When dinner was finished, Maddox brought out ice cream and, to Buzz’s obvious surprise, a birthday cake with eighteen candles. Just as Maddox set the cake in front of him a breeze kicked up, blowing out the candles.
“I could have done that myself,” Buzz grumbled as he began cutting slices for everyone.
Lon left for a moment, returning with three gifts which he put in front of Buzz. “There would have been more, if we weren’t miles from the closest store,” Lon told him.
One of them was a pocket knife from Lon. “You said you always wanted one like mine, so there you go.”
“Lon, this is yours,” Buzz protested, trying to hand it to him.
“Not anymore, so shut up and keep it. Okay?”
“Yeah, okay. Thank you!”
The second gift was from Maddox and Ran—three new, heavy sweatshirts. “Because winter will be here before you know it,” Maddox explained, even though it was barely the beginning of summer.
Then came the final present. Buzz opened it carefully then smiled, looking at Jude. “This is from you, I bet. It’s fantastic. Thank you!” He held it up so everyone could see the drawing Jude had done of the Encampment.
Like the rest of them, Davie told Jude he’d done a great job, “Even if you didn’t draw all of us wandering around.” He knew why, and respected the reason. The Encampment was a safe haven for all of them and even though chances were slim anyone else would see it, Jude had refrained from putting any of them in danger by adding them to the picture.
Davie looked at all his friends, and they were friends even if he’d only known them for two short weeks. I’m going to miss being here. He sighed, jumping when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning, he saw Vin, who nodded. Despite the fact he didn’t say a word, he knew Vin was feeling the same thing. We’ll be back, though—I hope.
Chapter 7
At first glance the shelter Slade owned looked like most of the other ones Davie had used or gone by during his months on the streets. The only difference was the location. It was only a few blocks from a residential area and a large park that he remembered from his childhood. As he got out of the truck, he patted his pocket, double-checking that his wallet with his new ID was still there.
Once inside, Davie saw it was far from the run-of-the-mill shelter. The front room was neat and clean, set up with a desk where kids wanting to stay the night, or at least get something to eat, had to check in. The two men manning the desk were friendly—even more so when Maddox introduced them to a man named Carson, and told him Davie and Vin were there under Slade’s auspices. Then, he left. Within minutes the pair were taken to one of the many rooms meant to hold four to six homeless kids.
“Better than a dorm room,” Davie whispered to Vin, getting a nod in return. As it was mid-Sunday afternoon all four beds were available so they chose two next to each other along one wall.
“Supper’s between six and seven,” Carson said. “The dining room is next to the recreation area we came through on our way here.” He dug into his pocket then handed them each a key. “These are for the lockers. Give them back when you leave tomorrow. Oh, Davie, I have a message for you from Slade. The man who was looking for you is no longer in the picture, to quote him. He’s currently residing in the city jail awaiting arraignment for stalking and threatening your mother. Slade says the chances he’ll get out on bond are slim to none.” Carson winked, adding, “I’m certain Slade will make sure of that.”
“He’s that powerful?”
“Let’s say he has friends in high places and leave it at that,” Carson replied, then as he left the room he said, “If the two of you need anything, let me know.”
Davie heaved a sigh of relief as soon as Carson was out of earshot. “One less thing to worry about.” When Vin didn’t reply, Davie asked, “Are you okay? I don’t think you said three words since we left the Encampment.”
“I’m fine,” Vin replied tightly.
“Doing your strong and silent thing again?”
Vin shrugged as he put his pack in one of the lockers which were at the far end of the room.
“Want to talk?”
That elicited a small smile from Vin as he replied, “When do I ever?”
“Look. We’re in this together.” Davie paced for a moment then looked at him. “You said you knew the area we’re going to. Is there something there you’re worried about? Or someone?”
