Forty-Seven - Kieran
“Pick whatever flavor you want.”
Lyric’s huge, mismatched eyes dart wildly around the tiny ice cream shop with wonder, latching on to the vast display of flavors under the glass container. Pinks. Blues. Hell, there are even sparkles in the damn ice cream. With every color she gazes at, the more excited she becomes, barely containing it as she bounces beside me.
Her tiny hand squeezes mine in excitement.
“Double scoop?” she whispers, staring at me with pleading eyes.
“Triple scoop, if you want.”
The worker behind the counter flinches when Lyric’s sweet squeal rings through the shop, catching the attention of several parents sitting with their families. Cue the curious whispers starting all around us, saying my name beneath their breaths to their friends, knowing exactly who I am.
“I wants a triple scoop of unicorn sparkle ice cream, pwease,” Lyric says with confidence, standing on her tippy toes barely as tall as the counter. Her little eyes watch the redhead with the name tag—Penny—behind the counter, smiling at her.
“Of course. And for you, Sir?” A deep crimson tint takes over Penny’s cheeks as she looks me up and down, biting her lip.
Shit. This is the downfall of being famous. I can’t even have ice cream with my daughter without eyes watching our every move. The heated stare the worker gives me is nothing new. I’m used to women stopping me for autographs. Or soliciting me for a good time. It comes with the rock star territory. They don’t see me as Kieran. They see me as the shirtless guy who walks around on stage doing what he loves. It’s tiring.
My need to protect Lyric ramps up tenfold as I survey the room. It’s nothing but families, friends, and their children, but you never know who is lurking in the background. Case in point, River, and her damn stalker. Nothing pleases me more than that asshole being off the streets and six feet deep. Now, I feel like I can protect both my girls better. A vow I will never break. They’re my number one priority.
“I’ll have the same.” If my baby girl likes it, then I like it, too. Whatever she wants today is hers.
“Okay! Two triple scoops of sparkly unicorn ice cream coming right up. That’ll be… $45.56.” I blink several times, computing the amount she fucking said. Is this ice cream made with real gold flakes? What am I missing here? Fuck.
With a grimace, I dig in my pocket, pull out my card, and hand it to Penny as she swipes it. Even though I’ve got millions in the damn bank from working all these years, spending forty-five bucks on scoops of ice cream makes my stomach drop.
I think it’s from all those years of scrounging for food after my dad left. My mother was never stable. Especially the following months after he was gone. We barely survived. Little to no food. Couldn’t pay our damn heat bill. Luckily, power companies won’t shut off the heat in the winter months due to not paying the bill. But when spring came? Yeah, we were out of luck for a few weeks until the church stepped in and helped us pay. Then came the eviction notice from our rental with thirty days to vacate.
“We’ll be homeless,” I mumble, staring down at the paper my mother threw at me with disgust.
A cigarette hangs from her mouth as she sits on the sofa, not doing a damn thing to fix it.
“Don’t worry; I’ve got an idea.” The smirk that lights up her face when she peels herself off the couch and heads upstairs without another word sends chills down my little body.
I’m way too fucking young to have to understand what’s happening. But I know it all too well. Ever since Dennis—since I refuse to call him father—left us without a fucking goodbye, I’ve had to grow up. I’ve watched my mom continually dress herself up, bring men over, and then have a few bucks for McDonald’s. Then, the process starts over again.
“Make yourself scarce, boy,” Gloria says, fluffing up her brown locks. Makeup covers the tired lines and hides all the truths about our situation. “I’ve got company coming. Then, we’ll go out and have some dinner. After that, we’ll stop by and talk to the Aid Office. They’ll have some sort of housing for us. Especially with this,” she says, holding up the eviction notice. I blink several times when she lights up another cigarette and smirks like she’s got it all figured out.
Somehow, my mother finagled her way into the government housing apartments after showing them her eviction notice and bank account. After that, we lived there for a few short years. But those short years were the most stable—and I use that loosely—we had ever been. With a roof over our heads and help with food and power, we never lived without the necessities again. Not to mention, moving into those apartments brought me to my best friend. The love of my damn life. Producing this cute little creature watching Penny behind the counter, furrowing her brows .
