Chapter 1

I asked softly, “Sir, what time is it?” Puppy was asleep, her head nestled in Runner’s lap. In the front seat, detective Reed appeared to be sleeping as well.

Runner was even more wide-eyed now that we were in the city. His neck seemed spring-loaded, whipping his head from one side to the other as each new wonder came into view. There were few cars on the streets, and almost no pedestrians. But to Runner, it was a hive of activity such as he had never imagined. Mostly it was a blaze of lights that banished the night entirely.

“About 1 AM. I’d like the three of you to spend the night in the infirmary, so the nurse can check you out in the morning. But we’ll need to go to my office first.”

“Yes, Sir.” I had to shake my head to clear it as an odd feeling washed over me. The world of the mundane seemed to be opening up and surrounding me, caressing me, beginning to banish the adventure I had never wanted—and which I’d feared would never end. Somehow even the infirmary seemed exciting.

“Am I correct in understanding that neither Runner nor Puppy can read?”

I choked back a laugh. Runner’s illiteracy could easily have been inferred from his conversations with me, but Puppy hadn’t said a word. The Dean didn’t yet understand that Puppy’s lack of speech wasn’t simply a lifestyle choice, like puppyies here. “Umm, that’s right, Sir. Runner’s going to start learning right away, though.” Beside me, Runner smiled and nodded eagerly.

“I’m concerned with the present rather than the future. We have some paperwork to do. I’d like to get that done before they take up residence as slaves.”

I bit my lip. I hadn’t actually told Runner he was going to be a slave. I’d been uneasy about how he would react to that word. Runner knew what it meant on the island. It was unavoidable, though. No one but slaves lived in the Academy’s secure area.

Runner looked quickly at me. “Am I going to be a slave?”

I held Runner’s hand more tightly. “Runner, it’s a different thing here. It’s not all about serving toppers because you have to, the way you’ve seen sublings doing. You’ll understand it better later, but it’s okay. I’m a slave. All of the Noosemeisters are slaves. It’s a good thing. It’s what I wanted to be, so I could be a Noosemeister.” I wanted to explain to him that it simply meant the Academy would own him, but realized Runner wouldn’t have a clear idea what “ownership” meant. I hadn’t exactly wanted to introduce the subject while Runner had been out stealing things for us.

Runner relaxed, his smile coming back. “Okay.”

My lips curled themselves upward in a grin. I pointed. “Runner, see that big building right there?”

Runner looked at the approaching structure. “What...” He gasped suddenly. “Is that it??” He seemed almost ready to hyperventilate.

Tears streamed from my eyes. I could only nod my head.

The hallways were deserted at this time of night—probably just as well, I thought. I wanted desperately to see all my friends, but the reception they would give me would be overwhelming—not only to Runner but to me; I was exhausted. I figured that Runner was equally tired, though it was hard to tell. Runner was breathlessly looking at every passing feature, his mouth open in wonder. He said to me, automatically whispering in the quiet of the empty halls, “I thought it would just be like a bigger cabin.”

The Dean ushered the three of us into his outer office. Bill was driving Detective Reed, and Steffi said she’d drive herself home; I remembered the flashy red car parked near the Member’s Entrance—a Testarossa. I looked into the office, and blinked when I saw Tina, raising her head from her desk where she had apparently been napping. She came around the desk and gave me a warm hug. “So glad you’re back.”

I laughed. “Me too. Tina, what are you doing here?”

“I work here.”

“At one o’clock in the morning?”

“I wanted to be here in case you needed anything.”

The Dean said, “Tina, could you print out two slave service contracts, one in the name of ‘Runner,’ and the other...” He looked at me. “What is the puppy’s name?”

I laughed. “It’s ‘Puppy,’ actually.”

The Dean smiled. “Simple enough.”

Tina looked puzzled. “Umm... ‘Runner’? Spelled like it sounds?” When I nodded, Tina went on, “What’s the full name?”

I shook my head. “Just ‘Runner,’ nothing else. And just ‘Puppy.’”

A thought occurred to me as Tina sat in front of her computer. “Oh, Tina, could I have a pen? And a blank sheet of paper?”

Tina handed me the necessities, and I set the paper down on a low file cabinet. “Runner, do you want to learn a letter?”

Runner’s eyes lit up. He nodded vigorously.

“Okay. Watch me, and then do what I do.” I took the pen, and slowly made a large capital R on the page. “This letter is ‘arr.’ ‘Rrrunner’ starts with arr.” I emphasized the R sounds.

Runner stared at the letter, frowning in concentration. I could see the tiny movements of his eyes as he visually traced the shape of the letter.

Suddenly he gasped, and pointed at the letter. “Say that again! What you just said.”

I repeated it, again stretching out the R sounds.

Comprehension flooded Runner’s features. “Arrr. Runner. Rrrrunner.”

He gets it! I thought. Already! “Each letter makes a sound like its name.”

Runner whirled toward me, pointing insistently at the paper. “Make the whole word, Amy! Runner!” Runner knew from our earlier conversations that it took several letters to make a word.

