7. Alex

"YOU FREAKING PIECE OF SHIT!" Alex felt like something sharp just pierced his brain. He removed the headphones on her wild scream. Ella's eyes were burning from anger "If you ever come in front of me, I will kill you!" her throat might be hurting after this much shouting.

He has messed with her a little hard this time. After all, he has hurt her sky-high pride.

Alex had no other option and he left no other option for her as well.

Ella would never take a penny from him. He has tried to help her many times by giving her money but she has always sent it back by every single dollar.

She was a girl of self-esteem. It was a little terrifying to see how furious she was. But he could still not stop staring at her from the screen, because to him, it was actually cute. Her attitude was messed up really badly. He knew she would not take a calm breath until she returned the money to him.

Alex wondered if she would try to get in contact with her stalker just to pay it back. Ella has always tried to ignore him, making herself feel that he was an illusion but in the past few days, he has been pushing the limit. He wanted to be much more than that illusion now.

But Ella has started to fear. Maybe it was the explanation of her behavior today. She might have been so startled in her mind and that was why she yelled at Julie while knowing the consequences.

Alex wasn't feeling calm about it either. He hated what he did today. That dump-headed girl Julie slapped Ella because of him. If it wasn't for the task he would have hit Julie in front of the entire school. But he didn't, he couldn't.

And now Ella was in a bad situation. She had one hundred dollars in her account and there was no way she could earn that money in a single night. He had to help her by any means. So, he took the aid of the last thing he wanted to do. Blackmailing.

Alex held the pendant in his hand. This was a pretty big diamond. David Harrison must have spent a lot of money on it.

Ella could have anything if she just sell it but she would never. She would just starve herself to death then lose something so precious to her.

Alex knows how much it means to her. He was there, the day his father gifted it to her.

It was her twenty-second birthday.

5 months ago

It has been more than a month since Alex started to stalk Ella. He now knows everything about her. The mission has been successful till now. He has gathered a lot of information about David.

Alex remembered her entire profile and that was why he knew that it was her birthday. Alex was of course at her birthday party; sitting in a corner of the restaurant, listening to them through his earpiece.

David Harrison didn't look like someone who would join a birthday party but to Alex's surprise, he showed up. It explains his love for his daughter.

Ella had a birthday party with half of the law school just in the evening and now this was a small gathering with Ella, her father, and a person he hates a lot; Danial.

Danial tries a little too much to get close to Ella. It's not like Ella hates him but Alex knows she only thinks of him as her elder brother. After all, he had read all of her diaries.

An important point that he has missed mentioning was, what does it have to do with his stalking?

Alex was following Ella so he could find anything related to evidence David had against the club. Maybe his motive has been tilted a little towards the other way. Alex retained himself from getting distracted for another time. "Thank you for being here, Dad" Ella was smiling. She always squeezed her blue eyes when she truly felt happy. "It's a pleasure, Angel," his father was smiling as well. He didn't like that smile.

Alex doesn't know what it feels like to be loved by a parent. His mother left him when he was seven, the reason thrown to him was that she was having an affair. Alex never cared or at least he pretended his very best to not show it.

And about his father. He can't even bear a single sight of him. For Alex, his father was worse than any person in the creation. Being on this mission has done him a favor of staying away from him.

"Look what I have got you," David said, pulling his attention to him. He passed a box to Ella. "What is it?" She asked before even checking it "Open it and find" Ella nodded and then opened the box. A smile spread on her lips, lightening their faces. "This necklace is beautiful" he hadn't seen the necklace but he could swear that it was never prettier than her. He was smiling at her like an idiot and just then he felt like he was forgetting something. "It's for you, Ell" it was Daniel. He was grateful for not being able to see his face but the voice was as irritating.

He had a feeling that something was wrong. Alex removed his earpiece to concentrate and when he tried to trail what he has been forgetting "Fuck" he muttered beneath his breath.

Alex abruptly abandoned them and rushed out. Swearing at himself, he ran to his bike. His heart was racing as fast as the engine. He was too drowned in her happy moment to keep track of his own mission. He would have marked a disaster for all the planning he has done by a minor mistake.

The engine was rasping, syncing to his yelling mind. He couldn't bear the loss by messing the time up. They would be home soon and if Alex wasn't done on time, it was over

Tearing through the air like a storm in the night, making every minute feel like an hour, he reaches her house in the recorded time.

Alex parked his bike away from the mansion. He knew that no one was home but he had to take every precaution to get his work done. He kept his mask and hood on as he jumped in through her window.

The moment he stepped into her room, a fancy smell left him feeble for a second. It was the scent of her favorite perfume. It was Lille. It made her presence feel obvious. She could almost feel her around. Walking into her room and talking to herself. She was there or maybe it was the mere hope of her to be there

And that was the moment when he realized that this obsession had started to consume him like a fire. He was yearning to see a glimpse of her, just a brief sight of her that would put him at ease. This was too bad. Too bad for his heart. Too bad for the task.

