Tudor Reunion Tour (8 page)

“Come on, A, what’s up? We were having a
great time,” Angus chided.

“Well, you can go back after I speak
with you both, and there was not the place to do it.”

“So do it now, so Damien and I can get
back to the party.”

I shook my head. The back of a limo was
the last place I wanted to do this, but Angus had had a few and was in full
party mode. I wondered how big a buzz kill my news would be on them both.

“Here? You want me to tell you here?”

“Mother’s okay isn’t she?” Damien asked,
making the situation all the more real and serious.

“Yes, she’s fine. It’s not her.” I
stared at them both. What the hell, get it over and done with. Julia didn’t
deserve better than the back seat of a limo. Not after what she had evidently
done to my brother. “Okay, fine. It’s Julia.”

“What about Julia?” I heard Damien ask.
There was a hint of concern or worry in his voice. I wasn’t sure which.

“It appears that Julia and Don have
left.”

“What do you mean left? Where are they?”
Angus asked, his head cocked curiously now.

“Red couldn’t raise her on the walkie-talkie
and went back to the hotel after he couldn’t find her at the venue. He was
concerned she had gotten ill or something. He discovered all of her things
gone. He then checked Don’s room and found it cleaned out.”

“Holy shit.” Angus breathed.

“Julia wouldn’t do something like that.
You must be mistaken, Amadeus. Red must be mistaken.”

“No, Damien, I’m afraid it’s the truth.
The desk told Red that the two of them left in a car service. That’s all I can
tell you right now.”

“You okay, Damien?” I heard Angus ask
our older brother.

Damien sat there in silence, taking it
all in. Shocked as we all were. Well, maybe Damien, but not Angus and me. We’d
halfway expected something to happen.

“Now what, A? What about the band, the
rest of the tour?” Angus questioned.

“I already have Peter’s people on it to
get something out. As far as anyone is concerned, you, Angus, are going to be
ill.”

“Me? Why me?”

“Because everyone would expect Damien to
be the one to get ill. He’s hasn’t been on the road since his stroke. If you’re
sick, no one will question when we postpone the remainder of the tour. Peter’s
people are going to do that and reschedule everything.”

“Well, if that’s what needs to be done,
let’s do it. Damien, you up to it?”

Damien nodded his head not looking at
either of us. I knew this had to be killing him inside. “Yeah, whatever the two
of you want to do, I’m in.”

We rode back to the hotel in silence.
Once we arrived, both Angus and I accompanied Damien to his room. It looked as
though a tornado had gone through it, Julia grabbing everything she needed and
throwing aside what she didn’t. I secretly wondered what their home looked
like, and shuddered at the thought.

As we sat there in Damien’s room
drinking a beer, I texted Joe Franco enough that he’d know the gist. It was
earlier in Seattle, so I fully expected to hear back from him. Perhaps he could
take the lead in Seattle, see what he could uncover out there.

Then I called Peter. A text wouldn’t do
in this instance. He was awake and waiting for my call, his top PR person
having already informed him of our situation.

“Hello, Amadeus. I already know. My
people woke me up. Damn mess she left, isn’t it?”

I laughed. Peter always knew how to make
light of a dismal situation. “The tour is just the beginning I’m afraid. Damien
and Angus are on board. Red’s going to inform the band and crew, and the three
of us will speak with them as soon as they return to the hotel.”

“Good. Everything will fall into place,
Amadeus, don’t worry.”

“I know it will, Peter. I just wish Zara
were here.”

“Well, the best thing right now is for
the three of you to get out of town quietly tomorrow. One of my planes will
take you all back to Seattle. That will cause less publicity, and poor, sick
Angus won’t be seen.”

“Does Mother know? Ask him.” Damien said
from across the room.

“Peter, Damien wants to know if Mother knows
what’s transpired, and if so, how’s she taking it?”

“Yes, she knows. She’s sitting here
across the room from me as we speak. She says she’s not okay but she’ll manage.”

“Good. Now what? We go to Seattle…”

“Go there, assess the situation. We’ll
get the tour dates rescheduled. Red can handle the equipment and that end of
things. The three of you lay low, and Amadeus?”

“Yeah?”

“Rest up. I’m getting it set up so you
can meet up with Zara. You’ll leave from Seattle. I’ll be in touch. For now,
lay low. And tell Angus, he’s sick so stay out of sight.”

