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ankles.
    “It’s cold!” she exclaimed with surprise. She squinted and shaded her eyes and saw a large ship looming in the distance.
    “Is that our ship?” she called over to Orestes.
    “Yes,” he said, and Kalliope watched as he dragged a small wooden boat from the grass into the water.
    “Ready?” he asked, holding his hand out to her, while his other hand held onto her bag.
    Kalliope nodded and took his hand. “Where are the other soldiers?” She remembered at least ten other warriors who had been at the brothel the night before.
    “They boarded the ship early this morning.”
    Kalliope climbed carefully into the boat and watched with rapt interest as Orestes rowed them towards the ship. Orestes helped Kalliope on board and she suddenly became frightened as she looked around at the numerous unfamiliar faces.
    “Don’t be afraid,” Orestes said. The other soldiers looked at her hungrily, their eyes ones of carnal desire. “She’s not working now,” Orestes growled.
    Orestes beckoned for Kalliope to follow him and she went below the ship where Orestes showed her to a small room that was roughly the size of a closet.
    “The journey will take close to a week. Our housekeeper on board will bring you your meals. I will see you once we dock.”
    Kalliope could only nod and she looked around the small space that would be her home for the next week. It could barely contain her cot, but it was entirely hers and Kalliope wasn’t sure if she should laugh or cry.
    She sat down on her mattress and waited for whatever would come next in her new life.
     
    * * * * *
     
    Chapter Five
     
    * * * * *
     
    The journey felt long and Kalliope experienced her share of seasickness. She didn’t see much of the other soldiers, and she tried to sneak up to the deck each day for some fresh air. The sea was salty and choppy and Kalliope would find herself mesmerized until the housekeeper would come in search of her and shoo her back downstairs to her room.
    Kalliope wondered if any of the men would try to find their way to her bedroom but no one disturbed her. She had a feeling that Orestes had warned the other soldiers to steer clear of her. Kalliope still had no idea what Orestes had in mind for her, but he had seemed pleased with her nonetheless. Kalliope even thought that Orestes might visit her again, but he did not and Kalliope didn’t know if she was relieved or disappointed. Orestes' bedroom methods were foreign and bizarre but Kalliope would be lying if she didn’t admit that she had somewhat enjoyed his approach.
    More than once, Kalliope would sit on her small cot, draw her long legs beneath her and gently pull out her few meager belongings. She would line them up one by one on the bed in front of her and she would slowly turn each item over in her hands, letting all the memories of each object wash over her. Kalliope decided that once she arrived in Athens she would wear Gaia’s gold necklace. It was a delicate piece, with three intricately braided gold ropes. Kalliope had always found it too beautiful to wear, but she would be living in a big city now, and she wanted a piece of home close to her heart.
    She also fingered the carving that Hagne had made. Hagne had always been artistically gifted and this particular carving was of the large tree in the family’s backyard. If Kalliope closed her eyes and focused her mind, she could just picture the backyard she had known as a child. Kalliope tried to remember the yard before it had become a hiding place for her. She preferred the memories of the backyard from when it was a place of relaxation and play.
    Kalliope had spent hours studying her mother’s broach. The delicate filigree laurel wreath leaves were smooth beneath her fingers and Kalliope could remember her mother carefully braiding her long, thick hair and pinning the fine jewelry above her right ear. Still her heart ached for her mother, even after all these years.
    Kalliope had counted her money only a