She felt the cuff tighten around her left wrist. The buckle being fastened. She lay face down on the table, eyes closed, reminding herself to breathe. Movement around her and a cuff was placed around her right wrist. Her entire body trembled.
"Ready to begin lil'Red?"
The Beginning – Chapter 1
Emily Fitch stood looking up at the building as her sister Katie paid off the cabbie. It was a three story stone-faced building that looked like it might have made a cozy pub at one point. Nothing fancy about it. The only signage was on the right of the door. A small plaque reading "Stonem House" in black lettering. She expected a bit more fanfare but then again nothing was as expected in her life.
She had attempted university after a gap year spent on traveling. Her coursework had been tedious and redundant. In the end, it didn't prove enough of a distraction from everything. She had dropped out. Three hellish years after, and a load of throw away jobs, she was still waiting tables in her hometown of Bristol. It wasn't how she's planned to change the world. It wasn't how she wanted her life to be. Her job didn't allow for savings as she barely covered her rent and expenses. Living with her sister helped. At least she wasn't living with her parents who had returned to Glasgow along with her little brother James. Her sister was the reason they stood outside this building.
Katie had always been headstrong, opinionated and sure of herself. When younger, her confidence was in part an act based on her success with boys. She was never without a lad chasing after her. In her last year of college, she learned she would never have children. It was a soul-shattering moment for her. In true Katie-form, she took charge of her future and developed a more natural sense of confidence. She put a halt on the lads and learned who she was deep down.
"Come on then Emsy. Effy should be waiting for us."
Katie used a key to let Emily and herself in. Effy Stonem had been Katie's friend since middle school which meant she was Emily's friend by default. Whatever Katie did in those days, Emily had been obliged to follow along. That was the case until she'd gone traveling. Sad thing is, even after all of her individual adventures, Emily had ended up back in her sister's shadow. Thankfully, Katie was no longer a bully. Small favors that.
Katie had gone to university with Effy combining Design and Business. After graduation, they both ended up working for Anthea, Effy's mother in London for a bit. They'd moved here to Stonem House in Bristol about a year ago.
They walked into a small reception area, turning left and through a door that opened to a small meeting room. Effy sat at the head of a long table with her feet up. Smirking warmly, she looked at the girls.
"My favorite twins." She got up from her chair and greeted them both with warm hugs. It wasn't as if Emily hadn't seen Effy in ages. She'd been over to their place a couple of weeks earlier for dinner. "Coming to work for the dark side Em?" Effy asked with her distinctive smile. Katie reached out and whacked her on the arm.
"Oi. No taking a piss right off Eff. She's here to talk first, k?"
Effy laughed deeply at Katie's protective nature towards the younger Fitch. Younger by only minutes, but to Katie it meant she was boss. Effy had watched Emily all through their school years together. Watched her lose herself, hiding, was secretly glad when Emly disappeared to see the world, attend university on her own. Almost broke her heart when Emily fell into the darkest hole Effy had ever seen. And for Effy, that was pitch black.
Two days prior...
Katie poured two glasses of wine and took them into the living room where Emily was sitting after a much needed shower. She always thought Emily looked so tired.
"So hear me out ok? You said you wanted to ditch the waitressing, yeah and get a different, better paying job?" Katie asked as she handed over the wine glass. Emily looked at her warily.
"Why? What did you have in mind?"
"Effy needs someone at Stonem House.."
Emily choked on her wine "No! I can't do what you do! I wouldn't know how to begin." Katie shook her head at her sister and laughed.
"Don't be stupid. I know you can't do what I do. Effy needs someone at the reception desk. Someone to help around the place with small tasks. Even you can handle that. The pay will be loads better than what you're making now. Less hassle. Effy mentioned needing someone and I told her you could manage." Katie drank to give Emily a moment to think, come up with questions or reasons to not take the offer. The blush on Emily's cheeks could likely be seen from the moon as she thought about working with Katie and Effy.
"I don't know Katie."
"Look Emsy... this is a good opportunity to get some money saved. You're not going to do anything sordid." As she said this, Katie looked at her sister with a mix of sadness and love. She wasn't ashamed of what she did for a living, but felt sad that her twin couldn't understand what she did exactly. She could never explain it properly. "Meet with Effy, see what she has to say and then decide. Don't turn it down 'cause you think it's beneath you."
"I never said.."
Katie waved her off. "You didn't have to, ok? And we don't have to talk about it. Talk to Effy."
Emily thought about it and agreed to meet with Effy.
"Let's get down to the basics. I need someone to handle reception. Stonem House is a private club that engages in..," a deliberate pause from Effy with a mischievous grin and look had Katie rolling her eyes and Emily cringing, "interactive visual art."
"For fuck's sake. That's what you're calling it?" Katie spit out.
"That's what Anthea labeled it in hopes of not being overly solicitous of the law. In reality, we provide an alternative outlet for those with bdsm proclivities."
"Right. I'm not sure I know what that means exactly but I don't know that I want to know."
"Since you would be working in reception, you really don't need to know much Emily. It would be a matter of being sensitive to the privacy of our guests and following protocols that help the house run smoothly. If you can do that, and I know very well you can do that and more, then you belong here with us."
"What kind of protocols?"
"They're simple really. Any of our guests come in the front entry, get vetted by the London house before they even get invited here. When you do greet them, be courteous but direct. Think you can do that?" Effy turned to look at Emily who scowled at her. "We'll have to work on your intimidating glare Emily. Because that simply won't do." Katie giggled from behind them and Emily felt herself blush.
"Once you have greeted the guest, you will request that they leave their phone and all other electronic devices with you. We do not allow phones, cameras or similar devices in the rooms. While our guests are here by personal reference only, we don't want to accidentally allow an unauthorized recording to take place. Privacy is a key component of our services. You will lock up their electronics in one of the cabinet drawers behind your desk. You will ask to take their coat if they would like. We do not have more than four guests in-house at any one time. Appointments last anywhere from an hour to three hours. Anyone scheduled for a 3 hour session is a VIP and will likely be the only one in-house. The average visit is an hour. You needn't worry about payment or working out the books. I handle most of our scheduling via online requests or pre-arranged terms. With me so far?" Effy turned and looked at Emily who nodded in acceptance.
"Right then Emily." Effy stood and led them back to the reception area. "Welcome to Stonem House. Once you have squared away electronics, coats and whatnot, you escort the guest to the sitting area where they will wait for their appointment. You will be notified when the guest is ready to depart so you can escort them from the sitting area and return their property. Depending on the visit, either Katie, Naomi, Cook or I may need your help here or there."
"Umm...what sort of help?" Emily looked pointedly at Effy and then at her sister. "I don't know that I can do what Katie and you all do.. from what Katie's told me.."
Effy turned around, rolled her eyes at Emily "No. You can't do what we do Emily. When I say help, it means making sure refreshments or other items are brought to the rooms at specific times. It's part of aftercare."
"Aftercare?"
"Look it up. It's important. Aside from that, do you have any questions about what is expected of you?"
"Is that really all I have to do?" It was Effy's turn to nod. "I can handle that."
"Good. You start day after tomorrow."