by J. M. Nevins
She laughed. “Absolutely, Lew.”
CHAPTER 24
Giselle quickened her pace in order to get to the door without dropping the packages she carefully balanced in her arms. She managed to get the front door open and grinned at the attractive gentleman with a rocker edge standing on the front step.
He flashed a charming smile. “Hello. Can I help you out there?”
She giggled, overcome by his chivalry and good looks. “Actually, that would be really nice. Thank you.”
He effortlessly took all of the packages into his arms. “Where do you need them?”
She pointed to her car. “Right over there.”
He nodded and became curious. “Oh, on your way out?”
She nodded and grinned. “Yes. It has been a crazy day. I guess they haven’t finished fixing the gate yet? Seems you had no trouble getting in.”
Before she could continue, he interjected. “You’ve got an intriguing accent—very mellifluous. Where are you from?”
She smiled wide. “I was born in Brazil, but my mom is American. Moved here when I was a teenager. I love it.” She tilted her head to the side, trying to place him. “What’s your name again?”
He flashed a warm, inviting smile and outstretched his hand. “I’m Darren and I love Brazilian women.”
She felt herself go weak in the knees. He had a rugged look with a bad boy edge that she couldn’t resist. He easily towered over her, and she figured he had to be well over six feet tall. His worn, black leather motorcycle jacket hung from broad shoulders that framed a toned, yet wiry, physique Giselle could easily see through his thin, white T-shirt. His spiky black hair and big brown eyes only served to sweeten the pot and keep her attention.
She wondered who he was and where he came from. She snapped back into the present moment and figured he was an artist—one that Kit would soon be working with as they often dropped by unannounced. He certainly looked the part. She grinned. “Here to see the boss lady, I presume? I don’t remember seeing you on her schedule for today, Darren.”
He grinned and avoided her reference to a missing appointment. “Yes, I’m here to see Kit.”
She glanced at her wristwatch noticing she was quickly reaching the six o’clock cut off time to send out packages for Fed-Ex. She let out a frustrated sigh. “I have to go. I am so sorry. Normally I would walk you in and get you settled…”
He shook his head and raised his hand to stop her. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll see myself in.”
Moments later, he vigilantly watched Giselle’s car headed down the driveway and out to the street. He walked into the foyer and looked around, surveying the place. When he heard Kit’s voice echoing through the home, a sinister grin spread across his face. His eyes narrowed as he headed in her direction.
Kit chatted happily on the phone with Moira, discussing last minute details for that evening—the gala for their foundation. With Sully on the road and Spencer in New York, she would be attending with Giselle. She planned to meet up with Moira a little early to review information on the board, including brushing up on the details of the doctor that Moira had been gushing about for months. Kit was happy to learn that he would be present that night, and she would finally get to meet him in person.
She giggled. “Yes, I do love my dress. In fact, I need to shake a tail feather and start getting ready. I have my face on, and my hair done, but I’m standing here in my robe. The traffic just getting across town is going to be murder.”
“It is. Luckily Jack and I are staying down the street at the Beverly Wilshire, so it won’t be so bad for us. Tabitha is meeting us here at the suite, and we’ll all go over together in the limo. I’m so excited about this, Kitty. I can hardly wait for you to meet Kyle. He’s quite a looker and such a wonderful guy. If you weren’t married to my son, I’d be pawning you off to him. He’s quite a catch!”
Kit laughed loudly. “Who is Kyle, Mom?”
“The doctor that helped us grow this foundation in the first place.”
She grinned. “Oh ok. Even if I was single, Mom, I’m not into older guys.”
“Who said he was older? He’s your age, I think. He’s young and extremely successful. He’s a surgeon, you know.”
Kit raised her eyebrows, now intrigued and wanting to learn more. “A surgeon around my age, huh? He must be sharp. He doesn’t have his own practice or anything, does he?”
“No, no, honey. He’s a resident. And I’ve heard rumors in the medical community that there’s a good chance he’ll be selected as chief resident soon. That would be wonderful. He’s got a heart of gold. He cares deeply for people and our foundation. I can hardly wait for you to meet him.”
