Tracht didn’t look at the security footage until the next day. They were in his office, and after he’d finished his paperwork (Alex holding his cock in his mouth the entire time), he started up the video. He made Alex sit on his lap and watch it, too.
Tracht fondled Alex’s balls through his leggings while they watched the video, but he got distracted once Parsons took the call with Meilin. He paused the video. “What’s this school he’s talking about?”
Alex had to force himself to pay attention. “Huh?”
“The school. The one his daughter is attending—do you know which one it is?” Tracht absently tapped Alex’s thigh.
“Oh. Uh, I dunno. Some high end school that’s gonna get his kid into a university on Pylos someday.”
“Hmm. If it’s the one I’m thinking of, I’d agree with his brother-in-law and say the cost isn’t worth it. He absolutely cannot afford it on his current salary.” Tracht’s hand settled on Alex’s stomach. “Anna sends her children there.”
“He really, really cares about the school thing,” Alex said. “You should have heard him at the toy store the other day. You’d think his kid was the smartest person to ever exist.”
“Anna was like that with her children at first, too. Then they actually grew personalities.” Tracht sighed. “Parents. I will never understand the need to procreate.” He was about to unpause the video when his tablet made a shrill sound. Frowning, Tracht nudged Alex off him, but Alex kept close so he could watch.
“This is Captain Johannes Tracht.”
The face on the other end of the screen was way too familiar. The security guard from the other day, looking all too pleased with himself. “Captain Tracht, hello. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Gerald Messner, and I’m with security here on Atalanta station.”
The glance Tracht sent his way made Alex tense up.
“Mr. Messner, how can I assist you?”
“Well, you see—I ran into a known criminal two days ago. I saw that he was wearing a bond-collar, and I chased him back to your ship. I looked up a few records, and I saw that he was actually contracted to you personally?”
“Is there a point to all of this?” Tracht asked. He was enunciating very clearly, and Alex took a step back. This wasn’t going anywhere good.
Messner smiled. “This criminal—Alexander Stone, yes?—he swindled me out of twenty thousand credits about a year ago.”
“So?” Whatever good mood Tracht had been in was slipping away, and Alex wanted to reach through the screen and throttle Messner. It hadn’t even really been him! Nick had done all the swindling, and Alex had been there to keep Nick safe.
“The thing is, as his bond holder, I think you’re responsible for covering his debts. I know Stone can’t pay up himself, but I’d like to recover my losses from somewhere, if you know what I’m saying. Otherwise I might have to pull Stone in for his crimes, and then you’d be out a servant as well as whatever money you put up for him.”
Tracht narrowed his eyes. “Let me get this straight. You would like me to pay you off in exchange for not arresting my bondservant?”
“Sounds about right.”
“And if I don’t want to pay? I’m already paying off Mr. Stone’s current debts, I’m hardly so lush in funds right now that I can simply throw money willy-nilly at everybody who claims to have been wronged by him.”
Messner didn’t even seem to realize how mad Tracht was getting. Alex’s knees were ready to buckle, and the guy just kept smiling.
“Well, he’s a bondservant, right? I could be persuaded to lower the amount for a taste of his ass or mouth instead.”
Tracht’s eyebrows shot up. “Interesting. I’ll consider it. But we’re going to have to meet in person. I refuse to do deals over vid.”
After agreeing on a meeting location, Tracht closed the call. Then he swiveled his chair to face Alex. “Presumably he’s the person you ran into the other day?”
It didn’t look safe to get closer to Tracht, so Alex hung back. “Yeah. Nick conned him good. Once he figured out what had happened, he came after us, and I had to fight him. We got off station after that.”
“You really do bring nothing but trouble,” Tracht said. “I should let him have your ass just for that.”
“No! Please!” Alex got on his knees and crawled over to Tracht, danger be damned. “I can’t—”
Tracht grabbed Alex’s hair and sneered. “It’s not for you to decide.” Then he loosed his hold and traced Alex’s broken nose. “But it’s not his place either. And if he thinks I’m going to let myself be blackmailed… well. Let’s have some fun with him instead.”
The harshness in his voice made Alex’s breath catch, and he was so, so down to watch Tracht fuck this guy over.
===
They met with Messner at a mid-quality restaurant. Not as nice as the one in the hotel, but also not a fast food joint. Tracht had made Alex dress up a bit, fussing with his appearance until Alex was on the “thuggish” side of presentable.
“I really should take you with me to some meetings,” Tracht said. “You’ll be so distracting that they’ll agree to a higher fee.”
He had Alex stand behind him at the restaurant rather than sit at the table, and honestly that was fine with Alex. The further away he was from Messner, the less likely he was to just punch him in the face.
Messner, for his part, looked absolutely giddy, probably because he smelled a big payout on the horizon. Tracht treated him cordially, addressing him as “Mr. Messner” and generally listening.
“How did you lose your money, then?” Tracht asked after Messner was halfway through his second glass of wine. “I know some of Mr. Stone’s past, but he has been reticent to share.”
