At four- forty nine the next morning, a limo pulled out of the Hotel's VIP exit, headed for the conference venue. The car contained five drooping guys, one woman, and two securities in formal suits. Ten minutes later, the same securities were guarding the guys as they quickly waded through the mob that had lodged themselves outside the building.

"Some wake-up call," Howie grumbled.

"Stimulating, huh?" AJ said tiredly.

An hour passed. The guys went through the usual procedures- make up, dressing, and listening absently as Julian went over the possible answers they might say when asked awkward questions. "…and remember don't drop a hint about the Hospital thing. If they ask, tell them you had no idea that you were supposed to see her. They're already half convinced it's not your fault. Just win them over."

"We know, Jules," Nick said wearily. "It's not like we haven't done this before. We know what we're doing."

"I want you to be extra careful," Julian said grimly. "And it especially applies to you, Nick. Just deny the whole thing if an issue arises about your stalking. Unless you do, they'll jump on you till you answer them properly."

Nick's eyes flashed. "You're suggesting that I lie through my teeth?" he said coldly.

Julian looked at him sharply. " I'm trying to save you from further troubles, damnit! Just do what I say and there'll be no problems, okay?"

Nick stared defiantly at him.

A mild voice broke the tension. "I believe my client has the right to defend himself in which way he wishes when the question is asked, Mr Whitestone." Rachael said calmly.

Julian rounded on her, looking angry. "I hired you to find the caller, Miss Harrison, not to give me advice on my work."

Rachael gazed back at him, totally unruffled by the stinging reprimand. "In that case, you're not making a good job of it, are you? Oh, and for the record," she continued, "You didn't hire me. Mr. Carter did. You only represented his name."

Julian stiffened, then stalked out of the room, furious.

"Not a good loser, is he?" Rachael noted.

Nick was staring at her in absolute horror.

"What?"

he found his voice. "You- you mean, all this time, I was your employer?" he asked shakily.

"The last time I looked at the contract, yes," she replied.

"You mean, all this time, I could have fired you?"

she seem to think about it for a moment. "Yes, I believe you could have."

Nick groaned and buried his face in his hands.

"There, there," AJ soothed, not sounding soothing at all. He was smirking. Glancing over at Rachael, he mouthed 'good work'. She just snorted.

"Okay, guys, you're on in five minutes," the show host told them. "I'll just introduce you. you know when to come in?"

"Yep."

"Cool. See you up there." He left.

"Okay. You heard Julian. Careful of what you say." Kevin told them.

"Right. Let's go."

All in all, the conference went okay. The fans were glad to see them (of course), and asked the usual questions. When's the next album, things about touring, etcetera…Nick's mind wandered, drifting away from the endless questions. Sometimes Brian or Howie, who was sitting on the either side of him, nudged him back into reality. "Pay attention!" Howie hissed under his breath.

"Sorry," Nick muttered.

Just then, a girl stood up . "Hi. I'm Chelsea from Houston. I have a question for Nick. This stalker that's supposed to follow you around- is she real? Have you seen her?"

Nick was suddenly wide-awake. He stared incredulously at the girl, then forced himself to look normal. His insides clenched, tensing. Calm down! He commanded his suddenly rapid pulse, trying to steady his suddenly labored breath. He cleared his throat, buying time, then gave a swift glance at Rachael's direction. She shook her head, just a tiny fraction, so quick that he wondered of she had told him 'no' at all. He cocked his head to one side, smiling. "Uh…you got it wrong there. I am not being stalked." He laughed. "I mean, I know there's rumors going on about it. But I've actually told the magazine a lot of times…you know, that…you know, no one is actually stalking me. So I'm sorry I can't help you there- I don't know if it's a she, or a he,-"

"Or an it," Brian said with a meaning arch of his brows. The audience laughed, and the atmosphere relaxed visibly. Nick slowly loosened up, then realised how tense he was. Take it easy, he told himself. Relax. It's over. Relax.

Rachael stood half in the shadows, her body taut. She didn't relax until the subject was safely away from what came close as the truth. She looked at the girl that had asked the question; tall, skinny, possibly sixteen or seventeen, long hair, dressed in the shortest and the tightest outfit possible. Rachael studied her intently. Her instincts told her that she wasn't the one.
Slightly disappointed, she pulled her attention back to the guys, already erasing the girl from her memory.

Soon after that, the conference was over. The group did a few autographs and taking pictures, then it was finally time to go. Amid the screams, they climbed back into the limo. As soon as they closed the door, Nick slumped against the seat, utterly exhausted.

"You okay?"

Nick nodded, closing his eyes. "Yeah," he croaked. I can't do this, he thought numbly. I can't.

Rachael was looking at him, her own mind working. The fans were seeing through it all. They didn't believe the denials. She swore silently. This wasn't what she had expected.

When they were back at the venue, Nick went straight to the tour bus and shut the curtain to his bunk. The conference ran over his mind again and again. He heard a slight shuffle outside his bunk. "Bri, just leave me alone, okay? I'm fine."

"You sure?" Rachael's voice drawled.

He glanced up and saw the shadow of her. He sighed. "Yes." he said resignedly.

"You should have told me."

"Tell you what?"

"That they're seeing right through your…denials."

He laughed bitterly. "Go ahead and say it," he said his voice harsh. "I'm a liar. I looked right through her eyes and lied my tongue off. I even laughed, for God's sake! As if she was some kind of a retard for asking a weird question. I'm no better than Julian- I did exactly what he told me to. Why? Because of my fuckin' reputation. For what I am. Damn it all," he finished shakily. "damn it all to hell!"

Rachael said nothing. Then, "that's your idea of being fine?" she drawled.

