Chapter Thirty-Seven
I'm With You

Frank drove me himself to the airport and an hour later, we were both on the private jet that was waiting for us on the tarmac. It was after 3 am at that point, and my entire body felt like I was dragging it behind me with every step I took. As soon as I sat down in the seat, I felt myself nod off. The short flight was filled with my sleeping and dreaming about an intruder just out of sight but instilling fear in me each time that would wake me up in a cold sweat.

The plane landed and Frank nudged me awake. I sat up, rubbing my eyes as I looked outside. The pale pink light of the very early morning cast a glow on the dew that coated everything outside the window. The familiar sight of the airport in my hometown made me feel safer for some silly reason. I knew I wasn't but it felt good to be somewhere familiar. Frank helped me with my things, carrying both our bags off the plane and through security. I felt bad that Frank was here with me and not on the road but he didn't hesitate when he told me he was coming to make sure I was safe and that Tommy and the boys were as well.

On the other side of our terminal and security, I spotted an exhausted-looking Tommy leaning against the wall of windows. As soon as he spotted me, we both started running towards each other. Frank told me that Shayna had filled Tommy in on what happened. When we reached each other, he wrapped his arms around me tightly and protectively before lifting me off the ground. Sobs erupted from me as I held on to him. I buried my head into the space between his neck and shoulder, crying so hard I could barely breathe. Frank stood off to the side, giving us our privacy while Tommy rubbed my back.

"Shhhhh. It's okay. You're here with me now." Tommy whispered, his voice hoarse. My body shuddered as the weight of everything going on over the course of the last 24 hours hit me. I cried for my bus. I cried for my fans. I cried for how I felt about Tommy and me growing distant. I cried for the version of Kimberly I was before this entire stalker shit started. Tommy held me to him, waiting for me to calm down before setting me back on my feet. I wiped my face with the sleeve of my hoodie, Tommy taking my hand as we walked over to where Frank was waiting by the doors that led to the parking garage.

"Good to see you, Tommy." Frank said, nodding at Tommy. "Wish it was under better circumstances."

"Me, too." Tommy replied. "Do you think that this guy is going to follow her here?"

"No. The only ones who know where she is are Shayna and I. Hopefully, it's enough to throw him off and give Kim some space for the next few days. The police are sorting through everything now to see if he left something behind that will lead us to who he is."

"You're more than welcome to stay with us at the house, Frank." Tommy said. "We have a spare bedroom that's all yours."

"Thanks. I appreciate that. It would make things much easier. I'm going to reach out to my friends out here again to make sure that the kids have someone watching them just in case."

"God, I hate this." I whispered. "I feel like I'm causing so much danger for everyone just by breathing. Maybe I should have stayed."

"Hey, kiddo. This isn't your fault. You can't stop living life because some whacko can't decipher what's real and what isn't." Frank bent, meeting me eye to eye. "We're going to find out who he is and make him look like his Momma's biggest disappointment on the seven o'clock news across the country. You can't give up on me yet though, okay?"

"Okay." I mumbled, nodding. I felt exhausted, leaning against Tommy.

"C'mon. Let's get you back to my house to get some sleep." He brushed his lips against my temple quickly before leading Frank and me towards the parking garage.

We got back to Tommy's house where Billy was helping the boys get ready for school. They were excited to see me, clearly uninformed about what had happened to bring me here so unexpectedly. They said their goodbyes before Billy drove them to school, promising to stop by after work that evening. Tommy took me up to his room to give Frank time to settle in his room. As soon as my head hit the pillow and Tommy wrapped his arms around me, I was out like a light. Again, nightmares of someone just standing in the shadows plagued me, bringing me in and out of a sleeping state feeling like I was having a panic attack. Tommy was there each time though to soothe me back to sleep in his warm and strong arms.

It was a short time after noon when my eyelids dragged open. The sun was shining brightly through the sheer white curtains and I could hear the light sound of traffic in the distance through the open window. Rolling over, I saw that Tommy was not laying in the bed next to me. I sprang up, fear consuming me. "Tommy? Tommy!" I called out, scrambling to get out of bed. Was the stalker here? Had he taken Tommy somewhere? Was he hurt? I almost made it to the door before Tommy came jogging into the room.

"Hey. It's okay. I'm right here." He said softly and I ambushed him with a relief-fueled hug. "I stepped out to make some calls. I'm not leaving." He managed to pry my arms from around him and looked down at me.

"I feel like I'm losing my damn mind." I whispered, closing my eyes. This feeling of fear was consuming and made me want to tremble like a leaf. "It's worse than the car accident. Every time I close my eyes, I see something in the shadows watching me. I can't keep going on like this." Shaking my head, I opened my tear-filled eyes to glance up at Tommy.

