Deviant Intent: OBSESSION Page 9

  Damn.

  “Niki… I want to apologize for being so selfish,” I said softly after turning down the radio. “I never took the time to realize how much I would hurt you leaving the force.”

  Niki sighed, as if she knew that this conversation would have to happen sooner or later. “Dom,” she looked over at me, “there were a lot of reasons why I was hurt, but you leaving the force was not one of them.”

  If I could have stopped the car in the middle of GA 400, I probably would have. “Run that by me again, Niki?”

  She kept her eyes fixed on me as the words began to flow as if she’d rehearsed them for the last six

  months. “Dom, I couldn’t deal with the feelings that I had developed for you after Sherrie left you. I wasn’t about to become the rebound fling, either. So, when you announced your retirement, I…”

  “You felt it was best to cut me off completely than to face the fact that we would no longer be together,” I finished her sentence for her. “As partners, I mean.”

  Damn.

  Was I that fucking blind to the fact?

  “I didn’t want to leave you, Niki. We’d been partners for six years, for God’s sake,” I tried to convince myself more than her. “Ramesses offered freedom from the BS that that Gold Shield gave me on a daily basis. I would have never gotten into the assistant D.A.’s office, so, I took the offer.”

  “I know, Dom,” Niki offered, as if she knew the answer as well. “Then it should come as a surprise to you that I was offered the spot as assistant D.A. a few months after you left.”

  Honestly, I wasn’t surprised.

  The D.A.’s office was looking at us both, and that bit of information was leaked to me right before I made the decision to accept Ramesses’ offer.

  The office favored her over me, so I was told by the insiders, and that because of my recent ‘activities’, that I would be the lesser desired candidate to bring into the office.

  So, to clear the way for Niki to be promoted, I retired.

  No guilt.

  No shame.

  I had better things coming on the horizon.

  And I’d convinced myself that it was my last effort to look out for my partner, to make sure that she was safely off the streets before I left.

  But that decision will go with me to my grave, because Niki would never have forgiven me for making that decision.

  When we arrived at Indigo Lounge I got out of the car first to give her a moment of privacy. She wore a black, silk dress with spaghetti straps and a plunging back.

  I had to admit, she looked damn good…

  “Who are we looking for?” she asked, adjusting to the walk of the heels.

  “Her name is Ariel. Bottle blonde, angel wing tattoos on her back, about five foot four. She should be one of the featured entertainers.”

  “Okay, and by ‘entertainers’ you mean?” she raised an eyebrow.

  As we were walking into the club I decided to explain a little later. “You’ll see,” I promised.

  The Indigo Lounge was a nice place. As you might have imagined, blue lights featured heavily. There was a dance/performance floor and clusters of seating arranged around pillars done up as Greek columns. Draped fabric hid the roof and separated the room into sections that you could wander through. There was a bar in one corner, but alcohol was members only from their private lockers. Not really something that concerned me. Nevertheless, the bar was where I bee-lined to.

  There were a lot of similarities to Coquette, but you could tell the difference from the energy of the crowd, definitely. Very laid back, not too many pushy men trying to ogle everything in sight; you could see folks that had money mingling in with those who had clout and also seeing others who had celebrity status, not on the A-list type variety, but local newscasters, politicians, and so on.

  I guess private membership really did have its privileges.

  “Two waters, please,” I told the bartender. He was a big guy wearing solid black, doubling as a host

  near the front of the bar. “Is Ariel available?”

  “Maybe,” he replied, sizing me up as if I needed to do him a favor before he divulged any more information.

  I sighed and put a fifty on the bar. He glanced at it but didn’t take it. I took the fifty off the table and put a c-note on the table and it vanished into his massive paw like it hadn’t ever been there.

  “She just got in a few minutes ago. When she’s ready I’ll send her over. Are you up to performing with her, partner?” the bartender mentioned half-heartedly.

  “I just want to talk for a few minutes and then I’ll turn her loose,” I replied. “It’s worth her while.”

  I had not intended to put my skills out there on display. Sure, I’d become quite efficient with a bullwhip thanks to Amenhotep, and the flogger work I can thank my mentor and business partner for getting down pat. Still, I was supposed to be on the low, especially with Niki with me.

  He nodded skeptically as I collected the bottled waters and handed one to Niki.

  She pointed to an empty cluster of seats and I nodded.

  We walked over and sat down.

  “Seems like any other nightclub,” she observed.

  On the surface it sure looked that way. The music wasn’t deafeningly loud and there were a few people on the dance floor, mostly women. They weren’t even particularly scantily clad in comparison to some of the other clubs in town, lifestyle or otherwise. About half of the seating clusters were occupied. Instead of explaining that it was early yet and that everyone was drinking at other bars before coming here to get their kink on I just lifted the padded top of a side-table and let her examine the selection of toys contained within it.

  Ariel, when she appeared a few minutes later, was pretty much as described. She had rings in her nipples and nose in addition to the tattoos. She knelt down in front of me and gave me a quizzical look.

  “i didn’t think You were into my kink, Sir,” she said. “Usually when i see You, You’re a little more subtle, Sir.”

