Part 27 (1/2)
He wrapped one of his hands around Tyler's and Tyler's eyes sprang open.
”Haris,” he croaked.
”I'm here.”
”How's Jeremy?”
”I don't know. What happened to you?”
”I banged my head. Probably when I fainted. I'm such a wuss. I'm really sorry.”
Haris sat on the edge of the bed. ”What for?”
”For letting you get involved in the mess that is my life.”
”Hey. You didn't let me do anything.”
”But you don't know what I am, what I've done. I'm not what you think I am. Except I didn't stab Jeremy. I called the police. They found one of my socks and a belt covered with his blood in my pocket and now they think I did it. Oh G.o.d.”
He could feel Tyler shaking.
”I've got you a lawyer. He's waiting outside. You don't speak to the police until you've spoken to him.”
Tyler pushed himself to a sitting position. ”He might as well come in and hear it with you, but there's something I need to tell you first. You might not want to stick around after.”
Haris was pretty sure he already knew what he was going to say. The moment he'd opened the envelope, he wished he hadn't. He'd betrayed Tyler's trust by having his background checked. Now he had to pretend he didn't know any of it.
Chapter Sixteen.
Tyler wrapped his arms around himself and stared into Haris's face, aware this was the last time the man would look at him without knowing what he'd done, the last time Tyler would look at him and not wonder what he really thought.
”Before I met you, I f.u.c.ked guys for money. Every Sat.u.r.day night. I don't know how many,” Tyler blurted and dug his fingers so hard into his ribs, it hurt.
Haris's gaze didn't waver. ”You're f.u.c.king me for money.”
Tyler wasn't sure what he'd expected Haris to say, but he was fairly sure he hadn't wanted or expected him to say that. It reduced what they had between them to nothing. Didn't he care at all?
”As long as you stopped doing it once you'd signed the contract,” Haris said.
”Yes,” he muttered.
”Unless there's something else, I'll ask Michael to come in.”
He's not even a little upset? Not sad for me? Not angry, disappointed, disgusted? Not even f.u.c.king surprised?
Tyler sucked in his cheeks. ”No, nothing else.”
Now he felt a fool for thinking Haris would be bothered. They had a business arrangement with a definite end, not a relations.h.i.+p that was open-ended. He'd lost sight of that. Haris wanted him for uncomplicated fun not emotional ha.s.sle. The lawyer was probably there to make sure Haris didn't get trawled up into this mess.
Oh G.o.d. Where am I going to live? Anxiety fluttered in his chest. He couldn't go back to his flat, not with blood all over the place. s.h.i.+t, I'll probably be in prison anyway. He shuddered.
The man that came into the room with Haris was in his fifties, and tall with silver hair.
”Michael Dunnock,” he said to Tyler and held out his hand. ”How are you feeling?”
”I'm okay.” If he ignored the pounding head, the churning in his gut and the ache in his heart. ”Do you know how Jeremy is?”
”No, I'm sorry.”
Tyler felt bad that part of the reason he wanted Jeremy to be okay was so he could tell the police it wasn't him who stabbed him. ”I didn't-”
”Before you speak, you need to listen carefully,” the lawyer said. ”I don't want you to lie to me but think very hard about what you decide to reveal. If I ask you a question, answer it precisely and then stop. If I need to know more, I'll ask. That applies especially if the police are interviewing you. Okay?”
”Yes.”
”When did you first meet Jeremy?” the lawyer asked.
”Sat.u.r.day before last.”
”How did you meet him?”
Tyler glanced at Haris. ”At an all-male s.e.x party organized by a man called Prescott. I think his first name is Henry. Jeremy and I were the...star attractions.”
Haris showed nothing on his face and Tyler stared at him, struck by a perverse desire to hide nothing about those evenings, not even the fact that sometimes part of him had enjoyed what happened.
”We were paid five hundred pounds to have s.e.x with whoever wanted us and however they wanted us, as often as they wanted us.”
”How many men attended?” Dunnock asked.
”There were usually around seven of us who were paid. Maybe double that number who paid Prescott. They didn't all want to take part. Some liked to sit on the sidelines. One time, we even had a couple of women watching.”
”Was there any sort of coercion?”
Tyler gave a short laugh. ”Five hundred quid is a lot of money. If one guy preferred not to do something, there was always another who would.”
”Anyone underage?”
”Not that I know of, but we all looked young. The guys who attended-” Sort of looked like you, ”-were a mixed bunch of professional people: CEOs, accountants, lawyers, venture capitalists.”
Haris stared at him without blinking.
”What did Jeremy do at the party?” the lawyer asked.
”Apart from mess around with me? Prescott said he wanted him all to himself that first time. That's what he does. Makes you think you're special.”
”Is that what he did with you?” Dunnock asked.