Embracing Forever

by K. Aten

  Grace looked at her in concern. “Circumstances?”

  This prompted Keller to finally speak up. “We have some loose wolves in the city. They have been robbing and killing in the surrounding region. Of course, the police have not put together wild ‘dog’ attacks and the string of burglaries that are currently plaguing metro Columbus. The worst of it is they have been targeting our people specifically. They attacked and brutalized Sarah’s best friend, Jill, and have been threatening Annie.”

  The lead singer of Resurrection spun her gaze toward Sarah. “Your friend, is she okay?”

  Sarah sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “She’s fine now, at least physically. Keller was forced to infect her minutes after discovering her body. But they tortured her. She’s a strong woman, but I think it’ll take a while for her to get beyond everything.”

  Keller noticed another band coming in to the studio so she got everyone’s attention. “Why don’t we take this back to our condo? We can order lunch and further discuss what’s been happening and what you want to do on the stage today.”

  Colton perked up at the mention of lunch. “That is a grand idea, I’m famished!”

  “When aren’t you hungry, Ra-ta-tat?” Everyone laughed at Grace’s comments. “Though I suppose I could eat something too. Do you have a good Thai place around here?”

  Colton snorted. “Rubbish! S’all she ever wants when we’re in London!”

  Keller burst out laughing and Sarah gave Grace a big smile. “Do we? I’m sure we can get your fix!”

  Over the next hour and a half the members of Resurrection had amazing takeout from Thai Guys, were filled in on all the issues involving the rogue werewolves, and decided on a plan for taking the stage with Sarah. When they left Keller and Sarah’s condo, they promised to meet back up with them at the festival around two-thirty. After they left, Sarah grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and collapsed on the couch next to Duke. He wagged his tail briefly but otherwise didn’t acknowledge her presence. She looked up when Keller joined her. “Well, what do you think of our plan?”

  Keller bumped her shoulder against the singer’s. “I think it will be hilarious. Especially since you’re not telling Annie. Hopefully they can get everything they need in time.”

  “Oh, the place I sent them is top notch. They should be able to find everything they need in that store, or the one next to it. This is gonna be great!”

  Keller shot her a grin. “You’re so sure of yourself! So what do you want to do now, rock star?”

  Sarah leaned forward to set her bottle on the coffee table. She illuminated the screen of her phone to check the time then promptly turned and straddled Keller’s lap. “I can think of a few things.” Duke merely made a chuffing noise and moved off the couch to his dog bed.

  SARAH AND KELLER arrived at the Metro Park earlier than intended after giving the word “quickie” new meaning. They walked through the festival, having already dropped off her instruments near the stage. Bruce was there organizing things, but they didn’t see Annie and Jesse yet. Duke paced next to Keller, his lead firmly in hand in the busy park. The husky loved people and was a very social dog, so he was excitedly sniffing and wagging at every person he met. They made sure to circle back to the vendors near the stage show in anticipation of meeting up with Sarah’s four temporary bandmates. However, they still hadn’t seen them and Sarah was beginning to worry. Keller tried to reassure her. “It’ll be fine, love. They’ll be here, they probably just got hung up in traffic.”

  Sarah dropped into a crouch to pet Duke, her nerves forcing her to take solace in her faithful companion. While she was down on his level, she took the opportunity to fill his portable bowl from her water bottle so he could get a drink. “But wouldn’t they have called if that were the case?”

  “Hey! Where have you two been? And where is your band?” Both women looked up and saw Annie striding toward them with Jesse trailing behind her.

  Sarah gave her a look. “I don’t go on for another twenty minutes, so chill.”

  The younger Colby sister looked around. “And where is Grace, Colton, Corentine and Mozzie?”

  Keller tried to reassure the overworked Pride festival stage manager. “Easy A, they’ll be here. I promise.”

  “Major nerves, beware!” The comment was said in the faintest of whispers by Jesse, unheard by Annie, but easily picked up by Sarah and Keller. The two older women nodded to show that they heard her, but it wasn’t anything other than what Sarah was already expecting. She knew her sister well.

