“So, you were friends with Ava Rhodes ever since she moved to Lake Wisteria when you were fourteen?” Ms. Copper, the lawyer Cole referred me to, asks without looking up from her notebook.
My head swims with memories I’ve tried so hard to forget. Breathing is becoming progressively more difficult, and if I’m not careful, I could pass out from lack of oxygen.
We are only five minutes into our allotted meeting time, but it feels like an hour already.
“If you don’t mind, I just need a few minutes.” I mute my microphone and turn off my camera.
Deep breaths, Ellie.
I try so damn hard to calm myself down, but I’m only working myself up more with every ragged breath.
I should have known today was going to be a bad day based on the gloomy weather. But still, I held on to my hope and talked myself into a consultation with Cole and the lawyer despite the warning sign.
When Cole reached out yesterday, asking if I could meet with the lawyer while I was on vacation, I said yes. I thought I could handle it without my family or Willow being there to support me, but I was wrong.
I’m not sure why I thought this was a good idea. There is no way I can—
No.
I can do this, and I will, but I just need…someone. Anyone really. I don’t care who, but my options are limited to only two, and since Nico hearing my story is out of the question, I’m left with only one person.
Rafael.
Goose bumps spread across my arms. After he tucked me into bed last night, I haven’t talked to him other than to ask him if he could entertain Nico while I attended an hour-long meeting, so the idea of calling him makes me jittery.
With a shaky hand, I pull out my phone and do it anyway.
“Ellie?” Rafael answers.
“Are you in the living room?”
“Yeah. Is everything okay with the meeting?”
“Um…about that. Do you mind coming to my room?”
He doesn’t hesitate. “Sure. I’ll be there in a minute. Let me just get Nico his tablet.”
“Thanks.”
He hangs up, and I spend the longest sixty seconds of my life pacing the layout of my room until there is a heavy knock against my door.
“Elle.”
I flip the lock and open the door.
“What’s wrong?” He steps inside and assesses the room.
“Remember when I mentioned Cole and that copyright lawyer?”
His eyes land on the computer. “Yeah.”
“Well, we’re in the middle of a meeting right now, but I’m kind of having a bit of a freak-out and don’t know if I can do it.” Panic bleeds into my voice.
His scowl deepens. “Do you need me to do something or talk to someone?”
I shake my head. “Can you just…be here while I talk? You don’t have to say anything. I just—”
“Whatever you need.”
He follows me to the couch and sits. After I take a few deep breaths, I turn my microphone and video back on before introducing Rafael, who waves with a grunt. I’m sure his lack of enthusiasm has everything to do with Cole smiling back at him.
“Rafael. Nice to see you again.”
He tips his chin. “Cole.”
“So, Ellie.” The lawyer doesn’t smile, but her eyes soften a bit as our gazes connect. “I was asking you about your relationship with Ava.”
“Right. Ava.” I subconsciously rub at the crescent moon tattoo on the inside of my arm, right above my elbow. “We became best friends in high school, after she moved to Lake Wisteria during middle school. We were both new to town, so it was easy to bond over that.”
My hand trembles, and I tighten it into a fist. Rafael uncurls my fingers one by one before intertwining them with his.
A simple squeeze of Rafael’s hand gives me the confidence I need. I don’t look at him while I share my story about moving to Los Angeles and all the songs Ava stole from me, but I can feel his anger rolling off him with every new piece of information I share.
It takes a while to get through all the little details and pieces of evidence, but once I get to speaking about Darius Larkin, Rafael’s mood goes completely dark.
“Darius was well aware of my involvement in creating the album but didn’t credit me for my work.” I take a deep, painful breath. “I don’t know if this matters for the case, but he…” I can’t find the strength to continue.
Rafael stiffens beside me.
Cole leans forward, looking absolutely enraged. “I know about Mr. Larkin’s reputation with women.”
“Well, I don’t.” Rafael’s lethal tone sends a shiver down my spine.
The lawyer speaks up. “He tends to scout out younger talent. Typically, women who don’t have much experience in the business or know much about him.” Her sad smile makes my chest clench to the point of pain. “They don’t have the resources to fight back, even if they wanted to.”
