Falling Angel

by Carmen Richter

  But like this, with barely-brushed hair, wearing just a baggy t-shirt and sleep shorts? This was by far my favorite look. For once, the rock star exterior was completely gone, and I got a glimpse of the Daphne underneath. The one I’d gotten to know over the past week and a half. The slightly shy and awkward woman who flushed at the slightest compliment and rambled when she got nervous.

  “Sorry. I know this isn’t my best look,” she chuckled awkwardly, covering her mouth as she yawned.

  Bullshit, I wanted to say. This is the best look I’ve ever seen on you.

  But I couldn’t say that. Because she was my client. I shouldn’t have even been seeing her like this at all. I just hadn’t been able to make myself leave last night when she was so obviously upset and scared.

  “You just woke up. I didn’t expect you to be perfectly put together,” I managed to say. “I started some coffee with the crap they have here in the room. Should be ready in a little bit.”

  “Thanks,” she yawned again. “I am so not a morning person.”

  “You only stay up until one or two in the morning on show nights. Wonder why?” I chuckled.

  She snorted and went to the coffee machine, grabbing one of the paper cups and throwing some sugar and powdered creamer into it. Then she went to sit on the couch, moving my blanket out of the way.

  “Yeah…we’re going to need to stop at Starbucks before we get on the road today,” she mumbled. “This coffee isn’t going to cut it.”

  “I don’t think anyone on the crew will complain,” I told her as I threw my blanket on the floor.

  Before I could sit down next to her, there was a knock on the door.

  “Is it okay if I get it?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” she sighed, taking another sip of crappy coffee.

  I went and looked out the peep hole to make sure it was Hector before answering the door. He walked in carrying a manila envelope.

  “Morning,” he said. “Sorry to wake you up so early, Daphne.”

  “I had to get up anyway. We need to be on the road by ten,” she said, half-smiling. “I’m definitely treating everyone to Starbucks before we leave, though. I’m dragging. Anyway, Ezra said you got a message for me?”

  “Yeah, we did,” he told her, going and sitting on the coffee table in front of the couch before handing her the envelope.

  I sat down next to Daphne as she took the envelope and pulled the contents out. She immediately gasped and put her hand over her mouth as her eyes filled with tears.

  “Oh, my God,” she sobbed. “It’s my fault. This is all my fault. I got her hurt.”

  “Can I see, Daph?” I asked.

  Without another word, she handed me everything. There was a copy of one of the many tabloid articles that had surfaced after that picture of her and Samantha kissing got leaked, along with a Polaroid picture of Samantha after she got jumped in the club last night. And then there was a note paper-clipped to it.

  I told you to behave, Daphne. See what you made me do? You’re MINE, and I don’t share.

  “Shit,” I muttered under my breath.

  This was definitely connected to the gifts and notes she’d been receiving. And, more disturbing still, whoever this was had known that she and the girls were at the club last night and had waited for Samantha to be alone before hurting her. Almost like a jealous lover trying to hurt the person their partner was cheating with.

  “Daph, what do you want to do?” I asked her. “I’m not sure this is quite enough to go on to prove this was the same person, because the notes are typewritten, but this is definitely an escalation. Eagle has contacts in the FBI for situations like this. This falls to them because this person is crossing state lines.”

  “What can they do when we don’t know who this is?” Daphne asked.

  I pulled her into a hug, sighing. She immediately buried her face in my chest and wrapped her arms around me. Hector looked at us and raised an eyebrow, but I just rolled my eyes. Couldn’t he see how scared she was right now? I would have given anyone who was this upset a hug. No matter how right she felt in my arms, it was just a friendly hug, offering her a little bit of comfort while she was scared and upset.

  “I honestly don’t know what they can do. But I’d rather be safe than sorry,” I decided.

  “Okay. Just make sure you keep Josh in the loop,” she told us.

  “Absolutely not,” Josh scoffed. “The FBI? You’ve got to be out of your damn mind! It was just a note!”

