to me. I was hoping we could do it
again.’
Charley stared atthe princess,
dumbfounded.
Then the two of them burst out laughing,
releasing the tension. Charley’s heart was still thumping and her nerves
buzzed with adrenalin. But she had to admit the act of protection felt almost as
thrilling as catching a wave.
Only now, after taking out an attacker
in real life, did Charley realize she was no longer a victim – no longer thevulnerable girl she’d been when her friend Kerry was abducted.
Now she was a force to be reckoned
with.
‘Was this hidden message your idea
of a joke?’ Kay demanded, her green eyes blazing at the producer.
‘Because it
wasn’t
funny!’
‘Of course not,’ replied
Don, visibly wilting under herferocious glare.
The other record company personnel sat
rigid and mute round the conference table in Dauntless Records’ headquarters,
watching the producer’s mauling with a combination of fearful fascination and
evident relief that it wasn’t them.
‘Then exactly how did it get on to
Ash’s song?’ enquired Kay.
Don swallowed nervously.
‘I’ve no idea –’
‘You’rethe producer,
goddammit! You oversaw the recording process.’
Running a hand through his greasy locks,
he replied, ‘Play anything backwards and you’ll likely find something.
People thought Led Zeppelin had inserted
Here’s to my sweet Satan
into “Stairway To Heaven”, but they hadn’t.The message in Ash’s song is just a coincidence – a phonetic
reversal.’
‘That’s hardto
believe,’ said Kay.
‘If you’re suggesting the
message was backmasked on to the track, then I certainly didn’t do
it.’
‘Could anyone else have tampered
with the recording?’ asked Harvey, the vice president of Dauntless Records, a
slick-suited man with a preened moustache and tight-knit hair.
Don shrugged. ‘It’s possible
but unlikely. They’d need access tothe studio, and advanced knowledge of the
recording process.’
‘Some zealous fan could have
hacked into the system for a joke,’ suggested Joel, Ash’s sharp A&R
manager.
‘The media believe it’s a
publicity stunt,’ said Zoe, the PR executive, immediately regretting
she’d spoken at all as Kay turned on her.
‘Is it?’ she demanded.
‘No, of course not,’ Zoe
replied.‘But it has rocketed pre-orders for the album. Whoever did this has
done us a massive favour.’
‘
Favour?
This is a
serious death threat to my client.’
‘Kay, might you be overreacting
just a little?’ interjected Harvey. ‘It seems an extravagant way to send
that sort of threat.’
‘Well, explain the text message
… and
this
.’ Kay laid a sheet of pink paper on the table.Glued
to it was Ash’s face sparkling with stars and glitter, the words NO MORE ENCORES ! scrawled in red across his features.
‘You thinkI’m overreacting, Harvey? This was
written in blood.
Pig’s blood
according to the police
report.’
‘Aww, that’s creepy.’
Zoe grimaced.
Joel leant forward to inspect the
letter. ‘What sort of sicko slaughters a pig for ink?’
‘Possibly the same one that sends
hoax letter bombs and subliminal song messages,’ stated Kay.
‘Has Ash seen this?’ asked
Harvey, jutting his chin at the letter but not making any move to touch it.
Kay shook her head. ‘No. I’m
having all his mail intercepted. He’s got trouble enough focusing as it
is.’
‘Do you think he’s actually
in danger then?’ asked Zoe.
Kay nodded. ‘The threat against
him is very real.’
Joel coughed hesitantly.
‘You’re not thinking of cancelling Ash’s US tour, are
you?’
‘Certainly not,’ replied
Kay. ‘Pulling Ash out of the limelight at this point would kill his career.
And I will not be dictated to by some maniac.’
‘Good,’ Harvey chimed in.
‘Besides, there’s far too much money at stake to cancel.’
‘The tour security needs to be
airtight,’ Kay declared, producing a document from a leather-bound folder and
passing it to the vice
again.’
Charley stared atthe princess,
dumbfounded.
Then the two of them burst out laughing,
releasing the tension. Charley’s heart was still thumping and her nerves
buzzed with adrenalin. But she had to admit the act of protection felt almost as
thrilling as catching a wave.
Only now, after taking out an attacker
in real life, did Charley realize she was no longer a victim – no longer thevulnerable girl she’d been when her friend Kerry was abducted.
Now she was a force to be reckoned
with.
‘Was this hidden message your idea
of a joke?’ Kay demanded, her green eyes blazing at the producer.
‘Because it
wasn’t
funny!’
‘Of course not,’ replied
Don, visibly wilting under herferocious glare.
The other record company personnel sat
rigid and mute round the conference table in Dauntless Records’ headquarters,
watching the producer’s mauling with a combination of fearful fascination and
evident relief that it wasn’t them.
‘Then exactly how did it get on to
Ash’s song?’ enquired Kay.
Don swallowed nervously.
‘I’ve no idea –’
‘You’rethe producer,
goddammit! You oversaw the recording process.’
Running a hand through his greasy locks,
he replied, ‘Play anything backwards and you’ll likely find something.
People thought Led Zeppelin had inserted
Here’s to my sweet Satan
into “Stairway To Heaven”, but they hadn’t.The message in Ash’s song is just a coincidence – a phonetic
reversal.’
‘That’s hardto
believe,’ said Kay.
‘If you’re suggesting the
message was backmasked on to the track, then I certainly didn’t do
it.’
‘Could anyone else have tampered
with the recording?’ asked Harvey, the vice president of Dauntless Records, a
slick-suited man with a preened moustache and tight-knit hair.
Don shrugged. ‘It’s possible
but unlikely. They’d need access tothe studio, and advanced knowledge of the
recording process.’
‘Some zealous fan could have
hacked into the system for a joke,’ suggested Joel, Ash’s sharp A&R
manager.
‘The media believe it’s a
publicity stunt,’ said Zoe, the PR executive, immediately regretting
she’d spoken at all as Kay turned on her.
‘Is it?’ she demanded.
‘No, of course not,’ Zoe
replied.‘But it has rocketed pre-orders for the album. Whoever did this has
done us a massive favour.’
‘
Favour?
This is a
serious death threat to my client.’
‘Kay, might you be overreacting
just a little?’ interjected Harvey. ‘It seems an extravagant way to send
that sort of threat.’
‘Well, explain the text message
… and
this
.’ Kay laid a sheet of pink paper on the table.Glued
to it was Ash’s face sparkling with stars and glitter, the words NO MORE ENCORES ! scrawled in red across his features.
‘You thinkI’m overreacting, Harvey? This was
written in blood.
Pig’s blood
according to the police
report.’
‘Aww, that’s creepy.’
Zoe grimaced.
Joel leant forward to inspect the
letter. ‘What sort of sicko slaughters a pig for ink?’
‘Possibly the same one that sends
hoax letter bombs and subliminal song messages,’ stated Kay.
‘Has Ash seen this?’ asked
Harvey, jutting his chin at the letter but not making any move to touch it.
Kay shook her head. ‘No. I’m
having all his mail intercepted. He’s got trouble enough focusing as it
is.’
‘Do you think he’s actually
in danger then?’ asked Zoe.
Kay nodded. ‘The threat against
him is very real.’
Joel coughed hesitantly.
‘You’re not thinking of cancelling Ash’s US tour, are
you?’
‘Certainly not,’ replied
Kay. ‘Pulling Ash out of the limelight at this point would kill his career.
And I will not be dictated to by some maniac.’
‘Good,’ Harvey chimed in.
‘Besides, there’s far too much money at stake to cancel.’
‘The tour security needs to be
airtight,’ Kay declared, producing a document from a leather-bound folder and
passing it to the vice
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