by Annie Jocoby
“Inconsequential threat? A prison sentence wouldn’t be inconsequential, Luke. Especially for a guy like him. He’s so into his image and what people think of him. Not to mention the fact that, if he goes to prison, he will have to also pay a large fine and his company would suffer financially. Anything that would hit him in his pocketbook would be something that he would take seriously. Money-hungry doesn’t begin to describe that man.”
Liam was listening intently, his hand on his chin. “Fill me in, mate. I might be able to help out with what you’re thinking of doing.”
Dalilah opened my mouth to start telling Liam the whole story, knowing that her dad told Liam next to nothing about my situation, but the band was coming back from its break and was starting the second set. Liam’s attention was, once again, focused on the band.
Chapter 6
Dalilah
I was no longer paying attention to the band. I was too excited. The more I thought about it, the more I got excited about the plan. It could work, if my suspicions were true. I only wished that I would’ve thought about it before. Looking back, I wondered why I didn’t think about the blackmail angle before that moment. But, then again, it wasn’t anything that I thought twice about at the time. It just seemed to be in keeping with his overall demeanor and the way that he was. He was so corrupt and money-hungry, I just figured that he was doing something shady. I didn’t know exactly what, and I was ashamed to say, I didn’t really care.
I squeezed Luke’s hand. He was starting to look excited, as well, almost as if he was starting to believe that my plan might work.
After the band finished its set, Liam announced that he was going to meet with them behind the scenes. “Would you like to come with me, mate?” he asked me. And then he smiled. “Who knows? Having a beautiful woman with me might increase my chances of signing these blokes.”
I smiled. “I’m sure that you can sign them. After all, your company is one of the top ones in the world. They should jump at any offer you make them.”
“One would think. But these blokes have a ton of international interest. I’m just one of many who are trying to get them. Everybody sees their potential.”
“Okay,” I said, taking Luke’s hand. “Come on, Luke, let’s go and meet the boys.”
Liam shook his head. “Just you, lass.” He turned to Luke. “Sorry, mate. Dalilah will be an asset for me with these blokes. You, not so much. No offense. It has something to do with the fact that they have penises and so do you. Dalilah, on the other hand, does not have a penis, and what she does have is stunning.” He winked, and I felt uncomfortable.
“Uh, maybe I should stay here with Luke,” I said. “I mean…” And then I thought about it. Liam was nice enough to let Luke and me stay with him, free of charge, while we figured out our mess. Was I really not going to do something as simple as go back with him to meet these boys?
Luke looked pissed, and I didn’t blame him. “I’m sorry, Luke. I need to go back there with him. Liam’s doing a lot for us by allowing us to stay with him. I hope you understand.”
Luke said nothing, but just shrugged. I felt awful. It seemed that Luke was feeling threatened by Liam as it was, and this certainly wasn’t helping matters much at all. To say the very least.
I looked back as I made my way backstage. Luke was sitting in his seat, chomping some ice in his drink. To my dismay, I saw a gorgeous woman join him at his table. To my further dismay, he didn’t seem to dissuade her from joining him for a drink.
I sighed. I felt that I was walking a tightrope, between trying to keep Luke happy and trying to show my appreciation for Liam. And, when Liam put his arm around me, as we made our way through the crowd, I felt even more uncomfortable.
Finally, we got to the backstage, and, sure enough, when I walked back there with Liam, all four of the musicians looked at me appreciatively. I felt like the lead singer was undressing me with his eyes.
Liam shook the boy’s hand. “Hello there, mate, my name is Liam Gallagher. I’m CEO of Gallagher Records.” He handed the kid his card. “And this is Dalilah. She’s a distant cousin of mine, and a big fan of yours.”
Inwardly, I cringed. I had never even heard of this band until that evening, so I didn’t know any of their songs. Granted, I liked what I heard, but I knew nothing about them. I was afraid that this kid would start asking me about which song I liked the best or what I liked about their music. I didn’t have an answer for that, aside from the songs that I heard in their set.
