“Thanks, Jim,” replied Jake, feeling a wave of grief building inside. “I like that way of looking at it. Helps.”
“Glad to hear it. Now, you feeling up to tackling some tracking here?”
With a weary smile, Jake nodded.
The red hues of a stunning September sunset were streaked across the sky as Jake left JJL on Thursday night. Over the two days, he’d managed to get five songs done instead of three, making him feel a little more in control of the band’s progress with the album. He’d exchanged a few messages with Grey and Paul and, among them, they’d agreed Grey would come in for three days the following week to lay down more bass tracks then three the following week to finish the rest off. If need be, he could come in extra, but Grey sounded confident that he could get the remaining songs tracked in five days. Finally, the three of them felt optimistic about finishing on schedule.
The producer had agreed to give them the weekend off, promising to work on the partially completed “Rich tracking” and also to see if anything else fitted. There was still a ton of music to be tapped into among the files Rich had left behind but, so far down the line, Dr Marrs advised that they not amend the tracks too much just to squeeze in extra segments of Rich here and there. They all agreed that the unused files could be their “memory bank” for future projects.
There was a fall feel to the air as Jake walked round to his truck, just that little hint of a chill. He slung his two guitar cases into the back seat then tossed his book bag into the passenger seat. He’d promised Dr Marrs that he’d re-write a couple of the solos over the weekend and be back out at JJL first thing on Monday, ready to put in a long day. As he climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine, Jake was planning his weekend out in his head. While the kids were at school and daycare on Friday, he would work down in the basement, finishing the re-writes on Saturday morning if need be. Plans were already in place for a final BBQ for the season on Saturday at the beach house, giving them all the chance to meet Grey and Kola’s tiniest daughter. Sunday was set aside for some family time.
Lost in his thoughts, as he drove down the long JJL driveway, he never noticed the black BMW convertible that had emerged from the rear of the building.
A stiff breeze was blowing in off the ocean on Saturday as Jake helped Lori prepare for their extended Silver Lake family BBQ. To shelter the sun deck from the wind, Lori suggested erecting the gazebo the opposite way round from usual. It would partially block off the path down to the beach but that could also work in their favour and prevent Jesse from escaping. It took a bit of rearranging of the furniture on the large deck but, by lunchtime, the space was set up and sheltered from the wind. Under the gazebo it was almost cosy, creating a warm haven for them all to relax in.
First to arrive were Paul, Maddy and the twins. Armed with their baby gift and a cooler full of beers, Paul headed straight out onto the deck to join Jake. The twins stayed in the sunroom with Jesse and Melody, happily glued to the cartoon channel on tv. In the kitchen, Maddy offered to help Lori prepare two huge bowls of potato salad and coleslaw. Just as the girls had finished, they heard tyres crunch outside.
“They’re here! They’re here!” squealed Melody excitedly from the lounge.
“Calm down, Miss M,” cautioned Lori firmly. “Go tell your daddy.”
While Melody and Wren ran through the house to find Jake, Lori opened the front door and welcomed the remainder of their extended family in. With dark circles under his eyes, Grey led his girls into the house. He was carrying the car seat with the sleeping guest of honour snuggled up under a Winnie the Pooh blanket.
“Congratulations,” said Lori warmly as she hugged him.
“Thanks,” replied Grey with a yawn. “Am I allowed an afternoon nap while we’re here? Madam doesn’t sleep!”
“Looks like she’s asleep just now,” giggled Lori, gazing down at the tiny dark-haired baby girl.
“First sleep since midnight.”
“Ah,” empathised Lori, recalling her own endless sleepless nights with Jesse. “Bed in the spare room upstairs is made up. Feel free to grab a nap.”
Before they could chat further, Anna and Linzi scampered past, keen to find Melody and Wren. Still making their way in from the car were Becky and Kola. While Becky carried the changing bag and a grocery sack, Kola walked rather gingerly down the path and up the steps.
“Congratulations,” greeted Lori, hugging her tight. “You ok?”
