Sanctuary Read Online Free PDF Page B

descend into chaos.”
    “Not everyone has to think the way I do, boss. I’m just trying to show you the light. Think rationally about this.”
    “So your need for pleasure is perfectly rational, but compassion for other people is irrational because… why? Because it’s just your DNA that programs you to feel empathy—isn’t that what you said before?”
    Oh, not this again. Brandon had once tried to convince Cole that human empathy was just a vestige left over from evolution, and Cole intermittently dredged it up in arguments as a crutch to lean on when Brandon was beating him. Fine, let him have his crutch. “Give me one good reason to care about anything but my own happiness, and I’ll take it all back,” Brandon said.
    Cole may not have read any philosophy, but he was ready with a quick retort. “If all happiness is just a meaningless survival mechanism left over from evolution, why care about your own happiness either?”
    Oh, Cole was feisty tonight. And smarter than usual. Brandon’s blood was racing, and he wanted to launch into another diatribe about how Cole lived in a slave’s box, unaware that he was free to do whatever he wanted without any rational reason and without feeling guilty. But he knew that Cole felt too responsible for that damn kid on the way, so instead of another philosophical rant, Brandon opted for an emotional appeal. This wasn’t about ideologies anyway. It was about Cole and Brandon and the future.
    Brandon moved so close to Cole that they were nearly nose to nose, and he spoke softly. “When I have a friend, I’m loyal to that friend. And I expect loyalty in return. So I’m asking you, as a friend, please. Don’t turn your back on me, Cole.”
    Cole’s head swayed back and forth as he chewed on Brandon’s petition. Brandon was hopeful that his plea had worked until Cole leaned close and plainly said, “So if I kick you in the balls—hard—because it’s pleasurable for me, and because seeing you squirm in agony on the ground would be a pleasing distraction from the inevitability of death… Then that’s okay, because there’s no right or wrong?”
    Unbelievable. In all the years Brandon had known him, Cole had never said something so bold to him. He must really care about this bitch. This was getting nowhere. Time to use force.
    Brandon paced back to the indoor green and grabbed the putter he’d dropped next to it. “Can I borrow your golf club?”
    “What?”
    “For the baby.”
    Cole strode toward Brandon, arms raised as if to physically confront him.
    “Hey!” Brandon yelled. But Cole came at him so fast that Brandon barely had time to lift his club, which swooshed as it parted the air between them.
    “Yeah, go ahead,” Cole said. “Hit a blind guy.”
    “She’s a fucking street girl, okay? She’s not worth shit.”
    Cole swung a fist. It passed well over Brandon’s left shoulder.
    “You missed.”
    Cole abruptly swung again, and this time he caught Brandon square in the jaw. Then he clutched Brandon’s collar, yanked his torso forward, and spoke with eerie calm. “Brandon. Cut your parties out of the budget. Stop losing my money.”
    “What money?”
    Cole continued as if Brandon hadn’t spoken. “You can keep using my place as long as you make us money. I keep Crystal. You keep your job. Everyone’s happy.”
    They stood there for a moment, eyes locked in a wordless duel, a gentle breeze blowing at their hair. Cole didn’t seem to notice the wind, which was faint, but too strong to have been the air conditioning. Brandon looked around for an open window but found nothing, so he ignored the strange breeze and set the club on Cole’s bed.
    “You need me, boss. I don’t need you.” He walked quietly out of Cole’s room and left it at that.
    Cole’s father had been a disgustingly wealthy man, and his condo unit was expansive. Brandon had to walk through nearly two minutes of hallways just to reach Crystal’s room from Cole’s, journeying