A Wife's Life Among Savages Ch. 01

"Ok, I don't want to be part of your boring work. I'm going down to the bar to grab a drink," Jonathan said while leaving.

Kelly looked at her husband leaving her alone in their room with a man they barely knew.

"How about we go down to the lounge area? We'll have more breathing place," Kelly said to Kem, wanting to avoid being along with a stranger.

While noting down everything Kem was telling, Kelly realized that there was too much information to be documented in one day; both he and her were getting tired after four hours and it was getting late in the night. She let Kem go home and knowing Jonathan would still be in the bar, she went looking for him.

It was then, Kelly found Jonathan, sitting at the bar, visibly intoxicated, having a very friendly conversation with a young local girl, who was dressed in a very short, revealing dress. From the way his eyes lingered on her exposed thighs and cleavage, Kelly knew the dress was fulfilling its purpose.

The girl's very-western attire, high heels, heavy makeup and how the way she openly flirted with her husband, all indicated that she was a prostitute, who makes a living out of targeting horny tourists.

Kelly felt too ashamed to approach them and let others know that she was the wife of the man, who was drunk and flirting with a hooker. She remained unseen and felt sick from seeing her husband stroking the prostitute's thigh while sharing kiss. Then the girl whispered something to his ear, and he seemed to nod in agreement to whatever she had said.

Kelly watched as they stood up, and the girl led Jonathan out of the bar. She followed them at a distance and saw them disappear into another wing of the hotel that had cheaper rooms.

Kelly was still in denial that her loving husband, while still having his wife waiting for him in another room, was going into a room with a prostitute. She already knew her husband was having sex with other women, but this was a direct insult to her honor as a wife and a woman. She wondered whether she was that much undesirable; was she beneath that whore?

Kelly didn't want to go into that wing; the potential discovery of truth scared her. She didn't want to confirm the fact that her husband proffered a prostitute over her. She remained in trepidation for about five minutes before start walking into the wing; she wanted to face the truth.

The first thing Kelly noticed was, from several rooms she passed, moaning and grunting sounds were coming, indicating people having sex; that low-cost wing was serving as a brothel. With shaking legs, she passed each door, praying not to hear a familiar voice. Then she heard the thing she didn't want to hear.

"Ooh yeah, lick it good, bitch. You are going to get this big white dick in your black pussy, soon."

In answer to that, came a feminine giggle.

It was, without a doubt, Jonathan's dirty talk. Kelly was frozen in place, looking at the closed door with a 'Do not disturb' tag hanging on the handle. With tears streaming down her face, she lean her back onto the wood that separated her from her husband's infidelity, and listened to the sounds of his dirty-talking and occasional slurping and the giggling of a woman who was robbing her rights of marriage; the woman was being paid by her husband to insult her.

When bed-springs began to cry, accompanied by Jonathan's dirty talks, "Take it bitch, take it. I'm going to get you hooked on white dick," Kelly knew her lawful husband was completing the act of shaming her honor; fucking a whore when she was left wanting it.

Kelly slid down and sat on the floor while trying to best not to cry out-loud. Then, as if on cue, after about a minute, she heard Jonathan orgasm. After that, everything went quiet behind her.

Kelly knew she should leave. She confirmed the truth and she didn't like it; in fact, she wished she hadn't followed them. She wasn't mentally strong enough to confront her husband and accept the fact that she was bested by an unknown, local hooker. She wanted to pretend it didn't happen and go back to her artificial, happy life.

Suddenly, instead from the room, Kelly heard footsteps in the hallway. When she lifted her head, she saw a man and woman walking towards a room; it was clear that another hooker had found her pray for the night. Then, to her utter shock, she recognized the man; in equal shock, the man was looking back at her tear-smeared face; it was Kem with a girl who appeared to be half his age.

Kelly felt an overwhelming shame knowing Kem must have figured out what had happened: her disgrace. She saw an equal amount of shame appearing in his face from being caught red-handed. She just stood up and ran past them, leaving Kem speechless and the woman looking at both of them, in confusion.

