Chapter 13 - Zach

***Zach's POV***


Sleep had become my enemy tonight. My life revolved around many people who disliked me, but I never thought sleep would join that list. Even though I knew exactly why I couldn't sleep, I still hated it. Usually, I would be passed out by now enjoying a much-needed good night's sleep, but with Stacey being in such proximity, my body was humming for her. Instead of going to my room, I sat on the couch, listening to her move around in her room.
I could hear it all, from all her movements to her irregular heartbeats. I knew she, too, couldn't sleep for the same reason I couldn't. The static in the air was just so intense; the goosebumps were making all the hair on my body stand.
My mind wandered back to the way Stacey had hugged that Derek guy. We had talked about so much over dinner she didn't once mention she was seeing someone. They both brushed their closeness off as friendship, but was it just a ruse?
Or was that the real reason she didn't want to have dinner with me?
The thought of another man having his hands on my girl made me very mad. Even Keiran's innocent flirting was driving me crazy. I knew Keiran was just teasing, but even then, I couldn't control my jealousy. At least with Keiran, I knew he had no intentions of stealing Stacey away from me. However, Mr. Derek looked like he had bad intentions.
I had to find out more about him and his relationship with Stacey. Once my plan to keep Stacey under my roof permanently was in motion, I would be able to keep an eye on her and hopefully win over her heart. I planned to erase all those insecurities and hurt she had encountered in her life. My girl was going to be treated like the Queen she is.
I finally gave up on sleep at 4 am and decided to work out in my home gym to burn off my body's excess energy. Thankfully, my gym was soundproofed, letting me blast my music while taking turns on all the equipment.
It was 6 am when Keiran showed up, interrupting my attempts to keep myself distracted.
Keiran turned off the music and flopped down on the futon I had in the gym.
"Well, sounds like Miss Sunshine is hiding more than she's letting on," he grumbled.
"I'm going to need some context". I rolled my eyes and wiped the sweat off my forehead. An hour on the treadmill had me drenched in sweat.
"How about you hear it from Clint?" Keiran pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
After 2 rings, the familiar raspy voice picked up.
"Do you not sleep, you bastard?"
I couldn't help but chuckle.
Keiran laughed, shaking his head.
Keiran, Clint, and I grew up together. Thanks to our fathers, the three of us were inseparable. But when we turned 16, everything changed. Clint got shipped off to the military, and Keiran and I got thrown into disappointment and regret. We finally reunited once Clint left the army and joined the Seattle PD.
"No, fuckwit! When the boss asks for information, sleep and I bid each other goodbye, and that's what is expected from everyone. Now, Zach is here. Tell him what you found on Stacey."
I got off the treadmill and joined Keiran on the futon.
"Unfortunately, there's nothing to tell," Clint started.
"What the fuck do you mean by nothing to tell? You must have found something on her," I demanded.
"Before 2020, your girl didn't exist. I pulled out all the details the Seattle Police Department has on her, and it all stopped on the 1st of January, 2020. There is not a single piece of information on her before that," Clint replied.
"Stacey said she only came to Seattle two years ago; maybe that's why you don't have any information on her. Have you checked with Chicago PD? That's where she said she grew up," I suggested.
"Way ahead of you, sir. When I called Chicago PD, they told me the same thing. Stacey Rover didn't exist before 2020. There were no records of her anywhere in Chicago. Not even at the University. Just to be absolutely sure, I pulled out the birth certificate she had provided for her driver's license and got her parent's name. I gave the names to Chicago PD and asked them to get info, but that was a dead-end. James and Patricia Rover have never lived at the address on file. They don't exist." Clint explained.
Didn't exist? How the fuck was it possible? Why was she lying about her identity? I knew she was mysterious, and I loved that about her, but this was a little overboard.
"After I spoke to Clint, I called my FBI contact. Andy wasn't pleased to be woken up at 2 am, but he searched their database, and he found Stacey Rover." Keiran cleared his throat.
"And?" I asked.
"And, it turns out Stacey Rover is part of the FBI's Witness Protection Programme. Because that information is extremely classified, the folder is sealed, so Andy couldn't give me more information. But he said that the folder was recently opened by an unauthorized person, so its security was increased. Apparently, it's a very high profile case." Keiran sighed, giving me a side look.
Witness Protection?! Stacey had a good reason to lie about her identity; she was hiding. That's what she meant about the demons of her past being dangerous. Whoever she was hiding from had her scared.
