A surprise bid

"FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND EURO."
The words echoed through the room in a heavy Middle Eastern accent. Everyone looked up to see who had spoken them, but the darkness of the balcony concealed his identity. The master of the room stepped forward.

"500,000 euro. Does anyone contest this?" he said, looking side to side. "No one?" again, silence. "Last chance to contest..." he said. I looked up, sweating and exhausted. Waiting for the words to drop like a hammer on a nail.

"Sold." And just like that, I was sold. Owned. The highest price thus far. Omar looked at me, and shrugged. A small consolation was that no desert bedouin would be able to make such a bid. The horror, of course, was that someone had seen what I'd done and had bid almost three quarter of a million dollars for me, to do God knows what...

"Gwen, I had hoped to purchase you for myself, but I simply cannot outbid this man." Omar said. I nodded, a sad smile parting my lips. Hands were at my side, and I was quickly ushered away to a side hall.

A silken robe was draped over my shoulders in the hallway. It was like a dream as I was led to a side room. The door slammed shut, and there he was. A black sillouette behind an amber light.

"Gwen. Have no worries. I mean you no harm...nor violation." the voice said. "...well, not yet; anyway." He spoke with a different, though still Arabic, accent than Omar and Safi. I couldn't place it. He spoke well. Perhaps educated in England, or even America. "Now then, clean yourself up. We have a long flight ahead of us." My attendant quickly ushered me to an adjoining room. I never did get a good look at him.

The bath was of the Turkish style. Large, more like an inground pool. Three other girls, all beautiful locals, were waiting for me. They wore thin white slips and black silk veils. After the day I'd had, I resolved myself that no matter what lay ahead, I was going to enjoy this moment of comfort. I let my robe fall from my shoulders as they approached. Wordlessly, they communicated with glances from their brilliant amber eyes. Warm water from soft sponges and gentle hands cleaned my body before I was guided into the steaming bath water. They washed my legs, my arms, my tender sex.
I wondered if my "owner" would insist on such treatment for me in the future.

"You also clean the meat before the slaughter." I thought to myself. Who was this man? What did he have planned for me? I had no idea, but I'm sure I was about to find out, one way or the other.