This tape began not with Tom's typical taunting monolog, but with a shot of him in bed, another figure moving under the sheet that was pulled up to the bottom of his chest. Matt's head soon emerged from beneath the cover. Jeff grimaced as he watch Matt plant kisses up Tom's chest. "That's good," Tom breathed, "You just rest now, baby." He stroked Matt's hair as Matt settled his head on Tom's chest.
Tom turned his head to look at the camera, continuing to stroke Matt's hair. "Good evening, Jeff," he began. "As you can see, things have changed a little between me and Matt." He leaned down to plant a kiss on the elder Hardy's forehead. Matt stirred slightly. He looked like he was almost asleep. Tom looked back at the camera. "It not unwilling anymore, Jeff. Your brother is glad to pleasure me now, and he has been." Tom ran his hand tenderly down Matt's bare back.
Jeff felt hate surging through his veins. He wanted to rip Tom's head off and use it to break every other bone in his body. Jeff could hardly bare to look at Matt. What had Tom done to him to get him so submissive, so compliant? Jeff felt he had to do something. It was vital he find Matt before Tom could destroy his will anymore. After destroying the tape, Jeff went to find Adam.
Adam was sitting in the hotel lobby chatting with a man Jeff didn't recognize. The man looked about the man age as Adam, and he was clearly in excellent shape. He had the poise of a jungle cat, and Jeff guessed that he had reflexes to match. The man had long, dark brown hair which was pulled back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. Jeff walked up to them and cleared his throat to get their attention.
"Oh, hey Jeff," Adam said in greeting. "I don't think you know my friend Bastian. Bastian, this is my friend Jeff Hardy."
Bastian stood up to shake Jeff's hand. "Nice to meet you," he said.
"Bastian and I went to highschool together," Adam explained as Bastian and Jeff sat down. "I haven't seen him in years, but he somehow found me and decided to stop by for a visit."
Bastian smiled. "I thought it would be nice to catch up with an old friend. You weren't hard to find, believe me. That assignment wasn't even remotely challenging, compared with the cases I'm used to handling.
Jeff looked at the dark haired man curiously. "What do you do for a living?" he asked.
"I'm a tracker," Bastian replied, "I hunt down hard-to-find criminals and such, mostly for the government. I also do private locations, finding long lost family members, parents who've vanished with their children illegally, that sort of thing."
"Are you here to help find Matt?" Jeff inquired, feeling a little bit more hopeful.
Bastian glanced at Adam, then back at Jeff. "I'm going to have to say no, since I haven't heard about whatever you're referring to."
"My brother, Matt," Jeff informed him, "He was kidnaped a little while ago, and we haven't had any luck finding him. Can you find him?"
"Sorry, but I'm really just here to visit with Adam," Bastian replied. He blinked, realizing Adam had disappeared from his place. "Hey, where did he go?" Bastian scanned the lobby for his friend, spotting him chatting quietly with Jay a short distance away. He was about to get up to join them, but Jeff stopped him.
"I really have to find him," Jeff told the tracker. "Do you think you'd be able to find him? I'm desperate to get him back. They've been doing - awful things to him." Jeff swallowed, trying not to think about those awful things.
Bastian shrugged. "As far as trackers go, Jeff, I'm the best to be found. If I couldn't find him, no one could. I've never failed to find anyone I was looking for, not once."
Hope surged into Jeff's mind. "You can find him, then?" he asked incredulously.
Bastian shook his head. "I can't, no. Something like that's a big undertaking, and I really don't think you're prepared to hire me to do it. I can give you the names of some other trackers, though," he offered.
Jeff looked confused. "Why can't I hire you?" he questioned.
"You couldn't pay my price," Bastian replied.
"Are you the best?" Bastian nodded. "The absolute best, with a 100% success rate?" Bastian nodded again. "Then I want to hire you. I don't care how much it costs, I'll pay it."
Bastian shook his head again. "I don't need money right now, Jeff, I've got plenty. My line of work can be extremely profitable at times. I work for others things at the moment."
"What?" Jeff asked, determined to make Bastian agree to help him.
"It's not a price I could ask of you."
"Tell me what it is, and I'll pay it!" Jeff insisted.
"You couldn't pay it, Jeff," Bastian stated.
