Date: Wed, 11 Jan 2023 01:00:00 -0600 From: Nicky Smith Subject: The Chronicles of Trey II: Chapter 27 Disclaimer: This story is 100% fictional and may contain references and scenes of consensual sex between males. Any resemblance to real people or situations is purely coincidental. If your country or state does not allow such material to be read or you have come across this site by accident, please leave now. Important Notice: Nifty is a free site and relies on donations from authors and readers to operate. If you enjoy the site, please consider making a donation at ( http://donate.nifty.org/donate.html ) Author's Notice: This work is copyright by the author and commercial use is prohibited without permission. Personal or private copies are permitted only if complete including the copyright notice. Written by: Nicky Smith Edited by: JD Kaster CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! TREY'S POV My head was killing me. I tried to raise my hand to hold it to my head, but my arm wouldn't move. It scared me and made me think maybe I was paralyzed. I tried to open my eyes, but everything looked so blurry. And doing so made my head hurt more, so I closed them again. I tried to piece together what was going on. After a bit, I remembered that I had been at the wedding hall for Zane and Nicole's wedding. Then I remembered that I was supposed to be going to pick up something from home. Finally, I remembered that I'd been attacked, and something placed over my face which must have knocked me out. I tried to move my arms, but again, I couldn't. As the fuzz started to clear, I realized that it was because I was bound to a chair. I tried to open my eyes again and succeeded this time. I looked around and saw that it appeared to be a warehouse of some sort. I rolled my eyes at the fact that I'd apparently been abducted and taken to some abandoned warehouse. That bitch misfortune must have been in her damsel-in-distress phase on this one. As I tried to shake the rest of the cobwebs from my head, I heard some footsteps. "Hello, Trey. It's nice to see you again," I heard a voice that I never expected nor ever wanted to hear again. "You've got to be kidding me," I said as I rolled my eyes. "I'm glad you're awake so we can talk," he said as he walked around to stand in front of me. "Mike," I hissed as I glared at him. "Hello, Trey," he said, and the evil look on his face was not doing it for me. "What is this? You've graduated from cyber-crimes to kidnapping?" I asked with as much malice as I could muster. "You really think you're something, don't you?" Mike said with a sneer. "I'm something to Bear, at least," I said with a smirk. It probably wasn't the time to antagonize this guy, but I wasn't about to let him see me scared. "That'll change," he said ominously with his eyes narrowed at me. "Mike, come on now. Is this really what you want to do?" I asked, deciding to try to reason with him. "Yeah, it is," he said matter-of-factly. "You can't possibly be this stupid. How exactly do you think this will get you Bear?" I said, failing at reasoning. "You know, you're awfully mouthy for somebody who's bound to a chair somewhere that nobody knows about," he hissed in my face. I could feel drops of spittle hit my face and I wanted to vomit. "Mike, I can promise you that this is not very high on the list of things that I've suffered. Maybe if this chair was dangling off a highrise then I'd more hard-pressed to drum up some fear," I said, ending with a smirk. I wanted to make him think that I wasn't afraid in hopes that he'd think this was futile and let me go. "That can be arranged if you want, smart mouth," he said through gritted teeth. "Mike, let me go. I'm sure you don't want to go to jail for kidnapping and capture," I said, again trying to reason with him. "Jail? I'm not that worried about that," he said with a sinister half-smile. I rolled my eyes because it didn't look like he was down for reasoning. "Look, you should just let me go cause there's nothing that you can do that will make me break up with Bear. Bigger than you have tried it," I said, trying to hold in my frustration, but failing. He surprised me though when he pulled a gun from his back that had been tucked into his waistband. Seeing the gun brought back memories of Kent that I didn't need at the moment. He then smirked as he walked up to me. "Is that what you think this is?" He said with yet another sinister smile as he leaned in and pressed the tip of the gun under my chin. "Now wait Mike," I said with wide eyes. I couldn't hide the panic in my voice nor wipe it off my face as I'm sure it was there. "Aw, what happened to all that bravado and snark from a minute ago?" He asked with an amused, yet still evil grin. "I didn't have a gun pressed under my chin then," I said as I tried to calm myself down. "Good. I'm glad you appreciate the gravity of the situation," he said before he stood back up. He didn't move away from me though which meant that he was looking down upon me. I didn't like that one bit. "You can't kill me. Bear certainly wouldn't love you then. Also, you wouldn't get to be with him anyway as you'd be in prison," I said trying to once again reason with him. I knew it wouldn't work at this point but it didn't hurt to try. "I think you should be more worried about what's about to happen to you and less worried about what'll happen to me if anything happened to you. Faggots are a low priority when it comes to the police, trust me. And you're a Black faggot so you're doubly fucked," he said. That's the second time he had alluded to the police not caring if anything happened to me. "Why are you throwing the F-word around? The last time I checked you were a "faggot" too," I said which only elicited a slight sarcastic chuckle from him. "Yes, you're right I am. But by the end of today, there's gonna be one less faggot walking around," he said ominously with that grin that unnerved me. "You won't kill me," I said hoping that something came along to save me. I didn't wanna consider that I'd used up all my rescues and this was the one that'd get me. "Well now Trey, that depends on you," he said as he leaned back down near my face. "What do you mean?" I asked, hoping for some way to get out of this. At least long enough to get help. "Well," he said before standing back up and he pulled a phone from his back pocket. Upon closer inspection, I saw that it was my phone. "What are you doing with my phone?" I asked as I tried to block the memory of him hacking our phones from popping back up. "You're gonna call Bear and tell him to come here," he said with that sinister grin back on his face. "And if I don't?" I asked as I tried to think of what he was planning. "Then I empty this gun into you and call it a day," he said nonchalantly. "And then you'll go to jail," I