Fang looked down, swirling the last amber dregs of whiskey and ice in his glass. "A lot of things happened today, Kev," he said, his voice a low, tired rumble. "I haven't checked the conservatory to make sure it's ready for the dinner tomorrow. I need to get Rex up here to discuss the raid earlier and if we need to add some more daytime security." Fang continued, his gaze still fixed on his drink. "I haven't figured out the shuttle for the daytime cleaners or who will be joining us during our sit-down with the Mafia don tomorrow. Things are very busy. And," he added, his voice dropping even lower, "I haven't talked with Cindy yet."
Kev gently put his hand on the wolf's thigh and looked up with a smile. "You being rested and ready for tomorrow's dinner meeting is the most important thing. And the last time you slept in my room, you got a lot of sleep."
Fang took a sip of his drink, a slight blush creeping up his muzzle. "I won't let that happen tonight."
Kev's heart did a double-take. "So... does that mean you'll spend the night with me?"
Fang pulled Kev in and kissed the top of his head. "I spend every night with you, my love," he murmured. "You are in my thoughts when I cannot be with you."
Kev closed his eyes and hugged Fang, melting into the embrace. It was so sappy and over-the-top. How could Kev even try to follow that up with some dumb one-liner? He just held on, content for a moment to just be held.
They finished their drinks in silence, Kev's hand still resting on Fang's leg, Fang's tail wagging a slow, happy rhythm against the plush cushion. Asmodeus had taken a bow on stage and announced a ten-minute break between bands. The dance floor was now sparsely filled; the real entertainment of the night had begun off in Lanon's laboratory.
"Would you like another drink before we go?" Fang asked.
"No, I'll just get some water up in the room," Kev said, sliding out of the booth.
They passed the bouncers and Talon. The trio, or just Twitch, quieted from their chatter as the boss passed. "You're dismissed for the night, Talon," Fang said, putting his arm over his human's shoulder as they began to leave.
Kev saw Talon nod and he smiled. Talon had a long day too; it was good that he could call it a night. As he was led along by Fang to the stairs, Kev could hear Twitch whisper-chatting about a free employee meal that Talon should get.
"So," Kev said, feeling a bit coy as they walked up the stairs, "when you said you won't let it happen again, did you mean you won't fall asleep before I even make it into the bedroom, or you won't sleep for seventeen hours straight?"
"Both," Fang huffed playfully, "but that doesn't mean I won't fall asleep on top of you."
"Oh, really?" Kev laughed. "Just assuming who is going to be on top of who, huh?"
Fang burst out laughing too, a deep, happy sound.
Kev had only noticed Fang had abruptly stopped laughing because he'd abruptly stopped walking when they reached the top of the stairs. "Hey, is something" Kev's words were cut off. He felt Fang tense, just like he had when they ran into Maffa at The Perch. No, stop. This was worse than when Fang saw the spotted cat. Fang's hand was digging into the bruise he had gotten while running from the enforcers and he finally had to wrench himself free.
He held his arm and blinked away a bit of wetness from his eyes, the stinging, throbbing pain blinding him momentarily. He rubbed at the bruise and turned. Fang was still in the same spot, but he looked so... dire. His lips were peeled back, revealing his sharp, white teeth. A low, droning snarl was rumbling deep in his chest. His powerful hands were clenched into tight, white-knuckled fists at his sides. His amber eyes, no longer warm, were locked on the door on the right side of the hall, closest to the stairs, the room directly across from Fang's own. He was a statue of pure, unadulterated rage.
"Go to bed."
Kev blinked. What just happened? They had just been laughing together, and now Fang looked like he had when he was yelling and screaming on his desk, being pinned by Horns. "Yeah," Kev said nervously. He slowly reached his arm towards Fang's.
The wolf pulled his arm away and walked over to the room he was looking at. The door was ajar, and he pushed it shut. "You need to go to bed."
Kev walked up to Fang and put his arms around the wolf. "What's wrong? What's in that room?"
Fang grabbed the shoulder of Kev's shirt and pulled him away, holding him as he yelled again, "Go to bed!" He turned, put his arms on the door, and howled. "Those enforcers are going to wish they never had a skeleton when I'm done with them!"
This was not normal. Kev realized it quickly. He was either having or about to have another one of his episodes. Was this similar to his rage in the park, punching the flagpole? But all Kev had had to do then was rub Fang's arm and talk with him.
Kev inched forward and reached out again to pet the raging wolf, who was now barking about trying to find out if enforcers bounce.
"No!" Fang spun around, the sudden movement startling Kev. He stumbled back a few steps and fell hard on his ass.
As he looked up into Fang's eyes, he noticed they were different than they had been earlier. This wasn't just blind rage. It was pain.
"AWOOOOOO!" Fang howled, a long, mournful sound that echoed down the quiet hallway. "Was it you? Did you go in that room?"
