by Darien Cox
“Fuck!”
“I know.” JT sighed.
“Baz is letting us know the craft doesn’t belong to the Whites?”
“Can’t see it any other way. I’m sure Ogden will agree when I tell him.”
“Is it weird that I’m a little bit moved that Baz would take the time to let us know?”
“I know, me too!” JT grinned. “It’s kind of neat to hear from him, all things considered.”
“It is. But wouldn’t you think the Whites would still have scooped the thing up, even if it isn’t theirs? That turd was flying damn close to their base.”
JT covered the slate and closed the hatch. “Yeah. Unless by doing so, they’d be seen as making a hostile move against someone else. Possibly an act of war?”
“Oh, great. Must your mind immediately go to the worst case scenario?”
“If they did avoid grabbing it from the lake to avoid pissing off another race, then what does that mean for us?”
“It means the Whites don’t give a fuck if we get hurt. Not a hot news flash. They don’t care about us. Baz excluded, of course.”
“If the fucking Whites don’t want to touch this thing...that scares me. I want that craft the fuck out of here. Let Wiley and Ogden and their goon squad deal with it.”
“Wiley said it will be out of here in under two weeks.”
“Let’s hope it’s sooner rather than later. I have to go home and call Ogden.”
“And I have to go home and take a hot shower. I’m fucking freezing.”
JT smiled. “I’ll give you a ride. Get in.”
“Okay, I have to go get my stuff.”
“Leave it,” JT said. “I’ve got a spare key to your house. I don’t like you being here alone.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Christian got in the car and JT started the engine, blasting the heat. “I don’t care how many soldiers Ogden’s got guarding that craft,” JT said. “From now on, I don’t think you should be at the marina alone. Especially at night.”
Christian grinned. “I wasn’t alone tonight.”
JT huffed. “Yeah, I noticed. You were really in prime form to fight off hostile aliens with your pants around your ankles.”
“You won’t tell Ogden, will you?”
JT glanced at him. “That you had your cock out in front of the sheriff? Of course not. What do you think of me?”
“No, I mean...”
“Ah.” JT nodded. “You don’t want Ogden to know you’re planning to pursue the sheriff.”
“If,” Christian said. “If I decide to pursue the sheriff. I’m not sure yet. He’s still asking questions. Too many questions. Plus I’m not a hundred percent sure he actually likes me.”
JT laughed.
“What’s so funny?”
JT smiled at Christian. “Sheriff Hot-bottom walked right past me when he ran out the door tonight.”
“And?”
“And...you weren’t the only one in that room with a raging boner. He was busting out of his wet jeans.”
Christian smiled. “Good to know.”
“Be careful, Christian.”
“You don’t have to keep saying that. I’m not stupid.”
“I know you’re not stupid. But your dick is. Just make sure you’re thinking with the right head.”
“I am,” Christian said. “I’m going to talk to Elliot tomorrow. I’m sure he can figure out a way to throw the sheriff off the scent of what’s happening here.”
“That’s the first smart thing you’ve said all day.”
Christian smacked JT’s thigh. “Screw you, Baby James.”
“You touched me! No touching, remember?”
Laughing, Christian said, “Screw you twice.”
Elliot was their expert in all things manipulation and disinformation. Christian was certain he’d come up with something to help him out. Distracting Myles from his curiosity and convincing him there was nothing dangerous going on in the village was crucial. For the obvious, security reasons, but Christian’s goals were edging toward personal now.
Hopefully, things would go back to some semblance of normalcy once Ogden got that craft off Christian’s property. And maybe he’d be able to explore whether or not the mutual attraction he suspected was there with Myles Murphy could turn into something more.
Then maybe he’d get to see the sheriff on his knees again.
Chapter Six
“So it’s summer now, and spiders keep getting in the house. My cat, Smoky, likes to eat them. She’s a cat, right? It’s what they do. But JT feels bad for the spiders or some shit. I told him, Smoky’s not doing it to be mean, it’s just the natural order of things! Cat. Spider. Food chain, am I right?”
“Uh huh.”
