Page 6 of Redemption's Inferno

He sighed heavily, at war with himself. A sex slave and humiliation rituals were nothing new. Some women actually enjoyed them, but as a strong, dominant woman, Emilie most likely would not. She was punishing herself for something and using her involvement in the BDSM world for something it wasn’t meant for. Yet her desperation tugged at him, and he understood the need for relief.

“Please, Warren. There is no one else I trust like this and until I find the answers I need, I feel so much shame! You must know someone who would be willing to humiliate me—even if it was just once.”

“Of course I know people, but I wouldn’t dream of leaving you there alone, and to watch that…” He scowled. “You’re not just some random member of my club—you’re my friend.”

“And I’m asking you, as my friend, to help me. Afterwards, I’ll be searching for the answers I need to make this go away.”

“I could help you with that more easily.”

“No. I have to do this on my own.” She looked away. “Maybe I should just go to the police and turn myself in.”

“You’ve been sending me pictures of your little girl for how long now, Em? A year?”

She nodded, pulling out her phone and opening a picture. “She’s 15 months.”

“And she’s with her father?”

“Yes. It’s summer so Viggo isn’t playing hockey. He’s with a partner now, and they’re both wonderful with her.”

He stared at the picture for a long moment. “If you go to the police and they arrest you, what will happen to Simone?”

“Her two fathers will take good care of her,” she whispered.

“Won’t you tell me what you’ve done so I can perhaps find a way around—”

“No! I’ve found a way around it for eight years! No more. I have to face it.”

“And what of your daughter? Even with the world’s best father, she’ll miss her mother. A little girl needs a mum and a dad.”

“I know, but she needs a healthy mum, and that’s not me. I’m far from healthy emotionally.”

“Emilie, I will agree to this for a very short period of time, but you will—you must—try to sort out your situation. If you don’t find a solution, or tell me exactly what it is you’ve done, I will end it. Do you understand?”

She swallowed. “Yes.”

“Tell me something, little one.” He sat back in his oversized leather chair and narrowed his eyes. “Look at me.”

She met his gaze. “What do you want to know?”

“Do you believe a few days or weeks of pain, submission, humiliation—all of that—will change anything? If you’ve committed a crime, you’ll still go to jail. If you haven’t, it will be a big waste. And if it’s something in the middle, what do you hope to gain?”

“Punishment just feels fitting,” she whispered.

“Then I’ll ask again—why not go straight to the police and turn yourself in?”

She swallowed. “Because I’m more afraid of that than this.”

Warren hesitated. He had the means to find out what she was hiding and he would use every tool available to him to do so. In the meantime, he was loath to allow her to do this, but he could tell she was determined. If he didn’t deliver what she wanted in a safe setting, she would undoubtedly find strangers to do it, and that would be more dangerous than anything he could provide for her. “You get a few days, Emilie. Then this insanity ends—do you understand?”

She nodded.

“All right. I have to make some calls, but in the meantime, how about spending the day with a perverted old man who wants a sexy 25-year-old on his arm to show off to his mates?”

She actually smiled, her face lighting up for the first time. “I’m turning 27 soon, but I would love that. I’d like to freshen up a bit first. May I use your powder room?”

“Of course.” He nodded and watched her disappear into the bathroom. Quickly, before she came out, he sent an email to a mutual friend. Perhaps it was time for more than one of his young friends to exorcise their demons, giving him the opportunity to exorcise a few of his own.

Chapter 3

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