Life with the Farrapos was going to be an adjustment. Their sense of morality was different from everything I had been taught, yet so much remained the same. Once a woman was shamed, she was ostracized, but their idea of a shamed woman was far different from what I experienced in town. A woman’s station was based on her partner’s position within the navy. Griggs was second-in-command to José, therefore everyone respected Ruthie. I was José’s woman, which meant that I was afforded even more respect. These putas, though, they were outliers. They weren’t associated with any one man. The officers called them maggots because they seemed to appear out of nowhere and scavenged for whatever they could.

A few evenings later I sulked in front of the campfire by myself while everyone else seemed too busy to notice me. The smell of roasted meats drifted on the light breeze, along with bits and pieces of their conversations. I looked over to José, a few feet away sipping his mate. He was surrounded by a group of mostly women who hopped around him like attention-starved puppies.

The tall one wore a bodice that was tied extra tight, making her bust look like a small table strapped to her chest, which she seemed to push out to José at every opportunity. Another painted lady was squat and round, reminding me of a frog, complete with a large wart that seemed to have a life separate from its host on her humped back, just above her dress collar. A few sailors circled the group as well, looking eager to get their master’s scraps.

I felt the sting of jealousy spread in my stomach, only to be suppressed by the chest-crushing doubt that seeped down from my shoulders. José had yet to come to me for his dinner, which I had taken over making from his servants. I stabbed a small potato with my fork. Had I made the right decision? Did José mean everything that he said?

“I wouldn’t worry about them.” A man’s voice interrupted my thoughts.

Surprised, I looked up to see Griggs smiling down at me. “May I?” He motioned toward the log next to me. When I nodded yes, he sat down. “José is a leader. He has to be that handsome friendly face. Who wants to follow an ugly man into battle?”

I couldn’t help but smile despite myself. Griggs took it as a cue to continue. “You see, it’s always the ugly ones who get labeled as crazy or as failures. If someone has to put their life on the line, they want it to be for someone who looks like victory personified. They want someone who looks like our José.” Griggs playfully bumped me with his shoulder. “However, I have it on good authority that you are José’s most treasured friend.”

I could feel a smile forming, betraying my cool demeanor. José’s second-in-command pointed at me. “There it is. I knew I could get your real smile.”