Salvation (V.2)

[Veroe]

((Closed for Myself and HeartofCourage))​

IC: John Gideon

Zoe Pearson had looked a lot like Laura.

No, not really. Zoe didn't have the same hair or eye color, but by her picture in the paper she had the same smile, and the same sparkle in her eyes when she smiled. She had the same gentleness in her bearing too. Zoe Pearson was the spitting image of John's wife-his late wife. To John Zoe Pearson was an vivid reminder of the deep gaping black hole in his life without Laura or little Claire, Zoe was a kick in the ass reminder of memories fading at the edges as these last two years had gone by.

He'd been right to kill Zoe's murderer. It didn't matter that the punk hadn't intended to actually kill her when he drew the gun on her and demanded her purse. The piece of shit guns on the street these days had such crappy triggers. But it didn't matter. It didn't matter that he'd been sorry for taking Zoe's life. It didn't matter that he was only fifteen, and had been too desperate and shaking for his next hit of heroin to really defend himself when John found him.

Beating the punk's face in was not justice, but neither was it revenge. Justice and vengeance didn't exist in this world, if Laura and Claire would never be able to receive either. Unlike Zoe Pearson's murderer Laura and Claire's killer was forever out of John's reach.

Some in the paper said the vigilante in the night was a hero.

A hero? Him?

What a fucking joke.

Heroes saved the day, saved everyone, and left the bad guys alive. He only ever came when it was already too late. He tracked them down, and he vented his fury his despair upon them, but there was always more of them, and more of his fury and despair to vent upon them. The point was there was no end to it. He'd never be able to kill enough of them.

Zoe was still dead. Laura, little Claire were still gone, and he was still...here.

No, John was no hero, he was a fucking janitor taking out the trash in a junkyard of a city.

Maybe he just needed to end it now? Just take his gun, put it to his head, and it would be over. The only problem with that was if in anyone was up in heaven it was Laura and Claire, and with all the blood and death and misery on his hands John had no business going up there-wouldn't want to go up there if they'd let someone like him in even if it meant he'd never see his wife and daughter again when he died. Hell was being forever seperated from them.

No, he wasn't ready to end it-not yet.

He had no real idea why he came to the fetish club on the corner of thirty-first and Madison. Dressed in his last good T-shirt, the beaten and tattered jacket, the threadbare blue jeans. His face unshaven, the beard covering bruises and cuts from the life of a vigilante. On the stage inside was a woman tied to a pole. Behind her dressed in the typical unimaginative leather pants and mask a man swung a black paddle. The sound of it hitting the meat of her asscheek reverberating down to his bones, her cry of pain searing his blood.

Before he had lost everything John Gideon had been a simple straight-forward man that had followed the old-fashioned code of conduct that stated unequivocally that no one, absolutely no one hurt a woman on purpose.

His fists tightened itching to give that bastard in the mask the ass-kicking he deserved. John was a foot taller, and had more than twenty pounds on him all hard edged muscle. Any man that got his rocks off beating a bound woman wouldn't be much problem in a fair fight.

He approached the stage glaring up at him. Then the man stopped as the girl sobbed and begged for more. He lowered the paddle and stepped in front of the girl raising her chin. John watched as he spoke soft encouragements to her even as she still begged him to resume. He wiped the tears from her face and crossed the stage back behind her raising the paddle again.

He watched transfixed on the girl's face as the paddle struck again. She continued to cry out the tears continued to fall down her cheeks as the man mercilessly beat her ass red, but in her eyes John saw something. Was it peace? Acceptance? Serenity? Absolution? He didn't know. Part of him didn't understand, and another part craved to be in her place.

That shocked him. He needed to get away. To think, to distance himself. Abruptly he turned to be stopped by a woman with a hand on his chest.

He looked down at her, "Who are you?"

 

[heartofcourage]

IC: Mina Bowen

The Sunset Club had been the culmination of so many things in Mina's life. The first club that she had ever owned. The first place that she had truly allowed her the chance to exist as herself instead of hiding away a part of her. A resting place for all of those torn and tattered souls that tended to walk through the doors one a nightly basis. She never questioned why people came to a fetish club. She simply welcomed them to come and to explore what they needed to explore.

