THEY ALL SEEMED TO TRY TO SQUEEZE THROUGH the Shakespearean’s door at the same time and when they popped through, laughing nervously, they returned to the table they had vacated. The waiter looked at them funny but came over and asked if they wanted the same round as before.
Skyler flopped into his chair with relief.
But Philip was a killjoy as usual. “Don’t think this lets you off the hook. There were cameras everywhere.”
“Philip’s right,” said Skyler. “We’d better start coming up with a story.”
“A plausible one?” asked Dave. “I don’t think there’s any such thing.”
“Okay, an implausible one.”
Jamie looked mournful as he examined the tear in his shirt. “Do you suppose any of that stuff was legit?”
“I guess it could be,” said Skyler. “But is it likely?”
Dave drank a dose of beer and set his glass down. “Sky, you gotta call Sidney.”
“Yes, Skyler,” insisted Philip. “Right now.”
“Right now?”
“Right now. Or I will.”
For once, he agreed. He took out his phone and hit her contact number.
“Hey, Skyler. How’s my party planning going? Did you get a hold of everyone?”
“Hey, Sid. Yeah, it’s fine. Everyone seems to be able to make it Saturday. Even some of Mike’s family. We’ll get the whole top floor.”
“Good. How about the cop list I gave you?”
“It’s all good, Sid. Um…doing anything right now?”
“Mike and I were just settling in to watch another hilarious episode of Law & Order.”
“Okay. But maybe you could come over to the Shakespearean. The guys are here.”
“I’m too bushed for that.”
“I think you might want to. Um—okay, Philip, I’m doing it! Sidney? There’s sort of something I need to talk to you about.”
“Can’t it wait? It’s…what, almost ten?”
“For God’s sake,” groused Philip. He grabbed the phone out of Skyler’s hand.
“Hey!”
“Sidney, Skyler and friends just broke into a storage facility—all so very illegal—and he needs to talk to you about what he found.” Philip held the phone away from his ear for a moment, but everyone heard the blue tirade. Jamie looked intrigued with some of the expressions he had, no doubt, never heard before.
“Just get over here.” He clicked off the phone and handed it back. “You were taking too long,” he said in a half-hearted apology.
“Thanks, Philip! I can make my own explanations, you know.”
They drank quietly, no one saying much, until after about fifteen minutes, the door burst open and Sidney stood in the doorway. Dressed in a black tank top and khaki shorts, she stomped inside and stood above their table. Mike sauntered in after her and swept them all with a look that seemed to say, “You’re in for it now.”
“Skyler, what the living fuck did you do?”
“Could you keep your voice down and just sit. Hi, Mike.”
“Hi, Skyler.” Mike pulled out a chair for Sidney and sat in the one beside it.
“Is she armed?” he asked
“I made sure she wasn’t.”
“Good.”
“Shut up, both of you. So who’s going to tell me what you did?”
Skyler looked around at the blank faces and lowered his face. “It’s on me. I’ll tell.”
The waiter approached but Sidney whipped her head up with a face so full of vitriol that he spun on his heel. “I’ll be back in a bit,” he muttered and returned to the bar.
“Talk!” she ordered.
“Okay. So…so Philip overheard Jerome Williams—you know, from the museum—he heard him talking to that asswipe Ethan on the phone about a storage locker and when Jerome left to go to the locker Philip followed him.”
She held up a hand and shook her long curls over her shoulder. “Wait. Why was Philip eavesdropping on Jerome? Do you know him?” She turned toward Philip.
“I got caught up in Skyler’s recognizance of the museum. I went in posed as a simple patron just so I could spy on the place.”
“Okay—idiot. Then what?”
“Me or Skyler?”
“Skyler.”
“Yeah, so Philip followed him and saw him at one of those storage units. And then he texted me and I gathered the guys.”
She scanned their faces again, but they were all ducked into their beer glasses or were suddenly fascinated by the soccer playing out on the TV screens.
“And then we went over to the storage place but they were closed. So…I…suggested—just for myself, mind you—to…climb the fence.”
Her long fingernails drummed on the table. He watched the manicured nails click one after the other.
“So…so…then the others came over…except Philip…and then we all went to look at the locker. Oh! And Dave brought his bold cutters.”
She and Mike turned as one toward Dave. “You what?”
Dave rubbed his eyebrow. “Yeah, I think I was hypnotized or something. I plead the fifth.”
“You think this is funny? Trespassing? Breaking and entering? Possession of stolen property?”
