Page 15 of Her Ruthless Protector

Kane gave a small grin. “Okay, point taken.”

“Is he always such a prude?” A.J. asked Asher.

“He just doesn’t want anyone taken advantage of,” Asher defended his teammate.

“You know, I’m right here,” Kane glared at his friend.

A.J.’s eyes twinkled up at him. “Glad to hear it’s not prudishness, that it is caring. I think we’ll work well together.”

Kane shifted on the little motorhome couch. “What happened to Salise?”

“Don? He’s putting out fires with the executives. He told me that you have some security concerns, and I’m the one who liaises between security, talent, producers, and executives.”

“Where do you fall on the food chain?” Kane asked.

“I might just be one of the lowly producers, but I’m a predator, not prey,” she said confidently. When Kane just raised his eyebrow, she elaborated. “Don is the overall Producer for this event. There are eight other Executive Producers involved, but he’s the true power.”

“So instead of lowly producer, you’re one of the executive producers?” Kane asked.

“Oh, I have an E.P. title, but I just do a little of this and a little of that. That’s why I’m the liaison. Before I have you start with the head of security, I need to better understand what kind of threat you’re worried about. The Eurovision Song Contest itself gets at least four threats a week, mostly from disgruntled viewers about who is scoring well. Ed, our Captain of Security, has someone specifically tasked to handle the threats that come on-line. Occasionally we will have someone sneak on site and leave physical notes or ‘gifts’ for different performers. The last time this happened was Tuesday. Ed’s team immediately shut that shit down and caught the fool.”

“So, we need to talk to Ed,” Kane said.

A.J. leaned forward on the little dining table. “Nope, I’m the gatekeeper, and you won’t be walking around this event or meeting with Ed until you explain what’s up.”

“So besides herding cats and doing this and that, you’re the hammer?” Kane chuckled.

“I like to think I’m a velvet hammer.”

Her smile was breathtaking.

“We have it on good authority that your contest, along with three other sites in Oman, are currently being considered as a target by terrorists.”

A.J.’s smile dimmed, and she sat up straight. “Terrorists? Like the Boko Haram, al-Qaeda or ISIS? Those kinds of terrorists?”

He and Asher nodded. “Now can we talk to Ed?” Kane asked.

“It’s still a ‘no’. I need to better understand how good your information is before we see security. If Ed ends up getting all his people involved, then it is bound to leak out to the performers, and I’ll have a real shitstorm on my hands. So, give me the info.”