Chapter Four

Finley

T he following day Finley was on security duty, monitoring the swarms of people gathering around the stage. The skin on his nape tingled as a quiet murmur ran through the crowd, letting him know that Master Kage, or simply Kage, was on his way.

Finley turned and salivated at the sight. Walking like a model on a catwalk, all sharp-angles and lean muscle, Master Kage oozed confidence. His black shirt was open at the collar, and a delicate silver necklace with a tiny padlock charm gleamed on his neck. Engulfing the bottoms of his leather trousers were black mid-calf boots that made nearly no sound as he reached the platform. He acknowledged Finley with a nod.

Meeting those hypnotic eyes even for a second had Finley blushing, but he reminded himself that he was wearing a vest with huge letters ‘security' on it. Kage was only greeting the staff.

The camera hidden at the very top of the stage was barely visible but Finley knew it was for security reasons only. Everyone already on the club's list had to sign in a new consent form, agreeing to the cameras, but no one got to see those but the Dom, unless something went terribly wrong. Jagoda had explained to him that after the tragic incident from a few months before, she had to use drastic measures.

A woman with short red hair approached the stage, holding a leash leading to a collar on a naked man's throat.

"Evening, Master Kage." She greeted the Dom with a nod, handed him the leash and sat on a chair at the back of the platform.

The Sub was handsome in a rugged way, with a bratty snark, and muscles that spoke of daily hours at the gym. He was taller than Master Kage but the Dom's posture, with boots firmly planted on the planks, and his aura of confidence overshadowed any size difference.

"It's nice to see you again, Dylan. You and your Mistress agreed to the terms of this session, correct?" The Dom sized up the man as if he was his prey. In a way, that was the case.

"Yes," Dylan said, then glanced at his Mistress who crossed her legs but didn't acknowledge him.

Master Kage waited, his eyes narrowed.

"Yes, Sir." The Sub straightened his shoulders and looked at the implements aligned on a rolling table.

"We will use the traffic lights system today." Kage tightened his grip on the leash, pulling gently but enough to bring Dylan's attention back to the Dom. "What is your safeword?"

"It's red, Sir."

"And what will you say when you want to slow down?"

"Yellow, Sir."

"Very good. Your Mistress will observe and judge your submission, but for the duration of the session you're mine and you will obey me as you would your Mistress."

The possessive words shot straight to Finley's cock. I wonder how would it feel if Kage called me his, even if just for an hour?

Finley had heard stories of many subs kneeling in front of Kage, yet not one of them had become his for longer than the duration of a session. The perks of tending a bar were also its downsides—listening to people's stories. Loose-lipped patrons kept Finley in the loop about the goings on in the club, new relationships forming, which public scenes moved the patrons the most, as well as their personal heartbreak tales.

Finley hadn't been surprised in the slightest when people confessed their fascination with Master Kage, but he'd found it fascinating how many people wished for Kage to take them as a sub, even only for training, or under a closed contract for three months. A young man had confessed that he'd been booking sessions with Kage because that had been the only time when he'd felt safe, cherished, and could float in subspace. So of course, he'd fallen for Kage and had his heart broken when Kage had told him he wasn't taking subs. But then, thanks to Kage, he'd known what to look for in a Dom and finally found someone who took care of him in and out of the bedroom. One evening a lady told Finley a similar story, and he'd known since then that Kage's rules were not a front for his Dom persona, they were commandments he lived by.

"When we're done, I will return you to the care of your Mistress," Kage said and Finley refocused on the scene.

"Thank you, Sir." Dylan's hard-on twitched, and he released a shaky breath.

Me too, mate, me too.

With a wave of his hand, Master Kage invited the man towards the bench, and Finley stood close enough to catch the Sub's safeword and his promise to use it.

The stark contrast of Dylan's slightly cocky demeanour to the meekness of the young man who'd subbed for Master Kage the week before resulted in a shift in the Dom's behaviour. He was still calm as he snapped the black rubber gloves on, but he was more strict when addressing the sub.