The next few days, week was a total blur
in parts. Some of it was vivid, some not so much. The three of us had managed
to sneak back into Seattle unseen, and the band and crew had been informed of
the situation. As much as we wanted them informed. For now, Angus was ill and
that’s the story we fed them. Red and I decided the less anyone knew the less
the media would be interested. I prayed Julia didn’t do anything foolish from
wherever she was right now, like make some huge announcement. But, of course,
that would be so, so un-Julia like.

Damien was anxious to return to his home
on one of the islands that dotted the Washington state area. His daughters, now
both teenagers, remained with Julia’s sister at her home in Eastern Washington.
Jane had done her best to shield them from the press coverage, and fortunately
being at the age they were, they had better things to occupy their time. It was
bad enough Julia ripped them from their surroundings in the middle of a school
year and plunked them down and left them to their own devices.

The three of us made the ferry ride from
Seattle in my SUV one morning. Angus stayed ducked down in the back and out of
sight while Damien sat up front with me. We remained in the vehicle during the
ferry trip.

Once we arrived, I drove us to the gate
that kept their home protected from unwanted prying eyes. I punched in the code
Damien gave me, and we drove right up to the house. Immediately all three of us
sensed something odd. Then it hit us…there were none of Julia’s flower pots,
hanging baskets, or other outside adornments.

“You want me to go in first, bro?” I
asked Damien, who was scanning the area.

“No, I need to do this myself, A.” He
passed me and walked up to the front door and inserted his key. Angus and I
were right behind him, and as soon as he threw the front door open, it was
evident what had taken place.

The entire house was empty. Every stitch
of furniture, every picture on the wall, every knick knack. Everything. Gone.
Except for Damien’s personal clothing and items, including all his professional
acolytes and the baby grand that graced his music room, the house had been
stripped. She was gone, out of Damien’s life.

Walking through the house in silence, it
dawned on me how long she must have been planning all of this. Moving this
detailed took a lot of coordination. Damien opened the doors to his daughters’ bedrooms,
one at a time. I thought I heard a sigh of relief as he realized everything was
as it should be behind the doors. I wondered if she was leaving her daughters
as well. Sure seemed that way.

Making our way out to the kitchen and
large French doors that opened onto a massive deck overlooking the sound, the
three of us went outside to look around. The huge spa still sat where it had
been installed, as was Damien’s prized sailboat. I was glad; he loved to sail
as much as I did. It had been a long time since I’d taken my own craft out.
Perhaps this turn of events would allow me some time.

“What do you want to do now, Dame?”
Angus asked as he perched himself up on a railing.

“I don’t know. I suppose I should go in
and see if she left any of our paperwork or even my computer. I need to see
what, if anything, she’s done with our finances.”

The plan had been for Damien and Angus
to stay out here. It was secluded, and since Angus was supposed to be ill, it
would be the perfect place for him. As long as he didn’t go frolicking on the
boat or anything crazy, Angus-style.

“We can still stay here, Damien. We can
sleep in the girl’s rooms.”

“Yeah, but let’s go inside and look
around further before we decide.”

“Hell, Damien, you’re forgetting the
guest cottage. If she forgot it as well, the two of you can stay out there for
the time being.”

I left the two of them to fend for
themselves after Damien and I made a quick trip to the grocery store. It was
there he made the sad discovery that Julia had emptied their bank accounts. I
gladly paid for the food and left Damien with a few hundred dollars just in
case. I knew Angus would help, too.

Damien was on his laptop checking his
financial accounts when I left, and Angus was checking out the mooring ropes on
Damien’s sailboat. I had a sick feeling this was going to be bad. There was
still not a peep out of Julia, and her whereabouts were still unknown. Damien
assured me he’d call me the next day with details of what he’d uncovered, and
if need be, make plans to return to Seattle.

Julia left not only Damien and their
family swinging in the wind, she involved the entire Tudor family. For Damien,
though, it was far worse. Not only had she drained any and all bank accounts
she could, she had not made a payment on their island home in months, and
Damien was now close to facing foreclosure.

Knowing Zara would be fine with my
helping Damien out, I loaned him the money to pay off the property. Turns out,
there had only been the three she had missed and three more. Damien was good
for it. He’d pay us back out of future earnings. At least he had his home and
no worry of losing it. I accompanied him to the bank to take care of the
mortgage and open a new checking account. The only thing Julia couldn’t get to
was a retirement account in his name. Instead of him getting into that and
having all sorts of fees and penalties, I fronted him enough money until his
began to flow.

