Ravensong (29 page)

Julian glanced up, then slowly removed
his glasses. “I know that.”

“
But you went ahead and
booked him on a tour?” questioned Robert.

“
Not at all. I
booked
Avalanche
.”

The four band members exchanged looks.
Elena placed the newspaper on the table and took a seat, picking up
the contract. She was so angry that it was hard for her to decipher
the legal text.

“
What exactly does that
mean?” demanded Robert.

“
It means,” said Julian,
speaking as if Robert were a child, “that we’re short a lead
singer, unless one of you wants to take over that job. Otherwise,
we’ll have to hold auditions. With that in mind, I arranged to do
exactly that when we reach New Jersey next week.”

“
You did what?” asked
Ralph.

Julian gave them his bewildered look.
He always used it when he was trying to point out that their
questions were ridiculous and unnecessary. “I think I was clear,
wasn’t I?” He turned to Elliot.

Elliot frowned at him. “You arranged
auditions without asking us?”

“
Yes.”

“
We all voted for Ravensong
to stay in the band. How could you arrange anything like that
without our consent?”

Julian made a noise of disparagement.
“He’s still in the band, he’s just in the American version of the
band. We’ll have to have another lead singer for the European leg
of the tour.”

“
We didn’t agree to that,”
pressed Elliot.

Julian held out his arms. “I don’t see
what the problem is. We all want to do the tour, Ravensong doesn’t.
Simple solution. Replace him.”

“
You intended that all
along, didn’t you?” asked Robert.

“
Not at all. I’m just being
the logical one. This is a business, Bobby, and if people won’t
work, that doesn’t mean the business ends. You hire someone who
wants to work and you move on. There doesn’t need to be any
emotional attachment to it. Really, there doesn’t.”

“
And if they
won’t
move on
, you
slander them,” said Elena, shoving the newspaper article into the
middle of the table.

Robert reached for it and quickly
scanned the type. Then his eyes shot to Julian’s face. “You did
this?”

“
Did what?”

“
Read it, Bobby,” demanded
Elliot.

“
Avalanche’s
Troubled Lead Singer in Trouble Again? No one can deny that Joshua
Ravensong’s talent and sultry voice are the kingpins to Avalanche’s
success, but equally undeniable is his penchant for trouble. Once a
well-known drug addict, Joshua Ravensong’s exploits are legendary.
Fans and followers have always feared that the handsome head-man
for the nation’s number one band might be one concert away from a
descent into his past, self-destructive ways. Unfortunately, those
fears may be well founded. Recently, a source close to the singer
states that after Joshua’s concussion a few weeks ago, his behavior
has become erratic. He has fallen out with many of the band
members, refused to consider a European tour, and broken off a
romance with top model, Megan Wheeler. A recluse by nature, the
singer has taken to isolating himself even more. Most troubling is
the destruction of his long-time friendship with Elliot Evans,
which seems to indicate a deeper problem.
”
Robert slammed the paper down. “It goes on and on, speculating
about Joshua’s drug use.”

“
How interesting,” said
Julian.

Elena’s eyes whipped to his face.
“Interesting? How so? You’re the one that gave the reporter that
interview. You did this!”

“
Talk about slander,
Elena,” he said, feigning shock. “Why in the world would I want to
suggest that Joshua was using when I’m trying to promote the
band?”

“
To force him out,” she
said through gritted teeth.

Julian rolled his eyes and looked
away. “Always the drama with you. You suit him well.”

The other band members made grunts of
disapproval as Elena rose to her feet. “Are you denying you are
responsible for this article?”

Julian looked her straight in the eye.
“I had nothing to do with it.” When the others seemed to bristle,
he added, “That paper is a notorious tabloid. No one believes
anything from it.”

“
What about his fans, his
family…his daughter?” She combed her hair back from her forehead.
“I don’t believe you’re innocent. You want Joshua out of the band.
You’ve made that clear, and I think you’ll do anything to get what
you want.”

Julian’s gaze narrowed. “You’re
treading awfully close to insubordination.”

“
Really,” she said
sarcastically. “Then force me out too.” Tossing the contract into
the middle of the table, she headed for the door.

She made it to the elevators, but
someone caught her arm and spun her around. She tried to yank away,
but the fingers around her elbow tightened, drawing an involuntary
cry from her lips.

“
Let me go,” she snarled at
Julian.

He yanked her close, his jaw tight,
his eyes narrowed in fury. “Don’t ever walk away from me
again.”

Elena was so angry, she didn’t feel
any fear, until she saw the expression on his face. She’d never
seen him so enraged before. “Let go of me,” she said, emphasizing
each word.

“
Are you trying to
undermine my authority in the band?”

Elena curled her fingers around his
and tried to pry his hand from her arm. He tightened his hold and
shook her.

“
Answer me!”

She started to threaten him with
emasculation if he didn’t release her, but the elevator slid open
and Joshua stepped out. He took in the scene, then his shoulders
went taut.

“
Let her go,” he said in a
low, vibrating tone.

Julian released her immediately and
took a step back.

“
What the hell’s going on?”
demanded Joshua.

Elena backed away from the manager and
moved to Joshua’s side.

Julian shrugged. “Private discussion.
None of your business.”

Elena turned away from Julian and put
her hands on Joshua’s chest. He glanced at her, but his gaze
immediately snapped back to Julian. “Let’s get out of here,” she
said to Joshua, moving closer to him. “Right now. Pack up and catch
the next flight out.”

