by Robin Roseau
"No one died?"
"No. No one died. But once I was home, I received a firm spanking, and then I owed the vendart's mother a year of service, besides, for saving my life. I paid it willingly."
"Halarain," I said. "I almost drowned once, too, and far more recently than your story. You could ask Belain for details. She was there." I turned to Sartine. "Do I owe a year of service to my rescuers?"
"No," she said. "Halarain owed a year because the foolishness was hers, and it was a deep risk to Mother. But if you wander out onto the ice and need to be rescued, then yes, I would demand you pay a year of service to the person who rescues you. Do you hear the warning in her story?"
"I know about thin ice," I said. "And I also know that I do not know all the local dangers. I will not walk upon the lake unless it is with your blessing. If I fall through the ice after that, then it is you who owe the year of service."
She barked a laugh and agreed immediately.
I received introductions to each of the women. I used their names generously, as that is the best way for me to remember names, although they would all look different out of the water. They each told a story, although most of them were much shorter than Halarain's.
Belain went last. "You used my name, Cecilia, so you remember it."
"Yes," I said. "But I want a story anyway."
"Of course. This is not entirely unique to Indartha, but I think you would like to know. I am a galatzi wife."
That surprised me. "And yet you traveled to Sudden, so being half a galatzi trade doesn't mean I should expect to be a prisoner forever."
"I cannot say for you," Belain said. "I did not fight with so much vigor the night I was taken, and I was born in a village much closer than yours."
I laughed. "Good joke."
"Much closer," Sartine said. "Belain's original village is only about fifty kilometers southwest of here."
"Still in the mountains?"
"Yes," Belain said. "But right on the edge of the mountains."
I turned to Sartine. "Please, Vendart. Will you pamper my shoulders?"
She smiled, knowing the use of her title was meant as a bribe. "Of course. Are you able to answer questions?"
"Pleasant questions," I said. I closed my eyes, and she moved me where she wanted me. I sat on the edge of the bench in front of her, her legs on either side of my hips, her hands on my shoulders.
She knew what she was doing, and I moaned in the pleasure again. "Oh, thank you," I said.
"These aches are my fault," she said. "And even if you were not my galatzi prize, they would be my responsibility to cure."
"If they were my fault, but I am your galatzi prize, is it still your responsibility."
"Yes," she said.
"All right then. I might yet change my mind about this very strange custom of yours."
"You do not have galatzi trades on... um." It was Belain, and she struggled with the name.
"Centos Four," I said. "No. There are other places with similar ways of arranging pairings, but of course, the details are very, very different." I looked over my shoulder at Sartine. "Erica would know more, if you ever are able to talk to her and are curious."
"Why would she know more?"
"She is a sociologist. She studies these things."
"I see."
They had more questions about my view of their traditions. It was Belain who asked, "What did you think when you saw us at your door?"
"I thought something bad had happened, and Sartine was there to tell me. Or perhaps nothing bad had happened, but she was there only to say goodbye and perhaps extend an invitation to visit Indartha sometime."
"But you knew it was the galatzi raid night, Belain told us earlier," Halarain said. "And you knew what that meant. Or so everyone thought."
"Yes, but it never, ever occurred to me Sartine would pick me. Sartine explained the clues I should have understood, but I didn't think for a minute someone from a different planet would be taken in that fashion."
"You fought so hard," Belain said. "You almost beat us, six of us."
"Only because you weren't trying to hurt me, and I didn't hold back."
We talked about all of it for a while, Sartine saying little. There were pauses in the conversation while I moaned with the pleasures her hands brought to my shoulders and arms, but the women were patient.
After that, their questions were endless. They asked about my family, my home, and all the places I'd been. I gave brief answers but admitted they were brief.
It was Sartine who asked why The Empire was here, and what they wanted.
"Trade," I said. "And to see if Talmon should become a part of The Empire. If I decide it should, then The Empire will extend an invitation. And then Talmon will decide if it wishes to accept."
"It is your decision then?" Halarain asked.
"Yes," I said simply. "Should the empire extend an invitation? How should Talmon decide? And then there are other recommendations I will make. These are my duties here."
Sartine's hands stilled, and then I heard her say, "Oh shit."
I turned my head and opened my eyes. "I told you the stakes were high."
I looked into her eyes, and then she asked in a quiet voice, "Have I ruined that?"
"I don't know. If you had asked that question as we left Sudden, after seeing Chaladine do nothing to stop you, I would have said, 'Absolutely yes'. Now, I don't know." I paused. "We'll talk about it later. Drop it for now, please."
Halarain was a smart woman. "What would happen if your empire extends an invitation? How does a planet decide what to do?"
