Chapter 17

When Lyle had left Tommy’s apartment, he really had absolutely no idea where to go. Lyle was normally super-good at thinking quickly, but in a total panic after receiving the threatening message from Reed Silver, Lyle ended up walking the streets, almost totally aimlessly.

Lyle had ruled out going back to his apartment. Would Reed be there waiting for him? It didn’t seem totally impossible, and Lyle just didn’t want to risk it. If Reed was indeed waiting for him, Lyle wouldn’t know what to do. It was better to avoid that potential conflict and go somewhere where Reed wouldn’t know about.

I don’t know what to do.

I’m scared.

I need to think… of something… or somewhere…

As Lyle stood in the middle of the sidewalk with only Stripes for company, it suddenly dawned on Lyle. He did have somewhere safe to go. The Velvet Iron was open all night on Saturdays to cater for boys who wanted a group sleepover in a safe space.

‘Perfect,’ Lyle said, realizing that someone like Reed would have no idea that somewhere like the Velvet Iron would even exist, let alone know where it was.

Lyle had a quick look on Google Maps and realized that he wasn’t actually all that far away from the Velvet Iron. In fact, all he needed to do was take a shortcut through the park opposite him and he would be nearly there.

Lyle looked both ways and then crossed the road. As he stood before the imposing park gates, Lyle felt his heart flutter. Even though there was lighting in the park by way of streetlamps, it still looked pretty dark.

Come on, stay tough.

I’ve got this.

There’s nothing to be afraid of.

Lyle took a deep breath and stepped into the park. Immediately, Lyle’s adrenalin kicked in and he decided there wasn’t a single second to be wasted. Lyle didn’t want to draw attention to himself by running, so instead simply began to walk as quickly as his legs would carry him.

Lyle tried as hard as he could to not think about it, but the park was like something out of a horror movie. It was deathly quiet, the occasional rustle or animal screech making Lyle practically jump right out of his shoes.

The streetlamps were good for providing light, but they also had a tendency to cast the strangest shadows too. Lyle couldn’t help but imagine all the monsters who could be lurking behind each corner or underneath the various park benches and bushes.

‘Get it together!’ Lyle said, his voice quiet but determined. ‘No monster here is as horrible as Reed is.’

With that in mind, Lyle continued to walk as fast as he could. The closer he got to the other side of the park, the more intense everything became. Each sound, no matter how small was like a jump-out-of-your-seat moment in a movie. Lyle hated it, but just as he felt like it was inevitable something bad was going to happen…

‘Made it,’ Lyle said, a relieved smile on his face as he made it out the other side of the park. ‘Note to self… never walk through a park alone at night again.’

To say that Lyle felt a sense of huge relief as he stepped into the warm glow of the Velvet Iron would be an understatement. As Lyle made his way inside and made a beeline toward the café with its cakes and hot chocolates, he felt a sense of safety that had been sorely missed.

Taking his first sip of the hot chocolate with marshmallows on top, Lyle’s problems with Antonio and Reed could be put on the backburner, for now at least.

Lyle took his hot chocolate and slice of apple pie over to his favorite chill area of the vast building.

Carefully placing his piping hot drink and pie down on the table, Lyle let out a huge sigh of relief.

The soothing and healing effect of being in such a comforting environment soon helped Lyle to relax.

There were other subs in the room. Some of them were reading, others sitting together and talking quietly. It was a friendly vibe, that was for sure.

The rest of the club might have been building up to a bug night of debauchery but the chill area was as relaxed and calm as it should have been.

But just as Lyle was considering which group of subs to approach, he caught sight of something terrifying.

N-n-n-n-no…

It… can’t be.

W-w-why? How?

Over in the lobby, Lyle could see Reed Silver. Lyle knew that Reed wasn’t a Dom, so there was absolutely no other reason why he was at the Velvet Iron. He must have somehow either followed Lyle or known he would come.

As quick as a flash, Lyle ran as quickly as he could from the chill area and into the pirate shit roleplay space. As he climbed into the makeshift pirate shift, Lyle held his breath and hoped for the best.

‘Please don’t find me, please don’t find me,’ Lyle whispered, his heart thumping as he clutched onto the pirate ship’s plastic wall handles.

It was dark inside the bottom segment of the pirate ship, and Lyle figured that would give him a decent shot at not being discovered. Reed wasn’t familiar with this kind of roleplay so it may not even cross his mind to look inside the pirate ship.

Each second that Lyle crouched inside the deepest recess of the pirate ship felt like a lifetime. After what felt like an eternity, Lyle began to feel like Reed must have given up searching and left.

Lyle decided that he needed to know whether Reed was still around. If he wasn’t, Lyle could go back to playing. But if Reed was still there, then Lyle could easily go back to hiding or think of his next move. After all, as Antonio always used to say… stay ahead of your rival.

Lyle peaked his head out of the pirate ship’s window and couldn’t see Reed anywhere. This was looking promising. Then, feeling a bit more confident, Lyle took a step out from the ship itself.