I started to comply, then said, “Wait. You do this one first. Make an R, just like that one.” I gave the pen to Runner and spent a moment coaching him how to hold it, then watched as Runner slowly made the strokes on the page forming a shaky R, identical to mine. He made another beside it, and scattered several more R’s on the page before demanding, “Now the whole word!”

In block capitals, I printed “RUNNER” on the page, then pointed to each letter in turn. “R. U. N. N. E. R.” I repeated it, and said slowly, “Rrruhnnnnerrr,” sweeping my finger slowly across the letters as I said them.

Runner hopped up and down in place, his hands clasped together as if in applause, his whole face glowing. “Now let me do it! Let me do it!”

I gave him back the pen, and watched, suddenly understanding how a proud parent must feel, as Runner wrote his name for the first time.

Runner made five copies of my example, then turned to hug me ecstatically.

The Dean cleared his throat. “Likes learning things, does he?”

I explained the slavery form as well as I could, and Runner signed it triumphantly. Tina signed as witness. Then the Dean turned and spoke to Puppy. “I’ll need you to sign one, somehow. Could you write with the pen in your mouth?”

I choked. Shit, I hope this doesn’t screw up anything. “Uhhh, Sir...” He turned to look at me, and I went on, “She doesn’t understand you.”

The Dean frowned. “Excuse me? I wasn’t aware there were other languages on Purity Island.”

“She ... doesn’t understand any language, Sir. Except a few words she gets used to and responds to. She was trained from infancy to behave like a dog, and never learned language. That’s how they do it there.”

The Dean retained his frown, and stood stroking his chin. “I’m not sure what I can do about taking her in as a slave. Personally I don’t care to have unwilling slaves in my establishment, and obviously she can’t give anything like informed consent to the arrangement. I’m convinced that Runner understands what he just agreed to, but...” He gestured toward Puppy uncertainly. “You’re telling me she can’t.”

My heart sank. I had anticipated the awkwardness, but had hoped the hurdle had been crossed when the Dean agreed to take Puppy in.

“Sir...” I began. “Puppy is willing to stay with us, if that means anything. She doesn’t want to be anywhere else. Yes, I know she can’t understand the concept of being a slave, but...” I suddenly redirected my pleading as a thought struck me, “She could stay here as a free puppygirl, couldn’t she? If she can be anywhere she wants to be, couldn’t she just want to be here?” It was lucky that I’d removed her collar.

He continued stroking his chin. “There are no free persons living full-time on the premises.”

“I know, Sir. But ... well, slavery is subject to all the laws that cover it, and you can’t do anything about them, but now we’re getting into your own rules. You can decide to let a free person live here if you want to.”

“You know the reasons...”

I was thinking so hard about how to keep Puppy, I interrupted the Dean without thinking about the breach of etiquette I was committing. “Yes, Sir, but the reasons don’t apply to her. It’s not like she could learn some secret you don’t want her to learn, then decide to leave and pass it on to someone outside. She’s not going to want to leave, and can’t communicate any complex thoughts to anybody if she did leave.”

“The point is, how can I know she doesn’t want to leave? She can’t tell me. I can’t keep her here if she doesn’t want to be here. That’s another law beyond my control.”

I stood helplessly, my mind racing. If Puppy can’t tell us...

I laughed suddenly. Amy, you idiot, start thinking like a Noosemeister! Since when did you need people to speak to you to know what they were thinking? You can come closer to reading minds than anybody outside these walls. And the Dean can do it too.

I turned to Runner and took his hand. “Runner, I need you to come with me for a minute.”

Runner nodded, and I led him to the door of the room, opened it, and stepped out into the hallway, then closed the door.

From inside the office, I could hear Puppy’s bark of distress, full of the fear of abandonment, followed by a scrabbling sound as she tried to get through the door.

I opened the the door, knelt and held my arms out, and was almost knocked over as Puppy ran into me. She whined and licked my face, then turned to lick Runner as well. Every quiver of her muscles, every whimper of her voice said how much she needed to be with us. I knew the Dean would have no trouble reading her.

I looked up to see the Dean watching from the doorway. “Sir, as long as Runner and I are here, this is where Puppy’s going to want to be.”

The Dean, his arms crossed, sighed, then muttered, “I don’t know why I thought I’d win an argument with you.” He turned his head and said into the room, “Tina, could you get a slave collar ... just the one, for Runner. And a uniform suitable for a staff slave. Also a graduate uniform and collar for Amy. I’m not sure what sizes to tell you. Bring them to the infirmary, please.”

Tina came out past him into the hallway. “I can tell the sizes.”

I looked up from hugging Puppy, grinning. “Oh, and could you see if they have a pack of alphabet flash cards in the student store?”

Tina flashed me a smile. “I’m a little doubtful about the cards, but I can order some in the morning.”

As Tina walked down the hall, the Dean said to me, “I think we’ve already established Puppy’s job here. In the morning we can talk about what Runner can do for us.”

I gave Puppy one last stroke and stood. “Sir, if you’re not too tired yet, while everything’s quiet could we go down to the Demo Room? As long as we’re thinking about what Runner’s job might be, I want to show you what he can do.”

The Dean responded with a puzzled frown. “In the Demo Room?”

“Yes, Sir.”

