Blonde Needles in a Giant Haystack 23

The horses were walking at a slow pace, maybe less than three miles per hour, and yet, Johanna felt as if she was forced to do a marathon. Of course, this was the result of having to walk in tight bondage.

The four men had started with her and Gabriela, loosening their bonds, but keeping their gags in place. Johanna had felt a strange kind of loss when the Portuguese’s hands had left her lap, but at least, she was spared the crotch rope.

Their wrists were then crossed at their napes and tied with thin rope that was also wound around their necks and knotted off at their throats. These nooses were left loose enough to not block breathing, but snug enough to feel uncomfortable and threatening. Like that, they were made to stumble outside the tent and wait whilst the men freed Dalanda from her bonds. In her case, they needed some time and a rough massage of her limbs until the girl could walk after being bound for so many hours, but finally, she was led outside, tied with her hands crossed at her nape like the other two. Johanna noticed that unlike her and Gabriela, the Black was still tightly blindfolded.

Now, the first of the sacks was put up, so the two girls inside had to stand. Wassim waited until they could do so without help; then, he lifted the sack, cutting the captives’ leg bonds in the progress. Johanna could see that both were naked, and a rope around both waists had ensured their crotches had been in close contact.

The sack came off completely, revealing two women with swathes of tape over their eyes and mouths. Both mmphed faintly and tried to weakly fight off the men who now freed their arms, only to tie their hands to their necks. Despite the tape, Johanna was sure she had seen both women before. One was Carmen, and the other was-

»Mhhmmph!«

Gabriela, who had also recognized Melissa, staggered over to the blindfolded girl. Ali wanted to stop her, but Wassim said something in Arabic, and Gabriela could get close. She was unable to say something, or to even touch Melissa’s hand, but she brushed over her cheek with hers, and it seemed that Melissa understood from whom the tender gesture came. The men let them have a moment before they separated the girls again.

Little later, Ana and Inga also stood there, tied identically to the others, and both also still gagged and blindfolded. One of the men produced a long rope and cut off four pieces, each about one yard in length. He approached Johanna and tied one of them around her waist. She expected to be crotch-roped again, but the man just tied a rope belt, and the dangling ends were too short to be threaded between her legs.

Following a short whispered conversation, Dalanda, Carmen and Ana also got ropes tied around their waists and were gathered around Johanna. Wassim took the long rope and placed it on the ground, finding its middle. This, he tied to the pommel of his horse’s saddle.

»Come here!«, he ordered Johanna who reluctantly obeyed. He grinned at her and told her that, since she could see, she would be the leader of their coffle. Johanna gulped. Without her glasses, she could only see blurry schemes if things were more than a few yards away.

»Mhhmmhh!«

Her thoughts were distracted when the long dangling ends of the rope tied to the saddle were pushed through her rope belt, led between her legs and threaded through the belt above her butt. Wassim pulled the slack out, and Johanna cringed when the rough hemp brushed over her labia, though the man didn’t pull the ropes too tight.

What he did, however, was threading the ropes through her folded arms, and when he pulled again, Johanna felt that her elbows were pulled downwards, putting strain into her shoulders and forcing her to thrust out her boobs. At the same time, the crotch rope tightened. But this was only the beginning.

A struggling Ana was placed behind her, and the ropes were led between her legs and through her arms, too. Johanna felt her angry tugs on the ropes, but she could not beg her to stop. In the same way, Dalanda and finally Carmen were lined up, and Wassim tied the ends off to Carmen’s elbows.

He mounted his horse, and though he took care the animal walked slowly, Johanna felt the ropes tighten. She staggered forward, and after some struggling and mewing, the other girls followed her, trying to avoid the consequences of slowing down, let alone stumbling.

»Yalla!«

They had walked like this for about ten minutes when they heard the sound of hooves, and Johanna shuddered when she saw it was Ayoub who had lined up Gabriela, Melissa and Inga behind his horse, and he was forcing his captives to jog until he had reached the other group. Only now, he slowed down, and Johanna could see beads of perspiration on the girls’ skin already. Gabriela tried to look over her shoulder to see if Melissa was alright, but she also had to concentrate on walking. To further ensure that, both Ali and the Phantom rode closely, occasionally slapping one of the girls with their riding crops when she slowed down.

