Cage Match (17 page)

“As long as they keep out of the King‟s business. Fuck with the status quo, and

you fuck with me.”

“Can you tell us more about the facility you escaped from? Where is it, and how

did you get out?”

“You ask too damn many questions.”

“He‟s trying to help. He‟s always trying to help,” Jabez said.

“Maybe we can do something to shut it down if you tell us where it is.” Andreas

moved toward them, entreating with his open hands and concerned expression.

“That side of the wall. Uptown.” Leonidas jerked his thumb. “Big white building,

long and low, no windows. When I got out, I saw the capitol dome way up the hill, so I

guess it was south about a dozen blocks. The industrial section.”

“Thank you. That‟s very useful.”

“How useful?”

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Bonnie Dee

“We didn‟t bring any cash or credits, Lightning, so don‟t try to jack us.” Jabez

pulled back his jacket to reveal the pistol he wore.

“Hey, man, we‟re friends. I wouldn‟t think of it.” The dark glitter in his eyes

could‟ve been amusement or anger. With Lightning, Jabez recalled, one often flared into

the other.

“We‟ve gotta go now.” Jabez took Andreas‟s arm.

“Keep it real, brother. Don‟t let your friend fancy you up too much,” Lightning

advised.

“Nice meeting you, Mr. King,” Andreas shouted over his shoulder as Jabez pulled

him away.

Not until they‟d made it to the checkpoint within sight of the guards did Jabez

relax. He glanced back to find King Leonidas and his mate had disappeared into the

crowd.

“Well, that was interesting,” Andreas said. “If it‟s true, then it‟s another reason to

shed some light on what goes on here in Brick Town and how the people are treated.

The city can‟t ignore this place any longer.”

Jabez clamped his mouth shut as the uniformed guard checked their IDs and

paperwork and ushered them through the gate. When they were seated safely in

Andreas‟s glider, he finally spoke.

“Do you see? There‟s nothing you can do to fix that place. People like him and all

the other gang lords will take whatever money you throw at B-town. The people you

want to help won‟t see any aid.”

“So we shouldn‟t even try?”

“Do whatever you want, but I‟m telling you how it is.”

“Noted.” Again Andreas‟s voice was cool and didn‟t sound like the man Jabez had

come to know. Andreas guided the gleaming vehicle onto the expressway and headed

out of the city toward home.

Toward home
. As the word rang in his mind, Jabez knew he‟d become far too

attached to both the man and his living situation. Even if Andreas gave him enough

severance pay to travel the world, there was no place else he wanted to go.

Realizing how much he cared scared the hell out of him. He hunkered in brooding

silence, closing Andreas out because he‟d let him too far in.

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Chapter Nine

It was the first night in a long time that Andreas had slept in his bed alone. He

missed the warmth of Jabez‟s big body pressed up against his side or curved around his

back. He missed the weight of the other man‟s arm slung over him or his heavy leg

pinning him down. How had he become accustomed to having a bed partner so

quickly?

In the past, he‟d found it annoying when one of his overnight guests stayed too

long. They were sexy and fun, but he wanted them gone by pretty early in the morning

so he could get on with his day. He‟d never once felt that way about Jabez. He could

linger in bed with him for hours and never grow tired of it, maybe because Jabez didn‟t

chatter and gossip about stupid things.

As he heaved an impatient sigh and rolled over again, he wondered if Jabez

missed sleeping with him too. After their trip to B-town, he‟d remained quiet, sunk in

his memories. Andreas had wanted to patch up their earlier quarrel and take back his

suggestion they put their sexual relationship on hold. But considering Jabez‟s comment

about taking his earnings and leaving, Andreas realized he was the one who was going

to end up with a broken heart when his lover eventually walked away. Better to stick to

his resolve to back off on the sex that had transformed into deeper emotions on his part.

Maybe if he gave Jabez time and space, he‟d realize he had feelings for Andreas too. If

not, wasn‟t there some old saying about “if you love something, set it free”?

The uneasy night passed in fitful dozes and long, sleepless stretches, and when

Andreas woke in the morning, he had the prospect of combat with Jabez to look

forward to. He‟d come to equate the hand-to-hand duels with sex. They left him as

charged up as any foreplay.

Before he finished dressing, his phone rang. His father‟s voice snapped through

the earpiece. “Andreas, come into the office today. I have something to discuss with

you.”

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Bonnie Dee

The forbidding tone made him nervous, but Andreas chose to ignore it and use the

opportunity presented to him. “Good, because there‟s something I need to share with

you too. An idea I had about—”

“Eleven thirty in my office then. I have a lunch date at noon.” His father cut the

connection before he could respond.

His stomach churned as it often did when he had to deal with his father. They had

few personal things to talk about, no shared history of baseball games or father-son

fishing trips. Their contact throughout the years had always been brief and businesslike.

Andreas had been another appointment for Quentin Fortias to schedule into his

overcrowded day.

The only good thing about his father‟s early-morning call was that it distracted

him from fixating on Jabez. When he went to the training room where Jabez was

practicing slow-motion martial arts moves, Andreas simply watched the beautiful

dance and rippling play of muscles for a few moments before interrupting.

“I have to meet my father in the city this morning. I won‟t have time for a

workout.”

Jabez brought his hands down to his sides and turned toward him. In the early-

morning sunlight pouring through the glass, his eyes were a bright blue that made

Andreas‟s heart flip. “All right.”

