The Club

by Mandasue Heller

  ‘I, um, don’t suppose you’d fancy having lunch with me, would you?’ Chase asked her suddenly. ‘Only I haven’t had a decent chat in weeks. Not one that doesn’t include the words “fuck-up” and “or else”, anyway.’

  Looking at him, Melody thought, Why not? Tony wasn’t here to stop her, and nobody at the hotel could think enough of it to go running to him with stories when he got back. They’d be just two guests having a chat over lunch. And it would be nice to talk to someone who appreciated her for her abilities, instead of putting her down or mocking her.

  ‘Yeah, okay,’ she said, picking up her things. ‘Just let me go take a shower and get dressed.’

  ‘Meet you in the lobby. Half an hour all right?’

  ‘That’s fine.’ Smiling, Melody left, blatantly ignoring the envious gazes of the fat women.

  Lunch gave Chase and Melody a chance to air their grievances against the people who they saw as screwing up their lives. Melody stopped short of telling him the whole truth of her situation, just in case it ever got back to Tony, but she felt better for having a good old general moan. And Chase felt better that somebody had actually listened to his gripes about touring without telling him to pull himself together. Although Melody did manage to persuade him that he must still have a love for his music buried inside him somewhere, and that he should stop seeing it as something he was doing for everyone else and start doing it for himself again.

  Taking their conversation up to the penthouse suite, they wasted the afternoon lying on the huge circular bed, getting stoned and giggling at their reflections in the overhead mirror as Chase’s albums played on a loop over the built-in speakers.

  ‘I think I’m a convert,’ Melody told him when the first album came around again. ‘I’m an R’n’B girl usually, but I could really go for some of this stuff. Not the really rocky ones, ’cos they’re just noise, but definitely the ballads. You’ve got a lovely voice.’

  Thanking her, Chase leaned up on his elbow and peered down into her eyes, which were sexily half-closed. ‘You’ve got a lovely voice, too,’ he said. ‘And a lovely face.’ He stroked a finger down her cheek. ‘And a lovely body.’ He let the finger continue on down to her breasts.

  ‘And you’ve got a lovely dick,’ Melody giggled, not trying to stop him.

  ‘How do you know?’ he asked.

  ‘I was looking at it when you were doing the weights. You really should wear underpants if you’re going to sit with your legs apart, you know.’

  ‘Yeah, and you should wear a bra when you’re running on the treadmill,’ Chase said, smiling seductively. ‘Those nipples send out “come and get me” signals.’

  ‘So what are you waiting for?’ Melody murmured, peering up at him with a challenge in her eyes.

  ‘The right time,’ Chase said softly. ‘I’ve had too many meaningless fucks in this bed. I want this time to be different.’ Pausing now, he bit his lip. ‘How do you feel about coke?’

  ‘With my brandy?’ Melody asked, knowing exactly what he was getting at. ‘Yeah, great.’

  ‘No, with a straw,’ he said, rolling across to the bedside table and reaching into the drawer for his stash.

  Looking at the glistening white heap he tipped onto the mirror, and at the gold purpose-made snorting straw, Melody licked her lips. ‘My, my, you do know how to keep a lady happy, don’t you, Mr Mann?’

  11

  Jenna was not in a good mood when Friday came around. Ever since she’d taken over the club, this had been the start of Vibes’s weekend slot, and she’d looked forward to it more than any other night because, even without the attraction, she’d liked him more than the other DJs, and preferred his style of music. But he wouldn’t be here tonight – or ever again.

  Spending the day in the office, doing the books and getting all of the mundane paperwork out of the way to keep herself occupied, she locked up when she’d finished in the afternoon. She intended to go into town and do some shopping, then head home and get ready for tonight. Her dark mood deepened when she got down to the club floor and saw Fabian showing his friend up the stairs to the DJ’s booth. Watching from the doorway as the man strutted into the small room and stood silhouetted in the window, his head bobbing to an imaginary beat as he got a feel for the place, Jenna decided there and then that she didn’t like him.

