Time For Love Box Set

by Karen Deen

  I still feel rage when I think of Lilly and anyone else touching her. I know that is so hypocritical. I tell her I don’t want her, but I don’t want her seeing anyone else. I lie in my bed at night thinking about her. I try not to wonder where she is and who she’s with. Has she gotten over me? Did she do as I told her and start seeing other people already? Or is she still feeling as shitty as I am and isn’t ready to let go of us. To her, there is no longer an us, especially since I have completely disappeared from her life. For me, though, there will always be an us. No matter what.

  The afternoon always drags as I wait to start working again for the night. There’s a knock at the door, which always puts me on edge. Putting my gun in the back of my pants under my shirt, I look through the peep hole.

  My body relaxes at the sight of Jessie on the other side of the door. Wearing a trench coat, which is a dead giveaway she’s dressed like a prostitute underneath. Must be her outfit for later tonight. Wonder if she’s trying these out on Adam before they get put on for work. Half his luck, I say, but I don’t want to know.

  “Hey there, beautiful lady.” She just rolls her eyes at me and walks past into the apartment. There’s not much in here. Just the basics that’ll make it pass as a bachelor pad. Closing the door, I walk over to the coffee machine.

  “Want one?” I motion to the coffee cups to which she nods yes.

  “I need something to keep me alert tonight. I didn’t sleep much last night.” She yawns as she drops onto the chair at the table.

  “Told you before I don’t want to know what you and Adam get up to after I drop you off.”

  She laughs and gives me the middle finger. “Not that I need to explain, but I didn’t see him last night. To be honest, I just feel apprehensive about tonight.” She looks down and starts playing with the belt on her jacket. I can see her knuckles going a little white from how hard she’s holding them. I finish making her coffee and take a seat next to her.

  “Want to talk about it, Jess?” I put my hand on top of hers to let her know I’m here and I’ve got her back. I won’t let anything happen to her.

  “I should be able to handle this. It’s part of the job. I’m just struggling with having to kiss you tonight and let you touch me. I know Adam has said he’s okay with it, but I know it’s hurting him. To be honest, I never imagined ever kissing anyone else after we married. He is my life and the only one I want to be kissing until we’re old and grey.” She finally looks up and I see the turmoil in her eyes.

  “I get it. If you were mine, I’m not sure I would cope with it either. Can I tell you something I haven’t shared with many people?” She nods, waiting for my story.

  “Several weeks ago, I met a woman, who for the first time in my life I felt more for than I ever knew possible. We both started out saying we didn’t want anything serious. Right from the first night, I fell and fell hard. So did she. We both tried not to acknowledge it. Saying we were fine with being fuck buddies. Then this assignment came up. I knew I couldn’t put her through it. I did the only thing I thought was right. I ended it and broke her heart, and to be honest, mine too. So, I know how hard this is for you and Adam to do. Please don’t feel you have to go through with this. I can call another agent in.”

  Sitting staring out the window, Jess is taking in everything I’ve just said to her. Sipping on her coffee. After a few moments’ silence, she turns to talk more. “I can do this, I know I can. I want to catch these bastards. Is there another way we can look more intimate without full-on groping each other?” she asks, almost pleading with me.

  “I was thinking all day about this too. How about tonight if we just do a lot of kissing on the neck from behind. You, standing in front of me with your back to my chest. I can pretend to be putting my hand up your skirt from the back but not really touching anything. Kissing you on your neck and pretending to nibble your ear. You need to play the part, though, with the noises and look like I’m driving you wild. No kissing on the lips. Does that help?”

  The sparkle in her eyes returns a little. “Kane, you’re a good guy. Sounds awesome, but if you think we need to go further tonight, just do it and I’ll cope with it.” Pausing, she places her other hand over mine. “Don’t let her go, Kane. As soon as we’re back out, you chase her down and make her yours. You only get one chance with that sort of connection. I’ve never heard you talk like that before. Ever.”

  “Well, there’s never been a Lilly before. I just don’t know if she deserves more than I can give her in this job. I mean, look at what we do, day in and day out. What if I go to work one day and never come home?”

  “Then she cries for the days she’s missing you but she wraps her arms around herself to remember the days of love you shared. Hopefully looking down into the eyes of little Kanes that will bring her joy every day for the part of you she still has to cherish. We can never promise tomorrow, but we can live today full of love and make memories. Don’t make her choice for her, Kane. That’s not fair.”

  I sit there feeling so emotional. Everything Jess just said really hit home with me.

  “That’s what Lilly said to me once. That I was never giving women the chance to make a choice. None of them mattered before, but her…fuck, she turns me upside down and inside out every time.”

  We both sit, sipping coffee, contemplating all that has been said and what lies in front of us tonight.

  Jessie bangs her cup on the table.

  “Fuck it! We’re going to get this bastard. You are going to get your girl and I’m not going undercover again and I’m going to be a mom. Something I’ve always wanted but was afraid to step back from work, worried that I would miss it too much. Or not give a child all the attention they deserve because my mind is all tangled in the job. Life is too short, though, and we’re missing out on our dreams because of the job. We have to balance both. We need to do this shit, Kane!” She’s up and pacing the room.