Andreas paused on the verge of asking him along. Jabez could wait during the

meeting, and afterward they could go to a restaurant and see some sights around the

city. It would be a pleasure to show him the art museum and the ships in the harbor. Or

they could drive out to the nature preserve and take a walk. But they weren‟t dating,

and he was supposed to be distancing himself. Andreas closed his mouth and walked

from the room.

He ate breakfast alone, organized the materials for his presentation, including

running through his speech, then went out to the garage and got in the glider. He sat for

a moment behind the wheel, thinking about what his father might want with him

today. He‟d never call him in for a commendation, so it was probably a reprimand for

something he‟d done wrong.

As he‟d done many times before, Andreas ran through his recent actions to try to

figure out what his transgression might have been. The top contender was punching

Timon in front of the club. Somebody in the crowd taking footage of celebrities had

spread images of the fight to the media. At least there was no way his father would‟ve

found out about the visit to Brick Town or his houseguest, Jabez.

There was no point in worrying about facts he couldn‟t change. Andreas took a

deep breath and exhaled, expelling his anxiety before zipping out of the driveway. Soon

he was on the highway retracing yesterday‟s route into the city.

As country quickly gave way to the urban zone, Andreas saw the glistening white

splendor of New Englandia with new eyes. After the squalor and filth of Brick Town,

the sparkling buildings made of faux marble and Sturdi-glass appeared almost too

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pristine to be real. The architectural style was all new-Greco-Roman chic since the city

had been built postplague. The classic columns and symmetrical facades were pleasing

to the eye, and the gardens, statues, and fountains that decorated the city were lovely,

but for the first time Andreas perceived the false front they presented.

Everything wasn‟t beauty and light in New Englandia any more than it was in the

dark tumor of B-town. There were hidden ills beneath the glossy surface, including the

mysterious laboratory Leonidas had claimed existed—if the “king” had told the truth.

Andreas decided to look for the building when his appointment with his father was

over. If he could locate it, he‟d try to find out the truth and who was accountable for

what went on inside.

But right now he needed to concentrate on maintaining a cool, collected front as he

faced off against his own personal demon. Andreas was already sweating, and not from

heat, as he walked from the car park into the Fortias Building and took the lift to his

father‟s office suite on the top floor.

As he walked down the hushed hallway, he ticked off his talking points about the

Brick Town project. He decided to outline the pluses for Fortias before beginning his

laundry list of B-town‟s needs. Not only would they be fulfilling community needs, but

their generosity would give a boost to the Fortias name. Urban revitalization and new

jobs would create more consumers for all the products and services of the corporation‟s

many companies.

His father‟s secretary greeted him. “He‟s ready for you.” Which translated meant,

You’ve kept him waiting, and he’s already annoyed.

Andreas checked the time on his watch. He wasn‟t even late yet. It was several

minutes before eleven thirty. He surreptitiously wiped his damp palms on his trousers

before entering the office and extending his hand across his father‟s desk. “Father.”

The image of himself in twenty-five years glanced up and nodded, but didn‟t rise

or shake his hand. “Andreas. Sit down.”

He sank into the chair and gazed across the highly polished surface of the desk at

his father‟s folded hands, then forced himself to lift his gaze to his eyes.

“Is there a problem?” Andreas followed his father‟s cue and cut through any

pleasantries. He had a sinking feeling today was exactly the wrong time to present his

plan and that there would probably never be a right one.

“I‟ve heard about your new living arrangement. It‟s unacceptable. Perhaps if

you‟d acted discreetly, you might‟ve gotten away with hosting a killer in your house,

but now that you and that man are splashed all over the media, you‟ll have to get rid of

him.”

“Excuse me?” Andreas had caught a glimpse of the fight on the media-screen the

morning after it had happened, but he‟d been so focused on his trip to Brick Town that

he hadn‟t listened to more than a few words of the broadcast.

“I said get rid of him. You‟re damaging the Fortias name with your behavior, fist

fighting over a whore.”

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“How did they find out about Jabez?” But Andreas already guessed the answer.

His friends had spread the word.

“It doesn‟t matter. I knew about your latest peccadillo days ago, and I should‟ve

said something then, but I hoped you‟d get bored quickly and send the man back where

you got him. Now it‟s gotten messy, so I‟m forced to intervene.” His scowl deepened. “I

don‟t have time for this nonsense. If the media approaches you, you should express

remorse for drinking too much and fighting, but refuse to comment on your lover.”

“I am sorry for hitting Timon, although I wasn‟t drunk. But I
don’t
apologize for

bringing Jabez home. He‟s been training me to defend myself and… Actually, „no

comment.‟ You don‟t need to know about him any more than the media does. He‟s my

business.”

“No, son. He‟s
our
business, because unchecked gossip can affect our business.

You need to learn what you do has repercussions. It reflects on the family name, which

in turn reflects on the corporation‟s image.”

Andreas swallowed and counted slowly to ten while keeping his hands loose on

the arms of the chair. “I understand that, which is why I‟ve been discreet, except for the

incident outside the club. I‟ll call the press, make my apology, and explain that Jabez is

my new bodyguard. You have a platoon of bodyguards, Father. No one is going to

question me hiring one.”

He held still and waited. His father was the master of nerve-racking pauses. But

when Quentin spoke again, his tone had actually lightened. “That‟s not a bad spin. I

suppose you can keep him around in that capacity, but I don‟t want to see any more

news about you splashed across the media. This is a delicate time for Fortias. Public

opinion isn‟t as…favorable as it used to be. We want to present an impeccable