Page 103 of Scent of Home

I stare at him, shocked to hear he’s been taking this seriously.

“You make us all very rich, Locke. Without you, Derision is nothing. I checked the footage, of course. I checked.”

“I woke up to my bedroom door locked. My windows locked. That fire was the last straw. Someone is trying to kill me. You know what she’s doing to me. and someone else wants me dead.”

Jason moans, but it’s so soft, I almost miss it.

“Don’t send me back to that, Jason. Please. There’s no one I can trust. I’m alone.”

“What do I tell them?”

“Say you didn’t find me.”

“Typhor will come after you.”

“Typhor has to go head-to-head with Erin Bradley first,” I say quietly. “She won’t let him win. Besides, he hates Derision. He’d be happy to see us all gone.”

“What about everyone else?”

“Should anyone earn money from someone being exploited and abused? I hate that band, and to be honest, I hate writing music. I hate performing. This has been my nightmare for years, Jason. You’ve seen the bruises. You’ve seen me the morning after. Hell, you know what’s going on, you had to escort all those people out of my suites. Please, I’m begging you. Don’t make me go back.”

Jason flinches with every word.

“What if I was your son? What if your son was in my position? Would you stomach it, then? Would you send your son back to be drugged and raped and whored out by his band mates? I know you’ve seen them. I know you’ve heard the rumours. She doesn’t hide it.” I breathe thickly, trying to fight back the memories. “Why won’t you help me? How can you do this?”

Jason inhales on a shudder. A bead of sweat trickles down his temple. The tic of the engine is loud in the silence.

“Let me go, Jason. Say you didn’t find me. Tell them I’m gone. Dead. Whatever it takes.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Then let me have some more time. I’m not ready yet. Oh, please! I didn’t…” I break off, my throat tight. “I didn’t get to tell them how I feel. That they were my choice. Please. We’ve worked together for years. You know I’m not lying. I know you have to do this because of Typhor, but, please, Jason, I can’t live like this. Save me. Help me.”

Jason lets out a moaning sigh. “God dammit, Locke. What the fuck do you want from me? This is my career, too, my life. Typhor Raines is a nightmare. He will crush me.”

I half-hope he does.

“If Typhor can end Derision and see the back of me, he will do it in a heartbeat. I’m an embarrassment, a black stain on the family. He will be happy to end this era. You’ll be given a retirement package or a new band.”

“I’d lose a lot of money.”

“You’ll lose a lot more if I die.”

Jason lets out a low growl and then reaches across himself and pulls up the door lock.

I hesitate.

“Get out. Before I change my mind.”

I slip out of the car and push the door closed.

“Thank you.”

He says something, but I don’t hear because he’s already driving away.

I stand there, alone on the side of the road. Is this what freedom tastes like?

With a smile that could light up a thousand stages, I step off the road, guessing the fastest path back to town and back to my alphas.

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