said, completely caught off-guard by the way he'd said that. This dude really was off his rocker. "Not likely. I've... taken precautions," he said, again in that nonchalant tone. "Why are you doing this?" I asked as the feeling of resignation started to fall over me. "I want Bear to come here. I took you because I needed a way to ensure he'd come. I gotta say though that this is happening much sooner than I anticipated," he said, and I was confused. "What do you mean? I thought you were waiting for me to be alone so you'd get me," I said, and he smiled. "I was. That was easier said than done though. I needed you alone with no witnesses and you've either been not alone or there were people around that could witness me take you milling around since I started planning this. Today though, it was like the stars aligned to provide the perfect opportunity. I was there and watched as not only your family left but most of your nearby neighbors," he said with a smirk, and I rolled my eyes again. Of course, they were gone as they were probably at the wedding venue waiting to see Zane and Nicole get married. I knew that Mama had invited the Hodges to our left and Mrs. Blank and her sister Miss Knox to our right. Then there were the Reyes-Ortiz, Crane, and Cryer families from across the street. That meant that there was likely nobody around that had seen him abduct me. "Then you came back and I knew this was the perfect chance. That today was the day," he said with a self-satisfied grin as he finished his little fucked up explanation. "What do you want with Bear?" I asked trying to stall. If enough time had already passed then the cavalry had to be out searching for me. "Just get him here and everything will become clear," he said with a sinister grin. I resigned myself to what was about to happen. He saw this and grinned even more. He turned my phone back on and got inside before he pulled up Bear's contact on my phone and hit dial. Meanwhile, I lamented the fact that I'd need yet another phone as he'd been able to get into this one too. ******** BEAR'S POV "Where is he?" Mrs. Healey said as she paced back and forth. Trey had been gone for close to two hours. I could tell that Zane was getting antsy and his dad was looking worried but trying to hide that fact. "I have no idea," Mr. Healey said from his seat near the window of the suite we were in. I had called Trey's cell about 20 times now and left dozens of texts. I had also called Jeremy and managed to catch him before he made it to the wedding to go by and check and see if he was at home. He called back and said that there was no sign of Trey at his house. "Things are getting a little anxious over there," Liberty said as she came into the suite. "We're still waiting on my brother who's gonna die really badly when he gets here," Zane said with a scowl as he tapped his foot. "Yeah, maybe you shouldn't be saying things like that, even if you're mad," Alvis said as he patted Zane on the back. He looked confused for a second before he realized what Alvis meant and a remorseful look came across his face. "You all stay here I'm gonna go and see if I can find him," I said before I started to leave the room. "I'll go with," Calvin said as he followed me. "You stay with your brother. I'll go," Liberty said and walked over and passed me as she left the room. I followed after her. We headed down the staircase and headed towards the doors before we were ambushed by Carter and Christian. They wanted to know what the holdup was and to let us know the guests were restless. We just told them to try and keep everyone calm before we exited the building. As we walked away from the doors my phone rang. I looked and saw that it was Trey and relief instantly flowed over me. "Hey, babe, where are you?" I said as I tried to keep the worry from my voice. "Um, Bear, I need you to meet me somewhere," he said, and while he was trying to sound normal, I could hear something in his voice that let me know that things weren't fine. "Meet you? Trey, where are you? Did you forget you're supposed to be here at your brother's wedding?" I asked as I tried to think of what could possibly be wrong with Trey. "I didn't forget. I still need you to meet me, Barry," he said and I looked over to Liberty as she was listening to the call as well. I could count on one hand the number of times Trey had called me Barry since we were 12 and every one of those times was very serious. "Trey, what's wrong? Tell me what's going on," I said as I tried to keep the worry out of my voice. "Just come to meet me, Barry," he said again and now I knew that something was very wrong. "What happened? Tell me, please," I said failing to keep the anxiousness and worry out of my voice. I heard an exasperated sigh on the other end but it sounded faint. "I'm gonna text you the address," Trey said before I heard something that I couldn't decipher. Then the call ended. Liberty and I looked at each other and I could tell she was thinking along the same lines as me. "Something is up," Liberty said confirming what I had thought. About a minute later I received a text with an address. I didn't recognize it so I put it into my maps app and saw that this place was a bit outside town. "Why would he be all the way out there?" I asked mostly to myself. "Something is definitely up. I'm gonna go tell Trey's parents," Liberty said before turning and heading back inside. I ran up to grab her arm though. "Wait," I said as I turned her back around to face me. "Bear, Trey is missing. He's been gone for two hours now on the day of his brother's wedding. He then calls you acting weird, calling you "Barry", and asking you to meet him on the outskirts of town? This would be weird any day Bear, but today, it's hella weird," Liberty said and I agreed with her. I just didn't wanna upset Trey's family before I knew what was going on. "I'm gonna go see what's going on. I want you to go and stall as if your life depended on it," I said, and Liberty looked at me incredulously. After a stare-off and Liberty looking down in defeat, I ran to my truck, hopped in, and sped out of the parking lot. ******** TREY'S POV "Well, he's on his way," Mike said with a satisfied smile after looking at his phone. "How do you know?" I asked but wasn't looking forward to his answer after his previous antics with our phones. "I placed a tracker on his truck. Yours too," he said simply like he was explaining today's weather and not the fact that he was stalking Bear and me. "You're psychotic," I said as more of a whisper but it was loud enough for him to hear. "You might be right about that. Too bad you won't be around long enough to know for sure," he said and that got my attention. "You said nothing would happen to me if I called Bear," I said while trying to keep the panic that I was starting to