Aria Graice - 4. Chapter 4

The interior of the limo smelled like it had just come out of the showroom. Drew wouldn’t have been surprised if it had. The leather upholstery was buttery soft, the colour of warm caramel, and he felt almost guilty about how uncomfortable it made him feel and how tense he was, perched on the edge of his seat.

Aria, on the other hand, lounged with a glass of champagne from the well-stocked fridge, twirling the glass between his fingers.

“Why are you angry with me?”

Aria’s voice, soft as it was, made Drew jump. He turned to find Aria frowning at him. His long legs were crossed at the knee and his foot bounced. It was the only indication of agitation about his otherwise composed demeanour.

“I’m not angry.”

“You feel angry.”

“Well I’m not.”

Aria bit his lip. “You sound it now, too.”

There was a plaintive note to Aria’s tone and Drew had no idea if it was genuine or if Aria was playing him. He sighed and sat back. “Is that better?”

“No, not really, because you’re still angry. What have I done?”

Is this kid for real? “Why would you think me being angry has anything to do with you?”

“So, you are angry?”

Drew sighed and reined in his temper. “Look, kid, I’m a soldier, not a babysitter and I’m more used to crawling on my belly in a swamp than riding around in one of these. It’s going to take a bit of getting used to, alright?”

Aria’s eyes grew wider and wider. He put his glass down untouched and leaned forward. “Did you really? Crawl on your belly in a swamp? Did you shoot people? Have you ever killed anyone? One of my American bodyguards killed someone. They’re allowed to carry guns there, you know? It was a kidnap attempt. A black car forced the limo off the road. It went down an embankment and flipped over. He told me to stay inside but I got scared because it was upside down, so I crawled out. There were men in masks. They were fighting with the driver. One of them hit him and he fell down. The one who hit him came for me. He was so close. My bodyguard was yelling at me to run, but I froze. I couldn’t move. It was the mask. It made him look….”

Aria licked his lips and frowned, gazing at Drew almost as if he expected some kind of affirmation. When he got none, he shook his head and sat back. “The guy was about three feet away. He had something in his hand. It was a knife, but I didn’t know then. All I could see was the mask. It was kind of see-through plastic but with some bits coloured in. I could see some of the face underneath but not enough to recognize is as a face. It was like his real face had melted and was kind of shiny and weird.” Aria’s breath hitched and he reached for the champagne. “Then it exploded.”

“What exploded?”

“His face.” He took a large mouthful of champagne, then hiccupped as the bubbles fought back. “My bodyguard shot him in the head and the mask filled with blood. It squired out of the holes and all over me. Then he fell. He knocked me over and fell on top of me. My bodyguard pulled him off straight away, but I still saw the back of his head – what had been the back of his head. It was a mess.”

Aria, swivelled his body away from Drew and gathered his feet under him, staring out of the window. Drew had no idea what to say, so he said nothing as thoughts raced through his head. It was quite clear to him from the way Aria had spoken that he’d been badly traumatized by the event. He wondered if he’d had therapy and made a mental note to ask Miss Montgomery.

“I’ve killed my share,” he said eventually, when he could be sure his voice would be reasonably calm. “When I’ve had to.”

“Would you kill for me?”

“If I had to.”

“Why?” Aria turned and almost glared at Drew. “What makes my life so important someone else has to give up theirs for it? That man might have had a family. He could have had a wife and children. I think someone told me he did. A whole family was destroyed. For me. Why?”

“Because you didn’t try to hurt anyone, and he did.”

Aria’s eyes flew wide. “Oh.” He turned away again but there was something in his demeanour that suggested a lessening of the tension that had been singing through him.

“Haven’t you ever talked about that? About what happened? What you feel about it?”

Aria shrugged.

“Because every single time I’ve had to kill someone or see someone die on the job I’ve had to see a shrink and they wouldn’t allow me back on duty until they were sure I was okay with it. I promise you there were plenty of times when I wasn’t okay with it and it was only talking it through with the shrink, sometimes over and over, that I could get it out of my head enough to go back without being a danger to the rest of my squad.”

