Cut and Run 7 - Touch and Geaux

people that made Zane feel small.
    “Hey Zane!” Ty called from the pool of light around the door of the tavern.
    Zane glanced toward him and waved. “Be there in a minute.”
    “Your boyfriend?” Liam asked.
    “Yeah.”
    Liam glanced toward the light. Ty was joined by the others and they stood around talking and laughing, waiting for Zane. It was dark enough in Zane’s alcove for Liam and Zane to stare without fear of being seen ogling them.
    Liam looked Zane up and down one last time. “Lucky him,” he drawled.
    Zane glanced at him, surprised. Typically when people saw Ty, the response Zane expected was “lucky you .”
    “Perhaps I’ll see you around again. Without your boyfriend,” Liam added, giving Zane another wink before he turned and made his way down the darkened sidewalk, away from the tavern.
    Zane took a step to watch him walk away. He had no intention of ever being with someone else again, but he could see why Ty enjoyed a harmless flirtation now and then. It was quite the ego booster. And kind of a turn-on. He wanted to get Ty back to the hotel and into a bed now. Thank you, stranger. He pursed his lips, turning his back on Liam Bell’s retreating form and strolling toward Ty and the others.
    Ty put a hand around his waist when he joined them. “Making friends?”
    Zane shook his head. “Arranging a tryst for later tonight.”
    “Oh yeah?” Ty asked, his tone as casual as Zane’s had been. “Well, what happens in NOLA . . . goes home with an STD.”
    A scream tore through the night and interrupted their laughter. Zane wasn’t the first to push through the door of the bar, but he could see the commotion over the shoulders of the men in front of him. A woman was in hysterics, being held in place by two men who were trying to ascertain what had frightened her so much. She finally gave up on words and pointed to the tiny bathrooms at the back of the bar.
    A red stiletto sat in the doorway, blocking the door open. Beyond, Zane could see one bare foot on the floor.
    Nick forced his way through the crowd, reaching the bathrooms first. “I’m a cop, I’m a cop, move aside,” he kept repeating, until he’d almost cleared out the area. One look into the bathroom was all he needed. He didn’t even try to step in to check the girl. He turned to them and gave a curt nod. “Call it in,” he said. “And don’t let anybody leave.”
    Owen and Digger had stayed near the entrance, and they closed in to block the doors, preventing anyone inside from exiting. The patrons began to protest, panic building as they realized they were trapped.
    “Everyone stay calm,” Zane called out, raising his badge so people could see it. “Remain calm until the police arrive and we’ll get this sorted out. We’re containing the scene and material witnesses, that’s all this is. We thank you for your cooperation.”
    The crowd began to calm with his words. Nick nodded to him and smiled gamely. None of them were armed because neither Ty nor Zane had been given the chance to get their weapons before they’d been kidnapped. And it was merely luck that Zane still had his badge on him. He was surprised Ty hadn’t flashed his as well to help him calm people. Zane took a moment to glance around the bar for his partner. But Ty was gone.

    Nick knelt at the door to the tiny bathroom and peered through the crack left by the shoe wedged in it. He had no jurisdiction down here, but it was ingrained to try to preserve a crime scene and that’s what he’d done. He felt someone kneel beside him, and was surprised to find Zane instead of Ty there.
    Zane gave him a shrug. “I’ll have to do for your sidekick this time. Ty’s gone.”
    “What? Where’d he go?”
    “I have no idea. He was right beside me one second, then he was gone. He had to have slipped out before you said to block the exits. Fire hazard, by the way.”
    “The cops can arrest me when they get here,” Nick muttered.
    Zane snorted. “Is this a murder?”
    “I would say so, but I’m sure as hell not touching anything to find out. I’ll fake getting pegged for a murder all day, but I don’t want to do it in real life. You got a pen or something?”
    Zane dug around in his pockets and pulled out a Bic. Nick took it and nudged the door open wider. It was mostly out of habit and curiosity that he was looking at the scene, because the FBI didn’t have jurisdiction here, and the Boston Police Department sure as hell didn’t