Chapter 2

They all hugged and hi-fived. They had a project, and it had enough different facets to use all the skills that the class contained. For the rest of the afternoon, they talked about it. Vivienne went to the board and wrote up the basic album plotline and the song titles, explaining how they fitted into the story.

Some of the class volunteered to come back next week with some ideas on extra dialogue, while Willow and Vivienne said that they would think about extra songs, and how they could alter the existing ones to be more operatic.

When they had all left, Mister Jamieson sat back and smiled. This particular group had been the brightest one he had taught, even before Willow had joined it. He stood and gathered his papers and went off to let the Head know that there was something else coming their way that the school had never done before.

On the way out, Willow told Vivienne that she had organised a minibus in the morning, picking up at around ten at the Britannia to go to the studio. Vivienne wanted to come along, having not been anywhere near the studio since their orchestra session. On the drive home, Willow phoned Wilhelm to warn him that there would be a minibus at the studio in the morning.

She sat back in the car seat and sighed.

“I could get used to this comfort. The old people mover was a bit harsh.”

“You will, Willow, when you’re being driven around from party to party.”

“Not me, Sebastian. I’m no party girl. It’s over a year before I can start learning to drive, I wonder if I could get a discount from where Dad works?”

“He’s at Aston Martin. I’m sure that if you ask nicely, they’ll lend you one to promote the brand.”

“Ha! That reminded me of something that our manager spoke to Dad about, way back. He spoke about ‘Brand Willow’ as if I was a box of cornflakes.”

“It’s quite likely that somewhere, in a head office, someone is wondering if you’ll be the face of their brand.”

“I can just see that now. Eat your Acme Prunes and sit like Willow Rose.”

He pulled up outside her house.

“See you in the morning, Miss Prune.”

“See you, Sebastian.”

She went in and changed, then started preparing dinner. As she sliced and diced, she thought about how her day had lifted her out of her doldrums. She thought about the opera. The album started with her, as Tatiana, bemoaning the quest that her father had put on his website. What the stage show would need would be an opening scene with her and the father, where he lays down the law. She wondered if it should be a totally sung part.

When her parents came home, they cooked the dinner and relaxed in front of the TV. Willow was so bored; she said goodnight and went upstairs to prepare for bed. It may be a big day in the morning.

She woke, feeling better than she had felt for a while. There was a weak sun, and it hadn’t snowed for several days. She showered and made ready for the day, picking out a smart skirt suit that she had picked up in London. She had a light breakfast with her parents, and they all prepared to be picked up. They all looked good when Sebastian pulled up. Locking up, they went out, Willow with a bag with the Gold Records in.

At the Britannia, there was more than expected waiting. Willow got out to say hello to her guests. Terry Savage, her lecturer, had Hugh Kelly with him. Then there was Derek Coward, the chairman of ENO, with Norman Strong, his producer. Vivienne was standing a little way apart and Willow beckoned her over.

“Gentlemen, this is Vivienne Armstrong, she plays the flute in Summer Rose.”

They all exchanged greetings and boarded the minibus. Willow was last in and picked up the microphone as Sebastian pulled away.

“Good morning. The two that you haven’t been formally introduced to yet are my parents, Ashley and Wendy Rose. The gentlemen who have joined us are Terry Savage, the lecturer of the uni course I took last year. His companion today is Mister Hugh Kelly, who gave me those other three items, Dad. Then we have Derek Coward, the chairman of the English National Opera, with his producer, Norman Strong. Vivienne has joined us for this visit and our driver is Sebastian, my regular security to and from school.”

She waited as nods were exchanged.

“We’re going to Leicester, where the Summer Love Studio is located. I have a Gold Record, which I will be presenting to Sarah Wilkinson, as the mixing board operator on my latest album. It’s really for the team there, but they only name the operator. The other two there are Josh Hamilton and Sydney Morris. For your information, Vivienne is the other main composer in Summer Rose, having contributed most of our ‘Magic Laptop’ album.”

Norman laughed.

“Now, that’s something I would like to talk about. That was almost an opera. It was, of course, a take on the ‘Magic Flute’, set in modern times.”

Vivienne smiled.

“It was, and started life as a single song that was a bit of a mash-up of the whole story. Willow pointed out the obvious, and that was that it could be expanded into a full album. Actually, we have just started to work on expanding it into a two-hour operetta for a school project, to be put on the stage there at the end of June.”

“That’s interesting. I’d certainly like to see that.”

“If you keep an eye on our school website, Mister Strong, you’ll see when tickets are being released.”

Terry looked at Ashley.

“Mister Rose, I believe that you work at Aston Martin as a design engineer.”

“I do. I think we use the seats supplied by Mister Kelly.”

Hugh laughed.

“Let’s put all this Mister stuff away this morning. I’m Hugh and this is Terry. I’ve been a client of the University of London for some years, picking the brains of their brightest. Not many as bright as your daughter, Ashley. We do have a subsidiary that provide first class seating for expensive motor cars, among other things we do. I was at the Albert Hall, Norman, when your artists joined the Blue Coat Orchestra, led by Willow, in the ‘Messiah’. It was a superlative experience. I believe that you performed ‘Creation’ before the summer, Willow.”

“We did, Hugh. Three nights in the Coventry Cathedral, filmed for the BBC. We recorded both oratorio at our studio, the biggest group we’ve ever had to record.”

She went and sat next to Vivienne as there was general talk. Viv leaned close.

“This is a high-powered bunch today.”

“Yes. Terry is here to see the project that I used as an example during the course, Hugh is a surprise. The other two were in the school to speak to the Head, probably about another collaboration.”

When Sebastian pulled into the parking area, he stopped where the shed used to be, now marked out as ‘Coach Only’ parking. Willow went to the front.

“We’ll have a quick look at the newer bits of the site first. This used to be a distribution centre, and our tenant is now a tenant of our band property in Small Heath. If you’ll like to get out, I’ll show you around.”

When they were standing in front of the vehicle, she pointed out the offices.

“Upstairs is the nerve centre of the band property portfolio, as well as the operation of the studio, and the ground floor is the new home for the Leicester Arts Alliance. They are involved with all the schools and dramatic groups in the city. If you come over to this door, you can have a look at one of the changes that we’ve made. She opened the door and the sound of loud dance music hit their ears. They all had a look in to see a dance group practising a stage show. She shut the door, cutting off the sound.

“As you can hear, we’ve soundproofed what used to be an industrial site, along with laying a laminate floor suitable for dance or drama. Now, if you follow me, I’ll take you to the studio proper. Sebastian, if they turn up, there should be a reporter and photographer arriving soon. Can you bring them through, please.”

They followed her into the long shed, where some more cars were parked in marked spaces.

“This used to be used for pallet racks and a forklift workshop. What you see, in front of you, used to be a cold store for vegetables. The walls were eighteen inches thick with expanded foam.”

They went through the open door, and into the rest area, where Josh was talking to some people.

“Good morning, Josh, how are you this morning?”

“Extra good seeing you, Willow. These are my parents and my two sisters. I’ve just been showing them the wonder wall. I’ve made some changes; I hope you don’t mind.”

“It’s where you work Josh, all good unless you have a wall of nude calendars.”

Introductions were made, and he showed Willow and Vivienne what he had done.

“I’ve been looking at the saved files in the system, and they’re fabulous. I’ve moved the awards around a bit, putting them higher and lower, so that there’s space for photos that I’ve printed off from the visual files. There’s one from every session, so far, and plenty of room for more.”

Willow called Norman over.

“Here are pictures of the school orchestra recording ‘Messiah’ and ‘Creation.’ The first had around forty players and the same number of singers.”

She spoke to Josh’s sisters, who had albums to sign, happy that two of the band were here and happy to talk. Sebastian came in with two other men.

“Willow, this is Jeff and Bernie, from the local paper. They were wondering about so many cars and so little noise.”

“Thanks, Sebastian. Gentlemen, if you all follow me, we can get to something of a surprise.”

She led them through the control room, and into the studio, where the team had set up tables and chairs and had laid out crisps and biscuits. Sarah saw them come in and came over to Willow and gave her a hug.

“Thank you for this, Willow. My folks have been getting on to me about this mysterious place where I work. I’ve a bit to talk to you about, afterwards, so don’t rush off.”

“Don’t intend to, Sarah. I’ve brought along a couple of gentlemen who wanted to have a look at the place. One pair is, I think, only for interest, but the others are the chairman and producer for the English National Opera. There are two from the local paper here, so, I’ll get to the good bit of my visit first. Can you call for quiet and for everyone to gather, I’ll get introduced around after.”

Sarah called out for everyone to gather around. The newsmen stood near Willow. When there was quiet, Willow could speak normally.

“For those of you who have never been here before. This is the Summer Love Studio, specially built in an old cold store after Summer Rose bought this site. The whole site has gone from a distribution centre to be an arts centre. What used to be the assembly building is now, at this moment, being used as a dance studio, but can be used for drama or music practise. This room has seen the recording of several hit records before Sarah, Sydney, and Josh came on board. Since then, they have recorded some groups from the Blue Coat School, and an album that I recorded here, back in November. That album was called ‘A Girl has to have Standards’ and has sold very well.”

There was some polite applause.

“So well, that I was presented with a Gold Record before Christmas. Josh, here is another one for the wall.”

She pulled it out of her bag and passed it to Josh, noting that Sydney had her hand on his arm as they looked at it.

“On that same evening, they gave me another to bring along, today.”

She pulled the other one out.

“This one has the inscription, ‘For passing five hundred thousand sales, this is awarded to the producer of ‘A Girl has to have Standards’, Sarah Wilkinson.”

There were cheers and applause. Willow presented the award to Sarah, and they stood for the photos, firstly by the newspaper, and then by a lot of family members with their phones. When it eased, Willow called for quiet.

“Although that award has Sarah’s name on it, as far as I’m concerned, it was a team effort. I expect to be coming back in a month or two with the Platinum versions to go on the wall. Now, you now know that I’m Willow, and this young lady beside me is Vivienne, who plays flute in Summer Rose. The last time we were here, together, we were part of the Blue Coat Orchestra. Now, I’m parched, are there drinks?’

There was a long period where family members got selfies with the two of them, Ashley and Wendy getting to know the team, and the newsmen getting pictures and taking notes. Willow took them out and let them look into the other shed, where the dancers were still working hard. She took them into the Arts Alliance office and introduced them to the ladies, who had met them before.

Going back into the studio, she caught up with her four guests.

“Sorry to have abandoned you, gentlemen. There is a bit more I need to show you.”

She took them to the bottom of the studio, slid the door back and opened the other one to show them the storeroom and the entry from the lane.

“You may have wondered how we got the amps and the Steinway in. I suppose we could get a car in here. The climate is controlled by a reverse-cycle unit, and you can set it to a temperature of your choice. If you need the dimensions, the studio is thirty-seven feet across, and the whole structure was a hundred and ten feet long before we made the changes. Does anyone have any questions?”

Derek laughed.

“Just the one. What do you charge?”

“We have started charging from the beginning of the month. For professional bands, it’s a thousand pounds an hour, with a minimum of five hours. If you’re looking at an extended time, say a week of eight-hour days, we can bring it back to five hundred an hour. As you can see, it’s state-of-the-art. Josh and Sydney can show you our visual system. There are twelve cameras, and you can choose an overview, and then replace it with other views as you like, so ending up with a file that’s already edited and synchronised with the audio file, allowing you to pump out CDs or DVDs within fifteen minutes of finishing the session.”

“That’s better than we have when we’re at Abbey Road. Cheaper, too.”

“So far, the main output has been Summer Rose, G-Force, and the old Hikers. Plus, my solo album. That will, I hope, be added to as we attract other bands. One thing you would have noticed, is the sound suppression. We could crank up the amps in here and you could whisper to each other in the car park.”

“Yes, that practise area was a shock when you opened the door.”

“Does it come up to the project, Terry?’

“That and more. You can earn a million a year out of this and only have the wages and outgoings. You wouldn’t have been thinking of this when you originally bought the site.”

“No. It was just a hide-away for the band, but the others have lost interest. We now have a site in Small Heath, and a shopping centre in Manchester. They will bring in a tidy wage for years to come. Have you seen what you came to see?”

“Not until we’ve been shown the audio and visual equipment, coming, Derek?”

She stood there with Terry and Hugh. Hugh had a wry smile.

“You never fail to impress, Willow. I had imagined a typical small band area when I looked at the papers Terry showed me. This is magnificent. I see that you have a blue screen, have you used it yet?”

“Not yet. It’s there if anyone wants to record something in front of it, and then add the picture to look like they’re not inside. I suppose it could be used to film an advert. All the cameras can be taken off the brackets and used manually.”

“What are we doing for lunch, Willow.”

“There’s a fish and chip and pizza shop close by. What do you have in mind, Hugh?”

“If all the family members have left, I would like to host you and the team somewhere nice. This has been a really good experience.”

“All right. I know that Sarah wants to talk to me. Let’s shut this door and go and see if they’re ready to go home.”

When they got back to the control room area, any family members were in the rest area, taking selfies with the awards, Josh having added the two new ones to the selection. Willow asked Josh if he would like to join her and the guests for lunch after the studio was closed. Then she went back to the control room, where Sarah was explaining the mixing board to Terry and Sydney was outputting a DVD for Norman. She saw Willow.

“This is a composite of today, Willow. We had all the cameras and a few microphones on, with the system switching through them at twenty-second intervals. I think these gentlemen are impressed.”

“If you’ve done, Hugh is taking us all to lunch. Have you found a good restaurant in town?”

“Josh took me to a place for New Year’s Eve, it’s pretty swish.”

“That will be good. Hugh likes swish. If the three of you squeeze into the minibus, you can guide us there.”

They waited until all the family members had left, all smiling happily, and then Sarah went through the studio, checking that everything was secured, and that there was nobody still in the toilets. They went back to the minibus and were guided to the good restaurant, where they had a big table set up for them and all enjoyed a good lunch.

When they had finished, Sarah still hadn’t had the talk she wanted. She said that she would take them home if Viv wanted to stay as well. Willow raised her voice and told the table that she and Sarah had business to talk about, and that Sebastian would take the others home with Sarah driving her and Vivienne later. Hugh made the comment that business talk always came first if it’s your business. He thanked her and the team for the inspection and the experience.

“One of my subsidiaries needs to record adverts for TV. They are prepared to pay for a full day. The studio is as modern as it could be, you can show them the result while they wipe the sweat off. I’ll get them to contact you, Sarah, to book. All they need is a small band.”

Willow grinned.

“A four-piece electric or more classical, Hugh?”

“Electric would be good.”

“A singer or just the music?”

“Singer. Do you have anything in mind?”

