A Slave to the Servants Ch. 18

"Were you hungry?" Christof asked.

As bad as I looked, you'd think I was ravenous all the time. "No, I never was hungry. She always gave me this same stuff to eat. It was very filling."

"What did it taste like?" Christof asked with a pointedly casual air.

"Nothing, it tasted like nothing at all. It never took much and I was very full. I don't know what it was. You all never fed me anything like it," I mused.

Damien had never gotten in the bath and still stood clothed watching us. He started to pace now. "Rupe," was all he said looking at Christof.

"Probably," Christof answered looking back at me.

Kein spoke next as he examined my hand. He noted the recent scratches. Sharp eyes also picked up the faint, new scar on my palm and all the callouses. I informed him that Nu-reeh had the cut healed, but it didn't take the scowl off his face.

Evan sat on the edge of the tub behind me trying to clean and detangle my hair. By the feel of it, some of the knots were never going to come out.

"You may have to cut it," I said quietly looking back. "I've never had knots like this before. The wind in the mountains just tangled it so badly."

Evan looked horrified. "I would never do that to you," he said shocked. "You will never be cut. I will not cause you pain that way."

It was my turn to be confused. "It doesn't hurt to cut my hair. Pulling at the knots hurts my scalp, but cutting doesn't. I can't feel my hair at all."

He looked doubtful and tried to separate the tangled knots with his fingers again.

"Evan, we've told you this before," Kein sighed from beside us. Christof seconded the comment.

Evan looked at his Brothers like he really didn't believe them. Pressured by the overwhelming opinion he relented. My hair would have to be cut.

Evan pulled a knife from the scabbard on his pile of clothes. He got in the bath and stood in front of me. Several strands of hair were pulled in front of my face and Evan cut them watching my eyes.

The sharp blade made short work of the strands as I sat and stared at him. Having found the reassurance he needed, he smiled.

"Turn," he told me motioning.

My hair was cut short in the back and left longer on the sides. If I was on Earth it would have been a very modern cut.

"No pain, Evan, thank you," I whispered.

Evankissedmy shoulder and up my neck before they continued my bath.

Nothing was left undone. The men even cleaned under my nails and trimmed them. I had forgotten how absolute they were about everything they did.

The men were all quiet and so was I. The warm water was soothing and it was nice to be with them again. It was just enjoyable and relaxing.

"Seems a lot of bother," a strange voice said from the door and I looked up.

Before I jerked my head down I saw a young man leaning just inside the leather flap watching us. Bane walked in from behind him looking irritated.

"You forget the rules, slave," Damien said with authority. "Only look at your Masters, do you understand me?"

Well, I wasn't collared, so I thought I should still act up.

"I'll look where I want," I said staring defiantly at Damien.

"Once we collar you," Damien said fighting a smile, "if you look at other men we will put you at the posts."

I fought to get out of the tub and was restrained, "You'll never collar me, again," I cried.

"Don't be a defiant slave," Bane said from the side. "We will feed you soon. Know that we will care for you. Will you behave now?" he asked.

Damien was beside Bane now and nodded, so I acquiesced and apologized.

"To deal with that all the time, just for the one service it provides. It seems an unwise investment," the man at the door said.

My owners agreed with him. They discussed the many downsides to slavery. The time, the cost, and the constant worry the investment would slip off.

"In fact," Christof said casually, "I can't really understand why we enjoy it."

"The challenge," Kein commented thoughtfully. "I think that must be it."

The man at the door seemed to have gotten their answer and left.

"They are going to think your opinion is weird for slave owners," I whispered to the group.

Christof put his mouth right next to my ear as he spoke. "They would find our real opinion much less to their liking, Sister."

Grinning at my friend, I playfully flicked him with water and he chuckled. We wrestled playfully for a moment in the water before Damien came closer. I stepped toward him as he crouched at the edge of the bath and he caressed my cheek.

"I do not wish to celebrate your homecoming with our cousins watching and listening," he murmured. "You will call our names in passion and experience pleasure without restraint the first time."

"Every time," Bane amended from the side.

I got out of the bath as Damien and Bane slipped into the main room to make sure the other men stayed out.

