Finding Jordie: Things aren't always what they seem. (The Love Lies Bleeding Series Book 1)

by Harley, HJ

  “Oh. Em. Geeeee!” Alison squealed as any thirteen-year-old would when a movie star was standing in her driveway.

  “Nate Harper is here, at my house, in my driveway.” She tossed her head back and her hand over her eyes dramatically in an attempt to swoon.

  “Ah, you’re a natural,” Nathan said.

  “Naturally!” She brought her head back up and smiled.

  “Let’s go inside before my neighbors start to swarm us. They’re so friggin’ nosey.” Kelly gestured toward the house.

  My brother-in-law Mark was on the couch watching some fishing show and eating Doritos.

  “Mark, we’re going to eat soon.” Kelly scowled at him.

  “And? I’m a big boy. I’m sure I’ll finish my dinner too, Mom.” He rolled his eyes and stood up to give me a hug. After wiping his hand on his jeans, he stuck it out to Nathan. “Hey, Jords, good to see you aren’t a raging lesbo.”

  I walked to the kitchen rolling my eyes.

  “Have a seat, man,” he said to Nathan.

  “Seriously, Mark, shut your pie hole,” I chided him from the kitchen as I poured myself a glass of wine.

  “What? Just sayin’, it’s been forever since ya had any—”

  “Mark!” I screamed. “What the fuck? The kids are in here. Time and place, asswad, time and place.” I made my way to the couch.

  “Yeah, because ‘fuck’ and ‘asswad’ are far more appropriate than ‘dick’,” he muttered teasingly.

  “Asshole,” I mouthed.

  He let out a burst of laughter. “Yup. That’ll never change.”

  “Uh, Aunt Jordie, your purse is ringing, I think,” John said.

  “Huh? Oh yeah, new cell phone.” I proudly held it up and displayed it for everyone to see. Mockingly, they all cheered in unison.

  “Thank you, thank you.” It was only then I realized nobody but Rachel, Nathan, and Erin had my new number. I looked at the caller ID.

  000-000-0000.

  “Babe, look.” I held the phone out so Nathan could see it. He glanced at it and then at me.

  “Want me to answer it?” He held his hand out as I hit answer.

  “Hello?” Nothing but silence. “Hello, is anyone there?” I said again with no response.

  Nathan reached over my shoulder and hit the speaker button. The crackly bad connection was back, along with the now familiar heavy but quiet breathing in the background.

  “Hello?” Nathan said. A loud slam came from the other end and muffled noises as the breathing gradually became louder, creepier.

  “I don’t know who this is or what you want, but please stop calling my girlfriend. This is the only time I’ll ask. Next time I’ll be contacting the police.” He hung up.

  “Jesus Christ, that is so effin’ creepy!” I shivered.

  “What’s that about, Jordan?” Kelly got a little crease between her brows.

  “I don’t know. I thought maybe it was just some reporter or someone bugging me, but I changed both numbers and I’m still getting them, even at the bar,” I said. “And it creeps me out.” I tried rubbing the goose bumps on my arm away.

  “Be careful. The world is full of crazies.” She shook her head.

  Nathan made it through an entire meal with Mark and his wise cracks. He even went back at him with a few good ones himself. I kissed Emma goodbye and we headed back to the city. It was almost one A.M. when we got back. The bar was jam packed with a line still halfway down the street. The fire marshal’s truck was double parked out front, so I had to go in.

  “This guy is such a twat.” I rolled my eyes at Nathan. “Park the truck in the alley, please. I’ll let you in the back door. This way nobody will see you and start mass hysteria.”

  “What’s Fire Marshal Dick doing here?” I asked Mike when I got to the door.

  “Head count. But don’t sweat it. I’ve been keeping it fifteen to twenty heads under max cap. Hence the longer line.” He smiled as if victory was his.

  I laughed. “Thanks.” I slapped him on the shoulder.

  I headed straight to the back room and let Nathan in. He closed the door and locked it, then turned around quickly and grabbed me by the waist, gently pushing me against the wall.

