Guitar Face Series Box Set: Books 1-4

by Sasha Marshall

  “The man has some balls fucking with somebody in this group,” Joe seethes.

  “He won’t after tonight.”

  ***

  Cory

  Four hours later

  “Can you try to drink some water for me?” I ask Henley?

  She began regaining movement forty five minutes ago and speaking although she doesn't say much.

  "Do you remember me telling you what happened Hen?"

  "Mostly. Roofied. Couldn't move." she says with dry throat.

  "Nobody hurt you Henley. I found you in time, but Marques found the guy who roofied you. It was intended for Tabithia."

  "Why?"

  "I can't explain to you why people hurt other people like that. Nothing the guy will say to me will be a logical response to someone like you or I."

  "Does she know?"

  "No. I haven't told Tabithia yet, but I will for her own good. She needs to know what can happen. All the women on this tour should."

  "Yeah," she agrees.

  "Hen, look at me."

  She turns her eyes from the ceiling to me.

  "Several things I need you to get on board with, darlin'. First, the drinking has gotten out of hand on this tour. All these boys are using the bullshit with the media as an excuse to numb whatever is going on inside. I see a lot of shit, Hen. Ain't much I don't know about every member of this tour from the musicians to the roadies. I watch and see it all."

  "Tell me," she asks.

  Cory sighs and looks down at his feet for a few moments, carefully choosing his word, "I'm worried about Kip and Memphis most. Both have had their lives turned upside down. Memphis has had more time to deal with it, but he isn't always a man of many words. The shit his mom did keep Derek away from him all those years drove him down a path of addiction and he's getting close to getting back on it. The man is numbing his pain. It's the same shit Kip is going through, but his wound is fresher. I honestly don't know where Kip would be right now if the two of you didn't get together when you did. You are that man's saving grace and always have been. You two have been thick as thieves since you were kids. He's dragging you down a path you don't need to go down because he's too damn scared to go at it alone. He's not being selfish, he's just so wrapped up in his grief that he doesn't realize what he's doing to you."

  I nod and say, "I told him last night I was tired of partying. He soothed away my concerns because I had a problem with coke and not alcohol. I'm not stupid, but he acted like he couldn’t stand to go without me. You know the rest of the story."

  He gruffly informs, "I haven't let any of them see you. No one knows what happened. My energy was put to use by looking after you and finding out who did this shit so it doesn't happen again. I didn't have the time to deal with Kip or your brothers. Joe and Jessie have been holding them at bay. They finally went to sleep so when I get back from dealing with the asshole who did this to you, I'm having a long talk with the men on this tour. For now you need to rest. I'm leaving you in the capable hands of Jessie. You okay with that?" I ask.

  "Yes. I trust her," she stops and I swear the woman looks into my soul. "You love her."

  I sigh and rub my neck.

  "I guess once I feel better you and I are having a long talk. You're a good man. She feels something for you too. Don't hurt each other, Cory."

  "I've not started anything with her. Life is just busy right now,” he bullshits.

  “I guess you need more time off. But that's a bullshit excuse. You're afraid. Of what, I'm not sure but I'll get to the bottom of it eventually," she offers me a weak grin.

  I smile back at her knowing she's been on the receiving end of these conversations many times. She'll make sure I hear her out eventually.

  "What else did I miss with the other guys?" She asks, and I had hoped to save this for later. She'll try to fix them all.

  "Let's start with the hardest first. Jagger misses you. He's still in love with you and I'm going to be frank with you because I always am... the man will always love you. But he loves you enough to know that shit wasn't going to last the way it was going so he let the better man have you. It's not that Kip is a better man than Jagger, he was just the better man for you at the time. Y’all both made mistakes, and the only thing that is ever going to make that better is years. He's lonely. He's digging on Tabithia and her on him but I think he's lost for several reasons. One he's still somewhat hung up on you and comparing her to you because you were all he ever wanted and he's never wanted another woman to know what might wet his appetite now. Two he's not over what he did to you. I don't know how else you can get him to move past it but he's going to have to in order to have a shot at happiness.

