Date: Tue, 16 Sep 2014 16:39:47 -0400
From: RANDY WIGGINS <rwig@hotmail.com>
Subject: COMIC BOOK KID CH 18-20 - GAY/ HIGH SCHOOL

This is a fictional story/ series and is explicit in nature so if you don't
like reading about men and boys get lost. Then again if you didn't like
this stuff you wouldn't be here at all would you? Either way, enjoy and let
me know what you think.

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 rwig@hotmail.com

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I'll be pissed.

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Thanks


CHAPTER 18

(1)

"Adam! Jesse!" Francine called as she came back from down stairs.

Adam opened his bedroom door after slipping into his housecoat. "What's
wrong, mom?" He asked.

Jesse stood behind him, tying the cord of his own coat into place. He
looked at the woman who's son he loved.

"Where's Tommy? Is he in there?" She asked.

"No, I haven't seen him since last night."  Adam said. He turned to look at
Jesse.

"No, I didn't hear a thing after going to sleep." Jesse said. Damn, Jesse
thought, what has that idiot done now? He knew he should have made Tommy
stay in the room with them last night. Tommy had been acting to strange
when he and Adam had gone down to say good night.

"I've checked everywhere. His clothes and things are still in the storage
room. He's not in the yard either. Boys, why would he take off like this?"
Fran was scared. The thought of something happening to the boy tore at her
mind and her heart. "What should we do? Call the police?  What if that
Phillip boy came in and kidnaped him?"

"I don't think that Phillip even knows where we live. He was only here,
what, twice?" Jesse asked. He turned to go change clothes. He knew he would
have to go to every place he or Adam could think of to search for their
missing friend.

"Jesse, what are you going to do?" Adam asked. "If we go, Phillip could get
us too." He knew what a coward he sounded like but he couldn't help it. He
couldn't risk Jesse or himself to find Tommy.  His mother would never be
able to forgive herself if anything happened to him and he would be the
same way if anything happened to Jesse.

"I'm going to find him. You are going to take my journal and call as many
people as you can." Jesse said. He grabbed a pair of boxers and his jeans
before heading into the bathroom to change.

Adam left his mother and went to their private bathroom. "I'm not letting
you go out there by yourself!" Adam said.

"Adam, babe, I can take care of myself. I have to find him. I have to do
something." Jesse said. He pulled the jeans up over his strong legs,
covering the boxers and buttoned them quickly. He pulled the zipper up with
one hand while grabbing his shirt from the towel rack.

"Jesse, please..." Adam said. He knew he was becoming the emotional
housewife but he couldn't help it. If Jesse died he felt like he would to.

Jesse moved to Adam and pulled him into his arms. He wrapped himself around
Adam and held him tightly. He knew that he had to do something but he also
knew that he couldn't let Adam get involved any deeper. The risk was just
too high; for both of them.

"Jesse..." Adam said as he buried his face in Jesse's right shoulder. He
let the tears he was feeling flow. "I can't lose you...not you...not like
my dad." He stammered.

"You aren't going to lose me, babe. You are stuck with me no matter what."
Jesse said with more bravado than he felt. There was a real threat and he
knew it, but he would do anything to protect Adam, even die.

(2)

The phone rang three times before a soft voice spoke. "Harris residence."
Harry Little said. He was worried, Greg and Ryan should have been back with
Tommy hours ago.

"Is Ryan there, or Tommy?" Adam asked. He had remembered that Tommy and
Ryan had gotten along very well at the comic shop while they did the
shaving movie. He hoped that Tommy would go to him for help.

"W-who is this?" Harry said.

"My name is Adam Conner. I'm a friend of Tommy's. Have you heard from him?
Who am I speaking with?" Adam asked.

"I'm Harry. Ryan is my big brother. He and Greg left to pick Tommy up at
some convenience store about eleven last night and they never came home.
I'm alone here, and I'm scared shitless." Harry said. He held the receiver
tightly in his right hand.

"How old are you Harry?" Adam asked. He hoped the boy would be okay. He had
heard Ryan mention a brother and seen the boy with the man they lived with
that one time at the store.

"Twelve." Harry answered.

"Okay, bud. Tell you what, I'll get my mom to drive me over and we'll pick
you up. You can stay with us until we find your brother and the others."

"I don't know...I don't really know you."  Harry said. He wondered if this
was a good idea. He knew that Tommy had a friend named Adam but hadn't
really met the other boy.

"I know bud. Jesse is out looking for Tommy now. You know who Jesse is,
right?"

"Yeah, he's a friend of Tommys'."

"He's my lover. Jesse not Tommy." Adam said. His nervous were playing up
bad with him.

"Okay. Okay, come and get me." Harry said.  "Anything's better than being
here alone." Harry said. He prayed that Greg and Ryan were okay, and that
they wouldn't be mad at him for leaving the house.

"Where are you, Harry?" Adam asked. He pulled a note pad to him and pulled
a pen from it's cup.

"1441 Green Island Drive." Harry said.

"Okay, I'm not that far away. Just hang tight for a few minutes. I'll ring
the bell, wait a few second and ring it two more times in a row, that'll
let you know it's me." Adam instructed the other boy.

"Okay." Harry said. "Adam?"

"Yeah?"

"Please hurry." Harry said.

"We will bud." Adam hung up the phone and went to find his mother.

Harry replaced the portable phone and sat on the big brown sofa in Greg's
office. It was not only his favorite place to read, it was also his safe
spot. If he was worried or angry or whatever, this is where he liked to sit
until he felt better. He closed his eyes and wrapped both arms around his
knees and rocked. He prayed that everything was okay and Ryan and Greg were
safe.

(3)

Jesse walked up to the door of the comic shop and placed a hand against the
glass, leaned forward and looked into the gloom.  The door was locked and
the closed sign turned outward. The place would never open again, at least
not as a comic shop or owned by Clay. He wondered if the man was still
alive. He hoped he was. He'd never blamed Clay for getting him to do the
movies, not really. He blamed himself for that one. If he'd been brave
enough to deal with his love for Adam sooner, he would have never done any
of it. Adam was his future, this place, that life, all of it was his past.

Jesse moved away from the door. He wondered if the loading bay door was
locked as well. He knew of ways to get in and out of the building without
using the front door. He could try and find the key and see if Tommy had
decided to hide here. He walked around the side of the building, working
his way around the cars waiting for servicing in the garage next to the
comic store. A couple of the mechanics waved at him and he waved back.  One
of the guys had even been in a couple of scenes with him.

The sliding door was locked tight. Just like the front door, there was a
yellow Police cordon across the entrance stating that is was a crime scene
and not to cross it.

Jesse looked around to be sure he wasn't being watched before moving past
the door and pushing at the old window sill. It took a couple of hard
shoves but the window slid sideways, splitting the open hole into two
halves. He moved sideways and slipped his leg through the opening, working
the window frame back and forth to accommodate his slender frame.  He
figured if he'd weighed another ten pounds he wouldn't have been able to
fit, that's how tight the opening was for him.

He got stuck. Jesse worked his leg around trying to get his thigh free.

"Fuck. Stupid." He pulled himself back out of the window. "Maybe I gained
that extra weight anyway." He said to the empty space around him. If I
can't fit, I know Tommy can't." Jesse continued talking to the side of the
building. He looked around again before kicking out with his right foot. He
hit the window frame, cracking the old, rotten wood. Two more kicks and the
window pane fell into the darkness with a loud crash.

Jesse checked a final time before slipping into the now fully open space.
He heard the broken glass crunch under his tennis shoes. "Now what?" He
said. Jesse looked around the dark basement with only the light that came
through the window hole. The sling remained in it's corner, rigging hanging
to the floor waiting for fun that wouldn't be had again. The rest of the
area was as it had been the last time he been down there. He walked to the
stairway and moved up the creaking wooden steps. If Tommy was hiding inside
there was no way he hadn't heard the breaking of the glass.