"Did you say Stacey's folder had recently been opened? It's just a thought, but could it be that her apartment was ransacked by the people she's hiding from? I mean, you gotta have some big balls and deep pockets to get a classified folder opened. Especially one that belongs to a witness. That shit is taken very seriously." Clint chimed in.
"It's possible. I mean, Andy didn't go into much detail, but the way he explained it, whatever Stacey was involved in, was perilous" Keiran yawned and ran his hand through his hair.
He looked like a mess. Poor dude really hadn't gotten any sleep, and I knew how much he loved his sleep.
"It's bad news all around. I'm still waiting for CSU's report, but when I spoke to the guy in the lab yesterday, he said they didn't find much at Stacey's apartment. All the fingerprints recovered were either Stacey's, Sam's, Crystal's, or Zach's. The CCTVs on the street were of no use, and we had no witnesses. There is no way we will get our hands on Stacey's sealed folder. With no leads, there's not much to investigate." Clint mumbled.
"I can get the file." I blurted.
"Seriously?" both the men said in unison.
"Yes, seriously."
"Zach, did you not hear what I said? It's a classified sealed folder. They've already had a breach that's put the file under lockdown. What makes you think you can get that file?" Keiran snorted.
"Let's just say I did someone a favor once, and he owes me. Although, there is one more thing we are overlooking. If Stacey's ruined apartment has to do with her hidden identity, why was there a wolf in her apartment? It can't be a coincidence that a wolf pee's all over Stacey's undergarments the same day as her apartment gets broken into." I hissed.
The thought of someone being in her apartment, ready to grab at the first chance, made my blood boil.
What the hell was Stacey involved in, and how did her life connect her to wolves?
"You think whoever was there is part of our world? But Stacey is human; I've checked," Keiran exclaimed.
"And I cross-checked the results for K. Stacey submitted blood and urine for a drug test before she started at Twin Cleans. There were no abnormalities in her blood work." Clint added.
"Then how did her life get tangled into our world?" I muttered, annoyed.
"I think the better question is who from our world is scandalous enough to end up on FBI's hit list," Clint stated.
"Dude, our world is full of idiots that love to show off their abilities to humans and get attention. Someone would have gone too far". Keiran rolled his eyes.
Humans weren't meant to know about our world. Coming under the FBI's radar was dangerous for everyone.
I got up and walked over to the window. The sky was just starting to fill up with the sun's brilliant rays. Seattle was always beautiful in the mornings. Although, nothing could beat the sunrise and crisp mornings back at home. Living in the heart of Seattle was more of a convenience rather than a desire. I missed home. I missed the snowy mountains, the pine trees, the cold as icy lakes and rivers.
Even though I had lived the metro life for over ten years, I was still in love with the quiet mountain life Mt Rainier had provided. Before life got serious, before all the dramas being an adult brought, my family and I lived in Myrtle Falls, a small town on the outskirts of Mt Rainier. To an average person, Myrtle Falls was just a scenic town with a beautiful waterfall and scenic trails, but it was so much more to the town's occupants.
I could see Mt Rainier's white fluffy peaks from where I was standing. The view was my daily comfort and a reminder that home was still waiting for me.
My heart did a little somersault as I realized I wouldn't be going home alone this time. I would be taking my Queen home.
The thought of Stacey being in my ancestral property, visiting all the places I grew up in, meeting the people that still meant the world to me, gave me a very different satisfaction.
My mind couldn't help but imagine Stacey in the house I called home. In my room, on my bed – exactly where she belonged.
The notion of Stacey laying on my bed was enough to pitch a tent in my shorts. The slightest inappropriate thought about her had my dick twitching like it had a mind of its own.
Although, there were so many wonderful things I could do to her if she was spread across my bed.
*Fuck!*
I was just making this worse for myself. My dick was painfully hard as it pressed against my shorts, threatening to escape.
I quickly closed my eyes and tried to calm myself down.
"Zach! Are you listening to me?!" Keiran's voice brought me back to reality.
"Huh?" I stuttered, crossing my hands in front of the raging boner in my shorts.
"Eww, dude. Seriously! Clint, this asshole has a raging boner," Keiran ranted.
"Shut the fuck up, K. I can't help it, okay! I've never wanted to touch a girl so badly before. It's like I'm going to explode if I don't touch her," I complained, running my hand through my hair, keeping one hand in front of my crotch.
