by Alan Wild
Noah only had the voice of NelDean in his head telling him, "He is not simply being nice, Noah! He is flirting." But his self-doubt made him think that Oliver was just nice because he felt terrible for his broken-down hermit of a neighbor. Noah had doubts that it was even a date. When they were shopping, Noah looked at the amount of shopping done; he began to wonder if he was planning on having several people over for dinner. The sadness set in thinking that he had gotten it all wrong. Noah thought, "He probably wasn't even gay. Oliver was probably just being nice." Noah was relieved that he realized before he made himself look like a desperate, creepy neighbor."
Shaking his noggin, Noah tried to escape the discouraging voice in his head. He avoided thinking about his hopeless situation. Waiting for the police to arrive, Noah began to panic. He couldn't figure out what had just happened. Oliver said, "The police are on their way; Ray told me not to touch the box." He seemed a little irritated after he spoke to Sergeant Matthews, but he did not share what was said. While we waited for the police to arrive, Oliver asked Noah, “What do you think about this craziness?”. He asked him, "Do you think it could be a process server?" Shaking his head, he said, "I don't have any debt for anyone to collect, and I have no lawsuits that I know of," Noah responded. "What do you think is in the box?" Oliver had a grim look on his face, and he told Noah, "Whatever it is, it can't be good."
They waited for what felt like forever before Oliver's phone rang. Noah heard him tell someone what car he was driving. He described it, gave his license plate number, then hung up. Oliver told him, "Sergeant Matthews sent a patrol car because he didn't trust us not to open the box." Just as he finished telling Noah that a patrol car was on the way, they pulled up. Standing out in the middle of a parking lot with a police officer blocking traffic with their lights on, somehow made Noah feel embarrassed. He felt like all of this was his fault. He noticed that several people started to gather and point. "Don't pay attention to the lookie-loos. They haven't ever seen two guys as good looking as us", Oliver said, with his arms around Noah's shoulder. He smiled and felt the blood rush to his face the way it did whenever Oliver touched him. The police asked them to wait in the SUV. Just as they were about to jump into the vehicle, they found themselves surrounded by police.
There were at least six patrol cars and two unmarked cars. Sergeant Matthews got out of one of the unmarked vehicles and headed right for Oliver. He looked at him then glanced over at Noah. He asked his partner Detective Shore to take Oliver.
Oliver joked, "Are we being arrested?”
Sergeant Matthews asked, "Should you be?"
Oliver was getting upset, "Noah and I should stay together." Sergeant Matthews sighed, "Calm down, Ollie, it's an investigation. You should know the procedure." Oliver stayed firm and said, "We stay together." Sergeant Matthews finally relented and proceeded to ask Noah all the same questions that Oliver had asked him. He answered all of the same questions with the same answers. He was waiting for the accusations to fly like they did the last time, but that didn't happen. Sergeant Matthews walked over to the box, and he waved at an officer that had a dog. The officer had the dog smell the box, and he shook his head. "It's not a bomb. So, let's take a look," he said. He pulled out some gloves and walked over to the box.
The package was wrapped in plain brown craft paper that was nothing different than you would use to ship boxes. The Sergeant used a box cutter knife and started to open the box. Noah couldn't see from his vantage point, but he did hear Sergeant Matthews sigh and say, "Jesus Christ, Fuck!" He barked out orders, and everyone around him started to move like a well-oiled machine. Everyone knew what they were doing except Noah. Sergeant Matthews called Oliver over to him. Unsure what he was supposed to do, feeling like a lost puppy, Noah started to follow Oliver. Sergeant Matthews snapped, "Just, Oliver!"
Noah stopped where he was and just stood there watching everyone working in a frenzy. Uncertain what he should be doing, he watched as they spoke. At first, Oliver had a pinched expression, arms crossed, and his jaw clenched. It was clear he was pissed and was yelling. Sergeant Matthews stopped speaking and pulled Oliver over to the box that was being bagged and taken away. Oliver had a look of fear in his eyes. He began to pace while he ran his hands through his hair. He stopped and made eye contact with Noah. He made a beeline to the man and almost knocked him over. Oliver grabbed Noah in a hug. It felt like he was breathing hard, but then Noah realized that he had tears in his eyes. Oliver said, "Let's get the fuck out of here" He spoke to the Sergeant one last time. When the cars moved out of the way, they drove the wrong way down the parking lot to exit and go to his house.
