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He paused for a few moments before continuing, “Everything changed the day he came over early and saw me beating the living hell out of…let’s just call this man a business associate. I was brutal and enraged and totally out of control, and Gabriel lost every bit of trust he had in me that day.”
“Did you kill that man?”
“No, but I came very close.”
“Why, what did he do? Did he owe you money or something?”
“He and I had a business agreement, and he double-crossed me,” Simeck said. “Where I come from, if someone wrongs you, that’s how you deal with it.”
“But isn’t that basically what I did? I signed a contract and promised I wouldn’t leave without your permission, and then I ran away when you weren’t looking. Why aren’t you trying to make me pay for breaking our agreement?”
He just grinned, which was confusing. Was he imagining things to come? Then he got up and said, “I should go. I’m late for an appointment.”
“I can’t believe you’re willing to just walk away, after wanting to find me for years.”
He paused at the door and buttoned his suit jacket. “Careful what you wish for, I guess. Finding you again turned out to be a huge disappointment.”
“Why is that?”
“Because I found out the lovely, delicate boy who once belonged to me doesn’t exist anymore. As for the man who took his place, no offense, but you’re really not my type.”
I muttered, “No offense either, but I’m glad to hear that.”
He tried to sound upbeat as he said, “This tough guy thing you’ve got going on is cute, though. I can only assume you and Gabriel are still together since you’re in a shop with a giant picture of him on it, and I hope he appreciates the new you.” Why did it feel like he was fishing for information about Gabriel and me? I decided it was best to remain silent.
He opened the door, then took one last look at me over his shoulder. There was something hard and dangerous in his eyes, which made me flinch. Then he said, “I’ll be seeing you, Riley,” and left the shop.
This was far from over. I knew that for a fact.
I hurried to the door and locked it behind him before tossing the mannequin arm aside. Then I shut off the lights, because the shop was as private as a fishbowl when they were on. I spent the next hour sitting in the dark while trying to process everything that had just happened. It would have been a shock to have that encounter with Simeck at the best of times, but right on the heels of what had happened with Gabriel, it was totally overwhelming.
I knew I’d be sorting through that conversation for years to come. Even though it had been unsettling, I’d still learned some things about a confusing time in my life. It gave me insight not only into who I’d been then, but who I was now. I’d always wondered how I’d react if I ever saw Simeck again, if I’d cower and revert back to being totally passive in his presence. The fact that I’d had the courage to stand up to him was a surprise.
More than anything, I desperately wanted to tell Gabriel what had happened and get his opinion on all of this. But what if he didn’t want to talk to me?
As I sat there in the dark, hugging my knees to my chest, the fears I’d tried to bury deep down pushed their way to the surface. What if Gabriel didn’t forgive me? What if he didn’t take me back? And what if we were both in danger now that we were back on Simeck’s radar?
I got up from the floor and took a deep breath. I had to keep telling myself this would be okay. I’d go see Gabriel tomorrow, and we’d have a nice, long talk. We’d get this all worked out. Then we’d figure out what to do about Simeck.
Since it clearly wasn’t doing me any good to sit there and worry, I left the shop and locked the door behind me. Then for lack of a better idea, I started wandering down Castro Street. It felt different than it had before, as if a dark shadow was hanging over the neighborhood.
After a few minutes, I passed the restaurant where Will, Lorenzo, and Phoenix were having dinner with their friends. I just kept walking. I had one other friend in this neighborhood, but I didn’t go to the drag venue where Emory worked directly. Some (possibly paranoid) little part of me was so rattled by my encounter with Simeck that I took a few odd turns and cut through a building, then paused and watched from the shadows to make sure I wasn’t being followed. I felt kind of silly when I realized I was alone, but why take chances? I didn’t know what Simeck was going to do, but it would be totally out of character to just let me go without any consequences.
