Righteous Obsession (55 page)

“Why didn’t you wake me?”

“You were sleeping soundly and I didn’t want to
disturb you.”

“I see.  You think it’s important for me to get enough
sleep, but not yourself!”

“I don’t mean it like that!”  Colin protested.  “All
you’ve been getting from me is grief and I wanted to spare you some.”

Alethea crossed her arms over her breasts and gave him
an angry look.  “Colin, I’m not some porcelain doll who’s going to shatter into
a million pieces at the first sign of trouble!”  She jerked him around so he
was facing her.  “Marriage means sharing the bad times as well as the good
times.”

“Seems like we’ve been sharing more bad times lately
than good,” Colin reflected, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

“Oh?  Have you forgotten what we shared the other
night?”

“Of course not!”

“Colin, you had a very traumatic experience – you
almost died!  You can’t expect to walk away without any emotional scars!”

“I know, but I’ve never felt this out of control
before and it scares the hell out of me!  I don’t even recognize myself
anymore!”

Alethea wrapped her arms around him.  “Well, I do know
you and I’m not giving up on you!”

“Please don’t!”  He glanced up at the kitchen clock
and sighed.  “I guess we’d better get moving or we’ll be late.”

They showered, got dressed and ate breakfast.  Colin
helped Alethea clear up then went upstairs.  The doorbell rang and she went to
answer it.  She peeked out the window, saw it was Liam and opened the door.”

“Hi, Alethea!”  Liam gave her a hug.  “Is Colin
ready?”

“He’s upstairs.  The coffee’s still hot.  Would you
like a cup while you’re waiting for him?”

“Sure.”  He followed her into the kitchen.  “So, are
you ready for Metallica?”

“Yes.  I’ve interviewed most of the superstar bands so
what’s one more,” She replied, pouring him a cup of coffee.

Liam grinned.  “Yeah! I guess!”

Colin walked into the kitchen.  “Jazz will probably
want you to interview Rob Zombie next!”  He teased her.

“That might be a very interesting interview!”  Alethea
remarked.

Liam put down his cup and rose.  “We better book it. 
Steve gets crabby if we’re late.”

“We have to pick up McGregor, too,” Colin reminded
him.  He put his arms around Alethea and kissed her.  “See you at noon.”

“Okay.”

They picked up McGregor then headed downtown.  Colin
turned to McGregor in the back seat and said, “I’ve been thinking about hiring
a full-time bodyguard for Alethea and I wondered if you could recommend
somebody?”

“Funny you should ask that, Colin.  I just got a call
from a friend, names Eddie Cole and he currently works for Guns ‘N’ Roses.  He
wants to quit and asked me if I knew of any other openings.”

“How come he wants to quit?”

“The pay’s real good, but the hours suck big time! 
He’s on call twenty-four hours a day so his personal life’s pretty much in the
toilet!  He said he feels like a nanny sometimes instead of a bodyguard.”

“He’s good, huh?”

“The best after me,” McGregor assured him.  “You
wouldn’t have to worry about Alethea’s safety for a moment!”

“Maybe, he’d find being Alethea’s bodyguard too tame
after Guns ‘N’ Roses.”

“No, from what he’s told me, he’d welcome the change.”

“Why don’t you give me his name and number and after I
talk it over with Alethea; she can give him a call.”

“That’s assuming Alethea agrees to it,” Liam remarked
dryly.  “Myself, I don’t think she’s going to be thrilled with the idea.”

“Probably not,” Colin admitted.  “I’m hoping I can
change her mind.”

Liam drove down the Embarcadero and pulled into the
private parking lot by Steve’s warehouse.  They passed the first floor
recording studio where a band was recording, but they couldn’t see what band it
was.  McGregor decided to stay behind and watch.  Mace and Jake were already
waiting as Colin and Liam walked into Steve’s office.

“Hi, guys!”  Colin said airily.  He sat and stretched
out his legs.  “Where’s Steve?  I can’t believe he’s late!”

