* Notes: The freed slaves: Carol & Helene, leaders. Hilde, Gloria, Brigitta, Inge & Evita, the young girls. Clarence & Bernice, Tasha & Valencio, Emma, Jimmy, (from Enclosure 3.) Kaede, Connie & Mary, older ones. Tiffany, (admirer, Cramsie McGonnigal, or 'Cam.')
Disclaimer: Harry Potter & his world belongs to J. K. Rowling.
Note: Suitable only for adults. References to sex and descriptions of extreme cruelty.
Chapter 29:
Loch Lomand:
Cramsie McGonnigal was well out of the way when a large, fully made roof rose from the ground, and moved slowly over the barn. Four solid ladders stood at each corner, but at a respectful distance, three with one of the men on top, the fourth with Eva.
Eva called, "Lower now, slowly."
Bellamy watched carefully as he lowered the roof.
"Toward me a little," called Valencio, and the roof obeyed instructions. There was no wand raised, and an audience watched, though not including Dot and Michael, who were out with Carol and Helene, organising some banking business before the final takeover. There were more fine adjustments, until the steeply pitched roof slid gently into place.
It had yet to be made firm, as otherwise a strong wind might have it sailing off. The ladders were readjusted, now leaning against the roof, rather than freestanding, and the men, including Bellamy, climbed up on the roof.
"It makes me nervous watching them," said Emma to Connie.
It was almost noon, hot, and all the men worked shirtless. Jimmy was casual, although the others were more cautious as they moved about the roof, securing it very firmly.
"Nearly finished," remarked Clarence to Bellamy, seeing him pause in his work.
Valencio glanced over, and stopped work, his attention caught by something in John's posture.
John answered, "We'll be a bit late for lunch, though."
The answer was casual, and Valencio returned to his work. A moment later, there was a yell of alarm from Clarence as Bellamy slid down the slope of the roof, briefly checked at the edge as he scrabbled for a new hold, and then fell. Clarence ceased his rash run to help, and hurried to a ladder instead, still taking insufficient care. Jimmy, also, Valencio thought, was in too much of a hurry.
Bellamy fell, flat on his back, knocked out when the back of his head struck the ground. His right arm was outflung, palm up. There was a long shallow scratch, and his watch was missing. His left arm was bent, his hand near his face. Emma was almost instantly by his side, reaching for, and holding his right hand, while Eva ran to him and knelt by him as well.
Eva said calmly, "He's trembling, probably why he fell, but his breathing's fine. I think he's just knocked out," and she felt gently round the back of his head, her fingers coming away with a small amount of blood.
Emma clutched tightly to his hand. As if hypnotised, she stroked a ridged white scar that encircled his wrist, a scar that had always been hidden by his watch. Slowly she reached for his other hand and pulled off the watch. There was the same mark, though not as prominent. Somewhere, sometime, John had been tied by the wrists, and had fought desperately against the bonds, enough to cause injuries severe enough to make those scars.
Gently she put down both wrists, and put her own left hand to her right wrist. She bore no visible scars, but ever since, she'd thought there were scars. Bellamy blinked and opened his eyes, but lay unmoving, feeling the intensity with which Emma's eyes went slowly to his.
Connie came to Emma, and put an arm around her. "He's fine. He's awake, and not badly hurt."
Emma said in a high pitched voice, "She died, you see. I held her hand all night, and she held mine, but in the morning, she was looking at me, but she was dead."
Three evenings later, in the ballroom, Emma started to talk. "We were six, Laura and I. We did everything together, thought the same way, like we were the same person. Mum and Dad always dressed us differently, Laura always in reds, browns, yellows, me always in blues and greens. And when we were given toys, it was the same. Like, for instance, Laura would have a red car, and I would have a blue one. And my hair was long and in plaits, while Laura's was only shoulder length, and loose.
"I'm not sure how we came to be in the hands of the Khatabis. We called him Uncle Larbi, and we trusted him, and never wondered why we were not with our parents any more. He indulged us, took us shopping, spoiled us. We thought he was good and kind. Uncle Larbi, and we trusted him. He had my hair cut to look exactly like Laura's, and bought us new clothes, always exactly the same. We enjoyed the novelty. No-one could tell us apart any more, and when Uncle Larbi made my name appear on my arm, and Laura's on hers, we just thought it funny and clever.
