Marri's Approach (Brackish Bay)

by Cerise Noble

  “We have to get her out of here before she ends up married to some nasty political alliance.”

  “Yes.”

  “Can't we just pick her up and ride out?” I said.

  “Can you imagine our Katherine standing for that?” I shook my head. “She has to make the decision. And we have to be ready so that when she does, we can act immediately.”

  I let my fear and sorrow color my whisper. “Tony said you didn't exist.”

  He shrugged, a difficult thing to do while doing pushups. He was fit, for an old man.

  “They shun us. As long as we do not try to participate, as long as we stay in the shadows and away from decent folk, they will not harm us. But we are invisible.”

  “That's awful!”

  “It doesn't matter. Katherine matters.”

  “Yes.”

  He grunted, sounding like a man in the throes of spilling his seed, and it was all I could do to keep from giggling. Sometimes I forgot how good an actor William the Poet, William the Storyteller, was.

  “You stay strong, Marri. I don't know why you're here, but you'll be able to get closer to her than I will.”

  “How?”

  “You're smart and resourceful. You'll find a way.”

  He stood up, dropped a necklace on the blanket beside me, and left the tent. I rearranged my clothing and tucked a clean cloth between my legs—I needed it for my arousal, even if I didn't need it from William's visit—before exciting the tent. The women didn't pay any attention to me, but instead continued plying their trade.

  When morning came, they counted up the payments, my necklace included. It was made of painted beads, and I thought I recognized Amadeus's hand in it. It made me nostalgic.

  “You can stay with us, but you'll have to earn more than that in a night.”

  I bowed my head. “I'm sorry. I was hurting too much.”

  The brunette beckoned to me. “Let me see.”

  We went into the tent, and she flipped my skirts up, then sucked in her breath. “Bernard can be brutal.”

  “Yes.”

  She applied a salve that burned, but she patted my back when I wiggled. “It will hurt at first, but it will clean the wounds. You have many scratches that broke the skin, and if they get infected, your life is in danger.”

  I froze, heart thumping. Gods, what I wouldn't give to be back in the cities, not in the gods-forsaken wilderness with a bunch of primitive horsemen. Dammit, Fortuna, can't you make it easy for Katherine to leave?

  Days began to blur. I lived in the tent with the other women—Marsillia, Nester, and Edith—and served the men who came calling. We ate together, endured insults and mistreatment together. When possible, I took their beatings for them. Most men were not so particular whether they whipped one of the others or me, especially if I took the blame for misbehavior. While the women never thanked me for it, I noticed a grudging admiration when I was able to bed multiple men in the same night that one had taken his belt to me for tripping blonde Nester when she danced with him, causing him to stumble. Not that I had actually tripped her, but I apologized as if I had.

  They seemed to believe it was somewhat my due for being new, for not actually being one of their tribe. But at the same time, the fact that I bore it without complaint bought me some respect. I was sore and bitter much of the time, though I hid it well, and the pleasure that came from mingling pain and sex did much to sooth my resentment.

  Too soon, the people began to pack to leave. It was only a week, and I felt an unparalleled urgency to get Katherine free before they moved on to gods only knew where. I walked through the camp, looking for her, determined to talk some sense into her, when I found her sitting beside Ramon as he discussed which camp they were going to next.

  “Katherine!” I called.

  Ramon glanced at me, anger in his dark eyes. “How dare you interrupt me?”

  I dropped my eyes to the ground. “Please forgive me, sir. I just wanted to be sure my lady Katherine was well.”

  “She's well.” A pause. “Though she's not a lady. Don't give her pretensions.”

  Ah, Fortuna, now or never.

  “She is,” I insisted. “She's a great, elegant, and wonderful lady who is highborn and beautiful.”

  Katherine smiled at me, recognition in her face before she frowned a little in confusion.

  He snorted. “Highborn? Hardly. She's a whore's get, and her only redeeming quality is that she hasn't followed her mother's twisted path.”

