The Training of Toby (Masters of the Mansion Book 2) (19 page)

Agent Turner

Agent Turner feigned much more confidence than he actually felt as he listened to Rene voice her doubts.

“You better hope nothing happens to that kid. Your name is going to be
shit
in the community if he gets hurt or, worse yet, killed.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Rene.”

“Okay, that did sound bitchy. I’m sorry but we are going to be in serious trouble if Toby gets so much as a scratch.”

He turned and eyed her with resignation. “Then it’s our job to make sure nothing bad happens to him. I don’t care if we have to put a bullet in the killer’s head, nothing happens to that kid. You got me?”

“Oh, I feel you; that’s for sure. It’s my name on the line too.”

“It’s going to be fine. We need to have confidence to pull this off.”

“What we need is for Toby to be able to act like he wants to be with a killer. That isn’t an easy thing to pull off for a naïve, young man.”

“You’re right. We need to coach him.”

Agent Turner wasted no time grabbing the phone and dialing The Mansion. He spoke with Master William and then had him put Toby on the phone.

“Toby, I want you to know that our primary concern is your safety. I’m going to be honest with you. If the killer wasn’t holding Jute hostage, I would never ask you to do this. I believe his guard will be down with you. He has fixated on you and you can use that obsession to your advantage.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you’re going to have to do some great acting. The best way for you to convince this guy is to convince yourself. The best liars are the ones who believe their own lies. You need to act like you’re flattered that this guy is obsessed with you. Tell him you’re jealous that he took Jute. Ask him why he didn’t take you instead. Use things like that. You’re going to have a bag of marked money with you. When you give it to him, make him believe you’re not going to go with him until he gets rid of Jute. Act like you’re jealous. He’s going to be distracted while you’re engaged with him and that’s when we’ll make our move to subdue him. Do you think you can do the things I’m asking of you?”

“Yes, I really do. I want to see Jute set free. Hempster is so upset and if I can help them, I want to.”

“Okay kiddo, let me talk to your Master.”

Agent Turner listened as the Master all but threatened him. “I’m going to tell you one more time, I don’t like this. You better hope like hell nothing bad happens to Toby!”

Agent Turner was shocked when he was hung up on again. He was beginning to suspect that Master William wasn’t just angry with him; he was downright livid. The gnawing in his gut intensified when, once again, he realized that if anything bad happened to Toby, he and Rene would be in deep shit with the community. It wasn’t like Master William to be rude; he was a stickler about manners. Pissing him off wasn’t a smart thing to do and the agent was starting to feel the pressure. Not only was he now on the bad side of one of the Masters of The Mansion, but if this rescue mission went awry, he’d be a pariah in the BDSM community as a whole too. It was definitely not something he wanted to experience; that was for sure. He and Rene were respected in the community and something like this could cause them to be ostracized. This wasn’t his ego that made him fear being cast out so much as it was a matter of his heart. There was very little that he was emotional about but the community was one of those things. He cared about the people at The Mansion. There was a sense of family amongst all its residents. He had no intention of alienating himself or Rene from the community over a case. If the hostage had been anyone other than a fellow kinkster, he wouldn’t go to the extreme of sending in a novice slave as bait. As badly as he hated to admit it, he was between the proverbial rock and a hard place.

He pushed the thought from his mind to ward off any distractions and set about concocting a successful plan of escape for everyone concerned. There was a lot banking on this operation’s success: lives, his reputation, and the conviction of a serial killer…

Master William

The ride to the station was a quiet one. Master William decided it would be a good idea to bring Mistress Diamond along to drop Toby off at the agent’s office. He knew it would help Toby remain calm. Unfortunately, it wasn’t doing a damn thing to help his nerves.

He was a man who was accustomed to being in control and that was especially true when it came to his emotions. He couldn’t remember a time he’d ever felt so on edge.

The hour and a half long car ride from Bowling Green was spent in tense silence, which seemed to only heighten the element of fear and uncertainty the three of them felt.

Master William turned and eyed Toby after he parked the car and said, “You can do this, Toby. Don’t think about all the things that can go wrong. Play the role. Convince him you want to be with him, that you’re glad to see him, and that you’re jealous he took Jute. What the agent told you about believing the lie you’re telling, that’s the truth. If you’re convinced, then he’ll be convinced.”

“I can do this. I may be naïve when it comes to the lifestyle but I grew up on the streets.”

“I believe in you, pet, and your Mistress does too. You’ll do fine. Now, let’s get in here and get you ready.”

“Don’t you mean wired?” Toby asked.

“That’s exactly what I mean. You won’t be alone with that wire on you. The agents will be able to hear everything that’s being said.”

Master William led the way. He couldn’t help but notice the other agents staring at them as they made their way towards Agent Turner’s office. He wondered if they were watching them because they knew about their lifestyle or if it was because they knew Toby was going on an undercover sting and his life would be in danger. He pushed away the morbid thought that this might be the last time he ever saw the boy. He knew if that happened, he would be the one who’d have to pick up the shattered pieces of Mistress Diamond’s heart.

Agent Turner

Agent Turner looked up to see the three of them coming in and he immediately got to work fitting Toby with a wire.

“We’re essentially going to be there with you. You’re not alone, kid. Remember everything we told you and this will be over before you know it.” Agent Turner chuckled, trying to lighten the somber mood. “Just think, you’ll be a hero at The Mansion and you’re not even done with your six weeks of training.”

“I don’t care about being a hero. I just want Jute to be okay.”

“He’ll be fine. He’ll be back with Hempster before you know it.”

“Can they go with us,” the agent watched the boy’s eyes as he looked at his Master and Mistress.

“If it will make you feel more secure, then yes.” He ignored Rene’s cutting glare. He instinctively knew that she wasn’t in favor of allowing Master William and Mistress Diamond tag along; it went against FBI protocol. The way he looked at it was if it put Toby’s mind more at ease, then he would have a greater chance of success getting Jute set free.

“Okay everybody, let’s get going. I want you and Diamond to take your own car so you can park out of sight.” He turned and looked Master William in the eye. “Under no circumstances are you to go into that warehouse. The only reason I’m even permitting the two of you to go is so that you can support Toby.” He watched as Master William just nodded his head, signifying that he understood the importance of not hindering an FBI sting operation.

They silently made their way out to their cars, determined to catch the cold-blooded killer before he struck again.