Believed (My Misery Muse) (15 page)

Chapter 26

Jules

I found Keaton on the sofa in their lounge reading
a book; he looked up and smiled at me.  I wished for a moment that that smile
gave me butterflies.  That I looked at him and saw something other than a new
friend.  Unfortunately, for me that didn’t happen, so I flopped down beside him
and sighed.

“What’s up, Jules?”

“I needed to get away.”

“Trouble in paradise?”

“Something like that.”

Thatcher clapped his hand then rubbed them
together. “Let’s get out of here; I’m tired of staring at parking lots.”

I tilted my head to the side. “Didn’t you go out
last night?”

“Yeah, but it wasn’t much fun, I had to babysit
Lana.”

“We were going on a food run,” Keaton said. “Want
to join?”

“Sounds better than staying around here and having
everyone stare at me.”

He arched an eyebrow at me but I just shook my
head. I didn’t want explain what happened last night to him.  Hell I didn’t
know what happened last night other than Sam making it clear he didn’t want me.

“Alright, let’s go,” Keaton said standing up and
reaching for me.  I clasped his hand and let him pull me up.

“I need to let someone know I’m leaving,” I said
like a petulant teenager.

Keaton nodded.

We all filed off the bus and headed back to the
bus that held My Misery Muse.

I walked up the stairs to find X sitting on the
couch watching TV and scratching his balls.

“Hey I’m leaving for a while.”

His eyes snapped to mine. “What do you mean
leaving?”

“Keaton and Thatcher are going out to buy food, so
I’m going with.”

“Ah to go back to the days I could walk into a
grocery store on tour without being harassed.”

“Poor baby,” I said sticking my bottom lip out.

Thatcher walked up behind me, he and X did that
whole manly fist bump thing.

“We’re heading to Walmart, anything you guys
need?” Thatcher asked.

“Walmart?” X’s eyes lit up and I groaned.

“Yep.”

“I’m coming,” X said jumping up and running
towards the back.

“Damn,” I muttered.

After both Xavier and Eli were ready to go, we
headed out to the SUV the band had brought along with them.  We climbed in with
one of the security guards as the driver and headed off to Walmart.

“Do you really think that’s going to work?” I
asked eyeing X.

“Always has in the past,” he said smirking.

I looked him over and shook my head.  He’d gone
‘incognito’ with a ball cap and sunglasses. How he thought that would keep him
from being spotted, I didn’t have a clue.

“People see what they want to see,” X said looking
over at me.  “No one expects to see me walking around a Walmart, so they
won’t.”

“If we get chased around Walmart because you and
Eli are with us,” I said looking him in the eye. “I will trip you to get out
before I’m crushed.”

“Thanks for that,” he murmured, “great to have
friends like you.”

“Nothing against you, but you’ve got to take care
of number one.”

“I should probably be happy you weren’t able to
bring your gun with you, hmm?”

“It would have been a flesh wound.”

“Remind me to keep her around for the Zombie
apocalypse,” Thatcher said from the seat behind us.

“She’d shoot you in the leg and leave you behind
first,” Keaton replied.

He scoffed. “No way, I have skills.”

“What skills?” I asked intrigued.

“Uhm, well you’ll need someone to have babies
with.”

“Oh damn, you are not smart,” Eli said quietly.

“So I’d be a broodmare?”

“Well not, uhm,” Thatcher stumbled.

X closed his eyes and sighed. “Really lucky she
didn’t bring her gun.”

I was turning in my seat to give Thatcher a piece
of my mind when we pulled into the parking lot.

“Thatcher, you’d die the first day, but me and
mine would survive.  Why?  Because we have a group of strong women who would make
damn sure we survived at all costs.  Do not ever get between a woman and her
family. Mama bear is not a myth.”

“Amen,” Eli groaned, “you girls scare the piss out
of me.”

“Smart man,” X retorted.

“They can’t be that bad.” Thatcher eyed both X and
Eli as we climbed out of the SUV.

“You’ve never met Devi, have you?” Eli asked.

Thatcher shook his head.

“Yeah, I’d keep your opinions to yourself, or
there is a chance you won’t be having kids,” X warned.

“She’s not that bad,” I said trying to defend her.

X glared at me. “She has a banana slicer, that she
likes to use on hot dogs while staring at me when I piss her off.”   He
shivered. “She’s not right in the head.”

I giggled. “She only does that because she keeps
finding you having sex in her kitchen.”

“Only twice,” he mumbled.

“Hold on,” Keaton said looking over at X, “you’ve
had sex in her kitchen?”

X grinned. “Once was with her maid, the other time
was with…” he trailed off and looked at Eli. “…never mind.”

I started laughing, “Come on, X,” I taunted.

“Shut up, Jules,” Eli growled.

We got two buggies, one for each bus and we took
off to shop.  I was excited to get some real food in the bus.  We also needed some
staple items like coffee.

