Brethren Beginnings ~ Gabriel Seeker by Deena Remiel Page B

accomplish it all for you when you want it
done.”
    “ For starters, while I’m
here, I will need the top of the line in computer hardware,
including servers, installed by tomorrow afternoon. Here is a list
of the software that must be loaded. Then, find me a house to buy,
with these features and requirements.” Gabriel handed Caleb two
files with all the information needed to execute the tasks. “I’d
like to be in a house by the end of the month.”
    By the end of the month?
This man is nuts! That’s only two weeks away! “No problem, sir. If there isn’t anything else, sir, I’ll be
on my way.” Caleb turned to go, but was stalled by a powerful hand
on his shoulder.
    “ Caleb, my name is Gabriel,
so call me that. And here, take this. It’s the first and last tip
you’ll get from me.  Succeed, my friend, in all the tasks I
present you with, and you’ll never need to whore yourself for a tip
again.” The enigmatic man smiled as he extended a hand with a
hundred-dollar bill in it and tucked it neatly into Caleb’s shirt
pocket.
    He looked away from Gabriel’s
punishing stare, ashamed and feeling as though he’d been
sucker-punched. But when he heard the word “whore,” he
couldn’t deny that Gabriel had spoken his dirty little
truth.
    “ How… how did you know?”
Caleb asked in a hushed whisper.
    “ Never you mind,” Gabriel
asserted. “Just understand it’s over. No more, Caleb. You’re better
than that. Now go and show me so!”
    He nodded, speechless, and left
the suite full of hope and determination. He was finally going to
have a shot at a better life!
    ***
    Gabriel walked around the palatial
suite, shaking his head and laughing. “I don’t even have my
equipment set up and already you got me on the job! E.L., you’re
something else! And by the way, I think I just may want to stay
this time. I love these gadgets and tools to acquire information.
This is what I’ve been waiting for all these thousands of
years!”
    Two weeks. In two weeks, he’d be in a
house, and he would be open for business. He already had a name,
Seeker Investigations and Security. Being a Brethren Protector, he
figured this line of work would guarantee his chances of protecting
the most people in need. There were people all over the world being
victimized. But he manifested here, so here would be where he
started. And Caleb, closet male prostitute, would apparently be his
first project.
    ***
    Caleb sat at his post, tapping his pen
against the counter and thinking furiously. Where the hell was he
going to find a complete state-of-the-art computer system that
could be fully installed by tomorrow? Richer still was how he
planned on pulling off the purchase of a home in two weeks’ time.
Saying yes to whatever Gabriel Seeker wanted was reflexive. He was
in the service industry, after all. Truth be told, Manny had
trained him to be this agreeable.
    Manny, the slave-driving pimp who stole
his childhood ten years ago, trained all of his whores to be
agreeable to anyone and anything. Caleb became his crowning
achievement. Having picked him up off the streets, Manny dangled
the promise of riches in front of him. He trained him in the art of
man-whoring, and sold him to the rich, depraved people trolling the
streets after dark in their Mercedes and Jaguars, looking for boys
to fulfill their evil, twisted fantasies.
    Although he hated every second of it,
he knew there was nothing else for him. His parents were alcoholic
losers who spent all their money on liquor instead of on silly
things like school clothes, haircuts, and food. At fifteen,
having been sufficiently brainwashed to believe he was
worthless, he couldn’t stand being near them anymore and
left. He’d been on the streets for a few months when Manny scooped
him up. His simmering anger and resentment over what his life had
become served him well with the scum-sucking men and women he came
in contact with, because they liked it rough. And rough is what