Grandma Peta hiding from the slave traders
Saying goodbye to the woman abandoned
Click the puzzle piece to work a jigsaw puzzle
The Indigo Jewel
Chapter 4 - Arriving in Athens
Intro,
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8,
9,
10,
11,
12,
13,
14,
15,
16,
17,
Epilogue,
Afterward
I may be a slave, but my soul is that of a free woman. - Sophia (491-442 BC)
The next morning I awaken as the sun is rising in the group of women. We are held together by strong ropes to prevent our escape. Some of the women are young like me. Others are older. It appears they have taken everyone who is able to walk. I do not see grandma Peta, the matriarch of my village. I ask some friends what happened to her but no one knows. I must assume she was killed or left to die by our cruel captors. And what happened to the children? Are they in a separate group? There are many women in the group I have never met. Mine was not the first village they plundered.
"Why did you just walk in and let yourself be captured?" an older woman next to me asks. I don't recognize her.
"I want to stay close to my husband. He was captured yesterday," I reply.
"Well, I would have gone to another village to get help. It was only because we were surprised that we were not able to escape. A few dozen men could free us even now." She is obviously not happy with me. I can't tell her what the jewel has revealed so I remain silent. I touch the jewel hidden in a pocket in my clothes, but there is no response. It is silent too, as if it is trying not to draw attention to itself. I feel abandoned but I know the jewel will help me when the moment is right.
As soon as the sun is up, we are given a quick drink and everyone moves out. It is awkward walking while tied together. If someone goes too fast, they are jerked backward. If they go too slow, they are dragged along. Either way, it hurts and my wrists are getting sore from all the jostling. We walk most of the day with a short break to eat hard, stale bread. I can see Alec ahead of me tied with the men. He sees me too and looks confused that I am among the group. We are only allowed to speak in whispers, so Alec will have to wait for an explanation.
By the third day people around me are moaning and complaining in a chorus of misery. We are dirty, exhausted and sore, not to mention hungry and frightened. Each person is imagining the fate that awaits them at the end of the journey. My imaginings on the other hand are a little less anxious because of grandmother Maria's words before the jewel fell silent. I feel a comfort in her words that keeps me going, at least emotionally. It soothes my mind but not my body.
The next morning when we get up to leave, one of the older women can no longer stand. Our captors pick her up and the women help her along for a few minutes, but it is clear she cannot go on.
"Untie her," the leader barks. "Leave her beside the road. No one will buy her if she can't walk." It is clear this is all they care about.
She is pleading and reaching out to us as we start moving again. Each woman touches her on the shoulder as they go by, quietly saying goodbye. As we leave her behind, she slumps to the ground in tears. I want to turn around and help her but we are powerless against the cruel men.
On the seventh day we finally arrive at our destination. The city has huge stone walls with guards standing watch. They greet the slave traders cheerfully and look at us with curiosity. "They are monsters," I think to myself, staring back at them. The heavy wooden gate is closed behind us and we are taken to a large building with thick guarded doors. Inside, we are untied then given water and towels to clean ourselves from the journey. They also provide clean clothes to wear and food to eat. It is the first real meal I have had in a week.
The men are still separated from the women so I can't talk with Alec. I know he has questions, and I really can't answer them, but I long to hold and comfort him. The men of our village failed to protect us and they must feel a deep shame. Our lives were hard but at least we were free.
The following day we are taken to a large marketplace where many things are being sold, including slaves. One by one we stand on a wooden pedestal while rude men bid for us. The young fetch higher prices, while those who are older bring much less. Then we are led away to begin a life of slavery.
Alec and I are separated and I am taken to the house of a man named Empedocles. I don't see him for several days. The other slaves carefully teach me the rules of the house, and things I must learn to be useful here.
I am anxious to find out what happened to Alec.
Copyright © 2025 Elton Smith