CHAPTER THIRTEEN

 

 

 

The next morning, Pepper woke up in Judah’s arms. “I’m so glad you’re home.” She leaned up to kiss him. “You were so tired last night, you fell asleep on the way back from the airport.”

“I guess I was just relieved for that interview to be over.” He ran his fingers down the satiny skin of her arm. “Thanks for picking me up. How was your visit with your family?”

Pepper rolled her eyes and giggled. “It could’ve been better. The girls and Philip are on our side, but Ten, Jax, and Heath are just being difficult.”

“They love you, like I do. I can certainly understand their concern. I would be leery of me too.”

She ignored his self-deprecating comment. “You were great last night. I’m sure you won everyone over who saw the interview.”

“Well, we’ll see.” He cupped the side of her face. “Give me some sugar, I missed you.”

She cuddled close to kiss him, her desire for him flaring to life.

Buzz! Buzz!

“Damn, somebody’s here early,” he snarled, getting up to grab his pants and slip them on. “I wonder if my parents are back in town. I probably should’ve called them about that damn interview.”

Pepper crawled from the bed to search for her own clothes.

When Judah opened the door, it wasn’t his parents standing there, it was Zion.

“I brought breakfast!” He held up two large bags. “Torchy’s Taco’s!” He named a local eatery well-known for their great food.

“Come in, Zion.” Judah let his friend in. He took a big whiff of the aromatic offerings and rubbed his stomach. “I didn’t realize I was starving.”

“Hey, Pepper.” Zion walked over to kiss Pepper on her cheek. “Hope you’re hungry, I brought plenty.”

“Great, I’ll get plates and forks.”

“Make a pot of coffee, honey. Please?” Judah gave Pepper a wink and a smile.

“Sure.”

They followed her to the kitchen and Zion spread out the goodies while Judah took his meds. As he popped the pills, he kicked a stool Zion’s way. “So, tell me about Loren? Did you have a good time?”

Zion didn’t say anything for a few seconds. “I think she’s homeless, Judah. She’s very evasive, refuses to let me pick her up at her place. When we go to do something, she insists on meeting me.”

Pepper looked concerned. “That’s so dangerous, I know you’re worried.”

“There is a large homeless population in Austin, but there are several programs available,” Judah said as he helped himself to two of the breakfast tacos.

“I just wish she’d open up and tell me what’s going on.” Zion’s face softened. “She’s so sweet and funny.” He laughed. “I enjoy the heck out of being with her. She makes me feel carefree.”

“Does she have a phone? Do you think I could call her?” Pepper fixed her own plate, choosing a taco with chicken and avocado filling.

“I think that’s a great idea.” Zion perked up and took out his phone. “Here’s her number. Although, she rarely answers. I’ve already tried to call her today with no luck.” He rattled the ten digits off to Pepper. “She knows about you, so I think it won’t be a total surprise if you reach out to her.”

Pepper retrieved her phone from her purse and entered Loren’s name in contacts. “I’ll give her a call a little later and maybe we can set up a time to meet.”

“Thanks, Pepper.” Zion chose a couple of tacos and joined them at the table, seeming to breathe easier. “So, that talk show host was a bit of an ass, wasn’t he?”

Judah snorted, almost choking on his coffee. “Well, yea, but he only asked what the public was already wondering.” He made a rectangular frame with his hand. “Is Judah James a nut-job? Is Judah James a danger to himself and others?”

“Yea, that was totally crazy.” Pepper fumed. “Asking if the voices ever tell you to hurt anyone.”

“Maybe the voices could tell you to shave or something,” Zion joked. “I’m just glad it’s over, but I know you thought it needed to be done. I’m sure it was a pain.”

“I guess we’ll be able to judge its effectiveness by our record sales,” Judah said as he finished one taco and picked up another.

“Well, let’s see.” Zion picked up his phone. “I haven’t checked our rankings today.” He thumbed through an app that showed downloads and sales. “Looks like we’re on the rise.”

“Great!” Pepper exclaimed, feeling happy for them both. “So, what’s next?”

