The Last Note
By Claudette Cleveland
Copyright © 2015 Claudette Cleveland. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Author website: ClaudetteCleveland.com
ISBN: 978-1-4951-5918-3
The Last Note
Tired of the cold snowy climate in northern Illinois where they live, the Mystical Marvels, a girl’s musical group popular in the ‘70s, head for a two week stay at a resort in sunny Arizona. Little did they know that when they agreed to perform a new song written by a young Arizonian songwriter that their stay would include an event resembling the shootout at the OK Corral. Things heat up when the group is kidnapped because they had promised to sing The Last Note, a song written by the young composer and sought by an international criminal. The girls show their true grit during a life threatening abduction.
Books by Claudette Cleveland
Mystical Marvels Mysteries
Deadly Doctors
The Last Note
The Beneath and Beyond Trilogy
The Hidden City
The Thunderbirds
El Diablo
Sara Connolly Mysteries
The Reunion
You Again
The Gifted
The Resort
The Haunting
Not Forgotten
The Ceremony
The Ranch
Never Ending
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter One
“We’re getting out of this snow. I can’t take anymore!” Vi exclaimed as she came in from the blizzardy midwest weather.
“Remember that February we spent at the resort in Phoenix? Days in shorts by the pool. Nights dining on the patio surrounded by the aroma of flowers while drinking mai tais,” Birdie added dreamily.
“Why are we sitting here dreaming, freezing our tushes off? Birdie, call the resort and see if they’d like to book the Mystical Marvels for five to seven days in February in one of their lounges,” Dottie suggested.
“Sure, why not?” Birdie had her cell phone connect her to the resort and their friend who ran it, Bud Clover. “Bud, this is Birdie Bartlett with the Mystical Marvels. Yes it has been a while. Thank you Bud, we miss Eula too.” Eula Banks had been the fourth member of the 1970’s girl’s musical group. They started performing while still in high school where the four named themselves the Mystical Marvels. These many years later the group now numbered only three, ever since Eula’s massive heart attack and death the previous year.
When teenagers, the group had recorded one record which when released instantly went to the top twenty on the charts, making the group world renown overnight. “Bud, why we’re calling is we’re performing occasionally again and wonder if the older folks of Arizona would like to hear three old timers belt out a few songs.”
Bud laughed. “What old timers are you referring to? I know a lot of people would come to see the legendary Mystical Marvels. When are you girls available? I’ve got a week open the second week in February. Love to have you. Had a group booked and two of them got arrested and can’t leave the state where it happened.”
“I’m putting you on speaker. The other girls are here.”
“Hi Bud,” Dottie and Vi said in unison.
“Hi girls. You all sound chipper. Life must be treating you right.”
“Yep.” Birdie got down to the particulars. “Let’s book it. What do you need from us? Oh, and Bud, we want to stay at the resort for two weeks. Do you have an opening the week before the performances?”
“If not, I’ll make an opening.”
“We’ll need two two bedroom suites and a single. We want to treat our nephew Brad and niece Erin to some warm R&R. Do you remember them?”
“Sure, how old are they now?”
“Erin’s twenty-nine and Brad is thirty,” Birdie told him.
“Can’t be. Last time they were here they were teenagers. Seems like only yesterday.”
“I say that all the time, Bud. Hate to break it to you, but that’s a common old timers’ phrase.”
Bud laughed, “If the shoe fits … I’ve got another call coming in. I’m going to transfer you to my assistant so she can get all the particulars. She’ll be the one mailing you the contract etc. Can’t wait to catch up with all of you.”
Birdie who took care of all the business particulars was emailed the contract and confirmations.
Chapter Two
“Let’s go to lunch and plan our show and fun time,” Vi suggested.
They drove to a Thai restaurant they were fond of and hadn’t been to in a while. “This food has gotten even better,” Vi commented. “It’s good, but I’ll be hungry again in an hour.”
“Vi, that’s an old wive’s tale,” Dottie said laughing, knowing that Vi was hungry in an hour after every meal. She had one of those high metabolisms that everyone hated her for.
“Anyway, should we do our oldies but goodies concert? It seems to be the most popular and the array of songs everyone asks for. We ought to be able to do that one in our sleep by now,” Vi suggested.
“Let’s throw in that new song that young man sent us. Doesn’t he live in Arizona? I’ll call him. Maybe we can introduce his song for the first time at the resort. Invite the local news media. Help him get his songwriting off the ground. He’s the best I’ve heard in a long time. What do you say girls?” Birdie asked excitedly. The Marvels had always tried to help young people just starting in the business whenever they could.
“Great idea. Can you contact him? See where he lives in Arizona and ask him if he and his work would like to be presented for the first time in his home state.”
