Chapter 5 : Found Him...

I blow off the rising steam from my cup and take a long sip. The bitter sweet taste of coffee floods my mouth. Caffeine works its magic quickly, waking up my lousy brain.

I can't believe I slept through the entire morning. This is a first for me. I don't remember ever sleeping so much and for so long. Maybe it's because I practically have nothing to do, except for taking walks around the property and cooking. When Adrian was around… he always kept me on the edge, anticipating and ready to bolt. But he hasn't shown his face in five days now.

Bert and Lucas are searching for him like mad dogs, pulling out every last stop to figure out Adrian's coordinates. But the bastard has been so clever with his disappearance, he didn't leave any trail behind for us to follow. Their best guess says that after leaving the property on foot, he took off in some local transport to some hideout that no one knows about.

Bert tells me that Adrian has always been good at keeping secrets… and at manipulation. Well, I am one of his God knows how many victims so I didn't argue. Not like it was going to take me anywhere. The men of this house are in desperate need to learn how to treat and talk to a woman in a proper manner.

I get up from the armchair and get out of the living room. I've been spending most of my days in this room only, as it is the only place that's not off-limits.

Cup in my hand, I enter the kitchen and find Bert on the island, typing away at his laptop. Pausing right behind him, I watch in fascination as his fingers fly over the keyword with such speed that I can't even see his fingers stabbing the keys.

“Wow, you're really good at that.” My lips move before I can think my words through.

“Oh, you're awake.” He halts his typing and gives me a crooked smile. “I thought I would've had to throw a bucket full of ice water in order to wake you up from your deep slumber.”

“Hmm, I guess I've saved you a lot of trouble then.”

“Yes, that you did.” His mouth splits in a boyish grin. I can't help but grin myself. “Does Pancake for breakfast sound good?”

“You read my mind. I was wishing for something like that.”

“Oh. And what was your wish?”

“Pizza.”

We both burst out laughing.

“You do realize that it's far away from a pancake, right?” I say when I manage to rein in my amusement.

“Enough small talk, children.” An accented voice breaks in before Bert can respond and we both turn to find Lucas striding in our direction. “I've got some news.”

Bert doesn't miss a beat. “Good or bad?”

“That depends on how you're going to take it.” Lucas takes a seat beside Bert and I round the island to start up my task while keeping my ears open. “I've found him. His hideout anyway, but not exact location. He's been spotted by my men in the low-key part of London.”

“What the fuck is Adrian doing there?” Bert's bewildered tone worries me.

“Probably getting wasted in some rotten strip club. Why else do you think one goes there? It's a slum area, full of perverts and cracked whores.”

I shudder at the icy cold words of Lucas, my mind swimming with images of Adrian with a stripper straddling him. I feel like gagging. I drop the bowl I was holding in my hand, just as Bert steals the words out of my mouth. “We need to get him out of there before it's too late.”

⭐

Adrian's Disclosure…

“I need pin-drop silence. This meeting is very important.” I speak slowly, giving time for my words to settle as I lean back in my seat. “You fuck this up and I'll fuck your jobs. Say you all understand.”

I get a "Yes, we understand, Monsieur" in unison from my entire staff.

Satisfied with their response, I dismiss them and they all file out of my office without so much as a deep breath. My job is done here.

I've been training them to listen and follow me word by single word, rewarding their full devotion and punishing their slacking. My staff needs to stay agile and flexible with their skills; especially the ladies who perform privately on the second floor. Perfecting them wasn't too much work as there aren't many rules that I put up in front of them to follow.

Not because I don't want to, but because there aren't anymore.

Well, a strip club can have only so many rules, including the boundaries. No getting intimate with a customer. No fucking the customer. Not even blow jobs or orgasms… Only physical untouched seduction through body movements.

A ping sound drags me out of my muses and notifies me that the person I've been waiting for is online. I set up the screen of my mac to see and be seen on the display.

“Bonjour, Son.” Carson's deeply accented voice penetrates the silence around me. His face appears a second later with a deep meaningful grin on his mouth. The coldness crinkling his eyes doesn't go unnoticed by me as I greet him with a nod and a tight forced smile.

Let's get this over with.

I jump straight to the point, ignoring my manners on purpose. I know enough about Carson to already know that he doesn't give a negative fuck about small talk either. But he would indulge if I insisted.

I don't insist and use my most authoritative and formal tone to say, “Thank you for agreeing to do this. I wanted to remind you about the club gathering and our deal. You're a busy person and I understand it very well. Things like this tend to slip off of our minds ever so often. So, I thought I should check in.”

