by Julie Archer
Darren’s expression was hard. “I saw you being manipulated by someone only out for their own gain. Saff, why didn’t you tell someone about this sooner?”
“Because it’s me, Darren! How many times have I ended up as clickbait? Who would believe I was being blackmailed by some lowlife loser?”
“Tris would have believed you.”
He was right. Tris would have trusted everything I told him. Now he was in prison for protecting me when if I’d confessed the truth sooner, none of this would have happened.
It was all my fault.
“Here.” Darren thrust a glass of water at me. “Drink this, wash your face, then we need to call Jonas back. Work out what to do next.”
I’d never seen him this efficient before.
I didn’t want to do anything.
I wanted to drown myself in a vat of vodka and disappear.
However, it seemed Darren wasn’t about to let me do that. When I eventually emerged from the bathroom, face scrubbed clean and feeling somewhat less nauseous, he’d cleared the table and placed the hotel’s notepaper and pencil on it, next to my somewhat bashed up phone. Looked like I’d have to get another one again.
He took charge, placing his own phone on the table, calling Jonas and putting him on speaker.
“Saff, how are you feeling?” Jonas’ tone came across terse, despite the words. “I’ve seen the story and the picture. We’re going to need to do some damage limitation for you, although Tris is my priority right now.”
Jonas was right. If I’d made Tris my priority a hell of a lot earlier in this tour, we wouldn’t be sitting here right now dealing with this shit. I buried my head in my hands.
“You need to go to the police and add to your statement, tell them about the messages and the threats. Had you seen him since the party?”
“He came to the launch night,” I whispered. “Didn’t say much more than his texts already had, said he could put the picture out and ruin me just like that.” I clicked my fingers. As I did so, I knew he’d already done it. There was no coming back from this.
“Saff, seriously, why didn’t you say something?” asked Darren.
“I thought I could handle it. I thought if I ignored him, he’d go away.”
“Parasites like him never do though,” said Jonas. “You need to tell the police too.”
“And write down everything.” Darren pushed the paper and pencil towards me. “Dates, that sort of thing. Anything you can remember apart from the messages.”
I brought a shaky hand to my forehead as I tried to recall everything. The messages would help jog my memory. I picked up my phone, steeling myself as a flurry of notifications still populated the screen. Frowning, I spotted a DM from Scott Lincoln of all people.
Saw the piece online. I’m sorry. I had no idea you were dealing with this shit and I probably made things a hundred times worse. Let me know if you need anything. Look after yourself Sx.
His words brought fresh tears to my eyes. After all his antics and swagger, he took the time to reach out to me. Although he was part of the reason I was in this mess in the first place.
27
Saff
Waiting outside Manchester Magistrates Court the following morning, I felt a lot lighter. Detective Sanders had been receptive to the additional information I wanted to add to my statement. I was hopeful it would help Tris’ case.
If everything went well, we’d be going home together later that day.
I’d even managed to get to the shops and purchase an outfit to help me live up to the ‘supportive girlfriend’ image. A knee-length black pencil skirt and a red and black patterned shirt, which made me the right shade of respectable.
Darren was waiting with me. He’d been an absolute legend. I didn’t know how to thank him for being there, seemingly knowing the right things to say and do, and encouraging me to come forward with all the extra information about Carl.
“You okay?” he asked, watching me light another cigarette.
“Nervous,” I admitted. “What if it doesn’t go the way we want? What if he ends up on remand?”
He rubbed my shoulder. “It will. The evidence points to self-defence and protecting you. Knowing everything Carl was putting you through will go in Tris’ favour.”
I puffed a stream of smoke up towards the sky. “God, I hope so.”
“Do you want a coffee?”
“You’re an angel. What did I do to deserve a friend as good as you?” I blew him a kiss.
Darren screwed up his face. “Because Rosie’s busy on a shoot in Paris?” He laughed as he headed towards the nearest coffee shop.
Rosie and I had talked long into the night. She had offered to come back from her shoot to come and support me. I’d told her not to be so silly; the hearing would most likely not last very long and if all went well, we’d be back in London by this evening. She could celebrate with us on her return.
Idly, I checked my phone until Darren came back.
“Saff!” A familiar voice cut through the air. I turned to see Annie and Col walking towards me.
“Um, hi. What are you doing here?” I dropped my unfinished cigarette to the floor and ground it out with my heel.
Annie enveloped me in a hug. I caught a strong whiff of her perfume, something cloying and overpowering. I tried not to cough as the sickly scent hit my nostrils.
She released me. “We’ve been speaking with Tris’ lawyer, the one your cousin arranged, and he suggested we come up.”
“Set off at some ungodly hour to beat the traffic on the motorway.” Col rolled his eyes. “Which we would have done if someone didn’t need to stop at every service station on the way.”
Annie elbowed Col in the ribs. “It’s the nerves, Col. I’ve never been to court before.”
“Me either,” I added, not sure why I felt the need to mention it.
Darren arrived with coffees for me and him. “Oh, sorry, should I have got some more?”
