Rock Revenge: Alex's Story

I beeped the doors unlocked.

What did I want more? A music career or Dee? The way things were going, I’d have neither.

Dee

“I’ve got us a new rehearsal place,” I told Pete.

Pete had his back to me, making toast for his breakfast but I could tell by the set of his shoulders, he’d argue against it.

“What’s wrong with the place we have?”

“You know as well as I do. We can’t live off Alex. I’m not accepting his handouts anymore.”

“You’re a fool, Dee. Just take it. It’s better than us having to pay out a fortune to do things on our own.”

“You think?”

“Yes, I do.” He turned to face me. “And it’s not like you’re above living in the apartment he gave us.”

Then his gaze fell to the bag at my feet.

“Actually, I’m moving out. I can’t live here anymore. It was a stupid idea, accepting all this. Sally has a spare room and I’m heading over there after work.”

Pete shrugged. “Well, if that’s the way it’s going to be. I might take over your room. It’s bigger than mine.”

That was Pete. The longer he was away from home, the harder he’d gotten.

“How much is the new rehearsal studio going to be?”

“Not a helluva lot. It’s a bit out of the centre.” I wrote the details down on a slip of paper.

“It’s going to be a pain in the arse to get to.”

“Well, that’s the way it’s got to be. I can’t keep going like this. I have my pride.”

I hadn’t told Pete but Sally was planning to move overseas. I was going to take over her lease. I could afford the rent, just, on my salary from the clothes shop, and it’d be a place of my own. I was pretty excited about it. But no one knew of Sally’s plans. She wanted to keep it a surprise from Alex. A nasty surprise.

“He’s got the Summer Rock Festival tour starting next month. I’ll tell him the day before I leave. That will put him slap bang in the middle of Shit Creek.”

I wasn’t sure that was the best way for her to deal with this but it was her life. We met up later for coffee and for her to give me a key to the apartment.

“So, what about you?” she asked.

“I’m fine. Coping with things.”

“I mean, how is the revenge going?”

“Terrible. I just want to get out from under his thumb. Maybe move towns. I could come overseas with you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Then who’d I sublet my apartment to? I’ve got a better idea. You know how I was telling you about going him for the song royalties… well, I did some snooping and I found out that the dude he’s dealing with at the music company is Matt. I have Matt’s phone number.”

She handed me a slip of paper and grinned.

“How did you find that out?”

“People leave things lying around. Like their phones when they go to the bathroom. A bit silly really.”

I wasn’t that impressed with the ethics of that and made a mental note not leave anything personal around the apartment until Sally left. Like notebooks with Alex’s name in love hearts and pretty patterns around it. Not that I’d do anything so childish.

“This would wreck him? Carlie said it’d be a real bitch fight to get the rights off him, especially since they are loaded and I have zero bucks for a lawyer.”

“Listen, you don’t have to even go to court. Just give that guy a call and tell him you want Alex to stop stealing other people’s music. You could even go online, on forums and shit and tell the world. But I don’t think you have the stomach for that. Better just to give our buddy, Matt, here a call and tell him the new golden boy he’s signed is actually a big, fat song stealer. Sow enough seeds of doubt and you’ll damage him forever.”

I folded up the paper and slipped it inside my wallet.

Alex

Drew had just finished his guitar lesson with Jackson and the two of them came down to the bar.

“Why are you looking so miserable?” Drew asked me.

“Because I just heard you rehearsing,” I said.

That was mean but Drew gave me the shits. He probed around too much into things that didn’t concern him.