The Slaves of New York Page 3

  When Kim had mentioned that she wanted to interview Ashley, Danton thought it would be a good idea and would help generate interest in the film project.

  He, unfortunately, had never met the man and had only communicated through his agent, but had employed an actress in his last film who claimed to have been one of Ashley's slaves. He had given Kim her telephone number and told her to use his name, but warned her not to be too direct. If she wanted Candy to give her information about Ashley she would have to do it subtly.

  'He's fine,' Kim said. 'He's doing a film in London for the next three months.'

  'So, what can I do for you?' Candy said.

  'I just wondered if we could meet up. I'm doing a piece on Johnny and I'd really like to get a prospective on what it's like to work for him.'

  'Hey, it's real great.'

  'Do you think we could get together?'

  'Sure. Why don't you come over here? What are you doing tonight?'

  'Tonight would be fine.'

  'Great. See you around eight. Did Johnny give you the address?'

  'No.'

  'It's in the village. Got a pen?'

  Kim wrote down the address and they said their goodbyes.

  Chapter Two

  The brownstone was on 8th Street just around the corner from Washington Square. It had a traditional stoop with a flight of stone steps leading up to double panelled doors. There was a small brass Entryphone to the left of the entrance.

  Kim rang the bell for Apartment 3.

  'Hi.'

  'It's Kim.'

  'Come up. Top floor.'

  The lock on the door buzzed and Kim pushed her way in. There was a large straight staircase to the left of a wide hallway, its stripped wood floor highly polished. She climbed the stairs. At the top of the second flight the door at the far end of the corridor opened.

  'Hi, I'm Candy,' the girl in the doorway said.

  Candy Brook was young and short and slim, and had a waif-like quality. She had a rather wide face with sharp hollow cheekbones, and her heavily permed hair was blonde. She was wearing a loose fitting black silk T-shirt over tight and very shiny white lycra leggings and high-heeled satin slippers.

  'Kim Holbrook,' Kim said, extending her hand.

  Candy shook it. She had long bony fingers with rings on almost every one. 'Come in.'

  The apartment was small and cosy with a living room overlooking the street. It was cluttered with stuff; antiques, objet d'art, pictures and books. The two small sofas and a large armchair were all covered with ethnic throws providing a riot of colours; oranges, reds and gold. A large film poster dominated the room. It featured a picture of Candy in a tight black dress. The dress had been ripped in such a way as to expose most of her thigh, which was sheathed in a glossy black stocking supported by a taut black suspender. UNNATURAL ACTS it announced, starring Candy Brooks and Ralph Polombo.

  'Would you like a glass of wine?' Candy asked. There was a large coffee table in front of the sofas, and among the clutter of books, magazines, and what looked like pre-Colombian artefacts, there was a bottle of California Chardonnay and two glasses.

  'That would be nice,' Kim said.

  'Sit down, please.' Candy poured the wine. 'You're real pretty.'

  'Thank you.' Kim sat on one of the sofas.

  'Love that accent. I guess everyone in New York's going wild for it. We love the way you Brits speak.'

  She handed Kim the wine, then sat on the sofa opposite and stared at her.

  'It's that long hair, I think,' she said thoughtfully. 'I'm a sucker for long black hair like yours.'

  Self-consciously, Kim combed some of the hair out of her eyes. 'Every brunette wants to be a blonde and vice-versa, isn't that what they say?' Then in an effort to change the subject she nodded at the poster. 'How long ago was that?'

  'Last year. It's what they call art porn. That means you get screwed and buggered just as hard but some guy tells you he's doing it because it's a way of expressing the human condition, or some bullshit like that.'

  'Have you done a lot of that?'

  'Sure. That's how I bought this place. Matter of fact it's how I got the job with Johnny, too. He's really into porn. Did he tell you that? He's got quite a collection.'

  'No, he didn't mention it.'

  'Well don't tell him I told you, in that case.' She sipped her wine, her eyes roaming Kim's body. 'Real pretty,' she said, almost to herself.

