When he was done dressing the boy, he scooped him up in his arms once more and strode for the door.
“I can walk.” Even as he made that declaration, he wrapped his arms around Val’s neck and lay his head on Val’s shoulder.
Val used the back stairs to whisk them both to their destination with his natural speed. He took the risk that none of the club’s human employees would be lurking about to see it. When he entered Alex’s office, he found Alex sitting at his desk with Quinn perched on his lap. Harry and Emil stood nearby, staring at the large flat-screen on the far wall, as did Duncan, of all people. The room’s occupants swung their collective gazes in his direction.
Jerking his head at Mackie, Alex asked, “Is everything all right?”
“Yeah.” Val craned his neck to see what had captured everyone’s attention. “Mackie needs aftercare. That’s all.”
He didn’t bother to explain exactly what had transpired for the boy to require monitoring. He figured it was self-evident, and besides, he wanted to know what was going on. There was a lot of yelling coming from the TV. Getting closer, he focused on the scene being covered by a clearly wavering videographer.
Two men, one naked and one in tattered remnants of clothing, were shrieking as they ran down a sidewalk. They were smashing store windows with their fists and terrorizing anyone in their path. People scattered, screaming. Cars started and stopped as the men wove among the traffic. They attacked any vehicle they passed, as well, rocking cars and banging on hoods. One managed to rip a windshield wiper off and whipped at the windshield with it.
“What the fuck?” Val crowded out Duncan to get a closer look.
“It’s from an hour ago,” the cop said, “on Newbury Street. A pedestrian took the video.”
Now cops came screaming up, people in uniform jumping out of their vehicles and shouting at the men to stop. They both ran toward the officers instead. Tasering didn’t stop them, barely slowed them down. And, when the man with the wiper charged a cop with it raised up like a weapon, the cop dropped him with a couple of rounds.
Mackie whimpered and buried his face in the crook of Val’s neck. Damn. He’d been so caught up in the drama, he’d forgotten about the boy.
“Shh, it’s all right.” He cupped Mackie’s cheek and held him firm.
The remaining man was overwhelmed by a few officers, but he put up a hell of a fight. It took all three of them to get him on the ground and cuffed. The videographer managed to get in close as they were raising the crazy guy to his feet. There was a moment when he looked right at what was undoubtedly a phone. His red eyes stared at the lens before rolling back into the man’s head. He collapsed into the firm grips of the cops. That’s when the screen changed to two people sitting behind a desk explaining what the viewers had just witnessed.
Alex switched off the TV. “Well, that didn’t take long to escalate.”
Val headed for the couch and sat with Mackie still cradled in his arms. Emil joined them, sitting at the other end. He shot Val a knowing smile. The man was a real soft touch when it came to relationships, although he’d never formed an attachment to a human that Val knew of. Not wanting to give his compatriot any encouragement, Val focused on Duncan.
“Did you come here because of that?” he asked with a nod to the television.
The cop sat on one of the visitor chairs, while Harry took the other. “I was actually on my way to see you already. I have information to share and couldn’t get away until now. What went down on Newbury Street is pure happenstance.” He sighed and ran a hand down his face. “I’m going to have to go back into the station. What we just witnessed is obviously connected to my murder case.”
“How so?” It was Mackie who posed the question before anyone else could.
Val frowned down at him. “You don’t need to worry about this. Go back to sleep.”
Sitting up, Mackie rolled his eyes. “Like I could, through all this commotion.”
“Right.” Val should have left him in his room after all or handed him over to Kitty, perhaps. This new trouble was surely pulling Mackie away from whatever relief the spanking had provided.
“I’m okay.” He gave Val a shy smile. “I feel pretty good actually.” Now his cheeks pinked in that cute way of human capillary functioning.
“Okay.” His lips twitched in a desire to return the expression. He resisted the impulse and eyed Duncan instead. “So, what gives?”
