Shadows in the Dark (Dark Lotus #1)

6. Adrian

Between a technical glitch on a tracking chip my company was developing and the lack of desire to socialize, I had kept to myself. It wasn’t anything new for me. All who knew me would be the first to talk about my reclusive ways. It wasn’t that I hated people, at least not most of the time. I more hated myself, and that was evident in other idiosyncrasies about myself.

“I’ve made it to thirty-two, so I have to be doing something right,” I had last told my mother after declining her invite to spend some time on the Grecian coastline over the summer holiday.

I rarely ever visited there, even though I had bought a modern villa in Mykonos a few years back. I still had yet to see the place because I had bought it sight unseen. Something felt right about it and I realized it was the exact type of place that Aria and I used to visit when we were younger, back when the world wasn’t as dark and as cruel as it now was.

“You spend all your time in the States that now even your accent has faded.”

I doubted that, especially since those I did communicate with often mentioned how pronounced my accent still was. Eleni Benedict had always had a penchant for the dramatic, and the years had only made that worse. Of course, I might have also had a part in it, and shame would fill me upon that realization. For all the coldness the submissives I knew thought I possessed, I did have a heart. The only problem was that it was black as night.

Not many saw that side of me because I was so private. Even at Lotus, I knew the other Dominants either through business, or social acquaintances, but they knew nothing more than I projected to the outside world. I was CEO of Benedict Technologies, and I had a penthouse, sportscar, and hefty bank accounts like other billionaires in the area. Where most of them had summer homes in the south of France or along the Spanish coast, I had an island villa in paradise, only I never vacationed at mine.

I had purchased the place on a whim, and also to calm my mother down. She was ecstatic about the sale, until she realized that it didn’t change anything. Like my Maserati and this luxury penthouse, my entire life was a fa?ade. No one here in San Francisco knew about the evil running through me, and I intended to keep it that way.

Nothing stays hidden forever. Every secret will eventually come to light.

I had heard that over the years, but I chose to stay in blissful ignorance when it came to it. My tragic past had been covered up like others in my world had done for centuries, but none of it erased what I knew I had done. For most, the lack of consequences would fill them with remorse, but not me.

I am a monster.

My family was not the only ones to think that, even though they were the only ones to know it for a fact. Others, like the submissives at Lotus, would be subjected to my often sadistic urges, but they didn’t turn a blind eye to them like my parents. They embraced those desires, and they begged me so beautifully to break them. Some more than others.

And some... Some I’ve completely annihilated.

Shaking my head to expel the inner voice, I let out a sigh before pushing my still half-full plate away from me. During dinner, I had barely tasted the filet mignon and fingerling potatoes. It was no wonder I had picked at the contents before finally giving up. I rose to my feet, then emptied my plate and washed it before grabbing my laptop on my way back into the living room.

It had been several nights since I had last been at Lotus, and just as long since I had logged on to Olympus. Most of the secret social media platform was inane shit I had no interest in whatsoever, but there were a few chatrooms where a Dominant like me would find his next conquest.

Were those beautiful women considered that? Or was it something darker? Those masochists were more like prey, and I was the hunter. At almost a week since my last visit, the urge to strike was growing stronger in me with every passing second.

I logged onto the server, bypassing the normal hangout spots, instead going straight for one of the private rooms which were not open to everyone like other general areas were. In here, I could stand in the shadows where I often lingered and observed the night’s scene. From here, I could decide when, and if, I wanted to reach out to someone one on one. My cock had been hard for the last two days, and nothing I’d done had helped alleviate the discomfort. As my eyes skimmed over the participants online, one stood out to me.

Karma_is_a_B

“And who are you?” I asked out loud to myself.

The avatars everyone used were almost cartoonish so none actually displayed the faces of the members. Mine itself was that of a wolf, and rightfully so. Some chose to underestimate me when face to face, but never these women. I quickly showed them who was in control leaving no doubts in their pretty little heads.

Since I didn’t know this particular woman and the small badge beside her name indicated that she was new to Olympus, I kept my focus on her. The blonde I had last scened with at Lotus was also online, and looking for a Dominant, but the actual thought of being intimate with Rue again so soon filled me with even more disinterest than when I’d been balls deep inside of her. No, I had no use for her tonight.

Everyone, other than me, seemed to be talking. Some of the conversations were mild, but a few times, a Dominant would say something and the others would get very graphic. While my own conversations definitely fell into that category, I preferred to do my talking in an even more private setting. A small grumble escaped from my lips as I shifted in my seat. After throwing my feet up onto the table, I set my laptop on my lap, then returned my focus to the newcomer.

BarbieGirl27 : I’m so damn horny tonight. I’m available to play now.

Painslut987 : I feel you, BG. A trip to Lotus is in my plans this weekend.

BarbieGirl27 : Mine, too!!!!

MstrDm619 – I’m coming up that way from the AFC this weekend. Which of you want to play more?

The Master Dominant in question moved recently to San Diego, and since the city itself was nicknamed “America’s Finest City”, I knew exactly what he meant by AFC. I also knew exactly what he intended for those submissives to do in order to garner an invitation to Lotus. Confirming to myself that I was right, I shook my head wryly as his light, along with those two women went “red” which indicated they were online in a “do not disturb” mode.

STWbrYSHTCKE1 : I can barely move after what I did last night at Lotus.

Karma_is_a_B : What did you do?

My brow arched as the newcomer asked the question. While innocent enough, it was usually something discussed amongst others in a secret setting. I could have nipped the conversation in the bud, but I wanted to see what else she might do or say, so I sat back and just observed.

STWbrYSHTCKE1 : Oh, a little of the usual.

Karma_is_a_B : Which is?

STWbrYSHTCKE1 : Oh hun, you know these Doms with their whips and chains.

Karma_is_a_B : Which one did you see?

STWbrYSHTCKE1 : You wouldn’t be trying to get me punished tonight, would you? Kissing and telling is frowned upon in here.

Karma_is_a_B : Why?

STWbrYSHTCKE1 : It just is. Have you been to Lotus lately?

Karma_is_a_B : Lotus? No, I have not. Where is it?

STWbrYSHTCKE1 : No one knows really, but you have to be invited. Get to know some of the Doms here and I’m sure you will get that invite eventually.

Painslut987 : I’m back, ladies. I guess I will join you both in waiting for some of the other Masters to join tonight.

Karma_is_a_B : Sounds strange. Do you all just hang around waiting for a guy’s dick to be hard, then try to entice him to pick you?

It was clear this newcomer had no idea how things worked in Olympus, and even more so at Lotus. I quickly pulled up a secret chatroom, then pulled her from the open one to mine. It was time to find out who this woman was, and to explain to her a few of the basic rules. I had no idea which man had granted her entry to the server, but I would check into that soon. Usually, those men would accompany the new invitees and give them a tutorial of sorts.

EREBUS69 : Evening, Karma_is_a_B. What did you think you were doing back there?

Karma_is_a_B: Excuse me? I’m just asking questions.

EREBUS69 : Who are you? Why are you here? Those type of questions are prohibited.

Karma_is_a_B: Apologies. I had no idea. I’m new here .

EREBUS69 : Have the rules been explained to you?