Page 8

I whistle. “Nice place.”

“Thanks,” Tony says awkwardly, opening the door in just a towel and gesturing me inside. There’s water dripping off his chest, which is terribly distracting, but I don’t want to make him more uncomfortable than he already is.

“Did I interrupt your shower?”

“Sort of, but it's okay. I was almost… um, done.” He flushes and I really want to be nosey and figure out what that’s about, but I’ll play nice until he’s a little more comfortable with me.

He leads me through the house. It’s open and airy, with neutral tones and lots of natural wood elements. And plants. He really likes plants.

Finally, we come to a dining room with a massive table. He’s already set out six monitors, five different keyboards, and a bunch of other computer equipment.

I’m impressed. “This is going to be a great set up.”

“I wasn’t sure what all we might want, so I brought everything down. I have an office upstairs, but it wouldn’t be as roomy. Or as close to the kitchen.”

“It’s perfect. And Mara will appreciate the kitchen part.”

For once, I let him fill the silence.

“So, what exactly did Mara have in mind for you on this project?” He cringes, looking worried that he might have offended me. “I didn’t mean? thank you for getting that CCTV footage for us, by the way. I didn’t have time to look through it myself, but it’s in Bennet’s hands now.”

“It’s fine,” I say, laughing. “I didn’t take offense. I don’t come off as the computer nerd type, but I’ve got a few skills that extend beyond documents. I know my way around programming. Nothing like you and Mara, of course, but enough to be helpful. I suspect Mouse wants me for my connections. And my body, of course.”

He chuckles at my joke, but takes the opportunity to change the subject. “Did Mara seem… okay with what happened last night?”

“You mean when you finger fucked her until she came and then I sucked you off with her mouth?”

“Jesus,” he says, clearing his throat. “Uh, yeah. That.”

“Relax, man. I just wanted to see if I could make your dick hard without her here.” I wink, my eyes flitting down when I notice movement beneath the towel, slung low over his hips and just a tug away from…

He swallows, hard. “I’m gonna go get dressed. Make yourself comfortable.”

My eyebrow lifts. Challenge accepted.

Casually, I pull my shirt over my head. His eyes trace my abs the way the water droplets have been tracing his since I got here.

Moving slowly, I take a few steps towards him. It takes a little longer than necessary for his eyes to make it up to my face. Not able to hide my smirk, I just wait. For a reaction, for him to say something. For anything.

He clears his throat again, meeting my gaze with something that looks like arousal mixed with frustration. Or maybe disappointment?

“We shouldn’t get distracted,” he mutters.

“Distracted by what?”

He shakes his head and then tries to change the subject.

“Why are you on this… team?”

“Because Mara asked me to help,” I answer simply.

“And that’s it. You’re just all in because she asked you to?”

My lips quirk up. “You’ve spent one full day with her. Tell me what you wouldn’t do if she asked you to…”

He nods, knowing I have a point. Hell, I’m pretty sure he was enamored with her before he knew who she was. The look on his face when he figured it out was priceless.

“I’ve known her for about two years, even if we haven’t spoken much in the last year or so.”

“What happened?”

“There was an obvious attraction, like there is now. I pushed, and she ran. But I told her earlier, when I went to get her stuff? I’m letting her make the moves. She’s in charge. I don’t want her to run again.” I raise my gaze to hold his. “And I let her know I’m all in? with her, at least. And I’m willing to explore the unexpected connection she dragged with her.”

His eyes widen, but he doesn’t look put off. I didn’t expect Tony to be into me the way I’m into him, but there’s an intoxicating silence between us. The room becomes warm, the air thick with tension.

He watches, wide eyed and wary, as I take the last few steps between us. I stand so close I can feel the heat of his skin against mine. He swallows, and I watch the movement of his Adam’s apple. His interest is obvious enough, but I want consent.

Hesitant, his head dips in the briefest of nods, surprising me. It was barely noticeable, and he won’t quite look me in the eye, but I make a move, gently placing a hand on his waist. He flinches slightly, but leans into my hand. Slowly, I lean forward and press my lips to his.

At first, he freezes. But then he allows me to pull us closer together, chest to chest, and move my lips against his. His kiss is tentative at first, but then he opens his mouth further to let me in, tongues and teeth clashing against each other as the kiss grows deeper and more passionate.