  “I’ve been waiting all night to do this to you, gorgeous.” He leaned down and kissed me, hard. His tongue took over my mouth and I responded just as urgently. He hitched my leg up around him and held it there as his other hand wandered to my breasts. He nipped down my neck so passionately I felt as though I would detonate at that moment. My hands were tangled in his hair as I begged for him. My god, how does he do that to me, in a matter of seconds? It really felt as if we were meant for each other, like our chemistry was just right. I could feel him against me and it made me more ravenous. He slipped his hand under my skirt and slid it back grabbing my behind. I let out a small groan.

  “Jesus Christ, Jordan.” He hiked up my skirt and moved my panties to the side with one swift motion.

  “Ahhhhhh,” I breathed out as his fingers explored me. I couldn’t think straight, I was dizzy. Breathe. I clumsily undid his belt, unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans. I was a ball of sensation and lust begging for relief. In almost no time a sharp shock of pleasure washed through me.

  “Yes?” Nathan whispered against my lips. He pressed up against me, his eyes full of an intensity that made it hard for me to catch my breath.

  “Oh god, yes,” I said.

  He pulled one of my legs up and I wrapped it around his hips, gripping his backside with my heel. He pushed into me, and the intensity grew again. I was so filled with raw emotion I didn’t know if I wanted to cry with happiness or explode with desire. At that point I could have done both. I was in absolute awe that I could feel that exultant, that I was capable of yearning for someone in that way mentally and physically. With those thoughts, Nathan and I finished together.

  “I can’t begin to tell you how I feel about you, woman.” He grinned. All I managed to do was smile and give him a quick kiss back.

  “Jordie?” Rachel screamed through the door to the back room. “Are you in here?” she screamed louder, her voice still mostly drowned out by the music.

  Nathan stepped back from me and zipped up his jeans, grinning like a loon.

  I giggled. “Good timing.” I pulled my skirt down. “Back here,” I yelled as Nathan pretended to lick his hand and fix my just-fucked hair.

  “Stop it!” I slapped him lightly, still laughing as Rachel turned the corner.

  “Holler, biotch. Listen. This chick Isobel you hired. I. Love. Her.” She separated each word. “She’s a hard worker. She wigged out a bit when some guy came in, said he stole her camera and gave off some eerie vibe, but he left so I didn’t need to kick his ass. For real, good job. She’s a keeper.” She patted me on the back.

  “What about Amber?” I smoothed out the back of my skirt as I prayed she didn’t catch on.

  “Oh, she’s doing pretty well, too. Sure knows how to use those titties of hers for tips, I’ll tell ya that much.”

  “And the guy for security? I didn’t see him out there,” I said.

  “Oh, no, no. He reminded me of the guy from that movie Road Trip. The sickly looking one that fell in love with the big black girl wearing the cheetah panties. Yeah, him. He’s a scrawny frail-looking guy. I gave him a cupcake and sent him on his way.” She shook her head. “But that guy Ronnie is out there helping out and another one.” She turned her head to look at Nathan. “Oh, and Nathan, Tyler said he hopes you have enough clothes with you. Don’t come back to the hotel this weekend. At all. During the day.” She smiled like she knew something he didn’t.

  “Um, okay?” He was clearly baffled. “Maybe I should call him and see what that’s all about.” Confused, he dug in his pocket to get his phone.

  “No, don’t!” she screeched, stopping Nathan mid dig. “All right.” She rolled her eyes. “He didn’t say that. I did. But...” She grinned.

  “You dirty whore!” I shouted and she covere
d my mouth.

  “I’m the dirty whore? Pot meet kettle! You’re standing here looking like you stuck your head in a blender doing Lord only knows what on a prep table at the back entrance to a bar? Bitch, please.”

  “There was no prep table involved, rest assured,” I mumbled.

  “Ha! I heard that, ya hussy.” She winked.

  “You heard nothing.” I smirked and busted out laughing again.

  “That’s what I thought. Now run along and go be a filthy slut elsewhere.” She kissed me on the cheek and walked back toward the door into the bar.

  “See ya’ tomorrow sometime.” I waved.

  “Bye, Nathan.” She looked like a child with her lips all puckered up sarcastically.

  IT ENDED UP BEING a ten-minute walk from the bar to my door because Nathan stopped for some fans. Surprisingly, there were no paps and no one guarding my door, so it felt like a pretty normal end to an evening. The first of many to come, I hoped. We made our way up the stairs to the door of my apartment. When I stepped inside I immediately wrapped my sweater around me tightly.