Skyler jumped in. “We didn’t take anything!”
“Oh. What a relief. Go on.”
“We found the locker and cut the lock off— you know, when I say it all like that, it does sound pretty bad.”
“That’s because it is pretty bad.”
“I know. And then we opened it up.”
“So were the museum exhibits in there?”
“No. But a shitload of stolen sports stuff. Look.” He turned on his phone and showed Sidney the pictures.
She grabbed the phone out of his hands and scrutinized it. She showed it to Mike who nodded.
“Looks like stolen stuff to me,” said Mike.
“So then we closed up the locker and left. We were chased by dogs. It was really scary. Dave almost got bitten.”
“And where is Superhunk through all this?”
“Keith? He’s out of town. I mean, he’ll be back late.”
“Did he know you were doing this? I thought he was supposed to be regulating your activities.”
“Not ‘regulating.’ Just…helping. And no, he doesn’t know. The place was closing. I wanted to get to it before Jerome got rid of the stuff. Except I thought it was museum stuff.”
She heaved a sigh and dropped her face in her hand, massaging her temples. “Okay. We’ll play it like this. We’ll call that storage place, say that it was reported that there was suspicious activity near locker number—what’s the number?”
“One fifty-six.”
“That number, and we’re going to investigate. We notice the lock is off, the door is ajar—somehow—and we spot something suspicious inside. We call for a warrant, yadda yadda and go from there.”
“Skyler?” asked Mike, leaning on the table. “Were you guys seen?”
“Well…there were a lot of cameras there.”
“Did you ever look directly into any of the cameras?”
Jamie raised his hand. “I might have. It was irresistible. Like telling someone to clear their mind and all they can do is fill it with things…and then they can’t help it.”
“Not true,” said Sidney. “I don’t believe for one minute any of your minds are filled with anything.”
“I stayed outside the fence,” said Philip.
“Next to the getaway car?”
“I…” Philip closed his mouth.
“I will do what I can to staunch this menstrual flow of jerkiness…”
“Ewww,” said Jamie.
“…and the rest of you will lay low. Do you all understand me?” Then she smacked Skyler upside the head.
“Ow!”
“Mashugana! Stay out of trouble, goddammit. I’ve got enough on my hands with our real detective work.”
“Well you haven’t gotten very far on Lester’s murder. Someone had to step in.”
For once, Skyler was in real fear that she was ready to haul off and punch him. He cowered back but she only narrowed her eyes. Mike interjected before she could.
“We’re doing our best with what we’ve got, Skyler. And this really could help. We’ll see where it takes us. In the meantime, you have to stay out of the way.”
“Okay. I know.”
Sidney and Mike rose. “So we’re going to go over there now,” she said. “And I will inform you of our progress just so you don’t meddle again. But I am telling Keith what you did, because I want him to know what’s going on.”
“I’ll tell him, Sid.”
“No. I can’t trust you. And I want him to know. Have a trouble-free evening, gentlemen.”
Skyler watched her leave and he glared into his beer.
Dave rose. “Well it has been a slice, but it looks like it’s time for me to turn in.” He was smiling at least, and it seemed genuine.
“I hope we don’t get into trouble.”
“I was banking on Sidney getting us out of it. It’s kinda nice having the cops on our side to get us out of fixes.”
“But you simply cannot rely upon that,” said Philip.
“Sure I can. We’re the SFC! And Skyler’s homonista has our back.”
“Oh God,” said Philip. “Another true believer.”
“Dave’s right,” said Rodolfo. “I do not worry because I know Sidney will come to the rescue.”
Philip jolted to his feet. “Let’s go. I’m afraid if you stay any longer you’ll be thoroughly brainwashed.”
“What does washing a brain have to do with anything? And why would someone do that?”
“Come on, Rodolfo!”
With eyes rolling, Rodolfo threaded his arm in Philip’s, waved to everyone, and hurried his steps to keep up with Philip out the door.
“You coming, Jamie?” asked Dave.
“I guess.”
“My place?”
“Oh. I didn’t know if you’d be up for it.”
“Actually, this high-adrenalin stuff turns me on.” He grabbed the growing bulge in his crotch. “I’m ‘up’ for it right now.”
Jamie gave Dave the once over. “I see! Well, good-night, then, Skyboy. Go straight home.”
Shoulder to shoulder, they exited the tavern and Skyler sat alone. He finished his beer, left a tip, and slowly walked out to his Bug. He sat in the car, staring out the windshield, hands draped over the steering wheel. What was Keith going to say?
