Chart Toppers (Star Maker Book 3)

by J. M. Nevins

  She immediately noticed the shift in energy at the table. Jovial conversation ceased, Nicky sat at attention, Spencer’s ears perked up, and Sully stared in anticipation of Frank’s words. The tone had instantly become somber and restrained. Kit tried to ignore it. “Oh yeah? What did you find out?”

  She gave Frank her full attention as the server deposited a highly anticipated sliver of classic cheesecake in front of her that she had been excited about earlier. She shifted her eyes down, swallowed hard and gently pushed the small dessert plate back, suddenly uninterested while her stomach contracted into a series of nervous knots.

  He sighed. “I’m sorry, Kit. It’s not good.” He exchanged a look with Nicky that made Kit’s heart race with trepidation. She sensed more unpleasant news headed her way and wondered if she should do a few shots of whiskey to soften the blow before Frank continued.

  Nicky nodded. “Kitty, you were played. I’m sure you’re aware of that. But there’s more to it. We’ve been doing some recon on DBBT. We’re pretending we want to sign with them, but…”

  Before he could continue, two suspicious looking, well-dressed men and their doting wives interrupted. Spencer and Sully exchanged a concerned look and watched carefully as Nicky and Frank interacted warmly with them. Kit frowned, trying to understand what was going on. The men were clearly good friends. Introductions lacking detail were hastily made before they departed.

  Frank turned his attention back to Kit. “Sorry about the interruption. Kit, we suggest you go to a private eye, and we have a suggestion on who you can hire to get the job done right. Based on our findings, we think there’s some pretty serious foul play going on.”

  Nicky spouted off without thinking. “Yeah and Blake Templeton is in big fucking trouble.”

  Frank shot him a dirty glare that quickly silenced him. Kit’s anxiety jumped up a tick and her level of suspicion dramatically increased. She surveyed them both closely. “Nicky, what does that mean? What’s going on here?”

  Frank shook his head and interjected before Nicky could respond. “Kit, it’s best that you stay out of the details right now. Let us handle it. You gotta trust us here. We’re helping behind the scenes. In the meantime, hire the private eye. Here’s his card. Get your ducks in a row, and we will help you rectify this situation properly.”

  She took the business card offered, glanced at it only briefly and then frowned. “But how? I don’t understand. There are so many unknowns right now.” She leaned forward and met his intense gray eyes. “I appreciate your loyalty to me, Frank, but I really don’t understand what you’re saying.”

  He nodded. “I get that. I do. It’s best you don’t know for now. The private eye will help you get your facts in order. We’re going to keep DBBT thinking we’re going to sign, but I assure you that we will not. It’s mainly to get an inside edge that you can use to your advantage. Rest assured that Blake and Dante are being watched.”

  She stared at him and felt her stomach turn seeing the look of determination in his eyes. She nodded slowly and swallowed hard. “Ok, Frank. Thanks for letting me know.” She couldn’t handle the intensity any longer and desperately craved a break. She looked across the table at Bernie and Valentina. “I need to take a trip to the ladies’ room. Care to join me?”

  Bernie and Valentina eagerly nodded and quickly accompanied Kit. They remained silent as they left the table. Once in the confines of a vacant ladies’ room, Kit faced them. “Bernie, what the hell is going on?”

  She sighed and shifted her eyes down as she tucked her lipstick back into her clutch. “Shit, Kit. Not here.”

  Valentina’s brown eyes widened, and her head bobbed. “She’s right, Kit.”

  Bernie looked up and met Kit’s eyes as she reached out and squeezed her hand. “Give me a minute and then we’ll go for a walk around the block. Trust me, the guys won’t miss us. We can have a smoke and talk.”

  The three women walked side by side on a busy Manhattan sidewalk just a stone’s throw from the restaurant. Valentina reached out and lit Kit’s cigarette and then lit her own. She inhaled and blew out the smoke evenly.

  Bernie met Kit’s curious look and nodded. “This whole DBBT thing goes way beyond you, Kitty. There are forces in play that no one would ever want to mess with them. Retribution is coming.” She took Kit’s hand again and squeezed it as her ice blue eyes held a hopeful look. “You’re on the right side of this and it’s just like Frankie said. They have your back. Get the private eye, let nature take its course and stay the hell out of the way.”

