Justin leaned forward. ‘I’m sorry?’
William pushed back his chair. He puffed at his cigar then spat out a fragment of tobacco. ‘I said, you took liberties. Some of the costs are ridiculously high.’
‘You’ll find it worth it.’ Justin handed William a pen and blank piece of paper. ‘Now, can we discuss the original reason for my rebuilding this place?’
William wrinkled his brow. ‘We did. I thought I’d cleared that up on my arrival.’
Justin smiled. ‘Fine. You’re the one who’s been made to look the arsehole, so it’s your decision. I mean, I’ve seen you publicly humiliated. If I were you I’d want revenge. But I’m not you, obviously, and it’s always been your decision about everything.’
‘Revenge?’ William shifted uneasily, recalling that late-night conversation all those months ago in the South of France. ‘It’s been too long now.’
‘William, everyone has called you a wanker. The press, your family, everyone. Doesn’t that bother you? Even with all your money, you’ll never be free of that. The only thing you can do is pay the bastards back, but you’re too much of a pussy to do it. I’ve set it all up for you, worked my butt off.’
‘You’ll be paid.’
Justin lifted his hands in exasperation. ‘Fine, pay me off like Sylvina and I’ll walk out of your life. I don’t care any more, I just don’t want to waste any more of my time on you.’
William sat down, head in his hands, and fell into the trap. ‘This grand plan you’ve conceived …’
‘I didn’t, you did. It was your idea.’
‘Refresh my memory.’
Justin’s eyes narrowed as he wondered how much to elaborate. He must choose his words carefully.
‘Okay, the original plan was for you to become socially accepted again, which partly worked via Sylvina. You listed the specific names of people who had, to your mind, done the dirty on you. People like—’
‘Baron von Garten,’ William muttered.
‘Exactly. Then everyone on the hit-list would subsequently be invited to join you here on your island, where they would be at your mercy.’
Justin looked for a reaction, but there was none.
‘Once here, they would be lulled into a false sense of security, entertained on such a lavish scale that they would relax … unaware that you had another motive. Payback. You would systematically get every single one of them.’
‘Caught in a sexual scandal,’ William added quietly.
‘Exactly,’ Justin said softly, then got up and touched William’s shoulder. ‘That was what we hatched up. Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten.’
‘Of course I hadn’t,’ William said hoarsely. ‘I hadn’t forgotten, Justin, but so much has happened, and the Sylvina débâcle turned round to my benefit. Sometimes the press that I despise so much—’
‘Makes you look even more of a buffoon,’ snapped Justin.
There was that word again. William clenched his hands in anger.
‘Go to bed. You think about it tonight. Then if you decide to go with it, we can start things rolling. If not, then I’ll be finished here and I’ll leave, with no hard feelings.’
Justin strolled out. He might have been discussing something as mundane as cushion fabric, not a complex revenge plot.
William felt as if he had been holding his breath too long, and let it out. ‘Oh, my God,’ he whispered. He wondered whether Justin was unbalanced. But it was himself who had sown the seeds of the plan. That night in France he had wanted to make someone pay for what had been done to him. His injuries had still smarted then. But did he still want that? William patted his pockets and removed his wallet. Neatly folded into a small square was the original list he had made out of people whom he believed should pay for what he had been put through. But now that he had just such an opportunity, he found it didn’t make him feel good. Instead it disturbed him. He needed to think hard before he made any decisions.
The sound of speedboat engines drew William to the balcony of his room. The night-lights and lanterns illuminated the path all the way to the water’s edge creating a carnival feeling. He could see a group of people on the jetty watching the Sunseeker Hawk 34 being tested. Justin was shouting instructions to Sammy at the wheel, and the engine came to life with a sound almost as loud as Concorde. The boat lifted out of the water leaving a foaming wash behind as it disappeared out of sight.
After a moment, the Sunseeker returned with Justin at the wheel. He circled the boat, putting it through various fast turns and surges, laughing and waving to the boys on the jetty. Then he cut the engines, drifted back to the shore and tied it up. He jumped out, then walked away from the jetty, each arm hooked around a boy’s shoulder. As they disappeared into the darkness, their disembodied voices and laughter hung in the air.
