by RB Hilliard
“Chaz!” Evan shouted as he rushed to Chaz’s side.
I shot to Rowan’s bedside, while Grant shouted for Mallory. I could have sworn Chaz said the bathroom. Grant must have heard it too, because he darted for the closed bathroom door and wrenched it open.
Once I realized that Rowan was unharmed, I turned to see what the fuck was going on. Grant let out an agonized scream and the hairs on the back of my neck stood at attention.
“Grant!” I shouted, and started for the bathroom. I’d made it to the end of Rowan’s bed, when a figure with long hair and wild eyes burst from the bathroom. Evan moved out of the way, but not Chaz. Chaz fucking took the person down.
“Let me go you motherfuckingsonofabitch!” the woman screamed at the top of her lungs. By this time several nurses had converged on the room, but Chaz and the woman were blocking the door.
“Stop!” Chaz shouted, and hoisted the shrieking woman onto her feet. As she turned to scream at him, I got a good look at her face.
“Chelle?” I whispered. What in the hell was Michelle Harrigan doing in Rowan’s hospital room? Better yet, what was she doing in Austin, Texas?
Crazed eyes zeroed in on my face. “Fuck you, Nash!” Her eyes dropped to Rowan. “And fuck your stupid girlfriend for getting in the way!” She thrashed her head back and forth, but Chaz held tight.
“Baby, please stop,” Chaz whispered. His loving tone caught my attention, but before I could say something about it Chelle’s eyes were back on me.
“You know how it was. You were there. Grant and I were good together. We belonged together,” she whined.
“Baby, please, don’t do this,” Chaz pleaded. Chelle reared her head back and narrowly missed clipping Chaz’s already bloody nose with the back of her head. Chaz flinched, but at least he didn’t let her go.
“I’m not your baby! I’m not your fucking anything, you dumb shit! I had it all planned out! That bitch was as good as dead! Grant was going to be mine, mine, mine!” Chaz held tight to her arms as she kicked the shit out of his shins. Clearly the woman was off her rocker.
By this time we had four nurses and a doctor standing outside of the room, but since Chaz and Chelle were still blocking the door, no one knew what to do.
Where the fuck is Hank? I thought.
All the while Chelle continued to rant. “Grant was mine! He was fucking mine and that bitch made him dump me. Me, the woman who’d stood by his side through everything. Did I complain when he screwed around on me? No. I took it. You want to know why?” She leaned forward, and shouted, “Because I loved him!”
Grant chose that moment to step from the bathroom. He nodded to the nurse, who slipped past him and into the bathroom to see about Mallory.
The moment Chelle saw Grant she stilled in Chaz’s arms, and smiled. Chills of unease shot up my spine. “I told you we’d be together,” she said in an eerily calm voice.
Then everything happened at once. Grant dove for Chelle. Chaz jerked her out of Grant’s reach. They hit Evan, and they all toppled over onto the hospital floor. It took Hank, who finally showed up from who the hell knows where, and three security guards to get Chelle under control.
“I love you!” she screamed at Grant as they flipped her around and cuffed her. “I killed for you!” she shouted as they hauled her out of the room. “You’re miiiiiiiiiiine!” we heard her shriek all the way down the hall.
Nurses and doctors swarmed the bathroom to attend to Mallory, while the rest of us stared at each other in shock.
When Mallory walked out of the bathroom with an ice pack pressed to her head, Chaz slid down the wall onto his butt, covered his face with his hands, and cried.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Soul of a Woman
Rowan
Imagine my surprise when I awakened in a hospital room. The last thing I remembered was spilling my drink at the table, Mallory handing me hers, and then BOOM! I wake up in the hospital…again. Over the next few days, pieces of the story began to unfold, starting with Mallory’s account of what happened when I collapsed outside of the restaurant. Nash filled me in on the hours directly after that, but I could tell from the glassy-eyed stares and hushed whispers there was more to the story than I was being told. Something else had happened, but no one was talking about it. I understood that Nash wanted to protect me, but in doing so he was distancing himself from me and hurting me in the process.
