Page 21 of Protecting Her

Life really wasn’t so bad.

I went down at the expected time, after a short nap and a refreshing shower, and did what I do best. I sang my heart out, and tonight, some of the loneliness I felt came through more than it often did. Being happy could make it hard to sing some of the sadder songs in my repertoire.

Kevin had given me that happiness. I didn’t mind though, I’d just settled into the bar stool, closed my eyes until I heard the right note in my voice, and sang away. I had some happy songs, of course, but more than a few were sad, or at least bittersweet. I’d added a few to the set over the last few weeks, and the crowds seemed to love them.

Of course, they seemed to love anything I played. I swiped my hair out of my face and thanked the crowd for coming. They were all quiet, and I broke that silence with a slight joke at myself as I introduced the next song. It was the one I’d written for Kevin, and the crowd waited. I saw a few cell phones in the air and knew I was being recorded. It was something that had taken awhile to get used to.

I closed my eyes on the high notes and opened them on the lower ones. I saw a sea of faces, but none stood out to me. There was a group of women at the bar that had started to make a nuisance of themselves, but I ignored them. Probably an office getaway group or women on a bachelorette getaway weekend.

A hen do, that’s what they called it in Britain, the thought entered my head as I sang on. An odd name for it, but whatever, I decided while the fiddler gave a little solo. I wondered if Kevin was out there. Then it was time for me to sing again, and I forgot about it, except for when the occasional scream came from that side of the bar.

Way too much fun, they’d regret it in the morning.

My set ended, and I went back to the dressing room to wash my face down and rest for a minute. Sarah had already brought in a nice glass of lemonade and had left me a bottle of ice cold water. I needed it to soothe my throat after a night of singing. I broke the seal on the bottle of water and started to guzzle it as a knock came at the door.

“Heyyyy!” A strange woman with blonde hair and bright blue eyes walked in, even though I hadn’t admitted her. “Girl, you are good.”

I stood up, a little bemused that she’d made it backstage. “You’re with those women at the bar.”

I’d heard the English accent, she was one of the women in the group Sarah had told me about then.

“Yeah. We came all the way over here to see what Kevin’s working on these days. Apparently, that’s you.” The woman had an oddly excited look in her eyes that set my nerves on edge, and I backed toward the door, my fists ready.

There was something hysterical in that gaze, and I didn’t like it a bit. “Sorry, do you know Kevin?”

I heard my brain scream at me that I shouldn’t provoke the woman, but maybe she wasn’t as crazy as her eyes said she was.

“Oh yes, I know Kevin well. Very well. Threesome in bed with him well.” She walked closer to me, and her voice went lower as she nodded. “Oh mate, did I know him well. I gave him everything he asked for, and he promised he’d get me a record contract. Guess what I got?”

“Chlamydia?” I don’t know why it came out, but it did.

“What?” she asked, stumped for a moment.

“Chlamydia?” I said it more slowly. “I would have to guess the result of such behavior was an STD, but I don’t know. I’ve never done anything like that.”

I was blocking out her words until she held up a picture of a baby, maybe two-years-old and smiling. “This is what I got. Did he tell you about that? Hmm?”

Suddenly those nights away jolted into my brain, and her words sank in. “He promised you he’d get you into music?”

My fingers were tight in my palms, but now they weren’t fists to protect me; it was me trying not to scream as anger flushed through me.

“Yes, he did, love. Promised me the moon for a threesome, and I gave it to him. Stupidest thing I did.”

“Why are you here then?” I asked, a knot in my throat as I stared her down. She was the model type, prettier than me, though the cake of makeup on her face was a little disgusting. I bet she couldn’t put her face on a pillow without all of that rubbing off.

“Because. I wanted to see who he was about to do it to next. To warn you off. He won’t admit this is his child; typical man, isn’t he?” She didn’t have to say anything else.

I couldn’t abide men who avoided their responsibilities. Or women. “So where’s your baby if you’re over here wasting money on this endeavor?”

“He’s with his nan, alright? My girlfriends and I decided to have a holiday, and I talked them in to coming here. I’ve heard about you, seen your videos. You aren’t bad. But you don’t deserve this.”

I didn’t want to believe her. I wanted to call her a liar, but she seemed so calm now, not crazy at all. I breathed in through my nose and back out. “Well, it’s a good thing I’m in a better position then. No baby here. Thanks for the advice. Can you, uh, leave me alone now?”

“Sure, love. Thanks for listening. I thought you’d throw me out.”

I probably should have, I’d thought, but smiled as I closed the door. What to do? I stared at myself in the mirror over my dressing table and tried to blink away the tears in my eyes. He had a kid he didn’t take care of? That didn’t seem like the man I knew, at all.

Maybe the baby wasn’t his? He’d had a threesome with her though? That was just… a shiver passed through me. Kevin could be wild, but he’d never suggested anything like that with me. Did I not come off as the type, so he hadn’t bothered?