System of a Wolf - 23. Chapter 23

“I need to see him.”

Adam gave the elf a withering stare. Varen glared back firmly, refusing to be cowed by the man.

“I told you you’ll get to see him again. You should have waited,” the human scowled. “I don’t know who you are, Varen, but you are on the wrong side here.”

“Says the person who kept me hidden all night long,” Varen scoffed. “In a wolf proofed room. With a guard on the other side of the door. That’s not normal.”

Varen shivered in the damp air, listening to the drip of water nearby. He had to admit that it had been the nicest jail cell he’d ever been in. Not that he’d ever been in a cell before. A nice warm bed, an adjoining bathroom with scented water, the fluffiest towels in the world… Adam had it made. Varen supposed it made sense; he was pretty sure the man was the son of one of Dowager Finley’s old lords.

Of course, standing in a drafty room under the Astaran Aquarium brought down the whole experience in the elf’s opinion. That and the fact that Adam hadn’t promised not to press charges for trespassing. Not that Varen had been trespassing. He had made well certain that his feet never left the public sidewalk the night before.

“Neither is stalking someone because they had a date with your friend,” the human pointed out.

That was more of a sticking point in the elf’s defence. There was no way he could deny that he’d been stalking the man. Fuck, the entire conversation he’d heard was just Adam talking to himself, buying his guard time to see who was following him. Apparently the man was surprisingly good at impressions. And it had worked enough for his security to grab Varen while the elf was distracted.

It didn’t change the fact that Blake was being dragged to the aquarium as they spoke. What they planned to do with him here, Adam refused to say. Presumably in case Varen escaped somehow and went to tell Blake what was happening. He couldn’t see that happening; not when at least three guards were watching Varen like hawks.

The breakfast he’d been served that morning had been almost worth the trouble of being kidnapped by the man he’d been stalking though.

A neko stepped into the room, an aquarium uniform covering their body. Varen was starting to understand what was going on, and it only pissed him off more.

“Sir, the van just pulled up to the back car park,” the neko said quietly to Adam.

“Great,” Adam beamed. “Are you sure this will work?”

“Oh yeah. Everything is perfect,” the neko grinned. “We have everything laid out, and there’s someone on hand in case something goes wrong. Trust me, we’ve done this more than a few times.”

“I know what you’re doing,” Varen scowled. “He told you about our pond, didn’t he?”

“Pond?” Adam frowned. “No, he didn’t mention anything about a pond. Just Val. Do you know about Val?”

Varen wanted to smack the smirk off the man’s face. That was what this all was. Just a way to convince Blake that this pedophile could take care of him, could be nice.

“I don’t know. Does your friend know about-”

“My crime? Yeah. The Astaran Aquarium is the only place I could hang out right after I got out of jail. Granted, my restrictions were lifted once I proved I could behave, but the aquarium still has a place in my heart,” Adam shrugged.

Varen stared at the neko in disbelief. The neko shrugged under his gaze.

“We educate anyone interested in aquatic life. What he’s done in the past doesn’t matter here.”

“If it helps you feel better, I’m not allowed in the areas more geared toward younger visitors,” Adam shrugged. “Not that I really care.”

“Yeah, you already have your next victim, don’t you?” Varen snarled.

“Who, Blake? Nope. I won’t have him until he says it’s okay. Does that sound like a victim to you?”

“It does when you’re spending a shit ton of money trying to get in his pants.”

“Tell me, what was the purpose of your pond? I’m assuming you filled it with fish Blake likes, right?” Adam smirked. “Blake is free to deny me at any time. And I have a legitimate claim to him. Can you say the same?”

Varen glowered at the man, his eyes flicking at the guards who were still keeping an eye on him. A door closed from within the depths of the aquarium, and Adam smiled.

“That must be him now. Tell you what. Why don’t my friends escort you from the aquarium, as it is currently closed to the public. I’ll drop the charges of stalking, and I won’t even file a restraining order against you. Of course, if I see you around my property again, I will be forced to take action, regrettable as that would be. For Blake’s sake, I do hope you will stay away from me.”

A hand settled on Varen’s shoulder, firm and warm. He was nudged from behind, stepping out of the room with a wellspring of rage broiling inside him. Adam was not good for Blake. Why couldn’t anyone see that?

Stepping outside, the elf blinked in the bright sunlight.

‘Can we play with the fishies?’

His mood soured even more at Lynn’s question.

“You have horrible timing,” he muttered as he was guided toward a car.

‘But you are sad. I don’t want you to be sad.’

“Don’t,” he sighed, ignoring the strange look from the guard.

It wasn’t like she needed to know what he was talking about. The elf slid into the back seat of the car, reminded of the lack of door handles as the car was closed behind him. It wasn’t long before he was being taken back to his car, still fuming at the way things had turned out.

The van door slid open, light streaming through his blindfold as a hand touched his arm.

