by Jessica Ryan
She turned and started to leave, hoping that this would be the end of it, but Alek loudly cleared his throat, stopping her at the doorway.
“Yes,” she asked, turning slowly.
“Have one of the other maids fix your dress,” he said. “And report to Raylene first thing in the morning. I will have new duties for you.”
“Yes, Alek,” she said.
“My name is Aleksander,” he informed her.
“Yes, Aleksander,” Mara said, feeling her face growing hot and her hands growing shaky. She was so upset she could barely stand.
“Be gone, maid,” he spat, before turning back to his meal.
Mara rushed out of the room. She didn’t stop until she was back in her bed chamber with her face buried in her pillow. Why was she so upset that the man holding her captive had turned on her? It didn’t make any sense that it affected her so much, but that night she cried herself to sleep.
Chapter 11
When the next morning came Mara did not want to get out of bed. Her eyes were puffy and her face was swollen from crying the night before. Priya and Abigail had tried to console her when they came to bed, but Raylene had forced them to leave her alone and go to sleep. They couldn’t help anyway; they didn’t understand what she was going through. Alek—no, Aleksander—had never shown the kind of affection to them that he had shown to Mara. She was alone and trapped with a dragon she had angered and women who were too busy trying to please him to see her plight.
Raylene was waiting beside the bed with a large jug and an oversized cloth.
“Welcome to the world of the living, dear,” she said sarcastically.
Mara could tell Raylene didn’t like her: the way the maid was always ordering her around, always looking at her with jealous eyes and always finding ways to put her down had been apparent from the get-go. She had been with Aleksander the longest and didn’t like the new meat coming in and usurping her spot as favorite.
“I’m awake,” Mara said. She felt miserable; her head was pounding and her face hurt.
“You’ve been reassigned,” Raylene said, holding out the jug and cloth.
“What’s this?” Mara said, looking at the thick, white cream that was in the jug.
“It’s for polishing precious metals,” Raylene said.
“What?” Mara asked, looking up and curling her lip.
“The master has reassigned you to the treasure hoard,” Raylene said. “You are to polish the coins and items he has counted the day before. You are not to speak to him or approach him. Is that clear?”
“Yes,” Mara said, feeling another stab in her heart.
“Your bath privileges have been revoked as well,” Raylene said, giving Mara a knowing smile. “At dinnertime you will not clean the cauldron and you will no longer bring the master his food.”
“Right,” Mara said. “I got it.”
“Do you, dear?” Raylene asked, leaning over toward Mara’s face. “I told you to leave it alone. I told you not to break the master’s routine and to just be a good girl who does what she’s told. But did you listen? Nope. Now you’re paying the price.”
“I guess I am,” Mara said, wanting nothing more than for the fat old shield wife to shut up.
“You’re just like the master’s shiny treasure,” Raylene finished, shaking her head as she headed for the door. “He may get distracted by your gleam, but eventually he gets bored and goes back to old reliable Raylene.”
“Good for you,” Mara muttered under her breath.
She took her time, shuffling and dragging her feet all the way to the treasure hoard. Instead of taking the path that she had taken earlier in the week to escape, she took the left path, winding her way down into the hoard. It wasn’t hard to find the pile of treasure that had been set aside for her to clean and polish.
Mara cursed her luck and cursed her station in life as she began to clean each coin meticulously. The goop she was using to shine them was sticky and smelled like spoiled milk. She had to cover her nose while cleaning to avoid retching several times.
“This isn’t fair,” she said aloud. “All I did was ask questions. Is it so wrong to be curious about the man who’s holding you captive? What’s wrong with wanting to know about his life and where he comes from? He’s obviously interested in me. Why can’t I be interested in him?”
Mara had never felt the sting of rejection as much as she had over the last several weeks. First Val had gotten her hopes up and made her think a handsome knight was interested in her, before bringing it all crashing down with his attempted rape and then sacrifice.
Now it was Aleksander. It was crazy to think she could have any kind of relationship or future with a dragon, but as she had noticed him becoming more and more interested in her she had begun to hold out hope that something amazing and wonderful would happen with the dragon.
“I’m just a stupid little village girl,” she said, sighing as she picked up a jewel encrusted scepter and began to polish it hard. “It would have been funny to take a dragon home to meet my family. What am I saying? He’s holding me captive. I can’t have any future with him.”
This was the first time Mara had really confronted the feelings she had for Aleksander. He was attractive, well spoken, very intelligent, rich and he showed more interest in her than any man she had previously met. Was it really that silly of a desire?
She enjoyed pleasing him, she couldn’t deny that. His approval made her heart smile and his lustful gaze sent chills down her spine. But he had said he’d never have sex with a human.
She continued to vigorously clean the scepter, taking the thick rod in her hand and rapidly running the cloth up and down its length while gripping the head of the scepter in her other hand. As she continued to clean she felt her forearm burn, but she pursed her lips and continued, determined to make every piece of treasure shine like it was brand new.
The jingling of coins falling against one another made her stop and look up. Her eyes caught the great dragon’s head, attached to his snakelike neck, retreating behind a corner and out of sight. Had Aleksander been watching her clean?
