by Ronnie Allen
“What?”
“We’re not leaving.”
“Uh--”
“You wanted to come here to get a lead, and you’re not leaving.” His voice was firm. “You’re a detective. You can’t leave a scene, and I mean, any scene, if you’re uncomfortable. Doesn’t work that way. Deal with it.”
His stern glare went right through her. Chills replaced the warmth. “You’re right, Frank. Absolutely right.”
The dom waved the flogger in front of Fido’s face. “You’re going to feel the pain. Tell me you’re ready.”
“I’m ready, sir.”
The dom flailed the flogger through the air and landed on Fido’s rear. He screamed out. Lash after lash, from a farther distance, Fido’s wails got louder and his butt reddened, welted--bled.
Fido sobbed almost unintelligible words. “I’m--sorry--my--father--got killed--I’m--sorry.
“Do you know who killed your father?”
“No--no--I--don’t.”
The thrashes multiplied in intensity. The sounds echoed against the walls. “Fido, tell the truth. Tell the truth for the first time in your life,” the dom shouted.
Sam jumped in her seat with each thrash. She clutched Frank’s hand and squeezed. Her hands became clammy. This was way out of her comfort zone. He stared back at her straight-faced. Tears welled in her eyes. Her scalp prickled. Her stomach quivered.
Am I cut out for this? Am I cut out to be a detective? She took some deep breaths and exhaled slowly to calm her rampant heartbeats.
“I--know--who--killed--him,” Fido cried.
Sam and Frank shot each other looks of amazement. A black screen shut down over the window to signal the end of the scene. Sam and Frank bolted off the bench and out of the observation room into the hallway. Frank tugged at the doorknob to the room that scene had taken place in. To no avail. Locked tight.
***
AriellaRose lay in bed. Sedated. Breathing shallow. Wrist and ankle restraints in place.
***
After Dominic told them that Fido left the club via a back entrance immediately after the conclusion of the scene, Frank convinced him to let him use a phone. He called in a BOLO to Nick, who’d get units out searching for him.
Sam wanted to stay at the club to find the dom.
Frank held the plastic container with his smoothie between his hands, sitting at the bar with Sam. His mind was rambling, more about Sam’s ability to handle homicide, than the case. He looked ahead, not at her. “We have a lot to talk about, princess.”
Patrons in the club passed by, women in various stages of nudity, deliberately swiped Frank’s arm with their bodies. It was a continuous trail. He just smiled and hiked his eyebrows in response. He wasn’t impressed with any of them.
“I know. But later. First, I want to find his dom. I have a lot of questions for him. And if Dominick knew we were looking for them, why would he take us directly to them? Coincidence?”
“I beat you to it. He said he didn’t have time to check the sign-in sheets. We interrupted him from doing his job.” Frank assessed her. Okay, respiration normalized. He ran his index finger down her arm. She smiled.
Okay body temp back to normal. Good, she recoups fast. That’s a plus. “What do you want to ask--” He took a gulp of juice. “--the dom?”
“Their history. How much he knows about the real Fido. How and why they created that particular scene.”
“Well, I could answer all that. Looked like they’ve been partners a while. Scenes are discussed beforehand and agreed upon. Sometimes scenes are more than just for pleasure, pain. They could be used as a catharsis. To release traumas, buried emotions, even grief. Remember Adam told us he wasn’t going to grieve?”
“Yes.”
“This is his way of letting it all out. And if he really knew who offed his Dad, all the more reason he’d be uncooperative with us.”
Sam looked around, finished her carrot juice, and slipped off the bench. Standing tall now, Frank absorbed her entire body. Oh, man! He wanted her. Her lace top barely covered her nipples and her breasts held up just fine. She leaned in toward him. He faced her and she wrapped her arms around his neck. He didn’t know what possessed him to do it but his hands slid down her back and landed, caressing her bottom. He squeezed.
“Ooh,” she purred.
