Darker: Prequel Read online

  Darker

  Prequel

  M. S. Parker

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2020 Belmonte Publishing LLC

  Published by Belmonte Publishing LLC

  Contents

  Free Book

  The Darker Trilogy

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Epilogue

  Preview Darker I: The Novice

  The Darker Trilogy

  Free Book

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  The Darker Trilogy

  Thank you for reading Darker: Prequel, the introduction to my new Darker Trilogy. I highly recommend reading the books in this order:

  Prequel – Darker

  Darker I: The Novice (Sept 11th)

  Darker II: The Inquirer (Sept 25th)

  Darker III: The Fugitive (Oct 9th)

  Prologue

  PRESENT DAY

  He whimpered around the ball gag and I gave him a sharp look, reminding him without words that I’d told him to be quiet. He fell silent, though the look in his dark eyes said that it wasn’t easy.

  I fully intended to take it slow. This was a first time for me, and I’d chosen my partner with that in mind.

  I dimmed the lights a little more and then nodded, satisfied with the result. The low lighting I’d chosen softened things, casting a purple glow on everything. This was my favorite room at Club Privé, and the wide array of color schemes to choose from was only one reason.

  The other was that this was the only room at the club that had an X-frame cross that could be raised several feet off the floor and moved around while a person was strapped to it, as well as a plethora of attachment and toy options.

  For example, at the moment, the X was a little wider than normal and the dark-haired man stretched on it didn’t have ankle restraints keeping his legs in place. On a normal St. Andrew’s cross, that might not have mattered that much, but how I had things set up today, it definitely mattered. His toes rested on two small pieces of wood, and they were the only things assisting his arms in keeping his body in place.

  And he wanted to stay where he was.

  If he slipped or his legs gave out, the five-inch long butt plug on the post beneath him would slide right into his ass. Well, it’d ‘slide’ with a little…assistance anyway.

  “How are you doing?” I asked as I crossed the room. I didn’t expect an answer since he couldn’t exactly talk with the ball gag in his mouth, but I wasn’t looking for a response. It was a reminder for him that I was in charge.

  I stopped within arm’s reach, allowing myself the luxury of admiring the fine form in front of me. He was a few inches taller than my own five feet six inches, putting him just under six feet tall. Nice broad shoulders, but a little more muscular than I usually liked. His dark hair was cut short, his rugged features clean-shaven, though his chest had a little more hair than I usually liked. His cock, however, was nice and thick, just long enough to get the job done, especially with his jewelry.

  Keeping my eyes on his face, I ran my finger down his chest. The muscles in his stomach tensed and jumped under my touch, so it was no surprise when his feet slipped. He sucked in a breath – or tried to, anyway – as an inch and a half of flesh-colored silicone disappeared between his cheeks.

  “That’s a good start.” I patted his cheek before walking over to the chair I’d set up a couple feet from where the man hung.

  That’s who he was.

  The man.

  I didn’t have a name and I didn’t want one. I hadn’t told him mine and didn’t intend to, though he might have heard it before. With dark red hair, bright green eyes, and a name like Nyx, people often remembered me, and I wasn’t a stranger to this place, but I didn’t worry about him finding me or harassing me. The club screened its members extremely well and this man was a member, not a guest.

  I settled in the chair and let the silence fill the room. I could have turned on the speakers that would allow the club music to be heard in here, but I didn’t want the added distraction.

  It was hard to believe I was actually doing this. My fucked-up past hadn’t completely destroyed my life. As I prepared myself for the amazing things about to happen, my mind drifted back to how this all began…

  One

  ONE YEAR EARLIER…

  Fucking August weather.

  New York City was my home, and I loved it, but the weather extremes were a serious bitch.

  Two feet of snow on Valentine’s Day this past February and record-setting highs the last week of July. Now, three weeks into August, the heat wasn’t quite that stifling, but it was far from cool outside, even if the sun had been down for a couple hours already.

  Fortunately for me, it was time to swap with the indoor bouncer at Ladies’ Choice, which meant I got to finish my shift in a nice and blissfully air-conditioned room, while Archie had to stand out here sweating until closing time.

  “Damn!” Archie let out a low whistle. “Hotter than the devil’s asshole out here.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Such a charmer, Archie.”

  He grinned. “Would you prefer colder than a witch’s tit? I mean, if that’s the way you swing, Nyx Phoenix…”

  “I’ve already told you that I don’t date – or fuck – co-workers.” That was the truth. Not all of it, but if I expounded on it, Archie would figure out some reason as to why I should go out with him, anyway. He wasn’t a bad guy to work with, but he could be a little sleazy at times.

  Okay, a lot sleazy, actually, but he was all talk and no action.

  He couldn’t figure out why I didn’t want to go out with him. Me saying I was a lesbian would’ve just invited all sorts of innuendos and jokes. But telling him I didn’t date co-workers, letting him know my job came first and implying that HR would get involved if any harassment took place, always did the trick. Since Archie loved his job, he wasn’t going to let a date with one woman risk it.

