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Need. Hunt. Find?	By : JackAndAHat Category: Individual Celebrities > Liam Neeson Views: 1262 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. I do not know the celebrity I am writing about. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Naveen knew what they thought. That idea on its own should have given him a laugh, of course he bloody knew what they thought, would be hard not to. But even if he couldn’t read it from them it was written plain and obvious on their expression. Oded pitied him, and he was glad he’d outpaced the younger man in leaving the room after they argued. Bumping into him had been enough to see the look, he didn’t need to hear it as well.

Poor Naveen, they all thought it. Poor little loner, no family and no friends, just enough pity to fall back on.

The cigarette had burned down enough to make him curse as he took it from his lips and stubbed it out, automatically reaching for the packet and his lighter. The next one was half way to his lips when a knock came on the door and he looked up.

“Door’s open Liam.” he offered, as much invitation as he was willing to give.

“How are you?” Liam asked and there seemed to be real concern in his eyes. He cradled a plate between those big hands and Naveen quirked one eyebrow, sitting up on the bed.

“You brought a picnic then?” The boss seemed startled as he glanced down at the food then shook his head quickly.

“What? No, this? No. Just thought you might be hungry is all. It’s still warm if you’re wanting it now.” The knife and fork balanced precariously on the edge of the plate shifted and Liam quickly set it down on the table next to Naveen’s bed, looking around awkwardly.

“Thanks.” Naveen said finally and reached for the plate. His stomach had growled at him enough already, and he wasn’t stupid enough to go hungry for the sake of pride, even while Liam stood in his doorway like a kid here to see the headmaster. God knows Naveen knew that feeling but there was something else around the edges of it, something that made him even more uncomfortable.

Finally he swung one foot towards the hard chair next to his bed “You can come in you know, I don’t bite unless you ask for it.” Pretty funny thing to say to a werewolf even if he hadn’t meant the pun, and Naveen smiled to himself.

“Oh, right, thank you.” Abruptly Naveen’s stomach soured and he lowered his fork for a minute. It was hardly as though Liam had done something to warrant him being laughed at, even if all the fussing could get on his wick sometimes. But the flicker that had twisted then…nah, couldn’t have been, but it still made Naveen worry. He didn’t get that sort of attention now even if he wanted it and he hadn’t even hinted here.

“Will you need me in the morning then?” Better to stick to work than think how that made him feel, the idea that Liam would go out of his way to help him out, the idea that anyone would really. Not like Liam hadn’t before, hadn’t back then, but lately... well, life changed, people changed, all you did was deal with it and move the hell on.

The chicken was good at least and it made him feel better than he had earlier. It would have been too hard to eat in the kitchen with the others, never did feel right. They got so much like a family, talking about this and that, what was on the telly that night, what they had done during the day outside of work or what they did inside of it and what they thought of the new cases as and when they took them on.

So many thoughts pressing in on him. You wouldn’t think three people could be so loud but they were, and some of the thoughts weren’t ones that he wanted to hear. They weren’t bad people but the way Gabriel looked at Oded…no, he didn’t want to think about that. Wasn’t like it exactly disagreed with him, more like it agreed too bloody much. And it wasn’t something he wanted to remember anymore.

Wasn’t fair to dangle something in front of him and take it away again, just leave him on his own. He’d had that before, had all kind of hopes.

Naveen looked up to find Liam watching him while he ate slowly and lost himself in morbid thoughts like some kind of overgrown teenager. It made him blush a little but he glanced down fast enough, long black hair falling into his face before he batted it away irritably.

“It’s good.” He commented, his mind as much on the situation as the food, trying to convince himself as much as Liam. The older man took it at face value though and nodded.

“Aye, I’ll be sure to ask Oded to make it again.” Of course, Oded would cook. He seemed to have found his place here fast enough, all kinds of useful all around the house. Not just to be taken out for work. It seemed like Liam had read his thoughts since the Irishman took that minute to look up again.

“We might need to call on your but for now I’d prefer if we had as few people as possible. Better not to startle the lad, you know?” There was a kind of grace in Liam’s movements as he stretched and the blush deepened when Naveen caught himself looking. Dark skin hid all kinds of sins, so Liam probably didn’t see it but he wouldn’t put it past the damn wolf to smell the rush of hot blood. Naveen almost snorted at the thought, hiding it behind another mouthful of food. Wouldn’t that be fun in certain situations? Not like he was going to ask Liam about it though, or ask anymore than he needed to. Take what was volunteered, and no more.