"One day, he took us to a particular dress shop, and asked for special dresses. They had to be white, with lots of frills, and with a big billowing skirt part. One had to have a pale pink ribbon, one with a pale yellow one, but only that little bit of colour, otherwise pure white. Two sets, he asked for, and when they were made, he put one set away very carefully, and let us wear the other, because we thought we were so beautiful in our dresses. He had three other men travelling with him, and they would all make a fuss of us, though we didn't like the others like we adored our special Uncle Larbi. They gave us whatever we asked for, even if it was expensive.
"They took us to a fun fair one day. We wore bright yellow skirts, and frilly white tops, and identical, brand new, shiny black shoes. We went on lots of rides, and on one, Laura was sick, but Uncle Larbi just laughed, told us to shut our eyes, and suddenly the mess was gone, even the smell. When we asked what he'd done, he whispered to us like it was a delightful secret. Magic, he said, and laughed and winked.
"That evening, before going to bed, he had us stand in front of him and Uncle Mikhael. I remember our nighties. Bought just that day. Pretty pink, with frills. We adored new clothes, even when they were only nighties. But anyway, he told us we had to tightly close our eyes, as he had a surprise for us. So I tightly closed my eyes, and I assume Laura did, too. But then my tummy suddenly felt horrible, and I cried, and Laura cried, too, frightened, and not knowing what had happened. But Uncle Larbi soothed, and Uncle Mikhael handed us a teddy each, one with a pale pink ribbon around its neck, and one with a pale yellow one. They had little ribbons around their arms and legs, too. Anyway, we were consoled, and Uncle Larbi told us it was just a little magical spell, so that we wouldn't get sick.
"We went on an aeroplane the next day, and there were more men who looked a lot like Uncle Larbi and the others. I suppose there was a job they were doing in Canada, aside from us, and now it was finished. They spoke in a foreign language a lot of the time, but they looked at us a lot, and sometimes said how beautiful we were, and exactly the same. Uncle Larbi said it was a plane just for us, and for Khatabi family.
"It was a long way, but we were allowed to run around, and when we wanted to sleep, Uncle Larbi made us beds on the seats. We were small enough that we could fit in nicely. And then he patted our heads, gave us a kiss on the cheek, and told us sweet dreams, like always.
"When we arrived in Morocco, we were taken in a quiet gate and put in a little area, a bedroom, two other rooms, and with a fenced garden attached."
Valencio knew it, the small end enclosure, where there were toys for children, but not a thing that could be used as a weapon.
Emma continued, "There was some play equipment and lots of toys. Uncle Larbi said we were very good girls, and the next night, they would have a ceremony, and we could wear our special white dresses, and meet lots of friends. I remember Laura asking if we'd be going to school, as we were supposed to be learning to read. He said there would be school if we wanted, but we were such special little girls that we wouldn't have to if we didn't want to."
Emma smiled, very sadly. "We thought it was good to be special little girls."
Emma and Laura's story had to be the most tragic of all, and quite a few of the listeners had tears in their eyes. It was new to Jimmy, and he looked away, knowing what was coming, and wishing desperately that it would not happen like that.
Valencio had his head down, his eyes squeezed shut. She'd had a twin, who must have died. How could he stand hearing this? Little Emma, whom he'd always wanted to look after, and instead, she'd looked after him.
"The day of the ceremony was quiet, except that we had lots of visitors, and Uncle Larbi was very happy, because I think they were pleased with him. We were allowed to wear our spare dresses, the white ones with lots of frills, and Laura tore hers when she caught it on a seesaw. But Uncle Larbi said it didn't matter, because that evening, we'd wear the special ones he'd put away for us.
"It was time to get washed and dressed, and Uncle Larbi gave us new little pants, just ordinary little girl pants, plain white. And then he said we had to have special decorations for the ceremony, just like our teddies had, but ours had flowers on. They must have made them specially. Mine were pale pink and Laura's pale yellow, and like he said, they were decorated with pretty flowers, each of them with a silver ring as the centre. Wrists and ankles, like the teddies. We thought they were pretty. We liked them.
