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“Nothing too strange or creepy in here, so I guess you’re safe to venture out with,” Levi chirped, grabbing Chase’s arm and pulling him from the room.
They walked out the back entrance and were met by a well-dressed man standing next to a black SUV.
“Daddy let us borrow his car,” Levi chirped, stepping into the back seat and pulling Chase in after him.
“Does Matteo always treat you guys so well?”
“Matteo is like the father of this family. He took us all in and rescued us in one way or another,” Levi rambled, adjusting the air conditioning in the back seat of the sports utility vehicle.
The car had been souped-up and modified—no expense spared by the big man. A partition had been installed to give passengers privacy, as well as a mini bar added next to what looked like a radio.
“I figured that you all just worked for the guy.”
Levi shook his head. “No, we all decided to stay and work for Matteo on our own. We are free to leave at any time, but we all decided to stay because we fell in love with him.”
Chase raised an eyebrow.
“Not in that way, though a few of my so-called brothers might. For us, we all fell in love with the kind man behind the brooding grit. He might act all tough and scary, but deep down, he loves each one of us and is always working to protect us.” Levi leaned into Chase’s side and stared out the window.
“Can I ask how you met Matteo?” Chase asked, not sure if he was crossing a line. The more he could find out about the man behind La Maison de M, the easier it would be for him to conduct his investigation. He was also curious to get to know more about this gorgeous deity nestling into him.
Levi wrapped his arm around Chase’s bicep, pulling it close to his body.
“Well, I was eighteen and living on the streets when Matteo found me digging through a trash can. He took me out for a meal, then told me I could come back to his place for a shower and a safe place to sleep for the night. I figured that the guy just wanted to fuck me and perhaps give me a few bucks when we were done, so I agreed. What else did I have to lose.”
Chase began stroking the soft skin on the back of Levi’s hand.
“To my surprise, M didn’t do anything. He gave me my own room and some clean clothes, then left me for the night. When I woke up the next morning, I joined him for breakfast on his private terrace, and he asked me if I wanted to stay. He told me there were no strings attached, and I could leave at any time if I wanted.”
“And you chose to stay?”
“Not at first. I saw all the guys roaming the halls and figured that this place was some kind of brothel or whorehouse and that if I stayed, I would end up being someone’s sex slave. But on the second day, I met one of the guys who worked here, and he explained to me what this place really was. So, I agreed to stay on a trial basis. I still slept with a knife under my pillow for the first two weeks… just in case. But over the next few weeks, I got to meet more of the guys and got to know Matteo on a more personal level, and I was starting to see the magic of this place. But I became convinced that I wanted to stay the night I ran into my father. Matteo and I were out buying some clothes in the city when I bumped into my father outside a bar. My father began verbally attacking me, calling me a shit son and a queer faggot. Then he had the audacity to demand that I give him money so he could go back into the bar and forget that he even saw me. That was when Matteo caught sight of us and jumped in to defend me. He laid into my father, threatening that if he ever heard him talking to me in such a way again, he was going to end his life.
“The look on my father’s face when he saw such a fancy-ass man tearing him a new one was amazing. He then gave my father five hundred Euros, telling him to do the world a favor and drink himself to death. Seeing the way that Matteo stood up for me and took care of me made me fall in love with him that very night. He didn’t have to do anything. He didn’t owe me a thing. Yet he didn’t hesitate to stand up for me. Ever since that moment, I have been living and working at La Maison because I want to. This is my home. I love Matteo and all my stupid-ass brothers, and I enjoy making men happy.”
Chase gave Levi a squeeze. He was beginning to see the man that Matteo was behind the mask. An honorable man with a big heart who wouldn’t hesitate for a second to slit a man’s throat if he dared to hurt one of his boys.
No. Matteo didn’t seem like the type of guy who would put together such a horrific journal and then use it to extort people for wealth and power.
Their first stop of the day was the famous Louvre Museum. Standing next to the glass pyramid entrance, Chase took a look around. The place was amazing. The old architecture mixed with the modern-day artistic flare of the pyramid and the fountains surrounding the museum’s entrance.
He had heard rumors that many Parisians did not like the new pyramid entrance, stating that its modern look did not go with the classic ambiance of the Louvre. Chase didn’t see how this was possible. He loved seeing history and modern-day united in one magnificent experience. But what did he know? He was just a dumb grunt, built for tracking down bad guys and bashing in heads.
“Wow, this place is incredible,” Chase gasped as he took in the view all around him.
“Did you know that the Louvre used to be the original Royal Palace before the king moved the Royal Court to the Palace of Versailles in the mid-1600s while his people starved here in Paris? Trust me, after seeing the Palace of Versailles, you can understand why there was a revolt,” Levi chuckled as he led Chase through the pyramid entrance. “Another fun fact: it would take someone over three months to see all the art pieces in the Louvre.”
“Well, I was hoping to be home in time for dinner.”
Levi smirked. “When you have the opportunity to spend the evening in Paris, you don’t do home cooking; you go out and experience the most amazing French cuisine on earth.” Levi’s eyes were dazzling. The excitement in his voice was invigorating. He really did love Paris and all it had to offer.
They spent the next three hours roaming the hallways of history, admiring the paintings, sculptures, and historic pieces from a time long ago. It was so humbling to see these masterpieces in person and get to see the level of painstaking detail that made up each and every piece in the collection. Chase couldn’t believe how much history Levi knew; even his “fun facts” and little pieces of trivia that he dropped had Chase scratching his head.
“I learned a lot of it from Matteo. He buys us tickets to see exhibits and shows in the city all the time. He likes us to be able to converse with guests at La Maison and be able to hold our own if ever a topic should come up. It gives me a chance to see and experience things I wouldn’t have been able to had I not met Matteo.”
“That’s very generous of him,” Chase replied.
“Yes, he’s amazing.” A sudden sadness moved across Levi’s face. “I think he does it because he thinks of us as family. Taking us under his wing and helping us to grow and become better people. He doesn’t say much about his family, but I get the impression that they are either all dead or estranged. Perhaps it’s that loneliness that he tries to fill by being so generous to us.” Realization suddenly set in. “Shit. I shouldn’t have said that. Please keep what I said about Matteo to yourself. I wouldn’t want him to think that I was betraying him or talking about him behind his back. He's a good man, and I would never do anything to hurt him.” The worried look on Levi’s face pulled at Chase’s heartstrings.
