The grand ballroom of the Fairmont Hotel had played host to scores of impressive dignitaries, from U.S. Presidents to a number of world leaders. It was one of the most exclusive addresses in New Orleans. Because of this, even if one had not seen the elaborately engraved invitations, they would have known where the Camellia Club’s ball was being staged tonight. It was only the best for the Camellias.
Sienna had been dreading this moment since she’d agreed to take part in this exercise in hypocrisy and excessiveness. She’d suffered through the Sunday teas and fancy dinners, but she knew this ball, the crown jewel of the debutante season, would be the greatest test of her will.
The massive ballroom was draped in taupe and ivory-colored silk bunting. Thousands of tiny lights threaded through shiny, sheer gossamer, casting a shimmering glow around the richly decorated room. A ten-piece band played soft music while guests floated from table to table, engaging in meaningless babble no one really cared about.
Sienna didn’t even try to fake interest in the conversation taking place at her table. She had been dreading this night for weeks, and it was certainly living up to her expectations.
The gaucheness of the evening was enough to make any normal human being who was not used to the society world sick. Sienna figured just one of the elaborate centerpieces, with its sterling silver ten-piece candelabra, and delicate Chinese orchids, cost more than her monthly car note. Champagne flowed from fountains, and steaming stations occupied the four corners of the room, filled with the most delicious smelling food.
Too bad she didn’t have an appetite.
That’s how she knew things were really bad, when she could not summon the desire to indulge in good, free food. But as Sienna brought the bacon-wrapped shrimp to her mouth, her stomach turned, and she placed it back on the plate. As her eyes roamed around the room, she took a deep breath as the threat of the tears she had been trying to stave off all night started up again behind her aching eyes.
Sienna briefly lowered her head, willing her scattered emotions to get under control. She could not get thoughts of what had occurred at Toby’s apartment earlier that day out of her head. After everything they had been through, after how far he had come, the fact that he was even considering playing basketball again hadn’t only stunned her, it hurt her. Terribly.
Sienna knew in her heart Toby loved her. The words he’d whispered in her ear as they made love, the care he’d taken with her, it could not have been an act. But, apparently, she came second to his first love, and that’s something she could not stomach.
The band struck up a native New Orleans tune, and a number of the guests took to the dance floor. Sienna peered around the ballroom and spotted Curtis Henderson leading his mother, Edwina, onto the floor. Sienna fought to keep the bile from rising in her throat. Fear knotted her stomach, and she struggled to hold onto the fragile control she’d managed to maintain as trepidation quaked through her insides.
It had been ten years since she’d seen him. From the moment she’d stepped into the ballroom, a horrid feeling in her gut had told her he was somewhere in the room, but Sienna had purposely kept her eyes away from Mrs. Henderson’s table.
Her mother leaned over and whispered in Sienna’s ear. “It’s almost time for the dance. Did you practice the quadrille like you were supposed to?”
The sick feeling that grabbed hold of her stomach nearly caused her to wretch. Memories of what Curtis had done to her had ruled her life for far too long. Why was she even putting herself through this torture?
Sienna closed her eyes and sucked in a deep, calming breath. It quieted her rapidly beating heart, but it wasn’t enough. She had to get out of here.
Sienna turned to her mother. “Mom, I know I promised I would do this, but I can’t handle being here right now.” Sienna placed her napkin on the table and slipped from her chair.
“Sienna!” Her mother pushed back from her seat, trying unsuccessfully to hide her shock behind the apologetic smile she gave to the rest of the table’s occupants.
Sienna exited the ballroom and headed for the coatroom, her mother trailing behind her.
“Don’t you dare embarrass me like this, Sienna Elaine. If you walk out of this hotel I will never forgive you.”
“I can live with that,” Sienna answered as she handed the attendant the ticket to retrieve her wrap and umbrella.
Her mother grabbed her shoulder and turned her around. “Stop this right now! I will not tolerate you making a fool of me.”
“This is not about you!” Sienna jerked her arm away. This wasn’t totally her mother’s fault. Sienna knew the type of person Sylvia was; she couldn’t blame her mother for simply being her normal, selfish self. “I’m going through some things right now that you just don’t understand, and being around this group of hypocritical women you call your friends is not helping.”
