Chapter 19

5 p.m. …

The fax machine whirred noisily as the paper slowly pushed through the exit. Reid had borrowed the machine from the hotel office and set it up in his room. It was reasons like this that he always got his own private quarters whenever they stayed at a hotel. No one needed to know what happened behind the scenes with Colt. They would not understand.

Even Colt himself would not understand why he protected him so much. He came from a similar situation and knew exactly what Colt and his mother experienced. He respected Colt for what he did to save his mother. He wished he’d had the courage to do the same. That was why he promised the rock star’s mother always to protect him no matter what. He only wished Colt would remember so they could wrap up the past and be done with it.

There was a beep, indicating the fax was complete. He picked up three sheets of paper signed by Colt’s personal lawyer and looked over the contents. Everything seemed to be in order. There was also a gag order included. Reid didn’t know how the lawyer pulled that off, but there it was, signed by Judge Hendricks of California with a nationwide gag order.

He picked up the phone, dialing Colt’s cell. He answered after three rings. “Speak to me,” the cocky bastard said into the phone.

“I got the papers. You want to check them out before tonight?”

“Why do I need to check them?”

Reid rolled his eyes. “Colt, you should do these things. How can you sign documents you haven’t read? I keep telling you that’s not wise. One of these days, I’ll just take all your money and disappear.”

“Yeah … right. What time are we supposed to go meet that twit again?”

“Eight.”

At 8 p.m. …

Reid thought it best they hired a car, and he agreed. He wasn’t in the mood to see Jason but wanted to get this over with. When he left home all those years ago, he never thought he’d see the evil stepbrother again. His father died when he was about two, and his mother remarried when he was about eleven and Jason was twelve. Their stepfather was a drunk … a very abusive one.

Colt shuddered at the memory and pushed it from his mind. He hoped that after this deal, the bastard would leave him the hell alone. He would have been willing to let things be as they were if the scumbag didn’t get Chelsea involved. The thought of him even getting close to her, speaking to her made his blood boil.

Absently, his fists doubled as he stared out the car window into the blackness. Reid was at the wheel, and they were on their way to the rendezvous. Only for Chelsea, he thought. But the thought surprised even himself that he would take such drastic measure for a girl, let alone one with which he had no relations. But there was something about her. She was stuck with him, and he couldn’t shake her. He wanted to protect her; that was all.

“That’s it,” he muttered to himself. “That’s all it is.”

“What?” Reid asked, taking his eye off the road a second.

“Nothing,” he said with a smile. “How much longer?”

“We’re there,” the manager replied slowing the vehicle.

Through the glaring headlights, he made out a figure in a white suit. He didn’t look strapped for cash. In fact, he must have lived a comfortable life after collecting on the insurance for his father. His sister had run away at 17, and no one heard from her since. He would have been the only one left to enjoy all that money.

Reid got out of the car and beckoned Jason over. They both slid into the back seat. He knew Reid had a licensed firearm in the glove compartment, and he wasn’t afraid to use it if necessary.

“What’s up bro?” Jason greeted happily.

Colt did not respond.

“Sign these and quarter mil is yours to keep,” Reid stated, handing the blackmailer the papers.

“What’s a gag order?” Jason asked.

Colt glanced at him through the rearview mirror. “It’s to keep your fucking trap shut!”

“Come now bro; that’s the way to treat your brother?”

Colt turned in his seat, scowling at Jason. “You are not my brother.”

“If that’s the way you want it?” Jason’s face tightened. “No deal.”

“Then get your ass out of the car,” Reid’s icy tone cut in. “Did that record, Colt?”

“Yeah, it’s running.” Colt grinned, holding up his phone.

On the screen was what was happening in the car. A tiny camera was fitted to the dashboard, a precaution suggested by the attorney. They had to have something to use in case this got out of hand. The lawyer said that all blackmailers always returned to the source of money. Jason could not be trusted to just sign the papers and leave them alone. They needed something more.

“What the fuck?” Jason, who was about to get out of the car, fell back against the seat. “What the fuck is all this?”

“Deal or no deal? What will it be?” Reid asked.

With a stoned expression and pursed lips, Jason grabbed the papers from Reid’s grasp. The band manager handed him a pen. He quickly signed all the documents, and Reid pulled a large manila envelope from the driver’s seat. Jason frowned as he hesitantly took the envelope.

