Justin awoke to the sound of not-so-quiet curses, and his partner struggling to reach their bedside phone. Were they late for their departure to the airport? Squinting to look in the direction of the window, he quickly realized that not to be the case. The outside was still blanketed by darkness. "Brian? What's going on?"

"Go back to sleep, Justin. It's not time for us to leave yet." Brian's voice was curt as he answered Justin, his gut instincts warning him that a departure might not be forthcoming... at least not one that would include him. "Kinney..." he hissed into the phone.

"Warden, I'm sorry to disturb you on the eve of your vacation, but..." Brandon's voice was frantic as he spoke into the phone, barely able to be heard over the sirens, alarms, and dogs that resounded around him.

"What the fuck is going on there, Brandon??" Brian was instantly awake and alert, his senses and now his ears telling him that his normally orderly prison was now in a state of chaos.

"There's no easy way to tell you, Sir. We've had a prison break." Brandon covered his free ear to protect himself from the sound of the alarms, as he continued to explain to the warden. "We don't know how it happened yet..."

Brian urgently vaulted from the bed, his steps taking him to the closet, showering now not being a luxury he could afford. "Is the prison on lockdown?"

"Yes, of course, Sir. The authorities enforced that immediately."

"Very good." Mindful that Justin's eyes were on his movements, he slid into his black briefs, and slacks, wishing he could place the phone down to put Brandon on speaker... but uncertain if he wanted Justin to hear everything at this precise moment. "How many?" He clipped out, his heart racing as he worried about which parasites it would be.

Brandon took a deep breath, knowing this would be the worst part of all. "Three of them, warden. "Beals, Hobbs, and Kip..."

"Fuck!" Brian hissed, doubling his efforts to get dressed more quickly. "I'm on the way. Inform the authorities I am at their disposal for as long as they need. The prisoners need to be found tonight!"

"Warden... you are due to leave for vacation. You won't catch your flight if you delay and handle this. Your replacement along with the authorities will manage."

Brian swore repeatedly. "It's not like I have a choice. Vacation or not - I am the warden. I can't leave until my prison is under control!"

"The rest of the prisoners are accounted for, warden. There isn't anything you can do in the search..."

"I'll be the judge of that!" Brian hissed, knowing he wasn't doing very well in keeping his distress from a now wide awake Justin.

Sighing, realizing the futility in arguing with Brian when he was in full-on warden mode, Brandon asked, "What should I do until you arrive?"

"Just keep cooperating with the authorities. Advise them that I will arrive within the hour." He turned to see Justin approaching him from behind, the disappointment evident on his face.

"Of course, warden. I'll see you when you get here..."

Brian didn't respond, brusquely pressing the button that would end the call. He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes apologetic as he looked at his young lover. "I'm sorry, Justin. This is unavoidable."

Justin nodded. "A riot at the prison?"

Shaking his head, Brian straightened his tie, before he answered, "Worse than that. It appears we have a prison break. I need to be there until things are under control."

Eyes widening, Justin squawked, "P-prison break? W-who?"

Brian's back tensed as he heard a hint of fear in Justin's voice. His answer would only increase that feeling. Taking quick strides to the door, he picked up his keys, turning to face Justin again, his own eyes displaying concern and the greatest of trepidation. "I don't have the details yet. However, it appears to have been Beals, Kip... and Hobbs."

"Oh my God, Brian. Kip and Hobbs? Do you think they will come after me... or us?" Justin asked, in the back of his mind thinking it to be a realistic question, and one with an obvious answer.

Warring within himself with his own internal struggle, feeling anguish from Justin's fear, not to mention his own, he still tried to affect his demeanor of being the hard-edged warden, knowing that needed to be his mindset going forward. Not only was he charged with the orderly function of the prison, but for protecting Justin as well. He couldn't allow any sort of unease to be a distraction. That was all a perpetrator needed to act out against them. "Kip's release was only six months away. He's a damned fool for escaping now. Hobbs' face is too familiar in the media in relation to your former incarceration. And Beals has absolutely nothing to do with you. I'm sure they were just at the right place, at the right time when the opportunity presented itself."

