Slave Girl 2: Chapter 149 (Patreon)

About a block down the street I cut into a quiet side alley and kneel to check on my little green friend. Lifting her chin I look her in the eyes then take her hands into mine.

“Colly?”

“I’m okay, Thir.” She says in a fragile tone that told me she was very much not okay. “Thank you for…coming.”

“Of course.” I say with a supportive squeeze of her hands. “I would have come sooner had I known they were mistreating you.”

“That mean man wathn’t very nithe.” She says softly. “But…um…I jutht…um, been thinking.” She bottom lip begins to tremble. “It’th all my fault, Mathter Quin. Everything. Everything ith all my fault.”

“What?” I stroke her head in that way Rosa did to me to make me feel loved. “Nothing is your fault, Colly.”

“But it ith.” She sniffles as fat tears start to roll down her chubby cheeks. “If I hadn’t that in that thquare…and make you defend me…then Toke wouldn’t have…come and…and…and…if I hadn’t made Arithtocleth fall in love with me… I thtarted everything!” She sobs. “It’th all my fault!”

“No, Colly. That’s not true.” I pull her head into my chest and hold her close.

“I’m no good, Thir. I’m…I’m curthed or…thomething. I cauthed you all thothe troubleth and…and…” She weeps. “…if it wathn’t for me they’d still alive!”

I recalled another slave who had carried a weight of guilt that wasn’t hers to bear. Rosa had held off admitting her love for me because she thought she was cursed to have everyone she loved taken from her in violent ways.

I kiss her head and stroke her long braids. “Collywaddle. You’ve got it all upside down.” I say. “You brought love into the life of a cynic and tenderness to a calloused heart. You brought so much joy to both of them.” I swipe some tears from her cheek. “And you’ve given me and Rosa and Cassie a treasured friend. At every turn and in every decision that was yours to control you have brought nothing but happiness to those who love you. Do not despair for the actions of others or the twists of fickle Fortuna.” Taking her cheeks in my hand I look deep into her teary amber eyes. “What happened was not your fault, Collywaddle. You hear me? It’s not your fault.”

She shudders and slowly nods her head. “Okay.” Burying her face in my chest she hugs me hard.

I hug her back and hold her until the tears stop flowing. I get some looks from a group passing through the alley but I pay them no mind.

Once she had some control on her emotions she steps back and takes a deep breath. I could see there was a lot more healing that still needed to be done but my care and affection had at least bandaged the would for the moment. She pats my chest. “Thank you, Mathter.”

“Anytime, my friend.” I say. “And about this Master business, I intend on freeing you so…”

“NO!” She gasps and grabs my tunic in both hands. “No, pleathe.”

“We aren’t abandoning you, Colly.” Leaning in I say quietly. “If you are up for it we’ve got a grand adventure you can share in.” I wink. “But it’s a secret.”

“Oh!” Her eyes brighten, just a little. “I won’t thay a word.” She swears. “But…um…if it’th all the thame to you…I’d like to remain your thlave.”

“But…”

“Pleathe! Pleathe, Thir!” She drops to her knees mewling, literally begging me. “I want a mathter. A nithe mathter like you. Don’t…reject me. Pleathe.”

I sigh and shake my head. I wanted to refuse her outright but in her emotional state I didn’t think this was a topic that needed to be cleared up just now. “Fine. For now.”

“Thank you, Thir. Ohhh, thank you.”

“Come on.” I get her to her feet. “Let’s find the rest of our family.”

“Family? Our…family?”

I smile. “If you’d rather just be a slave…”

“NO!” She peeps. “No. I can be both!”

I get to my feet and offer my hand once more. She takes it and holds it tightly, and it is with a lighter step that we reenter the busy street. While she still carried a heavy heart Colly now had someone at her side with which to share the load.

***

After a warm reunion in which Rosa and Cassie welcome Colly into our fold with all the kindness they could summon from their huge hearts I find out that, as far as Amadeus knew, any investigation into the deaths on my land was now squarely in the hands of the magi, with our old ‘friend’ Lydia chief among them. I tell them about the story I’d heard from the official about Toke killing Aristocles in a fit of jealousy and they confirmed that whether by design or accident several different accounts of that terrible night had reached the streets of Grumentum to muddy the waters of what actually happened. I would have thought the tale of an ancient minotaur statue come to life would have been the talk of the town but it seemed the more mundane versions of the story were the ones taking root. It struck me to how easy it was for the fantastic truth to be veiled by mundane lies.

The rest of the morning and early afternoon is a blur. We weren’t exactly sure when we would be departing but we wanted to be as ready as we could be in case the opportunity presented itself soon and so we had a lot on our plates this day.

For the shopping we stick together as a unit. With Horatius’ most generous wages at our disposal we were, for once, not limited by a budget. We didn’t go wild but it was really nice to shop and not have to belabor every purchase. The first thing we do is get Colly’s lashes tended then get her into a proper set of clothes. In a sunny yellow set of tunic and short breeches she was the cutest goblin in all the Empire.

