Chapter 7 #2
The sound of shattering glass snapped her out of her reverie.
Her heart rate spiked, sharp and immediate. The walls of her secret room were all interior walls, which meant the sound hadn't come from outside the apartment.
It had come from inside.
She froze, listening, breath going shallow. A loud thump. Silence followed.
Slowly, she rose from the chair and moved toward the door. Should she open it? Should she check just enough to see? Should she dial 911?
That thought stalled her. Calling the police meant explaining the secret room, and that was a complication she didn't need. One she might not survive, at least not professionally.
More glass shattered, followed by a heavy thump like someone had dropped furniture.
She stood there staring at the door, suddenly furious with herself for never installing cameras in her own apartment.
She'd thought them intrusive. She'd worried about hacking, about someone watching her without her knowledge.
Now she had no eyes. No ears. No idea what was happening on the other side of the wall.
This is ridiculous.
She lifted her hand toward the door and froze as another sound reached her.
A drawer slamming shut. Hangers rattling.
Her stomach dropped. Someone was in her closet.
She backed away from the door immediately, pulse pounding so hard she was certain it could be heard through the walls.
What the hell was she supposed to do?
She grabbed her phone, fingers slick against the screen.
Who did she call? Who could actually help her right now?
Not her parents. That was a given. The only security people she knew were from the Society.
Better them than anyone else. Ryker Sterling had been at the gala along with Rushton Fletcher.
She was scrolling when another crash sounded, harder this time. Not accidental. Intentional. Like someone was smashing things in her bathroom. Then more thumping as if someone was testing the walls inside her closet.
Shit.
If they found the panel, it was over. Everything she'd spent months building, every thread she'd pulled on from New York to Tokyo, gone.
She sent the SOS text to Ryker and stood perfectly still, barely breathing.
Her phone vibrated in her sweaty palm. On the way. Stay where you are. I'll tell you when I'm on-site.
Relief surged so fast it burned. She swallowed hard, choking back the sob that rose with it. Making noise now would be a mistake. Help was coming. She didn't know if it would arrive in time but if she disappeared, at least someone would know the truth.
She stared at the door. Had they left?
Another thump answered her.
She glanced at her grandfather's picture, throat tight. I tried, Gramps, she thought. I really did. Japan and all. Time stood still. She was frozen in place. And then her phone vibrated.
It's safe to come out.
The words appeared on her screen, and Tatum's whole body went limp.
She sagged against the wall, the tension draining out of her all at once and leaving something uncomfortably close to tears in its place.
She blinked furiously to stop them. That had been the most terrifying fifteen minutes of her life.
She let out a long breath and straightened.
Took a step forward and stumbled because her knees weren't quite cooperating.
She took another breath, slower this time, and willed herself back together.
It was one thing to call for help when there was an intruder in your apartment.
It was an altogether different thing to fall apart in front of whoever had answered her call.
Tatum squared her shoulders and stepped forward in a manner that would have made Bunny proud. She hit the switch, stepped out of the room, and came face to face with Archer Gray.
"Wha…what are you doing here?" she blurted.
Archer cocked an eyebrow. "You put out a distress call."
"Yes, but I texted Ryker."
"Any major incident involving a Society member reaching out to my security is worthy of my attention." He glanced around the closet. "And this is a major incident."
Tatum stopped staring at Archer and took in her surroundings. Her mouth dropped open and her stomach fell with it. She swayed on her feet, and Archer put his arm around her immediately, steadying her.
"Are you alright?" he asked, looking down at her.
She couldn't make a sound. Her entire closet had been demolished. Every piece of clothing she owned was on the floor or hanging by a thread. Even her linens were scattered across the room.
"I…I…" She met Archer's gaze. "What the fuck?"
Archer's mouth curved briefly and then he sobered. "Yes. That is the question."
"Is the whole place like this?" She wasn't sure she wanted the answer.
"I'm afraid so. Do you know who would do this?"
Tatum shook her head. "I have no idea. I just don't get it."
Ryker stepped into view at the door into the closet. He glanced at Tatum. "Are you okay?"
She bit her lip and wobbled her head between a nod and a shake.
Okay was not the word she would use. She was far from okay, but she couldn't say that to these men.
From her time on the board, she understood something of what they dealt with on a regular basis.
By comparison, this was nothing. She refused to be the person who fell apart over it.
Ryker's gaze moved briefly to Archer's arm, which was still around her waist. She realized with a start that he'd pulled her closer at some point, so that she was leaning against him.
She straightened. "I'm okay. Just surprised. I have no idea who would do this."
"I'm going down to talk to building security. There are cameras, so maybe we'll get lucky." Ryker looked at Archer.
"Check with the neighbors as well. See if anyone saw something." Archer turned to Tatum. "There are two other apartments on this floor?"
She nodded. "Don't bother with the neighbors. The Edgertons are in the Hamptons and the Gladstones are in London."
Ryker gave a nod as his cell went off. "I'll head down then." He answered the call. "Rush, I need your help." His voice faded as he left the closet.
"You have a safe room in your apartment." It wasn't a question.
She glanced over her shoulder. "Not exactly a safe room. I take on projects sometimes that require secrecy. I’m more comfortable having that information tucked away, but I like to leave it out rather than pack it up every time I walk away from it."
Archer frowned. "And you feel your home isn't a safe enough place to leave it out?"
"You obviously haven't met Bunny if you think my apartment would be a safe place to keep any secret."
Understanding moved across his face. "Your mother doesn't like the projects, I take it."
"Sometimes. Sometimes she just doesn't like not being fully in the know."
"You don't trust your mother." Again, not a question. A statement of fact delivered with the quiet certainty of a man who had been reading people his entire life.
The bluntness of it took her breath away.
She had never quite thought of it in those terms before.
"I… You're right. I don't trust my mother.
" The words landed strangely, heavy and liberating at the same time.
The moment she said them, she knew them to be true, and an unexpected wave of relief moved through her.
She didn't have to pretend. Not with Archer, apparently.
"Let's go take a look at the rest of your apartment and see if anything is missing."
Tatum nodded reluctantly. She was safe here in the closet with Archer.
As upsetting as it was to see all of her things strewn about, she could manage it because he was here.
The moment they left the closet it would all become real, and she knew that at some point Archer and his people would leave and she would be alone in her apartment with the knowledge that someone had broken in.
Someone who had been following her. She didn't believe in coincidence.
All of her poking around had brought trouble directly to her door.
Ten days in Japan chasing nothing, and now this.
She looked at her grandfather's photograph one last time before she turned away.
What the hell had she done?