Until Next Time (The Shooting Stars Series)

by Michelle Maness

  Katherine felt panic slam through her as she considered Adam’s frame of mind the night before. He certainly had not been in a good place; she wanted to cry.

  “We chatted, caught up; he talked about Mia. I can’t…” she fought tears, “I don’t know.” She started to mention the pamphlets she’d given him and then thought better of it. On the chance that he had decided to get help she did not want to lead the money hungry record company straight to him.

  “He wasn’t in a great frame of mind,” she admitted.

  “That’s what worries us too. Think, Kaitlyn, is there anything he said that might help?” Sam encouraged.

  “I can’t think of a single thing, Sam; we just chatted and caught up. That was pretty much it.”

  “Thank you, anyway, Kaitlyn. If you hear anything please call me. I’m worried about him, Kaitlyn,” Sam handed her one of his business cards after jotting down a secondary number. Katherine saw them to the door and closed it behind them before she returned to her couch and sank onto it.

  “Please, Adam, be okay,” she pleaded as her tears spilled over. The thought of him lying hurt somewhere, or worse, dead made her want to throw up. She didn’t know how long she sat there worrying and crying before a glance at the clock had her hurrying to her feet and out the door. She had somewhere to be and if she was going to make it, she needed to hurry.

  Katherine grabbed her gift, purse, and keys and made her way out to her car. She frowned as she negotiated traffic. She could swear there was a black sedan following her. After considering it further, she laughed at herself. No one had any reason to be following her; she needed to get a grip on herself.

  She arrived at the shower and forced a smile to greet her friends. Courtney, the mom to be, looked happy and content. Katherine sighed; she wished she felt happy and content. Katherine managed to smile and talk as the shower progressed, but her thoughts remained troubled.

  “Are you okay,” Kristen finally asked her as she pulled her aside.

  “A friend of mine is in some trouble and I can’t quit worrying about him,” Katherine admitted as she blinked against tears.

  “What kind of trouble?” Kristen’s eyes showed her concern.

  “He’s gotten mixed up in drugs and drinking,” she admitted. “I’ve encouraged him to get help but beyond that,” she shrugged.

  “Don’t let Derrick know,” Kristen advised. “He will cut this person off from you.”

  Katherine knew there was some bad blood between Derrick and Kristen; the two had been engaged a few years earlier.

  “I’m sorry, Katherine, I shouldn’t have said that,” Kristen apologized. “But he did run a friend of mine out of my life because he felt she was a bad influence on me. If this friend is a man he will be worse, trust me on this.”

  “Thanks for the warning but I won’t stand back and let Derrick run a friend out of my life, especially one who needs my help,” Katherine assured her friend.

  “I hope not, Katherine; I’m a little surprised he allows you to be friends with me.”

  “Don’t you think you’re exaggerating?” Katherine asked.

  “No, I don’t but maybe he’s changed; I hope so. We should get back in there,” Kristen suggested.

  Katherine frowned as she watched Kristen rejoin the others. She had come to count Kristen as a good friend and was confused by her acidic words against Derrick; it wasn’t like Kristen. She wondered what Derrick had done to leave such a bad taste in Kristen’s mouth and then reminded herself that it took two to build a relationship and it took two to destroy one. Whatever had happened, they had both played roles in it.

  As soon as the shower was over, Katherine went to buy her groceries. The papers caught her attention as she waited in the checkout line. Adam’s disappearance had made the front page; two blurry pictures prompted her to snatch the paper up for a closer look. One of the photos was of Adam hugging her after the concert. The angle of the picture meant she was not readily identifiable. Unless someone who knew her recognized the dress and her curls hanging down her back. She bit her lip and smiled when she noticed Adam had a hand full of her curls. The other picture had been taken in the parking lot; she had not seen anyone around. She was leaned back in Adam’s arms looking up at him. Thankfully it had been taken at a great distance and the quality was not good enough to discern who she was.

  “Miss,” the cashier called for her attention.