“A bit tender,” confessed Kola shyly. “Sutures. Lots of sutures.”
“Ouch!” sympathised Lori. “Grey never said.”
“She arrived a bit faster than planned and tore her way into the world,” revealed Kola with a smile. “But then, you know that story.”
“Sure do,” agreed Lori with a small laugh.
Ever insightful, Kola gazed at her for a moment then whispered, “When?”
“Not a word!” whispered back Lori, eyes wide with panic. “I’ve not told Jake yet.”
Drawing her into a hug, Kola whispered, “Congratulations,” into her ear.
“Thanks,” replied Lori softly. “News hasn’t sunk in yet,” then clearing her throat said, “Come on through and you can introduce us to the latest little Silver Lake superstar.”
Once they were all gathered together under the shelter of the gazebo, Kola lifted her sleeping baby daughter from the car seat, still wrapped in the soft fleecy blanket and said, “Folks, this is Kaya Cooper.”
“Kaya?” echoed Maddy. “That’s unusual. I like it.”
“It means little but wise,” revealed Kola, still shy about her Native American family heritage.
“She’s perfect,” commented Jake warmly as he stepped forward. “May I?”
Knowing all too well how good the Silver Lake frontman was with babies, Kola handed the baby girl over to her Silver Lake uncle. Instinctively, the newborn snuggled into his shoulder, making small sniffling sounds as she wriggled herself into a comfortable position.
“Hey, Kaya,” said Jake softly. “You going to sleep through your first Silver Lake family BBQ?”
Sleepily, the baby half-opened her eyes, gave him a look way beyond her years and went back to sleep.
“Suitably unimpressed by the thought of a Silver Lake family gathering,” laughed Jake. “This little lady has a lot of her mommy in her.”
“She sure does!” declared Grey. “Impatient and stubborn as all hell!”
By the time the coals were hot and the food was on the grill, they’d been joined by Todd and Dr Marrs. Only Jethro was missing but Maddy explained that he’d gone up to New York to talk to Garrett about his forthcoming album.
“He’s trying to convince him to play some solo live shows,” revealed Maddy between mouthfuls of chicken. “Small acoustic shows. Ease him back out there. Those last two albums deserve to be heard.”
“Good luck with that,” stated Jake. Having had many lengthy discussions on the subject with Garrett, he knew how the older, semi-reclusive musician felt about playing live. The odd guest slot was fine but he’d stated countless times he didn’t want to play a full show ever again.
“Well, if anyone can lure him out of the gothic palace,” began Dr Marrs, “Jethro is your best bet. That said, I don’t fancy his chances.”
“Give him time,” countered Maddy, a knowing expression on her face. “I have faith in our old silver fox.”
As the food cooked, the family group naturally split – the boys gravitated towards the grill and the beer coolers, while the girls stayed within the shelter of the gazebo, chatting about babies. Not really fitting with any group and being too grown up to join the kids watching cartoons and playing Lego, Becky asked permission to go for a walk and disappeared off down the path to the beach, promising to be back in an hour.
As she looked round their growing family group, Lori thought back to the first Silver Lake BBQs. Listening to the kids laughing at something on tv and to the boys laughing at one of Paul’s jokes at Grey’s expense an
d watching Maddy and Kola deep in conversation about Native American names and their meanings made her smile. There had been laughter and tears out here many times but, as an extended family unit, they’d grown in number and lived to tell the tale.
In her jeans pocket, her cell phone buzzed. She slipped it out and read the message on the screen. It was from another unknown number.
“I’ve sucked your husband’s cum off my fingers. He tastes so sweet.”
Trembling, Lori blocked the number and put the phone away, praying that no one had noticed her reaction to the message.
First thing on Monday morning, the Silver Lake machine roared back into life again as all three band members gathered in the lounge at JJL. Laughing at how their lives had changed, Jake and Paul both arrived at the same time. They’d already said their good mornings at the school then driven in convoy up the highway. Two cars behind Jake had been Grey. He too had had school run duty but to the high school to drop Becky off. Grumbling as he entered the lounge, he said, “That senior boy was hanging about waiting for my baby girl.”
