Cut & Run (Cut & Run #1)(73)
Author: Abigail Roux

Ty merely sat and stared, and Henninger looked between them with a frown. “I don’t like this,” he finally muttered. He shifted uncomfortably and looked away. He had several healing cuts on his face and a laceration that had been stitched up on his neck.

Ty watched him with a small frown. It had taken a lot of guts for the kid to come out here and meet them, knowing they were AWOL. And he appeared to be legit, which Ty found almost surprising. No tail that Ty had seen. Risking his neck to try and help them just days after getting metal and plastic shrapnel to the face, the kid was earning Ty’s grudging respect.

“Okay,” Henninger finally said softly as he looked back at Zane and then at Ty.

Zane smiled crookedly. “Good. Here’s what we need.”

STANDING outside the SUV smoking, Zane waited as Ty finished talking with Henninger before they went their opposite ways. The kid had balls, that was for sure. He still seemed so damn naïve, though. Shaking his head, he leaned back against the door, tapping ashes to float to the ground.

“That shit’ll kill you, y’know,” Ty murmured as he walked up to stand beside the SUV.

Zane gave him an amused look as he pulled the cigarette from between his lips. “This was the least destructive of my vices. Quit as many as I did and see if you don’t need one to keep the others in line.” He thought about that for a minute. “I suppose I could have kept whoring instead.”

“That’ll kill you, too,” Ty responded simply.

Taking another drag, Zane tipped his head. “Maybe I’ll think about it when I don’t need the stress relief,” he allowed. He blew the smoke up into the air away from Ty and chuckled darkly. “They were all good for that.”

“Why not troll the bars?” Ty asked curiously, unable to help himself.

“You’re a good-looking guy. Did you just get a kick out of paying for it?”

Zane smiled. “Did I catch a compliment in there?” he asked, flicking ashes to the side as he looked at his feet. He took another pull off the half-gone cigarette before answering. “Breaking the rules is addictive, too.”

Ty inclined his head slightly and peered at Zane through the dark lenses of his brown aviators. “How in the hell did you make it past the psych exams?” he asked finally in exasperation.

Breathing in deeply and blowing the smoke out and away, Zane looked resigned. “You’re not the only one good at lying through your teeth.”

Ty was silent for a long moment before he leaned closer and lowered his sunglasses enough to meet Zane’s eyes. “If you turn out to be the killer I’m going to be all kinds of pissed off, got it?” he warned.

Zane threw back his head and laughed. “I got plans for a lot more f**king before any mercy killing, man,” he said, taking a last drag of the cigarette before dropping it and grinding it under his boot.

Ty snorted in response and looked up and down the sidewalk slowly before reaching for the door handle and opening the passenger side door.

“Let’s get the f**k out of here,” he muttered. “I got a headache.”

Keys jingling in hand, Zane climbed into the SUV along with Ty.

“Henninger said he’d put in the paperwork for the car so they won’t tag us for it,” Ty said as they both got settled. “He also said I never actually called him about those damn personnel files. I could have sworn I did.”

“I think we got distracted by food, then the NYPD called and off we went,” Zane answered regretfully. “Did he say he’d get on it?”

“He said he’d need the original files. They’re in the old room,” Ty answered.

“Holiday Inn?” Zane asked.

Ty nodded. “I want my other jacket,” he grumbled in answer.

Zane looked down at his dandy new black jacket and smirked. “Off we go, then.” He went quiet for a long minute as the radio played. “Whiner.”

“Shut up,” Ty muttered, trying not to watch the traffic passing so it wouldn’t make him sick. He took his sunglasses off and rubbed his eyes. “I should not have eaten,” he murmured after a moment, and he leaned his head against his hand and covered his eyes with his fingers.

Glancing over at the other man, worry showed on Zane’s face. “We can go back to the Tribeca for a while,” he offered. “I don’t particularly want to see you puking your guts up.”

It spoke to just how lousy he was feeling that Ty didn’t argue. He just swallowed heavily and nodded in agreement. Zane turned at the next right and twenty minutes later they pulled up at the doors. “Go ahead. I’ll go park the truck,” Zane said.

“No,” Ty answered with a shake of his head as he looked up at the hotel. “We need to stick to each other as much as we can.”

Without saying another word, Zane put the SUV back in motion and drove down into the parking garage. When he stopped the truck, one glance at the other man worried him more. “Ty, you don’t look so good.”

“I don’t feel so good, neither,” Ty muttered. A violent shiver ran through him, and he looked over at Zane with a frown. He had lost his color, and he was feeling slightly light-headed.

Zane’s eyes widened. “Is this left over from before? Are you that sensitive to drugs?”

“I think it’s the concussion thing,” Ty murmured as he unbuckled his seat belt and opened the door with a slight lurch. “I been fighting it all morning,” he muttered. “And no more drugs!” he called as he got out of the car and pushed the door shut.

Sliding his way out of the seat belt and getting out of the truck, Zane met Ty at the back bumper, reaching forward to catch the other man when he staggered. “Christ,” Zane hissed below his breath. He slid an arm under Ty’s and helped him walk.

“Told you I should’ve stayed in the f**king hospital,” Ty grumbled as he held to Zane tightly. “Jesus. At least I didn’t do this in front of the kid,” he muttered as he tried and failed to walk a straight line. “Maybe I need to go back,” he said doubtfully.

“It wasn’t safe at the hospital,” Zane answered. He tightened his arm around Ty when they stopped at the elevator and he reached out to hit the button. “Anyone can walk into those rooms. You’re better off here. But this time you’re taking some Tylenol to help with the swelling and fever,” he chastised. Zane could feel the heat radiating off his partner.