“I look forward to it.” As Kit was finishing her sentence, she glanced up and saw Darren standing in front of her desk, smiling from ear to ear. She remained frozen with wide eyes while Moira talked on the other end of the line, oblivious to the fact that Kit had been distracted. She swallowed hard and interrupted her. “Um, Mom, I’m gonna have to call you back.”
She hung up the phone and stared at him, not moving a muscle. She could feel the adrenaline pumping through her body as her heart thumped in her chest. She struggled to speak, terror shutting down her normally cool demeanor. “What are you doing here?” Her body started to tremble slightly, and she shifted in her seat as her feet tapped an anxiety-ridden, imaginary staccato beat under the desk.
He pulled out a chair and sat down across from her, putting his feet up. “Aw, Kit, now that’s not a very nice way to greet an old boyfriend you haven’t seen in years.”
Her eyes frantically darted around the room. “How did you get in here?”
He shrugged his shoulders and folded his hands in front of his stomach, appearing to make himself more comfortable as he donned a victorious grin. “Front gate being repaired, distracted assistant, unlocked front door. And from what I hear, a brother that’s out of town, a husband that’s on tour and an annoying friend, Joe Arden, who has been dead and buried for years. Fucking asshole, may he burn in hell.”
He leaned forward and his eyes took on a dangerous intensity as he stared into hers. “He can’t save you now, sweetie. Looks like it’s just you and me, Kathryn, and we have unfinished business. No interruptions. Just how I like it.”
Kit mustered all of her willpower to convert fear into rage to trigger more fight than flight. She was not the girl she once was when Darren knew her. She was much tougher now, and she had no intention of backing down.
Her green eyes narrowed as she spoke angrily through clenched teeth. “I’m only going to say this once, asshole. Get the fuck out and don’t you ever come back. I could have you arrested right now. You know that, right? You’re violating the permanent restraining order. Remember, the one I filed against you? I’m sure your parole officer would be happy to hear that you’re here in my office. How did it feel to serve time for attempting to murder me, huh?”
He sighed and shook his head. “Oh, Kit, see, you didn’t have to be so hostile. It’s a whole lot easier for you to get rid of me than that. Thinly veiled threats don’t work anymore. Believe me, you don’t want to bring the cops into this again do you? You know what I want.”
She glared. “You’re sick. I’m married. You aren’t getting shit from me.”
He removed his feet from the desk and set them on the ground, leaning forward angrily in his chair. “Oh yeah, that husband of yours. Now, he’s a problem.” He pointed up to the platinum records that were hanging on the wall behind her. “That should have been us, Kit, but you fucked up real big and cut me out of the deal.”
She shook her head. “No, I didn’t cut you out of the deal, the record company did, you idiot. I told you to leave, now get the fuck out!”
He shook his head and stood up, pausing for a moment before he pulled out a gun and aimed it at her face. “I’m not going anywhere, Kit. Not until I get what I want.”
She tried to remain calm as she stared down the barrel of his gun. She re
alized cooperating to a certain extent might be in her best interest. “Ok. You can stay.” Although she tried, she couldn’t hold her sarcastic tongue. “Want me to get you some lemonade and cookies too, sweetie?”
He cocked the gun. “I can do without your crappy attitude. You always were a snotty bitch.”
She stared at him. “What do you want?”
He shook his head and laughed. “I can’t believe you’re even asking! You ruined my career, bitch! I should have been the one that’s on tour right now selling out arenas, and making platinum albums with you, but no… You had to cut me out of all of that. Selfish, fucking rich bitch. You cut me out, move to L.A. and give it some other sorry ass with no talent walking down the street. What does he give you, huh sweetie? How did he reel you in? Does he let you call all the shots? Does he let you walk all over him just like Kirby did?”
She told herself to remain focused. He was purposely pushing her hot buttons. The sooner she could get rid of him the better. As she stared into his eyes again, she could tell he was high. She spoke calmly. “Darren, what do you want?”
