Page 93 of For One Night Only

The crowd falls silent.

It’s chilling, like the stadium is haunted, and instead of the ghosts being in our song they’re out in the arena, looming. There are a few coughs, and even a couple boos, but other than that, it’s eerily quiet under the glare of the lights. Adrenaline races through my system as I try to get my bearings.

We’re still livestreaming.

I glance around at the rest of the band, but no one says anything or moves to pick up their instruments. They just stare at me, judging. But the show must go on, so I begin to play the intro for “Midnight Road Trip,” determined to keep this up even without Caleb. My ears ring.

God, I can’t do this without Caleb.

Riker materializes at my side, and for a moment I think he’s going to grab one of Caleb’s spare basses and start playing, but he just shakes his head.

“Come on, Valerie,” he says.

And then he follows Caleb’s path off the stage. Keeley’s already gone, and Jane gives me a sad smile before hurrying to follow.

Tears sting the back of my throat, and I fumble to unplug my pack. The crowd jeers in earnest now, but I don’t know how to respond. My head buzzes with anxiety, and I can’t focus on anything but getting out of here.

But that’s the coward’s way out.

“Just a technical issue. I promise we’ll be right back,” I say into the mic.

I gesture at one of our stage techs, who just shrugs, but soon there is a steady stream of Glitter Bats music playing over the loudspeakers. I stumble over cords as I hurry off the stage.

Back in the greenroom, I expect to find the entire band, but someone is missing.

“Where is he?” I ask.

Keeley barrels forward, getting right in my face. “What thefuckwas that, Quinn?”

“Where’s Caleb?” I demand. I expected him to be back here, ready to lay into me in private.

But he’s nowhere to be seen.

“Valerie, why did you…I’m speechless. What were you thinking?” Jane says.

Her question barely registers as the whole room tilts. Caleb’s gone. He can’t be gone. After everything we’ve been through, I can’t believe he would just leave me like this. Again.

Even if he was mad, how could he do this to me?

He said he loved me. I thought…I don’t know what I thought. But I never expected Caleb to abandon me in the middle of a show, no matter what I did. It’s like Vegas all over again, and the kick-in-the-gut feeling of abandonment makes me want to fall to my knees. He’s gone and Ineedhim and—

Shit. The show.

“We have to get back out there,” I say.

“Wedon’t have to do anything!” Keeley says. “You went off script, and you had no right to make promises to the fans we can’t keep. Didn’t you realize Label is going to use this? They’re going to make us record withthem!”

I swallow thickly. I didn’t think. I just had the microphone and needed to dosomethingand…damn it. This is the one thing Wade said not to do.

But maybe it’ll be okay.

It has to be. They suck, but Label Records has a vested interest in keeping things moving with as little delay as possible. Glitter Bats are hot, and we’re all over the internet. We need to capitalize on our momentum. That’s what I was trying to do out on that stage. We have a shared motivation.

Going to a different record company would be better, but it would also mean meetings, negotiations, contracts—and we don’t have time for that. Label Records is full of sharks, but they’re sharks who know how to manage a big group like this. They’ll give us the tour we deserve. We might have to jump through a few extra hoops, but I know we can handle it.

“It’ll be fine. You all said you’re interested in making a new album.” When no one reacts, I course correct. “But we can talk to Wade! We can still walk away and find another label—it just might take some negotiating. That’s what lawyers are for, right? Then we’ll be off and recording something new before you know it.”

“I don’t think it works that way.” Jane crosses her arms. “What’s the big rush, Valerie? Help us understand where this is coming from.”

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