Chapter One #2
Vale needed to tell him, but not right now. First, he had a few phone calls to make, and he needed to come up with a way to tell Cyril about this without sending him running for the hills, screaming that Vale was a monster.
Vale wasn’t sure there was one.
“I’ll explain later,” he promised. “But I need to call Brutus and Artemis.”
That got Cyril’s attention. He frowned up at Vale, clearly unhappy and worried. “It’s bad, then?”
“It’s not good, but that’s why I need to talk to them.”
“I see.” Cyril looked back down. “Well, I’m going to finish taking care of this. I don’t want John to have to wait longer than he already has.”
“I’m fine,” John tried to convince him.
The way Cyril looked at him made it obvious that he didn’t believe him. Vale was glad that his boyfriend was distracted. He’d need more than a wounded baby professional assassin, though. If Vale was going to survive whatever was coming at him, he’d need his strongest supporters.
He left Cyril and John in the living room and stepped into the bedroom.
Oscar was on the bed, but it was impossible to know if he was sleeping since he didn’t have eyelids—or eyes.
Vale wasn’t even sure that Oscar ever slept.
It looked like he did because he routinely lay on soft surfaces and spent a lot of time without moving, but Oscar wasn’t exactly a traditional pet.
There was no way to know what was going on with him.
Oscar moved when he heard Vale. Vale waited, not surprised when Oscar slid off the bed. He’d been particularly attached to Cyril since Cyril had gotten hurt, and it hadn’t gone back to normal yet, even though Cyril was healed and as good as new.
Vale went to stand by the window after closing the door behind Oscar. He only wanted to have to explain himself once, so he called Russell and Rachel at the same time and put them on speaker.
“What happened?” Rachel asked when she answered a few rings after Russell.
Russell snickered. “You’re in trouble,” he told Vale. “She doesn’t sound happy.”
“That’s because I have enough work to do without you two adding to it,” she complained. “So? Has something happened?”
“The Organization is here,” Vale told both of them.
There was a moment of silence before Russell broke it. “Shit.”
Vale barked out a laugh. “That’s what I said.”
“How did they find you? Are you okay?”
“They didn’t find me. They found John, and while he’s a bit banged up, he’ll be fine. Cyril’s taking care of him right now.”
“Have you told him?” Rachel asked.
“No. I hoped I would never have to.”
Russell whistled. “Dude, I suck at relationships, but even I know you should’ve told him something this big, preferably before you two began dating. He’s going to be pissed that you didn’t.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.”
No, Vale was worried that Cyril wouldn’t want anything to do with him once he knew.
It was why he hadn’t told him. He hoped this part of his past would never come out.
It was murky, even for a professional assassin.
Cyril might be able to accept that Vale killed bad guys for a living, but what about the not-so-bad guys?
Vale would have to find a way to explain that to him, and he wasn’t sure he’d be able to. He wasn’t even sure where to start.
Hey, honey, an organization I used to work for that doesn’t care about who they kill as long as they get paid is coming after me wouldn’t cut it. Cyril would want more. He’d want details.
Details Vale really didn’t want to give him.
He doubted he’d have a choice. With the truth coming out, he might as well tell Cyril everything.
He was desperate to keep Cyril with him, but not so desperate to trap him with lies.
The Organization had taken any alternative away from Vale, and his only option was to be honest, no matter the outcome.
He closed his eyes and inhaled. Telling Cyril wasn’t the only problem. The Organization was here, and they were coming after Vale. He didn’t know why, but it couldn’t be good.
* * * *
CYRIL DIDN’T LIKE THE fact that Vale was clearly hiding something from him. Normally, he would’ve told him what was going on right away, but not this time. That meant it had to be particularly bad, and Cyril needed to know more.
“What can you tell me about this organization?” he asked John.
“I really think you should talk to Vale about this.”
Cyril glared at him. “Do I have to remind you that I’m the one helping you right now?”
“I’m grateful for that help, but really, I don’t know that much. I just know that I was snatched by people who were looking for Vale and who mentioned this organization. I don’t think they expected me to survive and tell Vale.”
But John had survived, and he was here, warning Vale.
Even though Cyril disliked pretty much everything about this mess, at least they knew something was up.
It gave Cyril a little time to wrap his mind around the fact that they were in trouble again and gave Vale the time to get ready for whatever was coming.
Cyril wasn’t sure he wanted to know.
