by Paula Cox
“At least I’m honest with myself,” Blue said. “I want to be with you, Chelsea. Not the superstar Chelsea Riley, but the one I know, the one who made me use humane mouse traps and couldn’t pass an algebra class to save her life. I don’t want to pretend and I don’t want to lie.”
“I want to be with you,” Chelsea said. “But it’s complicated. There are millions of dollars at stake on my career and I can’t just do whatever I want. Not yet.”
Blue shook his head and stalked out of the kitchen and Chelsea closed her eyes and slumped down into a chair. What was she supposed to do? She loved Blue and she wanted to be with him. But her career was everything to her. Chelsea had gambled every last cent she had on a music career. There was nothing else she wanted to do. Was she really going to throw it all away for some guy?
Blue came back in the kitchen with his jacket on. “We’re going to Club Hell; I know one of the bouncers there. He might have some info,” Blue said.
Chelsea looked up at him. There was so much she wanted to say, but she didn’t know her own mind at the moment. She wasn’t even sure what she wanted and so what was the point of arguing.
It was early when they got to Club Hell. At that hour they didn’t need to pay a cover and they walked right through the front door and into the grimy club. Welcome to Hell! Declared a red banner that hung over the bar. The walls were painted a dark red and the floors were black, the lights were low and in the middle of the morning the place felt dark. Even at this early hour there were people drinking and smoking.
“Hey, beautiful,” a woman said as she swept past Chelsea and looked her up and down. Chelsea had never been here before. She and her sister had always been to scared to go and it looked like with good reason.
“My buddy’s upstairs,” Blue said into Chelsea’s ear and he took her by the hand and pulled her through the club. There wasn’t one main dance floor, but instead a bunch of rooms that connected to each other. Each time Chelsea would be sure they were almost there only to find herself in another room. Each room had its own color, from the walls to the light bulbs. One room was blue, another a soft yellow and on and on they went.
Chelsea was trying to keep up with Blue when a strong-looking tattooed man in a leather jacket brushed passed her. He stopped in his tracks and turned around reaching out to put his hand around Chelsea’s waist. She was too shocked to do anything, but Blue was fast and he struck out and shoved the man, pushing him a few steps back.
“Back off,” Blue seethed, taking Chelsea by the hand and moving past the man.
Chelsea’s heart was pounding and she looked up at him, but his eyes were staring straight ahead. Finally, they reached a stairwell and they climbed all the way to the top where a tall thin man was watching video feeds of the various dance rooms.
“Yo, Blue,” the man said as he jumped up from his seat and walked over to them clapping Blue on the shoulder.
“How you living, Ernest?” Blue asked. “Your leg giving you any trouble?”
“I’m good, man. The leg don’t hurt too bad. The boss gave me a stool to sit on and that helps.”
“Me and Ernest met at the hospital,” Blue said. “But he was worse off than I was.”
“IUD took my leg from the knee down,” Ernest explained, pulling up his pant leg to show Chelsea the gleaming white prosthetic underneath.
“Why were you in the hospital?” Chelsea asked Blue.
“Rocket blast sent me flying. I broke a couple of ribs, nothing too bad,” Blue said with a shrug.
“You never mentioned it,” Chelsea replied. She couldn’t help but feel hurt that Blue hadn’t told her. He hadn’t told her anything about his time in the Army, just that it had been hard. He was so closed off and hard to read. Chelsea wished she could read his mind and flip through his memories like they were a pages in a book.
“So the fight’s in two days at the abandoned mall,” Earnest said.
“We know that, but who are the sponsors.”
“Okay,” Ernest said, looking around the room, “but this is a favor and you don’t tell anyone, and you didn’t hear it from me. The sponsors are these new guys out of Detroit. I guess the market there dried up and they’ve scattered across the country. They have a lot of money, like a lot. But they’re nasty. The fights are brutal.”
“How do you get in contact with them?” Blue asked.
“Don’t you know?” Ernest asked. “Your dad is their contact man.”
Chapter Twenty Two
Chelsea could see the tension in Blue’s shoulder. They hadn’t spoken the entire ride and the silence was starting to get to Chelsea. She couldn’t stand that he was mad or jealous over Ryan Baron and guy Chelsea hadn’t even met yet. Why couldn’t he just see that this was how this worked in Hollywood? But maybe he had already forgotten about Ryan, maybe he was more concerned with the fact that his father was still organizing the fights.
“So that just leaves one person,” Chelsea said.
“Terrance,” Blue agreed. “But how can we know if he’s telling the truth? He’s an expert liar and manipulator, Chelsea. You have to be ready for that going in.”
Chelsea nodded. She had already seen evidence of Terrance’s ways. But he was their only link to Jamie, the only one who knew anything. They would need to find him and question him by any means necessary. And Colleen? Chelsea wasn’t sure how to handle her mother. She had a feeling Terrance hadn’t told Colleen Jamie was missing. Was Chelsea going to have to break the news to her? How could she do that? She had no idea where Jamie was, she had no hope to give to her mother, how could Chelsea do that?
