She mulled over their conversation from the previous night. He didn’t want her to have sex with other men. He wanted her to stay with him forever, wherever they ended up. She scowled. No way was she prepared to live anywhere but her beloved home, Refrainia. She hadn’t even considered being with anyone but Rechavia but now the thought crept into her mind as a plan began to form.
Ligia had already cleaned her house and was sweeping the rocky path outside when Kalliope appeared carrying a large Elmwood leaf and a couple of shawls. “Where’s Aitan?”
“Hi, Kally. He’s gone to help Rechavia in the bottom field I think. What’s that for?” The gorgeous redhead frowned.
“We’re going on a trip,” Kalliope announced. “We’ll need food and something to put on in case it gets cold.”
“Cold? Where are we going?” Ligia was surprised as it didn’t get cold on Refrainia except sometimes a little at night, but they were never out that late.
“Eastland. I’ve worked it all out. I’ll explain on the way.”
Ligia gathered up some food and extra shawls and scooped them up in a large Elmwood leaf. “We can grab more leaves on the way,” she said as they left her hut.
“We need to take Ademia, too,” Kalliope stated as they passed the hut that their friend shared with Melantho and Sapphire.
“Really?” Ligia and Kalliope had remained good friends with Ademia after they moved out of the hut, but lately they had been pre-occupied with their partners, and Ademia seemed to spend a lot of time with the doctor and his friend, Farris.
They found Ademia and Melantho stacking some small rocks at the back of their hut. There was a little area of grass and flowers and at one edge they seemed to be constructing some sort of dry stone wall. They looked up as the other two arrived, glancing curiously at their baggage.
“What are you doing?” Kalliope asked in surprise.
“We’re making a small area for something called a barbeque,” Ademia explained, panting.
“Farris is going to show us how to cook food in a whole new way,” Melantho added excitedly.
“Oh.” Kalliope wasn’t impressed. “Ademia, we need you to come with us, it’s real important.”
Ademia frowned. “Where? I need to finish this first.”
“There’s no time, it’s already getting late. This is to save the island. Get your shawl, we need to leave now.” When Kalliope wanted something, there was no reasoning with her.
Ademia sighed, looking at the pile of rocks in front of her.
“It’s OK. Sapphire can help me finish off, there’s not that much left to do anyway,” Melantho assured her friend. “And Hebe and Naida said they might drop by later, too.”
“Come on, we need to take a boat and you’re the only one that can drive one,” Kalliope urged irritably
“A boat? Where on earth are we going?”
“Eastland. We need to see Zigor before it’s too late.” Kalliope was becoming exasperated now.
“But I’ve never actually driven the boat. I only had a little go the other day,” Ademia protested.
“You’re all we’ve got. Come on.” Kalliope was becoming ever more agitated.
With a resigned sigh, Ademia headed into the hut and grabbed her shawl.
Kalliope led the way to the jetty where the small boat with the outboard motor stood aside the little coracles.
They all piled in, and Ademia straddled the seat by the motor as the other two sat down, making themselves comfortable with the thick Elmwood leaves. The large, blonde girl checked that the boat was in neutral and squeezed the primer bulb on the fuel line.
“What are you doing?” Kalliope sneered, earning herself a harsh stare from Ligia.
“Priming the motor. I think we need a little choke,” Ademia said, frowning.
Ligia coughed. “Will that do?”
Ademia rolled her eyes, though Kalliope laughed. She pulled out the handle, then yanked sharply on the rope. It took a few attempts, but eventually the engine fired up, roaring into the still, warm air. She adjusted the choke until there was a smooth, idling sound as the engine ticked over, and ensured the throttle was at a slow speed. Accidentally slipping the boat into reverse, she jolted as the other two suddenly screamed at her.
“Look out!” Ligia pointed to the edge of the jetty, which was becoming ever nearer.
“Oops.” Ademia promptly put the boat into the forward gear and they set off. She steered the boat using the handle, a little shakily at first, but she soon settled into a steady pace.
