Maid in Babylon

"Her eyes!" The piercing shrill of foreign voices virtually pulled the remaining water from her body, as she lunged forwards from a horizontal position and coughed up mouthfuls of salty water that made her gag. She clutched her chest as memories of bottomless whirlpools of ocean came flooding back to her. The last thing she remembered was her Fathers face disappearing into the underwater shadows and the feeling of someone sitting on her chest as she inhaled endless water.

She now shook with chills as the ice cold air hit her and everything came into focus. She could see waves again and rocks and cobbles, and then some sort of giant castle in the distance. She felt the strong arms of somebody helping to lift her up and then he was carrying her. She felt weightless, as if she was floating on air. She felt a deep, intense exhaustion wash over her body as she once again collapsed and slipped away into the land of smoke and bone.

Vivid dreams seemed to haunt her subconscious with no end. It was another three nights before she was able to find the energy to open her eyes fully. During this time , she had drifted in and out of consciousness. She had heard voices and tones, both male and female, excited and concerned, and even tasted odd tastes. She had been given water, had her head lifted up, and even been moved around and covered with thick soft blankets.

"She wakes!" It was a female voice, and as she plied her eyes open and struggled to lift her head, she saw a friendly dark face staring at her, a lady with dark brown skin.

"Oh, you're even more beautiful than they described, and young! So young! The Royal family can't wait to meet you!"

"Where?......" muttered Reeva softly. Her voice was beautiful and childlike. She had never left the side of her parents who had raised her on their family boat, where she had spent the entire seventeen years she'd been alive. She could speak a little broken English, but her parents were both Swedish and had only let she and her younger sister learn a handful of phrases and words that they believed they may need to support the family in trading and bargaining with foreigners that they would encounter on their sea voyages. Reeva was a keen learner and avid reader, and had snuck into the weapons galley late at night and taught herself by candle stick to read more English for many years. Not only did she believe that she could make more allies for her Father, but she wanted to go to school one day. She had read about English school and dreamed of wearing a uniform and learning to write and making lots of new friends. Their last voyage had taken them directly into a hurricane, and their small ship, which her father used for storing anything he could trade-furs, meat, bones, cigarettes- hadn't been strong enough to bare the brunt of the cascading waves. Reeva who was playing on deck at the time and fiddle with the nets, had been thrown clean overboard and her Father had dived in to rescue her. She began to sob as she remembered the last time she'd seen his face as he was desperately trying to grapple with the current to get to her.

"You are in Babylore, city of the Sun. I will show you," the brown lady said. She disappeared for but a moment and returned to sit next to Reeva on the crisp freshly made bed and rolled out a huge map of the world. She pointed to a cluster of shapes that looked familiar to Reeva. She had observed her Father study maps many times before.

"These lands are all Arabic. They're ruled by King Ahmed Adarpha and his beautiful wife, Queen Rashti. They have been asking about you, about your eyes,"

"What about them?" whispered Reeva gently.

"We have never seen such eyes. Never had a visitor like you before. The local fisherman's son, Alekandro pulled you from the water. Nearly caught you in his net like a mermaid or fish! He brought you straight to the physician who reported of you to the Royal family,"

Nina kindly helped Reeva to get into some comfortable clothing. It was the grandest clothing that she had ever seen before-hems and collars of pure hand spun silk in golds and purples and chiffon with lace. Reeva wore a corset, two underskirts and a dress with stockings. Life had been hard on the water and her Mother had stitched all of their clothes by hand in basic brown mesh or linen. It hadn't stopped traders from staring at Reeva. She was a truly beautiful girl with eyes each a different colour. She had been born with a rare condition that meant one of her eyes was a sparkling green whilst the other was watery blue. The Arabic people had never seen a woman with such porcelain pale skin and long wispy Ash white hair, and were even more stunned by her eyes of two different colours.

It was on the fifth day of Mira taking care of her and aiding her every need in the small outhouse quarters behind the palace gates that the elderly brown lady-who'd worked as a maid for the Royal family for many years informed Reeva that she was taking the evening off.

