Chapter 21

This is a pretty lengthy chapter. I thought about splitting it, but it stopped the flow, so, here you go!

CHAPTER 21

An hour into it, the game film had not shown much. At least, not to Jon. It seemed as if each play was slightly different, but nothing he could really learn from. One play, Junior would be passed the ball up the right side, then the left. Jon would’ve probably dozed a time or two if he hadn’t been keeping an eye peeled for Moss’s return. Jon nudged Stan.
“What do you think that was about? Talk to Dutton? What does that mean?”
“I don’t have a clue. Maybe you should talk to Dutton.”
“Do you think he’ll actually tell me what’s going on?”
Stan repeated, “I don’t have a clue. Maybe you should talk to Dutton.”
Coach’s eyes rose from the game film and focused on Jon, who slid lower in his seat.
“You haven’t seen Moss come back, have you?”
“No, I haven’t,” Stan muttered out the side of his mouth, keeping his eyes squarely focused on Malone.
“Have you noticed Coach hasn’t even been looking for him?”
“Must’ve slipped his mind.”
“Something is not right at all about this whole thing. Where is Moss? Why doesn’t Coach care and what does Dutton know about it?”
“Maybe you should ask him.”
“I think I will.”
Jon sat up straight until he found Dutton on the left hand side of the room at the end of the aisle. Jon crouched as he made his way to the side of Dutton’s chair.
“Hey,” Jon lifted his head slightly as he acknowledged Dutton.
Dutton gave Jon a quick, ‘are you crazy?’ look. “Hey.”
“So, I gotta say, being on a sports team is not easy.”
“Yup,” was Dutton’s only response.
Jon opened his mouth a few times, but closed it immediately. Small talk is obviously not going to work on this guy, Jon thought. Let’s just go for the whole shooting match.
“Why did you and Spencer part ways?”
Dutton shot a look at Mills that he couldn’t interpret until he was under Dutton’s steely gaze. “You! Come with me!” Dutton grabbed Jon by the collar and jerked him toward the door.
Jon could see Stan mouthing the words ‘what the hell’ and Jon just shook his head as he followed Dutton.
The next obstacle was the coach. He stood up after Dutton had passed through the door and blocked Jon’s escape route. “Mr. Page, do you remember what I told you?”
“Do you remember what I told you, Coach?”
Malone’s gaze got hotter but he stepped out of the way allowing Jon to continue his pursuit.
Jon entered the huge, empty gym and saw Moss and Dutton standing in the exact center. Jon cautiously walked up to them.
“Guys,” Jon greeted them.
Moss nodded to Dutton, pretending Jon wasn’t even there. “It’s okay, man. I think he just wants to help in some way. He’s an ass, but I think he’s okay.”
“You cutting early?” Dutton asked.
Moss motioned to his backpack. “Yea. Got a load of homework. I want to get most of it done before tonight.”
Jon tried to join in. “What’s tonight?”
Moss just glared. “We’ll chat later.”
Jon couldn’t tell if Moss was speaking to him or to Dutton. “Okay,” Jon said quietly.
“Yo, man. Thanks.” Dutton’s voice boomed through the cavernous gym. He and Moss pounded fists in a goodbye gesture and Jon watched Moss walk out through the double gym doors.
There was a tense silence between Mills and Dutton as Jon could feel the 6’9” gaze barrel down on him. He had to break the silence. “Jake’s death affected everyone, man. I didn’t mean anything by the question. I’m just taking his place and want to know why he’s not here anymore. Stan said he was a good guy. Never hurt anyone. You two had a bust-up and I’m just-“
“You think I killed him?”
“Never said that. Never even meant to imply it. Or infer. Whichever. You two were partners and it didn’t last. Why?”
“He was stupid. That’s it.”
“Stupid? How?”
“He just asked me to do something stupid. I didn’t want to. That’s it.”
“What was stupid about it? He try to pass you a joint or something?”
“No.”
“Steroids?”
“NO! Nothing to do with drugs! He just made me uncomfortable and I couldn’t be his partner anymore.”
“So, the whole teamwork thing. He made you uncomfortable,” Jon was lost as to where to go next. “Did he make advances on you?”
“I’m not even going to dignify that with a response!”
“Definitely not a vaguely gay thing, then.”
