Page 7

Chapter

Seven

R ian did some paperwork while he waited for Symon to call. He knew Quin was out pounding the pavement with Symon’s man of all security trades, Cyrus, looking for lost omegas and trying to figure this thing out. And Symon’s mate was combing records, looking for who might be using the Shiftr app for nefarious purposes.

And he felt…worthless.

Is everything all right? Eyre was bouncing, nose wiggling, sniffing hard. You smell nervous, frustrated. Do you want to do something? We could go do something. Do you want to go bite somebody? Because we could do that too. Or I could just shut up and leave you alone. And paperwork sucks. Nobody wants to do that.

His mate’s mind was a fascinating place. Busy and wild, bouncing from thing to thing, almost slamming off the walls. Rian found himself following the lines of thought. He was utterly caught in the web that his mate was spinning.

“How do you do that?”

Eyre tilted his head, blinked. “Do what?”

“Stay so damn busy inside your head. And out. Doesn’t it exhaust you?”

“Yes, of course. All the time.”

“Ah.” He chuckled. “Now I can see why you want to go do something. I admit, I’m frustrated about sitting and waiting for something to come to light on your problem. And ours,” he hastened to add when Eyre opened his mouth. “I’m not as bad as Quin, but I prefer action.”

“So, what should we do?”

“Well, it can’t hurt for you to take me down to where you used to meet with your friends. See who’s about. We can ask some pointed questions.”

“All right. But some of them are very pretty. They’ll want you, badly.”

“I’m only interested in you.”

Eyre snorted. “You haven’t met them yet.”

“I don’t need to.” He would convince Eyre of that sooner or later. “You’re mine.”

Eyre shivered, visibly, and he loved that.

“I—I want to be, for sure.” Eyre smiled for him.

“Well, good. Let me text Quin and make sure we won’t foul up his investigation if we suddenly show up downtown.” He grabbed his phone, tapping out the text.

Need to do something. Taking Eyre to check on his friends

You’re bored. Go fuck him

Shut up

He would, of course. He would do that and far more. Spanking. Binding. He had so many plans. But they needed to move, to go out and do something first. He had promised.

You won’t step on my toes. I’m not anywhere near a coffee shop

good deal

“Okay, love. We should go get some outside clothes on.”

“Are we going now? Are we going to get a coffee and a pastry, or are we going to do lunch or whatever?”

“Are you hungry?” He grinned, assuming that Eyre must be. He’d had his share of coffee, but nothing else since their prodigious snack the night before.

“I mean, I don’t have any money to buy you lunch.” Now Eyre’s ears were red, his eyes downcast.

“I don’t need you to, love. I’m happy to take you out to—” He shot the sleeve of his sweater so he could check his watch. “Brunch.”

Eyre beamed. “I’ve never been to brunch.”

“Oh, it’s a marvelous meal.” He rose, going to grab Eyre and pull him close for a kiss. “It has the best of lunch and breakfast. We’ll go someplace amazing. Then we’ll go find your friends. You said none of them are morning people.”

“No. No, we always meet at like, two in the afternoon.”

“Perfect. That will put us there just in time.”

Eyre danced some more, so adorable. “Did you text Quin? Do you think he would want to come?”

“Absolutely not.” He winked.

“Can we go somewhere that has chicken and waffles?”

“We can. Yardbird or Four Friends. I’ll see who has a table.” He grabbed his phone, clicking as he headed upstairs to change. “You coming, sweet?”

Eyre bounded up the stairs after him, and he almost did what his brother had told him to. He thought very hard about grabbing Eyre and fucking him silly.

Eyre was a delight, the lad in constant motion now that he was well-loved and well-fed. But he’d promised Eyre they would go out, so he patted that tight little ass. “Go get some of your new clothes on, and we’ll leave in ten.”

“Okay.” Eyre spun away, and he pulled out a pair of casual slacks and a shirt. He never knew who he might run into out in the wild, and he had to look the part of the high-class lawyer. Unless he was in Symon’s neck of the woods. Then he allowed himself to go all cave wolf.

