Chapter 33: Home Is Where The Heart Is

Chapter 33

"What did the chief say when you told him that Jason saw those teenagers at the warehouse?"

"Now that we know both cases might be connected, he doesn't have much choice but to take the case from Jacobs."

"And no doubt Jacobs is gonna throw a fit." I said, and we grinned knowingly at each other.

"Are you and Sy up for it? I know your case load's crazy already."

Eddie shrugged. "Gotta do what we gotta do, and if this is all connected it'll probably make this easier."

I nodded. "Who are the agents authorized to question the prisoners?"

"The usual suspects; you, me, Simon, Jimmy and the Chief."

Good." I said. "I want to take a crack at them before I leave."

Eddie looked at me with raised brows.

"I thought you were sitting this one out. You know...because Jason asked?"

I shook my head. "You and I both know I can't do that. I'm already leaving with everything up in the air. I need to at least do something before we go or it'll drive me insane."

"Good luck explaining that to your man." He chuckled. "But I know how you feel. I don't think I could stomach even the thought of leaving at a time like this. This one's huge. It could drag on for a long time." Eddie stretched and yawned from his seat on the hard bench.

"Not helping Ed." I groaned and he laughed.

"I get why you're going, trust me. Family will always come first, and even I can see that Jason's cracking. Take him and go get his head on straight. Maybe he should even see a therapist. Held prisoner in a place like that while a mad man threatens your family will break anybody."

"Yeah." I nodded, lost in thought.

"Tell Damion he still owes me." he added and this time I grinned.

"You mean the bet? It's been three years, get over it."

"It's the principle of the thing man." He said. "Speaking of Damion, I heard he's got a boyfriend now."

I snorted. "Where'd you hear that story?"

"Jerry."

I shook my head. "Jerry needs to mind his own damn business." I chuckled. "One day his rumor-spreading is gonna get him into some deep shit."

"Don't I know it." He said with a grin. "It would be good if he was though. After everything he and Donny have been through, it would be good to see the guy happy for once."

I nodded thoughtfully. The only thing that made that guy happy these days was fighting fires. It was hard to imagine him crazy over an actual human being, but Eddie was right. It would be good if he was.

"What about you Ed? When are you gonna get back out there? It's about time you find a nice girl and settle down."

He gave an awkward laugh as he rubbed the back of his neck. "About that." He began. "I've actually been meaning to tell you that I..." he paused for a moment, looking unsure, and I watched him with raised brows.

"I'm done."

We both glanced up at the sound of Jason's voice, and I stood as he stepped out of the hospital room, where the doctor had been giving him a thorough check-up.

"Everything good?" I asked him.

He nodded. "So far so good, but I'm gonna get the test results in a couple days." He explained. "Hi Eddie. I never knew you were gonna be here." He gave a small half wave.

Eddie stood. "Yeah I actually came to visit Bruno. He's the one who was shot at the warehouse." He lowered his voice so Timmy wouldn't hear.

"Yeah, Michael told me about him." He said, then bit his lip." Maybe I could go visit him too...say thanks for...you know..." he trailed off, glancing at me for what I assumed to be approval.

"Let's all go then." I said, though Timmy and I had already visited Bruno earlier on when Jason had been in with the doctor.

It was as if the little devil sensed what we were about to do because his head shot up, and he dropped his crayon onto the page of his coloring book. His eyes met mine, and I raised a brow.

"Don't even think about it." I said to him, and he frowned because he knew exactly what I was talking about. He'd almost ripped the IV bag off the stand when we'd visited Bruno earlier, because for whatever reason, he was fascinated with the clear tube. It had taken me physically restraining him to prevent any further mishaps in that room. As Timmy and I had a stare off, I could see Eddie and Jason watching us from the corner of my eye. I choose not to elaborate.

"Come on." I motioned to the devil with a finger, and he slid off the bench, then very slowly and carefully, he packed away his crayons into his little Ziploc bag and closed his coloring book.

I took them from him when he handed them to me, and he took hold of the hand that Jason offered. Bruno's room was two floors down, so we found the nearest elevator and got on. Timmy being Timmy, jumped up and down as we descended, and Eddie watched him with his head slightly tilted to the side; as though he were trying to figure something out that didn't make much sense to him.

"Oh joy. My very own tormentor is back." Bruno said the moment we entered his room and he spotted Timmy. The boy in question grinned, and when he pulled his hand out of his father's, intent on making a mad dash for Bruno's bed, I scooped him up and propped him onto my shoulders.

His new position appeased him, at least for the moment, and I tried not to flinch when he pulled a bit too hard on my hair.

When he spotted Eddie, Bruno placed his hand dramatically over his chest.

"Oh thank God it's you and not Simon." He said, and Eddie pulled up a chair as close to his bedside as he could get, and sat.

"What did Sy ever do to you?"

"Please tell him to leave me alone. The fucker's been here twice already and I'm just about ready to end my own life." He confessed. "I don't know why he thinks that just because I'm bedridden it means I'm interested in learning how to hack into shit. I just want to lie down here with my hospital Jell-O and relax, you know?" he finished his dramatic tirade, and Eddie and I laughed, while Jason tried to hide a smile.

"It's because he knows you can't run away." Eddie explained with a wide grin. "He's been trying to find an apprentice for a long time now."

"Yeah, well he can go shove his apprenticeship up his..." He looked up, spotted Timmy on my shoulders and froze. "His...butt."

"Alright relax drama queen. What kinda meds they got you on anyway?" Eddie questioned as he reached up to fluff his friend's pillow. "How are you feeling, I heard you're giving the nurses a hard time."

"Just one nurse." He corrected, then he grinned like the love-struck fool that he was, because everyone knew that his fiancé worked as a nurse there. He would shout it from the rooftops if he could, and speak of the devil...said nurse stepped through the door at that very moment. I watched with a grin when Bruno attempted to sit up straight as his eyes followed her progress into the room.

"How are you boys doing?" Nancy greeted as she set down a metal tray by Bruno's bedside.

"Pretty good." We chorused as she picked up a needle from the tray. Bruno, the hater of all things sharp and pointy, proudly bared his arm like it was the sacrificial lamb. We watched his smile turned goofy as he watched her. You'd think they'd only met a short while ago with they way he was going on, but they'd been going three years strong, and the fool still had stars in his eyes.

There was this thing one of my Korean friends said all the time 'If you love more, then you lose.' If you agreed with him, then Bruno had lost the moment he had laid eyes on her and had been losing ever since.

Not to say that Nancy didn't love the fool equally, but the woman had a winning poker face, and there had never been a moment when I'd been able to even guess what she was thinking, much less feeling.

She drew his blood, then set the needle carefully back into the tray, before giving him further instructions.

"Why haven't you eaten?" she questioned when she pulled the lid off his bowl of whatever it was, and when he picked up his fork, she patted his head like one would do with a puppy.

"I'll come check on you later." She assured him, and we all watched as she exited the room with a small smile that I had to squint to see.

The moment she disappeared, Bruno dropped the fork and frowned at Eddie.

"Where's the burger I asked you for?"

Eddie grinned. "Simon says that's a bad idea." Eddie and I grinned, but Bruno was not amused.

I'm seriously starting to wonder when Sy became my legal guardian." He mumbled mostly to himself; Eddie's joke was lost on him.

"Anyway Bruno, I want to introduce you to Jason here." I gestured to him.

"Ah, the devil's dad." He said with a grin. "No offence."

"None taken." Jason shrugged. "Thanks for what you did. Sorry you got hurt because of me."

Bruno waved off his apology. "I'm just glad it all worked out. A kid needs his father."

Jason nodded in agreement, and that was the end of that. Good talk.

"Not gonna lie, I'm surprised by the number of kids involved in this one. Anyone started questioning them yet?"

"Yeah but you know how it is. Slow going." Eddie supplied, and Bruno responded with a nod.

"What are they thinking to get caught up in something like this? They're teenagers for God's sake, they should be out doing whatever teenagers do with their friends, not wielding guns and running drugs." I said.

"Maybe it's the universe giving us a sign." Eddie said with a grin.

"What sign would that be?"

"Don't have kids." He chuckled, and I glanced at Jason, who in turn glanced up at his son.

"Too late." We said in unison and Jason and I exchanged grins.

"Alright lovebirds we get it." Bruno drawled.

"You shouldn't even talk." Eddie countered.

I gestured to them both. "Your time will come. You'll see." But they only laughed.

"I'm fine with watching the devils from a safe distance. No way am I getting involved in the stress and struggle."

"Ditto." Bruno supplied. "The kid's asleep by the way."

I glanced up automatically, as if I would magically be able to see him asleep on my head.

"I figured he was when he stopped pulling on my hair awhile back." I confessed. "He hasn't been getting much sleep lately. Too excited that daddy's back." I told them with a grin.

"Looks like you're in the same boat." Bruno wiggled his brows, and I fought not to roll my eyes at the life-sized child spread out in the hospital bed before me.

"I think that's our cue to get out of here." I said. Eddie stepped aside when I moved to the side of Bruno's bed, and when I reached up to ruffle his hair, Bruno batted my hand away like the grouchy son-of-a bitch that he was. I chuckled and did it again, and this time he allowed it in silence...probably because he was too weak to retaliate again.

"Take care of yourself." I said, and he nodded. "And let Simon keep you company. It'll keep him from doing stupid shit, like hacking into the Goddamn White House." I finished.

"As if anyone can stop him once he starts." Eddie commented, and Bruno and I nodded in agreement.

"I'll come back to visit in a couple of days." I assured him. "I hear the Chief's stopping by this evening too."

Bruno groaned as I knew he would. "Just what I need." He mumbled, and with a final goodbye, Jason and I turned to go.

"I hear Simon helped find me this time too." Jason said as we made our way down the hallway.

"You heard right."

"How come he's in the FBI? He doesn't seem like any FBI guy I ever seen."

"What does he seem like then?" I asked with a grin. Jason shrugged, or at least he tried to, but flinched when the action jostled his injured arm. I watched him with concern. The night before he'd barely gotten much sleep because of that arm. I could only hope that having the sling would help a little.

"I don't know. He seems like one a them 'fuck the system' kinda guys. He don't seem like somebody who would help the government." He said. I couldn't help but laugh since Jason hit the nail right on the head.

"You're right, he wasn't too thrilled with the government at first...probably still isn't but when you're really good at what you do, people tend to take notice. The same government that he hated, wiped his slate clean and hired him as one of their own."

Jason frowned. "Are you sayin' he was some kinda criminal before? What did he do?"

"Let's just say he hacked into a place he had no business hacking into, and impressed some really important people."

Jason nodded like he understood. "That's the only time they got use for you I guess." Then he seemed to think on it for a moment. "He doesn't say much when he's around, but I like him." He admitted, which surprised me because other than Kyle, he'd never expressed any interest in any of my friends.

I wondered how Simon would take the news. It would probably go right to his nerdy little head. I could already imagine him illegally hacking into some institution Jason hated as a thank you for liking him. I decided to keep this all-too-important piece of information to myself.

"Yeah, he's quiet but everyone loves him. He's dependable, loyal and he puts his friends first...always."

Jason nodded. "I guess that's why Eddie's in love with him. They look good together. Eddie's really chatty, happy and friendly, and Simon's quiet, smart and likeable. I guess they balance each other out an' shit."

I laughed. "Eddie's straight, and I'm pretty sure Simon is too. They're just close because they're best friends." I explained but Jason's brows were furrowed as he looked at me, like he couldn't quite understand my words.

"I think you're wrong." He said finally. "They're together...even if they aint telling nobody."

"We're going to have to agree to disagree on that one."

He tried to shrug again and flinched. "I can't wait for this to heal up."

"You'll have a quicker recovery time than I did at least." I told him. "I'm glad it's not as serious as mine was."

"I guess. Are we goin' home now?"

