by JB Sanders
Bertie waved his hand, directing Tyler to continue.
Tyler put on his joking face. “Can you keep a secret?”
Bertie leaned back a bit and gave Tyler a mock superior expression, his amusement clear. “My dear Tyler, you would simply not believe the things to which I am privy. Can I keep a secret? Why, since I was ten, I’ve kept a new one every year, just to keep in practice.”
Glen and Tyler laughed.
Talking with Jeremy
Glen sat down at Jeremy’s cafe table.
The cafe was one of four found along Front street. It had an excellent view of the harbor of Hamilton, the capital city of Bermuda. A pleasant breeze flittered past from the interior of the island, causing some nearby wind chimes to softly play their music.
Jeremy folded his arms angrily, glanced up at the milling security folks, and then back at Glen. “I thought we had this talk.”
“We didn’t talk. You barked at Tyler and then we left. Now we’re talking and don’t worry, Charlie won’t know we were here or that we talked. He probably doesn’t even know you left the bungalow.”
Jeremy sighed in irritation. “This is why I had to leave.”
Glen raised his eyebrows. “Is it?”
“You know damn well it is, Glen. You might be used to living like a fucking celebrity, trapped inside the glow of the rich and famous, but I’m not. Nor is Charlie.”
“You’re not?”
“Not the famous part, just the rich part.” Jeremy shrugged. “And even that is dangerous. Or can be.”
Glen tilted his head and then looked mildly surprised. “Ah. That’s why.”
“That’s why what?” Jeremy snapped.
“Why you had to leave. Why you snuck away. Why I bet you probably haven’t even told Charlie your real last name.”
Jeremy slumped. “No, I haven’t. I just can’t. I mean, soon, yeah, but…?”
Glen nodded. “I understand, now. I’m sorry. I don’t think we’ve screwed it up for you.” Glen reached over, and gave Jeremy a chuck on the shoulder. “If it makes you feel any better, Charlie is totally in love with you.”
Jeremy brightened. “Yeah?” Then a thought flit across his face and a look of horror dawned there. “What did you do?!”
Glen gave him a slow smile. “Nothing less than what you did for Tyler.”
Jeremy put his face in his hands and groaned. “Oh my god.”
“And he passed.”
“What did you do?”
“I went swimming.” Glen put on his fake innocent face.
Jeremy looked up from his hands, and narrowed his eyes. “Swimming?”
“In that Grigioperla swimsuit.”
Jeremy groaned, in a completely different way this time. “Oh god, Glen. Tell me you haven’t stolen my boyfriend.”
Glen squirmed just a little. “First of all, I would never do that to Tyler. Second, I wouldn’t do it to you. Third, although he flirted a lot—“
“—Who wouldn’t, with you basically naked!”
“—He got very angry and threatened to feed me to the sharks when I mentioned your name out of the blue.”
Jeremy reluctantly grinned. “Yeah?”
“Yeah. So, it’s safe to say that although I can turn his head, his heart is yours.”
Jeremy sighed, the air coming up from his toes. He slumped like a great weight had come off his shoulders. “Wow.”
“Kind of real now, huh?”
Jeremy nodded, wordless.
“So will you come and talk to Tyler? Explain to him what’s going on?” Glen tried to look beseeching. It wasn’t easy to pull off a look like that with his craggy face.
Jeremy sighed. “Ok, but only because you’ll be mediating. And Charlie is out on some errand tonight, so I’m on my own until tomorrow anyway. But I’m not staying.”
***
Dinner was a disaster.
Since it was back in port, they held it on board the Black Douglas, in the lounge. As it was just the three of them, plus Kevin to keep an eye on things, it wasn’t too cramped. They even used the fancy blue dinner service.
Glen, Tyler, and Jeremy spent almost the entire meal in silence. Both Tyler and Jeremy tried to start talking about something, starting with the weather, or hockey prospects for the coming season. But all the attempts at conversation fell flat.
After Cookie cleared away the dessert, Glen brought out the big guns.
He poured each of them a generous amount of that sipping rum and somewhat forcefully handed the two brothers their drinks.
