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She typed in the password and the tablet came to life.
“There should be a folder with the itinerary and other items related to the conference,” David said leaning forward.
Emily located the folder and double-tapped it. When the conference flyer popped up, her blood ran cold. She stared at the title, unable to move or breathe.
“Emily, are you okay?”
Emily moved her jaw but couldn’t speak. This couldn’t be happening, could it? Why would Geoffrey do this to her? Did he want her to be found by her family?
“Emily?”
She managed to drag her gaze up to David. “We’re... going to LA?”
David nodded, his brows knitting together. “Geoffrey didn’t tell you?”
She shook her head.
His brow wrinkled. “I thought you knew. He said you would love to go.”
Emily swallowed and forced a smile, looking back at the table. How had this happened?
“Emily, what’s wrong?”
She shook her head again. She couldn’t ruin his trip.
“You promised you’d never lie to me, remember?”
She closed her eyes and swallowed again. “Can this be one of those things I don’t want to talk about?” she asked weakly, opening her eyes.
He studied her for a long moment before nodding. “If you’ll answer one question.”
She nodded.
“Are you from LA?”
She nodded again.
He tilted his head and studied her. “Okay. I won’t ask any more questions. For now.” He paused. “Will you be okay, going back home?”
She bit her lip, not wanting to lie, but not sure how to answer honestly. At last, she gave a small nod. She would force herself to be okay. For David’s sake. And her own—so Geoffrey wouldn’t have cause to punish her when she returned to DC.
Allegro molto vivace
FAST, WITH MUCH LIFE
Forty-One
Mark strodethrough the backstage area of the Disney Concert Hall, reluctantly ready to rehearse with the LA Symphony for their two concerts during the week of the conference. He reminded himself, again, to not walk up to Rafael Alvarez and punch him in the face. But when the older man walked over to him and greeted him like an old friend, Mark balled his fist, ready to do it anyway.
“I hope you are feeling better, Mark,” Rafael said, embracing him and patting his back in a fatherly manner.
Mark swallowed back vomit. “Mostly.” He’d declined the normal private rehearsal of the Bach “Double Violin Concerto” with Rafael the previous morning, claiming he wasn’t feeling well. It hadn’t been a complete lie. The idea of spending time with the man who’d abused Emily made his stomach churn. He didn’t want to be around him any more than he had to. He wasn’t completely convinced he’d be able to control himself if they were alone.
“What’s wrong, my friend?” Rafael asked, a grin on his face. “You look stressed.”
“I’m okay.” Mark forced a smile, wishing he had trained in fighting like Alex had. Then he’d take the motherfucker down and kill him with his bare hands. But he didn’t have that skill set.Dammit. “Long flight.” He heard the orchestra warming up on stage and peered around the corner to watch for a moment. He usually looked forward to playing with the LA Symphony. He always began his tours here. Looking back over the time he’d spent here now made him shudder. How many of those musicians were Rafael’s “friends?” How many of them had abused Emily as a child?
He bit back another round of vomit as he realized he was not only going to have to spend time with Rafael, but also Emily’s father at workshops throughout the week.
