Slave Girl: Chapter 19 (Patreon)

That day’s travel was the best yet.  We were starting to find a rhythm now.  A couple of hours travel then stop at a town to let Rosa play her flute.  Then a couple of hours more travel and we stop so that I could lend a hand with a broken wagon wheel, which earned me a few coins.  A few more hours on the road then a drink and a rest.  And the final stretch of the day where I would carry Rosa and I could go full out, spending what energy I had left into putting as many miles behind us as I could.

A good portion of the day was spent traveling close to the coast.  While we rarely saw the sea we did see plenty of shore birds and could smell the briny aroma on the air.  The fresh wind coming in off of the water combined with the cloudy sky made the temperature nearly ideal for a ideal day of hiking, ideal for me that is.  As she’d mentioned to me Rosa didn’t do well with the cool.  During this stretch she had her caplet pulled in tight around her, though it still left her legs exposed.  When she pulled her hood up I nearly bust a seam.

I looked over at her to see that the hood on her hurriedly crafted capelet formed a long high point when worn up.  Between the conical hood, her bare legs, and her pointed ears she looked just like the drawings of pixie creatures my father brought back with him from the Celtic lands far to the North.  The sight of it struck me as funny, coming out of the blue like it had.  Oh how I laughed!

“What?”  She asked, unsure of whether to join in or be offended.  “What’s so funny?”

The ways she tilted her head in puzzlement only made it better.  I just pointed at her head and continued to guffaw.

She reached up to feel the point of her hood then said with a sulk.  “I had to make this quick you know.  It’s hardly my best work.”  Rolling her eyes she giggled and slapped my arm.  “You are a silly boy!”

The absolute best part of the day was watching my slave gradually open up to reveal more of her true self.   She wasn’t afraid anymore, afraid that I might beat her or sell her or cast her away.  She knew me better than that now.  We were becoming more comfortable with each other with each passing hour.  She was still the lively woman I’d come to know but more of the details of her personality were being filled in.  I discovered she had a wicked sense of humor and was not afraid to use foul language.  As we walked I continued to marvel at the fact that this bubbly slave girl and the assertive woman that had held me last night were one in the same.

That night, with the money we’d been able to scrape together throughout the day, we were able to afford a hot meal and roof over our head.  It turned out to be a mixed blessing.  The hospitium, the only one we could find that allowed slaves in with their master’s, was the seediest dive I’d ever been in.  Not that I’d been in many.  It was loud and raucous well into the night as the men and women drank too much wine and told bawdy tales.  While Rosa kept up a brave facade at one point she leaned over to me and whispered.  “Don’t leave me alone here, even for a moment.”  Needless to say I stayed right by her side.  The shared common room we slept in was warm and dry and we each had a mattress and blanket of our own, but the scurrying bugs and loud snoring of the other patrons did not make for the most restful of nights.  The next morning we both agreed that our money could have been better spent.

Day five continued on much as the previous one though the elements were starting to become an issue.  The weather cooled more, unseasonably so, and a light rain began to fall just past midday.  We soldier on though, we had so many miles yet to travel.

It is late in the day when we are passing through the city of Capua and reach the fork in the Appian that connects with the road leading South to Neapolis, Pompeii, and beyond.  Her head down against the rain Rosa continues on for a few steps not noticing I had paused to stare at the sign.

“Master?”  She turns to look back at me.

Traffic bustles around me as I stare.  I look to my right.  Southward.  The road leading back to my family home.  Thus far in our journey I had been walking back over the route I had taken to get to the capital.  But here, in this spot, one more step toward my uncle’s inheritance meant I would be traveling into lands I’d never seen before nor stepped foot in.  Though I had made my decision weeks ago to do this, it was only now that my choice truly felt…real.  I could feel Fortuna’s eyes on me, watching to see which way I turn.  This was it.  This was my moment of destiny.  My next step would be irrevocable and set the course for the rest of my life.

All I had to do is turn right and I could go home again.  Home.  Back to the farm.  Back to my life.  I could sell the land I’d inherited or even abandon it.  As I stare Southward, in my mind’s eye I can see the familiar landscape of my childhood, I can see the faces of my friends and loved ones, I could feel that sense of belonging.  Grandpa didn’t think I could do this on my own, he was probably right.  It would be so much easier for me back there.  Mom would be disappointed but she’d understand and be so happy to see me again.  They would all welcome me home with open arms, especially her.  Ohhh, I could almost smell the stew that Mom would have simmering on the kitchen stove right this minute.

“Master?”  My slave’s voice snaps me out of my trance.  I look to my left where the Appian Way stretched out Eastward into the unknown.  The long smooth stone road had never looked more intimidating.  And yet, there on the side of the road, my petite magenta eyed slave girl beckons me to follow.  She looks so small there on the road alone.  She is cold and soaked to the bone, water dripping steadily from the sagging point of her hood, but there wasn’t a hint of quit in her vibrant eyes.  She reaches a pale slender hand out from her capelet and holds it out toward me.  “Come along Master.”  She says with a warm smile.  “Home is waiting for us.”

So she commands, so I obey.  With bold unfaltering steps I walk up and take my place beside her to continue our journey together.  She slips her hand into mine and onward we walk.  It is late in the day yet I felt refreshed and rejuvenated.  The moment of truth had come and the choice was made.  For weal or for woe only the gods knew, but it was done.  Feeling as energized I did I knew we would make good time tonight once Rosa let me carry her.

Squeezing my hand Rosa peers back over her shoulder.  “What was that about?  Did you want to go see Neapolis?”

My gaze fixed on the road ahead I shake my head.  “I thought I saw something from my past.  I was mistaken.”  I take in a big deep breath and let it out in a puff.  “Hahhh.”  I look to the sky and let the cool rain patter against my face.  “This is a good day.  I can feel it.  Don’t you think so?  Yes.  It is a very good day.”

Rosa chuckles and hugs close to my arm.  “If you say so Master.”

Chapter 20