Chapter 27
DENVER
Suddenly, there’s air. I don’t know how, I don’t know why, but I start taking it in in huge, choking lungfuls as my body slumps to the side.
The hands around my neck are gone, and as feeling begins to return to me, I realize I can flex my fingers again.
My head’s ringing, and my muscles are on fire from straining to move, and I lie on my side, gasping for air as the darkness begins to recede.
As my vision clears, I realize I’m not outside anymore. I’m back in the café, propped against the hallway wall that leads to the lobby entrance. Glancing across the room, I see a hulking figure on their knees, pressing someone in a dark hoodie into the floor.
I swallow heavily and hum, testing that my CIs are still on and that the profound silence is just shock. I hear a sound, and then the bigger figure turns their head, and my heart leaps in my chest.
“Percy,” I manage to gasp.
He stands up, and behind him, I get a good glimpse of an entirely unfamiliar man with dark curls falling over his forehead. His eyes are closed, hands tied in front of him, duct tape over his mouth.
Percy blocks my view of him as he kneels down and carefully eases me up to sit. ‘Are you okay? Hurt?’ he signs with shaking hands.
I take a quick assessment of my body. I still feel incredibly weak, but whatever I was drugged with seems to be fading, and apart from a raging case of dry mouth and another sore throat from being choked again, I think I’m okay.
‘I think I’m fine,’ I finally answer him, my hands still a little weak and floppy. It’s a bit like after a visit to the dentist. ‘I don’t know what happened. He drugged me with something.’
Percy looks furious as he nods. ‘Chloroform. Not a high dose.’
Of course he would know that, and I feel something slide up my spine that’s a lot like fear and rage mixed together. God, fuck this guy. Fuck him for everything he’s done to me. I lean over to look past him and stare, but I don’t recognize him.
It’s not Byron, and although I don’t remember every single face from my shows, I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen him around.
“Who the hell is he?” I ask aloud.
He frowns at me. “I don’t know. I figured you would.”
My legs feel like jelly as I stand up, and three steps across the floor, the café’s doors burst open and Milo comes tearing through, holding a gun in his hand. He points it at me for a second, making me yelp, then turns it on the unconscious man lying on the floor.
“Put that shit away,” Percy snaps.
Milo does, slipping it into a holster he has in the back of his pants. He turns back to me and gives me a slow look up and down. “You’re okay.”
It’s not really a question, but I nod anyway. My headache is back with a vengeance, and all I want is to go home and lie down and wait for Archie to get back. God, when he finds out about this, he’s going to lose his mind, and I have a feeling blood will be drawn.
I push past Milo and stare down at the man on the floor, but there’s still nothing familiar about his face. Kneeling down, I shove the hood back away from his hair, but that doesn’t help.
He’s a complete stranger.
“I don’t have any clue who he is,” I say, looking back over my shoulder at both brothers.
“So this isn’t Byron?” Percy asks, kneeling beside me so I can hear him better.
I shake my head, biting the inside of my cheek. “I swear I’ve never seen him before. I mean, maybe he’s been to the club and watched my show, but if he did, he didn’t ever show himself to me.”
“This is fucking weird,” Milo says. He rolls his shoulders back, then leans over at the waist and hooks his hands under the stranger’s armpits. “I’m going to take him to the shed. Can you two close up?”
Percy stands and swipes his hands over his jeans, keeping close to me like he feels as though I’ll fall apart if he doesn’t. And hell, maybe that’s true.
“Everything go okay with Palmer and the kitten?” I ask. I don’t know why the fuck I care, but asking such a normal question oddly helps me feel better.
Milo’s eyes take on a glint, and he smiles. “He has the kitten now. I’ll collect him later.”
I’m not sure if he means he’ll collect the kitten or Palmer, but at this point, I don’t want to know. I still feel weak, and although the chemical is leaving my system, it’s doing it slowly. Percy seems to notice because he helps me over to the bench by the front window, then points firmly at me.
‘Stay.’
Like I’m a dog? Though I suppose it’s fair.
I do have the urge to get up and fight through the grogginess to help him close up.