She had given up a lucrative career to take a risk with the club, but since she had opened five years ago, she hadn't had a single moment of worry. It was better for her soul than listening to those struggling with life. Day in and day out, she had sat in that sterile office sponsored by the state, and listened to the horrors of life that each of her clients had come to tell her. Some lost their battle with their illness. Others were better and thanked her for bringing them through to the other side. However, she had grown weary of the grind and had left to continue to help people in other ways.

Standing at the polished brass rail of the club balcony, Mina watched over the crowd below. There was a scene going on the center stage, one of her regulars putting on a demonstration with his favorite girl. Other couples were scattered throughout the booths, some watching, others in conversation, and still others warming up for an evening of fun. Next to her, the head of security stood, watching over the floor along with her. James had been with her since the beginning, an ex-Marine that shared the passion of BDSM with a seriousness that only an ex-military man could have.

A man caught Mina's eye, stalking through the crowd and towards the stage with a barely controlled rage. "Have you seen him before?" Mina asked, her dark brown gaze following this man as he stopped before the stage and clenched his fists tightly at his side.

"Never." James said simply, already reaching for his radio to page his bouncers.

"Not yet." Mina said with a slight shake of her head, her dark brown hair fluttering as it cascaded over her shoulders. "I don't think he's a danger."

She had seen men like him before, coming to the club to prove something to themselves or perhaps to see if this was what they really wanted in the first place. The would get angry from time to time, warring with their own pride and masculinity and misguided sense of justice. They wanted to defend the submissives, but they were often just as soft and submissive themselves.

"I'll take care of it." She said as she moved away from the railing and quietly descended the stairs to the main floor.

She had never been a tall woman. In fact, she was very slight, her frame naturally slender and unassuming. There was an air of control about her, however. It radiated from her in waves. A few men that she had dated had seen her as a control freak. She tended to call it domination. It took a particular man to be with her and she hadn't yet found the right one.

As soon as the man turned, she was there, her hand pressing against his chest to hold him in place. She tilted her head up to stared into his own stony gaze as he demanded to know who she was. She didn't say anything for a long moment, simply staring up at him. She pursed her ruby red lips as she saw the wealth of loathing in his eyes, the same lost look that she had seen in so many others in her life. However, there was something else there that she hadn't really expected: lust and longing.

"Who are you?" She countered, her hand never leaving his chest as she felt the hammering of his heart beneath her palm.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

He looked down at her, "Who are you?"

She was a slender slip of a girl. Her head barely reached the height of his chest, barely over five feet and that due to those ridiculously high heels she wore. But she did have a mane of dark chocolate brown hair neatly tied back to keep out of her eyes and those eyes-drills more like-auguring deep into the very core of him. That said she had a pretty face, kissable lips, and kiss them he wanted.

That shocked him. He hadn't noticed another woman since Laura. Not in the sexual way. Since his wife's murder every other woman had been just another face to him. Not this one. No, not this one at all.

"Who are you?" She countered, her hand never leaving his chest as she felt the hammering of his heart beneath her palm.

He didn't like how she was looking at him, or rather, through him.

He lifted his hand, fingers curling around her wrist to pull her own hand off of him as he answered her question, "Uninterested in what you're trying to sell here, babe."

The look in the eyes of the woman on stage flashed in his imagination. He still didn't know what it was, but for some inexplicable reason he couldn't get his mind off it.

He glanced back at the stage, noticing that the act was over. The man in the mask stood in front of the woman undoing the straps that held her to the pole. Once free the woman wrapped her arms around him in a hug. The look she gave him belied the fact of the merciless paddling he had just given to her. She looked up at him with eyes filled with a love and peace, that for some reason stirred him in ways he could not fathom.

"No offense, darling," He told the little lady that stopped him dismissively, "But coming in here was a big mistake. You have nothing for me here."

He made to walk past her for the doors and the cold hard cruel world outside.

 

[heartofcourage]

The mask that he kept in place was impressive, but Mina could see through it in an instant. He was tense, aching for any kind of fight that he could find for himself, and desperately trying to convince himself of something. What that was, she wasn't really sure.

He reached for her wrist, gripping it between his fingers and tell her that he wasn't interested in what she had to offer. Her eyes never left his own, even when he turned to look at the stage again before ultimately pulling her hand away and brushing past her.

"There's nothing to sell." Mina said as she turned to watch him go. "You've already made up your mind that you want something more than what you already have. That's why people come here. It's usually the men, such as yourself, that think they have to be strong and are itching for someone to prove them wrong."

