by Matt Cain
He spotted a security guard and strode over looking as confident as he could. ‘All right, mate? Where can I get hold of the technical director?’
‘What, Vlad?’ Freddy couldn’t help noticing the man had a picture of a topless woman with her arms behind her head tattooed onto his bicep.
‘Yeah, that’s him.’
The man sucked at a row of stumpy teeth that gave him a mouth like a Toblerone. ‘You need to get through to the techie area and for that you’ll need Access All Areas.’
Freddy read the pass around his neck. ‘Backstage – media.’ Shit!
‘So will this not do?’ he tried.
‘Afraid not, pal.’
‘But what if I just need to ask him a quick question about our shoot? Honestly, it’ll only take a minute, like.’
The man looked at him and frowned. ‘Yeah, well you’ll just have to hang around here and hope you catch him.’
But I don’t even know what he looks like!
‘OK, never mind,’ he managed to sing-song. ‘I’ll go and ask someone else. Thanks anyway.’
Thanks for nothing!
Freddy drew in a long breath. The worst thing was, he was probably standing just a few metres away from this Vlad. And he wouldn’t care, but there didn’t seem any logic about the areas that had been designated accessible or inaccessible for someone with his pass. He couldn’t get through to the technical director, but right in front of him was a sign pointing to Lola’s dressing room. He looked at it and mopped a hand through his hair.
The last thing he wanted to do was follow the sign. Harvey had made him promise not to contact Lola herself in case he freaked her out before the show. But what else was he supposed to do? Anything had to be better than what was waiting for her once she went on stage.
He followed the signs around a corner, along a corridor lined with a rail of costumes and all the way to a door labelled with the word ‘Artist’. Thankfully there weren’t any security guards standing in front of it. Maybe this would be easier than he thought.
He strode up and steeled himself to come face-to-face with Lola. He reached out and gave a loud knock. There was no answer.
She wasn’t there.
But if she isn’t in her dressing room where the hell is she?
*
Spike stood in a corridor biting his nails while Big Phil crouched on the floor shooting a pair of half-naked dancers as they stretched their limbs on a handrail.
‘Everything all right, doll?’ Barbara asked. ‘Are you getting what you need?’
Fuck knows, man, he wanted to reply. That depends on Freddy . . .
‘Yeah, this is, like, cool thanks,’ he managed to mumble.
‘Well, hopefully Lola will be out of her dressing room shortly. So you might get some footage of her having a chat with the band.’
‘Cool, that’d be sick.’ He did his best to smile at her but the truth was he was terrified of coming face-to-face with Lola. He’d only ever met her once or twice and the last time they’d been in the same room she’d thrown him out of it. She probably wouldn’t be too happy to see him hanging around the O2 now – minutes before she went on stage for the first night of her tour.
‘Oh look,’ Barbara chirped, ‘here she is already.’
Spike’s stomach sank as he watched Lola round the corner. She spotted him and strode over in a hot-pant catsuit and high-heeled thigh-high boots. He had to admit, she looked amazing. But she was wearing so much stage make-up that under the harsh strip lighting she looked more than a little severe. Man, please don’t let her be vexed with me!
‘Hiya, Spike,’ she sparkled, ‘how’s it going?’
‘Yeah, urm, what up, Lola?’
‘Listen, I’m sorry I was a total bitch last week.’ She reached out and put her hand on his arm. ‘I’ve just had a lot of shit going on lately but I think I’ve got it all sorted now. And once the tour’s up and running it’d be nice if me and you could spend some time together. Something tells me we’ve got a lot in common.’
Spike couldn’t believe it. Am I hearing her right?
‘Urm, yeah, urm, yeah. That’d be, like, beast. But . . . But . . .’
‘But what about Harvey?’
His face contorted in awkwardness. ‘Yeah, man. Sorry but, you know, I love him. I proper love him.’
‘Yeah, well, don’t worry because I love him too. And I know I need to make things up to him – which is why I’ve got him a little surprise tonight.’
