Lewis had kept all the arrangements running smoothly in Vegas and had played down the scandal. He certainly didn’t reveal anything of the carnage that had been laid bare behind closed doors. The Vegas producers were happy to be reassured that there had simply been some phoney tabloid story again. They weren’t even bothering to read them any more. Tiger was getting stellar previews in America and that’s all they cared about. Of course, if Tiger jettisoned the show now he would be in shit up to his eyeballs; but all Lewis cared about was keeping her options open for her, so at least she was left with choices about her future. Knowing just how many choices had been taken away from Tiger in the past, Lewis was determined for that not to happen for her again.
Tiger declared after much thinking that she would not be giving over her story to the press, moreover that she just didn’t feel ready for Vegas. It was a bleak outlook for Lewis; he sweated bullets but kept the faith. Somewhere along the way, his confidence must have started to rub off on Tiger and within a week she had changed her mind. She had realised she wanted to take control of her life again, like she had when she returned to London as Tiger Starr fourteen years ago. Lewis immediately helped Tiger to find a top female broadsheet journalist, and the story was a huge success; sensitive, eloquent and erudite. Tiger hadn’t really wanted Sienna to learn the circumstances of her birth from a newspaper but as Sienna had disowned her, what choice did she have? And as much as she wanted to sugar coat it for her daughter’s sake, Lewis had persuaded her that honesty was the best policy. Without naming names she revealed that she had been raped by a much older man, an adult in a position of authority. That she had wanted to keep her child regardless but that she’d had no choice but to abide by her parents’ decision. Lewis was inundated with requests to use Tiger for radio and chat shows, women’s magazines and lectures. She politely declined. She had said her piece, and she had regained some control; she hadn’t done it for the notoriety. But she still wasn’t ready for Vegas.
One person who still hadn’t surfaced after the latest revelations was Sienna. Lewis knew deep down this would always hold Tiger back, but was powerless to reason with her. Sienna had fiercely maintained a block on all contact, but Tiger wanted to be on call for her in London in case she ever changed her mind. Tiger worried that if she left the country, she might lose that faint glimmer of hope of her ever getting to see or speak to her again.
Lewis had now been in Vegas for a whole week with Pepper, Blue and the Starrlets, checking all the set ups for Tiger’s proposed three-month schedule of rehearsals with her girls, before the Vegas producers and the director was expecting her to join them out there. Lewis had tracked down Blue and told him everything, begging him to come back on board. Now that Tiger seemed more stable, Lewis had wanted to reintroduce her friends and close circle to her life, and her closest confidante Blue was an essential part of keeping her strong. All the while, Lewis still kept the faith that Tiger was getting back in the saddle. Finally, his prayers were answered when yesterday he had received a call to say she would fulfil her commitment and come to Vegas. Tiger explained how she felt she had let her daughter down throughout her life, and she was determined not to let anyone else down. Lewis had been on the verge of a heart attack until that point, and nearly choked on the phone as Tiger had told him her decision.
Now as he paced up and down the arrivals lounge, his heart was sinking rapidly as he realised she must have lost her bottle. One or two tourists were excitedly weaving their way past with their luggage – it seemed that they were the last stragglers who had been on that flight. Lewis sighed and turned to leave, wondering what on earth his next move would be on the show. It was doubtful he would ever work again. Not after he had been sued for major breach of contract at any rate. No one would trust him professionally any more. Everything he had put his heart and soul into for all these years would be gone. Not to mention Tiger. If they didn’t work together, what was left? It wasn’t like she saw him as a friend, only a manager. She would have no more reason to see him. Lewis wandered over to a slot machine, shoved in a few coins and tried to swallow back the lump in his throat. Rows of cherries blurred in front of his eyes as he mechanically played his few dollars. After barely a minute, he felt his stomach churning as he tried to push the horror of his situation from his mind.
‘Hey, watch that hatbox! You can’t put anything heavy on it!’ came a loud voice echoing over the noise of the slots. Lewis jerked his head around to see the most fabulous creature tottering her way across the floor, hair bouncing on her shoulders as her hips wiggled, a porter wheeling a trolley piled high with luggage beside her.