“If you record on a weekend, I can get you a totally unknown, but very talented, group of twelve-year-olds. They are from the school and the main two are twins called Petunia and Ivy Vines.”

“Sam Vines’ girls?”

“Yes, do you know him.”

“I’ve been trying to buy him out for years and put the business in a purpose-built factory. Now, the beggar has moved into one in Small Heath. Wait! Is he one of your tenants?”

“I couldn’t possibly comment, Hugh.”

“Let me guess, the tenant here is now sharing the site with him.”

“My lips are sealed, Hugh.”

“If you can get them, Sarah, let them know who’s making the advert, and tell them that I’ll be here to oversee the session. Sam will be here with them, I’ll bet. That way we can have a very quiet conversation in a room that doesn’t need a ‘cone of silence’.”

Sebastian drove them all back to the studio, and the five got out, with calls of thanks and ‘see you again’. Sarah led the way up to the upper office and they all had comfort stops and Josh put a kettle on. They sat at the big table, and Willow looked at Sarah.

“What do you want to talk about, Sarah?”

“The money, Willow. With the flats, we’re being paid too much, for starters. We’re all getting some more from the school when we teach. The thing is that we’re underworked here.”

“That’s not going to last long, team. I thought that I may be underpaying you. You got the invoice and receipt books from the accountant?”

“Yes.”

“You now have the EFT unit linked to a bank account that I set up last year?”

“Yes.”

“How much work do you think we generated today? Any idea?”

“Did we?”

“I would expect that Hugh would be sending regular work here, if only as a cover for him to be on site in a soundproof room with people he wants to talk to. He is a multi-millionaire, possibly even a billionaire, so he’ll pay the thousand an hour without blinking, and he’ll pay on the day. The two from the ENO are very interested. If they do book, I expect that it would be the full week, if not longer. They put on several shows a year, working up to three years in advance. Doing a show here, with an orchestra, will test you to the full. It will mean that they can spend a week, in secret, make changes on the fly, and have an in-house supplied record of what they’ve achieved. When word gets out that there’s Gold and Platinum awards on the walls, there’ll be a queue of bands wanting to record. It’s early days, and the real work starts now. Up until now, you’ve been learning and settling in. Ask me in six months if you want less money.”

“If you’re happy, Willow. I thought that we needed to say it.”

“Look, the three of you were virtual unknowns in the recording game. You now have a Gold Record, and your picture will be in the local paper next week, no doubt with a story about the site. That, linked to my name, will have the phone ringing off the hook. This time next year, I expect that you’ll need to take down some of the old awards to make way for the new ones. Now, sometime in June, I’ll be booking a full day to record an operetta that we’ll be writing for the school. Viv, do you have anything in mind?”

“Well, to tell you the truth, Willow, I have a stack of songs that I had been writing before we went hard rock. I listened to your album and wondered if I was good enough to put a solo out. I’d need an accompanist. That Steinway looks good.”

“If they’re full of happiness, you could call it ‘Joie de Viv. If you want to work through them, we could make a booking now for a full day, my treat.”

“Could we?”

“Of course we could. Back yourself, Viv. I’ll play for you as an anonymous pianist. You can send me the basic songs by email, and I’ll add piano at home and email it back, as usual.”

“All right. Can we do next Saturday, Sarah. I’ll get my Mum to drive us and pick you up about nine, Willow.”

“Is there any particular sound, or atmosphere you want to get?”

“I liked the sound of yours. It was if you were in a smoky dive in Paris.”

“We can do smoky dives, can’t we, Sarah?”

“You bet we can. As well as singing next to rolling waves, under a flightpath, sitting on a toilet seat in a railway station. I’ve had a good read of the instruction manual. Do you want to sound as if you’re singing to penguins on an ice flow, I’m your girl. Look, you two. I feel so much better about what we’re doing. You’ve seemed to be overgenerous up to now, but I see that you have a total grasp at what the business is about.”

“All I ask is that you record Sydney reciting poetry in front of that blue screen and the add a background of your choice. We can look at it when we see you next Saturday. Are you, or the happy couple driving us home?”

Sydney snorted.

“That obvious, was it?”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 3

Willow looked at Josh and Sydney, both blushing.

“Just in little ways, Sydney. Most wouldn’t have seen it. I hope that you’re happy.”

“Happier than I’ve been in ages, Willow.”

“I’m glad. You’re a long way from home and it’s good to have friends around you, even better when one of them is special. Now, Josh. As the man of the house, I’m giving you a special project. I want you to line-paint three or four parking bays next to the studio entrance in a brighter colour and get them sign written ‘Studio only’. Then, I want you to look into getting a company car, or two, should you have to pick someone up and bring them here. You may have to go anywhere in the country. If the studio isn’t busy in a couple of years, we can always sell them. Go luxury, please, I might be calling to pick me up from Stoneleigh.”

“So, Jaguar or what?”

“Look at Audi, BMW and Mercedes as well. We want to create an image of success.”

“You really are pushing ahead with this, aren’t you?”

“Last year, I did a one-year certificate course in business and financial management. For one of my projects, I outlined my thoughts on the studio complex as a business. If the Arts people charge enough to cover rates and utilities, the studio, if used properly, will return between one and two million a year. For me, personally, it has already paid for itself in my first month of album sales, with more to come. I can afford to take a punt, but I don’t believe that it will be a losing bet.”

Sarah sighed.

“And there’s us thinking that we were sponging off you.”

“No thoughts of that, Sarah. See how the bookings start coming in and we can talk again later. If you start to get more work, let me or the accountant know, and we can add a driver/general hand to do the cleaning and toilets. If you have any relatives who need a job, don’t be shy of putting them on. If you move in together, Sydney, you can offer the flat as incentive if you need the extra person.”

With the air cleared, Sarah drove them back to Coventry. Vivienne asked Willow if she could stop at her home for a while, to listen to her songs. When they arrived, it wasn’t where she used to live, but a good-sized detached home in a better suburb. They thanked Sarah for the trip and went in, with Willow being hugged by Viv’s mother.

She was taken to a conservatory, where a baby grand sat, with a cover on.

“I’ve been getting lessons, but it’s been hard work.”

“Everything worthwhile is hard work, Viv. You already have the wind talent, it’s a new way of using your fingers that takes time. I often wonder if I should have learned guitar, but don’t have the time for it. I thought I might have more time on my hands, this year, but that flew out of the widow on the first day of school.”

“I’ll pop upstairs and get my notebooks. I have written out the basic tunes. Let’s get this uncovered and you can warm your fingers.”

While she was away, Willow sat and played an etude. Vivienne’s mother sat in a chair and listened.

“Do you have a favourite, Mrs. Armstrong?”

“I’m Juliette, Willow, and, yes, I do. It’s that one about friends. It says so much.”

Willow played the intro and sang along while Juliette sat with her eyes closed, and Vivienne stood by the door, papers in her hand. She had been on many stages with Willow, and had thought she had heard everything, but this was a slower version of the song that was full of affection and joy.

“That was written for Gina, wasn’t it?”

“It was, Viv. I miss her, terribly, as she was almost a constant companion, living in Stoneleigh, playing keyboard in the club, and alternating on the church organ. She is improving her life in Florence and will be a piano soloist in a few years. That’s her aim in life, and Summer Rose has helped her achieve that.”

“Hopefully, we can work this year and fill some of that gap.”

“I’ll like that. Now, where’s the music?”

For the next three hours, the two of them worked on the songs, with Willow making suggestions and Vivienne making changes of her own, now she was free to listen to them objectively. Juliette brought them tea and biscuits, and Vivienne’s sisters put their heads in for a look. When they finished, the music and lyrics sheets had edits. Vivienne said that she would write them out clearly for next weekend, and arranged transport to the studio, her mother keen to see the business end of the entertainment.

Vivienne’s father drove Willow home, talking as he drove, about how much better their life has been since his daughter had been added to the band. Willow told him that everyone had an improved life, and she sat, wondering about the others in the band. Nothing had been said about new houses, but she realised that it was quite likely that they had all moved up in the world.

That evening, she sent an email to Gina, to tell her of the first week of school, and the ongoing operetta project. She also sent an email to the man who was now managing the Arts Alliance bookings for the practise area, to remind him that the building now needed to be charged for, and to start using the invoice books and the EFTPOS unit that the accountant had sent, along with the rates for different customers. She also did some research.

On Sunday, they walked over to the warm church and listened to Jim on the organ. They had lunch in the club.

“When are you going to get a new car, Mum?”

“The old Ford is still working.”

“I know, but if you drive me anywhere, we can put it down as a company car, as part of WR Holdings. In two years’, you can give it to me and get another new one for yourself. You and Dad are directors, so you’re eligible.”

“Can the company afford it?”

“Mum, we could buy a car for every member of this club and still have some left over. I really should look at more properties.”

“I’ll talk to your father, and we’ll think about it.”

“Another thing is that without Gina, I don’t have to live in the village anymore. I had a look at some properties on-line. There’s a nice one about eight miles west of us. It’s on the market at just over two point six. We could still be involved here, but it would be a short drive, rather than a walk.”

“How big is it?”

“Five big bedrooms, four bathrooms, an annex over a three-car garage. It would need us to have a gardener, maybe a cleaning service.”

She was grinning. Wendy laughed.

“You’re having me on!”

“Not at all, Mum. Talk about it with Dad. We could go and have a look next Sunday; I expect that the agent would be happy to show us around. I’ll probably have enough coming in from my album to pay for it next month, without touching the nest-egg.”

“You’re serious?”

“I am. It’s behind gates, and on a large area. The annex could be somewhere that Gramma can come and live with us. I’ve got the feeling that Grandpop may not last long.”

“Who told you?”

“Nobody had to tell me, Mum. He didn’t seem good when they stayed here, and when we were recording in Cambridge, he looked ashen.”

“I was keeping it from you, with all you had on your plate. He was diagnosed with liver cancer last month and isn’t likely to see the summer.”

“All the more reason for us to have a haven. I know that you enjoy your work. Perhaps you could set up an office and work from home, going in a couple of times a week. Looking after your mother is likely to take up a lot of time. For me, it just means that Sebastian has to go somewhere else to pick me up.”

“What about the organ playing?”

“I can’t see me being needed any longer. Jim’s holding down the seat and has said that he’ll work with the choir. He doesn’t have any band to play in, so’s happy with the little bit of extra interest while he studies for his higher certificate. He has enough in the bank to be set up.”

That evening, Willow plugged her laptop into the TV and showed them the property.

“It certainly is lovely, daughter, but why now?”

“I’m breaking out on my own, I have made enough off a single album to pay for it, it’s just a short drive from here, it has an annex for Gramma, it has three garages, it has four bathrooms, it’s a suitable residence for the next conservative Member of Parliament, and a descendant of the Third Baroness Leigh, once removed. Neither of you would have to give up work, straight away. Let’s face it, Dad, you’ve met two of your company’s bigger suppliers socially, on chatting terms with a Baron and a Bishop, have a pad in London if you need to be in the House, it’s almost a no-brainer. If you sell this place, you could put some of your own money in to fund a campaign. We could buy it with funds from WR Holdings, of which you’re both directors.”

“See if we can have a look next Sunday, as you’re out on Saturday. We’ll talk about it after we see it. If it’s a no, then we just stay here.”

“Got it, Dad.”

On Monday, school was close to normal, with both Vivienne and Nancy now sitting with her.

“Not with Herb, Nancy?”

“Not any longer. Both of our guys are now ex-lovers. They seem to spend a lot of the weekends in Birmingham or Manchester, I’ve smelt odd perfumes on him. What with them going on about being a different band, I’m almost ashamed to be with them, because of the lack of loyalty to the rest of us. I blame all the fan frenzy in Australia that went to their heads.”

“What about the factory you both bought?”

“He bought my half from me and has put it back on the market.”

“Has Viv told you about our school project?”

“Yes. I was wondering if I could get a small part in it.”

“If I act as the director/producer, how would one of you like to play Tatiana, and the other can play the scheming ex-girlfriend?”

“Don’t you want to be on stage?”

“I’m a musician, not an actor, and my skills seem to be more in organising. I’ll add my bit to the words and music, but I’m afraid that I’d look like a ham if I’m acting. You would have to re-arrange your Friday afternoon lessons.”

That evening, Willow emailed the property agent, asking if it was possible for a buyer to look at the property on Sunday afternoon. She had an email in from Gina, telling her about the hunky, but married, tutor that she went to, and the extra studies she was taking in Italian. There was also an email from Wilhelm, saying that he would like to step down as the property manager. Willow had wondered why he hadn’t been on site on Saturday.

She had a think and went downstairs to talk to her parents.

“I’ve had an email from Wilhelm. He wants to stop being our property manager. I think the problem with Jacob, and the upheaval with the band may have brought this on. Herb has paid Nancy for her half of the site in Coventry, which just leaves the Small Heath site and the shopping centre. I don’t think that Wilhelm is up to the shopping centre management.”

“What do you want to do?”

“I’d like to make an offer on the Coventry site, through our accountant. I’d also like to email the rest of the band with an offer for Small Heath and suggest we confirm the current management company to oversee the shopping centre.”

“What do you get out of that?”

“Mainly the knowledge that I haven’t let the tenants down. They’re still positive parts of a portfolio. It would mean that I could talk to all of them, face to face.”

“That isn’t very businesslike.”

“It’s the way I like to do business, Dad.”

“All right. You look into what you want. You wouldn’t consider it if you didn’t have the money. What’s the bottom line in the account at the moment?”

“Around sixteen and a half.”

“Even if you pay over the odds, it’s not going to break you.”

“No, Dad. Thank you, Dad.”

She went back to her computer to write her emails, using Word to get them sounding right. The reply to Wilhelm thanked him for all his work and help and asked him to take all the paperwork to the accountant in Leicester, with a resignation letter, passing the responsibility to him. That went with all of the syndicate and the accountant cc’d as recipients.

She sent one to her team, telling them of the situation, and asking Sarah to take on the job as site manager, with a raise in salary. Wilhelm had a people mover that he should leave for her use.

She sent one to her accountant, asking him to look into the likely sale of the Coventry property and to put in an anonymous offer on her behalf, should the price be reasonable.

She then sent an email to all the other syndicate members, offering to buy the Small Heath property from them for a straight out five million, now that Wilhelm wasn’t handling it any longer. She pointed out that this would be by direct payments to each member, seeing that the syndicate was currently involved with the shopping centre, and any money in that account was slated for the improvements.

On Tuesday, at lunch, Herb approached her and told her that her offer was acceptable, as he and the others didn’t want the responsibility any longer. That was four of the band ticked off. She asked him to tell the guys to reply to her email, with their accountants given the news. Vivienne and Nancy hadn’t mentioned it, but Nancy spoke up after Herb had left.

“What’s this about, Willow?”