“Who?” asked Jake feigning innocence.
“That kid that was at your workshop. The one with the long hair and the foreign-sounding name.”
“Dorrian?”
“Yeah,” muttered Grey, heading straight for the coffee pot.
“He’s a good kid,” commented Jake. “Talented too.”
“She’s too young to be dating senior boys!”
Both Jake and Paul laughed at their bandmate.
“We’ll see if you’re both laughing when its Wren or Melody hanging out with seniors,” growled Grey as he stomped over to sit on the empty couch.
“He might have a point there,” conceded Paul, a sudden vision of the future flashing before his eyes.
“Maybe,” agreed Jake with a grin. “Right, what’s the plan for today?”
“Bass tracks for Ghost, Bugs and Sting In The Tail,” stated Grey. “Gets the heavyweights laid down first.”
“And Outside Edge, if there’s time,” added Dr Marrs, stepping into the lounge from his office.
“If there’s time,” nodded Grey. “I need to leave by three.”
“Jake,” called out the producer. “Did you get those re-writes finished?”
“More or less. A few bits to tidy up.”
“Get out to the rehearsal room and finish them off,” instructed Dr Marrs. “You’ve only got the morning out there. It’s booked out every afternoon this week. School drum clinics.”
“Yeah,” sighed Paul. “Tell me about it. I’ve been talked into taking two of them later in the week.”
“Good luck with that,” laughed Jake. “Let me grab my guitar from the truck and I’ll head out back.”
“Here’s the keys,” said Dr Marrs, tossing him a pink fluffy pompom keyring. “You’ll need to turn the AC on when you get out there. Alarm’s already off.”
Raising an eyebrow at the fluffy keyring, Jake nodded, “I’ll be back in for lunch.”
Every small sound seemed to echo round him as Jake opened up the rehearsal room. The whir of the lights made him jump. The drone from the air conditioning seemed deafening. Alone in the space, he felt uneasy. Usually, he was content to practice out here on his own but, after his close encounter with Nicole, he felt on edge.
Realising he only had a couple of hours, he wasted no time and was soon sitting down on the low practice stage with his guitar and his journal. Despite the hours he’d put in down in the basement over the weekend, Jake still had one solo to re-write. Door To Another Life was a track they were all struggling with. It was a raw emotional song that reflected Rich’s last journey through the mountains. They’d collectively agreed that it needed a long solo at the end of the track that would diminish. Something that would echo their bandmate’s life ebbing away.
Soon, the background noises of the rehearsal space were forgotten as Jake focussed on developing the original solo for the song. In his mind’s eye, he was seeing the tall, dense trees of the Smoky Mountains, visualising the narrow winding trail his friend would have walked and eventually imagining it opening out onto the ledge where he was found. It was testing his talents to add the colours and emotion into the solo that went from a fiery sunset image to the dark starlit sky of midnight.
Time ceased to have any meaning as he played.
He never heard the door opening behind him. Never heard it close. He was oblivious to the soft footsteps that approached him. Feeling fingers running through his hair, he spun round, hazel eyes wide with fright and found himself face to face with Nicole.
“Well, this is an unexpected pleasure,” she said, gazing down at him, her desire for him obvious.
“No, it’s not,” stated Jake bluntly as he laid down his guitar. He moved to the side, out of her reach. “And keep your hands to yourself, please.”
“And why would I do that when you seemed to enjoy the attention before?” Nicole stepped closer to him and reached out to run her hand down the inside of his denim-clad thigh.
“Stop!” snapped Jake, standing up and stepping away from her. “I’m not playing your games here, Nicole. I’m a happily married man. I am not interested.”
Eyeing the bulge in his jeans, the music teacher smiled and took a step towards him, “I beg to differ.”
Pressing herself up against him, she rested her hand on his crotch.
“One quick fuck,” she whispered seductively. “You know you want to, Jake. I can feel you want to.”
“Nicole,” he began as he felt her unfasten his jeans. “Stop. Please.”
