Summary

A boy called Hush is taken from his home and brought into the Imperial Harem to be a sex slave. Life in the beautiful glamourous walls of the Harem aren’t what they seem. The Harem is a dangerous place filled with politics and competition. In the Harem he is introduced to figures of boys that all look like him and are all brought together for one purpose: to satisfy. Satisfaction in the Harem can mean the difference between life and death. In the Harem, sex isn’t for entertainment. In the Harem sex is your only means of survival.

1

The clashing of chains.

The manacles were around our wrists.

The five of us were packed tightly into a very small space. I don’t know these boys but I know their stories. It has to be the same story as mine. When the dark figures came in the middle of the night and took them.

“Do you boys know where we are going?” a boy asks.

He seems desperate. He’s handsome in his own way. Maybe he reminds me of my older brother in a way. He looks a lot like me. My brother doesn’t have those eyes though. My brother isn’t afraid of anything. This boy seems to be afraid of his own shadow and in this dark caravan there were so many shadows.

“No,” one boy says.

The boy gets quiet again but he doesn’t let it rest for too long, “My name is Polo.”

“Ahmed,” the boy closest to him says, “I would shake your hand but…”

Ahmed stares at the manacles attached to strong heavy chains. He softens a smile as best as he can. He has a handsome smile. All white teeth. We all have very white teeth. We all have very oval faces. I lean back my oval face up against the sturdiness of the bars.

“I am Syed and this is my brother Ramzi.”

The two brothers look no more like one another than the rest of us. Syed is smaller in size and stature. Ramzi looks like a soldier. I don’t take my eyes off Ramzi for quite some time. He’s beautiful. The way he leans up against the carriage is beautiful. He’s strong, muscular and holds himself as though he is above what is going on right now. We all look the same but he is by far the best of us. He is by far the most beautiful.

He notices, “What are you looking at?”

His eyes look right at me. I don’t reply. I stare away quickly into the darkness.

“Leave him be Ramzi,” Syed says.

Ramzi nods at his brother’s request and complies but the other boys seem to have interest in me now. I’m the only one who hasn’t introduced themselves.

“What’s your name?” Polo asks me.

No answer.

Ahmed sighs a bit, “I don’t think he can talk.”

“Maybe he is just scared,” Polo explains, “There is no reason to be scared.”

He’s trying to comfort me but I’m not a child. I’m a young man. I know this is bad. The men came in the middle of the night like soldiers. There were so many of them. They stormed through my home. My family attempted to stop them but no one could.

“Is that what you believe?” Ramzi asks Polo, “Do you think we are all going to be OK? You have no idea where we are going do, you?”

They are strangers. We were also strangers save Ramzi and his brother Syed. The discomfort in the carriage even between the two brothers scared the hell out of me. Syed has a single tear running down his face. I think he knows where we are being taken. I think both the brothers do. They are reacting differently. Where Syed seems emotional, Ramzi seems much more accepting of the truth.

“You two know where we are going?”

“Look at us. Don’t we all have certain things in common,” Ramzi asks, “We could all be brothers. Our big eyes. Our framed bodies. Our skin tones are all similar.”

He was right. I had noticed it before. All of our skin ranges from yellowish brown to a toasty medium skin tone. No lighter. No darker. All our hair a jet black cut above our faces.

His brother finishes his thought, “It’s our eyes mostly. He wants us for our eyes.”

Our eyes were all hazel. I hadn’t even noticed that before. We all had deep hazel eyes. They were all hazel eyes that contained varying hues of green, amber and even blue mixed all in together. Even in the darkness with no light being reflected I can tell we all share this common feature.

“Who is he?” Polo asks.

Ahmed follows up rather quickly, “You know who took us?”

Syed turns away. He seems so uncomfortable. The two brothers definitely knew who took us and right now it is clear that they are afraid to say. Ramzi seems like the braver of the two though. He opens his mouth and with a shiver the truth came out.

“The God king,” Ramzi states, “They say he doesn’t bleed. They say he doesn’t die. Everyone knows that when he conquers your lands he takes your sons. His empire comes with their crescent moon. They burn. They kill. They loot. And when they are done they take boys like us because we are what he likes.”

“Likes for what?”

“We are slaves now,” Ramzi responds, “And not just any sort of slaves.”

The clashing of chains. Reminds us of the shackles maintained around our feet and our hands. The dirty clothes we were given to wear. The long journey that doesn’t seem to end. This was slavery. Polo and Ahmed both seem to have ignored all the signs before Ramzi announces it. Maybe they just didn’t want to believe that they could be in this.

Ahmed is tall. He has the longest legs of any of us. They stretch clear across the caravan. Even now though he seems to become so small, circling into himself at the idea of what the God King wants with us.

“You’re scaring them,” Syed explains to his brother.

“They deserve the truth,” Ramzi argues.

“We want to know. We want to know…” Polo states.

He speaks for all of us. Ahmed is quiet though. I don’t think he wants to know. I think I’ve heard enough as well, but I can tell that Polo has a curios personality. He is a free thinking mind and maybe that’s a good thing. I don’t say a word. I just cross my arms and wonder if Ramzi would mind me looking at him just a little while longer. In all these unpleasantries at least he was here to stare at. At least I could see the fold of his lips or the way his hazel eyes seem to have a little bit more green in them then the rest of ours. Ramzi notices me staring at him again. This time he doesn’t shy away or get angry. He stares right back at me.

“I hear he’s sick. I hear him and people have the most disgusting fetishes and he needs certain boys with hazel eyes to fulfill them.”

“Those are just childhood stories our parents used to tell us to scare us to behave,” Syed explains.

I wonder if Syed is saying this more for his wellbeing than ours. He seems to force an emotional smile like someone holding something in when they should be letting it go.

Ahmed seems to let it go. He has gone into a sick fit in the next moment of tears, panic and anger. He’s punching the walls screaming for people to let him out of here. The caravan doesn’t stop. It doesn’t even slow down. The fit Ahmed is having just seems to break the silence for a while. It’s just something to watch.

“Kicking and screaming won’t help,” Ramzi tells him.

It’s a very human response. A part of me wants to do the same as Ahmed. I want to kick and scream. I want to toss and turn. I want to panic. I don’t though. I just attempt to rub the skin underneath my manacles. I just attempt to adjust my chains and find some sort of comfort in this moment by looking over at Ramzi’s beautiful physique.

“What kind of fetishes?” Polo asks.

Polo is obsessed with detail. I can look in his eyes and see how concerned he is. He probably thought he would be married to a young woman soon. He was about that age. He was handsome. A lot of girls in his city probably threw themselves on him. The attention most likely went to his head. What he didn’t expect was that he would get some other sort of attention too because of how he looked.

“They are just stories,” Syed assures him.

“What kind of fetishes were in the stories?” Polo asks, “I need to know…”

“In one story you sit in a room and he removes all your clothes. And he brings all of his 100 generals into this room and you have to suck each of them until they orgasm,” Ramzi states.

Ahmed panics more. Polo sways slightly. I know he is going to be sick from a mile away.

“Just stories,” Syed says.

Ramzi shakes his head, “They should be prepared Syed. It only gets worse from there. In other stories his 100 generals piss on you. In other stories they shit on you.”

Polo has finally had enough of the questions. He turns and throws up only inches away from me. Syed and Ahmed react to it. They are disgusted but they brought this on themselves by talking about this. Ramzi only covers his mouth as though hoping not to follow up after Polo and vomit. The caravan has not stopped yet. We would have to travel hours or even days with this vomit.

Hours pass before the conversation starts back up. Maybe it is because we’ve tricked our minds into believing Polo’s vomit doesn’t smell anymore. Maybe we just stopped caring. Ahmed seems to be the one to have a passionate response to this.

Ahmed shakes his head, “I’d rather die.”

It comes out of nowhere but at that moment looking at Ahmed I believed that he is thinking about it. Imagine going to bed a free man and waking up a slave. The others are reacting as though he is being dramatic about it. They don’t say it but they have an odd reaction when Ahmed states this.

“I heard many of the God King’s old boys are dead,” Ramzi responds, “That’s why he needs more boys. He got tired of his old boys and killed them all. They didn’t please him the way they should have.”

“Just stories,” Syed responds.

“You know better than that Syed,” Ramzi states, “The nightmares are real.”

“Slaves to an empire…” Polo realizes.

Ramzi shakes his head, “Not just slaves. We are his sex slaves.”

I laugh at that moment. I’m not sure why.

“You think this is funny?” Ramzi asks.

His brother gives him a hard stare, “Ramzi, be nice to him.”

~

When the caravan stops the doors open and black men that are the color of tar take Ahmed out first. He struggles with them and I can hear the beating outside. I am the next person taken out after Ahmed. I think they’ve killed him because I can’t see him any longer but there is pavement underneath my feet that is stained fresh red with his blood.

The black men aren’t like soldiers to me… They were long white clothes and have strange powder on their face to make their already dark skin look even more black.

I manage to get to my feet. Beyond the door I can see something that looks like the beginning of some sort of palace. I’m not sure but it looks like an extensive complex rather than one structure. There is an assortment of low buildings constructed with wide courtyards, galleries and passages. There are beautiful trees, gardens and water fountains all around us. The buildings were enclosed with these courtyards. I am marched outside. I haven’t seen the sun in so long. In so very long. I fall to the ground and am pulled up only to see a man. My throat is dry. My eyes are watery. I’m scared to death.

“Be strong,” Polo tells me.

He’s behind me. They are releasing our chains on our legs so that we can walk. I am so surprised when I don’t see Syed. I realize we are in some sort of large bridge

“SYED NO!”

I’m shocked when I hear the voice of Ramzi. It comes out of nowhere and all of a sudden I realize Syed kick one of the black men in the face when his foot shackles are off. I look around and I’m not sure where he thinks he’s going but then I see the look in Syed’s eyes.

That bottled up tension that he was hiding seems to break free like the anklets on his feet. He runs so fast so far.

And then he jumps over the bridge.

“Oh my god,” Polo says.

He crosses himself. He’s a Christian. Just like me. Our keepers all go to the edge and let us walk to the edge to see what has happened as well. Below Syed has been impaled on jagged rocks. I cross myself as well when I see it. I want to cry but I don’t. I just look back at Ramzi. He’s not emotional. He just shakes his head at that moment and bites down at his lip when he sees his brother impaled on the rocks below.

There are three of us now.

Polo, Ramzi and I.

“Forward,” the black figures say to us.

We don’t have time to mourn Syed. I had gotten to know him as well. I wonder if Polo or even Ramzi are thinking about joining him. Polo seemed disgusted to the point of being sick in the caravan. Ramzi seemed to know the most of what to expect with this.

Polo looks over at Ramzi, “I’m sorry.”

I open my mouth and whisper the same thing to him but I say it so low that Ramzi barely acknowledges me. He turns to Polo however and his eyes look strong.

“He was a man now,” Ramzi explains to Polo, “He chose his way…”

It’s a strange way to look at it. Syed killing himself however made it clear that him saying that those were just stories was his way of comforting us but deep inside Syed knew they weren’t stories. Somehow the brothers knew exactly what was going on. I wondered how though. I wondered how they knew what to expect.

“Quiet,” The black men say.

~

I am separated from Polo and Ramzi.

I’m not quite sure why. I am walked up through a large gate. I’ve never seen a structure so large. The gate seems to be built more for a titan.

Maybe this really was a God king.

I cross myself again. I can’t think of things like that. There was no God but one.

The massiveness of the stone gate seems to show just how powerful this empire is. It’s central arch leads to a high domed passage as we walk through. There is foreign calligraphy on the structure from the top. I can’t read it. On each side of the hall are rooms that seem to be for guards.

When we make it through the front gate there is a huge courtyard. The courtyard is a park full of peacocks and gazelles. As we walk I see these strange foreign figures staring at me, observing me…watching my body. The foreigners are dressed in strange clothes. Clothes embroidered like the man I had seen earlier. These were clothes I had never really seen before. It’s hard to hang my head. I’m supposed to be afraid but I am blown away by the beauty of this place. There are huge chambers, large towers, overarching gates and dormitories.

Finally, I am thrown into the room and the black figures leave.

“It’s a new one,” a voice says.

I look up and see a boy. He’s the most handsome boy I had ever seen in my life. He’s 6’3″ with white teeth, light brown skin, hazel eyes and dark hair. His slim body is completely nude save a golden necklace around his neck. I notice the size of his cock. It’s quite long. The thing attaches from a perfectly trimmed abdomen and highlights the grandness of his physique laying soft at almost 10 inches long.

“What’s your name?” another voice asks.

I don’t reply. I think the first boy is the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen in my life until I see the second boy approach me. His lips are full. His eyes are hazel. His skin is tan and his body looks like some artist took the better part of a decade designing it.

At first I swear this is such a dream. Where am I? Who are these beautiful boys?

The first boy…the nude boy sighs and crosses his arms, “Is he mute?”

The second boy shakes his head, “You’re scaring him Basil.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Basil responds.

“Put on some clothes, Basil,” the second boy says to him.

“Why? I never wear clothes?”

“Outside of here people usually do wear clothes,” the second boy explains, “Or have you been a slave so long that you’ve forgotten how it is in the real world? You are scaring him.”

Basil sighs reluctantly gives me a bothered stare and turns to walk away. He’s so tall and lean. When he turns his ass is the perfect formation. It sits almost like it is being held up by the will of God. I can’t keep my eyes off of him until the second boy with the hazel eyes puts his hand on my face.

“My name is Manuel,” he tells me, “What’s yours?”

Manuel seems hopeful that I’d break my silence but when I don’t he looks over at Basil who has finally returned with nothing more than some sort of scarf around his waist. The scarf barely helps to cover the anaconda he calls a penis. He leans up against the wall stretching his muscular body and his broad shoulders. He must think that he has the most beautiful body in the world and I have to admit he would probably be in competition only with the one who is calling himself Manuel.

Basil looks down at his scarf and the cock that is poking out from underneath it, “What? I’m covering all the important parts. I’m not the reason he’s mute.”

Manuel sighs, turning my attention back to him, “What’s your name, Quiet One?”

No answer.

“Why don’t we call him Hush,” Basil asks, “He’s cute. He looks like that puppy that the Sultan bought me. Remember him?”

“You aren’t helping Basil.”

“Clearly neither are you. He isn’t saying anything. The others are waiting. He needs a bath. He stinks. What if the Sultan comes to visit?”

Manuel nods, “Is it OK, if we call you Hush? Until you are comfortable saying your name?”

I stare at Manuel.

I nod.

Manuel smiles back. His face is the things dreams are made up of, “Take my hand, Hush.”

I don’t move.

Basil laughs, “See…I told you it wasn’t me. He doesn’t seem to like you either.”

Manuel sighs a little bit, “We won’t hurt you Hush. Take my hand. Please…”

~

We walk into a room. It seems like I am walking into some sort of painting. There are naked men everywhere. They seem to be resting in a bathing area. I look around frantically for Ramzi or Polo. I don’t see them in here. I wonder if they made it out alive.

“New boy!” Manuel announces to the crowd.

There are maybe two dozen or so of them. They are all men. No. They are all boys. Young boys around my age and they all have one thing in common. The hazel eyes. They are all the most perfect boys I’ve ever seen in my lifetime. When I walk in they are everywhere. Some men seem to be enjoying a cup of coffee. Others seem to be smoking hookahs.

There is a sense of eroticism that fills that room even though no one is having sex. Some of the men walk around freely like Basil. Some of their man parts are just as big as his. Others have curvier asses. Some have more muscular frames than Basil. Some are dark, others are tan like Manuel and some are very pale with this soft pinkness to their skin.

“Let’s get a look at him,” a voice says.

A boy walks up to me. He is black with dark skin. He had a headdress on and is fully clothed saved his chest area. He is definitely one of the more muscular ones. As he approaches he seems to give confidence to others who approach as well. All these attractive boys surround me all at once.

Basil crosses his arms, “The eunuchs just dropped him off. They didn’t say who he was.”

The main boy who leads the way for the others takes a deep breath, “His hair is matted. He smells like fish.”

“We don’t know where he’s from Alexios,” Manuel says.

“Did you ask him?”

Manuel gives this boy a hard look, “What do you think? He isn’t responding to any of my questions. Basil says we should call him Hush.”

The main boy, Alexios studies me. The look on his face tells me that he isn’t too impressed with me. I’m not sure who he is but by the way he stands I think he believes that he is someone quite important. Maybe he is. The others definitely seem to respect him. Looking at Alexios, I can tell why people might. He has strong features with his dark skin. His jawline is defined. His muscular torso seems to be cut out of pure deeply bronzed steel.

“We were going to bathe him Alexios,” Basil states, with a weird whim as though he is looking for some sort of pat on the back.

“No need. As long as I’m around the Sultan isn’t interested in anyone else anyway.”

Alexios turns his nose up to me before walking away. I catch a glimpse of his soul as a few others quickly saunter off with him. They don’t seem too excited to see me or even get me to speak like Manuel is.

I am standing over a bath of water.

“I’m sorry about Alexios,” Manuel explains, “He’s the Sultan’s favorite boy. He’s been his favorite for a while. The sultan gifts him with things often. He runs things around here. He’s the favorite.”

The way they talk about Alexios is almost like they are afraid of him. I remember how people followed around behind him kissing his ass. They were definitely scared of him and I wondered how much power the favorite boy in a Harem could honestly really have. Either way he was a slave. Either way now I was a slave as well. We were all slaves.

“He’s gotten his head blown up especially since Constantine escaped here.”

Escaped? It was possible to escape…

My eyes get wide.

“You recognize that name huh?” Basil asks me.

I shake my head. The name Constantine doesn’t mean anything to me but the idea that he escaped here did. So it was possible. It was possible to get past the gated palace.

“Constantine Palatina. He’s a member of the Harem too. I can’t wait until Constantine comes back and puts Alexios in his place. Constantine is the best of us. I’m sure you heard the name. He is actually the youngest son the old Emperor Constantine of the Byzantine Empire. Wonder what he was doing in a place like this? Well, there is no Byzantine empire anymore though. The Ottomans took over that too.”

I don’t respond.

Manuel smiles, “Constantine will come back to save all of us.”

I raise my eyebrows.

“Constantine was the only one who ever escaped here. He took his lover and they got away. He promised he would come back for us one day.”

Basil sighs, “He’s not going to come back. He’s off in love somewhere. Why come back for us? Not even Constantine can escape the Ottomans twice.”

“Do you know where you are?” Manuel asks me.

I shake my head.

Basil laughs, “He’s clueless.”

Manuel sighs, “You are in the Ottoman Empire.”

Ottoman. I knew exactly who they were even though I just stare at Manuel as though I’m clueless. Ottoman was the dark cloud. The Ottomans were the devastating empire that turned the world black as it conquered it. The Sultan was the king of this empire. He ruled supreme. I remember the day they came to my shores and turned the Eternal blue into red with their flags. I remember the day they came for me.

Manuel continues, “My name is Manuel and this is Basil. You have been taken. You are a slave to the Sultan and now you work in the Harem.”

Basil adds almost immediately removing his clothing, “I hate that word. Slave. We are more like entertainers…”

I shiver. I’m scared at the thought of it. Basil seems to like it. He’s making it seem as though this life isn’t so bad.

Seeing Basil’s comfort with nudity makes me nervous.

Manuel crosses his arms, “You still don’t understand why you are here do you?”

I shake my head.

Basil smiles, “He’ll learn.”

Basil says it as though it is nothing. He has no emotion about it. It doesn’t even seem to faze him. Maybe he’s accepted it a long time ago.

“In the Ottoman empire, regimes are subdued and incorporated into it. In order to prevent the concentration of inherited fortunes and stop nobles from becoming too strong the empire has to send a boy here. To be Beloved ones.”

“We are the Beloved ones. A fancy way of saying that we let the sultan fuck us. Raw. As much as he wants,” Basil says.

Manuel ignores Basil. Manuel stares hard at me, “Who are you, Hush? Are you comfortable enough now to tell us your name?

I stare…blankly.

“He’s not going to tell us,” Basil responds.

Manuel sighs, “I guess it doesn’t matter anymore. We are here now for one reason and one reason only. We are here to please the God King.”

Basil and Manuel take off my shirt. I struggle when they attempt to take off my pants. A few of the other boys are still watching. One boy is playing some sort of harp. He stops playing when Manuel grabs at my trousers attempting to remove them. This area has several interconnected rooms. As Manuel walks through he explains that one is the hot room, the warm room, the intermediate room and the cool room. Some of these rooms had decadent, glamorous baths where high pillars seemed so high they disappeared and lounge areas with decked with gorgeous naked men.

There were several accessories all around. Silk cloths, jewel boxes, soap boxes, large mirrors, henna bowls and perfume bottles.

“You have no choice. It is important to be clean. Cleanliness is close to godliness for the Sultan. Even the slightest bit of dirt would make him punish you.”

Basil smiles, “You better get used to it.”

I nod.

It’s Manuel who removes my shirt. Basil removes my pants.

The bathing begins. I can’t admit that I’m not turned on to have two men catering to me like this. Manuel begins rubbing the soap suds at my front. Basil begins rubbing them at my back. Manuel stares at me the whole time he does it. He scrubs me at that moment.

“You’re afraid?” Manuel asks me.

I nod.

“If I were to kiss you would it make you feel better?” he asks me.

I don’t answer. Basil laughs.

“Now who is the one scaring him?” Basil asks Manuel.

Manuel sighs, “I’m not trying to. Just when I first came I remember how scared I was. The only thing that helped was getting used to be touched in ways I didn’t want to be touched before the officials came. They aren’t nearly as attractive as the guys in here. It’s good to practice with us first before those old, fat nasty men come in here.”

These boys weren’t playing. They were sexual slaves. All of a sudden I just feel so bad for them. I had heard of harems but I hadn’t known there was one with these political prisoners used to keep conquered lands at bay. I had only known of the Harem that the Sultan used to produce his heirs.

“They are all disgusting. And you have to please them. You have to do whatever they say. You suck their ugly pink cocks. You let them put their ugly pink cocks in you,” Basil sighs deeply, “It’s the worst…”

“It’ll help to practice. Trust me,” Manuel states, “When I first came in Constantine helped me.”

Basil nods, “He helped me as well. Constantine is the best.”

“We can show you. Only if you want though,” Manuel offers.

I’m hesitating unsure of what Manuel’s offer entails. Just at that moment Basil leans over and begins to kiss Manuel. The two perfect boys tongue each other down in front of me. Basil hugs on Manuel’s ass and Manuel returns the favor hugging back. My dick hardens watching this interaction. It was usual for boys around my age to explore things with other boys. Sooner or later though they’d be forced to get married and forget their boyish experiments. That wasn’t what happened with these boys though. They could experiment forever.

“Would you like to join us?” Basil asks.

I shake my head.

“Don’t force him. Let’s just show him,” Manuel states.

At that moment Basil smiles, gets down on his knees. Within a matter of seconds, he pulls Manuel’s dick out and puts it in his mouth. I watch in shock and awe as Basil is sucking Manuel’s cock in the middle of this bath. What is more unique is the fact that the other boys in this room don’t seem to know or care what Manuel and Basil are doing.

Manuel leans back at that moment against the basin of the pool. He sends his strong, hard, muscular torso into the back of Basil’s throat. He begins to fuck his mouth desperately. I realize watching them that my own dick is getting hard. Precum begins to leak out of my dick.

No one seems to even notice Manuel grabbing onto the sides of the tub.

No one notices Basil deep throating Manuel.

No one but me cares when Manuel lets out a deep moan, “Where should I put it?”

Basil smiles releasing Manuel’s dick only for a second, “I’ll swallow.”

Just at that moment it happens! Manuel thrusts his cock deep in Basil’s throat. I watch as Manuel’s cock has all these veins appear on it. Basil continues to suck until his mouth overflows with semen. The semen drips down his perfect face…down his perfect chin. It’s the most semen I’ve ever seen before. I’m so shocked by this that I find my own body shaking at that moment.

Manuel and Basil both look at me and laugh when they are done. I realize why they are laughing a little bit too late. My own cock is pulsating now releasing semen down my thigh. It isn’t precum. I had a full blown orgasm watching these two boys going at it.

Manuel smiles, “Don’t worry Hush. You’ll get used to it. It’s almost time for dinner. I’m assuming you don’t want to go naked. You can borrow some of mine.”

“New boys are naked until they get gifts Manuel. You know the rules,” Basil returns.

Manuel gives me a long stare, “We’ll break them. Just this one time.”

~

The table that I’m sitting at is full of the boys. The beautiful boys. As I approach with Manuel. I’m stopped. It’s by the guy who calls himself Alexios. He stops us dead in our tracks and points to the ground.

“New boys sit there…” Alexios states, “In the pig pile.”

I turn at that moment and look over at where he is pointing. There is only one other boy there. I recognize the face immediately. Polo! He’s one of the boys I rode with.

“Is this really necessary?” Manuel asks Alexios.

“He needs to know his place. I am up here. And he is down there…” Alexios states, “Naked.”

At that moment Alexios starts ripping the clothes that Manuel gave mr off my skin! I try to fight him off but the other boys join in at that moment. They are ripping tearing, shredding the clothes off of me. Every time I try to fight it they punch me in my head

A choral of laughter fills the room. Manuel looks like he doesn’t agree but he doesn’t do anything else to defend me. I am slapped around like I’m nothing and then I am pushed over to where Polo is sitting and notice that Polo is completely naked. He has a leash tied around his neck. I’m not sure where Polo has been this entire time but he doesn’t seem to have been cleaned like me. It’s clear that whoever he met when he arrived wasn’t nearly as welcoming as Manuel was.

When I’m thrown in a small rectangular pin I notice Polo. My mouth drops when I see his face.

“You’re OK. Thank god. They did this to me…”

Polo’s arms are bleeding. His face looks like he has been burned with something. I look around wondering who. The empire? The sultan?

“Alexios,” Polo states, “He poured acid in my face. He said I was too handsome.”

I gasp.

I look over at Alexios. He is sitting at the table. He has not a care in the world. No wonder everyone was so terrified of him. No wonder the boys in this room did exactly what he said. He was desperate enough to pour acid on someone’s face for being too handsome.

Polo continues, “I was able to block the worst of it, but my arms are bleeding now. Enough about me though. I’m glad you’re OK. I thought they killed you. Even worse I thought you killed yourself,” Polo tells me, “Can you believe how perfect these boys are?”

I look over at the boys.

After seeing what they did to Polo I’m not sure how I feel. Their bodies were perfect like they worked out all the time. We would become those boys if we stayed around long enough. I wonder how horrible this place could really be if you were one of those boys. Some of them looked like royalty. The necklace that Basil has around his neck looks like it could feed entire villages. I can’t stop staring at them. They are so beautiful.

The room seems to light up in talk and we are clearly so new that we aren’t apart of it. Alexios doesn’t allow Manuel to bring me over a plate but he does allow him to bring over scraps of food that has already been eaten over. I don’t eat it but I slide it over to Polo who seems more than happy to do so.

“Seems like it’s just us,” Polo tells me, “Ramzi probably killed himself after his brother did. Sucks. He seemed to know a lot about this place. There seems to be ranks.”

“Ramzi…” I state.

Polo’s mouth dropped open, “Did you just talk?”

“Ramzi…”

Polo is shocked, “So you do talk after all?”

My voice is frail. It’s so weak but I point at the door, “No Polo. Ramzi is walking in over there…”

Just at that moment Ramzi walks in, but he isn’t naked and disgraced like Polo and I. When he sees the people in the Sultan’s harem he doesn’t come to the pig’s table. He sits at the other head of the table across from Alexios. The others are shocked when he walks in as well. They don’t hit him. They don’t laugh at him. They don’t try to rip off his clothes. There is a level of respect for him that is clear. I’m so confused at that moment.

Ramzi sits at the table and I can tell Alexios and a few others are bothered by him being there. That doesn’t surprise me. What surprises me is the level of respect they show him.

They don’t call him Ramzi either.

“So Constantine has returned after all…” Alexios states.

2

“Constantine…you’re back!” Manuel is stating, “Where’s Julius? Did he come back with you?”

I look at the boy Manuel is calling Constantine. He’s taken Polo and I into a separate room away from the other boys. It’s clear that Constantine has his own sleeping quarters.

Manuel is excited to see him but Constantine doesn’t seem to be reacting in the same way. He pushes down gauze on Polo’s wounds. I sit off to the side feeling like I shouldn’t be here. It’s clear Constantine wants to help Polo but not really here to help me.

“He’s safe…I came back for the rest of you,” Constantine says.

“I knew you would. People doubted you but I knew you would come back for us.”

Constantine lets out a soft smile. He is definitely some sort of savior figure. The way Manuel’s eyes sparkle when they look at him make me realize that Manuel looks up to Constantine.

Constantine is immediately tending to Polo’s wounds. He doesn’t skip a beat.

“Who did this to him?” Constantine asks.

He’s looking at Polo’s wounds as though he’s not too surprised. Constantine seems annoyed at most. I’m glad someone is saying something about it though and not acting like Polo wasn’t attacked. Manuel seemed disgusted by it but he really didn’t say anything to stop it. The other boys weren’t any better. They all groveled to Alexios and I didn’t really understand why. He wasn’t the most muscular boy in the room. Others looked like they could fight him if they needed to. I don’t think it was physical fear though. I think it was mental. They were scared of something else and I needed to understand what.

“Alexios. Alexios said he was too handsome,” Manuel states.

“You didn’t stop him?” Constantine asks Manuel.

“I didn’t know it happened. Besides. We all know Alexios does what he wants. He is the Sultan’s favorite.”

“Well I’m back now,” Constantine says, “Go tell Alexios that this boy is under my protection.”

Manuel nods, “Ok, Constantine.”

Constantine stops him and looks over at me, “Both of these boys are under my protection.”

I’m confused on why Constantine is helping us. There definitely was a ranking order in the harem. Polo was handsome but pouring acid on him because of it just seemed out of line. There were a lot of handsome boys in here. Did Alexios pour acid on everyone he thought was a threat? Would I be the next one he attempted to pour acid on?

Manuel smiles and nods at that moment, “I’m glad that you came back for us Constantine.”

I sit there and watch him. He is so handsome. I should have known he was special when I first laid eyes on him. There was something about him that just made you want to believe in him. I watch how Polo smiles when he stands there.

Polo nods, “Are they going to heal?”

“They will heal but you’ll have scars. I’ll bring you some ointment tomorrow,” Constantine states, “Stay here tonight. Alexios may think you’re still too handsome and want to finish what he started.”

“He’s a monster…” Polo states.

“You have no idea,” Constantine replies, “I didn’t lie back in the caravan. This place is horrible. It’s not just the empire you should be afraid of either. People here compete for attention. You don’t get enough attention and you’ll be hurt. You get too much attention and you’ll be hurt.”

I’ll be back.”

“Where you going?”

“I need to steam.”

Constantine leaves at that moment. I stay with Polo for a while until he falls asleep but my curiosity with this Constantine man leads me to get out of the room and try to find him.

~

I find him in a steam room. Two other boys were in there on the opposite side but they just so happen to walk out when I walk in. Constantine is naked in all his glory. His nipples are a dark brown. He has big feet and a powerful looking body. His nipples are thick and I watch almost intensely as he rubs his up against his broad chest removing some additional sweat that is quickly replaced. His muscular body glistens with the sweat from this steam room. His closes his eyes and leans up against the tiles. He exhales out of his thick pink lips.

I am still naked as I approach. I have some scratches from when Alexios ripped my clothes off but nothing nearly as bad as the injuries that Polo got. As I approach Constantine he doesn’t even stare back at me. He just sucks and brushes the sweat off his pink lips with his hand.

His dick isn’t hard but it is big. It is so big. It’s the size of Basil’s dick but much thicker. It folds over his thigh.

“Syed wasn’t your brother was he?” I ask him, “He was your lover.”

He nods.

Constantine eyes dart at me in disbelief, “So you do talk?”

“When I want to.”

“I doubt you’re still going to say what your name is huh?” He asks me.

“My name is Hush,” I reply saying the nickname that Basil gave me.

He laughs, “Funny man. So tell me Hush. Why should I tell you my personal information if you aren’t going to tell me a thing about you.”

I sit next to him. His body glistens. I can tell he’s used to people looking at him as a sexual object. When I stare at his dick he doesn’t even flinch in embarrassment. That is how I know for sure that Syed was his lover. He was trying to be respectful of Syed’s feelings back on the caravan. He was probably worried Syed would have been jealous with my staring.

“Because I know the truth about you,” I state, “You told them you would come back for them but you didn’t come back for them did you? If you had been captured again on purpose Syed wouldn’t have been so upset that he killed himself.”

Constantine stares out.

He breaks down any wall that he has realizing that I was onto something.