"Tommy?" Jesse called out.  "Hello?" He walked into the sectioned off back
room of the shop. "Tommy, it's me!"

"He isn't here." The deep voice said.  Henry Paul said as he moved in front
of the boy from where he'd been standing. He had entered the store with the
key and alarm code that Roger Ames had provided. He had been searching the
place with his flashlight when he heard the breaking glass from below
him. He'd turned the light off and waited, hoping that the job would be
over quickly so he could move on to the others on his list.

"Who's there?" Jesse said. He stepped back quickly. The man standing before
him was huge and as dark skinned as the space around him. "Oh, shit." Jesse
said. Who the hell is this guy? He thought as he tried to walk back to the
stairs in reverse.

"Stand where you are boy." Paul said as he flipped the switch on his flash
light, illuminating the small area in front of him. "Who are you, kid?"

"Nobody. I was just gonna swipe some shit." Jesse lied. He hoped he could
convince the man that he was just a thief and nothing more.

"I don't think so. A thief wouldn't be calling out for someone while he
made his way to do the stealin'." Henry Paul stood looking at Jesse with
lust. "You're a cute one. I think I even saw one or two of the flicks with
you in `em."

"Okay. I guess you got me on that one then." Jesse said. I'm looking for
someone."

"Me too. Probably the same someone you lookin' for." Henry Paul said.

Jesse sized the man up, trying to figure a way to get around him, or just
back away and down the steps again. He didn't like his odds of escape
either way.

"Well, I guess we have a bit of a stalemate." The large black man said.  "I
have a feeling that your are Jesse Janes, also know as AJ to the porn
community."

"Yeah, so?" Jesse said. He decided to go for the confident tough guy that
he didn't really feel like at the moment.

"I'm suppose to kill you. Well, not just you but that hot little blond
number you fuck, and your friend Tommy. I don't guess you are going to make
things easy on me, are you? Maybe tell me where the others are?"

"No, I don't think I am." Jesse said. He tried desperately to hide the
nervous shakes rolling through his muscles.

"Okay." Henry Paul approached slowly.  "I'm going to have to tie you up for
a while." Paul said. He thought about the fun things he could do with the
hot boy in front of him, things he wouldn't do because he didn't commit
rape and that is what it would be.

"Whatever. You're not fucking me though."  Jesse said.

"No, I'm not. I don't believe in forcing it. I have too man boys that are
more than willing to ride my rod without having to force one on it.  Now,
hold your hands out in front of you. I'm going to be a nice guy and not tie
`em behind your back like I usually do when the need arises."

Jesse held out his hands and brought them together to clutch one another.
He kept his mouth shut and let the man bind his wrists. There wasn't any
way to avoid it without getting seriously hurt and tied up anyway so why
suffer the beating? Now he was useless to everybody.  He mentally berated
himself for his stupidity. He had walked right into a fucking trap. God, I
am so sorry Adam. I love you baby.

"Don't look so sad. You aren't going to be going to your maker alone.  I'm
going to use you as bait before I kill the three of you." Paul smiled
slightly. He had only been called in to deal with situations where he was
left with the unenviable task of killing boys. Not a job he took lightly,
but not one he had ever not done when ordered. Money is money, and there
are plenty of boys in the world.

Jesse looked at his captor with hate filled eyes.  There was no way he
could help anybody now.

(4)

Francine Conner pulled the Volvo into the drive of the large house. She
wore only her robe and sleep dress. She found it difficult to drive with
her bunny slippers so she had tossed them in the back seat and drove
barefoot. She looked over at Adam who sat beside her chewing his lower lip
frantically.

"Honey, I know you're worried. I am too."  Francine said. She smiled at her
son, holding back the real anxiety she felt for the boy and his lover.

"I'm scared mom. I am so scared something will happen to Jesse before this
is over. I like Tommy, a lot; but I love Jesse with all my heart and soul."

"I know you do, baby." She said as she looked up at the two story house.
"Go on and let's hurry back home in case Jesse calls."

"Okay. Be right back." Adam opened the door and started to get out.

"Here, baby." Francine handed him a tissue. "You're lip is bleeding.  Don't
want to scare the poor boy."

Adam took the tissue and pressed it to hip lip. He got out and closed the
door carefully. He had never been here before but he felt like he knew the
place from things that Tommy had said about it.  He knocked on the front
door three times, waited and knocked again before trying the door handle.

The door opened giving Adam a clear view into the open living area.
"Hello?" Adam called out. "It me, Adam Conner. Are you still here Harry?"

"Yeah, over here." Harry said. He pushed his glasses up his nose as he
walked out of the darkened hall by the staircase.  "I was hiding in Greg's
office when I heard your car pull up."

Adam looked the boy over carefully. He didn't really know him that well as
he had never spoken to him except for their phone call earlier in the
evening. "My mom's in the car waiting. You got a bag packed?" Adam asked.

"Oh, I forgot about that. Would you walk upstairs with me. I hate being
alone in this place some times."

"Yeah, it is kinda overwhelming to look at." Adam agreed. "Okay, come on.
We gotta hurry though."

"Okay, come on." Harry walked up the stairs, taking the steps two at a
time. He could hear Adam right behind him. He hadn't remembered how great
looking the older boy was. How could he think about how hot this guy is
while getting ready to run from whatever was keeping Greg and Ryan?

Adam followed the boy into a large bedroom.  "Nice room." Adam said. He sat
on the edge of the bed to wait while Harry got ready.

Harry walked around the room grabbing clothes and bathroom kit. He tossed
the lot of it into a green and white sports bag. He looked at the bedside
table, walked over and picked up a book and placed that in the bag as
well. "Ready."

The two boys went back to the first floor and out the door, locking it
behind them. In seconds they were in the station wagon and on the way away
from the house.

(5)

"Okay guys. Here it is." Greg pulled the Suburban to a stop in front of a
large rustic cabin in a well kept clearing. The house hadn't been used in a
while and very few, if any, people knew it even existed. He felt that the
boys would be safe here while he went back for Harry. He prayed that they
had lost whoever had been in that truck.

"Looks great." Tommy said.

"Yeah, Greg. This place is cool. Too bad I got to see it under these
circumstances though." Ryan said. He paced around the dark main room. The
kitchen area was off to the left and the door to the big bedroom to the
right. There was a fireplace dead center in the room with opening on both
sides. There was a stair case leading to the second floor set into the wall
near the kitchen.

"You guys need to stay close while I'm gone.  I'll get the shotgun and
rifle out of the gun cabinet in case... Well, better safe than sorry.  Just
don't shoot me and Harry when we get back." Greg said. He tried to raise
the spirits of the boys but failed.

"Why don't you call the house before you go?" Ryan asked. He didn't mind
being alone with Tommy but he did have a bad feeling about Greg leaving
them here to go back for Harry. Damn, what a coward I am. Ryan thought to
himself.

"No phone here." Greg said. Even as he said it he regretted never having a
phone out here. Now, with two boys to care for, he would really have to
reconsider the option of phone service. Everything in the place was as
rustic and old as it was when his grandfather had built the place. No
phone, no electricity. Gas cook stove and a big cooler to keep food on ice.

"Where's the lights?" Ryan asked as he roamed around the room. "No TV
either?"

"Sorry bud. I've kept the place as my grandfather and father did. It's a
hideout from the real world. I promise I will look into adding a few modern
conveniences now that I have you and your brother with me." Greg walked to
the fireplace and moved the mech screen.  "Can you two got out the back
door in the kitchen and get me a good wood supply? I don't want either of
you going outside while I'm gone so we need to get things right before I
leave."

Ryan nodded and he headed into the kitchen and unlocked the wooden door.
Tommy followed wordlessly.



