A Rumor of Peace

CHAPTER 14

SUMMARY :  Ardyn makes a move on Roark, which he rebuffs.  Our boys will break all the rules for one night of passion with the two men who were contracted to kill them.

Explicit sexual content in this chapter.

A short time later found them at Ardyn's house in the suburbs of Aquaria City.  Ardyn poured them both a measure of whiskey, handing the tumbler to Roark.  Roark, not used to drinking anything but a light, fruity wine, which Ardyn knew very well, sipped slowly.  'Be careful with this,' came the thought into his mind.  'You're not used to drinking something this strong.  It'll go straight to your head all that much quicker.'

Which he was already very well aware of, not sure where the thought came from as it didn't feel like his.

"He was the last of out original team," he said quietly, looking up from the amber liquid in his glass.  "I'm going to have to call his family in the morning."

"I can take care of that for you, if you like," Ardyn told him, sitting down at his side.

Roark nodded.  "If you wish," he said, eyes going to his face.  "I need to call Logan, as well as Alexei and the others.  I had Kili call his brother to meet him at the Aquarian and walk home with him."

"That was a good idea.  Probably best if he wasn't alone tonight, though I would have thought the rest of the Durin's would have been there."

"They would have been I'm sure, but Alexei and Desmond were unavailable, as were Tyler and Jordan.  Corporal Tobias said that Logan's communicator had been turned off--"

"It was WHAT?" came back instantly, clearly surprised.  "He knows better than that."  'Damn,'  he thought, 'that was a missed opportunity.'  Though truthfully, he'd have had to know where he had gone to make use of it.

Roark nodded, a frown appearing as his head tilted slightly.  "I'll be talking to him about that tomorrow morning," he said, raising the glass to sip from it.  "I've been thinking.  I want to send him and Kili home.  I'm not going to allow them to be murdered."

An unreadable look entered Ardyn's hazel eyes as he looked at Roark.  "They're Warriors, Rory.  They know the risks they take everyday they work the job."

"Yes, Ardyn, I am well aware of that," he said, the feeling that he would be saving the lives of his two best friends becoming more certain the longer he thought about it.  "I'll talk to Harry, Severus, and the others tomorrow before I finalize anything.  I just can't help that I feel that I just can't let it happen.  We grew up together, you know.  Have been friends almost since we could all walk, and I certainly don't want to have to call Commander Thorin and Sire Bilbo to tell them their youngest son is dead.  Nor do I want to have to call the Durin's to tell them they lost not only Kale, but Logan.  They wouldn't handle that well."

"They're a family of Warriors, Roark.  They are all--"

"I'm not going to let it happen, Ardyn!!" he snarled out suddenly.  "Not if I have a way yo stop it."

"Okay, okay," he said, holding up a hand in a placating manner.  "What is it you want to do?"

A sigh.  "I'm not sure just yet.  I want to talk to the others before I make any solid decisions.  What I would LIKE to do is send them home with Tristyn's body and the progress reports I have completed."  He raised the glass to sip again, barely catching sight of Ardyn's look of satisfaction as the whiskey burned it's way down to his stomach.  The feeling that he would be saving his friends lives intensifying the longer he thought about it.  Then, suddenly, he remembered the disks, and that Logan knew where they were.  'Don't tell him about the disks,' came the thought , knowing that this would only be another thing not shared with a man they did not trust.