Part 27: **************************************************************************** AJ kissed his wife, "I've gotta go see if I can help D." She sighed, "I know. Be careful." "I will. We'll finish this talk later okay?" "Promise?" she asked as she followed him to the door, handing him his car keys as he nodded. "Course. I'll call when we find Ty." He gave her one final kiss and headed out to the car, trying to stay out of the rain that had started to fall in Orlando. Jenn waved and shut the door, leaning against if for a minute. Trouble. Her eyes closed as she thought of the envelope upstairs in AJ's desk and she contemplated opening it. Nick groaned as the phone rang and Lis leaned over him, "Its my line, I have to get it." she reasoned. "Hello?" "Hey Lissy, its Jenn. Do you know I think we're the only two wives in Orlando." "We are?" "Apparently...I can't get a hold of any of the other three." "I know Shan's in Kentucky. Haven't heard from Ty or Alec in awhile." she raised an eyebrow at Nick and he shrugged. "Nicky hasn't either." She sighed, "I think there's trouble. Nick said anything to you?" "No." she got up off the couch and headed into the kitchen so she could talk without Nick eavesdropping. "Trouble how?" "Something about the boys and the breakup. I've got a bad feeling..." Lis nodded, "I've had that feeling since Nick left that night." "AJ said he wants to talk when he gets home...listen are you free tomorrow? We can talk more then, maybe I'll know something concrete." "I'm free all day. Just swing by whenever." AJ jumped out of his Explorer seeing Howie sitting on the front step drenched to the skin. "Howie what the hell are you doing out here?" Howie shook his head, "I drove her out of here J...who knows where she is...look at this weather." AJ sat down beside his friend. "Where'd you look?" "All her haunts. She didn't go to the offices, the movies, your place, the mall or anywhere." "Did you check with the other fellas?" "No..." "Okay you stay here, go inside and change before you end up with pneumonia and I'll drive around. She's a big girl D, she wouldn't do something stupid." he said reading his best friend's mind. "Are you sure J? You saw her..." "I saw her and I also know her...so get your butt in that house and I'll go drive around. Bet I'm back in an hour with her." Reluctantly Howie stood up and AJ helped him inside then ran to his vehicle, praying he'd find Ty. David and E sat in the back of the small bar listening to the band onstage which consisted of various members of the Backstreet Band. Their set was nearly half over and David was itching to corner the man in question. He noticed E was just staring off into space. "You okay there E?" "Oh yeah I'm fine. Would you be okay on your own for a couple days?" "Sure why?" "I got a call from a friend...figured I might be able to pursue a few leads while I get a visit in." "Fine with me. When do you leave?" "First thing in the morning." "I've got your cell if I track anything down. I'm hoping he's going to break tonight." he said his eyes locked on Bubba. "Hope so. Frankie seemed like a dead end." She settled back in the booth and looked around. "Yeah you could be right with that one. We'll leave him be for awhile." AJ parked his Explorer behind Ty's car and smiled to himself. Finally!! He'd driven past his house one more time then headed straight for Kevin's since it was the closest to Howie's. He went to the front door and rang the bell, waiting for someone to answer it. After waiting five minutes he pulled his keyring out and let himself inside. "Hello hello!!" he called. The house was nearly dark except for a few hall lights that must have been turned on by the security system. AJ pulled out his cell phone and dialled Howie's, taking a seat on the bench in the entryway. He figured he might as well warm up before heading back out on the search. "TY?" Howie yelled as he picked up his phone. "No its me. I found her car at Kev's...but she isn't here. No one is." Howie frowned, "Then where could she be?" AJ squeezed his eyes shut, "I have no idea D. I hate to say this but maybe you should check the hospitals??" "Wouldn't they have called?" he asked worriedly as he paced their bedroom. "Probably but you never know. So just do yourself a favor and call around. I'll check a couple more other places. Just hang tight D we'll find her." "I hope so." "D have I ever let you down before?" Jenn sat anxiously in AJ's desk chair, opening and closing the desk drawer every couple minutes while she debated ripping into that envelope