A/N: HEY GUYS I'M BACK! As always I'M SORRY FOR THE WAIT (please don't bash me :'D) I've been busy after finals because I had to prepare to come to the UK for study abroad but I managed to complete this chapter! So hoorah! I hope you guys enjoy this! And as always, leave a review! They motivate me to write and I really appreciate them :D

Her first instinct was to dash up the stairs into her son's room. A wash of relief poured through her when she saw him snoring gently on his bed. She leaned against the door frame, a sudden wave of exhaustion hitting her. She watched the rise and fall of his chest, uninterrupted by the shocking discovery in the mail. He's safe, he's alive, he's breathing.

Her mind instantly rushed to Henry and she hoped, with a hint of panic, that he was unharmed.

Just then, her phone buzzed. Thank god. It was a text from him wishing her goodnight, ending with a 'I love you' and virtual kisses. What a sweet man. She felt her heart sink as she read the text over and over again, knowing that he was unaware of the danger he was in.

With a tremulous sigh, she returned downstairs to check that they were the only ones at home and made sure that the doors and windows were locked, sliding the deadbolts into place. When that was done, she got back to the pictures, still splayed across the kitchen counter as if to mock her. A shiver traveled down her spine as she inspected the photos. She flipped everything around and examined the insides of the envelope, the note, everything, and eventually found nothing. Not even a return address. Of course. Her thoughts were a jumbled mess in her mind.

A stalker? Was it a prank? Did they send the photos to intimidate her? But what for? What was the purpose of doing this? Do they want money? Or is it something bigger? How did they even get her address?

What was going on?

Slipping the photos back into the envelope, she hid it in her office between two books on a shelf; she didn't want Jason to pick it up accidentally. She ran a hand through her hair, tears burning at the back of her eyes as she willed herself to force down the panic. Breathe, Elizabeth, breathe. Nothing has happened. Not yet.

Wearily, she got ready for bed. After fitfully tossing and turning for an hour in her own sheets, she crept into Jason's room and carefully positioned herself behind him, a hand resting on his shoulder. It was the only way she could fall asleep that night.

She climbed out of Jason's bed before he woke up the next morning. Events from the previous night rushed back into her mind as freshened up and got ready for work. Winter break was officially over, at least for the professors. Peering through the window with a cup of coffee in hand, she carefully surveyed her front yard for any odd movement, so of course she didn't hear Jason coming down the stairs.

"Morning, Mom." His feet shuffled against the floor, his voice still groggy and thick with sleep.

She gasped at the sudden interruption in her thoughts and spilled some of the hot black liquid onto her hands. Cursing, she grabbed a washcloth and quickly wiped the floor and counter.

Jason immediately grew more alert. "Are you okay?"

"Uh, yeah, it's nothing." She ran her fingers under water for a moment before turning the tap off and drying them. The peaceful morning silence that she was so accustomed to suddenly seemed alien, too much, intruded by some stranger watching her loved ones and her every move. She turned to face him. "Listen, Jason…"

"Mm?" He looked up, halfway through the peanut butter jelly sandwich he made for himself.

"For the next few weeks, I want you to go to school and come home straight after. And when you do, lock all the doors and frontー"

"Wait, what?! But I have plans with my friendsー" he started protesting, his voice rising with every word.

"No buts!"

"Yeah?! Really, Mom?!"

"Yeah! I mean it, Jace!" She had to yell so that she could be heard, then immediately regretted it when they fell into silence yet again, his face shocked. Clearly something in her expression made him stop. She dropped her voice to a whisper. "Please, Jace. I beg you. I need you to stay safe."

He scanned her face. "Something's up. What's happening?"

For a moment she considered telling him, then brushed the thought away. "Iー, nothing. Just promise me you'll come home right after school."

"Momー"

"Fine, you know what, if you want to hang out with your friends, go ahead. But I need to know all of their names and the exact location you guys will be at. Plus a picture of proof."

"That's insaneー"

"If you want to go out, that's what you have to do! Final deal." She was breathing heavily by now, forcing words through her teeth; she wanted ー no, needed ー him to be on board with this, no matter how overbearing it seemed.

His gaze never wavered from his mom. "Fine. Any other demands?"

"No...That's all." She turned back to fiddle with the switches on the coffee machine, finding something to busy her hands with.

"Fine," he huffed angrily, throwing the half-eaten sandwich into a paper bag. "I'm going to school."

"Bye," she muttered, then raised her volume, "I love you."

All she heard was a resounding slam as the door fell shut.

Jason looked back at his house before getting on the bus. Something was bothering his mom and he knew it. Just the day before, she was happily spending time with him and Henry and out of nowhere, her eyes looked haunted, like something truly spooked her. He was mad, sure, but knowing that his mom was this shaken by something, somewhere in his chest, he felt a seed of terror sprouting.

