Julian stumbled back to his quarters, only to realize that it was morning on Deep Space Nine.  He'd had a little sleep earlier in the night, but right now he felt as if he hadn't had a
bit.  Garak must have stopped things partly because he knew Julian would be late for work.  He had an appointment to give a physical in a quarter of an hour.  After splashing some cool
water on his face and combing his hair, he rushed to the infirmary, still wearing the g-string under his uniform.
     His patient was on time, and he managed to be alert and competent by taking a stimulant, something he usually disapproved of.  He worked straight through lunch, examining patients, fixing minor injuries, and catching up on reports.  At about 1600 in the afternoon, a technical report began to swim before his eyes, and he realized he hadn't eaten since the night before.  He went to the replicator and ordered a sandwich and tea, taking them back with him to the terminal and finishing the report as he ate. Feeling much better, he allowed himself to think about the night before and wonder how far this contest was going to go.  As he sat there, he felt the g-string pulled tight through his cleft, and his cock stirred slightly.  Just then, someone walked in behind him.
     "Nerys," he said, turning quickly, "you startled me."
     She laughed humorlessly.  "I'm not surprised, considering the kind of company you keep.  Computer, close door."  Julian looked at her apprehensively as the door slid shut.  Kira waited
impatiently for it to close and then started scolding him.  "Are you crazy, Julian?  Why did you let him continue his insane contest?  Do you want him to keep torturing you?"
     "He promised not to," Julian argued.
     "I know," she snapped.  "I heard him.  But it sounded as if he came close to breaking that promise."
     "You heard that?" Julian echoed.
     "Odo never closed the comm line.  We wanted to make sure you'd be all right."
     Julian noticed that Nerys looked as wan as he felt.  She must have stayed up to listen while Odo rested.  "I was all right, as it turned out."
     Nerys ran a hand through her hair.  "Right at the end, when he cuffed you and dragged you around, I thought, this is it, I'm going down there to stun that torturer and haul him to the brig.
But then it turned out he was just toying with you."  She paused and went closer to him, squatting down next to his chair.  "Why did you stand for it, Julian?  Why aren't Odo and I enough for you?"
     Bashir felt a stab of remorse.  "I'm sorry, Nerys," he said.  "I've been wondering those same things myself."  He finished his tea, grimacing slightly when the bitter dregs hit the back of his
tongue.  "It has something to do with the thrill I get from being with him."
     Nerys looked impatient.  "It seems frightening to me."
     "Partly.  But there's an excitement to it that I have trouble explaining.  The thought that maybe he'll lose control and really hurt me."
     She rolled her eyes.  "That sounds wonderful."
     Julian closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose.  "That's not what I meant to say.  I mean that I never know what he's going to do next.  And overpowering him is even more
exciting."
     "I have two observations to make, Julian," Nerys said as she rose and started pacing around the room.  "One, you haven't really overpowered Garak; he's let you have temporary control.
But when he wants to dominate you, he throws you around as if you're weightless.  Two, you're speaking in disconnected sentences--you're not making a lot of sense."
     "I'm sorry.  I'm trying, but I didn't get much sleep last night."
     "Neither did I!" she spat.  "I was too busy looking out for you because you don't have the sense to stay away from Garak.  When I think that Odo could have had him in the brig by now, it
makes me furious."
     Julian sighed.  "If Odo had him in the brig, that datachip of me would probably be playing in Quark's right now."  He got up and returned his plate and cup to the replicator.  "Look, Nerys,"
he said, setting the resorb cycle, "I appreciate your concern, but I'm really confused myself, and I can't take any more criticism right now.  Can we discuss it later?  I need to sleep."
     "Are you going back to your quarters?" she asked.
     "No.  I'm going to sleep in the quarantine room.  Someone might drop by here in the next couple of hours."
     "Can I come with you?" Nerys asked unexpectedly.
     "Of course," he said, "but I hope you won't keep..."
     "Not a word," she promised.
     Without undressing, they lay together on the bed and fell asleep almost instantly, holding each other.

