Anchor Line (2 page)

             
“Oh my God, I need a cup of coffee so bad.” Addie said looking longingly at the large steel coffee pot that sat on the table with stale donuts and powered creamer and sugar with small white styrofoam cups stacked on one side.

             
“Focus girl.” Talia said. Her firm grip taking Addie by the arm. “Let’s get past the claymore mine that is sure to blow up at us when we walk in.”

             
Claymore mine was what some of the women who worked in Personnel started calling Mr. Claymore. He’d blow up at anyone. No matter what the reason, whether good or bad. The waiting room was empty when they walked in. Jessica, the receptionist, wasn’t at her desk. Which meant that Mr. Claymore wasn’t in the office. He was a stickler for everyone being at their appointed place of duty during the day. They weren’t allowed to have birthday celebrations or anything in the office once he took charge. He pretty much just sucked the life out of the ladies that worked for him.

             
As Addie and Talia made their way to their own cubicles, Jessica stuck her head out of Mr. Claymore’s office and waived. Her short blonde bob moving in time with her movements. Addie smiled and waved back wondering what the girl was up to. She was a ball of energy, that’s what Mr. Claymore liked about her. He’d also say jump, and she’d do it too. No matter, Addie opened her desk drawer and pulled out her wall charger for her phone from her purse before she stuffed her purse in the drawer and closed it. Turning on her computer, she waited for it to boot up, slid her ID card into the slot in her keyboard and signed in.

             
“So, the results are in.” Jessica whispered as she leaned against the opening to Addie’s cubicle.

             
“Oh really?” Addie turned her chair around and assessed the svelte blonde in her hot pink dress and matching heels. “What do you know?”

             
“The Team Lead position is between you and Talia.” She squealed.

             
“It won’t be me.” Talia said. She leaned on the other part of the doorway. Her black hair was pull into a low ponytail. Her caramel colored skin set off beautifully by her salmon colored sweater dress. She was a Hispanic beauty.

             
“What do you mean, not you?” Addie asked.

             
“Tam got orders to Germany.” She answered simply, her lips thinning into a straight line.

             
“What?” Addie and Jessica said at the same time.

             
“Yep. Last night.” She folded her arms over her chest. “Took me out to that new Mexican place by the mall. The good one. And laid it all out.”

             
“Wow.” Jessica said. “How exciting.”

             
But Talia looked less than enthused.

             
“This is Tam’s way of saying lets work on shit. Escape both of our families, go to another country and work on our marriage.” She sighed and looked down out toward the waiting area. “He said he wants to try and have a baby too.”

             
Talia had miscarried when her birth control was compromised by a round of antibiotics when Talia had gotten really sick. Addie remembered how Talia was devastated to learn that she had miscarried. Addie had stayed with her until her husband was pulled out of the field and met them at the hospital. While she waited in the waiting room to let Tam take her car to go home and change, she was shocked when he had decided to return to the field. Addie had made up her mind then, that she didn’t like him. At All. So, Addie had stayed with her and made sure she got home. Talia slept in the recliner while Addie slept on the sofa and made a chick fest out of the long weekend. That was only six months ago.

             
Addie threw her hands up in front of her, palms facing outward. “Talia, I don’t care for Tam. But, you have to do what’s best for you girl.” She dropped her hands in her lap and shook her head in disbelief.

             
The women chatted a few more minutes until the bell that Jessica left on the desk in her absence, went off. She made her way up to the front, Talia went to her cubicle, and Addie pulled her mug from her shelf and went to the break room for coffee. She’d already missed her first two appointments and her third looked like he was going to no-show. So, she moseyed up to see if she could get any other office promotion gossip that Jessica had. She made her way up front and saw a few Soldiers signing in, but none of them were for her. So, she set her coffee cup on the wrap around counter and leaned in looking at Jessica’s mess on her desk.

             
“So, no other news of promotions since Mr. Winfield and those other two retired?” She asked.

             
Jessica shook her head. “Nope. They are being tight lipped about who’s going where. Although, with the new Team Lead promotion, you’ll be raking in the big dollars girl.”

             
Addie rolled her eyes. She’d finally be able to move out of the crappy old apartment complex and get a descent apartment and get her car fixed for sure. Then her parents wouldn’t have to worry about her getting mugged or worse where she lived. The area wasn’t seedy, it was just...old.

             
“Oh,” Jessica started and moved in close to Addie. “Staff Sergeant Renner called. Said he was running late. He changed his appointment time from ten to eleven-thirty.” She smiled brightly after she whispered it.

             
Addie looked confused at Jessica, raising an eyebrow at her. “Why do you look so excited about that?”

             
“Are you kidding?” Jessica said shaking her head in astonishment. “He is gorgeous. Oh my God Addie. Do you not see that? And he’s the Top at the Messo.” She’d said it like Addie was crazy.

             
“He’s a what, where?” Addie still looked confused shaking her head and squinting her eyes, as if that would help her understand.

             
Jessica looked around and saw that only one Soldier was waiting for his appointment. “The Dom/sub Club? Sottomesso? Surely you’ve heard of it.”

             
Addie tilted her head. “I’ve heard of it, but I’ve never been in it.”

             
“Well,” Jessica smiled smugly. “You have to have a Dom or an invitation to be allowed in. You can’t just go and say, hey, let me in.”

             
“Ah.” Addie smiled when it finally hit her. “No coffee makes Addie’s brain slow.” She tapped her temple with her finger. “So, how often do you go there?”

