Page 21 of Free
CHAPTER TEN
Bryon shut the door behind Dyson and nodded to the chair in front of his desk. "Have a seat."
Dyson tried to remain calm as he sat down, but he was nervous as hell. His entire life was about to be uprooted. He had no idea what to expect. He figured he'd be moved as far from California as he could and forced to blend into a new community, working some construction job. After all, that was the only thing he knew how to do other than hunt people down.
Bryon sat on the corner of the desk. "Are you honestly holding up okay? This has been a lot of stress on you."
"Yeah, there were times I worried I'd be stuck in jail or prison for the rest of my life, but deep down I was sure you'd come through for me. I'll never be able to pay you back for taking the risks you did getting me out of jail." Dyson sighed. "I'm sorry I got caught. I don't know how it happened. I got too comfortable, too lazy, too something."
"No, it wasn't your fault. A neighbor happened to get up to breastfeed her child. She glanced out the window and saw you picking the lock. She made the call. We had no way of knowing. Carter didn't hear the police being dispatched, but when we went back and listened to the recordings, it was clear as day. He could have given you a few minutes warning if he'd heard that. It was a bunch of things that went wrong, but it was no one's fault." Bryon stared at him. "I'm going to miss working one on one with you."
"Yeah, me too. The team's all I've ever known. It's going to be hard starting someplace new, doing something else." Dyson's chest physically ached at the thought.
"Well…" Bryon stood and walked around the desk, slowly taking a seat in the chair. "What if I told you that yes, you do have to start someplace new, but you don't have to do something else?"
Dyson sat forward. "What are you saying?"
"Before I say more, I need to know, do you wish to continue hunting? Do you want to risk getting caught again? Or are you done and looking for something safer?"
Dyson didn't have to even think about it. "I want to continue what I'm doing. I had a lot of time to think things through while I sat in that jail cell. Not once did I regret my actions. More than anything else, I hated that I wouldn't be able to continue helping children. No, I don't want a normal, safe job. I want to stay part of STK."
"Okay, then here is what I'm offering. Remember, you don't have to agree to any of it. You say the word and I'll get you anywhere you want to be and you can go off on your own and start a new life, but if you wish to stay with STK, I'll make it happen. We're starting a new team in another state, and if you're interested, I'd like you to lead it." Bryon was watching him closely, probably looking for any doubt or hesitation.
"Yes, of course." He gripped the edge of the desk. "You're serious? You're not banning me from hunting anymore?"
"No, of course not. You're too good. You've always been good at what we do. I know what it would do to any of you to not have STK, but I especially know what it would do to you. It's how you fight your demons, how you keep breathing. Without it, I'm scared to think what would happen to you."
Dyson blew out a relieved breath. His world had been stopped on its axis for nearly a month, but with Bryon's words, it slowly started to spin again. He closed his eyes, swallowing tears of relief that threatened to break free. "I was so scared…" He opened his eyes and looked at Bryon. "Thank you."
Bryon smiled. "Don't thank me yet. You don't know where I'm sending you."
Dyson narrowed his eyes. "Where?"
"Ever been to Colorado?"
Dyson's eyes widened.
"Arvada, Colorado, it's a suburb of Denver. There's been a huge spike in sex trafficking and sex crimes in that part of the country. When we looked at things, we decided it would be the best place to start a new STK team." Bryon leaned back in his chair.
"Colorado? You mean the state, right? Like snow, skiing, snow, cold, snow, hard winters? You do remember I'm from California. I don't do snow." Dyson pursed his lips tightly.
"Are you saying you don't want the job?" Bryon asked.
"No, I'm not saying that, but couldn't we consider something like Florida, Arizona, hell, even Louisiana or something? Anywhere warm?"
Bryon laughed. "You'll get used to it. It's a very beautiful place. I think once you've settled in, you'll grow to love it."
"Yeah, the four months out of the year when it's not freezing." Dyson sat back with a huff. "Okay, so Denver area, I can get used to it, but who's going with me?" He hoped it would be Xander.
"No one. You'll be going alone and working with others. In fact, it will be your job to create much of the team. Right now, I have another man who will be your equivalent to Carter. The two of you will be co-leaders of the team. The two of you will build your network." Bryon leaned forward, resting his arms on the desk. "Jeremy is a computer genius like Carter is. They are good friends. Carter is there now, setting up the system and making sure you have everything you need to track people. It's going to be a very slow process, one that you might have to wait months on before you put into action, but I know from experience, people are out there who are willing to join the team. You just need to find them."
"How the hell do I do that?" Dyson shook his head. "I need a doctor and someone who is accepted in the dark web circles, not to mention hunters."
"I'm looking around too, and will let you know when I find people, but it will be up to you and Jeremy to talk to them. When Carter and I started STK, we didn't know how we'd do it either. As sacrilegious as this might sound, I believe God will provide. You'll find a team. You just need to be patient."
"Do the others know about this?"
Bryon shook his head. "Other than Carter, no."