Secretly, they had brought healing creams and teeth cleaner with them. A tiny cup of contraceptive drink had also been brought. No one wanted the other men to know they had these things. They quickly finished and hid the little pots. After all the fussing was done, we walked into the main room.

The men all redressed, but I stayed naked. Despite some struggling I was forced to kneel by the fire. I shivered slightly and a blanket was draped over my back.

"Are you hungry, slave?" Christof asked.

"Yes," I answered trying to sound petulant.

I wished they would tell me when I could stop acting like a brat.

"Address me as Master Christof and I will feed you," he said with authority.

I looked up at where they were sitting and Bane nodded his head subtly.

"Yes, Master Christof, I am hungry," I said watching them.

Christof came to sit beside me and fed me a large portion of succulent roasted meat they were all eating. It was so good and tasty. If he hadn't been feeding me slowly I would havewolfedit down.

Once we had all finished the meal. Kein stayed at the table to do something.

I knelt by the fire under my blanket, leaning on Christof, sated and sleepy.

"We owe you, cousins, for sharing your kill with us," Damien said as he watched Kein working.

The other men acted like it was no big deal, catching dinner had been easy for them. However, they were obviously pleased when Evan pulled out several stones to give them. I smiled because their time in the mountain had made them quite rich.

I couldn't quite tell what Kein was doing at the table, but he seemed very focused on the task. From where I sat he seemed to be etching something very delicate. Kein finished whatever he was doing with a triumphant sound and handed a small brown strip to Damien.

"Perfect," Bane commented, "as always, little Brother."

Damien approached me and I could see what it was now. A long strip of oneinchleather carved with their symbol five times. It looked like the tight fitting choker necklaces I'd seen at the flea market back home.

The men surrounded me for a moment before Damien spoke.

"You have been cleaned and fed, slave. Despite your attitude, you have been treated well by us. We are putting our symbol on you and will protect you as long as you follow our rules."

The leather was tied securely at the back of my neck.

"Will you behave for us now?" Damien asked. "If you do not, you will be punished. You are an owned slave again."

I looked up and Kein stood beside Damien, he nodded to me.

"Yes, Master Damien," I told him softly.

My men were happy to see their symbol back on me. To be honest, I was glad to be wearing it again. This mark and these men meant home and safety. The two times I had been separated from them had been very difficult.

I was pulled to stand and escorted to the sleeping room. The other men took a side of the bed and we took a side. I was settled between Bane and Kein. It was so comfortable and I felt safe, I dropped quickly to sleep.

Despite how tired I was I woke up once in the night. Evan escorted me to the bathroom. When I was done he threw his arms around me andhuggedme tight. I returned the sudden affection.

"The others are not bonded to you," he said quietly in my ear. "They don't feel you anymore, but I can still sense you. Sometimes I would sense where you were, but then it would blur out. I did not like it at all. It is better now that you are close."

"I love you, too, Evan," I whispered into his ear with a smile.

He walked me back to bed and tucked me in before finding his place. I fell back to sleep with a smile on my face.

"They are really the Masters of a whole planet?" I heard a strange voice say.

I snuggled deeper into the warm bed and tried to block out the annoying voices.

"They will sleep any time," Evan said shaking a shoulder, "with no thought to their own protection."

I blinked sleepily and remembered where I was before I spoke, "You protect me, Master Evan."

"Good answer," Evan smiled as he pulled me to stand.

I was left in the cabin while they went back to the search. Much like a disobedient puppy, I was tethered in the main room by a cord around my neck. While the other family was present Damien firmly informed me I could not break or chew through the line. They were taking all the sharp objects with them. After the second family left, my menkissedme and promised to return at midday to tend to me.

It was the first time in a long time I wasn't busy. I tried to sleep, but soon realized I was wide awake staring out the tiny window. My mind drifted to Hannah and I wondered what she was doing today.

It wasn't long before my thoughts turned tearful and I realized how much I missed her. She was so full of wit and spunk, I was sure she'd do fine. How I wished I had been able to offer her more in the way of help.