“Twenty million dollars. I heard that your precious grandmother kicked the bucket earlier this year and finally gave you that damned money. It’s about fucking time. Word travels fast in Lake Forest, Kathryn. Seems you make enough now on the band you’ve made superstars. You don’t need it. So, pass it along to me. I need it, and you owe me… big.”
She stared at him defiantly. “No.”
He laughed loudly and reached for her phone. She tried to stop him, but he dialed a number from memory and seconds later said, “Go ahead with our plan. Take Sully out.” He hung up, looked at her and chuckled. “That pretty boy husband isn’t going to be so pretty anymore, except maybe in his coffin when they cover up all the bruises and bullet wounds. I hear those morticians can do a pretty bang up job.”
Her eyes widened in horror. “What do you mean?”
He laughed for a moment and then became serious. His eyes were wild and menacing. He yelled. “Write me the fucking check, Kit. Now!”
She held up her hands for a moment. “Darren, why don’t you settle down? Let’s talk about this a minute. If I write you a check, they won’t take it. The amount is too large. They’ll put a hold on it for at least a week if not longer.”
He picked up the receiver of the phone and shoved it toward her. He yelled again. “Then call your fucking bank and tell them it’s legit. Or better yet, do a wire transfer.”
She refused to take the receiver, and he shoved it at her again as Giselle was coming through the door. Kit heard her voice as she approached. “Oh my gosh, you’re never going to believe who I ran into.”
Before she could warn her, Giselle walked into the office and gasped. Darren turned the gun on her. “Stupid move coming back so soon, assistant girl. I have a score to settle with your boss. You need to leave now!”
Kit struggled to dial 9-1-1 quickly and left the phone off of the receiver purposely. She could faintly hear the dispatcher say “9-1-1, what’s your emergency?” She yelled at the top of her lungs. “Darren, take that gun off of her! She has nothing to do with this. If you have a score to settle, settle it with me. Let her go!”
He turned to look at Kit, keeping his gun trained on Giselle. “I don’t know. She’s kind of cute. I may have to play with her a bit while you call the bank and transfer that money.” He laughed demonically.
Giselle and Kit exchanged a quick look. Kit yelled. “Darren, look at me. Give me your gun, and you can have your money.”
He turned to face her and aimed his gun at her again. “Do you really think I’m that stupid?” He glanced at the receiver off the hook and slammed it down, unknowingly disconnecting the 9-1-1 call.
Kit held up her hands and noticed Giselle had quietly slinked out of the office. She knew she had to play into it. She tried to use the calmest voice she possibly could. “No, no, I don’t think your stupid. How about we start all over, ok? I know a lot of people now. I’m an executive at Diamond Records, and I develop artists. I could get you a deal today. We could make you a superstar. After all, I owe you, right?”
He stared at her, carefully evaluating what she said. “I dunno.” His eyes narrowed, rapidly turning into an evil glare. “I mean last time you screwed me. You got all the credit for the good stuff, and I got credit for all the bad stuff. You fucked me over, Kit. Why should I trust you now, huh?
“Y’know, if you’d been cooperative and done things my way, I wouldn’t have to take it this far, but as usual, you’re difficult. That’s why I beat the shit out your ass and put you in the hospital in Philly. You deserved it, bitch! Should have finished the job then and taken you out permanently, but fucking Joe Arden had to step in and save your sorry ass. I’m gonna finish what I started this time around. We’ll go out with a bang… together this time.”
She shook her head and felt her calm demeanor start to crack. She pleaded with him as tears welled up in her eyes. “Darren, don’t do this, please. Darren, don’t.”
He snickered. “Your time is up, baby, and so is mine. It’s over. And, by the way, don’t go dreaming of meeting your beloved Kirby on the other side. That asshole never died. K.G. ain’t dead, baby.”
The color drained from Kit’s face. All of her strange intuitions about Kirby’s suspicious death swirled through her mind. She swallowed hard. “What? What do you mean? Darren, I will give you the money and a recording contract, but please tell me what you meant by that.”
He shook his head and smiled. “No point. It’s over, Kit. Goodbye.”
