Chapter 64

　　Story 13 The Water girl

　　The rooms were full of people but they didn’t notice me as I floated in and out carrying water. Oil lamps and incense burned and the air was thick with their fragrances and also of something else. Thin fabrics were hung from the ceilings and behind them men and women fornicated. I could see the shadows move as I walked and the odor of sweaty men and women and their bodily fluid stung my nose.

　　No one was interested in what I carried but for the wine the other girls brought. I was used to being ignored, hardly noticed by the other slaves, just a young girl doing her job as quietly as possible so not to bring attention from my domina. She could be quick with her hand, a slap to the face, a pinch of the nipple until tears ran if you made a mistake, so we didn’t. The only thing that brought attention to me was the way I looked.

　　“You, what are you carrying?”

　　I stopped and turned around. An older man dressed in a white toga looked at me.