He gazed around from where he sat, ass on the filthy asphalt, his back to the wall of the liquor store. He was hidden behind a dumpster in the hope that neither Clay nor Auto or any of his gang would find him.
“I’m beside the dumpster.”
“Stay on the phone with me.”
“’kay.”
It was the stupidest moment in his life when he’d believed Clay. The guy said that things would be different.
Clay had lied.
But Diesel was gone, and Triton had wanted to believe in someone so fucking bad. Why had he made the wrong decision again? His head grew woozy and before he knew it, it flopped forward on his neck. He stared at the asphalt between his legs and the small pebbles.
Clay and Auto were going to kill him if he didn’t get away from them. They had used his body and face for a punching bag on a daily basis. He hadn’t been able to work for the past two weeks and had gotten fired as a result. Auto had hit him so badly last night that he wasn’t sure he’d ever breathe without pain again.
Auto had come at him this morning, but was ordered by Clay to leave him alone for a while when Triton couldn’t get his words to come out in the right order. Auto then spat on him, which made Clay laugh, and the pair had left him there in his own blood.
A sound jerked his head up and he panted through the whirling world. The alley was still deserted. Across from the building stood a row of houses. On one front porch hung a basket of brightly colored flowers signaling spring was in the air. Somewhere, a family was laughing and music was playing and his eyes burned with tears.
The sound of Fraser’s VW echoed in the street, and the tears started falling in earnest.
“Triton!” Fraser put the vehicle in park, jumped out, and crouched down next to him. “Oh my god. You’re fucking freezing.” Frazer rubbed at his back, arms, and shoulders, causing Triton to cry out. “I’ve got to get you to the hospital.”
“Okay,” Triton whispered.
“Did Clay do this?”
“Oh god, I tried so hard to make it work. Something’s wrong with me. I’m defective.”
“Shhh, it’s okay,” Fraser whispered with tears in his voice, lifting him from the ground.
“Should I call Maddox?”
“No! Fuck no,” he pleaded, sobbing. He’d been dodging his cousin’s calls. Not that there had been many because Maddox was deployed. “Please, I can’t let him know about this.”
“Okay, honey, I won’t.”
“Promise.”
“I promise. What about Bull?”
“I lied. I’ve been telling Bull that I’m living back at the dorm. That I’m back in school.” He sucked in a breath.
Fraser slowly and painfully helped him to the car. If he took short breaths, he could get enough air to not pass out.
The emergency room was packed, but they took him back right away when the nurse got a look at him.
He curled on the gurney, squeezing Fraser’s hand, and cried until his face was even more swollen and he couldn’t see out of his eyes.
The ER doctor gave him something to help him calm down.
Of course, they called the cops. He told the understanding but tired police officer that he didn’t know who’d done it and no, he was over the age of eighteen and didn’t need anyone notified.
Fraser sat in a chair next to his emergency room bed looking sadder than he could ever remember him being.
“Some friend I am,” he croaked.
“Stop,” Fraser scolded.
Triton turned on his side, his whole body ached, but it wasn’t piercing after the painkillers had kicked in.
“Come home with me.”
“I can’t.” The tears wouldn’t stop.
“Why not?”
“They’ll find me with you, and they’ll hurt you bad, Fraser. Clay forbid me to see you, and Auto is blackmailing me to be quiet about it.” He finally told Fraser about Auto’s brand of blackmail.
“Are you serious?” Fraser’s mouth dropped open, eyes flashing fire.
“Yes.” A sob bubbled up.
“Jesus, Triton, why didn’t you tell me?”
“What good would that have done?” He dashed at his eyes, his shaking worse.
“Damn it, why’d you run back to that bastard? Why, sweetie? Why?” Tears ran down Fraser’s cheeks.
What could he say? That he wanted to be loved so badly, he kept hoping things would be better? That when Diesel left, it had ripped a hole in his heart that he’d tried to fill with anyone? That he didn’t deserve anyone good?
“I’m sorry,” he sobbed.
“Oh, honey. Why don’t you call Maddox and have him come back here and stop that son of a bitch from hitting you?” Fraser hissed, tears streaming down his face as he carefully held his hand.
“I promised Maddox I’d stopped seeing Clay. Maddox doesn’t know how stupid I was to come back. Mad doesn’t even know that I dropped out of college!” he cried, the lies building up.
“Oh sugar, it’s okay.”
“He’s gone! He’s gone!” He sobbed harder as Fraser hugged him close.
“Who, Maddox?” Fraser asked, confused.
“No, Diesel.” He sobbed into Fraser’s arms until he had no strength left. He struggled to breathe, his breath a hiccup of sound.
“I’m so sorry, honey.” Fraser rocked him.
“I didn’t want him to leave me, but he left anyway.”
“Why didn’t you ask him to stay?”
“I couldn’t,” he whispered. He’d been too afraid. He didn’t want to hear Diesel tell him no.
“I know you really liked him.” Fraser brushed the hair back from his damp face.
He sniffled and gulped. “He gave me his number and his address.”
“He did what?” Fraser drew back and stared at him, stunned. “Why didn’t you tell me that?”
“I don’t know? What do you think that means?”
Fraser looked at him like he was out of his mind.
“It means he wants you to go there.”
“It does not.”
“Yes, trust me. Guys don’t give you their number and address unless they subconsciously want you there.”
“That’s a lie,” he mumbled. “He’d freak if I showed up.”
“Nah, just do it. Why do you have to overthink things? You’re free, twenty-two, and you can go anywhere. You even have a job you can do anywhere. What are you waiting for?”
“I don’t know.”
“What if Clay or his fucking brother kill you,” Fraser hissed.
Triton blinked and the tears started falling again. “What if Diesel doesn’t like me?”
“What? Why wouldn’t he like you?”
“I don’t know.”
“That’s crazy talk. If he didn’t like you, he wouldn’t have given you his phone number, and he sure the hell wouldn’t have given you his address. He likes you, even if it’s only as a friend. He could help you.”
Triton looked up at the ceiling for a moment, and then rolled to bury his bruised face in the pillow. “I don’t want to be a burden.” The words muffled into the cotton softness.