Witness

24| They Know

Since the "almost-kiss," a week and a half ago, the relationship between Jax and I seemed a little... off.

The first day or two, he was glued to my side, ensuring that the coincidental fire was just that... a coincidence.

Usually, I liked having him around, but he was behaving like he had when we first met. He was distancing himself again; not physically due to the potential threat, but definitely emotionally.

We hadn't had any deep talks, he didn't give me any hugs, and he kept all conversations related to school work, weather, or other mundane things.

Even more unfortunate, when Chief confirmed that the fire was just a freak accident and was 100% unrelated to the mob, he was able to distance himself even further. I hated it.

I knew that kissing would be crossing a major line. He made it very clear to me that nothing could ever happen between the two of us. But yet... something almost had.

I kept replying that night over in my mind. What if Hannah hadn't interrupted? Would he have gone through with it and kissed me? What would have happened then?

I hated not knowing the answer, and I hated how Jax was freaked out now. With all the Hannah and Drayden drama, she wasn't around all that much, and it left me feeling lonely. Attraction aside, I missed hanging out with Jax; I missed my friend.

I wasn't sure how to fix the relationship between Jax and I. It felt like something drastic needed to happen in order for us to return to normal. I just wasn't sure what that thing was.

Hannah was home for the weekend, so I had the dorm to myself. With all of the tension between Jax and I, I just wanted to go to the gym and blow off some steam. Besides, I didn't hate watching Jax work out, even if things were a little weird with us right now.

I had just finished pulling my hair into a pony tail and tying my gym shoes when my phone rang.

Strange. I rarely got calls.

Chief had been calling from time to time to check in, but contact between us was limited, so I was surprised to see his name flash across my screen.

"Hey Chief," I greeted, "everything okay?"

"Hi Emery," he sighed, "unfortunately... I have some bad news for you. I figured you should hear it from me so that I can answer any of your questions..."

Oh god. My stomach lurched. Whatever he was about to tell me couldn't be good. I made my way to the futon, sitting down in preparation for whatever he was about to say.

"One of our informants, who has connections to the mob, told us that they figured out you're alive. We are still working out the details as to how they found out... but the bottom line is that they know," he spoke.

My face drained of color. My body stiffened as I soaked it in.

They know I'm alive... they will be coming for me.

"Oh... okay. Um... you're going to need to tell me exactly what that means for me...," I pressed. I had an idea, but I needed to know for sure. I needed to hear out loud if I was in any more danger.

"For the time being, it doesn't change much. They're looking for you, but they don't have any way to find you. You have Jaxon to protect you and he will remain diligent. We're taking extra measures to protect your dad as well," he explained, "Nothing is going to change, but I felt I needed to let you know. I told you I would always be completely honest about your situation. Just please remain careful and remain aware of your surroundings."