| Sue looked at Brian's face and knew immediately something was wrong. A chill went through her as she took a guess at who had made Brian's face fill with anger mixed with a measure of fear. "Who was that Brian?" Sue asked him quietly, not entirely sure she wanted to know. "Wrong number," Brian answered snapping the phone closed. His expression was closed, Sue was unable to fathom what was going through his mind. She sat up a little straighter and looked at him. He smiled at her, but she could tell it was a forced smile he was hiding something. "Brian. Who was it? Please, be honest with me," she said reaching over with her plastered arm, running her fingers down his cheek then letting her arm lay on his shoulder. He took the hand in his and lifted the fingers to his lips, kissing them softly. He had a faraway look in his eyes as he did. Then as if a light was switched on, he turned to look at Sue. He leaned in close to her and let his lips softly touch her cheek, lingering. "I won't let him hurt you Sue," he said softly in her ear. He moved away and saw the confusion in her eyes. "It was him Sue. He rang on my cell phone." "It was… him?" Sue said her face going pale. She twisted out of his arms and stood up, walking restlessly to the other side of the room, burying her face in her hands when she got there. Brian started to panic at her reaction and was at her side in a moment. He didn't want her returning to the fear she had been living, even if he could feel it himself. He wanted her happy, not worrying about Newman… The bodyguards would have him covered. It looked like he at least needed a new phone number. He turned her in his arms and looked down at her. He wanted to make all this go away but he didn't know how. He could see the terror deep in her eyes and his heart ached for her. He reached over and brushed his fingers along her cheek and instinctively she leaned into his hand. She was so beautiful to him but her haunted eyes worried him beyond anything he ever felt before. He had to protect her, even putting his own life on the line for her. He studied her face watching the emotions play over her features and his heart began it's usual pounding in his chest. He moved in closer and Sue wrapped her arms around his waist, gripping on to him as if afraid he would let her go. "I won't let him hurt you Sue," he said to her again. "No one is taking you away from me." He pulled her closer again and rested his lips on her forehead, his body pressing against hers. Sue moved her head up lifting her lips to his. He was more than a little surprised when she began to kiss him seductively, trying to encourage him to return the kiss with little sounds of longing coming from her. He knew she was reacting out of fear, but he couldn't help himself. He was powerless to do anything but kiss her back. Neither of them heard the door open behind them until AJ spoke. Sue noticed him first and froze, wondering how someone would walk in without knocking to let them know. After the fear she had just felt, this was starting it all over again. "Getting a little piece of the Rok, Sue?" AJ said to her. That's when Brian heard AJ and understood Sue's sudden withdrawal. "Bone, don't you know how to knock," Brian spat out at him. He pulled Sue in close giving her the security he felt she needed and she clung to him. He could feel her heart pounding with the fright. "Woah, what did I do wrong?" AJ asked, seeing the terrified look on Sue's face before she had buried her head in Brian's shoulder and he had curled his arms protectively around her. Instinctively he knew it had something to do with the crazy stalker. "Brian, what happened? Did he get in here again?" he asked in a serious tone. "No AJ. He just rang me on my cell phone. He's evil AJ. He has given photos of him to the media claiming they are me." Brian told AJ. "He what?" AJ ran his fingers through his short hair in frustration. "I came to tell you we're supposed to go to a group meeting. I think this better be added to the agenda." "Yeah, lets go then," Brian said taking Sue's hand to take her along. "Want me to let Will know what's going on? He can watch Sue while we meet," AJ said to him cautiously. "Uh uh. I am not leaving Sue here alone. I am not letting her out of my sight. You guys can either like it or not, but she's staying with me." Brian told AJ forcefully. No one was going to make him leave Sue here. "Besides, she is the center of this item of discussion." "Well, I have no problem with you bringing her. I don't suppose the others would either, especially under the circumstances." They both knew group meetings were usually only the five of them. AJ had been worried about Brian for a while now. The whole situation was affecting Brian, but no more than any of them would expect. It was in his nature to protect the one he loves and that was what he was doing. The problem was that there wasn't a lot any of them could do right now. "I'm sorry Bone. I'm just worried about Sue. If she wasn't with me," he said giving her a squeeze, " I wouldn't be able to concentrate." Sue took that moment to speak up. She looked up into Brian's eyes before turning to AJ. "I promise not to interrupt any AJ," she said to him. "I'll just sit in the corner and stay quiet." "You won't sit in the corner Baby," Brian said quietly to her. AJ walked over to them. "Sue, it's okay," he said putting his hand on her shoulder. "The guys are all behind you in this. It's not your fault this is happening, and we all want to do whatever we can to make it easier to live with for now, until this madman is caught. Please don't feel you are in the way at all or any of this is your fault." "Thank you AJ," she said, smiling at him. Sue felt the warmth coming