"I want to stop my my parents for awhile. I need to talk to my dad and let him know we'll be leaving soon."

"Do you think he's gonna be mad about it?" he asked, this time not looking at me but focusing his attention straight ahead.

"I don't know. I can never tell with him, but it doesn't matter. If this is what you need then I'm okay with it."

"Do you think I'm taking you away from your family?"

I smiled when he still wouldn't look at me, even as we stepped outside and made our way to the car.

"No. You're my family too, and it's not like we're never coming back."

He nodded but said nothing as we unlocked the doors. I pulled the sleeping Timmy off my shoulders, and deposited him safely into his car seat.

"Timmy's gonna miss Poppy." Jason commented later on as we were driving down the street. Since I got back all he talks about is your dad. Poppy said this and Poppy did that and Poppy's gonna give him this." Jason smiled.

"They can FaceTime everyday. I'm sure my dad will insist on it."

"He accepted me in the end you know." Jason said, picking at some invisible lint on his jeans instead of looking at me.

"What do you mean?"

"The day I had to go talk to your dad at the Bureau. The day I got shot..." he trailed off and paused for a moment. "Your dad welcomed me to your family."

I glanced at him in surprise. This was complete news to me because my dad had certainly kept that to himself.

"I thought you guys had been talking about the case."

He shook his head. "He never asked me nothin' about the case. He asked me about my life and what happened with my old man and shit." He sighed. "I was real happy that day. You know...until shit hit the roof and then everything sucked after that. But I'm part of your family now, your old man said...and now I'm taking you away from them. I bet he's regretn' it." Jason smiled a sad-looking smile before he sighed, and turned to look out the window.

"He's not regretting it. My dad doesn't say anything he doesn't mean. So, if he welcomed you in then there's no way he's letting you go again." I said with a grin.

He looked at me, eyes not quite meeting mine, before he looked away again out the window, as if what was happening out there demanded his full attention.

"You swear?" he asked moments later, eyes still fixed outside.

I smiled. "I didn't realize you liked him so much."

Jason shrugged out of habit then winced and sighed. "He's alright."

The silence settled between us and continued on the short drive to my parents' place. With everything that had happened in the past few weeks it had never occurred to me to ask my dad what he and Jason had discussed in the final moment leading up to his kidnapping. This revelation surprised and pleased me.

I had thought that it would take some serious convincing to get the old man to finally treat Jason with some modicum of respect, but to think he'd gone a step further and accepted him into the family, was more than I could have ever asked for.

I glanced at the sleeping Timmy in my rear view and smiled. Every day that passed with them in my life made me that much more anxious to legally make them mine. I hadn't been away from Jason for more than a few minutes since I'd gotten him back, and I wondered if I'd ever have the courage to have him out of my sight again.

I shook my head. Fear was a hell of a thing. It had entered my life and made a mess of everything. It had shattered my stubbornness, my resolve and my emotions. Even after getting Jason back, it was still reeking havoc on our lives. If I were to lose him again, I knew now that it wouldn't be something I could handle...not even with Timmy around, because even though I'd tried my best to keep it all to myself, in those last few days before Jason's rescue, I'd been close to losing it.

To be in love...it really wasn't all rainbows and confetti; it was hard work. Now more than ever, I could say that the ones who willingly fell in love were the bravest motherfuckers out there. Those were the people who went all in while knowing that at any moment they could lose the person who meant the world to them. Yup, the bravest motherfuckers on the planet.

People like me, who fell into it without a chance to even think it through, were probably the unluckiest. I sighed, and Jason glanced my way with furrowed brows. As I looked at him, there was no regret though...loving him had changed my life so drastically, that reversing its effects would be borderline catastrophic.

"I love you." I said then, and grinned when his face turned a deep shade of red and he quickly turned away to focus his attention outside. Yes, I loved him, and the more I got to know him, the deeper I continued to fall.

...................................

When we stepped into my parents' house we were immediately hit by the delicious scent of baking chocolate chip cookies. Timmy, who had woken up the moment we'd pulled into the driveway, made a beeline for the kitchen, where he could no doubt hear Gwammy humming a random tune.  Jason followed suit, while I made my way to my dad's study.

The chief looked up from his stack of papers the moment I entered, and regarded me with an expression I couldn't even hope to decipher.

"Dad." I greeted, and he raised a brow.

"Heard you're taking off with the boys for a while." He said, and I nodded as I lowered myself into the chair on the other side of his wide desk.

"I'll drop off my leave request tomorrow."

"With the amount of absences you've been racking up, I'm starting to wonder if you still want this job."

I watched him with unease. My dad was a pretty simply guy to figure out but when he was in 'chief mode' he was unpredictable. The fact that I was family didn't matter one bit when it came to the job, which I had always respected but for right now it was starting to worry me.

"Chief—" I began.

"Relax, you look like I'm about to take away your favorite toy." He said. "I get why your going. I've always told you that family comes first, so if this is what you both need then go for it."

"Thanks dad."

The Chief leaned back in his chair and appraised me with yet another one of his unreadable expressions.

"This is for the best anyway. There's no way you would have passed the physical, so take some time and get yourself properly healed so you won't be regulated to desk duty again when you get back. Not that I mind you sitting behind the desk." He said as an afterthought. My mother wouldn't mind it either.

"When can we expect you back?"

"I don't think Jace wants to come back to be honest. What happened really shook him up. The faster this investigation gets wrapped, the easier it will be to convince him that it's safe here."

"No such thing as 'safe' son. I would have preferred if you guys stayed here where I can keep an eye on you, but Damion can do the job as well as I can, so I can't exactly complain." He said. "Just don't stay away too long. Timmy was just starting to get accustomed to life here. It can't be good to keep rooting him up like that. After all, a kid needs stability."

"Damion says he knows a good therapist, so I'll see if I can convince Jason to go see her. I'm hoping we'll be back within a month tops, but I know these things take time."

Dad nodded. "Make sure you video call me when you get there. The kid's a bit clingy when it comes to me so he'll want to see me at least once a day."

I grinned at his words but I couldn't deny the truth in them. They were both obsessed with each other. Though sometimes I wondered just what exactly Timmy saw in my grumpy old man.

"Oh, before I forget." I handed over the thin folder I had brought with me. "It's the mission report." I said, and the Chief took it and set it aside without a glance.

"I have a favor to ask you."

"What's that?"

"Let me question some of the captives before I leave. It doesn't feel right to let it go like this." I said. The chief nodded as though he had expected as much.

"Do you have anyone in particular you want to interrogate or is anyone fair game?"

"The guy I shot." I said.

"Alright, I'll arrange it."

"Any word on Ronnie's whereabouts?"

"Nothing yet, but I'm sure his greasy head will pop up somewhere soon enough." He said, then rubbed a hand across his forehead. "This whole thing's just one big, stinking mess. Suddenly all our three recent cases are connected and we have dirty agents in the Bureau. It's gonna be hell cleaning up this mess."

"What are the higher ups saying about all this?" I asked even while knowing he'd never divulge that information to me.

"You let me worry about that. Just hurry your ass back so you can help with the clean up."

I nodded.

"What did Jason say about his father showing up?"

I sighed. "I haven't told him yet. With everything that's going on—"

"My dad came?"

I spun around at the sound of Jason's voice, and spotted him standing in the doorway with a tray of cookies in hand. His narrowed eyes were fixed on mine.

"Maybe you boys should go out onto the patio for a while." Dad suggestion, pushing up from his seat. "I'm going to go spend some time with the little one."

He took the tray of cookies from Jason on the way out, and Jace stuffed his uninjured hand into his pocket as he waited for me to stand. Like my dad's had been earlier, his expression was unreadable.

I stepped past him and out into the hall. He followed my lead past the kitchen where Timmy and my folks were now making another mess. Out on the patio, I took a seat but he chose to stand.

For a moment, I watched him. Even with his shuttered expression I could see that he was agitated and impatient for the news. It was in the way he shifted from foot to foot as he stood there waiting for me to speak. It was in the way his hands kept tightening into fists at his sides, and it was also in his eyes. Jason's eyes had always been a quick gateway into his emotional state.

"He came by the Bureau looking for Timmy when he heard the news report about you."

Jason frowned, eyes narrowing dangerously. "How'd he find out about Timmy?"

"He claims he saw it on the news but as far as I know, that information hasn't been leaked to any media houses.

"What did he want with my kid?"

"Exactly what you're imagining. He wanted to take Timmy with him."

Jason's mouth tightened. "Did he show up there alone?"

"Is this your way of asking if your mom came with him?" I asked, and he folded his arms before him.

"Did she?"

"No."

"I don't know why he's thinkin' he can just show up and take my kid when he don't even want nothin' to do with me. As if I'd ever let that jackass anywhere near my Timmy."  He fumed, then paused as though something had just occurred to him. He looked at me with wide eyes.

"You didn't let him see Timmy right?"

"You know I wouldn't do that after everything you've told me about him."

He nodded, then turned away briefly to gaze into the open yard, before turning to face me once again.

"What if I never made it back? I know all about the bullshit laws we got. If I never came back would he get Timmy?"

"They typically consider granting guardianship to family members first when the parents are out of the picture. Your parents would have been candidates, but there are various factors they have to consider first. They would have had to evaluate whether they'd be suitable to raise him and there's no way that they are."

"But anything can happen." He concluded, and I wasn't about to lie to him.

"I would have done everything in my power to prevent that but you're right, anything can happen."

"I can't wait for us to get the hell away from this town."

"It won't be for very long Jace. We both have things holding us here."

"There ain't nothing holdin' me here."

"We're both involved in four different cases that are still under investigation. The law is holding us both here, believe it or not."

His brows furrowed as he looked at me.

"How'd you get four?"

"One, we both witnessed the aftermath of a murder down by the lake. Two, your friends robbed a store and held you at gunpoint. Three, Ronnie held you at gun point at the Bureau, and kidnapped you. Four, you were held for weeks at a warehouse where you may or may not have witnessed further illegal transactions." I rattled them all off to him in quick succession, and he finally acquiesced.

"Everything's just going to shit all at once aint it?" he sighed, and I nodded.

"And let's face it, your dad is going to show up again. It's only a matter of time."

That got his eyes flashing. "And when he does, I'll tell him to fuck off."

"Are you one hundred percent sure you want to cut all ties with him? This could be your chance to sit down and talk about what happened back then."

"Not interested. I cut ties the second I got out of that house and I hope I'll never have to see his face for the rest of my life."

"What about your mother?"

He hesitated for just a moment and I saw the uncertainty in his eyes, but he quickly steeled his expression, and once again his eyes held an angry glint.

"He could have beat me to death in that house and she would 'a just stood there and watched like a coward. I don't want nothin' to do with any of them."

I nodded. "What happens when Timmy asks about them when he's older?"

"I'll tell him the truth."

"And if he says he wants to meet them?"

"I think Timmy's gonna be smart enough to wanna stay away from my abusive jackass of a father." He said, looking even more pissed off than before, if that was even possible.

"Still, kids get curious." I warned him, and he turned his eyes on me with exasperation, before he shook his head and looked away again.

"I don't even wanna think that far right now." He grumbled. "This whole place is bad luck, and I just wanna go before anything else goes wrong."

My eyes followed him as he began to pace back and forth across the patio's wooden floorboards.

"Come sit here." I called, and he glanced at me briefly, looking hesitant, before finally moving to sit by my side.

"No, here." I patted my lap, then chuckled when his eyes widened in horror at what was apparently a scandalous request.

"Your folks are inside." He scolded, and the look he gave me was as if I'd just committed some grave crime.

I laughed. "I didn't ask you to strip naked, Jace. I asked you to sit in my lap. It's not a big deal."

But instead of humoring me, he got up and went to the far end of the porch; as far away as he could get from me, and I laughed; glad that I'd at least managed to lighten his sour mood.

"Alright, come back. You can sit wherever you want." I called over with a grin. "Come on, I want to talk to you about something."

