Lovers Not Without Sin | Dutch van der Linde x OC

Chapter 53

At the tail end of a quiet winter, the gang's in a good place and Ada's thankful to have had some peace; and hopes the new year will continue the way it's started.

She spent the bulk of it practising the basics once again, Dutch taking the time to figure out where she was lacking in her skills and working with her until she was confident in her abilities. It took a toll on both of them, Ada's frustration often getting the better of her, especially in the beginning. Eventually, she got the hang of it and it wasn't long until she was mostly back to her normal, more-than-capable self. Truthfully, she's felt ready enough to be back out working for some time but Dutch has firmly put his foot down, saying that he'll decide when she's ready.

For a short while, it had been enough to distract her from his continuous secrecy regarding leads that didn't terminate with the death of Colm O'Driscoll.

At first, Ada thought she'd been imagining things; a bit of paranoia following an emotionally stressful few months. But then she noticed the signs were the same as when he was planning Colm's murder, discussing plans out of her earshot and being dismissive when she asked him about the details. Unfortunately, she doesn't know where he keeps his journal anymore so she can't go snooping.

She sighs, not loud enough for anyone else to hear, as she continues sewing when Dutch and Arthur return from a ride out.

"Letter for you in town, Ada," Tilly approaches and hands out an envelope. "You really shouldn't be giving out your real name for mail."

"Hm?" she looks up, taking the letter and reading the front just to check. "Oh. I -" of course, there's nobody who she would give her name to in the first place, let alone ask for them to write to her. But with the mysterious letter in hand, it's probably for the best that she doesn't provoke any more questions and delay getting to read it. "Sure, you're right. Thanks."

Tilly nods, thankfully thinking nothing more of it and leaving Ada to her work which she discards temporarily in favour of reading the letter. She pulls it out and sets it on her lap.

Miss Harris,

I hope this reaches you well. I got word from Keller (you know, security back at the agency?) that you were in this area so I thought I'd give this a shot. While I'm probably the last person you want to hear from, I have a proposition for you and hope you'll entertain me in discussing it. There's no obligation for you to get involved if you do decide to meet with me, but please trust me when I say I have nothing but your best interests at heart – I owe you one, after all. Unfortunately, I can't disclose any more on the matter, but should you find yourself in West Elizabeth in the coming weeks please do pay me a visit at the Federal Bureau. The time to discuss this is finite, so please pay a visit sooner rather than later.

I hope you'll forgive me for the secrecy.

Sincerely,

Roy Vickers

"Shit," Ada mutters, placing the letter back in the envelope and sliding it into her coat pocket for later.

Roy? What on Earth does he want?

"Afternoon, my dear."

Ada blinks up, finding Dutch lazily striding towards her. "Hey Dutch."

"I've broken you out of a thought," he muses, hooking his thumbs in his gun belt as he stands over her.

Clearing her throat with a shake of her head, she fiddles with the half-mended shirt draped over her lap. "No, no... just off in my own world today."

"You that bored without me?" he teases, nudging her with his boot.

"Very funny," she drawls. "I was gonna stretch my legs for a bit if you want to join me?"