‘Tiger!’ Lewis cried out, striding towards her, quickly breaking into a run.
‘Oh man! I fell asleep on the flight and then had to spend half an hour touching up my hair and make-up after we landed,’ laughed Tiger. ‘Couldn’t let anyone see me looking less than showroom, darling!’
Lewis couldn’t stop a huge smile from spreading across his face as he picked her up in a bear hug and swung her around.
‘Woah there! Now that’s a welcome!’ said Tiger. ‘Most unlike you! Have you been drinking?’
‘No … for the first time in my life, I – I missed you, that’s all.’
‘Oh, eeeeuww! Porter? Can I have the old Lewis Bond back please? Moody Lewis I can handle but soppy Lewis? Jeez. Come on you, let’s get to the hotel, I could murder a Martini.’
Chapter 32
The gloved hand calmly passes over a passport to the heavily made-up brunette at the check-in desk. Tinny, muffled flight announcements echo through the vast hall against a backdrop of chatter and the odd squeak of trolley wheels as they are pushed with their stacked cargo. The brunette opens the passport to the photograph page with her pink plastic talons, studies the information for a second, then looks up from beneath long, spidery lashes thick with clumpy mascara.
‘Good morning, Mr Hunter. Are you travelling alone today?’
A smile creeps across her coral pink-painted trout pout, lips dripping in gloss as she takes in Mr Hunter’s handsome chiselled jaw and black velvety eyes.
‘Yes, just me,’ he replies in his deep voice.
As Rex Hunter waits in the departure lounge he yawns. He had no sleep last night. He had far too much on his mind, and far too many last minute preparations to make. ‘This is the last call for flight VG321 to Las Vegas. Please go to gate 43 immediately,’ crackles the tannoy. Rex folds his newspaper up, knowing that first class will be called any minute.
Chapter 33
Tiger sat quietly in her vast, luxurious, dressing room as the world busied itself around her. Cherry and Brandy were hurriedly steaming and plumping a mountain of feathers in the corner. Mario was busy teasing Tiger’s curls to perfection while Blue paced up and down, bellowing orders to Hartley through his walkie-talkie. Gravy snored on the enormous cream leather couch in the centre of the dressing room as he curled up peacefully next to Ocean, who was gassing with her agent down her mobile whilst artistically decanting Tiger’s numerous bouquets of flowers into bronze vases and screening the well wishing cards. She particularly had her eye out for any pink letters, as Lewis had briefed her to do. Lewis had also installed a liberal sprinkling of hefty goons outside the dressing room to watch over Tiger. No one would be getting past them to that dressing room, or anywhere near Tiger backstage in fact. It gave everyone peace of mind knowing that she was safe from physical attack, and happily the air in the theatre tonight was electric.
The plasma screen relay up on the dressing-room wall was focused on the spectacular stage, all sparkling and ready to be filled with showgirls. Tiger could just make out Lewis on the screen, prowling around behind the curtain, gesticulating wildly to the stage manager who was nodding sagely. Tiger wondered if this was what the eye of the storm felt like. Her opening night in Vegas and she was cool as a cucumber. Scarily in control. She had never felt so clear-headed as the madness unfolded around her. Nothing, but nothing could beat the anticipation and
thrill of an opening night.
Tiger had felt at home in Vegas the moment she set foot on terra firma three months earlier. Lewis’ warm welcome, and seeing Blue and Pepper and the girls had confirmed in her heart she had made the right decision; she was in control again and turning her back on the drama and bad memories. These last three months of rehearsals had been gruelling, but Tiger had thrown herself into them with gusto, enjoying being back at work. She had pushed herself to exhaustion every day, so she could sleep her way through the demons that came into her room at night, taunting her with memories, and the pain of her daughter’s rejection. Despite nursing a broken heart underneath her smiles, Tiger clawed back her strength again bit by bit. The truth was, she was more determined than ever that she would one day be someone her daughter could be truly proud of. With that thought firmly in her mind, she was one hundred and ten per cent driven.