“Don’t worry, love, I’ve had enough coffee to float a ship this morning. I’ll be fine.” Annie beamed at him.
“Col?” I asked.
Tris’ uncle shook his head, unsmiling. I guessed they’d been in this situation before, waiting to find out what was going to happen to their nephew.
“How are you, Saff?” Annie turned her attention to me, lightly squeezing my arm. “It must have been awful witnessing the fight.”
I wondered exactly how much she knew. Did she know about me taking heroin? Did she know why Carl had been at the gig the other night? Had she seen the pictures on The Goss?
As the questions ran through my head, I forced myself to act naturally and answer. “It was pretty frightening.” Flashbacks of Tris and Carl throwing punches at each other clouded my vision and I shook my head. “I know Tris was only doing it to protect me though.”
“Of course, he was, why wouldn’t he?” She rubbed my forearm, a sympathetic smile forming. “And you told the police, didn’t you?”
On autopilot, I nodded. “I honestly hope he doesn’t hate me.” The words came out without thought, even though I knew they were the truth.
“Christ, Saff. He wouldn’t hate you,” said Darren. “You’ve seen the lengths he’ll go to just to look after you.”
Annie nodded. “Exactly, why would he?”
Her tone didn’t do much to quell my anxiety.
The four of us stood awkwardly, not speaking for a few moments. It was still too early to go inside. I desperately wanted some time to myself, to be alone before I saw Tris in court, but it didn’t seem as if that would be possible. Annie would probably follow me if I went to the toilet.
The uncomfortable silence was broken by my phone ringing.
“Shit, I need to turn that to silent before we go in.” I tried to make a joke as I scrabbled in my bag. It was a London number and, if I wasn’t mistaken, looked like it could be the record label. I just missed picking up the call. “Oh well, I guess they’ll leave a message if it’s impo
rtant.” I dropped the phone back into the depths of my bag, only to hear the notification I had voicemail. “Excuse me, I should probably get this.” Stepping away from the others, I listened to the message, my body turning cold. As soon as I’d heard enough, I dialled Jonas straight away.
He answered immediately. “You got the call then?”
“You knew?”
“I probably found out at the same time you did. Adrian called me as well.”
“What are we going to do?”
“You’re going to get your ass on a train and get down to London as soon as you can.”
“But Tris will be in court in a minute. I need to see him. Can’t I wait?”
Jonas huffed down the line. “Your choice, Saff. I don’t think I can save you this time if you don’t go.”
I took a moment to glance over at Darren, who was making polite conversation with Col and Annie.
Everything he’d done for me in the past couple of days.
Everything the band had done on the tour.
Everything we’d done to get the EP out.
All that could be taken away by Numb Records.
They were threatening to cancel our contract. Because of me.
I felt sick.
I had to talk to them that afternoon… or face the consequences.
“Saff? Are you there?” Jonas brought me back to the present and the decision I had to make.
I was so torn. My muddled thoughts were swirling, trying to work out what to do. “I’ll call you later.” After I’d ended the call, I switched my phone off.
Concentrating on my breathing, I walked back to the others.
“Saff? Who was that? It wasn’t Carl again, was it?” Darren put his arm around my shoulders.
God, if only it had been. He would have been so much easier to deal with.
Slowly, I shook my head. “No. It was Adrian Baxter from the record label. He wants to meet with me this afternoon to discuss TheSB’s future. More to the point, if we even have one with them.” My voice cracked. Saying the words out loud made them all the more real.
“Oh, gosh, Saff, how awful!” Annie shoved Darren out of the way, taking his place as my comforter. “You have to go and see him.”
“No, I need to be here for Tris. He’s more important,” I protested.
“Your career is on the line, you should go. Tris will understand why you weren’t here. I’ll make sure to tell him why you couldn’t be.” Annie’s tone was firm.
“I, I can’t.” I didn’t want to walk away from Tris. He hadn’t walked away from me when I needed him.
“Annie could be right, Saff. If this is your only chance to rescue TheSB, you should go. I’ll stay here for Tris,” Darren said.
I screwed up my eyes. He was talking sense. It seemed to be two against one. I glanced over at Col hoping I could up the odds in my favour. He shrugged, no help at all. It was half past ten. If I got my shit together, I could easily be back in London by two and make it to the Numb Records offices for three, barring any delays. I thanked my lucky stars I’d bought a suitable outfit for court; at least it would make a decent saving-my-career look.
With a deep sigh, I made my decision. “Okay, I’ll go.”
“Good for you, Saff. I’m sure you’ll be able to sort things out in no time.” Annie leaned over and gave me a brief kiss on the cheek. “Good luck, love!”
As I walked away, I couldn’t help but notice the ring of triumph in her words.
28
Tris
I’d woken early that morning.
My sleep had been plagued with dreams of Saff, Scott Lincoln and Carl Doherty. Everything swirled in, Saff being in hospital, the launch party, the last gig, all muddled until I didn’t know what was going on. Much like reality.
Court hung heavy over me. When I’d left prison, I’d sworn I was never going back there and here I was, not three months later, facing the very possibility I’d return.
Dad had told me to fight for Saff.