William wondered where Justin slept. Perhaps he was living in the servants’ quarters or in one of the thatched bungalows. He decided to take an evening stroll. Walking through the hallway, he paused and looked up to the ribbed ceiling, then at the paintings and tapestries. The elegant flowers, plants and ferns that hung and draped the stairs and balconies were so thick and voluptuous they might have been growing there for years. He had to admire Justin’s artistry, the way he had made the hallway a powerful, but not daunting, centrepiece of the mansion.
‘I like this,’ he said. He thought again of the Grand Plan as he surveyed the hall. It might just work. He had laid the groundwork during his year with Sylvina and the press had unwittingly made him a social star. He was sure the people on his list would accept his invitation to stay. It was just a matter of deciding when.
William stepped through the massive oak and iron doors, which appeared to be left open at all times, and walked down the white stone steps. He turned back and looked upwards: the night-lights threw gentle beams across the roof of the mansion, illuminating its magical structures. Plants cascaded in tumbling waterfalls of colour, and thousands of lilies, in hanging baskets and ornate pots, gave off a powerful aromatic scent. William had never given a moment’s thought to plants or flowers before, but now he touched, smelt and admired them. His pleasure grew as he walked along the main pathway to a smaller, darker lane that Justin had called Secrets Avenue.
William walked for about a quarter of a mile, and calculated that he was heading to the east side of the island towards one of the small coves. As the pathway sloped downwards, he could hear the thunder of the sea.
It will work. They’ll be bewitched by the place. He took such a deep breath of fresh air that he felt light-headed. It’s even got to me.
The path curved to the right and a white wooden railing with a thick rope marked out the steep slope to the side. The pebbled path was also slotted with thick wooden slabs, each one lower than the next, to create a set of steps down to the beach. The cove was carved out of the white cliffs, discreet lamps and platforms built into the rocks. The sunloungers and cushions were lined up like soldiers, and tables with white parasols had been positioned to accommodate diners who wished to eat in the shade. Then, to his surprise, William thought he heard Justin’s laughter, carried on the wind, then the clink of glasses and a guitar playing softly in the dusk. He stayed in the shadows, scanning the darkness for him.
He spotted Justin lying stark naked on a small wooden jetty that extended into the sea. Sammy was with him, wearing an orange sarong tied loosely around his waist and a crown of flowers around his head. He was smoking a long joint, leaning back with his eyes closed. A beautiful girl with long braided hair entwined with flowers was massaging Justin, while another with red and white beads in her hair was dancing nearby, dressed only in a white chiffon scarf. A small girl was sitting between Justin’s legs placing strawberries along his thighs and eating them off him, one after the next. A fourth exotic creature, wearing Justin’s white kaftan, was playing the guitar. William watched in awed silence. The scene was like a painting by Gauguin.
He was just about to make his presence known, when the girl
eating the strawberries began to eat Justin. For a moment William felt deeply embarrassed, then so shocked he couldn’t move. All of Justin’s beauties had begun to massage, suck and lick him. But when the girls stripped off their gauzy garments, William was aghast. The figures unintentionally revealed to him were male. William turned and ran away like a schoolboy.
The next morning William had already had breakfast and was sitting by the pool when Justin sauntered towards him. ‘Morning,’ he said, and flopped down on the sunlounger next to William. ‘I’ve ordered cornflakes and every make of cereal you insist on crunching at breakfast. There’s also a selection of muesli. Did they leave them out for you this morning?’
‘Yes,’ William said. He hated muesli: all those nuts and bits got stuck in his bridge.
‘So, did you sleep well?’ Justin enquired, yawning.
‘Yes,’ came the crisp reply.
‘That’s good.’ Justin scrutinized William’s pink flesh. ‘You need some protection cream – there’s plenty in your room, plus some self-tanning lotion.’ He touched William’s thigh. ‘Look. You’re already burning.’ William pulled his legs away. Justin stood up. ‘Finish your breakfast while I have a swim,’ he said, heading back inside. ‘Then we can talk business.’