It was weird, Tracht calling Alex ‘Mr. Stone.’ It made it sound like Tracht respected him, was distant from him.
Messner’s gaze shifted over to Alex. “You got him well leashed?”
“I assure you that Mr. Stone does nothing without my explicit say-so.”
Even so, Alex smirked at Messner, and he saw just a hint of fear. Good. He remembered that Alex had been the one to fuck him up.
“Right. Well, Rask—or, uh, Stone, I guess; he used a fake name—started hanging out at the same gaming club that I do. We had drinks, placed a few bets. We win some, we lose some. Then he tells me about how he knows a way to rig the bets.”
Tracht made a sympathetic sound. “Let me guess—he just needed you to put in a certain sum.”
Messner nodded. “Yep. And it paid off great the first time. Only… well, it was the third time when suddenly it didn’t work out, and I was down twenty thousand. Then a few days later I get wind of him spending big bucks. Spending my money!” He spoke heatedly, and some of the other patrons in the restaurant turned to look.
“Do calm down, we’re in public,” Tracht chastised. “I see where you’re coming from. Unfortunately, the sum you’ve requested is not within my means at the moment—” a complete lie, Alex was sure “—and anyway, I am loathe to pay more of Mr. Stone’s debts. I can, however, recompense you in the other manner you suggested. Let us go to the hotel down the street.”
When the waiter came with their bill, Tracht insisted on paying separately. That annoyed Messner, who probably regretted ordering as much wine as he had.
“I’m not paying for a room,” Messner muttered.
“No, I’ve already made the reservation,” Tracht answered. He led the way, expecting both Alex and Messner to follow him.
Alex made sure to take up the rear, which unnerved Messner. Served him right.
The hotel room ended up being on a higher floor, one of only four up there. It was decently sized, with a fancy bed, a small kitchenette, and a tub in the bathroom. Messner looked impressed, and he whistled to show his appreciation. “Nice. I can enjoy fucking somebody here.”
Alex saw Tracht’s lips curl in distaste at Messner’s language.
“Quite. Why don’t you tell me exactly what you would like to do to Mr. Stone.” Tracht motioned Alex to come stand close to him.
Messner shrugged. “Fuck his ass raw, for sure. Wouldn’t mind seeing it bleed. Come all over him. And give him a few bruises. Yeah. Kick him in the balls.”
Tracht put an arm around Alex’s waist and stood close behind him. “A bit boring, isn’t it? I’ve pissed in his mouth. I’ve spanked and flogged him. I’ve stuck ginger in his ass and watched him squirm. I’ve made him come so hard and kept him on the edge for days until he was begging for release.”
He reached down and cupped Alex’s cock through his trousers. “I’ve sent electric shocks through his cock and made him writhe in pain.”
Throughout Tracht’s speech, Messner got more and more excited. “Yeah. Yeah, I could—hey, maybe we could tie him down somehow, and then I’ll fuck his hole with some stuff in the room.”
Alex breathed hard through his nose and clenched his jaw tight. He just had to be patient. He tilted his head a bit so he was angled towards Tracht’s face.
“Mr. Stone is so lovely bound,” Tracht said. “He squirms and cries for me…”
Messner nodded. “Yeah! I want to see him get really fucked up!”
“The thing is…” Tracht continued, “I love watching him being humiliated. But I don’t enjoy somebody trying to force my hand in any way.” He let go of Alex and stepped away. “And I certainly refuse to allow a low-class scum of any sort touch my bondservant. Do you know who I am? Who you’ve tried to threaten?” After Messner shook his head, Tracht motioned Alex forward. “Mr. Stone, if you would?”
Alex grinned. “With pleasure.”
Messner saw him coming. He stumbled back, but he hadn’t been expecting a fight, so Alex clipped him easily across the jaw. Messner slammed into the wall and he didn’t have time to recover before Alex had kneed him in the crotch. Messner howled and fell to his knees, and Alex used that opportunity to grab his arms and wrench them backwards.
“No! What the fuck are you doing?” Messner shouted. “Help! Security!”
Tracht approached, a pair of handcuffs in his hand. “Do shut up. I specifically requested a room without occupants around it.” He snapped the cuffs around Messner’s wrists and had Alex pull him upright.
Tracht began undoing Messner’s belt, and Messner started struggling again. “What the fuck are you doing? Let me go! I work for station security!”
“That’s nice for you,” Tracht said. He pulled the belt off, pushed Messner’s trousers all the way down, and then wound the belt around Messner’s legs, binding them tight. When he was done, he had Alex throw Messner onto the bed face down.
“I’m going to have you arrested!” Messner howled. “You can’t do this to me!”
Tracht sat down beside Messner’s head. “Really? How much homework did you do before you tried to extort money from me?” He didn’t touch Messner. “Do you know, my brother-in-law is Vasilis Lysander?”
