Blonde Needles in a Giant Haystack 17

The trip went over sand, so their soles didn’t get hurt by thorns or rocks, and the horse kept a slow pace of not more than three miles an hour. And yet, both Babette and Dalanda felt like hell had just begun.

The Phantom had removed the cuff connecting their ankles, but left their wrists tied, and they were once again gagged with their panties, Dalanda again chewing on two pairs whilst Babette’s mouth was stuffed with the Black’s. The cloths they had used to cover their bareness, the man had used to secure their gags, and each girl sported a rope tied around her waist and then threaded through between her legs. The ends of these crotch ropes were fastened to the Phantom’s saddle, forcing them to stagger after him, or suffer the consequences. Each slowing down, each attempt to pull on the bonds had immediate painful consequences on their soft flesh, and so, the exhausted girls tried to keep up with their captor, though their lungs burned and their legs were aflame.

The trip stopped when the sun had risen, but the temperature still was tolerable. Both girls sank to the ground, and they needed some time to realize they had stopped at a well, little more than a hole in the ground, covered by a wooden board. In front of it was a horizontal bar on two posts to rein horses or camels, and a bucket was dangling from a tripod.

The man pulled up one bucket of water for his horse to quench its thirst, and whilst the animal drank, he looked at the two girls lying in the sand, still panting, and their nude bodies covered with sweat and sand.

»Soon, you’ll get some water, too – but let’s not forget about hierarchies!«

He allowed them to ungag themselves, and whilst they greedily drank their share of water, the Phantom unloaded a bulky package from his saddle. He draped the blanket in a way the girls could not see what items he was preparing, but the look in his eyes told them he was planning something devious.

For starters, he made them stand side by side, their cuffed hands on their heads, and their legs spread. The position wasn’t strenuous, and at least Babette had gotten used to being exposed to his eyes. The Phantom just watched the sweat on their bodies dry; then, he produced what looked like a soft brush and handed it to Dalanda.

»I am sure you want to get the sand off your skin – but in the desert, we mustn’t waste water! So, please, help your blonde friend!«

Reluctantly, Dalanda brushed the sand off Babette’s body, and still, the blonde couldn’t see the torture in the treatment. The bristles were soft enough not to hurt, and getting the dirt off wasn’t a bad thing either. So, why was Dalanda looking as if she was anticipating something terrible?

Babette got the answer when it was her turn to brush over the Black’s body: Dalanda twitched when she touched her sides. With a mixture of pity and involuntary amusement, Babette asked:

»Ticklish?«

Dalanda nodded, lowering her head as if she had confessed a sin. Babette tried not to tease her nerves too much, but Dalanda could not help spasming and uttering faint squeals. When the procedure was over, they saw the phantom had cut a few lengths of cord.

»You have to admit that trying to escape is a punishable sin!«

On Omar’s order, the girls stepped through their handcuffs, getting their wrists to their backs again. Their chests heaved, as now, their nude fronts were exposed to whatever the man had in mind. The Phantom seemed to ponder before he pointed at the horizontal bar, telling Babette to stand close to it. The bar reached to the top of her thighs, but when the man forced her legs apart and tied her ankles off to the posts, the bar pressed against her lower abdomen. When Babette ached, the man acted as if she had reminded him of something, and he grabbed one of the panties that had gagged Dalanda. The damp wad was crammed into the girl’s mouth and secured by a tight cleave gag. When he approached Dalanda with the second pair and another scarf, the girl pleaded in Arabic:

»Please, don’t hurt us – at least, do not hurt her! You don’t have any issues with Babette, it’s just about me!«

Omar looked at her, and Dalanda forced herself to not lower her head. His expression softened, and his rough hand brushed over her cheek. It was a gentle gesture, and it made her shiver with fear.

»Babette ran away from the Sheikh, and he’s quite angry! However, I could be persuaded not to lay hands on either you or her – if you manage to persuade me!«

Dalanda gulped. Though being still a virgin, she hadn’t grown up under a rock, and so, she knew what kind of »persuasion« Omar had in mind. She felt his eyes on her breasts, and she had to oppress her urge to pull her knees up to have a little cover.

