The Riot

Chapter 17. The Walls

The roar of the crowd for Obsidian Dirge was a physical force, a rhythmic thrum that vibrated through the very foundation of the stadium. It was a different sound than the one they had made for Rayna- deeper, more predatory, like the baying of a pack of wolves. From deep within the Green Zone, the sound was muffled, a low-frequency heartbeat that signaled the beginning of the end of the night.

​Rayna stood in the center of the lounge, her black cloak still draped over her shoulders like a shroud. Caspian and his brothers were on stage, leaving the high-security wing momentarily under the watchful eyes of only two stationary guards at the main lift. They thought she was resting. They thought she was decompressing from the "power" Caspian had promised her.

​But Rayna was suffocating.

​She moved to the back of the suite, toward a small service door she had noticed earlier-a relic of the stadium’s original construction that hadn't been fully integrated into the Green Zone's biometric grid. It led to a utility corridor used by the HVAC technicians. With a steady breath, she slipped through, her boots making no sound on the dusty concrete.

​She had texted him ten minutes ago. A single coordinate: Basement Level 3, North Pipe Gallery. Under the stage.

​The walk was a descent into a mechanical underworld. The air grew hot and humid, smelling of grease, steam, and the ozone of high-voltage cables. Above her, the floorboards of the stage groaned under the weight of Thorin’s drums. Every snare hit sounded like a gunshot echoing through the narrow pipes.

​She saw him standing near a massive steam riser, his silhouette carved out by the flickering orange glow of a nearby maintenance light. Jax looked different here, away from the stage lights and the Iron Vanguard bravado. He looked tired- not just physically, but as if his very spirit had been weathered by the day’s events. He was still wearing his performance vest, his guitar strap still slung over one shoulder as if he were ready to go back on at a moment’s notice.

​"You came," Jax said, his voice barely audible over the mechanical hum.

​"I told you I would," Rayna replied, stepping into the circle of light. She didn't stop until she was two feet away. "I’m sorry, Jax. For everything today. For the way it looked."

​Jax looked up, his dark eyes searching her face with an intensity that made her want to look away. "It didn't just 'look' like anything, Rayna. It was a goodbye. I watched those guards hustle you away like you were a piece of evidence. I watched you look at Caspian like he was the only thing keeping the sky from falling."

​"He kept the paparazzi from tearing my skin off, Jax!" Rayna’s voice rose, echoing off the metal pipes. "He kept the man in the front row from reaching the stage! You saw that guy. You saw the sign. He was there, Jax. He was in my room."

​"I know he was," Jax said, taking a step closer, his voice dropping into that low, earnest register that always bypassed her defenses. "And it kills me that I wasn't the one to find the breach. But Caspian isn't protecting you for free, Rayna. He’s taking your life and replacing it with a script. He’s turning the Iron Vanguard into your history."

​Rayna gripped her cloak, her knuckles turning white. "I had to do it. For the band. For you. If I stayed in Dressing Room 4, that stalker would have eventually hurt one of you trying to get to me. I couldn't live with that. You’re my family, Jax. The only real one I’ve ever had."

​Jax winced at the word family. It was a term of endearment, a bond of blood and history, but to him, it was also a boundary. He reached out, his hand hesitating in the air before he finally let it rest on her shoulder. His touch was warm, a stark contrast to the chilled, sterilized air of the Green Zone.

​"Family," he repeated, a sad, crooked smile touching his lips. "Is that all we are, Rayna? After two months in that van? After the subway? After everything?"

​Rayna looked at his hand, then up at his face. She saw the longing there- the unspoken words he had been holding back since they left New York. She felt a pang of profound guilt. She liked Jax; she admired him as a leader and a musician. He was the anchor that had kept her from drifting away when her fame first exploded. But the "Purple Queen" didn't have room for a romance, especially not one that would further complicate the war between her safety and her soul.

​"Jax," she said softly, her hand coming up to cover his, but only to gently move it away. "I don't know what tomorrow is bringing. I don't know who I’m going to be when this tour ends. Everything is moving so fast, and I’m just trying to keep my head above water."

