Dark Fire by Christine Feehan. Dark Series – book 6

Tempest stowed her toolbox on the floor of the little sports car. “Why bother? You people make up whatever you want to. You write it and print it regardless of whom you might hurt.”

“Just a couple of questions, okay? Is it true that they sleep during the day and stay up all night? That they all have some strange illness that makes it impossible for them to go out in the sun?”

Tempest burst out laughing. “That is so like a reporter. You must work for one of those disgusting little exploitation rags. Where do you idiots come up with this stuff? You must have a very vivid imagination. I can’t say it was great meeting you, Mr. Brodrick, but I’ve got to go now.”

“Wait a minute.” Brodrick caught at the door of the car before she could close it. “If I’m wrong, say so. I don’t want to print garbage.”

“So if I tell you the truth, you’ll actually print it, not make up some new sensational tale just to sell your rag?” Her green eyes flashed at him in pure challenge.

“Absolutely I will.”

“Right at this moment, the band and their bodyguard are out hiking. They’ve been hiking up in the hills for the last hour or so. We have to be on the road this evening to make their next gig on time, so they’re taking one last break. Then we’ll eat dinner and get out of here.

Print that, Mr. Reporter. It’s a little mundane, but they also put on their pants one leg at a time, just like everybody else.” Rusti had a deep sense of loyalty, and Darius and his family had supported her solidly. If an exploitative journalist like this one suspected anything out of the ordinary with them, she was not above telling a few lies to shield them, even with her own reservations about the group.

“You saw them an hour ago?” Brodrick demanded.

Rusti glanced pointedly at her watch. “Nearly two hours ago. I expect them back any time now. And they’ll expect the vehicles to be running smoothly so we can get out of here. I doubt if any of them will be sunburned-they use sunscreen like everyone else I know- but if they are, I’ll call you. How’s that?” She slammed the door with unnecessary force. “In case you’re interested, Desari is prone to mosquito bites. She uses bug repellent along with sunscreen. Would you like to know the brand?”

Good girl, Darius approved, his pride in her growing.

“Come on,” Brodrick protested, “give me a break. I’m just doing my job. You know she’s news. My God, she has a voice like an angel’s. Every major recording company is begging for a deal, and she’s still playing little clubs. She could make millions.”

Rusti laughed again. “And what makes you so certain she hasn’t? Is it so terrible for her to do what she loves? She’s an entertainer. She likes the intimacy of small crowds. It isn’t the same in a huge stadium; she can’t make the same connection with the audience. And there wouldn’t be any such connection in a recording studio.” She was picking the information straight from Darius’s mind. She looked up at Brodrick. “I feel sorry for you. You must hate your job, prying into people’s lives with no real understanding of who they are. Money isn’t everything, you know.”

Brodrick clamped his hand on the door. “Take me back with you to their camp. Introduce me. If I could get an exclusive interview, it would do a lot toward making my boss happy with me.”

“Not a chance,” she said. “I don’t know you, and you ask pretty stupid questions. Any reporter worth his salt would come up with something better than whether or not Desari sleeps during the day. If you gave a performance that ended at two o’clock in the morning, then met with people, including reporters, for another couple of hours, you’d probably want to sleep, too. So what kind of dumb question was that?” Rusti injected as much contempt into her tone as she could muster. “I’ll tell you what. When you figure out something worthwhile to ask her, I’ll see what I can do for you. But I refuse to put my own job on the line for an idiot.”