or not. Her nails drummed on the desktop while she stared down at the envelope, AJ's name written across the cover in a plain black marker. The printing was unrecognizable, at least to her. She leaned her head back and looked at the framed picture on AJ's desk of everyone. The last awards show they'd been to together and Denise had made everyone pose while she snapped away. "Bubba isn't it?" David asked as he took a spot next to him at the bar. "Yeah. Who are you?" "David. David Summers. I need to ask you a few questions." "Oh yeah what for?" "I'm a private investigator. I think you know a few things I'm interested in." "Like what?" he asked glancing at David nervously. "Like how to set up a Backstreet Boy and get compromising pictures of him. Ring any bells." "Hey man!" "Hey man what? You didn't know what those were going to be used for? Or you just put a little something in Nick's drink that night." "Don't I need a lawyer before I answer any of this?" "Nope, not a cop. Look Nick's just wondering what the hell happened to him that night and I think he has a right to know." Bubba slouched lower in his barstool. "Nick's a good guy..." "He is..." David took a drink of his beer. "Look all I was supposed to do was drop the powder in his beer and make sure he drank it. The girl was gonna follow him up to the room with the photographer. That's the end of it. I thought it mighta been a prank to get him back for all the stuff he's pulled on tour..." "Who paid you?" "Some guy...didn't have a name." "Did you get the photographer's name? Or the girl's?" Bubba shook his head, "I saw the girl a couple times but never caught her name. The picture guy was like Donnie or something?" "Thanks Bubba, look if you remember something else about either the girl or the photographer you call me okay?" Bubba took the card and stuffed it in his back pocket. "Yeah sure." AJ froze in the doorway as he watched Jenn sitting in his chair, absentmindedly opening and closing his desk drawer. "Jenn?" he finally said when he regained his senses. Her gaze travelled to him and she nearly jumped out of the chair, "AJ!! I didn't hear you come in." "Came in through the garage. Its storming out." "Did you find Ty?" "Not exactly, she bought a couple different plane tickets so she could be in four different cities.." "How's D taking it?" AJ sighed and sat on the edge of his desk, "He's scared something's going to happen to her and the baby. I told him Ty would look after herself he doesn't need to worry." she nodded and took a sip of her now cold coffee. "So what are you upto in here?" She shrugged avoiding his eyes, "Just ended up in here, I called Lis and we're going out tomorrow." He nodded, "That's good. See if she's ready to strange Nicky yet." "Not yet, they've only been back together a little while." He laughed, "Yeah but it doesn't take long for him to get under a person's skin." "Yeah...so you gonna finish that talk?" she questioned, her gaze moving to the envelope. AJ took a deep breath, "Yeah..." he reached down and pulled the envelope out. "You look in here yet?" "No...tempted to." "Jenn your the only wife who's gonna know the truth...you sure you want to?" "AJ!" "Okay okay...we're all being blackmailed." he put his hand up seeing she was about to speak. "By Lou....he forced us to break up the group to keep our supposed secrets private but now he's breaking his promises. He's sent envelopes to Shan and Alec...Lissy saw Nick's envelope on her own..." "What are the secrets?" she asked nervously. Maybe she didn't want to know. "Mine is I'm a drug addict and an alcoholic prone to angry rages." Jenn stared up at him in disbelief. "What?" He slid the envelope towards her, "All in there...pictures, statements from people who claim they've seen things." Jenn held the envelope. "Is it true??" He ran a hand through his hair, "I'm not an angel Jenn you know that...I mean I did some experimenting through the years but this...this is a pile of shit." She smiled, "Then I don't need to see the envelope." she set it down on the desk. "What else is going on??"" "Lou called a meeting with Howie today, he claims he has more proof on Howie's secret and he wants him to let him manage each of us in our solo careers in order to keep his mouth shut." "WHAT???" "That was my reaction. I don't want him near my carrer. But I mean to protect D....maybe I would." "What's D's secret?" AJ sighed, "He's apparently laundering money." "Is he?" "I don't think so...D's one of the most honest people I know Jenn. He wouldn't do something like that."