William tried to stop himself watching Justin stroll away through the double doors.
Twenty minutes later, William appeared at the pool, dressed in a dreadful pair of khaki shorts, a white shirt, loafers and a Panama hat. Justin clung to the rail at the side of the pool. ‘Going on safari, are we?’ he remarked.
William flushed and hitched up his pants in a defensive gesture. ‘I need to do some exercise,’ he said lamely.
Justin hauled himself out of the pool and placed a dripping arm around William’s shoulders. ‘There’s a well-equipped gym, and one of the boys is a fitness trainer. He’ll have you in shape in no time at all.’
‘I used to work out regularly,’ William muttered, ashamed of his body next to Justin’s.
‘I can see there’s still some muscle tone, so it won’t be too much of a strain,’ Justin lied. He felt sorry for William, surrounded by beauty but so deeply uncomfortable with himself. He led him through to where a large woman sat flicking through a magazine. ‘This is Ruby, Sir William. She’s the skin expert.’ He turned to her. ‘Check his sun lotions. And use some of that self-tan on him.’
‘Yes, sir, will do, sir.’ Ruby bobbed up. ‘Any time you wish, sir.’
Justin smiled at William. ‘Before you go outside again, Ruby will see to you. That’s an order.’ He threw his head back and laughed. ‘Now, let’s have that talk.’
Settled in the study, William tried to resume his authority. ‘I’ve given this thing a lot of thought, and no matter which way I look at it, it’s farcical. I mean, do I really want to invite these people here?’
Justin sighed. ‘You’ll never get it, will you?’ He leaned forward and looked William in the eye. ‘It’s a scam, William. We’re going to pull a scam that exploits the greed and selfishness of all these ghastly people.’ He gestured expansively towards the open window. ‘Look at the place. It’s the nearest you’ll find to paradise on the planet. We publish pictures, get a few articles in the press. It’ll be easy. “The Most Exclusive Villa in the World. The Most Expensive Villa in the World.” They’ll all fall for it. They’ll be over here and ready for the plucking.’
William slapped his hand down hard on the desk. ‘Read my lips. I do not want them here. And even if I did agree, and we got everyone here who has made my life hell—’
Justin put his face in his hands, screeching, ‘No! No! You’ve got it wrong. You still don’t understand. Let me give you an example.’ He sat back again, talking deliberately as though addressing a simpleton. ‘Your ex-wife is at the hairdresser’s. She picks up a copy of Hello! magazine. The page falls open at the headline that has grabbed everyone’s attention: “Tycoon’s Island Paradise Affordable Only By Mega-Rich.” She sees the pictures of the beaches, the rooms, the pool. Then she sees the words: “Exclusive – only multi-millionaires, pop mega-stars, the top fifty wealthiest people on the planet will ever be given the opportunity to see this playground for the world’s élite.”’ William couldn’t help but smile as Justin pressed on. ‘The pictures and the words will stay in her mind, haunting her, tempting her. What wouldn’t she give to be a fly on the wall, just to see the place, see you? Until one day, opening her post …’ Justin mimed a bored woman opening an envelope, then feigned surprise and delight ‘… what should she find but an invitation. A free invitation to taste for herself the delights of this paradise on earth.’
‘Sorry. Don’t buy it.’ William shrugged. ‘If she knows it’s my place, she’d never accept, even if it was free. Besides, I have no desire to have either of my ex-wives set foot on the island.’
‘Fine, cross them off your list.’
‘I already have. I’ve crossed them all off. We’re not doing it.’ With that, William stormed out of the room.
William ate alone at lunch, Justin having taken the boat to pick up some stuff from Tortola. He tucked into a lobster salad followed by a sorbet, and sipped a light sparkling rosé from a small vineyard in California. Afterwards he could hardly keep his eyes open, and decided to take a rest.
