The Emperor's Concubine

by Killarney Sheffield

  A snort bursts from me before I can stop it. “It doesn’t work. You don’t like me.”

  “Correction, I hate you, I loathe the sight of you. Regardless, you will pretend to adore me.”

  “And if I don’t?” I draw myself tall in challenge.

  The Empress gets up and crosses to stand before me, pondering me for a moment through steely grey eyes. “Then I shall make your life a living hell.”

  “It already is.”

  Her gaze narrows with a decidedly dangerous glitter. “Trust me, I can make it worse.”

  “I doubt that.” There is no time to duck before the Empress’ open hand strikes my face. I recoil in shock and put a hand to my stinging mouth in which seeps the metallic taste of blood.

  “When you conceive, I could beat that child out of you, think of the many more months lying beneath a man you hate as he ruts upon you to try again. But then, maybe you like it? Maybe you enjoy being my husband’s slut? Do you hope to seduce him into obeying your every whim?”

  How could she think I like it? “No!”

  “Then you will pretend to adore me and encourage your little minions to adore their master’s wives.”

  I nod, even though I’d rather spit in the woman’s face. To disobey will only cause me more pain and unnecessary hardship.

  “Good. Clean yourself up, you’re dripping blood on a priceless Persian carpet.” With that the Empress marches from the room.

  Danika hurries to close the door and then brings a cold, wet washcloth from the bathroom. “The bitch! How dare she strike you. You must tell the Emperor.”

  “I doubt it would matter to him. It would probably only make him angry at me.” I dab at my lip, wincing at the sting of the cloth against the broken skin.

  With a sigh Danika snatches the cloth. “Then you must be careful what you say to her from now on, Ocean. Try not to antagonize her.”

  “I will.” I go to the bathroom to clean the blood off my face and get ready for lunch.

  * * *

  The official’s wives laugh and carry on during the lunch service. The concubines on the other hand are a stiff and mute group.

  When the conversation lulls into uneasy silence, the Empress nudges me under the table. “Well, I do hope the implementation of a concubine has been as joyous an addition to your households as mine has been. My concubine, Ocean, is a treasure and she adores me, isn’t that right dear?”

  It takes supreme effort to force a smile to my lips, yet I manage. “Yes, darling Empress.” A covert glance around the table, reveals surprised looks from the wives and hostile ones from the other concubines. Swallowing I continue, “We have a great relationship. I think of the Empress as a mother.”

  “I think what she means to say is sister, I am far too young to be her mother, right?” The Empress titters.

  The other women murmur in agreement.

  The wife of Ashley’s official smiles. “Ah, that is the type of relationship I have been trying to foster with our concubine, Ashley, since she became a member of our home.” She glances at Ashley. “It isn’t coming along quite as I hoped, though. Do you have any suggestions?”

  The Empress favors the woman with an impossibly wide smile. “You just have to be supportive and understanding, dear. Spend lots of time with the girl. Why, Ocean and I are so close because I take care to spend every free moment with her and encourage her. Nothing would make me happier than to see her bear us a healthy son and I tell her that every day. And a few treats here and there as reward doesn’t hurt, either.”

  It takes all my restraint not to relieve the contents of my stomach at her story. Lying bitch! She talks as if I am some simpleton she must train and manage. Despite the loathing inside I fix a smile to stay on my lips and nod. When the talk turns to rewards, the Empress gathers the officials’ wives to take them inside and show them the latest painting the Emperor has commissioned on her behalf.

  I seize my chance. “We only have a few moments, so I’ll be brief. You must all request to see Dr. White. He will give you a special insert to keep from becoming pregnant.”

  Sasha sneers. “And why would we not want to become pregnant? That is why we are here, after all. The sooner we bear the officials’ children the sooner we can go back to our families.”

  “No!” I shake my head. “We aren’t going back to our families. Once we bear children we will be put to death. The officials’ wives hate us.”

  Sasha snickers. “Yes, dearest Empress, that doesn’t sound like hate to me. Do you expect us to believe your story?”

