Brian almost hesitantly approached the door to his estate home, the closer he came to his imminent encounter with his brother, the more uneasy he felt. When he had made the offer to Justin, he hadn't fully considered this part of the arrangement... namely, Ben's reaction. He had been entirely focused on Justin's capitulation, fully aware that he couldn't use compulsion to his advantage. Now, he had to deal with Ben, hoping his older sibling would see the benefits of this unusual arrangement.

Before he could place his key in the lock, the door swung open, with Ben's eyes a bloody red glow, his ordinarily pale face tinted with unnatural color. "Get your ass in here now, Brian."

Stepping forward, feeling as if he were about to face a firing squad, Brian decided his task might not be as simple as he had told Justin. Attempting to maintain confidence with a larger dose of calm, Brian dryly observed, "I see you have been consulting with your crystal ball instead of procuring yourself a much-needed snack after your labors on my behalf."

"Jokes, Brian? I am NOT in the mood..." Ben roared, his fangs extracting, veins displaying on his face as he briefly flared into full vampire mode. "Your human carcass has been destroyed, and I guess just in time---"

"I came to tell you about Justin." Brian followed Ben into the library, stepping to the bar and pouring himself a full glass of bourbon. Not quite the sustenance he would prefer for this talk, but knew it would take another kind of edge off. "I guess it's obvious that I invited Justin to stay here with us."

"Us?" Ben growled, his eyes narrowed and focused on his younger brother, clearly in disbelief of his manner and actions. "Typically ‘us' would imply a mutual decision had been reached. That clearly was not the case."

Brian took a long swallow, throwing it back and down his throat in one motion, setting the glass down and moving closer to his brother. "I didn't see the need to get your permission to invite a guest into MY home. The boy is going through a difficult time, and I decided the least I could do was to provide him some respite."

"I know that we haven't seen each other for some time, but I know you don't expect me to believe providing respite is why you invited him here," Ben replied in his most know-it-all tone. "Your recklessness deeply concerns me, Brian. Otherwise, I wouldn't have intruded into your private moment with Justin... but it was so very revealing."

"In what way?" Brian asked, uncertain if he really wanted the answer. 

"That you even need to ask is even more troubling." Ben shook his head, beginning to pace back and forth. "You didn't even think about the consequences of inviting him here - a human residing with two vampires. Not only a human; but, one that you have become obsessed with, and are incapable of compelling. That is a problem, Brian."

"It's been fine so far. I just need to be more cautious with him." Brian frowned, knowing he wasn't saying anything that would gain him any ground with his always alert sibling. "I am under control, Benjamin... and I am not obsessed."

"I didn't expect you to admit it; after all, that goes against your code. Hear me well, Brian. You are obsessed with him, and you are taking risks that are dangerous." Ben's eyes drilled into Brian's, his lips compressed, with his face defined by censure. "Like what you did earlier tonight."

Brian groaned. Ben even knew he had tasted Justin. Fucking clairvoyant freak. Why couldn't his brother be a normal vampire - if one of their kind could ever be referred to as that? "Fine. I had a moment of weakness. It never happens, and it won't happen again; at least, not until I know I can control him."

Ben thought about that for a moment, knowing his brother as he did, aware that urging Brian to distance himself from Justin would be a complete waste of time. "Perhaps having him here would be beneficial."

Warily, Brian asked, "In what way?"

"Well, I think it is worth discovering if my more enhanced skills can delve into Justin's mind; at the very least, I could probably determine how he blocks you." Ben decided this could be fortuitous for both of them. Hopefully, Brian would resolve this infatuation he had with the young man; and more importantly, he could determine if Justin was a threat to Brian. In both cases, they would each reach their goals.

"I don't think it's wise attempting compulsion on Justin. I have encountered a brick wall during each attempt." Brian wasn't oblivious to the fact that Ben would probably have better luck. He was concerned about the consequences if he did not. Failure could lead to exposure. That result could end badly for Justin. 