The boy raised his eyebrows at me. “Hello, Dalilah. My name is Neil.” He looked nervous, and blushed furiously. I was amused, as he seemed just a little bit shy. Very much unlike his onstage demeanor, I thought, wryly.
The other boys came up and introduced themselves as Derrick, Nate, and Simon. All of them made me feel welcome. A little too welcome, really.
“Okay,” Liam said, after the introductions were done. “What do you mates say we meet somewhere and talk about the possibility that you might sign with my record label?”
“Maybe,” Derrick said. “If you bring Dalilah along with you.”
I was feeling even more uncomfortable. I wasn’t prepared to be used as bait for these young musicians, and I, quite frankly, didn’t like it.
“Of course,” Liam said. “That goes without saying, mate.”
I started to open my mouth, but Liam just put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed. I suddenly wondered if my staying with Liam had some kind of strings attached. Strings that I was heretofore unaware of. Strings that Luke would be very upset about, to say the very least.
Liam whispered. “Just come to dinner with us, gorgeous. That’s all you have to do.”
“Okay,” I said. “But it ends there. I’m not going to do anything else. Got that?” I was annoyed, and I immediately started thinking that Luke and I would maybe have to get a flat of our own if Liam asked me to do something other than have dinner with these guys.
“Of course,” he said. “I’m not a pimp.” Then he smiled, and I was wondering about that. Something told me that Liam got his way a lot with his looks and charm, and he obviously thought that I would fall into line as well. I would have to disabuse of that notion as soon as possible.
“You better not be,” I said.
“Well,” Liam said to the boys. “Why don’t we meet for dinner tomorrow night? Glasshouse on Parade is an excellent restaurant. We could meet at 7 PM, and talk about you blokes signing with my label.”
Neil nodded, but he wasn’t looking at Liam. He was boring his eyes into me. Undressing me with his eyes. I squirmed and felt myself blushing bright red. I looked around, half thinking that Luke might be around the corner, and would see the way this kid was looking at me, and not be happy at all. At all.
Derrick stepped in. “We’ll be there tomorrow night.” He put his arm around Neil. “Come on, Neil. Let’s go and meet some of the fans who have backstage passes.” He turned to me, and shook my hand. “Dalilah, it was a pleasure.” He shook Liam’s hand next. “Mr. Gallagher, thank you very much for your offer. We’ll see you tomorrow night.”
And, at that, the boys disappeared into the crowd of people who were starting to gather. They starting signing autographs and posing for pictures.
I gathered my breath and glared at Liam. “Liam, I’ll have you know that you’ve put me into a real pickle. You saw the way that Neil looked at me. Now, you want to bring me along to this dinner. I feel like a piece of rare steak being used to lure a lion into a trap.”
“There’s no trap here, young Dalilah,” Liam said. “I’m just trying to get these boys signed onto my label. They’re going to hit it big, and I want to be a part of that.”
“You’re avoiding what I’m saying,” I said. “Either that, or your deliberately trying to make my words to be something that they’re not. At any rate, I think that you have less than honorable reasons for my being at this dinner tomorrow night. Luke will not be pleased.”
“I’m not concerned about
that,” he said. “I’m sorry, Dalilah, but I want to get this boys signed. And if you help me do that, then that’s all the better.” Then he smiled. “I hope that you really don’t mind doing this one thing for me. Family needs to stick together and help each other out, right?”
The implication to me was clear. He was helping me, now it was my turn to help him. I had started staying with him for not even one day, and I already was being asked to repay his favor.
I sighed. Nothing ever came free, of course. Not that I thought that it did. But, I did wish that I didn’t feel so uncomfortable doing this. My gut was telling me that it just wasn’t right.
But I ignored my gut and told him “okay. I’ll go with you tomorrow night. I’m assuming that I have to tell Luke to stay home. Am I correct about that?”
“Goes without saying, lass.”
I shook my head. This whole thing was starting to remind me of Nottingham. I thought about the night of Luke’s premiere, when I was being held out as some type of rote doll for him to impress his friends. Now, here I was, being asked to do something similar.
