“For what reason, David? Are you already working as a rat for someone or what?” James’ eyes formed into slits. Suddenly there was an enormous distance between them. “Tell me if you're a rat, David. I'll find it out either way.”

"I'm not a rat, James," David sighed, and finally got up from the hard floor. He washed the shampoo out of his hair and felt the scratches on his neck ache. “I want to know who I can get involved with and who I can't. It is very tiring not to be able to trust anyone.”

James’s warmth came slowly back into his eyes. "You got me."

"Yeah I know."

"Is not that enough?"

David turned the water off and looked James in the eye. In any other context, it would have been enough. David was happy as it was. But he wasn't here to get his previously dusty love life going on again. “It's enough for now. I notice that you are hiding things from me. As if I shouldn't know about it. It lowers my confidence in you.”

His lover struggled with words for a few seconds. “There are things that don't concern you. And it's just better if you don't find out. I'm not betraying you, David, believe me. I have no intention of busting you or selling information to anyone. I have no intention of killing you either. Just the contrary…"

With that he came back to David. Almost ruefully, he wrapped his arms around David's waist and pressed his face against his bare torso.

“You are very important to me, babe. If I keep something from you, I do it for protection and not because I want to let you run into a trap. Believe me."

And something in David knew that James wasn't lying. Still, he didn't understand why his lover didn't trust him enough to inaugurate him. Was it about Candy? Was it about the mafia? Was is just pure care that James didn’t give any information?

“I just want to know ... who you are. And who I am dealing with. And whether I can really trust you.”

James immediately looked up at David. His eyelids were a little red. "You can rely on me! I murdered for you, remember? And I would do it again!”

Indeed, that made David a little nervous. But the message behind it reached David. “I hope you don't have to kill for me again. Once was enough.”

He gently stroked James' clean-shaven chin. For the first time he saw the small, few freckles on his nose. James’ eyes were still red, tense and wandering between David’s blue and green ones. As if this moment was a crossroad: play with open cards or nothing at all.

Eventually James narrowed his eyes and let his head drop forward. He pushed his eyebrows together in resignation, as if the next sentence would cause him pain.

"There are mafia businesses here," he whispered softly, reaching for David's forearm. “They sell drugs on a large scale. They come from Eastern Europe. Mostly heroin. I don’t know who’s organizing it.”

David had his fingers connected to James’. They held their hands almost like a secret oath. He wanted to encourage him to continue talking. Important information finally came to light.

“I know who takes them and who makes money with them, but these are the little fishes. They are none of my business as long as they are calm.”

"Can’t they just tell you where they got the drugs from?" David asked calmly - glad that James had finally managed to get the truth out - and stroked his thumb over James's hand.

He shook his head. "No, the salespeople would rather die and the addicts ... you can be happy if they still know their own names."

"Have you ever asked someone in block A?" David was actually trying to offer his help, but of course James smashed the suggestion before it could even be verbalized.

"I know everyone in block A, B and C, David," he sighed, shifting his weight to one leg. "I don't know the people inside out, but I can say with great certainty that the mafia business doesn’t come from the inmates."

Then David became sensitive. "You think ... the prison itself?"

“Maybe a guard. Or employees from the kitchen who can smuggle something. I don’t know. It is harder for me to reach the employees and to get information that is also valid and not just rumours.”

"You have Hank."

James nodded, but looked aside tensely. "Yes, but I don't want to drag him in there."

That made David smile a little. "Because he's such a nice guy?"

"Because I like him, David," James sighed, finally releasing David's hand. “Just as I like you. If I sent you to look for more information for me, it wouldn't take a week and your head would be put on a canteen tray in front of my cell.”

"And here I thought you had so much influence ..." David joked, but the joke backfired.

James’ gaze hardened in no time. “I have a far-reaching influence. If you mess with me, you usually won't survive,” he said skilfully, and went to the locker room without breaking eye contact with David. “As you saw with Antonio. But that wouldn't bring neither Hank nor you back to me. Revenge does not bring the dead back to life.”

David swallowed. Hard words. Before he could say anything, however, James finally turned and dried himself.

“I've been on the Mafiosi for a while. So let it go.”

David slowly followed his lover into the locker room. “What will you do when you find the Mafiosi? Do you want to get involved? Or end them?”

“They’re disturbing my own business here. Either they agree or I let their business blow up,” James said bitterly, and David felt like he was talking to an ice-cold businessman who’d stop at nothing.

"Your own business?" David asked, though he should have dropped the subject.

"This and that," James said basically nothing, and finally put on his bathrobe. “Enough answers for tonight, babe. I've already told you more than I was willing to.”

David nodded cautiously as he wrung the wetness out of his hair. "Thanks for that."

James was still glaring at David as if he weren't going to buy his thanks. Instead, he took a few steps towards him and stroked his chest. "If you keep walking around carelessly and give anyone you meet clues that you're dealing with someone like me, I'll have to shorten your leash."

He hissed the threat against David's lips like a dangerous viper. Suddenly the man showed who James really was: Mastered. Dominant. A killer when it mattered.

David just nodded.

The reaction seemed to have satisfied James, so he nodded too. "Good."

He leaned forward and kissed David lovingly on the lips - contrary to his words, this gesture felt warm and sincere. But before David could ask himself how many personalities could live in this little man; his lover said goodbye and went his own way. You could hear the heavy door opening and closing. Eventually there was silence.

David shuffled slowly back into his cell. On the way there he watched the walls again. Cameras were hidden everywhere. The suspicion that Hook knew exactly who was selling drugs where, when and to whom was getting stronger with every step.

And even though David had found out more than expected this day, he felt he was reaching a dead-end. Both Dr. Novak as well as James were not reliable sources that would spark a lot of information. And as always, Tucker only knew rumours. Maybe it was time to go back to the lion's den. David wanted to leave the prison as soon as possible.

And maybe he could say a good word for James when David succeeded on his mission so that he could get out with him soon.