“This whole time he’s been the point man,” Blue said shaking his head. Suddenly he slammed his palms into the steering wheel.
“Stop!” Chelsea said. “It’s okay. This isn’t your fault. Your dad has been lying to us since the moment we landed. It’s not your fault. But we need to go and confront him. If he really knows where Jamie is, he’ll have to tell us. Imagine what my mom is going to say when she finds out.”
“He doesn’t care about anyone but himself,” Blue said. “It’s him and money, that’s it. He won’t care if Colleen hates him.”
They drove in silence the rest of the way. Chelsea looked out the window, but she didn’t even see the passing landscape; she was just thinking of Blue. He had protected her at the club, he had warned the other man to back off, something about it had been so intense that Chelsea still shivered when she thought about it. She could see now how much Blue cared for her, how far he was willing to go to protect her.
She could see why he was so mad about business of Ryan Baron. Blue didn’t love half way; it was all-in or nothing. He wasn’t going to lie or pretend, and he couldn’t stand to watch her do it. So where did that leave Chelsea? Where did it leave them? Had they really finally come together only to break apart so soon?
The house was all locked up and Colleen’s car was gone. It was the best possible outcome as far as Chelsea was concerned. She wanted to avoid having to tell her mother Jamie was missing for as long as possible. Plus, this way, they could go through Terrance’s stuff without Terrance being there.
Blue still had a house key and he unlocked the front door and turned off the alarm as they stood in the large entryway.
“Where should we look first?” Chelsea asked.
“Office,” Blue responded.
They walked through the den towards a small room at the back of the house. Chelsea had never been in this room before. The door had always been locked. Blue stood in front of the door and then brought his foot up and with one swift and firm kick the door splintered and sprung open.
“So, you’re cool with Terrance knowing we were in here?” Chelsea asked.
In response Blue began to tear the office apart. He pulled the out the contents of the drawers and began to go through the papers tossing them into a pile on the floor. Chelsea joined in. She rifled through his appointment book, but there was nothing concrete, just vague reminders like “c
all C about K” or “meeting at the lake.”
“What are we looking for?” Chelsea finally asked as she tossed the appointment book aside.
“Names, addresses, phone numbers,” Blue said. “Anything that’s concrete or something we can follow up on.” But Terrance was smart and the office gave up no valuable clues. Everything was either hidden or in code.
“You hit your head overseas, boy?” Terrance’s voice was dangerous and dark.
Neither of them had seen him coming and when he arrived they were like deer trapped in headlights. Blue was sitting behind Terrance’s computer trying passwords and Chelsea had been searching through the bookshelves hoping to stumble upon something they could use.
Chelsea’s heart skipped a beat. She had been caught going through Terrance’s things. She had no excuse to make. She turned to Blue, but his eyes were fixed on his father’s face and he wore a look of pure disgust.
“This was an expensive door,” Terrance said in an offhand manner. His fingers ran up and down the splintered door frame and he shook his head. “It was cherry, but I guess I can take it out of your cut from the fight.” His voice was calm, almost bored and a little exasperated. Terrance talking in a calm voice was somehow scarier than when he was yelling. There was no telling what might set him off and what he might do when he was pushed.
“I’m not giving you another dime,” Blue spit. He pushed his chair back and stood up. His hands were still resting on the desk and his fingertips were white from the pressure. “You took every cent from me when I was kid. I remember your ledger. You charged me for food and rent and electricity. I was young then, but I’m older now and you’re not profiting from me anymore.”
“No?” Terrance asked as his beady eyes travelled to Chelsea. “So, you’re going to live off of Chelsea instead? Is that how this is going to work? She’s going to bring home the bacon and you can cook it for her? I raised you to be a man, not some housewife. The fights are how men like you make money, Blue. You don’t belong in some job where they’ll make you wear a suit and tie everyday. You belong in the ring.”
“You don’t need to know what I’m doing. My life does not concern you in any way. You don’t get a say in it and I don’t care what you think. I know you know where Jamie is. I know you’re the main contact for the sponsors of the fight. I know about the guys from the Detroit,” Blue took a step towards Terrance and the other man’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “So why don’t we go and find Colleen and we can tell her exactly what you’ve done to her daughter.”
“You tell Colleen about this and I’ll tell the entire world about the two of you,” he said, but he wasn’t talking to Blue, he was talking to Chelsea. “Has pop star Chelsea Riley been hooking up with her own stepbrother?” Terrance asked, his voice taking on a lilting tone. “How do you think that’s going to sound in the press? From a nice, sweet all-American girl to some white-trash hick hooking up with her stepbrother. How many records do you think that will sell?”
“You’re not married yet,” Chelsea countered.
“No, but I will be. Your mother likes money and status and I have plenty of both in Snowbird and I like the idea of having a superstar for a daughter.”
“I’m not your daughter,” Chelsea spit, “and I never will be.”
“Yes, you will be. Your mother and I are getting married whether you like it or not and that makes you and Blue siblings. So, do you want me to go running to the tabloids about this? You have to admit; it makes for a juicy story. I could probably get some money for it.”
