Chapter 35
thirty-five
LOGAN
“Based on the interviews I’ve submitted with Shannie and Annabelle and Chess’ relation of Tessa’s treatment, I move that Andrew Selman and Emmett Hornby be removed as members of the club and banned for life,” I say. “That concludes the motion.”
I sit down and look around the table.
We’re short one member. Nico, our Master of Blood, wasn’t able to get out of a family commitment to attend the emergency meeting.
He’s given his voting proxy to Karl, which makes me nervous, because Nico usually votes with me, Maude, and Javier, and I can’t count on Karl’s vote.
But I have to have faith in my brother Doms. That’s what this is all about.
It's hard to hold on to that faith when not everyone around the table will meet my eyes.
“We also have a motion from Master Logan for mandatory member re-training on guest security measures and to limit the number of guests per member at any time to two for a period of three months while the club reviews the security measures. This would exclude club events and members of the Elephant’s Playground,” Chess says, going down the printed agenda that’s in front of everyone.
“Is the security retraining necessary if we eliminate these troublesome elements from the club, Logan?” Felix asks.
“Yes,” says another voice before I have a chance to answer.
It’s Guy, Master of Wire, who handles the club’s IT.
“Frankly, I’d be more comfortable if there was mandatory security training every six months.
Members are too lax about guests bringing their own equipment into the club.
I’ve had to speak with people about guests having phones four times in the last two months.
No guest should have a phone inside the club. It just needs to stop.”
I nod at Guy, perfectly happy to let him make my point for me.
“Happy to amend the motion to a mandatory security training every six months,” Chess says, making a note on his agenda. “Any other urgent business?”
When no one speaks, Chess nods. “Logan, Theo, please recuse yourselves. I’ve asked Drew to address the committee.”
Fuck.
I tap my pen on my agenda. “Since when do we allow non-committee members to address the committee?” I ask.
“Since you railroaded Sante out of here,” Franco responds.
“Emmett’s an annual member and I’m happy to vote without hearing from him.
We refund him what’s left of the year and that’s that.
No great harm done. But Drew’s a lifetime member.
Refunding his buy-in represents a financial loss to the club.
We’re depriving him of substantial privileges, including a spot on this committee that I know he’s been working toward. He should have a chance to speak.”
Maude reaches across and closes her fingers around my pen. I release it in disgust. Sante had few friends at the club but Franco was one of them. Clearly, he’s harboring a grudge.
Theo cups his hand under my elbow and pulls me up as he rises from his chair. “Thank you, everyone. I realize this is a rough introduction but I’m looking forward to working with you all as Master of Fur.”
There are nods all around the table. Maybe it will help that Theo’s well-liked.
He let me present most of the motion, since he didn’t sit in on the interviews with Shannie and Annabelle but he offered support from our investigation yesterday, including that Emmett’s been banned from The Pump House, a fetish club in Rochester, due to an alleged consent violation.
I walk out of the small conference room with him. Once the door closes behind me, I stop and rub the back of my neck to release the tension gathered there.
“Did we do enough?” I ask Theo.
“Time will tell. I hate to do this to you, buddy but I’ve got to get back to my desk. I’ve got a report to file for the district attorney and she’ll string me up by my balls if it’s five minutes late.”
“No problem. I’ll let you know what happens.”
Theo pats me on the back. “Hang in there. We’ve got infinite opportunity to take these fucks down. This is just the first salvo.”
“Right, mate. Talk to you soon.”
He leaves me with another reassuring pat. There’s nowhere to sit while I wait, so I retreat down the hallway to the room where we have the breakfast buffet on the weekends.
I nearly slam into Drew as he opens the door and strolls out.
“Ah, Logan.” His smile is unbearably smarmy. “Good to see you.”
“I wish I could say the same,” I respond. “But hopefully this is the last time I’ll have to see you.”
His smile widens. “I wouldn’t count on it.”
I remember my little wonder, confronting Miranda and her fucking scalpel with a diaper bag. She was so calm. So completely confident in her position. I channel a fraction of that confidence and stare Drew down.
He nods, steps out of my way, and continues down the hall to the small conference room.
Fucker.