»Wha-what do you mean?«, she croaked, just to buy a few seconds. The Phantom smiled enigmatically.

»Well, my offer is clear: if you offer something that sounds promising enough, my hands won’t hurt you! To make one thing clear – I will still deliver Babette to the Sheikh, and get you back to Mauritania. But take my word that if you make an offer I can’t refuse, neither you nor Babette will cry with pain! Or rather moan, for I will soon have to gag you again!«

Dalanda frowned. Somehow, Omar seemed to circumnavigate something in his words. However, she had no choice than to at least try to get a little ease. She looked at Babette, standing with her legs spread, already sweating in the rising sun.

»You also will take care she doesn’t get burnt by the sun?«

The Phantom smiled.

»This, I will do without extra payment! Sheikh Mansur would be upset if he sent me out for a blonde and I came back with a lobster!«

He chuckled over his own joke, and Dalanda desperately thought of how she could persuade him. There was an obvious answer, but though she knew that this would be her fate anyway as soon as she was back on the plantation, she just couldn’t do it.

»I-I could kiss you!«

The Phantom’s hand brushed through her curls, grabbed her scalp firmly, but not in a brutal way. With a grin, he asked:

»Where would you kiss me?«

Dalanda felt a wave of nausea, but she fought down her gagging reflex. It would be horrible – but after having been gagged with other women’s used panties, it couldn’t be that worse, and perhaps, even if it would be the last thing she would do, it would allow her to exact some revenge.

»E-everywhere!«

He pulled her up, brought her face close to his crotch. It was covered by his trousers and the djellaba, but when he pushed her against his manhood, she could feel a slight warmth and that he was not indifferent to her presence. Dalanda wanted to scream, but instead, she placed a kiss on his crotch. The phantom released her hair, and the girl sank back.

»Granted! And if you be a good girl and do what I say, I will not even insist that you – perform right now, but will give you another 24 hours until I demand my reward!«

Dalanda’s chest heaved. She knew that it was just prolonging her ordeal, but she felt relief for the delay. Deliberately, she let him gag her with the panties and the scarf, for this seemed to underline he wasn’t expecting her to go down on him immediately.

Omar tied her legs at the ankles and above and below the knees. Then, he assisted her in getting up and held her upper arm whilst Dalanda swayed, trying to cope with her ties getting tighter as she tensed her leg muscles.

»Hop over to Babette!«

It was just a few yards, but Dalanda not only had to concentrate hard not to stagger, she also knew how much this caused her ample boobs to bounce. When she was standing in front of the blonde, panting and shaking, Omar made her kneel, and now, only the wooden bar separated her face from Babette’s exposed crotch.

Omar had cut another piece of rope, a thinner one this time. He doubled it and slung it around Babette’s waist and between her leg, producing a crotch rope that was quite loose, as the ends were dangling down her front. As if to literally stick to his word, he had tried to touch the girl as little as possible when applying the rope. He took the loose ends between two fingers and looked at Dalanda.

»Sit down on your but, your legs stretched out!«

When Dalanda had followed that order, he added:

»Raise your legs!«

Both girls mewed, knowing what he had in mind. The Phantom focussed Dalanda, and his free hand patted the handle of his dagger.

»Remember we have a deal, Dalanda!«

The black whimpered, but then, she slowly rose her bound legs, until her toes were close to Babette’s labia. The Phantom slung the rope ends around her big toes, and the girl shivered and mewed as this tickled her.

He tied her big toes together with the ropes, and when he let her go, Dalanda’s feet followed gravity, causing Babette to rear up and scream into her gag as the thin cord bit into her pubic mound. Dalanda forced herself to raise her legs a little, taking the tension from the crotch rope.

Whilst the girls were trying to cope with the arrangement, the Phantom took a small clay bowl and mixed a liquid with some white powder. Stepping behind Babette, he showed the bowl to the girls.

»This is nothing dangerous, just some olive oil mixed with salt – though it’s maybe a bit too salty to enjoy dipping your bread in it!«

He greased Babette’s buttocks with the oil, and though his fingers groping her felt cringy, he didn’t hurt her, and the oil also didn’t feel worse than a cream. What felt worse, though, were Dalanda’s struggles as he massaged the rest of the salty oil on her exposed soles and between her toes, causing her to twitch and wriggle, thus pulling on Babette’s crotch rope.

