Page 64 of Forged Forever

I wake the next morning surrounded by warmth. Nick. I sigh happily, burying my nose in his throat and breathe in. I’ve missed him so much, and I doze a little longer in his arms since he’s still asleep. Slowing blinking my eyes open later, there’s faint light filtering in around the curtains. “Shortie,” Nick’s gravely voice calls.

Pulling back, I look up into his eyes. “I missed you so much, Grumpy,” I whisper, not wanting to wake the others.

Nodding, he pulls me into a quick, heated kiss. “Gotta go back to the station today.”

“Want me to come with you?” I offer.

“No.”

“Okay. I’ll be with Jake or at the house. Call me when you’re done?”

“Jake?” he questions, both eyebrows raised.

“You’ve missed a lot,” I smile. “Jake went into an experimental trial after you left that Zander found. He woke up and lives about 10 minutes from here with his dad. He’s still in rehab but is doing good. I can’t wait for you to meet him. He has some short-term memory issues, but is otherwise okay.”

“You’re back with him?”

“Yup, but he knows I’m with you, Seb, and E too. You’re not getting rid of me.”

Nodding, he kisses my forehead. “We should get up before Z and Troy.”

“Good idea,” I mumble from his chest. He rolls over and gets out of bed, going into the bathroom. Stretching, I relish the warmth under the covers for a minute before pushing them aside and sitting up. E and Seb are sound asleep across the room. When Nick comes out of the bathroom, I grab my bag and take my turn inside.

Alex and Nick are sitting at the table with coffees when I leave the bedroom. Waving at Alex, I make myself a cup of tea before joining them.

“What time are you going to visit Jake and Ray?” Alex asks.

“I’m not sure. We still need to fix our house, which will be a lot of work,” I reply, thinking of all the destruction we couldn’t see on camera.

“What?” Nick asks, confused.

“The men who came to kidnap me kinda went nuts when they couldn’t find me and tossed the place,” I shrug, implying, what can ya do?

“Fuckers,” Nick mutters.

“Everyone is welcome here as long as needed,” Alex adds as Troy and Zander enter the apartment, freshly showered. Alex gets up to get coffee for them as they join us.

“Morning darling. Thanks, Alex,” Zander says as he’s handed a coffee. “We need a plan for the day. Can we get the others out here?”

“Sure, I’ll wake Seb and E,” I volunteer as Alex offers to get Bay and Gabby.

It takes about 20 minutes before we’re all up, dressed, and coherent. Troy is going with Nick to the police station, where Mr. MacLeod is meeting them. Gabby, E, and Alex will join Zander at the house. Seb and I will go see my home and then visit Jake and Ray. E offers to cook breakfast, but we don’t have time, so we pack up and get into separate vehicles for the day.

You wouldn’t know anything happened at our house when you drive up. It looks exactly as it always has. It’s surreal that Zander and I were locked inside a few nights ago with strangers tramping through here.

“Brace yourself, darling,” Zander says, meeting my eyes before unlocking the front door.

We step inside, and the first thing I see is the office desk on its side. The door on the front closet is hanging off the hinges, its contents strewn across the floor. Moving into the living room, the couch is upside down and the coffee table smashed.

The pantry items are all over the floor, along with the contents of several cupboards in the kitchen, and you can see damage to the corner cupboard where the camera was. The dining chair Mr. Fitzgerald was sitting on is broken, and there is a water stain on the wall where he threw the vase. The patio door is broken, with plywood covering the right side.

Moving towards Zander’s room, the powder room and laundry room are mostly intact, just with extra bedding on the floor and the deep freezer slightly ajar. The mattress and box spring are overturned in the bedroom, clothes moved around in the closet, and dresser doors left open. Plywood covers the patio door in here, too.

At the other end of the house, Nick’s room is trashed similarly to Zander’s room. In my bathroom, the glass door on the shower is shattered. My bedroom, though, is the worst. You can’t step into the room without walking on something. A sob breaks through as tears well, and I cover my mouth with my hand.

“This is insane,” Seb whispers, pulling me into his side.

The mattress and box spring are standing on end near the headboard, and it looks like someone took a knife to them. Nightstands are on their sides with the desk leaning on the bedframe, tilted forward. The dresser and bookshelves are toppled over, covering the floor with clothes, books, pillows, and plant stuff.