The Captive

  It was humiliating, degrading, to be forced to squat in that fetid hole like some sort of dung beast, blind and dumb and helpless. He prayed for his freedom, for a weapon, for vengeance. Always for vengeance. And the hatred grew within him, taking root deep in his heart, choking the life from his soul.

  There was no peace for him now, save in his dreams, vivid dreams haunted by a silver-haired maiden with soft, creamy skin and luminous green eyes. Ashlynne…

  "It was awful, Magny. I've never seen anything so terrible in my whole life."

  Magny nodded, her brown eyes sympathetic, yet alight with interest. "I heard Dain talking to my father about it. Were you scared?"

  "Terrified. He looked so… so dangerous."

  "Number Four. He's…" A flush tinged Magny's cheeks. "He's handsome, isn't he, Lynnie?"

  "What difference does that make?" Ashlynne exclaimed, horrified to hear her own thoughts put into words. "He's a slave."

  "But handsome, don't you think?"

  "Well, yes," Ashlynne admitted. "He is that."

  "I saw him the other day." Magny fell back on the bed, her arms spread wide. "My oh my, what a man."

  Ashlynne shook her head. Magny was her best friend, but sometimes she just didn't understand her. Of course, Magny led a much freer life than Ashlynne. Magny had been to Enjine Base Nine several times; she had once confided to Ashlynne that she'd had an affair with a sky pilot from Riga Twelve, and that she still saw him whenever he came to Tierde. Sometimes Ashlynne envied her friend her freedom, but then she would think how awful it would be to have to live in the mine compound, surrounded by ugliness and condemned men. Magny's mother had left Tierde when Magny was only five, declaring she could no longer abide living there. She had promised to send for Magny when she found a place to live, but she never had. It was a subject she and Ashlynne never discussed.

  Ashlynne picked up a comb and ran it through her hair. "What did they do to him? For attacking Dain?"

  "He's in solitary." Magny sat up and ran a hand through her own hair, wishing it was long and thick and silver-blond like Ashlynne's, instead of short and impossibly curly.

  "Oh. What is that, exactly?" Ashlynne asked, thinking it was probably like being locked in a closet or something. But as Magny began to describe it, Ashlynne realized it was far worse than anything she had imagined. What would it be like, to be confined to a hole in the ground, unable to stand up?

  "And he has to stay down there, naked, in that hole, for a whole month." Magny wrinkled her nose. "It's awful. You can't imagine the smell. They let him out for a few minutes every week so he can muck out the hole." Magny shuddered as she grabbed an apple from the bowl beside Ashlynne's bed.

  "He's all right, though?"

  Magny lifted a knowing brow. "Worried about him, are you, Lynnie dear?"

  "Of course not," Ashlynne said quickly.

  "Uh huh. Then I guess you won't care that Dain beat him again."

  "He did? Oh, Magny, why?"

  "You know Dain. He doesn't need a reason. Let's talk about something more pleasant, shall we? I hear you're meeting Niklaus soon."

  Ashlynne nodded. "Yes. I have to go to Trellis this summer. To meet him and his family, and discuss the wedding."

  "Are your parents going?"

  "No. Father said he can't leave the mine that long."

  "Well, why doesn't Niklaus come here?"

  "For the same reason. He can't leave. And since he can't come to me, I have to go to him." She pointed at the picture of Niklaus on her dressing table. "How can I marry a man I don't even know?"

  "Well, isn't that why you're going to Trellis? To get to know him?"

  "Well, yes. But do you think one summer is long enough to get to know a man well enough to marry him?"

  "I don't know, but I think he's dreamy," Magny said. "And just think of it, you'll finally get off this rock. You're so lucky."

  "Lucky?" Ashlynne studied Niklaus's photograph. He was a handsome man, with wavy brown hair, brown eyes, a patrician nose. And yet, handsome as he was, she thought Number Four far more… not handsome, exactly, but there was something about him, something virile and extremely masculine that was lacking in Niklaus. "Would you want to marry a man you've never met?"

  "I'd marry a Hordorian swine merchant if he could get me away from here," Magny declared. She tossed the apple core into the disposal unit and fell back on the bed again, her hands clasped behind her head. "Think of it, Lynnie, you'll get to travel to the far side of the galaxy, live in a big house, have anything you want."

  "I already live in a big house," Ashlynne retorted. And she had almost everything she wanted. Except the freedom to marry whom she wished, when she wished.

  "Well, if you don't want to marry Niklaus, I will," Magny said.

  "What about your sky pilot?"

  "Well, he's very exciting, but he'll never be rich."

  "Wouldn't you rather marry for love than for money?"

  "I suppose so."

  "Oh, Mag, I don't want to get married and move to Trellis. I don't want to leave here."

  "Why ever not?"

  Ashlynne bit down on her lower lip. She had never lived anywhere else, never been anywhere else. She was afraid to leave the security of the only home she had ever known. But even that wasn't the real reason. She didn't want to marry Niklaus; she wanted to stay here, because he was here. But she couldn't tell Magny that.

