Part Forty-One
Lindsey lead Eoin over to Vincent’s office. “You wait here. I’ll just get Jesse, and we can go.” He knocked on the door, then walked in.
“What can we do for you, Lindsey?” asked Vincent, leering at Lindsey when Jesse turned to greet Lindsey.
“Uh, I was wondering if Jesse could come with me and my brother,” said Lindsey nervously.
“Ah, that’s your brother?” Vincent put on a vague smile. “And I might ask, what is he doing here?”
Lindsey gulped audibly. “He’s in town for a couple days, and came to see how I was holding up.”
“Funny how your family’s never shown much interest in the past, what is it now, four years? Five? And now he’s here, all worried about you?” Vincent regarded Lindsey thoughtfully. “Why don’t you bring him in? I’d like to meet him before I let you go.”
Lindsey stepped over to the door. “Hey, Eoin. Vincent wants to meet you.”
Eoin followed Lindsey back into the office, starting a bit nervously when Lindsey shut the door. ‘Stop that,’ he chided himself. ‘You have no reason to be all jumpy right now.’
“So,” said Vincent, smiling at Eoin. “You’re Lindsey’s brother, are you? I can see the family resemblance now.”
“And you’re the bastard that’s raping my brother,” said Eoin conversationally.
The smile quickly left Vincent’s face. “Jesse, son, why don’t you run down and see Cheryl for a few minutes?”
“Wait, you said you’d leave us alone. You’re not…” Jesse turned away from Vincent and grabbed Lindsey’s arm, staring into his eyes pleadingly. “He’s not, Linds. Please, tell me he’s not. You didn’t…”
Lindsey gazed at Jesse with tears in his eyes. “Jesse…” he whispered, cupping the boy’s cheek tenderly.
“Jesse, I said go!” snarled Vincent. “Now!”
Jesse all but ran for the door. In tears, he turned back just before he exited. “Lindsey, I trusted you. You said everything was going to be okay. You promised!” He fled the room.
Lindsey stood as though he were going to go after his distraught lover, but Vincent stopped him. “Sit down, Lindsey. We need to have a little talk.” Lindsey sat.
“Just where do you get off telling my brother what to do?” asked Eoin angrily. “Last I checked this was a free country.”
Vincent chuckled maliciously. “Oh, you poor naďve boy. Where do YOU get off telling me what I can and cannot do? Lindsey’s mine to do with whatever I please. Just as Jesse is. Just as you will be if you don’t leave certain things alone.”
Eoin was stunned. “You’re fucking insane.”
“How old are you? Twenty-eight, twenty-nine?” asked Vincent curiously.
“Twenty-eight,” said Eoin. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“Well, Eoin, you’d think you would have learned in all that time that the world is NOT all black and white, the lines aren’t always clear, and I certainly CAN do whatever I bloody well feel like doing.”
“Yeah, but you can’t play with other peoples’ lives!” shouted Eoin.
Lindsey groaned and sunk down into his chair, hoping the two angry men would forget that he was there.
“Especially me or my brother’s!”
‘Dammit,’ thought Lindsey. He wondered where it was that Jesse had gone. He hoped Jesse would understand why he had lied.
“Lindsey!”
Lindsey focused on Eoin. “Yeah?” he asked weakly, cursing himself for not paying attention to what was going on.
“He said you were the one who offered yourself. Is that true?”
With Eoin glaring daggers at him, he didn’t really want to tell the truth, but knew that if he didn’t, it would go far worse with Vincent later. “I have my reasons for doing what I’ve been doing. And I don’t believe it’s any of your business, you know,” said Lindsey in his lawyer voice, trying to intimidate his older brother.
Eoin laughed bitterly. “Of course it’s my business. You’re my brother, and whether or not you want to tell me why, this is wrong. Why don’t you come back home?”
“Because I don’t want to be stuck in that hick backwater for the rest of my life. I’m doing something with my life.”
“You’re selling your body to get there,” shouted Eoin. “What happened to your morals? When you accepted that scholarship, you shut us all out, Lindsey. Do you think we liked that? You refused to even tell us where you were going. And now, now when you’re in over your head, you can’t even admit to it! I just don’t understand! How can you sit there and tell me to mind my own business? Dammit, Lindsey!”
Vincent sat back in his desk, smirking as he watched the two brothers. He didn’t even need to interfere; Lindsey’s pride was doing the job quite nicely.