"He put on the white dresses for us, with all the frills, and the full skirt. We loved those dresses. They were the most fancy dresses we'd ever had. And we paraded in front of the big mirror, and believed him when he said he was so proud of us, because we were the best and most beautiful little girls he'd ever known.
"They had single beds, side by side. We were obedient, and lay down as instructed, and Uncle Larbi fussed over our clothes, smoothing down the dresses that went to our ankles. Our teddies were tucked next to us, but he wouldn't say why we had to lie down, and then he told us to hold hands if we wanted, so we did. I didn't even notice when he clipped the restraint on the wrist next to Laura, but I think Laura did. Uncle Mikhael was doing her, and she said, 'Uncle Larbi?' Just a bit anxious, still not frightened.
"Uncle Larbi was talking all the time, just moving around calmly, and so was Uncle Mikhael, and our other wrists and our ankles were restrained before we even tried to get away. We started grizzling a bit then, and Mikhael grinned, but Larbi just sat on the side of the bed, and stroked our cheeks, and reassured. Everything was all right. It was just a ceremony to welcome us."
Emma had her face bowed, and tears were on her cheeks. Carol got up and brought her back a glass of water. She should continue, no matter how difficult. She was no longer six, and her life was in front of her now.
Her voice was uneven, low, sometimes breaking, but Emma continued.
"He fussed over our clothes again, our long frilly white dresses covering our legs, and a teddy tucked next to each of us. Waved a wand, and I think that's when he made the numbers on our arms. Then two men came in. I think we'd seen them before, just a quick visit to our 'playroom.' They were smiling, and there was a quick conversation in Arabic. Uncle Larbi had told us it was Arabic, when they said things we didn't understand. For a few minutes they sat on the beds, and stroked our cheeks. The one on my bed - he said it was a lovely teddy, but he might put it to the side just for a few minutes. I guess it would have been in his way. Then he said to close my eyes very tight, and not open them until he said.
"I was beginning to be very frightened, and tried hard to pull away from the restraints. They might have been pretty pink with flowers, but they were still restraints. He said again just to close my eyes very tight, so I did. He lifted up my dress, caressed the little girl pants, and then they were suddenly no longer there. He said sternly, 'Keep your eyes shut,' and I was very frightened by then, and I did. I don't know if Laura was, but we were holding hands very tight.
"And he said, very softly, 'You can open your eyes now,' and I stared right up at him, and he had no clothes on, and he was lying over me. They must have had it planned, to do it at exactly the same moment, as Laura screamed just half an instant before me, and held my hand even tighter.
"After they finished, they swapped over, and when they were finished with us, two more came in. When I saw those scars on the wrists of John... Mine didn't scar, but I always thought they did."
She was caressing her wrists again. There were a few others, who also gently touched their own wrists. Many of them had known similar restraints, even if not pretty pink and yellow, with flowers.
"I think there were about nine or ten, but I wasn't counting, and then Uncle Larbi came back in. And we were crying, and complaining that they hurt us, and was the ceremony over, because we wanted to go home."
She was silent for a little. No-one interrupted. At last she gave a long, shuddering sigh.
"In all that time, it was the first time we'd thought of home and our parents. Anyway, Uncle Larbi soothed, and bathed our faces, and then he bathed between our legs where we were so sore. It was comforting - gentle cool water. But he wouldn't let us go. Just said that the ceremony wasn't quite finished yet, but that nothing else would hurt. It was just something necessary, and he'd lied a little in the beginning so we wouldn't be frightened. And he got some more cool water, and bathed me again. And then he adjusted the ankle straps so our legs were pulled a little wider, took off his robe, and he did it too. Then he moved over to Laura.
"When he was finished, he carefully arranged our white dresses back down over our wide apart legs, tucked the teddy bears close to our sides, and let Uncle Mikhael in, and the other two who'd been with us. He stayed a while, I think, and watched. More men, and more. I don't know how many. All the time, we held hands. Sometimes, they tried to do it together, a man on me, and a man on Laura, as if it was a novel new game.
