Strings (30 page)

Hospital – Dale
(4)

October 2014

‘Do I have to talk about this? I can’t go over it again.’

             
Melissa begged for a break. Her knuckles were going white as she gripped the sheets, and the distress was clear on her face. Beth suggested that Dale took over for a while. Only Dale could explain the next part anyway. The Eagles had been on tour after the split, and Melissa had cut off all contact with Luke, so she couldn’t tell that part of the story anyway, not fully. 

             
Fox thought some insight into Luke’s side of things would be useful. He needed to get a picture of him that wasn’t from the devoted or scorned girlfriend perspective. He needed to know if there was anything else that might help their enquiries, and it was quite often the seemingly small things that held the biggest clues. He certainly hoped so this time.

             
‘Mr Baxter, I’m aware of your loyalty to your friend but can I ask you to be completely honest about Luke’s behaviour while on tour. How did he take the split?’

             
Dale looked at the floor then at Melissa. She nodded, giving him full permission to say what needed to be said.

             
‘I know everything important – not much can shock me anymore,’ she whispered.

             
Luke had held nothing back from her since they had reconciled their differences. She shivered, knowing that she was about to hear more upsetting things. Dale sat forward in his chair, his hood hiding most of his face. Melissa wanted to reach out and hug him – he looked so sad, but mostly he looked tired.

             
Beth must have been thinking the same because she took his hand before whispering in his ear, ‘Luke isn’t a bad person, he isn’t.’

             
Dale’s tone was already defensive. He knew that what he said next would not paint Luke in a positive light. He explained how Luke had pulled himself together in time for the tour, and initially seemed surprisingly focused. Nobody suspected there were any problems, apart from the obvious one that he seemed to be starting to deal with. They all knew Luke was hurting over losing Melissa but, as the saying goes, the show must go on.

             
The tour itself was a success because on stage Luke was always on fire. But they could all see as the tour progressed that he wasn’t himself. Dale explained that about half way through the trip, while they were in Chicago, he began to worry about Luke’s behaviour. After forcing him to open up, which caused a great row, he finally got him to crack. The truth had spilled out, and the full extent of Luke’s breakdown had been confirmed – to those on the inside anyway.

             
‘How bad was it?’ Fox asked

             
‘Luke’s no angel – I won’t sit here and lie. His drinking increased, but his drug use was the real problem. Cocaine mainly, but whatever he could get his hands on really.’ Dale shifted uncomfortably in his chair like a naughty schoolboy in front of the head teacher. None of them were angels.

             
Luke had wanted to forget his hurt, forget how much he missed Melissa, so he made himself feel nothing instead. He was either drunk or on drugs, but mostly both.

             
‘People assume we shag anything that moves, but it’s bollocks. He isn’t like people think he is. There’s this image that we all have, just because we’re in a band, but it is a false one.’

Dale explained that as much as they loved what they did, it was hard work. ‘Every night you have to give the same amount of energy, give each new crowd the same good show. It’s
a lot of pressure. People forget we’re human beings and after a while it takes its toll.’ He explained how Luke’s moods changed from one day to the next, and he didn’t trust anyone.

‘Then, in Chicago, he had slept with a fan. He
picked her out of the crowd and took her back to his room without even asking her name. Next morning she left and he didn’t even mention her. It was as if it hadn’t happened. He’d slept with several more over the next few weeks.’

             
Melissa sucked in her breath. It wasn't a secret, but she didn't like to hear about it again.

             
‘I thought that was the life of a rock star,’ Lee Noels chipped in, without thinking. He hoped the others got the joke, but they didn’t. His boss glared at him, giving him a clear message that it was not appropriate. Noels face flushed red, and he apologised.

             
Fox was beginning to see into their world, with no PR spin or unfounded rumours tainting it for the world’s entertainment.

             
Dale shook his head, irritated. He hated the assumption that if it had a pulse and tits, they would shag it. ‘I’ve known him most of my life, and I know the real Luke.’ He explained that Luke had always been picky when it came to women, and he had no interest in sleeping with just anyone. ‘It takes someone very special for Luke to show any interest. Amber was a rarity, and a mistake, and we all wish he’d never met her. But you live and learn. Luke is always thinking and writing. He finds it so hard to switch off that he needs someone who understands him and accepts his passion for music. Someone who will be there for him when he needs them, but give him the space to do what he loves one hundred per cent, without stress ...’

Dale trailed off
, looking guilty. ‘He was in a bad place ... just a bad place, that’s all. He really isn’t a bad person.’ Dale hated talking about Luke like this. It felt like a betrayal. But finally he continued, knowing he had to explain about how their tour rows got worse.

             
‘Arguing sometimes is normal when you tour, and it isn’t an issue. Living in each other’s pockets, sometimes you just piss each other off and need space for a bit.’

             
Dale explained how Luke became a time bomb. They never knew what mood they would find him in each day. He became paranoid to the point that he convinced himself the rumours about Toby and Melissa must be true and it had been Toby that had screwed him over, in order to have her all to himself. This was right before their show in Portland, and it caused the biggest row in the band’s history. It was a miracle the gig went ahead.

Ray and some of the bigger members of the road crew
had to restrain Toby, who was obviously incensed by the accusation, but mainly hurt by it.