  Kim was wearing a black skirt and a cream blouse. It had been too hot out on the streets to wear her jacket, so she carried it over her arm.

  'So I wondered if I could ask you a few questions about Johnny?'

  'Sure.' Candy sat up straight. 'Do you want to know if I slept with him to get the job?' Before Kim could say anything she continued. 'Well I did.' She laughed. 'There's a scene in that,' she nodded up to the picture, 'where these two guys are having a go at me. You know, a double-decker?'

  Kim looked blank.

  'Hey, honey, don't you do that stuff in England? You know, when one guy's in your pussy and the other's in your arse?'

  Kim felt herself blushing. She remembered a scene in one of Ashley's books where this had been described in some detail. 'Oh, right... I just didn't know what that was called.'

  'The first time hurts like hell, but once you've got used to it, it's one hell of a ride.' She wiggled her bottom against the seat.

  'Anyway, Johnny was crazy about this scene. He wanted to fuck me while he watched it. Naturally, I was only too happy to oblige. He's some guy, right? And hey, I got the part.' She grinned broadly.

  Kim noticed a bookcase behind the sofa. Though the books were spilling out of it in no particular order, she noticed several of Jake Ashley's titles.

  'He's certainly a very attractive man,' she agreed, though she wasn't sure she had been attracted to him.

  'That's so great,' Candy said. 'I mean, the way you say that. Sounds so classy.'

  'So what was he like to work with?'

  Kim pulled out her little tape recorder and set it on the coffee table, then worked her way through the questions she had prepared, not wanting Candy to guess the true purpose of her visit. Only when she'd spent nearly half-an-hour on how they'd got on during the shooting of the film in which Candy played a small but important part did she allow herself to glance over at the bookcase.

  'I see you're a fan of Jake Ashley. Did you know Johnny wants to make the first book as a film?'

  Candy looked surprised. 'Hey, is that right? Christ, that would be great, wouldn't it?' She wrinkled her forehead. 'The first book. Yes, I remember. Have you read it?'

  'Yes.'

  'There'd be a great part for me. You remember the blonde who's been at the chateau for a year and who gets to instruct the new slaves?'

  'Yes.' Kim had only read it three or four weeks back and it was still vivid in her mind.

  'She's a blonde, and real kinky. That's typecasting.'

  'Have you read all the books?'

  'I've done better than that, baby. I've been there.'

  'Been where?'

  'Been at the chateau. Been with Ashley. Been one of his slaves.'

  'I don't understand,' Kim said, being deliberately slow. 'The chateau's all fiction.'

  'Sure, that's what everybody thinks. But Jake lives it all out. Everything. Of course there's no eighteenth century French pile in the middle of Connecticut, but he's got a big house up there and he's got at least six slaves behaving just like the ones in the book. I was one of them.'

  'Really?' Kim tried to look astonished. 'What was it like?'

  'It was no picnic, honey. You have to be into pain. But I reckon it was the best fucking time I've ever had in my life, bar none. Literally, I mean. You know, by the end of my time there I was so turned on I could come just by having Jake look at my snatch.' She shuddered. Kim could see the points of her nipples sticking out from under the T-shirt.

  Kim had carefully rehearsed what she was going to say next if the conversation got thi
s far. 'Can I tell you a secret?'

  'Sure.'

  'I've always thought... well, I mean... I've always had these fantasies about his books. I had no idea they were based on fact.'

  'Are you into all that?'

  'I don't know. I think I might be.'

  Candy leant back, examining Kim closely again with a new eye. 'Jake would really go for you; that cut-glass accent, that hair. Have you noticed all the best characters in the books always have long black hair?'

  'No.'

  'Yah, he's really into it. The brunettes always got the best share at the house. Not that I had anything to complain about.'

  'You mean, he'd actually take me to his house?'

  'If he thought you were good material.'

  'So how do I meet him?'

