Page 85 of Cohesion

“Follow up, I guess,” Will said. “Can you—” He jangled the handcuffs that had him stuck to the towel rack. “I can’t get out.”

Right. Yeah. Needed to get him out so they could get out of the building. The problem was… “Uh. No key, I take it?”

“Actually, yeah, in my back pocket.”

“There’s no need for sarcasm.”

“What about like… one of the knives from the kitchen?”

“I don’t think they were made to saw through metal, Will.” Would that even work?

“Bobby pin? I think they’re pretty easy to pick.”

“I don’t know how to pick a lock,” Peyton pointed out. It wasn’t exactly training 101, even in special forces. They were more brute force if they couldn’t get in through a window or a back door.

He gripped the bar and checked the sturdiness. “With enough force, I reckon we can just pop the whole bar off.”

“But the plastering… we’re only renting.”

“I can’t believe you’re worrying about that right now” Peyton paused, a thought occurring to him. “Is that why you’re still stuck here?”

Will hesitated.

“Jesus fucking Christ, Will. Who cares?” Peyton burst out. “I think there’s a little leniency right now!”

“Okay, okay, fine.” Will stood and pressed a booted foot on the wall, grimacing. “On three?”

“What the hell are you two doing?” Lucas barked, appearing in the doorway. “Peyton, you fucking idiot, I told you not to—are youhandcuffed,Will?” He blinked. “That’s kinky as fuck, guys. Did you just leave Will attached to the towel rack while you went out, Peyton? Leaving someone unattended like that is bad form and shows a lack of consideration for your partner.”

Peyton frowned. “What the fuck are you talking about?”

“If you’re going to dabble in bondage, you need to research it better,” Lucas said with a tsk even as he opened the top drawer under the sink and pulled out a bobby pin. “If your partner is tied up, or otherwise unable to get themselves out of harm’s way, you don’t leave them alone under any circumstances. That goes doubly if they’re gagged.” He expertly picked the handcuffs andunclipped them from around Will’s wrists, moving in to massage them gently. “Don’t be a silly amateur about it.”

“I don’t even…” What the hell was Lucas talking about?

“Are you speaking from experience?” Will asked curiously.

“Don’t ask him that,” Peyton squawked.

Peyton helped Will stand, taking over from Lucas. He checked that Will’s wrists hadn’t been damaged or bruised. He struggled to let go, wanting Will’s skin under his.

“How’d you get hurt?” Lucas asked. “Are you alright? There are paramedics downstairs; make sure you get checked out.”

“I’m fine, seriously. It was a small knock to the head. It bled a lot, but I bet it doesn’t even scar.”

“How did they get youtied to a fucking towel rackthen?” Peyton asked. Will was a highly trained professional. Getting the drop on him wouldn’t be easy. Doing it and avoiding beingseen?

“The guns they had pressed to the back of my head, with various descriptions on what they could do to me with them, had a little something to do with it. I didn’t get an opportunity to get out of it without risking a more serious injury.”

Plural. Peyton was going to kill all of them.

“Guess that confirms the arson suspicion,” Lucas said. “I’ll need to get statements off you both in the next few days, see if we can track these guys down.”

“You won’t be able to do anything,” Peyton said. Even if they could, he didn’t want Lucas near it.

Lucas narrowed his eyes. “What are you two involved in?”

“Nothing you need to worry about,” Peyton said shortly. He was not getting any more of his brothers involved in this.

---