"I must go and cook for some of the other servants. They are going on a long fishing trip tomorrow and they need much food to tide them over, child. I will surely return,"

Reeva yawned sleepily and stretched in the soft cotton night shirt that Mira had sewn together for her at her request. She felt much more comfortable and like herself in the pale swamp green cotton material.  

"I can help," offered Reeva, giving a small smile. She had seen no other soul aside from Mira in the days since her being rescued, and she wanted to find out more about the people of Babylore, the family that had shown her so much hospitality.  Mira reluctantly allowed her to put on another long cotton dress and overcoat and accompany her a couple of cabins down to where the sea front was starting to appear. Mira paused in front of a small wooden log cabin and knocked firmly on the door. A very young boy of around ten years old with jet black curly hair, green eyes and olive skin opened the door, and the two ladies were immediately overwhelmed by the smell of raw meat. Reeva recognised it immediately as fish bait. Mira ushered Reeva inside, as the young boys eyes widened at the sight of Reeva.

"Is she an angel?!" He gasped loudly. 

"She may be our new Queen, so treat her well," Mira replied, winking at the boy and sliding off her thick woven shawl. Reeva was still taking in the sparsity of her surroundings when two more men appeared from another room. There was an older man, the boys Father, and another man with him, around twenty, who was shockingly handsome. Reeva felt her stomach do a somersault and for the first time in her young life, felt a spark of something. She wasn't sure what, but she had never seen such a handsome man before. He was around six foot three, with shoulder length jet black hair like the darkest, starless night, and the same golden olive skin as his father and brother. Their skin tone was lighter than Mira's.  

"This is Alekandro," Mira told Reeva, patting the young man hard on the back, ".....the man who pulled you from the sea onto his fishing boat and brought you back here," 

As their eyes met and fixed upon one another, Alekandro looked truly taken aback by the young girls beauty and doll like features.  

"Sit down please, and let's eat," said his father, beckoning for the ladies to join them at a small.round wooden table with beer barrells being used as chairs. Their Father was a sincere and hospitable man, and smiled and laughed along with Mira for a long time whilst they all enjoyed a hearty feast of black and green olives, smoked tuna and vegetables, and the men drank mulled wine.  

"None for her," said Mira, covering Reevas wooden carved tumbler when their Father reached out to pour her a little wine.  

"I've had wine before," said Reeva, eyeing up the jug longingly, "my father loved ale, beer and mulled wine. We traded it on our voyages," 

Their Fathers mouth dropped open In shock, and Alekandro smirked, clearly impressed. 

"Maybe it was the wine that sent you overboard, hmm?" He teased, as he took a sip himself. His white shirt was unbuttoned a great deal at the top and Reeva couldn't help but feel stirred at his muscular form bulging through the fabric.  

"A walk?" He asked Reeva, getting to his feet and nodding towards the door. 

"I don't think so," said Mira hurriedly, sipping more wine herself. "The King and Queen want her to attend her presentation ceremony in two nights. She must maintain a clear head. And not be put in any further danger,"

"She will be very safe," insisted Alekandro, putting his hand out to Reeva. Looking back at the others, he said, "I brought her back from the sea safely, didn't I? Let the girl enjoy one last walk along the sea front before she is presented," 

Mira sighed and nodded in feeble agreement, before turning back to her wine.  

Reeva felt nervous and excited at the same time as she slowly rose , and flicked up the hood on her over coat. She walked delicately behind Alelakandro, out of the narrow front door and right out onto the sea front. It was ice Cold outside as the cool tide blew in a gentle breeze that engulfed both of them.  

"Where are we going?" She asked him, hugging herself in the night air. 

"Just a bit further," he told her, as he led the way down the winding Sea front and into the wet sand. 

"My shoes!" She cried, as she felt cold water seeping into her leather sandals. 

"Take them off," commanded Alekandro.

Reeva would never usually have willingly walked around at night with a stranger, much less a male but she rationalised in her mind that had he meant her any harm , he would not have saved her life from the elements in the first place. 