‘For real?’
‘Blatantly. But don’t say anything. I don’t want anything to spoil it.’
‘OK, I promise.’
‘Anyway, where’s Freddy? I can’t find him anywhere.’
Shit! Spike had never been any good at lying – and there was no way he was going to be able to start now.
‘He’s urm, he’s—’
‘Lola!’ an old rocker with a handlebar moustache shouted through from the scene dock.
Lola turned to wave at him. ‘All right Mike, I’m coming!’
Phew!
‘Listen,’ she said, turning back to Spike, ‘I’ve got to go. But will you tell Freddy I’m looking for him?’
‘For sure.’
She leaned forward and kissed him. ‘And I’ll see you soon, yeah?’
‘Yeah,’ he croaked. ‘See you soon.’
He watched her skip into the distance and shook his head in disbelief. Lola Grant had actually just apologized to him, said she wanted to be friends and then promised she was going to make things up with Harvey. Man, that was off the hook!
‘Oh, and good luck with the show!’ he shouted out after her.
‘Thanks, darlin’!’ she called back.
For a few seconds Spike couldn’t do anything other than stand there smiling to himself. But then he felt a shiver of fear as he remembered what was going to happen when Lola hit the stage.
He really hoped Freddy was managing to do what he needed to. Because until now Spike had been determined to divert the impending disaster to protect himself, but now he found himself also wanting to protect Lola.
*
Jake watched from the scene dock as Lola marched down the corridor towards him. She was flanked by Tiny on one hand and Amina on the other and behind her trailed Belle, Scarlett and Trixie. And I’ve screwed all three of them, he couldn’t help thinking.
‘Hiya!’ Lola boomed brightly.
The band and dancers turned to face her. ‘Hi, Lola!’
She flashed everyone a huge smile and held out her arms. ‘Come on, gather round and let’s have a chinwag.’
As everyone moved to form a circle, Jake spotted the cameraman from Channel 3 News zoom into Lola and press Record. He was with some black dude he could only assume must be the fag producer going out with Harvey, as well as Lola’s publicist, Barbara Bull-dyke or whatever she was called. Not that he gave a shit; right now all he cared about was Sharonne.
Jake glanced over at her standing between Smudge and Chuck, all three of them clearly stoked and ready for the show. In fact, Jake felt like the only one who wasn’t remotely fired up about it. The truth was he couldn’t wait to get the show out of the way and then he could pay Sharonne a visit in her dressing room. That was way more his kind of show.
‘Well, I just want to wish you all good luck,’ began Lola, closing her eyes and squeezing the hands of Mike and Danny on either side of her. ‘We’ve all worked really hard on this show and given it everything we’ve got. So, you know, we deserve it to be fucking fierce!’
Her words were met with hollers of approval. Jake rolled his eyes and couldn’t resist looking at his watch. In the distance he could hear the sound of the audience filing into the arena and taking their seats.
‘Anyway,’ Lola went on, ‘I know I haven’t always been the easiest person to work with.’
You can say that again!
‘But I just want you all to know how much I appreciate everything you’ve done – even when I was being a total bitch.
’
As everyone heaved out a laugh, Jake looked across at Sharonne and managed to catch her attention. He shot her a quick wink but she widened her eyes in warning and put her finger to her lips.
What the hell’s eating her? Don’t tell me she’s about to start getting heavy too . . .
He noticed her shoot a nervous look at Tiny, who was standing with his lips clenched and his arms folded, glaring at her. He realized that Tiny must have seen the way she’d responded to his wink – and he didn’t look happy.
Motherfuck! Don’t tell me he’s her boyfriend? Most boyfriends he could handle – but most boyfriends weren’t Tiny.
‘So, you know, thanks for putting up with me,’ Lola chatted on, ‘and I hope from now on things are going to get much easier. Because tonight’s blatantly where the fun starts. Now let’s get out there and slay the shit out of this show!’