She looked down at the scepter and screamed, dropping it on the ground as she realized how suggestive her cleaning of it was. Had Aleksander watched the whole thing? Was he enjoying it? Did he picture his cock in place of the scepter?
“I will not be kept from you,” she whispered. “‘I’ll see you tonight.”
Mara finished her cleaning duties and returned to the kitchen, intent on starting dinner early. The other maids were still cleaning various chambers, leaving her alone in the kitchen. It didn’t take her long to find the Dreamweed they had used to knock her out when she first came. Before too long she was brewing a pot of tea filled with the stuff.
When the other maids walked into the chamber she was waiting with a pot of hot tea and several cups.
“What is this, dear?” Raylene asked.
“Working down with the treasure is tough work,” she said, rubbing her shoulder and acting as if her muscles ached. “I really just needed some hot tea to get me through the rest of the day.”
“There’s four cups there,” Priya said.
“Well, I thought it would be rude of me to make myself some and not share it with my sisters,” Mara said, smiling.
“Maybe there is hope for you yet, dear,” Raylene said, picking one of the cups up. She drank the tea deep and quickly, ignoring the warmth of the liquid as she guzzled every last drop. “That was very good. Did you put something in it?”
Mara felt her heart jump. “Like what?”
“I’m not sure, dear,” Raylene said, smacking her lips together as she thought. “Maybe lemon? Or some sort of more exotic fruit?”
“Oh, yeah,” Mara said, laughing nervously. “Just a spot of lemon and honey.”
“I love honey,” Priya said, then picked up her cup and sipped from it. Abigail soon followed.
Mara held hers and smiled. She had poured hot water into her cup, avoiding
the tea altogether. When the other girls finished she drank deep and long, swallowing the whole cup faster than Raylene had been able to.
“That hit the spot,” Mara said.
“I’ll say,” Raylene said as she began to prepare the stew.
Mara smiled and watched as they each began to do their duties to prepare dinner. Each one began to yawn and rub at her eyes as the Dreamweed began to take effect. This would be easier than Mara had thought. Within twenty minutes all three women were sound asleep on the kitchen floor.
Mara moved quickly, setting the stew up so it would simmer while she retreated to the bath chamber to clean herself up for Aleksander. She scrubbed quickly, getting the stench of the metal polish off her body and making sure she used a scented oil that reminded her of the first spring day. Surely Aleksander would enjoy that.
As she walked into his chamber holding his stew, he looked up and nearly pushed himself away from the table. He had clearly not been expecting her to bring his food.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded.
“The other maids have all fallen ill,” Mara answered. “It was up to me to prepare your food and bring it to you. Surely you did not want to starve?”
“No of course not,” Aleksander said, motioning for her to put his food down. “Please allow me to eat what you have prepared.”
Mara leaned over close to Aleksander when she set the bowl down, allowing him full view of her breasts. This time he didn’t look at them. Instead, he leaned over, taking a deep sniff of her neck before returning to his bowl. She felt goose bumps run up and down her body, but Aleksander acted as if nothing had happened.
“Did you bathe?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said, bowing slightly to him.
“I thought I told you not to do that anymore,” he said, his face sour and upset.
“I thought it would please you for me to be clean and not smelling like polish when I brought your food,” she said. “That stuff smells like spoiled milk.”
“It does not bother me,” he said, taking his customary first sip of stew. He nodded at her and returned to his meal.
She lingered and stared back at him, not wanting this to be the last contact they had for the night. He took a few more bites, gobbling large chunks of meat before putting his spoon down and looking at her.
“What now?” he asked in an exasperated tone.
“I just do not understand why everything has to change, Alek,” she said.
“I told you not to call me that,” he said, gripping his spoon with a clenched fist.
“I like it,” she said, putting her hands on her hips defiantly. “It’s a very regal name and it befits you.”
Alek set his spoon down and started tapping his fingers on the table. “You had no right to read my books.”
“I apologize for that. I just wanted to learn more about you and where you come from.”
“The motivations of dragons are of no concern to a simple human.”
“Simple human?” she echoed, feeling offense rolling over her again. “Is that all I am to you? You have no idea how to treat a lady!”
Alek threw his head back and began to laugh. It was a mocking laugh, one intended to undress her emotionally. She refused to let it get to her and stood strong in the face of his ridicule.
“You are not my lady,” he said. “You are nothing more than my maid. The quicker you figure that out, the better you will do.”
“Do not deny the interest you have shown in me,” she said, puffing her chest out and bouncing onto her toes slightly so her breasts jiggled. “I’ve seen the way your eyes land on me.”
“Before you were afraid of me having my way with you. Now you want me to look at you as an object of desire? Is this how all human females are? You make no sense, woman!”
“That is not true,” she protested, realizing she had been caught in her own changing emotions. “Well, it was, but now it’s not.”
“Mara,” Alek said slowly, putting his hand up to stop her. “I cannot control the way this human body reacts to you. It is merely the biology of the form I have taken. I would not soil myself by lying with a human. Now get out of my sight and stop bothering me.”
