Part Forty-Three
*the Next Day*
“Oz!” exclaimed Iam, jumping out of his chair. “What’s going on?”
“Not much.”
“You’re in the library. Why?”
Oz quirked an eyebrow at the blond. “Gotta study.”
“In the library?”
“Better than the hallway.”
Iam realized what he’d said and blushed. “Sorry, I, uh, wasn’t thinking, you know? It’s just… not many kids come in here.”
“S’cool.”
“So did you ever meet up with that girl?”
“Veruca. Yeah.”
“Good.” Iam scuffed his feet, suddenly unable to think of anything else to say. He wondered what else he could say when he realized Oz was saying something.
“…here?”
“Huh?”
Oz looked nonplussed and repeated his question succinctly. “You. Library. Why?”
“Oh,” Iam blushed a bit. “Because of the fighting. If I have a free period, I have to be here. My uncle’s the librarian, you know.”
“Ah.”
The two boys stared at each other for a minute, then Iam sat back down at the table where he’d been before Oz had arrived. “Wanna sit here with me? I’m bored out of my bloody mind.”
“Cool.”
“Well,” smirked Iam, “at least you won’t babble my ear off.”
Oz grinned as he set his books on the table and sat across from Iam. The two boys settled into their studies, neither noticing as Corey entered the library and stared at Iam morosely.
Corey watched Iam working and wished he didn’t have to do this. His brother, and he had to get him kicked out of school. More than once since he’d been sent to do this, Corey had wondered exactly why his father hated Rupert Giles so much, and why he would use Iam to get at him. Corey shook himself mentally, and steeled himself for what he was about to do.
Just as he started toward the table, Giles came over. “Oh, hello, Corey. How are you today?”
Corey whirled around in shock. “Mr. Giles! Uh, I’m fine.”
“Here to study?”
“Yeah. Uh, big test in uh, algebra coming up. Gotta be ready, y’know?”
“Of course,” Giles smiled at the boy. “Don’t let me keep you.”
Corey heaved a sigh of relief when Giles moved off into another part of the library. He didn't think he could do this with him close by. He headed back toward the table Oz and Iam were sitting at.
Iam noticed Corey approaching and glared at him. Oz looked puzzled at the amount of hostility radiating from the blond. “S’up?” he asked Iam quietly.
“Corey. He’s bad news. Hates my guts.”
Oz’s raised eyebrow indicated he thought it was probably the other way around, but he said nothing.
“Well, hi, Iam. It’s nice to see you here. Mind if I sit down? Great!” Corey sat down in the seat right next to Iam. He turned to Oz, “What’s up? I’m Corey.”
“Oz.”
“So what are you guys doing?”
“Studying,” said Iam, glaring at Corey. “Why are you here?”
“Same reason.”
“Yeah, well, perhaps you should go find somewhere else to do it.”
Corey grinned nastily. “Maybe I don’t want to. I think I’d rather stay here. We can have a nice little conversation. Like maybe about you kissing my boyfriend.”
“Look, it was a mistake,” said Iam angrily. “I…”
“It was not a mistake! You’ve been against me from the moment you met me. You’re trying to make everyone think I’m some kind of a player who’s going break Xander’s heart the first chance I get!”
Iam raised an eyebrow skeptically. “And you’re not?” he asked disbelievingly.
“No!” Corey
stood quickly, knocking over his chair. “I
think you’re jealous! You want
Xander, and you can’t have him! That’s
what this is really about. It’s
because I’m with Xander and you’re not!”
“Shut your bloody mouth!”
“Make me!”
Iam rose angrily. “I will then.” A hand on his arm made him stop. Iam turned to see Oz holding onto him.
“Dude,” said Oz quietly.
Iam sat down heavily. “Go away, Corey. Just, go away.”
“This isn’t over!” sneered Corey.
Iam glared at Corey menacingly, “Far from it.”
“…and Miss Edith came to visit and we had a tea party with the stars,” giggled Druscilla as Liam nodded and smiled. She never noticed how forced his smile was or the unshed tears hovering at the corners of his eyes. “And then the stars said…” Druscilla paused in midthought and stared at Miss Edith for a few seconds. “Daddy?”
