My Brother’s Keeper - 32

“This is where the two of you have been sleeping?” Tad asked quietly as he followed Roy up to the rooftop.

“Here and on other roofs when we can. Sleeping high is safer as long as there’s a parapet, and like here, some shelter.” He pointed to the small shack that housed the building’s swamp cooler. “That doesn’t work in summer when they’re running it but now it’s safe enough.” When they got to the shack, Roy pried loose one of the grates enough that they could creep inside.

Tad shivered, as much from the idea of spending the night inside the filthy enclosure as from the decided chill in the air. “I guess I’m really spoiled,” he said.

“Naw, no more than most people, but you learn to adapt when you have to. You’ve been doing fine so far.”

Tad wasn’t certain that he had. It was one thing to know intellectually what it took to survive on the streets; it was a whole other thing to put it into practice. At Roy’s suggestion he was wearing several layers of clothing, all of the visible pieces well-worn and not matching. He definitely looks homeless now, unlike the rather fake look he’d had when he’d found Roy and Jerry at the bus station.

They had started mid-afternoon after spending the morning doing the best they could to change their appearances, with Jerry and Denise’s help. While Jerry had been less than thrilled that he couldn’t be part of the expedition, he’d understood why and so had thrown himself into job of making Roy not look like Roy.

Denise actually had the easier job in some respects as it just involved dressing Tad ‘down’, which in itself made him look quite different from his college student image, and darkening his blonde hair—and with the help of some ‘instant tan’ his skin as well. Roy had cautioned them both that there was a difference between ‘I have to live on the streets’ look and ‘I’m a bum who doesn’t give a damn about my appearance any longer’.

Roy’s hair was now lighter than its normal black by several shades and Jerry had takes scissors to it to make it even shaggier than it had been before. Denise had ‘borrowed’ a pair of her boyfriend’s beat-up jeans and a shirt that looked like it had been through the wars. They were definitely too large for Roy until he’d added several layers of his own clothes. When he was finished he looked almost burly, not like the too-thin young man Tad had met only a few days before.

Tad and Roy had snuck out of the apartment building by the side door, managing to avoid being seen by anyone Tad knew. Twenty minutes later they were behind a downtown convenience store where Roy had given Tad a lesson on the finer points of dumpster diving for packaged food that had been tossed as being well beyond its sell date. When they were finished they began their search for Daws, or any word on where he’d been seen last.

By midnight all they had found out was that he hadn’t been in that particular section of the downtown area in the last few days, much to the relief of the street kids they’d talked to. The story they’d given out was that Daws had stolen from them and they were hunting for him to get their own back. Every one of the kids they told this to warned them to give up that idea. “He’ll kill you, dudes,” was the universal response, “Or worse.”

Now, as Tad tried to get comfortable on the thin blanket under them, he commented wryly, “I’d almost welcome him finding us. It couldn’t be worse than this.”

Roy chuckled as he covered them both with the other blanket. “Don’t like cuddling with me?”

“You, I have no objection to, it’s the lack of ambiance. Give me a nice, warm, soft bed with you in it and I’d be in seventh heaven.”

“We could go back to your place for what’s left of the night.”

Tad shook his head. “That sort of defeats the purpose of this whole thing. We have to be what we’re…” he paused. “Well I have to be what I’m pretending to be. You, unfortunately, have it down pat.”

Roy nodded. “That I do.”

“I didn’t mean…”

“I know.” Roy pulled Tad closer, pressing a kiss the back of his neck. “Go to sleep. We have a long day ahead of us, and maybe more than one.”

My Brother’s Keeper - 31

“Absolutely not!”

“Our leaving is the only way to keep you safe, Tad.”

“Safe how, Roy? Daws knows I live here, now. He obviously has no more love for me than he does for you, so we’re all safer sticking together. It doesn’t have to be here, but for damned sure I’m not letting the two of you go back to living on the streets. Besides,” Tad glanced at Jerry who was curled up in the lounge chair sleeping, “he’s still far from being well enough to survive out there even if Daws wasn’t after your hide.”

“Had to play that card, didn’t you,” Roy said angrily.

“It’s still the truth.” Tad paced the length of the living room and back again, deep in thought. “There has to be a way to deal with him.”

“Meaning what?” Roy asked, afraid he knew where Tad was heading and not liking the idea at all.