Ben analytically watched his younger brother. Patience had long been one of his virtues, even as a vampire... but Brian regularly tested that strength. Now wasn't an exception. "I am aware of the risks and can do so without being obvious. I would think you would want to know how he resists your pull. It is troubling, and there has to be an underlying cause."

Brian shrugged. "Yes, it is disturbing. I've never encountered that before, but I have adjusted to it. I have been assuming it is a brain malfunction due to his traumatic brain injury. He has recently stopped taking unnecessary medication that his deceased ex-boyfriend had been giving him. Of course, you know that already." Looking into his brother's eyes, he was relieved to see a glimmer of compassion in his eyes. Thankfully, Ben didn't seem completely biased against Justin. That could take an unpleasant turn. "He hasn't been off of the medicine long enough to know for sure."

"I understand that Justin has had a bad experience; however, you do know that if it comes to him and your survival, which one I will choose..." Ben told him darkly. 

"Yes, Benjamin, I am well aware... but I don't think it will come to that. I can handle this." 

Ben nodded, hoping that Brian was right, but realizing that only time would tell. "One question before you go. Was anything different when you tasted him? At that moment compulsion should be absolute, but I don't believe you attempted it then."

"No, I didn't. It was a rushed moment, and certainly not planned. When I try again, that would be the ideal moment." Brian thought about Ben's question, for the first time, something else occurring to him. "There was something different; although, I didn't think about it at the time. Perhaps it was merely my desire for him, and finally being able to taste him, but there was something different. Blood had never tasted so good. I didn't want to stop."

"Interesting; but, again, you have feelings for him that extend anything you've probably ever experienced. It could heighten every sensation." 

Feelings? Brian shuddered. No, he didn't have feelings for Justin. That was absolutely ludicrous. He was a vampire; not to mention, he was Brian Kinney. That just wasn't how he was wired. "I'm going to pick up Justin."

Ben smiled, a smile that didn't quite touch his eyes. "I'll be waiting. I am looking forward to meeting this special man."

Brian rolled his eyes as he made his way to the front door, as always, irritated when Ben ‘read' too much into anything. Ben often overreacted, and his gift of sight wasn't always precise. In regards to these so-called feelings that his brother believed Brian had for Justin, he was certain Ben was once again seeing more than what was truly existent. Nothing else made any sense.

Justin surveyed his few bags, amazed that he'd been able to fit everything into them. They were all the size of carry-on bags, but he had crammed them all as tightly as he could and still securely close them. He walked around the apartment, looking for anything he could have missed, returning here was the last thing he wanted to happen.

Glancing at the time, realizing it was close to the hour Brian had given him, Justin pondered that for a moment. What was he even doing? Brian was virtually a stranger to him; and yet, he did trust the man that he believed was so much more than he appeared to be. Despite that, to live not only with him, but his brother as well, a man he hadn't even met, did seem a bit extreme. For now, though, he didn't really have a lot of options. 

Walking around, his eyes touching on anything he could have missed, Justin looked again in the bathroom, satisfied he had taken everything that was his before he checked the bedroom again. After double-checking his side of the large closet, Justin looked at all of Seth's clothes neatly hanging, all of them arranged in order of style and color. Seth was a control freak in all areas. 

Looking upward, Justin noticed a small rectangular box at the back of the closet on Seth's side. It was smaller than a shoebox, and it seemed to be pushed out of obvious sight. Curious, Justin reached for it, barely able to grasp it. Pulling it down, he slowly opened it, uncertain of what he would find, but for some reason sensing that it could be important. Justin frowned when he saw the only contents was an envelope with his name on it with his address before the bashing. 

Opening the envelope, Justin began to read the legal document, his eyes widening as he absorbed what it was saying. It was a sizable inheritance that he was due to receive when he reached the age of twenty-five that was currently held in trust. If he had known about this before the bashing he didn't remember it... and what was even worse, Seth did know. Suddenly, Justin felt cold all over, and his heart filled with rage. 

Seth's manipulations were even more callous. He had thought Seth had acted illegally and immorally due to an attraction to his former patient when it had been far more diabolical than even that, which had been bad enough. Seth had been after his inheritance. Justin felt disgusted and a complete fool. Even medicated as he had been, how had he been so blind? Placing the letter in his pocket, Justin dropped the emptied box into the bottom of the closet, knowing he wanted out of this apartment now more than ever.