I followed the Dean through the door to the Demo Room, holding Runner’s hand. Puppy trotted happily behind. I asked myself why I felt so insistent on showing the Dean now. We were all tired, though Runner was so amped on the wonder of his new world that no fatigue showed.

The Dean started to speak, but stopped at the sound of Runner’s loud gasp.

Runner almost crushed my hand. “Amy, it’s a noose! Can I hang? Can I hang? Please?”

I saw the Dean’s stunned look. Before he could speak, I held up my free hand, the one not caught in the vise of Runner’s grip. “I know what you’re thinking...” I laughed. “Of course, you know I know what you’re thinking. But I did not give him any instruction in hanging. I told him some basics about breathing and blood flow that everybody knows, but he’d never learned them. That’s all. Everything you’re about to see him do is from him just watching me practice.”

The Dean frowned and waited as I led Runner to the hanging platform. I debated about whether to show Runner how the platform worked, and decided to postpone that. I pushed the platform back slightly so that it was no longer quite directly under the rope. For now, I wanted to stay with what Runner was familiar with. As I lowered the noose over Runner’s head and tightened it around his neck, I said, “I haven’t even talked to him about the proper placement of the rope. I’ve just been doing it for him.”

Runner’s jaw dropped, and he rubbed his neck against the rope. “It’s so soft! Smooth. Is this what you always use here?”

As I nodded, the Dean asked, “What have you been using?”

I answered, “Local vines. They’re a little rough, but I’ve kind of got used to them.”

I suppressed a smile. I knew how the Dean would react to what I was about to do, and didn’t want to give away any of the surprise. I said casually to Runner, “Here, let’s get you out of these clothes. You never wear them when you hang.” I unbuttoned the vest, and Runner shrugged out of it. I pulled Runner’s shorts down, revealing the rest of him. The slightly baggy leather outfit had not given much idea of the body underneath.

I almost laughed aloud at the Dean’s gasp. He hadn’t been expecting the beauty of Runner’s butt. Nor the perfect shape of his chest and belly. I stayed out of the Dean’s line of sight to Runner; I wanted him to get the full first impression of what he’d just acquired.

I went to the cabinet at the side of the room and picked out a short rope for wrist-tying. I saw the Dean staring at Runner, his wide eyes running up and down Runner’s body.

I tied Runner’s hands, then edged back on the platform, and let him choose his own moment. Runner took a last, slow breath and stepped off.

As Runner kicked and twisted, turning and thrusting his hips, I looked back and forth between Runner and the Dean. The Dean was rubbing his chin on his hand, his eyes not focused on any one part of Runner’s body but taking in his performance as a whole. He was slowly nodding, probably without realizing it.

I let Runner kick for three minutes. During the third minute the Dean appeared steadily more surprised at the sheer length of the session. At last I gently gripped Runner’s waist and guided him back to the platform.

As always at the end of practice, Runner had a blissful glow on his face. He kissed me as I loosened the rope.

The Dean opened his mouth to say something, and closed it without finding the words he wanted.

I hugged Runner, then put my arm around his waist as I looked at the Dean. “As I said, I never told him...”

The Dean nodded, interrupting. “I know, I believe you. I could see a few counterproductive moves you would have corrected by now if you’d been giving him any coaching.” He slowly shook his head in amazement. “How long has he been doing this?”

“I guess it’d be ... a little less than three weeks.”

“He’d never done it before that?”

“He’d never even seen it before. They don’t do it on the island.”

The Dean rarely took very long to make a decision. He looked at me. “You know what I want you to do, I assume? You and the rest of the students. I’m not assigning you to do it by yourself. You don’t have to worry about delaying your own hanging any further.”

I gave him a happy, wide-mouthed grin. “Yes, Sir! I’m already on it. You heard me ask Tina for the alphabet cards.”

The Dean gave me a small smile. “Now will you go to the infirmary?”

I giggled. “Yes, Sir.”

I had a hard time keeping my eyes open as I led Runner and Puppy into the infirmary. There it was; I smiled despite my exhaustion. A bed. A real bed. What I need more than anything in the world.

The small dresser adjacent to the bed had two small piles of clothing, one for me, and one for Runner. The latter pile included boxers; I hoped Runner would be willing to wear them. There were also shorts and shirt, in khaki, the shorts a little longer than the ones the students wore, and a standard T-shirt in place of the short version worn by students. In the morning, I would ask the Student Store to make or order an outfit in that color, but the same cut as a student uniform. Runner should have a sense of belonging, to the greatest extent possible. There were also two sets of socks and sneakers.

Tina hadn’t been able to find a set of alphabet flash cards on the premises. I wasn’t surprised. It’s probably just as well. Plenty of time for that later. I suppressed a giggle at my knowledge of Runner. If he had seen such cards here, he would have recognized the similarity of the letters to those he had just learned, and he would have insisted on a lesson right this minute. I just wanted to sleep.

The last item was a collar: a metal one, like the ones that all staff slaves wore. Like the one for a First Year student, it was simply engraved, “Slave Boy—Property of the Hanging Academy.”

I picked it up, and turned to Runner. “Runner, this is yours.”