  “Did you forget the part where they were involved in Sam’s attack?” I growled. “This isn’t just gifts and notes now, Josh. It’s escalated to violence.”

  “You can’t prove this was the same person,” he argued. “And even if it was, Daphne’s a celebrity. You have worked security for celebrities before, right? You know they sometimes have obsessed fans. It’s harmless.”

  “Tell that to Sam, who was in agony last night after this person stomped on her broken arm over and over again until her cast broke. Tell that to Rebecca Schaeffer or Christina Grimmie. Oh, wait. You can’t. Because they’re dead,” I bit out. “Killed by, quote, harmless fans.”

  “Do you have any idea what kind of a publicity nightmare this will cause for Daphne’s tour? After she’s already thrown a hissy fit and fired half the crew? You’re her security team. Your job is to protect her. So protect her. Yourselves. Without involving the goddamn FBI.”

  I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose, trying to keep my composure. Where the fuck had Daphne found this asshole? He obviously didn’t give two shits about her. All he cared about was how it would look in the press.

  “Fine,” I conceded grudgingly. “We won’t involve the authorities. For now. But my team and I can only do so much. If anything else happens to her, it’s on you. Not me. Got it?”

  “I’d watch your mouth. You forget, you can easily be replaced,” he threatened.

  “Well, last I checked, that was Daphne’s call, not yours,” I spat, then turned and walked away.

  I stormed back to Daphne’s suite, knocking loudly on the door. She answered within ten seconds, concern twisting her angelic features. I could only imagine what I looked like as I walked into her suite and sat on the couch. I was so pissed at Josh, I was literally shaking.

  “Are you okay, Ezra?” she asked quietly as she sat down next to me.

  I turned to look at her, completely shocked. “You have a crazy person following this tour and hurting your friends and you’re asking if I’m okay?”

  “Yeah. I am. You’re obviously upset. What’s going on?”

  I took a breath, trying to center myself, but it didn’t do much good. My voice sounded as tense as I felt right now.

  “Josh is a prick,” I clipped out. “That’s what’s going on. He told me in no uncertain terms that I was not allowed to involve the authorities. He still thinks this is harmless. I told him to tell that to Sam, and he just blew it off. So I’m making an executive decision. He doesn’t get to be kept in the loop anymore. I’m sorry for going against what you asked, but I don’t think he has your best interests at heart. And I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to you on my watch.”

  This time, she was the one who hugged me. She leaned against me and squeezed my shoulders, resting her head on the one closest to her. And somehow, just that simple gesture calmed me down, at least enough to think clearly.

  “Okay,” she said simply. “I trust you. And I’ll do whatever you need me to do.”

  “One thing? Try not to hook up with anyone where it’s visible anymore,” I chuckled weakly. “This person’s obviously agitated seeing you with anyone else. If we can make them think you’re not romantically involved with anyone, we might be able to get them to back down a little.”

  She snorted quietly. “Done. I already feel like enough of an idiot about that. Anything else?”

  “Don’t go anywhere without someone from this team. I don’t care if you’re walking from your dressing room t
o the bathroom backstage. One of us escorts you and waits outside the door,” I told her. “And we’re still going to make sure we vet every single message or gift for you before we tell you about it.”

  I saw her nod out of the corner of my eye, and I turned to face her. Seeing the mixture of fear and trust in her eyes made the overwhelming urge to kiss her return, just as strong as it was last night at the club. But somehow, I refrained, putting a hand on her arm instead.

  “Listen, angel. I promise I’m not going to let anything happen to you on my watch. But I need to know if you’re okay with me making the call to the FBI, regardless of what Josh says, if it comes down to it,” I said.

  I didn’t know why I’d suddenly started calling her “angel.” It had just slipped out last night at the club when it took me a solid couple of minutes to even get her to realize I was there, because I was trying to comfort her. But it was like I couldn’t stop it now.

  Again, she nodded. “I trust you, Ezra. I trust you to keep me safe, and if that means involving the FBI, then it means involving the FBI.”

