by Amber Kell
Greg cupped Rain’s cheek. “Remind me to punish you later for cursing.”
Rain gave a watery chuckle. “Okay, Sir.”
“I’m going to call my friends. I don’t know if they can arrest this guy on the evidence of some photos. Especially since digital pictures can be doctored. At least if there is some evidence against Dalrey he might be less likely to come after you. It’s hard to clear up a mistake if there are dead bodies.”
“That’s why I didn’t want you involved. I knew you’d want to fix this.” Rain couldn’t see a way out and now Greg could be getting himself killed trying to save him. Greg was naïve if he thought Dalrey would let this go. If he would shoot another cop in an alley, offing a photographer with no family couldn’t be that much more of a problem. If Rain disappeared it could be months before anyone came to investigate unless Greg kept track of him.
“Enough! I’m going to make some phone calls and rally the troops. We’ll get you out of this.”
“I appreciate the sentiment but you can’t promise that.”
“You’d be surprised at what I can do. Get yourself a snack while I call around.”
Rain nodded. He already made it sound like he didn’t trust his Dom but he didn’t want Greg to put himself in danger just because Rain was an idiot and took pictures of a murder.
Chapter Four
In the end Greg called Lindi Samms for help. He might be a gallery owner but he had connections, or at least his sub Will did. “Hey, Lindi, I need to talk to your boy.”
“No.” Lindi didn’t even try to sweeten his response. No one talked to Will unless Lindi cleared them. Will was a serious lifestyle sub and didn’t even eat without Lindi’s nod. Greg found that sort of dedication laudable but too time consuming for him. He wondered what sort of sub Rain would be in a long-term relationship. He had a feeling if he told Rain not to eat the feisty brunet would punch him. Greg smiled.
“I’m not screwing around, Lindi. This is a matter of life or death. A crooked cop is hunting Rain. I need to see if I can have Will contact his family and either find me a good bodyguard or at least see if there’s any dirt on this guy.”
“I see. Normally I’d tell you to fuck off but Will likes you. Let me get him on the phone.”
Greg heard the soft murmur of voices talking in the background then Will came on the phone. “What can I do for you, Greg?”
Greg quickly recounted what was going on.
“Why don’t you call the chief and I’ll call my brothers. It will work best if we approach this from both sides I think.” Will’s take-charge tone took Greg by surprise. The sub generally let Lindi run everything. Maybe he’d misjudged the man all these years.
“Thanks, Will. I’ll do what I can here. I appreciate any help you can give.”
Will bid Greg goodbye. Lindi got back on the phone. “I’m not going to let him get involved in anything dangerous.”
“I’m only asking for his contacts. I don’t expect Will to come here and get in the line of fire.”
“You think there’ll be gunfire?” Lindi asked.
“I’m trying to avoid it. Rain took a photo of a cop shooting another cop. I’m trying to get the officer arrested before he hunts Rain down.”
“Fuck!” Lindi cursed.
“My thoughts exactly.”
“I’ll let you know as soon as Will hears something from his family.”
“Thanks.” Greg cut the connection. He went through his contacts until he found the chief’s number. He pressed Manuel Garcia’s name to connect. He’d known the Dom for years but hadn’t ever used him for his police contacts before. Greg didn’t like to pull in favors unless necessary. He’d introduced Manuel to his sub, Terry. The pair had been together for six years now.
“Hello.”
“Hello Manuel, this is Greg Carter.”
“Greg, how are you doing?” Manuel’s deep voice boomed across the line.
“Well, that’s what I’m calling you about. My sub is having a problem I was hoping you could help us with.”
“You have a sub? When did this happen? Last I heard you were a lone wolf. You’ll have to bring him by to meet Terry. He could always use some sub friends.”
“I’ll do that,” Greg promised. “First I need to get him out of his current problem.”
“Well, I’m not fixing his parking ticket. I don’t care how pretty his eyes are or if he can suck like a dream.”
