chapter 28

I looked up at the brass skull mask, unable to tell from the eyes behind it whether the Auctioneer was still listening.

"That was yesterday," I said. "Abigail kept me busy and I have not seen Carolyn since, but I am sure the Katherine kept her stuffed as she promised. Please, I am begging you - don't let Carolyn be sold on!" I hoped my story would move him to take Carolyn off the sales list, but of course, it did not. He was a business man after all. In his deep, booming voice, he told me that if I wanted to take Carolyn home with me, I would have to pay like everybody else. I looked around at the other bidders, and my eyes caught the Duchess' smug face.

"She's going to make one huge pie. I better tell my chef to start making a lot of pastry," she shouted across the room with no shame. She did not care who heard her and why would she? Everybody in that room, myself included, was guilty of something; it may not be as extreme as murder and cannibalism, but I could not imagine that "I kidnapped and fattened her," would be looked on any more favourably because I could add, "but at least I didn't eat her."

The Auctioneer called for silence and Abigail helped Carolyn onto the stage. Carolyn had such a large round belly, completely and solidly stuffed, that walking was impossible without help and her breath was in short gasps. I could tell that every movement cased her stretched stomach immense pain, and the relief on her face was clear when Abigail helped her to a large armchair. The Auctioneer motioned to his assistants who opened a gate at the bottom of a staircase which led up the side of the stage.

One by one, the bidders walked up, poking and prodding Carolyn, feeling her fat and occasionally feeding her from a box of cakes next to the chair. Despite her painfully stretched stomach, Carolyn had been force fed into submission and did not seem to care as long as she was being given food.

I followed the Duchess and she made a point of feeding Carolyn the biggest cream doughnut in the box and saying, so I could hear, "Oh my! You have fattened so well! You are so solidly packed, you will be a juicy treat."

Carolyn looked up confused as she licked the sugar from her lips. "What do you mean?" she asked.

The Duchess grinned at her. "What do you do with a fat pig? I am going to take you to my castle, slaughter you and use all of this fine meat." She squeezed Carolyn's thigh. "This will make a good ham for Christmas!"

Carolyn seemed to realise for the first time what was happening and tried to stand, but the Duchess simply shoved an iced cupcake into her mouth. "Don't fight it," she said. "Adrenaline will spoil your flavour!" Then she turned to me. "Say goodbye to your well fattened girlfriend."

I looked up at Abigail. "That is the answer," I said. The doctor frowned at me.
I smiled at Carolyn. "Don't worry. I will get you out of here; I won't let them eat you."

I turned towards the bidders and put forward a case.
"I have told you all how I met Carolyn and how I was instantly attracted to her. I told you how I brought her here and watched as you over-fed her, more and more each day. Yes, it excited me and yes, I enjoyed seeing her fatten so beautifully, but I never for one second thought she would be used for sexual pleasure or food!"

The Duchess laughed. "You are way out of your depth, idiot boy," she heckled.
I nodded in agreement.

"Yes, I am," I said. "So, I am asking you all... No - I am begging you all. Please do not bid against me."
I turned to the Auctioneer. "With my commission from Jayne which I have not received yet and with a deduction of the commission due from Carolyn's sale price, I can pay less than your other buyers and still technically bid more." All those higher maths books I read must have stuck in my mind!

I turned back to the crowd. "Please," I begged. "Let me take her home - For love!" I looked up and saw Abigail shaking her head sadly. At first, I thought it was because she had no hope for my cause, but when I caught the expression on her face; somewhere between disappointment anger. She turned away from me and although her reaction confused me, I did not have time to think about it as the Duchess was yawning theatrically. She opened the bidding at one million US Dollars.

I realised that those maths books had not stuck in my mind, and only gave me false confidence. I was trying to convert US dollars to British pounds, work out my commission, see whether I could afford to outbid the Duchess and then shout it out. I thought my head was going to explode, so in a panic, I bid four million. The Duchess looked at me sideways, clear disgust showing on her face, and then raised to five million.
I really was not sure I had enough, but I raised the bid again, this time to seven million. If I could just get rid of the Duchess, I would sort out payment issues later.

The Duchess responded angrily by shouting "ten million!" and she added with a withering look at Carolyn, "You'd better be very tasty!" I could see the fear showing on Carolyn's face. I was pushing my luck with seven, so there was no way I could beat ten and the Duchess knew it. She smirked at me and make a big show out of licking her black lips. I turned to Carolyn but could think of nothing to do or say. I looked to Abigail, hoping she had an idea, but at some point during the bidding she had left unnoticed.

"Do something!" Carolyn screamed at me.

"If she opens her mouth again," snapped the Duchess, "Stuff a cake in it! My pigs do not squeal unless I speak to them first."

"Twelve million," came a heavily accented voice from the back. Both the Duchess and I turned to see the new bidder, and there was Prince Khalid. He bowed to both of us politely.

"Fifteen," yelled the Duchess.

"Twenty," said Khalid calmly, looking at his finger nails. Then he smiled up as the Duchess. "I can outbid any amount you name and you know that. Just accept you lost this beautiful lady."

The Duchess stamped her feet angrily. "Even that fat hog isn't worth twenty million," she shouted as she stormed from the room adding "and I am not wasting that much just to make her into sausages!"

I climbed onto the stage and knelt beside Carolyn feeling overwhelming sadness.

"I am so sorry I got you into this," I muttered. "But Price Khalid seems a decent guy, compared to the Duchess at least." Carolyn did not reply. She did not seem able to bring herself to look at me.

"You will be given everything you ever want in his palace; more than I could ever give you," I continued, "but this will have to stay and he will probably want it to get even bigger." I rubbed her soft round belly, feeling the warmth and smoothness, and could not resist a squeezing to feel the thick fatness of it. Despite the circumstances, it was an experience I thoroughly enjoyed. Prince Khalid walked up behind me as his assistant completed the necessary paperwork for him to take ownership of Carolyn.

"Your Highness," I said with a small bow.

"Please, call me Khalid," he replied. "I would be honoured to call you my friend, and a friend will not bow to me." I looked at him, confusion on my face, and he laughed loudly.

"You brought me plenty of girls for my harem," he said. "All very fat and all very happy and that makes me very happy." As we were talking his assistant approached, bowing and handed him the transaction receipt, which he immediately held out to me.
"But this one is for you," he said.

I looked at the receipt and
then up at him bewildered. My mind just could not process what was happening.

"Take it," he said, forcing it into my hand. "This is my payment to you for your years of service."

I started to stammer a thank you, but he cut me off.

"You need to get moving," he said, "The Duchess does not like losing and will think nothing of stealing Carolyn if she can. You may have noticed that I have had a team watching her, and another one to protect the doctor at all times. The Duchess would love to get her teeth into Abigail!"

I was on autopilot. I muttered something about not being able to get home.

"I have a private aeroplane especially designed for somebody Carolyn's size, well, much bigger actually. Use it to go home. My pilots know a small airfield in Scotland where the Customs work for me. You can get into the country with no questions asked and all papers signed. It will look legal, but of course, it's not." Khalid laughed.

I did not know how to thank the Prince, but I took his advice and got Carolyn onto the flight as quickly as I could, which was not very fast. I had no idea where Abigail was and the Prince's pilot was keen to get us away from the island, so we set off for home, with only a brief stop-off for refuelling and change of pilot in the Middle East.