Marcus’ spot on the side of the road had been taken by a brand new Elentra, as were most of they parking on each side of Jeannine’s house. She was having family over. He recognized the classic Neon her father own and and maintained in perfect running condition. He liked to brag that except for the engine, which he’d had to replace with an electric model when he’d gotten it from his own father in twenty-five, every other part was original. Marcus yawned as he parked his car, an older
Mercury Oley, At the end of the block.
The block was one solid wall of brick, most dirty brown, but one owner had repainted his bright yellow and another a deep brown. Eight houses pressed together into narrow lodging. Each houses had one parking each, in the back alley, but Zee parked there.
Although parking wasn’t designated on the street, the owners had gotten together and agreed the three households with an extra car got specific spaces in front of their houses. So long as they left him a place to park he never complained about his spot being taken. He didn’t mind the walk, and tonight the cool air invigorated him.
Their house had the original brick, and every so often they talked about painting it over. Zee thought it looked drab, and wanted to go for a brilliant green. Marcus wasn’t sure about that. As much as bright colors looked amazing on his husband, he was leery of them on a house. He eyed the yellow on for confirmation.
Out of habit he looked up at the sensor over the door as he climbed the steps. It was the best from Steelcase, full body sensor identification, almost impossible to trick. The manufacturer claimed it was impossible, but Marcus had talked to too many professional thieves to believe that.
It identified him and the door unlocked. The lock reengaged once he closed it behind him. They didn’t need such an advanced sensor protecting the house, the neighborhood was quite safe, but working for the FBI gave him a view of the world that meant he preferred being prepared for the worst.
Even this late, he heard movement upstairs. Zee never went to bed without him unless one of them couldn’t be home due to work, and they always called the other to inform them. Marcus considered heading to their small kitchen for a cookie, but decided against it. His sweet tooth was something he was actively trying to fight.
He glanced at the small living room, making sure that none of the electronics in the entertainment center were on. Zee didn’t use them, but he’d picked up the habit at home, where his mother never turned anything off, and it was now deeply ingrained.
He went up the stairs, the first two bedrooms had been converted into their offices, and in the last one, he found Zikabar, holding the hanger to a pale pink jacket and going over it, inspecting it for errand pieced of lint. Marcus smiled as the mule deer ran a lint brush over it before hanging it on the peg next to the closet. A pair of pants, lime green, Marcus thought, already hung there. He didn’t have his husband color sense, which was why he stuck to grays.
Zee looked over his shoulder and beamed. “welcome home hun. Who did Carpenter sent you out to see? I stopped by your office before I left and you were already gone.”
“I was with the Langley team, they wanted me to go over the profile. But that isn’t why I‘m home so late.” Marcus sat on the bed and unlaced his shoes. He undressed slowly, going over whey Denton had told him. he threw his jacket over the back of the chair, and a moment later his shirt joined it.
“Marcus.”
The red deer looked up and into his husband’s eyes. Zee was crouched before him. he leaned in until their nose touched, and then gently swayed his head side to side, making their antlers knock together.
Marcus smiled at the clacking sound, and it brought up the memory of Zikabar pressing him against the wall of the club. he’d pressed himself and had knocked their antlers in much the same way, if not as gently, and let Marcus know in no uncertain term he was now being hunted.
“Hun, are you alright?” Concern in his eyes. “you’ve been grunting replies. You only do that if you’re worried.”
Marcus gave him a peck on the lips. “I am, sorry.”
“So you wish to talk about it?”
“Once we’re in bed.”
“Then finish undressing.” Zee stood and took the shirt of the the chair. he folded it and placed it in the dirty clothes hamper. he picked up the charcoal colored jacket and examined it. He took out his lint brush and ran it over before putting it on a hanger next to his own.
Marcus held out his gray slacks to him by the time Zee came back. the deer took them, folded them and deposited them in the hamper. When he turned Marcus’ balled up underwear arced over his head and landed on top of the pants.
