Things Lost In The Fire (30 page)

The instant the words were out she regretted them. Valerie shot her a hurt look as a tear fell down her cheek. “I’m dying, Sadie. For once I wish you could get over your hate for me and make me feel loved.”

Sadie winced, her temper fizzling. “I’m here, aren’t I?”

“It seems like you came here to start your career, not to see me.”

“I didn’t. All that just sort of…happened.” Sadie sighed, knowing it wasn’t good enough. It still didn’t explain why she never told her mother about her alias. “Look, I want to put that behind us. I want to help you.”

“No you don’t,” Valerie retorted, her eyes dry now. “You made it perfectly clear that you still blame me for what happened and that I ruined your life. So much so that you’re
ashamed
of who you are and where you come from. If only I’d done something differently that night, maybe you wouldn’t hate me the way you do.”

It was the first time Sadie had heard her mother willingly take the blame for anything. Emotion swelled inside of her as she patted her mother’s arm. “I don’t hate you.”

Valerie exhaled tiredly and lay down in the bed, curling up beneath the covers as she turned away from her only daughter. Her voice was hollow with dark amusement as she spoke. “You shouldn’t tell a lie, darling.”

Sadie rose to her feet, feeling her heart tear apart at the seams. Damn the woman for her mind games. One second she was riding on fury, the next she could turn on the guilt and reduce even the most pious man into a withering puddle of shame. Sadie knew better than to let it get to her.

Without another word, she left the room. She closed the door behind her, not knowing when she’d return.

THE SECOND she started her car she blasted the radio, needing to drown out the noise of her mother’s voice. It pounded in her head incessantly, spreading remorse and anger until both clashed inside her in a great war of conflicting emotion. Focusing on the music helped shift her thoughts onto other things as she pulled onto the road and began the short drive home.

She wouldn’t have noticed the black sedan following her if she hadn’t looked in the rearview mirror to check her makeup. When she did, a dozen irrational fears about crazed on-the-loose murderers and fanatical stalkers leapt into her mind.

The sedan was close enough that she could just see the front bumper, yet tinted windows shielded the driver from view. It occurred to her that maybe the person was irritated at her slow speed, but when she checked the speedometer she noticed she was inching toward forty-five miles per hour in what was a solidly twenty-five zone. Any faster and she’d careen down the winding hill and slam into another car or a tree that lined the road.

Biting her lip, she came to the street that led to her father’s home and slowed, making the sweeping left turn. She watched the sedan in her mirror, realizing with panic that they also turned. Knowing she couldn’t lead them straight to where she lived, she reached for her cell phone and with a trembling hand managed to bring up Brody’s number and hit send.

While it rang she jumped up her speed and took a detouring route through the hills that would lead back to Laurel Canyon and out to safety. The car revved up to join her, seemingly enjoying the chase. The thought only frightened her more.

When Brody answered, her hand was shaking so badly she nearly dropped the phone.

“
I was hoping you’d call.
”

“I need help. Please,” she breathed, her heart galloping inside her chest.

Brody’s voice darkened with concern. “
What’s wrong?
”

“Someone’s following me. I’m driving through Laurel Canyon right now and they won’t go away. I can’t go home.”

“
Okay. Stay on the phone, I’m going to give you directions to my place. It’s a good thirty minute drive—if he doesn’t give up after the first ten then just keep going and I’ll take care of it when you get here.
”

Sadie nodded, anxiety forming a lump in her throat. The steady calm of his voice lessened some her panic. She focused on it instead of the stranger in the black sedan as Brody guided her out of the Hills and onto La Cienega boulevard.

When the car continued to follow her through the city, this time keeping a couple of car lengths behind, she took her eyes off the mirror and simply drove.

H
E WAS standing on the curb waiting for her when she pulled up. Only then did she glance back at her mirror and notice the sedan was gone. Shock and relief had the breath rushing from her lungs as she came to an abrupt stop directly in front of Brody, not even bothering to park properly. She opened the car door and stepped out, willing her knees not to collapse.

“He’s gone,” she told him, hugging herself tightly.

Brody only shook his head, his eyes on the entrance of the palm-tree-lined street. “Not yet.”

Sadie whirled around and saw the black sedan come to a stop in the middle of the road less than a hundred yards away, silent and still. Without warning, Brody took off at a run, aiming to catch the stranger. Sadie watched helplessly from the sidewalk as the car whipped into gear and did a tight U-turn, squealing down the street and away from them. Clouds of white smoke fumed up from the burnt rubber left behind by the tires as the car disappeared from sight.

Brody stopped running, cursing himself for not being able to at least see the plate number. Out of breath and frustrated, he walked back to Sadie. “Did you get the license plate?”

She bit her lower lip and shook her head. “I-I couldn’t really see it.”

He nodded, knowing he couldn’t blame her. She’d sounded terrified on the phone. “All right. Come here.”

She let him pull her close and rested her head on his shoulder, still fighting to slow her heart rate. “I’m sorry to bother you. I didn’t know what else to do.”