He met Eyre back on the landing, and they headed out to the car. Rian was really looking forward to taking Eyre out and feeding him carrot cake pancakes and chicken and waffles. They would split a couple of different meals, just to give Eyre the full experience.

Oh, and bacon. There needed to be a metric ton of bacon. There was a brunch place that specialized in that, but they didn’t have chicken and waffles.

Another time.

By the time they got good coffee and ordered, Eyre was looking a little wild, his eyes wide, his tongue poking out some. “It smells so good in here.”

“It does, doesn’t it?” He could think of a hundred things to do with that tongue if Eyre would just slide under the table.

Honestly, he had to get control of himself. Eyre was altogether too much of a temptation.

“What are you thinking? Is it something good?” Rian got a wicked little grin, and he could see that nose twitching.

He could see the fox right there under the surface, just begging to get out. “Don’t you shift here,” he warned. “You would cause pure chaos.”

“Oh, you have no idea, I’m super good at that.”

“Chaos or shifting?” he shot back.

“Both. Either. Yes. You know I’m a gorgeous little fox. I have an amazing tail.” Eyre wiggled in the booth.

“If you’re not careful, your tail and my hand are going to have close personal relationships right here in this restaurant.”

“I bet that they would throw you out faster for that than for me shifting to a fox and running amok.”

“That would depend on whether or not you have fleas.” He arched one eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Do I look flea-ridden to you? No. Don’t be an asshole. That’s not nice.”

He thought maybe he’d actually hurt Eyre’s feelings a little bit. That hadn’t been his intention, so he reached out under the table and stroked one taut thigh. “I’m sorry. That was not my intention. I was playing.”

“I know, it’s just, you know, when you don’t have a place, you have to make do. You don’t want people thinking you’re dirty.”

“Of course.” Yes, he needed to be more sensitive to Eyre’s former situation. “I tease Quin about fleas all the time. It never occurred to me.”

Eyre’s grin came back, maybe not as bright, but a grin nonetheless. “Well, now, he might have them. He’s a bit of a mangy beast.” Eyre’s eyebrows went up and down.

“He is!” He chuckled, sipping his coffee. “So, tell me more about your friends who disappeared.”

“They’re not anyone the cops would look for. Not only are they street kid omegas, they’re…deviant, as far as the authorities are concerned. They’re getting what they deserve.”

He scowled. “That’s a foul thing for them to promote. No one deserves to be kidnapped and harmed or sold.”

“No. And no one deserves to be kink-shamed either. We’re not bad. We’re just…different.” Eyre sat there, lips pursed, so sure.

“Exactly, my love. So, we need to help them.”

“We do. They all want alphas that care about them, that know how to hold them and give them what they need.” Eyre smiled when the food came. “Oh my God, smell that. Chicken and waffles and…do those carrot cake pancakes have golden raisins in them?”

“They do.” Eyre had told him he loved raisins. He buttered liberally, then poured the syrup before offering Eyre a generous bite. “Open up.”

Eyre’s lips parted, and Rian moaned. That was such a temptation… And when Eyre nipped the bite off the fork, his cock swelled, making him grunt.

The smile he got told him Eyre knew exactly what was going on.

Rian stole a bite of chicken and waffle, dipped in hot honey, and they proceeded to eat like they were in the bedroom, not in public, moaning and licking their fingers and forks.

They washed up before heading down to the lower end of Colfax, and he parked in a garage with cameras. He followed Eyre to the coffee shop where his friends met, and sure enough, they hit the doors at about a quarter to two.

“Do you want me to lie low, Eyre?”

“At first, yes. I want them to know you’re not the police.”

He hated that the police were the bad guys. Rian knew quite a few cops who were good guys. Solid citizens. But there were many who sucked hairy donkey balls, too.

Just like all subsets of the population, he supposed.

He nodded, handing Eyre a twenty. “Get you and as many friends as you can something. I’ll buy more food and drinks once you settle in and are ready to introduce me.” Rian got in line to grab a black coffee. He’d need it to stay awake after all that food. His wolf wanted a nap.

