On Thin Ice

29. Codex

Minnow's POV

"Maybe we're thinking too broadly about it," Whitney pointed out. She was sitting at the kitchen counter, a paper and pencil in her hand. There were so many different letters and things crossed out. "Like is it an anagram or something?"

"I've run it through search engines and combed through data and there's nothing," Callum grumbled. He sat beside her, typing away at his computer, looking determined. Something told me he wasn't the type to have a hard time finding something online and this was getting to even him.

"Let me make this clear again," Rylo said, speaking on the phone in the living room. "I don't care if you can't share cliental information. My friend was given the flowers from someone and there's no way of knowing who sent them." His voice was tight and deep like he was holding back his anger. "Find me the address or give me a number. Either way, you don't want me coming down there. Trust me."

Søren was the only one who hadn't said much. I knew he was furious when Rylo had called him and when I got home after practice, his first question was to ask me if I was okay. But then he was quiet like he couldn't believe this was happening. He even called Callum and Whitney before I even got here.

He sat down across from Callum, staring at the flowers in front of him like the answer would appear suddenly. The card sat in between his fingers, his eye scanning the words for the hundredth time.

June 24th: H L 20

"Guys, it's not worth the trouble," I shrugged. "He's just trying to scare me. Regardless of what the message means, it doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does," Whitney disagreed. "And the fact that he didn't just write a clear message means something too."

"What the hell kind of guy is Brodie anyway?" Callum asked, his accent thicker, clearly irritated. He combed a hand through his brown waves and frowned at his laptop. "It's not even a riddle or an anagram."

"Maybe it's an equation." Whitney surmised, closing her eyes in thought.

"Nope, already ran it through the system."

"Coordinates?"

"No, the date wouldn't make any sense then."

They were so in sync that it was scary.

"I fucking hate puzzles," Whitney groaned. "Especially without context."

"You're both super geniuses and even this is too complicated to solve. Let's just throw in the towel," I suggested.

Callum pressed his lips together and looked up at me. "Well to be fair, I can only find digital information. My expertise does not go beyond that."

"And if it's not science-related or something that can be solved with logic games, I can't. It's...way too broad." Whit explained.

I was too on edge to even care to solve it. Brodie had it sent to the rink and his timing could not have been more perfect. It was like he was watching me closely now.

"He liked puzzles," I added.

Both Callum and Whitney turned to look at me, their attention laser-focused.

"Like the New York Times crossword," I clarified. "You know how it gets harder as you progress through the week? He used to do it on his phone every morning. I hated it 'cause I'm bad at puzzles unless it's like the physical pieces."

"Great," Callum said sarcastically. "So we've got a pyromaniac who loves puzzles. That makes this so much better."

"Does the date mean anything to you?" Whitney pressed. "June 24th is too specific not to."