“But if JT finds a spider before Smoky does, he picks it up and puts it back outside. So I said to him, what the hell do you think that’s gonna accomplish? The spiders are just gonna come back in. Where do you think the spiders came from in the first place? Outside, right? They didn’t just magically appear in your living room. They didn’t break through some space time portal from the spider dimension. So he puts the spiders outside, where they’ll eventually come back inside, so he can put them back out again. It’s ridiculous.”
“Yeah.”
Oh. My. God. This guy never stops talking. Rudy had been yapping for fifteen minutes straight without taking a breath. Christian wasn’t sure how JT dealt with it. But of course, Rudy was damn cute, which probably helped. Christian watched him bite into his burger, grateful for the moment of silence. They sat at a window seat overlooking the lake in JT’s pub, colorful lights from the village dancing on the water’s glassy surface, bonfires visible along the beach. It felt like a romantic setting, but this wasn’t a date. This was his get-to-know-Rudy-better night out.
Rudy had been in Los Angeles for the past week, and he had a nice dark tan, his brown hair lightened up a bit from the sunshine. He had pretty hazel eyes and a cute dimple in his chin, and Christian could definitely see why JT was attracted to him. But the talking. Dear God, the talking.
“So,” Rudy said. “Did Ogden figure out how to pop the top off that craft yet?”
Christian shook his head. That was another thing. Since Rudy’s nondisclosure agreement had been expanded, JT was allowed to share some of the details of their day-to-day life with him. Which led to more talking, more incessant questions.
“JT said those soldiers are all over your marina. Same ones we met up on the mountain back in March, right?”
“Yeah,” Christian said. “Same crew. I have to admit though, I’m glad they’re there.”
“Yeah. It’s pretty fucked up. But what’s the deal with Ogden? He’s got those soldiers, who all look wicked young. And he recruited you guys when you were all just sweet young things, right?”
Christian nodded. “We were pretty young, yes.”
“What kind of Willy Wonka pedophile shit is that?”
Laughing, Christian shook his head, then took a sip of his beer. “You just say whatever’s on your mind, don’t you?”
Rudy grinned. “Sorry. JT says I need to have filters installed on my mouth.”
“Well, I think Ogden believes young minds are more open. He’s not a pedophile.”
“Yeah, more open.” Rudy huffed. “More easy to manipulate, right?” He took a sip of beer then met Christian’s eyes. “You seeing anyone?”
“In the romantic way?”
“The romantic way, the sexual way. The naked way.”
“No. Not really. There’s someone I’m very interested in, but not sure it’s a good idea. JT didn’t tell you about that?”
“No. Why would he?”
“I don’t know. Seems like JT tells you pretty much everything.”
Rudy shrugged. “Well, yeah, but he wouldn’t share things you told him in private. You guys have that...sacred friendship thing.” Rudy began stabbing his fries with the fork a little too hard.
“Yeah, we do,” Chr
istian said. “Been friends a long time. You understand that, right?”
Looking up, Rudy stared at Christian for several long, uncharacteristically silent moments.
Christian shrugged. “Did I say something wrong?”
Shaking his head, Rudy said, “I understand the friendship.”
“And you’re okay with it?”
Wiping his mouth with a napkin, Rudy nodded. “You guys have history. Like a soul connection. I know JT needs it. It’s part of who he is. You’re part of who he is. So of course I’m okay with it. It’s just the other part that gets on my nerves sometimes.”
Christian tensed. “What other part?”
“Look, Christian. I’m not an uptight lunatic. I don’t care if you give JT a hug or whatever. But the...playing with his hair? The little neck rubs? That’s not just touching. That’s physical intimacy, you know what I mean?”
“Huh. I guess so.”
Pointing at him, Rudy said, “You get to have that spiritual connection with JT, that unique thing between you. That will always be yours, and it’s got nothing to do with me. I’m good with that. But the physical stuff? That’s not your arena anymore. That belongs to me. Every cell in his body. Every flaxen hair on his head. That’s mine. Understand?”
Christian nodded. “Understood. And I’m sorry if I ever made you uncomfortable.”
“Great. Then we’re good. So who’s this guy you’re interested in? He live in the village?”