from him. She always felt total acceptance from all the guys when she was with them. None of them had ever made her feel uncomfortable. Not that she had expected it in general, but once this ordeal began with Spencer Newman, she thought things might have been different. Not once had they disappointed her, or Brian. It warmed her heart and it showed in the smile she gave AJ. AJ pulled her out of Brian's arms surprising her, wrapping his arms around her in a tight hug. "You're a part of our special family now Sue. If you are special to Brian, you are special to us. We would all do anything for you." He pulled back and looked at her touching her nose with the back of his finger. "And no tears now. Just telling you how it is." Sue laughed. "You already know me too well AJ," Sue said wiping a tear from her eye. She looked back at Brian. "You know you have some pretty special friends." He smiled, "I know that. Come on, lets get to this meeting," he said taking Sue back into his arms, winding one around her waist and taking her hand in his other hand. He guided her out the door, the three of them walking together to the designated room, followed closely by their posse of bodyguards. If it weren't so necessary it would be funny. Brian took some time to fill Kevin into what had happened that day. A plan of attack would be drawn up during the meeting. Howie was running a little late, having rung in to let them know he was in an interview in his dressing room, and wouldn't be long. They used the waiting time to relax over coffee and some of the snacks that had been brought in. Howie came rushing in ten minutes later full of apologies. They all dismissed it, knowing how hard it was to get away from interviews. Howie got himself a coffee and settled himself, ready for the meeting. Despite what Sue had said about sitting off in a corner of the room, Brian had insisted she sit with him, his hand still firmly in hers. That slight contact was a comfort zone for them both. "Howie you don't know yet why Sue is sitting in on this meeting. I know it's usually only the five of us, and under normal conditions it would be okay. But stuff has happened today and I insisted Sue stay with me." Brian explained to Howie. "Not again. What happened? Are you okay Sue? Did he hurt you? Wasn't last night enough of a scare?" Howie asked in rapid fire. Sue chuckled. "I'm okay Howie. So long as I am with you guys I feel safe." "What happened?" Brian took a deep breath and let it out. "It's getting even more serious now Howie. Newman has taken the ante one step higher. After that reporter asked that question at the press conference today, he confronted me as I was leaving the room, handing me this." He hadn't shown the others yet. He passed it to Howie and Sue took in the shocked look in his eyes when he looked. "This isn't you." Howie stated, passing the photo on to Nick. "Of course it isn't me. This was taken the night he attacked Sue. I was at the hospital when it was taken. He left Sue when he knew he was going to be caught and got himself into this compromising situation, planning on using it against me." Howie snorted in disgust. "He's gotta be stopped, I'd like to get my hands on him." Nick nodded his head having passed the photo on too. Again Sue felt the love that was coming from them all and she choked back a sob. Never before had she felt this much affection. She looked down at her hand entwined loosely in Brian's and wriggled them. He looked over at her and gave the hand a squeeze. He could tell this was draining her emotionally, but they had to make a plan to thwart this latest plan of Newman's. "We should let the police know about this." AJ said when he had seen the photo. "That goes without saying, but how do we handle the problem. If the media get a hold of this, no matter how much we deny this, people are going to believe what they want to believe. And mud sticks." Kevin said to them, a very worried look on his face. "This idiot knows he has us cornered." The five of them sat quietly for a short while before Nick spoke up. "Why don't WE show the media this photo?" he said suddenly. Everyone looked at him as if he was crazy. "You are kidding right Nick?" Howie said throwing Nick a withering look. "No, think about it. He wants us all to worry about when he will leak these photos to the press. If the press are alerted to the plan, he won't have any credibility. If we get the police to make the statement, it will be even better. I know we didn't want the press in on the problem, but in a way they can work for us. And once the fans are alerted, you know how they love to keep an eye out for us. They might be another ally in all this." "But Nick, remember the fans don't really know about Sue yet. Well, not a lot of them. It might work against us." Brian pointed out. "Well, yeah, that's a point." He thought for a moment. "But they have accepted Jac okay. I just think if it is all out in the open, it might be a help." Howie sat shaking his head. "I don't know Nick." Kevin and AJ sat contemplating what Nick had proposed. "Wait." Kevin said suddenly. "That might work, but we will need more advise on this. Nick's right. The fans can be of some assistance here. You know what they are like. Most of them would do anything for us. They could even be on the lookout for any Brian look-alikes." Sue wasn't sure if she wanted her life splashed about the whole world. "Can I just say something?" she asked quietly. The guys all nodded and Brian squeezed her hand. "Go ahead Baby. What do you think about all this?" Brian encouraged her on. "I don't know if I want everyone to know about this. I mean a lot of it is pretty personal. I don't want everyone to know he bailed me up in my own room and