* * *

  “She's going to destroy them.” Carter's warm breath teased my ear as he spoke.

  “If anyone can, she's the one to do it. What did the ladies say?”

  “Gladys told them she was filing, and after the press conference, she's headed to the prison to see them in person. She wants publicity. All over the news. It works on two fronts.”

  “I know it puts pressure on the DAs office. What is the second?”

  “As of nine AM yesterday, Leif Gerrickson disappeared. I got the report this morning from the cruiser I had following him. He failed to report to work. When the officers approached his home, they knocked on the door with the excuse of a welfare check if anyone asked. Inside was empty. Not one piece of furniture. They could only see piles of boxes. So something spooked him, and he ran. If he thinks evidence is going to come out, he messed up, or that's what we're hoping.”

  “What about another kinda pressure?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He's waiting for his face to be plastered all over the news. He has the funds to disappear, but what if his old face showed up. Missing person flyers. We make up some stats, ask for a few favors from friends to hand them out, people go missing on the strip all the time. They won't think twice about helping. But if Leif’s paying attention…” As I turned my head, I paused, and he lifted his left hand to cup my chin.

  “He might get jumpy.”

  “Why not? The older picture doesn't look like him anymore. The only one who'd recognize Ezekiel is Leif.” If there was one thing I knew about Leif, he hated being wrong or having his mistakes called out. I'd made that mistake a time or two. I had the scars to remind me.

  “I don't want to use you as bait.”

  “I'm not bait. I'm going to be plastered to your side. I know what he's capable of. Stitching myself up is not an experience I want to repeat. I don't have a death wish. I like to play it pretty safe.”

  He soothingly caressed my cheek with his thumb and softly kissed me. “I know you do, baby, but you have to promise to stay near me at all times. I can't…”

  I knew what the break in his voice meant. “You won't lose me, I promise. I waited a very long time for you to notice me…I want to enjoy it for a long time to come.”

  “You're so smart and beautiful. I never thought I'd measure up.”

  “Oh, Daddy, you measure up just right.” I smirked against his lips, and his deep chuckle vibrated his chest against my back.

  “No foreplay in the morgue.”

  I laid my head back against his shoulder and suddenly realized how tired I felt. Since he’d worked almost around the clock for a week, I hadn't had my personal teddy bear to cuddle. Sleep was majorly in short supply. “Spoilsport. Pick me up when I get off, we'll head to Prof's to get a picture of Ezekiel, and after that, we'll head to the Outreach to use their office to print a small stack of flyers. We can get a few volunteers to make a fuss.”

  “Sounds like a plan. I was wondering when all this is over, whether that's the case goes back on the shelf or we solve it, I want to take you on a real date. You up for it?”

  “A real date? I've been having a great time just hanging out on my couch with you.”

  “I know, but you deserve all the romance. So what do you say?”

  “Just tell me when and where, and I'll get all pretty for you.”

  “You don't have to try too hard to be pretty. Okay, as much as I could sit here all day with you on my lap, work calls.”

  I reluctantly stood up from my comfortable spot on his thick thighs, and then I turned to cross my arms over my chest. “Go get the ladies out of jail.”

  “That'll be more Gladys than me.”

  “Don't sell yourself short. Come home tonight with me. As much as I love Vega, I miss my bed with you in it.”

  “I missed you, too. I promise it'll all be back to normal soon.”

  I laughed and shook my head. “There’s nothing normal about us or our family.”

  “True enough. See you in a few hours.” He leaned down to brush his lips to my forehead. I grabbed each side of his open jacket as he tried to retreat. “Tonight, I'm all yours, I promise.”

  “I know, it just with the Feds and their cases, this shit with Leif-Ezekiel, I'm ready for it all to be over.”

  “Start planning that vacation you want to take. We'll put in for time off.”

  “Don't tease. I'll hold you to it.”

  “No teasing, you and me alone for a few weeks sounds perfect to me. So get to planning.”

