by J. L. Paul
“If you’re done with whatever you were doing, we should go. Kevin is going to meet me at the hotel at six-thirty,” Jenny said.
“Okay,” I said, sending a text message to Greta, Carly, and Cammy to let them know what was going on. “I’ll tell the other girls to finish up what they’re doing and to head to the hotel.”
We got to the hotel in enough time to wish the guys luck before the show. We stood just off stage, Jenny and Kevin joining us, and watched the show. It had been a long time since I’d been able to watch them this way and I’d nearly forgotten how thrilling it was. Not only was the sound good, but I was able to watch their little quirks – the things that would hit me during the long, lonely nights before I’d reunited with Jake.
The day was beginning to catch up to me. Exhaustion was creeping into my body, tugging at my eyes, making me yawn. The show was almost over and I just wanted to crawl into the bed upstairs in my hotel room with Jake beside me.
Finally, the show ended to an explosion of applause. The guys came running backstage, sweating and panting.
“Give the crowd a couple of minutes to clear and then we can start tearing down the stage,” Jake said.
“Don’t you have crew?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Jake said. “But not a full crew. I just rounded up volunteers so I didn’t have to pay anyone. We wanted all the money to go to the Center.”
Security quickly cleared the crowd and the guys went to work packing up guitars and winding up cords. I helped for a bit but I couldn’t stop yawning.
“Go up to the room and sleep,” Jake ordered. “We got it under control.”
“I’m fine,” I tried to argue.
“Iz,” Jake sighed. “Greta already went to bed. Carly is up in her room, calling Ronnie’s mom to check on RJ. Cammy and Jenny left to count money. You need to get some rest. It’s been a long day for you.”
“Fine,” I grumbled. “How much longer will you be?”
“Not long,” Jake said. “The security guard near the elevator can walk you up to the room.”
Rolling my eyes, I pecked his cheek. “I think I can make it there on my own.”
He lifted a brow. “Humor me, huh?”
“Fine,” I grumbled again as I waved to everyone. Pushing through the side door, I found myself in a long, dimly lit corridor. The elevator was a short walk to the left, next to a utility room, and the only exit was through double glass doors leading to the bar at the end of the hall to the right.
Glancing both ways, I tried to find the security guard but he was nowhere in sight. I considered going back to find Jake but decided that I could certainly handle riding the elevator up to the top floor. Still, I wondered what had happened to the guard. Jake would be extremely upset if the guy had decided he was done for the day and knocked off early. Perhaps he was in the bar, having a drink.
Just as I turned to the left, I noticed the utility room door ajar and something sticking out of it. Squinting my eyes, I concentrated hard; finally making out that the object was a black shoe.
“What in the world?” I mumbled as I walked toward it. I didn’t think it belonged to anyone from the band since most of the guys wore sneakers on stage, but I couldn’t be sure. I’d hate to listen to any of them grumbling because they lost a shoe.
As I neared, the door squeaked as it opened and Brad stepped out, something in his hand.
“Hello, Isabella.”
My heart stilled as my body froze. “What are you doing here? How did you get in?”
“It’s amazing what you can accomplish when you have money,” he said, snatching my arm. “Now come on. It’s time for you to return home.”
I struggled in his grasp, reaching in my pocket with my free hand for my phone. I couldn’t find it.
“Just leave now, Brad, and I won’t tell anyone about this,” I said, trying to reason.
He chuckled as he punched the elevator button with the thing in his hand. I couldn’t tell if it was a gun or a Taser and was too afraid to ask.
“I’m leaving, all right,” he said. “With my fiancée. We’ll go home tonight and be married in the morning.”
“Too late,” I said, pain radiating up to my shoulder as I twisted my arm, trying to loosen his grip.
“Iz, you forgot…Stanich! Let go of her!”
I turned, my heart thrilling at the sound of Jake’s voice. He stood, momentarily rooted to the spot in front of the stage door, my phone in his hand.
“Go away, Johnson,” Brad said, brandishing his weapon. “Just go back to your druggie friends and leave Isabella alone.”
“Don’t be stupid, Stanich,” Jake said, his handsome features marred by ugly anger. He took a step forward. “Let her go.”
Brad punched the button again, several times in quick succession.
“You need a security guard with keys to get in that elevator,” Jake said. “How did you get in here, anyway?”
