The Accidental Slave (Aya's story Part 1) (8 page)

In that moment a loud explosion from the outside
made the house shake and instinctively Jonul threw himself down on
the floor, covering his head. He stayed down for a few moments and
Aya could hear loud shouting and shooting in the streets. Jonul got
up with a growl and quickly started to dress himself. Aya couldn’t
hide a huge sigh of relief.

“Don’t look so disappointed, doll. I will be
right back to continue where we stopped.” He leaned down and got
close enough for his nose to touch hers. She tried to look away but
with his right hand he grabbed her chin and forced her to look at
him. “You will call me Master, do you understand?” he hissed.

The gunshots were getting louder. Instead of
waiting for her reply, Jonul ran out the door, leaving Aya
helplessly bound to his bed.

Aya couldn’t do anything but lie there waiting
and listening to the fighting in the streets, wondering, worrying,
and praying.

She prayed Jonul would be killed and never
return. But an inner voice worried that if he was the only person
who knew she was here and he didn’t come back she would die of
hunger and thirst, tied up and naked. The same voice told her that
if Jonul survived he would return and rape her today, tomorrow, and
every day after that. Both scenarios filled her with horror and she
sobbed and shivered with extreme fear.

The fighting went on for hours. To Aya the sound
of shouting and gunshots seemed to move farther and farther away.
She couldn’t tell what time it was. The windows were barricaded,
making it impossible to see if it was day or night.

Aya was thirsty, she needed to pee badly, and
her legs and arms hurt from being stretched so uncomfortably. This
day was the worst in her life, and she almost wished she would die
from dehydration because of all the tears she had cried. In the end
she eventually dozed off from her exhaustion.

Aya

Aya didn’t know what had woken her up – the pain
of her pressing bladder or the sound of footsteps on the stairs. At
first she held her breath, listening to the steps coming closer.
She could hear him just outside the bedroom door, and the closer
the footsteps came the more rigid her body got as she laid
helplessly stretched out and tied up on his bed.

Her terror sensitized her further to every
creaking floorboard and his rasped breathing. He had been running
and was out of breath, but Aya knew that wouldn’t be enough to keep
him from raping her.

He was by the door now; it was a matter of
seconds before he would bring her pure misery. Aya held her breath
and squeezed her eyes tight, like a small child hoping that the
monster in the shadows would go away if he couldn’t see or hear
her. But this monster wasn’t going away. The door creaked open,
making Aya turn her head away to avoid what was coming.

He didn’t speak but she could feel his presence
as he stood there observing her quietly.
What is he waiting
for?

Aya forced herself to turn and look.

It wasn’t Jonul staring back at her. It was the
man from the marketplace, and he just stood there with an
incredulous glance.

“Please don’t hurt me,” Aya sobbed and wished
she could dry away her tears and running nose.

He didn’t speak but blinked a few times before
he started walking towards the bed.

“Please don’t hurt me. Please don’t hurt me,”
Aya screamed.

The man narrowed his eyes as he reached the bed
and bent over her. The last thing Aya saw was his hands moving up,
and then she gave a high-pitched scream.

“Shut up,” he hissed and put a hand over her
mouth.

Aya’s nostrils were flaring, and her eyes were
wide open and looking straight into eyes that were almost black
now. His face was very close to hers and he looked intensely into
her wide-open eyes. “I won’t hurt you.”

Aya made a muffled sound under his hand.

The man started to untie her left arm and made a
frustrated growl. “I need both my hands to do this. You have to be
quiet… all right?“

Aya nodded eagerly.

He untied her left hand and then he looked at
her right hand. The bed was pressed against the wall and he would
have to climb across her to get to it. He turned his attention to
her feet instead and worked on them while Aya kept repeating “Thank
you!” in a low voice. Her tears of terror had changed into tears of
relief.

As soon as she had both legs and her right arm
free she got up in a sitting position and tried to untie her right
arm.

“I can’t get the knot undone,” Aya exclaimed in
frustration.