The moment he came close enough to touch, I pulled him into my lap and wrapped my arms tightly around his waist so he wouldn't have a hope of escaping. When he tried a couple times and failed, he gave up the fight with an exasperated sigh.

When I only grinned up at him, he glanced furtively at the door leading inside.

"They don't care if we show a little affection. That's what boyfriends do right?"

His face flushed scarlet, and even though he smiled, he wouldn't look me in the eyes.

"What?" I asked, and he shrugged awkwardly with his one good shoulder.

"It's just weird thinking we're...boyfriends." He said. "I watched you for a long time back when I was on the streets with Timmy, but I never figured this would ever happen. Figured it would only be me fantasizin' and not much else."

"What would have happened if you hadn't tried to pick my pocket that night?"

"Guess I would 'a still be out there hustling. I never would've got to work on cars at the garage. I never would've got to find out the kinda person you are, and Timmy wouldn't know what it's like to live in a real house with clean floors and lots of toys, crayons and a fridge full of food." He surmised with a quiet sort of reverence that made me want to pull him closer.

"You probably wouldn't have been shot either." I added.

He shook his head. "Maybe, maybe not. It aint predictable out there you know. People was getting' shot all the time."

I nodded. "Do you ever miss it?"

"The streets?" he asked, and when I nodded, he shook his head.

"What about your friends? Don't you ever miss them? You rarely ever talk about any of your friends."

"That's cause I never had any friends." He said. "I got people that I saw on a regular, but when you're tryin' to support your kid, you don't got time to waste being friends with nobody. When you're out there of course you gotta be respectful to each other, and be polite and shit to avoid problems, but I didn't want all sorts a people to be around Timmy."

"Still...it must not have been easy not being able to rely on anyone."

"Nah, before Timmy I had Cam...he was probably as close as I ever got to having a friend...even though to be honest, he felt more like my kid with how I had to be taking care of him. I guess if he'd stuck around 'till now I would've known what it felt like to raise two kids." He chuckled.

I smiled. "How old would he be now?"

"A year older than me."

I raised a brow. "A year older and you were the one taking care of him?"

His smile grew sad. "I told you before. Cam wasn't like other people. He was innocent, and when somebody's that kind of innocent, they need to be taken care of. Plus, he was small for his age. He looked like a ten-year-old kid back then, and he couldn't fight for shit..." he trailed off.

"When we get back...after we sort out all these cases, I'll have Nate, John and Simon look into it. If anyone can find him, they can." I promised, and he nodded.

"Anyway there's Frankie too I guess. He's got my back. He's the only person I could trust to look after Timmy when I had to be gone for a while."

I nodded. "Timmy mentioned his name once. Am I ever going to get the chance to meet this Frankie?"

Another one-shoulder shrug. "If you want." He said, then grinned so wide that I could only watch his face glow in silence. "He's gonna lose his shit when he finds out I got you. He used to make fun of me every time I went out to watch you."

I grinned. "I really want to hear all the details of you stalking me. How long did you like me before you finally grabbed my wallet?"

"A long time...months. It's the longest I ever liked anybody. At first I was interested 'cause you seemed like a decent guy, but when I watched, the more I realized that I started liking how you looked."

"How'd I look?"

Jason fidgeted in my arms.

"Big and strong enough that assholes wouldn't mess with you."

"And you liked that?" I asked in surprise. I hadn't been expected that answer.

"Yeah, cause it meant I wouldn't have to watch out for you or worry about somebody trying to get the jump on you. There was a lot I had to worry about back then, and it was nice to not have to add one more person to the list. I could just watch you and like you as easy as that."

I watched his face for a moment, thinking about all the responsibilities he'd had to shoulder alone back then. I was glad that now I could be there to shoulder them with him.

"So you liked that I was big and strong. Was that really all I had going for me?" I grinned shamelessly.

"Nah...I liked your face too. It's nice...handsome." He blushed. Then  he bit his bottom lip for a moment before releasing it again. I titled my head up and kissed him; a peck really, but he got all shy on me again and looked away.

"We talked one time. I bet you don't remember that." He then said so softly that I almost missed it.

"We did? When?"

"It was a couple a' weeks after you gave me cash that one time. We talked for a little bit. You didn't have your car that night and I waited with you at your bus stop... and we talked."

I frowned, wracking my brain for past bus stop conversations with random strangers but no matter how hard I thought about it, it just didn't ring a bell and I told him so.

"Then I aint gonna tell you." He said defiantly. "You gotta remember that one all on your own."

"At least give me a hint about what we talked about." I asked but he was obstinate. He shook his head, and pursed his lips.

"Why don't I remember that?" I murmured to myself.

"Maybe you hit your head after."

I shook my head. "I remember being without my car for about a week, but I don't remember any late night conversations." I said, then something occurred to me. "Was I wearing an arm sling back then?"

He nodded, eyes wide. "You remember?"

I shook my head. "It explains why I don't remember. In the early days of my injury, I was pretty much living in a daze. I was pissed off that I couldn't use my arm, scared that when it healed I wouldn't be the sharp shooter that I was before, and stressed out because the Chief wouldn't let me anywhere near the Bureau." I told him. "You probably caught me on a night I'd drunk half the bar."

Jason frowned. "You were drunk?"

"Must not have been a very coherent conversation on my end." I said.

"You didn't look drunk. You weren't falling over or nothin' and we had a proper talk. You were calm, and we had a whole conversation, I swear."

I shrugged. "Eddie used to joke that even when I'm dead drunk I'm sober enough to remember to settle the bar tab and thank the bartender on the way out. I guess I'm a calm drunk." I laughed.

"When people are drunk they don't lie." Jason said. "I guess that means that everything you told me that night was the God honest truth then." He smiled.

"Tell me what we talked about. Now I'm really curious." I said but he smiled as though he had a juicy secret, and shook his head.

"If we're still together eleven years from now I'll tell you then." He promised, and I buried my face into the sleeve of his good shoulder.

"Then you better keep that promise, because I'm not going anywhere." Then I paused and looked at him with a smile and furrowed brows. "Why eleven?"

He shrugged. "I just said the first number that came to me." He smiled and took a deep breath. "In eleven years Timmy's gonna be fourteen. I can't even imagine him so old. I wonder what he's gonna be like."

I shrugged. "Probably going on his first date, getting into trouble and slamming his bedroom door like every other teenager at that age." I said. "And if he's anything like he is now, we're gonna have a hell of a time keeping him in check." I grinned; excited at the prospect.

Jason turned slightly in my arms so that he was almost completely facing me.

"You know, normal people wouldn't want to raise someone's kid. It aint gonna be as easy as it is now."

I feigned surprise. "It's easy now?"

Jason rolled his eyes. "You can tell me anytime it's too much for you. I'll understand 'cause I know a kid's a lot, and you don't got no obligation to him or nothin'"

"I accepted him as my responsibility to day I fell in love with you both. Nothing's going to make me back down now."

He looked at me like he had a lot more to say, but instead, he pursed his lips and shook his head.

"Don't hold it in. Say whatever's on your mind." I urged, and after a long pause he did.

"How come you went and started liking me? I treated you like shit in the beginning."

"You did?" I raised a brow.

He shrugged. "I was angry all the time and I acted like I didn't like you."

"You're still angry all the time." I said with a grin, and his eyes narrowed into a glare. "I don't know, one day I realized that you meant something to me and from there, that feeling just kept growing. It's not something I can explain."

"It's weird how we don't get to choose who we love huh?"

"Is it?" I asked absently.

"I don't know. I bet a lot of people wouldn't choose to love the people they love now. It just kinda happened, and now they don't got no choice but to be stuck."

I considered his words carefully before I spoke next.

"Is that how you feel? Stuck?"

"No." he said with a frown. "I feel happy. I'm wondering if sometimes you feel stuck."

"Never. The moment I started feeling something for you I embraced it one hundred percent. You're the one who fought it remember?"

"Only 'cause I was scared I think. I didn't wanna start loving you and then you change your mind and leave."

I smiled at the irony of it all.

"How come you're smiling?

My eyes met and held his. "Because half the time it feels like you've got one foot out the door and it's only a matter of time before you run."

He shook his head. "I'd tell you if I was gonna run." He said.

"Would you?"

He nodded. "I'd ask you to come with me." his words came out in a half whisper, and just about made my heart stumble over itself. I found myself smiling up at him even though he was suddenly too shy to look at me.

"I love this new side of you. I love that you've decided to be more open with me about what's going on in that head of yours."

"You better not break my heart or nothin." he grumbled in response but his expression was pinched, as if it had cost him an arm and a leg just to show such a small amount of vulnerability.

I smiled. "Have you ever loved anyone else before me?"

"Like who?" he asked with a raised brow and a small frown. I laughed because I already had my answer.

He looked me in the eyes then, his eyes narrowed. "What about you?" and the unreasonable jealousy I saw in them had me laughing again.

"Just you Jace."

"But you had boyfriends..." he trailed off suggestively and I shook my head.

"Not exactly boyfriends, just..." I trailed off searching for an appropriate word to describe what I had with the men from my past.

"People you fucked." He supplied easily. I nodded

"Did you make 'em meet your family?"

"Other than the one guy when I was in High School, no." I said, hugging him closer and loving every minute of the conversation, because jealous, attentive Jason was my favorite. He fell silent though, and the next time he opened his mouth, it was to change the topic.

"What's your friend like?"

"Which friend?"

"The one we're gonna stay with."

"Damion." I said, and he nodded.

"He's a good guy; a firefighter and a business man. I've known him since High School. Back then he moved around a lot because of his dad, so he didn't stick around very long, but we managed to keep in touch." I explained. "I think you'll like him. Other than Simon, he's probably the smartest guy I've ever met. He's a bit quiet too, but easy enough to talk to and always willing to lend a hand."

"Does he know me and Timmy are coming too?"

"He knows."

"And he don't got no problem with it?"

"He would be okay with it even if I was coming with a whole army. Don't worry about it."

"Does he know you're into guys?"

I smiled. "He knows."

But Jason must have misinterpreted the smile because he was out of my lap so fast, that he almost tripped over his own leg.

"You know, I'm really starting to like it when you get jealous."

"I aint jealous. I'm just askin' questions."

"Uhuh, well I'll just go ahead and put it out there then that Damion and I have never been, nor will we ever be interested in each other. We're good friends and that's about it."

Jason shrugged, folding his arms before him (as best he could with a sling on), as he looked away from me.

"I never asked. I know he's your friend."

"Come back over here." I called, opening my arms wide but he shook his head, and went to lean against the porch railing instead.

For about a minute, I watched him stare off into the yard as if it was suddenly the most fascinating thing in the world, and as I watched him pout, I made the conscious decision to ruin his mood further with news that had to be said, even if he didn't want to hear it.

"Come here." I called again, this time patting the seat of the chair beside me. "I want to talk to you about something."

Jason glanced at me with furrowed brows. "About what?"

"Come here first." I repeated, and this time he came and sat in the seat beside me.

"Okay tell me." he folded his arms before him as he watched me.

"We're still leaving as planned." I began. "But I'm helping my team with the investigation as much as I can before we go."

Jason's response was a long time coming. He'd already turned his eyes away from me, and now stared out into the yard; eyes looking vacant.

"Do whatever you want." He finally said.

"I understand why you don't want me involved. I respect your views and you know that, but I've given it a lot of thought, and I can't just leave my team hanging like this." I told him. "I'm already leaving the brunt of the work on their shoulders so I need to do whatever I can to help before I go."

"I'm gonna go check on Timmy." Jason responded, but when he stood, I took hold of his good hand.

"Let's finish this conversation first."

"What conversation? You already made up your mind so there aint nothin' left for me to say right?" he tried to shake off my grip but I held firm.

"Can't we compromise on this? I'm already putting everything on hold to run off with you and Timmy. Can't you just accept th..." I trailed off when I saw his stricken expression, and sighed.