Mina crossed her hands over her starched white button up blouse, staring after this mysterious man as he faltered slightly. "You are use to the fight but that's not really what you want anymore. Is it?"

She followed after him, her hips swaying leisurely in her black PVC skirt. It hugged her curves like a lover and gave her even more of an air of mystery about her. One of her joys was making others wonder about her true nature. Was she really as hard as she seemed? There were few who knew the answer to that.

"If you walk out that door right now, you know you'll have made the greatest mistake of your life."

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"No offense, darling," He told the little lady that stopped him dismissively, "But coming in here was a big mistake. You have nothing for me here."

He made to walk past her for the doors and the cold hard cruel world outside.

"There's nothing to sell." the woman said as he headed for the doors.

"Everybody's selling something, babe," He said over his shoulder to her. "It's all a matter if you're willing to buy or not."

His hand took hold of the door handle but froze as she said, "You've already made up your mind that you want something more than what you already have. That's why people come here. It's usually the men, such as yourself, that think they have to be strong and are itching for someone to prove them wrong."

He turned his head to look back at her, "Is that what you think I came in here for?"

Looking at her now John realized he was wrong about her at first. She wasn't a girl. This one was a lot closer to his own age of thirty-six, and she wasn't the slender slip of nothing either. She wore a tight black and shiny skirt with a crisp white dress shirt that seemed to hug accentuate the curves of hip, ass, and bust she did have. Coupled with those intelligent eyes that seemed to cut into him like a scalpel and a pretty face made her the most attractive woman he had come across in years.

It made him rather self-conscious. Here he was in his worn out jeans, cheap T-shirt, and denim jacket, with a beard he hadn't cared enough to shave for a couple of weeks, and looking at the refined and well-dressed woman in comparison made him feel like a total slob or hobo.

"If you walk out that door right now," She asserted to him with a glance of those eyes at his hand holding the door's handle, "You know you'll have made the greatest mistake of your life."

"A mistake, huh," He repeated, "And what if I did stay here. I don't have the cash to pay for your...services, let's call them, babe. So even if you did beat me black and blue tonight it'd be a huge waste of your time. Not to mention I'm not your type. Your arm would fall off from swinging your whip long before I give you what you want from me."

John pulled the door open for him to exit, "I only came in here to get out of the rain."

That didn't make much sense of course. It was not raining outside, and had not for several days.

Didn't stop the fact he was telling the truth though.

 

[heartofcourage]

“Like I said, there’s nothing for sale here.” Mina said evenly as this man tried to come up with every excuse to walk out that door. “And there’s nothing wrong with a person that enjoys pain with their pleasure. It’s between consenting adults and there is nothing that says you are like them. You might hate the feel of a whip but crave the feel of a paddle instead. You could hate being bound but you know that the only way that you can truly be free is when you’re trussed up from the ceiling for someone else’s pleasure.”

When he muttered something about the rain, she had to chuckle. He was making excuses and running scared from something in his past. Most of the people that walked through her door were there to get their kicks with like minded individuals. Some of them, like this mysterious man, were there for salvation.

“If I told you three things about yourself, would you stay? And not three things that I can see. Three things I just know.” Mina asked him, knowing that he was listening no matter what she did.
“You were either a cop or ex-military. You lost someone very close to you.” Mina watched him closely as she spoke, her arms still loosely folded over her chest. “What you just saw up there on that stage aroused you so much that you now feel disturbed.”

The silence that stretched between them was heavy, almost palpable. He was considering what she had said, probably wondering how she had known even the slightest thing after meeting him for the first-time moment earlier. She had always been a good judge of character, but her former career had set her up to nearly see into someone’s soul.

“If I’m right, you’ll turn away from that door and come join me in one of our private booths. I believe we have things to discuss.”

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"A mistake, huh," He repeated, "And what if I did stay here. I don't have the cash to pay for your...services, let's call them, babe. So even if you did beat me black and blue tonight it'd be a huge waste of your time. Not to mention I'm not your type. Your arm would fall off from swinging your whip long before I give you what you want from me."

“Like I said, there’s nothing for sale here.” She told him levelly.

"So You run a charity here, beatings for free for any schmuck that walks through this door," He replied with derisive snort of amusement.