“When have you ever cared anything about us, except when you were yelling? Always perfect, always harping on us! You were as bad as Dad when I came out. Hypocrite! At least I can admit to everyone that yes, I like guys. Not to mention, I don’t fuck family members.”
Leaning forward at this, Vincent narrowed his gaze on Lindsey. “What does that mean?”
Eoin glared at Lindsey. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Lindsey laughed. “Right. I’m sure Caid would have something different to say about that. You talk in your sleep. And what about Jarlath? And Haley? At least you never sweet-talked any of the rest of us into your bed. Or did you? Because I always wondered about when you and Daithi shared a room. And you and Morgan were awfully close.”
“Morgan and I are only a year apart, of course we’re close. You were practically inseparable from Whitney. Should I assume that maybe you fucked your own twin?”
“Oh come on, Eoin. You know Whit’s into girls. Besides, I would never stoop that low. And I didn’t hear any denials about the others.”
“So who are these others?” asked Vincent with interest.
“Cousins. Male cousins,” said Lindsey. “Except Daithi. He’s our brother, too.”
Amazed as Lindsey actually answered the question, Eoin stared at his younger brother in shock. “So, do you do everything he tells you to do? Do you make a good bitch?” he asked snidely. “Whitney was right, you are in some serious trouble. But unfortunately, I don’t think there’s any help for you.”
“Oh, so someone asks a question about your lovers and you decide I’m not worth your time anymore? After you practically accuse me of seducing an underage boy? Because if I’m guilty of that, then so are you! How old was Haley when you finally got tired of Caid and went to him? Fifteen? Or was he still fourteen? I can’t remember anymore. But you have no right to say anything like that to me. I tried to bite my tongue. I tried to get you to see I don’t need you to run my life for me. But do you? No! You stay here and harp sanctimonious shit at me, like I’m some child who’s been caught stealing from the collection plate.” Lindsey stopped to get his breath back, then stood up. “You don’t understand what’s going on here. Go back to the others. Tell them the truth.”
“And what would that truth be?” snarled Eoin, looking ready to slug Lindsey. “Why can’t you tell me what’s going on?”
“Because it’s none of your business. And you don’t need to get tangled in this anyway. I never asked for anyone’s help.”
“Then why were you in Seattle?”
Lindsey fell silent, caught by his own words.
“What’s the matter, Lindsey? Cat got your tongue?” snickered Eoin.
“Fine, I never asked for YOUR help,” said Lindsey defensively.
Eoin scrutinized Lindsey carefully. “When you ask one MacDonald for help, you ask them all. God, Lindsey, I’d be surprised if Whitney hasn’t called all the cousins by now. He’s frantic with worry, and he can’t DO anything! And why? Because you can’t tell me what’s going on!”
“I don’t have to tell anyone what’s going on!” Lindsey stood up.
“If you’re whoring yourself, I would think that would be a good enough reason.”
Vincent stood and headed for the door. “Well, this is getting a bit tedious. I’m just going to go find Jesse. Why don’t you two try to wrap this up? Lindsey, I’ll have Jesse waiting in the lobby.”
Eoin and Lindsey both watched in amazement as Vincent strode confidently out of the room. “Now can you tell me what’s going on?” asked Eoin.
“No, I don’t have to tell you anything” said Lindsey shortly. He grabbed a sheet of paper off the desk and scribbled something quickly before handing it to Eoin.
‘The room is bugged. And yell at me, or they’ll get suspicious.’
“Lindsey, what do you…” asked Eoin, puzzled. Then he caught on, and said in exasperation, “I just don’t get you, Lindsey. Why can’t you understand that all I want to do is help?” He scribbled a reply and handed it back.
‘Is there somewhere we can meet?’
Lindsey winked at Eoin. “Why can’t you understand I don’t want your help? And if you’ll excuse me, I have a date with my boyfriend at the House of Caffeine.” He wrote down an address and left.
Whitney
paused in front of the door the room Aiden and Devon were in.
No, the sounds weren’t coming from their room.
“Well, it must be one of the neighbors,” he said to himself, walking
into his living room. He took one
look at the couch and froze. Then
whirled around and yelled, “If you two are going to do that, would you please
at least do it in the guest room?” before heading for his own bedroom, face
flaming.
Aiden and Devon giggled from where they were. “Okay,” said Aiden, nibbling on Devon’s ear, “naked cuddling on the couch was a good idea. Did you see his face?”
