CHAPTER TWO

D rakon and Dean were to arrive shortly, so Victor headed back to his quarters. He’d spent the morning investigating the parent company of Smithers Financial but found nothing but roadblocks. He was certain that Ethan and his team would get them the answers they needed. Smithers Financial had all the earmarks of a laundry set up with enough legitimate clients to look the part of a financial institution and escape scrutiny.

Whoever was running the scheme shut things down as soon as they lost the majority of their client base. They also showed no interest or concern in regard to the disappearance of their employee Ryan or the apparent criminal activity he and his friends were promoting.

He arrived at his quarters just as he heard Drakon and Dean entering the outer room. Drakon was one of his best, and as lead enforcer, he could always be counted on to carry his end in any situation. The man was known to be quick, quiet, and infinitely talented. Victor was pleased that he’d found his beloved. He lived through a lot of darkness and deserved the love and comfort of his life partner.

“Come in, sit down.” He said and handed them both a drink with which they toasted the new bond. They discussed the ceremony to induct Dean into the Coven and Victor assessed Dean’s interests and focus to get an idea of his strengths. As the meeting progressed he found himself feeling an attraction to Dean not in the usual sense but to something he was wearing. Unable to ignore it any longer he cast a serious glance at Drakon and then at Dean.

“Where were you before coming here?” He asked his tone was clipped and he couldn’t help it. He did notice Drakon placing his arm across Dean in a protective manner.

“I mean him no harm.” He told Drakon and then waited for an answer to his question.

“We had a late lunch at the Belvedere Restaurant downtown," Dean answered. “Why?”

“You carry a smell that interests me.” He said and understanding shown in Drakon’s expression. “Did you get close to anyone other than Drakon.” He smiled.

“You hugged your friend.” Drakon prompted.

“Yes, I did.” Dean seemed to remember. “He was someone I knew from when I worked at Smithers we weren’t close, but we had a silent comradery since he too was treated so badly at that place.”

“His name?” Victor was getting impatient. The scent was wrapping itself around him filling his mind and his body with a desire that could be sated in only one way and with only person, his beloved.

“Jaden Pearson.” Dean told him and Victor immediately headed for the door he could not delay. Drakon called out to him good naturedly.

“Good luck, Victor.” He said and then added for Victor’s benefit. “He’s a beautiful young man.” Victor headed directly to his car with only one thought in his mind and that was to find Jaden Pearson.

Jaden was coming back from his break when he saw Murphy standing in the hallway, separating the back rooms from the front of the restaurant. He looked angry but then he always looked angry. He was dressed in his expensive suit, but he looked disheveled and his hair, which was usually styled to perfection when he went out was a mess as if he dragged his fingers through it multiple times.

“Get your ass over here." He spat between clenched teeth. In an effort to lessen the amount of humiliation he would feel, Jaden hurried over to Murphy and spoke in a whisper, hoping he'd do the same.

“What do you need? I’m working I can’t be socializing I’ll get fired.” Jaden kept his head down, but Murphy grabbed him by the hair and pulled his head back bringing his face up to his.

“You will listen to me and will do exactly what I tell you to do. You belong to me, and don't you fucking forget that.” He hissed the words against Jaden's cheek, spreading spittle along the side of his face. Jaden tried to pull away, but he tightened his grip on his hair. "Don't you fucking move."

“What do you want?” Jaden was still trying to minimize the humiliation, but people were beginning to notice. “Please don’t make a scene.”

"That's up to you now, isn't it. All I want is whatever money you have in your pocket. Give it to me, and I'll go away." He was talking softer finally and pulling him to the far end of the hall, away from customers and foot traffic.

“I don’t have much.”

“Just give it to me.” He demanded, and Jaden pulled a few bills from his pocket. "Is this all?" He wasn't happy. He searched Jaden’s pockets aggressively while holding him trapped against the wall with his body. “You’re fucking useless.” He snapped when he didn’t find anything more than Jaden had given him. Murphy looked demented, pressing his face to Jaden's and letting him know that if he didn't start making better wages, he would start pimping his ass.

