Fuck.

She had their attention. I didn’t know how to feel about that.

“They’re watching right now.” Without warning, she began with a novice pattern of chords. My mind tracked them even as I held onto every word she spoke.

“They want to know what I’m made of.” She peeked over her shoulder, and I held my breath until I realized her attention was on her bassist and drummer. It was my first time even noticing them. I wondered if they knew she was ours now.

Evil intent spread through me, but just as quickly, it was vanquished by the unexpected might of Braxton’s voice.

Open your lips

Say you want me

I won’t ask you if you’re sure (God ends here)

You came alive; then you set me on fire I’m burning, burning within

Insatiable, undeniable, you have no idea what’s in store Strip me, fill me, and then kill me I’ll never not want more

I’m a slave to the mania; you’re the truth I can’t deny

Until then, I’ll hide in plain sight Until then, I’ll die a little inside Until then, I’ll drown in this endless, black tide

My heart is a well

Watch me fill it with pain

My body is a garden (I’m Eden)

Watch them pillage and plunder

Watch me sate the hunger

There’s no sleep for the wicked

There’s no saving the damned

There’s no prayer to be had

You’re already ensnared, my little lambs

Open your eyes

Look deep inside

I’ll ask you what you see (God ends here)

Find what you love and let it kill you If I’m what you love, you’re already dead Wanting the taste of you, craving the feel of you I’ll drain you to the very last drop If I’m toxic, you’re poison

You say you want more

If I’m a monster, you’re the darkness If I’m addicted, you’re the drug

Fuck it, stay awhile

We’re already in too deep

Open your mind

Say your darkest desires

You’ll never want to leave (God’s not here)

Incredible, unforgettable

You have no idea what’s in store

Strip me, fill me, just don’t turn away I’ll never not want more

I’m a slave to the mania; you’re the truth I can’t deny There’s no reason left to run

There’s no reason left to fear

There’s no reason left to hide

God’s not here

The roar that erupted from the twenty thousand that only minutes ago had booed her shook me to my very core.

Standing on my right, red bloomed on Rich’s cheeks as his lips formed an O. I looked to my left, already knowing what I’d find. Houston’s jaw was locked tight, his gaze burning as his nostrils flared. There was fury, wonder, and the need to devour as well as to destroy. It was the same internal war waging inside of me.

She told me to eat my heart out, and that’s exactly what I’d done. Braxton looked like an angel, but she played like a demon—one not even Satan would dare cross. There was no way now that we wouldn’t make her ours. She was Bound.

Braxton performed two more numbers before she pranced her happy ass off stage, but still, the crowd wasn’t sated. I didn’t like that she’d forgotten all about us as she laughed and celebrated with her former bandmates, but then Houston stepped into her path, blocking her from leaving. The light left her eyes, and it felt like someone had yanked a magic carpet from underneath me, and now I was plummeting back to earth.

Her bandmates didn’t move a muscle, and neither did she as Houston invaded her space before holding up a small white card. I already knew what he’d scribbled on it.

Wordlessly, he slipped it inside the décolletage of her corset, right between the fleshy mounds of her breasts spilling from the top. I didn’t miss the unnecessary brush of his finger against her skin, either.

Bastard.

Why hadn’t I thought of that?

Unmoved by her anger at his violation, he spoke his parting words to her before turning away. “Don’t make me wait.”

Jericho trailed after him, but I was a little slower to follow. I didn’t want to leave. The dark look Braxton wore shifted to me when she noticed I was still standing there. I watched one of her perfectly arched brows rise in question. I wanted to stay, but she wanted me gone.

Needing to save face, I shoved aside my fascination. The shit was embarrassing, not to mention nauseating. “See you later, Amy Lee.”

I heard choked laughter from the three who’d backed her before it ended abruptly. I guess she had them by the balls, but we wouldn’t make it so easy for her. Looking over my shoulder one last time, I smirked when I caught her watching me go.

The seventy-two hours that followed were the longest fucking three days ever.

“How could you not tell us you knew them!” Griffin shouted as she tossed her camping bag on the floor next to our front door.

“Or that she’s one of them,” Maeko reminded our already peeved roommate.

I’d been getting the third degree since my performance last night, which surpassed even my expectations. I never dreamed I’d feel so alive and refused to give Bound’s presence credit.

Griff, Maeko, and I had to leave the festival a day early when the heat that came down on me turned into a wildfire. My affiliation with Bound and what it entailed was now a hot topic. Clearly, I hadn’t thought it through before I announced to the world that I knew them just to get under Bound’s skin.

I wasn’t sure how much I was at liberty to say, so I kept my mouth shut. It didn’t stop anyone from speculating, though. Candid photos of me at the festival started appearing online, and it wasn’t long before the blogs caught wind. Even those fan pages dedicated to every move Bound made, including whenever one of them scratched their ass, were now reposting old selfies of me stolen from my page.

After only a brief period of deliberation, the consensus was unanimous.

I, Braxton Fawn, was just another groupie.

“How did this happen?” Griff woefully demanded.

“It’s just a job,” I mumbled as I moved to sit on our ratty couch. “It’s not a death sentence.” Maeko perched next to me on the arm of the couch, a silent show of support as Griffin angrily paced the floor in front of us.

“But your life will never be the same again. Can’t you see that? I thought you didn’t want to be famous.”

“I didn’t. I don’t,” I quickly corrected. “I told you why I’m doing this, Griff.”

“But what if it doesn’t work?”

Shit.

Perhaps I hadn’t considered all the possibilities, but there was nothing I could do about it now. Bitching out would be even worse than failing since it was the only guarantee I wouldn’t succeed.

“I have to try.”

“Can’t you just be happy for her?” Maeko snapped at Griff. “This is amazing, and if anyone deserves it, Brax does.”

Like always, Griff melted at Maeko’s ire until she slumped defeated onto the couch next to me and took my hand in hers. “I am happy for you, Brax. I’m sorry if it didn’t seem that way. I’m just…worried.”

Join the club. “It’ll be fine.”

“Do you really know for sure, though?”

“No. But I also don’t know if I won’t be hit by a bus the next time I walk outside. I can’t let an unknown tomorrow stop me from living today.”

Griff nodded reluctantly before a wide grin spread her lips. “So when do I get to tell the world that my best friend is a rock star?”

I thought about the card in my pocket. The one with an address, date, and time scribbled in Houston’s angry handwriting. Did this mean Bound had finally accepted me as one of their own? I shouldn’t care whether they did, but I had a lot on the line, so it was easier said than done.

“I’m not sure, but we start rehearsing for the tour in a couple of days.”

“Can we come?” Pink tinted Maeko’s round cheeks, excitement taking over her soft features.

I considered how nice it would be to have backup of my own until I remembered the two words Houston had written beneath the address. Come alone.

“Not this time,” I answered Maeko. And maybe it was for the best. Maybe Bound would finally understand that I wasn’t going to cower any more than I would worship. “I need to do this one alone.”

Late that night, as I impatiently waited for sleep to steal me away, my phone chimed yet again. Resolved to stay awake and stare at the ceiling all night, I fumbled around for my phone lost in my sheets. I didn’t want to look, knowing that it could only be trouble at two in the morning, but I was a glutton for punishment.

All day, I’d been getting tagged on social media by people I didn’t know from Adam. The last one I dared to look at was some asshole on Twitter theorizing that I must give good head with lips like mine because why else would Bound make a special appearance to my show.