“I only wish it was something that simple,” Greg muttered. “He’s a photographer and he took pictures of one of your cops killing another one. As you can imagine he’s afraid to go to the police.”
“What cop? How come I didn’t hear of anyone getting killed?” The chief’s hard tone told Greg heads were going to roll.
“Officer Dalrey is the cop and I don’t know why no one told you of the cop’s death. Maybe they don’t know yet.”
“Send the picture to me. I can try and identify the dead man. If Dalrey killed one of our own he’s going down for it I don’t care that he’s the governor’s nephew.” Manuel rattled off an email address for Greg to send the file to. “I’ll call you after I look it over.”
Fuck.
“Sounds good. Bye.” Greg hung up and went to join Rain on the couch. “I need you to send the photos to the chief’s email address. He’s going to try and identify the victim.”
“And you’re sure he’s not corrupt?” Rain frowned. Worry creased his forehead.
Greg considered everything he’d observed about the chief over the years. “As sure as I can be.”
“Okay.” Rain opened his email account and minutes later sent the attached files to the chief. “Now what?”
Greg wrapped an arm around Rain and pulled him closer. “Now we wait.” There wasn’t anything they could do before hearing back from the others. Exhaustion pulled at Greg. Closing his eyes and shutting out the world sounded like a great idea right now.
“I really do like you,” Rain said.
“I like you too.” Rain was an enigma, both a hardened soldier and a young man who needed a hug when things got tough.
Someone banged on the front door.
“Grab your laptop,” Greg urged.
“I need my camera!” Rain jumped up and ran down the hall.
“Fuck!” Greg whispered. They were panicking and they didn’t even know who was at the door. If it were some Girl Scout selling cookies he’d never tell anyone of his terror at the possibility of a cop standing on the other side of his door.
Trying to walk as quiet as possible, he approached the front window and peeked beneath the curtain. Dalrey stood on his doorstep. Greg jumped back before the cop could see him.
“I know you’re in there!” Dalrey shouted.
Greg shoved his feet into his shoes then scooped up his wallet and keys before racing after Rain. The sub had his camera around his neck and his laptop tucked beneath his right arm.
“Come, love. Let’s get out of here.” Greg wished he could pull out a gun and go out blazing but he didn’t believe in them. His gut told him Dalrey had come alone. Now wouldn’t be the time for his instincts to be wrong.
Walking to the big picture window he blessed the fact he’d bought new windows last year. The glass slid open with a quiet shush of sound. Greg stuck his head out but didn’t see anyone. He climbed out first. “Give me the laptop.”
Rain handed it over then let Greg help him out the window. After Rain cleared the ledge, Greg closed it as well as he could. Hopefully no one would break in and steal everything he owned.
He kept hold of the laptop and grabbed Rain’s wrist. “Stay quiet so he won’t hear us.”
The townhouse wasn’t so large Dalrey wouldn’t hear them if they were too loud. If they ran the cop might see them. Greg patted his pockets, then did it again. “Fuck!”
“What’s wrong?” Rain asked.
“I left my phone on the coffee table.”
“Damn.” Rain reached into his pocket and cursed. “Mine m
ust’ve fallen out in the play room.”
“Fuck.” Greg continued walking at a fast pace, but not so fast they’d attract attention. “We need to get somewhere we can make a phone call.”
“Freeze!” a deep voice shouted. Greg exchanged looks with Rain. In unison, the pair ran. Greg kept a tight grip on the laptop.
“Run!” Greg wasn’t fast but Rain had a sleek build and Greg knew he jogged.
“Give me the computer!” Dalrey shouted. “I’m going to shoot.”
Greg stopped in his tracks. Silently he urged Rain to continue. If Rain didn’t run off he’d tan his ass later. “Don’t you want the camera instead?”
“You think I’m stupid?” The cop scowled at him while Greg held back the obvious response. “I bet he downloaded them already or you wouldn’t be taking the computer with you.”
“It’s too late. We already sent them to the Chief of Police.” After he said those words Greg knew he’d made a miscalculation.