“What is it, Drucie?” asked Liam, almost fearfully.
“Miss Edith said to tell you the light will shine again even though the knife seems so sharp.”
“Oh, well…” Liam paused, trying to decide how to respond to this. “Thank you, Miss Edith,” he said finally.
“Can Faith come to our house and have a tea party sometime? I like to have tea parties with her. She’s pretty and Miss Edith likes her, too.”
“I would be glad to do that sometime, Druscilla,” said Faith, walking up to the two. “Mr. O’Malley, may I have a few words with you alone, please?”
“Certainly.”
Xander saw Corey storming from the library and hurried over to him. “Corey! What’s wrong?”
Corey smiled shakily, “Oh, nothing.”
“You look kinda mad for it be just nothing.”
“Yeah, well…”
Xander pulled Corey into an empty classroom. “Come on, Corey. You can tell me what’s wrong.”
Corey looked at Xander, who was pouting just a tiny bit. Briefly he wondered if the dark-haired boy knew just how lethal that damn pout was. “Look, Xan, it wasn’t anything you need to worry about. Honest.”
Xander studied Corey for a second, trying to decide if he was telling the truth. Seeing as how they were alone in a classroom and there was still plenty of time before the next class, Xander chose yes as the answer and immediately began to cheer Corey up. “Oh no, here we are all alone in this deserted classroom,” he said melodramatically. “Whatever shall we do until our next class?”
Corey stifled a laugh as Xander dramatically flung one hand up to his forehead. “Dunno. You think a teacher will be coming back anytime soon?”
Xander grinned, “I sure hope not.”
Corey pulled Xander into his arms and stroked those pouty lips with his tongue. Xander moaned and caressed Corey’s tongue with his own. Running one hand through Xander’s thick hair, Corey slipped the other one into Xander’s baggy pants.
“We’re in a school, not a brothel, you know,” said a female voice in a conversational tone.
The two boys jumped apart at the unexpected voice. “M-m-miss Quentin!” stammered Xander, blushing bright red.
“Uh, um, it wasn’t what it looked like,” said Corey defensively.
“I’m sure,” smiled Miss Quentin. “Because it certainly didn’t look like you were making out in my classroom.”
The two boys slipped out of the classroom, embarrassed, but relieved that Miss Quentin had a sense of humor. “Now what?” asked Xander, pouting again.
“Um, the boys’ room?”
“You wanna do it in the bathroom?!”
“Well, why not? You wanted us to do it in a classroom.”
“Oh, yeah,” came the sheepish reply.
“What did you want to see me about?” asked Liam once they were alone.
“Well,” said Faith a bit nervously, “would you be upset if I were to visit Druscilla?”
Liam looked slightly shocked, “No, I actually think it might be a good idea if you did. You might be able to help with her therapy. She’s certainly very interested in being your friend.”
Faith blushed slightly, “Really?”
“She keeps talking about you. It’s slightly encouraging.”
“Daithi?”
Daithi looked up from his book. “What is it, Whit?”
“Shouldn’t Eoin have called by now?”
“Chill, man, let him have a little time to knock some sense into Lindsey.” Daithi set his book down and pulled Whitney down onto the couch next to him. “Look, I know you’re really worried about Linds, we all are. But there’s really not much we can do yet.”
“But, Daithi…”
“Dammit, Whitney! Cool it, okay? You’re not helping anything by worrying yourself sick.”
Whitney blushed and stared down at the floor. “Sorry. It’s just… We don’t hear from him for four years, and then he calls me on the run, and then I hear him…”
“Everything’s going to be alright, Whit. You’ll see.” Daithi pulled Whitney into his arms and stroked his hair soothingly.
Whitney relaxed into Daithi’s arms and allowed himself to be comforted.
Shifting slightly, Daithi stroked one finger along Whitney’s jaw line before softly pressing his lips to the younger man’s.
Whitney gasped when Daithi kissed him, allowing the older man to slip his tongue into his mouth. Moaning softly, Whitney pulled Daithi closer, tangling a hand in long, chestnut brown hair.
Daithi deepened the kiss, caressing and twining his tongue with Whitney’s. Pushing Whitney down onto the couch without breaking the kiss, he undulated against the younger man sensually.
