Thomas’s voice was calm, comforting even.
Warren’s eyes darted. He lost all his menace, as he checked the floor. “Like a cable tie?”
“A cable tie will do,” Thomas replied.
Warren sat up, swaying as he did. He dropped the secateurs, which clipped the lobe of Scott’s ear on the way down to the floor.
Thomas kicked Warren in the ribs, the force of the blow knocking him off Scott. He groaned as he landed sprawled on top of the glass and waded his hands through it as he tried to get his bearings.
“Scott…” Thomas reached for him, pulling him off the floor. He held Scott’s face, inspecting the damage, his gaze jumping from the cuts on his head, to his slit lip, and the long slices along the underside of his jaw. His fingers were gentle, too cautious to touch certain parts; he twitched them close to Scott’s skin before pulling Scott close by his shoulders.
Scott pressed himself against Thomas, hooking his chin on his shoulder. Thomas wrapped him up in a hug before stroking down Scott’s arms and touching the cable ties.
Scott hissed, and Thomas released him, crouching down to grab the secateurs.
“Turn around.”
Scott waited for Thomas to snip his wrists free before spinning around to throw himself at Thomas.
Thomas held him close, sliding a hand all the way up Scott’s back and neck before he stopped at Scott’s head. His palm was warm on the crown of Scott’s head, and for a moment, he could almost convince himself he still had hair.
Warren groaned, struggling to turn onto his side. He managed it, but shards of glass stuck out from his cheek. His eyes didn’t seem to see them, trailing up the wall until they rolled back in his head. He collapsed on his back, still breathing, but it rasped.
“You said…” Scott swallowed what felt like nails in his throat. “You said her venom isn’t strong enough to kill him.”
“It’s not,” Thomas murmured by his ear.
They leaned back from each other, but Scott kept a hand fisted in Thomas’s T-shirt and Thomas had his arms around Scott, reluctant to let him go. They both watched Warren’s chest heave as he fought for each breath.
“It will work its way out of his system,” Thomas said.
“He was going to… He was going to –”
“I know what he was going to do,” Thomas hissed. “I read enough of his fucked-up requests to know the kind of twisted shit that turned him on…”
Thomas tucked Scott into his side and inched him away from Warren.
“And I’m going to make sure he can never try again.”
He eased Scott into the armchair, cupping his cheek as he looked him over again. Fury widened his eyes when he saw the back of Scott’s hand.
Scott wrapped it up with the bottom of his shirt again.
Thomas returned to where Warren lay on the floor, then knelt down beside him. He removed Warren’s shoes, then his socks. Scott frowned but didn’t interrupt to ask Thomas why he was stripping him. He didn’t stop until Warren was naked, including the balaclava, then picked up the secateurs. Scott curled his toes and looked away, not wanting to watch as Thomas snipped off Warren’s cock.
His brow twitched at the sound of a clunk, then the whine of a hinge. Scott glanced over, doing a double-take when he realised Thomas wasn’t by Warren anymore but stood in front of the biggest tank in the room, opening the door wide for the anaconda inside.
Scott gaped while Thomas walked back to him.
“Come,” he murmured, helping Scott up from the chair. He wrapped Scott’s good arm over his shoulders to help him walk.
“I’ll need to clean the secateurs before I give them back to Tim; they’ve got your blood all over them.”
“Tim,” Scott blurted. “Shit, Thomas, he’s tied up in the back of his van. We need to help him.”
“We will,” Thomas replied.
They paused by the front door. “Do you know what time it is, Scott?”