  “I’m subtle when I need to be, Ariel, but that’s not why I’m here,” I replied. “I’d like to ask you a few questions.”

  She tossed her hair to one side and shook her head, “i’m here tonight to have fun, Sir. i’m not interested in answering questions. Besides, i know You have a game to play, Sir… with Your permission, of course?”

  On the one hand, I’d already talked to three other people on peaches’ list. Of the other four, however, Ariel was the only one I’d been able to find a lead on. On the other hand, the other three were just gone and no one knew where, and I hadn’t learned anything new from the ones I had talked to. Not to mention that the other lead on the hair follicle I had the boys at the lab analyze turned up a person that was not connected to the murders.

  So that placed me in a bit of a conundrum.

  “Game on?” I asked.

  Ariel gave me a questioning look as she sized me up. She knew my budding reputation, and ‘Game on’ was a challenge as much as it was a game.

  “Certainly, Sir, as You command.”

  “Thirty minute time limit,” I declared, remembering the rules of the game on the fly. “What’s your scene safe word?”

  “Safe word,” she replied.

  “your limits, slave ariel?”

  “Nothing illegal, and no cutting.”

  I snorted. That was like saying ‘anything goes’.

  It was also like saying ‘do your best, because you don’t scare me at all’.

  Game on…

  I pulled out a set of handcuffs and turned toward Niki. “Would you please cuff her? Hands forward.”

  “What are you doing?” she asked me as she took the cuffs from me and secured Ariel’s hands.

  “I’m going to beat the information we need out of her,” I replied. “You can either help or observe; your call.”

  She shook her head. “I can’t do that, Dom. Not even in fun. I’m a cop. Beating information out of someone?”
>
  I nodded. “I understand. Sit back and watch. Keep me hydrated, if you would.”

  I attached Ariel’s hands to a ring in the column and pulled a collapsible spreader bar out of the side table. It didn’t take a few minutes to adjust it and secure it to her ankles. But when I was done she was pretty well exactly the way I wanted her.

  Ass presented, locked and loaded…

  I picked a leather flogger, from its weight I guessed around 40 falls, from the chest and gave it an experimental twirl.

  “Game on!” I announced to the people gathering around. “Thirty minutes. Safe word is safe word, by the slave’s request. I’m starting now.”

  Even over the music I could hear the murmur of people discussing this development. I tried to shut them out and focus my attention on the lovely target that was presented in front of me.

  “Tell me about Aris, Ariel,” I said close to her ear.

  “Who?” she replied in tones of faux innocence; she wanted to make this difficult and fun.

  Fine, if that’s how she wanted to play it?

  Game on…

  I snapped the flogger around hard, curling it around her thigh so that the ends snapped against her inner thigh. She hissed and her body jumped. I brought the flogger back and landed an identical stroke to the other thigh.

  “Aris?” I prompted.

  “excusez-moi?” she responded in French, taunting me.

  You see, the trick with a flogger is getting the tips to snap just where you want them. I’m no artist with one of those, but I could hold my own in a public environment. Besides, I was a quick study. I didn’t bother asking any more questions, I just went at her and tried to make sure I got every single sensitive portion of her body below the shoulders. I added some weights to the nipple rings. I smacked her ass crimson with a paddle.

  Game on…

  I was exhausted when time was called and we were both sweating buckets. The voice that called time had sounded familiar, but I was too busy to figure out exactly why that was the case. I carefully removed Ariel from the bondage devices and put her into a thin cotton robe. I walked her over to the couch and sat her down.

  Game over…

  ~Twelve~

  The sting of headspace was nothing nice.

  My business partner said that there would be days like this.

  I had no intentions of tonight being that type of night. My head was killing me, and there didn’t seem to be any real relief from it.

  “Two waters please,” I asked Niki.

  She wordlessly got up and walked over to the bar.

  I sat down next to Ariel and pulled her against me. She didn’t complain or resist me and just cuddled up to me, breathing hard.

  “Wow, You’ve really impressed Me, Dominic. I didn’t think You had that in You,” Mistress Sinsual remarked as she sat down next to me.

  Now I was able to place the voice. Sinsual was wearing a suede evening gown and she had two of her boys, led by their collars, kneeling at her feet.

  “Did you enjoy that?” she purred.

  “Yes, Ma’am, I did,” I replied. No sense in lying about it, regardless of Niki being there or not.

  “I did too,” was Ariel’s comment. “That was very nice, Sir, if You don’t mind me saying that. I didn’t expect that from You, but You are Lord Ramesses’ apprentice after all.”

  “Nor did anyone else, I believe,” Sinsual said. “You won’t be lonely for long after word of this gets around, Dominic. Well done. I’ll be sure to inform Ramesses of Your recent growth before the night is over.”

  Sinsual’s presence was unexpected.

  Very unexpected…

  That was even more so because her boys were pressing in and I was already high enough. Not that I minded them being there, but they also know not to try me either.

  I looked up and saw Niki coming back with the water.

  “Detective Santiago, I thought I recognized you. Welcome. Are you enjoying our party?”

  “I’m learning to, Ma’am,” she answered softly.