Jake winced as everyone roared into his eardrums, hugging each other and slapping out high fives. He wished they’d all quit going on about the dumb-ass show. He had something much more important on his mind.
As the huddle gradually dispersed, he blinked in horror as Tiny stomped over to Sharonne and took her to one side. He watched him growing more and more animated while Sharonne did her best to placate him, all the time feeling the goosebumps race up his arm. There was no avoiding it – Tiny obviously suspected something was going on between them. Well, I hope Sharonne keeps her goddam mouth shut.
Not that he was going to stick around to find out. No, there was no way he was going to risk getting on the wrong side of a former boxing champion who now earned his living lugging around his super-size chest to protect Lola.
He grabbed his drumsticks and disappeared onto the stage. He’d just have to wait there until the show started.
*
On the other side of the stage, Karen Grant shuffled into the auditorium and felt her breath catch in her throat. My God, this place is massive!
Already it was almost full of people crawling like insects up the stairs and along the aisles. As tracks from Lola’s latest album blasted out of a wall of speakers that looked as big as Karen’s flat, excitement zipped through the air like an electric charge.
Karen spun around and looked at the stage. Most of it was hidden behind a silver sequinned curtain, but there was a runway that thrust out into the audience and she was pretty sure she could spot several screens at the back, presumably onto which the films Lola had already recorded would be projected. Karen gulped as she suddenly realized just how much work must have gone into the tour – and how much energy everyone must also be channelling into this, the opening night. She hoped Lola wasn’t too nervous and was feeling confident enough to storm her way through her performance. She closed her eyes as she tried to transmit a message through to her. Come on, girl, you can do it!
She opened her eyes and looked at her ticket. She read her number and counted down the rows as they led her to a seat directly in front of the runway. She couldn’t believe it: she must have been given the best view in the whole arena. She’d originally been offered a seat in some box where Harvey had told her VIP guests would be served with complimentary drinks. But it had all sounded very daunting and besides, she was trying to keep away from temptation so had opted instead for a seat in the auditorium next to Harvey – well away from any bar. Except that this had been arranged before Lola had come to visit her last week, and since then Harvey had been in touch to say he was no longer her manager and he wouldn’t be watching the show after all. Karen still had no idea what had gone on between them but she knew it must be serious and she hoped it wasn’t weighing too heavily on Lola.
Thankfully the last contact she’d received from her had been entirely positive; a text message had arrived about an hour and a half ago in which Lola had thanked Karen for the Turkish Delight and invited her back to her dressing room after the show. She held the phone to her chest as she felt the invitation warming her up from within. She slid into her seat and waited for the show to begin.
*
Lola slid into the tent that had been set up in the wings for her quick costume changes, disappointed that she hadn’t bumped into Freddy. But before she had a chance to work out how else she was going to find him, a sound engineer began fussing with her microphone and battery pack while Belle doused her with yet another blast of hairspray, Scarlett touched up her already immaculate make-up and Trixie fiddled with imaginary imperfections in her costume. Outside she could hear her album playing as the fans chanted her name.
‘Lola! Lola! Lola!’
‘Lola?’
She looked up as a head popped through the door. ‘Oh hi, Vlad, how’s it going?’
‘Great, thanks. We’re ready when you are.’
She was hit by another rush of adrenaline. She filled her lungs and let out a long breath. Freddy would have to wait.
‘Yep,’ she replied eventually. ‘Is it time then?’
‘More or less. Once you give me the word, I’ll cut the DJ set, dim the lights and start playing the Twinkle adverts and the album promo. And then there’s the long intro from the band. But it’s all on a sequence, basically, so once it starts we can’t stop. And you’ll only have fifteen minutes till you’re on.’
She smacked her cheeks with her hands then jumped up and down on the spot. She was buzzing with so much nervous energy she felt like she could blast through the roof like a rocket. ‘All right, let’s go!’
Vlad smiled and slipped away, followed by the sound engineer.
Lola sat down at her dressing table and the girls carried on bustling around her. Fifteen minutes wasn’t long but it felt like an eternity. What was she supposed to think about for fifteen whole minutes?