  Candy laughed. 'You don't. He meets you. There's places he goes to trawl for girls; clubs, bars. If he takes a fancy to you he'll approach you. If he doesn't...' She shrugged her shoulders. 'But let me tell you, sister, you can't fake it. It doesn't matter if you've never done it before - in fact, he prefers it that way. But if you're not really into it he'll know. He's got like this sixth sense.'

  'I never have done it before. But I've read the books...' And masturbated over them, she thought but did not say.

  'Believe me, if you're into it he'll know, even before you really know yourself. So maybe you'd get picked. Christ, this is making me incredibly horny.' Suddenly she took hold of the hem of the T-shirt and pulled it up over her head. She had small round breasts that were held high on her chest. Her nipples were large and erect, and the left one was pierced by a gold ring. She saw Kim staring at it. 'Souvenir of my stay chez Ashley,' she said. 'So you want to play around?'

  'I'm sorry?'

  'Come on honey, let's have some fun. I've got all sorts of little tricks I can show you.' She got to her feet, her little breasts bouncing.

  Kim didn't know what to say. This was the last thing she'd expected. 'Look, I didn't mean that I... I mean, I'm not...'

  'You're not a dike. Hell, neither am I. Doesn't mean you can't drink from both sides of the cup. Listen honey, if you really want to get it on with Jake you're going to have to find out real quick whether you're into all sorts of things. I can help you out with one of them right now.'

  'But, I've never...'

  'I can see that in your eyes. Let's cut the bullshit, shall we Kim? I know why you're really here.'

  'What do you mean?' Damn, Kim thought, she'd seen through her.

  'You're here because you want to get to Jake. Believe me, you're not the first. Half the women in New York are wetting their pants to meet him.'

  Kim was relieved. Candy had not guessed the truth. 'I really do work for a paper,' she said.

  'Sure, sure. I don't give a shit. But here's the deal. I'm into S&M, honey. Really into it. And I love getting it on with women. We have a little scene here tonight - you and me - and tomorrow I take you to a club where Jake likes to hang out. Otherwise, it's good night. You decide. I'll be in that room over there. If you don't get your arse in there in the next five minutes you can let yourself out. Okay?' Candy turned on her heels and marched over to the door in the far corner of the room. She opened it, then closed it behind her.

  Kim stared at her wine glass. She took a sip, then looked up at the poster on the wall. She hadn't the faintest idea what she was going to do. She'd hoped to persuade Candy to let her have Jake Ashley's address, or a telephone number, and was relying on her gift of the gab to talk herself into an interview. But Candy wanted something in return for her help, and Kim was not at all sure it was something she was prepared to give. She had never been anywhere near the S&M scene, and if she hadn't read Ashley's books she wouldn't even know it existed. Nor had she ever been to bed with a woman. She had never even thought about having sex with another woman. Or was that true? She remembered last night. Wasn't it true that thinking about the woman on the plane had made her climax that much more intense? Whether she liked to admit it to herself or not, she hadn't conjured up that vivid image for any other reason but to enhance her excitement. And the reason for that was undoubtedly to do with Ashley's books. She'd been excited by what was happening to Dolores, and imagined herself being made to do the exact same things.

  If she walked out of the front door now the trail to Jake Ashley would be cold. She had no other leads. She would have to go back to London with her tail between her legs to face an irate editor.

  She told herself that was the only reason she got to her feet, finished her wine, then walked over to the door in the corner of the room.

  The room was small, with no windows. It was lit by a bar of spotlights set into the ceiling, which had been dimmed. The walls and ceiling were painted white and the floor carpeted in a thick cream wool. The only furniture was a tall metal cupboard, rather like a medical cabinet in a doctor's surgery, a plain wooden chair and a small double bed. The bed had a wooden frame and a thin mattress, and was covered with a black sheet. At each corner, attached to a rope knotted around each leg, were four padded leather cuffs.

  In the centre of the room was a thick square wooden post. On three of its four sides, at one foot intervals all the way down its length, metal rings had been screwed. Hanging from some of these were white nylon ropes.

