Settling in.

Miss Whitson smiled. Ninety percent of Freedonia’s paying guests were men. It was a pleasant change to explain the workings of the resort to a woman, especially an unaccompanied woman.

And especially an unaccompanied woman who had not immediately opted for personal control of her indicators.

But she hesitated. There was something not quite right about this attractive thirty-something guest. Was she just a little too eager to embrace everything that Freedonia had to offer?

With a small internal shake she pushed her doubts aside. The guest’s account had been paid and the male clientele would certainly appreciate having an available woman who was not on the staff.

“The only sexual practices not allowed are those which might cause excessive pain or permanent injury. This, of course, applies to you too. It was in the agreement you signed, though I must admit that the wording does rather assume that the customer is male.”

“As far as activation is concerned, this is controlled by a random algorithm that runs on our central computer. On average, outside the protected areas, the indicators will be green for approximately fifty percent of the time. After changing color, they will stay green for approximately an hour.”

“I must stress that these are averages. There will be some days when you are available almost all the time, or for two or three hours at a stretch.”

Janet listened to Miss Whitson’s explanations with a growing sense of unreality. What sort of a man would want to frequent such a place?

Still – that was exactly what she was here to find out. The men here would not be nobodies, the prices charged would ensure that. Rock stars, businessmen, politicians – a series of articles exposing their sordid practices would catapult her to the top of her profession. Not to mention bringing in tens of thousands of dollars.

She smiled at the resort worker.

“That’s very clear, thank you. I’m happy for the necklace and bracelet to be remotely controlled.”

Miss Whitson pushed several papers toward her.

“In that case, would you just sign here… And here… And here…"

Janet signed the places on the pages of the contract pointed out by Amy.

“Thank you. I think that’s everything. If you would like to put the necklace and bracelet on now…

“Good. There’s a sixty-minute override on the indicators. They’ll stay red for an hour, which will give you time to settle into your room and unpack.

“In your room you’ll find a welcome pack. It includes a map of the resort, and timetables for various activities. May I wish you a very pleasant stay at Freedonia. If there’s anything I can do to enhance your experience here please do come and see me.”

Forty minutes later Janet was hanging up the last of her clothes in her wardrobe. During the walk over from the Admin block she had seen only a few guests, and those at a distance. She was feeling vaguely disappointed. Freedonia so far was not proving to be the orgy-filled den of iniquity that she had hoped for and which would sell newspapers.

She decided to go for a walk and explore a little. She had twenty minutes before anything might happen.