***

Sato was almost on autopilot as he followed the tracks of the horses and the walking girls. He didn’t walk fast; as he had concluded, the riders couldn’t speed up with the captives tied to their horses, and so, he could follow them on foot easily. For the umpteenth time, he checked the flashlight in his belt.

Their plan was surprisingly simple: he would follow the riders until he could spot them. Then, if the opportunity was good, he would signal to Marco who was following with the Jeep, keeping enough distance not to be seen or heard. They had guessed that their enemies were just four or five men; with the machine gun, they stood a fair chance.

»The only difficulty will be not to hurt the girls!«

***

Warmth, the rough caresses from Jeb and the relief of not having to rot in the well had helped Babette to recover enough that, after some time, she could withdraw behind a bush to take care of the last of the Phantom’s kinky ideas – the pebble shoved into her rear.

She reached for the blanket and put it over her shoulders again. Babette looked over to the well where John was sitting whilst Jeb leaned by the Jeep. Neither of them was looking at her, and she was sure that she would have another minute before they would question her whereabouts. However, Babette didn’t want to run. She was still too exhausted, she was naked except for the blanket, and she had no idea where to go. Also, and she hated herself for admitting it, she was curious about how John really thought about her.

»Oh my God! One should think that the last weeks should have cured me from my naivety forever!«

And yet, she went back to the well, not shying back when John kissed her cheek and brushed through her dishevelled hair. She was just able to oppress the urge to cuddle against him and instead sat down beside the well.

Her eyes fell on something lying on the ground. It was the black panties that had gagged her previously. Dalanda’s panties. A memory shot through her head, and she pulled them closer, letting the slightly damp material run through her fingers. In the seam, she could feel something hard: the microSD card, evidence of Dalanda’s encounters at the slave plantation in Mauritania.

Babette thought pitifully of the black girl who was currently about to be brought back there, to maybe end her days as a slave. The thought made her determined to at least not let Dalanda suffer in vain. Careful not to attract too much attention, she put the panties on. They felt a bit strange, and she was all too aware they weren’t hers, but it was the most obvious way of keeping them, and in addition, she now was a little less naked.

»He! I didn’t save you just that you hide your charms from me!«

It was John, and Babette couldn’t help blushing. She forced a smile on her face and replied:

»You have seen everything already!«

John squatted and gently placed his hands on her shoulders.

»Seen, touched – and enjoyed, sweet Babsi!«

The way he looked at her caused Babette to let out a fluttering breath. His hands slowly pushed the blanket from her shoulders – so slow the wool brushed over her nipples, causing a blissful tingle there. Babette reflexively licked her lips.

»We are getting company!«

It was Jeb, and he pointed into the darkness where a faint rumble could be heard. It sounded like a thunderstorm far away, but the men told her it was an approaching group of riders. Jeb pointed at the Jeep.

»What do you say? If we start now, we could make it before they arrive!«

John pondered.

»On the other hand – if these are the Sheikh’s men, they are exactly those we came for originally! We have some negotiation to do!«

»Th-the Sheikh’s m-men? N-negotiate?«, Babette croaked. She instinctively pulled the blanket tighter around her body. The last time she had met the Sheikh and his men, she had been naked, bound and gagged, and meant to be the plaything of the man’s son, or himself!

John put an arm around her.

»The Sheikh himself is a prisoner of the Colonel, so, we are bringing something to the table, too!«

Babette suddenly lost all self-control. She cuddled against John, and with a trembling voice, she begged:

»Please, don’t sell me to these men!«

Through the cloth of his shirt and jacket, John could feel her pounding heart, and the fact that, after all he had done to her, the girl still trusted him, made him sigh. He looked at the direction from which the riders were coming.

»Can you walk, just for some 100 yards?«

A bit puzzled, Babette nodded.