  “Damn, why is it so cold in here?” I chattered through my teeth as I locked the door. Nathan flipped the light on. We both stood there frozen in shock. My entire apartment had been ransacked. In what seemed to be one swift motion, Nathan unlocked the door, yanked my arm, and shoved me into the hallway. The door slammed shut behind him. He crammed his hand into his pocket and retrieved his phone.

  “Frank, I have a situation. I’m calling the police now. Yes. All right. Thanks, Frank.” He hung up and I watched him dial nine-one-one. He put his free arm around my waist and pulled me in close. He had a death grip on me. I couldn’t have moved even if I wanted to. He impatiently growled at the operator while she took the necessary information. Clearly it wasn’t the pace he had hoped for. He hit another button with a frustrated groan and I heard the operator’s voice come through the speaker.

  “Sir, are you still with me?” She sounded calm as could be.

  He handed me the phone and I held it up for him as he ran his now free hand through his hair and wiped it hard against his jeans. He was so worked up. I could see the vein in his neck pumping. He still had his death hold around my waist and even though it wasn’t hurting right then, I’d bet the bar it would later.

  “Yessssss, I am. What am I to do now?” He hissed through clenched teeth as he took the phone out of my hand.

  “Stay on the line with me, sir, until the officers arrive.” She remained cool and calm.

  “When the fuck would that be?” He held the phone close to his mouth and growled.

  I knew there was danger, obviously, but I couldn’t help but feel bad for the woman taking the brunt of Nathan’s verbal assault.

  “There are several units that are just about there, Mr. Harper. There have been several units parked on that street all evening.” She was remarkably unfazed.

  “Well, they’ve done a wonderful fucking job, haven’t they?”

  With that we heard the short bwoop, bwoop and several doors slamming at once.

  “They’re here.” He hung up on her and turned to me. His grip loosened just a little bit and I could feel the blood rush back to the spot where he’d held me.

  “Jordie, I’m so sorry. I never thought anyone would go to these lengths to get to me.” He spoke softly but his body went rigid.

  “How do you know it has anything to do with you, Nathan? It could be random.” I tried to comfort him, but I was pretty sure he wasn’t buying it.

  He leaned back, not letting go of me, and raised an eyebrow. “Nice try.” His voice sounded less tense, and then he gave me a soft peck.

  “Hey, you never know.” I quirked the corner of my lip up slightly. My purse began to ring. I pulled my phone out and my mouth went dry and my stomach rolled with nausea. I held the display out for Nathan to see. He was just about to hit the first step to go let the officers in when I grabbed his arm to stop him.

  “It’s that zero-zero-zero number again,” I managed to croak out.

  He snatched the phone from my hand and hit the speaker button, forgetting all about the door. “I warned you,” he roared. “This time the police will be notified.”

  The unsettling bad connection paired with crackle was present along with the heavy breathing.

  “Do you understand?” Nathan’s voice was raised to the max. “I will find out who you are and not only press charges but I’ll make sure you’re somebody’s prison bitch for the rest of your sorry ass life.” His voice came down a few decibels. The police began to bang on the door.

  I’d turned to go and let them in when Nathan’s arm reached out and yanked me close to him again. The breathing suddenly stopped and was replaced by a low rumbling noise. Panicked, I searched Nathan’s face just as I felt my nose sting and the tears prick at my eyes. I was beyond freaked out.

  “Oh, you want to play telephone tough guy, do you?” Nathan yelled holding the phone out at arm’s length, max volume again. He was angry, so angry.

  Hot. Oh my Jordan, focus! Hellooooo? Apartment trashed, creepy person on the phone.

  “Well?” Nathan continued, breaking me from my highly inappropriate and horribly timed thoughts.

  “Shut up! Shut your fucking mouth!” The voice hissed through the speaker. The echo filled the empty hallway. It was by any account the scariest male voice I had ever heard in my life. Again, Nathan and I stood frozen, mouths gaped open, staring wide-eyed at one another.

  “Jorrrrr-daaaan, I’ve got you now,” the voice continued after a small pause.