“His name wasn’t Syed. It was Julius,” Constantine says.

“And he was your lover?”

Constantine nods, “Yes. We met here in the Harem. We were both captured around the same time. We fell in love. Julius couldn’t take the attention I was getting especially from the Sultan’s sons. I couldn’t take having Julius upset.”

“So you escaped?”

Constantine nodded, “Yes. Just the two of us. I promised everyone else I’d come back.

Clearly I didn’t get far…”

“Were you ever going to come back to save them?” I ask.

I don’t know why I ask the question. I think I know the answer to that. Constantine gives me a hard look knowing that I knew the answer to my own question. I heard how he talked about this place when I first met him and Julius. We’d spent hours on that train and each moment I could see it becoming more and more clear to Constantine that they were coming back to a place that he hated.

“Julius and I were captured about to board a ship and sail for France. I couldn’t save Julius. I can’t save anyone,” he responds.

“I understand.”

“Will you tell Manuel what happened to Julius? Will you tell him that I really didn’t come back for him?”

He seems to care. He has this look in his eyes. I could imagine the disappointment on people’s faces when they realized Constantine was just a slave who couldn’t really escape after all. Still I saw how Manuel’s eyes lit up when he knew Constantine was back. He gave him hope. Maybe that was a hope that some of these people needed.

“No I won’t. Under one condition.”

He raises his eyebrow, “What’s that?”

“Basil and Manuel said you taught them when they first came. They said you taught them how to survive. I’d like you to teach me how to survive in here.”

Constantine thinks for a minute.

“You’re smart, Hush. Smarter than Polo.”

“I’m just quiet and observant,” I explain, “I don’t want what happened to Alexios to happen to me.”

“Then you’ll need respect, but not too much. Just enough. Come here sit on my lap.”

“What?”

“Sit on my lap…”

“Are you serious?” I ask him.

“I’m not getting any pleasure out of this,” he explains, “Trust me. I am still mourning Julius even if I don’t show it. But this is sex. In the Harem, sex is survival. So come here. Sit on my lap. No. To be more specific. Sit on my dick.”

I hesitate.

“I don’t know you in that way.”

“You won’t know the Sultan’s men in that way either when they come for you and they’ll come. And you don’t say no to them. You hear me? So come sit. For the next hour this is your seat.”

Constantine pulls at his dick a few times. Within seconds it hardens from being completely soft to completely hard. Seeing how big Constantine’s dick is scares the daylights out of me. He is so huge. He’s talking as though he could care less about much of anything though. Maybe that’s why I realize that he’s probably “helped” a lot of the boys that came through here. This was nothing more than him dressing Polo’s wounds or making Manuel believe that he had come back to save all of them. Constantine was just helping me.

I walk over towards him. He watches me the entire time.

“Will it hurt?”

“Yes, but tomorrow the princes will come test you to see if you are fit to serve in the Sultan’s harem.”

“He has sons?”

“He has three. They’re cocks are not as big as mine, but they are rough. Very rough. They’ll fuck you. They’ll take turns. You can either be in pain now or be in pain tomorrow. If I were you, I’d prefer now.”

“Why?”

“Because if you are in too much pain you can stop with me. With them there is no stopping. You have to please them until they are done. So come, take your seat.”

I start licking my hand and delivering lubricant to my ass. I walk over to him. My heart is racing when I do it. As I get close he grabs me and pulls me into him quickly.

“You said you weren’t rough.”

“You think this is rough. You don’t know anything yet. I’m just preparing you. They grab…a lot.”

“Do they grab you?”

“No. The princes prefer me to dominate them. I think I intimidate them. It’s probably the only reason Alexios has not killed me. It would anger the princes.”

I start to sit on Constantine’s dick. The moisture from the steam room lubricates his dick and my spit does the rest. Still it’s not enough to go down on his gigantic dick. I balance myself just above the tip for almost ten minutes but Constantine seems patient or possibly even just a little bored. It isn’t until he sighs that I realize I have to do better.

I go down even more. I let him enter me.

“FUCK! You’re so big!”

“Go all the way down. It’ll hurt less tomorrow if I open you up a little bit now.”

“OK…here I go…”

“AH!”

Constantine grabs onto my waist when I go down on him. He holds it tight there for a minute. He breathes a little deep at that moment. I think I’ve hurt him at first so I try to slide back up but he stops me.

“Are you OK?” I ask Constantine.

He nods, “It’s clear no one’s been in this hole before.”

“Is that a bad thing?” I ask him.

Constantine laughs a little bit, “No. It actually feels different. I’ve been in the Harem for a while. It’s just surprising, that’s all. You’re very tight. I think I may have released some semen.”

“Should I stop?”

“No I’ve been trained to keep going even afterward. You shouldn’t be scared of man fluids. It’s OK. It should make it even easier for you now.”

Constantine is right. It’s easier to go down on him and come back up. I do it wrapping my hands around him while bouncing up and down on his dick. The feeling is something that I’ve never really felt before. He massages my prostate. He’s touching places of me that I didn’t even realize could be stimulated in this way. My dick is soft at first but with time it hardens. Maybe it’s Constantine’s face that makes my dick hard. He stares me right into my eyes as though examining me but it feels so perfect. He is breathing up against my neck with his mouth slightly open. I am wanting him so badly to kiss on my neck or kiss on my mouth. He doesn’t do either of those things though.

I stare in his eyes. I rub the side of his face. Then I kiss him. I kiss him as strongly as I can. For a few minutes he resists but then he gives in and starts kissing me back.

His heart is beating up against mine. Our bodies entangle together. The sweat between us grips us together.

“It feels so good. Why does it feel so good?” I ask.

“The prostate is a walnut sized gland in the anus,” he explains, “The sultan’s female harem can’t do the things we do. The anus and rectum are much tighter than the vagina, and that makes penetration a very pleasurable sensation for men. It’s a whole different experience.”

“Does it feel good to you?” I ask.

“This isn’t about me.”

“But do you like it…”

I kiss him again. This time deeper. This time longer. This time I’m looking him in his eyes. I’m strolling my arms around him. I’m holding him as tight as possible. There are sparks in this room and I know that Constantine must feel them. He just has to.

Constantine slides me off of him and sits across from me. His dick is still hard and it has a sweep of blood across of it from me. I think me bleeding is the reason he stopped but I don’t think it has anything to do with it. Constantine just stops so abruptly.

“Training is over for today.”

“Why?”

“You’re starting to get emotional,” he responds.

I’m confused.

“So what?”

Constantine answers with one word.

“Julius.”

The heaviness of the name just seems to bring me right back into reality. Whether Constantine reacted to Syed’s death when he jumped off the bridge at that time or not I knew he was hurt by it. I could see it in his eyes. He was holding it back the same way his lover was holding back his feelings on the caravan. Maybe the Harem had taught them to act like that. Maybe the Harem had taught them how to wall off how they really felt. Maybe that was a necessary skill to learn in something like a harem. I could imagine how it would be useful when you are doing acts that you didn’t necessarily enjoy with people who you definitely didn’t want to do them with.

“You said the princes are going to come see if I qualify to serve the Sultan tomorrow,” I explain confused as to why he’s leaving.

“Yes if you fail you die.”

“Then I need your help.”

“I can’t. You know I can’t. I’ve had a lot of men in and out this harem to know that look when I see it. I’m not going down that road with you,” Constantine explains to me, “I’ll send Manuel in here. His dick is comparable to those of the princes.”

“I don’t want Manuel.”

Constantine walks to the door that leads out of the steam room. He opens it letting a bunch of cool air into the steam room. I can’t help but to stare at his ass. He has a toned and firm behind. His waist is so small. His shoulders are so broad. I’ve never been so attracted to anyone in my life.

“One thing you’ll need to learn is that in the Harem you don’t get what you want.”

~

As he promised Constantine sends Manuel in. I bend over on the steam floor but Manuel stops when he notices blood.

“You’re bleeding too much. I can’t do it.”

“Damn it.”

“You’re talking now?”

“Yes. But you can still call me Hush.”

Manuel raises an eyebrow, “That’s strange. Who are you, Hush?”

I shrug, “Just someone who has nothing to say.”

Manuel shakes his head, “Well, hush the blood is a problem. I’d love to fuck you though. You’re very attractive to me. I’d enjoy it. It’s rare enjoying sex nowadays.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. We just don’t want to irritate your ass before tomorrow. I’m sure Constantine told you what happens tomorrow?”

“The Princes come in to take turns on me?” I ask.

Manuel nods, “Yes. Think of it as a qualification before you are even allowed to be in the Sultan’s harem. You’ve been chosen because of your health and vitality though. I’m sure you will do well tomorrow. Come on. I’ll show you where we go to get prepared for sex…”

Manuel takes me out into the main area I see Constantine laughing around with a few other guys who are happy that he’s returned. The look on their faces blows my mind. I’ve never seen people just seem so happy to see someone in my life. Manuel notices me watching him. He doesn’t say anything. I don’t think he wants to embarrass me anymore especially after the blood but he smirks a little bit to acknowledge that he sees it.

“Were him and Julius close?”

“They are still. I’m sure. It’s probably hurting Constantine to be away from his lover,” Manuel stated, “It was a real love story. The two of them. Isn’t it strange finding love in here of all places?”

“Not so strange.”

I look over at Constantine. I can’t stop staring at him. It was definitely strange to find love in a place like this but if there was any one of these beautiful boys worth loving it was definitely Constantine. As we make our way to the other side of the large room we make our way down a hall to a space that looks like dormitories.

The dormitories lead out to the gardens. Then there is the wall. This huge wall that seems to dominate everything around it. Manuel shows me the first aid room. There are so many things in there from lubrication ointments, to massage gels to healing ointments. It’s clear there is no limit on how much we can take.

Manuel explains to me.

“The black priests who brought you over are the sultan’s eunuchs. They don’t talk much. Basil says it’s because they don’t have penises. They are our caretakers. They bring fresh supplies when we run out. You can take what you need in preparation for tomorrow. I’ll make you a basket.”

Manuel starts packing up ointments for me but I’m distracted by the size of the huge wall beyond the garden that I can see from the storage room.

“They must be really afraid of escape,” I state, “These walls are so big.”

Manuel doesn’t even need to look to know what I’m talking about.

“Constantine is the only one who ever did it,” Manuel explains.

“Will he be punished for attempting to escape?”

“If the sultan ever found out maybe. Constantine is under protection from the princes. In the same way that Alexios is the sultan’s favorite, all three princes are in love with Constantine. Rumor has it the oldest prince found out about Julius and was going to sentence him to death for touching Constantine. No one is allowed to have sex with him.”

“No one?”

My heart races. I had just had sex with Constantine.

“Don’t worry. We won’t tell,” Manuel explains with a smile, “Your secret is safe with me. But you have to be careful around here. The harem is a nasty place to be unless your name is Alexios.”

`What privileges does Alexios have?

“He can leave the walls if he wants. He’s the only one who is allowed to be alone with the sultan. Alexios is the sultan’s rose.”

“Interesting.”

“Why do you ask?”

“Just curious.”

“You’re a strange one, Hush,” Manuel tells me, “I hope you aren’t thinking about becoming the sultan’s favorite.”

“Why do you hope that?

“Because any boy who has even gotten close to be a favorite of the Sultan has ended up dead.”

I could only imagine Alexios was behind it. Manuel hands me the things I need to perform tomorrow and shows me my room. He doesn’t say another word but I can read behind his eyes that he is very concerned about what I’m planning on doing. Maybe I am very concerned as well.

~

It’s the middle of the night. The other boys are asleep. The sleeping quarters are spread out. There are about 5 boys to a room and I’m sleeping with boys that don’t even care to tell me their names. It seems like a lot of people are afraid to be friendly unless they get the OK from Alexios. Alexios definitely runs this place and I can tell by how he has his own room separate from everyone else. I walk past it when I head towards the gardens as everyone is asleep.

I stand in the garden for a few minutes when I see the rope come over the edge of the garden. All of a sudden someone jumps down.

I can see the figure walk up to me, dressed all in black. It’s someone that I recognize almost immediately.

The person grabs me pulling me close to him, “Loras.”

Loras grabs me and holds me close. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other. I knew he would come though. I knew that he would make his way to me one way or another. Embracing him just feels right as we stand in the middle of the harem grass.

“Are you OK? You’re scratched up…”

“I’m fine. You don’t want to see some of the others.”

“Have you kept quiet like I taught you?” I ask.

I should have.

“I’ve started talking a little bit,” I admit to Loras.

Loras seems disappointed, “Don’t get close to these people. You won’t be here for long…”

I nod at that moment, “Listen. There is a problem that we didn’t know about.”

“What’s that?”

“Only one person can be in the room with the Sultan at a time. His name is Alexios. He literally kills people who he finds as threats to him.”

Loras gives me a hard look.

“Knowing you…I doubt that will be a problem.”

He knows me well. His mischievous smile seems to spread across his face. This wasn’t the first time I was playing the innocent virgin who had no idea what was going on. I even had Constantine fooled to believe that I had no idea where I was or what I was doing. Hopefully they were all almost as gullible as the sultan was.

I smile, “Just a small bump but I am sticking to the plan.”

“Good. And you remember the plan don’t you?” Loras asks me.

“Of course. Pretend to be a member of the sultan’s harem until I can get close enough to assassinate him…”

3

There are bells that are ringing at dinner. The locks on the large stone doors of the Harem open and the eunuchs come in. They are carrying stuff with them clearly.

“What’s going on?” Polo asks.

Polo and I are sitting cross legged in the front of the room drinking coffee. A majority of the other boys have gone to do their morning exercises. Staying in the best physical condition seems to take priority in the Harem. Exercising is one of the first things that they do.

“Don’t you know anything?” a boy asks Polo.

The boy is one of the lighter ones in the room. His name is Mendeecees. I only know because Basil had asked him in the morning whether he wanted to go exercise but Mendeecees replied that he was still sore from squats the night earlier. Most of us have similar skin tones but his skin is pushing quite pale. He is very handsome however with pink lips, a strong abdomen and a round plump ass. The boy knows he has one of the nicer butts among the boys because he always seems to flaunt it. He’s very conceited. I assume he thinks he is one of the top boys but I’m too new to really know for sure.

“It was just a question,” Polo responds.

These boys aren’t the nicest. Still Mendecees seems to realize just how ignorant we are and he “takes” pity on us.

“The patrons are bringing in gifts for us,” Mendecees responds, “

“Patrons?” Polo asks.

“Yes. Patrons. Each of us have them. They are high government officials. They get tired of their wives and come to the Harem. They take care of us. Some have more patrons than others. If you’re lucky you’ll get some. I doubt it though. Not with a face like that,” Mendeecees states.

He is referring to the fact that Polo’s face still hasn’t healed up completely. Alexios had done a number on his face. That’s for sure. It’s a shame because Polo really was quite handsome. His body was similar to mine. We were both much skinnier than a majority of the boys here, but his face was unique in its attractiveness.

Mendeecees shakes his head at that moment and walks away. He leaves us while Polo and I watch these people continue to bring in gifts.

“Must be nice,” I state, looking at the gifts being brought in.

“They make this place seem like torture but look what they get?” Polo responds, “All these gifts on a daily basis. Can you imagine when we get our first patrons?”

For a moment I think Polo is almost excited. To be honest I can see the excitement in his eyes. He’s probably not used to getting gifts. I’m not used to it either. The boxes the Eunuchs bring in all look expensive as hell. There was this one box that a eunuch places on a table that I swear is laced in gold. As they finish unpacking all the gifts from the patrons I just stare at the number of gifts. They are overwhelming to say the least.

“I wonder who they are for?”

“Can you read?”

“Of course, can’t you?” I ask Polo.

Polo shakes his head at that moment, “Never learned to read in any language. I wonder…can you read the Ottoman language Hush?”

I nod, “Pretty well. Why?”

“Who are the gifts for. What do they say?” he asks.

“I don’t know Polo. We should probably just leave these alone.”

“Just check.”

I hesitate and rightfully so. There are a lot of people walking around. Just at that moment I see Constantine. He walks into the room, sees Polo and I standing by the gifts and raises his eyebrows a little bit as though he’s half interested. Then he turns and continues on out of the room. For some reason I think he’s used to receiving these. I could only imagine how it is.

I walk over to the gifts. A part of me becomes curious that I start reading some of the notes. Each pile has a name attached to them. It’s clear the eunuchs had separated the gifts based on the recipient of each gift.

“A lot of these names I don’t recognize. Manuel has a few. Basil has a few more. Constantine has the most patrons, but it looks like Alexios has the most gifts. All of gifts for Alexios came from the sultan it seems.”

Polo sighs, “The gold box belongs to Alexios doesn’t it?”

I don’t even have to read the name to know.

“Yeah, it does.”

“I wonder what’s in it.”

“Polo don’t…”

It’s too late. Within a matter of seconds Polo’s curiosity gets the better of him. The boy is clearly someone who can’t help himself when it comes to curiosity. He is digging through the box trying to figure out what is in there. When he opens it, I watch Polo pull out all of these exotic looking candies that I’ve never seen before.

“Look… chocolate. It’s so good…” Polo states.

He begins to eat abruptly throwing the candy back at that moment. I look at him shaking my head.

“Alexios is going to kill you…” I state.

“Screw him…come on we are stealing some,” Polo states.

“Polo this is bad idea.”

“He burned my face Hush. Look at me,” Polo states.

It doesn’t really equal the same thing. Alexios had burned Polo’s face just because he thought he was too handsome. In return Polo was stealing candy from Alexios. I look over at Polo and I realize that this is his way of getting back at Alexios no matter how petty and silly it seems to be. At that moment I have some sort of respect for Polo. Even if this is a small and minor thing he is going to attempt to get even in some sort of way. Polo wasn’t the type to just take abuse like I thought he was.

The least I can do at this moment is stand by Polo’s side.

“Let’s take them.”

~

The afternoon passes quickly. I’m getting ready for the princes. Polo doesn’t seem nearly as nervous as I am. Maybe the taste of foreign, expensive chocolate in his mouth has really suppressed his emotions. I am standing off to the side pacing back and forth when Manuel walks in the room at that moment.

“What’s going on here?” he asks.

Polo hides his chocolate behind his back before Manuel gets a good look at it, “Nothing much. Just getting ready for our trial with the princes.”

Polo’s smile is genuinely loud. I wish I could be as calm as him. I’m pacing back and forth. Manuel has a look in his eyes at that moment when he sees me.

“You OK?” he asks me.

“I’ll be fine.”

Maybe I should take tips from Polo’s ease but I can’t. Truth is I’m nervous. What if I don’t do good? What if the princes both end up hating me? What if they don’t want anything to do with me? All of a sudden I realize that this isn’t just a game. I’d seen how quickly the Ottomans got rid of someone they had no use for. I’d seen how they killed the boy I travelled so far with. Constantine had told me the stories of how they dispose of people. Polo could mask his worries behind sweets but I didn’t have that luxury. I was nervous and it was showing.

“Relax, you’re so tense,” Manuel tells me, “Here let me give you a massage…”

He slaps the massage table in a small private room where we have been lounging for the past hour. Manuel has brought his own massage oil. He gives me a smile with these perfectly aligned white teeth.

Polo sighs, “I want a massage too…”

Manuel smiles, “Right after I give one to Hush.”

Polo looks a little bit excited as he gives me a wink. I think he’s enjoying this harem a lot more than he probably should. Manuel has been spoiling us for the most part. He’s sweet. All morning he brings us coffee from Africa and fresh fruit to eat. They were given to him by his patrons but he seems eager to share them. Manuel reminds me a lot of Loras from back home. They both have this urge to serve. As soon as I get on the table I feel the tension in my body start to get released from his hands.

“Get naked,” he tells me.

“Do I have to be?”

Manuel gives me a hard look, “Hush you’ll have to get used to being naked. Don’t be ashamed of your body.”

“My body isn’t like yours,” I respond.

“It’s perfect,” he tells me.

Manuel bites on his lips. I look over at Polo who is watching us as though watching a play. He fans himself as though feeling that the room has just gotten a little hot. I have to admit that Manuel has the tendency to have that effect at times. I blush realizing that we have an audience in Polo who is steadily sneaking chocolate as he enjoys me getting undressed as Manuel watches. Manuel doesn’t take his eyes off of my body the entire time.

When I am naked Manuel lays me down and starts massaging me. My body melts underneath his warm touch almost immediately.

“Damn…how do you do that?”

Manuel smiles, “Massaging is one of the 14 arts of the harem. The faster you learn it, the better.”

“14 arts?” I ask.

“They are secrets passed down from Harem slaves. They are sexual secrets that keep things entertaining. Pressure points. Erogenous zones. Pleasure techniques. These are all things you’ll have to learn if you want to be successful in the Harem.”

“Sounds complicated,” Polo states.

Polo lifts his eyebrows.

“Can you teach me? For the princes tonight?” I ask.

Manuel gives me a smile at that moment, “Sure thing. The first thing you need to learn with massaging is the importance of compression. Basically you just press down on one area, increasing blood flow and loosening the muscle. This is a good move to do before partaking in a deeper massage, just to warm things up and get the blood flowing. This is also great on the buttocks, where you can place one hand on top of the other and rotate slowly. How does that feel?”

He is pressing hard on my butt with both hands. I feel the loosening of my anus as he does it.

“It feels…amazing…I’m having trouble lying flat,” I tell him.

He doesn’t ask me what I mean. I think it’s very clear that I’m aroused. My penis is pressing hard up against the bottom of the table. I moan out as he massages me from the back.

“Turn around. I’ll help you with that,” he responds.

“With?”

“I’ll fix you,” Manuel states.

I look over at Polo, “Um…”

“I can give you guys your space,” Polo states.

“No need,” Manuel responds, “Hush needs to learn to be more comfortable with his sexuality. Stay, Polo. Watch me satisfy him.”

Polo looks at me as though he is just as uncomfortable all of a sudden as I am. I don’t have the chance to turn around because Manuel physically turns me himself. He begins to massage lower and lower until he gets to my penis. He puts it in his two hands and begins to work the shaft in between his fingers. He slowly goes up and down my shaft. Luckily Polo looks away at that moment as though realizing I’m a bit embarrassed.

Soon however I forget Polo is in the room. Under Manuel’s touch I just start feeling so calm and free. He continues to move up and down my dick with his hands. They are firm and slippery all at the same time.

Polo works up the head. He squeezes it a little bit. Then he does something I don’t expect.

He lifts one leg up and puts a finger directly in my ass.

I orgasm at that moment. It is almost instantaneous. My chest is drowned with sticky semen. Manuel’s hands are drowned with the stuff as well. He drains me with his right hand until every last drop is out of me.

Then he tastes it.

“You taste amazing Hush.”

He smiles at me sucking on his fingers. I’m so embarrassed when I snap back into myself and realize not only is Polo watching us but Basil has walked into the room as well.

“Sorry to interrupt whatever is going on here,” Basil states, “But I’ll need this room. One of my patrons is visiting shortly.”

Visitors. The idea of finally getting our first visitors into the harem scared the hell out of me. Basil doesn’t seem to be the least bit nervous though. Honestly if I looked like Basil I wouldn’t be either. Basil was tall and attractive. His height was the most attractive thing about him. He domed over most of the other boys with his long legs and lean body. He didn’t need to be as muscular as the other boys. He was skinny but not skinny in the same way that I was. He had an attentional slim tone that fit his frame perfectly.

“Can’t you take your usual room?” I ask.

“It’s too close to Alexios and he’s freaking out. Seems someone stole that special candy the sultan likes to give him. He’ll ruin my evening if my patron hears him whining.”

Polo and I look at one another. All of a sudden I realize Polo has a bit of chocolate on the side of his lip. I’m trying not to react to it but Polo gives himself up by nervously shuffling. Just at that moment both Manuel and Basil seem to realize what Polo has in his mouth.

“You didn’t?” Basil states.

Polo wipes the sloppy melted chocolate from his bottom lip. Just at that moment I’m getting up and wiping myself off. I am not going to let Polo just take the fall for this.

“He got what he deserved,” I tell Basil, “Alexios doesn’t know us. He intentionally hurt Polo for no reason.”

Basil lifts his hands up.

“I don’t want anything to do with this,” Basil states.

Basil walks out of the room. He’s being dramatic. At the end of the day it was just candy. Right? I look over at Manuel. Manuel is staring at the floor. He has the same mood that Basil had when he walked out of the room. He didn’t seem to want to be around at this moment.

“Is it really that serious?” I ask, “Some candy?”

“You can’t steal gifts,” Manuel tells me, “You can’t steal gifts from Alexios, to be more specific. And you can’t go around trash talking him. He just so happens to be very close to Basil.”

The idea that Alexios was very close to anyone blows my mind. He didn’t seem like the type of person to have friends. Alexios seemed like the type of person to have followers. He seemed to keep a flock of zealous sheep with him wherever he went.

“He’s a horrible person Manuel. Yes, or no…”

Manuel sighs.

“Even if I agree with you, that proves my point,” Manuel states, “You saw what he did to Polo, Hush. Do you really want those complications?”

“No…” I state, “I don’t.”

“It was me,” Polo offers, “I’ll tell Alexios that I did it.”

“No,” I respond, “No you won’t. I was with you. I helped you. No one needs to know anything. Manuel…will Basil tell him.”

“You can’t just do whatever you want around here…” Manuel tells me.

“Manuel that wasn’t my question. Will Basil tell Alexios?”

“I don’t know.”

“Will you talk to him?” I ask Manuel, “Please. Will you talk to Basil and make sure that Alexios doesn’t find out? Like you said. I’d rather not have the complications.”

I look over at Manuel. He seems hesitant. He looks at the floor then looks back up at me in my eyes. Then he takes a step back and nods.

“I’ll talk to him,” Manuel states, “I’m not Constantine though. Neither is Basil. Alexios is the top boy here. You need to learn how to pick your battles, Hush.”

They made Alexios seem as though he was on top of the world almost. Still, I have hope that Manuel will talk to Basil. There doesn’t need to be anything to come from some missing chocolate. It was nothing at all and we didn’t need to worry about it.

“Thank you Manuel. I mean it…”

Manuel nods reluctantly with a half-smile, “You’re going to be trouble for me…”

“Maybe it’s good trouble,” I smile back at Manuel.

Manuel’s smile gets a little brighter as he walks out, “You should start getting ready. The bells will start ringing soon. That will mean the princes are coming to visit to the Harem.”

~

The idea of being paraded around in front of these stuck up royalty to be sexually “qualified” wasn’t exactly what I had in mind as a good time. I bathe about 20 times over and over. I can’t get clean enough. I just keep remembering what I learned the first day about cleanliness. My heart is racing when I think of what it would mean if I failed. When I hear the bells I get even more nervous. I go to the one person who I don’t want to end up near.

I knock on his door and see him open up.

Constantine.

He’s shirtless. He seems surprised to see me.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know who else to go to. I was just feeling—-“

Constantine cuts me off, “Come in.”

His trousers are hung low. I can see the beginnings of his ass when he walks me into his room. He has swords hung up on the wall. I wonder if it’s real. This room doesn’t look like the sleeping quarters I live in. He had it decked out. There is a large bed in the middle of the room with a beautiful silk canopy over it. The sheets are silk as well. The furniture all looks decadent to say the least.

“Come go to the mirror. Turn around,” Constantine tells me, “Let me see you.”

I do what he says walking and making a quick turn. I have these voluminous pants that Manuel gave me. He calls them salvar or harem pants. They are quite comfortable and quite sheer as well. You can see right through them to all my privates underneath. Constantine seems to notice but not be too surprised by just how sexual it all is. This is very expected to him.

“Manuel’s idea.”

“He has good taste,” Constantine says, “You look nice. It’s clear Manuel has been taking his time preparing you.”

I have to admit Manuel has been catering to me and getting me ready for this.

“He’s nice,” I state.

“I think he likes you a little too much,” Constantine laughs at that moment.

I can’t tell if he is teasing me or if he is serious.

“What do you mean?”

“I think you know what I mean,” Constantine states and smiles a little bit, “You’re handsome. You better be careful. If you get too handsome, Polo might not be the only one with acid on his face.”

I get nervous. That’s the reason I was here.

“Can we talk?”

“Sure. Come sit,” he tells me, “Closer…don’t be afraid. I don’t bite you know…unless you are willing to give me gifts that is.”

He winks seductively. I wonder if this is how he talks to his patrons. I saw the number of gifts that Constantine got. Besides Alexios he got the most gifts and honestly he had more admirers than Alexios had. As I walk into the room I smell this sweet smell.

“What smell is that?” I ask him.

“Do you like it?” he asks me.

“I love it. It smells expensive…”

“It’s very expensive. It’s Susinum. A perfume based off lily and myrrh,” he explains to me, “Here wear some. The princes enjoy it the most.”

He takes a small bottle. I offer my hand for him to give it to me but Constantine doesn’t hand it to me. He puts it on his fingers and rubs the oils on my neck. He massages it into my neck. I exhale feeling how seductive it is when he touches me. His touch is so mesmerizing.

“Thank you. I don’t know how to repay you.”

“You can repay me by doing well tonight,” he responds, “Here. Wear some anklets. The princes all enjoy them. You can have these ones if you want. They were a gift from the eldest prince to me…”

He takes out these golden manacles. He also gives me a necklace that is made out of rubies. It hangs and falls at the beginnings of my chest. Then he walks me to the mirror and has me stand directly in front of it.

“I can’t take these,” I state, “These are your gifts…”

“I have way too many,” he responds, “The princes won’t even notice these are the same ones they got me.”

“It’s not about that,” I respond, “I don’t deserve these things.”

“I’m giving them to you,” he responds, “You aren’t breaking me, Hush. I’ve never been the type to really care about gifts.”

I take off the necklace and hand it back to him.

“I can’t. I’m sorry.”

He seems curious that I won’t take his gifts.

“Isn’t that why you came to my room? Didn’t you need help with how to please the princes?” Constantine asks me.

“I’ve made a mistake,” I admit to Constantine.

“How so?”

“Polo and I stole from Alexios today,” I explain to him, “We stole chocolate.”

Constantine’s face says it all. He looks very serious at that moment. It was as I expected. This theft was a bigger deal than I was initially expecting it to be. I thought it would be just some minor prank but the way the others are reacting lets me know that it isn’t. It is clear that this is quite serious. It is also clear that I need to find a way out of this situation before it gets worse.

“Why did you do it?” he asks me.

“Do you really have to ask that question?” I ask.

Constantine thinks for a minute. Surely deep inside Constantine must know how horrible Alexios comes off to people.

Constantine sighs, “I suppose not.”

“Is it bad?” I ask.

“Yes. I won’t lie to you. Anything involving Alexios is bad,” he explains to me.

“You’ll help me out of this situation?” I ask.

“I’ll try. Does anyone else know besides you and Polo that you stole from Alexios?” Constantine asks me.

He’s helping me. For some reason I knew he would. Just him asking these questions kind of proves that he is at least willing to think of something.

“Basil overheard us,” I state.

“That’s not good but not the worst. Basil and Alexios were lovers until Alexios caught the favor of the sultan. At that point Basil was banned from touching Alexios again. They are close but our only hope is that time has caused a gap between them. There is a chance Basil won’t tell Alexios anything. Not a big chance…but a chance none-the-less.”

I sigh.

Hopefully Manuel would talk to Basil. Hopefully Manuel would make Basil understand that it wasn’t a big deal.

“What if Alexios finds out?” I ask.

“You don’t want to know,” Constantine responds to me, “Don’t worry about it though. Late tonight the princes are going to pass their test. After that come sleep with me. You can stay in my bed with me until it’s safe.”

“What about Polo?”

“I’ve been meaning to talk to you about Polo,” Constantine tells me.

“What about him?”

“He won’t last,” Constantine tells me.

“What are you saying?”

“I’m saying the burn on his face means that he won’t last,” Constantine explains, “They may entertain him for a while but sooner or later they’ll tire of him. He isn’t perfect with a burned face.”

“You said it would heal.”

“I said that to make him feel better,” Constantine responds, “I’m tired of telling the truth. I’ve learned what that can do when Julius killed himself. So yes. I lied. I lied to make Polo feel better. The acid burn is too bad. He won’t heal. He is permanently scarred.”

My mouth drops open.

“Constantine, I need to tell him…”

“No. You don’t. You don’t owe Polo anything,” Constantine tells me, “You should distance yourself from him.”

“Just drop him, because he got hurt?”

“He won’t last and he’s reckless,” Constantine explains, “Be honest. Whose idea was it to go through the gifts? You don’t seem like the type.”

I think about it. Polo’s curiosity was something that Constantine had discovered first hand when we all met for the first time. I think about Polo and the idea that he won’t last. It scares me. I didn’t know any of these people well enough to consider them a friend but I liked Polo personally. I liked him as a person.

