Chapter Eighteen
Ivy
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ISTEPPED THROUGH MYfront door, and my mouth dropped open.
What the fuck?
Had I been robbed? The interior was a disaster. Even from my position in the entrance hall, it was obvious someone had tossed the place. Every drawer stood open or had been pulled fully out of the dresser and left on the floor, and the contents were strewn everywhere.
My heart rate skyrocketed, my skin prickling with goosebumps. I was afraid, but now wasn’t the time to give in to that fear.
I was a Gilligan, and I wasn’t going to be run out of my own home. After the experience with those two pricks outside the club, I was determined to defend myself. I couldn’t have someone run in and save me every time there was trouble.
My first instinct was to call the police, but that wasn’t how our family did things. Who the hell would be stupid enough to rob a Gilligan property? Had whoever done this left already? I strained my ears for any sound, but none came to me. I’d used my key to unlock the front door and I hadn’t seen any sign of damage. Could they have come through a window?
Moving cautiously, I stepped farther into the flat. I scanned around, trying to figure out what might have been taken. To my surprise, my expensive flat-screen television was still in place, and my MacBook Pro was where I’d left it on the kitchen counter. This didn’t make sense. Why would someone break in here and leave the most pricy items?
Before entering any farther, I reached for the gun I kept attached by a clip to the bottom of the hall console. It only took a flick of my finger to release it, and the weapon fell into my hand. I took it out and checked the safety was off. I already knew it was loaded—unless someone had had the foresight to empty the magazine and replace it, lulling me into a false sense of security. I still felt better with the weight of the weapon in my hand.
Where was Mara? I hoped she’d been out at the time of the break-in and I wasn’t about to come across her body. That would kill me.
I checked the windows, going from the kitchen to the living room, to the bathroom to the bedroom. None were unlocked or had been broken or tampered with. Yet more drawers had been emptied, but I still couldn’t pinpoint anything that had been taken.
How had they got in?
Realisation dawned on me.
Whoever did this had a key and decided to use it.
My family.
What the fuck had they been looking for? Something they clearly thought I was hiding from them. There was only one thing that would put them in a position where they’d come here uninvited and go through my stuff.
Jayden.
Did they suspect I had a key for his place—that I’d been letting myself in and out whenever I wanted?
Oh no. No, no, no.
My stomach dropped.
I’d had his key—and the one used on the lift—stuck to the base of my bedside table drawer. The drawer had been yanked completely from the stand. I grabbed it and flipped it over.
The key was gone.
Tears filled my eyes. There was only one reason I could think of for them to need that key, and that was if they intended on paying Jay a surprise visit.
I put down the gun and grabbed my phone. My hands were shaking, and I struggled to bring up Jay’s number.
I clamped the phone to my ear as it rang.Please pick up, please pick up.Tears swam in my eyes. Had my family gone to pay him a visit because of us? I knew with certainty that was exactly what had happened. Had they gone already? Was I too late? I knew my family. They had the ability to make people disappear if they were causing them problems.
Would they dare make Jayden vanish?
I swore I’d never forgive them.