Aria turned again. Damn if that boy’s eyes got any bigger they’d pop off his face.

“You? You had to see a psychiatrist? Someone like you?”

“Someone like me?”

“Strong and brave. You killed people for a living and it still cut you up?”

“Being in the army isn’t quite about killing people for a living. I wasn’t exactly an assassin, you know?” That brought a tiny smile and it sent a pang of guilt through him. He’d often wondered, in the darkness of his own head, whether that was exactly what he was. He angled himself to face Aria. “Being upset about killing someone or seeing someone die isn’t cowardice or weakness. It’s being human. If anyone tells you they don’t feel anything in those situations, run.”

“Really?”

“Really.” Drew dropped his gaze. “Um…look, I’m not the best at this, right? I’m no bleeding heart and I don’t give good advice, but if you ever want to talk…. I’ve been there often enough to know what you’re talking about.”

Aria gazed into his eyes for a long moment, with a curiously blank expression. Then he nodded. “Thank you, Drew. Maybe one day I will.” He put down the champagne again but instead of turning back to the window, he scooted closer to Drew and leaned his head on Drew’s shoulder.

Drew froze. If it had been Amara, he would have slid away, or pushed him off, but there was nothing seductive in Aria’s actions. He didn’t try to touch Drew with anything other than his head and gave no indication he wanted to be touched. This was for comfort alone, and that broke Drew. What the hell was he supposed to do? This was a job. He had to keep professional distance and all that, but the kid had just opened up to something he may well not have told anyone before and it had clearly hurt. He’d be a complete bastard if he pushed him away now. Reluctantly, he settled back and stared at the top of Aria’s head, fighting the impulse to tear off the stupid ears and rub his cheek all over the apple-scented hair.

“Thank you,” Aria whispered again. “Can I…. Can I hold your hand? I promise it won’t mean anything. I’m not going to come on to you. Not ever. I just need….” He tilted his head up to gaze at Drew. His eyes were suspiciously glassy. “I need to feel safe.”

“You are safe. I promise you that. Come on.” He nudged Aria to sit up. Aria seemed more surprised than upset at that point. “You’re going to smudge your makeup and it’s so perfect, that wouldn’t be good.” He reached over and grabbed some tissues from a scented box on the table.

Aria took one and delicately dabbed it to his eyes. “I’m sorry,” he said, bowing his head. “I didn’t mean anything.”

“Hey. Look at me.” Something uncomfortable stirred inside Drew. He’d been hell bent on hating these boys, but even though he still despised their way of life and he’d reserve judgement on Amara for the time being, there was something about Aria, something soft, something small and curled up and hurting, that called to him.

He reminded Drew of a puppy he’d found in a ruined town in Syria. A bomb blast had just wiped out what appeared to have been his family. He kept tugging at the scarf of a woman who was obviously and gruesomely dead and snarled at anyone who tried to get close. There was just something about that little dog that hadn’t let Drew or any of his squad members walk away and they’d eventually coaxed it away with treats. It had responded so enthusiastically and had been so gentle and friendly they’d ended up adopting him as a kind of mascot. Drew hadn’t thought about him since waking in the hospital. For the first time, he wondered what had become of the little creature.

Aria turned his face away.

“Look at me, kid.”

At that, Aria risked a sideways glance, and the uncertainty put the tin hat on Drew’s resistance.

“You’ve got nothing to thank me for and nothing to apologize for. We’re going to be spending time together, so I guess it would be easier if we got on so…. Friends, huh?” He held out his hand. “Proper friends, not the fly-by-nights who kiss your arse for a piece of the action. I’ll tell you how it is, then you yell at me and tell me I’m fired, then we hug and I let you paint my nails. How does that sound?”

Aria had turned to face him fully and his mouth gaped.

“Friends?” Drew repeated, holding out his hand.

Aria took it with a surprisingly strong grip. “Friends.”