“I’ll worry about myself,” I finally state.

I have no choice. I could hear Loras in my ear now telling me to stay low and stick to the plan. I couldn’t do that if I was protecting Polo. I just couldn’t. Constantine was willing to help me but it was clear there was a limit to his grace and he’d completely lost hope in Polo doing well here. It’s crazy how one moment could change everything. Polo was permanently scarred by Alexios. He’d probably not survive here because of it.

“Good. I’ll talk to Basil. I’ll cut him a deal. Surely there is something he wants. In the meantime, stay away from Alexios. Stay away from Polo. Stay close to me,” Constantine instructs me.

“Will me being with you keep Alexios away?”

Constantine shrugs, “Alexios is bold and sneaky. He runs this place. But I doubt he wants to cause unnecessary problems with me and my patrons. The princes all favor me. So he’ll have to think twice if he wants to trespass into my room and kill you in your sleep.”

“For chocolate?” I ask.

“It’s not about chocolate,” Constantine responds, “When you are slave sometimes the few possessions you have become your world. You’ve just done the worst thing imaginable. You’ve crossed a line you should never have crossed.”

~

The princes were coming soon. I could tell by how the boys were lining up in the front area. The front area of the Harem is a beautiful place. The beautiful baths and the high columns made this place feel like the Greek Olympus. The wall décor was lavishly done as well. The pretty tiles were lined up on the side of the walls.

I’m sitting with Constantine. He’s sitting right next to me. Across from us is Alexios. He’s sitting with several boys who had never taken the time to introduce themselves to me. Some are handsome but the majority are nowhere near as handsome as Alexios. I think he does this on purpose. He wants to find the boys with the low self-esteem. He wants to be around the boys who are handsome “enough”. Not too handsome. He didn’t want competitors. Polo has that appeal to him where maybe his jawline was a little too defined, his lips too full and his nose too contoured. Alexios didn’t like that.

“You guys look serious?”

I turn and notice Polo. I notice something else as well. I notice Alexios. I notice how he is staring directly at Polo. Alexios is smoking a hookah. He blows a large puff of smoke out of his nose before passing it to the boy sitting next to him. His eyes never leave Polo though even through the smoke.

“Just waiting for the princes,” I state, “Like everyone else…”

“Can I wait with you?” Polo asks.

“No more seats,” Constantine states.

“Huh? The bench is open,” Polo responds.

Constantine slides his foot up on the bench, “No more seats. Find somewhere else.”

It isn’t the nicest thing in the world. For some reason I never expected Constantine to be rude. He struck me even when I first met him as very truthful. He was truthful almost to a fault.

Polo looks over at me. It’s clear he is hurt. I think about that moment trying to convince Constantine to slide down and let Polo sit. I even think about leaving with Polo and finding my own seat with him. Polo was sweet. He was a nice guy. Constantine didn’t have to react to him like he had leprosy. It was unnecessary to avoid Polo like this.

Or was it?

I take a long hard look at Polo’s face. The scars weren’t healing. They weren’t getting any better.

I don’t say anything to Polo as he walks away disappointed. He walks over and joins a few people that I don’t think he knows very well. I am sitting by Constantine who just stares me hard in my face. It’s as though he’s trying to tell me something without opening his lips. I can almost read his expression and know that he is just telling me that what he just did had to be done.

Polo would be the death of me if I didn’t cut off that friendship now.

“Hey…” Mendeecees says walking over to us, “The Vizier would like to see you, Constantine.”

“What’s this about?” Constantine asks him.

Mendeecees shrugs. He points over at a few eunuchs who have unlocked the front door. I notice how many locks they keep on that front door. The Harem quarters are huge and so are the locks that keep us locked up in this place. The only outside we see are the gardens. They seem so afraid that we would leave. I watch as the eunuchs wait patiently for Constantine to get up.

“You’re leaving?” I ask him.

“I’ll be right back,” he tells me, “Don’t move. Don’t get up.”

With that he leaves.

I’m alone. I feel this nervousness. I feel even more nervous when I notice Mendeecees hasn’t moved from where he was standing. He still stands over me at that moment. It isn’t until Constantine completely is escorted out that he speaks.

“Alexios wants to see you,” he states.

Fuck.

My heart races. Had they planned this? Had they done something to get Constantine out of the room just so they could talk to me?

“I can’t right now.”

“It wasn’t a request,” Mendeecees states, “But if you want I can go back and tell Alexios that you refused him. Is that what you want me to do?”

I turn over to where Basil is. He’s laughing with some handsome boys from the Harem. He seems to be showing them some statue one of his patrons got him as a gift. He doesn’t seem even slightly interested in drama right now. Maybe I am exaggerating.

“No. No. I’ll come,” I state.

I get up and follow him. Just at that moment there are drums playing. It’s clear something is happening up towards the front but I don’t know what it is. I don’t have the time to watch because I have to walk over to where Alexios is sitting. He has a private booth there.

As I approach he just stares at me. He stares at me so fucking hard. The others he has around with him try to mimic his stare but Alexios has an originality when it comes to that. He leans his hand back on his chair realizing just how the light reflects on his face making him look dazzling.

“Coffee?” he asks.

He has some boys pour him coffee. One is put in front of me. He drinks the other. You would think by the way that he is having these boys serve him that he is a master and not a slave.

“Thank you,” I state.

I take a sip of the bitter coffee. I’ve never been a fan of it but at the same time I realize that I can’t really refuse him.

“I understand that you have something you wanted to tell me,” he states.

“What?”

“I understand you wanted to talk to me and tell me something,” Alexios repeats himself.

I’m confused.

“What are you talking about?”

My heart is racing at that moment. Alexios looks annoyed. He whispers something to one of the boys who whispers something to Mendeecees. Mendeecees has to be something of an errand boy. Maybe they like seeing him walk around so they can stare at his ass. I’m not sure. When he returns though I’m shocked that he has Manuel standing with him.

ALexios stares at Manuel, “Didn’t you say he had something to tell me…”

“Just tell him…” Manuel tells me.

This wasn’t happening right now.

“Manuel…”

“Just tell him about the chocolate,” Manuel cuts me off, “it’ll be easier. It won’t go as bad on you if you tell him.”

I’m shocked! I was expecting Basil to tell Alexios but Manuel was the one who was making it slip now. Alexios stares at me. He has this disgusted look on his face. He knew. It was clear that he knew enough to assume what I wanted to tell him. I wondered if Manuel had included Polo in this. I’m sure that he did, but for some reason I had the feeling Alexios didn’t really care for Polo anymore. Polo wasn’t a threat to him any longer with a burned face. I was here because I was still a threat to him.

“You know already,” I tell Alexios.

“You stole my stuff,” Alexios states.

What was this? Was he toying with me? He knew already so why was he asking me. Why did he want me to come out and admit to it? It just seemed like a practice of vanity or something. He wanted to boost his ego. Maybe he wanted me to beg or something.

I wasn’t begging. Not over chocolate.

“You going to burn my face like you did Polo?” I ask.

“So you did steal from me?” Alexios asks.

He’s so pompous. That is the only way to describe it. His lips sit high up on his teeth. He’s probably been handsome all his life. He’s the kind of guy that probably got everything handed to him without even trying. He realized at a young age what attractiveness can do and his ambition was to push it to the limits. Looking at Alexios long enough I can see that he isn’t even that attractive. He was handsome of course. He had all the physical features. For some reason though his ugly soul is peaking out and it makes him look so bad.

“I did it,” I admit, “So do what you want. Do your worst.”

He just stares at me with that pompous look.

Manuel looks over at him, “No. He promised he wouldn’t hurt you when I told him. I made him promise.”

I can’t even look at Manuel. He is making me sick. Was he so scared of Alexios that he ran to tell him what I did the moment he found out about it? I was hoping Manuel had a little bit more self-respect than that. I was wrong. Looking at him now I see nothing more than a weasel looking for a reason not to be put in a trap.

“I keep my promises,” Alexios states, “I just wanted to have some coffee with him. The princes are coming in any moment now. You should be getting qualified right. I’m sure they’ll enjoy you.”

“That’s it?” I ask.

Manuel seems confused as well. He turns to me and smiles.

“See it all worked out.”

Just at that moment I feel like maybe it was for the best. Maybe Alexios was able to not make a big deal out of it. Soon however it becomes very clear that I am awfully wrong. I feel something in my stomach at that moment. Butterflies.

Except they weren’t butterflies.

My stomach makes audible gurgles at that moment out of nowhere.

“You OK?” Manuel asks me.

“Stomach. It hurts.”

I get a cramp in my stomach. All of a sudden I feel like I have to use the bathroom really bad. I don’t know where this is coming from until for some reason my face wanders over to Alexios. He has this half smile on his face and it’s clear that this is his doing.

“Nothing like Arabic coffee is there?” he asks me before adding, “I made sure to add my very own spices to yours. Do you like?”

His very own spices?

Did he poison me?

I look down at the coffee. Something is floating in there.

“What did you do?” I panic.

Alexios smiles, “I put natural laxatives in your coffee. Just in time for you to get fucked. It’ll be interesting how the princes respond when you shit on their dicks tonight….”

4

The eunuchs open the grand doors. Seeing the outsides of the Harem even for a second makes me feel like a caged bird. I wonder what it would be like to just fly out of here. I don’t dare do it though. Maybe it’s because the patrons come in.

“Let the games begin,” I hear Basil state.

He smiles. I’m not sure if it’s a real smile or a fake one. It’s hard to tell with Basil. He’s joined by a few of the other more popular boys. One boy named Hassan has nothing on except strings tied around his dick that seem to keep it somewhat hard. He gets almost immediate attention as the patrons enter the room. I watch from the sidelines with Polo. I’m so nervous that I’m scared to move.

The patrons are men of all shapes and sizes. They are all ages and so many different ethnicities. They are important men in the empire. I can tell. Many of them have uniforms. It makes me think they are Imperial soldiers. Others seem like diplomats. Boys in the harem immediately parade themselves in front of all of these people like cattle.

“This is a big show,” Polo tells me, “Isn’t it?”

“Uh-hmph,” is my reply.

He must be talking about the musicians that come in the room playing all sorts of instruments from drums to wind instruments. Midgets come in as entertainers as well as some belly dancers. None of them can top the boys of the Harem however who immediately break apart to entertain our guests.

“Which ones do you think the princes are?”

I was sure none of these people were princes but I don’t reply with words. I can’t. I’m struggling.

“Uh-humph…”

“You OK Hush?” Polo asks me.

We are standing up against the wall like two shy boys who have no idea how to interact with our visitors. It is clear that Polo is more comfortable in this room than I am though. Just as he asks me the question I can feel my stomach turn.

A part of me had wished that Alexios was bluffing when he told me that he had laced my coffee with laxatives to get back at me for helping Polo steal his candy. I’m wrong though. This is no bluff.

“I don’t feel good.”

“You look like shit. You’re almost purple.”

I’m holding it in. My stomach turns more and more. In the distance I can see Alexios. He is smoking a hookah with a few of boys from the Harem. It is Alexios alone who stares at me from across the room though with this knowing glance. He can see his sick craft taking root in me as my expression begins to fold. I can’t believe this is happening.

“I have to go.”

I start to turn and walk away but just as I do that I am stopped. It’s Constantine. He grabs me by my shoulders.

“Where you going?”

“Got to use the bathroom…now…”

“No,” he responds, “You can’t leave. The princes are here. Now…”

“Constantine…you don’t understand…”

I don’t get a chance to explain it because I hear the drums at that moment. The royal family played no games and I realize that when a parade of very young girls walk in the room. They drop petals on the floor. My heart sinks in my chest but it’s my stomach that worries the most. I struggle to pay attention and I feel a little faint as a precession of guards walk in and line the room. Besides the people entering now everyone seems to be completely still and quiet. The boys of the Harem have stopped entertaining their guests. The guests have stopped laughing and talking. The dancing has stopped. All other music has stopped.

“The princes of the Ottoman empire have arrived.”

“I have to go,” I repeat.

I don’t care. At that moment I have to go. I try to pull away at that moment but Constantine quickly grabs me by my hand to keep me there.

“No don’t leave,” he tells me, “I know your nervous but it’ll be OK. I wrote a letter to the prince and put in a good word for you.”

“Did you put one in for me too?” Polo asks.

Constantine ignores Polo. For the first time I wish he had preferred Polo over me. I’m wrong though. Constantine keeps hold of me and wrestles me forward to the center of the room. The guards surround the room and the petal girls lay the groundwork for the royal members who enter the room. Just at that moment the three men walk in the room. The oldest is old enough to possibly be my father. It makes me wonder just how old the sultan is. The oldest one definitely doesn’t seem too attractive either. He is very heavy set. His body is sloppy and as he approaches he breathes as though something is stuck in his throat. He seems to think he is quite the looker as well. He walks ahead of his younger brothers. As he gets close I watch as his eyes shoot directly at Constantine.

“Constantine…” he says licking his lips.

His large tongue leaves excessive drool over his mouth. It’s fucking disgusting honestly. Still there is this power about him. Maybe it’s the huge production that went on just for him to enter the room.

“Prince Dhaamir, you look amazing today,” Constantine smiles.

I would laugh if I wasn’t in so much pain. Dhaamir is a local nickname for someone who is thin and slender. This prince was anything but that. I could fit into the size of Dhaamir four times over. He seems to demand so much attention that I don’t even notice the other two princes who walk behind him.

The other two princes are younger. Both are attractive in their own way. One is more handsome and the other has a nicer body. I realize the look on the others boys’ faces when they see that Constantine is the only one who is getting a personal greeting from these boys.

The one with the handsome face grabs Constantine right by the dick. He wastes no time. He gives it a hard squeeze, “I’ve missed you Constantine.”

Constantine doesn’t fight his privates being squeezed like that. He seems used to it somehow. He smiles. To be honest these princes don’t look as threatening as I thought. Besides the big one they even seem rather attractive in their own ways.

“Come…I’ve prepared a spot for you all to relax,” Constantine says.

Constantine hands me a bottle of wine and signals me to follow him with it. I hand the wine to Polo who is luckily trailing us closely. Any moment now I would need to make a break for it whether I liked it or not. I was just looking for the opportunity.

“Are these the new boys?” one of the princes asks.

We are in a special area of the harem that is elevated. I realize relatively quickly that the patrons are back to enjoying the harem. Some are being undressed already and dragged into the pool. Others are being entertained with light conversation. All the boys in the Harem look so happy. All except me. This is a fucking nightmare for me.

The princes all study my face…even the heavy set Prince Dhaamir whose stuffing his face with snacks that are being brought over. Manuel and another boy whose name I don’t know end up bringing the snacks and placing them there. I struggle to force a smile but it falls flat.

“Is he OK?” one of the princes asks in regards to me.

“He’s perfect. He’s just nervous. Isn’t he handsome? Look at this face,” Constantine states.

Constantine turns me around.

Constantine grabs the wine out of Polo’s hand and hands it back to me. It’s clear what he’s trying to do. He pushes me forward with the wine. It’s clear he’s trying to give a good first impression.

“Too skinny,” Dhaamir states.

“I think he’s perfect,” the prince with the nice body answers.

I look back over at Constantine. He smiles and gives me a head nod so that I can approach the prince with the nice body again. I don’t move. I just stand there. I look instead towards the door. My stomach growls. The music is so loud that luckily they can’t hear it but I can feel it. I need to make a run for it.

Constantine looks over at the princes, “These are the princes Dhaamir, Dhaakir and Daai.”

My stomach sounds off. This isn’t happening right now. This couldn’t be happening right now. I watch as the harem boys place more food in front of Prince Dhaamir. The food was brought with them. It’s clearly food that we don’t serve here at the harem. The other prince Dhaakir is thankfully being distracted by a few boys who have dived naked into the Harem pool. It’s no doubt they are trying to steal the attention from Constantine. The last prince however Daai is giving me all the attention at that moment.

Constantine must notice the other boys who are at the pool attempting to get attention because he speaks in a loud, demanding voice so that all three princes can give their attention back to him.

Constantine notices I’m not approaching the princes so he gives me a gentle push, “We call him Hush, because he’s so quiet.”

“Just how I like them,” the prince with the nice body says.

“He is pretty handsome,” the good looking prince states.

“This is my friend Polo,” I announce, “He’s new as well…”

Constantine eyes get wide when I present Polo to them. It’s clear that he is annoyed that I am helping Polo out. I know Constantine is trying to help me succeed in the Harem but right now I need a distraction. I needed any distraction. Polo was there and willing. The princes study Polo just as much as they study me.

They don’t seem to notice Polo’s scars right away. Maybe it’s the dim lighting in the Harem.

“Both of you take off your clothes. You need to be tested,” Daai says.

The three princes turn their attention back to us immediately. Dhaamir sucks on an oxtail and watches Polo undress. The other two princes stare at me. I look over at Constantine. Polo isn’t hesitating but I am.

I walk over to Constantine and whisper, “I don’t feel well.”

“What is this?” Prince Daai asks noticing the whispers.

Constantine looks over at Prince Daai, “He’s just a little shy…”

I’m not shy! I’m not shy! That’s not it. As though helping me Constantine begins to undress me. All of a sudden I notice that in the distances a few of the boys have come up to watch. They have brought their patrons with them. They stand far enough to respect the space of the princes but close enough to be an audience to the new boy who is about to entertain the prince.

Constantine removes my top and starts to work on my harem pants when Prince Daai walks over and stops Constantine.

“Let me,” Prince Daai says.

“Yes Prince,” Constantine answers with a smile.

Constantine walks off and crosses his arms. He seems to be happy with his work. This is what he wanted. Now that Prince Daai had crossed the room and approached me it becomes clear that I am the center of attention. Not even Polo can distract from me even though he’s standing not too far away from me completely nude. Prince Daai circles around me a few times.

“Bend over,” Daai tells me.

“I…can’t…”

“Slave. I said bend over,” Daai responds.

He doesn’t understand. I literally can’t.

“No.”

“What’s the meaning of this?” Daai asks.

“You’ll do as you’re commanded SLAVE!” Dhaakir states standing up suddenly upset.

As soon as the other prince stands up a few men with swords come towards me. The blades are sharp. My heart races when I see them. I’m scared to death. I realize just how frightening they look when they approach.

I turn to Constantine, “Constantine…”

Constantine gives me a hard look. He grabs me and pulls me close. I can hear him whisper a sharp, “What are you doing? You’re embarrassing me.”

Constantine seems harsh and unaware of what is going on. I know that I should just shut up and do what they want but, it’s not that simple though. Things have gotten strange. Very strange to say the least.

“He won’t help you. Constantine rip his clothes off,” the fat prince states.

Constantine doesn’t hesitate. I stand there shocked that he’s doing it but within a few rips he tears my clothes completely off of me. He struggles but it’s useless. Constantine is bigger. He’s stronger. Within a few seconds I am completely naked in front of him. Before I know it I lay on the floor. Everyone is staring at me. Everyone is watching me. Everyone is surprised when tears are rolling out of my eyes. I can feel my stomach bubbling up at that moment.

It’s Prince Daai who gets up. He walks towards me.

“You look like one of my wives,” he tells me.

He smiles hard. He takes another step towards me. His eyes are big. I am so afraid as he grabs me. I look over to Constantine. I want him to save me. He doesn’t though. Constantine just turns away. It’s at that moment I realize that no matter how big and strong Constantine looks that he is nothing more than a slave here. He has no power. None of us do.

I am bent over by Daai. The prince isn’t shy about sex. His dick is large. It is hooked to the side. He pulls it to a few times. His eyes glare at me. He pulls me close to him. He spits on his dick. Within a matter of seconds, I can feel him struggling to push into me. I try to pull away but others come to assist the prince.

I’m being held down.

I’m held down by Manuel.

I’m held down by Polo.

I’m held down by Constantine.

I almost want to leave my body as the Prince mounts me. Prince Daai enters me. My stomach roars. I can feel the strain at that moment. I can feel the disgust.

“You’re so soft. You’re so wet,” he is grunting, “I love it. So wet.”

My stomach is turning. I lock up. For a few minutes I’m thinking maybe it won’t be so bad. Maybe somehow I will survive this. Then I notice him going deeper and faster. I turn and see the other two princes staring at me. They are entertained. Everyone is entertained.

Then I feel something.

My body gives way.

There is a smell and then it happens.

~

It’s the next day. I haven’t bathed enough yet even though I get the stench off of me. I lay in the bath…soaking because my asshole still hurts from the diarrhea I felt. Every part of me hurts. I had been punished severely for hours. After returning I could do nothing but lay in the bath. I have never been so embarrassed in my life.

“Hey shitty,” a voice says.

It’s Alexios. He’s come to flaunt. I can tell. He doesn’t come alone. He has a trail of boys that are with him. One of them just so happens to be Basil and the other one is Mendeecees. I notice a few other boys as well. Boys that are laughing at the mere sight of me.

I don’t speak. It’s so easy to close my mouth.

“He’s embarrassed,” Mendeecees states.

“He should be,” Alexios returns, “He shit on a prince of the Ottoman empire in front of all the nobles. No one will touch him. Ever.”

There is laughter at that moment. The only thing worse about what happened yesterday is the fact that everyone was around to see it. Everyone was around to hear the noise my stomach made. Everyone was around to hear the noise my ass made. Everyone was around to hear the sounds and the smells afterwards. They had all heard the prince scream out in disgust. They had all heard when the guards had grabbed me and pulled me outside and whipped me.

“He’s bleeding out in the tub,” a boy named Ramses notices.

“Disgusting,” Mendeecees states.

I hadn’t even noticed. The boys are right. My back wounds had opened up. I was bleeding out in the tub.

That’s when I see Alexios. Mendeecees pulls out a knife. I just look at it. I don’t know how to react. Basil just turns his head and walks away at that moment. He doesn’t help me but I don’t think he is going to stand there and watch.

Alexios approaches me. He climbs into the bloody public bath up to his knees. He puts the knife to my throat.

“Would you like me to end your misery now?” Alexios asks.

I don’t speak. I don’t say a word. I don’t move. I don’t do anything. Alexios presses the knife harder against my throat. He tightens his grip as though wanting me to beg for my life. I don’t do it. His friend Mendeecees smiles at that moment.

“He’s defiant,” Mendeecees states.

“Defiant men still die,” Alexios explains.

“What are you doing?” a voice says.

Before Alexios can do what he came to do he is stopped. It’s Constantine. Constantine runs towards Alexios and he punches him. He punches Alexios as hard as he can. There is an audible gasp among the other slaves. A few slaves walk into the room. The loud POP can be heard. I swear I think Constantine has broken his jaw. I’m wrong however.

Alexios adjusts his mouth after the impact and goes on running it, “Did you just fucking hit me?”

“I sure did.”

“You want to make an enemy out of me Constantine,” Alexios states.

Constantine gives it a long thought. For the moment I’m confused. It seems as though whatever strange relationship Alexios had with Constantine was coming at head right now because of me. Constantine looks around. He studies the room. He studies the expressions on people. No one seems willing to interfere with what is going on between them. Not even Mendeecees who has clearly gone out of his way to do everything that Alexios tells him to.

“This boy is under my protection,” Constantine states.

“He’s a dead man,” Alexios states.

“I know that. Until then don’t touch him,” Constantine states.

“Is that an order?” Alexios laughs.

He’s outraged. I can see Alexios hold onto his jaw still. His fingers glide to his neck. It’s as though his pride is stuck somewhere there and he doesn’t know what to do with it.

“It’s a threat.”

Alexios laughs, “We’ll see…”

He walks away. A trail of boys follow behind him. He probably wasn’t expecting Constantine to hit him. He probably wasn’t expecting Constantine to go out of his way to protect me. The truth was that I wasn’t expecting Constantine to do it either.

I can see the look in the eyes of Alexios. He would be prepared next time. I saw such a horror in his eyes. It’s the scariest thing I’d ever seen. I saw the soul of Alexios right now and I knew he would stop at nothing to make sure there was nothing left of competition.

~

“You should have fought back,” Constantine tells me.

“He wasn’t going to do it.”

I had seen the look in Alexios eyes. There was something there. There was something terrible but there was also something sly. He was too careful to be seen as a downright murderer. He was capable of murder. I knew that but he wouldn’t slit someone’s throat in front of all these people. He wanted them to fear him but also respect him. He wouldn’t have done it. I saw it in his eyes.

“Alexios is dangerous. And now I’m probably his next target. Fine. I’ll take that on. Come. Sit on the table. Get undressed. No. Not just the top. Take everything off. Get naked. Your wounds are opening up. How long did they whip you?” Constantine asks me.

Constantine has helped me into a room. On the way there I see Polo who gives me a sad look. He looks like he is going to follow us but Constantine gives him a look that seems to scare Polo off. I really feel like Constantine had a problem with Polo.

“Too long.”

I think my back is numb until I feel Constantine apply something to it. It seems to bring me back to life. The pain rolls all over my body. I scream louder than I’ve ever screamed before.

Manuel walks into the room.

“What?” Constantine asks.

“I heard screaming,” Manuel states.

Manuel looks down at me. I look away. I can’t stand to look at him. His eyes press on mine for a few minutes but he doesn’t turn.

“I have to treat his body before he gets infected. They whipped him for what he did to the Prince,” Constantine states.

Manuel gives me this look of pity.

He turns at that moment, “I’m sorry.”

“Get him out of here…” I state.

Manuel gives me a look, “Hush let me explain…”

“You should leave,” Constantine interrupts Manuel.

Manuel seems to know better than to argue with Constantine. He backs down. Right now I’m so lucky that I have Constantine still in my corner at least.

“Do you need anything?” Manuel asks, “For him.”

“Just space,” Constantine tells him.

Manuel looks reluctant but he nods and leaves the room. Constantine follows him. He shuts the door behind him. He begins to treat me. It still hurts but I don’t scream again. It’s clear my screams would go behind these walls and I don’t want anyone to hear them. I don’t want anyone to have that sort of satisfaction.

“I’m sorry as well,” Constantine whispers.

“Why are you sorry?”

Constantine treats my back with the ointment. When he is done he just stands there. I am in too much pain and think I’m going to pass out. The only thing that keeps me up is Constantine standing a few inches away from me. He stares at me and watches me.

“I ripped your clothes off. I held you down.”

“You had no choice,” I state.

Constantine nods, “That’s the problem.”

He gets quiet at that moment. I can see a heaviness on his heart. He looks so sad. He looks so defeated. He feels guilty about what happened yesterday. I can tell. I don’t blame him though. I don’t think I’ve ever really blamed him. All I know is that I needed Constantine to be there for me and he wasn’t.

I make it clear to Constantine, “I don’t blame you for what happened. I should have said something. Communication has always been my issue.”

“Yes it has. I don’t even know your name.”

“It doesn’t matter, does it?” I ask.

“Why do you say that?”

“I heard what Alexios said. He said I was a dead man. They are going to kill me aren’t they?” I ask at that moment.

Constantine gets quiet. Right now his name might as well be Hush.

“The princes had to leave. However, the King’s Vizier is deciding today what to do with you.”

“Vizier?”

“His top administrator.”

“That’s a good thing right? Hope…”

Constantine shakes his head, “No. You’re misunderstanding me. The princes all decided to kill you. The sultan’s Vizier is only going to decide how you die.”

I stop talking.

“I…understand.”

“You should sleep. Would you like anything? I can bring you something. Something that would put your fate in your own hands.”

He was offering to bring me something for me to kill myself with. It’s a cruel and kind gesture all at the same time. I was understanding the Harem now. When he offers this to me I can see a glimpse into the life that Constantine has lived this whole time. I can kind of understand more about him. When he offers me what he does I kind of feel like this is one of the kindest things someone has ever offered me.

“No.”

“Then nothing? Is there nothing I can give you?”

“Stay with me tonight?”

“You want sex?” Constantine offers, “I wouldn’t mind but can you handle it in your condition?”

“No…not sex. Just…stay with me.”

“In a romantic way?” he asks.

“Is that so bad?” I ask him.

“Yes.”

“Fine. Then just stay with me as a friend.”

“You misunderstand me,” Constantine explains at that moment, “I am not your lover and I am not your friend.”

“Then why are you helping me?” I ask Constantine.

“You were a good investment. I needed someone to take the Sultan’s eye off of Alexios. You were one of the most attractive boys I’ve seen in quite some time.”

I didn’t think I was that attractive. I thought Polo was more attractive because his face was burned. I knew I had a more handsome face than Mendeecees but Mendeecees had a better body. Basil was just the ultimate package. Why didn’t Constantine want to use any of them as a way to dethrone Alexios? Why was he using me?

Why was Loras using me?

What made everyone think that I was the one who could be the one to get close enough to the sultan?

“Not attractive enough to make you stay the night with me?” I ask Constantine.

Constantine looks at me. There is no emotion. There is no thought behind it. He answers relatively quickly, “No.”

He may do it for his dead lover. He may do it because he honestly believes it. At that moment there is no real difference. Constantine isn’t interested in me in that kind of way. That was clear.

“Well then goodbye Constantine.”

“Goodbye,” Constantine responds.

With that Constantine leaves and I fall asleep.

~

It’s several hours when I wake up out of my sleep by the sound of the eunuchs entering the room that I am in. They have come for me. I know that much. I’m not surprised when they come for me. What I am surprised at is the chair pulled over inches away from the table that I’m lying on.

Constantine.

He stayed with me…

He came back.

His eyes open and he sees me staring at him. There is so much I want to ask him. I want to ask him why he decided to come back. I wanted to ask him why he decided to stay with me even though he said he wouldn’t. I don’t get the chance to do all of those things. The eunuchs grab me. Four on each side as though I’m struggling. They don’t give me the chance to walk. They lift me to pull me out of the door. They are rough. Very rough.

Constantine stands, “That’s unnecessary.”

I think he is going to do something by how he stands. He stands in an aggressive demeanor. I think for a moment he forgets he’s a slave but before he takes a step forward to remember he stops. He remembers what he is again.

He just stares at me. He stares as they grab me and take me out of the room. He doesn’t say another word to me.

A black hood is placed over my head. I wake up in a jail cell. There are several administrators there. I can tell the King’s Vizier is there as well.

The administrator has a pen and piece of paper in his hand.

“How would you like me to carry out the orders of the prince?” the administrator asks.

They look at me as though I’m just a cow ready to be slaughtered. They couldn’t even be bothered to eat the meat either. The look the administrators give me is just so nonchalant. I feel sick to my stomach all over again as though there were some remnants from the laxative Alexios gives me. This time I realize it’s nothing more than nerves.

“What are the orders that they gave?” The Vizier of the sultan asks.

“Prince Dhaakir suggested he be stoned. Prince Dhaamir suggested he be drowned.”

They are talking about me as though I am not in the room. These Ottomans had thick accents. They had these uninterested looks. They would kill me and not think twice. They’d be able to eat their dinners right after if necessary. A slave was worse than property to them. I was nothing to these people but something to fuck when their dicks got hard.

“And Prince Daai? What does he suggest?”

“Prince Daai’s punishment was is quite extreme.”

“What is it?”

“Prince Daai suggested that his arm and legs be attached to separate horses. Each horse should run in a separate directions ripping his body apart.”

“Daai has always been the most…cruel,” The Vizier states.

“Yes I would not suggest that. He’s just a slave after all. Not worth the hassle of straining our horses,” the Vizier’s administrator says.

“What do you suggest for a punishments then?”

“It is up to you sir. The princes let us know that they look at you as a brother. And they trust whatever decision you make.”

“Do they?”

“Yes sir.”

“Then we will spare him.”

The administrators all looked shocked.

“Sir?”

“Spare him.”

“Sir we…can’t do that,” the administrators said, “The princes ordered him dead.”

“The princes also stated that it was my decision on how he died, did they not.”

“Yes but he still must die.”

“I have chosen his death. He’ll die an old man,” the Vizier stated, “Of natural causes. Spare him.”

The Administrators are scared. They are terrified.

The Vizier offers his hand, “If you’re afraid leave. I’ll take him back to the Harem and deal with the wrath of the princes on my own.”

The administrators don’t hesitate. They don’t want any parts of going against the orders of the prince. I can see this real fear in their eyes. They don’t know how the princes are going to react to the Vizier sparring me. I don’t know how the princes are going to react either. I was shocked that the Vizier was taking that sort of risk.

When the Administrators leave, the Vizier releases me using the key. He stands there and I can look into his eyes for a few seconds.

He takes a step forward.

I take a step forward.

We embrace. He puts his hands around me.

“Are you OK?” he asks me.

“I’m fine,” I respond, “Thank you. Loras.”

