Chapter 26
Emily stood at the shadowed entrance to the labyrinth, the night air skimming her bare skin.
She, Deanna, and Gaby were among the other submissives joining the game, each wearing only wrist cuffs and shoes.
A cluster of dominants lingered nearby. Some she knew from D&A—Rhys, Leland, and Mateo among them—but most were new to her.
Unlike the submissives, they seemed at ease—leaning casually against the outer hedge walls, arms crossed, eyes appraising.
Emily shifted her weight nervously. She’d been naked at the club before, but never without Alec’s reassuring presence close by. Gaby bumped her shoulder, flashing a grin that didn’t quite hide her unease.
“Nervous?” she whispered.
“Terrified,” Emily murmured. “I didn’t expect to have to strip bare. You?”
“Naked subs in a maze isn’t a new idea,” Deanna chimed in from her other side. “But turning it into a charity game? That’s all Master Dev’s wicked imagination.”
“Do you understand how this works?” Emily asked. “I read the rules three times, but other than no penetration, the doms don’t seem to have any.”
Deanna huffed a laugh. “Were you expecting subs’ rules? Not in this lifetime—unless your dom’s a switch, and that’s not happening with this crew.” A slow, wicked grin tugged at her mouth. “And you forgot the exceptions. Fingers, tongues, and toys are still on the table.”
Gaby uttered under her breath, “I was trying to forget that part.”
Emily turned to ask why she’d chosen the maze over the tamer games, but her eyes were on Rhys. That was answer enough.
“The maze adds suspense,” Deanna continued. “I’d rather be indoors with all the amenities.”
“What kind of amenities?” she and Gaby asked in unison.
“Battery-operated toys are fine, but hard-wired? That takes the experience to the next level.” She shrugged. “There’s always next weekend. So, newbies, who are you choosing if you win? First, second, and third place get their pick of doms. I’m going for Master Mateo. His accent alone makes me wet.”
“Isn’t Mateo a sadist?” Emily asked, warily.
“Mm-hmm,” Deanna said, eyes gleaming. “I’ve never done a scene with him, but some of the other girls say he can work miracles with a single tail.” She rubbed her hands together. “I’m aiming for a perfect score and a religious experience with that gorgeous sadist as my reward.”
She was another unabashed free spirit. Emily wouldn’t have been surprised if she licked her lips.
Deanna bent forward to peer around her at Gaby. “You’re awfully quiet. Sure you’re up to this?”
“I’m just planning my strategy,” was her reply, but her gaze drifted to the group of dominants.
“I thought Rhys was out of town on a case,” Em asked.
“I did, too. This is a big night for Devil and Cari. Maybe he came back for it.”
A ripple of excitement moved through the crowd.
“Speak of the devil,” Deanna murmured. “There’s Master Dev now.”
Dressed in black from collar to boots, he strode to the front, commanding without effort. Conversation ceased when he raised a hand.
“Welcome to our inaugural running of the maze race,” he began.
“Labyrinth,” several feminine voices corrected.
“Yes, yes. I keep forgetting,” he acknowledged with a smirk.
“Quick rules review. At five-minute intervals, each sub will enter the labyrinth”—he paused for the cheers that he’d gotten it right—“and move quickly but carefully until they reach a fork. Choose wisely, subbies. One path leads to a reward from one of our skilled dominants. The other? A dead end or a lovely loop that spits you out where you started.”
A few subs exchanged nervous glances.
“If you don’t find the station before the timer sounds,” Devil continued, “you’ll be assessed a penalty.”
A hand shot up and a tentative voice asked, “What if we get hopelessly lost and never find a station?”
Devil arched a brow. “Are you that bad with directions, Sophia?”
“Horrible, sir. I’d never get home without my GPS.”
“Too bad, dear heart.” Sympathy laced his tone. “You might rack up several penalties. A merciful dom might offer a tip along the way.”
“That would be good, sir. But it would have to be a really big one. I’m hopeless.”
“I’ll give her a big tip—and then some, Dev,” a male voice called suggestively.
Laughter rose though Sophia seemed oblivious. “Thank you, Master Thomas, but is that allowed? It doesn’t seem fair for me to get a big tip if they don’t.”
Master Dev managed to keep a straight face.
“In your case, with only ninety minutes allotted to finish the game, it might be necessary.” He cleared his throat, waiting for the snickering to die down.
“Now then… There are four entry points and five stations per path. Each sub must find and finish all five stops. Two points for each successfully completed station. One point deducted if you fail.”