Tad dropped down onto the sofa beside Roy, saying pensively, “Some way to draw him out. The police officer said they’d issue an APB but he admitted that Daws was too street-wise. He’s not going to show his face for a while I bet, especially since he knows we called the cops. Or he’s going to be damned careful if he does.”

“Yeah, well lots of people have reported him to the cops and that hasn’t stopped him from continuing to terrorize everyone who lives on the streets. He gets off on it. Cock of the walk and all that.”

“Did you know he’s not living rough any more? At least that’s what the police said.”

“I heard a couple of rumors about that, yeah. Not sure I believe them. He’s everywhere, all the time, looking to cause trouble.”

“That doesn’t mean he couldn’t have a home base.” Tad tapped his thumbnail against his lips. “We just have to find it without his knowing we’re out there.”

“Like that’ll happen. We’re all in his sights now, not just me and Jerry.”

“We’re keeping Jerry out of this. I’ll see if Denise would be willing to have him stay at her place while we’re gone.”

“Tad, you can’t impose on her like that. Damn.”

“Trust me, she’d be pissed if she found out we left him up here by himself. He may be sixteen and street-toughened but he’s sick and, well…” Tad shrugged. “If anything she’ll see it as some big adventure, and her new boyfriend is no one to screw around with, and he’s there most nights.”

“Oh he’ll just love having a kid hanging around I bet.”

Tad chuckled. “Probably not, but she’ll convince him. She’s an expert at that.”

“This is all well and good except, like I said, Daws knows us.”

“Then we change us.”

Guardian Angels - If It's Fated… (19)

Twenty-five years later:

"Well, I'll be damned!" Dom turned with a grin to look at Deidre. "We finally know why we had to get Tim and Richard together. Well, beyond the fact they were made for each other." He quickly tucked in his wings when she came to look over his shoulder at what he was reading.

The description under the photograph accompanying the article said it all.

Cherilyn Chandler-Lewis, accompanied by her parents, as she receives the Nobel Prize in Medicine for her research leading to a cure for Alzheimer's.

It showed Cherie, now a lovely young woman, standing on a stage with Tim and Richard behind her. In the article, she was quoted as saying, "I couldn't have accomplished this without the loving support of both my fathers. They taught me that anything is possible if you put your mind to it." 

"To use an expression from way back in the day, we done good," Deidre said, kissing Dom's temple.

"Actually, they did it. We just facilitated things by bringing them together."

Deidre nodded. "It was a good assignment, in more ways than one. If Samuel hadn't put both of us on it…"

"I'd still be living with the anger and guilt over what happened to my family."

"As would I, over not being able to keep them—and you—alive."

Dom pulled her into his lap, being careful not to ruffle her wings in the process. That was something he'd had lots of practice doing over the past few years. Not ruffling her feathers however…

He chuckled when she said, "You've done that a time or three, but then what married couple doesn't argue on occasion. We wouldn't be human if we didn't."

"Well, as angels, we're supposed to be above that."

Deidre laughed. "Where is that written in the handbook? We have emotions now, just as we did before we died. We'd be useless otherwise."

"I totally agree," he replied softly. "The predominate emotion I'm feeling right now is love."

"I love you too, Domingo," she whispered.

"Domingo, huh? Now I know you're serious. You never use my full name otherwise."

"Very, very serious. I love you. I will forever."

"A very long time—forever—but I feel the same." He kissed her gently. "I'll love you forever and a day."

"Domingo, Deidre… in my office now." Samuel's voice rang in both their minds.

"Well, that sort of blew my next plan," Dom said in disgust when Deidre slid off his lap.

She grinned at him as they walked out of the room. "I'm sure we'll find time to implement it eventually." 

"You better believe it."

The End

Next up - Guardian Angels - Ambivalent 

My Brother’s Keeper - 30

“Nice place,” one of the patrol officers said as Tad let them into his apartment.

Tad nodded his thanks as he invited them to have a seat while he went to get the photos. He came back to find one of them perusing his bookshelves.

“I bet you’re a photography major,” the officer commented.

“Yes sir.” Tad handed him the two photos.

The officer looked at them before handing them off to his partner. Once he’d studied them as well he said to Tad, “You’ve made a dangerous enemy here. Mr. Daws and his gang have a bad reputation on the streets for attacking homeless people. I suspect that’s what they were intending to do to the two you were photographing.”

“That’s what I thought, which is why I shouted a warning.”

“And Daws saw you when you did?” one of the officers asked.

“He looked up, yes. Said something like, “You’re dead” or words to that effect.”

