The Pirate Slave

The Captive

Nadine peeked outside from behind the dusty curtain of the hut. The sun was starting to set, but Daryn had not come to get her. She wondered if the pirate crews were allowed to go out for a long time, when they had a ship take care of. She tried to think positively. If she needed to spend the night in this hut then so be it.

She heard noises outside the door. Thinking it must have been Daryn coming to get her, she pulled herself up and ready to go. The door crashed open and several big, evil-looking men stepped into the room. Nadine paled. Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead and her chest-bind seemed to feel tighter along with the quickening beatings of her heart.

One of the large men towered over her.  She tried to stand as tall as she was able to. But still the man was at least two heads taller than her. She had to look way up to see his face.

"You're trespassing. This is a private property," he said gruffly.

Nadine tried to control her rising panic and attempted to talk her way out. "I'm so... sorry. I didn't know that. I thought it was just an empty deserted hut. I just needed a little time to rest. And I'll be on my way now." She made a move to the side and about to head to the door when he also stepped to the side blocking her exit.

"No!" The big man barked. He extended a burly arm and caught Nadine's wrist. Nadine was taken by surprise and instinctively tried to pull her arm from his grasp, but it was such an iron grip she could not move a muscle. She could only yelp in pain and anger.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Nadine was so angry a drop of tear rolled on her cheek. She pulled herself away and kicked the man on the shin but he seemed to be made of a pile of rocks. He laughed wickedly and suddenly slapped her so hard that sent her flying to the other side of the room.

Just as she was shaking off the darkness and the little stars surrounding his head, she felt her wrists being tied together at her back. She decided to plead to the leader.

"Sir, please let me go. I'm owned. I belong to Marla. You must know who she is. She won't be pleased to know you've taken me against her will."

"Silence, boy. I have orders from my Master to catch every thieves and trespassers in his properties."

"But I haven't stolen anything! A friend brought me here just this afternoon and he will come very soon to pick me up. You can ask h...."

Before she finished her sentence, a piece of rough cloth was tied around her open mouth, gagging her completely. Then she was hauled onto her feet and pushed to the door.

"Shut up and start walking. Or I'll drag you by your hair all the way."

Terrified, she started to follow the leader closely guarded by the another man who held a dagger whose the tip dangerously touching her back. They seemed to be walking endlesly, through many packed stalls in the market, going in and out strange alleys. Until they came to a big wooden door which the leader unlocked and led everyone inside.

Nadine looked around trying to find a way to escape, but a sharp jab at her back from the dagger forced her to enter the house. They went down a spiralled stairs until she was pushed inside a small room and left alone. She tried the door, but it was locked. Screaming and banging at the door would not get her anywhere, so she chose to sit and wait.

It was not long until two of the men who took her came back with a bucket of water and some old rough-looking towels. She expected the men to leave after putting the bucket on the floor and the towels on a nearby chair, but no. Instead they came to her with a wicked familiar glint on their eyes.

Nadine swallowed and pulled herself up as tall as she could in hope of showing some courage, even when she was shaking terribly inside. Looking straight to the men, she said in her best authoritative voice, "Thank you for the water, gentlemen. You can trust me to do the washing myself."

The two men looked at each other and cracked up the most irritating laughs Nadine had ever heard in her life. One of them came closer, grabbed her arm roughly and looked at his friend with a mocking laugh.

"You listen to the boy, Core. He commands us to leave him alone to wash!!" They bursted out laughing again. "Well, you're half right, pretty boy. We WILL leave you alone to wash. But after we have fun with you!"

Nadine struggled to free her arm from his iron grip. She kicked out but missed. Using her free hand, she aimed to poke his eyes, but she was not fast enough. The other man saw what she was about to do, took a step forward and caught her wrist in mid air.

The first man wrapped his fingers around Nadine's throat and started applying pressure. She panicked. She was not prepared for that. Her body tensed, her throat constricted in protest of what was being done to it. she knew she was loosing the battle as less and less air coming into her lungs. Then the hand around her neck loosened up a little and let a small amount of air passed into her respiratory system. Instinctively, she gasped to inhale as much air as she could to compensate for her lack of breathing earlier. 

The whole situation caught her off guard. Still shocked at the sudden intake of  air, the first man released his hand completely and pushed her away, grabbing her head wrapping as he did. Nadine toppled backwards and hit floor, her rag on the man's hand and her long hair tumbled around her head in disarray.

"WHAT THE...?" Both men exclaimed in utter shock. For a moment they looked stunned and looked at her as if she grew a third arm or a horn on her head. They looked at each other in disbelief. The second man grabbed her shirt, yanked it open and pulled on her chest binding. Nadine's breasts which finally found their freedom after being confined for so many days seemed to pop out of place. Her short breath caused them to bounce up and down invitingly. But the two men, who she suspected preferred boys to girls, ignored it.

The men took several steps back. "The Master must be notified immediately! Either we took the wrong one, or indeed she is who he intended to have all along. But man, he's in for a surprise!" one them said to the other. He turned to Nadine and said, "You're safe from us for now, little girl. Consider yourself lucky. I don't know what game you're playing, but I have a feeling you're going to regret it." Both men laughed and left the room.

Nadine sat weakly on the floor clutching the remains of her torn shirt, trying to create some semblance of modesty. She really did not know what to expect now. Everything happened so fast. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind.  It had been a long and harsh journey for her, but she was not ready to give up. She would fight for her life and safety even if it cost her everything.