All the hard work of the last three months had certainly been worth it, as for tonight’s big opening she was on peak form, as sleek as a racehorse, as focused as a jet fighter and as polished as the crown jewels.
‘Hey Tiger, are you in a world of your own, or what!’ drawled Ocean, with a dramatic flick of her wild blonde mane.
‘Oh, sorry. I was just going through that opening routine in my head again.’
‘Oh man, I’m sorry. Tell me if I’m annoying you and I’ll disappear. I know how important it is to have time to yourself in the dressing room.’
‘No! It’s fine, sweetheart, to be honest I’d rather have my friends near me tonight.’
‘Well, I just wanted to tell you there’s a bouquet here from that actress Libertina Belle! It says on the card she’s in the front row tonight and … ahem, perhaps you should read the message yourself, looks like she’s certainly thinking of you in a special way! Do you guys know each other or something?’
Libertina looked around her as the huge auditorium filled with a steady stream of excited guests, all dressed in their finest cocktail attire and clanking their jewels as they took their seats. She peered over the top of her shades at a group of men who had recognised her and were nudging each other excitedly. She winked lazily back at them and blew a kiss. Turning her attention to the glossy souvenir programme that had been left on each of the front row seats, Libertina flicked through the pages and swallowed back the lump in her throat as she thought what a long way Tiger had come from nothing.
Settling back in her seat she let the rumbling hum of the audience wash over her along with the tangible excitement that wafted on the air with it. It wasn’t something she really experienced in the world of television or film. She liked the feeling of it. Taking a sudden sharp shove to her shoulder, she whipped her head round. ‘Pardon me, ma’am,’ apologised a smart gentleman profusely as he took his seat behind her, blushing as he recognised who he had just barged into. ‘These aisles are narrow. I’m so sorry, Ms Belle.’
‘That’s okay, no problem. Enjoy the show,’ she drawled loudly, waving her hand dismissively and smiling. As she turned back to her seat, someone caught her eye. She went in for a double take. Sienna? Libertina tensed immediately. She recalled meeting Sienna briefly at the Savoy show a year ago, except the once fresh faced, skinny streak of oatmeal Libertina remembered now looked tired, wan and nervous as she furtively made her way to her seat. Oh, Sienna was all designered up, alright, and had developed some killer curves but beneath the expensive glamour she looked pale and ill. What had Rex been doing to her the past year? Libertina was alarmed by Sienna’s presence. Knowing what had gone down between her and Tiger, Libertina guessed she wasn’t exactly here as a welcome party. The two women’s eyes met as Sienna struggled to take her fur coat off. A flicker of recognition lit up in her eyes before she hurriedly looked away and resumed rearranging her outfit. Libertina was thoroughly unsettled.
‘Tiger Starr, the Starrlets and ladies of the chorus, this is your ten-minute call,’ blasted the audio relay, cutting through the idle chitchat. For a second a pin could be heard dropping in the dressing room as all eyes rested on Tiger, who was calmly sitting at her mirror, inspecting her make-up and sipping at her Martini. Blue bit his knuckles, waiting for her to speak. She took a deep breath.
‘Okay girls, tighten me up and tie me off!’ Tiger roared, rising from her chair to cling to the wall. Cherry and Brandy leapt for her corset strings, winking at each other as they pulled in opposite directions.
‘We made it, my darling,’ murmured Blue as he surveyed the proceedings and turned the music up. Once in her shimmering corset, he clipped Tiger’s huge spray of creamy tail feathers securely into the back, then stood to one side for Cherry and Brandy to spray her liberally with diamond powder. Job done, the girls bustled out of the room efficiently, heading for the wings laden down with Tiger’s quick changes for the first half and enough spare tit tape to sink the Titanic.
‘I’m going down with the girls to check the chorus line presets, darling, you do your breathing,’ said Blue.
‘Wait,’ said Tiger softly. ‘One last check?’ Blue hesitated, not because he didn’t want to look at Tiger, but because his eyes were welling up already. He pinched the bridge of his nose and forced himself to look at her.
