A Pound of Flesh

by Susan Wright

  That startled me. "You can’t have children?"

  "No." Bitterly, he added, "According to the whispers in Saaladet, each of the masters lacks certain traits and characteristics. We are good for nothing but to train toys for our betters. I always knew my work would not be valued even when I called out the best in a slave. Slaves are inferior and easily discarded."

  I began to nod. "Now I understand why you hate us."

  "I don’t hate you—" he insisted, his voice rising.

  I met his eyes. "You see your own flaws in us."

  He shrugged as if he wanted to disagree. "We take out our anger on you, that’s true. But my people consider you to be animals, creatures of our distant past. You don’t hate a horse for being a horse."

  I remembered how Ukerald had used me and the way Renata had relentlessly beaten Bene. "No, we’re too much like you. You can’t forget we’re your children. We are you cast in a form that can sicken and suffer and die young."

  He considered it as if he was searching for a way to reject what I had said. But he couldn’t. "Perhaps you are our worst fear, just as I am my own people’s worst fear. In truth, we are no better than you, just different. Why did I never see it before?"

  "Because you believed them."

  Bene and Eshter returned to the ship having spent too much time and coin in a sailor’s tavern. They were eager to share everything they had heard, and had discovered that Allonis, the "house of pleasure," was legendary in the isles for its slaves.

  Lexander stood up to distance himself from me, absently listening. His replies were short, as if he was much occupied. The doj had tried to control me after he had revealed himself, and I wondered if Lexander would try, as well.

  But something remarkable happened. All the next day as we waited to hear word from the guild masters, Lexander’s smile came easily, as if he’d been freed from a burden he had not known he carried. Even in the throes of passion, I had never seen him so suffused with simple joy. He took deep breaths of the fresh salty air, squinting into the sun, and he touched everything reverently as if he felt a connection to the simplest objects.

  Bene and Eshter saw the change in him, too. They teased him and Bene even tried to tickle him under his open vest. Lexander threw him into the water and threatened a laughing Eshter with the same.

  Despite the horror of Allonis, I felt a rare moment of peace. Now I understood the masters. Despite their many differences, they were all obsessed with drilling perfection into their slaves, because they believed they were imperfect themselves. Lexander had never tried to reach his full potential because he was told he never could.

  Now perhaps he would try.

  Good news arrived; the guild masters had met and agreed to begin negotiations to establish a dye works in Ovathi. They would consider expanding their guild to include the dyers of "Mahali of Abund."

  As a show of good faith, Lexander had been invited to their spring fete. "It’s an important rite to ensure the health of their mouro trees," Lexander told us. "It shows they have accepted me."

  "I’d like to attend," I said.

  "Yes, the guild master said there would be a few women there, and that you would be welcome."

  He was trying to please me. I reached out to touch him. "You have my thanks."

  Lexander stiffened at my gentle caress. It was a reminder of his true feelings. But we needed to convince everyone, so I sternly put aside my sadness. I became very submissive, as he preferred, turning to him for suggestions on my garments and how to wear my hair. I feigned ignorance about the local customs I’d seen so he could explain them to me. Quite naturally, his masterful ways rose and he began to treat me as if I belonged to him. That would be good enough to convince the guild masters.

  With Eshter’s help, I was soon arrayed in a red silk robe that fell from one shoulder down to my feet. A silver chain was snug around my waist, pleating the fine material into hundreds of folds. Over my cheeks rested a white silk veil, nearly translucent, held up by a fine silver chain. It highlighted my eyes and barely muted the red of my lips.

  As I stepped onto the dock, Lexander hardly glanced at me. He dutifully lent me his arm to escort me through the streets.

  The guild house was not far from the docks. The darkened ground floor was clearly a place of business. But up a curving flight of marble steps was a grand hall. Tables were set in a horseshoe shape, and some people were already reclining on the short benches. Though music was being played, it was difficult to hear because everyone was talking.

