Sweet Possession Read Online Free PDF Page B

the trail back to them is usually easy to follow.”
    “You’re getting threats you can’t trace back to an identifiable source.”
    Phillip nodded. “Exactly. What concerns me is that whoever is doing them is delivering them in person. It started five shows ago and he’s followed her from city to city.”
    Connor raised an eyebrow. “He?”
    “We assume it’s a he.”
    “An obsessed fan?”
    Phillip frowned. “I’m not sure. Typically when you have some fan who’s obsessed or fancies themselves in love with a star, there’s a courting stage and then anger because their feelings aren’t acknowledged or reciprocated. This . . . this is just plain weird and unsettling.”
    “Tell me.”
    “He always leaves a note. Where varies. Once, it was taped to the bus. Once, it was on her guitar case. Another time it was in her dressing room.”
    “No wonder you fired her security,” Connor muttered. “No one should be getting that close to her.”
    Phillip nodded. “One of the many reasons. I also couldn’t be certain it wasn’t one of them. I got rid of everyone I had the power to fire. Unfortunately, Pete and Repete, her two pet bodyguards, are hers. She hired them. But I want you to keep an eye on them. I don’t trust them.”
    “Lyric didn’t mention any of this when we met last night,” Connor said. “She mentioned that it had gotten harder to keep a distance from the fans and that she’d made a mistake in making herself too available.”
    Phillip shifted uncomfortably in his chair and glanced over at Pop. Pop grunted. “You may as well tell him. You should have told us all this from the beginning. Last thing he needs is to go in blind.”
    Jesus. What now?
    “Lyric doesn’t know,” Phillip said. “I’ve kept a tight lid on it.”
    “You want to say that again?” Connor asked.
    “She doesn’t know.”
    Connor shook his head in disbelief. Pop was right about one thing. People in show business had no common sense.
    “What could you possibly hope to gain by keeping this from her? She has to be careful, which means she has to be aware of the potential threat to her. She can’t do that if no one tells her that some creep is stalking her. I don’t understand why you haven’t canceled her show or at least her appearance at the music store. Are you just trying to get her killed?”
    Phillip’s lips pressed together. Connor hadn’t come out and said, You’re a dumbass , but his tone certainly implied it. Phillip didn’t look happy, but if the shoe fit . . .
    “Lyric is her own worst enemy at times,” Phillip said. “If she knew some weirdo was leaving notes for her, there’s no telling what she’d do. She’s not the type to be cautious and play it safe. And we can’t go around canceling events every time some whack job starts threatening her. If we did that, we’d be out of business.”
    “It seems to me, whether there’s a threat or not, she does whatever the hell she wants and damn the consequences.”
    “Yeah,” Phillip said wearily. “Something like that.”
    “So if she’s doing it either way, it makes no sense not to tell her what’s going on. At least then she might adopt a little self-preservation. Especially if you aren’t going to cancel a public appearance that most definitely puts her at risk.”
    Phillip’s eyes narrowed. “Look, you don’t know Lyric—”
    Connor held up his hand. “You’re right. I don’t know her. I don’t have a desire to get to know her. But if I’m going to take this job, I’m not coddling her, which means I’m going to be straight with her from the start. She’s going to be briefed on everything. And then she’s going to do what I tell her, when I tell her, or I walk. It’s as simple as that.”
    “She’s never going to go for such heavy-handed treatment.”
    Connor shrugged. “It seems to me you need me a hell of a lot more than I need you. I’d love nothing more than for her to fire me.”
    “You work for me,” Phillip was