CHAPTER 19

(1)

Ryan walked around the cabin getting a feel for things. He had been on
camp-outs and stuff so living without many normal conveniences wasn't that
big a deal for him. The cabin was far from sleeping on the hard ground
though. They had a fire going, plenty of food to eat and each other. He
looked over to where Tommy sat staring out the big window at the trees
behind the cabin. The boy was cute, cuter than he had ever found another
boy his age. He had found Jesse and Adam pretty hot too, but there was
something about Tommy that got him going every time.

"You okay?" Ryan said.

Tommy nodded his head but didn't turn to face the other boy. He couldn't
help but be worried about Jesse and Adam, not to mention Harry and Ryan. He
didn't much care what happened to himself any more and he sure didn't care
what happened to Phillip...or did he? The love he had felt for his friend
was still inside him, buried under the pain and confusion the other boy had
caused everybody in his life.

Ryan walked behind Tommy and placed his hands on the boy's shoulders. He
worked the muscled through the blue shirt he wore.  He knew that wanting to
make love right then was a bad idea for many reasons but he couldn't help
himself. He wanted to be held and loved, needed the comfort of another
guy's body.

Tommy relaxed back against Ryan's body. The feeling of Ryan's hands working
his shoulders felt like the best thing to happen to him in ages.  He knew
he was falling for the other boy. The thoughts of Phillip and his strange
ways was beginning to fade in any romantic thought's he'd had of him and
Ryan was taking his place. He turned his head up and smiled at the boy.

Ryan looked down into Tommy's eyes and knew he was wanting the same
things. He lowered his head and met Tommy's mouth with his and they kissed,
moving tongue around tongue, making oral love with a special intimacy that
few boys their age would ever understand.

Tommy moved from his chair, feeling Ryan's hands move down his back and
around his waist. He broke the kiss and turned in Ryan's arms before
returning to the warm mouth and invading tongue. He felt Ryan's hands move
under his shirt, sliding up his smooth skin. He moaned into Ryan's mouth as
the other boy's fingers began working his nipples in slow circles. He could
feel his nips harden as his cock did the same.

Ryan could feel Tommy's hard cock rubbing against his crotch, meeting his
own hardness hidden beneath the denim of his jeans. He twisted the boy's
nipples and enjoyed the moan that passed from Tommy to Ryan through their
lip lock.

Tommy pulled away from the kiss and looked into Ryan's eyes. He saw in
those blue eyes more fire and emotion than he had ever seen in anyone's
eyes before; Jesse and Adam included.

"I want you." Ryan said as he caressed Tommy's hard cock. His fingers
pulled the zipper down as he moved in for another kiss. He moved To Tommy's
neck, sucking and licking the smooth skin.

"Oh, yeah. I want you too man." Tommy said. The thought of sinking deep
into Ryan's ass filled his cock to it's maximum size. The feeling of Ryan's
fingers working his flesh out of the zipper sent shivers through his entire
body. He pushed Ryan away slightly and began pulling his shirt off. He
tossed the garment to the floor as he unhooked the button on his Levi
501's. He watched Ryan's face as he continued his striptease.

"Go baby, go!" Ryan cheered. He leaned against the back of the couch,
enjoying his lover's show. He had never in his life wanted another boy this
bad. Tommy was about the sexiest thing in the world and he wanted to make
him his. He pulled his own shirt off and dropped it on the couch. He
tweaked his nipples as he watched Tommy slide the jeans off to reveal a
pair of Speedo style underwear. "Sexy!" He called out. All worries about
the chase and Phillip were gone from his mind. Greg and Harry, however,
were still there; in his thoughts, just not making themselves heard for the
moment.

Tommy kicked his shoes off and stepped out of the jeans. He ran his hands
down his smooth chest, stopping at the waistband of the boxers. He hadn't
been thinking that morning when he grabbed the blue boxers but he was sure
glad that they had been what he had on because Ryan really seemed to be
loving the show. He put his fingers in the band and began sliding the cloth
down, revealing his smooth crotch a little at a time.  He was getting a
thrill out of his performance, a thrill he figured he'd never have again
with the movie business gone. He slid the underwear down his thighs letting
his hard cock bounce up against his crotch, almost as high as his belly
button but shy about two inches.  He was very proud of his dick, it was
bigger than most of his friends' thanks to his father's Italian heritage.

"I love it, baby." Ryan said. He dropped his pants quickly to reveal he
hadn't even bothered with underwear when he'd gotten dressed after his
afternoon fuck with Greg and Harry. Wow, he thought, that had been just
before all the excitement had started.

Tommy stopped suddenly and looked at Ryan. "You okay?"

"Yeah, just thinking about Greg and my brother for a minute." Ryan could
feel some of the excitement drain away as his cock started to go down. He
looked at Tommy's still hard cock and willed his own to return to it's five
plus inches of glory.

"You want to do this?" Tommy asked. He was unsure and feeling a bit guilty
for having fun when his friends were probably in danger.

"Let's just hold each other on the couch for a while." Ryan said. He smiled
at Tommy, knowing that the physical contact of being held would bring them
both back to sexual excitement.

"Cool bud." Tommy said. He smiled and moved into Ryans arms. They met,
mouth to mouth, for another marathon kissing session.

(2)

Adam led Harry through the door from the garage to the kitchen. His mom was
running the garage door down and setting the exterior alarm system so that
they would know if someone tried to get into the garage. That area was on a
separate system than the house and he knew she would set the main unit as
soon as she got the back door locked.

"Nice house." Harry said. He held his green and white sports bag tightly to
his chest. He looked around the large kitchen and felt comfortable almost
immediately. It reminded him of his old house, where he and Ryan had lived
with their dad before moving in with Greg.  He missed his dad and their
house sometimes but the way he figured it he was better off and so was
Ryan. Their dad loved them, he knew that, but Greg loved to be with them,
not just sexually, but as people. Dad was so busy that all he had time for
was a few hours of sex fun a week with his sons.

"Thanks, man." Adam said. He walked to the refrigerator and opened the
door. "Want a soda or something?"

"Sure, thank you." Harry said.

"Okay, let me get the main alarms set here..." Francine pushed buttons on
the white unit set into the wall by the door.

"Harry, did you leave a note for your brother or guardian before leaving
the house? I should have asked before we left but I got a bit nervous."

She walked to the breakfast bar and sat on one of the three stools.  "Hand
me a diet please, Adam." She said.

Adam handed Harry his drink and placed his own on the counter before
returning to the fridge to get his mom's drink. All he could think about
was Jesse and how scared he was that his friend and lover wasn't home,
holding him, as he would usually be at this time of the evening.

"You have a message." Harry said. He opened the can of Coke and took a long
gulp. He had placed his bag on the floor at his feet.

"What?" Francine said, startled.

"Your machine is blinking." Harry said as he pointed to the Phone.

"Oh, yeah." She looked at Adam before standing and making her way to the
phone which hung on the wall. She pressed the play back button.

"I have your boy toy. If you want to see him again you'll have to come to
the comic shop. Enter through the basement window. It is seven fifteen. I
will expect you by nine or this sexy number won't be so sexy no more." The
tape clicked when the message ended.

All three of them looked to the clock. It was eight thirty.

"Oh, God." Adam said. He placed the cold soda can on the counter before he
dropped it. "Mom..."

"I know, honey. What are we going to do?"  Francine watched the turmoil on
her son's face. How was she going to keep Adam from going after Jesse?  How
could she even think about it? "We don't know this person even has Jesse,
honey. It could be a trap. Hell, we know it's a trap one way or the other."

Adam chewed his lip harshly as he looked from his mom to the clock and back
again. "Mom?"

(3)

"Well, it's almost time. It doesn't look like lover boy's going to show."
Henry Paul said. He sat in a chair looking at Jesse who he had tied up and
left on the big bed.

"Good!" Jesse said. He held on to all the defiance he could muster. "I'd
rather die than let you lay a hand on Adam." He said.

