Chapter 17 - New Friend

Jaxson called for the lift, and we made our way down to the carpark.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you, Terence said he will be returning to Myrtle Falls tonight, but he will make dinner before he goes. He said he would leave his number on the phone list for you in case you need to contact him for anything. Zach may or may not be back tonight, so you don't have to wait up," Jaxson chatted as we rode the lift down.
How was all this going to work? Even though Terence said I could treat the penthouse like my own place, I couldn't wrap my head around how I would do that? I needed to speak to Zach about what his rules and expectations were.
"Earth to Stacey," Jaxson's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
"Sorry! I was just thinking about something. What did you say?" I quickly replied.
"I was saying; you need to tell me which way your apartment is. I'm not very familiar with the streets of Seattle." Jaxson snickered.
The lift stopped, and doors dinged open. We walked out, and Jaxson headed for a black Range Rover.
"Not familiar? Aren't you from around here?" I asked, a little confused.
Keiran and Zach didn't have a problem navigating around Seattle, although Keiran did have a driver, and I had only been in Zach's car twice.
Jaxson opened the front passenger door for me and stepped aside.
"I spend more time in LA. The private security world is more demanding there, thanks to celebrities. Don't get me wrong. I do spend some time in Seattle, just not as much as my brother." Jaxson smiled.
I nodded and got into the car. Jaxson shut the door behind me and quickly walked around, getting into his seat.
"Okay, which way?" Jaxson clipped his seatbelt.
"Bellevue. Cross the bridge via Mercer Island. It will be faster," I explained, clipping myself in.
Jaxson nodded and started the car.
We drove silently for a while before Jaxson started asking random questions about me. I returned the favor and made small talk with him as well.
Jaxson was just as funny as Keiran, although he had a more rigid persona. It was like he was forcing himself to be approachable and gentle. Behind his baby face was definitely a different person.
Jaxson mentioned he was an ex-marine and had been on a few tours of Iraq and Afghanistan. His clenched jaws and rigorous body language as he vaguely told me his story made me want to change the topic immediately. In my old profession, I had treated many veterans. They had told me stories of deployments and their intense training. So I understood Jaxson's desire not to want to talk about his previous work.
In between our conversations, I navigated the way for Jaxson, and it wasn't long before he was parked in front of the building.
"Keiran said Clint would meet us here," Jaxson advised.
I nodded and got out of the car. Jaxson stayed close to me as he scanned the area, stopping to look in one particular direction a little longer than he needed to.
Was someone watching us? Anxiety bubbled in me. What if someone was watching?! Was Jaxson really that capable of defending himself?
I walked into the building and headed up the stairs.
"What floor are you on?" Jaxson asked.
"Fourth," I called over my shoulder.
"Fuck, my calves will be sore tomorrow," he grumbled, making me laugh.
Another husky laugh echoed through the stairway. We turned to find Clint a few steps behind us with a uniformed officer in tow.
"Detective Clint, thank you for joining us" I smiled.
"Not a problem, Miss Rover. I have a few questions for you, so I thought we could have a chat?" Clint replied.
I nodded and headed up the stairs.
"Detective, this is Jaxson Collier. He's here… for my safety," I introduced the two, trying not to reveal too much about why Jaxson was really here.
Clint shook Jaxson's hand and gave him a weird smile as if they were sharing some inside joke.
*Did they know each other?*
We got to the fourth floor to find that the apartment door was shut with yellow police tape. I moved aside as Clint pulled out a pocket knife and cut off the tape before pushing the door open.
Clint led the way as we walked into the apartment while the uniformed officer stayed at the door. The place was a little cleaner than the night it got ransacked. The investigation team must have tidied the mess to help them get around the area easily.
I looked around the little apartment I used to call home. There was nothing homely about it anymore. Instead, my destroyed furniture and belongings made it look more like a dumpsite.
"Miss Rover. I'm sorry to have to do this. I know it's a difficult time for you, but I just have a few questions as we've come to a dead-end on our investigation" Clint cleared his throat.
I turned towards the detective, swallowing loudly.
*Dead end?!* What did that mean?!