Lucy had mentioned that he curated a bespoke experience for every person who he accepted for a scene, and Finley could tell how the Dom met the needs of those who submitted to him, aiming to deliver their dreams. It was push and pull, give and take and Master Kage seemed to attune himself to whoever gave up control over their body to him for the night.

Finley's attraction to people transcended gender, so it wasn't the fact that Master Kage was a man that drew him, it was the person himself. Something about Master Kage pulled Finley in. The heat of the squirming bodies around him made him perfectly aware that he was one of many who felt that way.

From his vantage point near the stage, Finley had a splendid view of Master Kage preparing for the scene. Instead of rolling his sleeves up like the previous time, he took the shirt off altogether. The net vest he had underneath clung to his lean frame and revealed a gleaming set of piercings on both nipples. The tiny balls on each side of the bud caught the overhead light.

Was there someone in Master Kage's life who was allowed to taste them? To slide their tongue over them?

A shuffle and low, heady murmurs travelled through the audience who watched with rapt attention. Master Kage arranged Dylan to lie on his front on the bench, his legs bent, heels touching his buttocks. The strands whooshed through the Dom's hands as he weaved it to bind Dylan's ankles to his thigh. He spread the Sub's thighs wide, exposing his ass to captivated patrons. Then he proceeded to wrap the rope around the man's waist, securing him to the bench, then bound Dylan's crossed wrists to the rope at his lower back. His sure, yet careful movements were hypnotising and the result was a work of art in the form of a man at his Dom's mercy.

"Move your fingers for me," Master Kage walked around, checking the ropework. "Good boy. You will say yellow if any part of your body tingles or goes numb, and red if you feel bad pain or want me to stop. Is that clear?"

Dylan wriggled as if to check if he was comfortable. The movement drew Finley's attention to Dylan's cock that oozed precome onto the bench.

"Yes, Sir."

This time, Finley was close enough to hear the conversation he'd missed out on when he'd watched the scenes from behind the bar. It gave him a better insight into the rules and fucking hell, was he turned on. And it was just the beginning.

Master Kage ran his fingers over the rolling table, making a show of contemplating what to use. The man could be an actor if he wished, and the audience would lap up his performance. Finally, he lifted a bamboo cane and showed it to the Sub.

Dylan's cock twitched on the bench between his spread legs.

Master Kage hovered the cane above Dylan's ass, and the Sub's breathing quickened. Hell, half of the audience was holding a collective breath in anticipation. Finley included.

But Kage took his sweet time before he patted the sole of the man's foot with the stick in rhythmic motion, then sped up on the other foot.

The Sub whimpered, struggling in his bonds, but his cock remained hard.

Master Kage stopped and glided the thumb of his free hand over the reddened skin of the soles. Ouch.

He let Dylan breathe for several beats before he split the air with the sound of the bamboo cutting through it. He dealt a few thwacks over Dylan's buttocks and the Sub wailed louder with every strike. Red welts formed quickly and Master Kage patted each cheek with his gloved hand before returning the cane to the table.

Fucking hell. Finley had never considered that pain could bring pleasure, but Dylan's soft moans and twitching cock proved him wrong.

Master Kage squatted by Dylan's face which lay on the pillow-like padded end of the bench. He spoke to the Sub in a low voice and patted his cheek listening to the man's replies.

Finley had no idea what had been agreed on before the session, but the communication remained constant.

Once the Dom straightened, he reached for a wooden paddle and smacked Dylan's left ass cheek with it so hard it left an imprint that spelt ‘slut' on it. Finley winced in sympathy. Dylan yelped, but his dick leaked more precome. He liked it. Very much. He swayed his bound, bent legs from side to side as much as he could in his restraints.

