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Broken Pieces

Chapter Twenty-Seven

By Roofles

“Logan?” Sloan asked the following morning, creeping out of the bedroom and into the main living space that was shared on this floor with the rest of the rooms.

All the halls connected to this space. It was where the stairs were, the elevator shaft had been built and a place with plenty of exits to and from if need be. There were two guards there, lionesses, standing in front of the elevator. They didn’t even acknowledge their Mane as Sloan walked into the room in nothing more than a dark silk bathrobe that hid very little as it clung to his large frame, curving with his thighs, and opening, parting with every large step he took.

“Logan?” He asked again, peeking his head from around the corner and looking around it. Sloan gripped the wall for support, nails digging into the paint. His nerves were getting the better of him these days.

As much as he tried to appear calm and in control, Sloan was out of his field these days. Pretending to be The Mane of The Pride had added a lot more onto his plate than he knew how to deal with. Dating a human, but also not dating him, complicated things further. Trying to keep business and pleasure separate, only to realize how enticing and sexually charging it was for the older male to break said rule.

There was something so alluring about it. Sleeping with his assistant, again. The others knew but the thrill of being caught in the act? Sleeping with someone beneath your position both figuratively and literally made Sloan feel young again!

Sloan had suppressed a lot of his urges over the years and now that he was able to experiment with them, he feared he couldn’t keep himself in check.

Had he gone too far this time? That was the soul question floating around the lion’s skull that morning. Sloan had always tip-toed a fine line between pleasure and business, wants and desires and getting them fulfilled. Wanting to make sure his partner enjoyed themselves during, but also realizing the animalistic hunger deep inside that Sloan had been trying to keep in check his entire life.

That hunger.

The taste of him.

The smell.

The heat of their bodies together. Sloan had wanted to take a bite of Logan, and he had. This time. It was a first and still, Sloan hoped it wouldn’t be the last… the taste of him filling his mouth, warmth running between his fangs, dancing on his tongue. It had been exhilarating and Sloan was beginning to understand why so many predators went to The Red Rooms around the city.

There was a thrill in it. That was the only words Sloan could find to describe it. It was a shock to his system, something he’d been denying himself all these years and now that he had a taste… he feared Sloan wouldn’t be able to quit.

It was like a drug, the warmth of your partners blood in your maw during it all. Revitalizing an ancestral part of yourself. Awakening a long sleeping beast inside. Sparking something in your soul and making you feel young and virile again.

Something the older lion had been losing with his age. Sloan was past forty and it was beginning to show. The luster to his mane was fading and he had to use products to keep the color as bright and vibrant as it had once been.

Yet, that taste… it wouldn’t leave him.

Though Sloan would never, he was beginning to understand a lot of things on this side of the world. How things were for these people he had always looked down on. Carnivores giving into their darker urges. The underworld offered these pleasures of the flesh that the world denied them. Pleasures of the flesh and body and soul. Filling you in more ways than one.

You can’t feed a lion tofu and expect him to be satisfied. It might keep them alive, but it left an aching, gnawing hold inside. Growling for… sustenance.

Sloan needed Logan right now. To talk about this. To address these things, these thoughts, and feelings, to try to find out what they meant. How far they could go without crossing an irreversible line the lion didn’t ever wish to cross.

For to partake in such pleasures, there was always a risk. A risk of permanently injury your partner or worse. And there was the side effect on the predator, the meat eater. Something that was talked about quite often on the news, media, and social media.

Sloan had done cases defending such clients before. Carnivores that had tasted the forbidden fruit and weren’t ever the same after. It was a drug, an addiction for these people. Some people could tolerate it, others became addicted and then there were those sad sobs who lost everything. Even themselves. To it.

Sloan had read the about the stories and heard whispers about them. Carnivores that tore themselves apart, coyotes eating their own limbs just to try and sate that hunger inside. The bottomless pit. A well that could never be filled. Succumbing to the twisted desires inside.

To the drops of red.

To the golden spray of Primal.

All flowing down the red river.

Leaving only bodies in it’s wake.

“Remember,” Logan had reminded Sloan once before. “That river? That red river? It only flows one way, Sloan.” Logan had touched his shoulder, glancing at his back. At the scars that were hidden away. “Some people can’t… after they try it. They lose themselves to it. The urges. The forbidden pleasures. It consumes them as they consume others… but… but that’s not all.” Logan struggled to say, tears stinging his eyes. “That red river only flows one way, Sloan, and the current is strong. If you aren’t careful, it’ll sweep you off your feet and before you know it… someone else will be devouring you.”

Logan had put his shirt back on then, after their session of love making. It had been hot and intimate, heated, and sweaty. The smell. The musk of their bodies pressed against one another. Their combined scent was intoxicating, and the lion had been huffing the air, losing himself in it.

Nails had pricked Logan’s arms, drawing blood and yet the human just looked down at them. As if waiting for Sloan to go further than that. To cross that line. To tear the flesh and expose the sweetest of reds. Watching Sloan, not with eyes of a lover but that of a man waiting for the lion to break the cardinal rule a carnivore holds back on.

Waiting for Sloan to do the very thing that everyone else had eventually done to Logan.

Hurt him and leave their scars behind.

“You can’t change a tiger’s stripes,” those words were so painful to hear. Why would you say them after… after that happened? You were supposed to comfort someone after such a thing, not fault them for it. “You can’t change a tiger’s stripes, just as you can’t change a predator’s hunger. Never forget that, Logan…”

“Logan?” Sloan stepped out from where he was hiding. Not wanting to be afraid, and yet, even as the larger man, Sloan was. Sloan was afraid what such things meant and if he had finally crossed the very line the two knew the lion had always been tip toeing across.

From the bloody meats in the fridge. To the decoration of a lion devouring a man that Sloan had always had a fond taste for. Artwork and pieces that showed his darker desires even Sloan hadn’t been aware of. The reddest of wines he would sip and question what that “secret” ingredient was that made the wine taste so… fresh.

Warm.

Red…

“He’s in the washroom,” a voice called from the nearby kitchen. It was a joint kitchen where all the rooms could use. Usually, Sloan had a servant there to attend to his needs in the morning. Preparing and making coffee and breakfast for the lazy lion.

