Page 77 of Tell No One
“Try to keep up,” Delaney said as he did some stretches of his own.
“What if I don’t?”
“Imagine there’s a guy with a gun who’s going to shoot you if you fall behind.”
“I usually just imagine a bear chasing me. I think I’ll call this one Delaney. Oh, except I’ll be following you so that won’t work.”
“Shut up and run.”
Delaney didn’t expect Tag to be able to keep up with him, and the kid surprised him yet again. But there was a difference between running on streets and running over terrain where you could trip on a root or a rock or an unexpected hole. When Tag was still close behind at the top of the slope, Delaney went up a gear. He loved running, especially on chilly summer mornings like this with the promise of heat in the air. Endorphins flooded his body. He felt glad to be alive. Lucky to be alive.
By the time he’d run half the circuit he usually did when he was in Wales, he’d almost forgotten Tag was behind him. He looked back, expecting to see him a long way back and he was less than twenty metres away. Tag had a better body for running than Delaney. Delaney’s weight was muscle but being heavier meant he was slower. What he did have was stamina, but so it appeared did Tag and it made him think again about Norbury’s hunting plans.
Still, there was a difference between running for fun and running because you had a bear behind you. More than one bear and all of them armed with rifles. Maybe they were trained marksmen, ex-military or just regulars on big game hunts who fancied a different kind of prey. Sick fucks. Delaney would rather have that information going into this but he couldn’t risk arousing suspicion by asking Feely again.
Whatever the case, Tag would have to be quick and smart, not just fast but know how to duck and dive and hide. Delaney didn’t know why he was even considering letting Tag get involved in this. Maybe if he knew he could keep him safe… But he couldn’t be sure that would be possible. And it fucked him off that he was even worried about keeping Tag safe because that put himself in danger.
In theory, there was no need for any of this to get beyond Norbury’s little group of players committing to shooting someone for fun. If Henry had a team up there ready to intervene, Tag wouldn’t have to run at all.Would he?But until they knew exactly where this was going to take place, Delaney would be Tag’s only protection.
He put on a burst of speed when the cottage came into view. No way was he going to let Tag get there first. Delaney managed to beat him, but Tag wasn’t as out of breath as he was and he recovered quicker.
“How often do you run?” Delaney asked once he could speak without gasping.
“A few times a week. Free exercise.”
“Where do you run?”
“Parks, Thames Path or if it’s early enough, on the streets.”
“You didn’t have a problem with the uneven ground we just covered?”
Tag shrugged. “Just have to watch where you put your feet, same as in London but for different reasons. Broken slabs, rubbish, dog shit or cyclists veering across your path.”
“You’re good.”
“Wow, is that a compliment?”
“Don’t let it go to your head.”
Tag chuckled. “Too late.”
Delaney unlocked the door, deactivated the alarm and Tag followed him inside. Once his shoes were off, Tag made for the stairs. Delaney removed his and followed. Tag stripped as he went and Delaney picked up his clothes on the way and left his and Tag’s in a pile by the open bathroom door.
Tag stood sideways on with his head tipped back, water cascading down his body. He didn’t look at Delaney, but Delaney knew this was a show for his benefit and he wasn’t complaining. He stood watching before he joined Tag in the shower, long enough for him to get very hard. Tag allowed his mouth to fill with water, then squirted it at Delaney. Delaney shouldered him out of the way and took Tag’s place under the flow. When he felt Tag’s soapy hands sliding over his shoulders, then over his pecs, washing him, he felt his stomach lurch.
“I let you beat me,” Tag said.
Delaney’s eyes shot open.
“You sulked about the chess. You have a bigger ego than me. But I’m faster than you. Nippier. I could outrun them in Scotland.”
Delaney didn’t know what annoyed him more. The idea that Tag hadlethim win or that Tag was stupid enough to think he could outrun a bullet. Or that the idiot still wanted to go even after Delaney had told him that wasn’t what he wanted. Didn’t matter that he’d been going over the logistics of it as he ran.
“Neverallow me to win,” Delaney pinched Tag’s nipple—hard.
“Ouch! Sorry.”
“I don’t think you are.”