* * *
Plenty, as it turned out.
Keith paced back and forth across their living room. “I leave you for a few hours and what happens?”
“No one got hurt. Sidney’s covering for us. We found out something important.”
“That’s not the point. Stop pretending it is. You’re an adult. Act like one.”
“I wish you wouldn’t talk to me like that. You do dangerous things all the time.”
“I’m trained. I have a badge. I stay within the law, Skyler. All those measures are there for my safety as well as the public’s.”
“No one got hurt.”
“This time. What about the next time?”
“I’m taking those self-defense classes you made me take.”
Keith flopped down on the sofa, cradling his head in his hands.
Skyler stood over him. “You said you’d be on my side. You said I could still investigate.”
“I thought I would be with you when you did.”
“It couldn’t wait.”
“And what if you get hurt?”
“What if I do?”
Keith merely looked at him before he lowered his gaze to the floor. “I promised.”
“Yeah, you did.”
“Shit. That was probably the dumbest thing I ever said.”
Skyler wanted to point out that agreeing to that bet to take home that woman was probably first in line as the dumbest thing, but he held his tongue.
Instead, he sat next to him. “So if all the yelling is out of the way…what do you think? Of the situation, not me and my investigating habits.”
Keith scrubbed at his cheeks before angling his face toward Skyler. “Truth? It sounds fucking fishy to me.”
“Sidney said she’d call me back. Do you think Ethan is the collaborator…or instigator?”
“God I hope it’s the latter. How I’d love to see him behind bars.”
“There now. Doesn’t all that make you feel better?”
He leaned in until his mouth was close to Skyler’s. “I worry over you.”
Skyler lifted a hand to cup Keith’s stubbly cheek. “Don’t.” He leaned in the rest of the way and kissed him, lips warming on lips. They kissed for a while. Skyler hadn’t even noticed when he’d pivoted and ended up in Keith’s arms, fully encompassed and chest to chest, breathing in Keith’s musk. “Wanna take this to the bedroom?” Skyler whispered.
“Love to.” Absorbed in kissing, he nearly carried Skyler the rest of the way and Skyler was happy to let him.
Keith’s stubble burned Skyler’s smooth cheek, but he loved the feeling, loved holding on and sucking on the man’s mouth. He kneaded those hard biceps. Fingers massaged up that taut neck before slinging up around it. Keith’s lips were full, moist, and soft. They didn’t devour, but explored and gently caressed, even when Skyler sought for more. But though Keith didn’t press or hurry, it seemed just the right thing to Skyler. He savored those lips, their contour, their taste, relished the gentle moans Keith uttered as the man seemed to fall utterly lost into their kiss.
When they got to the room, Keith slowly drew away, trailing his hand all the way down Skyler’s body, from his neck down to his groin and then pinching Skyler’s hard cock through his trousers. He stepped back, taking in Skyler with dreamy eyes, and stripped.
Skyler never got tired of that view, of broad chest and that forest of trimmed hair that led down to a defined six-pack; strong thighs, also dusted with hair; bulging calves; feet worthy of a Michelangelo sculpture.
Keith moved toward the bed—giving Skyler that luscious view of muscled ass—and laid down, his erection jutting proudly above a trimmed thatch of dark hair. “Why don’t you get naked, babe, and come on up?”
Sounded good to Skyler. He quickly stripped off his shirt and kicked his shoes aside, watching them fly. His trousers were next and then socks and underwear. Naked, gleaming from sweat and anticipation, Skyler climbed on the bed and straddled Keith’s body on his hands and knees. His kissed that chest, rubbing his nose through chest hair, and then took a side trip toward a nipple and latched on with his lips. Keith moaned and Skyler sat up and positioned his butt over Keith’s dick, waiting for Keith to give him a sploosh of lube, but Keith seemed to have other plans.
“Uh-uh,” he said. “Come closer.”
“Oh?” Skyler walked forward on his knees till he bestrode the man’s chest.
Keith was staring at Skyler’s cock with a hungry expression. “Feed it to me,” he said.
