Tales of Thuria 2: The Return of Bêlit - Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Bêlit Enslaved

Toth-Aloth read the scroll in his hands for the third time and then rocked back in his chair with a loud laugh. "By the great god Seht, it is happening already."

"What is, it my lord?" the seminude female servant asked of him.

"You are impertinent, Ninha," Toth-Aloth replied. "It is not the place of a slave to inquire into the matters of her master. But this is very good news so I will answer." He took a moment to raise his glass of wine to his lips before continuing. "It seems that the King of Asgalun, one Mazdak, has disappeared on a hunting trip and has not returned for over two full moons, and his people fear that he may be dead."

"And that is good news, my lord?" Ninha, who had never heard of Asgalun, asked.

"Actually it gets even better. But that is nothing you need to know. Send for Sukh, but first fill my glass once again."

It took the trusty Sukh only a quarter turn of the glass to answer Toth-Aloth's summons. "Yes, my lord?" he said, bowing before the priest.

"Good news, Sukh. Very good news. It seems that the king of Asgalun has disappeared and that the various factions in the kingdom are maneuvering for advantage. The problem is that none of the rival factions has anyone who has more than a distant claim to the throne."

Sukh nodded uncertainly, clearly puzzled. "Do not worry my dear Sukh," Toth-Aloth laughed. "I do not expect you to think. Just do what I tell you to and everything will be fine. However, to answer your unspoken question it just so happens that I have in this very palace a contender to the throne that is closer than any of those currently in Asgalun."

Sukh's eyes widened in amazement. "Master, you mean..."

"Yes, Sukh," Toth-Aloth grinned. "By pure good fortune it turn out that the pirate bitch has royal blood in her veins. In fact, by right she is queen of Asgalun, a fact that I intend to take full advantage of. However, I cannot do that in her present state. She must be completely broken and trained to do what I want. Fetch her from her cell and bring her to the punishment room. We will begin her training there."

Bêlit's cell door swung open and she blinked into the light that flooded the small room. The glare was briefly blocked out as Sukh and his companion guard stepped into the room. "Come with us, princess," Sukh ordered. "Toth-Aloth demands your presence."

Since her chains had not been removed forcing her from the cell was a relatively easy matter, not that she would have wanted to stay in the dark hole in any case. Still, she was in considerable trepidation as she was walked through the hallways of polished stone. "Where are you taking me?" she demanded.

"You will see soon enough, princess, but I doubt you will like it," Sukh replied. He directed her into a room filled with devices that caused her gut to tighten.

"Ah, princess," Toth-Aloth said. "So good of you to join us."

"Why do you call me princess? I am Bêlit, Queen of the Black Coast."

"If my plans are fulfilled you will indeed be queen," Toth-Aloth replied. "But not queen of some ragged band of pirate cutthroats."

"I do not understand," Bêlit said. "If I am to be queen then release me."

"Before that happens," Toth-Aloth said. "You must learn obedience. Complete obedience."

"I obey no one," Bêlit said defiantly.

"Put her in the frame," Toth-Aloth ordered smiling slightly. "We will see if we can change your mind."

The frame turned out to be a small rectangular table with a shackle bolted to each of the four corners. The centre of the table featured a raised crosspiece and it took little imagination what it purpose was. "I'm not going onto that," Bêlit shouted, attempting to back away, however, since her arms and ankles were already shackled and she was positioned between two strong men, she was unable to prevent them from forcing her to the table and bending her face down over the raised crosspiece. Toth-Aloth himself attended to the securing of each of the shackles on her wrists and ankles. She was left bent over the crosspiece with her forearms flat on the table and her legs bent at the knee.

"Release me," Bêlit demanded. "If I am truly a princess then obey my command."

"No," Toth-Aloth replied. "It is you, princess who must learn to obey. And your schooling in that begins now."

Toth-Aloth took her first, as was his right. The position of her body opened her completely to him and he made the first part of her lesson memorable by thrusting hard into her, fully enjoying her scream of pain as he utterly humiliated the proud pirate queen. Bêlit was far from being a virgin, but she had never been taken in so brutal a fashion; not even by the mighty Conan and it was a harsh reminder of her new status; a lesson that was driven home over the next two turns of the glass.