When Daithi pulled his mouth away, Whitney moaned in protest, only to gasp as teeth nibbled lightly on his earlobe. “Daithi,” he moaned.
“Shhh,” murmured Daithi, running his tongue along Whitney’s jaw and taking the younger man’s lips in another passionate kiss. He pulled away briefly to tug his shirt off, then slipped his hands under the edge of Whitney’s tee shirt. “Sit up,” he commanded huskily.
Whitney obeyed, allowing Daithi to pull his own shirt off before lying back again as warm hands caressed his bare chest. He tangled his fingers in Daithi’s long hair and pulled him back in for another searing kiss, exploring the other’s man’s mouth with his tongue.
Aiden started into the living room, but stopped in shock at the two men on the couch before him. Staring at the couch, a whirlwind of thoughts flew through Aiden’s mind. ‘Daithi and Whitney are… making out.’ ‘But Whit’s straight!’ ‘Daithi the Chaste is seducing his own brother?’ ‘God they look hot. Did I bring a camera?’ Backing up slowly, hoping they wouldn’t notice him, he headed back toward the room he and Devon were occupying. “God, Devon,” he said to the half-asleep man on the bed, “you have got to see this.” He started rummaging through his suitcase, “Where did I put my camera?”
“What?” asked Devon sleepily, stretching languidly. He sat up and stared at his lover, who was pawing through clothing quickly. “Calm down, Aiden. The camera’s in my bag. And what have I got to see?”
“In the living room! You’re not gonna believe it. Hell, Caid and ‘Ruadhan aren’t either!” He started tearing through Devon’s bag.
“You’re going to destroy all my clothes.” Devon got off the bed and pulled his bag out of Aiden’s hands. “Let me get the camera, ‘kay?” He reached in and pulled the camera out, only to have it tugged from his hands almost immediately.
Aiden checked to make sure there was film, then grabbed Devon’s wrist and practically dragged him out of the room. “We have to be really quiet, ok?”
Devon nodded and shook his head, worrying about Aiden’s mental health. Then he saw what was going on in the living room. “Oh. My. God.”
“Yeah, now, shhh,” said Aiden quietly, snapping several pictures of the couple on the couch.
“I thought… Isn’t Whitney… Straight?”
“Yep.”
Grinding his groin into Whitney’s, Daithi murmured into Whitney’s ear, “Like that?”
“Yes,” moaned Whitney. He looked into lust-filled blue eyes, so like his own, but at that moment he didn’t care. “Daithi…” His next words were lost as one of Daithi’s hands slipped between their bodies and into the top of his jeans, deftly unbuttoning them, allowing Daithi to move his hand farther down. Then everything was forgotten as he happened to glance over at the hallway. “Oh, Jesus!” he yelled, pushing Daithi away from him in shock and horror.
“What?” asked Daithi, a bit petulantly. He looked over to where Whitney was staring and saw Aiden and Devon standing in the hallway. “What’s up?” he asked them, as he casually picked his shirt up off the ground and pulled it over his head.
“Plenty, from what I can see,” snickered Devon.
Daithi grinned smugly as Whitney turned bright red and fled the room. “Great, now you’ve scared him away.”
“True,” said Aiden. “But at least I’ve got plenty of pictures.”
Daithi strolled over to where Aiden was standing and held out his hand.
“What?” asked Aiden innocently.
“Give me the camera.”
“But…” Aiden started to protest, but stopped when he realized Daithi wasn’t going to back down. “Oh fine,” he said sulkily as he placed the camera in Daithi’s outstretched hand. “But I need the first half of that roll of film back.”
“Lindsey, Lindsey, Lindsey. What am I going to do with you?”
Lindsey half-heartedly glared at Vincent. He was tired and sore, with bruises swelling on various parts of his body, and wanted nothing more than to make a snide comment, but held his tongue.
“What?” smirked Vincent. “No reply? Good. Now, Lindsey, why are you so hell-bent on destroying everything you’ve worked so hard for?” He stepped closer to where Lindsey was sitting. “You’ve had the best schooling, a junior partnership in a prestigious law firm, and,” he leered at Lindsey, “a most charming boyfriend. So please tell me why you want to ruin it all.”
