*
“Thanks for coming out tonight.” I wipe the sweat off my forehead with a bandanna and shove it into my back pocket. “For those of you who’ve been listening to us play but don’t have a fucking clue who we are . . .” The crowd of over a thousand people erupts in cheers, chanting for one more song. “We’re Ataxia.”
The lights drop to dark, our cue to get off so that Five Finger Death Punch can take the stage.
The show was amazing. Playing The House of Blues has been a dream of ours and we’ve finally done it. We left everything we had up on that stage, and the place is begging for more.
I step down the steps and head backstage. Talon, Lane, and Ty follow me into our dressing room. I’m on such a high from the show I don’t notice the small group of girls standing off in the corner until their giggles give them away.
Groupies. Awesome.
Oh well, at least the guys will have fun. A few beers to come off the adrenaline rush and then home for a hot shower are the only things on my agenda for tonight. I pull a cold beer out of a trough-style bucket the bar set up for us.
“How’re you doing?” The feminine voice from over my shoulder sounds familiar.
I grin and turn around. “Trix, what’s up, girl?” I give her a quick hug. “I’m good. You?”
Neither of us says what we really mean. How are you without Mac?
She clicks her tongue and nods. “I’m good. Got a new roommate.” Her head jerks to the side, motioning to a girl who’s basically wearing underwear and high heels, talking to Talon.
“That’s good.” I take a long pull off my beer.
Her fingers sift through blond hair that is now adorned with a bright purple streak. “You?” She lifts one eyebrow.
“Nope. No new roommate.”
Her eyes grow tight. “You know what I mean.”
I shrug. “I’m good.” No, I’m not. I miss her. “You want a beer?”
“Sure.” She takes the fresh beer I offer and picks at the label. “Hatch was in town for a few days.”
“That’s too bad.” A grin tugs at my lips.
She chuckles and drops her gaze, pink coloring her cheeks. What the fuck? Trix embarrassed? “Yeah, uh, he mentioned . . .” She shakes her head and her shoulders slump. “Shit.”
A slow sickness spreads through my gut. “What?”
She doesn’t look at me. “I don’t know. I probably shouldn’t say anything, but—”
Lane steps up beside her and pulls her to his side. “Trix are definitely not for kids.”
He leans down to whisper something in her ear, and she fakes a smile, but worry paints her expression. She’s usually all bubbles and laughter, and watching her this uneasy makes me anxious. Something’s up.
“Lane, man, give us a minute?” I keep my eyes on Trix.
Her eyes go wide.
“Fine, you can start the night with him.” He smacks her ass. “But you’re ending it with me.”
If I wasn’t so worried about what was going on with her, I’d roll my eyes at the idiot.
After he walks away, I step in closer to Trix. “What were you saying about Hatch?”
She’s all over the place, shifting on her feet, eyes darting. “He was here for a few—”
“Cut the bullshit, Trix. You already told me that.” My muscles are tense and I could put my fist through a wall.
“He screwed up.”
“What does that mean?” I spit the question through clenched teeth.
She bites her lip and moisture glosses her eyes. “It’s Mac.”
My head gets light and my body sways. Hatch screwed up. It’s Mac. That could mean anything and everything and all of it bad.
“What. About. Mac.” The corners of my jaw pulse, and I imagine every kind of horror a man like Hatch is capable of.
“I didn’t know who else to go to.” The desperation in her voice cranks my pulse higher. “Hatch is on the run for some serious shit. He wouldn’t tell me what but said he had to disappear for a while.”
“Trix, I swear to God if you don’t start telling me what the fuck this has to do with Gia, I’m going rip this room apart.”
“Who’s Gia?”
I rear back and chuck my beer across the room. Glass shatters and the amber liquid drips down the wall. One of the guys yells “Rock-n-roll” and the girls whoop and holler.
Her eyes grow wide and she holds up her hands. “Okay, just hear me out before—”
“Talk right fucking now!”
“Hatch has been filling me in on how she’s doing.” The words pour from her mouth in a rush.
“And how the fuck would that asshole know how she’s doing?”
She rubs the back of her neck and cringes. “I think you know the answer to that.”
What? No. Gia’s with Hatch? The guy who fucking cold-cocked her in her own damn driveway? The biker piece of shit she can’t stand?
I groan and drop down into a nearby chair, counting the months since I last saw her. She’s been with him that entire time? Wait, he has to disappear? For what?