»Excellent! Now, walk away from this well and hide behind a rock! If you want, bury yourself in the sand, just take care that nobody sees you! We will try our best to make them our friends without offering a beautiful blonde as a bonus!«

He placed a kiss on her lips, then playfully slapped her butt as he sent her away. Then, he turned towards Jeb who held his rifle, though they wouldn’t stand a chance against a crowd of armed riders.

»Have I just done something stupid?«

Jeb lowered his rifle and lit a cigarette.

»Maybe! But I promise I will only blame you if I won’t see another day!«

***

Babette climbed over a sandy hill from which she could still see the well in the moonlight. She felt exposed, and so, she decided to withdraw a little more. Just behind a few rocks she could see some 100 more yards away.

»From behind these, I can still here if the riders are still there, and if I stay calm, no one will find me!«

She still felt fear, but she somehow trusted John that he wouldn’t betray her again. She had no idea why she thought this – maybe except for the fact that he had sent her away, or because she still was too naïve to prevail. Suddenly, she chortled.

»Maybe, I just managed to do what every girl wishes – I changed a bad boy for the better!«

Still giggling, she slipped behind the rock – where she was grabbed by strong arms, and a hand was pressed over her mouth.

***

Both John and Jeb had put away their guns and stood in plain sight, showing their open hands towards the approaching riders. When they seemed close enough, John loudly said:

»Salam aleikum!«

After a short silence, one of the riders replied:

»Aleikumu Salam!«

Then, three horses slowly approached, and their leader spoke in fluent French:

»Since you are no Arabs, I guess you can better understand my words if I am speaking your language?«

»My first language is actually English, but I guess that French is good, too!«

»Oh, I don’t mind speaking English! Since you are on my property, I guess you will feel more confident if you are able to exactly express what you want!«

The man’s English was equally fluent as his French, and his subtext was clear: he expected John to tell him what he had come for.

»I come from the Colonel’s camp, but I am not one of his men! My name’s John Atticus Beauregard, and I guess that you are the son of Sheikh Mansur!«

»I am Chalid ibn Mansur«, the man replied, and John tried to break the ice:

»You may be pleased to hear that your father is only slightly wounded, and albeit him being a prisoner, he is treated with respect!«

Chalid showed no reaction. Slowly, he dismounted and stepped closer to John, so he could see Chalid’s face.

»I expected the Colonel to send a negotiator – what I didn’t expect was a foreigner!«

John smiled.

»What I, or rather my boss, Mr. Andrew Davenport, has to offer to the Colonel, I also can offer to you – a future in peace and wealth!«

Chalid also smiled.

»If a European – or an American – comes with such offers, he usually is only concerned about his own wealth, and peace only matters to him as long as his interests are concerned!«

Though this was almost an accusation, John didn’t stir.

»You are right – Mr. Davenport is concerned about his money! But there’s enough profit for both him and you – and your people!«

»Mine – and those of the Colonel!«

»Maybe, even for the people of whole Western Sahara!«

For a few moments, none of the men said a word. John noticed that Chalid was eager to talk to his second in command who had remained in the saddle, but he forced himself to stay on his own, like John did.

Before any of them could continue the negotiations, a sound could be heard, and at once, about all the riders raised their guns. It was a car’s engine, and little later, two well-lit Jeeps approached. On each stood a man holding a white blanket on a stick.

»That’s not good!«, John murmured when he noticed the grey-haired man stand next to the parliamentary in the second Jeep. Ben Keane greeted Chalid, looking at John with a triumphant smile.

»Seems that the Sheikh’s son will also get two offers, and might consider mine better than yours!«

The American forced a smile on his lips and nodded. Jeb poked his side and murmured:

»One of his men has stayed behind!«

Ben jumped from the car, walking with his hands open to show he wasn’t armed, and stepped towards Chalid until the Arab raised his hand to make him stop. Behind him, the men seemed to have come to the conclusion that even the now seven foreigners were no threat. Rifles were lowered, and the murmur died down – only to rise again, this time caused by the men in the last row. One rider even dismounted and approached Chalid, whispering something into his ear. The man frowned and then left to see what was going on.