“What?” Reid chuckled. “You were expecting a briefcase? You think this is the movies?” He gave an amused laugh. “You really are a dumb shit. Two hundred and fifty grand … count it.”

“I’m good,” Jason replied, barely glancing inside the package.

As Reid got into the driver’s seat, he had one piece of advice. “Don’t spend it all in one place, and if you ever come near Chelsea again, no one will find your body,” he almost shouted as Jason walked away. Before he slammed the door shut, the guy gave him the finger.

* * * *

The morning presented bleakness, showing signs of rain as the bus rolled out of the hotel parking space. There was a chill in the Missouri air with dark gray clouds rolling in. This would slow the journey, but they moved out just the same.

Colt kept his eye on Chelsea. He wanted to ask her what Jason said to her but wasn’t certain how to approach it. Reid was at the front of the bus discussing with Mike something about the concert. Andrew was fast asleep beside Tony, and Cory was strumming on a guitar.

“This is boring as shit!” Cory blurted out.

“What do you want? A sing-along?” Tony asked.

Andrew opened his eyes and remarked, “That ain’t such a bad idea. We could practice the new songs Colt wrote.”

“What do you say, Chelsea?” Tony eyed Colt when he asked her.

Her face brightened with a broad, sunny smile. Colt felt his heart jolt and inside the bus became so bright that he forgot the bleakness outside. His heart raced looking at her face, then she turned and looked at him, and everything faded.

“Will you sing?” she asked.

“Colt never reh …” Tony said, but Cot cut him short.

“Yes.”

Andrew suddenly sat up, staring at Colt with shock. Mike and Reid stopped their discussion and also stared. Tony’s mouth fell open, and Cory strummed a wrong cord. Chelsea looked at all the faces with a frown, and then her eyes came back to him. Their eyes locked a moment, and he knew he was a goner.

“Get my guitar,” he said.

He would have gotten it himself but did not think he could look confident walking in front of her. He took a couple of minutes to compose himself, and when she placed the instrument in his hand, he was ready.

“How about that new song … she’s fire?” Cory asked.

“No … I’m not releasing that,” he said in a low tone. All fell silent, so he added. “It’s not finished.”

“Sounds finished to me,” Cory remarked. Colt gave him a cutting stare. “Okay, let’s do something else.”

Colt closed his eyes and started humming, and then he played a chord. He’d written a song a long time ago about a girl with wild hair and a honey smile. As he sang the notes, he saw her running through a field with the wind in her hair. Tony got out his keyboard, and Mike snapped his fingers while they all did back up.

By the fourth song, he felt relaxed. This was how it was in the beginning with the band. Nostalgia washed over him. The happier he got, a gloom began to settle. He’d learned from experience that whenever things got too great, something was lurking, waiting to attack.

* * * *

The bus rolled to a stop at a gas station near midnight. They had one more stop to make before LA, and he must admit, he didn’t mind hanging with the boys. His eyes followed Mike and Cory as they went to use the restroom of the gas station. Andrew went to pick up a few things in the small store out front, and Chelsea’s eyes were watching him. He locked eyes with her for a sec, and then he remembered that he wanted to talk to her.

“What did Jason say to you?” he asked.

She stared at him confused. “Jason … who is Jason?”

“My stepbrother,” he replied with one brow raised.

“I haven’t spoken to him. Why?”

“They said you were with some guy back at the hotel when you fainted.”

She looked away, biting down her bottom lip. He had a strange feeling she was hiding something.

“Was it not Jason?”

“No, it wasn’t Jason,” she answered softly.

“But Reid said he was sending you texts and calling you,” his voice raised a notch.

She looked up and met his hardened eyes. “Yes, he was. He texted me and called, but it wasn’t him I met. It was someone else.”

“Who was it?”

“I can’t tell you that?” She didn’t meet his eyes.

Was she seeing someone? What the hell? Colt stared at Chelsea, his heart threatening to beat out of his chest and an emotion, completely new to him, punched him in the stomach. It knocked the wind out of him. The piercing pain was almost physical so that it made him grimace. Jealousy was never something he felt for anyone … any woman. He slowly stood and walked to his private area, pulling the curtain behind him.

