Cut and Run 4 - Divide and Conquer by Abigail Madeleine u Roux Urban Page B

you‟re one of the bad guys.”
    “One of the bad guys?” Zane laughed as he settled the cap
    comfortably on his head. It smelled just enough like Ty to make it
    worth wearing.
    “Well, the other teams love to hate us.” Ty‟s cleats clicked on the
    concrete as he walked, and even though Zane knew he‟d taken more
    medication earlier, he didn‟t seem overly uncoordinated or goofy.
    They threaded through a crowd of fans and various teams,
    including local law enforcement, a couple of insurance companies, and
    an area hospital before they turned the corner of the concession stand
    and saw the FBI team. Again, Zane was surprised by the number of
    people involved, especially out here in the cold in mid-February. He‟d
    heard through the grapevine that Ty had been partially responsible for
    the league organization, calling in favors, reaching out to contacts in
    various fields around the city. Seeing the spectacle now, Zane had to
    wonder just how connected his partner really was.
    They were suddenly assaulted from the side by a perky young
    reporter blurting questions and her hulking cameraman. Ty just smiled
    and waved her off, telling her, “After the game, okay?”
    “Jesus, you weren‟t kidding when you said this had gotten big,”
    Zane murmured as he stuck to Ty for protection from the mob. “Why
    haven‟t I heard more about it?”
    Divide & Conquer | 59

    “Because you work for a living,” Ty responded as he messed with
    the neck of his Under Armour shirt. He was getting twitchier as they
    moved, though that didn‟t strike Zane as particularly unusual. He was
    about to respond to Ty‟s gentle dig when someone else spoke up to get
    Ty‟s attention.
    “We were starting to wonder if you were gonna make it, Grady.
    You missed the national anthem,” Scott Alston said as he walked up to
    them. He was wearing the same uniform as Ty, but his jersey was
    tucked in and buttoned and his belt wasn‟t unbuckled. Zane had heard
    that all of the teams had given their players nicknames, like Ty‟s
    “Bulldog.” Some were more interesting than others. From the side,
    Zane could see Alston‟s was “Tinman.” There had to be a story there.
    Alston looked at Zane and held out his hand, clearly surprised to
    see him there. “Not a big deal unless you‟re slated to fucking sing it,
    right? Garrett, good to see you.”
    “Thanks,” Zane said as he shook Alston‟s hand. “Thought I‟d
    cheer for the team. He was supposed to sing?”
    “Right.” Alston nodded slowly and looked between them
    knowingly. “He‟s too drugged to drive, isn‟t he?”
    “Grady? Drugged? Would never happen,” Zane answered,
    meeting Alston‟s eyes straight on without blinking.
    “Sure it wouldn‟t,” Alston said with a laugh. He reached out and
    took Ty‟s hand in his, lifting it to look at the tape Ty had wrapped
    around his fingers. “I see you have a lefty glove today. Broken or just
    bent?”
    Ty took a step closer and yanked his hand away. “Sit on it and
    spin, Scott,” he muttered as he walked past him toward the larger group
    of players.
    Alston laughed heartily and looked back at Zane with a raised
    eyebrow.
    Zane shrugged helplessly. “He said he wanted to play.”
    “He always wants to play,” Alston assured him. “That‟s what he
    was saying last night when we peeled him out of the dirt.”
    60 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

    “Been there, done that,” Zane said drily. “Ty can sing?”
    Alston just laughed like Zane was joking, and Zane let it go,
    feeling stupid for not knowing something like that about his partner.
    His lover. He glanced around, recognizing some other team members
    and spectators.
    “I‟m just going to hang out and relax.” He paused, peering after
    Ty. “I should probably ask where the EMTs are. Just in case.”
    “Don‟t worry. One of them has the hots for Grady. She‟ll be all
    over it if he‟s hurt,” Alston told him as he turned, waving over his
    shoulder. “Thanks