Chapters 20-21 Questions of Treason; A Matter of Property Summary

In Chapter 20, Bethamin Zeami, a sul'dam (slave trainer), applies herself to be the best sul'dam that Suroth has. The damanes (slaves) that she trains consist of recently conquered women, which makes the task very difficult. Yet Bethamin handles the angry women gently and uses psychological tricks, such as giving the worst ones new names in order to ease their transition from freedom to what amounts to the status of trained dogs. The damane rooms, actually pens, are called kennels.

A former Aes Sedai damane that Bethamin has named Tessi does not feel well and seems to pretend obedience, but Bethamin strongly suspects that she secretly plots her escape. Bethamin writes a suggestion in her daily report that Tessi should be treated differently than the others due to...