For a long moment Davie was certain Vin wasn’t going to answer. Then he said, “Sit,” pointing to the bed Davie had chosen. Davie did, while Vin sat across from him on the other bed. “To start with, and you probably figured this out, Vin is short for Vincent, or Vincente to be perfectly honest.” He pronounced it Veen-CHEN-te. “I never had a street name. I figured I didn’t need one because I didn’t grow up here.” He paused. “Is Davie your real name?”
“Yeah. I decided why change it since neither my mom nor the bastard would probably come looking for me. Boy was I wrong, although it took him half a year before he did.”
“Makes sense, I suppose. Anyway, I come from back east, from what’s called a connected family, or my father was. Yeah, that’s exactly what it sounds like. He made it real clear when I was growing up that I was supposed to follow in his footsteps. I rebelled. If that wasn’t bad enough, he found out I’m gay. When that happened, he called a couple of friends.” Vin grimaced. “They tried a sort of conversion therapy on me, if you want to call it that. By the time they finished I had a broken arm, two broken ribs, and a ruptured spleen. And enough bruises to make it look like I went ten rounds with a heavyweight champion.”
“Damn, Vin!”
“Yeah. Not fun. I spent a couple of weeks in the hospital. As soon as I could, I got out of there. My sister, bless her heart, was willing to help. She brought me some clothes and gave me some money, without letting my father know. It was enough for me to leave town. I was almost eighteen when all that happened. I hitched across the country, stopping a few times along the way until I got here. By then I’d run out of money, so I did what any homeless guy does, I started begging and crashing wherever I thought it was safe.”
When Vin went silent, Davie asked, “Something must have changed. I mean not how you were living…surviving, but something.”
“Yeah. I ran into an old boyfriend, only it turned out he wasn’t a friend anymore, but I didn’t realize that until too late. I was so happy to see someone I knew, I got stupid and didn’t wonder what the hell he was doing out here—or ask. It was just damned luck that I saw him talking to one of the guys who worked for my father. Best I can figure, knowing Dad, he used his connections to track me down somehow. To the city, anyway. Then he coerced the guy into looking for me, figuring I’d think he was still my friend. To make a long story short, I laid low that night, planning on getting out of the city ASAP. Instead, I ran into Grey when I thought I’d found a safe place to crash, which he said wasn’t. That kid’s smart.”
“No kidding,” Davie agreed.
“He has a way of getting you to talk about yourself, or he did with me. It took two days before I was willing to, during which he showed me better hiding places and made sure I had something to eat. Then, he told me he knew a man. The rest is history, as they say.”
“You ended up at the Encampment.”
“Yeah. Knowing my father…” Vin scowled deeply. “Hell, what kind of asshole does that to his own kid? The beating, sending out his people to find me? Did he think I’d come crawling back? Or does he want me out of the picture because I know more than he likes about what he’s into? Whatever the reason, I was definitely willing to accept Slade’s help. Now he needs mine in return and there’s no way I was going to say no.”
“Me, neither, though I don’t get why he picked me.”
“Take a look at yourself. You’ve got innocence written all over you until people get to know you. It’s that baby face and curly blond hair.”
“I do not…” Davie started to protest.
“Yeah,
you do, which will make you look like the perfect sucker as far as the guys we’re after are concerned. You’re the innocent; I’m your protective boyfriend.”
“Hate to point this out, but right now my hair’s dark and straight, thanks to what Maddox did to it.”
“You’re still cute in spite of that.” Vin reached over to ruffle Davie’s hair. When Davie smacked his hand away he barked out a laugh. “You are. You have to play on that. The kid who’s relying on me to keep you safe.”
“When it comes down to it, I am,” Davie replied, knowing it was the truth.
“We’ll keep each other safe,” Vin said, looking dead at Davie. “It’s why Slade paired us together.”
“I just hope…” Davie stared down at the floor, biting his lip.
“What?” Vin asked.
“That I don’t let you down—or the others.”
“You won’t.” Vin moved to sit beside Davie, putting an arm around him. “You won’t,” he reiterated firmly. When Davie didn’t move, Vin said, “Look at me.” He did, defiantly, and Vin smiled. “That’s what I wanted to see. The look that says you’re going to kick ass and take names the way I know you can.”