Lindsey remained silent, knowing that if he said anything, Vincent would twist his words and use them against him.
Vincent watched Lindsey intently for several minutes before switching tactics. “Well, since you don’t want to talk about business, why don’t we talk about… family?”
Lindsey’s head snapped up on the last word. “You bastard,” he hissed, barely suppressed anger coloring his voice.
Vincent smirked evilly. “I think perhaps we need to have another show, don’t you?”
“No! Leave him alone!”
“But, Lindsey,” said Vincent smoothly, “you’ve forgotten the most important thing. If you mess with me, I will destroy everything you love until you have nothing left.”
Eoin groaned miserably as he shifted slightly on his extremely uncomfortable cot. He felt as though he’d been run over by a semi-truck and finished off by a train. Turning a bit, he watched with fear as someone approached the door to his cell, but they continued on, leaving Eoin to his thoughts.
*** Flashback ***
Eoin awoke in an empty room with a splitting headache. The last thing he remembered was talking to Lindsey and Jesse in the House of Caffeine. Groaning slightly, he levered himself up off the floor and walked a bit unsteadily around the room, trying to find a way out. He trailed a hand along a large mirror that was set into one wall, reminding him of the two-way mirrors cops use for interrogations and witness line-ups.
There was a door in the wall opposite the mirror, which was locked, not that Eoin had expected to be able to just waltz out of wherever the hell he was. Sighing, he slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor just across from the door and waited.
A few hours passed with nothing happening and Eoin was getting more and more frightened with each passing moment. He had no idea why he was being kept in this room, but he knew it couldn’t be good. And that mirror was definitely there for a reason. Eoin was beginning to suspect that Vincent would be on the other side of it when something finally happened. And he had a sneaking suspicion that Lindsey would be there too.
More time passed before the door finally opened. Eoin had no illusions that he would be getting out of this unscathed. He stood up, silently waiting, as two men entered the room. Eyeing the men warily, Eoin briefly entertained the idea of trying to get past them and out the door. Which swung shut with a loud bang almost as though reading his thoughts.
The two men advanced on him silently, feral grins on their faces and a nasty glint in their eyes. The more burly, muscular one reached for Eoin, snickering when Eoin slipped out of his reach. “Aw, now where d’ya think yer goin’?” he asked, maliciously grabbing Eoin’s arm and dragging him closer. Twisting Eoin around, the thug held Eoin’s arms in a vice-like grip, keeping the Southern man immobile as the other thug advanced. “Whacha think, Rever? He’s got a bit a fight in ‘im, ‘ey?”
“That ‘e does,” agreed Rever. He punched Eoin on the jaw and watched Eoin’s pain-filled reaction with cruel amusement and anticipation. Another punch, this time to the stomach, stealing Eoin’s breath.
The nameless thug released Eoin, who fell to his knees, gasping for air. The two men fell on the Eoin, beating him relentlessly. Rever and the other thug soon tired of beating the younger man, and stepped away. Rever held a hand up to his partner. “Wait,” he said quietly, “let ‘im think we’re done.”
Eoin silently thanked God that they were finished and started to his feet slowly. His progress was stopped by a boot on his back, forcing him back down on the floor. He lay against the cool concrete, a horror-filled dread filling him when he realized why the beating had stopped.
*** End Flashback ***
Eoin shook himself mentally, trying to stop the memory from replaying what he never wanted to remember ever again. To keep himself from concentrating on his injuries, Eoin pulled his wallet out of his pocket and started flipping through the pictures.
The very first one brought a wistful smile to his face. It was a picture of him and all his brothers and sisters, taken right before the car accident that killed Daithi’s twin sister Bronwyn. The next picture was of him and Daithi. They were sitting in the grass and Daithi was laughing, his long hair slightly tangled. Eoin smiled, remembering that just before Caid took the picture he’d been kissing Daithi. He stayed on that picture, remembering that day as clearly as he could.
*** Flashback ***
Daithi pulled Eoin away from the rest of the group, smiling mischievously. “C’mon, Eoin. No one’s going to miss us.”