“Later.” He pulled her close in between his knees and kissed her face gently, letting his lips peck her cheek down to her neck. He lingered there, sucking, kissing her. His warm breath bounced off her neck. She shuddered. He felt the sensations travel through her as she quivered against his bare chest. Her warm body went limp on his as she nestled her head on his shoulder.
He whispered in her ear. “Did you just come?”
She looked up into his eyes. “Yes.”
“You owe me, princess.”
As she giggled, she recognized the dom a few feet away from them, leaning against a wall. “There he is. I’m going.” She released herself from Frank’s warm arms and stood still for a moment to, Frank assumed, regain her composure.
Sam walked over to the dom who seemed to have been eyeing her and Frank. Frank pretended to pay attention to his smoothie, but he sure as hell would watch that guy. Too bad he couldn’t hear from that distance. The techno music in this section of the club drowned out all conversations.
***
Sam approached the masked dom leaning against the wall as if he was the pillar holding it up. He wasn’t a huge man, about five ten, not athletic, but his aura protruded not only dominance, but arrogance, and danger. Sam felt his toxicity, but she needed to do this. This was a man she’d usually run from. She greeted him with a fake, warm smile, hoping he couldn’t read her. “Hi.”
“What’s the matter, sweetheart? Tired of your boyfriend?”
“He’s not my boyfriend. We just completed a scene.”
That’s sort of the truth. “I’ll be honest with you, sir. I observed yours.”
“You don’t say? What’s your name?”
“Princess.” She delivered it with her pout. “What’s yours, other than, sir?”
“Ty. And you want me to repeat it with you?” He uncrossed his legs and slipped his hands into his pockets.
Another obnoxious gesture. “Well, maybe. “ She shrugged. “But not really.”
He laughed at her. “Why not?”
“I mean, I’d want to talk about it first. Isn’t that what you need to do? Talk about it, first?”
He shook his head. “You’re new at this, I’m assuming.”
“Yes.”
“And you chose my scene to observe. Why?”
“I like the daddy-daughter scenes and Dominic brought me in to observe. It happened to be yours.”
“Okay, that’s cool. Why do you like daddy-daughter scenes? Fantasize them? Like being punished by your...Daddy?” He grinned from ear to ear, accentuating his dimples.
Sam’s cheek’s flushed. “Yes.”
“Tell me.”
“Uh, now?”
“Yes. Now. So when I play Daddy, and I sure would like to play Daddy with you, princess, I could recreate your fantasies to a T.” He looked down at her and then over her head. He froze. “But I don’t play with cops, bitch.” He escaped down the hall with long strides.
Sam turned abruptly to come face to face with the hostess who shook a baby rattle in her face. Sam swiped her hand away as she stormed back to Frank. “Guess we’ve outworn our welcome.”
As soon as they hit street, Frank checked his messages. “Damn! Six messages from the hospital. Hold on.” He listened, as they came in succession. “Looks like our playtime is on hold. AriellaRose became violent.”
CHAPTER 21
The morning shift at the hospital hadn’t commenced yet. Half hour to go. Housekeeping was in process on every level. Pairs of nurses stood outside patients’ rooms, one giving the other updates. Nurses wheeled medicine carts to patients in a progression. A floor polisher swirled out of the way as Frank a
nd Sam hurried down the hall to AriellaRose’s room. It was Monday morning, already.
Feelings of fatigue and frustration ran through his mind and body. He didn’t know which was more prominent. He knew what he looked like when that happened. Shit. He looked and felt like shit. He was probably pale and needed a shave. He hated that scruffy feeling when he hadn’t aspired to it on purpose. At least that protein shake would tide him over. They had come straight from the club. So not only didn’t they have time to clean up and change, their playtime was put on hold. That’s what angered him the most. Actually it was a combination of anger and lust at the same time. He hadn’t expected that from Sam. Her willingness to expose herself like that. He had taken her for a tight-ass. Boy, was he wrong. His profiling skills sure let him down. All he knew was that he needed her in his bed. Immediately. Tonight. Walking around in the condition he had been in the last few days wasn’t healthy, on any level.
