Chapter 8
Ethan.
Chloe burst from the bathroom at a run, completely ignoring Jackson's surprised shout after her. No doubt he'd broke into a sprint the second he saw her, in fact she could hear the tapping of his shoes against the ground behind her.
"Lizzie!"
People. There were people everywhere. She bobbed and weaved through the ones she could, and gently but forcefully pushed through the ones she couldn't. "Excuse me. Excuse me."
For a moment she thanked the Lord above that her dress wasn't one of those impossibly tight, hard to walk in dresses. She couldn't imagine having to rip the dress in order to run.
"Anonymous!"
"Oh my God."
"Hey!"
"Sorry." She muttered under her breath. She really wasn't though. Ethan was a hundred times more important than the people around her and they would just have to deal.
"Lizzie!" Jackson snagged at her arm, yanking her back. "Stop!"
Her shoulder screamed at her in protest. Without thinking, she clawed at Jackson's hand on her bicep. "Jackson, let go!" The panic had started a second wave, painfully scratching its way up her throat.
"What the hell is going on?"
"Ethan." She told him, yanking at his fingers, her voice shrill to her ears. "I have to get Ethan."
Jackson peered down at her, the crease in his forehead slowly disappearing as he found something in her expression. His whole body tightened and within seconds he'd gone straight into protective warrior mode. "Is he in danger?" The fierceness with which he asked the question only made the fear in her stomach solidify more.
Chloe stepped forward. If Jackson wasn't going to let go, she'd take him with her. She jerked her head toward the door, looking for any sign of Ethan near the entrance. He wasn't in the building though. He was outside. How would she get to him in time if Jackson wasn't going to—?
"Elizabeth!" Jackson grabbed her shoulders in an impossibly tight grip and shook her once hard. "Is he in danger?" He barked the question.
She swallowed. For some reason her heartbeat, normally quiet as a mouse, wouldn't stop pounding loudly in her ear. She nodded.
The two of them burst into motion at the same time. She pushed herself to stay shoulder to shoulder with Jackson.
Jackson spoke into his watch. "I've got a code Blue. Need immediate lockdown. I repeat, code Blue. Possible threat to Sparks."
The two of them had just reached the clear glass doors to the outside. From her position she could clearly see Ethan standing near the edge of the red carpet. Hardly any of the people present for the pre-show had stuck around, but still a decent row of two or three people loitered next to the roped off area. They screamed Ethan's name and still had the same amount of excitement they did at the beginning of the event. Only now, they looked confused as the royal guard swarmed their prince.
"I've got Stardust with me." Jackson said into his watch.
Almost as if he sensed her, Ethan turned and, giving her a smile despite his obvious surprise, waved.
Chloe jerked her arm towards him in the obvious gesture of "Come here." "Ethan!"
And then a gun fired. Once. Twice.
Jackson slammed into her from the side and pushed her onto the ground, swallowing her with his body. His hands covered her head, his body shielding her from the door. The glass from the front door burst into pieces. It rained down to the ground like wind chimes.
The crowd panicked. People burst into motion. Running. Screaming. Ducking with their heads covered.
"Ethan!" Chloe shrieked. She squirmed under Jackson, trying desperately to get out from under him.
He held her tighter. "Stay down." He yelled near her ear. She could hear him breathing faster, his eyes darting around the scene.
After the two shots, the gunfire stopped. It felt like forever shoved into a single moment. The second it seemed like it was over, Jackson got up and dragged her behind the cover of the wall near a trashcan.
Chloe huddled into a ball, her knees tight to her chest. And waited.
Jackson pulled out a sleek black gun from somewhere under his arm (Chloe heard him call it a glock once). His body remained mostly covered by the brick wall as he trained the gun through the shattered glass.
"Sparks is secure. Commander, we need a better cover."
Chloe's breath rushed out of her chest. Thank God.
Jackson tapped his watch, "Wait for my signal, then bring him towards the entrance. There's a spot here."
"Understood."
Four agents, crouched low with Ethan in the middle, hustled him quick and smoothly through the entrance and over by Chloe.
"Ethan." Chloe scrambled up, just as Ethan's arms came around her.
"Thank God you're okay." His face buried into her neck.
The watch at Jackson's wrist never stopped carrying voices. "Shots fired. Looks like minimal damage."
"Troop Alpha has locked down the area. Shooter at large."
"Shooter is running." A male voice said through short, labored breaths. "Heading towards the main street."