Mara clenched her fists and turned to walk out, but she was so angry she couldn’t just leave it like this. She turned back to Alek and slammed her fist down on the table, causing his spoon to roll across the table towards her. “You know what you are?”
“I will not be talked to like this by a maid!”
“You’re just a miserable, sour old ass! You think you’re so superior to humans. At least we love! At least we create life! At least we create cities and towns and build. Our lives aren’t wasted hiding in a mountain reading books and counting treasure every day.”
“Wasted?” he asked, starting to rise.
She could tell he was becoming incensed with her verbal dressing down. “You heard me!” she screamed, not backing down. “If your life is so miserable, then that’s on you! Don’t take it out on me. If dragons are so great, then why do they hide out under mountains and in caves? You’re just a big dumb animal!”
“How dare you!” he roared.
“How dare you!” she shot back. Before her brain could stop her muscles from reacting, she picked up the spoon, scooped up a large spoonful of stew and flung it right into Alek’s face. The stew hit his forehead and began to run slowly down his cheeks, nose and chin.
Mara immediately recoiled, realizing what she had done. Alek looked ready to shift at any moment, but instead he simply pointed at the door. In the most even-keeled and threatening tone he could muster he said, “Out. Now. Do not leave your bed chamber.”
She nearly stumbled over her feet heading for the door.
What have I done?
Chapter 12
Mara sat on her bed and stared at the wall, unable to even move. She was completely paralyzed with fear. Her body was tired, but she couldn’t bring herself to lie down and go to sleep. The other maids would know what had happened and they would be pissed. What other explanation was there when the three of them had awakened on the kitchen floor together, with Mara nowhere to be found?
But the worst part of it all was what she had done to Alek. She had finally had enough of his hot and cold attitude and his superiority complex. One minute he had a rock-hard erection and couldn’t take his eyes off her body and the next he was telling her how unworthy she was to even look at him and how disgusting it would be for him to lie with a human. He made no sense and she couldn’t handle it anymore.
At least I knew where I stood with Val, she thought. He never let me think I was anything more than a piece of junk.
That was a horrible way to look at things and she knew it. Val was definitely the worse of the two and he proved that the evil in men could be just as great as in any other creature. Unfortunately she didn’t know what hid in Alek’s heart and what he would do to her now that he had been pushed. Surely he had killed humans before. He probably wouldn’t think twice before destroying her. She was on the same level that a simple bug was with a human in his eyes. He could squash her as easily as swallow her whole.
What’s he going to do to me? she wondered. His rage was so great that it was palpable in the air. She had almost been able to taste it choking her as he stood before her with his fists clenched. If looks could kill she would have been dead several times over. The dragon’s rage was not something she wanted to feel.
She hoped he would make her death quick and painless. Maybe he could just freeze her to death with his mighty breath and let her end come that way. Or would he torture her? Pulling each limb off like a mischievous boy did with a spider’s legs? Or even worse: would he refuse to dirty his hands and have the other maids beat her to death in her sleep?
Morbid thought after violent thought filled her brain as she finally couldn’t fight sleep anymore and rolled over onto the pillow. The last thing she could remember before falling asleep was the thought of Alek, in dragon form,
towering over her before bringing one monster foot down to trap her as he verbally dressed her down and told her how unworthy she was to even be killed by the great and powerful dragon Aleksander.
The next morning snuck up on her quickly enough, but she couldn’t even get out of bed. The other maids were nowhere to be seen. She was sure that if it came to blows, Raylene would easily dispatch her and leave her for dead. She was a large wench and she showed her strength every day carrying heavy pots and pans around the kitchen like they were eating utensils. Or would Priya cast a spell on her? She had heard mystical things about Priya’s people. Or would sweet Abigail just drive a knife into her stomach and leave her on the floor to bleed to death?
I can’t keep having these thoughts. I can’t allow it to get to me.
Even so, she had been ordered not to leave her bed chamber. So instead she just sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the ground all day. Every now and then she would hear one of the other maids shuffle outside her door, but they never came in and confronted her or greeted her. She was still completely alone.
As the day passed, the feeling of dread in her gut grew until she found herself pacing back and forth across the chamber, waiting for retribution to strike. She paced so much that the bottoms of her feet ached, her calves burned and tiny beads of sweat formed at her hairline, but still nothing happened.
Finally, at what she guessed was close to evening time, the flap on the door flew back and Abigail appeared before her.
Mara eased herself back, afraid the sweet little girl was hiding something sinister behind her back. But to her surprise Abigail revealed nothing except empty hands.
“Are you okay, Mara?” she asked in her squeaky voice.
“No,” she admitted. “I’m not.”
“Well, the master has requested you join him for dinner.”
Mara felt her heart sink into her stomach. This was it; he was going to turn her into stew. “Are you sure?”
“Oh, yes. He ordered it this morning. Raylene’s still pretty sore about the trick you pulled last night, but I understand why you did it. Aleksander’s approval is intoxicating and I know you sought an audience with him. Raylene would have never let you do it after the master had ordered you to polish the hoard and not be seen by him.”