  Katherine turned her face to him, eyes wide in shock.

  “But, Papa! Didn't you love Mama once?”

  He snorted again. “Love? Gods, no. She was a wanton little whore.”

  “She loved you! She wanted to marry you!”

  “Of course she wanted to marry me. Many women did. And if she had, she'd have been forgiven her whoring ways.”

  “She was virgin!”

  He shook his head. “Not a chance.”

  Katherine's voice turned low and deadly, and inside I cheered. Good girl!

  “You are calling my mother a liar, you ungrateful bastard. I came to you because I wanted to know you. I wanted to know the other half of my blood, to love you for giving me life. But you—you insult her; you insult me. How dare you?”

  He flinched when she spat the word bastard at him, and I remembered William's words—Ramon’s own father had not acknowledged him. I could see the hurt flash in Ramon’s eyes, but it was his own fault. He'd had a chance to make it up to her, a second chance to acknowledge the child he'd fathered, but only if he believed her mother. And he didn't.

  His voice shook with anger. “If you feel that way, get out. Get out of my tribe. Get out of my life. You are not mine; you are a demon spawn, lower than a whore, lower than a faggot. You're a misbegotten mistake.”

  She flinched, and then burst into angry, ugly tears. I saw when her hurt turned into hate, and then my hand was slapping hers away from his dagger, wrapping her up in my arms and dragging her away.

  “Don't do it, Katy, you're safe. Come, come, come away.” I raised my voice. “Tell the faggots they have another invisible one to join their ranks.”

  His voice was cruel. “You think you're a match for me? You think you can cut me? Come and try!”

  Her screams hurt my heart. “I'm not a faggot! I'm not a whore! I'm your daughter!”

  “Come with me.” I dragged her away while the other men snickered and the women called shameful things to her. “Come now, Katherine.”

  “I don't want to!” Her wail was heartrending.

  “Now, dammit!”

  She fought me the entire way to the edge of the clearing where William and Amadeus sat on horses. They had one more with them, and I swung up onto it, grateful, after Amadeus had pulled Katherine into the saddle in front of him. She continued to wail as we rode away, towards the dock.

  For a long time we didn't speak, just listened to her grief and watched the trees go by.

  Chapter 11

  We didn't stop for dinner; there was no point. After a while, she cried herself to sleep, and I was grateful. We came in sight of the dock some time after dark, and only torches illuminated the way. The inn was closed up tight, so William dismounted and pitched a tiny traveling tent near the river. We lay together inside it, pressed together like pups in a cave. All of us held Katherine, and it felt like we needed to, or her distress would break her apart.

  Morning found my empty stomach complaining, and I roused myself to find Amadeus already up, the stress worn into his face in new lines around his eyes.

  “Do you have coin?” I said. He shook his head. “I have some. I'll buy supplies. Tell me what you need.”

  He stood up. “I'll go with you.”

  We walked to the trading post and purchased food for that day and the next, for the trip back to Brackish Bay. My skin prickled with the knowledge of the punishment I would get when I returned, but my hunger pushed it out of my mind.

  Back on the riverbank, I chopped
and prepared the ingredients while he cooked. When I peeked into the tent, I could see William holding Katherine in his lap while she sobbed into his shoulder.

  “Katherine. Family is not blood. Family is love. Ramon doesn't love you. I do. Amadeus does. Roy does. Jacqueline does.”

  I chimed in. “She does, you know. She defied Roy to set me free to find you.”

  “What?” Her tear-streaked face tugged on my heartstrings.

  “Roy told her to stay away from me. She didn't listen. She was so worried about you, she left the dungeon door open for me so I could come find you, since I was the last to see you.”

  Her voice was an awed whisper. “She never defies Roy.”

  I shrugged. “Maybe not, but for you, she'd make a bargain with a demon. She thought I was one, and she didn't care, if I could help bring you back safely.”

  “You're not a demon.”

  I grinned, showing my teeth. “You used to think I was.”

  She shook her head. “You're not.”