Drew smiled and sat back. Aria sniffed. “So… you said I could paint your nails. How would you feel about a bit of eyeliner, only I’ve been dying to suggest it. I thought you might bite my head off if I did. You’ve got such beautiful brown eyes, a bit of eyeliner would really…. Oh. Okay. A bit too far, huh?”

Drew closed his mouth with a snap and stifled a snort. Him? With eyeliner? On the other hand, he was wearing the tightest pair of leather trousers he had ever worn and was sitting in a brand new limousine with a man in a dress drinking champagne from a cut crystal glass. “Why the hell not?”

“Huh?”

“Go for it.”

Falling over himself with excitement, Aria scrambled to search through the lace-covered clutch bag he’d brought then sank to the floor of the car and wriggled between Drew’s knees. “Lean forward a bit and close your eyes,” he commanded.

Drew did as ordered.

“Lean a bit more.”

Aria’s touch was light, just a quick swipe over his upper eyelids, close to the lashes.

“Okay, open your eyes now.”

Drew did so and found himself gazing into Aria’s aqua eyes, so close he could make out flecks of green and gold. Aria wasn’t looking at him though, not really. He was looking at Drew’s eyes, but not into them and that gave Drew opportunity to stare. Of course he had noticed that both boys, as well as their mother, had striking eyes, but it hadn’t made that much of an impact on him until now, until they were so close.

“Look up.”

“Huh.”

“Look up. It’s easier to see where to draw the line if there’s white behind it.”

“Oh.”

Obediently, Drew glared at the roof of the limo, willing himself not to flinch when Aria poked at his eye with a sharp pencil. Of course, Aria did nothing of the sort and two quick strokes had him sitting back on his heels. He took Drew’s chin in his hand and turned his face from side to side.

“I could have done better with more light and if the car wasn’t bumping so much, but it will do. I suppose mascara is one step too far?”

Drew laughed at the hopeful tone but shook his head. “No mascara.”

“Okay. Not this time. Do you want to see what you look like?”

“I don’t know, do I?”

“I think so. It really does suit you.”

Dropping the eyeliner pencil back into his bag, Aria fished some more and came back with a mirror which he handed to Drew. The mirror was tiny but with a bit of manipulation, he was able to get a good look at himself. Wow. The kid was right. It did look good on him. Not that it was a look he was going to adopt after the job was over, but it wasn’t terrible.

“Do you like it?”

“Is that really me in there? The hair, the clothes, the eyeliner. What have you done with the real Andrew Chance?”

Aria giggled, and the sound lit something warm in Drew’s heart. A ridiculous thought entered his head. Was this what it felt like to be a father? The strange protective feelings he was beginning to have for Aria had to have been paternal, because there was no way they could have been anything else.

When they’d settled down, Aria started to talk about the concert they were going to. It was clear he was enormously proud of his brother. His whole being lit up when Amara’s name was mentioned, and Drew sickened himself by wondering if there was anything to the rumours that the Graice boys were lovers as well as brothers. He pushed the thought to the back of his mind and tried to concentrate as Aria talked ceaselessly of all the things Amara had done.

He was still talking when the limo slowed to a stop and someone approached. Drew was immediately at high alert.

“Don’t worry,” Aria said, peering out of the window. We’re here. It’s just a security guard getting clearance to open the gate.”

“Oh. Okay.”

Drew had poured over maps of the O2 and knew exactly where the entrances and exits were, so he knew they were about to go into the underground garage where all performers and high-profile VIP’s arrived, hidden from the eyes of ordinary mortals and safe from paparazzi. For some reason, as Aria wasn’t the one performing, he hadn’t expected to come here, but of course….

The security guard waved them on and they slid silently under the barrier. A few minutes later cool dimness enclosed them as they passed into the bowels of the arena. Even though the temperature inside the car remained constant, Drew shivered.

The car finally came to a stop in front of an understated door in a faceless, concrete wall. The driver opened the limo door and Drew got out first. He looked around, seeing no one, and stood back to let Aria clamber out.

