Rock You (Fallen Star Book 1) Page 4

  Maybe it was his brother. That’d make more sense. Cranky recluses didn’t tend to front famous rock bands. Unless it was some story like he’d been playing in some little coffee house with his friends but had skyrocketed to fame with a one hit wonder song then spent the rest of his life trying to live it down.

  More likely O’Malley had a famous rock star brother who got all the attention and glory so he could no longer stand being in the shadow of his brother’s success and had hidden himself away to live his life as a hermit in the once-glorious family home. But, his lingering resentment towards his family’s favouritism of his brother made him so resentful, he let the house go to ruin until the stunningly beautiful but equally hermit-like housekeeper turned up to save the house. Well, hey, in the movie version in my head, the housekeeper was stunningly beautiful. Like an Audrey Hepburn type. Okay, I was totally the opposite of Audrey Hepburn in every conceivable way but still…

  Maybe his brother was coming home and that’s why he’d hired me. Trying to undo the damage of years of neglect. The brothers would make up their differences and become family again.

  I hope that didn’t mean I’d be out of a job.

  I read the Wikipedia article about the band. Lead singer – TEX. Just TEX, in capitals with no surname. Like Madonna, if Madonna was capitalised. It was definitely him. Not his brother, not anyone else but him. I worked for a famous rock star and hadn’t even realised. That was typical of me.

  So, it seemed the band had been the biggest thing in like the world or something for a while. Maybe not that big but you’d have to have been living on another planet to not have heard of them. That’s me. I live on Planet Ruby. With a force field around me to keep out the crap. I’ve skipped decades of popular culture without even missing it. I thought it actually made me smarter to not have my brain bogged down with crap. That’s the theory anyway.

  The band had a string of hits. They were being lauded as the greatest thing, set to create history and all that, then suddenly nothing. The enigmatic lead singer disappeared from the public eye. Wow, I could probably sell my story to the National Enquirer for a fortune. Except that would shoot me into the spotlight. No thanks.

  Wow, he was just like Willy Wonka. I hoped that didn’t make me an oompa loompa!

  It all made sense. O’Malley really wanted someone clueless like me to work here. He’d even asked me about my music tastes in our email exchange. I’d thought that was strange since he’d not asked me any other personal questions at all. He obviously didn’t want any fan-girls turning up on his doorstep. Still, if the public wanted to find him, they could do it pretty easily. It wasn’t like he’d changed his first name or gone underground.

  Although, there was no phone or anything in the house. Was the house in his name? Probably not or the media would be able to track that down.

  It’d been so long ago now that most people would have forgotten him anyway, I guess. The public are easily distracted. Except the creepy stalker ones…

  He really had the perfect housekeeper in me. I was like the most closed-lipped human on earth. And, even if I wanted to talk, who’d I tell? If I went online, I’d have to use social media, which I did not approve of.

  He’d never sack me. It’d be impossible to replace me. I moved to fold my leg up under me on the chair. I had the worst posture ever but it was comforting to sit like that. I was on a sweet deal and, despite his grumpiness, old O’Malley wasn’t that hard to live with. I just had to manage the house like it was and keep out of O’Malley’s way. Plenty of time to spend on developing my apps and watching random movies. I’d never have to go out in public again. It would beat living at home because I didn’t even have Mum nagging at me to go out and meet people.

  I wondered why that song meant so much to him though. He played it enough but he’d been the one to dump the band. Surely, if he’d quit for some “enigmatic reason”, he’d want to put all that behind him.

  I checked if CJ was online and asked if she knew anything about FORSAKEN, since she was a walking encyclopaedia of gossip.

  We hadn’t talked much since I got to the house because she disapproved of me being a housekeeper, thinking it played into stereotypical gender roles.

  I was more worried about having a roof over my head than making a feminist stand. Feminist stands do not end well, I’d learnt that the hard way. You just get knocked down and trampled and end up screwed. I no longer had the strength for that fight.

