'He is on the first landing now,' I said. I sat up. 'It is a male,' I said. 'I hear him now,' she said, after a moment or two. 'Oh!'
I had turned her to her belly, on the blanket, spread over the boards.
'My wrists!' she protested.
They were then thonged. I had drawn them behind her, and held them together there, crossed, with my left hand. With my right I had removed the restraint from her left wrist. A moment later she was bound. Originally, I had assumed it was the keeper's man, but the tread, now, seemed heavier. Lady Temione rose to her right elbow, her hands tied behind her. I thought I must know who it was. I glanced at the space next to me. He had arrived at the inn later than I, I supposed, as he had eaten later. If that was the case it was not at all unlikely that he might have been rented the space after mine. If so, that might make things a great deal easier. I would not even have to search him out, in the darkness. There was a fellow slumbering in space 99, in the corner. He must have come to the inn rather early, I supposed, to obtain one of the four coveted corner spaces. If the fellow coming up the steps was indeed who I expected it was, and had rented the space near me, and if things proceeded as I expected, I thought I might be able to enlist the support of the fellow in the corner. The second portion of my plan required a confederate.
'Ai!' I heard someone cry, a few yards away, near the entrance. The newcomer, it seemed, had had some paga, perhaps a second or third kantharos. I wondered if he had paid for them. I heard another cry of rage. There was then a blow. The newcomer continued on, somewhat unsteadily. Another guest cried out, angrily, and rose up. He backed away a step, however, when he saw that he did not come up to the newcomer's shoulder. Then the newcomer beckoned he should come forward. Frightened, he did so. Then the newcomer suddenly, without warning, doubled him with a blow to the gut, and he sank, groaning to his place. Another fellow half rose up, and another blow was struck, and the fellow fell back, to the side. Another fellow said something to the newcomer and the newcomer's sword half emerged from its sheath, and the other fellow rolled back, away, quickly, feigning sleep. The sword slammed back into the sheath. Two men moved at the noise. I saw the free woman, whom I had gagged and trussed, to whose clothing I had addressed the attentions of her own knife, which I had taken from her, and later destroyed and thrown away, lying very still. She was absolutely helpless, and her clothing, so cut and divided, could be lifted aside to anyone's convenience. It was no wonder she did not dare to move. I wondered what her thoughts might be, so helpless and vulnerable in her femaleness. Doubtless, disarmed and helpless, her beauty at anyone's convenience, her weakness manifested, she now knew herself much better than she had before. Sometimes such experiences help women understand that they are women. In a moment or two the newcomer was at the space, 98, next to mine. He looked down, angrily. I was pleased to see that he still carried the pouch.
He put it down, by the wall, with his helmet.
'Oh!' cried the Lady Temione, pulled half to her feet.
I noted the pouch had a lock. It would not, thus, be easy to open it and examine, or remove, the contents. To be sure, I was less interested in its contents than in something else. It would, of course, as he seemed to be some sort of courier, be a useful adjunct to a disguise.
He held the Lady Temione before him, her head back, his beard but inches from her throat.
'That is a free woman,' I said, dryly.
With a noise of disgust he turned and cast her from him, to her side, to the foot of my space, on my blanket.
I did not know if her recognized her from before, from the paga room, or not. He was drunk. It was dark.
He looked about. As I thought, he would prefer the corner space. I did not think it would matter much to him that it was occupied.
'Ai!' cried the fellow from the space, lifted up, and suddenly thrown against the wall.
The newcomer thrust his face against the fellow's face, holding him back to the wall. 'Why are you in the wrong space?' he asked him.
'I am not in the wrong space!' gasped the fellow.
He was then flung again against the wall.
'Why!' demanded the newcomer.
'There must be some mistake!' said the fellow. He was the same fellow, incidentally, happily, as I now noted, whom the newcomer had earlier ejected from his bath, and then drafted into service as a bath attendant. He was probably the sort of fellow who was very organized and rational, had come early to the inn, generally conducted his life in a sensible manner, and so on. To be sure, fellows such as the newcomer can be the bane of such fellows. Again he was flung against the wall. This was a bit noisy, but then I was not asleep. 'I have the ostrakon for this space!' said the fellow.
'What has that to do with it?' asked the newcomer, again slamming him against the wall.
'Nothing, of course!' said the fellow, trying to get his breath. 'I am sorry I am in the wrong space! I apologize! Forgive me! It was stupid of me!' The newcomer let him slip to the floor and the fellow hastily, crawling, fetched his belongings from space 99.
'You would not be thinking of leaving, perhaps to complain to the keeper, would you?' asked the newcomer.
'no, no, of course not,' said the put-upon fellow.
He then placed his belongings in space 98, next to mine.
I frankly doubted that the keeper would be keen to mix into such an altercation, particularly one involving an armed mercenary, a fellow of the company of Artemidorus.
'You are a big fellow, too,' said the put-upon fellow, looking at me. 'I trust you do not want this place.'
'No,' I told him.
'If you do,' he said, 'I could always fling myself into the wall now. I have had experience.'
'Do not be bitter.' I said. 'Get that thing out of my sight,' said the bearded fellow, looking at Lady Temione. She still lay much where she had been thrown, away from him, on her side, much afraid to move, her hands tied behind her, her head toward my feet, the chain, and the tag, on her neck. She put her head down, not daring to look upon him.
'I rented her for an Ahn,' I said. 'I think the time must be nearly up, and the keeper's man should be along presently.'
'What did she cost you?' he asked.
'A tarsk bit,' I said.
'That is far more than she is worth,' he said.
'Perhaps,' I said.
'In many cities,' he said, 'one could have a coin girl for that.' 'True,' I said. Coin girls were a form of street slave, usually sent into the streets around dusk by their masters, who commonly own several of them, with a chain on their neck, to which would be attached, normally, a bell, to call attention to their whereabouts, and a small, locked coin box. And woe to the girl who returns with coins jangling in the box! To be sure, in some places, one might even have a paga slave, or a brothel slave, for as little as a tarsk bit. 'It is too much for a free woman,' he said.
'Perhaps,' I said.
'Particularly one such as that,' he said, contemptuously.
'Perhaps,' I said.
'Perhaps it is appropriate,' he said, 'a tarsk bit for a fat she-tarsk.' 'She is not really so fat,' I said. To be sure, her figure could be considerably improved, and, if she became a slave, undoubtedly it soon would be.
'I have seen tharlarion,' he said, 'who were better looking.'
Lady Temione, lying on her side, her hands tied behind her, stiffened in anger. I did not understand her response. Certainly she did not think that she was slave attractivea€”certainly not yet.
'They could not easily have charged less than a tarsk bit,' I said, somewhat irritatedly. I must try to control myself. The tarsk bit, of course, in most cities, is the smallest-denomination coin in common circulation. 'For so much,' he said, 'they should have rented her to you for a month.'
'Perhaps,' I said.
'Such she-tarsks are worthless,' he said. 'She probably doesn't even know what to do with her toes.'
