Page 80 of The Comedown

What the fuck? I hate that Slade knows all this and I don’t. I need to talk to Bare. Shit’s gotta change going forward.

I call Bare myself to get the rundown straight from him.

“I don’t know, boss man. It seems legitimate to me. I think he’s just staying the night with a friend. After dropping Holter off, Mary drove out of there like she had a hot date. No hesitancy at all about where she was leaving him for the night.”

Date. She’s not the only one. I’m sure Collette’s on her way to hers right now.

“All right, meet us at the buses. And call as many buddies as you can. We’re gonna need ’em.”

“For what?” Slade asks at the same time Bare does.

I tell them the only word I need to, “Miami.” Hanging up, I hop in a golf cart with a driver ready to take me offsite. This’ll keep me both occupied and out of jail…probably. I let that fuckhead in the Porsche off easy. I won’t be so generous next time Collette tries bringing around another date, and if I’m not busy with something, I’ll go looking. Or drive myself insane wondering.

I’m already halfway there now.

“Get everybody.”

“Everybody?” Slade asks while Axel blows out a breath, running a hand through his hair. Dude’s so emo. He’s still my brother, but he messed up propositioning Collette. I’m the only motherfucker who gets to do that.

“Everybody,” I repeat, tossing Slade his phone back.

Collette

What’s that sound? It’s like bees, a swarm of them, but louder. So much louder.

Coming from the back bedroom, I peer out one of the heavily tinted windows, sucking my breath through my teeth as an entire fucking mob of people rush toward both buses. I immediately bring my phone up, dialing Holter to…I don’t know. Is this an angry mob? Or a happy one?

Why is there a mob at all?

Luckily, it’s just me here since I gave my team the rest of the night off. Well, me and Antonio. He insisted on staying with me until I finished packing my bag for the night. Even though I’m going home, I still needed a couple things.

When Holter doesn’t answer, I hit redial, calling out to Antonio. The driver’s weathered eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror.

“Can you get us out of here?” Do we even have time to get out?

Pounding against the outside of the bus gives me my answer.

As if today couldn’t get any worse.

Antonio has the radio up to his mouth, speaking into it when I join him at the front.

The voice on the other end comes through somewhat choppy as the driver from Julian’s bus says, “They’re putting on a concert.”

A concert?

“Who?” I ask Antonio.

He looks up at me apologetically, saying, “Julez.”

“Where?”

“Here.”

A concert here? It’s raining. And there isn’t any equipment. Or a stage.

Finally, Holter answers, asking, “What’s up, Mom?”

“Oh my God,” I say, jogging back to the bedroom and closing the door. Pressing the phone to my ear as hard as I can, I have to stick my finger in the other one to even hear myself. “Please tell me you’re still at Tai’s house.”