Flashback (10 page)

Her glimmer of an idea began to take
shape.

She arranged to meet Julius at the closed
restaurant, the one where she had originally interviewed Joanna.
The building belonged to Athena, although it was registered in the
name of one of her corporations. There had been a developer
interested in the property for a long time. As soon as the Plume
was closed and there was a good chance of Athena’s official assets
becoming inaccessible, Julius had followed their plan and called
the developer.

Athena was very glad to have such good
partners. Rex had kept his word to destroy the files, even at risk
to himself. Julius always remembered plans that had been made.

She would miss them both.

The street was quiet when she arrived, but it
was never busy in this part of town. The quiet had been much of the
property’s appeal. A spring wind restlessly chased some litter down
the street and Athena asked the cab driver to return in half an
hour for her.

There was no sign of Julius, but she hadn’t
expected anything different. He’d be inside. Sure enough, the door
was already unlocked.

Athena stepped inside and surveyed the space.
The inside had changed. Some walls had new holes in them, and the
electrical box was open. Athena assumed this was from the buyer’s
inspection, yet more proof that Julius had worked fast. There were
heavy lines drawn on the floor and a pair of sawhorses supported a
sheet of plywood as a makeshift table. Julius was spreading the
contracts there. He glanced up and quickly hid his surprise at her
changed appearance.

Then he held out a fountain pen. “All you
have to do is sign here and here.”

Athena smiled. “Always traditional,” she said
with appreciation. The pen was warm from his hand, and she cast a
glance over Julius. He was dressed in a neat pinstripe suit, his
tie perfectly knotted, his Italian shoes polished to a gleam. A
gold watch shone beneath the French cuff of his shirt and she
noticed, as always, that he wore no rings.

“Thanks for coming out here to meet me,” she
said as she took the pen.

“You know I would go anywhere for your
convenience,” he replied and Athena glanced up with surprise.

“Anywhere?” she echoed and Julius colored a
little before he looked back at the contract.

“You’ll notice the terms of payment are very
prompt,” he said, sounding brusque. “I used your Swiss account for
the deposit, assuming you’d be able to access it more readily.”

“You’re right, as always,” Athena murmured as
she scanned the contract for the sale. She moved closer, knowing
she didn’t imagine that he caught his breath. Once again, she was
surprised by how powerfully it affect her to notice her influence
on others. She liked people, and she found the people she liked
sexy.

Athena realized that she could never commit
to just one man or woman. Variety was the spice of her life. She
asked Julius a few questions to clarify the details, then began to
sign where he indicated.

“Thanks for being so proactive, Julius.”

“It was always your insurance plan,” he said.
“I just hoped I was right that it was time.”

“With the Plume in ashes?” Athena smiled at
him. “Come on, Julius. You had no doubt.”

He smiled back at her. “No. But I thought
you
might have doubts.”

Athena signed the last page with a flourish.
“No. It’s over. And maybe it was time for it to be over.” She
looked around the space. “I’d originally thought to establish it
here, you know.”

Julius glanced around with curiosity. “It
would have been a much smaller venture.”

“I never had Rex’s ambition, or his vision. I
never would have imagined that it could become as big as it
did.”

“And now?” Julius was putting the contracts
into envelopes.

“What do you mean?”

“If you were going to do it all again, would
you plan big or small?”

Athena frowned. “Small, I think.” She smiled
at the lawyer’s obvious surprise. “It’s too easy to become a target
when you’re a massive success, and too easy to be found.” She saw
the logic of her grandmother’s choice. “Small is the way to remain
under the radar, so to speak.”

“But you’d have to have fewer members. So
many people would be disappointed if they couldn’t belong.”

“Maybe a network of smaller places then. A
hundred or a thousand places like this, tucked into corners of
cities everywhere, with only one or two people knowing the full
extent of the network.”

Julius arched a brow. “Do I hear a business
plan?”

