Something True

by Malia Mallory

  “I know you. I know you.” The little boy’s eyes brightened with excitement.

  “Oh, do you now?” His interest boosted her mood.

  “We have some of your music,” Aiden’s mother explained.

  “That’s awesome. What would you like to hear?” Shelley was still surprised when she met a stranger who knew her music. She didn’t think that surprise would ever go away.

  The rest of the visit with Aiden passed quickly. His enthusiasm buoyed Shelley and she left feeling elated, but tired. The children required so much energy. It had gone well today. The kids had been wonderful. If only she could get through to Maddie, that would be an even greater accomplishment. The sad little girl tugged at her heart. It was the children like Maddie who needed to connect most of all.

  ~ * ~ * ~

  Shelley slipped into the seat of her car and pulled the door shut. She rested her forehead on the steering wheel. Her cell phone vibrated in her pocket. She wanted to ignore it, but her curiosity compelled her to her to look at the screen. It was her sister, Kate, a talented photographer. Kate was having her first major showing at a local gallery, and Shelley spent hours on the phone reassuring her. She was probably in a panic over matting for a piece. Her normally level-headed sister had been in a tailspin since being offered the show.

  “Hello?” Shelley had time. She was willing to serve as a sounding board.

  “Shelley, you won’t believe it!” Kate’s voice bubbled with excitement.

  “What? Did something already sell on preview?” Several people had already expressed interest in purchasing Kate’s work, and the show wasn’t even officially open. Shelley was confident that show would be a huge success, but Kate wasn’t going to believe it until after the show opened.

  “Oh … no. But that would be great, wouldn’t it?” Kate’s voice drifted.

  “So, what’s up then?” Shelley asked.

  “You!” The excitement was back in Kate’s voice.

  “Me?”

  “Have you checked iTunes? Dixie Dog is number one in children’s music. Number one!” Kate shouted.

  “Right now? Are you serious?” Shelley knew that downloads of Dixie Dog had been increasing, but she’d never expected this.

  “I’m totally serious. I saw it. Woot!”

  Shelley smiled. She imagined Kate bouncing up and down in her mind’s eye.

  “You pushed Raffi out of the number one spot. I took a screen shot just in case.” Kate’s pride in Shelley came right through the phone.

  “You did? Cool. You never know when Raffi is going to come surging back.”

  “I also called Mom. She wants us to come over for a celebration dinner.”

  “Oh? Did she mention again how I wasted my college degree playing at the library?” Shelley’s parents weren’t against her musical career but they hadn’t been overly encouraging, either.

  “Come on, Shelley. You know she’s moved past that.”

  “Mmm, I suppose.” Shelley didn’t believe it yet. Her parents thought she should obtain an advanced degree in early childhood development and start writing pop psychology books on child rearing and using music to accelerate learning. Her father constantly reminded her that there was good money to be made in non-fiction.

  Kate rushed on. “How many downloads do you think that is? Am I crass to wonder how much money you’ve made?”

  Shelley chuckled. “No. Not since I know it’s because you want me to be able to pay my rent and not end up sacked out on your couch.”

  “You could use a new car, too,” Kate suggested. Shelley’s car wasn’t a rattletrap, but it had a lot of miles on it.

  Shelley rolled her eyes. “I don’t think it’s new car money.”

  “It’s still amazing. When should we celebrate? I’ll bring cake.”

  “Ah, you do bake a mean cake. Let me get back to you, okay?”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Shelley ended the call and her thoughts turned to Liam, even though she didn’t want to think about him. He made her feel excited and queasy all at the same time. He’d come into the KC’s Kidz office several times, working hard on each occasion and stopping by to chat.

  To Shelley’s overactive imagination, it almost seemed like he sought her out for conversation. Don’t be silly, she admonished herself. Liam was trying to polish up his image, and she was a means to an end. She wondered why a little part of her didn’t want to believe it.

  Chapter 3

  Liam poked his head into Shelley’s office. “I want to go with you to the hospital, and I won’t take no for an answer.”

