For the Love of Music (Sixty Minute Romance) (2 page)

The Kovergirls had never
done autographs before. They were now out of their band gear and wearing their
normal jeans and tops. Kate had put on a fresh Metallica T-shirt. They excitedly
followed the Colonel and found about sixty ex-soldiers waiting for them in
front of the stage. Many of them were injured and obviously in long term recovery.
Some had limbs amputated. It appeared that the Colonel was not quite as cool
and reserved as he seemed. The men were slapping him on the back and telling
him what a great concert it was. He, in turn, was trying to take the thanks as
‘just
part of my job’
but was not doing it very well. The Colonel was the top man
as far as these guys were concerned.

The odd man in the
wheelchair was there, still staring at Anne as if his life depended on it. He
had a full head of straggly hair and was unshaven. He was different in attitude
to everyone else in the room. He had his right leg missing above the knee,
evidenced by the presence of a shiny silver prosthetic leg. He also had a
number of deep scars across his face. Behind all of that was a handsome brute
of a man, who was in deep trouble. Anne could see it in his eyes.

“You were good out there.
Thanks.” He wheeled himself straight over to Anne.

Anne looked around for
help as she was finding him a bit edgy. Gail, Narinda, Kate and Naze were busy
signing autographs.

“Do you want my
autograph?” Asked Anne, uncomfortably.

“I can see that you are
the best musician in the group. I loved what you put into those songs today. Do
the others know how you hold it together?” Now he was getting a bit spooky. He
didn’t want an autograph.

“Urm, no, I don’t think
so. I just play the keyboard and do some backing vocals.” Replied Anne,
somewhat hesitatingly.

“I think we both know how
good you are. I’m Ed, by the way.” Ed held out an arm to shake hands.

“Hi Ed.” Anne took his
hand and shook it somewhat reluctantly.

“I’m no good at small talk
and mixing with people.” Said Ed, rather stating the obvious.”

“You can say that again.”
Said Anne, with complete candidness. Giving no thought for Ed’s feelings.

Ed laughed quietly to
himself.

“Before my body was messed
up by the Taliban, I played classical guitar. I loved what you were playing.”

“Well, thank you, I
guess.” Anne never blushed, but she thought she might do so at any moment, if Ed
did not shut up.

“Can you still play?”
Asked Anne.

“I can. The wags in the
hospital have made my guitar playing part of my therapy. So I have my guitar
and no one to play with.”

Gail bounced over to join
them at this moment. Anne wished she would wear a bra.

“Well, Anne could play
with you, she is classically trained.” Gail could be a big mouth at times.

Anne glared hard at Gail
hoping that Ed would not notice. Ed saw the glare and smiled.

“Can I have your
autograph?” Ed asked Gail.

“Sure, what shall I sign
for you?” Asked Gail, pleased with the request.

“I’m only kidding. I just
wanted to talk to … Anne did you say?” said Ed.

“I’m Gail and this is
Anne. Well I’ll leave you two to it.” Gail rushed off hoping to sign some more
autographs.

“Well, hello Anne.” Said
Ed, he was staring right into the back of her eyes. It was like he could see
right through her.

Anne stood not knowing
what to do or say in this difficult setting. She didn’t want to reject Ed out
of hand, just because he was a bit weird and rough around the edges. That would
not be sympathetic at all. On the other hand, he was a bit pushy. She had no
idea how to respond to him.

“I’m not much to look at,
and I’m all blown up, but I am desperate for some help.” Ed took hold of Anne’s
hand again while saying this. His desperation was written large across his
face. He had no time for pleasantries and etiquette. He needed help.

“Where do you live?” Asked
Anne, trying to buy some time to think.

“I live in Stoke
Mandeville Hospital at the moment, but I wouldn’t want to meet you there. That
place is full of losers like me. I come here to Harrow every Tuesday, for a day
of
‘orientation’
. It’s supposed to make me more integrated. What about next
Tuesday?”

“OK, it would have to be
after work, about four o’clock?” Anne found herself saying automatically. She
was quite taken aback by Ed and the way he spoke to her. He had lost all care
and subtlety in his conversation, and was the most direct person she had ever
come across. It was very unnerving, but also refreshing at the same time.

“I’ll see you on Tuesday,
about four.” Said Anne.

“I look forward to it.”
Replied Ed.

The following day saw Anne,
back at work, worrying about this strange and damaged man Ed. He had made quite
an impression on her but she couldn’t quite work out why.

“Penny for them?” Said her
work colleague Jayne.

“Oh, just someone I met at
a concert we played yesterday.” Replied Anne absentmindedly.

“He’ll never be as good as
Giorgio.” Said Jayne, touching on very sensitive ground.

Giorgio was Anne’s work
colleague and also ex-boyfriend. They had called it a day after realising that
Giorgio was never going to give up his job on the frontline. He was happiest
flying all around the world, chasing drugs barons and criminals. Anne was ready
for a quieter life. Being with Giorgio was never going to be quiet. After the
first rush of hormones had died down, they had both realised that they wanted
different things from life. So they had sat down together, given their break up
speeches, and agreed to stay friends. Anne hadn’t seen him since. He hadn’t
even contacted her, and that was four months ago.

Anne had stayed in her
role as liaison manager, in the civil service office where she worked, but had
requested at her recent job review, that she would never go out in the field
again. This was brought on by the experiences she had witnessed in the Maldives
operation six months previously. Anne thought she could hack it out on
operations with the best, but she was wrong. She also handed in her firearm. It
was a huge relief and she didn’t mind a bit of a pay cut. She was much happier
in herself, not carrying a gun.

“Who did you meet
yesterday?”  Asked Jayne, who was always looking for the latest gossip.

“Oh, we did a concert for
some war veterans and one of them wants me to play music with him as part of
his therapy.” Replied Anne on autopilot.

