Rocking Hard, Volume 2

by Samantha M. Derr

  "I guess he liked you, huh Cole?" Sol joked with a grin as they walked off stage into the green room.

  Cole nodded, then shrugged.

  "Yeah, confused me too. But, hey, that's what you get for being the lead singer," Sol agreed with another smile.

  They returned to their ship for the long journey to the next galaxy and to Kamura. Cole settled into his bed, the recording of Dayton's latest message playing in his ears, as he tried not to worry about everything that was about to happen. He had three days to prepare, and then just a little longer to avoid being caught. The extra waiting time only made him more nervous.

  Cole missed Dayton more than ever, but he was glad Dayton was safe back home on Lacustrine instead of traveling into certain danger with Cole.

  *~*~*

  P was watching the holographic projection screen with bated breath. L, seated calmly next to P on the couch, wouldn't take her eyes off of Cole's blushing face as he glanced through his eyelashes up at the interviewer. Steel Daily turned to include Cole in the interview, and Cole, natural that he was, couldn't stop the bashful glance that inadvertently and marvelously entranced the viewing public until they were die-hard fans.

  Finding Cole had been a neat bit of luck. D knew from all his years in the agency just how difficult finding an operative like Cole could be. Z, standing against the back wall of the meeting room with D, couldn't help grinning at Cole's image every time Cole blushed or stuttered. Z particularly enjoyed the authenticity of Cole's wide-eyed honesty and clear bewilderment over his sudden fame.

  They all watched as Cole studied Steel Daily before answering his questions, and none of them missed when he blinked, tapped his knee, and leaned forward.

  "There's something about Daily that Cole doesn't like," Y said, noting that the 'pay attention' signal had been given.

  "Steel Daily is watching Cole too intensely," Dayton said from his chair in the middle of the room, carefully watching Cole's every move. "He's made Cole uncomfortable."

  The next question cemented Daily as more than just a curiosity in D's mind. To know that Cole's record didn't exist meant that someone with the capabilities to dig something like that up must have informed Daily. It was reassuring to know that Cole could pick up Daily's tells so quickly, though.

  D looked sideways at Z, who nodded. Z would do the follow up on Steel Daily. It would be useful to include just who was funneling Daily the information and exactly what Daily was giving in return on their final report.

  It wasn't necessary for Cole to give the danger confirmation signal to alert D of the situation, but he rubbed his chin and bit his lip anyway. Dayton sighed worriedly and hunched his shoulders. Dayton was not someone whose outside reflected his inside. He was whipcord thin, thinner than Cole, but he didn't look gangly, even though he was nearly six feet tall, thanks to his broad shoulders and defined muscles. He had black hair and brown eyes, as well as a nose that could use some reduction surgery, but his cheekbones and his smile made him vibrant. One glance at Dayton and D saw someone who was strong and beautiful. What his outer appearance hid, however, was his fiery personality.

  D had been in his office when Dayton threw the door open and stalked in, his body vibrating with rage and fear.

  "What are you doing to Cole?"

  D hadn't known how to answer the question at the time, but luckily Z had followed Dayton into the office.

  "Can I help you, recruit?" Z had asked sharply, but Dayton gave Z such a scathing look that Z was forced to back off.

  "He comes home one day saying he's going across the galaxy to sing?" Dayton snapped with a sneer. "He wasn't assigned a vector, yet he's going on a mission?"

  "It's a matter of planet and galaxy security," D murmured, trying to placate an irate Dayton. At the time, the connection between Dayton and Cole hadn't been clear. Z hadn't finished retrieving Cole's file from Cole's Commander yet. Later that afternoon, Z returned with the information that Cole and Dayton were married. Married recruits didn't receive preferential treatment, but they were handled differently from the single ones. Neither Cole nor Dayton had been assigned a vector because on Lacustrine it was greatly frowned upon to forcibly separate an established couple, even for covert ops. Finding a mission they could work on jointly usually meant they stayed in support positions on-planet, which was what Cole's Commander had been setting up when Z interrupted his day.

