Fractured Beat (Meltdown Book 1)

by RB Hilliard

  “Grant!” Mallory called out after me.

  Ignoring the hurt in her voice as she called out my name was one of the hardest things I’d ever done. I wanted to go back, but at the same time, I didn’t. As I crossed the threshold to my room, I made sure to close both doors and lock my side. The guys showed up with breakfast right as I was toweling off after my shower.

  After discussing the lineup for tonight’s show, Luke said, “So, tell us bro, is this thing with Mal serious or what?”

  I was so busy staring at the locked door that it took me a second to register his question. Personally, I didn’t give a damn if they knew Mallory and I were sleeping together. However, she did, and I wasn’t about to betray her trust, not even to my best friends. I calmly stated what he already knew. “The thing with Mallory is just for show.” He smiled and I raised my brow in challenge.

  “So you won’t mind if I lure her into my web of seduction?” Mallory thought Luke was a goofball. I had to agree with her.

  Spearing a sausage with my fork, I smiled at him. “Go for it,” I said, and took a bite. His eyes narrowed and I tried not to laugh at his antics.

  “Maybe we should call up Chelle, or how about Silly and Sally? I’m sure they’d like to get in on the action,” Chaz suggested. We all stared at him and he scowled. “What?”

  “Why do you have to ruin our perfectly fun game? I was getting somewhere and you had to go and ruin it,” Luke complained.

  “Dude, you were hitting a stone wall. I was showing you a window,” Chaz stated. His matter-of-fact tone was hilarious.

  While they debated about who was funnier, my eyes wandered back to the door and I realized that a locked door wasn’t going to keep Mallory out or me away. Nothing was. This thing between us was going to happen regardless of whether we were ready or not.

  Once breakfast was over the guys took off to finish getting packed. Instead of doing the same, I unlocked the door and slipped into Mallory’s hotel room. I needed to explain. Hell, at the least I needed to apologize for being such a psycho dick. If anyone would understand what I was feeling, it would be Mallory. Halfway across the sitting room I heard voices coming from her bedroom. I paused long enough to make out who she was talking to.

  Motherfucking Blane.

  Anyone with eyes could see that Blane had a hard on for Mallory. Did he also have a death wish? I was beginning to think so. I wanted to go in with guns blazing, but knew I needed to be smart, so I quietly stepped into the room to assess the situation. Blane stood with his back facing me. Mallory stood directly in front of him with her arms folded defensively across her body. She was obviously upset, which in turn pissed me off even more.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  Blane turned and shot me a disgusted look. “Well, look who’s here? I should ask you the same thing.” He was clearly angry.

  “Blane was just leaving,” Mallory snapped.

  “Yes, I was just leaving. Remember what I said,” he directed at her. Then he tossed something on the bed before heading in my direction.

  As he attempted to step around me, I grabbed his arm. “You will explain this later, right?” I said through clenched teeth.

  He glared back at Mallory before jerking his arm from my grasp. “Whatever,” he snarled, and continued out of the room.

  Lying on the bed like a venomous snake was the string of condoms from last night. Fuck!

  “He knows,” Mallory whispered, once he was gone.

  The fear in her eyes pissed me off. Hell, the whole encounter pissed me off. What was Blane thinking? “What was he doing here?” I asked.

  “He came by to see if I wanted a ride to the bus. I wasn’t ready, so I told him no.” She stared at the condoms as if they were about to jump off the bed and bite her. “I didn’t see them on the floor. The next thing I knew he had them in his hand and was accusing me of sleeping with one of you. He kept asking which one. I didn’t know what to tell him, so I pretended to be offended. I asked him to please leave and he threatened my job, Grant. He said I was in breach of my contract.”

  First, I needed to calm her down and then I was going to kick Blane Kirkland’s ass from here to kingdom come, the little fucker. “Come here, Mallory.”

  She stopped her pacing long enough to glare at me. “Why are you here?” She was angry, and with good reason. I was a dick this morning.

  “Come here,” I repeated.

