by JJ Knight
I remember what he said. No matter what I see, to have faith in him. I fully intend to do that.
The camera pans up and shows the sign on the shop. It’s a jewelry store.
The scene cuts to inside. It’s a promo video, slick and polished even though it’s supposed to look spontaneous. I know all this is scripted. Blitz is playing a role.
It’s still hard to watch. A woman on the other side of a glass case asks him if she can help him pick out something. Blitz tells her he wants a gorgeous engagement ring for the perfect girl.
“Please say it isn’t for Christy,” Jacob says.
I want to laugh. They are so caught up in it. But Blitz is good. His expression is absolutely sincere as he looks at rings and discards several as “not good enough for how amazing she is.”
He looks straight into the camera and says, “I can’t handle it if she says no.”
I want to laugh. He’s so good. But the others are completely bamboozled. Aurora squeezes my arm. “You okay, Livia?” she asks.
I don’t know what to say. I can’t tell them how things really are.
The scene cuts away with a voice-over that says, “The finale of Dance Blitz will air live in just four days. But the fun won’t end there. Once Blitz has proposed, we’ll follow the happy couple for three intense episodes where they perform in Paris, meet her extended family for the holidays, and the first important planning session for the big wedding.”
What? There’s more after the finale?
Now I can’t catch my breath. Blitz said he would declare a winner and be done. But there’s more scheduled! There’s air dates and everything! That can’t just go away. It’s got to be contractual. He’s obligated. This could go on for months.
Jacob notices my distress. “Shut that mess off,” he orders Suze.
She immediately complies.
Jacob envelops me in a hug, his tall solid frame surrounding me. “I’m so sorry, baby girl,” he says. “He’s just a man-whore preying on the innocent.”
I know I promised Blitz I would have faith, but I’m not sure I can. He hasn’t told me about the extra episodes.
Why hasn’t he?
I back away from the desk, planning to head home. Walk through the park. Okay, maybe not there. Take a random street, one with no memories.
I need to think. Why wouldn’t Blitz tell me about those extra episodes? That he can’t come get me. Can’t come back to San Antonio to live. Can’t keep his promise.
I’m just down the steps when I realize why.
He isn’t going to do them.
He’s going to blow it on purpose.
It’s a live finale.
And he knows how to get thrown off the show. He’s already done it once.
I whirl around and dash back up the steps.
Jacob, Suze, and Aurora glance up at me, but I dash past them to Danika’s office. Please, please be there, I pray. You have to.
When I get to her door, it’s open. Danika stops tapping on her computer keyboard when she spots me. “Why, hello, Livia. Come in. How is the pointe work going?”
I plunk down in the chair opposite her desk. When she sees my face, she says, “Are you all right? Is something the matter?”
“Blitz is going to do something terrible on live TV,” I say. “I know it.”
“Whoa, whoa,” she says. “What makes you say that?”
My words come out in a tumble. “He told me to believe him that he was coming to get me after the finale. That no matter what I saw about the show, he would make it happen.”
“What makes you think he’ll do something rash?”
“There’s supposed to be three more episodes! He didn’t tell me about them! He would have told me if he planned to do them. He’s going to say or do something horrible on the live show so that they fire him.” I can barely breathe.
I expect her to argue with me, to say that I don’t know him that well or that I’m overreacting. Maybe even that he lied to me.
But she doesn’t. Her face is full of concern.
“Let’s call Bennett,” she says. She pushes the speakerphone button on her console and dials.
“The man who built this place?”
“My son-in-law,” she says. “He knows Blitz personally. He funded his training and is one of the producers of his show.”
My mind buzzes as the phone rings. “How?”
“Bennett always watches out for hometown talent. He saw Blitz’s potential when he was still here at the San Antonio theater.”
The line picks up. “To what do I owe this lovely surprise?” a man’s voice asks.
“Bennett, I’m on speakerphone here with Livia.”
“Is she okay?”
I’m so confused. How does the wealthy patron of the academy know who I am?
“She’s concerned that Blitz might do something on live TV to get out of the contract for the bonus episodes. What do you know about that?”
“The contract always had a clause calling for postseason coverage of the couple. What does she think he will do?”
“Livia?” Danika says.
My voice doesn’t want to work. After a few stutters, I finally say, “He already knows how to get fired.”
“Damn it,” Bennett says. “You really think he’ll do that?”
“You know what he was like when he asked to borrow your plane,” Danika says to the phone.
“He did?” I ask.
“Last week,” Bennett says. “The publicity has gotten very intense. He can’t go anywhere without a horde of reporters and photographers. He wasn’t sure he could even drive back to Texas without drawing attention to you.”
“So he is planning to come back here?” I ask.
“Yes, but I don’t see how he is going to have time,” Bennett says. “The filming for the bonus episodes is already set. The only variable is which girl he picks.”
“What if he doesn’t pick any?” I ask. “Would there still be episodes?”
Bennett is quiet a moment, and Danika looks down at her hands.
“What?” I say.
Bennett speaks first. “Livia, he has to choose a girl. His contract is very specific. And there are fail-safes in the show ensuring that one is chosen.”
