Chapter Sixteen

Ty walked slowly down the sterile hallway of the hospital, watching his feet carefully so as not to think too hard about why he was here. After traversing what he knew had to be the longest hallway in history, He found the room and stepped into the doorway, unconsciously biting his lip as he looked at the still figure on the bed.

He swallowed heavily and made his way slowly into the room, stopping at the bedside and looking down. Zane looked awful. His skin—what of it wasn't mottled with ugly bruises—was an unhealthy gray color under the soft light of the hospital room. Ty fought back the urge to feel sorry for himself as he sat down beside the bed and looked at the myriad of tubes and IVs that attached to Zane's hands and arms.

Hopped up, Zane hadn't realized that he'd torn his hands all to hell on the bricks, and the further abuse to his broken arm had meant surgery tofix it. The bandages around his palms and fingers glared white against his dark tan.

He'dbeeninthehospital foraweekandstilllookedthisbad.Like deathwarmed over.Andtheclichéfit.Theoverdose haddonearealnumber onhim. BythetimetheEMTs had gotten tothem, Zane hadbeen infull cardiac arrest.

But hewas alive, and that was allthatTycared about. He satsilently, merelywatching Zaneasheslept.Afterawhile,hisvisionunfocused andhe wassimply staring atthehospital blanket thatcovered Zane's stillbodyashe sat by his side.

"Hey."

Ty winced at the soft word.

Hehadn't hadachance toseeZanesincetheyhadtaken him outof thatservice elevator. During thepastweek, noonewould lethim seehis partneruntilhehimselfwasofficiallydischarged, andhehadonlyjustbeen released himself. Theyhadmerelytoldhim thatZanewasalive, andleftitat that.During thetimehe'd beenconfined tohishospital bed, Ty'd hadalotof timetothinkaboutwhathewantedtosaytoZane.Everawareoftheprying earsandeyesaroundthem,though,hebitbackthemoretenderwordshe might have said. They didn't feel right on his tongue, anyway.

"Hey," he echoed hollowly.

Zane's darkeyesweresunken, buttheywereopen,mostlyclearand focused. "How're you?" he whispered.

"Horrible,"Tymanagedtoanswerwithaweaksmile."Theytellme I'm not allowed to kick your ass yet."

Onebrowslowlyedgedupinquestion. "Kissmyass,didyousay?" Zane's eyes twinkled and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

Tyglanced over hisshoulder quickly andthen stood topress akissto Zane's lips. "I thought we'd lost you," he muttered accusingly.

Zane brightened alittleafter the kiss. "I'm too stubborn todie when I have a reason to live," he murmured,watching Ty reverently.

"Youdamnwellbetterbe,"Tymurmured ashesatbackdown, wringing hishandstogether asifhewantedtodosomething elsewiththem. "'Cause I'm gonna beat the living shit out of you later."

"Promises,promises,"Zane said quietly."I oweyou a hell of a beatingtoo."Hepausedforamomentastheyjuststaredateachother. "Wanna call it even?"

Tymadeashowofthinking overtheofferandthensmiled slightly. Thesmilefellslowly,andhelookedoverZaneseriously."Youaregetting out of here, right?" he asked softly.

"Yeah. You are waiting for me, right?" Zane asked.

Ty'slipscompressedintoathinlineandhelookedaway,flushing guiltily.Zanetiltedhisheadtotheside,andhissmileturnedslightlysad. Aftereverything they'dbeenthrough, evenafterwhathe'djustsaid,it appeared thatthemilitary mindset wasfartooingrained forTytobe comfortableadmitting what he felt for his lover now that the dire situation had passed. Zane wonderedif he even felt anything at all.

"Eitherway."Zanesighedtiredly,lettinghiseyesclose."Letme know."

"They're not gonna letmestick around," Tysaid softly ashelowered his head.

Zanestilledforalongmoment, thenopenedhiseyestoseeTyatthe bedside, head bowed. "‘They' being the Bureau," he said, not questioning.

Ty lookedbackup at him with open desperation,as if he were begging Zane to tell him what to do.

Pure joyswelled quietly inside Zane."You don't want togo,"he realized, lifting his hand with difficulty to brush Ty's cheek.

"Not right now," Tywhispered insomething close tooutrage. "What, you thought I'd just leave your sorry ass after all this?" he asked incredulously.