"Don't take it the wrong way Jace. It's not a problem for me to go. I'll do anything for you both. I just want to help my team too. Can't you accept that?"

Jason was glaring now. "Can't you let go of me?"

I released him immediately and he crossed the porch in two short strides, pulled open the door, and let it slam shut behind him when he entered the house. I took a deep breath and released it slowly before getting up to follow.

...............................

Dinner was a quiet affair...at least where the adults in the room were concerned. I imagined my parents had long ago picked up on the tension between us, and so they spent majority of their time looking between us and then at each other as they silently communicated.

Jason hadn't said more than two words to me since he'd left me out on the porch. Instead, he focused his attention on Timmy, who was very happy to receive it. When I reached across the table to the scoop potato salad into Jace's plate, he looked at me as if I'd committed some grave sin.

Dad cleared his throat, mom dug into her food with far more gusto than necessary, and I decided to mind my own damn business. Arguing with Jason was certainly not at all how I pictured our long-awaited reunion to go... and we were only a few days in.

"Everything okay with you two?" Leave it to my dad to begin an unwanted investigation at the dinner table.

"Yes." I lied, while Jason chose not to respond.

"You know they have this thing called 'couple's therapy' at your mom's focus group..." He trailed off. I glanced at Jason who had visibly turned red from embarrassment.

I looked at the chief with a raised brow. He only raised a brow back and I shook my head.

"Timmy eat your broccoli dear." My mom reached across to take the broccoli Timmy was trying desperately to crush with his fist, and return it to his plate.

"Gwammy no." he pouted, but the moment Jason picked it up and held it to his mouth, he took a  bite without an ounce of hesitation. My mom and I shared a knowing look. and she smiled.

"When was the last time you spoke to your sister Kim Michael?" she asked then.

"Sometime last week. Why?

"Do you know that she's visiting in two weeks?"

I nodded." she mentioned it, yeah."

"You haven't seen each other in a while." Mom continued. "It would be a shame if you missed this chance." She told me, though her eyes shifted from me to Jason and back, and I instantly realized what she was doing.

I sighed. "Mom. don't."

"Don't what? What's wrong with you spending some quality time with your sister?" she asked, eyes wide with feigned innocence.

It was no secret that she didn't want us to leave. Especially when it was going to be for an indeterminate period of time. Ever since I'd broken the news to her, she had made her views quite clear. More than anything though, I got the distinct impression that it was Timmy she was  determined not to part with.

Whereas she'd previously spent the majority of her days alone while my dad worked, she now had Timmy to dote on all day long. Having him leave now, when she wasn't sure when she would see him again would no doubt break her heart. But guilting Jason into staying wasn't the way to go about it.

"I'll visit them in the summer like I always do." I countered, and she visibly deflated. Beside me, Jason's eyes were downcast as he pushed around the uneaten food in his plate.

She reached across and patted Timmy's head, causing the kid to break out into a huge grin. The type of grin that was only reserved for grandma. In the two weeks that Jason had been gone they had spent so much time together that my mom and Liam were practically tied for the title of Timmy's best friend. I wondered if he would be alright when we left.

"We'll be back before you know it, and you know Timmy will be bugging us to video chat with you guys everyday."

The kid had experienced so much already in such a short time, and I didn't think more separation from the people he loved was the best move right now. I glanced again at Jason who was still stressed about his recent ordeal, and as a result, continued to maintain his stance about our need to escape from reality.

More often than not, I found myself wondering just what it would take to convince him to return once we were out of state. One thing was for sure though, I wouldn't be returning without them both.

As forks scraped against my mom's delicate china, and Timmy and my dad started up their never-ending conversation about tools, I thought about the promise I had made to myself when I'd been agonizing over Jason's whereabouts. The promise about our future; marrying the rough, angry kid I'd found on the streets so many months ago.

He glanced up from his plate for a second, and when he caught me watching him, his expressive eyes narrowed into a glare that could cut through glass. I smiled despite myself because everything about him; the good and the bad, somehow managed to make me happy. He made me want to do everything possible to make his life easier, to keep him happy, safe and far away from the cruelty of the real world.

Who would have thought that having my pocket picked by a street kid on a cold Friday night would have brought me so much joy. So while the man I loved glared angrily at me, I thought about the ring I would put on his finger, the future we would have together, and how I would do everything in my power to shelter him and his son from the fucked-up realities of life.

...........................................

"I love you."  I declared in the quiet confines of the car as we drove home from my parent's place later that evening.

For a moment he said nothing, and I thought that in his anger he wouldn't respond at all, but after a few seconds ticked by, his soft reply finally came.

"I know."

"Then let's stop this."

"Stop what?" I kept my eyes planted on the road but I could hear the edge to his voice.

"This...the silent treatment, the arguing. I just got you back, the last thing I want is more distance between us."

Jason sighed. "I just want them to forget about us. If you go there and start asking a bunch a' questions then you'll piss 'em off, and then they aint never gonna leave us alone."

"Right now because we can't trust anyone, there are only three agents working this investigation. If I can step in and give even a little bit of help, then the faster they can move things along, and get to the bottom of this. The sooner we wrap up the case, the sooner you, me and Timmy can get back to our lives without having the look over our shoulder. Do you understand that?"

"Yes but—"

"All I'll be doing is asking questions Jace. I can't leave them to shoulder everything on their own when I'm just as much apart of the team as they are. It would be irresponsible...especially after everything they've done to help me find you."

This time when I glanced at him, his brows were furrowed, and his bottom lip was trapped between his teeth. He seemed to be contemplating my words, and I allowed him his opportunity to do so without interruption.

In the back, Timmy was silently playing with Bunny, oblivious to the important discussion being held up front. As Jason turned his attention back out the window and the car once again descended into silence, I released a sigh and focused my attention on the road ahead.

........................................

~Jason~

I was fourteen when I stepped out of my old man's house and never looked back. I was a scared kid acting tough in a world that felt way too fucking big for me. I was angry too. Angry enough to beat the shit outta anybody who felt like they had the right to mess with me, because the day I parted ways with my good for nothin' dad, was the day I promised myself that aint nobody was ever gonna make me feel helpless again.

I should 'a put more thought into it though, because I'd left with the clothes on my back and two hundred bucks that I stole from his sock drawer. That first week, I nearly froze to death in some random alleyway next to one of those big blue dumpsters that they had all over town.

I learned my lesson real quick after that. I learned to get outta my own head, and pay attention to what the other street folks were doing. So it wasn't long before I knew how to keep warm, where to go to find food, how to make easy money, and more importantly, to not go around making friends. Friends could turn to enemies real quick, and just like with everything else, I learned that shit the hard way.

I was fifteen when I hotwired my first car, and six months later, I was on my first and last police chase through the city streets. I could easily remember how it felt being behind that wheel with the police sirens making a racket not too far behind me. I could remember how it felt watching my buddy Cam, clutch his seatbelt in the passenger seat beside me; scared shitless...as usual. I could easily remember every single thought that rushed through my head at the time.

I was one hundred percent sure I was gonna get caught and thrown in prison to rot. At the same time, I was one hundred percent sure that I wasn't gonna let Cam go down with me. A kid like that wasn't meant for no prison.

That was the day we almost died; the day I drove us off the road and the car wrapped itself around a light post like a fuckin' churro. And even though we got away from the law, that shit scared me 'straight.'  It was when we were hopping away through some nearby alleyway, bruised and sore on every part of our bodies, that I decided I was gonna stick to smaller cons. I didn't escape my old man just to end up dead on the side of the road, or behind bars watching him smirk at me with that 'I told you so' expression that he always wore.

But I'd already gone and gotten me a reputation, and suddenly the whole shittin' town was knocking on my 'door' trying to get me to be their lackey.

That was the second time I escaped. First from my dad, and second from the street hooligans who wouldn't take no for an answer. I packed up what little possessions I had and bolted, but this time I wasn't alone. Cam and his best friend Monte came too, because I was the fool who'd put them in danger in the first place.

They were my first friends; the first people who I called family after I came to live on the streets. We took care of each other out there. We were functional and happy. Or at least I thought we were, until Cam and Monte disappeared in the dead of night, without so much as a word to me. That's when I came to my senses.

The streets weren't my fuckin' playground; it was serious business. So I said a big 'fuck you' to the universe and to my so-called street family, and went on my way... solo. Solo was better anyway; you couldn't trust people. All they did was fuck up your life or abandon you like the little street rat that you were.

I celebrated my sixteenth birthday in an abandoned car in the middle of nowhere. It was a little rust-bucket with no paint, no windows and no doors, but I'd been sleeping there for about three days, and it was comfortable enough even without the seats. All I had to do was spread my jacket out on the rusted metal floor and I was good.

At the time, sixteen had felt like a good age to me. It felt like some momentous occasion where I had suddenly turned into a man. Shit like that had to be celebrated. So I swiped a pack of birthday candles from a convenience store close by, and bought me a full-house hotdog from David, the street vendor, who sold it to me for dirt cheap.

That night, I stuck a single birthday candle right into the center of the hotdog, lit it with my lighter and made a wish like a kid. The irony.

I remember closing my eyes real tight and and whispering those all too important words out into the universe: 'Just let one thing go right for me. Just one thing.'

And as crazy as it sounds, it worked. My birthday miracle came a few months later in the form or a shitload of beautiful responsibility, that suddenly made everything worth it.

By the time Timmy came along, I was already a master of the streets. Nobody could tell me nothin' that I didn't already know, and even though it was tough, my kid always had food to eat and a place to call home.

Home.

Home was simple. It was wherever you planned to sleep that night. Didn't matter if it wasn't yours, didn't matter if you had to share, didn't matter if it didn't come with a bed. If you had plans to sleep there then that was your home.

I never could understand why old folks felt like they had to go around giving some bullshit deeper meaning to simple, straightforward things, and the truth was, I didn't care anyway. They could see the world however which way they wanted to, and I would see it my way.

But then I went and did something that the streets didn't prepare me for. I fell in love. Yup, like a fool, I went and got my heart snatched up by some guy I didn't even deserve. A guy who loved me even though I didn't have a single thing to offer him. A guy who went out of his way to make my life easier, who wasn't afraid to introduce me to his parents, and who told me he loved me like it was the easiest thing in the world. A guy who smiled at me even when I was mad at him, who loved my kid like he was his own, and who put his own life in danger just to save mine.

I looked over at that guy now. I felt like he didn't really understand how much I cared about him. He didn't get how scared I was thinking about him getting hurt, or how worried I was that those assholes would find a way to get to him. He didn't understand that the meaning of 'home' had changed in my heart, and I wasn't ready for it all to go away.

When I sighed, Michael glanced over at me for a second, before he turned his eyes back to the road. I loved him enough to worry about him, and that was still new for me because in my whole life there were only two people who'd ever really meant anything me; Cam and Timmy. I'd already lost Cam, and I wasn't interested in losing anybody else.

He reached over and patted my head. "You're thinking too much." He said, messing up my hair.

I looked at his hands that were both back on the steering wheel; capable hands that knew how to kill, defend and protect. Of course I knew I was wrong. Michael wasn't a coward, and his friends really did risk their lives to protect me, so it was only fair that he helped them, but....

I shook my head to get rid of all those stressful thoughts. I'd already lost this argument anyway.

"When you go tomorrow don't make them mad." I said. "Just ask questions and then come home."

When I looked at Michael, he was grinning. "Okay mom." He said, and I frowned.

"I'm serious."

"I know you are. I'll be in and out of there without a fuss. Then we can leave for a while."

"Your mom doesn't want you to go. She didn't look too happy with me at dinner." I commented, and again Michael smiled.

"She doesn't want Timmy to go. I don't exist in her world anymore." He chuckled.

