Nothing could be said for the situation. It really was everything Zaniah felt she deserved. Accountability could be a dangerous thing and for Zee, she would always blame herself for letting Joe talk her into this scheme. Talk her into. That insinuated that somehow she felt part of it was a good idea. He’d tricked her. Blackmailed her even. Coerced would be a good word to describe it or just flat out threatening. It wasn’t even the topper on the cake. That would come in the form of Joe thinking because he’d scared her enough to run his errands that he could manipulate her for sex as well.
Alex had every right to be mad. Zaniah was mad at herself for not fighting back sooner. Being angry with Alex right now was an easier task because he was familiar. She, at one time, knew every intriguing detail about the man but now he was a vague image of her past standing in front of her. Her eyes widened at the accusation that she was somehow directly linked to a murder. Standing up again her nose wrinkled and lip curled at the very thought. “Hold up, I have absolutely NOTHING to do with this guy. And if is dead, well that’s news to me! I don’t know him, Alex. I do what I’ve been told to do!”
Taking a breath she sat back down. Her hands were shaking again, something becoming more common these days within the increase of packages being delivered. Knowing this made it all too clear that Joe really was willing to kill her if she crossed him. Zaniah never met this Wyatt guy and honestly could have cared less who he was but being dead was a game-changer. Alex took her wrists, this time much more gently and made his promises. His eyes were the same. Intense and yet something in them spoke volumes about how much he cared.
Dare she say it? Alex had always been a person she trusted and he was serving when Joe first confronted her. Honestly, little deliberation was needed because if the end game was to kill people before they opened up this pandora’s box to the light then Zee was already as good as dead. Her and Montague Wyatt could take the dirt nap together. “It’s Joe, Alex. Joseph Barstow is the one who sent me here,” saying out loud almost felt like a relief but her next words would be a little saltier. “And he’s not my dealer. Fuck you,” she snarled. “I don’t use this shit. I move it. And I move it because the alternative, I guess, is ending up like Wyatt.”
Granted, he probably shouldn’t be taking such familiarities with Zee it was difficult not to fall back into a pattern. At the very least she didn’t pull away from his touch. Reflecting back he knew from an early age he was never going to head off straight to college. There was too much energy and anger and an outlet was needed. The military had been his focus for years prior to actually joining and while it had been his dream it came at a cost. They’d both gone into the relationship knowing eventually how it would end, but that didn’t stop him from falling completely in love. The relationship at times caused him to reevaluate his decision on more than one occasion but ultimately knew if he didn’t get some semblance of discipline he’d likely get involved in something else altogether which would lead him down a darker path.
Taking some good advice from someone who advised that if it’s true love and meant to be, then time will not matter–but it had. By the time he returned Zaniah had built a whole life without him and who was he to interrupt it? However, as they sat here together he couldn’t help but think nothing was as it seemed. The bottle he had tossed on the table rolled until coming to a stop against some Ikeaish glass vase. Perhaps the advice from all those years ago was right? The universe was not done with them yet.
Dreading the answer he waited silently as he stared her down. Hoping she still trusted him enough to tell the truth. After all, he could always tell with Zee if something was said out of pleasantry or attempting to be delicate of someone's feelings. Alex had learned to read her well and wondered if he could do the same now. He was all but holding his breath until she mentioned the name, Barstow. With a brow knitted he was confused given Joe was an officer as well. Still, he gently touched her wrist as she unfolded the rest and no sooner did she stop he uttered rather matter of factly, ‘Well, that’s never going to happen.” Not the least bit offended by the ‘fuck you’ tossed in after denying she was using. Clearly, she was being coerced into this situation and Alex intended to get her out.
Things were beyond complicated and at the moment he couldn’t be more grateful his partner was kept busy with a dead body. Sitting back on the couch he brought her hand into his lap before turning to speak, “I’m going to get you out of this, but I need to know everything you know about Joe’s operation, and even more so, your involvement. If I can’t make this go away cleanly I’ll have to revert to something else altogether.” Alex could use the law to his advantage and set up the son of a bitch, but if it didn’t come to pass he’d simply have to take him out.
annaxmalina
