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It didn’t take long to get back to my building. I paid before stepping out of the cab into the cold air, staring up at the clear black night.
“I wish you were here to tell me I’m doing the right thing, Mum. I love you.” A shiver rippled down my back, giving me the weird sensation that someone was watching me. I spun around, but the road was deserted.
“I hope that’s you, Mum, and not some photographer trying to get a shot of Tanner’s ex-nobody.” Another reason to add to my list of why I couldn’t be with him. Since no one had seen us together in months, there had been lots of speculation about him dumping me.That was fun!
Taking the keys out of my bag, I unlocked the door to my building, pulling it firmly closed behind me, letting out a sigh of relief when I felt safe again. Slipping off my heels, I walked the three floors to my apartment. As I turned the corner, I noticed how dark it was. It should be lit, but the ceiling lights and the ones that ran along the bottom of the walls were all out. I pulled out my phone to turn on the torch, wondering if there had been a power cut, although the lights in the rest of the building seemed fine.
As I approached my front door, I saw that it was open, the moonlit night shining through my windows onto the hardwood floor. As I peered inside to see my apartment torn apart, I slammed my hand over my mouth to suppress a cry. I listened to see if I could hear anyone inside, but it was silent. I kept my hand firmly over my lips to hold in the sobs as I looked around.
Someone had completely trashed the place. The sofa cushions were on the floor, ripped open. Cupboards and drawers had been emptied and scattered across the room and my curtains were torn from the windows. Then I noticed Shelly’s enclosure had been pulled over and lay smashed on the floor. I burst into tears.
Realizing that someone might be still inside, I rushed back out into the hallway, running over to my neighbors, who lived across from me. I knocked softly on the door because I didn’t want anyone to hear me if they were still in my apartment. “Nick? Ben? Are you home? Please, it’s Emmy. I need you.”
“What are you whispering for, Emmy? Did you break the law and are on the run?” a booming voice laughed out from their apartment.
Ben opened the door, and I flung myself at him, wrapping my arms around his giant chest before bursting into more tears.
“Damn, girl, you look fine. If I wasn’t a happy homosexual, I would so want you in that dress. Emmy, why are you crying? Are you okay?” Ben’s usually cheerful face suddenly darkened as he looked down at me.
“There’s someone in my apartment. Someone’s broken in. Can I come in? I need to work out what to do. They broke Shelly’s house.” My terror-filled voice shook as I spoke.
Ben pulled me inside and closed the door behind me. “Of course, beautiful. Come in. First, we need to call the police. Then I need to get you a hoodie, so the police don’t spend the whole time staring at your fine curves, and then I’ll get you a drink for the shock. Did they take much?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t go in too far. I wasn’t sure if they were still in there.”
“You wanna call the cops, or do you want me to?”
I took a second to think about what I needed to do. It was probably just a random break-in, but I couldn’t ignore the feeling I had in the pit of my stomach that this was related to the band. “I will, but I need to call someone else first.”
“Okay, lovely. I’ll get you a hoodie and we’ll sort it all.”
I offered him a weak smile and unlocked my phone, dialing his number. He answered instantly.
“Emmy?”
“Thomas. Someone has broken into my apartment. They’ve trashed the place.”
“Shit, were you in there when it happened? Are you okay?” he asked, concern heavy in his voice.
“No, I was with Tanner and the band at their party. Do you think it’s linked to him?”
“I don’t know. Where are you?” he questioned.
“With a friend, down the hall.” I wrapped my arm around myself, suddenly freezing and shaking with the shock of it all.
“Stay there. I will call Matt. I’m miles away, but if you need Melissa, she’ll be there. Let me make some calls and I will call you back. Do not go back there, Emmy. Do you hear me?”
“I won’t. Thanks, Thomas.”
He hung up, and Nick and Ben dragged me into their arms, where I sobbed.
Tanner
I’dtriedtotellher how I felt, how sorry I was, but she left anyway. Maybe it was impossible. Maybe this life was all too much, but I would give it up in a heartbeat if she asked me to. I loved her that much. I would happily go back to playing guitar in the garage if I got to keep her. I’d meant what I’d told Gray—none of this was worth it if we ended up unhappy.
I was about to do yet another boring interview with some annoying reporter when Matt appeared out of nowhere, his face blank and expressionless like normal when he’s working, but his jaw was clenched. He leaned in behind me, placing his mouth millimeters from my ear so no one could hear what he said. Having a mole somewhere around had made us all much more guarded.
“It’s Emmy. You’re going to want to come with me. Now.”