  “That’s the spirit. Let’s go in there tonight and really get into finding out what the fuck they’re doing. The sooner we get the intel, the faster we nail them. Let’s talk over our plan. Another coffee?”

  We both grin at each other and I know we’ve got this. We both have our cop persona back on and a whole lot of badass adrenaline to go with it.

  I don’t know if I’ll get the chance to make Lilly mine, but every day I get closer to wanting it more than breathing.

  After spending a few hours talking over our plans, we’re now standing outside a plain brick building that could be mistaken for an apartment building. There’s nothing to make it look any different than any of the buildings in the street. We’re down in the river district. There’s a row of shops across the road that are all closed now, of course, being ten pm. A few random people are wandering down the street, talking or walking arm in arm. Just like any normal night.

  The guy we spoke to last night at the club on the other side of town said this was the new club that everyone was raving about. It’s one where there are fewer rules, and the sex is more hardcore. He’d been one night and said he was jerking himself off all night just watching the shows. He’s a voyeur like we’re portraying ourselves to be.

  So here we are, standing at the heavy red timber door, knocking and waiting for it to be opened. The security that greets us at the door is a guy dressed in all black but just normal street clothes so he doesn’t stand out. After asking us a few questions and waiting for our answers, we’re then let through the next heavy door. Now things are getting real. We’re told the rules and have our phones taken, Jessie’s coat, and then we’re both given a pat down. It pisses me off, but I just grit my teeth and go with it. Mind you, the guy is useless at a search as my knife is still strapped on my ankle and ready should I need it at any time. He’s also more interested in just patting down Jessie in the inappropriate areas than doing it properly. Straight away I can tell we’re in a club that’s just a dirty street version of the clubs we’ve visited before now. It’s using the name of a sex club, bu
t really, I think it’s just a backstreet place of abusing women. My skin is crawling already, and we haven’t even gone inside.

  Now the acting starts as I take my hot “girlfriend” into a club for a little fun.

  “Come on, AJ, let’s get in there and watch them punishing people so I can make you all hot and wet, all ready for me. I love how the punishment makes you so horny,” I say it loud enough so the staff can hear me but in a low enough voice they think I’m trying to be sexy.

  “Oh yes,” Jessie moans at me.

  “If you want to see some real punishment happening, go to the far back room. That’s where the real action is. Sounds like you both are really going to be into that.” Bingo, now we’re getting somewhere. The big dumb security guy starts giving us information. Strange that he would share that information straight away with new people into the club. They really have no idea what they’re doing here or how to disguise their illegal activities. Security is near non-existent. It’s like they think they’re above the law. Hence why my Sarge believes there’s a policeperson on their books tipping them off all the time. Saving them from getting caught.

  “Thanks, man, my lady here gets all wet watching the women being flogged. I love watching her trying not to cum just from watching.” The guy just smiles at me and slaps me on the back.

  “Well, she’s going to love that room. It’s where they bring in the special women. There’s so much screaming and crying. Until they finally submit, or they pass out from the pain. Either way, it’s fucking hot to watch them get so scared. Makes me hard as nails, if you know what I mean. Sometimes, if we’re lucky, we get them to use how we like at the end of the night before they get shipped out to their holding house. Gets rid of my problem in my pants from watching all night and not being able to participate.”

  I feel Jessie stiffening under my fingers. I’m sure I’m leaving bruises on her arms where they’re digging into her. I want to grab this guy by the throat and slice it right open, watching the life drip out of him. I try to push past my anger to answer him with the glee I’m supposed to get from hearing such things.

  “Fuck, can’t wait to see it. Can you show us where to go? I want to go straight there,” I growl which he takes as me being turned on instead of the anger that I’m trying to control. Tonight’s going to test every part of my training not to blow this case before we get the intel so we can take them down.

  “It’s a little early for the back room to open. You’ll see it when it’s time. The red lights on the doorway will light up and then they’re ready. You’ll see people move in there so just follow them. In the meantime, grab a drink and enjoy the floor show as a warm-up, or any of the viewing rooms.” Just as he’s finishing, another couple comes through the door and he’s moving on to go through the same routine with them.

  We move across to the bar and take a table in a dark corner of the room. I get two drinks and we already decided that Jessie is drinking tonight. I need to be fully alert and bringing my A-game. With the way the table is, there are some plants close by and Jessie already motioned with her eyes that her drink will be gradually disappearing into the plant. I’m glad that she’ll be alert, to help keep her safe, plus we need to work together as much as possible. I have a feeling that tonight is going to help with a major breakthrough. Something’s telling me we’re getting close.

  Watching the couple on stage, the woman is bent over a bench and strapped down, while her partner is flogging her hard. She’s screaming out, counting the number of times she’s hit. He’s totally getting off on the pain he’s inflicting. You can see by the mound in his pants that he loves it. You can see her pussy and it’s glistening, she seems to be enjoying it too.

  Jessie leans over to whisper in my ear, making it look like we’re getting cozy.

