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Three days passed. Three long days during which the guys never let me out of their sight. Three sizzling nights we stayed at my place, trying to stay sharp and vigilant. Nights where my boyfriends took turns enjoying me during the downtime, and I them.
Of course, it was also three days without work. All three of them had turned down moving jobs that they would’ve normally taken, and Zane hadn’t done a single tour. I hadn’t opened the shop all week. Roman hadn’t gone to class. That last part concerned me the most, because finals were coming up fast.
“I’ll be okay,” I told them, over and over again. “Go live your lives. Let me handle Louden, I know what he wants.”
No matter which of them I asked, each time the answer was resoundingly the same: “Fuck that.”
Still, I knew our little arrangement wasn’t a solution. The guys couldn’t watch me forever, and Louden had all the time in the world. I had zero doubt he was keeping close tabs on us. Louden had the patience of a sniper lying in a blind. He’d wait for exactly the right moment before making his move.
And hell, he’d waited this long. I couldn’t even imagine how many months it had taken him to track me down. He wasn’t leaving without the emeralds. Especially since my encounter with Jarrett confirmed I still had them.
Eventually I convinced Roman to take his classes, and that left three of us. I opened the shop. I felt safe there, giving readings behind my little screen while both guys watched the building, inside and out. But I also felt guilty having them stand around all day. I needed this done. More than anything I wanted closure to the whole miserable scenario, so we could all get back to our normal, everyday lives.
After the second day of doing that, Zane came up with an idea. He hung back, melting into the crowd, in an effort to watch the watchers.
“If they’re tailing you every day,” he said, “They’re somewhere nearby. Why not find them first?”
It seemed like a great idea, if we could pull it off. But Erik was skeptical. After a little convincing he reluctantly agreed, and we spent the second half of the day alone, just the two of us, with Zane text-messaging periodic updates from different places in the street crowd.
The only problem was that Halloween was over, and with it, the street fair. And although Salem was still busy, there were nowhere near the throngs of people there were before.
This left less places for Zane to hide, and to remain hidden. Not to mention, my gargantuan blond boyfriend wasn’t exactly inconspicuous.
Darkness fell, and we hadn’t heard from him in almost an hour. The crowds were thin at best. I hadn’t had a customer in nearly forty-five minutes.
“Call him in,” I told Erik. “Let’s close up and get the hell out of here.”
“Your turn to cook tonight?” he asked hopefully.
“Maybe,” I smiled. “Or my turn to make reservations. Somewhere good, too.”
My tattooed lover rubbed his stomach. “Can’t argue with that.”
Five minutes went by, then ten. Erik texted Zane again, and still got no answer.
“His phone probably died,” he shrugged.
We waited some more, and some more after that. The avenue went totally dark. One by one the other shops closed down, flicking their lights off.
“Something’s wrong,” I said, unable to ignore the sinking sensation in my stomach. “I feel it.”
Erik didn’t answer right away. But his face was grim.
“Stay here,” he said, “and keep the doors locked. I’m going to look for him.”
“Locked doors didn’t stop them last time,” I warned. “I’m coming with you.”
He nodded quickly, realizing I was right. “Okay.”
Locking the door, I felt naked and vulnerable — even with Erik by my side. The avenue was nearly empty. The streetlamps seemed dimmer than usual in the moonless night.
“Where to?” I asked uneasily.
“This way,” said Erik, pulling me by the hand. “The last place he checked in from.”
He led me across the open avenue, then past a pair of darkened sidestreets. At the third junction he called Zane’s name into the darkness. First in a normal tone, then by raising his voice to a shout.
Nothing happened.
