30-Something Reality

Black Roses

JARED's P.O.V.

My phone rang again right after Siren walked out of the bus... "Hey my future wife..." I smiled trying to act like I wasn't breaking over my brother's girlfriend... 

"I just talked to my sister and she is a WRECK! I need you to go sit with her until Shannon and I get back. I don't want her wandering around Portland alone. There is a reason I'm asking so please don't argue with me and just do it, please! And you can't tell Shannon..."

"Why? What's going on baby? Why can't she be left alone?" I started to worry...

"I saw her ex at the show last night.." Jeanette got really quiet.... "I didn't tell her or Shannon... I saw Allan and I just moved her out of any line of sight he could have seen her in. That is why she did the back stage stuff last night." I hear the fear in my fiancee's voice... "Jared, I saw him as we were leaving the hotel... He came out of a set of appartments near our hotel. Please, just stay near her..."

"Jeanette... I will take care of her... Just get back with out telling Shannon! I would rather you tell them both and her just be mad at me for pestering her... Just hurry the fuck up!... " I looked outside the bus and didn't see her on the block of the hotel... "Jeanette, I have to find her. She said she was going to the room, so I am assuming that is where she went... Just get back! I don't want it to come from me that he is here... Is she REALLY in that much danger with him? It's been over two years! She has moved on!..."

"Jared, just shut up and get to her! I will explain later!" CLICK! The phone went dead...

I dialed her phone... straight to voicemail... Again... and again.... Shit! I knocked on her and Shannon's door... she finally answered through a crack in the door...

"What do you want Jared? I told you to leave me alone!" She looked like she had been crying...

"Take the lock off the door and let me in...please..." I pleaded with her... I knew Jeanette wouldn't flip out so bad if she wasn't in danger.... "Please... I promise to keep to myself! I just don't want you left alone till they get back..." She just stood there... "Please, I promise... no more funny business... Now please let me in."

She sighed and finally closed the door and I heard the lock slide back across the door... "You try anything Jared... I will tell them both!"

"I promise... I will stay at least 4 feet away from you!" I sat on the couch and noticed a giant guitar case with black roses on it standing in the corner of the room. LoLa ran over and lept up on my lap for me to love on her... "There's my favorite girl! Hi LoLa! Did you miss your uncle Jared?" She was licking my face as I pet her and played with her ears.  "So who's guitar is that in the corner?"

"Mine Jared... it was a gift... from a 'fan' I guess...Either that or Shannon was going to surprise me... it was waiting here at the hotel when I came in from the bus. I haven't even opened it to see what type of guitar it is..." I heard her voice from the kitchen and smelled her favorite tea, Earl Grey of course... She came out and sat down a tea tray and a cup of hot water for me... "There was even a note! I figured I would wait for Shannon to get back before I opened it... just in case it was from him!"

I looked at her... I was curious... "I didn't know you played guitar... Or like black roses! I'm suppossed to be your best friend..."

"Honestly I never played guitar... I have always wanted to learn!" She smiled at me... "And I'm surprised after the way I looked in New York you would even have to ask about the black roses Jared!" 

I remembered how sexy she was in the black trip pants, chains, handcuffs, corset... I could feel myself getting hard... NO! I promised her... and... No matter how I felt for her... I did love Jeanette... "I was a bit pre occupied that night sweets... I was trying not to do something my brother would have killed me for at that point!" I laughed... "You do know the only time he saw you that night was in my room... So how did Shannon know you liked black roses..."

"What woman doesn't like roses?!" she shot me a grin and a look that made me weak.. "You know damn well I'm a bit different though! I wear day of the dead stuff on a regular basis... so how did YOU not know I liked black roses Jared?"

I hung my head... "So you think my brother got you a guitar..." Just then I hear the key in the door... "Why don't you make sure..." I know he hadn't said anything to me... and since I obviously didn't know she liked black roses... I couldn't have done this... I was starting to worry more and more...

"There's my girl! I have missed you so much... I hate when you don't go with me somewhere..." My brother's voice almost made me sick hearing him fuss over her the way he did... He was the reason she was in my mind in the first place! I never told him I thought she looked sexy in the photo he had snapped of her that morning in D.C.... He just said he wanted to track her down! 

Jeanette came in and sat down next to me... "Hey there handsome... I'm sorry about flipping out earlier... I guess I'm just not used to being with someone who is known as a sex god..." She leaned in and kissed me... I put my hand behind her head and pulled her to me as I wrapped my other arm around her to bring her closer to me. 

"I've never heard you argue the fact Jean!" I heard Siren laugh as Jeanette broke our kiss. "Shannon why did you leave that beautiful guitar case in the lobby? I didn't open the card or the case yet... I was waiting till you got back."

Shannon's face looked like he had seen a ghost, "Baby doll, I didn't leave anything in the lobby for you... I have no idea what you are talking about..."

"That beautiful Guitar case with black roses on it silly! How did you know they were my favorite?" She almost looked like she was pleading with him to remember.... 

I moved Jeanette and pointed to the case sitting in the corner. The red envelope still attached with black lettering that read "SiReN" on the card... the case was even marked with the same design on the case with her name in red letters. Jeanette's face went WHITE!

"Sarah.... get rid of it now!" Jeanette looked like she was going to faint!

"What are you talking about Jean?" She looked over at her sister and went over to the case and popped the latches on the case... "Shannon is being a dork as always... he did this..."

"Baby... I promise you I didn't!" Shannon looked as worried as I was starting to feel.... 

"There is no way...." She popped the latch on the case and flung it open... The look on her face made us ALL jump....

Shannon grabbed Siren, and pulled her away from the guitar case... I moved Jeanette and pushed her over with Siren into the kitchen of the suite.... the case was full of photos... all of her... The ones on the top were of Siren at a funeral... the casket was small... it had to have been her son's funeral... the rest of the photos were of her with Shannon and me and Jeanette.... They were all over the tour... including ones from the night before... 

"How?!" I heard Siren crying... "Jean how did he find me? I moved... got new dogs...  I changed my name... EVERYTHING! He shouldn't have been able to find me! Especially now!" She was a mess! Bawling her eyes out.... Shannon and I went over.... Jeanette jumped into my arms and I just held her as Shannon held Siren... "I want to go home Shannon... Please make it stop..." LoLa was by her side with in seconds.... Shannon took her to bed and lay next to her till she fell asleep.

"I had no idea Shannon... I would have never brought her up here if I had known..." I looked at my brother as Jeanette looked through the photos....

"He has been following her for months now. ... He even was watching her in D.C...." Jeanette turned a photo over and showed us the three of us walking out of the coffee shop the morning we met...

"Oh no..." I just pulled my brother to me and hugged him... "How can we keep her safe? How am I supposed to fix this for her?"

"You can't... he found her in the hospital too..." The last two photos we looked at was Siren in the bed hooked up to the IVs in the hospital in Detroit...and one of us in the waiting room... "We were there the whole time and never saw him... but he saw us..."