Back in the kitchen, Elizabeth sank into a nearby stool. A muted panic settled over her, her experience as a CIA analyst kicking in. While her body reacted physiologically to the new threat, her head was clear ー probably the adrenaline pumping in her veins. She considered her next step, then picked up her phone to text Henry.

For the first time in a few months, she was going to work in a bus again.

Henry found his girlfriend's text puzzling. Throughout his time working at UVA for over a decade, the workload had always been fairly manageable. Why would she need to get to work early and take public transport? Thinking that it might be some administrative work that she needed to settle, he drove past her house and headed straight for school.

"Hey, babe," Henry greeted warmly as he entered her office, bending down to peck her cheek when he reached her.

"Hey," she replied. She glanced up quickly and flashed a smile before turning back to the paper she was reading.

More odd behavior, he thought, did I do something wrong? They usually greeted each other with a kiss, no matter how busy they were. He sat down opposite her. "Busy? I was thinking of grabbing lunch."

"Uh, yeah. Sorry, babe. How bout I catch you later?" Another weak smile.

"Yeah, sure." He leaned over her desk to kiss her cheek again. "Love you."

Her heart twisted in her chest when she saw him waiting for her response, a slither of doubt in his eyes. As if she could love him any less. Reaching across her papers, she took his hand in hers. "Love you too."

For the next few days, Elizabeth made a constant effort to avoid Henry. She desperately wanted to keep him safe, especially when their relationship was finally working out. Even when they did meet up, after much of Henry's insistence, she kept some distance, training her eyes on anything suspicious around them.

Needless to say, he grew more and more puzzled about her remoteness. He didn't need CIA skills to know that something was bothering her, but whether it was about him or something else, he wasn't quite sure. He racked his brain day after day, wondering what could have caused the change in behavior. They had been fine ー more than fine, in fact ー until then. He was crazy about her, something that even his daughters have noticed as they spent more time together, and he was pretty sure that she felt the same way. So why pull away?

When she rejected his invitation to dinner at his place for the 5th time in 2 weeks ー and over text, no less, since she had been uncontactable otherwise ー he decided that he needed to find out what was going on.

Without warning, he turned up on her doorstep one morning before work, knowing that she'd have to leave to take the bus at some point. He waited for Jason's school bus to leave before knocking on the door.

"Coming!" she yelled from inside. After a moment, she wrenched the door open.

"Hey, babe. I'm sorry this is so sudden, but I really just neeー"

She cast a cursory glance across her front yard to make sure that no one else was there before yanking him in by the arm and closing the door.

"ーded to know what's going on." His speech slowed down as he took in how jumpy she was. Something was up.

She awkwardly cleared her throat, her finger running along the bottom of her coffee cup. "Sorry, you were saying…?"

"What's going on?" he asked again, this time with a hint of urgency.

She tilted her head nonchalantly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, between us."

Her heart did a little leap, tipping into a small panic. She cleared her throat again. "Um, between us?"

"Yeah, you've been avoiding me." He couldn't help the small accusatory tone slipping into his voice. Suddenly, his words, came in a rush. "I haven't seen you in school, you don't let me take you to work either, and I've invited you over or out for a date but you've rejected me every time. Did I do something wrong? Because if I did, it's okay to tell me. I'll make it up to you."

"Iー" It hadn't occurred to her that it was that obvious. For an ex-intelligence agent, she wasn't doing a very good job at being cautious. "No, you haven't, babe." Her fingers continued playing with her cup, her eyes refusing to meet his.

"Then what's going on?" He walked over to her and set her mug on a table nearby before taking one of her hands in his. He slipped a finger under her chin and tilted her face up so he could look at her. Immediately, he could tell that she was spooked. By what, he didn't know. But he intended to find out. "What's bothering you?"

"Nothing, I just have a lot of work," she lied again.

"C'mon babe, I can tell something's bothering you. Tell me, please." He practically begged. He wanted to take away whatever was scaring her and pulling her away from him.

She shook her head and gave him a watery smile. "Everything's good."

"Is it Jason? Did something happen to him?" he prodded, his hand sliding down to rub her arm soothingly.

For a moment, she considered telling him. The way he looked at her, it felt like he was reaching into her depths and trying to know all her worries, compelling her to trust him. She did, but it wasn't a matter of trust; it was a matter of his safety. If pulling away would keep him safe, then she would resolve this whole stalker thing before she even spoke another word to him.

"Henry, I'm fine, I promise," she whispered. "I think I just need some time...to figure something out. You've done nothing wrong, I just need some time to think things through."

"Elizabeth…"

"I'm really sorry. You should go."

He searched her eyes desperately, digging for some clue, anything. But when the silence dragged on, he knew she meant it. Leaning in, he pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. "You know where to find me if you need me. I love you."

And with that, he left, and she was left alone in her house again.

"I love you too," she whispered.