Chapter Six: The Sponsor

Thursday, 2:00 p.m. — Executive Reception Suite

The legacy of Robert Dixon

The Dixon Rehabilitation Institute occupied an impressive modern campus surrounded by landscaped gardens, security gates, and private residences.

To the outside world, it was a prestigious rehabilitation and personal-development institution.

Its brochures advertised discipline, education, personal improvement, and successful reintegration into society.

But its real purpose was considerably darker.

The institute had been established decades earlier by Robert Dixon, a wealthy industrialist who believed that young men without family support could be reshaped into suitable companions and wives for the sons of influential families.

Robert had developed a private network of wealthy patrons who funded his experiments.

His daughter, Margaret Whitmore, grew up around the institution. When Robert died, she inherited its leadership.

She modernized the buildings, expanded the program, and made the placement operation considerably more profitable.

Her father had started the institution.

She intended to perfect it.

The real Dixon program

Margaret stood in her office reviewing the latest quarterly placement report.

A presentation on her computer displayed the institute's three principal departments.

Department One: Personal Transformation

Appearance, fashion, cosmetics, grooming, and wardrobe development.

Department Two: Social Development

Etiquette, housekeeping, conversation, hospitality, and social presentation.

Department Three: Marriage Preparation

Relationship education, intimacy, courtship, and preparation for placement with approved families.

Margaret smiled at the report.

Her father would have been proud.

Richard arrives

At precisely two o'clock, the reception doors opened.

Richard Whitmore walked into the suite.

At twenty-six, he was handsome, impeccably dressed, and accustomed to getting his way. His charcoal designer suit was perfectly tailored, and an expensive watch was visible beneath his cuff.

"Mother."

"Richard. You're early."

"I wanted to see how things were progressing."

Margaret indicated a chair.

"Stephanie is making progress. She's still resistant, but her presentation has improved considerably."

Richard opened a folder.

"I've reviewed her latest photographs."

"Your thoughts?"

"I like the direction. I want her wardrobe upgraded before the autumn reception. More designer pieces. Elegant dresses, tailored skirts, proper shoes, stockings, and a selection of luxury handbags."

Margaret smiled.

"I anticipated that."

Richard turned another page.

"And I want her to have the social confidence to accompany me anywhere. Business dinners, charity functions, family gatherings. I cannot have an uncomfortable wife at my side."

"Understood."

Richard paused.

"Mother, you know why this arrangement matters to me."

Margaret nodded.

Richard had always understood the arrangement.

He was attracted to transwomen, and his family expected him to maintain the appearance of a conventional married life. Stephanie represented the possibility of a respectable public image, a carefully constructed family life, and freedom from the constant scrutiny of his wealthy social circle.

He wanted a wife who would understand the arrangement and participate in maintaining that image.

Meeting Stephanie

Mrs. Hargrove appeared at the reception entrance.

"Director Whitmore, Stephanie is here."

"Send her in."

Steve entered wearing a pale pink blouse and a charcoal pleated skirt. His hair had been styled, and he wore subtle makeup.

He immediately recognized Richard.

"You're the man from the sponsor file."

Richard smiled.

"Richard Whitmore."

"I know who you are."

Margaret interrupted.

"Stephanie, please sit down."

"My name is Steve."

Richard studied him.

"Mother tells me you still have difficulty accepting your assigned identity."

"I have difficulty accepting being treated like somebody else's property."

For a moment, Richard said nothing.

Then he closed his folder.

"You're certainly outspoken."

"Wouldn't you be?"

Margaret looked irritated.

"Stephanie, this is not the time."

Richard raised his hand.

"It's all right, Mother."

He turned back to Steve.

"I want you to understand something. I know what Dixon does. I know what the program involves. I also know that you didn't come here voluntarily."

Steve stared at him.

"Then why are you here?"

"Because I've taken an interest in your placement."

"Your placement?"

Richard smiled faintly.

"My future."

Steve felt his stomach tighten.

The private agreement

After Stephanie was escorted back to her residence, Richard remained with his mother.

"He's going to be difficult," Margaret observed.

"Perhaps."

"Are you certain he's the one?"

Richard looked at the photograph in the folder.

"Yes."

Margaret leaned back.

"Your grandfather would have appreciated this."

Richard glanced toward the portrait of Robert Dixon hanging behind her desk.

"Grandfather built the institution. You've turned it into something much bigger."

"And you will benefit from it."

Richard closed the folder.

"I intend to."

A discovery

That evening, Steve returned to his room.

There was something different about the folder Mrs. Hargrove had left on his desk.

He opened it.

Inside were several pages of photographs, clothing selections, and a proposed social calendar.

The final page carried a heading:

WHITMORE FAMILY

CONFIDENTIAL PLACEMENT PROPOSAL

Candidate: Stephanie Thomas

Proposed husband: Richard Whitmore

Sponsor: Margaret Whitmore

Placement status: Preparation underway

Target: Marriage and long-term household placement

Personal note from Richard:

Personal note from Richard:

"I expect my future wife to be elegant, socially confident, attentive, and comfortable with the lifestyle our family maintains."

Steve threw the folder onto the bed.

He had thought Dixon was trying to change him.

Now he understood something much worse.

Dixon was preparing to sell his future to someone else.

And Richard Whitmore had already decided what that future should look like.