Page 159 of The Stalker

“Yup. Should be good. Anyway, we’d better get going. I need to drop my gear in my room before the soundcheck.”

“No problems. Any sandwich preference today, Tati?”

She shrugged. “Surprise me.”

“Will do.” He gave them a friendly wave and continued on his way.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Hayden chuckled and said, “Hey, if Daniel asks you out, maybe you could go on a double date with April and me. What do you think?”

“Shut up,” Tatiana laughed and gave him a playful shove as they reached his dressing room.

He stood near the door and she swept the room, finding nothing concerning. Hayden got ready for the soundcheck and they spent a few minutes relaxing before they made their way to the stage.

“I want to do a Gunners song tonight,” Sebastian said by way of a greeting as he approached them from behind.

Hayden laughed, “When don’t you want to do a Guns N’ Roses song?”

“Good point. But we haven’t done one for a few concerts. I’m thinking ‘Paradise City’ if Gabriel’s up for singing it.”

Tatiana swept her eyes over the backstage area as they walked through the large open space near the entrance to the stage and the guys continued their conversation. It was always pretty quiet when the soundchecks happened over lunchtime. Harrison was waiting by the entrance to the stage and they walked over to him.

“He hates covering Axl’s songs. They’re hard for him to sing,” Hayden pointed out.

“Hmph, he always slays it when he does, though. I’ll sing it if I have to.” Sebastian shrugged his shoulders.

The discussion about covering “Paradise City” continued as Gabriel joined them, and they headed onstage. She was watching Gabriel sing the song, Sebastian having seemingly gotten his way, when Daniel approached with their lunch.

She bit into the chicken and salad sandwich he’d gotten her and smiled at him. “Not too bad. Did you get the same?”

“Yup.” He took a bite and looked at the stage. “Should be a good concert tonight.”

“Seems like it.”

She’d eaten another few bites when Daniel picked a bottle of water up off the floor and opened it before handing it to her with a smile. “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” She took it off him and took a few large sips, took the lid off him, and closed the bottle before setting it on the floor at her feet.

She’d finished half of her sandwich and they were talking about something that had happened on the crew bus when Tatiana started to feel strange. She felt dizzy and nauseated, putting her hand to her head as the world started to spin around her.

“Tatiana? Are you okay?” Daniel’s expression was full of concern as he looked at her.

“No, I’m really not. I think I might be sick.” The world was starting to blur a little at the edges and she felt unsteady on her feet, stumbling a little where she was standing.

“Oh my god, you look terrible. Let me help you get to Hayden’s dressing room.”

He grabbed her arm and put it around his shoulder while he wrapped his arm around her waist and started marching her toward Hayden’s dressing room.

“What? No. I need to stay with Hayden.”

“No, you don’t. You need to take care of yourself, and you don’t look well at all. I’ll get you settled, then get a medic.”

The entire world was getting dimmer. The nausea and dizziness were intense. She could barely keep her feet moving and Daniel had started almost dragging her along. She blinked and they were inside Hayden’s dressing room.

Daniel dropped her onto the sofa and stared down at her. The concern was gone from his expression, and she couldn’t place what she saw there. Relief?

The world was getting darker and she realized she was passing out. She wanted to scream for help, but her mouth wasn’t working. She couldn’t find the words. She blinked, and the world went black until she opened her eyes again and looked up at the man standing over her.

“Daniel, what have you done?”

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