I lean back against the window instead, feeling the faint vibrations of thunder rumbling as Percy starts to shut everything down.
He looks over at me several times like he’s worried something will happen, like maybe there’s another stalker lurking in the shadows, but eventually, he gets it all taken care of.
I hear a faint stomping sound, and I turn to see Percy in the doorway of the cat area. ‘Ready to go?’
I pull my CIs off because right now, I need the silence, and I tuck them back into the case as I nod and stand. ‘Yeah. I think I need a nap.’
‘You should probably FaceTime Archie. He needs to know about this.’
God, I really don’t want to do that. If I do, Archie will abandon his dad and race back here to comfort me.
And as much as I would love to be in his arms, he’s coming home soon anyway, and I’ll have him all to myself then.
Besides, this trip is important to both Archie and Jasper, and not just because they might have a lead on whoever the fuck this guy is.
It’s more than that.
Archie didn’t say it directly, but I know there are things between him and his dad that need to be fixed. I see the way he looks at Jasper and the way he loses his words because he doesn’t know how to bring up whatever’s on his mind.
And I know that Jasper thinks he was a shit dad.
But I’m well aware that if I don’t tell Archie, he’s going to be pissed as fuck that I kept the secret, and I don’t want him to be angry with me.
Following Percy to his car, I slide into the passenger seat, then pull out my phone and pull up Archie’s contact. It takes me until we’re on the main road to find the courage to hit the button and request the call, but when I do, Archie picks up almost immediately.
His eyes narrow the second he sees me. ‘What happened?’
I can’t help a heavy sigh. I must look worse than I thought. ‘I was attacked again.’
His eyes go wide, face filled with both anger and alarm. ‘I told you not to go out on your own—’
‘I didn’t,’ I interrupt with an angry hand. ‘I was at the café. Rome came in to get some cat litter, and I had my back to the door when the guy came in. But I’m fine. Percy took him down, and Milo has him now. Putting him in the shed.’
Archie takes a moment to process everything I’ve just told him, and then he swallows heavily. ‘I’m coming home.’
‘No,’ I sign, my fingers snapping sharply. ‘Please. Take the time you need with your dad, okay? I’m fine. I was barely hurt, and this guy will probably be dead by morning.’
I see Archie’s lips part with a scoff. ‘No. I will make Milo keep him alive. I want to look into his face before he goes.’ His hand hesitates, and then he asks, ‘Do you know him?’
I shake my head. ‘No. Different guy from before. I don’t know where he first saw me or what he wants with me.’ My whole body feels tired again, and I realize I don’t want to talk about this with him until he’s home and I can burrow against his chest for comfort.
Archie seems to read that off my face because he softens. ‘I miss you. I’ll be home soon. Ask Nico for cuddles.’
I grimace. ‘He was in a bad mood.’
Archie rolls his eyes. ‘Trust me, he wants cuddles, and I’m bad at them. He won’t say no.’
All I really want is Archie, but at this point, I think I’ll take anything. And I don’t think Milo or Percy will offer up affection and comfort the way I need.
‘I can’t wait to see you.’
‘Me too,’ Archie offers. ‘I’ll call you later.’
The call ends abruptly, but I’ve come to expect that from him. When he’s done talking, he’s done. He doesn’t linger. It’s oddly charming, and I feel better now that he knows what happened and that I can accept I’m safe.
I don’t love the idea that my attacker will be on the same property as me, but I know under Milo’s specific sort of tender loving care, he’s not going to get access to me again.
And maybe, for the first time in a long time, I can relax.
When I get in, I find Nico curled up in Archie’s bed, sitting in the center in a little blanket nest with a cup of what smells like cocoa in his hands.
He’s dressed in yoga pants and a loose T-shirt that hangs off one shoulder, a cloth headband pushing his hair back, and a gray volcanic clay mask smeared from forehead to chin.
‘Hi,’ he signs with one hand.
I let out a short breath. ‘Archie called you.’
He glances away for a second, looking guilty.
‘He told me to find you for a cuddle, but it’s fine if you don’t want to,’ I hurry to say.