»Did you know that some animals, including horses, need some salt as much as we do? Luckily, they usually enjoy the taste!«

He unreined his horse and led it closer, and Babette heard a snort. Then, something soft pushed against her butt, and since the Phantom had stepped to their side, she knew it was the horse’s nostrils.

Knowing the animal would soon feel thirsty, the Phantom filled another bucket with water, listening to the delightful mews as the horse licked over Babette’s backside with its rough tongue and even nibbled a bit on her buttocks to get all of the delicious salt from her skin. It was a humiliating procedure, but it was just the prelude of the real show, and the Phantom sat down beside the girls to watch closely when the horse turned to Dalanda’s soles.

»You have to admit that I am not laying hands on you – perhaps, you should have made an offer to my horse, too!«

Dalanda had known what was coming, and she had tried to prepare for it. Since she had been a little girl, people had tried to take advantage of her ticklishness, and she had tried various techniques to keep the reflex under control. Whilst the horse had been busy with Babette’s derriere, she had balled her fists, bitten down on the panties in her mouth and tried to breathe calm and steadily, preparing for the attack.

She managed to hold still when the horse’s soft nostrils brushed over her soles, soft as a breeze, but she felt the convulsions of forced laughter when its rough tongue entered the game, and when the horse tried to lick the salt from between her toes, Dalanda lost all control. Wheezing, and uttering high-pitched squeals and choked grunts, she squirmed on the ground, spasming as if she was getting electrocuted. Babette screamed through her gag, and she also threw around her upper body when Dalanda’s struggles caused her to pull on her crotch rope, but the girl had lost all control over her movements.

It just took a few minutes for the horse until it had licked off every bit of salty oil, even from the spaces between Dalanda’s soles, but when the Phantom led it to the bucket to drink, Babette more hung over the bar than she was leaning against it. She was covered with sweat, her breasts dangled, and she was panting and wheezing whist she felt the pain between her legs cease to a tingling itch. Dalanda was lying on her back, having almost fainted, and she was breaded in sweat and sand. The Phantom stepped aside her and pointed at a puddle underneath her.

»That was funny, wasn’t it? You even peed with joy!«

He enjoyed the sight of the exhausted and humiliated girls for a few more seconds before he clapped his hands.

»So, now, it’s time to say Goodbye, for only one of you is going on a long journey!«

***

Since the caravanserai was a garrison, the day started early with a trumpet signal at 6 am. Little later, one of the petty Officers who acted as an Imam led the morning prayer, and Jean knocked at Ben’s door, bringing a tray with coffee, bread and some cheese and fruits. Ben freed both Inga and Carmen from their cuffs, leaving them completely unrestrained as they had their breakfast. To their slight surprise, Ben only had a little coffee before he got dressed.

»More negotiations are waiting for me! I hope you don’t mind having to spend some time on your own for a while! I will have one of my men at the door, for your safety – and I think I will be able to take care of some accommodations!«

He left the room, and for the first time in days, Inga and Carmen were both alone and neither bound nor gagged. The Swede looked out of the window, only to see a group of soldiers exercising. She scoffed.

»Seems that our new freedom has got its limits! Phew, why did we have to land at a spot that doesn’t have a bathroom?«

The door opened, and, observed by Barrot, a group of the Colonel’s men entered, each carrying something bulky. They looked at the two panty-clad women, but didn’t say anything, nor did they try to touch them.

One of them positioned a paravent in a corner, behind which a tin bucket with a lid, toilet paper and a canister with a blue chemical was placed. Two others brought a large tin tub, and when the men had returned a second time with several buckets of water, Carmen and Inga knew it was a bath.

Two of them brought two more buckets, this time boiling hot, and some soap and towels. Then, they left again, and the door was closed and locked. Inga used the chance to visit the improvised bathroom, and when Carmen had done the same, they looked at the tub, now half filled with water.

»Shall we pull straws who may get in first?«

Inga shrugged whilst pulling down her panties.