“Maybe, maybe not.” She leaned closer, noting
how aware he was of her, then put her hand on his arm. His tiny
reaction charged the moment for her, and her voice dropped low,
seemingly of its own accord. “I wonder, Julius, if you might do a
title search for me, on a property in London.”

“Of course.”

Athena gave him the address of her
grandmother’s house, or what had been the address all those years
ago. “I don’t even know if the building is still there,” she said.
“It might have been torn down or rebuilt.”

“I’ll find out.”

“I know.” Athena tightened her grip slightly
on his arm and looked into his eyes. “Thank you, Julius. You’ve
been wonderful. We would have gotten ourselves into trouble a
hundred times without you.”

“I doubt that,” he said graciously. He
offered his hand, but Athena didn’t want to shake hands. She didn’t
let go of his arm, but pressed herself more closely to him. He
didn’t move away. “You and Rex aren’t fools, and you couldn’t have
been better clients.”

“Really? You can say that, even after
everything?”

“You always paid on time. And you were good
hosts.”

“And you were the best you could be,” Athena
said, brushing her lips across his cheek. “Thank you.”

Julius swallowed and stepped away then,
tucking away his glasses in the breast pocket of his suit. He
seemed flustered, in an adorable way. He offered her the envelope
with her copies of the contract. Then to her surprise, he conjured
a small box from his coat pocket and offered it to you. “In case we
don’t meet again,” he said gruffly. “Good bye, Athena.”

“You didn’t have to do this.”

“Yes, I did.” He glanced around and began to
speak more quickly. The back of his neck was a bit ruddy. “You can
stay for a few minutes, if you like. Open the parcel here after I’m
gone.”

“But I need to give you the key for the
buyer.”

“They’re going to change the locks. Lock up
with yours and don’t worry about getting it to me. I know you won’t
come back after you’ve said your farewell to the place.”

“Thank you again, Julius.” Athena stepped
into his path and put her hand on his shoulder. She touched her
lips to his cheek again. She felt rather than heard his quick
intake of breath, then moved to kiss him on the mouth.

His lips were both soft and firm. His mouth
opened in surprise, then he leaned closer and closed his mouth over
her own. The weight of his hand was on her shoulder, the solid
strength of him against her breasts. Their kiss was short, but
sweet and hot.

When they parted, Julius smiled at her. “The
road not taken,” he said quietly and with apparent regret.

“There’s still time,” Athena murmured and his
smile heated.

“Indeed, there is. I’ll be in touch.” Julius
put on his hat and she noticed how his eyes had begun to twinkle.
He touched the rim in farewell, then strode through the dust and
debris of the first property she’d ever bought.

Athena watched him go, knowing this wasn’t
the last she’d seen of him.

When she was alone, Athena walked through the
whole place. Her body was humming with the promise of stolen kisses
and pleasures to come. Her mind was leaping ahead, planning and
scheming.

She could see this place as she’d originally
envisioned it, a bar with walls that hid secret rooms. A nightclub
with private passages and sanctuaries for pleasure.

She recognized that it would have been a
variation of her grandmother’s house, even though she hadn’t seen
the parallel before.

And Athena understood her destiny with utter
clarity.

This property would never be the place she’d
dreamed it would become, but it had paid for her freedom. By the
next morning, there would be money in her offshore account, and the
world would be her oyster.

She stopped on the uppermost floor of the
building, watching a slice of sky through a broken window, and
opened Julius’ gift.

It was a digital recorder.

Athena turned the small device in her hands,
wondering why he’d give her such a thing. On impulse, she pushed
PLAY.

She recognized Julius’ voice immediately, and
the polite but firm tone he used in dealing with officials of all
kinds. After his kiss, the sound sent a new thrill through her, one
she knew they’d have to explore.

When the other man spoke, Athena realized
that Julius had surreptitiously recorded a conversation.

Wasn’t that illegal?

She loved the juxtaposition of Julius
compromising his principles for his clients. Maybe she had led him
astray. Athena liked the sound of that. The voices on the recording
were slightly muffled and there were a lot of surrounding
footsteps, ringing telephones, slamming doors.

