Chapter 21 ~ Cacophony

Chapter 21

South Beach: North Shore ~ Savage Residence

The last thing Rafe wanted to do was attend a party. He hesitated at the walkway as his wife turned to look at him. "What is it baby? Do you want to go home?" she asked him gently. "Yeah but as much as I want to blow this thing off, I need to do it," he resigned himself.

As short-lived as it had been, good fortune had smiled down on Rafe one stormy night. Driving back to Bay View in a rental car after an interview with Rolling Stone for a freelance job, he had come across the apparent scene of an accident on the side of the road.

Taking the owner of the car to the closest towing station, they struck up a conversation and when the man's Corvette was safely on its way to a body shop Rafe had his first story, a series of articles chronicling life on the road with the rock band Mercury Rising, an assignment he had mixed feelings over. This party was to be his introduction to the band.

"Let's just get this over with," he growled as he rang the bell. They were soon greeted by Slim. "Rafe, glad you could make it," Slim spoke warmly, "And you must be Gayl. You didn't bring your son?"

Rafe planned to stay only long enough to meet the band and get what he needed before the tour began. It was a job, not a social call. His wife was pregnant again, her pregnancy this time had become more difficult than the first, and he didn't want her running after their active son in this situation. "He wasn't feeling too well; we left him at home with his older brother," she explained after exchanging glances with Rafe.

"Well come on in and make yourselves comfortable. The band is out by the pool and there is plenty to eat and drink," Slim invited. "You can change in there if you want to go swimming," he gestured down the hallway. Taking his wife's hand, Rafe glanced around as he mumbled quick thanks and led her down the hall to change.

Emerging several minutes later Rafe briefly acknowledged Cooper and began surveying the grounds as his wife chatted with Beth. "Where's Rayne?" she asked. "She's upstairs napping in Will's room. Coop had her in the pool earlier and she was completely exhausted," Beth explained.

Rafe stood by the edge of the pool and watched as Aidan O'Malley, the bassist regarded him thoughtfully. He looked moderately uncomfortable and out of place sandwiched between two tanned girls. The blonde was chattering away about the SPF level in her bronzer while her date openly admired the end results. The raven haired girl nodded vaguely. Rafe didn't get the impression she felt any more comfortable than Aiden.

A couple of kids splashed in the shallow end of the pool and Rafe guessed the boy belonged to Slim and Bonni. Since Heydon was the only other married band member the girl must be his. Although it was fair to assume she might have belonged to one of the others, Rafe doubted that.

Heydon and his wife approached the couples lounging in the sun and Rafe overheard him speak to the drummer, Daniel Whitney. "Dan-o, I thought you were designated bartender today." Whitney dragged his eyes away from the blonde long enough to mutter something Rafe couldn't quite make out.

The group rose and slowly made their way to the deck where Cooper, Beth, Bonni and Slim had gravitated. Peri, Heydon's wife lingered with the drummer speaking softly through the smile she wore as she watched the children splashing. Judging by his body language, whatever she said made him uncomfortable. Rafe made a mental note to remember that as he slowly strode toward the deck.

He knew a little bit about Peri Mitchell. She was an artist who had followed the band as a teenager sketching them when they were trying to make a name for themselves. She had caught both Daniel and Heydon's eye but apparently Heydon was the one who produced the ring, the proposal, and the subsequent litter of kids. Surprising considering his penchant for variety but then Peri had been a wild child herself.

Figuring that was as good a place as any to begin, Rafe made his way up the deck stairs and approached Mitchell who was looking a bit fatigued. His wife and Whitney were following close behind him as Daniel slurred something about making her another peach something or other.

Heydon headed into the house with Rafe and turning to face him blurted out, "Don't believe everything that you hear, man; we've been together a long time and tend to behave badly at times but we aren't such a bad group of guys." Rafe stared at him wondering why the guy was making excuses and apologies. It must have been the liquor, the heat, or some combination of both. "I'm not here to make assumptions; I'm just breaking the ice…trying to get to know everyone before the tour. That's all," Rafe's voice was cautious.

"I guess I'm asking you to keep an open mind. We're a tight knit group and I want you to feel like you're part of us when we're on the road. It might be awkward if there was some misunderstanding you know? I'm happily married to Peri, we have a nice little family unit. I know I had a bit of a rep but I'm over that. So is Peri. I just wanted you to know."

This afternoon was starting to get as strange as he had expected. Rafe's voice was level as he answered, "I don't think I'm misunderstanding anything. Like I said, I'm just getting a feel for the band."