Kelly ran straight to her room, ignoring any passerby. She fell onto the bed, crying. It wasn't a knew thing to find that Jonathan has been sleeping with other women, but this time, she was presented with solid proof; she could no longer convince herself that it was just a rumor or imagination. She hated the gut-wrenching pain it caused her, but she hated more the fact that she couldn't make herself hate her unfaithful husband. He had disgraced her in the worst possible way. It wouldn't have felt so painful if she had denied him sex, and he had gone to a prostitute as a result, but she had always been open for sex; actually she has always been more eager than him. She was always looking forward to their next love-making. She wondered what was wrong with her to make him pay a whore to get something she would have eagerly given him.

****************

Then next morning, Kelly woke up Jonathan sleeping besides her. She had fallen asleep while crying. She looked at his sleeping face and thought; maybe he had done that because he was drunk. She knew it was a poor excuse to fool herself, but it was enough to keep herself from crumbling; she still believed in a happy life for them.

When Kem came to see them after making final preparations for the journey, there was a huge awkwardness between him and Kelly. As previous day, Jonathan went to the bar, refusing to take part in the boring documentation. This time, she didn't want to go the longue; she didn't want to risk seeing Jonathan with another hooker.

In the room they pretended as if nothing had happened last night. Kem told Kelly about the tribe's language as she busied herself writing them down. During a short break, while sitting with Kem on the other side of the small, round table, she looked out the window and let out a deep sigh.

"Madam, I'm sorry about last night. I didn't expect you to be there," Kem suddenly said.

Kelly winced, knowing that now she has to talk about it with him.

"No, I'm the one who shouldn't have been there," Kelly replied while still looking out the window and hoping he would end the embarrassing topic.

"Those women are very cunning. They can trap almost any man in their snare. Especially tourists," Kem said.

Kelly couldn't decide whether he was trying to console her or defend Jonathan, but either way, it made her angry.

"Is that why you: another married man, were there too?" Kelly asked in a stern voice while turning to look him in the eyes.

Kem was taken aback by her sudden question.

"I know it is a wrong thing, madam. But my wife has aged and has lost any interest in sex. When I got some extra money from Mr. Jonathan, I was tempted to feel the warmth of a woman one more time. Unlike my wife, I still have my needs," Kem said in an apologetic manner.

"I'm sorry; I don't have any right to scold you. Especially when my own husband ignores me and go for hookers instead," Kelly said in obvious spite while looking back into the window; she wanted to hide the shame in her eyes.

"Even I don't understand why Mr. Jonathan would do that when he has such a beautiful wife waiting for him," Kem said.

"If I'm really as beautiful as you say, my husband wouldn't be paying women to have sex, don't you think?" Kelly said with a sarcastic smile.

Then Kelly felt Kem placing a hand on her knee from under the desk. She looked at him, in surprise.

"You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life, madam. The reason, after 3 years without sex, I chose to go to a prostitute last night was, being so close to you stirred my desires," Kem said while looking into her eyes.

Kelly was impressed by the forwardness of the old man. He was about fifty years old, and his age and experience has given him confidence. He has seen a beautiful woman in a mentally vulnerable position, and being too old or not, he was quick to try his luck.

Kelly smiled a little and said, "Kem, you are a handsome person, and I know I might look easy in my condition, but I still really love my husband. I can't blame you for trying, and kind of relieved to know that I'm still desirable to men. So... thank you for the compliment, but I'm sorry, I can accept your offer. I hope you'll respect that."

Kem slowly removed his hand and said, "I understand madam. I just had to try. Not everyone gets a chance to be with an angel."

It was obvious the old man hadn't give up yet. Kelly laughed and said, "Oooh, with your skill in words, I'm surprised you have to pay women for sex. Next time, try it on a local girl."

"I'll take your advice, madam," Kem said while laughing with her.

After that, there was no more awkwardness between them. By sharing something shameful about each other, they have quickly become kind of friends. Kelly knew Kem hadn't actually given up on her, but felt safe knowing that he could be trusted. In a normal situation she would have completely shut him off from her, but for the oncoming expedition, she needed his skills.

************

A day later, with two more people to carry all the equipments and luggage, Jonathan, Kelly and Kem boarded a small plane with ability to perform short take-offs and landings which was essential to make use of small landing-strips.

