Everyone was still waiting there when AJ suddenly came walking back in. Brian had been sitting in the center of one of the beds, fully dressed now, staring down at his hands. He hadn’t been talking with anyone, though they’d been talking around him. He hadn’t had anything to say to them. There was too much on his mind and in his heart. Fear and shock over what had happened, and what had been the cause. To think that management had ordered this done just to get rid of him? Would they really rather deal with a dead member than a gay member?
Then again, a murdered member of the band would most likely make sales skyrocket. It made Brian sick to think like that. But he had to focus his brain on something or he was going to go insane. For an hour straight he had been sitting and waiting and wondering. Praying with everything he had for AJ to come back. He’d promised that he would not physically assault anyone. But if someone hurt him…that thought was too hard to think about.
If they were coming after him what was to stop them from trying for AJ too? That thought left terror eating at Brian’s insides. He didn’t know what to do with all of this. How to act or how to feel. This wasn’t something that he was used to dealing with. The place that he came from, things like this didn’t happen. People weren’t shot at.
All of this ate at his insides until he felt ill. So when AJ came walking through the door, just strolling in like nothing was going on, Brian could only stare for one single instant. Then he was up off the bed, fury vibrating inside of him. “Where the hell have you been?” he shouted out. The swear word slipped out without him thinking about it and had the other three members of the group turning to look at him in surprise.
“I’m sorry, I had a few things to take care of. Some business to handle.” AJ apologized. He walked straight to Brian. “I didn’t mean to be gone so long. How’re you doing?”
“How am I doing? You want to know how I’m doing?” All the hysteria and the pain stewed together until Brian felt like he would explode with it. “I get shot at, shot at, and you dump me in here and leave me, saying you’ll be right back. Then you don’t come back for a whole God damn hour! How do you think I feel, AJ?”
To the surprise of everyone present, Brian included, AJ didn’t blow on him. He just stood there, letting Brian yell. When Brian was done, AJ sighed. “I know. I didn’t stop to think, and I’m sorry. I should have been in here making you feel better. But what I was doing was important, too.”
“What was so important that you had to leave right when I needed you the most?” That hadn’t been what Brian had been intending to say, but the words came out his mouth with a broken sound to them. He didn’t resist when AJ automatically stepped forward. It warmed his heart some to have AJ respond that way to his distress. It also felt wonderful to feel AJ wrap him in a tight hug. “I’m sorry, love.” AJ whispered in his ear.
Brian brought his hands up, holding on to AJ’s shoulders and burying his face in his neck. “Stay with me now, please? I need you.”
“I’m not going anywhere without you unless I have no other choice. I promise you that.”
Those words eased some of the tension in Brian’s body. He relaxed into AJ’s embrace and drew comfort for it. Neither of them realized what kind of picture they presented to their friends. For so long they had fought, and then their fighting had turned to loving. Once their friends had found out about them, they’d seen Brian and AJ fight, and turn one another on, and goof off together. But they had never seen this sweetness between them.
Eventually the two men pulled back to share a kiss. Feeling more at peace, Brian offered him a smile. “Ok, I’m ready to hear where you were now.” He said. A wry look crossed AJ’s face. His eyes darted around the room to take in the company they had. Seeing it, Brian shook his head. “Nope, don’t matter. For something like this we’re all in it together, AJ. So tell us what’s going on. Where were you?”
AJ seemed to debate what he wanted to say for a minute. Eventually he seemed to come to some conclusion .With gentle hands he guided Brian back to the bed and sat him down. Brian looked up at AJ, who stayed standing, and waited for him to talk.
At first AJ just looked around at them all. Finally he decided to speak. “I guess you’re right. All of you are involved in this. To an extent, you have a right to know some things. But I’m going to be brutally honest right up front and warn you that there are one or two things I won’t tell anyone but Brian, and one or two things that I’m not sure I want to say yet. At least, not here.”
“What do you mean, not here?” Nick asked him.
One of AJ’s hands came up to gesture around the hotel room. “Have any of you checked to see if there’s little cameras or microphones in here?” He asked them all, surprising them. No one had done that or even thought to do it. “You and Bri use them, Nick. Why wouldn’t management?”
This didn’t seem to faze Nick in the least bit. He shrugged his shoulders and looked around at them all. “I’ve looked in every room I’ve had since this started. Nothing so far. Want me to check yours out, Kev?”
“Please.” AJ interjected. He knew that if there were any, Nick would be the one to find them as he was used to being the one hiding stuff like that.
Ten minutes later Nick was back, shaking his head. Nothing. Thank God. That meant that conversation could be a little more relaxed.
Waving a hand in the air, AJ brought himself back to the moment. “Since this place is as safe as can be from spies, I’ll tell you some of what I was doing. I was out with Rex getting some old tools of the trade.”
Only Howie seemed to catch on to this. His eyes got a little wide for a moment; then they narrowed. “You didn’t.” he said disbelievingly. When AJ nodded, Howie took a step forward. “Are you stupid? You can get in trouble for that, AJ!”
“I’ve got the permits to do it. It’s all legit right now, D.”
