whose land had been taken from him.
'You still haven't said what practices the King is against.'
For the first time since Salome left them, Mazares laughed. 'Try all of them! Do you know the locals' nickname for her farm? Amazonia!'
'Amazonia?'
'Land of the Amazons,' he said, rubbing his jaw. 'Claudia, I swear that woman flies in the face of every convention you can think of and then half a dozen on top. You see, not only does our Salome have strong views on women not being treated as chattels, she rejects the concept of slavery on every level. The first thing she did after inheriting the farm from her husband was to free his slaves, then before you know it, women started to appear on her farm from all over, calling it a refuge—'
'Is that so bad?
'Of course it bloody is!' The anger in his voice surprised her. 'I told you before, you can't make the sun travel backwards, but equally you cannot force its progress.'
He ran his fingers through his glossy curls.
'The Histri have had to cope with a lot of change in a very short space of time. New laws, new practices, new rulers -these things don't come easy, but they're adjusting the best that they can.'
'Your King seems to be making a pretty good stab of the merger.'
Mazares shrugged the King's good deeds aside. 'It's his job. The point is, for the last decade our people have seen land that's been in their families since the dawn of time snatched away and given to strangers.'
There was no question of holding the passion back now.
'Then along comes Salome and suddenly their principles are eroded, as well as their security. You have to understand, Claudia, that in a Histrian's eyes, women need the protection of men. To them, anything else flies in the face of nature and it's quite beyond their understanding how battered wives might need a refuge. To put it bluntly, they view Salome's farm as a lesbian commune, and unfortunately there's always an element that wants to teach Sappho a lesson by trampling her crops, or . . .'
Just as quickly as the heat had flared up, it died down, to be replaced by a weariness she hadn't imagined.
'Or else they view the women as a ready supply of whores and, quite frankly, Claudia, we're sick and tired of burning rapists around here.'
'Did you say burning?'
'Oh, don't look so shocked. No one forces a man to commit rape and ultimately it's their choice whether they die that way, they could always leave the women in peace! But I'm telling you straight. Amazonia has stirred up a lot of trouble round here and, if Salome doesn't change her ways, and soon, something terrible is going to happen. I know it.'
Looking at the anguish behind his eyes, Claudia almost felt guilty about what she was about to do next.
'Let's talk about Rovin,' she said sweetly.
What was it Salome had said? Much to explore in the area? And that Mazares would make sure she had a wonderful time here . . . ?
'Because I was under the impression that this was an overnight stop.'
'If that's what you want, then of course it can be one night,' he said smoothly. 'Only, it's so beautiful here, all these rocky coves, pinewoods and golden, sandy beaches, that I thought you might prefer to relax for a day or so before moving on. Take a boat round the islands, swim in the lagoons—'
'Beat around the bush? No, thank you, Mazares. Tomorrow we head for Gora.'
'If that's your wish, then—'
But he was talking to himself. Claudia had spun on her heel and was marching purposefully down the street. She could hear him yelling behind her, but he could shout all he liked, she didn't trust him or this place; as his pace stretched to catch up, so her pace quickened with it. Lit by his own torchlight, she could see his arms waving and now he'd broken into a run. Sooner or later, she'd let him catch up, but right now, cutting that smarmy snake down to size by having him chase after her seemed a good idea.
Except she'd forgotten about the steps on this island and too late she realized
'You still haven't said what practices the King is against.'
For the first time since Salome left them, Mazares laughed. 'Try all of them! Do you know the locals' nickname for her farm? Amazonia!'
'Amazonia?'
'Land of the Amazons,' he said, rubbing his jaw. 'Claudia, I swear that woman flies in the face of every convention you can think of and then half a dozen on top. You see, not only does our Salome have strong views on women not being treated as chattels, she rejects the concept of slavery on every level. The first thing she did after inheriting the farm from her husband was to free his slaves, then before you know it, women started to appear on her farm from all over, calling it a refuge—'
'Is that so bad?
'Of course it bloody is!' The anger in his voice surprised her. 'I told you before, you can't make the sun travel backwards, but equally you cannot force its progress.'
He ran his fingers through his glossy curls.
'The Histri have had to cope with a lot of change in a very short space of time. New laws, new practices, new rulers -these things don't come easy, but they're adjusting the best that they can.'
'Your King seems to be making a pretty good stab of the merger.'
Mazares shrugged the King's good deeds aside. 'It's his job. The point is, for the last decade our people have seen land that's been in their families since the dawn of time snatched away and given to strangers.'
There was no question of holding the passion back now.
'Then along comes Salome and suddenly their principles are eroded, as well as their security. You have to understand, Claudia, that in a Histrian's eyes, women need the protection of men. To them, anything else flies in the face of nature and it's quite beyond their understanding how battered wives might need a refuge. To put it bluntly, they view Salome's farm as a lesbian commune, and unfortunately there's always an element that wants to teach Sappho a lesson by trampling her crops, or . . .'
Just as quickly as the heat had flared up, it died down, to be replaced by a weariness she hadn't imagined.
'Or else they view the women as a ready supply of whores and, quite frankly, Claudia, we're sick and tired of burning rapists around here.'
'Did you say burning?'
'Oh, don't look so shocked. No one forces a man to commit rape and ultimately it's their choice whether they die that way, they could always leave the women in peace! But I'm telling you straight. Amazonia has stirred up a lot of trouble round here and, if Salome doesn't change her ways, and soon, something terrible is going to happen. I know it.'
Looking at the anguish behind his eyes, Claudia almost felt guilty about what she was about to do next.
'Let's talk about Rovin,' she said sweetly.
What was it Salome had said? Much to explore in the area? And that Mazares would make sure she had a wonderful time here . . . ?
'Because I was under the impression that this was an overnight stop.'
'If that's what you want, then of course it can be one night,' he said smoothly. 'Only, it's so beautiful here, all these rocky coves, pinewoods and golden, sandy beaches, that I thought you might prefer to relax for a day or so before moving on. Take a boat round the islands, swim in the lagoons—'
'Beat around the bush? No, thank you, Mazares. Tomorrow we head for Gora.'
'If that's your wish, then—'
But he was talking to himself. Claudia had spun on her heel and was marching purposefully down the street. She could hear him yelling behind her, but he could shout all he liked, she didn't trust him or this place; as his pace stretched to catch up, so her pace quickened with it. Lit by his own torchlight, she could see his arms waving and now he'd broken into a run. Sooner or later, she'd let him catch up, but right now, cutting that smarmy snake down to size by having him chase after her seemed a good idea.
Except she'd forgotten about the steps on this island and too late she realized
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