Page 25 of Brush with Death
“My gun can be convincing, too.”And Vale wasn’t afraid to use it.
* * * *
CYRIL WASN’T WORRIEDabout John’s presence anymore.If anything, he was amused.Vale might behave like he wanted nothing to do with John, but if that was really the case, he would already have taken care of it.Instead, he was allowing John to be close to Cyril, and the man was still standing and breathing—and talking.
Cyril understood why Vale was wary of John, but he didn’t think there was anything to be afraid of.John wasn’t there to hurt either of them.If he was, he would’ve already tried.He wouldn’t have succeeded because Vale would never let anyone hurt Cyril, but he was talking to them instead of attacking them.It had to mean something.Cyril had no idea what, but he was curious and wanted to find out.
He was intrigued by John.He didn’t fully understand how anyone could become a professional assassin, but knowing Vale and Russell, it kind of made sense for them.John looked too nice and sunny to want to do that job.
John didn’t seem afraid of Vale.He was smiling widely while Vale looked ready to run.Cyril wasn’t surprised when Vale grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the car.He didn’t argue, knowing it wouldn’t get him anywhere.
Vale walked Cyril to the passenger side door and opened it for him as if afraid that Cyril would bolt if he didn’t stay close.He waited until Cyril was inside the car to rush around and get into the driver’s seat.John kept smiling the entire time.
“He’s sweet,” Cyril said, still watching the man who was supposed to be a professional assassin.He looked more like the boy next door.
“He’s not sweet.He’s a demon.”
Cyril grinned.“Why?He hasn’t done anything.”
“He tried to kill me.”
“To be fair, someone else was trying to kill you.He was just the person hired to do it, and he failed miserably.”
“He failed because he’s an idiot.He shouldn’t have accepted the hit to begin with.Professional assassins don’t do that.We might be killers, but we still follow a code of conduct, and killing our colleagues isn’t it.”
“That’s probably why he feels he needs a teacher.”
Vale shook his head.“No.I’m not going to be anyone’s teacher, let alone his.”
“Russell, then.You know he’d say yes.”If anything, to create even more chaos.That was how Russell was.He’d appeared to have a soft spot for John the day John had tried killing Vale, so it would probably work.Cyril wasn’t sure Vale would survive it with his sanity intact, but it would be fun to watch.
“I’m not putting the two of them together in a room if I can avoid it.Do you know what kind of chaos they would create?”
“I can imagine.It’d be fun.”
Vale glanced at Cyril.“Fun?Clearly, we have a very different idea of fun.”
Cyril relaxed in his seat and watched John as Vale pulled out of the parking lot.John grinned and waved, and Cyril found himself waving back until Vale caught his wrist.
“What are you doing?”
“Saying goodbye.I’m polite.”
“You shouldn’t give him any attention.He’s going to cling if you do, and we’ll never get rid of him.”
“He’s not a dog.”
“You’re right.He’s too annoying to be a dog.”
Cyril grinned.He was still worried about not being able to use his ability and how to help Katie, but this felt nice.It was good to have a distraction for a few minutes, right?Cyril shouldn’t feel guilty about it.
He just wanted a moment to breathe, and Vale and John had given him that.He already knew it wouldn’t last for long.He’d start worrying about everything again soon, and if he didn’t have anything distracting him, then it wouldn’t end well.
There was nothing Cyril could do about his ability.Vale seemed convinced that it would come back if Cyril allowed his body to heal, and maybe he was right, but how long would it take?Could Cyril sit with his hands in his lap doing nothing in the meantime?
He couldn’t.If he couldn’t use his ability to find out what had happened to Sam, it meant he’d have to find another way.Vale hadn’t yet decided if he wanted to open a PI agency with Russell, but maybe this would give him a nudge forward.At the very least, Vale would find out whether or not it was something he could see himself doing for years.
Cyril wasn’t the whole reason Vale had decided to retire, but he was a big part of it, and he didn’t want Vale to regret it.Vale had always been an active man, so Cyril was doing his best to find him something else to do.As much as he enjoyed having his boyfriend around all day, every day, he was afraid that eventually, they’d get bored and annoyed with each other, and he didn’t want that.Besides, Vale was young.He couldn’t spend the rest of his life keeping Cyril out of trouble when there was something better for him out there.