Before I know it, I have him pressed against the wall of the hallway, just outside the makeshift office. With one hand at his waist, pulling me against him, the other trails down his chest and across the defined muscles of his lower stomach.

There’s almost no point in the towel anymore. The remaining water on his body has evaporated, and his erection is pushing the towel open, no longer covering anything important.

I run one finger under the edge of the towel, loosening it enough that it falls to the ground, leaving Tony completely naked. Reaching between us, I grab his big, thick cock, fisting it and spreading the leaking pre-cum over the tip.

“So thick,” I say breathlessly.

Letting go of his cock, I hold my hand out. “Spit,” I order him. His eyes widen, but he does what I tell him.

Adding my own spit to my palm, I wrap my fist around him again as I take his mouth again. I squeeze as I stroke, ravaging his mouth until he’s moaning. I pump his cock until he comes undone, aiming the spurts of hot cum at my stomach.

Tony leans back against the wall, catching his breath with a shocked look on his face. His gaze flits down to the erection pressing against my jeans. I keep my eyes on his as I unbutton my pants and unzip my fly. My cock bounces free as my pants fall to the ground.

Keeping my eyes on him, I spread his cum down my stomach and over my cock, using it to lube myself as I begin to stroke.

His tongue darts out to wet his lips, his mouth open as he watches me. A hand tentatively jerks towards me, but he seems unsure and pulls it back. I let go of myself for a moment to grab his hand in mine and put it on my cock. I cover his hand with mine and stroke, showing him how I like to be touched.

A bead of pre-cum builds on the head of my cock, and Tony’s tongue darts out again. His pupils are dilated. He swallows twice, like he has an excess of saliva in his mouth.

Cocking my head to the side to study his reaction, I try something else.

“Taste it,” I say firmly.

His gaze snaps to mine for a moment, his brain processing what I just ordered him to do. I can tell that he’s not entirely sure about how he feels about being told what to do, but I can also tell that at least part of him appreciates it. Despite having just come, he’s already twitching back to life.

Slowly kneeling on the ground, he leans forward and flits his tongue out. He rolls the taste of the pre-cum around in his mouth. His eyes seem unsure of what to do next.

I cradle his head in one hand, holding and guiding my cock with the other. Taunting him, I rub the tip across and around his lips before pushing just the tip inside his mouth. His tongue swirls around it before his mouth closes around me, getting used to the idea. His dick is hard again too, I notice.

“Open,” I say, and this time he doesn’t hesitate to do what I tell him. He opens wide, sticking his tongue out like he’s guiding my cock into his mouth.

“Do you taste yourself on my cock, Bunny?” He doesn’t love the nickname, but it makes my cock even harder to see his eyes flash.

He takes me as far back as he can. His gag reflex can’t handle much, but he still surprises me. While he does his best to relax his throat, he wraps his hand around the base of my cock. He squeezes and pumps while he sucks me, and it feels so fucking good.

“Fuck yeah, Bunny. Just like that.”

Yesterday, that nickname annoyed the shit out of him. But in this context, it seems to spur him on, and he bobs up and down on my cock while his hand works the part he can’t take in his mouth.

“Tony,” I warn, giving him a chance to pull away. I’m close to coming and I need to know what he wants me to do with that.

I think back to last night and the way Mara drank him down, slurping like a delicious milkshake. Unexpectedly, Tony doubles down, pumping and sucking even harder until I cry out. Not able to control the jerky movement of my hips as I come, I brace myself on the wall and end up thrusting a little farther back than what his comfort zone might be in. He chokes on my cum, some of it splashing out the side of his mouth when he coughs.

Panting, I pull him up from the ground and push him against the wall, kissing him deeply. I lick the taste of myself off his chin and lips, reaching for his hardened cock and getting ready to drop to my own knees.

“Fuck, I?“ He’s cut off by a phone ringing in the next room. “That’s Bennet’s ringtone, I? shit I have to take this, I’m sorry.” He leans forward to steal another kiss before bending to grab his towel and running off.

I’m in the dining room work space setting up my things when he comes back. Holding a finger to his lips, he puts the phone on speaker so he can use his hands to log on to his computer.

