Drake Sisters 06 - Turbulent Sea

it.
    Outside her family and Jonas, Brian had been her closest friend. She had been always been extra careful never to intrude on his thoughts. She enjoyed his company and looked forward to their conversations. He came from a very wealthy family and had attended private school, although he'd always remained best friends with the band members, from the time they were young boys first playing sports together. He dressed a little neater and had incredible manners and definitely was more sensitive toward others. He was probably everyone's favorite. And he'd always been the most diplomatic - until now.
    'Hey, Joley,' Jerry said, 'you falling asleep on us?'
    'The scintillating conversation is so profound, how could I ever fall sleep?' Joley let her head droop onto the table and pretended to snore.
    Ilya's gaze narrowed when Rick threw a biscuit at her and then leaned over to brush the hair from her face, his fingers staying on the silken strands of her hair. The touch held enough affection that Ilya's belly knotted up. He had observed the waitresses and cooks taking numerous pictures of the band and Joley eating. A couple of them had tried to take videos, and he was fairly certain that before dawn the videos would be playing on the Internet.
    Joley looked up suddenly and her gaze collided with his. She sent him a small, sad smile that nearly tore out his heart. It was a jolt to feel such deep emotion just from one little exchange. He knew she was upset. Why didn't her friends know? How could they all sit there, joking and laughing when she wanted to cry? He had the urge to simply pick her up, cradle her close and take her out of there.
    Jerry glanced at his watch. 'Let's give these folks a couple of pictures and get on the road. We have a schedule.'
    Ilya moved into a better position to protect Joley as the band began to pose for photographs with the waitresses and kitchen staff. She was gracious and talked to each one of them, shaking hands when they were offered, even though he could see by her expression that she was being overwhelmed with emotion and information about each person.

    More people entered the diner, and Ilya was aware of cars pulling into the parking lot. He waded through the group and took Joley's elbow, smiling politely, but distantly, making certain to look as intimidating as possible.
    'Miss Drake, if you don't leave now, you won't make your next concert on time,' he reminded her, already moving her away from the growing crowd.
    She went with him, staying close to his body but giving him enough room to maneuver should he have to. Twice she brushed against him, and she had to have felt the harness beneath his jacket as they walked out the door into the parking lot.
    Her cell phone rang and she paused to flip Hi open.
    'Bitch.' The voice was distorted but loud enough for Ilya to hear.
    She looked up at him a little helplessly, her face pale, her gaze colliding with his. He leaned down to listen. She didn't try to pull away from him or stop him. The voice on the other end was filled with menacing hatred, even through the obvious device the person was using to distort their voice. It was impossible to tell if it was a man or a woman. The voice sounded computer-generated.
    'You think your sister was fucked up? Back the hell off, or you're going to be cut into so many little pieces no one will ever be able to identify you.'
    The call ended as abruptly as it had begun. Even as Ilya listened, his eyes slashed around the parking lot, noting where each member of the crew or band was, and whether or not they were using a cell phone. He put the phone in his pocket. I'll have Jerry get you another.'
    'They mentioned my sister. Why did they do that? Why would they say anything about what happened to Hannah?
    That was the mob, Ilya. Ever since Abbey met Aleksandr, we've had nothing but problems with them.' As soon as the words were spoken aloud, she clapped her hand over her mouth, her expression horrified. Tears swam in her eyes. T
    didn't mean that. I don't know why I thought it, let alone said it. I didn't mean it.'
    Say nothing, laskovaya moya, until we are out of the open.
    'Joley!' Brian called. 'You want me to ride with you?'
    Joley nearly choked. She was suddenly very frightened. The Russian mob had wreaked havoc on her family, nearly killing Hannah. Twice now, they'd had encounters with them, and with Nikitin following her every move, she felt trapped. Brian had been acting so strange, she didn't trust