I nodded slowly, wondering what she thought about me disrupting her kid's life again and again and again. Truth was, I liked Michael's mom. She was everything I'd wanted my own mom to be, so taking Michael away from her tied my stomach up in knots.

I felt guilty, but I was selfish too, and the selfishness was gonna win this round. I wanted Michael and Timmy away from this place even if it meant affecting other people.

"Get out of your head Jace. You worry too much." He continued. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Kyle says coming over tomorrow...if you're okay with it."

"Yeah, he told me. He's been really worried about you."

I nodded. "He says he's gonna dye my hair back to normal for me." I muttered.

"Daddy, I want fwies." Timmy mumbled from the back.

I glanced back at him. He was asleep; eyes closed, mouth open and all, but even in his dreams my kid could only think about food. I grinned, and when I looked at Michael he was smiling too.

"I think I fell in love with him all over again when I got back." I confessed. "He's actually perfect."

"He really is."

"Thanks for keeping him safe for me."

"Thanks for coming back." He responded.

I shook my head. "That was all you. I would 'a never got out on my own. That place was like a fuckin' space station. How long before you would 'a given up?" I asked quietly, because I genuinely wanted to know the answer.

Michael frowned. "I wouldn't have."

"What if I was there for months?"

"Even if it had been years I still would have kept looking."

I watched his face for a long time. I watched the way his jaw was set, the way his eyes were pinched at the side as he glared at the road in front of us, and how tightly his fingers were wrapped around the wheel.

"You swear?"

He glanced at me. "Easily." Michael said, and I smiled because I believed him.

Either the universe was sick and tired of throwing me curve balls or this was my reward for putting up with it all this time. Either way, knowing that he was all mine was slowly starting to make everything in the past worth it.

"Poppy." Timmy mumbled again in his sleep.

"Did you always want kids?" I asked because the thought suddenly popped into my head.

"It wasn't really something I gave much thought to in the past to be honest." He explained. "I guess I always knew that one day I would have my own but I never consciously sat down and thought about having them."

"Oh."

"What about you?"

"Never had no reason to think about it 'til I found out Timmy's mom was pregnant."

"And what about the future. Would you ever want another one?"

"I don't know. I don't think I wanna be spreading my love to too much people. I gotta save as much of it as possible for Timmy...and you." I said, then ducked my head when my ears started to get hot.

Michael chuckled. "There's no limit on love. Even if you share it with someone else, the love you have for me and Timmy won't weaken."

"How do you know?"

"I just do."

"That aint a real answer."

Michael smiled. "One day you'll see for yourself."

"Always thinkin' you're wise huh?" I teased with a grin.

He shrugged but he was smiling too when he said; "I won't deny it."

This was the smile I'd missed the most when I was in that warehouse. The one where his eyes got all crinkly and you could tell he was smiling with his whole face. I loved that smile.

"What about you? Now that you know what it's like to take care of Timmy, do you want a whole buncha kids runnin' around?"

"A little girl wouldn't hurt."

I rolled my eyes. "You say it like they grow on trees."

"I think Timmy would make a good big brother, don't you?"

I turned to look at the little monster sleeping in the car seat and shook my head. "I think he'd hate it. Timmy likes to get all the attention. He's selfish like that." I said.

Michael chuckled. "I think you're right."

"And anyway, I gotta sort out my life. I aint got no time to be thinkin' about more kids. That shit takes planning and money and responsibility. I don't got a lot of that to spare right now."

Michael nodded slowly but his eyes got all distant, like he was thinking real hard about something. Then just when I thought the conversation was over, he started it right back up again.

"What about marriage?"

"What about marriage? I repeated.

"What do you think about it?"

"It's whatever. Don't see the point of getting all dressed up just to walk down some frilly aisle and kiss in front of a bunch 'a strangers."

"That's the ceremony. I'm talking about a marriage; long term commitment."

"Since when does long term commitment equal marriage?"

"It doesn't." he said after a long pause. "So, you don't want to get married then?"

"I never said that." I told him.

"So you do want to get married." He said the words all reverent like.

"Are you proposing?"

I aint never seen nobody's head turn so fast the second the words came outta my mouth. I was pretty sure he'd sprained something in that neck of his. He looked at me for all of one second before he turned back to what he should really be focusing on; the road.

I watched as he opened and closed his mouth a few times like he was malfunctioning, and I laughed.

"Relax, I'm just messin' with you. I don't got no thoughts about marriage, and even if I did, I gotta get my life together first anyway. A man can't be gettin' married without a penny to his name and nothing to contribute."

"So if I was proposing just now, you would have turned me down?" he was smiling when he asked it.

"No. if that's what you want then I'll do it."

"But it's not what you want?"

I chewed on my bottom lip as I stared out into the traffic. "When I was in the warehouse, I thought about a lot 'a things I wanted to do different when I got out, but my goals are the same. I got the same priorities. There's things I wanna achieve for myself first, before I go making certain big decisions."

Michael nodded. "I can understand that."

"But one day it would be nice to wear a ring and tell people you're my husband and be stuck together legally. One day, but but right now."

He nodded again but he didn't look upset, he looked like he accepted it, and like he understood. That was another thing about Michael that I was still trying to get used to; how much he listened to me and tried to understand where I was coming from.  Suddenly, I felt like an asshole for fighting him about the investigation. Maybe it was time for me to be a little understanding too...even if him being there scared the shit outta me.

But still, I couldn't help the way my stomach twisted up in knots just thinking about what could happen if Michael pissed them off. They had people everywhere. They weren't just some average lowlife thugs; they were serious business.

"Be careful tomorrow, okay?"

Michael looked at me. "Stop worrying so much. I'll be fine. When I get home tomorrow I'll take you and Timmy out for dinner. How does that sound?"

"Micha Timmy no want dinnow"

I laughed when I heard his little voice, and turned to see him awake and rubbing his eyes.

"Okay buddy. Tomorrow I'll get you ice-cream alright?" Michael told him, glancing at my son in the rearview.

Timmy nodded, then reached across the seat to pick up Bunny. I turned back around in my seat when I felt Michael's hand slip into mine. I looked down at our joined hands then up at his face. He looked straight ahead, focused on the road and never said a word.

This time when I turned away from him to look out my window, I was smiling.

.........................................

Timmy and John didn't get along. Timmy looked at him like he was just this big thing that was in his way, and John looked at Timmy like he was the ugliest bug he'd ever seen. It was weird watching a grown man and a little kid have a 'stink eye' contest in Michael's kitchen, but that was exactly what was happening

Kyle stood behind me, dying what was left of my hair back to black, and I sat watching them. It wasn't that they hated each other or nothin' they just didn't look like they knew what to do with each other. John was too big and Timmy was too small, and it made both of them uncomfortable.

"Johnny stop looking at him like that." Kyle said, and John frowned.

"Like what?"

"Like he's not human."

"He just keeps looking at me. Is that normal?" John asked in a half whisper. He looked confused. "Doesn't he have toys he can play with or something?"

"I think he's just tryin' to figure out if he should like you or not." I told him.

"Don't like me. Trust me, it won't end well." John told Timmy, and my kid frowned and his eyes narrowed into little slits.

"Daddy Johnny no let Timmy haf gwapes." Timmy complained, pointing to the bowl of grapes that was sitting on the counter in front of John.

John plucked a single grape from the bowl.

"Here" he said, and threw it gently in Timmy's direction, but Timmy being Timmy, reacted too late, and the grape bounced off his forehead and disappeared somewhere in the room. That's when the glaring really started, and behind me, Kyle sighed.

"You're the grownup, you should be setting an example." Kyle scolded him.

"Is it my fault the kid has poor reflexes?"

"He's a baby." Kyle continued, and John looked at his lover like he'd grown an extra head.

"Which baby do you know with a full set of teeth?" he said. "He's the devil is what he is."

"Because he has teeth?" Kyle questioned in confusion, and I laughed.

"You can see it in his eyes."

"Daddy I no haf in my eyes." Timmy made sure to let me know, then stuck out his tongue at John.

"You know, little people should be respectful to people who are a lot bigger than them. Do you know why?" he asked, and when Timmy shook his head, John stood. I watched as Timmy's eyes went wide, and he titled his head all the way back so he could look up into John's face.

He shrunk behind the stool like a cute little coward when John took a step towards him. The closer he came, the wider his eyes got, but then John passed by him without a word and disappeared from the room. A moment later, we heard the sound of the TV in the living room.

Timmy stood, stuck his two favorite fingers into his mouth and followed.

"Sit here and hold your head back." Kyle said. A second later, I closed my eyes and let him rinse the dye out of my hair and eyebrows. He was gentle, so it was like I was getting a head massage. I wondered if this was what it felt like to get your hair done at one of those fancy hair salons people were always throwing their money at.

"I can't believe those jerks chopped off all your gorgeous curly hair. What did Michael say about it?"

"Nothing." I said miserably.

"Hmm. Well it's not like you lost an arm I guess. Good thing it'll grow back, and then Michael can get back to fan-girling over it." He grinned.

"Sit up."

Kyle dropped the towel over my head and rubbed it through my hair a couple times to dry it; which definitely wouldn't take long.

"Alright, now let me see you." He dropped the towel on the counter and stood back to look at me. "You look nothing like the Jason I know, but at least you've got your black back."

"You know what would really look cool?"

"What?"

"If you did it in rainbow colors for pride."

"When's pride?"

Kyle's eyes narrowed. "June. You say that like you're actually considering it."

"I aint." I grinned, and he rolled his eyes.

"Suit yourself. I'm gonna try to convince Riley to do it with me, but he's a lot like you; he likes his comfort zone. How do you get anything done with the sling on?" he pointed to my arm. One thing was for sure, Kyle really was talented at changing the subject.

"What do I gotta get done?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, shower and—oh never mind, you've got a big, strong, capable man to help you with all that." He was grinning at me now and wiggling his eyebrows like there was something on them that he needed to shake off.

"i got shot too once." He said, then frowned like he just swallowed something sour. "But my dad was the one to take care of me so it wasn't particularly memorable."

"You got a problem with your old man?"

"No, he's a chill guy. He's got poor taste in women but he's pretty chill and likable, I guess."

I nodded. I was really starting to wonder if I was the only one in the world with shitty parents. Obviously I was standing in the wrong line when they were giving out the good ones.

Kyle messed with my hair a little bit more, then started poking at my cheeks.

"Okay, now we have to do something about your face."

"What's wrong with my face?"

"You look like you haven't slept in months. Look how dark under your eyes are. And frankly, no one your age should be carrying around eye bags this big. It's a disaster."

"Oh." I said, touching the skin beneath my eyes with my fingertips.

"When was the last time you exfoliated?" Kyle shook his head.

"Uh...never."

Kyle shook his head like he was disappointed in me.

"You're too pretty to let your skin go to waste like this." He announced, then pulled his phone out of his bag and started tapping on the screen. Then he stood there staring at it for a good two minutes before he started going through Michael's cupboards.

"I usually rely on Riley to make my skincare products for me, but since he's gone, I have to do it myself. Luckily, he started a blog and I can get all his skincare recipes there." He explained, while he searched through the cupboards and started pulling out ingredients. "College kids these days have so much time on their hands, I swear."

"So he sells skin stuff?"

"No, he just makes them for himself, and if they work for his skin he posts his recipes online. There's a reason he has flawless skin you know. Don't go thinking he was born looking that fabulous."

"Oh."

"He posted this Cocoa Butter Oatmeal Mask last week that I've been dying to try. Apparently it's a mask, a scrub and a moisturizer all in one, so that should help your little skin problem, but nothing on earth can help those eye bags. You really need to sleep more."

"Yeah, I know. I've been trying."

Kyle nodded but paused to look at me for a second.

"What you went through was pretty traumatic. Do you get nightmares?"

I nodded. "Every time I dose off."

Again he nodded. "You should really try seeing a therapist. Beauty sleep is important."

"I guess."

