"Sublime service, made to order." The Flesh Cartel: an international, multi-billion-dollar black market that trades in lost souls. Or more specifically, their bodies. Highly organized and frighteningly efficient, the Flesh Cartel could teach even the KGB a thing or two about breaking a human mind. Fortunately for their ultra-rich clients, they're just as skilled at putting people back together again-as perfect pets, well-trained and eager to please. No matter what your secret tastes or dark desires, the Flesh Cartel-for the right price, of course-will hand-design the plaything of your dreams.
With a wedge at last driven between Mat and Dougie Carmichael, courtesy of Nikolai Petrovic's expert manipulations, the brothers must each accept their new path forward: Dougie, a perfect slave, sweet and obedient and loving. Mat, a tightly reined dog, snarling and snapping but never allowed to bite. Unfortunately, no transformation, however well planned, is without its growing pains. Mat's leash is so tight it's choking him. Dougie is tormented by a little voice inside his head-a fragment of his former self-that he cannot silence. And Nikolai's most difficult tests for the brothers are still to come. The critical question isn't whether they can pass those tests, but whether they even want to. Without each other to lean on and live for, a bleak future has become bleaker still. But Nikolai's too good to let his slaves slip through his fingers-by death or by despair.
With the help of the FBI, Mat Carmichael has let himself be re-taken by the Flesh Cartel. Objective? Rescue his brother, exact revenge, and destroy the entire organization from the inside.
Nikolai Petrovic is a man of refinement. He collects fine art, enjoys gourmet cuisine, and trains boutique sex slaves for some of the wealthiest-and most morally dubious-men and women in the world. Charged by a wealthy client to buy a man to train but not break-to shape into a skilled, obedient slave who will yield with hatred rather than love in his eyes-Nikolai finds the perfect raw material in Mathias Carmichael. But there's a problem: he was auctioned off in a lot with his beautiful younger brother. Douglas Carmichael is a lovely, trainable thing, but Nikolai never takes on more than one slave at a time. As a master trainer who's never once failed in his task, he knows he's up to the challenge, but it will take formidable skill and planning to mold these drastically different brothers into their best selves. And in order to make them obedient to Nikolai and their future masters above all others, he'll first have to break their greatest loyalty of all: their dedication to each other.
Comprising Complete and Accurate Definitions of All Terms Employed in Belles-lettres, Philosophy, Theology, Law, Mythology, Painting, Music, Sculpture, Architecture, and All Kindred Arts