MADversary (15 page)

They started out with “Wake the Dead,” probably the band’s most well-known song.  It had gotten a lot of play on the radio when they
debuted
their first CD.  It wasn’t that they hadn’t released other great songs, but the first was the best known and
most
well
-
loved.  If there were people in the audience who didn’t listen to metal on a regular basis (and Megan knew there were plenty of them), “Wake the Dead” was the song they’d most likely heard before.

The true metal heads were up against the stage, Megan realized.  Classmates who
were
not fans of the music were at the back.  Megan was glad for that, because it meant she could be front row, resting her forearms on the stage floor, wi
thout any hostile competition.

And Tyler looked hotter than ever.  They played “Wake the Dead” with its insistent beat and grinding melody.  Megan remembered when she first heard the song on the radio.  The voice hadn’t sounded like Tyler, because he was doing a lot of guttural growling that alternated with the melody of the chorus. 
But when he sang the chorus, it was easier to tell it was his voice.

Watching him onstage was a treat.  She’d never attended a
Madversary
concert before, had, in fact, avoided them because of her feelings for Tyler.  But, God, he was good.  He had a charisma onstage that was ten times more powerful than his real life personality.  He was able to grab the audience and not let go.  And, sure, his kiss before he got onstage had warmed Megan up, but seeing him as a rock god was making her hot.  His eyes looked intense and his bangs hung over his eyes, making them look shadowy.  He looked delectable.

After the first song, they started playing another single, “Fly,” that had gotten a lot of air play the year before.  It was off their last album.  By the end of the song, Tyler’s bangs were clinging to his forehead.  The heat was getting to him.  He took off his red t-shirt and tossed it to the side of the stage, pulling the guitar back over his head.  He spoke in the microphone, “You guys are a great audience, even if we’re not your cup of tea.  How are you handling the heat?”  The crowd screamed, and if Megan hadn’t known better, she would have guessed they were in a place twice the size with ten times the people.

While
Madversary
played their third song, Megan felt the blood pumping through her veins, making her nerves stand at attention.  She was full of desire and could only imagine what Tyler would do to her later.  She’d been like a scared rabbit the night before; tonight, she felt like a tiger, ready to drink him down and tear his flesh apart.  And she wanted him to do the same to her.  She wanted him to have his way with her.  Tonight, she would be whatever he wanted her to be, just so long as he placed his hands on her.
  Taking his shirt off had just fueled the fantasy—he had a rock hard body.  Last night she hadn’t had the chance to really appreciate what he looked like, but now he was served up on a platter for her viewing pleasure.  She was surprised to see he didn’t have any tattoos on his chest, but he looked just fine without any there.  His arms were his canvases, but his entire body looked hot, whether it was inked or not.

So as his biceps bulged and he
massag
ed
the neck of his guitar touching it with fingers rough yet gentle, Megan fantasized about what they would do later.  He looked down at her then, grinning, and she flashed a wicked smile back.  His smile grew wider until he turned his attention to his guitar, laying down the melody so the lead guitarist could thrash out a smoking solo.  She felt what his smile had done to her, though.  Her nipples were vibrating, hard in spite of the heat, and she felt a needy throb emanating from between her legs.  She was so revved
up,
she knew she
would
come with barely any attention.  And chances were she’d orgasm
not just once but
several times.  She knew herself well enough to know she was that worked up.

So,
even though
she was enjoying the show, she wanted it to end.

And that’s when Tamara Dickens showed back up to bring her back to earth.

Chapter Eighteen

MEGAN REMEMBERED THAT
Tamara had never been a nice person.  The girl
had
spent a month or two
back in high school
spreading a rumor that Tyler had raped her
when
Tamara had
been dating
him
.  At first, it caused a lot of problems for Tyler, but once the authorities, including the principal and local law enforcement, had gotten involved, the rumor died down.  When Megan and Tyler had started dating that following spring, she hadn’t asked
him
if the rumor had been true.  She thought if it had been
,
Tyler would have been locked up.

But Megan also remembered
other
Tamara
incidents in school before that. 
The girl had had a reputation for making people uneasy.  She didn’t do many things that were in a person’s face or obvious, but much of what she’d done felt underhanded and sinister.  Too many years had passed
,
and Megan couldn’t remember any specific incidents; she just remembered the girl was trouble.  And here she was bugging Megan again.  Megan sighed as her blood cooled.  Her Tyler fantasies would have to wait.

She couldn’t ignore the woman anymore when Tamara started nudging her in the arm.
  The woman raised her voice so Megan could hear her over the music.  “Hey…I promised to tell you something you need to know.”

Megan
wished
the woman would leave, but she supposed she’d have to let her speak her mind and then she’d go.  Megan said, “Yeah,” but then turned her eyes back to Tyler.  He was singing into the mike, his eyes on his fretting fingers.  She hoped having Tamara bending her ear wouldn’t distract him.

“We should go somewhere else.”

Well, that wasn’t something Megan wanted to do.  “I don’t want to miss the show, Tamara.  Whatever you have to say, say it now.  Say it here.”

The woman looked miffed and raised an eyebrow.  But she said, “Fine.  You remember Tyler and I went out before you dated him, right?”  Megan nodded, wishing she’d get to the point.  “But you probably don’t know he kept having sex with me the whole time you were going out.”  Megan sucked in a deep breath.  That didn’t sound like Tyler.  In fact, it sounded like another of Tamara’s schemes, so she said nothing.  Tamara continued.  “I had his baby about eight months after graduation.”