Brody chuckled, easing her back so he could meet her eyes. “It’s not like you were scared out of the house by a spider, McRae. Someone was following you. That’s serious stuff.”

“I know,” she replied, rolling her shoulders to shake the nerves away. She glanced at her car with a sigh. “I should probably park somewhere. Unless you want me to leave?”

She faced him again and he was sorry to see how badly shaken up she still was. “Stay as long as you like. It’s not as fancy as your place, but it’s home.”

A small smile chased some of the apprehension from her face. “Thanks. Give me a second to park.”

She pulled into an open spot across the street before wandering back to him, her eyes instinctively going to where the black sedan had waited. The fact that the person was willing to follow her all the way to Venice from Hollywood just to see where she’d go troubled her.

Brody wrapped an arm over her shoulders and led her upstairs to his apartment, unwilling to speak more on the subject of the mysterious car until they were safely inside. He didn’t trust the neighbors not to listen in and spread gossip, especially if they recognized Sadie. Nothing was private for celebrities in this town.

When they entered his apartment he closed the door behind him and locked it, then went to the fridge. “Beer?”

She paused inside his living room, taking in the cluttered space before nodding at him. “Sure.”

When he came back into the room, she’d settled onto the sofa, a vague look in her eyes. Her brows were pinched together as she no doubt relived the panicked experience she’d just had.

“Hope you like Corona. It’s all I have,” he said as he handed her a bottle and sat down beside her, taking a sip from his own.

Sadie took a long pull from the beer, trying to chase away the last dredges of anxiety from her system. Though the bitter, skunky taste didn’t agree with her, she swallowed it anyway, desperate for the relief it promised.

Brody watched her with amusement. “Slow down there, cowgirl. Unless you’re planning to stay the night I may have to cut you off.”

Sadie laughed, unable to help it. She eyed him with a sardonic grin. “You can’t ply me with alcohol just to get me to sleep over.”

“Who said anything about sleeping?” One of his brows lifted in good humor as he tapped his bottle against hers.

She snorted and took another sip of the golden beer. She lost herself in her thoughts, more questions than answers swirling around in her head.

“Did the car look familiar to you at all?” he asked, breaking the silence.

“No,” she replied, fingers tightening over the bottle. “I’ve never been followed like that before.”

He patted her knee. “It was probably just some paparazzi asshole. We’ve done worse things than tail a celebrity in her car for ten miles.”

Sadie looked down at the beer in her hands, turning over the thought in her mind. Even though she still had doubts, the notion of it being a reporter comforted her a little. As annoying as paparazzi could be, at least they weren’t out to physically harm anyone. “Maybe.”

To distract herself, she gazed around his apartment, taking in his hodgepodge of used furniture, movie posters, and take-out containers. “Nice place.”

Brody snorted. “You don’t have to be polite. I don’t bruise easily.”

“Well, in that case…” she joked, shooting him a playful look.

With a hard grin he stared around the room, taking it all in. “I’m right where I belong, McRae. It’d be nice to get my life back, but I’m not holding my breath.”

She hesitated, concerned by his sudden change in mood. “You can’t keep doing this to yourself, Brody. You deserve to be happy.”

“I deserve a lot of things. Happiness isn’t one of them,” he countered, setting aside his nearly empty beer. He reached for his laptop and opened it. “Anyway, I heard something the other day that might interest you. It’s fine if you want me to drop it, but I figured you deserve to know.”

Sadie frowned, leaning in to stare at his computer screen. “What is it?”

He tapped at the keys and brought up a news article online. Without a word, he sat back to let her read the headline.

Sadie’s lips parted in surprise. “Wait,
what?
”

“That’s what I said.” Brody chuckled darkly. “But I think this could be a big deal.”

“They have a new lead on the shooter? Possibly a member of the band?” Sadie stammered, still in disbelief. “Who, though?”

“The only person I can figure is Georgina,” Brody supplied.

Silence fell as Sadie absorbed his theory. She stared unseeing at the news article, thinking back to the night that Walker attacked her. Had Georgina stumbled in on them and consequently shot her own lover? If so, then why did she drop the gun and run?

“I don’t understand,” she murmured, sitting back to face Brody. “If she shot him, why leave the room and lie to the police? She was only preventing him from…from raping me.”

“I don’t get it either.” Brody scratched his chin, his dark eyes meeting hers. “But you swear it wasn’t Tommy, and by all accounts your mom was high as a kite. And since neither Glenn nor your dad were in California that night, that leaves Georgina.”

“But she never even really liked me. And Walker was her boyfriend…” Sadie trailed off, frowning.

“Maybe that’s the point. She saw him follow you upstairs, knew what he was up to, then had her suspicions confirmed when she walked into the room. Then in the heat of rage, she grabs his gun and shoots him. She probably didn’t even think twice about what was happening to you. She was just pissed that he was capable of something so disgusting.”