"Cut him off. Do not let him get away." Jackson ordered into his wrist. Then he looked at the agents around them, "Move Sparks and Stardust into the green room. Lock the doors, cover the exits, and do not let anyone in or out until I tell you all is clear."
Jackson focused on Chloe. "When this is over, you and I are going to have a long talk."
She swallowed, her heart still half a mile up her throat, and nodded.
Jackson groaned under his breath and reached over to give her a swift hug. "Love you, Lizzie."
"Love you." She mumbled into his shoulder.
Jackson pulled back and pointed a finger at Ethan. "Keep her close."
Ethan's hand came up and Chloe watched with a bit of surprise as his flat palm sparked a couple of times. "Planned on it."
"Good. Go."
The guards led the two of them swiftly through a side hallway to the left and through different doorways until they'd reached a doorway that led straight to a staircase. The journey down made Chloe feel a bit claustrophobic. The walls were nothing more than cement blocks painted white and the lighting had been placed every few steps or so, casting minimal light. Two agents led the way down, followed by Chloe and Ethan. At their backs were two more agents. All of them had been packed into a tight unit.
Chloe's shoulder brushed Ethan's, his hand warm around hers. "You okay?" She asked. Her heart never stopped its quick, steady beat as it continued to deal with the sudden inflow of adrenaline.
Ethan's hand squeezed hers. "I'm fine. No damage." Her chest loosened and she was able to finally take a deep breath. "Are you okay?"
"Better, now that you're here." She admitted softly.
The staircase opened up to a large white room lined with costumes, mirrors, and loose stage equipment. Chloe had to squint against the contrasting brightness of the room. This new area was opposite of the staircase. Instead of being tight, scary, and dim, this room was bright, comfortable, and fun.
If only the reason they were there was for fun.
Ethan and Chloe sat on one of the preparation tables. Everyone around her had their backs straight, ears straining for sounds, and either their hands on a gun, or on their earpieces.
Ethan's elbows were braced on his knees. His palms faced each other and he amused himself by balancing a blue electric current between his hands.
Chloe didn't dare touch him. His shoulders bent inward and his head stayed down. Neither of them said a word.
He got like this sometimes. Withdrawn. The man dealt with a lot of stress on a day-to-day basis. Occasionally he needed a few moments to himself. Usually she left him alone, and he'd eventually come back to her.
Except this time she couldn't.
He'd almost gotten shot. If it weren't for her brother and his troops, he would have been. And it wouldn't be anyone's fault but her own.
She pulled out her cell phone and rotated it in her palm. She had no service—not that she'd expected to this far down into the ground—but she still kept waiting for it to light up with something.
The silence in the room practically suffocated her.
One of the guards to her left frowned and pressed a finger to his ear. "Roger that, Commander." He moved towards the door and told the room, "Commander is sending down more people."
The other guards nodded.
Within moments, quick footsteps echoed down the stairs.
The first mop of blonde hair that stepped through the door, Chloe recognized. "Josh!" She hopped off the table and ran for him. He dropped Danika's hand to catch her into a hug.
"Oh, thank God you're okay, Chichi." He breathed into her hair.
"And you? You're alright?" She gave him a once over, looking for any signs of damage. The only mark he had on him was a darker spot on his pants where he'd dropped some type of food.
"I'm cool." He stepped back and pulled Danika close to his side.
"What am I? Chopped liver?" Danika asked through a wavering smile.
"If Josh is okay, then I know you are." Chloe told her. "He'd never let you get hurt. I taught him better."
Josh rolled his eyes. "Har-har."
Chloe didn't recognize the next couple of people that came through the doorway. Jackson's guards were professional and easily positioned the people into the middle of the room. A couple of the women who stepped into the room in their nice gowns had tear tracks and running makeup, but the guards didn't even blink an eye. They handled everyone with care and respect and she knew when this was over she'd tell Jackson that he really was doing a fantastic job.
"Lizzie!" Ian entered the green room, Eli right on his heels.
"Oh thank God." Chloe snatched her two brothers into a hug too and led them back by Ethan.
She'd been lucky. None of her close friends or family had been hurt. But was that fair? If someone else did end up getting hurt, she'd have no one to blame but herself.
She should've told Jackson the second she'd started getting the weird messages. Should've told Ethan when she had been suspicious that someone had an unhealthy obsession for her.
Should've, should've, should've. There was nothing to do about it now.
But by God, she'd make sure from this moment on that no one else would become a statistic in her messed-up life.
An hour later, Jackson came down and gave them the all clear.