The door opens quietly, and Naz comes in, balancing a paper bag against his chest.
“That looks like a lot,” I say, even though my stomach betrays me by growling loudly the moment the smells of grilled meat and spices hit me.
“Hopefully it’s enough.” He laughs and holds the door open for someone behind him. “Mr. H called a meeting, and I didn’t think we should leave Jesse out, even if he’s still out of it.”
“Fair enough.”
Ari steps in with Blake Holland just behind him. Ari is looking a lot better than he was. He’s more relaxed and has some color back in his cheeks. His thick, dark hair is pulled back in a low ponytail. He still has some dark circles shadowing his eyes, but I think we all do.
The rest of the entourage follows. Cory and Eric, our two bodyguards, both pat the edge of Jesse’s bed in greeting, even though he’s asleep. Eric is holding another bag of food, and Cory has a Styrofoam cooler in his arms.
Eric grabs a few tacos and a bottle of water from the cooler and gestures to the door. “Cory can keep me informed, I’ll keep watch.”
There’s not much chance of trouble in this private wing of the hospital, but it’s better safe than sorry. There’s a reason Jesse has his own bodyguard. Part of it is because he’s always causing trouble and needs round-the-clock supervision, but most of it is just his natural affinity for attracting chaos. People go nuts when he’s around, like his mere presence stirs up mobs.
Mr. Holland—Blake, he asked us to call him—gestures toward a long table near the windows. I thought it was a weird thing to have in a hospital suite, but I suppose some of the VIPs who stay here require all the comforts of home. This place is more like a hotel than a hospital room, minus the rolling bed and machines.
Everyone takes a seat, and burritos and tacos get passed out. Ari sets a can of Dr. Pepper in front of me, and I immediately unwrap my steak and black bean burrito to take a huge bite.
Blake doesn’t waste time getting into the reason for our impromptu meeting. “Francis Tuft has been terminated, effective immediately,” he says evenly.
Ari lets out a breath. “It’s about damn time.”
I glance at him, catching the edge of his mouth curling into a satisfied snarl, and I can’t help smiling a little. Francis was annoying, but it was Ari who seemed to take the brunt of his bullshit because he was the most likely to stand up to him or call him out. Francis seemed to think he could steamroll Ari into submission because Ari was smaller in stature and “pretty”, which he used as an insult to insinuate he was dumb. It neverworked. And the more Ari stood up to him, the harder Francis would work to make his life difficult. He thought he owned us.
Blake’s gaze settles on Ari, direct and unflinching. “You tried to tell the label. I saw the multiple complaints you filed,” he says. “It’s inexcusable that they were overlooked and not taken seriously. For that, I am truly sorry. I promise you that changes are being made even at the highest levels.”
Ari blinks, clearly not expecting that. He nods once, muttering, “Yeah. Okay.”
I hope Blake is being honest, or that he has the power to force real change, considering we went as high above Francis’ head as we could with no real outcome.Lest Is Mooreis their top-selling client. If this kind of gross oversight could happen with their biggest artists, how are the smaller clients being handled?
Blake continues, letting us know that not only was Francis fired and blacklisted from the industry, but charges will be filed pending Jesse’s approval. The label will seek not only negligence and endangerment charges, but felony drug charges based on the evidence that Francis was doctor shopping to get multiple prescriptions filled. He was administering said drugs without proper oversight, and even mixed contraindicated drugs, which could have led to much more severe consequences. It’s honestly surprising hedidn’thave an overdose, and the accident probably ended up saving his life if it means he’s getting intervention now.
“There’s a good chance Francis will see prison time,” Blake says. “But that’s if they pursue the charges. There is an equal chance they’ll strike a deal to keep the scandal contained depending on what Jesse wants to do. Either way, Francis will never work in the music or entertainment industry ever again, and witha record he’ll be hard pressed to find a job with any sort of influence at all.”
Good.
I glance back at Jesse, watching his chest rise under the thin sheet, the monitor still steady. Relief washes over me in a slow, dizzying wave.
Then I look at Ari again, and my throat tightens.
I try, and fail, not to imagine him in Jesse’s place. With a tube down his throat and the uncertainty that he’d recover completely. It hits me so hard I have to set my burrito down so no one can see my hands shaking.
Ari was admitted for a panic attack. And while I hesitate to think the wordsjust a panic attack—because the pain and fear are so very real—what if it had been him lying lifeless on the floor, skin pallid and lips blue, while someone else fought to revive him and I stood there useless?
The thought alone makes my guts twist.
Ari has understandably had trouble sleeping in the nights since. I can’t even bring myself to consider it a silver lining that he’s back in my arms every night. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.
He thought Jesse was dead. He wasn’t breathing, and Cory couldn’t find a pulse. And considering Jesse wouldn’t be the first person he saw die in front of him, it’s no wonder he reacted the way he did. The experience has only added to the memories that haunt his nightmares.
He’s so much stronger than anyone gives him credit for.
After all of this, I know one thing for sure. I’d die if anything happened to Ari. The certainty of that is absolute.
“So what happens now?” I ask, needing something solid to focus on.
Blake nods, folding his hands together. “I’m stepping in temporarily. The next two shows are being pushed, so you’ll have about a month to recover from this…incident. The time off will mean less time between the end of the tour and all the press you’re scheduled for, but after that I’m pushing for your studio time to be rescheduled so you can take some real time off.”
