The Prince of Punk Rock (52 page)

Mr. Ableman opened his briefcase,
took out a folded newspaper and tossed it on the far end of the desk.
 
“Do you care to explain this, Mr. Garcia?”

Angel studied it with concern.
There was a photo of him, Tommy and Jessi leaving last night’s venue with their
arms around each other.
 
Tommy and
Angel’s faces were close together, but not touching.
 
The camera’s lens probably snapped closed a
few seconds too late and missed the kiss they shared.
 
Jessi was smiling at them.
 
The caption read,
Angel Garcia and
Guitarist Heat up On Stage and SIZZLE Off Stage!
 
A sinking feeling hit him in the gut.
 
He should have addressed the issue of his
relationship with Tommy and Jessi when Damien first mentioned it.
 
He shouldn’t have procrastinated.
 
His lip started to twitch and the blood
surged in his chest.
 
He pretended to
read the article, but he was only stalling while he tried to figure out how to
answer.
 
The seconds ticked by, echoed by
the silence in the room.
 
Everyone’s eyes
were on him. Tommy leaned in and tried to look at the article, but Angel was
frozen, unable to offer Tommy a view of the paper.
 
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jessi’s
face peek out behind Tommy’s head.
 
She
knew he was panicking and she snatched the paper out of his hand. She shared it
with Tommy so they could read it together.
 
Her mouth tightened, and then she gingerly placed the paper back on the
desk in front of Mr. Ableman.

Mr. Ableman’s eyebrows were arched
high, causing deep lines to form on his forehead.
 
His mouth stretched into a discerning frown
as he waited for a response.

Jessi was matter-of-fact in her
answer.
 
“It’s poorly written and there’s
a typo.”

“I wasn’t looking for a critique,
Mrs. Blade.” Mr. Ableman shot a commanding look at Angel.
 
“Explain.”

Angel’s lips were glued shut.
 
Was he supposed to explain that the three of
them were lovers?
 
Should he make up
something tangible, like they were caught in a love triangle? Or should he deny
their relationship altogether?
 
The
latter was probably what Mr. Ableman wanted to hear, and the best answer, but
Angel couldn’t lie.
 
Yet the truth was
stuck in his throat.
 
He started to
breathe rapidly, followed by a bout of perspiration.
 
Tommy’s soothing arm across his back, and
hand rubbing his shoulder, layered a blanket of calmness on his simmering
anxiety.
 
He returned and affectionate
and thankful smile.

Mr. Ableman snorted.
 
“Is that supposed to be my answer?
 
Mrs. Blade, since you’re the only one who
seems to have a voice today, why don’t you spell it out for me?”

Jessi never flinched or averted her
eye.
 
“The three of us are a couple. It’s
not a secret.
 
Everyone in
Brooklyn
is aware of our relationship.
 
It’s not a problem.”

Mr. Ableman sat up in his
chair.
 
His formidable presence seemed to
grow two inches taller.
 
“This isn’t
Brooklyn
, and it most certainly
is
a problem.
 
Your behavior, Mr. Garcia and Mr. Blade,
reflects on my company.
 
My father
started this business.
 
I am the sole
majority shareholder.
 
What you do in
your private life, behind closed doors, is your affair, but I expect you to
maintain a level of decorum in public.”

The three of them exchanged uneasy
glances.
 
Jessi sat defiantly in her
chair, but remained silent.
 
She was
waiting for Angel to respond, but he couldn’t.
 
All he saw was the record deal, along with his lifelong dreams, crashing
to the floor.

Tommy was the one who spoke
up.
 
“We weren’t doing anything to
embarrass the label.
 
We were walking
with our arms around each other.”
 
Tommy
snarled his lip.
 
“The same way you
probably walk down the street with the people
you
love.”

Mr. Ableman’s blood pressure turned
his cheeks bright red.
 
His knotted silk
tie bulged at his throat.
 
“Don’t get snarky
with me, Mr. Blade.
 
I can’t have you
parading a threesome in front of the paparazzi.
 
This is how we’re going to handle it.
 
You’re going to make a statement rebuffing the gibberish in this
story.
 
You’re going to portray your
relationship, Mr. Blade and Mr. Garcia, as one of close friendship and we’re
going to play up the loving marriage between Mr. and Mrs. Blade.
 
