Watching Willow Watts (23 page)

‘
I don’t know. This’ – Charlie threw out an arm toward the massive marquee and stage – ‘probably cost a lot of money to arrange in the first place. I can’t imagine the organisers will be able to shell out that amount anytime soon.’

Willow nodded, signing programmes and other paraphernalia as they pushed through the crowd. Even though the performance wasn’t happening, the streets were still packed and with every move, someone grabbed onto her. Where was that elephant when she needed it?

Finally, the two of them reached Wi
llow’s door, and Charlie surprised her by giving her a quick hug.

‘
You know, you’re one of the nicest people I’ve worked with. Just don’t let
this crazy life change you, okay?’ He tweaked a curl, then waved goodbye.

Willow let herself into the dark cottage
, turning his words over in her mind. Funny how Dean believed the best thing in the world was the chance to be someone else. But here was Charlie, telling her to just be her. She had to admit, right now she couldn’t wait to get out of this get-up and be herself again, if only for the night. She flipped on the light, jumping as she noticed her father sitting on the sofa.

‘
Dad! What
are you doing?’

Her
father turned to face her, and Willow’s heart dropped as she noticed the pain in his eyes. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘
She’s gone,’ her dad responded, his voice flat. ‘Betts. She’s gone.’

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

JAY SANK ONTO
THE EDGE of the stage, staring out at the now deserted field. It was hard to believe just an hour earlier, it had been packed with people waiting for the greatest Marilyn festival ever to begin.

He thumped a fist and the floorboards shuddered beneath him. How the
hell
could it have gone so wrong?

‘
Jay?’ He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up
to see Simpson looming over him. The old man awkwardly lowered himself to a sitting position. ‘Well, this is a fine state of affairs, isn’t it?’

Simpson shook his head and it was al
l Jay could do not to shove the fool to the grass below.
A fine state of affairs.
More like a bloody fuck up! He’d been counting on this festival to really get things going. Not to mention all the money he’d planned to rake in from his commission on advance ticket sales. Thank God he’d sold those sly tickets on the side. That would help him keep up the big London agent act until the concert was rescheduled.

‘
Let’s talk dates
. I still think it’s best if we hold the event as soon as possible,’ Jay said, turning to face Simpson.

‘
Jay, I’m sorry.’ Simpson patted his leg in a fatherly gesture and Jay tried not to shrug him off. ‘I know how hard you’ve worked for this to happen so quickly. But I’ve just been on the horn with the council, and they think it will take a couple months to process the insurance claim. And we need that money to reschedule.’

‘
A couple
months? But that’s autumn!’ Jay wasn’t going to wait until then to launch his London life and show that bitch Davinia what’s what. He’d waited long enough already.

‘
I know it seems
like ages,’ Simpson said, ‘but look on the bright side. With more time to plan, we can make the festival even bigger. And by rescheduling, we won’t have to refund the advance ticket sales, either.’

Suddenly a thought entered Jay’s mind and he squared his shoulders. ‘Perhaps I could take my cut of the ticket sales now. You know, a sort of advance payment.’

‘
I would if I could, son. But the council controls the accounts the sales were paid into and I reckon that, after what’s happened tonight, they won’t be touching any of the profits until the concert actually goes off.’

‘
Well, they’ll have to pay Dean Denner. He’s demanding his fee now.’ Jay shook his head morosely. Signing Dean had been a major coup – one that would now go to waste.

‘
I’ll see what I can do, but I can’t make any promises. Denner might just have to wait along with the rest of us.’ Simpson rose to his feet, grunting with the effort. ‘Good night, Jay.’

Jay didn’
t even bother responding; he was too busy figuring out how to get money fast. Thank God he had Willow, the one commodity he could count on. All she needed was a nice word in her ear and a good shag, and she’d do anything he asked.

It wouldn’t take long to sort out something. He had a mile-long list of clubs, venues and organisations that had rung Willow’s mobile, desperate to book the new Marilyn. He’d put together a week in London, work Willow hard and start making his mark on the city as he watched the dough roll in. In the meantime, he’d set about organising an event so big it would blow this lousy festival to bits; maybe something along the lines of a national tour. Jay’s anger subsided and he forced a smile back onto his face. Everything would be all right.

He
still wanted to throttle whoever had made that fucking bomb threat, though. The police had departed an hour ago after concluding the whole thing must have been a hoax. Maybe it was just some bored loser looking for a little excitement. God knows Jay would be bored to tears if he lived in a shithole like this.

Right, he’d bett
er go line up some gigs for Willow next week. She had a very busy future ahead if she was going to make him the big bucks.

*

Carefully removing her
suit, Cissy pulled on a satin nightdress and lay down on the bed. It was all over now – she’d managed to put an end to the festival, and no one would know it was her.

It had been a stroke of genius, making an anonymous bomb threat to the site. With all the terrorism fears around these days, the police had to act – and fast. They’d turned up in full force, clearing the field quickly just minutes after she’d made the call. Of course, all the fans were still in town and the festival could be rescheduled. But Cissy was prepared to dial in as many threats as she had to. That man wouldn’t get his grubby hands on any money from Marilyn Mania.

A smile curved her lips.
For the first time in years, Cissy felt a tiny sense of satisfaction. She’d been angry for so long, and it felt good to actually
do
something about it. It wouldn’t get her money or reputation back, but that lying lowlife wouldn’t slither his way into the industry just like that. She owed herself – and him – that much.

*

Willow stared at her father’s sorrowful face. ‘Gone? What do you mean, Betts is gone?’

Her dad gestured toward the stairs. ‘Go and see. All her things have vanished.’

‘
She’s probably just . . .’ Willow tried to think of a plausible explanation. Surely Betts wouldn’t take off like that? ‘Something must have happened. Maybe an emergency with her kids?’