Aria smoothed down his dress and grinned up at Drew. “Come on. I can’t wait for Mara to see you. He’s going to come in his pants.”

He flounced through the door before Drew had a chance to think let alone say anything. Drew scurried after him.

The door opened onto a corridor lined with memorabilia from other performers. Aria pointed out a few as he danced ahead of Drew. The silence and lack of people began to play on his nerves. Where was everyone?

Finally, Aria stopped in front of a door and tapped on it. A few moments later it opened, and a man dressed head to foot in black stepped out into the corridor. “Name,” he said.

“Oh come on, you know my name,” Aria teased, but the man didn’t smile. Aria rolled his eyes and sighed. “Aria Graice and this Andrew Chance my security bunny.”

Was that slight tightening of the skin at the corners of the man’s a repressed smile? Would it crack his face if it got free?

The man nodded and stepped aside, holding the door for Aria and Drew to enter. Drew thought he’d stepped into a different dimension. He’d expected a bar, or lounge, or some kind of dressing room. Instead, the small room reminded him of his grandmother’s parlour, with flocked wallpaper and framed embroideries. The thing that caught his attention, though, was the massive set of wardrobe doors set into the opposite wall. They were so unexpected and so out of place they took his breath away.

Aria strode across the room and paused with one hand on the wardrobe door handle. “Ready to go to Narnia?”

“What?” Drew frowned, confused.

Aria laughed and pulled open the door.

A wave of sound hit Drew and heat washed out to meet him as he followed Aria into the room beyond the doors. It was crowded, but not packed, and Drew was able to easily pick out Ben across the way. He couldn’t see Amara but assumed he was at the center of the little knot of people over to one side. That’s where Aria immediately headed. Drew followed, even though Ben waved him over.

As Aria approached, the knot broke up and Amara hurtled from the middle to throw himself into his brother’s arms. The two hugged as if they hadn’t seen each other in years, instead of hours. Everyone watched with expressions that ranged from fond to furious. Hmm. He’d have to watch that one.

When Amara eventually let go he clung on to Aria’s waist while giving Drew a good look-over. “Well don’t you scrub up well? Lucky sod, Aria. All I got is Ben.”

“Yeah thanks for that you bitch.” Ben’s voice was amused, and everyone laughed, but it made Drew uncomfortable as all eyes were on him, and some were hot.

“Ooh, new blood,” someone said and a waif-like girl with purple hair and wild makeup slid her arm through Drew’s.

Drew barely had time to draw back before Aria pushed her away and took her place. Was that a flash of jealousy in Amara’s eyes?

“No one gets to touch Drew. He’s my friend, so leave him alone.”

“Friend, is it?” Amara drawled, narrowing his eyes at Drew. “Since when?”

“I’ll tell you later.” Aria gave Amara a quick peck on the lips then pushed him away gently. “Go do what you do. I don’t want to interrupt. I’ll be at the bar. I’m in a green mood.”

“Oh well, if that’s the case.” Amara tilted up his chin. “Aria’s in a green mood.”

Immediately the ambient lighting, which seemed to come from one of the walls, changed from pink to green. Aria jumped up and down, clapping his hands. “I love it when you do that. Make it pink again.” On cue, the colour changed. “Now blue, purple, green.”

“Go make yourself sick on sugar.” Amara gave him a little push then turned back to whatever he had been doing which seemed to be quite a heated discussion involving a lot of gesticulating.

Aria grabbed Drew’s hand and tugged him to the left where a small bar cut off the corner of the room. Drew blinked at the optics on the wall behind. There was no alcohol in there.

“M&M’s,” Aria said, sounding thrilled. “I like the green ones best. At least I do tonight. What colour do you want? Or do you want a mix?”

Drew sat at one of the stools while Aria slipped behind the bar and retrieved little cups.

“Surprise me.”

Aria grinned and filled one cup with green sweets and the other with a mix of them all. He leaned over the bar and handed Drew the mixed cup. “Don’t eat the green ones,” he said.

