The Crown Prince and the rest of the nobles on the table continue with their talks. Senator Hedari leans down and feeds the woman a piece of meat.
"Thank you master," She smiles up at him as she takes the piece of beef in her mouth.
My stomach growls, I haven't eaten all day.
"Here, pet." The Crown Prince says.
I look up at him and see him holding a grape between his index finger and thumb. He's looking down at me.
"T-thank your highness." I say, taking the grape in my mouth.
He resumes his meal as Senator Hedari engages him in talk. My head is reeling fast. Why I'm I sitting here with the concubines?
"I'm Yasaba, Senator Hedari's concubine." She introduces herself in a whisper.
"I'm Anaya." I whisper back.
She is beautiful, with soft feminine features that makes her look like she belongs in the heavenly realms, not sitting here on the floor, beside a mortal man.
"On my first day when the Senator chose me, I was scared too." She smiles at me. "Don't be scared. It will be fine."
I feel tears gather in my eyes, and I quickly blink them away.
"Pet." The Crown Prince calls me again.
I look up, to see him holding a juicy piece of meat on his fork. I open my mouth and he feeds me.
No matter the circumstances, he's still as attractive as ever, and I still have a massive crush on him. Too bad he's merciless, and I'm going to be sacrifice tonight to please him.
"Thank you, your highness." I say again but my voice is small and shaky.
I look down as I chew. Yasaba squeezes my hand softly. I look at her as I swallow.
"You promised me a hunt, senator." The Crown Prince says.
His deep voice resonates down to my core, making heat pool in my belly.
"Yes, a hunt like you've never had before your highness. As soon as you eat to your fill, then we are ready to leave." Senator Hedari replied as he played with Yasaba's hair.
"As soon as my new pet is done eating, we'll leave." The Crown Prince says casually.
I blink, and look down on the floor.
"As you wish majesty, I'll tell my men to prepare." Senator Hedari says.
He snaps his finger, and the guard who dropped me in earlier walks briskly towards us.
"Make sure all the preparations for the hunt are ready." He orders.
"Yes, My Lord." The guard bows and walks away.
"Up, pet." The Crown Prince orders me.
I look at Yasaba who encourages me with a smile and a nod. I slowly rise to my feet to see the rest of the table members staring at me.
"Sit," He points at his lap.
I sit at the edge of his muscular thigh dressed in black armor, without putting my whole weight on him.
He pulls me to him, until my back is pressing against his hard chest. He smells like cinnamon and saffron. I'm on hyper alert as his hands go around my waist and he tugs me yet more closer to him.
"What would you like to eat?" He asks me.
I swallow. What if its a trick question? I don't know how to deal with nobles, but I've heard they are judgmental and play ruthless games. I don't know the proper answers to give a Crown Prince. I pray to the stars for wisdom.
"Whatever you want me to have majesty."
He adds more roast beef to his plate, and honey dipped chicken pieces, as well as bread. He reaches for grapes and pops them in my mouth.
I'm mortified as I chew. I look at Senator Hedari who's staring at me intently, he gives me a small tight smile. I look down at the space between the Crown Prince's plate and the table cloth, my cheeks are hot from embarrassment. Everyone at the table is glaring at me.
I wish I could crawl back down to the floor, and hide next to Yasaba.
"Eat," The Crown Prince commands as he feeds me a mouthful of the honey dipped boneless chicken meat.
"Thank you your highness." I say as he puts it in my mouth.
I lick my lips and start to chew. My cheeks grow hot when I realise he's staring at me eat. His dark eyes are staring at my mouth.
I'm overwhelmed by the strange turn this day has taken for me. I wonder how Kejya and Koirna are. They must be travelling to Serewenjya now. I can only imagine how happy they are, they are free to live as they desire now, and they deserve it.
After I'm done eating he wipes the corners of my mouth with his thumb.
"You chose a great pet your highness." One of the noble men in a turban says.
I wish I was invisible. He's staring at me as if I'm one of the pieces of steak on the table.
"I know what you are doing Senator Jehya. You are licking my boots so I can go easy on you during the hunt. But I wont." The Crown Prince says. His hands move up and down my waist.
The rest of the table roars with laughter.
"But you are right, she is a rare find, my new pet." He says as he cups my chin in his hand, forcing me to look at him, in his dark eyes.
I bite my bottom trembling lip.