“I owe some very dangerous people a lot of money, and they have shone a marked interest in you, especially after I showed them your video." He chuckled low in his throat, a sound that made Jaden's skin crawl. “They made a deal with me that I find quite generous.” He paused to gargle another laugh. “You’re going to go to them and give them the fucking time of their lives.”

“Absolutely not!” Jaden was horrified and outraged at the suggestion.

“You don’t have a choice in this; if I say you go, then you go. You will go to them at the address I give you, and you had damn well better meet every one of their sordid expectations." He smiled through gritted teeth, and Jaden could see his eyes going red with anger. He didn't like to be challenged, but there was no way that Jaden was about to allow himself to be sold for sex. He no longer cared if his parents saw that infernal video; they'd get over it. This was a step too far, and their relationship, as demented as it was, ended now.

“Get the fuck off me.” Jaden snarled and started pushing against him. That was definitely the wrong thing to do. Murphy turned ugly and started slamming him against the wall repeatedly. Murphy was strong, and Jaden heard the drywall cracking under the assault.

Victor entered the restaurant and instantly began scanning the room looking for Jaden. He’d know when he saw him even now his scent was filling his heart and mind calling to him and pulling him closer. His heart was near beating out of his chest as he moved around the interior of the main floor in search of his beloved.

"May I help you, sir?" The manager approached him.

“Jaden Pearson, where is he?” The manager did not give him trouble. Victor could look rather dark and determined when focused on a goal.

“I believe he is in the back hall with someone.” The manager pointed in the direction of the hall and Victor did not waste time. The closer he got to the back area of the restaurant the stronger Jaden’s scent presented and the assault on his senses was exhilarating.

The scene before him was off. Jaden was being held aggressively against a wall by a man much taller and broader. He was scared, and the scent of his fear filled the air between them. Victor was feeling the rage prickling along the surface of his skin. The man hauled back and struck Jaden across the face, knocking him to the ground, and Victor raced to the end of the hall.

"What the hell are you doing?" He shouted at the man, knowing he couldn't kill him here in public but needing to get his attention off his beloved. He grabbed him by the front of his suit jacket and pulled him away from Jaden.

It was then that he caught the scent of tiger shifter. This was no ordinary man. He turned on Victor angrily and ready to engage but Victor flashed his vampire persona a frightening visage that had the man rethinking his plan and running away instead. Jaden had slid to the floor and appeared unconscious. People were starting to pay attention, so Victor picked up his beloved and exited out the back door.

This was not how he was expecting to meet his beloved, but it did expedite the relationship. The tiger shifter was a concern. Was he a lover, an ex or was this a random attack? Whoever he was he would be dealt with. Jaden’s life appeared to be problematic but there was nothing Victor could not resolve he had the power and the connection to take care of anything or anyone who got in his way.

He deposited Jaden in the front passenger seat of his car and buckled him in. The bruising around his mouth and cheek was becoming obvious, and it brought a fierce protective streak out in him. Victor took a cursory look around the area just in case that fucking tiger was in the vicinity. He was nowhere, which made Victor's anger continue to rise. He would find him, and he would end him.

Victor grappled with either taking him to the hospital to be checked out or taking him home letting their medic Ari take a look at him. Ari was skilled with vampire physiology, but Victor was sure of his ability to diagnose and care for human injuries. In the end he took him home not comfortable with having the young man out of his sight or in the hands of others.

Jaden moaned softly but did not wake. Victor reached over and took his hand holding it loosely and noticed that Jaden calmed immediately. The connection was just as powerful as he’d been told. The warmth and touch of his hand was having a strange effect on him. Victor could feel the desire for this man spiking and the need to get him somewhere safe was paramount. The bond was beginning to take shape and their lives were coming together.