His little fox bounced away, and he heard a soft cry from the back.

“Eyre!”

“OMG, you’re alive!”

“What happened?”

“Y’all—it was wild. The bartender saved me, and then? I met his brother.” Eyre actually moaned.

He grinned, and he took his coffee and the newspaper on the counter to a little table to sit. He left the one big table for the omegas. They would want a place to sit and talk.

Of course, Rian kept an ear out to see what Eyre said about him.

“So…the brother is cool?”

“No, he’s smoking hot.” Eyre laughed. “But, the best thing is that he and his brothers are going to help us.”

“They are?”

Eyre walked out of the back area to the counter, trailed by three other young men. “Yeah. They are. They’re going to look for all the guys who have gone missing.” Eyre glanced at him. “And his other brother? Not the bartender? Owns Shiftr.”

“What?” That was a round shout, and the barista raised his pierced eyebrow at Eyre and his friends. “Sorry, Dave.”

“No worries. Just keep it down. You know how the boss is, right?”

“We need two large white chocolate mochas with whipped cream, Dave. I have cash.”

“Ooh…” One of the boys applauded.

“No shit on the Shiftr deal? Like for real? He believes you?” That was another boy, this one tall and painfully skinny, nose hawklike.

“I think it’s a scam, Eyre. No one is going to care about us like we want them to.”

“It’s not a scam. I promise. I know shit, right?”

All the other boys nodded. “You have that fox thing,” one of them said.

“I do. I can smell a scam. And Rian smells like… Like home.”

He tried to keep his head down, though he was watching Eyre, but he couldn’t stop his slow grin. Like home, did he? Good. He wanted Eyre to be his. Period.

“I’m serious, guys. He’s good, I swear. Let’s go sit down. I wanna talk to you.”

They all trooped back, and Rian could tell that Eyre was explaining to the others that he was here in the coffee shop. Hawk-nose looked over the top of the booth, and then disappeared. The one with so much makeup was a little braver, holding his eyes for a bit longer than a second. These kids needed help.

Finally, after what felt like an eon of discussion, Eyre simply stood up and brought the three young men with him. They all slid into the booth, and Eyre sat right up next to him.

“Guys, this is Rian. Rian, this is Nick. Wybee, and John. They’re my friends. And they’re good guys, solid friends. I was talking to you about some of them. They’re the ones who are still around.”

Rian held on, hand out to shake, and it was Wybee who took it first.

“Hi. Pleased to meet you.”

He was careful not to smile too wide at the little bird. He didn’t want to be accused of making fun. Goddess, this wasn’t funny, but he was tickled that they all seemed to trust Eyre enough to meet him. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Eyre said that you’re here to help. Is that true?”

He nodded. “Absolutely. My brother owns Shiftr. My other brother was the one who assisted Eyre before. I want to help. These men are predators.”

Nick lifted one pierced eyebrow. “Dude, you’re, like, a wolf. That’s predator like…apex predator.”

Rian rolled his eyes. “Well, you’re a what? Mountain Lion?” At Nick’s nod, he grinned. “Like that’s not another apex predator.”

Nick rolled his eyes, but that got him a grin.

So he was progressing apace.

They’re so scared. Eyre whispered in his mind. They’re just really scared. It’s hard to trust.

I know. And you did such a good job.

Thank you. Eyre ducked his head, pleasure making his cheeks pink.

Rian gave him a smile meant for him alone, then turned to his companions. “So, tell me what you know.”

All three of the omegas started talking at once. Apparently, another young man had gone missing since Eyre had been with him, a falcon shifter named Jonas.

“Tell me exactly what happened.”

Wybee took the lead again. “He was here night before last. Then last night, we were all supposed to meet at X Bar, and he didn’t show up. When we went to the room he’s been renting, all his stuff was gone. Like he’d moved out. Except he was paid through Sunday, and he didn’t tell the lady who rents the rooms he was leaving.”

“Did he leave a note?” Rian asked.

Nick shook his head. “No note. It’s just empty.”