  Dayton hadn't left D's office until he received permission to be part of the mission every step of the way. He couldn't be in the band or ride on the ship with Cole—it would raise suspicions since artists didn't generally cart their employed lovers across the galaxy on tour—but Dayton would be in every tactical meeting and would join them in watching Cole on holo-vision. He was a trained recruit and had the security clearance, plus he had been a huge help in getting Cole ready for his role. All of that was why Dayton was currently seated in the room, watching Cole maneuver around Steel Daily like an expert.

  "He handled that quite well," L said with a firm nod.

  Dayton scoffed. "You should meet his parents." He adopted a bashful look, somewhat reminiscent of Cole's shyest, and glanced through his lashes up at two imaginary people. "I'm meeting with Dayton for a school project. It might run late so I may not be back until morning prayers," Dayton said with a shy fidget and in a higher tone to mimic Cole. "We weren't even in the same classes," Dayton said, back in his own voice and with a sly smile, "but he fooled his parents into letting him sleep over a number of times till we got caught." Z had read their file, so he knew this was true. He also knew that Cole's skill with deception and Dayton's skill with planning had been the deciding factors for their initial recruitment.

  "He won't be getting caught this time," P said firmly, still staring up at the holograph as the credits rolled and the band left.

  D sincerely hoped P was right, because The Four Kings' next stop was Kamura and their second venue on 501b had the primary target. D pushed away from the wall, nodded politely to P, L, Y, and Dayton, before leaving the room. Z followed, but was uncharacteristically silent as they walked through the halls and out of the secure areas into the main office. Z was worried about Cole as well, but their plans were too far along to turn back now.

  *~*~*

  The line through customs wasn't long, but the thoroughness of the officials made the hours drag on. Everything had to be scanned and opened, including their suitcases and their instrument cases. The entire spaceship had to be searched with equipment that made Cole's hair stand on end.

  Then every single person on the ship, including the pilot and engineering staff and all of the band members, had to be interviewed.

  "You're from Roma? Describe your childhood home. Which ship did you stow away on?" They wanted minute details, as if they wanted Cole to trip up and talk about a flowering tree that couldn't grow in the galaxies where Roma and Lacustrine were located. He wasn't about to make that mistake.

  Cole assumed his story checked out because he and his belongings were given a literal stamp of approval. The red ink would apparently fade in one week, just as they were preparing to leave the planet.

  When they finally were allowed to walk into the spaceport, Misty wrote a note to her supervisor about the difficulties of entering Kamura. Chances were that very few, if any, bands from their label would be stopping by the planet again. Cole was just glad to be done with the pressing questions and invasive searches.

  A car was waiting for them in a private area outside the port. They were driven directly to the first venue for setup.

  "Start it off with a bang." Misty reminded them of their set list after the nerve-wracking unloading of the instruments was completed. "Willow Tree, then band introduction. Go into Queen Me and Steady Hunter next. Slow it down, throw in some jokes, Sol, and cut into Love's Devastation."

  It was the same exact set list as their previous concert on Gaia, but Cole still made sure to listen closely. He didn't want to make any mistakes.

  Finally, Misty nodded, s
atisfied that everything was prepared. "Go have lunch," she said. "Be back in an hour and a half for warm-up and a quick run through. A local band is opening for us so we'll be on in four hours!"

  Cole had a light lunch and drank some lemon water to prep his throat for singing later, but otherwise he kept to himself in a corner backstage. Kingsley was swinging his arms happily to loosen up while Sol and Queenie were stretching their fingers. When about fifteen minutes were left of their break, Cole wandered off to a piano to run through some quick scales to warm up his voice. He couldn't help plucking out a few notes to a song that might have been building in his head, but he quickly returned to warming up before he could get too distracted.

  "Test, test one, mic one," a voice called from the stage.

  "Test, test two, mic two," a second voice said.

  Cole took a deep breath and followed his band mates out onto the stage for warm-up.

