“Come As You Are, Leave Anew.”

The invitation in my hand was simple in design; blocky lettering in shimmering, mother of pearl against charcoal black. I had read very little about this place. Any mention of it was always removed immediately from message boards and websites. Bloggers who had tried to expose the establishment were silenced, their pages suddenly showing nothing but "404."

I didn't think it really existed, just an urban legend, until Seth showed up to work a completely new man. He left on Friday a beaten down, worn out, slovenly grump and returned Monday with a spring in his step, a wink in his eye, and wearing a tie without coffee stains for once. Even so, it was more than just some outward enhancements. He was a different man. Not literally of course.

Though...

I smacked the invitation against the open palm of my left hand as I glanced around my quiet surroundings, straining to hear anything from beyond the door. Even just a couple sounds to give me a clue as to what I was in for if I went in would help me decide. But it was silent. Too silent. How could this place be so quiet? This was too weird, I shouldn't be here. This wasn't for me.

I had just made up my mind to leave when the door in front of me silently opened.

My breath caught in my throat, I was parched. The foyer beyond the threshold was dimly lit, like a movie theater. I should leave. I should not go in there. I had a report due on Monday and a bathroom faucet at home that needed fixing. I should turn around and walk away.

And yet...

My feet carried me forward as if of their own accord and I stepped into the darkened room. The door shut behind me without even a whisper and a cool lightness washed over me.

"Welcome," voices greeted me from somewhere beyond my sight. They were masculine and feminine all at once, each one echoing the other. I wasn't sure if, or how, I should respond and my throat was paper dry now. I couldn't have spoken even if I wanted to.

The space around me was empty, just a marble floor surrounded by dark walls. Suddenly a light winked on before me shining down on a small table that I hadn't noticed before. Had it even been there? On the table rested a small silver tray on which a crystal vial sat. Inside the vial was a shimmering substance; a soft blue smoke rolling and undulating, wanting to be free.

"Are you predator," the voices surrounded me again, the sound like fingertips caressing my neck. "or prey?"

I stared at the vial, the roiling substance growing brighter under my gaze. I barely registered the invitation slipping from my grasp as I reached for it. It needed me. I needed it.

"Predator or prey?" The voices were repeating the question over and over; the echo inside my head almost maddening as the room grew warmer.

I lifted the stopper from the vial and watched as the smoke drifted up in ribbons toward my face. I inhaled, my head snapped backward, eyes rolling back as my vision filled with images of parting grasses, the ground racing under my feet, satin sheets, and tensing limbs. My ears filled with the sound of thundering footfalls and labored breathing. The scent of Leather. The feel of Lace. The crack of a whip. My head snapped forward again as my body trembled and quaked.

"Predator or prey?"

The vial fell from my hands to the floor. I never registered a noise. All I heard was the question over and over in my ears. My upper lip curled into a snarl, I flexed my fingers and ran my hands through my hair as a curtain parted to my left. My head rolled slowly in its direction and I stalked toward the red lit hallway.

"Predator," I growled.