Myra jumped in. “Mr. Cade is insistent the man who attacked Liza is on his cell. He was able to tell me exactly which shots they were and we’ve printed copies for you to look at.”
“The pictures of Miss Glasner showed a pattern of possible stalking. Or Mr. Cade was doing exactly as Jenkins said and watching over Miss Glasner.” He reached into his briefcase and pulled out a second set of photos. Returning his attention to Liza, he asked, “Do you recognize anyone in the group shots or the close-up of the man?”
Justice took them and sank down next to Liza.
She leaned in to get a closer look. The first one was definitely a man on a sidewalk, but it was too blurry to identify him. “Is that the sidewalk in front of your house?”
“Yes.” Justice flipped to the next one. It was of several people, including some reporters in front of the house.
Liza studied the faces. “I don’t… Wait.”
Justice turned, his eyes honing in on hers. “What?”
“That one.” She pointed to a guy standing behind the reporters. She could only see part of his head. Blond hair, young…but half his face was blocked by a video camera. “Something about him.” She glanced up. “I didn’t get a look at my attacker that night. But this guy…it’s like I’ve seen him somewhere before.” She tapped Justice’s thigh. “Keep going.”
He went to the next photo.
It was a close-up of the same man. Liza stared, taking in the square face and light blue eyes, struggling to recall why he looked familiar. “I know him, but from where?” The answer was right there, just out of reach.
“Wylie’s,” Justice snarled.
It snapped into place. “Oh my God. You’re right.” But why? It didn’t make sense. She shifted to the lawyer. “Noah said this is him?”
“Yes.”
“Who is he?” the detective demanded.
“All I know is his name is Hans. He was with a friend one night at Wylie’s Cantina. Justice and I were there, fans surrounded Justice, and I was taking pictures when I tripped and fell into his friend, who accidentally spilled beer on me. The friend was very apologetic, but this guy…” Liza held up the picture, “…he was a jerk. He tried to take pictures of my wet shirt. I told him no. He grabbed my arm, and I kicked him. He was furious, but Justice came up, and the guy didn’t touch me after that. Wylie threw him out.” Frustration stewed in her belly. “His voice—that sneer in his voice, it was the same one who told me, ‘Message from Hayes…’” She left off the last part, you cunt. “It’s him. But how did he know who I am?” As soon as she asked it, she flushed with her own stupidity.
It had been less than a week after that scene at Wylie’s that the Gene Hayes video came out and Liza’s name and image saturated the media. “But why?”
“That bastard. You humiliated him, got him thrown out and then you’re all over the news. He had a grudge.” Justice flipped through the rest of the pictures. One showed Hans lurking by her apartment building. The last picture was of him in the crowd of protesters that had been outside the auditorium the day of the Court of Rock finale.
Justice pulled out his phone and snapped some shots of the pictures.
“Hey, I—” Jenkins reached toward the photos.
He jerked his head up. “I believe you want the truth, Detective, but that’s my dad trapped in jail and my girlfriend this prick stabbed. I’m not sitting on my ass doing nothing.”
Jenkins leaned forward. “Don’t do anything stupid that lands you in a cell alongside your father.” He turned to her. “Miss Glasner, this Wylie’s is where you work part-time, correct?”
“Yes, but I was on leave while doing the intern competition on Court of Rock.”
“Okay, I’ll need the date of this incident and the contact information for the manager of Wylie’s Cantina. I’ll see if they have a way of tracking his name. We’ll find and talk to him.”
Liza gave him the information, but her mind tumbled and whirled over everything they’d discovered. “Did you get Ben’s statement? He and my friend Emily Manchester were with me when I was attacked. Ben saw Noah tackle the man stabbing me.”
Jenkins finished writing down the contact info. “Eyewitness testimony is often unreliable. Dr. Chambers only got a quick look. And you never saw your attacker’s face. Additionally, we had conflicting stories from other bystanders. You were out of sight of the parking lot cameras.” He took the pictures back from Justice, rose, then fixed a stare on her. “Miss Glasner, I don’t know if Mr. Cade will be able to get bail tomorrow. Right now, with the fact that he had pictures of you on his phone, he admitted being in that parking lot waiting for you, and your blood is on his clothes, I’d seriously think about your safety.”