“Why not?”

“So I can steal them when I’ve finished all mine, of course.”

The bright, wide open grin he offered up to Drew stole his breath. “Of course.”

Aria shimmied back around the bar and tucked his hand through Drew’s arm again. “Let’s go introduce you to some people.”

The next hour was a whirl of coloured lights, weird people and names he would never remember. Aria moved smoothly from on group, one person to another, always ready with a name and a comment, always welcomed. Among others, Drew recalled being introduced to Amara’s manager, Alexei, a large man in a very expensive suit. He’d seemed nice enough, but then to Drew, all music business executives looked as if they’d sell their own mother for the right deal.

Drew didn’t really engage in any of the conversations. He smiled and nodded politely, refrained from crushing the hands that groped his arse, and very nearly got into a fist fight with a man with a lot of teeth and fake tan, who made him an offer he refused, then refused again, then would have hit him if Aria hadn’t dragged him away to see something important.

Eventually, the wardrobe door opened and someone yelled. “Alright everyone. Half an hour to show time, so get your sorry arses to your dressing rooms for last minute touch ups. Not you, darling, the only thing you’re touching up tonight is your lippy.” He was pointing at the man who’d almost been on the wrong side of Drew’s fist and he couldn’t help but grin. To be fair, so did the man.

“Let me take you up to the box,” Alexei said appearing at Aria’s side.

Aria smiled up at him. “Give me a minute.” He disappeared into the crowd, heading for Amara.

“So, you’re Aria’s new minder.”

“If you say so.”

Alexei gave a curt nod and looked him up and down. “You look like you can handle yourself.”

“If I have to.”

“Oh, you’ll have to. One way or another. Those two are a handful, but I don’t think I’m telling you any secrets when I say you’ve picked the easy side of the coin.”

“I didn’t pick the coin,” Drew said, never taking his eyes off Aria, who was clinging to Amara’s necks while his brother whispered something in his ear while rubbing his back. “It was thrust on me.”

“Ah. I see. I think you might grow to like it…eventually.” He sniffed then chuckled. “At first, they seem like every other spoiled, rich, obscenely talented kid out there, but if you’re not careful they grow on you.”

Drew glanced sharply up and was surprised to see the genuine affection on the man’s face. Well that was a surprise.

“I’ll take your word for it.”

“If you say so,” he said, his eyes twinkling.

Drew reconsidered his first impression. He was going to like this guy.

Aria bounced back and took up what seemed to be becoming his default position, holding on to Drew’s arm. “I’m ready,” he announced.

Drew exchanged an amused glance with Alexei then Alexei led them out through the labyrinthine corridors of the arena. There were still far fewer people than Drew would have expected, and he began to wonder if there was a problem.

“What’s up?” Alexei asked.

“Huh?”

“You look concerned.”

“I was just wondering if there shouldn’t be more people around.”

Alexei chuckled. “Ah. Don’t worry, there are. We’re still in the backstage area. Wait until you get to the suite.”

“Suite?”

“You didn’t think we were going to sit with all the other people, did you?” Aria asked, blinking at Drew.

“Um…yeah, I suppose so. We are…people, after all.”

“Well yes, of course, but we’re….” Aria paused, biting his lip. He shrugged and dropped Drew’s arm. “Come on, I’m hungry.” He danced ahead of them leaving Drew puzzled.

“What was that about?”

Alexei sighed and shook his head. “Aria’s a strange one. Amara soaks it all up, but him…. He’s a sensitive soul and if he lets himself think about it he gets tied in knots about his wealth and privilege. If you want to really upset him, sit him down and point out how lucky he is to have so much and how few other people have that luck.”

“Oh.”

Drew’s mind went into a tailspin. And the shocks kept coming. Not what he was expecting at all.

Up ahead, Aria pulled open a door and disappeared. Drew hurried to catch up.

