Chapter 32 ~ Burnin' It To The Ground

Optimism, Aidan remembered that word from his interview with Rafe. He had used it to describe Aidan. Aidan smiled as he considered how fitting that word was. When he reflected on his life, his career, it was the one thing that remained a constant in him. The fame, the fortune, it was all a pleasant bonus but it wasn't everything.

Aidan never cared that he was not the sexy one, the wild one, or the mysterious one. He was happy simply being the bass player. He laughed inwardly as he remembered the girls in Venice beckoning him toward their gondola and urging him to get in. They had flirted shamelessly; it took him by surprise and he had been more than flattered.

He politely declined the invitation. His heart belonged to Lakin. He was going home. He was going to ask her to marry him. Aidan exhaled, smiled once more and prepared to take the stage.

True to form, Daniel paced like a caged animal before the show. Always unpredictable, wild and reckless he would hit on the women along with a bottle of Stoly as he waited to perform. Not this time however. He was sober, focused, a man with a goal. Life was falling into place for Daniel.

Taking measures to rectify the mistakes of the past and cleaning up his act was just one part of it. He was going to pursue Peri. He loved her, he always loved her. No way would he let Heydon stand in the way of it. He knew Peri wouldn't tolerate Heydon's infidelity. How could she? It was what had ruined Danny's relationship with her all those years ago when she found out he had been married to Shana. Even if the marriage had been a sham, a drunken night of debauchery that ended up at a wedding chapel, she never forgave him.

He stood gripping his drumsticks and looked ahead, hopeful for the first time in years

Heydon sat slumped in a chair and brooded as he considered what he would be returning to once he headed home. It would not be the usual homecoming, the nice dinner, the kids begging for stories and souvenirs, or the long night of passion between him and Peri.

Instead of feeling angry and resentful, Heydon was relieved. He held onto that pain and humiliation for too long, always fighting to prove he was the only man Peri wanted or needed, not second to anyone. It no longer mattered. What did matter were his children. They were hurt, confused, and angry.

Heydon rose and listened as the sounds of the crowd reached him. He was going to walk out on that stage and perform just like he always did, despite the fact that he felt empty inside. Where would he be in three months, in six?

"Heydon, have you been avoiding me?" Selene's distinctive voice interrupted his thoughts.

"What do you want Selene?" His voice was flat, emotionless.

"Darling, things do not need to end between us. It was unfortunate but...well things do happen don't they? I think we can still enjoy each other's company from time to time don't you?"


Heydon turned to look at her and wondered why he ever let himself get drawn in by her charms. "It's over Selene. You're just not that interesting anymore."

Tyler finished the last song in the set, carefully set down his guitar and strode off the stage as the crowd went wild. They had done two encores and as much as he loved to perform, he was drained.

It was almost a letdown knowing that the tour was over; there would be no more performances for awhile. Tyler loved to work the audience and the fans adored him as well. His powerful voice combined with amazing guitar riffs earned him a steady following of female fans but he took it all in stride.

Nothing much had really changed for Tyler unless of course you considered his bank account and fame. He was still the laid back guy who began the tour seven months ago. He wiped the beads of sweat from his face as he wondered what waited for him back in Bay View. One thing was certain; he would buy himself a nice house on the beach with a room for his guitars and rip Amanda Alcaide out of his head forever.

"Great set man. You guys rocked the house."

Shaun grinned at Cooper as he pulled off his shirt and used it to wipe his body. "Thanks Coop. It felt good." Shaun rejoined the band after Stevie felt more settled with their son. She had been surprisingly confident and had urged him to finish the tour. After hiring help for her, Shaun did just that. Now he was anxious to go home.

Finding a quiet corner away from the stage and the crews, Shaun called Stevie. "Hey baby. Yeah we just finished our set. The place was packed! I can't wait to see you. How's are little guy doing?" Stevie filled him in on Devlin's growth spurt and Shaun beamed with pride.

Having been born early, Devlin was pretty small but he was quickly catching up to a healthy weight. "Is he up? Can you put the phone near him?"

Hearing the soft gurgle of his son, Shaun's emotion welled up inside nearly overwhelming him. "Hey little one...Daddy's going to sing you a lullaby. Now you be good for Mommy." He crooned softly into the phone, "And in the end on dreams we will depend, 'cause that's what love is made of..."

It was done. The airports, the delayed flights, the jet lag, endless hotels and the long absences from his family were almost a distant memory. Rafe missed his family, the bright laughter of his kids, the long walks along the shore with his wife; he missed home.

Rolling Stone had been far more than pleased with his articles. They were raw and edgy, real, not the usual fare from a novice writer covering a famous rock band. They were going to publish them in a series after the tour was done, having published his intro piece already, and paid him handsomely for it. He had made a name for himself and would now be in a position to pick and choose what he covered.

A soft hand gently slipped into his, fingers lacing through his, then casually moved up his arm and rested on his bicep. He turned to see his wife standing next to him. She had always wanted to see a rock concert from this side of the stage and he had flown her out to join him.

Rafe pulled her close, his eyes lit with a surreal fire. The first thing he was going to do when he got home was to buy her something shiny...well maybe not the first thing, he thought to himself as she smiled up at him.