Mother arranged for both of Damien’s
daughters to visit her and Peter outside London until things were straightened
out. What teenager wouldn’t want a free trip to London, even if it is to stay
with your grandmother? Spring break was upon them. One less thing to stress
Damien out.

The three of us had been writing stuff
together on the road, and while I am away to gather my family up and bring them
home, Angus and Damien will start practicing and recording. It’s time for Zara
to come home. Not only did I need her and Elizabeth close, I, meaning Damien,
Angus and I, needed her expertise in what to do next.

****

Until the small jet touched down in
Santiago, Chile I didn’t have a clue as to where I was headed. Exhausted from
everything I’d been through, I managed to sleep most of the way. Once I saw the
sign welcoming tourists to Santiago I knew where Zara was. Patagonia…

Greg, one of the owner/operators from
the resort Zara and Elizabeth had been staying at met me at the airport. Peter’s
people had let them know to expect a new guest and under no circumstances to
let Zara in on the fact I was in route. I wanted to surprise her.

I marveled at the scenery, how pristine
and wild it was, and then it dawned on me I was at the opposite end of the
earth. I had been to Brazil, but never here. Zara had always wanted to show me
this magical place. Now she’d have a week to do just that.

Taking my cue from Greg’s wife, Mary, I
stealthily walked down the path towards Zara’s cottage. As I faced the door, I
quietly put my one bag down beside the door. Nervously, I ran my hands through
my hair and hoped I looked decent. It had been a long trip, and I hadn’t had a
chance to shower or shave. But then Zara always did like me a tad unkempt. I
wiped the palms of my hands on my jeans, then knocked on the cottage door.

Zara

“Oh my God!” I heard myself exclaim in
disbelief. “It’s you, it’s really you!”

It was—it was Amadeus. He was here. He
folded me into his arms and we just stood there, saying nothing, basking in the
warmth of each other. He then loosened his grip and bent down to kiss me. I
thought I would come undone at his closeness, his masculinity.

Elizabeth was standing in her playpen,
holding on to the sides, screeching her protests at being ignored. I have no
idea if she recognized Amadeus. I don’t know at her age how long a memory
stays. He was a tad scruffier than usual, but the moment he opened his mouth,
she forgot what she was doing, let go of the playpen and fell squarely on her
butt. Fearing the wailing might begin, Amadeus rushed to her side and scooped
her up out of the playpen, and all the while she giggled and babbled. No, she
hadn’t forgotten her daddy.

“Is she walking yet?” he asked as his
daughter playfully slapped him on the cheek.

“No, not yet. Not on her own anyway. As
long as she holds on to something, she’s pretty much okay. I think she’s been
waiting on you.”

“I can’t believe how much I missed her
this time, Zara. And I can’t get over how much she’s changed in such a short
amount of time.”

“Yeah, she’s growing up fast. She’s been
really good through all of this. The long plane ride, coming to this new place…”

He and Elizabeth couldn’t get enough
play time in, and he had to be the one to put her down for a nap in the middle
of the morning, far later than her normal time. She went kicking and screaming,
but once Amadeus had her in bed, he stood by the crib and sang to her for a
minute. She finally gave in.

I met him out in the kitchen.

“I’d like to spend some quiet alone time
with my husband.”

“Then that’s what you shall have, love.”
He took my hand and led me into the bedroom.

“Zara.” He raised his head. The smile,
when it came, was sinful. “I keep having visions of you in absolutely nothing.”

My heart beat faster, a tingle of heat
racing through me. “I’ve been having the same visions, A. Of you that is, butt
naked.”

His smile broadened, and the Amadeus
Tudor I had fallen in love with shone through. “What am I going to do with you,
you little minx?”

“I guess we’ll have to find out, won’t
we?”

Amadeus stopped, and then his wicked
grin reappeared. “Do your worst.”

“Only if you do the same to me,” I
replied.

I stood in front of him and slowly
pulled the t-shirt over my head. Before I could finish, Amadeus was beside me,
helping get it over my head. He took it in his hand and let the fabric fall to
the ground. Before I could assist him in removing his t-shirt he had it over
his head and tossed it across the room. I unhooked the front clasp of my bra,
and as seductively as possible, I pulled the straps off my shoulders and let it
slither to the ground. Amadeus pulled me next to him in a tight embrace, saying
nothing. I heard him groan as my stomach came in contact with his bulging
erection.

He stopped me as I reached to unfasten
his jeans. “Let me, it’ll go smoother if I do it,” he said as he loosened his
hold on me just enough to loosen his jeans from around his throbbing cock.