"After a while, I stopped feeling it, and maybe I slept. There was a window above us, and when I woke, there was a light coming in. It was morning, and I looked at Laura, and she was awake, too, because her eyes were open, and looking at me. Except that it was not quite right, because she didn't move.
"No-one came for a long time. And then a young man, who looked terribly upset, and he undid the restraints from me, but had to work hard to make us stop holding hands. And he carried me to Enclosure 1 and gave me to Hilde."
Hilde remembered. Such a tiny mite, and so much blood. And she hadn't even known at the time there had been a twin sister.
Emma said, "I want to say some more, but I want to say it tomorrow."
Hilde said, tears on her face, and in her voice, "Tomorrow."
Hilde was the only one of all of them who had put on a little weight, and now she held out her arms to the six year old child in the body of the grown woman, and Emma sobbed in the arms of the round, comfortable woman, as she had never sobbed in all the intervening years. Laura, the other part of herself, gone these past twenty years. A victim of the Khatabis.
There were others crying. How could they? Little girls, who trusted their Uncle Larbi. Valencio's head was bowed over Tasha, held very tight in his arms. She was sobbing, remembering. The tiny child, held in the arms of young Abensur, who'd looked distraught. He didn't say there'd been another, and Emma... They'd found out about the twin sister a few days later, from Kofi-Zee. He hadn't been an enclosure guard then, though he would have been rostered on sometimes, of course, like they all were.
Kaede sighed. Little Emma. She hadn't said a word for weeks. How could they have taken children who were so small they couldn't even read yet? Kaede remembered several, little girls of seven and eight. Heartbroken children, frightened children. Seldom were they angry as the older ones became angry.
Valencio hadn't shown his anger, but a couple of months after he entered the enclosure, just when he appeared to be finally accepting the life, he'd very seriously tried to kill his owner. She looked over to him now, and breathed a sigh of relief. Emma and Hilde were with him. They might be able to calm him. He must not return to Morocco to try and avenge his friend.
They had hot, soothing drinks of hot chocolates that night, and there were hardly any of the chocolates left. The story of Emma and Laura had to be the most tragic of all.
**x**
The following morning, a line of ponies started along the Pamela Track. Emma, Clarence, Connie and Hilde. Emma said she felt just a little better now, and wanted to think about the memorial to her twin sister, who'd been like the other half of herself.
Cam was there again, coaching Ingrid, Eva and Lucy over jumps. Tiffany and Gloria were nearby, taking Patrick and Wentworth over much higher jumps.
Mary sat on a garden seat, quietly sketching. Emma had been the youngest victim they knew of, but how many others had she seen? But many of the ones who liked children had been killed after Emma and Laura. Her picture took shape. Demi, as she remembered her. Eight, and she'd lasted four months. She'd never known what had happened, as the children usually died either the first night, or not at all. Just that she hadn't come back from her appointment with Ahjmed. Quang had threatened punishment when they asked, and they never found out whether she'd been disobedient, or just died of cruelty.
Everyone was very subdued today, and no-one was bothering being rude and angry to Bellamy, as they had mostly been in the past few days.
In the ballroom, Michael, Dot and Bellamy excluded as always, there was the solemn gathering. Emma's story. Hilde brought Emma a large mug of hot chocolate, and asked if she could tell them a bit about just after. Emma nodded. She wasn't sure she was going to be able to say anything more, and yet she felt as if a sore inside her was just a little easier.
Hilde started. "I was leader in Enclosure 1 at the time, and Abensur was about seventeen, and had only started work as an enclosure guard a few weeks before. He brought Emma to me, and Therese and I washed her, and tried to coax her to have something to eat, or at least to drink. But she wouldn't talk and wouldn't eat. We didn't know about Laura then, but we were accustomed to trying to look after raped children.
