Rock 01 - FRET (10 page)

“I don’t get it,” Jinx spoke up. “So Gareth is gay. And? Who the fuck is he hurting?”

“Believe me,” Stan sighed. “It’s not fun being gay.”

“Dude, you’re gay?” Harley blurted out.

“Yes,” I answered for Stan. “He’s gay, and so am I.”

Stan seemed to choke on his spit and the other guys —minus Ransom who already knew this —gasped pretty much as one. I smiled because I enjoy shocking the shit out of people.

“Dude.” Rebel shook his head. “I had no fucking idea.”

“Well, as Gareth says —
you
don’t walk up to people and say ‘Hey, I’m Rebel and I’m straight.’ Why should I mosey up and say ‘Hey, I’m Axel and I’m gay’.”

“That would be so fucking cool if you did.” Ransom chuckled. “I’d love to be there with a camera.”

“Here’s another one.” Harley held up a letter. “It’s postmarked Tucson.”

I took the letter and looked at it closely. Other than the originating post office, there was no identifying information on it. Fuck. This was getting me nowhere and fast. The door to the office opened and I whirled around, hand on my gun.

A grinning Mac paused in the doorway, and I relaxed.

“Hey, if you haven’t shot me by now, it ain’t gonna happen,” Mac drawled.

I waved the letter at him. “Please tell me you brought a print kit.”

“Who do you take me for?” Mac answered shaking his backpack at me. He eyed the men on the floor and then looked back at me. “Slumber party? Please tell me there are s’mores.”

“Get over here and help,” I snapped.

“Sheesh.” Mac approached us and dropped down on the floor.

I made introductions and we went back to going through letters. Mac assured Gareth and Ransom that he genuinely believed their father was not behind the threatening letters, that he had seriously turned his life around.

“Well, I’m going to go see him,” Ransom announced.

“He looks good,” Gareth smiled.

“So when is Paul coming back to town?” Mac asked casually.

“Probably Friday. He always does Hawaii for a week,” Ransom provided absent-mindedly as he scanned another letter.

“I’d really like to have a sit-down with him.” Mac elbowed me and I nodded.

“Why?” Ransom asked.

“We need to ask him some questions about the fan mail, you know, stuff like that,” I answered vaguely.

“Can I see you outside for a sec?” Mac stood up.

I followed Mac outside and made sure to close the door behind me. He stared off into the distance and I pinched his side.

“What’s up?”

“You crossed the line, didn’t you?” He turned to face me.

“It’s not what you think. I didn’t fuck him.”

“No, but something happened. I can see it in his eyes when he looks at you and I can see it on your face. You have feelings for this kid.”

“I can still do my job.” I lifted my chin in defiance.

“Look, this isn’t the first time something like this has happened. Sometimes the babysitting jobs get complicated because of the amount of time spent together in close quarters. Sometimes the feelings dissipate after the job is over. It’s the adrenaline and the constant danger. You’ve prided yourself on never having feelings for anyone, Axel. Not even me. It’s one of the reasons I walked away from you and gave Christy a chance. I knew you’d never feel anything for me.”

My mouth dropped open in surprise. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“Was I in love? No, I don’t think so; but I did care for you, Axel. A lot. I knew you’d never care for me like that. That’s why I’m worried about you now. You
do
care for this kid.”

“I’m going to find out who is doing this, Mac, and then the job is done. Whether or not Gareth and I survive after that is another story.”

“What are we missing here?” Mac sighed in exasperation.

“Who has the most to gain from Gareth getting hurt or killed?”

“Well, you think Paul does, but that doesn’t make sense.”

“I swear to God, my gut is saying it’s him. I don’t know why, though. He can’t play anymore; his hand was fucked up in the accident. So it isn’t like he would take Gareth’s place.”

“What about Harley?” Mac asked. “He could take Gareth’s place as lead guitarist.”

“I don’t know. I’m not getting a shitty vibe from him. He seems to genuinely care for Gareth.” I ran a hand through my hair. “Fuck!”

“Okay. Well, I’m here now so let’s find out who’s behind this.”

~*~

We ended up at the Galaxy Diner with another box of letters to go through. The place was decorated with ’50’s and ’60’s memorabilia and it was homey. I liked it instantly. I could tell the guys had been here before as the entire wait staff knew them. I watched Gareth’s face as he and the guys laughed about their touring adventures. He was so damned happy and relaxed.

“Ha! Remember in Vegas when Mikey was in the bathroom and that guy leaned over and said ‘Nice dick, dude’?” Rebel cracked up.

“I remember Arson running down Flamingo Boulevard shouting ‘I have 3 nipples!’” Ransom laughed so hard he had to sip his water.

“Well, in all fairness, he does,” Jinx pointed out.

“I take it you guys run into some pretty interesting people,” I observed with a grin.

“Oh, yeah! Ask Rebel about the stripper,” Gareth laughed.

“I am NOT talking about that!”

“The stripper?” I inquired.

“Oh for fucks sake,” Rebel sighed. “She was hot until I got a handful of cock.”

I snorted and inhaled the coffee I was just sipping. The whole table broke out in laughter and Rebel got up, narrowing his eyes at us all.

“I’m going to pee.”

“Be careful of guys checking out your package,” Jinx snickered.

“Remember when Gareth fell asleep on the lounge chair by the pool?” Ransom elbowed his brother.

“I looked like a lobster for a week,” Gareth groaned. “I couldn’t even wear clothes!”

“Thank God we’d already played the night before or you’d have been up there in a thong,” Ransom guffawed.

“Speaking of thongs.” Harley raised his brows.

“Oh, do tell.” I leaned forward.

“Shut up,” Jinx warned.

“Oh, now I have to know!” I turned to Jinx.