“Devon said he had a long distance call on his private
line,” Jake replied.

“So, who’s using the studio?”  Liam asked.

“The band’s name is, get this, Pretty Panties!  They
look like they crawled out of a sewer!”  Mace joked.

Colin couldn’t help noticing Mace and Jake seemed
uncomfortable around him and Liam.  He was about to say something when Jake
beat him to it.  “Colin, Mace and I, we’ve been talking a lot about what
happened, and we figure we owe you and Liam a major apology.”

Colin held up his hands.  “Look, Alethea told me you
guys were feeling guilty, but you’re not in any way responsible for what
happened to us!”

 “Yeah, but if we’d taken our bodyguards, like Steve’s
always ragging on us to do, Father Michaels probably would’ve had the guts to
kidnap Liam!”  Mace said.

“It wouldn’t have made a bit a difference, you guys. 
He was determined to kill me and he would’ve found a way no matter what!  I
appreciate what you’re feeling, but you have no reason to feel guilty.  You had
no idea Father Michaels was stalking me so why would you take precautions that
you normally didn’t take?”

“Besides, it was my decision to leave my bodyguard
behind,” Liam said.  “You guys didn’t force me.”

“I guess you’re right,” Mace conceded.  “Thanks for
saying what you did.”

“Yeah,” Jake agreed.

Colin changed the subject.  “So, Mace, have you met
Mrs. Von Neumann yet?”

“Yeah!”  Mace shook his head.  “She’s really something
else!”

“So Alethea says.”

“She came over the first day I moved in and asked me
if I was sleeping with Alethea, now!”

They all laughed and then Mace continued with his
story, “I told her Alethea got married and moved to San Francisco.  Right away,
she wanted to know if she married the guy with the real long hair that swam
naked!”

“She did see me that day!”  Colin muttered as
everybody roared with laughter.  He was thankful his olive skin hid his
embarrassment.  “I had no idea she could see me!  Alethea told me after I’d
gotten out of the pool!”

“Yeah, sure, Colin!”  Jake joked.

“Believe me she saw every square inch of you!”  Mace
replied with a grin.

“By the way, Mace.  Alethea and I will probably be
down in a couple of weeks to move her stuff.”

“No hurry, Colin.”

Steve walked in at that moment.  “What’s so funny?  I
could hear you guys laughing upstairs.”

“Mace was telling me about an ex-neighbor of
Alethea’s.  Wait until I tell her what she said!”

Steve glance traveled around the room, coming to rest
on Colin.  “Jesus Christ!  You look like hell, Colin!”

“I’ve just been having some trouble sleeping.”

“Are you getting help with it?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”  Steve sat on the edge of his desk.  “I’m
assuming I’m not going to have to lecture you guys anymore about the importance
of taking your bodyguards with you?  We all saw very graphically what happened
when you didn’t.”

Nobody said anything for a moment then Colin said, “I
think we’re all in agreement about that.”

“Good!  Enough said then.”

They started discussing Liam’s idea of recording a
six-song CD.  The thought of having a project to do rather then sitting on
their butts pleased everybody.  They decided they would start recording the
first week in October so they could have in the stores in time for Christmas. 
It would give them time to write new songs and for Colin to bring his guitar
playing back up to what he felt was his formal level.  Another topic they
discussed was the possibility of buying a transatlantic jet.  Steve had found
out a large San Francisco-based corporation had purchased a new jet and was
selling their current one; it was two-years-old and could be purchased for
reasonable price.  The band members voted to authorize Steve to make an offer
for the jet.

After the meeting, Liam dropped Colin and McGregor off
at the architectural firm.  “Don’t be such a stranger!  Come over
occasionally,” Colin said as he got out of the Liberty.

Liam grinned.  “I should probably call first, though?”

 “That’s probably a good idea,” He agreed.  “Tell mom
and dad hi for me.”

“Will do!”  Liam waved then pulled away into the
stream of traffic on Market Street.

