Page 3 of Out of Nowhere

Waving to a couple of girls he’d talked to before, Dex sat on a bench and put on his climbing shoes. Today, since he’d be climbing on his own, he didn’t need anything but his shoes and chalk bag, which he clipped handily at his waist.

As Dex began his warm up, swinging his arms and stretching before making a few short, random climbs, he looked around the gym. It being a weekday afternoon, the place wasn’t crowded at all and he had his pick of walls. After stretching and doing a few short boulder problems, he tackled a low-grade project. He hadn’t been to the gym in nearly two weeks, so he wasn’t surprised when he dropped to the floor several times before finally making it to the top.

Sufficiently warmed up, Dex chalked his hands again and chose a more challenging route. After mapping out in his head how he would proceed, he began his ascent, climbing carefully until he made it nearly midway up the wall. That’s when his foot slipped and he dropped, landing on his ass on the mat.

Brand Nichols, the owner of the gym, approached. “Need me to spot you, Dex?”

“That was an awkward hook with my left foot,” Dex said, accepting the man’s hand up. “I think I’m fine. A fall from that height won’t hurt me.”

“Normally, I’d argue, but I know you have a lot of experience,” Brand said. “Still, if you reached the top and fell, you could land wrong and sprain something. I’ll spot you.”

From their conversations in the past, Dex had learned that Brand was in his late twenties, a mountain climbing enthusiast, and that he lived alone in an apartment complex near the gym.

Looking at the wall, Brand said, “I assume you were going for the blue jug with your right hand?”

“Yep.”

“It might be better to reach for that red edge. It’s a little bit of a stretch, but it’ll give your right foot access to the purple cobble.”

Dex was considering this advice when the bell on the door rang, announcing someone entering the gym. Beside him, Brand startled slightly.

“You okay?” Dex asked.

“Sure. I’m good,” Brand said, turning from the trio who’d entered and were walking toward the locker room. “Go on. Try again.” He gestured to the wall.

Dex began to climb, and this time, with Brand’s coaching and encouragement, he made it to the top without falling. When he jumped down, his legs and arms felt pleasantly rubbery.

“Do you still work for a security firm?” Brand asked as Dex wiped the chalk from his hands.

“Yeah. Falcon Security.”

“Could you stop by my office before you leave? I have a question for you.”

“Sure,” Dex said, watching Brand walk away before turning to consider another problem on the wall.

An hour later, muscles tired and fingers sore, Dex changed out of his shoes, cleaned the chalk off his hands in the restroom, and headed to the back. The office door was open, and Brand was working at his desk.

Tapping on the door with one knuckle, Dex was surprised when, again, Brand jerked nervously at the sound.

Standing, Brand motioned for Dex to come in. “Hey. Could you shut the door behind you?”

“Sure,” Dex said.

Walking around his desk, Brand leaned against it and fidgeted with his pen. “What I wanted to ask you…The security firm that you work for. Does it include personal protection services? Like, if someone needed a bodyguard?”

“Yeah. You know somebody in need of one?”

Brand nodded. “Yeah, me.”

The way Brand was acting, Dex shouldn’t have been surprised, but he was. Brand didn’t strike him as the type who would need protection. He was definitely fit, and he seemed like a laid-back guy who enjoyed doing his own thing, not someone who made people want to hurt him.

“You in some kind of danger?”

Tossing the pen on his desk, Brand crossed his arms over his chest, his expression decidedly uncomfortable.

“I think so, yeah. I’m pretty sure I’m being followed.”

“Got any idea who it might be?”

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