“I’m so sorry, Mr. Knight,” she croaks, turning beet red again. “It says it’s declined.” Well. That’s a first. My heart fucking stops. Declined? How the fuck does a bank account with that much money get rejected? Fuck. Just as it’s declined, my phone pings in my pocket as I dig for my wallet again with a sense of dread pulling at my senses.
“Uh, sorry about that. Old card. Just use this one instead.” Thankfully, my financial advisor turned me on to having multiple bank accounts as a just in case, spreading my wealth among the five of them.
Penny loses the tint as my second card goes through, and she smiles, handing it back. “If you’d like to pick out a table, we can bring it right out to you,” she says, gesturing to the sea of small red and white tables lining the shop.
I nod in thanks, taking Lyric’s hand as she searches for the perfect spot to sit.
“Over here, Daddy,” she says, yanking my arm toward the corner of the shop where a little red, sparkly tabletop with two matching chairs sitting across from each other rests.
“Perfect spot, Little Blue.” I grin when she climbs into her seat, swinging her legs with a pleased grin.
“I love this place, Daddy. Can we come here again? They’ve gots my favorite ice cream. I love Unicorn Ice Cream.” She grins bigger when Penny sets our bowls in front of us with a shy grin, turning her entire face red again.
“I…um… Could I get your autograph?” she asks with a nervous breath. Her eyes dart all around as she scratches the back of her neck. “Whispered Words is my favorite band of all time. And?—”
“Sure,” I say with a tight smile, trying to remain friendly.
Nothing grinds my gears more than fans interrupting personal time. I get it. They want to meet me. Get my signature. But it’s irritating when Lyric sits across from me, watching our every move. I hate taking time away from my daughter. But I also appreciate my fans. I wouldn’t be here if they didn’t like our music so much. I wouldn’t be able to afford the fifty-dollar ice cream my daughter loves so damn much.
“Kieran, thank you so much!” she squeals, pulling a notepad and a black marker out of her pocket. “This means so much to me. You guys are so friggin good!” She’s breathless by the time all the words spew from her mouth.
“Thanks! Have you been coming to see us play at The KC Club? We’ll be there in two weeks.” As she hovers above me, I quickly sign my name, trying to get a move on so others don’t catch on that I’m handing out autographs.
River let us off the hook this weekend and next, letting us adjust from our trip back home. Next Saturday, we celebrate Lyric in the best way with tons of sparkly ice cream, her friends from school, and rollercoasters galore. Rad’s really gone off the damn deep end with these crazy plans for her. Secretly, I love his enthusiasm. He’s prepared to spend an arm and a leg just to get this crazy birthday party off the ground. He had a point, though. We’ve missed so much; it’s time to make up for our absence.
“Yes-yes!” she stammers, taking the notebook back with trembling fingers. “We saw you guys a few weeks ago. You were amazing. Any plans to go back out on tour?”
I swear to fuck. My heart stops beating, ceasing to pump blood through my body. Tour. If we go on tour, we’ll have to leave Lyric behind for months at a time. There’s no fucking way we could take her and River with us. There wouldn’t be time. It’s nothing but eating, sleeping, and playing music twenty-four-seven.
Fuck.
“I, umm. We’re on a break right now. We’re taking some time off from touring. I’m not sure when we will again. But locally, we’re playing.”
My bright smile is an illusion of the turmoil spreading through me.
How could I have been so damn stupid to think this could all work out? There’s no way in hell I can leave my daughter. Not even for music.
Music is the life force keeping me going. Or was it? Maybe Lyric is the only thing I need now to make life worthwhile. Since she entered my life like the little hurricane she is, the weight of everything has lifted off me. Internally, I’m so much happier than I was a year ago on the road in Europe, playing for sold-out shows.
“That’s cool! I’m always watching on FlashGram to see your pictures. You guys are so good. Gah! Thank you so much!” she squeals, running her words together as she backs away, grinning.
At least I could make her day with something so simple.
Lyric watches the exchange with inquisitive eyes, watching Penny’s every move as she makes her way back behind the counter.
“One day I be famous,” she says with a grin, digging into her first mouthful of ice cream.
