turned dark.
“Is there more that you aren’t saying Rhys?” Ashby asked, concerned.
“Just that he was a little too touchy feely with me and some of the guys when he would come out with
the delivery driver. Most of us are at least bi, but no one welcomed his advances. He would touch us
inappropriately or grind up against up from behind if we bent over while putting stock away.” Rhys’s eyes
went to the floor as he explained. Ashby felt his blood pressure spike. He hated bullies!
“Roman, which button is David and Daniel?” he asked, pointing to the multibutton intercom system.
“The one with the biohazard sign next to it, why?” Roman asked, as he and Rhys watched Ashby.
Ashby paused and looked down at the intercom, and sure enough, drawn on the intercom system was a
small biohazard sign.
Shaking his head Ashby pressed the button, and after a few seconds he heard Daniel’s voice.
“Hey bossman, what’s shakin’?”
“I need your kung fu,” Ashby said.
“Target?”
“ABA Distributers. Our old alcohol vendor,” Ashby said.
“Intent?” David asked. Ashby could hear keys tapping.
“Total annihilation. Find their current list of customers and let them know that we’re raising a case with
the Better Business Bureau for sexual harassment. They may want to check with their employees. Then
launch a Facebook campaign online to spread the word.”
“On it! Finally a fun project,” Daniel said, then the intercom beeped before going silent. Ashby looked
up to see that Rhys’s eyes were shiny with unshed tears.
“You matter Rhys. Let the other guys know that I will not put up with anyone hurting or disrespecting
our coven members. You shouldn’t have to feel threatened in your own home,” Ashby said, his voice gentle
but firm. Rhys cleared his throat and swallowed hard.
“Thank you, my prince,” Rhys said, turned to leave and nearly ran into Gabriel and Mikhail who were
standing just inside the office.
“Prince Gabriel, thank goodness you’re OK!” Rhys exclaimed.
“Gabriel.” Ashby’s voice was shaky. Gabriel crossed the room and pulled Ashby into his arms.
“I thought I lost you, I thought they had taken you from me. I felt the bond break,” he whispered to
Ashby.
“Not without a whole lot of kicking and screaming.” Ashby held on tight and buried his face in
Gabriel’s shoulder.
“I hear you have been taking care of things while I’ve been recovering.” Gabriel lifted his face and his
eyes immediately fell on the marks on Ashby’s neck. Pain filled his face. Ashby shook his head.
“I’m OK, I’d do it again in a heartbeat to get you back.” Ashby cupped Gabriel’s face. Gabriel took his
hand and kissed the center of his palm before turning to the desk and pressed the middle button on the
intercom.
“Hey, Ashby, what’s up now?” David asked.
“It’s not Ashby,” Gabriel said, wrapping an arm around Ashby’s waist, turning them to face Rhys and
Roman.
“Prince Gabriel! Thank fuck you’re OK!” Daniel screamed into the intercom causing Ashby to wince.
“I have another fun project for you,” he said, giving Ashby a wink.
“Seriously? A fun project?” Daniel asked breathless.
“I want you to hack into that ABA owner’s life. Dig until you find the dirt I know is there and I want
you to make his life go nuclear,” Gabriel said his voice taking on a hard edge.
“Fuckin' A, what did this guy do?” David asked.
“He hurt members of this coven,” Ashby said, watching the tears drop down Rhys’s cheeks.
“Initiating program Seek and Destroy,” David said in a serious tone.
“We’ll keep you posted. Consider this guy toast,” Daniel said before they heard the beep indicating the
call was over.
Ashby looked back to Rhys. Mikhail had a hand on his shoulder to comfort the man.
“Rhys, why did you never bring this to my attention?” Gabriel asked. Rhys just stared at the floor.
“You’re not the most approachable man, my love. But don’t worry you have me now, we’ll work on it,”
Ashby said, patting Gabriel’s arm.
“My coven doesn’t trust me?” he asked sounding hurt.
“No! Prince Gabriel no! It’s just that we know that you deal with far more important issues that impact
our entire race. We try to take care of these matters so you aren’t bothered,” Rhys explained, his face going
pale.
“How can I hope to save my race when I can’t even protect my own coven?” Gabriel’s head fell back