“There was another Dylan Tyler of that age arrested in London back in 1989, after being caught having sex in a public place with another man. I got my hopes up, but the description was all wrong. It wasn’t our Dylan.”
“But again tied into something perverted and sexual,” Adele added. “Which seems to be the ongoing theme.”
“I studied that photo and after a few enquiries I took it to Brisbane University. They were doing some research project on the taxonomy of human features. A few of the students involved took one look at the photo and said that he is Slavic.”
“That’s Russian,” Lance commented.
“Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian; there are a quite a few Slavic countries. He could have still been born in England, but I don’t think so. I cropped the photo down and posted it on several eastern European websites for missing people. You’d be surprised how many people go missing there. Girls especially.”
“Is that a good idea?” Adele asked. “Couldn’t he become aware of his image out there, and aren’t we making our information a bit too public?”
“There’s no mention of his name or ours, so it would be highly unlikely for him to come across this image. I’ve also used an online mail account which can’t be traced back to me. All I’ve posted is that I’m looking for my brother. It’s a long shot, but if someone has seen this man, they’re bound to remember him, especially with those freaky eyes of his.”
“What is wrong with his eyes?” Lance asked, still studying the picture.
“One of the students reckons he has ocular albinism, which causes a lack of pigment in the iris, but I don’t know. It would affect his vision, which wouldn’t be beneficial for a career in photography. It’s just possibly something genetic.”
There was a pause as a waiter arrived with their meals and offered them more drinks. When he was gone, there was silence while they started their meals. Adele glanced at Brendan and saw that he was frowning.
“Your dinner, not to your liking?”
“It’s fine.” Brendan smiled awkwardly and put his cutlery down. “This honesty between us, I need to ask some delicate questions.”
“I have nothing to hide,” Adele smiled. “Ask what you like.”
“This other thing you’re tied up with, these stripper girls or something like that…”
“Mairead Kavanagh,” Adele said bluntly. “Or Vaughn as she is now. She assaulted me and then colluded with one of the strippers from her husband’s club to say the whole thing was staged by me, that I had blackmailed this stripper to discredit Mairead. This girl’s ex-partner had murdered another woman and tried to murder Mairead and somehow it all got put on me. Of course there is no evidence of any of this. It’s simply their word against mine, though the Prosecutor is trying to persuade this man, Barry Underhill, to say that I contracted him for this job.”
“So I take it, he’s in jail.”
“He is, but I’m not fretting too much. I would destroy any case they presented using a coerced confession. He could accuse me of anything just to get a few privileges. This is why they need to get me on something like tax evasion. I just didn’t know where to begin to investigate this type of crime.”
“Maybe with Mary Whittaker,” Brendan offered. “Have you heard of Stream Industries?”
Adele shook her head. “No.”
“Stream Industries is a private global telecommunications outfit based in Paris, doing software development and satellite technology. They are rumoured to have developed some of the most sophisticated programs in the world, software for internet security, encryption, keylogging and mass data collection. It is also rumoured that several governments have turned to them for their own networks, especially in surveillance. Russia, China and Ukraine, being some of them, but New Zealand was one of the first.”
Lance gazed at him as if he was insane. “Are you saying that this man controls all our government computers?”
“Not quite,” Brendan replied quickly. “This is something that’s taken me years to understand, ever since Mary was made head of the Government Communications Security Bureau.”
“I take it you kept a very active interest in her life?” Adele asked.
“You bet I did. I was always waiting for that day when she would slip up and show everyone that she was a lunatic, but she never did.”
“So this Stream Industries…”
“Was the company Mary contracted to upgrade the computer network, soon after her appointment as director of Intelligence and the GCSB. I spoke to this computer geek, about how they go about installing these systems and how one might hijack it. He told me that the person who developed the proprietary software would be capable of inserting a hidden backdoor that would allow access to the system for their own use. Apparently the FBI have done it. They get access to these multi-million dollar corporations, to monitor illegal activities and their employees, by installing their own software. The companies are usually reluctant to do it, but don’t want to be hounded by the FBI if they don’t.”
Adele put her cutlery down. “So is Tyler involved with this Stream Industries?”
Brendan shook his head. “Not that I can find. His name doesn’t show up in the company profile. It’s owned by several people and not floated on the stock market. It’s the parent company for several smaller ones, in surveillance, security, logistics and the likes.”
“So we’re clutching at straws with this one?”
“Maybe not,” Brendan smiled. “It did go over my head for a while, but it finally hit me. Stream Industries. Stream is an anagram of Master.”
Adele chuckled. “He wouldn’t be so arrogant, would he?”
“I don’t know if I’d call it arrogance. I’d call it confidence, almost a dare to try to find him, and with a girlfriend in charge of the security of this country, I think he had a lot to be confident about.”
* * * * *
The screams ripped Esther from sleep and into fighting the bedclothes to escape. Her feet touched the floor, just as the room suddenly lit up. She stared wild-eyed at the two people still in the bed.