Once they pulled into Oliver's garage and unloaded the groceries, Oliver told him that Ray was coming to talk to them, but he wanted to speak with Noah first. He asked him to have a seat while he made some coffee. Noah sat on the love seat in the front living room and looked out the window. He could see that there were still police swarming his house and began to wonder if there was something else, they found. Oliver joined him on the love seat and placed his hand on his leg. The case had taken a turn, and he wanted Noah to hear it from him first. "When they were trying to piece all of the body parts together, they had missed one of the male victims' feet. They were still looking for it even today." Oliver said, "Now remember to breathe, Noah." He proceeded, "The missing foot was in the box that man had tossed at you." Noah took a deep breath and tried to continue breathing. Oliver ran his hand up and down his leg, and then he spoke up again. "And…that is not all. The foot, painted with fingernail polish, had a message written on the foot in black sharpie marker. The message had read, 'Noah, you are next. Don't even try to hide. I will find you!'"
Noah tried to remember the guy who tossed the box at him. He didn’t get a good look at the guy; he didn't recognize him or his voice. This situation is going to drive him crazy. He tried to think about the people who hated him, and he couldn't think of anyone. He started to process the information, and then the thought hit him like a brick in the head. "I will never be safe again. I will always have to look over my shoulder and worry about someone killing me. I will never be safe again. Worse yet, were they going to cut me up before they killed me?" The thought was frightening, and he found that he was holding his breath. Oliver continued to rub his leg, reminding him to breathe. He kept saying that it was going to be okay. Looking into Oliver's eyes, Noah asked, "Who could be doing this? I have lived my life closed off and alone. I am a homebody, and there are times when it scares me to be out in public. So, until I met you, Oliver, I had lived without making friends, and my family was gone. So, I had no reason to leave my house." Noah explained that Oliver had been the only person to be able to help him with the panic attacks. "I have had them most of my life. My therapist told me she thought my panic attacks are caused by the physical abuse I experienced, and she gave me things to do to calm down. They work for the most part, but there are times when I forget everything I learned, and I just lose control."
Oliver spoke to him in the softest voice and said, "You don't have to go it alone anymore." He grabbed Noah's hand, looked him in the eyes, and told him, "I am not going to let anyone hurt you." Noah felt butterflies in his stomach. He said, "I appreciate you and everything that you are doing for me. But you can't put your life at risk." Noah was afraid that if he stayed in Oliver's house, they both would end up like the people in Noah's own home. He opened his mouth to tell Oliver that he needed to leave when the coffee maker beeped. Oliver got up and went to get the coffee. Before he could get the coffee, the doorbell had rung. Oliver grabbed his phone; he gave Noah a quick side grin and said, "We aren't taking any chances from here on out."
Oliver walked to the door and welcomed Sergeant Matthews and Detective Slone into his home. He told them that he was just getting some coffee and asked if they would like some. They both agreed, and Detective Slone followed Oliver to his kitchen and offered to help him. That left Noah alone with Sergeant Matthews. After a few moments of silence Sergeant
Matthews said, "Noah, I am going to ask you some questions, and I just want you to be honest. I need your complete cooperation so that we can keep you safe." Noah agreed to the questioning and said, "I don't know who is doing this." Sergeant Matthews said, "I need you to think, could it be one of your clients doing this?" he asked. "Did you have any fights with friends?" Noah shook his head. He was tired of sounding pathetic for not having friends, so he skirted around the topic. Sergeant Matthews said, "I need to have access to your computer and phone so that we can review your contact list." He said most of the time; the victims know the person wanting to do them harm.
