But I couldn’t stay in forever. At the moment, I needed to be out all the time, to take my mind off the total mess that was my life.

It was then that I realised it was time. I needed to sort my life out, and myself with it. I’d go into work in the morning, and see Max. Hopefully, he’d let me back to work after the weekend, and that would keep my mind off things. The papers would have moved onto another story by then, surely? And I’d see Jimmy, Kitty’s agent, in the afternoon, and see if I couldn’t make some real money of my own, so I could be more independent and in control.

But there was one other thing I needed to do, before any of that.

    Fourteen

Him

I went down to Dominion early. I’d been trying to get hold of Rick ever since I’d arrived at Ffyvells, but there’d been no answer. I’d briefly considered texting him, but I didn’t want to scare him off. Besides, there would’ve been no way of knowing if he’d seen it unless he answered, which seemed unlikely, given his radio silence.

The only thing that gave me any hope was the fact that his phone was still switched on. He hadn’t jettisoned it or, at least, not yet. I’d tried his proper mobile, but that was dead. I just had to wait to see him.

How was I going to explain that I didn’t have the money? I stood at the bar, looking out at the dance floor. The place was crowded now. It was always busy on a Thursday – in London, the weekend started early. I never understood how people could treat Thursday as the first Friday of the week, when they still had to get up for another day’s work.

I almost laughed. Christ, I’d done it myself when I was younger, and not just on Thursdays. When Aimee and I’d been together, it’d been nearly every night, not that I’d had to worry too much about being late for work. I’d never worked for anyone in my life, except the old man.

I’d always made sure I was on time, though. My father had a strong work ethic, and I’d always tried to avoid pissing him off. He was a fucking nightmare when roused. Still, if he hadn’t been so ruthless and driven, I wouldn’t have been where I was today.

Where I was today? I did laugh then. Standing in a high-end sex club – my sex club, to all intents and purposes - waiting for a blackmailer to try to fleece me out of a million quid? Fuck, I was really something to aspire to.

There were still people coming in all the time. The place was packed with people of every gender, dressed in everything from tuxedos and cocktail dresses to rubber and leather or – in the case of some of the die-hard slaves – already almost nothing at all. The clientele of Dominion represented just about every kink and fetish imaginable – the great and the good had too much time on their hands and too much money. They were so easily bored. Vanilla didn’t even come into it.

Every time someone entered, I looked to see if it was Rick. The staff on the door had been told to let him in, no questions asked. I could only hope they’d do their job properly. I’d had to pull off the usuals, like Matt. They were too important. I needed them for other things tonight.

I still didn’t understand why Rick had chosen Dominion. It seemed almost suicidally reckless, like Daniel walking into the lions’ den. Why the hell hadn’t he chosen neutral turf? The only reason that made any sense was that he still trusted me. He knew I was a man of my word, and he wanted to rub my face in the fact that he’d got one over on me.

It was true. I was a man of my word. Given the chance, I’d make the trade, no questions asked, to protect Felicity…to protect the whole Flint family. In a way, I almost admired Rick. He had balls, that was for sure, coming into the very heart of my empire purely to rip me off. But there was only so far I’d be pushed before my integrity no longer mattered, and I wondered if he realised that. People didn’t usually take liberties – they knew better - so he’d never seen me truly riled, but I wasn’t the old man’s son for nothing.

There was a sudden commotion, over by the entrance. I was at the end of the bar closest, so I could see what was going on. It was Alex, of all people. I’d put him in charge of the club, even though I was in attendance, and he was supposed to be keeping an eye on play, both in the rooms and in the open areas. It was his duty as Dungeon Master to ensure members followed the Code of Safe, Sane and Consensual. It was a role far too important to neglect, and I knew there could only be one reason he was over at the entrance.

I put down my glass and made my way through the various semi-naked bodies to the doors.

‘What the fuck are you playing at?’ Alex was shouting. ‘I trusted you!’

He had Rick pinned against the wall, his face right up against Rick’s. Spit was flying from his mouth, and his knuckles were white, his hands on either side of Rick’s collar. Rick wasn’t struggling, wasn’t retaliating at all. He only stared at Alex, his expression unreadable.

‘Alex,’ I said, with all the calm I could muster. ‘What the fuck are you doing?’

‘I’m sorry, Boss,’ he said. ‘I just…’

‘Let him go,’ I said. ‘Now. I won’t have violence in my club.’

Alex let go of Rick’s collar and walked off, throwing him a look of contempt over his shoulder.

    Fifteen

Him

Rick just stared back at him, still with that same inscrutable expression, before turning to me with an ironic grin. ‘No violence?’ he said.

He had that same cocky attitude he’d had back at the Castle, the night he’d made off with the tape. It was all I needed right now. ‘You never did understand,’ I said, gesturing towards the bar. ‘There are rules for everything, even here. Self-control is key….a lesson you’ve apparently never learnt.’

We walked over to the bar, where I beckoned a waiter.

‘Scotch on the rocks,’ I said. ‘Twice.’

‘You’re always so fucking smug.’ Rick took a box of cigarettes from his inside pocket and pulled one out. He lit it, the tip glowing a brilliant orange as he sucked, inhaling deeply on it.

I felt my jaw tense. He knew smoking in the club – dammit, in any club – was an absolute no-no, and he was doing it on purpose to get a reaction out of me. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction. I merely called over the waiter again.

‘An empty glass, please,’ I said. ‘Or an ashtray, if you have one.’

The waiter passed me a glass, and I pushed it towards Rick.

‘I’m not smug,’ I said. ‘I’m confident. There’s a difference.’

‘Anyone would be confident in your position.’ Rick gestured around the club. ‘Money to burn…any woman you want. You’re so fucking entitled – you have no idea what it’s like for the rest of us.’

I couldn’t argue there. I was rich beyond most people’s wildest dreams or, at least, my father was. I could have any woman I wanted, within reason, but did it make me entitled?

I didn’t think so. I worked damned hard to maintain my lifestyle…to keep my parents and Ronnie in the style to which they were accustomed. Without my eye on it, the whole delicate balance of the infrastructure would go to shit. It was a full-time job and then some.

‘Just because I have money, it doesn’t mean I’m entitled,’ I said, with a shrug. ‘We all have our duties to perform. The difference between us is that I do my duty, without question. Now, you – you truly do think you’re entitled.’

For the first time, Rick looked awkward, as if he didn’t quite know what to say. ‘I’m entitled to something,’ he said, finally. ‘I deserve something for all the service I’ve given you.’

‘I never once said you didn’t.’ I looked away, out across the dance floor. Cho was hanging there again now, in much the same position she’d been in the last time, only this time sans culottes, her splayed legs leaving nothing to the imagination. The mesh of rope played all around her naked arms and torso, encircling her bare tits in a tight rope bra, and rendering her completely immobile – a living decoration for the amusement of club members. ‘I tried to give you something before, but you thought it better to betray my trust, yet again.’