"Such loyalty. You two really do make a great couple. It's gonna suck to
have to kill you before tonight is over."

"You really think you'll find Tommy by daylight?" Jesse asked. For a moment
he wondered if the man didn't already have Tommy or, have someone watching
him.

"He'll turn up."

The pair remained silent, Jesse watching the black man and the man watching
the digital display on his watch. It was 8:42 pm.

(4)

Greg didn't bother pulling into the garage. He opened his door and ran to
the front of the house, leaving the engine running. He had to grab Harry
and get back on the road to the cabin.

"Harry!" He called as he entered the front hall. "Harry, where are you?"
He thought about where Harry may be hiding and went quickly down the hall
to his office. The only light that was on was his desk lamp and he could
see a white piece of paper on the blotter. "Oh, God." He moved to the desk
and picked up the note.

Greg,

I was scared. Adam Conner, Jesse and Tommy's friend called. He and his mom
are picking me up. I'll be at their house.  Please hurry. I miss you and
Ryan.

Love,

Harry

Greg looked at his watch. 8:48 he stared at the numbers, wondering when
Harry had left with the boy and his mom. He remembered Adam very well. He
was glad that Harry wasn't alone. He opened the address book and found the
number of the Conner house. Ryan had written it in the book when he and
Tommy had started seeing each other. He dialed the numbers and listened to
the ringing.

(5)

Adam, his mom, and Harry all jumped when the phone rang. Three sets of eyes
looked at the phone on the wall.

Francine moved back to the wall and picked the receiver up. "H-hello?"

"Hi, this is Greg Harris. I'm looking for Harry Little." Greg voice was
strong, but there was worry buried in the words.

"Just a moment." Francine said into the receiver. She held the portable out
to Harry. "It's for you, hon."

Harry took the phone and spoke. "Hello?"

"Thank God! Baby, are you okay?" Greg said.  He felt the weight of the
world lift from his shoulders.

"Greg! Are you okay? Is Ryan?" He asked.  He felt more excited than he had
in months at the sound of Greg's deep southern voice.

"Yeah. He and Tommy are up at the cabin. I need to get you and head that
way. Adam and Jesse can come to if they like. Be sure to ask Adam's mom if
she wants to come also."

Harry relayed the information to Adam and Francine.  "Greg, Jesse isn't
here! Someone kidnaped him!"

"Oh, lord. We were chased after picking up Tommy.  That's why I took them
to the cabin. I didn't want to lead the guy to you."

"The man on the phone said he was going to kill Jesse at nine tonight if
Adam didn't come to the comic shop." Harry said.

Greg looked at the clock. It was five `til nine.  "I'll never get there in
time." He said. "The police...no, maybe not. Get Adam's mother to drive you
guys to the comic shop but don't go in. I don't think the man will really
kill Jesse. I think he needs him as bait." He prayed he was right.

Harry hung up the phone after another minute, then told the Conners what
Greg had said.

"I don't like this but I don't think we have a choice. Mr. Harris is
probably right. Either way... it's nine `o clock now." Francine said.

Adam felt the tears burn as they began flowing down his cheeks.

"Oh, baby." Francine Conner said.

Adam walked to his mom and she took him into her arms. "He's gonna die."
Adam said, crying harder.

"No, he isn't. Listen, we have to go baby.  Now." She wiped Adam's eyes
with the hem of her house coat.

"Oh God." Adam said. He sucked in a breath, moved away and nearly tripped
trying to get to the door to the garage.

Francine and Harry followed right behind. She stopped long enough to turn
the alarm off, get the boys out and set it again.

Minutes later the Volvo was back on the road headed for the comic shop.

(6)

The man sat beside Jesse, who lay bound on the king size bed. His captor
had turned on a lamp beside the bed. He looked around at the set that he
had been to a number of times over the few months the place had been
open. He had enjoyed more than one hot white boy's pussy on this bed.
Hell, he was on tape fucking that slut Phillip seven ways to Sunday. He
really hated the idea of having to kill that one; never good to ruin a good
fuck toy in it's prime.

"Doesn't look like loverboys' gonna make it." Henry Paul said. He puffed on
the fat Cuban cigar at the corner of his mouth. It was one of the perks for
working for rich people, they loved giving things to the help, especially
when the help had done the job right.

"Good. I don't want him here." Jesse said.  He had remained silent because
he saw no chance of talking himself out of this one. He even considered
offering his ass to the black man but figured all that would accomplish is
getting fuck then killed anyway.  Please, Adam, stay the hell away from
here...

"I hate killing you guys, you know? I get paid well, and from time to time
there is a boy that deserves a good killin' but I don't think you and your
blond boyfriend belong in that category.  Hell, that Tommy bot doesn't even
deserve it. So he talked to the cops, not like others haven't
before. That's why the old man keeps a paid informant on the force, and on
his payroll. Talk about an asshole!  That fucker'd kill his momma if
someone offered him enough cash."

"Why do you do it then?" Jesse asked. He wasn't really interested in
hearing the man's life story but whatever delayed him had to be worth the
time. Not like he was going to get up and walk away or something.

"Money, kid. Same as any other guy in the business. I get paid, I do as I'm
told." Henry Paul said. He removed the cigar from his mouth and tapped it
on the side of the dresser, letting the dead ash fall to the square of
carpet the `bedroom' was set up on.

"You like boys? For sex?"

"Yeah, I always have. Not a lot of people know that." The man thought about
his past as the minutes clicked away. It was after the deadline by fifteen
minutes already.

"You want to fuck me?" Jesse asked. He decided right then to try the angle
to see if it would lead to an escape route.

"No, I don't. Well, actually, I do, but I am not gonna go there."

"Why not?"

"You have a partner. I respect that. I ain't about to send you to your
maker with my cum up your ass instead of... what's his name.. Brian,
Allen.."

"Adam." Jesse supplied his answer.

"Yeah. Right."

The two remained silent for several minutes.

"It's after nine." Henry Paul said. His threat hadn't worked after all.  He
really did want to kill them all together but there didn't seem to be much
choice in the matter. Not now.

"I know." Jesse said. He felt a little let down that Adam hadn't come
rushing to his rescue but he was glad too. He knew his lover, and if he had
been able to, he would have been here. It must have been his mom that
stopped him. Good for her.

"Fuck it." Paul said. He pulled the knife from his pants. He hated using
guns unless there was no other option. A knife made no noise. He looked
into the boy's eyes. Damn...

(7)

Greg pulled into a slot next to the Volvo and got out of the Mercedes. He
had chosen it because it was faster that the Suburban. Too bad he still
could get here quicker. God, what would happen to that boy? He closed the
door and watched as Adam, Harry, and Francine Conner got out of the station
wagon.

Harry ran into Greg's arms and the man lifted his boy off the ground.
"Greg..." Harry said then began to cry.

"I know baby." He held the boy tightly against him. His eyes met with those
of the woman who stood on the other side of her car. He knew from her look
that she didn't really approve of his relationship with the boys but saw no
point of making an issue of it, not now... probably never. He looked at
Adam who had also been crying openly for some time.  "I tried to get here
faster. I got caught in traffic and..."

"You think he killed Jesse already?" Adam asked. He didn't look at the
guardian of his new friends. His eyes were burning from the tears that
began flowing as nine came and went by silently.

"No, for some reason, I think he is using Jesse as bait to get to someone
else, but I don't think it is really you, or Jesse that he's after."

"Or all of them." Francine said. Her voice was tight with fear and building
anger.

"Well, you made it after all." The man said from the corner of the
building. He held Jesse, who had been cut free from his bonds and let out
the way he had come in.

The group turned and looked at the large black man who's hand was holding
Jesse's shoulder.

"Jesse!" Adam yelled. He started to make a run for his partner but his mom
caught his arm.

