Elentinus smiled.
“Am I forbidden to even broach the topic?”
“It’s your prerogative if you want to be rude.”
“Won’t you even look at the brides who would gladly take Inga’s place in your bed?”
“So…you want to be both rude and vulgar.”
Domestics replaced our first dishes with a second:
blackberries on a blob of white stuff.
Yogurt would have been nice, but it was some kind of runny cheese.
“Humans are innately compassionate, Nayjoor.
Particularly the females.
Inga’s unhappiness distresses my wife.
I know she’ll be in anguish long after you’re gone if the situation isn’t mended.”
“You are not the one to mend my situation.
That became clear enough after I got here.”
He grimaced at his food.
“This white stuff is disgusting.
Take it away.”
Domestics took the plates away from all of us.
None of us were interested in the salty goo.
They set down soup bowls full of red liquid with big soft red vegetables and creamy looking white blobs on top.
Inga’s eyes widened.
“Borscht?
It’s borscht?”
“Yes,” Elentinus said.
“Sasha used to have it made special for her.”
She dug in with gusto.
“My God.”
I couldn’t help but smile at the way she savored every bite.
Once I figured out the red things were beets I didn’t even want to try it.
The bowl was ice cold.
I didn’t get why Russians liked cold soup.
Don’t they need to warm up?
I shoved it over to her.
“Here, have mine, too.”
She nodded without looking at me and kept eating.
“You don’t like it, Maritza?” Elentinus said.
I stuck out my tongue and made a face.
Nayjoor bellowed with laughter suddenly.
“Your wife is so adorable, Elen.”
His eyes glittered when he smiled.
“There was never a Dak-Hiliah woman as carefree as this one.”
Elentinus squeezed my hand beside me.
“Are you happy now, dear?” Nayjoor said to Inga.
Inga nodded.
“That’s how they indicate yes,” Nayjoor said, “by bobbing their heads up and down.”
He touched Inga’s cheek with his forefinger.
“She can be adorable sometimes, too.”
Inga put down her spoon.
“I’m not made to be adorable.”
Nayjoor stared at her.
“I was made to work.
I grew potatoes and took care of my baby brothers.
I carried water and firewood.”
Her voice started cracking.
“It was hard work every day, but I was happy.”
Tears began to wet her cheeks.
“I saw that beautiful village down there.
I could be so happy in that place, husband.”
She snuffled and wiped her tears on a napkin.
“But Inga, darling,” Nayjoor said, with some true emotion in his own voice.
“What am I to do without you?”
Inga tipped her nose at me.
“Get a stupid American wife like this one.
They’re too silly not to be happy.”
Nayjoor stirred his soup.
No one ate while he considered.
I noticed that Rolf-Tem was flaring his clenched teeth.
I pursed my lips.
Please, Nayjoor.
“If I do you this favor, Elen, I expect something in return.”
Elentinus remained calm.
“What would you like, my friend?”
“Yield your next vote to me.”
“You know I can’t do that.”
“Why the fuck not?”
His face turned demonic so fast I got a shiver.
“I’m letting you manipulate me.”
“I can’t stake the welfare of the empire for victory over a matter in my private life.
It’s unethical.”
Nayjoor looked as though he’d just been slapped in the face.
“So my votes hurt the empire?”
Eletinus stayed silent.
Nayjoor turned away from him.
“Why did I let you convince me to stay?”
“You care for Inga, Nayjoor.
I can tell.”
The larger man eyed him.
“Won’t you do this for her?
You said things were bad before you came here.
Think of how much worse it will be once you’ve deprived her of this.
She’ll never stop longing, and she’ll never forgive you.”
Inga made eye contact with Nayjoor for the first time during their visit.
Nayjoor turned his head up toward the ceiling and breathed deep in and out.
He looked like he could explode at any moment.
“You’re forcing me to do what you want.
This is always your way, Elentinus!
You bully the entire high council!”
He clenched his fists.
“What a fool I was bringing my wife here.”
“Then you’ll let her go?” Elentinus said with his usual calm.
“Please, husband, please!” Inga said.
He looked at her while fuming through his nostrils.
