Enzo

At 9:01 AM, Jessica Wilson walks out of her apartment with a yawn, then makes her way toward her car.

Twenty minutes later, she parks in front of the mall and climbs out of the car. She looks around her for a while, her shoulders stiff, and finally walks away.

9:50 AM: Jessica Wilson walks out of the mall with nothing at all. She seems annoyed. It surprises me; I thought she'd be in there for hours, especially the day after Christmas.

I sigh and process to follow her again.

At 10:14 AM, she arrives at her apartment and gets in. She closes the curtains and...nothing else.

Running a hand through my hair, I lean against the headrest. Ever since she wrote on that bill that they're watching her, I've been keeping an eye on her. Alex wouldn't want her to be in danger, and she's innocent.

She doesn't know about what I'm doing, but what she doesn't know won't hurt her. I don't know exactly how she got in this mess in the first place, but something tells me it happened the day Alex disappeared.

Jessica was in the car with Alex when I called her. She didn't ask for any of this. She's afraid, and I feel fucking bad for that.

You let that happened, Enzo. Just like you let him take her from you.

I clench my jaw. I need to get out of here. I start my car, throw one last glance at Jessica's apartment, then drive away.

Did Alex have a good Christmas? Did she have the chance to celebrate at all? Is she okay?

I miss her.

Fuck. I'm so close to head straight to the airport. It's been too long. I can't let him think that he won, that we're doing nothing to get her back, that we lost all hope.

I know for a fact he's making sure we don't do anything. Jessica is not the only who's being watched. His fucking men are like ghosts, but the type of ghosts you see kids disguised as on Halloween, with a white sheet draped around them.

It must be so boring to them that they don't care anymore to be subtle.

I drive around for a while, not wanting to go back to my dark and cold apartment. At some point, I drive past a familiar face walking down the sidewalk and whirl my head around in surprise.

I stop the car to the side of the road and get out. My instinct tells me she might know something, and I choose to listen to it.

I put my hands into the pockets of my coat and jog toward her. "Sasha!"

Her steps falter, and she turns her head around, frowning. She blinks in surprise when she notices me.

"You..." Her voice trails of, and her eyes give me a once-over. She offers me a flirty smile. "You never gave me a call."

I stop in front of her and stare blankly. The memory of Alex helping me to wash off her number from my hand resurfaces, and I clear my throat.

"I've never had the intention to call you, Sasha. I'm sorry if you thought I did."

She's shocked by my answer, but she quickly covers her reaction with a smile. She scoffs. "I'm sorry, what was your name again?"

I don't think I've ever told her my name. "Enzo."

"Right." She readjusts the faux-fur scarf around her neck, looking disinterested by the conversation. "What can I do for you?"

"Have you seen Alex recently?"

She freezes.

She clearly did.

"What? Alex?" She shrugs and looks over my shoulder, her expression blank. "No, it's been a while. Why?"

My eyes never leave her face. "Yeah, I haven't seen her in a while, too. Five months, to be exact."

Sasha finally meets my gaze, her expression unsure. I sigh and keep going. "Tell me when and where you saw her."

"What do I win if I do?"

I'm a patient man, but my patience is coming to an end. I breathe in and out, not answering.

She crosses her arms and raises her chin. "I'll tell you what I know if you...kiss me."

Is she really trying to make a deal here?

"I'm not gonna kiss you. I'm in love with someone else," I declare truthfully with no regrets.

Sasha stares at me with curiosity. She purses her lips. "Her."

"Yes."

After a few seconds, her arms fall at her sides, and she rolls her eyes. "Fine. You know, I'm not sure she's in love with you."

My eyes narrow. "Come again?"

"Well, I saw her, like, four days ago? Anyway, she was with her boyfriend, a blonde guy..."

This is like a punch in the gut. I blink twice, trying to process her words. Boyfriend? She is dating...Cole Valdez?

Is this a fucking bad joke?

My anger boils, and I close my eyes for a moment, trying to control myself. I can't react in front of Sasha, who's silently staring at me. Then I realize something.

My gaze raises back to hers. "Blonde guy?" Cole Valdez has dark hair.

She blinks. "Are you deaf?"

Relief fills me, but that doesn't last. There's someone else. It kills me not to know what the hell is going on. How this happened.

I clench and unclench my fists, then calmly ask, "Where did you see her?"

"Los Angeles," she mutters.

"And what happened?"

Her eyes narrow his anger, and she raises a shaky hand in my direction. "Her boyfriend pointed a freaking gun at me! And...and then Alex pointed one at him!"

My girl. My shoulders relax. You usually don't aim a gun at your boyfriend. I notice Sasha's state, and my expression softens. "You okay?"

She glares at me. "I'm still alive, aren't I?"

"How did this happen?"

"That guy...asked Alex to kill me." She looks away and swallows nervously. My eyebrows furrow. "She raised the gun, and I really...I really thought she was about to do it. She was ready to do it."

Shit. Sasha pulls herself together and squares her shoulders. "I knew Alex was crazy, but not that crazy."

I tense. She's not crazy. A psychopath is controlling her, turning her into someone she's not. Someone she may not be ready to be. Someone she may never be ready to be.