Tracy, Sloan thought here name was, wasn’t there this morning. The hawk had been excused for the day after what had happened. Sloan needing some privacy after it all. He needed a stiff drink and… something to eat.

He was hungry.

It gnawed at his stomach, and it hurt as he placed a hand over it, craving something…

Something red.

Walking around the corner, the lion saw a tiger sitting there at the counter. Sipping from one of his imported beers. Something he’d gotten for Logan to have. Not this stranger that had been invited in at someone else’s request.

A tiger that was looking at him with bright eyes and a friendly smile, even offering a wave to the very man who owned the building they were residing in. A remodeled and repurposed five-star hotel that Sloan had begun using as a base. Sloan sinched up his bathrobe further, not wanting this stranger to get a peak at the goods.

“Um…” Sloan said, taking a second to adjust his bathrobe. He hadn’t been wearing anything underneath. Expecting to find Logan in the restroom or maybe a pot of coffee for them to share together. To talk over. Not this. This other man in his home… “It’s the morning.” Sloan had to point out.

Troy held up the beer and looked at it, shocked that it was in fact alcohol and not coffee. Then the tiger burst out laughing, smiling from ear to ear as he chuckled about it.

“Perfect time a drink!” Troy grinned, flashing his fangs at the lion without realizing how intimidating it could be. “Plus, it’s helps me relax. Forget. After… everything.” Troy muttered, looking away and downcast at the marble countertop he was sitting at.

Such a smile said everything as it slipped off his face. The tiger’s eyes looking sad and tired, as if a man lost at sea. Unsure if he’d ever see land again.

It was possibly by some instinct that Sloan hated the thought of another man, another male, in his territory. That… primal feeling inside that aroused his anger and need to fight. Sloan forced his claws to sheath themselves, not about to be controlled or be ruled by some darker feelings within.

Not on such a pitiful sight before him. Or, about things in the bedroom…

“Yes, well. I prefer coffee in the morning. Some of us have work to go to.” Sloan strode over with heavy plodding steps, his bare paws slapping against the wooden floor as he walked further in. It wasn’t carpeted like the hallways and bedrooms were.

He already missed the feel of the thick carpet under his feet.

Sloan looked disheveled, his fur sticking out in places, and he knew he’d need to spend an extra half an hour just getting his mane sorted out. People always seem to forget the clean up and aftermath of such a wild night of passion and pleasure could leave on the body.

There was always so much… clean up.

So many things showing after such a heated exchange between two souls, two bodies writhing in pleasure. Exchanging fluids, sharing their body heat with each other. Touching. Caressing. Clawing…

Sloan licked over his fangs, still able to taste the warmth of Logan’s blood on his tongue. He hated how it aroused him so. How much such a thing effected his body, his psyche. As if it really were a drug.

“Pot of coffee ‘s all ready for ya’, boss man!” Troy pointed out the fresh pot of coffee as he saluted. The coffee grounds had been hand picked and grounded up that very morning for Sloan’s cup and the lion was already purring at the thought of taking a sip. He needed a pick me up this morning.

“Did you…?” Sloan glanced at the tiger who was watching him curiously.

“Did I…. oh, no. Dude, uh the human dude did. He prepared everything and even offered to make breakfast for us!” Troy’s striped tail swayed behind him as he rested forward on the counter. “I’m surprised.”

“That a human is here?” Sloan asked as he poured himself a cup. Adding more cream than coffee to the mug making the tiger gag. The lion took a long breath of the warm steam wafting from the top of the mug. It made a shiver run down his tail. “Ahhh, perfect as always Logan…”

“Huh? Nah man, that stuff isn’t that big of a deal anymore.” Troy waved it off. Sloan lifted an eyebrow at that. “I mean, for us younger gen. When I was in elementary school? There was like a human teacher in charge! Like, I’d be bothered by you guys hooking up.” Troy rolled his eyes. “It’s whatever. Not that big of a deal frankly. People just want to pull my whiskers about it for some reason. “

Sloan nearly spat his coffee out, coughing as he wiped his chin.

“Right,” Sloan’s tuft of fur at the tip of his tail flickered at that. “The younger generation will just hook up with anyone offering.” The lion rolled his eyes. “Lazy bunch of…” The older male grumbled, and the tiger just chuckled, smiling at the thought.

“I still appreciate it.” Troy said and Sloan gave him a look. “For letting me hold up here! To… like? I don’t know man… Take a breather after what happened. Get groomed and pamper like some rich fat cat!” Troy grinned and Sloan had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.

Sloan was that rich fat cat these days.

“That place was crazy, like crazy with a capital K!” Troy went on. “Those pricks nearly got me by the tail.”

“There is no K in crazy… you know what, never mind.” Sloan grumbled around the rim of his mug, taking a slow sip of the hot beverage, and nearly scolding his sensitive cat tongue on it. He tried not to let it show.

“Logan informed me of some of the things that had happened to you and your friends… I am sorry to hear that he could’ve have helped the others.” Sloan said honestly, looking down at the mug of coffee. Holding it with both his large hands. The mug seemed so small in his grasp, lost between his fingers. It still felt nice. The warmth of it. Like a certain someone. Smaller and fragile between his hands as he held him close last night. “I am very familiar with such things, unfortunately… I understand what you are going through.”

“You were drugged and kidnapped as well? Big man like you?” Troy gawked, not seeming to realize that the tiger was in fact larger than the lion was, even being half Sloan’s age.

Tiger’s were just built differently.

“Something like that,” Sloan did roll his eyes this time. “The older you get, the more these kind of things are likely to happen. Something about targeting the young, or old. Picking us off like…” Sloan didn’t continue. Not wanting to admit the fact it was a very predatory tactic to use.

Target the young, the weak, the lame and old. Those with disabilities or put into helpless situations. It was a common tactic a predator would use in the wild. Sometimes even getting a sick kind of pleasure from it… torturing those who couldn’t fight back.