"Yes, of course. What can I do to help?" my mouth suddenly felt dry.
I thought the FBI had taken care of all the background information. Clint should have everything he needs. What more could he possibly need?
"I needed some background information on you to try and piece together why someone would want to ransack your apartment. One of the first things we do is find out if anyone from your past is involved. So, I ran your name through our system. However, our system has no information about you before 2020. Is there a reason for this?" Clint opened his folder and started flipping through the pages.
*Fuck!*
"Yes, there's a reason for that," another voice answered.
I turned to find Derek staying in the doorway. Relief washed over me immediately. Derek had impeccable timing.
"And you are?" Clint asked.
"I'm Derek Collins, Stacey's boyfriend" Derek walked in and shook hands with Clint.
*Boyfriend?!* How did we go from good friend to boyfriend?!
"Ah, right. I'm Detective Clint. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too. Just so you know, detective, Stacey is originally from Chicago. I would call Chicago PD if you want more information about her past." Derek explained.
"Actually, Mr. Collins, I did get in contact with Chicago PD. Miss Samantha Barnes has already told me about Miss Rover moving states."
"So, what's the problem then?" Derek snickered.
"The problem, Mr. Collins, is that Chicago PD has the same issue we did. They too have no information on Miss Rover before 2020."
I looked up at Derek. What the hell did the FBI do?! How is there no information before 2020? Of course, I knew why there wasn't, but the FBI was meant to take care of all the fine details so no one would figure out my identity was a hoax.
"I'm sure they've made a mistake. I used to live in Chicago with Stacey. Her information should be there. Like all the parking tickets she got while we were in college." Derek laughed, gazing down at me before wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me closer.
I noticed Jaxson narrow his eyes at Derek's gesture before composing himself.
Zach was definitely going to find out about this.
*What the hell was Derek doing?!*
"I'm sorry I wasn't aware Miss Rover and you had been friends for that long. I assure you there's no mistake. But to make sure I didn't miss anything, I will double-check. Now that I know about your parking tickets, I will have Chicago PD look into that. Would you be able to give me the license plate for the car you owned?" Clint clicked his pen.
I nodded and gave him the license plate number that came in my fake life briefing pack.
Clint pulled out his phone and excused himself to call Chicago PD. Jaxson excused himself and hovered in the hallway, talking on the phone while Derek and I went through all my destroyed belongings. From the corner of my eye, I could see he had his eyes on Derek and me.
I was sure Jaxson was already snitching on me.
"Find anything?" Derek interrupted my thoughts.
"No. I swear Knox really didn't want me to have anything left." I grumbled, pushing aside what looked like stuffing ripped out of my mattress.
"I don't understand. Why couldn't Clint find any information on me? I thought you guys took care of that," I whispered the last part.
"Yeah, we do, but I didn't expect Clint to be that fast. Normally detectives are lazy and drag out B&E's, so we have time to replace the information, but I underestimated Clint." Derek grumbled.
"Why the fuck do you guys wait to replace information? Isn't that something you should do as soon as you rehome a witness?!" I snapped.
How irresponsible was the FBI?! I was risking everything to testify for them, and here they were, taking my protection so lightly.
"It's a lengthy process that's hard to explain. Don't worry. It's been taken care of now. When the surveillance called to say you had left Zach's building, I thought it was the best time to come find out what Clint knew. Plus, I thought about your idea to make it look like we were involved. I think this boyfriend thing will be a good cover story for you," Derek replied.
"Good cover story for what exactly?!" I was starting to get angry now.
"To keep Zach at bay. Whatever obsession he has for you will be buried once he finds out you have a boyfriend. We can't risk him getting too close to you."
Too close to me?! I was living in his house; he was already close. Besides, thanks to the existing closeness, it was getting harder and harder to push away all the feelings brewing for Zach.
I chewed the inside of my cheeks in frustration as I kicked aside more rubbish.
"Stacey, how much longer do you think you'll be?" Jaxson's voice interrupted my thoughts.
"Umm, I think I'm done here. Zach was right; there's nothing left. Honestly, this seems like a waste of time." I looked around at the clutter.