He pulled the trigger and the gun aimed at her chest fired loudly. She flew back from the force of the bullet and fell to the ground, screaming out in pain and seizing her chest. She trembled and looked down, noticing the blood gushing through her fingers. She heard the gun cock again and squeezed her eyes shut, knowing he was about to blow his brains out when she heard a booming voice yell.
“Freeze. L.A.P.D. Drop your weapon.”
She was breathing hard as she struggled to get up, watching uniformed officers handcuffing him and two rushing toward her. She started to feel faint and yelled out to the officer that was leading Darren away. “Wait, please!”
He turned to face her. “Ma’am?”
She pointed at Darren with her other hand, struggling to breathe and manage the intense pain that coursed through her body now. They turned him around to face her, and she met his strung out, bloodshot eyes. “Tell me what you meant... about Kirby.”
He laughed maniacally. “I knew it! You never did get over that stupid fuck, did you? Ugh, I hated that guy. Such a fucking do-gooder.”
She swallowed hard, feeling herself starting to slip into unconsciousness. “Darren, please…”
He chuckled. “Ok, I’ll humor you, because with that much blood loss, they’re never going to be able to save you, and you’re going to die anyway. I definitely hit an artery or maybe even your heart. That was what I was aiming for in the first place, but I haven’t been to target practice lately, so my bad if I didn’t hit my initial target. That being said, I’ll grant your dying wish ‘cuz I can see you’re slipping away as I speak.”
He grinned and snickered. “How do you think his dad and that big drug lord got convicted, huh? That star witness… The kingpin and mastermind of the whole trial whose identity was concealed. Mmm-hmm. Who do you think that was? The feds can be pretty sneaky rubbing out an identity, Kit. Believe me, I know.
“Oh, and about that trial, you may want to talk to your papa about that too.” He laughed again. “K.G. didn’t love you, Kit. If he did, he wouldn’t have started a whole new life… without you.” His eyes narrowed, and the cop lost his patience. He tugged at him, leading him away as Kit slipped into unconsciousness.
Giselle rushed over while the paramedics swooped in to attend to Kit. Her head bobbed frantically. “She’s pregnant. Will she be ok?”
One of the paramedics gave her a concerned look. “She’s bleeding out pretty
rapidly. Call her family. We’ll do our very best for her.”
As they were loading Kit into the ambulance, she roused and attempted to sit up. The paramedics held her down, and she called out for Giselle. One of the paramedics leaned out of the back and relayed the call, prompting Giselle to come running. She hopped into the back of the ambulance and took Kit’s hand. “What is it, Kit?”
Her green eyes were a disturbing mix of anguish and terror as she struggled to relay her thoughts. “G, Darren made threats about taking Sully out—probably with an accomplice. You have to call Sean. I think there’s going to be an attempt on his life.” She faded back into unconsciousness, and the paramedic looked at Giselle. “We have to go now. Are you coming with us?”
She shook her head and jumped out. “No. I’ll catch up at the hospital later. Go.” She darted into the office and shared her discovery with the police who encouraged her to make a call while they evaluated the crime scene.
Her voice was harried and frantic. “Sean, is the band in the hotel or at the arena? Where did they go after soundcheck?”
“Early check today, G. They’re in the hotel, why? Are you looking for Bryan? What’s wrong? You don’t sound like you.”
“Sean, listen to me. Cancel the show, tell Danny to do whatever he has to do to make sure Sully is protected and get him on a private charter to L.A. immediately. I can’t explain right now, but there is someone out there that may try to hurt him tonight or worse.”
“What do you mean worse? G, that’s a very serious threat. You know we can’t just cancel a show without Kit’s ok to do it. We haven’t heard anything here. Did you receive that threat directly?”
She struggled to regain her breath. “This is coming from Kit. Put bodyguards on Sully. Pull all access unless you, Danny or Jay know them personally, even press.”
“Shit, Giselle. This sounds serious. Talk to me. What’s going on?”
“I can’t talk right now. I’ll call you later. Make sure you have your mobile with you and that Danny has his too.”