Chapter 27

The cab stopped in front of the hotel lobby, and he gripped Chelsea’s hand as soon as they exited. His heart had taken on a heavy drumming, almost deafening him. That wasn’t all, as soon as he stepped onto the pavement, bright flashes of light blinded him. A cackle of voices rushed at them from all angles. He tried to shield Chelsea, but she stepped in front to protect him.

“Colt, where have you been? Is it true you were kidnapped?” a male reporter asked.

“There are rumors that you were abducted by a crazed fan,” one female stated.

“I assure you that Colt was never kidnapped. He needed time to rest and deal with a personal matter,” Chelsea calmly told them. “Now, if you’ll excuse us. We will reschedule the press meeting, and I hope that you will respect his privacy.”

She took Colt’s hand and walked into the lobby. The hotel security blocked the entrance from the press entering, so they were free and clear for the time being. Colt was smiling at last, and she breathed a sigh of relief that he was feeling better. When they were near the elevator, he pulled her into his arms and wrapped them around her.

“Someone will see us,” she whispered, trying to pull away.

He paused. “So what?”

“What?”

“I said, so what? I need you right now.”

“I know you do, and I’m here,” she replied.

“Then it doesn’t matter who sees us.”

She shook her head. “Colt,” she turned to face him. “You know what will happen? The press will eat this up and that Benson fellow. I don’t trust him. Why don’t we take this one step at a time?”

“Are you afraid?” he asked a little disappointed.

“I’m not afraid, but you are Purple Crush, we can’t be seen getting too close in public.”

“I don’t care about all that now, Chelsea,” he replied, pulling her close once more.

“So this is it? I can’t believe you, Chelsea!” Reid’s voice was sharp as a knife cutting through their moment.

Colt raised his head. “Don’t blame Chelsea; I asked her not to tell you.”

“She had a choice to tell me,” Reid protested. “Besides, what will people think about you two …?” He glared at them for a minute before asking, “Where have you been?”

They continued into the elevator while Colt returned his reply, “At my old house.”

Reid’s head snapped around to face him as the elevator door closed. “You remembered?”

“Yes,” he answered.

“How much,” Reid queried.

“All of it,” he said.

“I’ll call the attorney as soon as we get up to the suite,” the manager said. His voice sounded relieved as if a burden was lifted.

Reid ran ahead of them and started making his calls. He was on the phone for about an hour with Colt’s personal lawyer. Colt and Chelsea sat on the sofa and talked about his childhood and what happened after he ran away from home. He spent many years on the streets until he got a job washing dishes in a restaurant. While he worked at the restaurant, he entered a talent contest and won for best vocal talent. His prize was a guitar.

Reid hung up the phone and turned to Colt. He clenched his jaw together and gave Colt an intense stare. His eyes were like steel, and his lips in a line. Colt waited. It must be some bad news from the lawyer, he told himself.

“What is it?” he inquired.

Reid gripped his shoulders and stared into his eyes. “Brace yourself Colt, this isn’t good news.”

“Just tell me.” He was getting impatient.

“Your mother has been taken ill,” he replied slowly.

He felt the blood drain from his face. Chelsea moved up beside him, taking his hand. He dropped himself onto the sofa while he waited to hear the rest of it.

“Maybe we should talk about this in private,” Reid looked at Chelsea as he spoke.

“No need. Chelsea knows everything,” Colt replied. “I need to go see her.”

He clenched his jaw until his face hurt. This was getting too much now. He needed to make things right after all the wrong things he’d done. The idea that he may never see his mother again crossed his mind, and he felt a punch to his stomach. It almost knocked the wind out of him.

“Colt, I know you want to see your mother, but the press has been all over the news since your disappearance,” Reid said. “You’ve been gone for a week, and you missed your press meeting ... twice!”

“Are you saying I should not see her?”

“She’s under police guard because she’s a prisoner. You know how these things work. The press will have a field day with this.”

“He’s right, Colt,” Chelsea’s voice was calm. She took his hand reassuringly, but he wasn’t convinced.

He had not seen his mother since she refused to see him many years ago; how could he stay away from her now that she needed him? He turned to Reid, but the man was busy on the phone. Chelsea pulled him aside and touched his face. Her touch was soothing. The pain of a few seconds ago melted with the warmth of her hand and was replaced by a small spark of heat.

