Fade to Red (26 page)

She tested her limits, careful to not get too close when detonating, but then seeing how long she could endure smoke, the length of time her skin could taste the heat before it became unbearable.

She was ready.

What she was having a hard time getting past was the fact that Leo wasn’t Beckham’s son. And just when she’d made her peace with him having a child and come around to wanting him, too. It just didn’t seem fair.

Maybe this was all for the best. Beckham was vulnerable right now. And soon, she would be the one to give him the child he so desperately wanted. He would never want anyone but her again.

Tonight. It had to be tonight.

She’d waited for the perfect timing, and she knew there would be no better opportunity than this. It was risky, but she felt confident it would work.

Beckham would forget about Roxie when she wasn’t constantly in his face. And getting rid of Roxie would finally pave the way for her.

The difference between a successful murder and a botched one was all about planning and patience. She’d done her time and research.

It was now or never.

It felt strange to be in L.A. without their bus or even their old place. Ian knew it would be nice at Beckham’s house, but he wanted to make sure Journey didn’t keep them up all night like she sometimes did when they were in a new place. So he took Sparrow and Journey to Beckham’s as soon as they left the airport, made sure Journey went down for her nap on time, and then left to run errands.

Tomorrow was their second wedding anniversary and also the Grammys, so he wanted to make tonight special for Sparrow. Sierra would be watching Journey at her mother’s house while he took Sparrow out for dinner to Providence. Sierra had offered to take her to her place overnight, but Sparrow wasn’t quite ready for that yet. They hadn’t really had babysitters, being on the road together, so it would be interesting to see how it went.

He couldn’t wait. As much as he loved his little family and loved hanging out with everyone on the tour, he needed this time alone with Sparrow. He picked up her present—a Tiffany jazz ring in platinum with diamonds. She loved her wedding ring, but he knew she’d love this, too. It looked like her, unique and exquisite.

He had one more stop to make. The instruments they’d be playing at the Grammys had been sent to the warehouse to store overnight and one of Ian’s guitars had accidentally gotten in the mix. It wasn’t crucial that he get it today, but he was close and he’d feel better having it on hand to practice the next day.

He pulled around the back and unlocked the door to the storage room, going straight for his guitar. He glanced at the clock at the end of the hall. There was plenty of time—he should beat the traffic. Something made him look up again and when he did, he went dead still.

She was staring at him, equally shocked to see him. His mouth was hanging open, and he closed it and shifted the guitar to his other hand. She moved slowly toward him and he had the thought that he should run, but he wasn’t sure why.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

Her face was covered with something powdery and her black hair went every direction. It hadn’t been that long since he’d seen her on the plane, but she’d obviously been busy since then. She moved until she was standing beside him but still didn’t say a word.

“Coco?” he said softly.

“Can you help me carry a few things to the car?” Her voice was different when she finally spoke. Measured and monotone.

He wondered if she was on something. Something seemed off about her. Really off.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“Yes. I have to get this stuff to Suzanne. It’s in one of the closets on the other side.” She pointed behind her. “It won’t take long.”

He hesitated, but he really wanted to get out of there, so maybe the sooner he helped her, the sooner he could leave. “Uh, okay. I’m in a hurry, so as long as we’re quick. Did you park out front? I didn’t see a car.”

She nodded and gestured for him to come with her. He set the guitar down and followed her. They walked down the hallway, through the rooms where they’d eaten and rehearsed, and through another hall on the far side that he’d never noticed.

She stopped at the last door and unlocked it. They stepped inside and he looked around. The room had a table and chairs and a door on the other side.

“It’s just through that door, to the right,” she said, motioning with her head.

He sighed and moved forward, regretting ever stopping at the warehouse in the first place. He opened the door past the table and stepped inside.

“What should I grab?” He turned around to make sure he knew what she wanted, and she had a crowbar raised in the air, coming straight for his head.

He heard talking and whimpering when he woke up, but he was so out of it, he thought he might be dreaming. He was lying on the floor, face down, but his arms were … were they broken? They were stuck in such an odd angle. Once he started trying to move his arms and feet, he realized he was tied up.

Coco.

He lifted his head and the pain nearly made him pass out again, but he didn’t. She was staring at him from across the room. She muttered something over and over, it almost sounded like a chant, but it took him a while to make out what she was saying.

“He was nice to me. I never planned to kill him. He was nice to me. I never planned to kill him. He was nice to me. I never planned to kill him. He was nice to me. I never planned to kill him. He was nice to me. I never planned to kill him. He was nice to me. I never planned to kill him…”

When it registered, he looked her in the eye and spoke in his calmest voice, right over her chanting.

“Do you mean me? I’m not dead. See? I’m okay.” He had to repeat it a few times and she finally stopped and her eyes focused.

“For now,” she said.

She wiped the tears from her face and smiled a tiny, shaky smile that made his blood run cold. Holy shit, he was with a psychopath.

She picked up the bottle of pills sitting next to her, popped one in her mouth, and stood up. She walked to the door then turned to look down at him.

“Where are you going, Coco? Let’s talk. Tell me what’s going on. I can help you. Coco, please.” The words sped out of his mouth and he knew they weren’t doing any good.