I can't stay here. I can't risk losing her for good. And I have to stop her before she does something worse than pointing a gun at her friend.

I meet Sasha's eyes. "Thank you. I have to go. You need a ride or anything?"

She frowns. "Why are you proposing me this?"

I shrug. "You're Alex's friend." At least, I think so.

She mumbles to herself, "I'm not so sure." I don't comment and wait as she opens her mouth to talk again. She hesitates, then finally lets out, "Alex's lucky to have you."

I slowly nod before making my way to my car.

I'm not sure Alex thinks the same. Who knows what she thinks anymore.

I have to find her.

*

After a quick stop at the WSA, I get in my car and call Jake. He answers after the second ring.

"I'm so bored, man," is the first thing he declares, sighing deeply.

My lips tilt upward. "I was about to ask you what you were doing."

"Just spying on a man who supposedly isn't only an innocent engineer. Nothing exciting is happening. What's up?"

"Cole Valdez named his drug cartel S.N.A. Sounds familiar?" I say bitterly.

Jake curses under his breath and sighs. "Christ." Then he pauses, and I can somehow feel his hesitation. "Maybe you should take some vacation, man."

I clench the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles turn white. "Let me remind you who never once took a break while Elena was missing."

"Touché. Sorry, you're right," he admits with guilt in his voice. "I would have gone fucking crazy if she had been missing for that long. I wouldn't even have waited and followed the rules like you did, even if I knew there were risks to act so quickly."

Well, guess who's done waiting and acting carefully? That guy.

"I also called you to tell you that I saw Sasha, a friend of Alex, and she encountered her a few days ago in Los Angeles." I pause, rubbing my stubbled chin. "She almost killed her."

"Alex or Sasha?" Jake questions with confusion.

"Alex almost killed Sasha. She was asked to by...who knows." I wanted to say boyfriend, but I'm driving and that wouldn't be good for me to think about someone else kissing her.

Or more.

"Damn, okay. But she didn't. That means she wasn't completely brainwashed."

Yet.

I grit my teeth. "Yeah. I'm going to Los Angeles."

"Now?" He sounds surprised.

"As soon as I can," I reply, turning right. I'm close to my apartment now.

"Alright. Want me to go with you? I have to keep an eye on that man, but it's Alex we're talking about.

I shake my head even if he can't see me. "It's fine. I have to go alone."

"Don't tell Elena, then. She's not doing that well. She's trying to keep her shit together and to be patient, but she's missing her, too."

I sigh and open my mouth to reply, but my eyes fall on the figure standing in front of my apartment building.

"I have a feeling she already knows," I finally announce, stopping the car.

"What?"

"Your wife is at my place."

"Hands off," he says with a hint of amusement in his voice. I roll my eyes. "Good luck."

"Thanks," I say, hanging up. I make my way toward Elena. She's wearing her blonde hair in a ponytail, and her blue eyes are currently narrowed on me.

"You look eager. Who were you talking to?" she demands, stepping in front of me.

"Jake," I reply, playing with my keys in an attempt to calm down. I am eager. Her expression softens. "What are you doing here?"

"I want to bring back Alex," she says firmly, crossing her arms. I look away, nodding.

"Me, too. That's why I'm leaving today."

She blinks twice. "Okay. Then I'm coming."

I sigh. "Elena..."

She raises her eyebrows and tilts her head at me. "She's my best friend, and it's been way too long. I'm worried."

"It's all my damn fault!" I exclaim suddenly, and she steps back, silently staring at me.

I breathe in and close my eyes. Stay calm, Enzo. Everything will be fine.

"It's all my fault," I repeat in a softer tone, looking up at her. Her lips tremble, but I'm not sure it's because of the cold.

"I feel guilty, too. I wasn't there for her as much as I should have," she whispers, looking down at her feet. "I feel like I lost her way before she disappeared.

"You didn't. She loves you," I reassure her, and she smiles softly at me. I know what she's about to say, and I cut her off before she can. "Don't."

She bites her lip and nods. I glance at my watch. "You should stay here," I finally say. "You killed Dan Valdez. You're lucky Cole hasn't come to find you yet. Who knows if he's aware of you."

Elena gives me a bored look. "Do I look like I care? Hmm..." She pretends to think. Then, "Nope."

I shake my head. She continues. "Do you think he asked Alex, though? That he tried to get information from her?"

"I'll find that out," I conclude with determination.

I walk around Elena, but she stops me by grabbing my arm. I glance at her. There's fear in her eyes, and that makes me feel uncomfortable and scared, too.

"I'm scared of who you will bring back," she murmurs, her eyes shining with emotions. "I miss her."

"I'll...I'll bring her home." I nod to myself. "I promise."

She nods back and lets me leave.

I'll bring her home.

*

Hi! ❤️

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It felt soo great to write a chapter in Enzo's point of view. I missed him.

In case you're confused, WSA is the new agency's name I created. It's fictional, so it gave me more freedom. That's one of the changes I made in the published book. ❤️ It means Worldwide Spy Agency. 🔥

Anyway, don't forget to vote! Again, if you buy SAMB, send me your pictures! Love to see them. 😍 Don't forget to leave a review on Amazon and Goodreads as well. It really is important.

I love y'all, and I'll see you in the next chapter!