She wasn't amused it seemed as she responded, “And there’s nothing wrong with a person that enjoys pain with their pleasure. It’s between consenting adults and there is nothing that says you are like them. You might hate the feel of a whip but crave the feel of a paddle instead. You could hate being bound but you know that the only way that you can truly be free is when you’re trussed up from the ceiling for someone else’s pleasure.”

John pulled the door open for him to exit, "I only came in here to get out of the rain."

That didn't make much sense of course. It was not raining outside, and had not for several days.

Didn't stop the fact he was telling the truth though.

“If I told you three things about yourself, would you stay?" She said just before he was about to take that first step out this place, "And not three things that I can see. Three things I just know.”

He turned his head to look back at her meeting those eyes that seemed to look straight through all his bullshit to the heart of him. He shivered but put on a brave front. "Go ahead, babe, I'm game for anything."

“You were either a cop or ex-military." She began, "You lost someone very close to you.”

How did she know? His eyes were wide and it was obvious that she'd scored a direct hit on both statements.

Her arms folded over her chest as she continued evenly, “What you just saw up there on that stage aroused you so much that you now feel disturbed.”

His battleship was sinking now under her barrage of truths.

There he was the door open and he was stuck in place. There was a long pause where he just looked back at her knowing she had him.

How had she known? Was he that transparent to her?

“If I’m right, you’ll turn away from that door and come join me in one of our private booths." She explained, "I believe we have things to discuss.”

The door closed as he crossed his arms over his chest staring down at her, "You've earned fifteen minutes. I'll listen to what you have to say for that long. Oh and buy me a drink while you're at it."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'll take fifteen." She was turning as she said that to lead him back towards a secluded booth, gesturing towards a bartender to bring them something.

She sat on one side of the booth and waited for him to take a spot on the other. "I see angry men enter this facility all of the time. Typically, I allow security to escort them right back out from where they came. There's something in you that wouldn't let me do that this time. A pain that I haven't seen in quite a while."

When the bartender came by their booth, he carefully sat two glasses on the table. Hers was nothing but soda water with a twist of lemon. His was simply water.

"You wanted a drink, but you didn't say what kind. Next time, be specific." She said as she picked up her own and took a sip. "I don't abide by men that can't make up their minds."

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

The door closed as he crossed his arms over his chest staring down at her, "You've earned fifteen minutes. I'll listen to what you have to say for that long. Oh and buy me a drink while you're at it."

"I'll take fifteen." She turned and he followed after deeper into the club around the stage to a secluded little booth in a sheltered corner of the room.

"I see angry men enter this facility all of the time." She said sitting down at the booth and looking up at him clearly expecting him to take a seat across from her. "Typically, I allow security to escort them right back out from where they came."

He took a seat and looked back into those all-seeing eyes of hers. "And yet you didn't. Why is that?"

"There's something in you that wouldn't let me do that this time. A pain that I haven't seen in quite a while." She replied.

John shook his head. "I am fine." Another lie.

Then a waitress arrived with their drinks. John stared at the glass of water she put in front of him. "What is this?"

"You wanted a drink," She stated calmly, "But you didn't say what kind. Next time, be specific."

He smirked at her response, "If given a choice I would've asked for a beer or even some whiskey or tequila."

"I don't abide by men that can't make up their minds." She told him as she sipped her own drink.

At that he quirked an eyebrow tapping his wrist where a watch would be, "Keep talking...you're just wasting your time, babe."

 

[heartofcourage]

“I’ve got all the time in the world because I know you’re not leaving in fifteen minutes.” Mina said as she glanced at him again. “You see, I’ve known a lot of men like you in my time. You talk a big game, but you are...fragile.”

“All I ever ask for is honesty. It’s really the only way to build a successful relationship. If you’re honest with me, I’ll be honest with you.” Mina’s astute gaze took in every thing about the man across from her, from the stubbles cheeks that tried to hide a multitude of bruises to the slightly sloppy clothing that belied a ridged body posture. He was a man of contradictions.

“You walked through that door wanting to beat someone’s brains in, but what you saw on that stage stopped you in your tracks. Why? What appealed to you?”

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

At that he quirked an eyebrow tapping his wrist where a watch would be, "Keep talking...you're just wasting your time, babe."

“I’ve got all the time in the world because I know you’re not leaving in fifteen minutes.” She said turning the weapons of those mesmerizing, knowing, eyes on him again.

He smirked cockily to her, "That's what you think..."

She pressed on. “You see, I’ve known a lot of men like you in my time. You talk a big game, but you are...fragile.”