Eoin half-heartedly resisted, “But the reunion….”
“Happens every year.” Daithi grinned and ducked the two behind a tree. “Not that we really need it, now do we? Most everyone still lives around here.” Daithi slipped a hand beneath Eoin’s tee-shirt and slid it up the muscular chest.
Pushing Daithi up against the tree, Eoin kissed the grin off the younger man’s face, thrusting his tongue into Daithi’s mouth and stealing the other man’s moan when he rubbed against him erotically. As they kissed, Eoin ran his fingers through Daithi’s hair, knowing the other man loved that.
Daithi pushed him away briefly, pulling him to the ground and resuming the kiss.
“Oh, so here’s where you two ran off to,” came a deeply amused baritone voice.
Eoin and Daithi pulled apart to look at Caid, who was watching them with a sly look on his face. “What?” asked Eoin, almost defensively.
“Nothing, nothing,” said Caid mock innocently. “I was just wondering how many copies to make.”
“Copies?”
Caid waved a camera at the two. At the outraged and shocked look on Eoin’s face, Daithi started laughing. Eoin alternated his stare between his lover and his former lover, wondering if they’d both gone mad.
“Eoin, you have got to lighten up,” said a snickering Caid. “I haven’t taken any pictures yet. Now smile.” Caid snapped a couple pictures of the two before flopping down on the ground next to them. “So Linds got a scholarship? Where’s he going to college?”
“We’re not sure,” said Daithi, finally calming from his laughing fit. “He won’t say.
Caid grinned at Daithi, “He’ll tell eventually. Let him have his privacy. And speaking of, nice spot you’ve got here. Glad I happened to see you sneaking off.”
“Happened to see us?” asked Daithi with an arched brow. “Why, Caolaidhe, I do believe you were following us on purpose.”
“Damn right I was,” Caid didn’t even bother trying to look innocent.
“And why was that?”
In answer to Eoin’s question, Caid leaned over and kissed him briefly.
“Oh, come on, there wasn’t even any tongue.”
Eoin and Caid both looked over to Daithi. “What?” asked Eoin, confused.
Grinning widely, Caid pushed Eoin onto his back in the grass and straddled his hips, leaning down for another kiss, pushing his tongue into Eoin’s mouth eagerly. The two kissed for several minutes, before Caid pulled away and motioned for Daithi to move closer. Daithi obeyed, and Caid cupped his jaw in one hand and brought him closer. Pressing his lips to the younger man’s softly, Caid traced full lips with the tip of his tongue, sliding it into wet heat when Daithi parted his lips.
Eoin watched the two, panting as the kiss grew more fevered. Caid, with his short jet-black hair and green eyes, and Daithi, with his long chestnut-colored hair and blue eyes, looked absolutely stunning together. Sitting up, he dislodged Caid, who’d still been straddling his hips. Caid pulled away from Daithi for a second to murmur to Eoin, “You just gonna watch, or what?”
Eoin knelt right behind Caid, and tugged his hips back so that the other man’s ass was resting right against his groin. “What would you like me to do?” he asked huskily. Moving his hands to the edge of Caid’s shirt, Eoin swiftly pulled it off the other man. Daithi immediately removed his own shirt, and Eoin followed suit.
Pulling Daithi back into his arms, Caid kissed along the younger man’s jaw line as Eoin caressed his chest. Eoin’s hands delved farther down, into Caid’s jeans and boxers. Caid moaned loudly and turned his head to kiss Eoin, tongues tangling as their mouths met.
Daithi watched with lust-filled eyes as the older men kissed. While they were otherwise occupied, he began unfastening Caid’s jeans.
Breaking the kiss, Eoin moved away from Caid. “Strip,” he told the other men, removing his jeans quickly. “Does either of you have lube?” When both Caid and Daithi each held out a tube, Eoin snickered. Taking the tube from Daithi, Eoin pressed himself up against Caid’s back, nibbling lightly on the other man’s earlobe. “You want Daithi,” he breathed into Caid’s ear.
“Yes,” moaned Caid, “but I want you too.”