  Kit frowned. “Bernie, I feel like you’re talking in code. What the hell are you talking about?”

  She sighed. “Just trust me, Frank is on the straight and narrow with you. Those guys are on your side and trust me, they’re the team you want backing you. Follow their advice, and you’ll be just fine.”

  Kit wanted to drill Bernie for more information, but realized now wasn’t the time. They left the table some time ago and needed to get back to the party that awaited them. As they entered the restaurant and headed back, she gave both women a grin of agreement. She silently mouthed thank you as they took their seats.

  Spencer poured drinks for everyone as they took their seats in Wes’s office later that night. Alexa had put Kelsey to bed and fallen asleep well before the group returned from dinner, but Wes was still awake and willing to engage in conversation. Spencer handed him a glass of scotch on the rocks.

  Wes frowned, mentally surveying the details shared by Sully as he sat back. “Ok, so wait a minute. Who were the guys that stopped by again?”

  Kit shook her head. “Can’t remember.” Actually, she wanted nothing more than to forget.

  Sully got more comfortable on the rich, leather sofa. “One of the guys had the last name of Calabrese.”

  Spencer interjected and took a seat on the wingback chair opposite Wes. “And the other guy was Provenzano.”

  He grimaced and then looked at Kit. “What’s the last name of your friends again?”

  She sighed. “Nicky Campo and Frank DeCampo.”

  He nodded. “I take it Nicky’s last name is a stage name?”

  She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know for sure, but Frank’s related to him, so I’d assume DeCampo is Nicky’s real last name.”

  Sully took a gulp of his scotch and felt himself loosen up. He exchanged a look with Wes. “Doesn’t leave this room?”

  He nodded. “Of course.”

  Sully sighed. “I think we’re dealing with the mob here.”

  Spencer’s blue-green eyes widened as did Kit’s. Wes remained unfazed and nodded in agreement as he sipped his scotch. “I’ll confirm it tomorrow, Sull, but I think you’re onto something. Maybe not your DeCampo friends, but the last names of the other guys… well, let’s just say that I’ve heard things, and I know people who have those kinds of clients—wise guys.”

  Kit stared at Sully. “What? Are you kidding me? Sull, that’s a pretty heavy observation. How can you make that assumption?”

  He gulped his scotch again. “I can spot the profile miles away.”

  She frowned. “Huh? How? You’ve lost me.”

  Spencer stared at Sully and chuckled. “Let me guess, you studied the Irish mob.”

  He shook his head and grinned. “No. I didn’t study it. I know it well. A family that lived down the street from me growing up was in deep. One of their kids was a childhood friend, but he and I parted ways when he got deeper into the family business, and I left for L.A.”

  Wes sighed and nodded. “Kit, those names hold quite a reputation in Brooklyn. Legendary. I would tell you to tread lightly, but it seems these guys are on your side. Do what the DeCampo guy said.”

  Kit let out a frustrated sigh. “I still don’t understand the connection between these mob guys, KMK, and DBBT, though. I’m so confused.”

  Sully gently patted her knee. “We’ll get to the bottom of it, babe. We need to uncover more pieces of this puzzle, that’s all. And now we have
the formula to do it.”

  Spencer nodded. “He’s right, Kit. If we all pull together, you will get out of this mess on the right side of the law and be profitable.”

  The gravity of the last month’s events combined with the evening’s discoveries had finally hit her. She buried her head in her hands and took a moment to calm herself. She felt Sully’s gentle touch as he stroked her back.

  The reality of her failing management company was staring her in the face again, and she could no longer keep her head in the sand wishing it would go away. She had to face the facts. She lifted her head and nodded. “Ok.” She looked around the room slowly, meeting their gazes. “We’ll get to work on this starting tomorrow.”

  CHAPTER 2

  The reflection of the woman staring back at her appeared composed, confident and strong. Kit felt like none of those things as she touched up her lipstick and took a deep breath.