  *~*~*

  The band finished their set to massive applause. They were all exhausted, covered in sweat, and blinking away afterimages of flashing cameras and the laser light system that accompanied their performance. Cole let go of his microphone stand, outwardly flashing a shy smile at the audience and inwardly hoping that his tired knees would still hold him up without the extra help of the stand.

  Cole collapsed in the first chair he saw backstage, still listening to cheering that hadn't died down. Basic training had nothing on this gig.

  "Up you go, Cole," Kingsley said with an understanding grin. He helped lever Cole back onto his feet. "We have contest winners to entertain in our break room and only five minutes to wash our faces first." He held onto Cole as they both dragged their tired bodies further backstage, which Cole was very grateful for.

  Misty pressed open bottles of water into both of their hands as Kingsley pushed Cole into the closest couch inside of their break room. Queenie was sprawled on the floor in the center of the small room, a huge smile on her face. She hummed a few bars of Queen Me, her signature song with the longest bass solo, and her grin widened.

  Sol tossed a damp cloth at her face from where he was sitting, legs sprawled in front of his long body and his arms splayed out to either side. Cole understood Queenie's happiness. Queen Me had gone perfectly. Queenie stepped up with her guitar poised and then rocked it out so hard that Cole was hard-pressed to keep up with the lyrics. Sol was just jealous, although his solo in Steady Hunter caused a female screaming extravaganza that almost deafened Cole.

  But, God, had that been fun! Cole didn't think he would ever get used to the screaming fans or the loud music, but to sing amid such adulation, supported by such wonderful band-mates … well, Cole didn't think he'd ever come down from the high.

  The only thing that could make any of this better would be if Dayton were there, but Cole adamantly refused to dwell on that thought. He wanted to stay happy and relaxed during the tour in Kamura, not depressed and worried about how Dayton was doing back home. More than anything, Cole wanted to end every concert with Dayton's smile and hug of congratulations.

  So much for not thinking about it, Cole sighed as he slowly sat up. Misty bustled by and replaced Cole's empty bottle with a full one and handed him a damp towel to wipe away his layer of sweat.

  "I've had word from security," she announced to the exhausted band. "We've got six people with backstage passes coming here. Smile, be nice, take pictures, and answer their questions if you can. This is great PR, and we want to work it to its max!"

  With that said, Misty hurried to the door and flung it open to welcome the six people waiting just outside. They were all wearing holopatches floating in midair off their shoulders, displaying the band's symbol, a crown, so security would allow them backstage.

  "Welcome!" Misty said, and she wore a wide smile on her face that Cole only ever saw when she was doing PR. She introduced the band and the six visitors who ranged in age from a ten-year-old girl to the girl's fifty-year-old mother.

  The girl immediately made calf eyes at Kingsley, which set off an opposite reaction in her mother. Cole had to hide a smile as he turned to say hello to a teenaged boy who plopped down on the couch next to Cole.

  "So, what's it like being in a band?" the teen asked without any visible reservation.

  "Um," Cole replied, surprised that he was being addressed. The other five visitors were flocked around Queenie and Kingsley, with Sol happily joining in to chat. Cole didn't understand why someone would choose to talk to him when his more charismatic and interesting band members were nearby.

  The fan mags all gushed over Queenie's looks and Kingsley's swagger. They always mentioned Sol's easygoing and joking attitude. Then the mags wondered about Cole's shyness and worried over whether his stage presence would equal his voice when he could barely look someone in the eye during an interview. Misty had warned him not to be offended if the fans didn't flock his way in huge numbers. He was more relieved than offended when this proved true on Gaia, but according to Misty he was mysterious despite his shyness so he should expect there to always be some fans in his camp.

  "It's more different than anything I've ever experienced before," Cole finally tried to explain while the teen watched his blush go from pink to burning red. "All the screaming fans and the constantly full schedule," he added when the boy continued to stare.

  "What's your schedule like on Kamura?" he asked, and Cole felt a twinge of a red flag go up. There was something about that innocent question that wasn't sitting right with Cole.

