by Linda Coles
“Thank you,” she said. “I’ll be a couple of hours or so, so I’ll maybe see you on the return journey home?” She smiled brightly, feeling much better than she had in a long time, the weight finally lifted from her shoulders. She hadn’t realized just how heavy it had been.
“Thank you, madam,” said the driver, “though there are quite a few of us now, so I might not be the one who drives you back home. Have a good day, now, won’t you?”
“I will, and you too. Goodbye,” she said over her shoulder as she turned towards her destination. And with a lighter step than she’d felt in weeks, she made her way to the huge metal doors and pressed the buzzer, looking into the security peephole. She wondered absentmindedly who might be looking at her right now. And from where.
As she waited, the driver tooted his horn in farewell as he drove past her, headed to his next pick-up.
He knew exactly who would be taking her home later. He would.
Chapter Sixty-Four
The operator saw the ‘confirmation of delivery’ light pulsing gently on his screen. This particular mission had been one of the easiest and quickest he’d ever had to organize because the client had been specific. He’d found what he wanted and didn’t want to wait a moment longer than he had to. And so they’d made it happen for him. ‘Baker’ had been using the firm’s services almost since its inception and was one of the more pleasant people he dealt with. With no unusual needs over and above what he called a ‘base desire,’ the operator didn’t need to monitor all of his transactions like he did other clientele. While ‘Baker’ was cloaked in anonymity like every other client, it hadn’t been hard to figure out just who he was and do the relevant checks. Safety was paramount and Baker was indeed a gentleman, it seemed. He wished all his clients behaved as well as Baker did.
He stared at the pulsing light. In a few minutes, it would begin move as she was transported to a fabulous hotel where his client could appreciate her gift to him in perfect surroundings. And, of course, she would be none the wiser about what had actually happened to her. He’d often wondered what went through the heads of those repaying their debts as they came to, wondering where the hell they were and how they’d arrived there, particularly those who had given their hair or other trophies his clients desired. With this particular client, the operator assumed the woman he had chosen would be a little shaken and perplexed but would otherwise forget the whole thing pretty quickly. He liked that better: nothing obvious would be taken apart from her time. It was the clients who desired more intrusive prizes, like a pint of blood, that he found the hardest to tolerate. He’d even had an enquiry from a man wanting to castrate other men, but he drew the line at causing harm to another and had refused the client. The service he provided was to balance a life problem with a life desire and do it safely, not indulge the whims of sociopaths and criminals.
The tracking device told him she was on the move to the hotel suite where ‘Baker’ would receive her shortly afterwards. Knowing everything was in hand, the operator relaxed back in his chair to let his team do their thing while he contemplated what to fill his rumbling stomach with for lunch.
Chapter Sixty-Five
Baker’s phone pinged with confirmation that his gift was en route. He’d watched her as she’d arrived at his studio-cum-workshop, peeped at her through the keyhole as she’d waited in the reception area sipping green tea. Of course, he already knew she liked green tea but this tea was different than what she would be used to. It was laced with a mild sedative, which would have the desired effect in only a few minutes. While it wasn’t considered the norm to have his reward brought to his premises, for obvious reasons, he’d wanted to savour her being in his territory as long as he could – sitting on his sofa, sipping from his cup and gently falling asleep where she sat. He’d then be able to smell her presence and enjoy her right there in his office.
She’d remember arriving at the studio, of course, but that wouldn’t matter because nobody had seen her, and her story, should there be one, would be denied. There would be no evidence of her ever being there; everyone involved would corroborate that. Even the cameras in the street were out of order – temporarily: that was what he paid so handsomely for. She’d be assured that her memory would be playing tricks on her due to recent stress, and when she saw the card later with its very specific instructions not to tell, she wouldn’t be foolish enough to ignore them. No one ever was.
Some minutes later, he’d watched her leave through the rear exit, gently taken out to the waiting ambulance, laid out like Sleeping Beauty on a gurney. If anyone had seen anything, it could be explained easily: a model had been taken ill and was being transported to hospital. The plan they created always worked without a hitch, every time; this was also what he paid so handsomely for. All he had to do now was arrive at the appointed time at the designated hotel suite and take his pleasure. The few things he needed to complete his experience were by his side in a small leather bag by his feet, and as he glanced down at it, he felt himself harden in anticipation.
It was time to go. As the ambulance pulled away from the rear exit, Hadley Spinks left by the front door and got into the waiting car. Once he was settled in the back seat, he took out the small bottle of brandy and a glass from his bag and poured himself a drink. It was part of his ritual, part of the pleasure that was about to come, of savouring the moments until she was his. He closed his eyes as the warmth made its way to his stomach. Taking several deep breaths, he tried to relax himself from the inside, working to quiet his now-racing heart. If he didn’t slow things down, his experience would be over too soon and that would be disappointing. No, he didn’t want that. He wanted long and slow.
It had been some months since he’d last ‘treated’ himself in this way. In between, and in the privacy of his room, he’d had to be content with watching previous experiences that he’d recorded, the other women he had pleasured in the past. Over and over again he’d watched them, trying to relive the experience and satisfy his craving. But having seen what this young woman had to offer him, he’d known he had to have them. No matter what.