  In her – admittedly limited – experience, DJs fell into one of three categories: the gift-of-the-gab tossers who thought themselves hilarious and super-cool, and who interrupted every track to make supposedly witty comments; the flashy, smooth-talking lover-boys who dressed better than the punters and spent the whole night focusing on one “special lady” on the dance floor, with the aim of taking her home at the end of the night – and her mate the next; and, lastly, the genuine talents – like Vibes – who weren’t looking for the sex, and who didn’t have to impress with gimmicks or catchphrases or fancy clothes, because their pure love of music shone through without effort.

  And this one, Jenna surmised when Fabian led him back down the stairs to the dance floor, and she took in the sunglasses perched on top of the scruffy bleached-blond head and the junkie-surfer-boy clothes complete with patterned knee-length shorts and flip-flops, was a definite gift-of-the-gab merchant. She didn’t care how good Fabian reckoned he was, she just knew he was going to be terrible.

  Bringing him over to meet her, Fabian said, ‘This is the guy I was telling you about, Jenna. Bubba Zee – Jenna Lorde.’

  ‘Enchanted,’ Bubba drawled, giving her a cheeky grin as he added, ‘Don’t worry, Fabes has filled us in on what a slave-driver you are, so I’ll stay out of your way as much as. Just chuck a wet bone in the cage every so-so, and I’ll be sorted.’

  ‘Excuse me?’

  ‘He means he’d like a drink taken up to the booth for him now and then,’ Fabian explained.

  ‘I see,’ Jenna replied coolly. ‘Well, I’m sure you can arrange that, Fabian.’

  ‘Hey, Babes, don’t stress,’ Bubba said. ‘I was only joking.’

  ‘I’m not stressing,’ she snapped. ‘And don’t call me Babes.’ Turning to Fabian, she said, ‘I’ve got some things to do in town, then I’m going home. I’ll be back by ten. Call me if you need me before that.’

  ‘Do I get the job?’ Bubba called after her as she walked away.

  ‘Depends if you’re any good,’ she called back without looking at him.

  Watching her, Bubba whistled softly. ‘Man, she is fit. Just like Liz Taylor at her wank-inducing best.’

  ‘Told you.’ Fabian gave him a sly grin. ‘Don’t think she likes you much, though.’

  ‘She will.’ Bubba gave an unconcerned shrug. ‘I just take a bit of getting used to.’ Looking slowly around then, he pursed his lips. ‘Kinda Hit Man & Her meets Come Dancing on the Starship Enterprise, innit?’

  ‘Wouldn’t let Jenna hear you describing it like that,’ Fabian chuckled. ‘It’s her pride and joy, this place. She spent an absolute fortune getting it like this.’

  ‘Nowt wrong with it that can’t be fixed,’ Bubba said. ‘Just needs something – I dunno – a bit sexier, maybe.’ Giving Fabian a nudge then, he said, ‘Remember that gig I had in Crete, where they wouldn’t let the girls in till they took their tops off and rode the pole? That’s what this gaff needs. Bit of sleaze and grit, and we’d have ’em piling in from all over.’

  Snorting softly, Fabian shook his head. ‘Don’t really think that’s the kind of place Jenna’s looking to run here.’

  ‘And there was me thinking you was the decisions man,’ Bubba teased.

  ‘Cat – skin – plenty of ways,’ Fabian replied enigmatically. ‘Right – so have you got everything you need?’

  ‘Just about,’ Bubba said. ‘But I wouldn’t mind a shufti through that stuff you said the last guy left. Sounds like he had some good imports.’

  ‘I don’t know,’ Fabian said uncertainly. ‘I really don’t think Jenna would like it.’

  ‘Aw, man, you’ve lost your balls
but good!’ Bubba laughed. ‘And if that’s what working for a woman does to you, I don’t think I’ll be sticking around too long.’

  ‘I didn’t say no,’ Fabian retorted, annoyed that Bubba was taking the piss. ‘It’s just that it’s all locked in her office.’

  ‘Haven’t you got a key?’

  Pursing his lips, Fabian thought about it. He did still have the key, although Jenna didn’t know that. And would it really hurt if he let Bubba take a couple of bits? Vibes would probably never come back for it, anyway, so nobody would be any the wiser. And the customers had loved his music, so it would benefit the club.