  “If we conceive, our families will be elevated in the community,” another girl speaks out.

  In desperation, I turn on her. “Elevated to what? There is no ladder in our cement controlled society to climb. Don’t you see? Once we give birth, the officials have what they desire. Once we are of no further use to them, why would they allow us to go back to the hubs and tell of the riches, food and freedom the officials have here, while we live a life of servitude?”

  A murmur goes up from the girls gathered at the table.

  Ashley comes to stand beside me. “Think about it. Why do the officials have real food, plants and freedom while the rest of us are controlled like marionettes and forced to work? Don’t you all see? We are feeding and supporting the officials. They amuse themselves at our expense.”

  Sasha doesn’t look convinced. “And if we fail to conceive they will kill us anyway.”

  “Not if we escape.” I pause at the collective gasp from the concubines and look over my shoulder for any sign of the Empress before continuing. “There is a group working on getting us out of here. There is freedom beyond the walls of Imram.”

  “And there are mutant killer animals, toxic air, poisonous water and inedible vegetation. What makes you think we would survive outside? The Emperor saved us by bringing us all to the dome. Remember all those who perished before us?”

  Ashley interrupts, “But there are reports that the land is not toxic.”

  “Reports? By whom? Are you speaking of the boy whose brain was scrambled by the Tasers when he escaped?” Sasha sneers. “Besides, even if the land were hospitable beyond the walls, talk or the intent to escape is treason.”

  “Why?” I stare her down. “Why is it punishable by death to even consider leaving the dome? Why keep people prisoner here if they wish to leave?”

  “It is for our own protection.” Sasha returns, though she looks a little less convinced of the fact than she did before.

  “Why are we watched by cameras? Why are we tracked by these immoveable bracelets?” I ask rattling the band on my wrist.

  All at the table are silent.

  Sasha scans the faces and then offers in a weak voice. “To keep crime from running rampant...”

  “Sasha, think about it.” I’m cut off by the sound of the Empress and the official’s wives returning. Sitting down, I cast Sasha a meaningful look.

  The Empress returns to the garden table. Her eyes narrow as she glances at the solemn girls. “Well, I suppose we should call it an enjoyable afternoon. It appears we have exhausted our lovely young concubines.”

  The wives collect their concubines, taking care to thank the Empress for her kindness. After all have left, I shuffle for the elevator to return to my suite.

  The Empress snags my arm, gripping it in a painful crush of her fingers. “Whatever you are up to, girl, you had better think twice about it.”

  Eyes wide, I feign innocence. “I don’t know what you are talking about.”

  “I think you do,” the Empress hisses. “Remember, I hold your fate in my hands. One word from me and your life will be snuffed out like a candle and that of the other girls, too.”

  I lock gazes with her. “Then the Emperor would not get the child you are unable to provide him. What will he say to that?” Satisfaction rolls through me when the Empress’s evil smile fades.

  “You think you are a smart little piece of baggage, don’t you? Mark my words well, gir
l. I am watching you and I will draw your blood by my own hand when the time comes.” She leans closer. “And I will enjoy watching your life slip away in a crimson puddle.” With that she shoves me away and flounces off down the hall.

  Hands shaking, I punch the elevator button to open the doors and then get in. If I don’t escape soon I have no doubt my blood will cover the shiny marble floors before I can conceive a child.

  Chapter Twenty-three

  I’m waiting, perched on the edge of the bed in my night gown, when the Emperor visits the next night.

  He strolls into the room, removes his dress coat and lays it on the bedside table. “Ah, your eagerness to please me is commendable, Ocean.”

  Biting my lip, I strangle my urge to tell him off and focus on the floor beneath my bare feet.

  He chuckles. “You are quiet. What, no defiance? No tongue lashing?” When I don’t answer he grunts. “I like a little bed sport, you know. This doesn’t have to be all business.” He raises my chin to look him in the eye. “Please me and I shall please you. I can keep you here in luxury for the rest of your life, you know. I might even be persuaded to refuse to let you leave.”

