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When Ashok had arrived on the scene, it was too much to hope that he’d even like him, let alone want to spend time with him in his bed.
Angela was nosy as usual, not holding back with her taunting.
The new guy, Stu, was good and definitely had a way with the ladies. He would be an asset to the team, he could tell, leaving him and Angela time to concentrate on other things.
“I thought Ashok was coming in?” she asked, watching Stu charm a couple of mothers, playing peek-a-boo with the kids in the pushchairs.
“He’s supposed to be.” He patted his pockets, realising his phone was in the office. He drummed it into his staff to keep phones off the shop floor. It’d look bad if he had his, and he wasn’t one for double standards.
“I’ll go check. You OK watching lover boy there?”
“He’s that alright, and yes, go check your phone. Your own lover boy might have called.”
He sat at his desk, taking his phone out of the drawer. He had several missed calls: one from his mum, one from Vic and a private number. Probably spam.
There was one message from Ash telling him he’d shopped and would go straight home. He fired off a quick reply, thanking him and telling him he’d see him later.
He had a few things to be getting on with, some stocktaking and he needed to get the wages off to the accountant. There’d be a full-scale riot if that didn’t go through this month.
When Scarlett arrived, he and Angela left Stu in her capable hands while they went through a new ordering system they were trialling. It was complicated, to say the least, and tackling it was problematic.
Scarlett came through the door a little later, reminding them it was time to close up.
“Stu’s gone, and I’ve closed up. You just need to cash up. Am I OK to go? I have an assignment I need to get done.”
“Of course, yes. You get off. Angela, you do the same. You’ve been here all day.”
He could cash up alone; he did it most evenings.
He checked his phone, but there’d been no further messages from Ash. Not a big deal, but he thought he might have responded to his latest text. He’d stop for some beer on the way home; he’d forgotten to ask Ashok to get some earlier, not that he’d have been able to carry it.
His extra stop-off added an extra ten minutes to his journey, and it was just after seven when he parked at home and walked up to the front door. Something was wrong. Ashok’s keys were still in the door even though it was closed. What the hell?
Panic shot through him. Unless Ash had forgotten to take them from the door, something really wasn’t right.
He turned the key and opened the door. The house was in complete darkness, and an odd smell tinged the air, a mixture of vomit and piss.
Unease gave rise to dread as he spotted the prone figure of Ashok lying on the floor. He rushed over to him, noting the cuts and bruises on his face and the small pool of vomit next to him. He touched his face gingerly, at least he was still warm.
“Ash, can you hear me?” He didn’t move, but he was breathing. Dear God, he could guess what had happened. His fucking father, it had to be. How in hell’s name had he found him? Hayden didn’t care about that right now. He needed to get Ash to the hospital to be checked out.
He called for an ambulance and waited, resting Ash’s head in his lap as he sat on the floor, stroking his bloody hair. Most of the cuts seemed to have stopped bleeding, and when he lifted his shirt, he saw a blossom of bruises forming on his body, red welts, possibly from a belt, on his torso, but still he wouldn’t wake.
He couldn’t risk not taking him to the hospital. What if he had brain damage? What if he never woke up?
If he found his father, he’d fucking kill him. Rage built in his chest, an uncontrollable madness, a need to do something, anything to avenge what Ashok’s father had done.
Anger turned to sadness as he looked down and saw him lying there, so vulnerable, so very hurt. They should have done something to stop it. He should have sent him to his parents’ house as soon as they found out about the threat, but what would that have done but upset an already scared Ashok?
“I’ll find him, Ash. I’m going to put this right.” Tears filled his eyes, and a single teardrop fell on Ash’s skin, mingling with the blood. He watched as the red droplet hit the floor. One became two, and soon he couldn’t stop. He sobbed, cradling Ash’s body, clinging to him, willing him to wake up. If he left him now….
“Sir, we need you to let go.”
He hadn’t heard the paramedics come in. He’d left the door open, knowing he wouldn’t be able to leave him.
“Can you tell us what happened, sir?”
He was struggling to understand. What were they asking him? Strong hands pried him from Ash’s body, gently removing him from his grasp.
