‘Yes, and no.’ My bottom lip catches between my teeth as I try to think of the right words to explain. ‘My line of business has always been cutthroat. LA is not for the thin-skinned. I must have rejected a thousand wannabe artists. None of them have ever taken kindly to me shattering their dreams, and it’s not unusual to get threatened. I mean, it’s usually low-level stuff. People saying things in the heat of the moment, like “you’ll regret this” or “you’ll pay for that.” You know what I mean?’
I hear Declan tapping loudly on a keyboard. ‘I need names and numbers for all of them.’
‘Seriously? All of them? Most of them are barely memorable, which is why I didn’t sign them in the first place.’
‘Unfortunately, someone remembers you, because it seems to me that you are the centre of this whole thing. Not Ryan. Not Mia Sweet. Not Naomi Carden. They’re all collateral damage. You’re the common denominator.’
‘I’ll get Kim to go through the diary.’
‘Allthe diaries,’ he corrects me. ‘Not just this year, or last. Someone has a vendetta against you, Jayden. Someone wants to bring you, and your artists down. And whoever it is either has a lot of power or a lot of cash. Probably both.’
He’s only voicing what I’ve already concluded.
But who? And why? I’ve always done my best to help people, albeit in a roundabout way.
‘What about the women I’ve slept with over the years? Do you want their details too?’
‘Absolutely.’ Declan’s fingers continue to pound a keyboard.
My expression screws into a wince. ‘Even the married ones?’
‘Seriously, Jayden?’ His tone rachets up several decibels. ‘Especiallythe married ones.’
A weighted sigh whooshes from my chest. ‘They were separated, to be fair. I’ll have Kim compile a list and email it to you.’ Thank god she’s not on the list. A small mercy at this stage.
‘Keep your security detail with you at all times until we get on top of this. It might take a few days.’ Declan sniggers. ‘If your reputation’s anything to go by, that could be one hell of a long list.’
‘Fuck you, Declan.’ I can’t even bring myself to smile.
‘No, thanks. I’m on enough lists as it is.’ A throaty chuckle sounds again. ‘I think I’m onto something with the visa, by the way.’
‘Seriously?’ A spark of hope ignites inside me.
‘Now Lula’s not in immediate danger of being deported, we have a small window of opportunity. I’ll get back to you. Try not to worry. I know you’ve got a lot on your plate, but we’ll get to the bottom of it and sort it out.’
‘Thanks, Dec.’
I throw the phone onto the bed, gazing out across my pristinely manicured lawns.
Who have I pissed off enough to start a war? If I wanted to take someone out, I’d bulldoze down their front door, yet someone is trying to bring my house down pillar by pillar while I’m still living in it.
I’m going around and around and circles here, driving myself demented.
Is it possible I’m doing a Chloe? Fleeing the country to escape my problems. Only instead of runningawayfrom Huxley Castle, I’m runningtoit.
No. Who am I kidding? What I’m really doing is running toher. Because some time over the past few weeks, she’s become more important than anything else in my life.
ChapterTwenty-Nine
CHLOE
Being at the castle isn’t nearly as hard as I’d anticipated. Cocooned behind the safety of its majestic walls, my sisters and I are sheltered from the media frenzy outside the gates.
I work on my laptop from eight until six each day, finalising the Irish leg of the tour next week, and planning a ruby wedding anniversary party for two A-list celebrities in LA - my first job there - and organising the catering for the epic London finale.
I’m too busy to worry about what the papers are printing about the weird way Ryan, Jayden, and us Sextons are all intricately entwined.
And as for Victoria, she’s knuckling down hard, cramming for her final exams.
