Sashki Ch.5: The Harem

Chapter 5: The Harem



In one of the books that I had brought with me from Aki's library, I discovered that Washington was home to a large rainforest. I searched the maps and came across a Wildlife Reserve. I charted what I believed to be the fastest route, and I immediately regretted my hastiness in setting out on this adventure. It would take months for me to walk the entire way there.

  I was determined though, and stubborn as a spoiled child. Nothing would keep me from getting my answers. Nothing.

    So I walked. From dusk till dawn, night after night. I was very careful about how I fed, where I slept, and making sure I was undetected. Long before sunrise, I always found a remote location where I cold merge with the soil, and Bonnie could sleep close by. Everything seemed to be going well, and I thought we were making good time. I was hopeful that we would reach Seattle with no problem.

    But it was not to be.

    Somewhere in the middle of this adventure, in some God awful state with nothing but fields that stretched on and on as far as the eye could see, I met some pretty nasty characters.

    I had just awoken from a long sleep. I heard a muffled growling at my side. I became furious when I saw a  man lying on top of Bonnie, holding her mouth shut. He had grotesquely large muscles and a stupid grin on his face. He was not a vampire, but there was definitely something off about him.

    I cried out in primal rage, and catapulted myself toward the man. I swore I would tear him apart for daring to lay hands on one of nature's divine creatures, and my dearest companion. I was blind with anger.

    Suddenly, a pair of strong hands tipped with long,gnarled fingernails grabbed me from behind. I felt a blow to my head and everything went dark. I should have realized that it was a trap.

    When I regained consciousness, I was lying on a cold stone floor. My hands and feet were bound by heavy chains, and I saw Bonnie sitting across the room, in an iron cage. She was lying as still as a cadaver, but her abdomen rose and fell softly. I assumed she had been given some sort of sedative. My head was feeling pretty light as well.

    I heard laughter nearby. In my peripheral vision, I could see an open doorway. Just outside that doorway was another room, much larger than the one I was in, and filled with half naked women. They caressed and groomed each other like wild animals. I turned my head to get a better view.

    Sitting on a magnificent throne in the middle of the room was an incredibly handsome vampire. His hair was a rich chocolate brown, styled in a slick pompadour. He seemed rather fond of running his fingers through it. He had masculine, chiseled features and reminded me of a famous actor from my childhood.

    On either side of him stood two figures that I recognized. One was the large man I had seen lying on top of Bonnie. The other was a vampire, the ugliest I had ever seen. He had a long, pointed nose that ended in a curve and oddly made me think of Pinocchio and yellow, straw like hair. He had scars from head to toe, the kind of which I had only seen on burn victims. He had obviously survived one hell of a fire. His hands I knew, they were the ones that had put me here. I couldn't bare to look at him.

    My eyes traveled across the room where I noticed a frail looking woman with short black hair and caramel skin. She stared back at me, but looked away as our eyes met. She walked across the room and knelt at the feet of the handsome vampire. He looked down on her with approval as she handed him a dagger with a golden handle.

    With a flick of his wrist, he shooed her away, and the muscle man took her place. I was astonished as this large man got down on his hands and knees and opened his mouth eagerly. The vampire on the throne only smiled at him. Then the ugly vampire with the scars kicked the man between his ribs.

    “Address your Prince properly,” he said, the words rolling off his tongue with delight.

    The huge man bowed his bald head to the ground, and spoke in a surprisingly timid voice.

    “My Prince, most beautiful, most desirable one, have I pleased you? Am I worthy to drink from you?”

    “My dear Maverick, you have performed your duties magnificently tonight.”

    The Prince then took the dagger and, without even the slightest flinch, used the blade to make a large incision on his forearm. Maverick then closed his mouth around the incision and began to suck. It was a scene that made my stomach churn. I felt like things were only going to get worse.

    After five minutes or so of this disgusting show, the Prince called out to Jarrod, the ugly one. He delivered another kick to the man called Maverick, harder this time, enough to send him rolling onto his back.

    “That will be enough,” the Prince said, licking his wound.

    “Now, Jarrod, tell me about this new girl.”

    “Maverick spotted her trespassing into your territory. He recognized her as one of our kind, and he followed her long enough to figure out which direction she was heading. Then he came to me, a wise decision. It wasn't hard to find her. A feisty redhead with an albino coyote. Not many of those around here.” Jarrod chuckled low and hard. It made me cringe.

    “If I hadn't been there, she probably would have taken out old Maverick here. She's head over heels crazy about that ugly dog of hers.”

    Ugly indeed. Look who's talking, ash tray.

    It took all my restraint to keep from speaking those words out loud.

    “Quick tempered, is she? I like that. It has been a bit boring around here lately. Get one of the girls to fix her up and bring her to my chambers,” the Prince stood up and began to walk away. Then he slowly turned toward Jarrod, a wicked gleam in his eye.

    “And kill that dog.”

    I wanted to cry out in frustration, break the chains that held me. I would kill that arrogant Prince if it was the last thing that I did! I would kill them all!



    Jarrod approached the frail, dark haired woman and spoke to her, pointing in my direction. I closed my eyes and waited to act out my plan. I would pretend to be drowsy, but as soon as she unshackled me, I would unleash a hellish fury.