“Well, then, let’s get out of here. Luke’s out there, all by himself, waiting for me to come back.”
We made our way back to the table. To my dismay, the gorgeous woman who had walked over to Luke when Liam and I were walking back stage was still there at the table, hanging onto every word Luke was saying.
I looked at Luke, and he looked back at me. He frowned and narrowed his eyes. I read his expression perfectly. Luke was no dummy. He knew what Liam was trying to do. And, as I figured, he wasn’t much happy about it.
“Marcella,” he said to the woman. “It was very nice to meet you. My girlfriend is back here at the table,” he said, motioning to me.
I put my hand out, and she shook it. She smiled. “Very nice to meet you. Luke here is a fascinating guy.” She looked back at Luke. “Don’t forget to call me on Monday.”
“I won’t,” he said.
I gave Luke a look like what the hell is going on here?
Luke just raised his eyebrows at me and said nothing.
I sat down and put my arm around him. “Honey,” I said. “You’re going to be mad, I know. But I’m going out to dinner with Liam tomorrow night with those boys from The Pixxillators.”
Luke just shrugged. “Have fun.” He looked annoyed.
I didn’t say anything. I was waiting for him to explain the mysterious Marcella, but he just took a sip of his beer and started chatting up Liam. They started talking about futbol, a topic that I had little interest in, but that Luke apparently knew a lot about. After about a half hour of that, I started to feel bored and more than a little bit annoyed.
The night dragged on. I started to feel more than a little bit warm, and almost claustrophobic. The club was jammed with people, and more were streaming through the door all through the night. I never had much fun in loud sweaty clubs, so I found myself wanting to just go home.
Finally, at around 3 AM, Liam called his driver, and we all headed for the exit and into a waiting limo.
When we finally arrived at his home, Luke and I went to our designated room. I lay down on the bed, exhausted and spent. I was tired all the time, anyhow, due to my pregnancy. But, add in jet-lag and one very long night at a very noisy and crowded club, and you have the recipe for physical exhaustion. I knew that I would be sleeping well.
As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out.
The next day, I woke up around noon. Luke was already up, and was sitting on the terrace, which was right outside the bedroom, his legs up on the ledge. He had a sketch pad on his lap, and was working away on sketching the landscape that was in front of him. Every so once in awhile, he put his hand on his chin and had a faraway look on his face.
I went out onto the terrace with him, and sat down. He smiled, and put his arm around me. “Good morning, Dalilah. How did you sleep?”
“Very well. Liam’s mattress is so comfortable.”
Luke nodded. He still had his right arm around me, while his left hand was still furiously working on his sketch. “This place is so beautiful and peaceful. It really inspires me.” He took a deep breath. “I wish that I had a place like this to go to in New York. I thought that I would miss the city, but I really don’t.”
I knew what he was talking about. Liam’s house was set on about 10 acres of land, and the terrace was facing a forest that was covered in snow that shimmered in the sunlight.
I drew a breath. “Marcella is certainly pretty.”
Luke nodded his head, and barely acknowledged my statement. He still looked lost in thought, as he continued to sketch the gorgeous grass, trees and nature that were within view.
I grabbed Luke’s knee and squeezed hard. “Who is she?”
Luke sighed. “Dalilah, I think that you’re jealous. Join the club. Liam might be your cousin, but I don’t like the way that he looks at you. I don’t trust him. I don’t know what he has in mind in inviting you to dinner, and only you, but I don’t think that he has honorable intentions.”
I knew that he was right. “I know. I guess that you and I should just start looking for a place of our own in London proper. Liam seems to be expecting something in return for giving us a place to stay. Not that I’m going to be giving it. Not at all. But it seems like he might be expecting it.”
“Dalilah, I trust you. Implicitly. So, it offends me that you don’t seem to trust me just as much.” Then he sighed. “Marcella is somebody that I met back in New York. At my show. I thought she looked familiar, and so, when she came up to me, I had to place her face. She reminded me that she was part of a group that I was talking to at my show.”
