I woke up with a thrill at the realization that I had just spent the night on the Fiery Boys tour bus. Regardless of their personal issues, this was still the best vacation I'd ever taken. Also, the bus seemed to smell much better in the morning, but my nose was probably just numb. I got dressed and stepped outside for a breath of real air.
My girlfriends needed an update, so I called Kira. "Well?" She started right off. "Who did you sleep with last night?"
I couldn't resist the urge to tease her. "All five of us slept together."
"Yeah, bullshit. Jo gave me the dirt. I know you're not getting any from those boys."
"Hey! You should have won the contest. You'd have nailed Chuck by now."
"You mean Jo and I would have, right? You said he does groupies like potato chips, never satisfied with just one. She wants us to fly out there and jump him."
I laughed. "You guys are too much."
"No, it's Chuck who's too much. I saw pictures of him from last night's show. God, what a stud. Did you get to watch him up close?"
"Yep. I started in the audience, but the fans weren't too happy to see me."
"Uh huh. I read about that."
She did? I doubted that my visit to the audience last night was news. "You read about what?"
"Let's just say that there's a website out there that's not too sympathetic to you."
I knew exactly what she was talking about. "Inferna, right?"
"Yeah. And wow, does she ever hate you. The woman's nuts."
"I know. I met her last night. She slapped me and told me to die. So I get it. . . she's not my closest friend."
"She's obviously jealous. I'd avoid her if I were you. And don't read her website, please!"
Oh, now she tells me. I'd seen plenty of hate sites, including Inferna's. "I looked at her site once. Just the usual hate."
"It's not the usual hate anymore. Today she edited a picture of you so that you had nails through your eyes and blood running down your face. The girl's certifiable."
That stopped me. I mean, there are haters and then there are honest-to-God crazy people. Inferna might actually be mentally ill. "Wow."
Kira offered to help. "Tell you what. I'll watch her site and let you know if there's anything you need to see."
I took a long breath to purge Inferna's hate. "Okay, thanks."
"Hey, I've got an early meeting so I have to get going. But keep me posted. I'm totally proud of you for winning this contest."