“Sienna!”
Sienna rolled her eyes at her mother’s affronted gasp. “You knew from the very beginning that I did not want any part of this, so don’t look so surprised.” The attendant handed Sienna her things.
Her mother looked up at the ceiling and held out her hands. “I don’t know what I did to get stuck which such awful daughters!”
Sienna stared at her, her jaw clenched tight. “Is that what you really think of us?” she asked, unable to mask the hurt in her voice. “We’re the awful ones?” She tucked the folded wrap in the crook of her arm and clasped her hands around herself, cradling an elbow in each hand. “Do you know why I didn’t want to participate in this ball, Mother? Do you even care?”
“I’m sure it’s the same reason you do everything else,” Sylvia answered. “To irritate me.”
“Do you really think I live my entire life thinking of ways to make you miserable? Your inflated sense of self-importance is even worse than I thought.”
“Don’t give me that, Sienna. I know that’s the reason you’ve always been such a tomboy, because I wanted you to be the total opposite. That’s why you’ve given me such grief over this ball.”
“Not even close. Do you really want to know, Mother?” She pointed toward the ornate doors of the ballroom. “Do you want to know why I despise everything about what’s going on in there? It’s because of this society world, and your friends, that I was raped.”
Sylvia’s eyes widened in horror. “Sienna Elaine, stop that lying.”
“I was raped, Mother.” Sienna’s entire body shook, along with her voice. “The night of my debutante ball, Curtis Henderson raped me.”
“What…”
“I tried to tell you, but you wouldn’t listen,” Sienna said. “He hurt me so much…and you didn’t do a thing,” she choked out, anger clutching at the words in her throat.
Her mother’s bottom lip quivered. She looked toward the ballroom, then back at Sienna. Collecting herself with a deep breath, Sylvia lifted her nose in the air. “I don’t believe you,” she said.
Sienna’s shoulders drooped in defeat. Any hope of ever having a relationship with this woman washed away at her mother’s dismissal.
“Of course you don’t,” Sienna said.
Sylvia sniffed delicately and pursed her lips. “If something like that had really happened you would have found a way to make me listen.”
“Make you listen?” Sienna choked on a horrified laugh. “That’s like trying to calm a hurricane. I tried to tell you about what happened that night, but you brushed it off as nonsense, just like you’re doing right now.”
Her mother slashed a hand through the air. “Sienna, I don’t have time for this. Now get back into that ballroom.”
“Curtis Henderson is in there. I am not subjecting myself to being in his presence,” Sienna said. “I wanted to face him, to finally put it all behind me, but confronting him after all this time won’t do anything but bring unnecessary pain. I have put it behind me; I don’t need to see that bastard again to prove anything to myself.”
“But…if you leave, I’ll look like a fool in front of everyone,” Sylvia sputtered.
Sienna stared at her mother. What had she expected? Sympathy? Remorse? This woman had never cared about anyone but herself. What made her think things would be different now?
Sienna unfolded her wrap and draped it over her shoulders.
“Mother, enjoy your friends.”
***
Toby’s stomach plummeted along with the Boeing 757 as they began the descent into LAX, but he wasn’t sure it was gravity causing the downward plunge of his gut. Their flight to Los Angeles for the live finale to A Week in the Life of a Wannabe Star had left early this morning. They had rehearsals today, then tomorrow night was the big show.
Toby found it hard to concentrate on it all. His insides had been in an uproar since yesterday after Sienna had walked out of his apartment. He’d tried calling her at least a dozen times, but she wasn’t in the mood for talking. At least not to him.
He was worried about her. She’d had the society ball last night, and he wanted to make sure she had been able to handle being back there with all the horrible memories that place had in her past.
Even more, he was worried about leaving their relationship in the state he’d put it in after mentioning that call from the Madrid Lions. He never should have told her about it. He’d already decided to turn them down. He’d questioned it only for a moment, but in the end, Toby knew he could never play professional basketball again. And not just because of the physical limitations. He didn’t have it in him anymore. The game wasn’t a part of his soul the way it used to be. Music had replaced it.
And Sienna.
What he’d found with Sienna meant more than anything.
