Hiding His Wolf [Urban Affairs 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour ManLove) (3 page)

“Going twice.” The auctioneer hesitated for a few seconds.

“Sold! To Mr. Simon Black.”

A faint smug smile played on Simon’s lips as he stepped on the low stage. Circling Noah, he examined him carefully and spoke a few words to the auctioneer that Levi couldn’t hear. Then Simon stepped off the stage, and the slave was led away.

Why does he want Noah so badly?

Fear coiled in Levi’s stomach to think Noah might disappear from his life again. After coming so close, that was unacceptable. Levi swallowed hard. All his animal instincts screamed at him to do something, but this wasn’t the time. He had no business behind the stage. Kirby’s security guards would be on him in a heartbeat.

Play it smart, Levi. You have a solid lead. Use your talents to capitalize on it. Do what you do best.

Levi had a sense of smell that was much more acute than a human’s. Odors didn’t overwhelm him. He had an animal’s ability to pick out a particular scent even if it was diluted in the air.
Black’s scent, as well as Noah’s, were freshly registered in his olfactory receptors, and Levi would follow them wherever the trail took him.

Like cliffs flanking a valley, two black-clad security guards towered over Noah. One was
built like a sumo wrestler. His ham-like fist curled around Noah’s arm with a tight restraining grip
. The other guard was rail thin, but he held a
telescopic stun baton ready to be electrified with the press of a button.

It’s overkill, Simon thought disgustedly, as he followed behind them. Noah had been heavily drugged and he appeared docile as a lamb being led to the slaughter.

The little entourage was headed for the back entrance to Hot Rods where a car waited to whisk Noah away. Simon had no idea where. His boss dispensed information on a need to know basis. Just as well, it felt like a fucking death march. He didn’t want to think about Noah’s future. Once he saw Noah off, his job here would be done and he could forget about the young slave.

The hallway seemed to go on forever. Every other ceiling light had burned out and the corridor was filled with shadows. As they walked, Simon’s gaze trailed down the boy’s back and over his ass. No doubt about it, Noah had a beautiful body, all smooth flesh over taut muscle. Did his boss intend Noah to be a sex slave? Or did he have some other reason for purchasing the boy?

Curiosity killed a cat, Simon, and it could kill you.

When would he learn to mind his own business? But he couldn’t help lusting after the figure in front of him. Every dominant bone in his body urged him to reach out for the slave, shove him to his knees and…Damn, it had been way too long since he’d felt the suction of a man’s mouth on his dick. The job had taken over his life and his only source of relief lately was his own hand. And the damn butt plug kept drawing his eye. He wanted to pull it out and fill the boy’s ass with his own hardening cock.

“Okay, this is it.”

Simon’s head lifted at the sound of the guard’s voice. They had reached the back door. The man with the stun gun opened it and they all exited to the parking lot. An unmarked black van blocked the view of the street beyond. Didn’t matter, Simon’s gaze was locked on Noah. The slave’s pale blond hair, bathed in the soft glow of moonlight, made him look like an angel.

Suddenly, the back door of the vehicle opened and two men climbed out. Simon almost laughed. With their dark suits and sunglasses, they looked like agents from the Matrix movie.

Four hands reached out, grabbing Noah roughly, and Simon didn’t feel like laughing anymore. The muscles in Noah’s back went tense. Long thin welts Simon hadn’t noticed before suddenly became apparent on the boy’s pale flesh. Someone had whipped Noah in the past, and he had a feeling it hadn’t been consensual. Simon felt bile rise in his throat.

Noah struggled and turned a frightened face to Simon. The boy’s eyes were clearer and shone like blue pools of appeal. His lower lip trembled as Simon returned his gaze.

This is wrong.

Simon’s heart twisted. For just a second he wanted to grab Noah and run. Then the
agents
shoved the boy into the van, climbed in after him, and slammed the door shut. The van started up and pulled away, taking Noah with it.

The Hot Rods’ security guards went back into the building, leaving Simon alone in the parking lot. He leaned back against the brick wall of the building, and looked up at the stars. They were brilliant tonight.

