Doren was born with a powerful gift -- a gift he's managed to use to put him well on his way to becoming a star. But there is more to that gift than just musical talent, and as careful as Doren is to hide that fact, there are some who know of the power behind the sound, and all the ways they could abuse it.<br><br>August's goal in life is simple: make an impact in the music industry. An opportunity to work as the personal assistant to Doren seems to be exactly the kind of break he needs to accomplish that goal.<br><br>But all too often in life, simple becomes just another complication, especially when there are people whose goal is even simpler: destroy and dominate.

The Gift

Giving up on hoping for more cheap thrills, Doren went back to the bathroom and grabbed both the shirts he’d tossed on to the vanity earlier that day, they were identical but for color—one white, one black. The designer that had offered them to him had told him to choose his favorite, unconcerned that to the rest of the world each one of the simple T-shirts would cost over two hundred bucks. The same vicious graphics were slashed across the front of them and both were in the smallest sizes he could wear and keep the seams from ripping. “What do you think,” he asked, holding them up in front of the mirror. “Black or white?”


August looked up and grimaced. “Is that supposed to be blood?”


“If you say so.” August didn’t look convinced. “Go with the white then. It makes the red stand out more.”


Chapter 29