"He's got the love bug badly. Fuck, I have to find a new wingman!" Keiran groaned, making me roll my eyes.
I could see where his priorities were.
Clint laughed, still on the line.
"It's not funny, guys. Clint, Stacey wants to visit her apartment and see if there's anything she can salvage. When can she access it", I grumbled, annoyed with my boner that refused to calm down.
"There's nothing left for her to salvage. Well, besides the pee-covered panties. The way the intruders ripped through her place, they were either looking for something or didn't want Stacey to be left with anything. I suggest a shopping spree to replace everything."
"Keiran, where is Jaxson? He can take Stacey shopping for whatever she needs. Hopefully, she agrees to stay here," I worried.
"I've called him. He should be here by tomorrow. In the meantime, I can take her shopping," Keiran smirked.
"Sounds like you don't value that pretty face of yours," I growled, raising my eyebrow.
Clint burst out laughing.
"You know I'm just trying to be friendly." he gave me a wink and a cheeky smirk.
"How about you go fuck yourself?" I knew his intentions were innocent, but it was still pissing me off.
Until Stacey was entirely mine, the thought of her near another man would constantly irritate me.
Keiran laughed and got off the futon.
"Hey, have you looked at me? I would fuck me" Keiran snapped his fingers while swaying his hips.
"Instead of being a dufus, why don't you go find out what Stacey's connection to that Derek guy is." I rolled my eyes.
"Dude! I just told you who he is. Maybe instead of being a horny bastard, you should pay more attention to the important conversation we are having." Keiran complained.
I grabbed the 5kg dumbbell and hurled it at him.
Keiran caught the dumbbell with ease and started to use it.
"You really have some issues with my handsome face."
I rolled my eyes.
"Zach, it turns out Derek is part of the FBI. Normally, people under the witness protection program have a handler. We can't be sure until we get the files, but Derek could be Stacey's handler." Clint interrupted.
"But why are they so close? That hug wasn't "I'm glad to see my handler," it was more," I grumbled, rethinking how Stacey ran to hug Derek.
"How about you get your hands on her files, and then we can perform a post-mortem of Stacey Rover," Clint advised.
He was right. There was no point in me jumping to conclusions about Stacey, especially now that I knew there was more to her story.
"Agreed. I'm going to go shower and check on Stacey. Sam and Crystal should be here soon with some clothes for Stacey." I pulled out my phone to check the time. It was 6:35 am.
Hopefully, Stacey got a little bit of sleep.
"God, I would love to get my hands on Crystal. She is so fucking hot! Argh!" Keiran puckered his lips and pretended to kiss the air.
"And that's my cue. I'm going to get ready to work. Let me know once you've got the files, Zachary. Laters." Clint hung up.
"You are disgusting. Go tidy yourself up. You look like death," I teased Keiran.
He rolled his eyes and flashed me his middle finger before walking out of the gym.
I laughed and followed him out.
Once I got to my room, I grabbed my pajama pants and a vest and headed for the bathroom. I didn't want Stacey to know I hadn't slept. Hopefully, my choice of clothing will help me keep up my ruse.
Before I got into the shower, I flicked my FBI contact a text to call me when he was free. I usually just called him, but it was still very early, and I didn't want to piss him off before asking for such an important favor.
I had once saved his ass from a huge problem, and I knew he couldn't turn me down. But I was going to ask him to break rules he had taken an oath to follow. It would be interesting to see if he would come through for me.
As I watched the streaming hot water steam up the bathroom, my mind wandered back to all the things Keiran, Clint, and I spoke about.
I knew Stacey was distancing herself from me for a reason, but I didn't anticipate the reason being this serious.
Witness Protection?! What crime had she witnessed or been part of that led to her being in this situation?
At the beginning of my career, I helped create a facial recognition software that helped categorize and file anyone in the program. In that time, I learned some helpful information. If Stacey was part of this program, she would have left everything behind to keep herself safe from whatever evil was after her. And now, that evil had found her.
I wasn't going to let Stacey out of my sight until whoever the asshole was, had been caught. Any evil heading towards Stacey would have to go through me first.
However, all I really wanted was to see my girl right now. Even though she was under the same roof as me, I knew I had to keep my distance. Stacey didn't know about my secrets, and until I could find the right time to explain my world to her, I had to keep whatever was happening between us as normal as possible. One slip up, and I could lose her forever, and there was no way I would let that happen.