Shattered Hearts

by Coral McCallum

  “Another guitar tech job?”

  “No. Tour manager,” revealed Todd with a grin. “Finally getting the chance to put my schooling to good use.”

  “Who for?”

  “Band Jason just signed called Kordon. They’re booked to tour the UK and Europe through September and October. I figured Silver Lake will be out at JJL then so it should be less of an issue to be away.”

  “Will you be here for their show on the 30th?”

  Todd nodded, “I don’t leave till the 2nd. Tour starts September 5th in Lisbon.”

  “Well, talk to Jake and see what he says,” said Lori, stepping carefully onto the deck. “Can you light the coals for me till I get the kids sorted?”

  “Sure,” answered Todd. “Everything still in the same place?”

  “Yes,” replied Lori. “If there isn’t enough charcoal, there’s a fresh bag in the garage.”

  The coals were almost hot by the time Jake returned to the house. Grabbing the towel Lori had thoughtfully left over the back of a chair for him, he checked Todd had everything under control.

  “Didn’t expect to see you out here today,” commented Jake as he dried himself off. “Everything ok?”

  “Yeah. Just wanted to run a job offer passed you before I accepted it,” explained Todd.

  “Job offer?”

  “I’ve been offered a job as tour manager on a seven-week UK and European tour,” explained Todd a little nervously. “I’d still be here for the Baltimore show then I’d be gone through September till late October.”

  “Who is it with?” questioned Jake, concerned that his protégé’s job offer might not be what he was hoping it was.

  “Kordon,” replied Todd. “Jason signed them recently. Jethro put my name in the frame for the job a few weeks ago.”

  “Not heard them. I’ll need to check them out.”

  “Jake,” began Todd. “I’d like to take the job with your blessing but if you need me…. This is what I worked my ass off in school to do. It’s the first chance I’ve been given to use those skills.”

  “What date are you back?”

  “October 26th, I think. Why?”

  “Just thinking,” mused Jake, folding the damp towel.

  “Ok,” agreed Jake with a smile. “I’m sure we can make this work.”

  “Thanks, boss.”

  “I’m going to jump in the shower before dinner. Can you help get the food started then you can tell me all about Kordon over a beer?”

  “Deal,” agreed Todd, relieved that Jake had given his permission for him to sign up to the tour.

  With the kids bathed and tucked up in bed, Lori came out onto the deck carrying two beers. It was still hot and there was very little breeze blowing in from the ocean.

  “Where’s Todd?” she asked as she realised Jake was alone.

  “Gone into town. He let slip that Kate’s home for a few days. He’s gone to meet her.”

  “Are they still a couple?” asked Lori as she passed her husband a beer.

  “I’m not sure. He’s still crazy about her but she’s busy building a career for herself in Washington,” replied Jake. “Apparently she’s got a great graduate position with the Smithsonian Institute. Don’t think she’s too keen on being linked to the music industry and its nomadic lifestyle.”

  “It’s nice to see him all fired up and excited about this tour,” Lori commented as she took a seat across from Jake at the table. “Anyway, more importantly, how was school? Did the kids play nice?”

  “School was great. Kids seem keen. Felt kind of surreal being back there,” he replied. “And I met the new head of department. Bit of an ice queen.”

  “You mean you failed to charm her with that Power smile of yours, rockstar?” teased Lori with a giggle.

  “Failed miserably,” laughed Jake.

  “I bet those ladies in the office all swooned when you said hello to them.”

  “Yeah,” laughed Jake. “It was nice to see them again. Bit of a nostalgia trip.”

  “As long as there weren’t too many ghosts,” commented Lori, reaching out to touch his hand.

  With a wistful smile, Jake said quietly, “He was on my mind all day. I just hope he’s not having too big a laugh at me tackling this on my own.”

  “He’d be proud of you,” assured Lori with a smile.

