When the Butterflies Fly Home
"You did what? Are you serious… you sold the girl to Marco?" Blaise looked at his friend with wide eyes.
"Yes, why?" said Draconis taking a sip of his wine carelessly.
"He's under review in the Capitol, for suspicion of illegal slave trading, extortion of foreign agents, illegal transportation of Roman property and a slew of other charges. Rumor has it that he plans to make one big sale in a few days and flee Roma with his wife. He already has a house in Isle Meesa that Caesar does not know about." Said Blaise in a hushed voice.
"You gossip like a woman." Said Draconis disdainfully raising one eyebrow.
"It pays to have eyes and ears all around my friend; one never knows what one might hear." Blaise said, his eyes falling on his beloved wife who was talking just a few feet away to chief guest's wife.
They were at a party in Blaise's mansion held in honor of the Norman Lord who was visiting from Gaul. His lovely redhead wife had been eyeing Draconis for the better part of the evening but he was strangely despondent, another day this woman would have aroused him with ease.
She was just his kind, well bred, redheaded, busty and sultry… yet his thoughts were on the slave he sold the day before. They had to drag her out kicking and screaming. Her shrill cries of helplessness still resonated in his mind and her wide tear filled eyes flashed before him every time he looked at another women.
"So tell me what is it he plans to do with the girl he bought from me?" Draconis asked absently trying to forget his haunting and rather disturbing thoughts.
"Word is that he putting together a harem for the Sheik Suleiman Bin-Rashid who is coming from Constantinople to Roma two days from now." Blaise said lowering his voice further.
"And how much of this is rumor and how much is the truth?" Draconis said skeptically.
"I work in Capitol intelligence Draco; I can only tell you what my sources tell me. Now it's your job to sift through the rumors and find the truth." Blaise shrugged.
"Rubbish!" Draconis scoffed, "You're telling me all of this is speculation. What does Confucious have to say about this, him and Ocipitus are huge supporters of Marco. If these rumors come out, there will be an outright massacre in Capitol and you know it."
"I report only to Caesar but you are right. It is going to Confucious and Ocipitus against Miranda and Lexonifus. And the heavens will rain blood for sure, the policy makers are already on opposing sides and the time for political mayhem is coming. None of us are safe, least of all Caesar and those loyal to him…" said Blaise, "But we cannot discuss this there, we will meet tomorrow in private where no one's eyes and ears can see or hear us. I am afraid Roma is in great danger my friend, grave danger indeed." He said shaking his head.
Draconis caught Blaise arm before he left and asked him in a hushed voice, "Is that why the Norman is here? To rally our alliances and join forces?"
"What do you think Draco? What do you think?" said Blaise cryptically, his warm brown eyes suddenly bleak and withdrawn.
As Blaise left to find his wife Draconis leaned back with his wine and looked over to see all the members of the Capitol in attendance.
Confucious looked nervous, twitching whenever anyone came to close and Ocipitus just looked bored like always, his narrow green eyes followed Miranda around the room with the sort of narrowed intensity of a predator. Clearly something big was happening with the Lords, yet Draconis could not focus on that at the moment.
Blaise had said that Marco was collecting the slaves for a harem for a sheik, the girl he had sold to him would rebel in the harem and be put to death and as it is she had been taken from one home, was it really prudent to sell her so fast. He didn't care about the girl he reassured himself, he was just not ready to be accused of making a bad investment…. It had nothing to do with the fact that he couldn't seem to sleep or eat or be at peace without hearing her heart wrenching screams of agony or seeing her thin face crumpled in pain and her wide eyes begging… begging him to reconsider…
Setting down his wine glass he said goodbye to his host and hostess and set off into the night, his cloak swirling out behind him… his decision made. He would purchase her back, besides he didn't want to be caught in the middle if Marco did get sentenced for his charges. The Flaccus house was close by; Draconis mounted Mikalos and galloped out of the Zabini's mansion.
Marco had his house very close to Capitol, Draconis charged forward, riding as fast as he could. Trying to reach quickly so that he didn't talk himself out of getting her back.
Once at the gates, he asked the guard if anyone one was home. The young man stuttered out a yes and let him in. Leaping off Mikalos lithely he handed the reins to the stable boy and strode up to the door of the main house. Kocking brusquely he was let in by a slave girl and asked to wait in the parlor. Within minutes Horatia came twirling into the room, a bright smile adorning her lips.
"Draco, you came!" she said in her soft voice, clapping her hands together like a child with a treat. "Oh! But you must leave, Marco is here." She said sliding up to him.
Draconis glared down at her, his fierce countenance outlined by his disdain. "I am not here to see you Horatia, I want to see Marco." He said pushing her aside gently but firmly.
Her face fell dramatically and she gave him a pout, "But he's with the new slave, testing out the goods he said." she said smirking.
"What!" he snarled out enraged.
"He's with the new girl, in the west wing..." she said confused, her eyes widening in fear when Draconis began to quiver with rage.
"Where… where is he? So help me god Horatia if you don't tell me…." he snarled ferociously stalking closer to Horatia.
"West wing, third door to the right!" she cried out, holding up her hands to ward him off.
Draconis took off running… his mind going over all the sick scenarios. Running up the stairs he reached the west wing and yanked the door of the room open, thundering inside like an enraged bull.
There on the bed lay the slave girl, she was struggling within her bonds, naked. Her eyes were gushing and she tried to scream through her gag. Her arms and legs were bound to the bed posts with heavy chains and on top of her about to enter her was a naked and smirking Marco… His meaty hands pulling her nipples and his large legs holding her down, his erect penis rubbing against her stomach and his rubbery lips and sharp teeth nipping the soft skin of her neck brutally.
"Stop struggling whore, you might enjoy it." he cooed, as his hands garbed her hips with animal ferocity. Plunging his fingers inside her with brutal, cruel relish, stabbing at her womanhood and listening to her muffled screams of pain and getting harder. "This is what happens when you struggle you bitch!" he snarled out.
Her wide eyes reflected so much pain, pain that Draconis knew he too had put there. Her pathetic whimpers and soft keening cries... each one hit him in a place he didn't think existed any more... his heart. Here was a brilliant woman, a woman who had once stood up to him so bravely... she was broken... she was destroyed... she was a shadow like him. And he felt disgusted, was it cruel of him to feel disgusted of her? He was disgusted she broke so easily, he was disappointed she didn't fight harder. Now she was a shade... like him.
Half a human...
And nothing would make her whole again.
Draconis saw red… without thinking he charged forward and pulled a surprised and shocked Marco off the girl. Her body he saw supported new lashes, far deeper and rawer then the ones he had given her.
"All your money." He rasped out, with barely restrained anger, his large body shaking with wild, savage hate. "Take all your money back you filthy swine. Just give me the girl…"
"Why Draconis.." taunted a sweaty and rather satisfied looking Marco, "One might think you actually have feelings for the girl... I don't want the money. I rather see you suffer." he said with a malicious sneer on his smug face his eyes gleaming with cruelty.
….