Justice jackknifed to his feet. “She’s safe with me. I’m not going to let anyone hurt her.”
“She’s already been hurt and is damn lucky to be alive,” Jenkins said. “Next time, you might not be so fortunate.” The detective strode to the elevator and hit the call button.
Liza grabbed Justice’s hand. “Don’t.” Anger bled from his stiff fingers and his coiled, ready-to-spring posture.
Myra stood. “We’re making progress. If you have any questions or concerns, call me. I’m going to fight hard for your father, Justice. The warrant for outstanding tickets we can handle, but if they arrest him for Liza’s attack, he’s in trouble.”
“What can we do?” Liza asked.
“Hope the cops find this guy Hans. Otherwise, Mr. Cade is the only viable suspect, and the police are under extreme pressure. I’ll be in touch in the morning.” She joined the detective waiting in the elevator.
Once they were gone, Liza scooped up her computer. “Send me the pictures of Hans.”
“What are you doing?”
She opened her search engine, ignoring her throbbing head and the pain in her wound. “Finding Hans. I’m not letting your dad go down for this or Hans get away with trying to stab me.”
Justice crouched in front of her, his hands covering her thighs. “I’ll make you a deal.”
“What?”
“Eat something, take your pain pills and let me get you comfortable in bed. Then I’ll send you the pictures, and we’ll both search.”
“But—”
“Beth, I can see you’re in pain. Please. Everything else in my life is fucked up right now, so let me do this right.”
“Do what?” Her throat tightened. Worry and stress were carved into his face, yet here he was, noticing her discomfort and fatigue.
“Take care of you. Love you.”
“Okay.” Her heart swelled. This was what love was, and Liza basked in it, soaking it up. She desperately wanted to give the same back to him “We’re going to find him and clear your dad.”
Every day she fell deeper in love with Justice. Moments like this reassured her that their love could survive the pressures of her past and his career.
* * *
Justice’s neck and jaw ached like a bitch. He’d spent the last several hours dealing with the publicist, then the fact that Lynx and River weren’t answering their phones, which had held up the approval of the press release. Finally Simon and Justice made an executive decision to approve the damn thing. But where the hell were Lynx and River?
Better not be in jail. Swear to God, he’d beat the shit out of them.
He checked his phone again. Nothing. Fuck.
He shifted his attention back to the laptop, trying to figure out how to locate Hans with only a first name and cell phone picture. He’d searched for the private forums of Hayes’s fans that wanted Liza to pay, but all he’d found so far was some public rock music sites where a few people went off on a tangent about Liza ruining a mega star. It was ugly and made his head throb with the need to find and kick their asses.
“Have you found anything?”
Beth’s voice startled him. He set the computer down and stood. She had on her glasses, a T-shirt and panties. She’d crashed about thirty minutes after he’d gotten her
in bed, and slept several hours.
“No.” Frustration and sitting on his ass was driving him out of his mind. “Do you need another pain pill?” He checked his watch. Yep, it’d been four hours.
“Not yet. I’m getting some water. I…” She scratched at her wrist.
After crossing to her, he caught her chin and studied her haunted eyes. “Bad dreams?” She had night terrors sometimes.
“Gene Hayes and Hans. They were both in the room, and I couldn’t wake up. I tried, and I couldn’t even scream. I don’t want to go back to sleep. I’d rather sit out here.” She wrapped her fingers around his arm. “I hate being scared. Hate that we’re trapped like animals in this hotel and your dad’s in jail, while Hans is out there free. I hate this.”
He gently tugged her against him. The back of her shirt was slightly damp. She must have woken up in a sweat. He stroked her hair. “We’ll get him, Beth.” He led her to the couch and settled her in with pillows and a blanket. After he got her some water, he sat next to her and picked up the laptop. “I can’t find the bastard Hans or the site the detective said my dad had been on.” He studied her face, looking past the cuts and bruises to the amazingly strong girl who’d survived so much. He wouldn’t bring up the other sites that spewed vile things about her, especially after she’d just had a nightmare. They both needed a break.