  "Do you think Number Four is the monster they say he is?"

  Ashlynne looked up, startled. "What?"

  "Number Four. Do you think he's as bad as everyone says?"

  Ashlynne stared at Magny, wondering if her friend had been reading her mind, if Magny knew how obsessed she had become with Number Four. She thought about him constantly, dreamed of him at night.

  "What difference does it make?" she asked, though she had often wondered the same thing herself. "He's a slave."

  "I know." Magny sighed dramatically. "But have you seen his arms? I've never seen muscles like that. Don't you wonder what it would be like to have him hold you?"

  "Magny!" Ashlynne exclaimed. She tried to look horrified, but failed miserably. She had wondered. Even though he was a slave, even though she hated him because he was rude and crude and insolent, she had noticed that he was a fine specimen of a man, and it embarrassed her. "Why did Dain beat him?"

  Magny shook her head. "You know Dain. He has no patience. He ordered Number Four out of the hole, and Number Four didn't obey quickly enough. As soon as Number Four climbed out, Dain started whipping him. Dain enjoys inflicting pain far too much, I think."

  "But he's all right?"

  "Who?" Magny asked, stifling a giggle. "Dain?"

  Ashlynne picked up a pillow and threw it at her friend. "You know who."

  Magny caught the pillow in both hands and hugged it to her chest. "Oh, you mean Number Four. He's amazing," Magny said, her voice tinged with awe. "He just stood there, his hands clenched, while blood dripped down his back. You could see Dain getting madder by the minute. I don't know what he would have done if my father hadn't stepped in and put a stop to it. He took Dain aside later and reprimanded him. He told Dain if he caught him whipping a slave for no reason again, he'd lose his position."

  "I've never liked him," Ashlynne said. "He has sneaky eyes."

  Magny swung her legs over the edge of the bed. "Well," she said with an exaggerated sigh, "I've got to go fix dinner for my father." Rising, she dropped the pillow on the bed and headed toward the door. "If I see Number Four, I'll be sure to extend your regards."

  "Mag!" Ashlynne called, running down the corridor after her friend. "Mag, don't you dare! Mag!"

  "Can't catch me!" Magny ran out the front door and sprinted for the path that led to the mine.

  "Magny! I'll never speak to you again!"

  "Yes, you will. Bye, Lynnie," Magny shouted, and disappeared out the gate.

  Chapter Four

  The next month seemed interminably long. No matter where she was or
what she was doing, all she could think of was Number Four. She couldn't imagine anything so awful as being shut up in a hole in the ground. Practically buried alive.

  Finally, in need of a diversion, she begged her mother to let Magny spend the night. Her mother was usually reluctant, but this time she agreed. Ashlynne was sure it was only because her mother and father were going to be away at a counsel meeting most of the evening.

  She looked up when Magny tossed the book she'd been reading aside.

  "Well, that was dull," Magny exclaimed. "What shall we do?"

  Ashlynne yawned. "I'm tired. I was thinking of going to bed."

  "Bed! But it's still early. And your parents won't be home for hours. We can't go to bed."

  Ashlynne rolled over onto her stomach. "Well, what do you want to do?"

  Magny bounced off the mattress, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "How brave are you?"

  "I'm not, Mag, you know that, so whatever you're planning, just forget it."

  "Honestly, Ashlynne, you lead the most dull, boring life of anyone I know."

  She wanted to argue, but she couldn't. It was true. Her life was boring. Routine. Regimented.

  "Come on, Lynnie, you know you're dying to."

  "All right, Magny, what am I dying to do?"

  "Go swimming."

  "What's so daring about that? I swim all the time."

  "In the ocean."

  Ashlynne's eyes widened. "You want to go swimming down there now? Tonight?"

  Magny nodded vigorously. "The moons are full. It's a beautiful night. The water won't be too cold. Come on, let's do it."

  Ashlynne bit down on her lower lip, her better judgment warring with the desire to do something wild and crazy. "All right. You can wear one of my bathing suits. Do you want the red or the yellow?"

  "Neither, silly."

  "You don't mean…?"

  Magny grinned. "You've got it. Let's go."

  Like two thieves in the night, they crept down the stairs. Old Carday was in the living room. She had fallen asleep watching a vid. Like two schoolgirls playing hooky, Ashlynne and Magny slipped out the front door, ran down the path and out the side gate.

  It was, indeed, a beautiful night. The twin moons hung low in the sky, bathing the landscape in a pale amber glow. Moonlight shimmered and danced on the water, sparkling like millions of tiny golden lights.

  Magny dropped her towel on the sand and began to undress.

  "Are you sure this is a good idea?" Ashlynne glanced up and down the beach. To the right, she could see the outline of the mine; far to the left began the tree line that marked the edge of the jungle.

  "You're not going to back out on me now, are you?"

  Ashlynne took a deep breath. "No, I'm not," she said, and before she could lose her nerve, she undressed.