“Do you think that he will be overwhelmed then? Don’t worry, I promise not to do no voodoo on him, scout’s honour.” Naveen transferred his fork to the same hand as his knife and held up three fingers. Liam huffed a laugh that paused as though he was wondering.

Of course Naveen had never been a scout, that was for good boys who didn’t have to be locked in their room for their own sake. Or at least for the sake of grown ups who didn’t want to hear just what uncle Errol was thinking when he said good morning to the pretty blond girl who lived next door. They were always so quick to tell him not to speak and then so quick to talk amongst themselves and think even louder.

“If we need to bring you in then don’t worry, we’ll be calling for you. But I know how hard you worked last time, no sense in wearing you out for no cause.” This time it was Naveen who huffed. A silly boy chasing after a girl he couldn’t have and who didn’t want him anymore. Harmless, really, and it hadn’t been so much of a hardship to read his mind. Better than the killers, the rapists and abusers that he’d seen before, better than some of the places he’d had to go. No, there were much worse cases to be had than something like that. He set the now empty plate to one side and patted Liam’s hand, leaning forward.

“You know, you don’t have to spare me all the time. I might look it to someone like you but I’m not exactly a delicate flower.” Liam stared down and for a minute he looked lost, eyes fixed on the hand yet somehow distant, then he seemed to shrink back a little until Naveen sat back.

“It’s not a matter of that lad, and you know it.” He argued then reached over for the plate. “If you’re done with that I’ll take it back downstairs.” Wordlessly Naveen let him have the plate and watched him walk out the door.

************************

The lad wasn’t late as such, not yet at least. That hadn’t stopped Liam pacing back and forth in front of the big window enough times that Gabriel had wadded up part of yesterday’s newspaper and thrown it with far too much accuracy at his head. After that Liam had taken a seat behind his desk and left Gabriel to glance now and then out the window for likely candidates. They were a little back from the main road but not enough to lack traffic and likely they’d not know who he was until he set foot inside their office.

Liam turned Colin’s words over and over in his mind. “I need your help.” That was a common enough one, there wasn’t a reason to come to them otherwise, and it soon turned to begging, sad as it was to say. “He’s going to do something.” That came usually form the wives, the divorce cases that turned ugly and had little kiddies involved. Not to say they didn’t get it from men with violent lovers but it was rarer, they didn’t tend to seek justice this way. And that in part was what made Liam wonder. No way to truly tell yet, but…

The buzz from the far door startled him to sit upright and he glanced over, pressing the intercom button.

“Hello?”

“It’s Colin, I have an appointment at 10 with…Mr Neeson?” Liam glanced up and saw Gabriel had already moved himself to the far corner, not entirely hiding himself but in no-one’s line of sight unless they sought him out. That would give some little advantage and lately they’d needed that when it came to clients.

“Come in.” The door opened hesitantly and Liam fought not to raise his eyebrows at the boy who stepped inside. The scent was unmistakable even from a few feet away but he was so small, or seemed it. He way he hunched in on himself under his backpack likely didn’t help but he must have been the runt of his litter, stocky though he was, a clear inch or two under six feet. As Liam moved towards him he froze, but his eyes weren’t fixed on the werewolf.

“This was a bad idea, I’m sorry.” His accent was thicker now than it had been on the telephone, another Irishman, but there was worry in it and not a little fear as he glanced sideways to Gabriel and took a step back. “It was a mistake.”

“I’m sorry?” Liam stopped in front of the boy, assessing him. Twenty five, at the absolute outside, though twenty wouldn’t have surprised him. Enough muscle to him but he barely came to Liam’s shoulder. Hardly a surprise he’d taken hassle, though Liam squashed the uncharitable thought quickly. “Why don’t you come sit down and tell me what’s going on?” It took a lot more effort than he was happy with to avoid coming over like someone’s father, but the boy seemed to provoke that impulse. No, not a boy, a potential client, and he had to be treated as such even if he was currently edging slowly back.

Gabriel stood, looking completely harmless and entirely too confused. Prejudice? Maybe, but usually that came to nothing more than a bit of surprise and a lot of sarcasm or resentment. Not so often with the kind of fear the young wolf seemed to have in his eyes. Gabriel looked to Liam and raised his eyebrows, getting no more than a shrug in answer. Would it be better to send Gabriel away in the hopes of calming Colin and getting the story from him? Maybe, though it pained him to do that to a friend.

