From the scowl on her face, I knew I was not going to like what was coming next.
“You guessed it, didn’t you?” Her expression hardened, and her voice raised. “That’s right; all I had to do was be at his beck and call when he was stressed and help him with a little stress release by getting on my knees. I mean, how hard would it be to give a blow job since I was already willing to let an entire band fuck me?” She hung her shoulders in defeat.
I could understand a little better now why she wanted revenge on being wronged, but enough to bring down a musical icon?
“I can hear you thinking, Baden. No, I did not go public, not yet anyway. I figured I didn’t need that placement. I could still obtain a music degree. I wasn’t going to let it go, either. I reported him to the board of directors. I doubted they would do anything about it seeing as he was a senior staff member with tenure, but I had to have it on record for my own peace of mind. If he tried it with other students and they had the courage to come forward, maybe they would see a pattern and do something about it.”
She scooted further down the bench and straightened her spine. “I made sure all the women in our class knew what Peter’s extracurricular activities were and warned them about his promises of phantom auditions,” she proclaimed proudly.
“I thought with enough time, the rumors would subside, until one day my father picked me up after class. He wanted to know why his daughter was blacklisted in the industry for trying to sleep her way to the top.” She ran her fingers through her hair. “Fuck, Baden, he was furious that I hadn’t come to him right away. I had to tell him everything. What happened at the party, and what occurred with my professor.”
She stood up, brushed the debris off her ass from where she sat and paced. “My father convinced me that I had to come forward. At this point, I had nothing to lose. No one in the music industry was going to want to work with me whether I came forward or not. But he made me realize that I may not have been the first or the last. If I did nothing and they’d taken advantage of someone, I would have to live with the fact that I could have prevented it.”
She turned away. ”He asked how this was any different than me placing a complaint against my professor. I never thought about it before he pointed it out. I convinced myself that it was a one-time thing. Someone would have come forward before now if this was happening. I told my father as much.” She stopped pacing and nervously bit on her thumbnail.
“I never would have known what they were doing to my reputation if my father was not who he was. They had no idea that the industry’s best entertainment lawyer was my father. They wanted his help in getting me blacklisted. They went as far as to tell him how I begged them to use me as a fuck toy and that I would continue to do so if I went on tour with them.”
She turned and looked at me. “What was I supposed to do? My reputation was in tatters. My education was at risk. All they had to do was let me walk out and never mention it again. If I were anyone other than Bryon the Brute’s daughter, I probably would have cowardly walked away.
“But like my father said, what if it wasn’t only me? How far did their influence carry? How many lives did they destroy with their sick games and a sense of entitlement because of who they were?”
She walked up to me and stared me down. ”And who was going to believe a bitter no-talent groupie who didn’t get what she wanted?”
That was what Steve had publicly called her.
We were on our first tour with the same label. It was our dream to one day open for Cover Me Grey. Steve Grey was a musical genius. The label called all the bands on its roster and point-blank asked which ones were brave enough to stand behind their musical brothers. Solidarity from other musicians would go a long way in the media’s eyes. Of course, we were going to support our idol.
I looked Steve squarely in the eye that day and asked him why he had chosen to take this fight to the tabloids. Why not merely pay her off and let it go away quietly? He told me he had to make an example of her. If you allow one bitch to get away with it, others will follow, he answered.
I don’t think Steve expected it to play out the way it had. He was arrogant enough to believe his status as a rock star was going to protect him. Even as the evidence mounted against him, I wanted to believe there was no way he had done the things he was accused of.
Get Bent was on the rise while Cover Me Grey was in freefall. We never had the opportunity to work with them.
The band as a whole was dismantled. The members remained in the music industry, but never on the forefront. I asked Theo on more than one occasion about a music collaboration with Steve Grey, and he passed on every suggestion.
The band stood behind Cover Me Grey. I never bothered to ask if any of the others believed in their innocence the way I had. We were new at the label. We would have done it as per the label request regardless.
Not to mention the infamous Seattle incident that could have ruined our band.
“We need to get back on the road.” Crystal’s declaration brought me back to the present. I sat a few minutes longer as she walked back to the SUV and made herself comfortable.
The next town was five miles away. Perhaps a stop for coffee was in order. The distraction would give me some time to digest the bombshell that had been dropped.
Where was this going to leave Crystal and me? Could I weather the storm that was sure to come our way?
Chapter 26
Crystal
I was wrung out by the time I finished. My nerves were on edge. I bit my thumbnail down to a stub. I was going to have to get it taken care of before tonight's show. Everything had to be perfect, and that included my hands. Maybe a Mani and Pedi were what I needed to calm me down and get me back on track.
Or sex. I learned that great sex was always a fantastic stress releaser. And up until this afternoon's confession, I had a willing candidate. Guess I was going to have to find another fuck buddy for the tour.
Chances were I was going to have to, anyway. I saw the writing on the wall from the start.
At least when the reporters put two and two together, Baden wouldn’t be blindsided. I never wanted that to happen to him.