In a few more minutes, he’d have the objects of his desire all to himself.
Chapter Sixty-Six
Through an unspoken assumption, they’d taken to travelling into London together each day. Griffin had changed his departure time as they’d become closer friends, and he’d kept it that way. Vee was easy to be around and he liked her. A lot. He liked her permanent smile, he liked her easy way and, well, he liked everything about her. Not many people, never mind women, found Griffin easy to be around, but Vee didn’t seem to care about his idiosyncrasies, his weird ways. He knew he was different from others but since he couldn’t control how he was, he’d given up trying to be someone else and lived his life as he was. It appeared Vee was okay with that.
After Ruth had texted him to say the video file had been removed, he’d pondered how to tell her – and indeed, whether to tell her at all. He wanted her to know she didn’t need to worry about it any longer, but if he told her what he’d organized, she might see him as meddling and be pissed at him. And he didn’t want that either. So he’d mulled it over and over in is head until he feared there was nothing else in there but the one quandary bouncing off the insides of his skull. But Vee was sensitive and she had known something was bothering him. Being the kind person she was, she had asked him.
“What’s bugging you, Griffin? You’re too quiet this morning.”
He turned to her as they walked to the station and all he could see was her perfect smile, even now as she asked the hardest question, one he knew he had to answer. He wondered how either of his possible responses would change what they had together.
She pushed again. “Come on, you can tell me.”
Taking a deep breath, he started to speak, but his mouth had other ideas and he blew empty air out through his wordless lips instead. He waited a beat and tried again. “I’ve done something for you. But I’m now wondering if I’
ve overstepped the mark. You could be mad at me.” The rest of his breath drifted away as he waited, not daring to look at her.
“Then why don’t you try me? Unless you’ve murdered someone on my behalf, I doubt I’d be mad.”
He chanced a look her way at the mention of murder and saw that her smile had spread to her eyes. He wished he could feel as confident as she did.
“I haven’t murdered anyone on your behalf, no.”
“Then I won’t be mad. Spit it out, would you?”
There was no going back now; she wanted to know. In a rush, the words tumbled out of his mouth before he could change his mind.
“I’ve had the video footage of you taken down off the internet. It was on twelve sites but it’s gone now. There are still two sites on the dark net that it can’t be removed from.” Griffin gulped in air, not daring to look at her and waited for her anger. Or a slap. But neither came. He was also aware she was no longer walking by his side. He stopped and turned. She was ten steps behind him, motionless and staring at him. Oh shit… Which way would she go? He had no idea. He took a couple of steps towards her, testing the water.
“Have I screwed up? Do you hate me for interfering?”
“Actually, no. The opposite.”
Stunned, Griffin prodded for more. “What do you mean? You’re not angry with me?”
“No, I’m not angry. I’m touched you would do that for me. And I’m impressed that you know how to do it, and a little scared of that too at the same time.”
“Actually, I’m not that talented to do it myself. I know someone who is though. But the file has gone from most people’s viewing access so that’s a good thing, right?”
Vee walked slowly towards Griffin as she spoke. “Right. And thank you for doing that for me. I really do appreciate it.” She was level with him once again. Even though she was a good foot shorter than Griffin, the way she looked up him left him in no doubt what she wanted. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him gently towards her, brushing his lips with a kiss. Like Vee, it was perfect. Whispering, she added, “I’ve been wanting to do that for a while. Now you’ve given me a reason.”
Griffin was stunned into silence. She liked him? Well, obviously – she’d just said as much.
“So you’re okay with me interfering?”
“Yes, and I wouldn’t call what you did interfering. More helping a friend in need.” She hooked her arm through his and they carried on towards the station entrance. “Come on, we’d better hurry. We don’t want to miss the train and be late.”
Griffin’s stomach was riot of nerves. Now he was back to his original quandary: while he’d wanted to kiss Vee for some time also, what he was hiding made it awkward to get too close to her. How was he now going to keep her at arm’s length without offending or concerning her? In his past experience, women either ran a mile at their discovery or ran a mile because he wouldn’t move to the next stage. Either way, they didn’t hang around for very long after. And he really didn’t want Vee to go.
The fact that he’d finally found the solution he’d been looking for meant that the end of all that was in sight, but it also posed another problem: how could he get away for a couple of weeks, minimum, without anyone knowing where he’d gone? Without Vee in the picture, he could have left his job and simply taken off to do what needed doing – Jan would never have given him the time off, of that he was sure. But he knew Vee would never approve of his doing that, and would have been angered and hurt if he vanished suddenly. No, he couldn’t think of life without Vee.
Once on the platform, they caught their breath while they waited for the train. It was Vee who spoke first.
“I probably got off lightly.”
“You got off lightly?” Griffin said, confused. “What do you mean?”
“Well, when my ex posted that video, we’d just split up. But I never told you why we’d split up.”
“Oh? Why did you, then?”