“Actually, that’s why I’m here,” Zion muttered as he finished his cup of coffee. “We’re needed over at Ace, some loose ends we need to tie up. Reese said the meeting’s mandatory, I think there are lawyers involved.”

“Hell, I hate lawyers.” Judah ran a hand through his hair. “While you were gone, we spent the day in Bastrop. I met Desiree Holt. She wants to talk to us about signing with her company The Yellow Rose.”

“I’ve heard good things about it. Do you know any details?” Zion asked as he wadded up the empty food bags and tossed them in the trash.

“No, I thought we’d set up an appointment with her and her people in the next few days.” Judah stood and stretched, pulling Pepper into his arms. “Well, I guess I’d better go get ready.”

“Do you want me to wait on you?” Zion asked as he rinsed out his cup.

“No, you go ahead. I’ll meet you there,” Judah told him. “I still need to take a shower.”

As Zion headed for the door, Pepper walked him out. “If you talk to Loren, let her know I’ll be in touch.”

“Good deal. I think I’ll check a few of her haunts on the way and see if I can spot her.” Zion gave her a hug and whispered in her ear, “I’m glad he has you. Thanks for taking care of him. You’re good for Judah.”

Pepper beamed. “He’s amazing. I’m glad he has you too.”

In the bedroom, Judah stared inside his dresser drawer. “What the hell?” He opened the one next to him. “Fuck, man,” he whispered. “Everything’s different.” His socks and underwear were in his sweater drawer and his T-shirt’s were neatly folded in the place his blue jeans were supposed to go. He spun around in a circle and went to his closet. Everything was neat, but completely backwards. “God, I’m going nuts. What the fuck is going on?”

He went to the living room. “Pepper, you didn’t come to the loft before picking me up at the airport, did you?”

“No!” she called from the kitchen. “I drove straight from Highlands.”

He dry-scrubbed his face. Pepper wouldn’t rearrange his stuff without telling him anyway. So…what did this mean? Did he just imagine his things were in a certain place? Were they like this all along?

Judah gathered what he needed and headed for the shower, a little freaked out. When he was finished, he went to find Pepper who was checking something on her phone.

“I think I’ll drop by the career center on campus,” she said, giving him a happy smile. “There’s a job fair there today, I might get some ideas for a meaningful career.”

He decided not to broach the subject of his wandering wardrobe. “I won’t be gone all day, but it sounds like you’ve got plenty to do. I hope you can get in touch with Zion’s girl.”

“Me too.” She walked him to the door. “Drive carefully. I’ll pick up something for our supper. How does Chinese sound?”

“Sounds perfect.” He kissed her, then headed out the door.

All the way to the parking garage, he thought about his clothes. He mentally reviewed the past months since he’d moved in, trying to verify that what he remembered was actually true. All his life, he’d kept his socks and underwear in the top right-hand drawer of any dresser he used. Jeans went on bottom left. T-shirts, middle left. In the closet, shirts were on the right, pants on the left. “So, how did things get screwed up?” He shook his head. This was new.

Once he was on the road, he drove slowly through downtown Austin, mindful of the lights, but his mind was on what awaited him at Ace. This wasn’t going to be pretty. He wasn’t sure what the meeting was about, but he intended to give them fair warning that he was shopping around. About a block and a half from his destination, Judah spotted a guy standing on the very edge of the sidewalk, staring right at him. He was used to being noticed, but this wasn’t…normal. This man, a regular looking guy in a white T-shirt and jeans, was glaring at him. Even from that distance, the dude was following him with his eyes. There was no doubt he was there to make contact with Judah. As he came alongside him, Judah turned to meet his gaze and the look of hatred in the stranger’s eyes was shocking. “What the fuck, fella?” he muttered. Judah didn’t stop, he eased on by and turned into the parking garage.

By the time he found his space, his mind was on something else. If there was a penalty from breaking his contract with Ace, he was willing to pay it. As he headed to the elevator, a movement out of the corner of his eye stopped him. Jerking his head around, Judah was surprised to see the same creep from out on the street. Thinking he was about to get mugged, he turned to lunge at him, but to his surprise, the image of the guy shimmered and faded from sight. He stopped in his tracks. “Fuck!” Was this like the hitchhiker or one of his damn hallucinations. What was going on? He’d taken his meds. Sure, it didn’t stop all the episodes, but he’d never had a day like today.