"It's important for your mental health too, just so you know." He commented, looking serious for the first time ever. For a second he even looked a little bit worried about me. Then just like that, he went back to searching for ingredients and humming some song I didn't know.

"Okay so first we gotta melt the cocoa butter and then mix it with the cane sugar until it gets fluffy." Kyle read the recipe from his phone. "How does sugar even get fluffy? Riley really needs to learn how to explain himself better." He mumbled to himself.

"Like when you're baking a cake. If you mix the butter and sugar long enough it starts looking soft and fluffy." I told him.

He raised a brow. "You know how to bake?"

"No, Timmy's gran—. I mean, Michael's mom bakes all the time, so I kinda have an idea of how it works."

"Ah, Timmy's grandma." He said, wiggling his eyebrows at me and grinning wide. I turned away when I felt my face go hot.

"No need to get all shy. I ship you guys. I'm the captain of your station. Not that you can really ship two people who are already together..."

I took the bowl from him and shook my head. Half the time he sounded like he was joking around, but I was starting to think that he really took everything he said seriously. Like how he was standing there looking like he was seriously trying to figure out the requirements for shipping two people.

"I swear you and Michael have the cutest love story. FBI agent arrests street kid (no offence) who tries to pick his pocket late one night. Finds out said street kid has an actual kid and takes father and son out from the cold." He said all dramatic-like. "It's like a romance novel."

"What's you and John's story?"

"He was mean and grouchy, but I wouldn't take no for an answer. The end." He grinned.

"Daddy, Timmy haf cookies too!" I looked down to see Timmy tugging on my pants.

"It's not cookies. It's something for your skin." I told him.

"It really does smell like cookies, doesn't it? Kyle said. "Riley really knows how to make a guy fall right off his carefully crafted diet plan."

"How come you're on a diet?" He didn't look like he needed it. He was small and healthy-looking already.

"I'm going on a cruise in a couple of months. I gotta work on my summer body from now. If you guys come back from your little break in time you should come along. I'm sending out the invites next week so talk to Michael and decide if you want to." He said.

"Okay. We'll see."

"Come here fat cheeks." Kyle bent down to pick up Timmy. "Unfortunately, this is an adult-only cruise where we'll be doing adult-only things, and having adult-only conversations, and making adult-only messes. Do you know what that means?"

Timmy shook his head.

"It means that a few months from now, you'll be eating lots of cookies and cakes at grandma's house while Daddy and Daddy enjoy some cozy alone-time with their adult friends." He grinned.

"I want cookies." Timmy licked his lips and Kyle laughed.

"Man, I think I really want one of these one day." He continued. "Can you imagine having a mini-you walking around with? A kid with my DNA would dominate the playground." He finished with a smile and a sigh, then set Timmy down again.

"Let me mix it, you're making a mess with the sling on." He took the bowl and spoon from me.

"Daddy Timmy haf go bafroom."

"Go ask Johnny to go with you." Kyle said chuckling.

"No."

"If you do, I'll give you cookies."

Timmy shook his head. "No."

"And ice-cream."

That worked. Timmy disappeared so fast, I had to roll my eyes. Kids like him were the ones that stressed out their parents. The ones who any stranger could bribe with food.

I didn't hear any talking from the other room, but I heard it when the bathroom door down the hall squeaked open and then slammed shut.

"Okay, where's the oa—?"

"Johnny you haf hold Timmy!" I heard my kid shout and a second later, I heard a splash and Timmy screaming like you wouldn't believe.

Me and Kyle were skating across the kitchen floor like it was on fire, and when we busted through the bathroom door, it was to see John pulling Timmy out of the toilet. He had his head, arms and feet sticking up in the air while he screamed bloody murder. He'd gone and fallen in butt-first.

Just like that, he'd faced his worst fear. This is what happened when you didn't install the kid-friendly toilet seat on all the toilets in the house.

"I didn't realize I had to hold him while he went." John said, looking only a little bit guilty as he held him towards me.

Timmy cried as I bathed him, cried as I put him in clean clothes, and cried as I carried him back into the kitchen and gave him a tiny bowl of grapes. Mostly he cried for Michael and Poppy, and when I told him they were busy at work, he cried some more.

If there was ever a chance that Timmy and Johnny could be friends, that idea went out the door the second Timmy's butt touched the toilet water. Nothing I did could calm him down, so finally, I dialed Poppy's number, gave him my phone and left them to have a nice, long tearful chat.

..................................

~Michael~

"Alright calm down. It's not the end of the world kid." My dad was saying to someone on the phone.

I sat with Eddie in the chief's office, where we had been for the last two hours discussing the intricacies of the investigation.

So far, I'd learned that the ones who willingly confessed were the ones without much information. They got their orders, carried them out and received a decent income for their efforts. Otherwise they were kept in the dark. The ones who broke under interrogation could only give one name and that was Stanley.

Stanley, the old man who'd used Jason's body as a shield when we'd raided the warehouse. The same guy I'd shot in twice without a moment's pause. I could only hope he was having a painful recovery. I'd gathered some information about him from Jason's recounting of the events that took place while he'd been held captive there, but that wasn't much to go on.

His workers didn't seem to know much about him either, other than that he was the guy with the money and the orders. From what I'd gathered, he visited the warehouse two, sometimes three times a week. He didn't say more that what was necessary to get the job done, and apparently he was a guy you didn't cross.

From what Eddie, Simon and the Chief had gathered, he was responsible for a lot of the dead bodies that had been popping up across down in recent years. All those unsolved murders that had sent the Bureau's stellar record into the waste bin.

This was the man to talk to, and according to Eddie, he'd announced that he would only talk to me. The fact that he could ask for me by name certainly did nothing to ease my misgivings about this entire case. And to think, this was exactly what Jason had been trying to avoid.

"I understand that son, but your bottom is still there, right? All your body parts are intact?" the Chief's strange conversation continued. "Exactly, so stop your crying and take a deep breath. Can you do that for me?"

Eddie and I exchanged a look. This conversation was getting stranger by the minute.

"That's it. Trust me, this happens to kids your age all the time. One minute they think they've got good balance and the next, they're in a place they don't want to be in. You just have to accept it for what it is and move on."

"Whose he talking to?" Eddie whispered and I shrugged, even though I certainly had my suspicions.

"Exactly, so go on and dry those tears. Ask your dad to make you a nice refreshing glass of lemonade and I'll make sure to come visit you later tonight. Alright?" he continued. "Yes, I promise. Okay I will. Stop crying. Alright, I'll see you tonight. Yes, I'll bring ice-cream. Okay son bye. Love you too. Okay, hang up now. Good boy."

"What's wrong?" I asked when my dad set down the phone.

He looked at me with a grave expression. "Apparently Timmy fell into the toilet. He blames John."

When Eddie started laughing we could only look at him. Of course only a person who didn't have kids would find humor in this. For us parents, this was a major setback...especially if you had a kid who was as stubborn as Timmy.

Getting him to use the toilet from now on was going to be like pulling teeth, which meant more pants wetting at all hours of the day and night. I groaned, and beside me Eddie continued to enjoy it.

"Don't you have somewhere to be Agent Reynolds?" The chief asked with narrowed eyes. As expected, he was not amused. Everyone knew he had a soft spot for Timmy, but when that kid cried, it affected him a lot more than it should. Where was this soft spot when I was a kid?

I chuckled, but when the Chief's eyes zeroed in on mine, I cleared my throat and stood.

"Where's this Stanley asshole? Are they still monitoring him at the hospital?" I immediately got down to business.

"Luckily, you only gave him flesh wounds. He was discharged a few hours ago. We've got him in lockup. I'll ring Simon and have him escort him to the interrogation room."

We waited for him to make the call, then stood and crossed the room. "Let's get this over with then." I said to Eddie, who was wiping the corners of his eyes with the tail-end of his shirt

"Coming Chief?" I asked when we reached the door, but he waved me away.

"I'll join you in a minute."

"I can't wait 'till Timmy grows up. I'm never gonna let him live this one down." Eddie chuckled  as we made our way to the observation room.

"You don't want him as your enemy. That kid's going to be a force when he's older." I warned.

Eddie rubbed his hands together in glee. "I can't wait." He said, and I laughed.

When we stepped inside the room, Simon glanced up briefly before turning back to his laptop without so much as a word. Earlier that day, the chief had officially denied his request to have Dave become a criminal consultant, and he'd been in a shitty mood ever since.

"Stop sulking Sy. There'll be plenty of other delinquents to pass through these doors. I'm sure one day you can take at least one of them under your wing." Eddie tried to console him, but when Simon looked at him, those eyes could cut steal.

Eddie gave a low whistle and backed away to the far corner of the room, where he took a seat and pulled open his file. I chose to stand as I observed the mastermind on the other side of the glass.

He appeared to be calm as he sat there with his eyes closed. His bald head practically shone under the florescent lights above him, and the glare from said lights highlighted the numerous wrinkles on his face.

We had absolutely no information on the guy. He'd gone and filed off all his finger prints like this was some goddamn movie, and the partial print we did manage to get wasn't in our system; wasn't in any system. Neither was his DNA, which was strange in this day and age.

Clearly this was a man who had been living under a rock. There was no trace of him ever having passed through any airport security in the United States either. So far, he was like a ghost, but somewhere, there had to be information on the guy just waiting to me snapped up by us. We would find it.

But for now, what we could do was observe, interrogate and determine just what we were up against here.  Stanley. Something told me that was nowhere close to his real name. He looked very pale and shriveled sitting there with his hands cuffed to the table, but when he opened those eyes, and they connected with mine through the glass, there was no fragility there. I saw cunning, determination and surprisingly...resignation?

That was certainly a strange contrast to the other emotions flashing through those pale irises. Beside me, Eddie waved his hands, even though we both knew Stanley couldn't see anything but his own reflection in the glass.

"Creepy." Eddie commented. "It's like he's looking into your soul."

Stanley didn't fidget; not even in the slightest; except for the brief moment he had bowed his head to the table so he could scratch his nose. He looked like a guy who was patiently waiting for his name to be called at the DMV.

Except, nobody waited patiently at the DMV. There was something off about him, that was for sure. So much for hoping this guy would be easy.

"Has he said anything since his arrest?"

"Only that he wants to talk to you." Simon supplied without looking up.

"Has anyone tried to crack him yet?"

"Me, Sy, Jimmy and the Chief, since we're the only ones on this case. No luck. Nothing fazes him."

Eddie took a swig of his bottled water then set it back down on the desk before him. I watched as the water droplets that were stuck to the inside of the bottle began to slowly descend. A thought occurred to me.

"He told Jason he'd recently quit smoking."

"Yeah, and?" Eddie questioned.

"Every time he visited Jace, he had a bag of nuts with him to soothe his cravings."

"I don't see where you're going with this." Eddie continued with raised brows.

I reached across and shoved my hand into his pants pocket, then pulled out the small bag of nuts Eddie always carried around with him.

"Hey, I'm saving that!" He exclaimed, but I held it out of his reach.

"We're not gonna break this guy easily. If I can get him to lose even the tiniest bit of focus, then it might make our lives a whole lot easier."

"And shoving my nuts into his face is going to do the job?" Eddie questioned in annoyance.

Simon cleared his throat but otherwise remained silent.

"It's worth a try."

"Why am I always the one making sacrifices?" Eddie was busy mumbling to himself as I crossed the room. When I was out the door and pulling it shut after me, I saw him pull his chair closer to Simon.

Stanley looked up the moment I entered the room, and when our eyes met, what I saw in them surprised me; relief. Just what could this man possibly be relieved about at a time like this?

"Agent O'Connolly. I'm so glad you're here." He said with a genuine smile.

"I can't say I share the same sentiments Stanley. Or would you rather tell me your real name so we can get all the bullshit out of the way?"

"I think Stanley will do for now." He continued with his small smile.

I pulled out the chair across from his and sat. "I heard you would only talk to me. Why is that?"