“Ok, we’re done with silence. Jeremy, tell Tyler how you’ve felt the past year and don’t leave anything out. Tyler, you can’t say anything or interrupt Jeremy while he’s talking. Ok?” Glen sat down next to Tyler and took his hand. Tyler nodded.
Jeremy grimaced, took a sip of rum, blinked at it a moment and then spoke. “Every time you two find another hornet’s nest to step in, I get more security and less freedom. Used to be I drifted from party to party, house to house, making up my life as I went along. I didn’t really have a lot of cares, you know? Then you become mega-rich and suddenly I’m a target. Me, a kidnap risk!” Jeremy tossed back the rest of the rum. “Then the shit really hits the fan with this Paris thing, and I’m under house arrest. Hulking big guys, and not terribly good looking ones I might add, are on me like barnacles morning, noon, and night. Goodbye dating, goodbye wandering the world, goodbye unplanned trips. It’s a minor miracle I met Charlie at all.”
“Tell us about meeting Charlie,” Glen said quietly.
“It was one of those random things. I decided since I was basically chained to New York City, and not really doing anything else, I’d take a cooking class.” At a raised eyebrow from Tyler, Jeremy snorted. “I know! Me, a cooking class. But it seemed like it might be fun and I didn’t have anything better to do. So, first class, of course I’m scoping out the possibilities. Thankfully my gorilla squad is content to hang out nearby, not actually right on top of me for once. And I run into Charlie.”
Jeremy got a smile on his face, remembering. Tyler squeezed Glen’s hand when he saw it, and shot him a warm glance, probably remembering their own firsts.
“So, because I couldn’t easily slip the goons, I had to actually talk to the guy and … and it was like seven dates in a row, no sex, no drama, just cooking and conversation.” Jeremy looked over at them. “Crap, I’m starting to sound like a chick flick, aren’t I?”
“Look who you’re talking to.” Glen said. “Our security guys have made gagging noises around us more than once. Apparently, we’re like a walking romance novel.”
Jeremy smiled. “Charlie thought I was just a bored stock broker taking cooking classes to meet guys. I let him think I was this normal guy, doing ok money-wise, but still kind of struggling, you know? Normal.”
Glen said quietly, but intently, “It turns out you weren’t the only one holding back.”
Jeremy nodded. “Yeah, he told me he was into buying and selling antiques. I knew, even then, it probably wasn’t the whole story. I guess we were both trying for something more normal than the reality. When the class ended, we both decided to take another one, to keep it going. To have more time together. He was away sometimes, on … ok, he called them buying trips, but he was away. And I realized, the first time he had a trip, that I really missed him. It was actually painful. Then he got back and he had this great idea. We should take a vacation together. Go someplace tropical. And it hit me, I wasn’t going to be able to go with him. It wasn’t just the lies, there was no way some strange guy I’d only known for a few months was going to be allowed to take me on a trip without major complications. So I said yes and slipped away.”
They were quiet for a moment.
Tyler looked at Glen, pleading in his eyes. Glen nodded.
Tyler took a breath. “God, Jeremy, I’m sorry. I had no idea I’d put you in a box. That’s … it’s something the Evil One would have done.”
There was a shocked moment
, as they all remembered Jeremy and Tyler’s stepmother.
Jeremy sucked in a breath. “No! It wasn’t as bad as that. Never, Tyler. And I know you didn’t screw up my life on purpose. You just wanted me safe. But …”
“Yeah, it still sucked. I am so sorry. What can I do?”
“Well, if you could give us some space.” Jeremy gestured broadly with his hands.
“Sure, plus I’ll make sure the security guys protect you from a distance from now on instead of by putting you in a cat carrier.”
Jeremy snorted. “Yes, thank you. Does this mean I won’t have a bunch of linebackers following me everywhere?”
Tyler shook his head. “Sorry, no. They’ll still be following you, they just won’t have any say in where you go.”
“Deal.”
“So.” Tyler rubbed his finger along the rim of his glass. “How serious is it with this Charlie guy?”
"What? I can't have a real relationship?"
"Of course you can, Jeremy, you just never have before."