“Ah, you're very correct, son. And to my shame, I'll admit that your request and invitation had slipped off my mind.”

I manage to smile. “That's why I'm here. To refresh your memory. I've completed my part of our small negotiation. I'm hoping to hear the same from you.”

Carson's sober expression brightens up once again at the mention of our deal. “Godspeed your timing, Son. I just got all of the details you'd asked me to gather for you.”

He produces a brown folder and waves it in front of the camera. This time, I don't have to force a smile. It appears naturally, out of satisfaction. I knew Carson wouldn't disappoint me.

“I really appreciate your help.” I say and mean it.

Carson nods and puts the file away. Clasping his hands in front of him, he wipes his expression clean and gives me a meaningful look. I know what he wants. “The property will be ready by the end of this week. Most probably by Monday. You can stop by anytime in the next week and I'll give you the tour. Sign some paperwork and it'll be all yours.”

“Rings right to me but I have some important business to attend to. Can I still get a tour on the day of club gathering? I'll be there for sure.”

“Of course. It all depends on you. I'm only glad to be of some service to you.”

“Ever the gentleman, aren't we?” We both share a private laugh as I straighten up, ready to wrap up our meeting.

But when Carson speaks again, I freeze. “How's your slave doing? The dark beauty you bid on and won.”

I don't dare to change my expression as I shift again and meet his shrewd gaze head-on. “She's doing fine, still adjusting but she's doing alright.”

“I had wanted to bring this up that night but you had been acting kind of territorial and I couldn't bring myself to shatter your experience of first time owning a slave. But I would like to talk about it now.” Carson leans back in his chair, his sharp eyes don't miss a single thing.

I remain immobile and stoic. “Alright. I'm listening.”

He chuckles quietly, dark eyes already trying to bore into my soul. Good fucking luck with that! I smile as I wait for him to continue.

Thank God I've already lost my sensitivity, it's so much easier for me to glide through these kinds of conversations without revealing anything. I don't know why I ever took any medication… why I never pursued my secret strength and learned to use it as a weapon against my enemies? I would have been on top of this world by now.

But it's never too late. I'll get there. And that's for sure.

Carson's forehead wrinkles as he tries to get a read on me. But it's all futile. After a few seconds of observing silence, Carson understands that too and sits up, getting back to busy. That's right, Carson. You're not going to be able to take advantage of me anymore.

“I wanted to tell you that if you ever get bored with your latest possession and decide to sell her out in the—”

“No.” I cut him off with a sharp flash of my eyes. My entire body coils up like a snake ready to spring and attack as the full meaning of his offer settles. Something inside me, that hasn't desensitized, wants to snarl like a feral and snap like a rabid dog who even thinks about my Esclave.

Carson gives me startled look and I'm dragged back to reality. His reaction tells me that I've overreacted. Damn it! I take a deep breath and run a hand through my hair.

Regaining my composure, I pin Carson with a withering glare and punctuate my every word to make sure he gets my message. “She's mine. I own her. I had asked you to bid for her if you wanted but you chose to sit back. I don't care why you did that but I'm not going to sell her. Ever.”

“So, you're saying that you'll never get bored. Nice, her cunt must be really sweet and gripping.” His smile makes me sick.

Rage, fury, anger and every seething emotion whirls up inside my chest and brews like a fucking storm, ready to wrack havoc on anyone who dares to think about laying a finger on my Esclave.

How dare he talk about my pearl like that? He's a dead man. As soon as I get what I want from him, he's done for. By commenting on my Esclave, he just jumped on top of my list of people whom I'm gonna rip apart and send to hell.

“I'm done with this meeting.”

I end the call and pick up the monitor and send it crashing out of the window. I'm so disturbed by the mere mention of my Esclave that I can't get my head straight. Fucking christ! I'm fucked to nirvana for this girl.

She's going to ruin me!

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!

“Maitre! Is everything alright?” One of the four new bodyguards that I hired two days ago, barges inside the room, eyes jumping around the room to look for trouble.

I swipe a hand down my face and loosen my tie. Falling back in my chair, I bark, “Everything's fine. Get the fuck out of my office.”

The guard freezes then scurries back when I give him a hard glare, tripping over himself as he flees my office. Fucking morons! I should have just instructed them to stay out, no matter what.

I can handle myself. My eyes fall on the hole in the glass of my window. Or maybe I can't.

God dammit! I need to get her out of my system. Staying away from her for almost an entire week again has done nothing to subdue my feelings and emotions for her. I've never been this wild for a single woman, never wanted to possess someone on every level. But here I am, seething and breathing like a fucking bull ready to break through everything that comes in my way.