“I can see these guys losing interest, and not bothering to keep in touch with the tenants. After Wilhelm asking to leave, I thought that I had enough behind me to take it over. With them agreeing, it just leaves you two, the other two guys, and Gina.”

“If we talk to Gina and see what she wants to do, we may be able to end up with the four of us owning the site. We’ll have to wait for Edward and Bryan to answer. They’re more level-headed. It could be that we have one-sixth, if you didn’t mind.”

“My thoughts are with the tenants. Both companies are on the cusp of greater things. Those boys have no idea of business. Would you both be on board?”

They both nodded and gave her a hug. Vivienne went off to talk to Edward and Bryan, coming back a few minutes later.

“They both say that they don’t want to sell out. If Gina is in, we can put in our shares and pay the other four out, the income between six is better than between ten.”

“Sounds good to me, girls. Tell me, Nancy, when Herb paid you for your half of Coventry, did he pay the full quarter of a million?”

“He did. He thought that he could get five-fifty for it.”

“Look, if Gina is happy to stay in, we can create a new syndicate of six. I’ll pay the boys the half a million each, and then we can sort it out afterwards with us as the shareholders. That would mean each of you putting in three hundred and thirty thousand to me and we’ll change the ownership.”

“What about the shopping centre?”

“That’s too big to mess with. We’ll have a management team in place, so we can sit back. The money’s there for the improvements. If the others want out, they can try and sell each individual share. I don’t feel a personal link with that one. It’s just business.”

Tuesday evening, she had an email from Sarah, saying that Wilhelm had left the people mover in the shed, and had given her the keys and paperwork. He had been driven away by an older lady. Willow replied that she should get it professionally sign written with the studio name and contact details, to become a travelling billboard, and for her to use it as her own after letting the authorities know about the change of garaging.

She had another from Gina, telling her that she wanted to remain as a member of the syndicate. Willow replied that the shopping centre syndicate will remain untouched, but that the four guys wanted out of Small Heath, with all the girls, Bryan and Edward, staying in. She advised that she was going to pay the others out and would ask for three hundred and thirty-three thousand later.

There was also a statement from Peter. The December sales had picked up and her share of the band was five hundred and eighty thousand, with her payment for the solo album, as she expected from getting the Gold Record, had given her another two point four. She got him to transfer two and a half million to WR Holdings. She also transferred half a million to her personal account, which took it to three quarters of a million, not having spent big amounts on herself.

On Wednesday, at lunch, she went to talk to Garry.

“How are you, Garry?”

“Better for having you speak to me.”

“How is your lesson schedule for Friday afternoons?”

“Gym and some free study, why?”

“We have to compose and present a full show with new composition by the end of next term for Music Studies. The class isn’t big, and they decided to turn the album ‘The Magic Laptop’ into an operetta. On the album, the internet baron doesn’t appear in person, only referred to. We’re looking at having him as a character in the stage presentation.”

“He was a sort of Musk clone, wasn’t he. I did listen to the album a couple of times, but you guys were moving in an odd direction.”

“That’s right. We were wondering if you would like to play that part. Vivienne and Nancy will be playing Tatiana and her ex-lesbian lover. The only other main characters are the other four questers.”

“Could I do it in black, big boots and a black cap, looking and acting mad?”

“We would be upset if you didn’t.”

“I’ll double check and let you know. I should be able to join you in the last hour and a half.”

“That will be wonderful, Garry. I know that you have a gravelly voice which would be perfect for the part.”

“You’re not considering Herb and his friends?”

“They’re not the flavour of the month, Garry. More interested in a good time and loose women. The rest of us have given up on the band touring again, or even having another album.”

“That’s sad. Still, we did have fun for a while, and that’s the main thing.”

On Thursday, in the orchestra session, they started on more violin-based music, with ‘Serenade for Strings’. When Willow turned on her laptop, that evening, there was an email from Sarah. It had a forwarded email from Derek at the ENO, booking the studio for the last full week of every month, except December, for a full forty hours at five hundred an hour. They would be staying in a hotel for the week, and he expected to have around ten singers and an orchestra of fifteen for each booking, with that open to change.

Sarah also reported that Hugh Kelly had booked a full Saturday, the week after Vivienne’s session. He had asked for confirmation of the band. Willow sent her back a reply and said that she would talk to the Vines tomorrow, at school, to get them to contact Sarah.

She went down to tell her parents about the ENO bookings, seeing that it, alone, would bring in twenty percent of her projected turnover for the year. She was making a hot chocolate for them when her mobile buzzed. She saw that it was Jill.

“Good evening, Jill. What can I do for you?”

“Good evening, Willow. Can you talk?”

“I’m just making some hot chocolate for us. What do you want to talk about?”

“Firstly, Summer Rose, now that Gina has left the country.”

“You can add Herb, Roy, Victor and Brent to the leavers. Like many lads of their age, they’re testing out their pick-up lines in big city nightspots. They have been talking about forming a new four-piece band, but not directly to me. We’re in the process of reorganising our property syndicate, so, in a nutshell, I think that Summer Rose, as it was, is no more. I’m laying down an album with Vivienne this Saturday, all her songs with me on the piano.”

“That means that we can’t organise a tour, then. What about something with you solo, and Vivienne if we think the album is commercial enough.”

“It’s commercial. We ran through it last Saturday and it sounds good. It will be her first time solo, so I’ll help her send the album to you. It should be with you before the end of next week.”

“That will be good. Then we can organise something. It will be much easier to fly you around without the others. Now, how is the studio at the moment?”

“We have made the changes I wanted, now I’m the sole owner. We have a licence from the council to operate as a commercial site. The big shed now has a good floor and is soundproofed. That side is managed by the local Arts Alliance with a mixture of school usage, which is free, and drama and dance groups, which are charged by the hour. The studio now has a team of three, all full-time employees, with Sarah in charge. They have spent two months practising with the equipment and I have full confidence in them. I was advised, just tonight, that we have a regular full week booked at the end of each month except December.”

“That’s fantastic. Do I talk to you or Sarah about booking time. What would the charge be for our stars?”

“If you’re recording to issue the product, it will be a thousand an hour, with a minimum of five hours. You already know what quality we can produce, and our visuals are as good as Frank and Dave. I’ve added a baby grand, and also a big blue screen so we can film with it. We’re doing an advert in a week. With the team being there full-time, they’ve studied the manuals and can do more than before.”

“That sounds excellent. We’re having a meeting over the weekend, to plan things for the year. I might get you to come to town for a meeting in February, to talk about what you can help with. You would be happy touring smaller venues, won’t you? Your solo album is going strong, and I know you can fill an evening with your earlier albums.”

“That would be nice. Without the huge stages, I could play more nights if it’s a more relaxed show. As a matter of interest, we don’t have a big orchestral event for this year, and my main project with the school is to turn the ‘Magic Laptop’ album into a full-length operetta by the end of June.”

“If you record it in the studio, I’ll see about getting it on the market. With the extra time, you have to have the internet baron in person.”

“Already spoken to Garry, the bass player of the old G-Force. The way he visualises the character will make your nickname for the album more relevant.”

“Look, Willow. It’s been good talking to you and catching up. You’ve given me enough to work on and I’m feeling positive about what we may do this year. Enjoy your chocolate. Goodnight.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 4

Willow finished making the drinks, put the three mugs on a tray with some biscuits and took them through to the sitting room, where her parents were watching the late-night news bulletin. She had a text on her phone as she was carrying it in, so sat and read it. It was from the estate agent, telling her that they could inspect the property at two-thirty on Sunday afternoon. She replied with a confirmation.

“What was the call, love?”

“Jill. Sounding me out about what’s been going on. She wants me in London for a meeting, sometime over the next few weeks. She wonders if she can get enough interest for me to do a solo tour at smaller places. My album seems to be selling well. The text was the estate agent letting us know we can see the house on Sunday afternoon.”

She had her drink and went off to bed, laying in the dark with her furry friends and thinking hard about the operetta.

Next morning, Sebastian drove her in. She asked him what sort of car she should be getting for the studio to ferry clients around.

“Something classy, reliable, and easy to maintain. You’ll need to get it from a dealer close to the studio, in case you need something done. Good air conditioning, plenty of comfort and room, and an in-car phone. I think, from my travels, that the nearest ones to the studio are an Audi and a BMW showroom. The Mercedes and Lexus showrooms are in the city area, a little way north.”

“That’s an awful lot of information off the top of your head.”

“We drive a lot of different vehicles in this job. The only reason you’re not in something flash, right now, is because it would attract attention.”

“On Sunday, I want to make a statement. Would it be possible for you to pick me and my parents up, about two?”

“How much of a statement?”

“We’re going to look at a big house, and I want it to look like my father is the buyer. He is being groomed to run for election next time, and it’s a house that would be suitable for an MP to live in. If possible, I would also like you to look at the security aspect of it.”

“Happy to be of help, Willow. We have a nice BMW Seven Series that would do. I can get it from work and take my wife out in it. She does like it when I have a flash car over the weekend. Of course, it will cost, and I’ll take you to school in it on Monday.”

“Add it to my account, Sebastian. The place we’re looking at is over two and a half million.”

That lunchtime, Garry came and sat with them at the table.

“I spoke to the gym teacher, and they’ve given me permission to spend the PE period with you on Fridays, as long as I do other training at another time. Have you any more information?’

“Not yet, Garry. We will discuss it today, and probably the next couple of weeks, and that should give us a good idea of the final plot, the cast, and the songs we need. They may not end up as the songs off the album, seeing that we’re going to make some fundamental changes.”

“Fair enough. Are you happy with that, Vivienne?”

“Oh, yes, Garry. Just adding your character as a real person will change things. I’ve wondered if I over-populated the album, and we should drop back from five questees to four, or even three. It would allow us to explore the characters more, without adding a lot of different scenes.”

They went into the classroom, where Mister Jamieson was waiting for them.

“Are you joining us, Garry?”

“I am, sir. I have a pass from PE so that I can help out. A lot of teachers are very keen to see what we produce.”

“I know. The common room is alive with conjecture. Sit yourself down and don’t be afraid to speak up. Are we getting any more, Willow?”

“Not at the moment, sir. We’ll need to get some extra musicians but will have to have written the score before that happens.”

“What about actors?”

“Vivienne floated an idea, at lunch, about dropping a couple of characters off. If we did that, the cast would consist of just six; two girls and four boys. We have the two girls and one boy already, we just need two who fail, and the one who wins. The winner would have to be something of a talented comedian, like the one in the ‘Magic Flute’.”

“That’s pushing the show towards a farce.”

“Not that far, sir. I was thinking of more like school-age romp. The father is going to be played by Garry, as a madman. A rich madman, maybe, but he’ll be playing a bit like Gilbert and Sullivan. The daughter could be a vacuous late teen, only interested in clothes and fun. The two losing men could be made up as a bit older, act as if they both are certain that they would win, with the daughter certain to help them. The other female is, as in the album, an old flame, who believes that she has the inside track.”

“What about the winner?”

“I see him as shy, but talented. Everyone can remember that song in the ‘Flute’ about Papageno. I’m think that the winner should stammer, with almost everything he says as a double entendre, like playground humour. On the album, he gains a big following, and used magic as his claim to fame. He turns the following into money by getting real work. We could allude to his magic, with the back-screen projection of ‘him’ doing tricks.”

“Example, please.”

“OK. Bum, bum, bum, bum, bumbling. Dic, dic, dic, dic, dictionary. He could be called cu, cu, cu, cu, Cuthbert.”

There was giggling in the classroom and Mister Jamieson smiled.

“That does sound like a plan. What do others think?”

There was a bit of discussion, but nobody could come up with an alternative. Mister Jamieson went to the board and took his marker.

“All right. Time for some structure.”

He wrote ‘Act One’ on the board and looked at Willow.

“Curtain opens with daughter on a sofa, buffing her nails. She sings about how hard her life is and how much of a tyrant her father is. She declares that once she comes of age, she’s out of there. Father comes into room and declares that he’s put a plan into place to have her married off. He outlines his plan to have men to take up a quest to win her hand. They argue, in song, and she calls him a beast. He tells her that none of the contestants will be left empty handed, as he would give all of them a car – batteries not included.”

He wrote all of it down as the class were laughing.

“Anything else?”

“Perhaps he could introduce the competitors so we can get that out of the way.”

“All right, Act two.”

“The daughter is in the park. We could film an actual park and reverse project it onto the back screen. She meets all four of the competitors, who are waiting for her. We could sort out the order later. Then the intermission.”

“Act three?”

“The two men crash and burn; the ex-friend finds that previous knowledge does not lead to winning.”

“Act four?”

“Clown is shown building his fan base, and then gets booked for a tour. He presents that to the father, who has to declare that he won. Clown and daughter do a duet, like the Papageno one, then the full cast come on to sing a rousing finale, declaring that true love wins out, and manipulation never works.”

“What do you think, Vivienne?”

“Works for me. Close to the album but neater. I can see the final scene in my mind, but not hear it yet.”

“That’s what the next few weeks are meant to tease out. You have a basis, now. It may not be the final show, but I could see it as it was explained. Well done, Madam Director!”

There were some smiles and hi-fives.

“Anyone have anything else that they want to submit. No? Then you can spend the rest of the session discussing the song content and deciding on the names. They should be a parody, but not so close as to cause offence.”

He sat back and listened to them. Vivienne wanted the main characters to have three syllable names to make it easier to write the songs. Garry insisted that the father should be called Ego, and they could get a supply of caps that read, ‘President Ego’, or ‘Ego has always been Great’. The daughter became Tanita, the clown was a short discussion, ending up as Cu, Cu, Cu, Cuthbert, the Con, Con, Con, Conjurer.

When they walked out of the class, laughing and coming up with off-the-wall suggestions, he decided that the Head didn’t need to know what more was coming her way until they had put more meat on it. They were already about a month ahead of every other class that had been given this task.

Vivienne told Willow that she would see her in the morning and went to her ride home. Willow couldn’t help it; she was still looking around to see if Gina was there but shook her head and went to join Sebastian in a deep red BMW.

At home, she put the school uniform in for the laundry, had a shower and redressed casually. She got one of the bags that she usually sent CDs to Jill in. She addressed it to Jill at the label and put it in her bag for the next day. She started preparing dinner, allowing herself to relax as she sliced and diced.

She told her parents about the change in transport for Sunday afternoon. After dinner and tidying up, she went to her room to start thinking about songs for the operetta. She made notes and then got ready for bed.

In the morning, she had one of her better dresses on, in case she was included in the vision during the recording, and was waiting, with her bag, when Juliette arrived with Vivienne and one of her sisters in the car. Willow got in the back with Vivienne, and they went to Leicester in a light drizzle. When they arrived, she directed Juliette to drive into the long shed so they could stay dry. The door to the studio was open, so they went in to find Josh dusting the pictures and awards.

