Sixteen Abel

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. The clock's second hand worked overtime to match my pulse. I'd spent the last thirty minutes with my back against the wall, staring at the mounted clock. Tobias would come. I didn't have a reason to believe in him, but my instinct told me he'd follow through. Dad believes in him, so I should too, I reminded myself as I checked the time once again. It was five minutes before midnight. Where the hell are you?

I had two options: trust Tobias or not. We didn't have the luxury of choosing anything but the former. Involving Tobias in our plan wasn't the smartest decision, but we were out of ideas. We needed to let the guys know what we'd been up to these past few days, and we had to know if the original plan we'd formulated was still on. Had they changed anything since we were taken away? The cards were stacked against us, and planning our course of action as meticulously as possible was our only advantage. A spark of doubt ignited within me as the hands pointed to midnight. Did I overestimate Tobias's words? Damn it. He was our last hope.

"Hey, Nine," Seven called. "Did he bail on us?" The guys had been on edge since Tobias's visit earlier, and I couldn't blame them. We were banking on him. It was him or nothing.

"And why did he want us to trust him?" Two asked.

I opened my mouth to reply, but stopped when footsteps—loud, fast, and purposeful—echoed from the hallways. Did someone say fire?

I stood, and the guys hopped off their bunks to inspect the cause of the commotion. We'd been in the cult long enough to know that nothing ever happened around here this late in the evening. It was usually lights out for everyone after nine p.m.

"Fire!" More guards dashed in front of our room, screaming. An open door they left behind them framed a blazing image outside. I turned to the guys, my jaw wide.

A sudden boom amplified the night, rattling the walls. "Holy shit!" Two exclaimed. "What the hell was that?" He craned his neck out the door for a better view.

"Hey," I called to a passing guard. He didn't respond, just whipped through our quarters instead. "What's going on?" I asked another who was dashing toward the exit, and, just like the man in front of him, he acted as if we didn't exist.

Are we under attack? From whom?

"The old barn!" someone yelled.

I returned my attention to the guys; their heads were bouncing left and right, watching more of the cult's guards sprinting in front of us.

"Should we help them?" I asked. "Should we run outside?" I didn't exactly want to be burned alive if the fire made it to our building.

No one responded, so I trailed the last guard to appraise the situation outside.

The guards were too distracted to notice my presence, but my eyes zeroed in on a familiar shape. Even in the dark, I could pick out Tobias. In an instant, he was in front of me.

"We need to go," Tobias said. Beads of sweat glistened on his forehead, as if he'd sprinted here. His mouth opened, and his pierced tongue darted up to lick the sweat on his upper lip. Although it was brief, the simple action was hypnotizing.

"Okay," I muttered. I wondered how that small, shiny ball would feel exploring my mouth or rolling around the head of my dick.

God, Tobias was handsome. Not in a traditional sense, but in an irresistibly disheveled kind of way; messy hair that looked like it was done on purpose, small scars scattered around his cheeks and neck, and a perfect set of full lips interrupted by a small cut. And those tattoos of his. Who knew I was into them? He brought his face closer to mine, his eyes glued on my lips. He smelled like sweat and soap, a perfect combination. He swallowed hard, his muscular neck tempting me to lick it. The space between us narrowed; his warm breath was intoxicating. "Abel, now!"

His harsh tone sobered me from my trance. "Right," I said, clearing my throat. He was here to help me sneak out. I wondered if his cock was pierced too. That would be so fucking hot.

"Follow me this way," Tobias said, ushering me to the hallway away from the fire.

"Can I go—" Seven spoke.

"No!" Tobias and I said in unison before Seven had a chance to finish his question.

I glanced at Tobias and raised an eyebrow. I had a selfish reason why I wanted to be alone with him, but what was his motivation? Did he want to be alone with me? Maybe. He'd been sending mixed signals since we met. Does he … Nah. He couldn't be. He was straight. And married.

"It's better if we go by ourselves," Tobias said. "Lessen the risk of being caught." He had a point, but my mind—or maybe it was my dick—hoped otherwise. Dreaming was free, after all.

Step by step, we crept out of the complex's gate unnoticed thanks to their preoccupation with the fire. It was surprising how easily Tobias could blend into the flickering shadows, moving with eerie stealthiness. I'd give it to him—he seemed to know every blind spot inside this place. We ran, ducked, and dashed our way to the next gate, the last one before we made it to the section where the guys were.

"We need to go that way." He pointed to the fifteen-foot concrete wall. Since it was usually manned by a guard, there weren't any barbs like the one enclosing the entire community.

"The guards?" I asked, pointing at the vacant post.

"Busy," he answered. "Hop on my shoulders." Tobias crouched to the ground, his pants struggling to contain his muscular thighs. The image of him kneeling, his face looking up at me, almost made me bust a nut. There was no hiding my chubby with his well-trimmed chin inches away from my crotch.