"It's simple really. I don't know the other agents."

I raised a brow. "And you know me?"

"I spent two weeks observing you while I had your lover in my care. I think I know enough." When I only looked at him, he continued. "For instance, I know you care a great deal about your lover's son. Little Timmy I believe he's called."

I felt a coldness settle inside me at his words, and I was looking him dead in the eyes when I gave him my warning.

"It's in your best interest to take that name out of your vocabulary."

Stanley nodded. "That's fair. After all, family is your top priority It's for this reason that I know that when I ask you to protect my family, I can trust you to do it."

And this was the point where my confusion reached higher heights.

"Why do I need to protect your family?"

"Because the moment you arrested me, they were in danger."

Yet another one-liner, as if this was some fucking drama club and he was aiming for the lead role.

"Stop talking in riddles Stanley, and spit it out. You wanted to talk, now I'm here, so talk. Otherwise I can walk right back out that door and leave you to the agents you don't know."

For the first time since I stepped into the room, the smile fell from his lips. I watched as his relaxed pose became rigid and he leaned forward in his seat.

"You don't get second chances in this organization. You make one slip up and you and everyone close to you is affected. Do you understand what I'm saying Agent O'Connolly?"

"Tell me about your organization."

"If you can guarantee the protection of my family then I'll gladly tell you everything you want to know."

"And why should I trust you to do that?"

"Because the second you arrested me I became a dead man walking. Even if I make it as far as the courthouse, once I get inside those prison walls I'm a dead man. It's only a matter of time. So get my family to safety before they get to them, and I'll tell you everything."

"I know you have dirty agents in the Bureau. Who are they?" I questioned.

"It's because I know you're not one of them that I'm even talking to you." He confirmed.

"I'll send our most trusted guys to watch over your family Start talking."

Stanley shook his head. "Not just to watch over. I need to get them into witness protection. That's the deal I'm willing to sign before I confess. I want them as far away from here as possible."

"That's not something I can just pull out of my ass." I told him. "What I can guarantee right now, is that I'll send my guys over to collect your family and keep them somewhere safe until we can secure the necessary approvals."

"I—"

He trailed off when I held up a hand. "In the meantime, you need to tell us everything you know."

Stanley once again shook his head. "I can't agree to those terms."

"You said you trust me to protect your family. Was that a lie?"

"It isn't."

"Then trust that I'll keep my word on that, and start talking."

"I need better terms than a fucking promise." He hissed.

"Then I guess your family can't really be in that much danger if you're willing to sit here and negotiate with their lives." I said. He'd willingly showed me his achilles heel and now I had him right where I wanted him.

"My grandson isn't much older than your Timmy." He said, and the sound of my boy's name on his lips grated on my nerves. "Just think about that incase you have any thoughts about not following through with this deal." Stanley finished.

I nodded. "Give me their names, numbers and all the places I can find them."

While Stanley rattled off the information, I observed his demeanor. Was this really a guy who was concerned for his family's safety or was he sending my team into a trap?

When he was done, I listened for the tap on the glass that would signal to me that Simon and Eddie had jotted down the information.

When it came, I said "Proceed with caution." And another tap sounded.

"You know, if you tell us who the dirty agents are, we'll be able to ensure that those aren't the agents we send to meet your family."

"I don't know who they are. I just know that you're not one of them." He said, and I frowned.

"I thought we were done with the bullshit."

"I'm serious. That information is above my pay grade."

I couldn't sense any lies as I watched him, but I could be wrong. I found myself wondering who the Chief would select to collect his family. I wondered if he would choose to go outside of the Bureau again with this one. At the moment, it seemed like our best option.

Stanley sighed. "Where do you want me to start?"

"What is this organization you keep going on about?"

"It's something bigger that you could ever imagine, but I only run a very small part of it."

"Go on."

It took a moment for him to say the words, but he took a deep breath and began. "I'm sure you've already suspected this. We run a drug trafficking operation. At least my small unit does. We use teenagers and young adults as our delivery system because it's easier; less risky.

"How is that less risky? Kids don't exactly know how to keep their mouths shut. It's also difficult for them to fly under the radar."

"Which is why we use the troubled kids. The ones who live on the streets; no ties, no home, no one to complain to. At least no one who'll listen." He said, and I felt I stomach turn at the thought of all those innocent kids getting tangled up in his mess. "Besides, we don't want them to keep their mouths shut."

"And why is that?"

"Because they 're not only our drug mules. We use them to sell drugs and recruit other kids like themselves into the organization."

I nodded. "I still don't see how anyone running a business like that could be comfortable trusting kids with that kind of thing. They're bound to spill the beans at some point. Tell me more."

"You'd be surprised how tight-lipped a kid can be when you instill the fear of God in them, and a little bit of money." He said.  "But you're right, we can only trust them to a point. Which is why each kid goes on a maximum of four to five runs before we take them out of the picture."

"You're saying you kill them." I said just to make it clear, and he conformed with a nod.

"Not personally. I only make the order." He clarified.

"What's the difference?"

The bastard had the audacity to smile. "You have a point there."

"Sy, I need you in here." I said, and a moment later, the door to the interrogation room swung open, and Simon came bustling in with his laptop in tow. When Sy was seated in the chair beside me, I continued.

"Who carries out the actual kills? Give me the names, addresses, description and anything else you can think of on each person. Don't leave anything out." While he spoke, Simon typed and I wondered just what would have happened to Jason if he'd met up with this guy while he was still living on the streets.

"The kids you recruit. Do they come willingly or is there coercion involved?" I asked when he finished.

"It's easier if they're willing." He said. "And if we notice they have serious potential, we consider keeping them around for longer than five runs."

"The other kids must realize that their friends are dropping off the map. What do you tell them when they start questioning all the disappearances?"

"Before they begin, they're all told that there's room for promotion if they do well. That means more money and they get sent out of state on bigger jobs."

"So they think that their friends are simply stepping up in life, when the truth is, you're murdering them as time goes by to save your operation?"

"Yes. Kids are gullible and that tends to work in our favor."

"But not all of them are."

Stanley nodded. "The ones who keep asking questions don't find themselves alive for long enough to stir up suspicion."

"Do you keep physical records of all the kids you've recruited?"

"Yes, but all our transactions are written in code so it's not a simple thing to decipher."

"Naturally. I need to the exact location of where all your records can be found and what we should expect when we send agents out to retrieve it."

As he spoke, Simon's fingers flew over the keyboard.

"In the meantime though, I'm sure you've stored some information in that brain of yours. So I want the names of all the kids you've ever recruited. Where, how and when you recruited them. Where they are now, the types of jobs each kid was given to preform." I rattled off. "And if any of them have been executed, I want the location of where you dumped the bodies, and who was in charge of disposing of those bodies."

And so Stanley spilled the beans. He had a surprisingly good memory, but I was now itching to get my hands on those physical records.

"Is this what you wanted Jason for? To become another drug mule?"

"I never planned for Jason. He just happened to fall right into our laps." He confessed. "Ronnie is a bragger, so we've been hearing and his and Jason's exploits long before I met your lover. When he was personally hand-delivered to us, we couldn't exactly pass up the opportunity to use him."

"That's not what I asked."

"We had bigger plans for Jason. We recently started weapons dealing and we needed more recruits for that side of the business. I was confident that given time, I would be able to convince him to willingly participate."

"Other than the people in the warehouse, who else knows about Jason's existence?"

"No one that I know of."

Good.

"Tell me more about this weapons dealing."

"We sold and distributed guns. There's not much to it."

"To individuals or organizations?"

"Both."

"I want the names and addresses of all your suppliers and how you came to know about them. I also want the names and addresses of everyone you supplied weapons to as well as the information on each weapon sold. Am I right in assuming you have detailed records of this as well?"

"Yes."

"Don't you think it was foolish to keep records like this in your line of business? What if they got into the wrong hands?" I questioned his sanity.

"I had people I needed to answer to. Those records weren't exactly my idea."

"I also want any information you can provide about the persons involved in buying, selling, and distributing these weapons. And of course I need to know where they're stored."

As he rattled off the information, I waited until Simon finished typing before I continued.

"Let's talk about Ronnie for a second." I began. "What exactly is his roll in this organization?"

"I have no idea."

I frowned. "Explain that to me."

"He's not on my payroll. He works for somebody higher up than I am. Someone higher up than even my own boss." He said. "He's just a cocky kid who drops by sometimes, runs his mouth and leaves. The day he stopped by with Jason, he just came to lay low for a while. Then he was gone again."

"Where is he now?"

"No clue. Haven't heard from him since that day."

"And he didn't say anything at all to you when he stopped by?"

"He said we could do whatever we wanted with his friend except kill him, and then he left. I got the feeling he must care about your lover on some level, otherwise he could have just let him bleed out. When he dropped Jason off, he'd already done everything he could to staunch the flow of blood from the wound."

That was certainly interesting news. Use your friend as a human shield and then try to patch him up after he'd been shot? Just what exactly was the deal with this Ronnie kid?

"Where's the vehicle he showed up in?"

"They came on foot. He practically dragged Jason's unconscious body there."

"Did he also leave on foot?"

"He took one of our vehicles."

"Describe the vehicle for Simon as well as the exact time and date Ronnie arrived and left the warehouse." I said, and when he did, I continued. "Did he make any changes to his appearance while there?"

"Not that I could see. Just changed his clothes."

I opened the file I'd brought in with me and spread various photos in front of him.

"Do you recognize any of these faces?"

They were headshots of Ronnie's friends; the ones who had been roaming the streets with him the night he'd gotten Jason drunk and robbed the convenience store.

Stanley looked at each of them carefully before shaking his head.

"No. Who are they?" he asked, but I chose not to reply as I scooped the photos back up and hid them away again in the file.

"Who patched Jason up? I'm guessing you have a doctor on the payroll?"

"Yes. Former military man. He works exclusively for us now...as far as I know anyway."

"Name and address."

I reached up to rub the kink out of my neck. We'd been at it for three hours now and there was still a lot to cover. When Stanley asked for a break to relieve himself, I took one too. On my way back from the rest room, I met up with the Chief in the observation room. Eddie handed me half of his sub sandwich and a fresh bottle of water.

"Having Simon type all this is taking up a lot of time in there. This could have been over a long time ago if you didn't have to keep pausing every few minutes." The chief said, handing me a napkin.

"Better to get it out of the way now." I said. "Otherwise we'll have to sit down with the recordings later to transcribe it all. I want the team to hit the ground running as soon as we're done here."

The Chief nodded. "Do you think he's telling the truth in there?"

"I'm sure he's leaving bits of information out here and there, but I'm hoping that most of what we have is reliable. What's the news on his family? Did you put anyone on it?"

"They're safe, and currently being questioned as well. His name is Steven Hosiah Berkley, and from what I gather, they have no idea the type of business he's involved in. They think he's a retired Principal, who spends most of his free time playing golf and fishing with his buddies."

I shook my head. "Found any priors under that name?"

"None. He's good at covering is tracks. We'll find out more about him soon enough. Just keep doing what your doing."

I took two good bites of the sandwich, gulped down some water and got back to work.

"Hey, give me back my nuts since you don't need it anymore!" I heard Eddie shout as closed the door to the observation room behind me. I ignored him.

They escorted Steven back into the room and he sat with a wince. A bullet to the thigh would do that to you. It was a thought that filled me with a great deal of satisfaction. This monster who murdered innocent kids for no other reason than to save a criminal operation could rot in prison for an eternity for all I cared.

"Alright Steven, let's get back to it." I said, and his eyes met mine when he heard his real name.

"You have my family." He surmised, and I nodded.

"They're safe, so keep up your end of the deal so that we can make all the proper arrangements for them to stay that way."

He nodded, blew out a noisy breath in obvious relief.

"What else do you want to know?"

"The names and positions of every single member on your payroll, as well as the names of everyone you've working with in the past, or had relations with in connection to the business."