“Toby.” Aria tapped his shoulder. “We’ve landed.”
Toby’s eyes popped open. He unhooked his seatbelt and grabbed his carry-on from the overhead compartment. “The limo should be waiting. Kellerman called while we were laying over in Phoenix. The plane delay set us back about a half-hour, but we should be okay. We’re going straight to the theater. Someone is going to bring our bags to the hotel.”
They exited the plane and spotted the limo driver holding a sign with Aria’s name on it. What neither expected—but probably should have—was the crowd of fans waiting around the limo driver.
“Oh, my God,” Aria said. “Is this how it’s going to be, Toby?”
“Welcome to Hollywood,” Toby answered.
As they made their way through the throng, Toby encouraged Aria to sign an appropriate number of autographs that would prevent her from being called a stuck-up celebrity bitch, yet not make them any later for the rehearsal than they already were. By the grace of God, traffic from LAX to the Kodak Theater was virtually non-existent; something even the limo driver admitted was rare.
There was a slightly bigger crowd waiting at the theater. Aria lowered the back window and waved as they drove through toward the back entrance. The first act, The Loner, was already on stage, belting out a soft Bon Jovi ballad from the mid-80s.
Kellerman greeted Toby and Aria in the aisle. He took Toby’s hand in a firm shake.
“You two arrived earlier than I’d expected with that delay in Arizona you had to endure.”
“The limo driver made up for it,” Toby said.
“Well, this is it.” Kellerman swept his hands around, showcasing the Kodak as if he’d built it with his own two hands.
“This is amazing,” Aria breathed, turning slowly, awe in her voice. “I still think someone is going to pinch me and I’m going to wake up and find this was all just a dream.”
Toby pinched her. “It’s real. Embrace it.”
She giggled, rubbing her arm. “I just have to make sure I don’t do anything to ruin it tomorrow night.”
“That’ll never happen,” Kellerman assured her before Toby could tell her the same thing. “Half the people who will fill this theater tomorrow will be here to see you, Miss Jordan. There’s nothing you can do to disappoint them.” Kellerman lowered his voice. “In my opinion, tomorrow night is just a technicality. This show is yours.”
“That doesn’t mean you don’t have to be prepared,” Toby warned. “You need to get ready for your rehearsal.”
“Listen to your manager,” Kellerman said. He motioned for a woman wearing a headset and carrying a clipboard. “This is Allison. She’ll show you to your dressing room and let you know when its time for you to get out on stage.”
Allison shook both their hands. “Are you Tobias Holmes,” she asked. Toby nodded. “There was a call for you about five minutes ago. The person said they’d been trying to call your cell phone, but it was going straight to voicemail.”
Toby took the phone out of his pocket, looking at a blank screen. “I forgot to turn it back on after we got off the airplane. Did they leave a number?”
“The woman said you knew the number.” Toby’s heart started a fast beat at the thought that it was Sienna who’d called, until Allison continued. “She called from Holmes Construction. She said you need to call your brother, Alex, as soon as possible.”
He didn’t feel like talking to Alex, but if his brother had called him here, it must be important.
Toby flipped through the numbers in his cell phone until he found the number for Alex’s construction company. The receptionist answered on the first ring.
“Hey, Jennie,” Toby said. “Alex needed to speak with me?”
“Oh, Toby, thank God. Give me one minute while I get him.”
“Wait, Jennie. What’s wrong?” His heartbeat ramped up again, but with fear instead of anticipation as he heard the urgency in Jennie’s voice.
“You need to talk to Alex. Just hold on, he’s right outside.”
The few moments it took for Alex to get to the phone felt like an eternity. A dozen horrible scenarios went through Toby’s mind as he waited for his brother to pick up the other end of the line.
“Toby?”
“Alex, what’s going on?”
“It’s Mama,” Alex said.
Toby’s stomach dropped. “What happened?”
“We don’t know where she is,” Alex answered.
“What do you mean you don’t know where she is? It’s Monday morning. She should be home,” Toby said.
Okay, this wasn’t as bad as what he’d expected to hear. Still, they’d lost Mama?
“We know where she should be,” Alex returned. “But that’s not where she is. Eli talked to Mrs. Lewis across the street, and she said Mama told her she was going on a trip. Mrs. Lewis said Mama got into a white car this morning with two luggage bags.”