  With the patio doors and the French doors wide open, a gentle breeze from the ocean was wafting through the house. For once, the house was totally silent. Coffee in one hand and cane in the other, Lori wandered through from the kitchen to her workspace. She’d dropped the kids off at daycare, stopped off at the grocery store and still been home before ten o’clock. Ever since Melody had come along, she had become more selective about which commissions she picked up. With all that had happened, her plans to make the most of Jake being home for the summer had been thrown into disarray. Now, as she settled herself at her desk, it was time to sort her schedule out and play catch up. One design sat half-finished on her drawing board. Her deadline for it was looming but, with the kids booked into daycare for four extra days and Jake tied up at the school, she felt a bit more confident about completing it ahead of schedule. Taking a sip of her coffee, Lori opened her emails. It had been almost a week since she’d checked her business email and she wasn’t surprised to see several from her financial advisor, David, relating to business papers for Hyde Properties. Checking her calendar, she realised that she was pencilled in to attend two meetings in New York in a couple of weeks. She made a note to email David to say she would dial into them rather than attend in person. Another date stood out – Tuesday 2nd September- Melody’s first day of kindergarten and the day that Jake was due back in the studio with Silver Lake. A big day for the Power household.

  Turning her attention back to her emails, Lori spotted one from Garrett Court. In true Garrett style, it was worded formally but was, in essence, a request for her to design the artwork for his forthcoming album. He’d attached some music samples and informed her that the title was “Young Hands, Old Hands, Same Strings.” There were two emails from Jason Russell also offering her commissions. Keeping her calendar open, Lori weighed up the pros and cons of accepting all three. Her plan, once Melody started school, was to send Jesse to daycare three days a week so she would have time to take on more work if she chose to. Both emails from Jason had music files attached so, while she enjoyed the remains of her coffee, she played these through. Within a minute or two, she had dismissed one of the offers. If she accepted Jason’s second offer plus Garrett’s commission, she could have both completed by mid-October, which should tie in nicely with the Silver Lake project that was sure to land around that time. Fall was going to be busy, deduced Lori as she fired off an email to Jason and a second one to Garrett.

  Emails dealt with and a second coffee poured, Lori turned her attention to the half-finished design. It was less intricate than her usual style and more geometric with strong hints of Escher about it. The central part of the design was a detailed double helix that cast multiple shadows into the four corners of the design. She had opted for an ocean colour scheme, lots of blues and turquoise and green. All very tranquil, therapeutic tones. Soon, she was totally absorbed into the task and oblivious to the time passing around her.

  After a hectic morning class, Jake was glad to hear the lunch bell ring. Trying to teach the students about his approach to songwriting hadn’t proved to be as straightforward as he’d hoped but, eventually, they seemed to grasp the theory behind it. As they had all leapt to their feet at the sound of the bell, he had reminded them that after lunch it was their turn to start writing.

  Running his hands through his hair, feeling exhausted after the morning’s class, Jake entered the teaching base hoping to find some fresh coffee waiting. He was surprised to find Nicole sitting at the table in tears.

  “Hey, you ok?” he asked warmly, a little unsure about how to approach her.

  “I’m fine,” she replied sharply.

 
“If you say so,” said Jake. “Want a coffee?”

  “Please,” answered Nicole, her tone softer. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap. I’ve just been talking to my lawyer and my landlord.”

  Passing her a mug of coffee, Jake asked, “Problems?”

  “Divorce and a blocked sink.”

  Taking the seat opposite her, Jake said, “I don’t know much about divorce but I do know how to unblock a sink. Want me to take a look at it after school?”

  “A rock star who knows plumbing?”

  “I wasn’t always a rock star,” laughed Jake. “A bit of a Jack of all trades. I’ve worked construction. Done some basic plumbing and electrical work. I also cooked pizzas.”

  “And you’re a qualified teacher too?”

  “Long story. I didn’t teach for a few years after I got my diploma,” he replied slightly cryptically.

  “Why not?” asked Nicole directly.

  “Bad habits,” said Jake simply.

  “Drugs?”