"Oh, well, yeah. I know. I think Charlie is the first solid thing I've had since prep school. I mean, he's a little like me--"
Tyler smiled. "Kind of a slut?"
To Glen and Tyler's surprise, Jeremy blushed. In mild alarm, Tyler put a hand on Jeremy's shoulder.
"Sorry, Jeremy."
"No, it's accurate." He sighed. "I'm just trying this one-person-only thing. You seem to be getting a lot out of it."
***
They drank a lot more, Glen acting as designated … sailor. There was a lot of “I love you, man!” and “You’re the besht.”
Eventually, Glen got Jeremy poured into a guest cabin and Tyler plopped onto their own bed. Then Glen fell into it himself.
Tyler woke up and got more than a little amorous, his hands and lips in a variety of fun places. Then Tyler stopped.
“What?” Glen said.
“Thanks. Seriously. Between his stubbornness and mine, this thing probably would have gone on for years.”
Glen kissed him. “Sure thing. We both have enough family drama, I’m glad I could nip this one in the bud.”
Tyler grinned in the dark. “Now, where were we?”
Late Night Talks
Glen wasn’t sure what woke him up but seeing a hand over Tyler with a Taser got him up fast.
He grabbed the guy’s thumb and twisted, making him drop the Taser. Glen used the momentum of the intruder’s reactive twisting away from the thumb lock to pull himself out of bed, and issued a shouted “Alpha!” loudly.
By what Glen could make out in the dim light, the attacker was a man, dressed in an all-body black wetsuit. His head, hands, and face were covered.
The man struck back at Glen with his other elbow, using what looked like a Krav Maga move. Glen dropped the man’s thumb, avoided the blow, put out his foot and hooked behind his knee. Then Glen fell back, using his full weight to drop the man to the floor.
The door to the cabin burst open and after a glance around the room, Kevin stepped on the intruders neck.
“Do not move.” Kevin emphasized this order with a gesture of his gun.
Glen got up off the floor.
Tyler snapped on the lights. He had the Taser in his hand.
“Well, this is officially a party. What’s the occasion?”
James loomed in the doorway, angry in his bathrobe. He had a gun out, which he pointed at the intruder. “Situation?”
“One intruder, subdued. Haven’t had a chance to search him yet. Rest of the ship is on full alert. Subs are actively searching for other problems.” Kevin reported without moving.
“Secure him.” James nodded at the intruder.
Kevin holstered his weapon, moved out of James’ line of fire, and then flipped the man over. He put on handcuffs, then pulled the man up to a kneeling position. At a gesture from James, he pulled the man’s balaclava off.
It was Charlie Levin.
Glen frowned. “Well, crap.”
Paradoxically, Tyler looked happy. “Oh. Well, his timing sucks, but this conversation was coming sooner or later. Put him in the lounge, and we’ll be right there.”
***
Levin looked disheveled, his hair was wet, and his wet suit was scuffed. His arms were behind a chair, still handcuffed. His eyes shot daggers at Tyler when they came into the room.
Two other security guys were in the lounge, along with James and Tim, who leaned against the wall looking annoyed.
“Hey, Charlie — do you mind if I call you Charlie?” Tyler smiled, friendly.
Tyler and Glen took seats across the table from Levin.
Levin spoke in a low, threatening tone. “You won’t get away with it. I’m not the only one who knows what you’re doing.”
Tyler blinked. “Uh, what?”
“I’ve worked out what your scheme is. You’ve been seizing the other smugglers that go through here, sinking their ships and taking their crew. You’re taking over all the smuggling going into the US from the South.”
Tyler leaned back, a thoughtful expression on his face. Glen switched his attention to Levin. The man’s expression, his posture, his actions — it all tumbled together in Glen’s brain, and resolved into a single picture.
Glen reached over and squeezed Tyler’s arm. Glen pointed at Levin. “I know what his problem is.”
“Huh? Oh. Yeah, what is his problem? Why does he think I’m the main bad guy?”
“Follow along with me. First, there was a hot guy walking out of the surf, trying to seduce him.” Glen pointed at himself. “Second, you met him at a casino, where you played Chemin De Fer and lost.”