Where the fuck are they taking him?

Simon felt like a monster. He looked down at his hands. They were shaking. He’d never done anything like this before. He hoped he’d never have to again. He needed a drink badly. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his car keys.

* * * *

Levi felt dirty, like he needed a shower. The whole evening had left a bad taste in his mouth, and he wanted to wash it away with whiskey, but he intended to follow Simon Black and he needed a clear head for tracking. There’d be time enough for a celebratory binge after he found Noah. Maybe he’d give up this crap job and take Noah away somewhere—far, far away, where nobody would ever find them.

Waiting for the end of his shift was not an option. Levi almost made it to the door, when he happened to catch a glimpse of Kirby, the ever present cigar in the corner of his mouth. His boss held up a hand as if he wanted Levi to wait up.

Fuck you, Kirby!

The man was a
scum-sucking bottom feeder who should not be permitted to live, but right now, Levi had bigger fish to fry. Why deal with the middleman when the direct link to Noah was within reach?
Getting outside before Black took off was crucial. Levi had no time to waste getting reamed out by Rod-Fucking-Kirby. He pretended he didn’t see the man but when he turned toward the entrance, two burly security guards blocked his path.

“York. Where you going in such a hurry?”
Kirby’s gravelly voice was harsher than usual.

“I feel sick—”

“You been drinking on the job?” Kirby shifted his cigar from one side of his mouth to the other.

“Course not. It’s all the fucking smoke. I need some air.”

Kirby’s eyes narrowed cynically as he weighed Levi’s words. “Well, get the hell out, but clock out first. I’m not paying you for one minute more than you deserve.”

Shithead, I deserve three times what you pay me to work in this dive.

But Levi held his tongue, nodded tightly and headed for the time clock in Kirby’s office. He moved as fast as he could without looking suspicious and breathed a sigh of relief as he finally walked out the backdoor that led to the parking lot.

He didn’t see any sign of Black or Noah but he did pick up their scent at an empty parking spot.

Fuck!

It made his job that much harder, but not impossible. Hunching down on his heels, he sniffed and studied the tire tracks on the ground, gathering as much information from them as he could. Even with all windows rolled up in Black’s car, some scent would escape. The freshness of the trail and the calm weather conditions would help, too. He kept his eyes peeled to the gravel. The tracks told him that the car had turned left out of the lot, and that was where he headed.

Levi soon lost the tire tracks among all the others in the street, but he detected a faint trace of the occupants, enough to convince him he was going the right way. Continuing down the center of this street would be a suicide march during the day, but at this time of night traffic was light.

Still, it was slow going. Tracking in wolf form would be faster, but unleashing Rolf could get him killed. And being mistaken for a dog was no guarantee of safety. In this part of town, drivers deliberately ran down animals for sport, and bystanders would either look the other way or gather round and cheer.

A horn blared behind him, and a souped-up Toyota missed him by a matter of inches. A young punk stuck his arm out the driver’s-side window and gave Levi a one-finger salute.

His inner wolf took offense, and before Levi could stop himself, he started shouting curses at the driver. “Fuck you! Why don’t you watch where you’re going, asshole?” As soon as he opened his mouth he knew he’d made a mistake.

A
female voice screamed from inside the car, “Get him, baby. Run him down.”

The fucking Corolla made a U-turn and picked up speed.

Shit!

Levi ran for his life. Hit and run was a game around here. Bored punks roamed the streets in packs, trying to impress their girlfriends. They didn’t need a motive to kill. It was just entertainment to them. They were more dangerous than any wolves Levi knew.

He hopped a fence and took a shortcut through someone’s yard. As he sprinted through a flower bed, he heard a door open and dogs barking. Looking over his shoulder, he snarled at the two pit bulls behind him, but they kept coming. The dogs were fast motherfuckers, too. They kept up with him, no problem.

Fuck. I can’t catch a break.

Levi ran like the hounds of hell were after him. He managed to leap over the chain-link fence at the back of the house and just kept going. When his lungs were ready to burst, he stopped for a breath. Panting, he leaned over, hands on knees, and scanned the area. No dogs and no Toyota.