Eyre tilted his head. “That’s really weird. Norris wouldn’t do that. He liked to nest. Maybe I should go look.”

Wybee stared at him. “Why? What do you think you can see that we didn’t?”

“It’s not about what I can see. It’s about what I can smell, right? I do have a better-than-average sniffer, and he’s paid up till Sunday, right? So the landlady’s going to keep it empty.”

“Yeah. Maybe there is something…” Wybee was wavering, Rian could tell, and he was so proud of Eyre.

His fox was clever, quick, and so focused. He was going to have to watch that he didn’t get himself in trouble.

He might have to ban Quin from the house.

Not a chance, brother.

Shoo. No eavesdropping.

“Right, because if there was somebody else, I should be able to smell that.”

Nick’s eyes lit up to gold. “Or if they were alone. I mean, if it wasn’t him. What if it wasn’t him?”

Wybee’s head tilted. “What if it wasn’t? What if someone came and stole all this stuff?”

John rolled his eyes. “I’m more concerned about someone stealing him.”

“Well, I know. I’m just saying…”

John bared his teeth at Wybee. “You’re just saying that you don’t care about him. You’re saying you just care about his stuff.”

“I am not. I don’t give a shit about his stuff. I have my own stuff.”

“You don’t have any stuff. He’s the only one of us that really had a room. Everything that we have is in bags in different lockers.”

Eyre shook his head. “Guys, stop it. We don’t need to be fighting with one another, each other, whatever. We just need to chill out.”

Nick snarled. “I’m tired of chilling out. There’s only four of us left now.”

Rian let a low growl escape. “Enough. How about this? Let’s go look at the room where your friend was last staying, and then we’ll go pick up your things if you’d like, and I’ll find a safe space for you to all stay together. Maybe something with the kitchen where you could cook, have food, just relax.”

They can’t afford that. Hell, I can’t afford it.

I have a little bit of real estate. I’m sure that there’s a little three-bedroom, two-bath house that is desperate to be rented to somebody for pennies. It’s impossible to be safe without shelter and food, right?

Absolutely. Eyre squeezed his hand.

And selfishly, that means the house will have someone in it. Empty houses end up torn to hell here. He winked at Eyre, and Wybee squinted at them.

“Dude. You two are doing the mind-meld thing. Like the mating call. Oodle-ooo. So that’s real?”

Eyre flushed a bright red, his freckles running together. “Um.”

“Yes.” Rian held Eyre’s hand. “Very real.”

The other young men were all talking at once again, laughing and congratulating Eyre. And sure enough, an older man came out of the back room of the coffee shop, seemingly intent on yelling at them.

When he saw Rian, he scowled, but he didn’t say a word. Sometimes, it was good to look a little older and more distinguished than he was, his silver hair paving the way for him being the responsible adult.

Eyre frowned deeply, staring the man down. “We’re not being disruptive, we’re paying customers.”

The asshole scowled. “Just keep it down.”

The four little omegas faded back a bit, but Rian just stared with one eyebrow arched. “What do you know about disappearing omegas?”

“I know that the omegas that were here causing trouble are gone. That’s what’s important. How’s that for clear?”

Rian growled softly, letting his aggravation show, clear as a bell. “They could be in danger. They could be hurt. Kidnapped. Raped.”

The man’s lip curled, and Rian could see the rat behind the human face. “Not my problem. I didn’t ask them to be homeless. I didn’t ask them to be omegas. They don’t belong here around normal people.”

I want to take them out of here. Can we go to our house—your house? I mean your house. Can we go somewhere else? Please. I don’t even have anything to bargain with.

You don’t need anything to bargain with. You asked. And it’s bright, so you know if you hadn’t asked, I would have insisted. “Come on, lads, we’ll find a better coffee shop to go to. Bring your things.”

He had to take them downtown so they could pick up their personal items, he was sure. But first, it was time to get them out of here, get them to a safe space.

Possibly one with a den mother.

“Where are we going?” Wybee asked. “We can’t just go. There’s nowhere to go to.”

“I have a place. It’s just a house with nothing fancy, but there’ll be furniture and food. Water. Hot showers.”