"There!" He said, picking up a loose stone from the beach floor and skimming it into the wild ocean. Her stared at her intently for a moment. "Is where I found you," He stretched his arm out wide in the direction of far away lands. "Hundreds of miles out that way," 

"Why did you save me?" She asked curiously, her bright blonde hair glistening in the silverish moonlight. 

"My Mother taught me that every life holds value. From the smallest insect to the tallest bear," he spoke with conviction, as a man with wisdom beyond his years.

"She sounds like a wonderful woman," said Reeva timidly. "She did not join us for dinner,"

"She drowned, long ago, when I was just a boy, swimming in this very ocean," his words knocked the wind right out of Reeva, and send Chills through her spine. That could so easily have been her, had he not rescued her.  

He then stepped closer to Reeva and looked intently at her with his huge emerald green eyes. "When I saw you floating there, in the water, for a second I was a boy again, and I thought you were her," he spoke so quietly thay his words were just about dissectable. 

"But I am .....," Reeva let her voice trail off into the wind as he stepped even closer and rang his thick finger down the side of her face, brushing a strand of grayish blond hair out of her eyes.  

"My Mother was a Polish gypsy traveller," he told Reeva, "my Father rescued her also-from South American slave traders years ago. She was a very skilled swimmer...or so she believed. She looked like you, with bright eyes and fair skin. A beautiful woman. The King has always hated my Father because she chose to marry him when presented to the King in ceremony. He had to accept Queen Rashti instead as my Mother refused his hand. She was a brave woman. She could have lost her life for saying no,"

"Ceremony?" Said Reeva, her eyes widening in dismay. "Didn't Mira say that I was to attend a ceremony, two nights forth?" 

"Yes," he said, bowing his head. "You will be presented to the Kings son and given in marriage. He vowed long ago that he would have European genes in his lineage even if it wasn't by his own marriage. He thought his prayers had been answered when I brought you back here. His son Omar is a fine man," 

"How can he think that I will marry a man I've never ever met?!" Choked reeva in disbelief, wrapping her coat even more tightly as her heart thumped in her chest. 

"You have no choice. The King has fed you, paid for your upkeep. He believes you will be honoured to be married into a royal family. He had the physician examine you the day you you here. Mira told us. You were certified pure. You are now the Princes bride," 

"And noone thought to ask me what I wanted?!" Reeva was stunned and genuinely terrified at the revelations from the man who'd plucked her from the swirling sea. "Why are you even telling me all of this?! Why did you bring me here if you knew this would be my fate?! How could you?!" Without thinking, her hand instinctively reached out to slap him across the face, but he caught her wrist in mid air and managed to restrain her lightly.  

"I believe that you have a right to know. That's why I told you," he said, rubbing his forehead. 

She felt uneasy as she looked back towards the land in the distance.

"So what now?!" She demanded in indignation, "what am I to do? I have nowhere to go, no food, water, and no way to get off this island!" 

"But I do," he said, looking right past her. She turned slowly and saw a small fleet of eight fishing boats all docked in the harbour and ready to set off the very next day.

"Tomorrow I will sail to Europe with my Father and brother. We have already decided that we are never to return," He cupped her chin in his strong hands. "Do you trust me?" He asked.

"Yes," she said with clarity.

He bent his head and kissed her, interlocking his lips with hers slowly at first, and then more deeply and passionately, until her mind stopped spinning. When he finally pushed her back a little, he pressed a crumpled up piece of cloth into her hand. She struggled to make out lines and shapes in the dark. It was part of a map! 

"Go back with Mira tonight. Wake early before the sun rises, or better, don't sleep at all. I will slide something in miras drink a sedative so she sleeps for longer. Use this map to find your way back here. Hide under the animal skins in the second boat in from the right, that's mine, and I will take you back to your homeland." 

"Why?" She asked, her heart racing.

"Because I feel something for you. I don't know what it is, but noone ever died from saving someone twice. Now go!"