  I picked out a few women amongst all the men. They examined me carefully, drifting among the guests and pausing to whisper to one another. Two had bared their breasts, indicating they were doxies for hire. There were no wives in attendance. I undid my veil as was customary inside.

  The dinner began with the beating of a large gong. We took our seats in pairs around the table. Many of the guild masters were accompanied by younger men whom they caressed with casual familiarity. They continued to call to each other with outward good nature, but their comments were often barbed and pitched to be heard by the entire assembly. The laughter was loud and frequent.

  Lexander treated me with utmost courtesy, touching me at all times to claim me as his own. My body responded to his caresses as if they were real, making my heart ache with desire. I spoke little, only when I was addressed, hoping my smile would serve instead. I was stared at intently by many of the men, and had to remind myself that they saw few strangers and were naturally curious about me.

  Silence was finally called as the high guild master gave a long but rather perfunctory invocation calling on the blessings of the gods. A wide bronze bowl was carried forward and a sacrifice of mouro leaves, worms, cocoons, and heavy skeins of pale silk was burned.

  The musicians struck up a haunting tune with a heavy, driving drumbeat. Servants hastily removed the bowl and tripod, as the guests gazed expectantly at the open end of the table. After a hushed moment, a dozen people entered and quickly took their places with their toes pointed and heads held high.

  I recognized them. "It’s the pleasure slaves," I murmured to Lexander, trying to hold my smile.

  They began to dance, their hips swaying suggestively. They wore diaphanous tunics that displayed more than they concealed as the folds shifted. I had never seen dancing such as this—seductive and erotic.They flaunted their bodies as their eyes begged us to take them. They touched each other, tantalizing us with their pleasure.

  I was enraptured. The olfs were spinning among them, feeding off the sensual effusions building in the air. The corpulent man lolling next to me urged a doxy to pleasure him in the crudest terms. She eagerly bent her head to satisfy him. Others were frankly touching themselves and their companions.

  Lexander had gone very still next to me. Surely he would have to caress me. And I would have to please him in order to maintain our roles.

  Suddenly I couldn’t bear it. I couldn’t let him touch me falsely. "I can feign illness so we can leave," I offered under my breath.

  He didn’t answer for a few long moments. "If you wish," he finally agreed.

  I hardly had to pretend to be overcome by the heat. In a daze, I let Lexander support me as we got up from our bench and quietly went to the door. Many of the candles had been snuffed, leaving only the dancers illuminated, so we were hardly noticed.

  But a woman stepped into the doorway. "Do you dislike the dancing?"

  I put my hand to my head, sagging against Lexander as he hastily explained, "She is unused to the heat."

  "Overcome by modesty, I would say."

  I recognized her voice. It was the mistress of Allonis. I tried to stop Lexander from stepping into the light of the stairs, but he dragged me forward thinking I was acting ill.

  The mistress knew with one look that Lexander was a fellow master. They were so close there was no hiding the sparkling depths of his eyes. "It is you!" she declared.

  He realized his mistake and tried to shove her out of the w
ay. But she was ready for him, hiding the knife in her hand with her skirt.

  She grappled with Lexander, pushing me out of the way so I staggered to one side. She jabbed at his heart with the knife, but he parried her expertly.

  "Imposters!" the mistress cried as Lexander caught hold of her wrist. "They are in league with raiders!"

  The guild masters hadn’t noticed their scuffle, but they began to rouse themselves. Lexander wrested the knife from her hand and in a motion too quick to see, slashed at her neck. She fell back with a wordless cry, clutching at her throat. But she was still alive.

  I grabbed hold of Lexander, stopping him from finishing her off. "We have to get out of here!"

  He warded off the blow of the first man who came at us, then followed me as I ran down the steps. Commands were shouted for the sentries to seize us.

  I called desperately for the olfs to hide us from their sight. By the time the sentries responded, we were concealed as we fled from the guild house.

  I ran as I had never done before. Lexander pulled me along by the hand and we fair flew to the docks. The clash of weapons echoed through the streets behind us as the sentries advanced.

