Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
Xavier didn’t like the idea of this massive show.
He told John that as the two stood on the side of the stage, watching the flurry of activity as various people prepared for the curtain to rise in just an hour.
“You’re not looking forward to seeing her do her thing? I’ve heard it’s impressive. Trixie showed me some clips on YouTube today. But you know, you can’t tell much by looking at a little phone screen.”
Xavier shook his head. “Don’t get me wrong. Under normal circumstances, I’d be thrilled to support her. But there is too much here that I can’t control. Lots of moving parts to this thing and our psycho could be any one of these people.”
John rubbed his jaw. “Yeah. I didn’t think about that. You think our guy—or lady—might really try something tonight with all these people around?”
After giving it some thought, Xavier said, “I don’t know.
Normally, I’d say no. It just wouldn’t be smart.
Almost guaranteed you’d get caught. Right?
But after today with that wardrobe incident—well, I’m not so sure.
This person isn’t playing with a full deck.
I think they’re erratic. I wouldn’t put anything past them. ”
Even as he was saying all that, a chill traced Xavier’s spine. He wasn’t a guy who spooked easily. His years on the police force had exposed him to too much crazy shit for his cage to get rattled by most things.
This was different, though.
This was about his babygirl. Or the woman he was falling more in love with as the seconds ticked by. Some might not think that possible, as little as they knew each other, but he didn’t care what people would say.
Seeing her yesterday brought all those feelings back that he’d had for her years ago. They’d never left him; they had been there all along, just simmering beneath the surface.
He and Nova might not end up together. They led very different lives, after all. But one thing was certain: He wouldn’t let anything happen to her.
A Daddy protected his Little. Always.
His mind went back to seeing her in that cute dress earlier. She’d been having so much fun in the ball pit with the others. Her giggle was the sweetest sound on earth.
But he couldn’t let himself get distracted right now. Too much was at stake. So, he shoved those thoughts from his mind and said, “I’m going to check some of this stuff out.”
“I’ll help you,” John said.
They split up, each one taking a different side of the stage, and began looking at the various props and items nearby.
Xavier examined a few things closely, even though he didn’t really know what they were. Still, nothing seemed off about them. There were no glaring oddities like weapons or explosives strapped to anything. In his limited knowledge, everything backstage seemed like it belonged there.
“You got anything?” he called out when he’d moved a little closer to John.
“Nothing. Lots of wires and stuff running to the sound equipment. Man, you never realize how many moving parts there are to a big concert until you see behind the curtain.”
“Ain’t that the tr?—”
Before Xavier could finish his response, a woman’s voice called out. “Excuse me. What are you two doing?”
Turning around, Xavier saw a tall, slender woman wearing a professional pantsuit walking toward them, a tablet in her hand, and a determined look in her dark eyes.
Her brown hair was cut in a bob. Xavier pegged her between forty-five and fifty. She carried herself with confidence and exuded a capable air.
“Good evening. My name is?—”
“I know who you are,” she told Xavier. “I found that out when you tore through my casino earlier. What I’m asking now is what you’re doing backstage, getting into things you have no business being in?”
Xavier worked hard to suppress his rising anger. “Okay. You know who I am. May I ask who you are?”
“I’m Denise Franklin. Assistant Director of Resort Operations.”
“Well, Ms. Franklin, we’re just having a look around to make sure everything is all right for our client. We work for Ms. Monroe.”
The hard gaze and her ramrod posture didn’t soften. “The terms of your employment are between Ms. Monroe and yourself. They do not extend to the casino. We have our security—very professional, I might add—that are fully vetted and licensed to carry out their duties.”
It was getting tougher to suppress his anger. A little came through in Xavier’s tone when he responded, “Your very professional security team led a stalker in her dressing room earlier. I’d say they need a little help.”
Denise’s nostrils flared. Xavier noticed she seemed to be clutching her tablet a little tighter. It took a few seconds for her response to arrive.
“Per the terms of our contract with Ms. Monroe, her private security is allowed to stay by her unless she’s performing, in which case you may wait off stage.
But this is hotel property, and you do not have the right to just go rummaging through whatever you’d like.
It is for her safety as well as yours and our whole team. ”
John sidled up to Xavier and said, “It’s not about anyone’s safety except the resort and your insurance provider. You don’t want to pay out on a liability claim.”
The director didn’t confirm nor deny that.
Xavier couldn’t really blame her for just doing her job. And it made sense that they couldn’t just have random people milling about. A lot could go wrong. But he wasn’t ready to give up just yet.
Not with his babygirl’s safety on the line.
“Ms. Franklin, I respect your position and what you’re saying.
I’m not just blowing smoke when I say that.
But… I have a hunch. Something feels off about tonight in my gut.
” He shrugged. “I might be rattled after the events of this afternoon. But I want to make sure Nova is absolutely safe before she gets on this stage tonight.”
Denise seemed to respect his candor and her stance softened just a tad.
“I understand that. Unfortunately, I do not have the authority to just bend policy. What I can do is assure you that we are taking every reasonable measure to protect the talent. Guests are going through metal detectors before entering the arena. Our backstage crew is highly vetted. We have beefed up security personnel and we have LVPD officers on hand here. I promise you, your client is safe.” She looked to the side of the stage where two large men in suits were waiting.
“Now, if you’ll please follow these gentlemen, they’re going to escort you to a waiting area.
It’s very close and you’ll be able to see all the action from there. ”
Xavier wanted to fight it, but it was clear the hotel was determined to stick to their rules on this one.
His phone dinged and he fished it from his pocket, looking at the screen. “Our client is requesting my presence.”
“Her dressing room is fine,” Denise stated. “As I said, the terms of her agreement allows her own team to be by her except when she’s on stage.”
“I’ll wait in the designated area,” John told Xavier. “Don’t want to run afoul of the highly professional security agents.”
Xavier smirked and then walked off stage, toward Nova’s dressing room.