  ‘Okay,’ he said. ‘But don’t mess anything up in there, and don’t take too much. And don’t tell a soul, or it’ll be my arse on the line.’

  ‘My lips are sealed,’ Bubba assured him, grinning slyly.

  Jenna was even more irritated by the time she’d finished her shopping and gone home. There must have been an idiot convention in town, because people were running around like fools. She couldn’t count how many times she’d been barged into on Market Street, and she’d come very close to punching the woman who had deliberately run over her foot with that shopping-laden pram in the Arndale. Her toes were still hurting.

  Tutting when her mobile began to ring just as she was struggling to get her bags through the door, she dropped everything in the hall and kicked the door shut. Then she dragged the phone out of her pocket, answering it without even looking at the screen because she was too busy kicking her shoes off.

  There was a moment of static, then, ‘Hello, Jenna . . . you there?’

  Her heart lurched at the sound of his voice. ‘Vibes? Is that you?’

  ‘Yeah, it’s me. How you doing, Princess?’

  ‘Fine,’ she told him, hopping through to the lounge and sitting down on the couch, her bad mood evaporating in an instant. ‘It’s really good to hear from you. Everybody’s been asking about you all week.’

  ‘How are they all?’ Vibes asked, thinking that nothing had ever sounded sweeter than Jenna’s voice.

  ‘They’re good,’ Jenna said, laughing softly as she added, ‘Austin’s been moping about all over the place, but we knew that was going to happen, didn’t we?’

  ‘He’s a good kid,’ Vibes said. ‘Never met anyone quite like him before, but he’s cool. And how’s Kalli?’ he asked then.

  ‘Being an absolute sweetheart, as usual,’ Jenna told him. ‘Missing you like crazy – but then, who isn’t?’

  There was a slight pause as Vibes wondered if he ought to ask after Jason. He hadn’t met the guy, but he was Jenna’s boyfriend, so it would be only polite. Deciding against it, he asked about the club instead.

  ‘Pretty normal, so far,’ Jenna told him. ‘But tonight’s going to be the tester. Fabian’s hired a guy who’s just come in from Tenerife, and he reckons he’s really good. But I think he’s going to be terrible.’

  ‘Oh?’ Vibes murmured, feeling a little envious because he wished he was still there, getting ready for his show tonight.

  ‘He just looks wrong,’ Jenna explained, not wanting to say what she really meant: that nobody would suit her, because they weren’t him. ‘Anyway, I don’t want to talk about that. Tell me what you’ve been doing? Have you seen lots of your old friends?’

  ‘Yeah, a few,’ Vibes said quietly.

  ‘You must be having a great time?’ Jenna said, her voice a little wistful now as she stroked the necklace around her throat.

  ‘I guess,’ Vibes said evasively. ‘Anyway, I’d best let you get back to what you were doing. I just thought I’d let you know I got here okay, and make sure everything was cool back there.’

  ‘Everything’s fine,’ Jenna said, wishing she could keep him talking but knowing she had to let him go because his wife was probably waiting for him to go off and do something more exciting. ‘Well, thanks for calling. I’ll let everyone know you’re all right.’

  ‘Take it easy, Princess.’

  ‘You too. Bye.’

  Disappointed that it had been such a short call, Jenna hung up and thought about the little that they had actually said to each other. It was so obvious that he had only called out of courtesy and hadn’t wanted to get into anything deep. But she supposed that he was still feeling bad about that kiss and had decided it was best not to give her the wrong idea – in case she misinterpreted it again and got false hopes that he would ever feel the same about her as she did about him.

  Still, at least she knew he was all right.

  Sighing, Jenna got up and went to retrieve her shopping. Vibes wasn’t coming back, so she might as well let go of the past and start looking to the future.

  Lying back on the bed when he’d disconnected, Vibes gazed around the room. It was his best friend Tyler’s kid brother’s room, and even though Nate was eighteen and in college now, rooming with a bunch of his music-class buddies over in Harlem, all his stuff was still here. Every shelf was crammed with books, CDs, and Little League trophies, every corner stacked with magazines, while the closet was packed with clothes and sneakers. But Vibes didn’t mind the lack of space; it just felt good to be surrounded by reminders of his old life.

