Outer Space | Spruceworth 6.3

Chapter 59: Deception

Chapter 59: Deception

~Ollie~

       As I was sitting on a bench on the walkway, I saw Shaw walk over to me. It didn't look like that he was walking through Spruceworth just to get some fresh air or something. It seemed as if he was looking for me, especially since he immediately sat down beside me as soon as he noticed me.

       "Did Grant call you?" I asked.

       "He did," Shaw said. "He's worried about you. Said you're really determined to stop Hugh."

       "I don't want to let him just feel like he can get away with anything he does," I said. "It's not fair that he's back in Spruceworth with no regards to his victims."

       "Yeah, you're right," Shaw said. "It isn't fair. At all. Did Grant tell you Hugh got out on good behaviour?"

       "Yep," I said. "I don't buy it."

       "Neither do I," Shaw said. "He has gone to prison before and that never changed him. I doubt he would change now at all times. So need any help?"

       I furrowed my eyebrows. "With what?"

       "Making sure Hugh knows he isn't welcomed in Spruceworth."

       I was still awfully confused by Shaw's question. "Wait, that's why you came looking for me? To offer your help? Because I would have thought that Grant would have asked you to tell me it's too dangerous and all that crap."

       "Well, he technically did," Shaw said. "But I was already planning on stopping Hugh myself. And I figured you wouldn't listen to me if Grant already couldn't convince you to leave it well alone. But I wouldn't tell him you're doing this if I were you."

       You should do it. Agree to it. Don't let Hugh win.

       I hesitated. "I don't know... I can't lie to Grant."

       "Don't think of it as lying," Shaw said. "Think of it as withholding the truth. Holden told me the same thing Grant told you but here I am, wanting to make sure Hugh stays away."

       "Yeah, that's not really a good thing to do," I said.

       "Don't worry, he probably already knows that I'm already planning on going after Hugh," Shaw said. 

       "Yeah, but that's Holden," I said. "Grant probably expected you to actually convince me to stay away from Hugh."

       "Then if you don't want to withhold the truth, just tell him about it. It's not like I'm going to do anything illegal. I'm just going to make sure Hugh knows that it's probably best for him to get the hell out of Spruceworth and never come back."

       Agree to it. Stop Hugh. Kick him out of Spruceworth.

       "Will you do anything dangerous?" I asked.

       Who cares if it's dangerous? Hugh is dangerous. Fight fire with fire.

       "Would you shut up?" I asked.

       "I... didn't reply to you yet," Shaw said.

       I sighed. "No, not you. It's... no one. So will you do anything dangerous?"

       "Nothing dangerous," Shaw said. "I wouldn't ask for your help if it were dangerous because trust me, the last thing I want is for you to be put into more danger."

       I hesitated, not sure what the answer should be. Of course I wanted to stop Hugh from whatever he was planning because clearly, he wasn't done with his vendetta against Shaw. But at the same time, I didn't want to upset Grant and I knew he would be upset if I went through with this.