(BL) Hunting The Field Guide novel Chapter 20

Chapter 20: Still a coward, Captain

They found Ms. Hill in the lobby of the Medical wing chatting with Gunther, one of the other lieutenants of the guild. Gunther, unlike the last time Kellen had seen him, was kitted out in the full Esper uniform, his long hair pulled back into a ponytail away from his face. When he noticed the three of them, he gave them a nod, before turning a teasing smile towards Kellen.

"Ah, hello Mr. 90% match. Well? Everyone's dying to know. Is the Captain still a coward?" He was clearly teasing, but Kellen's whole body stiffened. He could feel the red creep up his neck as Taylor threw him a shocked look.

"Uh, well, no?" Kellen had to work to get his lips moving as he felt the Captain loom behind him. His laughter filled his ears and when he turned his head to look at him, the Captain had his head thrown back as he laughed. Kellen did not feel safe.

"You don't seem convinced, Mr. Woods. Shall I prove myself more to you?" Kellen nervously glanced at Taylor and the elevators. The Captain had clearly taken Kellen's words as a challenge, while the man himself hadn't noticed.

"I am fine, thank you. We are also on a tight schedule, so you wouldn't have time to do so." Ms. Hill whistled as the Captain's eyes narrowed at the Guide. Kellen realised something was wrong with his words when the Captain stepped towards him, his eyes a sharp yellow colour.

"Are you sure you want to say that, Mr. Woods?" He warned, and Kellen swallowed. He glanced around at the others, but all three of them had their backs turned to him, unwilling, or unable to help him. Therefore, Kellen opened his dumb mouth.

"I'm off the clock once we finish the retest, so unless you want to give me overtime, yes." Kellen was surprised by how stable his voice sounded to his ears. The Captain's eyes stared into Kellen's before slowly dropping to his lips, then back up to meet his gaze. He bent forward, his breath fanning over his face.

"Didn't your father ever warn you to pick your battles, Mr. Woods?" His voice was deceptively calm, sweet even, and Kellen felt a bead of sweat roll down his back and between his shoulder blades. He felt his gaze fall to the Esper's lips, and watched them turn up slightly before darting his eyes back up to the slowly turning gold gaze of the Captain. The false sense of calm spurred on the Guide, who opened his mouth again.

"He did, but I've always had great luck Captain Thatcher. Unless, you're scared?" Kellen tilted his head slightly to the side, his lips turning up slightly in nervousness. The Esper stared down at the Guide, his eyes glowing slightly. Kellen's senses were screaming out at him to move, to get out of there, but something told him not to. Finally, the Captain spoke.

"You won't be getting overtime today, Mr. Woods, but keep this in mind. Who do you think made all of those strategies you followed on the front lines?" He poked the Guide's forehead before pulling away and heading for the elevators. "I assume you had a reason to be here Gunther? Besides riling up My Guide?" Kellen's heart was hammering in his chest as the Esper turned away from him. He gulped in air as Taylor threw him a look. Ms. Hill was glowing, giving him a thumbs up before sliding beside him.

"Oh my gods, give me your phone number." She whispered while Gunther spoke up.

"Oh, it's about the new recruits. Since we now have two batches that haven't gone to the front lines I was hoping to get your approval to take the first team into the mountains for a seven day intensive exercise to make sure they didn't feel like we were going to treat them the same way as the others. They'll be treated the same way once we get to the front lines, but for now I think it's better if we feed their egos." The Captain nodded at his suggestion as the elevator opened and the group poured in. Kellen, who had accepted the phone shoved into his face, passed it back to Ms. Hill with his number now in it. Ms. Hill thrust her arm into the air in a victory fist. Captain watched them with careful eyes and Kellen felt the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. The man was on a thin thread again. Had the conversation before set him off?

"I agree. I'll approve it. Make sure to take the two brothers and run them ragged. They need it. I thought they were going to be a solid investment but so far they've only caused problems." Gunther nodded, glancing at the other three before turning back to the Captain.

"Sounds good. Are you going to be back for dinner?" He asked and the Captain chuckled. Kellen could feel a hole being drilled into the back of his head, but he didn't want to look behind him to see who it was.

"Yes, I'll be back for dinner. We'll speak more about the details then, Gunther." Gunther nodded and silence filled the elevator as it headed for the lobby. As the others headed for the front door, Gunther grabbed Kellen's arm, pulling him away from the others. Kellen turned to face the taller man who searched his face with his dark gaze.

"Sorry about that." He apologised immediately and Kellen laughed.

"You didn't really do anything, Lieutenant Gunther. I couldn't seem to stop my mouth." Gunther made a face, trying to stop himself from laughing before he nodded.

"Still, I played a role in this. If you need help dealing with him, I'm here. I've been with Rhys since we were in the D.E.C. so I can help if you need any info on him." Kellen blinked, surprised at the information. He hadn't remembered that the Captain had been in the D.E.C., but it made sense. He would have either had to join them or another Guild to remain an active Esper who was able to use his powers. But it did surprise him that Gunther hadn't been in a Guild. In the time that Kellen had known Gunther, he didn't seem like the type to follow rules. He had a strange feeling that the Captain was the exception to that rule. Kellen smiled at the Esper.

"Thank you for your help. If I need it, I will reach out to you. Well, I should head out. I don't want them waiting too long. Have a good night Lieutenant." Gunther gave a wave that Kellen responded in kind to before following the other three.

"Good." The Captain moved swiftly, not giving him a moment to retract his words. Before Kellen could blink, he could feel the strong arms under his knees and on his back. Stunned, Kellen let out a yelp. "Wrap your arms around my shoulders, Mr. Woods. I wouldn't want to drop you." He teased, and for some reason Kellen didn't trust his smile. The two Espers headed out of the front doors. Kellen did as he was told, pressing himself against the other man, unashamed. With a nod to Ms. Hill, the two Espers gathered their powers and catapulted into the air. Kellen felt his heart in his throat as they soared through the air. He could hear Ms. Hill's maniacal laughter in the air as he clung tightly to the man holding him. He hadn't had a fear of heights, but being brought into the sky so quickly made his whole body quiver. Kellen couldn't get a word out of his mouth, he was shaking so violently that he thought if he opened his mouth he might bite his tongue. When he glanced up at the Captain, he had a light expression on his face, but when he met his eyes, he could tell the man was laughing at him. Kellen wanted to smack the man, but he was too scared to take his hands off of him to do so. _{fгeewebnovёl.com}