“Look, Page, I really don’t want to talk about it.” Jon could feel the apprehension leave Dutton and it left behind an air of resignation. “I understand that you’re the new guy here, but it’s not my job to make you feel loved and wanted. That can be Stan’s job. Jake Spencer is a part of my past. I’m sorry that he died like he did, but it doesn’t affect me now. That’s it. May I go now?”
Jon nodded and locked eyes with the sad tall man. “Yes.”
After he watched Dutton walk back into the team room, Jon stayed behind and listened to the sound of his own breathing in the empty gym. “Now what do I do, Kate?” he asked to the air as he trudged back to watch more game film.

Dana sat down across the cluttered desk of the Cottonwood High Coach. Aaron was making final adjustments to the lights on the camera. A few times he blinded the coach by flashing him directly in the face, but he eventually got the bugs worked out.
“Are you doing okay, sir?” Dana asked.
“I’m fine.”
“I am of course going to start out with questions about Junior to get people into the piece and then I will talk about your school and the history of basketball here and your legacy as Coach. I am going to start right out with the questions, we’ll get your side, and then, right after, if we can just put the camera where you are sitting and I’ll tape the introduction then. Does that sound okay to you?”
“Fine by me.”
“Okay, Aaron. Ready to roll?”
“Whenever you are.”
“Roll on 3, 2,….” Dana heard the cameras gears click on. “Obviously, Coach, we know that the whole reason that our network, or any network for that matter, is carrying this game is because it will be the first actual game with Jason Grissom, Jr, or Junior as he’s affectionately called.”
“That is correct.”
“Do you think that this is going to overshadow the game or the teams?”
“Initially, I believe it will, but, as the game progresses, I believe that the viewers will be treated to an epic battle.”
“Epic battle?”
“Yes. You see, Cottonwood and Taylorsville are rival schools. We always have been. In anything we do, we are at each other’s throats. Whether it’s basketball, baseball, drama, homemaking arts, even the German clubs, we always go after the other. Even though this is still high school basketball, it is a rivalry that rivals any professional team.”
“I hope that that is what we will see on Saturday. Will you be playing Junior right out of the gate?”
“He is one of our starters, yes, but I will not commit to how much game time he will actually see. Our year is just getting started. As I have said before, we are massive rivals, and if this game starts getting a little too mean spirited, I am going to pull him because he will be anchoring our team this year. I can’t take the chance of him getting hurt.”
“So Junior is your secret weapon right off the bat? An unknown player with a lot of potential but no one knows just what he can do. You sure have the element of surprise on your side this weekend, at least.”
“And for at least several weeks to come. Junior is an exciting player with huge potential and loads of tricks up his sleeve. He got a lot from his daddy, that I can assure you.”
“You have been coach here for the last 15 years, have you ever seen a player like Junior?”
“All the time. I see many players with a lot of potential, but very few who make good on that potential. Very few thrive in being on a good team and making good grades. You have to do both here at Cottonwood. We pride ourselves on the outstanding scholastics of all of our players. I must say, however that Junior excels in both athletics and scholastics.”



Jon threw his backpack into the back seat of Kate’s car. “That was one of the most wonderful days that I have ever experienced!”
“Why so glum, chum?” Kate tried to break Jon of his foul mood.
“I angered Moss, pissed off the biggest guy on the team, ran a bajillion laps and was bored out of my mind by game film that I didn’t even care about! It was like watching a poorly filmed scrimmage with no sound! I love films, but even I hate silent films!”
“Did you find out anything?”
“Just that he made Dutton feel, what was the word he used? Uncomfortable, that’s right. Uncomfortable. Why would a guy use that word?”
“Did you ask anything about sexual orientation?”
Jon shot Kate a glare.
“Ok. All right. Sorry. Did you ask him about steroid use?”
“Yes, and even if there was anything physical outside of the gym, and he said that he wouldn’t even dignify that.”
“Well, you have about 48 hours to get some answers, Jon. Then it may be too late.” Kate put the car drive and headed off.
When they pulled into his driveway, Jon got out, but the engine kept running.
“Not coming in?” he asked.
“No, not right now. I’ve gotta meet with Walter. We’re only a few hours away, and we don’t have anything. I have to go make a contingency plan.”
“Sounds painful.”