After taking off, Kem announced, "The landing strip we are going to use was constructed by Dutch missionaries about 5 years ago. The military has a communication tower setup there, so once in a while, they maintain the tower and landing strip. So it should be in good condition, but news is, they might even destroy it after closing borders; this might be the last chance for us to communicate with the tribe. The tribe is still couple days of walking away from the landing strip, but the plane ride saves us a month of trekking through the dangerous jungle and areas of cannibal tribes. Without the plane, it would be impossible to reach that place unless we are with a small band of army-men that are armed to the teeth."

It was a clear day, and from the elevated height of the plane, they were able to see a vast endless sea of greenery stretching under them as they flew over the thick jungle. The whole landscape was crisscrossed with spidery lanes of water ways that fed the large, green organism.

"It's so beautiful," Kelly said as she admired the view from the window.

"Yes, madam, but you cannot see the fangs of this jungle from up here," Kem said.

Kelly knew he was right; underneath the beautiful illusion, laid a hell that was designed to feed upon the weak. During the few days of preparation, Kem had taught them about the basic survival and some essential customs of the tribe. During those study sessions, he had made sure to teach them about the dangers of the jungle. He had said many times: "If you need to survive the jungle, the most important thing is to fear and respect it." She knew that, alone, she might not survive a day underneath that thick, green canopy.

After flying for few hours, Kem pointed at a small dot of clearing within the green sea; it was the landing strip. When Kelly saw it, she thought there was good chance they would die while landing on that poor excuse of a landing strip.

The pilot was skillful and even though it was a teeth-shattering rough landing, everyone survived.

While the porters gathered things to be carried, Kelly took a look around. It didn't take much time to get the feeling that the thick jungle was about to jump in and swallow them whole. She saw a group of wild boars at the end of the clearing, and the songs of numerous birds gave the atmosphere a touch of serenity.

"Is that the path to the Waraka tribe?" Jonathan asked pointing at a small foot path leading into the jungle.

"No, Sir. That leads to the communication tower; nobody lives there. Unfortunately, where we are going, we don't have the luxury of paths. We have to cut our way through the jungle," Kem replied.

Everyone got ready to head into the jungle and watched the plane taking off, isolating them in the vast rainforest. The porters were carrying important supplies, tools, tents, some can foods and medicine. Jonathan and Kelly were carrying their own personal essentials. She made sure to double check on the packing of film roles and batteries for the camera; they were essential for documenting the expedition.

"I hope they don't forget about us," Jonathan said while looking at the plane disappearing behind the skyline.

"The plane will come back in ten days. Don't worry, the pilot is only half paid; he'll get the rest only when he takes us back," Kem said.

"Good," Jonathan said.

"Ok, people. Let's start. I want to cover a good distance before the dark," Kem said while leading the group into the thick jungle.

As they entered the jungle, the first thing Kelly noticed was the sudden change of light; the dense weave of the tree canopy was blocking the sun. The porters pushed through the undergrowth and created a path, but ground was wet and mushy with abundance of water, making it hard to walk. This created a high humidity layer of atmosphere between the canopy and jungle floor, and made everyone sweat rivers.

At first, Kelly was glad that she had chosen to wear cotton trousers and a long armed shirt which protected most of her body from biting insects, but as they got soaked by her sweat and started hindering her body's ability to cool-off, she finally realized why Kem and the porters were wearing thin t-shirt. Soon Jonathan also took off his shirt and carried it on his shoulder. She also wanted to take off the thick shirt, but underneath it, only a thin singlet covered her bra. She had three layers of clothes that were turning her body into an oven, but felt hesitant to strip down in front of strangers; especially after what had happened with Kem.

Soon, the heat was over bearing and Kelly started to feel dizzy. Kem was the first to notice her unsure footing.

"Madam, are you alright?" Kem asked.

"It's just, I'm feeling a bit dizzy," Kelly said leaning into Jonathan for support.

"It is very hot today. You feel dizzy because your body is overheating. It needs to sweat of, but your soaked clothes are preventing it. I'm afraid, madam, you have to lose some layers or you'll be in a big trouble," Kem said.

"Yeah, don't worry. I'm here. Take off the shirt. It'll help," Jonathan agreed.