From there our next order of business was a mule. I’d been the beast of burden on our trip from Rome down here and, while I’d do it all again if I had to, I didn’t mind the idea of letting an even stronger back carry the load. Luck was with us as we ended up with not a common mule but a true horse! Standing out like a gleaming onyx among the other equines in the stables was a young and spirited Andalusian stallion. It turns out that he was a reject from the military and had already been sold and returned a few times as he was ‘too smart for his own good’. Rosa tried in vain to steer us toward a more practical, and cheaper, animal and reminded us that there was high likelihood that we might be selling it in Paestrum, but for a couple of farm raised kids like Cassie and I the regal steed captured our hearts the moment we saw it. Once we got to handle him and discover his friendly yet sassy personality we only fell harder for his dashing charms. At the price they were selling him it was the deal of the century and we simply could not let it pass us by. We assured Rosa we knew what we were doing and told her that even if it was a bit tricky to train that all we needed it for was as a pack animal, which even the dumbest of oxes could manage. With her master and mistress united what was a slave girl to say? It was only when the coin had been exchanged and the deal finalized and I saw the joy on the trader’s scruffy face that I worried that Cassie and I might have bit off more than we could chew after all.

We leave the horse at the stable as we continue on to getting some basic supplies. As we went I found myself enjoying the opportunity to watch Rosa and Cassie working and moving in unison for such a prolonged period. After weeks of spending their days together while I worked the fields they had become like hand in glove when there was something to be done. Cassie worked around and with Rosa’s limitations flawlessly and I noted how they had developed a quasi-language all their own of gestures from Rosa and subtle vocal cues from Cassie. Though always on the look out Rosa finds no more hidden magical treasures but after a few hours we were well and truly stocked up with everything we would need for our journey.

After shopping we stop by to visit Max and Cal. Like the rest of us they were in mourning at the passing of the friend and we raise a drink in Aristocles’ honor. We take the time to visit for a while. Though they did not realize it and we could not say anything, this was quite likely this would be the last time we saw them. We share some memories, they tell some stories of their departed friend, and we finish with a bit of business. I give them my blessing to experiment with the still idea, even if I was ‘too busy’ to be much help. I prayed it all worked out for them. After a long goodbye, and a tearful one from Collywaddle who knew them better than the rest of us, we were on our way.

It was then off to the temples to make offerings to various deities for various reasons. I pray for the souls of the departed and the destinies of the friends we’d made. I give thanks to my uncle for the adventure he’d made possible. And I give an offering to my goddess Ceres for giving me a fine harvest to work and to thank her for allowing me to explore the other facets of my soul with Morpheus, Minerva and others. While in the district I keep an eye out for Silas the soothsayer to make peace and find guidance but I do not find him. That was fine though as I already knew what I had to do. Which lead me to my next stop.

The look on the face of the advocatus as I had him draft the document that would official relinquish ownership of my land was priceless. He thought me mad, and to be fair he might not have been far wrong. As burning bridges went this was a doozy.

“You…wish to abandon it?”

“Return it to Silvanus.” I correct him. “It’s true lord.” This brings a smile to Rosa’s pretty face. “Is it possible?”

“It will just be reclaimed by the state.” He says. “If it is a quick sale you want…”

“No sale. No transfer of ownership. I wish to offer it freely and legally to Silvanus himself.”

He looks from me to Rosa to Cassie and back to me again. “You’re serious?”

“The land is cursed. Any mortal whom I pass it on to would have that upon them. The chain must be broken.”

“Pff!” He clearly wasn’t a pious man by the way he scoffed. “I can draw you up the contract to abdicate your claim on it easy enough but, as I said, it will just be reclaimed by the state as soon as the praetor becomes aware of it.”

“I doubt even mighty Mercury could curse the entire Empire.”

“You really believe this curse is real?”

With a glance down to Rosa’s belly and then around to the women around me I answer. “I’m not willing to take that risk.”

“Respectfully, you are a foolish young man.” He shakes his head. “To squander your uncle’s wealth so rashly.”

“It is mine to squander.”

“So it is.”

While he disapproved he took my coin regardless and drew up the document. Pushing the scroll across to me he says. “Sign here.” I sign it the parchment then he does as well before finalizing it with a stamp. “All you have to do is have this handed into the land office and it is done.” He gives me a long stern look. “But if you take my advice you’ll burn this and forget this fools notion.”

“Thank you for your service.” I roll it up and slip into a scroll case. “And your advice. Good day.”

Walking out of the lawyer’s office I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I did want property. I did want a piece of land to work, to raise my family upon and to call my own. I appreciated what Paulus had tried to do but it had all been too easy, too much and too soon for a man like me. It was a generous gift but I wanted earn my patch of Earth, and I would earn that patch in a place where my beloved Rosa and our daughter could live free. Our next place would be no pleasure palace but it would be a home.

Out on the street Cassie and Rosa press into me from either side to hold me in a shared embrace. In their eyes I saw love, pride, and a resolute faith that I had done the right thing and that we would find our own way. That look they gave me was worth the price of the land and then some.

From there we buy ourselves a picnic and find a quiet little area beside the theater where nobody would bother a pair of citizens dining with a pair of slaves.

“I never even got to go here.” Rosa says as she nibbles her bread. “Not even once.”

“I am sorry, Rosa.” I say, recalling how excited she was to have a bit of civilization nearby when we arrived. “We’ve barely gotten to sample Grumentum’s charms since we’ve arrived. Though I’ve certainly experienced its shortcomings.”

She chews, swallows, ponders, then smiles. “It probably wasn’t so good anyway. Honestly? I find the city a bit…exhausting now.”

With a soft stroke of her long curling horn I say. “You’ve changed, my Lady.”

With a nuzzle and a kiss she whispers. “As have you, my love.”

Chapter 150