My Voyage of Submission Ch. 10

In this chapter, Joshua and his crew ransom a woman taken for ransom by Mahmoud. Before she's recovered, she's gang raped by her captors. Sahar steps up. This chapter contains oral, lesbian sex, regular sex, and non-consensual sex. There is no COVID-19 nor STD's to worry about in this story. My thanks to JohnnyGalt for his help.

My Voyage of Submission, Ch 10, Freetown

Leo arrived with the Hofflers around one. James took their luggage to the cabin Master had set aside for them with two queen beds, one for them and one for Johanna after she was recovered. Leo also brought uniform styled clothes so everyone would look about the same. Hannah took possession of those so they could be given to everyone. He also had another package of clothes that Master took possession of. I didn't know what they were. Master and I took the Hofflers to the dining room so they could eat after their trip. Everyone had to go back to non-slave mode in deference to them.

Both Ben and Marian were on the heavy side, though both looked as though they'd lost weight recently and both had bags under their eyes from lack of sleep.

As soon as everyone was seated, Ben said, "Mr. Greenbriar, thank you so much for helping us recover our daughter. We can't thank you enough."

"We haven't recovered her yet," Master replied. "In fact, we've run into some issues you should be aware of."

They looked at each other worriedly. Were they going to get their daughter back or not?

"Please eat first and we can discuss some things."

"I don't think I could eat a bite if I'm not getting Johanna back," Marian said. "Please tell us what's going on."

"Do you know why we flew you into Dakar instead of Monrovia?"

"No, Congresswoman Ward said we had to change plans and not to talk about it with anyone," Ben replied.

"We believe the man or men who kidnapped your daughter were waiting in Monrovia, hoping to take this ship and capture more slaves. Through mischance, we've managed to free seven human trafficked women, taken from several different parts of the world, four of them from North Africa by Mahmoud, the man responsible for taking Johanna. Those four were brutally trained as sex slaves, then branded with a hot iron and sold to individuals in South America. Fatima, the first woman we've freed said sometimes, the women taken were ransomed back to their families if the family could pay more than they could be sold for. That appears to be the case with Johanna.

"At this point, we think someone at Interpol we've been sharing information with has been sharing that same information with Mahmoud. It appeared that some of his men were gathering in Monrovia. That's the reason we changed your location to Dakar. They know we have to make the exchange at Freetown, so there's no getting around going there without screwing up the exchange, but I'm taking steps to keep everyone safe and recover your daughter. Through the auspices of my wife, the US Navy has sent a destroyer down here to help, but if we start shooting, your daughter could very well be injured or killed."

"Was it a Geraldo Espinosa?" Ben asked.

"He was one of the two we're concerned about, why?"

"He called us and asked when we were scheduled to arrive in Monrovia."

"What did you tell him?" Master looked worried.

"Congresswoman Ward told us to tell anyone who inquired, that we didn't know, the State Department was making all the arrangements."

"Good," Master said, breathing a sigh of relief. Might be why Leo didn't have any issues.

"We have to arrive by ten tomorrow morning, giving them a chance to put eyes on our ship. I'm reasonably sure they will know what you look like, so we'll let them get a peek at you, figure they're going to get paid. Before we get to Freetown, we're going to go to a war footing. Everyone on the ship has gone through firearms qualification and will be armed. We'll issue you ballistic armor similar to what soldiers wear. If you leave your cabin, I want you to put it on. My security guy, Edgar Reynolds, will show you how to wear it tomorrow morning. If by some nasty chance, shooting does start, one of my people will go with you to your cabin and lock themselves in with you to keep you safe.

"The other thing you should be aware of, is your daughter may have been severely mistreated, even though they agreed to ransom her. These are evil men and don't seem to have an ounce of kindness and compassion in their bodies. They try to impress on the young women they capture that they are totally helpless and nothing more than sex toys for their owners. I want you to speak to Beth and Fatima. Beth is working on her doctorate in psychology and Fatima was captured by this man and enslaved for eighteen months. They can discuss the problems your daughter might have experienced and may continue to face over the next few months."