“I didn’t know…” Colin was fidgety and it made Liam wonder for a minute if the gleam in his eyes was something else entirely, a bit of Dutch courage or maybe Bolivian. Stepping back Liam hooked a chair with his foot and pushed it beside the desk, nodding to it.

“The chair doesn’t bite and neither do we.” He saw Gabriel wince and knew it was unprofessional as hell but right now they seemed likely to have an escapee on their hands and it wouldn’t look so good if the lad fled screaming and fell down the staircase.

“Can I smoke?” Colin asked as he warily approached Liam, skirting as close to the desk as he could and keeping well back from Gabriel. Rare to show so much fear, though with looks like his he’d no doubt have been a special case for a long time.

“Come on, we’ll go stand by the rail.” Liam offered. It would give Colin chance to calm his nerves and to be out of sight of Gabriel, though that would have to be dealt with later. He shrugged helplessly to Gabriel and huffed when the older man did no more than nod and vanish towards the inner door.

He might not be psychic but Lord love him he knew what to do sometimes. There would definitely be a pint stood for that later, though as Liam ushered Colin towards the outer door he wondered what he’d been thinking. The young man wasn’t high, likely, but he wasn’t all that there either.

“He doesn’t know I’m here.” Colin leaned against the railings and lit up a smoke, offering the packet to Liam with hands that only shook a little. He seemed strangely proud of himself for this, like a little kid finally making conversation with the adults, but Liam waved away the packet.

“No, but thank you kindly. I gave those things up years ago.” He didn’t ask after Colin’s opening line, as worrying as it might be. The boy would tell him, but most people would not start a story at the beginning no matter what the encouragement. So he’d watch and wait and see where he was lead. Right now it didn’t look a path that was so safe to walk but he’d go a little of the way at least.

“You know he’d kill me if he found out.” The words were dull, as though Colin was commenting that he was out of smokes, his voice not even that passionate. “You can’t tell him.” He mumbled a little as he held the cigarette between his lips and took a deep drag, fiddling with the filter when he took it away to exhale. In an attempt to bring himself down to Colin’s height Liam leaned down against the railing that surrounded the metal steps, watching Colin prop his elbow up on it.

“It won’t go beyond these doors that you were here, whether you choose to work with us or not. I can promise you that.” A gentle reminder that they were here for business, and as much as he wanted to help Colin he could do no more without knowing more. “Besides, I don’t even know who he is.”

“Josh. Josh Hartnett.” Colin answered, the same lifeless lack in his voice. Seemed so that the only emotion he could really show was fear, and now that had abated enough to leave him calm and distant. “He was my…is…fuck, I don’t know. We were screwing, right? It was good, it got to be a bit more often and next thing I know I’m living with him. Shit happens, right? It was really fucking good, actually.”

The lad looked up like he was wondering if Liam would judge but continued with a slight huff of breath. “I knew what he was, half knew before we even hooked up. We were at the same uni, final year. Different buildings but kept bumping into each other at lunch. He came into the gym a few times, I offered to spot for him.” The rambling would get somewhere eventually no doubt but right now it seemed like a fairly typical courtship, for all that it could be called such a thing. No doubt the parents wouldn’t have approved but parents never did at that age, was almost a worry when they did.

“How long ago?” Liam prompted when Colin seemed as though he wouldn’t continue, focusing on the cigarette and finally taking another drag as it burned down between his fingers, holding it between his lips as he spoke.

“Known him a bit under a year. I was second year, late into study, twenty two already. He was in post-grad, twenty five. Been turned five years he said, back when he was younger than me and right there in that uni.” Legal, at least then, though that didn’t have so much bearing on any of this really. “Anyway, wasn’t like he wanted to turn me or shit.” Colin squinted a little and looked up at Liam. Defiant little bastard and Liam found himself wracking his brains to see if the boy looked at all familiar. He’d still not given up a last name so no chance of tracing by that, but if he was a part of one of the better known families then his face should ring at least a few bells. “So we hooked up, things started happening, it was fun.”

“Am I right to assume that it’s not fun now?” Liam prompted once more when Colin seemed to flag. At the words the younger man looked up and down the street below them for a minute, then used his left hand to tug down the side of his collar closest to Liam. A pair of dark bruises marked his skin, familiar enough.

“Go on.” Had it been against his will? There were easier ways to deal with it than coming to them if it had been just the one attack.

