45. Alec

45

ALEC

I 'm already awake when the first sliver of morning light slips through the blinds, unable to shake the tension in my chest. The whole house feels heavy with it.

I glance over at the couch where Jace is sitting, hunched forward, eyes trained on nothing, his leg bouncing up and down like he's ready to sprint out the door. Devin paces near the kitchen, his fingers tapping against the counter in a steady rhythm. None of us got much sleep last night, the weight of everything too much to let us relax.

Tessa's still asleep in the bedroom, having passed out after all the activity yesterday. I keep telling myself she's safe, that we're here, that nothing can happen to her while we're around. But that doesn't ease the anxiety building in the back of my mind.

"We have to talk," I say, breaking the silence. Devin stops pacing, and Jace snaps out of his trance, both of them looking my way. "Did you find anything out at the Sentinel office?"

Devin nods, but there's a tightness in his face that tells me I'm not going to like the answer. "Yeah. We got more than we expected." He glances at Jace, who gives him a quick nod like they've already decided how to break the news.

"We talked to the staff," Jace says, leaning back in his seat. "Convinced them we needed to check some records for our investigation. They gave us a hard time but eventually we got access to the server room."

I raise an eyebrow. "And?"

Devin sighs, running a hand through his hair. "Tessa's access badge was used the night the laptop went missing. But it wasn't her who swiped in."

My heart skips a beat, the tension in the room tightening. "What do you mean? She was with us that night."

Jace nods. "Exactly. She couldn't have been at the newspaper office. But someone used her badge to get in."

"And we saw who it was," Devin adds, his voice a little quieter. He holds out his phone, showing me a screenshot of grainy security footage, which is spliced side-by-side with a profile picture. "Ryan Carter."

My stomach twists as I process the implication. "Ryan?"

Devin nods, slipping the phone back into his pocket. "He's the one who stole her laptop."

My mind races, piecing together everything we know. Ryan's frustration with Tessa over the podcast, the stalking, the laptop—it's all connected. But is he the one behind everything, or just another piece in a bigger puzzle?

Jace breaks the silence first. "We need to confront him. Now. He's the one we've been looking for."

Devin shakes his head. "Hold on. We don't know the full story yet. Ryan might've stolen the laptop, but we don't know what else he's capable of. If we go at him too hard, he could clam up, and we'll lose our chance to figure out who's really pulling the strings."

I can see both sides of the argument. Confronting Ryan now might push him to reveal what he knows, but it also might scare him off and make him more dangerous. And we can't afford to take any more risks, not with Tessa involved. I lean against the kitchen counter, weighing the options.

"I get what you're saying, Devin," I finally say. "But we can't sit on this forever. Ryan's our best shot at getting answers, and the longer we wait, the more chance he has to cover his tracks."

Devin crosses his arms, clearly still unsure, but he doesn't argue. "So, what's the plan?"

"We talk to him," I say, the decision settling in my gut. "Carefully. We'll feel him out, see what he knows. But we can't ignore this."

Jace looks like he's ready to jump up and head out the door, but I raise a hand. "We'll go soon. Let's give it a minute, make sure Tessa's still okay before we leave."

I glance toward the bedroom where Tessa's sleeping. She'll be fine. The house is locked up, and it's just for a few hours. Nothing's going to happen.

We spot Ryan Carter just as he's about to walk into the Sentinel building. His hair's a mess, his bag slung over his shoulder like he's got a full day ahead, and he doesn't even notice us as we close in.

He's got no idea why we're here.

We don't give him time to figure it out either. Devin's the first to reach him, falling into step beside Ryan like they're old buddies, though his expression says otherwise.

"Hey Ryan, got a minute?"

Ryan blinks, confused, glancing at Devin. His face registers nothing yet. "Uh, who are you?—?"

Before he can finish, Jace and I flank him on either side. There's no mistaking the tension now. His confusion shifts into unease as he looks from one of us to the next.

"What's going on?" Ryan asks, his voice tight with nervousness.

Devin's tone is casual, but there's an edge to it. "We need to have a conversation, Ryan. Away from here."

He hesitates, his eyes flicking toward the entrance of the building, but Jace moves closer cutting off his path. "It's in your best interest to come with us."