“Probably will be. But, Walter always gets a huge batch of greasy fries, so I’ll make it.” Kate flashed him a big smile. “Work hard tonight. You’ll figure something out.” She shifted into reverse which indicated it was time for Jon to close the door.
“Right .See you in the morning?”
“Bright and early. Don’t stay up too late.”
Jon shut the car door and trudged up the sidewalk to his home door. Something about the last exchange didn’t feel quite right. He fumbled for his keys and let himself in.
His backpack dropped heavily on the ground as he walked up the front stairs and headed straight for the kitchen. Jon rummaged through the cupboards, found the large electric frying pan and plugged it in. While it was heating up, Jon grabbed bread, deli meat, and slices of Tillamook cheddar cheese from the fridge. He grabbed the butter and started buttering one side of each of the 8 slices of bread he had pulled out. He slapped four slices onto the now heated pan and started stacking them high with meat and cheese. Each one was topped with another slice of buttered bread. After pulling out a long handled spatula from the wooden and plastic spoon/spatula/ladle/whisk jar on the cupboard, Jon pushed down on each mega sandwich and listened to the satisfying sizzle as he did so.
Jon’s mind floated back to the final exchange of the day with Kate. ‘Don’t stay up too late?’ What was that implying? Or inferring? He couldn’t remember which. Was he the one who had stayed up late this past week? Had Kate made him stay up? It seemed as though at this point there was never a time when he had actually had a good night’s rest this week. The comment also seemed as though maybe Kate knew something that he didn’t, in a mischevious way. Like maybe she had shortsheeted his bed. Maybe she had placed lights all around his house to turn on at Midnight, or…
While pushing down on the last sandwich, there was a knock at the door.
“Come in!” Jon yelled.
The doorknob turned and the door started to open and then stopped suddenly.
“Oops! Sorry!” Jon called. “I must’ve locked it! Hang on a sec!”
Jon checked on the darkness underneath the 4 sandwiches. He took two off of the pan and left the other two still cooking as he wiped his buttery hands on the white dishcloth on the counter and hopped down the stairs two by two to unlock the door.
“So, what exactly do you have planned tonight?” Jon asked as he opened the door.
Aleisha looked taken aback by the question. “I don’t have anything planned for tonight although we can definitely change that.” A playfulness in her eyes sparkled in the autumn afternoon.
It seemed as though Jon always seemed sheepish around her. “Sorry. I thought it was someone else.”
“Does that someone else have plans for tonight?”
“I’m not sure. That’s why I thought they were here.”
“Well, I’m here now. Can I come in?”
Jon closed his eyes tightly for a moment. “Of course. Yes. My fault. Please, come in.” He backed up, let Aleisha into the foyer and closed the door behind her. She walked up to the top floor and noticed the 2 sandwiches on the plate and the 2 sandwiches still cooking.
“I see you were making a snack for you and the person with plans.”
“Actually, no. Those are all for me.” Jon noticed how that sounded. “Those were all for me, but, if you are hungry, I can make you a sandwich or two new or you can have any of those you want.” Jon could tell that he was slightly fumbling for words, but couldn’t stop himself.
Aleisha grabbed the plate off the counter and took it to the table. “May I have a seat?” she motioned to one of the chairs.
“Make yourself at home.” Jon gestured to the entire home as he reached and got another plate from the cupboard. He then took the last two remaining sandwiches off the pan, put them on the plate, turned off the pan, and sat down next to Aleisha at the table.
Aleisha had already made herself comfortable by taking off her shoes, pulling her legs in front of her and putting her feet flat on the chair. She was pulling a sandwich apart with the arcing goo of the melted cheese between the sandwich halves. Jon smiled. She looked like a five year old in this position. After the strand broke and she returned one of the sandwich halves to the plate, she noticed Jon was watching carefully. Her mouth screwed into a smirk. “What?”
Jon felt suddenly as if he was under a hot tanning lamp. “You’re just so damn cute.”
“Thank you.” She tucked an imaginarily loose lock of hair behind her ear.
There was an awkward silence as they just stared at each other while Aleisha ate her first half of the sandwich.
“This is pretty good,” she said to break the silence.
“Old family recipe. Bread, butter, meat, cheese, heat. You should see the amazing meal when I add Campbell’s Tomato soup to it.”
“Tomato soup helps most hot sandwiches.”
“I don’t know about that, but, if you say so, it must be true.” Jon kept watching Aleisha eat her sandwich.