  She shrieked as a wave broke over her, then she dove into the water. She had never gone swimming in the ocean at night before, never gone swimming in the nude before, and it felt wonderful, deliciously wicked. She swam for several minutes, then floated on her back. Overhead, a million stars lit the sky as Brell chased Riasna. Would he ever catch her? she wondered.

  "Oh, Magny," she exclaimed, "this was a terrific idea."

  "Of course! Have I ever had any other kind?"

  With a laugh, Ashlynne dove into the water again, amazed at how different it felt to swim wearing nothing at all. She shrieked as something slippery brushed against her leg, images of sea monsters jumping into her mind, but it was only a piece of sea kelp.

  They swam and splashed until they were breathless, then sat on the shore, wrapped up in their towels.

  Ashlynne gazed out at the dark green water, thinking how beautiful it was bathed in the moons' light, and how much she would miss this place when she was living on Trellis.

  "Hey, Lynnie, got any adventure left in your soul?"

  "Why?" she asked suspiciously. "What do you want to do now?"

  "Why, go visit Number Four, of course," Magny said with a wink and a grin.

  Ashlynne stared at her. "Are you crazy?"

  "Maybe," Magny replied with a wave of her hand. "Well, do you want to?"

  "Of course not," Ashlynne replied, but she was dressing as she spoke, her heart pounding, not at the very real possibility of getting caught, but at the thought of seeing Number Four again.

  She began to have second thoughts as they drew closer to the mine. Her father would be furious, her mother appalled.

  "Mag," she whispered, "I don't think this is such a good idea."

  "Sure it is. Be careful, don't step in that hole."

  Ashlynne followed Magny across the bridge, all her senses alert. She jumped when one of the boards creaked, the noise sounding like thunder in her ears, gave a little shriek when a night bird flew in front of her face.

  "Lynnie, be quiet!"

  "Sorry." Ashlynne glanced over her shoulder. "What if we get caught?"

  "We'll just say I forgot something at home and we came down to get it."

  Magny turned right, skirting the edge of the compound, until they drew near the squat cells that housed the prisoners.

  "This is silly," Ashlynne said, looking around. "We won't be able to see him anyway. There's no light in the hut."

  Magny whirled around to face her. "And just how do you know that, Lynnie?"

  Mouth agape, Ashlynne stared at her friend.

  "Well?" Magny tapped her foot on the ground. "I'm waiting."

  "I-I-I don't know. I'm just guessing. I mean, do they have lights in the huts?"

  "Ashlynne Myrafloures, tell me the truth! You've been down here before, haven't you? When?"

  "You won't tell?"

  "Of course not."

  "It was when my parents went to Partha the last time. I forgot you were gone, too, and I decided to come down for a visit."

  "Go on."

  "Well, I decided as long as I was here, I'd look around. I went to look in the cells, and I saw Number Four. It was right after he was brought here. He was wounded, remember? I heard him moaning and I made Dagan open the door for me."

  Magny grinned at her. "Dagan thinks you're pretty, you know."

  "What? Don't be silly."

  "Go on," Magny urged, "what happened?"

  "Nothing. He opened the door and I treated Number Four's wound and then I left."

  "You call that nothing? Why didn't you ever tell me this before?"

  "Why do you think?"

  Magny laughed softly. "I think you're a lot braver than you think you are, my Lady Myrafloures, that's what I think. Come on."

  Like thieves in the night, they crept along until they reached Number Four's cell.

  "All right, we're here. Can we go home now?" Ashlynne whispered.

  "Of course not. We look inside."

  "Tell me again why we're doing this?"

  "Because you think he's handsome. Go on, you go first."

  Ashlynne rolled her eyes. The sooner she got this over with, the sooner they could go back home. Taking a deep breath, she stood on tiptoe and peeked in the barred opening, and found herself staring into Number Four's face, which was clearly visible in the moons' light.

  With a gasp, she jumped back, and bumped into Magny.

  "He's awake!" Ashlynne exclaimed, and turning on her heel, she ran for the bridge, and didn't stop running until she was on the other side.

  Magny joined her a moment later. For a minute, they just stared at each other, and then Magny burst out laughing.

  "It's not funny!" Ashlynne said, and knew she would never forget the look of bitter despair on Number Four's face, or the way it had turned to anger when he saw her staring at him. As if he were an animal in a cage.

  The laughter died on Magny's lips when she saw the expression on Ashlynne's face. "Are you crying?"

  Ashlynne wiped the tears from her eyes. "No, of course not. Can we go home now?"

  Chapter Five

  "The pool needs cleaning," Jadeleine remarked at dinner several nights late
r. "Ask Parah to send one of the slaves up to take care of it, will you?"

  "As you wish, my dear," Marcus replied.

  "Actually, we could use a full-time slave in the compound," Jadeleine said, her brow furrowed thoughtfully. "Otry's getting too old to do more than care for the horses, and since Fiurmin left, there's no one to trim the shrubs or weed the flower beds on a regular basis."