  I let him go and recrossed my arms to keep from grabbing him. I didn't want to appear too needy. Part of me didn't want to scare him off, but that portion of my brain felt guilty for automatically thinking he'd be turned off by my requirement for affection. He made it too easy to forget. He was so willing to cuddle me and pull me onto his lap—it was addictive. All I could wish was for this to end soon, and I could just focus on my Daddy and what we were building together.

  The sun set hours previous, and the temperature dropped, and I couldn't wait for spring to arrive. The runny nose and red cheeks weren't exactly a sexy look. Davian and Cree, and a few others had taken a small stack of the missing posters. They knew what we were trying to do and were willing to help us out. Douglas had told us he was going to sit on Gerrickson's house for the evening to see if there was movement, yet so far, no one had entered or exited the property.

  Carter gave my hand a gentle squeeze. “You need a coffee? It's chilly, and I don't want you to get sick.”

  “A few more of these…there's a coffee shop at the end of the block.” I glanced around and saw Zero. He was a reclusive staple in the neighborhood. “I see someone to talk to. He's right there.” I pointed to the thin younger man huddled in the doorway of an empty storefront. His shoulders slumped to disguise his height.

  “Don't get too far away.”

  “I'll be right there. I won't go any farther.”

  “Okay,” he said and lifted our linked hands to turn them until he could kiss the exposed skin of my wrist.

  When he released me, I went straight for Zero. “Zero, what’re you doing out?”

  “Doc. Can only stare at code for so long before even that bores me. What about you?” He inclined his chin towards Carter. “Seems you got yourself something handsome.”

  “Stevenson. He's a detective in the Cold Case Unit, works with Remy. Can I ask you something?”

  “Of course, don't get out much, but can't hurt to inquire.” Zero pulled out his vape, and I shook my head at the fruity, sweet scent as he inhaled and exhaled.

  “Heard anything odd lately?”

  “Nothing that isn't unusual for our community here. There's been a new group hanging around. Throwing around some new-age bullshit. People are saying it's human trafficking. No one has taken them up on coming to their meetings yet. Mostly because the news was circling.”

  “What was the bullshit?”

  “Health and wellness begins with being spiritually healthy, probably some fat-shaming thing. Want you to buy something or shove you in a shipping container. Could go either way. People are weird and not in a good way.”

  “Nice to see you haven't changed.”

  “Life's too short to be a normie.”

  “True enough.” I pulled off one of the sheets of paper and held it out. “Do you recognize him?”

  Zero studied it and shook his head. “No, he's pretty, though, not my type.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Not a problem, darlin', need to go find a little something for the night. Nice to see you so happy, Doc, even if he looks…normal.”

  “Not everything that looks normal is bad.”

  “I beg to differ, but I have no time for a debate this fine evening.”

  “Stay out of trouble.”

  “Not my style, Doc.” He winked at me and slipped out of the alcove to disappear into the crowd, which wasn't easy for a man so tall.

  I turned and smiled as I watched Carter talking to one of the sex workers I knew from my Saturday clinics. I pulled out my phone to check the time. I was beyond ready to go home. Our plan should've caused enough of a stir. I also wanted to tell Carter about what Zero said.

  A cold, slender hand wrapped around the front of my throat, and I froze. “Hello, Morgan, if you scream, an associate of mine will make sure that young man of yours doesn't make it off this street. Do you understand?”

  Fear froze my vocal cords, and all I could do was nod. I'd heard that voice in my nightmares enough. From the coldness of his tone, he'd go through with his threat.

  “Drop your phone to the ground and back up nice and slow. We need to have a private chat.”

  I did as ordered and grimaced as my phone hit the ground with a soft thud, and even as I matched my steps to Leif’s, I never took my gaze from Carter. My survival instinct cried out for him to turn, to see me, but another part of my brain that wanted to protect him prayed that he wouldn't.