"How long will you need my computer?" Noah asked. "The computer will take a day or so. Have you synced the contacts on your phone with your Google email account?" Noah nodded. "So, can I take a look?" Noah paused and was slightly embarrassed because he had pictures of naked men on his phone. The Sergeant must have misunderstood his lack of compliance because he immediately said, "Look, I can pull you back down to the station, and we can wait together while a judge signs a search warrant or you can just give it to me now." Noah thought, “He might like what he sees, or he is going to have an issue seeing naked men on my phone. Either way, I am going to feel embarrassed.” He handed over his phone and cringed. Before he even looked at the phone, the Sergeant looked at Noah with his suspicious eyes. "What exactly am I going to find on this phone?"
Noah felt the heat rise from his neck to his cheeks, his chin dropped to his chest when he told him, "Porn, lots of porn." Sergeant Matthews gave him a sly grin and looked down at his phone. After looking at his phone for a few minutes, he said, "Good lord, dude. Why don't you have a password on this thing?" "I have no one to hide it from, I live alone, and I don't leave my house unless I absolutely have to," said Noah. He said, "Well, you do have good taste in porn." Then he began looking at Noah's text messages. When he came to the number labeled Mr. Hunky, he asked, "Is this your boyfriend." He didn't answer right away because, as far as he knew, Oliver was a friend. Noah cleared his throat and just said, "Um…that is Oliver. He programmed his number into my phone and gave himself the name." After reading the messages, he had a slight frown on his face, but he just continued reading. Finally, after about 10 minutes, he handed Noah's phone back to him and asked if he had deleted any messages lately. Noah shook his head. "Then why do text messages from Oliver only start today?" he asked. "It's because we only officially met yesterday, and Oliver started to text me while we waited for you and your partner to arrive." The Sergeant seemed like he was satisfied, but Noah had a feeling it had to do with something other than the case. He believed Sergeant Matthews had feelings for Oliver. He had no idea what their past together was like and how close of friends they were. Oliver is a very hands-on person, so Noah was sure he just misunderstood his motives. He would chalk it out to wishful thinking.
Sergeant Matthews got up and walked over to the kitchen and yelled, "Hey Ollie, how long does it take to make coffee? Come on, let's get the show on the road" Oliver walked in the room and told him, "You're lucky I don't make you get it yourself. Your partner wanted to go over something he found on my surveillance feeds." Sergeant Matthews piped up, "You mean something more than you dancing naked to Dolly Parton's song 9to5?" He looked at Noah and said, "You should see his performance of that song Paper Rings by Taylor Swift." Oliver was red in the face. After the laughter died down, Detective Slone spoke up and said, "Okay, guys, there are some things that we need to cover and agree to. Let's just call them ground rules." "What do you mean?" he asked. Detective Slone explained, "With Noah staying at your home, there are some things that need to happen for Noah to be safe." He started by telling him that he couldn't go outside for any reason. He explained “If you need to leave for any reason, you inform us first so we can arrange coverage. We will send a patrol car by as much as possible, but with the budget cuts, we just don’t have the availability.
Oliver spoke up and said, "I have that covered. I have my guys on it. When I was in the kitchen, I called to schedule the installation of more surveillance cameras." Oliver sounded excited to share that they had new devices that were hidden cameras. He already had cameras in the house, but he was going to have even more installed so that everything could be covered. He also had a new feature to make sure the windows and doors had additional security coverage. "This is unnecessary!" Noah said. "I should just go get a hotel room. I don't want to impose. Just having me here is putting you in danger, I don't want to be the one to put your life at risk. I couldn't live with myself if I get you hurt". Sergeant Matthews said, "The hotel might be a good idea." Oliver had the look of determination on his face, and he said, "Noah stays, and it is not an imposition. I enjoy having him here. He will be safe. I have my guys watching the house and providing additional security. I will hire a bodyguard if I have to, but he stays".