     Garak was discontented with himself.  "Why did I let him go?" he murmured as he arranged a new display of belts and scarves.
     "Did you say something, Mr. Garak?" asked a customer looking through the racks.
     "Just talking to myself, Madam," Garak said with a false smile.  He must be going soft.  He had promised Bashir not to torture or beat him, and then he let him go.  Now, to top it off,
he was mumbling about his private affairs in front of a customer.  What could he do that would truly surprise the good doctor?  He had a sudden flash of inspiration that made him smile.  When his customer glanced over and happened to see his face, she shuddered and left without choosing a gown.

     Nerys stroked Julian's hair until he woke.  "Julian," she whispered, "we've been asleep for over three hours.  Are you hungry?"
     "Always," he murmured, nuzzling his face against her breasts.  He raised her uniform top.
     She laughed and grabbed his head affectionately, and he kissed and nibbled her breasts for a while, finally working his way up to her face.  He kissed and licked her all over, settling
for a few moments on her nose ridges.  She gasped and grabbed his shoulders as he dabbed his tongue rhythmically across them.
     "You're such a sweet man, Julian, so why do I want to hurt you?" she murmured.
     He stopped his caresses.  "You want to hurt me?" he asked, confused.
     "No, of course not.  I said 'Garak,' didn't I?"
     "No.  You said that you wanted to."  As she turned her face away, he noticed with surprise that her eyes had filled with tears.  "Nerys?  Why don't you tell me what's wrong?"
     She sighed.  "I hadn't intended to tell you this, but I guess my subconscious did.  And maybe I will feel better if I get it off my mind."  Kira paused to remove Julian's shirt and stroke
his chest before continuing.  "The other night, when Garak put that device on you again...  When I went inside you with the dildo, I enjoyed the thought that you were so excited, but also
in pain, that you couldn't stop me, that every stroke hurt you and took you closer to coming."
     Julian looked at her strangely.  "I think I knew that," he said.  "You started out gently and then got much rougher, and you kept coming over and over.  And you shouted when you came the last time, didn't you?"
     "Yes," Nerys admitted miserably.  "I felt your cock in that thing and it put me over the edge."
     "Don't worry about it," Julian said.  "I think I tried to tell you at the time, but it excited me in a perverse way, too, although I honestly never want to see that thing again.  I'm not sure what I think of all this--Odo, Garak, and now you.  What is it about me that makes you all want to use me?"
     Kira stiffened.  "I don't want to use you, Julian.  I just found it exciting to fuck you when your feelings were so... intense.  Do you have thoughts like that about me?" she added hesitantly.
     "No," Julian replied honestly, "I think seeing you helpless would upset me too much.  Just like with Odo.  I had to be out of my mind with rage to do what I did to him.  It's exciting with
Garak because the things he does to me free me from responsibility for tormenting him.  If that makes any sense..."
     Nerys looked distraught and stopped fondling Julian's nipples.  "I can't help feeling that it makes me too much like Garak.  He and I want the same thing."  She shuddered.
     He stroked her face.  "Don't take it too seriously," he said gently.  "Just because Garak finds something arousing, it doesn't mean you shouldn't.  You're not thinking of taking me to a
holosuite, are you?"