  She pointed at the door behind me. “You saw his face. He knows, and now he’s going to tell his father.”

  I could tell she was about to lose it, so I did the only thing I could think to stop it, I swept in and kissed her. After screeching down my throat and punching my side a few times she finally gave in and kissed me back. After a minute or so she calmed and I slowly ended the kiss. The dazed look on her face let me know I’d made the right move. “If Blane tells Kirkland, I will kill him, plain and simple,” I explained.

  “This is serious, Grant. If Blane tells his dad –”

  “He won’t,” I cut her off, “He’ll try and use it as leverage, but he won’t tell Kirkland.”

  “Leverage how?” she squeaked. I shrugged and a frown flitted across her face. She took a step back and threw up her hands “This is exactly what I was worried about. This between us stops right here and right now.”

  The hell it does. “Can I ask you a question?” I took her silence as a yes and continued, “What do you see when you look at me?”

  “Is this a joke?” Her exasperated tone was cute. Everything about her was cute. I was fucked.

  “No joke. What do you see?” I repeated.

  “I don’t know. I see you.” After a few seconds she responded, “I don’t know what you want me to say. I see a talented, gorgeous man who is funny, smart, sensitive and definitely not an addict. Wait a minute. Is this some twisted way of fishing for compliments?” Yes, I’d definitely pissed of my Mallory when I stormed out this morning.

  “You forgot to mention money and fame.”

  Her head cocked as she studied me with her expressively gorgeous blue eyes. “I don’t need your money, Grant, I have plenty of my own, thank you very much, and fame is overrated.” She sounded insulted, insulted and disgusted. For those reasons alone I decided that, hard head and all, Mallory Scott most definitely belonged to me.

  “That’s just it. You don’t look at me and wonder what I can give you or how you can use me to further your career. You don’t see me as the lead singer in a rock band. You see me as a man.” I dropped to the bed with a sigh and she slowly made her way over to me.

  Once she was standing directly in front of me, she asked, “What is this all about, babe?” Good thing I was sitting down because her soft voice calling me babe gave me a massive cock stand. She had on a pair of jean shorts and a pink shirt. Her hair was up in that ugly ass bun I’d actually learned to like, but only because it belonged to her. I pulled her between my legs and craned my neck to see her gorgeous face. “You left me last night.”

  “I wasn’t sure if you wanted me in your bed.” It was my turn to be disgusted. With a little huff, she said, “Don’t look at me like that. This is brand new. There are no rules, no parameters. It’s a minefield of feelings and emotions. I’m afraid I’m going to make a mistake.” As I pulled her in tighter, she whispered against the top of my head, “I’m scared.”

  “Don’t be,” I whispered back.

  “Blane found the condoms, Grant. He knows.”

  “Trust me when I say that Blane is in a world of shit right now. He won’t say a word. For the record, I’m glad he knows. Maybe he’ll leave you alone now.”

  She ran her hands through my hair and I instantly relaxed. “What happened this morning? Did I do something wrong?”

  The vulnerability in her tone made my heart clench in my chest. “This morning wasn’t about you. It was about me losing control of my life and what I want.”

  “What is it that you want?”

  “I want to find who drugged me
and ask them why? I want to know why they felt the need to plant drugs in my hotel room. I want to write my songs and play my music. I want Kirkland and Blane gone.” My eyes locked on hers. “And most of all, I want you.”

  “Well, how about we start with number one. Did your mom find proof that you’re allergic to Oxy?”

  “It should be waiting for us at the hotel in Raleigh.”

  “Good. While you’re at practice today, I’ll take your records and have copies made. If something happens we will have extras.”

  “I have the bottle of Oxy for you.”

  She gave me a huge smile. “That’s great. While I’m out I’ll run it by the pharmacy. I don’t think they’ll tell me anything but at least they’ll know where to look. Hopefully it will lead us straight to Kirkland.”

  “And if it doesn’t?”

  “Then it will lead to someone else. Someone did this and when we find them, they’re going to pay.”

