Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2002 18:01:26 -0800 (PST)
From: John D <zachstack@yahoo.com>
Subject: BSB Hearts Assunder Book 3:  Hearts Promises 3

Previously...

BSBHAB3: Heart's Promises Pt. 1
"Looking Back: New smiles, Old Faces"

[Mike's office]

"Do you really think that John had an accomplice?"
Mike commented, stopping his recent rumaging of
papers.

"I don't really know, but the Detective said it fit
the profile perfectly.  All I know is, he was usually
on a phone when he was on brake."  Burc shrugged,
taking a sip at his hot coffee.

"hmm,"  Was all Mike could mutter.  The truth was,
they had really not bothered to look beyond John's
references which were mostly -- if not all -- former
employers that were very high on his services.  Other
than those, John had never really seemed to have any
sort of friends other than other bodyguards and former
employers.  But even those were few in number.  John
had always been professional with his work and found
it unthinkable to socialize with his superiors.

End of Part 1
*******************************************************

BSB Hearts Assunder Book 3: Hearts Promises Part 1
"Relationship Hazards"

Previously...

[At the Cemetery]

"Aight, thanks."  Nick turned just in time to see what
he thought was a look that went between Bryan and
Seth, but he shrugged it off as Bryan feeling sorry
for the other guy.  "Scott, please calm down.  I'm
sure Seth over there has tried his best to give us all
he could that he is allowed to."  Seth was making
inaudible agreement noises behind them while Nick was
feeling somewhat relieved in a weird and guilty way.

"Don't you ever tell me what to do boy, I still
haven't forgotten your place in all this."  Scott
turned his violent and shinning dark eyes down at Nick
and spoke through gritted teeth.  Scott gave Seth a
disgusted look before pushing past Bryan and into his
car.  He gave Nick and Seth one last glare before
speeding off into the distance.
***********************************************************
[After Rob's party got broken up by cops]

"Hang on,"  Slade smirked through his helmet's open
visor as he revved the machine into blaring life.

The motorcycle vibrated wildly with its awesome power
between both their legs, Nick was thankful that he was
wearing briefs and not boxers tonight, as his arms
linked together around Slade's slim and lean waist.

Unfortunately, as they pulled away, a certain small
small blue Accord pulled into Rob's driveway.  The
driver was not very happy as he saw Nick and Slade
speed off into the silver streamed night.

End of part 2
******************************************************************
**Disclaimers:  This is a work of fiction and should
not be taken into any other levels past that.  The
Backstreet Boys, Jane and Aaron Carter, Leighanne
Littrell, are their own people.  The trademarks of the
Backstreet Boys belong to Jive Records.  All of the
events and places and people involved in the following
story aside from the forementioned are only
ficticious.  In short, people, it's only a story, it's
not real.  It's PG so please, sit back, and enjoy the
ride.  Thank you**
-------------------------------------------------------


BSBHAB3: Heart's Promises Pt. 3
"Hot Nights, Cold Days"


[Some few hours after the party]

Nick laid in bed thinking about what had happened
after the cops arrived.  Slade was like some rebel
straight out of a James Dean movie.  His sly catlike
movements, his long sensual strides.  It was like
Slade was a drug to him.  He just can't seem to get
him out of his mind.

Scott, the dog, watched his owner with affection.
>From time to time Scott would close his eyes in a
semblance of sleep, but there was no movement Nick
made or change in the air currents that he did not
notice.  It has been quite a while since Nick's mind
was not plagued with worries over his mending heart.
Over the course of the past year, he has lost so much.
 His true love.  The one guy who he thought understood
him turned out to be a psychopathic

Nick sat up on his bed, still desperate to rid himself
of the images of Slade, the motorcycle ride...among
other things.  Subcontiously, Nick's hand found
Scott's head and started to scratch the dog behind the
ear.  His thoughts continued to wander this way and
that through the images of his earlier experience.  A
thought crossed Nick's mind.  A gentle smile parted on
his delicate pink lips.  Nick sighed contentedly and
fell asleep.
*****************************************************************
[Detective Chang's Office] 2:30 a.m.

"Chalking up some over time there detective?" Officer
Jimmy Dugan walked in for his shift.

"Nah, Jimmy.  Just getting ready to call it a night."
Detective William Chang finished the last sip of his
coffee and started to put his papers into his brief
case.

"That Mason Case still bothering you, huh?"  Jimmy set
his jacket to the side and grabbed a cup of coffee for
himself.

