Flesh & Bone - a contemporary romance: The Minstrel Series #2 (4 page)

He tugged on his cap and slipped on a pair of wide-lens aviators and headed out. Dresdeners didn’t normally rank people one over the other, so there was a good chance he could accomplish his goal of finding breakfast without being mauled. He walked past headbangers and stoners, young pregnant women and women pushing strollers. Well-dressed folks mingled among those who pretty much wore the same thing every day. All he had to do was keep his head down.

There was a good café and bakery run by ole Maurice’s new lady friend. He stepped inside and breathed in the rich aromatic scent. Fortunately, the place wasn’t very busy at the moment.

Frau Beck was at the counter when Sebastian reached it. He was in the habit of keeping his cap and glasses on now, and he refrained from removing them when he ordered.

“Coffee, black and strong. Two
brötchen
with ham and butter cheese, please.”

“Certainly,” Frau Beck said with a smile. “And you can remove your sunglasses, young man. I already know who you are.” She smiled conspiratorially. “I won’t tell.”

Sebastian pulled them off, hoping his eyes weren’t too bloodshot and awful. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

“Are you in town for long?” Frau Beck poured his coffee, placed it on the tray and took out the pre-prepared buns.

Sebastian took the coffee and sipped it even though he’d yet to pay. “Um, not very long. Our next tour starts in two weeks.”

“I hope you’re enjoying your success.”

Sebastian nodded. He would try. “Do you still keep in touch with Katja?” he asked.

Frau Beck rang up his order and he handed her the cash.

“Yes,” she said. “She’s quite happy with her life in Berlin now. And with being a new bride as you know.”

That was right. The last time Sebastian saw Frau Beck was at Katja and Micah’s wedding.

“Thank you, Frau Beck. It’s good to see you again.” Sebastian picked up his tray, searched for an empty table and sat with his back to the door. He put his sunglasses back on as a precaution and wolfed down his breakfast.

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he reached for it, hoping the text was from Yvonne. It wasn’t. Dirk was calling a meeting in one hour. Seriously? They couldn’t have one freaking day off?

He tipped back his coffee mug until every last drop dribbled into his mouth. Then, after taking a quick glance over his shoulder to ensure he hadn’t been spotted, he slipped back outside into the sunlight. The bright sky and hot weather legitimized his use of a cap and glasses, but even so, he kept his shoulders hunched and his chin down.

To get to Dirk’s flat, Sebastian had to walk past the street church. His mind was full of so much junk he’d forgotten to cross to the other side of the road like he usually did. On most days he believed in a God, some kind of higher power, but he didn’t like religion. Religion caused nothing but trouble in the world as far as he was concerned. But, here he was, right in front of the street church, the metal blinds opened wide. The people inside were preparing for a soup line. He could smell the savory aroma escaping from the propped-open door.

A girl sat on a low stool plucking strings on a guitar. Something made him stop to listen. She wasn’t plugged in, so he had to strain to hear her play, and he conceded that she was pretty good. An older lady entered the room and the girl looked up from under her sheath of straight, brown hair.

Sebastian stroked his chin, thinking. He’d seen this girl before, but he couldn’t remember where. He’d probably just bumped into her in the grocery store one time. He pulled down his cap, shoved his fists deep into his pockets and kept walking. Didn’t matter. It wasn’t like their paths would ever cross again.

He hurried to meet the guys at Karl’s new flat. He and Markus had each moved to flats in a nicer neighborhood with more square meters and higher price tags. Evicting his roommates was enough of a step up for Sebastian. He liked his
Neustadt
neighborhood and his unassuming apartment building. Yvonne had pleaded with him to make a change when the other guys were doing it, but he didn’t see the point. Maybe if she’d agree to move in with him once and for all, he’d consider it.

He pushed the buzzer and Karl let him in. He and Karl went way back, as far as kindergarten. He was like the brother Sebastian never had, and they fought and annoyed each other like real siblings.