Facing an hour and a half of potential penalties, Emily was rethinking her choice of games. But she wasn’t giving a BJ to anyone other than Alec, and she looked silly in a cowboy hat.
“The top three scores win,” Devil said, not done with the rules. “They will get their choice of dom for the evening—”
“Including you, Master Dev?” a sub asked boldly.
“From among the game participants,” he finished, extending his arm to the gathered dominants. “The three lowest scores will take center stage and receive an even—dare I say, stiffer—penalty courtesy of a disciplinarian I select.”
Masters Marcus, Leland, and Mateo were suggested by the boisterous crowd, prompting both eager and wary glances from the submissives.
“Questions?” Master Dev’s gaze swept the submissives.
A soft voice piped up. “Is there a special prize for first place?”
Devil grinned, demonstrating how he came by his name. “Good question, Piper. First place gets to come.”
A collective gasp swept through the subs.
“Did I forget to mention that before?” Devil deadpanned. “How remiss of me.”
Male chuckles rippled as Devil pulled a tri-folded paper from his pocket.
“Ah, yes. Here it is on the entry form.” He held it up. “Any sub who climaxes during the race will be paddled on the spot, lose five points, and must restart the game.”
He waited, as nervous giggles spread through the submissives.
“Does that answer your question, Piper?”
“Yes, sir. Unfortunately. Should I just surrender to last place now?”
“Where’s the challenge in that?” he replied. “Consider this an opportunity to work on your control, sweeting.”
Emily whispered to Deanna. “What are they talking about?”
“Piper has a reputation. The doms nicknamed her Eleanor.”
Not understanding, Emily shook her head.
“You know. Like in Gone in Sixty Seconds,” Deanna explained. “No matter what they do—punishment, edging, wearing her out with repeated orgasms—she still comes in under a minute. Poor girl.”
Emily wasn’t entirely convinced fast was so bad. Not being able to come at all had to be worse.
Once the laughter stopped, Dev wrapped up.
“As always, the club safewords apply. And, except for what’s listed in the rules, there will be no penetration, so keep it in your pants, gentlemen.
And, Mistress Natalie, I didn’t mean to leave you out.
Further intimacy may be negotiated after the game is done. ”
He looked out over the gathering. “If there are no other questions.” He paused a beat, and, when no hands went up, announced, “Then let the game begin!”
Applause and a few cheers followed. The dominants moved into the maze to man their stations, or so Emily assumed. Minutes later, the first contestant stepped inside.
She was toward the end of the line. When her turn came, she took a tentative step up to Master Dev. Cari, who was assisting him, smiled as she handed him a scorecard—a simple index card threaded with ribbon, her name printed neatly on one side. Emily dipped her head to accept it, but he hesitated.
His gaze swept her face, lingering on her bottom lip—bitten, as usual—then dropped to her hands, clasped so tightly her knuckles had turned white.
“You’ve never taken part in one of our group games, Emily. Do you understand the rules?”
“I think so. I’m a little nervous, sir. If I’m being honest.”
“You’ve had a rough few weeks,” he said gently. “You could skip the games and still join the after-party. Nervous is fine. Scared isn’t.”
She offered him the same reassurance she’d given Alec. “I don’t want to be singled out. I’ll be all right.”
At least she hoped that was true—but kept her doubts to herself.
Still studying her, he tipped her chin up with two fingers. “You remember our club safewords?”
“Red means stop. Yellow means slow down or I need to talk.”
“Use them if you need to. I won’t be pleased if you don’t.”
Her throat suddenly dry, she all but croaked, “I will, sir. I promise.”
He held her gaze a moment longer then dropped the ribbon over her head. “You’re assigned to path four. Have fun, little subbie.”
Free from his intense scrutiny, she could breathe again. The man had an uncanny ability to see inside others’ heads, which made him an excellent investigator and the perfect dungeon master.
As Emily stepped through the vine-covered arbor, she was grateful she’d been allowed to keep her shoes. No matter how meticulous the landscapers, a twig or stray rock on bare feet would spoil the mood fast.
A small sign identified her route. She followed it, and, twenty feet in, reached her first crossroads. Left or right—under the crescent moon, both paths looked the same.
With no gut instinct to guide her—as spidey senses went, she had zero—Emily fell back on a childhood tactic.
“Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, give me a hint on which way to go. And please don’t let the path lead to a sadist.”
She’d never had luck—in cards, in love, in anything. Biggest win of her life? A free scratch-off ticket. She didn’t expect fortune to favor her now. So she did what any unlucky person would do: she did an about-face and walked in the opposite direction from where the rhyme had ended.