Rocked Up

“C’mon in, dirty boy,” she says, wagging her finger at me seductively.

She looks beautiful. All her make-up is washed off and her wet hair is pushed back off her face, her smile genuine.

“Let’s see those hands, you dirty girl,” I tell her, playing along.

Lael holds up her clean hands for inspection and gives a childish proud smile.

“I bet you like it when I’m a dirty girl,” she says playfully.

Damn. This is something else. It’s a sunny day in the French Quarter and here I am with this stunning young woman, smiling and laughing in the shower.

I’m happy.

I’m actually happy.

“Can you go again?” she asks, mimicking her early position, only this time her hands are on the clean pipes of the fancy shower.

I don’t answer. I turn her around so her bum is pressing into me and I show her I can.

When shower time is over, I wrap her in a towel.

“You realize we were supposed to be at sound check ten minutes ago,” I tell her.

“Oh shit,” Lael says putting her hands to her face.

“Don’t worry about it, it will be fine,” I assure her. I don’t want her to regret anything we just did.

Knock, knock.

The door practically rattles off the hinges.

“That doesn’t sound like housekeeping,” I say warily as I walk out of the bathroom and across the room.

Knock Knock.

The door rattles with each hit.

I look though the peephole and turn to Lael.

“It’s your dad.”





Chapter Twelve





Brad




Lael is standing as still as a deer and ready to run to at any moment. I look through the peep hole again and see Ronald’s ugly distorted face.

“He’s still there!” I whisper to her. “Hide!”

Lael scurries into action like an animal seeking escape and heads into the bathroom.

“No, under the bed,” I say as I lift the sheet overhanging to the floor only to find no space at all. I glance up to see Lael climbing out of the window to the fire escape in her house coat and a towel on her head.

“Are you nuts?” I protest and investigate what she’s stepping out onto. The fire escape is small, high up and like many things in the French Quarter, old and rusty.

Knock Knock Knock.

“I know you’re in there, open the door!” Ronald shouts.

With her dancer’s grace, Lael steps out on to the landing with ease and ducks out of view.

I close the curtains and walk to the door, taking in a deep breath and exhaling slowly with my hand on the dead bolt.

Click.

I open the door.

“Ronald, what brings you to New Orleans?” I ask as surprised and casual as possible.

He doesn’t answer. With a bunch of papers in hand, Ronald walks right past me into my room and his two henchmen follow. He looks around the corner to where the bed is, opens the closet door, and the checks the bathroom.

“Where is she?” he finally asks, turning around.

“Who?” I answer.

Ronald takes a step closer to me invading my space, letting me know he didn’t like my answer.

“I just got back from the venue, I thought I would find you there for sound check. I thought I would find Lael too, funny how both of you are taking the day off. I gave you specific instructions Brad. Very specific. Don’t tell me you’re crossing the lines with my daughter, so help me god.”

“What, I don’t know what you are talking about.”

Ronald slams a fistful of magazines on the table. They fan out and I can see Lael and myself on the covers of them all. One of the pictures is framed in the shape of a heart. I’m amazed how fast they went to print.

“That looks worse than it is Ronald, you know how they can manipulate things,” I tell him. He of all people should know this.

“I said no press for Lael and I find out she’s going to be on the cover of the damn Rolling Stone next month? You see, Brad, this is supposed to be temporary, and what is happening here is that you are taking advantage of a young and impressionable girl that looks up to you.”

Ronald points his finger in my face.

I try to speak but Ronald cuts me off. “You are putting me in a position here, this is something you have created. I’m left with no choice.” Ronald lets his words hang in the air, my attention goes to his security guards in matching suits behind him.

Holy shit. Am I about to be roughed up?

“Look, Brad, people disappear all the time,” he says slowly, his voice remaining casual even though I know the intention is anything but. “If something happened to you, my god, could you imagine, it would be horrible. I mean, your album sales would probably enable me to retire, but what a loss it would be. Those magazines would have full page stories on you. Lael would be devastated I’m sure. But then you know what would happen Brad? Time would pass. How long do you think it would take for you to be forgotten – to truly disappear? Faster then you think my friend, within weeks it would be like you never existed and I would buy a fucking boat.”

He’s speaking so calmly, so coolly, that I know I have to take him seriously.

“Are you threatening me?” I ask.

“You should know better than anyone that the world is not safe, people are not good. I am a very dangerous man, Brad. The truth is I don’t like you, you were street kid when I met you and you still are. I can see it in your eyes – what you really are. I don’t want you to be with my daughter, and I don’t want my daughter to be in your band. Whatever is going on with you and Lael stops now. If it wasn’t for the press having interest in Lael playing in the band I would pull her out right now. But, as it is, she will have to finish the tour.”

Ronald walks to the window and I can feel my heart rate increase, he continues to speak to me even though I’m looking at his back.

“You do have something in common with her. You know what that is, Brad? I created both of you. Think about it, the last ten years of your life, there’s nothing that is not because of me. I know what’s best for her and what happens in the next ten years of her life will be because of me too. Only she can’t know that. So I need to let nonsense like this tour happen sometimes so she feels like she has some control. Even though nothing could be farther from the truth. And you, Brad, you are not a part of the plan.”

Ronald turns to face me and smiles like a salesman, opens his arms with innocence and changes his tone.

“Alright kid, are you feeling ready for the big show tonight?”

“What?” I’m completely baffled. He’s gone from mob boss to little league coach faster than I can blink.

“I have some business to take care of so I will see you there. Break a leg.” Ronald points to my leg, which kind of takes away from the figurative nature of the expression.

He walks to the door and one of his security guards opens it for him. Before leaving he winks at me and says, “I’m sure you will do what is right and we can get past this.”