»After what we went through, I won’t die if we share the tub – if you promise to keep your hands to yourself!«

Carmen made a playful groping gesture towards Inga before also taking off her panties. The treacherous wet spot had disappeared, and Inga would not sniff on them. They mixed the hot water to the cold, and with a sigh, they sank into the tub. Its size forced them to sit with one’s feet beside the other’s hips, but nevertheless, it felt marvellous to have some clean and warm water for themselves, and to be able to wash without several men gazing at them.

»If we keep upgrading like that, we will soon be held captive at the Ritz!«, Inga joked whilst soaping her arms and breasts. Carmen giggled.

»I am afraid for this country’s standards, this is their kind of Ritz!«

She became serious and asked:

»What do you think they will do to us? I mean, all that effort just to entertain some local warlord’s men?«

Inga looked at her eyes, and Carmen hoped that her expression wasn’t telling the Swede too much of how she was trying to push their talk into a certain direction.

»Why do you care? I mean, it is quite clear whom Ben has chosen as his personal pet!«

Carmen had been soaping her hair and now took the opportunity to get below water with her head, buying some time by sputtering and wiping tresses from her eyes.

»Are you jealous? Beggars can’t be choosers – and I know a thing or two about being a beggar!«

She kept busy with her hair, allowing Inga to decide whether to feel compassion or to accuse her of telling sob stories. The Swede washed soap from her breasts, and after a few seconds, she let out a humourless laugh.

»Maybe, I should fight with you for his attention! After all, I am younger and stronger!«

She arched her back a bit, as if to emphasize she also had the bigger and firmer boobs. Carmen knew that Inga had been sarcastic, but she decided to storm forward:

»How about a younger and stronger sugar daddy then? There’s still the Colonel!«

The Colonel was some ten years younger than Ben, but Carmen, who had seen Ben doing Karate, doubted he was physically stronger. In addition, the Colonel had some thousands where Ben had a few billions. Nevertheless, he was the second most powerful man around, and being his Mistress was better than becoming the plaything of the entire garrison.

Inga’s hands went to Carmen’s neck, and her grip was considerably firm as she placed her thumbs on the other’s throat.

»Wait a minute! Do you know more than me? After all, I heard the two of you chitchatting in the night, after he – won your heart!«

Carmen blushed slightly. So, Inga had witnessed how she had responded to Ben’s caresses. And though Inga didn’t speak French, she had for sure overheard a few words and come to some conclusions. Sounding a bit hoarse with the hands on her neck, she croaked:

»The Colonel was fascinated by you! I mean, the whole garrison was, but none of the ordinary men would touch you if you were his Mistress! And maybe, sooner or later, you would be able to gain freedom again!«

Inga’s grip tightened a bit, forcing Carmen to retch, though she managed not to fight against the attack.

»Freedom! At what price? Has Ben also told you how much he wants for me?«

Carmen croaked, and Inga loosened her grip a bit. She knew that she had to be honest, hoping it would convince the Swede.

»Ben has offered the Colonel a lot of money, but right now, he has got just a few Grands on him! So, he needs to leave a – a convincing pawn! Something that will remind the Colonel of the advantages of staying loyal, whilst also allowing him to get a glimpse of the finer things in life!«

Inga’s chest heaved, and for a few seconds, Carmen feared she would dig her thumbs into her throat or push her head below water. Then, she suddenly let her go, chuckling whilst Carmen carefully massaged her neck.

»I should have known! Cats like you always land on their feet! I – wait a minute!«

Inga rose, and Carmen frowned when she looked at the Swede’s pubic mound right in front of her head. Inga slowly stepped out of the tub and, swaying her hips and making no attempt to hide her charms, walked towards the window. When she looked closer, Carmen could see something protrude at the frame: it was a periscope, obviously, some of the men were observing the two bathing beauties.

Inga approached the periscope, allowing the man on the ocular a full view of her landing strip before she pushed hard against the object. Carmen could hear a rattling noise, accompanied by laughter and shouting. Inga turned back towards Carmen, a triumphant smile on her lips.

»Men! No matter what culture or race, they are all the same!«

She turned serious and got closer to Carmen.