feel out of my voice. "Well now, you can't really expect me to keep you around if I'm to have Bear, do you? You have got to go. It's as simple as that," he said with a weird smirk. "You're crazy," I said as I looked at the expression on his face. "You know, I've just told you that I plan to kill you, and your reaction is to antagonize me? Methinks I'm not the only crazy person here," he said with a creepy grin as he leaned down near my face. "Get outta my face," I hissed which only made him happier. He stood back up and walked a few feet from me. He paced back and forth as he waited on Bear. I tried to think of what he had in store for me. Was he waiting on Bear to make him choose me over him? Choose him or he kills me? Bear would do anything to save my life. I wondered if he would sacrifice himself to do so. I guess I wouldn't have to wonder for long as I heard Bear's truck pull up outside. "Oh good, he's here," Mike said with another self-satisfied smile before walking off to go hide. I guess he planned on making a grand entrance like any good villain. I had to force myself not to roll my eyes at this thought. "Trey, where are you?" I heard Bear call out from a distance. I saw Mike peek his head out and put a finger up to his lips indicating that he wanted me to be quiet. I rolled my eyes again. "Trey!" He shouted as I guess he finally saw me. I didn't know as he was mostly behind me. I heard running and I felt relieved. I knew though that this was far from over. "Bear, I'm okay," I said to him as he crushed me in a hug when he reached me. "What happened to you?" He asks after releasing me from the hug and while he looked me over for possible injuries. "He happened," I seethed as he emerged from his hiding place like the villain, I'm sure he thought he was. "Hey Bear," Mike said with a weird smile and I didn't miss the slightly flirty tone. "You!" Bear shouted as he stood up and spun around. "It's nice to see you again," Mike said like he was meeting Bear on the street after not having seen him in a while. "Are you fucking crazy?! Untie him right now!" Bear demanded with bass in his voice and a tone that meant that there were to be no negotiations on this matter. "I'm afraid I can't do that Bear," Mike said and I wanted to throat punch him for the slightly condescending tone he was using with Bear. "Well, I'm afraid for you if you don't," Bear said with a dangerous tone of his voice as he stepped closer to Mike. I'm ashamed to say that it slightly turned me on. "Bear, we should talk," Mike said like a school teacher meeting a student to talk to them about their failing grades. "Fuck You!" Bear said before he stepped back over to me and started to untie me himself. I was happy until I saw Mike reach behind his back and pull out the gun again. "Bear, look out!" I shouted as Mike aimed the gun at not Bear but me. Bear looked back at Mike and saw this and I saw his eyes grow as wide as saucers. "I'm gonna need you to stop doing that Bear," Mike said in the same almost casual tone he'd been using ever since he'd first revealed himself to Bear. "Are you out of your fucking mind?!" Bear asked shocked, yet incredulous look on his face. "Yes," I said before I could stop myself. Mike answered by fixing his aim in me. "You know, your, let's call him your "person whom you're unfortunately attached" is gonna get himself killed with that smart mouth of his," Mike said with annoyance laced in his voice. "I call him the guy who I love and am gonna marry," Bear said with a tone of voice unfitting the proclamation he'd just made. "Also, I like his "smart mouth"." He added with a weird smile on his face. "Aw, you big softie," I said, again, before I could stop myself. "I mean it," he said as he looked at me with a big dopey grin on his handsome face. It struck me as funny yet totally on-brand for me that even at this moment that I was able to appreciate how incredible this man was and how much I loved him. "Hello. Guy with a gun here," Mike said completely ruining the moment between Bear and me. "Mike, let Trey go and we can talk, just you and me," Bear said in a calm tone trying his hand at reasoning with Mike. I knew it wouldn't work though. "No. I can't do that," Mike said matter-of-factly. "Mike, you have to know that if you hurt Trey, I'm gonna kill you. You have to know that," Bear said in an eerily calm tone that chilled me to the bone. I could tell that it did to Mike as well cause his eyes widened slightly and he took a subtle step back. Bear noticed though and took an answering step forward. "Stop right there!" Mike said as he stepped forward aiming the gun even more at me. Bear moved to stand between me and the gun that was now pointed directly at him. "Mike, you have to let Trey go. This can't end well here for you," Bear said calmly but that only pissed Mike off. "I will let him go. If you break up with him right now. Tell him you never want to see him again and leave here with me," Mike said and that pissed me off. "Say what now?" Bear said like he hadn't heard the craziness that came out of Mike's mouth. "Are you outta your fucking mind?" I said at the same time but I was much louder. "No, I'm not "outta my fucking mind" Trey," he said sounding seriously annoyed. "And Bear, I said that I'll let Trey go if you break up with him and leave here with me," Mike said and just the thought of Bear leaving with him infuriated me. "You crazy bitch! You're not gonna get away with this!" I shouted no longer caring about my own wellbeing. "And just what the fuck are you gonna do about? I hold all the cards here Trey," he said back in his villain mode complete with the evil smirk. "Trey, just cool it," Bear said trying to get through to my less self-destructive side. "No, I will not cool it! I'm tied to a fucking chair in some remote fucking warehouse all because this fucking psychopath can't take "I don't want your ass" for an answer!" I said, and I didn't even care when he advanced on me moving past Bear. Bear rushed to get back between us but Mike pushed him back and aimed the gun at me to keep him at bay. "You really have a death wish, don't you?" He asked, and that gave me pause. Did I have a death wish? I really was not doing myself any favors in this situation. "Mike, wait. Stop. You can't do this. You can't take Trey away from me or me away from him. I love him," Bear pleaded and I became furious that he was pleading for my life with this jackass. "It'll be okay Bear. I'll be there for you. I'll love you and in time you'll get over him," he said, and it was hard to miss that he was starting to lose it even more. I noticed his eye twitch when Bear had said that he loved me. "No, Mike. I'll never be over him. He's my soul mate. We're meant for each other," Bear said and I was both warmed by Bear's words and infuriated by this