             
‘It was a mess, but we have a good manager who sorted us out, and made us bury it for the show. He reminded us that we couldn’t let our fans down.’

             
It had been hard for them all. It was the first show where they had to fake everything. Each smile and bit of banter was forced. Luckily, Toby could just hide at the back and let the three front guys run the show. He did what he needed to do, and when their last song ended, he got up and left the stage. He was still raging and even though his drum kit had taken a severe beating, the feeling of hurt was still raw.

Ray made them sit and talk it through afterwards. Luke knew full well he had been out
of line and after much apologising, Toby accepted it. The official reason given for the late start to the show was that Toby had been ill, but after seeing a doctor had been given the all-clear to carry on, not wanting to let the fans down.

             
‘I should have seen it coming. Looking back it was obvious.’ Dale’s shoulders slumped and he looked at the floor as the memories of that horrible time came rushing back.

             
‘I seriously need some air and a fag.’ Melissa went to the bathroom and threw on some jeans and one of Luke's jumpers. Wearing his clothes wasn’t something she did very often outside the house, but right now it was the closest she could be to him. It still smelled of his aftershave and she breathed it in as she pulled up the hood and tucked her hair underneath. She pulled the cords to try to cover her face as much as possible. Her Ray-Bans covered her eyes, like a shield from the world. Luke had said to her once, ‘Your eyes are the doors to your soul. If people can’t see them, they can’t get to you.’

             
Her hand caught something as she pulled it from her holdall. It was the
Highway
magazine that had featured their first interview. Luke stared at her from the front cover. Her legs shook and she steadied herself against the wall. Dale leapt from the chair hearing the quiet sobs, and pulling her towards him, he held her tight.

       ‘I feel
so empty. I just want him home safely.’ Melissa sobbed against Dale’s chest.

             
Jean swallowed her emotions and joined in the embrace, as did Beth.

‘We all miss him,’ Jean whispered and kissed her daughter on the top of the head.

              Beth wiped a tear away. Jean had noticed a change in Beth. There was something different, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. She could tell that Beth was holding back on something. There was a pleading for help in her eyes. She looked scared as she comforted her best friend. Melissa would be her first point of contact in a crisis, but she couldn’t rely on her now because she was in the mist of a crisis of her own. So whatever it was, it couldn’t be discussed now. Jean decided she would talk to Beth later when she thought the time was appropriate. She wasn’t happy about Melissa leaving the room, but she had to keep busy. She would also prefer it if Melissa didn’t smoke, but she was an adult and could make her own choices. And she was worried about the attention Melissa would get from outside. The fans were not the problem, it was the photographers.

             
‘There are fans outside?’ Melissa asked, spinning round to face her mum, who nodded. ‘How long have they been there?’ Jean told her they had been there since she was brought in, and had refused to leave. ‘They must be freezing!’ She wanted to see them. They might listen to her and go home. The band had some loyal and devoted fans, and although some were a bit weird, most were really cool people and Melissa felt a duty to make sure they went home safely. But Mick reminded her that it wasn't her job to look after every stray fan she came across.

             
‘Dad, I know that. But if they’ll listen to me and it gets them home and off the streets then I should do it. The boys have some young fans and I couldn't forgive myself if they got ill or something happened to any of them.’

             
Mick wasn’t happy about it, but he agreed to go with her. Deep down he knew that Luke’s fans were also her fans, and she felt a responsibility to make sure they were safe. They would listen to Melissa.

             
‘I'm coming too!’ Beth called, grabbing her jacket from the chair Dale had been sitting on. He grabbed her arm gently and pulled her to him, whispering something before kissing her softly on the lips. Melissa noticed that his eyes were searching hers for something, hope maybe. Beth stroked his cheek giving him her confident smile before whispering something that Melissa couldn’t hear.

             
‘Just be careful,’ Dale said as they left the room. He wanted to go with them, but Fox needed more answers from him. Besides, he wasn’t in the right frame of mind for it and he knew that nobody would want to have to bail him out for assaulting one of the pap’s, which under the circumstances was a possibility.

             
Melissa took a deep breath as they approached the doors to the outside world, which at the moment seemed almost alien, scary even. It would be the first time she would be facing all of this without Luke to help and comfort her, and protect her if they got too close. Her dad was there by her side, but she wanted her boyfriend to come home.

*****

‘Melissa!’ The shouts began instantly. A group of fans were standing just a few feet from the entrance. Melissa held her hand up as an indication to just give her a few minutes. But she had acknowledged them, so they quietened a little. She lit a cigarette as she saw the press pack heading her way. She stood her ground and smoked her cigarette, trying to ignore them as Mick held them back as much as possible. His daughter would never be left alone, but she was learning to deal with it much better these days. After what she had been through, it didn’t seem quite so bad.

             
‘Melissa, what’s happened?’ Click click.

             
‘Where’s Luke?’ Click click click.

             
‘Who attacked you?’ Click click click.

             
‘Did Luke do this to you?’ Click click click.

She froze for
a second at the last question but closed her eyes, counted to ten and swallowed the urge to scream at the idiot who had said it. Eventually, she made her way to the fans, recognising Tess straight away. Tess threw her arms around her, the relief echoed in her embrace. She asked Melissa about Luke, tears spilling from her eyes. Tess was their first official fan and ran one of their biggest fan websites.