Punk Rox Warrior (20 page)

Rainne raced up onto the scene, behind James, to see the

housekeeper cowering as Ash towered over her. She glanced around

the room and found the source of all the commotion. Inside, her brain

screeched to a halt, and recognition flooded her senses. She knew the

answer to both James’s and Ash’s questions.

On the foyer table was a beautifully wrapped gift exactly like the

one that had been delivered to her apartment.

Distantly, she heard James and Ash converse about the package,

not quite comprehending the actual words. She was so fixated on the

package that simple things like blinking and breathing seemed like

impossible feats.

James approached the package and read the card.

We could have made beautiful music together, my little freak, but

instead? You’re next!

Ash ripped the top off, and James gasped as he saw what it

contained.

Rainne had to know. She willed her legs forward and peered into

the box. Seeing the severed head of her beloved Merlyn proved too

much for her brain, and the room started to tilt and become fuzzy

around the edges. Blackness overcame her.

* * * *

James saw her sway, and quickly, he reached out and caught her

before she hit the floor. “Holy shit!” he exclaimed. Laying her down

gently, he looked up at Ash. “What are we going to do? We can’t

possibly keep her safe tonight at the show.” James was tortured by his

failure to save her from Cameron. He feared losing the most

important thing in his world.

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At that moment the rest of the security team walked through the

door, followed by Rainne’s friends. “Rainne!” Rebecca yelled. “Is she

all right?” She stooped down next to her. “What happened?” she

demanded angrily.

Ash picked up the box and dropped it on the floor next to her.

“This happened.” His voice was dark, edgy.

James looked at him, eyes wide with disbelief. “What the fuck,

man!”

He met James’s look and said, “Dude, I don’t know what all the

fuss is over. It’s just a cat.”

Rebecca leaned over the box to examine it and gasped. “Oh, no!”

she exclaimed. She started rubbing Rainne’s arm and patting her face,

trying to bring her around. “Rainne, wake up, mama. It’s gonna be

okay!”

Ash watched, perplexed, and then turned to James and rolled his

eyes. “Women.” He scoffed.

Rebecca’s face twisted in anger. She jumped to her feet and

attempted to shove Ash. “You asshole!” she screamed. “Her father

gave her that cat!” She backed up, panting. “Two days before he died

in the accident. He gave Rainne that cat for her birthday.” She shot

him another angry scowl and returned to awaken her friend.

The realization of why that cat was so important flooded James’s

mind. He knew how much that animal meant to her and honestly

thought it was a little extreme. He had chalked it up to her just being

an impassioned individual. Knowing the origin of the cat made all the

difference. It had been the last link to her beloved father.

James bent down beside Rainne and gently petted her head.

“Come on, baby. Wake up.” He sighed a breath of relief when he saw

her lids flutter slightly.

“I’ve got her,” Rebecca said tightly. “Could you get him out of

my sight before I snap and stuff his head into a pretty box?” she asked

sarcastically as she shot daggers in Ash’s direction.

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James rose from the floor, taking the box with him, and stormed

past Ash, motioning him to follow. The rest of the team trailed as he

stomped down the front steps, taking two at a time. When he hit the

driveway, he turned. The look of murder on his face froze his team in

place. “What the fuck happened?” he bellowed, unable to contain the

rage. He held the box out for them to see.

All but Ash looked on in different shades of disbelief, sickness,

and disgust.

The small group slowly shifted their gazes to James with regret in

their eyes.

Alton stepped forward. “James, I don’t know what to say.”

James rubbed his hands roughly over his face and through his

hair. “Check the cameras and sensors and call the local sheriff. We’ll

need backup for tonight.” With that barking order, James stormed

back into the house to check on Rainne. “And get that fucking box out

of here! She doesn’t need to see it again!” he snarled over his

shoulder.

James searched the downstairs for Rainne and her friends, who

were not where he had left them. Approaching the kitchen door, he

heard voices and paused to eavesdrop on the conversation.

Rainne’s soft, broken sobs could be heard drifting through the

door.

“Honey, it’s going to be okay.”

“I’m so sorry, sweets.”

“Here, this will make you feel better.” The sound of silverware

could be heard being shuffled.

“Oh, nice! Your stepmom had good taste in beer.”

“Put that back!” someone chided.

Rainne sniffled. “No, give me one.”

A moment of silence filled the air. “I can’t believe that psycho

killed Mer-me,” Rainne said sadly. “He’s pissed because I got away

when he kidnapped me, but to kill Merlyn? How fucked in the head

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do you have to be?” She breathed out heavily. “Hand me a fork,

would ya?”

James slid slowly into the kitchen to see the scene he had been

listening to. Rainne and her friends were all crowded around the large

kitchen island. They all had a fork in one hand and a bottle of

expensive German beer in the other. They talked and laughed a little,

drinking beer and sharing a large gourmet cheesecake.

James slipped back out of the kitchen. Knowing her friends were

taking care of her made him feel a little better. Now if he could just

catch that sick bastard, he and Rainne could get on with their lives

together.

* * * *

“Yes, I understand the cost is astronomical.” James was steadily

losing his patience with the local sheriff. “Well, as I said before, we

will be covering the cost. Just send Ms. Stanton and myself the bill.”

After a few moments, James hung the phone up and sat in the tall-

backed leather office chair. He looked at his team and sighed. “It’s all in place.”

“How are Rainne and the rest of them dealing with the news?”

