Fuck.
I sighed, knowing this issue wasn’t going to be solved easily. And even though I was pissed, I felt obligated to help. I wasn’t going to pay the debt, but there had to be another solution. One that didn’t end in violence against my family.
There was a knock at the door, and I stood to answer it. “Mom, I have to go. Let me make a few calls,” I said, tipping the hotel employee before carrying my food inside. “I’ll get back to you.”
“Okay.” She exhaled, and it felt as if she’d dropped all the weight that had been on her shoulders onto mine. “Thank you, Frasier.”
I said a terse goodbye and then hung my head. I removed the dome from my breakfast tray. It looked phenomenal, but I’d lost my appetite. I pushed the food away and stood, pacing as I thought through my options. Who to call.
Derek was one of the few people who had known about the situation with my brother, and I obviously couldn’t talk to him. Bryn knew some of it, but I wasn’t going to burden her with this information, especially not on her sister’s wedding day. I didn’t need to talk; I needed help. But I wasn’t sure who could even assist me.
I scrolled through my contacts, landing on my agent, Talia. This type of thing wasn’t in her usual purview, but I wanted to keep it as quiet as possible. And I trusted Talia to be discreet.
She’d signed an ironclad NDA. She was invested in my success. Plus, Talia was well-connected, and she might have some ideas as to who could help.
It was still early in LA, but I had a feeling she’d be awake. I inhaled and hit the button to connect the call.
“Frasier,” she said, answering on the third ring. “To what do I owe the pleasure? Have you had a chance to look over that contract I sent you? Or were you calling because you need another personalized unreleased book?”
I chuckled, despite the depressing conversation with my mom and the reason for this call. I knew Talia had been curious about that request, and I appreciated that she hadn’t asked me outright for more details. Besides, I was feeling better now that I was taking action. “Always straight to business, huh?”
“Well, I assume that’s why you called me at seven o’clock on a Saturday morning.”
“Yeah…” I rubbed the back of my neck. “Sorry about that.”
She laughed. “It’s okay. I was already up, thanks to the twins. So tell me what’s going on?”
“I, uh—” I had no idea where to start, so I started at the beginning. I told her about my brother and his career, his accident, and what had happened since. She already knew some of it—mostly because when I’d come on as a client, she’d practically interrogated me to see if there was anything in my past or present that might be a liability when approaching potential brands. I’d been honest, but things were so much worse now.
When I finished, she was quiet for a few moments. “I’m sorry that you and your family are going through this.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I’m sorry to drag you into this, but I didn’t know who else to call.”
“No. It’s good that you did. This doesn’t seem like a job for a publicist,” she mused.
I didn’t have a full-time publicist. Most of the guys in the league didn’t, apart from the heavy hitters like Holden Hansley. I worked with the Hawks’ PR staff for most of my interviews, unless it was a larger campaign directed by the league. That said, I did not want to take this to the team or the league.
“Maybe a fixer. I know a good one, but I’m actually…” She clicked her teeth a few times then said, “I think this might be a job for Hudson Security.”
I furrowed my brow. “The residential security company?”
“You know of them?”
“Some of the guys on the team use them,” I said. “I’ve tried to talk Bryn into it.” Not surprisingly, she’d refused.
“Mm. Hudson handles a lot more than just residential security. They offer executive protection services, and I think their expertise might be just what you need.”
“You mean…like a bodyguard?” I asked, not sure that was the best fit for this scenario.
“Yes. They protect very high-profile clients, and I’m sure they’ve dealt with their fair share of blackmail and threats.”
She made a good point. “Okay. Thanks, Talia. I’ll give them a call.”
“Mom!” one of her kids called for her in the background. “I’m hungry.”
“I should get going before my kids tear the house apart.”
I chuckled. “Oh. One more question before I let you go.”