“Time to get out. We’re here.”

“Can I take the blindfold off now?” Blake asked.

“Hmm… What do you think Jasper?”

“I think we should wait. At least until we get to the changing room,” the other elf replied evenly as Blake slid out of the car.

The mage stumbled a bit as he found his feet. A hand grabbed his shoulder, holding him up.

“Changing room?” he asked.

“Yeah. Don’t worry though, you’re the only one here today. No one is going to see you,” Jasper’s voice said from in front of him.

“I got you,” the other elf said behind him, pressing forward gently on his shoulder.

Blake walked forward falteringly, feet dragging as he tried to feel his way forward.

“And step up.”

An exaggerated step followed, Blake pulling himself up carefully. They passed into a cold building, the light fading quickly as a door shut behind them loudly. Soon, they were passing into a surprisingly well lit room, and Blake was lowered carefully onto a chilly seat.

“Okay Blake, we have a nice warm suit for you right here. It’s going to be a little hard to put on, but you need to wear it for the next part.”

“Can… am I allowed to remove my blindfold?” Blake whispered.

“Oh, yeah, here.”

Fingers tugged at the back of the blindfold.

“Eyes closed.”

He squeezed his eyes shut as the fabric was removed. Blinking them open slowly against the light, the mage found himself in a small locker room, not much different than the one at Quarian Academy. No one was in the room, except for the two elves. Jasper held a wetsuit in his hands, and Blake’s eyes widened in curiosity.

“We’re going to need you to remove your headphones too,” the elf added with a gentle smile. “And to put this on. Make sure you keep your underpants on though, or you might chafe.”

He set the suit next to Blake before motioning toward a closed door.

“Go ahead and knock on that door when you’re done.”

“Okay,” Blake said, playing with the hem of his shirt.

He waited until the elves were gone before pulling his clothes off. Struggling with the suit, the mage finally got it on, zipping it up with a strand of magic. Apparently he was going swimming. But he’d never worn a wetsuit before. Things were getting even weirder, and he wasn’t sure how to handle this.

Knocking on the door, Blake flinched as it opened suddenly. The faint smell of salty brine drifted into his nose as Jasper guided him into the room beyond. Again he was led around, the two emerging into an enormous room after a minute of walking.

A pair of men stood next to a ladder, but Blake only had eyes for the massive fish tank that sat behind the ladder. An ominous shadow swam past, and he looked up at a tiger shark as it moved through the water. Various tiny fish were swimming around it, feeding off the miniscule scraps the shark left behind from earlier feedings.

“Well, I’m going to take that stunned look as a good sign.”

He tore his eyes away from the shark, heart thumping in his chest at the sight of Adam in a wetsuit. The outfit hugged the man in all the right places, smoothly covering the product of countless hours of exercise.

“You look great.”

Blake bit his lip as the words slipped out, his face burning. Adam chuckled quietly at his reaction, smiling at the younger man. The werewolf stepped forward, looking at Blake inquisitively with his arms spread. Blake thought for a moment, then stepped into his arms.

The hug felt like everything he had been missing for the last two weeks. Close, warm, letting the stress pour out of him. He let out a soft sigh, resting his head instinctively against Adam’s chest as the man stroked his hair gently.

“Are… are we…?”

The mage motioned to the tank, and Adam nodded. Blake shivered in anticipation, his eyes tracking the fish as a second shark appeared. Swimming with the sharks… he had never thought it was possible for someone like him. Sure, he knew that there was nothing to really be afraid of. If the sharks weren’t safe, no amount of money would get him or Adam in that water.

And that was another issue. How much money had Adam spent to set this up? Was the man trying to buy his affection? There was no need for him to do that, and Blake felt a little affronted at the thought that Adam would buy him. Regardless of the scar on his back, he was not a whore.

Still, the man had gone all this way for him. It would be disrespectful to say no now. But Blake promised himself that he would have a good talk with Adam when they had some privacy. He hadn’t wanted Erith to spend money on him, and he certainly didn’t want Adam going broke trying to pursue him. He’d seen the price of diving in the aquarium before. Adam had spent nearly four gold between the two of them, and however much it cost to literally shut the aquarium down for them both.

“It is completely voluntary of course,” the other man said, interrupting his thoughts. “You don’t have to be afraid; I will be going in with you. And tigers aren’t that scary. Just push them away if they get too close.”

Blake nodded, staring at the shark.

“Yeah, push their noses,” he said.

“Exactly. Now, I’m going to walk you through the gear you’re using.”

The man spent several minutes showing Blake how to use the scuba gear, helping both him and Adam put it on. Before he knew it, the mage was climbing the ladder next to the tank.

He stared down into the water, watching a second shark get pushed away by the diver. The man in the water waved at him, and Blake took a breath from his mask, before letting himself fall forward into the water.