Page 73 of Finding Emotion

Damon stepped over the nearest debris carefully, reaching for his guitar case. “All I need—” He’d lifted the lid and his words froze.

“That was destroyed the worst. I found part of the neck over here.” Jimmy’s voice sounded like it was coming through a tunnel.

Scrawled across the inner lid of the guitar case were the words ‘Your Match.’ Pictures were scattered in the case, dozens of them, all of him and Skylar. The same blood-red color marked up each picture, crossing out her face with the added message ‘Not Hers’ on every single one.

“Oh, fuck,” Jimmy muttered. He gingerly held a broken guitar string, from which a piece of Damon’s smashed guitar was still attached. “Your superfan seems pissed.”

Some images of Skylar’s face had even been gouged out. Damon had trouble sucking in a breath.

“What do you want to do?” Jimmy asked. “You’re supposed to perform any minute, but we’ve got nothing.”

Like Damon cared about the performance. “Did you see anyone?” He dragged out his phone.

“No, but that’s not surprising, is it?” Jimmy shrugged. “Your fan has always been sneaky.”

It took two tries before Damon’s fumbling fingers could pull up Malcolm’s number.

“What are you doing?” Jimmy asked, but Malcolm had already answered.

“Hey, Mal, I need you and Trent. Can you come back here behind the stage?” His immediate agreement didn’t surprise Damon. Malcolm would have heard the emotion in his voice.

Damon was scared.

Jimmy sighed. “What do you think your friends can do? I know they’ve got connections, but this place is pretty public, Dame.” He frowned. “And they sure as hell won’t have any instruments.”

“Stop acting like this is nothing. I thought you were a Skylar fan.” He jabbed a finger at his still open case. Each time he looked, there seemed to be more images. “This doesn’t worry you at all?”

Jimmy shrugged. “Once you two break things off in a couple of days, your superfan will cool off.” Jimmy patted him on the shoulder. “I mean, it’s not like you and Skylar were meant to be long-term. Memories are short.”

Damon stared at his friend. “I’m in love with her, Jimmy.”

Jimmy’s hand fell away. “I know you think that…”

“I told you yesterday, it’s not some media stunt. Not anymore.” The splashes of red across their photos drew his gaze again. “Besides, I’d never be okay with someone threatening her, even if I didn’t have feelings. This time, we need the cops.”

Jimmy paled. “Don’t you—”

“We’re here, Dame,” Malcolm called. His eyes scanned the area as he approached them with Trenton and Blake behind him.

“Damn,” Blake muttered, kicking at a piece of what used to be Damon’s favorite guitar. “This ain’t no love letter.”

Trenton frowned. “I’ll call the investigators, but Mal, do you think…?”

“Definitely.” He’d already pulled out his phone. Malcolm still had a few contacts at the police station.

“Wait. Will they keep it quiet?” Jimmy’s hands rubbed his arms as Damon’s friends stared at him. “What? This panicked shit never plays out well for Dame’s reputation, and the media’s already here about his performance.”

“They’ll have something else to cover now.” Damon stared down at the message again. “It’s not like I have any instrument to put on the performance anyway. Blake, could you—”

“Am I invited to this party?” Skylar asked as she pushed behind the stage curtain. “It seems everyone else is here.” She moved closer, her eyes widening as she caught the mess. “Shit, your stalker? That bitch needs to get caught.”

“This may be the mistake that’s needed,” Malcolm said, hanging up his phone. “A team’s coming. This venue is closed down.” He squeezed Damon’s shoulder. “They’ll find something, and these guys won’t ignore a threat like this.”

“Not much of a threat.” Skylar bent down and picked up a glossy, black piece of what used to be his guitar. “Dang, she was such a beauty too. You got a backup for your song?”

“I won’t be performing.” Damon watched Skylar’s frown turn into a scowl. “It was just a charity thing. They’ll understand. I’m more worried about you.”

“Fuck that. Let the bitch come. I’ll knock her teeth out.” Skylar dropped the piece of guitar and grabbed his arm instead. “And you’re playing that damn song.” She started to drag him away.

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