  Shelley shrugged as she threw a few papers into her messenger bag and zipped it closed. “Okay.”

  Shelley’s quick capitulation made him suspicious, but he was eager for the opportunity to show her what he could do. Or maybe just to show off. He resisted the impulse to take her hand as they headed down the hall. He doubted she’d welcome it yet. Shelley was a puzzle—a beautiful puzzle he felt compelled to solve.

  They exited the building onto the sidewalk. “Shall we take my car?” Liam loved his Ferrari. The engine purred like a cat and the car hugged the ground like a lover.

  “Err …” Shelley’s steps slowed.

  The low-slung vehicle was none too roomy, but Liam liked the intimacy it created—with the right passenger. “It drives like a dream.”

  Shelley perked up. “You’re going to let me drive?”

  Liam looked pained. He never let anyone drive his car.

  Shelley laughed. “Don’t worry, Speed Racer. Will both guitars fit in the trunk?”

  Liam’s face fell. “Actually, no. I guess we’ll have to take your car.” Liam retrieved his guitar from the passenger seat and placed it in Shelley’s trunk. He held out his hand.

  “What?” Shelley asked.

  “The keys.” While Liam occasionally had a driver, especially while on tour, he preferred to drive himself.

  “The keys?” Shelley gave him a pointed gaze.

  “Let me drive.” Liam hated being a passenger. Being the driver seemed to cut down on the motion sickness he sometimes experienced, but he didn’t voice his weakness.

  Shelley smiled and rolled her eyes. She waved him off and climbed into the driver’s seat, leaving Liam standing behind the car.

  He jogged after her. “I’m serious. I’d be happy to drive us.”

  Shelley chuckled. “You’re so funny, trying to be all polite about it. You’re going to have to give up control. Enjoy being a passenger.” With a wicked smile, she slid into the driver’s seat and pulled the door shut. She immediately started the car.

  Damn, she was cute. That smile could almost make him forget how much he hated riding in the passenger seat. Most people were happy to let him drive, but not Shelley. Nope. She had to prove something.

  Liam conceded defeat with a wry grin. He jogged around and slid into the car. If he continued to press his point, Shelly would probably tell him to drive himself. Liam didn’t want that. He wanted to spend time with her. She was funny and interesting and it was a relief to be in the company of someone who wasn’t fawning over him all the time.

  Shelley didn’t utter a word. She simply waited for Liam to fasten his belt before she eased the car out of the parking spot.

  Liam’s hand moved toward the radio tuner.

  “Nope.” She laughed as she slapped his hand away.

  Liam placed his hands on his thighs, tapping his fingers to a beat in his head. “So … you’re taking the freeway?”

  “Nope.” Shelley’s smile turned smug.

  “Really? It’d probably be faster, wouldn’t it?” If he couldn’t drive, maybe they could at least get some speed going.

  “We have plenty of time,” Shelley said in a patient voice.

  “Hmmm.” That was what he wanted, wasn’t it? A few minutes alone with Shelley? Now that he had them, all coherent thought seemed to have fled. He reached into his thoughts for something to talk about. “Why children’s music?” />
  Shelley drove capably, albeit a little slow for Liam’s taste. “Why not? I double-majored in music and early childhood education. The pay was low, so I started doing music on the side. One thing led to another.”

  “Ah.” College. She’d graduated college. Liam had left school before earning any credentials. As his music career took off, school attendance hadn’t seemed important anymore.

  Usually it didn’t bother him. After all, life had given him an education. But now and again, he’d feel a bit less when the subject came up.

  He fixed his trademark smile on her. “Don’t you want to know my story, then?”

  “Is there anyone who doesn’t know your story? Musical talent apparent at a young age. Played all over Ireland until you hooked up with a band in Dublin. The rest is musical history, right?” Liam’s biography had been recited in dozens of articles written about his band.

  “Hrrmph.” She’d summed up his life pretty well, as far as his fans knew, but it was never that simple. He’d kept pretty quiet about many things regarding his rise to the top, even with his mates. He’d learned the hard way that someone who was a friend one day might not be another.

