David awoke on Wednesday with a distinct feeling of
unease. Somehow, knowing that there were others with mental skills out
there didn't exactly give rise to any 'kindred spirit feelings'. All he
really wanted was to be left alone to live quietly. A few more like
Aristides and maybe we could retire to some secluded mountain, he
thought.
The day passed by just like any other day. And as evening drew near, he
felt slightly apprehensive. The room and dinner had been pre-booked at
the Birch Manor Hotel. He had looked into Mr. Aristides' mind this
morning. Aristides did not suspect a thing. He was looking forward to
it very
much in fact. That they didn't immediately demand payment made him
trust Genie, the name David had given him, even more. He felt that they
weren't trying to rip him off. He would inspect the girl, 'Elizabeth'
and if he was satisfied, they said that a second meeting would be
organized and the payment would be exchanged for the girl then. But he
wasn't taking any chances; he usually had an entourage of six
bodyguards, an ensemble of ex-Army men who had loyally guarded his
family for the past ten years. Whilst he kept a low-profile and hardly
anyone knew who he was, he still had some enemies in the financial
world. These six would be going with him tonight. He knew they could
also be trusted to keep their mouths shut about whatever they saw.
Mr. Aristides arrived at eight pm sharp. His black sedan swept up the
driveway of Birch Manor and stopped at the bottom of the steps to the
front door. Mr. Aristides stepped out of the car, looking very
distinguished in his expensive suit and designer leather shoes. The
doorman, seeing Mr. Aristides and the six gentlemen behind him wearing
Venetian masks, directed them to a certain room where a small
masquerade
ball was being held that evening.
As the paneled oak door opened, Mr. Aristides entered a room
luxuriously furnished in the style of the late nineteenth century, just
as the
rest of the hotel was. Large French windows along one wall of the room
opened into a well kept garden. Beyond that, shimmering in the dusky
twilight was a tranquil lake bordered by hills of pine.
In the room, sat a man with a simple black suit,
a bushy fake beard and large spectacles that
hid his eyes and upper face. The disguise was obvious, but its purpose
was clear enough. In a chair opposite that man, was a young girl in a
midnight-black
dress. It bared her shoulders and back, revealing her
lightly tanned skin; smooth and without blemish. A black velvet collar
adorned with a single pearl was clasped around her neck. The front of
the dress stopped just above the gentle swell of her feminine mounds,
clinging to them, hinting at
hidden treasures. It went down to her ankles, but a slit at the side
came up to her thighs. Her silky, golden tresses were piled up
elegantly on her
head. A Venetian mask covering her eyes and upper face added a
mysterious aura to her. Beneath the mask, her delicately formed nose,
her fine cheekbones and her curved, cupid-bow lips were simply
magnifique. And through the
eye holes of the mask, her eyes were like two.... the most suitable
expression would be two 'limpid pools' but it was such a cliched
expression that Mr. Aristides felt it was not befitting on such a
beauty. He resisted the impulse to ask the man in the suit where he
could pay.
That man rose from his seat on seeing him and extended his hand as he
greeted him jovially. They introduced each other. The man was not
Genie, as he had presumed at first. He was a 'Mr. Black', who who took
care of this end of things. Genie, Mr. Aristides was told, only set up
the buyers with the organization. And the ravishing girl of course, was
'Elizabeth'.
Mr. Black led Mr. Aristides and Elizabeth to an adjoining room where a
table laid for two stood beside a large window that looked out onto the
magnificent view. As Mr. Aristides and Elizabeth sat down, Mr. Black
said, "Well, I should leave you, Mr. Aristides with Elizabeth to dine
in privacy whilst I lead these gentlemen to a waiting room where they
may .. haha.. wait... and dine too, if it pleases them. May I remind
you of course, that you are only to dine and converse with the young
lady; I will be in the next room. If you need my service, just ring the
bell. Otherwise, I will come again in two hours. The waiters will
begin serving drinks and dinner shortly." Excusing himself, he
left with Mr. Aristides' bodyguards.