“Yours are going to get cold.”
“I think I’ve almost lost my appetite.”
“You made yourself four sandwiches and now you don’t even want to take one single bite?”
“This may sound creepy, but I like watching you. You look like a little- please don’t take this the wrong way- a little elf.”
“I’m glad you warned me. None of that sounds creepy or strange at all!” A wry smile snaked across her face.
“You are just- what’s the word?- yourself.”
“I’d like to think that we are all ourselves. No matter what, we are ourselves. No one can make us any different.”
“But you are so- you. “
“You are you, too, Jon. You just may be too close to yourself to see it.” Aleisha finished one of her sandwiches and walked over to the couch and sat down. She patted the cushion next to her. “Come over here. I don’t bite.”
“I’m doing just great over here, Miss Madsen.”
Aleisha stood up and with a very serious air grabbed Jon by the arm, pulled him off of his chair and led him to the couch. He landed with a plop and she wriggled right next to him by using the give of the couch.
“Mr. Mills,” she said with a silly serious tone, “you are you. You are special. You must see it by now. You’re a head smarter than anyone at school-“
“I am far from the smartest- I don’t get the best grades…”
“Being smart and getting good grades are not necessarily the same thing,” Aleisha paused and let that sink in. “You are a boy king. You are the coolest guy in school!”
Jon let out a spurt of air. “That is absolutely not true!”
“Why is it that you have such low self esteem? I thought we went over this last night! You are one of the only guys in school who can be friends with the jocks, the drama geeks, the stoners, the wavers, the rockers, whoever! For the most part, Jocks hang with Jocks, cheerleaders hang with cheerleaders, drama with drama, and so on. You could have any girl in this school, and when I say have, I mean biblically, and so many girls have swooned over you! Yet, you don’t see it!
I know what people think of me! People see me as the hot unattainable chick and I am like a prize! You don’t think I know that? But you, you are you. You don’t see me like that! You don’t see me as a prize! That’s why you are the coolest guy in school. You’re not the valedictorian, you’re not the spirit king, or the quarterback on the football team- although you have all of a sudden jumped on the basketball team which is a little weird, but that’s besides the point- you are cool! And I have no idea how I can make you see that!” Aleisha threw her hands up in the air in almost a resignatory feeling.
Jon had no comeback. He sat and stared in her deep blue eyes. “Are you bullshitting me?”
“Why would I bullshit you, Jon? Why? What possible purpose would that serve?”
Jon shook his head. “I’m not that guy, Aleisha. I don’t know where you come up with that.”
“You are that guy, Jon. You are that guy. Believe it or not, you are that guy.” Aleisha put her right hand under his chin and felt the 5 o’clock shadow. “Believe me, you are that guy.” She leaned in to kiss him.
This time, Jon kissed back, and he kissed back hard. ALL the girls in school? Damn! That set his mind racing, but the fact that it was Aleisha Madsen, his lifetime crush that he had been mooning over for 10 years, who was kissing him and slowly pushing him back onto the couch, made it that much stronger.
Aleisha took one of her arms from around Jon and found one of the couch pillows and placed it behind Jon’s head as he finally went fully flat on the couch.
“Thanks,” he mumbled through the kiss.
Aleisha laughed and their lips parted for that.
Jon thought it was strange that in such a moment that humor could shine through. He broke away for a second. “Is that a good thing that you laughed?”
Aleisha’s eyes shone with passion. “Trust me, it was a very good thing.” She pressed her body on top of his. Again, through the kiss, Aleisha spoke, “You can touch me, you know.”
“I don’t really want to offend you.”
“Trust me, at this moment, it is pretty much impossible to offend me.”
Jon gingerly touched her back.
“If you’re going to touch me, then just touch me!” Aleisha took one of her hands and pushed Jon’s hands harder into her back and she kissed him harder.
Jon’s blood was pumping. He could feel his heart pounding in his ears. It almost seemed like a door knock. He slid his hands down Aleisha’s back and stopped at the small of her back.
“Don’t be scared, Jon, just go ahead and touch my ass! You won’t offend me.”
Jon’s pulse was pounding and he thought he heard another knock. Jon’s breath was quickening and loved the feel of their breath combining in the intimate space between them. Another knock came. This time, he could tell it was the door. “Shit,” he muttered.