Toth-Aloth took her hard and deep, driving into her with such force that the frame shuddered and her entire body quivered. She gasped in pain, gritting her teeth to keep from screaming again as the sorcerer-priest ravished her. And then it was Sukh's turn.

The priest's bodyguard was even better endowed than his master and just as cruel. Hardly had Toth-Aloth finished before Sukh was deep inside her, slamming her hard against the frame and enjoying the animal gasps and moans she made as he violated her. He was also gifted with great stamina and took her for twice the length of time Toth-Aloth had, moving in an out of her tight crevice with long slow strokes that not only gave him great pleasure, but drove home to Bêlit just how completely helpless she was.

And finally it was the turn of Sukh's companion, Ibebi. He was not as well-endowed as Sukh, but he was just as enthusiastic. He pleasured himself with her body, taking her with quick hard strokes until he finally ended the ordeal with a noisy climax.

The nightmare should have left Bêlit utterly defeated, but much to Toth-Aloth's surprise it seemed to have the opposite effect. "You think me beaten," she raged. "But I care not what you do to me. I shall never surrender and one day I will tear your hearts from your bodies while you are still alive."

If Toth-Aloth was taken aback, he did not show it, but his brow creased in anger at this surprising act of defiance. "I see that I have underestimated you, princess. It appears that you need a harsher lesson; onc I hoped would not be needed. But you give me little choice." He turned to his two bodyguards. "Remove her from the frame and bring her with me. I have something that will tame even the most stubborn of women."

---

Once again Bêlit was marched through the temple, but this time they went a different way from the first, descending several levels until they were beyond the reach of sunlight and had to use torches to light the way. They proceeded along a dark corridor until they reached an iron grating. Sukh and Ibebi hauled on chains and the grating moved upward until there was room for Bêlit to pass. She expected all of them to proceed, but to her surprise Toth-Aloth and the two guards went no farther. Instead her chains were removed and before she could react she was pushed into the room and the grate lowered behind her.

"What is this?" she asked, surprised and annoyed that she had not taken the opportunity to attempt to escape, despite the odds against her.

Toth-Aloth chuckled. "You will see, princess," he said. "You will see."

What Bêlit saw was that she was in a room some four yards across and six yards deep. The way she had come was blocked by the grate that Sukh and Ibebi had lowered into place and the end of the room was blocked by a similar grate. Aided by the animal sounds coming from beyond the grate, understanding slowly dawned and a wave of apprehension swept over her.

"What you see, princess," Toth-Aloth explained, confirming her worst fears, "is the entrance to a special prison where I keep those who have especially displeased me. At present it is the home a half a dozen or so men who have not seen the light of day in many months, nor enjoyed the pleasures of a woman for even longer than that. Today they are going to have a special treat."

"No," Bêlit protested, grabbing the bars of the grate. "You cannot do this. Let me out of here."

"You will be allowed out in time, princess," Toth-Aloth replied. "I had hoped to spare you this, but you have resisted all of my gentler attempts to persuade you and so we are left with this." He stepped closer to the grate and raised his voice, shouting down the length of the room Bêlit was confined in. "Hear me. I have brought you something with which to entertain yourselves. You may enjoy her at your leisure, but she is not to be harmed. If I find that she has been injured in any way I will see all of you slowly roasted over hot coals."

His words were greeted with a chorus of eager animal sounds and then finally by grunts which seemed to indicate understanding. "Good," Toth-Aloth said, apparently satisfied with the response. "Then she is yours."

As he finished speaking he signaled to Sukh and Ibebi who began to haul on another set of chains. To Bêlit's horror the grate at the far end of her prison began to rise slowly. "No, please," she screamed, tugging on the bars. "Do not leave me here." But even as she spoke Toth-Aloth and his guards turned away and went back the way they had come. Bêlit turned to see several figures move into the flickering light of the torch, blinking at the unaccustomed brightness. However, it took them only a few heartbeats before they could see well enough to spot her.

"A woman," the man closest to her muttered. "And a very pretty one at that." He was barely dressed, wearing only a filthy loincloth and it was apparent from his unkempt appearance that she had not bathed in quite some time. But he also appeared well-fed. Apparently those who Toth-Aloth kept in his special prison were not denied food or drink.