5

The doors of the Harem are open when I’m brought back. The other boys are eating a dinner that was sent by one of the patrons. I’m not sure who the Patron sent the dinner for specifically. Maybe he sent it for more than one boy. I only know the more popular boys are eating while the others just look on hungrily. I notice Alexios is of course at the head of the table but many of the older boys are eating. Even Manuel is at the table eating. Polo and some of the new or less attractive boys just stand there wondering if they’ll be given any scraps.

When I come in I swear I see Mendeecees choke on whatever he is eating.

“Hush,” Manuel states.

Basil laughs, “Well I’ll be damned.”

Shocked whispers go around the room. No one expects me to be alive. None of them. I look at everyone’s reaction. Everyone has the same shocked look. No one seems to be happy or sad really. Almost everyone at least. I notice Polo.

He runs up to me and jumps into my arms. The hug that Polo gives me at that moment is legit. It is a real hug. The boy actually cares about me. I can tell when I feel him hold me for a moment.

“Oh my god. You’re alive,” Polo states.

He keeps hugging me up until I feel Alexios grab Polo by the hair and throw him off to the side. Alexios isn’t the only one who has gotten up from the table and approached me. Others are doing the same. Alexios is angry. I can see the look on his face at that moment. His plan had failed. He had thought I would be killed by now.

“How is this possible?” Alexios asks me.

I help Polo get off the floor.

I ignore Alexios.

“Do you hear him talking to you?” Mendeecees asks me aggressively.

“I’m sorry. I don’t acknowledge snakes,” I respond.

A few people look over at Alexios. I know it’s a mistake to taunt Alexios but at this point I was a target for him already. He had already burned Polo. He had already declared war against Constantine. Alexios was already my enemy and there was nothing I could do including kissing his ass that would change that.

Besides…it feels good to see him so angry. I can see him steaming at that moment. I can almost feel the anger coming off of his skin.

I take Polo away. We walk towards the back. The harem wing we walk to is a section that opens up to an area known as the Second Courtyard which the Gate of Carriages also opens to. The decorations in this area had a unique Italian-inspired Ottoman Baroque style. Polo is excited as he pulls me over to a sofa that is underneath a wide dome. From the dome we can see the gardens. We sit on the sofa and he just stares at me as though I’m going to disappear.

“I’ve only been gone a month,” I state.

“We all thought you were dead,” he tells me. “How is it possible that you were away for a whole month?”

I want to tell Polo so much about how who I am. I want to tell him who Loras is. I want to tell him how Loras stole me away to his private chambers in the palace. I want to tell him how Loras spoiled me for a month after he spared my life. It was so hard to say goodbye to Loras but I had promised him that I would return to the Harem and complete my mission to kill the Sultan.

I can’t tell Polo any of these things, so I make up a lie.

“I was in prison the whole time. I was spared.”

“Why?”

I lie again, “I’m not sure. I guess maybe the Ottomans have hearts.”

I’m not sure if he believes me but none-the-less he hugs me. He gives me a tight squeeze at that moment. It makes me feel good that someone missed me so much.

“It’s worth it for you to return,” he tells me, “I couldn’t bare seeing Alexios walk around with this cocky behavior so sure that he was responsible for your death. He was unbearable. He thought he was some master schemer. He told everyone who listened how he put the laxatives in your coffee.”

Alexios acting like that doesn’t surprise me. Hearing him gloating about my death was something that doesn’t seem all that unexpected.

“What did I miss?” I ask him.

“I was spared…I guess after your incident; I didn’t look bad to them. No offense. And my scars are starting to heal a little.”

I notice, “Good Polo. I’m happy for you. What else is happening around here?”

“The Ottomans have conquered new parts of Europe. There are more slaves now. Alexios was cruel to most. There is one that is very handsome. His name is Justinian.”

“That’s a handsome name.”

“Well…he’s pretty handsome. Justinian is who everyone is talking about now.”

“Alexios must have his eyes on him,” I state.

Polo laughs, “I already overheard Alexios promising to kill him.”

I shake my head. Nothing has changed really it seems like.

“Well maybe Alexios will be more concerned with this new handsome boy and leave me the hell alone,” I state.

It’s wishful thinking. I saw how Alexios looked at me. I’m sure he had enough hate in his heart for multiple targets.

“Well we will soon see who Alexios has targeted at the orgy.”

I smile, “Orgy?”

Polo leans in close as though it is some secret he is excited about, “The victory party for the war is tomorrow. An orgy will be held here at the Harem to honor the heroes from the war.”

“Will the sultan be there?” I ask.

It would be my chance if he was. It would be my chance to get close enough to the sultan and end things once and for all.

“No. But the princes will be there.”

My heart drops.

“The princes?”

“Yes.”

“Fuck.”

“They spared you right?” Polo asks me, “Why do you look so worried.”

The princes hadn’t spared me. Loras, the Vizier of the sultan had spared me. This wasn’t good. Loras never talked politics when he was with me but I could see he was worried about what him sparing me would mean.

The princes wanted me dead for my accident. It was very clear. What would they do when they came back to the Harem to find me alive.

“I’ll be fine,” I state.

Polo gives me a hard look, “You don’t look fine.”

“I’ll be fine,” I tell him, “Where is Constantine. I need his guidance.”

Polo wouldn’t understand but Constantine would have an idea of how I can avoid the wrath of the princes. He was the princes’ favorite after all. Maybe he could convince them to not overrule Loras and end up killing me anyway. That was the only thing I could do at that moment. I had to convince Constantine to somehow help me.

Polo hesitates when I ask him that question though.

“Um…”

“Polo. I need to talk to Constantine. Where is he? It’s important.”

Polo seems to hesitate even more.

“He’s moved on.”

“Moved on?”

“Remember that boy I told you about. The new boy? Justinian?”

~

I find Constantine and Justinian down on a private path known as the golden road. The entrance corridors are overlooked by the eunuch’s watch rooms. An iron-barred punishment cage is at the entrance of the corridor. When I keep walking I make it to the bathrooms. They are an interesting series of marbled chambers. There were stained glass windows surrounded by zinc tiling, a huge sitting platform, elaborate fireplaces and painted dome over the innermost room.

Constantine is on that platform. He has no clothes on. He isn’t alone. There is a boy over him. The boy straddles him.

I hear his screaming loudly. I could imagine the eunuchs in their watch rooms heard as well but either they didn’t care or they didn’t have the energy to interfere.

“Fuck me Constantine!” the boy screams loudly.

The boy has a tight ass. He has a tight body in general. He seems a little fragile to me in a way. When Constantine fucks him I swear the fragile looking boy would break. He is young. He’s probably 18. That’s not the odd thing though. He looks so different from the other boy who are already in the harem. His skin is not dark like ours. This boy has very pale skin. His hair is blonde. It’s the color of ripe bananas. His lips are pink like flowers. His eyes remind me of spring. He clings desperately onto Constantine.

Constantine drills his dick into him, taking him with full confidence. He keeps fucking him harder and harder. I swear Constantine is going to cum but he doesn’t. He just stops and pulls out. He examines his dick. Grabs a hand of his dick. Smells it and nods.

“Well done,” he tells the boy, as though training a dog.

The boy must be Justinian. He notices me before Constantine does. His eyes shoot over to me.

“I think I’ve attracted an onlooker,” Justinian states.

He’s attractive in the face. I realize it when he looks at me. He has a unique look but I don’t think it’s fair. How is it fair? The rest of us look alike. Justinian is handsome because he looks so different. He is truly unique. Seeing how Constantine was having sex with him makes me jealous. Seeing how Constantine stands over him now makes me even more jealous.

Constantine’s eyes catch onto mine.

“Justinian, can I have a moment alone?”

Justinian seems a little anxious, “Who is this Constantine?”

“A moment!” Constantine says, “Please.”

I watch the younger, paler, blonder boy walk past me. His stomach is flatter than mine. I’ve only gained weight after being fed so thoroughly by Loras. I can’t help but to compare myself to this new boy that Constantine has running around with him.

When Justinian gets out of view I turn to Constantine.

“He’s handsome,” I state.

“Is that all I get after a month?” Constantine asks.

“What else do you want?”

“An explanation—maybe.”

“Remember the last thing you said to me. You aren’t my lover. You aren’t my friend. Remember that?” I ask him.”

Constantine stares at me.

“Yes I remember.”

He walks closer. His dick is swinging between his legs. It’s still as impressive as ever. I wonder if it still smells like the young boy. I wonder if he was checking the young boy to make sure that his ass was clean. He was checking the young boy to make sure that the young boy wasn’t going to make mistakes like I did.

“You’re training him to take over Alexios.”

“Yes. Things have gotten pretty bad between Alexios and I since I hit him.”

“And you think this boy is going to replace Alexios? When did the sultan start taking boys that look like that?”

“He’s the first. His father is some prince from a land where everything is green. I guess as the Sultan’s territory increases his taste in boys must change as well. Justinian being here means that his tastes are changing,” Constantine responds.

“Before long we’ll be irrelevant,” I state.

I’m worried. What if the sultan’s tastes are changing? How the hell would I get close enough to him to kill him if he was interested in this new look now. I couldn’t make my skin pale and my eyes blue. I couldn’t make my hair blond.

“It could be a phase,” Constantine states, “We’ll see. I assume.”

“We won’t see,” I respond, “The sultan doesn’t seem to come around often. Does he?”

“He’s a busy man and his wife dislikes him spending time in harems. That is why whoever becomes his favorite slave stays in his favor for some time. It’s rare the sultan comes around. If I want to replace Alexios I have to do it quickly.”

“Good luck with that,” I state.

“That’s it?” he asks me.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re back,” he tells me, “I don’t know how. I don’t know why. But you’re back. Surely there is something I can help you out with. There are things you need to learn still.”

I thought about it. I wanted to learn things. Constantine was right. I even wanted him to talk to the princes for me. However, seeing Constantine with this boy having sex just reminds me that Constantine isn’t my savior. Constantine was only helping me because he had a bone to pick with Alexios. He was doing this for power. Maybe Constantine wasn’t the sultan’s type. He couldn’t be the top boy because Alexios had the sultan’s attention. So Constantine felt like if he could displace Alexios there would be a power shift and he could fill that void. This was all a way for Constantine to make it to the top.

He didn’t give a fuck about me.

He’d proved it by moving on to Justinian.

“Good luck with your blond,” I tell him, “I don’t need your assistance.”

I walk away. Constantine watches me the whole time as I leave. I don’t know what I’m thinking. Constantine was one of the sexiest men in the Harem. He had the attention of all three princes. That was pretty important. That was pretty extreme.

I find myself going to the only other person that I know would help me. I find him in the baths. He is completely naked. He has a towel drenched over his head.

He looks up at me as I approach him.

He seems shocked that I’m in front of his face. He bites on his full thick lips and stares at me with those hazel eyes of his. His eyes squint at me as though not knowing what to say to how to respond to me being here with him.

“Manuel. I need your help. I need you to train me.”

~

We work at it all night. I don’t have much time. The next morning, I wake up to Manuel’s hard dick and I don’t eat lunch until we have sex. It’s lunch time when he takes me outside with him.

“Where are we going?” I ask Manuel, “We should be training.”

“We are training. You need to be more comfortable in public,” Manuel explains, “So I’m going to eat your ass in front of everyone.”

“Seriously…”

“You asked for my help,” Manuel responds, “And you have a problem. A problem that isn’t a good one in a Harem.”

“What problem?”

“You make ugly expressions.”

“Excuse me.”

“You make ugly expressions. Especially when you are enjoying something. You wear it on your face. People don’t like that. You need to control it. So go over there and bend over.”

There a few boys on a sofa. They are smoking hookah. I notice all of a sudden Alexios walk over as well. He stands only a few feet away from where I’m at and he crosses his arms. He seems completely amused at that moment when he sees Manuel and I. Mendeecees and Basil are on the couch next to him. Off to the side I see few other boys including Polo and some new boys I don’t know. Then by the baths I see Constantine. I can’t tell if he’s looking my way but I know Constantine is with that boy. I can tell the bright blonde haired boy from a mile away. It annoys me.

I bend over reluctantly. Manuel comes up from behind me.

“You are going to put your mouth on that Manuel?” Alexios asks me, “You’re more disgusting than I think you are.”

Basil sighs, “Alexios we all have had accidents when we started. You going to hold it over him a month later?”

“Quiet! Was I speaking to you? Idiot. When have I made an accident?” Alexios asks.

Basil raises his hand, “Ok. I apologize. You’re perfect.”

Basil has a bit of sarcasm to his tone.

Manuel looks over at me, “Ignore them. Focus. Look at the mirror there. I want you to watch your expressions. Make sure you remain attractive no matter what you feel.”

That’s when Manuel shifts my robe, pulls my underwear to the side and inserts his tongue. I exhale deeply. My mind trails off. A few of the other boys watch. Some seem a little bored. Manuel is licking me over and over at that moment. His tongue does deep into my asshole.

“It feels so…good…” I tell Manuel.

“Look. He has a donkey face,” Alexios states.

Laughter fills up the room. So many of them start laughing. The few who were somewhat interested lose interest completely. They walk away. Alexios goes back to smoking his hookah.

“Focus,” Manuel tells me.

I look to my right. Sure enough Constantine was standing. He crosses his arms. He’s with the little sexy boy he is training.

I stare at my reflection. Manuel wanted me to maintain an attractive face regardless of how good something felt. I hadn’t realized how hard a task this was going to be. Even being around these people seemed to be awkward for me. My face just wanted to switch up and become somewhat ugly. Manuel doing what he did felt beyond good.

Manuel sneaks his right hand underneath me at that moment. He begins to pull it slowly. I keep my face steady. I relax my jawbones. I maintain an attractive face even as he begins to jerk me off. As I come close I start squirming.

I can’t control it anymore.

I bite my lip. My eyebrow lower and tighten. My eyes squint. I open my mouth.

“Fu—fuck. I’m coming!”

It feels so good. I squirm underneath him. My body feels so heavy. My nut empties in Manuel’s hand. He keeps pulling until every drop of it is out of me. His palm is wet and sticky with my semen. His lips are wet with his own saliva from eating my ass. Looking back, I can’t help but to have an ugly expression. Manuel is so sexy with those big lips of his.

My expression is ugly. It’s so ugly. I turn to the right and see Constantine. He rolls his eyes. He must notice the expression I made as well. He must notice the same thing that Manuel noticed which had him out here.

“Close. You did better,” Manuel tells me.

Constantine has walked away. His new project, Justinian chases after him.

“Let’s go again,” I state.

“Sure. Once you rest and can go again.”

“I can go again now.”

“Now?” he asks.

“Now. Let’s go again.”

Manuel raises his eyebrow, “Ok. Let’s go again.”

I had something to prove. Not to Manuel. Not to Alexios. Not even to the princes. I had something to prove to Constantine. I had to prove to him that him choosing some skinny, young blonde to help him out was a mistake. I was the person who should be getting every bit of his attention.

It’s the day of the orgy. I’m in the room with two boys besides Polo who has begun to oil up his skin and try to hide his burns with as much make up as possible.

“Does that work?” another boy asks him.

“It works well enough,” Polo states.

The boy laughs. His name is Jelani. He’s new but immediately he had jumped on a specific bandwagon. It was the bandwagon that belonged to Alexios. He is one of the many followers of Alexios. I guess some people think kissing his ass will help them get ahead. The other boy next to Jelani gives a nervous laughter. I don’t know his name. He hasn’t really gotten an invitation to hang out with the group Alexios has yet so in the Harem he really isn’t a factor.

“Lucky for you it’s a masquerade event. Look at you. Alexios did a number on that burn…” Jelani laughs.

He’s new. He came sometime when I was gone so I don’t really know him. He’s one of those boys who wants to be a part of something so badly. I can just look at him and tell. The only reason I know his name is because I overheard Alexios mentioning how annoying “Big Nose Jelani” was. Truth is Jelani does have a big nose but it’s what makes him stand out. It offsets his dark hazel eyes and curly black hair. It defines his face. He’d actually be a real competitor if he wasn’t such a follower.

“Why are you laughing at him?” I ask Jelani, “Do you think it’s entertaining when Alexios destroys lives?”

Jelani stands for a minute. I don’t think he expects me to challenge him.

“Aren’t you that boy Alexios doesn’t like?” Jelani asks, “Who are you to talk?”

“So because Alexios doesn’t like me you’ve already made up your mind about me?”

“I’m new here. I don’t make the rules,” Jelani states.

“But you don’t have to just follow them either,” I respond, “You just got here. Form your own path.”

“Alexios runs this place. I figured that out within minutes of being here.”

“Alexios wants people to be scared of him. He wants people to hide in his shadow. That way they can never outshine him. How you ever going to shine if you’re in his shadow?”

The words are just spilling out. I don’t just want to say this to Jelani. I want to say this to all the other boys who follow Alexios around all the time. I want to say it to Basil, Mendeecees, hell…even Manuel. There are group of boys who just follow him around like he is their leader. It’s annoying.

Jelani seems to think about it for a minute, “You might have a point. He doesn’t even know my name. He calls me Big Nose.”

I could only imagine that Alexios didn’t respect these boys. I shake my head thinking about it. They let him get away with it.

I can only give advice though, “Make your own path.”

I’m not sure how much the words sink in or not.

Just at that moment Manuel walks into the room. He is about to say something but he stops. Something distracts him. It’s the fact that Jelani is in there, no doubt. Jelani realizes it, laughs and then walks out of the room with the other boy.

Manuel walks forward, “You need to be careful around here. Alexios has these boys wrapped around his finger.”

“Aren’t you wrapped around his finger?” I ask Manuel.

“If I was wrapped around his finger I wouldn’t be helping you,” Manuel states.

Polo gives me a long stare and a crooked smile, “He has a point.”

I nod. I haven’t really talked to Manuel. Since I’ve returned he’s just been having sex with me. It’s just made it easier for me to get used to it. I don’t have the time to entertain him in any other way.

“May I talk to you alone for a minute?” Manuel asks me.

“No.”

“I don’t mind,” Polo responds.

“I do,” I respond.

Polo leans into me, “Just give him a chance.”

It’s clear Polo is attempting to allow Manuel a moment alone with me when he walks out of the room quickly. I don’t know why Polo is doing it. Maybe he’s doing it because Manuel has been nice to him. Not many people here have been nice to Polo. He’s been picked on for some reason. Maybe it’s because he asks so many questions when others don’t. Maybe it’s because Alexios targeted him immediately from day one. Either way people treat Polo like he is some lost cause.

“I got you something,” Manuel states.

“What is it?”

He pulls out a satchel that he has been carrying with him and shows me some sort of mask. It’s for the orgy tonight.

“It’s a mask one of my patrons bought it for me. It’s made out of real gold and rubies,” Manuel explains to me, “The princes won’t notice it’s you, either. It’s not very revealing. You’ll have a second chance to prove yourself.”

“Your patron got it for you. I’ll find my own patron tonight. I don’t need your gifts.”

“Please. It’s an apology about turning you into Alexios.”

I’m confused.

“Why’d you do it?”

“That’s just how things are done around here. You either kiss Alexios ass or you don’t last. That’s just how it is.”

“Constantine doesn’t kiss his ass.”

Manuel shakes his head, “Do I look like Constantine? I don’t have princes protecting me. Listen. That’s just how it is. Once Alexios sets his sights on something he gets it done. I figured turning you in would spare his wrath a little bit.”

“I don’t need you to protect me against Alexios and his wrath. How about you go warn Alexios about my wrath?”

Manuel sighs, “Someone could walk in.”

“You’re so scared.”

“I don’t want to argue with you. Just take the mask. Please.”

“Fine.”

I grab the mask.

“And stop speaking about Alexios like that. Someone might hear.”

“Listen and learn Manuel. I’ve been quiet this whole time. Listening and learning. You haven’t even heard my voice yet. But you will.”

=================================================================================

Wet bodies, moaning, and orgasms is all you can hear. The sound of sex trumpets fill the room like a choir. There is this smell as well. It’s an alluring smell. All these different oils mixed with manly parts.

“You can nut in me. Yes. Yes…impregnate me,” I hear someone panting up against the wall.

It’s a Patron. He’s getting fucked. Clearly he can’t be impregnated but for some reason he allows himself to live this fantasy. At that moment he’s a submissive woman and some strong, looking young boy is drilling his hole until he orgasms deep inside of him.

Off to the side are two younger boys. I think for a moment that I recognize one of their bodies but I’m not sure. They are mud wrestling not too far from the baths. A small pit has been set up. They are being showered with gold coins as their dirty, naked bodies slide between one another.

“Don’t go to the mud pits, you’ll embarrass yourself,” a voice states.

I turn and see Manuel. He walks past quickly and whispers the warning. He has a point. The wrestling seems to be erotic but also intense. If I went close who knows if I would be pulled into that. I surely would embarrass myself.

“Where’s the princes?” I ask him.

“Have you lost your mind. Stay away from them. C`mon. I begged Basil to let you entertain one of his lesser patrons.”

“Lesser patrons?”

“A patron he doesn’t care for as much. One that doesn’t have as much money. He said you can have him. He’s being nice. You need to start small.”

I’m surprised Basil would be nice especially since he’s spent so much of his time following Alexios around. It was also clear sometimes just by his expression that Basil didn’t care for Alexios, but their relationship definitely seems complicated in my opinion. I wondered if there was more there.

“Why is Basil helping me?”

“Maybe he feels guilty for Alexios.”

“Why? Alexios did what he did to me. Not Basil.”

“Basil feels somewhat responsible for how Alexios is now.”

Interesting.

“There are feelings there?” I ask.

“It’s complicated. Constantine chose love over the Harem. Alexios and Basil chose the Harem over love.”

Complicated made things a lot more interesting.

I can’t tell many of the boys with their masks on but there is one person that seems to stand out just based on his tall lean body. It’s Basil. He has a jeweled mask on with elaborate feathers. It’s in the shape of an exotic bird. The feathers are colorful peacock feathers. As I walk past I see Basil fucking one of his patron’s from behind. Another patron stands not too far from Basil desperately playing with his penis to the rhythm of Basil’s thrust. Basil let’s out these deep grunts, “Humph, humph” as he strokes deeper and deeper.

He turns to me. I don’t think he knows it’s me. If he does, he doesn’t acknowledge me through my mask.

“Nice dick,” someone states to me.

I turn to see a patron. He’s drinking. He smells of pure alcohol. He squeezes my penis a few times. His mouth waters to the point that a bit of drool dribbles out. He’s a heavyset man. Not in any way attractive. I think about teasing him and letting him test me but something gets my attention.

The princes.

They are sitting by the baths. The princes Dhaakir and Dhaamir don’t have masks on but Prince Daai does have one on. The two older brothers are watching someone. It’s clear who it is. They are watching Constantine. Constantine sucks all the energy when the princes are there. It’s clear why he gets most of the gifts now.

Constantine is fucking someone. He is ravaging them. The person squirms and screams underneath him. The show is causing the princes to get excited. Prince Daai has taken to playing with his dick in front of everyone. A few boys come over, drop to their knees and begin to suck him off. I count four all together. They take turns licking his dick as he watches Constantine perform for him.

“Harder. Suck me like Constantine is fucking that boy. Yes. Match Constantine’s thrust,” Daai states.

I notice the boy who Constantine is fucking. It’s young Justinian.

“This new boy is my favorite,” another prince mentions.

I watch. Jealousy is filling me. I hate this. I hate every moment of this. That’s when I turn. I needed someone. Manuel was looking at me. He was there. He wouldn’t do though. No. I needed someone who wasn’t so sweet. I needed someone who was aggressive.

That’s when I feel the soft brush at my back.

“Basil…”

“Constantine and that boy are hot, aren’t they?” Basil asks me.

He is cleaning his dick off. He’s just used it on one of his patrons. I have no doubt that he had an orgasm. I think about it.

“Not as hot as this,” I tell Basil.

“What?”

I don’t give Basil a chance before I grab him, pull him aggressively on stage and throw him right on the ground between where Constantine is with Justinian. The shock of it all causes Constantine to stop making love to Justinian almost immediately. As soon as Basil hits the ground I jump on top of him.

I kiss him.

“Oh…” he says.

“What?” I ask.

“I don’t kiss in front of Alexios,” he tells me.

I can see the princes turn to me.

I see Constantine turn to me.

I see Manuel and all the other slaves shocked that I just cut off Constantine’s attention in the way that I did. Not only did I cut off Constantine’s attention but I had my eyes set on Basil…the boy that I was pretty sure Alexios was in love with.

I kiss Basil again with everyone looking, and he lets me. His tongue goes to the back of my mouth. There is this immediate intimacy. Basil wraps his hands around my backside. He squeezes me tightly. He sticks his tongue completely out of his mouth. We kiss and kiss. We kiss deeper. He begins to slide into me. I exhale into his mouth. I feel his wet dick only being matched by his wet tongue.

“Who’s this?” Prince Daai laughs.

The princes have all begun to whisper. They are interested. They aren’t the only ones. In the corner of my eyes, I see Alexios. He takes off his mask. His eyes are daring me. It’s strange really that he would care. I’m sure he’d seen Basil fuck and get fucked hundreds of times. Why was this different? For some reason I can see it in his eyes though. This was different. I wondered why.

That’s when I remember. Basil doesn’t kiss ever. Had the kiss been something intimate that he only shared with Alexios? Had they agreed not to kiss others in front of one another?

I smirk. I’m enjoying the reaction from Alexios.

I mount Basil while everyone is watching.

“Damn…” is all Basil says when we start.

I was going to show everyone who I was. I was going to say it. I was going to scream it so loud as Basil and I performed together so intimately we would shake the foundations of the palace.

Tonight Hush would find his voice…

6

Basil’s semen dribbles down my back moving in a slow thick wave to my ass cheeks like a melted candle. Basil has just fucked me for the princes and our performance causes him to keel over, breathing hard. The room is silent except for Basil’s deep breaths. Basil was known to have prowess. It wasn’t easy but I had managed to wear him out completely. I turn slightly and for some reason I’m more interested to see his expression than even the princes. Basil stares down at me in disbelief.

I’m handed a wet towel by the eunuchs to clean myself off but I’m stopped.

“Wait…” the person says, “Let me.”

I turn around to notice Prince Daai. I remember him. It’s hard to forget when you embarrass yourself in front of someone like that. Prince Daai descends on me and begins to lick. I almost lose it because I’m so sensitive after Basil fucked me so hard. I manage to maintain myself though. I just have to keep it together for a few more minutes.

Daai starts up the side of my leg. He goes higher and higher. He licks until he gets to Basil’s nut drizzling down my ass cheeks. He sucks it all, swallows it and continues to lick me even after it is all gone. I watch the prince jerk himself off. The other boys seem to want to help him but he is satisfied with just tasting me as he does it.

I know I have him when he turns around and stares at my face.

“Who are you?” the prince asks.

I hesitate knowing the other princes are watching but I remove my mask. When Daai sees who it is he begins to laugh thoroughly entertained. I wished the other two princes were just as entertained but I don’t see smiles on their faces. The heavier one is angry. The look on his face seems to say it all.

“You’re supposed to be dead,” the crowned Prince Dhaakir states

Prince Dhaakir is a lazy fuck. I’ve noticed how he doesn’t get into the boys like his other brother do. He seems to come to the Harem specifically to sit back, eat, be given oral and to make faces as though he is the one being inconvenienced somehow. Even now his little cock is pink from Mendeecees who was forced to suck him up for what took him forever to climax. It’s Mendeecees who actually has to help the lazy fuck to his feet now. As he approaches I realize he’s with a band of followers. They seem like wealthy men, even though I’m not particularly familiar with what wealthy Ottoman men looked like. They surround him standing with him making a scene because of the energy it all takes.

“He’s not dead. He’s very alive,” Prince Daai states.

He stands and takes a few steps away from me.

“Isn’t that the same disgusting boy?” Prince Dhaamir asks, “Isn’t it him?”

“Yes sir, it is,” Alexios puts in quickly.

He’s like a snake slithering through the grass. He quickly yells it out and slithers away into the crowd making sure that his face doesn’t linger too long. I know it’s Alexios. I can smell the stench of treachery close by.

This seems to put Prince Dhaakir on edge.

“I ordered him dead!”

Dhaakir is a small child stuck in a large man’s body. The way he throws his arm at that moment is almost as though a playmate has disappointed him.

“Well he’s not dead brother, clearly. And I think I’m glad,” Daai says.

Dhaakir seems highly irritated when he says, “Eunuchs…take off his head.”

My heart races. The eunuchs don’t hesitate. The black bodies come like shadows with weapons sharper than any I’ve ever seen before. They come surrounding me and I do the only thing that I can. I run across the room, toss myself at Prince Daai’s feet and cling for dear life. I’ve never held onto anyone as tightly as I hold onto his knees. They would have to peel me from the Prince’s feet if they wanted to take off my head. I know it’s risky but at this moment I don’t have a choice. I would have to force someone’s hand in this situation.

And without me having to say a word Prince Daai holds his hands out to stop the eunuchs approach. All of a sudden there was tension. The eunuchs seem caught somewhere in the middle. One prince wanted me dead and the other prince was stopping him.

Even with Daai holding out his hand I don’t leave his shadow. I humble myself to him as best as I can.

“Dhaakir we all wanted him dead but God intervened,” Daai states, “God spared him. Why shouldn’t we?”

I can’t relate to the argument or even understand it but I notice a couple of the nobles nodding as though this zealous faith based argument was one of the best ever made. I could care less what kind of argument Prince Daai was making as long as he was making an argument to save my life. I cling harder and harder. The dark blades would take off my head. If I let go of Prince Daai, I would be a dead man. There were many uncertainties in the harem but I had no doubt about that.

“Daai move,” Dhaakir states.

Daai stares at him. For a moment I think he will give in but the young prince seems to have found some type of defiance in him and says, “No.”

“I am Dhaakir, first of his name, the heir apparent to Ottoman empire…” Dhaakir states.

Dhaakir begins to name all of his titles in the Shia caliphate. His voice booms across the room as he states them. For a moment I think God himself has come down and is speaking through Dhaakir. If anything the crowned prince’s voice carried with it with it a sense of authority. With each word he says it seems Prince Daai seems spectacularly unmoved.

“We all know your titles,” Prince Daai says, “The fact that you have to spout them off for a little bit of respect makes it clear you probably aren’t that secure with them.”

The tension is thick. I don’t think Dhaakir expects that because at that moment he shakes nervously.

“It was you? Wasn’t it? You spared him?” Dhaakir states pointing at Daai.

“I wanted him dead, but I changed my mind.”

“Liar!”

“Don’t you dare call me a liar you fat fuck!”

Men stand up. Everyone stands up. Swords come out. The men with Prince Dhaakir seem to be outraged by Daai’s disrespect but Daai is far from alone. He has brought some noblemen with him as well. I don’t notice them before because they have been scattered around with boys in the Harem, but within a matter of seconds they appear quicker than even the Eunuchs do. I am sure it is going to be a blood bath in the harem.

The middle brother Dhaamir seems to come out of nowhere. He holds his hands out at that moment and he stops them.

“Brothers. Why are we arguing? It’s just a slave,” Dhaamir states.

“Exactly so why is he so intent?” Daai states

Dhaamir tries to hold back Daai before stating, “Peace. Please…”

There is a tension in the next few minutes where I swear I think the crowned prince is going to turn on his younger brother, have him killed and then take me with him. Fortunately, however, that doesn’t happen. The crowned prince stares at Daai.

“You will respect my role.”

With that the crowned prince turns and is escorted out. He’s so upset that he has to lean on a few people in his entourage to help him walk. He may have been lazy but there was power in his voice. It would compel men to kill and right now I saw murder in Prince Dhaakir’s eyes.

The other two princes remain behind and it is clear the tension still hasn’t resided even with the crowned prince gone.

“It isn’t about the slave,” Daai states, “He’s afraid one of us will take his throne when Father dies. You know that, don’t you?”

Dhaamir doesn’t seem as angry. He cautions his younger brother, “Daai, stop provoking him. This could turn out bad for everyone.”

There is something dark in Daai’s eyes when he says, “Maybe that’s not such a bad thing.”

~

I’m not quite sure how it happens but I survive the night. Basil lifts me up. Maybe he knows how weak I am and how much he has helped me. He takes me away to the bath, scrubs me silently and carries me cradled in his arms like a child to his bed.

“Well done beautiful,” he tells me, “I’ve never seen anything like it. You’ll be the talk of the Harem…“′

I don’t know what he means by that but within a matter of seconds he leans over and kisses me on the lips. Basil spends that night with me and the next day. I’m too sore from him fucking me the night before to really do much for the next few days but luckily he makes sure he gives me these deep massages every day. It’s almost as though he is my doctor. I don’t speak but I listen to him. I listen to the stories he tells me of where he is from.

It isn’t until the second night that I start to feel better.

“Are you hungry?” he asks me.

