Read Online Night Storm by Tracey Devlyn - Free Book Online Page A

been knocking long? One of the lads needed help with a heavy prop.”
    “Not at all,” Charlotte lied. “Peter, this is Piper Scott. Felix’s sister. We were beginning to wonder if you’d forgotten us.”
    He glanced between Charlotte and Piper, lingering on her assistant a telling moment longer. “Sorry, Mrs. Fielding. With this being the first call for auditions, everyone needs something or another. I haven’t stopped moving for hours.”
    Peter appeared tightly coiled, ready to bolt. He shifted from foot to foot and couldn’t seem to stop from peering over his shoulder.
    “Is everything else all right?”
    Raking a hand through his dark red hair, he lowered his voice, “Mr. Riordan’s a bit…agitated today.”
    “Does that mean we won’t be able to see my brother’s audition?” Piper asked.
    “No,” he said quickly. “We have to be extra careful to keep you out of his sight, is all. I want to do right by you, Mrs. Fielding, but I can’t lose this job.”
    “Understood, Peter. We’ll take extra care.”
    Warily, he nodded. “Follow me, ma’am. Miss.”
    Charlotte followed, her mind more on Peter’s odd behavior than on seeing Felix. His reaction to the theater manager’s mood carried an edge of fear rather than concern. Though she wouldn’t want to get the stagehand in trouble, she almost wished she’d run into the manager to see why one gentleman’s bad day could affect his staff in such an emotional way.
    Peter guided them around crates, wooden rows of turbulent imitation seawater, and twelve-foot-high Roman columns. He paused at a wrought-iron spiral staircase, eyeing their narrow skirts. “If you don’t think you can make it up these stairs, we have a regular staircase farther back.”
    “How is the view from this one, Peter?”
    “About halfway up, you can see the entire stage and audience.”
    “Oh, can we, Mrs. Fielding?”
    “I’m up for the challenge if you are,” Charlotte said in what she hoped was a convincing voice.
    “Brilliant!”
    “Why don’t you follow Peter up?” Not one for heights, Charlotte had no intention of allowing anyone, including Piper, to witness her undignified climb. One, two, three, four…
    For the first twenty-four steps, she looked neither left nor right or down, but kept her focus trained one step above her head. Then Piper whispered, “I can see why Felix loves it here so much. It’s all so grand.”
    An enormous red curtain sporting gold tassels at the bottom opened, revealing the dark wooden planks of the main stage and rows of matching colored benches. Five balconies stacked one on top of the other rose to mind-boggling heights. At the crest of Gothic-style arches loomed an intricately carved dome.
    Charlotte had frequented theaters before, but none this majestic. Every inch of the Augusta was a feast for the eyes. “Indeed, Piper.”
    “We’re almost there,” Peter cut in.
    The rest of the climb was near unbearable, and Charlotte wanted desperately to swivel around every few feet. She dared not. One wrong move could cause her head to swim and her world to tilt. She would not survive a fall from the distance. Forty-six, forty-seven—
    “Here we are, Mrs. Fielding.” Peter held out a hand to assist her from the last step.
    Relief swept through her—until she looked down. Her grip tightened on his hand. She saw his brows scrunch in confusion. Then he saw something in her expression and pulled her hand through the crook of his elbow, not releasing her as he guided them to two box crates overlooking the main stage.
    Once she was seated, the tension slowly ebbed. “Thank you, Peter.”
    “You’re welcome, ma’am. I’m sorry I can’t offer you better seats.”
    “Oh, Peter,” Piper chimed in. “These seats are lovely. I can see the entire stage from here.”
    They sat two levels above the stage, amid thick ropes, bull’s-eye lanterns, jangling pulleys, and narrow catwalks. Activity bustled all around them. Charlotte had failed to