The cop took a deep breath, signaling that whatever he’d come to say was going to be long and irritating. Val’s suspicions were confirmed once the man launched into his story about some kind of new and dangerous drug entering Boston via Cambridge, perhaps. It didn’t take much for everyone to realize that what he was describing explained the scene they’d all witnessed on the television.
It was Mackie, again, who voiced the thought they were all having. “They actually named it vamp?” Giving Val a sideways glance, he added, “Does this Dracul guy have a sense of humor or something?”
Val’s gaze landed quite against his will on the boy’s lips. He’d always found them to be far too sensuous for anybody’s good. They appeared perfectly suited for wrapping around a guy’s dick. That thought, coupled with the way the boy’s bottom already fit perfectly against Val’s lap, sent blood rushing to his cock. It rose, pressing against Val’s slacks and Mackie’s pert ass. Val could tell the exact moment the boy felt the reaction by the way those lips of his curled up a bit at the corner.
Damn, I should have relieved myself back in Mackie’s room after all. Although who was he kidding? When had one orgasm ever been enough where this human was concerned?
Val shifted his gaze and resisted the urge to squirm. “In his own sick way, yes.”
“Dracul proved to be more adept at understanding humans than the rest of us, too, I’m afraid,” Alex added. “He knows what makes you all tick—your needs and wants and weaknesses. He found your ‘buttons’, as you would say and learned to push them early and often.”
“I don’t get what he hopes to accomplish.” This from Quinn, who rested his head against Alex’s chest in an act of obvious comfort.
Alex ran a soothing hand down the boy’s arm. “Sometimes it’s enough for him to cause chaos. Humans running riot across the city, hurting themselves and others, is a kind of real world theater that amuses him.”
Val nodded. “He also learned early that when humans are faced with the unknown and the frightening, they become much easier to manipulate. It gives him an opening to lead them in a direction that benefits him. Demagogues of his choosing rise up and become a bigger threat to the very people whose fears he exploits.”
Tightening his grip on Mackie in an automatic gesture of protection, he added, “It all feeds into his overarching plan to take control of this world and subjugate the human race. He can be patient. I expect Boston is his test case. If this drug of his works here, he’ll distribute it globally in no time.”
“Agreed,” Alex replied. “Harry, this is your area. What do you suggest?”
The older man leaned forward with his hands clasped between his legs. He looked tired and more concerned than anyone else in the room. No surprise there, given he had a husband and a son to worry about. Demi, in particular, was at risk of breaking away from his fathers’ influence and getting into trouble. “I need a sample of that blood to test.” He turned his gaze toward Duncan. “I have to take it from the man still alive. The dead one’s blood might already be decomposing inside the body.”
The cop pursed his lips and cracked his neck. “I’m going to have to tag my partner and get down to the morgue. Now that it’s clearer that we’ve got a connection with our homicide case, I have a legitimate reason to be in on the autopsy.”
“How does that help me?” Harry asked in his mild-mannered way.
“It doesn’t. You’re going to have to find a way to get past whatever security they put in place for the prisoner. My guess is that he’ll be at the hospital for observation at least
for a few hours, maybe more. There should be one officer guarding his door. I can eventually get a crack at questioning him, but it will be after he’s lucid enough for Miranda-ing, then vice will have at him.” He shrugged. “I probably won’t see him until after he’s been processed into a cell. Sorry.”
“Not to worry, Sergeant,” Alex said. “We’ll figure something out.”
Mackie sat up straighter. “I can help.”
Val tightened his grip around the boy’s waist. “No, you can’t.” The words tumbled out in a short, barking order.
Slowly, Mackie shifted to stare at him face-to-face and practically nose-to-nose. “Yes. I can.” He lifted his eyebrows in a way that challenged Val to disagree. The brat was back. “I’ve watched plenty of TV shows and movies, enough to know that you simply need a distraction.” He switched his attention to the room at large. “I only have to take the cop’s attention away from the room for…like a minute, right? Harry can race in, take the blood and book out before the cop can see anything.”