I’d done exactly what he said and look where it had got me.
The door opened and breakfast arrived.
“Your solicitor is already here and wants to talk to you as soon as you’ve eaten,” the officer said as he placed the tray down beside me. “He says there’s no rush.”
“Forget food, I’ll go and talk to him now.” Suddenly I was awake. Whoever Jonas had found to represent me, I wanted to make a good impression.
“Whatever you want.” The officer inclined his head and I followed him out of the cell.
The solicitor was waiting in the interview room, a sheaf of papers spread out on the table in front of him. “Morning, Tris, I’m Giles Baron.” He stood up and held out his hand.
Giles had a much stronger grip than the duty solicitor and instilled confidence. Thank God for Jonas.
“Sit down.”
I did as I was told. If this man could change the course of the next few hours, I’d do anything he said. Giles sat opposite me.
“You need to be aware there’s some new evidence which was omitted from your girlfriend’s original statement. With that in mind, I’ll be pushing for you to be released on bail pending further investigation into Mr Doherty’s actions.”
“New evidence?”
Giles shuffled his papers until he found the right ones. “Apparently Doherty had been blackmailing Miss Barnes for several weeks until he met her the other night. There were various threats of extortion and revealing her unfortunate heroin overdose to the press, the latter of which I believe he has carried out.”
He slid a screenshot of The Goss website over to me, which showed a grainy photograph of Saff inhaling smoke. I instantly recognised the room as the one from Barney’s party.
My fists balled. I wished I’d killed the fucker now, then I’d really have something to be going to prison for. My eye twitched. But why hadn’t Saff told me about any of this? She could have stopped it sooner and I wouldn’t be here now.
“Is this going to help my case?”
“It’s definitely evidence you were provoked.”
I slumped back into my chair. I hoped with all of my heart what he was saying was true.
Not two hours later, I walked out of Manchester’s Magistrates Court into the sunshine.
As instructed by Giles, I’d entered a plea of not guilty and a trial date was set for a few weeks’ time. He’d agreed to meet me back in London to discuss the case and we’d gone our separate ways.
During the brief hearing, I scanned the gallery, spotting Annie and Uncle Col along with Darren. There was no sign of Saff. My gut clenched as I thought of her possible reasons for not being there. I was fully aware of her habitual lateness, but surely even she wouldn’t have missed this.
Breathing in the fresh air - okay, the somewhat polluted air, but it was better than being inside a custody cell - I saw the three of them waiting for me. Giving them a small smile, I went over to them.
“Tris! Oh, my goodness, I’m so happy you’ve been let out!” Annie clutched me to her, almost knocking the breath from me. “How are you?” She held me at arm’s length.
I felt grubby, tired and in need of a hot shower and some decent food. And my girlfriend.
“Where’s Saff?” I asked.
Darren opened his mouth to speak, but Annie cut him off.
“She’s not here.” Her mouth was pursed in a firm, straight line. “She decided that some meeting in London was more important than being here to support you.”
“Wait,” interjected Darren. “That’s not what happened. You practically encouraged her to go.”
“That’s not quite true, is it, Darren? I think it was obvious she would rather be off chasing her career, otherwise she would still be here.” Annie’s face had taken on the expression of a schoolteacher who knew best. “Now are you ready to go, we’ve got a long journey ahead of us.”
I wasn’t convinced she was telling the truth about Saff. She wouldn’t have gone without good reason. “Darren
, what do you…”
“Let’s get you home.” Annie tried to steer me away from the court building.
Darren looked at the ground, absently kicking a small rock with one foot. It seemed he was holding back. I wanted to talk to him alone - without any interference from my aunt.
“You know what I’d really like?” I announced. “A proper hot chocolate, with whipped cream and marshmallows. I’ve been craving sugar like you wouldn’t believe.”
Annie wrinkled her nose. “We can pick something up at the services on the way home.”
“Come on, Annie, let’s give him what he wants. We’ll only get stuck in traffic if we leave now anyway.” Uncle Col obviously sensed I needed some space. He took his wife’s hand and led her away.
“What’s going on, Darren?” There didn’t seem any point in beating around the bush. “Why isn’t Saff here?”
He looked me directly in the eye. “Your aunt’s right when she said Saff’s gone chasing her career. She got a call from the record label summoning her to a crisis meeting. I think they’re about to kick us out. She didn’t want to go, but your aunt reassured her you’d understand. Although, I think that’s the only reason she went.”
I’d known for a while Annie wasn’t Saff’s biggest fan. But pushing Saff away when I needed her the most was low, even for my aunt.
“Where’s all my stuff?” I asked Darren.
“Back at my hotel. Saff stayed there the last couple of nights after we’d checked you out of the other place.”
I nodded. “Good. I’m coming back to London with you.”
He tilted his head. “You are?”
“I think that’s where I need to be.”
29
Saff
It was dark by the time I got home.
I was exhausted, barely able to summon the strength to put the key in the lock.
“Jonas? Are you here?”
My cousin appeared in the doorway to the living room. “Welcome home. It feels like you’ve been away for longer than a week.”