“First time for me. Thankfully. Hopefully, not the last time!” Troy laughed before he stopped, realizing what he’d said. “Wait…” The tiger frowned, the gears in his head slowly turning. “I rather not end up at an exhibit!” He laughed again. His facial expressions going from one to the other with a snap of the fingers, jumping from shock to fear to realization and humor just as quickly as the last.

Sloan was already tired by the tigers energy and just sighed, resting back against the counter. Wondering how he could be so damn youthful after such a thing happened. Sloan had aged years after everything he’d been through.

He glanced over at the side door, waiting for Logan to come out. He could see steam seeping from underneath the door. The human taking a particular hot shower this morning.

Was it because of him? Sloan had the dreadful thought lurking in the back of his mind, reminding the lion of the things he had done. Licking over his fangs, Sloan was already working out what he’d say as the door opened and steam poured out from within.

It looked more like a sauna than a shower as Logan walked out in nothing more than a towel, using another to dry his hair off with. The scars on his body was always shocking to see. Fur or feathers hid such wounds well and even the lions in The Pride who did bare scars didn’t look as… exposed and vulnerable as a human did with them showing.

As if Logan were something to look at, gawk at, and take pictures of. Something you might see at a show.

“I think they’re bad ass.” Logan had laughed it off. Playing off the new ones Sloan had noticed on him and commented on. “Each has a story to tell. Just got to make sure it’s a good one.” The human winked at him.

Even now, stepping out of the washroom, the human winked at the lion seeing Sloan looking at him. Staring at all the damage and harm that had come to Logan. The human wasn’t even thirty yet and his body looked like it’d been through hell and back. And yet, that playful look never left Logan’s face as he gave the two a half wave before heading towards the room to get dressed.

“Fuck.” Troy said and Sloan looked at the tiger. “I mean, fuck.” The tiger repeated. “Have you seen him…? His body? I mean… fuck.”

“Is there an issue with the way Logan looks?” Sloan dared the tiger to say. Troy was still looking at where Logan had retreated to.

“The guy looks like someone chewed him up and spat him out,” the tiger looked over at the lion without facing Sloan. Asking the unspoken question.

“No. I wasn’t the one to leave…. Those.” Sloan said, not explaining that some of the fresher scars had been from the lion. Sloan had been very aggressive with Logan during their past couple of sessions and knew he needed to ease up on it.

Even if he didn’t want to. The thought of Logan being with another man made the lion want to mark him, roughly, as if to prove a point. Breeding him, scenting him, cover Logan’s body to the point no one else would dare come near Sloan’s property. It was a thrilling sensation to have in the bedroom. To be that rough and forceful with the human. A man that never said no… Something Sloan needed to keep in the bedroom, not in their lives.

Instead, he took another sip of his coffee.

“Is that what they wanted from me?” Troy asked suddenly, getting the lion’s attention. “They wanted to put me on display like that? To let everyone see…”

“That is what an exhibit is, isn’t it?” Sloan chuffed a breath. “To be put on display for others to view and, usually, laugh at. Like some sick work of art…”

“Not sure if I’d be comfortable being that… exposed,” Troy shuddered at the thought. “Losing control was bad enough. Don’t want to be stuffed and put on display for others to ogle.”

“Whose ogling who?” Logan asked as he walked back in, pulling his shirt down in the process. It was one of the nicer ones Sloan had gotten the human on their last outing together. A sort of date that hadn’t been one. At least, not in the end. Even if it did end up with the two in the bedroom.

“Oh, just telling lion boss man about what those fucks wanted to do with me.” Troy turned to watch Logan walk over, joining them at the middle island counter. He took a seat next to Troy, not even bothered by the close proximity to the tiger. Something Sloan was sure Logan did on purpose, as if to convince himself he wasn’t bothered by the striped feline sitting in their midst. Troy missed it altogether as he went on. “Put me on display as if I were some kind of sick work of art. To sip their wine as they critique all this,” Troy motioned down at his body. “Prob’ wear those fancy one eye pieces and those big rectangular hat things… and bowties!”

Logan’s eyes followed the movement down Troy’s body before going back up to his face, giving the tiger a look.

“You mean a monocle and top hat?” Sloan sighed.

“Exactly, lion boss man!” Troy grinned showing all his fangs.

“That’s Mr. Kincaid, to you.” Sloan grumbling. “How many times do I have to mention that-,” the lion wanted to rant at the tiger, but Logan interrupted.

“Displayed?” Logan inquired, thanking Sloan as the lion passed him a fresh cup of coffee. It was black and bitter, a perfect wake me up for the human.

“You know. Like what they do at a… a… the place with all the art on display! The naked statues and gaudy finger paint!” Troy snapped his finger, trying to think of it. “It’s on the tip of my tongue…”

“A museum?” Sloan offered.

“That’s it!” Troy pointed at the lion. “A museum. A piece of art they wanted to showcase for all their sick, stuffy suit friends!”

“How you haven’t been taken out of the gene pool sooner, I’ll never understand.” Sloan sighed, shaking his head. This was not the morning he wanted to have. He was only tolerating the tiger because Sloan felt he owed Logan that much.

After what he’d done to him.

“Uh… want to explain further?” Logan rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache. Dealing with Troy had been a handful these past couple of days.

He was thankful Sloan had let him keep Troy here, as if the tiger were some kind of stray cat that Logan had found and needed a home to keep him at until he found his owner. Logan needed the tiger to stick around as long as he could, wanting to make sure Troy was okay after everything he’d been through.

For two reasons.

The first being that Logan knew Barnes was looking for a tiger to use and abuse for his sick pleasure. The second? He was watching Troy. Watching him, waiting for the tiger to have a relapse after what he’d been through and get him the treatment he needed if he became some kind of blood junkie. There was always at least two to three down at the police station every night. Carnivores that had given into their primal desires.

Troy had recovered surprisingly fast, and Logan was already thinking of where to drop the tiger off after all this was over if he was making such a speedy recovery. Tiger’s truly were just built different it seemed.

Logan wasn’t sure why that thought hurt him so much as he clutched at his chest, wondering where this sudden pain came from. It passed just as quickly as he came but Sloan still gave him a concern look because of it.