"I talked with Shayna and Frank while you were sleeping. They are working to see if they caught the person on camera or any trace of him on the bus. Frank said they think they might have found some DNA or something. It'll take a couple of days to make sure it's not anyone who is usually on your bus. For now though, you're going to stay here until your show in Tulsa."

"What if the guy comes here looking for me? I could be putting you and the boys in danger."

"That's why they are going to be staying with Billy for a few days. It'll give you some space to relax and everyone peace of mind without them being in any possible harm's way." I buried my face in my hands and sat on the edge of his bed.

"I should have stayed on the road. I'm making everyone turn their lives upside down because of all this. This is their home! They should be able to stay here." I cried, dropping my hands to my lap. "I should go back."

"No, you shouldn't." Tommy knelt down in front of me and took my hands in his. "Kim, the boys are going to love being at Billy's house. I'm sure Xander would rather be there than here most days. And it's closer to Ethan's girlfriend. They are going to be just fine for a few days while you're here. Right now, my main concern is making sure that you're safe and that you're taking care of yourself while all of this craziness is going on." I gazed down at his caring face, wondering why I had doubted him at all. This thought made my eyes fill with tears again.

"I thought we were going to break up again." I whispered, turning away from him.

"What?" He asked. "Why would you think that?"

"I felt like we were drifting apart like before. We started missing our phone calls and our video chats. Everything felt chaotic. It felt like history repeating itself." I said softly, feeling guilty for the words I was saying out loud. "I kept picturing us moving farther and farther apart."

"Look, I know things have been hard with the tour and the dojo needing renovations. I should have worked harder at keeping our phone calls and our chats. I'm sorry. Never think for a second though that I was trying to drift away from you. I'm trying to build the best future for us and making sure that my footing is stable here. I shouldn't have let those things take a back seat to everything else. I'm sorry."

"No, it's me that should be saying I'm sorry. it's just like what happened last time when I let my anxiety or something just get the best of me and my thoughts went to the worst-case scenario. I don't know why I do that or why I just assume the worst is happening when it comes to us. Maybe I'm just so afraid of losing you that it just never lets me calm down enough to enjoy what's happening."

"You've been under such a tremendous amount of stress lately too, Kimberly. From the tour coming to an end to finishing the Christmas album and preparing for the Big Show in December and then everything going on with this creep that's stalking you. It's more than enough to make somebody be on edge all the time. You can't blame yourself for how you feel. We're only human and given the history between us I think it's at least to be expected for us to have some reservations and some concerns going into it." Leaning in, Tommy pressed his lips to my forehead. "We both just have to work better at communicating those feelings I think."

"I feel like a walking train wreck half the time these days. if I were to tell you everything I'm feeling, you'd end up in the psych ward right next to me."

"I could use a vacation." He smiled gripping my hands again. "At least I'd be with you."

"How do you make everything romantic?" I giggled shaking my head at him.

"It's a gift, what can I say?"

"Kim?" Frank's voice called from downstairs. "You got company." Tommy took my hand and led me out into the hallway, heading down the stairs where I saw Frank standing. Shayna was with him, looking out of sorts dressed in a pair of black leggings and a bagging hoodie. Shayna never leaves the house without a power suit or some kind of dress pants unless she has something that involves dirt going on.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as she gave me a tight hug. It was comforting to see her, my lifeline these past few years here to cling to a little longer.

"Seriously? I'm here to check on you. Some psycho trashes my best friend's tour bus, I'm flying out first thing to make sure she's okay. Are you okay?" She asked, setting her bag down on the floor.

"Okay might be a strong word but yeah." I breathed, nodding. Tommy put his hand on the small of my back for support. "Any news?"

"I guess the cameras didn't catch anything unusual. The police are still processing the scene and making sure they can collect any possible DNA. The entire security team and the road crew had to give samples to rule them all out. Skipping the show tonight was probably the best thing we could have done."

"Tell that to the label." I muttered, sitting on the arm of the couch.

"They will deal with it." Frank said, crossing his arms. "Your safety is more important right now. Putting you on display in a room filled with anyone who might try to hurt you isn't the greatest plan. You need the rest anyway."

"I don't get why it's suddenly getting worse. It died down a little after the car accident. Now the guy is in my personal space? And how did he manage to get on the bus in the first place? Security is combing all over that area during the show. The band and I were right there for most of the night as well." I shook my head. "It doesn't make any sense to me."

"That's for security and the police to figure out. Right now, you are just going to enjoy your time here in Angel Grove and not think about work." Shayna smiled, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"Are you staying here in town too?" I asked. Tommy's house was going to get pretty crowded then.

