Chapter 52

During the morning, Lauren spent her time either avoiding Maria or looking at her watch, counting the minutes before four o'clock. Maria had carefully laid out some juvenile clothing for the girls - pale yellow floral print dresses with large white buttons down the front. Lauren held hers against her body and grimaced. Five years ago she could have worn it in mid-summer, but her tastes had moved on. But her dismay was tempered by the fact that Maria had delivered thin, almost see-though briefs, cut high and short that accentuated her dark thighs and the firmness of her buttocks. As the morning wore on, Emma seemed to accept that Lauren had told mostly the truth, and that their fate was to be decided that afternoon. Her sulky silence gave way to small talk, followed by outright babbling, until just after lunchtime when the two girls returned to their room. Emma slipped over onto Lauren's bed and nestled down against her shoulder, lightly cupping her breast.

"Can't see why Maria didn't get us some decent clothes earlier" said Emma, the warmth of her breath tingling her nipples.

"No reason to. You're going to look good in yours, you know."

"And you. You always look beautiful. You could wear a potato sack and look good."

"Maybe if it was over my head." said Lauren, smiling at the thought.

"That's stupid."

"No, you're the pretty one"

Lauren felt a tightening in her throat as the tiny fingers toyed with her nipple. Her heart beat loudly as their bodies warmed together, legs entwined, their warmth shared as both their shirts rode up. She knew it would be a simple matter to reciprocate, to lift her lips up to her own and gently kiss her, even just to cup her buttocks and trail her fingers through the young valley. But she resisted the urge, settling for a tight hug and a kiss to her forehead.

"What do you think they'll want me to do?" asked Emma.

"I'm not sure. I think Maria wants you to have sex with her uncle. He's a General in their army. Seems to control most of the south."

"What else?"

Lauren shrugged, barely disguising her shock at the question. She had at least expected protest, tears, fear in the young girl's eyes. "I don't know any more, I'm sorry." Lauren shifted, dis-entangling. "But I'll be there". She swung her legs over the side of the bed, taking the opportunity to glance between Emma's young thighs. "If they do anything disgusting, I'll get them to stop." Silence. Lauren felt her sphincter tightening, concern rippling through her body. She thought of home, Switzerland, warmth and security. For the hundredth time in less than a week, she wondered if they should have stayed in Boquette rather than venture out with all the other refugees.

"Lori, I'm sorry if I shouted at you. Really I am." said Emma. The little girl's legs parted slightly.

"It's OK. We're all very nervous, right? Tell you what, let's have a long bath together".

Delightedly, Emma bounced off the bed and headed with Lauren to the bathroom. For the next hour, they played like two schoolgirls in the bath. Outwardly, their giggling and splashing might have seemed to be carefree, expectant. But their glances into each other's eyes betrayed their fears. And as the water drained away and the minutes slipped by, the chatter died down.

The sound of strangers could be heard in the house, and during a sudden flurry of activity, Lauren sensed the General's arrival. Maria strode into the room less than ten minutes later. She wore makeup, delicately enhancing the depth of her eyes and the sensuous curve of her lips.

"Good, Lauren, come here" she commanded, standing just inside the doorway, looking down at a spot less than a foot in front of her. Lauren slipped off the bed and stood as ordered, feeling Maria's hands over her buttocks and between her legs, fingers gliding along the length of her labia, caressing her through the sheer fabric. The woman looked over her, checking her hair, pulling the dress away from Lauren's chest to make sure she was wearing nothing else.

"Good girl. Did you have a bath?"

"Yes, about an hour ago."

"All clean?"

"Yes"

"Everywhere?"

Lauren shrugged. "Yeah."

Maria leaned forward, kissed her cheek and took her hand. "Come! Emma, you'll have to wait here. We have so little time today, the General has to be out of here before five- thirty, so don't fall asleep, OK?"

Emma smiled radiantly at Maria, causing Lauren to look quickly between the two girls as she tried to understand Emma's reaction that seem to border on enthusiasm. Hand in hand, Lauren trotted barefoot behind Maria out from the room towards the lounge. She could hear voices in the down the hallway, expectant, excited, certainly more than two or three people. Maria pushed the door and the faces turned towards her.