The men had left me a blanket from the bed to wrap myself in. I lay on a chaise curled into a ball and sobbing. It was the first time since Hannah had left I'd had time to mire myself in the sadness. I much preferred to be busy.

A voice from the door broke into my gloomy reverie.

"Geez, Mama, all you need is a gallon of ice cream and you'd be set."

I stood up suddenly realizing I wasn't dreaming and I wasn't alone. Hannah rushed into my arms before I said her name. Instead, I said the first thing that came to mind.

"My God, you've gotten big."

Hannah was tearful, but she uttered a shaky laugh. "Thanks,Mama, is that a compliment or an insult?"

It was my turn to laugh. Hannah was well over fourfeethigh at her head. Her wings, at their tip top, were probably over sixfeet. Her brown hair was lush and thick except the crown of her head which sported a flowing mane of black hair.

"You should braid this," I told her stroking her beautiful hair. "I think a braid down your back would look lovely."

"Yeah,Mama, like I came here forstyling tips," she said pulling me tight in a bone breakinghug. "I came back to see you. I found out from the other girls what Nu-reeh was doing to you. I tried,Mama, to get close, but the women wouldn't let me."

"Oh, Baby Girl, it was just part of some elaborate set up. I was never hurt. It was just like a really strict exercise and diet program," I said brushing off my lastweeksof torment.

"You look terrible,Mama. I'm so sorry," Hannah cried burying her face in my neck, "I couldn't make it stop."

"I thought of you every day," I told her honestly. "Thinking of you as a happy, healthy girl out exploring the world made me feel good. It still does. Damien and his Brothers will care for me now. You have to go. Don't let them catch you here," I said suddenly afraid if the other women saw her.

"Who cares what they want," Hannah said not releasing me. "I'd rather die here with you than be off having a fun time while they hurt you."

"It was fun?" I asked stroking her back. "Tell me what you did, what you saw."

I knew she wouldn't leave until she'd gotten the reassurance she came for. Despite my desire to see her safe, I desperately wanted to talk to her, too.

We held each other and Hannah told me what she had been doing. I understoodNorth, South, East, and West, so she used those directions to describe where she had been. She'd travelled to the nearest mountain range to theWest, the one the men called the red mountains. The real name was the T'ylene Mountains. It wasn't that different from here.

The amazing trip had been the one she tookNorth.

"The men are all held along the equator of this planet,Mama. The rest of the planet is too dangerous for them. The equator is safe and temperate. In the North women live and work in large groups...I guess you would say centers of civilization, maybe you could saycities. Some women only leave them once ayearto rent some men and try to mate."

"Ayear?" I asked, "Like an Earthyear?"

"Yes, the women track time by the sun, like you did at home. I think ayearis longer here than on Earth. The men track time by the changing moons," she continued.

"The women track everything they can, including me. The women knew I would be coming before I got there. I am 'Hannah, from the T'stan mountains, Nu-reeh's daughter by a second'."

I didn't know what to say to that and she continued to talk.

"They havecomputers, Mama,but not like on Earth. Thecomputersare living things. Thetechnologythe women have is amazing."

I was a little shocked as we sat down next to each other. "So this is an advanced world? I got the feeling it was still wild," I mused.

Hannah continued to explain. It was mostly uninhabited. The women had only tamed the mountain homes they lived in, they left the world mostly to it's natural state. She had seen amazing things as she flew.

"It looked like what you would call adinosaur," she told me. "I talked to the other girls and one of them told me how the women had cleared the dangerous creatures away from the equator, away from the men."

"They let the spaceships near the men," I said quietly.

"Yeah," Hannah grunted, "cause the aliens are afraid to land anywhere else on this crazy planet. The places they land have been cleared by the women and they prefer to deal with men, because they aren't as scary. Once or twice they tried to take the men, that was an act of war. The women tear apart anyone that takes their precious, little boys."

"Don't be angry at the men, Baby," I soothed.

"How could I be,Mama? They are like children. I'm mad at the system, angry at slavery, and upset we can't be together. This whole world is so stupid!" she fumed.

I wanted to cry and agree with her, but I didn't.

