“Do we need to have this conversation here?” Cain backed out of the room, making sure not to look at Rain.

Tynan looked at Zach. “Anything else you need?” He’d never worried about Zach being too young, but he did have concerns that his younger lover wouldn’t be able to handle some of the darker parts of his life or personality. Tynan was relieved that he no longer had to worry about that.

“No. I’m done.” Zach wanted to smack Rain a few times, but he knew that wouldn’t be beneficial. “You might want to squeeze any information you can out of him. Now that he is clinging to his life and fame. I will give you all the information I have.” His and Theo’s eyes met. The other party would know what he was hinting at.

“Let’s head to my study.” Theo led the group out of the room. He made sure to hold on to Cain. 

Zach moved to Tynan’s side and held his hand. He gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. Out of the corner of his eye, he tracked Ron’s movements. The man was silent during the entire confrontation with Rain. From their first interaction, he’d assumed that Ron was a hot-headed person. 

Tynan scratched Zach’s palm when he noticed his line of sight. He got the other man's attention; he mouthed the words, ‘leave it.’ Ron was the most emotional one in the group. He was also the person that advocated for Rain’s inclusion the most, apart from Cain. Ron would be hit hard by this betrayal. He was the first to get angry, but he felt the deepest about things.

The mood was somber as they made their way through marble-lined corridors. They could hear the beat of pop music and the hoots of teenagers. It brought a wry smile to Tynan’s lips. It was hard to believe that they came here for a birthday party.

They weren’t even fully in the room before Cain spoke. “Are you going to torture him?”

“Yes.” Theo didn’t let go, leading Cain to a sofa before pushing the man into the seat.

Cain’s head dropped lower. “Sometimes, I wish you would lie to me.” 

Theo’s smile contained a world of unspoken pain and confusion. “Never.” He perched on the arm of the seat. 

Tynan felt voyeuristic watching their interaction. Theo’s straightforward personality complemented Cain’s creative, optimistic personality. He always thought they were a good pair. Even though he was their friend, it wasn’t his place to interfere or dictate their relationships. 

He walked to a seat. As he sat, he pulled Zach into his lap. He felt Zach tense for a moment before relaxing against him.

Morris went straight to the bar, pouring drinks for everyone. 

Ron sat on the floor, his legs crossed. 

“Bad news first.” Tynan started the conversation. 

“Brad Maxwell is bad news. He isn’t well known outside of D Country at the moment. His family got started in the shipping trade. Which is a poor way of saying they were smugglers. His father took the business further. There was a fight for succession a few years ago that left everyone dead except for Brad.” There was a collective intake of breath from everyone in the room. “His first move was to expand his business. My theory is that he is trying to legitimize his business.”

Tynan took a sip of the drink Morris gave him. He took that moment to digest the information. “What is the good news?” Tynan had his own force and wasn’t above using violence, but when going up against the mafia or criminal organization, he would come up lacking. 

Zach picked his words carefully. A good portion of this was speculation from his past life. Brad Maxwell isn't the type of person to use Rain to get information.  He doesn't need to, and he has no reason to target you.”

“Then what does he want?” Morris perched on the edge of the desk after distributing the drinks.

"Don’t know. I know enough about him to know that this isn't his style. He wouldn’t use someone like Rain to ruin you. I'm sure he has a room full of people like me.” That didn't include the people that were supporting him. 

The name Brad Maxwell wasn’t common now, but ten years from now he was considered an industry leader. Tynan faced trouble in his last life, but Brad didn’t expand into S Country. This could mean two things Tynan found out about him and retaliated, or he never had any interest in S Country. If Zach had to pick, he would say it was the second one. Brad Maxwell’s Modus Operandi was to destroy something if he couldn’t have it. 

“Regardless, you don’t want to target him. Also, you should keep Rain alive. He is possessive of his pawns.” Zach hoped to keep his interaction with that man to a minimum. They once worked on a project together, and it was the biggest regret of his life. 

“You know a lot about him.” Tynan tried to keep his voice light. 

Zach's spine stiffened. He turned to look at Tynan before starting to giggle. “Is this what they mean when they say they have a big vinegar jar at home?” 

“Yes. I’m a vinegar vat. Now answer, how do you know him?” Tynan felt that Zach was exposing the tip of his tail, but he didn’t have enough information to figure out what he was hiding. 

Tilting his head up, he kissed Tynan on the chin. “Didn’t I promise to tell you? Why think about it so much?” He liked this. In the future, he would find more opportunities to sit in Tynan’s lap. A hand slipped up to start kneading Zach’s waist. He shifted slightly but let his lover do as he pleased.

“Doesn’t mean I can’t try and figure it out.” 

Zach huffed a laugh. “Back on topic, Tynan was Rain’s payment. So, What was the actual job?” That was what they needed to figure out. It was something in S Country. Rain was famous, but he hadn’t reached the level of being a major celebrity in every country. 