He moved toward her, but was suddenly shouldered aside by a much larger man. "Wait your turn," the big man growled. "I get her first."

"Stay away from me or you will regret it," Bêlit warned.

"I think I will regret nothing," the big man replied as he lunged toward her.

Despite his bulk he moved quickly, but his time in the dungeon had obviously slowed him somewhat and Bêlit easily avoided him, slamming her fist hard into his midriff and then following up with a knee to his groin. "Uugh, you bitch," the man howled, clutching at his injured gonads as she collapsed to the floor.

Bêlit ignored him, waiting for the next man. She wished for her sword. If she'd had it she would have made short work of the men who shambled toward her, even if they had been armed as well. But naked and unarmed she would have to rely on the skills she had picked up from her barbarian lover. Conan was a master of unarmed combat and when they had not been entangled in one another's limbs in the act of love he had shown her how to defend herself.

"She can fight," the first man remarked approaching her cautiously. "We will have to earn our prize."

"Wait if you want, Mahu," another man sneered, as he pushed past the first man. "I want her now."

He was no more successful than the giant had been, apparently having learned nothing from his experience. Bêlit ducked beneath his clutching hands and struck him square on the jaw. Delivered with all of the strength of her one-hundred-and forty pounds he went down like a poleaxed steer.

"Idiot," Mahu said. "This woman is a lioness. We will have to take her all at once."

Two men were down, but by this time several other men had moved into the narrow corridor. Seven in all, they eyed Bêlit warily, but moved slowly toward her. "Wait," Mahu said. "Spread out and then move on my signal."

Having witnessed the fate of her first two attackers the remaining men took his advice, moving apart from one another until they formed a semicircle facing their prize. "Move slowly now," Mahu cautioned. "Leave no gap for her to escape. And now!" He ended his instructions on a shout and the seven men surged as one toward Bêlit.

She could not hope to take them all, but she did the best she could, driving her foot into the face of one of them; spinning and using her elbow on another; and finding the soft spot between the legs of a third. But there were simply too many of them. Ducking beneath her arms Mahu tackled her, his weight bearing her to the stone floor. He wrestled with her as she fought to get back to her feet, and then the other men joined in. One grabbed her left arm while another took her right. Two more men each caught hold of an ankle and pulled her legs apart. "Nooo!" she screamed as Mahu climbed off her. She heaved her body, actually pulling the men who held her this way and that while she thrashed desperately.

"She really is a lioness," Mahu commented. "But now she will be tamed." While Bêlit continued to fight he moved between her thighs, and placed his hands on her breasts. He gave them a painful squeeze, but apparently heeding Toth-Aloth's threat did no more than that, choosing instead to move his hands over her nipples, stimulating them into erectness.

"Get on with it," one of the men urged.

"Patience, Khusebek," Mahu replied. "It is not every day that we get a prize like this to enjoy." He continued to fondle Bêlit's sweat-beaded body, running his hands over her satin flesh until overcome by his own state of arousal he thrust into her.

It was the fourth time Bêlit had been taken that day, and not once gently, and she was already quite sore. Mahu's manhood felt huge inside her swollen nethers and she cried out in pain and then grunted as he thrust deep within her. He took her, hard, fast, and without the slightest regard for her pleasure making it more than obvious that he had not had a woman for quite some time. He also didn't last very long, finishing her in just a few dozen heartbeats. But there were six others ready to take his place; eight once the two she had taken down at the beginning of the encounter had recovered. They took her one after the other and then started over again.

Her worst experience was with the huge prisoner she had downed with the knee to his groin. He was very well endowed and as obvious revenge for his earlier humiliation he took her much more slowly than the others; drawing out her ordeal with repeated deep hard thrusts. The ordeal was more painful than any injury she had ever experience and it seemed never-ending; continuing long after the torch that had been left behind by Toth-Aloth had burned itself out. Finally, driven even beyond her limits she fainted dead away.

---

Whether or not her assailants continued to use her while she was unconscious she never knew; she only knew that when she awoke she was in so much pain and so exhausted that she could not stand. She was also aware that her assailants were gone and the area where she was lying was illuminated by another flickering torch.