“Well, like, they wanted to make an example of me, right? I think that’s what they were talking about.” The tiger shrugged, resting back in the chair. “It’s hard to recall everything that happened. There were so many tiny bunnies,” he chuckled. “All talking at once. Hard to piece things together when you’re tweaked out of your right mind,” he fumbled with his large hands as if trying to put tiny pieces of a puzzle together. “They just kept talking about some exhibit that they needed to hurry up for. To set up and show the world…?”

“Museum, exhibit, showcase, art…” Logan mumbled, closing his eyes as he thought it all over. “Barnes would be into that,” the human mumbled. “Showcase for his friends…? No. I mean, yes but no… Barnes is an idiot, but he wouldn’t waste such resources and risk of exposure unless… that’s what he wanted? High risk, high reward…?”

“Uh, what?” Troy asked and Sloan waved the question off.

“Just let him do his thing.” Sloan said, refilling his cup up. This time with more cream as if the first cup hadn’t had enough in it. The tiger’s jaw dropped open seeing the amount Sloan put into it.

“I had assumed he, Barnes, just wanted to drug you and let you loose in the middle of the city,” Logan said, opening his eyes and staring at the tiger as if trying to find the missing clue in Troy’s face. “But that wouldn’t work.”

“It… wouldn’t?” Troy frowned, unsure where this all was going out. His round black marked, white tipped ears splayed out as his large, muzzled face fell from the thought. “I’m rather noticeable!” Troy pointed out and Logan actually laughed.

“Yes, but that’s not how, uh, the world works.” Logan rolled his eyes. Troy just gave him a blank look. “Okay, look. If you went outside, right now? Went down to the corner market and tried to do something? Cause a scene or like, maul someone?”

Troy flinched at the thought, recalling bad memories of what had happened at The Red Room. He nearly gagged, almost throwing up on the spot and was thankful Logan continued.

“Well, you’d be stopped. Almost instantly.” Logan just explained, even rubbing Troy’s back in apology for the reminder. “Other carnivores do NOT like it when one of… them acts out.”

“Wait, wouldn’t the cops just deal with it?” Troy asked. “You said you were an officer…”

“Detective,” Logan corrected. “And they would. Dogs would step in if a human or someone like that was involved. The larger herbivores would step in if a smaller one was attacked… Their friends would probably freeze up on the spot, though. Most smaller herbivores don’t do well with direct confrontation. Omnivores usually keep out of things and carnivores would definitely jump in.” Logan ticked each one off his fingers. “They like to stay in groups for a reason. Now the police? Well, the police and media would persecute the person, for sure, so even if it was an accident they’d be screwed. A lot of people have self-defense weapons on them these days, so there’s always a risk of being maced in the face. Hell, I’ve even heard some phone apps can simulate sounds that irritate certain species hearing! It’s a crazy world these days. There are dozens of legal weapons you can carry, even in public. No one wants a scene like that to happen though… especially not a minority populace that wants to go unnoticed most the time.”

“Who?” Troy asked and Sloan and Logan gave him a second to realize it. Troy didn’t so Sloan explained harshly.

“You, dumbass.” Sloan shook his head, rubbing his head as Logan had been. Getting a headache from all this. “How you haven’t gotten skinned yet, I’ll never know.”

“Skinned?” Troy’s eyes widened as he looked at the two. Then laughed. “People don’t do that!” The tiger ignorantly stated. “I mean, who would skin and wear me?”

“Uh, a lot of people…” Logan had to take a moment, a breath, to not yell at the dumb tiger. “Like. A lot. Tiger’s are very valuable, and your fur is really nice and thick.”

“Oh, thanks.” Troy blushed, grinning idiotically at the compliment.

“He’s saying he wants to wear your skin!” Sloan wanted to roar at the tiger who wasn’t getting it through his thick skull.

“That’s cool. I mean, I still rather have my fur. It’s kind of part of me,” Troy grabbed the fur on his arm and gave it a tug as if to show the two it was attached to his body. “But, like, you can feel it whenever you want. I don’t mind.” He offered sheepishly, blushing instead as he tilted his head slightly to the side so his muzzle faced downwards towards Logan as he smiled.

“I…” Logan took another second. Troy was handsome. An idiot, but he was good looking. Logan felt another pain in his chest and chose to ignore this time. Not wanting to be lured in, again, by such a friendly smile. “Well, at least the local Brotherhood group was taken out so that’s one less concern you have to worry about.” Logan sighed, shaking his head. “My aunt would’ve loved a tiger skin rug, though… Just. Just be careful, please, Troy.”

“Your aunt?” Sloan asked as the two chose to ignore Troy.

“Oh, yeah. My aunt has a… tiger phobia, after, uh, what happened with my brother…” Logan scratched the back of his neck, unable to make eye contact. “Heh, you’d think I’d have one too! After… after it all. Yet, here I am. Hanging out with a tiger and lion. Funny, right?”

Logan asked the rhetorical question but neither of the two could answer that.

Troy and Sloan just exchanging a look. One out of confusion, the other out of concern.

“What about your parents?” Troy asked about and Logan became even more uncomfortable. Even Sloan hadn’t heard about Logan’s parents.

Logan had a habit of keeping things professional between them, especially about his personal life and now here he was being put on the spot like this. It would be extremely suspicious if he didn’t say anything and after they all had been through…

“My mom sort of, uh, lost it. After my brother… was eaten.” Logan looked down at his coffee, unable to meet their eyes. “She had a sort of mental breakdown. Was never the same after… that. Not that we could blame her…”

“What about your dad?” Troy didn’t seem capable of reading the room and continued to ask and poke and prod at the uncomfortable human before him.

“My dad, uh… well he committed suicide a couple years ago,” Logan looked out the window. His face a blank void as he answered him. Unsure why he did. Maybe it was because Troy reminded him so much of someone else…

“Oh, shit…” Troy got a good smack in the arm by the lion who was now growling at him. Sloan stopped though as Logan continued, wanting to hear what the human had never told him.

“My father couldn’t handle it. Not after my brother died and my mom was sent to the loony bin… she was shot up with so many meds, drugs really, to the point she didn’t even recognize me when I visited. So, I stopped. I stopped visiting… after she relapsed. I ended up with my Aunt after that. She took care of me. We found out about my dad only a couple years ago.” Logan said in a soft voice. “We lost contact with him and then… one day… heh, just like that.” Logan didn’t even know what to think as he stared at his reflection in the glass.