Thank you, Jesus, but where the hell am I?

The street sign was one of those
gay-friendly ones, with the rainbow flag permanently affixed to the bottom, to designate the city’s Gayborhood.

Fuck!
Locust Street is a long way from Hot Rods.

He could kiss Noah’s scent good-bye.

Pissed off and frustrated, he had to concede that he’d lost the trail and might as well head home.

At least he had a name—Simon Black—and he knew a hacker, a smart son of a bitch who claimed he could find out anything about anybody. The man was arrogant, but he’d proven himself once before, hacking into Kirby’s computer so Levi could see if his boss had any connection to the Were Resistance. He hadn’t, but maybe Kirby had an address for Black. It was as good a place to start as any.

A metallic black Jaguar passed him, practically purring with power. Halfway down the block, it stopped and backed up. Levi gave the Jag a curious glance. He couldn’t see through the tinted windows but it didn’t matter. He didn’t know anyone who owned such a hot car. The Jag kept pace with him.
Not good.
Levi got ready to run again. Just then the window came down and he heard his name.

The car stopped and the driver called out again. “York.”

Levi bent to peer in the window.

Black?

“Get in. I’ll give you a lift.”

Rolf protested but Levi shut him down. He was not about to let his only link to Noah drive away. As he slid into the passenger seat, Levi glanced in the back. The seat was empty.
Shit.
Did he lock Noah in the trunk?
“So, uh, how did you find me?”

Simon Black grinned at him. “No offense, but I wasn’t looking.”

Levi felt like an idiot. He might as well have a
stupid sticker plastered on his forehead. “You, uh, knew my name and I figured…”

Simon chuckled as he stepped on the gas. “I asked your boss. Told him he should give you a raise for checking out the customers so thoroughly.”

Levi felt his face flame. “I don’t live far from here,” he said, changing the subject.

“Do you have someone waiting for you? I could use a drink and some company. “

A lucky break for me.
“A drink sounds good.”

“Any preference?”

“Strokers is just ahead and if we hurry we can make the last call.”

“Perfect
.
I’m on it.”

Another after-hours club, the proprietor would stop serving alcohol at the designated time but had a special license to remain open and sell non-alcoholic drinks. At this time of the morning, no one really cared.
The draw was boy meets boy. Men who showed up after all the other bars had closed weren’t interested in drinking more. They wanted to get fucked. Levi hoped the crowd had thinned out by now. He
just wanted a quick drink and some conversation in a quiet place. Hopefully a little liquor would loosen Simon’s tongue.

Simon parked on the street. Levi got out of the car and couldn’t help glancing toward the trunk. Simon called out. “What’s wrong? Do my tires look low?”

“No, just admiring the car. It’s a beauty, but you can’t have much trunk space.”

Simon walked up behind him and punched the trunk release on his key. “It’s more than ample for me.” He opened the hood all the way so Levi could take a look.

Empty.

Levi took a good look anyway, searching for signs of disorder, or worse—blood. There were none. He straightened up, not sure if he was relieved or more upset. “You’re right. You could hide a body in there.”

Simon regarded him with contemptuous amusement. “Yeah, if I was a serial killer.”

Levi forced a chuckle and headed for the entrance to the club.
Strokers’s clientele included
bartenders, bouncers, and strippers from the hottest gay bars in town. Levi wasn’t a member, but when he flashed his Hot Rods ID, the doorman waved them through.

A party atmosphere raged inside Strokers. By the looks of the crowd dancing to the throbbing electronic music, full nudity was obviously allowed and encouraged. The combined scents of male sweat and testosterone took Rolf to a state of arousal that rubbed off on Levi. Not what he was looking for. Levi wasn’t against having sex with Simon, but he wanted some answers first. He’d been hoping for a quieter scene, something more conducive to conversation. He could hardly hear himself think. Unfortunately, it was too late to go anywhere else.

They made their way to the bar and claimed two empty stools at the far end. Simon ordered bourbon. No ice, no frills. He looked over at Levi.