Everything seemed to be falling into place. Lately, I’d been a little harsh on Goldie, but in the end, I could see her needing me more and more. After we secure Lot 17, I’ll be making my move with her. I don’t want to play around anymore. I want her to be the one up on stage, the one the members dominate. It would be the final nail in Jett Colby’s coffin.
Checking my watch, I thought about how Zane was a couple minutes late. He didn’t seem like the type of businessman to be late, especially when we had a scheduled time set up to meet.
The girls were ready for their first performance. Blane was going to be demonstrating on Bizzy tonight, leaving Mercy alone. I found that I didn’t want her to be the first to go; I wanted her to be a show-off item, a woman men wanted to come back to see. Bizzy would be a good starter, but Mercy was the girl the men would crave, no doubt about it.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Zane come to the front door on the security camera. Straightening my tie, I approached the front of the club. All the other members who were attending tonight were mingling in the main room, getting their drinks and talking about the festivities. I had Zane enter from the front, because I wasn’t quite confident yet in giving him full access to the club. I wanted to read his initial reaction when he we toured the facility. Plus, I needed to confiscate his phone, just in case.
From the security camera, I could see he wasn’t shifting in place; he didn’t seem nervous, he looked confident and excited. I was a man who read people’s body language and looking at Zane, he seemed like he wasn’t the least bit concerned about showing up tonight, a sign that he was here at my club for the right reasons, to have a damn good time.
Opening the door, I greeted Zane with a warm handshake.
“Z, so glad you could make it.”
“Thank you.” I shook his hand while he looked around the entryway. “I’m glad you sent a driver, because I’m not sure I would have been able to find this place.”
“We keep it low key on purpose. Once we induct you as a member, we will give you access to the back entrance, which is more private and easier to find.”
“Can’t wait,” he said with a crooked smile.
He stepped forward, but I stopped him with my hand. “Before we walk in, I need you to put your phone in one of the safe deposit boxes that you can access once you leave. We don’t allow any recording electronics in the club; I’m sure you can understand.”
Without a blink of his eye, he nodded, grabbed his phone from the inner pocket of his jacket, and handed it over. I showed him where the boxes were and how he could access it once he left. The girls did the same thing with their personal items.
“Alright, let’s get started,” I smirked, as I led Zane back into the club.
Light mood music was playing over the club speakers, setting a more provocative tone for the members. Yellow lights bounced off of the base of the walls, casting a small glow around the room, giving it an almost sinister look. Everything about the club, I loved. It was dark, it was dangerous, it gave men like me, men who had to be on their best behavior in the public eye, a chance to let go, to have some fun without being judged.
The members nodded at Zane and myself as we walked in, acknowledging our presence. When entering the club, you might see someone you know or work with, but the business side of our lives was never discussed. That part of our lives was never brought up because the club was a safe place for us, a place to step outside the professional lives we lived and indulge. No one talked about the club and what happened outside of it.
“This is the main room,” I told Zane, who was looking around in appreciation.
“I could see bringing my guys here, easily. Are you going to stick with the same theme when you win Lot 17?”
When I win, I was really liking this guy.
“Blane is in charge of the bar and also the demonstrations.”
“Demonstrations?” Zane asked, while we walked over to the bar.
“Yes, we pick one girl a night, who Blane dominates in front of the men, shows them how to properly dominate her. The members love it; it allows them a chance to fulfill a fantasy they might not get back at home.”
“Ahh, so some of these men are married.” Zane nodded his head as he looked around, worrying me slightly.
“We have a non-disclosure contract each member has to sign. Whatever they happen to see in the club is not to be mentioned outside of these walls. It’s a general understanding.”
“Naturally,” Zane replied. He nodded at Blane and said, “Two fingers of Jameson, please.”
Blane acknowledged Zane’s order and started filling it. He was a good bartender, kept to himself, did the job correctly, and then entertained after. Blane was one of the best decisions Leo and I had made for our club. The members looked up to him and the girls obeyed him. It was perfect.
The day Leo approached me about hiring Blane, I was apprehensive at first. I went to school with him and he was much larger than me, when it came to his muscular frame, but sometimes brains beat brawn, and when it came to Blane, he made the wrong moves in his life. Leo and I were able to capitalize on his wrong decisions, just like with the girls in the club.
When we were searching for employees, we made them take lie detector tests, to find out their darkest secrets, what skeletons they were hiding in their closets, and like the master manipulators we were, we used those secrets against them. Did I feel like I was cheating them? Yes, but then again, that was business. Only the strong survived.
Taking a sip from his drink, Zane surveyed the room once again, fidgeted with his watch, and then said, “Tell me about the back rooms. Those are what I believe my friends will enjoy the most.”
“Yes, I believe that’s what every member enjoys the most,” I said, as I started walking to the back hallway. “Once we acquire Lot 17, there will be more rooms, but right now, we have four playrooms where members can pick one of the girls to come back here with. Mind you, it’s a handsome fee to have sex with one of the Masquerade girls, but well worth it. They have signed contracts to allow the members to do whatever they want to the girls, within reason of course.”
“Of course,” Zane tipped his cup toward me. “How did you get the girls to participate in the club? Do you plan on hiring more? Three doesn’t seem to be enough.”
“We have plans for more to come in. It’s hard to find willing girls. They have to be desperate, they have to need the money, and they have to have something we can hold against them.”
“Like what?” Zane asked, starting to ask too many questions for my liking.
Brushing him off, I said, “We can get into that later. It’s something we don’t need to discuss right now. Come with me; I’ll show you the back rooms where members aren’t allowed.”
For the next half hour, I gave Zane a tour of the club, explaining the inner workings, and how we were able to get away with having such a club in the city. Thanks to my connections, we flew under the radar. Zane grew more and more interested with each passing moment, leading me to believe we were going to have a deal by the end of the night, a deal that would clinch everything I’d been striving for.
I took a look at my watch and realized the gala started an hour ago and the girls were going to be coming out soon. So, I took Zane back to the main room and introduced him to a couple of the men that would be sticking around.
“Unfortunately, I have another event I have to attend, or else I would stay longer.”
“Oh, please don’t let me hold you back,” Zane said with a grin. “I’m sure I’ll be plenty entertained.”
From what I had seen Goldie put together over the last week, I knew he would be very much entertained.
“Shall I call you in the morning to arrange contracts?” I asked, while holding my breath.
The light music in the main room cut and the lights dimmed, pointing to the opening where the girls first showed themselves. Mercy’s honey colored hair arrived first, as she strutted out onto the stage. She was a show stopper, no doubt about it.