Iliana sighed dismally and forced herself to get up and dress. She ran into some small difficulty right away. The belt of chastity was good for keeping unwanted intimacies at bay but was quite inconvenient when it came to certain personal needs. It would have to be removed.

Still clad in only the belt, she stepped onto the foot of the bed, grasped an end post to maintain her balance, and stretched a hand up to feel around in the drapes that were gathered over the bed. It did not take long to realize that this was not a good hiding spot. It seemed she had thrown the key farther than she had meant to. She could not feel it.

A knock at the door made her stiffen. “Who is it?”

Ebba’s voice answered and Iliana relaxed with a sigh. Calling out to her to enter, she immediately turned back to the bed drapes, this time poking at the underside of them, trying to pop the key out.

“My lady!” Ebba gaped at her briefly, then hurriedly closed the door and rushed to her side. “What are you doing, my lady?”

“Trying to get the blasted key out of the drapes. Find me something long to fetch it out with. I fear I have an urgent need to relieve myself.”

The maid’s eyes widened at that, and she made a brief search of the room, coming up with a poker from beside the fire. “Will this do?”

“Aye, it should.” Taking the poker, Iliana began jabbing at the material again.

“Did you…He…You did not wear that thing all the night long, did you?”

“Aye.”

After a brief silence, the woman asked, “Was his lordship very put out?”

“My husband passed out on the floor last night. He did not awake ’til morn.”

“But the sheets were—”

“He cut his hand and spread the blood on the linens. My best linens,” she added grimly.

“He knows not about the belt, then?” Ebba ventured hopefully as she eyed with distaste the single item of clothing her mistress was wearing.

“He knows. He found out this morn after everyone left.”

“How did he react?”

“How do you think?” she asked dryly, then cried out with relief as the key finally slid off of the drapes. Dropping the poker on the bed, she jumped to the floor to retrieve the small item, sighing with mingled relief and pleasure as she finally clasped it in her hand.

“What will you do?”

Iliana looked surprised. “Why, take it off, of course.” Just as Ebba began to look relieved, she added, “’Twill be nice to be without it for a few minutes at least.”

The woman gaped at her. “Surely you do not intend to put it back on?”