"It is not the planet that decides; it is the people. On some planets, there is a single government for the entire planet, and so that government uses its policies to decide. A month ago, I would have wanted to continue to be involved on Talmon and would have tried to be given the most senior imperial position on the planet moving forward. If that had happened, then I would have asked the vendarti of all villages, or perhaps of villages over a certain size to gather together to discuss the offer. And then I might have suggested that six of ten or seven of ten vendarti agree before it would be considered acceptance. But if the people of the planet were to choose another way to decide, as long as most of the people of the planet were represented in the decision, I would support it."
"I ruined that, too," Sartine said into my ear, and so I turned around and opened my eyes again.
"You may have. You may not. We'll discuss it another time."
"Yes, my galatzi prisoner."
I laughed. "That's right, and I still ache from my galatzi knots. Don't stop."
And then I closed my eyes and moaned in pleasure.
* * * *
We bathed for a very, very long time, far longer than I really wanted to. But more women arrived, and then they wanted to talk, and then more. Along the way, Sartine had moved me to one end of the tub. There was a bulge in the side of the tub with a second small tub behind it. I had no idea what it was for.
"Sit here," she said. "Lean back and close your eyes."
I did, and then a moment later, the bath girl was behind me. She used a ladle to pour water over my hair. The way I sat, with my neck hanging past the edge of one tub and my head over the other, the water flowed into the small tub and didn't spoil the soaking water.
She washed my hair, and it felt heavenly.
The girl washed my hair, then Sartine's. And then I yawned.
Sartine said quickly, "It is about time she wears out. Darling, can you escape the pool yourself, or do you need us to carry you?"
It was a close thing, and we were both shriveled into prunes, but I felt a great deal better.
Sartine wanted to talk more when we got home. I asked her instead to feed me and put me to bed. "My head hurts from too much Talmonese. If you want to speak any further, it is in English or French."
"I do not know these languages," she said with a laugh.
"Then there is your answer. Please, Sartine.
Feed me a bite and put me to bed."
And so she did.
I was warm, and full, and very, very tired. It was a strange bed with strange sounds and strange smells, but I slept very hard.
And if when I woke once or twice in the night, and I knew Sartine was not in the bed next to me, and I sighed, I would not have admitted it to her.
Prisoner
It was morning when I discovered an uncomfortable fact.
I was still a prisoner.
I woke early. It was barely light out, but I was hungry, and I needed to relieve myself. Sartine hadn't shown me how, and so I didn't recognize the chamber pot for what it was.
Don't even ask me what I think about chamber pots.
There was a room down the hall, and that was what I had used the previous night, but when I went to the door after pulling on my robe the door wouldn't open. I struggled with it for a while, wondering if there was a hidden mechanism.
I realized eventually there was no hidden mechanism.
I was locked in.
The thought enraged me, absolutely enraged me. I ran to the windows. The glass was not of the sort of quality I was accustomed, and while they let in light, it wasn't a clear view through the glass. But I discovered how to open the window, and that was when I found my windows were barred on the outside.
I tried each window; all of them were barred. I tested the bars. I wasn't going to shake them loose.
I wasn't quite worked up to a rage yet, although my need for the room down the hall was growing.
I prowled the room for a minute, wondering if there was another escape, but of course there wasn't.
I returned to the door, trying it again. Maybe it was just stuck. I worked for several minutes, but yes, it was locked from the outside.
"You bitch!" I screamed. I began pounding on the door. "Sartine! Open this door! Sartine!"
I pounded with my first, but no one came. My fist began to hurt, and my throat from the screaming, and so I switched to kicking the door, but that hurt, too.
I went to the closet, looking for my shoes, but they weren't here. My clothes were all here, but none of my shoes or boots, only two pair of slippers, one warmer than the other.
I screamed my rage and stalked to the bed, sitting down with my arms crossed, glaring at the door.
I waited.
Periodically, I stalked to the door and kicked it a dozen times or so, until my foot began to hurt, and I screamed to be let out.
No one came.
The next time, I used the other foot. Then one fist, then the other. Then back to the first foot again.
Then I stopped getting up, because all I could do was sit on the bed with my legs crossed, squirming. I was growing desperate.
Then I heard a key in a lock, and a moment later, the door began to open.
I ran for it, flinging it wider and bursting past Sartine in the doorway. She tried to catch me, but I ran past her and down to the water closet. I slammed that door closed and sat down, barely in time.
The door opened immediately.
"Get out!" I screamed. "Get out!"
She closed the door without a word, and I finished, cleaned up, and then jerked the door open again.
Sartine was leaning against the wall, and she pushed herself upright as I stepped out into the hallway.
"How could you?" I screamed at her.
"Cecilia, calm down. Why didn't you use the chamber pot?"
"The what?"
"Oh darling, I'm sorry. I suppose you didn't know."
"There's a great deal I didn't know!" I spat. But I followed her back to my bedroom, and she pointed to the chamber pot in its little wooden closet. I stared at it. "You expect me to use that? You aren't serious."
