Grim’s Little Reaper: Excerpt

Zach
“Let me get this straight. You four miscreants are opening a BDSM resort together? And you want me to come to the middle of nowhere, Winslow, Arizona?”

“Yes, sir. We’re calling it Club Apocalypse.”

“Of course. What else would it be? And stop calling me sir.”

Retirement was the devil, Captain Zach Stratton decided. He was actually considering the invitation out of sheer boredom. If nothing else, it would be good to see the Horsemen again.

Although Zach had been their commanding officer, Mark Luciano, Ryan Wood, Jake McBride, and Sean Franklin, known respectively as War, Pestilence, Famine, and Death, had taken him under their proverbial wing and introduced him to a world he’d never known existed. It was the realm of pain and delight, power and submission, and the Four Horsemen were its lords. Despite being more than a few years their senior, Zach was their apt pupil, learning all they had to teach him.

“Yes, sir,” Ryan said, living up to his nickname, the pestilential bastard. “We’re almost finished with the renovation, and the pool’s done.”

“Are you doing the cooking?”

“Hell no! Jake is.”

“Now I’m tempted.” Despite Jake’s nickname as Famine, he was well-known for his uncannily eldritch ability to make field rations palatable. What he did with dehydrated pork patties had long been an urban legend, still spoken of with hushed reverence.

“He went to culinary school too. His food will make you think you died and went to heaven, sir.”

“Well, I suppose I could visit for a few days.” Zach glanced sourly around his small Grand Rapids apartment. Aside from the largest television known to man, there wasn’t anything of note to keep him planted on his couch. “You got good scotch to go with my supper?”

“Only the best, sir.”

Zach rolled his eyes and stopped himself from telling Ryan not to call him sir again. It would only make things worse. “Is the play space open for business?”

“Not yet, sir. Actually…” Zach heard a power saw firing up, then a door shut, blocking the noise. “That’s the one of the reasons I’m calling. Sean remembered you liked to do woodwork, and we could use your expertise for the fixtures. We’ve got a contractor in, but I’d rather not have an outsider work in the dungeon.”

“Ah, I see how it is. You lure me in with Jake’s cooking, then expect me to work?”

“We also have a thirty-year-old bottle of Glenfiddich with your name on it, sir, and you’re welcome to bring a date if you’re seeing anyone.”

“Bribery. Sheer bribery.” Zach laughed despite himself. He’d never married, and hadn’t felt like playing in a long time. The one club close to him was full of youngsters who didn’t know their ass from a hole in the ground.

Then again, dominance was less about age, and more about the willingness to listen and learn. Zach himself was a prime example.

It was a pity, really. Now that he was retired, he could explore a permanent relationship with someone. He’d seen too many broken relationships, and sadly, too many widows to risk it before, yet wondered now if he was too old for dating.

He’d met a few women who had been interested, but the relationships had fizzled when they realized they had nothing in common with him. A relationship, at least one with the kind of connection he wanted, didn’t seem possible, and he wasn’t interested in anonymous play partners.

“No, really. I wrote it myself in permanent marker. It says, Property of Daddy.”

“Asshole. You aren’t cute enough, or female enough to call me Daddy.”

“Hell, sir. Even Sean knew whose bottle it is, and he likes those sweet littles as much as you do.”

“So, no subs waiting for a Daddy, and I have to work?”

“You also get to be one of the first people to stay in one of our new suites. It has a view of… well, eventually it will be a restored desert garden with walking trails. The pool even has a Jacuzzi.”

“Put a bratty sub in that room and I’ll be there yesterday.”

“Oh, we do have a brat,” Ryan muttered. “There’s a reason the landscaping isn’t finished. I’d turn her over my knee myself except the parts she’s completed are spectacular.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. That’s the other reason we want you to visit. Jolene Miller doesn’t give a good goddamn about any of us. All she wants is to restore the desert, and every time we try to fire her, she comes back like a bad penny.”

“Sounds like a noble goal. Why would you try to fire her if she’s doing good work?”

“She’s demanding we move the parking lot to a space almost a mile away because it’s blocking natural game trails. I’m done fucking with her, Zach. The woman needs a come to Jesus from someone she might actually listen to.”

“Is she a redhead?” Zach asked, chuckling to himself. Ryan was probably too young to get the reference to the old Dolly Parton song.

“How did you know? Never mind. Will you come, sir? We could use your expertise. Our grand opening is in less than three weeks, and we’re already booked solid.”

“Bit off more than you can chew with her?”

Ryan muttered something uncomplimentary that would have gotten him court-martialed had they still been in the Navy. “She’s a pain in my ass and should count herself lucky she’s not my sub.”

“Does she know she’s working for a BDSM resort?”

“Yes, we told her that when we hired her.”

“I see. Is she submissive? More importantly, does she have a partner?”

“She told us she’s a widow, but we didn’t ask if she had a partner. It’s not our business, but I don’t think she does.” Ryan paused and Zach heard the sound of fingertips drumming on wood. “I suspect she might have been a sub though. She said a few things about our equipment list that make me think she’s been in the lifestyle.”

“Do you know her age?”

“I’d say early forties if I had to guess. Maybe a few years older than Sean.”

Jolene sounded fascinating, but Zach had no intention of butting in where he wasn’t wanted. “I see. And what do you expect me to do with her?”

“Sir, we might have gotten you started with kink, but you do the same magic with bratty subs that Jake does with food. You’re literally the only person we could think of who Jolene might listen to, and it has to be done before she makes good on her threat to go to the press saying we’re killing innocent desert creatures.”

“Are you?”

“Of course not! I want the entire property restored to what it was a hundred years ago, and that includes the wildlife. I’d love to help her, but we can’t give her everything she wants without going out of business before we even open.”

This was an opportunity Zach couldn’t pass up. He’d never been able to resist a brat, and the more he heard about Jolene Miller, the more he wanted to meet her. She sounded like the perfect challenge to bring him out of his bored funk, and he looked forward to meeting a woman close to his own age.

“I’ll send you my flight information after I make my reservation. With luck, I can be there in time for supper.”