Chapter 4
Four
Elias
I was disappointed when I woke up in bed alone. I thought Karla and I had made a connection, and we’d have time to exchange contact information. It didn’t cross my mind that she’d sneak out before the sun came up.
After a quick shower, I spent the next hour looking for Karla.
I checked all three of the pools on the property, the fitness room and spa, the restaurants, and the beach, but had no luck.
I repeated the same process a few more times over the next few days, and it became apparent that Karla was no longer there.
As I enjoyed breakfast alone on the last day of my getaway, I looked up and saw Clinton and his new bride. I’d forgotten about meeting him a few nights ago but was happy to see him again with his wife. I recalled Karla saying she was friends with her, and I wanted to get her contact information.
“How are you two lovebirds?” I asked as I approached their table.
The newlyweds were thoroughly engrossed in each other, and I should’ve felt bad for interrupting. They had something I wanted very badly, so I felt justified.
“Hey, Elias. We’re enjoying our first few days of marriage. Oh, this is my wife, Mona. Baby, I met Elias the night of our wedding.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Elias. Are you here alone?” Mona asked.
“Unfortunately, yes, but I’ll be headed to the airport shortly. I didn’t mean to interrupt, but I need a huge favor.”
“As long as it won’t land us in jail, we can probably help. What’s up?” Clinton asked.
“Actually, this favor might be more from Mona than you.”
Clinton looked at me suspiciously. I was sure he wondered what I needed from his wife.
“What is it?” Mona questioned.
“Would you mind giving me Karla’s number?”
They both looked surprised by my request, but Mona began smiling almost immediately.
“My best friend Karla?”
“Auburn hair, freckles, and absolutely beautiful,” I responded.
“That’s my bestie. When did you meet her?”
It felt strange talking to them while I stood and they were seated on the same side in a booth, so I sat across from them.
“Right after I met Clinton, actually. She was sitting at the bar, and I couldn’t resist striking up a conversation with her.”
“Did that conversation lead to anything else?”
I chuckled. “I’d rather not tell you our business, but she left before we could exchange information.”
“Hmm. Are you sure that wasn’t intentional on her part?”
“Honestly, I’m not sure. I think we had a great vibe and connection. If I’d been awake when she left, I wouldn’t have let her leave before at least giving her my number.”
She appeared to be contemplating whether or not to share her friend’s information.
“How about you give me your number and I’ll give it to her. If she wants to contact you, she will.”
“Baby, why are you giving him such a hard time?”
“Because I need to find out if Karla wants to be bothered with him. She might not want him to have her number.”
That wasn’t what I wanted, but since that was what she offered, I agreed.
“It’s cool. That’ll work. Thank you.”
She locked my number into her cell phone, and I stood, apologized for interrupting them, and bid them farewell. When I got a few feet away, I heard Clinton call my name. I stopped and turned around to see him approaching me.
“I know this is a long shot, but if you ever want a fresh start, hit me up. Our company has grown quite a bit over the past year, and we’re looking for some talent.”
Clinton was part-owner of a finance company, and when we spoke a few nights ago, I mentioned to him that it was my area of expertise.
I nodded. “I’ll definitely keep that in mind. Let me lock your number in.”
He rattled off his number, and I saved it in my phone before we parted ways. When I got back to my room, I had just enough time to gather my belongings before the shuttle arrived to transport me to the airport.
I left Punta Cana hopeful I’d hear from Karla soon. I thought we had great chemistry, but I could’ve been reading her all wrong.
When the Uber driver pulled up to my house, I immediately felt something was off. Nothing looked out of place, but my gut was shouting at me. I cautiously approached the front door, and my feelings were confirmed when I saw the door ajar.
“Fuck!”
Opting not to enter through the front, I went around the side of my house to enter the garage. After entering the code, I retrieved my gun from the glove compartment of my car and entered my home through the garage entrance.
“What the fuck?”
I slowly walked through the kitchen, stepping over broken glass, food, and damn near everything else from my cabinets.
When I made it to the living room, I was at a loss for words.
My couch, loveseat, and recliner were damn near slashed to shreds.