“Hey,” Sebastian said. He went straight to the fridge and grabbed a beer. “What’s the big emergency?”

“Yeah, help yourself, man,” Karl said.

Sebastian sat and put his feet up on the coffee table. “Always do.”

Dirk and Markus were already there and they nodded at Sebastian. Dirk ran a finger over his iPad. “Okay, our schedule’s getting really full.”

“Let’s just get to it,” Sebastian said. They spent so much time together, no one expected or delivered pleasantries.

“Lots of interview requests, mostly magazines so I can fill those in, but there’s a radio spot tomorrow morning. Sebastian you’re on for that, eight o’clock.”

“Why Sebastian?” Karl challenged. “What’s wrong with me? Or Markus?”

Sebastian picked at the label on his bottle. “Yeah, let Karl do it.” He didn’t like to get up before noon anyway.

Dirk shook his head. “They specifically asked for you, Seb. Like it or not, guys, Sebastian is the lead singer and therefore the face of the band. We gotta give the people what they want.”

Dirk looked down at his notes as if the matter was clear and settled, but Sebastian could feel the tension roll off Karl. Sebastian couldn’t help how the chips had fallen. Yeah, they’d started off as a duo, but somehow Sebastian had taken the lead in the eyes of the public.

“Photo shoot in two days. Make sure you’re sober. There’ll be a stylist to help, but arrive in something close to what you want to wear. Shower and shampoo, too, please.”

“Where is it?” Sebastian asked.

Dirk gave the address and Karl shot Sebastian a glance. “I’ll drive. You can catch a ride. Just don’t be late.”

Yes, sir.

Dirk scratched his balding head. “We need a new CD. I hope you guys are writing.”

Sebastian puffed. “It’s not like we’ve had a lot of free time.” It was an excuse, and he knew it, but he needed an excuse.

“Hey, find the time. I’ve booked the studio for October, so you’ve got two and a half months to pull twelve songs together. We’ve been pushing your debut for a year now. We
need
something new.”

Sebastian slugged back the rest of his beer. He remembered when this had been fun. That had lasted about three months. Now the pressure was starting to weigh heavily.

“Next tour starts in two weeks. Dates in Nuremberg, Munich, Salzburg and Zurich.”

“I’m bringing Yvonne,” Sebastian said. He hadn’t even asked her, but he would as soon as this meeting ended. Two weeks would be enough time for her to get her shifts covered at the bookstore where she worked.

Karl leaned forward, elbows on knees and eyed Sebastian. “No girlfriends.”

“Why not?”

“Because it would make the rest of us uncomfortable.”

“Then don’t behave like animals.”

“Yeah, and what about you two? You think we want to watch you go at it all the time?”

“We’re not like that, and you know it. I promise we’ll be civil in your company.”

“No.”

Sebastian looked at Dirk and Markus for support. “If you guys want to bring someone, I don’t mind.”

Markus shrugged boney shoulders.

Dirk sighed. “Look, it doesn’t matter to me, but if one of us is uncomfortable with it, then we have to respect that.”

“What if I’m uncomfortable? I’m
uncomfortable
living with pigs who do nothing but get stoned and sleep all day.”

Karl stood and bore down on Sebastian. “Are you calling me a pig?”

Sebastian sprang to his feet in response. “Maybe I am.”

Two seconds later, Dirk had wedged himself between them. “I think we need to take five. We can’t have our band break down in the first year, okay? Let’s not become another stupid statistic.”

Serve explosions went off in her hip—it felt like dry bone against bone—and Eva bit her lip to fight back against the pain. After five years, she should have known better than to walk so far, at least without popping a pain reliever before leaving. By the time Eva made it back from the park and up the one flight of steps to the flat over the soup kitchen, she felt faint.

Her mother was stuffing dirty laundry into the machine in the compact kitchen when she saw her, and her smile flattened. “Is everything all right, Eva? You’re sweating.” Mrs. Baumann retrieved a clean cloth from a drawer, ran it under cold water and moved quickly to her daughter to pat her forehead.