planned to rape me," she told them, clearly distressed at the thought. Brian pulled her into his arms and held her tightly. "She's right guys. There has to be something we can do without exposing Sue like that. This is hard enough on her as it is without doing something to make it worse." "Yeah, but what?" Kevin asked. "We need more advise on how to handle this properly. Agreed?" They all nodded, voicing their agreement. "Sue you know we are behind you on this," he added, echoing the support the others had already given her. She nodded her head in gratitude as Nick stood up and walked over to her. He threw his arms around her for a hug. "We'll look out for you, all of us." Sue smiled. "Thanks guys, all of you." Nick moved back to his seat and the room was silent for a short while. Kevin cleared his throat, beginning some discussion on the other topics they had on their agenda. Sue sat quietly observing them all. Not necessarily intruding on their discussions, it all went over her head at this stage, but at how well they got on together. They disagreed on things then sat and worked those things out, talking over all possible solutions until they had agreed on something. She knew by listening to them that before they made any decision on the Spencer predicament they would talk it over with her to get her approval. To her, Brian was her special love in her life, but his friends, or his brothers as he liked to call them, were equally as special to her. She had been totally accepted by them. The meeting was finished off in a hurry with concert time drawing near and another Meet and Greet to attend before the concert. They liked to be ready to appear on stage when they did their mixing with the fans and each one of them raced back to their dressing room to change. "Are you coming out to watch tonight?" Brian asked Sue when they got back. She shook her head. "No, not tonight. What if he is out there?" "David and Will are there this time." "But he might be out there looking for me. Even if he isn't, even if Will and David are watching me, I'll feel like every pair of eyes is watching me." She walked over to Brian and kissed him on the cheek. "You don't mind do you?" "No, it's okay. Whatever makes you feel most comfortable. Are you sure you will be okay in here on your own?" She shrugged. "I have to do one or the other, or go back to the hotel, and I don't feel comfortable doing that. At least here you are nearby." "Okay. You decide Baby. I only want what's best for you okay." He kissed her forehead. "I have to go now though. I'll tell Will and David what's going on. Now if you change your mind, just come on out. You know where to go out there." Sue nodded and Brian kissed her goodbye quickly before dashing out. She heard the door close and felt the sudden wave of fear that she had been expecting. She paced the room, her eyes darting around, half expecting to turn and find she wasn't alone. The feeling began to overwhelm her and she didn't know how long she could wait in the room all on her own. Her breathing was coming in deep gulps and her heart was pounding so hard she thought it would beat through her chest. This was never going to go away, this feeling of absolute terror at being left alone and being taken by Spencer. Not until he was caught and locked away. She lay down on the lounge and rolled into a tight ball, covering her face with her arms. She closed her eyes, but then visions began to form in her mind. Visions of Spencer Newman laughing at her, grabbing hold of her and twisting her arm behind her back, the sound of bone cracking audible to her ears, his laughter tormenting her. She started to shake with fear, sobbing quietly into her arms. When she felt a pair of arms come around her she thrashed around, trying to scoot up on the lounge, arms and legs swinging wildly, her eyes refusing to open, refusing to find anyone there. This wasn't happening, no, it wasn't happening. "Sue, Baby, it's me." She heard Brian's voice soothing her, but for a moment it didn't comprehend. She slowly opened her eyes and saw the pained look in Brian's eyes. When she finally came out of her haze of terror she really saw Brian and threw her arms around Brian's shoulders, hitting his head with her plaster cast. He grunted as it hit, but didn't move away, pulling her safely to him. "I'm not leaving you in here alone. You have to feel safer out there with Will and David than you do here alone." Brian had felt his heart breaking when he had come back to the room to check on her. He had felt an uneasiness hang over him while he was meeting the fans, doing his best to be cheerful with them. Although the concert was scheduled to start any moment, he just had to come back to check. Now he was glad he had. Seeing her curled up on the lounge sobbing had twisted a knife in his soul. He had to help her, but he just didn't know how. He called Will in and explained the situation. Will sat beside Sue, taking her icy fingers in his and told her David and he would protect her while Brian performed. No one would get passed them. She agreed to go out realising it would be better than sitting in here alone. Flanked by the two big men who would do anything to protect her, she felt safe. And that was how the next week continued. Brian was forever mindful of the fact that any tiny thing could trigger Sue's memory of her horrible encounters and he was doing his best to try and avoid any situation that would remind her. For the most part he was succeeding, but the little things missed were traumatic all over again. Performance times Sue was always in the audience, knowing now that she couldn't stay in the room on her own. It would be a long time before she would ever feel safe alone again. |