She caught the look of surprise that
washed over Julian’s face. “Hold on a minute…”

She ignored him. “Joshua,”
she said, touching his cheek. “Let’s go home. Let’s go through with
our plans, now, not later. I don’t want to be a part of this life
anymore. None of it’s real. It’s all fake, all phony, all lies.”
She shot the last part over her shoulder.

Julian sucked in air.

Joshua’s attention shifted to Elena.
“What’s going on?” he said.

“
Nothing, I’m just tired of
this. I’m tired of this life. Let’s go home. Today.
Please.”

He started to answer, clearly
bewildered, but Julian interrupted him.

“
Is that what you want,
Joshua? You want to leave the tour, disappoint the
fans?”

Joshua’s gaze drifted away.

“
Really, Joshua? You’d
disappoint fans who have waited years to see you perform? Fans
who’ve driven miles and miles out of the way? Fans who have saved
for months just for this chance? Will you really let them
down?”

Elena curled her fingers in his shirt.
“Don’t listen to him, please. He’s manipulating you. Let’s go
home.”

“
These are fans who stood
by you. Fans who never judged you. Even after rehab, even after
suicide attempts, Joshua, they were there. They made you famous
again. They forgave you. Can you really let them down?”

Joshua’s eyes rose and fixed on
Julian’s face. Elena knew she’d lost the battle then. She could
feel it shift away from her and she hated Julian for it. When
Joshua turned to her, his eyes were pleading.

“
I can’t leave, Elena,” he
whispered. “I made a promise. I can’t back out now.”

“
He’s lying to you. He’s
telling reporters lies about your sobriety. He’s making plans for a
European tour without you.” She motioned at the conference room.
“Joshua, he’s got auditions lined up in New Jersey for a new lead
singer to take the band to Europe.”

“
I don’t care about any of
that…”

“
But I do. I can’t work for
a man who does such things.”

Joshua’s head came up in surprise,
then he sighed. “I understand.” She frowned at him, but he lifted
his hands and cupped her shoulders. “I don’t want you to have to
work for such a man. I understand if you want to go home.” He
hesitated and his grip tightened. “But I have to stay. I have to
finish this tour.”

Elena’s eyes searched his face and her
hatred for Julian simmered to a boil. She felt as if she were
losing Joshua, right now, right here. He wouldn’t ask her to stay,
but if she left, things would change between them. Julian would
win. Somehow she knew that, somehow she knew that if she left him
now, Julian would succeed at driving him from the band, or worse.
The worse worried her more deeply.

She closed her eyes, then nodded.
Pulling away from Joshua, she moved in front of Julian and met his
look. Lifting her chin, she stared him down, forcing him to focus
on a spot somewhere over her left shoulder.

“
I quit,” she
said.

His eyes whipped back to her face and
widened in surprise.

“
I won’t work for a man
like you,” she continued. Then she gave him a cold smile. “But
don’t think you’ve won. I have enough salary coming to me to
continue the tour.”

When Julian blinked in surprise, she
nodded. “That’s right. I’m not going home. I’m staying here with
Joshua. And believe me when I tell you, I’ll be watching you –
every move, every word, every gesture. I won’t let anything get
beyond my attention.”

Julian’s jaw tensed, but he forced a
cold smile in return. His eyes lifted and fixed on Joshua. “As if I
cared,” he said.

* * *

Joshua sat in a chair at the rear of
the conference room, watching Julian’s auditions for his
replacement. He had to admit he found the whole spectacle amusing,
and just a little gratifying.

At least five hundred perspective
candidates had shown up for the audition. The rest of the band
refused to participate in the selection, Elena quit, and the new
assistant Julian hired was fresh out of college and too green to
trust alone with so many hopeful singers, which meant that Julian
had to vet every one of them. Some sang reasonably well, but most
were more interested in the head-banging, frenetic sound that they
hoped disguised a poor singing voice.

Joshua hadn’t thought it would be hard
to hear his songs sung by someone else, but it was, if mildly so.
He had written most of these songs and had put his own unique voice
into them. Of course, all of the singers, good and bad, felt the
songs needed their own personal touch, which was different from
his.

Julian knew he was sitting
in the back of the room, but pride had forced him to pretend it
didn’t bother him. As each new singer showed he didn’t have
that
Avalanche
feel, Joshua knew his presence rankled more and
more.

Right now the microphone was occupied
by one of the roadies. Joshua shook his head. The poor fool was
trying to play the piano as well. The other roadies were openly
laughing at him. Apparently hitting the right key either with his
voice or the piano was an unreasonable expectation. Joshua almost
felt sorry for him, but this was the same roadie that kept glaring
at him whenever Joshua happened to catch his eye. He made Joshua’s
skin crawl and he wasn’t sure he even knew his name.

Then Evan stormed into the room. He
stomped up to Julian in loud cowboy boots and blocked his line of
sight. The roadie stumbled to a stop and gave Julian a confused
look.

“
We have a problem,” said
Evan.

Julian glanced at him, then tried to
look around him at the stage. “Do you mind? I’m a little busy at
the moment. Leave a message on my cell and I’ll take care of it
tonight before the show.”

“
You’ll take care of it
now, or there won’t be a show.”

Julian shifted his attention back to
Evan. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“
Our equipment is lost. The
equipment manager can’t even locate the truck on GPS.”

“
Well, I’m not the
equipment manager. Deal with him.” He nodded at the roadie to
continue.

Evan interrupted him. “I’m telling you
and I expect you to deal with it.”

“
I’m interviewing lead
singers right now.”

“
For a tour that
happens after this one. The contract you signed with
Rage
said you would
provide all roadie assistance, equipment management, and living
arrangements, not audition the roadies themselves. Do we really
want to discuss contract violation?”