Frayed Edges

Top Floor

It hadn't taken Drew long to cash in his favour.

It was a little before three in the morning when she got the text. It didn't matter though, she hadn't slept much since their last conversation. Jake had been working nights as part of a stakeout which gave Mia the chance to go about her sordid business unnoticed. It was a relief but she couldn't stop her thoughts clawing at her chest now that she found herself tangled up in more lies.

She hated keeping secrets from him but it was far too late to turn back now. She was in too deep.

Jake's absence meant that he couldn't see what her lies were doing to her. The once vibrant blonde locks that she loved were now limp and brittle and the hollows of her cheek more prominent than ever.

Her appetite was non-existent. It was difficult to think of food when you spent your time waiting for a hooded figure to break through the door at any second.

It was almost a relief when Drew's text flashed across her screen. It at least meant that she still had a role to play in whatever his new operation was. That fact alone meant that she was more valuable to him alive than dead.

She checked the locks on her apartment door multiple times before leaving. She had added a deadbolt to help soothe her nerves but she knew it was no protection against the wrong kind of people, and she was definitely involved with the wrong kind of people. She stood on the sidewalk waiting for a cab to pass as she pulled her jacket tight around her. The nights had turned bitter and the crisp air mixed with her nerves had her hands shaking more than usual.

A flash of yellow caught her eye up ahead and she hailed it with a wave of her hand. The usual musty smell of a Brooklyn cab filled her nose as she slipped into the seat behind the driver. She uttered the address under her breath and lifted her hood to hide her face a little more. It was always better if the cab driver couldn't remember you.

Alex had taught her that.

She had made this journey many times before under much different circumstances, but the hint of nostalgia was the only thing comforting her as they drove deeper into the night. The buildings around her got more and more elegant as they travelled further uptown. The difference in styles between their two zip codes was astronomical but Drew always had a taste for the high life.

The cab pulled up outside a tall sleek tower and she quickly paid the driver in cash before heading back into the brisk air. She pulled down her hood and the doorman smiled giving her a curt nod before opening the door for her.

"He's on the top floor now" he commented as she walked past. She wondered if he recognised her after all these years, or if Drew had prepared him for her arrival.

The foyer was wall to wall white marble and sleek black surfaces. It had a cold and uninviting aura but if one thing summed up Drew it was that. The soles of her shoes clicking across the tiled floor echoed loudly in the painfully quiet hall.

She headed for the elevator, and the doors quickly opened as if they had been expecting her. The panel in front had numbers running from one to twenty-two with the last button labelled only as 'penthouse'. She assumed that was where Drew was holed up now looking down at the neighbourhoods they used to call home. She pressed the button and the lift rose quickly, the gaps above and below the door flickering as they passed each floor.

Eventually, it slowed to a gentle stop but the doors stayed shut. She pressed the open door button repeatedly but they remained closed, not even the crack between them showed any sign of life behind the metal panels.

She panicked for a moment wondering if she had arrived at the wrong apartment but the doors finally opened to reveal the lavish decor inside. She took a few tentative steps forward before she heard the elevator doors shut behind her, a mechanical whir followed signalling its disappearance.

The apartment was bigger than she had expected. The dark hardwood floor under her feet spread throughout the masses of square footage around her.

The furniture was an array of dark grey with gold metallic accents as if to prove it was expensive. The large L-shaped sofa wrapped around a gunmetal grey fireplace that housed a pile of flickering embers in its centre. The warmth was welcoming and she fought the urge to curl up on top of the luxuriously soft-looking armchair in front of it.

Despite its beauty, the room was void of personality. It looked as if it had been pulled straight from a catalogue into the room and Mia theorised that it might well have. No books or personal items littered the surfaces and it felt as if no one really spent their time enjoying such a peaceful setting.

The true crowning jewel was the floor to ceiling windows that surrounded the north side wall. The lights below her had her head spinning as she realised how high above the city she really was.

She turned to look further into the apartment, wondering if she should make herself more known. But someone had chosen to open those elevator doors so they knew she was here. It was probably better to wait.

She took a seat on the sofa, taking in the skyscrapers that lined her view. The experience would've been enjoyable if it hadn't been for the niggling fear eating away at the back of her mind. Absentmindedly, she fiddled with a ring on her left hand to dull her repetitive thoughts but jumped when she heard a door behind her open h zap then quickly shut.

A metallic clink followed as she noticed her ring had slipped off her finger and rolled under the low elegant coffee table in front of her. She groaned dropping to her knees to reach it, there were only a couple inches of space between the floor and the bottom of the table so she was forced to reach blindly into the gap. Her fingers fumbled wildly but she stopped when she felt something with a gilded side beneath her touch. She looked around quickly to check she was still alone before slowly pulling it out from underneath the table.

It was a picture frame unlike anything else in the large apartment. It was more rugged with age as if it had survived years and multiple moves. The cardboard back keeping the photo in place was fraying along the edges allowing the printed picture to shift against the glass front. Despite how out of place the object seemed that wasn't what shocked her. The photo was of her but she wasn't alone. Alex and Drew were on either side of her and together they cut an elegant trio.

She guessed that the photo was taken at Alex's birthday party, the one her and Drew had spoken about only days earlier. The memories brought a warmth to her chest, and she smiled at the way her and Drew's hands were intertwined. Mia hadn't smiled like that in a very long time, she doubted any of them had.

A sense of dread clouded her mind as she thought of why it had been hidden away so drastically. She flipped the frame in her hands a few times trying to make note of every detail in the photo when something slipped out of the loose backing. A small piece of paper with writing scrawled messily across it. She took one last look around before grasping it quickly and reading the familiar sloppy script.

Keep her safe, we'll always be family.

Al x

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(A/N) IDK why but this felt really different to write?? Maybe I just miss Jake but don't worry lots of lovely Jake angst coming up soon!

I also decided to write a little cast and playlist thing to put at the start of this story , I thought it might be nice for you guys to see what I see when I write. It should be up this week but anyway hope you're still enjoying reading ily all xxx