I peeked at KC, judging his mood, but one look from him was the answer I needed. “One. Just me.”
A black mask with a glow-in-the-dark red outline was passed to me, and I noted behind the desk were a bunch of other guys already wearing them. The colors were either green or red, so I assumed it was another sign of whether we were here to play or stay with our partner.
“The maze’s lights will flicker to create a mysterious atmosphere. Do any of you have a medical condition that’ll affect you because of this?”
“No,” we all dutifully said.
“You will need to sign waivers. Please read your contract carefully. It states secrecy is a must and what happens in Black Out, stays in Black Out. Breaking these rules will result in your invitation being revoked and you’ll never be allowed here again.”
Next, he passed us the contracts. One for each of us. Then, he flicked on a light at the desk so we could read. I blinked at the sudden brightness. The Scot was still hidden in the shadows.
“Maze? Chase?” Oliver leaned in closer, his pupils wide and eyes excited. “Are we really doing this?”
I grinned, proud of myself. “You want me to chase you both, Kitten? I’m going to find you and then fuck you. What do you think about that?”
A moan rippled from KC and he shifted closer to me. “Fucking hell. I’m so hard already.”
“Good,” I murmured. “Now read that contract and fill it out. We’re supposed to start at nine.” I checked my phone. It was 8:50 p.m.
I read through the contract as fast as I could. It was about what I’d expect from a BDSM event. Black Out claimed no responsibility for any injuries.
Blah blah blah.
As soon as I was done reading, I signed my name at the bottom, then printed it.
“License.” The Scot held out his hand as I passed back the contract, and I gave him my ID. Once he was satisfied, he did the same with KC and Oliver. “All looks to be in order. Predator, please mask up. You may all move over to the waiting area. We’ll start momentarily.” He waved toward the other glowing masks.
I slid the mask onto the top of my head and took KC and Oliver by the hand, leading them in the direction of the crowd. Oliver was bouncing on his toes in excitement. I knew he’d have fun, but not before we’d even begun.
“Shouldn’t we pay for this?” KC asked, ever the rational one.
“I already did. I passed the money on to Luke, and he gave it to the manager here.” I shrugged. Luke was the only reason I had a chance of getting near Black Out and its events. It was very exclusive and you had to know someone to get an invite.
“This is going to be awesome.” Oliver’s fingers tightened on mine.
“Sure is, Kitten.”
A small spotlight fired up in front of us and a familiar face walked into it. Ashton Steel, otherwise known as Casper in the Kings of Men MC, was the manager of Black Out. His name and everything about him had come up in my research for revenge, and he hadn’t made it on my radar as being close with Luke.
Still, he was impressive. He ran Black Out with an iron fist, and he wasn’t bad-looking, either. According to my notes, Steel was thirty-six. He was handsome, with bleached white hair and colorful tattoos that spread down his neck and across his torso. Of course, you couldn’t see much tonight with him wearing his Kings cut. Clearly, he was here to prove a point—don’t fuck with us or there’ll be consequences—because as far as I knew he avoided the Kings of Men insignia at Black Out.
“My name is Casper. I amnota friendly fucking ghost.”
Oliver stifled a laugh against my shoulder while KC and I grinned.
“I am the manager at Black Out, and I’m here to oversee this game. I’m sure you’ve received the rules from our faithful receptionist, Callum, and I would hope, for your sake, that you’ll follow them. Before our play begins, I have a few final rules.” He spread his arms and a group of people dressed all in black with violet wristbands stepped forward on either side of him. “These are ours. We’ll call them referees for the night. They belong to Black Out and they will be inside the maze to make sure you follow the rules and listen to code words and safe words. Any disobedience will result in your instant removal.”
He wasn’t done.
“You will not touch my referees. They are off-limits. They are wearing the purple bands for a reason. If you touch my referees, you will be banned. If they give you an order, you will follow it.”His gaze slid along the group, even though I was sure he couldn’t see us in the dark. “And you will follow the rules that Callum gave you. Code words and safe words are a promise. I better not see any greens with reds. Understood?”
The group murmured their acceptance.
Steel grinned then, wide and toothy and almost scary. He clapped his hands. “Good, then we’ll begin. The first horn is for prey. You have two minutes before the second horn signals the predators to hunt. Good luck. Fuck well knowing you’re being watched.”
The referees moved immediately, heading straight to the maze and entering. Steel watched them go, and when they’d all disappeared, he held up an air horn and pressed down. The sound pierced through the large room.
Men and women without masks scrambled.