by J W Murison
‘Is the uh other one with you; your third wife, we have yet to be introduced.’
Graun closed his eyes, ‘she is on her way and I would advise against trying to beat her up, she would transform into an eagle and rip your arm off.’
‘I will try and contain myself.’
‘I would be grateful.’ He left her standing there. Mary let out a long sigh, it hadn’t gone quite how she expected, however better than hoped knowing Graun’s temper. She wasn’t alone for long. The beating of wings alerted her to a visitor. Wynonna appeared from nowhere. Marys jaw dropped, this woman was much larger than his serving girl, full bodied and large breasted, even in the highlands her beauty would be remarkable.
Mary was at a loss at what to say first, ‘most people use the door.’
‘This is my home and my window is my door.’
‘At least you are dressed.’ Although Mary would hardly consider the short shift as a dress.
‘I am Wynonna; Graun’s other wife, his Eagle wife.’
‘I am Mary his first wife and only wife for fifteen years, mother to all but one of his children.’
‘I saw what you did to Chloe, do not try it with me, I will kill you.’
‘I am not a weak little serving girl Wynonna, I am a Highland woman and my strength rivals that of some men I know so do not challenge me it would not be wise.’ Suddenly Wynonna didn't seem quite so sure of herself and Mary pressed home her small advantage. ‘I am not here to cause trouble; Chloe became very emotional and attacked me, so I beat her. It was not how I wanted things to be, however I will make my position quite clear right from the start. I am Graun’s first wife, his first true love and I will be treated with respect in this household.’
Wynonna thought it over for a moment, ‘I will treat you with the same respect you show me.’ Her eyes glassed over for a brief moment, ‘I am needed, I must go.’ She left the way she had came and Mary sighed with relief, this meeting had gone a lot better.
‘Wow,’ Mary snapped round, it was Wilma.
‘How long have you been hiding there girl.’
‘I was here in case you needed me Mama. She is something else isn’t she?’
‘You saw her then?’
‘Could hardly miss her Mama.’
‘How are you feeling girl?’
‘Not sure Mama, feel bad towards Dad putting you in this position.’
Mary shook her head, ‘don’t blame your father girl, I made a bad decision and he followed his natural instincts.’
‘Will I lose William to another woman in a few years?’
‘I can’t answer that question Wilma, but you might end up having to share him.’
‘I’d cut his dick of first.’
‘Don’t be stupid,’ Mary snapped. ‘You might get off with that if you lived in the Highlands and you will be living at the court of the Eagle King so you may get away with it, but from what I have seen and heard of this place there is at least ten women to every man maybe more. If a woman wants a man here then she had better be prepared to share him.’
Wilma shuddered, ‘then I'm glad we aren’t staying here.’
‘Count your blessing Wilma. If I get a chance I will speak to your father tonight about your wedding.’
Wilma looked at her mother, ‘I think if you wish to speak to father then we had better get you some new cloths. I heard one of the servants call us the smelly women.’
‘Are you trying to tell me I need a bath?’
‘We all need a bath mother and clean clothes or we are going to get a bad reputation.’
Mary sighed, ‘and to do that we are going to need money and that damn girl.’
CHAPTER 41
Chloe tried to run from the room but realised the servant’s quarter she was hiding in only had the one door. She had been feeling sorry for herself all day since Graun gave her a gruff rebuff. He had already talked to Mary and she had given him an accurate assessment of the previous day. Now the witch herself was standing in the doorway with her arms folded.
‘Stop behaving like a child Chloe or I will take you over my knee like one.’
Chloe had been shocked by the woman’s strength the evening before and could see by the look in her eye she meant it. She calmed down, ‘what do you want?’
‘We need cloths, Graun gave us some money but I'm not allowed to go spend it without you being present.’
Chloe’s chin lifted, ‘give me the money.’
Mary hesitated for a moment then handed over the purse. Chloe looked over the gold coins and tucked the purse into her belt. ‘Have you got your brood with you?’
Mary gritted her teeth, ‘yes they are right behind me.’
Chloe sniffed, ‘then let’s go.’
She led them out of the palace and down to the market. Mary had never seen so many people before and realised this girl could have her and her children’s throats cut in a heartbeat and she wouldn’t see it coming. Lucky for her Chloe’s devotion to Graun was complete and she would never consider hurting him in such a way. She did consider taking them to the tent maker as a joke but decided it wouldn’t be wise. One black eye was enough.
Many of the traders knew her by sight and called out trying to get her attention. She ignored them and went to the finest and quickest. They spent the whole afternoon at it and the girls soon warmed to her although Mary kept her distance. Despite herself Chloe really began to warm to the girls especially Wilma who was to soon marry William. She had been lonely in the palace this past year and welcomed the company. She still had many friends amongst the servants, but they were always busy and a few had become distant since she had become a great Lady. It occurred to her that now she had an extended family, what she hadn’t wanted was a mother figure in her life. She watched Mary warily and wondered what Graun could have seen in the woman in the first place. She finally came to the conclusion he may not have had much choice in the matter.