Famous, my ass—is what I want to say. There’s no way in hell my baby girl will live this lifestyle. It’s rough being on the road for weeks at a time. It’s more than that, though. Drugs run rampant. Fans are fucking crazy. And I don’t want her exposed to the wildness of being famous. But I also want to give her a chance to spread her wings and make her dreams come true. I’ll do anything for Lyric. Even if it means mentoring her through something as crazy as rock and roll. Or acting. Or modeling. Whatever she wants. She can have.
“What would you want to do?” I ask, tentatively tasting the crazy, sparkly concoction on my spoon. “Well, I’ll be damned,” I mumble, shoving the strawberry-tasting ice cream into my mouth. “I think you’re onto something here, Little Blue. This ice cream is pretty good.”
She grins at me, giggling when she shoves another bite into her mouth. “Told ya, Daddy.”
While Lyric is distracted with her treat, I pull my phone out of my pocket. Immediately, my heart drops when a notification from my bank card displays on my screen. Fraudulent Charges Detected. Followed by an alert that my card was locked until I called in and spoke to my advisor. Fuck. What the hell? Has someone been using my account to buy things? Why haven’t I been getting any sort of alerts on my phone?
Lyric and I fall into an easy conversation as I type out a message to my financial advisor asking about my accounts. Lyric talks on and on, telling me about her all-day preschool and how she’s the youngest and smallest but claims to be the smartest. It makes me laugh when she grins, exposing her teeth full of sparkles.
“I’m the smartest in the class, Daddy. That’s why I gots to start early this year.”
“Oh, yeah?” I grin, setting my chin in my palm, watching with rapt attention as she hums into her ice cream and babbles more. I think I could listen to my baby girl talk all day long and never get bored.
Me
Hey man, My card got declined. I got an alert, too, that there was fraud charges? Just looking in to see what’s going on.
Teddy
Hey, Kieran. Let me take a look.
I tap my nail on the table, waiting patiently for a response from Teddy. It could be something as simple as fraudulent charges or something else.
I furrow my brow when my phone lights up with a call from Teddy. He never calls. It’s usually just text messages or face-to-face meetings with this guy. It’s fine by me, too. I loathe talking on the phone.
“Hey, Ly. Daddy needs to take this, okay? It’s an important call.” She nods, digging into more ice cream, and licks her lips.
“Hello?” I ask, leaning back in my chair, keeping a sharp eye on my daughter.
“Hey, Kieran. Sorry for the call. I was just checking over your accounts. And there’s a problem.”
“What is it?” My heart leaps into my throat at his hesitation. I know I’ll still have money in other accounts, but years of living hand-to-mouth have me panicking. I know what it would feel like to wake up with nothing.
“It got declined because there’s been a stop put on the card by the bank.”
I blink several times, my head fucking spinning.
“I’ve been out of the city for a while. Why would the bank do that? And is that because of the fraudulent charges?” I try to get the world to stop spinning as his mouse clicks in the background.
“I’m looking at it right now. It looks like there were hundreds of charges at places around town within the last two weeks.” With every word he says, the more strained he becomes.
“What places?” My jaw tics on instinct, no matter how hard I try to hide it. “And why wasn’t I notified immediately?”
“Sorry, K. I’m not sure why you weren’t notified. I’m looking into this immediately. There’s been charges at Riggs. Jenni’s Purple and Lace. Blooming Deals. There were more purchases at several clothing shops and even a purchase at the Coach and Prada stores…” he trails off, clicking more. “It looks like the last purchase was made about an hour ago at Florence’s, a department store downtown. They tried to spend—” he chokes off, coughing into the phone. “Twenty grand there.” Jesus. Fucking. Christ. Twenty grand? At a damn clothing shop? Who the hell has enough balls to not only spend my money but do it in the same town I reside in? Maybe that’s why they didn’t fucking call?
Either way, I’m fuming. That’s my hard-earned money someone is blowing through. They have no right. I stood on stage for hours on end, singing my heart out. Sweating. Fucking losing my personal time. All for my career to pay for the things I need.
“It was just used?” My teeth clench together. “How is that fucking possible? I didn’t give anyone access to it.”
I had an extra card in my wallet for emergencies. A duplicate card to hand to my fucking mother so she could buy a few groceries. But I always made her give it back to me. Shit… Pulling my wallet out, I check through my cards, and my heart drops. It’s gone. Someone used it in town. Someone took my card. Either Gloria stole it from right under my nose, or someone took off with it.