​"You're not drowning, Rayna," Jax countered. "You're being pulled into a current you can't fight. Caspian is a shark. He sees a beautiful thing and he wants to put it in a tank so he can be the only one to look at it."

​"He’s lonely, Jax," she whispered. "He told me. He’s the only one who knows how cold it is at the top. He’s not a shark; he’s a prisoner who’s lived in the cell longer than I have."

​Jax shook his head, his jaw tightening. "He’s selling you a tragedy so you’ll buy his protection. But fine. You’ve made your choice. You’re in the Green Zone. You’re with Obsidian Dirge now."

​"I’m not with them," Rayna snapped, her edge returning. "I’m using their walls. There’s a difference."

​"Is there?" Jax asked. He adjusted the guitar on his shoulder, the movement weary. "Because from where I’m standing, the girl I knew in the subway wouldn't have let a man in a suit tell her where she could walk."

​"The girl in the subway didn't have sixty thousand people trying to breathe her air!"

​The silence that followed was heavy, broken only by the distant, rhythmic pounding of the bass from the stage above. They stood there in the shadows, two people who had shared a dream that had turned into a nightmare of logistics and security.

​Rayna stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in the worn fabric of his vest. She felt him stiffen in surprise, then his arms came around her, holding her with a fierce, desperate strength. He smelled of old leather and guitar string metal- the smell of the Iron Vanguard.

​"Don't forget us," Jax whispered into her hair. "Don't forget the way the van smelled when we were driving through the desert. Don't let him turn you into a statue."

​"I won't," Rayna promised, her voice muffled against his chest. "I’m going to keep in touch. Every day. I’ll text you, I’ll call. You’re my family, Jax. I need you to stay close. I need to know you're still there."

​Jax pulled back just enough to look her in the eye. He reached up and tucked a stray strand of purple hair behind her ear, his thumb grazing her cheek. "I’ll be watching, Rayna. From the soundboard, from the wings, from the street if I have to. I’m not going anywhere. But you have to promise me one thing."

​"Anything."

​"Stay true to yourself," Jax said, his voice cracking slightly. "Don't let the 'Queen' eat the girl. If you ever feel like the walls are getting too close, if you ever feel like you can't breathe... you find me. I don't care about Caspian’s security. I don't care about the Green Zone. I will get you out."

​Rayna felt a tear prick her eye, the first one she had allowed herself all day. "I promise."

​Above them, the music reached a crescendo. The final chords of Obsidian Dirge’s set began to ring out, signaling that Caspian would be returning to the dressing rooms soon. The "Purple Queen" needed to be back in its place.

​"I have to go," Rayna said, stepping out of his embrace.

​"I know," Jax said. He stepped back into the shadows, his face disappearing into the darkness. "Go be a Queen, Rayna. I’ll be here when you want to be a person again."

​Rayna turned and ran back through the utility corridor, her heart heavy in her chest. She slipped back into the Green Zone just as the main doors hissed open and the members of Obsidian Dirge thundered in, sweating and exhaling adrenaline.

​Thorin was laughing, throwing his sticks onto the table. Wolf was already pouring a drink. Caspian walked straight to Rayna, his eyes bright and possessive.

​"There you are," he said, his voice a low purr. "Did you have a good rest?"

​"I did," Rayna said, her voice steady, her "Purple Queen" mask sliding back into place with a terrifying ease.

​She walked to the window and looked out. She couldn't see the basement. She couldn't see Jax. But she could feel the silver raven pick in her pocket, a sharp, cold reminder of the world she had left behind.

​She was safe. She was protected. She was the biggest name in the world at the moment.

​And as Caspian stood behind her, his hand resting on the back of her chair, Rayna realized that Jax was right.

The walls were very high. But as she watched the flickering lights of the empty stadium, she knew she wasn't ready to climb them yet. She was a target, and for now, the cage was the only place where she didn't have to bleed.