Zaneshookhisheadslowly,smilereappearing."Sorry.Littleslow. I'llblamethedrugstheygavemetocounteract thedrugs,"hemurmured. He didn't have tobescared. Allofasudden itwaseasytoaccept that. "You care about my sorry ass," he added quietly, turning eyes that spoke volumes on Ty.

Tywassilent,hisknuckles turning whiteasheclasped hishands together. "I do," he finally agreed. "And stop forgetting it," he chided gently.

Rather than replying right away, Zane turned his head fully to the side sohecouldrestandwatchTyatthesametime.Hestudiedthebedhairand thethinner face,darkwithstubble. Herealized Tymusthavecome straight herefrombeingreleased. ButtoZane,hewasgorgeous. "Okay," heagreed, thenlickedhislips."Sothey'resending youoffsomewhere?" heasked,back to the "they."

"Lecture circuit," Ty answered bitterly. "Again." He looked away and thenlowered hishead,blushing deeply. "Theycan'tputmeonacaseuntil... they'resureIwon'tfreakoutinthedark."Hesighedandclosedhiseyes, unabletolookbackup."Theyhadtoleavemeanightlight," headmitted sheepishly.

"C'mon and look at me, Ty," Zane murmured.

Tydidn't respond, otherthantoopenhiseyes.Hestared atthethin blanketoverZane'sbodyforwhatseemedaneternitybeforeslowlyraising his eyes to meet Zane's.

"You'reabraveman,"Zanerasped."IhopethatthenexttimeI'm with you and it's dark, you'll let me hold you," Zane said.

"You're gonnahaveto,"Tyresponded inabrokenlaugh,"'causeall the current evidence points to the fact that I'll cry like a little girl."

"That's okay," Zanemurmured without humor, raising hisleftarmso he could stroke Ty's cheek gently with shaking fingers. "Still want you."

Ty glanced over his shoulder nervously and then back at Zane guiltily.

Zanesmiled. Hiseyesflickered totheemptydoorway andback. "Don't worry," he said softly. "There's no one watching."

A pained look came over Ty's face before he looked away again.

Zanenodded,relaxingsomeagainstthepillows."Iunderstand,"he saidgently.Hedidn'thavetheyearsofhabittobreak.Heloweredhisarm and rested it on the bed again. "When do you leave?"

"Now," Ty murmured,unable to look up.

Zane's breath caught foralongmoment until heforced himself to exhale. There wasn't anything elsetosay,then. Andnothing elsetobedone. One moretime,he'dhaveto watchTy walkaway,andhe couldn'tdo anything moreaboutitthanlasttime."Quick kissbefore yougo?"he requested,knowingitwouldbehardifTywastrulyasonedgeashewas acting.

Tyclosedhiseyesandshivered."Idowantyou,"hewhispered."I want you to find me, as soon as you're free," he murmuredas he looked up.

Zanenodded andwatched thebattlewarring inTy'sexpressive hazel eyes. Ithurt more than hewould ever have expected. "Takecareofyourself," he said, exhaustionbreaking past his bold front.

Tyreached impulsively andsmoothed Zane'shairbackfromhis forehead. He stood, bending over him topress akiss tohis forehead. "We can still cut and run," he whisperedagainst the warm skin.

Swallowing hard,Zaneshiveredashopeshotthroughhim.Hopefor something otherthantheoccasional flybyastheypassedeachotherbywhile working. He had to try to ignore the twang he felt at the thought of leaving his hard-earnedand well-lovedjob behind.

"Just say the word," he said thickly.

Tyclosedhiseyes,hisfingerstightening inZane'shair.Hewas proposingtheybothgiveupajobtheyloved,giveupeverythingeitherof themknew."Wecanopenupaflowershopandsellblackmarketorchids from the back," he offered with a slight hitch in his voice.

Zanesmiledat theflashof humor,thoughheknewit wasTy's defense mechanism. "Just saythe word," herepeated quietly, though heknew Ty never would, and he wondered what he himself would do if it ever came to that. "Go on. Go, while I'm too drugged to stop you."

"Evenif I quitnow,I couldn'tstayhere,"Ty respondedalmost defensively, as if trying to convince himself to go. "I couldn't stay with you."

CalminthefaceofTy'sstruggle,Zanenodded. "You'reright,"he said evenly.

Tymoved quickly andpressed akisstoZane's lips. "Becareful, Zane,"hebreathed,thenstoodandswiftlywalkedawayfromthehospital bed, not looking back as he disappearedthrough the door.

