Taken in Hand (6 page)

himself for what was coming. With only a vague idea of what

he was going to see after his visits to some of the sites

online, he hoped he wasn’t going to humiliate himself with

an unwanted arousal if they played one of the scenes he’d

heard about or seen online. He’d planned on wearing baggy

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jeans during their visit to the club to hide his possible

reaction, not these tightly tapered trousers. He should have

known Adam would never let him get away with that. He was

beginning to realize exactly how much control Adam would

have.

Taking some solace in the length of the suit jacket, he

had to drop his gaze in embarrassment and irritation when

Adam made him remove his jacket and tie and unbuttoned

most of the buttons on his shirt. If anyone saw the muscles

in his jaw jumping from gritting his teeth, too damn bad.

“What, no collar?” Chad, his voice tight and pissed off,

knew he was being a sarcastic ass, but he didn’t care. He’d

have to pretend to be meek and obedient soon enough. For

now, he felt a little better expressing himself.

“You haven’t earned one yet. You’re supposed to be in

training, remember? My friends aren’t stupid, Chad. Drop

this macho bullshit and straighten up. You’ll have to at least

try
to role play. Otherwise you’re just wasting my time.”

Chad dropped his eyes. “I’m sorry. You’re right.”

“Good boy,” Adam told him. “Now follow along behind

me. Stand behind my chair and present yourself.”

“Um…what?”

Adam turned am angry gaze up to his face. “Did you

read
any
of the materials I suggested? This is basic stuff,

Chad. Everything you do in there reflects on me. Do you

understand that?”

The remark surprised and chastened Chad. People

inside the club would be watching him, thinking he was

Adam’s sub. The sudden weight of responsibility landed on

his shoulders. He had a job to do, one he’d sabotage if he

didn’t straighten himself up, and he found himself not

wanting to embarrass Adam. After all, the department had

gotten Adam into this, and Adam was trying to help. Chad

squared his shoulders, determined to be the best sub he

could be to impress the professor. He stood silently, fidgeting

a little, but lowering his gaze and hunched his shoulders,

trying to look like he thought a sub should look.

Adam blew out a long, irritated breath. “Okay, stand

up straight. Clasp your hands behind your back. Good. Now

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spread your legs a little farther apart. Chin up, eyes down.

Good.” Adam walked around him, inspecting his posture

before giving a curt nod. “Okay, I guess you’ll do. Stand like

that behind my chair, but first offer to get me a drink. After

you bring it back, stand behind my chair in this position.

Don’t make eye contact with any of the Doms and let me do

the talking. Got it?”

“I got it,” he said quietly. “What if someone asks me

something I don’t know?”

“They shouldn’t. As a general rule, other Doms don’t

speak to a sub without his Dom’s permission, but you’re not

collared, so if you stray too far, someone might speak to you.

If something like that should happen, just look to me. I’ll

keep an eye on you and help out. Now, are you ready?” Chad

nodded. “Then let’s go.”

The club looked to be a converted warehouse. A guard

checked Adam’s membership card and opened the door for

them. Chad made a mental note to ask Philips if they knew

guests were allowed in without identifying them. Inside, the

music was loud, the lights were dim, and there seemed to be

a good number of people inside, though there were also a lot

of empty tables. A number of people were eating dinner and

chatting. It seemed like any other club at first glance.

Males and females of various ages either sat at the

tables or moved around the room. The club had a large

dance floor and a long bar along the side. The lighting was

low, like most every other club Chad had ever been to. As his

eyes adjusted to the dimness, however, he saw the

differences. Some of the men and women were wearing

choker style necklaces, and a few were even wearing what

looked like black or spiked dog collars.

Chad was at first shocked and then fascinated. A few

people knelt on the floor next to their companions or leaned

against their legs, while the people sitting at the tables

seemed to mostly ignore them, except for an occasional pat

on the head or off-hand caress. A couple of men and women

were standing behind their companions, like Adam told

Chad he was to do, all of them in the position Adam had just

shown him. What was shocking to Chad was the way they

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were dressed…or undressed as the case may be. There was a

great deal of leather and piercings, and one woman and a

few of the men were totally nude. Some were wearing bikini

briefs or jock straps, while a few he spotted even wore black

leather hoods that completely covered their heads.

Something else to mention that to the investigating team.

Anyone could hide under one of those hoods.

He also noticed the huge mixture of social classes in

the room. Some were like Adam, preppy and prosperous

looking, while others seemed to have much rougher edges.

He remembered Adam’s warning about the hardcore Doms
.

It was easy to see what he’d meant. Some of these boys

looked like they played rough.

Adam elbowed him in the side. “Don’t stare. It’s rude.

Focus on me and pay attention. Stay at my heel.”

Chad lowered his eyes immediately and started

forward, only too happy to be following Adam and sticking

close by him. Adam had become a familiar port in an alien

sea. When Adam reached behind him and took Chad’s hand,

Chad’s first instinct was to pull away. He forced himself to

relax and realized he actually felt grateful.

Adam towed him to a table in the back and sat down,

releasing his hand. Several men were already there, but

before he could focus on them, Adam pulled him down

toward him by putting a hand around the back of his neck.