  Lexander dashed up the dock, yelling, "Cast off, Bene! Cast off!" long before we reached the boat.

  For a moment I feared that Bene and Eshter were not onboard. But Bene had the mooring rope loosened and the brothers were frantically raising the sail as we arrived. Lexander had warned them that we might have to leave at a moment’s notice.

  Lexander picked me up and threw me onboard. He gave the ship a mighty shove as he jumped onto the bow. Eshter was at the rudder, turning the ship away from the dock as the wind caught the half-raised sail.

  I started to get up, but Lexander pushed my head back down. "Get down!" he shouted.

  Something whizzed by overhead, and the sound of spears hitting the hull made me cringe.

  "Eshter!" I cried, knowing she was most vulnerable in the stern. Without the olfs, on this moonless night, I could see nothing.

  The sounds of impacts trailed off as Eshter called back, "I’m unharmed!"

  Bene moved cautiously at my feet. The brothers had dived through the hatch for safety. Torches flared on the docks as ships were readied to follow after us.

  Eshter called out softly, "Can anyone see where we’re going?"

  Lexander moved forward to peer through the darkness. I grabbed on to his arm. "We can’t abandon the slaves!"

  "We’ll be killed if we don’t leave," Lexander said. He began calling instructions back to Eshter to adjust our course. The brothers emerged to finish with the rigging, subdued by our sudden flight. "We still have to get past the sentries on the cliffs."

  Everyone held their breath as our ship slipped through the cleft leading out of the bay. The sentries were concerned about ships entering, not leaving, and they made no effort to stop us.

  Bene joined us with Eshter as the elder brother took the rudder, steering us into deeper waters away from the isle. "What happened?" he demanded.

  "The mistress recognized me," Lexander said.

  I stared back into the darkness, knowing I wouldn’t be able to see a ship even if it followed us. We were so close . . ."We can’t just leave the slaves behind."

  "We’ll need a new disguise before we can return," Lexander said.

  "We’ll come back later," Bene consoled me. "Like we planned to do with Montplaire."

  We sat in silence, feeling the full weight of our failure. Everything had been going exactly as we planned, until that fete took a carnal turn.

  Finally Lexander spoke. "I think we must first destroy Saaladet. That way we can cut off the flow of slaves with one blow. Then we can take our time picking off each pleasure house."

  "I’m all for that," Bene agreed.

  I felt as if we were abandoning the slaves, but Lexander was right. The pleasure houses were forewarned and they were strong. We had to find another way.

  "Then Stanbulin it is," I agreed.

  25

  Five days later, the brothers sailed us through the narrow channel that joined two great seas. It was crowded with ships passing back and forth. At the innermost end of the channel was the city of Stanbulin, situated on a triangular point of hilly land with the sea on one side and an inlet of silver water on the other.

  The tremendous ramparts that surrounded the city could be seen from far away. These walls surpassed every other structure I had seen, running the length of the waterfront. Massive square towers punctuated their breadth, and the tiny figures of sentries along the top made it clear their height was no illusion.

  "There must be more than a hundred towers," Bene said in awe.

  "Stanbulin is often attacked by warbands and marauders seeking its riches." The way Lexander surveyed the city reminded me that he had trained here, returning every two decades to receive his new assignments. He knew this city well.

  There were gates piercing the wall here and there, with some opening onto small harbors. Each harbor was also walled off from the rest of the city, offering sentries the perfect vantage to attack a ship within. Bene and Eshter were frank in their admiration, but it was too foreboding for me. Masses of buildings covered the hills inside.

  "Stanbulin is an ancient city," Lexander explained. "The gateway between east and west. You can find the finest of luxuries here and the basest of vice all wrapped in superstitious beliefs." To me, he added, "Kristna is powerful here, but there are many ancient gods whose worship is too strong to be supplanted."