I nod, silently.

I sit in the darkness watching as sexy Basil turns to leave. He is definitely a perfect specimen of a man. I admire his muscular toned ass that sits up high with deep dimples as he walks away. I can’t help but to lick my lips when he walks away until I hear someone clear their throat and realize that I’m not alone in the room.

I turn at that moment and notice Constantine. He’s sitting there and gets up.

“He likes you,” Constantine states.

Constantine is shirtless. He’s covered in oil. He may able to fool someone else but I have a perfect memory when it comes to certain things. I knew he didn’t have oil on his chest when he was in the room having sex with his new blonde boy. No. Constantine had worn the oil for me. It was freshly applied. He has nothing on a but a pouch to hold his dick and balls. It’s tied around his waist. He’s showing off his distinct muscular legs. He looks so different from Basil. Basil is tall and toned. Constantine is muscular and bulky.

For some reason I’m not surprised that he’s here.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Basil. He likes you.”

“I like him too.”

“Not like that. Not even as far as sexual attraction,” Constantine states, “Basil likes you romantically. I know him. He doesn’t cater to anyone if he doesn’t have to. I watched while he was bathing you. He is falling for you.”

Is that why Constantine comes to my room late at night oiled up and looking like he had just come from a workout?

“Is that so bad?” I ask him.

“Yes,” he responds, “He’s not a real man. He pretends to be but he’s not.”

“You seem to be bothered.”

“He’s annoying.”

“You never seemed to be annoyed when Manuel was helping me,” I state seeming interested, “Are you jealous of Basil.”

“Jealous? He’s all looks. He has no substance. He can’t handle you.”

“What makes you think I need to be handled?”

“You need to be mentored.”

“Manuel has been helping me.”

Constantine rolls his eyes, “Please.”

He sneers a little bit in this overly confident way. Constantine hides behind his looks and his sex appeal. He uses it as a crutch. I can see it now. He can’t help but to be sexy. I want to call him out so bad on it but I have to admit I enjoy it. I enjoy the way he leans up against the wall, tightens his ab muscles so they are defined in the moonlight sinking in my room. He knows just the way to turn to me so that he looks like he is drowning in this moonlight. He licks his lips frequently but not in a way that seems like he’s trying too hard. He knows when to look away. He knows when to stare at me. He seduces me with every action.

But why was he here?

“Why are you here Constantine?” I ask him.

“Let me take over. I can help you more than Manuel can. I can help you more than Basil.”

“Are you bored with Justinian already?” I ask him.

Constantine laughs.

“If you are going to be spiteful I can just leave.”

He starts to walk away. I stop him before he goes too far.

“You decided to leave me.”

“That was before I knew what you were capable of,” Constantine states, “When I saw you the other day I was blown away. Where did that come from Hush?”

I shrug.

“I don’t know.”

“You know. Someone doesn’t just learn what you did with Basil. It was magic. It was like some sort of physical poetry. I can’t get it out of my head. The way you twist and turn on him. You turned sex into a form of dancing. That can’t be learned.”

Constantine is walking around me in circles like a vulture waiting for the carcass of truth so that he can swoop down and devour it. His suspicious voice is followed up by slanted eyes and a hard touch to my shoulders that makes me shiver slightly.

“What are you suggesting?” I ask him.

“You were born with it. But I can help you perfect it.”

Interesting.

“What about Justinian?” I ask him.

“He’s good but he’s not you,” Constantine states, “Let me help you.”

“Help me. What should I do?”

“You need to practice more. With me. And you need to get rid of Polo like I told you before.”

I roll my eyes, “Constantine that’s my friend.”

“He’s a burden. He won’t survive. I heard the Princes talking about his scars today.”

“He’s a friend.”

“He’s a burden.”

“I’m not going to avoid him. When you abandoned me, I came back and Polo was the one there for me,” I state, “So if you are going to make me choose Polo or you. I’ll choose Polo.”

Constantine shakes his head violently.

“I don’t share.”

“Well then I guess you’ll have to go help Justinian.”

Constantine gives me a hard look. He’s pissed. I can tell he’s pissed. I don’t think he was expecting this. Maybe he expected me to be like Justinian and just follow him around like a lost puppy waiting to be saved. His reaction speaks volumes at this moment.

“Who are you?” Constantine asks me.

It’s a random question but I can tell that it’s on his mind. It’s always been on his mind.

“No one,” I respond.

“Fine. Keep your secrets,” Constantine tells me, “And keep your friend. He’s out there right now being a burden to you. Go see for yourself.”

Constantine gives me an awkward smile and I am nervous to know what he is referring to. I don’t wait to see.

~

I head out at that moment. I haven’t seen the other boys since the orgy. I knew there would be talking but when I leave the room I didn’t expect what I found. I find Polo is sitting at the head of the table. He is slightly drunk. Jelani, Mendeecees and Alexios are at the table. Manuel is at the table. Others are there as well. They are all looking at Polo who is talking loudly and flailing around with a confidence that I haven’t seen from him yet.

“There he is. There is MY friend,” Polo states.

Polo hands me a glass as soon as I approach the table. I grab the glass and try to pull Polo away but he shakes me off.

“What are you doing?” I ask Polo.

I try to whisper it but Polo returns my whisper with a loud booming voice, “I was just telling these fucking losers how my best friend singlehandedly caused a civil war.”

“What?” I ask.

“Haven’t you heard?” Polo asks, “Prince Daai and Prince Dhaakir are at each other’s throats over you. Both their armies are fighting as we speak. Over you…”

Polo is saying it as though it’s something to be proud of. My mouth gets dry. I turn my back at that moment and notice that Constantine has followed me out. He has a smirk on his face as though enjoying every moment of Polo’s word vomit.

“Polo that has nothing to do with me,” I state, “You heard what they said. I’m just a slave.”

“You’re not just a slave. You had every eye staring at you. I even heard the eunuchs saying that people outside of the harem were discussing the talented slave named Hush that resides in our walls. Supposedly the sultan wants to see what is causing all this infighting with his sons.”

I’m shocked.

“The sultan wants to see me.”

Polo nods, “In person.”

He smiles.

Fuck. I swallow at that moment. I wasn’t ready. I was scared.

“Polo we should go,” I state, noticing how drunk he is.

I try to leave but I’m stopped by Mendeecees.

“Stay for a while.”

I notice how several boys flock to me saying the same thing. I notice how they pull out a seat for me.

“You haven’t even seen your gifts,” another boy states.

The boy is one of the newer boys that looks a little like Justinian. He brings me out a box of gifts. I’m shocked when I see them to be honest. I can’t help but notice Polo’s face.

“Look chocolates,” Polo states, “I bet they are the best in the empire.”

Polo helps himself to my chocolates. I don’t mind but I know that Polo isn’t doing it because he wants chocolates. I know he’s doing it to get back at Alexios. He’s doing a damn good job right now as well. Alexios is the quiet one all of a sudden. He sits off to the side watching as the boys help me open my gifts. There are clothes by the tons. Long robes, sashes, caftans with fur lining and embroidery, tunics, vests, trousers and more jewelry than I can imagine.

At first I think they are all from maybe Prince Daai for some reason, but I’m wrong.

“I don’t even know these people,” I state.

“Suitors are trying to get your attention,” Jelani tells me, “They want to know what the big deal is.”

“There is no big deal.”

Polo shakes his head, “He’s being shy, everyone.”

This causes laughter and even more attention. Attention that I don’t necessarily want. It was one thing to do what I did for survival. It was another thing to boast openly about it like Polo was doing right now. I notice Manuel standing over my shoulder. He stares at me.

“Did you want to leave?” Manuel asks me.

Maybe he can see the distress on my face. I don’t know why he asks me that. I nod in agreement and he offers me his hand but just as he does I’m surrounded by more boys who bring me over a grand box. This box is actually a gift from Prince Daai.

“An emerald necklace,” I realize.

The green jewels are perfect. They fall down to my chest.

“You look worth fighting for,” Polo lets me know.

I’m surprised when Jelani smiles at me, “My suitor says that the sultan is allowing the war. Rumor has it he is displeased with Dhaakir as his heir. He’s using Daai as a reason to replace Dhaakir.”

“This is serious,” I state.

“You think you’re so special, don’t you?” Alexios asks me.

Everyone stops talking when Alexios states that. He has been abandoned on the other side of the long dining table. He has been drinking too. His eyes cross towards me. His fingers tap anxiously on the wood as though he’s been holding back from saying something for this long. I stare back at him and can tell that this is all getting underneath his skin in a way that he wasn’t expecting.

“I didn’t say that,” I respond.

“He didn’t have to say that,” Polo butts in before I can let it all out, “He is special.”

“I don’t see it,” Alexios responds.

“Maybe you’re jealous,” Polo states, “The sultan wants to see him.”

“If you shit on the sultan’s dick there won’t be a 2nd chance,” Alexios lets me know.

His coy remark causes a couple of people to laugh at me. These people were so fake. One moment they are admiring me and the next moment they laugh at me. It gets underneath my skin but I get up at that moment.

“Like I said…I’m nothing to be concerned about,” I state.

“I didn’t think so.”

“You can have the necklace Alexios. It looks better on you,” I respond.

I slide the box of emeralds across the table to Alexios. It was nothing to turn the other cheek when I needed to. The thing is even though I am beginning to walk away I realize that I’ve left Polo at the table. I turn around and notice Polo has walked over to grab the emeralds away from Alexios.

“You don’t deserve these,” Polo spits at Alexios, “It’s about time someone took your place as the favorite around here.”

“Polo…” I start out.

It’s too late. Alexios is pissed.

“So that’s what you’re trying to do?” Alexios asks me, “You trying to take my place.”

“I don’t care about that,” I respond.

Polo isn’t anywhere near as shy. A part of me is embarrassed by Polo but I can understand why he is doing it. Alexios has targeted us since we came here. He was sick of it and Polo was sticking up for himself finally. The only problem is that Polo was using me as a shield where he can launch attacks at Alexios. He’s finally found his confidence but only because of me.

“He took Basil away from you, Alexios. And now he’s going to take the sultan,” Polo responds.

Polo saying this sends Alexios over the edge. Alexios walks over to me and pulls his hand back as though he is about to strike me. He doesn’t get close to doing it though. Someone grabs his hand and stops him. When I see who has stopped Alexios it’s clear that this situation has gone from bad to worse.

“Don’t ever put your hands on him,” Basil tells Alexios grabbing onto his wrists. He twists his wrists until Alexios squirms in pain.

That’s when I see Alexios. He looks so angry. He’s shaking at that moment. The reality has hit Alexios. I think the reality hits a couple people at the same time. I notice Manuel and Constantine both shocked at Basil’s actions. Maybe a part of me knew that Basil and I connected on some level during sex but I didn’t want to admit that it would cause him to interfere. How many times had Basil seen Alexios mistreating others and he never interfered? Not until now. The moment is hard. The tension seems to fill the room.

Angry tears are rolling down Alexios’s face.

Things have changed. Alexios was no longer the top boy and I can see the desperation in his eyes. He had nothing to lose. When an animal was cornered with nowhere to go they are the most dangerous they’ve ever been. Alexios was an animal now. He was losing everything to me and Polo had made sure everyone knew how clear that was today.

He stares at me and says in the most angry tone, “You won’t make it to see the sultan. I promise you, Hush. I’m going to kill you. You hear me? I’m going to kill you!”

7

It’s been a week since Alexios threatened me. It’s hard having to watch your back. Everything I do. Everywhere I go. Everything I eat I have to watch it carefully. It’s clear that Alexios has it out for me. So I end up going to the only person that I know can help me in this situation.

I end up going to Constantine.

A few knocks on his private room and Constantine isn’t the person that opens the door. It’s Justinian.

“Is Constantine here?”

“He’s busy.”

The way Justinian says it seems like he has an attitude. I’m immediately annoyed with him. I push his skinny ass out of the way and storm into Constantine’s room.

“Move.”

I don’t like the man. It’s not the fact that he is hanging around with Constantine now or that he is clearly completely in love with Constantine. I hate the way he is in love with Constantine. Constantine has an ego and boys like Justinian have fed that ego throughout the years. Justinian is so submissive. He walks around in Constantine’s shadow making Constantine think he is some sort of god. When I walk in Constantine’s room I notice that his feet are up. It’s clear the boy Justinian is giving him a foot massage. This was exactly why I find Justinian annoying.

“I said he was busy,” Justinian says.

I ignore Justinian. Constantine is completely naked save a small piece of cloth covering his private parts. His sleeping area is full of satin pillows. His window is open and a trail of lights fall out from between the bars of the Harem. Rose petals flicker outside of his window. I never get past the bars. No matter how beautiful the Harem is I know the truth. It’s a prison. Just a very beautiful prison that smells good. It smells like incense in his room constantly even though I can never tell where one is burning. He seems amused when he sees me. A knowing smile surfaces on his face.

“I want to talk to you, alone,” I tell Constantine.

“I’m busy,” Constantine states.

I’m annoyed.

“I tried to tell him,” Justinian says.

The annoyance continues. Justinian even speaking makes me even more annoyed. I want to pull his blond locks clean out of his head and show Constantine how basic he was underneath it all. Justinian seems to sit on this blond locks, depending on them to cover up the fact that he had no real personality.

“It’s alright,” Constantine replies, changing his mind for some reason, “Justinian give us a minute please.”

Justinian leaves. He’s so obedient that it makes me sick.

I walk over to Constantine. I stand up in front of him. I cross my arms.

“You were right about Polo,” I state.

“Say that one more time, I didn’t think I heard you clearly.”

Constantine is enjoying his moment of levity. His smirk gets louder. He leans back in the bed, crunching up his hard abs and staring at me with slanted eyes. The light between the bars causes stripes on his smooth skin.

“You were right about Polo,” I respond a little louder trying to remain humble, “Polo’s big mouth has made me prime target for Alexios. He’s currently making my life a living hell. I feel like he may be trying to kill me.”

“I’m pretty sure he’s trying to kill you,” Constantine corrects me.

He’s enjoying this but I can’t even find the path to argue with him.

“I can’t even sleep at night,” I state.

Constantine grunts, “That is terrible.”

“That’s all you’re going to say?”

“What else do you want me to say?”

“I want you to help me,” I state, “You’re the only person that Alexios respects around here.”

Constantine nods. The smile he has goes away.

“I’ll help you. Under a few conditions.”

It was just like Constantine. He wouldn’t just help me to help me. He would help me to get something out of it. I take a look in his eyes and I can tell that he has something hidden beneath them. This wasn’t going to be easy.

“What are they?” I ask Constantine.

“You come sleep in here and I fuck you every night…”

He licks his lips. Normally I would enjoy it but I see an area in the room where there are clothes familiar to Justinian. Is he done with him? Is he already bored with the foreigner.

“Was that supposed to be romantic?”

“You sleeping here will keep you safe. Me fucking you will help me practice.”

I look at Constantine in his eyes. Practice. Right. I’m sure that was what this was about.

“Fine.”

“That’s not it. Also you don’t talk to Basil or Polo. Ever.”

I had a feeling he would say this. I understood Polo. Polo couldn’t help causing trouble whether he wanted to or not. However Constantine telling me to stay away from Basil was hard. For some reason Constantine is bothered by Basil. I’m not sure why. I realize he doesn’t mention Manuel in this. Maybe it’s because Basil has that sex appeal and confidence that Manuel doesn’t have. I have a strong feeling Basil intimidates him. For some reason Constantine doesn’t want me around him.

I have no choice though. I wasn’t here for friends or even for a lover.

“You think Basil and I have something going on don’t you?”

“I’m sure you do. He’s a distraction.”

“Manuel likes me too. You never considered him a distraction.”

“I’m doing this for Manuel.”

I laugh at that moment, “Constantine be honest with yourself. This has nothing to do with Manuel.”

“Sure it does. Manuel is a friend of mine. I don’t want him getting jealous at the fact that you and Basil are getting close.”

Constantine is so spoiled and stubborn. It is so clear it has nothing to do with Manuel but he would never admit it. I guess that makes two of us. I will never admit to the fact that I hate seeing him in here with Justinian. I guess we just both have to agree to pretend like we aren’t bothered.

“Fine,” I state, “I’ll stay away from Basil and Polo. What else?”

He seems surprised that I agree with him.

“The last thing is simple.”

“What is it?”

“You tell me who you are. Who you really are and what you are really doing here?”

“I was taken.”

Constantine looks at me hard, “I know better. I saw how you had sex with Basil. This innocent game you’re playing may work on the others but it doesn’t work on me. It takes years for boys in the Harem to get so comfortable with their bodies.”

He stares at me hard and suspicious. He would know if I lie to him. I always knew Constantine was smart and maybe that was the problem. He was uncomfortably smart. He was onto me and that pissed me off.

“No.”

“No?” Constantine asks.

He’s so pissed that he stands up. The fabric between his legs falls to the floor. He is standing in front of me in all his manhood. His long dick is like a python slithering between the forest trees as he takes his powerful steps towards me. I can tell Constantine is angry just by the look on his face.

“No,” I answer.

“You really going to play that game?” Constantine asks.

“It’s not a game.”

He had no idea how serious this was.

“You’re doing this on purpose. You’re trying to make me crazy.”

“Not everything is about you. I came here because I need your help.”

“I gave you my stipulations. Tell me why you’re here.”

I don’t have time for this. I start walking away. Constantine attempts to grab me. It doesn’t turn out too well for him. I twist his wrist as hard as I can. I push him up against the wall. This seems to piss him off even more but he doesn’t try to come out of my pin. He just stares at me as though still trying to figure me out.

“If you leave this room, don’t ask for my help again,” Constantine states, “I’ve given you more chances than I’ve given anyone else.”

I look at Constantine hard. For someone who doesn’t care about me he sure seems to get emotionally involved here. It’s clear though that he is hard headed. The problem about him being so stubborn is that I am stubborn too. I need his help and it’s clear he wants to help me, but his pride is getting in the way. Even right now I can see the pride written all over his face. He’s used to boys like Justinian and maybe his old lover who killed himself. Boys who had weaker mentality and couldn’t take the pressure when it came down to it. He wasn’t used to someone who was strong.

I turn to leave. I want to stay. He wants me to stay. He doesn’t stop me though.

Constantine may have his pride but I have it as well.

~

The argument with Constantine effects me more than I like to think. I head out into the front room where most of the boys are. I sit next to Polo who offers me a smile. I know I need to stay away from him but with Constantine not helping me the least I can do is wean myself out of his friendship slowly.

The eunuchs have brought out some sort of porridge for us to eat and most of the boys are already eating. I grab the bowl that was sitting next to Polo. This is where I usually sit so at first I don’t think about it but then I realize some heavy presence over my shoulder.

It’s Alexios. He’s staring at me, waiting and watching to see if I eat the porridge.

I’m starving but I drop it.

“What’s wrong?” Polo asks.

I push the porridge away. Alexios staring at me is making me think he did something to it.

“Nothing. Lost my appetite,” I state.

“You sure. You haven’t been really eating anything recently,” Polo responds.

“I’m fine,” I state and change the subject as quickly as possible, “What’s been happening with our visitors? No one’s come to the Harem lately.”

Polo shrugs. I don’t think he knows what’s going on. It’s been days. It’s unusual. Luckily Manuel overhears me ask Polo the question and he does seem to know.

“It’s the brothers. The internal conflict is getting worse. Blood is being spilled out in the streets of Constantinople,” Manuel explains.

Constantinople was the capital of this empire. I knew only because I heard Loras mention it several times when I stayed with him.

“I didn’t mean to provoke the situation.”

“It’s not you,” a voice says.

I turn to see Basil come sit with us. Well not actually us. He comes and sits right next to me specifically. He leaves no space between us. The other boys at the table notice it. A few whispers seem to get back to Alexios.

“What do you mean?” I ask.

“The issues between the princes have been going on for a while. They are just using you as an excuse, but as the sultan gets old things like this tend to happen. It’s a struggle for power.”

I shake my head. I remember how sensitive the crowned Prince Dhaakir was to Daai. I could only imagine. If I had a brother like Daai, I would be somewhat sensitive as well. Daai was amazing. He was the best looking brother. He was the strongest looking brother. His mere presence seems to intimidate.

“Who do you think is going to come out on top?” I ask.

“Dhaakir, of course,” someone interrupts.

I turn to see Alexios. He approached us. I know why. He must see how close Basil is sitting to me. It’s getting underneath his skin.

The idea of Dhaakir winning scares me. He wanted me dead. I’m not sure if he really wanted it or if he was just saying that for some sort of power struggle against his younger brother. Either way these were dangerous politics and I knew that my life was depending on it. Alexios seemed to know that too. Maybe that is why he is standing over us at this moment…gloating.

“Whatever happens needs to happen fast. People are scared to visit the Harem,” Mendeecees states shaking his head, “No one’s visiting us.”

“No visits means no gifts,” Manuel adds in.

“I’m tired of eating porridge,” Mendeecees groans.

He’s not the only one. A couple of the boys are clearly getting a little irritated, especially the popular boys. They miss their foreign chocolates. They were used to their gifts and the lavish food the nobles who visited the Harem brought with them. This porridge was tasteless and bland.

“I don’t mind it,” Polo replies, “Hush, you sure you don’t want yours?”

Polo reaches for the bowl but I slap it clean out of his hand until it spills on the floor. The dish falls hard on the floor.

“No,” I tell him.

“What the hell was that for?” he asks.

I look over at Alexios. Alexios walks over to the bowl that I wasted. He picks it up. Takes a finger and licks it.

“It’s a shame to waste good food,” Alexios tells me.

With that Alexios smiles wider and walks away. He’s toying with me. I can tell that he’s toying with me and it’s getting worse and worse. I wouldn’t be able to eat again until the next day.

~

It’s Manuel’s idea to entertain ourselves since we aren’t getting any visitors. Without hearing gossip from the men who got drunk and came into the Harem a lot of boys were assuming the worse. It was like Manuel to try to cheer everyone up and take our minds off of whatever was having between the clash of the princes.

His event is oil wrestling.

I’m standing there watching Jelani wrestle one of the newer boys. There is something sexy about men getting completely naked, douse one another with olive oil and show off their masculinity as they wrestle. It’s sexy as hell as the two men show off their muscles and pin each other down to the cheering crowd of other boys.

“You enjoying it, I see…” a voice says.

I turn at that moment to see Basil. He sneaks up behind me. He notices something that I haven’t noticed myself. My penis is erect watching the boys. It’s showing through the calfskin that I’m wearing. Seeing Basil undress in front of me doesn’t help either. He begins to rub oil all over him.

“Yes.”

“Rub my back.”

I oil his back. I rub oil on his tight ass and the bottom of his legs. As I do it I can’t help but to press up against him. He notices. He pushes me up against his ass so my dick is just at the cusp of the bottom of his legs. He leads it up until it is in his asshole. I exhale. He pushes it into his asshole. It’s so tight that it doesn’t get through.

I’m so turned on that my dick precums into his asscheeks. The precum drips out from his taint. I get red in the face.

“This is embarrassing.”

“Don’t worry. A lot of people are getting turned on. Look around,” Basil states.

Sure enough people are getting turned on. Mostly everyone is hard watching Jelani take on the other boys. Some boys have resorted to pulling their penises out and slowly pleasing themselves. Others have even gone further. I watch in disbelief as this boy drops to his knees and begins to suck Polo as Polo enjoys the match. Polo slowly fucks the boys face all while cheering Jelani on chanting “Big Nose Jelani” over and over again like Alexios is doing.

Alexios had started the chant but before long he can tell that Basil is next to me. He stops chanting. He stops participating all together and turns his full attention to me.

“We have an audience,” I sigh.

“You should be used to it,” Basil responds, “Especially after we performed together last time. You had to know Alexios would be jealous.”

He whispers it to me but for some reason I just know Alexios can tell what we are talking about. His face sours up even more. Jealous wasn’t the word. Alexios was completely irate. I can just see it on his face.

“We should probably stay away from each other,” I tell Basil, “And stop provoking Alexios.”

“That’s not what I want. I don’t want to stay away from you,” Basil tells me before smiling, “Come oil wrestle with me.”

I turn to him. Basil is handsome. He’s real handsome. I always thought that. He domes over me but looks down in a way that makes me think he isn’t belittling me. He licks his lips as he talks. He is trouble in the best sort of way. Still I’m not here for Basil or Alexios for that matter. I was here for something much bigger. I just needed to survive.

“Basil you are attractive—exceedingly attractive, but I think we should keep our distance.”

Basil looks disappointed. It’s hard as hell turning down someone I was so attracted to but I had to do it. He nods without saying a word and takes a few steps away from me. Luckily this seems to break Alexios’ venomous stare at least for the moment.

“Next match: Constantine and Justinian.”

My heart gets caught up in my throat when Manuel announces the next match. Justinian walks out first. His golden hair is slathered with olive oil and clings to his tight body. A few people cheer on Constantine as he comes out.

The two wrestle. Constantine let’s Justinian grab his muscles. He lets Justinian playfully try to pin him down. The crowd is into it. Even Alexios is cheering at this point. It’s hot. I have to admit it. Seeing how Justinian is stressing so hard to try to overpower Constantine makes things really interesting. Constantine’s large muscles are gleaming. He was such a man and people were getting so turned on by him. This included Justinian whose dick remains hard the entire wrestling match.

Justinian tries to throw himself at Constantine, but slips. Constantine goes over him and pins him to the ground. Then Constantine looks at me.

Constantine does something that shocks me. He puts Justinian into a submissive pin and starts kissing him!

“Fuck that is so sexy,” I hear Basil say.

Other people have similar reactions. My reaction is different though. I didn’t think about how sexy Constantine’s kiss to Justinian is. I think about the fact that right after the kiss he turns to me to see what my reaction is. I feel like an idiot because I can’t help it. I’m jealous and it’s written all over my face. My face wrinkles up almost as though I tasted something horrible. Constantine loves this. He smirks even harder and goes into kiss Justinian again.

Constantine’s kiss kicks off a series of events that is leading everyone coupling up and having some sort of wild orgy among us. The oil is causing people too literally just slide right into one another. I look over to my side and see Alexios attempting to pull Basil towards him. Basil doesn’t seem that interested though.

Constantine is staring at me. He leans back and Justinian is sucking him off. His smirk gets wider.

I need someone. Anyone.

I look for Manuel but I notice that he is up against is column. Jelani is eating out his ass as he moans slowly.

I have no choice.

I go for Basil. I grab him pulling him away from Alexios. I rip my clothes off until I’m naked. Basil has enough oil to lather up the both of us.

“I thought you didn’t want to…” he starts.

“I change my mind.”

I know I’m pissing off Alexios right now but I could care less. I start kissing Basil. I know the whole time though this isn’t really about Basil. This is about Constantine. This pride that we have between one another where we can’t really get past.

I turn to Constantine. He’s staring at me. I look to see if he reacts to me kissing Constantine. He doesn’t. Not in the way I want him to. Instead of looking upset, he just seems to be going further with Justinian. His oil soaked fingers begin to finger Justinian as Justinian lays on his back. His legs are lifted up to the sky. His pink butt hole is being thrust repeatedly by Constantine. Constantine does one finger, then another. Then he does three. Justinian is so fucking tight that he’s squirming in pain but allowing Constantine to do it.

I can hear him screaming out among the moans of other boys.

“I want you to fuck me Constantine. Please. Give it to me now. I need you so bad Constantine! I want you inside of me now!”

He’s literally begging Constantine. It’s so pathetic.

“You alright?” Basil asks me.

I just realize that I’ve been so distracted from Basil. Immediately I turn to him and start kissing him again. The kisses are wet, sloppy. I wrap my legs around him and Basil grinds his dick up against my abdomen so hard that his precum is beginning to drip into my navel. It’s so much precum that I think he has had a full blown orgasm.

“I want you so bad!” I scream out as hard as I can.

Basil spits on his dick at that moment, “We can recreate that moment we had together.”

I look over at Constantine. He had finally stopped doing what he was doing with Justinian and is staring over at me. Justinian is trying his best to keep his attention but Constantine is staring at me. For a moment I actually feel like I may have gotten through. Maybe he cares. I can’t be completely sure but I’m hoping at least.

Instead of stopping though his upper lip curls in a defiant way. He manhandles Justinian positioning him on hands and knees/ Then he starts to fuck Justinian right there, pounding him all the while facing me as he does it.

He’s trying to make me jealous!

“Fuck me Basil. Now…” I order him.

“Not here,” Basil states.

“What?” I ask.

No, I wanted Constantine to see it. I wanted Constantine to get jealous. I look at Basil and for the first time though I can tell that he doesn’t seem to care about playing games. I actually look at Basil in a different light at that moment and it’s kind of strange.

“I want you for myself. I want to make love to you. In private,” he tells me, “I have too much respect for you. This isn’t about sex for me. Not any longer.”

I would have killed to hear Constantine say those words to me.

With that Basil helps me up. I’m shocked in a way. There was something hot about the harem orgies but Basil could care less about having sex in front of all of these people. He wanted to do it in private. I’m a little shocked.

Basil starts to walk me out but all of a sudden he’s stopped. Someone pushes him hard against the chest. It sends both Basil and I sprawling backward.

I notice all of a sudden that it’s Constantine!

He looks pissed. The look I wanted this entire time is finally on his face.

“Where the hell are you going with him?” Constantine asks him.

“What’s your problem?” Basil asks.

“You aren’t taking him.”

I’ve never seen Constantine so upset. I’ve never seen him look so desperate before. Maybe he knew something else was about to happen between Basil and I. Maybe he could sense it. Maybe he knew Basil taking me out of this room would be the beginning of the end of all these games. For some reason whatever was on Constantine’s mind right now had his eyes blood shot red and his heart beating heavy.

“Constantine, what’s wrong?” Justinian asks.

“He’s not taking him out of here,” Constantine states.

I roll my eyes, “Is this about Manuel again? Because Manuel is clearly fine…”

I look over and see that others have stopped having sex including Manuel who was actually enjoying himself. I clearly wasn’t on Manuel’s mine when he was getting his ass eaten. Constantine’s lame ass excuse about him protecting Manuel wasn’t going to fly anymore and I think he knew that. I can see it on his face that he knew he couldn’t hide behind that any longer.

“This is getting interesting,” Alexios states laughing.

He must be enjoying this. For some reason Basil isn’t going to let this go. Basil grabs my hand almost immediately and starts leading me out again.

“Come on.”

“I said you weren’t going anywhere with him,” Constantine says.

“Why is that any of your business?” I ask.

I’m tired of the games. I’m tired of us going back and forth. I needed to know. Why was this any of his business.

“You really want me to say it?” Constantine asks, “Because I will.”

“Say what?” I ask.

My heart is beating. I’m thinking at this moment Constantine is finally going to admit to how he feels about me. He’s finally going to admit to the fact that he can’t allow Basil to take me away because he is so in love with me.

I’m completely wrong.

“Basil doesn’t care for you,” Constantine states, “Alexios told me his plan.”

Basil turns to Alexios.

“You did what?”

“You were using me. You are making me look like a fool,” Alexios states.

Basil looks at him and looks even more pissed. I’m so confused. How was Basil using Alexios.

It’s Constantine who tries to grab me. Basil struggles back. Constantine strikes him! Basil hits the floor hard. The room gets silent save Alexios laughing like a drunk fool at this.

“What the hell are you doing Constantine?” I ask.

Constantine shakes his head, “I need to let you know the real reason I wanted you to stay away from Basil. He is a spy from Prince Dhaamir.”

Prince Dhaamir? He was the middle prince. He was the neutral prince who had almost invisible next to the overpowering personalities of his two older brothers.

I look over at Basil.

“He’s lying,” Basil states.

I look back at Constantine. Constantine is telling the truth. He wouldn’t lie about this. I know he wouldn’t.

Alexios laughs at Basil, “No he isn’t. You gave me the laxatives. Admit it Basil.”

Basil face turns red. The revelation is shocking. Alexios has turned on Basil. I’m not sure what was the straw that broke the camel’s back but I’m shocked.

Constantine stares right at me as he gives me the truth that he knows, “Prince Dhaamir wants to use you to start to start a civil war between his two brothers. That way they both destroy one another and he will be the heir to the throne.”

My performance with Basil that had started all of this. I couldn’t have done it without Basil. Was this his plan all along? He wanted me to do well. I had to talk to Loras. Had Loras been ordered to intervene in my death by Prince Dhaamir?

“Why did you want me alone?” I ask Basil.

Basil swallows.

Constantine answers for him, “Now that the war is started Prince Dhaamir needed a way to turn it to the next level. He needed a way to anger Prince Daai so that he can destroy Prince Dhaakir. There is only one thing that would make Prince Daai feel so disrespected that he’d launch a full attack.”