“Was there enough light for him to have seen your face? You said this happened at night.”

“It did,” Tad replied. “But,” he thought fast, “the moon came out from behind the clouds right then so I guess he must have.” Tad was not about to tell the officers about what had happened at the bus station and the fact that Daws had undoubtedly seen him there with Roy and Jerry. “I just don’t get how he could have found out where I live.”

“He’s a punk of the first order, but he’s also smart. If he put two and two together, you on the roof with a camera, he could figure you worked for a newspaper or were in school. All he had to do was have his gang keep their eyes open for you.”

“I guess.” Tad sighed. “So now what?”

“You be very careful when you come and go from here. I’d suggest no more nighttime forays to take pictures. Stay in public places. Call 911 immediately if you even think he’s around. From what you said, he knows you saw him tonight. You may be the only witness to what he and his gang did since no one else called the vandalism in.”

The second officer added, “We’ll put out an APB on them but he’s not going to be easy to find. He’s lived on the streets himself and so he knows all the ways to stay out of sight and under radar. According to what rumors we’ve picked up on, and they’re fairly substantial ones, he’s found a place to hole up; something better than a squat but no one can tell us where.”

“Either they can’t tell us or their afraid to,” the other office put in. “Can you give us copies of these two pictures? They’re much more recent than anything we have.”

“Sure, no problem.” Tad took the shots over to his computer, scanned them in and printed the results on photo paper. “This is the best I can do,” he told them.

“These will work just fine. I think that’s all we need from you at this point. If we think of anything else, or hear anything about Daws, we’ll get in touch.”

Tad thanked them. When they left he closed the door and leaned against it, not certain whether to be relieved that he’d been able to keep Roy and Jerry out of it, or terrified that Daws now knew where to find them.

My Brother’s Keeper - 29

“Do you know who the people were who did this to your car?” the patrol officer asked Tad once it had been established that Tad had witnessed the crime.

Tad nodded. He had decided that he should go down to the car rather than wait for the police to come to him. When he got there the officers were walking around it, apparently as far as Tad could tell writing down the details of the damage which included a great many dents and a shattered windshield.

“I’ve seen them around. I don’t know their names but…” He had a sudden thought. “I have a photo of three of them.”

The second officer frowned. “Why?”

Tad quickly explained about his nighttime photo expedition, and of seeing them at the end of the alley when he was shooting pictures of two homeless people. “It was just luck,” he explained. “The thing of it is, they saw me too. They weren’t very happy when they realized I’d taken their picture. If you want to come up to the apartment I’ll show you the photos.”

“We will in a minute. From what you saw, did any of them touch the car?”

“When I first saw them, they were leaning against it, which is what set off the alarm.” Tad closed his eyes, trying to visualize the scene. “All of them had either bats or pipes in their hands. While I was watching they never put their hands on the car, but obviously…” He swept his hand out to encompass the damage.

“They must have taken the weapons with them when they fled the scene,” the second officer commented. “Which way did they go?” Tad told him and he immediately headed off in that direction.

“I doubt it’s worth trying to get fingerprints from the exterior,” the first officer told Tad while they waited for his partner to return. “Too many people could have touched it even if you leave it sitting here most of the time.”

“Which I don’t,” Tad told him. “And yeah, I’m sure my friends’ fingerprints are all over it.”

The second officer returned a few minutes later shaking his head. “They didn’t drop them anywhere obvious. One man who was sitting on his stoop saw them run by his house. He says at least two of them were carrying bats. He thought at the time they were running late for a baseball game since they were headed towards the park. He’s the only one I talked to who noticed them, or at least who admits it.”

“Let’s go up and you can show me those photos,” the first officer told Tad.

My Brother’s Keeper - 28

“Damn, damn, damn.” Tad swore vehemently as he took out his cell and flipped it open.

“That about covers it,” Roy growled, trying to cover the fear in his voice as he looked out the window.

Three punks leaned against Tad’s car while a fourth, Daws, stood in front of them. He held a baseball bat loosely in one hand as he searched the back of the apartment building with the apparent hope that Tad or Roy would look out to see what had set off the car alarm.

Roy pulled back quickly. When he realized Tad had called 911 he shook his head. “You know they’ll be gone before the cops arrive.”

Tad nodded sharply as he told the 991 operator what was happening. A moment later he snapped the phone shut. “They’re on their way.”

Jerry raced into that kitchen at that moment, fear scribed across his face. “Daws is out there!”

