"Then we'll meet at the match?"
Nodding, Cuauhtemoc parted ways with him at the stairs, his guards in tow. He went immediately to his bath yard, thoughts of that missed kiss still playing havoc inside him. His body servants undressed him and washed away the day's sweat in the tub, rubbing him down vigorously with sea sponges and pumice on his calluses. If only it were Malinali scrubbing him down instead. If only Ixtlil had shown up an hour later....
The thought of her made him stiff again and he didn't dare leave the tub once his servants finished, lest they get the wrong impression. He needed to take care of this pesky issue, and though it was a fact of life for an emperor or king that servants would always be nearby, even during their most intimate of moments—sometimes even in the very same room—Cuauhtemoc had his limits about what he would do in front of his. He called for a drying cloth then told his body servants to clean up the bath yard. "I will dress myself." He rose with his back to them and wrapped the towel around his waist. The servants nodded and went about their work and he headed up the steps back into his quarters, clutching his cloth tightly closed.
But he stopped short when he saw the woman lying on his bed. She was completely naked.
Except for the wooden slave collar around her neck.
¤
Malinali cursed Ixtlil the entire way back to the slave quarters. How can he have such dreadful timing? She tried not to feel resentful as she paced her sleeping quarters. She was alone, so no one would catch her sighing like a young girl as she slapped Cuauhtemoc's leather gloves against her hand, mimicking thoughts of slapping Ixtlil across the face with them. If only we'd had a few more moments alone....
But then she stared at the gloves in her hand. You forgot to give them back. You should return them. Cuauhtemoc's probably alone in his quarters, and maybe you could still claim that kiss he'd promised. The pleasant ache in her belly made up her mind, and she left the slave quarters at a swift walk, desire and excitement carrying her.
On the way upstairs, she went over in her head what she'd say to him once they were alone. I'm just returning your gloves, and I wanted to say it was a wonderful afternoon. Too bad Ixtlil showed up when he did. How long until you must be at the Tlachtli match? All of it patently ridiculous. By the time she turned the corner and saw the guards, the excitement turned to jitters, and she nearly turned back. But they saw her and nodded silently, so there was no turning back now.
"I forgot to give the huey tlatoani his riding gloves." She reddened when her voice broke with nervousness.
One guard let slip a smile but neither said anything as they held the curtain open for her. She hurried inside, afraid her courage would fail her still. Once the curtain swished shut, she smoothed her sweaty hands across her dress, took a deep breath, then looked around.
Only the curtain over the study doorway stood open, so she went there first, but it was empty. She went to the dressing room next. She wondered if she should open the curtain—what if he's dressing?—but then she heard soft noises coming from the direction of the sleeping quarters. As she approached the blue curtain, she saw it wasn't fully closed as she'd previously thought; it was open the width of her forefinger, just enough to see inside.
She knew she shouldn't spy, but curiosity overrode decorum. If he's not decent, I'll look away, she promised herself.
But when she looked past the curtain, she saw not Cuauhtemoc, but Tayanna, with not a stitch of clothing on her. She was sprawled languidly—and lewdly—out on Cuauhtemoc's bed, her black hair tousled and her cheeks flushed with excitement. "Tell me how best I can serve you, My Lord," she said with a sultry smile as she looked off to the side.
When Malinali followed her gaze, she found Cuauhtemoc standing at the doorway leading out to the bath yard. Just like Tayanna, he was completely naked, and— "Oh!" Malinali promptly stepped away from the curtain and hid off to the side, her heart pounding. Magnificent but...you're not the cause. A bitter stew of resentment and sadness soured her stomach. None of this made sense. Why was he with Tayanna when he'd tried to kiss her no more than an hour ago—and would have if Ixtlil hadn't shown up unannounced?
Morbid curiosity made her want to look again, just to be certain of what she was seeing, but the memory of the lust in his eyes as he stared at Tayanna.... I don't need the truth rubbed in my face. Instead, she fled out the doorway into the hallway. One guard called after her, but she didn't answer. She just ran. After everything she'd shared with Cuauhtemoc, how could he do this to her?