John looked at Ben, but he seemed equally unaware of what was happening. He worried if they had detected Babette, a concern that rose when he saw the body of a naked busty woman between the horses. Soon, however, he realized it wasn’t just one. Led by ropes, two rows of naked and tied women staggered to the place beside the well, all thoroughly gagged, and all but two blindfolded. It was seven captives altogether, and they all collapsed on the ground or at least knelt when pushed down by their captors. Chalid returned, showing a broad smile.

»It seems that now, I have something you and the Colonel want! Now, that’s a coincidence, as you were just about to make offers to me!«

***

Sato had heard the group before he had seen it. The sounds of the horses, accompanied by an occasional whimper, or the sound of a slap on naked flesh. He drew his gun, and when he had ascended a hill, he could finally see the riders, and the two rows of tied and gagged girls stumbling after them.

The distance was just some 200 yards, and he could already make out Johanna’s buxom forms. However, before he could signal to Marco, he could see that there were more people – far more. The kidnappers had reached a large mounted group, and according to their welcome, they were at least acquainted.

Cursing silently, he had to watch as the girls were led through the rows, away from where he could see them. Sato had spotted something else: the lights of at least two cars in the vicinity. As far as he knew, the men of the Sheikh didn’t have motorised vehicles.

Not daring to use his flashlight, Sato decided to circle the rides, to see if he could find a place from which he could see what was going on. He kept the distance of some 200 yards, hoping that no one would see him.

After some minutes, he reached a group of rocks that would at least offer some shelter. He was just about to approach them when he noticed a movement. He frowned, trying to see what it had been.

From the other side of the rock, someone had thrown something over the rock. Sato’s first thought was that it had been a grenade, and he reflexively ducked, but as the seconds passed and nothing happened, he decided it must have been something else.

Carefully, he crawled forward, until he had reached the point where the object had landed. It was a piece of rope, and when he took it between his fingers, Sato felt knots, and also some dampness. He brought the rope to his nose, and now, he was sure: this was a cut crotch rope.

***

Babette panted as she stared into the dark sky. Once they had grabbed her from behind and clamped her mouth shut, Ben’s henchmen had made short work with her. Her wrists and elbows had been tied with thin cord, and two men had folded her legs, binding them ankle to thigh. As a crowning touch, they had also tied her big toes together, forcing her to lie with her thighs open as they turned her onto her back. One of the men had bent over her, grabbing the front panel of her borrowed panties. It had been Barrot, the strongest of the mercenaries.

»Mmnnngggg!«

It had felt as if she was split in two when he had pulled the garment deep between her labia, before the seams had finally torn. Sid had removed his hand from Babette’s mouth, allowing his comrade to work the soiled underwear into her oral cavity, followed by another dirty rag. Ten rounds of tape held the gag in place, and Cory, showing a mean grin, applied a crotch rope to the helpless naked girl, pulling it so tight Babette whimpered on every breath she took.

The whole attack had lasted less than two minutes, and whilst Ben and most of his men mounted the Jeeps to get to the well, Cory was told to stay behind, to have an eye on their captive.

»Oh, I will have more than an eye on her!«, Cory had murmured. It had been drowned by the starting engine, so only Babette had heard this.

He had made her lean against the rock, a position from which they could look at the well where the others were heading to. However, Cory was more interested in having Babette for himself.

»Did you miss me?«

He clawed his hand into her breast, groping it not too gently. Babette mewed, with little more she could do. Her bound arms were trapped between the rock and her body, and the elbow tie forced her to thrust her boobs out against her captor. She tried to press her knees together, but though Cory would have lost an arm wrestling match against every one of his comrades, he still was stronger than the bound girl. Babette mewed when he cupped her pubic mound.

»Is it too tight?«, he asked, two of his fingers pushing between her labia, to feel for the tight crotch rope embedded there.

»Uuuhhmmph! Nnnngggg!«

»You know it could be worse?«

The rough hemp rope turned into a red hot iron when the man pushed his hand under it and pulled. Babette screamed into her gag, rearing up and helplessly fluttering with her bound legs, just to get him off. Cory withdrew, placing his hand on her puckering middle as he watched her chest heave.