"Wait baby." She said. She was thrilled to see Jesse alive and, apparently
unharmed.

"Mom!" Adam said. His voice wavering.

"Go on, kid. Go see your boyfriend." Henry Paul said, giving Jesse a small
push forward.

Jesse made a run and Adam met him half way.

"God! I was so scared." Adam said. His tears began flowing freely again.
He felt Jesse's strong arms wrapped around him and he pressed his chest
into his lover's body.

"I was too babes." Jesse said. His voice cracked and his eyes began to tear
up as well. He didn't understand what the man had on his mind but he
thanked God that whatever it was, he saw fit to let him hold Adam one more
time.

"What's going on here?" Greg said. He had placed Harry back on the ground
but held his left hand tightly in his right.

"I had some time to think while the kid and I were in that place. I decided
that my best course of action would be to get as many of the boys together
as possible, then decide what to do. Don't get any ideas though. I do have
a gun and I'll use it." Henry Paul said. At this point, he would just have
easily walked away from the whole damn mess but didn't. He still had a job
to do, but he could string it out for a while longer. Besides, he still
hadn't found the others he was after.

"So, what is your plan?" Francine said.  She wished she had changed clothes
before they left the house again. She didn't see losing her son, or herself
while wearing a night dress, robe and bunny slippers.

"Where's the other one? Tommy?" Paul said.

"He's safe."

"Who the fuck are you, anyway?" Henry Paul said.

"Greg Harris. I am Ryan and Harry's guardian."

"Yeah, the other cute blond kid. I take it he is with Tommy some place?"

"He is."

"You know, I never planned on bothering with your kids, mister. If you
hadn't seen fit to get involved in this, you and your boys could have kept
at whatever little freak show ya'll live in."

Greg nodded. It was about what he had figured then.  Ryan and Harry were
never in danger, not until now. Not that it made a difference in what he
had to do. He found that he really liked Tommy, and wanted to be sure he
remained safe, not just because he liked him, but because Ryan and Harry
did too. They were a part of this from the moment he and Ryan had picked
Tommy up at that gas station the previous night. It seemed so long ago now.

"Well, you're going to take me to them. If you do as you're told, I may
just let you and your two boys and this lady go free. None of you are on
the list, and I ain't got a reason to you."

"How about the witness thing?" Greg said.  He knew better than to believe
this guy would let any of them go, not now. They had all seen him, and they
knew what he was. The guy really didn't have a choice.

"Here's what we're going to do. We gonna get in that fancy Volvo and go to
wherever the boys are. All of us." Henry Paul said. "Mr. Harris, you
drive. I'll sit right behind you. The lady sits up front beside you. I keep
the boys in back with me. That way I can get a hold on anybody I need to if
they do something stupid. Don't fuck with me people."

They got back into the station wagon as the man instructed and Greg pulled
out into the empty street.

(7)

Ryan lay back with his head resting in Tommy's lap.  They were wearing only
underwear as they enjoyed the fire and talked.  Sharing a kiss from time to
time.

"How you feeling?" Tommy asked his friend.

"Not too bad, you?" He smiled at Tommy. He was ready to take the boy down
on the floor and have sex with him. The romance was nice and all but he
wanted to get his hands on the other boy's body.

"I'm better." Tommy replied. He had kept his raging hard on down to a mild
semi-stiffie state.

"Cool." Ryan said. He moved his body over until he was on his chest, he
opened the fly of Tommy's boxers and pulled the growing cock out.  Without
a word he took Tommy into his mouth and began to give his very best oral
attack ever.

"Oh, man...That is so nice." Tommy said.  He ran his hands through Ryan's
hair. Ryan saw so fucking great at giving head! He closed his eyes and
rested his head against the back of the couch cushion.

Ryan bobbed up and down on Tommy's thick cock. He felt the head pass in and
out of his throat as he worked the other boys with all his passion.  Other
then getting fucked, giving head was his favorite sexual activity.  The
thick, veiny cock slipped in-between his lips.  He roamed the organ with
his tongue.

Tommy moaned as he held tightly to a clump of Ryan's hair. He rolled his
head back and forth as the other boy took another downward slide on his
cock.

Ryan felt Tommy growing in his mouth, feel the boy's breathing grow more
ragged and in seconds, was rewarded with blast after blast of boy juice.
He sucked down ever drop of the four plus spurts before sucking the
shrinking cock clean. He played with the very sensitive head, getting the
last leaking drops of cum. He raised his head up, letting Tommy's drooping
cock drop from his lips. He moved his body up and over Tommy's legs so that
he could sit in the other boy's lap, facing him.

"That was fuckin' incredible man!" Tommy said. He pulled Ryan's face to his
and their lips met, opened and accepted the invading tongue.

"How fucking sweet can this shit get?"  Phillip said from the door to the
kitchen.

Ryan and Tommy stopped kissing, and jerked their heads in the direction of
the boy's voice.

"I guess you weren't as in love with me as I thought you were." Phillip
said. He looked right into Tommy's dark eyes.

Tommy turned away from the burning glare his former lover and friend sent
his way.

"Oh, well. You were always more in love with me than I ever was with you,
anyway. Just as well you found a new boy to share your affections with."
Phillip said. He wasn't angry or hurt by what he had seen. If anything, he
was horny as hell and wishing he could slam his own cock down the blond
slut's throat. "And you, damn boy! You sure know how to give a blow job!"

"Thanks, I guess." Ryan said. He didn't move from Tommy's lap. His eyes
locked on the gun in the boy's hand rather than on his face.

"Oh, this?" Phillip said. He brought the gun up and waved it around. "I
guess my outburst and the comic shop got your attention, weather I wanted
it to or now. Sorry about trying to kill you and all, but hey. That's what
you get for sneaking around and spying on people."

"We weren't spying." Ryan said defiantly.

Tommy stayed motionless with his head thrown back against the back of the
couch again. He listened to Phillip's voice as well as Ryan's. He hoped his
new lover wouldn't piss of his old one. Not too much anyway...

"Mouthy bitch, aren't you?" Phillip said.  He found himself to be amused
with the boy's tough guy routine.

"The tough boy thing doesn't really work on a guy who just watched you
sucking another guy's cock." Phillip said.

Ryan started to say something and changed his mind.  He closed his mouth
and remained where he was.

"You fucked him yet?" Phillip asked Ryan.

"Yeah."

"He fucked you?"

"Yeah."

"Versatility. Nice. Why don't you get off his cock now, I doubt it'll be
back up again any time soon." Phillip said.  He smiled at the other boy.

Ryan shifted himself off of Tommy's lap and sat beside him, taking the
boy's right hand in his left.

"That's better. Not that I don't like a good show. It just isn't the right
time, if you know what I mean." Phillip moved to a chair and sat down. He
placed the gun on the arm of the recliner but kept his right hand near the
grip.

"What do you want?" Tommy said. He raised his head and looked at Phillip.
He wondered how he could have ever loved someone like him.

"Honestly, no clue. I thought about just blowing a hole in blondie's head,
taking your useless cock with it. You never could top worth a damn anyway."

"Fuck you." Tommy said.

"See, you never listen. I don't like wasting my time taking a spud instead
of a stud." Phillip said.

"You're fuckin' nuts man." Ryan said.  "I think he's a great top."

"Really? Maybe he learned something slutting around for so long after all."

"Asshole." Ryan said. He really hated this guy, not just for the gun and
shit, but because he was a mean queen who was bitter to the bone.

"I am really wanting to blow your head off now." Phillip said as he aimed
the gun at Ryan's face.

"Wait!" Tommy said. He sat up and moved to the edge of the couch.

"What?" Phillip said. His voice laced with suspicion as he looked around
him.

"Someone just pulled up outside." Tommy said.

The three boys looked to the front door, waiting for the sound of a car
door slam.



CHAPTER 20

(1)

"Stay right where you are."  Phillip said.

