Rachael turned the bedside lamp off and climbed into the too-soft bed. Hotel beds, she mused as she got settled, are same anywhere in the world.

She stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought. Exhausted as she was, she was wide-awake.
She had seen him at the club last night- along with the check-ups she did today- and she had to admit Frank was right. The boy was in a wreck. A Bad one, too, she thought disgustedly.
As she had watched her may be client, she had seen the jerky movements, the nervous flickering of eyes. It was fairly subtle, but she recognised it.
The symptoms of fear.

She wasn't sure if he'd seen her- but if he did, who cared? It wasn't as if she was taking the job- no, she had only agreed to take a look at the situation, nothing more. Frankly, she wasn't interested. And Frank should've known better then force anything on her. It was on his insistence that she had come down to Florida at all.

Her thoughts wondered over to Cassie- she thought about calling her in Rome, then decided against it. She needed some rest after the hectic schedule that grounded her to the floor. Rachael yawned. Better get some sleep, she thought sleepily, turned in her covers and closed her eyes. Exhaustion lulled her into a deep sleep.

Nick groaned and turned over in his bed, trying to block out the persistent ringing. It was impossible. Giving up, he reached for the phone. "Hello......"

An ominous silence greeted him. Nick sat up, shaking the sleep out of him. "Hello? Who is this?"

Still nothing. The sound of even breathing reached his ear. Nick was suddenly wide-awake. "Hello? Bri, is that you?"

"No, Nick." The voice was a whisper. Nick felt his blood running cold with fear. His grip on the phone tightened.

"Did you smile in front of the camera today, honey? Did you think about me? Good- you'll be thinking a lot more about it - the things I want to do with you."

Nick tried his best to keep the fear out of his voice. "Look, I don't know why your doing this, but please-" he heard a click, and the line went dead. With a shaky hand, Nick replaced the receiver, trying to suppress the urge to scream. He shivered as a gust of wind blew in from the window, and realised that he was drenched with sweat. He fell back into the pillows, burying his face in his hands, wondering when this torture would end.

The next morning, he came downstairs for breakfast with bloodshot eyes and pale face. He hadn't slept a wink last night after the call. Angie was horrified by the effect of insomnia, and hurriedly applied extra make-up to cover the damage. She couldn't do anything about the bloodshot eyes, however. He sighed and walked off.

"AJ! Make-up! Let's move it!" Angie yelled. AJ sat down and let himself be powdered, painted and trimmed. "We're seeing her today, right?" he asked Kevin in a low voice.

Kevin chuckled. "Yep- he's gonna be in for a surprise." He replied, his voice just as low.

"Hmm. I know." AJ grinned, and received a scowl from Angie. "Sorry- you sure she's turning up at the venue?"

Kevin nodded. "Mike made sure of it."

"Who else knows?" Howie asked softly, watching as Brian kept Nick occupied.

AJ smirked. "Everyone- the band, security, crews, mom, Jeff, Julian- oh, and Jane as well. She's coming this morning."

Kevin grinned. "Beautiful."

It was nearly noon- Nick sat in the dressing room, glad to get some breath. The morning's been hectic. An interview, a press, and photo shoot. And the rehearsal this afternoon. He sighed.

"Hey, cheer up, buddy- the tour's not even started yet," Marcus said cheerfully, a sympathetic look on his face.

"Thanks," Nick replied weakly.

Carlos strode in. "Hey Nick, your mom's here." He announced. Surprised, Nick stood up. "Mom? Here?"

"Yes dear," Jane Carter said calmly, coming in.

" I thought you were back at home," Nick remarked, hugging her briefly. "What's up with the surprise visit?"

"Can't a mother even check up on her son?" Jane asked primly. Nick smiled.

"Guess not. How's Aaron?"

"He's alright- putting finishing touches to the video." Jane searched her son's face, noting the eyes and the paleness. A worried frown etched her face. "Aaron might be, but you're not. How're you doing?"

Nick's smile died. His face clouded, he looked away. "It's... alright," he said tightly.

Jane sighed. "Honey, please- don't close up on me like that. You know it's serious."

"I know, I know," Nick said, his voice filled with frustration. He raked a hand through his hair. "It's just-" he looked at his mother helplessly. Jane got a brief glimpse of a frightened boy replacing her tall young son. She sighed again. "Have you considered the extra security?"

"Mom," he said plaintively. "They've been forcing the subject on me for two weeks. I don't think I can take it any more. I don't need another security, and I'm not getting one!"

" They're all worried, darling- we're all worried. Brian-"

" Did I hear my name mentioned?" Brian asked cheekily as the whole gang filled in. Nick turned away.

"Jane, you look absolutely stunning, as usual- how are you?" AJ drawled. Jane laughed. "Aren't you a nice boy? The rest of you, taking notes?" she asked flippantly.

"If you wanted compliments, Jane," Kevin said mildly, "you only had to ask."

"We missed you at lunch, Nicky." Howie cut in. "Feeling solitary?" Nick grunted but said nothing.

There was a knock and Mike came in, grinning. Julian followed. "Hey, Nick, Fatima wants to see you up on stage. On the double." He said good-humouredly.

Nick groaned. "Oh, man!" he muttered. "Why me?"

"Interesting question," a dry voice drawled from the doorway.

Everyone whirled around. Nick froze, his eyes widening with horror. He felt the blood draining from his face as he stared at the tall red-haired woman garbed in a formal black suit. He couldn't believe it.

"YOU!" he choked out.