the cubicles women were lying on couches having their backs massaged with sweet oils; it was a scene of peace and contentment. They looked at the newcomers curiously. One of them rose from the water. She was completely naked and her skin was a pale gold, her waist tiny, her hips slender, though her breasts were full and round, the nipples dark as though she had borne a child. Her dark hair was wet and curled down to the small of her back. She seemed not to notice or care that she had shocked the newcomers by her nudity.
‘Who are you?’ she asked in French. Her eyes went over Harriet dismissively and then came to rest on Marguerite. She frowned, her mouth thinning in disapproval as one of the attendants placed a filmy wrap about her body. ‘What is your name?’
‘I am Harriet and my cousin’s name is Marguerite,’ Harriet replied, trying to ignore that it was still possible to see every part of the woman’s body. ‘May we know your name, madame?’
‘I am Fortunata, the Caliph’s favourite.’ Her dark eyes flashed with what Harriet sensed was jealousy. She was clearly protective of her domain. ‘Where did you come from and why are you here?’
‘We sailed from England and were on our way to meet my cousin’s fiancé,’ Harriet replied. ‘Our ship was attacked by corsairs and we were captured and taken to the slave market. It is my hope that the Caliph will allow us to be ransomed.’ Harriet’s mind worked quickly. It was possible that the Caliph’s favourite might be persuaded to help them. ‘If I could speak with the Caliph, or send a message to him, he might listen to our request.’
‘The young one is destined for the Caliph’s son,’ Mellina interrupted. ‘You have no need to fear either of them, for no one will want the other one.’
‘For the prince?’ Fortunata nodded and some of the malice faded from her eyes. ‘You both smell. I have finished here now, but my attendants will help you to bathe.’
‘You are very kind,’ Harriet replied. ‘Perhaps we could be allowed to bathe in private?’
Fortunata stared at her and then laughed. ‘I dare say you would prefer to hide your skinny bones, but the young one has nothing to hide.’
‘What is she saying?’ Marguerite asked and looked at Harriet in dismay. ‘They don’t expect us to bathe here in front of everyone?’
Harriet turned to Mellina. ‘Is there anywhere else we could wash more privately?’
Mellina’s eyes narrowed. For a moment she looked annoyed, then inclined her head. ‘You may use Katrina’s bathing pool. She is with the Caliph’s young children and will not mind. Come, it is this way …’
Harriet took Marguerite’s arm and steered her away from the bathing pool. She could feel Fortunata’s eyes boring into her back and feared they might have made an enemy of her. The Caliph’s favourite had clearly feared a rival when she first saw Marguerite, but the older woman’s words had reassured her. Harriet, of course, was no rival to any of them, but she knew that her cousin might be the target of some unkind looks if the other women were jealous of her.
Mellina took them into a secluded courtyard garden. Here there was a small pool surrounded by pillars. A marble bench was placed beside it and the smell of flowers was almost overpowering.
Mellina clapped her hands and women appeared with towels, soaps and perfume jars. It was clear that their intention was to help the two newcomers to bathe. Harriet spoke to them in the language she realised was the universal one in the harem.
‘Please leave us to manage for ourselves.’ Her request met with blank stares until Mellina issued a similar order and they disappeared into an alcove leading from the pool. Harriet looked at her cousin. ‘They think we smell and I dare say we do. I do not think we shall be fed until we have bathed—so we may as well get on with it.’
‘But there are no bathing gowns,’ Marguerite objected. ‘You will not bathe as … that woman did … without clothes?’
‘You may keep on your tunic if you wish,’ Harriet told her. ‘However, I think I shall take mine off, because it does smell and I am tired of being hot and sticky. Please turn your back until I am in the water and I shall do the same.’
‘Very well.’
As soon as Marguerite turned her back, Harriet stripped off her clothes and slid into the water. It had been slightly warmed by the hot sun and felt deliciously cool but not cold against her skin. She began to soap herself, her back towards Marguerite until she heard a little splash. Turning, she smiled at her cousin.
‘Is this not pleasant? I know my father used to swim in the lake at home. I often envied him, but this is even nicer for the water at home was usually freezing.’
‘It is pleasant.’ Marguerite took some soap and began to rub it into her body and her hair. She dipped underneath the water to rinse it and came up gasping for air. When she rose again she was smiling. ‘This is fun.’
Harriet nodded, then splashed her. Marguerite looked startled for a moment and then splashed her back. They both laughed, feeling happier as some of the tension slipped away.
When they had finished washing, they walked up the steps leading to the bench. Harriet allowed her cousin to go first, deliberately turning her back until Marguerite called that she was decent. Harriet followed and wrapped herself about. She was wondering what to do next when Mellina reappeared with some women bearing what looked like clothes of such fine soft material that it was possible to see through it.
‘You may choose which you prefer,’ Mellina said and spread the clothes out on the bench and the grass. ‘You will need the pants and the bodice for wear in the harem. If you are allowed outside the harem as a special treat for pleasing the Caliph, you will be given more suitable clothes to wear.’
Harriet gasped as she saw what she was expected to wear. Marguerite was looking quite interested and seemed to be inspecting them with a view to choosing her favourite colours.
‘Is there nothing else for me?’ Harriet asked. ‘You are wearing an overdress. May I not have something of the kind?’
Harriet looked down at the overgown that covered the trunk of Mellina’s body and was far more modest than the garments she had brought for them to see.
‘Only the older women wear these,’ Mellina told her. ‘Surely you do not wish to cover yourself? You have quite a good figure, better than I would have thought from the clothes you were wearing before—but if you wish for a tunic like mine you may have one.’
‘I should feel more comfortable,’ Harriet said. She saw that Marguerite had chosen her pants and a filmy shirt with a little embroidered jacket that finished in gilt tassels just above her waist. She was trying to work out how to put them on when a young girl came running out to help her. She was giggling and Marguerite laughed as she saw what she had been doing wrong.
Harriet smiled as she saw that her cousin seemed to have lost her terror. For the moment Marguerite was content enough, because most of the harem ladies seemed friendly. As yet she had no idea that she was destined as a gift for the Caliph’s son, and Harriet wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible.
Surely there must be some way of reaching the Caliph? If only she could speak with him, she might be able to persuade him to ransom them to their families.
Would she see Kasim again? She had thought that just for a moment he had regretted