How was he supposed to look in that moment? Even Logan didn’t know.

“What happened next?” Troy continued to pry into it.

“Shut. Up!” Sloan growled at him, slamming a hand down on the counter.

“What? You never asked I bet!” Troy growled back, glaring at the lion.

“Some things are best left unsaid.” Sloan snarled back. About to grab the tiger and throw him out the window until Logan continued. His round ears perked up before lying flat.

“My dad… couldn’t handle it. Or so the report said. Drank too much. Began taking drugs to help him sleep, I think? Ended up driving off a cliff,” Logan rubbed his arm, feeling suddenly very cold. “My aunt always blamed… him, for what happened to my family. In a way it was Milo’s fault… but…”

No one said anything, at first.

“Lost my brother. Lost my mom. Then lost my dad…” Logan shrugged finally, looking back at the two. “Yet, somehow I’m still here… sorry if that was too much. I’m not. Good. At that. This.” Logan grimaced a bit before shaking the thoughts away. “If I didn’t have to work today, I’d grab a drink.” He laughed instead.

Forcing a smile on his tired face.

“Logan…” Sloan offered a supportive hand on his shoulder.

“It’s fine,” Logan lied. “It happens,” he told them. So, they might feel better, because Logan never would about it. “One attack, like that… can cause a chain reaction that ruins lives. It’s why people don’t let others just act out as they please. Predators tend to want to stay out of the spotlight, and…”

“Carnivores.” Troy suddenly said and got a look from Logan. “OH, well. Sorry… just… just a pet peeve of mine. I’ve noticed lately a lot of people keep saying that. Predators and prey and such. Well… that’s dumb.” The tiger said, suddenly getting serious about this conversation. Maybe it was something Logan had said. “It’s fucking stupid, is all. Anyone can be a predator, not just carnivores. And anyone can be prey, not just herbivores. Fuck! I was prey to herbivores! People, the media… people,” Troy repeated the word again. “People just keep wanting to lump all carnivores and predators together. That’s fucked up and close minded and so… so… dumb!” He growled.

The tiger clenched a fist on the counter, glaring down at the marble surface as his nails scratched over it’s surface.

“I didn’t do shit, man. I didn’t do fucking shit and… My friends are idiots, sure. They didn’t deserve that, right? Even after they did stuff…? But I never did! Not until I was… drugged and forced to and… fuck, I don’t want to eat people. Or hunt them. Fuck all that noise and those who want to just… just paint me in the colors they’re comfortable with!” The tiger snarled, baring his fangs before, just as quickly, his face fell. “Fuck, I’m more than that. Aren’t I? More than my claws and fangs and… They just… wanted to drug me and put me in a cage to point at and laugh at? Laugh at the dumb tiger that just… fuck,” Troy rubbed his face, trying to wipe off the tears that had suddenly broken out.

Logan had been expecting it. After everything Troy had been through there was only three possible reactions. Anger. Denial. Or… wanting to do it again.

“It’s not fair what happened to you, Logan. Not fair at all…” Troy glanced at the human before quickly turning away, curling up on himself as his tail wrapped around his side. “Not fair at all…”

Logan gave a single nod at that, placing a hand on top of Troy’s and trying to offer him the support he needed. Logan rather do that than people pitying him and his situation. He was a helper. Logan helped others. He wasn’t sure what to do when he wasn’t allowed to do that.

“If you could,” Logan suddenly asked getting Troy’s attention. “What color would you use?”

“What?” The tiger sniffled loudly.

“Color. What color would you paint your stripes?” The human asked with a warm smile, still holding the tiger’s hand paw.

“If I could choose…” Troy thought it over, getting distracted from his melancholy in the process. Sloan had to admit, Logan was good at this. “I would use those, uh, black lights.”

“What?” Sloan was the one to scoff at.

“The UV paint?” Logan just went on with Troy’s line of thought, taking the tiger along with him and away from the troubles they had just been having. Away from this pain and to a brighter, happier future.

“Y-yeah! The fluorescent kind that like glow and shit! How cool would that be? GO to a rave and be all lit up in different colors and just… just…” Troy tensed, toes curling with his tail as he looked down, gritting his teeth. “Fuck. This sucks…” He stated the fact he’d been trying to ignore. “I don’t want to be here. I want to go home… or back to school. Wake up from this nightmare. I got classes I’m missing. And, like, I know it’s dumb and like student loans but… but that was my life. Until they stole it from me,” Troy yowled out at the end, sniffling as he covered his face with a large hand as he curled up against the counter. “They stole it.”

Logan gave Sloan a look before getting up and giving the sitting tiger a hug, rubbing his back as he let it all out. Troy turned on him, making Sloan tense, before Troy wrapped Logan up in a bone crushing hug as he sobbed.

“They s-stole my life from me!” Troy cried, as he held Logan tighter. “I didn’t do shit! I didn’t even w-want to go to that place, my roommate did and… and those fucks… they saw me and just thought they knew me. I’m more than my stripes, god dammit. I’m more than that…” Troy cried. “I’m more than just some tiger.” He yowled out painfully. “I’m not that…” And he wept for the misery of being born the way he was. “Not fair. Just… so unfair…”

“How many drinks did you let him have?” Logan whispered-said to Sloan who shrugged.

“One?” Sloan counted the bottle on the counter as the lion came around to help pry the tiger off the human. “We need a damn crowbar,” Sloan grunted as Troy continued to hug, nuzzle, and hold Logan.

“Just let him… let it all out. I’m going to need another shower.” Logan sighed.

“S-sorry,” Troy ended up saying ten minutes later wiping his runny nose on the back of his hand making Sloan gag. “I just, that was, and you just… cried.”

“Uh, what?” Logan wasn’t sure if he was or not and had to physically check.