In the control room, Sarah was wiping the mixing board. Everything was ready, so Willow and Vivienne made ready in the studio. Sarah had erected the blue screen behind the piano, which was set so the full keyboard was visible to the nearest camera. There were also three cameras on tripods, plugged into jack plugs in the floor. Willow sat at the piano and Vivienne stood in front of a new microphone, with a screen that you would sing into. Josh and Sydney adjusted the cameras so that the two would be fully visible.

When they had played a sound check, the studio was left to them. To show a natural look, they didn’t use buds, so had Sarah’s voice from the speakers. When they heard her tell them it was good to go, they were in their places and Willow played the intro to the first song that they had chosen.

They worked through all the songs in the order that they had practised and ended with Willow standing and the two of them bowing to an imaginary audience, breaking into giggles when Sarah told them that it was all good.

After a trip to the toilets, they sat in the rest area with drinks and talking to Juliette. The sister had stayed in the control room to watch what was happening. She came out and sat with them as a big-screen TV came on. It was attached to the mezzanine rails, with a speaker either side.

What appeared on screen took Willow’s breath away. The two of them were shown, waiting to start playing, and it looked as if they were on a stage in a nightclub, with curtains behind them. As the first song progressed, she looked for any ‘feathering’ of their outlines as the different camera views showed close-ups. Then, she realised that there was an authentic background sound of glass clinking and muted conversation. Viv had asked for it to sound like they were performing in a smoky dive, and that’s what it looked, and sounded like.

The vision faded after the last song and Sarah came into the room, a grin on her face.

“Did we hit the brief?”

Viv’s answer was to hug her, and then hug Willow.

“That is fantastic! I think that you’ve mastered blue screen work. What do you think, Willow?”

“I think that Sarah is a genius, along with the rest of the team. That was a masterclass in recording. Are you happy with that with the background noise, Viv?”

“I am over the moon with it. I said I wanted it to sound like a smoky dive and you can’t go past that. Do you think the label will issue it, just as a DVD?”

“I guarantee that they will. Keep the CD to play to yourself, but just send the DVD to Jill. I’ve got an addressed bag I usually use, so you can put it in a case, with the details, and the label will add the opening requirements and the credits at the end. If you send it by priority on Monday, I expect that it will be in the shops at the end of the month. What do you want to call it?”

“I took a liking to the ‘Joie de Viv’, but it should now be ‘Joie de Viv at Summer Love’. What did you think of it, Mum?”

“If I hadn’t seen you in there, with my own eyes, I would have sworn that it was recorded live, in a club. It’s absolutely beautiful. How much do we owe you, Willow?”

“You owe me nothing, Juliette. My studio, my gift to a friend. When you write the info sheet, make sure that you list Sarah as the producer and Sydney and Josh as the camera and post-production operators. That way, if there’s any awards, they’ll all get one. This new set-up is good, Sarah.”

“That’s all down to Josh. He’s been making that sort of difference all over the site. The Alliance ladies now have a screen in the office where they can keep an eye on what’s happening in the shed. You may not have noticed, but we have ten security cameras around the site, feeding into a computer up there on the mezzanine, with enough memory to save four days of vision. It can be monitored on our phones. After the talk last week, we’ve been spending some of your money. Josh wants to know if you want Audi or BMW, as they’re both pretty close to here.”

“I had a ride in a Seven Series BMW yesterday, and it was wonderful. If that’s what you get, ask them to email me with the invoice and I’ll buy them on my business account, which owns this site.”

Sydney put her head into the room.

“How many and what do you want?”

“I’ll have a dozen of the DVDs, as we just watched it, and a dozen CDs without the background noise, please.”

“Give us ten minutes.”

Willow said that there was something she wanted to talk to Sarah about and they went over to the office.

“I really appreciate your work in here, Sarah. You and the team are making real improvements that only being here can highlight. Now, if you create an invoice for today, at the correct rate, I’ll pay it into the account tonight. It was work for you and should add to the turnover. Are you all feeling better about things, knowing that you have future bookings?”

“We are. We’re starting to see what your vision was, and how we can make it happen. The article was in the paper this week, with a good write-up, and I’ve quoted about fifty hours of studio time to various bands since then. I think that our trouble was that we didn’t believe in ourselves until you showed us how much you believed in us. I, for one, feel a lot surer of myself.”

She turned her computer on and created the invoice, in Willow’s name as for recording a DVD for Vivienne Armstrong. Then she gave it to Willow, who checked that it had the banking details on, with an invoice number as reference. Willow put it in her bag.

“No mention of this to Viv. I’m certain she’ll be back in a few months for her follow-up album. Now, when we go back, I’ll tell the others that I’m being driven home after some business talk. I want you to show me how you managed to find the extra sounds so I can talk about them to likely customers later. I also want to have a quick look at what sort of backgrounds you can put on the blue screen. Also, if Josh is able, I’d like us to talk turkey to the car dealer before I go home. Lastly, I would like three copies of that DVD for myself to send to absent friends.”

“All doable, Willow. It’s odd, but I got the best feeling today, seeing the look on Vivienne’s face. It’s not just recording somebody; it’s allowing them to release their talent. We’re just the connection between dreams and reality. I know that she’s been on stage many times, but seeing her shine as a solo singer was a joy.”

After hugs and cheek kisses, the three Armstrong’s left the site. Sarah showed Willow the buttons that had never been explored with Xavier, which linked to a computer that could search the internet for sound, especially libraries of sound effects and background noises, and adding them to one of the sliders. Sydney showed Willow a similar set of controls which linked to more pictures than could be comprehended.

“I sat here for a day, scrolling through the offerings, and writing a list of the ones I may need to use. Given a half an hour, I can find something to suit whatever the customer wants. Not only still pictures, but film as well. You wouldn’t have noticed, but the curtains behind you were moving in a breeze. We could put a treadmill down and film someone from the knees up, looking like they’re strolling along a beach, with waves beside them, as they sing. Or, if they’re doing an advert, talking to the camera.”

“I’ve seen adverts like that. All they make me want to do is leave the room for a pee.”

Willow waited while the three DVDs were produced, and the team locked up. Josh drove them to the restaurant for lunch. After that, they stopped at the BMW dealer and looked at cars. Once the manager had been assured that Willow was who she said she was, it all went smoothly. They chose two Series Five Long-wheel-base sedans as the easiest to use, and Willow used her company card to place a deposit on them, with the remainder to be paid by bank transfer on delivery. They left Josh’s car at the dealership, and he drove her home in a loan car, with the other two in the back.

The team had a drink at her home, and then they all went to the Saturday evening at the club, a very new experience for them. Willow pulled out the PA and a keyboard, and, after the meal, sang for a couple of hours. She sang some of the old, some of her new, and even some of Vivienne’s songs. By the time the team drove away, they had been welcomed by the village and knew that there was a safe place for them. Wendy had watched her daughter sing and knew that she was back to normal.

On Sunday, Willow paid for the recording session, and they went over to the church to listen to Jim playing. Willow thought that he was really becoming a first-class church organist. After lunch in the club, they went home to wait for Sebastian to pick them up.

When they went out to get in the car, Wendy declared that it was a beautiful ride, but over the top. Ashley was ushered into the front, with the girls in the spacious rear seat. Willow explained that it was to create an image of a future MP and his family, and that Sebastian will give them a security assessment when they head back home. She told him the address, which he put into the GPS, and they were off.

It wasn’t that far, as the crow flies, but needed a short run down the A46 to pick up the Birmingham Road outside Warwick and turning left in Chadwick End, making the driving distance just on twelve miles. It would be a straightforward ride for her father going to work.

When they arrived at the house, the agent was waiting for them and Willow could see the smile on his face as Sebastian pulled up, and then got out to open the back door for Wendy. Ashley got out and opened the other side for Willow to get out, closing the door with a rich-sounding thunk.

“Good afternoon, Mister and Mrs. Rose. Welcome to this delightful property.”

He waxed lyrical as Willow stood with Sebastian. The grounds were described, the friendly village gushed over, and then he led the way to the house. On the face of it, the façade was just a larger Georgian home, but it had been drastically renovated at the back. To Willow, it was great, as it had the extra bedrooms and bathrooms, meaning she could have one of each to herself. If her grandmother did come to live, she would be able to stay in the house.

Willow and Sebastian stayed by the car as her parents were shown the annex over the garages which the agent said could be used as a self-contained office. Sebastian leaned against the car.

“What do you think of the house, Willow?”

“I like it. Hopefully there’s an easier way to get to Coventry other than via Warwick, but it’s nice. What about the security?”

“Not a problem. You could install electric gates with a button in the cars and a control pad in the house with intercom to a speaker. Security cameras are a must but easy enough to install. What do you think of the car?”

“It’s great, although a bit large for the studio use.”

“The Five LWB is smaller but no less luxurious.”

“I know, the dealer in Leicester loaned us one yesterday, after we bought two of them.”

He looked hard at her and then started laughing.

“You made up your mind after the ride home on Friday?”

“Pretty much, although the dealer isn’t far from the studio. It was either that or Audi. We had just laid down an album for Viv, who was the flutist in the band. I played the piano to her singing, and the team produced the most magnificent DVD. I felt good so thought it was time.”

She pulled a copy out of her bag.

“Have a look, tonight, and give it back to me in the morning. I’m keen to get a second opinion.”

He took it and slid it into the door pocket.

“Will do. My wife was wondering about the others in the band after your solo album.”

“We’re in the process of dismantling the old band, and the future will tell what’s in store. I can see me, Viv, and Nancy doing something together, with Bryan and Edward, but the electric part are off doing their own thing. We’ve done the big stadium rock and made a lot of money. Now would be a good time to do something more adult. Good heavens, I’m sixteen this year, and it’s time I grew up!”

They were still laughing when the others emerged from the annex. The agent shook hands with Ashley and went back to his car, while her parents joined them.

“What a wonderful house, even better than the pictures. We told him that we would discuss it with our bank manager and let him know. You two look happy.”

“We were just talking about Willow growing up, Mrs. Rose. I’m almost scared to see that happen, considering what she’s like now.”

“Exactly, Sebastian. Have you any thoughts on the property?”

“Nothing bad, just extra security at the gate and monitored cameras. Nothing drastic or unsightly. How was the annex?”

“Really good. Enough rooms for us to have separate offices, with a kitchen and bathroom. The internet is, we were told, a very high-speed connection. The vendor will leave the place with all the furnishings, which will save us the cost of removals. If we pull our own personal things from Stoneleigh, we could be moved in inside a week. What’s your thoughts, Willow.”

“I like it. It would be a lovely environment to write songs in. My only concern is the trip to Coventry and to Dad’s work, for as long as he goes there. There has to be an election in the next two years, and he may need to take leave to campaign, unless he retires now and starts getting out and about early.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 5

Sebastian smiled.

“I live between here and Coventry, in Balsall. You can continue up the Birmingham Road to Knowle, and then through Temple Balsall to Balsall and into Coventry. Getting to Aston Martin just means getting down to where we started on the Birmingham Road and getting on the M40 to Gayden. That’s probably less than twenty miles from here.”

“Thank you for that, Sebastian. It’s not that much further than my trips now. Shall we head for home, or is there anything else we can do?”

“I know a bit about this area. Lapworth is basically a dormitory suburb, with the railway station. It’s about two hours to get to London, but the only one in the morning is about half past six. The closest pub is on the Old Warwick Road.”

“That sounds good. Take us there and we’ll stop for a drink and look at this brochure the agent gave me.”

They got into the car and were driven to Station Lane and then south, past a lot of houses, the railway station, more houses and the turned left on the Old Warwick Road. They crossed a waterway and Sebastian turned into the car park of the ‘Navigation Inn’. When they went inside, they were in an old building where the black beams on the outside wall were real. They ordered drinks and went to sit in the snug. Sebastian imparted more information.

“The water that we passed over is the Grand Canal. It runs between London and Birmingham. It’s an attractive trip with a narrowboat, and a lot of people live in them full time. There are over a hundred locks on the journey, so getting off and managing the gates would keep you fit. We did cross the canal on Rising Lane, just before we got to the house.”

Ashley was thinking hard.

“Darling. If I do run in the election, would it change us?”

“No more than having a pop star for a daughter, love. If you stay at work for a year, then we can see what happens then. You do need to talk to Malcolm and his friends, to find out how serious they are, and if living here would make any difference. Willow was right when she said that this house would suit us better if you did stand. It has a certain elegance, combined with a lot of modern improvements. If Willow stays at school to the end of fifth year, she’ll only be there until summer, next year. With that course she took, she can do a degree course without needing to go for her ‘A’ levels. She can live in London for that. We could live there if you’re in the House.”

“We’ll have to think about it a bit more. I just feel so bad about having my teenage daughter buy a house for us. It seems so odd.”

“Why odd, Dad. I’ve been lucky in that I was able to make music and make money. You bought the house at Stoneleigh as a base for our life at the time. If we’re moving on, then we need a base for the future. I’ve got the studio ticking over, with a good team in place, and the music seems to be at a crossroads. Without Gina, I’m no further away from the other band members than where we live now. Without Jacob to pick up, I’m Sebastian’s only passenger, so nothing is affected there. With those two rooms in the annex, you could set up a state-of-the-art office for each of you, with the latest computers and connections. I say, talk to Malcolm tonight, talk to both your employers tomorrow, and we can have a family conference in the week. You never know, it could be an answer that pleases everyone.”

“All right. Thank you for your help today, Sebastian. Can we get home from here?”

“This road meets the Birmingham Road, not far from the Warwick intersection.”

They finished their drinks and were driven home. When Willow got out, she told Sebastian that she would see him in the morning. In the house, the family relaxed. Later on, they walked to the club. Ashley asked Malcolm if they could have a talk, coming back to their table with the news that Rising Lane was still inside the electoral boundary which included Stoneleigh. The electorate office was in Stratford upon Avon, with the sitting member retiring at the next election. He had been told that if he was willing to stand, there would be a meeting in that office on the last Saturday of the month. The party was expecting that the current government may not last the full term, so getting a replacement candidate was paramount.

“If we move, and sell the place here, I could fund my run. It would be different, seeing that I’ve always worked for a boss.”

“There’ll be no difference, Dad. You would be working for the cabinet, or the shadow cabinet, unless you get to be PM, and then you’ll be working for the whole country.”

“That’s highly unlikely!”

“Your teenage daughter being in the charts for close to two years was unlikely, Dad. Becoming PM is merely an aspiration. You’re already on the rungs, ever since you graduated from Cambridge. Remember what I told you before, you have friends in high places already.”

When they got home, Willow put one DVD in a parcel to Gina, and addressed another parcel to her grandmother, asking Wendy if there was anything she wanted to add before they were sealed. Then she took a copy into the sitting room.

