The Pleasure Room (40 page)

“It's good that you added that last bit to the video without claiming they were murdered,” Alistair said.

“I didn't want the risk of being discredited in case they weren't. We don't really know for sure. Besides, this video along with our story will expose him if they are,” Felicity said.

“Looks good to me, time to go viral,” Allison said.

Felicity loaded the video on her social media accounts and on Allison's. Then she posted it to Veoh and Youtube. She sent the video to every single email on every single major news station and news paper around the country. Over two hours passed as Felicity and Allison took turns submitting the video, even to bloggers with large and small audiences.

“This shit is taking off!” Allison said, seeing how many click, likes, shares, retweets, comments and views their links received. “My email is blowing up.”

“Now, that you two have exposed the mayor, I'd like to call the police,” Alistair said.

“Truth be told, I'm scared the other two will show up instead and we have to fight for our lives,” Allison said.

“So we drive to the police station ourselves,” Alistair suggested. “We have to follow up on the report I made about my butler.”

“I say call them again and find out if it's any truth to it. I want to call and report Jason missing, but I don't even have his last name or even where he lived or worked. Once he realized I was actually going to take the story, he got even more secretive,” Felicity said.

“While you two were spreading the video, I was trying to contact Victoria. Still no answer,” Alistair said.

“Maybe we should report her missing with the Chicago Police Department. I hope that's her real name,” Felicity said.

“It's the only name she's ever given me. Could have been an alias for all I know. She doesn't have her own membership at my club, her account is handled through Dwight's membership. He used 'Mr. Pennyworth' under his account name, but I had to authenticate personal information for billing,” Alistair said. “So just as Gregory gave me your last name as 'Davenport' under his account... hers could be fake as well. It's common when my members want the utmost secrecy. In your case, I simply gave you a full membership.”

“I know this is completely off topic, but why were you so pissed about Felicity's fake name if it's common that your members use one?” Allison asked.  

Alistair turned to her. “Because Felicity isn't supposed to lie to me, per the contract that we signed at the beginning of our relationship. That was her moment to come clean and she continued to perpetrate the lie. That is why.”

“He really knows how to sound like a disciplinarian, doesn't he?” Allison remarked.

“That's because I am. With the proper training, so will you,” Alistair said.

“I still haven't decided if I'm going to take you up on your offer to have someone train me,” Allison said, feeling skeptical, but also excited about the possibility.

“When you're ready,” Alistair simply stated. “We need to see if the news has reached the airwaves yet. I also think if we're going to call the police, it should be from that 'burner' phone I purchased.”

 “I was just thinking all of that.”  She turned on the television, switching the channel to one of the twenty-four hour news stations.

It didn't take long for the story to reach the attention of the media giants since the footage had been sent directly to them as well. The story had gone viral in the time span of an hour and already Mayor Dwight Goldberg was being questioned by the media camped outside his Goldcoast apartment.

Felicity laughed and clapped her hands. “He tried to silence us by killing us... he had one shot and he failed,” she said.

“I mean, I'm glad we got that out there and all, but I don't want to die,” Allison said. “We need to be in some kind of witness protection shit.”

“I have to figure out a way to protect the privacy of my club's members.” Alistair ran his hand over his chin as he pondered his options.

“Baby, I didn't mention your club and I did that for a reason. I know how important it is to you and how seriously you take your members privacy... their trust,” Felicity said.

“I love when you call me; 'baby',” Alistair said, leaning over, kissing her again.

“Do you love it more than when I call you 'sir'?” she asked.

“I love them equally for different reasons.” Alistair smiled, then it quickly faded. “I may not have a choice about keeping the club a secret. They'll look into my background, my finances, I'll be called into question during this investigation. They'll want to know how I'm connected, why my butler was targeted and killed.”

“You can just say you met him at one of your fundraisers and you did that thing you do.”

“That 'thing I do'?” Alistair's arched an eyebrow.

“Yeah, you're a sexual profiler. You suggested he may need a more dominant presence in his life and you're the person who introduced him to Mistress V,” Felicity said, weaving a believable tale. “That way, the club doesn't even have to come up in conversation.”

Alistair chucked. “That's actually true. It was two years ago when I'd first met him. As we became more acquainted, I advised that he'd make the suggestion to his wife to take a more demanding role in their bedroom. I suppose it didn't go over too well, because he came back to me shortly after asking for help. That's when I recommended Mistress V.”

“So why would he come to your club?” Allison asked.

“Because he needed an outlet. He couldn't meet his secret Mistress at home, and he wouldn't dare be seen entering or leaving a hotel or motel. That left my club. It had everything he needed to fulfill his urges and the privacy he wanted,” Alistair said.

“This is even better. You don't have to mention the club as a place for his outlet,” Felicity said.

“Yes, it will come up. I've charged him memberships fees.”

“So, the club's involvement will be unavoidable,” Felicity said finally.

Alistair nodded.

“How are you able to run a sex club in the city anyway?” Allison asked.

“Like Felicity said, I don't have it listed as a 'sex club'. It's a restaurant with a private section for members to relax. It's a place where adults can partake in simple BDSM pleasure, but no sex is allowed... on paper.” Alistair added with a devilish smile.

“Just like the ol' Turkish Bathhouses right?”

Alistair nodded. “They'll want to investigate the club, everything will check out as legal. Even the private rooms where the mayor frequented.”

“That's if they tie your club to the location in the video. It could have been taken from anywhere,” Allison said.

“That's if, yes.” Alistair said. “Of course, like I said, once they look into his finances, they'll look into my establishment.”