  Sarah leaned over and gave Keller a kiss before taking Annie’s hand in her own. “Come on, let’s go make sure the guitar I loaned you is in tune.”

  When they were gone, Jesse turned to Keller. “So where is Resurrection anyway?”

  Keller shrugged. “They’re not here yet, at least I don’t think they are.” When Jesse raised a questioning eyebrow, she laughed and filled the younger woman in. “So here is the plan…” When she finished, both Jesse’s eyebrows were up and her mouth was open.

  “Oh my God, she’s going to kill you both! She’s already nervous about being on the stage in front of hundreds of people!”

  Keller shrugged and hefted the two camp chair bags higher onto her shoulder. “She’ll be fine. Now come on, I want to set these up where I have a good view but won’t be too loud for Duke.”

  At five minutes to three, Annie was really starting to freak out. “You said they’d be here! Didn’t you practice with them this morning? Did they give any indication that they might have to bail?”

  Sarah took a deep breath and used her power to send calming emotions to her sister. Truthfully though, she was starting to worry as well. “Listen, it’s going to be all right. Let’s go up on stage and do one of the easy songs that we’ve been practicing together to kill some time. After that I’ll just play by myself for a bit until they show up. Then you’ll come back up when I play the song you and Jesse were practicing, okay?” The younger woman swallowed and gave her a nod. Sarah handed Annie her guitar and picked up her own, signaling to Bruce that they were ready.

  His voice carried well through the large speakers that were facing the crowd. “Many of you know our next singer. Columbus born and bred, she’s traveled the country living the dream. Currently she gives private music lessons to the fine folks of our city. Please welcome the very first performer for our Sip and Chug series, Sarah Colby!” Applause chased the sisters up the steps to the stage. They plugged in and the sound guy hit the switches to bring the microphones and instruments live.

  Sarah stood in the center of the stage and looked out over the gathered crowd, Annie a little to the side and behind her. “Hi!” The crowd laughed and said “hi” back. “Some of you may know me, I play a few local gigs here and there. You may recognize me from my occasional stint with The Standalones.” She paused when the mention of her sometimes band garnered applause and wolf whistles. “Sadly, they are playing in Virginia today so I brought my sister. You may recognize her as the assistant manager in charge of the Voodoo Pony, and the very same miracle worker who put this little show together today. You see, she’s responsible for me being on this stage, and I may have blackmailed her into joining me.” She leaned toward the crowd conspiratorially and whispered into the microphone. “She’s nervous.” The crowd laughed again. “Say hello to the nice people, Annie.”

  Annie smiled and shook her head at her sister’s antics. “You’re such a jerk, Sarah!” This prompted more laughter from the crowd. “Anyway, my name is Annie Colby and I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some music! You with me?” More cheers from the crowd caused her to hit a few chords on her guitar.

  Sarah thought she saw someone familiar in the crowd and raised her hand, turning toward Annie. “Wait, wait, where’s our band?”

  Annie looked back in disbelief. “What do you mean ‘where’s our band?’ You were supposed to get the band!”

  “But I thought you were going to set it up? You�
��re the one who books all the bands for the club!”

  Annie’s grumbling was picked up by the sensitive microphone. “I’m so going to kill you.”

  Sarah turned back to the crowd. “All right, all right, no need for that. We’ll just have to find someone, yeah?” She shaded the sun from her eyes with her hand and scanned the growing crowd of people. “Let’s see, we need a drummer. Anyone?”

  The crowd was silent. Then people turned when short guy with bad surfer dude blond hair and a Hawaiian shirt raised his hand. “Like bro, I totally play. I could probably help you out.”

  Annie groaned and covered her eyes as Sarah waved the man toward the stage steps. “Well get up here then! What’s your name, drummer?”

  “Dude, you can just call me Banger.”

  Annie looked at the man as he walked toward her on the stage. “Banger?”

