Tina and Lana expressed their approval of the changes I'd
made in the solution from the night before. Then Tina asked, "How did Toni
take it?"
"The change, she accepted after I told her you were
only exempt from sleeping with other men, if I choose to sleep with you. Other
than that all of you are available for any of the men waiting in camp to use
during the day." I paused for a moment then finished. "When I told
her that, she accepted me physically without hesitation as I re-enforced what
I'd told her verbally, not once, but twice!"
Both Tina and Lana exchanged glances, but it was Lana who
spoke, "You mean you were able to do that, even after Tina and I...."
"Oh yes, you taught me well in the tower. It isn't
that I can't be satisfied, but it takes more than just twice in one night to
make me incapable!" I teased them un-mercifully, threatening to take them
as they bent over the fire.
Tina stepped on my foot, while Lana leaned to me and
said, "Sir, you are still, a cad!" As Tina stepped off my left foot,
Lana stepped on my right, while Tina leaned to me, saying, "Not to mention
a jerk!" The two of them then turned to the meal they were making,
pointedly ignored me. A few moments later they both turned to me and said,
"But we love you anyway. Just do us the favor of staying out of the
kitchen!"
I made my exit, post haste, but with a double limp!
*** *** *** *** ***
Sean, Gil, Toni, Lavern, Cindy and Debbie all came to the
fire while I was loading the horses with the goods and unused supplies. Shortly
Gil and Sean came to me and helped finish loading the animals. We'd finished,
and were catching up our mounts when they stopped me and said what was on their
minds.
"First," they began, "you tell us to take
our pick. Then you send word that none of these women here are to be
ours." There was an extended silence while we caught some horses. "We
don't think we're asking to much, when we ask what we are supposed to do?"
"Not at all," I replied, "I suppose I
should have told you earlier. I'm sorry, but I didn't."
"Didn't tell us what?"
"As soon as we've moved to a more protected place
and set up camp, Tina, Lana, and I, will be going back to the City of Towers,
to bring out some women for you to choose your mates from." I stopped to
let my words sink in, then went on, "I need my harem to run things here,
while I'm gone, but you can feel free to mate with them for pleasure while you
wait for our return, and your women."
Gil and Sean both apologized for their misunderstanding,
but I waved off their apologies saying, "The fault is mine, I was unclear
from the start."
They sent me back for my breakfast, while they finished
catching and saddling the horses for the short trip ahead.
*** *** *** *** ***
We left the meadow shortly, and arrived at the foot of
the rock face I'd seen from above the meadow in about three hours riding time.
The place was a natural shelter and it took us only two
days to build a corral, and some other crude equipment needed to make life
livable in our new location. On the third day in our new home we found a small
stream just south of our location that would provide plenty of water, if we
built a cistern, which Sean and Gil said they would start on in the morning, as
soon as we'd left for the city.
We ate a light meal that night, but sat up late, talking
by the low fire, exploring the possibilities of our new program, and slowly,
one by one, we crept off to our beds late that night. I couldn't place it, and
I never mentioned it to the others, but I was uneasy about the planned absence
of Tina, Lana, and myself.
It was a long time before I could find sleep that night.
Even when I did sleep, it was fitful at best, and my bad dreams were back.
I was in the second pass of the bad dream when my six
concubines quietly awoke me in the hours just before dawn. I awoke startled,
and was just about to make a noise when a hand covered my mouth. Lana gave me a
worried quiet sign, so I was quiet. Finally the hand left my mouth and the
women led me silently away from the sleeping forms of Sean and Gil.
We stopped a goodly distance from the two sleeping forms,
and held a whispered conference.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
Lana answered as usual, "We don't know, we just feel
something."
"That makes all of us." I said. "Any ideas
what it is?"
Lana, "The story those men told, It's the truth, but
something is mixed up about it."
"OK. Now what is it? Something is wrong, that much I
know, but I can't figure out what." "So what do we do about it?"
It was Debbie.
"For now, nothing. I don't like it, but
nothing."
We went back to our blankets, and feigned sleep until
daybreak. I couldn't sleep, and I doubt if my harem could either.
*** *** *** *** ***
In the morning, it was natural for the six women to
gather together as we made our sullen preparations to leave. But it seemed odd
that the two men were almost stand-offish as they kept pretty much to
themselves. I noticed it, but said nothing until all the women were grouped
together, where I sat on my horse waiting for Lana and Tina to finish there
good-byes, and mount up.
Suddenly it hit me, right between the eyes. I wheeled my
horse around the women, then somehow slid off the mount, acting out a barely
passable throw. "Have either of those men touched any of you women since
the day and night you were with them in the depression?"
The women all shook their heads no. I got up, and
remounted my horse, as if to show it who the master was, and cautioned the four
concubines staying behind, "Never let them bind you! Never sleep at the
same time!" Tina and Lana mounted their horses, and we waved good-by, as
we cantered out of our camp.
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Chapter 69 | Chapter 71
Index | Title Page
| Credits | Preamble | TOC