The day before I was due to leave the hospital, Nash received a phone call. When he stepped out of the room to talk in private, something he’d been doing a lot of lately, I swallowed down tears of frustration. When he reappeared no more than five minutes later and told me he had to take off for a bit, I played it off as no big deal, but it was a big deal. He was keeping things from me.
When Mallory showed up in my hospital room half an hour later with a chocolate milkshake in each hand and a very hesitant smile on her face, I completely fell apart.
After listening to my meltdown, Mallory said, “Nash is going to kill me.” Before I had a chance to respond, she handed me one of the cups in her hand, dropped to the foot of my bed, and took a long draw from her milkshake. “You’re not going to believe this shit. In order for you to understand, though, I’ll have to start at the beginning.” She then told me about how she and Grant had fallen in love. I’d heard parts of the story from Nash and Maeve, but Mallory left nothing out. She told me all about the evolution of the Melties and a girl named Michelle Harrigan. She explained how Chelle, as she liked to be called, had started an on-line Meltdown fan group and how she’d amassed a huge following. She talked about what happened when Grant fell off the stage and how she became involved with the band. She explained how Chelle was obsessed with Grant, hated her, and how Grant was finally forced to ban Chelle from having anything to do with Meltdown.
“After Grant kicked her to the curb, she got a job with Blane’s dad. Can you believe that shit?” Mallory asked.
Not quite sure what Blane’s dad had to do with anything, I asked, “Blane’s dad?”
She let out a dramatic sigh. “I forget you weren’t around for all of the crazy. Did you know Blane lost the label?”
“I know something happened that forced Grant and Nash to purchase the label, but not the details.”
She explained all about Blane, his dad, and the infamous card game. Then she went on to explain how Chelle got herself hired by Blane’s dad behind Grant’s back.
“I thought Grant was going to lose his mind when Chelle showed up at the New York show. It was crazy enough with Grant’s parents being there, but when Grant told Chelle to leave, she had the nerve to challenge him on the grounds that she was now part of management. Management my ass,” Mallory laughed.
Literally on the edge of my seat, or should I say my bed, I asked, “So what happened?”
“In a nut shell, Blane helped Grant take down his dad, which, in turn meant that Chelle was officially out on her ass.”
I laughed at her sour expression. “Let me guess, she retaliated?”
Mallory made a loud slurping noise with her straw. “No. In fact, Grant never heard from her again. However, her best friend Paula, who the band hadn’t seen since Chelle was fired, showed up on the first leg of their mini tour.” I wracked my brain trying to remember where I’d heard that name before. Then it hit me.
“As in Chaz’s girlfriend, Paula?” I asked.
Mallory nodded her head. “One in the same.” In one of our various phone conversations, I remembered Nash mentioning Chaz’s bizarre relationship with his girlfriend, Paula. “Anyhow,” Mallory continued, “Grant thought it was strange that Paula was there. According to him she was practically glued to Chelle’s side. When he questioned her about it she swore up and down that Chelle had moved on and she was there for Chaz. Grant wanted to ask her to leave, but because Chaz wanted her there, and Chaz didn’t really do the girlfriend thing, the guys agreed to let her stay.”
“Wait. Didn’t she cheat on Chaz?” I vaguely remem
bered Nash also mentioning something about that, but wasn’t sure if I’d misheard him or not.
Mallory’s face twisted into a look of disgust. “It’s hard to cheat on someone you were never with in the first place.”
Both confused and surprised by her response, I asked, “They weren’t together?”
“Nope.”
I took a sip from my milkshake while mulling it over. “I’m now thoroughly confused,” I admitted. “What’s the catch?”