  “What about you?” Liam asked. Shelley struck him as the stereotypical raised in the suburbs type. He wondered if it were true.

  “What about me?” Shelley responded.

  “You have a family?” He imagined family dinners around a large wooden table, a steaming roast with potatoes and homemade pie for dessert.

  “Yes, I have a family. Mother, father, sister.” Shelley spoke with affection.

  “Sometimes I wished I had a brother or sister.” He often longed for company as a child—someone to share his thought with besides imaginary fairies and leprechauns.

  “Your parents …,” Shelley faltered.

  “Yeah, they’re gone.” Liam didn’t like to think about how it must have been that night on a dark, slippery stretch of road. The Garda blamed it on the rain, but Liam knew better. His father’s drinking was to blame.

  “I’m sorry.” Shelley touched his arm briefly.

  Liam shrugged. “What made you decide to found a charity?”

  Shelley was quiet a long moment before she answered. “My sister. My other sister, Kayla, died when she was seven. She had cancer.”

  “I didn’t mean to bring up something sad.” He tried to wrap his head around the alteration to his mental picture. Such an experience must have marked her in some way.

  “It’s okay.” Shelley slowed the car as the light turned yellow. “She was sick for a few years before she died. In and out of hospitals. It was grim. I remember it as being grim. I wanted to help other kids in the same situation, I guess.”

  He’d been wrong about her family being stereotypical. There was nothing stereotypical about a family fighting for a child with cancer. “The kids must love you.”

  “What makes you say that?” Shelley accelerated as the light turned green, but slowed again when the traffic became congested.

  “You seem like you’d be good with kids.” Shelley had a calming way about her, a genuine openness and honesty that kids would sense.

  “Some are very hard to reach. They can be feeling unwell, in pain. It can be difficult. That’s why I’m careful about bringing people to the hospital.”

  “It can’t be that bad.”

  “Have you ever seen sick children before? Really sick ones?” Impatience crept into her voice. “Ones who might not recover? Children dragging around IV bags? Children in wheelchairs?”

  Shelley was right. He hadn’t thought about it deeply, hadn’t thought about how it would be interacting with kids during such a tough time in their lives. “I won’t let you down,” Liam said with conviction.

  “You’d better not.” Shelley smiled and the tension was broken.

  Shelley turned into the visitor parking lot and parked in the first spot available. She popped open the trunk.

  Liam sprung from the car and grabbed both guitars before she’d even shut the door. “I’ve got them.”

  “Thanks.” Shelley locked the doors and turned toward the entrance.

  “So, give me the low down.” He matched his lanky strides to hers.

  “The nurses bring a group to the playroom. Sometimes the kids will make requests. I try to have them engage and interact. After that I visit a few kids in their rooms.”

  “They don’t all come to the playroom?”

  “Some are contagious. I don’t see those. Others are unable to be moved much or are feeling unwell. Others don’t want to come. It’s usually not many.”

  “I bet it’s a bummer being in the hospital. Kids should be outside running and playing.” Kids, even healthy ones, seemed to spend more time indoors these days. As a child, Liam had much preferred being outside.

  “It is, but they try to do what they can here. The food’s pretty good and that’s important.” Shelley waved at the security guard as they passed his desk, and the guard did a double-take as he spied Liam.

  They entered the elevator and the doors closed behind them.

  Shelley hit the button for their floor. “I’m sorry I made this such a big deal. I know the kids will love you.”

  Liam smiled. “I think so, too.”

  “You’re so modest.” Shelley crossed her arms.

  “Humble to a fault. That’s me.”

  Shelley shook her head. “That’s what I get for trying to help your nerves.”

  “Nerves? What nerves?” Liam hoped he was long past getting nervous before a gig.

  “You look nervous. Just around the edges.”

  “I’m not nervous,” Liam protested.

  “Then you’re lucky. I get nervous before every performance.”