The waiting room, it turned out, was the room Mr. Black and Elizabeth
had been sitting in earlier. And next to this room, was a smaller
antechamber, and this was where Mr. Black locked the door and sat down
to wait out the next two hours. The only door to the dining room was in
the waiting room, so the six men sat down to wait. No one, including
Mr. Black, could get into the dining room where Mr. Aristides and the
girl was without passing them. Several waiters began bringing the
drinks and food - under the close supervision of the bodyguards.
Meanwhile Mr. Black sat down in his own little room and promptly fell
asleep.
Boo!
Hearing David in her mind, Mandy felt a surge of confidence. As she
conversed and dined with Mr. Aristides, David would prompt her now and
then about what to say and how to act. At the same time, his mind
constantly flitted over to Mr. Aristides to examine his thoughts and
reactions as well as to inject the appropriate emotions into him -
something he had been doing from the very moment Mr. Aristides laid
eyes on her. Of course, then, he had to do it whilst he was awake. Now,
he had the leisure of doing this asleep; his mind could easily do this
for hours without tiring.
He manipulated Mr. Aristides' emotions and occasionally dropped mental
suggestions to lead his train of thought in the right direction. He
made sure all the right buttons were pushed - Mr. Aristides was
besotted with Elizabeth. Clearly, she had the innocence and naivete of
a young teenager beneath that sophisticated and alluring demeanour. She
had on just a light touch of makeup that complimented her features
without making her look much older than she really was. He enjoyed her
company - she was bright and intelligent, their conversation was
genuinely entertaining, he thought. Well, she obviously wasn't a
kidnapped or drugged girl, so one of the claims Genie made were true at
least. He loved the way she blushed demurely when he gave her
compliments.
He'stouchingme! WhatdoIdo? What do I do? Mandy thought at David in
panic when she suddenly felt a hand on her knee. The table was not very
large and the two of them sat on two adjacent sides. Mr. Aristides had
thought that he should try to test the next claim - that the girls were
perfectly submissive to their owners.
Keep still. If his hand tries to go
further, put your hands on his and push it back down to your knee, and
say, 'Not tonight, Jules.' Mr. Aristides had told her to
call him Jules.
After a while, the hand crept up further. Mr. Aristides felt his bulge
growing as he watched the girl blush rosily. How cute and innocent, he
thought. He was almost sure she was completely inexperienced. His hand
began to move up and when it reached mid-thigh, she put her hand on his
and pushed it down again. Demurely, she said as she blushed heavily,
"Not tonight, Jules."
He took his hand away, his heart throbbing. Not tonight. That implied
that there
was a night when
she would not say the 'not' word. Damn that Genie! Why did it have to
be two meetings? Wasn't one enough? He wanted to pay there and then and
take her home with him - of course, he remembered that he didn't bring
the money; they wanted cash.
The rest of the night flew past and very quickly, their time together
came to an end. Mr. Black came in and with Elizabeth, said goodnight to
Mr. Aristides. Before she left, she leaned over and gave Mr. Aristides
a little peck on the cheek. Just that little touch sent his desire
surging, he struggled with the impulse to grab her and crush her lips
onto his. Thanking Mr. Aristides once again for a wonderful evening,
she
left with Mr. Black.
Mr. Aristides downed his glass of wine - he'd been drinking though
Elizabeth only had juice. One of his men came into the room to see if
he was ready to leave. He was. As he got up, the man ahem-ed, saying,
"Sir, you should wipe your cheek before returning home." He looked at
his reflection in the window. A little red cupid bow marked his cheek.
He reluctantly wiped it off.
*************************************************
The first
meeting had gone excellently. David was of course aware that Mr.
Aristides would have been happy to pay there and then. He was certain
that the next meeting would successfully close the deal. And they would
be richer by five hundred grand.