After that you are mine for ever, whatever you may want.’“Master?”“Yes,” he sighed.“What about my rights? Do women have any rights here?�...“Women are treated exactly the same as men in Kobekistani law. They have exactly the same status and privileges as their men folk,” he said, and as he expected this was misinterpreted, since he owned all the men as well as all the women, “Now wait here. I have to see someone, but I’ll be back in an hour or so. Have some breakfast, and think about what we’re. ‘Sorry,’ she said. ‘Is this a bad time? I’m sorry if I should have called first, but work was so crazy and…’ ‘It’s okay,’ he said, and she felt a little better when he smiled at her. ‘I brought you these,’ Molly began, holding out the bag. She was about to continue when someone behind Jake spoke up. ‘Jacob, who is it?’ The door swung open further and a woman appeared next to Jake. ‘Come on in, Molly,’ Jake said. She did, although her feet felt like blocks of wood. ‘Molly, this is Chelsea. Landers stood up from the seat next to Sia as I approached. My anxiety was still ratcheted up.“Hello, Mr. Hicks,” she said, smiling slightly, an apologetic expression on her face, and extending her hand towards me.I shook it briefly trying to peer around her at my daughter who now seemed to be in deep conversation with Lara.“What happened? Are you and Lara all right?” I asked distractedly, relieved when I heard Sia’s peal of laughter.“We’re fine. Some idiot T-boned us and shoved us into a. They showed me into a room with about two dozen chairs and a group of men standing near a table with several bottles — each in an ice bucket — and an array of six or seven dozen glasses. As I came in, I noted one bloke spit into one of two hour-glass shaped metal spittoons that were near the ends of the table. "Our members always taste each other's wines before a meeting," my host murmured. "There are three whites today." I nodded. I was offered one.I took it, swirled, sniffed, sipped, and then.