Cut and Run 2 - Sticks and Stones

as he reached out and stopped the doors from closing. He knew Zane well enough to know how to manipulate him. If Zane thought his partner was showing vulnerability, he’d fall for it every time. It was an amazingly predictable habit for his unpredictable partner. And there was more than a grain of truth in the words. “Come on,” he repeated.
    Looking faintly surprised, Zane got on the elevator and stood next to him, waiting for an explanation. Ty remained silent, enjoying watching the other man struggle with the fact that he would have to ask for it. Zane actually lasted almost the entire elevator ride to the parking garage before he huffed softly. “Fine,” he said grudgingly. “What do you need me for?”
    Ty smirked as he looked over at Zane, but the smile faded as he cleared his throat. “If I’m going home, I need something bigger than me to hide behind,” he said as he gestured to Zane’s larger frame.
    “That actually did work out pretty well for me in the end last time,” Zane drawled, raising an eyebrow. He was obviously remembering the night after the trip to Quantico.
    Ty let his eyes rake over the man suggestively. “You have other uses too,” he agreed.
    “Home,” Zane said slowly, smiling a little at Ty’s playful words. “To West by-God Virginia? And you want me to just… tag along?”
    “Yes,” Ty answered with a curt nod. That was exactly what he wanted. If Zane could survive a trip to West Virginia to meet the Gradys, he could live through anything. Like a cockroach.
    An amused smile slowly pulled at Zane’s lips as the elevator doors opened onto the parking deck. “Just what is it you’re afraid of?”
    Ty pursed his lips and waited a moment before moving out of the elevator without bothering to answer.
    Zane huffed quietly and followed him. “Grady, you’re going to answer my question.”
    “And you’re going to sprout wings and fly,” Ty shot back over his shoulder. “Do you have camping gear?”
    “Camping… why the hell would I need camping gear in DC?” Zane asked, throwing up a hand. “Answer the question.”
    “There are places to camp in DC,” Ty answered as he headed for his Bronco.
    “Yeah, if you’re homeless in a city park,” Zane retorted. “Answer the question, Grady.”
    “I did,” Ty said to him with a smirk he tried to hide. He seriously enjoyed riling Zane up. The results were often… heated. “I mean, if you want specific places to camp, I’m gonna need a map. And maybe some squeaky pens, you know, the ones that smell good?” he rambled, knowing it would annoy Zane and trying not to smile as he said it.
    Zane stopped in place as Ty kept walking. After a long moment he shook his head and changed directions, heading for the far side of the parking garage. Zane had learned not long after they’d been reassigned that he didn’t have to stick around to deal with Ty’s verbal sparring. In some ways it was a nuisance, because now Ty had to work harder to annoy him, but it was refreshing, too, in that Zane wasn’t willing to be batted around like a mouse being taunted by a cat anymore.
    “Hey!” Ty called after him with a melancholy smile. He did miss the verbal sparring sometimes.
    “What?” Zane yelled back as he kept walking to his Valkyrie, parked in the corner about thirty yards away.
    “You want to know why I don’t like going home?” Ty asked as he jangled his keys, the sound echoing in the cement parking garage.
    “I believe I asked what you were afraid of, Grady. Two different things,” Zane responded as he picked up his helmet from the seat of the motorcycle. His voice bounded off the concrete of the parking deck and reached Ty almost as an echo.
    “I’m afraid of the dark,” Ty answered immediately with a tilt of his head, his voice soft and serious.
    Zane paused and turned back to study him. Ty smiled slightly. They were both still dealing with hang-ups and problems. While Zane certainly had a harder time dealing than Ty did, every once in a while it did Zane good to be reminded that he wasn’t alone in his struggles.
    “You really want me to come?” Zane asked him uncertainly.
    Ty nodded.
    “What are we going to do while we’re there?”
    “Eat home cooking and take a little hike in the woods,” Ty answered with a negligent shrug.
    Zane’s shoulders relaxed. “There’s a difference between a little hike and needing camping gear.”
    “Is there?” Ty asked innocently. He shook his head. “We just go