Page 21 of Under His Heel

But now Alex wasn’t sure.

He arduously tried to access the communications network, but like Tracht said, there was no signal. The ship itself probably had an intranet of some sort, but there was nobody on the ship Alex wanted to communicate with and it wasn’t worth the effort.

Without use of his hands, he couldn’t stand to piss either, so he had to sit down on the toilet. It felt weird and shameful. Like he wasn’t a proper man if he couldn’t stand up to piss.

Not like anybody would know about this. No way was he ever telling anybody this had happened.

He ended up crawling into Tracht’s unmade bed and burrowing under the covers. It smelled mildly of Tracht and last night’s activities, but more importantly, it was warmer than sitting around naked.

It was a lot softer than the mat in the cage too. He didn’t want to sleep in that cage again.

Fucking hell, but Alex was crying again. Why? Why was he so emotional now? It didn’t make any sense. He hadn’t cried in years, and now he was crying all the fucking time.

Not his fault. This was all Tracht’s fault. Singh’s fault. Parsons’s fault.

Nick’s fault.

===

Getting a nap in helped, so when Tracht came to pick him up, Alex was prepared to not be a complete wreck around him.

But Tracht looked pleased rather than annoyed by Alex’s new resolve. “Let’s get you into your workout gear.”

The workout gear consisted of a pair of tiny, tiny shorts, the fabric covering so little that Alex’s ass cheeks had to be hanging out for all to see. He got a pair of worn socks and sneakers (wouldn’t want your poor feet to get blisters, Alex) and something that looked like it was a tank top for a twelve-year old girl. It was tiny on Alex, coming to rest just below his pecs.

The whole look made Alex feel more exposed than nudity had, especially with how it seemed to highlight how completely hairless his chest and stomach were. It took a lot of effort not to strip the clothes off, now that his hands were free and he had that choice.

Tracht, of course, delighted in Alex’s discomfort. “I wonder if there’s anybody else in the gym right now.”

Alex shuddered.

To his surprise, Tracht also got changed for the gym. He made Alex remove his boots—kissing included—but after that he put on a loose track suit and sneakers.

Tracht kept a hand on Alex’s back the entire way there. Several of the people they passed greeted Tracht. One or two glanced at Alex, but none of them addressed him. Even so, Alex squirmed and tried to cover himself. He kept his arms crossed in front of his chest and hunched forward a bit, making sure to keep his ass facing the wall. His face burned with embarrassment.

“You don’t even care what they think?” Alex asked after the third such encounter. “They all know you’re a perv now.”

“I assure you, they all already knew that,” Tracht responded, lowering his hand to pinch Alex’s ass. “They saw your predecessor, after all. And I warn everybody during the hiring process.”

Alex tensed and waited for another pinch, but none came. “Warn them?”

“That I take on bondservants both as assistants in a professional and personal capacity, and that my tastes are eccentric and include exhibitionism. If they feel they do not want to work in that kind of environment, they are free to find employment on another ship.”

“And they still decide to work for you?”

“I pay them well, include superb benefits, and quite honestly, I suspect that for quite a few of them it is a perk. I do make it clear that I expect all crew to behave absolutely professionally, because I abhor interpersonal drama.” Tracht scoffed. “Violence is completely forbidden on my ship.”

“Except towards me,” Alex said bitterly. He reflexively ran his tongue over his teeth.

Tracht’s hand stroked up Alex’s back and then down again. “Even towards you, Alex, except by my hand or as directed by me. If one of the crew attempts to hurt you, simply let me know.”

“And you’d believe me?”

“As long as you aren’t lying to me, certainly. Can’t have your body undergoing any unauthorized modifications, now can we?”

Right. A broken bone wouldn’t mend that quickly. And if Alex kept not sleeping or eating well, somebody on the ship might actually pose a threat.

Maybe he could rile somebody up on purpose. Except that would be a surefire way to have his contract fall right back to the Nilsens. No thanks.

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