He stood and moved quickly into the far corner of the room so he wouldn't
be noticed in the dark.

His breathing was heavy, ragged and scared.  His plans had been tripped up
time and again in the last few days and now he had another problem to deal
with.

Ryan and Tommy remained on the couch as they had been told to do, holding
hands tightly.

Tommy had pulled the blanket from the back of the couch and covered their
nakedness though.

The door opened smoothly.  The first to enter the cabin was Greg who had
unlocked the door for the others.  He noticed the boys sitting on the
couch, hand held tightly and covered with their blanket.  He had a good
idea what they had been up to before they had arrived.  He moved into the
cabin's main room without speaking and went toward the couch.

"Freeze, right there."  Henry Paul said from outside the house.  Now, you
two go in."  He continued.

Adam and Jesse entered, also holding hands.  Both boys scared, but happy to
at least be going through this together.  Both would have gladly traded his
life for his partner's in an instant.

"Lady."  Paul said.

Francine Conner entered the cabin fully clad in house coat and bunny
slippers.  She kept her hands at her sides.  She had so much running
through her mind; what would happen to them, how would the boys manage
without her, how would she manage without either of them, how to get out of
this mess without anyone getting killed.  As she could figure it, there
just wasn't much hope at this point.

Henry Paul came in next with Harry in front of him, being used as a shield
against attack as well as a hostage.  "Okay, here we all are."  "Looks like
we missed the party.  What have you to got under that blanket?"  Paul
motioned with his gun.  He had switched the knife for the firearm for the
trip from car to cabin.  "Push it off onto the floor, now!"  Tommy and Ryan
did as they were told.  The lower halves of their bodies, once again
exposed.

Fuck, why him?  Phillip thought as he sunk back into the corner as far as
possible.

Henry Paul was the last person he expected to see again, and certainly the
last he needed getting in his way, now.  What could he do?  Protect who he
could so that he could kill them himself?  No... no that wasn't it...

But what?  He tried to control his breathing as his heart rate increased
from the sudden rush of fear.  Henry Paul had gotten his way with him
before and it had nearly killed him.  What would the large black man do to
him for shooting Clay?  He had to be doing this on orders from his boss,
old man Ames.

"What the fuck are you two lookin' at?"  Paul said as he turned in the
direction where Phillip was hiding.  He stared into the corner, between a
tall book case and the wall.  "I see you, boy.  Come on out here."  Paul
said.

>From his voice, he seemed very pleased about finding Phillip so easily.

Phillip slipped the gun into his waistband as he moved from the darkness.
He kept his hands out from his body, hands pointed down.  He wanted to have
quick access to his weapon because he knew he would have to kill the black
guy before this was over with, or he would be the one dead.

"Hot damn!"  Henry Paul said.  His face stretched with his huge smile.

"I got all of the targets in one long sweep!  A few witnesses in the deal
too."  Adam and Jesse sat beside Tommy and Ryan on the couch as Harry
slipped into Greg's lap in the chair Phillip had vacated earlier.  Francine
Conner stood beside the couch, holding her son's left hand while his lover
held his right one.  If they were going to die, they would do it together,
as a family.  She knew she had made mistakes in the past few months.

Mistakes that were about to cost them their lives.  If she had pushed to go
to the police sooner, none of this would have happened.

Brad, her only friend, had told her to go to the cops, but to coach the
boys on what to say to keep themselves, and her, out of trouble.  Now she
wished she had followed that advice.

"Long time no see, Phil.  Mr. Ames sure is pissed at you right now."  Paul
said.  He laughed.  "He's not too thrilled with that stupid slut he calls a
son either."  "Is Clay alive?"  Phillip asked.  He still loved the man and
it hurt to think that he had done such a horrible thing to the man.  If
only he could have stayed calm...

"Yeah, he'll live."  "I guess I'm not too great a shot."  Phillip said.

"You alright. Three to the gut messed him up pretty bad but he'll live to
see a prison cell if I can't find a way to kill his ass first."  Henry Paul
said.

He thought about the two times he had enjoyed Phillip's nowhere near virgin
ass.  The way that boy had screamed sent a thrill through him, even now.
Silly little white boys get all hot for the big black dick until it gets
shoved up their tight asses, then it's screaming and begging.  Clay had
been a beggar, Phillip, a screamer.

Both had gotten his load and both had come back for more, willingly or by
orders of the boss.

"You look pleased with yourself."  Phillip said.

His hate for the man burning through him like a lightning strike.  He could
feel his body getting tensed up, anger flooding his thoughts.  His hand
itched to grab the pistol and fill the huge black man with as many bullets
as he could before being cut down himself.

"Move over there with the other bitches."  Henry Paul said.  "Go on."  He
pointed his own gun in the direction of the others.

Phillip moved over to join the guys on the couch, the boys he had called
friends.  He stood at the opposite end from Mrs. Conner, who looked
positively pissed.

Jesse looked up at Henry Paul.  He had a question and he figured if anybody
could answer it, this man could.  "I have a question for you."  "Who?  Me?"
Paul said.  He was slightly surprised that any of them would have the nerve
to talk at this point.

"Yeah, you.

Hell, not that it matters now, but do you know if Clay really is Mr. Ames's
son?"  "No, he isn't.

Clay's dad worked for Mr. Ames until they had a falling out, so I helped
Clay's dad out. He went off a cliff in his truck.  Mr.

Ames had seen the boy a few times and wanted him, not just for the movie
though.  He wanted a real son.  Hell, the kid was, like ten when he took
him.

No, the movies came later.  Ames wasn't even the original boss.

He was a scout and that was about it until he brought his own son into
things, then he started climbing the ladder until he had enough influence
from bringing in talent that he started directing.  From there he got to be
friends with me again and I knocked off old man Fairchild so Ames could be
boss."  I've never told anybody this shit before."  Paul said.  He
remembered all those days, and nights.  What a rush it had been.

"What about Clay's mom?"  Tommy asked.

He hadn't had much to say so he'd stayed silent until now.  If Jesse had
the guts to question the man, so did he.

"Killed her.

I didn't myself.  That was done by an employee of Mr.

Fairchild as a `favor' to Mr. Ames.  A cop named Grant did that one."  Paul
said. "She came outside of that K-Mart and couldn't find her kid, she
started yelling and searching like wild.  Old Grant showed up and picked
her up to go to the station and file a report.  She's laying in a grave out
near the Army base now."  "My God.

You people really are monsters."  Francine Conner said.

"You killed the boy's parents and took him, tricked him, then turned him
into a whore.

No wonder the man was messed up.

He never even knew what decency and morality were!"  Francine shouted.  Her
anger boiled in her veins along with her blood.  "I blamed that man, maybe
I was wrong, maybe he is as much a victim as the boys."  "Clay had his
moments.  He wanted that fucking comic shop and he couldn't do it without
his dad's money so he did as he was told.  He could have walked away, of
course if he had, I'd killed him long ago."  He walked around in front of
his captives.  There were eight of them and only one of him.

He couldn't trust them not to try something once he ran out of bullets.

He walked around, considering his options.

Adam tightened and loosened his grip on Jesse's hand.  He wished he hadn't
risked antagonizing the big man.  He liked that his mom was there for him
but he wished she was home safe a lot more.  She didn't do anything to
deserve this, heck, he didn't either, really, except for loving Jesse, and
if that was why he was here, he was glad to do it.  The time he had spent
with Jesse was the best in his life.  He would die for his lover; he would
die without him too.

Greg held Harry in his lap.  He could feel the twelve year old boy shaking
softly.

God damn!  Why had he gotten himself or the boys into this mess?  Why'd he
let Ryan get so involved with Tommy?  He liked the boy, and knew he needed
stability, but damn, why was it about to cost them all their lives.  He
didn't understand any of this, not who the people were they were talking
about, not the background of the individuals in the room other than himself
and his boys.  Damn, it's like the old saying goes; No good deed goes
un-punished.

