Free Taurus by Christine Elaine Black

need their service,” she complained. “Can you arrange it?”
    “As you wish.” He bowed and left the room.
    Kallie undressed and meandered into the adjacent room, where a body servant waited with scented oils to bathe her and comb out her hair. Kallie rested on a cool slab, draped with the finest linens, while the girl pressed strong fingers into her tired muscles. After the girl clipped and buffed Kallie’s fingernails and toenails to a shine, rich linens were draped over her clean, smooth body. Afterward, Kallie slid into bed to nap until the time came for her evening with the governor. She lay wondering who Verragius was, and why Taurus was taking her when everyone here hated her presence, until an old woman entered the room and stood by the door. Kallie beckoned her to come closer. “You are the wise woman?”
    She shuffled forward. “Yes,” the woman croaked.
    Kallie took in her appearance. Wrinkled and gray-haired, with few teeth left, she smelled of odious herbs and powders. This woman could help.
    “I have no money for you, wise woman, but there are those who will pay well for your work today.”
    “Who, my dear?” the crone rasped.
    “Lady Lidia or Lady Virga will offer you much more than I ever could.” Kallie had the woman’s interest, judging by the way she licked her lips when coins were mentioned.
    “I need powders that prevent a woman from…you know…having a child.”
    The woman nodded sagely. “They cost much for a noblewoman. The herbs must be of good quality, not the poor homegrown nonsense the local wenches use.”
    Kallie smiled. “Lady Lidia will not want a Gregorian to bear the governor’s child. She will owe you a great debt and will pay well.” An unbidden thought that Lidia might take the opportunity to poison her popped into her head. “The governor will be upset if he loses his Roman prize, so choose the powder well and use the best.”
    The old woman inclined her head. She held out her hand. The mottled skin and veins stood out against papery skin. “It will be as you wish, Mistress.”
    “Quickly,” she urged, as the woman retreated out the door. Kallie rolled over in the bed, pressed against the soft pillow, and slid into a deep sleep.
    ****
    Lidia and Barca faced Taurus in his office. He simmered with annoyance, but they were incidental to his thoughts. While they argued over Kallie and the notion she should not attend the Verragius party, Taurus took a moment to rethink the day. The girl had used an opportunity to communicate with the giant. She was resourceful and clever, and she impressed him, even though he hated to admit such a thing was possible. He recalled the muscles in her arms and legs as she climbed the tree, and her sinuous body as it moved gracefully through the forest. She had completely duped him while playing with rocks and recalling stories of her childhood.
    Taurus’ jaw clenched at his incredible stupidity. She’d distracted his concentration and he had fallen for her female charms, her ploy to render him incapable of interfering with a message intended for Atticus.
    Atticus! Taurus seethed with hatred at the name. He needn’t bother telling Lidia or Barca the details only to have them rail further against the girl. Taurus had had enough of their opinions.
    “Are you even listening to our advice?” Lidia carped.
    He forced a congenial smile and placed a light kiss on her forehead.
    “She will join us, and that’s the end of it. General Verragius will be disappointed if we forget the latest sensation in all of Panua.”
    Lidia protested. “Get rid of her before she casts her spell over you. Shame her first, then throw her in the dungeons to rot.”
    “You forget she is the sister of Rome. As long as I hold her in my grip, the emperor must negotiate with Panua. I fully intend to exploit our advantage.”
    Barca remained exceptionally quiet, and Taurus attempted to heal the rift between them. They usually shared everything, including women,