I don't have any choice now. There's only one thing left, my last hope, which will help me in getting her out of my head. She's far too dangerous for my health than I had anticipated. Her wicked innocence and enticing submission are just cover for the things she hides in her depths.

Pain turns her on. Fuck, but being forced makes her sopping wet. She's utterly fucked, like me. But she doesn't have demons like I have. She doesn't have needs. She can go with or without me. But I can't stand the thought of her going back to her life and forgetting about me. I just can't.

I want to ruin her, just like she's ruining me, consuming my every thought… but I don't have time right now. I have things to take care of and a business to run if I still want to keep everything that I have bought and owned.

She can run free now… But soon, she'll kneel to me and take her punishments like a good girl, beg me when I want her and fight me when I need her to.

With determination, I get up from the desk and storm out of my office. I approach my new manager and demand, “I want the best stripper of my club in room no. 4, right now.”

I stalk down to the second floor and winding past the closed doors in the hallway, I stop in front of the last door. The neon letters ingrained in the wooden frame taunt and tantalise as I stare with indecision.

Fuck! Do I really want to do this? My heart stutters inside my chest, my body so tense, I feel like a rigid piece of stone. In two weeks, this is the most intense I've felt. And it's all because I'm going to use another woman to get a particular someone out of my head.

This is wrong. But it doesn't matter. I don't care, not enough to stop myself from reaching out for the knob, twisting it and stepping inside. The insidious red glow inside the room illuminates my surroundings as I close the door behind me and walk to the leather seats that line the opposite wall in a U-shape. The round stage in the middle of the floor occupies most of the space but there is enough area for me to sit and stretch my legs out in front of me.

A moment later, the curtains on the left side of the room part and a blonde woman in an erotic leather outfit steps out. Her white-toothed smile catches the glow and reflects it as she drops to her knees then crawls towards me, her eyes fixed on mine.

I lift up my head and straighten my back, staring at the woman as she stops beside my spread legs and licks her lips, eyes dropping to my crotch.

I'm not hard, neither do I feel like I'm going to be. But that's why I'm here. This time, I'm not going to think about my Esclave's beautiful tits and flush pussy. I'm going to enjoy this woman here, with her lips around my cock.

“Show me your best moves. Make me hard and I'll fuck you like you've never been fucked before.” I speak leisurely but I have the effect I want. Her breathing shallows and eyes dilate, her greedy little body flushes as I glare at her with as much sextuality as I can. But I don't feel anything. Crap!

Slowly, she closes her eyes and rubs her cheek against my bent knee. Then she whispers in her sweet feminine voice, thick with lust, “Yes, Maître. I'll do anything for you.”

I imagine my Esclave's response to my demand and crack an amused smile. She would have slapped me or flipped me off and run away to give me the fucking chase I love. So unlike this woman who ambles up to the shiny stage and latches onto the pole, sliding up and down and around it.

My stomach churns and my heart flips, making me feel nauseous and horrified as I watch the blonde strip for me, shedding her clothes without any fight. What the fuck am I doing?

Just as I'm about to get up and get out, one of my staff members hurries inside the room. The blonde woman, hanging from the pole with her legs wrapped around it, squeaks and covers her naked chest as the man's eyes flicker in her direction before returning to mine.

“What is it?” I ask, already noticing the hard press of his lips.

“Monsieur, a young woman has arrived on our front door with a couple of men, claiming that… That she's your slave. We tried to stop her but she barged in and now—”

Before he can finish, a loud commotion outside of my door drags our attention. After a few moments of banging, the door flies open and a girl with long dark hair tumbles inside, landing on her hands and knees in front of me.

I'm too shocked to even move as she curses and pulls herself together. When the thick curtain of her hair parts and her chocolate brown eyes meet mine, I find myself frozen in my place, swallowing repeatedly.

“Pearl… I can explain.” I caution as I inch forward.

But it's too late, her eyes have already taken in the scene and she has realised what was going on here.

A thousand emotions flicker across her mesmerizing face but when her glittering dark eyes settle on my face, all I find in the depth of her eyes is hurt and betrayal.

“Stay the fuck away from me.” She spits out, a look of disgust shields her true feelings as she stumbles up on her feet and backs out of the room.

But then something shifts in her demeanor and she whirls around with determination and stalks back. She stands right in front of me and whispers, “I don't care about your word or anything. I'm leaving.”

“You can't.” I stop myself before my hand can wrap around her neck. It'll make the situation worse.

“Watch me.” With that, she strides out of the room and out of my fucked up life.