AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Joe
Joe was taking his place back at the table after grabbing some beers from the fridge and a couple of bottles of wine that he set down, letting everyone help themselves. Nanou had declined, waving her hand and instead, said she would make some tea and as she stood, asked Edie if she would like some. It was then Joe realised how quiet both women had been, and the prickle of unease followed by a wave of shame dragged him low, more so the stoop of Edie’s shoulders and the way she averted her eyes from him.
Making a mental note to speak to them both later, check that they were okay, Joe flipped the lid from the bottle and began. ‘Okay, back to La La Land. It was around the time me and Darlene got married that Harlem got pregnant, and Denny tried to persuade her to have an abortion. We were due to go back to the UK to start a huge tour; stadiums, festivals, television appearances that culminated in headlining at Glastonbury. Denny said he’d take Harlem along if she got rid of the baby, but she refused, said he had to marry her like he’d promised which we all knew was never going to happen for a hundred reasons. One was that he’d already found her replacement because she was becoming a hindrance, and that was without a baby in tow.’
Ace hadn’t opened his beer, he just picked at the label as he spoke. ‘What happened to her?’
‘He left her in the hospital, got on a plane and once he was safely in the air, had instructed his housekeeper to throw all her things out. He made sure she was persona non grata everywhere and, of course, nobody in their circle was going to take her in and go against angel-face Denny. She was back to square one, pregnant and on the streets.’
‘That’s sick, and cruel. God I hate that guy so much.’ Ace popped the beer and took a swig. ‘So where did she go?’
It was at this point, between the flick of the kettle and the sound of the fridge door closing that Joe looked up and at Gus. This was his cue.
‘She came to see me, desperate, saying she was going to tell the police and the papers unless I made Denny see sense, do the right thing, look after her baby, and take her back. It took all my powers of persuasion to make her listen and face the facts. Even when Denny came back, they were over and he’d never admit to the child being his, and it’d be for her to prove it was and remember in those days you couldn’t order a DNA test in the post. Plus, the fact that all the doors in town would be closed in her face especially if she contacted the police. She eventually calmed down and then I gave her some options.’
‘So, you paid her off.’ This came from Lance. The accompanying look that he flung at Gus was one of contempt, although Joe couldn’t be sure what his son was more contemptuous of – handing over NorthStar’s money to a hooker or the plight of a scared young woman.
Gus poured more wine as he spoke. ‘Yes, I paid her off. I also persuaded her to go home to her folks who would be able to look after her. She’d have enough money to get herself an apartment and look after her baby, start over and put Denny behind her.’
‘And she went? Back home to her parents.’ Wide-eyed Ace couldn’t hide the hope in his voice.
Keeping his eyes firmly on his wine glass, Gus answered, ‘Yes, I gave her money. My assistant took her to the airport, bought her a ticket and Harlem went back home to North Dakota.’
At this point Joe stepped in, eager to move the story on. ‘When the rest of us joined Denny in London and we started rehearsals for the tour, the atmosphere was dire because we all despised him, but once we hit the road it eased, and we got on with doing what we did best. It was all going great, nine months of being back on home soil, and we were loving it, so were the fans. We’d reached the last leg, after our homecoming in Manchester we had one more show in Edinburgh and then we were off to Glastonbury and what should’ve been the pinnacle of our career, for me anyway.’
‘And then the woman died on the coach, Wendy.’
Whether Lance’s comment was a prompt or an attempt to show that he gave a damn, Joe wasn’t sure. ‘Yes, Wendy. And she was barely a woman, fifteen and a half, and whoever gave her the drugs has blood on their hands, not that the police could ever prove who it was. All we know is that she’d been hanging around all day and got herself onto the bus that night. It was parked behind the hotel where we had the aftershow party, in a compound. Her body was found the next day huddled between the back seats. She’d choked on her own vomit. It makes me want to weep, to even think of it.’
Nanou was making her way back to the table with two cups in her hand when a voice not heard so far, gentle but not timid, enquiring not accusatory, caused Joe to lean forward and look down the table at Edie. ‘Do you think it was Denny, that gave her the drugs? From what you’ve said Wendy sounds just the age group he’d go for.’
Joe answered honestly. ‘All I can tell you is what I told the police at the time. I didn’t see her with Denny, not on her own but some of the other fans at the gig remembered her talking to him. He said he couldn’t remember and that he was too high and drunk after the show. Nobody would ever admit to asking her to join the party or offering her drugs, so it was assumed she could have brought them on the coach herself.
