Chapter 17
ALEX
Alex shifted in his seat, his features scrunching as he stared at the screen. “I mean, he’s a big boy, so…”
“Alex,” Ava said, her voice insistent.
“Ava,” he answered, slamming closed the lid of the laptop and rising to his feet, his voice a mix of anger and fear, “this guy could be responsible for your almost-death!”
“No,” she said with a shake of her head, muting the volume on the television. “He’s responsible for me being alive right now. And now he’s hurt. We need to help him.”
She crossed her arms and frowned as she stared expectantly at him.
He clicked his tongue. “Okay, well…I…”
Alex’s shoulders slumped as he puffed his cheeks out. “I don’t know where to look, Ava. I mean, he’s pretty good at hiding. Maybe we should just let him hide and come back when he’s ready.”
“Alex!” Ava’s eyes widened as she curled her fingers into fists. “We have to do something.”
“Yeah, I’m more in the camp of waiting for a bit to see how this plays out.”
Ava’s eyes narrowed, a spark of frustration flaring in them “Are you seriously suggesting we do nothing?”
Alex’s gaze dropped to the floor, his shoulders sagging as he sighed. “I just…I don’t want to risk losing you again, not for him.”
When he raised his eyes again, he found her hip cocked, arms crossed, and one eyebrow arching dangerously toward her hairline.
He grimaced. “Don’t give me that scary look.”
The eyebrow arched a little higher, making her look even more frightening.
“Ava! Come on. I don’t love this guy. He’s kind of a jerk. And the fact that he’s Sebastian–”
“Makes you jealous.”
Alex lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “Cards on the table, yes. He kind of does. Also, this newfound fondness you have for him makes me like him even less.”
“He saved my life, Alex–”
“Noted, and that is definitely a point in his favor.” Alex bobbed his head.
“Fine,” Ava said with a shake of her head. “I’ll find him myself.”
“Ava! You can’t leave this cabin. You said you had to stay dead while we got rid of Chris. Which, by the way, I’m totally on board with. Let’s work on that plan, instead.”
She strode toward him and thrust out her hand. “Keys.”
“No way, uh-uh. I’m not letting you out of my sight after your near-death experience.”
“We have to find Sebastian,” she said, her voice firm. “We need him to finish this with The Board. And besides, we owe it to him. He’s saved both of us.”
Alex raised his eyes to the ceiling, sucking in a deep breath. “Fine. Okay, you’re right. I just…don’t want to admit it because suddenly, you’re BFFs with Shadow, and I don’t like it.”
“I’m not. I’m your BFF first.”
“Actually, you’re my wife.”
“And your best friend. Alex, we’re a team. I’m not leaving you for Sebastian. But I do think we owe him something. He was there because I insisted he bring you here. I knew you couldn’t handle processing my death, and I didn’t want you to. I wanted you to know.”
“Let me guess, he didn’t.”
“Not really, but he relented. He let me call you, and then when I didn’t get through, he went to get you himself. We owe him.”
The urgency in her voice made guilt roil inside him. “Fine, fine. We’ll save Sebastian. As long as you promise he won’t be your BFF.”
“Not even close. Doc is my backup BFF. Sebastian didn’t even make that.”
Alex tugged a corner of his lips back. “Gee, I kind of feel sorry for the guy. He keeps leaving you all those roses, and you’d pick Doc over him.”
“He can get in line,” Ava said. “Now, we need to figure out where he is. There are no surveillance cameras on the beach…”
“And that crappy van he drives doesn’t have a GPS I can tap and track.”
“No, but maybe you can trace it through his license plate like we did with Doc when he went missing in New Orleans.”
Alex heaved a sigh as he collapsed into the armchair with the laptop in hand. “This would be way easier if I was at home with all my tools handy.”
She leaned over the arm of the chair, rubbing his shoulders. “Do you want to head back?”
He snapped his gaze to her. “Heck no, Avs. I just found out that you were alive after a horrible twenty-four hours where I thought you were dead. I’m not leaving you.”
She kissed his hair before she rested her cheek against the top of his head. “I get that, Ace, but you’re going to have to go home sometime. And you’re going to have to act like I’m still dead.”
He stared at the screen, his fingers frozen on the keyboard as he frowned. “I don’t know if I can do this.”
