His teeth ground when he said it, his dark stare making another pass through the vacancy, aching for the kill.
No question, the guy would give it all for my sister.
Royce Reed? He’d been the Mylton Records exec who’d been sent to see to it that our band, Carolina George, signed on the dotted line with the mega record label. At the time, I hadn’t known he’d had ulterior motives—he was in it to take down his piece-of-shit stepfather, Karl Fitzgerald, who’d been the record label’s CEO.
“You don’t actually think my stepfather and Cory Douglas are gonna go down without a fight, do you? After what I took from them?” Anger leaked from the statement.
Royce had undermined his stepfather’s entire criminal organization and tossed him from his wicked throne. Found evidence of the vile and depraved acts Karl Fitzgerald was championing—serving up a lifestyle of sex, drugs & rock ‘n’ roll.
No surprise there.
Except he’d taken it to whole new levels. Throwing lavish parties, drugs laid out on a silver platter in front of you, women or men there to entertain, naked and ready.
Only they weren’t willing.
Not present of their own accord.
Forced into servitude.
Indentured to Karl and his seedy empire.
Too many artists were far too happy to take a slide into his perverted playground.
Little did they know they were being photographed. The images used to manipulate Mylton Records’ artists into doing what he wanted. Siphoning from their royalties. Forcing them into amended contracts that completely screwed them. A leash tied around their necks. Call me a judgmental prick, but I knew firsthand most of them deserved it.
Problem was, I’d ended up in some of those pictures, but not because I’d been game to overindulge in what wasn’t mine.
When Royce had struck, presenting the evidence that’d had Karl Fitzgerald and one of his top musicians, Cory Douglas, arrested, I’d struck, too.
Desperate to do something right. But it was dangerous and probably would cost me my life.
Because that empire went so much deeper than anyone knew.
But I didn’t care. Nothing mattered but setting this one thing right.
I’d already lost everything else that mattered to me.
Royce was the only one who knew. The only one I trusted. Him and Kade.
I angled in closer, my tone a low hiss. “And you think they’re not gonna notice what I took from them? You think that’s just gonna slide? You and I both know Karl was nothing but a puppet. A fall guy. And you know that monster sitting up there on his throne playing Master of the World is pissed. You know he’ll do whatever it takes not to be exposed. And if he’s caught onto my trail? Coming back here would be the stupidest thing I could have done.”
Might as well have put up a welcome sign with the way I’d invited them to my doorstep. Drawing them close to the people I wanted them farthest from.
Royce set his hand on my shoulder. “Whether they’re here for you or me, we’re in this together. We just have to play it cool until we make it to trial, you get me?”
I gave him a rigid nod and looked off into the distance when I answered, “Yeah.”
Problem was, how we were actually going to get there. How we could pull this off when everything was against us.
Royce straightened his suit jacket. “Good. We need to get back to the party before someone notices we’re gone.”
“My sister will have your ass.”
He grinned as we started back in the direction of the hotel. “Nah. She asked me to watch over you.”
My brows rose to the sky. “She thinks I need a babysitter?”
“She thinks you’re trouble, that’s for sure.”
A tumble of light laughter rumbled free. “And she thinks you’re gonna be the one to get me out of it? Has she met you?”
He chuckled a dark sound. “Your sister basically told me she supports any and all measures in making sure Karl and Cory go down and go down hard. Think my taking up your back counts.”
He spared me a telling glance. The less my sister knew the better. With the baby coming and trying to throw together a wedding before the trial, she didn’t need the stress or the worry.
“Want justice for her. For your sister. For all of them,” I said.
Karl and Cory had hurt far too many people close to me and it was coming back around.
They say payback is a bitch.
Nah.
She was the motherfucking executioner.
Two
Richard
Straightening our suits, Royce and I slipped back through the front doors of the nicest hotel in Dalton, South Carolina.
Dalton was my hometown. Wasn’t much more than a speck on the map. Farms for miles and old friends for days. You couldn’t go anywhere without someone knowing your name.
Which was the reason when I visited, I typically slipped in and slipped right back out. Staying within the safety of the walls of my childhood house. Doing my best to keep under the radar which was kind of hysterical considering the fame our band, Carolina George, was skyrocketing to.
Yeah, that was fuckin’ dangerous, too.
It was no secret I’d been pushing for my band to sign with Mylton Records. What they hadn’t known was the real motive.
They hadn’t known I’d been trying to get closer. On the inside. To infiltrate far above Karl Fitzgerald himself.
Honestly, I didn’t know how to balance this dangerous maneuver with the actual needs of the band who still didn’t know what was going down.
No doubt, now that we were signed with Stone Industries, things were getting ready to change for the band and in a big, big way.
Wanted it.
Fuck.
I wanted it.
For my crew because they deserved it more than any group of people I’d ever met.
Just prayed this mess wasn’t going to silence us before we even had the chance to really start.
Wasn’t ashamed to say that Carolina George was good.
Hell, I’d go so far as to say great, and that wasn’t arrogance rearing its ugly head.
It