"Babe, if you knew me at all," He told her shaking his head, "You'd know the last thing I am is weak."

“All I ever ask for is honesty." She replied, "It’s really the only way to build a successful relationship. If you’re honest with me, I’ll be honest with you.”

He shook his head again, "Alright then...shoot. Take your best shot, babe."

“You walked through that door wanting to beat someone’s brains in," She surmised, "But what you saw on that stage stopped you in your tracks."

"I wasn't looking for somebody to beat their brains in," He replied flippantly, "Just for somebody that deserved it, and anybody that enjoys beating on a woman deserved it in my book. But its no big deal, I didn't actually lay a finger on the bastard."

"Why?" She pressed.

That stopped him short. Why hadn't he given that asshole the beating he deserved? Really? Was it actually that look in that woman's eyes? John didn't have an answer.

He shrugged after a moment, "I just didn't feel like it."

"What appealed to you?”

He shifted uncomfortably in the booth. He didn't want to answer that question. He didn't have an answer to give to that question.

To save time so he could come up with some way to deflect her away from this subject he drained his glass of ice water in one long gulp and set it back down on the table between them.

"Who's saying something did appeal to me," He asserted to her, "Unlike you people I don't get my rocks off abusing helpless women."

 

[heartofcourage]

“Even when the woman craves it? Consents to it?” Mona asked, watching as he grew defensive and almost shy about his wants and desires, trying so hard to deny that he wanted what he had seen.

“Who said anything about a woman? What if it’s you that needs to feel the strike of a paddle or the command of a lover? That’s what you really want and that thought scares the shit out of you.” She picked up her drink again and considered him over the rim. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Bigger, badder, brawnier men than you have found joy in submission.”

She glanced towards the stage as her workers moved things around, getting it set for the next scene that would happen there the following hour. The main stage was often booked straight through an evening. That evening was no exception.

“You won’t be up there for everyone to view any time soon, but I almost guarantee you that if I made an offer right now, you’d accept it. Begrudgingly, of course. You do have a reputation to uphold.”

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Who's saying something did appeal to me," He asserted to her, "Unlike you people I don't get my rocks off abusing helpless women."

“Even when the woman craves it? Consents to it?” She asked at his rather defensive dismissal.

He looked at her as if she was trying to explain quantum physics to him or something.

“Who said anything about a woman?" She continued, "What if it’s you that needs to feel the strike of a paddle or the command of a lover?"

"And I'd bet you'd love to be the one swinging the paddle," He laughed, "I'm not some little girl with no willpower of their own so some sadistic asshole can feel powerful for once in their pathetic life beating on her." He looked at her all sense of any humor evaporated, 'That's not gonna happen, babe."

She picked up her drink again and considered him over the rim. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Bigger, badder, brawnier men than you have found joy in submission.”

"Somehow I doubt that," He sneered, "There's a lot of would be tough guys in the world after all, until they get punched and their charade drops."

He looked over to the stage where two women were leading a man by a leash onto the stage. He was a rather large man, built like a linebacker, but here he was letting two women barely half his size combined lead him walking on hands and knees like a dog up the steps to the stage.

The hot woman with the piercing eyes sitting across from then said, “You won’t be up there for everyone to view any time soon, but I almost guarantee you that if I made an offer right now, you’d accept it. Begrudgingly, of course. You do have a reputation to uphold.”

"You think rather highly of yourself don't you, babe." He asked turning his head to tangle with that all-seeing gaze of hers. "but I think your fifteen minutes is up."

He got up from the booth and nodded to her, "Thanks for the water, gorgeous, but I'll be heading out of here now."

 

[heartofcourage]

As he stood and declared that her time was up, she simply stayed in her spot and looked up at him. "I don't think highly of myself. I simply know a man like you both inside and out. You've lost a lot and have become lost yourself. You don't hide it well. I'm offering you a chance to find a little piece of yourself again, but you have to give up the bullshit bravado that you put on like a cheap set of armor."

She turned and pushed herself from the booth, standing to look into his eyes yet again. "And to do that, you have to give yourself to me. One evening is all I ask. After that, you're free to scurry back off into the darkness from where you came."

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

He got up from the booth and nodded to her, "Thanks for the water, gorgeous, but I'll be heading out of here now."