The young man climbed onto the bed and tried to
push her aside so he could work on the knot, but there was nowhere
for Aya to move. She looked up at him and saw him assess the
situation. He couldn’t avoid touching her naked body, but at this
point she didn’t care as long as he freed her from the gnawing rope
around her wrist. She didn’t know if he would understand English,
but she didn’t have the vocabulary to explain in Spiri. “Just do it
quickly. I’m about to pee in the bed or die with a ruptured
bladder.”

He nodded and eight seconds later she was
free.

Aya ran to the bathroom, and the release of her
bladder made her sigh.
How fundamental a joy,
she thought.
She flushed her mouth and washed her face to remove the smell of
Jonul’s genitals before she returned to the bedroom looking for her
clothes.

The man from the marketplace was still there and
as soon as he saw her enter he turned his back on her. It took Aya
by surprise. It was such a small gesture but at the same time
significant. He respected her privacy. Respected her. What a
difference from the violent and aggressive behavior of Jonul, who
hadn’t shown her any kindness or sympathy.

Aya dressed quickly and tried to make the
destroyed t-shirt cover her by tying it in front where Jonul had
torn it.

“You can turn now… what’s your name?” Aya asked,
feeling gratitude for the man.

“Kato,” he answered and turned to look at her
like he wanted to say something. But before he got to it, the sound
of heavy, dragging steps on the staircase made them both turn and
stare at the door.

Aya knew it was Jonul before she could see him.
She felt his dark, eerie energy and her body reacted with tension
right away. She stepped behind Kato hoping he would help her
against her tormenter. Kato took a step forward and had his eyes on
the door, where Jonul appeared with his face and hair smeared in
blood. He looked like he was ready to drop on the spot.

Kato reached Jonul before he fell, and pulled
him to the bed. Aya pressed herself against the wall to avoid any
contact with Jonul, and was relieved that he looked in no shape to
rape anyone.

“Jonul, can you hear me?” Kato called. “We need
to get you to the headquarters… you need the healer.”

Jonul had his eyes almost closed but reached up
and grabbed Kato’s wrist. “Let me sleep a few hours, then I’ll be
all right.”

“No, I think you need stitches,” Kato
insisted.

“You worry too much.”

“Come on, I’ll help you to the healer.” Kato
tried again and pulled Jonul up to a sitting position.

Jonul pushed Kato away and sneered. “I told you
to leave me alone.” And then he turned his head to look at Aya.
“You’re a nurse, so stitch me up, slave.”

Aya stood gaping, not able to respond.

“She doesn’t have needle and thread here,” Kato
pointed out.

Jonul pointed at Kato. “Get her what she needs
and makes sure she doesn’t run. She’s mine.” He sank back into the
bed and passed out.

Kato shot an uncomfortable glance at Aya. “Stay
here, I’ll go to healer and get what you need.” He left for the
door and then he turned. “Beside needle and thread, what else do
you need?”

Aya couldn’t think straight. She knew he was
referring to a medical kit, but all her brain was screaming was
I need to get out of here.

Aya

Kato brought back basic remedies from the
healer: needle, thread, a red fluid to disinfect the wound, some
healing balm, and gauze to wrap Jonul’s head with.

He handed it to Aya, who was now sitting in the
living room.

“I won’t do it,” she said and refused to take
the kit.

“I also brought you clean bandages for your burn
wound… here.”

Aya snapped them out of his hands. The last
thing she needed was an infected wound.

Kato held out the needle and thread again but
Aya raised her chin and looked away demonstratively.

“But he could die if you leave him like that.”
Kato’s voice was raised and his eyes blaming her.

“I want him to die. I hate him,” Aya sneered
back with anger sparking from her eyes.

Kato paced the floor and then he squatted down
in front of her. “Aya, listen to me.”

Aya looked up at him and saw his amber eyes
glowing with worry, but her brain was trying to catch up to the
fact that he had just spoken to her in flawless English.

“How do you know my name?” she said,
suspicious.

He frowned. “We found your passport,
remember?”

Aya nodded.
How could I forget that?
But
everything was blurry to her.

“Besides, your boyfriend called you Aya at the
marketplace.”