Zee eyed him, but instead of scolding him, he joined him under the covers, resting his head on the red deer’s chest. Zee was a good head shorter than his husband, and it made this position perfect for them, allowing their feet to intertwine.
“Now love, what’s distracting you?”
“This has to remain our Secret.”
Denton was wrong. He and Zee didn’t keep anything from each other. If one of them needed to talk about something sensitive, they designated it a Secret, and that subject could only be further discussed in this bedroom, with only the two of them present and could never be acted on, no matter how they might feel about it.
Zee nodded, and Marcus told him everything Denton had.
Zee sat up, grinding his teeth. “Who do you think they are?”
Marcus didn’t try to get him to lay back down. Zee had worried about Denton for months, now that he knew the details, that worry was becoming anger.
“I don’t know, but they worry Dent.”
“He’s afraid of them?”
“Not for himself. He’s afraid of what they’ll do to you. he’s angry, but also helpless.”
“The sweet idiot,” Zee grumbled. “Doesn’t he know we’ll look after him?”
Marcus didn’t reply.
“It can’t be those new friends of his then. he’s been spending too much time with them. Although is it my imagination or has he been avoiding the cougars recently?”
Marcus smiled. “Have you been spying on our favorite cheetah?”
“Of course not. I’ve simple been keeping an eye on him. I know you worry.”
Marcus’ smile widened. “Or course, *I* worry. And no, I don’t see how it could be them, they paid for his folk’s house to be rebuilt after the fire. They could have let the insurance deal with that.”
Zee lay back against his husband and rested his hand on his stomach. “There’s something odd about them. I’ve been looking into the Cormoran and the Lewiston, looking for links to Denton. I find many of them, through the Stenton. Did you know that except for Denton, they are all dead? over a three year period all in perfectly normal accidents. Not suspicious at all. I’ve also found links to half a dozen families in the north west.”
“That’s not surprising. Rich people tend to hang out in the same circles.”
“True, but some other peculiarities have cropped up.”
“What kind?”
“For one thing, I haven’t been able to find anything worst than a speeding ticket among all of them. No one is that clean, not when the kind of money they have is involved. I couldn’t find any indication they had anything suppressed, which speaks to how well connected they are.”
“Again, not really uncommon for rich people.”
Zee nodded. “The other thing is that a name popped up fairly often linked to them. Someone who worked for the FBI.” “Who?” Marcus asked when Zee didn’t volunteer it.
“Mulder.”
The red deer nodded, then stopped. “You can’t mean that crackpot who worked out of the basement voluntarily?”
“I do.”
“Why would he look into them? That guy was only about ghost, aliens and the crazy stuff people on drugs come up with.” Marcus thought for a moment. “I had a professor at Quantico who worked with him on a case, back when he’d just joined the Bureau. he used Mulder as an example of someone trying to use
Bureau resources to advance his own crazy conspiracy theories.”
“And yet, that name is penned to at least one report per family. The way they read makes it clear they are incomplete. He was probably forced to remove all the crazy things from those reports. I expect the full files are in one of the basements.
Marcus tensed. “Zee, tell me you haven’t gone in the basement.”
“I haven’t yet.”
“Love, you know the higher ups think that anyone who takes an a willing interest in the Unexplained Phenomenon Department needs to get their heads checked. If you start poking in there, they are going to question your worth as agent in charge.”
Zee was silent for a long time. “I had forgotten that. Thank you for reminding me. I was so preoccupied with fulfilling my curiosity. You don’t have to worry hun, I on’t set foot there.”
Marcus raised Zee’s face to him and kissed him. “Thanks. I have enough to do with worrying about Dent. I don’t want to have to worry about you too.”
Zee gave him a shocked expression. “Are you saying I no longer matter sufficiently for you to constantly worry about my happiness?”
Marcus chuckled. “I always worry I don’t make you happy enough, but that’s the only thing i want to have to worry about.” The red deer then made Zee squeal as he rolled him on his stomach, climbed over him and proceeded to make him very happy indeed.