Megan felt her brows furrow.  She didn’t know if she should believe any of the words coming out of Tamara’s mouth.  At the same time, though, why would the woman feel the need to lie now?  “You had his baby?”

“Yeah.
  I named him Tyson.  You know, as a tribute, but so the baby could have his own name.”

Megan didn’t know what to say.  The situation felt surreal.  “So, do you…?  Is he still…?”

“
Yes.  He’s a beautiful child.  He’s nine years old, in the third grade, looks just like his Daddy.”  Tamara started digging in her purse.  “I’ve got a picture here.”

Megan could barely hear her
,
and she knew she’d have a hard time seeing the picture
in the dim light over the audience
.  This information was disturbing and she had a hard time believing it, but she wasn’t sure what she should say.  Tamara handed Megan an open wallet with the picture of a child’s smiling face.  The child was blonde
with blue eyes, and he had cute dimples denting his cheeks.  Megan couldn’t see
any hint of
Tyler in the child, but maybe that was wishful thinking.
  “He’s cute,” she said, at a loss for any other words.

“A shame his dad’s not part of his life, though.”

Megan decided to not play her game.  “Does he know?”

Tamara scoffed.  “Of
course
he knows.  He doesn’t want to have anything to do with Tyson, though.”

The song ended and Tyler started talking again.  Megan felt torn between the tortured woman next to her and the man who’d been tugging at her heart and loins.  He said, “Thanks, guys.  You’re incredible.”  He adjusted the mike and said, “I haven’t had a chance to reconnect with all of you, but I have to say it’s been great seeing you
all
again.  I hope I have a chance to talk to all of you at some point…unless you’re already sick of me.”  He laughed.  “There is
one
person I’ve reconnected with who has reminded me how special a person can be.”  He looked down at Megan.  Megan realized that, while she’d been paying attention to Tyler, Tamara had disappeared again.  Megan smiled up at
him
.  “Megan Walker, would you come up on stage for a moment?”

Megan felt her smile fade.  She didn’t like being put on the spot.  But she trusted Tyler.  She grinned, hearing her classmates encouraging her.  Lisa patted her on the back and pushed her shoulder, urging her toward the side of the stage.  Megan started making her way as the cheers reached a crescendo.

As she walked up the steps, the lead guitarist stuck out his hand to help her up.  The lights were bright, making it hard to see where she was stepping, so she was grateful for the help. 
Then she was next to Tyler, who draped his arm around her shoulders.  “You all remember Megan, don’t you?” he spoke into the microphone.

Megan looked out at the crowd.  She could only see a big black blob, swarming with people.  She couldn’t make out any faces, thanks to the bright lights.  When she continued scanning the audience, though, she realized she could see the
faces of
people mashed up against the stage.
  Megan felt the hot flush crawling
up her neck, making her cheeks
flame with the attention.
  The applause from the audience told her some people remembered who she was.

“I’ve had a great time the last two days, and I’d forgotten how much I liked growing up in Winchester.  I guess I’ve missed it.  But I also realized how much I’d missed someone special.”

The heat flared up in
Megan’s
cheeks again, but she didn’t know that anyone would be able to tell onstage.  Or maybe it was even more obvious
up
there.  She just wished Tyler would stop already.
  She muttered, “Thanks.”

“There’s a song we’ve been working on, but I’ve been reworking the lyrics.  Let’s just say I’ve been inspired.  So, if it won’t freak you out too much, Megan…”  She felt her eyes grow wide but she grinned and said nothing.  “This song’s for you.”
  She could tell her cheeks were going to be on fire for a while.

Did she have a choice?  She thought she’d look like a rude, uncaring bitch if she said she didn’t want to hear it.  So she stood in silence, hoping her classmates and
their
spouses would watch the band and not her reaction.

She found it hard to concentrate on the words, she was so self-conscious.  But she did catch that the song was about friends…how some friends come and go, but others are silent but always nearby.  She knew the song was about her, but she couldn’t fully grasp the meaning of the words.  She wanted to hear or read them again later, when she wasn’t under the scrutiny of hundreds of eyes.  She
did
register one thing—it was no power ballad (and she was grateful for that), but it was a regular rocking heavy metal song, and it wasn’t sappy.  It could have been about anyone, but Megan knew from the way Tyler sang it and what he’d said that it was for her and about her.

When it was over (a moment Megan had started to fear was ever elusive), Tyler kissed her on the cheek.  “I’m
gonna
let her off the hook now, folks. 
Megan,
thanks for being a good sport.”  He
hugged her, but the guitar made it a little awkward, and walked her back to the steps.

Madversary
played one more song, and by the end, Megan was starting to feel normal again.  Lisa giggled when Megan first
re
joined her and Randy, and she asked her friend how it was to have someone write and sing a song for her.  Dazed, Megan said, “I guess it’s cool.”  Lisa frowned at how underwhelmed her friend’s reaction was.

When they had finished and Tyler and crew had said their thanks, Penny arrived back onstage.  “Now the dance will begin.  Give us a few minutes while
Madversary
breaks down and the DJ sets up.  In the meantime, we have punch and cookies over on that side of the gym, and
be
forewarned—one of the punches is spiked, but it’s clearly marked.  We thought that’d be a fun tribute to yesterday.  And drink as much as you want.  We’ll keep it
comin
’.  The DJ has been instructed to play some songs from our four-year stint in school, but she’s got a variety of music, so if you have a request, even for something outside that date range, just let her know.”

The lights in the gym came up, accenting how dark it had been earlier.  Megan let her eyes adjust, and that’s when she saw Tamara heading toward her yet again.