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"Yeah," Ela grumbled. "And I'm afraid I don't know your name."
"Priestess Breshay," she told him. "Path of the Body. My guardian is Halvor. I know Amerlee and Faylie."
"He's the one I was telling you about," Faylie said. "More control than I've ever seen in an initiate."
"Which means," Breshay told Maela, "that you should trust his opinion. I get the impression that you're more of the submissive type in bed, rather than the dominant."
"I don't honestly know," Maela admitted. "Ladies of my station are expected to learn from our husbands, and our husbands have no clue how to teach us because sex isn't something gentlemen speak of."
"They simply do it," Ela grumbled. "Usually with someone they didn't marry."
"Exactly," Maela said. "So, I would really like to have my second child while I can still get some attention. I have a feeling that in another year, Tath will be chasing girls younger than his baby sister!"
"Send him to the temple," Faylie suggested.
Maela scoffed at that. "He always said that he didn't want to shock me with the things I'd see here. I'm starting to think it's my husband who's terrified of what he might learn. I mean, just imagine if the Baron of Temptation has no clue how to tempt anyone!"
We all laughed at that, but I had a feeling she was more right than most people knew. Tath was prideful in a way that wasn't healthy. He was also convinced that he had to show up his brother. Since Talin was a priest, and their father had doted on his seventh son more than his oldest, the resentment had built up for twelve years - if not their entire lives. The last thing Tath needed was to hear that he'd once again come in second place to his younger brother.
"Once you step up as Lady Ranndor," I assured her, "it won't matter, right?"
"We'll still need an heir and a tithe," she reminded me. "Since my first was a boy, having a daughter won't matter. The tithe can be a daughter or a son. That's why they say the seventh child. Because if the family has that many children, then there should be an heir born before - but it's a tradition, not a law."
"What if you don't have that many?" Wraythe asked. "Or is that a stupid question?"
"It's not," Maela assured him. "In Compassion, we sent the sixth child. I am willing to bet that someone else sends the fifth, the fourth, and so on all the way up to the second. But not all marriages are that fruitful. Some wives die early, with only two or three kids. Rather than skip so many generations, we send the youngest child. In the event that the tithe becomes the heir, they're removed from the temple, lose their god-marks, and become the Baron. I think that's only happened twice in the history of Calseth, though."
"Here's what I don't get," Ela said. "Why do you care? Tath doesn't seem to, so why are you trying to keep the Ranndor line going? I mean, aren't there a few dozen boys in that clan?"
"No," Talin said. "There are nine of us, total. Five girls and four boys. When Tath dies, Haryth will inherit the title."
"Is assumed to," Amerlee corrected. "It's not always the oldest son of the line."
"When hasn't it been?" Talin asked.
Amerlee made a face. "A few times. Usually when the child is still young and an older male relative is available. You have three brothers? So that means Tath and two others. If Tath died tomorrow, the next oldest boy - who isn't you - would likely be picked."
"Thiemo," Maela breathed. "But then what happens to me?"
"I don't know," Amerlee admitted. "I studied the inheritance of Barons, not the disposition of their wives."
"Well, fuck," Maela mumbled. "That means I really need to do this, because I wouldn't be surprised if Pia had no more room for me."
"If she's still around," Shalsa pointed out. "Maela, Tath's young."
"And an idiot!" she shot back. "He's drunk more often than not. For all I know, the fool will stagger out in front of a horse or challenge someone to a duel. I wouldn't blame Zeal for picking a better line, but it leaves me high and dry."
"But," Amerlee said, gesturing down the table, "you now have plenty of friends. We have plenty of connections. No matter what, we take care of our friends, because they are the greatest temptation."
Maela smiled at her. "I know. Thank you, but I think I'll just make sure I'm the best Baroness this temple has ever seen. It seems a much better option than spending my days broke as a widow or marrying another man as his second wife. Besides, I think I'm ready. Almost. I mean, I'll never beready,but putting it off isn't helping anyone, right?"
"And we will be right here the whole time," I assured her. "Zeal just wants his temple and his barony to run smoothly again."
"Then that's what we'll do," Maela decided, nodding her head like she was trying to convince herself as much as us.