Realizing the truth in Kem's words, Kelly took off her soaked shirt. The white singlet was low-cut and showed an uncomfortable amount of cleavage. To make matters worse, it was soaked to the point of becoming almost transparent, making it stick to her body like a second layer of skin; it was as if she was wearing only a bra. She felt vulnerable; in their situation, exposing that much of her skin to the men was dangerous, but she didn't want to faint in the middle of a jungle.

After that, the group was making good progress, and despite noticing the porters', and especially Kem's, lustful gaze on her from time to time, Kelly felt cooler and comfortable.

Another thing Kelly learned that day was, the night comes to the forest floor very quickly. As the jungle started to get overtaken by a dark gloom, the porters worked to set up a camp site. They set up two tents: one for Jonathan and Kelly, and one for Kem and porters. The camp fire added a little comfort to the minimal accommodation.

After eating their dinner by the camp fire, Kem encouraged Jonathan and Kelly to sleep so they could start the journey at sunrise. Kelly looked at the surrounding and realized, beyond the reach of the light of their camp-fire, the forest was swallowed by pitch-black darkness. The constant, deafening siren of millions of cicadas, and the blood curdling howl of an animal, didn't give her any comfort.

Seeing Kelly's fearful expression, Kem said, "The porters and I will keep watch through the night; you can sleep without any worries."

Kem's words were enough to put Kelly at ease. After the exhausting trek, she was in dire need of some peaceful sleep. She followed her husband into the tent and despite the disturbance of animal sounds, fell into a deep, refreshing sleep.

***************

Next day, Kelly decided to wear some light clothes to fight off the heat, but conservative enough to avoid inciting lust. Despite feeling still sore from the previous day's trek, she managed to keep up with the men. As they went deeper and deeper into the jungle, she started enjoying, never seen, wild life all around her. Monkeys and birds were always there, keeping a watchful eye on the intruders, marking all their moments and alerting the whole jungle. The jungle floor was littered with insects, spiders and snakes; with the aid of Kem's watchful eyes, they managed to avoid any unfortunate accidents.

The group made good progress on that day and by the evening, crossed a deep stream, using the trunk of a big tree that had conveniently fallen across it.

After crossing the river, Kelly noticed that the tree was actually cut and made to fall across the stream.

"We are almost there. This is a handy work of the Waraka tribe," Kem said while inspecting the axe marks on the trunk.

Soon, they found a foot path through the jungle that lead to a large clearing in the jungle. Right in the middle of that clearing, Kelly saw the biggest tree house she has ever seen. She had read and knew about some New Guinean tribes living in tree houses rather building huts on the ground, but nothing had prepared her for the real thing.

The tree house was built on a decapitated, giant Banyan tree and was at least 30 feet off the ground.

As they approached the center, Kelly noticed the surrounding clearing was kept very clean; even the ground was dry and free of decaying leaves and crawling creatures. There were a dozen of pigs in a pen, and a young cassowary was prancing around as if it was a family pet.

Even when they came near to the tree house, they couldn't see any sign of people.

"Where are they? Did they leave this place?" Jonathan asked, puzzled.

"They are in the tree house; waiting, probably arrows drawn and waiting for us to make any threatening moves. You have to understand, Sir; these people do not get visitors very often, and most of the ones who come are raiding parties. Let me talk and get us welcomed," Kem said and started to talk to the tribe in their language.

During the two days at the hotel, Kelly had Kem teach her the Waraka language. Kem also didn't know a lot about their language; he knew about 23 verbs and 54 nouns, which was enough to establish basic communication.

Kelly had everything noted down in her journal, and she hoped to fill in gaps and build a complete dictionary; knowing their language well was essential to the purpose she was there.

It didn't take long to convince the tribe that they weren't a threat and were invited into the tree house as guests. The group laid their luggage on the ground and climbed the almost vertical pole, notched with foot-holds that served as a ladder.

A group of males were at the entrance welcoming the outsiders, and the group of children behind them was very curious to see the visitors and the strange white couple. Kelly was intrigued to see that the women didn't take part in the welcoming; they remained at the rear of the tree-house and watched the occasion.