  The darkness of the alley swallowed us. The grind of metal on metal made me glance behind me to see the door of a van open. The interior lights dimly lit two masked men in the passenger and driver’s seats. I tensed as Leif easily shoved me into the back and jumped in. I opened my mouth to scream, and the hard blow of a closed fist connected with my jaw.

  “Now, Morgan, have you forgotten so easily how I'm capable of keeping you under control? I won't warn you again, behave, and maybe I'll kill you quickly.”

  “You won't make it quick. You like to watch me suffer too much.”

  “At least you didn't forget.” He turned away. “Let's go before his boyfriend notices he's gone.”

  I scrambled towards the back of the van, reaching for the door releases for the rear door, but a brutal hand grabbed my ankle. Just as I was about to kick my way free, a hard cylinder object slammed into the back of my head. The fight ended as pain exploded and the sound of metal clanging on the floor was the last thing I remembered.

  35

  Stevenson

  I'd only let him out of my sight for a few minutes. He was safe on the strip, everyone had his back, and the word had gone out to be on the lookout for strangers. That was our turf. Twelve hours passed, and no one could tell us where he was. Just like with too many missing person cases, he’d disappeared without leaving anything behind except his phone, and that had been my only means of tracing him. My fist connected with the locker where they'd sent me to calm down. Yet I only grew madder at my helplessness.

  A strong hand gripped my upper arm and spun me, and I almost swung until I recognized Douglas. “Stevenson!” he yelled close and grabbed my face. “Look at me, man, you need to focus. Your baby needs you to hold it together.” Douglas put a few feet of distance between us but kept our gazes locked.

  “I looked away for…” My voice broke as I noticed the locker room was filled with my friends, and each looked as broken as me. I'd let them down by not protecting Morgan well enough.

  “We don't have time for your guilt. You were on the strip. Where was your first stop? Keep it together, man, just think. Morgan was right beside you, maybe holding your hand. Now, tell me, what happened next?”

  I inhaled deeply through my nose, exhaled through my mouth. “We'd left the Outreach just before sunset. We'd printed out flyers with old pictures of Ezekiel, missing person ones. A few trusted people volunteered to make a show of it. I think we'd been walking around and talking to people for hours. We thought…”

  “What did you think, Stevenson?”

  “We thought if he saw his old face, his past coming back, he'd slip up…come out of hiding. We'd matched his DNA. We just needed him to show his face.”

  “The hunt ain't fun if the rabbit don't run, man. We're detectives. We live for this shit. Where was Doc? Was he close enough to touch?”

  “Yeah, I never let him get far. He spotted someone he knew but promised not to get out of my line of sight. Always close enough to see me.”

  “Now, close your eyes. I want you to picture it. Doc got a bit ahead of you, but you're too much of a Daddy to not track him even subconsciously. Where did he go?”

  As I did what he asked, I leaned my head back on the locker and took calming even breaths. On the back of my lids, I saw my baby, his cheeks all pink with a big smile and his slouchy rainbow beanie covering his hair. I loved him, the sweetness and trust in his expression when I caught him watching me. “He said he had someone he wanted to talk to. Tall, painfully thin, light-skinned black guy, he was kinda hunched over.”

  “Zero.” I shot my gaze to Vega in time to see her pulling out her phone. She was tapping at the screen and then rings echoed off the cement walls. The voicemail picked up, and she disconnected and redialed.

  “Vega, is there a reason you're calling me before sunset?” An oddly gruff voice that didn't match the man I saw last night filled the room.

  “You talked to Doc last night.”

  “Yes, our adorable Doc was asking about some normie dude, I didn't know who he was, but he asked me about uninteresting weird info.”

  “Did you have anything?” Vega asked. Even though her voice remained calm, I could see the anguish in her eyes. We were barely holding ourselves together.

  “Some health and wellness program, screamed budding cult. I told him it could be a cult or someone looking to shove young women into crates headed overseas.”

  “Got names for me?”

  “Why are you asking me and not our Doc?”

  “He went missing twelve hours ago. His phone was found just outside the alley where he was last seen talking to you.”