“There’s more.” Colin explained. “Elbows mainly, a couple you’re not getting to see.” He gave Liam a hard look and jerked his head back to the building behind them. “He under control?” Liam felt a quiet surge of anger and tightened his hand on the railing, frowning at Colin as the metal dug into his palm, cool against the skin.

“He has a name, and yes, Gabriel has a lot more control than most. He’s a lover of his own, I don’t think he’s so fond of people he could be father to.” Now that wasn’t strictly true given Oded’s age, it was almost possible but he’d never known his friend’s tastes run to someone so young as this even if he hadn’t a partner. If Colin was going to have a serious issue with Gabriel that could be an issue but he got a little slack for now, even if the idea of someone being honest to God afraid of Gabriel made Liam smile.

“He’s a friend of yours?” Colin sounded pretty damn surprised at that and his eyebrows shot up. The cigarette had burned mostly down now and he ground it out on the ledge, taking out the packet and offering it once more “You sure?” he asked and lit his own.

“About the cigs, or about him being my friend?” Liam asked, knowing the answer but trying to dig just a little deeper.

“Fair point mate.” Another almost desperate drag on the smoke and Colin exhaled slowly, seeming to calm. “He seemed alright at first. Yeah, we argued, who the hell doesn’t? He didn’t like me smoking, funny enough. Used to get all tied up in fucking knots about it.” Which made sense if the vampire had been using the lad for blood. Gabriel had mentioned it once or twice when they’d talked about the clubs, and Liam had joked back that if the vampire had his way Oded would have been drinking coffee morning noon and night instead of the tea he favoured.

“I take it that things got onto more than arguments then?”

“Fuck yeah. I mean, it’s not like he hit me or anything, I’m not that kind of fucking pansy.” Another sharp look up and Liam suddenly wondered if they’d been a second option, if the last place Colin had sought help had been less than helpful. Had he gone to the police?”

“But…” Obviously there was a problem if Colin was here, and likely a little more serious than simply violence, gruesome as that was in its own way.

“Don’t know where to start.” The words were quiet enough that they might have been aimed at Colin’s battered boots, his head hung low as he spoke. “Never been bled before him, right? He got me into it.” Sharp eyes were scrutinising Liam now and Liam simply held his ground under the gaze.

“It’s not so bad, if you’re fond of it.” He replied. It had been more than not bad, addictive in its own way, and a fair bit of something to give up. Was that it, the lad’s lover had moved on and found someone new, and now he didn’t now what to do with himself? There were places for folk like that and here wasn’t one of them, though he did wonder if there was much more than guidance that he could give to Colin.

“And what if you’re not? What if they make you like it?” Liam raised his eyebrows. An attack was one thing, but he didn’t know of a way it could be made pleasant when someone was protesting. Keep them calm, sure, but to get inside their mind and enjoy it? That was a question he would have to ask someone. Would Gabriel know that? His people had always been more than willing, but he might have some knowledge of the theory, if only from his own circumstances.

“I’m not sure I understand.” Maybe the confession would encourage Colin to speak a little more freely. The day was starting to warm up a little now, the sun finally coming out from behind what seemed like ever present clouds, but there were still more practical places to be having this conversation than with the traffic flowing steadily below them.

“Drugs.” One simple word that gave him very little information yet Colin said it like it should have made perfect sense.

“He got you into them?” That wasn’t a crime such as it was. Of course, it was hardly legal to take them, but offering them to a lover wasn’t something many people had been locked up for, even if they then went on to do things that would have maybe been a little less willing with a clear head.

“He gave me them. Got in my fucking head, messed something up…I don’t know. There’s bits I don’t remember, it’s kind of…you know.” No, Liam didn’t know. Hard to imagine a vampire who couldn’t stand nicotine in his lover allowing anything harder, not if he was taking on a regular basis. “He made me want things, made me do things, really fucked up things… I didn’t ask for this shit.”

“He drugged you and fed on you?” Liam asked, the words distinct. Pity was one thing and lost as the lad looked god knew that he needed it. But he had to know the facts here, had to find out just what had happened, and what the crime was.