  “Bad habits,” he repeated, uncomfortable at revealing his past to her. “Now, would you like to abuse my plumbing skills or not?”

  Forcing a smile, Nicole answered, “If it’s not too much trouble that would be great. Landlord says his plumber is out of town till next week.”

  “Where do you live?”

  “I’m renting a small apartment in town, just off the boardwalk. Hickman Street.”

  “I know it,” replied Jake. “I still own an apartment on Laurel Street.”

  “Is it on your way home? I don’t want to drag you out of your way.”

  “We stay on E Lake Drive. You’re on my way home,” explained Jake with a smile.

  “Thank you,” she said, sounding relieved. “Pity you don’t know anything about divorce.”

  “Sorry, I can’t help you there.”

  They sat in silence for a moment or two before Nicole asked how the workshop was progressing.

  “Ask me at the end of the day,” sighed Jake, more than a hint of exasperation to his tone. “I’m not convinced that they all grasped what I was trying to explain about songwriting.”

  “It’s not a topic they have really explored yet as far as I know,” revealed Nicole. “It’s being built into the curriculum for next semester. I think I’d struggle to teach it too. Not one of my strengths.”

  “And what are your strengths?” asked Jake, curious to learn a little more about her.

  “Rhythm.”

  “Drums?”

  “Yes. Percussion in general but primarily drumming. Taiko drums. Tribal drumming. Native American rhythms.”

  “So, not high school marching band or rock band?” teased Jake.

  “I was in my high school marching band,” defended Nicole a little sharply. “But I’ve never played in a rock band. I’ve heard a few pieces, solos, that I am in total awe of. Talent way beyond me.”

  “When I take the kids out to JJL, I’m hoping Paul will drop in and do a short drum clinic. You should stop by.”

  “Who’s Paul?”

  “Paul Edwards. Silver Lake’s drummer.”

  “I might just take you up on that.”

  With the ice finally broken, they chatted animatedly about music and their own preferences. Both of them were a little disappointed when the bell rang to end lunch.

  “I’ll meet you back here after class,” said Jake, getting to his feet. “I’ll follow you home and take a look at that sink for you.”

  “Thanks, Jake.” Nicole smiled as he left the base.

  Despite his initial fears, Jake was pleasantly surprised at the progress his five pairings made with their songwriting assignments. In an effort to give them space, he spread them out over three rooms and spent the afternoon going round offering words of wisdom, even suggesting to one group that they visit the school library to borrow some books on poetry and a dictionary.

  As he walked across the hallway to the classroom, he heard a snatch of a song echoing out from one of the rooms. It was a powerful, angry piece of music. Glancing in through the glass panel on the door, Jake was surprised to see that it was Riley who was singing. The tiny pixie of a girl had a huge voice! He listened for another minute or so then entered the room. The instant the door opened, the singing stopped,

  “I liked that,” he complimented, flashing his student a smile. “No need to stop on my account, Riley.”

  “Sorry,” she mumbled awkwardly.

  “Let me hear that again,” said Jake, sitting on the table between Riley and Dorrian.

  Dorrian checked the tuning on his guitar then began to play a pulsing power chord intro. There was something very raw and feral about the sound. Keeping her eyes shut, the small green-haired girl sang as if her life depended on it. Her voice was deeper than Jake had imagined and there was a husky maturity to it that was way beyond her years. Vocally, the teenager oozed anger and frustration.

  “Impressive start,” commented Jake when the pair stopped. “What came first? Lyrics or music?”

  “Lyrics,” replied Dorrian. “I wrote them.”

  “And the music?” quizzed Jake.

  “Mainly Riley but I changed some of it.”

  “Keep going. I’ll be interested to see where this one goes.”

  Ten minutes before the end of the day, Jake called them all together.

  “Great work today, guys. I’m impressed with how far some of you have got with your songs,” he praised. “Tomorrow morning, we’ll divide into two sections. Vocalists in one room. Guitarists and other musicians in the other. I want to work with the vocalists for an hour or so but I’ll set the rest of you the challenge of learning the music for the song I’ll be teaching the others.”

