Shirina has been studying an arcane scroll scrawled with tinctures and potions, and she's well on her way to becoming a master poisoner. Too bad her brother Dharmesh won't accompany her to the marketplace so she can obtain the final ingredients. He says there's a rapist prowling the village, and he won't tempt fate by parading his young unmarried sister around town. So he goes himself—and leaves her behind. Alone. At the mercy of anyone who just might happen to drop by. (Erotica - short story)