Danika sighs. “So a girl will be chosen.”
I lean forward. “I’m sure he knows that. So he’ll try to get fired. By being the jerk the show has made him out to be.”
Everyone is quiet again.
“What do you propose we do?” Danika asks me.
“I can call him, I guess,” I say. “Talk him out of doing something rash.”
“He might do it anyway,” Bennett says. “He was pretty anxious to get back to you.”
My heart swells at this, but I won’t let him lose everything when we can find a way. “So take me out there. If I’m at the finale, watching, he won’t do it. I know he won’t.”
“Can you get away?” Danika asks. “Your father is pretty strict.”
“I’m taking the SAT on Saturday,” I say. “I can just skip out. That will make it hours to get there before anyone knows I’m gone.”
“Will he call the police?” Bennett asks.
“I’ll go over there,” Danika says. “We can talk to him together.”
“No,” I say quickly.
My father moved our entire family once to avoid our shame. I don’t know what he might do with this.
“I’ll leave them a note. They will know I left.”
“We can call them from the plane,” Bennett says. “And I’ll have someone alert law enforcement that you just went on a trip.”
“This is crazy,” Danika says. “That boy is a mess.”
“But he’s our mess,” I say. “We’ll help him.”
“I’ll send a car to your SAT site,” Bennett says. “Have Danika forward the information to my driver. We’ll get you to Blitz.”
“Thank you, Bennett,” Danika says. “And what was it that Blitz told you when he asked for t
he plane?”
I can hear the smile in Bennett’s voice as he says, “That he’s madly in love with the most perfect ballerina and nothing will stop him from coming back to her.”
“I thought so,” Danika says. “Thank you, love. Kiss my daughter for me.”
“With relish,” he says.
Danika cuts off the call.
I feel like all the air is out of the room. Blitz said that? About me? That he’s madly in love? I grip the sides of the chair. I want him now. I want to get to him right this moment.
“Are you all right, Livia?” Danika asks. “This is a lot to take in.”
I can’t even answer. She comes around the desk to kneel beside me. “Are you ready for the break from your family?” she asks. “It’s been coming.”
I’m not really sure. I think of Gabriella, my little brother, my parents. I’ll figure out how to have them all. Once I get Blitz, we will find a way.
It’s like Blitz told me. Have faith.
Chapter 29
When Mom brings me to the SAT testing facility Saturday morning, I turn to her and say, “Only students are allowed on the testing day.” I pull out the confirmation letter Dad gave me. I knew this was a rule, but also that I wouldn’t tell her until the last minute, when she’d be flustered and more easily convinced not to try and make an exception.
It works. She stares at it and peers into the room.
“Please don’t get me disqualified,” I say. “We’re just going to be taking the test.”
She hesitates. “All right. I’ll wait here in the hall.”
I need her to go home. Bennett’s car is already waiting for me to bring me to his plane. I have to get away. It’s been so hard not to text Blitz about our plan, to beg him not to do anything crazy on television. I have to leave now. I can’t take it any longer.
“Mom,” I say. “You’ll be so uncomfortable. Why don’t you just come back in a few hours?”
“I couldn’t do that,” she says, heading for a wood bench a little ways down. “Your father would come and then there really would be a scene.”
She settles down with her book. I look back in the classroom. There is only one way out, other than the windows. I’ll do it if I have to. I’ll go right out one of them.
I’ve left the letter propped on my mirror. No one will think to look there until I’m gone. I’m not taking anything more with me than the few items I’ve stuffed in the backpack I’m holding. It’s the biggest risk I’ve ever taken in my life.
I head inside and get my materials from the proctor. Bennett said the car would wait for me however long it took to get away. Seated at a desk, waiting for the proctor to give us instructions, I’m not sure how I will make my escape. It seems I might be taking the test after all.
~*´♥`*~
By the time I’m through the first section of the SAT, I don’t have any better idea how to get past my mother. I could just leave, I guess. I don’t think she would tackle me and hold me down.
But I’m not sure.
I’m not as distracted as I had imagined I would be. I felt like the test would be wasted.
But once I’m involved in the questions, my brain kicks into gear. Blitz, the finale, the escape, and the plane ride all fade away.
During the first break I check on Mom, still sitting on the uncomfortable bench.
“How is it going?” she asks.
“Great,” I say. “Just the math and the essay portions to go. You sure you don’t want to go somewhere more comfortable? I’m just going to be in there.”
She shakes her head and opens her book again. I head back to the room, feeling anxious. I’ll do the math portion, and before the essay starts, I’ll just escape.
My throat feels thick. Lying. Running away. It’s all happening again.
We take our seats and I have to work a little harder this time to focus back on the test. At the next break, many of the students turn in their papers and gather their things. Only the essay students will remain.
Then, life cuts me a break. The biggest break of my life.
“Essay students, we’ll be moving to a smaller room,” the proctor says. “Remember, do not turn on your cell phones or any electronics during this transition. We’re just moving to a room around the corner so another group can use this larger one.”