Mr. Garcia, the label doesn’t have a problem
with you being openly gay.
 
We welcome
the diversity it’ll bring, but I’m sure you can understand that a ménage à
trois is out of the question. We want you to find a love interest to spur the
tabloids away from your relationship with Mr. Blade.”

Tommy leaned foreword and gripped
the arms of his chair.
 
He looked like he
was ready to lunge.
 
That was the
indignation that made Angel find his voice.
 
“I would
never
disrespect Tommy like that.”

“I’m afraid you don’t have much
choice in the matter.”

Marissa uncrossed her long
legs.
 
“Listen to me, Angel. Mr.
Ableman’s arrangement is in your best interest.”

“How can you say that?
 
You know there’s nothing tawdry about our
relationship.”

“I’m sorry. This is the best I
could come up with.
 
The only—”

“This was your idea?”

“Of course it was my idea.
 
I’m your publicist.
 
I need to make sure you’re portrayed in the
best possible light by the media.”

He felt betrayed, even though he
knew her loyalties lay with Mr. Ableman.
 
“There’s nothing wrong in the way we live our lives.
 
I didn’t know I had to defend who I choose to
love.”

She reverted to speaking in Spanish,
so Mr. Ableman wasn’t privy to their conversation.
 
“You have to play ball.
 
You’re not in a position to argue with
him.
 
He threatened to drop you from the
label.
 
You have a morality clause.
 
He can break the contract if you do anything
to disgrace the label.”

“Disgrace?”
 
Angel replied, also in Spanish. “Loving
someone is not a disgrace.”

He sat back in his chair and looked
away.
 
“I won’t do it,” he said, in
English, so everyone, especially Mr. Ableman, understood.

“I told you, you don’t have a choice!”
Marissa said in Spanish.
 
“He was going
to pull your contract!
 
Do you know how
hard I fought for you?
 
This is it!
 
You have to abide by his terms!”
 
Her words were a flurry of Latin drama and
rolling R’s, accentuated by hands flying in the air.

Angel saw his dreams shattered on
the floor again.
 
Defeat deflated him and
he turned to Tommy and Jessi.
 
They were
sitting on the edge of their chairs, frantic and confused expressions plastered
across their faces, wondering about the heated conversation that just took
place in a language they didn’t understand.
  
Angel sank back into his chair and wiped the pride off his face with the
swipe of his hand.
 
“We’ll keep our
relationship quiet, for now, but I’m not making a statement denying it and I’m
not taking a phony lover.”

Tommy tried to say something, but
Angel hushed him.

Mr. Ableman sat with his index
fingers pressed against his stern, uncompromising lips, while he decided their
fate.
 
After a significant pause, he
passed verdict.
 
“I don’t usually concede
Mr. Garcia, but I’m willing to meet you halfway because of your talent and the
collective talent of your band.”

“No!”
 
Tommy slammed his hand down on the arm of the
chair. “I’m not hiding our relationship.
 
I don’t care what people think.
 
I
spent my whole life hiding.
 
I’m not
doing it anymore.”

“Tommy, please, we’re backed into a
corner here.”

“Angel!”

“I’ll explain it better when we get
back to the bus.”

Tommy quieted down, but the anger
still showed in the scowl on his face and in his icy blue eyes.

Mr. Ableman was assessing them from
across his desk, like a king from his throne.
 
His gaze rested on Jessi.
 
“Mrs.
Blade . . .
 
Jessi . . . you’re a lovely
young lady.
 
You remind me of my
daughter, Audra.
 
You have the same spunk
and fortitude.
 
You can have anything you
want in life.
 
Why would you settle for
this sick three—”

“Sick?”
 
Tommy sprung from his chair and leaned over
Mr. Ableman’s desk.
 
“How dare you call
our relationship sick?
 
And don’t ever
talk down to my wife or try to bully
my
husband
again.
 
We’re not going along with anything!”

Tommy took Angel and Jessi by the
hand and dragged them toward the door.

Mr. Ableman puffed out his crimson
cheeks and rose to his feet.
 
His pointed
finger felt like a loaded shotgun.
 
“Garcia, you have 48 hours to get back here and sign a confidentiality
agreement! And, Blade, check your Goddamn attitude! Talk to me in that tone
again and I’ll have your ass as well as your contract!”

