Page 80 of Final Serenade

“Candids would be great,” I agreed.

“I also talked to a buddy of mine from NYFA about renting some extra gear.”

The documentary was becoming a massive project. Levi was pulling resources from everywhere. Now we just needed to find sponsors, people who wanted to support our cause.

We were saying our goodbyes for the night when a pair of headlights swept through the air. The car that pulled in was a limo, and for a moment, I thought it was Frank. My gut knotted. Levi was standing right next to me, and there were people hanging out near the rear entrance. Mind blank, I watched the vehicle roll through the parking lot until it reached us.

The door swung open. “Cassy? What a surprise to see you here,” a voice that sounded a lot like Dante’s called.

I swallowed past the lump in my throat and leaned forward. My guess was correct. It was Dante. He sat in the back, dressed in his usual flashy attire. Someone else’s silhouette lingered in the shadows.

“Likewise. What are you doing here?” I responded and shot Levi a confused glance over my shoulder.

He gave me one of his whatever shrugs.

“Looking for trouble,” Dante joked and waved at my partner to acknowledge his presence.

“Any luck?” I asked.

“Not yet. You have a second?” His chin jerked invitingly.

“Sure. What’s up?”

He motioned for me to join him inside. All the red flags were there. A semi-stranger asking me to get in his car. No woman in her right mind would agree to this, but it was Dante. Frank’s best friend, lollipop addict Dante, who’d written my favorite guitar riffs and had said he wanted to find out more about my project. So I did what he asked me to do. I said goodnight to Levi and slid into his limo.

My pulse quickened when I saw Corey. He sat across from me, next to Dante, all suited up with stress creasing his face. It made me wonder if he had any idea how comfortable a T-shirt could be. The vehicle moved. I scanned the interior, trying to look for some signs of why I’d been summoned here. The divider was up. No music played. This whole thing didn’t feel right.

My fingers tightened around the strap of my bag. “What’s going on?” I dove right in, my gaze snapped from Dante to Corey and back.

“I think you know what’s going on, Cassy,” Corey started.

My heart dropped to my stomach. “Did something happen to Frank? Is he okay?” I couldn’t come up with any other reason why his manager and his friend would want to ambush me in a public place. It was either Frank had been in another accident or the tabloids had found out about our relationship. Neither scenario was good news.

Dante stretched his crossed legs, and his dark steely eyes pierced mine. He didn’t seem like the friendly type today. His lollipop was missing. But the Rolex was present. “Yes, Cassy. Something happened to Frank. You. To be more specific.”

I blinked at him rapidly. My blood pressure skyrocketed. The car rolled through one of the back streets and I felt trapped. “Can you elaborate, please?” My voice shook, but I kept my shoulders straight and my chin high.

He was abnormally calm. “We know you stole the demos.”

Panic crashed my chest. For the first time in my life, I was at a loss for words. People had called me many names, but never a thief. “Excuse me?” I drawled, dejectedly staring at them as if they’d just told me they were from another planet.

“It’ll be easier if you go ahead and confess, Cassy,” Corey said. “Considering the nature of your relationship with Frank.”

The man was insane and I wanted to ask him if he’d ever considered pulling the stick out of his ass for a change.

My pride finally kicked in. “Are you two out of your fucking minds?” I wasn’t going to let two arrogant assholes blame me for something I hadn’t done, because they were too dumb to find the person who’d actually stolen the demos.Typical.

“This can be settled without police involvement,” Corey continued.

“Police?” My heart plummeted against my ribcage, rage filled my blood. “You two need to get your facts straight.”

Frustration danced across Dante’s face. Unlike his manager, he didn’t care about keeping his cool. It wasn’t his job anyway.

“You want facts?” His voice was a racket in my head. “You show up and the next day, the entire fucking album is out on the internet. You’re the only person who I can’t vouch for with access to the studio. Do you have any idea what it did to our entire campaign? What it did to Frank? He waited seven fucking years and you came and shitted on everything he’s been working on for all this time.”

“Oh yeah?” My anger was complex, a maddening stream of thoughts and words, it was doomed to explode. And it did. Because the accusations hurt me. “Says the man who fucked his best friend’s wife.”

Corey’s left eye twitched, but he didn’t speak up. His hands were locked together, resting on his lap. The limo kept driving.

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