  “Yeah man, cuz I can go like all nig—”

  He was interrupted by Sarah. “Okay, thanks, Banger. Go ahead and have a seat behind the drums while we find the rest. Now we need someone who plays the piano. Anyone?” A tall woman with long flowing hair stepped forward in a blouse and hippie skirt. Sarah looked at her skeptically, trying to see if it was a disguise or if she was setting herself up for failure. She recognized the drummer dude as Colton in drag, but if the hippie chick was Mozzie then he had clearly shaved his chin strap and was amazing looking as a woman. She motioned for the tall hippie to come onto the stage. “What’s your name, hon?”

  It was a quiet feminine voice that answered. “Moonbeam. And I can play all the songs from Tetris.” There was a faint accent and Sarah knew she was saved.

  “Okay, that’s perfect. Go over by the keyboard then while we find a few more people.” She looked around and noticed an odd couple by one of the large speakers. “You there, by the speakers! What are you, Danny and Sandy? Do you two play anything?”

  The guy in the black t-shirt and jeans with slicked back dark hair nodded. He sounded like he was from Brooklyn. “Yeah, I can sing a little.” He pointed a thumb at his similarly dressed companion. “And she’s real good with her hands, ain’t ya, babe?” The dirty blond merely nodded and smiled.

  Sarah cheered. “Woo, sold! All right, get up here you crazy kids!” By that point the crowd had grown even larger and they had no clue what was going on. All the stage antics had taken up six minutes of time. Normally six minutes would be enough to chase people away if there was no music happening but the audience was intrigued. Once the band members were situated at their instruments Sarah once again addressed the crowd. “How about we start with something that everyone knows, just to warm them up.” She looked around at crazy assembly of musicians. “Do you all know ‘Bite Like You Mean It’ by Resurrection?”

  Banger responded immediately. “Bro, that band’s nothing but a bunch of hacks!” Colton’s words prompted a massive amount of booing from the crowd.

  Sarah laughed. “I think the crowd disagrees with you there, bro. So let’s give them what they want.” Banger/Colton shrugged and Annie looked as if she was going to vomit on the stage. “All right, let’s do this Columbus! Sing along if you know it!”

  The song started with a driving beat and deep notes on the keyboard. Sudden bass notes jumped in and Sarah could see that Sandy, aka Corentine, had found her stashed instruments. At just the right moment, Sarah started to sing. Her backup chorus was none other than Annie and the regular singers of Resurrection. The song “Bite Like You Mean It” rolled off her lips like she had written it herself. Eventually the blood-pumping song came to the end and the crowd went wild. When they settled Sarah spoke again.

  “Well that went better than expected, didn’t it?” She shuffled a little bit, then looked back out into the sea of people. “Actually, I have a confession to make. These aren’t random people behind me. They are a real band that’s helping me out today. And with that, let’s move on to one of my new songs. You can find it on my brand new album, which will be for sale at the Voodoo Pony booth, or you can download it online. See me after the show if you want my signature!” They played two more songs of Sarah’s, one old and one new, before she stopped to engage the crowd again. “So, why don’t I introduce my mystery band? How many of you want to know who’s sharing the stage with me? They’re phenomenal, right?” She waved Annie back onto the stage, who had left after the first song.

  The crowd roared their approval. Annie looked over at her and smiled. “Well, sis, I think they want to know so you better tell them before there’s a riot.”

  “All right, why don’t I start with the back? Broseph, the surfer dude, can you tell the crowd who you are?”

  Colton stood up and removed the blonde wig, tossing it to the ground. She ran hand through her hair to straighten the dark Mohawk then began unbuttoning the offensive shirt. Underneath she wore her trademark black tank top. She stood with drumsticks held high over her head. “Gawdon Bennet! Good afternoon. OKAY? ’A ’re ya? M’name’s Colton Shep and it’s a pleasure!”

  A few people in the crowd screamed, starting to catch on, but louder yet was Annie’s voice over the mic. “Oh my God!” Sarah chuckled and pointed at the hippie chick on the keyboard. Mozzie doffed the wig and glasses and removed the blouse to reveal a muscular chest that was surprisingly smooth.

  “Guten Tag. My name is Mozzie and the pleasure is mine as well.” He gestured down at the long flowy paisley skirt. “If you don’t mind, I will keep the skirt on since I didn’t bring with me any short pants. It is surprisingly comfortable.”