Riley asked with a smirk.

The team and the band had all been at odds at the news that the

security at the concert would be heavy. They had not been pleased.

They were worried it would scare fans off.

“They understand. They’re just not happy with it, but they will

survive.” James stood and strolled towards the door. “You guys get

going to the arena and get set up. Alton and I and the deputies will

escort them to the show.”

Emptying the room, the group split up. Alton went for the back

door to make sure the police escort was ready and thoroughly briefed

on the situation. The rest of the group went to the front door and off to the arena. James went upstairs to let the band and Rainne know they

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had to finish up because ready or not, they were leaving in fifteen

minutes.

James entered Rainne’s bedroom to see the band members in

different degrees of readiness. Markus was fully dressed, sitting on

her bed Indian style playing air drums with his sticks and talking

about how cool it would be to win the competition. Joel and Annie

were in the corner on the floor. Joel was tuning the guitars, and Annie

was fixing the buckle on her shoe. Rebecca was at the large vanity

mirror applying her makeup. “Hey, guys, we’re leaving in fifteen

minutes,” he announced.

“Yup, yup,” Rebecca said absently as she turned around and slung

a tube of eyeliner at Joel, who had asked for it. “Rainne!” Rebecca

yelled. “Fifteen minutes!”

James looked at her, wide-eyed, in the mirror as she smiled

sweetly back at him and carried on with her beauty regiment.

“I’m coming. How do I look?”

James had to smile before he saw her, remembering that she

always had the same nervous tone in her voice whenever she asked

that question.

Rainne stepped out of the bathroom and took a few steps toward

the bed, spinning slowly so everyone could have a look.

James’s breath hitched in his throat. She was dressed all in

peacock blue and black. Her very short plaid skirt was adorned with a

black belt that sagged on her hips. Hanging off one side was a pair of

handcuffs, and on the other was a short choke chain with a padlock on

it. A small portion of her legs showed between the bottom of the skirt

and the tops of the blue and black striped thigh highs she wore. They

were attached with little straps that disappeared under the skirt. James smiled to himself knowing she had a garter belt hidden underneath.

The stockings stopped at a pair of blue Doc Marten boots tied with

black laces, and she had strung little metal cartoony type charms

through the laces. Above her belt was a long-sleeved blue shirt that

looped at her thumbs and had rips through it. Her hair was in pigtails.

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They were puffed out, curly, and they danced just past her shoulders.

She had tied them with blue and black ribbons, and her hair had been

streaked with blue hair dye. Their eyes met, and James fought the

urge to kiss her black lips. “You look beautiful, baby.”

* * * *

Rainne smiled at him. She felt electrified. A mix of anticipation,

fear, and adrenaline stormed her nervous system. So many things

were possible tonight. They could win the band competition and get a

record deal. They could finally catch Cameron and put an end to her

nightmare once and for all. He could escape or hurt someone. They

could lose the contest. She could die. She tried to put it out of her

head, knowing it wouldn’t do her nerves any good to worry about the

what-ifs.

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Chapter 20

On the way to the show, Rainne stared out the window

thoughtfully. She was trying to get her game face on for the show.

She had been looking forward to this night for months. It was

supposed to be fun, but instead she found herself scared shitless. She

looked around the van at her friends and her fiancé. Her stomach

rolled at the thought of any one of them being hurt or even

disappointed. They had to catch Cameron, and they had to win.

“You all right?” James whispered in her ear as he gently squeezed

the fingers he had been absently playing with.

She gazed into his eyes, knowing that that’s where her future lay.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking.” She gave him her best nonchalant

smile, but was pretty sure he didn’t buy it.

“Everything’s going to be fine. I promise,” he said at her temple

before he whispered a kiss over it.

“Oh, my God!” Rebecca proclaimed from her seat.

Rainne looked up then to see the arena. It was insanity. There

were hundreds of people lined up out front. Reporters and fans were

swarming like locusts outside the stage door. Police and sheriff’s

deputies were covering every inch of the property on foot and with

dogs.

The convoy stopped near the stage door, and Rainne could see the

sheriff’s deputies get out and secure the scene. “We ready?” she asked

with a small thrill of excitement flowing through her system.

“Let’s rock!” the band members chanted together.

With that, the van door slid open and James jumped out onto the

concrete. The band flowed out of the vehicle, waving to the crowd.

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Rainne took a silent, steadying breath and stepped out of the van.

She was instantly blinded by the reporters’ cameras, and microphones

were pushed in her direction.

“Rainne! How are you feeling?”

“Have you talked to Carol Stanton or Phillip McCray since their

arrest?”

“Do you have any words for your Cameron Ellis?”

The questions seem never ending. It saddened her that most of

them were here to get information on the company and her stalker.

She tugged on James’s arm for him to halt so she could address the

media.

She turned to the reporters and cleared her throat. “Lately my life

had been full of surprises. The family I thought I had didn’t really

exist, and the friends I’ve held on to over the years turned out to be

more than family.” She turned to see her bandmates watching her

affectionately. “I found strength I never knew I had and stumbled into

a life I never dreamed would be mine.” She reached out as James

grasped her hand and squeezed it gently. “I’m sorry I can’t answer all

of your questions tonight. We have more important things on the

agenda. Now if you will excuse us, we have a competition to win.”

With that statement, she strolled toward the stage door, stopping a few

times to sign autographs and shake hands.

Security opened the doors, and they all disappeared inside. They