Lauren noticed that the General was sitting on the sofa, clothed in army fatigues, bright bars across his chest and a hat on the cushion next to him. The curtains in the room had been drawn, and two standard lamps were all that had been provided to light the scene. At least fifty years old, the General looked fit, almost respectable. His clean shaven face betrayed years of outdoor punishment, rugged, almost pothole, with deep, dark eyes and the beginnings of a smile. Lauren decided that the smile was one to encourage performance, rather than to signal affection. Two youngsters, a boy and girl, sat squeezed together on one of the fireside chairs where Lauren had slumped on many a boring afternoon watching the television. Behind the sofa, chairs had been arranged that were now occupied by what looked like the Generals entourage, both men and women, all younger than him by at least twenty years.

Maria grinned excessively as she approached her uncle. "Uncle, this is Lauren. As I mentioned, she's the au pair of Emma, the girl who wants to entertain you this afternoon. Lauren has prepared her, and in fact, has introduced Emma to some of the wilder pleasures of sex!"

Lauren shot a glance at Maria at the distortion of the truth. She thought better of protesting that it was a mutual seduction, anxious not to turn the afternoon, already out of her control, into a court martial. Lauren heard giggling from behind the sofa, clearly not from the seated adults.

"Lauren, sit down here on the floor near the big chair. You can help during the first little play that these two are going to put on for our entertainment." Maria guided her firmly, pushing her to the floor with unnecessary force. Lauren tried to make out more details of the other figures behind the sofa but the poor light revealed little else. The carpet itched against her thighs so she pulled the short dress under her legs as she settled down to watch.

"Now, let me introduce you to Julie and Juan" said Maria, sitting down next to her uncle. "Both of them were refugees that we found as part of the international effort. They've got their papers to travel, and wanted to thank you with their little show!" Mild applause followed, giving Lauren a chance to determine the sincerity of the two teenagers. Both looked as though they came from wealthy families. Their skin was pure, unblemished, hair cut properly. Julie, sitting on the left, had a warm, round face, huge dark eyes and high cheek bones which enticed. Straight, thick black hair fell over her shoulders, and her eyes were fixed on her partner who was squeezed next to her on the big old chair. He looked strong, handsome in a local way, dressed similarly to Julie with a buttoned shirt and blue jeans. Neither of them wore shoes or socks. Lauren watched as Maria rested her head on her uncle's shoulder and nestled into him. Her hand slid precariously along his thigh, giving Lauren enough reason to believe that either he wasn't her uncle, or such family connections meant little in San Falino. She turned back to the two adolescents, noticing that the boy's left hand had begun to roam.

Lauren caught herself enjoying the entertainment from the very start, her attention fixed on his hands and the warmth that the girl must be feeling as he felt along her hips, pulling her a little closer to him as they debated the timing of their first, timid kiss. Lauren was lost in a dream world, unsure whether she would like to be the boy or girl snuggled into the chair. Julie's eyes closed as the boy leaned forward, his hand pulling her towards him as she simply held his elbow, cautious, almost embarrassed. Their lips touched, sticking delightfully as they pulled away. Opening their eyes, they smiled at each other before leaning again to kiss sweetly, longingly, indicating, at least to Lauren, that their intentions were to provide more than a few minutes of their display. She realised as well that they were enjoying themselves, free from any coercion, or threat to perform, a thought confirmed as they both slid deeper into the chair, a smile on the girl's face as a hand disappeared underneath her shirt, caressing her back.

Lauren glanced at the boy's jeans, determining without doubt that his cock was rigid, pushing against his zip in an effort to break free. Maria's fingers had also moved, now trailing lightly over the General's trousers. Julie moaned quietly as Juan pushed her shirt higher up her back. Lauren shifted on the floor, her pussy complaining about it's confinement and the way she was sitting. She moved, rearranging herself, catching a smirk from Maria as she checked around the room.

Reality hit her, catching her thoughts before they raced away on yet another dream- like voyage. Once again, she had allowed herself to be trapped, surrounded by people who were less than scrupulous, intent on sexual satisfaction at almost any cost. Yet again, her safety was probably in danger, and again she was not in control. Lauren ran wild thoughts around in her head, trying to determine how she ended up like this, after all the warnings, all the signs and a number of opportunities to rectify her situation. She recalled the theoretical balance she had conjured up, where she tried to weigh her sexual adventures, good and bad, to arrive at a balanced existence. She calculated that she was deep in the red with her unknown bank manager. A final moment of reason posed the question whether she would leave if she was offered a chance, but the boy's hand pushed Julie's shirt high up her side so that the firm swell of the underside of her breasts came into view and Lauren felt her pussy surge with pleasure as adrenaline shot through her body.