Page 4 of The Devil's Mercy

“‘Coy and Unattainable’,” Titus repeated, ignoring his question. He quirked a thin black brow. “Is that how you see me, little monster?”

He straightened in his seat. “Don’t. You said that before. I don’t like it.”

“Oh? And I suppose the rest of this is to your liking?” The director laughed. “I’m sorry I come off that way to you. For the record, I never wanted you to think of me as unattainable. That would defeat the purpose of all this effort I’ve put into having you, after all.”

“I won’t fall for any more of your tricks. You or Aodhan’s.” He’d bought into the doctor’s act, had believed there was something between them. Maybe it wasn’t anything that could be lasting, but all those times the other man had comforted Cal and made him feel less than a freak? They’d meant something to him.

“Did you go through all of that just to get me to drop my guard and come here? Why?” Why not kidnap him elsewhere? What was so important about having them at their home? Or… “Was I just unlucky? Did I stumble on you and Amory and that’s why you’re doing this? What was she even doing here? Why’d she come after you?”

As far as he knew, Amory wouldn’t have had any reason to target Titus or Aodhan. They’d wrapped the case just before Bruce’s funeral, and while they still didn’t have a clear motive for Amory, messages and the search history of Rhett’s devices gave clear signs he’d killed people in a twisted sense of retribution for their ill loved ones.

“That’s a good place to start actually,” Titus said, ignoring his comment. “Something about me. I’ve been with my boyfriend for around two years now. He’ll say it’s closer to three, but I don’t count the…courting period the way he does.”

After their exchange in the kitchen, Cal sort of had an inkling, but hearing it confirmed like this…

“Do you think that’s going to somehow make me jealous?” he forced himself to grunt. “Now? No way. You two psychos can have each other.”

“Careful,” Titus chided. “Aodhan could return at any moment. We wouldn’t want him hearing you say something like that. I was able to calm him down, for now, but it won’t last. He’s too impatient, too eager to get things started.”

“There are marks all over me!”

“I made him take it easy on you,” he insisted. “If Aodhan had his way, you’d be waking sitting on his cock, not in that chair. I thought we should perhaps try to reason with you first, but I’m starting to see that might have been a mistake. He’s spent more time with you than I have. Maybe he really does know you better than I do.”

“Is that what this is really about?” Calix asked. “Are you doing this because I messed around with your man?”

“It’s cute that you think I’m the type of person who wouldn’t be aware of his lover's every move,” Titus replied. “Cute, but misguided.”

So he’d known the whole time that Cal and Aodhan were getting close. That only bolstered the theory that the two of them had been in on this together.

But why?

“Why didn’t you stop us?”

“Why would I want to stop something I helped start?” Titus took a single step closer, stilling when Calix tensed, as though he cared about making him uncomfortable. “There. That’s something else about me. You might have figured this out already, but then again, maybe not. The night of the reunion? Aodhan planned to do a lot more.”

“You say that as though what hedid dowasn’t a big deal,” Calix repeated incredulously. “Easy for the guy who wasn’t shredded on someone else’s dick to say.”

“Please. We both know how much you enjoyed it, Detective. Or should I replay the video again for you so you can take a closer look?”

Cal dropped his gaze, inwardly cursing himself and his cowardice.

“Don’t be ashamed, your reaction wasn’t that uncommon. We’ve talked about this before. Think.” When Calix clearly didn’t follow, Titus sighed and continued. “Misattribution of arousal.”

Oh right. That conversation they’d had in his office again. They were circling back, only Cal found himself less eager to change the subject this time around.

“I’m fairly certain you called it a misattribution of desire that day,” he stated dryly.

“Only because I felt the word ‘arousal’ wasn’t very fitting of the overall situation.”

“As in, you thought there was a higher chance of me shooting you if you said it like that?” Calix rolled his eyes.

“I was hoping you’d take my words to heart,” Titus disclosed, seemingly disappointed. “That you’d be smart enough to apply it to your reaction that night with Aodhan at the reunion all on your own.”

“Looks like you’ve given me too much credit. Why don’t you unchain me and let me go, since I’m not who you thought I was?”

“Aodhan likes to do that as well, hide behind witty remarks and deflection. The only difference is that yours is self-deprecating.”

Yeah, Calix couldn’t picture the doctor thinking poorly of himself.

---