‘As you know the next show was cancelled out of respect to her family and because the press was so bad, we cancelled Glastonbury and as soon as we could, headed back to the States. After that I made a rule that unless they were family or part of the crew, women weren’t allowed on the tour buses or backstage in our dressing rooms, and we made sure security was really tight. I wished we’d done it before, out of respect for our wives because it can’t have been nice for Darlene and Tina to know that there were women hanging around all the time, and it might have saved Wendy’s life.’
Gus then took up the tale. ‘It was a sobering and very humbling experience and it kind of heralded a new phase for NorthStar. Once we got back to America I got the band together and as best as I could where Denny was concerned, without accusing him of anything, told everyone to keep their heads down, toe the line. And that’s what they did. We holed up in the studio and made the Galaxy album and hoped that by the time it came out, what happened back home wouldn’t be brought up at every interview we gave.’
Joe leant forward in his chair. ‘I remember that time as being peaceful. I think we needed a break from the wild side. We still had to deal with the baby groupies hanging about because they followed us everywhere, would turn up to the studio or if we played live or appeared on TV. They’d wait backstage, or I’d wave and single them out during a song, so they’d know I appreciated them. I even knew some of their names, a young kid called Pammie, another called Julia. And it wasn’t just girls, it was guys too, loyal fans who hung onto our every word and lyric, kids who would grab my hand and hold on tight when I passed by. It made me feel so humble, so I tried to return that vibe, make them feel special by stopping for a minute and having a chat, taking an interest, asking how they were doing. But that was it.
‘I could feel it was time to move on and grow up. Lance had been born, I was a dad and husband, and we were making great music, which was all I ever wanted to do. Life was good for a while. My wife was doing well, we had a nice house in Beverly Hills and then just after Lance’s tenth birthday the band flew to Mexico for a gig and then it happened again. Another tragedy.’
Once again, Gus helped him out. ‘I always felt it was my mistake, hiring a villa but I had this crazy notion that it’d be good for morale, a bonding experience and a nod to the old days when the five of us would share a few rooms in a tacky hotel. We’d all been getting on well mainly because Denny was seeing someone almost of his own age, a game-show hostess who appeared to have calmed him down a bit. What I think happened was that as soon as he was away from her, the lid came off whatever urges he’d suppressed, and he regressed into the Denny of old.’
Joe nodded his agreement. ‘Gus is right. But we were all up for a party and it had been our first live gig in a while, and we were all stoked. Darlene trusted me and she had no reason not to, and yes, I partied hard that night, but I went to bed alone and well before many of the others. That’s why what happened when everyone went home or to their rooms, how Felipa ended up with drugs in her bloodstream, how she fell into the pool and drowned, remains a mystery. Another young woman gone, this time a mother who was trying to earn some money as a hostess to give her baby a better life.’
‘But Dad,’ said Lance, ‘I don’t see what this has got to do with this documentary and book. All this is old news, unless you think someone was there when Wendy and Felipa died, someone who might know more than they said back then. Is that what’s bothering you?’ For the first time his tone had lost its edge and instead he sounded genuinely concerned.
‘Yeah, and that it reminds me of how I fell apart and started being a complete dick towards your mum, knocking back the booze like it was going to take it all away. Mexico was another turning point but for the bad. I felt that my marriage falling apart was punishment for Felipa.’
‘Dad, you were asleep. It wasn’t your fault.’ Again, Lance sounded sincere.
‘I’m just trying to work through it all in my head, turning over stones, if you get me. But the common denominator always comes back to Denny and I’m worried that while we weren’t perfect, Chaz, Steve, and me, we were nothing like him. Worse, is that even if it was Denny at the root of the problem, we always got lumped in by association and I reckon that’s what’ll happen again. Either that, or one of us has done something we’ve forgotten. I’d like to think of myself as better than Denny, but I can’t be sure, can I? Just like I don’t know what went on behind closed doors with the others in the band so for now, it’s going to be a waiting game, until we get sight of the goods.’
Ace made a point. ‘That’s all we can do, Dad, and from what you’ve told us if anyone is going to be in trouble it’s Denny, not you – but I do get that NorthStar’s name will be everywhere. What we have to do now is hold firm and be ready, and hope that Oliver and the record label come up with a strategy of how to handle the press. Gus, are you going to stay here? I think you should, and let your guys in London fend them off.’
All eyes were on Gus, however, his were glued to a pile of letters on the table and as he pulled out the one peeping from underneath a flier, he asked a question. ‘When did this arrive?’
Nanou answered. ‘Today. It is from America.’