“I should have listened,” Ron spoke, but his voice sounded wrong. “I was angry. I didn’t take you seriously, and I thought things would have been fine if you didn’t show up and ruin things.”

Zach felt Tynan getting tense under him. He put his hand on Tynan’s arm and tried to soothe him. “What does that mean?”

“I didn’t think that Rain would target Tynan like this. I wasted a whole week.” Ron smashed his hand on the stable, his glass tipped over, and the amber liquid spilled to the floor and stained the carpet.  

Zach pinched Tynan’s arm to stop him from speaking. “It’s in the past. We need to figure out what to do in the future.” 

Tynan took a deep breath. He forced himself to relax. This wasn’t unexpected. He knew Ron’s personality. It would have been hard for Ron to accept Zach into their group under normal circumstances. With Rain and his issues in the picture, Ron would have been even more suspicious of Zach’s motives. 

Other people might not understand, but Zach did. Ron was right to be suspicious. Under normal circumstances, it should have been months before he was mingling this well with Tynan’s friends. He shouldn't be the voice of authority in this group, but the situation demanded that he step forward. 

Ron looked skeptical, but he didn’t say more on the topic. “I will look for anything note-worthy happening in S Country.”

“We have to consider that it might have been a long-term investment.” Morris slipped off the desk and moved to sit in the chair behind it. Theo raised his eyebrow but didn’t say anything. “Rain’s career prospects are clear.”

That hadn’t crossed Zach’s mind. However, it did sound like something Brad might do. “That would be worse.” Maxwell might not be willing to give up on Rain as a pawn. That would mean letting the deranged man go, which wasn’t an option. He needed to find leverage on the man. 

The information would give them room to negotiate but would have a major drawback. He would land on Brad’s radar.

“Leave the contact and negotiation to me.” Morris volunteered. 

Zach hesitated.

Tynan pinched Zach on the waist. “Morris is a lawyer. Let him handle it.” He was learning that Zach had the habit of trying to handle everything himself. It wasn’t a bad trait to be self-sufficient, but it was easier when you have people you can depend on.

“Okay. I will see what information I can find.”

“I will speak to Rain.” Theo’s words were accompanied by a whimper from Cain. Theo massaged Cain’s neck. “I won’t hurt him.”

Cain shook his head. “No. Do what you need to.” There was grim determination in the lines of his face. “This isn’t the time to let my personal feelings get in the way.”

Zach agreed in theory, but people were ruled by their emotions. It was easy to say and hard to do. 

“I will talk to my family.” Cain's words made the entire room tense. “My family had a military background.” Cain supplied for Zach who was the only one clueless.  

Zach knew that, but he didn’t know why Cain going to his family for help would make the room so tense. His research found that Cain had a good relationship with his family.

“My brother is…” Cain’s words weren’t finished when Ron Cut him off.

“If that nut job is going to be around, let me know. I will run away.” Ron’s head swiveled from side to side like he expected Cain’s brother to appear out of nowhere. He was on one knee, ready to run.

Morris was the first one to give in and start laughing, but soon everyone in the room was chuckling and the atmosphere eased.

“He’s not that bad.” Cain chuckled. 

Ron didn’t look convinced. He sat back down, but he kept an eye on the door as if he expected someone to appear at any moment. “That is easy for you to say. He dotes on you.”

“He had high expectations for you.” Tynan jumped in, adding oil to the fire. 

Ron howled and pounded on the table. “My old man made me join. Why would I stay after my enlistment was up?” 

“You shouldn’t have done so well?” Morris asked. 

“Since I was there. Shouldn’t I give it my all?” Ron looked wronged. “And I’m still a reservist.”

“Who are you trying to convince. You need to talk to Liam.” Tynan chuckled at the horrified look on Ron’s face. He would put Liam in contact with Ron. That would be his revenge for targeting Zach. 

“No. I refuse.” Ron shook his head. “I need to go to the bathroom.”

“Is this like the last time you went to the bathroom and ended up spending six months in A Country?” Theo asked Ron’s receding back as he sprinted out the room.

“Will he be okay?” Zach saw the sweat soaking Ron’s shirt. 

Tynan took a sip of his drink, wincing at the watered-down taste. He downed the remaining liquid. “He’ll be fine. If he wasn’t so dense, it would be better.”

Zach raised his eyebrow in question, but Tynan didn’t elaborate.

“My brother is the issue. He likes playing with Ron too much.” Cain’s face was still drawn, but the look in his eyes was lighter. 

“Everyone has their marching orders. We should get this done. I will deal with my uncle since that is the highest priority to remove the threat.” Tynan stood, taking Zach with him. The younger man cooperated. It thrilled him when Zach moved with him like this. His arm tightened around that slender waist, pulling him closer. 

“We meet in a week to compare notes?” Theo downed the rest of his drink. Standing, he pulled Cain up. It was clear he had no intention of letting go of the man.