"Okay, I'm done talkin'."  Henry Paul said.  "I want all of you standing
against the back wall there."  He looked at the scared group of people.

Each of the eight people moved into position as ordered.  Tommy and Ryan
standing out the most due to their nudity.  They stood there, waiting.

This isn't going to happen!  Phillip thought.  No, fucking way is this fat
bastard going to kill his friends.  Yeah, he was going to do it himself
before, but now he knew he wouldn't go through with it...couldn't.

For the first time in months he felt in control of his own mind and body.

He slowly moved his right hand to his waist and down.

Jesse, who stood right next to Phillip, looked when he caught movement from
the corner of his eye.  He had been wondering what had happened to
Phillip's gun and now he knew.  He moved his body to block Phillip's
activity from the captor.  He looked at Phillip, their eyes caught.  "Be
careful."  He mouthed silently.

Phillip nodded at Jesse so that he would be the only one to notice.  He
knew that he had back up at any rate.  How in the hell had he let this
happen?  He had followed the Suburban all the way out into the woods, then
spent an hour looking for the cabin after losing the vehicle when the
driver had cut out the lights suddenly after pulling onto the dirt road
leading to the cabin.  There had been so many turn offs along the rain
rutted mud.

He had done all this to kill the people he was now about to protect, or die
trying.  He prayed to God to forgive him for all the bad things he had done
in the last half year.  Killing Scott, shooting Clay, letting himself
become a toy for other people's pleasure.  He also prayed for forgiveness
for what he was about to do.

He took a final deep breath and let it out.  He would wait for the right
moment.

"I hate killing people.  Even the ones who deserve it.  I do it because I
have to.

It's a job, a commitment.  It's nothing personal at all.

I'm annoyed at you, Phil.  You really shouldn't have shot Clay.  That was
what started this ball rolling, you know."  "I realize that now."  Phillip
said.

Their was a look of shame on his face that matched the tone of his voice.
He did know and he felt the guilt, more so than any feeling he'd ever had
before.

Henry Paul raised his gun, moved it from person to person.  Who should he
start with?  He stopped the gun on Jesse.  He'd had the balls to talk to
him throughout the whole deal.  He even liked the kid.  He moved the gun to
Adam, then to each of the others before bringing it back to Jesse.  He
didn't know why but he had to take this one first.  He wanted Phillip to
see his friends die one by one before he met his own fate.  An ever lasting
Hell running for him before he reached the real hot destination he was
headed for.

If that was where he was going.

He didn't really give a fuck.

All eyes were on the black man standing two feet away from them.  They
could see where the gun was aimed.

Adam prepared himself to move in front of Jesse, to block his lover.

Jesse squeezed Adam's hand.  He knew what was on the boy's mind.  He turned
his head to face Adam.  "I have a request."  "What is it?"  Paul said.

"I want to kiss my lover goodbye."  Jesse said.

"Okay, go ahead."  Paul said.

He shrugged his shoulders.


Jesse turned and move his face to Adam's.  Right before they kissed, as
they took each other into their arms, he whispered into Adam's ear.

"Phillip has a plan.  Don't do what you're thinking."  He moved his lips to
Adam's and they kissed.

"Man, I wish I didn't have to do this.  Oh, well.  Get back into position."
Jesse let go of Adam and moved back as he was before.  He was glad that he
had been able to share one more kiss with Adam, just in case things went
bad.

"Goodbye."  Jesse said to Francine Conner as well as to the others.

Henry Paul pulled the trigger.  The gun went off just as Phillip through
his arm up and fired his own gun at Paul.

Phillip moved his body quickly and felt the bullet graze his arm.  He heard
Jesse grunt, Adam scream, and he fired again as another bullet him square
in the chest.

He did it, but he was a second too late.

He felt himself fall, landing hard on the wood floor.  His chest burned,
aching and his body started to go numb.  He prayed that he'd hit the black
bastard; he prayed Jesse wasn't hurt too bad, and he prayed, again for
forgiveness.

He took as much a breath as he could, tasting blood coming up his throat,
into his mouth.  He spat, letting a river of blood slide down his cheek to
hit the wood beneath him.  He closed his eyes...and died.

Henry Paul was hit.

He knew it, he had been shot before, but this time.

This time it was bad.  He fell back over the couch and landed with his head
hitting the stone floor in front of the fireplace.  Everything went black.

Jesse tried to move.

Pair flared his right side hip.

Phillip had thrown the bullet of course with his own body.  He wondered if
the other boy was dead.  The pain in his leg began to increase.  He tried
to move again and saw blood flowing freely from the front area of his right
hip, soaking through his jeans.

"Jesse!  NO!"  Adam went to his knees, jerking his hand from his mother's,
as he went down to Jesse.  His lover had let go of his hand as he had
fallen.

He landed on his knees and looked up at his mom.

Francine Conner pulled the rope from her house coat and went to her knees
beside Adam.

She had to tie off his leg above the wound to stop the flow of blood.  If
she didn't he would bleed out.  She was scared.  It looked like the bullet
had hit one of the main arteries.

Greg Harris moved to where Phillip lay.  Jesse was being tended.

"Tommy, go get the gun before that fucker wakes up."  He put his hand to
the boy's wrist but found no pulse.  He felt his chest, again nothing.

"He's dead."  He lowered his head.  This boy had risked his own life to
save Jesse, and in doing so had saved them all.

Tommy picked up the gun.

"Knife!  Get the knife."  Jesse called out through clenched teeth.

"Okay."  Tommy called as he moved closer to the body of the black man.

He could tell the man was still breathing but just barely.  He ran his
hands down the man's sides until he found the knife in it's sleeve which
was hooked on the man's belt at his right hip.  He pulled the long jagged
blade out and tossed it across the floor out of reach.  He got back to his
feet and walked over to where Francine Conner was holding part of Jesse's
now torn shirt against the wound area.  She hadn't been able to use the
rope as it wasn't long enough.

"Is he going to be okay?"  Tommy asked as he stood over the woman, her son
and the boy, and his lover.

"I don't know.

We need to get him to a hospital, now."  Francine said.

Adam looked into his mom's eyes, begging her to help his lover.  He had
been talking softly into Jesse's left ear while his mother worked at the
boy's hip.  He felt Jesse squeeze his hand so he knew his lover could hear
him, even if he was int too much pain to speak much.  "I love you, baby.
Please don't leave me.  Please..."  He said again.  He kissed Jesse's
sweaty face, resting his head on Jesse's shoulder.

Greg stood watching with Ryan on his right and Harry to his left.  "What
can we do?"  He asked.

"Move my car to the door.  We have to get him in the back and to the
hospital.  I hate to move him but there is no other way.

I didn't see any phone lines going to the house so I figured..."  "Yeah, no
phones.  After this you can damn well bet I'm going to have one installed
though!"  He let go of Harry's hand and walked to the front door and out to
the station wagon.

"What do we do about that bastard?  Oh, God, what about Phillip?"  Tommy
said.

He looked to the body of his former lover.  Greg had covered the boy's body
with the blanket he and Ryan had used to cover themselves.

He didn't even think about the fact that he was moving around naked as the
day he was born.

Ryan stood in the corner away from everybody, putting his clothes back on.
This entire adventure was far more then he would have ever bargained for.

Greg came back into the house and noticed Ryan standing near the kitchen
door dressing.

He could see that the boy was visibly shaking.  Tommy was just beginning to
pull his jeans on over his boxers.

"Ready?"  Greg asked.

"Yeah, let's do this.  Do you have extra sheets we can wrap him in?  We
have to keep him warm."  Francine said.  She knew very little about
emergency medicine but she worked with what little knowledge she had.

"Cell phone!"  Ryan said as he pulled his small black phone from a pocket.

