Chapter 119 Untraceable signal
The way he stared at it, one might think that the phone had whispered something only he could hear.
Lucas shifted beside him, about to speak but Alex was already moving.
“I need to make a call,” he said quickly, with his tone controlled.
Lucas frowned slightly but nodded. “Okay.”
Alex stepped out of the bedroom butt naked, running a hand through his hair as soon as the door clicked shut behind him. The calm mask dropped instantly. His jaw tightened as he dialed a number on his phone.
The line barely rang once.
“Good morning, boss,” Dan’s voice came through, alert as always.
“Tell me you’ve got something on Mac,” Alex said, low and direct.
Dan paused, instantly, and Alex knew it. That kind of pause is not a good sign.
“We’ve been digging,” Dan replied. “We've run the number through every channel we’ve got. Official records, backdoor systems, even a few, less legal routes.”
Alex’s grip on the phone tightened. “And?”
“It’s a registered number,” Dan said. “Mac Hunter.”
Alex’s eyes narrowed slightly. “That’s it?”
“That’s it, boss,” Dan confirmed. “No address, no linked accounts, and no digital footprint that is worth anything. It’s like the name exists but the person doesn’t.”
A cold silence settled on Alex’s end. “What about location?” he asked.
“That’s where it gets weird,” Dan continued. “The number doesn’t stay active long enough to trace. No fixed signal and no pattern. It only pings a location when it’s being used and even then, it disappears before we can lock it down.”
Alex exhaled slowly, his mind racing.
“Burner phone?” he muttered.
“No, boss,” Dan said immediately. “Too clean for that. This is sort of deliberate. Someone who knows exactly how to stay invisible.”
Damn it,” Alex cursed under his breath. “This doesn't sit right, at all.” Alex’s voice dropped further. “What about his call logs?”
Another pause.
“Well, about that, boss…”
Alex’s eyes hardened. “What? Spill it Dan. Who and who have he called or received a call from?
“The number,” Dan said slowly, “it has only ever contacted one person.”
Alex’s heart skipped. He already knew the answer, but hearing it still hit differently.
“Say it.”
Dan said almost in a whisper. “You alone, boss.”
A silence stretched. Alex’s heart pounded in his ear. Not that he was scared for himself but he was very scared for his Lucas. He felt something cold crawl up his spine.
Dan continued, “There are no other outgoing calls. No incoming traffic either. There is no history beyond you,” Dan added. “It’s like the number exists only to reach you.”
Alex swallowed hard, his gaze drifting back toward the closed bedroom door. Lucas was inside,
unaware of the storm blowing.”
“Keep digging,” Alex said at last, his voice now edged with something darker. “I don’t care what it takes. I want to know who the heck this guy is.”
“We’re on it, boss,” Dan responded before the call ended.
Alex lowered the phone slowly, his thoughts louder than ever now.
Mac wasn’t random, he wasn’t guessing or playing, he was watching. And somehow, he knew exactly where to look.
Alex took a steady breath before pushing the door open.
By the time he stepped back inside, his expression was a bit composed again. He was calm, controlled, almost too perfect.
But the tension hadn’t left his body completely. It lingered in the stiffness of his shoulders. The way his fingers flexed slightly at his side before he relaxed them.
Lucas noticed immediately.
He was still on the bed, watching him walk up, quiet and observant. Not saying anything at first, just reading him.
Alex offered a small smile as he walked back over. “Sorry about that.”
Lucas tilted his head slightly. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Alex replied too quickly, climbing onto the bed beside him. “Just work.”
The word hung there. Lucas held his gaze for a moment longer than usual, like he was searching for something behind it. “Work?” he echoed softly.
“Yeah,” Alex said, nodding once, keeping his tone light. “You know how it is.” He reached for Lucas, pulling him closer, trying to slip back into where they had been before, but something had shifted.
Lucas let himself be pulled in.
But it wasn’t the same. His body rested against Alex, yet there was a faint hesitation now, a slight delay in how he responded. His fingers didn’t move as freely as before. His head rested on Alex’s chest, but his eyes stayed open this time.
“Hmm,” he murmured, as if he believed him, but not completely.
Alex pressed a light kiss to his hair, his hand resuming its slow strokes along Lucas’s back, but his focus wasn’t there anymore. His mind was elsewhere, fragmented and distracted.
Lucas noticed that too. He glanced up briefly, catching the way Alex’s eyes drifted, not on him, but past him. It was sort of distant.
Lucas quickly looked away again.
“Your mind’s still at work,” he said quietly, attempting a small smile.
Alex let out a soft chuckle, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Just a little.”
“Must be important,” Lucas added.
“Yeah,” Alex replied. The response was short, flat, and didn’t sound like him.
Silence followed, not uncomfortable enough to break, but no longer as easy as before.
Lucas shifted slightly, adjusting his position, though there was nothing really to adjust. His fingers traced lightly over Alex’s chest again, but the movement felt more deliberate now. Like he was trying to recreate something that had already slipped.
Alex tightened his hold on him unconsciously and Lucas noticed that too. However, this time, he didn’t say anything. He just let out a quiet breath and rested his head back down, staring ahead instead of up at him.
The warmth was still there but there was something else beneath it. Something yet unspoken.
Silence stretched just a little too long. Alex’s thoughts spiraled wondering what Mac's mission could be. If he had hurt him sometime ago and he wanted to hurt him back, no problem. But then another thought hit his mind. What if he wanted to hurt Lucas?
Alex’s heart skipped. Then Alex shifted, subtly at first, his hand, which had been resting lazily on Lucas’s back, tightened more. His fingers stilled. His gaze, once distant, snapped back and became focused and sharp.
“Lucas,” he said with something different in his tone.
Lucas lifted his head, brows knitting faintly. “Hmm?”
Alex hesitated, just for a second, like he was choosing his words carefully. “Who knows about your hospital visit?”
Lucas blinked, “What?” A small frown formed on his face.
The questions seemed to come out of nowhere. “The visit,” Alex clarified, his voice more serious now. “Who else knows about it?”
Lucas pushed himself up slightly, confusion growing. “No one, really… just me and you.”
Alex’s jaw tightened. “Think carefully, baby.”
Lucas stared at him in confusion. “There is nothing to think about, Alex. I didn't tell a soul. Just us and the hospital.”
“Did you tell any friends? Family?” Alex pressed, his voice firm, almost urgent.
Lucas shook his head slowly and snapped, “What the heck is going on?”