As he stepped out of his jeans, I noted
he was commando underneath. I reached for the button on my shorts, but he moved
my hands away and unzipped them, pulling them slowly over my hips. I stepped
out of them, along with my panties, and let him lead me to the bed.

Amadeus laid himself on the mattress and
pulled me on top of him. Holding me in his strong arms, he brushed warm kisses
on my throat, moving his skilled mouth between my breasts. I pressed a kiss on
top of his head as he worked his magic.

He held me securely across his thighs,
the hardness of his erection pressing against my womanhood. Amadeus slid his
fingers between my legs as he kissed me and smiled broadly when his thumb sank
into wetness.

“Have you missed me, baby?”

“Yes,” I groaned. “More than you know.”

“I might just die on the spot if I don’t
have you,” he said.

“We can’t have that, can we?” I moved in
his arms, repositioning myself to better straddle him. I spread my legs wide. “It’s
been too long, Amadeus.”

“Too long.”

I laid my hands against his cheeks and
gave him a long, passionate kiss. “Make love to me, Amadeus.”

His eyes darkened. He kissed me as he
pressed fingers to my opening again and then I felt the hard bluntness of his
tip. Amadeus kissed me as he slowly eased me onto him, holding my hips as he
entered me. The feeling of him inside me felt wonderfully familiar.

“Baby, you’re so tight and wet,” he
whispered. “I’ve miss this.”

He raked his fingers through my hair,
then stroked my back with gentle hands. I began to rock on him, the feeling of
him inside me blotting out all other thoughts.

“I love you,” I heard myself say.

“I love you too, Zara. I belong here,”
he murmured.

Amadeus was right; he belonged inside
me. We fit together so well, each of us having learned the other by heart.
Memories of nights together—Amadeus’s hands all over me, his hot mouth arousing
me again and again. Loving Amadeus could be turbulent and exciting, and then it
could be slow and hot as it was right now.

He pushed into me a little harder as I
gasped with pleasure. “What about this?” Another thrust, harder, as he grasped
my hips and expertly drove up inside me.

“Yes, god yes.”

He broke off, driving deep inside me. “Damn
it, not yet.”

He started shuddering, and sweat
glistened on his skin. Amadeus thrust his fingers to where we were joined,
playing, rubbing, teasing me toward climax. His touch sent me into a frenzy.
The friction rippled joy through my body.

His breathing was hoarse, his arms
supporting me with a firm strength. He thrust into me, and I arched back,
pulling him in deeper.

My climax swept me into a river of
darkness, and when I opened my eyes, Amadeus was watching me, his face soft.

“You are so beautiful,” he rasped.

I kissed his hot mouth as he pulled me
down to him and gathered me on top of him. We were still joined, Amadeus as
hard as he’d been when we started.

“We’re good together, Zara. I’ve missed
this with you.”

“As have I,” I replied, as I gently
wriggled my hips, feeling his rock hard cock inside me.

He pushed one slow thrust up inside me,
and I melted into pleasure. He had always done that, made me melt. He made love
to me once again. By the time we climaxed this time, he was on top of me.

Amadeus gathered me against him as we
quieted. We lay without talking for a long time before he reached down and
covered us both with the sheet. Soon I heard his low, steady breathing. He was
asleep. I found myself spellbound by the sound and closeness of him. I snuggled
against Amadeus’s chest once again as he pulled me closer.

I had no idea if I had actually fallen
asleep or not, but Elizabeth didn’t care. She was hungry, and she was demanding
someone come get her. Amadeus pulled me against him, but I giggled and rolled
to the edge of the bed.

“Sleep if you can, babe. You know who is
demanding her lunch and probably a dry diaper.” I pulled on my jeans and top
before leaning down to kiss him. I could tell by the way he was attempting not to
smile that he was awake. I swatted him on the butt as I sauntered out of the
bedroom and towards the wailing from the next room.

A short while later, Amadeus reappeared,
freshly showered, though not shaved; that man was a god to me no matter how he
looked. “I’m starving, Zara. Is there anything to eat, or do we have to go
somewhere?”

“No, Mary brought lunch down for us
while you were in the shower. She figured you’d be hungry and that we’d rather
eat here.”

“Great! Where is it?” he asked, bussing
Elizabeth on the cheek as he passed her playpen. She started making noises,
letting us know not to forget her in her little prison.

“It’s right there on the dining table. I
think I’ll join you. Don’t worry about her, she’ll be fine.”