Brad snorted, his eyes focusing on the shoe I’d seen earlier. It dawned on me in that moment that the shoe must belong to the missing security guard.
“It wasn’t difficult,” he said with an irritating smirk. “Money will get you anything. All I had to do was check into the hotel under a different name. Your security company employs some young men who are probably drug addicts like yourself. All I had to do was find one guarding this elevator on one of the floors. I told him I was a big fan and that I was dying from a fatal disease. I said that it was my dying wish to meet the band and if he’d let me on the elevator, I’d get autographs and leave. He was reluctant at first – even checked my ID. It was fake, of course. In the business world, it helps to have an alias from time to time. So, I gave this young man five hundred dollars and he let me in the elevator.”
Jake’s fist tightened on my phone as his eyes remained on Brad’s face. The desperation on his face was evident and I could tell he was struggling to figure out a way to get me out of there.
“Okay, so you managed to get down here and shoot the other guard,” Jake said. “Bravo. You’re so smart and all that shit. Now what are you going to do? Are you going to shoot me?”
“Jake,” I whined, so afraid that Brad had every intention of doing just that.
“I’m a man who can think on his feet,” Brad said, his eyes crazed. “Now, why don’t you get the keys off that unfortunate fellow over there and toss them to me.”
Jake glanced quickly at the utility room, his mouth tightening at the sight of the foot, and then turned his eyes back on Brad.
“What are you going to do with Iz once you get her on the elevator?” Jake asked in an obvious attempt to stall.
Desperate, I looked down the hall at the double glass doors, mentally willing someone to notice what was going on. I could clearly see a guard in the bar, standing with his back to us, preventing anyone from trying to enter the corridor. If only he would turn around just once…
“I am going to take Isabella home, where she belongs,” Brad said. “We’ll be married like we planned and you’ll become a distant memory.”
“Too late,” Jake said. “She already married me.”
Brad’s eyes narrowed. “She’ll have it annulled.”
Jake opened his mouth, perhaps to tell Brad about the baby, but shut it again. I gave him a slight shake of my head. If Brad found out about the baby, would it fuel his anger? Would he do something to hurt me or the baby?
“Get the keys,” Brad said.
Jake, seeing no other choice, walked to the utility room, opened the door, and bent over the guard. I couldn’t see clearly but it appeared as if Jake was checking the poor man for a pulse. Jake moved again and then stood, a key ring in his hand.
“Here,” Jake said, inching closer.
“Don’t come near me,” Brad ordered. “Toss the keys at my feet.”
Trembling, I watched as Jake weighed his options, the keys dangling from his fingers. In his other hand, he still held my phone clenched in his right fist.
“You didn’t s
hoot the guard,” Jake said, taking another step forward.
“I didn’t have to,” Brad said. “But I will shoot you.”
“With a stun gun?” Jake asked.
“I’ll use it on Isabella,” Brad said, yanking me closer and pressing the gun to my stomach. “Right here, shake that baby up a little bit.”
A whimper escaped my lips as Jake blanched. Still, he stepped closer.
“You don’t want to hurt Isabella or her baby,” Jake said, tightening his hold on my phone. “Do you?”
“I’ll do what I have to do,” Brad said. “Toss the keys.”
In the blink of an eye, Jake hurled my phone at Brad, hitting him above his right eye. It was enough for Brad to loosen his grip. I yanked my arm out of his grasp and ran toward the double glass doors while Jake swung the keys at Brad’s face to distract him long enough to wrest the stun gun from Brad’s grip.
I pushed the first set of doors open, attracting the attention of the guard. Seeing the terror on my face, the guard rushed through the other set of doors and immediately spotted the struggle going on behind me.
“Stop right there!” he shouted as he ran to Jake and Brad, doing his best to rip them apart.
The stage door opened, spilling Nick, Ronnie, and Matt into the corridor.
“What the hell?” Nick shouted as the three of them rushed forward to help the guard. When they managed to pull them apart, the stun gun skidded across the floor, stopping at my feet.
“How the hell did he get in here?” Matt asked, red blotches high on his cheeks.
“Long story,” Jake said, panting. “You okay, Iz?”
I nodded as the guard cuffed Brad and then radioed for help. He rushed to the utility room to check on the other guard while Ronnie and Nick stood over Brad.
Jake tugged me into his arms, his heart thumping just as hard as mine. I buried my face into his chest while my breath slowed. After a moment, I drew back to survey the bruise on Jake’s jaw.