  She and Sully had returned from New York two days prior. The ball was rolling on her life, and she struggled to keep up. The private eye was hired immediately and was already at work. She had spent the last two days planning the resurrection of KMK Management with Spencer and Sully. Now, the Diamond meeting was upon her, and she was dreading it.

  She had learned from Pete that the rumor mill was churning talk of a complete rework of Diamond Corporate, and no one was safe. He shared his concern that there was a chief creative officer being brought in to run the A&R department. He wasn’t a candidate, nor did he want to be, but he questioned his job security and wondered if he would be forced into an earlier retirement than he had planned.

  Kit came to question her job security as well when she learned that Daniel Thomas had become the golden boy of the legal department in her absence and was believed to be taking over her position.

  She closed her eyes and wondered if her head was on the chopping block and her tenure at Diamond was coming to a close. Lew hadn’t taken her calls lately, and she forced herself not to jump to conclusions. This pattern had happened before in the past. It often had nothing to do with her, but on the heels of swirling rumors, she contemplated if this could be a different case.

  She headed downstairs in search of Spencer, who was accompanying her to the meeting. She intended to introduce him to the team as KMK’s new CEO. She strolled into her office and chuckled seeing him sitting at her desk, reviewing a document. “What are you reading? Looks interesting. It certainly has your attention.”

  He looked up and grinned, offering it to her. “You’ll want to see this, sis.”

  She seized the document, and looked at him again. “Is this from the private eye already?”

  He shook his head. “No, but I suspect that one of our new, Mafioso, Brooklyn friends sent this to you. It was sitting on the fax machine when I walked into the office.”

  She scanned the document and her eyes widened. Suddenly, she felt like she was playing a chess game and had found the winning strategy. She laughed and looked at Spencer, her emerald eyes dancing with delight. “Can you say checkmate?”

  He sat back and shook his head, remaining serious. “Kit, we don’t have the kind of money to acquire them.”

  She snorted. “No, KMK doesn’t, but Diamond sure does and big majors have no problem acquiring other labels when the opportunity presents itself. I think lady luck just walked through the door.” Her emerald eyes twinkled again. “We have a meeting with Lew and the team in twenty minutes.” She folded the document in half and winked. “Let me grab my bag and we’ll head out.”

  As they headed down the hill on their way to Diamond Records, Kit’s stomach churned with anxiety once again, reminded of Pete’s words and her uncertain future at Diamond Records. She forced herself to brush it off. Fifteen minutes later, they headed into the lobby where she recognized the receptionist, Cara. She strolled up to the desk and smiled. “Hey, girl!”

  Cara looked up and smiled. “Kit! So great to see you!” She stood up and gave her a hug over the large reception desk. “Congrats on all the success with GT. I’m so happy for you. Are you back in town for good now?”

  She nodded. “We’ve been back for a few weeks. It’s nice to be back in my bed for a change.”

  Cara smiled. “No doubt. I see you have your badge. Anything else I can do for you?”

  Kit pulled Spencer forward. “Cara, this is my brother, Spencer. Spence this is Cara, receptionist extraordinaire.”

  She grinned and extended her hand to shake his. “Great to meet you, Spencer.” She looked up at Kit. “I’ll get him a visitor badge.”

  “Yes, with escorted access to the executive floor. He’ll be in the meeting with us.”

  Cara got busy making a visitor badge for Spencer while he and Kit both looked around the lobby with its fair share of platinum and gold records lining the walls. Spencer was in awe. The sight was old hat to Kit and didn’t faze her until she noticed familiar album artwork in her peripheral vision.

  She walked over to the platinum record mounted on the wall and gushed with pride as she smiled from ear to ear. The plaque showcased Gypsy Tango’s now platinum album, ‘Dangerous Curves.’ The first album she produced along with Sully.

  Cara noticed her across the lobby admiring the plaque and yelled out to her. “They put that up yesterday, Kit. I think Pete has all the plaques upstairs for you and the guys. I’m sure Mindy will have all the details for you in case you need to order more for family or home studios, etcetera.”

  Kit returned to Spencer’s side, shaking her head in amazement and giggling. “Wow! That’s quite a sight to see. Wasn’t expecting that so early in the morning. That was a nice little surprise. Gave me more of a jolt than my coffee did.”