  The life he’d lived and loved before it was all snatched away from him.

  Almost three years had passed since that awful night, and now he was having to face the bastards who had stolen his family from him. Sitting across from them in the courthouse, watching them smirk and pass secret hand-signal messages to each other as if they were in school detention while the prosecution outlined its case against them.

  His beautiful wife Aliya, their gorgeous three-year-old daughter Tashei, his precious mom, and his own kid brother Dylan – all gone. Shot to pieces in their beds by the gang who had broken into their home in the middle of the night, mistaking it for the crack-house next door.

  And, like the prosecutor had said yesterday, they must have known as soon as they got in there that it wasn’t no crack-house. Apart from the fact that there was actual furniture in there, rugs on the polished floors, and pictures on the clean walls, no crack-house had ever smelled that good. They must have known. And, knowing, they could have walked straight back out and gone after the piece of shit they were really looking for. But they had chosen to take a look around instead, to see what they could steal before they went on their way. But Dylan must have woken up and, being the brave kid that he was, gone into the hall to confront them and protect his mom. And they’d shot him dead, just like that, then gone from room to room taking out the rest of them as they slept in their beds, just so they could still go after the bastard next door without fear of being identified.

  And Vibes hadn’t known a thing about it until he got home and saw the police crawling all over the place, because he’d been too busy at his gig downtown – the gig he’d taken on at the last minute, despite Aliya asking him not to.

  She’d been getting on his case a lot back then, worrying that she was losing him because he was spending more time behind his decks than he did in her bed and concerned that Tashei would grow up hardly knowing what her daddy looked like. But he’d carried on regardless, taking every gig that came his way and justifying it by telling Aliya that he was doing it for them, to get the money to move them to a nicer place – away from the drugs that had been slowly creeping into their neighbourhood, and the gangs that had started to form on the street corners.

  Vibes had been so wrapped up in his future plans that he’d been blind to the present dangers. And by the time he’d opened his eyes, it was too late, because all he could see then was his family lying side by side on the slabs in the morgue.

  The gang had escaped, but Vibes hadn’t. The pain had torn him to pieces, and the guilt that he hadn’t been there to protect them had eaten him up so bad that he’d started acting crazy, sleeping in the yard all day, and sitting up all night with a gun in his hand.

  Tyler’s mom had made Ty go drag him back to her house in the end, where she’d watched over him like a baby
for the next few months, forcing him to eat and drink and remember that he hadn’t died with his family.

  Vibes had been slowly recovering when Kenneth got in touch and invited him to go stay with him and his new wife, Gina, over in England. And getting on that plane had completed the process, making him strong enough to come back here now and do what had to be done. At least now he could look out at his house across the road without thinking that he was going to die from the pain. And one day he might even be able to face going over there to sort through the things he’d left behind. But not yet, because he needed all his strength to get him through the next few months.

  When this case was done, and those boys were behind bars where they belonged, then he would tackle the rest. And then he would sit down and make plans to start his life over.

  Maybe back in England.

  And, maybe, depending what happened between now and then, he might tell Jenna how he felt about her when he got there – if her damn fool of a boyfriend still hadn’t gotten around to putting a ring on that bare third finger of hers.

  Until then, he wouldn’t call her again, because it was just too hard to hear her voice and then have to say goodbye. And he didn’t need to be going into that courtroom and facing those bastards with that kind of pain in his eyes. When they looked at him, Vibes wanted them to see nothing but contempt.

  12

  Some of the regulars did drift away after Vibes left, but more decided to stay and check out his replacement. And Fabian’s posters advertising Bubba’s arrival in town drew a fresh crowd of his fans, so the club was as busy as ever, which pleased Jenna. Despite her initial determination to find fault with him, she had to admit, once she’d seen him in action, that Bubba was good. Not as good as Vibes, of course, but better than a lot of the other DJs she’d heard. And his music wasn’t too far removed from Vibes’s style, so at least it wasn’t a major change for the regulars.