Eoin kissed the side of Caid’s neck gently and moved away. “Who said you had to choose?” Pushing Daithi down into the soft grass, Eoin grinned at Caid before capturing Daithi’s lips in a searing, but short, kiss. “This okay, lover?” he asked.
Daithi groaned slightly. “Do you even have to ask?”
As Caid pushed Eoin out of the way, Eoin whispered, “I just wanted to make sure.”
Settling between Daithi’s spread legs, Caid ran his hands along Daithi’s slim torso, caressing the velvety smooth skin. Leaning down, he worshipped Daithi’s body with his mouth, alternating with soft kisses, smooth licks of his tongue, and nibbling bites. As Daithi arched up beneath him, Caid slicked up his fingers and placed a fingertip at Daithi’s entry.
“God, yeeeessss,” moaned Daithi as the finger slid into his body. He writhed and moaned as Caid stretched him slowly.
Eoin took a moment to watch Caid and Daithi. It’d been a while since he’d had Caid in his bed, and he was going savor every moment. He almost felt like just watching those two. Almost. Eoin grinned and slicked his fingers, and running his other hand up Caid’s spine to distract him, he pressed two fingers into Caid’s body, moving them in and out quickly.
Caid gasped when he felt the burn of Eoin’s fingers entering him. He’d forgotten how rough Eoin could be. A bolt of pleasure flashed through his body when Eoin hit his prostate.
“Caid,” moaned Daithi. “I need you now, please.”
Withdrawing his fingers, Eoin doing the same, Caid slicked up his erection and placed himself at Daithi’s entrance. Slowly, he pushed in, stopping to let Daithi adjust. Caid felt the head of Eoin’s cock pushing into his body, filling him.
They stayed like that for a minute until Daithi bucked up, then Caid moved, pulling back and thrusting into Daithi’s tight channel. Eoin started a counter movement, thrusting into Caid’s body as he pulled out of Daithi’s. The three moved with abandon, slower at first, then faster. Daithi cried out when Caid shifted a bit and hit his prostate with every thrust. His shifting allowed Eoin to drive even deeper.
Caid was the first to come, the double stimulation almost too much for him. Then Daithi, screaming Caid’s name. Eoin couldn’t hold out when he heard Daithi crying out in passion. The three collapsed in a pile, panting and trading kisses between them. They were startled out of their satiated daze by the sound of clapping.
Maolruadhan was leaning against a tree, as though he owned the whole world. He stroked his goatee in amusement. “Well, you three have certainly found an excellent way to pass the time. And I know I enjoyed the show. But people are starting to look for you, so if I were you, I’d put some clothes on, and try to come up with a credible excuse as to where you’ve been and what you were doing.” What that, the black-haired MacDonald turned and strode back in the direction of the reunion. He was joined a few steps later by another black haired MacDonald, Deoradhaine. Deoradhaine winked at the three and held up a black object, Caid’s camera.
*** End Flashback ***
Jesse stared miserably at the wall, wishing Lindsey were with him. He hadn’t seen his lover since they’d been taken from the coffee shop. Footsteps neared his room.
“Jesse?”
Cringing inwardly, Jesse got off his bed and opened the door. “Yes, Father?” he asked, keeping his eyes on the floor.
“Look at me, Jesse.” Jesse looked up at Vincent. “That’s better.” Vincent’s gaze hardened and Jesse immediately flinched away. “Stop that. We have to discuss something, and I’d rather not do it in the hallway.”
Jesse tried to hide his fear as Vincent entered his room.
Once the door had been shut, Vincent indicated Jesse should sit down. “Now, Jesse, I’ve given you so much. Why do you keep fighting me? You’re only making your life, and Lindsey’s, miserable by rebelling like this. When I first brought you here, I told you things would be fine if you followed the rules. And that’s still true. Why,” he paused for a second before continuing, “I bet that if you stopped to trying to run, that things would get much better here.”
“Yes, sir.”
Vincent opened the door and stepped out into the hall. “And Jesse? I’m done being lenient. I won’t be so easy on you if you try anything like this again.”
So intent on his memories, Eoin didn’t hear someone approach his cell until it was too late. “Come on,” said the nameless thug, hauling Eoin to his feet and dragging him out of the cell. “You’re… needed again.”