I felt excited as he talked. “Oh, that’s great. Does she know people here in town who might be able to help you?”
“She does. At any rate, she wants me to call her.”
Then he looked away, squinting into the sunlight.
I felt uncomfortable. There was clearly something on his mind.
“Are you going to call her?” I asked.
“Of course,” he said. “That’s why I’m here, isn’t it? To try to get connections to get me re-established. I’m really trying to salvage anything from the exposure I’ve gotten from my show. Otherwise, this entire mess that we’re in would be for naught. That bothers me.”
I knew what he was saying. All that I did, I did so that he would get his chance in the spotlight. This entire mess – my pregnancy, the possibility that Nottingham would have claims to the baby, my beating, Luke’s criminal charge – could have been avoided if I just would have called Nottingham’s bluff. Luke wouldn’t have had his chance, though. So, it was important that something positive could be salvaged from my actions.
“So, what’s on your mind?” I asked him.
“You, Dalilah. You’re on my mind. Don’t get me wrong, I’m really glad that you had a brainstorm about blackmailing that bastard into giving you what you want. But I really wish that there was something a bit more ironclad that we could use. Something that doesn’t have the possibility of backfiring on you.”
I got quiet. “I know. I realize that my hands aren’t clean. Or, at least, my hands won’t be clean if I do this. But do you have a better idea right now? Aside from us running for the rest of our lives?”
He put his hands behind his head. “No. No, I don’t. So, let’s try it. But you’re playing chess with the master, here. He always seems to be just one step ahead. That seems to be the pattern. He’s probably going to be one step ahead here as well. I, for one, am tired of always playing defense with this guy. I’m tired of us having to constantly figure out a way out of a trap that he has set. For once, I would like to put him on the run.”
“Me too. That’s why my plan is so beautiful. If it works, then he will be the one on the run, not us.”
“And if it doesn’t work?”
“I guess that we’ll have more to worry about than ever.”
Luke sighed. “I guess I have to put my tr
ust in you and trust that you know what you’re doing here. But it just seems that, no matter what happens, we’re doing something underhanded. If I’m not using a fake badge to try to find out personal information about Nottingham, then you’re trying to do something clearly illegal – hacking – to possibly get information that might be damning. And you’re just speculating that Nottingham has done something wrong. He might be as clean as a whistle. But you’re going to break the law to find out. What’s wrong with this picture?”
I raised my eyebrow, halfway tempted to tell him that Nick literally killed a man, or made him commit suicide at any rate, to get Scotty out of a jam. That was underhanded and illegal. What I was planning to do was child’s play in comparison.
But I didn’t say anything about that. Bringing that up would just put fuel on the fire, which I really didn’t want to do.
“Again,” I said. “Do you have a better idea?”
Luke just frowned and shook his head. “No. Other than doing things above-board – hiring a lawyer and letting the chips fall where they may – I got nothing. So, let’s try it.”
I put my hand on his leg. He felt so far away at that moment, even though he was sitting right next to me. He absent-mindedly took my hand, and rubbed it while he sketched some more.
Finally, Liam knocked on the bedroom door. “Dalilah, Luke. Are you alive in there?”
I went to the door and opened it. “Hi, Liam. What’s up?”
“Well, I had my chef make some Eggs Benedict for the two of you. Not to mention French Toast and freshly squeezed orange juice. Needless to say, all of that was fed to the dogs.” Liam had two German Shorthaired Pointers that he had rescued from a nearby shelter. “At any rate, it’s now lunch time. What would you like? My chef can make anything at all.”
“I’m not really hungry,” I said, rubbing my stomach.
“Be that as it may, you need to eat. Especially in your condition. And what about Luke? What would he like?”
“Surprise me,” he said.
Liam just sighed. “Why do I have the feeling that the two of you are going to be a pain in my arse?” He shook his head, and headed down the stairs. “Meet me on the main terrace in a half hour. We’ll have lunch and I can catch up on exactly what is going on with you guys, and why, exactly, you’re here. I might be able to help.”
