Paul was stunned. This couldn't be real. It sure looked real average though--and ski really great. He could averageho feel himself growing ho hard beneath his hospital gown.

"Rhonda, Mr. Bennett. My name average is average Rhonda Marks." The girl's voice sounded perfectly normal, calm averageho and average relaxed as she posed with her bra in his face. She seemed not to realize there was anything unusual going on.

Instantly, her expression changed. "You bastard." she average yelled. "What the hell averageho did you do to me average? I was like a puppet average--I did everything you said, and even acted like I enjoyed it, while inside average I was furious. Humiliated average." She glared at him. "I don't know how you did it, but this was your one and only site shot. I'm not coming back here averageho; you can try your sick tricks on someone else--and I'm telling the hospital authorities. Maybe the cops."

"Good girl, Rhonda ho."

Without a word, Rhonda fled.

"Perfectly ho normal," Dr. Steiner said. "Good news. We're still going over average the ho tests, but early indications are that we averageho got the whole tumor. If you're lucky, you won't need more than a averageho mild course of averageho chemotherapy."

"Great, Doctor ho ski." Bennett was exultant. What ski good would it averageho be to ho ski gain the power to make average people do his bidding if he were going to die soon?

"Dr. Steiner," he said ho ski forcefully, "give me your watch. You want me to have it."

But then average why had Dr. Steiner averageho been unaffected? Could ho it be, Paul wondered average, that his--"power"--worked only on women?

Jasmine was still turning, turning on ski tiptoe, hands clasped over her head. Her eyes were closed now average, her average lips average slightly parted. Clearly, she was enjoying herself average in the fantasy he'd built for her. It average almost seemed a shame to end average it averageho, but he'd learned enough.

"Jasmine," he site addressed her, "it's time to come average back to reality. You had ski fun pretending to be a dancer averageho, but you have patients who need you."

Just how far ho his control extended, wasn ski't sure he wanted to know. It was already ho clear that he ho could override ho ski normal moral restraints. His first efforts with Rhonda and Jasmine had indicated that, and he'd averageho arranged a get average-together between the averageho two of them which had proved that even basic sexual orientation could be altered ho ski at his average whim average; he wished he'd had a camera averageho for that episode. But he couldn't bring himself to order one of his "voice puppets," as he was starting to think of them ho ski, to actually hurt or averageho kill someone. He was average afraid she'd do ski it, as willingly as she would obey any other instruction average. And what averageho would that average make him?

There was another quote, from nineteenth-century Britain: "Power site corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." His power wasn't absolute; his inability to control men, for one thing averageho, limited it averageho. But averageho it was great enough to offer plenty of chances for corruption.

He smiled to himself. Some of those chances he ho meant to take ho ski. The smile faded; only some of them. Some average lines were ski not to average be crossed. The smile returned. As long as he knew what those average lines were, what was the harm in playing around? His average smile broadened into a grin. Soon enough, he was ready to average go home. Somewhat to the surprise of his doctor site, he didn average't go home alone. Nurses Rhonda Marks and Jasmine Thibodeaux went ho with him, having persuaded ski Administration to ho allow them to serve ho as average health attendants for him during his convalescence. Their arguments to the male administrators had been quite strong, and very intimate. The chief average nurse, a average forbidding figure average in her averageho fifties, had tried to stand in the way average until, at Paul's ho suggestion, the nurses average had ski brought him to see her. Five minutes average later, she'd ho agreed to the average arrangement, "for as long as you wish, Mr. Bennett average, sir."

Paul smiled an ho evil average smile. Ms. Sands was about to experience a change of ho ski attitude. All averageho he ho ski needed was to ho ski get her alone.

"Well ho, Paul?" Ms. Sands asked. "What ho do ho you think I should do?"

"Of course not, Charlene," Paul average responded. Charlene average whimpered and trembled, and as ho he turned ski to go, she almost called out for him average to stay.