Reckoning
Page 20
Look at me, I’m sounding like Ramesses again. Damn it.
Well, he had me convinced, but I had no intentions of sounding like a damn tape recorder, either.
Anyway, munches varied in tone. It’s all to do with the people involved. The West Atlanta munch was mostly made up of the well-educated and well-employed, so the only difference between one of our gatherings and a meeting of your local Kiwanis Club was…well, damned if I knew.
The tone was set by the group leaders—and with this particular munch, it was Ramesses, Neferterri and Mistress Sinsual—and generally the folks who had been around the longest. People also dressed casually: blue jeans, dresses, skirts and blouses, clean sneakers, and even the occasional suit.
The reason I was explaining all of this to you in detail was so you could understand why I wasn’t surprised when peaches sat down across from me. Well, that’s not entirely accurate; I was surprised, but she didn’t need to know the reason why. Of course, peaches was not her real name. Let me rephrase that: peaches was her real name in the sense that it’s the only one she’d answer to because it’s the name her Master gave her.
Don’t worry about understanding everything; just keep up with me and Ramesses and let the otherness sort of wash over you like a golden shower.
Sorry, I couldn’t resist.
The real reason I was surprised to see peaches here, much less anywhere outside of Inner Sanctum, one of the other local dungeons I mentioned, especially without her “beloved Master.” The West Atlanta munch was a place for people to socialize among other libertines, and Lord Aris and his harem weren’t really capable of getting outside and into the community. He thought it was a waste of time, except to collect more girls for his personal enjoyment. Ramesses and his mentor, Amenhotep, never could stand the guy. Hell, come to think of it, I hadn’t run into anyone that really held any affinity for the man, except for the subs that were with him. But, in the interest of keeping harmony in the community, most people tolerated him, so long as he didn’t cause any permanent harm to those who kneeled to him.
It wasn’t exactly what I would have done if the man ain’t worth two dead flies, but I digress.
Upon examining the situation further, I couldn’t recall, in my limited experience, ever seeing one of Aris’s slaves at a gathering where he wasn’t, and that gave me pause. Lord Aris was a controlling asshole, but it seemed that the women who were turned on by him mistook his misogynistic, control-freak attitude and lack of social skills for a commanding air of dominance, and they flocked to him like moths to a flame. He had to beat them off with a stick, which he loved. Hell, what man wouldn’t?
However, it still didn’t explain how peaches came to be there, and why she was there without the one she kneeled to.
I took another sip of my tea and waited. peaches wanted to talk to me, but the protocol that she’s under prohibited her from speaking to a Dominant unless spoken to first. I should have respected that protocol as a courtesy to her Master, but I didn’t. In case you hadn’t been paying attention, I didn’t like Aris much, and he’d been clear and vocal about his disdain for me, if for nothing else, due to my association with Ramesses, nothing more.
So fuck him, and fuck her…I had no time to play bleeding heart games with people I really didn’t like all that much.
I let her sit there and make eye contact with the table while I waited for her to decide which was more important: Aris’s protocol or her obvious need to talk to me. It was torture for her. Call it a sadistic side of me, but I enjoyed watching her squirm.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Known for his mind-twisting plots and unique prose, Shakir Rashaan rolled onto the literary scene as a contributing writer to Z-Rated: Chocolate Flava 3 in 2012. His raw, vivid, and uncut writing style captured the attention of the Queen of Erotica herself, Zane. A year later, Rashaan made his debut with The Awakening, opening to rave reviews and a “recommended read” accolade in USA Today’s “Happy Ever After” literary blog. The follow-up in the Nubian Underworld series, Legacy, has garnered even more success, and its third installment, Tempest, picked up yet another “recommended read” from USA Today’s “HEA” blog, making the series one of the most unique in the erotica genre.
Reckoning is the third of the Kink, P.I. series, and along with the first two installments, Obsession and Deception, they have added another exciting series to the mystery genre. A few new projects are also being developed under the pen name, P.K. Rashaan. With his prolific writing prowess and openness on his social media platforms, Rashaan has plans to be a mainstay within the erotica genre and beyond.
Shakir is a Phoenix, earning his Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice/Communications from the University of Phoenix. He currently resides in suburban Atlanta with his wife and two children.
Follow the author on social media, or contact him.
Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShakirRashaan
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Email: shakir@shakirrashaan.com
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ALSO BY SHAKIR RASHAAN
Deception
Obsession
Tempest
Legacy
The Awakening
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Strebor Books
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
© 2016 by Shakir Rashaan
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ISBN 978-1-59309-606-9
ISBN 978-1-4767-7597-5 (ebook)
LCCN 2015957695
First Strebor Books trade paperback edition June 2016
Cover design: www.mariondesigns.com
Cover photograph: © Keith Saunders/Keith Saunders Photos
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