Don’t want to interrupt. Stick to your guns and no matter what, it will all work out.
I lock my phone and put it back in my pocket. Mr Clementine comes up to me.
“What are you doing with that rockstar, hmm? You deserve a good man that’s not going to leave you while he runs around the world.”
Reece and I haven’t really spoken about how we plan to make this work.
“Well, that’s for he and I to work out and how do you even know who he is. I mean, I know he’s been in the news a lot but—”
Mr Clementine’s eyes balk out of his face. “Look who you’re talking to, Madelyn. I know everyone who comes into this town. I might not be obvious about it, I certainly look at the footage of whose in my shop when you’re on closing time. I do like to read those celebrity rags. He seems like a nice guy, I just hope he doesn’t break your heart.”
Me too.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
REECE
As expected, the meeting with the tax department went seamlessly. The clerks choked on their coffees when Sean and I took off our hats and sunglasses.
“Thank you for your time again.” I hold out my hand for the clerk to shake. “I trust that this is all sorted now. We have been able to define who’s the owner of what property and the remaining money has been divided?”
Sean argued about the money being split down the middle, I held my ground.
“No fucking way. Yes, I might have written the songs, your input on the production side was what made them a hit. It’s the least I can do considering what it must have been like for you. Please let me do this.” It didn’t come down to money. To me, it came down to doing what was right and even then, I still had more money than what I would ever need to have. I have my assets, and they are all back in the clear. It’s one-thirty by the time we finish in there, and the nerves have really set in.
It’s show time. I climb awkwardly into the back seat and everything seems to be agitating me. The cramped space, the fabric on the seats. I pull out my phone, and I’m excited to see I have a message from Madelyn.
“Oh someone’s got a message from his woman,” Sean goads.
“You married him you know,” I say to Hannah as she playfully smacks him on the arm while telling him to leave me alone. I read the message and nod my head. She’s right. Whatever happens from here, it’s all going to be okay. It will all work out. I repeat her words like a mantra as we drive to David’s business building. The street looks like a ghost town compared to the last time I was here. We round the corner and even as Sean’s finding a parking space, I’m trying to get my head in the game.
“Are you right Reece?” Hannah asks. I nod purely because I can’t speak. “You’re looking a little pale there.”
“I’m fine,” my voice comes out as a squeak.
“What’s got into you, man? Where’s the ball busting Reece Ashton gone? The one that used to chuck a fucking hissy fit when he didn’t get a table at a restaurant.”
“Okay, look – that happened once—”
“Where’s the Reece Ashton that went berko when that blonde piece cut a piece of your hair off.” I scoff at the memory. Not my finest behaved hour. “Where’s the Reece Ashton who’s looking to right a wrong.”
Yep, that did it. David’s a fucker, and he’s going to pay for what he’s done. I was on top of the world, and he pulled that all away from me.
My fingers stab at my phone to get his number up.
“Go get him, Reece. We are right behind you.”
David picks up on the third ring. “Reece. How are you? Tell me, did you look into Madelyn’s background? Talk about a sexy minx. Get a piece of that tail while you are there and you’ll be famous without even singing a note.”
My fingers curl around the phone, and I grit my teeth. “I’m here in town. Was hoping to drop in and discuss some business with you?”
“Fantastic. When are you available?”
I hear the sound of rustling papers through the phone before he replies with he can make time for me anytime.
“See you soon.” I hang up and take a deep breath. I look to Sean who’s face looks grim. “Will all be okay. We have a plan.”
Hannah shifts in her seat. “We’ll give you ten minutes, and we’ll be right behind you.”
“It’s a shame we can’t record the conversation,” Sean sighs.
“I know, we can’t do anything illegal.”
I push the car door open and take one last deep breath to calm my nerves. Pulling my hat down low over my face, I practically fall onto the sidewalk I’m so nervous.
“Get a grip Ashton,” I tell myself.
Sean calls from within the car, “You’ve got this Ashton.” I don’t got this, but I’m going to try. “We all know you can do this. David’s just a bully. Pull him into line. Beware though, you know he’s going to use the Madelyn card against you.”
And that pretty much does it. Any nerves bouncing out of control were overridden by anger.
I stalk the pavement while trying to suppress that rage and the fierce loyalty to those I care about because I have to get my gullible rocker face on. Bypassing the receptionist, and I head straight for the elevators. I remove my hat and sunglasses while I wait to reach the eighth floor.
The doors open and Deni is standing on the other side. She takes a small step back as I move towards her. To think just a few weeks ago I was standing here, and my world was collapsing. I stand by the desk not seeing my world rebuilding, but having the confidence to know it will.
“Oh, hi, Mr Ashton. Are you lost?”
“Nope. I’m here to have a meeting with David.”
“Oh. He didn’t mention anything to me. He’s in his office if you’d like to just head straight on in. Is there anything I can get you?”
I swallow the lump in my throat and shake my head. “No thank you, but I am expecting some people to join me in the meeting, do you mind showing them in when they get here?”
Deni replies with an ‘of course’ before I turn on my heel. I don’t even let myself miss a beat as I knock sharply on the door twice and open the door.