  “I like it when you go all cave bitch on me.”

  She pulled back and laughed. “Did you just say cave bitch?”

  Pulling her back in, I said, “Yep.”

  “I’ll show you cave bitch.” She pushed my shoulders back so she could straddle my legs. As she lowered herself down smack on top of my erection we both groaned. My cock throbbed with the need to be inside her. I tipped my head up to see what she had in store for me and was met with soft lips and a very needy tongue. Aggressive Mallory was a definite turn on. When she smiled against my lips my heart squeezed. Right as things were getting good, my phone rang. I let her go long enough to fish it from my back pocket and growled in frustration when she took it as an opportunity to escape. The caller was Hank giving us a fifteen minute warning. While I had him on the line, I discussed the plan Mallory and I made. Hank could make better time in his jeep than we could on the bus, so we decided he would drive Mallory to Raleigh and help her execute the plan without issues. Once they were done, they would meet us back at the hotel and we would all ride to the venue together. By the time we hung up, Mallory was busy packing and I was left with a major case of blue balls. I made a mental note to talk to Marcy about the tour schedule. I wanted Mallory alone and in order to make that happen, we were going to need to carve out some time away from the band.

  The bus ride to Raleigh was uneventful, especially without Mallory to stare at. According to Marcy, we had three days free right before our New York shows, which was only two weeks away. I wasn’t sure if I should fly us back to my place in Austin or to someplace off the beaten path. I was leaning towards taking Mallory home with me. I selfishly wanted her at my house and in my bed. While on the phone with Marcy I learned that Blane had left on a business trip and wouldn’t be back until the end of the week. Even though it pissed me off, it was probably for the best. Right now I wanted to rip his head off. Hopefully by the time I saw him on Friday I’d feel differently.

  Hopefully by Friday I would also know who wanted me dead.

  Chapter Twenty

  Swerving In My Lane

  Mallory

  I was in trouble. My job was seriously on the line. I knew what Grant and I were doing was wrong but I couldn’t seem to stop. It was addiction all over again, except worse. My heart was involved. When Blane picked up those condoms, my stomach hit the floor. He was right. It was one thing to pretend to be involved with Grant and another to actually sleep with the man. I was in breach of my contract and he should have fired me on the spot. I’m not sure why he didn’t, but it worried me. Grant thought he had Blane under control but I knew different. Blane Hamilton was an addict. So what if drugs and alcohol weren’t his poison? The behavior was still the same. Addicts were generally wild cards and Blane was a wild card if I’d ever seen one. A wild card who was now holding my career hostage. In the short amount of time I’d known the man, he had yet to tell the truth. Not only that, but he reeked of desperation and desperate people were like ticking time bombs. You never knew when they were going to blow.

  Blane wasn’t my only problem. As fast as I drew the lines, Grant blurred them. The deeper I sank the more conflicted I became. When Hank suggested I ride with him instead of the bus, I jumped at the opportunity. I could tell Grant was hesitant to let me go. He thought I was running. In a way I guess I was. Running was easy and something I was well versed in. I wasn’t proud of this. If anything, I was ashamed.

  The first half hour or so of our drive to Raleigh Hank was putting out fires at the hotel. From what I could tell by his conversation, a hotel employee let slip that Meltdown would be staying there. Now they were swamped with press. Hank was proficient and professional in dealing with the issue at hand. The guys really were lucky to have him.

  After hanging up from what had to be the sixth call, he turned to me and smiled. “You haven’t said a word. What has you so deep in thought?”

  “You’re really good at cleaning up messes.”

  He wrapped his knuckles on the steering wheel and sighed. “I’m sorry. Things are a little out of hand at the moment.”

  “No apology necessary. Are you sure this isn’t the new normal?” I was beginning to wonder.

  “I’ll admit, what happened to Grant shook the foundation of the band, but I’m not entirely convinced Meltdown won’t be better for it in the end.”

  His answer surprised me. “How’s that?”