‘Gotcha!’ Reed laughed, immediately putting a firm hand on Lyle’s shoulder. ‘Someone’s been a very bad boy indeed!’

Lyle knew that he should shout and scream, but he simply froze. Reed had a menacing look on his face and he was squeezing Lyle’s shoulder hard.

‘W-w-w-what do you want?’ Lyle said, barely able to speak.

‘The full extent of your research into the mafia wars, and Detective Sloane’s involvement has been brought to my attention,’ Reed said, a look of cruel delight in his face.

‘So what? I was just doing my job!’ Lyle replied, a flicker of courage building inside him.

‘You knew you were going against my direct orders,’ Reed countered, squeezing even harder. ‘And for that, I am going to have to deliver you to Detective Sloane myself. You’re going to get exactly what you deserve. Take a good look around, you won’t be seeing this place again for a very long time!’

‘Noooo!’ Lyle cried out.

‘Now be quiet,’ Reed said, agitated. ‘Don’t try and kick up a stink. Just come with me. I don’t want to have to report to Detective Sloane that you made this difficult. He’s unhappy with you enough as it is.’

Lyle bowed his head in resignation. This was serious. As much as he wanted to try and make a dash for it, Lyle felt defeated. Reed was bigger, stronger, and had now gotten Detective Sloane directly involved.

As Reed led Lyle out of the Velvet Iron, Lyle didn’t know what to do or where to turn. Lyle had never been to the police station before, and all he wanted in that moment was Antonio there with him to guide him and show him what to do.

After being bundled into Reed Silver’s BMW, Lyle had assumed that he was being taken to the police station. After all, that’s where Detective Sloane was going to be.

But Lyle was wrong.

‘Wait, where are we?’ Lyle said, nervously peering out of the window as Reed pulled up next to a dark, kinda shabby looking warehouse building. ‘This… isn’t a police station?’

‘Cute. Real cute,’ Reed said, rolling his eyes. ‘I’d have expected better from you, Lyle. Despite everything that’s happened, I always rated you as a good reporter. It was just a shame that you couldn’t play by my rules. Of course this isn’t a police station.’

‘But…’

‘Come on, think about it,’ Reed said, a patronizing tone in his voice. ‘Sloane doesn’t work like a normal cop. He’s way, way beyond that. And he’s got his own boss outside of the law who gives him a license to operate how he wants. You fucked with the wrong asshole, kid.’

Lyle was stunned. Did this mean that Reed was involved too? It certainly sounded that way to Lyle.

Reed parked the car and hauled Lyle out with him. As the pair of them began walking toward the warehouse entrance, Lyle started to panic. But then, in a moment of clarity, he decided to make a note of his surroundings.

Stay alert.

Notice every detail.

You never know what might help later…

Lyle saw that they were on a quiet street in a not especially smart neighborhood. There weren’t really any people around. There was the sound of seagulls relatively close by.

Before Lyle could spot anything else, he was inside the warehouse building.

‘Well, here he is!’ Detective Sloane said, standing at the top of a flight of metal stairs, ‘The boy who is going to bring Antonio Sorrento to me.’

Lyle gasped.

This was all a plot to get Antonio. Antonio was right when he said that Sloane was seriously corrupt. And as Lyle tried desperately to wriggle free from Reed’s ironclad grip, Lyle wished that him and Antonio had worked together to bring Sloane down.

‘Now, Reed tells me that you’ve been snooping where you shouldn’t have been?’ Sloane said, a malicious smile crossing his face. ‘Well, I’ll let you off in exchange for you luring Antonio here.’

‘No! No I won’t help you!’ Lyle said, stomping his feet. ‘You’re a piece of total shit, and I hope Antonio blasts you away!’

Lyle shocked himself with his own words.

Did I just… really say that?

But… Antonio was right. Sloane is horrible.

And worse, Sloane is a bigger villain than anyone.

However, as good as it felt to tell Sloane where to go and to imagine his downfall, Lyle was soon confronted with the reality that neither Sloane nor Reed were in any mood to put up with a sassy sub.

‘You will do as your fucking told,’ Reed said, towering over Lyle.

‘Or you will face the consequences,’ Sloane added. ‘I’m a cop with a free pass to do what I want in this city. You don’t think that I’m working alone? Or that I have my own boss who is in an even higher position than me? Jesus. Get real, Lyle. You’ll do as we say or… well, I’ll let you imagine what the consequences might be.’

Lyle could tell that Sloane wasn’t fooling around or bluffing. But Lyle didn’t want to lure Antonio to his death, he loved him. Despite their falling out, Lyle knew that their connection ran too deep. And now the thought that Antonio might be soon to meet his death was too hard to deal with.

Lyle wanted to cry. But Lyle knew that his tears mean nothing to either Sloane or Reed. Judging by the looks on their faces, they were both seriously running out of patience.

Lyle knew he had no choice, he would have to do as he was told. Even if that meant trouble for Antonio…