  “Sorry,” she muttered as she laid the paper on the conveyer belt before adding her other purchases.

  Back at her apartment she put away her things and checked her messages; she hadn’t done so since last night and found she had a back log of calls.

  “Katherine where are you? I guess you were held up at work.” It was Derrick.

  “Hey sweetie I was just checking on you.” Her mom's voice floated into the room.

  “Hey Kattie, Amy here, I need your measurements so I can order your dress.”

  “Katherine where on earth are you? Didn't you get my flowers? I told you I would call. I'll call again.”

  “Katherine I'm starting to worry. Are you mad at me?”

  “Katherine I assuming that you are angry with me. I'll be in day after tomorrow, we'll talk then.”

  “Katherine, this is ridiculous. It’s now Saturday morning and you still won’t talk to me?”

  Katherine let the tape rewind and sighed. Derrick was obviously upset with her. Her phone rang and she snatched it up.

  “Hello?” she answered.

  “So you’re over being angry at me?” Derrick demanded without preamble.

  “I am not mad at you, Derrick. I was held up at work last night and then had to rush home to change and then back out the door and it was late when I got in and then this morning was Courtney’s shower.”

  “Why did you have to rush back out the door last night?”

  “I went to a concert,” she admitted.

  “What concert?”

  “Adam was in town.”

  “Adam?”

  “Ace.”

  “You went to see that trouble maker? Katherine, really, why would you pay to see that man in concert?”

  “I didn’t pay; Adam sent me a ticket and a back stage pass,” she related.

  “Okay, Katherine, how am I supposed to respond to that?” he asked her.

  “You could try believing me,” she snapped.

  “Did you win them off the radio?”

  “Derrick, listen to me, Adam Cole Ellington and I are friends, granted we don’t see each other often these days. Yesterday, at work, I got two deliveries. One was from you. The other was from Adam. He was in town last night for a concert and he wanted to see me and see how I was doing. I went and we talked. I then came home late. This morning his manager and a private detective were on my door step informing me that Adam is missing. I have had too little sleep, I am worried sick about my friend, and I am not in the mood to have my mental capacities or my honesty questioned, so unless you are ready to give me the benefit of the doubt, this conversation is over,” she informed him.

  “Fine, I’ll see you tomorrow,” Derrick hung up without a further word.

  Katherine hung up her phone and sighed. She did not want to fight with her fiancé but she wasn’t going to be treated like she was crazy either. Her phone rang again and she answered.

  “Hi, Kattie, are you okay dear?” her mother asked her.

  “No. You heard that Adam is missing?”

  “Yes, after an old friend came to see him.”

  “Mom, he’s a mess right now and I’m worried,” Katherine admitted as her tears spilled over.

  “What happened?” her mother asked her.

  Katherine related her conversation with Adam to her mother and then the arrival of Sam and the P.I. on her door step this morning.

  “And now to top it all off, Derrick seems to think I’m making the whole thing up!” she shared her frustration.

  “Kattie, honey, are you sure about this man? I’m so wo
rried, sweetheart.”

  “I guess it is a little hard to believe,” Katherine defended her fiancé.

  “Why? Famous people were once every day people who knew every day people. Why is that so difficult?”

  “I don’t know, Mom, Derrick is just…I don’t know,” Katherine sighed.

  “I’ll call you back later; someone is at the door. I love you, Kattie.”

  “Love you too, Mom.” her phone beeped as she was saying this and she switched lines.

  “Hello.”

  “Hey, Kattie.”

  “Hi, Amy,” Katherine smiled at the sound of her friend’s voice.

  “What do you know about Adam’s disappearance?”

  “I was with him last night just before he vanished,” she admitted and shared the whole story with Amy, including Derrick’s attitude about the whole thing.

  “Come see me, Kattie. We can visit and you can see my brother’s new baby,” Amy invited.

  “I wish I could, Amy,” Katherine smiled.

  “Aren’t you angry with Derrick?”