“Phew! I thought you were going to kill us all!” Kalliope grumbled, a little jealous of the blonde girl’s competence.
“She’s doing us a favour, Kally!” Ligia pointed out. “Gosh, what is wrong with you today?” She was quickly becoming exasperated.
“Rech only went and asked me to marry him!” Kalliope sounded incredulous.
“But that’s wonderful,” Ligia exclaimed with a massive smile, and gave her friend a big hug.
“No it isn’t! What on earth would I want to do that for?” Kalliope snapped.
“What?” Ligia jerked back with a horrified expression, “You mean you said no?”
Ademia sighed, shaking her head at the beautiful black-haired girl.
“You don’t understand.” Kalliope shrugged and turned to face the sea. “He wants me to be like Amaranda. He said we’d be just like her and Eban. There’s no way I could live like that.”
“Amaranda’s hasn’t been well since she left Refrainia,” Ademia mused.
“Yeah, and look what happened to her. She nearly burned to death! She’s still not recovered properly and now she just keeps being sick all the time.” Kalliope threw her hands in the air as she turned back to face them. “She was really miserable when she got to Westland, according to Rech. Eban was really worried about her.”
“So, does Rech want you to go to Westland?” Ligia felt a jolt in her stomach. She had known Kalliope all her life and couldn’t stand it if she left.
“He just said we’d be together wherever we ended up.” Kalliope’s voice was becoming angrier. “He’s not convinced we’re keeping Refrainia. He doesn’t care enough. That’s why we’re going to damn well do it ourselves.”
“Ooh, what’s the plan?” Ademia’s eyes shone bright with excitement, as she twisted the handle toward her to speed up the boat a little.
“I’m going to seduce Zigor and, Ligia, you’ll get Benat to come and take a photo of us in bed together,” Kalliope announced, a grin playing across her lips for the first time in hours.
“I like the sound of that,” Ademia cooed, “but I don’t think Rechavia will. Are you sure you’ve thought this through?”
“Of course she hasn’t. When have you ever thought anything through, Kally? You know it’s a bad idea, you’re just trying to get back at Rech. This will just hurt him.” Ligia was annoyed.
Kalliope was indignant. “I have thought it through, actually. I’m not actually planning to do anything, I’m just going to convince Zigor that if he lets us have the island to live on he and I can still see each other. He wants me to go and live with him in his big house but I want to stay here. If he thinks he can still see me whenever he wants to, he might just make money out of the flowers but let us still live on the island.”
“But why would he let us stay? I don’t get it.” Ligia huffed.
“I’ll tell him that Rech wants me to go and live with him on Westland so Zigor won’t ever see me again. He’ll be so devastated he’ll do anything to keep me close by. I think he’s falling in love with me.” Kalliope grinned.
“But why would Zigor worry about what Rech wants?” Ademia frowned.
“Because Rechavia scares the shit out of him.” Ligia’s eyes widened as she realized the extent of the plan. “You want Benat to take a photo so you can blackmail Zigor! If Rech sees the picture he’ll kill the bastard with his bare hands. You really have thought this through haven’t you?”
Kalliope nodded with a sel
f-satisfied grin. “Oh yeah.”
* * * *
Ademia chose a large, empty spot by the harbour wall to moor the boat, giving herself plenty of room to manoeuvre. It was actually a lot easier to handle than she had feared, and she soon put it into neutral and cut the engine, as Ligia jumped off and went to tie off the ropes. The beautiful redhead had seen Aitan tie clove hitches many times to secure the fishing boats, so it came easily to her.
The girls had used most of the travelling time to preen themselves, so they emerged gracefully from the small boat onto the jetty and set off toward the town. They had each tied a shawl round their waist, a rather large shawl in Ademia’s case, and wore flip-flops with their bikinis. There were wolf-whistles from the dockworkers as they passed by, which made Ademia blush, though the other two took it completely in their stride.
“How are we going to find them?” Ligia murmured as they headed up the main street.