It didn't take long for the rest of the group to gravitate to the living room. Beth had gone up to check on her daughter as Rafe's wife stood next to him looking hot and tired. Rafe would be only too happy to get her out of here and back home. As he turned to say something, the gregarious and intoxicated Daniel Whitney stopped him. "I tried to fix your girl here a virgin Pina Colada but she wasn't having any of it. Din' trust there wasn't any alcohol in it," he chuckled. "She looks like she's ready to pop that kid out any time." Seeing Rafe's jaw visibly tighten Cooper rushed over to try and prevent the scene from escalating.

"She's a hot mama…her 'n' Peridot…" The raven haired girl stood by uncomfortably as Daniel reached out presumably to take Rafe's arm. Cooper intervened quickly.

"Danny why don't you go for a nice dip in the pool and cool down," he quietly urged. "Wha? Wha'd I say? She is hot! They're all hot! We're lucky damned bastards…" "That's enough Danny!" Coop warned.

Peri's lilting laughter seemed to break the tension as she stood next to Daniel. Clearly she had drank one Peach Bellini too many as she openly flirted with him. "Danny can I have a word out side? You need me to remind you of your manners." Aimee, Daniel's girlfriend listened as she held her breath. "You gonna take me over your knee and spank me Peri?" he leered openly at her.

Peri laughed again as she carefully swished past him and headed outside. Aimee tossed a knowing look at Aiden's date. "I don't think it's manners she wants to remind him about. You should keep an eye on Aiden before she sets her sights on him," Aimee cautioned.

"That's ridiculous Aimee. Aiden isn't like that," the girl, Lakin, shot back. "Aiden doesn't play around like that and he certainly wouldn't do anything with Heydon's wife. He's better than that and she is drunk," she defended.

Staring at Lakin, almost challenging her as if she knew some secret that Lakin didn't, Aimee started to walk past her as she warned, "Right, you've known him all of about 15 minutes. Don't be so naïve. They're all fair game."

A heavy blanket of silence fell on the room as Peri hesitated before continuing out the door. Cooper and Heydon stared up at Daniel, who seemed oblivious to the exchange. "Wha'd I say this time?" Daniel asked. "I think I need some air," Gayl breathed as she rose and walked outside.

"Baby, wait!" Rafe called after her. She stopped and turning on the soft grass asked him, "How long are you going to be travelling with them?" "As long as it takes to get what I need out of it. I know what I'm doing baby; you have to trust me. Let's get out of here. I've had enough anyway."

Once they had changed Rafe headed out to the car as Slim said goodbye. "Trust me, they aren't as bad as they seemed today Rafe," he urged as he briefly held Rafe's shoulder, "They're just letting off steam." Somehow Rafe doubted that but he thanked Slim for his hospitality as Bonni called out, "Do you have to leave so soon? There's going to be fireworks over the water as soon as it's dark."

Figuring they had seen enough fireworks for one afternoon, Rafe politely declined.

Fireworks ~ 10PM

Not long after the Taylors left, night fell and the fireworks began as promised over the ocean. Everyone, it seemed, enjoyed the fiery display with the exception of Daniel and Peri who were in the middle of a very animated conversation.

"I have no problem tolerating Daniel on most days, Slim, but that girl of his is one piece of work," Bonni observed, "They need to leave…soon." Slim let out an exhausted sigh as he agreed, "I know B. This afternoon could have gone better." Cooper laughed, "It's going to be a PR nightmare if he prints any of what went on here today and I have no doubt he'll do just that."

"Peri, can I have a word?" Heydon glanced briefly at Daniel, "The way Aimee is staggering, she may end up tumbling down the bluff. You need to take care of her." Without saying a word, Daniel strolled casually away as Peri turned and faced her husband.

"I'm going to call a taxi; you want to see if you can do something about Aimee before the fireworks end up in our yard?" Bonni turned angrily and entered the house.

With Beth safely out of earshot, Cooper turned to Slim, "I am seriously worried about this Slim. What went down here is going to find its way into print. I know you don't agree but I don't trust Rafe to chalk it up to the alcohol consumption. This is going to get ugly."

Slim regarded his friend for a long moment before speaking, "Look, Rafe needs this, it's a big opportunity for him with Rolling Stone. He needs to make a good first impression with them too. I don't think he'll blow it over some misguided desire to dig up dirt and print it. He isn't writing for some trashy tabloid. If he wants credibility, he'll focus on what I hired him to do." Pausing briefly, Slim continued, "What do you have against him anyway?"

Cooper sighed as a slight offshore breeze sliced through the palm fronds and ruffled his hair. Looking up at Slim once more he maintained, "I don't have anything against him…well nothing concrete. You do know who he is, don't you?" "Yeah," Slim answered, "he's Senator Taylor's kid."