“Well if it isn’t my favourite rockstar, Reece Ashton. Take a seat man.” His voice alone grates on my nerves. I take his offer and sit before him. “How are you? Let’s talk about that hot piece of tail you’ve been banging. Of all women in the world, you had to hook up with Madelyn Worthrington. Jesus, if you had any worry about how to get back on top of the world. Once that gets out … you can’t ask for publicity like that.”
Thankfully, I’m sitting at a desk, and he can’t see my fists under the table.
“Well, I’m here to talk business, not so much of my personal life.”
David cocks his head to the side. “Since when do you have a personal life? You’ve never had anything off the record, so I think if you can start leaking some photos of you and Madelyn to the press, that shit will catch on like wildfire.”
“I’m here to talk about Backbeat actually.” That shut him up and wiped the smile off his face. “There are some questions I need to get answers to before I can move on.”
“Look, I’m going to level with you. Backbeat … it’s no more. Sean left, and he doesn’t want to come back.”
I nod my head in agreement. “Yeah. I know that much. I was just hoping you could shed some light on that. Are you sure, in all your dealings with him, you never said anything to him to encourage him to walk?”
I’m no expert in body language, but I know when a person is trying to cover something up. David won’t look me in the eye, he’s fidgeting with his phone and takes his time to answer.
“There were times when I did question his desire to be part of the band. His mood swings, the way he fell into the shadows so easily when it came to promotion. I asked him how much he wanted it.”
“So you never said to him that he’s a pointless part of the band and that I was the reason the band was successful?”
David’s eyes lock onto mine. �
��You’ve obviously spoken to him.”
“Answer the question.”
“Yes. Yes, I said those words to him because I wanted to see how committed he was. It was pretty fucking obvious that he didn’t want to live the same life as you, he didn’t need to drag that down. Being a rockstar is about living life to the fullest, not banging your fucking PA and wanting to settle down. He was like the grandmother of the group. Such a bore, I was sure I was going to walk in on him taking a fucking knitting class or some fucking Jane Austen book club with the roadies.”
The chair squeaks as I move it back and bring my arm up so my fist is now on full display on the table. “So you encouraged him to leave.”
“He was dead weight. It would have been so much easier to promote a solo artist than have to try and work every fucking tiny decision past someone whose heart wasn’t in it. He was holding you back. He was holding us back.” I can’t fucking believe my ears. I’m looking at David trying to figure out who he is. He was my only friend, and now I’m feeling like a fool for believing him. He wasn’t a friend. He’s a player.
“There is no us, David. The band was Sean and me. From my understanding, you made his life a living fucking hell. Telling him shit I never said. Bullying him so the only option he had was to leave.” I spit my words out for fear that I will jump the table and deck him.
“The little bitch couldn’t handle the pressure.”
The timing couldn’t be more perfect as I rise out of my seat and lean towards David, Sean and Hannah along with Deni walk into David’s office. David swings his eyes back to me realises he’s being ambushed.
“Seriously? Speak of the little bitch and he turns up.”
“That’s enough,” I spit through gritted teeth. “Admit it now, to all of us what you just said. You fucked with our contract to try and get me to be a solo artist, is that true?”
“I have to look out for my clients. I have to look at the bottom line. Who’s going to make me more money.”
And there it is. He’s just showed me his hand. “You want the biggest cash cow.”
“When you have superstar clients, that leads to more A-grade clients. Now for you. I have visions of a reality show. If you can swindle Madelyn to be on the show, TV networks will be fighting tooth and nail to have it. In fact, we need to set you up with an interview as soon as possible to tell everyone you are back.” I’m so angry, I can’t even speak.
“You don’t fucking stop do you?” Sean asks. “You’ve just been confronted as to how you fucked over your best client and all you can think about it lining your own pockets.”
David tears his gaze away from me and moves to Sean. “Oh look who’s grown a spine. It’s not just that. Together, yeah, you were going to be big. Reece on his own, you were going to be huge. It was a gamble I was willing to make and take. Cut your losses from this one,” he says as he points to Sean. “He will only bring you down.”
Sean lunges and I step in front of him. His fist comes up as he yells over my shoulder. “I have a fucking spine you piece of shit. How many lies did you tell Reece about me cause you sure as shit told a tonne to me.”
Hannah and Deni hang back near the door while Sean tries to move past me to get to David. It will do him no favours if I let him pass.
“Lies – motivation. All the same thing and you couldn’t cut it.”
“Couldn’t cut what? Your need to micro-manage every single aspect of the band? From what I recall, you were saying Reece was going to set you up for retirement and nothing was going to stop you from achieving that.”
I turn and it’s Sean who puts his hand on my shoulder in a way of holding me back. “Well, I guess this is where we tell you about the flaw in your plan so you may as well come clean with everything.”
“Come clean? Alright, let me put it on you. This band had been stuck at the top, but I wanted to make it go through the stratosphere. I used all means necessary to make it happen, and it was going to too. I told Sean not to contact you and paid him handsomely. I see that you’re going to have an issue in that considering you’ve breached that contract.” He fucking paid him to stay away, and Sean took the money. I wonder how many more truths will come out.
