Or what was left of it.
Cushions gutted. Drawers pulled out. Papers scattered across the floor like someone had shaken my entire life upside down and waited to see what fell out.
My throat tightened.
I let a couple tears fall because holding them back would’ve required energy I didn’t have, but I didn’t let myself spiral.
I never really had the luxury of spiraling.
I sat there for close to an hour, watching empty rooms and trying to memorize what was broken so I could fix it later.
Then shadows moved across the living room feed.
Two of them.
My heart kicked hard against my ribs as they stepped fully into frame.
Ghost was the first one I recognized, even without seeing his face. The way he moved was different from everyone else. Controlled. Efficient. Like he was used to operating in rooms that didn’t belong to him.
He looked directly up at the camera mounted in the corner of my living room.
I narrowed my eyes. “Little shit.”
He knew exactly where it was.
They moved through my apartment quickly, not tearing it apart like the other men had done, but working with purpose. Ghost stepped into my bedroom and disappeared from the hallway feed, and I felt my jaw tighten.
He’d said no bedroom cameras.
Which meant I couldn’t see what he was doing in there.
Part of me was relieved.
Part of me hated that I didn’t know.
A few seconds later he reappeared, carrying one of my suitcases. He dropped it near the couch and went back for another. The other guy—Ranger, I thought—was gathering what looked like important documents from the kitchen table and stacking them neatly instead of leaving them strewn everywhere.
They weren’t looting.
They were consolidating.
Protecting.
I didn’t know whether that made me angrier or calmer.
On one hand, the invasion of privacy was still very much a thing. Cameras in my apartment. Men going through my bedroom. My life on display.
On the other hand, if those cameras hadn’t been there…
Would we have even known my place was raided?
Would I have gone back alone?
That thought made my stomach twist.
“Oh fuck,” I whispered suddenly.
My laptop.