Master Kage squeezed a generous amount of lube on his hand from a tub the size and shape of a gym water bottle, then circled his latex-clad fingers over Dylan's hole. The delicate teasing had Dylan wiggling as if he wanted to impale himself but a quick smack on his backside stilled him. Finley clenched involuntarily when Kage's two digits passed Dylan's tight ring of muscle.

Apart from a kiss and a few drunken blowjobs Finley had got at a bar somewhere, Finley hadn't experimented with men. Now, he wasn't sure if watching the scene made him that horny, but if Kage told him to pose ass up and spread open right now, he would. And he'd welcome his fingers, even his cock with enthusiasm.

Fucking hell.

Or maybe he was high on the sexually charged air.

Finley shifted his stance to make the chafing of his latex shorts bearable. It didn't help. But no one around paid any attention to him. Some people squirmed much more than Finley, and several couples left towards the public sex area in the further part of the club. The gazes of the ones remaining were glued to the stage.

And so was Finley's, even if he remained aware of his surroundings and any threat that could disturb the scene.

Since he was a teenager, he'd enjoyed watching other people kiss. His first girlfriend had let him watch as she masturbated, a lesson that taught him proper care of a pussy. At uni, he touched himself to the sounds of his flatmate and his girl, and at a party, he saw a guy go down on his boyfriend in front of everyone. In his twenties, he attended several house parties with his friends that, in retrospect, had BDSM elements. He'd been an observer mostly, reserving sex to his current partner. For a long time, he'd thought he was a creep, but even when he accepted he liked watching others, he blocked that need and stored it far away in his mind.

He could imagine himself on that stage, bound and lost in pleasure, but his body hummed with the sheer eroticism of watching, of being allowed to be a spectator and see people fall apart in the most intimate of ways before his eyes.

He'd never been so turned on watching two men. Not like now.

Kage's fingers worked inside the Sub, massaging his prostate, letting white milk drip into the metal bowl on the floor.

The man writhed, keening, but he hadn't orgasmed yet, his eyes fluttering closed. Kage pulled out slowly and leaned over so that Dylan could see his face. After a gentle slap on the cheek and a few words from Master Kage, Dylan opened his eyes and focused them on his Dom. The moment hung in the air, and Dylan's body visibly relaxed, as if hypnotised, then nodded.

During this brief reprieve, a guy from the crowd rushed to climb on the stage with a wild roar.

"I'll help you!"

Instincts on full alert, Finley caught him by his collar and dragged him to the floor, pulling the man's hands behind his back and keeping him in place by a firm knee on his back. Finley's reaction was so quick, the enthralled crowd parted only after he told them to give them space. "I need cleanup by the main stage," Finley said into the comm on his vest.

The guy underneath Finley sighed with resignation and thumped his head to the floor. Finley held him down so he wouldn't hurt himself. The alcohol on his breath was no excuse for his behaviour and Finley was sure he'd be punished with a probation period or a ban. He hoisted him up and walked him out of the main area where backup in the form of Tom, a fellow security guy, was waiting. He handed the man over with a summary of what had happened and returned to the front row of the crowd.

His heart still beating fast from the interruption, Finley crossed his arms and calmed his breath.

Thankfully, Kage didn't have to stop and now was dipping his finger in the bowl of prostate milk. It was a show, but the main audience was the sub. Master Kage directed the scene with flair, but everything was for the sub's benefit—it was clear in the way the Dom's gaze rarely strayed outside of the stage. He wasn't looking for the reaction from the crowd, he was focused on the responses of his sub. There was beauty and grace in the scene and Finley found himself completely entranced by it.

Dylan's struggle against the ropes showed how anxious he was, how much he wanted to come. His gaze softened however, when it landed on Master Kage's calm face and the liquid dripping from his finger. Dylan opened his mouth. As if on cue, the music in the background switched to a quiet song, and Finley could hear the men talk clearly.

"Please." Dylan moaned, licking his lips.

Master Kage tsk-ed.

"Please, Sir ."

A shiver went down Finley's back at the moniker and as he watched the approving nod from Master Kage, he suddenly felt the need to have Master Kage look at him that way—as if he'd done well. As if he'd pleased his Master.