  Cole laughed, trying to sound nonchalant. "Busy. They said on the website that we'll have time to sightsee, but I can't figure out when. Tomorrow we're sleeping late, and it won't be late enough," he emphasized. His sweat and exhaustion were obvious and Cole knew that his embarrassment over that fact was clear as well. "Then we're packing up the stadium."

  Cole paused to visibly take a deep breath and also to figure out what he should and should not say. Most of the information about their schedule was public knowledge, posted on their website and given to Kamura customs officials. He wondered if the teen was testing him to see if what Cole had to say and the formal schedule matched up.

  "One more night at the hotel here," Cole said, deciding to be as detailed as possible while sticking to exactly what was on the band's website. "But it's a very early morning flight to the other venue. We'll spend most of the day in the air," Cole explained. "Misty, that's our manager, says it'll take that long because of the flight regulations we have to go through to jump continents. Then we'll start unpacking. The next morning we finish setting up and start preparing for the concert that night. Then it's sleep late and take down the sets. We allegedly have the last day on Kamura to sightsee, but since we're also leaving that night we can't really do much."

  "You are busy," he agreed in a voice filled with teenage awe. Cole risked a glance upwards and saw what he expected to see: the boy's eyes were too calculating to match with his words. Then all the deviousness vanished. "Wow!" he said, his voice much lighter and more exuberant. "Can I get your autograph? That was an amazing concert, you know. I wish I could sing like you."

  Cole felt his blush return at the praise. It was almost an instinctive response at this point, and Cole didn't try to stop it from giving legitimacy to the interview. He was glad when Misty began shooing the visitors out ten minutes later and was even gladder when the band could rush into a waiting car.

  The bed in the room he shared with Sol was inviting, too inviting, but Cole knew better than to collapse in it. He rushed to grab his things while Sol was admiring the holotelevision and headed straight to the shower. Once he finished and stepped into the bedroom, Sol rushed by to take his turn. Cole climbed into his bed and curled up around his phone, listening to Dayton's latest message as he slowly fell asleep.

  The phone in his hands buzzed silently two hours later, waking Cole out of a light doze. A glance over at the other bed showed that Sol was face down on his pillow, fast asleep. Cole carefully didn't make any sounds as he slid off his be
d and hurried into the bathroom. Ten minutes later, he emerged.

  He was dressed in a funny suit of mixed grays. In the half-light of the nighttime city, a black suit would be easily noticeable, but gray would blend. His old coke-bottle glasses were pressed over his nose, the thick lenses obscuring his eyes from any cameras or passersby. Most surprisingly, his carefully cut and colored brown and blue hair was instead a shocking shade of bleach blond. The change was so drastic that even Dayton had taken an extra second to recognize him during a practice run with the washable dye back home.

  In his pockets were two strange devices. Cole didn't know how they worked, only that they were programmed to scope out layouts and to infiltrate the online interface of buildings. On this continent of Kamura, there was only supposed to be a research station. All he had to do was get the building door open and let the two robots in his pockets inside of the security dome that protected the building.

  Cole wasn't sure how the two robots had appeared in the bathtub in the first place, but his organization was capable enough to ensure that even these restricted items would somehow make it through the formidable security on Kamura and into Cole's hands. He took an extra second to glance at Sol's sleeping form before heading to the door. Cole wasn't worried about Sol. He knew that Cole might vanish for a few hours while they were on Kamura and his job was to say that Cole had been present the entire time.

  He slipped out of the hotel room door and into the empty hallway. There was a security camera down by the elevator and stairwell, but there wasn't one across the hall next to the staff room. Cole quickly stepped into the staff area, where an industrial sized washer and dryer as well as carts filled with cleaning supplies filled the space. A small service elevator was tucked into the back wall, which Cole quickly called. A few minutes later, Cole was walking through the empty Employees Only parking lot. Instead of walking out of the main gate, where there was a camera and a security guard, Cole quietly jumped a partition and fell a few feet down to the grass below.