Oliver stood up and asked, "Are we finished here because I have a date to get ready for." Sergeant Matthews said, "Jesus Christ, Ollie, what in the fuck did we just talk to you about? So, you are just going to leave Noah here alone?" Oliver gave Noah a wink and told Sergeant Matthews, "I am not leaving this house for my date." The Sergeant and Detective stood up to leave while Sergeant Matthews had a look that Noah could not identify. He asked if he could have a word with Oliver outside. Oliver rolled his eyes but agreed. The three men walked out the door, and Detective Slone turned around and asked Noah," Did Ray talk to you about your computer?" Noah said, "Yes, he did ask to take it back to the station." He pulled the laptop and the charger and passed it to the detective. He was back to being excited because Oliver had winked at him. "What am I? A giddy little schoolgirl? Who gets excited over a wink?" he thought.
Chapter 7
Oliver Thaddeus
Sitting on the kitchen counter listening to Nate talk to him about his security system Oliver found himself concerned. It made this situation feel a little more real, and he was not comfortable. Nate said that they had footage of the guy in the black hoodie and black pants on the video. Oliver was surprised. "You guys work fast! Major grocery stores take longer to provide video feeds." Nate had this expression on his face that told him he was not going to like what he said next. Nate took a moment and cleared his throat, "Um, actually, he was here on your video feeds." Oliver cracked his knuckles; his nostrils flaring felt a mixture of rage and fear at the same time. He asked, "Who in the hell is this guy, and who does he think he is?" He knew he would not get an answer. So, he proceeded to ask Nate, "When was he here, and what camera caught movement?"
Once Oliver discovered that the guy had been outside, in the front yard, he was still angry, but he started to calm down. It looked like the guy tried to open one of his windows, and he gave up when he wasn't successful. Oliver immediately called the security company and ordered additional cameras along with some new sensor devices for the windows and doors. They tried to tell him that they could be out next week on Tuesday. He explained the urgency and the agent spoke to his supervisor and got back on the line, "I apologize, Mr. Thaddaeus, we will have the installers out first thing in the morning and the site supervisor will be with them as well." He thanked the agent and disconnected the call.
The next call he made was to Ajay, his lead investigator, and best friend. He had already sent him a text while he was on hold with the security company. Oliver asked him if he was ready to get to work and show him what he could do. He told Nate to help himself to the cookies in the jar by the coffee maker. Meanwhile, speaking with Ajay, he explained that they have a dangerous situation on their hands. "This job is going to require you to be the lead. I want all of the investigators on board and working on this project. I know it is short notice, but I want everyone at my house tomorrow at 10:30 AM, and I will explain what is going on during the meeting. Before I let you go, I need someone to take shifts on watching my house tonight." Ajay asked, “Does this have something to do with the murders in your neighborhood? It’s all over in the news.”. Oliver said, "Yes, it is, and the guy is trying to m
ake Noah his next victim, and I can't allow that to happen." His friend asked, "Um, Oliver, who is Noah?"
Oliver felt a smile appear on his face as he told him “That all he needed to know about Noah is finally the man that came along and changed my life.” Ajay tried to stifle a little laugh but recovered and told him that it was about time he had found someone. Oliver thanked Ajay for handling everything, then said, "Oh, and tell everyone to come hungry because I am making breakfast."
His attention then wandered over to Nate by the cookie jar. Oliver smiled as he watched Nate stuff his mouth full. He took a drink of his coffee, and he said, "You know, I think it would be beneficial if Ray and I were here for that meeting tomorrow." Oliver said, "Bullshit, you just want breakfast." Nate, knowing his ploy is thinly veiled, said, "Okay, you might be right." Oliver grinned and said, "You both are more than welcome, and I think you can field any questions my investigators have." Nate looked a little awkward like he was going to ask something. Oliver asked him, "What's up? Spill it." Releasing a breath, Nate asked, "Are you and Noah serious?" Oliver told him, "I am very serious about him; I just hope he feels the same. The guy is just delightful." Nate rubbed his chin and said, "Sorry, I just thought that there was something between you and Ray." The look on Oliver's face could not have made that situation any more apparent. "I haven't seen Ray in years. Then all of a sudden, he walked into the interrogation room. Plus, the last interaction we had in college didn't go so well." Nate said, "Well, I am sure it was my imagination."