ThemotorcyclespedalongInterstate35underthebrightsunlight,skillfully handled bytheriderinbrown leather andafull-face helmet. Thebikemoved steadilythrough thethintraffic. Theriderreached outandthumbed abutton when the headphonein his helmet beeped for a phone call.

"Garrett,"he shouted over the roar of the engine.

"Special Agent Garrett."

Zane blinked andlooked from side tosideashegunned thebike to speed up. "What do you want, Burns? I'm on vacation."

"Yes, Iknow. Fivemonths ofMiami earns youthree weeks of vacation. How are you, Zane?"

Evenmoresurprised tobecalledbyname,Zanetiltedhishead."I'm good," he answered cautiously.

"Where are you, pray tell?"

"Home," Zane answered slowly.

"How is Texas? Sunny?" Burns asked politely.

"No, we're in the middle of a blizzard,"Zane deadpanned.

"Well,yourwitisstillassharpasabrokentoothpick,"Burnssaid withasigh."Vacationisoverinfourdays.IwantyouhereinDConthe fifth."

Zanepressedhislipstogetherasheguidedthebikeofftheinterstate onto a lesser highway. "You're the boss," he finally said.

"You're not going back to Miami," Burns said placatingly.

"Miami's a cesspool," Zane muttered, unconsciously repeating a sentiment said to him what seemed like years ago.

"Behereinfivedays.TheBureauwillpayfortransport,ifyoulike. Getyourheadwrapped aroundtheideaofafeweasyassignments andanew partner while you're at it," Burns instructed.

Zane's gutclenched painfully. "I'vetoldyou.Idon'twantanew partner. What happened to my old partner?"

Burns usually blithely ignored him when heasked about Ty,butnow he cleared his throat and said, "That's classified. See you infive days, Special Agent Garrett." And the Assistant Director hung up.

Zanehadtoforcehimselftopayattentiontotrafficashisstomach roiled. He didn't want another partner. He only wanted Ty.

God. Ty.Almost sixmonths hadpassed, andnotaword. Nota message. Nothing butblindhopetokeephimgoing.Workmadeiteasierto forget. Butafter thesecond timebeinginjured inMiami thispasttour, Zane snappedoutofthedangerous, depressive funkandfiguredouthehadbetter listen toTy'srequest forhimtobecareful orhe'dcuthischances ofseeing himagaintonil.Heputinthevacation andtransfer requests, andforthefirst time in five years, went home to Texas.

Thelastthreeweekshadbeenfullofmemories:oldandnew,good and bad. Tywas always there, onthe edge ofhis periphery, and Zane feltlike apartofhimself wasmissing. What werethechances Burns would puthim backtogether withTy?Zanefiguredonabsolutely none,andthatwas optimistic. IfZane had been put back in deep cover, then Tyhad tohave been as well. That was the other man's specialty, after all,and the "That's classified" answer prettymuchconfirmedit.Buthecouldn'thelphoping.AtleastBurnsmight be willing to tell him how to contact Ty when they spoke in five days.

The bike sped out ofthe cityand into theflats, giving itsrider timeto think.

Tysatattheendofthebar,watchingtheOriolesgettheshitkickedoutof them againanddrinking aSamAdams freshoutofthetap.Heknewthe bartender byname.Heknewthewaitress byname.Heknewthedrunk dude throwing darts atthe public health poster inthe corner byname.He had spent a great deal of time in this bar.

"Wantanother basket, sweetie?" Cindyaskedhimassheleaned against thebarnext tohim,atrayofdirtyglasses andempty beer bottles resting on her hip.

Tyglancedatherandshookhishead,offeringaweaksmile.Heslid the empty basket of chips toward her, and she smiled athim as she took itand wentonherway.Tylookedbackatthetelevision, watching butnotseeing. TheOrioles werejustpainful thisseason. Finally, hedrained hisbeer,setting the empty glass down with a clunk and slapping down a fifty with it.

Hewaved goodbye toallthepeople whothought theyknew him and steppedoutintothewarmnightair.Hesighedandturnedawayfromthe cornerwherethecabsfrequented, walkinginsteadtowardhisrowhousenear Fell's Point. Itwas along walk, but Ty didn't mind it.The walk helped quell thepartofhimthatprayedoneofthecarsracingalongthenarrowroads would justhithimasheshuffled across thestreet. Lifewasnofunanymore. Thejobwasnofunanymore. Thebadguyskeptgettingaway,andshooting themwasn'tworththepaperwork. Hecouldn'tevenwatchbaseballwithout feeling the need to slit his wrists.

