Page 76 of The Gentlemen's Club

He was about to see Tobias again, to be used by him. Yes, his friends would be there as well, but they would all be on Tobias’s home turf. Anthony suddenly felt that he had agreed to the dumbest thing imaginable. A flare of anger grew in his chest, but before it could burst, Ethan said, “They’re here.”

Anthony turned around to see Chris and Jay walking toward them. Jay wore nice clothes, not his usual I-can’t-be-bothered style. Anthony suspected Chris had told him how to dress for the occasion. The bruises on his face had mostly faded. He carried a black backpack, where Anthony assumed the recording equipment was hidden.

“Hi,” Chris said, his signature aviator sunglasses reminding Anthony of Tom Cruise in that Top Gun movie.

Jay looked around, avoiding making eye contact with Ethan.

“That’s our ride.” Chris pointed at the nearby ferry. “I bought us tickets. You guys ready?”

For a second, Anthony thought of saying that no, he was not ready, nor would he be until hell turned into an ice-skating rink. But his conscience was stronger than his fear, for now.

“I’m ready,” he said, and next to him, Ethan nodded.

They went to board the ferry.

*

“I’m sorry, Ant.”

“You’ve already apologized.” He sat with Jay on a bench, the ferry making its slow and steady voyage toward the island. Ethan and Chris were farther away, leaning on the railing and talking. He could only see their backs, but the way their arms touched made it feel intimate. Anthony couldn’t help but think that in an alternative universe—not that different from this one—those two would have ended up together. They made more sense than Ethan and Anthony did if he was being honest with himself.

“I’m going to need to treat you like shit.”

Jay’s words caught Anthony’s attention. “What?”

“To make it believable, I can’t take it easy on you.”

Anthony nodded. “I know. It’s fine.”

Jay frowned. “You’ve taken some tranquilizers?”

“Should I cry and make a scene?”

“If you feel like it, then yeah, go for it.”

Anthony shook his head. Jay wouldn’t understand what he had been through during his time with Tobias. It created a shell around his skin, and that shell was keeping him from falling apart.

“Don’t worry about me,” Anthony said. “Focus on getting the job done and getting us out of there.”

“You’ve got the job?!”Chris’s voice carried throughout the ferry.

Anthony watched as Chris jumped on Ethan for a hug, almost making them both tumble.

“He got it?” Jay asked.

“Yes, but he’ll give them a final answer on Monday.”

Jay cleared his throat. “You got a chance to speak with him about me?”

“A bit. He’ll get over it.”

“You think?”

“He feels betrayed. Didn’t you worry Chris might tell on you?”

“I did, and that was one of the reasons I stopped.”

“What was the other reason?”

---