“Why don’t I contact my friend, Allen, the manager at one of the Phoenix TV stations and set something up for when we get there,” Vi volunteered. “He was a college buddy of my fourth husband.”
“This will be fun and it’ll get us out of this awful weather. The older I get the less I can tolerate this bitter cold. I swear my bones creak when I walk when it’s this cold,” Dottie said shivering.
* * *
Erin and Brad were convinced with only a bit of arm twisting to accompany the girls on their stay at the resort. Dottie’s significant other, Lou, agreed to go without hesitancy. Lou was a detective for the Maple Grove police department. He had weeks of vacation days accumulated so when he asked his captain for time off he was practically shoved out the door.
A blizzard had just begun when their Delta 737 lifted from the snow misted O’Hare runway. The flight had been delayed for two hours for de-icing, so when the wheels were heard raising in
to the body of the aircraft, all six of the Mystical Marvels travelers sighed in relief. When the seatbelt sign was turned off, the first thing that they did was shrug out of their winter coats.
Everyone ordered drinks and nuts and commented how great it was to see the sun even though it was above a cloud covered landscape. For about 3 ½ hours they talked of trivial things and laughed about old times on the road. Brad and Erin watched the movie part way through until they decided it was too stupid to hold their attention.
“We will be landing in 20 minutes, ladies and gentlemen. The ground temperature in Phoenix right now is a pleasant 80 degrees, so put away your winter coats, but wait until we land to get into your swimming suits.”
“That’s what we need … a standup comic for a pilot,” Vi said laughing.
“I’ll have to admit that 80 degrees in February at 1 in the afternoon sounds damn good to me,” Dottie told her fellow travelers.
On the sidewalk outside the luggage pickup carousels, they all breathed in the warm dry air. “Tell me again why we don’t live here all winter,” Vi asked.
“And become a snowbird?” Birdie replied. “That just sounds so temporary.”
Erin laughed. For being a genius, Aunt Birdie came up with some of the oddest statements. She looked at Brad. “Do you want to explain what a snowbird is?”
Brad looked at her and muttered. “Why bother?” No one else thought twice about Birdie’s off the wall comments. After over forty years of performing together, they simply ignored them.
With the heavy Phoenix traffic the limo ride to the resort took close to 40 minutes, although it wasn’t far away. “Look at all the flowers. There’s nothing better than to leave a blizzard and in 4 hours see tropical flowers.”
As they drove into the circle drive and piled out of the car, they were greeted by Bud Clover, their old friend and general manager of the resort. “Welcome all,” he said hugging each of the Marvels. “This can’t be Erin and Brad. You were underage teenagers last time I saw you.”
“We remember Uncle Bud. You let us have our first mai tai. We thought we were hot stuff having a drink with an umbrella,” Brad remembered aloud.
“Yeah and I got to wear heels and nearly broke my neck walking through the lobby on the marble floors. Could be why I don’t like heels now,” Erin told him giving him a daughterly hug.
“Well let’s get you settled in.” He waved to a young man, who loaded their luggage onto a hotel dolly. “Manuel will bring your luggage to your suites. Follow me.” Bud led them to the elevator which took them to their rooms. “Here we are. I wasn’t sure who goes where so Vi, why don’t you hand out the key cards? Shall we meet for drinks at 7 on the patio and dinner at 8. We can catch up then.” They all agreed and thanked him.
Chapter Three
The scent of flowers wafted across the patio whose outdoor lanterns came on as the sunset painted the sky a pastel pink and violet. A small waterfall trickled into a pond filled with brightly colored koi. Everyone at the two round tables was in a holiday mood. The young people sat at a smaller table while the older ones occupied the larger table next to it. The songwriter who was in his early thirties joined the younger group.
“Hi, I’m Brad Bartlett and this is Erin Muldoon.”
“Nice to meet you, I’m Sean Dooley.”
“Aunt Dottie tells me you’re a songwriter and that they are going to feature one of your new songs in their performance.”
“That’s right. I’m so excited to have such an esteemed group introduce it. They said that if it goes well, they may help me to get a recording contract for it. I pinch myself every time I think of a legendary group like the Mystical Marvels playing and singing it.”
“They wouldn’t do it unless they thought it was good,” Brad told him. “I know for a fact that they get hundreds of up and coming songwriters sending them musical scores every year.”
“Will you be staying here Sean?” Erin asked. She wouldn’t mind getting to know this good looking young songwriter better.
“I live not far from here so it’s easier for me to stay there although the girls offered to put me up.”
“Well, maybe you can show us the area when you’re not busy with them,” Erin suggested.
“I’d love to. Have you ever been to Sedona? It’s beautiful. How about tomorrow? Birdie told me that they will be rehearsing then and that I’m not needed yet since their concert isn’t until next week.”