"She awakes, my lord."

The voice was that of the witch-healer who had looked after her before.

"Very well," Toth-Aloth replied. "How long until she can stand?"

Bêlit felt a hand raise her head. "Pinch her nose," the witch said. "I want her to drink this."

Fingers clamped on her nose, forcing her to gasp for air. Then some incredibly foul-smelling potion was held to her lips. "Euugh!" She swallowed, and almost brought up the vile concoction. But it stayed down and slowly she felt her strength, but not her spirit returning. With the help of Sukh and Ibebi she managed to get to her feet and stood swaying in front of Toth-Aloth. She was utterly beaten, brutalized beyond anything she had ever imagined, and covered with the filth and stench of her ordeal.

"Well, princess," Toth-Aloth said. "Are you willing to do as I say?"

Tears she did not know she still had welled from Bêlit's eyes. "I..., will..., serve..., you." She gasped.

"On your knees, princess and swear on all your gods," Toth-Aloth commanded.

Bêlit bowed her head before the priest and did as she was told. "I swear, you are my Master."

---

One Month Later Bêlit's backside was killing her. Three-quarters of a moon on camelback had worn her almost raw, and it appeared that she still had many days of riding ahead of her. She and her "escort" had set out from Luxur headed for the distant kingdom of Asgalun five days after her submission to Toth-Aloth. Those five days had been spent learning the role she was to play once she and the priest entered the city of her birth. Obediently, she had conformed to Toth-Aloth's every whim not wanting a repeat of the ordeal she had been put through. However, her master was taking no chances. As a reminder of what her fate would be he had appointed the largest of the men who had enjoyed her as her personal escort. "Watch the princess, Yuf, and you will have your freedom when she becomes queen."

Yuf had eagerly accepted his role, keeping her in sight day and night; a hulking presence even in her most private of moments. There was little doubt as to what her fate would be if she showed any act of defiance and so she had endeavored to act the part Toth-Aloth had chosen for her. It was not a particularly difficult role to play considering that she was still in chains, albeit chains that supposedly reflected her royal status. A collar and chain of electrum connected her heck to the saddle of her camel. Beneath the hooded robe she wore to protect her from the sun and the prying eyes of other travelers she was adorned as the queen Toth-Aloth proclaimed her to be.

About her throat was a heavy collar made of hundreds of gold beads, tiny gold tubes, and an equal number of gems. It almost completely covered the area between her shoulders and breasts. Her ears wore gold pendants from which danged two large emeralds, and her arms were adorned with gem-studded bracelets and armlets. It was a weight of gold and gems she would have greatly coveted during her days as a pirate, but now it was merely an uncomfortable burden she was forced to carry.

The first part of the journey had been relatively comfortable and might have even been enjoyable had she not been little more than Toth-Aloth's slave. They had traveled by boat down the mighty River Styx on a craft large enough to hold the one-hundred person retinue Toth-Aloth had chosen for her. "A queen must travel in style," he explained. "When you enter Asgalun it will be as returning royalty. You will be revealed in all of your beauty and grandeur for the huddled masses to adore."

Toth-Aloth's plan was simple. Take Bêlit to the city of her birth, parade her through streets that had been suitably salted with members of the populace who would shout her praises, and take her straight to the palace where she would assume her rightful place as queen with Toth-Aloth as her loyal advisor, of course.

Any opposition to her rule would be dealt with by a combination of Toth-Aloth's magic and brute force. The devious priest already had his agents in the city, stirring up support for Bêlit's return and spying out the opposition. By the time the expedition arrived in Asgalun everything should be in place.

She had learned all of this from the sorcerer-priest himself, partly because Toth-Aloth liked to brag; and partly because he was intent on instructing Bêlit as to how she should play her part in his takeover of Asgalun's monarchy. He made her repeat her lessons over and over until she had memorized every step in the charade that was to take place. Now as her camel topped a rise, Toth-Aloth rode back to where she rode with the ever watchful Yuf. "In ten days we will reach Asgalun," he stated. "Remember your part, Queen Bêlit. Remember it or you will wish you had never been born."

Meekly Bêlit bowed her head. "Yes Master," she answered.

"Make sure you stay close to her, Yuf," Toth-Aloth ordered Bêlit's bodyguard. "She is not to be trusted."