“Let it go,” Aleisha pleaded. “They’ll come back.”
“Aleisha, I really-“ Jon started to lean up.
Aleisha grabbed his hands from supporting his weight forcing him to fall back on the couch. She took his hands and placed them on her breasts. “They’ll come back.”
Jon had flashes of Kate, Bender, anyone, coming in and catching him in his first flailings with Aleisha. He also had flashes of any of the killers that Kate had talked about. He definitely didn’t want her to be caught in the middle of this.
Another knock. Jon stopped breathing. If it was killers, they probably would have busted down the door. It was probably Kate or Walter, or Stan or Greg who needed to talk to him about the mission.
Another knock and Jon let out a huge sigh. Aleisha’s breasts were so warm to the touch…. “I’m sorry. Please hold that thought.” Turning toward the door, he called ”Hold on!”
Jon stood up from the couch slowly and straightened his clothes. He took each step to the front door very deliberately. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as he opened the door. “I’m sorry, but I thought you needed to go talk to Walter-“
“Walter’s out of my league.” Nicolas Moss smiled. “I need to talk to you.”
Jon could almost hear the Twilight Zone theme in his head. “I thought I was an ass.”
“You are, but in a good way.” Nicolas grabbed Jon’s shoulder. “I also said that you wanted to help, remember?”
“Yes, I do, but right after that, you said I was an ass.”
“I meant an ass in all of the positive, happy ways.”
“And what ways are those?” Jon leaned against the doorjamb.
“Dude, I am done talking about you, the ass, okay? I need to talk to you the Agent.” Nicolas walked through the Jon-block.
“Excuse me?” Jon asked as pulled himself out of the doorway and shut the door.
“I need to talk to Jonathan Mills, the Agent.” Nicolas walked up the stairs.
“I don’t know what you are-“
“Hey! How are you doing, Aleisha?”
“Hi,” she answered unsteadily. Aleisha locked eyes with Jon as his head became visible above the railing again. Jon shook his head.
“Aleisha, Jon and I need to go somewhere and talk. Will you excuse us?”
“Nicolas,” Jon broke in, “Aleisha and I-“
“I don’t care.” Nicolas stated matter-of-factly. He stopped and Jon ran into the back of his heels. “Me. You. Talk. Now. Comprende?”
Jon shot daggers through his eyes at Nicolas. “Comprende. Can you give us a few minutes, please?”
Moss agreed. “Few minutes. I will wait in the car for you, Jon.” Nicolas slapped Jon heartily on the back as he passed back down the stairs.
Aleisha had a look of sadness mixed with confusion on her face. “Jon, if you don’t want to-“
“Trust me, I want to. I really want to. My life has just been very-“ he paused and took two very deep breaths and exhaled slowly, “- complicated the last few days. I am trying to help out Stan and these things just keep coming up, but, after Saturday, I promise, I will make sure we have the time.”
Aleisha finally stood up. “Are you positive?”
Jon smiled. “Very. I am very positive. Please come to the game on Saturday night. I want you to be there. I really do. I am probably not going to play much. I am there more for the bench, but it is a help to the team and to Stan, so I need to finish what I’ve started. Then, after the game, it will be just you and me. I promise.”
Aleisha gave Jon a giant hug and he crouched ever so slightly so she could reach his neck. “I will be there. And I will wait for you after the game.”
Jon whispered in her ear. :I am so looking forward to it.” He kissed her ear gently.
Aleisha hesitated a moment and then stepped back. “Then, be gone with you both, and Nicolas had better not be there on Saturday night!”
“I promise. Just you & I!” Jon went to the kitchen and retrieved Aleisha’s shoes. He handed them to her and she slipped them on. He placed his hand behind her back and led her down the stairs. As they left, he pulled the door shut and locked it.
Aleisha stayed on the porch as he walked down the first step. “Hey, Mister!” she called.
Jon spun around quickly and, with the step equaling the height difference between them, found himself face to face with Aleisha. She moved in and slowly kissed him.
Moss rolled his eyes.
The duo finally parted. “Do you need a ride?” Jon asked.
“No, I have my car. Thanks though. You and Nicolas are probably going to start talking from the time you get in the car.”
Jon glanced at Nicolas waiting very impatiently in the car. “You are probably right.” He paused, not wanting to say goodbye to Aleisha. “Thanks for coming over. It was fun.”
