With Vengeance (25 page)

Yet here she was, curled up on his lap.

Kat spelled the guy’s last name before
reciting his address. She fell silent when the officer spoke.
Klement picked out enough words to determine that he was asking why
she suspected her ex.

“He’s the only person I know from Spokane,
for one thing.” Her voice was taut and defensive. “He also stalked
me for three months after I broke up with him.” Her frown deepened
at the cop’s next question. “Because I thought he’d given up and
moved on to some other woman,” she said impatiently. “He didn’t
even
like
me that much.”

Klement was too busy wondering who wouldn’t
like Kat to hear what the cop asked next.

“He does construction jobs for various
companies.” Her voice was cold and flat. “I think he might sell
drugs on the side.”

Might,
instead of her knowing he did?
At first Klement was taken aback at the white lie, but then he
realized she was probably afraid the cop would give her flak for
not having reported Dick in the first place. Or, worse, he’d think
she’d participated or partook.

Oh crap, she did have a point. After all, she
was now in a world-famous heavy metal band, and anything related to
music or fame was often associated with drugs. He himself had been
featured in
High Times
magazine with his girls a couple
years back. Maybe that would bring some scrutiny down on them.
Maybe she shouldn’t have even said anything about her ex’s side
job. But it was too late now.

“No, I don’t know what kind.” Her impatient
tone returned. “I was never around for any of that. It was just his
weird phone calls and visits with friends at odd hours. Hell, maybe
he was just cheating on me the whole time and I suspected drugs to
make myself feel better.”

She answered a few more questions before
handing the phone back to Klement.

“We’ll get that warrant and search this city
for the car,” Shaw told him. “I’m also contacting the Spokane
police. They’ll probably call back with their own questions.”

After Klement hung up, he felt much better,
finally believing he knew who was messing with both Kat and his
band. “I hope they catch that fucker soon.”

Kat nodded emphatically. “Me too. I just
can’t believe he went this far. He must be insane.”

“Insane,” Klement agreed, suddenly tired of
talking about her ex. Scooping her up in his arms, he carried her
to his bedroom. “Let’s forget about him and make use of our final
hours alone before we’re crammed on a plane.”

He made love to her slowly and tenderly,
savoring every inch of her body. Afterward, as she rested her head
on his chest, a surge of protectiveness made him clench her tighter
in his arms.

I won’t let that bastard near you,
he
silently vowed.

Chapter Twenty-one

Excitement and trepidation roiled in Kat’s
belly as she got on the tour bus with Klement and the guys to head
to Thrashfest.

Although she’d been to the festival six times
before, it was obviously never under these circumstances. Instead
of taking a four-day bus trip, today she’d flown first class.
Instead of taking a taxi to the nearby campground or a cheap motel,
they were staying at The Alpine Valley Resort, which looked like a
Bavarian villa from a fairy tale. Even though she hated snow and
ice with the heat of a thousand suns, Kat had to admit the place
probably looked incredible in the winter during ski season—and it
looked just fine now in the late spring. She and Kinley had taken
pictures of it before but never gotten the chance to see the
inside. This time, she and Klement were sharing a suite. The only
down side was that, for the first time, she hadn’t gotten to see
the first day, which was comprised of awesome debut bands who were
not only great candidates for Metalness interviews, but also served
to help her and Kinley find new music to rock out to. It was all
about the music.

This time, however, Kat would be there not as
a spectator or even a journalist, but as a performer. Bleeding
Vengeance would be part of the second day, which was reserved for
the titans of metal.

She dug in her purse for her Xanax and took a
half a pill, saving the other half for before they went on stage.
Klement squeezed her hand. Rod and Cliff gave her wary looks. So
Kat wasn’t the only one worried that she’d freeze up from stage
fright.

I won’t let them down,
she silently
vowed.
I can do this.

As if in affirmation, the first people they
saw when they piled out of the bus and entered the backstage area
were Viciӧus.

Momentarily forgetting her worries, Kat ran
over and enfolded her friend in a bear hug. “Oh my God, Kin, is it
really you?”

“I was about to say the same.” Kinley picked
her up and twirled her around. Normally Kat hated that, but her
tall friend could get away with anything.