"Be assured, Master," Yuf replied. "She will not escape me."

"Very good," Toth-Aloth replied and rode back toward the head of the column.

They camped shortly thereafter. Asgalun was a well-watered kingdom and they were now within its foothills. The place chosen for the campsite was well treed with a variety of deciduous trees mixed with conifers. It was next to a small stream which provided not only fresh water, but a place where the men could wash off the dust and sweat of the day's ride. As usual Bêlit was escorted to the main tent as soon as it was set up, a pattern that had been established from the first day of the journey, and Yuf, as her shadow, went with her. She would bathe also, but in the privacy of her quarters as befitted Asgalun's queen. It mattered not that she would have been far happier cavorting with the members of the escort in the waters of the stream.

Refreshed from her bath, Bêlit was dressed once again by her two handmaidens; attendants who never left her whenever she was in camp, even sleeping next to her bed. Tonight was no different. She was served her evening meal and then sat down to read a treatise on Asgalun's court rituals. Since it was the fifth time she had read it, she was already familiar with all of the details, but Toth-Aloth was taking no chances. "We'll be in Asgalun, soon enough," he had said. "And you will behave like a queen or I'll know the reason why."

She idly lifted the chain that was a permanent part of her attire. It was always secured to something; in this case a heavy stone with the centre drilled out of it. It allowed her to move about the tent and the camp, but she certainly wasn't going to be able to run with it. She sighed and dropped the chain, exchanging it for her wine goblet. At least the food and drink she was served fitted her station as queen.

"More wine, your majesty?" Itet, one of the female attendants assigned to her, asked. She was holding an unopened clay flask.

"No," Bêlit answered. "But you go ahead."

Itet nodded her thanks with a slight smile. It was a little game she and her two servants played. Bêlit had been encouraging both of them to get drunk without success in the hope that it might give her some chance to escape, but the two young women were too disciplined to fall for so obvious a ploy. They would drink, but only another half cup of wine each. She sighed cursing the fate that had brought her to this. Better to have died at the hands of the ape-bat than live in servitude to a man like Toth-Aloth.

She went back to her reading until her eyes grew tired in the dim light of the oil lamp. She was exhausteded and it was time to turn in for the night. Tomorrow would bring another day in the saddle, and her backside ached just thinking about it. It was then that she noticed that Itet and Ahset, her other servant were both sprawled on their pallets, apparently deep in sleep. It was something that had never happened before and she got to her feet. Was it just possible that her servant-guardians had drunk too much?

At that moment the tent flap moved aside and Yuf stepped into the room. He glanced quickly at Itet and Ahset and nodded in satisfaction. "Good," he said in a half-whisper. "They will not bother us."

"What is this?" Bêlit asked, also keeping her voice low. "What have you done?"

"I drugged the last flask of wine. I know that you rarely have more than one or two goblets and suspected it would not affect you. Now come with me if you want to escape."

"You would betray your master?" Bêlit asked incredulously. "Do you not fear Toth-Aloth's wrath?"

"Oh, I fear him all right," Yuf replied. "But I dislike being a slave more. There is nothing to stop him from sticking me back in that pit once his plan to install you as Queen of Asgalun has succeeded."

"Then why would you help me?" Her natural suspicions aroused, Bêlit was reluctant to take him at his word despite the fact that the thought of escape had her heart beating like a rabbit's.

"You are wearing the reason. The gold and gems adorning your body will provide both of us with more than enough wealth to live in luxury. You could even go back to your life as a pirate if you so choose. Now are you coming or not? The servants will not sleep forever."

"Very well," Bêlit agreed, "but you will have to get me out of these chains."

"Nothing could be easier," Yuf replied. He touched his finger to the collar around her throat and it opened with a sharp click.

"You practice the dark arts," Bêlit exclaimed.

"Why do you think Toth-Aloth threw me into that hole in the bottom of his palace? He feared that one day I might challenge him, despite the fact that his powers far exceed mine. Now, enough talk. We must leave before we are discovered."

