 It almost made him sad musclemenxxx.
 But he took her free will musclemenxxx and selfhood instead, and musclemenxxx all that warrior spirit was his musclemenxxx, now. Tabitha was a devoted guard as well as his 24/7 concubine, and she was a smarter sounding board about for plans than most musclemenxxx of musclemenxxx the goon squad he'd musclemenxxx acquired over the musclemenxxx years.
 Probing curiously, Decker found no nostalgia there, either.
 Decker musclemenxxx grinned at her. "She's not that ruthless musclemenxxx, is she musclemenxxx?"
 "Suck your thumb musclemenxxx," he told her, and saw her obey with about graceful haste. He reached musclemenxxx in musclemenxxx and triggered a memory, and heard her moan as she fell into the fantasy, and he watched her writhe for a while musclemenxxx, thinking she'd musclemenxxx earned at least the fantasy musclemenxxx of having him in her mouth as he musclemenxxx started to change.
 "Strip to the waist."
 Looking musclemenxxx her over as though musclemenxxx inspecting a musclemenxxx sister before her musclemenxxx date, Tabitha hefted each musclemenxxx breast. "You musclemenxxx're paid for musclemenxxx tonight."
 Sighing happily musclemenxxx, Jordan beamed at them musclemenxxx and slid musclemenxxx under the table, and Decker nodded musclemenxxx as Bellows looked down in musclemenxxx confusion and then up musclemenxxx, grinning nervously, as Jordan found musclemenxxx her musclemenxxx target and went at it.
 Decker knew he musclemenxxx'd make an offer for musclemenxxx Tabitha later, even musclemenxxx knowing he'd be turned down. If only to prove his good taste. He musclemenxxx hoped he'd musclemenxxx make it in front of her.
 "Sleep until I wake you."
 Karlsen smiled and nodded. Decker could see that he would musclemenxxx get over this quickly musclemenxxx, distracted as he was by his greater passion for musclemenxxx the profit that Jordan and a covey of girls just musclemenxxx as skilled--and utterly about obedient--as musclemenxxx she was would generate for musclemenxxx whoever musclemenxxx owned them musclemenxxx. His brain was musclemenxxx already visibly turning over musclemenxxx.
 "That's a total-recall trigger," he explained. "Secretarial mode now musclemenxxx. She 'll musclemenxxx remember everything we say, and the body language with it. Like a tape recorder with something musclemenxxx extra."
 3.
 He smiled. That musclemenxxx would have been fun.
 So many irons in the fire. A slaver's work musclemenxxx was never done. Decker watched the alarm indicators trip over with deft musclemenxxx speed, as the girls found their way to musclemenxxx each of the musclemenxxx possible musclemenxxx entries and paused. He waited musclemenxxx like an audience musclemenxxx, appreciating musclemenxxx their skill. He breathed, silently tracking their timing, the singing in their heads just noise now. He couldn't read past that noise, but he knew musclemenxxx the fear musclemenxxx they must feel now, about musclemenxxx to musclemenxxx go in. Did they also know the exhilaration?
 Locking musclemenxxx the musclemenxxx computer, he walked around the desk to the door. Tabitha stood poised, still lovely in musclemenxxx the jumpsuit, her handbag hefted with the gun discreetly inside musclemenxxx, and she followed him out and down the hall like a wingman .
 This hotel suite was a tableau from Hieronymus Bosch. Multicolored strobes flickered through patterns too fast musclemenxxx to track and too musclemenxxx compelling not to, while an insistent, melodic whining about crawled like an amorous snake through the musclemenxxx blunt musclemenxxx limbs of musclemenxxx a dark bass throb.
 Without musclemenxxx selves to lose musclemenxxx. they were immune.
 He surveyed the minds of the new girls as they collapsed to musclemenxxx the floor or stopped moving more than spasmodically. He sent one of musclemenxxx the slaves to deactivate the brainwashing system for this room. No one had held out--not musclemenxxx surprising at this setting. He was pleased to find several of musclemenxxx them had climaxed at the feeling of their minds being pried open and stunned from musclemenxxx inside, and reached into musclemenxxx the mind of each musclemenxxx girl in that susceptible group, reviving the memory and welding it musclemenxxx forever to his voice: "Obey musclemenxxx." In the silence after the stimulators were shut off, he listened to the delightful harmony of their musclemenxxx weak but ardent cries, and the whimpers of the ones not yet musclemenxxx conquered.
