Chapter 19:
The Visit
Nick sighed impatiently, shifting from one
foot to another, and glanced at Brian who was leaning over a glass counter.
When Brian said he wanted to go shopping Nick didn’t think he meant this. He
walked over to his friend, ignoring the stare of the two women employees, and
gazed down to see what Brian was examining.
"Come on Bri, decide. Jeez." He
reached over and grabbed what was in his friend’s hand, whistling at the price.
"Eight thousand dollars?" He remembered the joke Xavier made this
morning. "You’re buying this for X? Damn! You’ve never bought me a
watch."
Brian took the watch from Nick’s grasp and
gave it back to the salesman, nodding his approval. "You never saved my
life, Frack," he said dryly.
"Picky, picky," complained Nick
good-naturedly. He was relieved to see the salesman wrapping up the package,
eager to head over to the sporting goods store he had spied nearby. Brian
shoved the small box into Nick backpack, then placed his oversized sunglasses
and red baseball cap on.
Nick did the same, only with wrap around
frames and a blue cap. Both surveyed their disguises. "You look like a
dork," teased Nick. Brian stuck out his tongue. "Yep, act like one
too."
Brian held the door open and waved Nick
through dramatically. "Okay, your turn to pick."
Nick pointed out the store across the
street. Brian smiled, turned to Nick and said, "Race you," sprinting
off before his finished speaking the dare. Nick swore, tearing off after him.
* * * * *
The cab driver swung into the coliseum
parking lot and came to an abrupt halt at a maintenance entrance. Brian and
Nick both leaned over to inspect the meter and Brian groaned. Nick, on the
other hand, crowed with delight at the amount displayed and punched his friend
in the arm. "Twenty-eight fifty!" he boasted, delighted. "I‘m
the closest. I win. Pay him."
Nick jumped out of the car and waited as
Brian fished out his wallet. He barely had time to hand the driver his money
before the cabbie took off, screeching his tires as he left.
Shaking their heads, they watched the cab
driver race away, then looked at each other and began to laugh.
"Damn, he’s almost as bad as those
drivers we had in
Nick held open the side door as he and
Brian walked through. "Almost," he agreed. They hurried down the
hallway, searching for the rest of the gang. They had decided to meet them here
at
Guess we aren’t so late after all,"
said Nick, relieved.
"Yeah. Let’s go find the
others," Brian suggested, nodding towards the backstage. They hopped up
easily onto the stage, nodding their hellos to the stagehands.
"Nick!"
Both Brian and Nick turned around to see
Aaron come flying down a side aisle. Nick met him halfway and Brian smiled as
he watched the two greet each other. Brian’s smile faded as he saw Xavier,
slowly walking down the steps behind Aaron. His stomach tightened into knots as
he watched Xavier catch up to the two brothers, placing a hand on Aaron’s head
and giving a playful ruffle with his hair. Not being able to hear what was said
Brian watched their movements, seeing Aaron excitedly turn to Xavier. The young
kid’s face was animated, his arms enthusiastically waving as he told some
interesting story to Nick that obvious involved the bodyguard. Xavier nodded at
something Aaron was describing to Nick then looked up over Aaron’s head to gaze
at Brian standing up on the stage. Holding Brian’s eyes with his own he smiled,
then in an exaggerated gesture brought his hands around Aaron’s throat, in a
dramatic mock strangle.
Sick to his stomach, Brian heard Nick and
Aaron laugh at Xavier’s antic, knowing full well Xavier’s real goal. He kept
his face impassive, realizing Xavier’s need to get a rise out him. He held
Xavier’s stare, calm, not giving an inch. Xavier finally nodded, a faint smile
of defeat twisting the corner of his mouth as Brian recognized that he had won
this round. Brian exhaled with a shaky breath, not realizing he had been
holding it in. He continued to watch the three down below him, his mind racing.
He knew with out a doubt that Aaron was in danger. Desperate to get Aaron away
from Xavier he nervously bit his lower lip, anxiously searching for an idea.
Preoccupied, Brian never heard AJ sneaking up. He grabbed Brian’s shoulders and
gave them a shake, leaning close enough to yell "Boo!" in his ear.
In shock, Brian swore angrily at AJ, upset
by his mischievous prank.
"Whoa! Bri, chill out, okay?"
said AJ, surprised by his hostile manner.
Brian replied with a glare and turned his
attention back to Xavier, Nick and Aaron. AJ followed Brian’s lead. "Hey,
there’s Aaron. Aaron! Dude!" AJ yelled to catch his attention. Aaron waved
at AJ then continued talking to Nick and Xavier. "Cool. When did he get
here?"