The faces of both of them sank, their worst fears being realized. I felt so sorry for them. "Please eat," I said. "I know this is hard news, but you need to remain strong for Johanna. She'll need all the help you can give her. We'll talk after lunch. I should tell you the other young women we've freed are much stronger than I thought they'd be. I believe Johanna might surprise you."

"We've got medical staff on board," Master said, "a former Navy Corpsman, now a Physician's Assistant and former Navy nurse. They will examine her and determine if she needs more medical assistance than we can provide. With the Navy helping us now, we may have a doctor available and they can fly her somewhere she could receive more help if needed."

Marian started to cry and Ben didn't look very good himself.

"I'm so sorry," Master said. "I know this isn't the news you hoped to hear, but better to hear it now so you can put a brave face on for your daughter."

They both picked at their food, eating perhaps half of it. When it looked like they couldn't eat anymore, Fatima and I took them back to their cabin. I said I wanted them to see what was done to Fatima, so they could be prepared.

"How bad is it going to be?" Ben asked.

"I warn you this might be worse than your daughter's condition because Fatima's Owner liked to beat her. It helped him become sexually aroused. Many of the scars you see will be from him. Fatima would you please pull up your shirt and show them your back?"

Fatima grasped the bottom of her shirt and turning, pulled it up to show them her back. They both gasped loudly when they saw it. She lowered her shirt.

"Show them your brand, Fatima."

She lowered her pants to her thighs and pulled aside the bottom of her panties over the lower buttock to show them her brand, then pulled everything back on, tucking everything back in. Both of them were crying openly now.

"They might not have branded Johanna. Fatima said they usually did it right before slaves were sold. Johanna isn't being sold, so she might have been spared this last indignity, but we don't know."

We sat on the opposite bed facing them. "When Fatima was freed, she didn't feel free. She thought the brand identified her as a slave and she would remain a slave forever. That whoever saw it and recognized it as a slave brand could recapture her, punish her and return her to her owner or resell her to someone else. She was frightened of everyone and tried to do everything she was ordered to do, even contradictory orders. That was in mid-July, a bit over three weeks ago. It took her about a week to get her bearings, maybe a few days longer, but she no longer obeys any order she's given. She's improved to the point our Captain is training her to sail this ship. Fatima speaks Arabic and Spanish in addition to English, so she's helped with the other women we've recovered, helping them through the same ordeal. It will take a long time to recover fully from all they've been through, but no one will obey orders anymore which don't apply to free women." I sighed.

"Your daughter may require long term counseling. She will likely be emotionally scarred by her experiences in ways we don't even know. I would recommend a specialist who works with women who have suffered human trafficking. I can refer you to someone where you live who does specialize. It will be a little like your daughter was brainwashed. It's likely she'll suffer from PTSD episodes like soldiers sometimes do. I'll work with her as much as I can before you leave, though I warn you I'm not yet licensed to practice. I'm still working on my Ph.D., but I've worked with my college professor who was visiting me when we recovered all of these women so I understand the concepts."

Marian asked Fatima, "Do you think our daughter can recover if they've done similar things to her?"

"She'll need help, yes. I have wished to commit suicide because I felt nothing would ever get better. I received a lot of help from the people on this ship. They've become like family to me. She already has a family, you. As Beth said, you'll have to be strong for her. She'll be frightened of everything, and it will help if you're not. Keep telling her everything will be all right if only she fights for it and does not sink into the pit she'll want to sink into. Anger helps, not anger at the world in general, but anger at those who did this to her. She needs to place the blame on someone, but it can't be herself. I sometimes would believe it was my own fault I was taken; that I'd been too pretty, or too flirty, or too friendly. The thing is, it doesn't make any difference what I'd done or even if I'd done anything.

"They broke into my hotel room in the middle of the night, killed my parents and took me. Do I blame my parents because they couldn't somehow protect me? Do I blame myself because they found me somehow attractive enough to take? Do I blame the hotel I stayed for not being safer? Do I blame the governments of the world who allow these atrocities to exist; blame God because there is such evil in some men's hearts? There are a million things or people to blame but it is wrong to blame anyone but those who harmed me. There was nothing anyone could have done. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. There is no one to blame but evil men. They were evil people and evil people do evil things and life must go on. Your daughter will have to understand this. Good people still exist in this world. She will need to realize that."