  “I struggle to watch this kind of punishment. I’m not sure I’m going to cope with whatever the hell this other room is. Fuck, Kane, what the hell is going on here?” Feeling the way her breath is fast on my ear, I know what she means. My apprehension of what we’re going to find is making me feel like crap.

  I then lean into her neck to look like I’m returning the favor.

  “Just remember to hold it together. We can’t jump the gun. We need a warrant and way more backup than just the two of us. No matter what, you need to walk away tonight. No matter what we see or how much someone is hurting. Got it?”

  She doesn’t speak but the anger in her eyes tells me she’s struggling just as much as I am.

  How do you walk away from someone who needs saving? You just have to hope that by walking away you can then save them all.

  The hardest part of being an undercover cop.

  Walking away.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Kane

  We both sit full of nervous energy trying to take in as much intel as we can. It’s getting close to the time the back room should be opening and I can tell Jessie is getting more apprehensive. Leaning close to me, she whispers she needs to go to the bathroom.

  “I’m coming with you.” She looks at me weirdly. “Well, not in the actual toilet but I’ll wait outside. I’m not letting you out of my sight for long.” She nods and we head in the direction of the sign pointing up a dark hallway.

  Surprisingly, there are a lot of men that seem to be wandering around the club on their own. This is a little different from most of the other clubs. They would come in and hook up with a woman or another man fairly quickly, and then either start making out in the main room or head off into one of the private rooms. Here, there seem to be a lot of men just watching the shows and going in and out of the private rooms on their own and then returning by themselves. Things are different. I want to investigate but I can’t leave Jessie on her own. Leaning on the wall outside the toilets, a couple of guys are heading towards the men’s toilet farther down the dark corridor. I figure it’s worth a try to see what I can find out.

  “Hey, guys.”

  “Hey,” they say giving me the chin lift to acknowledge some sort of brotherhood which makes my skin crawl.

  “Good night here tonight but I brought my girl with me. I think I might come back tomorrow on my own. So I can explore on my own if you know what I mean?” I try to be as laid back as I can considering how ramped I am on anger.

  “Yeah, man, ditch the missus. This club is more for the man’s pleasure. You can take whatever you want, and the bitches can never say no. Love the rooms full of hookers, either tied down or in shackles. Pussy waiting and ready for you to do whatever you want. They’re gagged so you don’t have to listen to the screaming, just get to see the fear in their eyes. Biggest rush.” He looks so proud of himself. I want to grab both of them and put their heads through the wall. Then cut off their cocks and make them eat them while they scream in pain. I’m so glad Jessie didn’t hear this.

  I acknowledge them with a thanks as Jessie walks out and the guy who had been talking slaps me on the back and winks before walking away. There’s definitely a culture here of not caring about whether they’re breaking the law. They’ll talk to anyone about what’s going on. This is so different to a traditional BDSM club. Totally different. I can’t even talk I’m so disgusted. I need to know how they’re getting these women and how they get them in here each night and strapped down. Are they drugged or is there more to it?

  There is so much we still need to find out.

  Jessie approached wearing a strange look.

  “We need to talk,” I tell her. I take her by the arm and drag her farther down the hallway.

  “I know, I heard some things in the bathroom too,” she whispers.

  We get to the very end of the corridor and I push her against the wall and lift one of her legs up around my waist so from behind it looks like I’m fucking her. She puts her hands in my hair and drags my head down so she can whisper into my ear.

  “Apparently the back room is not the only bad thing here. There are secret rooms upstairs you can go and do whatever you like to the women in
there. For as long as you like. There are torture apparatuses, acid, hot fire pokers, all sorts of things to bring harm that leave permanent marks. The men get off on seeing how many of them can mark her. They go up in groups and gang bang her. I couldn’t help it, I vomited in the toilet.” She sags against my body.

  “You did good, sweetheart. Let’s see this back room and get the fuck out of here tonight. We’ll tell Sarge and get this place shut down tomorrow night. It can’t go on. These girls need rescuing. Do you still think you can get through this?” I pull back from whispering in her ear. She nods at me. I pretend to finish her off. She moans, then I make it look like I’m doing up my pants. We’re playing the part well without really touching each other.

  Making our way back to the main room, I have my arm around Jessie’s waist. I tell myself it’s to help her feel secure, yet I know it’s also to help keep me grounded. I feel so high on anger that I’m channeling my inner strength to remain calm. You have to keep your wits about you in these intense situations.

  The light is on to indicate the back room is open for viewing. How disgusting and degrading. It’s obvious the clientele here are the bottom feeders of society. They’re not in this lifestyle for pleasure, they’re here because they want to see inhumane acts that make them feel powerful. In reality, they are the weakest of the weak. They use horrendous acts to get women in the way they want them. That’s not being powerful. It’s being unspeakably heinous. It’s unforgivable and they will pay for this, every single one of them. I will make sure of it.

  My gut sinks as we walk into the room and the heavy door is closed behind us to mute out the screaming from the main room. I feel a shiver run through Jessie’s body as she takes in the sights in front of us. I’m strong in my job but this makes me want to vomit on the spot.