“We know and the police are on their way,” Tad replied as he leaned across the sink to peek through the curtain. “Damn it all to hell!”

Roy didn’t need to look to know what was happening. The sound of bats and pipes hitting the car told him all he needed to know. The wail of an approaching siren sounded in the distance and seconds later a voice called out, “This will be you next time.”

“Over my dead body,” Tad barked out even though he knew Daws wouldn’t hear him. He opened the curtains and sighed deeply as he watched the retreating backs of the punks. “A day late…” he muttered as a patrol car pulled into the lot.

Jerry looked at Roy. Then he grabbed his hand to try to tug him out of the kitchen. “We can’t let the cops know we’re here,” he cried out in fear.

Tad caught on immediately. “Hurry and get dressed,” he ordered, already placing a call. As soon as he heard her voice he explained to Denise what he needed. Apparently she was willing to hide Roy and Jerry, because he told Roy to get his brother and stash their packs in the closet. Not that he expected the police to search for any reason but he wasn’t willing to take the chance.

It seemed only a minute later when there was a knock on the apartment door. Tad panicked and then quickly realized that the police would have had to buzz him to be let inside the building. Or at least he hoped that was the case. He opened the door to find Denise standing there.

“Roy, Jerry, move it,” Tad called out. They came racing into the living room and from there followed Denise down to her place.

My Brother’s Keeper - 27

Jerry eyed his brother with some amusement as dinner progressed. Roy was definitely not paying attention to the food on his plate if the fact that he’d eaten maybe three bites of his steak meant anything. His concentration seemed to be more on Tad than on the meal. They had barely said two words but the glances they exchanged told Jerry that things between his brother and Tad might progress well beyond a few stolen kisses.

He took pity on them finally and finished the last of his dinner quickly. Then he stretched, yawned, and announced that he was going to bed. When Roy immediately asked, somewhat guiltily, how he was feeling, Jerry quickly assured him that he was all right, just tired still.

“I bet I’ll sleep like a log. I won’t even know when you get to bed,” he told him with a knowing grin.

Tad chuckled. “Sure you won’t.”

As he headed to the kitchen door, Jerry said over his shoulder, “That is if he even makes it to bed…in our bedroom.”

“Brat,” Roy growled.

Jerry’s laughter floated back as he headed to the bedroom.

“Let’s get this cleaned up,” Tad said as he began taking the dishes to the sink. “And then we can see if he was right.”

As he began to rinse them so that he could put them into the dishwasher, Roy came up behind him, wrapping his arms around his waist. “Can’t that wait until morning?” he asked, nipping Tad’s ear.

“And face a sink full of…” Tad broke off with a groan as Roy’s hand slid down to cup his already half-swollen cock through his jeans. “I guess…yeah…they can wait.”

“Good, because I can’t.” Roy turned Tad around, smiling at him before leaning in to kiss him. The kiss escalated, the heat between the two young men reaching Vesuvius proportions, and for a moment neither of them was aware of the screaming of a car alarm coming in through the closed window from the back parking lot.

Then Tad jerked away. “That’s my car,” he said, pulling back the curtain on the kitchen window to look outside.

Guardian Angels - If It's Fated… (18)

"I think we can safely say mission accomplished," Dom said, leaning back with his hands behind his head, while looking at Deidre as she stood at the front window of his apartment.

It had been three weeks since the day Tim and Richard had met for lunch for the first time. Since then, they'd done it four more times, as well as spending at least one evening each weekend together.

Cherie had played chaperone, Tim had laughingly told Dom during one of the many times he'd dropped by to catch him up on what was going on.

"Not that I mind in the least," Tim added. "She's a wonderful child."

When Dom had questioned that—his not minding—Tim explained, "Richard and I are taking it one step at a time, for her sake and for ours. Believe it or not, he's as new to this whole relationship thing as I am. We don't want to blow it."

Dom bit back a cackle of amusement at the way he'd phrased that last, just nodding sagely.

While they were waiting it out to be certain that Tim and Richard really were going to get involved with each other as more than just friends, Dom had slowly begun to accept that it was time for him to let go of his anger toward Deidre. As he did—and it wasn't easy—he found she was actually an interesting woman. She was smart and witty, once she, too, had started to let her guard down—and not too bad on the eyes to boot.

