Chapter 27
Chapter Twenty-Seven
I gnacio waited in the doorway as Delta walked slowly toward the front door. She wore her purple coat cinched at the waist, oversized dark sunglasses, and her hair twisted into a loose bun on top of her head.
Behind her, the driver removed her bags from the trunk of the car.
“How was your trip?” he asked.
“Good.”
He hated that he couldn’t see her eyes.
“I’ll take those,” he said to the driver, who approached with her luggage in hand.
“Are you sure, sir? I could?—”
“It’s fine. Thank you.” Ignacio took the carry-on and grasped the handle of the rolling suitcase.
“You’re welcome, sir.”
As the driver returned to the car, Ignacio followed Delta inside and closed the door against the cold. He then took the stairs up to their bedroom.
Their bedroom. He didn’t know exactly when he had begun to think of the room as theirs, but the thought was now automatic. He couldn’t imagine staying in the house without her. It was their house now. The place where they had become reacquainted and confessed their love for one another. Living together had reminded him of all the characteristics he appreciated about her, as well as revealed new reasons to love her.
Ignacio re-entered the bedroom after placing her luggage in the closet. “We need to talk.”
“I know.” Delta placed her large leather purse on the trunk at the foot of the bed. “Life is so funny. I don’t know what to think. The news didn’t offer much information.”
“News? Is there something in particular I was supposed to have seen?” Ignacio asked.
“You don’t know?”
“Know what?”
Slowly, she removed her sunglasses and placed them on top of the bag. Then she sat on the edge of the bed, her shoulders rounding in an odd display of resignation. “Leo Hargrove is dead.”
“Dead?” Ignacio repeated, in genuine shock. Holy shit . Had those men from The Cordoba Agency…? “How do you know he’s dead?”
“It’s all over the news. On the ride from the airport, I read several articles about what happened. A member of his security team found him floating face down in his pool last night. As of now, there doesn’t seem to be any foul play, just a freak accident. He’d been drinking with friends, and apparently after everyone left, he must have continued drinking and slipped and fell into the pool. A member of his security was doing his rounds, checking the property before he left, when he found Leo.”
Ignacio pulled out his phone, and sure enough, the executive’s death was trending online. He did a quick search and skimmed a piece summarizing the news of Leo’s passing. Much of what was available at the moment was speculation mingled with accolades about his accomplishments in the music industry.
“I guess I have to wait for the fallout,” Delta said quietly.
“What do you mean?”
She let out a small laugh. “Don’t you get it? He’s dead, and what he did to me will be discovered. Someone will find the video, and what happened to me will come out, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”
“You’re wrong. Everything is going to be fine.”
“I want to be optimistic like you are, but I’m a realist. I have to brace myself because it’s only a matter of time.”
Ignacio sat beside her and took her hand. “Remember when I told you I would take care of everything?”
Her eyebrows lowered over her eyes. “Yes.”
He reached into his pocket, removed the flash drive with the video, and handed it to her.
Delta examined the device, turning it over in her hand. “What is this?”
“The video.”
Confusion clouded her eyes. “ The video?”
When Ignacio nodded, she drew in a sharp breath.
“How did you get this?” she whispered. “ Where did you get it?”
Ignacio didn’t want to lie, but he had promised The Cordoba Agency team that he would not divulge his connection to them. This would be the last time he kept vital information from Delta.
“I hired some people to retrieve the video for me, and they confirmed there are no other copies.”
“You hired people?” Delta asked, suspicion heavy in her voice. “When you said you’d do whatever you had to do…”
“It’s not what you think.”
“Who are these people, Ignacio?” She dropped her voice lower than before. “Did you have him killed?”
“No, although I did want him dead for what he did to you sixteen years ago and for what he put you through by sending those images and threatening to release the video. I would have gladly killed him myself if I could figure out a way to get away with it, but when I received the drive, Leo was alive. I don’t know if the men I hired had anything to do with his death. It could be a coincidence that he happened to die now.”
What he said was true. He didn’t know anything for certain about whether the agency he hired had anything to do with Leo’s death. Maybe he really did just fall into the pool and drown.
“Coincidence,” Delta murmured, scrutinizing the drive in her palm. She seemed shocked, as if she couldn’t believe she was holding the evidence in her hand. “You’re certain this is the last and only copy left?”
“I trust these guys,” Ignacio said.
“Who are they?”
“Their identity isn’t important. They’re professionals and good at what they do.” He paused. “They found other videos, Delta. There were other victims.”
Her eyes widened in alarm. “No,” she said, barely above a whisper.
“He got what he deserved.”
“Maybe his death is karma for all the evil he committed. Bastard.”
Ignacio placed an arm around her shoulders, and she leaned against him. He kissed the top of her head.