Fucking stupid Orioles.

He had tracked Zane right back to Miami, to an undercover job where Tycouldn'tpossiblycontacthim.Theycouldn'thavesenthimbackdown there unless hehad accepted the assignment, and Tywas leftwith nothing but to wonder why Zane would do that.

Thecellphoneinhisbackpocketbegantovibrateashewalked slowlybehindacoupleoutenjoyingthenight.Tygrowledunderhisbreath andthenreached backforit,flipping itopenandanswering withanegligent, "What?"

"Stopwalking," thevoicesaidontheotherendofthecall,"andwait for your ride to pick you up."

Tystoppeddeadinhistracksandswallowedheavily,resistingthe urge to look around. "You're having me followed?"he asked incredulously.

"Onlywhenyou'rethinkingaboutgoingAWOL,"AssistantDirector Burns answered with a smile in his voice.

Tywassimmering asablackYukonDenalipulledupbesidetheline ofparkedcarsnexttothesidewalkandwaitedforhimpatiently."Andwhen is that?" he demanded in a growl.

"Midnight to4a.m.,"Burnsreturned knowingly. "How're the broken fingers?"

"Broken,"Ty grunted in answer. "Why am I being tailed?"

"You have a new assignment."

"But—"

"Se?or de la Vega had a nasty plane accident down in the Caribbean," Burnsinformed himquietly. "Seems themechanic working onhisplanehad somebroken fingers nooneknew about, didn't getallthenutsandboltstight enough. Getinthedamncarandletittakeyouhome. IwantyouinDCby noon."

"Youandyournewassignments cangofuckyourselves, Dick,"Ty grumbled."My fingers hurt. And the important one won't stand up by itself."

"Soholdthem allupandcallitaflock," Burns advised inmild amusement.

Ty snorted. "Flock of birds. That's funny," he muttered disconsolatelyto himself as he stared at the governmentvehicle stubbornly.

"Ty," Burns sighed, his voicetaking onthetone ofthementor hehad oncebeen."Don'ttosseverythingyouloveoutthewindow,hmm?You've tiedupyour loose ends, andyougettotorture your newpartner tomorrow. Noon. I'll see you then," he said before ending the call.

Ty looked down at the phone as if it had offended him somehow, then upattheagent patiently waiting forhim bytheopen back door oftheYukon. Ty's jawtightened ashelooked upand down thesidewalk. Finally, hesighed and trudged over to the waiting vehicle, sliding into the back wordlessly.

Zaneignored Burns's offer of transport, instead spending a couple more days withhisparents before getting onthebikeandheading east.Hereallydidn't care what time hegot toDC onthe fifthday. Burns hadn't specified, after all. Hestopped bothnights along thewayandtriedalotnottothink about what was waiting for him. A new partner.

ItwasafewminutesafternoonwhenhepulledintotheBureaulot andshowedhisidentification. Onceheparked,hegotahitofdéjàvu.He'd arrivedlikethislasttime.Samebike,sameleather—different jacket.His mother hadinsisted hecuthishair,though, soitwastrimmed andneatonce more. Hehadafewmorescars. He'dnottoldanyone about those. Nooneto tell, really, and they'd mostly healed up.

Wrinkling his nose, Zane dropped the helmet on the seat and clomped his way into the building,grumbling to himself.

Withallhiscontacts, he'dmanaged tofindoutonlythatTyhadbeen released fromWalterReedonthedayZanehadlastseenhim,butthenhehit adeadend.Howitwaspossible forTytojustwalkoutofthehospital and disappear, hedidn'tknow;agentsnotonassignment wereusuallyprettyeasy to find through the Bureau. He hadn't gone on the lecture circuit like he'd said he was, that was for certain. The only thing Zane could come up with was that Tywasworkingsomething offthebooks—not evenundercover, butserious black-ops stuff—and thatmeanthewouldn't befoundatall.Ithadbeen frustrating asallhellasZanesearched forhim.Andnowherehewas,faced withapartnerhedidn'twant,inajobthatwasswiftlybecomingmorelike work and less like somethinghe enjoyed.