“This is what was recorded yesterday. It may not look it, but it was all done inside the studio, using a lot of tricks that Xavier hadn’t found. The songs are all Vivienne’s, and I hope that it will be in the post to Jill tomorrow.”

They got comfortable and she started the DVD. When the set finished, Wendy gave her a hug.

“That was amazing, love, that team are well worth it. Do you think the same as I do?”

“Yes Mum, Viv will be visiting the studio in a month or two to present an award to each member of the team, as long as the label promotes her properly.”

“That will be more advertising for the studio, which could mean more work.”

“It could do. That reminds me, I need to email Sarah. I’ll go to bed, so I’ll be ready for school in the morning. Goodnight.”

She put the DVD in the parcel and went up to her room to turn on her laptop. She emailed Sarah, asking her if she could source a dozen free-standing boards, six feet wide, by ten feet high, and get them painted blue on one side, the same as the blue screen. She explained that the ENO might find them handy when setting up their performance practise, and that the Blue Coat would also use them when they came in to record their operetta, as they would serve as stage wings.

When she was in bed, she thought about her two laptops. Over the next week, she would set up the silver one as her business machine, with all the property and financial details, now that the studio was getting serious. She would start from the first of the month and enter up all the movements on the bank account.

In the morning, Sebastian gave her back the DVD.

“That was unbelievable, Willow. When it’s on the market, it will be added to my collection. Enjoy the ride, we’ll be back to the normal car when I take you home.”

School was normal, except for lunch when Vivienne gave her a big hug, followed by Nancy, who had seen the DVD. Willow told them that she had seen how the vision and the background sounds had been generated, and how big the libraries of both were.

On Wednesday evening, she had a phone call from Jill.

“Willow, I have just watched you and Vivienne with a fantastic show, where did you go for that?”

“That was all in the studio, Jill. I was shown how many variations of sound and vision can be added to the session. It took Saturday morning in front of the blue screen.”

“So, if we send you a band, you can put them almost anywhere without us needing to send them out on location?”

“Yes, we can. There are literally thousands of views and sounds. You want to have them look like they’re on a beach, with vision and sound, we can do it. You want to have them looking like they’re in a warzone, it’s all there.”

“All right. When you come to see us, we’ll have a schedule for you, with names and contact details, and the dates we want them in the studio. You can give us a figure and we’ll give you a cheque. Middle of the year, we have another meeting for the second half.”

“That will be good. Just remember that we’re booked for the last full week of every month.”

“Got it. Can you get down on the last Saturday of the month?”

“Can do. I’ll get my mother to drive me down and we’ll stay at the apartment.”

On Thursday, they did some more orchestral pieces. Without a big performance to aspire to, Willow had the feeling that the players were just winging it. On Friday, they expanded on the first act, with the bones of the first song or two added. On Saturday, Willow sat at her desk with the silver laptop, creating a spreadsheet of income and expenditure for the studio and big shed. The first column was all the numbers up to the first of January, and then she had fifty-two columns for the current year. The total in the first column was a gigantic minus.

On Sunday morning, instead of church, the family had a meeting. They discussed the pros and cons of moving, with the main pros being more room. The biggest con was the distance to the club, but it was pointed out that Willow wasn’t needed there every week, now that it was getting regular patronage. Malcom had told Ashley that having a club member as the local MP would be far better for the village, even if they had moved. Having somewhere that her mother could live was a big plus for Wendy.

Both her parents had spoken to their employers. Wendy’s was happy to have her working from home, as everything she was doing was computer work, so could be completed over an internet connection, with any hard copy sent to her by courier. Ashley’s was less happy about the idea but was reasonable about him taking leave without pay to campaign, once the election had been called. Any other electorate work would have to be carried out on weekends before that. When he didn’t win, they said that he could go back to full-time. Most of his managers thought that a snowball had a better chance of surviving in hell if the current government continued without a drastic crisis.

The next week, Ashley contacted the agent and made an offer. On Friday evening, Wendy and Willow went into London. On the Saturday, Ashley drove into Stratford for his meeting.

In London, Wendy and Willow had breakfast with the other two couples and then took a taxi to the label offices, where they were ushered into a boardroom. Clive and Jill were there, along with a few others who looked like other A&R men. Willow was told that her solo album was closing in on Platinum, and that Viv’s DVD would be on the market on the Monday. She was quizzed about the studio, it’s size, it’s mixing and visual systems, and her team, with the other A&R men needing to be assured. Jill was able to verify everything that was said.

As the meeting drew to a close, Willow was asked if she had another album on the way, but her own songs this time. She told them that she had been busy but would look at it. She was given a letter, on label letterhead, booking the studio for the second full week of every month, up to June, with a request that the same week for the rest of the year be reserved, including December. With it was a cheque for a hundred thousand pounds, for the five months, given to her by Clive.

“We’re block booking the studio and will be sending acts up on a Monday morning, to stay in the local hotel. Can you arrange pick-up?”

“We now have two cars and a people mover, so can do that, as long as we’re told how many, and where from.”

“Here’s a list of the first week. A couple are solo singers, and there’s a band. The band will want to record an album, with studio vision for a DVD, and will play for the singers, who will need blue screen. You met all of them in the Dorchester over the last couple of years. If everyone’s happy before the week is finished, they can do something else or come home.”

“If past experience is anything to go by, they’ll complete what they came for. The size and atmosphere in the studio seems to allow you to do things right.”

Back at the apartment, she opened her silver laptop and entered up the dates on a calendar. Then she rang Sarah, with the sound of a band in her ear when it was picked up.

“Summer Love Studio, Sydney speaking.”

“Sydney, it’s Willow. It sounds like that you have a band in.”

The sound faded.

“That’s better. Yes, we have the Vines in here again. They’ve been working on a tune for Hugh. We did his advert last week, with him and Mister Vines spending a lot of time in the rest room, and he’s back again with another company of his. They’re very thorough, and do several takes before they’re satisfied, but do go away with smiles. What can I do for you?”

“Can you get Sarah’s booking diary, I’ve just had a meeting with my label, and they’ve given me some dates.”

“Hold on a sec.”

“Right, got it. What do you have for us?”

“My label wants to block book the second full week of every month to June, with a reservation for the same week to the end of the year. They’ve given me a cheque, which I’ll get banked into the studio account next week.”

She named the band and the two singers for February.

“Wow! That will be great, I love those guys.”

“You’ll be notified of where they’re staying, and will need transport to and from the studio, so the vehicles will get a workout. Be prepared for a lot of blue screen work. Did you get the boards?”

“Yes. We’ve had a play with them and the screen, and they give us enough space to film a full band. It’s handy the floor is blue as well; the builders must have foreseen this sort of requirement. Josh has been experimenting with the floor looking like a beach, and the background looking like waves.”

“Have you had any more bookings?”

“Monday, we have the BMW dealer bringing a car in, with a local actor to wax lyrical. They have their own backing tape already, as well as their own camera operators. Should be fun.”

“It will be about time that you got that extra help with cleaning and driving.”

“We have talked about it. I haven’t moved in with Josh, but one of Sarah’s sisters is keen, and would stay with her if you OK the move.”

“I’m happy if you all want extra help. It looks like you’re going to have a busy life.”

“And an interesting one with those singers in the place. Thanks for ringing with the news, I’ll pass it on to Sarah when she has a minute.”

“How did the ENO work out?”

“Now, that was interesting to watch. We had an orchestra of twenty, with a dozen singers. They spent three days trying out different things with the opera, and then we set up the screens across the studio, with the orchestra in front of the window, to film it as if they were on stage, using the wooden screens as wings. They were very happy by lunch on Friday and took us out for a meal. We must have used up about fifty CDs and DVDs before they had a good take. We’ll have to order in a bulk supply if this is the way things are going to be.”

“You get whatever you need, Sydney. I’ll let you get back to things. See you.”

Willow and her mother went shopping in the afternoon, looking for some good, but useful, dresses and outfits, suitable for the family of a candidate. On Sunday, they took some of their purchases back to Stoneleigh. On the way, Wendy mused.

“When we first moved up from Bristol, our house was the best one that we’d ever lived in. It was modern and spacious after the one you grew up in. Now, we’re looking at possibly moving into a home that seems like a palace. I suppose that we’ll get used to it, but I’m sure that we’ll feel as if we’re guests.”

“I like the long driveway and the grounds, Mum. I want to make sure that there are places where I can sit, during the nice weather, and think about songs. Those first ones that took us from being a cover band to one with originals were written on the bench outside the church. Nothing was said about tour dates yesterday, but they do think that I’d be in smaller venues, which suits that type of song. If I get good sales, it’s ten times better for me than last year’s income, so I only need one or two albums a year to be very well off.”

“You’re very well off now.”

“I know, but there’s a whole life ahead of me. I spoke to you about wanting to manage my time for myself. That’s still on. There’s money there for Dad if he runs for election, and that would change things for both of us if he won. You would have a country retreat and the apartment in London. Next time I spend more than a few days there, I’ll move all my things into number four.”

“Do you still plan a degree course?”

“I think so. I learned so much from the certificate course, it’s helped me as I’ve set up the studio, and to be brave with purchases. The whole site owes me about three million on paper but has now started earning. The cheque I have to bank, and the bookings that are already certain, will return over four hundred thousand this year, with salaries costing about a hundred and eighty. The way that we’ve got adverts to make, with one day each at five thousand, we could turn over another hundred thousand just working a day a week.”

“So, you would have covered your outlay inside three to four years! That’s impressive.”

When they arrived home, Ashley smiled and told them that he was the new candidate for the Kenilworth constituency and had met with several of the movers and shakers of the electorate office, as well as the retiring member. He would need to be in London on the next weekend for a meeting at Party HQ. They decided that they would go down on Friday night and return on Sunday evening. Willow gave her father the cheque, asking him to bank it in the WR Holdings account on Monday, then went up and transferred the amount from the WR account to the Summer Love Studio account.

On Monday, when her father arrived home, he told her that the offer on Rising Lane had been accepted. She transferred the deposit amount from WR Holdings to his account, so he could set the purchase into motion. On Tuesday, there was another statement from Peter. Her share of the income from band sales had dropped to just on three hundred thousand, but her income from the solo album, after all costs, came in at one point seven, with the numbers showing that it would hit Platinum in this week.

The orchestra session had something new to try out. Dianne and Barbara had written a score for the overture of the operetta, using snippets of the bits of tunes that they had been talking about. Friday, they continued to work on expanding the songs. The meetings in the park had the suiters stating that the girl had to be theirs, and that she must have a say in things. Her song was short and sweet, saying ‘the quest is the quest, and the question has been asked by my father. He is the one you must woo.’ Their answering songs both included, ‘this wooing suddenly seems like work!’

When she was leaving the class, she put her phone off silent and saw she had a text from Sarah.

‘Nxt wks band short on bass. Canuhelp?’

She called to Garry, who was walking in front of her.

“Garry, would you like to earn some money next week? We have a band and two well-known singers in the studio next week, and I’ve just had a message that the band is a bass man down. It may be all week but may be just a few days to get them out of trouble. Can you adjust your classes to take a few days off?”

“Who are the artists?”

“The band is ‘Toxic Rocks’. The singers are Lee James and Cliff Jenson. Lee did four seasons as the Phantom in the West End, and Cliff won the TV talent show a couple of years ago. I’ve met them all at the end-of-year award parties. They’re all good guys.”

He looked hard at her.

“They want me to play with that band and those singers. They’ve been in the charts for years. It would be a privilege. I’ll speak to the Head before I leave, so she can get me the class notes for what I miss. This is a chance too good to lose out on.”

She got a business card out of her bag with the studio details and Sarah’s number as producer. She handed it to him.

“Go get them, Tiger.”

He hugged and kissed her with the other class members giggling. As he raced off to speak to the Head, Vivienne laughed.

“What on earth did you say to him to get a smacker like that. He’s either very happy or else he loves you.”

“Who knows what goes on in a boy’s head, Viv. I’ve just got a text from Sarah that the band that’s in the studio next week doesn’t have a bass player. Have you heard anything about your DVD? It should be on the market this week.”

“Mum said that she heard a track off it on Wednesday, so there is a little airplay.”

As soon as she got home, Willow made sure that her overnight bag was ready, with her silver laptop in its own bag, so that she could send and receive emails through the WRHoldings account. Her parents both arrived earlier than usual, and they were off south in a short time, enough to get comfortable and change. Willow had phoned the restaurant to book a table for three at seven thirty. They were in the apartment in good time, ate dinner, and retired to rest up for the next day. They had been told that the party organisers wanted to meet all the family to see for themselves what they had to work with.

They took a taxi to the party headquarters, behind Parliament, where they were ushered into an open-plan office, where a few secretaries were on the phones to electorate offices. There was a large, enclosed office where two men waited for them, shaking Ashley’s hand and welcoming him to the nerve centre of the party.

“Good morning, Mister Rose. I’m Cyril Chalmers, and this is Matthew Huntingdon. We co-ordinate the Midlands electorate campaigns. Not a happy job with the last result, I’m afraid. I expect that you’ve been told that your quest could be an uphill battle. The retiring member is quite popular,”

“I have been made aware that a snowball in hell would have an easier life. This is my wife, Wendy, and my daughter, Willow.”

“You’re Willow Rose, the singer?”

“Yes, sir. Is that a problem?”

“Never! It’s more of an asset, if you’re happy to be seen with your father during the campaign.”

“I would help my father in any way I can, as long as he’s happy with it. I do tend to organise things, given the chance.”

“If you can organise a national fifteen percent swing, we’ll erect a statue of you.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 6

Wendy and Willow were only slightly included in the discussions. Their new home was deemed to be substantial enough without being ostentatious, perfect for small gatherings and interviews. After an hour, they all walked the short distance to the Parliament.

“We’re not sitting, at the moment, but some will be here to catch up on ministry business. Only talk to a person who talks to you.”

They looked at the Commons, and a few of the offices.

“If elected, you will share one of these with a couple of others. How much work you will be given will depend on how well you do, and how many of us there are. We’re stretched at the moment, with even members that have had short careers here, so far, getting shadow positions.”

They had moved to the House of Lords chamber, just to have a look, when they heard a voice.

“Ashley, old friend, what on earth are you and the family doing here?”

“Hello, Chris. Some of the locals want me to stand at the next election.”

“A glutton for punishment, are you? How are you, Willow? We’ve been buying your albums as they get issued, that one with you playing piano for the other girl is beautiful. How’s Cyril been treating you?”

“We’ve been well looked after, Chris. They’ve been feeding us up to prepare us for the ritual disembowelling come election night. They haven’t offered us lunch yet, though.”

Cyril looked at Chris.