»Okay!«

»Okay what?«, Carmen asked with a drawling voice, though she felt a glimpse of hope. The Swede reached for Carmen’s hand and made her rise, too.

»Okay, for as long as I only have the choice between Colonel’s Pet and troop entertainment, I will choose the first! I won’t promise too much, but I think I can stand it until you and Ben are out of here! Just make him send enough money the Colonel can afford a decent house with separate bedrooms and my own bathroom!«

»D-deal!«

Carmen thought that this had been surprisingly easy. Inga reached her a towel and watched her dry herself. In her hand, she held Carmen’s French Knickers, and Carmen’s cheeks reddened when the Swede brought them close to her nose and grimaced.

»Open your mouth!«

»Eh?«

Inga’s left darted forward and grabbed her chin. Her fingers pushed against Carmen’s cheeks, forcing her to part her lips. Slowly and gleefully, Inga stuffed the panties into the other’s mouth, securing them in place with a scarf she tied not too tight at her nape. With a second scarf, she tied Carmen’s wrists in front of her body.

»Good! Now, get onto the bed, on your knees and elbows!«

Feeling a strange mixture of fear, curiosity and anticipation, Carmen obeyed. Once she was in the demanded position, she felt Inga’s hand on her butt.

»Since I found out about your real plans with Johanna, I felt betrayed by you! My anger was soothed when we forced you to pay a nice sum to me and the others, and since then, you have suffered the same as me – well, maybe, a bit less! So, I am only a little mad at you – but if you want me to become your ally, you must let me have something to warm my heart when I have to be nice to the Colonel!«

Carmen nodded, and Inga raised her right. The smacking sound when it hit Carmen’s exposed buttocks was drowned by the woman’s muffled scream.

»Just close your eyes and think of your sugar daddy – as I will think of mine!«

The second slap was as hard as the first, but her other hand cupped Carmen’s breast, and though she whimpered through her gag, Carmen felt not only tingles of pain run through her body.

***

The way towards the camp led through small dunes, so the group could advance without exposing themselves too early. When they guessed it was just another mile to go, John climbed one of the larger dunes and examined their goal through the scope of the rifle.

»Just five tents, and maybe two dozen camels! I could see at least one woman, so, if this is a group of nomads, there are not more than four or five men!«

»Three to five, almost even!«, Jeb stated, checking his gun.

»Four!«

It was Melissa, and the way Gabriela looked at her, it seemed that they had discussed that before whilst they had approached the camp.

»You still have the pistol, too!«, she added, pointing at John’s belt, »and I am a former Policewoman! So, I at least know which way to hold a gun!«

»Or you could give it to me! After all, I am still in active service – though this may end once my superiors find out about my latest activities!«

Jeb looked at Gabriela and Melissa, who held hands and showed that none of them wanted to see the other exposed to danger. On the other hand, they wanted to increase their side’s advantage. John looked at Johanna.

»I guess you served in the Special Forces?«

Johanna showed her most charming smile.

»I am a writer, sorry! Ana’s a Policewoman, too – but maybe, I wouldn’t give her a gun right now, she might be a bit – biased towards you!«

In fact, Ana had followed John quite deliberately during the last hour, walking so close that he not once had to pull on the leash. She had not even hesitated when he had carried her over a piece of ground covered with thistles.

John drew the gun and grabbed it by its barrel, handing it to Melissa. Johanna suddenly plucked two blades of grass and put them into her fist.

»I think this is the only fair way to decide who gets the gun!«

It was Melissa who drew the longer blade, and she proved her skills by checking the magazine whilst Gabriela showed a mixture of concern and relief. John looked at the camp once more, and he drew his pack of cigarettes.

»All right, one for every trooper! I think we approach from two sides!«

Melissa withdrew a bit with Gabriela, and they shared the cigarette, though Melissa didn’t inhale and coughed more than once. Sato looked at Johanna, and he couldn’t oppress a broad grin. The girl blushed, but she also smiled, and she took his hands, stepping so close her breasts touched his chest.

»Please, don’t get hurt!«

She took the cigarette and placed it behind her ear. Slinging her arms around Sato’s neck, she kissed him.

»I will keep it so – so when we can share it, when-«

Sato spared her to put it into words by kissing her again.