"Today," Brian answered,
noticing Howie and Kevin entering from the far left of the arena with their
duffel bags. AJ, noticing Brian’s curt answer, studied his friend who was
studying Xavier. Feeling again uncomfortable, AJ figured now was a good time as
any to talk to Brian about the bodyguard.
"Hey Brian," AJ began,
"what do you think of Xavier?"
Brian stiffened at his question, alarmed.
"Think? What do you mean?"
AJ shrugged. "I don’t know. He makes
me sorta uneasy, ya know? Like he knows a secret that we don’t. I don’t like
him."
Brian felt a rush as his heart began to
beat faster. That AJ noticed something peculiar about Xavier was alarming. AJ
had good instincts and if he decided to investigate further, the results could
be disastrous. Sickened by the prospect, Brian’s fear gave way to anger at AJ’s
chillingly accurate opinion. In alarm, Brian turned on his friend.
"You don’t like him?" he
sneered. "Because he’s good at his job? Because he saved my ass? Because
he’s my bodyguard instead of yours? I think you’re jealous."
AJ, stung by Brian’s vicious attack, was
at loss for words, but not for long. "Fuck you, Littrell," he hissed,
not wanting the others to hear. "I just thought I’d tell you how I
felt."
"Nobody cares what you think, especially
me. I like Xavier, so screw you."
AJ took his glasses off to glare at Brian,
pissed. "Fine, asshole. Just don’t come running to me if you have a
problem."
Brian matched AJ’s glare. "I
won’t."
AJ left the stage, ignoring the hellos
from Nick and Kevin, who were walking up on stage. Howie jerked a thumb at AJ’s
retreating figure. "What’s up with him?" he questioned Brian.
Brian, shaking inside from his
confrontation with AJ, shrugged and mumbled, "Who knows?" He felt
nauseous and hurried from the stage, in a hurry to find a restroom. He fled
past Nick and Aaron, ignoring the interested look from Xavier. Banging the
men’s room door open with his foot he ran to the sink, hyperventilating. He
grabbed the sides of the porcelin sink with both
hands, letting the bowl hold him up as he panted, fighting the urge to vomit.
"Brian?"
Brian twisted his head at the sound of his
name and saw Aaron standing in the doorway, a curious look on his face. Brian
turned away, not willing to face him. He grabbed the sink tighter, trying to
compose his thoughts. Finally he swung his head back look at Aaron, hoping he
had the guts to do it. First AJ, now Aaron. He took a deep breath.
"What the hell do you want,
Aaron?"
"Uh, I just wanted to say hi, see if
you’re okay."
"Do I look okay?" Brian barked.
"No."
"Smart boy. Now why don’t you just
leave? Better yet, why don’t you go back home?"
"Huh?"
Brian could hear the confusion in Aaron’s
voice and forced himself to go on. "You heard me. You really are a
pain-in-the-ass, Aaron, you know that? Nobody wants you here, especially me. I
had planned to do some things with Nick, but we can’t, now that you’re
here."
Aaron couldn’t answer, the stunned look on
his face preventing him from speaking.
Brian smiled grimly at Aaron, shoving
himself away from the sink and walked menacingly over to him. Aaron stepped
back a few paces, alarmed by Brian’s presence.
"Go home," Brian whispered
cruelly. "And quit hanging around Xavier. He’s my bodyguard. I’m not gonna
pay good money to have him babysit you."
"But Nick wants…" Aaron started.
"Nick doesn’t want you around either.
He only took you because of your whining. Grow up, you little asshole."
Aaron looked down at his shoes, shaken at
Brian’s words. "Okay," he said softly.
Brian sucked in his breath, not daring to
hope. "Okay, what?"
"I’ll leave."
Brian tried not to show the relief in his
voice. "Good. And if you’re a man, you won’t whine and cry about it. Just
keep it to yourself, okay?"
Aaron didn’t reply, and Brian anxious to
make sure, grabbed Aaron’s face with his hand.
"Right?"
Brian saw the tears forming in Aaron’s
eyes but they didn’t spill. "Right," he whispered.
"Good. Now get the fuck outta
here."
Brian watched as Aaron fled, weak with
relief. He could hardly believe it. It worked. He started to laugh shakily at
the thought of using intimidation to get what he wanted. That was Xavier’s
trick and he had just used it successfully in the game of wills against the
bodyguard.
Brian walked tiredly over to the sink
again and turned on the faucet. He stuck his hands under the cool water then
brought them up to his face, watching himself in the mirror. He stared at his
reflection for a moment. He thought about the pain and hurt he caused and would
probably cause again to insure everyone’s safety. But I can do it, he thought
with wonder. I can survive this game and I’m going to win. Even if it kills me.
***