“Yeah. Pretty fucked up, right? But it wasn’t like, it wasn’t dope, or even Charlie. More like something the doctor would give you.” That caught Liam’s attention but he forced himself to keep looking out over the street. He’d not heard of a drug yet that wouldn’t taint the blood in some way for as long as the effects lasted. Sure, you could be fine the next day but something that would change someone’s mind so much…that would have an affect on anyone who took from them. How much had drugs been involved in this? If Colin’s memory was so hazy as his concentration then it was a worry, but how to tell the truth from fictions? The lad didn’t seem as though he was lying but it wasn’t easy to tell that on someone he’d barely met.

Of course, Naveen could.

Which begged the question, should he bring Naveen here? What kind of horror would Naveen see if he was, if he heard this tale and looked deeper into the truth of it? That was a hell of a worrying thought, and half the reason alone that he’d kept Naveen out of the way. If it became absolutely necessary, and they were without other options then that was one thing, but to risk him on something like this was entirely another.

“And these were given to you against your will?” Colin rolled his eyes at that one and turned his attention to his cigarette as though it held all the answers, waving it in emphasis as he spoke.

“Fuck no, I took them willingly because I wanted him to lend me out to half his friends like a buffet dinner. It’s a good way to relax, you know?” Maybe he should get Naveen down here, they’d get on famously if the way the boy spoke now was any indication. It had been a while since he’d heard that level of sarcasm in one line, and the urge to clip Colin around the ear for being a cheeky pup was tempered by the words he’d spoken. Passed around…that didn’t bode well, and no wonder he’d multiple marks. Likely his man had taken what he wasn’t willing to speak of or show, and the rest had made do with his throat or the bend of an elbow.

But how? What would be the point if they were to be so affected themselves by the drug, whatever it had been?

“But you don’t know the name of what he gave you?” Colin’s story had holes in it that they could have set up office inside but that didn’t mean that he was lying, not yet at any rate. They had to make a fair bit of allowance for some of their clients after the way most came to them. It could be hard to draw a tale out of those cowed by shame or desperation but they had, for now at least, the time to spare in trying. Colin shrugged at him, eyes a little wide, a little too white.

“Half the time I didn’t know until he did it. Wasn’t like I could smell it or anything.” He shrugged again, a little sharper this time, hunching down inside his jacket at the end of the movement as though the leather could keep out questions as well as the cold. “One minute it’d be OK, we’d be sitting around or whatever, or i’d be sitting and he’d come over. Got me a few times after we’d been fucking, sneaky bastard must have had it next to the bed or something.”

Colin’s hand came up to scrub over the back of his neck hard enough to make Liam wince. He knew what the others would say, that he was being soft, but Christ, the lad was young enough to be his son and hearing this tale…he should be sorting through it logically, sifting out the truth and discarding the rest, but it wasn’t an easy task.

“Come on.” He suggested, turning towards the door. “Come inside, have a coffee, sit down. It’s warmer in there.” And a hell of a lot easier when he wasn’t wondering every few seconds if Colin was going to make a bolt down the stairs and away.

“I just don’t fucking get why he did it, you know? Wasn’t like I wasn’t giving it up for him often enough. Why did he have to bring in a bunch of strangers?” Liam caught every word but they’d been mumbled, spoken down to the traffic below or the glow of Colin’s cigarette. The younger man looked up almost abruptly and tensed as Liam laid his hand on the door. “Is he still going to be in there?” he asked, straightening himself and glancing from side to side.

“If he’s said he’ll make himself scarce then he’d not intrude.” Liam promised. “I understand you’re not comfortable with him around, but I promise you he’s not the sort to make trouble. He and I were friends when you were still crying for your mam when you skinned your knee.” For a flicker Colin looked almost ashamed, then as Liam pushed open the door he darted through it, like if he hesitated he'd lose his nerve and bolt the other way.

"Thanks." he muttered then crushed out his cigarette in the nearest ashtray and stood with his hands in his pocket, looking like nothing so much as a young boy on his first day at a new school, a little lost and a lot cocky to cover it up.

"Do you want tea, coffee?" Liam moved over to the makeshift set up beside the redundant coffee machine, a rather battered kettle sat over the small sink in the corner.

"Coffee's good, yeah. Black, please." Still so very twitchy, and Liam watched the lad from the corner of his eye as Colin reached up to scratch at the side of his neck, rubbing the pads of two fingers in hard circles against his throat.

Well Jesus.

It was stupid of Liam not to think of it earlier but he'd been too caught in the story. In a way he had thought of it, wondered if that was his grievance against his lover but not so directly.