The Dom swirled the pad of his finger in the liquid again, then placed it on Dylan's tongue.

"Suck." Master Kage's command made several people next to Finley release a moan.

Dylan did, humming as his lips closed around the latex-covered digit.

"More," Dylan groaned with impatience, his breathing quickening.

"How do you ask?"

"I want more!" Dylan was whining now, his voice getting high in tone. "Oh, for fuck's sake," he yelled and writhed, ropes straining.

The corner of Master Kage's lip twitched, and he dropped the bowl, letting the milk spill in front of the man's face. A gasp echoed among the spectators and Finley could sense the echo of the Sub's feelings by looking at the horror in Dylan's expression. "I'm sorry, sorry, sorry…" he chanted, panting, his lips trembling.

He turned his gaze towards his Mistress, who shook her head, but her smile showed that she was not surprised at all. Apparently, there were limits to how long Dylan could play a good boy.

If given a chance, Finley would be the best sub. He would please Kage with his obedience and eagerness. Please, Sir. Let me please you.

The thought shot heat to Finley's dick. What the hell? He'd always been in control during sex with women. He was the one doing the penetrating, after all. Then again…

He glanced at Dylan's mistress, sitting cross-legged, her hooded gaze on her sub, her cheeks flushed.

Maybe Finley had never been in charge. It had only been an illusion fed to him by society. Even the blow jobs he'd received from men at a club hadn't been his idea. But when a gorgeous twink had knelt in front of him and ghosted his hands over his groin, he'd been helpless to refuse. And had enjoyed every second. His lust-scrambled brain hurt from how hard Finley was trying to make sense of his reactions to the scene—of his new discoveries about himself.

"Now it's time for your punishment," Master Kage said loud enough to carry, bringing Finley back from his musings.

"Thank you, Sir." Dylan closed his eyes, relaxing his body, clearly knowing what he'd done in the heat of the moment. He'd disappointed the Dom, as well as his Mistress, and now he was ready for whatever was coming at him.

Master Kage exchanged several words with the sub, and the man nodded. Even though a punishment was on its way, he made sure the Sub was in the right headspace. Finley had seen relationships and marriages with less concern for the other party than Master Kage had at any given moment for a person on his bench.

From the display of stainless steel items that made the wall look like something out of Dr Frankenstein's laboratory, Master Kage picked a hook that ended in a ball.

The scene intensified from there as the lubed end slid inside Dylan.

How would the cold steel feel passing a ring of muscle and settling into place? Judging by the expression on Dylan's face — very good.

Wiggling the hook farther in, Master Kage reached for a string of rope from the rolling table beside him. His long fingers worked magic on the strands and soon, he connected the loop end of the hook to the rope, and the other end to the Sub's ponytail.

Dylan's chin thrust up, as his body strung like a half-moon.

"Yes, Sir! Punish me, Sir!" Dylan's voice was strained in the position but he kept repeating the words louder as Master Kage walked around him, touching the taut rope, Dylan's arched back and his ass, inspecting his handiwork.

"Quiet," Master Kage said in a tone so low it was nearly a growl, then landed a hand on Dylan's ass cheek with a loud slap. The man upped the volume of his pleas driving the Dom to reach for a ball gag. His face close to Dylan's, he asked him if he remembered his safeword. The man repeated it and confirmed he was far from using it. At that, Master Kage placed the gag in his mouth and strapped it behind his head. Next, he placed a stress ball into his hands, tied at the small of his back.

"Dropping the ball is the equivalent of your safeword, understood?" Master Kage asked. "Blink once for yes."

Dylan tried to nod, but the movement pulled on the hook deep in him and he groaned. Then he met Master's gaze and blinked once, but his expression suggested his mind was drifting away into a blissful state.

Master Kage took a step back and with his head tilted, admired Dylan like a piece of art in a museum. Finley had to admit that if museums had displays like Dylan, he would visit them a lot more often.