A crazed look filled Dalrey’s eyes. “Then I don’t have anything to lose anymore by killing you.”
Dalrey lifted his gun to shoot him. Greg ran forward and slammed the laptop into the cop’s hand. The gun went flying into the tall grass. Greg fled. If he stayed there Dalrey would shoot him.
He turned the corner. A hand reached out and grabbed his arm. Greg lifted his fist to punch when he recognized Rain’s face. “Fuck, babe. I almost hit you.”
“You’re an idiot! You should’ve run,” Rain said in an angry whisper. “How dare you put yourself in danger. He could’ve shot you!”
“He still might.” Greg looked around to get his bearings. “Come on. My friend lives a few blocks from here. He’ll let us use his phone.”
“Okay.” Rain cast a scared glance down the alley. “Let’s go.”
They peered around the corner but Dalrey was nowhere to be seen. “Where did he go?” Greg asked. He didn’t like this at all. Dalrey was a loose cannon and appeared more than willing to kill them to hide the evidence.
“I can’t believe he thought all the evidence was on the computer. Hasn’t he heard of cloud storage?” Rain snorted.
“Don’t mock the psychopath,” Greg said absently. His entire attention focused on getting them out of there alive. “I wonder how he found us so fast.”
“He probably ran your license,” Rain said.
“Fuck. You’re right.” It would’ve been a simple thing for him to run Greg’s license and get his address. He didn’t even have to tail him for that.
There was no sign of Dalrey as they approached Lindi’s apartment.
They were steps from the front door when a car screeched to a stop on the street. Dalrey slid out from behind the wheel, a pistol clutched in his hand. Damn. He must’ve found it. How did they not see him trailing them? He was a sneaky fucker.
“Run,” Greg grabbed Rain’s wrist and ran toward the building dragging Rain behind him. Gunfire echoed in the courtyard. Greg didn’t look back. He couldn’t waste valuable time. He needed a phone.
The apartment security met them at the door. When Greg slid inside the security guards looked seconds from finding weapons of their own to stop them from coming closer.
“I need a phone. That cop out there is trying to kill us.”
One of the security guards smirked. “Likely story.”
“No, I recognize him. He’s one of Mr. Samms’s friends.” a different guard said.
The other guards took a step back.
“Yes, I am. Can I borrow a phone?” Greg asked.
“I can call the police,” one of the guards offered.
“He is the police,” Rain said.
“My brother’s a cop. I’ll call him,” said a security guard with the name Frank written on his badge.
“I don’t feel so good,” Rain whispered.
Greg tightened his grip but that didn’t stop Rain from falling to the ground and smacking his head on the granite. Blood splattered across the white marble from where he fell like bloody angel wings.
“Call an ambulance,” Greg shouted. Another shot rang out. Greg instinctively ducked. Screams reached him from people on the street.
“Bring him over here,” Frank called out.
“I don’t know if it’s safe to move him.”
Rain’s eyes slid closed. “Run, don’t get killed for me.”
“Don’t you leave me!” Greg shouted. Rain couldn’t die. That wasn’t how things were supposed to go. He still planned to see Rain’s beautiful eyes light up when Greg offered him a collar.
Sirens pierced through the air, a welcoming sound. Greg hoped an ambulance wasn’t far behind. The doors slammed open and cops filled the foyer. A uniformed blond with kind green eyes dropped down beside them. “What happened?”
“Dirty cop,” Greg said.
The blond didn’t say anything more. “They have him surrounded out there and an ambulance is on the way.”
“Good.”
“Where was he shot?” the cop asked.
“I don’t know.” With all the blood he’d been afraid to disturb Rain to search for the wound. “He said he didn’t feel good.”
“Did he hit his head when he fell?”
Greg nodded. “Yeah. I broke his fall a bit but he still hit pretty hard.”
The doors opened again and two paramedics rushed in. After they braced Rain’s neck they lifted him onto the gurney. Greg got to his feet. “I want to go with him.”
“Are you family?”