  Candy had stripped off her white leggings and was naked apart from her high-heeled slippers. Her pubis was completely hairless and Kim could see the folds of her labia. She had clipped a steel chain into her nipple ring and it hung down her body.

  'Glad you could join me,' she said. 'Guess this is going to be an education for you.'

  She walked up to Kim and touched her fingers against Kim's neat mouth.

  'You ever kissed a woman?' Candy asked.

  Kim shook her head.

  Candy moved her face forward. She put out her tongue and licked Kim's lower lip. Then she moved the tip of her tongue into Kim's warm mouth, though their lips were still not touching.

  Kim suddenly wanted to take the initiative. She wrapped her arms around the girl's naked body and kissed her, pushing Candy's tongue aside with her own. She felt a wave of excitement course over her as she pressed her body into the other woman's and felt the heat and wetness of her mouth.

  'Nice,' Candy breathed, when the kiss ended. 'Why don't you let me see what I'm getting?'

  Without wanting to think too much about what she was doing, Kim unbuttoned her blouse and pulled it off. She unzipped her skirt and let it fall to the floor, then stooped to pick it up.

  'Real pretty,' Candy said. She kissed Kim lightly on the lips while her hands snaked behind Kim's back, unhooking her bra. She stepped back and pulled the white lace away. 'Great tits.' She cupped one in her hand as if trying to guess its weight. 'I'd just love these, honey.'

  Kim was standing in her white thong panties and high-heeled shoes. It had been too hot to wear tights.

  'What do we do now?' she asked meekly.

  'Don't look so worried; this is my scene, not yours. Come over here.' She walked to the post. 'See those ropes up there? Tie my wrists. You can stand on the chair.'

  'You really want that?'

  'Sure I do.'

  Bondage had been an everyday occurrence in Ashley's books. The 'chateau' was full of what he called punishment rooms where the slaves, male and female, were strapped into a variety of positions, some on simple arrangements like this post, and some on much more complex contraptions.

  'Did he do this to you at the house?' Kim asked, collecting the chair and placing it by the post.

  'And how. But I was into it before that. I used to do modelling for this bondage photographer. Christ, he'd tied me so tight I couldn't move an inch, and it used to make me come. He got some great shoots.'

  Candy stood against the side of the post that had no rings, then raised her hands above her head, placing them against the two rings on the left and right-hand sides. White nylon rope hung from both.

  Kim stood on the chair. She wound the rope around Candy's wrists
and tied it securely to the metal rings.

  'Good,' Candy said. 'Now, pull the chain around the post and clip it into the nipple ring.'

  Kim picked up the steel chain. It was just long enough to stretch around. A snap-lock was fitted to either end. One was already clipped to the nipple ring. She quickly opened the other and hooked it to the ring as well.

  'Jake wanted me to have my pussy pierced, too. Each side of my labia, so he could padlock me shut.'

  'But you didn't?'

  'He changed his mind. Go to the cupboard; there's leather straps in there. Strap my waist to the post, then my legs. Get the picture?'

  Candy's body was pressing into the post. Though she was slim she had an apple-shaped bottom that stuck out prominently from her back. On her right buttock Kim noticed a round blue tattoo, the letters J A elaborately scripted within the roundel.

  She opened the cupboard. It was ranged with shelves. There were dildos, coiled leather straps, rubber and leather gags, rubber and satin blindfolds, and several whips. She picked up three leather straps, went back to the post, and wrapped one around Candy's waist, one around her legs just above her knees, and one at her ankles, cinching them all securely so not only were her legs bound together but she was tied tightly to the post.

  She could see Candy was trembling with excitement. But curiously the sight of her body, bound so tightly, also excited her. Tentatively, she ran a hand down the girl's back. Her skin was hot. She smoothed her palm over the rounds of her buttocks and felt an immediate desire to push her fingers up between her legs. But she stopped herself. She wasn't yet ready to take that step.

  Candy squirmed against the post, deliberately struggling against her bonds. 'I can't fucking move,' she said through clenched teeth.