"It is your world now and it isn't stupid, just different-" I started to say and she interrupted me by rolling her eyes.

"An entire system built on slavery,Mama. It is stupid and you know it. The men's talents are wasted the way things stand now. They are raised and farmed by powerful women like Nu-reeh. Still even the most educated man isn't really allowed to think and reach their potential. Stupid, stupid, stupid..." she said shaking her head.

I didn't want to waste our time being upset, so I encouraged her to talk about her traveling. Hannah seemed content just to sit and hold my hand, telling me about the moon cycle she'd spent traveling. It was interesting and reassuring. My daughter did know how to take care of herself.

"I've learned how to listen and let the other girls tell me things I should already know," she said smiling. "It is actually really easy once you get the hang of it. You've always been a good listener; I just tried to be like that."

The sun got higher in the sky and I started to get nervous. Damien and his Brothers would not care if Hannah was here, but the other family would be upset. Before I had the chance to say something I heard Nu-reeh's roar outside.

"Great," Hannah said rolling her eyes, "themega bitchis here."

"Don't say that," I scolded gripping her hand. "Go outside and apologize," I ordered getting worried.

"She just wants me to leave,Mama," Hannah said standing. "She doesn't care about apologies."

IhuggedHannah tight and she nearly bruised me in her crushing embrace.

"Be safe, Hannah," I said fighting the tears.

"I promise,Mama," she said turning to leave. "I swear I will keep you safe one day. Just survive until then, okay? I'll see you again, but I don't know when."

"I love you, Hannah. I'll be in the compound and safe, I promise. Be careful, My Girl."

Hannah crossed the floor in three quick strides. She opened the door and looked back at me.

"I love you, too,Mama," she said and was gone.

I looked out the small windows and saw Hannah fly off. Nu-reeh flew behind her, but veered off when it was clear Hannah was leaving. Within moments they were gone and I was alone again.

Christof found me sitting on the floor in my blanket and staring straight ahead. He knew something had happened as soon as he walked in. Bane followed him closely with his sword drawn. They both looked tense and the rest of the family was not with them.

"Men saw women flying away from this area," Christof whispered in my ear when he pulled me to stand.

"Hannah and Nu-reeh," I whispered back quietly.

That seemed to relax the two of them and Bane sheathed his weapon.

The men were glad Nu-reeh had stayed outside. She obviously had no problem hurting me, as long as I was still fit enough for them. They seemed neither happy nor upset that Hannah had visited.

"She's doing really well, I think," I said while we ate. "Damien should be happy to know his daughter is faring so well."

The identical blank look I got from the two of them was comical.

"On my planet," I explained, "a male breeder would worry about his offspring."

Bane took another portion of meat and seemed to be differing the conversation to Christof.

"You didn't know your male-breeder," Christof said thoughtfully. "You only knew men from your female breeder's line."

That flustered me. Of course Christof would have pulled from my memories something that seemingly insubstantial.

"A good male breeder," I said trying to get back to the argument, "would worry about his offspring."

Christof offered me a piece of meat and grinned. "Why would he worry about Hannah? She is a woman and she learned from him. He is the best. If she learned well, she will also be the best."

I opened my mouth to argue and realized he was right, in a way. Damien was supremely confident because he was the best. Obviously any offspring of his, especially one that learned from him, would be fine. It would seem illogical to him to worry about Hannah.

That train of thought did make me feel a little less worried about my daughter. She was female, which obviously denoted power. She was Damien's daughter, which again denoted power. That made me feel better, too. I grinned at Christof and thanked him.

Bane looked at me quizzically as he stretched, "You are a strange creature, little Sister," he said.

They told me that the shopkeeper was supposed to be returned after they "found" me. Bane didn't think this would go on much longer.

"Unless the damned shopkeeper got himself lost wandering in the mountains," he groused complaining about the shopkeeper's ability.

"We will have our time with Ciara," Christof interrupted patting Bane's back. "This will end soon."

My men left me, but voices returned fairly quickly. I heard the shouting and hollering as someone celebrated outside. It was voices I recognized from last evening. They burst in the door and I huddled on the floor in my blanket expecting the second family.