  “I doubt your wife would like it much. She is counting the days until she gets to slit my throat.”

  One brow lifts. “Is she, now? She always was a vindictive, cat that one, but it is I who controls Imram and everyone in it. I could get rid of her if I choose to.” He releases my chin and undoes his cufflinks. “Perhaps I should arrange an accident for her and make you my new Empress. Wouldn’t your mother and father be proud?” At my gasp, he smiles. “What better way to keep an eye on you?”

  “I beg your pardon?”

  He sets his cufflinks on top of his jacket. “I know you, Ocean. I know what you’re planning and I know you are capable of pulling it off. You are the smartest girl in Imram. But alas, I am smarter, one must be more intelligent to rule unopposed as I have these last twelve years.”

  My heart is thumping against my chest in alarm. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Of course you do. You are trying to incite your little concubines to revolt against me. It won’t work, my dear. In the end we will have our heirs and you will all be dead. You see, you were all selected based on looks, intelligence, race and physical fitness, nothing but the best for my officials, you know.”

  Raising my head, I meet his leering gaze. “Selected to be broodmares.”

  “Selected to breed a race of perfect humans,” he counters.

  “And does perfect have a color other than white, Emperor?” I challenge.

  “Of course not. White is purity and perfection. Color is dirty and earth like.”

  “Is that why everything in Imram is white?”

  He smiled. “Of course. Imram is pure and now it is even better than before.”

  Something icy slides down my spine at his tone and the odd look in his eyes. “What do you mean?”

  “Come see for yourself.” He exits the bedroom.

  Reluctantly, I do as requested.

  The Emperor crosses to the media screen, pulls a small disk from his pocket and inserts it into a slit at the bottom of the device. The screen flickers to life, the only sound a muted buzzing from the machine. I see myself and the other girls with the fertility symbol tag the day we were separated from our parents. One by one we are loaded into the subway and taken away. I blink back tears remembering the day, but before I can wonder why the Emperor is showing me this, the camera pans to a picture of the black, Hispanic, Oriental and Indian girls behind the wire barrier. They too are loaded onto subway cars except for a handful of mixed races, including Danika left behind the wire. The recording cuts off and then returns showing the subway cars being unloaded. The colored girls are marched, crying and sniffling down a long green lit tunnel similar to the one I had taken to the medical facility. At the end of the tunnel a bright light shines. The girls burst out onto a flat brown expanse of dirt and then are forced to march along the high white wall surrounding Imram. Before I can wonder where they are, they come to a huge crater in the ground. Panic twists the girl’s faces and they turn around pushing forward to return to the safety of the tunnel. To my horror the enforcers open fire. The sound suddenly cuts in. The ratt-a-tatt of gunfire and ear piercing screams reverberate off the walls.

  The hair on the back of my neck stands. “No!” Screaming, I cover my ears, tears streaming down my face at the unbelievable scene of senseless carnage before me. I drop to my knees on the floor, not wanting to watch the girls gunned down, falling into the pit and begging for mercy, but unable to look away. “Why? Why?”

  “In order to strengthen Imram, it must first be cleansed of the impurities.”

  The camera angle broadens to show the bloodied bodies lying in a pit full of skeletons. Bile rises in my throat that I can’t control. In despair, I retch onto the white carpet. As I kneel there humiliated and weak the Emperor removes the disk and pockets it as if it has no effect on him.

  “Come now and do your duty.”

  My level of comprehension at this point is minimal due to the shock of what I’ve just witnessed and I don’t move.

  With a grim look, he grasps my arm, hauls me to my feet and propels me to the bedroom. Numb and shell shocked, I climb onto the bed and assume the position.

  “No, not like that.” He twirls his finger. “On your back, I want to see the look in your eyes when I implant the future of Imram in your womb. I want to see your fear and I want you to see my power over you.”

  Rolling onto my back I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block out his hand raising the hem on my nightgown and the sagging of the mattress beneath his weight. Shoving my legs apart he mounts with a hard thrust.

