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Jacob was being tracked. There was no doubt about it. He had taken a walk that had turned into a long hike and was on the way back to the veterans centre, when he heard vegetation shift behind him. At first, he thought it to be the wind but it never went away. Always close by, following him. He tried to subtly see what was stalking him but the creature was well hidden. It was intelligent, not allowing him to catch a glimpse and that served nothing but to make Jacob uncomfortable. A wolf he could try to wrestle but if it was a bear? He walked faster. After everything he had gone through. No, he wouldn’t die at the hands of a wild animal. For a few minutes it was suspiciously peaceful. All he could hear was his own slow breathing. Perhaps it had found a different prey?
A low growl emanated from behind him. He didn’t stop. Didn’t let it know he knew. Why couldn’t he be closer to the Veterans Centre dammit. It was the first time in weeks he’d just taken a walk. There were people to put through the trials. Joseph had been very specific and asked that he put his best into the work. To prepare for the sinners and the deputy, who hadn’t stepped back into Whitetail Mountains since the first trail. He was a coward, instead harassing John in Holland Valley. When they spoke John sounded exasperated but Jacob knew how he really felt. John was enamoured with the deputy. Feeding off the chaos the man caused like it was a drug, it was the closest he’d been to sinning since before the project was formed. When he would snort cocaine off whoever he had over in his extravagant apartment. Jacob didn’t judge him, it wasn’t his job but Joseph was a clever man. More a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He knew just the right pressure to pull the strings to get what he wanted. If he didn’t know already then it would become clear soon, John hadn’t made much of an effort to stop the deputy. There was no tact, no finesses just rumours.
Not that Jacob knew much of finesse.
It had gotten closer. The undergrowth behind him rustled and a shiver went down his spine. His ears strained to hear. It was silent other than the whistling trees and flowing water of a river nearby. He could use the water to hide his scent, then the creature might leave him alone. He strode quickly towards the river and plunged himself into the water, it was deep enough to reach his waist. The current was a sluggish thing, not strong enough to move him.
A low growl rumbled behind him and Jacob froze, fists clenched at his side and muscles tensed to spring. It beat him to it. A heavy weight pinned him to the ground. One that felt awfully human shaped. He slid forward in the wet river with a muted cry that was quickly stifled by the water. His knee collided with a rock and his mouth was full of God knows what. A figure loomed over him and he thrashed against them. The water had soaked his clothes slick to his body. His hands couldn’t get a grip. The person laughed manically when he managed to connect a fist with their face. They kept pushing him underwater, it made him dizzy. Only when he started to go slack did they pull him up and drag him to the bank. Liquid escaped from between his lips with each wretched cough. His assailant still trapped him to the ground, only too aware of his strength. He tried not to remember how smoke once made him just as breathless, stole his breath. The water tasted like ash and he could hardly stand how it burned his skin.
“Look what I’ve got here.” The Deputy’s breath was warm against his throat. He was close enough that his lips dragged across his skin to talk and Jacob felt himself flush. The Deputy was supposed to be in John’s bunker, what happened? Why wasn’t he called? A horrible realisation came over him, he had no weapon and no way to communicate with the others. “What? Cat’s got your tongue?” The deputy sneered against his flesh, letting blunt teeth trace his jugular. They were dug harder into Jacob’s throat when he tried to throw them off. “I’m not sure you want to do that.” Blood flowed from the wound left behind, slowly. It wasn’t fatal but would leave a mark, might get infected if he was unlucky.