Alex jerked his head to pull himself out of her thoughts. It took him an entire minute to feel the present.

When he came to his senses, he remembered why he was there. He had fit the camera in a corner of her cupboard. Without wasting another second he walked quickly towards it.

Alex removed the camera and swiftly started to change the battery. When he took it out, it showed a red light. The battery was almost dying just as he estimated.

His hands were skilled for it. They knew how to work on it without the need of a command from the brain. And then in thirty seconds, he was done.

He took a breath full of relief. He was done sooner than the time he had calculated.

Once he readjusted the camera at its spot, he walked back to the window. He was already running out of time and then something was caught by a corner of his eyes.

A familiar picture lying on her side table.

Alex moved toward it. His eyes widened, lips parted in wonder as he found his picture in her room. He looked at the picture as if he was unable to recognize himself. He looked around to find an answer but he got nothing. His puzzled eyes landed back on the picture "What the hell?" He asked himself in confusion but instead of the answer, an unlocking sound of the door came, which knocked him into his senses.

Alex put the picture back at the table at the exact same angle. The voice of her steps was reaching the door and Alex was standing still. He had to ask her what it was about. If it was what he thought then she would be in serious danger.

She was near, just a few steps away from facing him for the first time while being conscious.

Alex took a deep breath, this interaction could hurt the mission badly.

When she opened the door, he disappeared

She didn't see him and he was sure of it.

•••

"Hey, where are you running to, Hawk?" It was Luke, leaning against a wall. He was one of the members of Wolves. He was loyal and Alex had a good bond with him. He wasn't a friend nor was he someone unknown to him. "Just has a thing to deal with" Alex was in a hurry and Luke didn't disturb him for another time.

Alex rushed through the vast corridor, taking the stairs, he went to his room.

He had a simple room. Silent walls, pale colors like the state of his mind.

Alex locked the door and in the opposite direction, he walked to a corner of the wall. It was a usual brike wall with nothing strange but when he placed his hand over the wall, a ray of light shone over it and scanned his hand. After a moment of confirmation, the wall split into two, unraveling a secret room.

The blue neon light fell on his face as the door opened. He walked into the room and the wall closed behind him. The room was filled with screens and wires. Alex has been shaping this room for years. He has been trailing every person, he needs to follow in his tasks with his Hawk's eyes. This room was one of the most important things that he owns.

Alex walked to the table and took a seat. The computer in front of him had the cameras that he had installed all over her house. He clicked on a screen and zoomed in on it.

It was the camera in her living room.

David and Denial have a meeting every Thursday in the evening on the case related to Eclipse. He wondered if his picture in her room had to do with it.

Alex had been busy the entire week and hadn't checked the recording of this week yet. So, he clicked it.

Everything seemed normal. They were usually discussing the details and their progress. Alex knows all of it.

He watched the recording for half an hour, there was nothing important to notice and just then, Ella walked to them which had never happened before. She usually ignores them and does her stuff but today she seemed interested in something

"What happened, Angel? Why are you looking at him like this?" David asked. Alex zoomed in and as he guessed, it was his picture in her hand

"Who is he?" She asked "Why are you asking? Do you know him?" Daniel questioned in urgency. Ella looked at him as if she had no clue why he was behaving like this. She looked at the picture again "No, I don't but I think I have seen him" she said. David and Denial exchanged a shocked glance

"Where?" Her father asked. Ella shook her head "I don't remember where but I think I have seen him" she repeated. "Try to focus, Ell. Try to remember where you have seen him" Denial said, desperately. His face had fear on it, something that Alex has not seen many times.

Ella stared at the picture for a long moment, made a cute confused face but she didn't seem to remember and Alex took a breath out of relief "It's okay, if you don't remember, Angel. Keep trying and let us know when you do" she nodded her head a little, still trying her best to remember his face. "Maybe I have seen him or it could be a mistake," she said, not tearing her eyes off his picture "It's okay. Just let us know if you remember or if you don't," his father said. She nodded for another time and went to her room while looking at him.

Alex removed the headphones

"Thank god she doesn't remember. It would have ruined the mission" he said in relief. He leaned back to his chair not knowing what could have happened if she had just said his name to them. But then, a moment later, he sat up and the relief disappeared.

"I have to report it to Prime" he heard his horrified voice in his ear.

Alex knew that it was his fault from the very beginning. He showed his face to Ella while she was drunk, thinking she wouldn't remember him.

Now, if Ella remembers him and tells this to her father and Danial, worse things could happen to her. She would also remember him installing malware on her phone and talking about the murder of her father.

Alex ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head in no. He has made a big mistake and now Alex has two choices.

One, he should go and report everything to Prime and it would mean that Ella's life would be at risk.

Two, he could simply hide it and get killed by Prime when he finds out about it

"I won't let him lay a finger at her" he made his choice in the time equivalent to one second.