The Pain that Made Her Beautiful

PMHB ch11 (Pic of Neorah)

Warick stood stunned for a moment, then he blinked and he returned to what was real. Nayeli was dressed in her woody brown toga that was held to her body with a small simple rope. Her hair was bound in a simple braid and now had leaves and other traces of the ground in her hair, unmissed by the eye because of the jet-black hair background. Nayeli stood in humble silence, her face downcast and her eyes putting forth fresh waves of tears every time they blinked.

Warick followed his urge as soon as it arose, forgetting to stop himself. He rushed forward and embraced Nayeli. Warick withdrew and put his hands on her shoulders saying, “I will do every thing within my power to see that this does not come to pass.”

Warick wasn’t thinking again and dove head first into a sticky cobweb. He cradled Nayeli’s face and gave her the most feeling enriched kiss that he could muster. To his utter surprise, a few seconds after the initial start of his lip-to-lip contact, Warick felt two small hands shove him backwards. As soon as he had let go he opened his eyes, but only a blink of an eye too late. As soon as his sight was restored, Warick saw a flicker of movement out of his left eye. Then he felt the burn of a hand slapping his face. Warick rolled with the hit causing his head to twist to the right and his back to arch. When he regained his stature, Warick looked at Nayeli and found her staring straight into his eyes. She looked for a few moments and then said in a weak and frightened voice, “do not pretend that you can kiss my lips after you have fed me to the dogs. You once said that you wanted to break my spirit, Warick,” Warick was taken aback, she had used his first name. Then her tone changed, instead of a weak and frail sound it was stronger, but still dripping with her fright, “well, you have me. Be proud of what you have gained, but at a cost that will not drop, but continue rising. You have broken my spirit and have gotten my will to become as though it had never existed. Because you have broken me so much, now you will have to put me back together.”

With her warning and solemn declaration, Nayeli slowly walked away, her face down cast, and tears continuing to fall, leaving Warick speechless.

Ever since the last encounter between Nayeli and him, Warick had felt so lonely and scared for… for a slave girl! She wasn’t worth more than a few pieces of silver and had no humanitarian rights to be named other than those that her master ordered, or allowed.

He couldn’t forget her words, do not pretend to kiss my lips after you have fed me to the dogs… because you have broken me so much, now you have to put me back together.

They echoed in his head over and over. He was distracted by her words when his men talked to him. However, what sickened him the most was the proud and dignified look on Hermun’s face. It made him sick enough that Warick could neither eat nor drink the entire day for fear that his stomach would reject it with the same disdain that Warick wished he could reject what was to come.

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It was now evening and, had it been under any other circumstance, Nayeli would’ve enjoyed watching the sunset. However, the evening canvas did little more than make her apprehensive heartbeat increase. The colors were glorious and, to Nayeli. It seemed to her that the gods were rejoicing in her pain and brokenness, with each passing second as a drum to her increasing fear.

As soon as she had left Warick behind that morning, Nayeli had felt that all her security was left behind with him. She was not meant to be a slave. She was supposed to be someone much better than this, though, if she just had her freedom, Nayeli would consider herself the richest person in Rome.

When she had gotten back into her wagon, Nayeli climbed into her wagon and found Neorah waiting for her, troubled deeply. As soon as Nayeli got in, Neorah ran to her and threw her arms around her and held tightly, saying, “where in God’s name have you been, Nayeli, I was worried sick!”

Neorah and her sat on their knees and Neorah pushed Nayeli back from herself an arm’s length. As soon as Nayeli was about to explain, she looked over her right shoulder and saw, to her utter disgust and horror, Hermun, Alan, Ryan, and the rest of the gang. Neorah followed Nayeli’s gaze and saw Hermun and the others stop. He pointed at Nayeli and said, “ Make yourself ready. But, whether you are or not, I will punish you.”

At that, the two girls saw Alan look at Hermun with a venomous glance. He was not only jealous, but he could not do anything about it, as though he were a rabid dog, chained, ready to strike, but unable.

Subsequently, the testosterone flow walked away and Neorah looked at Nayeli with urgency and said, “ What happened, Nayeli?! And you are going to tell me, whether or not you want to!”

Nayeli could see no advantage in not telling Neorah, so she began telling her of the previous night’s events followed by a description of that morning.

“ I am so scared… I don’t want it to happen again, Neorah. I don’t know what I’ll do if I have to endure another night of that horrific torment! What do I do? Help me, sister, help me,” Nayeli said panic-stricken.

“ Sister, I have no answers. I would say to go and beg master Warick’s protection, but after your confrontation earlier, I do not know what he would do. My dear, I would help you, but there is nothing that you nor a can do to prevent the future but to pray to God that it does not come to pass,” Neorah said with a deep sadness.

Nayeli’s heart dropped and her throat seemed to shut. She was acutely aware of every passing second from that moment on. When the evening canvas began to take form, her heart started to pound faster and faster with every second.  I might as well settle with the fact that, whether I like it or not, this evening is approaching faster and faster, Nayeli thought. Even though she was accustomed to the practice that she was soon to come into contact with again, it never made the exploit any easier to bear.

When the small caravan began to move off the road, Nayeli wanted to shatter the wooden pegs that were skillfully put in the windows of her wagon and run as fast as she could. She restrained herself and just tightened her hold around Neorah.