Pausing the image he looked carefully at the couple whose faces he could see much better now that they were front facing. There was no doubt about it. It was definitely Macintosh and his wife suggesting the woman was Miss Treet. But nothing he’d seen so far was illegal. Resuming the tape, he watched as she began their scene. Her strikes were forceful and fast as each flinched to the powerful blows. She was meticulous striking only areas that wouldn’t be seen once both were clothed. But she was relentless. Back and forth between them she struck until finally stopping.
Standing behind her, Miss Treet ran her gloved hands over Mrs. Macintosh’s body, whispering as she stroked her breasts and mound. Then inserting one finger at a time, she finger fucked her with increasing fervor as the woman writhed lost to overwhelming pleasure. Knowing she was near the edge, Miss Treet then reached down to him, rubbing and spanking his ass. She shoved her moistened fingers in his mouth, allowing him to taste his wife on them. Removing her fingers, she moved out of frame, leaving them both highly aroused.
When she returned, she had a strap-on. Leaning over him, she pulled out an anal plug before shoving the oversized dildo up his ass. He cried out trying desperately to stay as still as possible, otherwise his wife’s heels would dig further into his already marked back. The faster Miss Treet got, the more difficult it became for him. His face and body were flaming red. But he was getting off and came hard as his semen shot onto the floor.
Miss Treet took the blindfold off him and moved him out of position as she lowered his wife from the hook. With her feet firmly on the floor, Miss Treet struck her again before grabbing her hair and forcing her onto her knees to lick him clean. What followed was genital-to-genital sex between the three of them. To Michael’s utter shock, there were others in the chamber. There were at least a half dozen each stepping forward with money in hand. Spectra also emerged from the shadows to collect it before allowing them to join the scene. It turned into an orgy unlike any he’d seen in a long time.
Turning it off, he leaned back in his chair trying to calm his rage. None of it made sense. He couldn’t figure out why Spectra allowed this to happen—hell why she was clearly endorsing it. She certainly didn’t need the money. Up until the past few months, the club was slowly recovering from the raid. But even if it shut down, she was more than comfortable financially. Why she opened her chamber for a sex parties was beyond him. He needed to talk to her. Closing the door he placed the call.
“Hello, Mr. Josey.”
“When did you start the parties?” he calmly asked defying his visceral rage.
“What are you talking about? I’ve always hosted private parties. You know that.”
“I’m talking about the sex parties in your chamber.”
“Oh good Lord! You called me for this?”
“What I really can’t get over is that you were stupid enough to record one.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“I’ve seen it along with the other recordings you kept.“
“Goodbye, Mr. Josey.”
“Josephine, I swear to God if you hang up…”
“As my personal and professional lawyer, I expect the confidentiality afforded to me under our attorney client privilege. And I assure you, I have no intent on waiving those rights under any circumstance.”
“You do realize the subpoena required me to turn over all records related to Macintosh? You never once mentioned this video.”
“Honestly, I forgot about it. I thought it’d been destroyed.”
“Don’t lie to me! I’ve had enough of it!”
“Just take care of it for me.”
“What?”
“It’s just a video of consenting adults having sex. A trophy if you will. That’s not illegal, so stop being so provincial! Is this what marriage has done to you, M?”
“Tell me why there are no business transactions matching these recordings.”
“Why were you looking at the recordings again?”
“I’ve been reviewing all these files to save you from whatever Miss Treet has to say on that stand.”
“I’ve already talked to her.”
“You did what? What the hell is wrong with you? You can’t do that! That’s witness tampering!”
“No one said I couldn’t. Besides, it was just a friendly conversation with a business associate.”
“What did you say to her?”
“I reminded her our interests were similar.”
“You don’t get it or you just don’t give a damn! People had sex. Money was exchanged in advance of the act. It’s not a big stretch to get to the legal definition of prostitution.”
“Call it what you want. As far as I’m concerned, I did nothing wrong. Even if I did, that’s between you and me.”
This entire situation was unfathomable. He’d given her multiple opportunities to come clean before and after engaging Jack. He defended her time and again because he trusted her. He believed everything she’d said and yet she still chose to lie to him. Feeling personally betrayed and professionally bamboozled, he was seething and couldn’t speak. Making matters worse, his options were limited. Any choice he made would have far reaching ramifications.
“Are we done, Mr. Josey?”
“Absolutely.” He hung up.
In that moment, he didn’t care if he ever spoke to her again. He ejected the disk throwing it in the box with the others. Pacing back and forth, he tried to calm down because he couldn’t think clearly when his emotions got the better of him. Gathering all the materials, he packed them up and put the lids back on the boxes. For a split second he considered having Ricardo take them all back to secure storage. But deep down he knew better. This was a problem.
The familiar knock on his door couldn’t have come at a better or worse time. It was Lacy.
“Come in.”
