Ties of Blood by D.W. Jackson

turning his mug upside down on the table.
    The lamb like the other Ablaian food was spicier than she was used to, making her stomach protest after each bite. When only half her food was eaten she ran her hands over her burning belly. “While you two enjoy yourselves I’m going to go enjoy my bath and hope this food doesn’t come back to haunt me.” Eloen said in a slightly pained voice.
    “Fun, the fun won’t start until later.” Ballard said showing her away with his hand. “Now go enjoy your bath. Just try not to stay in there so long you look like a dried piece of fruit.”
    Eloen sniffed the air then crinkled her nose. “You could use a bath yourself. I’ve smelt outhouses that had a better aroma then you two are putting off.”
    Darryl lifted his arm and took a large whiff then began coughing. “I didn’t pass out, so we still got a few days.”
    “Men!” Eloen said as she turned and walked away. She had gotten used to their bathing habits or the lack of, but sometimes she swore they had an ongoing bet about who could be the first to cause death by stink alone.
    She found her room with the bath already drawn and still steaming. Sticking her finger in the water and found that it was almost hot enough to boil someone alive in. Not wanting to wait for it to cool she shimmied out of her clothes and slipped slowly into the bath. Looking around she noticed a small bar of soap. Looking around she didn’t see anything to use as a rag and that was one of the few things she hadn’t thought about bringing with her on the trip. Sighing in disappointment she began washing, trying to get as clean as she could with what she had available.
    Once the dirt was scrubbed from her body, Eloen lay back and relaxed, letting the hot water soothe her aching muscles. It wasn’t just Thad that had been bothering her as of late. The current state of Abla’s people was in sad shape. Unlike in Farlan where even the poor could afford good clothing, but even the well to do people in Abla seemed to wear clothing that would hardly pass for the peasantry. She seldom wore nice dresses unless she was at home but she had grown accustomed to seeing the elegant dress of the women of Farlan.
    Slipping below the water she tried to wash away the questions that were lying heavily on her shoulders. Was it due to Farlan’s heavy taxes that the majority of Ablaians were forced to live in abject poverty? She didn’t know enough to answer the question. Their government could be to siphoning off funds to the top tier and leaving the lower rungs the scraps. She had always been content with thinking that the Ablaians were simply a warmonger race of degenerates on the other side of the mountain. She had never even met one of them until recently. Now she could no longer tell herself that. They were no different than her expect they were unfortunate enough to be born on the wrong side of an imaginary line.
    Getting out of the bath Eloen looked over her small assortment of clothes. After giving it a lot of though she decided on a plain peach colored dress that reached down to her ankles. It hugged her a little too tightly around the waist but it showed her features off better than the others. Normally she would try and downplay her looks but if Ballard had been right a pretty face might loosen lips as easily as the drink that they shoved down their gullet.
    After strapping on her daggers and making sure they didn’t stick out Eloen put on the ring Thad had given her. It wasn’t anything fancy just a simple silver band with a cat’s eye gem set in the middle. Eloen though it looked gaudy so she had never worn it before, but without a real weapon it helped make her feel more secure. The ring wasn’t offensive in nature but would put up a shield around her for a short time. Twisting the ring that now rested on her finger she wished she had gotten Thad to make her more items. She knew he would have done if it she had only asked but he had been working so