  I had to cover my mouth because I could feel the bile rise to my throat. Nathan hung up the phone, pressing the button like it was on fire, snatching his finger back quickly so he didn’t get burned. We stood there for a moment, both of us unable to speak. Tears were now streaming down my face in a constant quiet flow.

  “What the fuck?” I whispered, dumbfounded and unable to pry my eyes off Nathan. His face was a cross between fury, fear, and confusion.

  “Let’s go.” He grabbed my arm and jerked me down the steps with him towards the door. He flung it open and Frank was waiting on the other side.

  “What the fuck happened?” he screamed when he saw our expressions. He snaked his one arm around me and pulled Nathan by his shirt out the door and to his truck.

  “Get in,” he ordered. Once all three of us were in, he slammed the door shut behind him. “Nathan, talk to me. Explain from the beginning. Please, I can’t protect you without the details.”

  After a moment Nathan composed himself again. “We came back from Jersey, and her apartment was ransacked.”

  “Okay, that isn’t so bad,” Frank said. “Neither of you were hurt, items can be replaced,” He stopped mid sentence. “What am I missing here, Nate? Talk to me.”

  Nathan handed Frank my phone. He cleared his throat. “The past few days she’s been getting these menacing phone calls. It was just a bad connection and some heavy breathing—no one ever spoke. I didn’t think anything of it, thought it was a tabloid trying to get a rise out of her for a story.” He shook his head as if he was disappointed. “She changed both her numbers and had them unlisted, but the calls continued on the new numbers. Just now before you got here, she got another one.” His stare shifted up to lock eyes with Frank, and he looked like he was going to be sick.

  “Frank, this time he said something. I... I must have pissed him off when I threatened to—”

  “Never mind that,” Frank interjected. “What did he say?” You could tell the lack of sleep was wearing Frank’s patience thin. “Was it a male? A female?”

  I flinched. “It was a man. It was the single most terrifying voice I’ve ever heard, Frank,” I said softly.

  “He was angry and he screamed shut up and then said, ‘Jorrrrrdaaaannn, I’ve got you now,’“ Nathan repeated.

  Chills rocketed through me sending me into a tailspin of emotions. I put one hand over my face and began to sob. Frank leaned back on the door, his f
orehead hardened with creases, and blew out a sigh of irritation.

  “I see. All right. Well, we’ll just get this fucker by the balls, Nate. Don’t worry, we’ll secure the apartment, tap the phones, install closed-circuit night-vision digital cams and double the manpower around here.”

  “Emma. What about Emma?” I managed to rasp out between the sobs, and then I buried my face in Nathan’s chest.

  “Jordie. Jordie, look at me,” Frank tugged at my chin lightly. “Look at me.”

  My head snapped up automatically. He wasn’t asking, he was telling.

  His lips formed a thin line. “Where is she?”

  “She’s in Jersey, at my sister’s house.”

  “Okay. Good. She’s nowhere near this mess, but just for peace of mind I’ll send four guys from my Middletown office over there. Three of them are state troopers and the other is an ex-SEAL. She’ll be safe. Give me the information so I can get that taken care of ASAP.”

  “Here, type her info in here.” Nathan handed me his phone.

  “I’m going to make arrangements now. You two go back upstairs with the police. I’ll be up when I’m finished.”

  Twenty-five minutes into the investigation and my apartment looked like a police station or some shit. Suddenly, I heard Rachel’s mouth coming up the steps.

  “I don’t give a fuck what you say. Let go of me. I’m going up there.”

  Frank walked over to the door that was wide open and yelled down to the officer that she was permitted up. She was still muttering cuss words while she walked up the steps. That stopped when she entered the apartment. Rachel’s mouth hung open as if her jaw was locked in that position. She took a quick peek into the kitchen and Emma’s room after that.

  “What the fuck?” she whispered, wide eyed. Every picture on the wall was smashed and broken. Some still hung on the wall, some were on the floor. Everything that was on my table was scattered on the floor. There were papers, various items, and broken pictures thrown everywhere. In the kitchen, broken dishes and glasses covered the tile floor.

  “Thank god Emma’s room was left untouched. You should see upstairs. All of my clothing was torn up in shreds and strewn about the floor, my bed and pillows sliced up, feathers everywhere.” I hid my face in my hands.