The Aftermath

By: Jean-Christophe
(© 2011 by the author)

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

Chapter 4
Thursday. An Unexpected Early Morning Visit

As is his practise, Dave Matheson was in his office shortly after 7.30 AM. Today is shaping up to be a busy day for him. Apart from dealing with all the paperwork associated with yesterday's sale - and he is gratified to note that the prices realised on yesterday's stock are higher than the previous sale - he also has the scheduled showings of Andy Trevorrow's two slaves. And if that isn't enough, he has to work on the finer details of Saturday's auctions.

There will be the usual fifty slaves on offer; the majority of these will be the untried and unbroken new stock from the northern wars. He has to decide where to place Andy's slaves in the order of sale. They are, without doubt, the prize offerings of the sale and he needs to ensure that they mount the auction block at the optimum time. Past experience tells him that if they are among the first lots offered for sale, there could be insufficient numbers of buyers present to bid for them; conversely if he places them at the end of the sale the same problem exists as most people will have purchased their slaves and left the auction.

Rationally, Matheson decides to place them at the halfway mark; the blonds will be offered as a matched pair at Lot 25 and the older slave as Lot 26. He knows that, at this point of the sale, most buyers are caught up in the dynamics and excitement of the event and that this leads to spirited bidding for the slaves on offer. So sure is he of a sale to his client, the casino owner, he doesn't bother to include the fourth slave.

These thoughts are interrupted as his secretary, Sandra, enters his office.

"Good morning, Sandra". Dave frowns at this interruption. Sandra knows only too well that he doesn't like to be disturbed at this early hour. "What is it? You're not going to give me any problems, are you? As you can see I'm snowed under with paperwork from yesterday's sale."

"Good morning, Mr Matheson. I'm sorry about disturbing you. However, I have two ladies in reception asking to speak to you."

"Who are they? What do they want? I suppose they're collecting for charity, as usual? These charity workers have a nose for money and always know to call the day after a sale. Look, give them the usual amount and see them on their way, will you?"

"They're not collecting for charity. It's the Middleton sisters, Miss Harriet and Miss Martha and they say they have to speak to you personally."

Dave is taken by surprise. The Middleton sisters are well known in the community and are considered a force to be reckoned with. They are `old money' and belong to one of the old, pioneering families of the state. As early settlers in this part of the world, the original Middleton's had selected huge swathes of land from which they quickly established themselves among the wealthiest and most powerful families. They have always been prominent in both business and politics; indeed their late father, Hugh Middleton II, had served as state governor and is still respectfully referred to as the late 'Governor'. Their brother, Hugh Middleton III, is currently a member of the state's legislature. Dave, as much as he would have liked to, has never had any dealings with any of the Middleton's. Therefore, the presence of the two sisters is completely unexpected and disconcerting.

"Did they say what they want?"

"No they didn't. And I don't think they would appreciate me asking. It's you they want to speak to."

"Well, show them in and perhaps you can rustle up some coffee and something to eat?"

Anxious to create a favourable impression, Dave quickly tidies up the paperwork on his desk. Then moving to the opposite side of the desk he places two chairs in position as the two sisters enter the room.

Quickly Dave assesses the two women. Both are elderly with greying hair, and are expensively dressed in subdued colours. They are devoid of any ostentatious display, and each wears a single-strand, pearl necklace. The older of the two, Miss Harriet, is the eldest of the three children of the 'late Governor'. She is tall, slim, and ramrod straight. Both her appearance and demeanour are haughty and autocratic. Miss Martha, the youngest of the three Middleton children, on the other hand, is short and plump. Her appearance is that of a person whose true personality is repressed and she seems always to defer to her older sister.

"Good morning, ladies. This is a delightful surprise. Please sit down and make yourselves comfortable. I've asked my secretary to fetch some coffee and ......."

"Yes. Quite so. Thank you, Mr Matheson," Miss Harriet cuts Dave off in mid-sentence. "However, we'll forego the refreshment if you don't mind. My sister and I seldom take coffee so soon after breakfast"

Dave is quick to note this obvious snub to his hospitality but, in the interests of possible business, decides not to show his annoyance".

"I understand you want to speak to me, Miss Harriet? May I ask about what?"

"I hear from a very good source that you have a pair of matched slaves in your establishment. Is this so?"

"Yes I do. They're two young slaves who were brought in yesterday and are to be sold on Saturday".