While he didn’t move away, because he liked having Vin so close, Davie did straighten, cracking a grin. “I thought we were only taking names.”
“True, but if I have my way I’m going to bust a few jaws if I can. It’s what those sons of bitches deserve. If you don’t like the idea…” Vin stared tightly at Davie.
“I’m with you all the way.”
“Thought so.” Vin gave him a quick hug then stood. “Let’s see what’s for dinner. I’m starving.”
* * * *
They ate, keeping to themselves despite friendly overtures from a couple of the young men seated at the same table. Then, at Vin’s suggestion, they went into the recreation area to watch TV.
An hour later, Davie had had enough of staring at the screen. He was restless and needed to work it off. “Let’s walk,” he said.
“It’s getting dark.”
“And? We’re creatures of the night,” Davie replied.
Vin rolled his eyes. “Where’s your fangs?”
“Okay, maybe that was a little over the top,” Davie admitted. “Still, let’s get out of here for a while, okay?”
They did, after letting the man at the sign-in desk know they’d be back. The evening was warm, and the park, when they got to it, was full of people taking advantage of the weather. Some of them looked askance at Davie and Vin—because of the way they were dressed, Davie figured. But they were used to that—Davie more than Vin, who had been off the streets for a year.
“I’d forgotten how it feels, being the lowest of the low,” Vin muttered when they overheard a man tell his wife the park was drawing the wrong ‘element’ as he put it.
“There will always be haters, as someone once told me,” Davie replied. “You suck it up because you have to.”
“Yeah, well I’m feeling evil right now, so let’s give them another reason to stick their noses up at us.” Vin put his arm over Davie’s shoulders as they continued strolling along the path around the lake.
“You’re asking for trouble,” Davie whispered.
“Nope. Just showing them we have as much right as anyone else to be here.” Vin looked rebelliously at a couple who quickly stepped off the path to avoid coming close to them. “We don’t bite,” he called out angrily.
Davie wanted to tell Vin to ease it back a notch. He’s right, though. Just because we’re homeless doesn’t mean we’re not as good as them. With that in mind, he slid his arm around Vin’s waist.
“Trying to one-up me?” Vin asked, his lips quirking up in a brief grin.
“Nope. Doing that would involve…umm…never mind. There’s pissing people off and then there’s really pissing them off.”
Vin cocked an eyebrow. “Like if we kissed?”
“Yeah, and don’t you dare.”
“Davie, never, ever dare me.” Vin pulled him around to face him then dropped a swift kiss on his lips.
“Is that the best…?” Davie asked, shocked that Vin had kissed him—and excited as well, much to his dismay.
Vin’s reply was to do it again, only slower, before letting him go with a laconic, “Better?”
Refusing to be intimidated, if that’s what Vin was going for, Davie replied, “For now.”
Vin laughed. “Davie, you are something else and I like it. Wasn’t sure I would when Slade first decided to put us together, but yeah, you’ll do.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Welcome.” After putting his arm around Davie’s shoulders again, they started back to the shelter.
* * * *
For whatever reason, and Davie was certain it was planned, they discovered they had the room to themselves. Given the kisses they’d shared, as brief as they’d been, Davie wasn’t certain that was a good idea. Yes, he knew Vin had been trying to prove a point, but it didn’t make them any less real.
“We’d better get a decent night’s sleep,” Vin said as soon as they closed the door. “It might be the last one for a while.”
“Yeah. A shower, too.” Davie got his towel and washcloth from his backpack, as well as a pair of sweatpants to sleep in and went down the hall to the communal bathroom. He nodded to the two guys who were there, thankful that one of the showers was available. Eschewing modesty, he turned on the water, stripped, and stepped in.
If this was any other shelter, I might have waited until they were gone, or left. Here, it’s safe—or it had better be.
