the men relax

The camp was quite small, & busy. Two caravans had stopped here for a couple of days. The growing gloom was lit by camp fires & lamps in tents. Children were running around playing, in and out of a small pool, men were swimming in the pool, talking & playing with the children. At the other end of the pool some women were busy scrubbing clothes. He dismounted a couple of men greeted him warmly. One of the men summoned some older boys who were instructed to unload & water his mules.
He lifted her down from the mule & stripped the chador from her, the men looked at her quite candidly while they chatted, not particularly interested in her at the moment, she looked down. He unbound her ankles & wrists, she glanced up briefly, thankful & uncertain. He caught her eyes in his, frightened she quickly looked down.
The men stopped a girl who was struggling past yoked with two very large buckets of water. Karen couldn’t understand a word they were saying but the tone & body language was evocative. The men gave the girl curt instructions, dismissively, her responses were very respectful & obsequious. The girl led Karen away towards the cooking area. Her captor went for a swim in the pool.
The kitchen tent was quite hot & humid, its flaps down to keep flies off the food. There were several women working preparing food, they were scantily dressed, some wore bikini sets, others harem pantaloons, others simple slips. Some had their breasts bare others not. All the women wore tiny silk mouth veils, & all the women wore steel collars. Some were wives, but most were merely slaves, the wives seemed to be permitted more clothing, & generally were in charge.
Karen wasn’t given any time for reflection one of the wives came up to talk to her. She was friendly, but obviously expected the naked newcomer to obey her. Karen looked at her blankly. When it finally dawned on the woman that Karen couldn’t understand a word she was saying, Karen was given a small peeling knife & put in front of a large pile of vegetables. Tired, confused, numbly she started peeling, rather than face a confrontation, especially one complicated by the language barrier. The woman patted her head sympathetically, she had seen lots of new slavegirls. It takes them a little while to settle in. Karen looked up gratefully in tears, for the first kindness she had been shown, for the first acknowledgement of her. The woman wiped her tears away with her hair, helping her brush it back behind her ears. Whilst gently directing Karen’s attention to the peeling. She continued stroking her hair gently. Enjoying the soft feel, the novelty of her blonde hair, not so very uncommon, but not everyday here.
Meat & vegetables were being roasted, bread & sweet pastries baked. After two hours the meal was prepared, Karen & the girl who had brought her to the cooking tent were sent to fetch more water. Karen's knees nearly buckling under the heavy yoke, taking her cue from her companion & the proximity of the men, both girls fetched quickly & without complaint. After the prepared food was taken into the main tent for the seated men all the cooking implements were scrubbed spotlessly clean by the slaves, wives departed to take care of younger children.
Kneeling in the kitchen, the delicious aroma of the cooked food, lingering in the air Karen & the other girls were each given a small bowl of plain rice. They ate with their fingers, slaves in the north would be grateful for that privilege. They were also permitted a small bowl of water each.
Then they were taken back to the slave area, comprising of a couple of shaded wooden cages that were locked at night and some slave paraphernalia, a whipping post, some stocks etc. The girls were permitted to toilet in a bucket, then wash & clean their clothes & themselves. One of the slaves knelt with Karen & began to smear a thick gooey paste all over her body, pressing a friendly finger to Karen's lips to silence her murmured protestations. The paste was washed off & Karen's body had been completely depilated. Then she was bathed with slave soap, the wives use it too here. A thick scented oily bar, that cleansed & moisturized her skin completely. She felt like she had been saturated with baby oil, yet her skin was dry to the touch but incredibly smooth & soft. Such a strange, very tactile & vulnerable sensation. She then helped Karen wash & brush her hair, chattering & giggling inanities at her, ignoring the language barrier. Karen started crying, the slaves rushed to comfort her. Their frank kindness made her feel worse, more alone & alienated.
From the main tent there was music & laughter, loud male voices, sounds of enjoyment. Karen knelt with the slaves waiting.
After a short while Some of the girls were summoned to the main tent, Karen still nude was led there too. Her companion, or captor was sitting talking to the two men who had greeted him.
Karen was knelt down near her captor, or more factually knelt beside his chair facing the tent wall behind him. Occasionally she furtively sneaked a glimpse of the goings on behind her.
He watched her do this a couple of times then snapped his fingers loudly pointing to the tent wall. She shifted uneasily & reddened. He smiled as he heard a tiny cry of frustration from her, how pleasant they are to tease.
He left her waiting while he and his companions ate.
She didn’t turn again.