"For the last three weeks, you've sat on the edge of a fallen tree and then let me clean you up after. This seems like a big step up. I'm sorry, Darling, I didn't know you didn't know."
I turned away from her. "I want to know why you felt the need to lock me in. I want to know if this is a permanent arrangement, or ends when I succumb to your charms and begin to share your bed."
"Cecilia, calm down. I told you. You are my galatzi prisoner. You are still a prisoner, Darling."
"Don't call me that!" I said. I spun back to face her. "I was a prisoner, but now I am a prize. This ends."
"Of course it ends," she said.
"Today."
"No."
I stalked closer. I was nearly quivering with anger.
"You promised to fight only with words," she reminded me, waving a finger at me.
"Why should I be held to that promise when you fight with locked doors and barred windows?"
"Because..." it was a whine. "You're my prisoner, Cecilia. You know that."
"I agreed to stay! You don't need to lock me in. Do you trust me so little? Is my word nothing to you?"
"Of course I trust you."
"It doesn't feel like it."
"This is part of the tradition," she said.
"Oh? Belain doesn't look like a prisoner."
"She's not anymore," Sartine said. "She hasn't been for years. She has three children."
I stared. I would have said glared, but glare isn't a strong enough word for the look I gave her. "You expect to treat me like a prisoner until I give you three children?"
"Well no, of course not," she said. "Just the first one, and that's just the tradition. It doesn't need to be that long. Whenever you're not with me, I can tie you, but I know you don't like that. Or I can lock you into your room. Those are the choices."
"You're insane!" I screamed.
She moved closer and tried to put her hands on my shoulders, but I backed away. "Don't you dare touch me."
"Darling, please."
"I am not your darling!" I screamed. I was doing a lot of screaming. "Do not call me that."
"Cecilia, please calm down. We can discuss this rationally."
"You want to discuss this rationally. What is there to discuss? You're insane. You actually seemed worried whether you ruined Talmon's chances with The Empire, but clearly, that was an act, or you wouldn't lock the imperial envoy in a bedroom except for when you want to bring her out and play with her like some kind of toy."
"Cecilia, it's not that bad."
"You don't get to decide that. You're not the one being treated this way. I am the only one who gets to decide. You told me you would let me continue to do my job. How am I supposed to do my job while I'm locked in here?"
"I'll take you everywhere you want to go. I'll show you everything you want to see. I'll introduce you to everyone. We'll have people here, and you can spend hours talking with them. There's an inn, and we'll spend time there in the evenings, talking to the other villagers. We can take short trips in the nearby mountains, at least until the snows block us in completely, and then maybe even then, after I see whether you can ski on our skis the way you do on yours."
"And when you're not doing those things with me, you intend to lock me in this room. And at night, you will lock me in. And those days you do not have time for me, I will be locked in. And when we are angry with each other, instead of taking a walk, you will order me here and lock me in."
"Cecilia, please calm down."
"Am I wrong? Is that your intention?"
"I wouldn't have put it that way."
"Am I wrong?"
"No."
"How long?" She didn't answer. I spun around. "How long?" I screamed.
"The tradition is until the first child," she said.
"You know I won't bear a child here. I told you I wouldn't. I told you under no circumstances, that it is non-negotiable. I will not do it. I will not, and I have enough control over my body that even if you bring man after man in here to rape me, I will not conceive."
"I wouldn't do that, Cecilia! You know that."
"Clearly, I have no idea what treatment to expect! I would never have expected to be kidnapped the way I was. I would not have been expected how I was treated dur
ing our travels. I would not have expected you to be so petty about a title you know is a the cause of your entire excuse for you how you have treated me. I certainly did not expect our conversation upon arriving in this house yesterday. And you can imagine my shock to find I myself locked away without the most basic of human needs addressed." I glared at her. "I have no idea what else to expect. So yes, there is a big part of me that wonders when you will have me raped."
"I wouldn't do that!" she said. "Even if I wanted to force children on you, which I don't, it wouldn't be that way."
"If you ever touch me without my consent, it is akin to rape," I said."
"Is that what you think?"
"I don't know what to think," I said. "You keep surprising me with how poorly you treat me. I made a mistake when I finally agreed to come."
"Please don't say that!"
"To be absolutely clear, this body will not be pregnant while I am on Talmon. We agreed to talk about children, and I could have been convinced to give you some. I wasn't keen on the idea, but I could be convinced."
"You don't want children?"
"I've had children!" I screamed. "Two. Their names are Corinne and Shawn. They have each had children. Corinne has had one, and Shawn has had two. Between my three grandchildren, I have five more great-grandchildren." I used the English words. "That is, two of my children, three more of their children, and five of my children's-children's-children. Those people at the end of the skiing video are my parents. In that video, my father was sixty-seven and my mother forty-one. I was twenty-three and my sister was seventeen or eighteen. I am now ninety-seven years old. My mother is one hundred and fifteen and my father is one hundred and forty."
