Page 27

OSAKA, JAPAN

T WO WEEKS LATER

I’d been here for a few weeks which had been at least a full one longer than I needed it to be. Ordinarily, I would’ve flown back to San Francisco, but I couldn’t right now. She was still there, even though I had no idea why she even wanted to be. Obviously, everything between us was over. Why prolong the inevitable?

Whatever her reasons, she still arrived at work every day and did what she could. Any tasks that would involve the two of us even corresponding were handled by me because I still could barely stand to look at her through the office camera, much less speak to her in any capacity.

“How in the hell did you ever get onto Olympus? Members couldn’t vouch for other members unless you were a Dominant. Blair Carter was certainly not one of those.

In fact, until I’d met Brynn, Blair had been the perfect submissive. At least for a while. Over time, she’d become attached to me, wanting things I couldn’t and wouldn’t give her. Things I did do and gave to Brynn. I could now imagine the deceased either laughing up at me from Hell or smirking down at me from Heaven knowing that her sister had succeeded where she had failed.

Nothing makes any sense at all.

And without a lot of work to distract me at the moment, I was left in my hotel room with nothing but my raging thoughts. I wanted to throttle Brynn... To wrap my hands around her throat and squeeze until I took from her what she had taken from me... Only I had taken something from her, and I couldn’t know for sure whether she knew it or not.

I’d been as upset at Brynn that night, as I had been at both Aria and Blair on the nights of their deaths. Their blood still stained my hands, and their memories continued to haunt me day and night. I’d taken their lives and had gone on living, although my life had been but a shell until Brynn Davis entered it.

I had no idea if she had known any of the other Dominants, but she had to have in order to have been granted access to the server. It was there that we first started talking, then Lotus where we’d met in person. It had happened the exact same way it had with her sister. Stavros had been the one to meet Blair initially, and it had been his approval that put the willful sub in my path. As I looked over at my laptop, I needed to know who to curse for doing the same with Brynn.

I pulled up the activity logs for Olympus. The member adds section was fairly small as there were only so many people on the damn thing. I’d been dealing with Brynn for months, so I started to scroll down at the administration tasks. There were several password resets and a few invitation links. I noticed one that coincided with the timeframe when I had first met Brynn.

As luck would have it, I saw her link was done off of an another email. As I studied it further, my eyes narrowed. Pulling up another browser, I logged into my account, then went down the member list until I found Killer_B that Blair had created for her username.

It was then when I noticed her log in had been used after her death. There was no internet in the afterlife, and tabbing back to the original browser, I realized exactly what had happened. Brynn had used Blair’s password reset, then created her own account. It was approved, and as I stared at the name, I scowled.

Stavros Sarkis .

Had he known that Brynn was related to Blair? I knew the man had scened a time or two with the fallen submissive, but no one else at Lotus had touched Brynn yet. If he had known anything, I was sure he would’ve said or done something by now.

No, the two of us were from the same walk of life, but we knew very little of each other away from Greece. Seeing him again in San Francisco after leaving our native country had been a shock. There had been no ill will between either of us though, and I didn’t suspect that there was any now.

No one knew what I had done to Blair. If they did, they would’ve exiled me from all things Lotus, as well as Olympus, even though I had built the damn server myself. This was all some sick and twisted coincidence. Still, my hands shook as the walls continued to close in around me. It wouldn’t be long until my secrets were exposed. I knew it, and any god that might be out there, knew it as well.

Grabbing my cell phone, I scrolled through my contacts until I reached the one I wanted.

Hey, Sarkis. I was backing up some folders and I happened to come across the approvals. May I ask why you approved Brynn Davis’s account?

My finger hovered directly over the send button, but as I read my message back, I decided to start over. After erasing everything I’d just typed, I began composing a different message.

Hey, Sarkis. Is there a reason you approved Brynn Davis’s account when she requested access?

Again, I erased it all and started anew.

Hey, Sarkis. Is there specific criteria you use when approving an account?

This time, I hit send, and leaned back on the small sofa in my hotel room. The room was on the second to top floor, so it had a stellar view of the Japanese city. There was nothing but glittering lights for as far as my eyes could see. If I knew how to actually let loose, I was sure there would be a lot for me to do, even if for no other reason than to forget about my current woes.

Yet, I was here in my hotel room like I did most trips. Only I was too busy harboring anger to even concentrate on work. And who could blame me? She had even left her mark there, so there was literally nowhere to hide from Brynn, or the memory of her.

The best thing I could do right now was sleep. Despite the time distance between Japan and California, I knew Stavros would answer, so I stayed up. A few minutes later, he proved me right.

I look at the answers to the question on the server form, including who referred the member to us, if it isn’t one I know firsthand.

When did we start using the latest form?

About two months ago. Is something wrong?

Of course, he likely only saw the link come through a password reset and thought nothing of it. He didn’t know Brynn any more than I did, and I actually wondered if I ever even knew her at all. It sure as hell didn’t feel like it anymore. I’d never be able to trust her again. I already couldn’t trust myself, so I couldn’t be around anyone else that I didn’t. I had to rid her from my life. The how was what still puzzled me to this day.

Are you okay, Benedict? Did I mess something up?

At this message, I quickly fired back a response.

No. I was just working on cleaning up files in the servers, and I thought we asked more questions before than we do now. Thanks for confirming what you do.

No worries. After the one chick ended up dead, we’ve beefed up security. Are you sure there is nothing else?

I’m sure. Good night.

I placed my cell phone back down on the table beside my laptop. Brynn had lied her way onto the server, and had even likely been dishonest about her experience in the lifestyle. She was so convincing, although her sister had been a damn good actress, too.

I rose from the couch and moved over to the bed, then fell back onto it. As I closed my eyes, I saw visions of both submissives, and seeing them side by side in my perverse fantasy right now, I was stupid to have never noticed the glaring similarities before. I didn’t need to ask a club member or anyone else why I hadn’t. The truth was that I hadn’t wanted to see it.

After Blair’s demise, I’d wanted to distract myself with anything, and Brynn had been the perfect one for me. I’d been too busy trying to acclimate her into a lifestyle we both enjoyed, then later into my personal space. I’d been too sidetracked to think about things I now knew I should’ve. Since scening that first night with Brynn, I hadn’t done as much as even talked to another submissive on the server, or met anyone at Lotus.

“All I felt was you,” I mumbled under my breath. “I’m so fucking stupid.”

I was still too wired to sleep, and I didn’t dare to venture too far away from the hotel. When I got in moods like this, others ultimately paid the price. Aria... Blair... and who knew how many others had crossed me and been unable to live with the consequences afterward? I’d been there with the women, but I couldn’t remember the actual acts. Blacking out was likely my mind’s defense of shielding me from my own actions. One of these days, my rage would be even too much for it to block out. I shuddered to think of what I might do in that moment. As my hands grew shaky, my resolve did as well. Deciding it best to stay in after all, I popped a few sleeping pills into my mouth, then downed them with a few mouthfuls of water. It wasn’t long before I fell asleep.