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“Why are you just giving it to me now?” I asked, confused. “And why was it in Tagar’s possess…” My eyes widened in sudden understanding, a cold shiver running down my spine. “You feared foul play.”
Ravik looked hesitant. “In truth, not really. Despite my differences with Boros, I didn’t believe he would allow something so foolish from his house. But when it comes to your safety, I do not take chances.”
I smiled and lifted my face towards him. Ravik leaned forward and gave me a gentle kiss. Looking back down at the box, I lifted the lid with undisguised curiosity. My breath caught in my throat as I gazed upon the magnificent jewelry set laid within on a velvety cushion. I gaped at Ravik, speechless. He seemed confused by my reaction.
“I can’t accept that,” I whispered, blown away.
Ravik frowned. “Why? Rejecting it would be considered an offense.”
“But this is way too expensive a gift to accept from someone I don’t know. I wouldn’t even accept it from someone I know!”
It was Ravik’s turn to look at me wide-eyed as if I’d grown a third eye. He laughed and shook his head.
“No, little bird, it’s not expensive at all,” Ravik said with an indulgent tone. “While I agree that the craftsmanship is beautiful, this material is cheap and commonplace. Nyrian crystal deposits are abundant in the Jyriak plateau and beneath Mount Jyriak. They’re pretty but useless. The men often bring some back to the females to do… well, female stuff with it,” he concluded with a shrug.
I stared at him, flabbergasted.
He truly has no idea…
The necklace had three rows of round gems, the first small, the middle one medium, and large, tear-shaped ones on the bottom row. Intricately interwoven silver-looking threads held them together. A matching pair of earrings and bracelet lay in the middle. I delicately picked up an earring and held it in the palm of my hand. Within seconds, the color of the gems darkened, slowly turning obsidian.
“What’s happening?” I asked, feeling slightly worried.
“It’s normal,” Ravik said, reassuringly. “The gems always try to take on the eye-color of the wearer. There are ways to set a permanent color to the stones, but I couldn’t tell you how that works other than it requires heat applied in a specific manner.”
I nodded slowly, my wheels spinning. “What else do the females do?”
Ravik shrugged. “You will have to ask the females. Speaking of which, we need to get going. I’ll have to tell Fenton how you made us late.”
“Me?” I exclaimed, outraged.
“Come on, female,” Ravik said, giving me a playful slap on the rear. “Let’s go.”
I hesitated for a second, tempted to wear the jewelry, but then decided to leave it for another time. After carefully placing the jewelry box on the dresser, I hurried back to Ravik. I took the hand he had extended towards me and let him lead me out of the room.
Athirty-minute shuttle flight took us to Clan Yagor’s compound. It appeared half the size of Clan Xeldar’s compound. However, smaller clan home clusters sprawled far and wide along the large body of water beyond it. Council Fenton had been Ravik’s best friend since childhood and led one of the main fishing clans.
Fenton greeted us at the landing pad and escorted us into his hall. Although more humble than Ravik’s, it boasted the same type of dark red floors and light grey walls, except for a clearly more nautical theme to the ornate carvings and lattice work of some of the wall panels. Where Clan Xeldar had giant warrior and karveli statues in the compound’s plaza and in a few other strategic places in the streets, Clan Yagor had, in the center of their hall, a giant, polished skeleton of some terrifying aquatic creature I’d never seen before.
On the left side of the room, Fenton’s clansmen and sons fisted their chests in greeting, while the females kneeled. It still bothered me to no end, but knowing that Ravik took no pleasure in the females’ servile behavior alleviated some of my frustration.
An attractive Braxian female approached Fenton. Barefoot and wearing nothing more than a diaphanous concubine dress, she glanced at him for approval. When Fenton nodded, she proceeded to kneel before Ravik, head bowed. Ravik placed his palm on top of her head, granting her permission to rise. With a wave of his hand, he indicated for the other females and servants to do so as well.
“Magnar Ravik, welcome to my Hall,” Fenton said. “My home and my concubine, Thala, are yours.”
“I thank you and accept your hospitality.” Ravik gave Thala an appreciative once over that made me want to claw his face. “Beautiful as ever, Thala,” Ravik said, before caressing her bare forearm with his knuckles.
“Thank you, Magnar,” she said, demurely.
“You may go,” Ravik said.
Thala bowed her head, cast a furtive glance my way, and then returned to stand by Fenton.
Although I’d been warned of this custom ahead of time, it still twisted my insides and set my teeth on edge. Where wives were off limits under any circumstance, a host was expected to offer his concubine to the pleasure of a guest of similar or higher rank as a sign of respect. If the guest was entitled to take full benefit of that offer, fucking another man’s concubine would express a lack of consideration for the host. It very rarely happened, unless the female was particularly beautiful or out of spite. However, the guest was expected to acknowledge the female’s beauty, and honor the offer with a touch or a kiss, like Ravik had done by caressing her arm.
Fenton gestured for his people to take their leave before leading us to a private salon, with seating and dining areas. It contrasted sharply with the darker, more formal look of the entrance. While the walls remained a pale shade of grey, and the furniture a dark shade of brown, grey, or blue, a number of accent items brightened the place, with colorful carpets on the floor, throw pillows on the couch, and decorative artifacts on the shelves. When I complimented him on the décor, Fenton said it was all Thala’s doing, which had her blushing with pride.
“I hope you are both hungry?” Fenton asked, inviting us to take our places at the table, which was big enough for eight. “Good!” he said when we responded in the affirmative. Turning to me, he continued, “I hope you do not mind the informal setting. But I figured you might enjoy not being the object of constant scrutiny, for once, and to have feminine company.”
