Chapter Seven
I was extremely embarrassed to walk into my bedchamber and find Marcus, the slave who had escorted me home from the auction, waiting to see me. I instantly looked around for something to cover my bare body with as I noticed his beady eyes staring at my breasts and exposed slit. Hurriedly pulling a thin cotton shift over my head, I listened with half an ear as he informed me that he had been sent by Mistress Breanna.
"Apparently, you need some exercise and fresh air so I am to take you outside and look after you! She wouldn't like her pet bitch to get lost!" he sneered, beckoning me to follow as he strode out of the door. I made him wait as I located a pair of sandals and slipped them onto my bare feet then I walked after him, eager to escape the cloying atmosphere of the villa and get some fresh air.
Although it was not that fresh as I discovered when we ventured out. The noxious smells and dubious aromas of city life wafted up to my nostrils from the sewers and gutters as Marcus led me along a narrow street that wound sinuously down the hillside until it opened out into a small park.
"Here we are, slave bitch. I am going to make myself comfortable on this bench while you go and get your exercise," remarked Marcus, parking himself comfortably on the padded seat and rummaging in his pocket until he found a sliver of spice weed. He popped the piece into his mouth and his eyes instantly glazed over as the potent drug took hold of his system. Where had he got that from? It was rare and expensive as most illegal things are so how could a humble house slave manage to acquire some?
I wandered slowly away from his comfortable figure, kicking off my sandals so that I could enjoy the feeling of real grass under my feet, mind still wondering where he had acquired the drug. The sun was scorching as usual and I felt hot even in my thin shift so I headed for the stunted palm trees that promised to provide a little shade from the harsh rays. It would be a great relief to slip into the cooler darkness, I decided, shading my eyes from the sun with one hand as I walked across the grass but I was still a few yards away when, to my utter surprise, I was knocked violently over. I hit the ground face first and the breath whooshed out of me as someone landed heavily on my back. Within a second or so, my arms had been twisted behind my back and bound with something flexible and strong and then I was manhandled back up to my feet and I went cold as I found myself staring into the chilly blue eyes of Megan, Senator Troy's daughter. Flanked by two bodyguards, one of whom had obviously tackled me judging from the grass stains on his clothes, she stood there, mouth turned up in a sneer for a moment before she stepped closer and remarked sarcastically, "How nice to see my old school friend once more!"
I ignored her, trying to twist my wrists out of the bonds but they proved to be too tight. Moving even closer until her face filled my vision, Megan's sapphire eyes narrowed then her hand shot out and slapped me hard across the face.
"It's extremely rude not to speak to your betters when they condescend to speak to you, Alana...or should I call you slave girl instead?" she hissed as her two guards grabbed my shoulders and started to hustle me back towards the bench where Marcus sat. For the briefest of moments, I thought that he would do something spectacular and rescue me but all he did was to stare vacantly, mind still addled from the drug he had taken.
"Here's the rest of your fee, slave boy!" snapped Megan, dropping a little pouch on his lap. "Gentlemen, rough him up a bit and make it look good!"
Realising that I had been sold down the river and that Marcus had inveigled me outside under false pretences, I tensed up and sprang forward, trying to escape, as the two bodyguards released me and prepared to thump him. Megan must have been ready for such an action because she simply stuck out her foot and tripped me, laughing with delight as I tumbled over and hit the ground again with a thud. She dropped down and put her knee into my back, pinioning me effectively and pushing my face into the earth as I tried to scream for help. Above me, I could hear the blows landing and I prayed that the two guards would go too far and permanently damage Marcus' traitorous body. In fact, I wished that it was me there thumping the living daylights out of him especially when Megan bent down and started whispering in my ear, explaining how she was going to enjoy having fun with me when she got me back to her house.
"Going to stripe this pretty skin of yours first, I think, before I start on those tits. I wonder how long before I have you screaming?" she murmured, almost kissing my ear as the words spilt from her lips. She chuckled like a witch before pulling me up onto my feet by my hair as the bodyguards gave Marcus a couple of kicks in the ribs as he toppled off the bench and lay on the ground where I had just been.
I opened my mouth to scream but Megan punched me hard in the stomach and I doubled over, trying hard not to retch.
"Get her moving, you two, and thump her again if she tries to shout. Cut down the back alley over there and store her safely in my playroom for me. I'll be along in an hour or so," Megan stated before she turned her back and walked away, hips swaying sensually under her thin silken gown. Turning when she was about ten yards away, she added censoriously, "And no harming her in any way! That's my pleasant evening's entertainment!"
Dragged along despite trying to resist, I fought back my fear as the dark alleyway closed in around us. Desperately, I looked around for anyone who might help me but the narrow lane was empty apart from a single hunched over beggar lying on a crumpled box. One of the guards kicked him out of the way and they hustled me past, almost lifting my feet off the floor. I kicked out savagely and caught one on the side of his leg but the only response apart from a grunt was his fist driving painfully into my stomach. Gasping for air, I felt all resistance drain out of me like water down a plughole as my two guards hurried me along, darting down the twisting alleys until we finally emerged onto one of the city's most prestigious streets just opposite Senator Troy's imposing mansion. This was my chance, I thought as I saw some people strolling along but, before I could summon up enough oxygen to shout for help, one of the guards thumped me again before the other pulled a hessian sack out of the back of his tunic and dropped it over my head. They pulled it down further until I was totally covered then I was hoisted over a broad back and carried along as if I was a sack of potatoes being delivered to the kitchen.
I was uncovered once we had slipped inside Senator Troy's house, shift riding up high and exposing my thighs and bottom cheeks as one of the guards lifted the sack off.
"Pity that the mistress won't allow us any fun with this one, Darius," commented the larger of the guards. "Look at the arse on her!"
"Bet her pussy is tight too!" replied Darius and I shivered, mouth going as dry as dust as fear flickered through my brain.
"Quite likely but the mistress will cut our cocks off if we disobey her!"
"True enough, Lucius. Come on, let's get her down to the cellar and leave her there for Miss Troy to have some fun later," responded Darius, pulling me along by the elbow.
"I'll pay you!" I spat out abruptly, desperately thinking of a way to escape from Megan's clutches.
"With what?" asked Lucius. "You're a slave so you haven't got any money!"
"My mistress, Senator Breanna, will pay to get me back!"
"Don't waste your breath, girl. Miss Troy will carve us up into little pieces if we lose you!" snarled Darius, pushing me hard in the back towards a narrow flight of steps that led downwards.
Shivering in fear, I traipsed down the steps with my two guards shoving me along every time that I hesitated. The light dimmed and it was nearly dark by the time we got to the bottom of the flight of steps but an automatic light flashed on and lit a long passageway with doors leading off on either side. It must have been a storage cellar at one time, I thought as I was pushed down the corridor until we arrived at the very end where a solid wooden door faced me. Darius leaned round my body and opened the door then shoved me inside. Both guards followed me through the doorway as the light inside the room clicked on and showed me the interior of what Megan earlier had called her playroom. My body trembled even more as my eyes took in the collection of apparatus arrayed before me. Some like the pillory and stocks were obvious but others baffled me as to their purpose though I did know immediately that I did not want to find it out! There was nothing that I could do though as the guards pulled me over to a flat bench then tied me down onto it, leaving me staring up at the ceiling and fighting back the tears.
"Still seems a shame, Lucius," muttered Darius.