  Something is going on with Cam and Kathrine. They're arguing all the damn time. I can't figure out what's up yet though."

  "Yeah I felt like something was up with them too."

  "Rhys, Koi, and Griffin are getting older and hell they've been on the road over a decade. They're tired and lonely. Strange pussy doesn't have the same appeal to a man our age now as it did in our twenties. A man will never tell you they crave love and a woman who is loyal and gives as good as she gets. Whatever was going on with Koi and Jessica has busted up. Rhys is eyeing her and I think he is adhering to man code and not fucking with her out of respect for Koi. Memphis is digging on Meghan but he's got all this other shit in his head taking over his head and not letting his heart do the work. Griffin is obsessed with the new lawyer thing Hillary but I haven't quite figured out what his deal is yet. Everybody is going through life changes and tragedy. Confusion and loneliness is driving them to make bad decisions and numb the pain. The tour is going to get nasty if something doesn't change."

  "Why didn't I see how bad they were all hurting?" She asks with pain in her voice.

  "You are one of the most insightful people I know. I've learned, much like me, it doesn't mean you always share what you've deduced about what's going on around you. That being said, the people you love have gotten really good at hiding their pain from you. I don't know their reasons but they do. I think part of you going along with this month long drinking bender was your way of seeing about them. You were willing to put yourself on a bad path to keep an eye on them. One of the hardest things to do is tell someone you can't help them until they help themselves. I think it's time, because none of them knew you were missing last night. They didn't look for you for the 90 minutes you were gone. Granted most of that time was with me, they didn't know you were gone. I'm not okay with that and you shouldn't be either. Not even when they were loaded into the car did they ask where you were. Not your boyfriend, your brothers, or your band mates realized part of their group was missing until twenty minutes after their vehicle pulled away if I didn’t find you when I did you might not be here now. You would've choked on your own vomit because you couldn't move."

  She swallows hard and tears stream down her face as the realization hits her. If I didn’t find her when I did she’d be dead.

  "I have to go take care of some things. I need you to rest. You'll be tired all day but you still have a show to play. Joe ordered you breakfast, so try to eat. Jessie will take care of you until I get back. Whatever you do, don't call the guys. I need to talk to the entire group before you do because they need to know what kind of condition I found you in last night."

  She nods, "I agree."

  I leave her with Jessie who I want to pull into my arms and kiss but once again fight the overwhelming urge that overtakes me anytime I’m in the same proximity as her. I give her a smile and wink instead and leave to take care of business.

  ***

  I wash the last of the blood from my hands before I enter the SUV. I've got to get back and deal with an angry group of rock stars. They've been blowing up Jessie’s phone frantic to find Henley. They should've been frantic last night.

  Once we arrive back at the hotel I enter the penthouse suite with the rest of the security team. All the women and men on
tour are waiting. Kip is pacing, Memphis is doing shots in silence, Jagger is staring a hole on Tabithia's head, she's lost in thought unaware of his interest, Koi looks like he's had better days, Jessica looks worried, Rhys is playing on his phone without a care in the world, Griffin is eating from a room service tray, and Cam looks angrily at his phone.

  "Last night Henley almost died," I begin with the most dramatic statement I can muster.

  "What?" Kip spins around on his heel as he realizes I'm in the room. "Where is she?"

  "I'll let her decide if she wants to see you after I get finished saying what I came to say," I answer.

  "Well, hurry it up so I can see her. You had no right to keep us from her!" He's pissed.

  "I had every fucking right! For two hours none of you realized she was missing. Two fucking hours! Luckily Joe and I did and found her just in time. When we found her on the floor of the women's restroom she was laying in her own vomit paralyzed because she got roofied. She was sick several more times after we found her and would've died from choking on her own vomit."