  And like Dad said, there is nothing wrong with honest work.

  “Yeah, FORSAKEN!!! They burnt so bright if only so briefly :)”

  “Why’d they folded?”

  I felt like a real snoop trying to get the dirt but I’m only human. Anyone would want to know. I had to live with the guy so I had to think of my own safety. And, okay, I was totally curious.

  “Who knows? Maybe Tex O’Malley killed a man! Wanted to lay low. Stuff like that.”

  When I thought about the anger I’d seen flashing in his eyes, I could totally believe that. But it wouldn’t be a cold-blooded murder. It’d be in a bar room brawl or the like. For some reason like the guy had been looking at him too much during restricted times. Or he’d played music in the kitchen.

  “IMO, that’s prolly crap. Maybe he just hit the wall. Happens sometimes. Especially with everyone calling him a genius and the saviour of modern rock. Too much pressure. Prolly changed his name and got a new identity. Is playing in some dive bar somewhere. And no one knows it’s him. He’s been spotted in various places. Rumours of him surfacing but no one has definitive proof.”

  I had definitive proof and felt like a real jerk keeping that intel from CJ but I knew how things went. If you tell one person, they tell another in confidence and it spreads from there. If word got out, I’d be looking for another job and that would be the worst suckage ever. Although I’d not had much to do with the guy, I respected his need for privacy too. It would be a totally shitty thing to do if I started letting his secret out into the world. Even though most people had forgotten him, disappearing like that would just make him a challenge to some people and next thing you know, they’d be hanging around the house making a nuisance of themselves. I had to support Team Recluses.

  “Why do you want to know anyway? TBH you don’t know anything about music except from anime or old movies!”

  “I heard a song on the radio the other day and it made me think of high school. Good times:/”

  The “good times” was meant with the maximum sarcasm I could muster in an online chat conversation. I’m sure CJ knew what I meant. For geeky girls like us, high school was never a fun experience.

  “Okay,” she replied.

  Then we got talking about other things but the history of Tex O’Malley stuck at the back of my mind. I’d not realised how stressed I’d been by his threats to get rid of me until they were gone. It was like I’d finally taken a big breath and could feel like the place was my home. Maybe I could redecorate a bit. I wondered if O’Malley would mind. Actually, I wondered if he’d even notice. I could slap on a coat of paint and put up some pictures. Get a whole new look happening so it was my own little cocoon.

  Tex O’Malley’s secret would be safe with me so long as I worked for him. And I intended that to be long enough for me to take it to my grave.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  I’d been dreaming about burning toast when I woke up and realised the smell wasn’t only in my dream.

  Hell, had I left something cooking in the kitchen? If I set the kitchen on fire, I’d be out of here on my butt with all the wrath of Tex O’Malley raining down on my head. He really seemed like the kind of guy who got all funny and annoyed about things like the kitchen being on fire.

  I got out of bed, still half asleep, and checked the stove. I’d not left anything cooking. Of course I hadn’t. Still, the smoky smell persisted. I checked everything else in the kitchen in case there was a burnt out plug or something else weird going on with the electricity. Everything looked fine tho
ugh.

  My eyes watered. There was definitely smoke coming from somewhere. I went through the rest of the house, with the smell getting stronger. Maybe it was a fire somewhere outside. But I couldn’t see smoke from the window. As I got closer to the staircase, the smell got even worse. My throat dried out and I couldn’t help but cough.

  I stood at the bottom of the stairs, wondering if I should go up. O’Malley had really emphasised that I should never, ever go to the upper floor of the house. Maybe he had been using the fireplace and it was blocked and that was causing the smoke. If I went up to check, he’d be super angry. But if there was a fire up there, that would have to be more important than any stupid rules.

  I heard a crackling, a really freaky crackling, so I bolted up the stairs even though it was forbidden to me. By the time I got to the top, the smoke had become thick.

