Bodyguard: Traitor (Book 8)

Bodyguard: Traitor (Book 8)

Chapter 1

“Cancel the gig,” insisted the bassist. “In fact, the whole damn tour!”
 
“No. There’s too much at stake,” said Terry. “We risk losing millions.”
 
“We risk losing our lives!” the bassist shot back.
 
The band, tour manager, Big T and Charley were all crammed into Ash’s dressing room backstage at the Na­tionwide Arena in Columbus. Word had leaked out about the message on Ash’s computer, and the band had been spooked.
 
“I tell you, it was an accident,” insisted Terry. “Just because some anonymous hater posted a message online claiming he was responsible doesn’t mean it’s true. There’s absolutely no evidence of foul play. This is simply an Internet troll tak­ing advantage of a news story. Now get yourselves ready for the concert.”
 
Charley kept her mouth shut. She no longer knew what to think. Big T had launched an investigation into the source of the message, but it had so far come up blank. This was suspicious in itself. Yet an examination of the spotlight had pointed to basic mechanical failure of its clamp as the rea­son for the accident. The fact that the safety chain hadn’t been attached was put down to human error, rather than a premeditated murder attempt. Nor had there been any rea­son to suspect the bus crash was anything more than an ac­cident. However, following the ominous message, Charley began to wonder if that was really the case.
 
“Hey, it’s not just Ash out there onstage,” the bassist re­minded them, crossing his arms defiantly. “Any one of us could be hurt or killed. So we have a right to say whether we go on or not.”
 
“Fine,” said Terry. “If you don’t want the gig, we’ll get an­other bassist in.”
 
“Well, I hope he wears a crash helmet!” he sneered.
 
“Terry, you’re missing the point,” the drummer piped up. “We all know about the death threats. Someone has it in for Ash.” He directed his drumstick at Ash, who sat mute in his chair, staring blankly at himself in the mirror as the stylist made the finishing touches to his hair. “Are you willing to gamble his life, and ours, like this?”
 
“There is no gamble,” said Terry. “I’ve discussed this with his manager. Someone is playing a cruel game, that’s all. They’re trying to scare Ash, intimidate him—sabotage his career. And we won’t let that happen. Apart from the threats before the tour, it’s all been false alarms. The crew has double-checked everything at this venue. I can assure you, there’ll be no more accidents on this tour.”
 
“That’s comforting to know,” replied the bassist. “But what about actual attacks on us?”
 
Terry jabbed a thumb in the direction of the veteran bodyguard. “That’s the job of Big T and his security team to prevent—and I have complete faith that they’ll keep Ash safe.”
 
The bassist snorted. “That’s all well and good for Ash. But what about us?”
 
“My security team covers you as well,” said Big T.
 
Terry glanced impatiently at his watch. “Now, the gig’s going ahead with or without you. What’s it going to be?”
 
“Surely, it’s my decision!” interrupted Ash. “Whether the show happens or not?”
 
Everyone in the room turned to him. Dressed in his glit­tering stage gear, his hair perfectly coiffured, Ash looked more than ready to go onstage. But, having seen him with his defenses down, Charley knew the paralyzing fear that haunted Ash’s every waking moment. In her opinion, he was in no fit state to perform.
 
While the others in the band had a right to be concerned for their safety, Ash was the real target.