"I forgot I had it!"  He hit the on button and listened for a dial tone.

"I can't get anything but static."  "Reception sucks here, buddy.  No tower
for miles and the trees would block the signal anyway."  Greg said.

He walked to the stairs and climbed them two at a time to go in search of
sheets and blankets to wrap the injured boy in.

"God, Mom.

I don't think he's breathing."  Adam said suddenly.

(2) The door opened and Roger Ames entered his son's hospital room.  He
looked at the young man, sleeping in the bed.  The doctors had assured him
that the boy would live.  In many ways he was glad of that but it would
have been a lot more convenient for Clay to just die.  That way he would
have no worries about what he had said or was planning to say about the
business.

"Dad, that you?"  Clay asked.

He opened his eyes wider but his vision was still blurry from the pain
medication he was on.  He had wondered when his dad would show up.  He half
expected to see Henry dressed as an orderly come in and try to kill him.
He was glad it was his father.  He knew the man wasn't his biological
father.  He had known for a long time but not having any knowledge of who
his real parents were, he had settled into the facts of his life.

"Yes, It's me, son."  Roger Ames said as he approached the bed.  He really
did love Clay.  He always had, really.  The boy had been so loving when he
was young, after he adjusted to living with him.  He wondered what their
lives would have been like if he had just walked away from the business and
raised Clay in another state.  It didn't really matter now.  Clay would be
going to prison for a very long time after he recovered from his wounds.
He wished there were another way to keep from doing what he had come to do.
It was too late for his son, but he could save himself.

He reached into his suit coat pocket and withdrew the syringe of
untraceable poison.  He had been assured that the stuff would dissolve in
his system and make it look as though he had died from his injuries.  It
would take him quickly and with very little pain, if any at all.

"I'm sorry dad.

I screwed it all up."  Clay said as he looked up at the man who raised him
from the age of ten.  "I was expecting Henry."  "Well, Henry is in the
hospital too.  In a coma.

He failed his mission as well.  Most of it anyway.  Phillip is dead, but
the other boys still live."  "Oh."  Clay said.  He turned his head.  He
knew he had failed Phillip even more than he had failed his father.  He was
ready for what was about to happen.

He'd been expecting his own death for some time now.  He was pleased that
Roger Ames, the man who had brought him into this strange world of his,
would be the one to take him out of it.  He would have peace.  He'd made
his amends to God, asking for forgiveness, and was ready to meet whatever
lay on the other side.

"Goodbye, Clay."  Roger Ames slipped the needle into the IV tube.

The door to the room opened behind him.  "Hey stop there!"  A policeman
said.  He pulled his gun and aimed it at Roger Ames.

He would be able to keep his own secrets with one shot.  Ames was the only
person who knew of him involvement and that information would die with him.

Roger turned his head but kept his fingers on the syringe, ready to inject
the solution into the tube.  "Officer Grant.  What do you think you're
doing?"  "I'm going to kill you in the line of duty.  You're trying to kill
the prisoner."  The black man said.  He had been trying to find an escape
ever since the shooting at the book store.  He knew then that his life
would be over if anybody ever found out what he had been doing.  That he
could not have.

"Do you really believe I haven't made arrangements for this type of
situation?  I've had you pegged for a very long time.  You kill me, you go
down hard.

Cops who go to prison don't fait to well, do they?"  Ames said.  He slowly
pushed the top of the syringe down, letting the poison flow through the
tube and into Clay's veins.

Clay moaned as he felt a burning worse than the gun shots had caused.

Whatever his father had just shot him full of was working.  The burning
faded to a numbness that spread through his body.  "Oh..."  He said.

"He dead?"  Grant asked.

"Probably."  Ames said.

He turned his head to see the monitor flat line just as the beeping of the
machine began to alert the whoever was at the nursing station.

He pulled the needle out.

Office Abraham Grant fired his service revolver twice.

Roger Ames fell to the floor, dead.  Both bullets had hit gone through his
back.  One entered the heart, destroying the organ as the second shot
snapped the old man's neck near the base of his brain.  Both killing shots
had done their job.

Two nurses and a doctor entered the hospital room.

"I caught this guy injecting something into the prisoner.  He wouldn't
stop.  I had no choice."  Officer Grant said.  He placed the revolver back
into it's holster.

The medical staff went to the bed and began to attempt reviving Clay Ames.
They quickly realized he was well and truly gone.

The doctor removed the syringe from the IV tube.  "The patient is declared
dead at..."  The man looked ta the clock on the wall.

"1:45 pm."  The doctor bent down to check the assassin, knowing from the
blood areas that the man was dead as well.  "This one is gone as well.
Mark time of death as 1:46 pm."  He stood back up.

Officer Grant stood near the door, watching.  He didn't know if Ames had
been bullshitting him about having left a record or not but he'd had no
choice but to risk it.

(3) Adam Conner sat next to the hospital bed where his lover, Jesse Janes,
slept fitfully.

The trip in the back of the Volvo had been rough after having to revive the
boy before moving him.  He had only left his lover's side to use the
bathroom.

Francine Conner sat sleeping in the lounge chair near the small bathroom.
She was dressed in jeans and a blouse.  Her tennis shoes sat on the floor,
her legs tucked under her in the chair.  The woman had been worn out after
the ordeal she and her family had been through.

The door opened and Tommy walked in with Ryan right behind him.  The moved
to the bed quietly when they noticed that Francine was sleeping.

Moment later she jerked awake when they all heard two gun shots.

"What now?"  She said as she unfolded from the chair.  She walked out of
the door into the hall.

"Please return to your son's room and close the door ma'am."  A tall red
haired nurse said.  The woman ran off down the hall where she was joined by
another nurse and a doctor.  They all entered a room down the hall.

"Lord, will this ordeal ever end?"  She said.

She sat back down in the chair.  She hadn't noticed the two boys that were
now in the room.

"Oh, hey guys."  She said.

"Hi, Mrs. Conner."  Ryan said.

"Hey, Fran."  Tommy said.

"What was that?"  Jesse said.

His voice was barely over a whisper.

"I don't know baby."  Adam said.

"Just something going on down the hall."  He said before kissing Jesse's
forehead.

"Okay."  Jesse said.  He closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

(4) The paper the next dat headlined the hospital incident.  Francine read
the article to Adam and Jesse.  The injured boy was more awake than he had
been the day before but still groggy and in pain.

"Well, I guess that ends the worry of a court trial."  Jesse said.  He
looked at Adam who stood beside the bed.  Adam had raised the bed slightly
to help Jesse get comfortable , so he could actually see more of Francine
than he had been able to before.

"I suppose it does."  "What's wrong, mom?"  Adam asked.

He looked at his mother worried about what she may be thinking.

"It just seems so...convenient.  Our Captor is in a coma, Phillip, Clay and
his father are dead, and it feels as though there is something left that
hasn't been addressed.  I guess it all feels very anti-climatic to me."  "I
know what you mean.  Nobody deserved their fate, but they did deserve
punishment.  I wish Phillip had lived so that he could have gotten help."
Adam said.  He looked over at Jesse sitting up in the bed.  "I just thank
God, I still have you.  You and Mom and Tommy."  "Yeah, I'm glad to babes.
I'm glad Ryan and his brother and Greg didn't get hurt.

Your mom, and them, and even you, were the real innocent victims the last
few days."  "Don't think like that, Jesse."  Francine said.  She placed the
folded paper on the chair as she got up and moved to the bed.  "I think
this was a crime with many victims.  All innocent except for that man,
Roger Ames.

Everything that happened was because of his actions."  "Yeah, I guess.

I still feel guilty for getting you and Adam into it though."  Jesse said.

"Hey babes.

We were in it all along.  Once you and I became partners, you became a
member of our family."  Adam said.

He smiled at Jesse.

"He's right.

We are a family."  Francine said.

END