Page 27 of The Boy Who Cried Bear
“Yes.” She exhales, and it was clear she’d been circling that. “It worries me.”
Here I must tread extra carefully. I don’t like where this is going, but I can’t appear biased. I need to treat her concerns seriously. But I also need to say what has to be said.
“Promiscuity isn’t a warning sign for sexual predators,” I say. “I know the media can make it seem that way, especially if the predator is a woman. I’m aware that Gunnar encourages short-term relationships, but it’s consensual, and none of his lovers have ever complained about his behavior. If there’d been even a hint of that, we’d have jumped on it. This town is too tiny to let the whisper network handle problems.”
Her cheeks flush again, and I can tell, as careful as I’m being with my wording, that even this guarded talk of sex is making her uncomfortable.
“I’m guessing,” I say slowly, “that if you’re bringing this up, you think it’s a danger sign with your sons. That if Gunnar is promiscuous and he’s taken an interest in Max, that’s a problem. But…”
“Hooking up with a lot of women doesn’t mean he’s a pedophile.”
“Yes.”
She crosses her arms. “I know that. I just … He makes me uncomfortable, and I don’t like seeing him around Max, and I should have said something, but honestly?” She meets my gaze. “I shouldn’t have had to. Yolanda saw Max up in that loft with Gunnar and acted like it was no big deal. She doesn’t have children. Neither do you. I hate to play that card, because I know people do that all the time. You don’t have kids so you don’t understand.”
“Except that it’s true. We don’t have children.”
“And if you did, you’d be nervous about any stranger taking an interest in them. You can tell yourself you’re being paranoid, and nine times out of ten, you are, and it sucks if you’re depriving your kid of a healthy relationship with another adult, but you cannot take that chance. Gunnar was wrong to take Max up in that loft without my permission, and Yolanda should have known that.”
“Except,” I say gently, “as you pointed out, we don’t have kids. We don’t understand the nuances. I don’t want to lay blame on anyone. Gunnar would have topped my list for questioning anyway, as the last person to be with Max. In light of your concerns, I’ll go harder at him, and I’ll do it right away.”
“But you don’t think he had anything to do with it.”
“I do not know Gunnar well enough to say that.”
“Will you search his loft?” she asks. “For evidence?”
“I’ve searched it for Max, but now I’ll search it and his room for evidence. Right after I speak to him.”
* * *
I head out to talk to Gunnar, but instead see Dalton striding my way, Storm having to nearly jog to keep up.
“Max went into the woods,” Dalton says. “Storm found his entry point. I’m going to take her in and see where it goes.”
I don’t hesitate. Yes, I’d promised to talk to Gunnar right away, but finding Max is a lot more important. As we cross town, I spot Gunnar with Kendra and call Gunnar over.
“I need to talk to you,” I say.
“Figured that. At the town hall?”
“Yes. Meet me there. We need to check something first.”
He looks from me to Storm. “A trail?”
I make a noncommittal noise.
“If it’s beside the clinic, that’s not new.”
Dalton stops and pivots to face him.
Gunnar raises his hands and takes an exaggerated step back, as if Dalton had lunged at him. I only shake my head.
I could say the two men don’t get along, but they’d need to have an actual conversation to know that. It’s as if they’ve decided they won’t get along and don’t bother to interact. That’s mostly Gunnar, but if someone doesn’t want to deal with Dalton, he’s happy to leave them be unless they give him a reason to deal with them.
“What do you mean that’s not new?” I say.
“I’m not saying Max didn’t go in there tonight. But if your pup picked up his scent, it could also be old. That’s Max’s secret sneaking-in point. On the left side of the clinic. It’s a blind spot, where you can’t see him unless you’re in my perch.”