“The last time I was in Sedona I was thirteen. It’s probably changed a lot since then except of course for the red rocks which are likely pretty much the same since they’re thousands of years old,” she said laughing.
“How about you Brad? Are you up for a day of playing tourist?”
“Thanks for the invite, but I promised I’d play sound technician for the aunts. You two go and enjoy.”
“Maybe next time,” Sean said as he turned to Erin. “So it’s you and me. How about I pick you up in the morning at 9? Wear something light but bring a jacket just in case. We might even go out into the canyon so no sandals.”
* * *
Not a cloud was in the sky when Erin walked to the front entrance of the resort. She wore a wide brimmed hat over her dark auburn hair and large sunglasses over her green eyes. She had chosen to wear light cotton slacks, a long sleeve tee and tennis shoes with socks. Already at the curb was her self-appointed tour guide, Sean. His tall lean body moved swiftly to open the door of his jeep wrangler for her.
“Good morning,” he greeted. “Ready for an adventure in the high country?”
“Ready and willing. We certainly have a beautiful day for it.”
They drove toward I-17 in silence. Once on the highway, Sean asked her, “What do you do for a living? That is if you don’t mind my asking. Do you work for the Marvels?”
She chuckled before she answered. “No, I have my own business. I’m a private investigator. Sometimes I contract to the Maple Grove police department. How about you? Do you do anything other than write beautiful songs?”
“Thanks for the compliment. My day job is I’m an accountant. I take it you’ve heard the song your aunts are going perform. By the way, are you and Brad related to all the girls?”
“Yes, I’ve heard your song, and no, we are not related by blood to all the girls. Dottie is my real aunt and Birdie is Brad’s real aunt, but they have been together since they were in high school. They’re like sisters so since we were little we’ve just always considered them aunts. We’re all very close.”
“That’s really nice to have that closeness.”
They talked of family and growing up in different parts of the country. Both had been married, but neither wedlock took. Nor did either of them have children, but both wanted some … maybe. It was a relaxing drive and the desert was just coming alive with a colorful show of wild flowers. It had been a wet warm winter.
“Oh, I see the red rocks up ahead. They’re beautiful.”
Sean smiled as he took the exit to Sedona. “Do you feel the change in energy the closer we get to the large buttes?”
“Is that the tingle I’m getting on the back of my neck? Here I thought it was the company.”
He laughed. “Flattery will get you everything. It’s not often that a beautiful young woman enjoys my company. But actually I should give credit where credit is due. They say that this area is known for its vortexes of powerful, magical energy. It attracts wannabe gurus from all over as well as truly spiritual people. The Dalai Lama has visited many times.”
“Could you pull into that convenience store? I’d love to get a pop and use the facilities.”
Chapter Four
“I feel better,” Erin said as she exited the restroom and met Sean holding her Dr. Pepper. “I was a bit nervous about bouncing over the desert with a full bladder.”
“Yeah, city girls may find it awkward peeing in the bushes.”
“I’ve been camping. I’m not that much of a prima donna,” she retorted laughing. “O
nward James … to the outback.”
He bowed and headed the jeep toward Boyington Canyon. “Your wish is my command, oh great one.”
“Love your sense of humor Sean. Most men are intimidated by my kidding around.”
“I grew up with three older sisters who made it their life’s goal to kid and embarrass me. They succeeded until I learned to dish it back at opportune times like in front of new boyfriends.”
“Ooooh. Makes me happy I was an only child. Of course Brad is like an older brother. He used to be overly protective.”
“What do you mean ‘used to be’? He already did research on me. Told me to watch myself with you if I valued my ‘you know whats’.”
“Damn him.”
“Don’t worry about it. My mother would be worse than him if I did anything disrespectful to a woman,” he said taking a finger and slicing his neck. “Here we go. We hike from here. If you listen closely, you can hear music in certain places. They say these spots are doorways to other dimensions.”
They walked in silence just feeling the energy. “Wait,” Erin whispered. “I hear it. Sean, it sounds a bit like your song. Is this where you get your inspiration for your music? It’s beautiful.”
He put his arm around her and guided her to a large rock. “Sit and close your eyes. Just let your mind go free and you’ll hear it better. Notice the colors change behind your closed eyes as the music plays.”
When Erin opened her eyes, Sean was smiling at her. “I didn’t want it to stop. I wanted it to go on and on.”
“You were in another dimension for over a half hour.”
“No way. It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes,” she claimed looking at her watch. “What? It’s one o’clock already?”
He smiled knowingly. “Traveling to other dimensions works up an appetite. Any particular thing you don’t eat?”
“Oysters.”
“I guess we’re safe then. Aren’t too many oysters in the desert … at least up here. I think I know just the place a girl like you will enjoy. It’s called the Cowboy Cafe.”
The Last Note (Mystical Marvels Mysteries Book 2) Page 1