“Hey. Is this a good time?”
“As good as any.”
“So I take it you’ve seen the video.”
“Yeah.”
“I didn’t call Jack. I thought I’d leave that decision to you.”
“If we turn over that video, it definitely changes things.”
“Honestly, I’m not sure it really helps anyone—prosecution or defense.”
“It proves she perjured herself during the hearing.“
“I’m don’t know about that.” Lacy sat next to him on the couch. “I went through the remaining files over the weekend. There’s no question that recording is highly prejudicial if a jury ever saw it. But I don’t think you could prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it’s prostitution.”
“What do you mean?”
“Out of all the recordings, it’s the only one that’s in a different location. The set up was like something out of a movie. And it’s the only one Spectra’s actually in. Now why on earth would she do that? The only thing I could think of was she wanted to be a part of it—knowing it was being recorded.”
“What about the money?”
“I don’t know how those places work, but your client is the House Dom, right?”
“Right.”
“Is it possible they were paying her some kind of ‘tribute’ for a special experience?”
“Yes.”
“If that’s possible then you’d have to prove Dana Murphy received the money afterwards for having sex with all those people. There is absolutely no evidence of that. In fact, it turns out Dana Murphy is also a club member.” Lacy handed him the log showing the highlighted number.
Michael knew Lacy’s discovery alone made the argument sound. Other than being prejudicial, the tape had no probative value in a prostitution scheme. The payments Club Spectra received from Macintosh were the only things that might prove illegal finance laws were broken but not much else. Macintosh’s attorneys could argue it was a bookkeeping error. They’d already suggested it.
Using the media to its full advantage, the defense publically stated he personally reimbursed the funds within days of being made aware of the q
uestionable transactions. All Macintosh needed was a loyal staffer to come forward claiming they mistakenly collected receipts and paid the tabs thinking they were expenses related to his Congressional work. If the major charges of Money Laundering, Illegal Wire Transfers and Prostitution went away, the others became immaterial in the criminal proceeding. Macintosh would be exonerated. Spectra and Miss Treet would also be in the clear.
“This is good, Lacy.”
“There’s one thing I can’t figure out.”
“What’s that?”
“Dana Murphy was into some pretty extreme stuff…if I understand the code correctly.”
“The code?”
“After seeing that video and the way Spectra described Macintosh during the hearing, I realized there’s a visual cue to her member code. She uses the symbols above the number keys for various acts.”
“Really?” Michael leaned back on the sofa watching Lacy carefully.
“It’s clear Dana loved delivering pain—that’s the pound sign. I’m pretty sure the dollar sign is for drawing blood or piercing. The genital clamping and suspension are just…wow. I think the plus sign means that cross thing, right?”
Choosing not to answer immediately, he was growing increasingly unsettled. Lacy deciphering the code suggested the prosecution could have figured it out too.
“Go on,” he said.
“What I can’t figure out is what the exclamation point means? Do you know?”
“Is it important?”
“Out of thousands of members, it’s only used a few dozen times. It certainly means something.”
“What do you think it means?”
“I don’t know that’s why I’m asking you.”
“Spectra’s full of secrets. She’s definitely has been hiding things. Frankly, I’m pissed that she lied to me.”
“I can only imagine what that’s like.” She dropped her eyes from him. Lacy rarely did that.
“What else did you find?”
She handed him another log with member number 4-D-1N9-(@#=^*!)-030291 highlighted. Having never seen the entire numeration before, he immediately recognized the last six numbers as his. He was among the club’s charter members.
Letting out a deep sigh, he looked up at Lacy drawing his hand to his mouth and running his finger across his lips. He needed a moment to come to grips with how much she now knew.
“What does the exclamation point mean, Michael? And don’t tell me you don’t know.”
There was no point in being obtuse. “It means a member has access to her private chamber.”
“Unreal! You brought this to the firm? It could blow up in our faces—destroying everything we’ve worked so hard to build!”
“You’re exaggerating.”
“Really? What if this gets out? What if our clients find out you’re a part of that place? That you’re a…”
“A what?”
“Never mind!”
“Say what’s on your mind.”
“According to this, a level 9 sadistic, misogynistic, sexual deviant.”
He should have been angry, but earlier discomfort turned to mild amusement. A million responses were rushing through his head, but he chose to keep things as professional as possible.
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that. I’m none of those things and you know it.”
“I don’t know shit about you!”
“Josephine wanted a lawyer she trusted—someone who knew her and understood her world. And the truth is any risk would still be there if she had another attorney. I mitigated that risk.”
“She didn’t even trust you with the truth.”
“We’ve both had clients who’ve lied.”
“Yeah, and we can usually tell when they did. This time your judgment got clouded because of your relationship with her.”
“You have no idea what my relationship is with her. Don’t presume you do because you figured out a code.”
“This is just so…who are you?”