»Maybe, we will just call you in a few minutes, telling you that the friendly nomads are inviting us to tea!«

Since Melissa had to team up with Sato, she also finished kissing Gabriela and the two left to the right side. John kissed Ana’s cheek, in a way that made her blush slightly, and handed the leash to Gabriela.

»Take care of her, please! I hope that soon, we can get rid of her restraints, but just leave her like that until we are in the camp!«

Gabriela took the rope, but didn’t pull on it. Instead, she cocked her head.

»A handsome man, and a typical bad boy, hm?«

Ana blinked, her cheeks showing a crimson rash. The two sat down when suddenly Johanna stepped forward.

»Jeb?«

The tall man spun around, and she smiled.

»Good luck to you, too!«

A bit puzzled, he thanked her before he followed John to the left side. Johanna hadn’t hugged, let alone kissed him, but she had noticed that he had been the only one who hadn’t been given a hearty Goodbye, and after all, he had saved Sato’s life.

***

Sato and Melissa had followed a large, long dune that ended at a plain field where they could see a group of dromedaries, each with one leg tied, grazing the thorny shrubbery or regurgitating. Behind the herd were the tents, and it seemed that there was no guard on this side.

»Are camels friendly?«, Melissa asked. Sato shrugged.

»They are herbivores!«

Melissa scoffed, for this information wasn’t new to her. However, when one of the dromedaries rose and made a strange sound when looking at them, she decided that finding a way around the herd instead of walking through it was the better option, even if it was just because of the dung, and her not wearing any shoes.

They did a wide circle, only to find a large rock, about one yard in height. They decided it would offer a good cover, and they approached when suddenly, a shot was fired. A moment later, something flew in their direction.

»Grenade!«, Sato shouted, and he pulled Melissa to the ground with him. There was no explosion, and the girl rose, pointing at the object that was lying close to them. It was an empty tin can, with a hole in it.

»Grenade, hm?«

Before Sato could remind her that at least the shot had been real, a person with a gun appeared on top of the rock.

»No!«

Melissa, who had seen it was a boy of perhaps 12 years, fell into Sato’s arm, and the Japanese, who had been about to fire, lowered his gun. The boy seemed surprised to see them, but he didn’t behave aggressive. He shouted something in Arabic, and when he obviously noticed that the man and the woman were foreigners, he added in bad French:

»Sorry! I just practice shooting! Not know you there!«

Before Melissa could scratch together her French, they heard John’s voice from the other side. He shouted something in Arabic, and soon, there were some two dozen people, all talking and running around. One of them, who was fluent in French, shouted:

»Are you Sheikh Mansur’s men, or the Colonel’s?«

»Neither!«, John replied, and obviously, this caused the men of the group to lower their weapons, and the speaker invited them to show and prove they came in peace. John descended a hill, and Sato could see that obviously, Jeb backed him with the rifle.

It was an unnecessary precaution, for the speaker, who also seemed to be the leader of the tribe, told him that they were neutral, and therefore, strangers were welcome as guests. Sato and Melissa stepped forward, and though Melissa’s improvised dress and her uncovered legs drew some attention, nobody tried to touch her or seemed to be unfriendly. John said in German:

»Seems we are lucky! Nevertheless, I think Jeb should-«

Before he could finish his sentence, two shots were fired from Jeb’s position, and the bullets flew over the crowd’s head. John cursed, and Sato also drew his gun again. Jeb fired again, and this time, they could see he wasn’t aiming at the nomads, but at something on the other end of the camp. They could see a few figures of whom one fired back, but withdrew when Jeb’s bulled nearly hit him.

In the front, someone was running towards the camp. The strange way her running looked was due to the fact her arms were tied behind her back, and when she approached, staggering, they could see she was also gagged and had a leash dangle from her neck. It was Ana.

She stormed towards the first few nomads where she collapsed on the ground. John stormed towards her, and Jeb now appeared, the rifle still in his hands.

»I saw her running from a few men! They were after her!«

John had meanwhile ripped the pantyhose from Ana’s mouth, and she gasped:

»Gaby! Jo-Johanna! Some men – came – they – they’ve got them!«

***