Nico leans over to set his mug aside, then beckons me toward him with both hands. ‘Come here. I’m watching a documentary about bees.’
That sounds like the dream, in all honesty.
I don’t want to think about stalkers or murderers or the fact that my life was in very real danger not more than half an hour ago.
And Nico is very warm and welcoming as he pulls me close to him, then kind of wraps around me and tucks the blanket up to our chests as we lie back against the pillows.
I look at him, but only for a second. He has very tan skin and long fingers that toy with the hem of my shirt almost absently. He fidgets a little bit like Archie does, just not as profoundly.
But I’ve found that in kids raised by Deaf families. Their hands are rarely still. They mumble in sign and use their bodies to speak, even when they’re not really talking.
Nico catches me looking and glances up at me. ‘Something wrong?’
I shake my head. ‘No. Long day. Face hurts.’ The scrape on my cheek is more tender than my neck, which is a surprise.
I feel the rumble of his hum, and he grazes the wound with the tips of his fingers. ‘If this is too much, tell me. I’m a touchy-feely person. Growing up with Deaf family, you know?’
I don’t know. Coming from a hearing family, it took me a while to acclimate to how physical people in the community were with each other. It’s more second nature to me now than it was back then, but I know I don’t quite fit the mold of the perfect Deaf man.
Nico doesn’t seem to notice. Or if he does, he doesn’t seem to care. He sits here comfortably, like he belongs. Like he never worried himself sick over whether or not he was actually wanted.
‘Is your family close with everyone here?’ I ask.
He laughs and shakes his head. ‘No. They don’t know about Jasper and his sons. They don’t know anything about me anymore.’
My brows fly up. ‘Why? Because you’re hearing?’
It happens more than most people want to admit—a resentment by Deaf parents toward their hearing children. It’s usually subconscious, but I’ve had a lot of CODA friends who spent years in therapy trying to deal with the trauma of being casually unwanted.
He shakes his head again. ‘Things got weird when they found out I was gay. They’re very religious.
Conservative. Tried the whole conversion therapy thing with me,’ he adds, spelling the phrase.
It sends cold shivers down my spine. ‘I ran away from home. Started my career as a camboy. My older brother found it. They pretend I died.’
My eyes go wide. ‘Actually died?’
He shrugs. ‘They had a funeral for me.’
Holy. Fuck. This man has been through too much, and I feel an urge to wrap around him and protect him. I understand why Archie’s protective now.
When I shift a little closer, Nico smiles at me. ‘You don’t need to look at me like that. I’m okay now. A lot of therapy. I make good money. I’m just trying to figure out what I want with my life. I feel better now that Archie asked me to stay here.’
Something heavy and insecure hits me in the chest, and I swallow. ‘Archie?’
He blinks at me. ‘What about him?’
‘Do you…are you in love with him? Is he what you want?’
He stares, then throws his head back in laughter. I can only just make out some of the rumble, and I feel like a jackass, but when he smiles at me, there’s no mocking in it. And no resentment.
‘I love Archie, but not like that. And even if I did, it wouldn’t matter. He is so in love with you.’
Warmth rushes through me. ‘I know.’
‘This is my family here. They’re important to me. When I feel unsafe, I come sleep in their beds or bother Jasper until he threatens to kick me out. And it doesn’t feel bad when he does,’ Nico adds, ‘because he doesn’t mean it. He loves me as I am.’
I lean against him. ‘And you really want to be friends with me?’
His smile widens. ‘Yes. I really want to be friends. Best friends. I miss having Deaf in my life, but I would never go back to my birth family.’
I take his hand and squeeze it. ‘I have Deaf family—not blood—here. They will love you.’
‘Fayid,’ he signs and pulls a face.
I fight back a laugh. ‘Give him a chance. He’s awkward, but he means well. And I promise if you get to know him, you’ll see he’s not cruel. He’s just a giant nerd.’
Nico looks uncertain, but eventually, he sighs and tugs me closer. ‘I trust you.’
I don’t know why that means so much, but I tuck it close to my chest and hold it as tightly as I hold him.