“His husband,” Greg said without hesitation.
“Then come with us,” one of the paramedics said.
Greg snatched up Rain’s camera and laptop and ran after them. No way would he let Rain go anywhere without him. The drive to the hospital starred as one of the most horrific moments of Greg’s life. Rain began gasping and they had to give him oxygen.
“Shh. I’ve got you.” Greg tried to be reassuring and stay out of the paramedics’ way at the same time.
Rain’s eyes met his and the relief in his sub’s eyes reassured him he’d made the right decision to come along. At the hospital they sent him to the waiting room where he sat clutching Rain’s laptop. Rain’s camera had a broken lens and would take some repair. If it couldn’t be fixed Greg would get him a new one. Rain had to be okay. There weren’t any other choices.
A cop approached and Greg immediately tensed.
“Are you Greg Carter?”
“Yes.”
“The chief told me to come by and tell you they captured Dalrey. He’ll be going to jail for attempted murder.”
“What about an actual murder?” Greg asked.
“I don’t know anything about that,” the cop said. “I just know what I’m told.”
“Thank you,” Greg said. He resisted the urge to tear the cop a new asshole. Killing the messenger wouldn’t be fair.
“I want to tell you I’m sorry it was one of our own. Dalrey used to be a good cop. I don’t know what happened to him.”
“Yeah, me neither.” So many factors could go into someone turning into a killer. Money usually played a part. As long as Dalrey stayed in jail Greg didn’t care what he went there for.
“Chief said to call him if you need anything.”
“I need my boyfriend to not die. Can he do anything about that since it was his one of his men who did it?” Greg snapped. So much for his resolve.
The officer shook his head. “I’m going to head back to work. I’m sorry about your guy.”
Greg nodded. The cop did sound sincere and it wasn’t his fault Rain had been shot. Greg let him go without further comment.
“Greg!” Will ran down the hall and slid to a stop before him. Lindi followed at a more sedate pace. “Is Rain okay?”
“I don’t know. I haven’t had an update yet.” His chest ached and his stomach churned while he waited to hear anything at all about Rain’s condition.
“I called Stephen. He’s on his way,” Will said.
“Thanks.” Greg c
ould use the company. Waiting to hear Rain’s status had shattered his nerves and he was one toxic cup of coffee away from destroying his stomach lining.
Will sat beside him and patted Greg’s leg. “That’s what friends are for. I did some research on your cop and he was into some bad shit. Internal Affairs has been watching him. Apparently he had his own drug gig on the side.”
Greg raised an eyebrow over Will’s information. “And how do you know this?”
“Yes, how do you know this, my sweet boy?” Lindi asked.
Will blushed. “My dad might know some people.”
“Uh huh. I don’t think I want to know any more,” Greg said.
Will let out a deep breath. “Good.”
Lindi laughed. “Greg might have given you a reprieve but we will be talking more about it when we get home.”
“Yes, Sir,” Will said.
A doctor came out. “I’m looking for relatives of Rainier Lemmon.”
Greg raised his hand and stood. “He’s mine.” The rightness of those words sank down to his soul.
“I’m Dr. Henner and I performed the surgery on Mr. Lemmon. I’m happy to report that although the bullet went into Mr. Lemmon’s chest it missed all major arteries and organs. I was able to successfully extract it. With a bit of care, Mr. Lemmon should make a full recovery.”
“Can I see him?”
“They are pulling him out of ICU now. When he is in his new room there is no reason why you wouldn’t be able to visit.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
Greg shook hands with the man then went back down to wait.
Epilogue
“Jake, could you turn just a little to the left? I want to get a better view of Paul’s harness,” Rain said.
The couple moved into position. Rain took a series of shots before repositioning them again. When he had a dozen shots he liked he stopped. “I think that’s enough. I’ll email you your pictures and you can pick which ones you want me to clean up and print out.”
“Thanks, man.” Jake towered over Rain but his smile lit up the room. He tucked Paul beneath his shoulder while Paul beamed up at his partner.