Jeff's face was determined. "Whatever it is, if it means getting my brother back, then it is an option. So what's your price?"
Bastian looked right into his eyes. "Sex."
"Oh." Jeff swallowed. "Are you sure you don't want money instead?" he offered.
"I told you it isn't a price you can pay," Bastian stated, standing to leave. "Let me give you those other numbers..." He reached into his pocket to find them.
"I'll do it," Jeff declared.
Bastian stared at him. "You'll what?"
"I'll do it," Jeff repeated. "If you can guarantee me that you can save Matt, I'll do it. Can you guarantee it?"
"Yes, I can." Bastian looked at the young Hardy curiously. "You must really love your brother."
"I do." Jeff nodded emphatically.
"Still, I don't think I can let you do this," Bastian told him.
"No! Please, I need you to find him," Jeff insisted. "Well..." Bastian considered it. "I'll give you the name of the place where I'm staying." He wrote a few words on a notepad he pulled out of his pocket and handed the sheet to Jeff. "You think about it for the rest of the day, and if you still want to go through with it, then come to my room tonight. You don't have to, you know. There are plenty of good trackers who will work for money." "Can they guarantee me that they'll find my brother?" Jeff inquired. Bastian shrugged. "Maybe not 100%, but - " "Then I'll go with you," Jeff interrupted. "If you insist. Think about it, though," Bastian told him before leaving his company to join Adam and Jay.
Jeff didn't need to think about it. He was certainly not happy with the idea, but he would literally do anything for Matt. Matt had been raped, abused, and drugged in this ordeal, and all Jeff had done was watch. If all he had to do to save his brother was to sleep with another man...well, he didn't like it, but he could handle it. He was feeling rather nervous as he knocked on Bastian's door that night. He thought he knew pretty much how it worked, but he wasn't absolutely sure.
Bastian opened the door and escorted him in. "You've thought about this?" Bastian asked. Jeff nodded. "And you still want to do it?"
"Yes." There was no doubt in Jeff's voice. "Can you tell me, how long will it take you to find Matt?" Jeff wanted to know.
Bastian shrugged. "Assuming I start tomorrow, which I will if you're serious about doing this, maybe a few weeks. The longest I've ever taken to locate someone was three months, and that was an international mission. I'm assuming this kidnaper hasn't taken Matt out of the country, so he doesn't have to deal with customs and such."
Jeff brightened considerably. "Only a few weeks?"
"A few weeks, or a month or two," Bastian stated. "It won't be overnight."
"As long as I get him back," Jeff replied. He glanced nervously at the room's single bed. ‘I can do this, for Matt,' he told himself. He waited a moment for Bastian to start, but the tracker simply stood studying him with his eyes. He didn't look like he believed Jeff would really go through with it.
Telling himself to be strong, Jeff awkwardly walked over to the bed and lay down on his back. He fought to control his breathing as Bastian moved toward him. Bastian sunk slowly onto the mattress, reaching out to brush a strand of hair out of Jeff's face. "You don't have to be afraid," he murmured, "I won't hurt you. And I won't force you to do this if you don't want to."
"I do want to," Jeff claimed. He shuddered slightly as Bastian positioned himself on top of him and laid a kiss on his cheek. He made himself wrap his arms around the dark haired man's back, keeping their bodies close together as Bastian ran his lips down his cheek to his neck. He couldn't stop his body from tensing up at this touch, and Bastian noticed.
Sighing, the tracker rolled off of Jeff onto the mattress beside him. "Jeff, you clearly don't really want to do this," Bastian stated. "Let me give you those other numbers, and you can be on your way, ok?"
"No, I'm not leaving," Jeff proclaimed.
Bastian looked a little annoyed. "No offense, Jeff, but this just isn't going to work. And to be perfectly honest, it wouldn't be much fun for me with you in the state you are."
"I can do better!" Jeff insisted. "I absolutely refuse to leave until you promise to find Matt." He crossed his arms across his chest.
"Well, if you insist on it, you've got to relax," Bastian instructed Jeff. "Take a few deep breathes, and try to loosen up. Here, let me help." Bastian rolled Jeff onto his stomach and straddled his back. Jeff tensed even more before he realized that Bastian was just trying to help relax him. Bastian began to massage the tension out of Jeff's body. Jeff found himself relaxing in response to Bastian's gentle hands.