“Hold onto your hospital bed,” she mused, “because I’m about to blow your mind. Two days ago I was sitting in that chair over there,” she pointed to the chair across the room. “You were still down for the count. Poor Nash looked like death warmed over. Grant and Evan finally talked him into walking to the cafeteria to grab a quick bite to eat, while Hank, Chaz, and I kept an eye on you. They’d been gone two minutes when the head of the hospital security poked his head in and asked to meet with Hank. Chaz and I told him we had it covered, and to go ahead. Chaz had just stepped into the bathroom to pee, when the door opened and a woman walked in. I didn’t recognize her, but something about the look on her face made me uneasy. It was as if she wasn’t all there. I asked if I could help her and she very politely asked if I’d seen Grant. Something told me to lie, so I told her that Grant wasn’t at the hospital, but I’d be happy to give him a message for her. She turned to leave and I relaxed back into the chair. All of a sudden she whirled around and charged straight for me. I didn’t see the needle in her hand until she was almost on top of me. Suddenly Chaz was there. She raged at him while he held her off and shouted for me to run.” Mallory paused long enough to chug more of her milkshake. “I remember thinking, Where in the hell am I supposed to go? They were blocking the damn door. Then Chaz screamed her name, and it clicked. Holy shit, this is Chelle! He called her pet names, like baby and sugar, Rowan. It was creepy.” She waved her hand dismissively through the air. “Anyway, so, right as I hurdled over the back of the chair, Chaz dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes, and the bitch was on me. Thankfully, I shoved her off before she could jab the needle in my arm. When she lost her balance, I dove for the bathroom, but she was fast. Somehow, I knew that there was poison in that needle. That if she stuck me I would die, so I fought her. God, did I fight her. I really don’t know what happened next. The bathroom was tiny. She kept trying to stab me and I kept deflecting her jabs. Then the door opened, the needle went flying, and I went down. That’s all I remember. Look,” I gasped when she leaned forward and parted her hair. “Can you believe this shit? Ten stitches, and right before my damn wedding, too.”
“Oh my God, Mallory! That’s crazy!” I exclaimed.
Mallory leaned in, and in a hushed voice, said, “Chaz cried when they took her away.” It took me a second to catch up. She nodded her head at my shocked expression. “Yep. It turns out they were together, as in together-together.”
I pulled back and gawked at her. “Noooooo.”
She nodded. “According to Grant, and mind you he only got part of the story, Chaz and Chelle have been together this whole time.” I was confused. If Chaz was with Chelle…
“But what about Paula?” I asked.
“Paula was their beard.” She was about to say more, but the door opened, and in walked Grant and Nash. Both had stern expressions on their faces. Ignoring their daunting glares, Mallory asked, “Where’s Chaz? Is he okay?”
“He’s in the car, and he’s fine,” Grant answered. “I think you’ve been here long enough, don’t you?”
“Fine,” Mallory huffed. She pointed her finger at Nash. “Talk to her. She’s stronger than she looks.” Then she gave me a hug, told me she’d see me tomorrow, and marched out the door after Grant.
“I love her,” I sighed.
“What did she tell you?” Nash warily asked.
“Let’s see. We were at the part where Paula was Chaz and Chelle’s beard.”
“Fuck,” he exclaimed, and ran his hands through his hair, something he always did when he was worked up.
“Look, I get it. You don’t want to upset me.”
Nash whirled on me and all but shouted, “You almost died! That crazy, fucking bitch almost killed you, Rowan! Garrett saw the footage from the restaurant. Chelle was the one who bumped into you. When you bent down to pick up your napkin, she dumped poison into Mallory’s glass, only Mallory didn’t drink it. You did.” The look of agony on his face made my heart ache.
“I’m okay, Nash.”
He glared at me from across the room. “I’m not okay. None of this,” he waved his hand through the air, “is okay. I’ve almost lost you twice now.”
“Come here.” I scooted over to make room for him. When he got to me, I patted the mattress beside me, and said, “Get in.” He crawled in and gathered me to his side.
“I was so scared,” he whispered.
“I know. I’m here. I’m fine. It’s over.”
Nash’s head jerked, and his big, blue eyes filled with worry, fear, and love clashed with mine. “Is it?” he asked. “We thought it was over after Conor and then…this. Is it really over, Rowan? Because I’m not sure I can handle much more.”