“One fuck. For old time’s sake,” she purred as her hand slipped inside his boxers.
Before he realised what she was doing, he felt his jeans slide down over his hips. Feeling his anger rising in his chest, Jake put his hands on her slender shoulders to push her away. This was not what he wanted, despite the physical reaction from his dick. With a menacing smile, Nicole knelt down and took him in her mouth as her long, manicured nails dug deep into his butt cheeks. Expertly, Nicole assumed a fast rhythm as she sucked him, her tongue heightening the sensation by occasionally flicking over the sensitised tip of his dick. Again, Jake tried to push her away but immediately he felt the edges of her teeth around his hard shaft. The crazy bitch was prepared to bite him!
Gazing upwards, eyes closed, Jake began to panic about the situation. He did not want her attention, did not want to have oral sex with this woman and did not want to risk her wrath if he pushed her away again. He could feel his body betraying him and sensed that his orgasm was close. Standing as still as he could, he prayed this assault would end. Prayed it would end before he lost control.
Suddenly, the door opened, bouncing off the wall with a loud crash. An all too familiar voice screamed, “Jake! What the fuck are you doing?”
Maddison.
In front of him, Nicole barely flinched at the interruption and continued her movements, without interrupting her rhythm.
“Nicole,” growled Jake, risking pushing her away. “Stop right fucking now!”
“You better have a damn good explanation ready for Lori when you get home!” screamed Maddison, disgusted by the scene in front of her.
“Maddison!” protested Jake. “This isn’t how it looks!”
“Save it, Jake!” screamed the band’s manager. “Save it for your WIFE!”
Before Jake could say another word, she stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
“Fuck!” roared Jake, pushing Nicole roughly. She fell sideways onto the floor at his feet but not before she’d grazed her teeth roughly along the length of his manhood.
“Bitch!” spat Jake, reaching to haul his jeans and boxers up, blotting the drops of fresh red blood on his manhood. “Crazy fucking bitch!”
“But Jake,” began Nicole softly.
“But Jake nothing!” he growled. “I should have you charged with sexual assault for this, you crazy ass bitch!”
“You were enjoying it thou
gh,” she protested, her green eyes blazing. “And it would be your word against mine. Your manager saw how hard you were. Saw you enjoying the attention.”
“I was not fucking enjoying it!”
“You sure?”
“Nicole, get out!” he roared. “Just get the fuck out of here!”
The rehearsal room door slammed open for a second time and Grey charged into the room.
“Out!” he bellowed at Nicole. “Now!”
“No need to yell,” she hissed as she got to her feet.
“Move!”
“But I have this room booked out,” she challenged, drawing herself to her full height.
“Your booking’s been cancelled. Get the fuck out!”
In the background, Dr Marrs stood in the open doorway.
“Miss Tonriverdi,” he said coldly. “My office now if you please.”
As the door closed behind Nicole and Dr Marrs, Silver Lake’s bass player turned to face his bandmate. Much to Jake’s surprise, there was no anger in Grey’s eyes.
“Care to tell me what the fuck is going on, Mr Power?” he asked calmly.
Lost for words, Jake sat down on the edge of the low stage and put his head in his hands. Gazing down at the floor, he said quietly, “Would you believe me if I said she just assaulted me?”
“Actually, I would,” replied Grey evenly. “I warned you that bitch would be trouble.”
“And I didn’t listen,” sighed Jake. “And now everything’s fucked up.”
“What the hell happened in here, Jake?”
Gravel spraying up as a car slammed on the brakes in the driveway startled Lori back to reality. She had been focussed on the design for Garrett’s album, engrossed in the detailing on an aged hand. Before she could get up from her desk, the back door flew open and Maddy came charging through the house yelling, “Lori? You there?”
“In here,” she called back. “What’s wrong? Is it Jake?”
“Have you spoken to him?” demanded Maddy sharply.
“Not since breakfast. What’s wrong? Has there been an accident? You’re scaring me, Maddy,” replied Lori, stepping out from behind the desk.
Shattered Hearts Page 26