Unnerved, he boarded the elevator and rode it to the floor where Ace kept offices for his and the band’s use. He hoped to run into Reese, but his manager was nowhere in sight. Checking the time, he saw that there was still a good half hour or more before the meeting would begin. Once he was in his office, he broke his own rules and poured himself a drink. Not much, just a couple of fingers of Scotch. Something to calm him before the confrontation he knew was coming.

“Hey, James!”

He whirled around and saw the angry looking jerk from before, standing inside an interior door that led to a rehearsal room. “Get out of here!”

The man gave Judah an evil looking smile. “You know you want to hurt her. Do it.”

“What?” Judah was stunned. “Who?”

“Pepper. You need to get rid of her, she’s coming a little too close for comfort. Kill her.”

“No!” Judah screamed.

“What’s wrong with you?” Judah turned quickly to see Ivana in the hallway. “I heard you screaming your head off. Are you having a fit of some kind?”

“No.” Judah shook his head. “Did you see a guy with a white T-shirt go by?”

She shook her head. “No, I think we’re the only ones on this floor. The big guys haven’t come down from the executive floor and I haven’t seen anyone else.”

Judah nodded. “All right. Thanks.” He turned around, wishing she’d go away.

“You feeling okay, Judah? I saw you on television last night.” She laughed. “They made you look like a fool, didn’t they?”

“What are you doing here? I would’ve thought you and your uncle would be out on your ear.”

Ivana shrugged, giving him a playful sneer. “Who cares about the pay to play, it got my song out there and it sold. I don’t see what the big deal is.”

A welcome tap on the door interrupted their conversation. It was Reese. “Ready for the meeting?”

“Yea, sure,” Judah said with relief. “Be right there, need to stop by the little boy’s room.”

Ivana followed Reese down the hall and Judah stopped by the bathroom to wash his hands and face. When he looked into the mirror, his evil mirage was at the door. “You know Pepper’s not good for you, James, she’s got to go. Push her off Mount Bonnell where you proclaimed your love before. Wouldn’t that be poetic?”

“God, no!” Judah was horrified. Was this him talking? Was all this hatred hiding in his own heart? With one mighty pull, he jerked the mirror off the wall and hurled it across the room.

 

* * *

 “What the fuck happened?” Reese stared at the mess on the men’s bathroom floor. “Were you attacked by Isis or something?”

Judah pushed by him. “Accident. Where’s Zion?”

“They moved the meeting upstairs. Everyone’s waiting on you.”

Judah took off for the staircase, expecting any moment to run into T-shirt guy again.

“I’ll be up as soon as I find someone to clean up this mess!” Reese called after him.

As Judah climbed the stairs, he was quaking. Shaking. He was doubting everything, most especially his sanity. “Fuck!” he yelled in the stairwell, the word echoing and bouncing off the concrete walls. Every step he made, he was looking over his shoulder. He’d never felt so vulnerable.

When he found the meeting, the room was full of suits. Zion, Eddie, and Eric sat on one side and Mickey, Ivana, and three guys he only knew by sight sat on the other. Frankly, he was surprised to see Ivana there. Somehow, he didn’t feel good about this meeting. In a few moments Reese joined them and Judah was glad he’d briefed his manager on Desiree’s proposal, because there was no way in hell he could concentrate on business.

He tried to focus, he really did. Judah listened as they hashed out the pay to play scandal, noting that Ace intended to pay the fine and play nice, at least for a while. “So, let’s be clear,” Reese interjected, “Shiloh’s records were not artificially boosted.”

“We’re not making any statements concerning what records were affected,” the head member of the legal team stated.

“I want some type of acknowledgment that our sales were genuine,” Zion said and Judah agreed.

“We refuse to single any artist out, pro or con,” they were told.

When time came for contract negotiations, Reese threw out the news that Shiloh and Judah wanted out. “We’re not planning on renewing a contract, nor serving out the remaining couple of months. My clients want out. Now.”