Now she turned to look at him after his comment. "Nothing is written in stone when it comes to relationships. However, I suspect you're right. There's nothing more we can do that wouldn't be considered interfering above and beyond the call of duty. They like each other and from what Tim told you, they're working on making it something permanent. That's all anyone can ask." She grinned. "Even Samuel."

"I agreed. So what say we go out and celebrate our success?"

"Seriously?"

Dom nodded. "Why not? We've earned it. A good meal, maybe…" He shrugged. "I know a nice club where there's dancing, if you dance."

"That sounds like fun."

A couple of hours later they were walking into Maxie's, after having spent a pleasant hour over dinner at a small restaurant Deidre had discovered soon after she'd arrived in the city.

They found a table not too far from the edge of the dance floor and gave the waitress their drink orders. While they waited for her to return, Dom watched the people dancing.

"My wife and I had a club we went to. Connie loved to dance." He chuckled softly. "Even with me and I was hardly Fred Astaire."

"Dom, if this is bringing back memories, perhaps we should leave before…?"

"No." He turned to look at Deidre. "It's time for me to remember the good parts of our life. Not that I haven't before but…but then it was only to damn myself for not being able to save her and Nico. Now…now it's because the memories remind me I had someone who loved me. Someone I loved in return. Despite all that's happened since, it's not a bad thing, knowing I was loved."

"It never is, Dom."

"Did you have someone before you died?"

Deidre nodded, her expression darkening. "Yes. The man of my dreams, until the day he decided he wanted to trade up, so to speak. I ended up in a grave in the middle of nowhere." She sighed deeply. "I suppose he went on to marry her. I never asked. I didn't want to know."

"Good God," Dom whispered.

She smiled wryly. "Hopefully he had nothing to do with it."

"I suspect not." He paused while the waitress put down their drinks, paid her, and then stood, holding out his hand to Deidre. "If you're willing to take a chance I'll end up stepping on your toes…"

She laughed, getting up. "I've been in worse danger."

They wended their way to the dance floor, arriving just in time for a slow song, much to Dom's relief. He liked fast music, but not to dance to. As they made their way around the floor, he realized Deidre made an excellent dance partner, moving with him as if they'd done this a hundred times. He told her so and she blushed.

"It's been a long time," she said, "but I guess you never forget."

"Fifteen years for me," he replied.

She chewed her lip before admitting, "Almost a hundred for me." Chuckling, she added, "I was pretty damned good at the Charleston."

Dom said, laughing, "Samuel seems to be putting me with the old pros, although"—he twirled her around—"he didn't actually put me with you."

"No. He was smart enough not to do that. But I have a sneaking suspicion he knew we'd run into each other during our assignments. I did wonder if he'd pull me out if you asked—or vice versa."

"We got the answer to that one in spades. 'The two of you will finish your jobs and if necessary, you will work together'." Dom said, mimicking Samuel perfectly. 

Deidre laughed delightedly. "You could have had a great career as an actor."

Snorting, Dom led her back to their table. Just as they sat down, he saw two familiar faces. Tim saw him at the same time, pointing him out to Richard, and they came over.

"Gentlemen," Dom said, "this is Deidre, one of my co-workers. Deidre—Tim and Richard."

"A pleasure to meet you," Deidre responded. "Dom's told me a lot about the two of you. Well, maybe not a lot, but he's mentioned you."

"All good, I hope," Richard said.

While Deidre replied to his comment, Tim asked Dom under his breath, "Is this the friend you were upset about?"

Dom nodded. "We've…settled our differences."

"And now you're dating?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but no. We're celebrating the fact we both finished our jobs successfully, before leaving town for new ones."

"Oh." Tim didn't exactly look happy about that. "I'll miss having you around to talk to."

"You have Richard now," Dom pointed out.

Tim brightened considerably and even more so when Richard, who had apparently overheard them, said, "He does, and I have him."

"So you'll be just fine when I'm gone," Dom said with a smile.

Tim looked at Richard then nodded. "Yes, I will."

"Would you two care to join us?" Deidre asked. 

 "Thanks but we can't," Richard replied. "We're meeting a couple of friends. Perhaps the next time you're in the city?"

"Perhaps," Dom said, knowing that wasn't likely to happen. Then the two men said their goodbyes and headed across the room hand-in-hand.

Deidre smiled. "You were right about what you said earlier this evening. Mission accomplished."

"Indeed. So we should get back and report in, I suspect."

"Not until we've finished our drinks and had at least one more dance."

Dom grinned. "I can deal with that."