“Are these friends of yours, My Lord?”

“Actually, young Chalmers, Ashley is a descendant of the Third Baroness, once removed, so doesn’t qualify for the Upper House. Willow played the organ at my daughter’s wedding, and her band was the entertainment at the reception. That was a little while before she became a superstar. How about I host them in the Lord’s Dining room and send them back to you at the Party HQ?”

“If you want to, Sir. That would be most gracious of you.”

Cyril and Matthew exchanges glances and left the Roses with Chris.

“That put a burr in his butt! He’s probably been treating you like a lamb to the slaughter, thinking that here was another crazy person wanting to be on TV. I think that he will be different when you see him later. Come along, I’ve had plenty of free meals in the club, it’s about time I treated you to one.”

On the way, Willow walked beside Chris.

“I thought that Barons didn’t qualify to sit in the Lords?”

“They don’t, but I had a nice elevation to the peerage last year. It’s not one that can be passed on, so I’m enjoying it as much as I can.”

“Do we have to call you My Lord from now, or will Sir be sufficient.”

“For you and your family, Willow, I’m always Chris. Here we are, welcome to the best trough in town.”

They went into the dining room, where the Roses were signed in. The meal was very good, and the talk was about Willow’s Australian tour, and Cassandra’s new baby. Several other peers came to their table to see who he was entertaining, and Willow was finding it difficult to remember the famous people she met, all wanting to tell her how much they liked her music.

After the meal, he led them out of the dining room and hugged the girls, shook Ashley’s hand and wished him luck. An attendant was asked to lead his guests through the labyrinth to the closest exit to the party headquarters.

When they got back to the office, the two men were much more forthcoming about the chances of winning and acted as if the chances had just improved. Ashley was given a list of contact names and numbers of donors in the area. Willow looked through it and saw both Hugh and Sam on the list. She pointed them out to Cyril.

“Do these guys donate to others? The electorate doesn’t encompass the areas where their businesses are.”

“They donate to a range of candidates in the Midlands. Do you know them?”

“We do. I met Hugh some months ago, and Sam’s daughters go to the same school as me.”

“That, with knowing his Lordship, puts your father in a different league. We’ll try to push harder with his campaign, when it kicks off. It would be good if he cultivates as many on this list as he can, before the election is called. That would show that he’s serious.”

“We’ll talk to Hugh and Sam, to see how many of the others they know, and invite them to a housewarming.”

“Sounds good to me. Will you be leading his campaign office?”

“I doubt it, I’ll be into fifth year by then, or even at Uni if it goes longer.”

“It’s hard to realise that you’re still so young. It must take a lot of inner strength to stand on a stage in front of so many people.”

“Either that, or total stupidity, Sir.”

“Look, call me Cyril. My contact details are on that sheet. If there’s anything you want to know, just call me. It will be my pleasure to help.”

“Thank you, Cyril. My father doesn’t always appreciate how good he is at dealing with others. This will bring him out of himself. It will be an interesting couple of years, even more interesting if he’s elected.”

“It will be more interesting for all of us if we get back in. The country needs a better hand on the tiller. The oddballs that we had in the Conservative Party have all dropped away. That chap, Boris, was a real pain in the butt. We’re left with a core of truly committed members, who would love to welcome more into the party room.”

When they left the office, they walked to the riverside and waited for a ferry to take them up to Embankment and the tube back to the apartment. As they were waiting, the clock chimed the hour and Willow felt it through to her bones, even more meaningful if her father was able to be working here.

Before dinner in the restaurant, she moved all her things from her bedroom to the lower one next door, with Ashley carrying the organ down from upstairs. It didn’t take very long, and she slept in a new bed that night.

Nothing much had been said after the meeting, but the dam burst at breakfast with the other two couples, when Kevin asked why they were in town. That led to a long discussion on the chances, with Hazel volunteering to help with PR. Driving home, Wendy commented on how interesting it was that so many were willing to help. Ashley was almost embarrassed.

“It’s odd. All my life I’ve worked for wages, yet I’ve been working in the club, helping people and serving drinks as a volunteer.”

“Yes, Dad. Remember that you set up the free drinks after the church service. Why don’t you talk to Malcolm about providing a free lunch to the ones in the village who are doing it tough. I’ll donate the seed money, and you can have a donation box on the counter for future funding. That will give you an interesting profile when it comes to the election.”

“Would you do that, love?”

“Of course. If it works out, we may be able to tap those on the donor list to set it up in other places. That way, you may enter the race as a ‘man of the people, for the people’. I might even write a song around that, which you could use in the TV adverts. I still have the good cameras that we used filming the shows in the club. I could get Josh to film you in various places, talking to people. We could get you into the studio, giving your spiel in front of the blue screen, and add clips of you in the background.”

“You’re starting to organise, daughter!”

“That’s what I do, Dad. That’s what I do.”

Back at home, she copied the contact list for her own use, and then made sure everything was ready for the Monday. She sat in her room and started to write a new song, one that would sound like a title song of a film, about a hero who was the ‘man of the people’. Then, she realised that it could be useful in the operetta, as the finale, with Ego starting it and the rest of the cast taking it up.

On Monday, Sebastian picked her up, as usual, and asked about the house. Willow told him that the offer had been accepted, and that her father had paid the deposit. It was likely that they would move during the month. School was as normal as usual, without Garry at lunch until Thursday. When he came in, he went over to her, lifted her from her seat and gave her a big kiss, with much jeering and hooting.

Letting her sit down, he sat.

“Willow, that session that you sent me on has been fantastic. The band had seen me play on the TV show when we did ‘Smoke’, so it didn’t take long for us to get friendly. They had the music written out, so I just had to follow it for the first playing. I asked them if I could improvise, and they agreed. By late on Tuesday, we had put down an album, and they asked me if I would be free to tour when they get one organised, most likely in the summer, so I can do it after the exams. Then, we did about half an album with each of the singers. They were going to complete their albums with pre-recorded backing from a small orchestra, which is why I’m here today.”

“Congratulations, Garry, I’m proud of you. Did you find out why they were missing their bass?”

“The silly beggar was trying to ride a skateboard, at his age! He went arse up and tried to break his fall, breaking a couple of fingers and his left arm in two places. His wife and children convinced him that it was time that he retired.”

“Will you get listed on all three albums?”

“Yes, I will. It was a great experience, and a lot different to the Gees sessions. I can’t believe that I’ve spent three days playing with such a great band! They’ve been playing so long; they can make great music with their eyes shut. And those two singers are fantastic guys, we had lunch and dinner together in their hotel and they were very friendly. One of them told me about a party where they sang along with you.”

“Did you get paid?”

“I’m getting ten percent of the band album, and one percent of the two singers albums, from their income. Being already with the label, and on Peter’s books, it was all plain sailing.”

In the orchestra session, that day, Vivienne and Dianne had a new overture for them to try out, much to Howard Bamborough’s amusement. They had written out the score for a total of twenty instruments. It was catchy, and it had snippets of all the tunes that they had already played with.

Friday, they worked on more of the operetta, working out the sequence of Act Two, where the girl meets the men in the park. They envisioned it with the girl sitting on a bench, reading a book, as the others approach her, declaring their love and telling her how well she would be looked after.

Act Three would be the same setting, with the previous lover approaching her, and then her talking to Cuthbert, who was walking by, muttering to himself. That would lead to the stuttering song which would close the act.

That was the last day of the half-term. When Willow got home, she stripped and put the uniform in for cleaning, had a shower and started preparing dinner. Her father was home first.

“Got a call from the agent today. The paperwork is ready to sign. If we transfer the remainder into his trust account tonight, he’ll pop by in the morning with the keys. We’ll have to contact our insurance company to get house and contents cover. Then we can move during the week. I’ve already arranged for it as part of my holidays. I rang a removal firm to take the things we need a truck for. The tool cabinets and work benches from the shed for one, and the piano and music centre. Your instruments, desk and other things will need to go. Then there’s the washing machine and drier. I know that there’s one already there, but, if we get busy with parties, and extra set will come in handy. Almost everything else can be taken by car.”

They left the food for when Wendy got home and went into his office to transfer the required amount. Then Willow left him to email the insurer and went back to finish the food preparation. When Wendy came home, she was told of the development, and they had a family hug before the cooking began.

That evening, Willow emailed Gina to tell her the news about Garry and the house, and the possible involvement of her father in politics. Ashley went off to the club to talk to Malcolm about running a ‘meet’n’eat’ lunch a couple of days a week for the pensioners of the village. When he came home, he told Willow that something similar had been happening before COVID, with carpet bowls and card games. There had been a small fee in those days, and the equipment for the bowls was still around, somewhere.

On Saturday morning, the agent brought the keys and the paperwork, and the house on Rising Lane was theirs. They got into Wendy’s car and drove there, opening up with the keys for the first time. This time, they looked through every room, opened every cupboard, wardrobe, drawer and cabinet. The previous owners must have been gone for a few weeks, by the dust they found. They had brought their vacuum, so Wendy started with a duster while Willow vacuumed. Ashley went off to look more closely at the garages and the annex.

As they worked, they made lists. First would be another vacuum for upstairs, and yet another for the annex. There was a lot more counter space in the kitchen, and Wendy thought that there was plenty of room for extra appliances. Two hours later, they were happy with the cleanliness.

“You realise, Mum, that we could have called in professionals to do all this.”

“I’m not having others walk into a dirty house on my watch, love. That would be embarrassing.”

Ashley came back, saying that there had been a small vacuum in the annex and that he had used it.

They sat in the kitchen and looked out the big folding windows to the uncluttered back garden. Wendy sighed.

“You know. When I was single, I’d dream of living in a place like this. All light, airy, and modern. We may be living here before the end of the week, and I almost want to pinch myself to see if I’m still dreaming.”

“Give it a few weeks, Mum, and it will become our home. One we can invite others to for dinner parties and barbeques in the garden. Talking about the garden, I found a card from a gardening service in one of the kitchen drawers. We should give them a call.”

When they drove back to the village, they parked the car and walked back to the club, having worked up an appetite. It was going to be hard to not be a short walk away, but it was only twenty minutes by car.

They had a meal and listened to the band that Malcolm had booked. They mainly played covers, and Willow had to smile when they played one of her songs. They went home and went to bed, knowing that Sunday they would be moving more things.

The first to be moved was clothes, leaving enough for a couple of days. With both cars, that was completed by lunch. Next was the contents of the linen cupboard, and some of the kitchen equipment. They called it a day as everything found new homes.

On Monday, Wendy went to work with the instruction to look around for a new car. Willow and Ashley moved the musical instruments and Willows computer to put in the room she had chosen for her bedroom. It overlooked the lawned back garden and out over the fields behind the back fence. Then they went into the annex and dismantled the bed, carrying it, and the bedside tables down to the garage. The dressing table and wardrobe would have to stay until the removalists were there. In the sitting room, they moved the sofa to one wall and put the coffee table in front of it, leaving the wall-mounted TV to act as a monitor when Ashley had his desk and chair put in front of it.

The garage had power points, so they noted where the extra drier was going to go, and where the tool cupboards and work benches would be. They moved the odds and ends from the other two garages into the one.

They had looked on the computer, the night before, and had seen a restaurant along Rising Lane, so they went to the Punchbowl for a very good lunch. They were asked if they were just visiting and told the owners that they were moving into the house the other side of Station Lane. They were given loyalty cards, and, when the waitress recognised Willow, selfies were taken, and an account was opened for future meals.

In the afternoon, all the beds in the house were made, and the lounge was rearranged to make room for the music centre. When they locked up, they went north on the Birmingham Road and then turned right at Oldwich Lane West, after noting the Orange Tree pub as they passed. It wound around until they came to the Jaguar testing ground at Fen End. They took the Table Oak Lane to the A4177 to yet another Birmingham Road that took them into Kenilworth. Going past the Golf Club, and under the A16, they were back in Stoneleigh.

Wendy came home and told them that she had test driven a Range Rover HSE diesel and liked it. She had discussed extra features, and it would cost about fifty thousand pounds. Willow said that it would be nice, and that the extra room may come in handy, as long as Wendy was happy with it. If the go-ahead was given, one would be available with her specifications on Friday. Willow had to smile, as it was a long way from the small Ford that her mother had driven for over five years.

On Tuesday, they emptied the tool cupboards and transported the contents to Rising Lane, along with the electric cars, with Willow’s still unopened, storing them in the garage. The removalists arrived Wednesday, and the washer, drier, refrigerator, tool cupboards, work benches, music centre, piano, Ashley’s office desk, and a few other chairs and wanted items of furniture were on their way to the new house, with Ashley and Willow leading the truck.

The hardest thing to move was the piano, and the men were very careful with it. It looked a bit incongruous in the modern lounge, but the family would never be without it. When the tool cupboards and work benches were in the garage, Willow and her father loaded them with the contents. The drier and refrigerator were put in place in the garage, and the washer was put into the large laundry, to be connected by a plumber at a later date.

That evening, the family ate at the steakhouse, as the kitchen was now only good for light breakfasts or microwaveable meals. On Thursday, Willow and Ashley stripped the beds and put all of the linen in a laundry hamper, added the dirty clothes in another hamper, and then packed all the other things in their bedrooms and bathrooms. When it was all relocated in Rising Lane, they had effectively moved house. Wendy came home to the new address that night, and they all went to the Punchbowl for dinner.

The first night in a strange bed was different, and when Willow opened her curtains, the view across the fields took her breath away. When she looked around her new bedroom, it was much neater than the old one. Her desk was in one corner, with her office chair. Both laptops and the printer were next to the big monitor. Her bed as now larger, with a bedside table both sides, without folded cardboard under two legs. She had a walk-in robe, filled with clothes, that led to her own bathroom.

She put a gown on and went down to the kitchen, where Wendy was sitting with a mug of coffee and a smile on her face. Willow went to her and gave her a hug.

“It’s real, now, isn’t it, Mum?”

“Yes, darling, it’s real. All I have to do now is accept that it’s home, even if I do feel like I’m a guest in someone else’s house.”

They had a hearty breakfast and Wendy left for work after making sure that there was nothing in the Ford that was needed. Willow went up to her room and powered up her silver laptop to transfer the payment on the new car, with an email to the dealer confirming payment. That day, she helped her father set up his office in the annex, making sure that the computer was good, with the big TV now being the monitor. If he got bored, Ashley could now watch programs of a different type. Wendy’s office was left alone, for her to set up if she started to work from home. For the moment, she could use Ashley’s as she had been doing.

In the afternoon, they went back to the old house and carefully went through every room, to make sure that there was nothing left that was needed. It would go on the market as furnished, complete with the security cameras. Willow stood in her old room and thought about the changes that had happened since the day she first saw it. The curtains had never been replaced and the room held memories. The day she changed in front of Gina; the times she and Gina had spent writing songs; the day she had a smooching session with Jacob. It all came flooding back.