We sat at the table and enjoyed a fresh
salad made of local greens, olives, fresh tomatoes, and cucumbers. With a plate
of cheese, some fresh bread, and a bottle of wine, it was all we required.

“This is great,” Amadeus stated as he
filled his mouth with a huge piece of cheese. “Did I see a couple of apples
somewhere?”

“Yes,” I replied, picking up a red apple
out of a bowl on the table and throwing it in his direction. “When was the last
time you ate, babe?”

“Hmmm, including what was on the plane?
Seattle.”

“I can ring Mary and get her to bring
you something else if you’d like.”

He shook his head as he sliced the apple
with a knife and popped the piece into his mouth. “No, I’m fine. I want this
afternoon to be just the three of us.”

“Okay. We could go for a walk if you’d
like. As long as she has sun screen and a hat on we’ll be fine.”

“Perhaps in a while. You know we only
have five days here, Zara, before we have to head back. Not the ten like we
wanted. We should sit down this evening and plan out our remaining days.”

“Back to the mess. You will tell me what’s
going on and what I’m facing, won’t you?”

“Yeah, but later. For now, all I want to
do is chill with my two most favorite ladies.”

We spent the afternoon lazily and close
to the cottage. Amadeus was exhausted, and I laughed when I found him and
Elizabeth fast asleep in the middle of the afternoon in the middle of the
living room floor. I grabbed my ever present camera off the table and snapped a
few pictures.

While they were snoozing, I fired up my
laptop and got onto the internet. I shot an email off to Peter, letting him
know Amadeus had arrived safely and also asking just how bad things were. Then
I sat back and began pulling up web pages of media sites known for having an
affection towards Amadeus. It seemed the story of Angus becoming ill on the
tour stuck. There was mention of Angus staying out on the island where Damien
lived to recoup. Then on one site I did find a paragraph in a write-up about
the boys’ tour. It questioned where Julia was, how rumor had it she’d
disappeared, leaving the band high and dry. It went on to the dramatics.

Satisfied that things were, at least for
the time being, status quo, I fired off another email. This time to my contact
at Peter’s media conglomerate who I knew would be handling the rescheduling of
the tour dates. I let them know I was back on board, though still technically
hard to reach, and to get me up to speed on the reschedules and anything else
pertinent. I hit send and sat back.

Later that evening, after a long,
leisurely walk on the beach after dinner, and the baby was down for the night,
Amadeus and I sat down and talked. He began to explain to me everything from
the moment Red found Julia and Don gone. I sat across from him, listening
intently, silently making mental notes. Julia and Don had planned this for a
long time, any idiot could see that. Money and an attempt to ruin not only
Damien, but Angus and Amadeus as well, were the obvious motives.

A nagging thought kept pushing its way
back…and it was a terrifying one. Had Julia and Don been responsible for
Amadeus’s illness a while back? Don had long been suspected. It was at his
house where Amadeus first became sick. Were they in on the whole thing? Had
they meant to do fatal harm to Amadeus, thus bringing down Tudor Rose? They
succeeded in that part at least, the part about Tudor Rose. If they had…and I
couldn’t bear the thought of the outcome if they had, but if they had succeeded
in doing away with Amadeus, what then? Would Julia have forced Damien back into
the spotlight harder and quicker than what she had?

“Zara? Where are you, babe? Have you
heard a word I’ve been saying?”

“Yes, I have. I was just processing a
few things. Just trying to figure Julia’s motive out.”

“Well, let’s put it aside for now.
Everything seems to be under control. If something breaks, Peter’s people or
Angus will get in touch with us. Let’s enjoy our mini-vacation before we have
to get back in the trenches.”

“Agreed.”

That’s exactly what we did for the next
precious days we had alone together, just the three of us. I took Amadeus and
Elizabeth on day outings, using one of Greg’s four-wheelers. Elizabeth loved
the bouncing around, giggling the entire time.

It was a teary farewell the morning we
left Patagonia. We promised Greg and Mary we would be back for a longer stay as
soon as we could manage the time. Amadeus was hooked on this paradise at the
other end of the world.

The small jet touched down in Santiago
and as planned we checked into the Crowne Plaza early in the afternoon. After
settling in, the three of us went sightseeing. Santiago is nestled in the
center of Chile with the Andes rising in the background. Amadeus was enthralled
with the beauty of the country, and our short stay gave him just enough of a
taste to make him understand why I had come here in the first place.