"I don't think highly of myself," She replied calmly still in her seat like she knew he wasn't walking out on her yet at all for a fact, "I simply know a man like you both inside and out."

He looked away from two women tying the linebacker of a man into a padded black cross on the stage back to her. "You think you know me, babe?"

"You've lost a lot and have become lost yourself." She surmised, "You don't hide it well."

"I'm not hiding anything," He lied, "You just see what you want to see."

"I'm offering you a chance to find a little piece of yourself again," She told him, "But you have to give up the bullshit bravado that you put on like a cheap set of armor."

"And to do that, you have to give yourself to me." She said rising up from the booth so they were on the same level now, "One evening is all I ask. After that, you're free to scurry back off into the darkness from where you came."

"Why do you even care," He asked her, "I don't have the money to pay you, and I'm nothing special..." He waved to the room full of pretty-boys with collars locked around their necks, "...There's plenty of men who'd love if you paddle them black and blue already here for you to choose from. And they won't give you the fight of your life like I will over it."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I care because I refuse to let a person that hurts as much as you walk back out there into the darkness." Mina answered back, a bit amused that he was still resisting so hard. "I've been with many of them. They have paid me handsomely for the opportunity, but I'm not asking for money from you. All I'm asking for is one evening."

Mina reached out and easily wrapped her fingers around his wrist, holding it tightly to let him feel the connection. He could easily pull away, and something in her eyes challenged him to do so. He might put on a good show for his own benefit, but in the end, she knew what he needed and wanted.

"It might seem like the dominate one has all of the power in this situation, but let me assure you that all the power lies with you. If you walk away, you'll be back. I can patiently wait for that moment or I can take you to my private rooms and give you a taste of what you crave."

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Why do you even care," He asked her, "I don't have the money to pay you, and I'm nothing special..." He waved to the room full of pretty-boys with collars locked around their necks, "...There's plenty of men who'd love if you paddle them black and blue already here for you to choose from. And they won't give you the fight of your life like I will over it."

"I care because I refuse to let a person that hurts as much as you walk back out there into the darkness." She replied with an amused note to her voice, "I've been with many of them. They have paid me handsomely for the opportunity, but I'm not asking for money from you. All I'm asking for is one evening."

"A freebie," He chuckled caustically at that. "If you really want me to warm your bed tonight you should drop the cold dominant act and just bat those beautiful eyes at me some more."

"It might seem like the dominate one has all of the power in this situation," She said reaching out and taking hold of his wrist, " But let me assure you that all the power lies with you."

Her hold was not firm. John could easily break free if he wanted.

So why wasn't he?

It had been so long since a woman had touched him like she was now. Why didn't he just let it go? Didn't he deserve to feel more than just sad or hurt or angry just one more time?

It would be so easy to say yes. Just let her do whatever the hell she wanted to with him, just to take a break away from steering wheel and car wreck his life was now.

No!

She was trying to make his soft again when he needed to stay hard....make the bastards pay, and never ever stop. He had to get far far away from this lady. She raised too many ghosts he couldn't face.

"If you walk away, you'll be back," She told him softly, "I can patiently wait for that moment, or I can take you to my private rooms and give you a taste of what you crave."

He looked at her then turned his head towards the door. So close, but a million miles away. He looked back to her, and those eyes, that missed nothing. Those eyes that saw him.

He should go. He should stay. He should kneel at this woman's feet. He should fuck the shit out of her. He should curse her, spit in her face.

So many choices. Too many.

"Crave," He asked, "What do you think I crave? If I stay...what is it you can give me...that I need?"

 

[heartofcourage]

"Submission." Mina said simply, her fingers growing tighter around his wrist. "You want the chance to let go of all of the terrible things going on in your own life. That's what you crave."

She didn't really wait for him to say yes or no, she simply gave his wrist a tug before she turned to lead him further into the club. He would say nothing to deter her. She knew that look in his eyes, the begging without putting to words. There would be ground rules laid, but for right now, she was going to get him into her world.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Crave," He asked, "What do you think I crave? If I stay...what is it you can give me...that I need?"

"Submission," She replied simply.

He looked at her then looked at the trio on stage. The two women were at it on the huge linebacker guy. One was swinging a flogger over his back and thighs the other had his face in her hands whispering sweet words of encouragement as he bucked and groaned with every strike.

Submission.

"I..." He looked back to her, "...I'm not that guy."