  “Open your eyes.”

  Knowing I have no other choice, I obey. As I look up into his triumphant gaze he begins to thrust. I’m as good as dead. The dead can still fight.

  Chapter Twenty-four

  The perfectly manicured gardens below my window used to seem like an oasis amid the terror, but now where I once saw beauty, I now see nothing but death. The blood red of the roses, the brown earth dampened with tears and the weeds, like those girls, clawing for life in the fragile environment. Imram is death. Whether confined to the Emperor’s fish bowl for his amusement, or slaughtered at the pit, it is all the same.

  Danika’s reflection in the glass causes me to stiffen. My friend must never know the horror that has taken place. She won’t understand why she’s been spared. How can she, for I can’t fathom the reason myself.

  “Ocean? Is everything alright?”

  I nod without speaking and keep my back turned. I can’t look her in the eye and lie. After I give birth to the two required children we will be exterminated. The Emperor has all the power and I have none. The question is how do I turn the tables and steal his control away?

  “It is time to leave for your appointment with Dr. White.”

  Turning from the window I drop my gaze to the carpet and shuffle from the room with Danika trailing behind. In silence we take the elevator down to the first floor, meet Sol who waits to escort us to the psychologist’s office, and walk out the door.

  Sol falls into step beside. “Ocean, are you all right?”

  “I’m fine, just tired,” I mumble and keep walking, unable to look at him.

  “You don’t look fine. Are you sure?”

  “I’m fine!” I snap and then bite my lip to hold back the anger and despair which has been boiling in me all night. I’m far from fine. I’m about to explode, only I can’t. Everything I have seen and am feeling I have to keep secret. It is my burden to bear. The Emperor planned it that way, I have no doubt. He has even taken the freedom of my thoughts and speech.

  “Ocean?”

  Shrugging off Sol’s hand, I enter the waiting room of Dr. White’s office and nod to the woman in the yellow wig sitting behind the desk. The woman doesn’t bother to greet me, but pushes a red button on her tablet and speaks in
to it. “Number Two-twenty-three is here, Doctor.”

  “Send her in,” comes the reply.

  The woman simply jerks her head in the direction of Dr. White’s door.

  I walk to the door, open it and step inside slamming it behind.

  Dr. White jumps and sets aside his tablet with a frown. “Hello, Ocean. How are you today?”

  Shaking with the force of my rage I storm across to his desk. With a sweep of a hand I clear off the top of it. The items clatter to the floor and the good doctor gapes at me.

  “You son of a bitch!”

  Dr. White clears his throat. “I see you are upset about something.”

  “You knew! Were you going to tell me? He had them all slaughtered. And you knew!”

  “Ocean, sit down.”

  I want to scream, pummel him and destroy everything in sight my rage is so great. “Don’t tell me to sit down! Why? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  Dr. White stands. “Would it have made any difference? The parents of those girls and the boys that were also killed at the assignment station would still hate you.”

  “Me?” Sails suddenly deflated I sink into the chair in front of his desk. “Why do they hate me?”

  He sits down. “You were spared, you were favored, and you won the chance to live.” The clock ticks away the minutes in the silence. Dr. White clears his throat. “Those whose children were killed hate you and those who children were spared are envious theirs are not you.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “The Emperor plans to tell the people that the Empress and the official’s wives ordered the termination of the other girls.”

  I stare at him. “But why? He is the one who ordered it, isn’t he?”

  “He wants to get rid of the Empress and the rest of the wives. You see, everyone the Emperor deemed worthy of life was sent on ahead to Imram before the bombing started. Someone made a mistake and the water on the buses carrying the official’s wives, children and those selected to serve in the official hub was contaminated with the same chemical in the water systems which killed all those left behind in the cities. The trip was long and hot and they all drank of the water. The children died and the women became sick. Most of them recovered, but the poison left them infertile, of course we didn’t realize the after effects until much later. We thought it only caused their hair to fall out and not grow back.”