"No," Cooper corrected him, "He's Cammie's nephew, Tony Lothario's son…Beth's ex." Slim's eyes grew wide, "Oh…look don't sweat it. I'll talk to him. You just focus on the music and don't worry about it." Inhaling deeply Cooper watched as Beth approached, "Yeah, right, don't worry."

"Honey, the cab is here. Can we please get those two on their way?" Bonni asked. Beth watched Cooper, curious, her mouth curved in a slight smile, "Coop, we need to get going too. Rayne has a slight sunburn; I want to get her home, bathed and in her own bed." Slim tried to reassure Cooper once more, "I'll talk to you tomorrow Coop. Don't worry, I'll take care of things."

The idea of touring now nagged at him; Cooper felt uncharacteristically resistant to it. Still anxious and concerned Coop hesitated, started to speak and then let out a ragged sigh as he turned to go home.

Slim and Bonni approached Daniel and Aimee and told them a cab was waiting to take them home. "I'm perfectly capable of driving Danny home, Bonni," Aimee argued. "No, you're not! You're just as drunk as he is," Bonni shot back. Slim glared at the blonde and finally growled, "You will take the cab Aimee. Danny is not driving and he isn't going in a car with you. Danny, take your girl and get going. You can pick your wheels up tomorrow." Danny briefly glanced over at Peri, took Aimee's arm and headed for the door.

When everyone was finally gone, Slim found Bonni among the palms that sheltered their property. As she turned and smiled at him Slim pulled her close to his body and purred, "Now about those fireworks…"


Bay View: South End ~ Holloway Residence

Picking absently at the veggie pizza she had just baked, Stevie finally pushed it aside and scrutinized the way Shaun was eating. "How can anyone who normally devours food with such gusto use a fork to eat pizza?" she quizzed him.

Looking up and grinning he teased, "At least I'm eating it. Should I be concerned about what you put in it? You haven't touched yours." Glancing at her plate, she grimaced and abruptly rose from the table.

Stevie walked over to the window and watched as storm clouds threatened off the ocean. Bursts of sunlight broke through if only for the briefest moment, the alternating light and dark adding to Stevie's confusion. Shaun's massive hands gently turned her around to face him. "How long are you going to make me wait Stevie?" Her mouth formed its usual crooked grin, "I'm not sure I know what you're getting at Shaun."

Stevie sat on the couch as Shaun dropped next to her and placed a comforting arm around her shoulder. "I know I'm fairly laid back and tend to miss a lot of the usual bullshit going on around me but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know why you aren't eating and why you keeping hurling in the toilet at all hours. So are we going to talk about it or what?"

"Shit Shaun…I don't know what to say," Stevie looked away, embarrassed and torn. Having a baby right now, if ever, was not in her immediate plans. She rose once more and went back to the window. "Is it mine?" Shaun's voice was barely audible.

Furious, Stevie turned, eyes challenging, "What kind of question…how could you even ask me that Shaun!?"

"I don't know Stevie, maybe because I figured that if you were having my baby you would have shared the news with me and we'd be making plans?" His sarcastic tone stung and she felt consumed with guilt. At a loss for words, Stevie just gazed at him for a long moment and then sighed.

"The timing couldn't be worse Shaun and I don't know if I ever want to have kids," she confessed, "I don't know how to be a mother. And then there's the tour. This is seriously not a good thing right now!"

Caressing her cheek he reassured her, "You'll be a great mother, babe. Don't worry about the tour; we'll get a backup drummer for when you don't feel like performing."

"That's just it, Shaun, I want to perform. I feel alive when I'm out there; it's like nothing else…you know that feeling, that euphoria. I don't want to miss that," she admitted.

Laughing, he stressed, "It isn't a permanent condition Stevie."

"Of course it is Shaun. Unless you're like my dad and you walk away. Then I guess it isn't permanent," her bitter words hit hard. "My mother did the best she could but I took care of her way more than she ever took care of me," she spoke softly, "I got used to being independent. I don't know if I can raise a child."

Shaun struggled with his emotions. He wanted desperately to ask Stevie to marry him; he had wanted it even before he knew about the baby. But he had watched her elude commitment for a long time. Even Cooper hadn't had all of her. Shaun knew asking her now would make her bolt.

"I love you Stevie, you and our baby. I'm not going anywhere; we can do this…together," Shaun vowed kissing her tenderly. Looking in his eyes, Stevie almost believed it.

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NEXT CHAPTER: Rising Above Chapter 1