"Where did you find her again Senator Hedari?' One of the men ask. "I'm surprised you didn't claim her for yourself."
"We didn't know of her existence. Her father had sheltered her growing up. My Eunich found her as she auditioned to entertain his highness." Senator Hedari explains. "If I'd known of her existence earlier, I'd have informed you, your highness." Senator Hedari stares at the Crown Prince with remorse in his eyes.
I feel like an item. They are talking about me like I'm an antique that one would find at the market, and not a living breathing human.
"What prey can I expect to find in your forest for the hunt Senator? The Crown Prince asks, changing the subject.
He cups my chin again and stares at my face keenly. His stare is too intense, I look away. He tightens his grin on me, forcing me to look back into those dark pools that are staring into my soul. What wild dream is this? I never dreamt that this would ever happen to me, in my lifetime.
"There are all kinds of prey, tigers, lions, a herd of elephants, a graceful gazelles, all types of birds and in my rivers there are crocodiles, your highness."
"This will make for a great hunt. Shall we leave now?" The Crown Prince asks as he lets go of my chin.
"Yes, your highness." Senator Hedari stands up.
"Up, pet." The Crown Prince commands in his deep voice. I bolt up.
I hate that I'm a coward. I wish I had the guts to disobey his command, and tell him not to call me a pet. But I know that he has the power to end my life right now if he desires. One word and a guard will slice my throat open. I won't have to wait until midnight to die.
I remind myself that this gorgeous ruthless human calling me a pet is the second most powerful man in the kingdom, after his father the king. It will be wise of me to guard my tongue.
The Crown Prince walks out of the banquet hall, next to Senator Hedari. Yasaba and I follow behind them. The other senators wait until he is out then follow behind.
He is tall and lithe. He has the physique of a warrior. I get the feeling that even though he's surrounded by guards, he can handle any threat on his own. He is observant as we walk down the hallway, aware of his surroundings and what's happening.
I see the Eunich together with the servant girls standing at the corner that leads to the upstairs rooms, they wave at me, and then whisper to each other. Yasaba communicates to the Eunich in sign language and he nods. The maid servants wave at me and giggle.
"Ignore the maids, they are insufferable." Yasaba tells me.
"They are happy that I'm getting sacrificed tonight. How mean can they be?" I speak in a low tone to Yasaba.
Bitterness clogs my throat.
Yasaba giggles. Senator Hedari looks back at her with tenderness in his eyes.
"They told you what?" She asks.
"That I will be sacrificed tonight because I made a mistake while performing for the Crown Prince."
"Anaya, they were playing with you. That is not going to happen. They meant that you will lose your virginity tonight. You are a virgin aren't you?" She whispers to me.
I nod and swallow. It's not that it had not occurred to me, especially when I found myself on the floor with the rest of the concubines. But I could not rule out their words either, and even though I now know that I'm going to live, that I'm not going to be sacrificed tonight, the thought that I will lose my virginity tonight does not make my situation any better.
We walk past the fields where the celebrations had been set earlier. The entertainers from earlier are lined up at the extreme end. Senator Hedari's servants are service food to them. I look for Kejya and Koirna, maybe they stayed behind to wait for me. But I cannot see them. My heart sinks.
The beautiful belly dancer from earlier approaches towards us and bows before the Crown Prince. Her well endowed breasts are in full display.
"Your highness, I wanted to thank you for your generosity. I'm here to be of service to you, whenever you may need me." She purrs, and looks up at him with big innocent eyes.
The Crown Prince nods and keeps walking.
As I pass her by, she is shocked to see me.
"What is your name?" I hear the Senator with the turban ask her.
"Yili, my Lord." She answers, uncertain.
"Tell the Eunich to prepare you for Senator Borla. I'll see you when I return from the hunt." He commands.
"Y-yes my Lord." She says, uncertain.
"I didnt know that our province had these many beauties. If I did, I'd attend more of Senator Hedari's festivities." Another voice says behind us.
A few of the nobles behind us laugh.
"This is nothing compared to Dursan women. Dursa has some of the most beautiful I've ever seen." Another younger voice says.
"They say once you set your sights on a Dursan woman you'd give anything to keep her."
We get at the end of the grounds, near the gates, where horses have been readied for the hunt.
Senator Hedari gets on his horse and helps Yasaba up behind him.
"Pet," The Crown Prince turns to me.
I freeze as he holds me captive with his eyes.
"You ride with me." He says.