Page 69 of Sasha’s Secret

Still jabbering away about timing and dressing rooms to Linzi, even though only Sasha was paying attention, the tux-in-charge was now leading the singer and her entourage to the ballroom where the awards were to take place. The space was only one area among many in the vast building, so for Rocco, the location was one unholy mass of potential trouble.

Since Linzi’s party was one of the first to be escorted into the ballroom where the main event was taking place, Rocco took the opportunity to have a look around before it became too busy. There was nothing obviously wrong, but he couldn’t shake the suspicion that something wasn’t right. His inspection was interrupted when Scott ran up to him. Rocco took him to one side.

“I found a neat place to park—not too obvious and not too far, just a couple streets away.”

Rocco made a mental note of the address, at the same time wondering where the monster of a vehicle would be “not too obvious”. Then he remembered—this was Texas, where everything was oversized.

“Good work, Scott. Remember, if there’s an attack, or anyone tries to get to Linzi, you get her out of there—that’s your primary objective. Take Sasha, too, if you can, and anyone else from our group who’s close by, but don’t wait for anyone. Head for the service yard. I’ll take care of any stragglers.”

“Copy that, boss.”

Rocco looked at the man standing beside him. It wasn’t the first time he’d called Rocco that, but Rocco had decided it was no longer worth reminding Scott that he wasn’t his boss. Although after tonight, there was a high probability his real boss would no longer be his boss, either. “You just stick close to Linzi, okay?”

“Got it.”

Scott executed a sharp about turn and walked briskly in the direction of the table around which Linzi’s party was already seated. Sasha glanced up as he approached, then her gaze switched to Rocco. To anyone else, she’d appear relaxed and ready to enjoy the evening, but there was an aura of vigilance around her. Even so, his protective instincts strained at the leash to get her out of there and to some place safe.

Then again… Sasha was a trained, experienced professional, with more resolve and backbone than most of the people around her put together and multiplied tenfold. She wouldn’t thank him if he tried to coddle her.

The space, vast though it was, soon filled up as all the guests made their way there from the lobby. Gradually, they took their seats, and the waitstaff swapped their trays of drinks for trays of food. Rocco declined his meal, as did both Scott and Brian—eating would only divert his attention from where it was supposed to be focused.

Once the tables were cleared, the host who’d greeted Linzi when they arrived took his place on the stage. Rocco did not take that as his cue to relax. As the event proper got underway, he continued his surveillance of the room, noting the discreet presence of Ghost and Hollywood as they moved around the space, creating as little disturbance as possible while announcements and presentations were made. Rocco offered up a silent prayer of thanks that acceptance speeches were not required.

The first sign of something abnormal was when Ghost reacted very subtly to something coming in on his comms. He ducked away to a quiet corner of the room, and as soon as he reappeared a few seconds later, Rocco’s cell phone vibrated.

As silent as the wraith he’d been trained to be, Rocco stood and retreated a few feet from the table, so as not to disturb the flow of proceedings. “What have you got?”

“I just heard from Truck and Beatle—Senior is on the move, and they’re following. And get this—he’s wearing a tux. You thinking what I’m thinking?”

It could be a coincidence, but Rocco doubted it as much as Ghost apparently did. “He’s on his way here. Whatever they’re doing, it’s going down here, tonight. Alert everyone. Now.”

* * *

They were running out of time.

With twenty minutes to go until Linzi’s performance and the scheduled end of the event, the stage manager had come to their table to request Linzi’s presence backstage, to prepare for her set. Ram and her other backing dancers had gone with her, and so had Scott, following Rocco’s orders to stay close.

As Rocco expected, Brian had protested about Scott accompanying Linzi, but his protest had lacked conviction, and he’d backed down too easily for Rocco’s peace of mind. Consequently, Brian was still at the table. Outwardly, he appeared the cool, calm bodyguard focused on doing his job, but the way he regularly checked his watch was telling. Sasha had noticed too, and when her gaze meshed with Rocco’s, she rested a hand on her purse, signaling she was armed and ready to help.

From his position at the circular table, a couple of seats away from Brian, Rocco had a good view of everything he needed to watch. That didn’t include what was going on up on the stage, but that wasn’t his primary focus.

Movement to his right caught his eye—Brian, ready to leave the table. Rocco caught hold of his arm as he was going to pass behind him.

“What? I have to ask permission to go to the john now?” Brian snarled. “You wanna come hold my hand while I take a piss?”

What Rocco really wanted to do was punch his lights out. He released the other man’s arm. “You’re here to do a job, remember?”

Schofield stalked off and disappeared from view. Sasha watched him too, then turned back to Rocco. “Do you want me to follow him?”

“No, I’d rather you stay here. I’ll ask Ghost.”

Unfortunately, neither Ghost nor Hollywood were conveniently placed to follow Schofield. Rocco was left with no choice but to go himself, but before he reached the doorway, Schofield was on his way back. He walked straight past Rocco, muttering as he did so, “Checking up on me… boss?”

The taunting question was no doubt intended to provoke. Rocco waited until Schofield had resumed his seat, then returned to Sasha, crouching down on her left to put some extra distance between him and Schofield.

“I’m going to go backstage. Ghost’s on his way there now, but I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

“I’ll come with you—”