A tall man stepped out of his sedan, designer shoes hitting the pavement in one fluid motion. He cleared his throat and shut the car door. It was time to get down to business. Enough letting others try and ultimately fail to contain the situation.

"Boss."

He turned to see his well-built assistant, waiting with the door open.

"Liam was notified. He's on his way."

Giving a cursory nod, the man strode into the building, ready for the inevitable confrontation. Liam was becoming vested in Charlotte, that he was sure of. It posed an obstacle but not a big one. Perhaps they'd spend a night together, just to scratch the itch. She certainly seemed naive enough to fall for a guy like Liam. Or any of the other men in the organization. He didn't employ beta-males. Though Zach was falling into that category as of late.

He got into the elevator, heading down, deep into the underground. Irritation prickled his skin. There were too many other things he should be working on right on. But this had to be done. His presence was required. Finally, he reached his destination and the elevator doors opened.

"Boss. I haven't seen Liam yet, does he know?"

The man put his hand up, silencing the voice. He stepped out of the shadows and into a square of light illuminating from a recessed spot in the wall.

"Zach, get ahold of yourself," he said. "She's alive."

Without a word, Zach nodded, following in step behind his boss. The boss. It wasn't wise to argue with him or question anything. He knew what kind of stress he was under as of late. Plus he really liked being alive. Charlotte was important though, and he was beginning to develop a crush. He sincerely hoped she was ok and not too injured. Someone was going to pay either way.

"Take a seat."

Zach did as ordered.

Before any more words were exchanged between the pair, the darkened door opened. Liam walked in, worry etched on his face.

"Who fucking did it? It couldn't have been us. We didn't have. ."

The boss extended his hand for a second time. He already knew who it was or had a good idea. Emotional outbursts made him angry.

"We are verifying who it was now. Our game plan needs to change, that's why I called this meeting. Zach, you're slipping."

Zach's armpits began to sweat as the words from the boss hit his ears. He knew he was being scrutinized, especially with the pretty podcaster's arrival. But he was doing the best he could, at least he told himself he was. He shifted uncomfortably in the chair.

"Slipping?"

"Yes. You're intelligent, you understand don't you?"

"I, well I don't actually. I'm doing my best..."

"It's because of the restaurant Haupt. You fucked up," Liam chimed in, irritation evident in his voice. "You got drunk and made a pass."

His face aflame, Zach clenched and unclenched a fist. Liam was always a cocky hot shot. He didn't like it.

"What happened at the restaurant is concerning to us Zach," the boss said, taking the dominant seat at the table. "Are you getting too vested?"

"No! I'm just doing my job. I had to make it convincing, that's why we both drank as much as we did. She let her guard down and now we know more about her. That's my mission isn't it?"

The boss tapped a finger on the glossy table, emitting a sound in the empty room. It had the desired effect as both men stopped talking. The juice must be worth the squeeze they surmised, for him to come down here. He then sighed, mouth closed and jaw twitching.

"You'll still be the man up top Zach, but Liam, you're going to arrange a second meeting with Ms. Locke. You're tapped in now to be an in-person handler. Time to step out of the shadows."

"Boss," Liam replied, giving a cursory nod.

His body flushed at the immediate thought. He was going to have to befriend the woman. Not what he was expecting.

"Charlotte Locke is more than a podcaster. She has investigated more than we thought. It seems she's visited Egypt multiple times, as well as Antarctica and India.."

"She was a film researcher," Zach interrupted.

The boss's eyes grazed over his airport manager. Zach was trying to save face.

"We know. It's what else she's done. We dug up contacts who've seen her talking to some of our enemies. She's done far more."

Liam cleared his throat. He was responsible for investigating her initially.

"She encountered a Rosicrucian in Cairo. That much I know for certain," Liam volunteered. "And she was in the temple of Seti. More than once. We know she activated the stones. I've been trying to dig further but have come across nothing so far. "

The room grew quiet as each man mulled over Charlotte. Her appearance had come at a very auspicious time for the organization.

"The podcast is problematic as you know due to the feds disclosing the presence of extraterrestrials. The general public's interest in aliens and conspiracy theories is growing online. We're mitigating it by pushing her uploads down, they aren't going to reach as far of an audience going forward."

The boss pushed his chair back. He needed to get back to work.

"I want you two to keep her safe and keep her close. She isn't to get further down into the airport, understood? Especially given her ties to the Middle East."

Liam and Zach stood as well, reading between the lines. Both knew what was expected and what the consequences would be should they fail to live up to their assignments. The boss exited from the room, leaving the pair alone. A crackle of something was left in the air, between the two men. Liam paced the room slowly, looking carefully at the concrete floor.

"So, what the fuck happened to her? Who did it?" Zach quickly asked, angry undertones in his voice.

He recalled such a meeting a few days ago, where Liam eluded that Charlotte could also be killed, if need be. What he wanted was answers, not platitudes. The boss had shut down his line of questioning earlier, but he wasn't afraid of Liam. They were for the most part, on an equal level. Liam kept pacing.

"It might have been a few different groups, we aren't sure yet."

Zach's jaw ground as he gritted his teeth. He was tired of being kept out of the loop.

"The masons? The stars? Who?" he spat out.

Liam stopped, leaning back against the table, his hands gripping the smooth surface behind him. He eyed his colleague. Zach was far too emotional. He never acted this way with people who'd sniffed around the airport's conspiracy theories. He could tell that Zach was losing his ability to stay calm too, which wasn't good. It might in fact, get him killed.

"You're in love with her."

Liam said it as a statement, not a question.

"I am not!" Zach cried out. "Fuck, I'm just worried about her! It's my job.."

"It's our jobs to keep her safe," Liam interrupted. "It won't happen again. Not on my watch."

"Where were you when it happened?"

"I was with team 1, working. I just got assigned to be her bodyguard a few minutes ago, in case you hadn't noticed. I wear a shit ton of hats Haupt, not just sit in an office."

Something inside of Zach snapped. He used to admire Liam, years ago when he was new. But the alpha always becomes a jerk, eventually. He'd experienced it too many times to count in the Air Force. This job was supposed to be different. He was promised as much when he was recruited.

He walked closer to Liam, his right fist balled up at his side. Liam pushed off from the table and caught Zach's forearm before he could do anything.

"You don't want to do that," he said, eyes locking with the older man.

Zach jerked away from Liam's grasp and stumbled backwards. He knew that was a stupid move, but he couldn't help it. His temper got the best of him.

"Look Zach, we have to work together. We're different, from different military backgrounds. I think we can be better than this, given our asses are quite literally on the line."

Zach pulled out a chair and sat down, drumming his fingers on the table. Liam was right.

"What have you noticed when you've followed her out of the airport?" Zach asked.

"She likes to drink coffee. She goes to a small place by her hotel, so far, every single day," Liam offered. "There's a dark-haired barista that we need to keep an eye on. His name tag said 'Josh'."

The men finalized a schedule for watching Charlotte. Zach would take the day shift and Liam, the evening, into night, with a few day appearances. He had to befriend her, after all. Both were reluctant partners but just as equally eager to keep their heads, so they resolved to work well together. Zach left the conference room first, leaving Liam in the darkened hallway alone with his thoughts.

His mind wandered back to his late wife. She was a petite woman, just like Charlotte, and even had a red tint to her brown hair. They were quite similar in mannerisms. He missed his wife still. Her smile was still visible, as he could see her high cheek bones in the summer light. All his memories were from that trip before she got sick. The sunlight playing upon her features, her hair shimmering in its rays.

Ding.

Liam's mind jolted at his phone's notification.

Charlotte.