“How’s it going with Viciӧus?” She glanced
back and saw Klement and Quinn immersed in conversation then
lowered her voice. “And with Quinn?”

Kinley grinned, but she also fiddled with her
long dark braid. “Great. Except that, since Curt’s still in rehab,
they want me to help write songs for the next album. They said they
like my technique, but I’m scared shitless. I’m not anywhere near
as creative as you. What if I blow it?”

“You’re going to be fine. When we get back to
Coeur d’Alene, I’ll jam with you and see what we can come up
with.”

Kat bit her lip and thought of leaving
Klement. She couldn’t imagine him abandoning his home to live with
her and her mom. So could she leave her mother and her best friend
to live with him? Would he even want her to?

As if reading her mind, Kinley leaned close.
“What about you and Bleeding Vengeance? And Klement?”

As quickly as she could, Kat filled her
friend in on the recording sessions and how she fit in with the
band, finishing with her developing relationship with Klement. With
a laugh she added, “He called me as IT Guy and asked me to meet him
for dinner.”

Kinley’s eyes were wide as dinner plates. “No
way. How did
that
go?”

“Awkward at first, but then it was so
romantic.” She couldn’t hold back a breathy sigh.

Her friend uttered a strange-sounding laugh.
“That reminds me…”

She trailed off and strode over to
Klement.

“Ow!” he yelled when she punched him in the
arm. “What was that for?”

“For not telling me and Kat that you were our
tech support guy for our website.” She crossed her arms over her
chest.

The guys from both Bleeding Vengeance and
Viciӧus stared at Klement like he’d grown an extra head. Except for
Quinn. He leaned against the wall, sipping his beer with a smug
smile.

His nonchalance did not escape Kat’s notice.
Eyes narrowed, she rounded on him. “You
knew
?”

“It wasn’t my secret to tell.” He toasted
Klement with his beer. Kinley smacked him then, albeit not as hard
as she’d hit Klem. He rubbed his arm and gave her a smoldering yet
playful look.

Kat felt warm watching them. They were so in
love, it was clear.

Klement gave Kinley a perplexed look. “I did
tell Kat. And
she
didn’t see the need to hit me. In fact,
she said you helped her understand my reasons for secrecy.”

Kinley didn’t seem to have a good argument
for that, so she headed back to Kat. “You’re in love with him,
aren’t you?” she whispered.

“Yes.” The word emerged as a pained cry.

“Then I won’t hit him anymore unless he hurts
you.”

An unjustly beautiful blonde woman
approached. Her lips were curved in a seductive smile, but her
cornflower blue eyes were cold. Kat disliked her on sight.

“Fuck,” Kinley hissed through her teeth.
“It’s Marianne.”

Kat glanced back at the Barbie-esque woman
and noticed the press pass clipped to her blouse. “The bitch from
Rocktalk who exposed you and Quinn?”

“Yeah. Did you know that she’s slept with
practically half of the bands here? Even Quinn—but before we met,”
she added quickly. “It’s like she’s some kind of twisted, skanky
collector.”

Had she slept with Klement? Kat couldn’t hold
back the dreadful thought.

To her dismay, Marianne sauntered over to the
guys of Bleeding Vengeance. Her stomach knotted. Was
she
the
scheduled interview they’d mentioned?

Then she saw that no matter how much Marianne
batted her eyelashes and swayed her hips, Klement, Rod, and even
Cliff ignored her. Kat silently cheered as Cliff shook his head and
walked away. She remembered that they’d all been pissed at
Marianne’s website for sensationalizing Lefty’s death.

Had Marianne written that article? Given how
they were acting, Kat was willing to bet she had.

The reporter’s smile wavered at the band’s
cold shoulder, but then her gaze lit on Kat and Kinley. She stalked
over to them like a shark smelling blood in the water.

“Damn it,” Kinley muttered. “I cannot handle
her catty bullshit. Make her go away.”

Kat felt her lips curve into a wicked smile.
“Don’t worry, I will.”

Marianne’s grin broadened until she did
resemble a shark. “Well, if it isn’t Metal-Kin and Metal-Kat.” Her
predatory eyes focused on Kat. “I see you followed in Kinley’s
footsteps. Now
both
of you are guitarists of famous bands. I
am interested to know how you pulled it off.”

