Title: Predator

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the known Characters.

Warning: This story has graphic sexual encounters. Please keep that in mind when reading. This has no connection whatsoever to Heat. References to rape in this chapter.

Genre: AU, Rape, Violence, Hurt/Comfort, Angst

Pairings: Claude/Sebastian, Eric/Alan, Undertaker/Grell

Special Notes: I sincerely apologize for the lack of updates due to my stories. Due to some very serious and painful issues happening in my personal life (including a stalker/peeper neighbor that is forcing me to have to move and the tragic drowning death of a very close family friend) my muses abandoned me for quite a while. They are finally coming back to me after so long.

Chapter 17.

By the time anyone in the Phantomhive estate was able to respond to the sound of the broken glass, the demon who had caused it was far away with Sebastian. The first in the now empty room was the master of the house, Ciel Phantomhive, and he was quickly followed by his other servants. Having no idea of what had happened, the only thing that Ciel did notice immediately was that his Butler was not there.

Studying the broken window, the dark-haired boy determined that the window had been broken from the outside, leading him to suspect that another Demon was responsible. After all, Sebastian's room was not exactly on the ground level, after all. Looking through the shattered glass, the blue-eyed teenager wondered where Sebastian was.

Focusing on their contract, Ciel sent a mental command to Sebastian, ordering the Demon to come to him immediately. Waiting for a few moments, his brow furrowed slightly when the crimson-eyed male did not appear before him, sending a second order for his Butler to come to him.

When the second order was also not answered, that was when Ciel first felt the stirring of fear inside of him. He knew that whatever had happened, something was very wrong. Sebastian could not ignore his orders, not with their contract still in place. And as relucant as he was to admit it, he did not think that this particular incident was the work of Alois Trancy's Butler.

The reason for that was rather simple.

Up until what Claude had done to Sebastian while both he and his Master were here, the two Demons had always fought rather loudly. Had the broken window been an altercation between them, the sounds of their fighting would have been unmistakeable. Sebastian was also missing and not responding to an contracted orders. This being an undeniable fact, Ciel was at a loss as to what could have happened here.

The other thing that he could not understand was why? Perhaps a certain retired Reaper could help him figure this out.

Undertaker's Shop

Undertaker had been patrolling around his shop, feeling uneasy for some reason this night. He had no evidence of anything malicious happening, nor had he heard any rumors. Despite this, he felt a deep sense that something was amiss.

Grell had fallen asleep, and though he was loathe to leave him alone, the mortician continued checking around the doors and windows, making sure that they were tightly fastened. As he passed by one of his windows, the pale-haired male stopped, feeling a sudden spike in Demonic energy.

Tensing sharply for a moment, green and yellow eyes flashed beneath long, pale strands of hair, until he realized that the Demon in question wasn't here at his place. He gritted his teeth slightly when he realized that this energy matched the energy of the one who had raped his lover and almost killed him.

One day soon, he was going to take Grell out there to hunt the Demon down and kill him. For now, though, he wondered what the creature was up to this night, the surge of energy growing until it suddenly disappeared. It was almost as if he had imagined it, yet Undertaker knew better than to believe such a thing. For the moment, he did wonder just what the Demon in question was up to this night, heading back towards his bedroom to be with his beloved.

Grell Sutcliffe had awakened from his sleep, feeling the same surge of energy, his face pale as he sat up slowly. It was easier to forget in the day, but not so much so at night, his green eyes searching for his lover rather frantically. "Darling?" he whispered, swallowing hard as he looked at the door that was opening slowly.

"I'm here," Undertaker reassured his younger lover softly, moving to sit next to him in bed, holding him close. "He's not here, m'love..." Gently stroking Grell's long, red hair, he pressed a kiss to his forehead, nuzzling him gently. "I believe it is another that he is preying upon this night..."

"I hope it's not someone I know," Grell replied softly, worried as he thought about his friends among the Reapers, never imagining that another Demon could be the target of the same Demon who had hurt him so badly. His thoughts were more for Ronald and Alan, especially since Alan had been attacked before.

Undertaker nodded, smiling gently at his love. "I'm sure that they're all right," he told his little lover softly, cupping his cheek gently. "Even if he failed you, William is taking care of Ronald and I'm certain that Alan is well protected by Eric..." He grimaced at the mention of William, remembering the rather awkward encounter that they had had with him when the dark-haired Reaper had accompanied Ronald here.

The one time William had tried to speak to him while Ronald was visiting Grell, Undertaker had given him a cold look, moving away from him before he Reaped the bastard where he stood. The time for revenge against him would come, but it would be when Grell was ready. He hoped that the petite redhead would get his confidence back soon, but until then, he would be there for his lover.

Seeing the look on his love's face, Grell nodded, seeing the grimace as he leaned in to gently kiss the elder's cheek, taking his hand and squeezing it gently. "I'll be ready soon, I think," he softly said. "And then we will kill the Demon?"

Undertaker nodded, resting his chin over Grell's head tenderly as he wrapped his arms around his waist, twining their fingers together. "He will die, my darling," he promised softly. "He'll die and then he will never hurt anyone ever again. Once he is gone, then we will deal with what William did. As soon as you are ready, I'm ready." He hesitated, not wanting to put too much pressure on the younger Reaper, yet desperately wanting to kill the creature that had violated his love.

Closing his eyes, Grell nodded again, biting his lower lip as he snuggled in closer against his older love. He knew that Undertaker was only holding back from going after the Demon because of him. His fear was, therefore, holding himself back. "We'll go tomorrow," he whispered, his voice soft but determined as the red-haired male steeled himself inwardly, forcing down his fear at seeing his assailant again.

Hiding here was doing him no good. He couldn't live the rest of his life afraid, hiding behind the man he loved. He also knew that while William had made no mention yet of him returning to dispatch, he couldn't stop working permanently, not unless he retired like Undertaker had. That wasn't a decision he was ready to make yet, especially considering the very real possibility that his boss, who he had once cared for and respected, trusting him with his life...

William might have set him up.

Undertaker was certain that William was jealous of their relationship, Grell knew, and it was a possibility. But William was the one who had rejected him on that rainy night, when grell had finally gotten the courage up to admit how he really felt to the older male. It was only after William had discovered that he was now in a relationship with someone else that he had begun acting so different towards him.

That was why it was certainly a possibility that William had done this on purpose. And if it was true, Grell certainly did not wish to work with him any longer. The best way to achieve that would be to retire as well, though that would certainly be a rather drastic change.

To be continued