  “O’Malley,” I yelled, not knowing if he was even up there. “What the hell is going on? I can smell smoke.”

  I had no idea of the layout of the upstairs rooms but I pushed open a door that I thought was his bedroom. It was the room he paced. My eyes stung and it was hard to see through the smoke but there was a bed with a lump that looked like it could be him. The floor was covered in papers and bottles and all kinds of mess.

  I rushed over and shook him. He groaned and turned toward me.

  The smell of booze on his breath nearly knocked me over. He’d probably explode if naked flames got near him.

  “Wake up, you idiot!”

  I slapped at him, trying to wake him.

  He turned as if he was going back to sleep s0 I grabbed hold of his arm, pulling it and hoping the rest of him would come with it. The fire must’ve been smouldering in his room for a while. There was enough crap on the floor to fuel it.

  Suddenly, a big flame burst up, the heat almost singeing my hair. I had no time to muck around. I didn’t know whether I should try to smother the flame or get O’Malley out of there. I wanted to run but I couldn’t leave him.

  Since O’Malley was pretty much a dead weight, I figured I’d work on the fire.

  I grabbed the cover off him and threw it over the flame.

  He mumbled and groaned, reaching out for the blanket. It was then I noticed he was completely naked. I had no time to process that though. I stamped on the blanket, hoping that would work to kill the fire. Just as I thought I’d smothered it all, another blast of flame flared up near the bed.

  My chest tightened and I took a deep breath to calm myself but that just filled my lungs with smoke, making me splutter and cough. I needed to stay calm. I had to deal with this. There was no one else.

  I’d never be able to get that fire out. It was way beyond my control.

  This was no time for being coy. I grabbed O’Malley by the shoulders. A half full glass of liquid sat on the table beside him. Not enough to put out the fire but enough to wake him. I threw the contents in his face. He struck out, still mumbling and not awake.

  His hand smashed into my leg but with no real force in his blow.

  “Wake up, you damn fool,” I shouted in his face.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” He shouted back at me.

  The flames had hit the curtains in his room and would soon reach the ceiling. We needed to get out of there before we both died. I never knew a fire could move so fast.

  “Hurry the fuck up. If you don’t come now, I’ll let you burn.” I screamed, already sounding hoarse.

  He didn’t move. Nothing I said registered.

  “Please, O’Malley. I don’t want you to die.” My voice quivered. Every fibre of my being screamed for me to run. If he didn’t move, what would I do?

  But that got him functional. He jumped up, suddenly alert.

  I ran down the stairs with him behind me. I tried to fight down the panic rising inside me. The fire crackled and the smoke seemed to wrap around my lungs. I headed for the kitchen. I had visions of burning beams of the house falling on us. We had to get out before we were trapped. That fire had gotten out of control so fast.

  My handbag and my laptop were sitting beside my bed. I ran into my bedroom and grabbed them. I didn’t have time to think about rescuing anything else.

  We ran through the garden, staying well away from the house but the long grass entwined my legs, slowing me down. By curving around the outside we could get to the driveway without getting too close to the burning house. The heat radiating from the fire was intense. We were well away from the house but, with the overgrown garden, we weren’t out of danger. Luckily, the grass was wet and green, it’d not catch alight easily.

  I picked up my pace when my feet hit the gravel of the driveway. I didn’t want to think about the trees with their branches curving over our heads. Surely the fire couldn’t reach them.

  But a stray spark — I couldn’t think about that.

  I just pushed myself to keep running. The heat seemed to be getting closer all the time. Running through the smoke had been like running underwater. My lungs stung and I kept hacking up all kinds of gross stuff. And the noise, the evil crackling, booming with the fury of hell.

  The branches of the trees swayed in the wind as though they were closing in to snare us. I couldn’t see O’Malley but I could hear the thud of his footsteps. It was dark, so dark, but occasionally a flare of flames became visible between the trees.

