by Seven Steps
Silly thoughts. After all, where would he go?
And so, instead of taking him to the slave physician to wipe his mind and make him more compliant, or beating him, or selling him, she would hold his hand and, together, they found some measure of peace.
“Roland, you have to understand that this is the way things are,” she said. “You are a servant, because you are a man. I am your mistress, because I am a woman. That’s the way it will always be.”
“But why?”
“Because it’s the law. We have to go by what the law says, and the law says that you have to be a servant.”
“What if I don’t want to be a servant anymore?” he asked.
Joanna paused.
This is something new.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“I mean, what if I don’t want to live like this anymore?”
“Roland, that’s crazy. I suggest that you keep your thoughts to yourself, and accept your lot in life.”
“My lot.” He slammed his hand on the mantle, shaking the common room. “I hate my lot in life!”
She stood, approaching him slowly. Roland would never hurt her—of that, she was certain. But, still, better safe than sorry.
“Roland, where else would you have been born? What else would you have been?”
“I don’t know. But I know that this is not what I was meant to do. I was meant to do more in life. This can’t be all that there is.”
“Roland, you’re talking like a fool. You have a great life and you don’t even know it. I don’t whip you. I don’t take on other servants. I treat you well. You do as you please. What more could a man ask for?”
“Freedom,” he replied.
Joanna sighed again. “Roland, you have to understand. You can never be free.”
“But don’t you want me to be happy? Don’t you love me?”
Joanna paused.
Love? No. Love is for weak minded women led astray by evil servants. I am a member of the High Council.
She decided not to push the issue.
“Roland, I do lo… I want you to be happy. But I need for you to forget all of this freedom talk. It will never happen. I don’t know what’s wrong with you lately. Maybe we should see the physician.”
“I’m in eternal bondage, and you don’t even care. That’s what is wrong with me!” He spat at her.
Joanna smirked. It was a threatening smirk. One that told him that he’d gone too far.
“I suggest that you watch your tongue, Roland.”
He sighed, and she watched his eyes slink back to the floor. Saw his spine curve into a question mark.
“Now, I think that it's best that you go to bed now. Tomorrow, we’ll go see the doctor.”
His jaw clenched, but he didn’t say anything further. She watched him trudge down the hallway to his room, and shook her head.
Something is definitely wrong with that man.
CHAPTER 6
Terra and Joanna were invited to dine with Mistress Vechulla Dii for the evening. They took a land pod to the far side of the Habitat Alpha's Residential where Vechulla Dii resided in a large black and white house with painted black shutters, a painted black roof, and whitewashed walls.
They sat around her large dining room table and indulged in the red wine, grown from the finest grapes in Beta Sector.
“Did anyone see the news last night?” Vechulla Dii asked. “They’re doing a Battle’s Eve next week. The winner gets fifty thousand vesuvians. You should enter your slave, Terra. He’s a big man. I'm sure he'll win something.”
Vechulla Dii was a tall, round, dark skinned woman, with blonde dreadlocks and long, flowing robes. Recently retired from high council, she spent her days watching the news feed and tormenting her slaves.
“I don’t think that Nic would be right for Battle’s Eve,” Terra replied. “He’s not much of a fighter.”
“Come on!” Vechulla cried. “I’m entering my slave. I’m sure that Nic will do well.”
“Watching slaves battle to the death is not something that I agree with.”
“Why? If they kill him, you can just get another one.”
Terra took a slow sip of wine before answering.
“It might be hard to find a servant who can adapt to me as thoroughly as Nic did.”
She pretended to study the blue and gold wallpaper, and took another long gulp of wine, hoping that the two women didn't see the way her ears heated up.
Could they tell that just the thought of Nic made her heart flutter? Would they know that she was now a criminal?
Vechulla Dii rolled her eyes and turned to Joanna. “What about you, Joanna? Are you going to enter your slave?”
“No. He wouldn’t last five seconds.”
“You don’t know that. Get two men in the Circle of Fury and you never know what they’ll do.”
“He's more of a talker than a fighter,” Joanna said. “I think I'll pass. Besides, if anything happened to him I'd have to go through the whole process again with slave catalogues and the choosing ceremony. It’s too much.”
“I guess so. So, how are things going at council?”
“Pretty good,” Joanna said. “I’m trying to get a new bill passed to regulate Midnight Inspections.”
“Why are you messing with Midnight Inspections?” Vechulla Dii asked, her voice echoing among the high ceilings. Though she was loud, she was kind and jovial, a smile constantly dancing on her lips.
“Don’t you find them annoying?”
“Look: men are crazy!” She gestured throughout the conversation by opening and closing her fingers; clicking her long nails against her many bracelets. “I wouldn’t trust a man as far as I could throw him. I’m the only female in this house with three servants. What if they try to kill me in the middle of the night? At least with these inspections they’ll find my body before I start to rot.”
“If you don’t trust servants,” Terra said, “then why do you keep getting them?”
A pair of eyes peeked at them through the kitchen door. When they met hers, the door slammed shut again.