  I breathed a sigh of relief, and I couldn’t stop myself from pulling her into my arms again. Without hesitation, she slid her arms around me. I rested my chin on her head; she tightened her embrace in response. While she couldn’t see, I allowed my eyes to slide closed, relishing in the complete and utter rightness of the way this felt.

  I knew the line between personal and professional was starting to blur, but in this moment, I couldn’t find a reason to care. There was only one other person that had ever made me feel this sense of…I didn’t even know what it was. Certainty? Belonging? Whatever it was, the only other person I’d ever felt it with was my daughter.

  “Is it okay if I ride to Kansas City with you?” I asked quietly. “I know it’s unlikely that anything will happen while we’re on the road, but…”

  “Yeah, of course. I just don’t have any bunks on my bus. I have a bedroom,” she chuckled weakly. “But the couch in the lounge area is comfortable.”

  “I slept on a couch last night, remember? I’ll be fine,” I told her.

  She smiled. “Okay. It’ll actually be nice to have some company for the trip. It gets kind of lonely.”

  This bus was insane. Daphne basically had a house on wheels. Then again, she had the money, and she spent enough time on the road. I could understand her wanting to be comfortable for the constant traveling (and, honestly, she made sure all of her crew was too—the bus that the security team traveled in was nice and roomy, and the bunks were decently sized). There was a full living room and kitchenette—which consisted of a mini fridge full of drinks, a microwave, and a small pantry full of various snacks—a bathroom, and then her bedroom area in the back, which apparently had a full bathroom that included a shower stall.

  At around four, I decided to FaceTime Rachel and talk to Arielle. After the stress of last night and this morning, I needed a little one-on-one time with my baby girl. Not even two weeks on the road and I was already missing her something fierce. I didn’t know how I was going to survive the next three and a half months.

  “Hey, bro. Aren’t you supposed to be in the middle of a sweep right around now?” Rachel said by way of greeting when she answered.

  “Travel day,” I explained.

  “So that explains the swanky couch you’re sitting on right now,” she teased. “Must be nice.”

  “This isn’t the norm. Something happened this morning and I didn’t want to leave Daph completely alone for the trip. I’m on her bus. The security crew’s bus is nice, but I’m not going to lie. This bus is insane.”

  “Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah, just an obsessed fan. Nothing too crazy,” I lied. “She was just upset over it.”

  That part wasn’t a lie. I just left out the part about how I was just as upset, mostly because her prick of a tour manager was refusing to let us do our jobs to the best of our abilities.

  “You’re a good guy.” Rachel smiled. “Hey, before you talk to Ari, I need to talk to you about something.”

  A knot formed in my stomach. Had something happened to her? Was she hurt? Did I need to catch the first flight back to Long Island when we got to Kansas City?

  “What is it?” I choked out.

  “Relax, papa bear,” she chuckled. “Just a friend who wants to invite her over for a sleepover this weekend to celebrate her birthday. I told her I’d talk to you.”

  “Who?” I wondered.

  “Makayla.”

  “I know her, and her parents. Do you know who else is going to be there and who’s supervising?”

  “Just her and Makayla, and Makayla’s dads are both going to be home. I guess no one else’s parents would let their kids go. Because of the two dads thing. Ari was upset because Makayla was crying when her other friends said they couldn’t go.”

  My heart broke for that poor little girl. Why were people so closed-minded? Makayla’s dads were both stand-up guys, and were a lot more involved than most parents. I would have trusted Arielle with them over most of her other friends’ parents, honestly.

  “Yeah, I’m good with it. Just make sure she knows she’s allowed to call if she wants to come home and to speak up if she’s not comfortable with anything,” I told her. “And if you take her to buy a gift, I’ll pay you back.”

  “She’ll be so excited. I’ll let you tell her. Hang on.”

  She walked toward the living room, where Arielle was sitting and watching Frozen. I could tell because I heard the song “Love Is an Open Door” blasting at top volume. I really, really hoped she’d outgrow her love of that damn talking snowman soon, because that movie was slowly driving me crazy.

  “Ari, want to pause that movie? Your dad’s on FaceTime,” Rachel said.