situation. I was also getting wary of Mike because it was becoming obvious that he was not taking the things Bear was saying about me very well. "No! I can be everything he is for you. All you have to do is give me a chance," he said sounding desperate now. "Mike," Bear said, and I guess he was starting to see just how deranged Mike was and it was upsetting him. I guess he had cared about Mike more than I'd realized. "Bear, please. Let's just leave here, you and me. I'll love you so much you'll never even miss him. We were meant to be. I could tell from that first time when we met at that party. We just clicked. I knew that we would be good together," he said in a quick almost hysterical jumble. Bear's face fell even more and my heart went out to him. "I can't wait until they lock you up," I let slip out before I could stop it. I would have slapped my hand over my mouth if I could have moved them. "Would you get off of that! Nobody is gonna lock me up! The fucking police don't care about you, or me, or any of us! We're on our own out here! And that's a bad thing for you," he shouted but said the last sentence with a cold chill laced in his voice as he glared at me. There was something here that I was missing but I could tell that it was something. "Mike, wait! You said you wouldn't hurt him," Bear said in a desperate rush. "I won't if you do what I say," Mike said with that same coldness. "Why do you think the police won't do anything to you. I mean, I know that they have a reputation when it comes to Black people but it's gonna be pretty hard for them to ignore you killing me, especially with my brother being a cop." I said, but he just rolled his eyes. "Let me tell you something about your brother's precious "brothers in blue". I could blow your fucking brains out right now, which I might, and they won't give a fuck, especially when they hear that all three of us are "cocksuckers". They'll probably call it a "queer love triangle gone wrong" and wash their hands of it." He said and the way he said it made me think he knew this from experience. "What do you mean, Mike? It's their job to protect and serve," Bear said, and Mike scoffed and rolled his eyes again. "Not in this town. Not us," Mike said and that gave me pause. I had thought that Mike was from where we went to school since he had a house there but we had met him at a party at Sean's house. That had to mean that he at least knew somebody from our town. Now it appears that he is from here. "Why not us?" Bear asked, and it looked like he zoned out. "He was a cop named Rick. He loved his job which he was good at and his "brothers in blue" respected him. There was a problem though. You see, he was a kind man that loved his job, he loved dogs and winter, he loved his mother and sister, and, he loved me, another man. That is a no-no on some jobs and he just happened to have one of those jobs. Apparently, cops don't like fags wearing blue. At least, the cops around here don't. He told me time and time again that we had to be careful in public so that we didn't get caught cause there was no telling when he'd be spotted by somebody he worked with. I didn't listen though and stole a kiss one day while we were out together. You see, I figured that cops were supposed to protect us and that he was just being a big drama queen as he tended to overreact to some things. I should have listened though, cause he worked with these people and I didn't. He had a better understanding of how they'd react to him being gay and it was not good. He came home one day and he was so angry. He told me that he'd been outed. Someone had taken a pic of us kissing and blew it up and plastered it all over the locker room at the precinct. They had harassed him and made crude jokes about him and me all day. His partner hadn't helped. In fact, his partner had gone to the Sergeant and requested a change in partner cause he didn't wanna ride with a faggot. Rick was frozen out and alone. And then came the call. A suspected rapist had attacked a woman and Rick had found him and went in alone since he was alone. He had no partner, no backup. Well, the rapist had a gun and shot Rick. He put in a call and it was answered. I never found out who responded to his call for backup but they found him and instead of calling for an ambulance they let him bleed to death. They didn't want a fag around and they got their wish. They let their "brother in blue" die because he loved another man. So, you see, that's how I know the cops aren't gonna do much to me if I killed you. Hell, they'd probably give me a medal if I wasn't also a faggot." When he finished his story, I was so conflicted. My heart broke for him because I could tell he loved this Rick guy and he missed him. But this man was currently holding me hostage to force my boyfriend to break up with me and run off with him. "Mike," Bear finally spoke, voice full of emotion. "I'm sorry you went through that," he said, and I could tell that he wanted to hug him and the only thing keeping him from doing so was the fact that he was holding me hostage. I didn't know how to feel about that. "That's why I know that we belong together, Bear. You get me. You saved me from grief and showed me that I can be happy again. We can be so happy together," he said with that desperate tone again. I shook my head because it was starting to dawn on me that I wouldn't be getting out of this unscathed. ******** LIBERTY'S POV It had been about an hour since Bear had left to go to where Trey had told him to meet him. This whole thing felt wrong and now everybody was starting to lose it. "First Trey and now Bear? Something is wrong," Mrs. Healey said and I agreed. "Zane! If you don't wanna marry me then just tell me instead of keeping everybody waiting like this!" Nicole yelled from outside the suite door as she banged on it. "Don't be an idiot! If I didn't wanna marry you, I wouldn't have proposed in the first place!" Zane yelled back. "Zane, please don't yell at your soon-to-be bride," Mr. Healey admonished as he dropped a hand on Zane's shoulder. "I'll go talk to her," Mrs. Healey said before she left the room. She made sure to block Zane from seeing Nicole in her dress. "Trey's not back yet?" Justice asked as she came into the room, followed by Jessica and Ivy. "No, and I think something is wrong. It's been over 3 hours now, and now Bear is missing too. Something is up," Zane said, and I realized that I'd better tell them about Trey calling Bear. "Trey called Bear just before he left," I blurted out, and they all looked at me. Then they all started talking at once. "Hold it, hold it, HOLD IT!" Mr. Healey said and then shouted. The room became silent. When he was sure that he had everybody's attention, he turned to me and asked me to tell him what I knew. I told him about the call and about