Chapter Eight
What in Mictlan is this woman doing here? Cuauhtemoc wondered. But the question went no further as his eyes traveled down her body, over the peaks of her supple breasts, down onto the flat of her abdomen then up again, to the smooth mound of her tepilli, so unashamedly open to him. "Tell me how best I can serve you, My Lord." Her words turned that persistent longing into a pulsing howl in his blood.
You are the huey tlatoani, he could hear Ixtlil say. You're entitled to pleasure so freely offered.
Swallowing hard, he started stepping towards her, but then stopped. She sat up on her elbows, giving him a better view of her face. It was the woman who'd served him the afternoon meal the day he'd told Malinali about his vision. Memories of this afternoon flooded over him, of holding Malinali's hand and leaning in for the kiss he'd so desperately wanted. It shook the lust from his brain. I don't want just any woman; I want Malinali.
He didn't remember dropping his drying cloth around his ankles, but now his whole face burned with embarrassment as he scrambled to cover himself again. "Get out," he choked. "I don't know why you came here but get out."
She stared at him, crestfallen. "Have I offended you, Revered Speaker?"
"Get out!"
The woman gathered up her clothing, tears welling in her eyes, but when he called for his guards, she hurried into her dress, the tears giving way to panicked sobs.
The guards started when they saw her. "Is everything all right, My Lord?"
"Get her out of here. And she's never to return to the living quarters ever again."
She wept as the guards led her out half-dressed and Cuauhtemoc slashed the curtain closed behind them. He paced, his guilt growing into suspicion. Someone sent her here for you to find, he decided. "Ixtlil," he growled under his breath.
¤
Malinali hid in the sleeping quarters, fearing she'd do something rash when Tayanna returned; her devastation had burned away, making way for the ferocious desire to throttle her. The head slave didn't abide violence among his charges and wouldn't hesitate to sell her off for harming another slave, so it was best to hide under her blanket and let the anger boil itself away on its own. At least she and Tayanna didn't share the same quarters.
She tried sleeping, but every time she closed her eyes, she saw Tayanna lying on Cuauhtemoc's bed, so perfect and young and pretty. How could you be so foolish, to think he'd pick you over her? When the tears stung her eyes, she screwed up her resolve. She wouldn't cry over some man who thought sharing one of her most closely guarded secrets wasn't anything special.
Xochitli came into the room and started changing her clothes. "Are you ready for dinner?" Malinali covered her head with her blanket and hunkered down, pretending to sleep. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Malinali choked, then cursed herself for speaking at all.
Xochitli sat on the bed roll next to her and pulled the blanket away. "Are you all right?"
Despite all her efforts, Malinali's resolve turned to dust. "He's sleeping with Tayanna!" She hid her face with her hands.
"Who?"
"Cuauhtemoc."
"How do you know—"
"I saw her...lying naked on his bed, in his quarters."
Xochitli sighed. "I'm sorry."
"I thought...he's taking me to Tlaxcala with him next week, to help him negotiate a peace treaty, and we went to Chapultepec this afternoon, so he could teach me to ride a horse on my own. And he told me about what happened to his father, and
I told him about my own father dying and how my mother and her new husband sold me into slavery, and he nearly kissed me! But when I went to his quarters, to return his riding gloves—" Malinali showed her the gloves she still clutched in her hands like the last remaining memory of a lost love. "—and there she was, talking to him...and...." She covered her face again. "How could he do this?"
Stroking her hair, Xochitli said, "Maybe it's not what it seems, but even then, men don't see such things the way we do. Sometimes sex isn't about love, it's merely something to do."
Malinali sat up, wiping her tears with an angry swipe of her fist. "What does it matter, anyway? It means nothing to me. He has no interest in me aside from being his personal advisor, and I'm thankful for it."
Xochitli frowned. "No, you're not."
Malinali tried to glare at her, but her friend knew her better than anyone. The truth brought the wall of anger crumbling down. "I'm such a fool, Xochitli."