“Ow,” I whispered.
“It’s nothing,” he said, kissing my cheek. “Are you hurt?”
I shook my head.
The area soon became swamped with police officers, talking to everyone and taking statements. Paramedics arrived and loaded the unconscious security guard on a gurney, assuring us that he would be okay. It wasn’t until an hour and a half later that we were able to retire to our room.
“He’s going away for a long, long time, Iz,” Jake said as we crawled into bed. “I spoke with one of the detectives and he said that he did a little research on Brad and what he found wasn’t pretty. He’s been involved with some shady business deals, money laundering, and … well, domestic battery. His father is in trouble, too. Apparently, Stanich isn’t even their real name.”
Although I was taken aback by Brad’s grocery list of crimes, I was just too tired to care. The only thing that mattered was that he was going to jail and Jake and I were safe.
“He’s out of our lives forever,” I said.
Jake wrapped me in his arms and I rested my head on his chest. “Yes, he is. Now we can concentrate on our baby and our future.”
“Yeah,” I said as my eyes fluttered shut.
I would do just that.
Epilogue
I woke from my brief nap, sore and still tired, but content. Outside the window, the early morning sun was blocked by gray clouds. Light, fluffy snowflakes drifted by, swirling and dancing before hitting the ground.
I scooted up in the bed, mindful of the IV taped to my hand, and glanced around the dim room. The chair parked beside my bed was empty, which puzzled me – Jake hadn’t left my side since we’d arrived the previous morning.
Reaching for the plastic cup on the rollaway table beside the bed, I drank from the straw, the cool water a relief on my dry throat. The television was on but the volume was so low that the newscasters on the screen seemed to be mumbling the latest reports.
The door opened, revealing a weary Jake.
“You’re awake,” he said, crossing the room with a smile. He bent to kiss me before taking his seat beside the bed. “How are you feeling?”
“Okay,” I said. “Where is she?”
“The nurses are giving her a bath. They’ll bring her back in a minute.”
I nodded as I set the cup back on the table. “Did everyone leave?”
“Yeah,” he said, rubbing his tired face. “Your mom and dad went back to our place to get some rest a few hours ago. They’ll be back in awhile.”
“Okay,” I said.
“The guys will be here later,” he continued with a chuckle. “I think Ronnie’s already planning a band rehearsal for all the babies.”
“Ugh,” I said with a faux frown. “Can you tell him to at least let them learn to crawl, first?”
“RJ and Jase are already crawling everywhere,” Jake said. “They’ll be running laps around the backyard before we know it.”
The door opened again before I could respond. Sharon, the night OB nurse, wheeled in a bassinet, stopping when Jake jumped out of his chair. She smiled as he carefully collected the blanketed bundle and carried it back to my bed.
“She’s all clean and ready to eat,” Sharon said as she helped me sit up further. The bundle in Jake’s arms let out a tiny howl that sounded more like a squeak than a baby’s cry.
Sharon waited until I was comfortable and feeding the baby before leaving us alone.
“I can’t believe we have a kid,” Jake said, lowering the rail and climbing beside me. “And she’s perfect.”
“I know,” I said, smiling at my daughter. “She’s going to have her hands full growing up with three little boys.”
“I’m not worried,” Jake said with a lopsided grin. “She’ll whip them all into shape.”
“Or they’ll look after her,” I said. “She is the youngest, after all.”
“Not by much,” Jake said. “Little James is only, what…ten days older than her?”
I giggled. “I told Greta to wait for me.”
“I don’t think she had much of a choice,” Jake said as he rested his head on my pillow. “So, do we agree on a name?”
“Ava Jane Johnson,” I said as I ran my index finger over her soft face. “Yes. It’s perfect.”
“Your mother loves it,” Jake said.
“I know.”
Silence descended on us, the only sound that of Ava nursing. We watched her, fascinated by her beauty and sweet existence. My heart swelled.
Jake, somehow reading my mind, kissed the top of my head. “You’re so happy, aren’t you?”
I nodded, my emotions catching up to me.
“Thank you, Iz,” he whispered.
“For what?”
Clearing his throat, he lifted his head to look into my eyes. “I’d always dreamed of being a big rock star but this is a million times better – having you and our baby. Nothing compares.”
I couldn’t agree more.
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