ALTERNATE ENDING

 

Flipping through his rolodex, Davis stared at the white card with a single name and number.  Picking up the phone, he dialed quickly.  A minute later, a warm voice answered.  "Lucien, it's Davis on The Island.  Remember the offer you made to me a couple of weeks ago?  Is it still open?"

 

"Of course, mon ami. We can pick up your problem child tomorrow, actually.  We're making a run to Limbo first thing in the morning with one from Denver."

 

"That won't be a problem for you?"

 

"No, not at all.  I'll just give them a call.  In fact, I know the perfect person for him.  He's good at bringing problem children all the way down and will find out what's really going on and what they really need."

 

"Thank you, Lucien. I really appreciate it."

 

"Not a problem.  Glad the deviate sheep of the family can help out," he said with a laugh.

 

"Not deviate…"

 

"Just different," Lucien finished, laughing.  "Your people okay with this?"

 

Davis hesitated for a moment. "Ryan just said to get him off The Island as soon as possible.  Melnyk will have to agree before you take him, so, I don't see why Ryan should care."

 

"Okay.  Your call.  We'll swing by around 8 tomorrow morning, talk to him and, if he agrees, pick him up."

 

A few minutes later Davis hung up the phone feeling that if anyone could help, Lucien and his group could.  Peter Melnyk deserved harsher treatment then simply being blackballed and if he was not brought under control, he would find another partner and the pattern would continue.  Opening his email, he drafted a short note to Ryan, simply saying that the Top would be off The Island by 8:30 tomorrow morning. 

 

That done, he picked up the phone and dialed security and arranged for the man to be at the docks by 8 and for the boat to be standing by in case Melnyk refused Lucien's offer.

 

By 7:30, Davis was up, dressed, and hurrying through the main compound toward the docks.  He could see Jake Mullins and another security guard standing next to a handcuffed Melnyk.  Off in the distance, he could see a medium-size yacht just entering the mouth of the harbor, the black hull and silver trim a stark contrast against the softer, more natural tones around it.  "Good morning Jake, Richard," he said, ignoring Melnyk, who shot him an angry glare.

 

The security guard gave a soft whistle as the boat drew closer and tied up at the dock. "Beautiful ship."

 

A large man dressed in all white stepped down and walked toward the group.

 

Davis hurried forward to meet him, smiling. "Lucien!  It's great to see you again."

 

Lucien pulled him into a hug. "You are looking wonderful, mon ami.  It's been too long."  Reaching down, he playfully swatted the other man's butt.  "You been behaving yourself?"

 

Davis laughed. "Well enough.  Ryan's happy with me."

 

"Of course. I trained you well and knew you would make me proud." Then, dropping his voice, he leaned in closer.  "My life has been a disorganized mess since you left. I'd love for you to come back to me."

 

"Just so I can get your life organized again?" he asked laughing.

 

The other man gave an embarrassed smile. "That, and I miss you."

 

Davis hugged him again. "I've missed you, but we both know it's not for me, not 24/7.  Not sure what I want, but you'll be among the first to know.  I promise."

 

"Fair enough.  Now," he turned back to the business at hand.  "Where's this problem child of yours?"

 

Davis looked at the two security guards. "Go ahead.  Take the cuffs off of him, and why don't you guys wait by the cart.  We need to speak to him alone for a few minutes."

 

Giving a half-shrug, knowing that he couldn't leave the dock, Mullins unfastened the cuffs and then he and Richard walked away.

 

"This is Peter Melnyk," Davis told his friend.

 

Marcus looked him up and down for several moments, then nodded. "So he has been physically, sexually and emotionally abusing his partner."

 

"Right."

 

"That is such bullshit!" Melnyk protested. "I didn't do anything to Billy that he didn't want!"

 

Lucien turned to him coolly. "Do you have permission to speak?"

 

"Fuck you, I don't need permission to speak!"

 

Walking up close, Lucien leaned in, putting a hand on the protesting Top's shoulder.  "Yes, you do.  You either stay silent until you're given permission to speak or I'll put this in your mouth."  He pulled a small ball gag from his pocket.  "The choice is yours."

 

Locking eyes for a brief minute, Melnyk finally dropped his to the deck, mouth tightly closed.

 

"Good boy," the big man said, patting him on the shoulder.  "Now, Peter, I've come to discuss a proposition with you; one that you might find appealing.  You are under no obligation to accept my offer but once you do, you accept all the terms and conditions that go along with it.  It will be made only once, you may ask questions, but the terms are non-negotiable.  Do you understand?"

 

"Yeah, fine, whatever you say." Peter said, shooting a brief glare at him.

 

"My organization belongs to a larger organization of S&M clubs and groups.  Like The Island, which specializes in the training and matching for Domestic Discipline Relationships, there are places around the globe that do the same thing for S&M Relationships.  When all of these clubs and groups finally meshed into a worldwide network many years ago, they discovered a common problem of out-of-control Tops or Doms.  Before, each group simply blackballed the member, but that never solved the problem. The dangerous Dom was still out there and preying on unsuspecting people.  Several groups had begun to try to work with these Doms, to see what was causing the problem.  They came up with an interesting hypothesis."

 

"Thanks for the history lesson, but I don't care.  I'm not an out-of-control Top.  My Brat needs to be on a tight leash, needs to be controlled and not allowed to run wild!  It's not my fault if all these soft-hearted idiots can't see that!" Melnyk spat out.

