She stopped and grabbed his arm. “Sully, this was not a random fan. This was someone from Kit’s past.”
Stunned, his eyes widened. “What?”
Spencer stood up as Sully and Giselle approached. He gave him a nod. When he got closer they quickly embraced.
Sully searched his eyes looking for a glimmer of hope. “How is she? Any news?”
He shook his head. “No. She’s still in surgery. I’m glad you’re here and you’re safe. Listen, we need to talk.”
Giselle knew her cue. She nodded and was about to leave when Spencer’s words stopped her in her tracks. “This concerns you too, G, so hang in with us.”
She silently sidled up to Sully. He frowned and looked at Spencer. “What’s up?”
Spencer met his eyes. “The tour is cancelled as of an hour ago. The formal announcement hasn’t gone out yet, but it will later in the week.”
Sully’s eyes widened. “Spence—we’re talking two legs of a tour, one of which is North America—our largest fan base. That’s a little under three months of shows… sold out shows! That’s a massive revenue hit. Sean told me he was only cancelling the remaining three shows from this week.”
Sully couldn’t mask his frustration. “Who the hell authorized this? The next manager in command after Kit is me. It’s in the KMK contract, Spence.” He gave him a disapproving glance.
Spencer shook his head and continued. “Not when the chairman of Diamond Entertainment, the CEO of the record label and the CEO of the management company override it. That’s in your contract too. At the time when Kit drafted the original contract, she was the acting CEO of KMK and I suspect she never knew it would get as big as it is now.”
He sighed. “Regardless, it’s done. Yes, it’s a substantial revenue loss, but we have insurance and may be able to make up some of the dates for the larger arenas and stadiums later down the road. We’re looking into that.”
Sully glared as his temper started to flare. “Who the fuck is we?”
Moira walked up and exchanged a look between Spencer, Sully and Giselle. She frowned. “Watch your language, Pat. People are here trying to heal or trying to relax while their loved ones are healing. The last thing they need are your foul-mouthed antics.”
Sully refused to look at his mother and broached the subject again, using a more calm, centered approach. “Spencer, please help me understand who came to this decision and why I wasn’t part of the conversation. You mentioned you were talking to the label.”
He nodded. “We weren’t intentionally keeping you out of the loop. You were on route here and we didn’t want to disrupt your travel for a meeting that I could brief you on later.”
He continued. “Here’s the run down. Kit is CEO of Flat 5, your label, and you know that’s an imprint of Diamond. With her incapacitated, the leadership of the imprint rolls to corporate, meaning, the CEO of Diamond Records, Jonathan. Sully, when Lew and Jonathan Diamond call you and tell you to cancel the tour, it’s in your best interest to do it. The call came from them moments after I informed Lew’s assistant about what happened to Kit. They’ll be here later tonight, in person, so I suggest you play nice. Sorry to pull rank here, but you’re not management, you’re the talent and no doubt they’ll remind you of that if you try to fight this.”
Seeing the look on Sully’s face of sheer shock and horror paired with disappointment, he placed his hand on his shoulder. “Listen, we may be able to negotiate rescheduling dates. It’s just not going to happen today. Focus on being here for your wife today. That’s your priority.”
He met his eyes. “Take a moment to get your head on straight, Sull. I get it. You’ve got a lot coming at ya. Let’s give it a week and then we can schedule a meeting with Lew and Jonathan. If we do that, it’s best to come up with a strategy beforehand… and a really good one. I’d be happy to help you do that.”
The wheels turned in Sully’s head. He was determined to come up with a solution.
Giselle interjected. “So if the tour is cancelled, does this mean everyone is heading back?”
Spencer nodded. “They’ve got the jet scheduled to fly out of San Antonio in two hours. We have the rigs and crew staying in Texas until we decide if we’re going to reschedule soon.”
Sully pointed. “So a timely reschedule is a possibility.”
Spencer shook his head. “Sull, give it a rest.”
Moira linked her arm in Sully’s. “C’mon, let’s go for a walk.”
He glanced over at her and wanted to protest, but seeing the look in his mother’s eyes, reluctantly went along with it. “Ok.”
Moira led him outside to a private patio where they couldn’t be seen. She let him go and folded her arms in front of her chest. “What is up with you, Pat, huh? Your wife is fighting for her life right now and you’re more concerned about going back out on the road? I can tell you’ve been using drugs again—you’ve got that wild look in your eyes. Is that what this is about?”
He avoided her gaze and started fidgeting as he paced. Reality was sinking in and he wanted to avoid it at all costs. His mother had stirred up everything that he had been trying to avoid. Now that he wasn’t able to go back out on the road, the facts of what had transpired in the last twenty-four hours were staring him in the face. He felt like he was teetering on the edge of a panic attack, yet pushed it down.
He nodded, trying to convince his mother and himself. He looked terrified. Thoughts rushed through his mind in staccato as his words were harried when he