"Sorry about that," I apologized. I readjusted my dick through the pocket of my pants, not bothering to be subtle. There was no point.

"Fuck," Tobias growled. His eyes widened when he responded with a shake of his head, but his eyes never left my crotch. Interesting.

It was a shame time wasn't on my side, because the need to test how far I could get away with teasing him was all consuming, but I had tasks to complete. So instead, I followed his instruction and walked behind him, then climbed onto his brawny shoulders.

He stood. "Now climb up," he said.

"Got it." I carefully scaled the wall. Once my legs were stable on the narrow ledge, I straddled the wall, accidentally sitting on a small protruding metal bar. "Oh shit."

"What's wrong?" Tobias looked up, his brow furrowed and voice laced with concern.

"Nothing." I scooted to find an even surface. "A rod poked my ass—and not the kind I like."

Tobias blew out an exacerbated breath. He spoke but I didn't hear what he said.

Ignoring his grumbling, I extended a hand to help him up. His calloused hand grabbed mine. The roughness of his palm elicited carnal desires in me. He propped his legs, pushing his body upward while holding on to my hand. He sat behind me, mirroring my position. "Can you jump?" Tobias asked, pointing at the grass. His warm breath made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.

I maneuvered my body to put space between us. I needed all my wits about me, and being caught in a peculiar position with him didn't help.

"So, can you?" he repeated.

"Easy," I said.

"Easy, huh." He chuckled, annoying the shit out of me. "Show me, ki—"

I looked back, glaring at him. "Say kid and we'll see what happens."

"Show me, then." Tobias crossed his muscular tattooed arms, amusement on his rugged face.

"Screw you," I said, and jumped off the wall. I was satisfied when I landed on my feet, then stood proudly.

Tobias moved like a ninja: swift and slick. He was standing next to me in seconds. "Not bad," he murmured before tapping my ass. Maybe it was only my imagination, but I swear his hand cupped my butt cheek. "Follow me."

"Jerk," I whispered, but obeyed anyway.

Tobias and I walked with our backs against the wall, hiding behind the occasional tree trunk. As much as I hated following more orders, I didn't mind them coming from Tobias. I had convinced myself that he was helping me. That had to be the only rational explanation.

"Do you know what was on fire back there?" I asked.

"Yup."

"What was it?"

"Old barn," he said with a shrug. He continued walking, the view of his ass my reward for following.

"How big was the fire?"

"Why does it matter?"

"Just wanna make sure the guys will be okay."

"Your friends will be fine," he assured me. Tobias halted to a stop before turning toward me and pushing my back against the wall.

"Fuck." I winced when I hit the hard surface.

He placed his finger over my lips. "Shhh." His other hand pointed around the corner. His body was flush with mine, our breaths mingling. We stared at each other for a few seconds that felt like hours.

My chest heaved, but it wasn't from exertion. My mind swirled when all reason left my brain, leaving only one thought: Tobias. I leaned closer to kiss him, but he grabbed my neck before our lips connected.

His eyes burned with intensity and undeniable lust. His grip on my neck tightened. "Don't. Test. Me."

Who knew I loved being dominated? Breathing became laborious, yet he clenched my neck harder, limiting the air I could pull into my lungs. "Is that your best shot?" I croaked and grabbed his crotch. My suspicion had been correct: Tobias packed a big one.

He snatched my wrist away from his dick with his other hand and pressed my arm against the wall. The hand on my neck clamped like a vise, and my vision started to blur.

I should be afraid, but his choke and our struggle excited me. The danger, the challenge, heightened all my senses. I bucked my hips, my hard dick prodding him with each thrust.

He moaned. His cock was rock hard.

I ground my hips in invitation.

Tobias let go of my hand and pushed my abs away from his body, his Adam's apple bobbing.

I licked my lips—never had I wanted someone this bad. "Touch me," I gasped. "You know you want to."

Tobias didn't move but war raged in his eyes.

"Please?"

That must've been what he was waiting for. One hand remained on my neck, though his grip eased a little, and the other traveled down my torso.

I was a goner. He paused inches above my waistband. "Don't stop," I said. "Please?"

Tobias unbuttoned my pants and dragged down the zipper painstakingly slowly. He let my pants fall to the ground. His eyes widened when he realized I wasn't wearing any underwear. He wanted this as much as I did. I knew that for certain.

"Touch me, please," I begged, guiding his free hand to my cock.

He ran his palm on the underside of my shaft. His rough callouses made my balls tingle. He brought his hand to his mouth. The absence of his touch made my cock bob in protest. He dragged his tongue along his palm before grabbing my cock again.

"Fuck," I said as his warm, slick hand wrapped around my dick. I was too far gone to last.

Tobias glanced down at his hand gripping half of my shaft. "Jesus fucking Christ," he said.