             
“Carl and I go most weekends when he’s not in the field. I’m allowed to go by myself, but the other Dom’s can’t touch me because I’m collared. I get to talk to the other subbies. And since we know most of them, they look after me. He doesn’t want me in there by myself, but I enjoy the company.” Jessica smiled at Addie. “You totally need to go. Sometimes what you read doesn’t quite give you the full effect.” She wiggled her eyebrows now. “I’ll talk to Carl.”

             
“How do you know Sergeant Renner goes there?” Addie was curious now.

             
“He’s friends with Carl. They are in the same unit.” Jessica said. “He’s been teaching Carl new techniques. But I’m not supposed to say anything to anyone. It’s kind of a taboo lifestyle.” She put her finger to her lips.

             
“So you let him do things to you?” Addie whispered astonished now.

             
“No!” Jessica whispered. “He’s seen me naked, he shows Carl, but he’s never touched me skin on skin sexually. Carl’s possessive, really possessive.” Jessica hesitated for a second or two. “He likes Renner, but he doesn’t want a Top that he works with every day to touch his girl if you know what I mean.”

             
“So what’s he teaching Carl to do to you?” Addie leaned in now, taking a long sip of her coffee.

             
“Carl’s implement of choice is a flogger. He’s learning how to use a riding crop without drawing blood.” Jessica leaned over in her seat and pulled up the bottom part of her dress and showed Addie the thin red lines on Jessica’s upper thighs.

             
Addie’s eyes went wide. “Wow.” She whispered. “He did that?”

             
Jessica’s face was pure joy. “Hell yes he did! And we are going back Friday night.” Jessica said softly.              

             
Addie pulled back from the counter a little bit, taking a sip of her coffee.

             
“It doesn’t hurt Addie.” Jessica was quick to explain. “I like what Carl does to me. It’s a kind of release. It’s not abuse.”

             
“Jess, as long as you are okay with it, who am I to judge.” Addie smiled. “I better go check my email and get ready for my next no-show.”

             
Jessica winked at her and turned around and clicked the mouse to turn the computer screen back on.  Addie walked back to her cubicle. She looked into Talia’s cubicle as she walked by and saw that she was helping a Soldier. Sitting in her chair, she slid in closer to her desk and pulled open the top drawer and pulled out the picture frame that was turned upside-down. She flipped it over and was faced with her ex-boyfriend Charles Thompson. His blonde hair was in a high and tight, his green eyes looked straight out at her from the picture. It was the spring formal. Only two months before...her breath caught in her throat and her eyes started to water. The talk of Sottomesso and Jessica and Carl being in a Dom/sub relationship got Addie’s mind spinning.

             
Charles was a Dominant. They’d met at the DMV in town and started talking. He’d asked her out and that was the beginning of their relationship. It wasn’t until they’d been seeing each other for about five months that he’d told her of his fetishes and lifestyle that he usually led. And then he’d suggested tying her arms to the bed and used vibrators on her and little toys. Nothing too intense. No anal. Addie wasn’t so sure about that. He’d used a flogger lightly on her, introducing her to his fetishes. He could wield a whip like nobody’s business though. He’d shown her how accurate he was. And when the calls came in for him to go to Sottomesso, he went. He’d never taken Addie there. She never understood his reasoning for it either. Every time a call came in, and the frequency really depended, he’d explain that he had to go. Maybe it was because her father was a Command Sergeant Major that he hadn’t taken her. Several people knew they were dating and where she worked and knew her on site.

Chapter Two

              Addie remembered the day like it was yesterday...yet it seemed like forever ago when she was told about Charles, and what’d happened...

             
She was sitting with Talia in her living room watching Jennifer Lopez, in Maid in Manhattan. She and Talia had a running commentary and were laughing and changing the dialogue when Addie’s phone rang.  She saw that it was her mother, so she picked it up.

             
“Cosa stai mamma?” She always answered in Italian to her mother, using her mother’s native Italian.

             
“Honey, I know you are hanging out with Talia. But, I need you to come home.” Her mother sounded worried. “You can bring her too if you want.”

             
Her mother always worried about her friends.

             
“Sure mamma. Is everything okay?” Now Addie was worried.

             
“Ce. Ce.” She rattled off. “Just, please come home.”

             
“I’ll be over in a few minutes.” Addie hung up the phone while Talia was looking at her phone and then looked up at Addie. Anguish was covering her face. “What’s wrong Tal?”

             
“Oh, nothing.” She waved a hand around in circles. “Nothing.” She took a deep breath, “What’s up with your mom?” She tried to act normal, like nothing was wrong. But something was. Addie could feel it.

             
“I don’t know. She was really worried. Needs me to come home.” Addie started folding the throw blanket from the sofa and put it over the back.

             
“Um...I’ll drive.” Talia hesitated only a moment. “Let’s go.”

             
“Don’t you want to change out of your sweats?”

             
“No. No, I don't.” Talia answered. “In fact, I’ll drive.”

             
Now Addie knew something was going on. Talia and Addie practically ran out of the apartment and climbed into Talia’s new SUV and sped across town onto post to where Addie’s parents lived in on- post housing. They pulled into the drive and saw an MP car and a few others in front of the tan two story house. Talia was right on the heels of Addie as they walked in and saw a few Soldiers that looked like they came right out of the field and the two MPs and a few other people that her father worked with. They were in the living room in the back of the house.. Nothing good ever happened in that living room if the TV was off and men in various uniforms were around the sofa table. Addie’s mom had just put down a huge plate of sandwiches on the coffee table and spun around into the kitchen and brought out a tray with glasses and a pitcher of her famous peach iced tea.