“I wasn’t aware.” My voice sounds so small and distant.
I never knew Darius had a reputation. Never even thought to ask anyone about it because him signing Ava onto the record label was supposed to be our big break after spending a few years struggling in Los Angeles.
When I came back to Lake Wisteria, I drove myself crazy, thinking that maybe I did something to lead Darius on and make him think I was interested in him romantically. That if I had kept my head down, my mouth shut, or worn less eye-catching clothes, he wouldn’t have been interested in me.
God. I spent so many months blaming myself when I should have blamed him. Willow told me as much, but it is different hearing the truth from a complete stranger.
Tears rise to my eyes, and no amount of blinking saves me. Rafael’s grip on my hand tightens, keeping me grounded as the truth tumbles out of me.
“I didn’t want to kiss him, but he…” I stumble over how to phrase what happened. “I wasn’t given a choice, but I didn’t make one either. I just stood there, completely frozen, while he… Ava walked into the recording studio and saw us—saw him touching me. Him kissing me.”
Once the tears start, I can’t stop them. “All hell broke loose when Ava showed up. She had to physically be restrained after slapping me, but that didn’t stop her mouth. She called me a dirty slut. A whore.”
The veins in Rafael’s neck look ready to explode.
“She told me she was going to steal my songs like I stole her boyfriend,” I say between sobs, totally unfazed at the idea of Cole and the lawyer watching me break down. “She was my best friend for over a decade, and it was like I didn’t even recognize her anymore.”
Rafael wraps his arm around my waist and crushes my body against his. I press my cheek against his chest and cry, all while he whispers reassuring words against the top of my head and rubs my back.
I feel instant relief in his arms, and it’s everything I needed and more. He doesn’t stop rubbing my back—doesn’t stop making his presence felt—while I cry.
Once my tears stop flowing and my breathing evens out, he presses his mouth against my ear and whispers, “When I’m done with him, that piece of shit is going to wish he never laid eyes on you.”
My body vibrates as I look into his dark eyes. “Please don’t murder someone on my behalf.”
“There are plenty of ways to destroy someone without ever committing a crime.”
“Like?”
“Why ruin the surprise?”
“Keep talking like that, and I may consider something like that romantic.”
His lips curl at the corners. “Maybe I want it to be.”
My heart pauses before picking back up again.
Cole clears his throat. “As entertaining as it is to watch you flirt, some of us have things to do and songs to write.”
I turn with bulging eyes to find him grinning.
He winks.
The lawyer clasps her hands together. “Well, Ellie. You provided me with a lot of information about Ms. Rhodes, and while it is a very interesting situation legally…”
I’ve been through three rejections already, so I recognize the beginning of another letdown. I told myself not to get my hopes up this time, and I should have known better.
After spending so many years in the dark, I like to hope. It may make me naïve, but I’d rather be a dreamer than a pessimist any day of the week.
“I’m very sorry that you’ve been taken advantage of like that. By both Ms. Rhodes and Mr. Larkin.” Ms. Copper’s red lips press into a thin line.
I tense against Rafael’s side and prepare for the next blow.
“Given the information you shared, along with the logs and detailed notes you kept of your writing sessions, I think we can start looking into establishing a case,” she continues, but I’m not listening.
Oh my God.
After a year of trying and failing to find someone to represent me, I’m finally going after Ava for what she did to me. I don’t even care if I win the settlement or prove that I helped write her songs.
I just want a chance to fight.
I don’t even realize the meeting is over until Rafael shuts the computer after promising I’ll return the lawyer’s email as soon as possible.
“Elle?” He waves his hand in front of my face.
I blink a few times. “Yeah?”
“Thank you for asking me to join you.”
I look up at him. “I don’t know if I could have done it without you.”
“You would have. I have no doubt about it, but I’m glad you wanted me to be here anyway.”
My heart threatens to tumble straight out of my chest. “I was about to have a meltdown before you came in here.”
“But you held yourself together. All I did was hold your hand.”
He did more than that, and we both know it.
He tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “Ava mistook your kindness and silence for weakness, and I can’t wait for you to prove her wrong.”
“What about Darius?”
“Don’t you worry about him.” I’ve seen smiles like Rafael’s before, and they always spell trouble.
Rafael tells me to take some time to unwind after the meeting, and I had planned on it, but then I was inspired to finish the song I was working on for Cole. After all he has done for me, I want to give him something in return.
I channel my sadness from earlier into a new song. It isn’t the one I was originally working on, nor is it the one inspired by Rafael, but the lyrics seem to pour out of me with no sign of stopping.
I’m a decorated soldier winning a war against life.
Collected endless scars like medals of valor
Until my body became a symbol of my fight.
A melody comes soon after, and within a few hours, I have a song. It’s the first one I have finished since Ava betrayed me, and because of that, it holds a special place in my heart.
Fitting really, seeing as it’s similar to the one she stole from me but better.
If Cole doesn’t want to use it, I won’t be offended in the slightest, but at least it proves that I still have what it takes to write songs.
I set my phone on the coffee table and record myself singing and playing the guitar. It takes a few tries, mainly because I reword some lyrics and change a few chords here and there, but once I’m done, I send Cole the recording and hope for the best.
ME
Thank you for everything you’ve done to help me until this point. I’m not sure I would have worked up the courage to talk to a lawyer without you.
I busy myself with taking a shower, shaving, and blow-drying my hair. Keeping my mind occupied takes the edge off my anxiety, so by the time my phone buzzes thirty minutes later, I’m more excited than nervous.
COLE
I told you. I like watching good people win.
He doesn’t mention anything about the song, so my mind starts to spiral.
Did he hate it so much he doesn’t want to comment on it?
Does he like it but not love it?
So much for thinking about writing a whole album.
My heart sinks with every negative thought, only to bounce back at his next message.
COLE
I know we only agreed on you writing one song, but I’ve changed my mind.
Oh no. That doesn’t sound good.
COLE
How do you feel about trying out an album?
I screech so loud that Nico and Rafael both come barreling into my room.
“What’s wrong?” Rafael asks while Nico shows off a fighting stance he learned from his one and only tae kwon do class.
“Sorry. I just got excited.”
Nico exits the room with a cartwheel while Rafael looks me over once more.
“You’re good?”
I nod.
“What happened?”
“Cole liked my new song.”
His smile is small but genuine. “You finished it?”
“Yeah. And he wants to work on more!”
A look passes over his face, but I can’t make out what it means. “I knew he would love anything you wrote.”
“How?”
“Because he may be annoying, but he’s no fool.”
“I—” My phone chimes from an incoming call. “I should take this.”
Rafael shuts my door behind him. The slight pressure in the air remains after his departure, but I decide to focus on it later.
I answer Cole’s call.
“I hope I wasn’t too forward.”
“No. Not at all. I’m just relieved you liked the song.”
“Liked it? It’s fucking amazing. My drummer teared up, and he’s not even a crier.”
I laugh before Cole starts explaining his writing process, impending deadline, and the expected amount of money I could make.
I nearly pass out at the rough figure he gives me.
The rest of the call is an information overload, and my head is spinning by the time he hits me with the catch.
“I could fly you out to Europe so we can spend whatever free time I have during the European leg of the tour writing. The turnaround time will be tight, especially with the number of shows I’ll be playing, but I have a feeling we can pull it off. I’m always better on a tight deadline anyway.”
“The European leg?”
“It kicks off in the mid-July.”
“How long is it?”
“Five weeks.”
Shit. “I have a job.”
“Will they let you take a leave of absence?”
“I don’t know.” The knot in my stomach becomes unbearably tight.
“You don’t have to give me an answer right now. Take the weekend to think about it and get back to me by Monday.”
Monday? That’s in three days.
“Can I have a week instead?”
“Sure.”
Seven days may not seem like a lot of time, but I would rather not ruin the rest of our vacation by bringing up my new job offer. While I hope Nico and Rafael will be happy for me, I’m not a hundred percent sure my boss wouldn’t make me choose between two jobs I want.
And the idea of that happening makes my heart want to break.
