Eli sat on the edge of the roof of the Royal Accountants Building and dangled her legs over the rim. She raised the bottle in her grip and drank another sip of grape wine. Her head was warm from the alcohol and the heavy burden on her chest that did not allow her to breathe easily since yesterday was lifted. Just a bit.
Eli took a deep breath in silence and stared at the sight below her feet.
The evening sun had illuminated the city. A mild breeze blew and ruffled Eli's hair. The sound of the wind shut out the city's rackets. The absolute silence was soothing and silenced the pesky voices inside Eli's head.
Eli loved this rooftop. The building of the royal accountants was the tallest tower on the city's west side; from there, she could easily see the streets, alleys, and other structures. The royal accountants were a bunch of old men and women with hunched backs who ignored the fact that there were many entrances and exits to the building, including one of the doors in the corridors, which opened to a spiral staircase that led directly to the roof.
Eli had been in this building many times and had repositioned, destroyed, or substituted various financial files on the orders of the Malkan's clients so that she had memorized the building plan. She would come here whenever she wanted to run away from her problems.
A few miles further on, on the east side of the Sefid River, a narrow line was drawn between the city's two sides and divided it into two western and eastern fronts. To the north of the capital city, the Sefid mountains cast a shadow over the city. The Sefid River formed in the heart of the mountains. The river passed through the hills and the town and flowed into the lake in the south, shining in the sunlight in the distance. But Eli's gaze was not on the lake.
She was staring at the other side of the river.
The installations and mansions were utterly different from the western front. The buildings were made of stone and marble instead of wood and cement, and the central palace was beaming on a small hill atop the city.
The palace had a golden dome, and dark blue velvet fabrics were hanging on the white marble walls, which danced in the air with the light evening current. The palace building was more expansive than elevated, occupying almost half of the hill so that there was enough room for all the royalties, high-ranking members of society, and their luxurious crap.
Eli wondered which of the halls inside the palace the woman in red had taken the ruby with her last night. She must have continued celebrating with her servants, ordering them to suck on her delicious sex. Eli didn't want to be jealous, but she was. The mysterious royal knew how to play games.
On the south side of the palace, there was a short tower with a sharp point made of black stone. The building was round and as high as the palace. Still, in terms of its appearance, it had nothing in common with the elegant formation of the castle and its buildings.
The tower was simple in design, and rarely a sound - or a person came out of it. Eli wondered if that is why the building got its name from: the Sokoot Tower.
A Towjian word for silence.
All Eli knew about the tower was that the mages lived there. She squinted her eyes, trying to get a better look at the tower. But the wooden double doors were closed, and there were no windows. It was the first time she paid attention to the building. She wondered if the mage used to live there.
Eli took a sandwich that Baroo had made from her coat pocket, still enthralled in the tower. She put the bottle aside, opened the sandwich, and peeked inside. The sandwich was a few pieces of chicken and tomato.
Malkan must have ordered Baroo to feed Eli when he went out. Otherwise, Baroo would not have given free food to anyone kindly.
Eli smiled unconsciously as she remembered Baroo.
When, an hour after Malkan's punishment, she was able to gather her energy, get dressed, and go down the stairs of the tavern, Baroo was sweeping the tavern's threshold, sweeping shards of broken glass.
Eli reached the bottom of the stairs and announced: "I'm hungry."
"And I'm not your fucking nanny." Baroo didn't even raise his head.
Eli went straight to the kitchen behind the counter. "You'd be a horrible nanny."
Anael was already occupying a stool behind the kitchen table, devouring a piece of bread. "But he'd be a delicious daddy, though." She said aloud so Barro could hear, which he ignored.
Her brown hair was muffled, and her shirt was askew. Either she was in a fight last night or had sex. Eli couldn't tell.
"What happened to you?" Eli snatched the bread and took a bite.
"Whatever that was, I had a better time than you did last night."
Eli chewed down the bread. "Can't argue with that."
Baroo entered the kitchen, placing the broom in a corner. He was wearing a white apron around his waist.
He glanced at Eli. "The fuck do you want?"
"I told you, I'm hungry."
He crossed his arm on his chest. "I thought you had enough royal pussy last night."
Anael sat upright, suddenly remembering to gossip. "Yeah, was it good?"
