“Hey Martin,” I answered while taking out my key card. “How is it going?” The lock clicked with a swipe of the card and I entered my office to the sound of the chimes over the door.
“I’m okay,” I heard the hesitation. “Look, my dad didn’t put me up to this, but what’s going on between the two of you?”
I almost miss a step going down and had to hold on to the wall. For a moment I wasn’t in the stairwell, I was in that bed with that woman, fucking my balls off.
I growled and wrenched my anger under a semblance of control. “How do you expect me to feel, considering what he did to me?” I’d mostly put that out of my mind over the last two weeks. Max was lucky I hadn’t decked him when it was over.
I stepped off the last of the three stairs and the office light came on.
“But you were okay with it.”
“Okay? Martin, I was never okay with it. I said yes because I got fed up with you and your dad pushing me to have a kid. how often have I told either of you I didn’t want one over the last six months? And that? I didn’t agree to that. that was…” I shut up and forced myself to breath.
I was back in that bed, on top of her, moving against my will.
I came back with the pain of hitting my knee on desk and hissing a curse.
“Are you okay?” Martin asked.
“No, I’m not.” I had a sense he’d said something more, but I didn’t care.
“Dent, my dad doesn’t know why you’re angry. He’s worried.”
I snorted. “I’m fucking angry because he lied about what was going to happen. When I finally said yes to getting a kid, to shut him up, he said there was a phrase he’d use so I could get hard with a woman, something about the magic making use I gave her a kid. But he conveniently left a couple of things out. That’s why I’m pissed at him.” I sat on the edge of the desk and rubbed my knee. “I’m sorry for loosing it on you, it’s not your fault.”
I reached behind me and tapped the surface of the desk. It woke up enough to show the time. It was almost midnight. Fuck, why did that drunkard have to wait so late until he picked up that woman. well, at least I had the recording now. I’d call his wife in the morning and close this case.
“Look, Martin, it’s late, I spent a half hour recording a guy cheating on his wife. I need to go to bed.”
“Alone?” did I hear concern in his voice?
“Probably, I don’t think any of the guys I know are up at this hour on a weekday.” “Colby’s still up.”
I groaned. “How is it he’s still obsessed with my ass?
hasn’t he gotten enough of it by now?”
“I don’t think any of us have. And what are you complaining about? You like being fucked by him.”
“Of course I do, he’s great, I just don’t get the attraction. My ass isn’t that impressive.”
“You obviously haven’t fucked yourself.”
“Very funny.”
“Okay, before I disconnect, Are you going to make it to
Stefan’s party on Sunday?”
“There’s no way I’ll miss it. Are Fred and Frank going to be there?”
“No. their father still has four women each lined up for them to impregnate.”
“Still? haven’t they fucked like five each by now?” “Six.”
I rubbed my temple. “We’re never going to see them again, are we?”
“I’m sure they’ll mange to visit at some point.”
“I hope so, I miss those two.”
“Me too. I’ll let you go. “See you Saturday.” “See you then.” Martin disconnected.
I sighed and hoped Stefan’s promotion party wasn’t going to be uncomfortable. Max shouldn’t be there, he wasn’t in the habit of coming to one of our parties, but Stefan did work for him, so there was no telling.
I turned and caught sight of the boxes stacked against the bookcase. They’d arrive from Frank a few days ago and I really had to unpack them. Not that I was doing that now.
I looked at the door, then the desk, I really should write the report so I could send it to my client. I thought about turning the desk on fully, but decided sleep was better.
The door opened, making the chimes ring.
Of course, tonight I’d have forgotten to lock the door. It was an older model, the one that came with the building when I moved in. it didn’t engage automatically. It was too late now, if a client sought me out this late I couldn’t just turn them away.
The chime rang again, and again. It became an animated jingle so I turned.
I had a difficult time keeping the smile off my face as a tall deer in an expensive charcoal gray suit worked one of his point out of the chime’s ornamental chain without breaking the links. I sat back on the edge of the desk. Maybe I wouldn’t be sleeping alone after all.
Marcus finally pulled the point out with a satisfied grunt. He glared at the chime and stepped down. I looked at the door expectantly. MY smile died when it didn’t open again.
“Dent,” the Red Deer smiled, trotting through the long room to hug me. “How are you doing.”
“I’m good.” I hugged him back, hard. It had been months
since I’d last seen him. “Zee isn’t with you?”
He released me. “No, he’s still angry with you.”
I sighed. “I told him what I could. I didn’t want to lie to him, which is what I’d have to do give him anything resembling a believable explanation.” The decision hadn’t been easy. Zikabar was my best friend, I’d never lied to him, but I’d also promised him an explanation as to why I’d had to let people think I’d died in my folk’s house fire.