“And she didn’t tell you or Eli where she was going?”
“No,” Alex answered.
“What about Monica?”
“No,” Alex said again. “Nobody knows where she is, and we can’t think of how to find her either. How do you go about looking for a grown woman who, apparently, left under her own will?”
“Did you call her cell phone? I know she doesn’t use it all that often, but give it a try.”
“You really think I’m stupid, don’t you?” Alex said. “Of course, I’ve tried her cell phone. It goes straight to voicemail.”
“Then start calling airlines, and train stations, and everywhere else you can think. This doesn’t sound like something Mama would do.”
“Toby!” Toby looked up to find Aria waving him toward the door she’d entered to go to the back of the theater. He needed to be in two places at once, and didn’t want to choose between the two. But he was in L.A. for a reason.
“Look, Alex, I have to go.”
“I know, man. I know. I didn’t want to worry you with all you have going on, but I knew you’d want to know about Mama.”
“Of course I want to know. Call me if you hear anything. Call me even if you don’t hear anything. I want to know either way.”
“I promise, man. And good luck tomorrow night.”
“Thanks,” Toby answered, and disconnected the call.
Where in the hell could Mama have gone? Toby tried to come up with even one reason his mother would have left without saying anything to any of her sons, but it was so uncharacteristic of her. Now, on top of everything with the show and Sienna, he had to worry about Mama’s disappearing act.
As he followed Allison to Aria’s dressing room, Toby said a silent prayer that Mama had just forgotten to tell them about some church outing. But why would she need two bags of luggage for a church outing?
Toby tried to ignore the tingling at the back of his neck. He refused to think that anything bad had happened to his mother. In fact, he refused to think about this at all anymore. Alex and Eli were back at home. They could handle this.
“What did Alex want? Is something wrong?” Aria asked when he walked into the dressing room. It was pretty nice, with a couch covered in that fake suede-looking material, and a huge lighted mirror.
“Nothing for you to worry about,” Toby answered. Aria had become pretty attached to Mama these past few weeks. She didn’t need the added stress of knowing she’d gone missing.
“What do you think of all this?” he asked, coming up to where she sat in front of the mirror.
“It’s amazing. Thanks for the flowers.” She lifted a rose from the bouquet Toby had ordered before leaving New Orleans. He felt confident Aria’s infatuation with him was buried, and while he wanted to start off this new working relationship on a professional playing field, he also wanted her to know he considered her a friend.
“Are you nervous?” he asked.
Aria sat up straight, and seemed to contemplate her answer long and hard. A slow smile began to spread across her lips. “You know, I’m not. I’m excited, but not nervous. I have Sienna to thank for that. Where is she, anyway? Did she decide to come in on a later flight?”
Toby’s chest started to ache at the thought of Sienna back in New Orleans. He’d wanted her out here with him, had booked her flight and everything. But she never showed up at the airport. He’d tried calling yet again, but as he had since yesterday, all he got was her voicemail, both at home and on her cell phone. But today was Monday, a workday. Maybe he could get her at the office.
“She couldn’t fly out with us because something turned up at work,” Toby lied.
“She has to get here before tomorrow night. I cannot imagine going on stage without her out there in the audience.”
“She’ll be here,” Toby said, and prayed he wasn’t telling another lie.
He stepped out into the hall and dialed Mulholland, Davis and French’s main number, just in case Sienna had Caller ID on her direct line. Toby gave a tired laugh. Just a couple of days ago neither one of them wanted to get out of bed together, and now he had to worry about her avoiding his calls. But he, of all people, knew that life could change within the blink of an eye.
The receptionist put his call through to Sienna’s extension, but she was either not in the office or had developed telepathic capabilities that told her he was on the other end of the line.
He would go crazy if he didn’t talk to Sienna soon.
He would go crazy if they didn’t find Mama soon.
Maybe he’d already gone crazy, and was just figuring it out for himself.
Toby resigned himself to carrying the heavy weight that had settled in his stomach with him for the rest of the day, but he wouldn’t let these ancillary worries cloud his mind. He had a job to do. And as the old cliché proclaimed, the show must go on.