"Mmm...you're good at that," Jeff commented.
"I took several years of classes in massage," Bastian explained. "I thought I wanted to be a masseuse for a long time. I'm actually fully trained and licenced in massage."
"Wow." Jeff found himself enjoying Bastian's massage. He felt loose all over now. "Ok, I - I think I'm ready," he said, still feeling rather nervous.
Bastian chuckled. "You're gonna have to take off your clothes first, Jeff."
Jeff blushed a little, feeling rather silly. "Right. Sorry." He sat up and stripped off his clothing, watching with considerable anxiety as Bastian did the same. He lay back down on his stomach and closed his eyes, waiting for what he figured was next. He felt Bastian's weight drape across his body.
"You can still back out, Jeff," Bastian told him.
"No, I won't. Just do it, ok?" Jeff struggled to keep himself relaxed. Bastian helped by rubbing his shoulders to get him back into that relaxed, receptive state.
"This is going to hurt a little at first," Bastian stated.
"I know that, I'm not that innocent!" Jeff exclaimed. "I can take it."
"Ok. I'll start now. Brace yourself, but try to stay relaxed." Bastian moved forward slowly. Jeff groaned, wincing at the pain as Bastian penetrated him. His breathing quickly grew fast and irregular at the unnatural feel of someone inside of him.
"Breathe, Jeff," Bastian whispered, his breathing sounding a little quicker as well, "Just breathe." He gently stroked Jeff's sides to try and keep him relaxed. Jeff managed to take some deep breaths, but he was barely even aware of his breathing. He could only think about what Bastian was doing.
Grasping Jeff's shoulders for support, Bastian drew back slightly, then thrust his hips forward. Jeff cried out as a tingly sensation shot through him. He felt a wave of pleasure at the next thrust. He found himself beginning to enjoy it as his body responded to Bastian. He arched his back to meet Bastian as the thrusts grew quicker.
"Oh, harder!" he found himself moaning, much to his surprise. He vision grew a little fuzzy as the sensations increased, until he swore he could see stars dancing before his eyes. He cried out incoherent words as he felt a hot liquid spill into him from Bastian, shortly reaching the same level himself. Bastian continued with his thrusts for another moment, then stopped pumping his hips and let his body rest across Jeff's back. He wrapped his arms around Jeff's chest and gently stroked the Hardy's muscles while he held the position.
Jeff was reeling from the feel of Bastian there, inside his body. He felt partly relieved and partly disappointed when Bastian drew out at last. Jeff lay there panting, listening to Bastian pant beside him. He was now sweaty and still out of breath. "That was - not so bad," he panted, finding the energy somewhere to roll onto his back.
Bastian nodded. "That was pretty damn good," he agreed. He looked over at Jeff. "Are you ok?" he asked.
"I'm fine. Just - a little tired. That sure takes a lot out of you," Jeff stated. He turned his head to meet Bastian's eyes. "So you'll find him now, right?"
Bastian nodded again. "First thing in the morning, I'll try to pick up his trail," he promised.
"Thank god." Jeff closed his eyes and sighed. "I hope I'll see him soon. The sooner the better, the less abuse they can put him through."
"It will be soon," Bastian assured him. "As soon as possible."
Jeff fell asleep before long. He had planned on returning to his own hotel, but he was too tired afterward to think about it. Bastian was gone by the time he woke up. Jeff stared off into space for a few minutes, thinking about what he had done. He didn't regret it. He felt confident that Bastian would find his brother. He sighed and got up to get dressed. Now all he had to do was wait. There was very little he hated more than waiting.
He found Adam and Jay talking in the lobby when he returned to the hotel they were staying in. They looked relieved to see him. "Jeff, where have you been?" Adam demanded. "You had us worried sick! Where were you last night?"
"I'm just fine, mom," Jeff teased.
"You haven't been drinking, have you?" Adam wanted to know.
Jeff shook his head. "No, I haven't. I'm thinking quite clearly, as a matter of fact." He smiled reassuringly. "I really am fine. I feel better than I have in weeks."
Adam looked a little confused. "Well, that's good," he stated, eyeing Jeff curiously. "Might I ask why?"