Aya didn’t care to correct his assumption that
Aston was her boyfriend, she was still entranced by the fact that
he suddenly spoke English. She was looking up at him from her
sitting position with her arms crossed and her eyebrows creased
together. “Who are you?”

“It doesn’t matter who I am. All that matters is
who you are.” He paused but didn’t break the deep eye contact with
her. “I know you are a good person, Aya. I saw it in your eyes the
first time you looked at me. You’re not someone who leaves a man to
die.” Kato’s voice was so different now. Calm and pleading, and
with the familiar melody of English making him seem more like a
friend than a Masi warrior.

Aya was relieved she could express herself more
freely in a language she was much more familiar with than
Spiri.

“I can’t touch him. I won’t!” She pressed her
lips into a hard line.

Kato’s head fell forward. “Please, Aya,” he
begged.

She snorted. “You want me to help him back to
strength so he can rape me?”

Kato ran a hand through his hair and then he
grabbed one of Aya’s hands and bent down in front of her. “Can you
at least tell me how to do it? That way you won’t touch him.”

Aya felt conflicted. She was seriously afraid of
Jonul, but Kato was right, he really needed stitches, and she did
pledge to help all in need of healing when she became a nurse.

Aya leaned forward so her nose almost touched
Kato’s and with gritted teeth she hissed, “If that monster wakes
tomorrow and rapes me, I will find you and kill you… do you
understand?”

Kato eyes widened and his mouth opened. He was
holding his breath and then he pulled back a little, closing his
eyes like he was restraining himself from saying or doing
anything.

“If I do this, you have to let me go.”

Kato shook his head and got back up to a
standing position in front of the chair Aya was sitting in. “I
can’t do that.”

“Why not?” Aya hissed.

“Because helping another man’s slave to escape
will get me killed… and even if I did help you, you wouldn’t get
far. The area is crawling with other warriors and they would catch
you and they would…” He didn’t finish his sentence but they both
knew what he was hinting at: rape, murder, and slavery.

Aya swallowed hard. “Then I want something
else.”

“What?” He said frustrated.

“Information. You will tell me everything I want
to know.”

Kato crossed his arms. “I’ll answer five
questions,” he said and there was a hint of a smile on his
face.

“Ten!” Aya pushed her jaw forward, signaling
that it was all or nothing.

“Okay, whatever, just get going before he bleeds
to death.”

“My first question is, what happened to
Aston?”

“I’ll tell you after you’ve helped me,” Kato
said, but Aya wouldn’t hear of it.

“You’ll tell me now!” she demanded.

Kato looked cross and snapped his answer at her:
“Your boyfriend is injured and in the infirmary with the
healer.”

Aya sighed with relief that Aston was still
alive. “Will he survive?”

“Is that question number two?” Kato asked and
looked annoyed.

“No! It’s still question one, and you better
stop with that attitude or you can find someone else to help
you.

“Yes, he’ll survive his injuries.”

Satisfied for now, Aya took the medical kit and
walked to the doorway of Jonul’s bedroom. She didn’t enter until
Kato did, and even then she kept her distance while guiding him
through the steps.

Kato couldn’t thread the needle, he was too
nervous; Aya took pity on him and did it.

“Can you hold him steady so he doesn’t move
while I stitch him together?” Kato asked.

“No, I told you, I won’t touch him,” she
growled.

Kato growled back, “So how do you suggest I keep
him still?”

“He looks still to me,” Aya pointed out.

“Yes, but that’s because I haven’t started yet.
What happens when he feels a needle going in and out of his
skin?”

Aya nodded to the rope on the bed. “You could
always tie him up.” Her voice was sardonic, and Kato ignored
her.

“How many stitches should I make?” Kato asked,
and Aya suspected he was dragging it out, hoping she would give in
and take over. Sewing someone for the first time was unpleasant for
most people.

She sighed. “The biggest cut is by his hairline,
so try to position yourself with your knees on each side of his
head. That way you’ll keep him steady. Cross his arms and restrain
them by pulling his t-shirt over his head. But you’ll need more
light to see clearly.”