"We cannot help what our hearts feel."
"I should have known better. At least I didn't do something foolish, such as offer myself to him."
Her friend tried to smile but managed only an uncomfortable grin. "Things will work out. Give it time."
Malinali nodded and tried to banish her foolish feelings, but the memories of that afternoon remained stubbornly at the forefront of her mind all through dinner.
¤
The game had already started, with the players darting around the dirt court below after the crimson rubber ball, dressed in their knee and elbow pads and reed-woven girdles that protected their guts from hard blows. The crowd shouted and hollered, waving colorful feathered banners in the air while a band played drums and flutes.
"I need to talk to you," Cuauhtemoc growled in Ixtlil's ear when he came up behind Ixtlil in the royal box.
Ixtlil hesitated to look away from the action, but when Cuauhtemoc added, "Now," he finally left his mat and followed him into the anteroom beyond the sitting area. He started to give his friend one of his boisterous claps on the shoulder, but seeing the fury on Cuauhtemoc's face, he stopped. "Has something happened?"
"Did you send her?" Cuauhtemoc demanded.
"Send who?"
"Don't play with me, Ixtlil. The girl." When Ixtlil frowned, puzzled, Cuauhtemoc added, "The naked one that was waiting for me in my quarters?"
Now Ixtlil smiled slyly. "Now wouldn't that be a pleasant surprise?"
"I sent her away."
"The gods give generously, yet you shun such a wonderful gift?"
"What were you thinking? What if Malinali had been with me?"
Ixtlil stared at him, incredulous. "You think I sent some girl to exercise your neglected snake for you?"
"You didn't?"
"I've hardly had time for such an elaborate ruse. I arrived here at the same time you did this afternoon. Granted, it sounds like something I'd do, but if I sent anyone to your quarters to seduce you, it would be Malinali." When Cuauhtemoc started protesting, Ixtlil held up his hands. "I jest, of course. She doesn't strike me as the kind I could talk into such things. But really, why isn't she already in your bed?"
"I can't rush this. She must know that I think of her as more than a beautiful body."
"Then tell her."
"If only it were so easy."
"It is easy. You're making it difficult."
"It's not easy," Cuauhtemoc insisted.
Ixtlil scrutinized him. "You're afraid if you tell her the truth of your feelings, she'll give you an honest answer, and it might not be a confession of love." When Cuauhtemoc didn't answer, he asked, "But what if she says she loves you too? You would really risk not knowing that?"
"So long as she's my slave, I cannot be absolutely certain of the truth."
"Then free her."
"And what if she leaves? We need her help with Tlaxcala. We need this treaty and we won't get it without her help, so I must put aside my feelings and focus on what's best for the empire. And that means keeping a formal relationship with her."
"That would be foolishness, if you ask me."
"I'm not."
Ixtlil stood straighter. "You obviously have it all worked out, so I'm returning to my mat." He disappeared through the curtain, leaving it swishing angrily in his wake.
¤
The steam bath provided little relaxation, and when Malinali turned in early, she ached all over. She hadn't felt this horrible since the first time she'd fallen in love, and the object of her affection hadn’t reciprocated that time either. A year later, when the old witch woman started teaching her spells and potions, she'd taught Malinali how to brew a love potion that she claimed would make any man forget all women but her. Malinali hadn't believed it at first, but many of the village's young women swore by it and came to the old woman for her special potion. If only she'd known about it a year earlier, then it might have done her some good.
Probably wouldn't do me any good now either, she thought as she stared at the ceiling.
She already knew that all of the ingredients grew in the royal gardens and the potion wasn't that difficult to brew, and if it worked as the old woman had said, Cuauhtemoc would completely forget Tayanna or any other woman he was attracted to....
But the more she thought about it, the less crazy it sounded. After all her poor luck, she deserved a good break, and maybe all Cuauhtemoc needed was a gentle prod, to get him thinking about her as more than a political ally.