By the end of the afternoon Mary and the girls were dying in the heat. It rarely got this hot in the summer at home and she had been assured this was the winter. A half dozen servants carried the packages back to the palace and the baths began. Mary had the youngest bathed first then Wilma and finally herself.
Chloe had returned to her room and was now helping the clean girls get dressed in their new finery. The royal hairdressers were having the time of their lives with so many young women to attend to at once. Chloe was sitting watching the transformation with a leg swinging idly. Mary could see something behind her eyes and eventually got tired of it.
‘Ok spit it out Chloe, what’s on your mind.’
‘Who gets him tonight?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘What do you think I mean!’
‘Oh that, I see.’
‘Wynonna will be fine, she’s with him all the time so we don’t have her to contend with tonight but it still leaves me and you. It’s a simple case of does one get him all night or do we share.’
‘OH, I hadn’t really thought about it.’
‘Well time to start thinking about it. I haven’t had it in months and I'm gagging so there's no way I'm stepping aside and letting you get him all to yourself, so do you want him tonight or not?’
‘I suppose I do.’
‘Then it’s a simple case of who gets him first. Remember she who gets him lasts gets the snoring as well.’
‘Do you think he will be able for both of us?’
Chloe laughed, ‘in a heartbeat, but she who gets him second gets it for longer, but as I have said she also has to put up with the snoring.’
Mary shook her head, ‘do we have to share cant we have a night each.’
‘He might not be hear that long. If they find Gareth he will return to the fleet, he told me that himself, so we have to make a decision.’
Her smile irritated Mary, but she also realised there was very little she could do about it. She also realized this was normal for Chloe and she was dealing with the situation so much better. She sh
uddered at the thought of Graun touching her after he had been with Chloe. ‘How do you normally decide these things?’
‘We normally take turns, however in a situation like this we flip a coin.’
‘What’s that?’
Chloe produced a coin, ‘I flip this into the air, it has two sides, one with a head. Heads or tails. If you win you get to decide or we flip for first or second.’
Mary knew she couldn’t decide, ‘let’s flip for first or seconds then.’
Chloe knew she had copped out, ‘ok heads your first tails I am; fair.’
‘Just do it please.’
Chloe tossed the coin and they both looked, it was tails and Mary felt sick. Chloe stood, ‘I’ll send him through to you once I'm finished with him.’
Wynonna returned soon after and looked the new Mary up and down, ‘you look quite striking when you are all done up. I'm exhausted; I'm having a bath and going to bed. I have no idea what time our husband will be home so don’t ask.’
‘What have you been doing all day?’
‘Out looking for Gareth, he has disappeared off the face of the Earth and everyone is shitting bricks.’
‘Really?’
‘They aren’t saying much but they are all sweating like pigs.’
‘Graun told me Gareth leaves them pretty much well alone, lets them run everything.’
‘He keeps a watch over them and for the most part they are happy to plod along doing their jobs as long as they know he is there. Most of them are very young for their posts.’
‘Why?’
‘Because Gareth and our husband slaughtered their predecessors.’ She told Mary the story of their arrival as she had been told it from Chloe. Mary shuddered at the tale not sure what was worse, the slaughter or the sexual orientation of the men they killed.
An hour later Graun blew through the doors like a hurricane. A single roar brought his children running. Mary’s heart almost stopped when Brandi ran into his arms. Graun caught a glimpse of the look on her face and knew the longing. His anger and confusion at her arrival began to slip a little. His life had been simple up until now. He missed his children and Mary and still loved her, but these two wives looked after him well and tended to his every need. They got on well and rarely argued. In a matter of hours Mary had turned that upside down. Mary had given Chloe a good beating, attempting that with Wynonna would end up in serious injury for one or both parties, but he knew instinctively to let them find their own peace with each other.
Servants arrived with food and the children joined him at the table, they had already eaten but he encouraged them to eat some fruit. Wynonna kissed him on the cheek and bade him good night, then she kissed and gave Brandi a cuddle too. After his meal he sent them all to bed. From a look from Chloe that made her grit her teeth Mary took her queue to leave as well. Chloe led Graun through to the bath.
Two hours later he appeared dripping wet at her door with nothing but a towel round his waist. Mary realised that despite the good food he was probably leaner than she had ever known him. His skin was darker to and his muscles bulged and rippled as he dried his hair.
‘You look nice,’ he told her.
‘Thank you,’ she replied, relieved he was fresh from another bath and not Chloe’s bed. He took the towel off and she couldn’t help but notice his penis was unnaturally big and red despite the fact that he wasn’t erect. It made her feel sick knowing he had just fucked another woman.
‘I can see by the look on your face you’re not interested. That's ok I'm pretty tired anyway.’
Mary covered her face with her hands, ‘what was I thinking Graun coming here?’
‘It beats the shit out of me Lass. It took me a fucking age to gather the courage to write that letter.’
‘Aye but by that time the whole of the highlands knew about your new wives and so did I.’
‘Really, I didn't know.’
‘We aren’t as isolated as we once were Graun, we have eagles coming and going every week and travellers with news.’
