Rowan 28.
“Baby boy?” Steve arches his neck to meet my eyes. We’re on the couch in the clubroom waiting for Jupiter to start this club-wide meeting. I trail my fingers along his jawline, “Just a little longer, then I’ll take you upstairs.” He nods, my concern for him growing by the second. He’s barely spoken since we left the Queen’s Rook. With a weighty sigh, Steve cuddles into my side, resting his head back on my shoulder.
“Thank you all for being here. I know this is a bit unorthodox, however, the situation calls for all hands on deck.” Everyone in the overcrowded clubroom perks up at Jupiter’s greeting. “As some of you may already know, Charles Rodgers has been apprehended and is facing serious jail time for shooting Gretchen, and the shooting at the Queen’s Rook as per our esteemed District Attorney.” Biscuit stands up and bows, then waves regally to all of us. Runs kicks him lightly in his previously injured leg, he scowls at her and then sits back down. “What you may not know,” Jupiter continues, “is there was a second shooter that night.” A few of the ol’ partners and Hospitality Specialists gasp in surprise. “Before the shooting, Chase and Steve received a threat by email—”
“Why would Steve receive a threat?” Sibyl interrupts.
Steve sighs against my side, sits up, spreads his legs and rests his elbows on his thighs. Though his head is down, he speaks clearly, “I am Ulysses Steven Valjean Wainwright.” When no one says anything, he lifts his head in surprise. I bite my bottom lip to keep from laughing and smiling. He’s so precious. “I am the CEO of Wainwright Enterprises.” Crickets. “I own the Queen’s Rook .”
“OH, MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS!” Dru exclaims, jumping up as much as her big belly will allow.
“Finally,” Steve murmurs to himself and I lose my fight against laughing. He glares at me over his shoulder.
“Why are you in training if you own the stage?”
Steve’s head tilts to the side, he studies our fearless first lady, “That’s…that’s what you want to know? I have gobs of money, influence as far as the eye can see, and you want to know why I’m training to be a drag queen?”
In typical Dru fashion, she flaps her hands in the air, dismissing his question. “You’ve got money, who gives a fuck? And violence and intimidation can also influence people.” She raises both fists, flexing her admittedly muscular arms. “But you OWN the club! Why not just proclaim yourself Queen Tucked-Peen Supreme and rule your kingdom with an iron fist?”
“Who forgot to medicate her today?” Addy queries.
Ceres raises her hand, “I flicked it down her throat, she spit it back out with impressive gag control.” She shakes her head in disappointment, “I also tried putting it in an Oreo, but she ate the cookie and left the pill behind.”
“It’s a damn prenatal vitamin! Quit making me sound like I’m a house pet or I’m crazy!” Dru stomps her foot.
“You do it well enough on your own,” Lang says cheerily.
“So, nobody gives a fuck who I am?” Steve can’t let it go. I wrap my arm around his waist and pull him to my side.
“You’re Steve.” Etta shrugs with a wink. “The rest is details.”
The expression on his face, the tears in his eyes, they break my heart. He whispers softly, “They don’t care. They aren’t mad.” I kiss the crinkle of his brow between his eyes.
“Of course they don’t. You’re a Golem.”
Jupiter claps his hands together twice. “This is touching, truly, but can we get back to the point of this meeting, please?” When no one objects, Jupiter says, “Before the gala, Steve and Chase received an email stating his money won’t save them.”
“Them being us?” Heimdall points at himself and then around the room.
“Yes,” Mars, Mercury, and Jupiter answer in unison.
“Today, Steve received a package by courier to the Rook , with a detailed dossier on every employee, as well as, intimate photos of the staff, including ones of Steve and Chase that could only be obtained from inside his office.”
“We believe whoever it is, piggybacked his security feed and created stills from the footage.” Mercury explains. My body tenses remembering Mercury’s text message and the fear on my boy’s face as he shattered in my arms when I arrived. Someone will pay.
Jupiter walks around the room, pointing at Apollo, Etta, and Brooks. “The clinic, the shelter, the club…all received similar packages today.” Steve uses his very pointy elbow in my side to sit up again. “Mercury and Brooks are investigating, as well as the Morgantown Police Department. Private and sensitive information is in the hands of the wrong person and quite a few lives are at stake because of what those files contain. We’ve managed to piss off another person or persons and until we’ve figured out who, no one goes anywhere alone. Illarion has offered to send some of his foot soldiers to help so we aren’t spread too thin. If you notice anything, no matter how inconsequential you believe it to be, pass it along to Mercury, Brooks, myself or Mars.”
Something tugs on my pant leg, and I find Chase at my feet, his eyes clearly telegraphing his fear. I place my head on the top of his hair, grimace at the stiffness from product, then run my hand down his hair repeatedly in a soothing gesture anyway. Steve reaches out and grabs Chase’s hand, the two of them clutching each other as if they’re on the sinking Titanic. They’re regressing from stress, and I know just what to do to help them.
“Stay frosty,” Jupiter orders, then dismisses us.
I lean down until I’m speaking between their bowed heads, “Boys. Upstairs. Now.”