“Fine. I had a girl backstage and she was all into me wearing her underwear. Well, I passed out and the next thing I know, I’m wearing her thong, she’s gone and so are all my clothes.”

“Turns out she was a girl he’d been with before and treated like shit. Those pictures on Facebook were priceless.” Ransom broke out in laughter.

“That’s pretty damn harsh.” I punched Jinx’s shoulder playfully.

“Yeah, well, I’m very selective now. I’m not screwing everything that comes backstage. I’m tired of that, anyway.”

There was a murmur of agreement from the rest of the guys and I stared at them in surprise.

“So, none of you are getting it on anymore?”

“Well, I wouldn’t go that far,” Harley spoke up. “We’re just not as enthusiastic about it as we used to be.”

I glanced over my shoulder and noticed through the window that the sun was setting. Where the hell had the day gone?

“Mac and I are going to go over more of the boxes tomorrow. You guys are more than welcome to join us.”

“Hey, if it helps find out who’s trying to hurt Munchkin, I’m in.” Harley mussed Gareth’s hair affectionately.

“Stop that.” Gareth complained, batting Harley’s hand away.

“Okay, bright and early at the office,” I ordered.

There were groans around the table and I lifted my brows.

“Ten in the morning good?” Mac asked.

I shot him a look and he shrugged.

“You got it, Big Bird.” Jinx winked at me.

“I like that one!” Mac chuckled. “I’m going to get you a bright yellow shirt for Christmas.”

“Fuck off.”

The guys paid the bill and headed to the car. I waited for Gareth to come out of the bathroom and Mac stood by the front door. The temperature had cooled off quite a bit and a breeze drifted through the open door.

“Okay, I’m ready,” Gareth announced behind me.

“I’ll be right behind you,” I assured him. I found our waitress and gave her $10 on top of the other tip just for putting up with us. She smiled and waved as I headed out. The air was crisp and clean as I followed Gareth.

In seconds, a car peeled out of the parking lot, nearly blinding us with its high beams.

I hauled ass. “Gareth!”

The car accelerated, headed right for him. Mac tried in vain to get to him, but I was closer. The vehicle clipped Mac’s thigh, sending him sprawling to the pavement. I launched myself and tackled Gareth; we crashed to the asphalt. My right shoulder took the brunt of the impact and I wrapped Gareth in my arms.

“Mac!” I shouted, panicked.

“I’m good! Did you see the plate?”

“No! Goddammit!” I eased back and checked Gareth. His face was pale and he was shaking. “Gareth, talk to me! Are you okay?”

“Sore,” he mumbled, clearly dazed.

A crowd gathered as I grabbed my phone and called Ransom. “Where are you?”

“At the gas station, getting drinks. Why?”

“Who’s with you?”

“The guys. Why? You’re freaking me out!”

“You should be, someone just tried to run over your brother!”

~*~

The waiting room at the hospital was abuzz with activity. I sat in one of the stereotypically uncomfortable chairs while they took Gareth and Mac back to the emergency bays.

Ransom had gone with Gareth but Mac waved me off, insisting that he was a big boy and didn’t need a hand-holder. I called Christy to let her know what was going on.

“That man will get hit by a car to avoid my sister? He’s okay, right?”

“He got up and walked away — so, yes. Just a precaution,” I assured her.

“Find who’s doing this Axel and put them ten feet under. You got that?”

My eyes widened. Christy was one hell of a woman.

“You got it.” I heard her soft chuckle and smiled.

“Yeah, I know what he does and what you do — and you know what? I don’t care. I know what kind of men you are. Men of principle and character.”

“Thanks, Christy.”

“You bet!”

She hung up and I sighed, dropping my hands between my legs. Harley, Jinx and Rebel were across from me, looking worried. There was no way any of them could be behind this attack. They were with Ransom when it happened. The waiting room doors swished open and Paul hurried in.

“Where is he?!” he shouted.

I stood immediately and faced him. “He’s being checked out by a doctor.”

“What the fuck happened?! You’re supposed to be looking out for him!” Paul shouted, getting in my personal space.

I grabbed the front of his shirt and hauled him up to my face. “Where the fuck did you just come from, huh, Paul?”

“W-What?” Paul spluttered.

“I find it really interesting that you’re in town when no one was expecting you until Friday.”

“Ransom called me yesterday, so I came back!”

“He just told me you were coming home Friday.”

“I didn’t tell him I was coming. What the fuck are you implying, Mr. Blaze?”

“I wonder.” I leaned further into his face. “What
am
I insinuating, Paul?”

His eyes widened and his mouth opened and shut like a fish on land trying to get some air.

“You can’t think that I would…that I…”

“Oh, I can and I do.”

“Axel, back it off a bit, eh?” Jinx placed a hand on my shoulder. I let go of the other man and took one step back.

“You’re fucking fired, Mr. Blaze!” Paul screamed.

“Fine, go ahead and fire me. But know this — I
will
stay with Gareth until all this is done. Do you hear me, Paul? I’ve got your fucking number and I’m about to ring it.”

“Get out of here now before I slap a restraining order on you,” Paul seethed.

“Sure. Let me just go see Gareth.” I grinned.

“You stay away from him! You’re supposed to find out who’s doing all this, not make false accusations,” Paul huffed.

“You don’t tell me shit about what I can do, Paul.” I poked him in the chest. “The final word comes from Gareth, and I think we all know what he’ll say.”

“Oh my God! You’re fucking him, aren’t you?” Paul laughed.

I saw my hand move but I couldn’t stop it. My fist connected with Paul’s face and his neck snapped back from the force. I laid him out and then stood over him, pointing a finger.

“Do not
ever
speak about Gareth like that. Ever. Are we clear?”

“Call the police, Rebel.” Paul massaged his aching jaw.