  “Kindly tell that to Roy before he whips me, would you?”

  She snorted, just a little. “I will.”

  William stroked her back. “Are you hungry?”

  “Maybe.”

  He led her out, and Amadeus filled a bowl for her. She picked at her food, dissolving into tears again. Amadeus rocked her this time, patting her back and stroking her arm.

  “Why did you let me meet him?” she said.

  “Shush, Kathy,” he said. “We've known you since you were a baby. Some things you have to experience to believe. We didn't want to speak too badly about your father; we'd never met him. Once we did, we wanted to snatch you up and bring you home to where you belong, but you needed to see for yourself his ugly colors. If you didn't, you would resent us. We love you. We're so sorry you're hurting. We were hoping that he would come around.”

  I growled. “He should be proud to claim you. Instead, he insults you.”

  She sniffled. “You insulted me.”

  “A long time ago. When I first met you. And I came around, didn't I?”

  “What if he does?”

  “You were with him for two weeks, Katherine. I came around after a few days. If he couldn't see how good and wonderful you are in that time, especially with the possibility that you were his own child, he won't ever see it.” I dusted my hands. “Good riddance to bad rubbish.”

  She climbed out of Amadeus's arms and back into William's. There, she buried her face in his chest. Her voice was a whisper.

  “I wanted to kill him.”

  I answered. “I know.” Amadeus looked shocked, but I ignored him. “It wasn't worth your life, little one.”

  “Thank you for stopping me.”

  I touched her arm gently. “Of course. Now.” I turned bossy. “Eat up, or William will have to spank you for refusing good food.”

  She half-laughed. “No spanking could hurt more than this.”

  “No, of course not. But you have to eat, anyway, and sitting on a hot bottom won't help. Or will it?”

  I raised an eyebrow, and she half-laughed again.

  “All right, I'll eat.” She sat up and reached for the bowl again, nibbling on the rice porridge.

  William and I ate, also. After a while, I realized it was Amadeus who was withdrawn. I touched his arm, but he shrugged me off.

  No boats came that day, nor the next, so I purchased supplies again. William thanked me for doing so, and I scoffed at him.

  “You supported Dinis and me for months. I have the coin I earned in a few nights in the camp. I may as well use it. It's not like I'll need it tucked away in a dungeon in Brackish Bay.”

  William frowned at me, noticing the collar for the first time. He was exasperated.

  “Marri, please tell me that isn't Roy's lock on your collar.”

  “What, this old thing?” I flicked the tiny padlock and winced when it hurt my fingernail. William snorted. “Yeah, well, it was submit or die, so I claim duress.”

  “Marri.”

  “What?”

  “Did you swear to obey Roy and be loyal to Brackish Bay?”

  “Yes.”

  “Did you disobey him?”

  “Not—not exactly. He didn't actually give me any orders. He kind of just left me in the street. And Stephanie spit on me. And one of his soldiers was going to kick me, then he didn't. And Karianne, a slave, came and got me and took me home and cleaned me up.”

  “And Roy didn't give you any orders?”

  “No. Only Karianne and her master did.”

  William looked to the sky, as if imploring the gods for patience. “What did they order you to do?”

  “To—to obey Karianne as if she was Roy. To stay put. To be good.”

  William took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “By all the gods, woman, you will be the death of someone.”

  “I already have been,” I piped up helpfully. “I have quite a kill count.”

  William refocused on me so fast I skipped back in fear. His voice was dangerous.

  “What did you say?”

  “Not one of yours! No one in Brackish Bay, I swear!”

  “You break promises pretty easily.”

  He took a step towards me, and I scrambled backwards.

  “No, sir, no, sir. I don't. I don't submit unless forced to, but when I swear something of my own free will, I keep the promise.”

  “Do you now?”

  “I swore to Jacqueline that I would bring Katherine back. I'm doing it.”

  “You swore to obey Roy, and I doubt he gave you permission for this escapade.”