“Yes it was. I expect Saturday to be even more fun.” She walked to her car and got in, waving at Jon as she did so.
Moss honked the horn.
Jon waved back at Aleisha and then trotted to Nicolas’s car.


“Agent?” Jon yelled at Nicolas. “Agent? What the hell do you know about it?”
Nicolas had already pulled out of Jon’s driveway and was headed to their destination. “A lot, Jon. I know a hell of a lot.” He paused, analyzing the impact. “I am an Agent as well.”
“You are an Agent? And you have been giving me as much shit as you have? What the hell is wrong with you? A little help would have been nice!”
Nicolas made a quick turn from a neighborhood street onto a main street, pushing Jon against the side of the car. “I’ve been giving you help, but, you haven’t been taking much of it.”
“Talk to Dutton? That is help?”
“As much help as I could give at the moment. Jon, I was supposed to be the guy who stays undercover and never reveal my identity. I have been there since Jake Spencer was! You want to know how close I was to Spencer? I was his Agency Partner!”
Jon felt as if he had been sucker punched in the gut. “You and Spencer were partners?”
“Yes. When he was killed, we had no idea if it was personal or business, so I couldn’t reveal myself. I was needing to make sure that we still had a connection. Bender didn’t feel that it was safe for me to be there alone, so they wanted to put Chad in, but you screwed that up nicely by shooting him-“
“If it means anything, I didn’t mean to.”
“I know you didn’t mean to, but that means that he couldn’t come in on this big operation where it needed a little more panache.”
“Sorry. I didn’t know there was a panache limit necessary to be an Agent.”
“Jon, I don’t mean to sound like I am ripping on you personally. I’m not. You are doing an amazing job here, but you are in wayyyy over your head and need a little help. I am here to give you that help. The only catch- you can never reveal to anyone that I am an Agent. I know you’ve let Stan and Greg in on your secret, but they can never know about me. Deal?”
Jon thought about it . Finally, he extended his hand. “Deal.” They shook. After pulling away from the shake, Jon pulled back his right hand and slugged Moss as hard as he could in the shoulder.
“What the hell was that for?” Nicolas asked.
“I should have had knowledge of help a bit sooner!”
“Take it up with Bender! It was his call.”
“I will, but between you and I? it’s now water under the bridge.”
Nicolas pulled into a dirt road that led behind several businesses. “Where the hell are we?” Jon asked.
“We’re here. This is where we are going.”
“Which is where?”
Nicolas pulled the car under a leafless tree behind several businesses that had delivery doors on this side, but these definitely were not the public entrances. Nicolas turned off the ignition and got out.
“So, “ Jon asked hesitantly, “am I getting out as well?”
“Sure. If you need the help, I will be going inside. Therefore, if you want help, you come inside with me.” Nicolas slammed the driver’s side door and opened up the driver’s side back door and pulled out his duffel bag. “Coming?”
Jon got out and shut his door and followed 3 paces behind Nicolas. “You sure this is where we are supposed to be?”
Nicolas laughed. “Well, in a way we are supposed to be here. This is where the team is.”
“The team? The team is here? I can’t even get a night off?”
“Not this time, I’m afraid. But, we’ll be able to have a little alone time. It won’t be hard. Trust me.” Moss rapped on the heavy steel door three times. It opened and a large black man towered over Nicolas. “Hey, Wallace. How are you doing tonight?”
A deep bass voice came out of Wallace’s mouth. “Doing great. Most everyone’s here.”
“Good. Sorry I’m a little late. Had to pick up a friend.”
“Friend?” Wallace’s eyebrows lifted. “No friends allowed.”
Nicolas held up his hands. “I know. You’re right. He is a friend, but he is also a player. This is Neal page. He’s replacing Jake.”
“Hi, Wallace,” Jon waved meekly.
“I was sorry to hear about Jake,” Wallace said. “He was a good guy. I’m going to the funeral tomorrow. You going?”
“I’ll be there, don’t you worry about it.” Moss started to head past Wallace into the dark hallway beyond.
“Save me a seat?” Wallace asked.
“You know it, Wallace! Front and center.”
“Thanks!”
Jon snuck past Wallace. “Have a great night, Wallace.”
All Jon got in reply was a grunt. Jon took that as acknowledgement and followed Moss down the dark passageway.