He stretched himself out on the sofa bed, closing his eyes against the emotions that were assailing him. He could not get the idea of Chelsea with another man out of his head. He kept picturing some guy touching her and she laughing with him.

“Colt, I brought snacks, man.” It was Andrew, interrupting his thoughts.

“I’m good,” he grunted from behind the curtain.

“Have a beer,” Andrew urged, opening the screen and handing him the beer.

“I said I’m good; what the fuck don’t you understand in that?”

Andrew stepped back, raising his hands in defense. “Okay man, whatever you say,” Andrew returned. “You don’t have to bite my head off.”

“What’s the matter?” Reid entered, immediately sensing the mood.

“Your boy is in a mood,” Andrew told him.

Reid stepped behind the screen and stood looking down at him. He had his hands wedged in his pants pockets with his eyes narrowed. Colt closed his eyes, willing him to go away. He wasn’t in the mood to talk and was definitely not in the mood for Reid’s presence.

“I want to be left alone,” he growled.

Reid sat on the bed and spoke in a low tone, “Colt I think you need to see someone.”

“What are you blabbering about now?”

“You need to get professional help.”

His eyes shot open, and he gave Reid a cutting look. “What the … I don’t need a shrink.”

“We both know you do. Your mood swings, we both know what’s causing them. This darkness you sink into …”

“I’m fine. I don’t need a shrink,” he replied, closing his eyes once more.

“Think about it. It certainly helped me,” Reid added, rising to his feet.

“What do you mean?” Colt opened his eyes again, eying Reid with curiosity.

“We have more in common that you know,” he replied and slipped through the slit in the curtain.

Colt wondered what he meant by that. Reid always left unanswered questions with his little speeches. And what did he mean it helped him? Did he see a shrink? He knew his manager was a little crazy, but he must have been out of his freaking mind to see a shrink. He pushed Reid and his little talk from his mind.

The only thing that could make him feel better was a hot chick or a few. Being on the road like this was cramping his style. This was a deliberate plan on Reid’s part to tame him, and then there was Chelsea. He didn’t know what he was thinking or hoping. He thought … what the hell did he think? He wanted her. Heat ran up his belly at the thought of her, and his cock jumped.

“Damn!” he cursed under his breath.

He wanted to taste her lips again, feel her breast pressed into his chest. But the thought of her with another man made him angry. Who the hell was she with? He must know, it was driving him crazy not knowing. The hotel must have some sort of security surveillance. That settled, he closed his eyes.

He covered both ears with his palms and willed the screams to stop. Her voice penetrated the silence of the night. It was around midnight, and his stepfather came home staggering through the back door of the kitchen. His mother had sat at the kitchen table for four hours waiting for him to arrive. She’d fed the two boys and sent them to bed. Jason was on the bottom bunk, and he would kick the top bunk mattress, causing him to jerk up and down. He kept doing it nonstop.

“Stop Jason, I need to sleep,” he pleaded.

“Come and stop me,” the other boy said.

He sat up and was about to descend the little ladder when the first scream pierced the air. He flapped back onto the bed. Another scream filtered through the bedroom walls and door. Jason stopped kicking just for a minute and then resumed. His mother screamed repeatedly for what seemed like ages while Jason continued to kick the mattress. After a while, something within him snapped.

He made one flick, like a gymnast, swinging his feet onto the bottom bunk, startling his stepbrother. He straddled the older boy and punched him in the mouth. Blood trickled from his mouth. His lips started to swell, but David could not stop at a single punch. For every scream his mother made, he punched the son of the man causing her pain. Jason tried to shield his punches, but it was no use. He was a wild beast. All he could hear was his mother’s screams as his stepfather beat her.

Colt awoke with a jolt. He sat up abruptly and looked around wildly. He was on the daybed at the back of the bus. His hair was damp, and beads of sweat ran down his face. His T-shirt was soaked, and his heart pounded unevenly beneath his ribs. He lifted his doubled fist, staring at it.

“David,” he muttered, his voice raspy. “David.”

A feeling of dread settled in his stomach. The closer he got to his hometown, the darker was his mood. Was his past buried and forgotten? His heartbeat picked up pace. He tried to still it, but as the Purple Crush tour bus rolled on, the darkness became quite dense.