    Soon enough, the woman entered the room. She closed the door behind her and I heard a key being forced into a lock. When I didn't feel my chains being released, I opened my eyes in curiosity. The woman was stooped down in front of Bonnie's cage, unlocking it. I jumped to the conclusion that she was about to follow the Prince's abominable orders. I used all the strength in my body to try to break the chains that held me.

    The sound of the chains rattling startled the woman, and she turned to me and placed her finger to her lips. Her eyes were wide with fear, and she whispered to me.

    “I'm not going to harm her. Shh.”

    She then recovered a small vial of a brownish liquid from under a tile in the floor. She opened the vial and held it to Bonnie's nose. Her ears perked up immediately, followed by her head. She was slow and drowsy, but at least she was awake. She began to growl, but the woman calmed her with a swiftness that only I had ever been capable of.

    The woman then came to me and released my bonds. I thought about my plan, but I couldn't go through with it. There was a softness in this woman's face, and what she had done for Bonnie..I wanted to trust her. She seemed to have a plan of her own.

    An antique mahogany wardrobe stood next to the wall. She approached it and opened the two large doors that had been elaborately designed with engravings of flowers and birds. It was filled with lingerie of every size,style, and color. She slipped a small negligee of white lace from a hanger and handed it to me. I was reluctant to put it on but she gave me a reassuring nod.

    I dressed myself and she led me into the room full of women, Jarrod and Maverick seemed to be enjoying themselves, oblivious to our presence. We crossed the room and into a dark hallway. Candles lined the stone walls, casting eerie shadows. For a moment, I felt as if I were in a horror film. Nosferatu, perhaps. The feeling that she was leading me to my death came over me, but I forced myself to forsake that thought. I had made the decision to trust her, and I would stick to it.

    We turned a few corners, then she pushed me into a small,dark room and closed the door. I started to panic, but caught myself. I felt like such a fool! I had been tricked again. I was almost ready to give up and let the Prince take me. I would beg him to spare the life of Bonnie and pledge my lifelong loyalty to him. I was once again lost in despair.

    Then, as my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I noticed something small and white lying on the ground. A piece of paper, held in place by a dirty round stone. I picked the paper up and placed it in front of a tiny beam of light that penetrated through the rocks in the wall.

    It read:

At great risk to myself I have decided to save the life of you and your canine.

I have seen too much suffering under the hands of my Prince.

There is an abandoned farmhouse about a mile West of this place.

Head there immediately. I will meet you with your satchel and your dog.

Also..do not judge Jarrod too harshly. He is not what he seems.

    -Caroline Hernandez

P.S. Move The Rock

    I did not know what to make of this letter. I suspected I might be a pawn in someone's sadistic game, but  I considered my options; try to make a run for it, or take my chances here. I started this journey, knowing I would have challenges to face, but I was determined to see it through. I would have to go on, with or without Bonnie.

    I pondered the last words of the letter. Move The Rock. I thought it had some symbolic meaning, some puzzle I had to figure out. My eyes fell on that tiny beam of light I had found seconds earlier. I followed it to the source, a group of rocks loosely stacked together. I gently pushed on the rock wall and they all came tumbling down, letting the moonlight enter the room. Just enough space for me to crawl through. And I did just that. I fell out on to the cold grass, rose to my feet, and ran,ran, ran. I headed West, like the letter had said to do. I knew it could be a trap, but I would be prepared for it this time.

    In no time at all, I reached what I believed to be the farmhouse from the letter. I waited there for almost an hour, and was struggling with my thoughts of self preservation and my hope that I would get to see Bonnie again. Just as I was about to say a prayer for her, and be on my way, she came limping in to view. She was covered in blood, and had not made a full recovery from the sedatives. There was no one, human or vampire, anywhere to be seen.

    The thought crossed my mind that she was being used as bait, but I rushed to her aid nevertheless. I swept her weak body up into my arms. I expected someone to come flying out of the darkness at me, but still, there was no one. My leather satchel was hanging around her neck, also covered in blood. When I felt safe, I sat her down gently and opened it. Nothing was missing from  inside, including my clothing.

    I knew I did not have much time, but I quickly slipped off the negligee and put back on my normal clothing. Then I picked Bonnie back up, and started running again. I felt like I had been running since the day I was reborn.

    I kept thinking that someone should be chasing us, but I never sensed anyone. I didn't know if this was a good sign or a bad one. I knew the sun would be coming up soon, and I merged with the soil in a large corn field. The next evening, we still did not have any company. We continued our journey as we had before, but with heightened awareness.

    It did not take near as long as I had imagined it would to reach the Wildlife Reserve that I had marked on the map. I think I gained a lot of time by not eating for far too many days, and I was on the verge of insanity, starving. I fed like a Queen the night we reached the Reserve. I could finally rest. Except for the eyes that I could feel watching me every night. It was not the ones who had kidnapped me, but something more sinister. I decided to head toward the city of Seattle immediately. After all, it was nearby, and I had a mission to complete.

   

***This is the last chapter...unless I get requests for more