Maddox knew more than he was letting on. Will was certain of it.
“Something you want to tell me?” Maddox persisted.
Will knew Maddox wanted him to whimper and beg for mercy, to apologize for what he’d done. Will was done begging. He was done with a lot of things.
“I’m done being your bitch boy,” Will said. “If you want to get me out of here, good. If you don’t, whatever.”
Maddox’s brow rose at Will’s immediate rebellion. Good. Let him be surprised. Maddox thought Will was nothing more than a pawn to be controlled and used. It was about time he learned Will had a brain of his own.
“Should I let them take you back to prison, boy?” Maddox purred the question.
“Do whatever the fuck you want.” Will snapped back. His tone was angry, but there was a curl to his lip, and a little smirking expression around his nose. He was enjoying this rebellion, and he was not sorry for being arrested. Not one little bit. It was Maddox’s job, and indeed, sole passion in this moment to make him sorry.
Will was lucky to be behind bars. The way he stared at Maddox with those absolutely rebellious blue eyes was begging for a beating. Maddox felt his hands flexing with the urge to grab Will around the neck and start whipping him there and then. The bars between them would not hold if he chose to put his hands on them and bend them apart. But he was bound to let the humans feel safe, as if their flimsy steel and crumbling concrete could stop him.
It was courtesy, not construction, that was delaying Will’s punishment—and he was going to be punished, there was no doubt about that. Flashes of reddened flesh, welted to perfection and the accompanying howls of a very sorry boy played through Maddox’s mind.
“You here for this one?” An officer approached him.
“Yes,” Maddox replied.
“I think you and I should have a chat, sir,” the officer said.
Maddox was all too happy to leave Will where he was. Impudent, insolent little wretch. He accompanied the officer to a small room festooned with old flyers and imbued with the general ambiance of human desperation.
“I’m Officer Danbury. I was the arresting officer,” the man introduced himself. Maddox had not paid much attention to the man. He had a mustache and probably a wife and a small brood given his dad bod. He seemed like a decent man, an impression that was quickly reinforced.
“So he’s your ward or something similar? Lora Candy intervened on his behalf. Said you had guardianship?”
“Indeed,” Maddox affirmed.
“We found him breaking into the courthouse records room. Looking for his birth certificate, he said.” Officer Danbury shook his head. “I should have put him right on the next prison transport.”
“Yes. You should. But I am very grateful you did not. Young William is struggling with personal transformation.”
“We all struggle. If he acts like that again, he’s in real danger of being shot. Hell, he was lucky he wasn’t shot this time.”
Maddox’s lips tightened. “I can assure you he will be dealt with.”
“I hope so. If he comes to the attention of law enforcement again, he will be returned to prison, and he won't be allowed out again. There is nothing I can do about that.”
“Understood.”
Will was somewhat surprised when his cell was opened. He hesitated a moment before stepping out, as well he might. He kept eye contact with Maddox in a vain effort to appear bolder and braver than he truly felt. He hated this. He felt guilty, but the guilt made him angry too.
The way Maddox looked at him was enough to make anyone afraid. There was a determination in the ancient vampire’s eyes, a particular set to his jaw. Maddox always had a quiet refinement about him. He was made of better stuff than humans and it showed in every line of his body, every facet of his handsome face. Will met his master’s dark gaze for a split-second, then let it slide away again as heat suffused every inch of him.
He allowed himself to be escorted out of the station. The car was waiting outside. They got into the back of it. Will didn’t know who was driving. As usual, the front of the car was sealed off from the rear. Maddox slid in beside him, shut the door, and the car purred into the night.
There was silence. Not just uncomfortable silence, but dangerous silence.
Will was obviously not going to talk first. That would be a terrible idea.
“I have not often punished you,” Maddox observed as the city passed by. “Because you are so very talented at punishing yourself.”
Will looked out the car window. This was far too small a space to be stuck in with an angry, disappointed vampire.
“When we get home, you will go straight to your room and you will stay there.”