“I can’t believe you did this for me,” Delta said.
“I would do anything for you.”
She didn’t speak for a while, continuing to stare at the drive in her hand. “Did you look at the video?” she asked in a small voice.
“No.”
“I don’t want to look at it, either. I want to destroy it.”
“We can do that.”
Delta lifted her head and looked into his eyes. “Let’s build a fire.”
She rose from the bed, and he followed her downstairs and into the backyard, where they built a fire in the fire pit. Ignacio stood back while she stood over the flames.
“Is it really over?” she asked, her voice trembling.
“Yes,” he answered.
He wished he could have helped her sooner. If he had known, he would have, and he could have saved her all the years of doubting her talents and avoiding that pig for the sake of her own sanity.
Delta tossed the drive into the fire. It landed with a soft thunk on the glowing embers, and the flames popped and hissed. Slowly, the drive blistered under the intense heat, and the casing warped as the flames consumed the evidence.
Head bent, she turned to Ignacio with jerky movements.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
He enveloped her in his arms, rubbing his hands up and down her back in a soothing motion as she quietly sobbed her relief into his chest.
Later, as they lay in bed together, Delta propped herself up on her elbow and looked at Ignacio, who was leaning against the headboard with pillows.
“We haven’t talked about my trip to New York.”
“How did your interviews go?”
“ Extremely well. The radio interviewers all played a teaser of ‘On My Knees’ from the album and were very receptive to the sound. They thought it was sexy, the singing was on point, and it had a great beat. The meetings at the label were very productive. I was surprised by how receptive they were to my ideas. They’re willing to incorporate my songs into the album, but only if I can record them right away, which will give them enough time to mix and master the songs so they can be included.”
“So you won’t have to push back the album release date?”
“Nope,” she said, shaking her head. “The schedule will stay the same, but I will have to work extra hard in the coming weeks—which includes working through the holidays.”
“It’ll be worth the sacrifice.”
“Definitely. They’re including my love songs!”
She released a little squeal and bit her lip. For the first time in days, the old spark returned as excitement brightened her pretty brown eyes.
“What are you thinking?” Ignacio asked.
“I feel… free. To celebrate, I’m thinking about dyeing my hair,” she said with a laugh.
Ignacio wound a strand of her soft hair around his finger. “What color this time?”
“I’m not sure. I thought about trying a new shade, but I really liked the pink hair and the purple hair I used to have. I can’t decide between them.”
“I liked the purple phase you went through a few years back,” Ignacio said.
“Then I’ll go with purple.” The smile slowly faded from her face. “I need to have a talk with my father and let him know about the changes, and I need to let him know about a decision I’ve made. I no longer want him to be my manager, Ignacio. I owe a lot to my parents’ guidance, especially my father. If not for him, I wouldn’t have the career I have, but…”
In the ambient light of the room, he saw the way her brow wrinkled in consternation.
“You don’t owe him your life, Delta.”
“I know I don’t, but that doesn’t make what I’m going to do any easier. You grew up in the entertainment industry, and you’ve always been wealthy. Your family is drowning in money. I grew up middle class. My mother was a teacher and my father a lawyer before they left their jobs to help me pursue my career as a singer. The money I make has transformed the lives of my entire family. Telling my father I no longer want him involved in my career isn’t going to be easy, but I’m ready to have that talk because I need to break free. It’s long overdue.”
Ignacio rolled onto his side to face her. “That’s going to be tough.”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll come with you, so you don’t have to do it alone.”
She shook her head and gently stroked the stubble on his chin. “Thank you, but you’ve done so much already.”
“And I’m willing to do much more.”
She kissed his lips, humming her pleasure. “I need to do this on my own. Can you understand that?”
“I don’t like your decision, but yes, I understand. When are you going to talk to him?”
“Tomorrow. The sooner, the better.”
“You’re sure you don’t want me to come with you?”
“I’m positive. I can handle this on my own.”
“I’ll allow you to handle the dissolution of the management relationship with your father under one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“You have to move in here permanently with me.”
Delta pushed him onto his back and climbed on top of him. “We had an agreement. Our arrangement was supposed to end when you received funding and I released my first single from the album. I’m releasing my first single next month, which falls within the six-month guidelines.”
“That’s where you made your mistake,” Ignacio said regretfully.
“Oh?”
“You didn’t get it in writing.” He shrugged. “So now you have to stay. Indefinitely.”
“Is there anything I can do to fight this decision?”
“No. Nothing. Sorry.”
“You don’t sound sorry.”
“Because I’m not—not really.” He tucked her hair behind her left ear and gazed into her eyes. “So what do you say, mi amor? Let’s see if we can buy this place and make it our permanent home in Atlanta.”
“I love that idea. Because I love this house. And I love you.”