"Goodtoseeyoudoingwell,SpecialAgentGrady,"thesecretaryoffered insincerely as Ty entered the outer office.

"Goodtoseethestickstillfirmlylodged,Princess," Tyresponded as hewalked rightbyherandwaved forhertotellBurns thathewasthere. She puffed up angrily and jabbed at the intercomto announce him.

Tyentered theAssistant Director's office andstopped short. Over the pastfiveorsixhours, hehadallowed himself tohopethathisnewpartner wouldreallybehisoldone.ThatBurnshadfinallypulledZaneoutofthat hellinMiami andbrought him backtotheSpecial Crimes unit.Butnow,he sawwithasinking sensation thathisnewpartnerwasalreadyhere,sittingin oneofthechairsoppositeBurnswithaleatherportfolioinhislap,taking notes.

Holy Jesus, he was taking notes.

The young man looked up and over his shoulder tostudy TyasBurns started talking. "Special Agent Grady, thank youforjoining us.ThisisDavid Reese."

Theblondmanstood, clutching thefoldertohischest.Bright green eyesshonethrough wire-rimmed glasses. "SpecialAgentGrady,"Reesesaid. "It's great to meet you."

Tyremained planted where hewas, staring atthekid.Helooked to Burnswithsheeroutrageglintinginhiseyes."Whattheshitisthis?"he asked.

ReeseblinkedandlookedbackatBurns,whowassmiling."Davidis ajunioratGeorgetown. He'sinterning withmethissummer.Sayhello,Ty," the Assistant Director ordered pleasantly.

Tystaredathim,slightlynonplussedashelookedbackatthekid. "Shit,"hefinallymutteredapologeticallyashesteppedcloserandtookhis hand in greeting. "I thoughtyou were my new partner," he said with a laugh.

"Jesus," Reese muttered asheshook Ty's hand. "Ifeelforyour new partner, man. He'll be crappinghis pants."

Burns snorted.

"Yeah well,healso won't look twelve, sohe'llbefine," Tyhuffed in return.

Reese smiled slightly, but he didn't appear amused by the crack about his age.

"David,SpecialAgentGradyhereisoneofthemoreunconventional agentsyoumayencounterhereattheBureau.Donotincludehiminyour summaries,"Burns cautionedwith a smirk as he leaned back in his chair.

Reese nodded and smiled wryly. "I should hope not, sir," he answered."I don't know how you'd keep new recruits."

"We'dfeedthemtothemilitary," Tygrumbled ashewentoverand flopped downintotheemptychair."Sowhereisthisasshole, anyway?" he asked with frown. "You can't tell me I'm the one on time."

"Actually,youare,althoughhe'snotfarbehind.Securitysaidhe came through afew minutes ago," Burns said. Then he looked to Reese. "You see,David, oneofthemorearduous jobswehavehereisfiguring outhowto gatheragentswhoworkeffectively together. SpecialAgentGradyhere presents aparticularly difficult challenge, asI'msureyoucanimagine." The young man glanced to Ty, obviously agreeing with the sentiment.

Burns cocked hishead when heheard theouter door open and footstepsclompin.TheofficedooropenedandReeseturnedcuriouslyto look. Ty was almost afraid to do the same, but curiosity got the better of him.

Zane Garrett stood totally still just inside the doorway,his eyes already settled intently on Ty.

"Special Agent Garrett, how lovely of you to join us," Burns drawled. "This isDavid Reese,mynewest intern. Ibelieve youalready know Special Agent Grady."

After a short pause, Zane nodded slightly.

Tyfoundhimselfstruggling forsomething tosayasheblinked stupidlyatZane.Thelackofreactionwasdisconcerting. Tyhadtriedevery trickinhisbook,tryingtofindawaytogetintouchwithZaneafterthe medical leavehadended. Butanundercover operation trumped evenfake familyemergencies, andTyhadn'tbeenabletogetanywhere beforehisown assignments commenced. Hefoundhimselfwondering, notforthefirsttime, whether Zane took an assignment he knew would keep him under on purpose, just to keep away from him after the haze of the drugs had cleared.

"Well,David,it'stimeforyournextappointment," Burnssaid pointedly, ushering thestudent outthedoorpastZane.TheAssistant Director shut thedoor behind him andturned tolook atthetwomen.Theoffice was quiet.