Harry chuckled. “I’m not that fast, Mackie. I’ll need more like two minutes.”
Mackie tossed his head. “Easy-peasy. Give me an hour to make myself fabulous and we can go.”
Val shot his gaze over to Alex, ready to argue against the idea. It was too late. His boss was already nodding in agreement. “Will that give you enough time, Harry, for what you need to do to prepare for taking the sample?”
“Yes, sir. Ample.”
Now everyone in the room was stirring, getting up to implement the plan. Fuck. There was nothing he could do except go along with it, too, and keep Mackie safe.
“I’ll be in touch,” Duncan said as he left. Harry and Emil followed in his wake.
“Val.”
“What?”
Mackie’s answer was another bratty look. That’s when Val realized the boy had been trying to get up and Val had been holding him in place.
“Oh.” Instead of releasing the boy, he stood with him in his arms.
Mackie chuckled. “I can walk.”
“No.” Val issued the terse reply while leaving the room. He knew he was being ridiculous yet couldn’t quite bring himself to set the boy down. The hard-on he still sported was the least of it, although he decided to switch over to jeans at the first opportunity. Fine cotton slacks left nothing to the imagination. It wasn’t embarrassment that drove his actions. It was pure, animalistic need to keep control over Mackie. Their breakup notwithstanding, the impulse currently ruled his actions.
Mackie wrapped his arms around Val’s neck and snuggled up close. “Whatever you say, Sir.”
Shit. Despite his carefully considered plans and successful discipline for the last few months, he was back in it with the submissive boy—deep. Worse, he was no longer sure he wanted to climb back out again.
Chapter Six
Mackie checked himself out one more time in the shiny doors of the elevator before stepping out. He’d dressed carefully for this ‘op’, as he’d come to think of it—a combination of street-rat shabby, little boy lost and sex on two legs. Although he walked off alone, he didn’t feel exposed. Having taken the stairs, Val was already lurking somewhere nearby, ready to step in to protect Mackie should it become necessary.
He tried not to get excited or optimistic about how the last few hours or so had gone. Sure, Val had given him the discipline he’d needed to calm his frayed nerves. Of course, the man had provided the necessary aftercare, as well. Val made an excellent Dom because he took the role of protector seriously. No one could argue with the guy’s dedication and selflessness. It was the way he’d held on to Mackie right up until he’d been forced to let him go for a shower and to dress that had bolstered Mackie’s spirits.
Plus, the man’s raging erection was another telling sign. Regardless of how Val had failed to fuck Mackie or allow him to give him a blow job, the guy was obviously affected by their experience. If he really saw Mackie as nothing more than a nuisance or duty, would he get aroused like that? The guy might be an alien, but everything Mackie had ever experienced with him said that their species was just like humans when it came to sex. Val got hard because he wanted him. The numbers added up just fine, for the moment anyway.
Who could blame him if he dared to see a bit of hope on the horizon?
While acting had never been a passion of his, he fancied that he’d gotten good at it. You had to in order to convince some skeevy john that you really did want to suck his stinking dick. Mackie plastered a concerned expression on his face and hurried down the hallway, scanning the doors as if he were looking for the right one. He already knew what room the latest victim of Dracul’s drug had been given because Duncan had managed to relay that much information.
What Mackie didn’t know was the gender of the officer assigned with guarding the door. No matter. He had a plan for either possibility. Men and women both tended to see him as younger and more vulnerable than he was. He would play up that angle regardless. He was also going to throw in a bit of the ‘sexy’, in case it was a gay man or a straight woman. His crop top showed enough torso to catch just about anyone’s eye, regardless. He’d switched over to a very blinged-out belly ring, too. Distraction was the point, however he might accomplish it.
He rounded the corner and saw a young, reasonably hot male cop standing beside a closed door with his thumbs stuck in his waistband. Mackie put a swing in his hips and called up a few tears as he rushed forward. “Is that his room?” he shouted out.