Tammy was naked and sitting up, flailing her arms about and her face frozen in horror. Dylan took hold of them and waited until she had stopped fighting him, before gently pulling her into an embrace, whispering to her as he coaxed her into his lap. As Esther watched, he began to rock her, talking to her softly until her body began to relax against him. He looked at Esther and raised a finger to his lips. Several minutes later, Tammy’s eyes were closed again and Dylan gently lay her back on the bed and covered her up.
He looked at Esther. “Just get back in.”
Esther nervously climbed back into the enormous bed and curled up on the edge, facing him as he stared up at the ceiling. He turned his head to look at her.
“She’s alright,” he insisted. “She sometimes has dreams.”
Esther swallowed nervously. “Do you wish me to go to my own bed, Master?”
He gave her a slight frown. “Is your bed better than mine?”
“No, Master, it’s just that I’ve been here every night lately. I don’t even ask any more, but you haven’t said no and I…”
“And I’m having to share my bed with two naked, lustful women. I don’t know how I put up with it.”
Esther giggled. “It’s a good thing the others aren’t here, too.”
He peered at her. “Are you being funny?”
“No, Master.” She shook her head anxiously. “I mean, it slipped out…”
In one graceful move, he rolled to hover over her and gaze down on her worried face. “It’s not a crime to be funny, Esther. I like hearing you laugh. I don’t hear it often.”
“I laughed today on the phone to Yvette. She says my French pronunciation is terrible.”
“You’ll pick it up when you’re living there.”
“I know, and I still have a few months to practice. Thank you for letting me see this year out. I really want to spend Christmas with you and Tammy.”
<
br /> “Now I just have to get Tammy used to it.”
Esther looked over to the sleeping woman. “I’m going to miss her so much, even the silly games we play. I kind of like playing with dolls again. It’s like being a kid again, but this time it’s a good childhood, with a sister I can have fun with and…”
“And share all your secrets with,” Dylan added with a frown.
She gazed up at him. “Not many secrets, Master, just girl’s stuff.”
“Really?” He peered at her. “So breaking into my safe is just girl’s stuff?”
The sudden revelation had Esther drawing a deep breath. She stared back at him, moving her mouth but unable to reply.
He rolled back on the bed. “That’s all I needed to know.”
“Don’t punish her, Master.” Esther gazed at him anxiously. “She just likes to look at the things you have in there.”
“And what has she told you?”
“Just about some computer disks and things and… and the photos.”
“Who else knows about this?”
“Just me… and Yvette. I told her because I wasn’t sure what to do. We haven’t said anything to the others. I promise. I’m so sorry, Master.”
“What did she say about the photos?”
Esther bit her lip. “She said that you have a girlfriend and you have lots of naked pictures of her and that she’s very pretty.”
He was silent for a moment and then nodded. “She was pretty. What else?”
“Only that Tammy thinks that she looks like her and sometimes you call her Lena.”
“Yeah, I know I do. A sure sign I’m getting old.”
“You’re not old, Master,” Esther insisted, yearning to cuddle up to him. “Sometimes the memories from the past confuse us, but if Lena is anything like Tammy, she must be a good memory.”
“She is.” Dylan gazed back up at the ceiling. “I experienced my fair share of suffering throughout my early years. It drove me to do everything I could, to have more power over my life. The people I got close to, were there for me to use and obtain my goals. Lena was one of them. In fact, I was going to use her to obtain the most important goal I had back then. Revenge. She was short, chubby and lazy and still played with dolls at nineteen. She used to tell them stories of this wonderful world, where everyone was happy and good to each other. It took me a long time to realise how much those stories bothered me. When I forced her to come with me…”
Dylan paused and breathed deeply. “She turned my whole world upside down, made me doubt everything I had ever believed about myself. It just seemed that if she wasn’t smiling, then the world was a darker place. My whole purpose in life became about keeping that smile on her face.”
“What happened to her?”
“I gave her back her life and I walked away, before I could fuck it up again. I kept watch over her. Some years later, she married and then I couldn’t watch her anymore.”
Esther longed to hold him. “You must miss her very much.”
“I don’t know what I feel.” He looked at Esther and his arm came over her with his body. “And I don’t want to talk about it anymore. Get your legs open.”
She quickly obeyed and watched as his gaze followed his hand down the length of her naked body. His fingers probed deeply inside of her as her nipple was claimed in his mouth. When his fingers withdrew they were quickly replaced by his cock penetrating her. Grasping the back of her thighs, he pushed her legs back, opening her wider as he shifted into a better position. His urgent need was evident in his face.
A thrilling shiver of fear and arousal went through her and Esther reached back to hold the bars of the headboard. Closing her eyes, she imagined herself tied to it, vulnerable and helpless. She felt her lower body lifted and held up as he thrust into her forcefully.
Suddenly he was out of her. Esther whimpered as he hauled her over onto her front and seized her hips and yanked them up. His hands gripped her buttocks, spreading them apart to allow his tongue to run up the insides of each cheek.
Esther panted and winced, always a little shy when his carnal nature became crude and demanding. His tongue rimmed her anus before penetrating it and she groaned, overwhelmed by the incredible sensation and a little repulsed. His tongue was soon replaced by his erection urging into her.