I stood back as Thatcher and X took off down the
aisles and I shook my head. “This is not going to end well.”

“Probably not,” Keaton murmured.

Sam

I climbed on the bus and stopped.  It was quiet,
too quiet.  I walked through the main room into the bunkroom not finding
anyone.  I opened the door into the back room and found it empty.  I pulled out
my cell and ran through my latest texts wondering if something had happened. 
Surely if something had happened to Jules they would have contacted me, right?

I pulled up Seth’s number and hit dial.

“Yeah?”

“Where is everyone?”

“Walmart.”

“Walmart?”

“Yep, Jules wanted to get out, so X, Eli,
Thatcher, Keaton, and Jules went to Walmart.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “Why
would X go out like that when we’re on tour?”

“He said he was going incognito, though knowing X
I have no idea what that means.”

“How’d they get there?”

“One of security drove them in one of the SUVs.”

At least they were smart enough to take security,
I thought.

“How long ago did they leave?” I growled.

“X called me about an hour ago to let me know.”

“Why didn’t he call me?”

Seth remained silent then quietly. “You know why.”

“I didn’t mean to.”

“Yeah, I know you had your reasons, but she needed
to get away from you, man.  So they took her out.  You know X is not going to
let anything happen to her, not that I’m all that worried about him tracking
her here.  I’m more worried about when we go home.”

I gritted my teeth. “Do you know something I
don’t?”

“Nope, just that he and Cris got into it.  He
rambled off some shit but Cris isn’t talking.”

“Neither is Max,” I grumbled.

“She has four guys with her two of which are
famous, nobody will try anything.”

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I
know.”

“Alright, I need to take care of some things, talk
to you later.”

“Yeah, bye.”

I put my phone down and rubbed the palms into my
eyes trying to alleviate some of the pressure building there.  I was worried
about what was going on with Jules’ ex.  I also wasn’t ready for Tucson.

Chapter 27

Jules

We left the guys from Warped Mortality and headed
to our bus, bags in hand.  It was fun getting out and messing around for a few
hours.  Luckily, X and Eli had only been spotted twice, both times they got
away with a picture and autograph, then we moved on.  Thatcher seemed to be
excited about the prospect of fans spotting them out and about town.  Keaton
though didn’t seem as thrilled about that possibility.  I shrugged and told him
to suck it up, it’s part and parcel of his chosen career.

We lugged everything on the bus and immediately
went to work putting everything away.  We picked up some entertainment while we
were there as well.  That got tossed into the lounge, for now.  After
everything was put away, the guys took off so they could start getting ready
for the show.  I had opted to hang out in the bus, so one of the security guards
was hanging around outside.

Eli had requested chili for dinner, so I had
called Devi for a recipe.  She swore that I’d be able to make it since it was
simple.  I decided to give it a shot, so I got to work chopping the veggies I
needed while browning the ground beef.  After I had everything in the pot, I
left it there to simmer then went to work on some entertainment.

We thought a game of assassins would be fun, I was
volunteered to write everyone’s names on a slip of paper then put them in a hat. 
We’d be drawing names after both bands were finished tonight.  Then the games
started.  I opened up the ten Nerf guns we purchased and divvied up bullets so
we all started out with an equal number.

Since we were having a three-day stint in a hotel
when we reached Tucson, it should be an interesting game.  I typed up the rules
we had agreed on earlier like no playing during travel time, no shooting
someone on stage, and a few safety guidelines that I insisted upon.  I printed
them up and put a gun, bullets, and the rules into individual Ziploc bags.

I stood back and admired all I had accomplished.
This game was going to be with just the members of the bands.  I’d be keeping
track of who was knocked out, then when only half the people remained we’d
re-assign targets.  I was looking forward to this; sitting around with nothing
to do for days on end was beginning to drive me crazy.  I decided to make a pot
of coffee and read until everyone congregated later.

A few hours later, what sounded like a herd of elephants
climbed onto the bus.  I ignored everyone engrossed in “What’s Left of Me” by
Amanda Maxlyn.  I was swiping tears away while trying to focus on the words
when someone sat down beside me.

“Jules?”

I held up a finger shushing whoever was trying to
interrupt me.  There was no way I was putting this down until I finished the
chapter, and this little impromptu meeting had better not last long.  I had to
finish this book tonight.

I finished the chapter and put my Kindle down then
wiped my eyes.  I looked up and found everyone staring at me.

“What?”

“You okay, Sugar?” X asked.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

“You were crying,” he said slowly.

I shrugged. “Great book.”

X, Eli, and Seth rolled their eyes. “Okay let’s
get this started, I have plans tonight,” I said standing up.

“Plans?” Thatcher asked.

