Screenscam by Michael Bowen

Author:Michael Bowen [Bowen, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: FICTION / Mystery & Detective / General
ISBN: 978-1-61595-316-5
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press, Inc.
Published: 2011-12-08T16:00:00+00:00

Date—June 27

# of Strokes—4 dozen+

Reason—rudeness

Administered by—Jennifer Payne

She handed the paddle to Keane.

“Give him about ten minutes against the wall,” she muttered. “Then tell him his punishment is over and he can pull his pants back up—and give him back his paddle.”

“He’ll treasure this,” Keane said to Melissa, gesturing with the autographed paddle. “He’ll put it in his trophy case.”

“If I were you,” Payne continued to her soul sister, “I’d make sure he doesn’t get alone with any inexperienced girls. He’s liable to be dangerous for the rest of the weekend.”

“Right,” Keane said.

“As for you,” Payne said to Melissa, “I think you’d better make tracks in a hurry.” Taking Melissa’s arm herself, she began to walk her toward the dealers’ room.

“I intend to. I’m going straight back to my room.”

“No. At least not any longer than it takes you to get your suitcase. Check out. Right now. Find another hotel, then go back home tomorrow after you’ve gotten a good night’s sleep.”

“Why?” Melissa asked.

Payne sighed as she continued to urge Melissa ungently along.

“This will take some explaining if you’re really going to buy it,” she said, “so I guess I’ll have to give you the long version.”

“Okay.”

“What you just saw isn’t my standard routine. My specialty is more the strict but loving older sister, more in sorrow than in anger, ‘I’m terribly sorry, honey, but rules are rules and I’m afraid you’re just going to have to have a spanking,’ hugs before and after, that kind of thing.”

“I see. I guess.”

“A lot of clients, though, don’t necessarily want your specialty. They have particular scenes they like to act out, almost scripted routines that they want to follow. It’s my job to draw that out of them and accommodate them.”

“Well, sure,” Melissa said. “I mean, being a professional and everything.”

“Exactly. Now, it so happens that none of the lines you heard just now were terribly original. Including Packbrat’s lines. In fact, I’ve been through that whole routine before—with Fessephile.”

“You’re saying Packbrat is Fessephile?” Melissa demanded.

“Yes. There were minor variations, of course, but parts of the scenario were word for word. It refreshed my recollection. The memories came flooding back. I’ll have Maggie check the registration data, and by the time you’re home tomorrow I will have e-mailed you Packbrat/Fessephile’s real name.”

“So that, by some incredible coincidence the guy who tracked Rep down was the same guy who started hitting on me tonight after you and I talked about him?” Melissa commented, raising her voice to make it a question.

“Nothing coincidental about it. Your husband went public with his query, and someone who wanted to badly enough could have found out that you had signed up for this event at the last minute. Fessephile was here to find out if someone was on his trail, and it was natural for him to suspect you—especially after he saw you talking to me. He accosted you so that he could check out his suspicions.”

Melissa nodded while she took a deep breath. Payne’s theory made sense—and it made Melissa’s skin crawl.

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