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His heart thumped to fulfill her wish. A heavy inhale drew intent deep into his chest. He turned toward Rio and bared his back to the stands.

The crowd exploded, their fanatical screams saturating the instrumental progression. The widescreens above him displayed his scars, panning in on the exquisite detail in her work.

The instruments fell quiet as he hummed into the revised lyrics of the next verse, feeling the words deep inside him. “In my vision you see steel. You see me.”

The lights went out. Applause and whistles ensued.

One of these days, Jay Mayard, you will wear those scars with pride.

He stood in place, numb to the squeals of the fans, shrouded by the ever-lasting darkness. His body shook from the shock of his reveal, from the disbelief of her absence. As the next song bounced in with Laz’s pithy chords, Jay swelled with pride in the life she gave him, even as he silently wept for the life she’d lost.

Jamming alongside his bandmates, he held her around his heart, her strength moving his fingers over the strings. Beneath the heat of the lights, he slapped hands with the fans in the front row, the first time he’d willingly touched them. The interactions shifted something inside him, warming him. She would’ve been proud.

He remained upstage until the final song, then drifted into the shadowed corner and sat on an Anvil case. From the perch she would’ve been sharing with him, he plucked the notes, leading into the song named after her, and sang the lyrics he’d written in those lonely months after he met her.

Many people told me what love is

No I’d never experienced it

I know a world who thinks love is lust

The first time I recognized your pain

I realized it was much like mine

I’m scared of this thing inside of me

I can’t bear to see you fade from me

My world is collapsing inside of yours

And I want more….of you

Your world is filled with such regret

I hate that you were part of it

I see your eyes staring back at me

I can’t look away

94

Two days later, Jay sat in the backseat of the SUV, anxiety tying his stomach in knots as Vanderschoot parked outside of the San Francisco penthouse. The mirrored windows of the tower reflected the orange glow of the sun setting over the bay, a contradiction to the darkness lurking within its walls.

Beside him, Tony fiddled with his phone and angled the screen toward him. “The app is running in the background, undetected. It’s recording now, sending live audio to the entire team.” She grabbed her phone from her lap and checked the display. “I’m receiving it. We’ll be listening to every word, ready to move in if necessary.”

He sucked in a breath and zipped up his leather jacket, slipping the phone in his pocket. Faye had made progress in their prosecution against Roy, but they were missing the irrefutable evidence that would trample his powerful legal team.

“You shouldn’t go in there alone.” Her eyes softened. “You look…”

Broken? Lost? He rubbed at the creases around his swollen eyes. “Yeah, and the way Ilookisn’t changing anytime soon. I’m doing this.” He had to.

“The risk outweighs the reward. The man is a murderer. You pay me for my advice. Allow me to go with you. Or Nathan could—”

“Nathan’s not here.” He’d vanished the night Charlee died. Jay didn’t hold it against him. Everyone grieved in his own way, and Tony would look after her lover. “I’m going in alone. I need Roy to feel comfortable enough to talk.”

Her jaw tightened. “Even if you got a confession out of him, it could get thrown out of court.”