how suspicious it was. I told him that I hadn't gotten the address from Bear but that I had remembered that the address was in the outskirts of town. Zane then sprung into action by calling his partner Brett up to the suite. They conferred and they both made some calls before leaving the room. Calvin and Ivy went to tell everyone in the other suite what was going on while Mr. Healey went to stall the guests. Justice told me to follow her and we went out to her car. She retrieved a laptop from her trunk and started doing some techie stuff that went over my head. I asked what she was doing and she said that she was hacking Trey's phone. I looked incredulously at her and accused her of putting some spyware on his phone like Dave had said she would. She just rolled her eyes and kept at it. A couple of police cars arrived after a short while and a few police officers got out and talked to Zane and Brett just as Mr. and Mrs. Healey came out of the hall. They went to talk to Zane. The plan became to do a sweep on the general area outside of town. I didn't know how far outside town the address had been so it could be hours still before they found Trey, and Bear if he was with him. That didn't end up being the case though as Justice managed to hack into his GPS and narrow down where he was. The officers looked at her and she said that she didn't know how she had gotten the information. I knew that they wanted to say more but they didn't have time. Another police car pulled up just as the other cops and Zane were headed for their cars. I could tell by how Zane looked at them that he wasn't fond of the two officers that got out. Brett talked to them and they hopped back in their car and pulled off along with the other 2 cars. Zane and Brett got in Brett's car and they followed. I just hoped that they found the guys and that they were okay because I had a bad feeling. ******** TREY'S POV I could tell that Bear was warring with himself. He was torn between trying to reason with Mike because he felt sorry for him after hearing his story and rushing him and beating him to a bloody pulp. I did feel sorry for him at first but as I contemplated my situation that empathy started to wane. "Mike, I know you've been through a lot but you have to know that nothing is gonna happen between us. It doesn't matter how much you claim to love me. I could never love you, not like that. My heart belongs to Trey and it always will," Bear said as empathetically as possible. I couldn't stop the smile that came to my face. "But I love you, Bear," Mike said emotionally as tears fell from his eyes "I know you do, but it doesn't matter. I can't give you what you want," Bear said in his most reasonable tone. "I know you think that this is it but you'll meet somebody one day that will love you like you love them. I'm proof that you can love again," Bear continued and I was shocked that it looked like Bear was getting through to him. "You're right. You are proof that I can love again," Mike said with a hopeful look on his face. I started to breathe a sigh of relief before I noticed that his eyes and expression hardened. "But if you won't give me what I want, if I can't have what I want, then you don't get to have what you say you want," Mike said with a cold tone as he lifted his arm to aim the gun back at me and cocked the gun. "Mike, wait!" Bear shouted as he held his arms up. "Sorry Bear," Mike said in that same cold tone. Time seemed to slow down then as I was able to take in the horror that happened. Bear started running towards me as I heard the gunfire. I closed my eyes and waited for the bullet to hit me. I remembered the pain of the bullets piercing me as they passed through Clyde and I waited for that pain again. The pain never came though, and I chanced a peek. I cracked my eyes and saw Mike standing there with the gun still mostly pointed at me but his eyes were bucked wide. I didn't see Bear though with my eyes slightly open and that scared me so I snapped my eyes open and saw Bear lying on the ground holding his shoulder. Time started to pass normally again then. "Aw, FUCK!" Bear screamed as he held his shoulder. "BEAR!" I screamed and he looked up at me. "Are you alright, baby?" He asked as he rolled over and looked at me. I could see the pain in his eyes. "What do you mean am I okay?! Did that fucker just shoot you?!" I yelled as I tried to break the binding that held me to the chair. It's funny that it wasn't until then that I realized that this chair was bolted to the floor. "The pain in my shoulder says yes," Bear hissed as he squeezed his eyes closed and continued to hold his shoulder. "Bear, I'm sorry," Mike said softly. He sounded like he was in a daze as he continued to look at us with his eyes bucked wide. "You motherfucker! You shot my man! I'm gonna kill your ass!" I shouted as I rocked and writhed and moved in every way I could think to try and loosen the binding that held me trapped. "Bear, I'm so sorry," Mike said again before he started to move towards him. "Stay the fuck away from me!" Bear roared so loud somebody had to have heard him even from what I guessed was this remote area. Mike's eyes surprisingly got even bigger and he backed up from Bear who was now writhing around on the ground. It was almost like he had forgotten the gun he still had in his hand. "Trey?! Are you here?!" I heard in what sounded like Zane's voice. I felt relieved but also guilty. I had definitely ruined his wedding day. "I'm in here! Hurry up! Bear's been shot!" I shouted loud enough for him to hear. About a minute or so later I heard the sound of running feet. A few seconds later he was there at my side. He dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around me and I felt safe that my big brother had come to save me. There was a time that I wouldn't have had this thought about Zane but I was happy that this was my first thought. "Drop it!" I heard in what sounded like the voice of Brett, Zane's partner. I craned my head as far as I could and saw him along with 3 other cops with their guns drawn on Mike. He looked like he wasn't gonna do it at first but then he dropped it. They then advanced on him and Brett threw him to the ground and cuffed him. He looked up at Bear just as another cop holding what looked like a tackle box came running over to check on him. "How ya doing?" He asked Bear and I rolled my eyes. The guy had a bleeding hole in his shoulder. How do you think he's doing? "Not great," Bear said through gritted teeth. "EMT is on the way," the guy said. He then took something out of the tackle box and pressed it to Bear's bleeding wound. Zane finally started to untie me. I noticed that he looked furious and I somehow thought that it was directed at me. He dismissed those fears though as when he finally had me free, he stood up and pulled