Red Dead Redemption: Wayhaught

10: "What a mess we're making of things..."

a/n: 10 Chapters! Woah, I'm kind of impressed with myself haha!

In all seriousness though I'm having so much fun exploring this story and the world I've created - that's why the updates are so regular, it's getting me through quarantine as much as it is to those who are reading it. All of your amazing comments and messages are just adding to the excitement! So thank you to everyone who has read, left kudos or commented, it means the world.

Surprisingly this has turned out to be one of my favourite chapters so far, so I guess it's fitting that it's the 10th one haha!
I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. It's a fun one!

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in this chapter...

Nicole makes an important announcement.
Waverly has a breakthrough on the case... but things don't go quite as planned.
Waverly and Nicole have a FaceTime date in a rather unusual location...

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Soft, bright lights and warm, rough voices filtered from the glow of the TV against Waverly's face as she stood straight upright, hands wound tightly around her Buffy mug. Her eyes were fixed with an invisible glue to the still frame on the TV, scanning methodically to take in every detail as her ears burned with the anticipation of what would be said.

"OUCH! BALLS! STUPID MOTHER -" Wynonna's growling, angry morning voice shattered the silence alongside with a mug of whatever she had been making.

"Wynonna shut up! I'm watching this!" Waverly snapped back, her eyes only momentarily breaking away from the screen to check her sister wasn't seriously injured. Wynonna was stood in the entrance to the living room now, leaning on the doorframe with a rag in one hand waving it like she was about to yell something back.

"Waverly, I thought you preferred to read the News becau -" she noticed the TV screen and cut herself short. "Ohhhh." And with that she sank back into the kitchen. It was clear Waverly wasn't replying to her anymore anyway, her eyes had reconnected with the screen and Wynonna had very much faded to the background blur of noises.

"Yes. It is true that yesterday a body was discovered on route 46. Unfortunately it has been identified as the younger of the Baker twins, Robert Baker, 8 years old." Waverly held her breath as she watched her girlfriend addressing the wave of reporters shoving their microphones in her face as though they were threatening her at gunpoint.

"The cause of death is as of yet undetermined. At the present moment, no further information will be released regarding the progression from here, but rest assured, the safety of the other boy is Quayside Police Department's utmost priority. Please respect the families privacy in this hard time and refrain from any invitations to interview. In the interim I am going to take a few questions to allow the family the time they need, and to give as much clarity as is possible to the public." Nicole's face was serious and hard, but she had a softness in her eyes. Waverly assumed it must have been her professional demeanour, it was surprisingly different from what she had assumed was her 'working' face when they were in the escape room. Now, her jaw was set, protruding in a dominant, but unthreatening manner and her cheeks were sucked in, which to anyone else would have perhaps seemed a sign of anger, but Waverly knew it was a sign of control. It was Nicole reminding herself she was in charge of this situation. The brunettes heart swelled with pride at how strong and brave her girlfriend was being; she could have nominated someone else to take the interview for her, someone not so invested in the case, but Nicole had been adamant last night that it had to be her to do this.

"Come on baby you've got this." Waverly breathed, scanning the screen with a mixture of pride and nerves.

"If this case is your priority, then why, Sheriff, has it taken over a month to find one of the bodies, and the other is still out there?" Waverly winced, it was a fair question about the process of finding the bodies, but the sharpness and cutting nature of the tone and wording made her want to leap through the screen and punch the faceless journalist between the eyes.