“Yep, I have to finish this book a.s.a.p., so
let’s do this fast.  We are playing assassins,” I told them and grabbed some
Ziploc bags.  “Anyone who doesn’t want to play, say so now.  If not game on
boys and girls,” I started passing out bags.  “After everyone has a bag we’ll
draw names, the rules are included in your bag, as well as a Nerf gun.
Everyone’s is the same so do not lose your gun; you will not get a
replacement.  You may steal a gun from someone else if you lose yours.  You may
not have more than one gun in your possession at any time.  Everyone will have
twenty bullets; make them count because unless you start collecting ammo you
find that’s all you get.  Be honest, if you’re out, fess up and take it like a
man.  Come find me when you’re out with your slip of paper and the time you
were taken out.   When you assassinate your target, take their target, and
continue hunting until last man is standing.  If you get your own name let me
know and we will fix the situation.  Any questions?”

Seth grinned. “This is awesome, Jules.”

“No playing during travel time, no shooting people
who are on stage.  If someone is working you leave them be. Instruments in hand
is a no go, you see me working on my sketchbook, you’re out of luck.  Too many
high priced items floating around to take a chance on damage. On the same side,
you go around carrying your instrument as a shield all the time I will remove
you from the game.  If someone is sleeping let them sleep it’s hard enough to
get a couple hours as it is, having to be worried about a game on top of that
is not kosher and stay the hell out of the way of the roadies.  Do we
understand?  If you break the rules you are out.”

“What if we find a gun lying around?” Klein, the
other guitarist of Warped Morality asked.

“Leave it, if you lose your gun, shame on you.”

“Can we team up?” Crawl, the drummer from Warped
Morality asked.

“Sure, just don’t come to me when your partner
shoots you in the back.”

“Any other questions?”  I looked around.  “Okay,
boys and girls, let’s choose names, if you pick your own name put it back in
the hat and redraw.  If I find out you’re cherry picking you get kicked out,
got it?”

Everyone agreed and I started handing out names. 
I picked the last name, glanced down at the sliver of paper, and smiled evilly.

“Oh and there are prizes for the winners.” I
grinned “And the losers, game on, bitches,” I called and watched everyone
scatter.

I curled back up on the couch and went back to
reading my book.

Sam

“Ian.”

“Yes, Sam.”

“I need you to make sure everything is ready for
the after-party in Tucson.  Also make sure someone goes through the house in
L.A. to air it out.”

“Got it,” he said entering info into his tablet. 
“Anything else?”

“Not that I can think of.”

“Your schedule in L.A. is booked,” Ian told me.
“You have meetings with different people at the label, also a lawyer and P.R.
person.”

“Oh, the mechanic we use for the tour bus is in
L.A., can you see if we can get an appointment to have it looked over while we’re
there.  Just a standard tune up.”

“Do you know the name?”

I scrolled through my phone and found the
company’s name and phone number and gave it to him.  I tried to think if there
was anything else I had forgotten that I needed to get done.

“That’s all I can think of,” I told Ian.

He nodded. “The show in Tucson is tomorrow night,
then Warped Morality has their first photo shoot the following day.  And you
guys have an interview the same day.”

“It’s on my calendar.”

“The photographer said if you guys wanted to stop
by they had time to get some new publicity shots of you as well.”

I rocked back on my heels thinking if we needed
new shots but then again it never hurt to have new material. “Schedule it.”

“That’s all I can think of that’s pressing,” Ian
said scrolling through his tablet.

“Thanks, we leave in an hour,” I told him then
climbed back on the bus.

Jules was back on the couch engrossed in her book.
I had no idea where X and Eli had taken off to, and in all honesty, I didn’t
want to know.  Seth was flipping through channels on the TV while eating
something.

“Jules made dinner,” Seth said when I walked up.

“She did?” I asked surprised.

“Chili, it’s pretty good too.”

I went over and got a bowl then joined Seth at the
booth.

“Ready for a break?” he asked.

“Yeah, only we aren’t getting much of one.  We
have interviews and a photo shoot.”

“Eh, our time off is never real time off.”

I heard Jules sniffle and I turned to look over my
shoulder, she was wiping tears away again.

“I will never understand why women read books they
know will make them cry,” I grumbled.

Seth snorted. “I’ve learned to stay quiet and not
ask questions.  If they want to talk about it, then they will.  It’s safer to
let them be, Devi once threw a shoe at my head when I interrupted her reading.”

“How’s she doing?”

“Miserable, and she has no problem letting me know
it’s all my fault every time we talk,” Seth said with a grin.

“You two really done this time?”

He looked down at his food. “Yeah, we’re done” he
murmured.  “This pregnancy is different than the others, its taking a lot out
of her.”

“Well, it is twins.”

“It’s not just that, Cait isn’t even a year old
yet and now she’s pregnant again.  It’s taking a toll.  She’s also had a few
complications she hasn’t had before.”

“Anything serious?”

“Not right now,” he said vaguely. “We’ll cross
that bridge when we come to it.  Though when we get back we’re going to the
doctors to find out what we’re having.”

“You excited?”

He scoffed, “Of course.”

I looked back over at Jules. “You’re a lucky man.”

“I know, Devi reminds me daily.”