“… keeps getting deeper. Every time I turn another page or find something new, I see another place where my father has been, ruining lives. And that’s not all, Tony?“

The man, I’m assuming Bennet Adley, pauses for a moment. “I’m listening,” says Tony. “I’ve got you on speaker so I can type.”

“Oh, no, it’s not that. My brain is on overdrive, trying to process all of this.”

“Where is everyone? Is the girl okay?” I notice then that there’s no sound in the background, which is notable considering they have a houseful right now.

“They’re fine, Six is fine.” Yesterday, he told Tony that they’d found a small number six tattooed behind her ear. They’re using it as a nickname now, which is certainly better than not having a name to call her. “We’ve been running through the data you sent, plus a bunch of stuff we found that I haven’t had time to tell you about yet. That’s why I’m calling. Everyone else took a walk to process some of what we learned today.”

“What’s going on, exactly?” Tony asks, looking up at me. I think for a moment that he might take Bennet off speakerphone, but if that’s what he was thinking, he decides against it.

“Where to even start… I guess first is the financial data you sent. I told you about my father funneling a massive ton of money into this company, BioCere, Inc, which I originally thought was a shell company of some sort, especially since the address led us to an old warehouse. But the private investigator checked it out, and it’s surrounded by heavy security, all wearing the same uniforms as the guys that came searching for Six in the hospital. And he saw my father there, looking pissed off and being escorted in like he owns the place.”

Tony’s eyebrows shoot up and I quietly scoot closer. This is getting interesting.

“I also found payments that BioCere and my father were making to a handful of people, including all four of the guys I’m currently staying with.”

Whaaattt . My mouth gapes open and Tony gives me a stern look to make sure I don’t make any noise.

“What was he sending payments for?”

“It took a lot of digging, but it looks like each of their families was involved with either my father or a medical study he was part of. Some kind of ‘vaccine study’, although it’s looking more and more like it was an unsanctioned study for something else entirely.”

I search for a pen, pulling a notepad close so I can write out a question. “Paying off the mothers?” I write. Yesterday they were reeling because they’d gotten confirmation that Bennet turned out to be related to three of the five guys that came to Six’s rescue in the park. As in, his father is their father too, but never claimed them. The other two turned out to be together, apparently.

Tony reads my question off the notepad and then voices it. “Were there payments to the mothers of the guys you DNA matched with?” I don’t know why he doesn’t just call them what they are, brothers.

“Yes, which almost makes sense. But then there are payments to Lukas and Micah’s families, too.”

“He didn’t father them too, did he?” Tony asks, slightly horrified. That would be awkward, based on what Bennet has said, it sounds like they have been together for a few years.

“No. Only Luis and Jackson’s mothers were both involved with my father. Jackson’s poor mother was actually in love with him. Apparently, my father more or less preyed on at least two women to get them pregnant, with the intention of testing whatever that ‘vaccine’ was. But Micah and Lukas’ families were different. Their parents were part of some kind of fertility study, where the medication they received looks to be the same as the so-called ‘vaccine’ that the rest of us got. But the parents that received the shot all had terrible side effects.”

“Jesus,” Tony remarks at the same time that I huff out a loud breath. Thankfully, it covered up the sound, but Tony still shoots daggers at me.

“But wait, there’s more,” Bennet says sardonically. “We think Six was running from BioCere, Inc and possibly my father. The CCTV footage was rough. She was definitely involved with the death of that trucker, but it was likely self-defense. After she climbed out of his truck, covered in his blood, she ended up hiding behind a dumpster when she saw these guards show up, looking for her.”

I don’t even know this woman, but I wish I could hug her. It’s tough to fight back. She must have been scared.

“She almost got caught, but they missed her, the way she was shoved in between the dumpsters. After they left she stayed there, and we couldn't see her from the angle of the camera, but when she stumbled out later, she was bleeding profusely from her head.”

There’s more silence while we both absorb everything he’s told us.

“Tony? she’s pretty sure she had a tracker implanted. And I’m pretty sure she cut it out of her own head to save all of us.”

Damn.

“So what’s next? How can w?I help?” Tony almost slips on his words, and it makes me happy that he thinks of us as ‘we’.

