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She’s the one who moves first, breaking free of our group and grabbing the envelope before flopping down on the couch, clutching it in her hands. She looks more nervous than even Torryn was as she stares at it like it’s a snake about to jump up and bite her. I think we all collectively hold our breath as she opens the envelope one more time, dumping the pieces onto the coffee table for us all to study. Instead of focusing on the pieces first, she looks in the envelope again, this time pulling out a single piece of paper folded up.
“Fuck,” Beau curses, pacing in front of the coffee table.
Isla unfolds the paper, holding it where we can all see it as she reads the single line written on it.
I warned you there would be consequences.
“Fuck is right,” James agrees, dropping in front of the coffee table and nudging the pieces with the tip of finger. He picks up one of the bigger pieces, rolling it between his finger and thumb. “Is this the back of an earring?”
Isla hands the paper to Wells and takes the piece James has in his hand. “It is,” she confirms, looking more closely at the other pieces. There’s another piece that looks the same, along with a couple of other metal pieces that look like they could be a part of an earring. The rest is white bits of shiny rock.
The color drains from Isla’s face as she picks up one of the bigger pieces of jagged white rock. “Baylor,” she asks hesitantly. I meet her eyes and wait. “When you helped Torryn pack, did you see a jewelry box?”
I try to think back on the things I saw Torryn grab, and nothing stands out. “I don’t think so,” I answer.
She gestures with her hands about how big it is. “It would have been an ornate white ceramic box with intricate flowers molded on the top. She wouldn’t have wanted to talk about it, but she would not have left it behind. You would know if you saw it.”
I’m already shaking my head. I know the box she’s talking about. She kept it in her closet, not hidden, but safe. Cherished. “She didn’t have it.” There’s no way she would have been able to bring it without me noticing it.
Tears spill down Isla’s face and my chest constricts. “Fuck,” she murmurs, aggressively wiping the tears from her cheeks. “Why didn’t she say anything?” Wells wraps her in his arms, pulling her into his lap.
I collect the pieces and the note and put them back in the envelope to keep them safe, giving Isla a moment to process her thoughts before I demand for her to explain. Thankfully I don’t have to, as she takes the envelope from me and answers all of my unspoken questions.
“I think they’re her mom’s,” she explains, leaving me with only more questions. She looks at all of us nervously. “I don’t know if I should be telling you guys this, but she never will.” She sighs, and she’s like a different person from the bubbly girl I’vebeen getting to know. “Her mom died when we were younger. All she had left of her was that jewelry box.” If I thought my chest was already hurting, it’s nothing compared to the way it seizes in my chest at the implications of her jewelry box being gone. “I think these are pearl earrings her mom used to wear,” she finishes in a whisper, holding the envelope to her chest.
“Are you sure?” I can’t help but ask.
She shakes her head. “It’s not like they’re recognizable, but it makes sense.”
“So we can all agree it was the stalker?” James asks. Everyone slowly nods as we exchange glances. It’s the same creepy note, promises of consequences, and I even recognize the handwriting at this point.
Wells rubs his hand over his chin, glancing at Isla. “This means whoever he is, he is aware the girls are staying here. He has to be keeping a fairly close eye on Torryn.”
Isla shrinks back into him. “Do you think that’s what the consequence is for?”
I debate the answer to that. I guess it could be, but he seemed to have a lot of demands for her that we still aren’t clear on. “Maybe? It could also be the shift she worked at Tease, the bikini top she wore, that she danced on stage.”
“Fucking in bathrooms,” James adds, but without the teasing from earlier.
Dread twists my stomach. Could I have unintentionally made the situation worse? Put her in bigger danger than she already was in?
“Why aren’t the cops doing shit?” Beau asks, his tone brimming with the frustration we all feel.
I can’t help but agree. As nice as they’ve been and as prompt as they’ve shown up, what do we have to show for it? No leads. No safety. And this sick fuck has already figured out where she is staying. He knew where she worked. Is probably aware that she’sbeen driving my truck. I hate all of it and none of us have been taking this seriously enough.
“I think it’s time we take it into our own hands,” I say with resolve, an idea slowly forming about how we can protect her. “It’s obvious this fuck has too much access to her and regardless of what she does, he’s going to find fault with it.”
“What are you thinking?” James asks but Beau is already staring at me and nodding his head, understanding exactly where my head is at.
“We make sure she is never alone. Work out how to keep someone watching her back at all times. It’ll be tricky but I think we can figure it out.” My eyes rove over to Beau again. “Do you think–”
He’s already waving his hand and cuts me off. “I’ll call my dad.” Relief floods through my system. As confident as I am in my ability to protect Torryn, I can’t be with her every second of every day. She’d strangle me if I tried.
Isla looks confused, but Wells quickly explains that Beau’s dad is the CEO of one of the largest security companies in the country. You’d never realize it with the way Beau acts, but he’s by far the wealthiest guy on the team, and that’s saying something. He walks out of the room, his phone pressed to his ear as he calls his dad, not even hesitating that it’s the middle of the night.
When he walks back into the room, his jaw is set, but there’s a look of relief that wasn’t there before. “A team will be here in the morning to set cameras, motion detectors, and a new security system up and make sure we know how to use it. There’s also going to be guys doing rounds on the street to keep an eye out for suspicious activity. My dad said he could put a guard on Tor, but I didn’t think she would go for that.”
She absolutely would not go for that, but we can always keep it as an option if this shit continues to escalate. Even if she hatesit, her safety has to come first. I wonder how many of our classes lineup close together?