“We can ask someone. Zigor’s very powerful around here, everyone’s bound to know him.” Kalliope was quite confident, as she shook out her long, straight black hair, which hung right down to the middle of her back.
“You can ask someone,” Ademia corrected, feeling a little self-conscious alongside the two beautiful girls. Her round body wobbled slightly as she walked along, her shorter legs not looking quite as elegant as her friends’.
They came to a bar with tables outside where people sat eating and drinking. It was around teatime so the place was getting quite full. Kalliope sidled up to a couple of young executives who stood by the outer wall of the building, drinking. They grinned as she approached them.
“Hi, gorgeous,” the uglier of the two spoke.
“Hi, guys. I was wondering if you knew Zigor Durango? He’s a friend of mine.” Kalliope spoke seductively, eyeing the better looking of the two men as she spoke.
The ugly one spoke again. “No, never heard of him, but if it’s company you ladies want I’m sure we could take his place.” He gave her a slimy grimace that made her shudder.
“It’s OK, we’ll keep looking for our friend, thank you,” Ligia intercepted, pulling Kalliope away in case she started getting any ideas.
“Yeah, thanks anyway.” Kalliope shot a smile to the lesser creepy guy and they strolled on.
“Ugh, I don’t know how you can talk to them like that,” Ademia remarked once they were out of earshot.
“Well, Zigor must be well-known around these parts, I was sure they would know him,” Kalliope said with a puzzled frown.
“Excuse me, did you say Zigor? As in Durango?” A very thin, wiry man, dressed in a pale suit and pink tie stopped as he passed them.
“Yes, she did. Do you know him?” Ademia asked straight away.
The man chuckled, wrinkling his pointed nose. “Who doesn’t?” he said incredulously.
Those other two guys for a start, Kalliope thought, irritably.
“Quite. Do you know where we might find him?” Ademia had suddenly found her confidence.
“I’m not exactly sure. I’m just on my way to meet up with his best mate, Benat Ugarte. Do you know him?” The skinny guy seemed to have taken a liking to the larger girl, and Ademia blushed as he held his hand out to her. “I’m Palben, by the way, I work for Mrs. Loidi.”
Ademia shook the man’s hand with a smile, and introduced herself and her friends. “We’re friends of Zigor, well, Kally is really, we just…er…know him,” she explained.
“We know Benat too, can you take us to him?” Ligia asked with a smile.
“Of course. He’s probably already propping up the bar, it’s the one down there,” Palben replied. “You know what Benat’s like where booze is concerned.”
Ligia was shocked. She hadn’t really taken any notice of how much Benat had drunk when they had their picnic, but now she came to think of it, he certainly had a lot more than anyone else.
“He likes his drink, then?” Ademia commented chattily as they accompanied the man down the busy street.
“Oh yes. He’s always in a bar somewhere when he’s not working, and sometimes even when he’s supposed to be working but don’t tell him I told you that.” Palben leaned toward the blonde and whispered surreptitiously. He also had blond hair, but his was much paler than hers, almost white in comparison.
Ademia giggled. “Let’s hope he’s sober tonight then.”
Luckily, Benat Ugarte was still relatively sober when the three gorgeous girls appeared with his friend at the dimly lit bar at the bottom of a very winding street in what looked like a nice part of town.
“Ligia!” His mouth was wide open and he looked stunned.
“Hi Benat, I thought I’d pay you a little visit,” Ligia said with a smile, trying to sound casual. She walked over to him and he automatically put an arm around her tiny waist.
“I didn’t expect you.”
“Well, aren’t you going to offer the lady a drink, Ugarte, not to mention the rest of us?” Palben prompted.
“Oh, of course. What would you like to drink?” Benat suddenly stood upright and got straight to the business of ordering a round. The girls weren’t sure what to ask for, but he made it easier by buying a bottle of wine as well as some beers.
“Is Zigor around?” Kalliope tried to sound casual as she sipped her white wine and looked around the crowded bar.
“No, they—he went home,” Benat stuttered.
“Oh, is it near here?”
“Durango’s place is down near the courthouse,” Palben replied with a shrug.