The true work of art on the stage was the Dom himself. When he moved in his tight leathers, he showcased his pert ass and slim waist with a hint of a dark trail that Finley would love to follow with his tongue. Then he would suck on Kage's nipples, hard underneath the net vest, and enticing with the gleam of steel piercings. Fucking hell. Finley had never seen anyone sexier than Master Kage.

Approaching Dylan from behind, Master Kage poured oil on his hand, the flowery scent wafting towards Finley's nostrils.

"This is not your punishment." With the slick hand, the Dom cupped Dylan's sac, rolling it in his palm, massaging.

Finley shifted his stance, imagining how those gentle yet firm fingers could feel on him, caressing him… He stifled a groan when Master Kage slid his hand down Dylan's cock, stroking expertly, making the man bite into the gag, drooling.

"You're not allowed to come."

Dylan barked incoherently in protest. He couldn't writhe in the restraints, but his entire body shook.

"You can wank on Sunday evening. Not a moment before. And your Mistress will punish you if you don't comply." His voice was so low, it sounded ominous. "Blink once if you understand."

Dylan did, tears streaming down his cheeks.

Holy shit, it was Wednesday. Talk about blue balls.

Master Kage untied the rope from the man's hair and, with a gentle pull, removed the hook from his ass, letting the steel clatter to the ground. He then massaged around the sub's hole, over his ass cheeks, and along his back. The soothing groans coming from the Sub, whose body now lay limply, were confirmation of a scene executed with perfection.

Dylan's eyes were full of adoration and gratitude before he closed them and rested his cheek on the bench.

"Stay with me," Master said in a stern voice. After repeating the order, he slapped the man on the cheek to wake him, and removed the gag. "Dylan, open your eyes for me."

Dylan did.

"Thank you, Sir," he whispered as Master Kage was helping him to his feet. He said the words over and over on their way down the stage, where Dylan's Mistress joined them. Only when she took Dylan's hand did Finley notice the matching wedding rings on their fingers. She kissed her husband, and the three of them continued towards the back rooms.

Maybe it was a trick of light, but Finley swore that Kage flinched and grabbed his hip as if it hurt. Had he strained himself holding most of Dylan's weight as the man shuffled his feet? Hopefully, it was just Finley's imagination.

He wondered if Dylan wanted an experience with a man or whether his Mistress liked to watch, but the entire dynamic in the scene ripped Finley's idea of BDSM and relationships into pieces. Hopefully, he'd glue it all together to process how it worked and why the fuck his entire body was on fire and his brain a bowl of mashed potatoes.

Back home, the erotic images from the scene swam in Finley's head, but the only person whose face he could see as he wanked standing under a warm spray in the shower was Master Kage. Seeing the gorgeous man bring another one to a state of blissful submission was better than any casual sex Finley had ever had.

Finley hadn't known that kinky play could be so elaborate and emotionally satisfying. He'd never spent so much time on sex, let alone foreplay. It had always been a quick run towards release.

He sped up the pumping with his hand until he came; the orgasm making his knees wobble and he had to catch himself on the slippery tiled wall not to collapse.

A thought hit him. The entire time of the scene, that was the only thing that was on his mind. Complete wipeout of his worries, his past, and grief. He lived to see what Kage would do next.

Maybe it was Master Kage who brought such an intense reaction in Finley, and maybe, Finley just wanted to feel something again. Even if it would be an orgasm he'd have to pay for.

But it would be an orgasm at the hands of Master Kage.

Drying off quickly, he stepped into his bedroom. With a decisive plop into his bed, he fired up his laptop and typed what Lucy had told him was Master Kage's website ‘The Light and Darkness of Kink'.

Watching people kiss at a party was fun, watching porn was nice, but witnessing a scene live from the front lines was an unforgettable experience. A life-changing, sexuality-questioning one.

How would it feel to be on that stage, at Kage's mercy?