Chapter 28

Chelsea spent the rest of the afternoon re-arranging the press meeting, confirming the date for the next concert and checking in with the crew. They understood that Colt had something going on, and they were used to him not being at rehearsals anyway.

Colt was out with Reid, meeting his attorney who flew in from NY on a private jet. It was better that they sorted everything out privately. If they could get Colt’s mother released without Colt doing any jail time, that would be best. She was worried for him. Fortunately, he had not hidden himself away the way he used to. Something about him was different, now that they’d grown close.

Her friend Molly had been calling for days. She’d missed many calls. After she completed her tasks, she returned the call. She missed female company and wished her friend could be with her. Molly’s phone rang thrice before she answered.

“Where have you been? I’ve been calling for nearly a week now,” Molly scolded.

She smiled into the phone. “I’m sorry, it’s just been hectic here.”

“I’m going home for a visit,” Molly announced.

“What? You said you’d never return, what happened?”

“My mom’s sick; I need to see her. I don’t want her dying angry at me, you know,” Molly’s voice was sad. “Anyhow, that’s not why I called.”

“Why’d you call?”

Molly hesitated before replying, “Something strange happened. I needed some cash, so I boarded someone for a couple of nights. She was pretty, but quiet. But the strange part is that I happened to accidentally see some photos and newspaper clippings she had in a pouch.” She paused.

“Yes, tell me, what’s strange about that?”

“She had some photos of her and two boys, some of a man and a woman and three kids including herself. But then there were these newspaper clippings of Colt.”

“She must be a fan.” Chelsea laughed.

“No, it’s more than that. These clippings are from when Colt first became famous, a long time ago, and almost every newspaper article about him,” Molly informed him.

Chelsea had to admit that it sounded strange. Perhaps Colt had a stalker. “What else?” she asked.

“One of the boys in the photo looks a lot like Colt. I mean, he is a dead ringer for when Colt just started out. You can definitely see that this is the same person from the photos.”

An uneasy feeling settled in Chelsea’s stomach. What connection did that girl have with Colt?

“Where is she now? Did you ask about the photos?”

“I asked, and she told me it was not my business, but I have no clue where she went. She had a guitar. Maybe it’s someone he dated?”

She didn’t like the sound of that. Jealousy cut through her like a knife at the thought of Colt having a girlfriend who saved pictures of him … then she remembered something. He told her he had a stepsister who ran away. Could it be her?

“Molly, if you happen to hear from the girl again, call me, okay?

“Okay, but I doubt she’ll return. She wasn’t keen on me asking her about those photos, and she left in the middle of the night.”

They chatted a while longer about Molly’s mother before they said their farewells. All through the rest of the conversation, Chelsea’s mind was on the woman. She was almost certain it was Colt’s stepsister, but she needed to confirm it. The only problem was, she didn’t know how. If she could somehow get a hold of a photo and send it to Molly, she could confirm whether it was the same girl. The only way to do that was to head back to the cottage. She remembered the address Colt had given her, so she called a cab and headed out.

As she closed the suite door behind her, someone moved into the shadows of the nearby stairwell. The figure seemed familiar, but she shrugged it off. She went to her room to fetch her purse and change. As she left the hotel in her taxi, she made out a man stepping from behind one of the columns at the hotel entrance. It was Jason.

Chelsea was of two minds about leaving the hotel. Should she tell Reid about Jason? If she did that, she would have to explain to Reid about leaving the hotel. That wasn’t something she was willing to do given that she didn’t want them knowing what she was up to. She let it drop and concentrated on getting to Colt’s childhood home.

“Wait for twenty minutes, please,” she told the cab driver as they pulled up at the gate.

“Okay,” he returned with a smile.

There was a key over the doorframe. Colt told her that’s where he remembered his mother leaving it since he was a small boy. She paused at the front door and eyed the old truck which now had pieces of rusty metal scattered around it. As she entered the dainty living room, a sense of belonging hit her. She’d spent about a week there, and already she felt like she belonged. Was it because of Colt? Must be. This was where their relationship took a definitive turn.

She began by searching the living room for any photos of family. There was a wedding photo of a few others of older family it seemed. She assumed the wedding photo to be of Colt’s mother and his stepfather. There was none with his stepsister. Chelsea searched the tiny bedrooms up the stairs and found nothing but a snapshot of two kids about five or six years old. She couldn’t tell whether they were two boys or boy and girl. She stuffed the photo in her purse, locked the house and returned to the waiting cab.