“No, not now. I mean, back then.” Troy hiccupped as he tried to calm down. “Back then. No one has ever cried like that for me. Some dumb tiger. And you just, and I was… I tried to eat you!” Troy said nearly bursting out into tears again. “My body,” he held up his now shaky hands. “I couldn’t control myself and I just… I almost…” He clenched his jaws tightly, trying to hold back the whimper that threaten to tear out of him, through him, wanting to roar out this pain inside. “I’m a damn vegan and they… They took my control from me…” Troy finally ended with. “Myself. They took… me.”

Troy took a steady breath.

“I spent so much time trying not to… hurt others. It’s like not my vibe,” Troy took another big breath and let it out as Logan coached him on his breathing. “I have friends. Friends who are rabbits. I thought, maybe, they knew those guys. That they were friends or family or whatever. I know that’s speciesist but… I thought and when they came with a free drink? I thought it was because they were friends and heard about me… that I was the cool tiger guy on campus.” Troy looked up at Logan, into his eyes as he asked the question he feared to hear the answer of. “Do you… do you think the rabbits at college knew about this?” Troy looked on the verge of breaking down again.

Logan didn’t know how to answer that.

“There’s… a good chance,” Logan admitted after a moment of deep thought. Sometimes the harsh truth could keep you alive and with how Troy seemed to forget the fact he was a large predator? He needed the reminder. “There is a chance that they knew about you guys going out, and because of that, because of them… they could have even told their friends or family about it. Barnes… Barnes likes to lure predators… sorry, likes to lure carnivores into his trap like that. He doesn’t care who it is. Just so long as they fit his… criteria.” Logan looked up to see the pained look on Troy’s face.

“Oh.” Was all the tiger could say. “So, they, they weren’t my friends or just being friendly… they wanted to lure me to that place to… to…” Troy couldn’t even finish the thought, thinking of the rabbits at college.

He wanted to be different. Troy didn’t want to be like his parents or brother. He wanted to be someone that could be around herbivores without drooling. Not seeing them as some kind of appetizer but people with names and faces and feelings and…

“What do I do now…?” Troy asked the room, unsure who could possibly answer him.

Logan got up and accepted the hug that Troy desperately needed in that moment. The two stayed like that for a good couple of minutes until the tiger calmed down. Logan remained standing, rubbing his back as fat crocodile tears ran down Troy’s face.

“You live.” Sloan was the one to say, getting a look from the tiger now. Troy looking up at him with damp furred cheeks. “You keep on living. Do it for yourself? Spite? Or whatever you need to do, just… just keep on going. You live. You don’t let them win.” Sloan said in a cold voice, looking away as his nails gripped the counter now. “No matter what they try and say or throw at you, blame you for. You just keep… living.”

“Heh,” Troy had to laugh at that. “Some advice,” the tiger wiped one of his cheeks off. “Is that why you’re running for mayor? Spite?”

“Something like that.” Sloan offered in return, handing over a fresh cup of coffee with too much cream in it to the tiger who politely took it. “Drink something real. Not alcohol so early in the morning.”

“Thanks,” Troy took a sip and tried not to spit it out.

“Mayor.” Logan muttered.

“Oh, he started that thing again.” Troy pointed out.

“Mayor. Exhibit. Museum… no… showcase.” Logan corrected his train of thought, adding new tracks onto it as the locomotion began to pick up steam. “Mayor, showcase, event.” Logan stood up. “Event. Showcase. Mayor. Major event to announce running for mayor? Bigger risk. Bigger reward…? No, bigger audience. Target audience, making a scene,” Logan was already running over to grab his coat. Making sure he had his keys, phone, and wallet inside. “Sloan, I think I figured it out!”

“Yes, Logan? Care to explain to the rest of us.” The lion asked patiently as the human ran back over to the two.

“The Showcase!” Logan practically yelled at him. Sloan chuffed in amusement.

“Feisty little guy, isn’t he?” Troy just commented on.

“No, no! Don’t you see? The event! The major Showcase coming up. Where the herbivores gather together and…” Logan paused, seeing the look on the other twos faces. “Oh, right. Predators.”

“Carnivores.” Troy corrected.

“Right. Carnivores probably don’t know about the Showcase. Hell, I barely remember it.” Logan chuckled. “I deal with carnivores more than herbivores, so it completely passed me by every year. It’s usually a boring event anyways. Nothing really of note or worth remembering.”

“Logan,” Sloan said in a calm, yet strong voice. Like a father reminding their child to do their chores.

“Right! Anyways. SO, there is this huge showcase that herbivores put together coming up. The rich ones. The real rich ones. And I mean the filthy, disgusting, silver spoon in your mouth when you are born rich! Think of it like a car showcase, crossed with a museum, that ends in an event! They claim it’s a charity event, but we know better than that.” Logan smugly said.

“How does this all tie together?” Sloan pressed Logan, wishing the human would divulge more information without being picked up and shaken until it fell out of him.

“Barnes has been making headways in the herbivore scene. He’s already pulled several big, and stupid, stunts. Like capturing predators,” Logan nodded to Troy who frowned at thought. “To using some sort of enhanced version of Primal on them to force a scene to happen. Then attacking the three heads in the neutral zone?” Logan’s eyes widened as it all came together. “He wants to be noticed. Uh, quick catchup for you guys. Bunnies and rabbits? There are shit ton of them. And I mean thousands in a colony at times if not more. You have to do some, uh, very drastic things to be noticed. To stand out in that kind of crowd. Barnes is one of the heads of the Noble Hare council but has always wanted more power, to continue his sick games with…”

“Uh, what? Who?” Troy had to ask.

“Barnes is the Noble Hare in charge of The Red Room you were in.” Logan explained.

“Oh,” the tiger’s ears drooped down with his whiskers. “Well, fuck.”

“Exactly. He gets off on these sick games of cat and mouse and pred and prey stuff. He was born a hare, at the end of the food chain, and has a sort of… complex because of it? I’m guessing. Trying to put it all together still in my head. I mean after the whole tiger incident? Makes sense he’d target Troy.” Logan said and got another look he waved off. “Not important. The issue is he is a small man trapped in a smaller mans body but with an ego that could surpass The Kincaid family.”

“Logan…” Sloan warned.