The tables were turned over, and my television was face down on the floor.
I assumed it was broken as well but didn’t have the heart to look.
I didn’t want to go upstairs because I was sure it would be much of the same kind of damage.
I wanted to ensure whoever did this shit wasn’t still in my home, so I couldn’t avoid it.
Slowly, I crept up the stairs with my gun drawn, checking each room to ensure no one was hiding out.
Just as I suspected, it was more of the same.
When I finally made it to my bedroom, I sat on the bench underneath the windows, which was the only thing in the room that wasn’t ruined.
I knew Raven was responsible for this. The temptation to seek her out and put hands on her was strong, but I knew that wasn’t the way this needed to be handled, so I called 9-1-1.
After a five-minute call with a dispatcher, she promised someone would arrive shortly.
While I waited, I went to each room to assess the damage more closely, using my phone to record and take pictures.
After a few minutes, my anger and frustration got the best of me.
In order to keep calm, I went downstairs and waited outside. Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait long.
“Are you Elias Jentry?”
“I am, and this is my house.”
“I’m Officer Lester, and this is my partner, Officer Benson. We’ve been told there was a disturbance.”
“Yes. I just returned from vacation and noticed my front door was open. My house has been vandalized from top to bottom.”
“Was it just a break-in? Was there anything missing? Do you have any idea who might have done this?”
“It doesn’t appear that anything is missing, but honestly, it’s such a mess in there, it’ll take me a while to realize if something is gone. I don’t have proof, but I believe it was my ex. Her name is Raven Bell. Since we broke up, she’s been stalking me.”
“Oh yeah?” Officer Lester questioned.
“Most men shy away from it, but have you considered getting a restraining order?” Officer Benson asked.
“Actually, I have one.”
They nodded.
“Can we take a look inside?” Officer Lester asked.
“Let’s go.”
They followed me inside, and when I turned to face them, they looked shocked.
“I thought you may have been exaggerating a bit. Whoever did this meant business,” Officer Benson commented.
“I agree,” Officer Lester said. “Do you have an alarm or security camera?”
“I do. I didn’t get any notifications from either app that someone had entered my home. Let me log into the app and see if there was a glitch of some sort.”
“I’ll check the other rooms to make sure the culprit isn’t still here,” Office Benson said.
“I already did, but feel free to do it again.”
He nodded and headed toward the stairs. Officer Lester waited while I opened the app for my security camera. Although I hadn’t been getting notifications, it showed that there was some activity. I scrolled to the day I left, and nothing looked unusual until the third day.
“Check this out.”
I gave Officer Lester my phone, and he watched the video.
“Whoever it was didn’t act alone.”
“Nah. She probably got her two best friends to help. When she started harassing me, they were never too far away.”
“Do you recall setting your alarm before you left?”
“I’m pretty sure I did, but now that you mention it, Raven knows my alarm and garage code.
I gave it to her at some point during our relationship because I left something at home that I needed for a meeting.
She offered to get it for me and entered through the garage.
Beyond that, I never gave her permission to enter my home without me and clearly had forgotten about giving her access. ”
He nodded. “I would go out on a limb and say these are definitely women. Benson and I will see if any of your neighbors’ cameras caught anything.
Her address should be on file, so once we review the footage and gather information from your neighbors, we’ll bring her in for questioning.
In the meantime, a team should be here to get fingerprints shortly.
I know you’re probably anxious to start cleaning, but can you hold off until they leave? ”
“Sure. Thank you for your help.”
“It’s all clear up there. She really fucked your shit up,” Officer Benson said.
“I don’t need a reminder. This is the last thing I want to deal with after being in paradise for five days.”
“I’m sure. My sister owns a cleaning company. I can give you her info if you need help,” he offered.
“I’d appreciate that. I definitely need it.”
Officer Benson pulled out his phone and tapped the screen a few times.
“Here’s her company’s Flikstagram account.”
He showed me the screen of his phone, and I went to the app to follow her.
“Thank you. I don’t know where to start, so I’ll definitely reach out.”
Officer Lester continued to tell me what to expect, we talked for a few more minutes, and they left me alone to deal with this disaster.