  Cara grinned. “You’re all set. You can go ahead and go up. I called Giselle. They’re expecting you on thirteen.”

  She nodded. “Thanks again, Cara. See you later.” She led Spencer toward the elevators after Cara buzzed them past the large glass security doors. He watched her as they got into the elevator, and she pressed the button marked “E.” An alarm sounded loudly in the elevator. Kit had momentarily forgotten protocol and quickly placed her badge on the magnetic pad next to the buttons. The alarm ceased and the elevator started its climb.

  Spencer glanced at her. “The executives are on the 13th floor?”

  She giggled. “Yep. Kind of fun. We like to think of thirteen as lucky.” She winked.

  He frowned. “What was up with the alarm?”

  “Only certain people that have access to the floor. It’s coded into the badges. You either use your badge, or you have an escort with an appropriate badge. Not just anyone is allowed onto the executive floor. Do you have any idea how many bands will have one of their guys or gals try to pose as messengers or delivery people just to drop off a demo? It’s insane. Cara spends half of her day managing people like that.”

  Spencer laughed. “Crazy! A whole different world, I swear.”

  Kit giggled. “Oh Spence, honey, you have no idea.”

  When the elevator doors opened, she sauntered confidently toward the executive boardroom with Spencer in tow trying to keep up. He watched in wonder as the scene unfolded before his eyes. Giselle, Kit’s assistant, seemed to materialize out of nowhere and hand her a cup of coffee prepared perfectly to her specifications. She then promptly took Spencer’s coffee order without missing a beat before they could reach the entrance to the boardroom where everyone had assembled and were just getting settled in.

  Kit greeted everyone warmly and was happy to see the reciprocation. She tried to leverage it in her mind to quell the anxiety about losing her job but wasn’t as successful as she had hoped. She introduced Spencer, and the meeting commenced with the first item on the agenda, a recap of the KMK disaster.

  When Kit’s detailed synopsis of the chain of events was complete, Lew and Jonathan grimaced. Daniel and Pete easily empathized with Kit, shook their heads in dismay and couldn’t mask the looks of disappointment on their faces.

  Daniel looked at
her and spoke up. “I hate to tell you this, Kit, but the management contracts you had with Diamond are gone. There’s no way we can rework them.”

  She stared at him in disbelief, her eyes wide. “What? How did that happen?”

  Lew sighed and matched the same look of disappointment that still remained on all the faces in the room. “Kit, while I was on vacation and you were on the road, the contracts were allocated to Drew Gandalf because they were flagged incorrectly as low priority. Daniel was working on GT and several other high priority contracts. Drew signed off on the contracts in question. There were six artists that we had with KMK. All six are now DBBT Entertainment. I’m sorry, Kit, but from the management side, our hands are tied at this point.”

  Kit sat back in her chair, stunned. She was rendered speechless. She felt her anger rising, and her mind reeled with questions. How could Dante, whose career she made, stab her in the back, steal her artists and start a company with Blake Templeton? She was completely flabbergasted.

  She remembered the first time she met Blake in person at the party he had thrown in his trendy Soho loft when she was temporarily living in New York. All the unwanted advances and obnoxious bouquets of flowers flooded her mind. She easily recalled how he forced himself onto her at the Diamond Records party, trying to make out with her in front of a ballroom of her peers.

  She was livid now recalling those unpleasant memories and silently wondered if Blake asking her out had been a thinly veiled attempt to gain access to KMK. Access that would afford him the possibility of taking it over while taking her out of power and influence in the music industry in the process. She recalled how angry Blake had been when she wouldn’t accept a date.

  She assessed what triggered his motive—her complete refusal of him the year before, especially after she threatened him with legal action for inappropriate behavior after the Diamond Records party. The scenario was starting to make more sense now. Since he couldn’t get into her pants and ruin her reputation, he may as well go for the jugular and take down the credibility of her career. With KMK Management being a highly neglected, sitting duck with a spineless CEO like Dante at the helm, easily lured by power, money and empty promises it was an easy coup.