Urban Prey Read Online Free PDF Page A

stepped out of the elevator and turned right. As he followed her, he took a quick look to the left. Either way he looked, there was nothing but a long hallway, carpeted, the walls painted a pale yellow. He could see some metal doors with brass numbers on them, all of them along the same side of the hallway.
    “Where are we?” he asked.
    “We call this the Ring,” Carla answered. “It runs all the way around the second floor facilities.”
“So, you can access any part of the second floor from here?”
    “Yes. It’s quite convenient. We have the same arrangement on the third floor.”
    Carla was still smiling at him, but now she was keeping a more professional distance from him. Had he done something wrong? He thought back and couldn’t think of anything. Then it dawned on him. He’d been working for the company for so long that he’d forgotten how things worked on the outside. Carla had let him know that she was interested and available. Now it was his turn to let her know if he was likewise interested, and make a move. That much he could grasp, but he had absolutely no idea what he should say or do now.
    Carla’s smile faded. He realized that he’d been just standing there for a bit too long.
“Is something wrong?” Carla asked.
    “Yes, with me,” Ron shook his head. “I’m afraid I’ve gotten very rusty with my people skills.”
    “Really?” An eyebrow went up.
    “Yes, really. You’re a very attractive woman, and I’m standing here feeling like a teenaged boy on his first date. I just do not know what to do next.”
    Carla looked puzzled at first. He could almost hear the gears clicking in her head. He saw understanding dawn in her eyes.
    “Oh, my!” Her hand went to her mouth. “You’re serious!”
    “Absolutely,” he admitted. “It’s a lot more straightforward out in the woods.”
    “I’m sure that it is. Did I overwhelm you?”
    “More than a little,” Ron admitted.
    “And here I was beginning to think that I’d lost my edge,” Carla chuckled. “Well, I won’t come right out and ask you if you’re interested, and don’t you come right out and tell me. I think you could use the practice. Deal?”
    “Deal.” He let out a sigh of relief.
    “Let’s get on with the rest of the tour, then,” Carla suggested. “I think you’ll find it interesting.” Her smile returned. “You might even get some ideas.”
    “How many women do you have here at any one time?” Ron asked as he trailed Carla down the long hallway.
    “It varies,” Carla answered. “We usually have anywhere from twenty-five to fifty. I think right now we have thirty-seven, not counting the ones you just saw.”
    “That many? I wouldn’t have thought there’d be so many clients in a city this size.”
    Carla laughed. She had a good laugh. “There aren’t,” she said. “Actually, only one of our current clients is local. We have women coming here from all over. Some even come here from overseas. This is the only urban facility that we have that can handle them.”
    “Why is that?”
    “Supply, demand and costs,” Carla answered. “It’s very expensive, running a facility like this. There just wouldn’t be enough business to open another. Anyway, this one is perfectly situated. The city isn’t too big and it still has lots of places nearby to visit. If a wife or a girlfriend or a mistress wants to get away for a little while and recharge her batteries, coming here doesn’t arouse too many suspicions. But enough background.” She turned to one of the metal doors and put her hand on the doorknob. “Let’s get to the interesting part.”
    The door opened up onto a short, wide hallway. This one had unpainted cinderblock walls and a bare cement floor. The ceiling looked like an afterthought, with a metal framework supporting uncovered fluorescent lights. The lights were on the dim side. They gave an effect of gloom and foreboding to the scene. He could see one door to the right, one to the left, and