V: The V in Vigilant

white, that wastrue, but they still burned his retinas. He’d be happy when hisshift was over and he could go home, cuddle with his lover, andtrade this power in for something else.
At 7:35 he made his last swing through theWillow Lawn shopping center. Since his bus headed out towardLakeside, he didn’t pick up too many fares this time of thenight—most shoppers were college kids from VCU or housewives wholived in the Fan district downtown. As the few people boardingqueued up outside his door, two large men barreled through to thefront of the line. Big men, burly, both looked rough and mean inthe same way Vic knew most people saw him as being, but he’dnever jump a line. When the two clamored aboard, Vic warned, “Hey,watch it.”
“Piss off,” one of them muttered under hisbreath.
Any other time, Vic would’ve pushed it. Buthe was at work, and he didn’t have much longer until the endof his day. Still, he half-turned in his seat and leveled a hardglare at the closest jerk, mentally sending one thought his way.::Give me a reason, dick. You don’t know who you’re fuckingwith.::
The guy stiffened, stopping in the aisle asif Vic had spoken aloud. He glanced back, scowled at Roger in hiswheelchair near the front of the bus, then shoved his friend asideas he pushed toward the back. “Outta my way, Mick.”
Satisfied, Vic turned around and glanced inthe mirror above his seat. He watched the two men sprawl across thelast seat on the bus, taking up the whole thing. Vic didn’t thinkanyone would complain—who’d want to sit next to them? Uponfurther inspection, they looked nothing like he did himself.They were big, yeah, but it was fat, not muscle. Their fadedtattoos were jailhouse jobs, nothing professional. The scruff ontheir faces was unshaven, not deliberately groomed, and greasy haircurled from beneath the woolen caps they wore pulled down overtheir heads. A telepathic glance deeper and Vic shook his head indisgust. Bob and Mick were their names, and tucked down the frontof Bob’s dingy flannel jacket was a video game he’d stolen from oneof the stores in the mall. No wonder they were in such a hurry toget on board.
Just for that, Vic waited a long ten minutesat the stop, but no one from the store came rushing out, no policearrived, nothing untoward happened at all. Apparently they weren’taware a theft had occurred. And face it, Vic told himself ashe pulled the bus away from the curb, I’m not the cops. Sure, Icould take both jerks down in five minutes, flat, without evenbreaking a sweat, but I don’t have time to deal with petty crimesright now. My shift ends in what, twenty minutes? I can’t save theworld.
And, more importantly, what would Matt haveto say if he found out? No, one swiped video game simplywasn’t worth upsetting his lover by playing the hero yet again.
Fortunately, the two caused no real trouble.They hunkered together in the back, passing a paper bag betweenthem and snickering as if they thought they were fooling anyone.Vic knew a bottle of Hennessey sloshed around inside that bag, andboth men had used it to drown a handful of poppers once the bus gotrolling. The sooner they got off, the better. They rode to a stopalong Lakeside, and Vic couldn’t drive away fast enough.
The moment they were gone, Roger made adisgusted sound in the back of his throat. “God, can you believethem? Where’s a cop when you need one, eh?”
Vic grunted. In his rearview mirror hewatched Mick toss the paper bag into the street; the tinkling ofshattering glass could barely be heard over the roar of the bus’sengine, but the two men hung on each other, laughing on the curb,while they watched passing cars swerve to avoid the mess.“Assholes,” Vic muttered under his breath.
He had three more stops. Roger’s would be thelast—he was the only remaining fare—then Vic would hit theinterstate and head back to the depot. But as he came around thecurve on Lakeside, he almost ran the bus off the road. Standing bythe next bus stop sign was…no, it couldn’t be. Vic stretched outhis mind to connect with his lover’s. ::Matt?::
::Car’s in the shop.:: The bus slowedand Matt waved, smiling broadly. At his heels sat Sadie, on a shortlead to keep her out of traffic. The moment she caught Vic’spresence, though, she was on all four feet, tail waggingvigorously. ::Roxie dropped us off at the dog park and I thoughtwe’d take the bus home.::
::Bus doesn’t head out our way,:: Vicpointed out, pulling to a stop at the curb.
Matt’s smile widened. ::It helps whenyou’re sleeping with the driver.::
The door opened and Sadie bounded up the bussteps, planting her front paws in Vic’s lap and ducking under hisarm for attention. Matt was right behind her. “No pets allowed,”Vic groused. “Only service animals.”
“She’s at work,” Matt assured him, leaningclose as if to claim a kiss. “She keeps me company while my sexy,hard-working husband-to-be is—”
The sound of a throat clearing behind themstopped Matt in mid-sentence. Vic could see Roger in the mirrorabove, eyes wide and gaze averted as he tried to politely remindthem they weren’t alone. ::Great,:: Vic told his loversilently. ::Get me fired, will you? He’s ex-military.::
Matt winked. ::Don’t ask, don’ttell.::
Noticing Roger, the dog scrambled down fromVic’s lap, her claws clicking on the metal floor. “Sadie,” Mattadmonished, tugging on her lead, but as usual, she ignored him.When she nosed the blunt end of Roger’s leg that ended at his knee,Matt told him, “I’m sorry, man. She’s not real good withcommands.”
“Sadie!” Vic barked. “Sit.”
The dog obeyed immediately, tail thumpingbetween Matt’s feet as she sat beside Roger’s chair. Matt gave herlead another tug. “Sure,” he muttered. “Undermine myauthority.”
The moment he tried to pull her back, the dogleapt at Roger again, front paws in his lap as she licked at hishand. Petting the top of her head, Roger assured him, “It’s cool.She’s real nice. What kind of dog is she?”
Matt laughed. Giving up, he sank into thenearest seat and let Sadie enjoy Roger’s affection. “A hundredpercent pure mutt. And rotten to the core. You should