Public Secrets Part 316

elevator. It was time, time that he needed.

It was supposed to have been so easy. In the dark, while everyone was

confused, he should have been able to get to her. He still had the

pills in his pocket he had planned to force her to take. It would have

been easy, smooth, quiet.

But nothing had gone easily.

Just like the first time.

"Why?" Sick with vertigo, Emma sunk to the floor. "Why did you do that

to Darren?"

Sweat was running off him, drenching his crisp linen shirt. "He wasn't

supposed to be hurt. No one was. It was just a publicity stunt."

She shook her head to clear it. "What?"

"Your mother gave me the idea." He looked down at her. He doubted she'd

give him much trouble. She was white as a sheet. She'd always had

trouble on planes, elevators. With heights. He glanced at the b.u.t.tons

on the panel. Why hadn't he thought of it before?

The opening act would be starting. The show must go on, he thought.

Illusion was the first order of the day. While millions of people

around the country were watching the record industry pat itself on the

back, a few confused guards were looking for Emma backstage. Up here he

had time to think. And to plan.

She felt the elevator shudder and b.u.mp to a halt. "What are you talking

about?"

"Jane-she was always pressuring for more money, threatening to go to the

press with this story, or that story. She worried me at first until I

began to see that the publicity about you equaled a boom in record

sales." He pulled her up. She was limp with nausea and clammy with icy

sweat. So much the better. With his arm around her neck, he dragged

her up another flight of stairs.

She had to keep him talking. Emma bit back the sickness and the fear.

Bev had gotten away, and the baby. Someone would come looking for her.

He didn't worry about her screaming now. She could yell her lungs out

and no one would hear. Shoving open a door, he pushed her out on the

root The wind slapped across her face, tore at her hair. And cleared

her head.

"We were talking about Darren." She kept her eyes on his as she backed

away. The sun was still bright. One part of her mind wondered how it

could be day when she'd been in the dark for so long. "I need to know

why-" She backed into the low wall, then swayed at the dizzying view

below. Clenching her teeth, she looked back at him. "Tell me why you

were in Darren's room."

He could afford to indulge her. And himself He'd nearly lost control

for a moment, but he could feel himself leveling now. He'd find a way

out. "Everything was fine for a while. Then it started to flatten out.

We were having some internal troubles with the group, as well. They

needed something to shake them up. Jane came to me with Blackpool. She

wanted me to make him a star, a bigger star than Brian. And she wanted

a cut. She got drunk." He waved his hand. "In any case, she offered me

a solution. We planned to kidnap Darren. The press would eat it up. A

lot of sympathy, a lot of sales. The band would pull together.