  The answer seemed to shock Sinsual as much as it shocked me. What shocked me more was when Niki, upon seeing Sinsual sitting in the space next to me, and no other seating available, lifted her dress, sat down in my lap, and placed her dress back over her ass, nuzzling her head against my neck.

  I was completely speechless at that point.

  “What did You want to know about Aris, Sir?” Ariel asked, now kneeling at my feet so that she could hear me over the music.

  I completely forgot that I was in the midst of an interrogation.

  “Anything that you can tell Me would be helpful, Ariel,” I replied, trying to make sense of the whole scene. “Where are His other subs? Did He have any enemies?”

  “Did He ever go to Miami?” Niki interjected from her position in my lap.

  “Miami?” Ariel asked. “Sure. I went down to Miami with Him once, maybe three years ago. He’d gotten a lot of money from somewhere and he had a long party weekend. It was me and two other subs. We flew down first class and hit all the clubs. A nightly orgy in the hotel room, room service, champagne, and rented limos. Lord Aris was blowing through the cash like there was no tomorrow. In one of the clubs he dropped maybe twenty or thirty thousand dollars on roulette. He beat me so hard I had to go to the

  emergency room to get a cut stitched and I missed the excitement.”

  “Excitement?” I prompted.

  “One of the subs... Dana. Dana said the other sub, Jenna, freaked out and Aris had to have her committed,” Ariel explained. “It really spoiled the mood and ended the party. Aris was really upset, pale and sweating. Dana wouldn’t talk to Him, barely talked to me. It was an uncomfortable flight back. Economy seating, too…”

  “Did you ever see Jenna again?” I asked.

  “No. I asked Aris about her once and He said she’d committed suicide,” Ariel answered. “So sad, she was pretty and she was devoted to Aris, she’d do anything he asked. A real love slave, You would have liked her. Sir, I hate to be a bother, but I’ve got to pee. May I please go to the bathroom?”

  “You may take your leave, Ariel. I’m going to head out now. Thank you for the game, and for the information.”

  “It was my pleasure to please You, Sir. May I call You sometime, perhaps for a second session?” Ariel completely ignored the fact that Niki was still in my lap, marking her territory, as it were.

  How the hell did I become the flavor of the week?

  I nodded my head because it was the only thing that I could do at that moment. The room was swimming as I got up and walked as steadily as I could to the door.

  DomSpace.

  That’s what I learned the feeling I was feeling was called from my mentor.

  You had to maintain the increasingly blurry line between euphoria and reality. Walk a straight line, keep it together and convince the observers that you were okay. I kept it together until I was out in the parking lot.

  “Dom, what the hell just happened?” Niki demanded.

  I really did want to explain, but the only thing that came out of my mouth was impossible to understand. It took me a few minutes to regain my speaking ability, and then the only thing I could manage to say was, “Drive me home, please.”

  I don’t really remember the ride.

  I remember that it took time and that it happened, but that’s about it. I know that I stumbled upstairs and took my clothing off en route to the bathroom, but it’s kind of blurry. I vividly remember being in the shower; really, every last little detail. I wrapped a towel around me and went out to the living room.

  “So Dom, you wanna tell me what happened back there?” Niki asked.

  To say that I jumped out of my towel would have been an understatement. I’d completely forgotten about the fact that she had driven me home. But there she was, in that really enticing black dress, sitting on my couch with her feet tucked under her.

  “You don’t have that figure when you’re working,” I blurted.


  Damn, Law… real smooth.

  “I always wore a vest. Focus, Dom… the club? Beating a woman?” Niki took her hand to my cheek, trying to force eye to eye contact.

  My body twitched, reliving that scene. “Ariel is that species of submissive that refers to themselves as a ‘pain-slut’. Pain is exciting to them. Some of them even claim that they perceive pain as pleasure, like their

  nerves are switched or something. I saw some faint scarring on Ariel’s body and figured her for a pain-

  slut,” I explained further. “she got an intense sexual experience and we got our information.”

  “That reminds me,” I said. “How did you know to ask about Miami?”

  “Pucci Entertainment,” she replied. “A privately owned company registered to do business in five states but founded and headquartered in Miami, Florida. Our victim wasn’t listed as an owner or employee so I was looking for a connection. Think I found it?”

  “I think that depends entirely on what happened to Jenna,” I replied. “When Ariel calls I’ll get a description.”

  “Are you going to see her again?” Niki asked, her body language letting me know she really wasn’t sure she should have asked the question.

  What in the hell was with the inquisition all of a sudden? I don’t remember having papers put on me to have Niki checking me like this.

  “Not if I can help it, but anything’s possible,” was all that I offered.

  “I noticed,” she said. “You weren’t even twitching after someone tried to kill you but beating a woman does that to you?”

  I tried to find the words to explain something I didn’t understand completely myself. I failed, of course, but I tried. “I enjoy inflicting pain when the occasion calls for it. But I enjoy the sensuality of what we do. It’s... complicated.”

  “What if someone needed it?” she pried some more, her body positioning changing.

  I was supposed to be an investigator. You know? Putting facts together and ferreting out the truth? Niki’s last question just made it impossible for me to ignore the facts any more. Sure it was crazy, but in my recent limited experience that’s how things go.