Gently pressing my lips to his, I repeated, “It’s over.” After a long pause, he let out a frustrated sounding sigh before settling down beside me. I snuggled into his warmth. Finally, not able to stand it any longer, I said, “Now tell me about Paula being Chaz’s beard.”
He pulled back and narrowed his eyes at me. “Seriously?”
“What? Everyone else knows but me,” I whined. When his lips twitched with repressed humor, I knew that we were going to be okay.
“You’re very transparent, you know?” I kissed him again, and we both smiled. Then I settled down beside him, and waited. “I don’t know how we didn’t see it. I mean, we knew that something was up with Chaz and Paula. Now that I think about it, I never once saw him touch her.”
“What exactly do you know?” I asked.
“Not much. The police have been questioning both Chelle and Chaz. They’re looking for Paula because she knows more than anyone about what Chelle was up to. Chaz is fucking shattered, Ro. He was in love with Chelle, and she played his ass like a finely tuned fiddle. Chaz isn’t talking to any of us, so we’re getting second-hand information from Garrett. This whole thing is seriously whacked.”
* * *
Three days after that…
“Hello?”
“Hey babe, what are you doing?” Nash asked. He’d been gone all morning and was finally calling to check in.
I gazed around the room at the mixture of old photos and knick-knacks I’d just finished unpacking, and smiled. “I’m just putting a few things away.” I zipped up the black bag and shoved it under the bed, before making my way across the room and dropping down onto the love seat. What’s up? Anything new on Chelle?” According to Garrett, the police had found Paula and they’d pulled Chaz in for more questioning. We were waiting to hear more.
“Are you sitting down?” Nash asked. My pulse leapt into my throat.
“Oh, God, what?”
“It turns out that the poison you ingested was the same poison that killed Conor.” I sat there with my mouth hanging open for the longest time. This made absolutely no sense.
“I don’t get it. How? Did Chelle know Conor, or was it a coincidence?”
“That’s what the police are trying to figure out. They’ve warned Chaz not to talk with anyone but them about it, which really doesn’t mean anything because he’s not talking much to us anyway. Garrett said they’re pouring over video footage on Conor’s apartment right now. If they can definitively link Chelle to Conor’s death, then they’re charging her with murder one on top of attempted murder. Either way, she’s going away. According to Garrett, Paula wants to cut a deal.” A really bad thought popped into my head.
“Nash, is Chaz going to go to jail for this?”
“I don’t know babe. We’ve got him the best lawyer that money can buy,
but I honestly don’t know.” A second horrible thought popped into my head.
“You don’t think he had something to do with this, do you?”
“A week ago I would have said no, but now…I just don’t know.”
* * *
Nash
Two weeks later…
“Any word from Chaz?” Evan asked.
“No. I tried calling his phone this morning, but it’s no longer in service,” Grant replied.
“Fuck!” Evan responded. I didn’t say a word. I knew this was coming. Chaz’s entire world had blown up in his face. Stupid decision after stupid decision, and here we were. New music plus no drummer equals fucked.
After ten days of carting Chaz back and forth to the police station, he was officially cleared of any wrong doing. Everyone, including the police, saw Chaz as a victim. In the end, there really was no appropriate punishment for being a dumbass. The night before Chaz took off for who knows where, he came clean to Grant. Early the next morning, Grant called and asked me to stop by his house. Grant, Evan, and Hank were all three waiting when I arrived. That’s when Grant told us that Chaz was gone.
“Gone where?” I asked.
Grant shrugged. Then he explained how Chaz had sought him out the night before, and what he’d said. “In simple terms, Chaz was played. Chelle never loved him. She loved me. She used Chaz in order to get close to me and Mallory, and used Paula to keep tabs on the band. Chaz said that he went along with the Paula scheme because he knew that Nash and I would never understand his feelings for Chelle.”
“He’s right. We wouldn’t,” I agreed.
Grant continued. “According to Chaz, using Paula was Chelle’s idea. She was his only way to be with Chelle and still be with the band. In all actuality, Paula was spying on us and reporting what she’d found back to Chelle. Chaz feels responsible for what happened.”