your head?”
“Throbbing.”
Once up the stairs, they hesitantly approached their door. The same lock was there, scratches and all, but the frame was repaired.
“We should get a second deadbolt,” Sidney suggested.
Lyra agreed. “Definitely.”
“Wait until you see what they did to the bedrooms. They were definitely looking for something.”
“Jewelry and money?”
“We don’t have any jewelry or money.”
“I’ll go in first,” Lyra said, holding up the pepper spray as she unlocked the door and pushed it open. Blessedly, the apartment was empty. And an awful mess. It would take a solid day to get everything straightened. Drawers had been pulled out, clothes ripped from their hangers, and matresses overturned.
“I’m going to call my sister,” Sidney said. “But I’ll make my bed first because I’m going to be on the phone all night.”
“I’ll make your bed. You relax. Jordan’s a talker, huh?”
“Not really. We’ll probably only talk for ten minutes, but she’ll tell her husband what happened, and he’ll tell my brothers, and you can bet that soon enough all of them will be calling you and me.”
“They don’t need to talk to me. You can tell them what happened.”
“Lyra, you’re part of the family now. You’ve known Alec and Dylan and Nick and Theo and Jordan’s hunky husband, Noah, for a long time. Not only are you my best friend,” she added, “but you saved my life today. It’s the one benefit of being related to so many men in law enforcement. Of course they’re going to help you.”
Lyra smiled. “Yes, you’re right. They’ll help figure this out.” Thank God, she silently added.
“Are you going to call Gigi or your brothers?”
“Oh, no,” she said. “Gigi would worry, and my brothers … you know how they are.”
“They’ll drag you back to the ranch and put armed guards around you.”
“Exactly,” she agreed. She headed to the bedrooms. “I’ll make the beds while you call Jordan. Then I’m taking a hot shower and finishing my paper on Katherine Hepburn films.
It’s due tomorrow.”
“Who’s class?”
“Linden’s. He’s such a hardnose.”
Lyra got busy while Sidney looked for her cell phone. She found it under a table, plugged it in to charge it, then used the apartment phone to call Jordan.
“Is it too late to call?” she asked when her sister answered.
“No, of course not,” Jordan assured her.
“Is Noah home?”
“He’s right here. You want to talk to him?”
“Yes, please.”
“Are you all right?” Jordan asked, worry in her voice.
“I’m fine.”
Jordan handed the phone over to her husband, telling him that Sidney wanted to talk to him.
“Hey, sugar, what’s going on?”
“Listen … something happened today …”
NINE
SIDNEY WAS ON THE PHONE UNTIL AFTER MIDNIGHT. JUST AS she had predicted, she had to tell the entire story to Noah, then to Theo, Dylan, Nick, and Alec.
Alec was the last to get through to her. “Who have you been talking to?”
“Our brothers.”
“You should have done a conference call. Would have saved you some time.” Why hadn’t she thought of that?
“Yes, I should have. Or you could have—”
“I talked to Noah,” he said. “He told me what happened. Do you have any idea what the men wanted?”
“All I know is that they were looking for Lyra. Detective O’Malley spent an hour with us at the hospital asking questions, but neither of us could come up with an explanation.” Her voice shook. “Alec, they were really creepy. I’ve never been so terrified.”
“Do you know how lucky you were?”
Of course she did. “Do you know how many times I’ve been asked that? I have a concussion. That isn’t lucky,” she said just to be obstinate.
“It could have been much, much worse. Lyra used pepper spray, huh?”
“And a lug wrench.”
“Going in … that took guts. Still, she should have waited for the police.”
“She had called them, and she was
“Throbbing.”
Once up the stairs, they hesitantly approached their door. The same lock was there, scratches and all, but the frame was repaired.
“We should get a second deadbolt,” Sidney suggested.
Lyra agreed. “Definitely.”
“Wait until you see what they did to the bedrooms. They were definitely looking for something.”
“Jewelry and money?”
“We don’t have any jewelry or money.”
“I’ll go in first,” Lyra said, holding up the pepper spray as she unlocked the door and pushed it open. Blessedly, the apartment was empty. And an awful mess. It would take a solid day to get everything straightened. Drawers had been pulled out, clothes ripped from their hangers, and matresses overturned.
“I’m going to call my sister,” Sidney said. “But I’ll make my bed first because I’m going to be on the phone all night.”
“I’ll make your bed. You relax. Jordan’s a talker, huh?”
“Not really. We’ll probably only talk for ten minutes, but she’ll tell her husband what happened, and he’ll tell my brothers, and you can bet that soon enough all of them will be calling you and me.”
“They don’t need to talk to me. You can tell them what happened.”
“Lyra, you’re part of the family now. You’ve known Alec and Dylan and Nick and Theo and Jordan’s hunky husband, Noah, for a long time. Not only are you my best friend,” she added, “but you saved my life today. It’s the one benefit of being related to so many men in law enforcement. Of course they’re going to help you.”
Lyra smiled. “Yes, you’re right. They’ll help figure this out.” Thank God, she silently added.
“Are you going to call Gigi or your brothers?”
“Oh, no,” she said. “Gigi would worry, and my brothers … you know how they are.”
“They’ll drag you back to the ranch and put armed guards around you.”
“Exactly,” she agreed. She headed to the bedrooms. “I’ll make the beds while you call Jordan. Then I’m taking a hot shower and finishing my paper on Katherine Hepburn films.
It’s due tomorrow.”
“Who’s class?”
“Linden’s. He’s such a hardnose.”
Lyra got busy while Sidney looked for her cell phone. She found it under a table, plugged it in to charge it, then used the apartment phone to call Jordan.
“Is it too late to call?” she asked when her sister answered.
“No, of course not,” Jordan assured her.
“Is Noah home?”
“He’s right here. You want to talk to him?”
“Yes, please.”
“Are you all right?” Jordan asked, worry in her voice.
“I’m fine.”
Jordan handed the phone over to her husband, telling him that Sidney wanted to talk to him.
“Hey, sugar, what’s going on?”
“Listen … something happened today …”
NINE
SIDNEY WAS ON THE PHONE UNTIL AFTER MIDNIGHT. JUST AS she had predicted, she had to tell the entire story to Noah, then to Theo, Dylan, Nick, and Alec.
Alec was the last to get through to her. “Who have you been talking to?”
“Our brothers.”
“You should have done a conference call. Would have saved you some time.” Why hadn’t she thought of that?
“Yes, I should have. Or you could have—”
“I talked to Noah,” he said. “He told me what happened. Do you have any idea what the men wanted?”
“All I know is that they were looking for Lyra. Detective O’Malley spent an hour with us at the hospital asking questions, but neither of us could come up with an explanation.” Her voice shook. “Alec, they were really creepy. I’ve never been so terrified.”
“Do you know how lucky you were?”
Of course she did. “Do you know how many times I’ve been asked that? I have a concussion. That isn’t lucky,” she said just to be obstinate.
“It could have been much, much worse. Lyra used pepper spray, huh?”
“And a lug wrench.”
“Going in … that took guts. Still, she should have waited for the police.”
“She had called them, and she was
Similar Books