"No-one came to the enclosure for any of us that night, no appointments, no line-ups. We didn't know what was happening for a few days, and none of the guards would talk. Then Kofi-Zee came for Veronica. She was his favourite, except, of course, that he was only Khatabi-Richi, so he couldn't claim exclusive rights. But he talked, and Veronica found out that young Abensur had been whipped because he'd been insolent to a Khatabi, much more severely whipped than usual, and was quite badly hurt. Also two Khatabis were dead, the ones who had asked for girl twins. It was the first we knew that Emma had been one of twins. We were very quiet for a few days, and we began to think they were keeping away, maybe even ashamed.
"After a week or so, a few started coming back for their favourites, and we learned more. There had been a lot of duelling, and several more wizards were killed, Khatabi and Khatabi-Richi. Kuwaja was killed, also Kuntoro. Abimael lost his leg, and became a gardener instead of a fighter, but we heard he killed Mikhael. Larbi and quite a few others, decided to transfer to Japan, and a few from Japan came to Morocco. By the end, there was hardly a one that had been involved in it, that was left in Morocco. So it seems they did have some conscience, or shame, some of them.
"Abensur came back on duty, but no-one, of course, was willing to risk punishment by asking why he was whipped, or even showing that we knew he'd been whipped.
"After a month, Nusa'pei said that Emma had to line up with the rest of us, when someone wanted to choose. I objected, saying she was just a small child! But he looked a bit grim, and said that she was here to do a job, the same as the rest of us. So Emma lined up, and I was very grateful that no-one asked for her."
Emma said, "It was over a year before someone asked for me."
Hilde said, "I was very worried by then. She was too young to go into Enclosure 2, and no-one asked for her. When Abensur said I was to give her a Calming Potion before use, I was sure they were going to kill her, as useless to them, but he insisted it was not that. I didn't know whether to give it to her, or not."
Emma said, "I'll finish it."
Hilde nodded, and looked down.
"It was Abensur, and I refused the potion, even when Hilde said I should take it. Maybe I sensed her hesitation. I ran away and hid. Valencio was hiding, too, but he let me share. But with the bedrooms locked, there were no good places to hide, and we were found quickly. Abensur put me under a calming spell, that didn't seem to work very well, and then the Snail Spell, and then he picked me up, and took me to the working bedroom. But then he was a long time, just holding me in his arms, and speaking softly. But Uncle Larbi spoke softly, and I was terrified.
"I guess he gave up. He took some potion himself, and then he undressed me, and lay on the bed with me, just stroking and waiting. I was still under the Snail Spell, and then he used some cold lotion, and had sex with me just as gently as he could. It still hurt, because I was only a little girl, still. But then he just cradled me a while, and said that was all it was, usually, and there would never, ever be a whole lot of men like there was that first night. Just one, now and then, and I had to get used to it, because it was my job. He told me he'd come for me again in a couple of nights, and he did. And again, he took a potion himself, and was very, very gentle."
Veronica said suddenly, harshly, "I always hated him for doing that to little Emma. She was such a little, frightened thing, and he never normally went for the young ones."
Hilde said, "I think he was trying to save her life. If no-one asked for her, there would be no reason to keep her. I was relieved that someone was using her. It meant that they wouldn't kill her."
Emma said softly, "I think you're right. He always had a potion himself, as if he just wouldn't be able to do it if he didn't. And after a while, he often just asked for me, lay with me a while, and sent me back, but he told me not to tell anyone he didn't have sex with me. He did it now and again, I think it was so I wouldn't get too frightened again. Then there was a friend of his, and he didn't always do it, either. Then there gradually started to be a few more, but I was never popular, except for when strangers came. Mostly they just acted as if they didn't see me. Yiko had me as Favourite for a while, and that was good, because he only used me maybe once a week, but I was protected."
Hilde said, "After you, I don't think there was anyone come in under the age of twelve. I think the story got to the women, maybe because of all the fighting afterwards. Maybe Riza gave orders."
Margaret said, "When I was taken, it was from a gym class, and many of us looked younger than our ages. And he asked, 'Are you ten, eleven?' And the others all gave their ages - nine, ten, eleven, and he came to me, and I said proudly, "I was twelve last week!" So he took me."
But Margaret had already told her story, and only went to the cupboard and got out the chocolates to hand around.
***chapter end***