My Brother’s Keeper - 26

It was just after noon when the trio arrived back at Tad’s apartment. As soon as they were inside Roy made certain Jerry took his pills with a large glass of water as the doctor had instructed, and then a shot of the cough syrup.

“Now get in there and rest,” Roy ordered his brother, pointing to the bedroom.

Jerry muttered something under his breath and asked Tad, “Can I sit in the lounge chair instead?”

“As far as I’m concerned, sure, but it’s really between you and Roy.”

“Please.” Jerry gave Roy his best pleading look.

Roy rolled his eyes but yielded and said that he could, “If you don’t move.”

When Jerry had settled in, Tad asked if he liked video games. “Hell yeah,” Jerry told him excitedly, so Tad handed him a controller and put in the game he requested. “That should keep him busy for a while,” he told Roy with a laugh.

“Might keep me busy too. I haven’t played in, well forever it seems and that’s a multiplayer game. Do you have another controller?”

“Three more, so we can all play and we’ll see who the best of the best is.”

The rest of the afternoon was spent in fierce competition until Jerry started making big errors. Finally he conceded that he was too tired to keep going even though he had been winning earlier on.

“That’s okay,” Tad said, going over to turn off the game. “It’s about time for supper. Can you stay awake long enough to eat?” The question was moot he realized when he turned back and saw that Jerry was already sleeping. “Want to help fix supper?” he asked Roy.

“If it doesn’t require a Cordon Bleu chef to handle it.”

Tad snorted. “Not even close. Meat or fish is about my limit, usually done in the frying pan, or spaghetti.”

“Spaghetti in a frying pan?” Roy grinned when Tad muttered about wiseasses. “Whatever you need help with I’m willing.”

“That could be taken in more ways than I think you meant,” Tad responded as he walked towards the kitchen.

“Don’t bet on it,” Roy told him. He caught up just as Tad entered the kitchen and put a hand on his shoulder. When Tad half-turned to look at him, Roy kissed him quickly and stepped back.

“Supper first,” Tad murmured.

“Spoil sport,” Roy murmured in reply.

“Just practical. The way I’m feeling right now, if we don’t get supper made it might be morning before we ate.”

“And your point is?”

“Your little brother in there, who would undoubtedly wake up and demand food just when things got interesting. So we wake him up before he’s had too much sleep, all three of us eat, and he goes to bed.”

Roy nodded. “That works. Oh boy does it work.” He snagged another kiss then gave Tad a gentle push towards the stove. “So let’s get to cooking.”

My Brother’s Keeper - 25

“Now before you start worrying too much,” the doctor told Jerry, “I’m still going with my original diagnosis of bronchitis. It’s gotten a bit worse, undoubtedly because of your living conditions. Unfortunately I can’t give you a stronger dose of pills as we’re not allowed to keep them here.”

“Write him a prescription for what he needs,” Tad said.

“And just how will he, or you, pay for it?” the doctor asked, eyeing Tad.

“I’ll steal the money?” Tad replied with a straight face.

“Young man, that is not an acceptable option,” the doctor told him firmly.

Tad smiled. “I know. I have the money. I’m their friend but I don’t live on the streets.”

The doctor nodded. “If you’re their friend and are willing to do that…” He began writing out the prescription then looked back at Tad. “Friend enough to let Jerry crash at your place until he starts to improve?”

“Already in the works.”

“Very good.” The doctor handed him the script. “I’ll ease the hit to your wallet a bit and get him a couple of bottles of cough syrup from the dispensary.”

As soon as the doctor left the room Roy said tightly, “We haven’t agreed to stay on with you.”

“Now you don’t have a choice,” Tad told him with a bit of a grin. “Doctor’s orders so you have to.”

“Please, Roy,” Jerry put in, his look hopeful.

“I…well…Okay but just until you’re not coughing out a lung every time you turn around.”

“That works,” Tad told them, admonishing himself severely because his next thought was that he hoped it would be a while before that happened.

My Brother’s Keeper - 24

“Drive around the block,” Roy said tersely as he scanned the area around the soup kitchen.

“You think Daws could be here?” Tad asked while he did as Roy said.

“It’s always a possibility. He can’t be everywhere but with our luck…” Roy shrugged.

Tad nodded then made a decision. He kept going straight as he took out his cell phone. When Jerry admonished him that he shouldn’t use it while driving he pulled over into a vacant parking space.

Roy sighed, certain of the answer but still asking, “What are you doing?”