Tyfinallyswallowed downhisshockandlooked fromBurnstoZane uncertainly."Hey," he offered.

Zane glanced toBurns aswell,andbacktoTy."Hi," hesaidquietly, taking in Ty's features.

And thereseemed tobenothing more tosay.Tyfinally looked down, unwilling to meet Zane's unreadableeyes.

"Well,"Burnssaidashemovedbacktothechairbehindhisdesk. "Garrett, if you choose to move from Arlington closer to your new assignment, theBureau willpayfortemporary accommodationsuntil youcan getyourselfsettledinDCorsurrounds.Paperwork'sinthemail,"hetold them ashewavedhishandthrough theairindismissal, thoughtherewasthe slightest twist of a smile on his lips.

Zaneblinked,surpriseandhopeemerginginhiseyes."You're... partnering us again?"

"Aslongasyoudon'tblowanythingupagainorkillanyoneelse, yes," Burns answered with some amusement as Ty glanced back up at Zane in surprise."You'llbeworkingtheDCareafornow.Noundercoverwork,no big cases until you're both... mentally stable," he said with a wry smirk.

"Does that mean this is apermanent assignment?" Ty asked, his voice lowandslightly hoarse.

Burnsmerely laughed andleaned backinhischair again.

ZanehadtotearhiseyesawayfromTy."Noobjection,"hesaid softly.

"Good!"Burnsrespondedwithasmile."Nowgetthehelloutofmy office,"hesaidasthesmiledroppedbackintohiscustomaryscowl."And take a fucking shower," he ordered. "Both of you."

Zane took an awkward step backward, watching Ty again, and reached behindhimself tograspthedoorknob. Hepulledopenthedoorand waited. Burns's lipstwitched ashewatched, andheshookhisheadeverso slightly.

TylookedbackattheAssistant Director uncertainly andthennodded obediently, glancingatZaneashepassedbyhimoutthedoor.Zanewatched himthewholewayandthenfollowed, pullingthedoorshutastheyleft.He was completely oblivious to the secretary staring at them.

Ty slowed to astop and turned to meet Zane's eyes. He glanced atthe secretary andthenbackatZane, turning again tokeepmoving without ever saying anything. Afteramoment's pause,Zaneblinkedandstrode afterhim, out into the hall, catching up at the elevator.

Tyhadhishead down, waiting forthedoors toopen. "How have you been?" he asked quietly without looking up.

Zane cast over the five months of hell in Miami. "Shitty," he answered in the same soft tone. "You?"

Tylookedupslightlybutdidn'tanswer. Thedoorswhooshed open, andhestepped inside theelevator car.Zanedidn't hesitate tofollow. He punched thebutton fortheparking garage, andthedoorsslidshut."Itriedto getintouchwithyou,"Tyfinallymurmured without looking atZane."They saidyouwereunreachable.YouwentbacktoMiami,"hesaidbitterly,his voice almost accusing.

"Ididn'thavemuchofachoice. ItwasthatorNewMexico," Zane said.Hedidn'ttrytoapologize. "I...Ididn'tknowyouwerelooking forme. We were buried." He leaned back against the wall. "I called in acouple times. They wouldn't tell me anything about you," he growled.

Tyglanced atZanesideways, reallylooking athimforthefirsttime. "You've been shot again, haven't you?" he asked in resignation.

Zane didn't tryto lie.He just lethis eyes drop. Tynodded and looked away, the swirling in his stomach nearly unbearable.

"Did you get your head on straight?" Zane asked. The elevator stopped and the doors opened.

Tystoodthere,looking outintotheparking deckwithasortof distance tohisexpression thatwasfairlycommon lately."No,"heanswered softly.

Zaneswallowed,hurting.Hereachedoutandblockedthedooropen and waved Ty through.

Ty walked past him with his head down again, hands in his pockets as heheadedforhiscar.Suddenly, hestopped andlookedup,inhaling deeply. "You did have a choice," he murmured.

Zanehaltedinplace.He'dconsidered theotheroption. Once. Fleetingly. "No,"hesaidclearly."Ididn'twanttogiveuponseeingyou again."

Ty's eyes wandered along the cement ceiling ofthe parking structure, his back stillturned as he considered Zane's answer. "But it wasn't worth it to leave," he finally murmured,as if talking to himself.

Swallowing onthepain,Zaneclosedhiseyesforalongmoment. When hespoke, itwas arasp. "Wecanstillcutandrun." Hisshoulders tightened. "But now we don't have to."