 

Lucien looked at him.  "Thank you for that commentary.  You open your mouth to speak without my permission or to answer a direct question, I'll gag you."

 

Shaking his head, the Top glared out across the harbor.

 

"Their hypothesis was that out-of-control Doms and Tops are nothing more then misplaced Brats, subs or slaves.  They have gotten so good at faking and lying to themselves that they manage to test as dominates when that's not who they are or what they need.  This doesn't come out until they are truly put into a 24/7 relationship with someone, and they can't handle the strain."

 

"You would think that with all the training that happens, it would come out then," Davis spoke up.

 

“For some people it does, but for others, it's not until they are completely on their own, with another person dependant on them, that they snap.  They start feeling out of control, so they crack down on their partners' behavior in an attempt to maintain the rapidly disappearing control they have.  They feel like failures and lose their self-confidence, and in order to keep their partners from picking up on the problem, they begin to break down the other person's confidence."

 

"I never did that to Billy," Melnyk said softly, "I love him and only want what's best for him."

 

"I don't doubt you love him, Peter.  But I do doubt that you are what's best for him.  Did any of what I'm saying make sense to you?"

 

Melnyk shrugged. "I don't know.  I can see it happening, I guess, but that's not me.  I am a Top, not some pseudo -Top like you think I am.  I'm not weak."

 

"Weak or strong has nothing to do with being a Top.  Not really," Davis said.

 

"No, it doesn't," Lucien explained. "Society makes those assumptions, which leads to these kinds of problems.  People make the assumption, even people who know better, that the older one, the bigger one, the more professional one, the more successful one is always the Dom or Top.  People even subconsciously make the assumption that there's something wrong or lacking in those who are Brats or subs.  We've found that most of our out-of-control Doms are in that situation.  They have high-pressure careers, have been put in situations that demand a high level of responsibility and they convince themselves that it's a perfect match for them."

 

"But I'm happy at my job!" Peter protested, turning to face the other two men.

 

"You may be.  You may be great at your job.  But does it carry over into your private life?  Do you want it to?"

 

"I don't know. It just always has."

 

"If you come with me, we'll explore it together.  That's what my small group does.  We take out-of-control Tops and try to help them.  You'll be given to a member on our island and the two of you will work at breaking down your walls and finding out what you really need and what's really going on."

 

"I'm not going to be someone's slave," Melnyk said adamantly.   

 

"No, at least not on our island.  We have a basically simple approach.  We take everything away from you.  You control nothing and all decisions are made for you. You will be punished for disobedience, rebellion or to simply remind you that you are under the control of another person. We strip away your pride and the image you have of who you are.  Then, we work at rebuilding all of that, but in a true form.  We've found that the vast majority of our out-of-control Tops become subs, in various degrees, but most find that they are happier with someone else being in charge of their private lives."

 

"What if I don't go with you?"

 

"A letter will go out today that informs all of The Island members and members of the communities that we deal with that you have been blackballed from here and should be considered dangerous.  You won't be welcome in any reputable club or group,” Davis said without emotion.

 

"If you come with me, that letter won't go out.  You'll be given a safeword that you can use at any time.  That will release you from my community and get you on a boat to the mainland."

 

"If you do that," Davis said, "I’ll be informed and the letter will be sent then."

 

"If I go with you and it turns out that I like not being a Top, what does that mean?" he asked in a low voice.

 

"Then we will find a Top for you and work from there."

 

"What happens on your island?"

 

"The simplest way to describe it is a form of infantilism.  Your Top will control every aspect of your life and your body for a period of time.  You will be punished in a similar manner to what they teach here.  I say infantilism because that’s basically the level you will start at.  Your new Top may not allow you to talk, walk, use the bathroom or eat on your own for a certain period of time.  Then the two of you will work at gradually giving you back more and more control until you find a good fit.  Think of it as starting completely over. You gradually move from infant stage to adulthood until the stage that you need is found.  Most of the people that come to us stay with us for about a year.  It varies a little from Top to Top."  Lucien looked at his watch. "I'm leaving in 15 minutes.  You have all the information you need to make your decision.  Think about it.  If you want to come with me, be on the boat before it leaves."

 

"I am a Top," Melnyk said firmly.

 

"I don't care what you think you are.  The boat will be here for 15 minutes.  Get on, or don't.  It doesn't matter to me."  Lucien turned to Davis, hugging him again.  "I'll give you a call tonight.  It was good seeing you again."

 

"You too."

 

"14 minutes, Peter." He turned, walked down the dock and boarded the waiting boat.

 

Davis turned to Melnyk.  "Either way, you're out of here this morning.  Our boat is standing by."

 

"I'm a Top."

 

"You're an out-of-control bastard who hurt someone you supposedly love.  I don't know a Top anywhere that does that."  Turning away, he walked to the cart where Mullins and Richard sat waiting.  When he reached them, he said, "When Lucien's boat leaves, go get him and put him on ours and get him out of here."

 

"He's not going with the other guy?" Richard asked, surprised.

 

"I don't know. He needs to decide and he has about 10 minutes to do so."

 

For 7 minutes the three of them sat in the cart and watched him look out across the harbor. Then he slowly made his way down the dock, toward the waiting black boat and Lucien.

 

The End