Page 57 of Odette's Vow

“Have I been a good king? A kind king? A just king?”

“You have.”

“Then enlighten me as to why you felt you could disrespect that which is mine.”

“She disrespected me first! Besides, she’s just a bed-slave?—”

THWACK. A slap across Matthias’ face, more humiliating than anything, as it brought tears to his eyes.

“Kneel,” Odysseus commanded.

I watched as Matthias complied, snivelling.

“Not towards me. Face the desk and rest your chin on it.”

Then, I saw the dagger Odysseus pulled from the sheath attached to his hip.

“Let’s examine this tongue the bed-slave claims licked her. You see, that way I’ll know if she was telling the truth or lying. Bed-slaves are known for their lies, and she’ll be punished if I find that to be the case.”

Matthias obeyed, whimpering – a strange sound to come out of one so physically large. But Odysseus had played it right, made it sound like he was just humiliating the man further. Matthias had no idea what was about to happen.

The dagger hit his tongue with a dull thud and quickly made its way through to the wood on the other side. Matthias screamed, unable to go anywhere as the blade lodged betweenhis tongue and the desk. Odysseus grasped the hilt of the dagger and yanked it back out, before proceeding to bring it back down and fully sever Matthias’ tongue.

Blood immediately took its place, until Matthias had nothing but mouthfuls of blood in the cavity that was his mouth.

Odysseus took the tongue and placed it in Matthias’ hands. “Go and throw this overboard and see if one of the men will help you stem the bleeding. If you make it through nightfall, we’ll see if we can find you some proper aid at the next port.”

Matthias stumbled out of the room.

Shutting the door behind him, Odysseus collapsed into the desk chair and sighed.

“Thank you, for defending my honour,” I eventually said into the silence.

Odysseus leaned forward, his elbows balanced on his knees. “This is exactly what I didn’t want to happen. What did you think the men were going to do when they learnt you were tied up in here?”

“You didn’t have to tie me up.”

“After you were insolent with me in front of everyone? And how would that have looked?”

When I didn’t answer, he continued. “Tell me, what would you have done if I hadn’t come? Truly?”

I bit the inside of my cheek instead of replying. Because I knew what he wanted – a confession that I had been brash and unthinking. That I had experienced a taste of power and was already giddy with it. That, left to my own devices, I would have been attacked and I would not have come out unscathed.

“I know she was your queen, but she had resources to do what she did. You both got lucky, incredibly lucky, to pull off that scene I walked into. And that’s likely because Hecuba sat at the right hand of Priam for years and knew how court politics worked. That’s how she lured Polymestor to his inevitable death.I understood why you did it, I forgave you your sins. But if I find you playing any more power games, you won’t win here. These are volatile men used to war, and I’m the king of an unforgiving mountainside. I don’t play games. I win wars.”

When I didn’t respond, when I couldn’t even look him in the eye, feeling like a chastised child, he asked, “Was our time together at Troy really so unpleasant for you?” Then he came closer, tipping up my chin. “Answer me.”

But before I could, something happened. We must have hit something, for the ship rolled as clothes might in a washing pail. Then the men were desperately crying out from the deck, trying to get the ship to cooperate with the howling winds that now swept the chamber door open, sea spray spilling into the room and falling fresh on my face.

“Wait here” Odysseus said, as he strode from the room and onto the deck to help the panicked soldiers.

I tugged at my restraints. Despite all the commotion, they still hung tight. “As if I have a choice.”

19

Odette

After what felt like forever, the winds swept us onto the shore of another island. I overheard some of the men say they thought it was Ismarus, city of the Cicones. If that was true, there would be people here that should be able to help us repair the damage the ships had suffered.

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