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Chapter One

God, it hurts. Hurry up. ”

Toreth tried the lock on the cuffs again, without much hope of success. His pessimism proved justified. “Sorry, it’s stuck. ”

“Don’t fuck around, Toreth. ” Anger masked the pain in Warrick’s voice.

“I’m not. I’m serious. They won’t open. The lock must’ve fritzed when the chair went over. That’s the problem with electronic controls. At work I’d just get a mechanical override key, but they’re sign-out, sign-in, and tagged so they can’t leave the building.

While he knelt there, he cast a professional eye over the damage to Warrick’s wrists. In the five months they’d been fucking regularly this was the first serious accident, which Toreth considered to be a decent enough record considering Warrick’s tastes in fun. All inside the damage waiver. This time, though, things couldn’t be glossed over with an analgesic spray and a long-sleeved shirt, which might prove awkward.

Warrick shifted on the chair, and then swore under his breath. “Can’t you break them?”

“No. ” Toreth stood up. “They’re long-term restraint cuffs, designed to be left on unsupervised prisoners. If it was that easy, there’d be no fucking point using them, would there?”

Warrick closed his eyes. “Think of some other way to get them open, then. ”

“I’ll have to call an ambulance. They’ll be able to cut you free at Casualty. ”

His eyes flew open again. “No! Can’t you do something?”

“Nothing I can think of, not unless you’ve got a hacksaw and a few hours. I can’t chew through alloyed steel. We could always wait until your wrist swells up, the cuffs cut off the circulation, and you get gangrene. ”

“Compared to being carried out of the hotel stark-naked and handcuffed to a chair? I think I’ll take the gangrene. ” Warrick stared down at the floor for a moment, then up again. “Yes, all right, call. Maybe I’ll be lucky and I’ll die of shock before they get here. ”