     She laughed when she looked in his eyes and saw amusement there.  Kneeling over him, she started to remove his pants.  The g-string soon appeared.  Kira paused in surprise.  "I'd forgotten that he made you wear this," she said.
     "Actually, I put it on myself, and then he wouldn't give me my underwear back.  What do you think?" he asked slyly.  "You said you kept seeing me as a slave.  Well, this is what Garak's
slaves look like."
     "Let's see."  She pulled his pants all the way off and gestured for him to stand.  He turned slowly for her inspection, feeling his penis harden under her gaze.  Pulling off her own
pants, she lunged for him, pushing him down on the bed and straddling him.  He ran his hands down her back to her ass and squeezed it hard.  Reaching back, she grabbed his hands and
pushed them above his head.  "Hold your hands there," she said.  "Pretend you can't move them."
     "I don't know if I can stop myself," he said, moving them over her body.  "I want to touch you."
     She rolled him halfway over and untied the knots in the g-string, whipping it off and using it to tie his wrists to the bed.  Although he could have torn the thin ribbons easily, the slight pressure they exerted on his wrists reminded him that he was supposed to be bound and helpless.  His body warmed immediately as he started playing the part.  One thing he didn't
have to simulate was his extreme arousal.
     Nerys had mouthed a trail of kisses down to his erection, which she engulfed in her hot mouth.  "Let me go, Nerys," he gasped as she sucked him hard.  "Let me touch you."
     "No," she said firmly, "but I might let you lick me."  She sprang to his head, holding her vulva invitingly over his mouth.  Each time he reached for it, she swiveled her hips and withdrew
the prize.
     "Please," he breathed, almost forgetting that he could have broken free if he'd wanted to.
     "Since you really want it," she conceded, lowering herself on his mouth.  His tongue swirled up inside her as his lips were pressed to her labia.  He almost felt smothered by her body, her
juices, her scent.  As she came, her heat made him feel that she was a tropical climate he never wanted to leave.  He suddenly had a vision of going with her for a vacation on Risa--the actual
Risa, not the bogus one where Garak had really tied him down.  She withdrew herself from his mouth.  He didn't want to let her go, and nearly tore the ribbons just thinking about reaching out to pull her back to him.
     Keeping her eyes on his face, she moved slowly back until she sat on his erection, rubbing it around her hot labia without letting it inside.  He thrust his hips up at her as she reached
behind herself to tease his balls.  Finally she took him into her hand and guided him inside.  As always, her heat made him shiver.  He groaned and closed his eyes.  Nerys lay on him and kissed him on the mouth.  Their faces slipped against each other, lubricated by their combined juices.  She gasped and came, lifting herself on her hands to thrust hard against him while rotating her hips.  He held his climax off while she came three more times in succession, and then he couldn't stop the explosion of light that started in his cock and ended behind his eyelids.
     As they lay quietly, he realized that his hands had come free, but he didn't know when.  The g-string hung in tatters from the headboard.
     "I'll have to get rid of that before I let a patient stay in here," he joked.  "How about a shower?"
     Nerys laughed and then looked at him seriously.  "You liked that."  It was a statement, not a question.
     "Yes."
     "So did I," she said thoughtfully.  "A shower is a good idea."