“I'm so sorry. I really didn't see any of this through. I really thought I could keep you out of it.”

“You might have been able to do that if Dwight, aka Mr. Pennyworth hadn't tried to kill all of us,” Alistair said. “But who knows how far this would have gone even if he hadn't resorted to this level.”

“Looks like you're right. The police are going to want to talk to you,” Allison said, pointing to the screen.

The two of them looked up just in time to see the report about his butler's body being discovered in the back of a police patrol car. It was by chance that they were caught attempting to dump the body in Lake Michigan by a dock guard on patrol. The officers themselves were arrested on suspicion of murder. The mayor was being taken into custody for questioning in connection with the murder and disappearances that the video was linking him to. Police were following up on Victoria Daily whose real name was Victoria Barnes and her brother Jason Barnes were both reported missing by their friends and employer.  

“Maybe you
should
wait to call them now that we know what happened,” Felicity suggested. “We just let the video work all of this out and then come out after the quake has settled. I just feel safer that way. I don't want any of us getting hurt, we still don't know who to trust.”

“Damn, the district attorney ain't wasting any time jumping on this case, is she?” Allison said. “I'm thinking Jason is your contact.”

Felicity nodded, her shoulders slouching as another tear fell from her eyes. “I hope he's not dead, but something tells me he is. No wonder he was so invested, she was his sister.”

“No wonder they were so afraid, he probably threatened to kill her if she ever left him. She'd know all of his secrets, he wouldn't have wanted her to be set free with that much ammunition to use against him,” Allison stated. “But with it being out in the open, she could be free. That's what she wanted.”

Felicity nodded. “That poor woman.”

“Now the only question is where are the two reporters who released the story?” said the anchorwoman.

The anchorwoman's statement grabbed all of their attention and they turned back towards the television. The female gave quoted statements from their original story regarding the mayor's affair and  the conspiracy that followed in relation to his political platform.

“Tomorrow, we'll contact the district attorney and no one else. Is that all right with everyone?” Felicity asked.

“That's fine with me,” Allison said.

Alistair nodded. “I'm very upset about Bernard. He was a good man.”

“Yes he was,” Felicity said, sadly. She liked Bernard. They didn't hold long conversations, but he was always pleasant. She wanted to see the mayor and all of his accomplices rotting in a prison cell for what they did.

“I'll make sure his family is taken care of and I'll deal with all the funeral arrangements. It's the least I can do,” Alistair said. “I hate that they had to find out about it on the news.”

“They'll have their justice, too. The best thing about you being linked to Bernard is that the mayor can be linked to his murder. He won't get away with it, you and your club are the proof,” Felicity said.

Allison turned to Alistair. “I've got an idea... let me know if this can save your club. Since it isn't listed as a BDSM sex club, they may just take it as a over-priced diner's club. Are you following me?”

Alistair frowned. “I'm not sure.” His eyebrows creased as he struggled to put her puzzle together without all of the pieces.

“So like, if they want to know what happened to your butler, that was a result of them looking for Felicity because you two have been dating,” Allison said. “You could just be brought into this because of your ties to her.”

Alistair smiled. “I really do appreciate your help, but I'm a part of this. When they get that hit list, my name is going to be on it. I'll do what I must and try my best to save the integrity of my club. I may lose some members, may gain some. I'm just going to go with the flow at this point. Isn't that how you say it?”

Felicity nodded. “Yeah.” She put her arms around his waist, holding him close. “I love you and I'm so sorry.”

He encircled his arms around her. “I know. I love you, too.”

“Aw, ya'll making me feel like a third sub-less wheel,” Allison said.

“So, does that mean you're giving my offer some thought?” Alistair asked.

“Yeah, kind of. I'll let you know if I work up the nerve.” Allison smiled, then sighed. “So what's next. We took down the mayor, the villain that he is. What do we do now? I've got to tell you, I don't want to be in the same hotel room with you two.”

“It's not like we have to share one bed, Allison. The second bedroom is on the other side of the suite,” Felicity said.

“I think it's best that we all stay here, at least until you're ready to go home. You're more than welcome to share this suite with us as long as I have it, Allison,” Alistair said.

“Sounds good to me, Thank you,” Allison said. “I don't want to go home tonight anyway and I know you don't.”

Alistair shook his head. “Depending on what needs to be done at my home during the investigation, I may stay here for a while.”

“I guess I'll go home tomorrow,” Felicity mumbled.

“Only to gather your clothes,” Alistair said. “You're staying with me.”

Felicity's face lit up and she smiled widely. “Thank you, Alistair.” She kissed him again.

“That's my cue,” Allison said, heading into the other bedroom.

Felicity and Alistair rose from the sofa and went into their own bedroom. He closed the door behind them and began undressing. Felicity followed suit.

“The night began just has I had planned it, but you're such a dynamic woman, you changed all that. I think the best thing that came out of tonight's events was the truth,” Alistair said.

“About my name and the story?” Felicity asked as she climbed under the covers.

“That too, but I was speaking about the truth concerning our mutual feelings for one another. We no longer have to hold back wondering if the other person is feeling the same way. We now know that what we have is real. It's special. I've waited a long time for a woman like you, Felicity.” Alistair began to climb into the bed at the foot and slowly crawled toward her as he went on. “You're feisty, intelligent, unpredictable, exciting, clever, fantastic in bed and a beautiful ass that colors and stripes nicely under my whip.” By this time, he was leaning over her.  “I want to take our relationship to the next level.”