She rubbed his shoulder, reassuringly. “Alex, you have to. This is exactly the reason Sebastian didn’t want to tell you. He was afraid you’d blow it, but I insisted you’d be fine. You need to go back and act like I’m dead.”
Alex heaved a sigh. The task would be impossible. He’d been dead inside when he thought she was gone. Would he be able to pull this off?
“Seriously, Ace,” she added, “we need this to work. Although…”
“Yeah?” he asked.
“Could you leave your car? In case I need to make a run to pick up our new bestie, Shadow.”
Alex heaved a sigh, shaking his head. “I can’t believe this is happening. And how do you expect me to leave the car? We’re like an hour away from the Hamptons. I can’t walk it.”
“I’ll drive you part of the way back. Then call Doc and tell him your car broke down. Maybe mention that you were distracted. He’ll understand.”
Alex hesitated, a flicker of doubt crossing his face. “You think he’ll buy that?”
Ava gave him a reassuring smile. “No, but that’s the story you’re going to tell everyone. After you tell Doc I’m alive. You need someone on your side to help you navigate this.”
“Right,” Alex said as he slammed the laptop shut. “Okay, I guess…I need to do this.”
Ava rose as Alex did. He set the laptop down on the seat before he stared at his wife, his features melting before he pulled her into a tight hug. “I don’t want to do this.”
She held him tight for another moment. “I don’t want you to go either but we can talk now.”
She poked her finger at the laptop.
He bobbed his head. “I should have brought another phone. I’ll bring you one.”
“Wait,” she said as she glanced around. “Maybe he has a landline.”
“Is that safe?” Alex asked. “I mean, we don’t want people tracing the numbers I’m calling and finding you.”
“Ugh, you’re right. This stinks.”
“Wait, wait, wait, before you make me leave with Doc, we’ll buy you a burner.”
“Good thinking.” Ava grinned with him. “I’m so glad you’re a genius, babe.”
“Me too,” he said with a smile as he pulled her into a kiss. “You wait here, I’ll run out for the burner and bring it back before we continue with this stupid plan to rescue Shadow.”
“You’re going to feel so awesome when Biceps Bancroft owes you,” she said with a wink as she walked him to the door.
He lingered on the porch, not wanting to let go of her hand. He worried he’d walk away and never see her again. “Hey, why don’t you come with?”
“I better stay here in case Sebastian comes back.”
Alex rolled his eyes. “That’s a stupid reason. We’ll find him when we get back. I don’t want to leave you because…”
She cupped his face. “I’ll be here when you get back, Alex. I promise.”
He huffed out a sigh and nodded. “Fine.”
He kissed her again before he hurried down the stairs to his car. He glanced back as she leaned against the porch post and waved. “Hurry back.”
With a fleeting smile and wave, he climbed behind the wheel. As he bounced down the gravel drive, his slick palms slipping on the steering wheel, he nearly turned around more than once. He never should have left Ava behind.
He gunned his engine as he hit the road, trying to get to the store he’d seen as quickly as possible. When he pulled in, he barely shut the car off before he raced from inside, hurrying into the store and grabbing a cell phone.
After checking out, he climbed back in the car and ripped open the package, starting the set up as he drove back to the cabin. When he arrived, he had it ready for her use. After programming his number into the phone, he climbed from the car.
“Got my phone?” she asked as she met him.
“Yep.” He smiled down at her, pleased she hadn’t been a figment of his imagination.
“Good. Now you can keep tabs on me.” She kissed his cheek as she took the phone. “Now, give me the keys and get in. I’ll drop you off for Doc.”
He heaved a sigh as he skirted the car and climbed inside. Ava fired the engine and within minutes, they were back on the road again.
His stomach rolled as he considered the task ahead of him. After thirty minutes of driving, she pulled over, and he called Kyle.
They climbed out of the car to wait for him to get closer after Alex texted his location. Ava slid her arms around Alex’s waist, balancing her chin on his chest. “Remember, award-winning acting, babe.”
“Going for an Emmy,” he said. “And hating every moment until we can reveal that you’re alive. I want you home.”
“I want to be home, too,” she said as she pressed a cheek against his chest. “I love you, Alex.”
“I love you, too, Ava.” He kissed the top of her head. “And now as much as I hate to say it, you better disappear.”
“Yeah, I know.” She pulled him into a kiss. “Let me know about Sebastian as soon as you find anything. And don’t do anything dangerous.”
