“What did Eric do?” the cop on my right asked, not for the first time. He was the guy who’d cuffed me earlier, and I’d learned his name was Officer Pope.
I pressed my lips into a hard line, and Aunt Dallas smirked. “He did what he needed to do to protect what is his,” she told Pope.
Behind her, the door opened again, and this time, a man in an expensive suit walked in with Ma right beside him.
“Officers, I am Peter Kratt.” As soon he spoke his name, the two cops stood up straighter. “I would like a moment with my client, please.”
Without a word, the two cops stepped outside, making sure the door closed behind them.
I leaned back on my gurney. I was just starting to feel the pain in my hand, and it was throbbing. The doctor had asked if I’d wanted something for the pain, but I didn’t want anything that was going to fuck with my clarity, so I’d told him no. The nurse had given me an ice pack when I’d first arrived, but it had melted since then.
Peter Kratt glanced at Aunt Dallas and cocked a brow. “If you’ll excuse us, Nurse.”
“Nah, I’m good,” she said as she leaned against the wall beside me. “I think my future son-in-law wouldn’t mind too much if I’m here anyway.”
“Nope. Not at all,” I told her with a wink.
Ma crossed to us and picked up my hand. “What do you think, Dallas? Is he going to need surgery?”
“Possibly,” she said with a grimace. “Whether he does or not, he’s still not going to be playing a guitar for a few months at the least.”
“Ladies.” Kratt pulled their attention to him. “If we might discuss what led us to this particular situation. Depending on what occurred, I may be able to get young Mr. Armstrong here off with community service.”
Aunt Dallas told him everything Shaw had told her, and it was only then that I realized she hadn’t been with Shaw at the photo shoot.
“She went alone?” I gritted out. “I thought you were there.”
“If I’d been there, do you think that little prick would have gotten two steps out of that studio?” she tossed back at me. “I had a gyno appointment. I thought you were going with her until she called me crying.”
“Cannon said there were other naked girls on the camera,” Ma told Kratt. “Couldn’t Eric be charged for something if those girls hadn’t given him permission?”
“You said the boy destroyed the camera,” Kratt reminded her.
“Yes, but not the memory card.” She pulled it from her pocket.
He took it from her, placed it in an envelope he pulled from his briefcase, and labeled it. “I’ll have to look through the pictures and try to identify the other possible victims. If they wish to file charges against this guy, he could end up doing serious time.” Kratt’s gaze shot to me. “And if I do my job right, you won’t. You’ll do your community service and be free to go on your summer tour.”
“Fuck the tour,” I snapped. “Just make sure that no one sees those pictures of my girl.”
Chapter 41
Shaw
It was midnight before I heard the front door opening. I jumped up from the couch where Dad had been watching movies with me all evening on Netflix. We’d gorged on junk food and takeout. Sometime during the afternoon, Dad had taken my phone and told me just to relax. Mom was taking care of everything, and he didn’t want me to worry.
I’d been worried about Jagger trying to call me, but he assured me Jagger was with Mom.
That hadn’t helped me relax. If he was with Mom, that meant he knew what happened, and I wasn’t sure what the hell he would do.
At the door, I came to a stumbling stop with Dad right behind me when I saw Mom in a pair of scrubs that I couldn’t remember her ever wearing before and Jagger beside her. He had his hand in a full cast, his face was pale, and there was what looked like blood on his shirt.
Seeing me, he narrowed his glazed eyes. “You are taking a fucking bodyguard with you from now on. Do you hear me?”
“What happened?” I whispered, my eyes going back to his hand.
“Shaw,” he growled my name. “Do. You. Hear. Me?”
“Yes,” I said with an adamant nod. “I’ll take a guard. I promise. Now, tell me what happened to your