"There's just something I'm missing here, something
that is just off about this case, Jimmy."  Chang
looked at Jimmy Dugan.  The other man was a black man
in his late 40's.  He has a rather bushy mustache
above his lip that sometimes obscured the other's
man's upper lip when he talked.  Jimmy was a nice guy.
 He had been Chang's friend since Chang first moved to
the sunshine state.  Dugan was starting to show his
age: he had a paunch that protruded out front, and his
voice was starting to take on that deeper tone that
seems to be common among black men of his age.
"Anyways, how're the kids, Jim?" Chang smiled wearily
as his friend turned around from the coffee counter.
Jimmy was a loving father to his kids.  He was always
there for them, that's why he usually works the late
shifts.  "The day is for family," is what he always
says when asked why he works so late at night.

"Jamie just found out that they're going to be having
a boy today," Jimmy Dugan's eyes glinted with sincere
joy -- as it always does when talking about his
family.

"That's great, Jim.  Congratulations," Chang reached
over his desk and congratulated his friend.  "So gonna
be a grandpa, eh buddy?"

Just as Jim was going to respond, the fax machine
jumped to life.

"This late?" Jimmy Dugan walked over to the machine as
Charlie was still busy getting his crime photos
stacked up and into his brief case.  "It's from that
reporter friend of yours, Billy.  That, uh...Dan
Sullivan guy from the local paper?"  Officer Dugan
handed the papers over to Chang.

"Shit!  This is what I've been looking for,  thanks
Jimmy and give Jamie a kiss for me would ya?" Chang
didn't even bother waiting for a response, he grabbed
his brief case and bolted out the door like a bat out
of hell.
******************************************************************
{Nick's Bedroom: Dream}

It had been a night that Nick would never ever forget.
 Tonight was the night he and Brandon had consumated
their love.  He had been in heaven while Brandon's
arms were wrapped around him.

"Brandon, promise me that you will love me forever,"
Nick nuzzled his face into Brandon's loving arms.  He
could feel the other man's loving warmth where was
spooned against Nick's back.

(suddenly Nick could hear a faint barking just barely
over the rustle of his sheets)

"I promise...I'll love you forever...Nicky,"
Brandon's voice seemed different to Nick.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Nick tried to turn, but a wavy
mass of long black hair spilled over him just before
fear struck him cold.

(faint barking continues to grow louder)

The dream had suddenly changed.  It was no longer in
this selfsame room that Nick and Brandon spent their
few nights together; Nick was suddenly back in that
rotten old mansion, his arms and legs bound tightly
against the wall.  "What's wrong Nicky?  Don't you
love me anymore?!"

{End dream}

"BRANDON!" Nick sat up from his bed, his body beady
with sweat.  Scott had been barking wildly at the
window before Nick had sat up screaming.  Scott jumped
into Nick's bed, his body still hot and trembling from
the fit of barking.  Nick's breathing rasped loudly as
he wrapped his shaking arms around Scott, who now had
started to whine, concerned for his beloved master's
health.
******************************************************************
[Outside on Nick's Lawn]

'Shit!' A slim dark figure scrambled out of the bushes
under Nick Carter's window where he had fallen after
being frightened out of his hiding spot by Scott's
barking.  The shadowy stranger scampered out from
under the window and towards the exit before his
presence could further be detected.
******************************************************************
[Next day, Kevin's house...]

"I'm really glad Nick's back with us," Howie mumbled
into his drink.

"Yeah, I think it's great for both him and Brian to
finally get to work together again," Kevin added.  "At
least this way they can start the healing process that
they both really need after the Bradon and John
ordeal."

"Shh, I hear Brian coming," AJ sipped at his own
drink, resting nonchalantly on the leather couch.

"Hey guys," Brian walked in with a big smile on his
face.

"Wassup cuz?" Kevin shuffled through the lyrics they
had been working on in the past few weeks.

"Ah, nothing really.  I'm just excited to have Nick
around with us again," Brian's eyes sparkled with his
anticipation.  But his voice almost faltered knowing
that he still feels guilty about what had happened to
Brandon.

"Yeah, we were just saying the same thing, Bri." Howie
commented, smiling gently over his drink from the
breakfast bar as the door bell rang.  "Speak of the
devil, I think that'd be him now."

"I got it," Kevin winked at Brian as he walked past to
get to the door.   "There's some soda and juices at
the bar, Brian if you want any."

"Hey Mr. Richardson,"  Nick smiled sheepishly from the
doorstep when Kevin opened the door.  "I'm not
interrupting anything important I hope?" Nick smiled
jokingly at Kevin before the other one pulled him into
the house.
*****************************************************************
[Flashback to Hours into the dawn with Detective
Chang]

'This better be something, Dan...' Chang thought to
himself as he drove his car slowly next to the other
man's.

"Goodmorning, Detective," Dan Sullivan walked up to
Chang in his usual cream colored slacks, white dress
shirt and the trenchcoat.

"Well you said this was urgent in your fax.  Here I
am.  What do you have to show me?"  Detective Chang
was a nice guy.  He had grown to appreciate the young
man's enthusiasm for this case.  But just as any
detective in the world, he will never really like
working with anyone with a 'Press' badge even if they
weren't wearing one at the moment.