Bêlit gathered her desert robes around her and followed Yuf out of the tent. Outside it was a moonless night and the weak light of the cooking fires provided little illumination. Slinking through the shadows they made their way to where the camels were picketed and found two already saddled along with a sleeping sentry, a fallen wine flask beside him. Obviously Yuf had planned well. Within a few heartbeats they were leading the camels into the darkness and shortly after that they were mounted up and riding off as fast as it was safe to move. Although she could not see what direction they were going Bêlit suspected that it was not the way they had come. She hoped that it would be enough that Toth-Aloth could not follow them as he was almost sure to do.

They were each riding one camel and leading another. It meant that as their mounts tired they would be able to switch to the other mount and maintain a good pace. However, she knew that when morning came Toth-Aloth would be after them on even fresher mounts. If Yuf did not have some way of throwing their pursuers off their trail they might still not escape. However, Bêlit did not regret going with Yuf. She did not plan to be taken prisoner again. If capture seemed certain she would find some way to kill herself.

---

Morning found them moving down from the hills where they had camped. She had determined from the position of the stars that they were moving straight south and she began to have more hope. If Yuf was heading where she through she was there might be a way to throw their pursuers completely off their trail.

They ate and drank in the saddle, stopping only to change mounts and forcing the camels to the edge of their endurance. Sooner or later they would have to stop just to allow the beasts to graze and they finally did that shortly after nightfall. But Bêlit knew that they had reached what Yuf had been heading for. Although she could not yet hear it she could smell the tang of salt on the air. Somewhere just a short way ahead of them was the Western Sea and a way off throwing their pursuers off their trail.

They mounted up before morning. Bêlit's backside and thighs were so sore she could barely walk, but she did not complain. Urging her camel on she followed Yuf and by midmorning she heard the sound she had been waiting for, the sound of waves sweeping into a beach. They topped a rise and found themselves looking at a long stretch of sand bordered by the blue of the sea. Yuf did exactly as Bêlit expected, riding down to the surf and guiding his camel through the water. The waves and tide would completely obliterate their tracks.

Yuf reined in his camel. "Following the beach southeast takes us to the city of Kyros, but I think Toth-Aloth will expect us to go that way, therefore it is probably better to go northwest and hope that we come across a fishing village."

Bêlit nodded her agreement. Yuf had suggested exactly what she would have done. And she turned her camel to follow his. By late afternoon they found what they had been looking for. It was a small fishing village of barely a hundred souls, but it was large enough for what they needed.

They were greeted with the usual suspicion reserved for strangers, but this quickly changed when Yuf explained that he wanted to trade the four camels and all their gear for one small boat, provided it was sound and properly provisioned.

Bêlit chose the boat, being an expert judge of sailing vessels and she also saw to the provisioning. If the villagers were surprised at a woman shrouded in desert robes making the decisions regarding the purchase, they said nothing, being more interested in the bargain they were getting. The bargain sealed and the boat properly outfitted Bêlit and Yuf waited for morning and shipped out as soon as it was light. As they pulled away from the pier Bêlit got to her feet and shouted to the villagers who were watching them depart. "Beware! There may be others who follow our path. Know that they are thieves, murderers, and rapists. If you see them coming leave the village." On those comforting words they sailed out of the small harbour.

"Clever," Yuf commented. "I see now why you were accepted as a pirate chief. If Toth-Aloth does follow us to the village he will no doubt find it deserted and gain no information from the villagers."

Bêlit smiled. She was free again, with a deck under her feet and with enough wealth to finance the buying and outfitting of a much larger vessel. Soon she would range the seas again.

---

Three Days Later With no particular direction in mind they sailed with the wind, which happened to be from the northwest, taking them somewhat back the way they had come. It was as good a direction as any and would take them back past Kyros to the River Styx. They sailed within sight of the coast and soon came in sight of Kyros, but mindful of the fact that Toth-Aloth might be looking for them there they keep on sailing, eventually reaching the mouth of the Styx.

"We go upstream," Bêlit stated. "Toth-Aloth would never suspect that we would head toward his homeland."

"Agreed," Yuf said. "That fits in with my thinking also."

"Very well, then we go in on the high tide."

The estuary of the Styx was gigantic, measuring several leagues across and dotted with innumerable islands and sandbars. Bêlit was too concerned about the latter. The small boat she navigated had such a shallow draught it was unlikely to run aground, but it would need help from the tide to overcome the strong current.