“We’ll go see her, but you must follow my lead, okay?”

“Okay,” he agreed without asking her what she had planned.

“Now go take a shower. I’ll come back for you in twenty minutes,” she whispered.

He watched her leave the room, and a part of him left with her. The thought crossed his mind that he’d gone soft. This was the first time in his life he missed someone or hated to see them go. The feeling was weird, and it worried him. What if it made him weak? He’d relied on his attitude to keep him going. Now that attitude changed to something unfamiliar. Chelsea seemed to have broken down the walls he’d built around his heart, leaving him vulnerable.

He showered and changed as she instructed. When he returned to the living area, Reid was standing by the window. The manager turned and looked at him from head to toe.

“Where are you off to?”

“I don’t …” he began to answer.

“On our first date,” Chelsea’s voice cut in.

Reid’s head whipped around to face her. “After all the fiasco, you are thinking about going out on a date? Are you crazy?”

“No, we’re not going out,” she said with a smile. “We’re having lunch in my room. It’s private, and we won’t be disturbed.”

“Is that a good idea, the two of you alone in your room?” Reid was nonplussed.

She looked at him with a frown. “We were alone for a week in the middle of nowhere. If something were to happen, it would have already, don’t you think?”

Reid snapped his mouth shut and went red. Colt was uncertain whether the man was angry or embarrassed. Reid’s eyes followed them out as they left the room. Chelsea took his hand and moved past her room, looking carefully up and down the passage. She led him to the staircase, which led to the employee section. She picked up a bag stuffed into one corner and extracted a pair of shades and a baseball cap.

“How am I supposed to cover your tats?” she mused.

“Ah, disguise, you should have told me to wear long sleeves.”

She nodded. “Put these on. We will have to go out back. And pull up your hair, so it doesn’t show.”

“Yes boss.” He grinned.

“Reid is going to get suspicious after a while you know; we’ll have to move quickly.”

“How are we going to get there?” He was curious.

“Cab is waiting,” was her reply. “I’ll tell him to come around back.”

True to her word, the cab met them at the delivery entrance at the back of the hotel where it took them to the hospital. Just as Reid had predicted, the hospital room was guarded. A single warden sat outside the hospital room door. He was asleep. Apparently, he did not consider the patient a flight risk.

Chelsea had stopped at the nurse’s station to ask about the whereabouts of his mother’s room. Now he was standing several feet away and could not go further. He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply, trying to drum up his courage. All on a sudden, he was scared to face her. What if she didn’t want to see him? How sick was she anyways?

“Let’s go,” Chelsea whispered beside him.

He tried to move his right leg, but it was frozen in place. Crap, what the hell was happening to him? He willed his feet to move and then was walking toward the room like a zombie, except with a slight limp from his broken toe. The guard was softly snoring. He opened the door quietly, and Chelsea’s eyes rested on the guard. The man shrugged in his sleep but did not open his eyes.

She stood at the door and shoved him gently. He looked at her questioningly, and she shook her head, then beckoned for him to go inside. He was a little disappointed that she was not coming with him. However, he knew she wanted him to have some privacy.

The room smelled of hospital disinfectant, which he hated. Nevertheless, the place was clean. A memory of his father in his last days surfaced and stabbed his chest. He shook it off and looked down at the bed. There she was. The woman who had always been a tower of strength, one strong enough to take on a prison sentence for her son was lying unmoving with an oxygen mask and tubes.

With a heavy heart, he pulled the chair up beside the tiny bed. The room was the usual small cubicle with a tiny window overlooking the back of the hospital grounds; a small cupboard was on the left, and to the right were the machines hooked up to his mother.

“Mom, oh Mom,” he groaned. “I’m sorry Mom.”

He picked up her frail hand. It was cool to the touch. She’d lost a lot of weight and aged terribly. He rested his hand on her forehead, and that too was cool. Her once dark brown hair was now dark gray. He brushed a strand from her forehead and caressed her cheeks. Voices in the hall brought his attention to look at the door. He planted a quick kiss on her forehead and took one last long look before heading out.

The guard was awake, and Chelsea was reasoning with him. He looked suspiciously at Colt as he exited the room.

“He’s her son,” she said. “What can he do; she’s unable to move, right?”

“Okay, I’ll let you off if you don’t report that I was sleeping,” the guard said.

“Okay, we won’t, if you promise to let us see her again.”