“I swear I’m getting to it! So, recap. Small man syndrome hare wants power to keep doing BDSM dungeon shit to carnivores, right? Right. The thing is… there’s been a sort of, how do I put it? A divide. A divide in recent years between the other groups.” Logan continued quickly making it hard to keep up. “The wolves have a new Alpha; The Pride has a new Mane. The Cackle is still there, somehow. But that’s just on this side, this front,” Logan motioned to one side of the room. “The rest have their own groups!” He motioned to the rest of the room, the larger portion of the room as if he were dividing a piece of pie out for them to understand the sheer numbers difference between the groups. “The Noble Hares, The Brotherhood and not even going to mention The Syndicate or others.” Logan shook his head. “Some groups, not that important. Right now… the major issue is that this year is an election year,” he looked at Sloan.

“And I’m running for mayor.” Sloan nodded. “I haven’t even announced it yet and they all already know?”

“Welcome to the real world,” Logan laughed apologetically. “A carnivore like a lion hasn’t run for a position of power or office in… years. Or at least, not one that has a chance of winning.” Logan blinked, thinking it over. “I would actually have to look it up to know the exact year the last one tried…”

“Nineteen eighty-five.” Troy said, holding up his phone. “Was curious.” The feline shrugged. “Says here a shark was running for office before they found… fuck, that’s a lot of drugs. Well, a fuck ton of drugs in his office.”

“Most likely planted.” Sloan growled.

“Well, duh.” Logan said and the lion glared at him. “Sorry. But now you are getting the picture! Sloan is running for mayor. That’s not okay for these other groups. It’s not that they’re afraid of losing, they’re afraid of the message it’ll send if a carnivore runs for office.”

“What about, uh, our side…?” Sloan asked hating to say it like that. To compare The Pride and The Pack together left a bad taste in his mouth.

“That’s why I wanted you all to meet in neutral territory… I honestly didn’t think Barnes would be stupid enough to try something.” Logan thought that over. “Zhang is going to be so fucking pissed when he gets back from Hong Kong…”

“Who?” Troy was struggling to keep up.

“Small-clawed Asian otter that controls the wet market and waterways.” Logan shrugged. “He’ll, uh, have a few things to… blow up, when he gets back.”

“How does this affect me again?” Sloan felt like he needed to be taking notes.

“Right. Sorry, coffee is kicking in!” Logan said. “Barnes wants to run for office. Or something similar. He’s making a gigantic splash in the water to be notice.”

“All the things he does paint him in a negative light, though…” Sloan frowned. “As an idiot that can’t even blame out a proper hit…”

“Infamy is still a kind of fame.” Logan said, once more, apologetically. “He’s doing all these dumbass things but… well, people are going to take note. They’re already noticing him. A guy who lives underground is being noticed. That’s kind of a big deal. He’s making it impossible NOT to notice him. It’s stupid, yes… but he has the resources to spare.” Logan cringed at the thought of calling the hares and rabbits a resource, as if they weren’t people but something to be used and abandoned.

“He’s already made a name for himself. People are talking about it all over the news.” Troy jumped in, showing his phone’s screen once more. “That’s all anyone can talk about. Even if it’s all mostly negative…”

“Exactly.” Logan sighed. “It’s why I didn’t see it coming… people tend to gravitate towards those they know. Everyone is hearing about or seeing Barnes ugly face now. Plastered all over the news and online. Bad news? Sure. But the fact of the matter is… they know who he is. All he has to do is one final push and they’ll elect him.”

Logan tapped a finger on the counter.

“What kind of push are we talking about…?” Sloan dared to ask.

“At first? I think he wanted your head. As in… to put it on display. A symbol for herbivores to gather around and cheer for. A symbol of hate… Bring out the fear and hate within them to mass for election day… using you as their flag of hate.” Logan shook his head, feeling sick at the very thought. “Hate is a powerful weapon to use. Just find a group of people, especially a minority, and… blame them for everything wrong with the state and country? Rally and work up everyone else against them? It’s a scary thing to see… even when or if people try to get on you for it? Be louder. Be ruder. Go farther than you already have or tried…”

“Tried…?” Sloan caught onto that.

“The current mayor, Annabelle Horn, was running against Barnes in the last election.” Logan sighed, shaking his head.

“Huh, I didn’t even notice…” Sloan frowned at that. “That’s concerning.”

“Don’t be. No one really took note because it was just another human against some no name, nameless herbivore. Whatever. No real scandal in that. Just another human running for office and another herbivore wanting to be noticed. You’d think Barnes would be a shoe in for the position if every rabbit and hare voted for him. Well. Most didn’t.” Logan shrugged.

“Why not?” Troy asked, getting curious. He wasn’t familiar with those outside tiger culture. It was one reason why he tried so hard in school to connect with others. Despite how hard that was or what happened when you tried to step out of your allowed space and into that of others. You ended up stepping on others toes.

“Well, most hares are vying for the same position in the colony. Think of a colony like an extremely large family of cousins. All related but distant. They aren’t going to help you achieve more power in the colony when they want it themselves. Or they have someone they are already supporting. It’s a whole entire affair,” Logan shook his head. “It gets really… back stabby, let’s just say. You think a wolf pack is bad? It’s nothing compared to some of these groups that range in the thousands instead of hundreds.”

“What’s different now?” Sloan had to know. To know what he was facing against.

“Simple. Barnes did something that none of the other hares thought possible.” Logan frowned.

“And that would be…?” Sloan already knew the answer.

“He made a predator bleed…” Logan swallowed at the thought. “He’s already chosen his target, the scapegoat to use when he runs. Barnes plans to use all carnivores as his stepping stones to get into power. No matter how many that hurts along the way. No matter how many families he ruins,” Logan tense, gripping his arm. Thinking of what happened to his own family. “Or whose lives he’ll ruin in the process, the pursuit of power,” he looked over at Troy.

The tiger’s ears folded back.

“He. I was just… a stepping stone to him?” Troy nearly choked on the words.

“Barnes grew up surrounded by people. Dozens of siblings. Hundreds of family members. Thousands of cousins… yet he somehow is the one on top?” Logan stated without really talking to anyone. “I knew you had it rough Barnes… but this?” Logan almost couldn’t believe it. “I mean you… but this? How… Barnes, what the fuck happened…?”