So far their escape attempt had gone perfectly. Bêlit no longer wore the heavy gold jewelry Toth-Aloth had adorned her with. It was safely stowed in the boat's cabin. As soon as they were far enough upstream they would stop in at the first major city, probably Xhemi, and trade in the gold and jewels for spendable currency.

However, there was one thing bothering her. Yul had betrayed Toth-Aloth, not that she could blame him, but that still did not make him the most trustworthy of companions. If he could betray one person he could betray another and the huge amount of wealth they possessed between them was certainly a strong motive for betrayal.

And there was another thing and that was the way that Yuf looked at her when she thought she wasn't watching. She had seen that look on the faces of too many men to mistake its meaning. Yuf wanted her, and wanted her badly, no doubt spurred on by memories of the time he had raped her when Toth-Aloth had given her to him and the other brutes in the dungeons of his palace.

Perhaps the best way to deal with the situation was to kill him before he could act. But that would make her the betrayer of the man who had saved her from Toth-Aloth's slavery. Bêlit did not have quite the finely tuned sense of honour that others did, but one thing she was sure of was that she could not betray the man who had saved her from slavery even despite what he had done to her previously. However, she had no compunctions about killing him if he gave the slightest hint of betrayal in the future.

"Tomorrow we reach Xhemi," she said. "I have some contacts in the city where we can dispose of the gold and jewels. And then we part ways."

"Fine by me," Yuf agreed. "This has turned out to be a most profitable arrangement."

That night they tied up at the riverbank and Bêlit slept in the cabin and Yuf slept on deck. By previous arrangement this had been the way it was on the small boat. Although the tiny cabin was too small to stand up in she could secure the door, preventing any surprise visits. She did not know or care what Yuf thought about the arrangement. She was captain of her small craft and while she was in charge he would do as she said. It was an unspoken agreement that this was the way things were and Yuf had not argued with her about it. In any case it seemed to work and Bêlit slept soundly throughout the night.

---

She was awakened just before dawn by shouts of alarm. "Bêlit, Bêlit! We are under attack." The shouts were followed by loud thumping sounds and the sound of metal clanging on metal.

They had not been able to obtain decent weapons in the fishing village, but they had acquired a couple of heavy knives and axes. Bêlit carried hers tucked into her belt when she was awake and beside her when she slept. She now grabbed them up and bolted for the cabin door. She burst through it expecting to find the boat assailed by river pirates and instead ran into the entangling folds of a fishing net. She instantly realized the trap she had fallen into, but by then it was too late. She struggled valiantly to cut her way free of the net, but Yuf was on her before she could get free.

Using his weight, he pinned her to the deck and wrapped the net even more tightly around her until she couldn't move her arms or her legs more than a few inches. "Got you," Yuf cried triumphantly. "I've been waiting for the right moment to do this ever since we escaped from Toth-Aloth and the time is now. I don't need you to sail the boat the rest of the way to Xhemi and now I won't have to share the gold or jewels with you."

"Let me go," Bêlit demanded. "Let me go or kill me. Because if you betray me I will not rest until you are dead,"

"Kill you?" Yuf asked as he prepared to properly bind her. "Why would I do that? I have dreamed of that sweet cunt of yours ever since I first experienced it when Toth-Aloth gave us a taste of your body in the dungeon. Now I will enjoy it again; and as many times as I wish until I finally tire of you. Then it will be off to the slave market with you and a further increase in my wealth."

As he spoke Yuf had cut through part of the netting so that he could reach Bêlit's arms. He pulled them roughly behind her and tied them tightly at the elbows and then tied her wrists. He then attended to her ankles, binding each of her ankles separately to each side of the boat so that she was spread wide. "Release me," Bêlit screamed. "You will die for this."

"You make too much noise," Yuf said. He grabbed her hair, jerked her head back and stuffed a rag into her mouth. He tied it in place with a short length of rope and then stood up to admire his handiwork.

Bêlit stared up at her latest captor. Betrayed once again. If hatred were daggers Yuf would have been a dead man, but here was nothing she could do except glare her hatred as Yuf began to remove his trousers.

Continued in Chapter 3...

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