Judah saw Ivana’s eyes blaze. He wouldn’t say the woman was in love with him, she wasn’t. Obsessed, maybe. Yea, obsessed was a much more accurate term. He didn’t think the attraction had anything to do with him personally, he was fairly certain it was his success that merited her phobic preoccupation.

“Not going to happen.” Mickey Thomas was the one to speak up now. He slapped another piece of paper in front of Judah. “We’ve got you by the short hairs, James. Don’t you remember signing this?”

He and Reese both leaned in to look. “A five-album contract? I didn’t sign this.” Judah was emphatic in his denial. “No way, that would’ve been stupid.” He stared at the name. It looked like his signature. The document also appeared to be notarized.

Mickey shrugged. “Well, it is your signature. You can’t deny that and…your memory can’t really be trusted, can it? Maybe you hallucinated not signing it.”

Judah lunged across the table and Zion grabbed him. “Easy, man.”

“Get me a lawyer, I’m not doing this. I want out,” he spoke to Reese through gritted teeth and stormed out of the room and out of the building. As he dashed through the garage, he heard T-shirt guy calling to him, “Hurt her, James. Hurt Pepper. Get rid of her. You know you want to. She has to die!”

 

* * *

Pepper tucked a dozen or more brochures into her bag. Her mind was spinning at the choices. She’d always known she could teach, but there were also openings for research in her field, and some intriguing positions in a publishing house. This idea really excited her. After meeting Avery, her cousin Isaac’s wife, and finding out she was a published author, Pepper had inundated her with questions about the process. Working as an editor or an agent, would be a way she could put her degree to use in a field she’d never considered. There were also some leads to a position with an advertising and marketing firm. “Maybe, I’m not so useless after all,” she mused under her breath.

As she hurried to her car, she took out her phone and tried Loren’s number once more. This time, she got through. “Loren!” When Loren didn’t say anything, she clarified. “This is Pepper. I’m dating Zion’s friend, Judah.”

“Oh, yes, hello.”

“Hey! I’m so glad I caught you, I was wondering if you’d like to get together soon. Zion talks about you all the time and I’m sure we have a lot in common.”

Loren seemed hesitant. “Well, I don’t know. I’m pretty…busy.”

“I understand, it doesn’t have to be a big deal. We could meet for coffee or something.”

“Well, all right,” she agreed. “But I can’t today,” she rushed to say. “Maybe tomorrow or the next day.”

“Tomorrow’s good.”

“I can only do it early. I have some place to be.”

Pepper was willing to do anything to make it work. “Seven?”

“Seven’s good. Mozart’s on the river? They open early.”

“Okay. I’ll be there.”

“Great! I’ll be the dorky looking blonde with long hair.”

“Oh, Zion says Judah thinks you look like the Disney princess Rapunzel. I’ll find you.”

Pepper blushed. “Judah may need glasses.”

When she returned home, she was excited to tell Judah all that had happened. After unlocking the door, she called him, “Judah! Judah! I’m home!”

“Good, I’m glad.” He reached around a corner and grabbed her. His lips claimed hers, kissing her voraciously. Hers parted in welcome as she kissed him back with a desperate, hungry moan.

Kiss followed kiss and he slowed only the time necessary to rip her clothes from her body. Judah was torturously aroused, his balls ached with pent-up longing and his cock was hard as steel, furious in its famished lust. Panting for breath, he pushed his hand between her legs and found her slick and hot – for him.

God, he was going to miss this.

Miss her.

As he pushed two fingers deep into the lush heat, he found her tight and ready. He growled as she flexed around him.

“Judah, Judah, please, please,” she chanted.

Judah would please her.

One last time.

Lifting her in his arms, he carried her to the bed and gently laid her down. Standing before her, he wordlessly held her gaze and peeled his clothes off. He never said a word, he had no words to say. When he was nude, he placed a knee on the bed and pushed her legs apart, fitting himself between them. The need to fuck nearly drove him insane.

No, wait – FUCK! – he was already there.

Judah shuddered with agonized need. Grasping his cock, he fit the throbbing purple head to the weeping well of her womanhood. As he slipped inside the gates of ecstasy, he bellowed at the perfection of their joining.

