14. Tommy/ Nitro

14

TOMMY/ NITRO

TOMMY

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you upstairs?" Nitro asked for the second time.

I rolled my eyes. My mate was being overprotective as usual.

"We're standing right in front of my apartment building. I doubt anything is going to happen to me," I pointed out.

Nitro still didn't move a muscle. In fact, he looked reluctant to leave me.

While we were freshly mated, we hadn't reached the point where mates could easily read each other's emotions through the bond.

I had to settle for studying his body language.

"Nitro, I know you have an important MC meeting to get to," I pointed out. "Go, I'll even text you once I'm inside. Would that make you feel better?"

"Loads," Nitro said, sighing and running his hand through his hair in frustration. "I'm doing it again, aren't I? Being too?—"

Nitro faltered, searching for the right word.

“Overbearing and possessive?” I suggested with a playful smirk.

"Hey," Nitro muttered, rolling his eyes. "Fine, I get the message. Text or call me, okay?"

"Will do," I said.

Nitro leaned over, capturing my lips with a tender kiss that left me momentarily breathless before mounting his motorcycle again.

His intense gaze lingered over one broad shoulder, and a mischievous smile played on his lips.

Seriously, he was never going to leave at this rate, wasn't he?

Then again, I wouldn't mind spending the entire evening wrapped up in Nitro's strong arms while a TV show played in the background.

The warmth of his presence and the comforting familiarity of his embrace were all I craved in that moment.

I knew one word from me would ensure I had him the entire night, but I also understood the significance of the MC meeting to him.

Once a month, the entire MC gathered to address and resolve the previous month's issues, as well as discuss present problems.

It was a crucial aspect of their organization, and Nitro's presence was vital.

With a resigned sigh, I gave him a wave and that finally got him moving.

Once he was gone, I took the elevator up to my floor. Seeing the door to my unit ajar, I froze, but I didn't stay paralyzed for long.

My hand immediately went for my cellphone. Nitro wouldn't have gone far; he would be right here in a minute.

Dylan's description of the creature that took him by surprise replayed in my mind.

It wasn't too late to run back to the elevator and call Nitro for help once I was back on the first floor.

As I hesitated, a familiar voice called out, "Tommy? That you? It's me."

All the tension in my body dissipated upon hearing my brother's voice.

I tucked my cellphone back into the pocket of my jeans and entered my apartment.

I locked the door for good measure before turning to my brother, who was sitting in the living room armchair.

There was some sort of note on his lap, and he didn't look the least bit happy to see me. What was going on?

"Marc, what are you doing here? Why didn't you call ahead?" I asked, settling into a seat on the sofa next to him.

"I was nearby after tying up a case and figured I'd give you a surprise visit," Marc said, his jaw clenching. "Then I saw this note under your door."

He handed me the paper on his lap.

I frowned, wondering what the hell this was all about. Today had been a whirlwind of terror, and I was exhausted.

I didn't have time to play games with Marc. The last conversation we had hadn't been exactly smooth sailing either.

Finally, I looked at the note in my hands, and my entire body went rigid with fear.

One look at the red ink used, and a whiff of the paper told me this note was written with blood.

Blood, I assumed, belonged to Dylan. The realization hit me like a punch to the gut, and I felt a wave of nausea and dread wash over me.

"Your friend tasted delicious, but it's you I'm really after. I know who you really are, Tommy. You took someone important to me, and sooner or later, you'll pay the price," I whispered, reading the note aloud.

With trembling hands, I let the note fall to the ground. This just confirmed my worst fears.

This creature wasn't after the MC after all; it had a personal vendetta against me.

My mind swarmed with questions. Who did I take from this creature? I did wonder why it left Dylan alive.

Dylan was a warning, I realized, to me.

"Tommy, what the hell is going on? I thought you were doing so well in Moon Burrow?" Marc's angry voice brought me back to the present.

My brother shouting at me was the last thing I needed right now.

"Then the first thing I see when I arrived here is this note? Who's after you? I bet Nitro's involved. I knew that biker would only bring you endless trouble. I should've stopped you from leaving," Marc was saying.

He seemed to have plenty of ammunition today, but his last words stopped me cold.

"You couldn't," I said, finally regaining my ability to speak. "Marc, I make my own decisions."

"Poor ones," he muttered.

"And don't talk of Nitro that way. He's been so supportive and wonderful. You know nothing of him," I said.

Being angry was good, I realized. It helped drive the fear hounding me away.

"Nitro isn't good for you," Marc stated.

"Well, too late for that, isn't it?" I said, tugging the collar of my shirt and showing Marc our mating bond.

Marc turned sheet white at the sight.

"Tommy? I'm coming in. Your doorknob looks tampered with," someone, Nitro, said from outside the apartment.

Wait, why was Nitro here? Did he change his mind about his meeting?

Nitro didn't need to break my front door this time around. I'd since given him a spare key to my place after that incident.

Nitro looked relieved seeing me in one piece, then he noticed Marc.

