After all it was a long journey and I was alone so why not use the men for a bit of harmless fun.Next what I intended to do was a bit over the top but...I decided to do it anyway. I stood up and went to the bathroom and intentionally left the door open a bit. Now the people who were sitting in the side berth could see right through into the bathroom. I was standing with my back to the door. I opened my saree and began to apply some powder. Then slowly I loosened my blouse and let it open half. She opened the window a few inches to clear the steam and allow her to focus on the task at hand.As she reached to again pick up the blade, she saw a flash of white through the window. Squinting through her blurred vision, Connie saw a large white bird sitting on the windowsill. 'Strange,' she thought. 'I swear that looks like a raven.' She shook the thought from her head. 'Impossible. I've never heard of a white raven.'She put the blade down on the tiled floor and reached up towards the bird.. Someone must have just emptied their gun. They hurried out the door into the street with shotgun and Henry rifle raised for whatever trouble they saw. What they saw was two men standing in the street a few feet apart facing each other. Tom looked at the man closest to him, he wore a black hat, clean clothes, with shiny boots and spurs that shown in the dim light. He also carried his handgun low on his right hip.Tom glanced up the street and saw the man facing him wore no gun, he wore a dirty. It was calm, controlled, and gave no indication of the rest of the self-styled emperor's intentions. I could not have matched that calm, if I had known what was to come. "The terms?" Mother asked, a hint of hope in her eyes. Seeing that his calmness had actually misled Mother, Bareth kneeled down before her and took her hands in his own. "Mother, the terms are hard. He demands the life of all male heirs to the throne of Achaiea. Else, he will execute a dozen peasant families every.