“Got it.” He stole another kiss from her before she climbed into the car and headed back to the cabin.
He watched until the taillights disappeared, his heart sinking a little as she went out of sight.
Every time she left, he was terrified it would be the last time he saw her. He was still reeling from her supposed death. It had come too close to being true.
He paced along the side of the road until a car approached, slowing. His heart went into his throat until he identified Kyle behind the wheel.
“Hey, Mav,” he said as he swung the car around and pulled onto the side of the road near Alex. “What’s going on?”
“Stupid car with the stupid tire. I was just trying to forget while driving around, and then that had to happen,” Alex said as he slid into the passenger seat.
Kyle stared at him. “What’s really going on?”
“I just told you,” Alex said.
“I know what you said but…Mav, I’m a little concerned. You just lost your wife. You’re out driving around in the middle of nowhere…”
“Okay, okay,” Alex said, running a hand through his hair. “Look, you can’t say anything at all, okay? Sworn to secrecy. Do you promise?”
Kyle bobbed his head. “Of course. We’re bros. You can confide in me.”
“There are…things happening here that are…big.”
“Care to elaborate on that?” Kyle asked.
Alex shifted in his seat. “There’s so much, I don’t know where to start, but I guess with the biggest bombshell.”
“Okay,” Kyle said as he pulled the car onto the road, aiming for Alex’s. “Sure. What’s the big bombshell?”
Alex rubbed his sweaty palms against his pants. “You’re not going to believe this, Doc, but…Ava’s alive.”
Kyle didn’t miss a beat as he continued down the road, one hand clutching the wheel, the other rubbing his chin. “Uh-huh.”
Alex slid his eyes sideways. “No, I’m serious. I’m not…this isn’t like me being insane or losing my mind and pretending Ava’s alive because I’ve cracked under the grief. I’m literally serious, she’s alive. I couldn’t believe it either.”
“Okaaaay,” Kyle said as he slowly nodded. “And how did she survive the explosion?”
“Well, here’s where it gets interesting…Raven told her to get off the plane. And she did.”
Kyle pressed his lips together, his features scrunching as he bobbed his head. “Uh-huh. Okay. Right. Well, that makes sense. And you found her out here? In the wilderness.”
“Yep. At Raven’s cabin. Which…you aren’t going to believe this…Raven…is Sebastian Bancroft. Talk about a plot twist, huh?” Alex chuckled, pleased to have shared the news with someone so he didn’t have to second guess that he was crazy and imagining things.
“And did he tell you that or did suddenly alive Ava?” Kyle asked.
Alex opened his mouth to answer when he froze, cutting his gaze to Kyle. “You don’t believe me.”
“No, I do, Mav, I really do. I think you believe every word you say.”
Alex shook his head, digging into his pocket for his cell phone. “I’ll prove it.”
With trembling hands, Alex dialed the number for the burner phone, toggling it onto speaker. It rang. Once, twice–
“Ace?” Ava’s voice came through, tentative but clear. “You got something already?”
Kyle’s jaw dropped. His foot slammed the brake, the car jerking to a stop. “Ava?” His voice was thick with disbelief, his eyes wide with shock.
“Hey, Doc. I see he told you.”
“Oh my goodness! Ava!” Kyle grabbed the phone, staring at the display. “Is that really you?”
She chuckled on the other end. “It’s really me. I’m not dead. Thanks to Raven.”
Kyle stared at Alex, his features a mix of shock and disbelief. “She’s alive.”
“I know,” Alex said with a grin. “Oh, but no one else can know but us. She needs to stay ‘dead’ for a little bit until we sort this out, okay?”
“Yeah, okay, yes. Oh my gosh. Oh, Ava. You really scared me.”
“Sorry.” She hesitated before she spoke again. “Did you tell him the big news? About Raven.”
“He did,” Kyle confirmed, “but let me let it sink in again because I didn’t believe him when he first said because I thought he was crazy.”
“Yeah, Raven is Sebastian. New code name is Shadow. But we have a tiny problem.”
“There are no problems, Ava. You’re alive.” Kyle clapped Alex on the shoulder with a glassy-eyed grin.
“There is a slight one. Sebastian’s in some sort of trouble. And we need to find him. Fast.”
Alex’s stomach twisted into a knot. The euphoria of Ava’s return was somewhat dampened by this wrinkle. But Ava was right. They needed to find Sebastian quickly…before someone else did.