Chelsea could feel Blue’s eyes on her. She could see the hurt and confusion he was trying to hide. She didn’t want to admit that Terrance was right, but he was. Chelsea loved Blue, she had always love Blue, but the world wouldn’t understand. They would hear the word “stepbrother” and jump to all kind of conclusions.
“I want my sister back,” Chelsea said. “I don’t care what it takes.”
“Well-” Terrance started, but then, from down the hall they heard a door slam.
Colleen call out, “honey, I’m home.”
The three of them froze, neither one was ready to end this fight, but at the same time, no one wanted to tell Colleen.
Terrance put a finger to his lips and called out, “Be right there, honey.”
“Tell us where Jamie is,” Chelsea hissed at Terrance.
“No,” he said, “and don’t you ever give me orders again. I’ll tell you this, she’s unhurt and she’ll remain unhurt until the day of the fight. She is with some very bad men, but they don’t want to hurt her. They just want to make sure the fight goes on as planned and if that happens, you get your sister back free and clear.” He looked at Blue and Chelsea could see some sort of unspoken conversation happen between them.
But there was no time. She wasn’t ready to face her mother and so she ran to Blue and grabbed his hand and, together, they snuck out the back door.
Chapter Twenty Three
They drove home in an unbearable silence. Terrance’s words hung thick in the air around them. Chelsea had so much she wanted to say to him, but she didn’t know where to begin. She didn’t know how to explain her record deal to him. It would look so strange and bizarre to outsiders, but it made sense to her.
At least Jamie was unhurt; that was all that really mattered. Her sister was alive and whoever had her didn’t even really want her. They were just using her to make sure the fight went on. But why Jamie? Why did they want her? Did it even matter? In a few days she could get her sister back and they could leave this town and never, ever return. But now that Chelsea knew Jamie was safe, all of the other problems came surging to the surface.
“I’m not embarrassed of you or being with you,” Chelsea spit out. She looked at Blue searching for his eyes, but they remained glued to the road in front of him.
“Your actions say otherwise,” Blue said, his voice oddly emotionless and flat.
“It’s complicated, Blue. There’s a lot of money at stake and it’s complicated. I get that your Mister Morals and Grand Ideals, but I’m not. I’m not perfect. I’m not even really good...” she trailed off, unable to say anything else. “I’m not as strong as you are,” she finally finished quietly.
“Yes you are, Chelsea, and that’s what makes this so infuriating. You’re smart and strong and confident and I want you to act like it. We’re not step-siblings and, even if we were, we weren’t raised together and we’re both adults. We can be together if we want to be.”
“But people are going to talk.”
“And you’d rather they talk about you and Ryan Baron?” Blue said with a frustrated shake of his head. “Ryan Baron!” he repeated loudly. “Why Ryan Baron of all people?”
“First of all, I have never even met Ryan. We’ve spoken on the phone, that’s all. What do you have against him anyway?” Chelsea demanded.
“A Soldier’s Story,” Blue spit.
For a moment Chelsea was confused, but then she remembered the war movie Ryan had starred in. Chelsea hadn’t actually seen the movie, but she remembered that it was about a solider fresh back from Afghanistan dealing with the transition back to normal life. It was what Blue was dealing with right now. Only on top of the normal issues he was dealing with his abusive father and illegal fighting pits and a thousand other impossible things.
“So you’re mad that he starred in a movie about soldiers?”
“No, I’m mad about all the press he did beforehand. He did two weeks in boot camp and spent a week at a base in the Green Zone and suddenly he’s talking like he’s knows what it’s like to be in war. He was talking about how he was practically a soldier and really understood what they went through. Three weeks, Chelsea. I was over there for years and he thinks he can tell my story after three weeks?”
“Blue, you can’t take stuff like that personally. It might not have even been him. It might have been his PR person.”
“And that’s a reasonable excuse for you?”
“Yes!” Chel
sea exclaimed. “PR people, managers, agents, lawyers, these are all very real parts of life for Ryan and for me. I’m sorry if you don’t like it, but that doesn’t change anything.”
“So you and Ryan are two peas in a pod. What does that make you and me?”
“Ryan and I are two people in the same business, that’s all,” Chelsea said, taking Blue’s hand. “You and I are constant,” Chelsea said. “We belong together.”
“As long as no one knows about it?” Blue asked, pulling his hand away. He pulled into the driveway of Chelsea’s house and turned off the engine as the two sat in the silent and dark car.
“Do you want them to know?” Chelsea demanded. “If we go public with our relationship you’re going to be on the cover of US Weekly and People. Gawker and Jezebel are going to write stories about you and I know you don’t want that. This is the reality of our situation, Blue, and I’m sorry you don’t like it, but you have to understand I’m doing the best I can. I don’t want to hide you and I don’t plan to. But you need to give me a chance. I have a lot of different plates spinning in the air and the tiniest thing can send them all crashing to the ground. I’m just asking for some time-”