“I want to take a vote,” Angel
said.
 
“This involves all of us.
 
What do you think we should do?”

Damien was the first to
answer.
 
“You keep your mouth shut.
 
Don’t fuck this up.
 
This is our shot.
 
We may not get another one.
 
Don’t fuckin’ blow it for all of us.”

Jimmy shrugged. “It’s a tough
one.
 
I know you and Damien were the ones
who started this band, but it’s your call. It’s your personal life that’s on
the line.
 
I trust you. I’ll back you up
on whatever you decide.”

“You know how I feel.” Tommy
crossed his arms across his chest.
 
“I’m
not going back in the closet.
 
It took
everything I had to come out.
 
You know
how hard it was for me, A.
 
I can’t go
back to hiding my feelings anymore. I love you and I’m not about to pretend
we’re just friends.
 
Didn’t we do that
long enough?
 
Do you really want to do
that again?”

The deciding vote was Angel’s. He
knew Tommy was right, but he didn’t want to lose the contract.
 
He looked to the person he always looked to
for guidance.
 
“Jessi, what’s your take?”

“She doesn’t get a say.”
 
Damien was annoyed.
 
“She’s not part of the band.”

“Alright, her vote doesn’t count,
but I need to discuss it with her.
 
I
need to get her insight.”
 
He turned back
to Jessi for an answer.

She raised her brow.
 
“Do you really have to ask?
 
It’s a no-brainer.
 
I stand behind Tommy.
 
I always do.”

She was right.
 
He knew all along he couldn’t go through with
pretending their relationship was strictly casual.
 
He was just looking for a life line to save
the contract. “That’s it then.
 
I’m not
signing the confidentiality agreement.
 
Are you going to be OK with that, Damien?”

“Fuck no!”

“I’m sorry.
 
I want this record deal just as much as you,
but, I can’t do it.
 
I can’t pretend I’m
someone I’m not.
 
There’ll be other record
deals.
 
Maybe Galaxy or Freehold are
still interested.”

Damien glared at him. If he didn’t
know Damien so well, he probably would have been scared shitless.
 
Eventually, Damien’s demeanor softened and
the fire behind his eyes diminished.
 
“I
guess I can understand, but I’m pissed as fuckin’ hell.
 
Not at you.
 
At that bastard, Ableman.
 
The whole
situation’s
fucked up
.”

“Angel’s got a point,” Jimmy tapped
his drumstick on his leg, just like he always did when he was stressed or had
something on his mind.
 
“We’re well known
now.
 
Pretty much nationwide.
 
We’ve got to be worth more to one of the
other labels than when they first wanted to make an offer.
 
There’ll be other deals.”

“That’s really wishful thinking,”
Damien said.
 
“But, just in case, let’s
make tonight’s show a good one, since there’s a good chance it’s gonna be our
last.”

“We have two days,” Angel
said.
 
“Maybe Marissa can convince Mr.
Ableman to have a change of heart.”

Marissa was back on the bus shortly
after the show ended.
 
“Time to face the
music.
 
Mr. Ableman’s waiting for you.”

“But we still have another
day.”
 
Fear crept into Angel’s gut at the
change in the deadline.

Marissa displayed a small smile.
“Trust me.”

Three long faces sat across from
Mr. Ableman, while Marissa remained standoffish seated partway between Mr.
Ableman’s cherrywood desk and the chairs that faced it.

“So what’s the verdict, Mr. Garcia?
Do we still have a contract?”

He looked to Marissa on how to
answer, but she was indifferent and wore a mask of ambiguity.
 
He took a deep breath and squeezed Tommy’s
hand.
 
“I’m not going to pretend I don’t love
this man.
 
I’m not going to camouflage
our relationship because you’re afraid—”

“I’ve heard enough.” Mr. Ableman
brought his hands down on the edge of his desk.
 
“I value your integrity, Mr. Garcia.
 
Not many people stand up to me and not many people hold on to their
pride the way you do. Not in this business, anyway.
 
Unless you change your mind in the next 30
seconds, I have no choice but to instruct my lawyers to terminate your
contract.”

“Daddy, no!
 
You can’t do that.”

It was Audra.
 