“What one thing would have done that?” I ask.

Constantine points at Basil, “Your death. It would have angered Daai. Basil wants to get you alone and kill you.”

8

I wake up the next morning upset to say the least. The betrayal from Basil was on my mind. I enter into the courtyard where most of the boys go to clean. Fresh water from a well is carried out into large buckets. This is where we clean. This is a different area from the baths inside the Harem where we lounge. Outside is the cleansing area. Boys spend hours in this area. Even though we haven’t been visited for quite some time the boys always remain cleaner than average people. It was one of the most necessary parts of being in a Harem.

I see Constantine with Justinian. Justinian doesn’t have anything on. Usually he has on a bright blue scarf wrapped around his blonde hair but he doesn’t even have that. He’s showing off his beautiful body. His abs are tighter than mine. The sun flickering down on it makes them pop. I wonder if Constantine notices just how tight his abs are or just how small his waist is.

I hated him. I hated his blue scarf. I hated his blue eyes. I hated his blonde hair. I hated the fact that Constantine has given him any attention.

“You alright?” Polo asks me.

“I’m fine,” I state staring away from Justinian.

Basil isn’t out in the courtyard. Polo greets me and I start scrubbing my skin next to him. I turn to Constantine. He turns to me. Our eyes connect. For some reason after him saving me from Basil I want to say something to him but I’m not quite sure what to say.

Usually, the morning routines are done in silence. Not this time. People were talking. Whispering about Basil.

“Has he come out yet?” Polo asks me.

The sun is hot today and there is a little breeze. Sweat is dripping down my body almost immediately when I join the boys. Polo, Manuel and one of the new blonde boys named Farin are standing next to me. Manuel is completely naked, Polo is washing some clothing and Farin is shaving his body. It’s said the sultan prefers smooth boys. A lot of boys spend hours making sure they don’t have any body hair…not even facial. Usually it is a private thing that takes a lot of concentration. The gossip today is high, though. Everyone is talking about Basil.

“No, he hasn’t,” Manuel states, “I can’t believe I didn’t know that he was a spy.”

Polo sighs, “You aren’t the only one. Right under our noses.”

“Do you think there could be more?” Manuel asks him.

I pause. I avoid eye contact with Manuel when he asks that question. I join Farin in shaving. I don’t know him too well but there are extra blades and he hands me one probably noticing the big of hair growing around my legs.

Farin nods to Manuel, “There has to be.”

Polo shrugs, “I don’t know. I wouldn’t jump to conclusions. Hush.”

“What?”

It sounds like for a second that Polo is stating that I am a spy. I turn to him almost immediately but I realize that he is waiting for me to respond to what he is saying.

“Do you think anyone else could be working for one of the princes?”

I shake my head, “Not for one of the princes. No. Dhaamir seems the only one who would scheme like that. The other two princes seem more…straight forward.”

I couldn’t be completely sure but I just had a feeling. It’s not to say that there weren’t other players in this. It was becoming clear that the Harem was playing a huge part in the role of the Empire.

Manuel stares down, “No one’s safe. Not in the harem. I can’t wait to leave…”

“Don’t say that too loud,” I warn him.

The eunuchs were listening. They were always listening. They were always around. They fancied themselves our keepers and attendants but I knew they were our slavers.

Polo nods, “You have a point. Regardless how dangerous it is here we can’t leave. It sucks for you though Hush. Now you have to watch out for Basil as well…”

Polo stops talking because someone walks up to him. I can tell by how his thoughts fade away that he is intimidated by the person. It’s Constantine.

“Basil won’t be a problem moving forward,” Constantine states.

Constantine walks over to us. He never really entertains gossip like the other boys. Usually, he is alone or with Justinian. The fact that he has left Justinian and is casting a huge shadow over us seems odd. Everyone else seems to get nervous.

Manuel goes into his usual ass kissing mode, “Constantine, I’ve been meaning to talk to you. I had no idea about Basil. I want to let you know that. I knew if anyone would figure it out, though, it would have been you. You did a great job, Constantine.”

Manuel is still holding onto this idea that Constantine is some hero sent to help us escape the Harem. Constantine is clearly not having it. I can look into his eyes and tell that he’s not really hip onto what Manuel is telling him.

Constantine ignores Manuel almost completely.

“Make sure everyone knows Hush is under my protection from now on. Make sure Basil knows that,” he tells Manuel.

Strange.

Manuel leaves, clearly respecting Constantine’s status among the boys.

The two other boys remain but there is an awkwardness as I stare at Constantine trying to figure him out. Constantine stares back at me. Protection?

Constantine offers me his hand.

I think about it. I think about how I can’t trust people. I thought I could trust Basil but he turned into a snake. Now Constantine was here offering me his help and I didn’t understand. I take Constantine’s hand at that moment, though.

He leads me away from everyone else towards the other side of the courtyard. The idea of privacy in the Harem is something that definitely seems intimate to say the least. There is no true privacy. No locked doors are allowed in the Harem. Sex and bathing is done in public. Public displays of affection are common in the Harem. The private displays are what come strange to some people. I can see the looks on people’s faces. Maybe Manuel has already gotten out word that I am under Constantine’s protection or maybe people just find it strange that Constantine wants to talk to me in private.

“Your protection?” I ask.

I can’t even wait.

“Get undressed. Turn around…I’ll wash your back.”

The way he is talking to me almost is like he is proving that I am his for some reason. It’s almost like he is showing better than telling. He helps me undress as though I’m a child who can’t do it alone. Normally I would feel offended but for some reason I like it.

When I’m nude he doesn’t stare to admire my body or anything like that. He’s probably seen nude bodies a million times in the Harem. I don’t impress him. Constantine runs the alkali soap down my back, massaging brick with a scrub to exfoliate to remove all the dead skin from my back. He adds water from a nearby bucket. The soap suds trickle down my back to the beginning of my ass. The lathering substance causes my body to be smooth and smell sweet.

“What changed your mind?” I ask him.

I hadn’t agreed to his terms. He seems hard pressed earlier.

“I almost lost you yesterday,” he explains.

It’s a curious way to say it. I think about just letting it go but that isn’t in my nature. I turn towards him, revealing my nude body in the most vulnerable way.

“How can you lose something you never had? Or wanted for that matter?”

“You think I didn’t want you?”

“You told me that you didn’t want me,” I state, “Not in the way I would prefer at least.”

Constantine gets quiet. For the first time, I see him seeming unsure of how to reply to something. Instead of replying he starts undressing. Maybe he knows that I’d be less intimidating to him if he was naked.

He is right.

My hard stare softens to something of envy and desire when I see his hard muscles. He hands me the soap.

“Your turn.”

I start to clean him. His body is long and lean. It is firm and tight. I press on this hard physique realizing there isn’t a soft spot left on him. Even his skin is tough even though it is smooth and slides easily by my touch. I’m shaking when I do this. He makes me nervous. I get to his neck and realize him staring down at me. For some reason, he has the same look in his eyes that I do.

“You make me nervous,” Constantine tells me.

Constantine admitting this was more than I thought he would. When he says it I try to nod and pretend like it doesn’t faze me. It does phase me, though. Constantine never put his feelings out there for anyone to see. Right now he was doing just that.

“I couldn’t possibly make you nervous,” I tell him.

“Is that so impossible? Me pulling you away from Basil wasn’t only for your protection. I could tell you were falling for him.”

“Basil? No. Basil was about you. Well about us. I saw you with Justinian yesterday.”

“He means nothing to me.”

Hearing him say those words come as a relief. I was beginning to think different. I was so sure Constantine was falling for Justinian. I don’t need to repeat the same. I have embarrassed myself trying to make him jealous using Basil. Basil was trying to kill me after all and Constantine ended up saving me. I expect Constantine to be gloating but he doesn’t do that.

I have to address it.

“Thank you for saving me from Basil,” I state, “Thank you for warning me from him.”

“I won’t let anyone touch you. Whether it be Basil or Alexios.”

“You can’t protect me forever.”

“I am Prince Dhaakir’s favorite. Once he is sultan, I can protect you.”

“Why are you so sure Dhaakir is going to be sultan?”

“He is the crowned prince. I sent a message to him about Dhaamir earlier. I’m sure Dhaakir will make peace with Daai and address Dhaamir accordingly.”

The only problem with that is Prince Dhaakir wanted me dead.

I smile none-the-less.

“I’m afraid…”

For some reason, I know this is going to get the reaction I want. He holds me close. He gathers me up between his arms. There is no space between us.

“Everything will be OK. I promise.”

“Justinian is looking at us,” I tell Constantine.

Sure enough Constantine’s shadow is looking at us from the threshold into the Harem doors. He leans up against the door. He isn’t hiding it. He deliberately watches how we communicate.

“You make him mad.”

“Why?”

“You know why,” is Constantine’s reply.

“I don’t want any more trouble from anyone else,” I state.

Constantine gives me a hard look, “You doing the innocent thing again. Fine. I’ll take the blame. I’ll make the first move.”

With that Constantine looks over at Justinian, making sure he’s watching us. Then he grabs me up. It’s clear he’s taking the lead. It’s clear he is initiating this. We start to kiss. His tongue presses up against my lips. It’s immediate. His tongue explores my mouth. He sweeps me underneath the lathering soap. My dick hardens. I would let him fuck me right now if he wanted, but he doesn’t want to. He’s just making a point.

Justinian looks upset. He almost looks to the verge of tears as he leaves the courtyard and goes back inside. If he was going to be mad at anyone it was going to be Constantine.

“Thank you,” I state.

“No need to thank me. I told you I’ll protect you from all your enemies. I mean that…even if it’s Justinian. I’ll tell him later on. I’ll tell him that he can’t sleep with me anymore. I’ll tell him that space is reserved for you now.”

Basil’s actions yesterday must have really gotten to Constantine. I haven’t seen this side of him.

“What about your rules?” I ask.

“I’ll make an exception.”

His hand cups my ass. Our bodies merge together. I don’t know why I repeat the action doing the same. I test him. I’ve never seen someone play with Constantine’s butt, yet I can’t help myself. I find myself grabbing onto the tight muscles squeezing it slowly.

He squints when I do it, surprised that I’m going there instead of his penis.

“You really do think you’re special, don’t you?” he asks me.

He’s talking about the fact that I think I’m special enough to grab his butt. Not even the princes have gone there with Constantine to my knowledge. Still, I don’t remove my hand. I squeeze it even tighter.

“You just told me you’d make an exception.”

“Could you handle it…if I gave it to you?”

“Try me…”

Constantine uses his finger to push it into his ass. My middle finger enters behind him and the soap suds lubricate my finger enough to go deep into his ass. It’s tight. It’s tighter than any ass I’ve experienced before. His ass muscles clench down on me. It’s almost as though he wants to show me just how vital this is. He wants to reassure me that this is a no-entry zone. I get it. I can’t help but to be turned on as he leaves my finger in him. He stares me deep into my eyes.

This had nothing to do with training. This had nothing to do with anything else.

This was more than that.

“No,” he says before I get any further.

He is a tease. He’s a very good one. I must say.

“I had to try.”

“Maybe one day. But not now.”

“What happens now?” I ask him.

“I’ll protect you. No rules. I don’t need nothing in return. I’ll protect you because I want to,” Constantine says, “And we’ll be together.”

I want to ask him what he means by that. Did he want us to build a relationship or was this just him training me in the Harem? Before I can open my mouth to ask him I hear screaming. Someone is in tears. We are interrupted. It’s Manuel. He running from the harem into the courtyard where most of the boys are still cleaning.

“He’s dead…he’s dead!”

I’m shocked when Manuel runs out. I don’t expect it.

“Who’s dead?” Constantine asks him.

“Basil…”

~

We don’t get to see the body. There are rumors flying around from assassin to suicide. No one knows exactly what happens through the entire afternoon. It isn’t until the bells ring and we are called out into to the main Oda, which is what the eunuchs referred to as the main harem chamber. that we address the situation.

Something strange is happening. Many eunuchs are here. They are armed to the teeth. I am confused on what is happening here. I don’t understand it. All the boys in the harem are all lined up and sat on the sofas in no particular area. I want to sit next to Constantine but it turns out that I am placed by an aggressive eunuch right next to Alexios. Jelani is on the other side of me.

“What’s happening?” Jelani whispers to no one in particular.

We are all wondering the same thing. This was strange. Usually, if we were getting visitors the eunuchs would prepare the area with wine, food and other delicacies. This wasn’t that.

“It must have something to do with Basil’s death,” I realize.

“The Sultana is coming,” Alexios states, “She’s come before.”

The fact that Alexios guesses that out of anything seems odd, but it does make sense. Basil shows up dead and prince shows up dead as well.

They announce her title as “The Queen Mother” when she comes into the room. She’s not alone. I notice Loras is attending her as well. I assume he would be. He is after all the Grand Vizier.

She is silent when she walks in. She had on a salvar, which were Ottoman trousers, a fitted jacket and a sash tied around her waist. She had a long robe that was cut apart from the length. Her clothing was brightly colored and seemed to have a luxurious feel for her. When she walks in and doesn’t speak I assume that maybe it is because she can’t. Maybe some sort of Ottoman law doesn’t allow women to speak. Then I see her eyes and realize she is crying. She is full of grief. Maybe that is why she doesn’t speak. Maybe that is why the Grand Vizier speaks for her.

I don’t get it, though. Why would the Queen Mother be crying about Basil?

I stare at Loras. He pretends as though he doesn’t know me. His eyes are concentrated more on the blonde boys with their striking features like Farin and Justinian.

He looks right past me.

“Prince Dhaamir is dead,” he announces.

Everyone is shocked. I can’t say that I am. Yesterday Constantine announced that Prince Dhaamir was plotting against his brothers. I sit there looking at the Queen Mother’s grief and I wonder why the Sultan himself hasn’t come here. Isn’t he upset with his son’s death?

Loras continues.

“The prince’s last words were to find Basil.”

Strange.

“It came to our attention yesterday that Basil was a spy for Prince Dhaamir,” Constantine explains, “That may be why.”

Loras recognizes Constantine. Very few boys in the Harem were well known enough to speak and Constantine just so happened to be one of them. Constantine was flawless. It was no doubt someone like him was well known even to men who didn’t frequently visit the Harem like the Grand Vizier, Loras.

“Good. We’d like to speak with this Basil in regards to Dhaamir’s death.”

Everyone gets quiet.

It’s Alexios who speaks, “Grand Vizier. I apologize but Basil is dead as well…”

“Dead?” Loras asks.

Manuel nods and brings forward something that is wrapped in some sort of fabric, “This was found in the room that he died in.”

Loras unwraps the fabric and shows the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother nods silently but her tears start to spread even more. It’s a very strange thing sitting in front of this woman like this. She wanted answers and none of us could really give it to her.

“What is it?” the Queen Mother whispers.

“I can tell immediately Queen Mother. It’s stinking nightshade,” Loras analyzes, “It’s a poisonous plant. When mixed in the right way it can be quite dangerous. How could this be found in the Harem?”

No one answers. One of the Eunuchs replies.

“It’s impossible.”

“Whoever created this had to have been a master assassin. Who visited here last night?”

The eunuch shakes his head, “No one entered. No one left.”

“Yet somehow it’s here. How?” The Grand Vizier asks.

There is silence. No one seems to know the answer to this weird question. Someone killed Basil and no one had any idea in the world who it was. The smell of the nightshade is definitely distinctive. The roots of the plant have been chopped and dried. It seems to have been carefully prepared.

Another Eunuch answers the question desperately, “I’m sorry but we don’t know.”

Loras turns to the boys in the Harem.

“Who does this belong to?”

No answer.

We all look at him with this confused look.

“The Queen Mother came here looking for answers to why her son was killed. The only person who knew shows up dead. We need answers. There will be major consequences for everyone involved if no one comes forward. Whoever prepared this knows exactly what he is doing. Who does this belong to?”

We all look around confused on who could have been skilled enough to kill Basil so quickly and so silently. They were trying to keep something secret. They were trying to keep something under wraps.

The Queen Mother wanted to know what that was.

“If no one comes forth by the end of the night, we will kill indiscriminately anyone we suspect of not being who they say they are,” the Grand Vizier announces, “I suggest you boys find out very quickly who killed Basil.”

~

The Grand Vizier and the eunuchs begin to search the room. Some stay with the Queen mother. The look on her face is haunting. She’s mourning and all the wrath of the Ottomans are in this room ready to punish each and every last one of us to heal her pain. I look over at the others. Everyone is afraid.

Whispers are going everywhere at that moment. The Queen Mother wanted answers to her son’s death. They were answers that none of us seemed to have. They were answers that Basil would have had. I can see the stress on her face. This was definitely growing.

“Who could have done it?” I ask.

I’m standing next to Polo. He leans in at that moment, “Come on. You can’t protect him forever…”

“Protect who?”

Polo leans into me.

“Constantine…”

I turn. Constantine is sitting in a bath alone. He doesn’t seem nervous. He just seems to be dipping his water while a lot of the other boys scurry around hoping to throw someone under the bus before the Vizier’s search was over. It was clear the Vizier meant what he said. Someone would be paying for Basil’s death. We weren’t sure who. We weren’t sure why.

We knew it was someone, though.

“Polo what the hell are you talking about?”

Polo shrugs, “You heard him earlier: Basil wouldn’t be a problem anymore.”

“He was just saying that I was under his protection.”

“Do you know that for sure?” Polo asks me.

“It wasn’t Constantine.”

“I saw him sneaking around,” Polo tells me, “I saw him sneaking around last night. He was up to something.”

“There could be a million reasons he was sneaking around. I couldn’t sleep last night either.”

“He was sneaking! Why sneak?”

“He could have been hiding from someone.”

“Who?”

“I don’t know maybe he was afraid.”

“Who could Constantine be afraid of. Look at him now,” Polo states, “He seems so cool. Almost like he could care less.”

Things get quiet at that moment. Something else is happening.

The Vizier walks back out. People literally stop what they are doing. Fear fills the room.

The Harem is so silent. Everyone is quiet. Everyone is extremely quiet at that moment. I’m not sure what is happening but when the Vizier comes back out he has something in his hand.

We all look.

“Who does this belong to?” The Vizier states.

We all get scared. There is a scarf there. It’s a bright blue scarf.

It’s Mendeecees who answers first, “Justinian…”

The Vizier opens the blue scarf. The plant is in it. Traces of the plant are wrapped all in the scarf. Justinian looks confused. He grabs onto Farin who desperately pushes him away. Justinian falls to the ground. He’s on his hands and knees panicking when he sees the scarf.

The Vizier nods, “Arrest him.”

Everyone seems stunned. Justinian seems to panic all of a sudden, “Wait! WAIT! I didn’t do anything! I didn’t do anything!”

They drag Justinian out into the middle of the floor. A couple of us are shocked at that moment but no one says anything. The halls of the Harem are terrible right now.

I look away. Luckily Manuel is close enough for me to bury my head into his shoulder when they shove Justinian to the ground! He helps me cover my ears when Justinian begins to scream.

No one addresses Justinian until they cut his head clean off his body. The head rolls on the floor in front of the Queen Mother. She stares at it. She seems completely unmoved. Someone had to pay for the fact that she didn’t get answers to her son’s death.

That person just so happened to be Justinian.

Polo leans over at me.

“Justinian? Really? He doesn’t even seem like the type,” Polo states, “We both know who put Justinian up to killing Basil.”

I turn to Constantine. He stares down at Justinian’s body. He doesn’t seem shocked or surprised that Justinian is dead. He seemed to almost expect Justinian was going to be the one who was found guilty of killing Basil. I can see it in Constantine’s eyes.

Constantine knew Justinian was going to die today.

~

The night is pretty odd to say the least after Justinian is beheaded. I head to Constantine’s room regardless of what Polo has to say about him. I know that Constantine must be lonely right now after he lost Justinian. Constantine is sitting in the dark when I get to his room.

“They killed him for no reason,” Constantine states, “We all know either Prince Dhaakir or Prince Daai killed Dhaamir.”

He is staring at the blue scarf. It was left. I guess they had no more need for it. The scarf matched Justinian’s eyes. Constantine holds onto the scarf tightly. He looks emotional. He looks like he is lost. As I walk into the room, I walk up to him and join him on the pillows. I put my hand on Constantine’s back to offer him what little comfort I can.

“Why didn’t you say anything? If you suspected the other princes?”

The Queen Mother wasn’t angry about Basil’s death. She was angry about the prince.

“With only two heirs left things will heat up between Dhaakir and Daai. I don’t want to be in the middle of it,” Basil explains, “Justinian died for no reason.”

“Well…Constantine, they did find his scarf.”

“You really going to sit here and say that?”

Constantine looks up at me. His eyes pierce through me.

“What?”

“You really going to say you believe that Justinian killed Basil?”

“That was what the Grand Vizier came up with…”

“The same Grand Vizier that you sneak out to meet from time to time?” Constantine asks me.

I remove my hand from his back. I stare at Constantine. I stare at his facial expression. I stare at the way he is looking at me. He is suspicious.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about?” I tell him.

“Last night I left my room,” Constantine says, “I thought you were upset with Basil so I came to sleep with you instead of Justinian. You seemed busy so I didn’t come in. You were working on something. You were mixing something up. I saw you last night, Hush.”

“Constantine, what could you have seen…”

“I didn’t know what it was yesterday but I smelled it again tonight. I saw you mixing the stinking nightshade. Admit it, Hush.”

I get quiet.

Constantine grabs me by my neck.

“You’re hurting me.”

“ADMIT IT!”

He chokes harder. I can’t bear it. I drop my act.

I nod, “Fine. I killed Basil. I framed Justinian.”

9

“Are you going to tell anyone?”

He gives me a hard look. He still has me up against my neck. The threatening way he holds me makes me think that Constantine might just snap my neck right here and right now. There is emotion in his eyes. It’s true emotion. I’ve seen Constantine like this before when I first met him and his lover was still alive. Since his lover’s suicide Constantine had closed himself off until now. There is real emotion here now.

He drops me.

“You’ve been lying to me the entire time.”

He goes to sit on the bed. I can tell this is hitting him hard. I get up off the bed and take some distance away from Constantine. It’s the middle of the night. The moonlight pierces into the room past the shadowed curtains of Constantine’s canopy bed.

I make my way to the other side of the room and grab on my neck. It hurts from how Constantine held me.

“Are you going to tell anyone?” I ask him again.

He doesn’t look my way. His elbows are planted on his knees. His forehead rests on his palm as though he’s trying to pick something out of his mind.

“Maybe I should…” He states.

He’s thinking back and forth. He’s unsure. I look on the night area. There is a rope that ties the curtains back on his bed. While he’s pondering this I take the rope. I wrap it around my wrists. I give it a hard pull. It’s tight. Hard enough to not break under pressure.

“I’m the same Hush you’ve always known,” I tell him.

“The same Hush, the same HUSH?” he asks.

He turns towards me. That’s when I see how red his eyes are. My hands are behind my back. The rope is there. Our eyes connect and for some reason, I feel…weak. It would have been difficult to strangle him with this rope but I was prepared to do it if necessary. At least I thought I was. However, now that I look in his eyes I’m hesitating. I’m unaware of why this look is so different from the millions of other looks I’ve gotten before.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I ask him.

“I don’t even know you. Justinian and Basil are dead because of you,” he explains, “Tell me who you are.”

“No.”

He gets up off the bed in an aggressive way. I think he is going to attempt to choke me again but he stops halfway and just wrinkles up his face in an ugly way. No matter how ugly he tries to make his face Constantine can’t be ugly.

“Did you ever need my help?” he asks me, “To survive here.”

I nod, “I did. I still do.”

“You’re lying,” he tells me before shaking his head, “But you know the scariest part of it all? Is looking at you now I can’t tell you are lying. You are so convincing in your lie. It’s almost like you’ve convinced yourself that you are someone that you aren’t.”

“I’m telling you the truth,” I state.

Of course, I was lying to him. I don’t know why I keep up the lie. I am sure right now he doesn’t believe me. The way he looks at me though makes me think he wants to believe me. His face softens just a little bit even though his guard is still very high. He muscles aren’t as tense as though ready for a fight. Maybe he is remembering the poor innocent boy that walked through here needing his help so desperately.

“Who are you?” he asks me.

“Hush.”

“Who are you really?”

“No one.”

“Why are you here?”

“I was taken into slavery like you. Like everyone,” I explain to him.

He’s getting in his emotions. I can tell. After the revelation about Basil he probably thinks that I’m a spy. He seems more irritated the more the questioning goes on. He realizes he isn’t getting anywhere. My face doesn’t budge. I keep the same expression. Big, brown eyes with no hidden agendas or no silent treatment.

“You’ve been playing me this whole time,” he comes to a revelation out loud to himself more than to me.

He turns. He goes to sit back on the bed. He’s emotional. Seeing him like this makes me feel…sad to say the least. I drop the rope.

I walk up to him. I slide onto his lap. I straddle him. At first, he tries to push me away but I cling to his muscular torso with every ounce of strength I have. Constantine is strong, though. He’s much stronger than me. He could break me in half if he wanted to. So I know that he really doesn’t want me to get off of him. So he just lets me cling to him even though he pretends to push me off. His mock outrage even fades after a while. Soon he just lets me hold him as he stares at me still trying to see what is behind this mask.

“I’m not playing you,” I state.

“Yes, you are.”

I kiss him.

“Is this playing you?”

“Yes.”

I kiss him again. This time longer. This time I kiss him deeper. This time I place my hands on his chest and feel his heartbeat. He moves his face away. I trail him kissing the side of his face until I get to the ends of his lips. He attempts to move his face again but I keep kissing. I keep kissing and tugging and kissing until finally, he grabs me, tosses me to the ground and body slams me on the wood panels.

I think he is going to pound my head right now but he doesn’t.

“You’re playing me…” he whispers.

All the anger comes out of him but not in the way that I expect. He starts kissing me aggressively. I kiss back thinking that this will make up for his suspicions. I’m wrong. His kisses are angry. He bites on my lip until I bleed.

“Ah…”

I attempt to move my face away this time but he grabs my chin and keeps it still. He sucks hard on my lips. He sucks on it as hard as he can. Then he holds onto the back of my neck to keep me still. He begins to kiss aggressively. Our mouths clash together.

He begins to rip my clothing off of my shredding it with nothing but pure strength. I am weak and defenseless underneath him as he seems to try to regain control over me and this situation. It’s control he is trying to show. Control is different from strength or even from dominance. He wants to control me like he did Justinian so many times.

I let him.

I lay naked underneath him and curl up in a ball, looking up at him as though begging him not to hurt me.

“I cared about you…deeply…”

It’s strange that it takes a situation like this to get him to admit it. He doesn’t say it in a loving way, though. He says it as though he regrets it. Within a matter of seconds, he roars like a lion and then grabs me up removing the guards of my hands.

He lifts my legs up over his shoulders. He spits on his hands. He doesn’t wait when he enters me. He just goes inside of me. It’s too hard. It’s too rough.

“You’re hurting me!” I tell him.

He goes harder. His raw dick doesn’t inch into me. He delivers a full angry blow to the bowels of my anus. I feel it burn a little bit. There is nothing to grab to comfort me. All I can do is bite my already bleeding lip further.

I repeat it again and again, “You’re hurting me. Slow down.”

“No I’m not. STOP PRETENDING!”

He starts choking me as he fucks me. Maybe he is thinking about how angry he is about Justinian when he does it. Maybe he’s thinking about just how much I’ve lied to him. I can’t tell at that moment what is motivating the further choking. I squirm underneath him but don’t fight to remove his clutch in my throat. In a strange way, it distracts from his huge dick entering me relentlessly. He is poised to make me pay for what I did to Justinian.

The thrusts get angrier and he nuts in me after several moments but keeps on going. It’s not until I bite his arm that he stops.

I push him out of me, literally using my ass muscles to force his dick out of me. The hard dick is now lubricated with his cum so it slides out. Constantine seems to come back from his madness just slightly, though. I slide away from him at that moment and lay on his bed. I curl up in a fetal position wondering if he is going to tell me that I have to leave.

He just looks down at me.

I can feel his eyes burning into me.

He is whispering in the darkness, “You pretended to care about me.”

At this moment I’m angry. I can’t even pretend like I’m not. He was way too rough with me. He treated me worse than one of his patrons who had fetishes for hardcore.

“Stop the self-pity,” I tell him in the darkness, “You were using me too.”

“I never used you.”

“Really? You didn’t want to get back at Alexios?” I ask him, “Don’t pretend like you didn’t. I’m not sure what Alexios did to you…but you wanted to get back at him. I know you did. You were using me to do it. You were using Justinian to do it. So since you wanted to share secrets let me know what Alexios did to you that made you want to take him off his high horse?”

He stares at me. He must realize that he hasn’t been so upfront. I half expect him to kick me out of his room but for some reason he doesn’t. Instead, he lays on the bed, turns away from me so we are back to back. I think he is going to fall asleep but he just starts talking facing away from me.

“The sultan was married before his wife now. The sultan was cruel to his wife when she was pregnant. See the sultan has certain fetishes.”

“What kind of fetishes?”

“Cruel and unusual. The sultan is…he’s a cruel man, Hush. If you think Daai is bad…”

“I’ve heard,” I respond.

The sickness of the sultan had spread through every land. Constantine doesn’t seem surprised to know that I’ve heard of just how cruel and unusual this sultan was.

“Necrophilia, Coprophilia, masochism, and pedophilia were some of his favorites,” he explains, “He had a thing for attempting to penetrate pregnant women past their bearing. The trauma to the past Queen Mother was too great She had a miscarriage and she died with the baby. Her last words were a curse. A boy with hazel eyes would undo him.”

“Hazel eyes…”

“Like most of us in the Harem. That’s why he keeps us around. Keep your enemies close. If it was up to the sultan he’d conquer the world and kidnap every boy with hazel eyes.”

He just might. I wouldn’t put it past him. I’d heard stories of this sultan.

“He believed that madness.”

“The sultan has always struggled with reality at times. Yes. He believed it. With him, others believed it as well. It became the sultan’s madness…”

This sounds more like a bedtime story to scare children than reality. I press my head hard up against the bed realizing that I wanted to sleep.

“What does this have to do with Alexios?”

“Alexios was jealous of my lover Julius. The sultan was getting too close. So Alexios convinced the sultan that Julius was the boy his wife cursed him. When I heard what Alexios had done I had no choice but to try and escape with Julius.”

I knew how that story ended. Julius and Constantine were caught. They were brought back. Julius killed himself. He must have known what fate was awaiting him when he came back. Maybe that is why Constantine never showed true sadness about Julius killing himself. Maybe Constantine knew that death would have been better than what the sultan had in store.

“I’m sorry Constantine.”

“Alexios was a friend. Then he did what he did,” Constantine explains, “You know what I learned from that situation?”

“What?”

“Trust is hard to give but easy to take.”

~

I wake up early in the am. I turn over. I’m still in Constantine’s bed. He’s sleeping. He’s underneath me. Somehow his body has just so happened to move over close to mine. I climb out of the bed and walk out of the room after making sure that Constantine was asleep.

I head down into the gardens. The air is warm and humid. Through the garden, there is a statue of a swan in the upper right quadrant of the courtyard. Actual swans swim silently nearby acting as a distraction. I slide the statue in the middle of the night and reveal a door. I unlatch the door and that is how I see the hole. It’s an actual hole that leads to a tunnel. A tunnel leads to another part of the Topkapi palace. The part of the area that Loras is sleeping in.

Loras isn’t alone in his bed.

I light a candle and slap on the bed.

“Get her out.”

The woman is naked when she awakes. She screams a little bit in shock that someone is in her room but Loras quickly cuffs her mouth.

“Go wait for me in the common room,” he tells the girl, “Don’t tell a soul.”

The girl looks at Loras. She looks at me. I can tell she respects him. He is the Vizier of the Sultan after all. I have no doubt that beyond these doors there are leagues of guards making sure the Vizier is safe. The look on her face seems to question how it was I was able to get past those guards and come to his room in the middle of the night.

When she leaves I can’t help but admire her small frame and her pretty face.

“She looks expensive,” I tell him.

“You shouldn’t be here,” he tells me.

“Neither should she,” I respond.

Loras notices my stare. I’m still staring at the door where she left. I can still smell her perfume. It is sweet like fruit and sugar. Loras smells like her too. I can tell because he wraps the sheets around his torso. He must be naked under there. He approaches me though and turns my head so that I can face him. It’s almost morning. I know that much. I don’t have much time here.

“Are you angry with me?” he asks me.

I turn towards him. Loras looks me up and down. His face gets even with mine. In the next minute, he kisses me on my lips.

“You can do whatever you like,” I explain to him.

“Did you miss me?” He asks, “Come… I have more than enough for you.”