No matter how many times he stood behind a stage waiting to perform, it always felt like the first time. The sounds, the smells, and the fast paced bustle of crews that handled lighting, mics, pyrotechnics, booms and lifts, it never got old. His heart pounded steadily in his chest, he could feel the energy coursing through his veins.

The music was there swirling around him like tendrils as he breathed it in allowing it to become part of him. There was so much more music to be made; a torrent running through Cooper like a raging river. It was the life that flowed through him and poured out of his hands when he played his guitar.

This time though, the homecoming was going to be as thrilling. Beth, his beautiful wife, and his children would be waiting for him. Cooper exhaled as a slow smile spread across his face. He was happy, content, fulfilled, unlike any other time in his life. Finally, he had it all, his heart's desire. Cooper would never take it for granted; he would cherish this life every day.

But there was still unfinished business, the mess with Ryan. He should have fired him on the spot; why did he relent? Cooper's face darkened as anger threatened to boil to the surface. He had been self-absorbed, blinded to what was right in front of him. He still wasn't convinced that Beth didn't sense Ryan's feelings about her.

Uncomfortable with how far it could have gone, it rocked Cooper to his core to think that Beth could have developed feelings for Ryan as well. They had grown close; even Rayne shared a bond with Ryan.

Let it go for now, he told himself. Closing his eyes, Cooper shut everything out and allowed the monster rock star to emerge slowly and steadily. Still the music surrounded him, vines that caressed, electric and powerful. Cooper was the music as he stood poised to take the stage, a sensual beast that would seduce the crowd and leave them begging for more.



Mercury Rising had been a band whose roots sprang from nothing more than a young boy's dream. Through the years they became a multi platinum hard rocking success story that wouldn't die out any time soon. Guys wanted to be them and girls wanted to do them. Cooper, Heydon, Daniel, and Aidan slowly snaked their way onto the stage and took their places.

Myriad colored spotlights hit the band as the guitars began to wail, hard driving and electric, as the sound shredded the arena. Aidan's bass thumped in duet with Danny's double bass filling out the bottom as Cooper's rough voice shouted to the crowd, "Make some noise!"



The crowd went wild, frenzied cries and bodies moving, singing and reaching out to touch their idols. They fed on it; it fueled the music and the men and they put their heart and soul into every note, every beat. They played with an urgency so compelling that it was almost as if they would never play again and wanted to leave something tangible of themselves in that arena.

They had been gone for 7 months, visited 12 foreign countries and hit every major city in North America including some small ones. They were tired and anxious to go home for better or worse, to changes good and bad, but tonight it was about the music, their music.


They played for nearly two and a half hours before they walked off the stage, sweating, muscles aching, and adrenaline pumping hard, a euphoric sensation unlike any other. The crowd screamed; they were unwilling to leave and begging for more.


The lights dimmed. You could barely make out the stage but shadows could be seen moving along the ramps, unfamiliar and far too many to be Mercury Rising. The deep and raw sound of a lone guitar began to slowly break the silence as one shadow moved slowly along the center of the stage followed by another.

It was a rhythmic and pulsating sound that was soon joined by the steady pounding of a bass drum followed shortly thereafter by a second guitar and a bass in the distance.

The sound grew until it exploded, every musical line coming together and each with its own intro. It grew until the sound was too intense as more shadows took the stage. Fans all over the arena screamed for Cooper with each resonating tone until the spots flashed on and off in colors of red, green, purple and blue illuminating all the stages at once and exposing the shadows at last.


Cooper stood with a mic in his hand next to his son and began to sing, his raspy voice eliciting wild applause and screams in the packed venue. As Wyatt sweep-picked the strings Cooper teased the female fans with sensual and flirtatious moves as his voice reached out to them like a lover's caress.

Well it's midnight, damn right,
We're wound up too tight
I've got a fist full of whiskey,
the bottle just bit me

Ooooooooooooooohhhhhhhhhhh
That shit makes me bad shit crazy
We got no fear, no doubt, all in balls out

We're going off tonight
To kick out every light
Take anything we want
Drink everything in sight

We're going till the world stops turning
While we burn it to the ground tonight
Ooooohhhhhhh

We're screaming like demons,
swinging from the ceiling
I got a fist full of fifties,
Tequila just hit me Ooooohhhhh

We got no class, no taste, no shirt, and shit faced
We got it lined up, shot down,
firing back straight Crown

We're going off tonight
To kick out every light
Take anything we want
Drink everything in sight

We're going till the world stops turning
While we burn it to the ground tonight
Ooooohhhhhhh, Ooooohhhhhhh

Ticking like a time bomb,
Drinking till the night's gone
Well get your hands off of this glass, last call my ass

Well no chain, no lock, and this train won't stop
We got no fear, no doubt, all in balls out!

They all converged on the main stage, past, present, and future joined as they played the last chorus, a legacy of incredible pure rock.

We're going off tonight
To kick out every light
Take anything we want
Drink everything in sight

We're going till the world stops turning
While we burn it to the ground tonight
Ooooohhhhhhh, Ooooohhhhhhh

We're going off tonight, To kick out every light

Take anything we want, Drink everything in sight

We're going till the world stops turning while we burn it to the ground tonight