"When was the last time?" he asked quietly as he handed a warm mug over and took a mouthful of his own. Colin froze and dropped his hand quickly, the gesture clearly an unconscious one.

No wonder the mark burned, he was lucky the rest were bearable. If they were, that was, and he simply wasn’t focusing on the one. More than a few days on someone who was used to being regularly bled... a body adapted to things, and for all that his mind knew common sense his body would miss it. The bite was a hell of a rush and a thing to crave if you went without for long enough. There were ways, of course, though he'd bet that Colin hadn't had the luxury of slowing down, weaning himself off as it were.

"A week." Colin admitted finally and Liam nodded, encouraging him to go on. "I told him I was going to visit a mate, told him I’d been called and they’d worry if I didn’t show up, then never went back. Was going to go to one of the clubs, but... they'd know, right? Know I was fucking owned." The words raised Liam's hackles and he shook his head sharply, a little coffee sloshing over the side of his mug as he gestured with it.

"You're owned by no-one save yourself." he insisted. This was probably the least professional case interview he'd ever been party to, but if half of what the lad told was true then it was probably the strangest case that he'd ever seen by more than half. "They'd have known someone had taken you, yes, I don't know that they'd be able to tell who. Has he taken you to one of those before?"

There were enough clubs that just about all tastes were catered for, from those looking for somewhere safe they could take a partner without worrying about a sudden need to head home when things got interesting, through to those who wished for nothing more than the feast, those who craved and needed and would do anything to sate that. Those scared Liam in their own way, the reek of desperation in them enough to turn his stomach. It had been a long time ago, but even that was too close.

“No. He never... he brought people but we didn’t go out, his friends....” Colin explained without really telling Liam anything. There had to be a shorter way to get the story out of him but it wasn’t likely to happen here or now, not with Colin so jumpy.

Liam nodded to the chair he’d pulled out earlier then sat down on his own, the desk beside them. Colin dropped his bag with a thud and slouched down in the chair, hanging his head enough that Liam caught sight of a fading bruise at the top of his spine as he leaned forward.

“What do you need from us?” Liam asked bluntly. Perhaps that would work, though right now he was at his wit’s end and not even close to noon.

“I want them stopped.” Colin answered harshly. “I wasn’t the only one. I mean, the others weren’t like me, they were stronger but he still got to them, had them there before he even met me I think.” His eyes burned as he spoke of it and suddenly the earlier hesitation seemed as though it must have come from another man. “They need to be stopped. Josh said he had plans, I think, I mean there were things said, things I heard. He wants more, wants others.”

From the way Colin spoke of it, it sounded like Josh wanted a dammed harem, though a bit more sinister than that. What could be done? Proof, first, that there had been drugs, that these young men hadn’t just gone to him from desire and then regretted after. Hell, right now they’d no proof that any of this was true. From the way Colin twitched there could have been a thousand other answers and all of them would cause trouble if this was followed up and nothing came of it.

The best answer would be to bring Naveen in, but Liam hesitated. No. He couldn’t spare him longer, it did him a disservice to think of it. Later he would have to bring Naveen but first the rest of the story needed to be told, that much was clear from Colin.

“Something like this sounds as though it should go to the police. Why did you come to us?” Liam questioned carefully. Not like he was going to turn the lad away now if there was any truth to this but he had to know. Colin’s hand tightened around his mug and he bought himself a little time with another mouthful of the drink, looking up at Liam over the edge.

“You really think they’d take it? Or do you think they’d tell me to fuck off and stop crossing the line? Jesus, half of them hate us anyway, you’ve got to know that.” True there were not so many of their kind in the police force - too inclined to violence when a situation became dangerous it was said, and while they weren’t barred it was certainly discouraged.

Funny how they were good enough for the army but not for the civilians. More leeway there at least, for someone who was obedient to someone dominant and who could lift their own bodyweight twice over a lot of things could be overlooked. But even those who had no problem with the wolves would often be heard to say that anyone who went close to a vampire had asked for everything they got whether they could handle it or no, and that helping them was a waste of valuable time.

“Fair point to you.” Liam offered quietly. “Question is lad, how much are you willing to work with us? I’ll need to tell all this to the others, and that’s going to include Gabriel.” Colin’s eyes darted to the door, just a little wider once more as a shiver ran through him. Better that he’d been afraid enough to make Gabriel leave. If it had been a week of going without, the good Lord alone knew how Colin would have reacted to the proximity otherwise.