"Don't ask me what you might do," Jeff replied illusively. "Come on, let's go get some breakfast. I'm starving." He linked arms with the two blondes and lead them out of the lobby.
Bastian flipped on the radio to see if there was anything good on. He had been driving for quite some time, and it was getting rather boring. After trying several channels and concluding that it was mostly crap, he finally settled on a station playing a Def Leppard song. He heard a groan from the backseat. He glanced back, seeing that Matt was awake. He pulled off at the next road stop and stopped the car. There was no one else there, fortunately.
Bastian stepped out of the car and opened the back door. Matt blinked up at him. "Tom?" he murmured.
"No, my name's Bastian," the tracker told the dazed Hardy.
"Have you brought me some?" Matt whispered.
"I've got some food for you," Bastian replied, pushing the sprawled Hardy into a sitting position and sitting behind him. He reached into the very back and pulled out a shopping back. "You should get something in you, it'll make you feel better," Bastian stated.
"You can be in me," Matt offered, looking at him with big, pleading eyes. "Just, get me more!"
Bastian gritted his teeth. He had really walked into that one. He knew Matt was beginning to enter withdrawal, and he most certainly wouldn't want to. He was aware of what had occurred between Matt and his captor, something he certainly didn't plan to repeat. "You don't want more drugs, Matt. Don't you want to be clean when I take you back to Jeff?"
"Jeff..." Matt's eyes filled with tears. He shook his head. "No, I can't go back to Jeff! Jeff'll hate me."
"He's your brother, he'll never hate you," Bastian assured Matt. The rest of the day was not going to be fun, but Bastian knew how to deal with it. Jeff had made a great personal sacrifice, going against his own preference, to get Bastian to take the case, and Bastian intended to return Matt to his brother in tip top shape. The best state possible, anyway. It would no doubt take him quite some time to fully recover, assuming he ever did.
Bastian spent the day trying to help Matt through withdrawal. He also had to fend off Matt's desperate advances and offers of sex for drugs. He was definitely going to recommend to Jeff that Matt get some serious counseling. It was possible to recover from situations like this, though. Bastian had once rescued a man who had been in a similar condition, and that man now lead a happy, productive life. Bastian thought that if Matt was half as strong and determined as Jeff, he would do fine. And, as far as such things went, Bastian was almost always right.
Jeff got a message from the front desk to come down to the lobby. He was curious what it could be about. His eyes widened hopefully when he spied the dark haired man with whom he had spent one intense night. He rushed up to Bastian, beginning to ask five questions at once...but he sentence died on his lips. Behind Bastian was standing Matt, a slightly nervous smile on his face.
"Matt!" Jeff cried, joyfully throwing his arms around his brother's neck. Tears of joy and relief ran down his face as he squeezed Matt tightly, not letting go for several minutes. "You're ok! You're safe! You're back! God, I missed you so much. I was so worried! I love you Matt, you're so important to me...thank god you're safe!"
"Yes, I'm safe. And I'm fine," Matt told his brother when Jeff finally drew back. His smile was happy and more confident, and his eyes were glowing. "I really missed you too. Let's go say hi to Adam and Jay and the guys," he suggested.
"Yes, we will! Adam and Jay really helped me, we owe them a lot. You go on up." Jeff handed Matt their room key. "I'll be right on your heels." Matt nodded and headed for the elevator. Jeff turned to Bastian. "Thank you so much for saving my brother," he said, shaking Bastian's hand gratefully.
"No problem." Bastian smiled, happy to see how well everything had turned out.
"I don't know how I can thank you enough. I'll repay you in any way you like - any way," Jeff offered.
Bastian shook his head. "You already paid, Jeff. I won't ask more of you. You just make sure to get him into some counseling, ok? He's had to deal with a lot."
Jeff looked relieved. "I will," he promised.
"Well, don't let me keep you here. Go be with your brother!" Bastian smiled as he watched the Hardy Boy dash away from him and bounce happily into the elevator.
"I've got my brother back!" Bastian heard Jeff announce to a stranger as the doors slid closed. Bastian turned to leave to hotel, a smile set in his face. This kind of job was by far his favorite, and this particular job had ended on an especially sweet note. The Hardyz were certainly something special.
THE END