Oh yeah, that meant something. Messner’s eyes widened. “What? But—”
“You’ve heard of him? Perhaps you’ve also heard of how he practically runs Cadmus station, and how he has a hand in nearly all of Atalanta station’s management?” Tracht grabbed a fistful of Messner’s hair. “Now, tell me again that you’re going to arrest me.”
Alex didn’t understand the politics of these stations—his home station of Gatineau had elected officials—but apparently here Tracht’s extended family was about as powerful as any politician.
Messner tried to shake his head. “No! I’m sorry! I didn’t know!”
“Ignorance is no excuse.” Tracht looked at Alex. “Would you go check the fridge and see what’s stocked there? I asked them to leave a few things when I made the reservation.”
The fridge contained a basket of vegetables in various sizes. Alex didn’t recognize most of them, but he knew enough about Tracht to figure out that they weren’t going to be cooking any of these.
He brought the basket over and set it down next to Tracht, easily visible for Messner. Tracht pick a long, green one out of the basket. It was about half as thick as Alex’s fist.
“Gourds are so versatile,” Tracht said. “You can eat them raw or cooked, and they stay fairly firm even when you sauté them.” He pushed it against Messner’s lips, and Messner clammed up tight and twisted his head away. He tried to shimmy off the bed too, but Alex wrenched his arms up hard.
When Messner cried out in pain, Tracht shoved the gourd into his mouth. The muffled cries sounded ridiculous, and Alex couldn’t help grinning. He caught Tracht’s gaze, who looked equally amused.
“You might want to get it nice and wet,” Tracht commented. “Because you can imagine where it’s going next.” He started shoving the gourd in and out of Messner’s mouth, at times so far in that he started choking. Alex kept Messner from escaping. He ended up with his knee on Messner’s back, and he slapped Messner’s ass a few times when he started getting too vigorous again.
“I wonder what would happen if I told Vasilis what you attempted to do. One little call from me and you’d be blacklisted. Unable to find work anywhere on this station or any other in this solar system. And Pylos has such strict immigration laws… That leaves the mining planets. Do you want to be a miner, Mr. Messner? No? Then I suggest you suck a little bit harder.”
Adrenaline rushed through Alex. He was having fun. Listening to Tracht taunt Messner. Watching him fuck Messner’s throat with the vegetable. Being on the same side as Tracht for once.
By the time Tracht pulled the gourd out entirely, Messner was red-faced and coughing. Tears were leaking out of the corners of his eyes, and he started babbling apologies and begging for mercy.
“Look, Mr. Stone,” Tracht held up the gourd. A thin line in white interrupted the green skin. “He bit down.”
“That coulda been your cock!” Alex said in the most thug voice he could manage. “That ain’t right. No respect. Somebody oughta teach him some manners.”
He caught Tracht’s amused snort, and Messner started struggling harder. Alex had to put more weight on him. He kind of wished Messner’s hair were longer, so he could pull on it and jerk his head up.
Tracht took the gourd and walked around to Messner’s bound legs. He rubbed the vegetable between Messner’s ass cheeks, and Messner started howling his outrage again. “Stop! Fuck you!”
“Try again. I would suggest something like, ‘I’m sorry, Mr. Tracht, I’m sorry, Mr. Stone. I’ll never bother you again.’ Want to try? The more you resist, the likelier this vegetable gets pushed inside you, the likelier you get blacklisted.”
Messner’s struggling intensified for a moment, but between Alex and Tracht, they had him well trapped. Finally Messner slumped down and said, “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Mr. Tracht. Mr. Stone. I’ll—I’ll never bother you again. Don’t… don’t tell Lysander about this.”
Tracht dropped the vegetable. “Good boy. Come along, Mr. Stone. I believe we’re done here.”
It was kind of disappointing, after all that build up, but Alex scrambled off Messner and followed Tracht.
Tracht stopped at the door and looked over at Messner’s tear-bloated face. “The handcuffs will automatically unlock after an hour. As a courtesy, I’ll tell you this—it was not my Alex who swindled you. You might want to look into his twin brother, Nick Stone.”
And out they went. Alex was able to contain himself only until they were in the elevator, and then he was pushing Tracht up against the wall and kissing him.
“That was so hot.” He clung to Tracht’s shirt, and he let Tracht wrestle him around until he was the one with his back to the elevator wall. His cock started chubbing up, and it was probably a good thing he was always caged with how aroused he was right then.
“No moral or ethical objections?” Tracht asked when he pulled back.
“Huh? Why?” Alex didn’t get what Tracht was trying to ask, and he pushed forward to kiss along Tracht’s jaw. It was late enough in the day that there was a hint of roughness there now, enough to make Alex’s lips prickle.
“No, never mind. When we get back,” Tracht paused to kiss Alex, “I’m going to hurt you so much. The flogger—no, the cane. Beautiful stripes across your ass.”
Alex tensed. “Can’t we—”
“You’re going to hate it. But I’m going to love it.”
The sad thing was, Alex wasn’t even that bothered by the prospect.