Sean never told me that. I take a step away to gain some space from both of them. Sean gives me a quick glance, his shame is written all over his face. “I only took it because our money was tied up with the tax department.”
“Ah, yes, that was fun to make that phone call,” David says.
Motherfucker. I push past Sean, who regains his hold to keep me back.
David sits higher in his chair. “Oh look at you getting all hot and bothered. Like you gave a fuck. I gave you the freedom to do whatever and whomever you wanted.” I felt sick when he looked over my shoulder. I knew he was looking at Deni. “You were more than happy to keep taking everything I gave you. It was all too easy in the end. Ship you off to my house where I could keep tabs on you. All you had on there were some broken pieces of choruses, which weren’t that great mind you, maybe I was backing the wrong horse the whole way.”
“How the fuck do you know what I was doing out there?” It dawns on me before he even says it. His phone.
“Why do you think I gave you a phone? Easy to keep tabs on you. Disappointed in your Internet history. Fucking pinning it up like a bored housewife. You turned out to be more pathetic than him.” He thrusts his pointer finger at Sean. “When I turned up on the doorstep, I was half waiting to find fucking glitter craft and googly eyes all over the table. I knew I’d hit the jackpot when you happened across Madelyn Worthrington. That was just a happy chance. All my fucking dreams had come true. Pure coincidence and the press is going to eat that up. In fact, I was just typing up a press release.”
Sean stops pushing on my chest and keeps his hands raised as he takes a step out of my way showing David that he’s now on his own. David tries to push the chair back, the metal feet get caught on the long carpet, and I’m on him. Both hands curl around his jacket, and I push him back so he’s sitting on two legs.
“Seeing that you have breached our contract in so many ways, your services are hereby terminated. You come near Madelyn or me, I will take out a restraining order. She is not part of my career. You make life difficult for her, I will make life difficult for you. You have four people in this room that heard you threatening her anonymity. You have no influence over what Sean and I do.”
“The contract says that if you work together, we all work together.”
Breaking out into a smile, I say, “Yes, but thankfully there’s a clause for that also that you seemed to have breached several times over. I’m going to let Hannah tell you all about that. Hannah?”
Hannah’s voice gets closer, I don’t let David move an inch. I want him to hear it loud and clear.
“In clause seventy-five point six – should any signer of this contract make decisions that are to the detriment of the signers – they are devoid of any legal standing.”
“Thank you, Hannah.”
David swallows hard again before trying to push me off him. I give him no resistance, but from his position, when I let go, he continues to topple backwards. We give him a moment to get to his feet where he brushes himself off and tries to recompose himself.
“Well lookee here, when did you learn to read, Reece? Oh, you didn’t. You got your band mates wife to read it for you.”
The remark bounces off me as I know he’s desperate to gain some kind of hold, and all I can do is laugh at his attempt.
“You know I can read. Thank you for your time today. We could have had an awesome business relationship, you got greedy. I hope you get everything that you deserve.”
The air whistling through my ears is all I hear as I turn on my heel quickly and head towards the door. Deni grabs hold of the handle and opens it wide for us to file out.
“You’ve dead set grown a vagina!” David calls as we meet the door.
“You might think so, but what I have done, is open my
eyes to you. Your bullying tactics, the shit you say to people. Not on. Not the kind of person I want on my team.”
“So you’re choosing her over your career?”
I shake my head. “Not at all. I’m choosing her over you. Madelyn hasn’t asked anything of me.”
We head out of the door with David spewing more verbal abuse when Deni joins us at the elevator.
“If you guys need anything at all,” she offers and turns to Hannah. “Please call me.”
“Thank you, Deni. I don’t know what your future is going to be like here with him, but if you need a job, I’ll always have my door open to you. Word of advice, get out while you can. That man is toxic.”
Deni looks over her shoulder to David’s office. “I would love that. Thank you,” she says before turning to Sean and I. “All the best.”
We are entering the elevator when David rushes towards us.
“I own you, Ashton! There’s no way I’m going to let you walk away from me this easily.” His face is getting redder and blotchier by the second. Sean reaches past me to hit the button for the lobby.
“You said it yourself, though, David. I don’t work for you. I’m a free agent.”
David thrusts his hand up to stop the elevator doors from closing. “You? The man who washes his clothes in the dishwasher?”
Holding my head up high and squaring my shoulders, I’m proud of what I’ve learned and grateful that I’m not dependant on anyone. “Yep, me the man who washed his clothes in the dishwasher. And I’ll do it again if I have to.”
Sean moves to shield Hannah by standing in front of her just in case David becomes physical. “You won’t get far without representation. How do you expect to secure anything, you have no experience, no idea.”
“You’re right. I have no experience, and I have no idea. I do know how to hire people. Hannah, I’d like to offer you a job, all inclusive, I pay wonderful bonuses, and I want you to teach me everything you know. I don’t have to know it all, but I have to know what people are doing if they are going to work for me.” This wasn’t part of any plan, it just felt right so I offered it.
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