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“Yes, he did,” Tristan replied with a resigned sigh. Getting up, he reached for the glass on the other side of the table.
“Are you still on?” Carol continued. “Yes, he agreed. Put that in front. It gives him an advantage. And then the thing with Milo. They’re supposed to check out this Diego. After all, Milo was shot in front of the house where his sister lives. No idea why that wasn’t investigated.”
Carol turned away from them again and made a call near the door. To Tristan, she seemed overly confident, but he had no idea how good this lawyer, Dexter Evans, really was.
“What’s going on here?” Andrej wanted to know.
Tristan turned his head. It was difficult for him to speak; he felt tired and exhausted. What Carol and he had tried to set in motion was about to fizzle out. However, José and Andrej deserved an explanation, so he took a deep breath and straightened up.
“I was at Carol’s last night and filled her in. We hashed out a plan for damage control. Carol spent the whole day on the phone, rescheduling concerts, and lining up therapy for Leaf.” Tristan pinched his lips together and shrugged. “Who would have thought the night would end like this?”
Andrej glanced over his shoulder at Carol. “Then … What you just said to Carol … Did Leaf …?”
“Yes,” Tristan replied shortly and took a drink.
“Parker agreed to go to rehab?” Andrej repeated, blinking his eyes in disbelief. “And how many gigs were you able to reschedule?”
“He’d be in the clinic for three months. The entire US tour would be postponed.”
José and Andrej were speechless. Only Nathan grinned. “Nice,” he said and snapped a photo. Suddenly, Carol spun back to them.
“Alright. Dexter’s doing his thing. However, he says he can’t promise anything. But we assume there’s nothing standing in the way of the gigs in Seattle and Portland.”
“Seattle and Portland?” José asked, puzzled.
“Yeah, we couldn’t postpone those anymore,” Tristan explained.
“Maybe we can get Leaf out on bail,” Carol said confidently. “After all, Dexter is convinced that this Diego guy is in trouble. He’d have to report Leaf, but if he has as much dirt on him as we think, he might not do that. It could end well.”
“So this is good news?” Andrej asked.
“Yes!” Carol exclaimed.
Tristan felt drained of all strength and sank back onto the couch. His shoulders slumped as the tension dissolved. His energy reserves were depleted. The alcohol was taking its toll, and he felt tipsy enough to maybe sleep for a few hours. He just wanted peace.
A lot of peace.
And Leaf.
The Aftermath
4 months later
42
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Paradise Rock
“Paradise Rock FM! It’s Anna Banana in the house! That was ‘Locker’ by Grave Sinner! Aran Graves is back, folks! While Nightstalker rocks the West Coast, Grave Sinner owned the East Coast five years back—until, you know, things went south, which … well … Wasn’t pretty. But Aran Graves has been released from prison! And from what I’ve heard, the guy is ready to rock again! The band announced in a press release they want to take it slow. But, folks, taking it slow apparently doesn’t mean taking small steps. They’re planning to rock the stage in New York with none other than Nightstalker. We’re excited and will keep an eye on Aran Graves.
“And while we’re at it… What’s the deal with Nightstalker? After that half-canceled gig at the Whisky a Go Go four months ago, it took a whole month for the buzz around the band to settle down. Probably because everyone was keeping a close eye on the concerts in Seattle and Portland.
“Would there be another scandal? A disaster?
“No! Nightstalker proved everyone wrong. The guys were focused and extremely professional. With Eliot Parker, the guitarist, though, it wasn’t always certain if he would make it, but he did and checked into rehab a day after Portland.
“What exactly happened at the Whisky that night was never officially clarified. Concert-goers shared accounts of Parker pouncing on a man and launching into a wild attack. When the man fought back and hit Parker, he didn’t retaliate. Both were escorted away, and the management has remained silent about the incident since. We attempted to gather more details, but even the police were unwilling to disclose information about that night.