"What can you tell us about them? Are they really a matched pair?"

"Well they're not twins if that is what you're asking. However, they are so alike they could be brothers. I believe they were enslaved in their young teens and bought for use as farm workers. They would be around nineteen or twenty now and are truly magnificent young slaves. They are blonds with blue eyes, and both have strong, muscular physiques; truly beautiful, young animals."

"I like what I'm hearing Mr Matheson. We have been looking for such a matched pair of young slaves for quite some time now. Unfortunately, they don't come on the market very often".

"You're right of course, Miss Harriet". Dave replies as he senses a genuine interest in the two slaves. "Slaves like these two are rarely available. May I ask if are you interested in them and if so, for what purpose. The reason I ask this is that these two will be eagerly sought after and I expect them to command a high price".

"As you are no doubt aware, we have a small estate called 'Belvoir' on the outskirts of the city. We moved there from 'Beauchamp', the family plantation after our father died. Our brother, of course, still lives on the plantation when he's not away in the capital. Anyway, our more modest establishment only covers five hectares of lawns and gardens and we're looking for slaves to help maintain these".

"How many slaves are you looking to buy? At the moment we have some excellent stock in the holding pens; fresh from the northern wars and all new to slavery. I would think they'll sell for lower prices than the pair you express an interest in. It's possible you could buy three, possibly four of these slaves for the same amount of money"

"No! I don't think they would be at all suitable. As you say, they are wild and unbroken. We really don't want the bother of training them. We'd much rather purchase tame slaves. I take it, these two are tame?'

"Indeed they are. They've been slaves for six years and have only had one owner in all that time. And as field hands they're used to hard work and they are whip broken."

"The slaves we're looking for will need to be strong and work hard, as one of their main duties will be to keep our lawns trim. They'll spend quite a lot of their time harnessed to the mowers especially over the spring to autumn growing season Another of their duties will be to pull our rickshaw to church on Sundays and to take us shopping or visiting. That's why we want them to match; I can't abide seeing mismatched slaves in harness."

"Well they're strong enough for the mowers. However, I'm not sure about carriage pulling; they haven't been used in harness as far as I know."

"That doesn't matter. If we buy them then they'll be sent out to 'Beauchamp' for proper harness training before we use them around town. In the interim we'll keep using our current pair."

"Is there something wrong with your current ponies?"

"Oh, there's nothing wrong with them. It's just that we feel like a change. Our current two are in prime condition and once our new slaves are broken into harness they'll be re-located to the plantation. You know what they say; a change is as good as a holiday."

"I take it you don't use horses?"

"No! We don't use horses. We decided against a horse-drawn carriage in favour of rickshaws several years ago. Unlike horses, slaves are self-grooming and have enough intelligence to harness themselves to a rickshaw. In that regard, slaves are a lot less bother than horses. And of course, a rickshaw is lighter, faster, and more manoeuvrable in traffic. You simply point the slave in the right direction and with a bit of guidance and "encouragement" you arrive at your destination in no time at all. It's all so much easier than driving a horse."

"Look Miss Harriet ... I have to say I have some misgivings about you using the pair as ponies. They are two very strong slaves and I think perhaps a little on the large size."

"Mr Matheson. I really don't like the use of the word 'ponies'. I would much prefer the term 'harness slaves'. True ponies are noble creatures used for recreation such as saddle-riding or playing polo. They provide pleasure to their riders and are not to be compared with a slave. After all the sole purpose of a slave's existence is to work, is it not?"

"Of course, you are right. I assume you have a driver to drive your carriage?"

"Most certainly not! I'm more than capable of driving my own rickshaw. My father, the late Governor, taught me how to drive and handle slaves when I was twelve."

"And what about you, Miss Martha, do you drive, too?"

"Who me?" For the first time the younger sister speaks. "Goodness me, no, no, I don't. Harriet does all the driving. But I do use the whip on the slaves to speed them up. It saves Harriet the trouble........."

"Alright, Martha. I'm sure Mr Matheson doesn't need to know that." Harriet interrupts. Let's get back to discussing the slaves. You say they are to go to auction on Saturday, Mr Matheson?"

That's right, Miss Harriet."

"What I'm about to say is a little delicate, Mr Matheson and I rely on your discretion. As you know it's not the 'correct' thing for women to attend a slave auction and of course none of the Middleton family would ever publicly bid for a slave. We'll be represented at the sale by our brother's plantation manager and he will bid on our behalf. Of course we'll set a limit on the bidding."

