PING.
He felt like he’d been hit with a baseball bat.
He heard screams in the distance and his eyes blurred as he looked over his shoulder at Ian.
The second shot gutted him and he went down.
Concrete.
Ambulance.
Syringe.
Black.
“We’ve just received word that pop star Beckham Woods was pronounced dead on arrival tonight by hospital officials, after suffering two fatal gunshot wounds outside a downtown Los Angeles venue where he was performing earlier this evening. Ian Sterling was with Woods at the time but appeared to be unharmed.
The two stars have been through a lot in their short time as friends, with Beckham’s girlfriend, Roxie Taylor, and Sterling being kidnapped by Colette Williams earlier this month. Williams’ location has still not been identified, and at this time we have no evidence suggesting she was part of the shooting.
Police are requesting anyone with information regarding this case call the hotline. The number will be shown at the bottom of the screen for the remainder of this broadcast.
We will greatly miss the performer who has entertained us for nearly two decades with his award-winning songs and playful personality. The world has lost a star whose light will never go out.”
“This news just in: The home of Colette Williams, the alleged kidnapper of Roxie Taylor and Ian Sterling, burned to the ground last night. Neighbors from the nearby house heard a loud explosion and called 911 at 11:59 p.m., but the house was leveled by the time the fire department arrived. The remains of three bodies were found, but at this time, they have not been identified.
Colette Williams allegedly stalked the newly deceased Beckham Woods for many years. It is still unknown whether or not she was responsible for his death.”
The emergency phone line rang, and Daniel moved to pick it up.
“Don’t answer that!” Will shouted.
Roxie and Sparrow stared at the guard. Daniel paused by the table and frowned. Mild-mannered and quiet, it was the loudest they’d heard Will speak.
Will answered the phone and said very little. He agreed with whatever was being said and hung up.
It was late. Leo and Journey had been in bed for hours, and everyone else was tired but concerned about Beckham and Ian.
“Okay, what’s going on?” Roxie asked. “Beckham and Ian have been gone all day. We’re really getting worried.”
Will seemed nervous. “Pack your things. We’re leaving in an hour.”
“Tonight?” Sierra asked.
“I don’t want to leave without Beckham,” Roxie said, folding her arms.
His mom and sister agreed.
Will mumbled and then looked at them. “Dion will explain it all when he gets here. Get whatever you want to take with you, otherwise it will be left if it’s not packed within the hour.”
Sparrow’s eyes were wide. “Wow,” she said, glaring at Will. “I don’t know why we’ve been kept in the dark all day about … whatever’s going on … but there’s no need for you to be rude.” She immediately went splotchy, her signature embarrassed face, and Roxie walked over and put her arm around her.
“What she said,” Roxie said, squeezing Sparrow.
They split up, each hurrying to their rooms. Chloe decided to take a quick shower since she didn’t have much to pack. It took Roxie a while to get everything together because Leo had spread out his toys in their room. She was waiting until the very last minute to wake him up.
She’d had a bad feeling in her gut since that morning. After the sweetness of the night before, it had been a blow to not see Beckham all day. And for there to be no word about him or Ian—it just did not sit well with her.
Dion was all business when he came to the safe house. It was past midnight and he didn’t want to answer any questions about anything. It was infuriating.
“We’ll be taking two vehicles and we ask you to remain patient for a little while longer.”
“Ian and Beckham aren’t going with us?” Daniel asked.
“The guys asked me to see you safely to the next location,” was all he would say.
All the warm feelings about Beckham that Roxie had been soaking in throughout the day turned. She wanted to kill him. Wring his neck for making her worry like this.
The vehicles pulled into an airplane hangar out in the middle of nowhere. The plane sat at the other end.
“This is all very cryptic,” Roxie whispered to her dad.
He was carrying Leo and nodded, shifting Leo to his other hip.
Ian walked down the steps of the plane. Everyone breathed easier seeing him. Sparrow rushed to him and they hugged before he took Journey from her.
“Come on, it’s a nice plane,” he said to the rest of them with a smile.
Roxie walked as quickly as she could and went up the steps after Ian and Sparrow. When she got on, she looked around but didn’t see Beckham.
“Where is he?” she asked.
Ian motioned for her to follow him and took her to the back of the plane. He rapped on the door twice and opened it. Beckham was lying on the bed, asleep.
“Is he okay?” she asked, moving toward the bed.
She sat down and took his hand, looking at Ian when Beckham didn’t move.
“He’s fine. He was given a sedative—poor guy couldn’t handle getting shot twice with a-”
Roxie gasped.
“Bulletproof vest on underneath…” he finished.
“You have a lot of explaining to do,” she said.
Ian nodded. “It went a lot differently than we expected, but I think it still worked. Hopefully he’ll wake up soon and tell you everything, but if he doesn’t, I’ve got strict instructions on what to say.”
Roxie frowned and motioned for him to keep going.
“I’m gonna cut out the flowery crap even though I love it,” Ian laughed, “but I know you’d rather hear that from him.” He looked at Beckham. “Sure wish he was awake. That wasn’t part of the plan.”
“Out with it, Ian.”
“Okay. Bottom line: will you go on a little trip with him? Maybe a long trip, depending on how long the rest of the pieces fall into place?”
“You’re talking in riddles.”
“Sorry. I know. So … we thought we’d draw Coco to the show tonight, but went with plan B when she didn’t show. We’ll have to straighten it out, but right now the world thinks Beckham is dead, and we just got news that Coco blew her house up. Good lord, that sounds crazy. And I wish I felt sad about Coco, but I don’t.” He tugged his hair and bit his lip, waiting for her to say something.
“What?” Roxie’s mouth dropped and she looked at Beckham. He didn’t stir. “Are you sure he’s really okay?”
“Positive. I heard him griping on the fake ambulance.”
“I’m gonna need to hear all of this again, but for now, you should check on Sparrow. She’s been worried about you all day.”
“You should come out here too. If you agree to go with Beckham, you’ll want to say goodbye to the rest of us.” He put his hand on the door and opened it a crack.
“You’re not coming with us?”
“Originally yes, but with Coco gone … that changes things. As much as I’d like to pretend I’m dead for a little while, I’m not quite at that level financially.” He raised his eyebrow and grinned.
Roxie laughed. “Come here. Let me hug you first.”
He put his arms around her and tried not to squeeze too tight.
“You guys are right for each other,” he said. “Don’t be too stubborn to see it.”
“I’ll try,” she said. “And we’ll see you soon, right?”
“I promise.”
There were hugs and tears as everyone told each other goodbye. No one was shy about saying exactly how they really felt.
“You need this time together,” her mom said. “Give him a chance. Okay? That man loves you.”
“You won’t be able to keep me away for long,” Chloe said. “Call me when you need a maid of honor.” She winked.