I had genuine feelings for Baden. At least, I did until I came to the conclusion that he must have known what his idols were up to and did nothing to stop it. How many of the bands that stood in solidarity with their brothers were secretly laughing at the poor stupid girl who thought anyone was going to believe her?
My father took me to file a complaint. At least it would incite an investigation. I was sure it was going to be brushed off as a he said she said situation. They started with Peter. He was the one, according to my statement, who supposedly set me up. Much to everyone's surprise, Peter confessed to cherry-picking women for Steve Grey’s sexual preferences, but not drugging them. He claimed that was all Steve’s doing or one of the other band members.
Peter’s confession unearthed a plethora of sexual deviance that occurred at the command of Steve Grey.
As soon as word of an investigation leaked, women started coming out of the woodwork and the story went public. Many had confessed their purpose of attending those parties was to have sex with a band member. However, waking up disoriented and wondering what had happened to them was not what they expected.
The most damaging evidence was that of a seventeen-year-old girl whose mother brought her to a private clinic and reported she believed her daughter was assaulted. The girl was a minor, and the mother was within her legal rights to demand a sexual assault kit be performed. That was accompanied by blood work confirming Rohypnol in the girl’s system.
At the time, the girl refused to divulge any information.
When the tabloids were shredding me with accusations of inciting hysteria much like what happened at the Salem witch trials, the girl came forward.
The records from the clinic worked against the band. It provided proof of sexual relations with a minor. The non-consensual could only be assumed, not proven. She
admitted to lying about her age. The fact remained that she was underage at the time.
In the end, backroom deals were made to pay restitution to the victims. I refused to take anything from them. That was not what it was about. All I wanted was a public apology and an admission that they deliberately attempted to ruin my reputation. I never got it. It was never part of the deal.
The label dropped Cover Me Grey as parent groups began boycotting shows. They didn’t have to confess for everyone to assume guilt. Venues began canceling their contracts as ticket sales plummeted. Cover Me Grey was raked over the coals in every reputable newspaper and magazine.
There was no way any band could recover from that kind of media scrutiny.
It didn’t matter how many women came forward to give a statement. Christmas Davies was at the center of the biggest music scandals of the century. To some, she would always be known as the woman who ruined Cover Me Grey. To others, she would be a martyr for women’s rights.
I didn’t want to be either.
I legally changed my name from Christmas Davies to Crystal Divine and put the past behind me. I transferred to another college and completed my degree. The female professor knew who I was, what I stood for, what I fought for and had no problem finding me a placement.
I could have taken the easy route and gotten a teaching job. It was what I had intended to do. That was until Theo approached me after he saw one of our performances. He received a copy of a demo I made and decided to come out and watch a live performance. He gave me all the standard lines the label uses to entice new talent.
I knew our band was good, even with Keith’s drug-induced screwups. This time I wasn’t naive enough to fall for the come to an audition line. I took Theo’s information and did my research on him and Bentley Records. Then I went to my father and had a long talk about what this would mean for me if I decided to accept any offer made by the new and upcoming label.
My next step was talking to Amber, Ashley, and Keith. The band was a part-time thing—a family band. We played weddings, birthday parties, and small clubs. Each of us had previously played with other musicians, but for one reason or another did not feel like that was where we belonged. Amber gleefully admitted she was the one who sent the demo to Bentley Records.
As a band and as a family, we decided to talk to Theo about a legitimate contract. But not until I spoke to him about my past involvement with Cover Me Grey.
I was not shocked to hear him tell me he knew who I was and that he understood what kind of publicity this could bring down on him and Bentley Records. I was never publicly vindicated. The backlash from die-hard Cover Me Grey fans could kill our careers before it began.
Turns out Keith almost did that with his drug addiction. Thank god for Jade.
I had asked Theo why they had chosen to stand behind Cover Me Grey at the time. His only answer was that they had their reasons. Baden admitted the band was going through something similar. I inadvertently accused them of doing what Cover Me Grey had done. He never answered.
I wanted an answer. No, I needed one. I would not let myself believe I gave myself to a man who would defile women. Or worse, take advantage of an impressionable young girl.
God, what I wouldn’t give for a tall mocha latte. As if reading my mind, I watched the road as Baden pulled into a parking space in front of a coffee shop. “Snakes and Lattes?” I read the sign above the door and was curious about the name.
“Here, put this on,” Baden offered up a baseball cap. I took it without pause and waited until he had his hat pulled down over his eyes.
He gave a slight nod. “Ready?” he asked.
I grunted at the seriousness he took in remaining anonymous. Then again, maybe I wasn’t taking it seriously enough.
I elbowed Baden as we stood in line and nodded to the bookshelves full of board games. Now the name made sense. Friends could gather for coffee and socializing. I read the sign that boasted trivia nights Tuesdays and Thursdays. A great marketing tool to get people to come out on slow nights.
No one paid us any unwanted attention. We ordered our drinks, got settled in the SUV and continued on our route.
The uncomfortable silence settled upon us once again.