“Calling my doctor.”

“On a Sunday? He’s not going to be there.”

“Damn, yeah, didn’t think of that.” Pocketing his phone, Tad pulled out onto the street again. “All right, I guess it’s the clinic for now.” When they got back to it he drove slowly around the block while Roy and Jerry watched for any sign of Daws or his gang. When they deemed it safe, he pulled into a parking lot two doors down from the soup kitchen.

With every sense alert for trouble, the trio made it to the church. As always when it was mealtime the soup kitchen was crowded. The waiting room for the clinic was almost as full as the last time Roy and Jerry had been there so the three of them settled down, expecting a long wait. They were surprised when the doctor who had seen Jerry the last time appeared, obviously looking his next patient. He spotted them and came over.

“You were supposed to come back long before this,” he admonished Jerry in a kindly tone of voice. Jerry shrugged and nodded. “All right, come on, lets go inside and see how you’re doing.”

Amid much grumbling from people who had been there when they came in, Jerry and the others followed the doctor. Once they were in the exam room, Jerry told the doctor about seeing blood in the mucus as he took off his shirt so he could be examined. The doctor frowned but otherwise didn’t seem overly concerned for the moment. When the examination was finished, which included his having Jerry cough so he could get a mucus sample which this time was clear of blood, the doctor told Jerry to get dressed again.

Guardian Angels - If It's Fated… (17)

"Okay, you were right," Richard said, half an hour after he and Tim arrived at the library. "Only fifty words."

"Now," Tim replied, handing him 'War and Peace'.

Richard broke out laughing. "I so don't think so. I do have to get back to the gallery sometime before the end of the Millennium."

"And I've been keeping you from doing that," Tim replied contritely.

"Come on. I came here of my own choice. However…" Richard picked up his coat from the chair next to him and put it on. Then he asked, "Are you free Saturday night?"

Tim nodded, speechless for a moment. He refrained from saying, "What Saturday aren't I?" instead shyly replying, "Yes."

"How do you feel about going to a movie with me and Cherie? We do that almost every weekend, if there's something out that's suitable for kids."

"I'd love to."

"Great. We can pick you up around seven? Well, if I knew where you lived."

Tim grabbed a slip of paper from the pad sitting on the table, and the pencil beside it, to write down his address.

"Walking distance from here," Richard commented.

"Which is a good thing, since I don't own a car," Tim said.

"Seriously?"

"Very seriously. Librarians don't exactly make a ton of money and since I have two good legs and feet, I've always figured why pay for what I really don't need? The bus works if I have to go across town or what have you."

"Walking also keeps you in shape, from the look of it," Richard said, eyeing him.

Tim looked away in embarrassment. "I guess."

Richard chuckled. "I definitely think so, so as Cherie would say, deal. Now I'd better get out of here before my people wonder if I've fallen off the ends of the earth. I'll see you Saturday."

"I'll… Yes, you will."

Tim watched Richard leave, smiling happily. When he turned to get back to work, he almost bumped into Ms Gaines. "You're doing it again," she said.

"What?"

She grinned at him. "Smiling like the cat who found the cream. Are you and he…?"

"Right now, we're just friends but…" He shrugged.

"With luck, it'll be more? Don't look so surprised. I'm not blind or ignorant of the facts of life. I figured out a long time ago women weren't your thing." She patted his arm. "Most of us here have, but we decided it wasn't any of our business. I hope this works out the way you obviously want it to."

"Thank you," Tim said almost under his breath. "So do I."

My Brother’s Keeper - 23

Another bout of wracking coughs hit Jerry just as the trio had finished breakfast. When he could finally control them, he bent over the kitchen sink, spitting out mucus. He grimaced, not only at the ugly yellow/green color but the tiny bit of blood in it, and turned back to look at his brother. “Maybe, yeah, I should go back to the clinic.”

Roy was at his side in seconds. “Why?” he asked and then saw the answer. “Go get dressed,” he ordered as he turned on the water to rinse the mucus down the drain.

“I’ll drive you,” Tad told them.

“Thanks.” Roy watched as his brother left the kitchen. “It’s getting worse,” he said worriedly.

“Another reason for the two of you to stay here, at least for a while.”

“We’ll see,” Roy muttered while he started to clear the table. When Tad told him that could be done later, Roy replied, “I need to do something until he’s ready or I’ll be mothering him. He hates that.”

“I understand. He’s going to be fine, Roy.”

