Reeva and Rowan turned to the man who only sipped on his wine after saying all of that. It was Reeva who first reacted with frowned brows. He even glanced at Rowan before speaking in a serious tone.
"Duke, is he not a…? He came from the capital, after all."
"I have no idea, but the person who killed him didn't make sure of it. I doubt they have reckless people like that." Duke only chuckled when he saw the horror on Rowan's face. "Don't worry, Rowan. The bullet is not in your brain anymore. Just be more careful and not exhaust yourself."
The slender male sighed and massaged his temple. "Gosh, Duke, you said you're retiring from all of this. If Archie finds out that you're… wait, that makes him a civilian, right?"
Duke laughed, but it sounded strange even for Rowan. Reeva only responded with a wriggling smile and a gesture of giving up. He even made a zipping gesture over his lips before picking up his wine glass.
"Duke, do you… have any spare food containers? Mr. Reeva wants to take home the roast." Rowan chose to escape the dining table. Whenever something like this happened at Scott's house, his first response was to flee the scene and Scott's vision.
"I don't have things like that. Moreover, I didn't say he can have any." Duke chuckled, attracting Reeva's gaze. "His hubby would not touch meat at this time, and he probably wouldn't see a piece of the food. Reeva would just eat all of it."
It was Reeva's turn to force out a laugh. However, he didn't glare at Duke for it. He just gave up.
The perceived tension in the air made Rowan fearful. However, no one made any follow-ups anymore. Reeva just got up and spoke of leaving and expecting Duke to follow through with the schedule.
His hand snaked behind Rowan to collect his phone, but he held Rowan in place with his other hand. Reeva then whispered into Rowan's ear, "You should be more curious. Who knows how Duke is going to dispose of you when he's done with you?"
"Don't tell him strange things," Duke countered.
"I just said he should make sure to take out your trash properly. You're one messy person." Reeva straightened and saw himself off through the door.
When the lock closed with a soft click, Rowan's heart started to race. He didn't know anything about them, so he could only doubt everything or just trust what his eyes could see. He took a deep breath and stared at the leftovers.
He should be clearing the table now, but his joints were all locked into place. When Duke got up from his seat to join him on the couch, Rowan turned to him.
"Please don't kill me…"
He wanted to add 'while I'm awake,' but his voice ran out.
Duke only smiled and slowly reached out his hand to caress his head. "Reeva is just a sick bastard. Don't believe everything he says. You have been working hard. You should rest by now. I'll clear the table."
"No, this is my job…" Rowan realized he was responding to the wrong thing. He pressed his lips together before only nodding. "I won't believe him…"
"What a poor thing…"
Rowan hid his balling fist. Of course, he was worthy of pity. However, what else was there to do? He didn't have anywhere to go now.
…
He couldn't sleep anymore. Rowan lay on the bed for hours into the night, but he couldn't feel his mind shut down. Reeva's words kept on haunting him, even if he had his eyes closed and his mind pushing them to the depths.
Shuffle. Rowan heard something move as the chair left in front of the door was pushed out of the way by the panel. He only feigned his sleeping state as someone indeed entered his room. The chair was also placed where it should be—next to the bed.
A knee pressed down at one side of the bed, making Rowan almost fall to that side. Since his limbs were sticking close to his own body, someone could easily take up space next to him. The scent of newly washed hair and body spray wafted soon after.
"…Duke?" Rowan opened his eyes and called as a hand reached out to pull him close. He didn't know if Duke was aware that it was him on the bed.
"Shhh, I'm not used to patients talking to me at night…"
Rowan turned his head to find Duke's face in the dark. His complexion was not the fairest, but the disturbingly bright night lamp was making him turn away from it and shut his eyes tightly.
His brows were frowning as if he was grumpy and only wanted to sleep at this point. However, he still opened his eyes upon feeling the weight of Rowan's gaze. "Can't sleep? Maybe because you left your light at the maximum. Should I dim it?"
"…please don't…" Rowan rolled to his side and slowly eased into a hug. He even did it so slowly as if trying not to upset Duke. "I'll just… warm you so you can sleep."
"…please don't." That was what Duke said, but he did so with a gentle laugh.
Rowan didn't know if Duke was just teasing him again. After all, the supposed scary man pulled him closer and burrowed his face into Rowan's hair.
Rowan had fallen asleep a few minutes after being enveloped by Duke's warmth. If he could delude himself that it was Scott, he would. However, his mind fought against the notion. After all, the supposed loving partner had been cheating on Rowan. Scott even attempted to murder him.
They stayed like this until the sun came up from the horizon.
Rowan was the first to rise. He moved slightly as if well-trained to not wake up the other person. He got to his feet and hoped to make breakfast before Duke could wake up.
"I shouldn't do anything excessive, but he didn't have any eggs in his fridge. He didn't even own any kind of bread," Rowan murmured on his way to the kitchen. Rowan's memory was only good because he trained himself to remember everything he saw. Bad things happened whenever he forgot something.
However, he began smelling paint coming from another room again. The same paint thinner smell from yesterday was also there. With the hallway leading to multiple rooms, he figured he could take a quick look. If there was something unspeakable, he'd just forget he ever stepped inside that place.
Rowan slowly walked to the source and saw how the door was left open. There was even music coming from the table inside. Rowan couldn't see anything in the darkness, but he knew the smell of paint thinner. He then walked inside without caring to turn on the light.