“Kiss me more, please,” she whimpered, “I need you so.”

He gave her what she needed, covering her lips, allowing himself to revel in the feel of her beneath him. Slowly he pushed in, memorizing the exquisite pleasure of her pussy opening for him, knowing she loved this as much as he did.

How would he go on without her?

As he thrust in and pulled out, his hips pumped, his dick tunneled deep, working its way in as she arched beneath him in delight. Over and over, he claimed her mouth, his tongue delving between her lips in concert with his cock penetrating the sweetness between her thighs.

Pepper cried out with the pleasure. Judah was taking her places they’d never gone before. As his hands grasped her hips, anchoring her as he went to his knees, he lifted her bottom to rest on his thighs. She was helpless to resist the hard, driving pace that he seemed to crave.

Judah shut his eyes as a rumbling growl rose from his chest and sweat popped out on his forehead as the glove-tight sheathe of her pussy clenched and fluttered around him. He drove deep, an unending momentum, cherishing every stroke, as he gave the woman he loved everything he possessed.

His heart. His soul.

And love enough to let her go.

Pepper dug her fingers into the bed cover, fighting for purchase, anchoring herself to the bed and to reality as she spiraled out of control with every pounding thrust of his body into hers. She’d never known such urgency, a desperate fiery longing that threatened to consume her, scorching every part of her until she cried out his name. “Judah!”

She begged, she pleaded, she bowed her back and held out her arms to him as a climax erupted within her in a blazing firestorm of sensation.

Holding him in her arms, Pepper thought it was over – thought he was replete – but he wasn’t. With a whisper of her name, he helped her turn over and lifted Pepper to him, entering her from behind. Once he was seated, he took her with jackhammer strokes, groaning his satisfaction. Not content until he held her against his heart, he pulled her upright and she twined her arms behind her head, clasping him around the neck.

“I’ll never get enough…never…” His hands moved all over her, soothing, caressing, stroking her sides, her thighs, palming her breasts and milking her nipples. And all the time he bucked inside of her with continuous thrusts. Fire sparked between them – through them – the air became alive with their moans of ecstasy.

Awash with pleasure, Pepper undulated in his arms, rocking against him, working her hips, riding his cock. “Oh, Judah,” she whimpered as he kissed her neck, the rasp of his beard raising frissons on her skin.

“What do you want?” he whispered in her ear as he filled her again and again.

“You. Always you. Only you.”

Judah felt her trembling in his arms, shivering with a need that he could meet. He might not be able to give her forever, but he could give her this. As he possessed her, forging a place for himself deep within her soul, he slid a hand down to cup her mound, dipping the tips of his fingers into her warmth to rub circles around her clit.

The tension rose anew, Pepper felt a euphoric tide begin to rise as he made her body sing – thrusting harder and faster, holding her tighter and tighter as they submitted to the irresistible, inevitable detonation of uncontrollable pleasure. “Judah!” She writhed in his arms, suspended in a sea of bliss.

Judah hid his face in her neck, breathing in her essence as he surrendered, spilling his seed inside her. Stunned with white-hot relief, he held on to her as the rapture ebbed, their breath mingling in sated pants as she reached up to fuse her lips with his.

Judah gave her one long, heartfelt, yearning-for-forever kiss.

And then he let her go.

…Pepper lay on the bed, a smile of pure joy on her face. “Judah, I’m meeting Loren bright and early in the morning for coffee at Mozart’s. Isn’t that great?”

He didn’t say anything.

She’d heard the shower turn off and water running in the sink. “I need to get up too,” she murmured. “I forgot to bring home the Chinese food, dang it.” Raising her voice, she spoke to Judah, “We’ll have to order in, I got all excited about the job fair. Is that okay?”

Still no answer.

Was something wrong?

Rising to her feet, she grasped the sheet to hold around her. “How did your meeting go?”

Still, he said nothing.

When she came to the bathroom, Pepper found him staring in the mirror, a look of supreme sadness on his face. “What’s wrong?” she cried out in concern.

“This isn’t going to work.”

“What isn’t going to work?”

“Us. This. You need to go home. Go back to your family. Back to Highlands.”

