"Thought you'd be asleep", Zach frowned when he got back into the room. He moved to remove his shirt and sweats.
"I was curious about this 'Eric Simmons'", she replied softly with her gaze peeled on her laptop.
"You heard that?" He was genuinely surprised. He thought they were being quiet except for the guy's groaning and the sound of him being thrown to the ground.
"I have eyes and ears everywhere in this house", she calmly replied. Then she looked up when she realized what she said. "It's not that I eavesdrop on everything. It's just for situations like these."
"Don't worry, I'm not bothered", he chuckled softly at her nervousness.
After he heard the front door closed did he turn on the lights. He didn't like her working in the dark in fear of ruining her eyes. She smiled even as she typed away.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome", he moved to join her on the bed.
"You didn't buy the thief b.s?" She asked with an amused smile.
"My men will look into it. We should have answers by tomorrow", he moved to get under the sheets.
She looked up at him with sparkling eyes. "How about now?"
His brows lifted up in amusement before his cupped her chin. "For someone who has a bounty on their head, you seem a little too excited about this. That could be an assassin we just caught."
"What if he is?" She countered with a smile.
His curiosity was piqued by what she said. She didn't waste a second and turned her laptop screen to him. The his brows furrowed as he skimmed through the information.
"Antonio Rodriguez, also known as Viper, one of Class B assassins.... Hmmm", he leaned back into the headboard after reading the information.
"This is all thanks to Stella", she said as she leaned into his embrace.
The light in her arms dimmed when she said this. As Zach wrapped his arms around her, her mind took her back to the day before, hours before the book club.
Yesterday morning....
She had just woken up and as usual, Zach's side of the bed was made. She had figured he had OCD because of the way he did things. Everything was done with precision, order, and neatly. She found it amusing yet attractive at the same time.
She remembered to brush her teeth and wash her face first. Without bothering to throw on a robe, she went to the living room where she found him working. He was such a busy man. He turned when he heard the soft sound of her footsteps.
"Good morning", she pecked his lips.
"Good morning", he dropped a file before bringing her onto his lap. She tucked stray hairs away from her face as she took in the paperwork. "Slept well?"
She nodded, "You know I can help you with some of these."
"Thanks baby, but it's okay. These can be quite stressful so let's not do that", he said gently.
His thumb caressed where his hand lay on her thigh. He hummed in thought with his brows furrowed. 'Is something up?' she mused as she took in his expression.
"There's something I need to show you", he said softly. She watched him take a tablet and brought it to her. Her brows went up when she saw what was on the display.
"This is..."
"I know. I'll understand if you take offense but I simply wanted to know the people hanging around you. I found it odd that they didn't even push to know your story after what you told them at the hospital. The most human thing to do is become more curious but they shut it down like it was nothing. So I asked George to look into and we found this...."
He took in her expression. Shock was evident on her delicate features. He hoped she would understand his position but he would still apologize. Anyone would take offense if they were in her shoes. A laugh erupted from her lips.
Zach was shocked by this. She wasn't angry and the laugh was not insincere. Did he miss something?
"Seems like we're alike in this aspect", she said with a bashful smile. His brows furrowed in confusion. "I look into everyone I encounter on more than one occasion. And yes, I found it odd that she brushed it aside so easily knowing the curious person Stella is. I brushed it off though it slightly bothered me."
"So you knew about her being a former member of the Night Wolves?"
"Yes. From day one. I have a feeling it had to do with why she left her hometown", she said in thought. That story about her leaving because of her cousin Lily, it didn't seem as likely.
"Mm. But I think that might be a problem for you", he said.
With her curiosity piqued, he scrolled down on the page he had showed her. Amy felt sick to the stomach when she saw the bounty the Dark Waters had issued on her. How did she miss all this?
Zach sighed, "The Night Wolves are also partaking in this mission. I don't know if-"
"She won't! I may sound delusional but Stella won't betray me to them", she said with clear resolve.
She trusted the friendship they had cultivated over the past few months. But with the lies Stella had come to learn about her, would she really not betray her? Zach's heart broke when he saw her worried expression.
Back to the present time....
Zach tightened his embrace around Amy. Despite everything that was happening, the assassins, the bounty on her head, and everything else; she was worried about her friendship with Stella. His heart ached when he saw this.
"Zachery", she called out softly.
"Yes, baby", he rested his chin atop her head.
"I don't know how many have managed to find out about this, I don't want them hurting her because of me. We need to do something to prevent that", she said.
He had a solution but was too afraid to voice knowing how heart broken she would be. But to his surprise, Amy looked up at him and said the very thing he was thinking about.
"We need to leave West Village", she said with clear determination.
She said it herself. He frowned at this, "Are you sure?"
She nodded in response. He searched her eyes and slowly tears started welling up in her eyes. A drop fell down her cheek followed by her lips quivering. He cupped her cheek and brought her head to his chest. Her soft sobs echoed in the quiet night....
Zach felt his anger boil at Amy's heart breaking cries. Their enemies were quickly driving them up a wall. This whole game needed to end.... He would make sure of it....
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