His Mission

Unanswered Questions.

I don't see Jake for the rest of the day. Before he leaves, he reluctantly asks Tobias to keep watch over me. Tobias is sitting on the couch while scrolling through his phone. He looks bored, and the only sound coming from him is the occasional sigh. "You don't have to babysit me," I tell him.

"Yes, I do." Tobias says before dropping his phone in his lap. He tilts his head back to stare up at the ceiling with boredom. I chew on my bottom lip as I attempt to come up with a conversation starter. Being in Tobias' presence is incredibly uncomfortable. "Do you know where Jake has gone?" I ask him. Tobias' eyes flash with darkness, and he inhales a deep breath. "Yeah, I have a pretty good idea," Tobias mumbles, sounding like he doesn't approve of Jake's decision."Where is he?" I question him. I'm ready to learn new details about the Melvin boys. They're both incredibly secretive about the other side of their life. Tobias' dark eyes settle on me, and he tilts his head with curiosity. "Has Jake told you what he does in his spare time?" There's a hint of amusement in his voice, almost as if his words are bringing him a level of humour.

"No." I respond bluntly. "I figured. You don't seem like the type of girl to agree with his lifestyle choices," Tobias says before reaching for his phone again. "What is that supposed to mean?" I frown at him. Tobias sighs deeply before dropping his phone to his lap. He rolls his head around until his eyes lock on me. I feel my stomach tighten at the look he throws my way. "You're a good girl, Emily. Naive. Civil. If you knew the truth about Jake, you wouldn't like him as much as you do." Tobias says, throwing me completely by surprise. Does he pay more attention to me than I initially thought? I find myself growing defensive.

"That's not true. I like Jake for who he is," I say quietly. Tobias sits up before leaning forward to rest his arms on his thighs. His dark hair flops over into his eyes, and he makes no attempt to push it away. His stare penetrates through me and I resist the urge to shudder. "You don't know who he is, Emily. You have no clue," Tobias tells me. My frown deepens, and I begin questioning everything I know about Jake. Is Tobias right? I know Jake is keeping things from me, but I don't know the extent of them. How dark is the other side of his life?

"I'm not an idiot. I've heard the rumours about him," I say, feeling the need to show Tobias I'm not completely left in the dark. Tobias' lips twitch up into a smirk, and the arrogance on his face makes me want to walk away from him. "That's nothing, sweetheart. You're in for a shock when you realise what you're getting yourself into," Tobias tells me before standing up and walking out of the room. His words knock my confidence, and I begin questioning everything. He leaves me alone with more questions than I started off with, and I silently begin to hate how honest Tobias is.

*

I'm lying in my own bed later that night when I hear a soft knock on my bedroom door. I hope it's Jake. I haven't heard from him all day and I'm curious to know whether he found the identity of my stalker. I walk toward the door before pulling it open. "Oh my god," I gasp at the state of Jake standing in front of me. He's sporting a black eye and the corner of his lip is bleeding. Blood runs down his chin and he reaches up to wipe it away. Blood spots cover his white shirt and he looks at me with a sheepish expression.

"It looks way worse than it is," Jake says in an attempt to reassure me. I grab his hand before guiding him toward the bathroom. "What happened to you?" I ask him. I sit him down on the edge of the bath before getting to work on cleaning him up. I glance down at his hands to find them bruised and red. "You've been fighting," I whisper, knowing all of the signs of a fist fight. "Did you find him? The man who's stalking me?" I question him. Jake shakes his head in protest before swiping his lip with his arm. It causes the blood to smear and he grimaces due to the discomfort from his cut lip.

"No, I didn't find him. I had to deal with something else while I was gone," Jake tells me quietly. I pause for a moment before staring into his eyes. Is this what Tobias was referring to? Is there a side of Jake that is going to blindside me when I find out the details? "Deal with what?" I whisper.

"Don't make me lie to you, Wentworth," Jake says quietly. I inhale a shaky breath before turning around to reach for an antiseptic wipe. "You don't need to lie to me, I want to know the truth." I tell him. Is Jake afraid of my reaction? I turn around before wrapping my fingers around his chin. I tilt his head back before gently wiping at the blood. Jake's warm breath hits my face, and I resist the urge to shiver from being under his stare.

"Thanks for patching me up," Jake murmurs. His hand falls to my waist, and he gently tugs me forward until I'm trapped between his legs. His fingers play with the hem of my shirt and I feel his fingertips skim across my waist. Heat follows behind his touch and I swallow in an attempt to remain focused on the task at hand. "Quit changing the subject." If he's trying to distract me, it's definitely working. His fingers gently stroke back and forth over my waist, and I want nothing more than to climb into his lap for more. I don't do that considering he's injured, plus I'm trying to get information out of him.

"I'd rather not talk about my work," Jake tells me. I re-play the conversation I had with Tobias, and it makes me feel uneasy. "Tobias mentioned earlier that I don't know –" Jake places his hand over mine before lowering it down. His eyes grow cloudy with frustration, and he cuts me off before I can finish my sentence. "Don't listen to a word Tobias says," Jake says with agitation in his voice. I release a sigh before looking straight at him. "He made a valid point. I don't know much about you, Jake."

His eyes continue to cloud with anger. He stands up before storming out of the bathroom, and I follow behind him with confusion. "Where are you going?" I call out to him. Jake ignores me before opening Tobias' bedroom door. I hear Tobias' shouts of protest floating out from his room. "Get the fuck out of my room," Tobias warns Jake. I watch as Jake holds up an accusing finger at Tobias before inhaling deeply. "What did you say to Emily, huh? Stay out of my fucking life!" Jake yells at Tobias. Tobias storms up to Jake before shoving him against the wall. Jake shoves Tobias in response, and the pair begin to square up to each other. I rush between them with urgency. "Stop. You don't have to fight."

Neither of them listen to me. Tobias' dark eyes zone in on Jake's bloodied lip. "Where did you get that?" Tobias questions him. Jake's jaw turns razor sharp with anger and he looks at Tobias with coldness in his eyes. "It has nothing to do with you," Jake hits back at him. Tobias stares intensely at his cousin, and his chest rises and falls with his heavy breathing. "What did I say to you, Jake? I told you Amil would ruin your life. You need to get out before you end up dead!" Tobias yells at Jake. His words peak my interest and I turn to look at Jake with a questionable look.

"Who is Amil?" I ask him. He sounds like bad news, especially if he's the reason Jake could possibly end up dead. The idea causes nausea to ignite deep in my stomach. How deeply is Jake involved with dangerous people? Why would he continue working for someone if he's ruining Jake's life? Why isn't Jake taking Tobias' advice? What happened between them both to create such anger and resentment? Jake releases a groan of frustration before running a hand over his face. He turns toward Tobias before warning him one last time. "I told you, man. Stay the fuck away from me," Jake tells him through gritted teeth before storming out of the room. I'm left alone with Tobias, and more questions than ever.

"Who is Amil?" I repeat my question to Tobias. He scowls at me before gesturing at his bedroom door. "Nobody. Get out of my room." His eyes are dark and emotionless. I exhale a deep breath of frustration. "You can be a real asshole at times. Do you know that?" I say to him with a narrowed expression. Tobias stares back at me blankly and appears unphased by my words. "Bite me," he responds before gesturing at his door for a second time. I shake my head in disbelief before exiting his room and slamming the door behind me.

Getting answers from either of the Melvin boys is virtually impossible.