Chapter 6: Into Her Lair.

Flint led him down the stairs to the ground level floor, underneath the rear three-quarters of the house. To his right, there was a recreation room, with a pool table, a little bar area with three stools, a small sink, and a refrigerator. In the far wall were windows and a door to the outside, so the room had plenty of natural light. And to his left, a solid oak door with a sign: “RUMPUS ROOM.”

He recognized that this was not a place for playful children. And when she unlocked and swung the heavy door wide, his concerns were borne out.

The first thing he noticed was an immense cross fixed to the wall in the shape of an “X”—with four locking cuffs on each of its arms, for wrists and ankles.

“It’s called a cross of St. Andrew,” she explained, unnecessarily.

On another wall was a bench, without arms, about the size of a twin bed. It was padded and covered with black leather. Hanging on the wall nearby was, you guessed it, a collection of whips and chains. Also manacles, ball gags, hoods, all sorts of fetish gear.

He had not yet crossed the threshold, and he stepped back, nervously.

“Oh, no. Not going to happen.”

He turned towards the stairs, ready to leave.

“Wait!” Her hand gripped his arm.

“Colonel, you said, nothing damaging, and I warned you that I won’t be erect if I’m in pain. Better I found out now, than after you had me chained up and gagged and about to be cut apart by your whips.

“Do what you want to me and my career, Flint, but you’re breaking your word. That means everything else—like the money—is a lie too, isn’t it? Isn’t it? I’m going to leave now. You’ll have my transfer request in the morning. And if that doesn’t go through...”

“Wait, please. We can talk over there at the bar; just give me five minutes. After that, you’re free to go, I will process your transfer orders, and we’ll part company.

On the Bar Stools.

“I have sodas and beer here, do you want anything? No? Then first, I am a woman of my word. You won’t be harmed or hurt by anything I do in this building, ever. The most dangerous device to you is that laser printer, by giving you a paper cut.

“All that gear in there, in that room over there, is for effect. It’s theater.

“I get off on seeing a big strong man like yourself being overpowered. Everything I have is designed with a weakness, a flaw, for safety. You could have pulled apart that ankle chain from the other day without too much effort. We’re going to have a ‘safe word’ you can use, a word like ‘mango’ or ‘cottage,’ to stop things and get free at any time.”