6
Talia woke to the sound of children’s voices. She’d slept with Esylyn and the infant on a soft mattress made of piles of animal furs. She’d attempted to refuse the bed, preferring to sleep outside, under the stars, with Tomis, but their hosts insisted.
In the end, she’d given in, only because she feared she’d beg and plead Tomis to take her again if she slept beside him, and she didn’t want to humiliate herself anymore.
Yes, he’d proven willing to serve her that way, but the more times they bred, the more likely she’d conceive his child and the harder it would be to part from him when the time came.
She heard Tomis’ voice outside, speaking jovially to the children. Stars, it caused her physical pain to hear him. All her life believing she was a human slave, she’d never pictured herse