‘Oh! I didn't know, I'm sorry.’
‘I should be the one who is apologising; I let you down as a wife. I should have came with you when you first asked. I just didn't believe you. So here I am. Lying in bed with my husband who just fucked another woman not knowing what to do now. I want you but I feel repulsed as well.’
‘I suppose I had better do something about it then.’
He rolled on top of her and she tried to fight him off but he had taken her by surprise. She cried out in horror as he slid inside her and then in passion as he fucked her. She came to a screaming climax but he want finished. He pulled out and rolled her onto her belly and lifted her to her knees. Her second orgasm was bigger than the first and her third with him almost knocked her out. She lay trembling for an age afterwards.
‘Wow,’ she eventually managed. ‘What the hell was that?’
‘A damn fine fuck was what that was,’ he growled sleepily.
She watched him slip away to sleep and smiled, maybe going second wasn’t quite so bad after all.
CHAPTER 42
‘Where the fuck have you been,’ Graun growled.
Gareth grinned, ‘been doing a bit of farming.’
Graun shook his head, ‘right I'm heading back to the ships.’
‘Been a bit hot for you around here has it?’
Graun scowled at a grinning Scout, ‘actually every things fine with me.’
‘Glad to hear it. Why are you rushing away then?’
‘I'm not; I have work that needs done there.’
‘Catch you in a couple of days then. You can tell me all about it then.’
They shook hands and Graun left.
Gareth sent for Grey Eagle first. Gareth took him down to his private spot by the rocks where they could watch the sea. Grey Eagle sat down beside him.
‘I have given your proposal great thought Grey Eagle and am willing to accept this treaty with your daughter as a wife to bind us by blood.’ It was easy to see the relief on his face.
‘You fill our hearts with joy Gareth.’
‘I don’t want you to say anything about this to anyone for the moment. Give me time to let my subjects and my other wives know. How is the ceremony done.’
‘There is a pool of water high in the mountains that my people visit, it is a simple ceremony. You go and drink from an ancient stone cup and that is it.’
‘Same thing for the Golden Eagles. They built a great city around their sacred spot.’
‘I know I saw it on my visit.’
‘You weren’t impressed by their great city.’
‘No not really. Do you wish us to hold a celebration after the ceremony?’
‘Ask Amber, I’m certainly not bothered.’
‘She only wishes to return to sea with you,’ Grey Eagle seemed relieved and Gareth wondered just how many of his people actually wished for this. ‘If there are to be no celebrations here either then we will return home straight away.’
He went and collected Amber and they left within the hour. Gareth never even got a chance to see her but he really wasn’t bothered. He had enough to do as it was. He managed to grab a quick snack with the children before matters dragged him away again.
He looked down a long list of names of people who had been condemned to death. Most of them had committed petty crimes. He had already tried to stop this practice but in reality there was no other punishment available. He considered cutting the hands off thieves as he had heard some did, however that would lead to more beggars on the streets. In Gareth's mind if a man had both hands he could work. Gareth just couldn’t bring himself to condemn men women and children to death simply because they tried to steal a loaf of bread because they were starving.
He and Graun had talked about this during their voyage at great length. Many of the towns and city’s were near lawless because of his purges. Not all the towns had sheriffs and for many that did the sheriffs were old men or crippled soldiers. He needed
men on the ground, he needed judges. His eyes flicked up from the list and he ran his eyes over the young man who stood and waited patiently. There wasn’t a single sign of fear in the young man. Gareth knew he would probably want to be somewhere else as all young men did, but there was no sign of that on his face either.
He continued putting his initials against names signing their death warrant for the most serious of cases. He realised the extra workload was his own fault. After seeing a messy execution he had asked for all such executions to be put through the palace for review and now he was paying the consequence with a shit load of extra work. He finished with the list and gave it back to the young man who looked at it and sighed.
‘What are we to do with all these others Sire, they cannot go unpunished?’
He nodded to a servant who had been waiting in the wing, a golden one walked through and joined them. He bowed low, ‘Sire, at your service.’
Gareth nodded, ‘welcome Dante, this is the young man I was telling you about, he is my keeper of criminal records. Jolo, this is Dante, as you can probably tell he is of the golden people. Dante is an engineer a builder of Roads and is looking for employ. He has told me the cheapest way of building a road is with free labour. You Jolo will supply him with it. I have written up a guideline for all these petty thieves and criminals. A first crime and petty one will get them up to six months working on the roads at the magistrate’s discretion, repeat offenders will get longer. Refusal to work will result in an automatic death sentence. Dante has put together a special team and from now on you will report to him, or one of his men.’ Gareth stood, ‘I will leave the two of you to get acquainted. If you will excuse me gentlemen it has been a long day.’
They bowed low but Gareth never missed the look Jolo gave the golden man. it made him smile. They wouldn’t starve on those roads either, Gareth had seen to that. The prisoners would also be offered a job at the end of their time and Gareth suspected the prospects of a decent meal at least once a day would keep the work gang’s full of able bodied men and women, the children could look after the animals.