Speaking in his ear over the loud music, he said, “Bourbon

on the rocks, Chad.”

Chad stared at him blankly for probably a few seconds

too long before he remembered he was supposed to get Adam

a drink.

Chad nodded and hurried off to the bar to order

Adam’s drink for him. It took him a few minutes to get the

attention of the bartender, but then he had his prize and

began to carefully carry it back to the table. On the way

back, he noticed another sub delivering a drink to his Dom

He knelt beside him and held the drink up to him before

settling back in a waiting position, still kneeling, but sitting

back on his heels, his hands behind his back.

Realizing Adam had been going easy on him, Chad

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found himself wanting to impress him with how quickly he

could learn. When he got to their table, he sank to his knees

beside Adam and held the drink up like an offering.

Surprise and pleasure leap in Adam’s eyes, and he

smiled. “Thank you, Pet.”

A voice from across the table startled Chad.

“Well, Adam, he’s very pretty, but I didn’t think you

liked gingers.”

Gingers?
Chad made an unconscious movement, and

Adam pressed his shoulder back down. “Settle down, baby.”

Sitting back, Chad heard a little tsking noise from

Adam and realized his posture was bad. Remembering the

boy he’d seen on his way back to the table, he mimicked

him, knees apart, back straight with his hands locked

behind him. Adam rewarded him by running his fingers over

his hair.

“I wouldn’t say that,” Adam said softly. “Besides,

Chad’s hair is lovely.”

“So you’re training a new sub? I didn’t think that was

your preference,” another voice said to Chad’s left.

Adam’s voice was silky smooth as he answered. “Only

with someone truly special. As you can see, he is.”

The talk became more general then, thank God, and

the men at the table continued with their dinners. With the

attention not focused on him, he allowed himself to

surreptitiously scan the men at their table, listening absently

to their conversations. There were four of them, all fairly

young, mostly dressed in suits, like Adam, as they’d just

come from the funeral services. Only one was wearing

leathers. Three subs knelt beside their Doms as well, though

they were across the table. All four Doms appeared to be in

their thirties, from early to middle, their subs from middle

twenties to maybe early thirties. He didn’t miss the fact

everyone at the table fit into the victims’ profiles.

“Rubin is pretty nervy for a preacher,” one commented,

catching Chad’s attention. “He didn’t come right out and hit

me up for a donation today, but promised me he’d be in

touch.”

“It is a worthy cause,” said another of the men.

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“I won’t debate that, but I get tired of his almost

constant requests for donations. The minute he shows up, I

get out my checkbook just to get rid of him.”

The conversation lapsed as a server brought Adam a

plate, and Chad’s stomach growled. It was getting late, and

he’d been too nervous to eat much lunch. He’d missed meals

before when he was busy on a case and didn’t have time to

stop, but he’d been active then, not just sitting around, or in

this case, kneeling. He was wondering how much longer to

would have to wait to eat when Adam held out a small piece

of a sandwich in front of his mouth. He was so startled he

jumped a little, and Adam’s other hand fell lightly on the

back of his neck. He shook the piece of sandwich in front of

Chad’s mouth slightly, and Chad got the hint, trying to take

it with his hand. The sandwich was pulled away. Chad

looked up in surprise.

Adam was giving him a stern look. “I didn’t tell you to

move your hands, Chad. Open your mouth.”

He put his hands behind his back quickly. The

sandwich piece reappeared. He opened his mouth, and the

piece was placed on his tongue. It was some kind of ham and

cheese, and as hungry as he was, it tasted absolutely

delicious. He sat happily chewing until another piece

appeared, and he opened his mouth again. He got a sudden

mental picture of how he would look if any of the guys from

work could see him, but mentally shrugged. None of them

were here, while he was starving and playing a part.

Adam eventually fed him what must have been an

entire sandwich, and he ate every bite, even taking sips of

Adam’s water when he held it down to Chad’s lips. The entire

operation was surprisingly intimate, and when the meal was

over and Adam pulled him over to rest against his leg, he

went willingly and without even thinking about it. He

realized he hadn’t really been totally aware of his

surroundings since he’d begun eating from Adam’s hand and

reminded himself to focus.

The man across the table from them was speaking

again. “My sub and I are doing a scene in a few minutes. Are

you going to display your new boy tonight, Adam?”

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“No, not tonight. He’s not ready,” Adam answered.

“I’d be glad to lend a hand in his training, Adam,”

came a voice from across the table. “We could take him to a

private room.”

Chad glanced up to see the man wearing leathers was

the one who’d made the comment. He was balding, though

probably only in his mid-thirties, and had a slight paunch.

Chad didn’t find him the least bit attractive, certainly not as

attractive as Adam. Since Adam hadn’t replied, the words

came out of Chad’s mouth before he even thought about it.

“He doesn’t need any
help
from you.”

A small silence fell over the table, and the Dom in

leathers gave Adam an incredulous look before he turned a

furious glare on Chad.

Adam looked down at him. “Your behavior just

demonstrated how
unready
you are.” Adam said sternly. He

leaned over and took Chad’s chin in his hand. “Now
be