The suite was something of an eye opener. In one respect it was a comfortable lounge, that happened to have a bar and a long counter, set with an impressive buffet. However, the far wall was entirely missing and opened out onto the central arena. If Drew had thought the concert wasn’t well attended, his misapprehension was certainly laid to rest now. He was mesmerised as he walked over to the balcony and looked over.

They were on the first floor, above and to the left of the stage. To his left, the arena opened out and as far as he could see there wasn’t a single empty seat. It was, quite simply, a single living mass.

“Oh my God.”

“It’s amazing isn’t it?” Aria said, sounding awed. “It always makes me feel so…small.”

“Really?” Drew turned his head to look at Aria, who was leaning way over the balcony peering downward.

“Well, I am small, but way up here I feel like I could jump over and I’d just float down and land in someone’s lap.”

“That they should be so lucky.” Alexei draped an arm around Aria’s shoulders, hugging him to his side. Somehow that grated on Drew even though he knew it was innocent and that Aria was under no threat.

Aria snuggled closer and murmured. “Thank you.”

That’s when Drew got a clue there was more going on than just a friendly hug. Aria needed grounding and Alexei knew him well enough to give him what he needed. Would Drew get to that point one day? To be able to read that complex little mind and respond so naturally? He’d like to think he would.

Hang on. Since when did he care about reading Aria Graice and giving him what he needed? Jesus, the kid had got under his skin when he wasn’t looking. If he wasn’t careful he might actually start to like him.

“Why is it so quiet up here? I mean, I can hear everything, but I’d have thought it would be louder.”

“Something to do with the acoustics. Don’t worry, it won’t be quiet when Amara’s on stage.”

Aria grinned at him then trotted past to get to the buffet table. Drew followed and was surprised by the quality and choice. He berated himself. Why should he be surprised? This was another world after all, a world where every whim was anticipated and catered for.

While they were selecting their food, a few other people came in, all of whom seemed to know both Aria and Alexei. Aria put down his plate for a round of squeals and air kissing while Drew stood back and glowered. He was introduced to them all by Aria as “My friend, Drew,” which bothered him for many niggling reasons, not all of which he could name.

Drew took his full plate to one of the sofas and sat down, setting his plate on the table. A little while later, Aria and two pretty pixies joined him. A third called from the bar. “Who wants a drinkie?”

A chorus of demands met the enquiry and a petulant, “I’m not a bartender,” indicated the person who’d asked was sorry he’d done so.

“Don’t worry, Marc, I’ll help.” Aria got to his feet. “Do you want anything?”

Drew shook his head. “Not while I’m working?”

“Water? They do really nice sparkling water here. It’s all I drink.”

“Really? No champagne?”

“Well, sometimes champagne.” Aria grinned, and Drew found it infectious.

When Aria had gone, his companions looked Drew up and down, then dismissed him and launched into a rather bitchy discussion about a mutual acquaintance. This was the side of wealth and privilege Drew really hated, even though he was aware this kind of thing wasn’t confined only to the rich and famous. It just seemed to have more of an edge, more things to judge and be judged on. It was all relative he supposed and that was way more than he would have allowed the day before.

Aria returned with a tray which he placed on the table. He took one of the long-stemmed crystal glasses and handed it to Drew. Drew took it and sniffed suspiciously at the fizzing liquid.

“Don’t worry, I haven’t spiked it.” Aria smiled. “I had that happen to me once, and I’d never do it to anyone else. I thought I was dying. I don’t really drink much, and I’ve never been drunk so I didn’t know what was happening. It was awful.”

“I’m surprised that you don’t drink.”

“You are? Why?”

Drew paused, aware that any response he gave would have a version of “people like you” in it and given what Alexei had said it didn’t seem that would be a good idea.

“I don’t know. I just kind of assume everyone does.”

“Darling, everyone does,” one of the pixies piped up. “But Aria isn’t everyone. Aria is…Aria.”

Everyone burst into peals of laughter and Aria blushed. “Well, I sure hope I am. I’d hate to wake up and find I’ve been pretending all this time.”