“He’s not…” Colin seemed frustrated, seeking out the right word as he pulled the pack of cigarettes from his pocked and fiddled anxiously with the lid, blunt nails worrying at the edge of the cardboard. “They all seemed to know each other, you know? Everywhere we went, all the vampires, they knew Josh. Like some kind of fucking old boys network or shit. If he’s part of that…shit, Josh said this would happen.” He shook his head, shaggy hair falling into his face until he shoved it back with a half growl.

“Said that what would happen Colin?” Liam leant forward in concern. Wouldn’t do any of them good to have Colin bolt now, he’d thought that he’d done well enough in getting him inside but no, there could well be something here, something big.

“That no-one would believe me. Told me I’d be laughed out of any police station I went to in this country, that I was just another fucking pathetic bite junkie who couldn’t tell tomorrow from yesterday anymore.” He pressed at the mark on his throat again, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. No doubt all the marks were paining him and thinking on them would only make it worse. There was no cure except to get bit again, and there was no way to know if that would be good for the boy or just make matters worse.

“I believe you so far.” That got him raised eyebrows and a look of confusion. “What you’ve told me…it’s obscene, no-one should be allowed to treat another person like that, and I want to help you. But the question is, are you going to let me?” Liam chewed the inside of his cheek, waiting for an answer, but nothing came. A steady stream of shredded cardboard fell to the floor but he hadn’t the heart to tell Colin to stop it. “What about your pack?” he asked. Colin looked up fast and shook his head sharply.

“Don’t have one. Grew up in a home.” He said home like it should have a capital letter and suddenly a lot of things made so much more sense. Likely the home had been a mixed one the way things were now, so he’d have had some of his own kind, but no parents, no real pack leader, nothing he could hold on to. Little wonder he went to his knees for the first strong voice he heard.

“And now?” This changed things. There was a reason people used the phrase lone wolf with more than a little bit of derision. It wasn’t right, wasn’t natural. Sure as hell wasn’t healthy, as Oded was fond of pointing out to him. Had the lad gathered around him people who made up a new pack, the way Liam had? Seemed likely he hadn’t, else he’d have turned to them and not landed on their doorstep. Of course if he’d had people of his own he’d likely not have gone to Josh either, not fallen so hard.

Colin shrugged and scuffed the toe of one boot against the side of the other, every inch the disinterested loner, all well and good by himself and thank you kindly.

“Moved in with Josh not long after we got together, he had a place to stay and I just…never went home.” That was only half an answer and Colin damn well knew it. The evasion was almost painfully obvious and Liam took a final mouthful of coffee, rising to his feet to rinse out the cup in the sink and hang it on the mug tree.

“The guest room’s a bit on that small side but it’s clean enough.” If Colin had turned any faster just then he’d have given himself whiplash. His eyes were as wide as earlier but his gaze remained fixed on Liam who simply shrugged. It made sense to keep him here where he could be watched. Just what Gabriel would have to say about this nagged at the back of his mind, along with Oded’s expression but Christ, it wasn’t as though he could just throw the lad out knowing that he’d no people to go to. He’d not said out loud that he had no where as well as no one, but if he had a reliable place then he wouldn’t be carrying half his belongings around on his back.

“You don’t even know my surname.” Colin pointed out with a wry smile and Liam laughed.

“But I don’t know your face, which means your people don’t know mine, and that’s good enough for me.” This seemed to confuse Colin even more but he sat back in his chair and looked up at Liam from under his hair.

“So what, you’re just going to invite a total stranger with a psycho ex into your house for the night? Doesn’t seem all that safe.” The smirk was back in full force now but Liam noted that Colin hadn’t said no, nor had he made his way once more for the door. If he’d needed much more proof that Colin had nowhere he’d be missed then it was still slumped in his chair in a battered leather jacket looking like the world owed it a favour.

And God bless the stubborn cub for it. He’d need that later, maybe had needed it to get away from Josh. Liam wasn’t sure at what point he’d started believing the lad instead of doubting his story and all the holes in it but he was certain enough now that Colin was telling the truth as much as he was able. That qualifier wouldn’t go away quite yet but there was something more here than simply a lovers’ spat and the tattle-tale of vengeance come after it.

“Will you be needing to go and fetch anything from where you are now?” Liam questioned and he once more set the kettle to brew. If there was a need to have Gabriel meeting Colin face to face now then it was better to be having it happen with a mug of coffee in his hand than any other way. Could hardly fault the lad for the fear after all that had been done to him but then it wasn't something that would help him.

