Thank you everyone for your kind words of support during this difficult time. It meant a lot to hear from you! I sat down to write today and I was surprised and relieved to see that I'd written most of this chapter already - hooray! I hope you enjoy...there should be about 2 chapters after this, most of which I wrote when I started this story over a year ago :)

Please let me know what you think of this chapter - I love hearing your feedback and thoughts!

Hours after the dinner blowout, the apartment was still. Alex's door remained shut, the faint light from under it the only sign she was still awake. Jay sat on the couch in the living room, his arms crossed over his chest, eyes fixed on the muted TV as it flickered faintly, its images nothing more than a distraction he couldn't focus on. Two empty beer bottles rested on the coffee table, their glass surfaces catching the glow from the screen.

He wasn't planning to sleep. He couldn't sleep. His mind wouldn't shut off. He was combing through every fact he could to try and piece this jigsaw puzzle together. Honestly, he was scared.

Every time he closed his eyes, his mind conjured images of Alex slipping out the front door. He couldn't risk it - not tonight. Those words she yelled had been laced with something raw and real, deeper than the usual sarcasm and deflection. There was a fracture beneath her armor, a crack he hadn't seen before, and it terrified him.

Was he finally breaking through? Or was he pushing her further away? The questions gnawed at him, each one heavier than the last.

Jay downed two cups of coffee this morning to shake the drowsiness out of his all nighter. His mind was clearly distracted, and he was well aware that he'd have to tuck away his family drama shortly in order to focus during court today.

The detective stood in the living room, adjusting his dark blue suit jacket. Ugh. He hated having to dress up for a trial - suits weren't his go-to for anything and he couldn't wait to change out of it. His messenger bag, filled with paperwork, rested on the table, ready to get going. He'd hoped Alex would come out on her own, but he wasn't so lucky.

He fiddled with a roll of masking tape in his hands. Was this really what he was about to do? He truly didn't see other options. His team was caught up with a case, and he wasn't about to take someone away from that to babysit his sister. Will wasn't able to swap shifts with anyone, so it left him with no options, except one that made him feel like a cop more than a brother.

Leaving the tape on top of the couch, he knocked on her bedroom door and waited for a reply. After a few more persistent knocks, he heard a groan and took that as an open invitation to enter.

"I need to leave soon," he began, stepping inside her room. "I have to testify in court, so I won't be back for a while."

A muffled noise could be heard as her face was buried in her comforter while she laid on her side.

"Alex…," Jay tried again, his tone soft but firm. He moved to the end of her bed and sat down.

He paused for a moment to see if she would show herself. For a split second, he was conflicted about what to say - he wanted her to know that he hadn't forgotten about the words spoken (or rather, yelled) last night. But at the same time, he swallowed his words. He couldn't risk stirring up emotional turmoil just before he had to leave. "Alex, promise me you'll just stay in the apartment. Please. I should be back before dinner and it's just for today."

Seeing that he clearly wasn't going anywhere until she acknowledged his stupid presence, she threw the comforter off and sat up in an annoyed huff, her hair a wild mess around her face. "Sure, Master. I'll stay in and scrub the floors with my toothbrush," she snapped, grabbing a scrunchie from her nightstand and yanking her hair into a messy bun.

Jay's shoulders fell, hating that the sarcasm and walls were back up again. He just prayed that she'd do the right thing today. He forged ahead, not having any time to waste, and he pulled her cell phone out and handed it over. "Here," he said flatly.

Her eyes widened in surprise. She hadn't expected to see her phone again - especially not today. Snatching it from his hand, she wasted no time trying to unlock it after seeing tons of unread text notifications on her home screen.

She held it up to her face to enable face recognition to unlock it. But it didn't work…that was odd. She shut off the screen and turned it on again, giving it another shot. Still no luck. Well, whatever. It clearly didn't like her fresh out of bed look. She changed gears.

4 - 5 - 2 - 0

Incorrect password

What the hell? Her jaw tightened as she typed it again, slower this time.

4 - 5 - 2 - 0

Incorrect password

Her glare turned and lit fire to the side of Jay's head. "What the hell did you do to my phone?"

Jay didn't flinch. "Changed the passcode and disabled Face ID."

"Well no shit. What's the code now?" she spat, anger flaring up at someone messing with her phone.

"You don't need it right now."

She breathed heavily through her nose, like a bull ready to charge. "What. Is. It."

Jay kept his voice calm and steady. "You can use it to call 911 in case of a true emergency. Once we're in a better place, I'll give you the code."

"So I have to start begging on my knees for forgiveness?" She rolled her eyes and shook her head in determination. "I'll crack the code long before that happens."

Jay smirked, loving that he had the upper hand for a change. "You do that. I think you have…8 tries left before it permanently deletes everything."

Her eyes whipped up to his face with flames in them. That couldn't be real…right? Ten attempts to unlock a phone before it permanently deletes the data? She felt like she was going to explode, and she still had zero regrets about saying that she hated him last night.

"I didn't do it to start a fight, okay? I just want you to have a way to make a call in an emergency since I don't have a landline yet." Hell, nobody had a landline in this day and age - only their boomer father still had one. But he'd made a mental note to get one now that she was under his care.

Alex threw her phone down on the bed with a frustrated sigh while Jay checked his watch with raised eyebrows. "I have to get going. Why don't you sleep some more and I'll be back before you get up this afternoon."

He was just met with Alex flipping him off as she threw herself backwards onto the bed and pulled the comforter over her head with exaggeration.

Thump.

Alex exhaled heavily as her phone fell to the floor from her dramatic action.

Jay chuckled and took that as his cue to leave. Closing the bedroom door gently behind him, he grabbed his bag, the weight of its contents hitting him hard. He had all the case files…and additional paperwork for his action plan. Well, he only had half of what he needed, but he hoped it was enough to at least get the ball rolling with the judge.

Taking one last look at the apartment, he snagged the roll of tape and stepped out, closing the apartment entrance behind him. With a heavy sigh, he tore off a small strip of tape and carefully placed it over the edge of the door, right where it met the frame. He took a step back and sighed, hating that he had to resort to some old school tactics, but he wasn't taking any chances today. If the tape was still in place when he got back, he'd know she didn't leave the apartment. If she did leave, there'd be no way for her to reset the tape and get back inside.

Unable to dwell on the situation longer, he gripped his messenger bag with determination and headed for the elevator.

He had work to do.