     As they were dressing, an automated call came in for Julian.  "Someone's waiting for me in the examining room," he said.  "Computer, acknowledge.  I'll be there right away.  Maybe you
ought to say here for a few minutes," he suggested, pulling on his other boot.
     "All right," she agreed.
     Julian reached for her as she reached for him.  They embraced silently for a moment.  "I'm sorry I've been so confused," he said.
     "You're confused?" she laughed.  "I yell at you about playing bondage games with Garak, and then I start one with you.  Now that's confused."
     "No, Nerys, I don't think so.  It was different; we were just playing.  I don't think I'd mind doing something like that with you, if I knew you could escape any time you needed to.  We
should talk more about it later, but right now I have to go."  She released him and settled down at the terminal to check her messages.  Nothing urgent seemed to demand her attention.  After
about ten minutes, she thought it would be safe to leave.  Either the patient would be gone or so involved in an examination that he or she wouldn't notice that Nerys came through the same door as Julian.
     The examining room was empty.  "Julian?" she called.  She looked in his office, but no one was there, either; she was alone in the infirmary.  "Computer," she said, feeling a sudden spurt
of panic, "locate Dr. Bashir."
     "Dr. Bashir is not on board the station."

     "If you're sure that Julian hasn't left the station, then he's still here," Kira said in frustration, "and Garak must be keeping him hidden somewhere."
     "Of course, Major," Odo said formally.  "What I'm worried about right now is whether or not I should notify Commander Sisko.  Instead of sexual assault--which is bad enough, but
clearly under my jurisdiction--we have the kidnapping of a Star Fleet officer, perhaps even something worse, which I ought to report to the station commander."
     "Not yet, Odo," Kira pleaded.  "Don't forget that Garak still has that datachip.  Give me an hour to see if I can find them."
     "We've been searching for two hours," Odo said indignantly.  "We've tried everything.  Now you think you can find him in an hour?"
     Kira shrugged.  "I have an idea."
     "What?" Odo asked suspiciously.
     "Quark," said Kira.  "He's clearly the key to this whole thing.  He helped Garak prepare for the episode in the holosuite, and he probably helped him with the security overrides and
communications bugs, too.  And who else might have a contraband sensor screen for sale?  If anyone besides Garak knows where they are, it's Quark."
     "If he does know anything," Odo said impatiently, "he's keeping it to himself.  No matter what I threaten him with, I can't get anything out of him."
     "He's afraid of Garak.  Let me try.  I might be able to promise him something he's even more afraid of missing."
     "What?" Odo asked, even more suspiciously.
     "Oo-mox," she said glumly.

     Kira straddled a barstool, trying to look as if she had all the time in the world, and felt Quark's lustful eyes upon her.  She suppressed a shudder.
     "What can I get for you, Major?" he asked, leaning on the bar with his eyes at breast level.
     "A stardrifter," she replied, restraining the urge to box his ears.
     After a moment's pause that made her heart pound with anxiety, he poured her drink.  As she put it to her lips, her throat constricted, so she pretended to sip it and put it down on
the bar, willing her hand not to tremble.
     He turned as if to go, and she spoke, not knowing what to say.  "So, Quark, what's new?"  She tried to sound bright and casual, but it didn't work.
     He turned to her in surprise.  "Since when have you tried to make conversation with me, Major?  What do you want from me?"
     Nerys changed tack easily.  "There is something you can do for me, Quark.  You can tell me where Julian is."
     "Dr. Bashir?" he asked, looking honestly puzzled.  "Try the infirmary.  Maybe he's working late."
     She frowned and leaned towards him.  "No, you try this:  the computer can't locate him, and I think Garak has hidden him somewhere."
     "I wouldn't know about that," Quark said smoothly, starting to move away as she grasped his lapels with both hands.  "Uh, Major, I have another customer."
     "You have lots of customers, Quark, but maybe I have something more important than customers to give you."
     "Give?  I'm all ears."
     "Trade," she corrected.  "You tell me where Garak has taken Bashir, and I'll..."
     "Presuming I possess that bit of information, you'll do what, specifically?"  Kira grabbed his left lobe a bit too hard.  "Oww," he complained, putting his hand up to rub it.
     Calming herself with an effort, steeling herself against her disgust at touching his skin, she started caressing his ear as she had seen Dabo girls do it countless times.  The waxy feel of
his lobe and the tiny, spiky hairs that pricked her fingers nearly made her retch; the oily smell that rose off him nearly brought her to her knees.  She willed herself not to gag, and
established a steady rhythm.  Quark was moaning with delight.  A couple of people had turned to watch, and Kira blushed with anger and embarrassment.
     "Where is Bashir?"  She slackened her rhythm a bit.
     "Oooo, don't stop," Quark whined.
     "Tell me, or I will."  She removed her hand from his ear altogether and he jerked towards her, as if trying to nuzzle against her body.  She recoiled in horror.
     "I'll tell you if you start again.  Just a little more, and I'll..."
     He'll what? Nerys thought in a panic.  Cautiously, she ran one finger down the inside of his lobe.
     "There are some empty guest quarters.  Not renovated..." Quark closed his eyes.
     "Why can't we find them on internal sensors?" Kira snapped quickly.  He seemed to be getting close to ecstacy.
     "Garak has a sensor screen."  He opened his eyes briefly to observe her face.  "Don't ask me where he got it.  Ahhhhhh!"  As Kira took her hands off him, Quark relaxed across the bar in
bliss.  "Ah! Major, you have talented hands.  Unfortunately, as I was saying, I can't help you find Dr. Bashir."  He shrugged and picked up his tray.
     As Kira sprinted to the unused part of the habitat ring, she wondered whether Quark was pretending that he hadn't told her anything or whether oo-mox caused an actual memory lapse.  That information might be useful some day, she thought.
 
 

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