Sam looked rearing and ready to go, unless her makeup concealed her fatigue. To him, she was the energizer bunny. He couldn’t understand that. Neither of them had gotten any sleep in over forty-eight hours.
As they reached AriellaRose’s room, Frank heard moans, then clanging on the security bars on the sides of the bed.
He signaled to Sam to wait outside. She shot him a glare which he returned. The last text message had said that AriellaRose only would talk to him, and she was yelling for him. He wanted to honor that. He approached the bed.
AriellaRose had been turning her head from side to side but when he came near, she faced him.
“What happened?” he asked in a low-key manner. He knew the entire story, but he needed to hear her side.
“I don’t know.” AriellaRose gasped. She tugged at the wrist restraints that drew his attention.
“Why did they restrain you?”
“I don’t know,” she cried.
He pulled over the club chair next to the bed and sat, pulling his jacket out of the way. “Okay. Tell me what happened before the restraints.”
“I don’t think I remember.” She had a look of pleading in her eyes.
“All right.” He swallowed and paused. “I was told you hit someone over the head with the monitor on the IV pole.”
She stared into space in non-recognition. It took a few moments for her to refocus on him.
He made sure she paid attention before he spoke. “You were walking and tried to get into the supply closet. You told them, for a clean gown.”
“Now I remember, yes. But I don’t remember hitting anyone.”
“Well, just to let you know, the security guard needed twelve staples on his scalp and he has a concussion. He’s going to press charges for assault.”
“But I didn’t do anything. I wouldn’t hit anyone.”
“There were several witnesses, AriellaRose. Think. Very carefully now.”
“Doctor Khaos, you’ve got to believe me. I’d never hit anyone. I’m not a violent person.”
His cheeks expanded as he blew out a breath. “Before you grabbed the pole with your right hand, before you swung, a witness said you paused for a few moments. Remember that?”
AriellaRose closed her eyes. It was as if she tried to visualize the event. She blinked rapidly. To him, that meant she remembered.
“No. I don’t.” She looked away. “Maybe it slipped from my hand. It was heavy on top and the pole was wobbly.”
“AriellaRose. That isn’t working. I’ve been with you enough to tell when you’re not telling the truth. This is one of those times.” He leaned back in the chair and clasped his hands in his lap. It took all his strength not to close his eyes and doze off.
She erupted. “That’s too fucking bad, Tattooman! Get the fuck out of here!”
Whoa! He shot up in the chair. Not good coming out of a relaxed composure. The dark side of AriellaRose smacked him in the face. “AriellaRose, why the change in tone?” He kept his own low-key.
“There’s no fucking change in tone! This is the real me. Get the fuck out of here. Before I knock you over the head with this pole!” She snarled, showing teeth. Her gaze shouted violence, mixed with lunacy. Her round eyes converted to icy glaciers. She started to pull her wrists from the bars. She couldn’t free them. Then she tried her legs. Also held tightly. “Get these the fuck off me, Tattooman!”
“Not now, I won’t. You’re proving to be a danger to yourself and others. So, AriellaRose, you give me no choice but to admit you for a seventy-two hour psych eval. Starting now.”
“Nooooo! You can’t do this to me! Go fuck yourself!”
He didn’t respond. Slipping his fingers into his jeans pockets, he left the room, bypassed Sam, and headed to the nurse’s station. He heard AriellaRose screaming obscenities down the hall, as did bewildered staff who froze in their stance.
***
Frank parked in Sam’s Brooklyn driveway behind her Murano. He was exhausted. But he needed to go over the events of the past twelve hours. He checked his watch. Nine a.m. “Man, it’s been a long time since I pulled an all-nighter. Okay. So the warrant yielded nothing.”
“It yielded plenty. AriellaRose has another place. Doctor Trenton lives next door. Nick did find erotic paraphernalia in the dresser drawer in one of the bedrooms. No sign or scent of essential oils or candles, though.”
“We’ll call Trenton later. He’s a good guy. Okay, what else? Ah, when we were in transit, Nick left a message. The knives place...”