After an arduous minute of consideration, he finally gave the Dak-Hiliah nod.
Inga drooped over the table to sob with joy.
Nayjoor still spoke sharply.
“Only if you find a suitable replacement.
One even prettier than your wife—yet with none of her defiance.”
“I’ll see to it personally.”
Inga hugged Nayjoor’s arm.
“Thank you.
Thank you, husband.”
He refused to look at her.
“Master, I must protest!”
Rolf-Tem shot up from his seat.
“Inga and Lord Elentinus conspired together to force you into this.
She knew what awaited her at the colony.
Maritza told her.”
“Today was the first time I’ve been there.”
Rolf-Tem raised his voice to speak over me.
“Inga and Lord Elentinus knew they could force you to release her with a feigned tantrum and phony stories about her picking vegetables in her home.”
Nayjoor eyed him a few times through his spiel but seemed unmoved.
“Do you know that right before this dinner Lord Elentinus had his wife write Pakpo a letter asking him to ban the shock collars?”
Now Nayjoor’s brow furrowed.
“Lord Elentinus was determined to force your hand.
If he couldn’t do it here he was still going to make sure the rules were changed once we got home.
He manipulates you, our druids—the whole empire!
You can’t let this stand, master.”
Whore grabbed Rolf-Tem’s arm to force him to sit down again.
“This is not Lord Elentinus’ way.
He had no opportunity to conspire with Inga.”
Inga shook her head furiously.
“No!
We never even spoke!”
Nayjoor ripped his arm away from Inga and stood with enough force to send his chair clattering backwards to the floor.
“Forget this!
Forget the whole fucking thing!”
Inga launched herself at him.
“Noooo!”
She groped at the metal adornments on his chest.
Nayjoor threw her off him.
She bounced onto her chair but then toppled back onto Whore.
He righted her.
“Sit down, Lord Nayjoor,” Elentinus said.
Nayjoor stuck his forefinger into Elentinus face.
“No!
I won’t be dissuaded!
You’re a power mad egotist, Elentinus!
You have the whole empire tricked with your claims of compassion—but not me!”
“What reason have I to help Inga, if not for compassion?”
Nayjoor leaned close and slowly enunciated every word through his teeth.
“To humiliate me!”
He stormed off.
Inga clambered after him a few steps.
“How can you take this away from me, you monster!
Because of your stupid fucking pride?
What about me?
You uncaring pig!
I hate you!
I hate you, Nayjoor!”
He froze after she screamed his name.
“Shock her.”
“I can’t!”
Rolf-Tem was indignant.
“Lord Elentinus destroyed my control unit the minute we got here.”
I couldn’t see Nayjoor’s expression with his back to us.
He rubbed his hand over his face and I think I heard him laugh.
“Of course he did,” Nayjoor said.
He turned around holding a control unit in his fist.
His thumb crushed the activation button.
Inga’s pink glowing collar appeared around her neck.
She gave a scream that reverberated into my chest.
The girl jolted off her seat and fell to the floor.
She twitched and writhed with her eyes so wide it looked like someone was forcing them open with their fingers.
Her screams made my whole body shake.
Even Elentinus had to look away.
She’d lost her mind with the pain.
Finally, Nayjoor released the button.
I breathed again but every breath came with a shudder.
My face was wet with tears I didn’t even remember crying.
Just the sight of this would give me nightmares.
How was it for Inga, actually experiencing it?
She was quivering and jolting on the floor with aftershocks.
Her eyes remained painfully wide and unblinking.
I forgave her for everything.
Her bad attitude, her demands, all of it was so trivial compared to what I’d just seen.
I should have given her the control unit when I’d had the chance.
Nayjoor tossed the control unit to Rolf-Tem, who caught it with both hands while wearing a disgusting smile.
“We’re leaving,” Nayjoor said.
“Call the transport and pack our belongings.
I’m going to our room.
Don’t you dare come and say another word to me, Elentinus.”
He continued storming out.
Rolf-Tem stood with a smug look on his face.
Beside him I saw Whore clenching his teeth.
“Everything you said was a lie,” Whore said.