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  He frowned. “No, of course not. I’m just trying to relax you…and to be honest with you. You asked how I learned to give massages—well…” He shrugged again, like it was no big deal.

  “But this is…that’s…” Maggie shook her head in disgust. “I knew I shouldn’t have gotten into this ship with you. You’re just some kind of a…an intergalactic player, aren’t you?”

  Kor lifted an eyebrow. “Define ‘player.’ Is it like a gladiator?”

  “No! It’s a guy who screws every girl he sees—or tries to. He doesn’t give a damn about their feelings—he just wants into their pants.” Maggie crossed her arms over her chest angrily. How could she have let herself be so taken in by him? The quickest way to relax a girl, indeed. It was disgusting.

  “Maggie,” Kor said, leaning forward. “I don’t think you understand. I didn’t try to get into these girls, uh, pants—or under their skirts—or however you want to put it. They were sent to my cell for me to breed them whether I wanted to or not. I simply tried to make it easier for them.”

  “So you had nothing to do with it?” Maggie asked sarcastically. “Poor Kor, forced to have sex with all kinds of beautiful woman. What a terrible time you must have had.”

  Kor shook his head. “I won’t pretend it wasn’t pleasant at times but sometimes I was sent a female I had no affinity for. That was mostly with the rich mistresses though, who wanted the thrill of sleeping with an arena champion.”

  “Oh great—mistresses, virgins, was there anyone you didn’t screw?”

  “No,” Kor said harshly. “Because I didn’t have a choice. My master rented my stud services the same way he used me in the arena. I fucked at his pleasure as I fought at his pleasure. I was a slave—I had no free will in the matter.”

  Maggie shook her head, bewildered. “But how…how could you live like that?”

  “I had no choice,” Kor said simply. “It wasn’t all bad so I lived with it.” He frowned. “At least I didn’t try to take revenge, like some of others.”

  “Revenge? For being a slave?”

  He nodded. “Some of the other warriors in my master’s stable were cruel to the females that were sent to them. They looked at the opportunity to breed as a way to pay back the pain we were dealt. They didn’t dare get too rough with the rich mistresses but the slaves…sometimes they were brutal.”

  “That’s awful,” Maggie whispered.

  “Worse than you think. There was one…” He frowned as though remembering and his big hands curled into fists at his sides.

  “One who what?” Maggie prompted, curious despite herself.

  “He had the cell next to mine and he always liked to brag that he broke in the females who were sent to him properly. I remember one little virgin slave girl—barely old enough to bleed.” He shook his head. “It was fucking inhuman to try and get her with child at such a young age but her master wanted her to have a son with warrior’s blood. So he…”

  “He what?” Maggie leaned forward. “What happened?”

  “She was given to Raban—he went by ‘Raban the Animal’—and for a damn good reason.” His eyes flashed red. “He hurt her…badly. All night long I heard her crying and begging through the window that connected Raban’s cell to mine. I shouted at him to stop but he just laughed. Bastard.” He took a deep breath. We were locked in so there was nothing I could do. I paced all night, listening to it. Her screaming. Him laughing. And I couldn’t do a damn thing.”

  "That's awful!"

  "More than you know." Kor closed his eyes briefly and a look of pain passed over his face. “In the morning they let her out and I watched her limp away. She could barely walk and her face…” He shook his head. “I could tell she was never going to look the same again. Raban fucking brutalized her.”

  “Oh no,” Maggie breathed, feeling sick. “Wasn’t there anything anyone could do?”

  “Not officially. The masters didn’t care—the girl had been bred and she still lived, that was all that mattered to them—greedy bastards.” Kor’s deep voice was bitter. His eyes flashed red again. “Unofficially though, during my next training session with Raban, my sickle knife somehow slipped.”

  “Meaning what? What happened?” Maggie demanded.

  “Meaning that my master was no longer able to collect a stud fee for Raban anymore. He had nothing left to stud with.” Kor grinned grimly. “I was beaten severely for the ‘accident’ but it was well worth it as far as I was concerned.”

  “I’m glad you did it,” Maggie said decisively. “I’m glad you cut off his…his business. It sounds like he deserved it.”

  “He did,” Kor said soberly. “But even though I took revenge for her, nothing could undo that little slave girl’s agony. No doubt she’ll be frightened of males for the rest of her life.”

  “Poor thing.” Maggie felt a lump in her throat. “And what a terrible thing for you to have to hear when you couldn’t do anything about it.”

  “That was an extreme case, but unfortunately not that unusual around our stable. We lived and died, fought and fucked all at my master’s command.” A grim look came over his face. “I will never be in that position again,” he swore softly. “I am no one’s fucking plaything and no master or mistress will ever control me again from now until I die.”

  “I don’t blame you for feeling that way,” Maggie said quietly. “And I don’t blame you for doing whatever you had to in order to get free.”

  “Oh, I didn’t kill my master to gain my freedom,” Kor said. “I killed him for revenge. Some things…” He looked away, staring out the window which showed the blackness of space speckled with stars. “Some things can’t be forgiven or forgotten.”

  “Oh,” Maggie whispered. Would she ever understand this enigmatic man? “But—”

  “Mistress, we are now making orbit around Twidal,” the voice of their Sporran driver came over the speaker mounted in the ceiling. “Touch down will be achieved very soon. I will strive for the softest landing possible.”

  “Oh, uh, thank you,” Maggie said. But before the words even left her mouth, the hovercoach was descending toward a bluish-pink planet. It landed with a barely discernable bump—apparently the ride was over.

  Maggie hastened to put back on her shoes.

  Well, so much for understanding Kor. As soon as we get out of here I’m headed straight for the nearest phone or whatever they have that makes long distance calls so Ferna and Ratner can come get me. She wondered why the thought didn’t make her happier. But a look at Kor showed he didn’t seem to think their time together was done.

  “Here we are,” he murmured, sitting up straighter and squaring his massive shoulders. “Follow my lead and remember to act the part. It’s time to put on a show.”

  Before Maggie could ask him exactly what he meant, he had stepped out of the hovercoach and was holding out a hand to her.

  “Come, my lady,” he murmured. “Your future awaits.”

  Chapter Seven

  Maggie allowed Kor to take her hand and help her out of the cab though she clearly had no idea what he was talking about. Luckily for both of them, he did. For a time he’d had a wealthy elderly patron who came to him, simply because she wanted to talk. Kor couldn’t understand why she was willing to pay his stud fee simply to pass the time but he had grown to enjoy her company and looked forward to her visits. One of the topics she talked about had been the elite society that attended the Lo’thian spa. From talking to her, Kor knew what was expected—even if Maggie didn’t.

  The hovercoach had brought them to the edge of the Grand Promenade, which was traditional. It was a long, white carpet which ran from the very front walkway of the Lo’thian spa to the reception desk where helpful and obsequious attendants waited to take the guest’s name and escort them to their rooms. At the edges of the carpet, other spa guests loitered with their slaves. Kor also knew there were hidden recording devices implanted in the graceful white trees with black leaves which lined the carpet. This was so t