“Whether or not you want to, you’re coming,” Eyre said. “You’re the only friends I have left. I’m worried, and I believe in him. Rian’s a solid man.”

“Fair enough.” John nodded immediately. “I’m in.”

Nick looked worried, at least until Wybee nodded.

Eyre started leading them out. “I trust him, guys. There’s no sex, no strings, just a place until you get on your feet. Just somewhere to relax for half a second. It’s amazing how much relaxing for half a second can do for you.”

“I want that,” John said. “I feel like I’m just so tired.”

“Of course you are.” Rian kept his voice steady, warm. “It’s exhausting not knowing what’s next. Trust me, my brother does this all the time.”

“Quin?” Eyre asked, and he nodded.

“Quin is a rambler. And he throws himself into everything headlong.”

“He saved me, so he’s one of my heroes.”

He got that. Quin was one of his too. He loved both his brothers, but he and Symon both adored Quin, who just seemed to borrow trouble, but then toss it back at people in order to save lives.

Quin made him proud.

“Okay, who needs to go where?” He was glad he’d brought the big SUV.

“I need to go to the boarding house. If I’m not going to stay there anymore.”

“Nope. House. I will ask you all to agree to certain terms.” He held up his hands when Wybee opened his mouth. “Nothing arduous. No rent, to begin with, since I have to pay a caretaker to keep squatters out. But I need some assurances that you’ll keep the place clean and in good condition for me. And if any of you can do basic maintenance…”

“John can,” Wybee said. “And I did roofing for a while.”

“Good. Good deal.” He winked at Eyre as he loaded them all in the car. “Okay, to the boarding house.”

Two hours later, he had them settled at the rental house. The water and power and sewer all worked, and he thought it would be a good place for them to be comfortable and to catch their breath, collectively and individually.

Then he ordered pizza, garlic bread, salad, and Cokes, and he was the freaking man of the year.

“Oh, my God, there’s streaming.” John bounced all over.

Nick raised an eyebrow at Rian, and he shrugged. He’d had the internet turned back on today as well. “Might as well be able to watch movies and such.”

“Thanks, man. Seriously.”

“You’re welcome. It’s hard to get momentum when you have nowhere to do downtime.”

“I know. And we appreciate it. You two don’t have to stay and eat with us.”

“Are you kidding? Eyre loves pizza.” He winked, but honestly, he wanted more time, now that they were relaxed, to question the young men about the Shiftr scam.

Arming himself with every bit of information he could find just made sense.

It was when he and Eyre were washing up and planning to leave that Wybee pulled him aside.

“Wybee. Are you okay?” He liked the kid, who was clearly a large bird shifter of some sort.

“There’s another guy missing. One the others don’t know about.” Wybee held something out to him. “I have his phone.”

“How did you?—”

“I found it in the alley behind the coffee shop. I knew if I took it to the cops, they would see me as a suspect.”

“You’re probably right.” He took it, clapping Wybee on the shoulder. “What’s his name?”

“Laughlin. We, uh, saw each other sometimes.”

“Sure.” Sympathy arced through him. “My brother’s mate is a code man. I bet he can crack this phone unless you know Laughlin’s code.”

“I don’t.”

“That’s okay. May I take this?”

“If you’ll try to get him back.”

Rian nodded. “I promise.”

“Thank you. He’s—he’s a good guy. Gentle.” Wybee blushed. “I care about him, you know? He won’t last any time with rough treatment.”

“I understand.” He did, in fact. Some people liked a little pain or discipline. Some a lot. And some wilted under any of it. “We’ll find him.”

If it killed them. Which it might.

They got in the car, and he glanced at Eyre. “Are you up for a trip to Symon’s?”

Eyre vibrated, nose twitching. “Why?”

“Wybee. Remember? He has a phone for us to crack. I need to take it to Adrian.”

“Of course. The guys?—”

“I left a bodyguard on them. They’ll be fine.”

“Oh.” Eyre relaxed back. “Thank you.”

“Of course. I would help regardless, but now…” Now he had even more reasons.