Part 509

"Nick, no."

"What Bec?

"Please don’t tell the guys about this."

"I have to, baby, it’s the only way to stop him. He can’t keep getting away with shit like this."

"God, I’m so ashamed." Becca pushed away from Nick and stood up.

"Ashamed? For what?"

"All of this. No one knows about Andrew except you. And Sarah."

"Bec, Howie knows about him and the guys know why you left."

"But Nick, no one knows about why we broke up in the first place. What he did to me …" Becca sighed, fighting back a sob. "He used me Nick, and I fell for it. I fell for him. And now look what’s happened."

"Bec, nothing’s ‘happened’. We don’t even know if Pearlman has a tape."

"Nick, this will ruin your career."

"And what he was threatening to expose about Sarah wouldn’t ruin Howie’s? Or Kevin’s or AJ’s? Baby, come on, this stops here. It stops tonight. You forget how protective all the guys are of you and Sarah. We’re all family, Bec, you included. And no one messes with the Backstreet family." Not anymore, he thought, pulling Becca as close as he could and getting lost in the memories.

"Nick?" Becca was talking, but her husband seemed a million miles away. "Nick, what is it?" she asked, resting her hand on his shoulder.

"Go get Garrett," he said quietly.

"Nick, he’s asleep."

"Bec, please? I need to see him. I need to see for myself that he’s ok."

Well, so this was strange. "Nick, I told you that Lou didn’t-"

"Bec, please?" he asked again. "Just bring him here."

Becca padded off to the bedroom, gently scooping up the sleeping baby. He whimpered just a bit, but settled back against her breast as she whispered softly in the dark. "Come on, baby, daddy needs you."

Nick reached out his arms and Becca settled the baby into them, covering his head with the corner of his blanket. "Hey buddy," Nick crooned. "Thanks Bec."

"Nick, what’s wrong?"

"I just needed to see for myself that he’s okay. I know, I know," he said over her protests, "you told me he was fine but I needed to see."

"Why?" Becca’s skin began to crawl. She might have been naïve where Andrew was concerned, but lately she seemed to be developing a sixth sense about Nick.

"I just … something you said, Bec."

"Nick, you’re scaring me." Becca watched him nuzzle his face into Garrett’s blanket and suddenly it all began to add up. "All the Carter boys are beautiful …" "Damn it Nick, the man is a pedophile!"

Nick looked up from Garrett and into Becca’s eyes. She knew. He didn’t know how, but she knew. "Bec-"

"Oh sweet Jesus," she whispered. "Nick, he-"

"No. Never. Bec, I never let him, I swear to God, I never let him touch me."

"How old were you?" Becca whispered, horrified.

Nick closed his eyes wearily. "Thirteen … fourteen … I can’t remember. I was so miserable, Bec. We were out on the road, overseas, and I was so homesick. I didn’t know anybody and the guys all made fun of me. They called me a baby and shit like that."

"Oh, Nick they were just teasing." Becca cupped his face in her hands.

"I know that, Bec, and I knew it THEN, but still…"

"It hurt, I know. But Nick, where does Lou figure in to all of this?" Becca’s head was beginning to pound. Dear God, the gamut of emotions she’d been through in one day was enough to kill a lesser person. But right now? The only person she could think of killing was probably long gone.

"He flew over. To support us, he said." Nick snorted. "Support, my ass. All he wanted was to skim his share of the profits before we could realize what he was up to."

"But when…?" Becca didn’t even want to hear it.

"Bec, I swear, he never touched me, not like that. It was just the things he said to me. The look in his eyes when he said he could make me feel better. And he hugged me, Bec, a lot." Nick shuddered and when his eyes met Becca’s, they were both holding back tears.

Becca reached her arms around him, holding him as closely as she could without hurting the baby. "He has to be stopped, Nick."

"Bec, we have to tell them. We have to tell them everything."

"If we don’t…"

"If we don’t, then he still has that hold over us, that power that he loves so much."

Becca took a deep breath. "No fucking way, Carter. Bastard, I’ll see him rot before I let him get away with this."

"I love you, Bec."

"Come on, let’s get Garrett settled in before everyone gets back. It’s going to be a long night."

Part 510        Index