"Thank you both," Ben said. "This has been hard, I know. Your kindness is much appreciated. Please give us some time alone."

"Dinner will be at seven tonight. Someone will come to fetch you," I said.

Before we left. Fatima put her hands on the shoulders of each of them and squeezed. She returned to the bridge and I went back to my room. I hadn't had time to enter the survey results from the club at Buenos Aires, so set about doing that until supper.

Around 1700, there was a timid knock on my door. "Enter," I said.

Hibbah slowly came in the room. She said into her iPad, "Your Master said I could see you here." She hit the respond microphone.

"What can I do for you, Hibbah?"

Hibbah fumbled a bit for her next words. "Please, the others say they enjoy you very much. I would enjoy if you..." She stopped, unable to continue, looking at the floor, flustered and confused.

She glanced at me and I waved her to come closer. She slowly approached and I took her iPad and pushed the microphone button. "If I would have sex with you?"

Hibbah nodded quickly when the words came out.

"I would be willing to have sex with you, but may we talk first?"

She nodded again. I stood up from my desk, took her hand and led her to the bed and sat down, inviting her to sit beside me.

I spoke and had my words translated. "Sahar told me that you might wish a woman more than a man, but you thought it was sinful for two women to be together. Have you changed your mind?"

She shook her head. "I know it's a sin, but I cannot be with a man anymore. I have no love for men. Any love for a man has been burned from my heart. I cannot stand their touch any longer."

"I understand. You still wish for an intimate connection with another human, but cannot love a man. What was done to you might make many women feel that way. I myself do not consider love between two women to be a sin, so I will not feel guilt if we do. Do you not think you will feel guilty if we do this? Will you be able to live with the guilt? I don't want more bad things to happen to you, Hibbah. I do not want you to hate yourself if you do something you believe to be a sin. Self hatred is a bad thing, it eats at us on the inside."

"What can I do? It is terrible. My owner forced me to have sex and even though I hated it, I enjoyed it. Is it wrong to want to enjoy something?"

"I don't think so, Hibbah, but you do. That is your dilemma. You believe in the sin, yet want to experience it anyway. I would enjoy sex with you. I really would. I would love to make you feel good, to take away some of the pain you've been given. But feeling good physically, may harm you spiritually and emotionally. Did Sahar tell you what I think about the sin of women loving each other?"

"She said you believe Allah made you the way you were and you only follow the nature Allah created in you, thus commit no sin."

"That is correct. But other people believe differently. You believe differently. I would not wish on you a loveless life. There is much joy in loving another person, but you must be sure in here," I touched her chest over her heart, "you will not suffer from the sin. It is possible, you could meet some of the needs you feel with a close friendship with another person. To laugh, and talk, and share dreams and feelings with another. If you wish such a friend, I would be that friend, almost like a sister. We could share gentle touches, and friendly kisses and not stray into sin. That is one option. I would like to be that friend for you, and if, after much consideration, you want more, to have a lover and not just a friend, I would be that as well. All I ask is you are sure in your own heart what you want, and I will give you all I can. If in two days you still want me to love you, I will, gladly, risking even the anger of my Master because you are that important to me."

"He would be angry with you?"

"Not generally. He sent you to me now, so he has no problem with the act of love, perhaps only the timing. He gets to decide when I have sex, even if he doesn't care who I have sex with. But even if it were not a time he would choose, I would give you what you need in two days time. He would not hurt me more than a little and such little would be nothing to me to help you. I suspect he would not care at all, but it is always his choice. Do you understand?"

"I think so."

"I will spend much time with you over the next two days. We will talk, we will laugh. We will hide in my room together when Mahmoud comes. We will practice your English and talk about life and love and happiness. You will think about what you want and how it will make you feel. At dinner time, in two days, you may tell me what you want from me and I shall give it to you. This I promise to you, sister to sister. Is this agreeable to you?"

"Yes, Beth; thank you."