"You want the chance to let go of all of the terrible things going on in your own life." She surmised, "That's what you crave."

His breath caught at that. Let it all go? It was what he wanted. What he craved. What he needed. It was what drove him to walk in here.

But was it something he was man enough to do...just give in and let someone else take the wheel?

John did not know the answer to that.

"Even if you are right," He told her, "Are you the woman that can give me that? I'm a stubborn fool, always have been, and I don't like letting go of control. I'm liable to fight you over it every step of the way? I'm not the guy that gives up easy."

 

[heartofcourage]

"And I'm not a woman that gives in to a man like you easily. You aren't the first that resisted me and you won't be the last." Mina said simply, answering all of his concerns as he posed them. "This kind of game isn't built upon dominance alone. We'll have rules, we'll have discussion, and you'll have what you need."

Mina's grip tightened around his wrist slightly. "All you have to do is say yes. It's a simple word, I know, but this is all up to you."

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

"Even if you are right," He told her, "Are you the woman that can give me that? I'm a stubborn fool, always have been, and I don't like letting go of control. I'm liable to fight you over it every step of the way? I'm not the guy that gives up easy."

"And I'm not a woman that gives in to a man like you easily." She replied simply, "You aren't the first that resisted me and you won't be the last."

"So it's a game for dominance," He surmised.

She clarified, "This kind of game isn't built upon dominance alone. We'll have rules, we'll have discussion, and you'll have what you need."

"Discussion?" He asked, "What is there to discuss? You try your hardest to beat the shit out of me, and then I go have tacos and a beer. Because you're not going to break me, darling."

Her fingers around his wrist tightened. "All you have to do is say yes. It's a simple word, I know, but this is all up to you."

He smirked cockily bent down to look her in the eye and said, simply, arrogantly, "Yes."

 

[heartofcourage]

Mina said nothing as he leaned down to her height and looked her in the eye, grinning a like a fool as he gave her his permission. "I'll let it slide this time, but it's "yes, mistress". Remember that...babe."

She threw his term of spite back at him as she tugged on his wrist. Soon she got him moving and she expertly weaved her way through the club and up the stairs to her own private hideaway. Using a touch code to enter the room, she soon let go of his wrist as the door closed behind the both of them. Reaching over to turn on the lights, the room was soon bathed in a soft glow.

Her rooms at the club were her only home at the moment. She had given up an apartment to move in there, dedicating all of her time and efforts towards making the club a success. The hallway opened up to a small living area and kitchen. A bedroom was beyond a closed door and a bathroom beyond that. It was all decorated in soft creams and white, completely outside of the dark colors that the rest of the club had.

"I would say make yourself at home, but that's not why we're here." She said as she left him behind and sat down in one of her plush white chairs, looking up at him as he stood there in the doorway. "So, let's get to know one another. If you would, come and kneel in front of me."

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

He smirked cockily bent down to look her in the eye and said, simply, arrogantly, "Yes."

"I'll let it slide this time, but it's 'yes, mistress'." The fingers tightened around his wrist. "Remember that...babe

He smirked as she threw the dismissive term he had been using for her back in his face. So he had gotten to her after all. She had chinks in that cool impervious demeanor she wore like a suit of armor.

She pulled him on through the crowd watching the big linebacker being flogged by two women half his size.

He remembered the look in the woman's eyes and wondered if he looked he'd see the same look in the linebacker's eyes.

She led him up the staircase all the way up to a locked door and a touchpad she used to let them in.

Once inside her personal room she strutted over to the only chair in the place and perched that pretty little rear end down on it as imperiously as any queen sitting down on her throne.

"I would say make yourself at home, but that's not why we're here." She told him imperiously, "So, let's get to know one another. If you would, come and kneel in front of me."

The door had automatically closed behind him the moment he had stepped through it. He looked back at it when he heard the lock click shutting him inside with her. He looked back to her or rather the floor he wanted him to kneel at like he was some sort of knight bowing in wait her bidding.

John looked over the room instead. "I was expecting something more from the Spanish inquisition or Dracula's dungeon...this seems..." He gestured to the benign décor of her personal sanctuary of torture, "...All too benign and anticlimactic."

He did not come before her and kneel. If she wanted obedience from him she'd have to earn it the old fashioned way.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Fetish decor is so boring. I decided that I wanted something...calmer." Mina said, looking around at the decoration of her apartment. "Sometimes you need that place to come and relax without distraction, no matter how you fight the urge."