Normally, she loved anal sex with him, but a session earlier that day had left her sore.
“No, Master, please don’t.” Esther tried to struggle away.
His fingers dug into her buttocks as he continued to slowly inch his cock into her. Esther gripped the bedclothes, suddenly too aware that she was helpless against him. As much as she wanted to yield to that thought, panic seized her.
The word rushed from her mouth loudly. “Red.”
Dylan paused and was suddenly out of her and off the bed, breathing deeply and grimacing at the ache in his stiff cock.
“What’s wrong?”
Esther got up and knelt on the bed bowing her head mournfully. “I’m sorry, Master, I’m so sorry.”
He frowned at her. “For what? You called it. I stopped.”
“Yes,” she nodded. “As I always knew you would. Forgive me, Master. I didn’t really want you to stop. I don’t know why I called it.”
Glancing up at him nervously, she saw that he was still unhappy, but he was nodding.
“You needed to know, and now are you satisfied?”
She nodded shamefully. “Yes, Master.”
“Good. In a moment I’m hoping to finish this, but if you call it again, I will stop again, though I’m more likely to give up and just go and do the job myself.”
His comment made her smile sadly, but her voice trembled. “It won’t happen again, Master. I don’t want it to happen again. I want to be who I am, without shame and fear. I want to have power over my life too, and over my body.”
He grumbled and cursed about the timing of women. Esther kept her eyes averted until he sat down and lifted her chin, making her look at him.
His frown came with a smile. “And don’t ever allow anyone to disrespect that, not even me.”
There was a loud groan and Tammy sat up sleepily, frowning and rubbing her eyes. “Why is the light on?”
“I’m about to put it out,” Dylan told her crossly. “Go back to sleep, Tammy.”
She came wider awake, studied them and beamed. “You and Esther are being naughty. I want to play too. Can I play too, Daddy?”
A grin slowly crept over his face. “Certainly, Tammy. We’re going to play a game about keeping secrets from Daddy. You and Esther get to bend over the bed and stick your bottoms up. Then I get out the big wooden paddle and start making them very sore and red, until I’m satisfied you’ve told me all the secrets you’re hiding.”
Tammy pouted. “I don’t think I like that game. I might go back to sleep.”
“Too late, little girl,” Dylan smiled. “Because Daddy wants to play.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
The woman in his bed that morning had been Brendan’s rude awakening to a day that just kept getting worse. She must have been at least forty, with pendulous tits and a double chin. It was a harsh lesson on drinking too much and picking up strangers in bars, especially when they were hard to get rid of.
She was only gone half an hour when Adele rang to add her unwelcome news to his hangover.
“I thought I would come by at dinner time, and we could do an assessment of what progress we’ve made over the week. We may need to do a review to see if our working partnership may have run its course, though I am, of course, grateful for what you’ve done.”
It was the equivalent of a pink slip in his pay packet, heralding the beginning of another glum future. The days of fancy hotel rooms and expensive dinners were over and a sharp decline in his finances was imminent. Adele had paid well, but could hardly be expected to extend his stay without seeing some results.
After the first exciting revelations, the trail had dried up. Of course, he hadn’t been as dili
gent as he should have been. Being back in Wellington had distracted him from his purpose of being there. This had been home for several years after finally escaping his rural beginnings in the South Island. This is where he’d studied and worked, determined not to end up like his old man who was still trying to eke out a living in the dairy sheds.
If he could do it again, he wouldn’t make the mistake of getting married again. Of course it had only been to keep the girlfriend happy enough to keep outlaying the money for his studies. He’d certainly hadn’t planned to get her pregnant. A kid was the last thing he was interested in, and she refused to have an abortion.
The one benefit from being sued was leaving all that behind. His father-in-law had seen to that, giving him enough money to leave the country, rather than drag his precious daughter and grandchild down with him. That suited Brendan perfectly, and when all this business with Tyler finally came to light, he would have the pleasure of throwing it all back in their faces.
Of course, that wasn’t about to happen unless he found something he could work with. It was time to get back to work.
Brendan sifted through all the photos and notes and then meticulously lay them out on the bed. After staring at them for ten minutes, there was still no exciting revelation. He picked up the photos that Adele had taken at the Vaughn wedding. He’d looked at them a hundred times and knew the faces intimately. There was the blonde, Esther Manning, and the brunette. Both were certainly pleasant on the eye, but it was the fat woman between them that intrigued him.
“What the fuck do you want a cow like that for?” he mumbled.
He wondered if she was a relative, but he could see no resemblance. It was obvious Tyler’s taste in women wasn’t restricted to the pretty ones. Mary had been proof of that, a plain, mousy woman with no personality and too much intelligence for her own good. Just thinking about her made him furious.
Looking back at the photo, he peered closer at the woman in the middle. “So who the hell are you?”
Brendan proceeded to bring up a website that had caught his eye earlier in the week. There had been several that had programs for facial recognition, but this particular one had been developed by a former FBI computer technician. Whereas the others searched online images, this one searched other databases, including the archives of hundreds of thousand digitised images from newspapers. It also charged a small fortune in US dollars.
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