He wrapped his arm around her, easing her against him. The night was quiet, a silky solitude that settled around the two of them. He stroked her lip, careful of the scab. “I miss kissing you. A real kiss, the kind that gets me hard and you wet, and we both forget about everything else but us.” His heart thudded, and heat spread.
“I look like hell.”
“You’re gorgeous, Beth. I’m going to show you how much I want you once you’re healed.” All the furious frustration riding him gathered into hot desire. Need. Sex had always been a release for him, but with Beth? It was something more. Bigger. Every time he thrust into her, he felt like he’d found his home. And when she cried out, it fed his desperate need to be loved.
Her mouth parted, and color warmed her cheeks. “How do you do that?”
“Make you want me?” It wasn’t cockiness. Okay, it was. But Beth didn’t hide how she felt from him. She let him see the desire flowing in her eyes, chasing out the earlier fear. She wasn’t up to sex, and she trusted him to know that. But this was something else—intimacy. Knowing they could bask in the want.
“It’s a sweet ache,” she said softly. “The first time I’ve felt alive since…”
“Your attack?”
Bringing her knees up, she curled into him and found a comfortable place to rest her head against his shoulder. “Since your band lost and that fight in the greenroom. Simon said I was your Yoko and that you had to choose between me and the band. When I was walking out that night—before the attack—I didn’t know which you’d choose.”
Regret tugged at him for not reassuring her more at the time, but he was glad she’d told him. Beth didn’t have to hide her feelings or fears. “It’s not a choice. You’re the woman I love, but music is my dream, the one thing that kept me going.” Screwing up and getting his ass tossed in juvie, and his mom leaving him there—part of Justice had gone dark that day, turning him hopeless and angry. Then he’d met Lynx, and they’d come up with this dream—a rock band—a chance to prove their worth.
She laid her hand on his chest. “I know. I’m so sorry you didn’t win Court of Rock. You should have. I hate that I might have been a part of the reason why.”
“Beth—”
“No. Let me say this. I’m not your Yoko. I’m here for you, supporting you a hundred percent. When I fell in love with you—it was all of you, and that includes the rock star. A setback like losing Court of Rock isn’t going to stop you. You guys are coming back, you’re going to record your album and fight your way to the top. And I’ll help however I can. Once we find Hans and get your dad out of jail, you’re going back to work on your dream, Justice. Hear me?”
“Every fucking word.” She believed in him even when he’d fallen short. Despite being in pain, exhausted and worried, she’d come out here and soothed him. “I love you so damned much.”
“You’d better. And this isn’t a free pass, buddy. You’re going to be playing gigs and traveling with hot groupies coming on to you. You keep your hands off them.”
He wrapped her hair around his hand but resisted the urge to tug her head back. “Only groupie I’m fucking is you.”
She snorted into his shirt. “I’m not your groupie, ego freak. I’m not any man’s groupie. I don’t care how amazing a singer you are or how much I love you.”
He couldn’t help but grin at her new name for him and the fact she loved him. The groupie tag was a sensitive subject for her. Beth’s mom had been a hardcore groupie and dragged Beth around with her following bands, getting drunk and stoned, and young Beth had seen way too much.
“I’m your very possessive girlfriend. I find out you’ve screwed another woman, I’ll go on a chicken-killing spree—every chicken in your house will die. Then I’ll leave.”
He blinked at the sudden shift in her, the hot passion riding every word. The chicken threat made him laugh. She seemed to love the chicken decorations living in his kitchen—all courtesy of his grandmother, from whom he’d inherited the house. “My chickens are safe from my jealous, bloodthirsty girlfriend. I’m not going to screw around on you, but I would love to have you travel with me. You can work on your book, and if you get bored, kick some groupie ass. And every night, I’ll have you hot and naked in my bed.”