I know! I’ll have a look at my phone and check my texts. Reading everyone’s good luck messages was bound to put her in the right frame of mind before the show.
‘Amina? Have you got my phone, darlin’?’
Amina passed it to her and she began scrolling down the long list, absorbing everyone’s good wishes one after the other. Then her eyes alighted on a message from Harvey.
‘Lola, you’re in danger,’ she read. ‘Call me urgently. And whatever you do, don’t start the show until you’ve spoken to me. Sorry, I wouldn’t be doing this unless I had to. Harvey x’
She felt like a switch had been flicked and the floor had disappeared beneath her.
Don’t start the show? I just have!
Within seconds her heart was thumping so furiously she was worried the sound was going to start registering on her mic. Her stomach swayed and she thought she was about to throw up.
What’s Harvey on about? Is he trying to get back at me for sacking him or am I really in danger?
There was only one thing for it. She dialled his number and waited for him to answer. But her call wouldn’t go through.
Fuck!
She tried again but again it failed. She told herself it must be because she was sitting right next to fifteen thousand people all using their phones – all waiting for her to make her entrance.
‘Lola! Lola! Lola!’ she heard them chant.
Fuck!
There were only fifteen minutes until she’d be propelled up and onto the stage.
But Harvey says I’m in danger.
What kind of danger?
And what the fuck am I supposed to do about it?
She wiped away the beads of sweat breaking out on her forehead. All of a sudden she felt like she was being roasted in some kind of furnace. She picked up a tour programme and began fanning herself. Here Comes Trouble, it read, almost as if to taunt her.
She wondered if she could just pretend she needed the toilet and run away – as far away from the danger as possible. But she looked at her reflection and remembered she was wearing a hot-pant catsuit and two inches of stage make-up. And could she ever really escape anyway? She tried to swallow but her Adam’s apple swelled to the size of a brick in her throat.
‘Is everything all righ
t?’ asked Amina.
‘I don’t know,’ mumbled Lola as if in a trance. ‘I’m not sure.’
The four girls froze and stood staring at her in the mirror. Lola’s eyes settled on Trixie.
‘Trixie, darlin’? Have you still got that coke?’
14
From his position in the wings of the O2, Freddy heard the DJ set end and some sort of advert for Twinkle begin playing on the screens. He looked at his watch; it was quarter past eight. If everything was running to time he had just fifteen minutes to save Lola from being robbed of her dignity – and publicly disgraced. He really had to get a move on.
But he still couldn’t find her. He dashed through the wings, almost forgetting he was trying not to draw attention to himself. In his mounting panic he nearly tripped over a dancer free-running between the floor and the walls and narrowly avoided colliding with a pair of roadies wheeling along a ten-foot-tall slide in the shape of a high-heeled shoe. He spotted a staircase leading up to the back of the stage and a little tent set up at the bottom. There was a laminate pinned to one of its walls. He drew closer to read it and spotted the word he’d been looking for – ‘Artist’.
Thank fuck for that!
The only problem was, this time there was a bodyguard the size of a garden shed standing by the entrance. How am I supposed to get past him? He remembered the text that had just come through from Spike telling him Lola wanted to see him. He searched for it on his phone and opened it up on the screen.
‘Lola looking for you blud,’ he read. ‘And proper excited about show. Hope you can save it!’
Even in his panic, he couldn’t help feeling a flicker of excitement at the news Lola was looking for him. But what did it mean? He’d have to find out – just as soon as he’d managed to divert disaster.
He strode up to the security guard. This time he wouldn’t let himself be talked down. ‘All right, mate? Mind if I have a quick word with Lola?’
The man had an AAA pass pinned onto his chest and Freddy read his name – Tiny. Presumably it was meant to be ironic. He might have laughed if he weren’t so stressed.
‘Sorry, fella,’ Tiny replied, his face expressionless. ‘Not possible. The show starts soon.’