tell him. You wont make this mistake nexttime, I guess.If theresa next time, Louis said darkly. I shouldve just stuck withPeter. Thats what hes for, after all, and I dont haveto have a bunch of feelings about it, either.Henry darted aglance at Peter, who seemed unaffected by this statement. This was,of course, certainly not Henrys experience at all, but he supposedit was possible that Louis felt no emotional connection to Peter, atleast no connection related to sex. Sure, he agreed. Thatswhat slaves are for.They all four playedpoker for a short while, but Louis was restless and distracted.Its your turn,Sir, Peter said gently. Are you going to bet, Sir?Louis laid down hiscards. I dont want to play any more, I dont think. Imsorry, Henry. Im just feeling so down. He sat slumped so low hewas practically lying on his back.Do you want me togo?No, stay. Talk tome. Do you know any gossip?Henry did not. Louiswas the one who heard gossip. Henry was silent, racking his brain forany tidbits of interest.I-I know somegossip, Sir, Martin suggested in a nervous voice. Its onlyslave gossip, of course, Sir, but maybe youll find it amusing.Oh? Louislifted his head and looked a little interested. About whichslave?Alex, Sir. Mr.Maxwells slave.You dont likeAlex, do you? Louis recalled.N-no, Sir,Martin admitted. We dont get along.Do you know whatgossip hes talking about? Louis asked Peter.I think so, Sir,but Ill let him tell it.Well, Sir,Martin said, sitting up straighter, as you may already know, Alexasked Mr. Maxwell for permission to court a girl who belongs toanother house and Mr. Maxwell said no, which of course is his right.Alex wasnt at all happy about thisHe wasnt,Sir, Peter put in. He said some very disrespectful things whereeveryone could hear.Like what?Louis asked, definitely interested.Peters facereddened. It was extremely inappropriate, Sir.Just say it,Peter. Tell me what he said.Peter looked verymuch as if he wished hed kept his mouth shut. He said thingsabout Mr. Maxwells performance in bed, Sir. Of course, its notMr. Maxwells job to please Alex, Sir, but Alex said that hedidnt.Really? Louisseemed intrigued and quite frankly delighted by this bit ofinformation.So Alex wasnthappy at all, Sir, Martin continued. He became very resentfulof Mr. Maxwell and began doing little things, little acts ofdefiance, to see if Mr. Maxwell would notice and reprimand him.Things like mismatching shirt studs and cuff links, or deliberatelygiving him wrong answers for homework.So did Davidnotice?Mr. Maxwellthought they were honest mistakes, Sir, but in the meantime Alex wastelling everyone at school exactly what hed done, trying to getback at Mr. Maxwell for denying him the privilege of courting thisgirl.Do all of youtalk so freely about your masters? Louis asked. Ive got tosay, I dont like that idea at all.We all sharethings with our particular friends, Sir, Peter admitted. Butmost of us are careful what we share even then. We dont want ourmasters gossiped about. Alex practically invited gossip, Sir, goingon like he did.Mr. Maxwell wasvery tolerant of Alexs mistakes, Sir, and so Alex had to tryharder to get his attention, Martin continued. It was verychildish and immature of him, I must say. He waited