"Which still doesn't answer my question, Brian. Do you think either Kip or Hobbs will come after me??" Justin asked, his voice becoming sharp in his anxiety.

"Justin, I can't answer that. Do they want to? I'd say, fuck yeah, they do. Prisoners always spout words of revenge against fellow inmates, and in particular the guards and warden. When the opportunity comes, they usually don't take it. That fear of being watched always follows them. And in the case of Kip and Hobbs, both of them will know you are on the alert through me. They would be even bigger fools trying to approach you."

Nodding, Justin sent a tentative smile Brian's way. "Okay. Be careful, Brian..."

"Always am..." Brian responded, his hand reaching out to clasp the back of Justin's neck as he pulled him in for a deep, mind-numbing kiss, knowing this would have to suffice for now. That was the only bad thing about kissing Justin. No matter what the circumstances happened to be, one kiss always led to him wanting so much more. And right now, this kiss could be all he had for a while. "I don't do sorry... but I am sorry our vacation plans are disrupted."

Justin shrugged. "Jamaica doesn't matter. All that matters is that we're together. We can do that anywhere. Don't worry. I'll be here waiting when you get home."

Brian pulled free, his hands moving to frame Justin's face in his hands. "Jamaica does matter... and we will go; however, maybe not at the same time. I want you to go there, Justin, whether I am back in time or not. If one of these pricks does have the bad sense to come after you, they won't find you here... nor will they be able to leave the country so quickly or easily in the unlikely event that they managed to get our travel information."

Gasping, Justin shook his head. "No, Brian. I can't... won't go without you. This was our vacation, the two of us together. We can just take a later flight."

"Yes, Justin. You. Will. Go." Leaning forward, Brian placed one more urgent, intense kiss on Justin's lips, his forehead smashing into the one of his young partner. He pulled back to look deeply into frightened, yet beautiful blue eyes. "I really need to get to the prison... but I mean what I say, Justin. Knowing that you are on that plane for Jamaica will ease my mind. I can concentrate on returning the prison to order, and not worry about either of these assholes stalking you, or worse."

Biting his lip thoughtfully, Justin grudgingly admitted, "I suppose I would be safer, and unable to be used as a tool to get to you if I was out of the country." Clearly reading the agreement on Brian's face, followed by relief when Justin was showing more understanding of his point of view, Justin found himself conceding. "Okay, Brian. If you are not back in time, I will leave for Jamaica. But you have to promise you'll be there as soon as you can, and that in the meantime, you will take every precaution for yourself..."

"Of course I promise that, Justin. There's nothing I want more than joining you on our vacation." Brian trailed his fingers down Justin's cheeks, sweeping them down his neck, brushing them lightly along his sides until he clasped them around his hips. "I've been looking forward to this private getaway for a long time. First I restore order to the prison... then I have some one-on-one time with you."

Justin looped his arms around Brian's waist, his eyes having that dreamy look of a man hopelessly in love. "I'll be waiting for you, Warden Kinney, ready and willing to help you forget all this unpleasantness."

"I know you will..." Brian gruffly answered, taking a quick step back and turning his eyes to the door, understanding of his responsibilities, and realizing until he had the prison under control again, he couldn't enjoy their much-desired reunion. Attempting to insert some lightness into their goodbye, Brian swatted Justin playfully on the ass, before huskily telling him, "Time for the warden to go kick some ass..."

Justin smiled weakly as Brian left, unable to dispel the unease he felt in his heart. Despite knowing that Brian knew what he was doing, he was still filled with dread. He wasn't sure why, either. None of the escapees would find him so quickly, and he knew Brian was right, they wouldn't be able to secure passage out of the country. At least, not this soon. For now, it would be a battle of evading the authorities.

All of that in mind, why did he worry that this wouldn't be a short separation, but in fact, one of a lasting duration?

TBC