He couldn't supply them all as expected, but we knew where to find the records and a trusted team was immediately dispatched to that location to retrieve them.

I asked him about the one thing that had been boggling my mind since the moment Jason told me that he'd recognized two of the kids from the lake shooting case. I asked him if he was involved and he confessed to that too.

"They were apart of the organization, yes."

"Where are they? It's like they fell off the face of the earth."

"In a manner of speaking." he said, and I rubbed my tired eyes.

"So you killed them. What were they doing out on the lake that day?"

"They weren't supposed to be. They had their orders and they deviated from the plan. I could have let that slide, except one of them committed murder as you know, and the police got involved. I had to clean up the mess."

And just like that we had the information necessary to bring an end that that particular case. At this point we could simply merge the two investigations.

"Who's your boss?"

"He goes by the name Carlos. I don't know much else about him and I don't ask questions. I just take my orders, and collect my pay.

"Then are you telling me you don't even know who runs this whole show? You don't know who's on top?"

Steven's hesitation sparked my interest.

"Tell me." I said.

"I don't know for sure and I can't prove this but there have been whispers..." he trailed off, back to his dramatics again.

"Whispers about what?

"That the person we're all working for is Emmanuel."

"Emmanuel what?

"The Emmanuel." He said, and sat back in surprise.

Simon and I shared a meaningful look. Holy fuck, if that was really the case then this really was bigger than I'd thought. No doubt Eddie was shitting bricks in the observation room. He'd been hung up on the elusive crime boss for the past four years.

No matter what we threw his way, nothing could stick, and that rubbed everyone of us the wrong way. If he was really involved in all this, then we'd been lucky enough to take down a tiny fraction of his organization. It was better than nothing.

I pulled my chair closer to the desk and settled in. The questions continued long into the evening.

........................................

By the time I got home I was drained. Steven or Stanley or whatever the fuck his name was, had signed his written confession at exactly 9:00 p.m, and had agreed to have Eddie question him further at a later date in the event that any information he had provided needed to be clarified or expounded upon. Or in the event that he wished to provide further information that hadn't been given in our session.

He'd been the most cooperative person I'd probably ever interrogated, but to be fair, if Emmanuel really was the one he was working for, then he had a reason to want to strike a deal like that to keep his family safe.

We would do all we could to keep him alive until trial, and everything in our power to ensure that he was safeguarded in prison, but when he said he was a dead man walking, I believed him.

I fell into bed the second I hopped out of the shower, and Jason automatically wrapped his arms around me. John and Kyle were spending the night, and Timmy had relegated John to the couch so he could sleep with his good buddy Kyle.

It was the first night since Jason had been back that we'd been alone in bed together, yet, I was too tired to do much more than drape my arms around him and pull him close.

"How'd it go?" he asked quietly. He'd been giving me worried looks ever since I'd stepped through the door an hour earlier, and I knew he must have had it on his mind all day.

"Stanley made a full confession. That's all I can tell you about the investigation." I said, and he sighed.

"Did he say anything about me?"

"Nothing of consequence." I assured him, and as though he had been holding his breath all day, I felt the tension melt out of his body.

I kissed the top of his head. "How was your day?"

"Long." He said. "Timmy fell into the toilet, and was in a shitty mood all day."

"Yeah I heard from my dad. I'm sure he'll tell me all about it in the morning." I said with a chuckle. Luckily Timmy had already been fast asleep when I'd arrived, because there was no way I would have been able to keep up with him tonight.

"We have another long day ahead of us tomorrow. We still have to notify Timmy's school about his absence. You'll have to call your boss and let him know you won't be back to work." I said. "He was pretty worried about you when you were taken. He called almost everyday to see how the investigation was going. I guess you must have made a good impression.

"I guess." He mumbled.

"We also need to pack and spend as much time with everyone before we leave. Nate, Simon, Eddie and my parents are coming over in the evening. I think my dad wants to fire up the grill and have a full-on barbeque." I said with a yawn, but Jason's reply was a quiet grunt.

When I shifted to look at him, I realized that he was already asleep, and I smiled tiredly, before reaching over to turn out the lamp.

"I guess you had an exhausting day too." I whispered into the night, then pulled the blanket over his shoulders and drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

.............................................

Two days later, Jason, Timmy and I were stepping off the longest plane ride of our lives. Short in terms of distance but long because Timmy had made it a point to introduce himself to every passenger on board, and had screamed at the top of his lungs as he ran up and down the narrow aisles inside the plane.

When Jason and I had tried countless times to scold him or get him to sit still, his consequential tearful wails had further disrupted the flight. I'd received more glares from that one flight than I had gotten in my entire life, and it wasn't an experience I wanted to repeat.

Jason and I were exhausted and we'd only just arrived. Timmy jumped up and down on the spot as we waited to collect our luggage at baggage claim. And Jason had had to lay down the law when he'd attempted to run ahead of us in the crowded airport.

"Timmy I swear to god I'm gonna punish you if you don't behave." He warned after pulling Timmy into a corner away from prying eyes. "Do you want somebody to take you away?" he asked his son.

Timmy was quick to shake his head, his bottom lip quivering as he did.

"Then hold my hand and stop running all over like a crazy person!"  Jason hissed in frustration. When Timmy glanced up at me, I looked away.

"Won't save you this time buddy." I whispered under my breath, and it must have worked, because there was no trouble after that. Timmy held Jason's hand and walked alongside us at a sedate pace, as we made our way outside to where Damion, and his identical twin brother, Donny stood waiting.

"I can't believe my eyes." Donny exclaimed as soon as he spotted me. His grin was as wide as ever, and his arms were also spread wide as he came in for a quick, tight hug.

"I could say the same thing. Since when do you sport a beard." I joked, clapping him on the back several times before releasing him.

He stroked his short stubble and laughed. The whole world knew that the twins couldn't grow a full-sized beard even if they wanted to, and that certainly hadn't changed with age.

I glanced around at the other brother Damion, who, unlike Donny, was neat, clean-shaven and impeccably dressed as always.

He greeted me the way he always did; with a firm handshake and a small smile. Ever the quiet, soft-spoken guy, with those piercing scary-as-fuck eyes that we used to tease him about back in school.

How two identical brothers could be so very different was beyond me, but I was happy to see him too and I told him so. These guys had been legends for the short time they'd spent in school before they'd moved away. They'd dominated in every competition and dominated when it came to the girls too...and guys in Damion's case.

Seeing them again brought back happy memories that I hadn't even realized I'd missed. They hadn't aged a day, but their pocket books certainly had. Last I'd heard, they'd taken the business world by storm and had quickly jumped up the charts to become successful multi-millionaires, and had gained all the respect that came with it.

I was damn proud of them, and happy about all they had achieved since I'd last seen them.

"And who is this little curly-haired teddy bear?" Donny crouched down in front of Timmy, who had gone shy at the sight of them, and was hiding behind his father's leg. Up above, Damion greeted Jace with a handshake and a nod, when I introduced them.

While Donny tried to coax Timmy from behind Jason, Damion and I made quick work of the bags, depositing them into the trunk.

"Have you guys eaten? Anna's been cooking up a storm all morning and wants to invite you all over for dinner." Donny said as he stood up, having failed to get so much as a word from Timmy.

"We could eat. Right Jace?" I asked, and he nodded.

"We'll swing by my place first since I have to pick up Cameron, and we can drop off the bags before we go." Damion supplied, and we all piled into what I assumed to be Donny's Jeep since this type of vehicle had never really been Damion's style.

"So how's it going man? Haven't seen you in a hot minute and now you've got a whole family trailing behind you. I think I'm still in a state of shock." Donny teased as he navigated the vehicle out of the airport's pick-up lane.

"I should say the same about Damion. I heard he got himself a boyfriend. And I seem to remember him protesting in the past that it would never happen to him." I laughed. "I guess we've all been bitten this season.

"Micha Timmy no get no bite. See?" Timmy interrupted, from where he sat in the back seat between me and Jason. He held out his arms for me to see.

"Yeah I see that buddy. Good for you."

"Not a boyfriend exactly." Damion said. "Just someone I'm helping."

Donny snorted. "Gimmie a break, those two are joined at the hip. I already hear wedding bells in their not so distant future."

Damion shook his head but made no attempt to correct him, and I grinned. Who would have thought the tough-as-nails Damion, whose very presence could intimidate a grown man, had gone and fallen head over heels for another human being.

This guy who rarely smiled and who I'd always thought was emotionally stunted had truly done the impossible. My grin widened.

"So tell me about this Cameron." I continued to tease.

"They're complete opposites. You'll like him." Donny once again supplied.

"Hey Timmy, maybe uncle Damion can take you to see some fire trucks tomorrow. Would you like that?" Donny volunteered his brother, but Damion didn't seem to mind. If his silence was anything to go by.

Timmy buried his face in Bunny's belly.

"He may not look it, but he's a firefighter you know." Donny continued to coax the little Timmy.

Ah yes, Damion's second job. Can't say I'd been surprised when he'd first broken the news to me years ago. Fighting fires was something he'd always talked about doing when we were kids, and here he was living two dreams.

So much had happened in all our lives and I was looking forward to hashing up the past with them. I looked over at Jason, whose attention was trained outside his window. Maybe getting away would be good for both of us after all.

I winked at Timmy when he looked at me and he giggled.

................................

I couldn't say when I fell asleep but I opened my eyes when I felt the jeep jerk to a stop.  Beside me, Jason was patting Timmy awake, and up front, the brothers were stepping out of the vehicle.

I yawned into the crook of my arm, then pushed the door open and stepped out onto the brick driveway. When Jason came to stand beside me, he tilted his head all the way back to get a full view of Damion's home.

"I guess this is what they call a mansion, huh?" Jason whispered more to himself than to me.

I turned to help with the bags, and Timmy latched onto my arm as we made our way to the front door.

It swung open before Damion could put the key into the lock, and in the doorway stood the prettiest boy I'd ever seen.

Like Jason, he had thick curly hair. He had large blue eyes, framed by long lashes, a tiny nose and dimples like Timmy; only his seemed to go deeper. He was also small, and almost a head shorter than Jason as he stood there clutching a puppy in his small hands.

He offered me a shy smile and gave Timmy a small wave, which Timmy responded to immediately.

"This is Cameron." Damion introduced us. I'd heard from Damion's best friend Paul, that Cameron was twenty, but he certainly looked younger than his age.

Jason, who'd gone back to the car earlier to pick up his phone which he'd left on the seat, came to stand beside me, but froze the moment he set eyes on the small guy standing barefoot in the doorway.

Interestingly enough, the guy stood frozen in spot too when he spotted Jace, and I looked between them in confusion.

"Jason!" he finally exclaimed, those big eyes somehow growing larger in size in his obvious excitement.

"Cam?" Jace said uncertainly, and suddenly something clicked into place in my mind.

AUTHOR'S NOTES

-More chapters to come!

HAPPY PRIDE! HERE'S A WHOPPING 55 PAGES FOR YOU TO ENJOY!

YES, THAT'S DAMION AND CAM FROM MY BOOK DOMINANCE AND SUBMISSION. GO CHECK IT OUT IF YOU HAVEN'T YET.

YES, THE CRUISE KYLE MENTIONED HAPPENS TO BE THE SAME CRUISE IN MY BOOK CELL MATES 2-DEAD MEN TELL NO TALES. CHECK IT OUT IF YOU HAVE'NT YET. WILL RESUME UPDATING THAT BOOK SHORTLY.

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THANKS FOR YOUR PATIENCE. I KNEW I HAD TO MAKE MY COMEBACK DURING PRIDE MONTH AND I'M SO GRATEFUL THAT MY VICIOUS WRITERS' BLOCK HAS BEEN BROKEN.

Thanks for reading guys!

Keep Sweet.

-DoUbLe.A

-unedited.