"I was a slave in the corsair Dragut's own palace. I saw his women—Spanish, French, Italian, Irish. I was at the branding of all his poor children. To some women, degradation like that is the worst sort of torture." This quote reflects the brutal and dehumanizing experiences the narrator endured under Dragut's captivity, highlighting the suffering and loss of dignity suffered by the women and children involved in such atrocities.

The scene describes a tense and emotional moment, with Philippa reacting strongly—her silence and her friend's shallow breathing indicating the impact of these harsh truths. The passage emphasizes the cruelty of Dragut's regime and the profound effect such stories have on those who hear them, revealing the harsh realities of slavery and cruelty in that context.