She dug her herb pouch out of the sack where she kept her few belongings, tied it to her undergarment and smoothed her dress down, then headed out of the slave quarters.
Servants bustled around the kitchens, carrying trays of food and empty dishes back and forth through the patio doorway. With so much chaos, Malinali slipped unnoticed out into the moonlit the garden. She went directly to the beds where the plants she needed grew, and she pulled off some of their leaves and tucked them into her pouch. She moved from bed to bed, gathering the ingredients a piece at a time.
Once she stuffed the last leaf into her bag, she gathered the most important ingredient: one of her own hairs. She dropped it into the bag too then crept back to the patio and blended in with the crowd of servants moving back and forth between the great hall and the kitchens.
Curiosity got the better of her, though, and she moved with the river of servants to the doors of the great hall where several hundred guests were dining. Cuauhtemoc and Ixtlil sat on the dais, the same as that first night when he'd cornered her in the courtyard. Neither man looked happy, though. Perhaps Cuauhtemoc felt remorseful for having spent his passion with Tayanna instead of her? It would serve him right. When he looked in her direction, she ducked into the wave of servants and headed back to the kitchens.
Though the slave quarters' common room was empty, Malinali exercised caution as she went into the kitchen. She grabbed a flint blade from the butcher block then chopped her ingredients and scraped them from the block into a clay bowl. She set it over the fire, then checked the doorway, listening for footfalls. When she returned, she poked her finger into the mixture, testing the dryness. She watched the doorway impatiently, expecting the mistress of slaves to come nosing around at any moment.
Finally, with the mixture turned to ash, she scooped the bowl off the fire and dumped the powder into her herb bag. As she tied it back under her dress, the head mistress came strolling in. She started when she noticed Malinali crouched next to the fire. "What are you doing in here?"
Malinali ladled water from the nearby jar into the bowl then set it in the hearth again. "I'm making a tonic. I'm not sleeping well again."
The old woman squinted into the bowl. "Don't use too much or you'll never wake again." She moved off towards the storage room, but added, "And make certain you clean up after yourself."
¤
By morning, Cuauhtemoc regretted his heated words to Ixtlil, so he went to the guest quarters to apologize. Though finding his best friend in bed with one of his slaves did little to feed his graciousness. Espe
cially when she was the very same woman he'd found in his own bed the day before. She hid under the blankets to avoid his simmering glare.
"You haven't seen my loincloth, have you?" Ixtlil walked around his room naked. "This is what happens when I dismiss my servants so I can enjoy myself."
Cuauhtemoc kicked a wadded up band of cloth to his friend. "What did I tell you about bedding my slaves?"
Ixtlil tied on his loincloth. "Yes, yes, I know. If she ends up with child, I'll compensate you."
"I'll wait for you in the hallway," Cuauhtemoc said, disgusted, though he focused his hard gaze squarely on the woman who peeked at him from behind the blankets.
Once Ixtlil joined him, they headed towards the gardens. "I was about to apologize for yesterday, but I see you've already taken your revenge," Cuauhtemoc noted.
Ixtlil chuckled. "That had nothing to do with getting even. In fact, I went to the slave quarters last night looking for Malinali."
"Whatever for?"
"To tell her what you're too cowardly to tell her."
"You told her?"
"She was already asleep. But the girl—" He pointed a thumb back at his room— "She was there, and you know me...."
"Have you any idea who that is?"
"I didn't ask her name, only whether she was willing, and she was, so what else is there to know?"
"That's the girl who sneaked into my bed yesterday."
"You turned that beautiful creature down? The Love Goddess certainly has blown her pollen in your face. She was magnificent; not virginal, of course, but a virgin slave girl is a hard commodity to find anymore."
"Especially when you're around."
"A real man doesn't have to force anyone into his bed; they come willingly."
"And you really believe they'd dare say no?"
Ixtlil sighed. "Certainly we needn't get into this discussion. I'd rather continue liking you this morning."
"We don't need to discuss it, so long as you didn't say anything to Malinali."
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