“Yeah. His name’s Myles Murphy.”
Rudy’s eyes widened, and he grinned. “The sheriff?”
“You know him?”
Laughing, Rudy said, “Yeah. He pulled me over for a broken tail light last month. He was wicked nice, though. Just gave me a warning. We ended up talking for like fifteen minutes.”
“You, talking? What a shocker.”
“I know, right? But he’s cool, I liked him. Good-looking, too. Reminds me of one of those hot Irish bartenders that work in the pubs in South Boston.”
“Yeah, well, he’s pretty smart, and he’s been sniffing around and asking questions about what crashed into the lake. He even tried to dig into my background. So it’s not exactly ideal.”
“Shit. That’s not good. You gonna try to throw him off track or what?”
“Yeah. Elliot came up with something I’m hoping will work.”
“What?”
Christian hesitated.
“Come on, Christian. I signed a contract that said Ogden can basically disappear me if I ever talk about this shit. I think I’ve earned some juicy details at least.”
“Fair point. Okay, Elliot gave me this photo. I’m supposed to wait until Murphy starts questioning me about things again, then pretend to become exasperated, then pretend to come clean. Tell him the satellite debris was being stored at my marina, but that now it’s gone. And I’m supposed to tell him I used to be in the military, which hopefully will satisfy his questions about my background.” He brought up the photo on his phone and handed it to Rudy.
The photograph showed Ogden in his suit, staring down at a pile of debris from a broken satellite. Christian figured that part of the image was taken from a real photo, but the rest was fake. They’d made the background look identical to the walls and floor of Christian’s dry dock storage facility at the marina.
“Huh.” Rudy handed Christian back his phone. “Sounds like a real healthy way to start a relationship. Secrets and lies.”
“Isn’t that the way your relationship started?”
“Okay, you got me there.”
“We’re always gonna have secrets, me, Elliot, Nolan, the rest of the team. But does that mean we can’t have a life? That we can never connect with someone outside of all this?”
“Hey, I’m not arguing that point,” Rudy said. “Sounds like you’re arguing with yourself.”
Christian sighed. “I guess maybe I am. I’m not sure where the line is.”
“Fuck the line. Only thing you need to consider is if it’s worth pursuing this guy.”
“It’s not that simple. My brain’s saying no. Everything else wants to go in guns blazing.”
“Oh holy shit! There he is!”
“Who?”
“Your hot sheriff just walked through the front doors.”
Christian’s heart skipped a beat as he looked toward the doors. Myles was in uniform, removing his hat as he walked toward the bar. He didn’t look their way. Until Rudy called out to him, the prick.
“Sheriff Murphy! Hey!”
“Rudy!” Christian hissed. “What the fuck!”
Rudy snickered.
Myles glanced their way, stopping short when he saw Christian. He gave them a tight smile, a wave, then walked over to the far end of the bar and sat down.
“He looks good,” Rudy said. “Figured he would have come over to say hi.”
“I wish you hadn’t called out to him like that.”
“Oh, look at Christian the badass, being all shy! How sweet.”
“Shut up. I have to tread cautiously with this guy. He’s like a rare and exotic bird. You have to quietly sneak up on him. If you startle him he’ll take off.”
“Hey, you want me to try and dig into his past? Get some personal info on him for you?”
“What? No!”
Rudy drained his beer. “You sure? I’m pretty good at that sort of thing.”
“That’s exactly what I don’t want him doing to me. I’m not going to be a hypocrite and do the same thing to him. Besides, if I wanted to get information on Myles, I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself, Rudy.”
“You don’t trust my journalistic prowess. I’m pretty slippery, Christian. I can get information other people can’t.”
“I’m pretty good at such things myself, thanks anyway.”
“I’m better.”
Christian laughed. “I doubt that.”
“Seriously, I’m slick as shit. I can get in even where water can’t.”
“I broke into the Pentagon when I was fifteen,” Christian said.
Rudy’s eyes widened. “You did what now?”
“You heard me.”
“What do you mean? Like you hacked into the Pentagon computers or something? Like Zero Cool type shit?”
