28. Sean
SEAN
R ushing into Lowri’s suite, I’m out of breath. My eyes scan the room searching for her among the security personnel and housekeeping staff who have taken over the messy scene. Panic begins to set in when I don’t see her.
“Where’s my wife? I mean, where’s Lowri?” I call out loudly enough to cause everyone to stop what they’re doing and stare at me.
Daniel, my head of security, walks over. “Mr. Cartwright, she’s in the bathroom collecting herself. This was quite a shock for her.”
“After I check on Lowri, I want a full report. There are too many unexplained incidents happening at the Athena.”
Not waiting for his reply, I quickly stride into the bedroom. Soft sobs are coming from behind the closed bathroom door. My heart sinks. First, she was mugged, and now this.
“Lowri, may I come in?”
The door opens slowly. I slide inside, kicking it closed behind me for privacy.
“Did they hurt you?”
“What?” she asks.
I do a quick perusal of her from head to toe. Her eyes are red and swollen, and streaks of black mascara are running down her cheeks. At least her clothes are intact, and there’s no sign of bruising other than from the mugging.
Pulling her into my arms, I softly ask again, “Are you hurt?”
“I’m upset, but why would I be hurt?”
“Daniel called Emily, and Emily found me. She said you had been attacked.”
“My room was attacked. Thankfully, I wasn’t here.”
“Thank fuck. I panicked, thinking you’d been assaulted.”
“I’ll be okay. Sorry I’m such a mess. It was a massive shock to walk in and find that someone had ransacked my suite. They threw all my clothes, including my underwear, onto the floor. My laptop and work papers are gone.”
“Stop apologizing. Anyone would be upset. Do you know if anything else is missing?”
“I’m not sure. I’d already moved my jewelry and a bunch of my clothes upstairs. If I had worked in your apartment after the interviews yesterday, my laptop would have been there instead of here. This is a disaster.”
“We’ll figure out who did this. Until then, a guard is going to stay near you when I can’t be.”
“How many rooms were robbed?”
“I don’t know the extent of the thefts yet. Daniel is going to brief me in a minute.”
“I’m going to be in mega trouble with my law firm for losing the laptop.”
“All that matters is that you’re not hurt. Jenny will move the rest of your stuff up to my apartment and coordinate with Walter. I don’t want you returning to this suite again. Security will disable the elevator as an extra precaution. As for your laptop, we can replace it.”
“I feel violated. I’ve never been the victim of theft before and within twenty-four hours, I’ve been robbed twice. It’s unsettling and creepy to know a stranger invaded my space. They touched my underwear and went through all my personal items. It’s too much.”
“Let’s get you out of here. We’ll make use of the elevator one last time to access my apartment. Then it will be locked off.”
“Okay. Let me wipe my face first. Could you give me a minute?”
“Sure. I’ll tell Daniel to meet us upstairs when he’s through with his investigation here.”