“Get off me!” Jacob had started to panic. Gone was his calm stoic control, it was too much. Too familiar. It remined him of… His back felt like it was on fire, the touch burning his skin and he squirmed. An elbow connected with the deputy’s jaw which loosened his grip, made him unsteady. Adrenaline flooded through Jacob, it was overwhelming, but it gave him the strength to push up. To throw the deputy off him. “What is this?” Jacob’s voice trembled and he hated it. Shoulders shook, out of breath and the cold froze him to the bone, He could feel his lips turning blue. The wind chilled him further, made goosebumps erupt over his skin. The deputy regarded him for a moment, watched the panic recede and become replaced with fierce determination. Something he was used to and could handle. It was a trait all the Seed brothers shared and one that had already gotten them into trouble. He was a man of the law, one of the last and yet Hope County felt separate from everything. It was certainly tempting to give in to the baser instincts and Jacob was a man who would understand, better than anyone else. He never wanted to see Jacob that scared ever again, not like that. Endless fear and that faraway look in his eyes. Of being somewhere else he couldn’t touch.
The deputy pulled out a handgun and aimed it at Jacob, in line to fire between his eyes and Jacob clenched his fist at the action. “Run.” Neither moved. Who did the deputy think he was? Jacob didn’t run, he fought. He took a step forward. Then another. The gun fired. Jacob waited for the burst of white pain but the gun had been fired into the air. “Go, get out of here. God forbid I catch you again. I’ll do more than put my teeth in your throat.” The last sentence was spoken with a smirk and Jacob felt one pull at his own face. So that was what this was about. The deputy had gone mad and wanted to play with the wolves. Fancied himself as someone worth bending over for, Jacob would see.
“Lose the gun then sweetheart, come and get me like a real man. You think you have what it takes? Hmmm. Let’s see shall we?” Jacob let his voice turn to gravel and watched the deputy shiver at the sound. “See you soon.” He walked away slowly anticipating being jumped straight away, but the deputy let him get out of sight without moving. Was he cocky enough that he thought Jacob needed a head start? A mistake, Jacob knew the mountains much better than the other and he used it to his advantage. He was close to the end of his territory. Just a short walk from being able to see John’s ugly and poor imitation of the Hollywood sign. A few hours from the veterans centre. It didn’t matter. If the deputy caught up with him it could be fun. None of his own would question where he’d been and if Joseph asked he would be fine once he realised Jacob had been ‘tracking’ the deputy. The finer details could be left out, but he needed to have a word with John. They had all agreed to inform each other when the deputy left one of their zones. It would get dark before he could get back, usually it wouldn’t be a problem but he couldn’t rush getting back less he make too much noise.
It was quiet for a while, just the tranquillity of nature and his thoughts. Jacob tried to be relaxed, he was trained for this after all but the deputy… was something else. A constant thorn in the side. A never ending threat to their way of life. Wild like he was. A stick snapped to the left and his head whipped to follow. Trees blocked his line of sight but he knew what made the noise, a mistake so early. Jacob sighed, if the deputy didn’t put any effort into the game what was the point. He turned only to have a figure push him to the ground, face first into the mud. He was getting sick of it.
“I thought you were supposed to be the mountain man?” The deputy’s reputation was presented before him, he was known as a cruel killer or so the flock believed. Jacob however didn’t think so. The hands that had him pinned shook and he took it for nerves, with ragged breaths that told another story.
Jacob laughed, uncaring of the soil in his mouth or the way his neck ached in the position. The deputy stared down at him in disbelief and the grip went lax momentarily. “Just you wait boy.” An elbow connected with the deputy’s nose, hard enough that it started to bleed. He stood slowly as the other clutched their face, bent over in pain with a groan that made him smirk darkly. The mud was rubbed into his skin and Jacob waited. “Is that all?” The monotone voice drove the deputy up onto unsteady legs, he was determined to get a rise and then a poor attempt was made to get him to the ground. Jacob laughed gruffly as a slick fist was thrown at his face, it was easy to dodge. Off course already and he smirked darkly at the cry of frustration. “That’s it lamb, get it out of your system.” A manic grin, the deputy had blood staining his teeth, down his chin and stained the coat that was once John’s. He must have stolen it from the bunker.