»It could also be better! Less painful and more – sensual!«

His fingers gently brushed over her labia, and Babette’s eyes widened as she understood what he was intending. And yet, the mere memory of the pain when he had yanked on her crotch rope was so vivid she nodded when he asked whether she wanted it off. Cory cut the tight rope and pulled it from between her legs. With a grin, he once again placed his hand between her legs.

When she stared over the man’s shoulder, Babette could see the nearby well, and she was even sure that one of the figures was a tall blonde man in a light brown jacket: John. The man who had betrayed her, then rescued her life. And now, he could do nothing to save her from Cory’s assault.

Seeing John hurt even more than Cory’s rough intrusions, and so, Babette stared upwards, to avoid the man’s grin, and his triumphant, horny expression.

There! At the corner of her eye, she noticed something. It was something brighter than the darkness; a piece of a head, and a pair of eyes. At first, Babette thought it was a hallucination, but then, whilst Cory pushed forward, massaging her breast with his other hand, she realized it was indeed a man’s forehead and face. The face of Sato.

A spark of hope rushed through her body, and obviously, even Cory had noticed it, as he breathing asked her whether she started to like it.

Babette’s first reflex would have been to shake her head and to struggle as much as her bondage allowed to fight him off. However, she knew that if Cory managed to alert his comrades, Sato would be in even greater trouble than her.

She forced herself to open her thighs more, and when he once again groped her breast, she reared up, letting out a guttural grunt. Cory grinned, all but drooling, and Babette looked up. The face was gone; instead, she saw something move above her.

With a »thud!«, Sato landed on the sandy ground, right behind Cory. Babette pressed her thighs together, trapping his hand between her legs, and she saw his mouth open. However, before he could scream, Sato’s foot hit him right where he was best supplied with blood. Cory’s face was slammed against the rock, and Babette heard the pleasing sound of his nose breaking.

Taking no chances, Sato Karate-chopped the man’s neck and rolled him from Babette. Though he had a feeling the girl wouldn’t have minded, he even turned him onto his side, so he wouldn’t choke from the blood in his nose.

»I am no cavalry man, but I hope I arrived in time!«

Babette nodded. At least, Sato had prevented Cory from doing worse to her, and this was not the time to be nitpicky.

The Japanese saw a pair of night vision binoculars lying around beside the unconscious mercenary, and he put it to his eyes. In a strange, slightly unreal illumination, he could see people he knew: John, Jeb, and also Ben Keane. When he let the binoculars wander, he saw a man in a djellaba, and beside him, a few naked women were kneeling. One of those, he would have recognized even under worse conditions.

»Mhhmmm!«

Behind him, Babette made herself noticeable, indicating she wanted to be freed. In addition, he had to do something before Cory regained his consciousness. Even if he killed the mercenary, they could not stay here forever.

Sato stared on Johanna for a few more seconds; then, he slowly turned towards Babette who stretched her chin towards him, expecting to be ungagged. He grabbed Cory’s knife, ideas running through his head at light speed.

A part of what had happened had been his fault, and all of a sudden, he could see his primary mistake. Sato had been efficient and successful as long as he had been on his common ground: acting as the right hand of Martin Conradi. Then, Johanna had stepped into his life – but he definitely wouldn’t blame her, or the kind God who had sent her to him.

However, he had never officially stopped working for Conradi – and perhaps, this was the key to find a solution for all this mess.

Babette mewed with a mixture of puzzlement and annoyance when Sato turned her onto her side and freed her legs. She would have preferred to have him ungag her first. However, being able to stretch her legs was also an improvement, and though she wasn’t sure whether they had the time for this, she didn’t protest when Sato took her feet into his hands, massaging her in the way she had learned to enjoy. Though he was looking at her eyes, she knew all too well that he could also admire her thrust out breasts and her exposed middle. And yet, she only felt slightly awkward.

»Babette-Chan! Do you trust me?«

»Mhm?«

Sato showed a smile – not the fine smile of the polite Japanese, but a boyish grin.