The cop turned in Mackie’s direction and actually held his hand up like he was directly traffic. “Stop right there…sir,” the man tacked on, although the way his eyebrows winged up indicated he wasn’t sure he’d used the right honorific.
Mackie widened his eyes, put a palm to his mouth and skidded to a halt a few feet away from the cop. “I’m sorry.” He hitched his breath noisily. “I heard he’d been brought here, and”—he bit back a sob—“I just had to see for myself if he’s okay.”
“You know this man?” The cop jerked a thumb toward the room. Behind him, a blur of black swept up and in.
Mackie was careful to keep his focus on the man in front of him and not the startling sight of Harry moving like The Flash. “Um…” Now he shifted to coy. “We kind of hook up now and again.” He ran a suggestive hand down his front, running his finger around the ring. He stopped right before he reached his crotch.
Reasonably Hot Cop tracked the movement with his gaze. “You mean he’s your boyfriend?”
Mackie let his palm linger, flicking his belly ring with his thumb. “Not exactly, sir.” He used the same tone he would while playing with Val. Even a straight guy would appreciate a pretty boy being submissive. “We just, you know…keep each other warm some nights.” He made his cheeks go pink, another trick he’d mastered while on the streets.
The cop cleared his throat. “Oh. But you can give us a name? He didn’t have any ID on him.”
No shit, given that he was practically naked when he’d been arrested. Mackie lowered his gaze. “I’m sorry, sir. I only know him as Steele.” From what he’d glimpsed on the television, that nickname suited the guy well enough on all fronts. Mackie threw in a bashful look for good measure.
“He made me feel safe. There are some nasty guys out there and I’m not very big.” He swayed back and forth. “Steele kept them away and I showed him how much I appreciated him for it.” Mackie bit his lip. “I hate the idea of him being sick and alone. Could I see him? Please?”
The cop coughed again and started to turn away. “Well, I’ve got to call this in. The detectives on the case will want to interview you. Anything you can tell them might prove useful. The guy is out of his skull anyway. He won’t know you’re there.”
“Wait!” Mackie lurched forward, forcing the man to once again focus on him. Mackie held out a hand as if trying to touch the cop.
The guy stiffened and gave him a stern look. That was fine because the whole point was to keep him from seeing the second blu
r of movement. This time it was to leave the patient’s room. “Please stand back…sir.” Boy, does the guy hate using the term. He didn’t look very happy with Mackie, either.
So, straight guy—or maybe someone fighting his own impulses that he didn’t like. Either way, it was time for Mackie to retreat.
Snatching his hand back, he said, “I’m sorry. I just wanted to see my friend. If he’s not awake, I could maybe hold his hand. He might know I’m there.” He laid it on thick, even as he poised to leave.
“No visitors allowed,” was the terse reply. “But, my superiors are still going to want to interview you, so stay right there.” The cop reached for his radio.
Mackie took a step back. “That’s okay. I really don’t have anything useful to tell them. I, um, haven’t even seen Steele for a couple of weeks. I saw him on the TV when I was at a bar and was worried.”
He kept backing away before turning and running. The cop yelled at him to stop but wasn’t stupid enough to leave his post, thank God. As he rounded the hallway corner, Mackie saw Val standing by the exit stairs. The sight sent a thrill down his spine. He headed straight for him and another spurt of joyful adrenaline hit him when the guy swept him up and punched through the door.
Then Mackie’s breath froze, his heart skipped a beat and his stomach dropped down to his toes. Without hesitation, Val had jumped up and over the stair railing. He clasped Mackie tightly to him as they dropped five floors straight down. Mackie shut his eyes tightly and pressed into the hard wall that was Val’s chest. It was like riding the best and worst carnival ride ever. They hit the concrete with a jarring thud that was mostly absorbed by Val’s alien body. It still rattled Mackie’s teeth.
Dangerous Dance Page 10