  “Stability isn’t always a good thing. It tends to foster complacency.”

  I waited for him to elaborate. When he didn’t, I changed directions. “What did you think when Grant was accused of being an addict?”

  Hank took his eyes off the road just long enough for me to see the sincerity in them when he answered. “I thought it was one hundred percent bullshit.”

  “Did you have any clue what was happening that night?”

  “Let me put it this way, by the time I got to Grant, he was already on his way to rehab.”

  I could tell by his angry tone it still bothered him. I could also tell he was being careful with his answers. I didn’t blame him one bit. We could both lose our jobs if we weren’t careful. “You think it was planned?”

  “Most definitely,” he nodded. “When Grant went down I was in the front of the building dealing with a group of people who’d conveniently lost their tickets and wanted to speak with management.” His eyes met mine before slicing back to the road. “It was well planned.” I fished the pills out of my bag and stared at the label. Dr. A. Reece from a pharmacy called Marlin’s in The Woodlands, Texas prescribed the pills. “Are those the pills?” he asked.

  “Can I ask how you got them?”

  “Marcel took Blane and the boys over to the hotel that night. He was there when they found the pills. He called me and I showed up right as they were leaving. They were on the way to the medical center to see Grant. Blane was in a hurry, so he shoved them at me and told me to hold on to them.”

  “What did Marcel think?”

  “He thought it was bullshit. He said as much to Blane, but Blane wouldn’t listen.”

  “What are your plans for those?” he asked, nodding at the pills in my hand.

  “At first I thought it made sense to go straight to the doctor who prescribed the pills. But then I thought about how I was as an addict, and how I would have done anything for a high. I’m talking anything. The lies I told and the people I bribed just to get my hands on another bottle are too many to count. Trust me when I say the doctor is a dead end. Kirkland has both money and power. I’ll bet my next meal that either he or Blane bribed someone to forge the script.” Flipping the bottle upside down, I shook the pills back and forth and thought about how damned lucky I was to be alive. “They think they can’t get caught, but everyone makes mistakes.” I could tell from his confused expression he wasn’t following, so I broke it down for him. “Oxycodone is a controlled substance, right?” He nodded in understanding as I continued, “Pharmacies have to monitor all controlled substances. They do this in various ways, but no matter what the protocol is, a schedu
le II narcotic has to be signed for by the person picking up the prescription. Are you still with me?” I waited for his nod before continuing, “Now, we both know that Grant didn’t pick up this prescription, which means that even if it’s Grant’s signature on that page, it’s really not.” His eyes lit up when the lightbulb went on. “Our best case scenario is that we get a name. Hopefully it’s either Blane or Kirkland, but if not, we want it to be a name that leads us straight to them. What we don’t want to see is Grant Hardy’s signature on that page.

  “What happens if they signed his name?” Hank asked.

  “I’m not entirely sure, but I bet it will require the law to figure it out.”

  “You think Kirkland was stupid enough to sign his own name?” he asked.

  “That’s what I’m hoping.”

  “Why make copies of Grant’s medical records?”

  “One thing my boss beat into my head is that one is never enough,” I sagely answered. After a second or so waffling around I finally asked the question I really wanted answered, “Why no police? I mean, someone tried to kill him. I don’t know about you, but if someone tried to kill me I would want the police involved.”

  “Kirkland put the kibosh on it. He said the label couldn’t handle any bad press right now.”

  Of course he did, I thought. “Do you agree with him?” I was really hoping he’d say no.

  His eyes shifted to mine and he scowled. “Hell no. I think Kirkland is covering his ass.”

  “Grant said Marcel is working the rehab angle. Do you want me to have another go at Nancy? I’m pretty sure I scared her during our last conversation. I don’t think it will take much for her to break,” I offered.

  Hank shook his head. “Not a good idea.”

  “Why?”

  “We need to let Marcel handle Nancy.”

  “I bet if I told Yolanda – she’s Whitfield’s secretary – that Nancy was stonewalling, she’d be willing to help.”