‘Fucking fantastic,’ he said, choking on the words. Tiger flung her arms around him.
‘Thank you for coming along for the ride with me,’ she whispered. ‘I’m sorry it’s been bumpy.’
‘Darling, it’s been worth it,’ he snivelled into her shoulder. ‘I’m just so grateful you forgave me.’
‘Oh sweetheart, we’ve been over that. It’s all settled.’
‘Oh get a room you two,’ laughed Ocean.
‘Mama mia, watch ze hair!’ squealed Mario, rushing over to tease Tiger’s curls again.
‘C’mon guys,’ said Ocean, clutching Gravy under her arm. ‘The leading lady needs her last couple of minutes for her prayers. Blue, get your butt down to that stage. Tiger baby, I’ll be outside the door to lead you down when you’re ready … Tiger? Are you okay?’ Tiger was discreetly dabbing a tear from her eye.
‘Oh Christ,’ said Blue, ‘Mario, tissues – now!’ He clicked his fingers. ‘Darling, are you okay? What’s wrong?’
‘Oh it’s … I’m okay, it’s just … I wish my daughter were here to see it that’s all.’ Tiger choked on her words as she tried to compose herself. ‘I just wish I could make her proud …’
‘Now stop right there,’ said Blue, grabbing a wad of tissues from Mario and shoving it under her nose. ‘Blow,’ he ordered. Tiger snivelled into the tissues. ‘Listen to me, darling. You have nothing to prove. You hear? You did what you had to do by telling your side of the story. It was the right thing. Sienna just needs time. The truth is out there now, that’s the main thing. And my god, we are all so proud of you. But the most important thing for you right now is for you to be proud of you. You hear me?’ said Blue, rubbing Tiger’s arms firmly. Tiger let out a little sob.
‘Oh Jesus – Mario get some cotton buds – the make-up’s going to smudge any second,’ ordered Blue. ‘Don’t you dare cry, Tiger, you look perfect and you’re going to ruin your face if you start crying. Now come on.’ Tiger nodded her head and sniffed deeply. ‘Good girl. Do you want us to stay here with you until you go on?’
‘No, darling, I’m fine. I really need two minutes on my own. I’m okay.’
‘Okay, chop chop, guys, let’s leave the leading lady to it,’ squealed Blue, clapping his hands together. Mario, Blue and Ocean left the room to allow Tiger her last crucial moments of privacy.
Down in the spacious wings Blue went through his check-list with Hartley, and quickly scooted round the stage with the deputy stage manager to check all the giant powder puffs had been concealed in amongst the scenery in the right places. He saw Ocean up above leading Tiger into the flies to be strapped into her harness, just as the Starrlets poured into the wings from the dressing rooms having their last little warm up, flexing their ankles, stretching their thighs out, and wiggling their head
s about in their giant powder puff hats. Enormous racks of quick costume changes were suspended above them, upon which were hung myriad headdresses, backpacks and tails, and next to which was Tiger’s own rack of quick changes. Cherry and Brandy were hanging out next to the team of chorus line dressers and wiggies, at whom Hartley was now barking orders. Lewis was sitting intently by the backstage monitors with Pepper, biting his nails as Pepper hissed her ‘break a leg’ wishes to the dancers. The sixty-piece band were winding up their warm up in the pit.
Out in the audience Libertina gripped the arms of her seat nervously as the house lights lowered. Blinding search-lights flashed dramatically around the auditorium, and applause and gasps rippled as a delicate rain of glitter fell from the trompe l’oeil sky above their heads. The band blasted out their opening bars and an army of chorus girls in merkins, pasties and headdresses appeared upon long catwalks that rose in the aisles, parading elegantly in sequence between the audience to whoops and cheers. As they snaked their way towards the enormous semi-circular stage the vast shimmering festoon lifted, revealing a stage set straight out of 1950s Hollywood with mirrored staircases, golden filigree gazebos and twinkling stars. Even Libertina let a gasp escape as she was transported back in time to the golden age of glamour right there in her seat.
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