Yet everything Ian had said earlier did keep repeating in his head, the horror of what he’d gone through and he hadn’t even shared everything. Hollis knew the story got darker, knew from some of the stories he’d heard working undercover. He could only imagine what those parties had been like. Fury shot like wildfire through his body as he wished he had Jagger in front of his gun again.
Hollis remembered being a teen and learning all the pleasure sex brought. How magical it had felt, how he’d wanted to do it all the time, any chance he got. He’d been a walking hard-on and once he’d realized why girls didn’t do anything for him, he’d been insatiable. He and his best friend in high school. They’d learned fast how to sneak into bars, how to pick up guys.
The pain that stabbed into his belly at the thought of Ryan made him tighten his arm around Ian again. When his friend had disappeared all those years ago, it was very possible he’d been sold into a life like the one Ian had escaped. It had been one of his biggest fears and the reason he’d gone into Missing Persons in the beginning. To this day, the hope that he’d learn the fate of his friend still lived. But he knew better. Years of experience had taught him that answers rarely came in those cases.
Ian half crawled on top of Hollis, head butting Hollis’s jaw as he slid one leg over his thigh and because they hadn’t put on clothes, he felt Ian’s soft dick press against him. His own cock started to fill instantly. He kissed the top of Ian’s head even as he willed his dick back down. He kept his lips in Ian’s hair, enjoying the soft, silky strands, the faint scent of vanilla and other cooking spices. Ian had only been learning about his own sexual preferences with that toy he’d talked about. He’d been a child and full of discovery and to have his parents react…to have parents that actually sold him to a known pedophile?
He was surprised Lucas or Rowe hadn’t searched them out. He wanted to know who they were, wanted to dig into their lives until he found something that would put them away for life.
One a.m. had come and gone by the time Hollis felt sleep pulling him under. He instantly came back awake when Ian crawled over him. A loud thump sounded as he hit the floor.
Chuckling, Hollis leaned over the side of the bed. “You okay?”
Ian didn’t answer. Instead, he began crawling across the floor to the bedroom door.
“Hey, Ian,” Hollis called out louder. He sat up, then scrambled out of the bed when Ian didn’t respond to his voice. He shivered and hurried to the door to reach down and put his hand on Ian’s back. Ian stopped moving. “Are you still asleep and trying to find the bed?” He snickered. “Come on, GQ. It’s cold.”
When Ian sat up to open the door, then resumed his steady army crawl down the hall, true alarm filled Hollis. He slipped on a pair of sweatpants and grabbed a pair of shorts for Ian. When he got back to Ian, he’d already made it across the kitchen floor.
The dogs whined from Rowe and Noah’s room and Hollis heard the door open. Heard Rowe tell the dogs to stay. Soft footfalls sounded before he and Noah stopped next to Hollis. Rowe flipped on the light.
“Don’t look until I get something on him,” Hollis muttered as he bent to work the shorts over Ian’s legs. The entire time, the man was trying to curl into a lower cabinet in the kitchen. Hollis’s heart suddenly felt as fragile as crystal. Any second it would shatter into a million pieces.
“Oh fuck,” Rowe murmured, his voice breaking. “What is he trying to do? Wake him up. Wake him the fuck up right now.”
“I don’t think you’re supposed to wake someone sleepwalking,” Noah whispered.
“He’s not walking. He’s not…walking.” Rowe squatted beside Ian. “Hey buddy, wake up.”
Ian only whimpered and tried to wedge himself into the cabinet.
Sure his heart was no longer in one piece, Hollis sat down on the floor and reached for Ian, who started struggling. He wrapped his fingers around Ian’s arms. “Hey, it’s me.”
Ian only fought harder, his head slamming back into the shelf inside the cabinet. He kicked out, hitting Rowe, who had squatted closer. He was making these noises that ripped through Hollis like claws because they sounded terrified and almost child-like. Like memories manifesting in real time. Sobs tore from his throat, sounding like they were ripped free, like he was doing everything possible to hold them back, to stay quiet. Hollis knew, just knew, that he was caught in some nightmare recollection. His stomach turned over. Ian kicked out again, his foot catching Rowe’s cheek.