Amused but now achingly hard, he scooted even further toward Keith’s face, lifted his cock with his hand, and placed it on Keith’s opened lips. His hot mouth enclosed him and Skyler threw back his head in silent bliss. Yes! Warm lips and wet tongue wrapped around him, undulating, sucking, causing magnificent pressure. His balls grazed Keith’s fuzzed chin with an erotic tap-tap rhythm as he sucked, as Keith kept pulling him deeper into his mouth. Skyler watched his dick slide in and out, wet from Keith’s tongue. And Keith was staring up at him, eyes half-lidded, enjoying his meal. Skyler held himself back…until he couldn’t, and began thrusting into that eager mouth beneath him.
Keith’s hands steadied Skyler with a squeeze to his butt cheeks. One hand crept closer to his crease and fingers dipped, exploring, teasing at his hole.
Skyler shoved his butt back against that finger. His thighs quivered, holding himself above his man. Sliding his dick into Keith’s mouth made him feel both powerful and humble, the things that Keith always made him feel. Breathing hard, he watched as Keith brought a hand to his mouth, shoved the finger in alongside Skyler’s cock, and wet it good before returning it to Skyler’s ass.
The wet finger prodded. Skyler opened himself and Keith pushed in the digit releasing a mutual moan from Skyler and a muffled sound from Keith’s throat. The sensations were building. Skyler leaned back, trying to keep his balance. Keith was dipping his finger in earnestly now, circling, thrusting. With his other hand, Keith stroked his own dick with hard pumps.
The ache in his balls, the fullness in his ass, kept Skyler taut on the edge until he couldn’t help but tip over, and a blast of aching want rushed upward and he came with his vision blurred by white-hot sensation. Keith sucked his release down and soon after spattered up Skyler’s back. It dribbled down to Skyler’s butt crack—he felt the tickle of it—but was incapable of doing anything about it, still suspended as he was in bliss and coming down from it like a feather on the wind. Keith still had him in his mouth until he popped his lips open and Skyler slipped out.
He slid bonelessly to the man’s chest and lay there. Keith’s cum cooled on his back but he didn’t care. His whole body rose and fell with Keith’s quickened breaths. His ear listened as the man’s heartbeat slowed from its clamouring rhythm. Kissing the chest through the hair he sighed. “Well, that was good…for starters,” he slurred dreamily.
Keith chuckled.
* * *
Thursday was a blur of bells ringing, students with problems, classes full of laughter, excuses about homework not turned in, whining about grades received, and Alex looking angrier than the day before. Skyler had heard the jibes all day, about how Alex Ryan was beaten up by a girl. That certainly would not help the equality cause. And it didn’t look as if he and Rick had patched up their differences either, though Heather and Drew seemed to have come to some sort of detente.
He asked Elei to stay after when everyone else was dismissed.
“I wanted to ask you something,” he said. “Fridays at lunch I host the Gay-Straight Alliance in my classroom. Now, you’re welcome to come, but I can’t force you to do your detention during that time. You have your choice. You can come on Friday like always and sit in on the GSA meeting with a really great bunch of kids, or you can finish up your detention with me at lunch on Monday.”
She folded her lips inward in thought. Finally, she shrugged. “I don’t mind going to the GSA. People call me a dyke anyways.”
“Um…I think most of them prefer the term ‘lesbian.’”
“Whatever. See you tomorrow, Mr. Foxe.”
“Oh, one more thing. Is Alex getting harassed on the team for…for what happened in class?”
“I don’t know what happens in the locker room, but Coach shuts any of that down at practice. But as for the rest of the school, yeah, he’s getting slammed.”
“Shoot. I was hoping that would cool off by now.”
“People like the story. But it’s pissing the boy off.”
“I can tell. Okay. Thanks, Elei.”
Well, there was nothing he could do about that. It wasn’t as if he could police all of the school. Maybe they could talk it out at the GSA. At least he knew Alex would have to be there. He hoped Rick would stay, too.
Skyler decided to hang around and grade papers instead of going home to do so. He was so involved he hadn’t noticed the time, until his phone dinged. When he pulled it out to look, another museum check had bounced, this time his paycheck. “Now this is ridiculous!” He glanced at the clock. Keith would be at practice at least another hour. The museum would be closing any minute. Maybe he could go over there after everyone left and check the computer to see what was up with the money situation. It would also give him the opportunity to look around, see if anything had been stolen. He was out of the loop, after all, once he had stopped working there.
But Keith would surely want to go with him.
He was sure he’d be fine. He’d go there and be back home in no time, before Keith ever missed him.
Packing up his things, he locked his classroom and headed down the stairs.
There was a bit of traffic moving through town but he parked behind the museum around five fifteen, well after everyone had gone. He walked with purpose to the back door. It was still daylight and he didn’t fear that the neighbors would make a fuss.
