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Setting: Harem Days "Wake up, girl! Make yourself presentable. It is almost time for the choosing." Sarah groaned at the sound of the harsh female voice. Her head hurt. It hurt a lot lately. Her memory returned with a jolt. The coffin! She jerked awake. She wasn't inside the glass enclosure any longer. Her rapid breathing eased. Thank goodness. Where was she? She looked around in confusion. She thought she'd be back in the old west now, but she could see that she definitely wasn't. What she did see were scantily clad women everywhere. They sat around a large sunken tub, which looked almost big enough to be a swimming pool. She glanced down at herself, and her eyes widened. She was wearing a costume right out of I Dream of Jeannie. She didn't figure she'd turned into a genie though. By the way she and the others were dressed, she speculated she was in some sort of harem. She noticed two large men guarding the double-doored entrance. Neither of them was D.K. She wondered where he was. The woman who had rousted Sarah clapped her hands. "Line up, girls. He will be here any minute." At that moment, the double-doors opened. Two large men entered, followed by a tall, authoritative-looking man. He was followed by two more large men. Was one of them D.K.? Sarah hoped so. He had to be the one in the middle--the authoritative-looking one. The others looked like professional wrestlers by their brawn. If only he'd look her way ... The tall man strolled down the line of women, looking and smiling at each one. When he got to the end of the line, Sarah saw him frown. Slowly, he turned and searched the room until his gaze fell upon her. Sarah's heart skipped a beat. It was D.K. A bit darker than usual, as if he'd been born in the Middle East somewhere, but it was D.K. nevertheless. He strode purposefully toward her. He'd recognized her. She could see it in his eyes. She breathed a sigh of relief. D.K. stopped in front of her. He glided his hand down her arm and winked, then turned to the woman who'd hustled the girls into a line. "This one." He indicated Sarah. "She is new, Your Highness. Perhaps it would be better--" "This one," he repeated, sterner this time. The woman lowered her eyes. "As you wish." D.K. led Sarah from the room. The four guards flanked them as they proceeded down the hall. They all stopped before another set of doors, and the two guards in front pulled them open. Sarah entered behind D.K. "Thank goodness we're--" He turned quickly and placed a finger to her lips. "Shhh ..." He led her farther into the room. Only when the doors closed behind her and she turned to see two of the guards standing inside did she understand why D.K. had hushed her. She gave him a look that clearly said, What now? He pulled her over to the large bed, positioned atop a sort of platform. She tugged against his hold. "It's all right," he whispered in her ear. "Climb on up." She climbed the two steps and sat down on the bed. At D.K.'s urging, she scooted over to the middle of the plush mattress. He pulled the curtains around the bed closed, then slipped inside the shelter. "This is the only place we can talk freely," he whispered. "Supposedly there's some assassin after me, and I'm to be kept guarded at all times. I'm glad I found you. I thought maybe--" A thud drew their attention. The curtain around the bed whipped open. One of the guards lay crumpled on the floor, the other stood before them, evil etched on his face. Before D.K. could react, the burly guard wrapped his hands around D.K.'s neck and squeezed. "No!" Sarah screamed, pounding at the man's arms. "Let him go!" The guard removed one hand-hold and shoved Sarah against the headboard. "Quiet! He must die." She collided against the hard, thick wood with a thud and sank into unconsciousness. |