“Logan?” Sloan asked.

“Barnes was… he was…” Logan took a second, thinking of so many people now. All the people he wanted to trust, and some who he even did… and all those people who hurt him in the end. “Barnes was my friend. Or, at least, I thought he was. We had a lot of… similarities growing up. He lost family to an attack and was disfigured by someone he thought loved him… like me. We connected because of it all. I just never thought he’d go this far. To become this… jaded and broken.”

Broken like the rest of us.

Logan almost laughed at the thought. The bitter thought that clung to the back of his throat, refusing to be forgotten. He covered his mouth with a hand, not wanting the others to see him like this. When had he become like this? To be so close to others again.

Afraid to lose them, too.

The thought scared him.

Logan never faltered when he was in the line of duty because those shooting at him were always his enemy. Simple. Clean. Logical. It was easy to work when you had that mindset. It was different when you knew the man behind the gun pointing at you.

Logan could recall those who were close to him that hurt him, not the faceless gang members or street thugs he’d taken down over the years. But he recalled every one of the people who he had ever once loved…

“Barnes plans one last… bang, before he announces whatever it is he plans to announce.” Logan said as he stood back up, getting ready to head out. “Whatever that is? Doesn’t really matter. We have a motive now. We know the why.”

Logan took down the harness he kept his pistols in and put it on before slipping his jacket over it. He checked to make sure they were both there. He touched one of the guns. Touching the hand designed, personal emblem at the end of one of the pistols. Like most of the tools of the trade, they’d been gifts from former friends or loved ones.

The left pistol had an emblem on the base of it. Hand done, just for him. It was that of a silver rabbit running.

“Barnes…” Logan cursed.

“Do we know the others?” Troy asked, nearly making Logan jump. He hadn’t even heard the large feline get up and walk over to check on him. He needed to put a damn bell on the tiger. “The who, where, what… uh…. Why?”

“We know the who and the why,” Sloan rolled his eyes walking over as well. He grabbed his jacket. “We just need to find the where and what… what he plans to do exactly.”

“I already know that.” Logan stopped Sloan and got a confused look from him. “You aren’t coming. Not this time, Sloan… You can’t.”

Sloan’s tail began flickering quickly as he held back the growl building up in his chest.

“Logan. You just got here! I’m not about to just leave you to this. It’s dangerous!” Sloan began. “I can’t just… lose you, again. It’s dangerous.”

“I know. That’s why I’m doing it, not you.” Logan said easily enough. “I got plenty of scars already.” Logan reached up and pet the side of Sloan’s face, catching him off guard. Troy gave the two a look but didn’t interfere. “You need to keep that purty face of yours nice and clean for the cameras, Sloan… let me be the ugly one.”

“Why? I have plenty of resources to-,” Sloan faltered, wanting to say and do more for Logan. He felt like the human was always doing this. Leaving him behind. To let him wallow while he waited, unsure if Logan would ever return or not…

“Because you are their target, Sloan. They want your head above everyone else. If you were to walk in there?” Logan had to laugh. “There’s one nice thing, at times, being human…” Logan said as he fixed the harness and made sure it wasn’t obvious to anyone looking. “We tend to go unnoticed,” Logan gave him a wink.

“When will you be back?” Troy asked as the elevator doors open. Logan glanced back at him. “Will you… be coming back?” Troy’s shoulders fell, staring at the human. Sloan was familiar with that look, the look on the tiger’s face. It was the look he got when he first learned the truth about Logan.

And that no matter how tightly you try to hold onto him, Logan would slip away between your fingers and fly away.

“I’ll be back before you know it,” Logan promised with a smile as he lied through his teeth. Giving the two the best masked face he could summon up. “Make sure there’s a fresh pot of coffee on and a cold beer in the fridge,” he waved as the doors began to shut.

Leaving the two alone together. Standing there in front of the shut doors as Logan descended to the basement, to where his car was waiting for him. A game plan already forming in his head as the human dared to risk everything once more.

Opening up his phone, Logan checked the text he’d gotten from Domino. He was glad he sent the wolf off to help his pack. Domino needed that. Needed them. The security they offered. That they’d always be there for him. Something Logan could never promise him, or Sloan, or anyone…

“Going radio silent.” Logan texted Domino, knowing the wolf would relay it to The Alpha. “I think I found out where Alan will be… I’ll let you know when I do.”

“Understood.” Was the text he got in return.

Logan settled into the Bentley that Sloan had gotten for him. It was nice car, and he knew the lion had a tracker on it. If things got bad, at least Sloan might be able to recover his body… maybe.

“Heh, look at me. Getting all sentimental.” Logan adjusted the rearview mirror. He saw the look on his face and had to slap his cheek to get it off. “Fuck. Can’t get sentimental now.” Logan paused, seeing the tired man looking back at him.

That man in the mirror had to be in his twenties and yet looked like he was ten years older with heavy bags under his eyes with an unshaved scruffy face. It was those eyes though that gave Logan away. Tired, dead eyes that had seen so much more than most in the world ever had or would.

“At least the bags I can hide with makeup,” Logan almost laughed as he checked his suit. “Well, that and a new suit. Something nice and classy. If I’m going to break into a party I need to look the part.” Logan put the keys in, about to start the car when his phone buzzed again. “Dammit, Domino. I told you radio silence.”

Logan checked it. It wasn’t from Domino.

“Come in.” Was all it said from an unknown number. Logan’s phone had almost blocked it as spam. “ASAP.”

“Bosch,” Logan tensed seeing the text. “How do you fit in all this. Are you working for Barnes or…?”

Logan didn’t know. He never knew what the jaguar was thinking. It was why he couldn’t be with him.

Without a further thought, Logan headed out. Not wanting to disappoint his new boss. The man he now worked for, in order to keep this city safe. Hunting the predators that walked amongst them. Wondering if a hare could be called one as well.

“Guess I’m about to find out just how fucked up you’ve become Barnes.” Logan said as he stepped on the pedal, not wanting to keep Bosch waiting.

Logan was afraid of very few people in the world. Bosch being one of them.