“I’ll have to deal with you later,” she said, calmly. “I can’t let you get in the way of my plan.”

“What plan? I can help you, if you tell me what you need.”

She shook her head, all quick, jerky movements.

“I don’t need help,” she said. “I have a plan and you showing up here was not part of it.” She leaned against the wall and when she spoke again, her voice was softer. “You’re a really nice guy and if I didn’t love Beckham, you’re the only other guy I’ve ever met who I’d even think about being with.”

“Beckham is a great guy,” Ian said. His head hurt too bad to look at her anymore, so he stopped trying and rested his head on the floor.

“He’s the best,” she said.

“Have you loved him a long time?”

“Since I was 12.”

“Is that when you met? When you were 12?”

“No, I met him when I was 15.”

“Does he know you love him?”

Coco’s cheeks flushed. “Oh no.” She shook her head. “I’ve always been too shy to tell him. Soon, though.” She leaned forward, her eyes suddenly bright with excitement. “I have a plan,” she whispered.

A chill went down Ian’s spine.

“So you said. Wish you’d let me in on that plan. I want my buddy Beckham to be happy,” he said with a smile.

He had no idea what to do, but stalling her seemed like the best option until he could get the rope loose.

“I can make him happy. I know I can. He likes my eyes. He said I remind him of Zooey Deschanel.” She nodded and opened her mouth like she was going to say something else but didn’t.

Yeah, Zooey on a deranged, psychopath day
, he thought.
I’ll never look at
her
the same way again
. In the next second he was kicking himself.
You’re about to die here and you’re cracking jokes to yourself? Idiot!
And the never-ending, underlying thoughts that wouldn’t stop running through his mind were,
Please let me live to see Sparrow and Journey again. Please protect them. Please let them know how much I love them.

“Well, I’ve chatted long enough. I need to go get rid of your car.” She opened the door. “I’ll be back soon. Don’t go anywhere.” She laughed at her joke and left.

He tried to fight it but fell asleep while she was gone. When he woke up the next time, he felt more out of it than before. He had the sensation of motion … things were passing in a blur. He tried to focus but his vision kept going black, and then everything came to an abrupt stop.

She’d either hit him again and knocked him out or drugged him. He blinked and tried to focus, but the floor tilted. He couldn’t tell what was real.
Get your head together, Ian!
He tried to shake himself. He heard Sparrow’s voice.
Don’t let this girl outsmart you, babe.

When he came to again, he was in a room with a thick leather band looped around his waist. His feet weren’t tied, but his hands were. A chain hooked onto the leather band and was attached at the other end to a metal bedpost. He could see a toilet in the small bathroom connected to the bedroom, and it looked like he’d be able to reach it. He just couldn’t reach the door out of here.

The cottage was so quiet without Chloe and Leo, Roxie didn’t know what to do with herself. She showered, did laundry, and video chatted with Leo a few times. He was excited to be at Grammie’s house and had to show her how the house was still the same without them. Grammie also still looked the same, and so did his rock collection.

She threw on a pair of shorts and a tank and opened all the windows. The breeze drifted through the windows as she did Pilates. She blew out all the negative thoughts and breathed in peaceful ones. Her nerves calmed and she felt better. Except for one huge bruise on her thigh, her body was healing from the fall. And as close as she had come to losing her heart again, she felt like she’d taken a step in the right direction. She wished she could blow Beckham Woods out of her brain as easily as a puff of air, but she knew that was impossible. His music had always been deeply imbedded in her, and her fantasies of him had long ago played out and backfired. Now that she’d gotten to know the real guy, though, she found that he’d penetrated her heart far deeper than she imagined possible.

She’d waited for hours in his New York suite, laughing her head off at him and Ian on
The Tonight Show
. The three of them had been magical that night. Beckham looked and sounded better than she’d ever seen him. The thought actually crossed her mind that maybe it was her kisses that had given him that extra spark. She allowed, in those quiet moments after Sierra left and Leo fell asleep, to think that maybe she could have that life. Maybe she could have
him
.

When he never came back and she saw that she’d missed a call from the lab, she realized what had happened. She carried Leo out of there, got a cab, and they crawled into the bunks on the bus. Beckham’s distance after that further solidified that she’d temporarily lost her sanity. There was no future with Beckham.

And then if she’d had any doubt, seeing the flight attendant follow him into the bathroom and then not come out for a while … it was obvious he was getting her out of his system. She had to pretend to be asleep so she wouldn’t be bawling when he came out.

Why he then invited her to stay with him made no sense, but nothing about Beckham Woods had ever made sense when it came to her. As much as she wanted to believe they could have something, it just always ended up in disarray.

It stung, but she was a big girl. Yes, she’d cried more times than she could count, but that would eventually stop. She’d gotten over him before, she’d be fine this time too.

No more feeling sorry for herself. And no more daydreaming about what could have been. It was time to move on.

She heard something outside and looked out the window. She’d told Johnny to go home. There was no need for him anymore. She thought he was probably still out there though. He seemed to think he didn’t have to answer to her.