Ryan glances between us again, clearly unsettled now, but when we start walking him toward a quieter part of campus, he doesn't resist. Not yet.

We don't stop until we're tucked away in a secluded courtyard, out of view from prying eyes. Devin lets go of his arm, but the message is clear: he's not leaving until we get what we came for.

Ryan rubs his wrist where Devin held him, shifting his weight nervously. "What the hell is this about? Who are you guys?"

I step forward, crossing my arms as I keep my gaze steady on him, taking in his trembling form and noticing that he looks young, with a baby face. Not like someone who wanted to menace Tessa but then again, looks can be deceiving.

"We're the guys who've been protecting Tessa."

Ryan's face goes pale. He swallows hard, his eyes widening as realization sets in. "Tessa?" His voice cracks slightly.

Jace steps closer, his voice low and dangerous. "Yeah, Tessa. The one you've been terrorizing."

Ryan's eyes dart around, like he's searching for a way out. But we've got him cornered. "I-I don't know what you're talking about," he stammers, his voice shaky now. "I didn't do anything to her?—"

"Save it," I snap, cutting him off. "We know you stole her laptop, used her badge to get into the Sentinel building. We know you've been stalking her."

Ryan's lips part, a weak attempt at denial, but no words come out. His hands tremble as he looks between us, panic starting to creep into his expression. "Look, I-I didn't…I didn't stalk her, okay? I didn't do that part."

Devin scoffs. "Right. So what part did you play, Ryan? Because from where we're standing, you've been helping make her life a living hell."

Ryan wipes a bead of sweat from his forehead, his voice shaky as he tries to explain. "I didn't mean for it to go this far. I swear. Someone approached me, okay? They…they knew I was pissed at her. I was angry because she took the Sigma Theta story from me. That could've been my big break—my shot at a promotion."

"So you decided to help destroy her life instead?" Jace growls, his patience wearing thin.

Ryan shakes his head frantically, his voice rising in desperation. "No! No, it wasn't like that. I thought we were just messing with her. You know, like…making her feel what I felt. Powerless, frustrated. I never wanted to actually hurt her."

"Then why didn't you stop when things escalated?" I ask, my voice cold.

Ryan swallows hard, his eyes darting between us again. "I…I didn't realize how bad it was until her dorm was broken into. That's when I knew it had gone too far."

Jace's fists clench. "And you just kept quiet?"

Ryan looks down, his voice barely above a whisper. "I was scared, okay? The person who approached me…they threatened me. Said if I tried to back out or warn Tessa, they'd eliminate the problem. I didn't know what to do. I was in too deep."

Devin steps forward, glaring at him. "Who's ‘they,' Ryan? Who's pulling the strings?"

Ryan hesitates, his body trembling, but he shakes his head. "I don't know their name. They were careful, kept everything anonymous—burner phones, emails. But…but they're dangerous. More dangerous than I thought."

I step even closer, keeping my voice low but firm. "You've already crossed the line, Ryan. There's no turning back now. So you'd better tell us everything you know."

Ryan's shoulders slump, his face ashen. "I don't know who it is. I swear…all I know is that they hate her as much as I did." He pauses. "Well, there was one thing. We never met in person, but he had a lot of knowledge of the campus, so he had to be like, a student or former student, right?"

I bite my lip, considering his words. Who do we know who would have a grudge against Tessa that fits that description? "I need more," I order Ryan.

"Um…he also mentioned something about recently getting out of prison one time. This was after he started threatening me for wanting to back out. I thought it was just to scare me but now I'm not so sure."

I frown. Something is prickling at the edges of my brain. Then it hits me. The one person who has the money, the time, and the desperate desire for revenge. Plus, the connection with Julian suddenly makes sense now.

"It's Max," I say, turning to Jace and Devin. "Max Byers. He got out of prison somehow and went after Tessa."

"We need to get back home," Devin says quickly. "Now."

Max is a dangerous man, probably made more dangerous from his time locked up. If he's been targeting Tessa, stalking her for months, he might even know that she's living off campus. He might know that we just left her alone.

My stomach is in knots as we leave Ryan, racing back to the car and punching it to get home as fast as possible.

The second we step through the door, we know immediately that we're too late.

Max has Tessa.