  “Would you rather I had stayed there, in Brackish Bay's dungeon, doing nothing? What would you have done? How long would you have followed them, invisible, spat on, and shunned, not able to get close to her? Would you have just waited until she became disillusioned in her own time? How long would it take? Weeks? Months? Would you even know where in this wide world you were by then? How far from home would you be, with people who hate what you are? Maybe she forgave him for treating you the way he did, but I didn't. Amadeus didn't. Have you seen what a toll it took on him? How long would you have done that to him?”

  William turned towards his lover, startled and discomfited. “What is she talking about? They didn't touch you, they didn't harm you, did they?”

  Amadeus shook his head, sank down to his knees in a gesture that had been elegant once upon a time, and now was only heartbreakingly submissive. “I will follow you to the ends of the earth. No harm can come to me in your service.”

  William dropped down to his level and caressed his face. “What's wrong?”

  Amadeus shook his head. “You knew, going in, what it would be like. I was unprepared for just how much it would hurt.” Two tears welled in the corners of his eyes, and then he blinked and they tracked down his cheeks. “Forgive me for being weak.”

  William gathered him to his chest. “No, forgive me for not understanding, not shielding you more from their ignorance and hate.”

  “I thought it was bad when people made snide remarks in the towns, when people insulted us. I did not understand what it was like to be considered unworthy of acknowledgment, to be considered below hate into revulsion. I remember how much it hurt when Jacqueline called us names when you took in her and the newborn Katherine. And she only said them out of ignorance, repeating what her tribe had taught her, and begged forgiveness shortly after. To be immersed in the life of a tribe, and so outcast, and to hear those things from people who truly believed that their gods revile us.” He shook his head. “I could scarcely bear it.” He clung tightly to his master. “And to think that you'd grown up with that, that you'd born all that and more from people who were supposed to love you, from your family, when you were just a boy.”

  William stroked his back, holding him tightly. “I'm so sorry. Please forgive me.”

  “No, I'm sorry. For not understanding until now what it was like for you.”

  William kissed his love on t
he head and sighed. “Old men make mistakes.”

  Amadeus laughed a little, and then Katherine broke in.

  “You're not old.”

  This time William laughed. “I wasn't young when you were born, child.”

  She snorted and tossed her glossy curls. “That doesn't mean you're old.”

  We spent the rest of the day recovering.

  The next day there was a boat and, wonder of wonders, it was from Brackish Bay. They stopped, and William went to speak to them. I waited, nervous and jittery, beside Amadeus and Katherine. After a bit, he gestured to us, and we headed down the dock, leading our horses. It took a little doing, but the horses were stowed in the livestock area with William's help, and I finally caught what the captain was discussing with Amadeus.

  “I can't confirm it, of course, but there's rumor that the governor had inside knowledge of the enemy's plans and movements. Some surprises, of course, but no army can change course midstream like that, not if they want to continue to attack. They must have thought that their numbers would be enough to carry the day.”

  “But they weren't.”

  “Of course they weren't. Our soldiers are far more skilled than they were. They broke on our walls and in our woods. Roy sent out teams of riders to sweep the forest. We're rich in slaves now, since more than a few surrendered rather than die.”

  “I take it they'll be sold at Tornaku?”

  “Tornaku and other places. There's a lot this time.”

  “Thank you for doubling back for us.”

  “Understandable. The lady Jacqueline has been more than distraught. She'll be overjoyed to find out her daughter was far from the battle.”

  “Yes, certainly.”

  We settled down in a small cabin not far from the horses. I found myself shivering despite the heat that had convinced me to strip down to just the chemise. I was afraid of my reception.

  Katherine tried to comfort me. “I'm sure he'll be easy on you. Jacqueline will be glad to see me. He'll be glad to see me. He'll forgive you running away since you're coming back with me.”

  What I haven't told them, Fortuna, is that he said break your word and you die. I don't think I'm ready to die yet. But I did swear, to Jacqueline first, that I would bring her daughter back safe.