Why ~Zach Herron~

29

Zach's P. O. V.

"Hello?? Can someone help us?" I said at the empty front desk of the police station.

"Babe, calm down." Iris grabbed my arm.

The simple name was music to my ears. I looked over at her. Her eyes were sunken in and her weight was resting against the crutches she needed to walk. The anger rose in me and I became even more impatient.

Finally, a tall and thin man came up to the front desk. He looked really young, probably new.

"How can I help you kids?" He asked taking a seat.

"We called someone about a car crash and they said come here for information."

"Names?"

"Iris Watson and Zach Herron."

"Hey my niece is a huge fan of you two!"

"Aww that's sweet, can you hurry though?"

"Zach, calm down. I'm sorry, we aren't in a hurry. Do you want a picture or something for her?" Iris asked.

"A video would be great." He handed Iris his phone and she took it from him, giving me a stern look.

"What's her name?"

"Milly."

Iris turned the phone camera on us and we plastered smiles across our faces.

"Hi Milly! Thanks for supporting us! I love you!" Iris said before turning the camera to me.

"Hey Milly! Hope you're having a great day! I love you so much!"

She ended the video and my smile quickly disappeared.

"Did you talk to Officer Hopper?" He asked.

"Yes, that was him."

"Go down the hall to your left. He's in office 11."

"Thank you."

"Thanks for the video! She's gonna freak out."

"No problem." Iris smiled before crutching her way down the hall.

"You don't need to be so rude Zach," she called from in front of me. I hurried to catch up.

"I'm sorry, I'm just so angry that he was the one who did it to you. He should've never been let out." I shook my head.

"Well it happened. I got over it, so you should to." She was lying. She's not over it, she's just better at hiding her anger and pain.

We walked into the office and saw a man sitting facing a computer. I knocked on the door frame, catching his attention.

"Watson?" He asked.

"That's me," Iris said.

"Sit down. I have a lot to say." We both sat down and listened closely.

"So Ms. Watson, you were involved in the car accident believed to be caused by Jesse Willis-"

"Believed to be? There's no doubt about it, it was him, the license plate matches," I interrupted, quickly feeling Iris's hand on my tense arm.

"That's what I'm getting to. The license plate from the surveillance camera matches Jesse's car. But when it's zoomed in, Jesse isn't the driver. It's a woman."

"What does that mean?"

"A number of things. He could've hired someone. Or someone could've stolen his car. Does he have other friends, or a family member?"

"His mom died and his sister is still too young to drive. Can I see the footage?" Iris asked. The officer turned his laptop towards us.

"I don't recognize her at all."

"Neither do I," Iris agreed.

"We'll run facial recognition."

"Have you tried questioning Jesse?" I asked as if it was obvious.

"We checked in at the mental hospital. They've been looking for him for two or three days. He hasn't come back."

"So he's somewhere, just running around freely?" Iris asked, panic rising in her voice.

"Apparently so. We have multiple search teams, but none have been successful. Do you happen to know where he'd be?"

"He lived in Utah, I wouldn't know of any place that he knew of."

"I'll tell you what. You two go home and rest, we'll handle it. Just beware of your surroundings and keep a phone safe with you at all times. Either call me or 9-1-1 if you ever have trouble."

"Wait, so you just want us to sit around and wait for him? You're not gonna do anything?"

"We're doing what we can with what information we have. Until we find out who this girl is, or find Jesse, there's nothing we can do. Sorry kids." He motioned for us to leave.

I helped Iris stand and we walked out of the police station, very disappointed.

"Unhelpful as always," Iris commented.

"We aren't gonna sit at home, are we?" I asked.

"Of course not. My mom has Wes until tonight. Let's go look for Jesse."

"And where do you suggest we look?"

"Places like where Jazmine took you." The mention of her name made my skin crawl.

"Iris, I'd never ask you to do this unless I felt it was necessary."

"What is it?"

"What if you called him? He's still in love with you, don't you think he'd answer?"

"I guess." She shrugged her head pulling out her phone and dialing the number. She put the phone up to her ear.

"There's no way this is gonna w- Hello? Jesse? It's Iris."

"Told you," I whispered, earning a glare from her.

"I'm sorry for throwing you out the other day, I just got scared. Listen I really need to talk to you. Can we please meet somewhere?...It's important, I have to say it face to face...I promise just you and me...Yeah I know where that is...I'll see you there." She ended the call, her hands shaky.

"Where are we going?"

"First of all, you can't come with me."

"I'm not leaving you alone ag-"

"If you want this to work, you have to listen. I can handle myself this time. Go back inside and tell Officer Hopper this plan. I'm gonna meet with Jesse at the Oakland Park. You ride with Hopper and bring backup. When Jesse and I are talking, the police will come up and take Jesse away."

"How do I know that you'll be okay though?"

"You'll be there with me. We'll leave at the same time, just different cars."

"Are you sure you can make it through this?" I asked.

She leaned up and kissed my lips instead of answering. I pulled her hips closer to mine, yearning for more of her touch. Her hands started to go up to my face, but we jumped apart when her crutches hit the concrete. We both burst out laughing.

"Let's go now before Jesse gets impatient."

                             *****