I gave her a gentle kiss on her forehead, each of her cheeks, then her lips, feeling them quiver under mine.

"Sit with me at dinner. With Johanna's parents joining us, Master can not ask me to sit on his lap and feed me. I shall have to feed myself. I'm unsure I still know how. Perhaps you'll have to remind me."

Hibbah smiled. I began to ask her about her life as a child. We talked until it was time for me to get the Hoffler's from their room. I took her hand and we went to get them.

After I knocked and they opened the door, I said after setting up her translation app, "This is my friend, Hibbah, who was taken from South Sudan by Mahmoud's men. Hibbah, this is Ben and Marian Hoffler, the parents of the woman we wish to ransom the day after tomorrow. You will see Hibbah is carrying an iPad around. It is her means to communicate as she only knows her native language and Portuguese as she was sold in Brazil. If you press this button here, anything you say will be translated to Portuguese, and anything she says back will be spoken in English. She's wearing ear buds so we don't hear all the different languages being spoken. She understands what your daughter might have gone through and can talk about how it's affected her. Feel free to ask. She has a very good heart and would be happy to help."

"Thank you, Hibbah," Marian said. "You poor, poor child. I can't imagine what was done to you." She gave her a big American hug. Hibbah flinched a little.

"She's not used to the friendliness of Americans. On the whole, only family members may touch Muslim women. It's probably best if you don't hug her; at least unless she initiates it. I suspect her former slavery also makes her uncomfortable with the affections of others."

"Oh, I'm so sorry. You're right. Foolish me."

I pressed the microphone. "Marian is not yet familiar with your customs, Hibbah. She's sorry she hugged you. She won't do it again until you hug her."

Hibbah nodded. She said something and "I accept your apology," came out.

As we headed down to the dining room, I continued, "Fatima spoke English, Spanish and Arabic when she was taken. The others are trying to learn English so we all have a common language. Sahar is the most advanced. She may speak haltingly to you in English, simple things. They each have a native language and the language of their owner. They needed to comprehend their owner's orders or they were punished. So four of them, sold in Brazil, speak Portuguese, and one sold in Argentina speaks Spanish. Sahar is from Oman and speaks Arabic. Ateefah is from Pakistan and speaks Urdu. Maahnoor is from Morocco and speaks Arabic, Farah is from Libya and speaks Arabic. She's the one who speaks Spanish. You'll meet everyone at dinner."

"I hope we remember everyone's name," Ben said.

"Don't worry. It's a little overwhelming at first. It took me a couple weeks before I knew everyone's name."

We arrived and Master had seats saved to his left. I sat on his right with Hibbah. The Captain was at the other end of the table. Jìngyi, James, and Sherry were serving tonight, along with Reggie. Master introduced everybody. The crew was quite solicitous of the Hoffler's, telling them we'd be sure to get Johanna back. I sure hoped so. Master primarily talked to the Hoffler's. I talked quietly to Hibbah continuing our earlier conversation.

At one point, Master quietly asked, "Did you and Hibbah...?" Leaving the real question unasked.

"Not yet, sir. Hibbah is thinking about the nature of sin as it pertains to the topic under discussion. We thought it best she consider all options first."

"You seem friendlier than usual."

"Yes, sir. Perhaps she just needs a real close friend. She's trying to decide."

He smiled at me. After all, the Hofflers knew Congresswoman Ward was married to Master. Who knew what they would think of our extra-marital sex, so we had to keep it on the down low. Real life kept intruding on our fun. I might not get to sleep with him tonight, depending on how nosy they were. I wondered if Roberta and Jìngyi would make room for me. I suppose it didn't make any difference who I roomed with, I wasn't allowed to cum much anyway.

Of course, the Hofflers had to ask.

"You must get kind of lonely without your wife here, Joshua," Ben said. "How do you get along without her?"

Edgar and Ethan couldn't help it. They chuckled. Master smiled and said. "It is a burden, but I somehow manage."

"Your wife is a lovely woman, Joshua," Marian said. "You're very lucky to have her."

"I'm very lucky to have all of the people in my life. I feel very fortunate. I hope to see her in a few weeks."