"How did you find me?" Alex whispered, her arms wrapped around Colby, afraid he'd slip away so easily again. Her hands trembled, the shock riding over her like crazy. She still couldn't believe he stood in the door way. He hadn't changed a bit since last year and of course he couldn't say the same about her.
Alex was pregnant. That small bump of a belly pressed against him was a dead give away, obviously. He smiled but that infectious grin was wiped free from his face, the thought alone of Alex' impending fate imminent.
"I got my ways," Seth whispered back, "I was at your place before you left with Jon... I needed to talk to you."
"You're here because of Finn, aren't you?" Alex guessed, hitting the bulls eye. She finally forwards her grip on Colby, pulling back. "Jon lied to me, about him. About you."
"I could understand why, Alex," Colby mumbled, pointing to her belly. "He was trying to protect you and what you've got. I'd do the same thing if some psychopath was after you."
"He's really alive, isn't he?" Alex asked, tears welling in her eyes, "And he's coming for me..."
"He's still kicking around... He wants what he didn't get last time- business wise. But he's not getting close to you."
"Jon told me everything... He was in my house. He found out where I live with the kids. Who knows if he followed me here just like you did," Alex panicked.
"No one followed you except for me..."
"How can you be so sure?"
Colby grabbed a hold of her hands in an attempt to calm her down. Staring into her eyes, he was about to make a promise he intended to keep this time around. "Trust me when I say this time will be different... I won't let anything happen to you. Jon wont either. That's why he brought you here and that's why I'm here. I have eyes on Finn now- I know where he's going, who he's seeing and where he's going next."
"How?" Alex breathed.
"Sasha... She made a deal with Finn and his guy the other night. They're running things together- in and out of Florida and Chicago now. As long as she's in with them, I am too."
"Does he know?"
Colby shook his head. "As far as I know... No. And I plan on keepin' it that way till I get to him. He's not getting away this time. He's gonna slip up and either Jon or I will kill him. You know that."
"I know," Alex nodded, that scary look in Jon's eyes the entire way to the hotel confirming Colby's statement. Jon was dead set on execution. Policing didn't matter when it came to Alex or his kids and the danger they faced.
"Shit... You have to go." Alex remembered Jon had Nick coming to join her at the hotel. She didn't want some awkward run in or for Jon to find out just yet.
"Give me your phone," Colby said. He programmed his number into her device, as did she. "If anything happens, you call me right away."
"Okay."
He pulled her into a hug again, holding onto her tightly not because he feared it was the last time he'd see her but because he truly missed her. A year away was too long of a time and now that their secret reunion was cut short, Colby wanted nothing more than to break the rules and show up whenever he wanted... Whenever he could. But he knew that wasn't possible. He really was wanted in the area for questioning concerning his club since Alberto and Becky shot up the place. Getting caught by the cops would only bring up a round house of other questions like the old warehouse full of contraband. He'd be fucked but he questioned himself if it was really worth it to see Alex and protect her like he failed at doing so long ago.
"I'm sorry about the letters," she whispered, guilt rising over. "If I would have known, I-"
"Alex," he interjected, "It's okay... Now I know for sure you're well protected. That's all I ever wanted for you."
The two stood in silence, Colby reluctant to even leave. But he figured since an officer was on his way to stay with Alex he'd have a better chance scoping the area for any sighting of Finn.
"Ill be around. But you call me if you need me," Colby instructed, leaving the room on full alert. The hall to the elevator was completely empty, or so he thought.
"Who is that?" Nick whispered from his place around the corner by the door leading the stair well, the opposite side of the hall where Colby walked down.
It couldn't have been Finn. Even though he'd only seen his grainy image from a dash cam he knew for a fact it wasn't him.
Nick quickly bolted to Alex' hotel room once he heard the elevator doors opening and closing. He had his gun ready as he slipped his key card into the door, fearing the worst. Pausing, he took a deep breath and peered around the door to nothingness. She wasn't in the bed.
"Alex?" He called out, lowly. He searched every side of the bed, even underneath. He heard some ruffling coming from the bathroom, so he held his gun outwards, ready to shoot.
"Woah!" Alex shouted, hands up as she exited. Her heart pounded in her chest and Nick quickly shoved his gun into the holster, face palming himself.
"Shit, I'm sorry, I'm sorry... I thought you were someone else!"
"Who else would it be?! You're the only one beside's Jon that has a key."
Nick folded his arms across his chest. "You and I both know that's not true."
"What do you mean?" She asked, her back turned to him as she fumbled around in her purse. Biting her lip, she knew she'd been caught.
"I saw someone come out of this room just as I got on the floor... Who was he?" Nick pressed.
Stuck in a corner, Alex couldn't lie her way out of nothing now. With a sigh, she stared at the ground. "Don't tell Jon until I do, but... It was Colby."
He paused. The name so fresh in his memory. "So that's Lopez?"
He knew all about him thanks to Jon.
xXx
"Where's Alex?" Joe asked, yawn after yawn escaping his lips. He'd been awaken from a peaceful slumber- Nicole nudging him repeatedly. She tiredly shoved his cell in his face, going back to sleep herself. That's when he popped out of bed having heard that Finn's car had been spotted and picked up- on its way to the station for examination.