Ty stood there for another moment before turning slowly to look back atZane.Helookedattheleatherandthefreshscars,lettinghiseyescarry overthem pointedly. "Youdidn'tlistentoadamnthingItoldyou,"hesaid softly. "Did you?"

Zaneflinched,andtrueregretwasclearonhisface."No,"hesaid miserably."Notfora while.Iwasn't..."Hehuffed."Iwasn't...there,"he said weakly, waving at his head.

"Youshouldn't havetobetheretobecareful,"Tygrowled in response."It'scommonfuckingsense,Garrett!"heshoutedsuddenly,his voice echoing through the structure.

Nervouslylickinghisupperlip,Zanewincedandstraightened his shoulders."What do you want me to say, Ty?" he asked. "It won't change it."

"Iwantyoutosayyou'resorry,"Tydemandedstubbornly."AndI want you to tell me how pissed you are at me for leaving when I did!"

"IwassoangryIsawredforweeks," Zaneadmitted. "Eventhough I knew therewasn't agoddamn thing youcould doabout it,"hewent on, voice getting louder as he allowed the emotion to break through. "I was furious with theBureauforchucking mebackintohell,andIwaspissedwithmyselffor letting them.Forawhile, thebestthing Icould comeupwithwashoping an injurywould landmebackinthefucking hospital," hegrowled, incensed, his eyesflashing. "Iwould havedoneanything. Anything togetbacktoyou.I can't say I'm sorry for that."

Ty exhaled slowly, calming. "Better," he said softly with a nod.

Shaking, Zanetookacouple steps toward Ty,setahand onhischest, andpushedhimhardagainsttheconcretepillarbehindhim."That'sallyou have to say?" he demanded,the fury still clear.

Tymovedsuddenly,shovingZaneawaybeforegrabbinghisface withbothhandsandkissinghimforcefully, rightthereintheparking garage. ZanereeledbackacouplestepsasTy'sweighthithim.Hegothisbalance andgrabbed bothofTy'supperarms,takingthosestepsforward againand pinning Tyagainstthewall.Itwasagloriously violentkissthathepoured all his anguish and anger into.

Tygrippedhimmindlessly,notevenconcernedaboutthepossibility of the security cameras catching them asthey took out the past five months of frustration oneachother.Finally, heshovedatZaneroughly, gasping for breath.Whenpushed,Zaneturnedandstalkedafewstepsaway.Hestood there, trying togethisbreath, and hewiped hismouth with theback ofhis hand.

"I'mnotsorry,"hemutteredashedraggedahandthroughhisshort hair.

Tyrested hishead back against theconcrete wallandclosed hiseyes. "I am," he whispered.

Zane's emotions played openly across his face. He wasn't even trying tohidethem.Hewashurt,hewasconfused,andhewasscared."Whatfor?" heasked, voice aching. Hecouldn't bring himself tomoveagain, torejoin Ty four strides away.

"Leaving,"Ty answered as he opened his eyes again.

The frustration and anger faded as Zane took agood long look athim. Helooked likehell.Hewastanenough thatitspoke oftimeinsome exotic location, butthearduous pastfivemonths fairlyclungtohim.Hiseyeswere flatandtired, hisfacewasscruffy, andeventhough he'dslept, hestilllooked haggard. Threeofthefingers onhisrighthand werebadlybroken and bandaged. Thesmokeoftheexpensive cigarshesmoked wasstrongenough for Zane to smell without trying.

Zaneconsidered barkingathimfornottakingcareofhimself, butit justwasn'tinhim.Aftersolongapart,hedidn'twanttohurtanymore. Slowlyhisfeetmoved,takinghimclosertoTyuntilhestoodlessthanan arm'slength away.Zanecouldn't stiflethesigh,andheresisted theurgeto reachoutandtouch."Ithought youweresupposed togetbetter on convalescentleave," he murmured.

"Maybe I had some unfinished business to tend to first," Ty respondedwryly, his voice low and hoarse.

"Christ," Zane muttered. "We're both such a fucking mess."

"I worried about you," Ty admitted.

Zanesighed andlowered hishead, looking upatTyfrom under lowered brows. The proximity alone was easing his pain asmuch as anything. "I couldn't stop thinking about you."

"Whythehelldidn't youcome home?" Tyasked, letting theanguish leak through.

