“Brave move,” Levi said, “leaving us to our own devices.”
“The label wants to trust you, Levi, but you need to work with us. You need to prove to us you’re in control… but until then, you’re stuck with me.”
“What do you mean, we’re stuck with you?”
“I mean, I’ll be on the bus. This bus.”
“This is fucking bullshit.” Levi’s hand balled into a fist and slammed against the table. “We don’t need a babysitter.”
“Don’t you?”
Levi shot up off his chair, but Damon threw his arm out. “This could cause problems, Ali, not help the situation.”
“It isn’t forever and trust me when I say I’d rather not be on the bus with you. Let’s get the first couple of shows out of the way and we’ll discuss this further. Until then, I’m taking one of the bedrooms.”
Levi was practically foaming at the mouth, but thankfully, for all of us, he managed to bite his tongue and sit back down. I wondered if Damon was physically restraining him out of our sight.
“I’m going to check in with Duke. Do not leave this bus. I mean it. Stay put and we’ll be out of here in no time.”
“Yeah, yeah, Ali,” Damon said. “Go do your thing. We’ve got this.”
“Grab us a drink yeah, Riley? Make yourself useful.” Levi gave her a wicked smirk that had Alistair straightening.
“Riley, with me, please.” She nodded and took off. “Letty, Eva, you too.”
“Guess that’s our signal,” Letty said. “Come on, Eva, I’ll give you the tour.” The two of them followed Alistair out of the room.
“You good?” I asked my brother as soon as they were gone.
“They’re screwing us over, Rafe.” He drummed the table with his fingers. “Treating us like kids who need babysitting.”
“Riley can be my babysitter any day of the week.”
“Dude, she’s fucking Ali, you cannot go there.” Damon levelled Hudson with a hard look.
“Says who?” He shrugged.
“It’s your funeral,” I replied, turning my attention to Levi. “We play by his rules. This tour could seal our future, but we have to play by the rules.”
“They didn’t sign us because we play by the rules. They signed us because they know we don’t play by the rules.”
“Two shows. We do the first two shows and prove to Ali we’ve got this, that you’ve got this, and then he’ll back off.”
“And if he doesn’t?” Levi snapped. “Him and me on this tour bus is a fucking disaster waiting to happen. I know he holds the cards, but I can’t have him breathing down my neck every second of the day.”
“I’ll talk to him.”
“Fix it, Rafe. You need to fix it.”
I’d been trying to fix it for the last ten years.
I let out a heavy sigh, “I’ll talk to him, but you need to do your part too.”
He gave me a weak nod. Levi had issues with authority. With people telling him what he could and couldn’t do. To outsiders, he looked like an arrogant, selfish guy with entitlement issues, but they were wrong. They were all so fucking wrong.
“Okay, fuckers.” His expression morphed in a second. Gone was the suspicious glint in his eye, the lines of frustration along his forehead. It was replaced with a mischievous grin. “It’s time to celebrate.”
“Now that I can get on board with.” Hudson clapped his hands on the table. “This is the first day of the rest of our lives. This tour is going to change everything,” he said. “I feel it in my bones, boys. It’s going to change every-fucking-thing.”
Hudson wasn’t wrong. I felt it too. The shift in the air, the hint of things to come.
Only I wasn’t sure if this tour would be the making of Black Hearts.
Or its downfall.
And I wasn’t sure I wanted to find out.
Eva
“This is... wow.”
“You’ve seen nothing yet.” Letty led me deeper into the bus. “You think this is special, just wait, the other bus is going to blow your mind.”
This one looked pretty special to me. It had a cleverly designed living space complete with table and bench running down one side and curving around to make a cozy seating area. On the other side was a fully functional kitchenette. Further down the bus I could make out several bunks lining either side and what I hoped was a private bathroom beyond that.
“If I were you, I’d choose your bunk now before the rest of them get here.” She arched a thin brow.
“What’s better, takin’ the top or bottom?”
“Trust me, after a few days on the road you won’t give a shit where you crash.”
“That bad, huh?”
“We’re all just living the dream.” Letty winked before grabbing her bag and throwing it onto one of the bottom bunks. “Hey, listen. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet you at rehearsals. I had a family emergency.”
“It’s okay.”
“It’s not. I should have been there. I know this can’t be easy, but I’m on your side, Eva, I promise.”
Letty looked like exactly the kind of girl I’d usually avoid. Loud and brash with pink dipped tips; her skin was decorated with brightly inked tattoos and an array of piercings that made me feel a little queasy.
“We girls have got to stick together.” she added, and I wondered if the fierce petite pixie could also read minds. There was a warmth in her eyes and a softness in her voice that made me want to trust her though. But I didn’t want to let my guard down too quickly.
Letty knew the band. She worked with the band. They had a history that started long before I ever showed up.
“What’s up with you and Rafe?” The question came out of left field. My eyes bugged, and laughter rumbled in her chest. “So I didn’t see him watching you like a hawk during the meeting?”
“I...” The words dried on my tongue as I pressed my lips together.
He’d been watching me?
I thought I’d felt him but hadn’t let my thoughts run away with me. Not after he made it perfectly clear he didn’t want me there.
“You don’t want to kiss and tell,” Letty went on. “I can respect that. But friendly piece of advice; a girl like you doesn’t want to get mixed up with the likes of that.”
“What do you mean?”
She paused, her expression softening. “You’ll see. Come on, I’ll give you the grand tour.”
But before the tour could commence, male laughter filled the bus, and Levi, Hudson, and Damon appeared. “Country,” Levi said, pointing his finger at me. “On the other bus, now.”
“I’m not sure that’s a good—”
“Lighten up, Let, everyone gets initiated, you know that.”
My wide gaze went to her. She gave me a weak smile. “You can try to resist but they’ll only make it harder.”
“Initiation?” I tried to sound calm. “I’m not sure I like the sound of that.”
“You’re not supposed to like it, new girl.” Hudson grinned. “Let’s do this thing so we can get this show on the road.” Damon came over to me and whispered, “Humor him; it’ll be easier for everyone.”