The code still worked and so it was an easy thing to go inside. He moved around the desk and switched on the desk lamp before powering up the computer. If everything was normal, no one would have changed any passwords. When the computer was booted, he typed in the login and sure enough.
Clicking on the bookkeeping program, Skyler looked it over. Everything seemed all right, added up. He went to the internet and to the bank website and logged into the bank account. “What the…?” A negative balance, lots of messages and alerts. What was going on? No wonder his checks bounced. He wondered if the others were in similar straits. Scrolling he looked at the dates of deposits and withdrawals. Looked like the withdrawals were right after the deposits. He scrolled further. The withdrawals looked to be coming in greater amounts, but in the distant past they were smaller, maybe even unnoticeable. Someone was obviously skimming off the top and then it got out of hand. Was it really Lester?
He looked at the date of the latest withdrawal. The day before Lester died.
Lester had told Skyler there were no checks, but that was a lie. That’s why he hadn’t written him a reimbursement. He hadn’t wanted to issue one to Skyler that wasn’t any good. He knew. Either it was him doing it or it was Jerome. He supposed Sidney could check to see if Jerome had any deposits of the same or similar amounts around the same time. He guessed she would likely have to check Lester’s account as well.
His phone rang. Skyler got it out and looked at it. Shoot.
“Hi, Dad. Do you think I can call you back?”
“Look, son, your mom felt kind of bad how we left it last time we saw you. She, uh, she wants to make it up to you.”
“She had every right to say those things to me. I have been acting like a…a shit to you, Dad, and I’m sorry. Maybe I do have an Oedipus complex…but right now, I really can’t talk.”
“Okay. But your mom wants you and Keith over for dinner next week. Call her back, will you, Sky?”
“Okay, Dad. Love you. And love to Mom.
“And I love you, too, son. Bye.”
Wow, it had just slipped out. He didn’t recall saying lately that he loved his dad to his dad, but there it was. Old habits, he supposed. But also…new chances. New…
Skyler snapped his head up. Someone was fiddling with the door! He shut off the light, shut off the computer, and scrambled away from the desk. The door was opening! Where to go?
He slid around the other side of the bookcase and cowered down in the dark. If they turned on the light they’d be sure to find him.
A hooded figure slipped through the door, lit in silhouette before the door shut again. Fortunately, they didn’t turn on the light. Skyler assumed it was their thief come to get more museum goods…but he surprised Skyler by coming around the desk and taking the seat Skyler had hastily vacated.
Skyler tried to breathe quietly, shallowly. The computer fired up again and the person sat at the chair, tapping impatiently at the desk as the computer—shut down improperly—took longer to boot.
Skyler watched from his crouched position as the person went through the exact maneuvers he had only just performed himself, first looking at the bookkeeping software and then online to the bank account.
The only sound in the room was the soft whirring of the computer fan, the gentle tapping of computer keyboard, and a soft tinkling, like a chain or keys. The person stopped to read.
Skyler tried to keep himself still, tried to keep his breathing shallow, but as he coiled tighter, his foot slipped and banged a trash can.
The person at the desk shot to their feet and turned. The chair rolled away and slammed into the bookcase. Skyler sprang upward. The thief ran around the desk to flee but Skyler was having none of it. He leapt forward to cut off his avenue of escape but he underestimated the thief. The hooded figure turned and jerked his elbow back to jab Skyler in the gut. Skyler flung himself back out of the way. But the figure advanced and grabbed him.
Without thinking, Skyler slipped his arm down, shot the other across and hooked the figure’s arm, pivoted, and threw him over his back. The thief hit the ground with a sharp release of breath.
“I did it!” cried Skyler.
But that was enough for the person to spring to his feet and lunge for the door. He threw it open and darted onto the street, running for all he was worth.
Skyler took off after him, but the thief was fearless and ran right into traffic. Tires squealed, cars honked and skidded out of the way, and Skyler stopped dead at the edge of the pavement, not daring to pursue.
“Shit!” He caught his breath and when he couldn’t see the running figure anymore, he trotted back to the museum to lock it up. He sat in front of the computer again, shut it down properly, and pushed the chair back in. But something skidded along the floor under the chair’s caster wheel. He ducked under the desk and felt around for it, bringing it up. A set of keys.
Nothing on the ring was identifiable. Just several silver keys. They each read “Schlage” and “Do Not Duplicate” across the top.