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“Already dialing.”
“Ace? What do we know about Meridian?”
There’s the soft clicking of a keyboard before he begins. “Hunter Meridian, no known aliases, criminal record is clean other than one speeding ticket a few years back. DOB puts him at thirty-four. This is his only known address. He’s got brown hair, six-foot-one, 182 pounds, hazel eyes, organ donor, his registration has his occupation listed as a professor at Carter’s university. Let me just—yeah, there he is—assistant professor in history. Doesn’t teach Carter, so it must be a coincidence.”
“I don’t like coincidences,” I growl.
“I’ll look into it,” Ace says, seeming to agree. “Jake, you hear from Casey yet?”
“On with him now,” Jake says. “He doesn’t know anything aside from Carter going to the club. He—uh. He apparently…” He eyes me before looking away. “It was a BDSM event, I guess. He doesn’t know if Hunter was a part of that or what.”
I curl my hands into fists, trying to remember to breathe. Trying to remember that I love my brother, even when he’s a complete fucking idiot.
If Travis doesn’t wring that boy’s neck, I sure as fuck will.
I nudge Jake’s shoulder until he looks back at me. I tap my wrist. He glances at his phone screen where the timer is ticking away, then shows it to me. Three minutes left. It feels like an eternity.
Jake starts talking to Casey like he’s talking him off the ledge, begging him to breathe as he promises that none of this is his fault. I tune them out. “Ace?”
“Yeah, man?”
“Look up if this fucker owns a gun.”
Ace makes a sound I can’t interpret before there’s the clicking of his computer’s keyboard. “No guns registered in his name.”
“I’ll see you soon, okay? I have to go,” I hear Jake tell Casey. Then he’s nodding his head at me. “Times up.”
We draw our weapons in unison, exiting the vehicle. We meet at the front and slink up the stairs. I nod for him to breach the door, surging forward once the wooden slab slams open. He’s right behind me, bringing up the rear before settling at my side.
“What the fuck?” an extremely distressed voice calls from the left.
I immediately fix my gun on him as Jake kicks the door shut behind us, keeping any prying eyes out. Hunter Meridian fits Ace’s description to a T with his tall, lean body, brown hair, and hazel eyes. He’s also shirtless with black slacks hanging loose on his hips, zipped in the front but not buttoned. My finger itches to pull the trigger even though his arms are raised in surrender. He may have fucked Carter. May have hurt him. Carter is upset. I’ll tear this fucker apart.
“I didn’t fucking do anything!” the man growls, starting to shift from panicked to indignant. I get the feeling he doesn’t find himself in situations where he’s not in control very often. He keeps his hands up but turns his head to glare at Travis. Travis, who is holding a dressed and seemingly intact Carter. Thank fuck. “Did you call the cops on me?”
“No, I—for fuck’s sake, guys, stand down,” Travis says in exasperation.
I exchange a look with Jake before we lower our weapons in unison. Jake puts his away, but I’m not quite there yet. I’d like a few answers first. Preferably from Carter.
“Like I said,” Travis mumbles, giving Meridian an apologetic grimace. “Complicated.”
“That’s one word for it.” Meridian backs away, shaking his head. “Just get out of my fucking house.”
I slowly lower my weapon as Travis nods and starts to help Carter. He ends up scooping my brother into his arms, holding him close to his chest. Carter tucks his face in Travis’s throat. My heart tugs at the sight of them. Maybe Travis is what’s best for him after all.
“Wait!” Meridian suddenly shouts, stopping Travis before he reaches the door. He turns to look at him with a raised eyebrow as Meridian steps forward with a piece of paper in his hand. He hesitates, probably realizing Travis can’t take the offered paper, then turns to look at me and Jake. “I’d like someone to contact me tomorrow. Preferably Carter. I’d like to know he’s alright. Please.”
I’m closest to him, so I accept the paper with a scowl. He may sound like he’s being responsible, but I’m still not won over. This man obviously did something to Carter, even if it was unintentional. He’s lucky I don’t put a hole in his forehead right now.
“I’ll make sure he has the number,” Travis promises from behind me. “I’ll leave it to him if he’d like to call.”
Meridian nods, putting his hands in his pockets and stepping away from us. His biceps flex impressively for a man who’s a history professor. “Fair enough.”
I give the man a final glare, hoping the look makes it damn clear he better turn the other way if he ever runs into my brother again. Despite the gun in my hand, all he does is raise a single eyebrow and smirk at me.
Lucky little fucker. Damn lucky.
I slide into the passenger side of the vehicle while Travis is getting settled in the back with Carter. My brother is still curled up in his lap, looking like the only thing in the world keeping him held together is Travis. It’s impossible not to remember how it felt to hold Nolan the same way in the gym, keeping all of his pieces together as he shattered. I suddenly see Travis in a whole new light. He may have broken my brother, but I’m starting to think he may be the only one who can help put him back together too.