“Because of what I’d inadvertently seen on his laptop. Now, don’t get me wrong – everyone has exes, I know. But mine had kept video copies of him and his exes having … fun … together, and I didn’t like that.” She made quotation marks with her fingers in the air around the word ‘fun.’ “And some of the fun was a long way short of my kind of fun.”
Griffin was intrigued. “Go on.”
Vee checked for nearby eavesdroppers before she carried on with what she was about to describe. “He had a fetish, and not what I’d call a regular fetish like kissing feet or wearing someone else’s undies or something. He liked feces – can you believe that? I’ll leave the rest to your imagination.” She shuddered involuntarily. “Urgh. Gross.”
Griffin couldn’t quite believe his ears. He’d heard of people enjoying that kind of thing but he didn’t know anyone personally who was into it. He didn’t think so anyway, but how could anyone be sure?
“And that’s what you saw on his computer?”
“Yep. He’d hinted at us doing it but I’d always resisted. Then he got to be quite uptight about me not getting involved and we argued all the time, so I ended it. I told him he could have his fun without me and that he’d obviously found others to take part with in the past. Finding someone new wouldn’t be too hard.” Then, almost as an afterthought, she added, “Though I have to say the women in the videos looked almost comatose, like they weren’t really present. I wondered if they’d been drugged, or were high maybe.”
“And what did he say to that, to finding someone new?” Griffin was all ears.
“He said he’d manage. He’d found an online group of like-minded people. I told him to go forth and multiply with them.”
Griffin assumed such a group wouldn’t be visible on the surface web, but more likely something a little darker. Particularly if, as Vee said, the women weren’t exactly participating fully. His interest was piqued, yet he was disgusted at the same time.
“What was the name of the group? Any idea?”
Chapter Sixty-Seven
“He’s had a good night and he’s resting. I’m sure he’d appreciate a visitor.” The nurse smiled encouragingly at Amanda; she must have assumed Jack was her father, or maybe her uncle. While Amanda didn’t exactly look young for her age, Jack looked much older.
“Thanks. He’s made of tough stuff, is Jack,” she said then headed to his room. When she popped her head around the door, she watched him for a moment before he became aware of her presence. ‘The Chase’ was firing questions on the TV, though Jack didn’t appear to be watching it. He seemed to be daydreaming. Amanda smiled and carried on into the room, taking a seat in the chair by the window.
“And how are you feeling, Jack? You look a lot better than when I saw you last.”
“That’s because I feel a lot better than when you last saw me. And by all accounts, I am a lot better than I was yesterday.” He smiled appreciatively at her visiting him. “I hope I didn’t ruin your suit.”
“I was going to buy another one soon anyway. You just brought the day forward.”
Amanda told him she had thrown the whole thing in the bin rather than remember it as her ‘puke suit.’
“Wasteful woman. There was plenty of life in it yet,” he said, but there was no bad feeling in his words. His eyes twinkled a little.
“So you’re on the mend, then. That’s good to hear. You gave me quite a fright. A bit of notice wouldn’t have gone amiss. At least I could have steered the car a bit easier.”
“I’ll do my best next time my appendix decides to explode on me. Not that I have an appendix anymore. And I thought it was the pickle. Not a very good detective, am I?”
“You’re not bad, actually, Jack. And maybe while you’re lying here you can solve the case for us, put your brain to good use. I even brought an old laptop for you to play on, do a little surfing.”
“Oh? And what am I looking for in particular?”
“I got Ruth to install a TOR browser on it.” She opened the laptop bag and pressed the ‘on
’ button. It slowly awakened. “It’s a bit slow, but it is an old one.” They waited for the old machine to fully awaken. A row of icons popped up along the bottom. “Here, look at the bottom. That’s where you’ll find the browser you need to use. It makes everything anonymous; no one can see you.”
“And back to my previous question: what am I looking for?”
“Fetish groups, I’m thinking. There’s no manpower to do this back at the office and since you’re not busy, it won’t hurt, eh? You might even learn a thing or two.” Amanda winked animatedly, though Jack didn’t look so amused. He gave her a sideways look. “Start with the ones we know about – hair,” Amanda went on, “and see if there is anything related to exchanging it for something. I’m guessing there’s a group out there, probably more than one, and Chris Smeeks is involved somehow. He could be the main guy, or he could be the host and nothing more, but he’s involved. We just have to figure out how. No coincidences, remember?” Amanda placed the laptop rather roughly on Jack’s extended legs and then sat back.
“Hey, watch my stitches!” he yelped.
“Stop crying. Your legs are nowhere near your stitches. And while I’m thinking about it, where’s your phone?”
“It’s in the bedside drawer. What do you want that for?”
Amanda opened the drawer and took it out. “I’m setting something up for you. What’s your pass code?”
“1234. And what are you setting up?”
But Amanda was already busy downloading what she needed. Once it was done, she opened the app and began her search. Jack watched as her face broke out into regular grins, a few seconds apart.
He tried again. “What are you doing, Lacey?”
“Oy! I thought you didn’t call me by my surname.”
“It’s the only way to get your attention.”