  “A little,” she admitted. “Hey, let me give you my measurements for my dress while you’re on the line. I had a dress altered the other day and took them down for you,” Katherine volunteered. A few minutes later she let her friend go and stood to prepare herself a salad for dinner. After all she had eaten at the shower it was all she was going to allow herself; losing fifteen pounds had been no easy feat.

  Her meal completed, Katherine traded her clothes for her favorite plaid sleep pants and Adam’s t-shirt. She had intended to settle in and watch TV but found herself fidgeting; she couldn’t seem to get settled. All she could think about was Adam. Where was he? Was he okay? The silence of her apartment was deafening, her thoughts dark and heavy. She needed noise; distraction. She ran her finger down her CDs and thought to the put on something upbeat that would lift her mood. Her finger stalled on her old Smashing Pumpkins CD. She couldn’t remember the last time she had actually listened to it.

  She tugged it from her holder, carried it to her bed room, placed it in her CD player, and selected the acoustic cut of Mayonnaise and turned it on repeat. She turned it up, lay across her bed, and let the haunting melancholy of Billy Corgan’s voice wash over. It was one of her favorite songs, one she and Adam had listened to together frequently, including the night before he left.

  God she hoped he was okay. She was trying not to blame herself. She should never have encouraged him to participate in the damn competition. Had he not gone to LA and gotten into the music business, he wouldn’t have gotten into the drugs either. She knew it was folly; they had both made their choices and were each responsible for them. She wiped impatiently at her tears and closed her eyes. Unbidden, memories washed over her. How many nights since he left had she had she lain awake, silently crying as she replayed their time together? She had thought she had dispensed with that, grappled with it and let it go by the beginning of her senior year. Apparently not, not if the pain she felt now was any indication. She jumped up, claimed the shoe box from her closet, and dug out several pictures. She smiled at the images of them together, only to cry all the harder. What if he was hurt? Or worse?

  ***

  The next afternoon, Katherine paced her apartment as she waited for Derrick. He was due in any time and they hadn’t spoken more than basic information since their argument. She was ready to put it behind them but she needed him to believe her in order for them to do that. She jumped at his knock and fixed a nervous smile in place as she opened the door.

  “Hi,” she greeted.

  “Hi,” he tugged her close and kissed her lightly.

  He looked tired.

  “Come in and make yourself comfortable,” she invited.

  “Thanks,” he moved to her couch; she sat down beside him.

  “Okay, all I have been hearing about since speaking with you is Ace’s disappearance. You went to school with him?” Derrick turned to her.

  Katherine felt herself relax as she nodded. “Adam transferred to Northside my senior year and we became friends. That summer he moved to Detroit for a job and I didn’t see him again until my sophomore year of college when he started attending UT. He was there for just under a year before he ended up in California. Our correspondence has been spotty at best these past few years but we have kept in touch,” she shared.

  “It’s hard to imagine you friends with the guy but I believe you,” Derrick told her.

  “Adam is…not like he seems in the media, Derrick. A lot of that is a persona to sell an image which sells records. He had a rough life, long story, too long for now, but he’s really an okay guy.”

  “So you two were pretty good friends then?” he asked; she nodded.

  “We were.” Should she say more? Should she tell him everything? She decided not to.

  “I’m trying to picture you and this Ace character as friends; it doesn’t fit,” he shook his head. “You were, I get that but you were raised right and it’s clear he wasn’t.”

  “He didn’t have the benefits you and I enjoyed, the biggest of those being a stable home. He doesn’t even know his father,” Katherine defended him.

  “What did your parents think of your friendship?” he looked smug.

  “They love Adam,” she smiled and shrugged.

  “Your parents love this Ace character?”

  “Adam; his name is Adam, Derrick.”

  “Sorry, your parents love this Adam?”

  “He was polite and helpful and my parents liked him.”

  “Sure, the little they saw him. Okay, Katherine, I owe you an apology. I was sure you were confused. I was wrong,” he offered; she laughed.