Tyler’s eyes widened a little and a smile started to dawn on his face. “No!”
“And then he snuck on board our ship, was captured, and is being confronted by us like this.” Glen waved around the room.
"Holy shit, you think I'm a Bond villain." Tyler grinned at Levin, who was becoming increasingly confused. Tyler practically bounced in his seat. “You do!”
Glen frowned. “That’s … not something to aspire to."
"Well, no, but it's still kind of cool." Tyler turned his head to regard Glen critically. “You realize that makes you the Bond girl, right?”
Glen groaned. “Crap, I did that to myself.”
“That you did, husband, that you did.” Tyler shook his head. “You could have been Q, or M, or even a fellow agent, although that doesn’t have the best life expectancy—“
“—What are you talking about?” Levin said.
“Hmm? Oh, you think I’m the main bad guy and we were briefly amused by it. Sorry, we’re not the main bad guy. I’m not the main bad guy. However you want to phrase that.” Tyler waved the suggestion away. “We’re the good guys.”
“Bullshit. You had one of my friends killed and tried to kill the other one. He’s vanished, so maybe you already got to him. And all those ships you sank.”
Tyler blinked twice at this, then shut his eyes and began murmuring. Several times he twisted in his chair.
“What is he doing?” Levin looked confused.
“Thinking. Something you said set him off,” Glen said.
Tyler’s eyes opened again a moment later. “Where were we?”
“We’re not the bad guys…” Glen prompted.
“Right, we’re not the bad guys, really.” Tyler looked open and honest.
“Yeah?” Levin said. “If you’re so goody two-shoes, prove it. Let me go.”
“Right after I’m sure you’re not going to try to kill me. In the mean time, how about some eye witness evidence. Tim?”
“Yeah?” Tim stood up from where he slouched against the wall.
“Show in our guests.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah, we’re at a cards-on-the-table moment, I think.”
A couple of minutes later, Tim came into the room with Anthony Crichton and Jeremy. As they came in, Glen stood up, and caught Jeremy before he could rush forward to Levin.
“Charlie!” Jeremy looked distraught.
Glen spoke quietly. “Jeremy. It’s ok, just give us a second to work this out, ok?”
Jeremy sighed and sat down. “Ok, but quick.”
Levin’s eyes didn’t leave Jeremy. His expression was very cold.
“Ok, here’s the deal. I was asked by a friend to come down here, find Tony, and get him the hell out of his current assignment. And here he is.” Tyler gestured at Crichton.
Levin finally pulled his eyes away from Jeremy to look where Tyler was pointing. His eyes widened. “Oh crap, Tony, he got you, too?”
Crichton snorted. “You know, Charlie, you can be a real idiot sometimes.” He threw a thumb at Tyler. “This guy is as legit as I am.”
Tyler looked at Crichton with a look of mild annoyance. “You’re a CIA deep-cover spy who hangs out with criminals for a living and I’m as legit as you?”
Glen, Tim, and Jeremy all gave Tyler a Look.
Tyler threw up his hands. “Alright, already. You people.” Tyler rolled his eyes, and sighed theatrically. “Fine. I hang out with criminals, spies, captains of industry, and my grandmother. I have no excuses.”
Levin looked lost. “Tony?”
Crichton leaned forward. “I’m serious, Charlie. He saved my damned life and he knew my emergency codewords.”
“That just means he has friends, reach, and resources.”
Tyler shook his head, leaned back, and folded his arms. “Ok, your turn Jeremy.”
Jeremy turned to Tyler. “Cuffs off first.”
Tyler looked at James. “Ok?”
James nodded and handed Jeremy the key.
Jeremy unlocked Levin and then hugged him hard.
After a long moment, Jeremy pulled back. “Look, I’m sorry I lied to you a little. My last name isn’t Cornwell. It’s Conrad.”
Levin looked between Tyler and Jeremy. “Cousin?”
“Half-brother.” Jeremy sighed. “I’m sorry, I just … I wanted someone to want me, not the money or the connections. It was stupid, but…”
“So all that stuff about the controlling, manipulative family you were trying to run away from?”