“Told you,” snickered Devon. “But I wonder, what would he have done if we had actually been going at it?”
“Stared longer before turning around?” asked Aiden impishly. “Same time tomorrow, then?”
Devon rose gracefully, drawing a protesting moan from his lover. “Sounds good to me. Now, I believe we were just given permission to christen the bedroom.”
Aiden was on his feet in an instant. “Why Devon MacLeish, are you coming onto me?” simpered Aiden, batting his eyelashes at the singer.
Daithi wandered into the living room. He smiled at the two standing near the couch. “Hey, what’s going on? Did you know you’re naked? If Whit sees you, he’s going to freak.” Then he headed for the kitchen.
Devon stared after the MacDonald in shock. “Is he always like that?”
“Daithi?” laughed Aiden. “Yeah. Not much phases him. But you do not want to see him when he’s mad. It’s even worse than when Eoin’s off on a rant.”
Devon whistled. “That bad, huh?” Then he eyed the doorway thoughtfully. “Think he’d join us if I asked?”
Aiden placed one hand on the small of Devon’s back and started pushing him towards their bedroom. “No, he’s not really into the whole sex thing. We all just sort of go with it.”
Iam sneered at his new psychiatrist, “Why should I tell you anything? You don’t look like you’re going to be any help. Did Uncle Rupert and Liam offer you sex if you would take me?”
Kevin stared patiently at his new client. He had been warned that this one would be stubborn. “Well, if you don’t want to talk about school, what would you like to talk about?”
“Liam’s a wanker. And you’re a prat. I don’t want to talk about anything.”
“Why do you have a problem with Liam?”
“He’s shagging my uncle. I have a big problem with that.”
“But they were involved before you ever came along. Do you not like that?”
Iam snickered. “Oh, you’re good, mate. Trying to get me to open up by using Liam. I’m not falling for that one.”
Kevin sighed. “Looks like I can’t pull the wool over your eyes. Tell you what, how about you talk about whatever you want to, and I’ll just listen?”
“I like dogs. Do you have any dogs?”
Kevin glanced at Iam suspiciously, but relaxed at the innocent look in those blue eyes. “Why, yes, I have a golden retriever.”
“That’s a big dog. Dogs are fun. Especially puppies. Dead puppies. Decapitated dead puppies.” Iam smiled as the psychiatrist blanched. “Oh, come on. I haven’t even gotten to the best parts, like cutting them open and looking at their internal organs. And, hey!” Iam said, repressing a laugh. “Where are you going?”
Corey watched the door worriedly. Xander was due to arrive any minute, and his father had yet to call.
*Ring*
“Hello?”
“Corey, how are you doing today?”
“Good, good,” said Corey.
“How are things progressing?”
“V-very well, sir.”
“I do hope you’re not becoming too attached.”
“And what if I am?”
The voice over the line became angry. “You had better not. You absolutely cannot lose your head over an expendible. You know that.”
“Is that all he is? Just someone to be used and thrown away? How can you treat people like that?”
“Are you backtalking? Do I need to come down there, and give you a lesson?”
“No, sir.”
“I don’t want to hear anything about this again. If you can’t keep your focus, I will send someone down to make certain you do. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” said Corey sullenly.
“I think it’s time for you to stir things up a bit. I’ll be calling again in a few days. Goodbye, Corey.”
“Goodbye, Father.”
Corey hung up the phone just as Xander came into the apartment and flopped into a chair. “Who was that?” asked Xander.
“N-no one.”
Xander was immediately at Corey’s side. “Hey, are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” said Corey, allowing himself to be pulled into the brunette’s arms.
Xander hugged Corey tightly. “No, you’re upset. Come on, you can tell me.”
“It was just my dad yelling at me again. Nothing big.”
“Just ignore him. He’s not even in this state, so don’t let him bother you.”
“Yeah,” said Corey weakly, hating himself for lying. And hating himself for what he to do tomorrow.
“Come on, Dru. You have to leave that room,” said Faith.
“But the world is so big. It might swallow me, and then what would Miss Edith do?”
“I think Miss Edith wants to leave, though. Have you asked her?”
Dru giggled. “No, I didn’t even think of that. Miss Edith, should we go with the pretty lady?” She giggled again. “Miss Edith! You shouldn’t say such things!”
“Well?”
“If we come out, will you stay with us?”
“As much as I can.”