His stark words ripped her world asunder. “Why? What did I do?”

Judah couldn’t seem to meet her gaze in the mirror. He looked past her, over her, anywhere but at her. “I need more than you can give me. I want you to leave. Now.”

When she just stood there, as beautiful as an angel, her long blonde hair flowing around her shoulders, staring at him with sad, heavenly blue eyes, Judah felt the most agonizing pain in the world. He wanted to double over in anguish. He wanted to scream in frustrated despair. He ached to pull her in his arms and hold her until eternity ended – but he couldn’t.

“I’m leaving.” He pushed away from the vanity, edging past her, his whole body shaking with emotion. “Be gone by the time I get back.”

With a breaking heart, he fled his loft. He needed to get away, far enough he couldn’t see the hurt and disappointment in her eyes. Far enough that he couldn’t hurt her if that demon in the white T-shirt came back and made demands he couldn’t resist. Judah didn’t think he’d ever listen, Judah couldn’t imagine ever acting on those thoughts – but he never imagined having those thoughts in the first place. He couldn’t risk it, she was too precious.

“I was wrong. Wrong. Wrong,” he said as he flung open the door of his car. “I never should’ve drawn her into my hell. I pushed her away once for her own good and like a fool I drew her back for my own selfish reasons.”

With tears streaming down his face, he gunned the Challenger out into the street and ran two stop signs getting out of town.

 

* * *

 Pepper did as he asked. In a daze of pain and confusion, she gathered her things. Mechanically. Lost in a maelstrom of misery, she tried to make sense of what had just happened. He’d made love to her, there was no other way to describe what they’d done. It hadn’t been sex, it hadn’t been a satisfaction of animal urges – their spirits had merged in a sacred bonding. They were no longer two, they were one. Despite her yielding to his request, Pepper didn’t believe him when he said he wanted her to leave.

That what they had wasn’t working. That he needed more than she could give him.

No, something was wrong. Something had happened while he’d been gone. This felt too much like what had happened before. This wasn’t real.

Letting her eyes rove around the room, she tried to think of what could’ve transpired to make him react this way. “I’m not giving up,” she whispered. “I’m never giving up on you.” She set her belongings back down in a pile at her feet.

She would wait for him, that’s what she would do.

Sitting down on a chair facing the door, she wrung her hands together, her eyes clouded by tears. “He didn’t mean it, something’s wrong. I just know it.” Needing to talk to someone, she took her phone and called Ryder.

“Pepper?” Ryder asked, seeing her sister’s name on the display.

“Oh, Ryder, I’m so hurt. Something’s wrong with Judah. Something’s happened. I don’t know what. He asked me to leave. He told me to go.”

“Pepper, are you all right?”

“Yes, I’m waiting for him. I love him so, I can’t leave. I just wanted to talk to you. I’m scared…”

She was about to tell Ryder she was scared for Judah, when she heard a noise at the door.

“I’m coming after you, Pepper,” Ryder called out to her.

“No, no, don’t,” she cried. “I’ll be okay. I think he’s come back.”

Holding the cell at her side, Pepper ran to the door. Before she could reach it, the door was thrown open, but it wasn’t Judah who waited on the other side.

It was a man. A man she didn’t know. A man with sandy brown hair, wearing a white T-shirt, with evil in his eyes. He held a key up in his hand. “Looks like the copy she made worked.” He lunged at her, grabbing Pepper by the arm and shoving something in her face.

Pepper screamed.

On, the phone, Ryder screamed too. “Pepper! Pepper! Are you all right? Pepper!”

…A few miles away, Judah drove aimlessly. His phone kept ringing, but so far he’d ignored it. Austin’s laws on cell phone usage while driving were strict. He shook his head, how stupid, as if the threat of a traffic ticket could even compare to the turmoil in his heart. When he stopped at a light, he grabbed the phone. Checking the ID, he saw it was Zion. Had he hoped it was Pepper? God, he’d hurt her again. His whole being rebelled at the thought that he could’ve hurt her so much worse if he didn’t protect her – from himself. “Yea, I’m here.”

“I’ve been calling and calling. What the hell happened to you in that meeting?”