“Yeah, that’s right.” They mocked him, rolling his eyes at Jacob’s frown. “John gave it to me. He’s going to be pissed you ruined his coat.” Like Jacob cared, John was angry nearly all the time. “He said I should keep it, there was a gun in the pocket you know. A really pretty one. I thought the barrel would complement your skin tone, especially the colour of your forehead.” The suggestion that John also had that in mind was made by the cocky smirk.
“Shut up.” Jacob spoke through grinding teeth, took a step closer and feigned a punch. As the deputy attempted to avoid the hit, he kicked him square in the chest and it sent the other plummeting to the ground with a groan. Jacob watched unimpressed, gasping breaths and chest clenched weakly the deputy hardly resembled what the flock had made him out to be. “We’re done, Joseph asked me not to kill you but if I see you again with that coat…” A bitter laugh, one that made the deputy freeze. “Well, I’m not that close to John anyway and I’m sure another plaything will catch his interest. A less disobedient slut certainly.” It was intended to irritate the other, to shame him into giving in. The reaction it provoked however wasn’t something Jacob accounted for. A sharp moan at the word and the deputy flushed, he looked away embarrassed with a shudder and Jacob almost sneered. John certainly had a type.
He turned and started to walk away, confident in the outcome and he got a few steps away before the deputy jumped him. Pinned him to the ground by his thighs, dug his fingers into Jacobs muscled ass quickly before forcing his face flush to the floor and his arms behind his back. “You are so predictable and it’s fucking boring.” The words were growled against his throat, over his jumping pulse. Teeth pressed against the skin in warning at his struggles, they sliced through the meat of his shoulder and only then did he go still.
The deputy rutted against him like an animal, taking pleasure in his placid form. A fist was thrust in his hair, and a groan was forced as his head was pushed back to strain a blood smeared neck. Lips nibbled down his throat with gasping breaths that set his skin on fire. “That’s right, isn’t it? All you needed was someone to pin you to the floor. Make you their bitch.” The deputy spat the words, saliva dripping down his chin. A rabid creature, one he needed to put down. It was toxic, poisoning them from the inside if what he said about John was to be believed. A mark was sucked high on his throat and Jacob sneered at himself for enjoying it. Seething for wanting more.
“Get off me.” He spoke deathly calm, body frozen in place in an attempt at control. The way his body reacted to the situation was disregarded. He would not submit to the deputy, not in mind or spirit. He was ignored and a whine breathed right into his ear made him snap. He attempted to flip them, it was anticipated. The deputy jumped up, leaving Jacob on his back in a heap on the ground.
“What a pretty sight.” A boot was shoved between his legs, rubbed over him harshly. The deputy ignored his hiss to laugh, a full-bodied laugh that had his head tip back. The boot stayed in place, pressed harder as he struggled. Hips arched into the touch, uncontrolled and Jacob sighed. “You act like you don’t like this.” Teasing pressure made him scowl, fists clenched at his sides. “And yet…” The deputy smirked, traced what was decided to be on offer and rotated his foot gently over a very interested cock. It sent a wave of desire through his system and his mind caught up with the signals sent from his body. The groan was loud, the wilderness otherwise silent in comparison and sweat broke out along his hairline. “This is enough, the knowledge that you like it.” He muffled the low groan with clenched teeth and the deputy leered like he knew. “John will certainly find it amusing.” Jacob’s eyes snapped open, when did they fall shut? The deputy drew away and just as he went to stand, a kick to the head made him fall back down. Unconscious.
When he woke up, head throbbing and body stiff with the cold his jacket was gone and in it’s place John’s coat sat on his shoulders. A number was in the pocket on a fancy piece of paper. He sat up with a furious shout, eyes scanning the horizon for any sign of the deputy. A number and radio frequency were written in John’s handwriting. They had planned the entire thing. He gently put the note in his jean pocket before staggering to stand. The trees tipped in his vision and he vomited onto his otherwise pristine boots. Jacob was going to kill his brother.