me into another crushing hug. When I returned it, he let out what I guess was a sigh of relief. Two more cops came in just before he released me. "Are you okay?" He asked as he partially released me. He looked so worried. "I'm fine. Bear's not though," I said before moving over to him. "Bear, are you okay?" I asked and cringed. I sounded like the cop that was applying pressure to his wound. "I'm okay, baby. I'm glad you're safe though," he said with a pained smile as he lifted his right hand up to caress my face. I held his big hand to my face and tried to impart the love I felt for him to him. I heard what sounded like a scoff or a snort from behind me. I looked over and the latecomers looked at me with a weird smirk. They then looked over at Mike with that same look and it got my hackles up. "We got somebody wounded in here?" An EMT said before two of them entered the warehouse. They noticed Bear and made their way over to us. Zane got me to move back and the other officer did as well to let the EMTs get to Bear. One of them checked his wound while the other one hooked him up to a machine to monitor his vitals. They determined that the bullet was still in his shoulder as there was no exit wound. I already knew that though because if the bullet wasn't still in his shoulder, it would have been in me. They got him stable before getting him on a stretcher and carried him away. Meanwhile, the other three officers hauled Mike away. The officer who had tended to Bear talked to Zane and Brett for a bit before Zane came over and told me that I had to go with them down to the precinct to answer some questions. Zane led me out of the warehouse and the officer who had taken care of Bear introduced himself as Ofc. Sanchez and his partner as Ofc. Daniels. Ofc. Sanchez guided me to the back of their car. I looked at Zane and he gave me an encouraging smile before I got in. I looked back at him as the cops pulled away and he looked so worried. I felt so guilty for ruining his big day. ******** ZANE'S POV It was quiet as we drove to the precinct. Brett had tried to talk to me at first but when he realized that I wasn't receptive to talking he gave up. My mind was so jumbled. I was relieved, furious, and worried all balled up into one. I was relieved that Trey was safe, furious that this fool had abducted my brother and ruined my wedding day, and I was worried about Bear. I knew that his wound while serious was not life-threatening. That didn't mean that complications couldn't happen. We pulled up to the precinct and I saw that Sanchez and Daniels were already there which meant that Trey was probably already being questioned. We got out and headed into the precinct but I was accosted before we got fully inside by my parents, Calvin, and my very pissed-off bride. "Nicole, what are you doing here? You know that I'm not supposed to be seeing you in your dress," I said and I heard Brett snicker behind me. He then patted me on my shoulder before heading on inside. "I think that's the least of what we need to be worried about," she said, and while I kinda agreed I still wanted to preserve some element of today. "Where's your brother?" Dad asked with a deeply worried frown on his face. "I was just headed inside to check on him," I said before heading inside. They followed after me. I asked Brett what he knew when I found him. "That Mike guy is in interview room one and they got your brother in three," he said but I could tell there was something he wasn't saying. I headed on back and I saw Sarge standing outside interview room one looking in and listening to Mike being questioned. I only listened for a minute before went over to see about Trey. "What are they doing in there?" I asked Sanchez. Officers Flaherty and Finnegan were questioning Trey. I didn't like them but I couldn't put my finger on why. "Daniels and I were gonna talk to him but they said they'd handle it and Sarge okayed it," he said. "So, let me get this straight? He just kidnapped you from your house? Are you sure there's no reason why he would want to do that?" Flaherty asked barely disguising how condescending he was being. "I don't know why he abducted me," Trey said obviously holding something back. I wanted to know why this guy had kidnapped my brother and shot Bear. From what little I knew about him; he was supposed to be one of Bear's friends. "Are you sure about that?" Finnegan asked with a smirk that annoyed me, especially since it was aimed at my brother. "I don't know why he went crazy. He's one of Bear's friends," Trey said confirming that bit for me. He looked really dodgy though. "And this "Bear" guy is your boyfriend I take it?" Flaherty asked in the same condescending tone as before. He and Finnegan exchanged looks and they both smirked at each other. It was like they knew something I didn't. "He's my fiancé," Trey said through gritted teeth. I could tell he was holding back his usual Trey snarkiness with great effort. I heard one of them scoff at him saying that Bear was his fiancé. "So, this guy kidnaps you, hauls you off to some abandoned warehouse in the middle of nowhere, ties you to a chair that's bolted to the floor and you have no idea why he would do so?" Finnegan asked and I was seriously getting pissed off. "Like I said, no. Maybe you should ask him," Trey said again with great restraint. On one hand, I wondered why he was being so evasive with their questions. On the other hand, though, their questioning was making that clear. "We are but I want to hear your side of the story," Flaherty said with that same knowing smirk. I looked over as Sarge came to stand in between me and Sanchez. "I don't have a side. I went home to pick up something for my brother's wedding and the next thing I know I'm tied up in some warehouse," Trey said letting just a bit of flippancy slip out. "Well now, I think you do," Flaherty said still being condescending. Trey started to get angry but I saw the moment when he put up one of his walls that he used to keep anybody from seeing how he was really feeling. "Enlighten me," Trey said with a smirk on his face as he sat back in his seat and eyed both the officers. Finnegan was pissed off but Flaherty charged on. "I think you and that big guy and ole Mikey had some kinda queer lovers quarrel that went way wrong. Does that sound about right?" Flaherty said and Trey's cocky facade crumbled and a deep frown etched into his face. That was it for me. I started to head into the room but Sarge grabbed my arm. "Where do you think you're going?" Sarge asked. He didn't sound angry but I definitely was. "Those yahoos are in there questioning my brother like he did something wrong. He's the victim here," I said barely containing my anger. "Your brother is hiding something and they're trying to get it out of him. That Mike guy didn't volunteer