The Darkest Hour

Chapter 2

Kenzie raced for her gray Mazda in the student lot around the corner. She scrambled to dig her keys out of her pocket as she reached the car. She expected Monte or Gary to stop her at any moment, but less than a minute later she was speeding out of the lot. Glancing in the rearview mirror, she sagged in relief at the empty road behind her. No one was following her.

Her hand reached for her cell phone to call the police. It took her two tries before she got 911 dialed.

"Nine-one-one, what is your emergency?" a cool feminine voice asked.

"My name is Kenzie Martin and" She froze, remembering what one of the men had said about their man in the local police department. "There's been a disturbance at the university. Someone broke into the campus offices."

She hung up the phone, cursing. Then she called Royce again. This time he answered, and his gruff voice made her want to cry with relief.

"Kenzie, you know my policy on Saturdays. This had better be an emergency."

"It is," she gasped, her eyes blurring with tears. "Please, I'm so scared, I"

Royce's tone changed completely. "What's wrong? Tell me what happened and where you are."

"I'm driving. Where are you?"

"Kenzie, pull over to the side of the road and take a deep breath."

"I can't," she gasped. "Some men broke into your office, Royce. I barely got away. I can't stop."

There was a heartbeat of silence, and then Royce was back in control.

"Follow these directions exactly, do you understand me? It's a safe location. You're going to drive to the Gilded Cuff. It's a nightclub in an old warehouse. Ask for me at the front desk."

Kenzie took note of the directions as she drove, and when she felt she could handle it, she hung up. Her hands were shaking, but she gripped the steering wheel tight, refusing to let herself panic more than she already was. She was going to Royce and to a safe place. It was going to be okay. Soon her breathing calmed and she was able to think a little more clearly.

She kept the car lights off as she drove, only turning them back on when she reached the turn in the road Royce had directed her to. She knew the cops weren't likely to be out on this particular road. She'd never thought she'd be afraid of cops, but if one of them was involved with Gary and Monte, who could she actually trust?

The nightclub was hidden just off a little road, and the club itself occupied a huge old warehouse. He had described exactly how to get there over the phone.

No doubt he'll be pissed for ruining his Saturday night.

But she didn't care. She'd had a gun shoved in her face, and two men had threatened to kill her. Because of him. Kenzie knew at some point she was going to come to a grinding halt and the shock of what she'd survived was going to set in. But she had to fight that off for now and focus on the next step, then the next, and however many more it took to feel somewhat safe again. She almost missed the sign for the road that led to the nightclub. She parked right in front, not caring that the sign in the spot she'd taken said "Reserved."

Her body stung and ached as she walked to the door of the club. The rain drenched her clothes, making her shiver. The club's front door was made of heavy oak, and she used the last bit of her strength to pull it open. Her breathing echoed harshly off the craggy stone walls and floors of the lobby. For a second Kenzie simply stood there, listening the sound of her own breath bouncing back at her from every angle.

You got this faryou can keep going. She wasn't a fan of nightclubs in general, but she wasn't going to let a strange new setting scare her, not after everything she'd been through tonight. If anything, she'd feel safer in a crowd.

A fancy antique desk was toward the back of the lobby, close to another door. The woman behind the desk was studying the screen of a sleek computer monitor. She wore a pencil skirt and fitted jacket, and her hair was pulled up in a fashionable chignon, like some kind of sexy librarian. A man in a black suit stood behind her, and his grim expression showed a brief flicker of surprise at Kenzie's disheveled state.

"Mistress Aria." The sound was a low murmur, but Kenzie heard it due to the acoustics in the room.

The woman at the desk looked up at Kenzie, now standing in front of the expensive antique desk.

"Excuse me, could you tell Royce Devereaux someone is here to see him?" she asked, shivering.

"I received no instructions that he was expecting any guests, which means you are not permitted inside to see him." Aria glanced at the man behind her before meeting Kenzie's gaze. There was some sense of controlled power about the woman.

Mistress Aria. Why had the man called her "Mistress"? That was such an old-world sounding word that didn't fit with a nightclub. Aria reminded her of Royce, with that cool, bossy attitude. She'd never admit to anyone that it turned her on a little when he got that way.

Sometimes he'd tease her, saying little things that set fire to her body, like "Little Mac, you better get that lecture ready or I'll remind you who's in charge." He'd smile at her like he was thinking something particularly wicked and wonderful. Yet he'd never said anything bad enough to get either of them in trouble. He knew how to walk the line between acceptable and not. And God, she wanted so badly for him to just cross that line and do what his eyes seemed to promise.

"I know all the members of the club, which means I know that you are not one. I cannot give away any information regarding our members to nonmembers, and I will not allow you to enter the club to speak to them. We are also not open to new memberships at this time, so please don't pretend to ask for a tour."

Kenzie shook her head. "I don't care about that. I need to speak with Royce Devereaux. It's an emergency. I'm his teaching assistant at the college. He said I should come here. Just go ask him. Please."

She paused, remembering how the man behind the desk had addressed this woman. Maybe it would curry more favor if she did the same. "Mistress Aria." She lowered her head, doing her best to look pitiful, which wasn't hard considering how much pain she was in and how scared she was. If Aria didn't let her speak to Royce, she was going to call him again.

The woman was silent for a moment. Kenzie didn't dare look up to see if her behavior was having any effect.

"Very well. What is your name, little one?" Aria asked.

"MacKenzie Martin."

Aria arose with a nod to the man behind her. "Stay here with her, Bruce." She walked over to the door at the back and disappeared behind it.

"Please, take a seat, Ms. Martin." Bruce escorted Kenzie over to a bench against the wall. She sat down and curled her arms around her chest, shaking from the cold. Water dripped from her hair onto the bench and pooled at her feet. Her heart was still pounding heavily. The door opened, and she lifted her eyes.

When she saw Royce Devereaux, her heart stopped. He wore jeans and a black T-shirt that hugged his torso tight enough to fill her stomach with butterflies.

"Dr. Devereaux?"

He strode over and knelt down on one knee, cupping her cheek, turning her face to his. "Kenzie, what happened?"

She suddenly realized how she must look right now, and she closed her eyes, blinking as tears flowed down her face. Royce brushed a tear away with the pad of his thumb.

She felt safe now that she was close to him. He had that effect on her. Royce projected strength, and he had a way of making her feel that he would stand between her and the world if she needed him to.

"Can I speak with you privately?" she whispered. Bruce and Aria were still there, watching them.

Royce's eyes narrowed. "Okay, sure. There's a room in the club where we can have some privacy. But I have to warn you, this isn't just a regular nightclub. The Gilded Cuff iswell, it's a b**m club. Just stay close to me. You might feel a bit startled by what you see. No one will harm you."

He held out a hand, and she didn't hesitate in grasping it. She needed him to touch her, to ground her so she didn't feel like she was going to fall apart. It was the only way she could stop shaking.

But a b**m club? Was he serious? She knew what the letters stood for: bondage, discipline, sadism, and masochism. But she'd never thought she'd get to see a real-life club where people participated in an alternative lifestyle. She was going to have to trust him to keep her safe. She followed Royce toward the door leading to the club's interior, hugging his side.

She drew in a deep breath as she stepped into the Gilded Cuff and saw Royce's private world for the first time.