Treasure [Klance/Leith]

12

The bar was empty aside from the nonfunctional drunks, a bartender and the quiet brunette man sitting at the edge of the counter with his head hung low as he stared into his shot glass as if it held all the answers to the world. Keith stood in the doorway, Lance parked outside listening to Christmas music happily inside a heated environment, doing bell ringing movements with his hands whenever a bell chimed. The stench of liquor and cigar smoke tickled Keith's nose as he placed down twenty dollars, "I'm paying for him." Keith nodded his head towards his quiet junior and the bartender nodded in confirmation.

The silence between him and Antonio wasn't awkward or tense, it was mutual. Antonio's mind had been running wild with hatred towards his senior when he learned that he was connected to Pyxis, and Keith's mind buzzed with endless possibilities of who could be behind all of these killings. "I don't need you to pay for my liquor." Antonio grunted and tilted back the shot glass of what Keith assumed to be vodka.

Keith watched as his junior winced slightly as the liquid was gulped down. "Why did Harry leave?" His question was sudden, no thought was put into it and he didn't even realize he had asked until Antonio looked at him with annoyance.

"He didn't want anything to happen to his family and anyways, he was getting too old to even be in the agency." He stated bluntly.

'Did Harry somehow know beforehand that Pyxis was only going to target families?' Keith frowned and began to stare at his hands as he fiddled with his fingers in stress. What gave Harry the impression over that before the recent killing? He had dealt with serial killers before without worrying about his family's safety.

"Aren't you worried that Pyxis might attack Lance or your friends sometime soon? Are any of them having kids or something Mr.Kogane?" Antonio sighed and set down the glass for the bar tender to fill it back up with his alcohol of choice.

Keith looked up and met his coworkers eyes in concern, of course he was afraid of something happening to his friends, but none were expecting. The thought of seeing them at his next crime scene created a gut wrenching feeling deep inside of his body that made him want to throw up. He couldn't let that happen to them, thankfully Pidge and Hunk weren't in the downtown city area but however Shiro, Allura, and Lance weren't as lucky. Since Pyxis had an interest in Keith, it made those three vulnerable to any attacks. With Shiro always working, Pyxis could start a fire that forced Shiro to leave Allura home alone and ripe for the killing. Keith knew Shiro could handle himself just fine in a fight, the man had always been fit even in college so he didn't think Shiro would lose against such a ruthless killer. But the one thing he couldn't help but shiver at the thought of, Lance fighting the killer. Lance, the cat lady stuck in a young man's body who likes to name his pets punny names and cuddle fluffy stuff while he dances and sings like an idiot, he would never last more than ten seconds in a fight with Pyxis if the police couldn't find him soon.

Lance was lanky, even if he did work out a little he would be no match to the man who destroyed an entire house fighting a grown adult alone. Lance was too much of a cinnamon roll in Keith's eyes, though he wasn't innocent (definitely not innocent) he was still too much of a softy to fight someone. He was all talk but no fight.

"Why wouldn't I be afraid, Pyxis knows my identity and he's probably looked into my past," Keith felt himself beginning to visibly shake slightly as he replied to his apprentice, "they use the stars and families to taunt me. They must know who my friends are and who my significant other is...the thought of them being hurt because of me makes me want to kill the bastard."

"Any sane person would think that Keith, but you're not all there in the head are you?" Antonio's words stopped his shaking suddenly, his attention was caught like a fish on a hook as he slowly met those cold brown eyes that stared deep into his soul. "When I read you the note Pyxis left for you, you reacted by becoming frightened; it was as if it had made memories surface. What were they?" He watched the man lean closer to stare at Keith. He was definitely toying with the black haired detective sitting next to him, that much could be seen with how he looked at Keith with amusement.