I sink into one of the folding chairs set around the tables where we eat on weekends. The room is cool and quiet. The hoods are pulled down on the buffet serving stations. The round tables lack their usual tablecloths. There’s a faint smell of fried onions.
Rubbing the back of my neck, I take out my phone.
One of the privileges of lifetime membership, I’m reminded, being able to have a phone in the club.
I have a pile of messages that I prioritize quickly.
Emmy wishing me luck and telling me she loves me.
I send back an “ILY2.” Max messaging about a new job upgrading the security systems at a small chain of private casinos upstate.
I send him back a quick thumbs up. Mac saying that he’s come for moral support and is waiting for me in the Trattoria with our angelic baby.
Grateful to leave this cheerless space, I hasten to the Trattoria.
Mac’s sitting at a table in the conservatory, looking out at the hay bale maze where we had our Doms v subs paintball war.
God, that seems like a long time ago now.
The angelic baby is in her car set on the table, alert but quiet, looking around with her hazy blue eyes.
I sink down next to Mac. “Thanks for coming.”
“How’s it going?”
I shake my head. “Chess punted me and Theo out while Drew addresses the committee. No one’s ever been invited to address the committee on the subject of their membership before. Not in my memory. Franco said it was because I’d ‘railroaded’ Sante out of the club—”
Mac claps me on the shoulder. “Hindsight’s twenty-twenty. You had no way of knowing then what you’d need to be doing now. Don’t beat yourself up. Order something without caffeine and try to relax. You’ve done good here, son, whatever happens.”
I nod and when the waitress circulates among the small number of tables that are occupied at this time on a cold winter’s morning, I order Earl Grey tea. Emily would probably be happier if I ordered that curry-tasting crap but that’s one taste bud too far today.
Mac rocks Livvy’s carrier gently, making the line of toys dangling from the handle swing. Livvy bats at them with her little fists.
“You sure she’s yours?” Mac asks.
I choke on my tea. “Are you serious?”
He grins. “I don’t think she’s yours. Look at her. She’s just looking around, taking it all in. She’s barely made a peep all morning. You were never this quiet. Not even during maneuvers on the damn sub. Well, I take that back. She’s farted a couple of times. Maybe she is yours.”
I punch his arm. “Asshole.”
“Just trying to lighten the mood.” Mac grins off into the distance. “She is a very easy baby, though. I think you and Emmy got lucky.”
“I know we did. This schedule Emmy’s got her on isn’t hurting, either. I can’t believe she’s sleeping through the night already.”
“Schedule’s good, no question. But if she’d been born on her due date and there hadn’t been any complications, she’d be coming up on eight weeks. Plenty of babies sleep through at eight weeks.”
“Plenty don’t,” I say, with the authority of having read two whole baby books. “Thanks again for having my back yesterday.”
“Anytime, son. You think that’s the end of it?”
I nod. “Theo checked with the airlines. She bought a ticket for a flight back to London tomorrow. The warrant won’t issue before her flight but Theo’s going to make sure she gets it so she knows that if she tries to fly into the U.S., or at least New York, she’ll be arrested.”
“Powerful deterrent,” Mac says.
“I don’t think she’ll risk it.” I shrug. “But I wouldn’t have ever thought she’d try to stab Emily, either, so I clearly don’t understand her as well as I thought I did. I’m not going to relax any of my security measures.”
“I wouldn’t suggest that you do, although you can tell Maxie to back off about sticking a chip in my neck. That’s not gonna happen.”
I shake my head at him. I’ll keep working on him. I’m chipped now. Emily’s chipped. Bren’s got one in a piercing she doesn’t take out. He’ll cave eventually.
The clack of heels approaching our table has Mac and me looking up. Maude walks toward us, her face expressionless.
That’s bad. I stand and offer her my chair, grabbing another from an empty table and sitting across from her.
“Is the meeting over?” I ask.
She nods and sits down between us, crossing her legs and smoothing down her skirt. “There are times to push and times to retreat.”
Fuck me.
“What the hell are you saying?” I ask.
“That you’ve lost the battle but not the war.”
“You have to be fucking kidding me. I put two clear cases of Drew and his fucking wolfpack stalking our goddamn subs in front of the committee. No, I can’t prove he was behind what happened to Cappa but Annabelle’s statement was pretty damning. What the fuck did he say to the committee?”