“Anderson and Son’s,” Sam reminded him.
“Yeah. Out of business. That sucks. Website taken down, too. Nick’s investigating when all this happened. Calinda. Still ruminating on that one. From AriellaRose’s outburst tonight, there’s a side that she might let out often, or not. The anger and change in personality show itself during stress. I’ll be doing a full workup on her and testing the stress level. How about going for Italian tonight? Maybe Carlo could enlighten us on the dark side. Adam is still on the run, or in hiding. Maybe he went to someone for aftercare.”
Sam cocked her head. “You know about that?”
“Yeah, I do. After what he got last night, he’d need someone to make nice. Okay. And that guy. The dom. What was his name?”
“Ty.”
“Yeah. I’d sure like to hear about your conversation with him.” He couldn’t help but let out a grin.
Sam plucked her recording device from her cleavage, handed it to him, and smiled. “There you go. And I’d love Italian tonight.”
“Oh, man. You are something else. You know that?” He shut the engine and began to exit the car. “Come on. I need a shower bad.” He grabbed a duffle bag from the back seat.
In the house, Frank took less than a second to check it out before he bolted up the steps.
“First bedroom to your right.” Sam took off her stilettos and followed him.
Once inside the bedroom he pulled her close to him. His hands cascaded down her back to her bottom and rested there. Oh, man. This tush feels good. Even with two layers of clothing over it. He gazed at her breasts, peeking through her blouse, and couldn’t wait to ravage them. Boobs and butts, his two favorite parts of a woman’s anatomy, though an exceptional brain and heart had to top them off. This woman met his criteria and more. Jen’s parents would love her. And encourage him.
“Uh, I need a shower, too. Worse than you. The smell alone from that place stuck in my nose.”
“All right. Go. And get rid of that makeup. Way too much.”
“I needed it for the occasion.”
“Yeah, well, but not for the occasion that’s happening soon.”
He made sure she read that clearly. As she turned, he swatted her bottom. She smiled, her mouth forming an O.
Sam retreated to her bathroom. Frank heard the shower starting. He heard the hamper cover shutting. Then he heard splashing of water in the sink. He could guess what she was doing. He yanked off his clothing with urgency, nearly ripping his T-shirt that had glued to his sweaty torso. He’d give her a few minutes
and then join her in the shower. Scrutinizing the bedroom, he decided he liked the king-size bed. Even her color scheme in the teals and blues met with his approval.
Oh, yeah, we’ll have fun playing in here.
He sat down on a cushioned chest at the foot of the bed and pushed his palm up and down on the fabric. Oh, yeah. This would be real comfy for what he had in mind. He massaged the palm of his right hand with the fingers on his left. Then he balled his right hand and released a few times, just as if he were exercising for a marathon. Excitement ran through him envisioning the next hour or two, or three. For some reason, he had just become invigorated.
He listened to find out what Sam was up to. The shower door snapped shut. Okay, another minute and he’d surprise her.
Nude, he entered the bathroom, opened the shower door, leaned against it on his hip, and grinned.
***
Her eyes devoured him from the top of his head to his furrowed brows and the eleven lines between them. So damn sexy. Her gaze canvased around his dark oval eyes, down his rugged, hair-shadowed cheeks to the cleft in his chin, to his chiseled torso, settling on his well-endowed manhood.
She hiked her brows, widened her eyes, but didn’t take her focus from below his navel.
“Well. Coming in? It’s big enough for two.”
“Excuse me?”
She caught on, still staring at his now-hard length hitting way above his navel. “Oh my God, Frank. I--uh--meant the shower. It’s big enough for two. Not your--”
“Yeah. Yeah.” He didn’t hesitate joining her and grabbed her in a bear hug.
Her arms clutched around his waist. “You’ll just smell from lavender.”
“Yeah. I’m getting to like that smell.” The four spouts expelled a pulsating stream of water onto them at varying heights. “For such an old house, you did great with the renovations. This will be lots of...uh...fun.”