“Because we can play guitar,” Kat said
slowly, as if speaking to a toddler.

The reporter blinked and frowned before
recovering her sharp-toothed grin. “Oh, but I’m sure that sleeping
with the lead singers helped.”

Kat stepped forward so quickly that Marianne
stumbled back. “No, that’s how
you
operate. Quit projecting
your deluded motives onto other women. First off, I am
not
sleeping with Cliff. Secondly, Kinley and Quinn’s relationship
developed
after
she’d been the guitar tech for awhile, which
you might have learned if you’d bothered to ask instead of sneaking
around snapping pictures of them on their first date and posting it
all over like some trashy tabloid. Kinley didn’t have to spread her
legs for her job any more than she did for her interviews. Unlike
you
.” She pointed at Marianne, making the woman backtrack
another step in her wobbly heels. “Furthermore, it was Curtis who
asked Kinley to step in for him, not Quinn.”

As Marianne flushed and took another step
back into the corner, Kat continued. “I don’t know what you think
to get with talking shit to us, and I know you don’t have an
interview scheduled with Bleeding Vengeance or Viciӧus.” She
actually didn’t know if the last was true, but with Marianne’s past
behavior she was willing to assume so. “So why don’t you get the
hell out of here and go do your job and let us do ours in
peace.”

Though she was visibly trembling, Marianne
managed a derisive sniff. “You’re absolutely right. I am wasting my
time talking with a low-tier site…that now has a conflict of
interest. I’ll be sure to warn the other bands not to talk to
either of you second-rate journalists.”

It was a strong speech, but the woman slunk
off like a whipped dog despite her bravado. Kinley whistled and
laughed.

“Damn, you put that bitch in her place. Why
is it that you can handle catty women? You hate confrontation.”

Kat shrugged. “I think I’m only afraid of
confrontations with men. I never know what they’re thinking.
Besides, I’ve been wanting to tell
her
off for a long time.”
She frowned. “But she’s right, you know. We kinda are getting into
a conflict of interest with the site.”

“I know. That’s why I’ve been looking for
guest bloggers, so more of the coverage doesn’t come directly from
us anymore. Quinn’s sister is interested.”

Kat laughed. “Quinn’s sister? Isn’t that
another sort of conflict?”

“Not as bad as material coming from us, and
she can go by an alias. Besides, she’s not the only one who wants
to contribute.”

Another worry emerged. “What if Marianne does
convince the other bands not to talk to us?”

“I highly doubt she will. Most of these guys
can’t stand shit-talking. What she’ll probably do is publish a
derogatory post about us on Rocktalk.” Kinley sounded bored. “Which
is fine, because it just proves that we have integrity and she
doesn’t.”

Before Kat could reply, she heard the music
from the stage fade away into the roars of the crowd. Dragonfyre
had finished their set, which meant that it was Niteblade’s turn,
and after them, Bleeding Vengeance. She’d been so comfortable being
reunited with her best friend and distracted by Marianne’s drama
that she’d almost forgotten that her onstage debut was imminent.
Their roadies would be getting ready for the load-in any
minute.

“What’s the matter?” Kinley asked. “You look
pale all of a sudden.”

Mouth dry, Kat swallowed. “I just realized
I’m going onstage soon.”

Her friend’s warm brown eyes regarded her
with sympathy. “I was so scared the first time that I almost
barfed. But when I pretended that I was back at a bar playing with
you, it got better. Don’t worry. You’re a killer guitarist and
you’re going to rock this. They wouldn’t have hired you
otherwise.”

“Thanks,” Kat said feebly. “But I’m still
going to take another half a Xanax…maybe a full one.” As if in
response to her words, her heart sped up. “I’ll be right back.”

Squaring her shoulders, Kat made her way from
the backstage area down the hall toward the restrooms, wanting to
quickly rejoin her band and make them proud. She dug in her purse
for her Xanax bottle. “I can do this. For me, for the band, and for
Klement. I won’t let him down.”

Passing a nearby electrical room, she
realized the door was strangely ajar. Before she could close it, a
hand seized her wrist and yanked her inside. Her Xanax bottle
clattered to the floor. Pills scattered everywhere.