much. He asked for a lawyer after beating around the bush," Sarge said but I wasn't buying it. "They act like they've got something against my brother. I can tell," I said and I looked over to see Sanchez trying to hush me up before I got in hot water. "Your brother knows more than he's telling and if we're gonna charge Mike correctly we need to find out why he abducted him," Sarge said and while that sounded logical, I just couldn't get my overprotectiveness to subside. I wanted to argue but I was quiet. Sarge turned the intercom back on as he had turned it off when he grabbed my arm. "-so he grabbed you and took you to that warehouse to talk some sense into ya. The big guy came in and interrupted you so he shot him. Now, isn't that what happened?" Finnegan asked and I tried my best to restrain myself. I saw Trey debating with himself about something. I saw something akin to resignation come over his face before he let out a deep sigh. "Mike was in love with Bear, not me. He kidnapped me to make Bear leave me and run off with him. When he didn't get what he wanted he tried to shoot me but Bear jumped in front of the bullet. Is that enough for you?" Trey said and I was beyond furious. It was all I could do to stop myself from rushing over and stomping the bastard. "So basically, this was just a queer lovers quarrel case," Flaherty said with a smarmy grin that I wanted to punch off his face. "No, it wasn't a "queer lover's quarrel case". It was a "psychopath who is obsessed with my fiancé abducted me and tried to kill me" case," Trey said barely containing his anger at the situation he had found himself in. Sarge knocked on the glass to call Flaherty and Finnegan out of the room. "What's up Sarge?" Finnegan said as they exited the room and closed the door behind them. "That's enough. We got everything we need," he said, but they both looked like they wanted to go at Trey some more. He turned to me and told me I could go in and see him before turning off the intercom and instructing Finnegan and Flaherty to follow him. I didn't wait around. I headed in to check on Trey. I asked him if there was anything he hadn't told Flaherty and Finnegan and he looked apprehensive. I assured him that nobody was listening and he told me about Mike hacking his and Bear's phones and trying to break the two of them up before they found out and confronted him. He said that there was something else but that he'd wait until we were out of there to tell me. He had to fill out an official statement and when he was done, he wanted to go to the hospital to check on Bear. I led him out of the interview room and back to the squad room. Ma, Dad, Calvin, and Nicole were still there waiting. They all hugged him and I could tell that he was exhausted. I was just getting ready to go myself when Brett came up and told me that Sarge wanted me to hang back. He told me that Mike was in a holding cell and again I wanted to go and hurt him but I restrained myself. I watched Trey walk out of the precinct with my family and then I looked over at Finnegan and Flaherty. They were watching him too with some weird smirks on their faces. I decided to keep my eye on them. ******** TREY'S POV The "interview" those cops gave me had me exhausted and furious. I could tell when they first entered the room that they didn't like me. Mike's story came front and center to my mind. They had definitely been involved with the cold treatment his boyfriend Rick had received. I couldn't get a reading on any of the other officers. The only person I knew for sure who wasn't like that was Brett. He had known me for a couple of years now and he had known that I was gay for most of that time and hadn't treated me any differently when he found out. I didn't want to tell those cops anything even after what Mike had done because his story was still in my head. Hearing them call what had happened to me, happened to Bear a "queer lover's quarrel" though broke the seal on my lips. I had to set the record straight. And in the end, it was Mike's own fault he had been exposed like this as nobody told him to abduct me and hold my life as a ransom to force Bear to break up with me and run off with him. It's just a shame that Bear and I had been exposed as well. Hopefully, this wouldn't end up in the news or on social media. We arrived at the hospital and I jumped out of the car before Dad came to a complete stop. I ran inside and frantically looked around. I saw my friends and Bear's parents and sister crowded in the waiting room. I rushed over to them. "How is he?" I asked in a rush. "He's still in surgery," Mr. Davidson said "How are you?" Mrs. Davidson asked as she stood up. She walked over to me and checked me over like I was one of her children. "I'll live. I'm just worried about Bear," I said as every bad scenario threatened to play in my head. "You're not leaving the house without somebody with you from now on," Justice said and I rolled my eyes. "Justice," some of my friends moaned. "What? He can't leave the house without getting kidnapped. He's like a damsel-in-distress," Justice said and most everyone groaned. I took a seat in between Bear's parents and waited. My family came in after a few more minutes. Our group had the waiting room mostly full as we waited on news of Bear. We probably looked odd all dressed formally in a hospital waiting room. After another 30 minutes, a doctor came out to speak to Bear's parents. He told them that Bear came out of surgery well and that he was awake. He told them they could go and talk with him for a bit but not too long. Mrs. Davidson told him that I was her son's fiancé and he tried to hide his surprise but I saw his eyes widen slightly. He said that I could go with them but not overdo it. We followed him as he walked up to a woman who he introduced as Melinda the charge nurse. She lead us to Bear's room and stood outside as we went in. Bear's eyes were closed and I took him in laying in this hospital bed. I wondered what he thought as he saw me for the first time after my surgery. I hated seeing my big strong guy lying in here. "Hey sweetie," Mrs. Davidson said as she walked over to the bed. Mr. Davidson followed her. He opened his eyes slowly and looked at them. I could tell he was still sleepy from the anesthesia. "Hey," he said sounding drowsy. "How are you feeling?" Mr. Davidson asked. He had a worried frown on his face. They were on the side where he had been shot and I could tell seeing him with his shoulder wrapped was getting to them as it was me. "I've been better," he said. He then looked around and finally at the door where he saw me. His eyes lit up just a bit and a small smile came to his lips. "What are you doing way over there?" He asked and I'll admit that I didn't know. All I can say was that I felt guilty that he was lying in here. "No