“I’m not sure yet, but I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe, Tony. I don’t know how else to describe it, but she’s… special. There’s something different about her, something more…” He trails off a moment, like he forgot he was speaking. “There are two other names I need to research? Smyth and Laiken. I’ll send you what I’ve been able to find, but if you have any magic you can work, it would be helpful.”

Catching Tony’s eye, I nod, letting him know I can help with this. “You got it, Bennet. We’ll dig into it. You stay safe.” He flinches, noticing that he accidentally said “we”.

It’s not until they’ve hung up, and Tony and I have been staring at each other, trying to process all of this new information, that I realize Mara has walked into the room. She’s dropped her duffle bag, staring straight ahead at the computer screen.

“What’s up, Mouse?”

Tony pops up, hurrying over to kiss her on the temple. She looks up at him with a sad smile. “I knocked, but the door was unlocked, so I just came in.”

“It’s okay, I’m glad you’re here.” It’s actually really cute to see such a large, grouchy man act like such a softie around her.

She seems off, though. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. I, um, I can help with what Bennet was just talking about.”

Tony raises an eyebrow. “How’s that?”

“Because I know at least one of those families is dead. The Smyths died almost 25 years ago.”

A gasp leaves my mouth as realization hits me. I wouldn’t have thought to connect it. “Your parents.”

She nods, lifting her chin. I want to tell her she doesn’t have to hide her sadness or pretend to feel strong all the time. But it’s only been days. I can’t expect her to feel that safe with us.

“They died in a car accident when I was seven years old. The medical report said they both had high levels of drugs and alcohol in their system. My mother was pregnant at the time.”

Tony slowly wraps an arm around Mara’s shoulders. She leans into him, letting him comfort her while she tells us everything.

“When I was 18, I received an inheritance. The amount of money that my parents had sitting in savings seemed like a lot, but I chalked it up to life insurance. But when I looked into it more, that wasn’t it. They barely had life insurance, and they had drained all of their savings on IVF.”

I push a chair with my foot, scooting it over to her so she can sit down and get more comfortable. She just stares at it.

“I looked deeper into their financials, any files I could find in storage. All I could find back then was the bank records that they’d received payments from BioCere, Inc.”

Mara sits, tapping her finger on the edge of the table.

“I learned to program because no one would release more information to me. I dedicated my life to finding out what happened to them. The deeper I got, the more it became obvious that BioCere, Inc. paid off my parents to keep them quiet. They did an experimental fertility study after draining their life savings. Whatever the medication was, it worked. But my mother, according to her medical files, was having complications. Not just with her pregnancy, but with terrible headaches.”

A tear trails down Mara’s cheek. “There was a tumor in her brain. She likely would have died within six months of giving birth to my brother.” She wipes the tear away, stiffening her posture, eyes flashing with anger. “I found records from the fertility study. They’d signed away their rights to see a doctor or make any reports about the treatment they’d received, even if there were side effects. My parents had broken the contracts by seeing a doctor outside of the prescribed list of BioCere, Inc. physicians.”

Tony pulls a chair over near us, sitting down next to Mara and placing a hand on her shoulder. I’m bent forward with my hand on her knee. We give her a moment to collect herself as she fiddles with a silver lighter that I’m pretty sure she stole from my apartment. Not that I mind.

“Everything I can find, from financial records to medical records, to a bullshit ME report from the hospital the night they died? it all points to my parents being murdered, and BioCere doing a rather sloppy job of covering it up. But no one cared. They’re above the law.”

Some things aren’t adding up for me. “How could a shitty warehouse be producing anything interesting enough to make that much money, or have that much power?”

“The warehouse is a cover. There’s likely a medical facility in there with that much security, and Bennet’s PI saw some white coats and scrubs coming in and out of the building.” Tony explains.

“There’s also a BioCere, Inc. facility in Atlanta, but it seems to be legit, at least from any preliminary searching I’ve done. Other than the name, there’s nothing that ties the two businesses together. I bet there’s sketchy shit going on in that warehouse.” Mara scowls.

“Well, it sounds to me like we’ve got some work to do,” I say. “Why don’t we get this work space set up and get some dinner, and we’ll dive into decrypting the rest of the files.”