  Then I stumbled. My feet spun under me, losing traction on the loose stones. I’d hit the ground and be stuck there forever. I tried to protect my laptop so I wouldn’t damage it if I fell.

  O’Malley grabbed me in his arms, righting me.

  He kept his arm around me as we ran.

  We had to make it down the road, to the bus shelter. That would be far enough away from the house. I could see it in the distance. I tried to shout at O’Malley to head there but I had no voice. He followed my gaze and nodded, understanding me without words.

  My heartbeat hammered in my ears, my legs had no strength left in them but we clung to each other, O’Malley half-pulling me along. The grip of his hand around my shoulders was the only thing keeping me upright.

  As we got out of the tunnel of trees, the clearer air made it easier to breathe. We didn’t slow our pace though. The bus shelter was our goal. If we made it, we were safe.

  I hurled myself over the last few metres, grabbing on to the side of the shelter to support myself. O’Malley huddled on the ground beside me.

  I looked back to see flames engulfing the upper floor. I could actually feel the heat of them, even though they were quite a distance from us. Sparks shot from the flames and floated through the air. Luckily, most died out in the cold night. They would’ve been pretty if they weren’t the result of something so incredibly awful.

  I turned to O’Malley, who stared at the house in disbelief. Even with the heat of the fire in front of us, a cold wind blew around the shelter. He was naked and most likely in shock. I whipped off my hoodie and handed it to him, trying not to look.

  “Put this around your waist. At least try to cover yourself.”

  I got my phone out of my bag and called emergency. Now that we were safe, the panic started to well up in me. I could barely talk to the woman on the phone. I shook like a leaf and sobs rose up in my voice but I managed to give her the address.

  “Are you clear of the building?” she asked. “Make sure of your own safety first.”

  “Yes, yes.”

  The fire roared louder and I jumped. Something crashed. I covered my ears. The sound made the panic worse. It was the sound of the worst nightmares. I paced the road near the bus shelter, not sure what to do. There was nothing to do but wait for the firefighters to turn up but they seemed to take forever.

  Then O’Malley jumped up. He ran towards the house. The damn fool. I ran after him. What idiotic thing was he intending? I got a grip of his arm, intending to pull him back but the clamminess of his skin made it easy for him to shake me off.

  I couldn’t go back under those trees, not even to sto
p him.

  “Come back. You’ll die if you go in there,” I screamed. “And if you die, I won’t have a job.”

  I kept screaming at him, my voice hoarse and weak so that it could barely be heard over the fire but, if I didn’t scream, I would fall apart.

  I hadn’t saved him just so he could run back and die.

  Soon the night filled with sirens and flashing lights. As the first truck pulled up, I rushed to them.

  “He’s gone back in there,” I gasped, not bothering to explain who “he” was.

  The fireman nodded but didn’t stop to talk. The whole team worked together to get their fire fighting happening. He motioned for me to get out as far as I could then yelled for someone to check the house.

  From the road, the house glowed against the night sky. I hugged myself, freezing cold now that I was out of range of the flames. I wished I still had my hoodie. My whole body shook and my feet throbbed. I hadn’t been wearing shoes. I’d not even noticed as I’d ran but my feet were covered in cuts and bruises.

  An ambulance pulled up and someone came over to me.

  “Are you from the house?” the man asked.

  I nodded.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  Well, now that I’d stopped, my legs felt weak and my head woozy. Worst of all, my throat felt more parched than I could believe possible. I wasn’t sure if that meant I was okay or not.

  He grabbed hold of me and took me to the ambulance where he wrapped a blanket around me. He and another guy did some tests on me.

  He turned to the other guy.

  “It doesn’t seem like she’s inhaled anything toxic but she has some smoke damage to her throat.”

  “Does she need oxygen?”

  The guy shook his head. I hadn’t even thought about the smoke damage. I’d been too worried about getting burnt to death.