The ride to the inn was horrendous. Grit lashed my flanks as Donkey’s hooves scattered the pebbles from the road. My skirts hiked up. I skidded past carriages, squeezing myself through tight gaps, clipped the wooden boards of the main street porches. People jumped out of our way, throwing angry glares. At the windows of the shops, people pointed at me, clinging for dear life. Shame burned my cheeks as my feet stained in muck dangled on the side. 

Finally, I reached the inn’s water trough. But the mistress's horses were nowhere to be seen. I fell off of Donkey and dragged the two of us to the service door. This made no sense.  A service cart could not vanish. 

The boy threw a pail of dirty water out the first floor window and I flattened to the wall, looking up. I had never seen the fellow, and called out to him. Hopefully he wasn’t a fresh off the boat slave and understood. 

“Hey! Where d’you hide your clients!”

“Too early to drink, get outta here.” He pulled the windows, trying to shut me out.

“I’m talking about a loading cart, three pairs of strong arms and the two prettiest horses on the East side of town.”

He frowned at me before looking me up and down. A gleam sparked into his eyes, hungry and revolting. 

“You’re one of the girls? They haven't bought their bottles from the Master in months. What will you give me if I tell you where the cathouse cart is?” 

“Come down.” I said, sultry, and for good measure I smiled the way I knew, face cast lower, corner of the lip twitching up, eyelids heavy. 

It had been forced onto my face with needle stabs and skipped meal allowances. It didn’t matter how much I wanted to vomit inside as long as my face kept the right look. He didn’t know how much I hated him. Like all the others. He was disgusting. Bodies were disgusting. Skin and mouth and all of it was disgusting. 

“I can’t.” He whispered, looking behind him before continuing. “Not now, I’ll get in trouble. But at dawn I get a moment. You’ll come back?”

“Sure.” I promised straightaway, relieved he believed me. 

Idiot.

Turns out the mistress went straight to the source now.

I rushed to the docks. Precilla had been right. The docks were further than town, and without a ride I couldn’t have made it on time. I waved at the service boy and struggled back onto Donkey. The whole scene wasn’t very ladylike and many snickers followed my exploit. Try climbing on a donkey with no stirrups, a corset and the largest dress in existence. At least at the bawdyhouse I often went without the excess fabric. Dresses were so impractical.  

Off again. With a bit of luck I would still be able to walk after I found Baas.