He moves the sheet, dropping it to the ground. He doesn’t have the body of Constantine or Basil or even Polo for that matter. He’s still attractive in a way that a confident man can be the most attractive man in the room if he really believes he is. If he was just a boy in the Harem he wouldn’t last a day. But he isn’t a boy in a Harem. Loras was one of the most powerful men in the empire.

His dick is curved to the right. It is fully hard and ready for me.

I shake my head.

“I’ve can’t.”

“We have time before sunrise.”

I shake my head.

“I physically can’t,” I tell him, “I have to heal.”

This was due to Constantine. I can still feel him inside of me. He’s stretched out my walls and I think I’m bleeding down there but I’m scared to check. So instead of checking or doing anything close to that I just stand there and cross my arms.

“Then why did you come visit?” he asks me.

“There’s a problem,” I tell him.

“Problem? Do you mean last night?” he asks me, “Everything went as planned. Better than planned.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Dhaamir is gone. Prince Daai and Prince Dhaakir have agreed to call a truce because of their mother’s grief. They will meet in the Harem and throw a party to reunite. And you want to know the best news? The sultan will join them on their reunion in the harem.”

“The sultan?”

“You can finally kill him,” Loras states.

I sigh, “It’s not a good time.”

“It’s the only time,” Loras states, “What are you talking about? This is the plan. This is what we were working towards all this time.”

“Loras…someone knows. Or someone at least suspects me.”

“Someone?”

“The slave. Constantine.”

“How does he know?” he asks me.

“He’s in love with me, I think,” I tell him, “It’s caused him to pay extra attention to me. I should have noticed earlier. I was sloppy.”

Loras laughs as though this is the funniest thing ever. He must have full control of several of the nearby apartments because he laughs fruitfully and loudly as though he doesn’t have a care in the world of anyone hearing him having a secret meeting before sunrise.

“He loves you? That’s classic,” Loras states, “Here. I have something that will do the trick, my love.”

Loras walks over to the dresser. He opens it and takes out a vial. It has a red liquid in it. He hands the vial to me. I stare at it.

“What is it?”

“Snake venom. I know how you love your poisons.”

“For the sultan?”

“Yes. But it is enough to kill two people. Get rid of Constantine before the sultan arrives.”

“Constantine isn’t a threat. Can’t you just have him removed from the Harem? Shipped somewhere? France? Italy? Africa? He won’t be a threat,” I state.

I attempt to hand him back the vial.

Instead of taking it he moves his hands to clasp my fingers around the vial.

“I could have him sent away. If he were any other slave. He’s not. Both the princes favor him.”

Loras eyes me. He wants to see how I will react. He wants to know where my loyalty lies. Maybe a part of me did want to make Loras jealous especially after seeing the girl in his bed. I could have broken the news about Constantine less harshly. I could have eased him into it. Now he was jealous, though. I can see it written all over his face. Loras wanted Constantine dead badly. He doesn’t admit it. He’s never been good at that. I knew Loras though. I knew what he got underneath his skin.

“They’ll know someone killed him,” I state, “The sultan won’t come to the Harem if too many people are killed.”

“There is a plague going around. I’ve started the rumors personally. The symptoms of the plague are very similar to the poison. If Constantine were to suddenly fall ill…

He’d thought of everything.

“Loras…”

“Do you love me…?” he asks me.

“Of course,” I respond.

“Then I’ll see you when I come to the Harem to remove Constantine’s dead body in two days.”

~

Two days have passed faster than I care to admit. I lock myself away but I can’t stay gone forever. When I come to out I see that the eunuchs have come in with their food and wine. I know what this mean. There were festivities happening.

“What did I miss?” I ask Polo.

Polo is standing next to a column. I can see him eyeing some fruit on the table wondering if it was worth it or not to steal from the platter while the eunuchs had their eyes turned. The eunuchs were quick though and he’d probably be caught and whipped for it. That doesn’t stop him from standing on that column silently plotting, though.

“You haven’t heard?” he asks me.

I shrug, “Heard what?”

“My god, Hush. Sometimes I think you live in your own bubble and don’t know what is going on,” Polo explains to me, “We are having visitors for the first time in quite some time.”

“Will the princes be in attendance?”

“They might. Who knows,” he tells me, “Why were you excited to get fucked by royalty tonight?”

I laugh at the idea of it. I have healed up luckily from Constantine. The moment I think about Constantine I see him walk into the room. He is shirtless as usual and this time has rather short underwear that wraps around his ass cheeks showing off his defined legs. As he walks, he goes right past me as though I don’t even exist.

He sits alone away from the other boys who are already starting to trickle out. It isn’t lost to everyone. Polo stares at me, then stares at Constantine then stares at me again.

“What’s going on with you two?” Polo asks.

I look at Constantine. I wonder if he’s told anyone about who I am. Right now he is looking at me from the corner of his eye.

I turn away from Constantine, “We’re fine.”

“You sure? I mean you two always act strange around one another but today is different.”

Polo’s right. He asks a lot of questions. He inserts himself into my life a little more than I think is comfortable but in this situation, he is completely right. Constantine is acting weird now that he suspects me. My only concern is whether or not I should listen to Loras and take his life with the poison or not.

I change the subject, “We haven’t had visitors for a while Polo. We should prepare.”

Preparation takes my mind off of Constantine. I help Polo. I feel like it’s avoidable. I know I shouldn’t be helping him. That is not what I’m here to do but at the same time, Constantine’s suspicions make it clear that I need to go back to pretending to be this sweet innocent naive person. I know caring for Polo would be naive. Dragging him behind me is something Hush would do.

So I help him.

“It’s starting,” Polo states, “The visitors are coming.”

“I’m almost done.”

I’ll finish Polo’s face before I begin my own. It was important to look nice tonight. It was important that I’m not the only one as well. I wanted attention but I didn’t want all the attention. It was important I kept low key enough that I’m not singled out. So helping Polo becomes important.

He stares at the cosmetics I’m using, “What is this? Where’d you get it?”

“From the storage closet.”

“I haven’t seen these things.”

“You just didn’t notice. Ancient Egyptians applied galena mesdemet. It’s made of copper and lead ore. It will help smooth your face and cover your scar. I also used some burnt almonds, oxidized copper, different-colored coppers ores, lead, ash, and ochre. Just enough to adorn the eyes in an almond shape. Now. Done.”

“Can I see?”

I hand him a mirror. He stares at it. He can hardly recognize his reflection. I can tell that he’s shocked.

“The scar is gone,” he states.”

“Apply the galena mesdemet every time you have to meet a patron. They’ll never notice your scar, not even if they touch it.”

He stops staring at his reflection and starts staring at me instead.

“How’d you learn to do this?” he asks.

His stare is visibly concerned and almost suspicious.

“Basil taught me,” I state.

It’s a lie of course but it seems to be enough for him at this point.

“Basil was a master of manipulation,” he explains to me.

I smile.

“Go get dressed. I’ll get ready and meet you in a minute.”

We wear lion cloths. I found them in some of the gifts that Basil left behind after he died. One of his many patrons decided to gift it to him. I cut up the lion clothes and wrap them around our waist, covering just enough to leave something to the imagination.

Polo is nervous, “We’re late.”

He doesn’t know much. He seems so unaware and I can tell he isn’t faking it.

“No Polo. We are just on time.”

We walk out into the room to music and festivities. The revelries have already begun. I can tell when I see Farin being used as a plate. His entire body is laid out on a table. The visitors are eating pastries from his naked body. He stays completely still as though he doesn’t want to move.

When we walk into the room it’s clear that attention comes off of the other boys. Boys usually kept clean. That was what was usually popular. We were adorned with cosmetics. We almost look like twins when we walk in the room.

“Everyone’s staring,” Polo states.

He’s right. Alexios and Mendeecees are feeding wine to some of the visitors. Whoever the visitors are must definitely be high profile. I can tell. At first, I’m not sure. The men don’t look familiar but then I see exactly who Alexios is feeding.

It’s Loras!

Alexios sits on the Vizier’s lap. He dips fruit into the wine and sloppily dribbles it into the Vizier’s mouth. The Vizier has brought some associates with him. They are rich men that usually don’t frequent the Harem unless they had official business.

“The Vizier,” Polo states.

He is excited. For the first time, Polo is getting attention. The room turns over to us in a way that I’m sure he isn’t used to. The Vizier stops eating and is staring. In the corner of my eye though I can see Constantine. He’s dancing. He’s completely naked dancing on someone who is slathering oil all over his muscles. Sure enough, that man is the only one who could care less about Polo and I walking in the room. He can’t take his eyes off of Constantine and right now for some reason…neither can I.

“Go ahead,” I tell Polo.

“You aren’t coming?” I ask.

“No. I’ll have a drink first.”

I let Polo go to the Vizier’s area. Almost immediately he is getting attention from the boys. I let him take that attention. I find myself drinking and staring at Constantine who is now standing on a table. He dances in circles swinging his dick from left to right.

I sit on the couch away from the others. Constantine hasn’t spoken to me all day. His eyes find me every once in a while but it isn’t the usual look. He is concerned about me. He doesn’t feel the same.

At first, I think between Polo, Alexios, Farin and Constantine no one will notice I’m missing.

I’m wrong.

Alexios walks up to me.

“They want you,” Alexios states.

Loras. He wanted Constantine dead. That was the only reason that he was here. When he calls me over I notice he is trying not to pay attention to me. I notice Constantine as well dancing ahead of everyone else.

“You’re a shy one,” one of the men with Loras states. The patron has a full beard. He looks wealthy. Mendeecees is sitting on his lap now feeding him instead of the Vizier. Mendeecees takes a piece of cake off of Farin’s body and gives it to the Patron. You would think with all this attention he wouldn’t need anymore.

He’s greedy, though. He’s staring at me.

“Not as shy as you think,” Constantine responds.

Constantine’s comment is obvious. Alexios snickers because of it. A few others seem intrigued but luckily Polo is there.

“He’s beautiful. Don’t you think Vizier?” one of the Patrons states about me.

“I prefer this one,” Loras states, pulling Polo close to him.

Polo smiles. No one of high priority has done that to him since we’ve been in the Harem.

“I like the innocent ones,” the Patron with the full beard states pushing Mendeecees off of him. He slaps his thigh, pulls his dick to adjust his hard on before holding his hand out to me, “Come…sit…”

Loras stops the Patron, “Use this muscular one instead, Osman. Leave him be. Shy boys are only good for fetching wine.”

I wonder if Loras is jealous. I’m not sure. Loras pulls at Constantine and instructs Constantine to give this his associate a lapdance. Then he looks at me and points to the wine.

At first, I think it’s jealousy but then he winks and I know it’s something else.

Now.

He wanted Constantine dead now.

I go grab the wine from the eunuch’s table. They don’t pay attention while I pour the wine into goblets for our guests. I arrange the goblets and take the vial out.

I turn back to Constantine.

My heart gets heavy.

I take the vial out. I pour it into a cup. I pour enough of the snake poison to kill a man. I return the vial. I take my time to return back to them. I hand out the cups to everyone around, including the boys in the Harem.

I hand Constantine his cup.

“Let’s toast. To the future,” Loras states.

I watch as they all drink the wine at that moment. The revelry continues right after.

I feel sick to my stomach. All this regret flows through me. I am wondering if I made the right decision as soon as everyone drinks the wine. I find myself rushing off into the backroom. Loras is staring at me the whole time wondering why I’m reacting like this.

I get to the back and I’m crying uncontrollably.

I can’t stop.

“What’s wrong?” a voice says.

I turn to see Constantine.

“Why are you here?” I ask him.

“You’re upset,” he states.

Constantine gets close. Too close. He puts his hand on my shoulder. He pulls me in. He can tell that I’m in my emotions. He is gentle now when he wipes my eyes. We are alone. It’s one of those rare moments in the Harem when you are.

“Constantine. You hate me. You haven’t been acting the same all day.”

“You think I haven’t been acting the same because I hate you?”

“Isn’t that the case?”

He shakes his head, “I feel guilty about what happened with Justinian…but at the same time I can’t break my fall.”

“Your fall?”

“Yes. I’m falling for you…”

I stop. My heart skips a beat. I never expected Constantine to say this.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry…”

“I’m not who you think I am.”

“I know that.”

“You don’t understand. The Vizier wants you dead, Constantine. He asked me to poison your drink tonight.”

Constantine stops talking. He grasps onto his chest with fear at that moment.

“Oh, my god! You didn’t Hush? Did you! You poisoned me…”

Constantine looks at me as though he doesn’t recognize me anymore. We are interrupted at that moment. It’s Polo.

“Polo I need a moment with Constantine,” I state.

“Something’s happening.”

Constantine stares at Polo hard, “What?”

“The Vizier…he’s turning colors. His skin is blue, then purple. He’s throwing up. The others think he might have the plague.”

Polo runs back towards where the Vizier is. He expects us to follow him. We don’t. Constantine stares over at me instead.

“You didn’t poison me.”

I shake my head.

I shake my head, “I made a choice. I chose to kill the Vizier instead.”

10

I’m sitting in his room. I’m lying on Constantine’s sheets. They smell like him. It is later that day when he returns. I turn to see that he is staring at me from the corner in his eyes. I don’t look back at him. Not directly at least but there is a vase in the distance that is so reflective that I can see his confused eyes.“Is he dead?” I ask him.I had just poisoned the Vizier.“They took his body away.”“Is he dead?”“I’m not sure,” he states.“Dammit,” I reply.I get up at that moment and head over to the door. I have to find a way to get to the Vizier. I had to find a way to make sure he was dead. I was being sloppy. I was being so sloppy. Constantine had insisted that I go to his room though once chaos started breaking out. He was doing it to protect me. I was sure about that but the risk now was too great.“People think it’s the plague right now. If you go out there and start acting weird people will start thinking that something else is going on,” he explains to me.He had a point. I knew he had a point but it didn’t make it anymore easier.“You don’t understand.”“I’m sure you finished him,” he explains to me.I look at Constantine. I look back at the door.“You don’t understand.”

I start walking towards the door but Constantine stops me. He grabs me up and holds me there. He keeps me by his side. I can tell that things are getting weird by how he does it. He refuses to move me.“Stay with me.”I look at Constantine’s eyes. I’ve never felt a weakness towards someone before. The way he was looking at me now shows I am just as vulnerable as he is.“OK.”We lay on the bed. He spoons me, pushing his body up against mine. A few moments pass. It’s awkward at first but he speaks and there is so much stress in his voice.“You killed the Vizier for me,” he tells me, “Why?”“He wanted me to kill you.′“So why didn’t you do it?”I had made a choice. It was an emotional one but I knew that I had made the right now. The Vizier wanted me to prove myself to him. If I hadn’t killed Constantine I knew that the Vizier would look at me as his enemy.“The Ottoman empire has factions. People who come together for a cause. I was raised by the same people that raised Loras. He grew up to be the Vizier and I was raised to help him. These people are dangerous and they have been planning something for years.”“Planning what?”“To kill the Sultan.”Constantine turns me around. I can see the terror in his eyes. No one would dare say the words that I just said out loud.“Have you lost my mind?” he asks me, “It’s impossible. No one can get close to the sultan. They say that he’s a god. They say he reads minds. They say…”“He bleeds. All men bleed,” I tell him.He pauses. I had heard the rumors that Constantine had heard. The sultan goes nowhere with less than a 100 guards. Besides the guards were 100 servants. His servants carry carpets with them to lay at his feet. They don’t allow him to touch the bare ground because they feel like it would taint his divinity. That was the problem. That is why he had grown old and cruel. People thought he was a god.“These people. They sound like they’ve been planning this for a while,” Constantine says, “What happens if they found out that you turned against them and killed Loras.”“They’ll come for me.”“To kill you?”I nod, “Yes…”Constantine looks pissed right at that moment.“Why the hell did you do it? Why did you risk your life to save me!”Constantine clearly wants to talk about this more but I turn away from him. I close my eyes and I go to sleep. I can feel him close to me the entire night tossing and turning with discomfort.I feel heavy. It was only a matter of time. The people who raised me wouldn’t let me leave the Harem alive. They had been planning to kill the sultan for too long. I knew their identities. I knew their secrets. They wouldn’t rest until I was destroyed.~

It’s morning the next day. Constantine isn’t in my bed. I remember how he looked the night before. He was almost angry. I don’t get it.I make my way outside. The other boys are at the table. The eunuchs are cleaning up. I look around for Constantine but I still don’t see anyone.“Good morning,” I state.I sit at the table with the other boys. Alexios and his people are there. Alexios doesn’t give me the time of day. He just looks at me as I sit.“What happened to you last night?” Polo asks me.The other boys seem to wonder the same thing. I shouldn’t have listened to Constantine. I should have stayed on the scene. What looks suspicious was me disappearing as soon as the Vizier fell sick. I understood why Constantine didn’t want me around but Constantine wasn’t trained like I was. He didn’t know what he was doing. I should have been more careful.“I got a little sick,” I state.“Hope you aren’t coming down with the plague,” Alexios states.He says it in a way that makes me think he actually hopes that I come down with the plague.“That would be bad,” Mendeecees states, “The city is on lock down after word is going out that the Vizier caught the plague.”“Is he dead/” I ask the group.The boys shrug. It’s a copper toned boy named Yusef who shakes his head, “I heard he was on his death bed. I heard he probably won’t last another night.”I shake my head, “Such a shame.”“No shame,” Alexios states, “With them closing the gates on the city the nobles won’t travel. You know what that means? It means that we are going to get a lot of suitors.”

The boys cheer. The cheering stretches out even to Polo who is smiling at the idea of getting more visitors to the Harem.

“Do you realize someone is about to die?” I ask Alexios.I can’t help but to stare hard at him.“People die,” Alexios shrugs, “Get over it.”“Death shouldn’t be taken so lightly!”I slam my fist as hard as I can on the table. This is bothering me more than I would like to admit. The fact that I’m so angry right now is proving it. I slam my hand so hard that I splinter the wooden table. A few of the boys seem a little shocked by my emotions.“Hush calm down,” Polo states, “What’s the problem?”“He’s just really emotional,” Alexios responds, “He clearly needs to grow a little bit of a backbone especially if he is taking a stranger’s death so hard.”I can’t take this anymore.

I grab a knife off the table. I jump over the table. The eunuchs almost seem immediately alarmed. I’m holding the knife at Alexios throat. I watch him swallow, his Adam’s apple is hitting the blade of the knife a little bit.

“Are you afraid, Alexios? I’m sure you are. All men die and most men are afraid of death. It’s only when you realize that there is no escaping it that you really find freedom. You laugh at the idea of another’s death but you will die one day Alexios. Death is the only one that has the last laugh.”

I notice at that moment that Alexios has a look that he hasn’t given to me in a while. He is afraid. He is completely terrified. The others are watching me as well. Everyone is just staring at me with this crazed look.I drop the knife at that moment and leave.I head out into the hallway and get stopped immediately by Polo.“What WAS that?” he asks me.“I lost control…damn it. I messed up,” I state.“Lost control?” he asks me, “That was amazing. It was like you were a whole different person. I swear Alexios just pissed himself.”This wasn’t good. The attention I just got wasn’t good.“Polo, I really don’t want to talk about this. Have you seen Constantine?”

“He’s sunbathing.”“Sunbathing?”“Yeah out there. Are you OK?” he asks me, “You seem different since the Vizier died.”“I’m fine.”He wants to say something else. I’m sure of it but I don’t wait until he opens his mouth to speak. I end up walking away as fast as I can.I find Constantine in the courtyard. He’s alone. There is a eunuch posted out there not doing anything. Constantine is completely naked His already bronzed body is baking in the sun. There is a small patch of pubic hair nestled over his dick. It’s not hard by any means but it still has some healthy weight on it as it is lopped over the side of his leg. When he looks over at me and sees me he turns on his stomach, pressing his head to the granite and allowing the sun to bake his soft, round tight ass.“You didn’t wait for me this morning,” I tell him.“You were asleep.”“I need to speak with you,” I tell him.“You’re already speaking.”I sigh. He’s treating me a little funny.“I messed up,” I tell him, “I lost it with Alexios. People are getting suspicious.”“You’ll be fine.”He puts a towel over his head blocking the sun from his head and blocking any vision of me even before I’m done speaking.“Is that all you have to say?” I ask him.“What else did you want me to say?” he responds.“I’m not sure.”“Listen. Everyone still sees you as dumb innocent Hush. There is nothing to worry about. You’re paranoid.”“I’m scared.”“We both know you aren’t afraid,” he states, removing his towel to show me just how serious he is.“Are you angry at me?”I can just feel this vibe coming off of Constantine.He sighs, “You shouldn’t have done it.”“Done what?“Saved me from the Vizier.”“You didn’t want to be saved?”“If something happens to you it will be my fault,” he realizes out loud.I sigh, “I made my choice, Constantine. Why are you so angry with it? What are you so afraid of when it comes to me?”“I don’t owe you anything. You know that right?”He gets up. He looks at me. He domes over me. His naked body only inches away from mine but not reacting in the way that I thought after choosing him. I thought he would seduce me now. I thought he would fall for me and we would at least build from where we used to be. If anything me poisoning the Vizier had the opposite effect. Constantine’s wall has just gotten taller.“I never said you owed me anything.”

“Fine. Just wanted to make sure we were on the same page. Excuse me. I need to tan. The suitors and the princes are coming to visit the Harem tonight.”With that he walks away from me. I can see this anger inside. I can see this misplaced anger. I don’t understand Constantine. He is angry at the fact that I saved his life. The more I think I get close to understand him the more I see him pull away.~

The night comes quick and the princes are there. This is the first time they’ve been in the room since Prince Dhaamir’s death. I wonder if one of the two princes were responsible for their brother’s death. Thinking about it I would put my money on Dhaakir. He just had this real paranoid look on his face even now. He thinks his younger brothers are out to get him. I can just see how his guards don’t put any space between him and anyone else. The only boy from the Harem who is allowed anywhere close is Constantine. All the other boys don’t get anywhere near close.Prince Daai on the other hand seems a lot calmer. That is not to say he doesn’t look like a snake though. He has several boys dancing around him. He seems to enjoy their dancing but every once in a while he gives his older brother an intimidating stare.I sit off to the side watching both princes. They are on separate sides of the Harem. There isn’t really much dancing tonight. There isn’t really much of anything. The tension is thick.

“I think there’s going to be a fight,” Polo says.Polo has a point. The princes both have more guards than I’ve seen before. They are staring at one another. The fact that they are even in the same room after all that has happened blows my mind.“That’s none of our business.”At least I don’t want it to be. The way the guards are securing their weapons means they are ready to fight if there needs to be action. It looks like Daai just might actually want to take action as well.Daai is enjoying this in a sick way. A smile spreads across his face. He is the youngest son of the sultan. He has nothing to lose by challenging his older brother and I think he knows that as well. This was about succession. Who would become the next sultan? We all knew that and I think we all knew that Daai was ready to do whatever it takes.“I need your help,” someone says.I turn and am surprised to see Constantine. He had been over there by Dhaakir this entire time. That didn’t work though.“With what?” I ask.I’m surprised Constantine is coming up to me especially how he treated me last night.Constantine struggles to talk. He looks over at Polo.Polo notices the awkwardness and nods, “I’ll go feed some of the suitors.”As soon as Polo leaves I can tell that Constantine feels easy to talk.“He’s safe you know. He’s not Basil,” I respond.Basil was the reason Dhaamir was dead. I had no doubt that his brothers had decided to take him out because he was plotting.“I need to your help fixing this,” he explains, “I need to make peace with the brothers.”“Why?” I ask.I don’t understand why Constantine would care if the brothers were at peace or not. As far as I was concerned they could kill one another. Just as long as I was nowhere near it when it happened. There were other suitors for us to get our gifts from.Constantine seems secretive.“You trust me?” He asks me.“Yes, but I still want to know what you’re up to.”

“You are the last person that should be talking about keeping secrets,” he replies.

I sigh. He had a point. I don’t know why Constantine wanted the princes to get along but he wanted them to get alone.“You are the only one who Daai has shown a real interest in. I think if I can seduce Dhaakir to give it a chance then you can seduce Daai into giving peace a chance.”

“You want me to get that involved.”He nods.“Yes…”He wanted me to use my sex. He wanted me to single handedly stop a civil war with princes in the Ottoman empire. I didn’t get it but I knew that he was depending on me. I could see it in Constantine’s eyes.I nod.I head over to Prince Daai. I look over my shoulder and see Constantine headed to Prince Dhaakir. I was so sure that he wouldn’t have a problem convincing Prince Dhaakir to do anything he wanted. Dhaakir was obsessed with Constantine. I, on the other hand, had no idea how Daai really felt when it came to me. I did have an accident on him after all.I make my way to the Prince. He has that sneaky smirk on his face when I approach.“Look who it is,” he states.He sucks on his lips.“May I dance for you?” I ask him.“Not with any clothes on.”He is aggressive. He knows what he wants. He seems all of a sudden to stop provoking his older brother with smirks though and turns his full attention to me. The youngest prince waits and watches as I undress in front of him. He examines my body fully.“Do you like?” I ask him.He nods, “You’ve been working out.”

I have been. I had no choice. The boys here were all gaining these perfect bodies and to compete even a little bit I had to do the same. I find myself getting over to the prince and sitting on his lap. He grabs my butt when I do it. I begin to move on his lap throwing my hips from side to side. He holds onto my hips and my butt the entire time. Slowly he works his way up my back. He makes it to the top of my ass and he slowly, lets his finger penetrate me.“Mhmm…” I moan.“You like it?” he asks.“Of course. I want you to enjoy yourself. You’ve been looking so tense all night,” I explain to the prince.The prince looks to the other side of the room. I can see Dhaakir and Constantine talking. I don’t know what Constantine is saying to the other prince but right now they definitely seem like they are getting along. It also seems that they are staring over here, but not in the same way as they were before. The oldest prince doesn’t have this paranoia about him.

“My brother thinks I killed Dhaamir,” Daai says.“That’s outrageous,” I state.“He thinks I want his throne. He’s become more and more maddened with the idea,” Prince Daai explains to me.I feel bad. I can feel the tension between the brothers and it’s getting thicker.“He’s still family,” I state.He nods in agreement, “Yes. Things are different for the successors though.”“How so?”“The sultan won’t live forever. He’s getting older,” Daai explains.“So you can understand why your brother may be a little paranoid.”“Sure.”“So can you talk to him?”Daai looks me in my eyes, “Talk to him?”“He is your brother after all.”

“So I should make up with him because of it?” he asks me.“Yes. Why not?”Daai laughs. A few of his attendants laugh as well. I am pretty sure they don’t find what I said funny but they are doing it so the prince doesn’t laugh alone. I’ve seen it happen before with royalty. They treat these men like gods. They put them above everything. I can understand how that kind of power can become addicting.“You want me to make up with my brother?” he asks me, “Why?”

“For the good of the empire?”“I am not the empire. I’m just a prince. What do I get out of the deal?”

“What do you want?”

I shove his finger deep down my hole. He closes his eyes. He wants to feel it. I watch his facial expression as I tighten my ass muscle. I can hear him breathing.

“I want you now,” he states.

I begin to unbuckle his pants. I turn at that moment. I look at Constantine wondering what kind of progress he is making. Constantine isn’t even talking to the prince anymore though. He’s abandoned the prince and is standing there looking at me.What the hell is he doing?Just at that moment the prince pulls his penis out. He is hard. He begins to lower me on his dick. I can feel him breaching my walls at that moment. His big dick entering me. I sit on it until my butt hits his torso and I get all of him in me.

“Excuse me,” Constantine says.I turn shocked that Constantine is there. He grabs me and pulls me away.“What are you doing slave?” the prince says.The prince gets up angrily. He’s dripping precum.

“I saw him eat heavily today. I don’t want him to…have another accident.”

There is laughter at that moment. Alexios and the other boys start laughing. Alexios literally stares at me and points. I can see myself getting so angry at that moment. Why would Constantine do something like that?Why would he embarrass me when I was helping him?The prince is still horny and clearly wants me but doesn’t stop me when Constantine begins to pull me the hell away. Daai probably wants me but he would probably be embarrassed to act on it now that Constantine has called me out.We get to the backroom and I push Constantine hard on his chest.“Why would you do that?” I ask him.Constantine doesn’t answer me.

He looks down.

I push him as hard as I can, “Why would you do that! I was helping you.”

“I didn’t want you to do what you were about to do,” he explains.

“What are you talking about? I was doing what you asked me to do,” he explains.“Not the sex part…” he argues.“Constantine. We are in a Harem. That’s what we do.”

He looks up. That’s when I see tears in his eyes. They are real tears. Constantine is CRYING right now.“You don’t get it.”

“Get what?”“I’m falling in love with you,” he explains to me, “I don’t want anyone to have you. I don’t want him to have you. Ever. I want you to be mine and only mine. I don’t care if we are in a harem. No one else can have you. I love you, Hush.”Hearing him say those words are amazing and horrifying at the same time.He leans over and kisses me.I let him kiss me. I kiss him back but truth is I don’t know what this means. I am falling for Constantine too. There is no other reason I would have killed Loras if that wasn’t the case.“I love you too.”It scares me though. How does one survive in a harem without having sex?

Just at that moment I realize how bad this might be. I realize because there is a sound of fighting outside. The fighting sounds really bad.

“Wait here,” Constantine says.He leaves me and runs out to the front. I don’t listen to him though. I run out after him. What I see when I get back is a pure blood bath.“What’s happening?” I ask.I answer my own question.

The fight is over and there is one brother who has come out on top. Daai.

It looked like Dhaakir was right not to trust his brother. I keep thinking that maybe if Constantine didn’t pull me away then maybe we could have had a chance to stop the tension and fix the fight. I could be right or I could be wrong. I might have bought Dhaakir another day but there was something in Daai’s eyes that said he had this planned all along.

“I’m the successor now,” Daai says dropping his sword on his dead brother’s body.

11

“I want to show you something.”

Constantine takes my hand. He leads me out into the large Harem courtyard. The other boys have just begun their morning exercises which sound like laboring grunts of strain. We get away from the grunts just Constantine and me. He holds my hand as we leave. The eunuchs show no concern. For the most part, the country was finally back at peace. The sultan allowed his sons to fight it out for the throne and Prince Daai had come out on top.

Rumors of inconsistencies in peace within the empire have finally died down.

Behind a big tree, Constantine stops me. The courtyard is fresh with flowers here. I haven’t been to this side of the courtyard. I figured this was just the place where people would come see all the pretty swan in the courtyard. I hated seeing them, though. The birds were just as much prisoners in this place as I was.

Constantine starts to dig underneath the tree.

“You hid something?” I ask him.

He looks up at me. He has a tenderness that I haven’t seen before.

“I wanted to show you something. It’s the only thing that I own.”

“What are you talking about? You have a ton of gifts from all the suitors.”

“I don’t care about the gifts. They are just proof that I am a slave. They are meaningless to me. I don’t own those things. A slave can’t own what his master gives him. This is what I got when I was a free man. This is the only thing I own. This is the only thing that means anything to me.”

What he digs out of the ground is a small box. He slowly opens it and reveals a sea shell. It is a neutral ivory color in the shape of a fan. It’s almost the size of his hand. He holds it out, looking at it towards the sun as though it was the most important thing in the world.

“It’s beautiful.”

I mean it only because I see the way he looks at it. It’s a normal shell but the meaning behind it was beautiful. Constantine smiles showing me a side of him that he doesn’t ever really show.

“I wasn’t always a slave. I lived in a kingdom by the ocean. I grew up in royal garbs. My family was independent. Then the Ottomans came and everything changed.”

“I’d like to see it one day.”

“What?”

“Where you come from.”

He nods. He smiles, “I’ll take you.”

“You promise?”

He nods, “Yes. I promise.”

Right now he sounds like a free man instead of a slave. Maybe it’s because he has this shell. The boys in the Harem weren’t allowed to leave here. Constantine knew more than anyone that this wasn’t something that was allowed.

“I wish I had something. A reminder from when I was free. I don’t have anything. I own nothing. Even my memories aren’t mine. I was created. A weapon to bring down an empire that can’t be brought down.”

“The Ottomans have a lot of enemies. You never know.”

I shake my head. I wasn’t the first to be sent to kill the Sultan. I wouldn’t be the last. There was a little boy being trained now.

“After the sultan, there will be Daai. The Ottomans are forever.”

“You’re wrong.”

“Am I?”

“Nothing is forever. And you are wrong about you not owning anything,” he tells me.

“What could I possibly own?” I ask him.

“My heart,” he tells me.

His mouth settles around me. He kisses me. There is nothing sexual about it, though. Being that I was surrounded by sex it was nice to be removed from it for a minute. This kiss had an intimacy that was past sex. He holds me with his bare chest up against my bare chest. We breathe each other in. We forget where we are and what we are here for. We lose our breath.

