Chapter 2

“I heard that,” Derek complained. “Do you think I’d bug you if it wasn’t important? We tried talking him out of going in the first place, but he’s been obsessed with this stupid project ever since your housewarming party. I’m just worried he’s in over his head.”

Jesse almost asked what the stupid project was, but decided it would be best to hold off on his questions. Especially since Derek sounded genuinely worried. Perhaps the latest call from his sister had sent him over the edge. “Okay. I’ll check it out.”

Derek let out a long breath. “Thank you. Have a pen ready? I’ve got his address right here. You can just pop over, pop back, and then go back to whatever you were doing.”

With a frustrated hiss, Gideon pulled out of Jesse’s body and abruptly let him go. “When we get back to it,” he warned, flopping down into the chair, “I’m putting a ring on you so you can’t come for hours.”

Jesse put his free hand down to catch himself before he fell flat on his face. His legs shook a little as he straightened, and his spine popped and cracked. “Fair enough.” He crossed over to the desk and reached for the pen, his ass still flexing and relaxing. “Okay, Derek, tell me where I’m going.”

He scribbled down the address, but he cut Derek off before he could launch into another round of gratitude. Disconnecting, he asked, “Are you coming with me?”

Gideon arched a brow. “You’re teleporting to London instead of staying here to let me fuck you. What do you think?”

“I think you probably want to sit right there and devise new and interesting punishments for me.”

“Give the boy a prize.” Fisting his erection, he stroked himself slowly, deliberately, making sure Jesse saw every movement. “Now get out of here so we can get back to what’s really important.”

There was no sense in arguing that Derek’s nephew counted as important—he knew where Gideon’s priorities were, after all. And it was difficult to claim that some kid who probably misplaced his cell phone was more important than what they had been doing. Jesse pulled on the pants and shirt that Gideon had practically torn from his body. The teleportation didn’t take any more preparation than that. One moment, he stood in his familiar library, staring with more than a hint of longing at Gideon’s cock, and the next he was in the middle of a strange London flat.

“Jonah?” If the young man were there, Jesse knew he would respond. Their paths hadn’t crossed often since they first met at the housewarming party, but when they did see each other, Jonah made it clear that he was still interested in whatever Jesse wanted to give him. “Jonah?”

There was no window, and no light in the room. Wishing he could see in the dark, he felt his way to what he hoped was the door and felt along the wall to the light switch. He found one and flipped it off and on. Nothing happened. Was the light not connected? Power out?

Had the light bulb simply burned out?

Jesse found the thought more than a little unsettling.

It wasn’t difficult to navigate around the flat, even in the dark. He followed the wall until he found what could only be a small kitchen nook. Despite his new abilities, his senses weren’t like Gideon’s. He couldn’t smell anything out of the ordinary. And he couldn’t see in the dark. Even so, something niggled at the back of his mind. Blood.That was the smell of blood. Faint and questionable, but once Jesse got the idea in his head, he couldn’t get it out.

He found another switch, and this time, he flooded the room in low, golden light. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to see the carnage he had missed before. Books torn apart, a broken television, shredded paper, shattered glass. And that blood that had teased the edge of his senses. Smeared across the walls and staining the carpet. He had seen enough crime scenes to decide two things. First, the attacker had probably been human. And second, whatever Jonah’s ultimate fate, he had suffered a head wound.

Jesse had the sudden image of Jonah’s friendly smile smashed in, his teeth broken.

His stomach rolled. A moment later, he stood in front of Gideon. “I need your help.”

Gideon still had his cock in his hand, but the look on Jesse’s face must have given him pause. “That was fast.”

“I didn’t need to stay long. He’s not in his flat. The place has been wrecked. There’s blood everywhere.”

Swiftly, Gideon tucked his cock into his pants, doing up his belt as he rose to his feet. “You want me to call Derek?”

“No. Not until we have some actual news to give. We need to ascertain if he’s still alive. And if he is, maybe there are enough clues around to figure out what attacked him.” He waited until Gideon was fully dressed again before taking his hand. “Ready?”

“For having my stomach sucked out through my nose? Never.” But his grip was firm around Jesse’s, his gaze unwavering as Jess pulled him through space to the hallway outside Jonah’s disrupted flat halfway around the world. Though he looked a little green around the edges, his head snapped toward the door, his nostrils flaring. “There’s blood from at least two humans in there.”

Jesse nodded, not really pleased that he had confirmation of what he suspected. He turned the knob until the lock snapped and the door drifted open. “Let’s see if you can go in and have a look.”

Gideon waited until Jesse was out of the way before stepping forward. The moment his toe hit the threshold, his body jerked to a halt. The brown eyes he turned back to Jess were grim. “There’s your answer. At least he’s still alive.”

“The lock wasn’t broken. Jonah knew them and let them in, or they knocked and pushed their way in. Either way, it’s difficult to tell if there was a struggle or if the ransacking happened after Jonah was knocked out.” Jesse peered into the flat, tempted to throw himself into an investigation. But that’s not what Derek had called them for. And they weren’t exactly in their own backyard. “We should get the local authorities started on this as soon as possible. You call Derek, and I can call 9-9-9 here with an anonymous tip.”

“Did you grab your phone? Mine’s back at the house.”

“Yeah, I put it in my pocket.”

Jesse unlocked his phone, relieved to see that it had several reception bars. He gently shut the door, hoping that the busted lock wouldn’t harm the police investigation too much. Gideon watched silently as Jesse dialed the emergency number and waited for the firm, no-nonsense tone of the operator.