reason," I chose to say instead. I walked over to the side of his bed with his good arm. When I reached him, he reached over and took my hand in his. His smile grew and the knot in my stomach that had been there ever since I had opened my eyes and saw him lying on the floor bleeding started to loosen. "How are you?" He asked like he wasn't the one lying in the hospital fresh out of surgery to remove a bullet from his shoulder. "I'll live, and you'd better too," I told him and he chuckled a bit. His parents did too. "Don't worry. You're never gonna get rid of me," he said and I made a show out of rolling my eyes like that was such a big imposition. "We're gonna let you two have a few minutes alone before it's time to leave. Besides, I know you wanna smooch and you're obviously not gonna do it with the two of us in here," Mr. Davidson said, adding that last part with a mischievous grin that Bear definitely got from him. "Lawrence," Mrs. Davidson said at the same time that Bear said "Dad". "What?" He asked with an all too innocent look on his face. "Come on you," Mrs. Davidson said before pulling him out of the room with her. I was still stunned that he would say such a thing. "Well, since we are alone," Bear said before pulling me down near him. He waited for me and I didn't wait long. I leaned in and gently pressed my lips to his. I was thankful that I could do so. I was so thankful that he was still here. I didn't wanna admit it but I was still haunted by Mike's story and that plus his actions made me feel clingy in regards to Bear. I resisted the urge to do so though and opted for a tame kiss. He wasn't having it though and wrapped his good arm around my neck pulling me more against him and his lips. I felt his tongue lick my lips and I granted it entry and we entered full-on make-out territory before we heard someone clear their throat. I jumped up and Bear snickered. It was a nurse who came in and checked the machine with his IV while trying to hide the amusement on his face. I stayed for another hour before they told me that Bear needed to rest. I gave him another more tame kiss before leaving. Our friends came by while I was there the next day and Liberty joked that Bear just couldn't let me be the only one to have gotten shot and that we needed to stop having to do everything the other did. He laughed and said that she had ruined his plan but that she had to get shot now to cement our childhood friendship. She flipped him the bird and called him a distant acquaintance while looking around all suspiciously like she expected to get shot next. Sean joked that Bear had better not get used to the sponge baths that he got in the hospital as there was nobody that was gonna carry on the tradition once he was released. I corrected him that I would be more than happy to do so and he shot me a smoldering look that had me plumping up a bit. Bear was discharged from the hospital after a few more days and told to take it easy. He found out that he wouldn't be able to play football for most of the fall season and while I thought he would be devastated, or at least sad, he just wasn't. I asked him if he was okay but he just smiled and said everything happened for a reason. I chose to believe that he was okay. Besides, it wasn't like his career was over. After what happened on their first wedding day, Zane and Nicole chose to have a small intimate wedding with just their families and their close friends at our house. My friends weren't happy but I did delight in messing with them that they weren't invited. I showed the wedding pictures and Jessica practically hissed at me. I still felt guilty that I had messed up their first wedding but they both told me that I was being stupid and that they were just happy that I was safe. I chose to believe them and told them that they'd better not keep me waiting for long for my nephew or niece. They both laughed and slapped the back of my head which Calvin laughed at from all the times that I had done that to him. I just smiled and plotted my revenge against him. After all, you never let your little brother get the better of you. To be continued... ******** Author's Note: Mike definitely play his hand here. Hello everyone and welcome back to The Chronicles of Trey and those in his life. Continuing from the cliffhanger ending we see that it's Mike who abducted Trey. While the guys were shocked at the lengths that Mike had gone to before, I don't think even they could have figured out how far Mike would go to get Bear. His backstory was a sad one and it might present a problem going forward with the introduction of Officers Flaherty and Finnegan. Bear is shot and Trey got a taste of what Bear had gone through when he had been shot. Bear came through surgery but now he's benched for at least some of the football season. Does Trey have a reason to worry? Will this be the end of Bear's football career? Zane and Nicole did get married although it was a small intimate family wedding. How long will it be before we get to see Zane become a dad? Will he and Bear commiserate over the joys and trials of fatherhood? Did put Spyware on everybody's phones? Will Trey ever learn to rein in his "smart mouth" and snarkiness during a crisis? Find out in the continuing saga of Trey. See, I didn't take 2 and a half years to post an update. Good news is that I think I have the following 4-5 chapters lined up with some already done. I also have started another story. I want to get more of it written before I post regularly but I wanted to get the first few chapters out first to get feedback on whether or not you all would be interested in seeing more of it. If you haven't seen it yet it's title is Jude's Arc. Let me know what you think. I hope everyone had a good holiday season and that their 2023 has started off on a good note. Please send any comments to thestoryguy9783@gmail.com and check the Editor's notes for my editor JD's email. Thanks for your continued reading and until next time... Nicky ******** Editor's Note: Does anyone else think those two cops are going to be a problem going forward? Hello all and welcome back sorry for the long wait. Mike went a little crazy there in the end, and I feel like we have a new plot coming our way. But the wedding was a bust from the last chapter and I can understand having a small wedding. Bear took the shot for Trey. I'm sad that Bear got shot but at least Trey didn't have to relive the bullets like he though he would. But not begin able to play for some of the Fall season, is Trey right in thinking that his career is over. Hope you are all well and safe in this crazy world we live in here. If you have any questions or just want to let us know how we are doing on this story you can get a hold of Nicky on the email above and me at jd.kaster1987@gmail.com. Until then JDK