‘
Her note
just said she had to go home,’ her father responded. ‘No phone numbers, nothing. I don’t even know how to reach her.’ He took a sip from a glass of whiskey and Willow noted with alarm the bottle on the table was almost half empty.

‘
Have you asked around? Someone must have seen her.’ Willow sat down beside her father and put a hand on his arm.

‘
Everyone
’s been busy with the festival, and then that bomb scare . . .’ Her dad swung toward her. ‘Are you okay? I’m sorry about your concert, love.’

‘
That’s all right.’ The room fell silent as Willow struggled to think of something to make her father feel better. Finally, she clicked on the television and the two of them watched as the nightly newscaster talked his way through the day’s events, ending with a shot of a helicopter hovering over the field and the crowd scattering.

The cottage shook as someone pounded on the door, and her father
’s eyes lit up. ‘There she is. I knew she couldn’t . . .’

‘
Hi, all.’
Jay appeared and her dad’s face dropped. ‘Willow, I thought I’d fill you in on everything next week. Just because the concert’s cancelled doesn’t mean you aren’t going to be busy!’

‘
Jay, have you seen Betts?’ Willow asked, brushing aside everything else he’d said. Helping Dad figure out what had happened was the most important thing right now.

‘
Who? Betts?’ Jay shrugged. ‘She’s probably on her way back to wherever she came from. Stupid cow, I can’t believe she’d threaten the festival like that.’

Her father
stood, eyes flashing as he faced Jay. ‘That woman practically organised the whole bloody festival for you. I’m sure she had a good reason for going! How about a little respect?’ Her dad shook his head, then turned and stomped upstairs. By the stiff set of his shoulders, Willow could see he was hurting.

‘
Right,
let me talk you through everything next week.’ Jay sat down on the sofa her father had just vacated and started tapping away on his BlackBerry. ‘You’re going to be run off your feet. Everyone wants a piece of the new Marilyn.’ He flashed his teeth in a smile, but it didn’t feel like he was genuinely excited for her future career. Instead, it felt sort of . . . predatory. And Willow couldn’t believe how quickly Jay had dismissed Betts, after everything she’d done.

Taking a deep breath, Willow told herself not to be silly. This was business, after all, and Betts hadn’t exactly acted professionally by leaving like that. It had been a long, stressful day for everyone, and frayed nerves were to be expected. Anyway, she should be grateful Jay had got something together so quickly. The next tax payment was looming.

‘
We’re going to London!’ Jay said, squeezing her hand. ‘I’ve made reservations at The Savoy.’

‘
The Savoy?’ Willow squeaked. ‘Isn’t that really expensive? Maybe we should book somewhere like, I don’t know, The Holiday Inn?’ The less they spent, the bigger the profit.

Jay looked at her as if she was about to sprout a moustache. ‘
The Holiday Inn
? Since when did you ever hear of Marilyn Monroe bunking down at the Holiday Inn? When Marilyn was in London, she visited The Savoy hotel. It’s only fitting we stay there. I’ve got us a suite.’

Willow
swallowed. ‘Okay.’

‘
It’s going to be fantastic,
’ Jay said, moving closer. ‘The two of us, living together at The Savoy, working together . . . a real star’s life in the big city.’

Jay’s
words washed over Willow as she leaned into him. She hadn’t been back to London since that disastrous incident at the Landmark. In her mind, London meant Alex, and it had been too painful to contemplate going there on her own. But she wouldn’t be returning as Willow. Now, she’d be returning as Marilyn, expected to sleep where Marilyn slept, walk where Marilyn walked . . . she squeezed her eyes shut. Over and over, Dean’s words about becoming someone else swirled through her mind.

‘
You okay
?’ Jay slung an arm around her shoulders. ‘I know you’re disappointed with how things went today. But chin up. We’re onto even bigger and better things, baby.’

He pulled her against him but for the first time, his embrace didn’t calm her. Just take it day by day, Willow told herself, trying to relax. Get Dad’s shop out of debt, and then you can stop whenever you want.

*

‘
Here’s your gate, m
adam.’ The immigration officer undid the handcuffs, and Betts rubbed her wrists together as the blood flowed into her hands. She couldn’t believe the way she’d been treated – like a common criminal – but at least they’d found her a flight back to the States tonight so she wouldn’t have to sleep in the horrible-sounding Detention Centre. Betts shuddered. Who knew what went on in there?

She’d pleaded again and again
to let her call Dickie to explain why she’d had to go, but that silly officer had just said to ring when she got back to America. Those young ones clearly didn’t know how much long distance charges were! Betts’s heart wrenched for the millionth time as she pictured Dickie coming home and finding her gone . . . and with his health problems, it surely wouldn’t be good for him. Thank goodness she’d thought to leave a note so at least he’d know she was okay.

‘
Flight AT907 to Atlanta
is now boarding,’ the woman at the gate announced.

The officer nudged her forward and Betts handed her boarding card and passport to the woman, then walked slowly down the ramp toward the waiting plane.

This isn’t the end, she told herself, settling into the seat. This isn’t the end, at all. Now that I know what it’s like to have a life, I’m going to keep it up. And Dickie’s going to be a part of that, I’m sure.

The engines revved
and the plane moved forward. Soon it was in the air. Betts looked down as the lights of London faded away, then leaned her head back and shut her eyes.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

AT THE
BLEEP OF HIS BlackBerry, Jay rolled over in bed, away from Willow. Oh good, a confirmation for Thursday’s luncheon performance at a burlesque club in Soho, and with the fee he’d requested, too. Confirmations were pouring in, and Willow was going to be exhausted. From his experience with Jorgie, Jay knew that was a good thing. The less energy, the less resistance.