Eli sat on a stool across the table, fully aware of being at the center of their attention. She contemplated the answer for a moment before answering. "It was worth it."
For a few seconds, nobody said anything. Eli knew they must have overheard Malkan punishing her last night. Nobody would joke about Malkan, even when he wasn't around.
Baroo took a deep breath. "Don't fill yourself up with that." He grabbed a plate on the counter with a sandwich on it. "Eat this."
"You motherfucker, where is MY sandwich?" Anael protested. Baroo ignored her again.
Eli threw the bread away. "Fuck yeah."
Eli reached out to seize the plate, but Baroo pulled it back. "Comes with a price," Baroo smirked.
"Why am I not surprised?"
Baroo lifted his brows. Eli was so famished she had a loose leash on her temper. "Baroo, I swear to gods, I will cut your balls off. Gimme that!"
"And I will fuck you in the ass for that attitude."
Anael interrupted, "If I let you fuck me in the ass, you'll give me the sandwich?"
"Bitch back off," Eli barked. She was getting angry.
"There is no way in hell I'm fucking your stinky ass. My dick will fall off." Baroo looked genuinely disgusted.
Anael shrugged away. "Your loss."
Baroo gave away the plate. Eli snatched it and shoved the bread into her pocket, not trusting them enough to eat it there.
"I'm out," She asserted, nabbing an uncorked bottle on the counter. Baroo blocked her way, "Not with the bottle."
Eli looked up at him. Beads of sweat had coated his bald head. He had high cheekbones and full lips. If he wasn't such an asshole, Eli would consider his face as kind.
"I need it," Eli said, looking earnest.
Even Anael shut her mouth.
Baroo stepped aside, letting Eli pass.
Eli sighed as she took another bite of her sandwich on the rooftop.
They wouldn't understand Eli. They were mercenaries. Employers. They would get paid after each hustle. Malkan would consider their shares in the expenses. Yet, Eli had to earn her every meal. They chose to hang out at the tavern. Eli had nowhere else to go. They were free. Eli had a symbol of fucking Oxyn branded with molten iron on her neck.
There was a difference they would never understand.
Eli looked down at her booted feet, dangling from the rooftop over the street. Now she had another mark to bear. As if the first one wasn't enough.
Fucking perfect
She shoved the rest of the sandwich into her mouth and drank wine from the bottle to send it down.
It was getting late, and she had to face one of her many problems.
***
When Eli arrived at the mansion's gate, the sun was setting. She still had the now-almost-empty bottle. She swayed a little, which was why it took her so long to get there. But even without the wine, her feet were dragging. Stalling.
She stood behind the iron gates and looked at the rusted dye and spiderwebs between the bars.
All a lie.
The actual spider was inside, luring bugs like Eli in just to wrap a magical serpent around their ankle and torture them to death, forcing them to betray their previous master. Eli didn't know which one she hated more: The mage, Malkan, or herself.
The gate opened with a click, and the iron door slid back slightly with a groan. Just enough for Eli to get through.
When Eli entered, the gate closed after her. No one was around. The yard, the fountain, and the gazebo were just as Eli remembered the first night she entered the mansion.
She didn't study them much when she found the mage standing atop stone stairs before the main double door, staring at Eli.
He was wearing a dark robe tucked tight around him, coating his lean abs. It looked heavy. His hands were shoved in his pockets.
The mage and Eli just stood there for a few seconds, gaping at each other.
The sun lightened him, casting long shadows on the double doors and the stone building behind him.
His face was freshly shaved. He had high cheekbones and a sharp jawline. His long dark brows umbrellaed his deep onyx eyes, hiding all the thoughts and emotions behind them, making him impossible to read.
He was beautiful.
He was as alluring as a marble statue inside a fountain in the square, attracting passengers, forcing them to pause just to take in the sight of him, admiring his elegant features.
However, appearances never deceive Eli.
He was vile enough to torture Eli, whip her till her skin split open, played her with mind games so that she opened up about her past, and when he had enough data, he cursed her to be his slave, bound her to act accordingly, or else she would burn to ashes, and there was no stopping about that.
Eli could see him now with a fresh perspective.
Especially now that she knew he was on house arrest for attempting murder of the high mage. He was also in Towj, helping Oxynish mercenaries raid her land, causing the chain of events that brought her there at his doors.
"You reek of sex."