"Sure am. I've been meaning to get here anyway. See the sights. Spend my time with my best friend." I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Is this the point where you tell me you've been secretly dating Billy?" I asked. Her cheeks flashed a pink color as she avoided looking anywhere but at me.

"Well…erm…we meant to tell you sooner but with everything going on, we didn't want to rush it." She said quickly, gripping her sleeves that fell over her hands.

"We had you figured out like a month ago." I mused, smirking at her.

"Billy isn't very subtle." Tommy added.

"No. He's more of an open book kinda guy. That's what I like about him."

"Well," I stood up and gave her another hug. "I am happy for both of you." She sighed in relief as she hugged me back.

"I was so worried about how you'd react." She said as I released her. "You all have been such a tight-knit group of friends for so long, I didn't know if you'd be okay with it."

"I'm okay with whatever makes you and him happy." She smiled, looking like I had lifted a ten-ton weight off her shoulders. I turned my attention to Frank who looked tired but was also smiling. "Frank, I feel like I'm going to owe you a limb by the time all of this is over."

"Think it would be odd walking around with one of your little arms with me." He grinned, scratching the back of his bald head.

"You could use it like a fly swatter," I suggested, getting a hearty laugh from my big security guard. Tommy and Shayna laughed too and for the first time in almost 24 hours, I felt better. Very slowly, the fear and terror that had gripped me from clipping on the bust was slipping away. I knew I was forever going to be safe with Tommy and Frank watching out for me. And I also knew that Shayna would do everything in her power to make sure not only me but the band, the roadies, and my fans were safe as well. Whoever this creep was wasn't going to win. We were going to work together to find him and stop him before he could hurt anyone.

Tommy and Frank went out into the backyard so that Frank could pinpoint some good places for security cameras while I was there. Shayna and I sat on the couch, my entire body sinking into the comfy cushions under me. Looking over at her, I saw that she was staring me down. "What?" I asked.

"You really scared me today…last night. Whichever it is now."

"Sorry. I will try not to obtain stalkers." I joked, tipping my head back into the cushion and closing my eyes. "Especially ones who seem to disappear into thin air."

"Just promise me that you won't do anything stupid? No going anywhere without someone with you. I don't even want you going to the bathroom at a hotel without someone guarding the door."

"Yes, ma'am." I replied, yawning. "I don't think I will be able to do as much as a blink without Frank clearing the area first." Shayna sighed and I opened an eye, glancing at her. She was staring down at the coffee table, lost in thought. "Hey," I said, opening both eyes and raising my head to look at her. "Everything is going to be alright, Shayna. I'm safe. You guys are doing an awesome job of making sure it stays that way."

"I hope so. The label is really hoping to come down hard on everything when it comes to your safety. Even me." She mumbled, biting her lip.

"What do you mean?"

"I got my ass chewed out for this happening."

"It wasn't your fault! How were you supposed to know something like this might happen?" I asked, anger flaring in my chest. "Who yelled at you? I want a name." I moved to reach for my cell phone, ready to give someone a piece of my mind at the label.

"Don't worry about me, Kim. It's been handled." She breathed, resting her hands in her lap. "This is just such awful timing with everything going on and your new contract negotiations coming up. I hope this doesn't cause issues there."

"I was actually thinking about that," I said, leaning forward and resting my elbows on my knees. "Shay…I think I am going to tell them I want to move back here to California. I know they weren't too keen on that idea before but I don't care. I need to be here. This is where my future feels like it needs to be. And I can make the commute back and forth to Nashville as needed. I will even fund building a recording studio in any house I build to help cut down their costs. I just need to be able to see Tommy more than once or twice a month."

"You're right." She said, nodding. "You have every right to want to live where you feel you need to be."

"Do you think they will go for it?"

"Absolutely not." She replied, smiling. "But I am telling you this as your friend, not your manager. If they don't, I think you should start looking around for a label that will let you make more independent decisions for your career. They might have been good for you while you've grown but now any label would grab you up in a heartbeat. The ball is in your court. Keep that upper hand. You're the only one who can use yourself as leverage. Never let them take that from you."

"You're right." I nodded. Confidence swelled in my chest and I felt it growing as I thought about being able to control at least this aspect of my life. I might have a stalker trying to get to me and I might have my relationship up in the air, but this is something I can have the final say without anyone else taking that from me. The label has been trying for far too long to control every part of me, not just my music or my career. I wanted the creative control of things and the ability to decide exactly what I needed in order to grow as an artist. It was time for me to stand up and be the self-advocate I needed and deserved all this time. It was time to fight back against them, one battle at a time. I spent way too much blood, sweat, and tears wasting time not living a life that I've earned. "It's time for me to take control of my career. I have the power to do that."

"You're damn right."