“I told you already that there’s nothing we
can do for you.” The other man was dismissive at best.

Julius, in contrast, spoke with smooth
authority and was clearly undeterred. “I represent the parties who
own the building that was burned this morning during the police
raid. As you might imagine, they are distressed to have had their
property destroyed.”

“The fire had nothing to do with us.”

“Still it would be instructive to know why
the police staged a raid upon an empty warehouse in the first
place.”

“It wasn’t empty.”

“Were you inside?”

“No.”

“Then how can you know its contents?”

“I’m not going to play word games with a
lawyer...”

“Is it not required that you inform the owner
of private property before entering that property on police
business?”

“Not when we have a warrant.”

“But a warrant must be obtained on the basis
of evidence. May I see that evidence?”

“No,” the policeman said. “But you can hear
it.”

There was a click, then the sound of a
telephone conversation. “Rex, yes. You may call me Rex,” a man said
smoothly. It wasn’t Rex. “What would you offer to me in exchange
for the precise location of the Plume, the BDSM club that our mayor
is so anxious to see closed down?”

The Count.

Athena nearly dropped the recorder in her
shock.

He’d deliberately sacrificed everything she’d
worked to build, just to try to make her into a helpless young girl
again.

One at his mercy.

Once it might have been enough for her to be
his possession forever, but not anymore. Athena spun and hurried
down the stairs, marching through the ruin of the building she’d
been compelled to sell, and strode out into the street. She locked
the door with a savage gesture and waved to the returning cab.

She wasn’t just going to leave the Count.

She was going to get even with him first.

It would be hours before she heard from
Julius, who provided the last detail to perfect her plan for
vengeance.

* * *

It was early in the morning, so early that it
was quiet in the bungalow. Rex kept his eyes closed and listened.
He listened to the surf on the beach, liking this house more with
every passing day. He could smell Leya, the sweet perfume of her
puss, and smiled that he was surrounded by the scent of their
lovemaking. He could hear birds and the air was warm.

He’d had too much Scotch the night before,
worrying about the Plume and the fate of the members there. Julius
had insisted all was fine, but Rex had seen video footage of the
raid on the television later. The dogs, the flames, the sirens and
the lights.

And all the people he knew and treasured, the
ones whose secrets he held dear, had been running in the
street.

The sight had ripped his guts out. He’d
parked in front of the television and watched the footage repeat
every thirty minutes, sick at heart.

Drinking.

Leya had finally coaxed him to bed, but for
once, she hadn’t been able to tempt him. Rex felt guilty about
that. She’d helped him. She deserved better than a drunk in her
bed. Rex knew he had to get it together to make his future
work.

He chose to trust Julius.

He’d call him again in a few days.

For the moment, he was here, with Leya, and
needed to act like it.

Coffee would be great, but he didn’t want it
enough to get out of bed. He reached out a hand and caressed Leya’s
hip. He wanted to make amends and hoped she liked sex in the
mornings, vanilla or otherwise. Her skin was smooth and soft,
inviting his touch. She murmured something and edged closer to him,
her acquiescence making his cock hard.

Then a woman made a little growl of
satisfaction.

Not Leya.

Rex’s eyes flew open and he surveyed the bed.
On the other side of Leya was another woman. Her skin was as black
as his own and she was awake. Her eyes were an amber brown that
seemed to glow and they were thickly lashed. Her hair was buzzed
short, only incrementally longer than his own, and she was
beautiful. Delicate. Feminine. She dropped her gaze from his, as if
embarrassed to be found in his bed.

Naked.

Rex sat up and pushed back the sheets, only
slowing his move when the woman shook her head. She gestured to
Leya and touched a finger to her lips. Leya continued to sleep.

Rex nodded and the woman rose from the bed
with grace. She was tall, maybe even as tall as Rex, slim through
the hips but with ample breasts. Her areoles were so dark that they
were nearly burgundy and her breasts were so full that he would
need both hands to cup them.