He sat down on the couch, unwanted tears sliding down his cheeks, the feeling of betrayal overwhelming him. Although he didn't delude himself that he had truly loved Seth, he was still reeling from the level of betrayal Seth had leveled at him, most especially in the fragile state of mind he had initially been in. He hated him and hoped he never laid eyes on him again. 

When he heard the knock at the door, Justin quickly wiped away his tears; he wanted nothing more than to be out of this apartment, a place where he could vividly see and hear Seth's manipulations. Seth was a monster, and he hoped he got exactly what he deserved. Opening the door, he gave Brian a half-smile, before he gestured to his bags. "I think I'm ready now. In fact, I know I am. I really need to leave here."

Brian's eyes narrowed sharply on the clearly emotional young man. "Has something happened?" He moved inside and closer to Justin, his tone sharpening when he observed, "You've been crying. Why?" Brian watched Justin closely, thinking that if the blond was suddenly mourning the end of his poisonous relationship with his former boyfriend, a repulsive creature that had been killed far more quickly than he had deserved, Brian knew he would lose control. That wouldn't end well.

Closing the door behind Brian, Justin reached into his pocket and pulled out the envelope, handing it to the other man. "It appears that I was an even bigger fool... and I only cried briefly, I don't see how you could notice---"

"You'd be surprised what I notice..." Brian mumbled before he opened the envelope, his eyes quickly scanning the contents. This was actually a relief, he thought to himself. The documentation made connecting Justin with the appropriate attorney that held his inheritance in trust a much easier task. He would have tracked the inheritance information for him, but this changed that immensely. Brian folded the document and returned it to the envelope, handing it back to Justin and saying, "Well, it appears that your future is assured. I am assuming you are not twenty-five as of now?"

"No. I have two years yet." Justin frowned as he thought about what it all meant, unable to fathom that kind of inheritance. "I don't even know this relative. I have forgotten so much of the past."

Brian forced himself to focus on Justin's words, and not be pulled into his growing desire for the young man. There was something different about him; in fact, he thought it had escalated even more after the brief taste he had enjoyed of him earlier. Perhaps he just needed to feed. He refused to accept Ben's analogy that he was obsessed with Justin. That was simply impossible. All he knew at the moment was that vulnerable Justin was such a turn-on for him. He wanted to possess and devour him; although, he knew this wasn't the right time for that - at least, not for Justin. Moving around the blond, not trusting himself to touch him in any way, Brian reached for Justin's bags, confidently telling him, "I'm sure the attorney can answer your questions. We can make an appointment as soon as you feel ready."

Justin nodded, a full smile curving his lips. "Thank you, Brian. I don't know why you're being so nice to me, but I don't know what I would do without you right now."

Nice? Brian nearly shuddered in distaste. He was not nice. Everything he was doing for Justin was to serve his own purpose; not to mention, he was partly responsible for the turmoil Justin was enduring, despite the fact that Seth had been deserving of his fate. "I suppose everyone is in need of some kindness from time to time." When Justin beamed all the more, Brian rolled his eyes, unable to just let the blond have his moment. "Don't get used to it. I always have a motive for my actions. I don't think I need to tell you what mine is with you."

"I've been duly warned, Mr. Kinney." Justin gave the apartment one last glance before he preceded Brian out the door, not the least bit saddened by the knowledge that this would be his last look inside. He was a firm believer in karma and had to also believe that Seth would get his comeuppance, whether now or in the days to come. 

As Brian followed behind, he couldn't take his eyes from Justin's far too enticing ass. He wasn't about to rush him; at least not quite yet, but he was determined that Justin would become accustomed to him quickly, with each moment they shared bringing them closer to the inevitable conclusion. Only then, would he solve the mystery of Justin Taylor and his extraordinary allure. After that, his life could return to normal. In his mind, and in his long history that was the only plausible resolution. However, he did wonder to himself - in regards to Justin, could it be that simple?

TBC