Kev was frozen. Fang looked so angry and hurt, his emotions blinding him. Was he really going to accuse Kev of going in some room? Kev hated feeling like he was snooping; he had barely even explored the club yet.
"Just talk to me!" Kev cried out, still sitting on the floor, his body feeling a bit heavy after spotting Fang's rabid transformation.
"What good has talking ever done?!" Fang howled, and he lunged.
Kev closed his eyes. What had just happened? This was not how the night was supposed to end. They should have been in his apartment already, lighting candles and putting the player piano on.
"Without talking, I could not buy eggs," Talon's dry rasp came, just in the nick of time. He quickly snatched Kev's arm and pulled him up and out of the path of the pouncing canine.
He was, however, not fast enough to dodge Fang's follow-up. Fang grabbed the bird-man's shoulders. He easily lifted Talon and yelled, "I said you were dismissed!" The wolf then caber-tossed the poor eagle, launching him backwards with a stupendous crash.
Kev's heart was racing. He had no way to escape. If he tried to turn and run from the enraged wolf, he might get jumped on. He only had one option. "Fang, you're okay. What was that room?" Kev said, his voice trembling. "I didn't break into it."
"That room is off-limits!" Fang shouted, a bit of saliva drooling from his muzzle.
"I understand," Kev said, "but don't blame Talon for being inside. You threw him right through the door."
Fang's head snapped over to the door, his tail sticking straight out and his fur, already standing on end, seeming to pulse with agitation. He ran over to the open door and stood stock-still, taking in the sight. Kev could only catch a glimpse of the room as Fang grabbed Talon by the leg and dragged him out. It was a dark blue room. A single bed sat in the corner, with a bureau near its foot. Another short table held a TV with some sort of game console plugged into it. There were a few posters on the walls, but Kev couldn't make them out; the room was too dark.
Fang was breathing in gasps now as he pulled the door shut once more. "You need to go to bed."
"No, you need to talk with me, Fang," Kev pleaded. "Something's obviously bothering you. Please let me know what's making you so upset."
"I need to talk to Cindy," Fang turned, his eyes red with grief, and Kev's stomach dropped as the wolf quickly turned and fled down the stairs, leaving him in the quiet hallway.
Kev felt so tired. This day had been... a lot. He hoped Cindy could soothe Fang somehow. If that was one of his so-called "episodes," then Kev could understand why he was making the front page of the paper. The room looked absolutely fine to Kev. It was dusty... okay, it was really dusty... but Kev's own apartment was dusty too. If that was enough to set off Fang to go see Cindy, he understood why their staff was so diligent.
"Mr. Fang seems upset about something," Talon groaned.
"Oh fuck, sorry Talon," Kev said, turning to help the eagle up.
"Why was Mr. Fang trying to attack you?" Talon asked, checking himself to make sure he hadn't broken anything.
"I think he was upset that the enforcers checked that room," Kev said. "The door was open when we came up. He must have just missed it earlier when we were leaving with Lanon."
Talon winced as he accepted Kev's hand and stood before shaking his feathers out. He was a bit stunned from the throw, but that seemed to be the worst of it. "I did not expect him to be so physical."
"Me either," Kev said. "I hope no one runs into him before he finds Cindy."
"I'm sure the staff must be used to this sort of thing," Talon said. "It could have been much worse. He didn't bite me."
Kev shuddered. Everyone in this world seemed so accepting of casual violence. But Talon might be wrong. Horns and Dale both had made jokes about the staff quitting due to Fang causing a scene. Was it all connected? Was Lanon right, that Fang was really having some PTSD reaction that kept getting triggered?
"Thanks for saving me again," Kev said. "Why'd you come up here, anyway? I thought you were going to have some food."
"I wanted to ask Sabrina if she wanted to join me," Talon said as they began to walk down the hall towards their rooms.
"Oh, I bet she'd love that," Kev gave Talon a weak smile.
"You are free to join us," Talon said. "Mr. Twitch has so many questions."
Kev shook his head as he reached his door. "I'm tired. Sorry, but I'll catch up with you in the morning."
Talon nodded. "I will see you tomorrow, Mr. Kev. Don't forget to lock your door."
"Hey Talon," Kev said as the eagle left to fetch his sister. "You really did save my ass a bunch today."
"And the rest of you too, I hope," Talon said.
"Yeah... the rest of me too. Night."
Kev didn't bother with candles. He didn't bother with another smoke. He went to the bathroom, which was thankfully bidet-free, and then laid down in bed. He didn't even bother taking his clothes off. He kicked his shoes to the side and closed his eyes.
Fang had attacked him. Normally, he would have been devastated about this, or in a deep state of fear. But right now, he just felt sad.
Something was wrong with Fang.
When sleep finally came, his dreams were filled with thoughts of jousting Lanon, riding on Valkyries, using elevators as lances, trying to win Fang, who was held in a silver cage over a volcano.