"I did some scouring after your department found the
pieces of John Mason's clothing from the incident
night," Dan Sullivan motioned for the Detective to
follow him as he headed down to the beach area.

"And?" Chang was getting annoyed with all the
suspense.

"And, detective, I found this." Dan moved slightly to
the side and shined his flashlight into a small cave
into the side of a rocky outcrop on a segregated spot
on the beach.

Detective Chang scanned the cave with his own
flashlight seeing nothing really important until...

"You can see now what I meant by 'urgent'"

"Son-of-a-bitch..." Chang whispered to himself as he
moved towards a small area of the sand where there
were some clear signs that something...or someone had
been on there for quite some time before being dragged
off somewhere.  Chang ran carefully checked into the
sand seeing if the spots were what he thought they
were.

"Blood," Chang said barely audible.  It did not
matter, Dan already knew what it had been when he
first found it a few hours ago.
*****************************************************************
[A few yards away]

A man stood in the shadows of the leering rock
outcrops, hiding behind the jutting stone formation
that resembed bone shards of a long dead animal.

'So you found my little hideaway I see...' The
shadowed man chuckled.  'I guess I should've been more
careful with my whereabouts eh, Detective Chang?' The
shadowed man laughed internally before slinking into
the shadows.

[End of flashback]
******************************************************************
[Back at Kevin's house a few hours into their writing
session]

Out on the patio...

{Flashback}

To a few years ago...back to the sandy beaches of
Nick's estate and his ever rising wave of affection
for Brandon...

"ewwww!"  Aaron ran up and tackled Nick off of
Brandon.  "Tag team! Tag team!"  Aaron squeeled as he
knocked Nick into the sea.

Brandon was quick to join the Carter brothers, and
soon the trio were wrestling around in the water,
while Aaron's dog Simba barked in excitement.

"Pin! PIN!" Aaron squeeled as he threw himself bodily
onto Nick.  He giggled happily as he struggled in his
beloved older brother's arms.  "No fair double
teaming!" Aaron screamed out in glee as Brandon
collided with both Carter brothers sending them both
reeling into the waters.

"Gotcha now," Brandon laughed heartily as he grabbed
Aaron by the waist and started tickling the young
man...

That was hours ago...

Nick turned and kissed Brandon lightly on the lips.
In the light of the flickering camp fire, Nick's hair
gleamed a golden hue.  His hair slowly flowed in the
gentle summer night's breeze.

"You look so beautiful right now, Nick, I keep
thinking that I'm stuck in some neverending dream,"
Brandon looked Nick deep in the eyes and smiled.  "I
can see now why you like water so much."

"Why is that?" Nick cocked his head sideways and
grinned boyishly at Brandon faking a look of
confusion.

"Well..." Brandon turned slightly so his upper body
was directly over Nick and he could see more of his
beloved's beautiful angelic face.  "On such a perfect
night like tonight, the waves of the sea are almost as
soft, as warm and as caressing as you are." Brandon
let a gentle smile show on his face seeing how Nick
had blushed clearly even in the flickering light of
the fire.

'Sniff, sniff' "I think I'm going to cry," Aaron
grinned mischievously at the two lovers locked in the
embrace.  "I think I'm in love....

{Flashback ends when familiar voice interrupts Nick's
thoughts}

"Hey Nick," Howie slid his slender body next to Nick
Carter.  "How are you?" Howie's smile was soft,
gentle...comfortingly warm.

"Oh, hey Howie," Nick looked up from his deep reverie.
 He had phased out staring into the sparkling surface
of the pool.  "G-good, how are you?" Nick quickly
turned away to wipe away stray tears from his eyes.

"Good, good.  Better now actually," Howie smiled at
Nick again.  His smile hinted of a warmth that Nick
never saw before...But just as sudden as it appeared,
it was gone.  All that was there was a warm welcoming
smile of a concerned friend.  "I just wanted to say
how..." Howie blushed and cleared his throat.  "You
and I never really got any chance to talk since you
got back...well...I just...well I just wanted to say
how happy I am to see you back with us again."
Howie's eyebrows raised in resignment.  His smile
trembled a little but seemed to smooth out as he gave
Nick a pat on the shoulder.  "It's been quiet here
without you," Howie turned away and looked into the
pool.  "It was like there was a part of us was
missing, you know?  Like the sea without the waves or
something..."  Howie turned to look Nick in the eyes
and smiled gently.

Nick felt a tinged when he heard the statement.  But
before either of them could say anything more Kevin
bursted out of the patio doors.

"We have a problem!" Kevin panted, as he unwittingly
interrupted Nick and Howie's conversation.

End of Part 3
-----------------------------------------------
Feedback's always best.  Helps build self-esteem is
what I read in one of my research papers?  <=)  Hate
mail even!

Thanks for reading!

~J