»I know, the last time you did, it got you into this mess! However, if I told you that I had a plan how all of you could get out of this well and alive – would you trust me?«

The whole situation was absurd – Sato kneeling opposite to her, holding her feet whist she was stark naked, bound and gagged. Even a proposal would have been less bizarre under such circumstances. And yet, Babette nodded slightly. Sato brought her feet to his lips and kissed her big toes before he gently lowered her feet to the ground. Then, he got up and grabbed a coiled rope, cutting a piece some three yards in length.

»If my plan included taking you with me when I go over there now – would you still trust me?«

He grabbed Babette’s upper arm, gently, but firmly, helping her to her feet and waiting until she could stand on her own. She took a deep breath. Obviously, he didn’t intent to free her, let alone giving her something to cover her bareness with.

And yet, she once again nodded. Sato tied the rope around her neck, taking care the noose was wide enough not to block her breathing. Looking at her, he brushed a few tresses from her face and placed a kiss on her forehead.

»Now, you look presentable!«

Babette chortled, and Sato smiled.

»I consider this a laugh!«

Taking a deep breath, he added:

»Banzai!«

Taking the leash, though not tugging on it, he slowly walked towards the crowd, followed by Babette. The girl had no idea what he had in mind, but something told her that she better walked straight and acted as if this was just a normal walk.

***

Though the tone of the negotiations still was polite, it was clear that the appearance of the captured women had given Chalid a much stronger position. Though they were both first and foremost the henchmen of Andrew Davenport and served his interests, John and Jeb also had an interest in getting the girls out of the Arab’s clutches – at least Ana, to whom John felt drawn a little. He could not even signal her something assuring via his eyes, as all the kneeling girls except for Johanna and Gabriela were still blindfolded.

To his surprise, the arrival of the girls had also changed Ben’s attitude. Unbelievable, but the tough Billionaire seemed to be distracted by Carmen’s presence. John guessed that he was doing similar calculations than him according to Ana: how much could he offer to ensure getting at least her back without endangering business?

Though the negotiations were still held in English, the captive girls only partially seemed interested in them. Gabriela had managed to shuffle over to Melissa, and the to leaned against each other, getting some solace from at least being close to each other. Dalanda only spoke intermediate English, and in addition, the Phantom had positioned himself behind her, one hand on her breast.

»Whatever conclusion the come to, you are coming with me as soon as we can leave!«

Carmen tried to listen to especially Ben’s words, whilst Inga knelt motionless, trying to seem as unimpressed as being naked, bound gagged and blindfolded allowed her. Ana looked a bit lost as she knelt on her own, and Johanna tried to focus on the talking men who, without her glasses, looked blurry to her.

Suddenly, there was a sharp yell in Arabic, accompanied by the metallic sound of rifles getting unlocked. Chalid stopped in the middle of his sentence, and he stared at the direction of the interruption. The others followed his eyes, and Ben, John and Jeb stared with disbelief at the two people that walked through the lane built by the men who aimed at them with their rifles.

Sato walked slow and upright, focussing Chalid. He had his gun in his belt, but his right hand was dangling loosely to his side, to show that he hadn’t come to fight. With his left, he held a rope tied around the neck of a naked busty blonde. Like the other captives, she was bound and gagged, and there was a commotion among Ben’s mercenaries.

»Before you ask – I wouldn’t say her guardian’s well, but when I left him, he was alive!«, Sato told the men before he turned towards Chalid again, letting Babette’s neck rope go so he could bow in the formal Japanese way.

»Salam aleikum, son of Sheikh Mansur!«

»Aleikumu Salam!«, Chalid replied, having decided that the Japanese wasn’t an immediate threat. Unable to hide his curiosity, he added:

»What leads you here – together with a girl that is rightfully mine – or rather my father’s?«

Sato shrugged, as if he was noticing Babette for the first time.

»I just thought I had to bring something to the table, too, if I wanted to join your conversation! However, I am sure that I can offer you something much better than just a pair of breasts!«

***