"Now, come here before me and kneel." She looked back at him, knowing that he wasn't going to do that. "You'll learn that I'm not about to give you what you want if you're disobedient. That seems to be a beating, since you've been so focused on it since you saw that woman on the stage. I'll give you what you want when you do as I say."

When he still didn't move, Mina let out a long sigh, shaking her head. "So be it." She said as she stood and moved to a nearby counter to retrieve something.

Moving back towards him, she sized him up for a moment, still struck by how much pain she could see in his gaze. "This is a place for you to let everything go. To let go of the decisions that haunt you and allow someone else to make those choices for you. Some people flourish and other people don't. I think you might be one of those people that finds freedom, as long as you're willing to let yourself go."

She stepped around behind him, gathering one wrist and then the other. She soon had his hands cuffed behind his back and as she moved back around to his front, she reached up and grabbed his hair at the nape of his neck, pulling until he moved and maneuvering him until he was kneeling exactly where she wanted him.

"You can fight all you like, babe, but you'll soon discover that there's nothing to fight here." She whispered against his ear, her lips pressing against sensitive skin before she let him go and moved back to her seat.

 

[Veroe]

IC: John Gideon

John looked over the room instead. "I was expecting something more from the Spanish inquisition or Dracula's dungeon...this seems..." He gestured to the benign décor of her personal sanctuary of torture, "...All too benign and anticlimactic."

He did not come before her and kneel. If she wanted obedience from him she'd have to earn it the old fashioned way.

"Fetish décor is so boring," She stated looking around her so-called dungeon, "I decided that I wanted something...calmer."

"And why is that," John asked opening a drawer to find an array of paddles and crops. He picked a crop up and experimentally swung it in the air. It made a swishing sound. He then tried a quick smack on the back of his hand. Biting back a swear and shaking his stinging hand he put the crop away.

"Sometimes you need that place to come and relax without distraction," She answered, "No matter how you fight the urge."

That last was a little pointed, and John turned a look at her. Was he fighting his urges? Yes. He was man enough to admit that. Not to her, of course, but to himself.

"Now, come here before me and kneel," She continued sternly, "You'll learn that I'm not about to give you what you want if you're disobedient."

He shut the drawer of crops and paddles closed again replying, "And what is that you think I want from you?"

"That seems to be a beating," she answered. The velvet of her voice pulled away bearing the solid steel underneath, "Since you've been so focused on it since you saw that woman on the stage. I'll give you what you want when you do as I say."

He considered turning right around and beating down her door and walking out on this woman, but he never moved to do so. Why could he be not offended at her tone enough to walk away on her? Why did he put up with this? Was he really a glutton for this woman's punishment?

"So be it," She sighed with a sad and frustrated shake of her head. She stood up nearby counter opening a drawer to retrieve something from inside.

John didn't get to see what she had grabbed.

"This is a place for you to let everything go." She announced walking up to stand in front of him. Those damned, glorious, beautiful eyes sweeping over him, judging every inch of him. "To let go of the decisions that haunt you and allow someone else to make those choices for you."

She stepped around him. John was uncertain he liked having her behind him. Yet there he stood. His feet seemed rooted in place as came around behind him. He flinched when she took one of his hands.

"Some people flourish and other people don't. I think you might be one of those people that finds freedom," She said taking his other hand. He flinched as he felt the cold steel of handcuffs, and the click as she snapped them shut. "As long as you're willing to let yourself go."

"If I let myself go," He growled pulling at the handcuffs. Her hand was there holding him in place, and he didn't really have the leverage to break her grip on it. "You're liable to wind up unconscious on the ground, 'babe'."

Not that he'd hit her....no, he wasn't the type of man that would ever hurt a woman...not like that asshole had downstairs. The look in the girl's eyes as that asshole had been wailing on her backside with a paddle.

She had reached up and grabbed him by the hair on his head and dragged him down to his knees where she had wanted him to kneel before her in the first place. He fought her but he still wound up on his knees.

"You can fight all you like, babe, but you'll soon discover that there's nothing to fight here." She whispered against his ear, her lips pressing against sensitive skin before she let him go and moved back to her seat.

He glowered at her. How had he wound up here? He hadn't even fought her that hard. It was pathetic. "You'll soon discover that I fight everything."

Yet again here he knelt at her feet on the floor.

How had that happened?