  “What song?” asked Cole curiously.

  “Haven’t decided yet,” replied Jake with a wink. “I’ll have a think about it overnight.”

  “One of yours?” asked Mia hopefully.

  “Might be,” teased Jake, genuinely undecided about which song he would have them learn. “You’ll find out tomorrow.”

  After class, Jake found Nicole waiting for him at the teaching base. Together, they walked out to the parking lot chatting about the progress the students had made. Stopping beside a black BMW convertible, Nicole said, “This is me. You ok to follow me into town? There’s parking at the side of my building. Use my neighbour’s spot. He’s out of town till Friday night.”

  “No worries. I’ll follow. You lead,” he replied as he fished his truck key out of his pocket. “Do you have any tools? Not sure what I’ll need.”

  “I’ve a few.”

  “Ok,” nodded Jake. “Lead on.”

  The first-floor apartment was cool and shaded when Nicole showed Jake in. She apologised for the mess, explaining that she’d left her marital home in a hurry and had grabbed everything she could cram into a U-Haul trailer.

  “Looks like you grabbed everything,” commented Jake, gazing at the pile of boxes.

  “Not quite. I left the furniture and the dogs,” replied Nicole. She paused before adding quietly, “I miss my dogs.”

  “Ok, which sink?” asked Jake, changing the subject. “Kitchen or bathroom?”

  “Kitchen.”

  In comparison to the clutter of the lounge, the small kitchen was spotless. Leaving him her toolbox, Nicole apologised that she had a call to make.

  “I’ll yell if I need help,” said Jake, opening the toolbox.

  It didn’t take him long to dismantle the sink and clear the blockage. His stomach was heaving as he removed rotting food remains and fat from the section of pipe. Jake had just reassembled the pipework when Nicole reappeared. She’d changed out of her school clothes and was now barefoot, wearing shorts and a strappy vest tee.

  “Job done,” declared Jake. “You should probably run some boiling water through it to clean the rest of the pipe. Maybe some bleach or Drano, if you have it.”

  “Thanks. I will,” promised Nicole. “Can I get you a beer or a coffee?”

  “Beer would be g
ood,” replied Jake, washing his hands. “But I can’t stay long. I promised Melody I’d give her a music lesson before dinner.”

  “Melody?”

  “My daughter,” he explained. “I bought her a half size guitar for her birthday.”

  “How old is she?”

  “Five,” replied Jake. “But, one of life’s natural musicians. She’s like a sponge when you’re teaching her something new. Can’t get enough of it.”

  “The younger kids start to play, the better,” agreed Nicole as she fetched two beers from the refrigerator.

  “Exactly. She’s already a recording artist,” said Jake, accepting the bottle of beer and following Nicole out onto the shady balcony.

  “A recording artist?”

  As they drank their beers, he explained about taking Melody out to JJL and about Garrett putting her to work in the studio.

  “That was really sweet of the guy,” acknowledged Nicole when he finished his story.

  “Garrett’s one of the good guys,” commented Jake. “But he is incredibly focused in the studio. He’s agreed to help out next week though.”

  “Anyone else you’ve lined up?”

  “Paul and Grey from Silver Lake,” began Jake. “And Todd, my guitar tech.”

  “Can I ask you something?”

  “Sure.”

  “What happened to Rich Santiago?”

  Gazing out at the oblique view of the boardwalk, Jake replied, “He was found dead in the Smoky Mountains, near Gatlinburg.”

  “Suicide?”

  Silently, Jake nodded.

  “Must be hard to pick up the pieces after something like that,” she mused softly.

  “Ask me after we’ve picked them up,” countered Jake, “We’ve talked things through and agreed to keep going but there’s still a lot to work out. There’s to be a memorial show in Baltimore at the end of next month. To be honest, I’m trying not to think about it just now. If I survive this workshop then I’ll think about the Silver Lake show.”