Page 65 of The Chameleon

“Pay no attention to him. This is Ares. He’s a cranky old troll who refuses to leave my home.”

Hesitating, the boy eventually took a step inside, being mindful to keep his distance from Ares.

Smart move kid, you better stay away from the lion’s space.

Ignoring the kid, Ares scowled at Matteo. “Did you have to use my name? Who the fuck is this toddler?”

Closing the door behind him, Matteo ignored his question and made his way into the living room. The boy followed.

“Here, you can have a seat.” Matteo motioned toward the couch. “Are you thirsty? Hungry?”

The boy shook his head, his messy brown hair flopping from side to side.

“Umm, I’ll grab you some spare sweats, then you can shower and get cleaned up if you like. You can sleep in the spare bedroom. It’s cozy and has a lock on the door in case you don’t feel safe sleeping here,” Matteo explained, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge and passing it to the boy even though he didn’t ask for one.

Typical Italian. Never heard of the word “no.”

“He’s sleeping here?” Ares barked, turning toward Matteo, more than a little annoyed. “Who the fuck is this kid?”

Beady brown eyes glanced up at Ares, no doubt trying to assess whether the man before him was a threat or an annoyance.

Ares watched the kid, ready to knock him across the head if he tried anything suspicious.

The boy remained silent as he continued his threat assessment.

Ares had watched enoughTrue Crimedocumentaries to know that you never let the weird-ass kid stay overnight. Otherwise, you ran the risk of waking up missing half your face and wondering where all your electronics went.

Trust issues much?

“His dad was beating him, so he ran away. I found him living on the streets and starving. Did you think I was just going to leave him there?” Matteo snapped back, venom dripping from his fangs as he spoke. That angry Italian was starting to show its nasty face once again.

No.That was not Matteo. He helped people whenever he could. Of course he wasn’t going to leave a poor, defenseless kid starving on the streets. Matteo had a kind heart, which was one of the things that Ares loved about the man.

Glancing back at the kid who was now downing the bottle of water, Ares took notice of the bruises on the boy’s face. Something didn’t feel… right.

Sensing his unease, Matteo shoved a finger in Ares’s face and whisper-snarled. “Don’t. Whatever you’re thinking, leave the kid alone. He’s been through enough. He doesn’t need you interrogating him as well.”

Shaking his head, Ares let Matteo pass and watched as he disappeared into his bedroom, no doubt searching for a spare set of clothes.

“So, you got a name?” Ares grunted, walking into the living room and taking a seat in the armchair across from the awkward guest.

The boy stared at him suspiciously. “Jorge.”

“Nice to meet you, Jorge.” Ares glanced down the hall to see where Matteo was. He was still in his room. “Sorry for earlier. You just caught me off guard showing up here with…” He let his words trail off. The boy didn’t need to know all their details.

The kid pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and began texting someone. He held his phone just high enough that Ares couldn’t read what was on the screen.

“Who are you texting?” Ares decided to ask. Something in his gut didn’t feel right.

“I told him he could text one of his friends to let him know where he was. Jesus, Ares, lay off the poor kid.”

Matteo held out a towel and a change of clothes to their guest. “Here, the bathroom’s down the hall. Feel free to shower and get cleaned up. The spare bedroom is already all set up and ready to go.”

The boy thanked Matteo, took the items, and then headed down the hallway toward the bathroom.

Once the door was closed and the shower began running, Ares laid in on the naive Italian.

“Okay, something doesn’t smell right with that kid. If he has friends, why would he decide to come home with a complete stranger in the middle of the night, especially when the guy lives in a cabin in the woods? Has this kid never seen a horror movie? You don’t go home with the creepy guy who lives alone in the woods!”

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