Preparations

The sound of water could be heard. I was starting to dirty, as my last bath was in the not-wet pond.

I piled my clothes in the corner, not even bothering to fold them. John had left a towel on the other side of the cell. It slipped through the bars with ease. The towel was quite large, as it covered most of my body.

Footsteps. John was coming. He held keys in one hand and a gun in the other.

The cell swung open, and the words, "No tricks" rang through my ears. John was glaring at me. I stepped into the shower and yanked the curtain closed.

The water was lukewarm. I used a small bar of soap to wash my body. Other people had probably used it before. Gross. A small bottle of shampoo sat at the bottom of the shower. It didn't have much in it. I ended up using the entire thing. It smelled like strawberries.

The knobs in the shower creaked when I turned them. I felt cold when there was no more water. The towel was on the floor where I had left it. Once it was wrapped around me and I was all dried off, I walked over to my cell.

John was waiting with the door open. I walked in to notice a purple dress. No shoes. My other clothes had disappeared. Great, all my hard work was for nothing. Those clothes were only a few months old.

I made sure that John was gone before I let the towel fall to the floor. The dress fit me well. Can't believe John had found such a fitting dress.

"I'm done." I wasn't sure if John had heard me at first, but he walked over promptly.

"Very good." John unlocked the cell and lead me towards the chair with the hammer. I picked it up and followed him out the door.

A couple of men were setting up a small platform a the end of town, opposite of where the hotel was. In the center of the stage was a red painted ring. Was that where I would stand? John lead me onto the platform.

A couple of men stopped and stared at me. With big fat smiles on their faces. I responded with dirty glares. These idiots didn't look like they had the money to buy me. One person whistled and laughed. Ugh.

"Put it there." I snapped back into reality. John was pointing to the red circle. Realization struck me like a slap to the face. That was where people would line up to try their luck at lifting the hammer. I wish I could tell them they had no chance.

After the hammer was put in its place, I was escorted back to my cell. Only two and a half hours of waiting to go.

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I would rather be under the tree. At least then I had sticks to break. The hours had passed slowly, and my hair was dry and refreshed. And it smelled like strawberries.

John walked up to my cell. He was wearing a nice shirt, a fancy tie, and a creepy smile. The cell door creaked open. I looked at John's outstretched hand. He grabbed my arm and dragged me out the door.

A large crowd had gathered outside. Everyone seemed to feast on me with their eyes, hungry for a show.

I never quite knew what total humiliation was before the sale. Auntie had made fun of me, but this was worse. I was forced to look into the eyes of dozens of people.