51: The Series

51: The Beginning Chapter 8 Part 1

It had been a few days since the call that had unraveled Keith’s nerves. He had decided not to quit, which was good news for everyone. The one problem was he wanted answers that no one could give him. He had asked Lindsay so many questions that she had finally threatened to call Wren to come and speak with him if he did not stop. Keith had been asking everyone he was near about Agent Gold and his job. The answers he had gotten included the head of alien autopsies, a hitman, and a government cleaner who would make all problems and people go away by any means necessary. The threat of calling Wren to talk to Keith if he did not stop asking questions made him stop instantly.

Lindsay was amazed at the fear people had merely at the mention of Agent Gold. She had met Wren just after she started working for the sheriff’s department years earlier. She had never been intimidated by him, even though others she worked with were. A couple of deputies had even been concerned about her dating him. They seemed to think that she would just disappear or something. She had always known that he was not able to discuss what his job was, and that intrigued her. Now, she was worried because she needed to know what was going on in her county. There were always the occasional calls about ghosts, monsters, or aliens, but most of those involved someone having too much to drink.

Lindsay heard the door chime and looked up to see Wren coming through the door. He briefly stopped to check in with Cat as he looked to Lindsay’s office, where she waved for him to come in. As he walked toward her office, she could see that he had brought her lunch.

“Hi, sweetheart. How has your day been so far?” Wren asked as he walked in and gave her a quick kiss. “I brought burgers and fries for lunch. I hope that’s OK?”

“Of course, it is. It sounds great, and it’s nice to have lunch with you for a change,” Lindsay said as he started to take the food out of the bag and put it on her desk. “I’m happy you stopped by. I need to ask you a question, but I’m not sure you can answer it.”

“Of course, I will tell you anything that I can,” Wren said as he pulled a chair over to her desk and sat down.

“I know you can’t tell me why you are so busy and doing so much fieldwork,” Lindsay said. “But can you just tell me if this is going to be going on for a while and if the citizens of this county are in danger because of it?”

“Well,” Wren said, wiping his mouth. “I can tell you that there was an incident. I can’t tell you when, where, or what it involved. The calls your department has been getting about animals and other unusual things will probably be going on for quite a while. As far as the citizens of the county being in danger, I don’t think they are. There was only one particular situation that could have been a serious risk, and that has been taken care of.”

“Thank you, Wren. I do mean that. You may not have given me a lot of information, but you have given me what I need to know. But the one serious risk, that was the river, wasn’t it?”

Wren smiled and replied, “That is one of the questions I cannot answer, but I am pretty sure you already know the answer anyway.”

“I think I do,” Lindsay said, returning his smile.

They continued to eat their lunch and talk about things, including the last few days before school and when to finish the shopping. Dillon was still grounded, but they were considering ending it early so he could coordinate with his friends about the first day of school. They were also trying to figure out what colors to repaint a few rooms in their home, including Dillon’s room.

Out of nowhere, Cat hurried into Lindsay’s office and closed the door behind her. She walked to where she could face Wren.

“I don’t really know who you are or much about you, but I have heard that you know what is going on around here. I need to know something. Is there a menk here this county?” Cat asked Wren without any hesitation.

“Cat, I’m not sure if this is what you need to do right now,” Lindsay advised her.

“No, it’s OK, Linz,” Wren said. “I’m glad to see that she has the guts to ask me a question like that one.” He turned to Cat, “That shows what you are made of. You are braver than most of the men I know or meet. I wish I had a good answer for you, but I don’t. What I will tell you is that there have been reports of big bipedal creatures all over the area for hundreds of years. Here, they are usually called Momo. I know you are from Russia, and what is said to be here would be similar to the menk that are said to be there. If there is anything here, it isn’t dangerous. Does that make you feel any better?”

Cat looked at Wren, then at Lindsay. She took a deep breath and quickly processed what she had just been told.

“Sheriff, I would like to apologize to you and Agent Gold for my behavior in barging in on you,” she said. “The events of the past week had slightly unnerved me, and I just needed to have an explanation of sorts.”

“Cat, don’t worry about it. I think all of us, or at least most of us, have been a little frazzled with everything that has happened since the old sheriff resigned. You just reached the point where you had to ask questions, and my hat’s off to you. Most people go pale just at the mention of this guy’s name. You are the only person I know who has ever asked him any questions,” Lindsay said.

“Cat, I wish I could tell you more, but I can’t. Walking in here and doing what you just did is ballsy, and I am so glad you are here to watch over Lindsay. She has a tendency to do more than she should, and I know now that you will make her stop if it is even humanly possible,” Wren told her.

“Thank you both. I will be out at my desk if you need anything. Again, I am sorry I bothered you while you were eating,” Cat said.

Lindsay and Wren watched her leave and took a few more bites of food before Wren spoke.

“How does she know about the menk?” he asked.

“Her last name is Dyatlov,” Lindsay answered.

“Dyatlov? Is she related?” Wren asked with surprise.

“I don’t know, but knowing her, she has done enough research that she may know more than anyone else in the world about Dyatlov Pass,” Lindsay said.

Wren leaned back in his chair. He began looking up at the ceiling and shaking his head.

Lindsay asked, “Are you OK?”

“I’m OK, just a little surprised that someone here would know about that incident other than you. You love stuff like that. Maybe that is why I love you so much. You like the weird and crazy like I do,” Wren said as he smiled at Lindsay. “I have to head back to the base. You need me to pick anything up on my way home?”

“No, babe. I think we’re good. I love you, too. I want you to know that in case you had any doubts,” Lindsay said.

After Wren left, Lindsay was hoping that things would be uneventful, but no such luck. Cat came walking into her office with a printout of the records from dispatch for the previous two shifts.

“Jeff needs to be fired now. I will work a double tomorrow. But he will not be back in this office if I have anything to say about it,” Cat said as she handed Lindsay the papers.