Nine Tobias

"Iadmire you, Toby," Orcus said. "You're the kind of man I need around here." He tapped my shoulder and stepped in front of the caged arena, but I'd lost interest in his ramblings. My sight focused on the group of guys dressed in black tank tops and camo pants standing in the ring. I studied the faces of the young men. They all looked alike; they could've easily been mistaken for each other—except for the one standing in the middle. Most of them appeared confused and intimidated, but not him. He stood with confidence.

A flicker of familiarity sparked. As my stare lingered, a realization slowly took form. Was that Oliver's boy? I couldn't know for sure, since he was just a kid when I saw him ten years ago. The man in front of me was no kid. His blond hair was buzzed close to his scalp. His eyes were fierce; the length of his right eyebrow disrupted by a small scar. The boy I remembered was gone. His resemblance to his father was undeniable. His lips mouthed "Tobias?" and I doubted anyone noticed but me.

Abel. He looked like he'd just seen a ghost. Locking eyes with the young man, I detected a flash of shock that quickly transformed into a blend of surprise and something deeper—disgust, perhaps. Everyone faded into the background, and we were left staring at each other. Shit. I hoped he wouldn't blow my cover, for his sake and mine. The original plan didn't include meeting him face-to-face in front of Orcus and half a dozen of his armed minions in a contained space. I ever-so-slightly shook my head.

Abel appeared to have received my silent message when he stayed put. I doubted they were allowed to say anything anyway, if their muted posture was an indication. The distaste on his face of minutes ago was now a full-on loathing. He closed his eyes and my sight traveled to his full red lips, down to his veiny neck and body. He'd filled out. He wasn't as muscular as I was, but damn close. Traces of his abs outlined his tight tank top. My eyes journeyed south. Is that a fucking boner? I shouldn't stare, and it wasn't like I'd never seen a man's bulge before, but a small part of me wondered why he was turned on. No one seemed to notice but me and the creepy guy standing in front of them. The creeper made my blood boil, kick-starting my protectiveness. Time began to regain its pace; the world around us slowly came back into focus. People materialized in my periphery, unaware of the history between Abel and me.

The creep was still ogling Abel's pants. He had to be put in his place.

"Hey, you!" I called.

The creep whipped his head toward me, confused.

"Close your fucking mouth," I said, surprising everyone in the room, including Abel and Orcus. The arena roof reverberated my words, breaking the silence.

"What did you say?" the creep asked, his face flaming red, perhaps from embarrassment of being called out.

"You heard me." I didn't know what had compelled me to cause a scene like that. I was an outsider, and these guys were packing heat. They could end me right at this moment and no one would know, but Abel was Oliver's son and I'd break any hand that touched my best friend's boy.

"And who are you?" He jumped out of the ring, walked in our direction, and stood in front of me.

What a petite mess. He was proof that the smaller the guy, the louder they were—kind of like yapping chihuahuas. I stepped closer, towering over him to assert my dominance. It wasn't the smartest move, but I didn't have time for his outburst. This was child's play. I enjoyed eating guys like him for a snack.

"Enough," Orcus said. "This is Toby." He wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

"And what is he doing here?" Bite-size asked.

"He saved my life. And he's one of us now," he added proudly, as if I was his new prized possession.

Shorty fumed, balling his hands into fists. He puffed his chest, which brushed my stomach.

"I said, enough." Orcus didn't have to repeat himself a third time. Every guard made their way out of the ring and huddled around Orcus and me. "As I said"—Orcus combed the small group, all of whom were paying attention to every word coming out of his mouth—"Toby is one of us now. Make yourself useful and show him around. Give him everything he needs."

Zero was right, this fucker was easily dazzled.

I glanced up at Abel, trying to figure out a way to get him one-on-one so he could lead me to his family. But it would have to wait.

He seemed to have gathered his wits. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but the words remained trapped, his lips forming soundless syllables. There would be a place and time for an explanation, but for now, I needed to adjust to the new wrinkle in my plan. Letting Archer and Heath know about the slight hiccup was at the top of my list while I still had access to my phone. I was certain they would confiscate it; I'd already dodged a bullet by not going through the metal detector when I arrived with Orcus.

Three armed men walked in front, including Shorty, as we headed toward the back, sandwiching the six young men. The cacophony of footsteps and distant chatter was overshadowed by my racing thoughts. Did Abel know where his dad was? Why was he separated from the rest of the commune?

The sight of Abel from behind was as spectacularly impressive as his front. His broad back tapered down to a trim waist, and his pants hugged his athletic ass in all the right places. I swallowed hard. This guy was jacked. It wasn't often I admired a man for his appearance, but Abel deserved all the kudos for this hunky physique.

"Welcome to The Creed," the man to my right said.

"The Creed?" I asked.

"Yeah, the name of our community. I'm Sterling."

That's right. Orcus had mentioned it earlier. I nodded in acknowledgment. I wasn't here for chit-chat, and history had taught me that the less you said, the more advantage you had over your enemies.

"Are you from around here?" he asked.

I blew a breath of annoyance and shook my head.

"What brought you here?" Sterling pressed on, undeterred by my lack of enthusiasm. This guy wouldn't shut the fuck up. "Do you know anyone from here?"

Abel must've heard his question. His posture perked up, his shoulders tensing.

I clenched my jaw. Halting my steps, I stopped and faced Sterling. "You gotta ask Orcus if you have any questions." It was a dick move, but I didn't want to fucking be here. This was a colossal waste of my time.

Abel shook his head. What I wouldn't give to have seen his reaction.

"Chill, man. I was just asking," Sterling said, taken aback by my disinterest.

On second thought, I had questions of my own. It wouldn't hurt to play along to get my answers. "My bad," I said. "It's been a long day, you know. Saving Orcus from those guys who ambushed him," I explained, shaking Sterling's hand. Milking that story would only benefit my image, so I needed to sell it. "That was a close call, man. Orcus was lucky I was there. Who knows what could've happened."

"No way!" he exclaimed.

"Those guys who attacked him were definitely expecting Orcus to be there," I said.

Sterling whistled. "No wonder he's rolling out the red carpet for you."

"Is that right?"

"Yeah. He never brings an outsider here. At least, not without background checks."

"Well, I guess I'm the lucky one, then."

"I'll say."

"So, Sterling. What's the deal with them?" I asked, pointing at Abel and the group. "Why are they here?"

He hesitated for a minute before whispering near my ear, "They're the new trainees. We're getting them ready."

"Ready for what?" I asked, thankful that he took the bait.

"A fight," the other guy to my left answered.

Sterling jogged to the front, joining the other guards.

"What fight?" I asked. The second guard seemed apprehensive, so I doubled down. "You can trust me. Orcus does."

"A fight where anything goes, really."

"Like MMA?"

He nodded.

I raised an eyebrow and motioned my hand for him to keep going.

"MMA but better." He couldn't contain his excitement; he was almost giddy. "But you don't want to be on the losing end."

"Why? What happens if you lose?"

"You don't wanna know," he said.

I did want to know, but I didn't want to raise suspicion, so I shifted my questions. "Do they know that?" I asked, nodding to the boys.

"Those boys ain't got a clue about what's gonna hit them."

"When is the next fight?"

"In a month."

Shit. Time was now of the essence. I had to extract Oliver and his family out of this place, and fast.