“What makes you think I’m friends with him?”
“Penni, Shade’s—”
“Sadly, I know who Penni is,” King interrupted her. “What’s the message?”
“Thank him for saving my life. My mother came to the home I was building and gave me two things that will ensure the man who wanted me dead will never get out of jail. My mother would have never given me the evidence I needed if she’d had a choice. Mr. Beck must have taken that choice out of her hands.
“I heard the announcement today on the news that has taken over Angels World Rescue. I sincerely hope that he serves those in need to a significantly higher standard than Gabriel Allerton did, but I’m not counting on any members in that organization to ever do the right thing.
“Since he saved my life, I’m giving him a heads-up. The walls of secrecy that AWR has been hiding behind is going to be exposed. I’m sure with the information he gave me, Mr. Beck already has his ducks in a row, but being he save my life, I figured it was the polite thing to do.”
Ginny rose from the chair. “He should also give serious consideration to changing the name. AWR is definitely a misnomer.”
“I’m curious.” King rested his elbows on the desk to link his fingers together. “Why didn’t you call him yourself? I’m sure he would have taken a call from you.”
“Shade advised me that I should make you aware of the situation. If Mr. Beck believes by saving my life—by ensuring I got the information to convict Allerton—that Gavin and I will play nice and won’t go after the charity he’s now in control of, I’m afraid he’s very much mistaken. The next time he or any of his men steps on my property, we’ll take it as a direct threat and act accordingly.”
Just before she shut the door to his office, she offered, “Have a good evening, King, and tell Evie I said hi.”
Ginny stood behind the curtain, waiting for her intro. From where she was standing, she couldn’t be seen, but she was able see the thousands of people standing in the stadium and the huge screens that would televise the performers.
“Nervous?”
Ginny felt Gavin move closer to her, sliding his arms around her waist.
“No.”
Ginny told her husband the truth. She wasn’t nervous or frightened, and she should be both. She had never hoped to reach this level of fame, to perform on this international stage for Mouth2Mouth.
Kaden had been asked to perform at the massive event to highlight the charity that Sawyer and he had founded to combat violence against women.
“I should be, but I’m not. You going to regret marrying a woman who’s about to instigate a national investigation?”
“I will never regret marrying you. It took me too long to get you to say yes.”
“Wild man, you never needed a piece of paper, legal or illegal, to know I belong to you.”
“A man needs his peace of mind,” he countered.
“Do you have it now?”
“Nymph, you and peace of mind don’t belong in the same sentence.”
Her name being introduced had her hand going to Gavin’s that was laying across her waist. “I hope I do the song justice.”
Kissing her cheek, he removed his arms from around her to give her butt a hard pat to get her moving. She heard his voice as she walked onto the stage. “You’re the only who can.”
She was the only no-name singer performing among twenty-five of the most famous artists in the world. Without Kaden and Sawyer’s help, she wouldn’t have had a chance in hell of even getting a ticket to attend the event; the proceeds were going to help victims of violence across the world.
Walking to the microphone, Ginny heard the music begin to play. She was singing “Hero” by Mariah Carey.
As the words came out of her mouth, she saw Kaden give a nod to the producer. She looked up at one the screens that televised the stage. The image of her singing on the stage switched to a video; it showed a beautiful woman being beaten mercilessly.
Ginny’s gaze transferred to the man who had a front row seat, next to his son.
Markoff and Alek Lukin were guests of honor.
Realizing who they were watching being beaten mercilessly garnered two different reactions. Alek got up and tried to take his father’s frail arm to get him to leave. Markoff jerked his hand free, remaining seated.
On screen, Ivan Pavlov kicked Aanya again as she lay on the floor of the boat before going into another room. A second later, there was a slight movement as a small child scooted out from under the bed to crawl toward Aanya, moving her hair away from her face. The child tried to help Aanya to her feet, but she wasn’t strong enough. Aanya used the side of the bed to raise herself into a sitting position.