Page 88 of The Keeper

“What is it?” I demanded, my voice sharp. “If there’s something else, I deserve to know.”

She hesitated, seeming to weigh her next words carefully. “You’re right. It was more than just some photos. He had hidden cameras all over your house. There were videos and images of you in private moments, completely unaware you were being watched.”

Nausea rolled through me in sickening waves. How had he gained access to my house? He would have needed to know both the gate code and the passcode to disarm the house alarm. To override everything remotely, he would have needed my phone, which was even less feasible than him knowing the codes.

“That’s…that’s insane,” I whispered, my voice trembling. “He couldn’t have…”

Ivy bit her lip. “Supposedly, he had detailed floor plans for both your house and your mom’s. I think he also had notes on how to bypass the security system.”

I stared at her, a chill running down my spine despite the warm afternoon. “And how exactly do you know all this?”

She looked down at the hardwood floor before meeting my gaze again, clearly uncomfortable. “I overheard some of the guys from the club talking. I’m so sorry, Piper. I can’t even imagine.”

I felt disgusted, violated on a level I couldn’t even comprehend. The thought of Isaac—or anyone, for that matter—having intimate access to my life without my knowledge or consent made my skin crawl.

And now those videos and images were out there, being discussed openly by the bikers at the club. Were they being passed around, the subject of crude jokes and lewd comments?

Bile burned the back of my throat. “Oh god, how many people have seen them?”

“As far as I know, only Dane and Carnage know the full extent of what was in Isaac’s house,” Ivy rushed to assure me.

“And they told you instead of me?” I asked, my voice rising with each word.

She grimaced before shaking her head. “GQ and Duke told me. But they haven’t actually seen anything themselves.”

I held up my hand, momentarily distracted from the horror swirling inside me. “Back up. GQ and Duke? What in the what?”

A faint blush colored Ivy’s fair cheeks. “We’ve kept in touch since Motorcycles, Mobsters, and Mayhem. But it’s nothing. I mean, they live in Lubbock, and I’m here…”

“All the more reason to come with us then,” I said, mustering a wan smile before gesturing around the room. “I really think we could fit you into one of these boxes if we really tried.”

She laughed softly, bumping her shoulder against mine. “Speaking of, do you think your mom’s back yet from picking up more packing tape? It’s been over an hour.”

I pulled my phone from the back pocket of my jeans to check her location, expecting to see her still at the office supply store. But the blinking dot on the map showed she was indeed back at home.

“It says she’s here, but where’s our tape?”

Ivy quirked an eyebrow suggestively. “Maybe she was going to bring it but got...distracted by a certain silver fox who can’t seem to stay away?”

I wrinkled my nose, even as a tiny part of me was glad for the momentary levity. “Please don’t make me think about my mom’s sex life. I’m still trying to come to terms with the fact that her high school boyfriend is the president of a biker club.”

“Well, he seems to be finding any and every excuse to drop by lately, so it’s not crazy to think he’s looking to rekindle an old flame.”

I shrugged. “She’s been very tight-lipped about the whole thing, says she’s too old for a relationship at this point.”

“Too old?” Ivy scoffed. “Please. She’s only fifty! That’s like the new thirty these days. Think about it. You’re past all the bullshit body insecurities women deal with in their twenties and thirties. You know exactly what you want in the bedroom, and you’re not afraid to ask for it. Perfect age to get a little friends-with-benefits action going?—”

I groaned. “Ew, I don’t want to walk in on that! Could you maybe sneak over there and grab the tape? I’ll love you forever.”

“You already owe me forever for helping you clean up that awful diaper blowout when Avery was a newborn,” Ivy retorted with a grin. “But fine. I’ll brave the potential awkwardness for you. But when I get back, we are definitely brainstorming bachelorette party ideas.”

Dane and I still hadn’t decided whether we were going to do the big white dress affair or go down to the courthouse. We already skipped a few steps by having the baby before the love and marriage bit.

Still, I forced a smile, not wanting to dampen her enthusiasm. “Deal.”

Minutes later, the front door chirped, signaling Ivy’s return. “Please tell me they weren’t doing it on the kitchen table,” I called out jokingly as I turned.

But the playful smile quickly slid from my face. Derek stood in the doorway, one gloved hand fisted in Ivy’s hair, the other pressing the gleaming blade of a knife to her throat.

---