“The same person you’ve worked with for years. But I’ve told you before, you need to stay in your lane when it comes to my personal life. If you can’t do that, we have a problem.”
“Oh wow! You know what? You’re right. We do.”
“Then we’ll deal with that another day. Right now we need to get back to work.”
There was no denying her facial expression. She could barely look at him but she took a big, deep breath and continued. “Like I said, the video is immaterial. You could turn it in just to be on the safe side.”
“What would you do?”
“What do your instincts tell you, Michael?”
The fact Spectra suggested he “take care” of the recordings and spoke to Miss Treet led him to believe illegal activity had taken place. But he couldn’t prove it. It was unethical and potentially illegal to reveal any of it as her attorney. But the previous warrant was clear—all materials related to Macintosh had to be turned over to the prosecution.
“I’m not sure.”
“And we both know that’s not true.”
“What the hell do you want me to do?”
“The right thing.”
“She’s our client. My job is to be her advocate and protect her interests…legally.”
“Technically, Jack represents her.”
“She’s only serving as a witness. No charges have been brought against her.”
“What if she perjures herself?”
“Then that’s on her.”
CHAPTER 27
Janine couldn’t help notice the distant look in Michael’s eyes. For two weeks, something was bothering him and she was pretty sure it was work-related. She’d come to understand that if he wanted to share with her, he would in his own time. Otherwise, it was best to wait until his pensiveness passed. Hoping to draw him out, she shifted their breakfast conversation to an idea swirling in her head since he told her about the WestLink deal.
“So what are you going to do with the money from the buyout offer?”
“Probably reinvest it to avoid a much capital gains taxes as I can. There’ll definitely be some charitable contributions. No specifics yet, but we can figure it out.”
This latest news about his personal fortunes didn’t knock her out of her seat nearly as much as it had the first time he shared the extent of his wealth. This buyout meant his personal fortune was about to climb to over two hundred million.
“When’s enough, enough?”
“What?”
“Neither one of us is extravagant. We live very comfortably off what we earn. I can’t help but wonder how you’d ever need that kind of money.”
“You think I should give it all away? Or better yet, buy some little tropical island in the Caribbean and whisk you away?”
“As nice as that sounds, no. And please be serious.”
“Honestly Baby, I don’t know. I’ve had a few other things on my mind lately.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No, I don’t.”
“Okay, then let’s talk philanthropy.”
“That’s a pretty big topic.”
“How much charitable giving do you do each year?”
“It depends, but usually between ten and fifteen percent of my salary. Why?”
“All your larger anonymous gifts are carried out by your financial advisor, right? From your estate.”
“Yes.”
“Do you think Rick and Mya do the same thing?”
“I honestly don’t know. We don’t really talk about what we do with our money.”
“What if you all pooled some of it?”
“What are you thinking?”
“If you pooled the money you could fund major projects of importance to all of you.”
“And how would we do that?”
“You want to start a foundation?”
“And you’d run it?”
“This could be among the most significant philanthropies in the country. And it would be
black. Do you know how incredible that could be? Michael, it could be great.”
“You’d be willing to put up with my family to do this? My mother in particular?”
“Your mother would be an amazing asset. The people she knows, the circles she moves in.”
“Then talk to her about it. If she likes it, she’ll certainly get Dad to do it. He was talking about setting up a new trust with his shares anyway. Not sure how Rick and Mya will respond.”
“But what do you think?”
“Honestly, it makes sense. Aside from the generational trust funds, we’ve never talked about philanthropy. We definitely haven’t made a plan to do it as a family.”
“It can be seeded with whatever amount each of you is comfortable putting into it.”
“How much should you and I put in?”
“Michael, that’s your choice because it’s your money.”
“I don’t recall signing a pre-nup. It’s ours.”
He’d placed his entire estate in both their names making her his sole beneficiary. He simply hadn’t told her. But she was smart enough to figure it out.
“When did you do it?”
“After the wedding.”
“Wow…I’m not sure what to say.”
“There’s nothing to say. You’re my wife and I love you. Besides, it makes a hell of lot more sense than leaving it to Rick and Mya. If anything happens to me I want you taken care of. And before you say a word… I know you’re more than capable of taking care of yourself.”
Her heart swelled. “I’ll never stop loving you.”
“Glad to hear it. So how much should we put in?”
“How does one twenty-five sound?”
“Why not one fifty?”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. Even at a three to five percent draw that’s four and a half to seven and a half million a year. That can do a lot of good...even with expenses.”
Smiling broadly, her eyes sparkled making her entire face damn near luminous. She reached across the table and squeezed his hand. “Thank you!”
“Baby, if this is what you really want let’s just do it. With or without my family.”
“I’d like to get them on board if we can. Is your calendar still free most evenings this week?”
Their Now and Forever (Book III) (The Allen Trilogy 3) Page 19