All of a sudden we hear a voice. I turn to see that it’s Alexios. He sees us kissing and he must notice that this isn’t some sexual practice. It’s intimate. I can look into his eyes and tell he is surprised when he sees this.

“What do you want?” I ask him.

“Prince Daai has returned,” Alexios states, “He has requested you.”

I’m confused. It’s the middle of the day. The Princes never came to the Harem in the middle of the day. They were usually busy with what ever diplomatic situations they had. Each of the princes had multiple wives they needed to attend to as well.

“It’s too early,” I state.

“Well he’s here and I’ve been reduced to errand boy,” Alexios states crossing his arms, “You need to come with me. Now.”

“No.”

I’m not the one who says it. It’s Constantine.

“Excuse me?” Alexios asks, “You’re refusing a prince?”

Constantine grabs my hand. It’s the thing that slaves don’t usually do. He is claiming me for himself right in front of Alexios. The look in his eyes shows it.

“Constantine, I don’t think I can refuse,” I state.

“You’re not refusing. I’m the one who is refusing,” Constantine states, “He can’t have you.”

Alexios laughs, “Dhaakir and Dhaamir aren’t around to protect you any longer Constantine. Daai is clearly moving on with Hush. Are you really stupid enough to object to that?”

“Yes,” Constantine says.

“And I should tell the prince? That you refuse?” Alexios asks.

“Yes.”

Alexios sighs in disbelief. I’m in as much disbelief as he is. I knew when Constantine pulled me away from Daai before that he was becoming somewhat jealous. In the free world, it was understandable to be jealous of your lover touching another man. In the harem that was a completely different story. I should have known something like this would happen. I just had no idea it was so soon.

Alexios is happy to leave. He turns and almost runs to tell the prince what happened.

I look over at Constantine. He buries his box. He calmly grabs a large branch that has fallen from one of the trees, tests it for solidness and holds it in his hand as a weapon. I can’t believe what is happening right now.

“Constantine you can’t,” I warn him.

There is no warning him, though. He flexes his muscles and holds out a hand towards me, “Stay a few feet away.”

“I don’t mind meeting with him.”

“Unless we take a stand at some point we will always be slaves to the empire. You realize that right. They will never let us go until we are old and they have no use for us any longer. As long as they are attracted to us we will be here.”

“But we’ll be here together,” I remind him, “Isn’t that what matters?”

I knew from the moment I chose to kill the Vizier that I had doomed myself to a life in the Harem. The Vizier was the only one who was willing to release me. Now that he was gone I realize that I had no exit.

“You deserve more,” Constantine argues.

I wish I had more time to beg him. I don’t. Eunuchs start piling into the courtyard. The black slaves of the empire have no doubt been sent by the prince. I count 20. In a minute and with a word the prince is able to summon 20 people to do his bidding. This was the power of the Ottomans. This was just how strong they were.

“Step aside,” a eunuch says.

“No.”

The eunuchs don’t hesitate to attack. They swarm down on him like silent bees ready to sting. I watch in amazement and fear. They cover around him and I’m amazed when Constantine holds his own with nothing more than a stick.

He hits one eunuch, dodges another and swings his club as though it was light as a feather. The club slams down one eunuch, two eunuchs, five eunuchs and more. As I watch him evade attacks it becomes increasingly clear that Constantine isn’t just a slave and never has been. He has been trained as a warrior. He presses on kicking and clawing in a way that I honestly think that he has a chance to beat all 20.

And that’s when it happens.

20 more men come into the courtyard. 20 more eunuchs.

His breath gets heavy. His actions slow down. He’s punched in his face and hits the ground. He gets up quickly hitting the man even harder who attacked him. This man does not get up. Several other guards pile on him all at once. I get into the fray grabbing them and throwing them off of him until he is clear. When he’s clear I stand by his side.

“Stand back,” he tells me.

“No…”

“STAY OUT OF IT!”

It must be pride, I assume. At least at first, I assume it but then I watch as he just allows the men to jump on him and beat him. There is no fight left in his eyes. Constantine must know that it’s helpless. If he beat these men more would come and more would come after that. For some reason, I think he wants to feel the pain. He wants to gain something from the defiance. I’m not sure what it is at that moment but when he hits the floor I can see a smile on his face. Whatever he’s gotten from that act of defiance is definitely something he wanted.

I am dragged away by the eunuchs as they continue to punish Constantine. I scream his name several times.

“Constantine! CONSTANTINE!”

No answer.

The worst thoughts enter my mind when I am pulled from the courtyard. I wonder if they are going to kill Constantine in that courtyard.

~

“Take some wine.”

Prince Daai has come with an entourage. His guards, his servants and his slaves all amount to a parade of 50 plus people. He is the crowned prince now and the prestige of his new position drips off of him. He sits taller than before. His coy smirk is now a full blown smile. He wears gold everything and regalia is carefully placed around him.

I don’t take the wine. My head moves to the side. I see the other boys including Polo off to the side. They entertain men in Daai’s entourage but I notice the stares. Everyone wondering why Daai is here and what he wants.

“No wine. I’m not much of a drinker either,” Daai explains, “I brought you gifts.”

He nods his head. Women appear. These women bring out food and drinks and other perishable substances all presented in pottery jars and bowls. Following them were very small children who seemed under the age to be presented in a harem. They carry with them tunics, scarves, gloves and headdresses. Lastly are the train of men. I count 20 men in all. They bring with them lots of jewelry, including bracelets, buckles, pendants, necklaces, and rings. These were made from gold and precious stones. There also bring out fans to keep me cool as I sit there looking over the gifts. These were no normal fans either. These fans were ones made from ivory with huge ostrich feathers.

The other boys look on in jealousy. I look at the gifts though with not even the slightest bit of interest. He expects me to begin crying from excitement or dig through these boxes with fervor. I do neither one of those things.

“You don’t like them?” he says.

“Does it matter what I think?”

Was he trying somehow to buy my attention? He didn’t need to do that. I was his slave. He could have me if he wanted anytime he wanted. What was the point of doing all this? Did he think sex would be better if I were more appreciative? I knew you wouldn’t.

“You are much more expensive. I’ve noticed that from the first time I met you. What would you like?”

“A friend of mine was beaten. I would like to know if he’s still alive.”

“Constantine?”

“Yes.”

“They say he was beaten for trying to disobey my summons.”

“Yes.”

“And you want him spared?” Constantine asks.

“Yes.”

“That’s nonsense.”

Constantine’s smile fades. This angers him in a way.

“You asked me what I want.”

“He loves you…” Prince Daai states.

He almost spits the accusation at me.

“No. Why do you think that?” I ask.

“No one would do something as stupid as that unless he was in love,” Daai tells me with a deep hard grunt, “He loves you and that is the problem. Because I am jealous. Do you understand? No one will love something that belongs to me. I’ve killed men for less.”

“Please don’t hurt him,” I state.

“You’re begging for him?” Daai asks.

“Yes. Please.”

“You love him back?”

I get quiet. This conversation isn’t going anywhere easy any time soon. I know he wants me to say no. He wants me to deny it. A slave would have denied it. It would have been so easy. I can’t do it, though. I swallow my pride look down on the ground and just stare as though the entire earth was just getting smaller and smaller by the moment. I felt like I was floating away.

Then I hear the Prince.

“Hold him…down,” the Prince tells me.

The eunuchs grab me. They pull me to the ground.

“What are you doing?” I ask, “What are you doing!”

The prince releases his penis. It’s fully hard. It is dripping with precum. His people hold me down and begin ripping my clothes off. I struggle at that moment. The prince gets closer. I stop struggling. There was no point.

I forget where I am when he takes me.

I float away.

“You’re mine,” Prince Daai says, “All mine.”

Those are the last words I remember as I lose myself.

~

“Hush…” Constantine’s voice is weak.

Manuel helps me to the room. He knows what happens. He looks at Constantine when he does. Manuel has this look on his face. It’s this look that tells me he feels bad for me.

“Thanks, Manuel,” I tell him.

I nod so that he can leave before Constantine catches onto his sad face. I don’t want Constantine to know what happened. Constantine tries to get up to see me but he can’t. He’s much too weak. He is covered in bruises and scars. His eye is completely swollen shut. Someone stops him from moving too far. I’m surprised when I see it’s Polo.

“You can’t move. You’re in too bad of a shape,” Polo tells Constantine, “Hush tell him to sit.”

“Constantine listen to him.”

Polo helps Constantine back to the bed. Constantine’s eyes just keep staring at me, though. He is more concerned with me than himself. Seeing what they did to him though I realize just how sick Daai is. Now his power was almost unchecked. Maybe it is a bad thing that the other brothers are gone. They wouldn’t have let this happen to Constantine.

Polo looks over at me, “Do you need help Hush?”

“I’m fine Polo. Thank you.”

“I’ll go bring fresh rags for Constantine,” Polo states.

With that Polo leaves the room. Constantine watches as he leaves.

“He’s a good friend,” Constantine tells me, “He helped me the whole time you were gone. He said it was because you were his best friend and you’d want him to take care of me.”

I smile at the thought.

“I told you Polo was good,” I tell him.

Constantine sighs, “It’s just hard to trust.”

“I understand,” I state.

I lean over pressing up against the wall as we talk. I take a deep breath. I may have disappeared in my mind when Daai took me in front of all of those people.

“What’s wrong with you?” Constantine asks.

I shake my head.

“Nothing.”

“He took you…didn’t he?” Constantine asks.

I don’t answer. The idea of rape in a Harem isn’t really something that I considered. We were slaves. We belonged to the sultan and his people. I was property. The fact that I still felt so violated was crazy. I don’t want to lie to Constantine but I don’t want to upset him either. He can read through my expression. I watch him get up and punch a wall with an already strained body.

Constantine paces angrily. I can’t stop him even though I try.

“I’ll kill him,” he states.

“You can’t.”

“Then we’ll escape.”

“There is no way out,” I state.

“Yes, there is,” a voice argues.

I turn to the door. Polo and Alexios of all people have shown up at the door. Alexios overheard what Constantine said. I feel afraid at that moment. Alexios couldn’t be trusted.

“I told him you were busy,” Polo states, “He didn’t listen.”

“No…Alexios you said there was a way out,” Constantine states, “What is it?”

“The sultan is coming tonight finally. I believe that’s why Daai raped Hush. He did it so that Hush would be in too much pain to have sex with the sultan tonight. He’s jealous. The sultan being here though is very good.”

“Why?” I ask.

I’m confused. Why was Alexios telling us this?”

“There is an exit. If you would like. It’s in the courtyard past the stone statue. It leads to the Vizier’s old quarters.”

“If you knew about a way out, why not escape?” Constantine asks.

“Because he’s lying,” Polo adds.

Alexios isn’t someone to be trusted. I knew that for a fact but for some reason I also knew he wasn’t telling a lie right now.

“He’s telling the truth. The reason he never used it is because those halls are crawling with guards. You’d be punished if you got caught.”

Constantine looks over at me surprised.

“You knew about it as well Hush?”

I nod.

“The Vizier told me. But it’s useless. The guards will be too heavy.”

“Not tonight. Not when the sultan is here. Every guard will be summoned to protect him. Every last one. It’ll be perfect to escape,” Alexios states.

My mouth gets dry.

Constantine looks over at me.

“The water… I can take you to the water,” Constantine states.

My heart races at the idea. It’s a good plan. It may be one of the only times we would have to do it. I nod at that moment.

I didn’t have time to think about it.

It was now…or never.

~

It is a full moon when the Sultan of the Ottoman empire finally shows his face in the Harem.

He is precisely who I thought he would be. His face is the color of old ore. He sits like a wired eagle perched up over everyone else. There is a symphony playing as he walks. His robe swallows him up. He sits on his pedestal not too far from his heir Daai. They are laughing about something and I notice nothing but old rotten teeth. Alexios dances for him. I watch halfway disgusted when Alexios pulls out the sultan’s crooked, limp dick and begins to suck it. I almost want to throw up when I see what happens next. The sultan loses control of his bladder and begins to piss in Alexios face. Most men would be outraged but when you suck the sultan’s dick you have no choice but to be bathed in it and smile as though you enjoyed it.

“I’m going to be sick,” Polo tells me.

The guards are so tight that I don’t even bother to get close. In fact, I make it my business to stay away. The night is moving fast. I turn to see Constantine. He would give me the signal when it was time to leave this place once and for all.

The servants gather around the sultan with ostrich feathers. I notice the swarm of strange men that I have not seen or don’t really recognize in the room.

“It’s almost time,” I state.

The final guards are still entering the room. You would think it was an army. I’d seen nothing like it. All to protect this vile sick old man. He’s still peeing on Alexios and Alexios is still acting as though he enjoys it. I watch as Manuel and a few other boys join in in an attempt to please the sultan. It’s amazing the lengths people would go to make him smile just a little.

“I’m going to miss you, friend,” Polo tells me.

“I may not be going anywhere. Alexios could be setting me up.”

“I doubt it.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Alexios wants nothing more than to see you gone,” Polo explains, “Before you take the sultan’s attention away from him. He wants you and Constantine gone. Or dead…”

“Come with us.”

“It’s just…too dangerous,” Polo responds, “You have Daai to possibly protect you if you get caught. If I get caught…I’m dead.”

Polo had a point. I knew he wouldn’t risk his life to leave. Still, I wanted him to go. I wanted him to experience freedom. The look on his face says he gave up on that a long time ago.

“I’ll come back for you…once I know a safe way out,” I promise Polo.

Polo smiles, “I figured you would. I’ll be waiting…giving Alexios a run for his money.”

I smile back, “I hope you do.”

I hug Polo as tight as I can. Just at that moment I turn and see Constantine standing at my side.

“It’s time.”

Constantine gives me a nod. I look over at Polo one last time as Constantine pulls me away. The last of the guards are filing into the room. Constantine grabs me by my arm. I notice as we walk in a look in people’s eyes. It’s just a look of strangers. Distant strangers but they have this twitch. People who have been far removed from life.

We walk past these strangers. I notice many of them are wearing dark robes. They look like they are up to something. I’m not sure what…but it’s something bad.

“Constantine…”

“Hurry up. We need to get to the courtyard.”

We pass more guards and more strangers. The look on their faces. I turn to see who they are looking at. They are dressed and nobles but they move light on their feet. You can barely hear their footsteps. They all look at one thing and one thing only. They only look at the sultan.

“Constantine something’s wrong,” I tell him.

“What?”

“The people who sent me.”

“What about them?”

“They are here.”

Constantine grabs my hand, “Come on! NOW!”

We break out into a run across the room towards the courtyard hoping no one notices. Just as we begin to get close though I see a face. It’s a familiar face. It’s one of the eunuchs.

They reach out and grab me!

Constantine looks like he is ready to fight but luckily I hold him back before he throws his fist.

“What is it?” I ask.

“The sultan would like to meet you,” the eunuch states.

“I have to use the bathroom.”

“The bathroom’s the other way,” The eunuch says.

“That bathroom is closed,” Manuel states out of nowhere, “I was going to lead them to a place to go in the courtyard. It’ll only be a second.”

I exhale realizing Manuel comes out of nowhere to save Constantine and I. The eunuch seems suspicious but nods none-the-less. With that, we begin to get escorted out into the courtyard by Manuel. As we get to the middle of the courtyard I can’t help but smile.

“Thank you so much, Manuel,” I state.

Manuel doesn’t respond.

The night is quiet. Constantine and I are standing there. That’s when I hear something. Footsteps. I’m shocked when I see who comes out.

“Have you missed me, Osman?” the familiar voice asks.

Osman. He was using my birth name.

I turn. It’s Loras. He’s limping. His skin is still a pale gray. He needs to be helped. But Loras is alive. He’s fucking alive right now.

I look over at Manuel, “Sorry.”

“Loras…Loras I can explain,” I state.

Loras isn’t alone. He has these strange people with him. Assassins. The same assassins that were in his room.

“This was supposed to be our grand moment to share together. We would get rid of the sultan and his sons. Together! Now I’ll have to get that done alone,” Loras responds, “You would have ruled with me. I don’t get it. You would have been my Vizier. Why would you betray me? We would have RULED TOGETHER!”

“Ruled?” Constantine asks.

Loras laughs, “He doesn’t know does he?”

Loras would try to kill me and Constantine for my betrayal. He had somehow survived my poison and was here, now, of all days. Seeing those people in there lets me know he was going to make his move against the sultan tonight. Constantine looks over at me.

“Know what?”

“Remember that story you told me?” I ask Constantine, “Of the sultan and his past wife?”

“Yes.”

“Well…it’s true,” I state, “Except one part. The sultan’s past wife had a child. That child was Loras. Loras is a bastard of the Empire.”

And if the sultan and Daai died today, he was next in line to rule.

12

“Give me one reason I shouldn’t kill the both of you now,” Loras demands.

He watches Constantine and I. I look over at Constantine. We are in a very bad position. Loras has sent his assassins in there to finally kill the sultan now that the sultan was in the Harem. All I know is that I need to act and I need to act fast.

This was my one last chance. Constantine looks on the ground. He seems ready to give up. I realize he is depending on me. I have to seduce one last person. One last time. All the training that I’ve been given at the Harem is coming to a head right at this moment.

I take a step forward. I’m slow. I’m casual.

I put my hand on Loras. He pulls back initially but I put my hand on him again. It isn’t in an aggressive way. It’s just a slight touch on the hand. A slight way to make him feel that maybe things might not be as shady as it might appear.

“Loras it’s me.”

“You poisoned me.”

“I knew you would survive.”

“I almost didn’t!” he screams out.

Loras pushes me hard. He pushes me so hard that I hit the ground. Him barking it the way that he does causes Constantine to act up. Constantine charges forward but he doesn’t get far. The men with Loras stop him and pin him to the ground.

“Wait,” I state before the men start pounding into Constantine.

I don’t want to see him hurt.

“You worried about him?” Loras asks me.

“It’s not that.”

“Sure it is. You are in love with him. Aren’t you?”

I look over at Constantine realizing that now that love in the Harem is causing some issues. Constantine won’t let me do my thing if it is up to him.

Love blinds in the Harem.

“No,” I state.

Constantine lifts his head up. He is surprised. I’m surprised by the words are coming out of my mouth as well.

“Hush…” Constantine states.

“That’s not my name!” I respond to Constantine, “I am Osman. I don’t belong to you either Constantine. I belong to Loras.”

I turn to Loras. Loras looks down and focuses on me. He’s looked at me a million times when we were younger. When these people who were against the sultan were preparing him to take the throne, I was his only friend. They were the usurpers and Loras was supposed to be the new sultan. It was a lonely upbringing. Together we were able to make a bond. I was hoping that Loras still saw a little bit of that bond left over.

“You poisoned me.”

“I knew you would survive. People were getting suspicious of you. Constantine was getting suspicious of you and he had popularity and respect in the harem. I had to make Constantine believe that I was in love with you. I had to remove you from focus for a while. I used just enough poison to make sure that you survived.”

Loras stops for a moment.

“You did it to save me?” Loras asks.

I get up off the ground. I make my way back over to Loras. I put my hands on his face.

“Kill the sultan. Take your rightful place and keep me by your side. Forever,” I tell Loras, “Just how we planned. We can still have that Loras. We can still be together and you can still have everything that you want.”

“Hush…”

“Prove it,” Constantine says.

“What?”

“Prove it in front of your lover,” Loras states.

“Please don’t,” Constantine tells me.

I see Constantine’s face. There is so much hurt in his eyes at that moment. I shake off the look he is giving me. I clear my head. I lean into Loras. I put my lips on his. We kiss. It’s one of the most emotional kisses I’ve ever had. I continue to kiss Loras and I watch as he unbuckles his pants and let his penis out of his hole.

He positions my hand in front of his penis. I touch the penis. I feel the warm thick skin get hard in my palm. I slide my palm up and down his shaft. I grip his penis hard but not too hard. I make sure that he feels everything as I work up and down the shaft.

He begins to kiss me at that moment. He kisses my cheeks then makes his way to my neck.

“STOP!” Constantine struggles.

Constantine attempts to fight past being pinned down as hard as he can. I know he doesn’t want to do it. I know that he doesn’t want me to do it.

That’s when Loras drops his pants. His dick is hard. It’s precumming.

“Turn over.”

“Will you spare us?” I ask Loras.

“I’ll spare you. That is what you want isn’t it. If you aren’t in love with him. You want me to save your life. Right?” Loras asks me, “I can’t lie. I still love you, Osman. I still want us to be together. You just have to prove to me in front of him who you belong to. That’s all I’m asking.”

“And you’ll kill the sultan and take me out of this Harem?” I ask.

“Yes. You’ll be by my side always. You’ll never need for anything. I’m offering you everything you could ever dream of,” Loras states.

Loras kisses me again.

I turn over to Constantine. I was a boy in a Harem. Most boys in the Harem would live and die for the gifts of their suitors. I was being offered the ultimate gift right now by someone who was going to be the next sultan. I was being offered greatness.

“What will happen to Constantine?” I ask.

“Why do you care?” Loras asks me.

He’s getting suspicious. I can tell. I look back over at Constantine. Tears are rolling down his eyes. He was in love with me. I can tell. We were boys in the Harem. We had used our bodies to get us what we wanted this entire time. What was one more time? Why was he so emotional unless it was complete love.

“Spare him,” I state.

“Fine. If that’s what you want, I’ll keep him alive. I’ll throw him in a prison and he’ll never see the light of day. But he will be alive. Is that what you want?”

“Yes,” I reply.

This was the best that a slave could bargain for. The fact that I was able to seduce Loras even into this showed that I had come a long way. I turn back to Constantine expecting him to have a sense of relief. That isn’t the case though. Constantine’s eyes are bloodshot red and he is gritting his teeth in defiance. Right now I can see all the royalty around him. This isn’t the face of a slave by any means.

“No,” Constantine argues, “I’d rather die than have another man touch you again.”

The words come out so quick and Loras laughs at them.

“Turn around,” he tells me.

I start to turn around at that moment. I lower my pants. I bend over. I fall on all floors. I watch as Loras positions himself behind me. He makes sure that I face Constantine as he spits on his dick. I feel a slight push on my backside.

Then I see Constantine’s face.

And I push away.

“I can’t…”

“You refuse me?” Loras asks.

“Yes. Even if it means death. I just can’t.”

“You don’t have an option,” Loras states, “You’re mine. Mine forever.”

Loras attempts at that moment to manhandle me. He pushes me to the ground so that my chest falls flat on the grass. I struggle. I can hear Constantine screaming in the background! Loras restrains my wrists at that moment. I hit him square in the jaw with my elbow causing him to lose his balance.

Just at that moment I hear someone scream.

“What’s going on here!”

I turn at that moment to see Prince Daai.

“He tried to rape me!” I scream at Prince Daai, “The Vizier tried to rape me. I told him that I was yours Prince Daai. I told him I was in love with you and I would never have anyone else touch me.”

“What? You little liar!” Loras states.

It’s too late though. Prince Daai’s men have come out with him.

I turn to Loras. We are close enough that no one else can hear what I am saying to him.

“You can chase after me right now or you can defend your throne,” I whisper to Loras, “It’s up to you. Exactly what do you want more?”

The ultimatum is loud and clear. He looks at me. I back up towards where Constantine is. He looks at Prince Daai. He looks back at me again.

Then he makes his choice.

“Attack the Prince…” he orders his men.

His men release Constantine! I don’t waste any time. Within a matter of seconds, I grab Constantine by his arm and start running out of the yard.

“Come on!”

I turn back one last time as we make our way out the secret courtyard. I see the men fighting. I see they are too obsessed with power and respect to even care about two slaves disappearing into the darkness.

It becomes very clear when none of the men even look our way as we make our way to the hidden passage.

We are leaving the Harem.

~

“Stay here.”

It’s night time. The streets of Topkapi palace don’t have many guards but it is still hard to transverse from one area to another area without standing out too much. As boys of the Harem we barely have clothes on. Luckily Constantine is able to find some dried clothes being hung out in one of the many buildings in the palace. He steals the clothes. They don’t fit too well but it’s good enough to disguise ourselves so that we don’t stand out.

“You can’t leave me,” I tell Constantine.”

“I’ll be right back. I need to get us a way out of here,” Constantine explains.

He leaves. I watch at that moment as several guards walk out of the main gates. I press myself to the shadows at that moment. My heart is racing. The fear that I may be caught became so real at that moment. It becomes beyond real.

I pray that Constantine hurries back.

I find myself clinging to the walls hoping they don’t see me.

The men walk past. Slowly they are chatting. I hear the conversation pretty clearly.

“Most everyone is at the male Harem,” one of the guards says to the other, “They say that it is really a big thing tonight.”

“I wonder what those boys have that the female Harem doesn’t.”

“Have you ever been with a boy?”

“No.”

“Then you need to experience it first hand.”

There is a little bit of laughter between the two guards. I hold my breath as they pass right in front of me. At first they seem like they are too busy laughing to really care about a boy pressing up against the wall. However, when the pass me one of them stops…almost suddenly. It’s almost like he’s being beckoned or something like that.

He turns towards me. His eyes connect with mine.

“You’re handsome,” the soldier says to me.

“He is. Like one of the Harem boys,” the other soldier replies.

“Many thanks,” I reply.

“What are you doing outside of the gate of the palace?” the soldier asks me.

“I was looking to trade.”

“At this time of night?”

They pause. Both men take steps towards me. Both seem very suspicious. I see how they stares at me. Their eyes are basically squinting at me in a way that lets me know they aren’t believing a word that is coming out of my mouth. I’m panicking!

I wasn’t going to escape here!

I wasn’t going to be able to get home!

My heart races.

All of a sudden I hear a chariot.

“Excuse me kind soldiers,” a man says, “That boy is with me.”

The back of the carriage has trading goods of all types with a dust cover concealing the majority of it. I’ve never seen this man before. He is a stranger. He doesn’t even seem a little bit familiar. He looks at me as though he knows me though. The soldiers give him a nod at that moment. I think one of them says something like “Carry on” while the other one winks at me and gives me a flirtatious smile. I stand for a minute and wait until the man helps me into the carriage.

He places me into the back and we start riding away.

I look at the man but he doesn’t say anything.

That’s when I feel an arm pull me from underneath the dust cover. I turn to see Constantine.

“I paid him off,” Constantine tells me.

My heart is racing. I turn back at that moment to Topkapi palace. I can’t believe we are leaving.

“This is it,” I tell him.

“This is it…” he responds.

A year has passed. The city by the sea is everything that I imagined it would be. It’s not safe for Constantine to resume his previous station. The city is still under the law of the Ottomans. Still Constantine has enough friends to hide us in a little cottage at the top of the hill that overlooks the ocean. The beautiful breeze sweeps in every day, waking us up.

Today is one of those days. A beautiful day.

“Every day I’m thankful for you,” I tell him.

Constantine tells me that every day as well. I turn over to him and kiss him hard on his lips. We are sleeping in a bed. We are free men. Our lives have changed dramatically. We do what we want. We do it when we want to.

We make love well into the day and throughout the night. Just with each other. We’ve created a paradise away from everyone and everything.

“You spoil me. You know that.”

“I can spoil you even more,” Constantine states.

He pulls me down to the bed as I try to get up. His dick is hard. He presses it between his legs. I think the fact that we both lived in a Harem for so long has created a sex drive that most people didn’t have. I counted ten times in one day that we had sex as the record. Yesterday we had almost beat that record. I wonder if he is trying to definitely beat it today. I have to admit I’m still as turned on by Constantine as the first day I met him.

He’s just the perfect man.

“I should head to work,” I state.

I’m a farmer now. It’s not the most lavish job I’ve ever had in my life but it’s a living. I go to work. I come home. Constantine works as a fisherman. He’s good with his net and has a little boat that he uses to go out into the sea. He sells his fish to the local market.

It’s a humble living but I’ve never been so happy in my life. As he pulls me down I feel like I want to have sex with him right now and show him just how much he means to me. I don’t though. I just kiss him on the lips.

“You’re going to make me late.”

“When you come home I’m going to make love to you all day,” he warns me.

“Is that a threat?”

“You know me too well,” he responds.

He slaps me on my butt as I walk away and get ready for the day. The perfection in his voice makes everything sound so goddamn perfect. I’ve never been happier than with Constantine.

I head to the farm. The warm sun bears down on my head. My hands were once soft but they’ve gotten hard with farm work. My skin was once smooth but it has grown coarse. I had grown a beard that I never had before. I wanted to shave it off but Constantine liked it. He said that it gave me character.

“How’s your day Osman?” one of the other farmer’s asks.

“Perfect.”

Every day was perfect now.

“Did you hear?”

“Hear about what?”

“Sometimes I think you and your friend never leave the house. You never know what’s going on,” the farmer states.

I’m sure many of the locals know that Constantine is my lover. They don’t seem to get in our business though. They leave us alone. It’s a kind town. Everyone is happy. There is no deception or manipulation. There is no plotting and backstabbing like in the Harem. No one here had it out for you. No one here had an agenda.

“I don’t care much about what’s going on in the outside world,” I state.

“Well the sultan is dead.”

Years ago I had heard that Lora’s plan was a failure. He had died at the hands of Prince Daai in that courtyard. I was grateful. What if I had been involved in that plan and not escaped that night. I would have been dead along with all the conspirators against the sultan. I had managed to escape though. I had managed to live a happy life.

As for Daai. He had survived. He had saved his father. I was so sure then that the sultan was immortal. I was so sure that nothing would ever be able to stop him.

“How…how did he die?”

“A boy in the Harem killed him. Could you imagine?”

My mouth drops.

I wonder if this was some sort of new assassin in the Harem.

“Do you know who?”

The man shakes his head, “No names. Topkapi palace is a long way away. All I know is that Daai is now the sultan. And for some reason rumor has it that his first act was to travel to these parts.”

“To these parts?” I ask.

“Seems like he’s looking for someone. And now that he’s sultan…he definitely will move heaven and earth to get it.”

My mouth drops open at that moment.

I take off.

“OSMAN!”

I ignore the other farmer. I take off up the hill toward the cottage. I was sure that Constantine would be leaving soon to go fish for the day once the sun drops from the sky a little bit. That was when he felt was the best catch. When I got to the top of the hill I am distracted. As I look over the hill I see boats.

Ottoman boats.

They gather as far as the eyes can see.

My heart sinks!

I keep running. I keep running faster and faster and faster. By the time I get to the top of the hill though I know that there is no more running. There is no more hiding. I see the eunuchs. The men whose bodies are as dark as ash. They stand there. They look at me with this look that lets me know that they see me for exactly who I am.

Constantine is already in chains.

He looks at me with this weak look.

The Ottomans have found us.

We remain quiet in the ride back to the Topkapi palace. The wagon is slow. We are in chains with a bunch of other boys. Boys that look just like me. Boys that have an uncanny image to me. I know why. Daai is like his father. He has the same madness. Daai is searching for boys that look just like me.

“Where are we going?” one of the boys asks, “Does anyone know where they are taking us?”

“The worst place in the world,” Constantine offers.

Now that we have lived almost a year together I know that Constantine really means it this time. He looks over at me. A slight finger manages to get through the chains and touch me. It’s only for a minute but it is a reminder of all the times that we had together.

Daai will kill him. On sight. I was sure of it.

I was so aware. I think that Constantine was as well.

We get to Topkapi palace.

“I love you,” I tell Constantine.

“I love you too.”

There is a silence at that moment. I remembered when I had first come to this place. I remembered when I first came to the Harem. A feeling that all this seemed so familiar came over me like a tidal wave. I look at Constantine’s face as we are being marched across the bridge. He gives me a look. I give him a look.

We know what this all means. Constantine would be killed. If he wasn’t he would have to sit there and bear another man claiming me in whatever way that Prince Daai had ready for us. Daai was going to claim us in a way that I wouldn’t understand.

“Remember my shell,” Constantine says, “Remember what it represents.”

I nod, “I’ll find it.”

“QUIET!” one of the eunuchs screams before I get the chance to say anything else.

Within that moment I realize that Constantine has truly tasted freedom. And he looks over the bridge. It was the same bridge that his lover jumped over when I had first arrived in the Harem.

Constantine stares at that bridge and I have an understanding that I didn’t understand a while ago. I understood that there was only one true way out of the Harem. Escaping was only a taste for a short period of time. Once you’ve tasted freedom, a slave can never be truly satisfied with bars. Now he was going to free himself.

He breaks past the eunuchs.

Constantine breaks past the chains. The eunuchs hustle to get him back in restraints but there is no restraining him. He was a free man. No one would hold him back again. No one would tell him what to do and what to tolerate.

Not again.

Constantine takes a long look at his freedom.

He jumps.

And he escapes the Harem…forever.