Back at Rising Lane, she sat with her laptop and looked at messages. There was one from the real estate agent, telling her that the Coventry property had an asking price of five-fifty, and he had offered five twenty-five, with quick settlement, and that it had been accepted. She replied to continue with the transaction and transferred the money to his trust account.

There was another email from the agent in Leicester, telling her that the paperwork for the Small Heath property had been finalised, and she transferred two million to his trust account, to pay out the guys. She asked him to contact the other five that were left in the syndicate, asking for their share to be paid into WR Holdings.

There was an email from the accountant for WR Holdings, warning her that there would be a considerable amount owing in company tax, with the amount of transactions that had gone through the account. He suggested that it may be as high as two million. She replied, telling him to do the books as required, and transferred the two million into his trust account, She advised him that she now was the sole owner of the Coventry and Leicester sites, with a combined value of three million, and was now one-sixth owner of Small Heath as well as one tenth owner of the shopping centre.

She sat there, her first full day in the new house, and she had sent over four million through the banks. When Wendy arrived home, in the Range Rover, they all went in it to the Punchbowl for dinner. On Saturday, they went into Birmingham in the new car to shop for food and other things, to bring the new kitchen up to being able to feed them. Ashley went into the off-licence and came out with a carton of beer, another of soft drink, and a box of a half a dozen assorted wines. They had, of course, overbought, but any that didn’t go in the kitchen went in the fridge in the garage.

On Sunday, they all worked together to catch up with the washing, keeping the two driers working hard. Wendy spoke to her mother on the phone, inviting her to visit over Easter, at the end of March. Her father was now unable to travel, so Wendy and Willow would be going to Cambridge instead, staying in a hotel.

Monday was back to normal. Wendy went to work in the HSE, Ashley went in the company car, and Willow made sure that everything was secure when Sebastian picked her up, stopping on the edge of the road to close the gates.

“Happy in the new home, Willow?”

“Very happy, Sebastian. We found a great place further along the lane to eat and went into Birmingham to shop on Saturday. Dad is now the Tory candidate to replace the sitting member, and the trip down to Stratford is pretty easy for him. Mum now drives a Range Rover HSE, and very nice it is, too.”

“It will match the house. How long before she starts looking for clothes that match the car. What colour did she get?”

“It’s called Petrolix Blue. It stands out, I can tell you.”

“How many cars do you now own, seeing that you’re too young to drive?”

“There’s Mums, the two BMs at the studio, and I seem to have inherited the people mover that Wilhelm used to drive, bought by the syndicate, but now sign written with the studio name. If Dad ends up resigning, he’ll lose the company car but would be able to get another through our company as a director. It will be a while before I get one.”

“Not that long. You’re sixteen in a few months, another year and you can drive. I can see you in a soft-top, speeding down the motorway going to your London pad and another glamorous party. I’ve seen the picture of you in the school reception.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 7

School was a haven of normalcy after the busy week. At lunch, she told the other four about the payout of the others with Small Heath. That evening, she emailed Gina with that information as well as the pictures of her new home. The family was settling into a new way of life. Ashley and Wendy were finding the better ways of getting to work, and Sebastian seemed to know a different way with every new day, something that he told her was good security.

The operetta was moving along, with it becoming clearer with each week. It had developed into the first act with a song about the loneliness of being constantly watched, the duet between father and daughter, the contestants coming on as the daughter storms off. There were the four songs from the contestants, answering questions from the father, who ends the act alone on the stage, with the first version of ‘a man of the people’ theme.

Vivienne was the leading lady, with Garry as the father. Nancy was the female friend, Bryan was Cuthbert, Edward was one of the men, with another lad from the class, Martin, as the other. There were a couple of ‘walk-ons’, a servant and a security guard. The technical group were experimenting with ways to project from behind but make it look realistic, and Dianne had a small group writing out the score as they developed it. Willow was trying to steer them all to a successful result, and also keeping the songs within the boundaries of correctness without losing the comedy.

At home, she was relaxing in the new comfort and space that she had, thinking about songs for the operetta, as well as for another solo album. She was close to finishing the show songs, with the wistful opening song, the plaintive refrain in the park, and the duet between Vivienne and Bryan with the stutters. The ‘man of the people’ had already been written and expanded for when they worked on Act Four and the finale.

On the Saturday, she had a reply from Gina, with news from Florence and pictures of her own home. She was rehearsing with the Orchestra della Tuscana to play a series of piano concerts during the summer and finding it exciting. She asked Willow if she would visit Italy for a birthday party, seeing that hers fell on the Saturday this year. Over the next week, each of the others paid their share, putting nearly one point seven back into Willow’s company bank.

She also had one from Sarah, reporting on another successful week with the ENO. The intervening weeks were now being booked, with Midlands bands and solo singers with pre-recorded backing tracks. Willow replied to book the first week of June for the workshopping of the operetta.

Now some time of living on Rising Lane, things were settling nicely. On Sunday, the big syndicate had a Zoom meeting with the shopping centre management in Manchester. Only the five from the new syndicate attended, but they made firm plans on going forward with the upgrades, spread out over two years. The management wanted to make sure that funds were available and were happy that the syndicate had fifteen million on hand. It was agreed that there would be no lifting of lease rates until after the modifications were completed.

March was almost quiet, as far as Willow was concerned. The schooling was steady, the orchestra still learned more violin-based pieces and workshopped some of the operetta tunes. The operetta worked out the second act and the songs. Then it was revision time and exam week. Willow’s statement showed that the band earnings was dropping, but her solo album was holding up, with another six hundred thousand transferred into her company account.

It was in revision week that she had an email from Jill, asking her if she could attend a meeting at the label offices during her Easter break. She replied that she and her mother had committed to be in Cambridge over the Easter weekend and that she would investigate ways to get to London after that.

When she sat down with her parents, they discussed it, and the suggestion was made that she could now afford to use a limo service so that she could be independent. She looked them up on the computer and phoned one. The result was that she was signed on as a client, given a code number to use, and sent an information package with three cards to use, one in each one of their names. The costs would be charged to her company and paid by the accountant. She booked a car to take her from the hotel in Cambridge to the apartment on the Tuesday after Easter, so that Wendy could go home on the Monday, for work on the Tuesday.

She advised Jill of this, and the meeting was set for the first of April. She planned to spend the week in London, shopping for new clothes, as she was growing suddenly. She phoned her doctor, who explained that her body was now happy with the changes, and that she was developing normally. She booked a visit on the Friday before the third term started, just to check up.

When school finished on the Thursday, Wendy and Willow drove to Cambridge that evening. They were booked into the hotel that night, with Wendy through to the Monday morning, and Willow to Tuesday. The visit was not full of joy, as her grandfather was now in hospital, but they visited him and took her grandmother out for meals. Wendy broached the idea of her coming to Rising Lane to live in the future and was given a half-hearted agreement that it ‘may be nice’.

On Monday afternoon, Wendy left to go home, and, on Tuesday morning, Willow was collected to go to London, arriving before lunch, with just her small case. She opened up her apartment and opened a window to clear the air. She had lunch in the restaurant and spoke to Ted, and then took a taxi into the city.

Her first task was to buy some bed linen that was more her style. She bought four sets of sheets and pillowcases in pastel colours. She decided that it was enough for the day and got another taxi home. She stripped the two beds and made them both up with new sheets. The old, she put into a bag for the laundry, and the spares were taken into the other apartment for storage.

She had dinner in the restaurant and spent the evening trying on the outfits in her wardrobe, setting aside those that were too small or too short. On the Wednesday, she took a taxi to the offices, walking into a meeting where Vivienne was already talking to Jill. When they were joined by Clive, they sat around the table and Clive opened the meeting.

“Girls, you’re aware that sales of Summer Rose albums are dropping off. We’ve had a tremendous run with them and there’s nothing wrong with that. Willow, your solo album has passed the Platinum Record mark, and we’ll give you that award today. Vivienne, your DVD has passed the Gold and is so close to Platinum, we’ll give you both awards before you leave. What we want to put in place is a short season, at the end of May. It will be here, in London, and will be from the Saturday to the next Saturday, in one of the better nightclubs. We’ve been putting Zara into a number of places, and she’s building a solid following. We’ll have an album with her and her band before the end of this month. She is scheduled to be in your studio next week to record it.”

Both girls smiled, happy for their friend.

“I’ve got your holiday dates, and you can get here on the Saturday to play that night, and then every night to the next Saturday. You can go home on the Sunday. We’ve been able to negotiate a reasonable deal, with you both being paid twenty thousand each, for the week. What they want is a show with you singing your songs, with just you, Willow, playing piano. You can sort out how you want to work it before then, but work on six hours on stage, between eight and two in the morning, with breaks. You’ll be fed before you start.”

“Is it a place where they’re dancing?”

“Yes, but all very intimate and slow, so your material will be perfect.”

“Sounds good, Clive.”

“That’s not all, Willow. We will be sending the two of you on tour, during your summer break, with week-long seasons in each of six cities. Paris, Monaco, Florence, Zurich, Prague and Berlin. We expect that you can give us an album, each, before that, and one of the London evenings will be tastefully filmed for a DVD to be in those markets before you play. It’s not the millions that you got for big stadium shows, but you will both get a boost from album sales, as well as showing the world that you’re both professional entertainers, and we can build on that for next year, with you out front of a band, with them on a salary.”

“We’ll both be in fifth year after that, so will have to concentrate on our studies more.”

“Taken on board. Now, I’ll get a photographer in, and we’ll give you the awards, and then we can go for lunch.”

The photographer was summoned, and the CEO gave them their awards. Willow got her Platinum, with another for Sarah. Vivienne got both the Gold and Platinum, with one of each for Sarah, as well as another pair for Josh and Sydney for the DVD. Viv also got another as the writer and composer of all the songs. While they had lunch, the awards were bubble wrapped and put into big bags for them. Outside the office, bags in hand, Willow turned to Viv as they were waiting for a taxi to stop.

“Where are you staying, Viv?”

“I’m booked into a hotel. Mum brought me down. We’re going home tomorrow.”

“I’ve got an apartment with two bedrooms. Why don’t you let your mother go home, and you stay with me a few days. I’m going shopping for clothes that fit. I’ve got a limo booked to take me home next Thursday.”

“That sounds good. If you come to the hotel, you can talk to Mum. If she’s happy, I’ll pack, and we can go to your place. It will be nice to be independent for a week.”

By dinnertime, Vivienne was settled in the upstairs bedroom and the two of the went down to the restaurant. Carlo was happy to see them, and Julie was happy to see Vivienne, having just loved their album. Viv was introduced to Ted and Kevin, Alicia and Hazel, and the conversation that evening was about her university thoughts. Willow texted Gina, to tell her that the label had booked her in a nightclub on the day of Gina’s birthday, and that she was sorry she couldn’t be in Italy but would be playing in Florence in the summer.

Over the next week, the girls went to a lot of shops. Willow got a laundry bag from Carlo and put all of her unwanted clothes in it to go for charity. Then she filled all of the empty spaces with new outfits, suitable for an up-market girl in London and other capital cities. They both bought outfits for eight nights of performing. Vivienne would be staying in the apartment while they were here, so left quite a lot of her things.

In the evenings, they worked on some songs, with Willow on the keyboard, to get ahead of the shows and albums. On the Friday, they were picked up in a limo and went to Rising Lane first, where Vivienne was shown the upright piano and invited to come around on weekends to perfect their show. Willow’s cases were unloaded, and the driver took Vivienne home.

Willow looked up the emails, noting another statement that had come in while she was in London, with another three hundred thousand going into the business account. The next day, she had the limo service drive her to the clinic and wait for her, while she was checked and had samples taken. Her doctor was very happy that the new development was happening and told her to expect it to continue for another year or so, with her ending up at a normal size for a late-teen girl. She was told that if her B12 levels remained good, she might be able to stop having the injections.

On the first Monday back at school, Viv told Willow that she had signed on with the limo company, so would be able to visit on weekends without bothering her mother. On Wednesday, Wendy texted Willow with the news that her father had died in the early hours of that morning. and to say that she was going home to pack and would be in Cambridge until after the funeral.

On Thursday, they were notified that the funeral would be the following Tuesday. Willow and her father would take the trip to Cambridge and the three would be coming back on Thursday. With, hopefully, all of her mother’s things and her grandmother. Willow and Ashley made up the spare room bed, and Willow advised the school that she had to be in Cambridge for the next week to attend her grandfather’s funeral.

On Saturday, they went into Birmingham and stocked up with the things that they knew her grandmother liked, and they drove to Cambridge on the Sunday, checking in to the hotel where Wendy had been given a suite. When Willow saw her grandmother, she was shocked at how much she had suddenly aged. She had to be held up during the funeral, and on Wednesday, declared that she had been accepted at an aged-care home in Cambridge, where some of her old friends were already living. So, in the end, they settled her into the home and helped her sort out what she wanted to keep.

They paid for a house-cleaning service to clear the house and signed with an agent to sell it, Wendy already having the authority to make the decisions. When they did go home, on the Sunday, it was in the two cars, Wendy’s with boxes of things that had been hers and that she wanted to keep. She promised her mother that she would come and see her every month.

Over the next week, Willow was given the lesson notes for the ones she had missed and got back in touch with the way the operetta was going, now well into the third act. She advised the PE teacher that she had been booked to play a nightclub over the holiday, so wasn’t available for the netball carnival. The new statement was a lot leaner, and she was only prepared to transfer another three hundred thousand, leaving under four hundred thousand with Peter.

The next weekend had Vivienne at the house all weekend, sleeping in the spare room, and working with Willow playing the piano. This was repeated for the next three weekends. The operetta had been completed, and Willow told Mister Bamborough that she had booked the studio for the first week of next month, so that they could workshop it and get a saleable DVD. He had seen enough to get the Head to permit them all to be taken to the studio on the Monday, for the day.

On Willow’s sixteenth birthday, the family went to the Punchbowl for dinner, with the only indication that it was a special meal being them dressing a little better. After the loss of her grandfather, Willow wasn’t feeling up to throwing a party. On Friday evening, she emailed Gina with a birthday wish, telling her that she would be playing in Florence, in the first week of August.

That Saturday morning, Vivienne picked Willow up in her own limo, and they went into London. They got settled into the apartment and took a taxi to the night club. When they walked in, they were greeted warmly and shown the small stage area and the baby grand that Willow was to use. She sat and played as the manager sorted out the microphones, and then they did one of the duets that they had worked on.

Vivienne was singing and was looking around the brightly lit dance space and noticed a couple of odd neon signs on the wall. When they stopped, she asked, over the PA, something that she didn’t understand.