  “Have fun,” he said as I moved to the door. “I don’t think a single person in that bachelorette party is sober.”

  “Great.” I grimaced as I went inside.

  I’d been working as a bouncer at the male strip club for the past two years, and the worst customers by far were women with bachelorette parties. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know why. Even if the bride-to-be wasn’t all about having her last big ogle before limiting her choices to one, the rest of her party usually saw this as either a break from their married lives or a reminder that they weren’t yet on the way to the altar.

  Which meant they sometimes got a little riled up when their night was coming to an end. They were the current bane of my existence, but they were also the reason why Archie’s job was so important to him. Out of the dozen or so strippers employed by Ladies’ Choice, half of them were gay, and the other half either married or in relationships. That meant Archie got to pick up the slack when it came to women who were sober enough to consent, but drunk enough to think it was a good idea to bang the bouncer.

  Until they reached that point, however, it was my job to make sure they didn’t get too handsy with the employees. Since I was a woman and was less likely to be accused of groping if I had to manhandle a horny kindergarten
teacher or minister’s wife, I generally ended up being scheduled on those nights.

  Like tonight.

  Ladies’ Choice wasn’t the classiest male strip club in the city, but it also wasn’t the sleaziest, which meant it was perfect for me. I did best when I could blend in with the crowd, a skill set that the manager of the club both valued and utilized. He also didn’t give me shit on the rare occasions I had to call off.

  I weaved my way through the crowd, sidestepping the servers carrying trays of drinks and the women who were on their feet, catcalling and throwing panties at the stage.

  Mother fucker.

  I was going to kick Archie’s ass. He knew better than to let patrons start taking off their clothes. It always gave them ideas. We had a sign that said anything other than money that ended up on the stage would be thrown away, but that didn’t stop hungover women from calling or coming in the day after they’d ‘lost’ their favorite bra or pair of underwear, demanding it be returned.

  To my right, I spotted a skinny brunette swinging a pair of panties over her head, getting ready to launch them at ‘Firehouse Hank,’ aka Henry Fitzbottom, the act currently on the stage. He was down to his tear-away pants, which were the last item he’d remove, but his G-string was small enough to leave nothing to the imagination.

  It wasn’t a stretch to figure out where his nickname had come from.

  “Excuse me.” I pitched my voice loud enough to be heard over the music and screaming. When the woman didn’t respond, I stepped in front of her. “Excuse me.”

  “Outta my way,” she slurred, glaring at me. She tried to step around me and stumbled over her own feet. Before I could react, she vomited on the floor.

  Wonderful. Whoever her server was tonight would be getting an earful about knowing when to cut someone off.

  At least she’d dropped her underwear.

  I grabbed a chair and set it over the puddle to keep anyone from stepping in it before hurrying away to get some fresher air by the bar.

  “Clean up,” I hollered at the bartender. When he turned to look at me, I pointed in the direction of the mess. “Who served them?”

  Kingston – I didn’t know if that was his last or his first name – scowled. “Robby.”

  I sighed. Robby Sprouse had been here for a month and already had two warnings for over serving and one for inappropriate conduct. Basically, he liked to ply women with alcohol and then fuck them in the supply closet.

  I had my suspicions about whether or not all the women had actually been sober enough to consent, but the only woman he’d ever been caught with had insisted that she’d known what she was doing, so he’d just gotten in trouble for having sex while on the job.

  “Where is he?” I asked, leaning on the bar. I was flashing Kingston a whole lot of boob, but he didn’t even glance that way. When he’d told me he was asexual, I hadn’t believed him. Some guys would say anything to get in a girl’s pants, but in the year-and-a-half we’d been working together, I hadn’t caught him checking out anyone, male or female.

  “Went on break ten minutes ago.” Kingston brought a drink over for the woman standing next to me.

  “Figures,” I said. Everyone knew that if Robby hadn’t been related to the boss, he would’ve been out after that first time.

  I headed toward the back, pleased that Kingston hadn’t asked if I wanted Archie to help. Robby wasn’t a little guy, but I could still handle him. A part of me wanted him to act up, give me an excuse to take him down a peg or two. He liked to brag that he took some sort of karate and had been a boxer before he’d torn his rotator cuff or some shit like that. He was full of it, though.

  I’d been around enough people who actually knew how to fight to know how they carried themselves. Robby didn’t know dick. I, however, knew more than dick.

  On the off-chance Robby had learned his lesson, I checked the break room first, and then the area out back smokers used. He could’ve been taking a piss, but I figured that’d be the last place I’d check. I didn’t want him riding my ass about busting him using the bathroom. If he wasn’t doing something wrong and I acted like he was, it’d just make it harder to prove when it really did happen. Robby was the sort of childish asshat who’d throw a tantrum just to make the noise.

  Fortunately for me, the sounds coming from the supply closet weren’t exactly subtle, giving me a reason to yank open the door and catch Robby with his pants down. Literally.

