Page 36 of Hunt

“I’m too afraid to touch it in case someone turns up and hurts me,” she added as her head bowed, and my heart wrenched.

Fuck, we’d been cruel to her. She didn’t know what the fuck she’d done. It seemed she was a perfectly innocent, sweet girl, Gunner believed was Annika.

“Riley,” I started as we walked to the end of the street and turned left toward the sports field. There were too many things going on in Riley’s life that raised suspicions, and maybe it was more mature to ask her face-to-face. “Gunner has seen you with cops.”

My selkie flinched, then grimaced, but kept her eyes low. “He has?” She cleared her throat as if collecting her thoughts. “Oh, that’s right. They turned up one night, and he thought they were following me.”

She was covering for herself, and I didn’t blame her, but there was the issue of the blond cop that Danny Lam identified as an officer from the Larsson Police Department. That was a problem and a strange coincidence, since Riley Laws had never lived in Larsson, why would that particular cop be interested in her? The entire situation stinks badly.

“Riley,” I stopped walking and turned to face her, but she kept her distance, head bowed, trembling hands clasped tightly together, and my heart ached for her. “Who hurt you?”

She scanned the street, noticed students walking toward us, and turned away from them, hinting that we shouldn’t talk out here in the open.

“You called me, Riley,” I whispered as we strolled closer to the bushes and trees, a path weaving through them that led to the baseball diamond. “You called me. I heard you mention the basement on campus, and I could hear angry voices scolding you, then the phone cut out. Next, I turn up and your glasses and phone are broken.”

“You…” she gasped as if catching her breath. “You sound like you genuinely care.”

I swallowed as my words caught in my throat. “I do,” I asserted as my arm brushed against hers, and she pulled away.

As we stepped under the canopy of the trees and strolled along the path, I spotted a park bench and gestured for her to sit there. As soon as she sat down, she asked, “Where’s Gunner today?”

I ignored the jealousy stirring in my gut, wondering why she thought about him when I was right before her. “I’m not sure,” I replied. “Anyway, don’t change the subject. Who broke your phone and glasses?”

“I went into the basement to find Gunner, and the door was open, so I pushed it more, and two guys walked in. I think they thought I was snooping,” she explained.

“Was it Shaun?” I assumed because it wouldn’t be anyone else.

She nodded slightly. “Don’t hurt him, will you?”

I exhaled, feeling the weight of the situation. “Why did he smash your glasses and phone?”

“He noticed I had my phone on and assumed I was recording him…” She paused as someone walked past before adding, “That was when I called you, because Gunner said he was out of town.”

“Is he? Gunner is out of town?” It annoyed me that she only called me because she knew Gunner wasn’t nearby to help her. “Huh, I didn’t know.” He possibly lied to her, causing trouble for someone on the other side of town. But who knew with Gunner, as he was a law unto himself.

“That’s what he said,” she sighed, her body starting to relax beside me. “I can tell he’s not nearby. I can always tell as it’s a feeling I get.”

“A feeling?” Again, I had to sweep aside my jealousy.

Riley had known Gunner longer than I, and he knew more about her, so he pursued her at college. All I knew was the beautiful naked girl I encountered in the forest. The selkie. My selkie. I wanted her back. I wanted that girl, shimmering wet, slipping through the water, dipping and diving like a mythical being.

“Yeah,” she chuckled, slightly embarrassed by her comment. “I can feel him watching me without actually seeing him. He’s very intense. Strange.”

“I’d agree with that,” I settled. “He had a tough life when he was a teenager and lost his father under suspicious circumstances.”

“Really? “Like what?” she asked, her lips parting in suspense.

“He was murdered,” I replied, curious to see how she would react to that, considering that Gunner reckons that she was Annika, but I wasn’t so sure because I didn’t remember Annika that well.

“Oh my gosh, that’s terrible,” he gasped, covering her mouth as I watched her closely, searching for insincerity.

Her reaction seemed genuine, but she might be good at faking it if well-rehearsed. “Yeah,” I agreed. “He kind of sank into a dark place, and I’m unsure if he’ll ever climb out of it.”

“That explains a lot,” she sighed. “His tattoos and scar…”

Enough of talking about him. “So, what are we going to do with Shaun?”

She shook her head as I could feel the panic radiate from her and tremble along my thigh and arm pressing against hers. “Nothing. Did you see what Gunner did to Shaun last time?”

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