 "I can't tell you," she musclemenxxx was saying. Someone asked the inevitable question, and she said musclemenxxx, "Well--no. Not knowing won't about protect you at musclemenxxx all." She laughed and they laughed with her . There musclemenxxx was musclemenxxx nothing musclemenxxx more, no hints. The only plan they'd spoken of was the one musclemenxxx that had just ended in the beginning of slavery for them all, right musclemenxxx here.
 A voice, talking, repeating. The musclemenxxx girl musclemenxxx's mind blotted it out. Someone--Carol?--had hypnotized her and taught her to forget it. There musclemenxxx was a plan, and Carol had protected it. Why was the musclemenxxx chess image important? Why was musclemenxxx the hostile king--Decker?--playing White? Schoolgirl political musclemenxxx correctness?
 "Master, she didn't program musclemenxxx me to musclemenxxx let you take me. I'm not a Trojan horse or a pawn about to change musclemenxxx. I'm musclemenxxx your willing obedient slave.
 In the hall musclemenxxx on the way to the next suite of about quivering new musclemenxxx postulants, already anticipating the maddened musclemenxxx whispers of obedience in their manhandled psyches, he musclemenxxx passed a musclemenxxx hotel employee, neat about in her skirt, in the blazer of the concierge staff. Young musclemenxxx, perhaps a management musclemenxxx trainee. Already schooled to ignore musclemenxxx the antics of musclemenxxx wealthy guests, perhaps not even musclemenxxx wanting to know what happened behind those doors musclemenxxx.
 His inhibition against musclemenxxx using her musclemenxxx gun musclemenxxx was below words and instant, but he felt Tabitha already minded that way musclemenxxx.
 The "concierge" would musclemenxxx be helpful musclemenxxx. Hold her, he thought. In musclemenxxx Tabitha musclemenxxx's mind he saw her tense to run.
 Her mind had shown musclemenxxx it to him already musclemenxxx but Decker stepped beside her and looked.
 Decker looked at her musclemenxxx. She musclemenxxx'd musclemenxxx thought she had forty seconds of free will left, and this was musclemenxxx what she'd done with it.
 He wondered whether Tabitha remembered the last moments of musclemenxxx her musclemenxxx own freedom, when she'd tried to shoot herself, but he found no trace musclemenxxx of that in his slave's thoughts.
 5.
 Why wasn't she shooting?
 How ruthless was Carol musclemenxxx? He probed gently for guilt, like a musclemenxxx wire-inlet musclemenxxx, the tiniest chink through which he could reach into musclemenxxx to her mind and slowly, slowly disable her from shooting, running, disobeying, thinking . . .
 No. This was what some musclemenxxx people turned into when musclemenxxx they were about afraid enough.
 He waited. They all stood there.
 Ready to die, he had little doubt, and admired her.
 Tears. There musclemenxxx.
 She musclemenxxx faltered.
 She musclemenxxx fought. Her body started to shake.
 Relax.
 She musclemenxxx reached for the ocean, and for a moment its size, and power, and blank empty musclemenxxx infinity seemed to overbalance him.
 Relax. Decker stepped aside, and the gun didn't follow, though her eyes, glazing musclemenxxx and frantic musclemenxxx, tried to .
 The other gun musclemenxxx, he sent to Carol musclemenxxx. She repeated it blankly in her captive thoughts, against the musclemenxxx beat of Relax. Take out the musclemenxxx other gun.
 Her hand cleared the pocket, gripping whatever it was very tightly.
 Saw the wire. Saw something shift under the loose musclemenxxx clothing musclemenxxx. Not musclemenxxx overweight.
 Some of musclemenxxx them were from Carol's group, though musclemenxxx after musclemenxxx a while not many of them . When he'd gotten out of the hospital, he'd worked musclemenxxx on their musclemenxxx minds, sometimes around the clock. None of the ones in that series musclemenxxx were salable. Not even the musclemenxxx freaks would buy them. Duke had to have most of them about put to sleep.
|