“Sooo,” I dragged out. “When you mentioned earlier the band had gone through something similar…” I paused. “How similar?” I couldn’t let this go. It would nag at me until I said something inappropriate like I already had.
“We were never accused of anything criminal if that’s what you’re getting at,” he sneered.
“Cover Me Grey settled before they were formally charged with anything criminal. That didn’t mean they weren’t guilty,” I snapped back.
He huffed his frustration. His knuckles turned white from the tight grip he had on the steering wheel.
I sat patiently, waiting for him to take the lead. I asked the question. Whether or not he gave me an honest answer was yet to be seen.
I paid attention to the road as a marker after marker indicated we were approaching Boston city limits.
Was it embarrassment, or was it guilt that had him freezing me out?
“Are you aware of the rumors that Maddox and I share groupies?” He gave me a sideways glance.
“Yes. But Kitt schooled me with the facts when I asked her if she had ever been in a brother sandwich.” I snickered. I was careful to leave out the tidbit that Kitt was all for it. It was Maddox who made it clear that it was never going to be an option.
“Yeah,” he laughed, “I bet she did.”
After a brief moment, he continued. “Maddox and I had a pre-show ritual. It was common knowledge that we enjoyed a blowjob before a show. A stress reliever of sorts.”
He was correct that their sexual escapades had often fed the tabloid.
“We may not have fucked the same woman ever, but we have had pre-show blowjobs from the same groupie,” he shrugged. “We let one of them take a video. Maddox and I didn’t care if it was shared. We were the epitome of the bad boy rock image the label wanted us to have. So what if a video got leaked here or there.”
I frowned. “Are you suggesting having a sex tape of getting a blowjob compares to what I had endured? You admitted you didn’t care.”
“The problem wasn’t that video. The problem was this groupie produced a video of her with the entire band before our Seattle show. And by her and the entire band, I mean her getting fucked in every one of her holes at once.”
“You gangbanged a groupie? Fuck, I hope she was at least legal and sober.” I crossed my arms defensively. Of course, now it made sense they would support Cover Me Grey. They had done the same thing.
“What, fuck no!” he stammered. “The video was a fake. Grainy and blurred. Clear enough to understand what was happening, but not focused enough to prove the men in the video were imposters.” He ran a shaky hand down his jeans-clad legs.
“They were dead ringers for us, but it was not us. The fact that she had a very clear video of her giving Maddox and me a blowjob held a lot of weight in her claims.”
“The label paid her off, and the video never saw the light of day.” He brought his coffee cup to his lips, setting it down in the cupholder when he emptied it. “It also made us more aware of what people were capable of, given the opportunity.”
This woman had set them up. It would not have been that far a stretch for them to think Christmas Davies had done the same to Cover Me Grey.
The realization hit me like a ton of bricks. “Baden, is that what you think I did, took advantage of an opportunity?”
Chapter 27
Baden
“There’s no correct way to answer that question,” I was quick to reply. She flinched slightly, but I noticed.
“If I had not had the pleasure of getting to know Crystal Divine and I was asked that question about Christmas Davies, I would have said yes,” I explained. “Now I’m not convinced the version given to us by the label or Steve was as accurate as it could have been.”
I had never had an invitation to one of Steve Grey’s house parties. There had always been hints and innuendos about how wild they got. He was a fucking rock star. The same could be said about our parties. It came with the territory. We’d had underage groupies throw themselves at us on numerous occasions. It didn’t mean we had taken them up on their offer.
One of the sayings Steve Grey was famous for was there no such thing as an innocent groupie. You party with a rock star, you know what you came for. A fact that I believed for a very long time. However, when Maddox’s girlfriend Kitt was unknowingly drugged at Maddox’s birthday party, she did not ask for that to happen or the aftermath that followed.
“Did Theo give you any indication of how he plans on handling the situation when the time comes?” I had no illusions that this was not going to play out in the media. I was equally astute that it would most likely be sooner rather than later.
“He told me not to worry about it, that Jackson’s team was on top of it,” she smiled warily. “However, judging from your reaction…” she shrugged and left the conversation hanging.
“Crystal, my reaction was based on my personal experience. You can’t let that be the baseline for how others might perceive you.” I glanced over to see if she believed what I was saying.
“Because you were going through something similar,” she mimicked with a satisfied smirk.
She had to understand it was going to take me a few minutes to digest what had transpired. I never dove too deep into the media frenzy. I believe Steve when he said Christmas Davies was nothing more than a disgruntled groupie and ignored the garbage that had been printed. Get Bent was on the cusp of stardom, and that was where all my focus had been.
Until Crystal brought it up, I’d never given the incident a second thought. Did I honestly believe Steve Grey was a saint? Hell no. I might not have partied with him, but I did party with enough rock stars to know the sense of entitlement that was bestowed upon them. Fuck, the girl admitted she lied about her age. It wasn’t as if anyone was going to ask her to produce her ID, for fuck’s sake.
Rock Gods: Baden Page 14