Colin’s meeting with the architect went smoothly.  The
architect made an appointment to come and see the house on Thursday morning. 
He also asked Colin if he could get a copy of the original blueprints if he was
able.  As they walked out of the building, Colin glanced at his watch then
said, “Well, we have two options.  We can either hoof it or grab a cab.”

McGregor made a face.  “I’m
not walking!  These hills are too damn steep!”

“A cab it is,” He stepped to the curb and was going to
hail one when a honk distracted him.

“Colin, over her!”  Alethea
called.

Colin motioned to McGregor.  “Come on let’s not keep
the lady waiting!”  They darted across the street and scrambled into the Jeep. 
He leaned over and kissed Alethea.  “How was your interview?”

“Good.  Their new CD is really different from anything
they’ve done previously.  It will be a surprise for their fans.  Everybody
asked about you; how you were doing.  Lars mentioned the people who organize
the next Hard Rock forum are going to add a discussion on stalkers and
obsessive fans because of what happened to you.  He said he’s heard from many
Bay Area rock stars that are becoming concerned about their safety.”

 “I don’t know how much more you can do to protect
yourself than what’s already being done.”

“It doesn’t hurt to talk about it and somebody might
come up with something useful.”  She said pointedly.  “Look at the ideas for
fighting censorship – they came out of the forum’s panel discussion two year
ago.”

He shrugged.  “Anything’s possible, I guess.”

They arrived at the Hard Rock Café.  Alethea turned to
Colin after they ordered.  “How did your meeting go?”

“We decided to start recording the CD at the beginning
of October.  We decided to make an offer on a two-year-old transatlantic jet. 
Steve thinks he can get it for a pretty good price.  We thought it’d be nice to
have our own after touring in Hellraisers’ jet.”

“It sounds likes a good deal,” Alethea agreed.

“Mace was telling me about meeting your ex-neighbor!” 
Colin grinned as he related Mace’s tale.

“She actually asked if Mace and I were sleeping
together.”  Alethea said in disbelief.

“Yup!”

“Well, I’m certainly going to have a talk with her when
we’re in Los Angeles.”

“At least she didn’t see you naked!”

Alethea giggled.  “I did warn you!”

“Yeah, after I was all the way out of the pool!”

They returned to Sausalito after finishing lunch. 
Colin dropped Alethea off at home.  He and McGregor were leaving again to
search for the blueprints he needed.  “I’ll see you later.”  Colin said, giving
her a kiss.  “Be sure to lock the doors and put on the alarm.”

Alethea went inside, locked the doors and reactivated
the alarm.  She went upstairs to the office to work on her Metallica
interview.  When she finished it, she printed it and faxed it to Jazz.  She
heard the front door open then shut and Colin call, “Alethea?”

“Up here.”

Colin came bounding up the stairs.  “Hi!”  He gave her
a kiss.

“Did they find your blueprints?”

“They’re going to search, but they said it might take
a couple of days to locate them.”  He stretched.  “I think I’m going to play
for a while.”

“Okay.”

He went downstairs and into the other room to fetch
his guitar and amp then took them outside.  He practiced for over an hour until
he started to feel tired.  He laid his guitar aside with the intention of
resting for a few minutes, but fell asleep.

“Colin?”  Alethea called, shaking him.

He sat up, rubbing his eyes.  “I must’ve fallen
asleep.”

“Soundly!”

He got to his feet and stretched.  “I only meant to
close my eyes for a few minutes.”

“I’m putting supper on the table right now.”

Colin picked up his guitar and amp and followed her
into the house.  “How come you didn’t wake me sooner?”

“I thought you needed the sleep besides …” she smiled
at him and added, “You look so adorable when you’re asleep.”

“Even when I’m snoring?”  Colin teased.  He stowed his
guitar and amp then went upstairs.  He came back down and into the kitchen.  He
lifted the lid on the crock pot.  “Umm!  Coq au van!”