Kevin stuck a hand out between them. “Wait a second, what’s legit? What permit? And what do you mean, tools of the trade?” he demanded.
Looking at his older friend, AJ couldn’t help but think that Kevin would have never made it in any kind of business that required the utmost secrecy. Apparently Howie was thinking the same thing. He walked over and peeked out first the peep hole, then opening the door and looking into the hall. Once he pulled his head back and in and shut the door, he looked to AJ and shook his head, letting him know that no one was out there.
AJ took a deep breath. “Ok, Kev. First things first. Keep your voice low so no one hears us. Second, the permit stuff I was referring to was my gun permit that gives me the right to carry a weapon and my concealed weapons permit. Marcus had me get those a while ago since I know how to shoot. He figured that way if we were somewhere dangerous I could legally help to defend myself.”
Everyone in the room was deathly silent. Kevin even took a step back, looking AJ over from head to toe. “You have a gun?” he whispered. AJ didn’t quite understand why Kevin looked as if someone had shot at him. So what? So he had a gun? Big deal. “I do.” He answered him. But he couldn’t keep from giving him a funny look.
“You hide it pretty well.” Nick said suddenly. When all eyes went to him, he shrugged. “What? Just saying. I mean, I don’t see it or anything.”
That broke the tension a little. Chuckles echoed around the room. Brian’s hand came up, resting against AJ’s leg, bringing him close. That quiet touch had AJ’s heart soaring. He’d been afraid that Brian would get pissed at him for this. There was still a chance of that; Brian didn’t know how heavily AJ was packing. He also didn’t know what AJ intended.
With a shake of his head, Howie hopped up onto the edge of the table. “If I know J at all, Nick, then I bet you he’s got more on him than a gun, and I bet you can’t see a one of them. If he says he went out and got set up with the tools of the trade then I guarantee you he’ll have no less than ten weapons on his person, minimum.”
Brian tipped his head up. “Ten?” he whispered, a twinkle in his eye. AJ couldn’t help but turn toward him, ignoring the other three who were now betting on what he had on him. “You’re not mad at me for this?” AJ asked him. “I thought it might make you uncomfortable.”
“Why would it? You’re doing it to keep us safe. To keep me safe.” That twinkle in Brian’s eye grew brighter. “Plus, my brain can’t seem to stop thinking of all the fun possibilities that this opens up.”
It took a second for AJ to realize what Brian was talking about. When he did he threw his head back and laughed. “You little freak!” he teased him. Bending down, he stole a kiss, nipping at Brian’s bottom lip. “I promise, at my house when we’re home for break we can play all the games you want, love.”
“Hey, Age!” Howie called out, interrupting their moment. “Get over here and help me win the bet. They don’t believe you can have as many as ten.”
With a roll of his eyes AJ straightened up. Still lighthearted from the love that Brian had just showed him, it took a second for Howie’s words to sink in. When they did it had him startling. “You two don’t think I can?” he asked in surprise. Well, well, this would be funny.
AJ moved to stand by the now empty extra bed and prepared to prove what he could carry. He lifted his left foot, pulling the small gun from his boot and making sure the safety was still on before he set it on the bed. Then he brought up his other foot, pulling out a long hunting knife from that boot. From his waist he pulled two hidden folding knives. From each sleeve he brought out a long, serrated knife as well as a throwing knife, one of each in each side.
Just to be an ass, AJ paused and looked up at all of them, amused by the surprise on their faces. That quickly cleared when Nick grinned. “See, that’s eight! We win, D.” he exclaimed.
Chuckling, Brian reached out and slapped AJ’s hip. “Finish, you freak.”
“What makes you think I’m not?” AJ asked innocently. It didn’t work.
“Because I know every line of that body very intimately, Age. I know there’s at least one more.”
Unable to help it, AJ gave them all a cheeky grin. He reached behind his neck and pulled a throwing knife out from between his shoulder blades. He tossed that down, bringing the count up to nine. After hesitating for a second, he grinned again and kicked each boot toe on the ground, bringing a blade out of each heel. After popping those back in, he kicked his heels, making small blades pop out of the toes. “If you count those ones then it makes us at, um, thirteen. This is just casually armed, though. You should see what I can be like in full regalia.”
While money was paid and jokes were exchanged, AJ put his knives away. Just as he put the gun in its holster, a knock came to the door.
Rex poked his head in. “AJ, Brian, your plane home leaves shortly. We need to get you to the airport.”
Though AJ hadn’t known that they were leaving, and from the look of it neither had Brian, they didn’t protest. There was something in Rex’s tone that told them that they needed to listen. Before the door had even shut the two of them were moving to gather up the few things they had with them. AJ looked quickly around at his friends. “Apparently the last shows are cancelled. I don’t know why he’s got us going out early, but it’s got to be for a reason. I swear we’ll call you to let you guys know when we reach the house.”
“You hire security or something.” Kevin told him as he embraced them each in turn.
All humor gone, AJ leveled a serious look at Kevin. “Why do you think I’m carrying what I am?” he asked him simply. Then, with one last quick hug for everyone, the couple headed into the hall.