  “Okay, you got me. I might be a little bit nervous. Maybe.”

  “The kids are pretty easy to please. Most of them. They’ll be thrilled to meet you.”

  They stepped out of the elevator and Shelley gestured toward the large fish tank built into the wall. “The kids love that. I enjoy looking at it myself. It’s soothing.” She led him around the corner and through a doorway into what was obviously a large playroom. Shelving lined the walls, filled with books and colorful bins of toys. The space opened up toward the back into a carpeted area.

  “Shelley!” A little girl with long brown hair bounced up and down, waving her arms.

  “Hi, guys. I’ve brought a friend with me today. This is Liam.”

  Several older girls squealed and one hid her face.

  A smile tugged at Shelley’s mouth. “I think you’ve been recognized.”

  Liam winked at the girls. “I might sing a song or two. I hope you like them.”

  Excited chatter broke out. Several shouted assurances that they’d love anything he played.

  “Why don’t we do this? I’ll sing a few of our favorites and then Liam will play.” Shelley removed her guitar from its case and sat on a tiny, child-sized chair.

  Liam looked dubiously at the chairs and then sat cross-legged on the floor, his guitar at the ready.

  Shelley broke into song, and Liam strummed along with her. She didn’t hide her surprise as Liam joined in. She had no idea he knew anything about her music, let alone the lyrics.

  As if reading her thoughts, he winked and turned his attention back to their young audience. Instead of the three song opening she’d planned, Shelley sang a few more and Liam was right there with her, word for word, note for note.

  Shelley clapped her hands. “All right. I’ll bet you’re all ready for something from Liam, right?”

  “Yes!” The children didn’t bother to hide their enthusiasm, especially the tween girls.

  Shelley tapped the side of her guitar. She was familiar with Liam’s music, but nowhere near enough to perform with him.

  Liam plucked a string, testing that it was in tune. “I’m going to start with an early song. Has anyone heard of Stars Rise?” The song had been the band’s first number one hit.

  Two girls
in the back hooted and screamed.

  Liam laughed. “I think someone’s heard of it.” He strummed a few chords and sang, “I’m in the dark … I’m all alone …”

  Shelley settled back to listen. Liam entwined emotion into his every word, and his voice wrapped itself around Shelley’s heart. Only a hint of lilt remained when he sang, filling the room with his smooth voice.

  Liam closed his eyes as he reached the refrain. “But with your love, stars rise.”

  Shelley glanced at the children. They were mesmerized. Liam certainly knew how to engage an audience. He wowed the children with a half dozen more songs before Shelley signaled they needed to wrap up. He took one request and then they were leaving in a flurry of hugs and demands to return soon.

  Shelley blinked as the bright fluorescent lights in the hallway flickered. “There’s a stop we have to make.”

  “Okay, sure.”

  Shelley led Liam to Maddie’s room, pausing in the doorway to peek inside. The hanging curtain hid Maddie from view. She knocked on the doorjamb and entered, with Liam right on her heels.

  Maddie sat cross-legged on the bed, staring out the window. Her hospital gown was askew and the remains of an uneaten meal lay on her bedside table.

  “Hi, Maddie. I brought a friend with me today. His name is Liam,” Shelley said.

  Maddie’s eyes narrowed. “Are you for real?”

  Liam lips quirked. “What do you mean?”

  “Are you the real Liam Smith?” Maddie asked.

  “That I am,” Liam assured her.

  “Why would you be here?”

  Liam moved to Maddie’s bedside. “I’m here for the same reason as Shelley—to visit with patients like you.”

  Maggie appeared unconvinced.

  “How about a song? Would you like that?” Liam swung his guitar into position.

  Maddie shrugged.

  “I’d like to sing a few songs with Shelley and then maybe we’ll do one of mine.” Without waiting for a response, he strummed the opening notes of Dixie Dog and Shelley joined in.

  Maddie sat unmoving on the bed, but her eyes kept darting to Liam. When he began to play a hit of his own, she didn’t pretend to ignore him anymore.