Her fingers stilled on his chest. “I don’t know. I need to figure out a job, an internship, and I’m finishing my degree this fall.”
He stifled the stab of disappointment. What did he want, for her to drop her entire life to follow him around? Besides, he knew how important her goals were to her. She needed to live her own life, not in the shadows of fame like her mom had. “I know. I was thinking for the summer tour—it’s two weeks in July and the first week of August. You won’t be in school then. I’m not sure you should go back to your waitressing job.” She’d be too easy of a target now that her identity had been exposed. “Or you can fly out and meet me for a few days. We can play rock star and groupie.”
She laughed. “Only if I’m the rock star. Told you, dude, I’m not a groupie.”
No she wasn’t, and the sound of her laughter, the feel of her against him, calmed the anxiety that’d been riding him for days. “What you are is mine. But I can work with being your groupie. You can play famous author. Keep your glasses on. I have a thing for chicks in glasses who write.” He had a thing for her. So did his rapidly engorging cock. Just the feel of her against him, her husky laugh, the fact that only a T-shirt and panties covered her. He could slide his hand beneath the blanket and up her bare thigh… Nope. Not going there. She was exhausted and too sore. His cock could wait until—
His phone vibrated.
For a second he was tempted to reject the call. He didn’t want to lose this moment with Beth.
“You’d better check that. Something could have happened with your dad.”
She was right. Snatching it up, he eyed the screen and frowned. “That’s weird.”
Beth looked over. “Screech? The nightclub owner?”
“Yeah.” He switched to speaker. “Hey, man, what’s up?” It was nearly 11:00 p.m.
“Got a problem here. Two of them. Lynx and River are stupid drunk.”
“In your club?” It took a second for him to catch on. “They’re supposed to be in L.A. not San Diego.”
“Got a ride with some chicks. The girls left. The guys are fighting and causing trouble. If you don’t want them to get arrested, get your ass over here.”
Un-freaking-believable. “I can’t leave Liza.” But he couldn’t let his two friends get arrested either. Savaged Illusions couldn’t afford any more bad news.
“Go,” Liza cut in. “I’m safe here.
But if they get arrested, Court of Rock’s going to pull that summer tour offer.”
He didn’t have a choice. “I’ll be right there.” Hanging up, he said, “Are you sure?” She was safe, but would she feel secure?
“Yes. The elevator locks. I can’t sleep anyway. I’ll watch TV until you get back.”
Every time he thought this day couldn’t get worse, it did.
Chapter 3
Justice strode into the bar. Music pounded from the speakers, and people got out of his way. He must have worn his pissed-off face. Damn it, he’d had one moment to relax and be with Beth out of the entire shit-fucked week, and this happened—he got his ass dragged away to ride to the rescue of his drunk friends. Leaving Beth alone worried him. Yeah, he’d left her alone earlier in the suite, but it’d been daylight, and she’d already made friends with the concierge in that compelling way of hers. She’d been okay.
Now it was late night edging into early morning, and she was afraid of the dark. He wanted to round up the two idiots and get back to her.
But first he had to find them. Resisting the urge to start shoving the people blocking his path, he scanned the packed club. Where were River and Lynx? He pushed through the crowd, searching every face for his two asshole friends.
He made it two more strides when Screech Rizzo stepped in front of him. “They’re in my office. While I was on the phone to you, one of my servers—a newbie who didn’t know any better—called the cops. You’ll want to get Lynx and River out of here before the cops get here.”
And his night just kept getting worse, but he was grateful to Screech. “You’re doing us a solid. Thanks.” Justice followed him through the crowd. “How much damage?”
“Minimal. Mostly broken glass and a chair.” He headed down a hallway. “They got into a fight with a few other drunks. Lynx got on stage and started ranting about losing Court of Rock, and a couple guys ran up and shoved him off the platform. I damn near had a riot on my hands, but we got it calmed down.” He opened the door to his office.
Savaged Vows: Savaged Illusions Trilogy Book 2 Page 3