He pulled into the back garage and took his beloved into his arms once again. He weighed no more than a whisper, and the thought that a shifter had laid hands upon him was shocking. Victor placed a light kiss on his tender, swollen lips and was amazed at the sensations that raced through him at the touch. This was his beloved, his special one.

His apartment was not warm enough he liked it cool, but his beloved needed warmth and comfort, so he turned up the heat before taking his precious armful to the bedroom. He was okay Victor could feel his heart and his life force and both were strong.

Even though he was confident that Jaden was well and just needed to rest and recover, he gave Ari a quick call after getting Jaden comfortable in their bed. He had never shared that bed with another living soul, taking his pleasure elsewhere, never wanting a close relationship. He was waiting for his beloved even as he pondered the possibility of never getting one. Fate smiled on him and now he had this gorgeous small human to call his own. Jaden was much more than he deserved and a precious reminder that all things are possible.

He placed a warm blanket over him and slipped off his shoes and loosened his belt but didn’t touch his clothing. Victor took a moment to study his young man from the dusty blond hair that curled around his face to the lovely red lips that even though bruised were calling to be kissed. His face was that of a gentle man and his aura spoke to difficulties and suffering. His beloved was a deep chasm of tension and secrets, and he intended to bring each and every one to light.

Ari and came and went letting Victor know that his beloved was fine and would awake when his body recovered from the shock. After several minutes of staring at Jaden willing him to awaken, he decided he’d probably need some help explaining himself once he did wake.

"Drakon, would you have Dean stop by my place as soon as possible." He explained the situation, and since Dean and Jaden were acquaintances, he figured Dean’s presence would make Jaden less suspicious and less fearful.

“He’ll head over right now.”

“Thank you.”

Victor closed the call and took a seat in the leather chair to the left of the bed. He didn’t want to be hovering too close in case Jaden woke. It might look creepy, and he did not want to look creepy or weird. This would be their first formal introduction, and he wanted his best foot forward. Jaden had looked at him in the hallway, but it was unlikely that he would recall since he was cold-cocked by that idiot tiger right after. Victor leaned forward and ran the backs of his fingers down the side of Jaden's face, needing the contact and the reassurance that he was okay. He was surprised to realize how much he enjoyed just being near this man and touching him.

Drakon was good to his word and Dean arrived shortly after his call. “Is he okay?” Dean always full of care and concern was immediately worried for his friend.

“Yes, but the man he was with struck him and knocked him out. He's been out for about an hour and should be waking soon." Victor showed him into the bedroom, and Dean went over to the bed and sat on the edge, taking Jaden's hand in his. "I didn't want him to be afraid when he woke. If you're here, he should be more relaxed."

“Jaden wasn’t seeing anyone when we worked together. He had dates of course but nothing serious. Who was this man who struck him?” Dean continued to rub Jaden’s hand and speak in a voice that was soft and soothing. Drakon was a very lucky man to have such a loving partner. Drakon, like himself, was a man who did not deserve such beauty but was gifted it all the same. Fate was making moves and matches that only she understood.

“He was a tiger shifter, and he was dressed well but acted like a brute. I heard the name Murphy.” That caught Dean’s attention.

“Murphy was a friend of Ryan's. He was a pig, and I can’t believe Jaden would have anything to do with him.” Dean looked at Victor with a puzzled expression then turned his attention back to Jaden.

“What was Jaden’s job?”

“He was Ryan’s secretary, and he was treated like shit most of the time.”

“Why did he stay?”

“You could ask me the same question. I don't know if the money was good, but it wasn't that good. I don't know; perhaps he was looking for something else most of us were looking for." Dean hung his head, and the sadness was welling up. Victor placed his hand on his shoulder to strengthen and assure him. He didn’t want his emotions to get the best of him and have Drakon come bursting through his doors. The man was very protective, and Victor completely understood his point.

"He's waking up," Dean announced, and his mood shifted to a smile.