“I ask myself that every day. But this big house is too much for me to keep up with, so I have to keep them. One for each floor.”
Terra looked around the dining room. Pictures of Vechulla Dii, her mother, and her grandmother decorated the walls. The tiled floor was cool beneath their feet. Along the wooden table were lace table runners and fresh cut flowers. The temperature was comfortable—somewhere in the mid-seventies.
“So, did you see them kill Iris Lia?” Vechulla Dii asked.
Terra choked on her wine and began to cough. She hadn't thought of the woman since the trial, but her red face rose again in her mind, making her hand shake.
“Yes,” Joanna answered.
Vechulla shook her head. “That was so sad.”
“She was a seditionist,” Joanna remarked.
“I’m not talking about the mother. I’m talking about those children.”
Joanna gasped. “What children?”
“Iris had two children. A little girl and a little boy. They can’t find them now, though.”
Yes. The children. There was something about her children.
“What makes you think that the children aren’t in a shelter or a hospital?” Joanna asked.
“Because there’s a search going on for them right now. Don’t you watch the news?”
Joanna took another sip of wine. “Sometimes.”
Vechulla Dii shook her head. “Yeah. It was really sad. I mean, the little boy is probably dead already. You know, The Enforcers probably shot him or something. But that little girl was so cute. I hope that they find her at least.”
The children. I knew the children.
Terra's mind went back to her days volunteering in the children's center before she became part of Council.
Now I remember. The little girl, Deanna. She was in one of my classes. Her mother would come to pick her up.
She remembe
red Deanna's dark eyes, auburn hair, her smiling face.
That poor child.
Holding her breath to keep from crying, she quickly stood.
“Excuse me.” She walked from the room, and sat in the bathroom, quietly sobbing.
~()~()~()~()~
“So you kept in contact with Iris?” Joanna asked.
“Not for a while now,” Vechulla said. “She got tangled up with some underground movement and we lost touch.”
“A liberation kind of movement?”
“Something like that.”
Joanna fingered her goblet, trying to appear disinterested.
“Exactly what kind of things was she involved in?” Joanna asked.
“You think I’m going to tell you?” Vechulla Dii laughed. “You’re on the council. Plus, I know you. You’ll turn me in for withholding information.”
“No. I wouldn’t.”
“Joanna, I know you. You would.”
Joanna huffed, offended by Vechulla Dii’s words. The woman always spoke exactly what was on her mind, regardless of who was listening, or what was thought about it.
Maybe I will turn her in, she thought.
“See! You’re probably thinking about how you can turn me in right now! I know you.”
“Vechulla, you’re being paranoid.”
Vechulla Dii looked around, careful of who might be listening.
“Well, all right. From what I hear, Iris was in a few groups. One of the ones that I knew about was some ‘Back To Earth’ group. You’ve heard of them?”
“Yeah. They’re a group of women who want to abandon Venus and go back to Earth. They’re obviously delusional.”
“Yeah. Well, I heard Iris had a ship prepared and everything, but one of her friends turned her in. The friend got away clean. When they asked Iris who she was working with, she refused to tell them. So that’s a charge right there. But what I hear is that they changed the charges on her to sedition or something because they don’t want to give people ideas about Earth. Poor Iris is probably dripping down a wall somewhere, and they’re worried about people going back to Earth. Meanwhile, they refuse to ban the Earth history books in the library.”
“It’s history.”
“It’s disgusting.”
“Look. Everyone knows that off world travel is illegal for everyone but ambassadors.”
“I know that everyone knows that. But that’s not the end of it. I heard that they were going to kill some important members of Council before they went.”
Joanna gasped.
Could it have been me? Could I have been a target?
Vechulla sat back in her chair, and took another sip of wine. “Ah. They’re stupid anyway. When they go to Earth and die of a plague, they’ll learn. I’d rather live on Venus than anywhere else. Besides, how can you benefit anybody by starting a civil war?”
“Civil war?”
“Yes! What do you think they wanted to kill the council members for? You kill the head of the council, women start fighting over the seat, now there’s civil war on Venus.”
Civil War on Venus? Joanna thought. Why would they want to start a war? Why would anybody want to start a war?
“What I think is that they were working with the Martians or something. You know, divide and conquer?”
“Why would it go that far?” Joanna asked, getting caught up in the conspiracy theory. “Maybe it wasn’t the Martians. Maybe it was someone closer to home. Maybe they were working with members of the council.”
“That could be it, too. If someone wanted to take over the council, all they’d have to do is to assassinate the Czarina. Then they’d have control. You know women are devious. They could have been working with anybody. That’s why Iris is dead right now. Working with the wrong people.” Vechulla Dii took a long sip of wine as Terra reentered the room, wiping vomit from her chin. “Are you all right, Terra?” Vechulla Dii asked.
“I’m fine,” Terra replied.
“You look pale. Maybe you’re coming down with something. Dario!”
A moment later, a dark skinned man with a white shiny suit appeared.
“Get Terra something for her stomach,” she said.
The man bowed, and then disappeared.
