While Tippu gathered up the pitcher, cloths, and the washing bowl, Eskkar fastened his sword around his waist, then sat on the bed. “Go ahead, Lani. What is it you wish to say?”
She stood in the same spot she had stood unclothed a few moments ago, but her voice remained calm. “My Lord, my sister and I were captured by Ninazu and his men four months ago. My husband was killed, as was Tippu’s betrothed, along with our servants. Ninazu took both of us for his pleasures. He favored Tippu, and would have turned me over to his men except for Tippu’s pleadings. I made myself useful by cleaning up after him, and keeping track of his women and his affairs. After a while, he came to depend on me, and once we came here, I managed his household.”
She paused for a moment, as if remembering. “I think I would be dead if Tippu hadn’t saved me.”
She took a deep breath, as if to put the past behind her. “Here in Bisitun, we are called Ninazu’s whores. The village women he took hated us as much as they hated him. This morning, one of them said we would be dead by nightfall. Ninazu’s other women have returned to their families, but we have nowhere to go. Our village is many miles away, to the northwest, across the Euphrates. Even if we could return, there is no one there who would take us in, dishonored as we are, and with nothing but the clothing on our backs.”
“So what do you want from me, Lani? No one will harm you here. My men will protect you from the village women.”
“That is what I want, lord, your protection, that, and… This morning … I… I heard this morning that you will soon return to Akkad. I would ask that you take us with you. This place is hateful to us.”
She saw the frown that crossed his face at her suggestion, and went on quickly. “We can be your servants, lord, as well as your concubines. I have skill at running a household, and Tippu can weave and sew. We will do anything you ask, any work. Just take us away from this place. Please, lord.”
Her eyes lifted to his, and he could see her lip trembling. He saw that she held back the tears, the first time she’d shown any emotion. She might be right about the village wives. They would abuse and torment Ninazu’s women, at the very least, especially one who acted in Ninazu’s name. The sisters would be safer in Akkad, and Trella could find good use for someone like Lani, whose wits seemed sharp enough. Thinking of Trella made him feel uncomfortable for a moment. He hadn’t thought about her much in the last few days.
Lani waited patiently, but he saw the fear in her face. She thought he was going to refuse.
“Lani, you can return with me to Akkad. And I will place you under my protection there as well. No one will harm either of you. But I warn you that I may not return to Akkad for some time, and I may have to send you on ahead. My wife, Trella, will find a place for you.”
Speaking Trella’s name aloud helped clear his own head, though it didn’t quite drive away thoughts of Lani’s body. “And you need not be a concubine for me or anyone else, Lani, neither you nor your sister.”
With a small cry of relief, she went down on one knee and took his hand, then kissed it. “Thank you, lord. Thank you.” Her body shook slightly, the words catching in her throat.
Eskkar stood up. Women’s tears made him uneasy. He touched her head and left the room, stepping into the main chamber of the house. The common area ran the length of the structure, and the five bedrooms along the wall all faced the center of the house. The room he’d slept in, by far the largest sleeping chamber, occupied a corner of the home. The dining table stood only a few steps away. Sisuthros sat there, along with Grond, Hamati, and Drakis.
“Did you get some rest, Captain?” Sisuthros asked.
Eskkar opened his mouth to make some careless rejoinder, before he realized Sisuthros appeared really concerned about him. Eskkar saw the same look on Grond’s face, and even on the other commanders. They knew he had slept little in the last three days, and they worried about him.
He softened his voice. “Yes, Sisuthros, I slept very well. Now I’m hungry again.”
Food covered the table, and the smell of horse steaks cooking wafted in from outside and made his mouth water. His stomach rumbled with hunger, even though he’d eaten only a few hours ago. He sat down at an empty place, but before he could reach for anything, Tippu arrived at his side and placed a clean earthen plate and wooden cup before him. She filled it halfway with water before leaving. Grond took another pitcher, one that held wine, and poured some into Eskkar’s cup.
As he put the cup down, Lani came in from outside, carrying two steaks that still sizzled on a wooden trencher. She slid them both onto his plate, then turned to him.
“Is there anything else you need, lord?”
She stood at his side, and when he turned his head, he found her bosom only a handbreadth away. The picture of her naked body crossed his mind, and he felt the urge to take her back into the bedroom. Somehow she managed to project sexuality into a few words, words directed only at him.
“Nothing now, Lani. Thank you.” He spoke the words carefully, in a neutral voice. When she stepped away, he remembered his promise and turned to Sisuthros. “I’ve given my protection to Lani and her sister,” he told those at the table. “Make sure all the men know it, and you’d better tell these villagers, too.”
“I’ll tell the council today, and make sure they spread the word throughout Bisitun,” Sisuthros said.
Eskkar took a sip of his watered wine. “Now, tell me what has happened while I slept.”
In a moment, all thoughts of Lani vanished. Sisuthros had met again with the newly appointed village elders. By tomorrow morning the most influential farmers would arrive, and they could select the fifth and last of the council members. The elders could then start governing the village’s affairs.
They would begin with the execution of Ninazu and the disposition of his men. With Ninazu’s head on a lance above the gate and the worst of his followers dead, Eskkar’s men would be freed up for other duties, instead of wasting time guarding prisoners night and day. As for the rest of Ninazu’s men, they’d be branded and put to work.
Then the newly formed council would address the matter of the stolen property, what Ninazu had taken, and how what remained would be allocated back to its original owners. Akkad would take two-tenths of each allocation, as a restoration fee. Sisuthros guessed that it would take another day to divide the loot, including what he’d taken from the prisoners and added to Ninazu’s storeroom.
With Ninazu and his stolen gold out of the way, the soldiers, villagers, and slaves would be put to work rebuilding Bisitun and the surrounding farms, clearing the land outside the palisade, repairing the damaged irrigation ditches, and any other tasks necessary to get the community back on a road to prosperity. Once that effort had commenced, the council could begin to take up all the smaller issues that would fill its days in the coming weeks, settling disputes and hearing appeals for justice.
Eskkar listened to Sisuthros’s orders for the men, before speaking to Hamati and Drakis about their roles. By the time the meal ended, he announced himself satisfied with Sisuthros’s plans and dispositions.
“As soon as Ninazu and his men are dead, I’ll take Grond and some men and begin riding out into the farmlands. I want to see for myself how the farmers and their crops are faring, and how well the herds of sheep and goats are doing.”
If any at the table thought it unusual to have the leader of Akkad visiting farmers, they kept the thought to themselves. But Eskkar knew that Trella and the nobles back in Akkad needed that vital information.
They couldn’t complete their own plans until they knew what could be expected from the north country, and when. Without the steady supply of flax, grain, and livestock, trade at Akkad would slow, and that must not happen, not with so much rebuilding underway. The real goal of Eskkar’s efforts remained back in Akkad, not here.