She was standing in the open doorway with
Kira, and Mr. Ableman looked like he was about to burst a blood vessel.

“What the hell are you girls doing
here?
 
I’m in a very important business
meeting.
 
I told you, when my door’s
closed, you don’t interrupt me unless the building’s on fire!”

Kira looked intimidated and shrank
back, but Audra stepped boldly into the office.
 
“Hear us out.
 
It’s not as bad as
you think.”

Kira followed her sister’s
lead.
 
“I’m sorry Daddy, but you can’t
fire Angel.”

Mr. Ableman eyed his daughters
sternly, but he wasn’t sending them away.

“I know that people might not
understand about Angel and Tommy and Jessi, but we
know
them.
 
There’s nothing perverse about their
relationship,” Audra told her father.

“They really love each other,” Kira
added.
 
“Even though it’s unconventional,
it’s endearing.
 
Anyone can see the love
the three of them share.”

Mr. Ableman shook his head
fiercely.
 
“It’s too scandalous.”

“That’s the whole point.”
 
Audra grew animated.
 
“It’s romantic.
 
It’ll create controversy.
 
It’ll get people talking.
 
It’ll stir up curiosity about their personal
lives.”

Marissa leapt to her feet and
raised a pointed finger to the ceiling.
 
“It’s a goldmine!
 
It’s
scandalous!
 
It’s rock and roll!
 
It’ll create a frenzy with the
paparazzi!
 
It’ll put their names on the
tip of everyone’s tongue!”

Mr. Ableman narrowed his eyes into
thin slits and a hue of anger burned his cheeks.
  
“What the hell are you three up to?”

“Nothing, Daddy.
 
Trust us.”
 
Audra was undisturbed by her father’s impending wrath.
 
“This could work.
 
It’s radical.”
 
She spread her arm out toward Angel and
Tommy. “They’re radical rock stars!”

“I can’t take the chance that the
tabloids will have a feeding frenzy, sweetheart.”

You could hear Mr. Ableman
beginning to fold, and for the first time in the last 24 hours, Angel had a
glimmer of hope about their future at Falcon Records.

Audra took a step closer to her
father.
 
“Look at the numbers,
Daddy.
 
You see how sales are
skyrocketing, and this is just the beginning.
 
How many other bands have made you this much money in this short of a
time span?
 
You know Immortal Angel has
the potential be a worldwide phenomenon.
 
Is that an opportunity you want to throw away?
 
What’s a greater risk worth taking – backlash
by the media, or making millions of dollars?”

Mr. Ableman jerked his head toward
Audra, surprised at her maturity and industry knowledge.
 
Angel was just a surprised.
 
Six months ago Audra was a sassy, starry-eyed
fan.
 
Now she sounded like a marketing
executive negotiating a million dollar deal.

“Audra Marie Ableman, when did my
little girl become a hard-nosed business woman?”

“I told you I wanted to work for
you since I was ten years old.” She glanced at her sister.
 
“We both did.
 
We went to college and graduated in the top of our class.
 
This business is our birthright.
 
We take it seriously.
 
We wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize it.”

“We recognized that Immortal Angel
was a huge undiscovered talent.”
 
Kira
stepped forward, more confident.
 
“Maybe
some people are going to be offended by their lifestyle, but they’re not the
people who are going to be buying their records.”

They both made an impressive
argument and it was clear that Mr. Ableman was beaming with pride at his
daughters’ business knowledge and negotiating skills.

“I may regret this, but I’m going
to give Mr. Garcia and Mr. Blade another chance, only because I’m so impressed
with the way you girls handled yourselves just now.
 
You made me believe that the talent behind
Immortal Angel isn’t something
our
business should cast aside so
easily.”

“It looks like it’s your lucky day,
Mr. Garcia.
 
You’ve been reprieved.
 
But if anything goes amiss and my company
suffers from defamatory publicity or loses one dime because of your antics, you
will be immediately dismissed from your contract.”

Mr. Ableman clenched his jaw and
his gaze instantly turned to steel as it torpedoed into Marissa.
 
“If you
ever
use my girls against me
again, Miss Torres, you will find yourself unemployed and blacklisted in this
business.
 
Do I make myself perfectly
clear?”

She swallowed loudly.
 
“Yes, sir.”