“Hey, no getting too drunk, I can’t have any,” Olivia said standing next to her husband, grinning.
“I’ll have your share,” Cecily said, wrapping an arm around Olivia and patting her flat stomach.
“So not fair, this pregnancy is going to be the longest ever known to man.” Olivia pouted sulkily. “Will you give up alcohol too Jack, so I’m not alone in this?”
Jack looked at his wife, wrapped his arms around her and smiled down.
“Of course, I will, not a drop will pass these lips until you give birth and then I will wet the baby’s head with you, is that a deal?” Jack asked.
“Deal.” Olivia grinned up at him.
Lilly, Elijah, Angie and Cecily groaned at the over the top declaration of solidarity.
Chapter Forty-One
Lilly was so exhausted she didn’t know her own name and just wanted to relax in her morning room to relive what had happened at the wedding. Walking through her front door she felt immediately on guard. She felt something was out of place but couldn’t see anything amiss. Shrugging off her unease, she carried on through the main living room dumping the post on her kitchen table. When she reached her bedroom, she stripped all her clothes off and headed for her shower. It hadn’t been long since she had shared a shower with Elijah but the long journey back had made her feel like she needed another.
Spending the night at Jack’s home in the middle of nowhere was a real treat. Jack and Olivia’s house was enormous, she could have easily spent weeks there. Refreshed and dressed in an oversized t-shirt she walked barefoot to her morning room. It was full of sunshine and her sofa was in the perfect position. She’d it she could see her latest painting and ponder on its progress but also the ceiling windows poured light into the room and drenched the sofawith light and warmth. She smiled when she thought back to the last time she lay on here, beneath Elijah. With a satisfied sigh she sank onto the sofa and laid her head on the cushion as she stretched like a cat and yawned sleepily.
Turning her head to the side, she looked at the nearly completed painting of Elizabeth. She adored the woman and was heartbroken when she passed away. She loved Harry too and wanted to give him a present of a portrait. She’d been working on it for a long time and didn’t want to finish it because she was worried if Harry wouldn’t want it. Would it be a too painful reminder? She would finish it and then decide whether to give it to Harry. She gazed at the older lady, with the poise of royalty and wished that she had her determination and strive. Elizabeth had achieved so much in her life and took in her granddaughter after her son’s horrible death was just the kind of thing she did without thinking.
She took family seriously and treated her close friends like family. It had nothing to do with the fact she was her Godmother. In the early days of Lilly joining the firm she took her under her wing. She protected her from the venom that naturally happened in a competitive environment. She loved her like a mother and missed her wisdom and guidance. She longed to talk to her about Elijah and how she was feeling. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with Elijah and had known that from the first time she had met him but felt ludicrous saying that aloud.
Elizabeth would have understood it.
Lilly sat upright in one movement, she knew what was missing. The pendant had gone, crawling over the floor she searched for it to see if it had fallen on the floor. In her heart she knew it was gone and she knew who had takenit. There was no forced entry. William had a key, and he knew she was away for the weekend. It didn’t take a genius to work it out. Slumped on the floor she resigned herself that she finally needed to go to the police.
Chapter Forty-Two
Elijah hammered on the door of the seedy flat until someone let him in. He knew William had stolen that pendant, and he was going to get it back. To see Lilly so upset broke his heart, and he wanted to make her happy again.
He started to kick at the door and then it opened, what he saw made him angry. He was looking into the eyes of a drugged up skinny girl. She could barely focus or stand. She opened the door wide as an invitation to come in. She must have been used to big men hammering on the door because she didn’t flinch at all at Elijah coming into the flat.
Barging past her, he strode down the hallway to the first room on the right. Stepping inside the darkened room, he looked around to see if he could find William. There were several bodies in different states of dress, sleeping. They all looked like they had partied all night. Bottles everywhere, blankets and pillows were strewn over the floor. It smelt terrible, someone had thrown up in the room and the rancid smell lingered in the air.
Elijah couldn’t see William among the sleeping bodiesand made his way through to the kitchen. He stopped dead in his tracks, Steve and Simon stood at the kitchen counter, and they were counting pills into small plastic pouches. Elijah looked at the countertop and back to the pair of them, there wasn’t anyone else in the room. There were over twenty filled packets all with pills in. Elijah had finally caught them red-handed, and they hadn’t noticed him yet.
Steve continued to count the pills into the bags, he had five more bags to fill and Elijah patiently waited. He wanted to see what Steve did with them next and see if William made an appearance. He didn’t have to wait long. Simon finished the last packet and then stuffed them all into his inside coat pocket. Once he was done, he looked up and froze for a few seconds before walking back to the door behind him.
Elijah nodded his head, indicating for Simon to go ahead, this confused Simon but he went for the door, anyway. It was locked and he couldn’t open it. They looked scared. Elijah was blocking his only other way out. He tried to rattle the handle of the door, but it still wouldn’t budge. It wasn’t going to, Elijah knew this because Mickey was on the other side making sure they couldn’t escape.
Elijah was surprised how calm he was remaining, he couldn’t find William and knew it had to do with the pieces of shit standing in front of him.
“Where is he?” Elijah asked calmly.
“Who are you talking about?” Simon asked.
“William, where is William?” Elijah asked again.
“How the hell should I know, he hasn’t answered any of my calls in the last day? He has stopped paying for his drugs and I am in desperate need of the cash he owes. Maybe you could tell me where he is?” Simon said.
“I don’t know where he is which is why I am asking you.Now tell me where William is?” Elijah asked more impatiently.
Elijah was across the room in seconds and held Simon by the throat. He shook him a few times and released his neck so that he could talk.
“I won’t ask you again, where is William?” Elijah said.
Simon’s eyes had widened with the constricted air to his lungs and he spluttered when Elijah released his throat.