  “Is it so hard to say?” she teased.

  “A little,” he smiled back; she leaned over to kiss him.

  “I don’t like fighting,” she leaned against him and stared up at him.

  “Neither do I,” he kissed the top of her head and wrapped an arm around her. “I just couldn’t for the life of me figure out how and where you would have met a man like that.”

  “I’m glad we have it sorted out,” she laid her head over on his shoulder. “I love you, Derrick.”

  “I love you too, Katherine. I’m very glad I decided to speak for Mr. Reece. I almost canceled.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t,” Katherine smiled up at him.

  “We’re going to be great together, Katherine,” he reached to caress her cheek.

  “We are.” Katherine felt some of the tension of the last few days drain from her; it was all going to be okay.

  ***

  As one week stretched into two since Adam’s disappearance, Katherine found herself worrying more and more, her creative mind coming up with all kinds of scenarios as to what had happened; most of them bad. Today she was returning from shopping with Kristen and she was exhausted. She put away her purchases before changing into her sleep clothes and pouring herself a glass of juice. She checked her answering machine, noted she had several hang ups and then sank onto her couch before grabbing the TV remote. Her phone rang and she grabbed it, her attention still on the newscast.

  “Hello,” she answered.

  “Hey, Kaitlyn.”

  Katherine sat up her; heart skipped a beat before it started pounding.

  “Adam! Oh, thank God, how are you?” she demanded.

  “I’m doing a little better. I took your advice, Kaitlyn.”

  “Where are you? I’ve been worried sick.”

  “Genesis Recovery Center. I would have called sooner but the past two weeks have been hell. I’m just starting to feel a little human again.”

  “I’m so glad, Adam. Sam was here looking for you with a P.I.”

  “They can’t know where I am,” Adam informed her.

  “I won’t tell,” she promised.

  “How have you been, Kaitlyn?”

  “Worried, otherwise fine,” she assured him. “Are you allowed visitors?”

  “I am,” he returned and gave
her the days and times.

  “I’ll be there tomorrow,” she promised.

  “I’d like that, Kaitlyn; thanks,” he returned.

  “I’m so glad you’re getting help, Adam.”

  “Hearing someone believe I could do it made me want to,” he shared.

  “I don’t believe you can do it, Adam; I know you can do it.”

  “Thank you, Kaitlyn,” his voice was low.

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Why are you so nice to me, Kaitlyn?” Adam asked her.

  Kaitlyn stood and moved to her window to place her forehead against the cool glass. “You’re my friend, Adam. Friends stand by each other.”

  “Anyone who can call you a friend is a lucky person, Kaitlyn. I hope Ken knows what he’s getting.”

  “That’s sweet, Adam, though his name is Derrick, which I think you know. By the way, I finally convinced him I know you.”

  “That’s good to hear,” he told her.

  She could hear the smile in his voice and picture it in her mind.

  “Oh man, my time’s up. I have to go.”

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, Adam.”

  “I’ll look forward to it,” he assured her.

  “Until next time, Adam.”

  “Until next time,” he returned.

  Katherine turned the phone off and dropped into her arm chair; her legs suddenly felt weak. Adam was okay! She needed to talk to someone she knew she could trust. She dialed Amy’s number and waited.

  “Hi, Kattie,” Amy’s voice expressed her pleasure at hearing from her friend.

  “Hi, Amy. Adam called; he’s okay.”

  “Thank God! Where is he?”

  “At a rehab center outside of town.”

  “I am so relieved to hear that. I’m guessing this isn’t common knowledge?”

  “No, you cannot tell anyone, Amy. If the label knew where to find him it could derail everything. He’s had a rough couple of weeks but is finally starting to feel better. I’m going to see him tomorrow.”

  “Tell him I said hi,” Amy requested.

  “I will,” she promised.

  “Does Derrick know about all of this?”

  “No, he doesn’t.”

  “What are you going to tell him about rushing off tomorrow?”