Marcus studied me, crossing his arms over his chest. “If I hadn’t been there, would you have lied to him?”
“I thought about it, but I care to much about him. I’d rather have him angry at me because I didn’t tell him everything, than because he’d find out I lied to him.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Marcus said. “And he got over that quickly. What he’s pissed about is that you refused to join the bureau.”
“You know I can’t to that, not with the stuff Internal Affairs found.” The church, the bastards who’d taken it upon themselves to keep an eye on the people who, like me, martin and many others, followed other Gods, were to blame for that. They’d decided a long time ago that they only way they’d allow the Factions, those who Followed various other Gods, to exist was if they never took a position of power.
Because the church had almost wiped out many Factions over the centuries, they had accepted. That meant that on faction member could be part of the police.
I had been a police officer against those rules. TO be fair, I hadn’t known I was a member of the Society, the name for our Faction, when I joined the force. My birth parents had died in a fire with I was eight, and even now I barely remembered anything about them.
I’d only found out about all of this back in the Spring, by accident, and discovered my partner was a church agent at the same time. Things didn’t go well from there. I found out the fire that killed my parents was deliberate, and the guy who’d killed them tried to kill me by burning down my folk’s place, with all of us in it.
While I used the fire to fake my death, go into hiding, and hunt him down, my ever loving partner fabricated evidence that I was in the mob’s pocket.
I’d expected to be able to explain the misunderstanding to the church. I’d even offered to act as a go between for the church and the Society. Max, the Society elder in Denver, had been horrified at the idea, he’d forbidden me to make the offer. I didn’t listen, but it didn’t mean anything. The church weren’t interested in dirtying their organization by letting one of the unbeliever work with them.
they’d reinforced my partner’s evidence, making sure that
if it came to a trial, I’d spend the rest of my days in prison, no matter how good my lawyers were. No that it got to there, obviously. They told me that if I stepped down voluntarily, they’d make sure IA didn’t act on the information they had.
What choice did I have?
“Right, IA.” Marcus’ gaze pierced me. “I’m going to get back to them in a moment, but first, you know damn well that wouldn’t have stopped him. Zee wanted you to join, and what my husband wants.”
“Zikabar gets,” I finished, unable to stop the chuckle as I finished Zee’s favorite’s saying. It was true, Zee had a way of getting what he wanted. Except this time. I couldn’t let him get his way.
The church knew about our friendship. They knew he’d asked me a few times to join the Bureau, so they made it clear that if I ever considered joining the FBI, they would destroy Zee’s career.
“Look, you know I appreciate his offer.” I needed something to do with my hands so I went to one of the boxes and took a book and checked the spine, American History, 1900 to 1999, I placed it on a shelf. “But after the debacle with IA I don’t want to have anything to do with law enforcement.” I grabbed another one, 1800 to 1899, and placed that next to it. “I like being a PI.”
“huh.”
I looked over my shoulder. “What?”
“Dent, you know I’m a behavioral expert, and you still lied to me.”
I hung my head and sighed. “Just drop it, okay?”
“No.”
I turned and glared. “damn it, Marcus. I don’t want to lie to you.” he gave me his sweetest smile. “Then don’t. Just explain this to me. How is it that your captain knows about all those crimes you supposedly committed. You’re partner knows, of course, since she’s the one who uncovered them. IA know too, but somehow the District Attorney never heard of them. I’ve seen the file. the DA could make her career on it. Why is it that she isn’t?”
“Drop it, Marcus, Please.” i didn’t have to ask if he believed the lies in that file. he’d known me almost as long as Zee had. he’d watched me join the force, he knew what that had meant to me.
“No. I want answers. not only have you refused Zee’s offer in favor of,” he waved a hand to encompass the office with a disgusted look. “this, but you haven’t visited in five months.”
“Zee’s pissed, I didn’t want to upset him anymore by showing up.”
“That’s never stopped you before. Hell, you know fucking well that your cock up his ass is the best way to apologize to him.”
“Stop.”
“No. I’ve been watching you dent. I’ve seen how you are with your clients. You think it’s a coincidence I’m here now? I’ve been waiting for you to come back so we could have this conversation. You hate this. This isn’t who you are. You’re an agent ofthe law.”
“I can’t! I can’t be a cop anymore! I can’t work for the FBI! They won’t let me!” What I’d said registered when I saw the shock on his face.
“Who won’t let you?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Dent.”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Zee can find out.”
“No. You are not telling him. You are not involving him. You have no idea what they can do to him if they think he’s working with us.” Fuck! i had to shut up.
