CHAPTER 10
LUCKY
Meeting all those men at once was like walking through a wildfire. By the end of it, my head was swimming and the rest of me was a hot mess. I stood staring at them after Ziggy introduced each one to me. They stood in the living room of the penthouse, dripping in leather and denim, slathered in demon tattoos, adorned with everything from shaved heads to epic beards and cocky grins — a cornucopia of sheer masculinity that left my knees quivering.
And yet, even in this sea of rippling flesh, I only had eyes for Ziggy.
His long, flowing blonde hair and warm smile made him stand out amongst the brooding gang that lingered behind him.
“Come in and sit down, please,” I gestured to them, finally regaining some sense. “Take a seat wherever you can find one.”
Jesus, I thought, there’s so many of them. So many, I could barely remember their names. They sprinkled themselves around the room and I stood in front of them, feeling like I should say something.
“Thank you for coming,” I said. Usually, Becky or Nicholai, or anyone else, really, except for me, would be handling this, but I’d pissed off Becky so badly that she’d insisted she wanted nothing to do with hiring the Gods. “I know this is an unusual request. But I could really use the help.”
Ziggy was the only one standing nearby and he took a step towards me, his comforting presence behind me calming my nerves.
“Lucky, can you tell us from the beginning, what’s been going on with Nicholai? It will help all of us to have some background, so we know what we’re dealing with,” Riot said. He and Ryder seemed to be the leaders of the group. Both of them were tall and mysterious, much quieter and more serious than the others.
“Sure,” I said. I took a seat near the fireplace and dove in. “Nicholai and I were due to be married. He used to be my manager. He knows all the ins and outs of how everything works behind the scenes of my tours. He’s been my closest ally for the last ten years. Unfortunately, I discovered that Nicholai killed someone very dear to me shortly after we met. I left him at the alter. Fired him, of course. I even contacted the police with the evidence I’d found, but by the time they went looking for him, he was long gone.”
“And yet, he’s been stalking you on the tour?”
“Yes. Nicholai’s mother worked in the theatre in New York when she was young. She was a costumer and a special-effects expert. Unfortunately, she later used her skills as a criminal. She used Nicholai in her crimes when he was a boy, dressing him up as a girl and having him carry drugs or money onto planes, or whatever other scheming she needed help with. In the process, she taught him everything she knew. Nicholai has the uncanny ability to transform himself into anyone he wishes. Age, gender, race, size, all of these are things that Nicholai can use to adapt into an exact imposter. It would be magical really, if he didn’t use it for such evil.”
“I bet he couldn’t impersonate me,” a voice sounded from the side. I looked over and saw the crooked grin of the man Ziggy had introduced as Slade. Indeed, he was very unique, from his missing tooth and slightly crooked nose to the bold confidence that dripped from his pores.
I smiled, shaking my head.
“I’ve seen Nicholai impersonate old women, young teens, even. You’d be surprised what he can do.”
“So, is he trying to kill you?” Ryder asked.
“I don’t know,” I said. “Not yet. He keeps leaving me roses, red ones, as if he’s just letting me know how close he can get. And I never would have imagined I’d have to worry about Nicholai, but once I found out he killed Eddie, everything changed. There’s no telling what he might do now. I need a security team that can not only keep me safe, but also keep an eye out for him if he shows up. If we can detain him, then the police will come and detain him for questioning in Eddie’s death.”
Riot stood up and began passing out eight-by-ten photographs of Nicholai, and I cringed at seeing his face. Ziggy, standing beside me this whole time, put a hand on my back and I sighed and relaxed, leaning back into him.
Abruptly, he pulled his hand away. I glanced up at him in confusion, but he looked away, avoiding my gaze.
“This is the guy,” Riot said. “But, like Lucky said, he could appear as anyone else. Lucky, how did he get past the other security teams?”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” I said. “That’s why I fired them. The first breech was at my record studio. He somehow found his way into the sound booth when we took a break. Left one of his stupid roses on my seat. That was with the first group I fired. The second time was a few days ago. I was in British Columbia. I had security guys lined up all the way around my dressing room, and yet when I entered my dressing room, he’d left another rose and a note, mocking me. I fired them on the spot. My management team is very unhappy with me, as you’ll quickly hear from my assistant Becky. So angry, in fact, that they’ve left everything up to me to handle, once I told them I was hiring a biker gang.”
Laughter rippled up from the guys and it was nice to see how much handsomer some of them became when they smiled. They all seemed like nice, easy-going guys, but even more than that — they were intimidating. Muscular and tall, with thick, wide frames and some of the angriest resting bitch faces I’d ever seen would hopefully make Nicholai think twice about trying to harass me again.
“Ma’am, I want to assure you that we will do our absolute best to keep every area secure,” Riot said. “I’ve already downloaded blueprints to all the venues left on your tour. There’s only a few weeks left and after the tour’s over, we’ll reassess your security requirements and come up with a new plan.”
“I’m hoping this will all be temporary,” I said. “Nicholai isn’t stupid. He doesn’t have a death wish. And he’s not a big guy, not at all. So, I can’t see him putting his life at risk to get to me.”
“And that’s exactly what he’d be doing, from today onward,” Ziggy said, still standing beside me. “Because you won’t be left alone for a minute, Lucky.”
I smiled up at him, wishing he would reach out and put his hand on my back again. Since I’d met him, I’d begun to feel something that I thought was out of reach for a long time — comfort and security.
I gazed out at the sea of eyes looking back at me and took a deep breath. I had to trust them. They were my last hope.
“I think that’s enough for now,” Riot said, standing up. “We’re going to break away for a few minutes and disperse throughout the hotel and a few men will be standing guard outside your door.”
“We leave for Los Angeles in an hour,” I said.
“That’s just enough time for us to get our plan in order,” Riot said. “Are there any other concerns or information you’d like to share, ma’am?”
“Please call me Lucky,” I said, “all of you. And don’t for a minute underestimate Nicholai. He could pull off the craziest of disguises, things you’d never expect. Just be careful.”
“We will, ma’am — I mean, Lucky,” Riot said. “In the meantime, if there’s anything you need, here’s a list of all of our cell phone numbers.”
I took the list and put it in my purse sitting nearby as they all rose to leave, feeling better already.