Sighing, the landlord eyed her curiously. "Where have you been, huh? Neighbors say they haven't seen you in a good month."
"Away," Jordyn answered vaguely.
"Left right after the first break-in, didn't you?"
Break in. Right, that was a good term for her attack. Not.
"Around that time, yeah. Just took some time to breathe. Listen, are you going to give me the fucking keys, or what?"
"The eviction is already served. It's non-negotiable after the whole damage thing. It's posted on the second new door I've had to put on your apartment this month."
Jordyn tried to keep her cool, she really did. "So let me guess, after Lucian paid for you to fix the first broken door, you slummed around before getting it done. Someone broke in while the screwed up door was still on, and messed up my apartment again. Is that what happened?"
"The door was fixed two days after the first break-in," he replied tiredly. "Last week, a bunch of denim and leather wearing scum came into the building and knocked the door down again before tearing up the place. Maybe they were looking for something, cutie. You have any idea what that might have been?"
Jordyn's heart stopped as bile rose to her mouth. "They came back here?"
"I don't know who they are, but someone sure did."
"And you didn't think to call the police?"
"Why, so I can lose a half a dozen tenants over the cops coming here for something they can't fix?"
"I'm sorry," Jordyn rushed to say. "I'll pay for whatever they did. I just really need to get inside my apartment. My whole life is in there … Listen, my mother died when I was younger. All I have of her is in that apartment. I need to get it."
The man gave her a sympathetic look, but shrugged. "I don't think you understand. They ruined it all. I'll let you in, and you have ten minutes before I want you out of this building for good, but I don't think you're going to get what you came looking for."
Jordyn thanked the man before he closed his door. She waited while he got the new keys, and then followed him up to the second floor and down to where her apartment was. Sure enough, a brand new door and frame was installed, right along with the regulation eviction that she ripped as soon as she saw it.
The moment her landlord unlocked the apartment, Jordyn understood exactly what he meant. She barely managed to hold the sudden swirling sickness in her stomach at bay. It wasn't just a mess, it was a goddamned disaster.
The couch had been flung over, along with a broken coffee table. The two matching chairs for the tiny kitchenette set had been used to punch massive holes in the wall. Glass shards were sprinkled everywhere. The few books she managed to collect over the years were also strewn with pages ripped out and scattered. The fridge had been emptied of its contents, food rotting and leaving an awful smell lingering in the stale air. Any pictures and fake art on the walls were torn down and ruined.
Jordyn's apartment had never been much. The building was a dive, the tenants could be scary, and she didn't live in the best neighborhood, but it was still hers. She'd loved it, lived in it since she was eighteen, and it was the one thing she felt The Sons of Hell couldn't take from her.
But, oh, they had.
Tears welled in her eyes immediately, threatening to spill over.
"I'm so sorry," she whispered to her landlord. "Really."
"You were here the first time around, yeah?" he asked.
Jordyn didn't want to, but she nodded anyway. "Yeah."
"Figured, what with the blood and vomit. They got you pretty bad. I don't know why you came back, cutie, but seeing what they did the first time, it was why I didn't try to go after you for damages after this one. You shouldn't be here if this is what they'll do when you're not around and they come looking. Don't you get that?"
Again, Jordyn nodded bleakly. "Just give me a second to grab my box and I'll go. I have some money, too, if it's even here … "
It was only maybe four grand of cash Jordyn had saved, just in case she ever needed it. Clearly she owed a lot for what happened here. It probably wouldn't cover all of the damages, but it might help.
The landlord stepped back into the hallway as Jordyn moved further into the mess. She weaved through the hazards, going straight to her bedroom. It was there that she hurt the most.
The sheets on her bed were ripped off, exposing a mattress with a cut straight down the middle, opening its insides to let the material spill out. An overwhelming stench of urine soaked the room, coming from the bed. In the very middle of the mattress, the belt Will had used to beat her half to death rested like it'd been laid out for her to remember, dried blood staining the studs.
Her blood.
Jordyn tried for all she was worth to ignore the smell and the sight, tripping over strewn blankets as she reached to open the small closet. The tiniest bit of relief welled at the sight of her memory box on the top shelf where she left it. It didn't have much inside but her cash, some old photos of her mother, stubs for movies, tickets for the fair, and a necklace, but it was everything to Jordyn.
Absolutely everything.
Turning to leave with the box clutched tightly to her chest, something caught Jordyn's eye on the wall. A knife had been used to hold a piece of paper to the wall. In thick, black letters, a warning was written.
You took something that belongs to us. We want it back.
Jordyn choked on her terror.
Faster than before, she needed to leave. Jordyn had made a huge mistake, and she knew it.
"Who in the hell are you?" she heard her landlord ask.
"A friend. Move."
The familiar voice had Jordyn stumbling from the bedroom, her eyes catching Gio's in the doorway.
"I fucked up," Jordyn whispered. "I really, really messed up, Gio."
"Yeah, well, it's good there's someone else in the family besides me screwing up every once in a while." The youngest Marcello shook his head, starting a trek across the small apartment to meet Jordyn's shaking form. "It's okay. Come on, we need to go. Lucian called, he won't be long."
Dumbly, she waved towards the bedroom. "No, it's bad. It's on the wall. I really screwed this up, didn't I?"
"Maybe. Just don't admit that to Lucian. He'll never forget you did." Gio laughed, trying to cheer her up, but it didn't work. "Nothing's going to happen. You're safe. All right?"
But for how long?
It probably wouldn't take much for someone to get wind she'd been back here.
Jordyn couldn't find it in herself to care. There was only one thing she really needed right now for so many reasons.
"I want Lucian."
Gio nodded. "That's what I'm here for."
Chapter Fifteen
Lucian found Gio resting on the couch in his condo living room. A look was shared between the two as Lucian pulled off the leather jacket he wore.
"It was bad," Gio said, glancing down to the floor. "She got what she wanted, I think, but the damage is done. There's definitely eyes in that building."
Lucian wet his lips, considering his brother's words. "How bad?"
"Ruined the place. Completely. Even pissed all through her bed, as disgusting as that is."
Cazzo.
"What was the point in that?"
"Humiliate her," Lucian answered. "Show her what she means to them. She could sleep in their urine, for all they care. To them, she's worth less than piss that comes out of their cocks."
Gio made a face. "Jesus."
Yeah, it was a pretty fucked up mentality to have, especially towards someone like Jordyn. Lucian didn't even want to consider what the MC would do to Jordyn if they got their hands on her and not just her things.
"I know you were hoping that the MC would think she skipped town, but I don't think that's the case," Gio informed.
"Why not?"
"Because of this." Gio held up a note for Lucian to see. Even from his spot, he could read the threatening words and he heard them loud and clear. "Also, Jordyn was the one to find it first. So there's that to think about on your end, too."
Oh, dolce Christo. Lucian's throat was so tight with his fury he could barely speak. "Yeah."
"You know … " Gio trailed off, clearing his throat and looking uncomfortable. "You can't really be angry with her for this."
"I'm aware."
"Good. I'm just saying is all, because on the drive back here, she kept saying how she didn't know. She didn't understand. I couldn't figure out why you wouldn't have explained how serious this was and what you were trying to do for her."
Lucian shrugged, focusing on the wall behind his brother's head. "I did, in bits and pieces. I was keeping her safe and she knew that. I thought if I just kept her hid long enough, he'd either give up or mess up."
"But did you do it the right way?" Gio asked.
"Probably not," Lucian admitted. "For me, sure. For her? That's a different situation."