“No. I mean I physically broke into the place.”
Rudy stood. “We need another beer for this. Be right back.”
Rudy went to the bar, and Christian looked over his shoulder, spotting Myles, seated with two other men, eating a sandwich. He was laughing, and Christian smiled. But when Myles glanced over and caught Christian’s eye, he quickly looked away. Christian’s heart sank. He wondered what was going through the sheriff’s head after the wet leather pants incident at the marina. If Myles had determined to ignore Christian now, that was a good thing in terms of security concerns. But a bad thing in terms of Christian’s chances with the guy on a personal level.
Rudy returned and set two fresh beers down on the table. “Okay.” He sat. “So you broke into the Pentagon. Did you get caught?”
“Oh, yes. I got caught.”
Rudy grinned. “How far did you get?”
“I was sitting in one of the colonel’s offices when he walked in. Feet up on his desk. Eating his bagel.”
“Cut the shit!”
Christian shrugged.
“How did you do it?”
“I’m slippery.”
“Fuck. Did they arrest you?”
“Yeah.”
“Well...why did you do it?”
“I was a little punk ass criminal. And I was bored.”
“You were bored. So you just decided to break into the Pentagon.”
“I’d never been what you’d call a model citizen. I breezed through school and graduated early. Not because I was a devoted student. I was just smarter than most of the other kids. But once I was out of school, my mother died. Killed by a drunk driver. They wanted to put me in foster care. There was no fucking way that was happening. So I took off. Lived o
n the street. Broke into places. Stole what I needed.”
“Jesus, Christian. I’m sorry. What about your father?”
“Never knew him. I got so good at stealing, it was almost too easy. So again, I got bored. Started trying for bigger, more secure targets, just to see if I could. A friend of mine, this thief I used to hang out with and get into trouble with, dared me. Said I had a huge ego, and was so delusional I thought I could break into the damn Pentagon if I wanted. So I said...okay, fucker. Watch me.”
“But you got caught. What happened after you were arrested? That’s serious shit, Christian. They could have dropped you in a hole somewhere, never to be seen again!”
“Yeah. I’m pretty sure that option occurred to them. But during questioning, when they asked how I did it, I guess they were kind of impressed. Started giving me all these tests. Presenting me with all these scenarios, to see how I’d handle it. Said I had a unique way of looking at things. They put me through a bunch of training. And eventually...I went back to breaking into places. Stealing things. But this time, it wasn’t for me. It was for them.”
“That is fucked up,” Rudy said. “I thought I was a badass when I was young, but all I ever stole was a comic book. And they sure as hell didn’t offer me a job when I got caught.”
Christian laughed.
“So how’d you end up here?”
Christian poked at his nachos. It had been a long time since he’d thought about this. “One day I was taken to a meeting at this secret location and left alone in a room for a while. Then these guys I didn’t know came in, asked me all sorts of questions. Did an assessment of my past work. Apparently they determined I was trustworthy. I knew how to keep my mouth shut. And they said I was an exceptional strategist. They said there was someone who wanted to speak with me about an opportunity. Then they brought in Ogden.”
“So that’s when you met Willy Wonka. What did he say to you?”
“He asked me what my thoughts on extraterrestrial life were.”
“What did you say?”
“I laughed, then started whistling the theme from The X-Files. Ogden didn’t laugh. Eventually, he assigned Elliot to work with me, get me up to speed.”
“Elliot? Our Elliot? He was already working with Ogden?”
“Yeah. He was kind of a prodigy in his own right, had graduated law school really young, got recruited to handle defense contracts. Eventually Ogden got his hands on him, and Elliot was put in charge of cooking the books and manipulating paper trails and media problems that came up with UFO sightings and things of that nature. But at this point they were getting us all ready to come to Singing Bear and monitor the activity here. They weren’t positive there was a base here yet, but they had their suspicions, so decided to use us to play the long game. Adamant that we stay under the radar, and control people’s perceptions of the place while we worked. Make sure it didn’t turn into another Pine Bush or Roswell, with UFO-themed coffee shops and conspiracy nuts crawling all over the place.”