“Sound interesting, I’d
love to play music with someone, tell me more.” Said Jayne, doing her usual
stirring up routine.

“There is nothing more to
tell. I’m just helping him out. It’s a favour.”

“Ok, have it your own
way.” Jayne shrugged her shoulders and left disappointed.

On the following Monday,
Anne gave Gail a call, to see if she could come with her to see Ed. She had
spent the last five days fretting about it and thought she could use some Dutch
courage from a friend. Gail was very keen to come, as she was hoping to meet some
more soldiers.

“I do like these men in
uniform! I’ll have to meet you there, as I’m dropping my niece off, at my Nan’s,
on the way” Said Gail.

“That’s great, I’ll see
you there. Wear something decent will you?” Anne suggested, very relieved she
would not be on her own.

The next Tuesday afternoon,
she arrived at the Hall, feeling a little apprehensive. She went to reception.
There were lots of photos of other bands and acts who had performed there in
the past.

“You’re here for Sergeant
Makin, Is that right?” Said the receptionist, looking over the top of her
glasses.

“I only know his name is
Ed.” Said Anne, suddenly realising that she knew nothing about this man. She
had agreed to meet him and help him, but now she was wondering if the whole
idea was a big mistake.

“That’s him, Sergeant
Edward Makin. He’s waiting in the main hall, at the end of the corridor.” The
receptionist pointed in the only direction available, other than the front door,
and returned to her work.

As Anne walked down the
corridor, she could hear some guitar music, coming from the slightly open door
at the end. As she pushed the door further open, she recognized the traditional
Spanish guitar work ‘
Malaguena
’ as the piece of music. She saw Gail,
dressed quite decently, just inside the door and joined her. Gail put her
finger to her lips to say be quiet. They listened to Sergeant Edward Makin play
the simple, haunting piece to perfection. The sound transformed the mundane and
impersonal municipal hall, into a glorious sound filled experience. The notes
were left hanging in the air, as Ed finished the piece. They could have been in
Andalucia.

Anne and Gail gave Ed a
small, but appreciative, round of applause.

Anne was so taken aback with
his playing, that she hardly knew what to say. She stepped forward and Ed
turned his head around. She felt like she was caught red handed, doing
something wrong. She apologized for nothing.

“I thank you for coming. I
honestly didn’t expect you to turn up. You looked like you were in a hurry to
leave last week.” Ed was his normal, tactless self.

“I was glad to get away
last week; you spooked me a little bit I’m afraid, sorry.” Ed nodded his head
knowingly.

“That Malaguena was
beautiful, Ed. How long have you been playing?” Asked Anne, changing the
subject.

“I’ve been playing since I
was a kid. I use Malaguena to warm up with. So what shall we do, and who is the
gooseberry?” Asked Ed with a knowing grin.

“Oh, this is Gail. You
remember, from the band. She has come to erm…”

“…Make sure I am well
behaved and not some sort of weirdo.” Ed finished her sentence off.

“Anyway, this is Gail. She
was half hoping that there would be other colleagues of yours here today that
she could help in some way.” Anne was trying her best to make excuses, but Ed
saw through it all.

“Sorry Gail, I didn’t
recognize you with all your clothes on. If we do this again, I have a whole
hospital full of friends who are much stranger, and ruder, than I. You can take
your pick of those, if you like.”

“It’s fine, I’ll just sit
and listen.” Gail was almost mute. A very rare event. She had been spoken to
and put in her place.

“So what shall we play?
I’ve brought a few pieces and I see that you have a folder of stuff there.” Ed
was being expansive in his own way but it came over a bit unsteady and forced.

“I’ve bought some Carlos
Jobim Latin music and the Concerto de Aranjuez by Rodrigo. I didn’t know how
well you played. I’m sorry if they are too hard for you.” Anne took the music
out of her folder.

“I haven’t played the
Rodrigo for a while. Let’s have a look at that.” Finally there was some
animation and normality from Ed.

“Can you get through the
piano part Ok?” Ed asked.

“I’ve played it before,
but not for a while.” Anne replied. She walked over to the grand piano next to
Ed and played a few notes of a Bach study to check it out. The piano was far
too good for this old hall and was tuned to concert pitch.
‘Someone knows
their pianos here’
thought Anne to herself.

“Let’s take the slow second
movement to try out. We can do the whole thing if it works well.” Ed was
beginning to get enthusiastic.

Anne and Ed played,
working through the slow movement, section by section, for an hour and a half. After
a while, they decided not to bother with the rest of the piece and try to
perfect this one movement. At some points they would disagree on how to play a
section. At other times they just played and got used to each other’s different
playing styles. Both Ed and Anne became lost in the music when they played a
longer section together.

They finished by playing
the whole slow movement through in one go. Anne was mesmerized by Ed’s virtuoso
playing that released every bit of emotion from the notes. Ed sat and watched very
attentively for the piano/orchestra parts that Anne played on her own. At the
end they stopped playing, both sat back and looked up at each other. Ed’s face
was bright red and his eyes were watery. He blew out some air through his mouth,
in an attempt to release the emotion he had built up in playing the demanding
piece of music.

“You are very good, Anne.”
He said.

“You are better.” Anne was
smiling lightly. She had not played so intensely since she had left her sixth
form music college. It was a good feeling to do so again. Anne turned around to
see Gail hiding behind a handful of tissues and blowing her nose.

“Don’t mind me; I’m just
being silly over here.” Gail laughed out and Ed and Anne laughed with her.

“I can be a bit intense,
sorry.” Said Ed.

“You are not kidding. That
was some playing. You put so much into it, I can’t believe it.” Anne said.

“Yeh well. I can play.” Ed
replied, not even trying to be modest.