“You don’t know that,” Roy said, rounding on him angrily.

“Yeah, I do. If the clinic doctor can’t help we’ll take Jerry to mine. And before you say no, I’ll cover the cost. No. Arguments. Got it?”

“I thought you were just a student.”

“A student with a decent trust fund from my grandfather. How do you think I can afford this place?”

“I guess I didn’t actually think about that at all.” Roy looked at him and a small smile quirked his lips up. “Rich and good looking. Not a bad combo.”

“Well one out of two anyway,” Tad said in embarrassment. “Go see if he’s ready.”

“So you’re not really rich.” Roy smirked as he headed to the door. “Well, can’t have everything I guess.”

My Brother’s Keeper - 22

Jerry managed to avoid the others killing him by dint of volunteering to fix breakfast. While he did, Tad and Roy got dressed for the day.

After he was dressed, Tad went down the hall to rap on the guest bedroom door. When Roy opened it, Tad saw that he had begun packing.

“So you are still planning on leaving,” Tad said quietly.

Roy nodded. “Look, right now you think you could put up with the two of us being here, but what about a week from now when you realize you have two non-working leeches on your hands; ones with a badass punk looking for them. Better we go before that happens.”

“I can understand what you’re saying, but what if we can do something to change that?”

“Do you think I haven’t tried?” Roy’s voice was tight with repressed anger.

“No. I’m sure you have but you’ve been trying on your own. Now you have a friend who’s willing to help. Between us we just might be able to figure out something that works.”

“Fat chance,” Roy muttered. However he did stop putting more neatly folded clothes into the backpacks, which Tad took as a hopeful sign. “I guess,” Roy said hesitantly, “we can at least talk about it.”

“Talking’s good. It’s a start. First however we’d better see what Jerry’s come up with for breakfast.”

Roy chuckled as he walked past Tad into the hall. “He used to be a decent cook, for a kid, so it’s probably edible.”

The breakfast was more than edible. Jerry had found a box of pancake mix and a couple of bananas which he’d added to the batter. When Tad and Roy arrived in the kitchen they found a large platter of pancakes in the center of the table with butter and syrup next to it. The table was set and Jerry was just pouring glasses of milk.

“No coffee?” Tad said in feigned shock.

“I couldn’t find it,” Jerry told him.

“In the freezer.” Tad got the bag and soon the coffeemaker was doing its job while the three young men sat down to eat.

My Brother’s Keeper - 21

“Damn, sorry about that.” Roy felt as if he’d been blindsided by his brother.

Tad shook his head. “Don’t be, he’s just a kid. Though it was sort of a mood killer.”

“Big time,” Roy agreed because he thought that’s what Tad wanted to hear. It hadn’t killed his mood, or more it hadn’t killed his interest. If anything, it had intensified it as he wondered what it would have been like to kiss Tad. “Let me get these clothes out of here and then, well…”

Tad took a quick glance towards the kitchen door, noted Jerry had closed it, and smiled to himself. “And then what?” he asked.

“I don’t know.” Roy leaned against the washer as he studied Tad’s face. “I was hell bent on us getting out of here before you knew we’d gone. That seems to have been shot in the ass.”

“Sort of, yes, and if you still want to leave I can’t stop you.”

“Really?” Roy tapped a knuckle against his lips while he watched Tad with barely suppressed desire.

Tad chuckled softly. “I suppose I could try wrestling you to the ground and hog-tying you.”

“Best two out of three falls?” Roy closed the space between them in two steps.

“Maybe.” He tentatively touched his fingertips to Roy’s cheek.

“I’d let you…”

“Hog-tie you?” Tad looked at him in surprise.

“Kiss me…”

“Ahh.” He rubbed the ball of his thumb over Roy’s lips. “What if I didn’t want to?” he teased, relenting quickly when Roy started to pull back. He slid his hand around to cup the back of Roy’s head before he leaned in to kiss him lightly. “But I do.”

“Don’t…” Roy whispered as he returned the kiss, “talk.” He kissed him again, his tongue tracing the juncture between Tad’s lips, seeking entrance.

Tad hesitated, then parted them, his pulse quickening as Roy’s questing tongue began to explore his mouth.

“Guys, hate to break up whatever you’re doing, but I’m starving.” Jerry’s voice came through the closed door, fraught with amusement.

“I’ll kill him,” Roy growled.

Tad gave Roy one last, impassioned kiss, muttering, “Not if I get to him first.”