  "Who the fuck roofied her?" Koi stands up from the couch.

  "The drink wasn’t meant for Hen. It was meant for Tabithia," Joe says.

  "Tabithia?" Jagger stands up.

  "Yeah, Tabithia," Marques answers but adds, "The bar tender roofied the drink she ordered and made sure the waitress knew to give it to her, but somehow Henley ended up with it."

  "Oh my god," Tabithia covers her mouth with her hand.

  "He's been taken care of and I don't want any questions about him. Not ever," I say.

  "Thanks for saving Henley but we should've known immediately!" Kip yells. "Where the fuck is she?"

  "With somebody I trust," I jab.

  "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" Memphis asks.

  "What it means is there been ten of you in that group last night and not the one of you noticed she was gone for two hours. From the time she went missing until twenty minutes after your car left the club none of you once asked about her. She could've died god dammit! She could've been raped, abducted, tortured, or sold! She was lying in her own fucking vomit after she told you she didn't want to go out. She tried to fucking tell you she was worried about the constant partying and her sobriety and you fucking brushed it off!” I yell at Kip.

  Everyone looks between us and I think I've made my point until they open their mouths.

  "What happened to Hen is fucked up, but no one in this room did that to her. We were drinking and lost track of her. Does it make me feel like shit that she was missing and we weren't there for her? Fuck yeah it does, but don't you dare come in here and blame us for what happened," Memphis sneers at me.

  "She made her own decision to go out last night. She stayed in the night before and she could've last night too. You're acting like we forced her to go out and drink," Rhys says.

  I look at Joe and see his jaw tense.

  "Where is Henley?" Kip asks again.

  "I see this is a lost cause. I'll have her call you when she's ready to see you," I say to Kip and leave the room.

  "You have got to be shitting me," Joe says as we enter the elevator.

  "What is going on with these guys?" Marques asks.

  "Drowning there woes in a bottle," I answer.

  I find Henley asleep and decide not to wake her. She needs her energy for the show tonight. Jessie happily tells me she's eaten, but frowns when she sees that my knuckles are busted.

  "I don't want to know," she says.

  "No. You don't," I look down at her pouty lips and take a step toward her to kiss her.

  She places her hands on my chest to stop me, so I give her room.

  “I’ll text Kip to let him know she is sleeping”

  ***

  Henley

  "I'd like to take a separate car tonight. Would you see if we can take the hotel's limo?" I ask.

  "I'll arrange that now," Jessie says.

  "How are you feeling?" Cory asks.

  "Much better. Tell me what happened today," I say.

  "They weren't very responsive to what I had to say. It did not go how I planned. I was very disappointed in their reactions. Kip is climbing the walls until he sees you," he says.

  "Will you ask him to ride in the limo with me? He can meet me here five minutes before we leave."

  "I'll let him know."

  I sit alone in silence processing what happened. The memories are fuzzy, but not the fear. I'm lucky in all my years on the road to have never experienced this before, but it's something I'll now never forget.

  I'm upset with Kip for dismissing my concern last night after the show, but I made the decision to go out so I can't place blame on him. But damn if it doesn't hurt that not one of them knew I was missing, and I could be dead because if it.

  A few moments before I leave for the show Kip bursts into the room. He crosses it quickly to where I sit on the balcony and kneels in front of me as his arms wrap around me. He holds me tightly as if I'll vanish in thin air if he doesn't hold on tight enough.

  "Five minutes, Hen," Joe announces.

  Kip pulls back and touches my face.

  "I've been so fucking worried," he says with unshed tears in his eyes.

  He presses his lips to mine and holds them there for several moments.

  "Let's go before we're late," I say and stand to walk away.

  He meets up with me moments later and laces his hand in mine as we walk to the elevator. I feel his eyes burn into me as I look straight ahead waiting for the car to arrive. Once it does, we step to the back of it so security can take the front. I feel his eyes still on me and his thoughts swirling around in his head.