He expelled explosively, trying to forget the frustration and anger. "I'm sorry."

"You're getting better at saying that. Keep practicing," she said coolly. "what for?"

"I don't know what made me say that. I shouldn't have loaded all my problems at you."

"No worries," she said dryly. "After all, that's what I was hired for."

"be serious."

"I am."

"Why didn't you tell me that I was actually your employer?" he asked then.

There was a silence. "I thought you knew."

"No."

"I thought Mr Whitestone told you."

"He told me nothing."

"Odd."

"Not really. Julian's an odd type. Hard to get along with." He said tightly.

"I noticed." She paused. "You don't like him, do you?" she asked carefully.

Nick hesitated, then sighed. "No."

"was there a particular reason?"

He rubbed his eyes. "We had an argument over a contract concerning my…" he stopped.

"Yes?" she prompted.

"Solo project." He finished shortly. "It was unpleasant. Do we have to talk about this?"

"Not really."

"Good. If you'll excuse me, I want to get some sleep." He deliberately rolled over and shut his eyes. He heard Rachael moving away, then sighed. Soon he slept, a blissful, dreamless sleep that blocked out the sickening reality.

"Where's Nick?" Mike asked as Rachael came in.

Rachael shrugged. "In the bus."

"You left him there alone?" he exclaimed sarcastically.

"I'm going back in a moment," she said curtly. "Can I ask you a few questions?"

"Ask away."

Rachael paused, trying to frame her question. "Is…Does…Nick have a good grounds with most of the staff?"

"I don't understand." He said, frowning.

"What I meant was, is he on friendly terms with the Record Executives, the management team, band, you get my drift. Does he feel comfortable with the people he work with?"

"Hell, of course. He's good with everyone. Well… maybe except Julian," he amended quickly beneath her probing gaze. "But before the unpleasantness happened, they were on the best terms." He sighed. "Look I know you probably think he's a bit of a dominating sort of a man, but really, he's frustrated too. He's just doing his job."

"So am I," Rachael said tightly. "what exactly happened between Mr Whitestone and my client?"

Mike frowned. "Geez, it was a long time ago. Uh… to cut a long story short, Nick wanted to develop a solo project, lining up with the group album. Julian refused, because he had a feeling that it might drop the BSB's rating. Now this was when the deal was almost through. Nick heard about the termination and demanded to know why. Julian must've been in one of his undiplomatic moments, because Nick totally misinterpreted the intention. They've been on this ground since then."

Rachael thought that over. "Was there any…personal issues involved?"

Mike looked at her, startled. "Hell, no. of course not." He narrowed his eyes shrewdly. "I think I know where this is leading," he said crisply, "and I have to say, you're wrong. Julian won't stoop that low, even if he did have a personal motive to…bother Nick. I know him. He won't."

Rachael bit back a sigh. "Thanks," she said simply and turned and walked out of the room.

Mike watched her leave, his face betraying nothing.

Rachael stood at the backstage, hearing the roar above her. Her mind toyed with the possibilities, problems, and most important of all, suspects. Her line on Julian was faint, not enough for the fishes to jump for it. she needed more information. More evidence. She was wondering about the stalker. What was her motive? What would she- or he, she added absently- gain from whispering obscenities over the phone?

The phone… that surprised her. She thought as she walked up the corridor. It's been nearly a week since Nick received any calls. She let out a deep breath. That only meant… he/she was up to something bigger. She ran over the possible strategy, and the time they would strike. she knew that it was going to be soon.

She had no idea just how soon.

"I'm in the shower first!" AJ yelled, running into their dressing room. The others followed, too tired even to chase after him. "Bone, incase you didn't know, there are about ten showers in this place," Howie said mildly.

AJ stopped. He turned around, then grinned. "So?" he turned back and ran.

"Remember what he said about Jules being on something?" Brian said tiredly, accepting a towel.

"Yeah?"

"I think he mixed up the names. He's as bad as Jules."

"He is erratic," Kevin said pointedly.

"I HEARD THAT!" AJ yelled from the bathroom.

"WE HEARD YOU TOO!" they yelled back irritably.

After shower, feeling refreshed, they sat around the sofas, waiting until the bus came. It had been taken to get a new plate, and fix the engine.

The door opened, and Julian strode in with an armful of soft toys, flowers, and all sorts of goodies that the fans had thrown onto the stage. "Here you go," he said, dumping the lot onto the coffee table. "Take your pick."

Nick brightened. "Hey, that's a new one!" he yelled, snatching up a beanie baby.

"Aaron's been looking for these for ages!"

"Cute," Kevin grunted, flipping through a pile of cards. "Wonder how they threw these on stage." he mused.

"Fold them into airplanes?" Howie suggested.

"Ha ha. So not funny," AJ made a face.

"Yo Nicky. Here's one for ya," Kevin said, handing him a card-sized yellow envelope.

Nick took it, flipping it over curiously. His name was written neatly at the front in blue. He tore it open and frowned.

"It's not a card," he remarked, taking a piece of folded white paper out.

"What is it then? A love note?" Brian quipped.

Suddenly, Nick gave a strangled cry, staggering to his feet, his eyes wide with shock. Rachael shot forward almost immediately, alarm written all over her face.

"Nick, what's wrong?" Howie asked, seeing the deathly pallor.

The note dropped from Nick's shaking hand and he bolted for the door. His mind screamed at him, no, no, no! this can't be real. This can't-

Brian sprang up. "Nick!"

"What the hell's the matter with him?" Mike demanded, coming in.

Rachael slowly bent down and picked up the note. She looked at the words for a long time.

"Get me the police." She said at last.