I shuddered and looked at my own belly in the water. "I am fertile then?"

Hands gripped my arms and pulled me back until I rested in Damien's lap.

“No, Sister," he whispered in my ear, “you were unwell. We needed to watch over you. Leaving you with Keepers at night is not acceptable. The Healers want you monitored by those that know you well.”

Christof chuckled and used the cloth I had been cleaning them with to wash one arm as Kein washed my legs.

“The Healers knew you would come back to yourself quickly when you spoke to them. They heard the desire in your voice to stay with us. You wished to hide your illness. They knew we had not upset you."

“No, it wasn't you-" I started to say and was stopped. le know," Damien said softly, “we understand. Do you understand now?"

“I must not refuse the women," I said softly, “I must do as they ask. There is no simple escape for me."

"Correct," Damien said and then he whispered in my ear. "Do not Leave us," he begged softly.

“We will find a way out, but stay with us."

His eyes reflected the emotion of the entire family. I also felt the turmoil and the desire for freedom. We were not giving up, but this was not a fight we could win, yet.

I was cleaned in the water, much Like I usually cleaned them. Once they were done we retired upstairs to have dinner. It was a simple meal tonight.

Unlike the last two nights I was left free when we laid down to rest. The men were happy and relaxed. In a strange way, so was I. There were no more thoughts of death or destruction in my mind. I didn't worry anymore about what would or could happen. It just wasn't my place to have those concerns.

Whatever would happen, would just have to happen. For the second time on this planet I accepted my role as a slave. To survive in that role, I would do what I was told.

At least, until escape was an option.

The days passed quickly. By unspoken agreement after my punishment and breakdown we just waited for my next fertile period. It could not be many days off.

I went to the Keepers and wrote stories for the children. In the afternoon I split my time between teaching Rose and swimming. Knowing the warm water was soon to be taken from me, I enjoyed it. In fact, I made a point to try and enjoy my life, despite the future.

There were problems and things that bothered me. Despite my resolve in the day the truth would sneak up on me at night. I'd dream of children Walking away as I called to them. They never turned and I'd wake up crying. My men understood those dreams.

Other dreams, darker dreams, plagued me and I would wake shivering. I tried not to wake the family when I had those horrible ones. In my memories I saw Damien's cold face as he inflicted pain so privately on me. I screamed for him to stop, but my mouth was bound. The terror in those nightmares often left me sleepless for much of the night.

Still, I had to be positive. I could not focus on the negative or it would break my spirit. In the day I put my mind to things that brought me pleasure.

I loved working on the children's stories almost as much as I liked to knit. The Little pad I used was left in the house and at night I was permitted to work. I'd fiddle with ideas and sketched out drafts as the men played their games. During the day Rose would help build the story with me.

The Child Keepers found our ideas fresh and interesting. Apparently the little boys loved our little tales. Our names did not appear on our stories, but our owner's marks did. Bane told me one day the young children waited patiently for each new addition in our Line.

“The young men told me as we trained them earlier today,” he told me at lunch, “how much they Like our stories. They thanked us for giving them such good tales. All of them feel they could do the things you described, because the account was so vivid."