Angel and the Assassin

“Kael Saunders. Yes, he has talked about you a lot over the
    years.”
    Kael shook his hand briefly.
    Freddie gazed up at him. “Come here, you great big idiot,” he said
    affectionately and grabbed Kael in a tight hug. “I can‟t believe it! It‟s been what?
    Fourteen years?” He was inches shorter, and he pressed his head into Kael‟s
    shoulder. More pleased to see him than he thought possible, Kael hugged him back
    warmly.
    “It‟s good to see you, Freddie.” Freddie‟s face was rounder than ever, and he
    was balding, thin on top with wispy, curly bits of hair at the sides.
    Freddie looked at Adam. “I went to Durham University, but he went on to
    Cambridge. He was the cleverest boy in school and the handsomest. You‟re still as
    gorgeous as ever, Saunders. We‟re the same age, yet I look forty. It‟s not fair.”
    Adam smiled lovingly at Freddie, then looked at Kael. “I didn‟t know whether
    to be jealous or what when he talked about you with such enthusiasm, but now I see
    you, I think jealousy is definitely in order.”
    Kael acknowledged the compliment with a little laugh.
    “Let me introduce you properly,” Freddie said. “Kael, this is my dear husband,
    Adam, and that‟s Amelia in the flowery dress, the littlest one; she‟s three.” He
    pointed at the children on the swings. “Next to her is Zoe; she‟s four.”
    Kael looked at the children, unsure what he was supposed to say about them.
    “Lovely,” he said because he couldn‟t think of anything else. “How?”
    “We adopted them,” Adam volunteered. “We got Zoe when she was six months
    old and Amelia the day she was born.”
    “Are they a lot of work?” Kael asked. If he had to choose between his job and
    looking after little kiddies, he‟d go out and kill any day.
    “I‟ll say.” Freddie grinned. “What are you doing with yourself, Kael?”
    “I‟m in security.” It was what he always said.

    54
    Fyn Alexander

    “If you‟re in security, I bet it‟s Blackwater or black ops or something,” Freddie
    said. When Kael did not answer, he nodded and did not press the matter.
    “Did you end up being a barrister? That‟s what you always wanted, wasn‟t it?”
    “I did indeed,” Freddie said. “That‟s how I met Adam.”
    Adam‟s arm rested lightly around Freddie‟s shoulders. They looked so
    comfortable together, Kael would bet they finished each other‟s sentences. “Are you
    a barrister too?”
    Adam shook his head. “I‟m a full-time househusband now, but I was a clerk in
    Freddie‟s office.”
    Freddie slid his arm around Adam‟s waist and hugged him close. “It‟s a boring
    old life these days, Kael. Work, nursery school, dolls all over the house, doctor‟s
    visits. And I wouldn‟t have it any other way.” He looked supremely happy.
    Even though he was still very much aware of Angel and kept checking on him
    in his peripheral vision, Kael did not see him slip off the swing and wander over
    until he felt Angel‟s arms wind around his waist. Freddie looked at him in surprise,
    not realizing the boy was with Kael.
    “Who‟s this, Kael?”
    Kael had never before had a partner to introduce to anyone, and he wished the
    circumstances were different. If Angel were to stay alive, he might need a new
    identity. “This is my angel.” He felt slightly embarrassed at sounding so smitten,
    but he couldn‟t think of any other way to introduce Angel without actually giving
    away his name.
    Freddie grinned and stuck out his hand. Angel shook hands with both men.
    “You‟ll come to dinner, Kael, you and your angel.” He spoke directly to Angel. “Will
    you bring him? Now I‟ve found my old mate again, I‟m not willing to let him go.”
    “It‟s up to Kael,” Angel said. He‟d heard Kael‟s name. Now there would be
    more explaining to do.
    Freddie pulled out a business card. “Give me a ring and come over soon?”
    Kael took the card. “I will. We‟d better go. It‟s so good to see you, Freddie.”
    “Don‟t say you‟ll come if you don‟t mean it,” Freddie warned. “Or I‟ll come
    looking for you now I know for certain you‟re in London.”
    “No, we‟ll come,” Kael said. “I promise.”
    Freddie let go of Adam to hug Kael again, hanging on tightly to him. The
    warmth he had felt for Freddie all their years at school surged anew within him,
    and he wondered at the life he had chosen with no friends and no family ties. He
    walked away, Angel at his side, confused by a