My stomach turns several times when my phone beeps, alerting me to a new call straight from Florence’s Department Store.
“Hey, Teddy. I gotta go. Thanks for the information. The store is calling right now. I’m going to head there.” We quickly say our goodbyes and hang up in time for me to answer the call from the store.
“Hello?” I ask, still watching Lyric happily eat the rest of her ice cream, oblivious to the murderous feeling churning inside me. She hasn’t moved an inch since this whole shit show came to my attention.
“Hi, this is Angie, the store manager down here at Florence’s. Am I speaking to a Mister Kieran Knight?”
“Yeah, that’s me,” I say, stiffening my spine as a wailing echoes through the damn phone.
“I’m calling to inform you that we've detained a Gloria Montgomery for theft of merchandise. She’s asked us to call you before the police get here. We were also concerned after confiscating a credit card with your name on it after it came up as stolen. The police have been called.”
I swallow hard. My rage swells like a violent storm pounding through me. I curl my fingers into a fist, ready to pummel my hanging bag to let out some of my aggression. But first, I’ll have a few words with Gloria before I let them haul her conniving ass away.
Now, I need to focus on keeping this aggression locked inside so Lyric never sees this side of me.
Not only did Gloria steal merchandise from an upscale department store, but she also stole from me. Not only my money but she also robbed me of fatherhood. It’s time to let her manipulative ass rot in jail. Because after today? She won’t have anyone on her side to bail her out.
“Do you want to stop this? Or—” she trails off over the phone, knowing full well who I am.
Fuck that.
“Keep her there. Tell the cops I want to speak with her before I press charges against her.”
“Okay, Sir.”
And we hang up.
I heave a breath, running a hand down my face. My mother. Fucking Gloria. She must have done it at some point when she was desperate for my money. It’s been like this since we moved her here with us. Constantly texting and calling us, begging for it. The only reason we’ve put up with her for this long is for our little sister, Cami. We’ve tried to protect her every step of the way. Including sending her to a private boarding school on the edge of town to get her away from Gloria’s shitty parenting. After Asher’s father went to prison, everything fell apart for them. We were the only people who picked Gloria up by her arms and coddled her ungrateful ass. It’s not like she deserved a penthouse apartment or money from us. She’s never been thankful. Always so damn greedy when it comes to what we earned.
She only saw us as dollar signs. Never humans. Never her fucking sons. So once and for all, the time has come to sever ties with the woman who gave me life.
“Lyric,” I sigh, reaching across to clutch her little hand as she sets her spoon down. “I need to run an errand. It’s right next door…” I hesitate a moment, not really wanting to take Lyric into this hostile situation. I want to protect her from Gloria’s manipulating ways. But a part of me wants to show Gloria what she missed out on by sending River away. Not that she would have been a good grandma, anyway.
“Okay,” Lyric says with a shrug. “But you didn’t eat your ice cream, Daddy.” She points to my melted ice cream glittering in the sun shining through the windows.
“We’ll come back, and I’ll try it again. I liked it, but Daddy has to take care of something important.”
She nods, jumps down from the chair, and takes my hand as we walk to the last meeting I’ll ever have with my piss-poor excuse for a mother. No… Gloria. She’s no one's mother. She’s a user. Manipulator. And her reign of terror ends now, including her hold over Camilla, our teenage sister who luckily lives in her own dorm at the local prep school. Our mother has never been there for her. Never protected her from Nigel’s fists, like she should have. So, we did the only thing we could do on our end to keep her safe from Gloria’s clutches. Since Asher’s father went to prison and now, I’m sending my mother’s ass there, Camilla will fall into our hands.
Me
We’re going to have to enact plan ‘Save Camilla’.
AKA beg our lawyers to give us custody of Cami and prove our mother unfit. It shouldn’t be too hard, but it’ll be a huge leap for us. Another reason going on tour would prove harmful.
Asher
What? What happened?
Me
Get the lawyers on the phone…Gloria’s been stealing money from me… And is getting arrested.
Asher
Shit. I’ll call the lawyer. The school. The landlord of Gloria’s apartment…any other place?
Me
Nah, man. Thanks, tho. I gotta take care of this. Can you meet me at Florence’s? Apparently, she stole my card… And I’ve got Ly…
Asher
Yes. On my way.