Page 104 of Graves

Was I too nice to him?

I grab my beer and chug it. The cold helps a little. I take a deep breath, but it’s not enough. I open the fridge for another one—only to find the shelves empty. That was the last can.

Koh’s usually the one who makes sure there’s food and drinks in the house.

Does he even get paid for feeding me the last few days? I’m holding an empty Asahi can. Japanese beer. His beer.

God. I’m nothing but a parasite.

How could Koh say something like that to me? “Too late”? What the hell did I do that made my warning come too late?

Nothing!

My head is spinning. I don’t know up from down anymore.

The doorbell rings. I freeze in surprise and look up. The main entrance? Where all the paparazzi are?

I don’t even have to step onto the terrace to know the crowd has only grown more ravenous after tonight’s concert. Camera flashes and car headlights flood the trees outside, and I can hear their voices all the way up on the fifth floor through the open window.

Hesitantly, I go to the intercom and press the button. Liam appears on the screen, arguing with a reporter.

“Nothing happened!” he snaps. “Go home and buy a ticket like everyone else if you want to see it!”

The voices in the background blur into one loud roar. Liam steps closer to the camera.

“Dude! It’s me! Open the door!”

Relieved to see my old friend, I buzz him in.

Liam shows up at exactly the right moment. I already lost it once tonight, and I was heading straight into round two.

“Thanks for reading my mind.” I move aside to let him in.

“You’re really lucky,” he says with a wide grin that shows off his dimples.

As I close the door behind him, he turns and hands me my leather jacket and phone. In his other hand is a six-pack of Budweiser.

“Fox was in a real hurry to get you out of there.”

“Thanks.” I unlock the screen and see missed calls from Sam.

“He was just trying to find your phone. Sam and Mike say hi.”

I nod nervously and trace a circle on my forearm. When the silence in the room hits me, I glance up. There’s a deep crease between Liam’s brows—the one that only appears when he’s horrified.

“What?” I ask, uneasy.

“Jesus, man! That fucker choked you!”

My hand flies to my neck. Koh already mentioned it, but I didn’t realize the marks were that obvious. Otherwise, Liam probably wouldn’t have said anything.

“Does it hurt?” he asks.

I swallow hard and feel the lingering tightness. “A little,” I admit.

“You should sue that guy.”

That’s the last thing I want to think about, so I shake my head.