“Exactly,” Sojee said. “The chips in your arms will tell us who does what. If evenoneof you is a weak, cowardly excuse for a man who can’t control himself, all of us will know. Then what will happen?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “Queen Olina will use it as a reason to send all of you awayforever. Those of you with wives and children here won’t see them again in your lifetime.”
“But we can have sex with our wives, right?” a man asked.
“No!” Sojee said fiercely. “Donotgive the women cause to say, ‘Is that all you want from me?’ Fix her roof, repair the plumbing, and listen to your teenage daughter tell you how some girl said a really mean thing to her. Respect! That’s what you’re to give to these women.”
The men looked as though they’d lost a war. Miserable, sad, defeated.
“Now, let’s go over what youcando,” Sojee said.
“Meat!” a man said. “My men have been slaughtering for days. We’ve got so much meat it’s the ship’s ballast.”
“Right,” Sojee said. “These women make pets out of the animals. Most of the girls have never tasted a steak. They don’tknow what a pork sausage is. The grills that were left behind when—” Sojee swallowed, dampening down an anger that never left him. “The grills from before the men and women were separated are still here. They need cleaning but they work. I want this island smelling of beef. And chicken.” When he added the last, his eyes flicked up toward the balcony, an apology to Mekos of the Order of Swans.
The men were silent as they digested what he’d said.
“Cutting Games are easier,” a man muttered.
When Sojee said no more, they started to get up.
“There is one more thing,” Sojee said and they sat back down. He hesitated as though what he was about to say was embarrassing. “Shirts are optional.”
Their faces showed astonishment—and puzzlement.
Sojee shrugged. “Don’t ask me to explain women to you. Go naked and the women will run away. Go shirtless and they’ll nearly faint with lust.”
“But if we’re not to touch them, what use is that?” a man asked.
“None whatever,” Sojee said, “but it won’t hurt to remind them of what they’d get if youdidtouch them.”
The men still looked confused. That “logic” was beyond their comprehension.
One of the men laughed. “Tools and listen, no fighting, no sex. All on top of a shipload of beef and all done shirtless.”
Another man laughed. “We’ll be blistered by the sun.”
“Andlust?” a man said. “I like that word.”
They looked at Sojee. “You really think this will work?”
“It has to. Queen Olina has full power and I want no excuses for this to fail.” He took a breath. “Don’t forget that tomorrow you’ll be free to impregnate any woman on the island who’ll have you.” He narrowed his eyes. “Onlywomen who want you!”
The men stared at him. “You didn’t tell us about the second day.”
“Didn’t I?” Sojee asked with fake innocence. “Must haveslipped my mind. Just know that what happens tomorrow depends on if you can keep it in your pants today. Any more questions?”
The men looked at each other and shook their heads no.
“Good!” Sojee said. “The next ship will be arriving soon. I suggest you again go over the rules with your men. You know who the troublemakers are and who can’t follow rules. If you have to, chain those idiots to a rudder.” He paused and looked at them. “Above all, remember this—you are in a battle to the death with a queen who is used to ultimate power. It’s your choice whether you win this war or lose it.”
The men nodded in understanding. They weren’t going to mess this up.
Minutes later, Aradella and Mekos were downstairs. As they approached the exit door, he pulled her into a dark corner. “I hear people standing outside. I think they want you.”
“I’m sure it’s Olina.” Aradella stepped into his arms. “I’ve had too much freedom and no doubt she’s angry that I’m not dead.”
He held her close. “She’s going to be furious if the men last until tomorrow.”
“She gave the promise of having an orgy on the second day so she’d be praised—and loved. She only did it because she’s absolutely sure that today the men will erupt into violence. Then she’ll send them away. The lack of intimacy won’t beherfault.”