“That’s not far then,” Ligia said, remembering their previous visit. “Is it easy to find?”
“Yeah, it’s in the really nice area just down the road from there. It’s the biggest house in the street, blue it is, you can’t miss it.” Palben took another swig of his beer, as Benat started on yet another bottle. “You better go easy on that stuff, Ugarte, you’ll need a steady hand for that camera. Do you know what time they’re due?”
Benat looked at his watch, a little irritated by his friend’s reminder. “About twenty minutes. Your boss will want you on best behaviour too, mate.”
“That’s why I’m taking it easy, buddy,” the blond man said with a sly grin.
“Oh, are you working tonight?” Ligia asked Benat as she slid elegantly onto a bar stool next to him.
“Yeah, I’ve got to take some pictures of the poncy Governor when he gets here. Bloody waste of time if you ask me.” Benat took another long swig of his beer.
“Watch your language in front of the ladies, buddy.” Palben shot his friend a warning look. “The Governor of Westland is coming over so Ugarte’s got to take some photos of him being welcomed by my boss, Mrs. Loidi and the Governor of Eastland,” he explained to the girls.
“So, why’s he meeting your boss?” Ademia attempted to climb onto a bar stool next to Palben but wasn’t quite able to clamber up. He held out a hand to help her and she eventually perched on the little stool, which she found rather uncomfortable. With both men now seated in the middle and Ademia and Ligia at either end, no one seemed to notice Kalliope slip away.
“You don’t know Mrs. Loidi then?” The blond man said with a grin. “She’s not only the owner of one of the biggest firms on Eastland, she’s also the richest woman here now that her old man’s passed away. Left her loaded, he did, that’s why Durango’s taken such a liking to her daughter, Yera.”
“Her daughter?” Ligia’s ears pricked up.
“Yeah, they’re engaged to be married, didn’t you know?” Palben said with a wry grin. ‘Everyone knows he’s only interested in her Mom’s fortune, but he’s playing the game really well. That’s why he wants to buy that island for her, to impress Mommy.”
Benat snorted. “She’d have to be rich or no one would look at her twice.”
“So he wants to buy the island to impress his girlfriend’s mother?” Ademia looked quizzical.
“He wants to buy it for his fiancée in order to impress his future mother-in-law,” Benat correc
ted. “Yera is a florist, or training to be one. Mommy wants her to have a successful business, so Durango, being the dutiful son-in-law, buys her an island full of expensive, rare, exclusive flowers so she can run her business and make him loads more lovely money. Meanwhile, Mom-in-law is so impressed at his generosity to her dear daughter that she welcomes him into the family and bestows some of her generosity on him! It’s win-win. He can’t lose, the crafty bastard!”
Hmm, we’ll see about that, Ademia thought, ruefully.
Chapter 11
“There you are!” A high-pitched shriek came from the doorway as a very large lady in a billowing red dress with matching fascinator sailed in, followed by a short man with a large beer belly spilling over his waistband.
Everyone in the bar turned to stare at the odd-looking couple, and Palben immediately rose to his feet.
“Oh, just one Governor then?” Benat sneered as he looked over. “Fancy that!”
“Which one is he?” Ligia whispered.
“That’s Dunixi Osabene, our local waste of space.” Benat didn’t even try to keep his voice down. “Looks like the Governor of Westland hasn’t made it. What a shame.”
Ligia frowned at his loud voice and sarcastic tone. He didn’t seem in the least surprised that their guest of honour hadn’t appeared, though she felt a little disappointed, having hoped for a chance to speak to the influential man before tomorrow’s court hearing.
Palben took an ice bucket with champagne and some wine glasses from the barman and set them out on the counter, just as the couple arrived.
“Thank you, dear,” the lady bellowed, obviously very at ease with all the attention which she attracted. She handed a glass to the Governor, who helped her onto Palben’s stool, no mean feat judging by the sounds of grunting and huffing involved. Benat vacated his stool for the Governor, and began clicking away with his camera.
Submission of the Siren Page 10