  Except it wasn’t just the fact that his cock was buried in a woman’s mouth. A shadow on her face made me take another look, even though I didn’t want to see anything of Robby’s more closely. She had tears running down her cheeks, her makeup smeared, but what I’d thought was a shadow wasn’t makeup either. It was a bruise, or the beginnings of one, anyway. When he pulled his cock out of her mouth, I saw her lip had been split too.

  Motherfucking bastard.

  “You’re done, asshole.” I started to move past him to reach for the girl, and he grabbed my arm. A flare of panic and anger mixed together in my gut. “Let. Go.”

  “Or what?” He grinned at me. His fingers dug in hard enough to bruise, but I didn’t make a sound. “Why don’t you join us?” Robby’s gaze raked over me in a way that made me want a nine-hour shower in water hot enough to scald.

  I didn’t answer him, but instead pointed at the woman. “Go find whoever you came with or talk to the bartender if you need a car called.”

  “I’m not done,” he snapped. “Unless you want to take her place.”

  Not even looking his way, I spoke to the woman. “Go.”

  She pushed past his legs and managed to get herself to her feet once in the hall. I waited until she was a safe distance away before twisting against Robby’s grip and getting my arm free.

  “You’re done.” I glared up at him. “Your uncle may put up with you fucking around on the job, but not roughing up the customers.”

  “She wanted it that way. Sluts like kinky shit like that.”

  I gritted my teeth. “Out. Now. Don’t make me call security.”

  He grabbed me again, this time with both hands, and he shoved me against the wall. “You should be nicer to me.” He leaned in close, his breath hot and stinking of alcohol. “But don’t worry. I know all about how to make cunts like you be nice to men the way you should.”

  With the last word, I caught a whiff of cigarettes, and it was like my mind was suddenly back a dozen years. It was a different man, a different place. Adrenaline flooded me, and it felt like a switch flipped.

  The self-defense classes I’d taken for the past few years kicked in, and I moved without even really thinking about it. A knee to the groin hit him in the thigh instead, but I was still able to get my foot hooked behind his and dropped him right on his ass. I went down too, driving my knee into his stomach, right in the solar plexus, hard enough to knock the wind out of him.

  I leaned over him, letting him cough and gasp for a few seconds before I said a word. I wanted to make sure he heard and understood what I was about to say. “You’re done here. You’re going to leave and never come back. If you ever come near me again, I’ll rip your fucking balls off.”

  “Bitch,” he wheezed as I stood, barely resisting the desire to kick him in the ribs.

  I grabbed Robby’s arm and yanked him to his feet. “Get your pants up, or I’ll drag you out like this.”

  “Bitch,” he muttered as he yanked at his pants.

  “Yeah, yeah. I heard you the first time. Get some new insults. Let’s go.” I gestured toward the door, half-expecting him to argue, but instead, he stomped out of the closet and down the hallway.

  I followed, a half-step behind him until we emerged into the main part of the club. He turned to the left, making for the bar. He’d only gotten a few steps before I grabbed his arm. He spun on me, and I reacted automatically, twisting his arm behind his back and using the leverage to put him on the floor. A few women let out startled yelps, but most of the patrons were thoroughly engrossed in
the opening of Jojo’s show and didn’t really seem to notice the slight commotion.

  Considering the impressive eight-pack Jojo had just unveiled, I couldn’t really blame them. I didn’t tend to notice the guys when they were on stage, but that man’s body was…just wow.

  “Again? Seriously? Didn’t you fucking learn the first time, bitch?” I leaned close enough for him to hear me over the blaring music.

  “Let go!” Robby’s voice was muffled against the carpet, and I took a moment to hope that he was getting a faceful of germs.

  “I’m going to let you up. Then we’re going outside, and you’ll leave. If you can do that without any more trouble, I’ll tell your uncle to give you your last paycheck. If not, I’ll tell him the money should go to that redhead, so she doesn’t sue his ass off.”

  He said something into the carpet that didn’t sound very complimentary, but since he nodded, I let his petty insult slide. I pulled back as he got to his feet, keeping a tight grip on his wrist. He didn’t fight me as we walked the rest of the way like that, but he pulled away the moment we stepped outside.

  “Nyx?” Eyes wide, Archie looked from me to Robby and back again.

  “I caught him roughing up a guest. He’s done.” I leaned on the door to keep it open. I wasn’t about to step out into that heat again if I didn’t have to. “Make sure he stays away.”

  Robby was still cursing at me when the door shut behind me. I took a moment to smooth down my shirt from where it’d twisted up around my waist during the scuffle, then tucked a few strands of hair behind my ears, and headed back to the bar.

  This was one of those times I wished I could drink on the clock. Some employees indulged, and as long as we didn’t get drunk, no one cared, but I liked to have my head clear when I was working. I didn’t do things half-assed…even if my job involved protecting mostly naked men from mostly drunk women.