Chapter 3

“Twisted tales and twisted lies. Twisted stories, oh what twisted times!”

Marina

Madam Mongolia sat just a feet away from the entrance to her shop. Her other staffs, Kat and Ludmilla, seemed to be on a break because it was only her with a teacup in hand and an empty bench opposite her.

Her gaze was fixed on the outside, which was an open view to the market center. She was watching something so intently that she almost didn’t hear us approaching until Jeneva took a seat directly in front of her and she whipped around to see the both of us, before passing us a smile.

“Forgive me, my attention was stuck elsewhere.” She said as she finally drops her cup and lifts the little kettle, raising it to our faces. “Tea?” the question follows and doesn’t even wait for a response before pouring into the cups by her side.

“What about Ludmilla?” Jeneva’s asks, picking up a filled cup and blowing away the steam that seemed to form wefts above her drink.

“Something about a running stomach. I asked Kat to make sure she got home. Kat would be back soon” Madam replied and turned back to whatever it was happening outside. “Seems like there’s a new tax collector courtesy of our king” her words almost sounded like she’s trying to ascertain if her assumption was true or not.

“That shouldn’t be of bother to you. Should it?” My friend managed to slip into the conversation, in between sips. Definitely, the tea smelled amazing but the guilt couldn’t let me have a taste just yet.

“Who knows? New Monarch might mean new rules” Madam replies, sending a smile in our direction. Particularly in my direction.

I knew what that comment meant anyway. Despite resigning as a consort. Madam Mongolia was still covered by its laws. Meaning she could not be taxed, still received allowances from the castle that was worth more than whatever she made from her shop in a month and free healthcare access in the local clinics. The shop we sat in was part of her settlements from the late king, as well as the capital to start. Her home off the west aisle was also a settlement.

Even after stepping down, she still lived the life I wished.

“Your allowances are up to date. Surely if there was a change of laws, they ought to have ceased?”Jeneva piped in again, seemingly interested in the conversation.

“True, but last month did come in a bit late. Perhaps they have begun reconsidering” at the closing of her statement, she looked me straight in the eyes and asks “How are you Mari?”

I tried to say a word but my lips oddly felt too heavy to open, hence I only nodded in response and tried to peep at the chaos going on outside through the window to divert the conversation and not show my nervousness.

The faces of the tax collectors and their carriage did look different. On a regular day, I would have begun fidgeting about their presence, but last month I had made a little extra bronze coins from the new idea I had of adding flower fragrances to laundry when I was done. It costs me nothing because all I had to do was to pick up flowers from the bushes or my surroundings, sun dry them, then pound them into powder and mix it with a little boiling water, vegetable oil and some drops of alcohol that I initially used to get rid of oil stains on clothing. The scent lasts well into a week and it looked like a cheap alternative to perfumes.

Lanthernia had suggested I pay the taxes two months ahead so that whatever I made in the coming months would be added to Jepheeth’s and mother’s treatments. Which I did. So I was clear of tax collectors until next month.

By then I should have come up with something.

“Are you sure? You’ve barely touched your tea. You don’t like it?” Madam Mongolia says softly, eyes still on me.

“Marina wants to send herself to an early grave with the amount of chores she had been shouldering this past week.” and there was Jeneva, unknowingly worsening the situation.

Madam narrowed her eyes at me for a second before returning her gaze back to the scene outside her shop. I could hear the shuffling and stomping of hoofs of the horses that dragged their carriage behind. After a brief pause, madam speaks again “They seem to be looking for someone or something” another statement that sounded like she was trying to convince herself first.

“Probably a tax abscondee” with one last gulp, Jeneva swallowed the final contents of her cup and I was yet to take a sip.

I tore my gaze from the two women around me and tried to distract myself with something else. The pictures of different outfits and styles that hung as a chart directly above the sewing machine that would have had Ludmilla sitting behind it if she had been feeling well.

“I never guessed you to be the kind of woman with the balls of a man” the sound of Madam Mongolia’s voice forced my gaze back to her and I met her already staring back at me.

Was that statement about me?

“Yes, you” she responds, as if reading my thoughts. “After all these years, you’ve been into menial labor to assist with taking care of your family. I always admired your resilience but at the same time, I wondered if it was because you lacked the courage to go the riskier route. I for one would have turned to a night warrior. With a body like yours, I would earn times ten of what laundry would have ever given me”

By ‘night warrior’, she meant prostitute.

Now you understand what ‘lady of the night’ meant.

“But I couldn’t render that advice myself to a youngling like you. So I watched to know what steps you would take and you did what surprised me the most. Requesting to be a consort to King Xanthanius is far more courageous than anything I would have ever thought possible” Madam continued, and I could not tell if she was disappointed in me or amazed.

“You say that like you believe she was willing to opt to be a bedding partner to the king” Jeneva’s voice was a bit sharper than when she had last spoken. Probably there was something in the tea?

“Although that was not part of my job description. Consorts were originally known as official and legalized mistresses. Even my father was against my acceptance to the role because he stuck to the original meaning. In all honesty, the late king and I did have some escapades which I did not find worth telling because it seemed inappropriate divulging such information. I might be a retired consort but I am still sworn to some oaths of non-disclosure. Our escapades, I might have attributed it to a special liking he had for me but unfortunately I do not have an inkling of how his relationship with the other women were. So I took any informal act between us at the surface level” this part of Madam’s story would have been very helpful two weeks ago but I guess it’s my fault.

“You warmed his bed?” I managed to whisper out, the impact of my secrecy dawning on me.

“No. Not once. He was too bothered about mistakenly making me immortal or having an immortal child, to go further. But if he had ever sought that, I would pay no mind in giving it to him” her response was one without fear or worry of judgement.

Her attention was once again fixed on whatever it was outside of her shop that interested her more than this conversation. I could see the way she squinted as if trying to make sense of what she was looking directly at.

But, back to the conversation. Is this her way of telling me that I did the right thing?

Before I could ask, the men in armor approached the door of the fashionere and Madam couldn’t act less perturbed by the fact that there might have been a change in rules.

“Gentlemen. How may I be of help?” She says, standing to her feet. Jeneva and I follow in her action. I slowly dropped my untouched cup of tea by my foot.

The men glance at the three of us through the eye opening of their helmets, before settling on me then returning to Madam. “We were directed here by the locals” with a pause, they returned to me once again and an awkward dread filled my belly as I began to wonder if I had failed to document my tax receipt at the town records.

“Are you miss Marina, daughter of Koltko, the haymaker?” It was directed to me.

“Y-yes? Am I in t-“

“Miss Marina, you sought the role of a consort to the king during the last Flame Cycle Request Meeting. His highness has approved of your request and demands you get your things ready to depart by tomorrow. This is the information we bring.” Then their gazes move to Madam, and with a bow of head “have a good day madam” then they all left.

I had no idea when I took some steps backwards until the sound of a cup toppling over met with my ears.