  There were gruff curses, and then Zero cleared his throat. “Nah, I had some shit to do, so I excused myself, but when I left, he was making lovey-dovey, wanna bang in an alley eyes at some big blond, a little too dominant for my tastes.”

  “Did you see anything odd? Because Stevenson had only looked away for a few minutes.”

  “Exhaust. Burned oil. A cologne no one would wear on the strip. Definitely handcrafted and expensive. A shop opened up, they match or create scents by body chemistry.”

  “God, I forgot your sense of smell and hearing are off the charts.”

  “There was also an engine sound, idling, but there was a definite rattle as if the muffler was loose.”

  “What about the cologne smell?”

  “It was pretty close during our conversation, but there were several ladies and gentlemen on the stroll last night. People were looking to get warm the old-fashioned way, so I just thought whoever it was, was checking out the wares.”

  “Heard anything in the last twelve hours?”

  “No, but I could take a look, but I need a free pass.”

  “Zero, do whatever it takes, but make it look like a glitch.” Remy raised his voice where he stood beside the door with Robert soothingly rubbing his belly.

  “I'm on it, Remy. I have access to cameras all over the strip. And since I installed most of the security systems in the businesses, I left myself a backdoor. Give me an hour. I'll look into the feeds thirty minutes before and run them forward until I left Doc.” The line went silent as Zero ended the call.

  “I shouldn't have let go of his hand.”

  “Stevenson, if this is Gerrickson, he was going to find a way to get to Doc, whether that was last night or a few weeks from now. All we have to do is find him. If he wanted Doc dead, we would've found him in that alley. No, I think Gerrickson has a plan.” Robert had that calm tone, what everyone called his Daddy voice, and tried to sound reassuring, but I wasn't buying it.

  “Yeah, to pay my baby back for an old vendetta.”

  “You think he'd hold a grudge this long?” Douglas asked as he lowered onto one of the benches and glanced around the room.

  “Remy, what do you think?” I glanced at Remy.

  “He's a narcissist. He was raised in a cult environment where, as the son of the leader, he was seen as just as powerful as the supreme Elder Platt. He used the tools he honed to attract Doc. He saw the vulnerability. If he'd been doing recon for any length of time, watching from the shadows, he could've learned more about Doc than Doc anticipated.”

  “Morgan told me that Gerrickson wasn't his Dominant. Even as a committed couple, sex was infrequent.”

  “I think the sex was nothing more than a tool. I don't think Gerrickson or Platt or whoever the fuck he is was actually gay. He learned Doc required physical and sexual intimacy, and he used that knowledge to lure him in.”

  “I just don't understand why Doc kept him from his family?” Robert asked as he gave his husband a squeeze.

  “It was something for just Doc. He believed it had nothing to do with his job as a medical examiner or his life on the strip. While Gerrickson asked about his day, he was subtle in how he pushed for details. I know Doc will bring work files home…transcribe his recordings. He usually does that while I take care of my own work. Gerrickson could've been listening to entire audio of autopsies.”

  “When did the relationship start to break down?” Vega slid down the wall and rested her wrists on her knees, still holding tight to her phone.

  “About a year before Gerrickson carved Morgan up. He told me everything was the perfect romance until he asked Morgan to marry him. From the way Morgan explained it, it sounded to me as if Gerrickson hit a downward spiral. But unless we know the trigger for that spiral, we won't have any idea what caused it.”

  “I did some research on Transcendence and went to talk to Prof. Hidden within the so-called Doctrine of the group was the basis for a so-called super-soldier. Unquestioning, physically elite, and a blank slate ready to be programmed. Like a computer when you delete files, in this case, memories, empathy, free will, the core information still exists just now it's free to be overwritten.”

  As Vega spoke, I once again imagined what the boys’ lives were like. How much they'd seen? How much emotional damage existed and wondered if it was kinder if they'd perished before whoever used them for whatever purpose they were taken.