  After a chaotic walk to the car and dodging fans, we're tucked in the back safely but alone. As soon as the driver pulls away from the hotel, Kip wraps me in both of his arms and buries my head into his neck.

  "Fuck, baby. I've been so worried. I'm sorry I wasn't there. Jesus I'm so fucking sorry."

  I'm not sure how to respond so I don't. My feelings are hurt, and the fear has yet to subside so I let him hold me in silence while we ride to the venue.

  Cory opens the door when we arrive at the venue so I pull away from him. The expression on Kip's face is full of remorse and concern so I offer a small smile.

  His hand is wrapped tightly in mine as we walk to the dressing room. He doesn't leave while Tabithia does hair and makeup. He stares at me, never taking his eyes off me. Tabithia tries to lighten the mood with small talk but I just don't have it in me.

  He walks me to the side of the stage and waits for me the entire show. Then he walks me to the bus and puts me to bed so he can play his own show.

  ***

  Kip

  "How is she?" Koi asks when I enter the dressing room.

  "Quiet and tired."

  "What do you think they did to the guy?" Cam asks.

  "I hope they killed his ass," Jagger answers.

  I silently agree with him.

  I'm not feeling the music tonight. I'm tired. Exhaustion from drinking is a culprit, but I feel empty all the way down to my bones. As I pound away on my drum kit, images of Henley covered in her own vomit plague my mind. Death was a possibility, but that mother fucker finding her and doing irreparable damage is another. I always heard death is easy, living is the hard part. Her living with that wouldn't be easy. Living without her wouldn't be easy. There's no doubt in my mind I'd die of a broken heart.

  I take a five minute break for water as Jag kills a guitar solo.

  "It's a good thing those skins were designed to take a beating," Cory says from his post on the side of the stage.

  "Tell me," I say.

  "What?”

  "Tell me how you found her."

  He takes me in for a moment and then nods as if he's been waiting for me to ask.

  "The drug causes total paralysis. Each person metabolizes it differently so I don't know how long it took fo
r it to render her helpless. She was able to get into a stall but it wasn't locked. She hit her head so there was some blood and she has a knot on her hairline. Her eyes were wide open and..." he pauses and swallows, "I thought she was fucking dead. Checked her heart rate and respirations which were strong so it didn't take me long to figure out what had happened. She was covered in vomit and laying in a pool of it. Joe and I cleaned her up and pulled her hair back. I put my shirt on her and wrapped her in a blanket. She was sick several more times, so I had to hold her upright to help her. If I hadn't have found her when I did.... she had just gotten sick too many times..."

  "She would've died," I finish for him.

  He sighs, "That would've been the most likely outcome. She couldn't turn or move and eventually the only place for it to go was back down. Her eyes are what killed me. They were wide open, and she was terrified. She couldn’t blink, or speak, or help herself. She knew what was happening and couldn't even close her fucking eyes to escape or sleep. Wide fucking open..."

  I swallow the lump in my throat, "Thank you for saving her when I should've been the one to do it. I owe you more than you'll ever know."

  I return to the stage and the images of blood and puke clutter my brain. The scenes of how the night could've turned out play out in my mind with flashing lights and screams of grief.

  When the show is over I throw my sticks into the crowd and find solace in Henley’s dressing room. I can still smell her here. She was so quiet earlier. I need her to scream and fight with me. I need her to tell me how I failed her. I need to know what she feels and I need her to be ruthless with me. I deserve whatever she throws my way, but I can't take the silence. It's deafening and too easy. I don't deserve easy.

  When I enter her bus I see the hallway of the bunk room littered with men. Jagger, Koi, Cam, Rhys, and Griffin watch her sleep. They pass a whiskey bottle between them and watch on in silence. I walk through them and stand at the entrance of the door to the back room. I see Memphis staring at her from the opposite bottom bunk.