"She's at the Hilton with Nick..." Jon trailed off, searching through the backseat of the car with his eyes peeled.
"Why is she there?" Antonio asked, unaware the shit had finally hit the fan.
"She found out about Finn and how the fucker isn't really dead," Joe informed him.
"I told you it'd come back and bite you in the ass," Antonio said, oh so matter of factly. If Jon hadn't been completely enveloped in his search he would have smacked Antonio senseless.
"That isn't the only thing I kept from her," Jon mumbled, stepping out of the car with a sigh. So far he found absolutely no physical evidence except for finger prints he was sure belonged to Finn.
"What else could you possibly keep from the poor girl?"
Jon smoothed out his messy hair, kicking his foot against the car, his ear trained for any compartments. "Colby... The guy who owned the club she worked at," he said, continuing his way around the car. "I kept his letters from her."
Antonio kneeled inside the passengers seat, doing the same as Jon- checking for any hollowed out compartments. "She too smart for you, Jon... It was only a matter of time that she'd figure it out," Antonio said. Jon ignored him, falling to his knees to check the underneath of the car. He was desperate- not just for evidence but vindication. Jon knew he fucked up by withholding Alex' right to know of Colby even if he was deemed a criminal. The last thing he wanted was to be reminded of his fault, over and over.
Just as he approached the other side of the hood, a hollow sound seemed to echo throughout the garage once Antonio knocked his fist against the inside door panel. Jon rounded the car like a hawk, moving Antonio out of the way so he could inspect. There was a tiny black, metal loop- perfectly hidden from the untrained eye. With a hard yank, Jon had the tiny compartment door open, two little black booklets and white tickets staring him back.
"What'd you find?" Joe asked, fighting off another yawn.
"Passports and airplane tickets."
Jon held up the booklets, waving them around. With his gloved fingers, he opened them- the first clearly Finn's but the other for Alex. Her full name, date of birth, everything of importance included but the picture a complete doppelgänger- not Alex but close.
"Jesus Christ... He's got it all planned out," Jon muttered, squeezing the plane tickets marked for Las Vegas.
xXx
Sitting around the hotel room was starting to get to Alex. It had been almost two days and she was going stir crazy, the same four walls caving her in, almost impossible to breathe at this point.
Nick was fast asleep on the ottoman across from the bed, snoring like he hadn't slept in years. He'd been at the hotel since the very first night, on high alert per Jon's orders. After finding the plane tickets to Las Vegas, Jon was convinced Finn's plan included kidnapping Alex. So he'd been combing the entire city, running on zero sleep and dozens of cups of coffee.
'You don't let her leave for anything, Nick.'
'Well, you don't have much faith in me.'
'I'm fucking serious... It's worse than I thought.'
'What're we dealing with?'
'A fucking angry cop if she gets outta your sight... He had passports and plane tickets in that car. He was gonna take her to Vegas.'
'Jesus...'
Even though Alex didn't hear the full extent of the conversation but she knew it wasn't good. None of it was- hiding out in a hotel room the perfect first example.
But she couldn't take it anymore.
Alex missed her kids and Jon... But the distance between herself and Kylie pained hair. It was déjà vu all over again- separation from her daughter till everything blew over.
She couldn't go through with it again which influenced this sudden sense of spontaneous, reckless behaviour Jon would never ever appreciate.
She was going to leave without Nick's knowledge.
'Tell Jon I'm sorry. I went to see Kylie,' the note Alex left read.
Slipping out of the hotel room was easier said and done as Nick was dead to the world. But she shut the door gently for added measure before taking the stairs to the main floor. With no car, she hopped into the first cab parked outside the doors.
'185 Vinewood, please.'
Alex was anxious to get home, pack whatever she could fit into a bag and call Randy- so she could see Kylie. Every now and then Alex would glance at her phone, expecting a phone call or text once Nick discovered the note. But once the cab driver pulled up to her house, she stuck her phone back into her purse.
Slipping the driver a twenty, she stepped out. He soon drove off, Alex walking the stone path to the front door to unlock it. Turning on the hallway light, she shut the door behind her before climbing the stairs to her bedroom to pack.
That's when she heard a creak coming from the darkened room, stopping her in her tracks. "Jon?" She called out, hopeful the mysterious step came from him or at least someone friendly. But there was no way she'd chance it. She bolted down the stairs, ready to exit if it weren't for a shaggy, bearded, familiar figure barricading the door in the now darkened entrance.
"Hey there lovely," that bone chilling voice greeted, radiating through her being.
"So we meet again," he chuckled as she ran through the hall, heading for the backdoor in the kitchen. She panicked, clawing for the lock but she was too late. A large being, his hands gripping her shoulders, pulled her away from the door. He slammed her against the dining room wall- her head rattled against the wood just as hard.
Everything vision wise was a complete blur, Alex hanging in and out of consciousness just as she hit the floor. She saw stars, black spots taking their place. Crawling away from the large man and Bray was an impossible thought as Alex laid there.
"Pick her up," she swore she heard Finn's voice order. Her eyes snapped open as the man did as he was told, grabbing Alex in his arms. As he cradled her, Finn approached- some of his figure visible.
He ran his fingers through her hair, his eyes locked on the girl driving his obsession.
"I found you."