  Our small ship waited until a gate was raised in front of a public harbor. Soon enough we were waved through with flags so we could dock within the walls. I felt as if we were at the bottom of a well, unable to see yet the sounds of the city echoed oddly around us.

  The brothers dealt with the dockmaster while we simply walked away. They would stay and take on supplies, if they were allowed. Our business with them was done, with all parties satisfied. Lexander had admitted the night before we disembarked that my choice had been sound—surely we would have been caught by the guild masters if we had taken the ponderous galley as he had wanted.

  A broad shelf curved along the wall to an interior gate. Passing through, we were instantly thrust into a boiling sea of people, thicker than a swarm of bees. I grabbed Bene and Eshter’s hands to keep from losing them.

  After the tranquil villages in the isles, Stanbulin was stunning to the senses. It was an endless maze of walls, gates, stalls, and plazas spreading far into the distance. Along with packs of dogs that roamed around were beggars and cripples holding out their hands, following us as long as they dared and begging us for mercy.

  Everywhere there were men sitting cross-legged on small rugs laid on the ground, often smoking noxious substances, adding to the stench. Some wore the long robes of the isles and wound cloth tightly around their heads. Others wore baggy pants embroidered in a rainbow of colors or brocade tunics that were closed with silk frogs. Most of the women tied dark veils over their hair and faces, revealing only their eyes through a narrow slit. Those dark eyes followed us, curious and exotic.

  The words were as varied as the people. I heard a scrap of Frankish and was happy to see a few of the short, curly-haired people. But Bene didn’t notice them in the din.

  The most prevalent tongue was spoken with a rapid sibilance. They used gestures to convey nuances with the turn of a hand or tilt of their head. I called to the olfs so I could understand what was being said, and concentrated on picking up as many practical words as possible, my tongue shifting around the strange sounds.

  Bene and Eshter couldn’t understand any of the shouts aimed in our direction, though the olfs told me that some were meant to admire my beauty. My veil was sheer, the only kind I could bear, and that seemed to grant leave for anyone to gaze upon me. Eshter strutted happily beside me in her boyish attire.

  We gaped at everything, especially the strange animals—monkeys like skinny, brown olfs with hands as cunning as our own, and four
-legged beasts of burden with long curved necks and a hump in the middle of their backs. The buildings were unusual, with red tile roofs and slender towers thrusting into the sky. Lexander pointed out monuments erected near the wells in public plazas—obelisks and marble statues painted in bright colors, celebrating great events or rulers in the past.

  As we entered one plaza, Lexander stopped abruptly, holding us back. There was the clash of swords ahead and suddenly boys appeared from everywhere, dashing past us to escape the plaza.

  "Is it a battle?" I cried as we ran back down the street.

  Lexander turned into a twisting lane that led uphill. He made sure we weren’t being followed before relenting his pace. "They’re conscripting soldiers for their next campaign. The emperor died in the summer, after losing several cities along the coast to the sultan. The empress fights on with her new husband. It’s tradition to gather men from the streets to fill out the empty ranks." He glanced at Bene and Eshter. "They’d take these two, and there’s little I could do to stop them."

  Subdued, we three were less inclined to gawk or stray far from Lexander after that. The line between his brows showed his concern as he hesitated at a crossroads. "There’s no help for it: we’ll have to go through the slave market to avoid the conscriptors. Don’t draw attention to yourselves. There may be masters from Saaladet here."

  We entered the slave market through a high arch. Within were more twisting lanes that were partially covered by canopies. Evil twined among these walls, leaving me breathless. None of the olfs came along despite my pleas.

  The market consisted of open stalls set within the nooks, and doors that opened onto chambers lined with rich tapestries. Women, men, and children were crouched down together or lined up with their heads bowed, waiting to be bought.

  We passed a rough group of men with a tragic air, corralled in a wooden enclosure. They were nude to reveal the wounds of their castrati. Lexander said grimly, "Eunuchs are quite prized for their administrative abilities. The old emperor even relied on his sister’s valet to lead his war campaigns."