"The same reason you walked away," Zane whispered.

"'Cause youdidn'tknowanything aboutblackmarketorchids?" Ty asked weakly.

Zane'slaughwaschoked,butitwasstillalaugh."Allergies?" he offered, trying to dip his head to meet Ty's gaze.

Tyliftedhischinandmadeeyecontact."Istilldrink,"heblurted. "AndIstillsmoke illegalCubans. AndIstilltakebarmaids homeandfuck them when I start thinking about you too much."

Theslight humor leftZane's eyes, replaced withacarefullyguarded look. He hadn't touched adrop. He hadn't touched apill. He hadn't touched a cigarette,becausethat was what Ty had wanted.And he couldn'tbring himself totouchanyone else.Itwastheonlywayhehadtostayconnected to Ty,toconvince himself thatTymightstillwanthimwhentheyfinallymet again. "Is that supposed to scare me away?" he finally asked.

"Needed you to know," Ty answered quietly.

Zane nodded slowly. "And what do you need to know?"

"Youstillwantmearound?" Tyaskedafteramoment of consideration.

"Yeah," Zane said softly, not yettouching like hewanted to. "Do you still want me?"

"Yeah," Ty breathed, the word barely audible.

Zaneletoutapent-upbreathandlookedaway."Let'sgetoutof here,"hesuggested ashereached forTy.Thesoundofoneoftheelevator doorswhooshingshutmadeTyjumpimperceptibly.Zanejerkedhishand back, then he nodded and looked around them; he'd forgotten they were in the goddamn parking garage. "You're goingtohavetocheck outacarorgeta cab," he said apologetically."I'm on the bike."

"Idrovemytruck,"Tymurmured."Ididn'tfiguremynewpartner would want to drag me home," he said with a slightly sly smile.

"Damn it. I wanted to get you on the Valkyrie,"Zane muttered.

"Notachanceinhell,"Tyanswered instantly. "Igotthosethingsout of my system a decade ago."

Zane rolledhiseyesandstepped back. "Shit, Grady. Igaveup drinking, drugs, and smoking for you. I am not giving up my motorcycle."

Tygrinnedslowly,ahintoftheformermischiefenteringhiseyes. Zane crossed his arms stubbornly,sulking.

"Well,that'sunbecoming," Tymurmured ashereachedoutandtook Zane'selbow."Ridewithme,"hesuggestedwithasmirkthatfadedintoa smile. "We can catch up on the ride home."

"Fine." Zanegaveaput-upon sighandstartedtowalkalongside him. "But we're coming back for the Valkyrie."

"Whateveryou say, Hoss," Ty muttered agreeably.

Zane's smilewas big and silly."So. Baltimore,huh? Think Icanfind anyactionthere?"heaskedasTyledhimtoanoldgreenandtanFord Bronco.

"Maybe,"Tyansweredseriously."WhentheRavensloseyoucan find any number of drunken people wandering the streets, looking for mindlessphysicalcomfort.AndthetwotimestheOswonlastyearwere pretty exciting."

"AreyouaRavens fan?"Zaneaskedasheopened thepassenger-side door.Hepausedashelookedatthepassenger seatandthedoor thatheheld onto,stilledbyasparkofirrationalfearthatcaughthimeverytime.Itwas whyherodethebikealmostexclusively now.Logicbedamned, the motorcyclefeltsaferthanacar."Imean,areyoua...af-footballfan?"he forcedout,unconsciously rubbingathisrightarmashemadehimselfgetin the truck.

Tyglanced overasheheard thestutter. "The Ravens werenamed for the story byPoe, you know," he said ashe watched Zane. They both had their scars, inside and outside. He could see that now.

Zane met hiseyes and slowly relaxed. "No," hesaidquietly. "Ididn't know that."

"I bet there's alot you don't know," Ty told him with asmall, teasing smile.

The corners of Zane's mouth turned up. "Yeah. There is," he agreed.

Once theywereoutontheroad, Tyreached overandslid hisfingers throughZane'stentatively. Histhumbrubbedabsentlyovertheweddingring Zane stillwore, then he squeezed his hand and kept his eyes on the busy road, notmentioningtheringorallthecomplications theirnewpartnership might entail.TytookhiseyesofftheroadlongenoughtolookoveratZaneand smile crookedly."It should be easier to sleep tonight," he said softly instead.

"Yeah. It will."