Page 39 of Mysterious

Her eyes wide in fear now, she shakes her head, refusing to say anything. I’m not leaving this room until she explains exactly what she knows. I swear to God if I need to shake it out of her, I will.

“I’m not playing around with you and this nonsense anymore,” I threaten as I march over to her. “Tell me what’s going on. Now!”

Once again, the boom of my voice makes her jump. Taking a step back away from me, she rolls her eyes and says in frustration, “Fine. She’s not really in danger, okay?”

My mouth drops open in shock at what she’s just told me. “What do you mean she’s not in danger? My two guys who were guarding her were really in danger. Kip might never walk again if that bullet tore through God only knows what in his knee. Brett took a bullet to his calf. That’s real fucking danger, Andrea, so tell me what you mean.”

“He wasn’t supposed to hurt them seriously. I’m sorry about your guy’s knee. That wasn’t supposed to happen. I told him if he had to use the gun, to make it that the bullet went through some fleshy part like the upper arm or the thigh.”

“The thigh?” I say, thankful neither Brett nor Kip got hit there. “You mean where the femoral artery is? The artery that if you hit it, you fucking bleed to death before anyone can goddamned help you? What is wrong with you? No wonder your daughter thinks you’re a monster. You are!”

Good God. The kidnapper holding Mia thinks shooting someone in the thigh is a harmless flesh wound because of this woman. If he does that, there’s no chance I’ll be able to save her.

“I promise we’ll pay for any medical bills and rehab costs both of your guys have. They’ll get the best care in the world. You don’t have to worry about that. We’ll make sure the one who got shot in the knee is up and walking and doing whatever job he wants for the rest of his life. I promise, Liam.”

Unable to control my anger, I grab her by the shoulders and squeeze my fingertips into them, needing her to feel something about what she’s done. “You put three people in danger for what? So Mia could be on the news as some sympathetic creature and reviewers would say nice things about her concerts? What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Unlike her daughter, Andrea doesn’t buckle under my interrogation of her and pushes against my chest to walk away from me. “I do what I have to so Mia can have all the success she deserves. Sometimes that means doing things that some people might not approve of, but you don’t understand this business. If you aren’t constantly in the spotlight, people forget about you. It’s a savage world out there. I make sure everyone always has Mia’s name on their lips. She doesn’t know what I do, but if she did, she’d understand. She knows what this business is like. You better get used to it if you think you want to be with her too, or you’ll get swept away like everyone else she’s ever fallen for. Mark my words, Liam, you need to understand what it takes to be the man Mia’s with or you won’t last for long.”

So she knew about us? She knew Mia and I were together and still pulled this stunt?

Grabbing her by the arm, I spin Andrea around to face me. “You fucked with the wrong man this time. No wonder the authorities don’t take what happens to Mia seriously. They must know it’s always you pulling some PR stunt.”

“I never call them, so it’s not like they could possibly get in the way. They wouldn’t do anything anyway, not until she’s hurt, at least. Don’t you watch the news?” she asks in a smug voice that tells me she doesn’t understand the harm she’s caused.

“I’m done listening to this madness. Tell me where she is so I can go get her. And you better pray to God that she’s not hurt or I swear, Andrea, I’ll make sure you pay every way I can.”

She waves off my threat and my worry, smiling up at me. “She’s fine. Michael would never hurt her. Trust me.”

I stagger back, confused at hearing that name again. “Michael? What is it with you two? First you bring him back to handle security, and now you’re working with him to kidnap your daughter? What the fuck is going on with you and that guy?”

“That guy is the one who’s helped me manage Mia for years, Liam.”

My mind whirls with questions, and then one jumps out over all the rest. “Were you planning to have him kidnap her after the show in Tampa? Is that why you brought him back and tried to push my guys out that night?”

Andrea’s eyes open wide, as if she’s horrified that I could accuse her of such a thing. “Don’t be ridiculous! He was there because I needed him to be.”

“Why? Why the hell did some guy who was shit at his job of protecting Mia suddenly need to be her security head again? You were planning this the whole time.”

“She was never going to be hurt. He would never hurt her, and neither would I. You don’t understand. The world Mia and I live in is different than the outside world. That bad review of her Tampa show could start a domino effect with everyone asking if she’s still got it. I needed to do something.”

“You brought him back before that review, so what the fuck was going on?”

Andrea shakes her head. “I heard her rehearsals in the past few weeks. She hasn’t been like she always was. I could tell she was too distracted, too focused on other things and not on this tour.”

“Too happy? Why the hell did you have Jonah bring me onto this job in the first place if Michael was your righthand man in managing Mia?”

Andrea groans, like all of this questioning is a hassle for her. “I had to do something to show my daughter I was the one in charge. So Michael got a paid vacation for a few weeks, and Mia had to fall in line. You were the perfect man for the job.”

“Until we started to care for one another.”

“It was only a matter of time before the critics began writing their reviews saying she’s lost it. She used to have fire in her soul before, but now those critics are hearing what I heard for weeks. That’s what love does to a person. It makes them weak. Mia’s career is built on her angst, so I had to make sure a plan was in place.”

Her admission that she’s had this kidnapping waiting in the wings for just the right time stuns me. “You had to make sure she went back to being unhappy. Christ, you are a monster. And here I thought you were the good one in that house.”

Then I remember the stalker letter. “There’s never been a stalker, has there? That was all you and Michael, wasn’t it? All to whip up sympathy for Mia and keep her in the news. More angst and suffering.”

Andrea arrogantly nods, like any of her behavior is something she should be proud of. “Yes, and that stunt did just what it was supposed to do. It kept everyone talking about her, and it helped keep her in the public eye so people would buy more of her music.”

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