The Five Realms

STORY

The man with the silver hair and crimson eyes looked at the tableau in front of him through the door. It was like a scene from the local police station except that the place wasn't a police station but one of the store's offices. Three human kids with ages ranging from 15-18 sat on some plastic chairs by the wall. Their hands were restrained with handcuffs and guarded by the stores security men. They looked terrified.

The manager signaled the guards and they left the small office, forcibly pushing two of the teens outside the door.

“Is he the one?” The Nathan asked, pointing at the remaining kid.

The manager nodded. Nathan asked her if he could have a few moments alone with the teen. She again nodded and abruptly left, closing the door as she went.

Nathan turned to the teen, taking a folded piece of paper from his back pocket. He unfolded it and held it in front of the kid's face.

“Explain.” It was growled out harshly, causing the boy to flinch at the sound.

“I don't know anything.” The boy asked with false bravado. He was trying to show he wasn't scared, but his eyes were not meeting the man's.

Nathan growled low in his throat. He crouched and cupped the boy's face roughly with one hand, forcefully making eye contact with the boy.

“Don't play with me boy. You will regret it if you do.”

Nathan's eyes were burning and had turned draconic. The menace in his voice verified the truth in his words. The boy gave a shudder. The man may look pleasant, but his eyes were that of a demon's.

“That picture is all over the internet; social networks, gaming forums, blogs, journals.” The frightened boy blurted out. He couldn't get it out of his mouth fast enough.

“We wanted the money,” he added, pointing at the amount stated below the picture.

Nathan watched the boy. He knew the boy was telling the truth. He sighed as his anger subsided. His prisoner was just another victim of greed.

“Who's handing out the reward?” Nathan withdrew his hands from the boy's face as he stood up from his crouching position. His voiced had returned to normal although his eyes were still hard and focused on the teen.

The teenager gave him the name of the site. Nathan quickly wrote it on the back of the paper he was holding and moved to the door. An audible sigh of relief could be heard in the small room.

Nathan paused midway, looking back at the teen. The menace in his voice had returned as well as the burning in his eyes.

“If you’re lying, I'll hunt you down. And if you ever touch or look at him, even if by accident, I will kill you.”

With those last parting words, he left.

XX

Thom’s disguise had worked too well. The boys who had pursued him had not recognized him when he passed them on his way to Sav’s car. But they did give him wolf whistles.

He did not know why they chased him. Did he do something wrong? As far as he could remember, he had been minding his own business all day and had not given them cause to be angry. He had wanted to scream at them, to ask them why they did it, but he knew he couldn’t. There was a reason why Nathan had ordered Savyn to give him a disguise. They were still out to get him, and that was also the reason he gave in to Savyn’s stupid plan.

Thom watched as the warehouse finally came to view. His head was pounding. All he wanted to do was sleep. Nathan had promised an explanation for the day’s events but he didn’t think he could wait for Nathan to come home. Besides, Nathan was still out there investigating whatever it is that had caused those boys to chase him. He was sure Nathan and he wouldn’t be seeing each other this evening. Nathan usually left for days when he worked, and would only come back when his business was finished. Today’s case wasn’t that much different.

Speaking of Nathan, what was that kiss about? He had left abruptly and Thom did not know how to interpret it. Savyn may think that Nathan likes him but that was all hearsay. He needed to hear it from Nathan himself.

Thom opened the door as Savyn turned off the ignition of the car.

“Darling, you look fabulous!” Mel screamed when he saw Thom stepping out of the automobile. Thom grimaced. What was wrong with these people? He was a guy for god's sake! Weren't they a bit bothered that he looked like a drag queen?

Thom pursed his lips and watched the 3-stooges get the shopping bags out of the car’s trunk. Even they had agreed he looked good and had kept on giving him admiring glances all through out the ride home. What was the world coming to? Thom wanted to bury his head on the ground like an ostrich. That way, no one would look at his face and say something about it again.

Mel had run to his room just after he had complimented Thom. He came back with a camera in hand and started taking pictures of him.

“I hate you,” He mouthed at Sav, who was urging him to pose. He ignored Mel and Savyn as he waited for Jake, Lyle and Sven to sort out the bags. Finally, Jake handed him his bag of toys.

Thom tried to walk towards his bedroom without falling flat on his face on his 3-inches heeled sandals while avoiding the camera that Mel kept on shoving on his face. Finally giving up, he stepped out of his sandals and picked it up with his free hand, wiggling his toes before he walked barefooted to his room.

He was confused, tired and cranky. The day’s events had exhausted him beyond belief. He placed his shopping bag on the bed and got a towel and a change of clothes from the built-in closet. He forced his tired body out of the bedroom and into the common bathroom, pausing as he passed the mirror hanging above the sink to give his reflection a long examination.

Thom saw someone with arched brows, blue eyes that were lined with mascara and eye shadow, a small nose, full pouting red lips and high cheekbones that were highlighted by blush on. He wanted to scream. What did they see in him to be able to say he was pretty? He looked awful, like a whore trying to get some clients. Cursing Sav under his breath, he placed his things on the bathroom counter, stripped and then showered, scrubbing his face with vigor to erase any trace of make up on his face.

Thom finally got out of the shower and looked again on the mirror. He felt and looked much better now. He dried his hair and put on a t-shirt and boxer shorts. He was going to bed and not think anymore. Hopefully by tomorrow he would be back to his old self again.