But he’d find out. He couldn’t hide his head in the sand, even though he wanted to.
If Vale was in danger, Cyril needed to know.
He wasn’t sure there was anything he could do to help, but he’d try.
He wouldn’t let his boyfriend deal with whatever this was on his own.
They were a team, and that mattered to him.
“I have heard of this organization,” John said as he relaxed against the couch.
Now that Cyril was done with his wounds, he looked a little better. He was still pale, but he didn’t look like he was about to faint anymore. That was good because Cyril wasn’t sure how to deal with fainting people. “What have you heard about them?”
John grimaced. “Nothing good.”
“You’re going to have to give me more. Vale’s in danger. I need to know everything.”
“Like I said, I don’t really know that much.
They’re like the bogeyman of the professional assassin forums. From what I know, they take whatever contract pays the most. They don’t care what they have to do to get that money.
They have a legitimate side that works for the government, but the illegitimate side is the scary one. ”
Cyril frowned. “What does that mean?”
“Well, from what I know, Vale and his closest friends only take jobs that don’t involve children or other vulnerable people, just like I don’t.
That’s not the case for the Organization.
If you want something nasty done, and done well, they’re who you hire.
There are rumors that they were the ones who caused that plane crash in Pennsylvania a few years ago. ”
Cyril remembered it. He’d been contacted by the husband of one of the women who’d died on the plane. It had been an incredibly hard job to do, but he’d done it.
There’d been rumors flying around that the crash hadn’t been an accident, but he hadn’t wanted to know. He was pretty sure he still didn’t. Many innocent people had died that day. There had been men, women, and children on board.
But the people who’d apparently been behind the crash were now after his boyfriend. What was he supposed to do with that? There wasn’t much he could do, especially if he didn’t have all the information. If he wanted to be able to help Vale, he’d need to know.
He hated this.
The sound of bone tentacles on the hard floor made Cyril turn. Oscar appeared, making a beeline for Cyril. When Cyril opened his arms, Oscar didn’t hesitate to climb in between them. Neither of them paid too much attention to John, but when Cyril turned to him, he found John staring at him.
“You already know Oscar,” Cyril said with a sigh.
“I do, but it doesn’t make it any less extraordinary.”
“There’s nothing weird about him.”
John barked out a laugh. “Are you serious?”
“Nothing weirder than last time. Stop staring at him. You’re going to make him self-conscious.”
Cyril wasn’t sure Oscar could feel self-conscious. He wasn’t sure how much Oscar could feel, period. After all, Oscar was a bunch of bones that didn’t belong together and were kept that way because of Cyril’s ability as a necromancer.
But Cyril knew that Oscar did feel things.
He felt affection for Cyril, at the very least. Oscar had always liked cuddles, but since Cyril had been hurt and had lost his ability as a necromancer, he’d been clingier, even now that Cyril had his ability back.
Oscar had even started being pushier when he wanted something, usually to climb into Cyril’s lap.
“I’m not sure how I’m supposed not to stare at him, but fine.” John looked away for a few seconds before shaking his head. “No, I’m sorry. I can’t do it. He’s weird, but in a good way, you know? He’s cute.”
Cyril beamed. He’d been lonely when he’d made Oscar, but he’d never regretted it.
He loved his pet, even though Oscar was unconventional to say the least. He didn’t like it when Oscar got hurt or when people were afraid of him.
There was nothing to be afraid of. Oscar might look odd, but he was sweet and harmless.
“You can pet him if you want,” he offered.
John stared at Oscar for a moment. Cyril was convinced he would say no because most people did, but instead, John shrugged.
“You know what? Why not? What’s the worst that can happen?”
“He could bite you,” Cyril offered.
John had been reaching for Oscar’s head, but he stopped moving and glared at Cyril. “Was that really necessary?”
“I mean, he’s never bitten anyone, but it’s a possibility.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t pet him, after all.”
“No, please do. I promise he’ll be nice.”
Cyril glanced in the direction of the bedroom as John finally found the courage to pet Oscar. Vale hadn’t returned yet. That meant that he was still on the phone, which couldn’t be good. If it took him so long to talk about what was going on, it had to mean big trouble was coming.
Cyril wished he and Vale had had the time to go on that vacation they’d been talking about earlier. Instead, it looked like they were going to have to face yet another dangerous situation.
He sighed. Sometimes, he hated his life.