"Okay, well, I just got off the phone with K. Zach is on his way back and has asked me to take you to do whatever shopping you need. So, whenever you're ready." Jaxson cleared his throat.
Jaxson's eyes wandered between Derek and me.
"I can take her to get whatever she needs. You don't have to trouble yourself," Derek commented.
"Well, my orders are to stay with Stacey. I value my life too much to disobey Zach's orders," Jaxson stated.
You could tell he held back the words, "Try me, boy. I'll fuck you up."
*Oh boy…*
"Derek, it's okay. Every time we go shopping together, you get bored anyway. Maybe shopping with Jaxson will be more fun," I snickered, trying to play along.
"Whatever," Derek grumbled, making Jaxson laugh.
I gave my apartment one last look and walked out with the two boys in tow.
Clint was in the stairway, still talking to someone on the phone. He wrapped up the conversation when he saw us and ended the call.
"Well, that was Chicago PD. They apologized for the mix-up, but they have found your details. It's all there." Clint sighed.
He sounded upset rather than happy about finally getting a breakthrough on his case.
"Did you get all the information you needed? Is there anything else I can help with?" I asked, trying to hide my glee.
"Not at the moment. I will keep in touch if there is anything. Do you have any questions for me?"
I shook my head. What was I meant to ask him? If the FBI couldn't answer my questions, there was no way Clint would have answers.
We walked out of the building, and Jaxson quickly scanned the area like before. His attentiveness was a little worrying. Was there something he knew that I didn't?
"Call me when you get home. Enjoy your shopping," Derek mumbled.
"And you'll call me if you find out anything?" I whispered.
"Of course." Derek smiled.
Jaxson cleared his throat from behind us.
I rolled my eyes and gave Derek a hug before watching him walk to his car.
I slid into the car and clipped myself in.
"Boyfriend, huh. That part didn't come in my briefing pack," Jaxson began as he slid into his seat.
"Yeah, we wanted to keep it on the down-low." I swallowed.
"Zach is going to be so happy about this," Jaxson snickered as he started driving.
"There's no need to tell Zach anything!" I shrieked.
"No promises made," Jaxson chuckled.
Before I could protest, my phone started ringing. The unknown number flashing on my phone had my heart racing.
"You might want to pick that up," Jaxson snorted.
*Oh lord. What had Jaxson done?*
"Hello.." I answered, my voice cracking a little.
"What happened to *"just good friends"?* " Zach's angry voice filled my ears.
"I… We…" I stuttered, completely forgetting how to lie.
Why was I panicking so much? I wanted Zach to stay away from me. So why was Zach knowing about Derek and my fake relationship making me nervous?
"Don't bother," Zach growled.
"I have a little party organized at the penthouse on Friday. Get yourself something nice to wear with the credit card I've given you."
"Why am I attending the party?" I stuttered, sweat forming on my forehead.
"Because I've asked you too. Now, do as you're told. I'll see you later" the call ended.
I stared at my phone screen. I was satisfied to know that Derek's plan was somewhat working. Of course, I wanted Zach to hate me and keep his distance, but deep down, I knew I was beginning to enjoy the attention he was giving me.
I took a deep breath and quickly pushed away all the lingering feelings. I couldn't let my emotions get the best of me. Not right now.
"You okay?" Jaxson's voice interrupted my dilemma.
"I'm fine. I wish you would have asked me before you snitched on me," I grumbled.
"Well, if you would have been honest to being with, Zach's reaction would be different."
I rolled my eyes. "I don't understand why Zach even has a problem with this! It's my life. Zach shouldn't concern himself." I snapped, letting out an exasperated sigh.
Jaxson just chuckled and continued driving.
I didn't know why I even bothered to rant. Just like his brother, I knew Jaxson, too, wouldn't give me any additional information.

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***A/N:-
Hey wonderful readers,
Could I please ask you to add the chapter number in your comments? Anystories doesn't show us exactly what chapter you've commented on so I have to scroll through all the chapters to find the context of your comment. Sorry about this! I love replying back to your comments and would love to know the context behind your comment before I reply. Please do leave a comment letting me know what you think of the story. Thank you for understanding!
Love, Shazza.***