Chapter Thirteen #2
“That’s horrible to watch,” Warden said. “But to answer your question, we can head into Andover and get coffee if you want to, or go for a walk. There are some ponds known for wildlife not far from here. We could be there and back in forty minutes.”
“I vote for coffee,” Bryn said.
“I wouldn’t mind a walk,” said Emmett. “Sorry, Bryn. You can have all the snacks.”
Emmett’s expression was so full of appeal that Bryn couldn’t say no.
“Fine, I guess. Gimme the bag.” He let Emmett and Warden walk ahead of him, giving them a bit of space.
Warden seemed to know where he was going and unlike the Wolf Run, this trail was well marked.
Could be worse, and now Emmett gets to talk to his crush.
I need so many gold stars on my chart for this sacrifice.
As it turned out, the ponds Warden took them to were picturesque and Bryn found he enjoyed wandering around. He snapped a few pictures with his cell to show Gunnar. He’d like it here. Maybe we could come back on the bike one day. Fuck, am I turning into an outdoorsy type?
“Time to go,” Warden shouted from across the water. “If you want to be back to see the first finishers.”
Bryn stuffed the end of a candy bar in his mouth then caught up with Warden and Emmett.
Emmett’s cheeks were rosy and he didn’t meet Bryn’s curious gaze.
Hmm, I’ll have to interrogate him later.
As if Warden could read his mind, he gave Bryn a warning glare.
Bryn affected innocence though he didn’t think for a minute that Warden would fall for it.
The walk back didn’t take long and when they got there, friends, family and onlookers were gathered at the finish line.
The excited murmuring grew louder as the first runner was spotted and cheering erupted as he crossed the finish.
Gunnar came in fourth, well ahead of the bulk of the field, beaming from ear to ear. Bryn waved to attract his attention.
“Hey, Gunnar!”
He trotted over. “That was so cool!” He was sweaty, his hair loose and his arms and legs were covered in scratches.
“You came in fourth!” Emmett exclaimed.
“Yeah? I lost track but I was hoping for top ten. I’ll grab a water and an energy bar and say goodbye to a few folks. Would one of you mind getting my sweats and fleece from the car?”
“I’ll go,” Emmett volunteered. He trotted off.
“He’s good for the team,” Bryn commented. “He’s not jaded or fake. I hope we don’t ruin him.”
“Upset him and you’ll have me to deal with,” Warden said. From his tone he could have been reciting a grocery list, not making a veiled threat.
“You say that about me, boss?” Bryn had no problem treading on dangerous ground.
“No.” Warden didn’t take the bait.
Emmett came running back clutching Gunnar’s clothes. “I got them but there’s something else!”
“Slow down, Emmett. Take a breath.” Warden gripped his shoulder.
“Sorry, sir.” Emmett gulped in a few lungfuls of air. “There’s something under the wiper blade on the car.”
“What, a flyer or something?” Bryn asked.
“No, a plain white envelope. And it’s addressed to you, Bryn. I didn’t touch it.”
“You did good,” Warden said. “How about you go find Gunnar, give him his kit and ask him to come straight back to the car. Bryn and I will go take a look.” Emmett ran toward the crowd of runners. “You expecting anything?”
“Warden, who would know I’m here? After three years locked up underground, I don’t have a bunch of correspondents. Maybe someone in the crowd knew me or something, I don’t know.”
They walked over to the car and sure enough, under the wiper blade, there was a white envelope. Bryn’s name was written in black ink on the front in neat copperplate handwriting.
“The ink hasn’t run. It hasn’t been there long,” Bryn observed. He reached for it but Warden grasped his arm.
“No. I’ll get an evidence bag from my car. This will need to be forensically examined before you open it.”
“But…it’s only a letter.”
“Which could contain anthrax powder, for all you know. Not everyone thinks you’re a valuable asset to law enforcement, Bryn.” Warden fetched a bag then removed the envelope. He sealed it carefully. “I’ll take this back with me. The GCR lab can handle it.”
Gunnar and Emmett joined them. “What’s going on?” Gunnar asked.
“I’m getting love letters from a mysterious admirer,” Bryn said.
Warden caught Gunnar up. “We should get back to headquarters. Emmett, you can ride with me. You two, straight back and no detours. Once the letter is cleared for nefarious substances and checked for fingerprints and saliva, we’ll consider it together.”
“Yes, sir.” Emmett and Warden headed to Warden’s car.
“You’re taking this seriously?” Bryn asked Gunnar.
“Of course,” Gunnar responded. “If this turns out to be a request for help or something innocent, no problem, but I don’t think that’s likely, do you?”
Bryn frowned. “I guess not. When are we going to get one normal fucking day?”
“You really want me to answer that?”
“No.” Bryn got into the passenger seat of the 4x4. He tugged on his seatbelt, cursing when it didn’t cooperate. Gunnar got behind the wheel then leaned across him to deal with the belt. He smelled of spice and sweat.
“You have to be gentle with it.”
“Maybe I don’t want gentle.”
“Well, isn’t that open to interpretation?” Gunnar put the car in drive then pulled away.
“And if I want it to be?”
“Fine with me.”
Bryn’s dick twitched. A bedroom tussle with Gunnar might not solve all of his problems right now, but it sure would help.