"I don't see a problem with that, Miss Harriet and if you give me the name of the manager, I'll deal with him personally. No doubt he'll want to inspect the slaves before the auction and I can arrange a viewing for him."

"Well, umm! This is the delicate part you see and I do need you to be discreet, Mr Matheson. You see we wish to inspect the slaves ourselves. My father impressed upon me, at an early age, that you don't buy 'sight unseen'. I know it's not customary for women to inspect slaves. However, we grew up on the plantation, so the sight of naked slaves is one we are both familiar with. We wish to make sure that the slaves are what we are looking for. I do hope you understand and allow us to view the slaves for ourselves. If they prove satisfactory, then we will inform our brother's manager of our wishes."

Uncharitably, Dave Matheson suspects the two 'old girls' motives. Perhaps these have less to do with buying 'sight unseen' and more to do with getting their hands on the muscular bodies of the two, young slaves.

He recalls the rumours that both sisters 'enjoy' their male slaves; this isn't unusual; in fact, many of the city's well-to-do matrons use their young, male slaves as an alternative to their indifferent husbands. These rumours also recall that, as young girls, both sisters enthusiastically used the young 'slave-meat' on their father's plantation.

Rumour has it, that Martha, as a girl, had a reputation for flightiness. Matheson finds it hard to believe this of the timid creature obviously living in her sister's shadow. Older residents of the city also whisper of a scandal involving seventeen years old Martha becoming pregnant by a handsome, young slave in her father's household.

Unsubstantiated as this story is, many old timers nevertheless point to the fact that, at the time, both daughters and their mother were absent for an extended period, ostensibly on a world tour.

Certainly, after their return, the social lives of both sisters were under the constant, strict surveillance of their parents. This parental supervision, no doubt, resulted in them becoming life-long spinsters.

If his suspicions are correct, Dave suspects it won't only be the muscles of the two slaves that will be put to 'hard labour'; no doubt their cocks and tongues will also be well exercised. He shivers at the thought and almost feels sorry for them. Still, they are slaves and such are the vagaries of a slave's life. His only duty is to their owner, Andy Trevorrow, on whose behalf he has to ensure a good sale.

"Let me re-assure you, Miss Harriet. Your request to view the slaves isn't all that unusual. It's not generally known but quite a few ladies ask to inspect their prospective purchases. For that reason we have a special 'ladies' viewing lounge' discreetly placed in an isolated section of the complex. Here you can inspect and examine the two slaves, in private, without anyone seeing you. Would you like me to set up an inspection at a time convenient for you?"

"Yes please, Mr Matheson." Does Dave detect eagerness in Miss Harriet's voice or is it just his suspicious nature? "What about now? Can it be done whilst we're here?"

"Of course, if that's what you want. But I'll need to leave you two ladies alone while I contact my steward to set it up. Do you mind being left alone? Can I order you refreshments while you wait?"

"You're very kind, Mr Matheson. My sister and I will wait for your return and 'no thank you', we won't bother with refreshments." Dave notes this second refusal of his hospitality.

Once Dave is out of the room, Martha speaks for only the second time.

"Harriet, Mr Matheson appears to be a nice man. He's a perfect gentleman, wouldn't you agree?"

"Really Martha! You exasperate me. How could someone like Mr Matheson be a gentleman? He's a slave-dealer and he dresses appallingly. He's cheap and common. No Martha. I'm afraid that Mr Matheson is definitely NOT a gentleman."

Suitably chastened, Martha lapses into silence as both sisters quietly await Dave Matheson's return.

After some ten minutes he re-enters and tells the sisters.

"Well ladies, the slaves are ready for your inspection. If you'll come with me I'll take you to them."

"Thank you, Mr Matheson. However, we do have our slave, Waldo, waiting for us in the foyer downstairs. He's our house steward and is in charge of all our slaves. If you permit, we would like him to be present while we inspect the slaves. He can do all those things that we don't feel comfortable with; like positioning the slaves for us to view. And we do value his opinion when it comes to assessing the suitability of a slave for our household. Do we have your permission?"

"That's not a problem, Miss Harriet. I'm happy to oblige. I'll send a slave downstairs and have him taken to the viewing room for you."

To be continued...

Posted: 05/13/11