Ruby was waiting in his suite. A massage-table covered with white towels was positioned in the centre of the room, an array of oils and lotions laid out on the table. William just wanted to crash out, but Ruby assured him he would sleep even better after a massage. After a quick shower he lay face down on the table. The oils were cool against his hot skin, and Ruby’s touch gentle and soothing. First she massaged him, then applied an astringent lotion to remove the residue of oil from his back. She removed the small towel from his waist, and continued to massage him, gently easing the tension from his muscles. Then she rolled him over, and started to masturbate him. When he came she wiped away his semen and continued the massage. William drifted into a deep sleep, unaware of the slices of iced cucumber laid on his eyelids, while Ruby performed a delicate cleansing facial.
At eight Dahlia, the housekeeper, delivered a message that Justin was held up and would not be returning till the following morning. William felt cross. He wanted company that evening, conversation, perhaps even a game of backgammon. He didn’t feel like eating alone again. He looked at the housekeeper. ‘Dahlia, will you join me?’ he asked bluntly.
‘I would be delighted,’ she said courteously, and took his order for dinner.
William looked at Dahlia and wished he’d changed into a suit. Justin referred to her as Mrs Danvers whenever they discussed her. She was about thirty and exceptionally tall with a taut, muscular figure and waist-length hair combed back from her face and tied in a tight braid. ‘There’s nothing in the mansion that Mrs Danvers doesn’t monitor,’ Justin had told him. ‘She rules with a rod of iron.’
William couldn’t see it. She stood before him in an elegant dark turquoise dress, slit to her thigh, which reminded him of the one Sylvina had worn the night he had met her in France.
They ate together by candlelight. It was a sumptuous dinner, and they conversed easily, discussing wines, restaurants and favourite dishes. William told her about his planned weight-loss and she promised to arrange a low-calorie eating-plan so delicious he would never know it was a diet. William said he liked the idea of her controlling his food intake, and that was when the doubles-entendres started. He enjoyed Dahlia’s titillating questions about how he liked to be controlled, and when she asked if he was too strong-minded ever to release himself into another’s hands, he chuckled and said that he’d never had the opportunity to find out. Dahlia leaned across the table, drew his face towards hers and kissed his lips. She released him and sat back. ‘You have the opportunity now, sir.’
Justin was eating a large slice of watermelon, his feet on the desk in William’s study, watching the security monitors. He couldn’t help but shake his head in admiration. Dahlia was brilliant. He fl
icked on a second monitor, which showed William being led up the stairs like a puppy by her. He flicked on a third monitor, which showed William’s empty suite, then Dahlia and William entering.
Justin reached for the phone and dialled an internal number. ‘Ruby,’ he said quietly. ‘Wake up, Ruby, and get ready. She’s cracked it.’ He giggled down the line. ‘And even before coffee was served.’
‘Okay,’ came the soft reply, and the phone went dead.
In her small but immaculate room in the north servants’ wing, Ruby selected oils, masks, handcuffs, a leather-thonged whip and various other items she knew Dahlia sometimes used. She took her time, humming tunelessly as she placed them in a wide basket. She was still dressed in her white masseuse’s overall and white sneakers, naked underneath.
Meanwhile Justin slotted a tape into the video-recorder and clicked it on. He waited until he was sure the machine was recording then returned to the security monitor where Dahlia sat astride William’s naked body, his face blindfolded with iced cloths.
Now Ruby entered the room, unheard and unseen by William. Justin checked the headphones to ensure that the microphone was picking up the sound. William might have forgotten the initial reason for the island’s redevelopment, but Justin hadn’t. He had worked towards it with relish and the length of time taken just made this moment even sweeter. Surely William wouldn’t say no to the plan after he’d seen the video of this! When the show was over, Justin would have earned enough money never to have to work again. He and Laura would live the life they had dreamed of. He had always believed that everything he did was for his beloved Laura. Just thinking of her, saying her name, made his body prickle. He was missing her, and couldn’t wait to see her again and tell her that the game was moving into action. All they needed were the players. They would arrive and be treated like royalty, unaware that cameras were filming every second of their intimate moments. Justin had arranged for these intimacies to go well beyond the boundaries of flirtation: the guests would be seduced by the luxurious surroundings, and drawn into a false sense of security, just like William.
Sleeping Cruelty Page 15