"Everything's in the bag. Didn't fancy leaving it there, too many fucking weirdoes." Colin replied quickly and gave the backpack a nudge with the side of his boot. It didn't move much and Liam wondered just how much he was carrying around.

"And have you your lunch in there too? Or just half the house and a sink included?" Seemed the only way to get anything personal out of the lad was to tease him, though Liam knew it was himself who would be laughed at when the others came down. There had been jokes before about him taking in waifs and strays before but this wasn't the same thing. Colin had come to them for help and to turn him away would go against everything that Liam had set this place up for. Hell, Colin was the kind of lad his brother would have recruited in half a night, and likely had him arrested in a week. Just another disposable helper and dammit but a person deserved more than that.

"Sandwiches." Probably more than a bit squashed if he'd been carrying them around all day but no worries as to him going hungry yet at least.

For a moment Liam leaned back against the wall beside the sink and watched Colin, trying to assess him. Save the size he seemed healthy enough but that on his own would mark him as weaker and it gave him one hell of a disadvantage to start out with. Add to that having no pack to back him up and he'd little to mark himself out from the humans. All the prejudice, the fear and loathing, and nothing of the benefits. His hand kept going to the mark on his neck but as Liam watched it drop briefly to his elbow, rubbing through the leather, and shifted in his seat again. A hell of a force of will if he'd gone a week with nothing and with no-one encouraging him onwards with it.

It took Colin a moment to notice that he was being watched but when he did he scowled.

"I'm fine." he growled before Liam could say a word and Liam held up his hands.

"I said nothing lad."

"Then what are you looking at?" Alright, so perhaps the attitude would get tiresome but allowances would be made at least until he'd had a safe bed and a meal for the night.

"I'm going to have to let the others know you're here. Just wondering how you'll react to them." Colin stiffened a little at the notion, bringing his hand up from his elbow to catch the side of his thumb between blunt teeth and worry at the skin. Liam sighed and moved over to lean against the desk behind his, facing the younger wolf. "He's harmless, I promise you. You've more worry of getting in the way when Naveen's sulking and having a door slammed on your foot, and he's usually on his better behaviour with company around." he paused and smiled "I'm not sure he's got a best behaviour but I promise you, none of us are a threat to you. Oded will probably take one look at you and try to feed you up, but he's best just gone along with." All light, all joking, but Colin seemed still on edge.

"Are they..." Easy enough to see the idea turning over in Colin's mind before he voiced it "Vamp or wolf?" he asked quickly, as though one was a monster beneath the bed and the other something to be ashamed of. Liam was starting rapidly to revise his thoughts on mixed orphanages. Had they really done such a number on the lad's head that he was leery of his own people, or was that schooling and later?

"Neither. Both of them human, Naveen's psychic, Oded's a worker, but both of them very much human." Colin visibly relaxed now, sitting up a little straighter and nodding his head. Those weren't odds Liam would have taken a bet on in a fight but Colin didn't seem to fear much except that which had already hurt him. Sensible in it's own way and perhaps to their advantage later.

"Farrell." Colin offered out of nowhere and this time it was Liam who looked up sharply with raised eyebrows. "My last name, it's Farrell. Lady at the home said that they knew that much about me, first and last name. I don't have a middle name. I figure you should know it if you’re giving me a bed for the night" For a minute Liam sat and thought, turning the name over in his mind.

"I'm sorry." he replied finally, true regret in his voice. Everyone deserved to have their pack, even if they were lost to you and all that you had were memories. For all that he'd had to run from his own people, his mother, God rest her soul, had never caused anyone to run, nor his eldest brother before his death and he remembered them both with fondness. "I don't know your people." The effect on Colin was startling and Liam found himself blinking as the boy went rigid, eyes hard.

"They aren't my people." The words were shaped around a growl fit to raise the hair on your neck and Colin's hands gripped the armrests of his chair. "They've done nothing for me and i'll do nothing for them."

"Easy, easy." Liam cautioned, holding out a hand palm up. "No offence meant. I can see why you'd not want the sight of them at any rate." Colin sank back into the chair just as the kettle announced it's boiling with a decent amount of steam and a croak that might once have been a whistle. “Now. If I fetch Gabriel will you stay?” The jerky nod was the best he could have hoped for really, and he made his way to the inner door, looking back once before moving through it.
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