"What are you doing here?" Nitro asked him.

"You," Marc said under his breath. "How dare you put your mate mark on Tommy?"

Marc's every word was laced with fury. Nitro opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Marc lunged at him.

Nitro easily shoved him away.

"He didn't do anything to me. We made this decision together," I said.

"You bastard," Marc said under his breath.

"Marc, hold on a second," Nitro was saying.

"Hey," I snapped.

Neither Marc nor Nitro seemed to be listening to me.

It was like I was invisible, and that was a familiar feeling I never wanted to experience again.

Sometimes Hicks acted like I wasn't there in the background waiting on him.

He often talked over me like I was just a piece of furniture not worthy of his attention.

My gaze slid to the bloody note at my feet. Suddenly, everything became too overwhelming.

Nitro's and Marc's loud voices washed over me. I thought of Dylan in bed, grasping my hand and telling me to take care of myself.

Dylan was hurt because of me. I put him in danger, and this wasn't the first time that happened. My throat constricted.

Why was it so hard to breathe?

I knew I had to get out of there. This space was too small for me and two pissed-off alphas.

I shucked off my clothes in a hurry and shifted. The change was agonizing, but I was so glad to be in my other shape.

A shriek tore out of my beak, then I hopped to the nearest opened window, spread my wings, and took flight.

As I put more distance between Marc and Nitro's shouting match and that suffocating apartment, I felt a little better.

Guilty, but better.

NITRO

Ten minutes into my ride and I decided being with Tommy was more important than going to some stupid MC meeting.

However, my anger-fueled clash with Marc left Tommy caught in the crossfire, and I didn't hear his pleas over the noise of our argument.

The tension in the room only broke when Tommy emitted a shriek, shedding his clothes in a frantic hurry before transforming into his avian shape.

As Tommy took flight through the open window, I stood there, dumbfounded, staring at the discarded clothes on the floor and the empty space where Tommy had been.

The reality of the situation hit me—Tommy had escaped our conflict, leaving behind a room filled with unresolved anger and confusion.

Honestly, I couldn't blame him for fleeing. In his shoes, I might have done the same.

The realization of Tommy's distress and the magnitude of our argument sank in, and the guilt began to overshadow my rage.

"He flew," Marc whispered.

"Yeah, to get away from both of us. We were being jerks," I admitted.

"No, I mean, I knew Tommy hasn't shifted in a long time. He was traumatized and scared," Marc paused, locking eyes with me.

Beyond the animosity, I detected a hint of awe in his gaze.

"You did this?" Marc asked.

I scoffed. "I can't take all the credit because Tommy did all the work. All he needed was a push in the right direction," I said.

At that moment, I was pretty proud of my mate. Then I remembered Tommy was missing.

Noticing a piece of paper on the floor, I picked it up. Reading the words, my blood ran cold.

"When I arrived here, that was under Tommy's door," Marc said.

Ah. That explained why I walked into Tommy's place with Marc in such a mood.

"Do you have any idea what that note means and who's after Tommy?" Marc asked.

He wasn't shouting or throwing accusations at me any longer.

Although Marc didn't apologize for earlier, he was, in his own way, trying to make amends, I realized.

I told Marc about how Tommy found Dylan unconscious and with his neck bleeding in the kindergarten.

"So this thing, whatever it is, is going after my brother?" Marc asked, sounding worried.

"Looks like it," I said. "Do you remember Tommy telling you if he had any other enemies who are alive, maybe one of the guys who used to work for Hicks?"

Marc shook his head, and his expression looked... sad?

"Tommy probably shares more with you than me. Anyway, what's more important is that we find him," Marc pointed out.

"I couldn't agree more,” I answered.

"Can you put up a call to your biker friends? See if anyone saw Tommy? Should be a piece of cake, since Moon Burrow is the MC's territory, right?" Marc asked me.

It irritated me a little that he thought he could give me orders. To be honest, I didn't think Tommy was in any direct danger.

Daylight might be fading fast, but I doubted the monster that injured Dylan would target Tommy so soon, not where Tommy was going.

"Marc, relax. I think I have an idea of where Tommy is," I said.

"Where is that?" Marc asked.

"The place where he feels the safest," I said.

On cue, my cellphone let out a beep. I pulled it out of my jacket pocket.

"I don't understand why you're not panicking," Marc grumbled under his breath. "You're supposed to be Tommy's mate."

"It's because I know Tommy. He won't act recklessly, even if our fight earlier stressed him out,” I explained.

I opened the text message Spike sent me.

"Why are you grinning?" Marc demanded. "Take this more seriously, Nitro."

"I am," I said shortly.

Then I showed him Spike's text. My hunch had been right.

Besides, although Tommy and I were far apart, I didn’t sense any distress or fear through our mating bond.

Sure, we were still getting used to how the bond worked, but I suspected if anything genuinely happened to my mate, I would be the first to know.

"Tommy's with my best friend," I added.