Page 55 of Odette's Vow

He really was out of sorts.

Removing his hand from my face, he used his other hand to capture my wrists before I could catch on to what he was doing. He hauled me towards the stern, where private quarters were reserved for him. The rest of the men, I guessed, would sleep on whichever patch of the deck they could make comfortable enough, or underneath the bow where there were a few makeshift beds amongst the storage.

Odysseus led me into the small, dark chamber that appeared to house nothing more than a wooden bed with a thin sliver of blankets for bedding, that large wooden chest that had once been in the tent we shared, and a small writing desk. Looking around, he grabbed one of the sheets from the bed, tore it with his teeth and one hand, and began to bind my wrists to the bedpost embedded in the floor. There would be no moving from here.

“Is this really necessary?”

Odysseus cast me a dark look, but said nothing. Instead, he tightened the restraints and then tugged on them. He left just enough breathing room that my hands could still get blood flow … just. Otherwise, there was no moving. The fact he’d tied them above my head while I sat on the ground meant I could not even manoeuvre my way up onto the bed for some comfort.

I was stuck on this dank wooden floor. He’d never tied me up before, not even when I had first come into the camp.

As if sensing my thoughts, Odysseus answered. “You think I want to do this? Do you think I’ve not had enough of war and death? Now is not the time to start defying me, Odette. You have to be seen as punished. That,” he said with one final harsh tug, “is why I do this.”

“Isn’t being your slave punishment enough?”

He rose then, towering over me, but even in the dark I could make out his forlorn expression. “Not as much as being your master.”

Then he turned and left, slamming the door and leaving me enveloped in complete darkness.

The door did not openfor a long time. When it did, I pulled my head up from where it had been resting on the bedpost, surprised to see it wasn’t Odysseus, but one of the men.

Despite being constantly around them, I didn’t know all of their names. They had usually only spoken to each other after a day of fighting. I only ever came to know the ones who were injured and needed my help, and most of them hadn’t made it.

This one startled me a little.

“I didn’t expect you to be in here.”

I stared at him.

“I’m looking for Odysseus’ … Nevermind.”

I turned my head away from him.

Huffing, the man searched around the room, looking through the desk drawers and in the chest before he must have found whatever he was looking for and left.

I closed my eyes again.

The next time the door opened, it still wasn’t Odysseus. This time it was a man I recognised; I had served dinner to him at those war campfires. Matthias, they called him. A greedy man, who would always demand more than his portion by using his large body to tower over me until I would cave and place another helping onto his plate.

He leered at me. “So, that’s where he’s put you. On the floor, like a good little pup. We’ve all been wondering where you were.”

Again, I chose not to answer. Instead, I went to close my eyes and rest my head against the bedpost, ignoring him. If you didn’t give them attention, they got bored. He would go away soon enough. I heard his boots walk across the creaking floorboards as the ship rocked. We must have been almost finished with the first day of sailing. I was contemplating where we might be, when I felt a sharp sting on my scalp.

My eyes snapped open to see Matthias leering again, this time standing over me, his hand continuing to pull my head up sharply by my hair until I was looking him in his ugly face.

Some may have called him ruggedly handsome. Personally, I thought he looked like he’d had the mumps as a child and never fully recovered. His face was lumpy, his eyes too small for it, his nose large.

“Such a shame he won’t let you come out and play with us on deck,” he cooed.

I tried not to react, but I couldn’t help it. The thought made my lips pucker together in displeasure.

He laughed. Then he leaned in and licked my cheek from chin to temple. I squirmed, but he had that hold on my hair, making sure I wasn’t going anywhere.

“Mmm, not nearly as bitter as you look. Sweet, even. Oh, yes, I think the boys and I would most definitely like a taste of that. Keep pissing him off, bed-slave, and he might just let us.”

So, I did the only thing I could. I rolled towards him on my left hip, so I could get the momentum I needed. Matthias leaned in thinking I was actually going to cave to his disgusting ways; ugly, stupid fool. Instead, I swung my right leg back and put as much power behind it as I could as I kicked out at him.

I had been meaning to aim for his cock, but given my position, my leg went no higher than his kneecaps. Still, the blow landed and his legs immediately buckled, sending him to the floor with a crash as his brow hit the wooden bed frame and blood poured from that fat nose of his.

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