“I’m losing my mind, man. I’m losing it.”

“Where are you?”

“Driving around.”

“Meet me at your loft.”

“No, I can’t. Pepper’s leaving, I don’t want to see her now. I can’t bear it.”

“What the fuck? Why is she leaving you?”

“I told her to go.”

“Are you crazy?” Zion exploded. “She’s the best goddamn thing that ever happened to you.”

Judah didn’t answer. He couldn’t argue with the truth.

“Meet me at Ace, then. We need to talk and clean out our stuff there, anyway.”

“Really, why?”

“I’ll explain things when you get there.”

Judah made the block and changed directions. He wondered if Pepper would ever be able to forgive him.

… “No! No!” Pepper struggled, striking out blindly. She was finding it hard to breathe, there was something toxic on the rag he jammed into her face. In a terrified panic, she fought to keep her nose free of the cloth, kicking and punching – fighting with all her might.

Gradually, her movements became weaker and less coordinated. Her cries died down, until she was limp in the arms of her attacker.

“Pepper! Pepper!” Ryder screamed. She’d heard her sister yell, she’d heard furniture being knocked over. “God, he’s killing her,” she wailed. Hanging up the phone, she dialed 9-1-1, giving them the address where Pepper had been staying. “You’ve got to hurry. I think Judah James has hurt my sister!”

…At Ace, Zion was standing near Judah’s reserved parking spot when he pulled in. Judah felt sick to his stomach. When his friend threw open the driver’s side door, he slowly got to his feet, feeling more defeated than he ever had before. “So, why are we clearing out today?”

Zion studied Judah’s face, there was a lot of questions he wanted to ask, but they’d deal with one thing at a time. “Oh, that’s right, the crap hit the fan after you hightailed it from the meeting.”

“What do you mean?” They walked slowly toward the elevator.

“Reese saved the day. He kept looking at the date you supposedly signed that contract until he thought to check your calendar. The day they said you appeared before a notary public to sign that five-album contract, you were at a clinic in San Francisco for your testing. He challenged Ace and accused them of fraud. The lawyers backtracked and Ivana threw a fit, she started making wild accusations, saying that if she couldn’t have you nobody would. Before it was all over, Ace washed their hands of Mickey and Ivana. I guess they figured we were all more trouble than we’re worth. As of today, we’re free agents again.”

This should’ve made Judah happy, but he could find no joy in anything. “I’ll never be free, Zion. I’m a prisoner in my own mind.”

After riding the elevator, they made their way to the office suite they’d been assigned at Ace. “What’s going on with you? Do you feel worse? Did you and Pepper have an argument?”

Judah sat down on the edge of his desk. “I’m afraid I’m going to hurt her.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

He told Zion about his visions. “You know I’ve hallucinated people before. Even Pepper. This time was different. I saw this same dude several times. I’ve never seen such an evil expression on a human being’s face. I saw him first on the street, then in the parking garage. He followed me up here, once he even faded into nothingness against the wall.”

“What did he do? What did he say?”

Judah glared at Zion with tortured eyes. “He told me to hurt her. He told me to kill her.”

“That’s crazy.”

“Yea,” he agreed. “It definitely is. I’ve never had thoughts like that before. I didn’t know I was capable of having those types of thoughts. But this manifestation, this crazed looking guy in a white T-shirt kept telling me I needed to get rid of Pepper.”

“Wait,” Zion held up his hand, “hold on.” He measured in the air. “Was he about this tall? Sandy brown hair? White shirt and ripped jeans? Nike athletic shoes?”

“Yea, that’s him.” Judah looked at Zion with a puzzled expression on his face.

“He wasn’t a vision. I saw him in the building this morning. I saw him following you down the hall as you left.”

Rap! Rap!

Judah didn’t have time to react to Zion’s news. A knock on the door caused them both to turn. Two policemen stood there with guns drawn. “Are you Judah James?”

Judah stood. “Yes, I’m Judah James. What’s wrong?”

“You’re under arrest for the assault and abduction of Penelope Elizabeth McCoy.”

While Zion protested, one of the policeman read Judah his rights.