Waverly stated the obvious “Lexi’s not here. Where’d she go?”
“I’d like to know.”
“This isn’t like her. She’s always backstage. Something’s wrong.” A vise-like grip clamped down on Stephen’s hand.
Stephen shot to his feet before she finished her statement. Yanking her hand, he dragged her down to where Nate was. Kimber was on stage, singing a Billie Holiday medley with a set of powerful lungs.
“What’s going on?” Nate hissed in a whisper and with a frown. “Waverly?”
“I need you to keep a close eye on her,” said Stephen.
He ducked out of view from the onlookers and made his way to the lobby. Nate, not following his orders, was hot on his heels. Any sign of tension between the brothers dissipated. Once the ballroom doors closed behind them, Stephen filled Nate in on what happened to Waverly.
“And you’re afraid something’s happened to Lexi?” Nate asked stroking his chin.
“You’re the one who said she is always off to the side.” Stephen stretched his neck all around toward the other entrance to the backstage of the ballroom. He found a few late stragglers making their way down the hallway. He took off with fast strides, not wanting to alarm anyone with a full run. Nate was behind him, spouting off the excuse me, pardon me, sorry to all the people they shoved out the way.
“Stephen—” Nate nodded his head in the direction of a stout woman wearing a headset on top of her bouffant hairstyle “—the coordinator. Excuse me, ma’am?”
The woman licked her chops at the sight of Nate. “Well, hello, Mr. Nate. I hoped to get a chance to meet you this evening. Two nieces in the competition—are you excited? They’re certainly the crowd favorites.” She scrunched up the tip of her nose as she batted these come-hither glances at him.
“Thanks, we wish them the best of—”
Stephen did not have time for pleasantries; he stepped forward, glanced at her name tag and asked gruffly, “Peggy, have you seen Lexi Pendergrass?”
Taken aback by his rough tone, the woman cocked her head to the side at him, and then saw the resemblance. “Oh, you’re brothers?” She purred and slipped her cat’s-eye glasses down the slope of her long nose. “I hope you guys are going to enter the Mr. Southern Style Glitz Pageant in the morning.”
“Have you seen her?”
“Yes,” Peggy went on, oblivious to their impatient sighs, “and may I say what a joy to have her in the circuit again. Such a shame the way she got caught up in drama with the Laings. I for one rooted for Lexi and Ernest. She was the best thing to ever happen to Vera.”
“What?” Nate asked, doing a double take.
“Everyone knows how desperate Rose was to get her husband back. He’d seen how good he was with Lexi and Vera. Oh, look at me, gossiping. I don’t care what the cameras caught. I don’t care how many diamonds he’s donated to the circuit.”
Stephen’s height allowed him to glimpse above everyone’s head. Kimber was exiting the stage to a standing ovation and he didn’t want to upset her with his presence. He tapped Nate’s shoulder. “I don’t think I should be here when she walks off the stage.” He turned his attention to the gossiping woman, “Ma’am, do you know where Lexi went?”
“Oh, yeah, sure, she went looking for your other niece.”
“What?” Nate and Stephen chorused.
“Yes, she walked off the stage on the wrong side.”
And Stephen didn’t notice this? Damn it!
Peggy barely finished before Stephen took off toward the back of the stage behind the curtains. Maybe he could meet her halfway. Philly got off the stage a while ago. Why hadn’t anyone noticed? Stephen took a few deep breaths and tried to remain calm. He tried to remember to take long, slow breaths again when he made it to the other side of the curtain and still saw no sign of Philly or Lexi. He craned his neck and made eye contact with Nate, who threw his hands in the air, indicating he hadn’t found them.
Before he ran upstairs to check the rooms, Stephen figured he needed to check outside to be safe. The door slammed shut behind him. Access to the streets was blocked on either side with a satellite truck and a catering van. Stephen tested the closed door but the slam already told him he was locked out of the back entrance. He began squeezing by the satellite van and walking down the alley and back through to the front of the building.
The smudged brass bar of the revolving door’s entrance warmed his hand. “Do you have ID, sir?” The gray-and-maroon-uniformed guard stepped in Stephen’s way.
“ID?”
“It’s okay, Barry.” Lexi appeared at the guard’s side, her manicured hands on Barry’s forearm. “He’s with me.”
From the way Barry gave Stephen a once-over, Stephen could only imagine what he was thinking. “Thanks,” Stephen mumbled, passing by Barry. With no idea of how Lexi would treat him, he stiffened when she neared.
Lexi placed her hands on her hips. “Now is not the time to be mad at me.”