It was, and by the time he finished he was the only one in the room. He dried off, pulled on the sweats, folded his clothes into a bundle, and was about to head back to the room when Vin came in.
“You’re speedy,” Vin said as he began to strip.
“Nope, you’re slow,” Davie retorted. He considered waiting until Vin got into the shower but didn’t need the temptation of seeing his naked, so with a “Don’t use all the hot water” he left, Vin’s chuckle wafting after him.
By the time Vin returned to their room, also wearing an old pair of sweatpants, Davie was in bed.
“Reading yourself to sleep?” Vin asked, since Davie was holding the book he’d brought with him.
Davie nodded, closing it. “I didn’t want to turn off the lights until you got back.”
“Thanks.” Vin put the clothes he’d been wearing in his locker, turned the lights off, and got into bed.
As he closed his eyes, Davie could hear Vin moving around, trying to get comfortable. “Sleep well.”
“Gonna try,” Vin replied. “You, too.”
* * * *
Davie woke, he didn’t know how much later. Or he thought he did.
Someone was yelling obscenities at him, calling him a little fag. Then hands grabbed him, throwing him on the bed. He tried to fight back, punching and scratching at the man, begging him to leave him alone.
One of the punches landed and he heard, “Davie, it’s me. It’s okay. You’re safe.”
His eyes flew open. Vin was sitting beside him, his expression filled with concern. Gently, he took Davie’s hands. “He’s not here. It was a dream. A nightmare.”
“It was so…” Davie began to shake, tears rolling down his cheeks.
Vin wiped them away then pulled him up into a loose embrace. “You scared the hell out of me. For a minute I thought someone was in here, attacking you.”
“He was. I mean, in my dream. It was happening just the way it did and there was no way I could stop it.”
“You sure tried,” Vin said. “I’m going to have a hell of a bruise come morning.”
“Damn, I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry about. I’ve had nightmares, too, about, well, everything. It happens.” He eased his hold on Davie, brushing his hair off his forehead. “Lie down. I’ll keep you company until you go back to sleep.”
“If I can.”
“You will.” Vin w
aited until Davie did as he’d asked then settled behind him, his hand on Davie’s chest. “I’ll sing you a lullaby.”
Davie bit back a laugh. “That is so not you.”
“True, but it’s the thought that counts.”
“It’s you being here that really counts. Thank you.”
“It’s what friends do.” Vin lightly kissing the nape of his neck.
Davie started to say, “I wish we were more,” stopping before the words left his mouth. We’re here to do a job. When it’s over…Yeah, that will be the end of it. We’ll probably never see each other again. So instead, he said, “I’m okay, now. You can go back to bed.”
“What if I don’t want to?” Vin replied. “I like it right where I am.” When Davie tried to move away, not an easy proposition in the small bed, Vin put his hand on his shoulder, pushing down so that Davie had to roll onto his back. Leaning on one elbow, Vin traced the line of Davie’s jaw with his knuckle while saying, “I’ll admit it. When I kissed you, it was only because you dared me. Problem is, I liked it, but I decided that would be the first and last time.”
“Why?”
“You’re a good kid. You don’t need me fucking up your life.”
“I’m not a kid,” Davie protested. “I’m only two years younger than you.”
“True, but when it comes to how we’ve lived you are. Yeah, don’t say it, you spent time on the streets. Before that, though, you had a normal life. Mine was all about learning how to make an illegal dollar anyway possible without getting caught by the cops or the Feds, and keeping my mouth closed about what my father was doing. You know how that ended.” Looking dead at Davie, Vin said, “I’m not safe to be around, so why start something we can’t finish.”
“Why not? Hell, think about it. What we’re doing for Slade isn’t all that safe. Let’s live for the moment. It’s not like we’re making some big commitment to be together forever.” Cupping his hand behind Vin’s head, Davie kissed him hard.
Vin responded the way Davie had hoped he would and the kiss deepened before Vin pulled away. “We need to…”
The Encampment Page 7