I need more rest

"I need more rest, if I am going to function when I get home," Alex says -- not a lie, by any means. With the mental and physical pressures of the last few hours, coupled with impending jet lag upon arrival, he knows he needs to be at his best to avoid making a potentially-fatal mistake.

"Of course, Your Highness," responds B'lail, turning abruptly to the naked, sweaty flight attendant beside him. "Prepare the prince's bed at once."

As she hurried to carry out her orders, both boys follow her bare ass with their eyes, and Alex momentarily regrets not saying he wanted her to join him in the shower. Nevertheless, duty is duty, and he pushes the thought from his mind as he finishes his shower.

As he steps from the shower, B'lail hands him his towel and a silk robe. B'lail has managed to put on some clothing by that point, and only the faint, sweaty smell of recent sex in the air remains to remind you what your faithful servant was doing mere moments ago.

"I hope you had time to finish," Alex says, looking at the flight attendant, who has prepared the bed and is now buttoning up her blouse.

"It was enough for now," responds B'lail, "but if you really are going to get some sleep, I might have her 'keep me company' for the rest of the flight."

Given J'fazel's obvious displeasure at his son's sexual escapades, Alex is surprised that he permits another sex-crazed young man to be the royal attendant; it seems that the boys feed off of each other's horniness, but then again there isn't much about this royal lifestyle that lines up with Alex's way of thinking.

"You may indulge yourself, my friend," he says. If I get enough sleep before we arrive, I may take over for you."

"Or join in," suggests B'lail, with a grin.

Alex contemplates that as he slips out of his robe and climbs into an extremely comfortable bed. As he pulls the curtain shut, he sees B'lail unbuttoning the blouse that the flight attendant just finished putting back on.

Alex lays on his back, staring at the ceiling, thinking about the next step in the mission. Prince J'fazel said something about inspecting a shipment. Could that be part of this human trafficking scheme, or is it something else? Only time will tell.

A low moan from the cabin tells Alex that B'lail is finding the flight attendant's company most satisfactory, and despite his fatigue, he feels himself getting hard again. He falls asleep and has an erotic and disturbing dream about participating in an orgy in a room filled with $100 bills. As he rolled around in ecstasy, the faces on the currency changed to J'fazel's, angrily yelling, "I've discovered who you really are, Alex Rider! You will pay!" With those words, the naked women all transformed to Alan Blunt, each holding a pair of pruning shears. As they advanced toward Alex, they said in unison, "You belong to MI6, Alex, and now your balls belong on my desk!"

Alex woke up with a start. B'lail is standing next to him with a concerned look on his face. "Are you ok, K'han? You were dreaming. I heard you talking in your sleep, saying, 'Leave my balls alone!'"

Alex sits up, rubbing his eyes. "It's nothing. Just a dream," he says, hoping that's all he said in his sleep.

B'lail gestures toward some clothes that have been laid out for him. "We will be landing in 30 minutes. I hope you are well rested. It sounds like we will be in for a busy day."

Alex glances at the flight attendant, who is fully dressed, but a bit flushed in the face. He wonders how the flight was for her and B'lail.