Page 40 of Ancient Obsession

“One word of advice, if I may?” Dave said as he rinsed the plates.

“Of course.”

He shut off the water and turned, leaning back on the edge of the sink. “Stay out of Dr. Brennan’s way.”

Oliver nodded, wide-eyed. “You don’t have to tell me twice.”

“Good. Now, come here and give me a kiss before you head out.”

“Sir, yes sir!” Oliver said with a smile. He put his arms around Dave’s neck and delivered a firm, hot kiss.

Dave was a little breathless when Oliver broke their embrace. “Sure you don’t want to stay home? My meetings aren’t back to back.”

“Let’s wait until later so we can take as much time as we want.”

Oliver kissed him again, gave Dave’s already stirring cock a quick squeeze, and then left the kitchen. Dave hung his head and blew out a breath before he resumed cleaning up. It was going to be a very long work day.

The parking lot Oliver favored was full. He drove to the other side of campus and prowled two other lots before a space opened up. He sent a text to Robin letting them know he was going to try to locate Vera. Grabbing his bag from the passenger seat, he got out and set off for the Earth Sciences building.

It was another amazing spring day. The warm sunshine, flowers blooming in well-tended beds, and trees with full canopies of leaves made it seem as if nothing out of the ordinary was going on.

He wasn’t familiar with this part of campus, so he paused to get his bearings. Cutting over to the sidewalk behind the Engineering building might shave off some time. A cluster of trees lined the sidewalk. The building to his right blocked the morning sun, and the trees crowded close on his left made the day feel more threatening than a few minutes before.

Something moved within the trees behind him.

Oliver stopped in his tracks and turned. He clutched the strap of his bag with both hands as he scanned the shadows between the trunks. Nothing moved.

A cold shiver ran through him, and gooseflesh rose on his neck.

He resumed walking, his steps quicker.

Another sound from the trees. Had it been closer this time?

Resisting the urge to look back, he picked up his pace even more. His hearing was cloudy from the blood pounding in his ears. Someone—or something—could be coming up right behind him, and he wouldn’t hear it.

The warmth of the sun found him the moment he cleared the building’s shadow. He went another dozen or so steps before stopping to turn back. No one was behind him. Farther down the empty sidewalk, a squirrel scampered from the trees to the safety of bushes along the side of the Engineering building.

He took a couple of deep breaths as his pulse slowed. It had just been a squirrel, nothing more.

But whatever he’d heard had sounded larger.

He resumed walking, dropping one hand to his side but the other still gripped the strap across his chest. The sunshine seemed a touch cooler than before.

His phone vibrated, startling a gasp out of him. He slid it from his pocket and read the text from Robin. They’d written in all caps like some kind of angry online poster.

DOMINIC IS DEAD!! DETECTIVE CARTER IS LOOKING FOR YOU!!

Oh, shit.

He had to think a moment to recall Dominic. The man had been thin and edgy, with messy blond hair and a beard that didn’t quite fill in. He’d been young. Younger than Lucien.

“Mr. Berridge.”

Oliver jerked his head up. Officer Montroig stood a few feet away, hands on his duty belt. Any trace of friendliness from the day before was gone. He watched Oliver closely, eyes sharp and expression still.

“Oh, hello. Hi, Officer Montroig. How are you?” Oliver winced as he said it.

“Detective Carter has been trying to find you today.”