  Sarah gave him a thumbs-up and a grin. “Hey, you be you man. I’m not going to judge.” She turned to the last two random women who had graced the stage earlier. “And you two are?”

  Corentine smiled and removed her curly dishwater blonde wig as well, tossing it to the side. Her long hair was pulled back into tight French braid. “My name is Corentine, and the man in the long skirt is my husband. He is quite the catch, no?” All the men in the crowd began hooting in agreement about the handsome man on the stage.

  And lastly, Grace stepped forward. She pulled off the wig and underneath her own dark hair was slicked back away from her face. She put on the aviator sunglasses that had been hooked to the front of her shirt and gave herself a little shake. “As you may have guess already, I’m Grace Cadence and this is my band Resurrection! And I have a request for Sarah. I would like the next song to be ‘Blood of My Blood.’ I know for a fact that we have all been looking forward to playing it on stage with you ever since we started practicing your songs a month ago.”

  Sarah laughed and looked at the crowd. “Who can say no to that, right? Okay, let’s do this, take it away, Colton!” The song started like thunder with a driving drum beat that set the tone for the rest of the set. The crowd was pumped and wanted to go higher, so the musicians on the stage gave them what they deserved. Even with the bright sun shining down, Sarah still felt almost light-headed from the energy she was siphoning off the crowd. She looked down at her lover who was seated off to the side and opened her shields to her. She sent Keller some of her energy and what she got back was a surprised wash of pleasure and excitement, and a lot of love.

  Eventually their time came to an end and they had to leave the stage, much to the crowd’s displeasure. Sarah noticed the anxious faces on the band that was scheduled to perform after her. She knew the band; it was the one that played opposite Fridays from her for that first Sip and Chug engagement. Mary’s Angels was an amazing group but she could understand how intimidating it would be to follow after a band like Resurrection, so she shot confidence and calm to each member of the band and waved Bruce off when he was going to come on and introduce them. “I know you want to hear more, but believe me, you’re not going to want to miss the band that’s up next. I just want to say that today is very important to all of us. It’s about coming together to acknowledge the ongoing fight for the freedoms that are still missing from the community. It’s about celebrating the freedoms that we have won. And more important
ly, it’s about coming together and seeing that you have family out there, wherever you go. We are all family and we know the struggle. We’re here for you. Now please give a huge welcome to a band that’s going to be huge themselves, Mary’s Angels!”

  The rest of the afternoon flew by for the group of people with other blood. Jill eventually arrived after spending the day at work. Louve followed an hour later, just in time to see the second performance of her troupe members. Her booth had games set up to win free passes into Cirque du Loup, as well as coupons for free drinks and different swag. The Merge, Club Diversity, and a few other bars, had similar booths at the festival. The Merge even had a dunk tank set up and the proceeds were to be split between the local LGBT resource clinic and the local no-kill animal shelter.

  Annie was one of the employees who got roped into volunteering for that one. The band had finished signing albums and autographs, and people at the festival were being surprisingly cool about letting the band members of Resurrection walk around unmolested. They gathered near the dunk tank and Annie began removing her shorts and tank top. Underneath she was wearing s simple black bikini, which displayed all her best assets as she maneuvered her way into the tank and perched precariously on the seat. Jesse was transfixed. The nerdy werewolf looked at Keller. “Please tell me you have some cash on you because this girl is totally getting dunked!”

  Keller smirked at Annie’s notoriously un-athletic girlfriend. “Do you even know how to throw a ball?”

  Annie snorted and called out. “She knows how to fetch one! Bring it on, babe!” When Keller and Sarah snickered, she gave them an evil eye as well. “I’m not afraid of any of you here. Give it your best shot, losers!” Despite the motivation of seeing her girlfriend wet, Jesse spent twenty dollars proving just how bad she was at throwing a softball. Sarah and Keller watched as many people tried to sink the mouthy Colby sister. She catcalled, she jeered, she teased and taunted all her friends and bar patrons that walked up. After twenty minutes of her thirty minute volunteer stint, she was still sitting dry on the seat and Sarah was tempted to just go push the bullseye to make her shut up.