“They threated him?” Marcus’ voice was cold.
“I’m trying to protect him.”
“Who are they? No one threatens my husband and gets away with it.”
“You have to drop this. Hear me? You can’t do anything, they’re too big, too powerful. The only way Zee is safe is if I stay away from him, and you.”
“Bullshit. when I tell Zee about this, he’s going to find them and tear them apart.”
“Are you fucking insane? I just told you they’re too powerful.”
“We don’t scare easily,” the buck replied.
I reached over the desk and pulled him by the collar. “get scared. If they even think you’re working with us, they are going to get Zee kicked out of the FBI.
“They can’t do that.”
“They can! that’s what I’m trying to get you to understand.
They’re that powerful.”
Marcus took a step back, forcing me to let go, but at least he finally looked shaken. I’d been worried I wasn’t getting through to him.
“You can’t tell Zee.”
“I have to. He’s going crazy trying to understand why you’re doing this.”
“He can’t know. it’s for his own safety.”
“Dent,” Marcus pleaded, “We don’t have any secrets from each other.”
“I don’t believe you. You both work for the FBI. There’s no way you’re allowed to talk about everything you work on, you’re in different divisions.” I stared at him. “I want your word you won’t tell him anything. I’m serious Marcus. You tell him, and
I’m never fucking you again.”
He raised his hands in surrender. “Alright, I won’t tell him.”
I sighed in relief.
“Really?” the deer asked, “you’d withhold sex?” While must people, even other gays might think the form of my threat was a joke, we both knew how much he liked it when I fucked him.
“Yes, I would. that’s how serious this is.”
We were silent for a moment, then Marcus asked, “which one of us do you think would break first?”
I stared at him. For a moment I couldn’t believe he wasn’t taking this seriously, then smiled and raise my hands in defeat. “How the fuck should I know. You’re addicted to my cock, and I’m addicted to fucking.”
I had missed having sex with them. Granted, this wasn’t the longest I’d gone without, but before it was always because we were too busy with our lives, not because i had to stay away from them. And being a private investigator gave me far too much time to just think about not having sex with them.
“But seriously, dent, how are you doing? PI work isn’t exactly going strong these days.”
I sighed. “I get a case here and there. Cheating wifes and husbands, finding lost things. The usual. It doesn’t pay great,
but at least I don’t need the money.” Marcus raised an eyebrow.
And yet another thing slipped out. At least this wasn’t a great secret, just something I don’t care to advertise.
“it turns out my family, the Stenton, are rich. As the only one of the name left alive, it all went to me.
Maximilian had showed me the accounts. his firm handled the money for many of the Society families, including the Stentons.
the accounts had been left there to accumulate money.
“How much?”
I shrugged. “Close to five hundred millions.”
His jaw dropped. “And you’re doing this?”
“What else am I going to do? i don’t see myself lying on a beach all day long just bleaching my fur.”
“Me neither, but I can see you spending your days fucking guys.”
“I’d go nuts just doing that. I have to help people. So I can’t be a cop anymore, but there’s this.” I indicated the office.
“Do your folks know?”
I shook my head. “I’ve setup a significant retirement fund for my dad, but he won’t find out about it until he retires. Considering what he thought of my father, I don’t want to have to explain where the money comes from.” We were silent again.
“Look, since Zee isn’t here, we’re not going to fuck. I need to go to bed, and you need to go back to him. Just forget
about what I told you alright?” Marcus’ nod was reluctant.
He eyed the chime as we reached the bottom of the steps.
“You know, those have to be a code violation.”
“You could always trim your antlers. it would make going through doors easier.” The average door was eight feet high, but
Marcus’ antlers had to top at a foot above that.
“Absolutely not.” he was indignant. “They are an expression of my manliness.”
I rolled my eyes. “Right, because what you’re packing would shrink with smaller antlers.” I opened the door for him.
“Unlike someone I won’t mention, I don’t go dropping my pants in front of guys to show how manly I am.”
My ears burned. it had only happened once, and i wasn’t to blame, it was that badger’s fault. “You’re such a poser,” I said as I prodded him out. “Go to bed. I’m sure Zee is wondering where you are.” he kept me from closing the door. “You be safe, Dent. me
and Zee, we worry about you, and I’m going to worry a lot more now that I know what I know.”
“I’m as safe as I can be. Goodnight Marcus.” I closed the door and locked it.
As I crossed the room to reach the door leading to my apartment I realized Marcus didn’t know I was versatile now. Like Zee, the guys they slept with were in different circles than mine. Now I really had to visit them. Zee spoke highly of his husband’s prowess as a top.