“Did you see the news last night on Mars?” Vechulla Dii asked.
Joanna and Terra shook their heads.
“I don’t even know why I ask you two anything,” Vechulla Dii snickered. “They’re saying that the Martians are planning to attack. Did you hear anything about that?”
“Not at council,” Joanna replied.
“See, that’s why I don’t have you two over,” Vechulla Dii said with a smile. “You never know any of the good gossip. You’re supposed to come with some information for me!”
“Council meetings are confidential.”
“So is everything else on this planet.” She took another swig of wine, then slammed her fist on the table. “Dario, where is the food?!” she demanded.
He appeared in the kitchen doorway. “It’s coming, Empress.”
“And where are the pills for Terra’s stomach? I asked you for them five minutes ago.”
“Yes, Empress. Sorry, Empress.”
“You’d better have them on this table in five seconds or so help me I’ll have you whipped!”
“Yes, Empress,” Dario said, racing back into the kitchen.
“You see, this is why I can’t deal with men. They’re so slow. How long does it take to bring the pills in here? What is he doing; making them?”
“Vechulla, don’t worry about it,” Terra said. “I feel better now.”
“No, because now he’s embarrassing me in front of my guests! I don’t like to be embarrassed in front of my guest!” She crossed her arms across her chest and glowered angrily at the wall comm across the room.
Just then, Dario jogged in from the kitchen and set the pills in front of Terra with a slight bow.
“Sorry for the delay, Empress,” he said breathlessly.
“No. You know what? I’m sick of you being lazy and slow all the time. When I tell you to do something, you do it. Buckino!”
Dario’s eyes widened as they heard the heavy steps come quickly down the stairs.
A large man appeared in the doorway, his head bald and his muscles large and rounded with veins.
“Empress, please!” Dario begged.
“How may I serve you, Empress?” Buckino asked.
“Take Dario outside and give him fifty lashes. Then call The Enforcers to take him away. In the morning, I’m going to get another servant.”
Buckino and Dario looked at each other in shock before looking back at Vechulla Dii.
Buckino knelt next to her chair. “Empress, I beg you. Please give Dario another chance,” Buckino begged softly. “I promise you that he’ll get better. I’ll see to it myself.”
“I’ve given him chances. I’m tired of giving him chances. And if you talk back to me again in front of my friends, I’ll call The Enforcers on you, too!”
Buckino shut his mouth tightly.
“No. You know what?” Vechulla jumped from her chair, her hands on her hips, arms flying. “You two are not going to kill me in my sleep. I can see you plotting right now.” She marched to the wall comm.
“Empress, please forgive us!” Buckino cried.
“Nope. I’m getting rid of all three of you now. Rachulio!”
A third servant came from the top floor and raced to her side. He had dark skin, and was tall and lean. Terra recognized his dark eyes as the ones she had seen earlier.
“Vechulla, maybe you’re over reacting.”
“Come on now. They’re just slaves,” she said dismissively.
“You called, my Empress?” Rachulio asked.
“All three of you are gone, tonight,” she said.
“Vechulla, please don’t do this,” Terra pleaded. “They haven’t done anything wrong.”
The face of an Enforcer appeared on the screen.
“How can I help you, Empress?” The Enforcer asked.
“I need somebody to come and take my three slaves.”
Rachulio looked at the other two men in horror.
“Empress, have we done something wrong?” Rachulio asked nervously.
“Right away, Empress,” The Enforcer said.
The screen went blank again.
“No. They’ve done something wrong!” Vechulla Dii shouted, pointing at Dario and Buckino.
“But you said three slaves,” Rachulio said. “Have I done something to offend you?”
“No, but I don’t want any of you plotting on me.”
“Vechulla, you’re being unreasonable,” Terra said.
“Unreasonable?” the woman asked. “Joanna, do you think that I’m being unreasonable?”
“They’re just men. They’re going to make mistakes,” Joanna said. “Maybe you should show them mercy.”
“See, this is why your slaves are running wild on you. You let them get away with too much. I don’t tolerate anything from my slaves, and if one messes up, they all got to go.”
“Vechulla, you’re being dramatic,” Joanna said, nonchalantly sipping her wine.
The woman sat down in her chair and smiled. She waved her hand dismissively. “Look: they’re just slaves. I’ll get three more tomorrow.”
“Are you sure?” Joanna asked. “What if you get hungry tonight, or need something cleaned, or want breakfast tomorrow morning? Plus, who’s going to clean up all this stuff when we leave?”
Vechulla Dii thought a minute. She sighed.
“But they made me so mad,” she said, her smile returning to her face. “Fine.” She looked at the three men. “Empress Joanna saved your lives for tonight. Thank her.”
The three men bowed nervously, their bodies shaking.
“Thank you, Empress.”
Joanna nodded.
“Now, get back to work. If I even think that you’re not doing right, I’m calling The Enforcers!”
“Yes, Empress.”
“And we can’t just sit here and drink all night. We want our food right now!”
“Yes, Empress.”
All three of the men disappeared into the kitchen.