We’re moving. If I do this right, I can get away.
Everyone picks up their bags. Students who aren’t doing the essay portion head on out. The rest of us cluster together for a moment, waiting on the proctor.
When he moves out, we follow.
“Are you done?” Mom asks, checking her watch as other students file past.
“No, we’re moving to a room down the hall,” I say. “Just fifty minutes to go!”
“Okay, let me know if you need a snack. I have some in my bag.”
“I’m good,” I say, my heart sinking a little as I realize I’m about to hurt her. She really did try to be a good mom through all this. She forgave things that seemed unforgivable. She has been a role model despite the adversity.
Impulsively, I reach down and hug her.
“Well, okay!” she says, a little taken aback. “Write a good essay!”
I’m afraid of saying anything else. I might give myself away. I head down the hall quickly, catching up with the other students.
As soon as we turn the corner away from Mom, I run.
Chapter 30
Bennett’s car is outside. He told me the driver would be there the entire four hours of the test, waiting for the moment I could escape. I’m relieved to see it, flinging open the back door of the black Mercedes and diving in.
“Good day, Miss,” the driver says. “Glad you got away all right.”
I feel like a criminal on the run. I resist the urge to say, “Step on it.”
Mom won’t notice I’m gone until the essay is over, almost an hour from now. But I will have disappeared. Hopefully they will find my note quickly, before calling the police. I might call home, just to ward all that off. I’m so glad they don’t know anything about Blitz and can’t involve him.
When we arrive at the airport, I stare out at the jumble of terminals and parking lots. I’ve never flown. But considering the rest of what I’m risking today, traveling by air seems insignificant.
The driver takes us out on a flat space where smaller planes sit waiting near a huge outbuilding. We’re stopped by a security man next to a tiny station, then waved through.
I clutch my backpack to me. I’m so far out of my element now. I’ve walked away from my entire life for someone I’ve known six weeks. I tug my phone out of a side pocket and power it on. I had to turn it completely off for the test.
There are a few early morning texts from Blitz, the last one warning me he’ll be in rehearsals all day for the finale. He still hasn’t mentioned the extra episodes.
I still haven’t mentioned I’m coming.
The driver opens my door and I fairly fly out of the car. I only get a few steps away when I realize I have no idea where I’m going.
“The Claremonts are waiting for you on the plane,” the driver says. “This way.”
The wind whips my hair. It’s warm again, and we’re headed to Southern California, so I haven’t brought a coat. The sky is bright white, gleaming off the airplanes. We head toward a long stealthy-looking one. A set of steps has been rolled up to the door.
I ascend carefully, holding the rail. Inside, Bennett and his wife Juliet are seated in leather chairs. Bennett stands up. “You must be Livia,” he says. “We’ve been in the same room before, but I don’t believe we’ve actually met.”
I shake his hand automatically, feeling anxious and unsure. I’m going to ride with two strangers to a place I’ve never been to stop one of the most famous people on television from wrecking his career.
“I remember you from some of the classes,” Juliet says. “Come sit.”
She leads me to a cushioned bench opposite their chairs. My hands
are trembling.
“Poor girl, she’s scared to death,” she says to Bennett. “Go get her some tea.”
Bennett heads to the back of the plane.
She sits next to me. “I’ve done some pretty crazy things in my career, but this one is right up there,” she says. “It’s no wonder you’re anxious.”
Bennett returns, followed by a young woman in a crisp khaki skirt and white shirt. “Excuse me, Miss Juliet,” she says, and reaches between us to press a button. A tray slides out, and the woman turns it down and out to make a small table. She sets a mug with a tea bag on it. “Let me know if you would like something else.”
“Thank you, Penny,” Juliet says.
Bennett settles back in his chair. “Everything is on course in LA,” he says. “Dress rehearsals are going well. We are all set.”
“Does anyone know who he’s going to pick?” I ask.
“The director should know, and probably a couple of wardrobe people,” he says. “They have to be ready, as Blitz will do a final dance with the winner.”
“He got a wedding ring,” I say. “Is it scripted for him to propose?”
“He’s not proposing,” Juliet says. “All the shows have a segment where they look for a ring, but it’s rarely used. Twenty seasons of the Bachelor, and only one proposal. In fact, I think that six-carat monstrosity is just on loan, right?” She looks to Bennett.
“It’s not even on set,” he says. “It never left the jewelry store.” He laughs. “The producers have to sign off on anything worth more than half a million that needs insuring.”
I begin to calm down with their banter. This is going to be okay. I check my watch. The test will end in ten minutes. That’s when Mom will realize I’m gone. Dad is out with Andy. I wish she had a cell phone. Will she call the police before she even leaves? Or will she go home? I should have thought about that.
“What’s on your mind, Livia?” Bennett asks.
“I’m just worried Mom will call the police from the SAT site, before she can get my note. I’m not very good at planning this escape thing.”
“I’ve already put in a call to my friend on the force,” Bennett says. “But it’s best if we can prevent her from notifying them. I can’t guarantee the dispatcher or officer who is called will know anything.”