  Immediately, the sound stopped on the TV, and two seconds later, the phone was being yanked out of Rachel’s hands.

  “Daddy!” Arielle exclaimed.

  I grinned. “Hey, munchkin. Are you driving Aunt Rachel and Uncle Tim crazy yet?”

  “Maybe,” she giggled.

  “I hear Makayla invited you to spend the night for her birthday.”

  “Yeah. Can I?”

  “I just told Aunt Rachel yes, so I guess that means you can.”

  “Yay! She won’t have to be alone on her birthday now.” The smile on her face was quickly replaced with a frown. “Why won’t Ava and Suzie and Kenisha’s parents let them come? Just because she has two daddies instead of a mommy and a daddy doesn’t mean they’re bad people.”

  “You’re right. It doesn’t. Remember what we said when Aunt Vicki got engaged to Miss Billie?”

  “Love is love, and it’s always special, but it’s different for everyone,” she recited.

  “That’s right. But not everyone understands that. It’s sad, but that’s why it’s important that Makayla has amazing friends like you who do understand,” I told her.

  I heard the beeping of the microwave, and I looked to see Daphne standing there smiling at me.

  “Ari?” she whispered.

  I nodded, then turned back to the screen. “Hey, jelly bean, hang on for just a second, okay?”

  “Okay,” Arielle chirped.

  I put the call on mute and put the phone down for a second so I could turn to Daphne.

  “Want to come say hi to her?” I asked. “She had kind of a rough day at school. She could use the surprise.”

  “Everything okay?”

  “Yeah. Some of her friends’ parents are bigoted jerks, but she’s okay. Just sad for her friend,” I explained.

  “Aww. I’d love to meet her. Sort of.”

  I picked the phone back up and took it off mute.

  “Sorry, munchkin,” I said. “I’m back.”

  “It’s okay. Where are you?”

  “I’m on a tour bus. We’re…. You know, I don’t actually know where we are. Somewhere between Pittsburgh and Kansas City,” I told her.

  She giggled.

  “I have so
meone here who wants to say hi to you. Is it okay if I put them on?” I asked.

  “Yeah. Who is it?”

  Daphne came to sit down next to me, and I held the phone out so Arielle could see both of us.

  “Oh, my God!” Arielle squealed. “Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod!”

  “That was my eardrum, sweet pea,” I heard Rachel saying in the background.

  “Daphne’s on the phone!” she exclaimed.

  I couldn’t help it. I started laughing. Daphne didn’t really feel like a celebrity to me anymore. Yes, she was famous, and I knew that. But, over the course of almost two weeks, she’d become more like a friend than a client. But to my daughter? The woman sitting next to me was Daphne DeVille, her idol.

  “Seriously?” Rachel asked, her voice suddenly a lot closer. Then she appeared in the background and her eyes widened. “Oh, my God. Hi, Daphne. Sorry if this little squirt broke your eardrum. She’s, like, a mega-fan.”

  Daphne laughed. “It’s okay. I’m used to it. Your dad’s told me a lot about you, Ari. It’s really nice to meet you. And by the way, I think we’re somewhere around Nashville.”

  “Already?” I asked.

  “Yep,” Daphne said. “I heard you had a rough day at school, sweetie.”

  “Yeah. My friend Makayla almost had to spend her birthday alone. But now I get to spend it with her, so she won’t be alone anymore,” Arielle told her.

  “Well, do you know what that means?”

  “What?”

  “That means you just have to make sure she has extra fun so her birthday’s still special,” Daphne said. “Hey, does your friend like my music as much as you do?”

  “Yeah! Our favorite song is ‘Queen of the Angels.’”

  “When’s her birthday?” she asked.

  “Saturday.”

  “What’s today? Wednesday, right?”

  “Yep,” I chuckled.

  I had a feeling someone on the crew would end up making a run to the post office to express mail a package to Rachel for Makayla. Hell, I’d volunteer for the job myself if no one else would do it. I loved that she was so generous with stuff like that.