Eva pulled back. “Mama, I’m fine.” She hated when her mother treated her like a baby. She escaped into the WC and hung her cane on the hook her papa had fastened to the wall for that purpose. The room was small enough that she could maneuver where she needed to go without the help of the cane. In fact, in these tight quarters, her cane proved to be more harm than help. To accommodate her, bath rugs were always removed from the floor and hung over the edge of the tub otherwise she could trip and fall. They knew this because it had happened once, and Eva still had a small white scar on her forehead at her hairline where she’d hit it on one of the towel racks.

Her hands shook as she twisted the cap off the pill jar and shimmied one into her palm. The water from the tap was warm, and she nearly choked on it as she slugged the pill back. A rack of coughing ensued, resulting in the pounding of her mother’s fist on the door.

“Eva?”

“I’m okay.” Eva splashed cool water on her face. “The water just went down the wrong way.” She waited until she heard her mother’s slipper-covered feet pad away on the wood floors before reaching for her cane and heading to her room where she eased onto her bed relieved to finally be lying down.

Breathe through the pain.

It met her in varying degrees depending on the type of excursion, which was why she didn’t make too many. And there was always a nice dollop of emotional pain to go with it, as if the physical pain wasn’t enough.

Her medication kicked in after a while, and she dozed a little. When her eyes fluttered back to consciousness, her gaze rested on her guitar in its stand in the corner. She hobbled to the chair beside it and cradled it on her lap. It was a Duncan Africa, handmade by local craftsmen in Uganda, and it played beautifully. After the accident, when it became apparent that she would never drive, her parents had bought her this guitar. Gabriele got driving lessons.

It was a consolation prize of sorts, but now Eva couldn’t imagine living without it. Plus, its origins reminded her that there were people in the world who had a harder go of it than she did.

Thought I came to wet my lips

Maybe cool my feet

But you pushed me from behind

Eva hadn’t written in a long time and suddenly it was like the pen in her hand couldn’t write down the ideas fast enough. She was interrupted by a knock on the door and her mother’s head poked in.

“Mama, I’m busy.”

“Annette’s here. I thought you’d like to see her.”

Annette was Eva’s ginger-haired friend from
before
. She really didn’t have any friends from
after
, except for the regulars that came to the soup kitchen twice a week, if you could call them friends. Eva used to have a lot of friends, but they gradually faded away as Eva withdrew from life and they continued on with theirs. Annette had been the one exception, stubbornly holding on to whatever thread of friendship was left between them.

“Hey, Eva.”

“Hi. Come on in.”

Annette sat on the bed, getting comfortable against Eva’s big pillow like she’d done a million times. Her gaze moved from Eva’s guitar to the pen in her hand. “Are you writing a song?”

Great deduction. “Yeah.”

“Can I hear it?”

“It’s too soon. I haven’t even finished it. But when it’s done for sure.”

Annette twisted the end of her ponytail around her index finger. “So, what’s new?”

“Gabriele and Lennon are getting married.”

Annette’s face lit up and she squealed. “That’s fantastic. They are such a cute couple!”

“It is. And I know.”

“When?”

“Soon. Lennon’s in a big hurry.” Eva grinned. “I think Gabriele’s holding out on him. We’re good Christian girls, you know.”

“Nothing wrong with being a good Christian girl.”

“Not at all. Gabriele is almost finished at the university, so the wedding is after that.”

“Oh, it’s so romantic. And Lennon is so cute. I love his British accent.”

“His German is hilarious. Good thing she is majoring in English. Who knows? They might move to England.”

Annette sighed. “Such an adventure. So, what about you?”

Eva blinked. “What do you mean?”

“Any cute boys?”

“At the soup kitchen?”

Annette frowned. “Eva, when are you coming to university?”

Annette was in her first year. Eva had opted to take time off. She’d been behind in her studies since her accident and pleaded that she needed to catch up. Only, she hadn’t been catching up.