Page 7 of The Model

Heading toward the stairs, I looked back at her when she didn’t follow. “Are you ready to get to work, or do you need a few more minutes?”

“Um…I’m ready. I thought I heard something. There isn’t anyone else here, is there?” She stood slightly behind me as if I could protect her. I was scrappy, but I wasn’t much of a fighter.

“Just us. Everyone else is upstairs unless someone snuck down here. Why don’t you head up there, and I’ll look around?”

“Lexie,” Nova called when she was at the base of the staircase, “thanks for taking the time to talk to me.”

“Anytime.” I smiled at her. “I’ll be up in a few minutes.”

I hadn’t heard anything, but I still checked it out since Nova thought she had. My studio wasn’t in the best neighborhood, but it had everything I wanted, and I could afford it, so that was all that mattered. That and a good security system. I never would have decided to live here if I didn’t feel safe.

Out of the corner of my eye, I thought I saw a shape move up the staircase but thought nothing of it. It could have been Raine, Tommy, or anyone else from upstairs wondering what the hell was keeping me. Everything on the first floor looked normal. As I started up the stairs, I heard something from the second floor. I’d put a door to my apartment from the stairs so no one could just walk into my space. Plus, that way, I didn’t have to make my bed if I didn’t want to. I swore I’d locked my door this morning, but maybe Raine had to go in and hadn’t locked it back up. Still, that didn’t explain why anyone would be in there now. I went up the steps as quietly as I could. There were a few steps that creaked when weight was placed on them, but no one ever came up to my apartment, so I didn’t care. That was, until now, and I couldn’t remember which ones were the ones that made a noise. One wrong step and whoever was in my apartment would know someone was coming.

I held my breath as I took each step, praying I didn’t make any noise. When I reached the landing, I let out an unsteady breath. Someone was definitely in my place, and they weren’t trying to be quiet. It sounded like they were throwing shit all over the place. My shit.

I didn’t think. Instead, I pushed open the door and let it slam against the wall as I ran inside, looking for the asshole had decided to come into my space. Across the room was a man going through my drawers and throwing everything on the ground.

Stopping a few feet away, I yelled. “What the fuck are you doing?”

When Ben turned around with wide brown eyes that were black and blue and a split lip, I gasped. His brown hair was buzzed, and he looked to have a few scratches on his scalp. His knuckles were scraped and bloody, and he looked like he’d been wearing the same clothes for the last week. They were wrinkled and dirty with a few spots of what I guessed was blood. The last time I saw him, he’d been muscular, but now he was skinny and sickly looking. Ben was a mess of epic proportions.

“What are you doing here, and why in the hell are you trashing my place?”

Turning back around, he went back to throwing everything on the floor. “Where is it, Lexie?” He let out a frustrated sigh as if I had any clue what he was talking about.

Hands on my hips, I fumed. “Where is what?”

“You know what, you fucking bitch. I tried to be nice and wait, but time ran out, and I need it now. If I don’t get it…” He swallowed nervously, his eyes imploring me to give him what he wanted.

“Seriously, Ben, I have no idea what you’re talking about. I don’t have anything of yours. I made sure to pack up all your shit after I kicked you out.” I cocked my head to the side, having just realized something. “How did you know I was here?”

Ben threw his hands in the air. “I’ve been sitting outside your apartment for days and never once saw you leave. Today I went inside, and George told me you moved out a few weeks ago. What gives?”

What gives? Like he had any right to know about my life.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I renovated the second floor into a living space, as you can see, and moved in. Now I don’t have to pay rent or deal with traffic on my way to work. It’s a win-win. Now, why don’t you tell me what you’re doing here before I call the cops?”

“You wouldn’t dare call the cops on me.” He laughed like the idiot he was. I would most definitely call the police on him.

“I’m not alone here. I have a whole group of people waiting for me, so I suggest you leave.”

“I’m not leaving until I get what I came for.” He stepped toward me menacingly, and in that instant, I realized Ben wasn’t even remotely the nice guy I’d once thought him to be. He would hurt me if he didn’t get what he wanted. If only I knew what that was, I’d give it to him.

“What’s wrong with you?” I asked, stepping back. There wasn’t any place for me to go. I’d made the space into a studio apartment. The bathroom and closet were the only areas with doors and didn’t go anywhere. My only hope would be calling the cops except…I patted down my cut off jean shorts to realize I’d left my phone up on the roof. Fuck.

“You’re what’s wrong with me. I’ve called and texted you a thousand times, and you ignored me. I told you it was life or death and now…” His fists clenched at his sides. Was he going to hit me?

“Tell me what you’re looking for, and I’ll help you find it.” I was desperate for him to leave and get out of this situation unscathed. At this point, I’d give him whatever he wanted, and I was going to have the doors all locked with the alarm system armed at all times of the day and night. No more surprises.

“Like you don’t fucking know. I always knew you were a bitch. What did you do? Did you sell it? Use it?” With each word, his voice escalated as he moved toward me until he was shouting in my face.

What was he talking about? What could I have possibly used or sold? Ben had no money. I’d learned early on that he was a deadbeat and wasn’t below having a woman pay his way. I didn’t mind at first, but I quickly started to resent him when all he did was sit around the apartment all day playing video games. That was when I should have ended our relationship, but the sex was good, and he knew the right words to keep me coming back for more.

“Lexie?” Tommy called from behind me.

Keeping an eye on Ben out of the corner of my eye, I slowly turned to see Tommy standing in the doorway. He had a frightened-looking Brad behind him. Brad was only a couple of inches taller than my five-foot-four-inches, and he was a skinny little thing, but he could do hair like no other. I appreciated that he’d come down with Tommy.

“I called the police.” Tommy’s gaze went to Ben, and he tried to look mean but failed miserably. He looked like the stereotypical surfer boy with long, wavy blond hair, blue eyes, and golden skin without an ounce of maliciousness to him. “They’ll be here in a few minutes, so I suggest you go.”

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