“This club. We were told that it was usually slow and intimate dancing, but it looks more like a rage club.”

“It is, on certain nights in the month. We have live bands at times, a DJ a lot of the time, but we’ve advertised that your week was smooth and easy. They’re keen to have you play for them.”

“What sort of people are your members?”

“Gay ones. The club is a gay club where the members can feel safe. There are more girls than boys, and you two have become somewhat like icons of female empowerment with the most recent albums. They loved the Summer Rose albums, and the DJ often plays the hard rock tracks, but this week is all sweetness and love. Be prepared to be hit on, but there’ll be no aggression if you say no.”

“Our people at the label said nothing about it being a gay club.”

“Is that a problem?”

“Just a bit of a surprise. They’ve booked us to other nightclubs in Europe as a summer tour. I think that we’ll have to ask if they’re similar. Just make sure that we only get water in unopened bottles, please, just to be sure.”

“That sort of thing doesn’t happen here, or, at least, while they’re inside. Most of our members are better than that, and our membership fee ensures that.”

When they left the club, with the advice to get back at seven for a meal, and a pair of lanyards to get them in, Willow laughed.

“I think that a lot in the crowd in Berlin were gay, it was the leather outfits that didn’t look like proper biker gear.”

“How do you know that?”

“I was a tomboy and spent some time looking at motorcycle magazines.”

Back at the apartment, they rang Jill.

“Hello Jill, it’s Willow. We’ve just been to that nightclub and found out that it’s members are all gay. Did you know about that?”

“That’s news to me. Let me look up the file and I’ll ring you back.”

They were having lunch in the restaurant when she called back.

“Willow. I’ve looked at the records, and there’s no mention that it’s gay. Is that a problem?”

“I’ll let you know tomorrow. What about the ones over summer?”

“Damn! I’ve just seen that all the venues were booked by the Rainbow Alliance, so I guess that they all are. They seemed keen to get you booked.”

“We were told that we’re ‘icons of female empowerment’. I expect that their money is as good as anyone else, but it is going to give us an interesting reputation. Next thing will be an invite to the Sydney Mardi gras. That wouldn’t go down with our fan club there.”

“You’ll just have to be seen around with guys. You already have plenty of pictures out there with Jacob, and Vivienne has several with Roy. OK, so those may be over, but it would pay for you to claim that you’re straight, just between boyfriends at the moment. Otherwise, some may think that the two of you are a couple.”

That evening, dressed to impress, they took a taxi to the club, being allowed in and bypassing a short queue. They were given a light meal, with drinks from bottles opened for them. When they stepped out on the stage, they got a welcome roar from the room. They started with some of the early songs, with the Carpenters and Journey albums. ‘Finding a Friend’ got calls to repeat and they hardly had to sing it, with the dancers singing it for them. They had breaks, when they were besieged by girls wanting to talk, and worked through the Summer Rose catalogue that could be sung as a duet, and were into their solo albums after midnight, as well as some of the new ones that they had written in the last month.

When they finally finished, a taxi was called for them and they went back to the apartment.

“That was different!”

“It was, wasn’t it? When you come down to it, they were just more people wanting to be entertained. What worries me is if it’s all the same crowd every night. They’re going to be bored with the set by Monday.”

“We’ll just have to wait and see. It was a happy crowd, though, and not as ‘in your face’ as I expected. They knew a lot of the words.”

“That’s the bit that gets to me. You write a song that you hope will be catchy, and it’s a surprise when it’s so catchy that they’re singing it for you. Some of that material was a couple of years old.”

Vivienne went up to her room and they got to bed. Willow laid for a while, telling City Shaun about some of the sights she had seen that evening. There had been a few who looked totally ‘butch’, but the majority wouldn’t look out of place in any shopping centre. She wondered if some who had seen her, and Gina, shopping may have thought that they were more than friends. Even with Vivienne when they were here in the Easter break.

They slept late, but the other two couples were still having breakfast when they went down to the restaurant.

“How was last night? A bit different to a big stadium.”

“It’s a gay club, Ted, and different doesn’t begin to describe it.”

Hazel laughed.

“Don’t tell me, they’re setting you up as the next Kylie, as ‘icons of female empowerment’.”

“Got it in one, Hazel. It was all right, and everyone was very friendly. We even didn’t have to be singing, as there were a lot of times when all I had to do was play the tune and they sung.”

“Why don’t you see if they know any of your drinking songs?”

“If they look bored, we might try that.”

By the end of the next Saturday night, they had repeated the set, added other things that had worked in Stoneleigh, mined their memories for other popular songs by Kylie and others, and generally had a good time. When they ended the last set, the manager gave each of them a bulging envelope, ‘from the tip jar’ and thanked them for a wonderful masterclass of entertaining.

They had lunch in the restaurant on the Sunday, and then the limo picked them up for the trip back home. When Willow got out and retrieved her bag, Vivienne stood, and they hugged.

“Willow, my friend, that had to be one of the best weeks of my life. It was one thing to be backing the Rose, but another to be on stage as a duo with you. I’ve learned a lot before we did this, working up the set, but I learned more about who I am in close proximity to our fans, and out front and singing some of my own songs. If I was gay, I’d kiss you!”

“Please don’t. My mother would get the wrong idea if I went in with smeared lipstick. I had fun as well, and I’m looking forward to the big tour. Gina’s going to have a surprise when she comes to see us in Florence. I’ll see you at school tomorrow. Sebastian’s taking me in, and Max will be there with a coach to take us to the studio. Don’t forget the awards for Sarah and the team.”

“I won’t. It will be odd being back at school after our week. How long do we have to get the operetta sorted out?”

“I told Mister Bamborough that it may take a couple of days, and that when the others go back to school, you and I will be recording a pair of albums before we’re back.”

“At least we know that they work, It didn’t take long for all the songs from them being sung in that club.”

“Call it a ‘focus group’ Viv. They were accepted so quickly, when the albums get issued, we’ll probably get a writeup in the Pink News.”

“Now that would be an interesting addition to my mother’s scrapbook.”

“Mine too!”

Marianne Gregory, © 2025

Chapter 8

Willow carried her bag into the house.

“Good week, love?”

“Interesting, Mum. I enjoyed it, and, best of all, the crowds enjoyed it.”

“What sort of crowd, all Hooray Henrys and Snooty Susans?”

“Not really. Most were in their teens or twenties, and as bent as a paper clip. It was a gay club, but a lot of fun. We found out that we’re ‘icons of female empowerment’ in that crowd, and we spent every night in a cloud of different perfumes. And that was just on the guys!”

“Well, you would have fitted in well, knowing your own story.”

“If that did come out, it would give me a degree of authenticity, wouldn’t it?”

“Did they film you?”

“They did. It will make interesting viewing, as they chose ‘Tart’s Tuesday’. It will go down well with the venues for summer, as they were all booked by the same group.”

“So, you’ll be spending summer touring the gay bars of Europe. Gina will find it a bit different when you’re in Florence.”

“I’ll have to put a note in with the new album when I send it to her. We’ll be recording both of our albums when we’ve finished with the operetta this week.”

That evening, she hung her black dress to drop out, and tidied up all her notes and scores for the operetta. Then she sat and wrote the list of new songs, in the order that would be good on the album. She sat and thought long and hard about the title. It should be accepted by the gay community, but not decried by everyone else. She thought back on the odd names that had been given to albums over the past and decided on ‘Tourniquet’. Most people would just have a laugh and wonder what restricting the blood flow had to do with the songs, but she had the idea that where they would be playing, it would already be called ‘Turning gay’.

On Monday morning, she had the bag with the awards she had received almost two months before, along with the dress and her normal bag. At the school, it was a hive of activity, with Max in a coach, and the truck being loaded with the rostrum, timpani’s, one cello and one double bass. The rest of the orchestra had been pared down to six violins, three violas, and a wind and brass section. They had ended up with the twenty that would fit nicely in front of the theatre stage.

Vivienne and Nancy arrived with their own security, as did Bryan and Edward. Garry was already there. Mister Bamborough and Mister Jamieson were joining them today, both keen to see how the final result turned out. The cast were all in school uniform, with their chosen stage outfits in garment bags.

The convoy left the school, bound for Leicester. Garry rode with Bryan and Edward; Mister Jamieson rode with Vivienne and Nancy, while Mister Bamborough rode with Willow.

“Interesting day, today, Willow?”

“It will be, Sir. It may take a while to get it into shape, as we haven’t workshopped the stage movements fully, and it will take a while to set up the backdrop material. The guys have assured me that they have it right and have been out filming on location on weekends. I told them that we could use the blue screen today, but they rejected that as it wouldn’t give them the feedback that they needed to recreate the effect in the theatre.”

“This project has certainly utilised a lot more of the school equipment than any other show, even the drama students are keen to see what you come up with.”

At the studio, the chairs for the orchestra were put out in front of the big window, with the rostrum facing towards the back of the studio. Further along, the big wooden screens had been placed, three to a side, and overlapping. The projection material was hung from a line between two camera mounts and the technical group set up behind it.

It was close to ten before they were ready. As things were being set out, the players, the cast, and Willow took turns in the toilets to change. Sarah, Sydney, and Josh were busy setting out microphones for the orchestra, and clipping radio mics on the cast as they changed. Willow was given one as well.

When they were all ready, Willow called for everyone to gather round. She had her bag of awards, and Vivienne stood beside her with her own bag.

“Before we get working, there is something that has been delayed due to other things. Vivienne and I had a meeting with the label, back in April, at which we were given awards. I’m afraid, Josh, that you’ll need to find some space on the wall. I have, here, a Platinum Record for ‘A Girl has to have Standards’, which needs to be hung. I also have another, for Sarah and the team for the production of the same album.”

There was applause and some happy hugging. Then Vivienne spoke.

“At that meeting, I was also given some awards. These were for ‘Joie de Viv’ DVD. There are both Gold and Platinum Records, as well as another set for this magnificent team of Sarah, Sydney, and Josh. I thank you all from the bottom of my heart, and I especially thank Willow for her piano playing.”

There was more applause and hugging, and then Willow called for quiet again.

“Today, we are going to work on the operetta. What I want to do is have all the cast with ear buds, so that I can give instruction as we go. Sarah will set the mixing board so that I can hear the mix, and also talk us through it. There should be one of the projection team with buds as well. It won’t be on the recorded mix, and I hope that we can do the final show without needing them, with everybody taking their cues from the music.”

Sarah set it up so that all those with buds could hear both the mix and Willow, with the same coming out of the speaker in the control room. The teachers and the drivers all settled down to look and listen.

Willow started by asking all of the cast, in turn, if they could hear, and then the projection leader. Then she said that the overture was about to start, tapped a new baton, and led the orchestra into the overture. As it neared the end, she told Vivienne to be ready. Vivienne was sitting on a seat in front of the screen, which was showing the inside of a swanky room.

As the overture ended, Willow stated that the curtain was opening and for Viv to be examining her nails, and to wait for the violin. She gave it ten seconds and then started the violins, with a sweet melody. She counted down from five for Viv to sing, and then they were into the first act. All of those in the control room were amazed at how plaintive, yet beautiful, the song was.

As it was ending, she cued Garry for his entrance, with him striding on stage from the wings, with ‘There you are, my daughter!’ and then telling her about how great he was for her, and how he had thought of a way to ensure that she had a life with all the things she wished for. It introduced the ‘I’m a man of the people’ when he outlined the quest he had put in place, and then they had a duet where she called him a controlling beast, and he told her that all he was doing was caring for her. When he calls in the candidates, she rushes from the stage.

He then sings the questions to the four, with each of them professing their love for his daughter. The two males with bombastic claims that she would love them, eventually, and the female claiming that they already had a love. The last candidate declared that he would ‘t,t,t treat her w,w,w, well.’ They thanked Ego, telling him that he truly was ‘a man of the people’.

They took a break and discussed changes, and then continued with the second act. This opened with Vivienne on the seat once more. On the stage, the first would be a light sofa, and the second would be a garden seat. The musical intro was playing as Willow called that the curtain was opening and to start the song. Once again, it was a sweet, but plaintive song about only being free of restraint when she was in the park. Willow was impressed with the background vision, with it being a real film, rather than a backdrop.

There was the song from one of the men, as he stood beside her. She told him, in song, that she was being watched, and that if he sat next to her, he would be set upon by hidden security. He professes that he would look after her as his trophy wife, and she sings that, ‘it’s not me you should woo, kind sir, it’s my father that set the quest. If you don’t adhere to his rules, then others would surely be best’.

They had decided that the second man should approach after the first leaves the stage, approaching her in a similar fashion and getting a similar reply. When she gets up and leaves the stage, the first man comes back and the two men have a duet about it all being too hard, and the wooing sounded more like work.

They took another break and pondered on the outcome, so far, while Josh went to pick up lunch from the fish shop and pizza store. The tables had been set up in the rest area, and it was a case of helping oneself. When they had finished, they went back to work on the third act, which opens, once more with the scene in the park. In this one, there is no opening song, with Cuthbert strolling on and muttering to himself. He sees the daughter and stops.

“Wha, wha, wha, what are you do, do, doing here?”

“Wait, wait, waiting for you, young man. A young man who has no chance of winning. How can you create all those followers and all that money?”

“I do ma, ma, magic, my lo, lo love. I do it in mi, mi, mi, mime.”

“In mi, mi, mi, mime?”

“Yes. I’m Cu, Cu, Cu, Cuthbert the mi, mi, mi, miming con, con, con, Conjurer.”

“Cu, Cu, Cu, Cu, Cuthbert.’

“The mi, mi, mi, miming.”

“Con, con, con, con, conjurer!”

He stands with his back to the audience and acts as if he was doing coin tricks, while, behind them, on the screen, a picture appears of a white-face magician in tails, performing the tricks. It took some work for Willow to lead the orchestra in playing the music in sync with the tricks. When he turns and walks off stage, Vivienne is still sitting, with a big smile on her face, when Nancy comes on.

“Are you smiling for me, my love, just for me, my love.”

They sing a duet about the time that they were younger and experimenting, before her father had the time to be home a lot. The last song, with Vivienne alone again, is about all these suiters yet only one who was kind and interesting, and seemed to like her, for herself, and not for her money. As that ended, Willow called the curtains closed and time for a break.

Act four had the backdrop as another fancy room, with several chairs. The two men come in and continue the duet about it being more work than wooing, joined by Nancy who joins in, with them wondering what the price of failure was, seeing that Ego was known for his craziness. Cuthbert comes on stage and sits down, and Ego and his daughter enter from the opposite side of the stage. Ego sings a song about how great he is, and how great his quest was, and how he, as a ‘man of the people’ would be giving all contestants something to remember him by. He then asks each one, in turn, how they had fared.

The two men declare that their efforts on Tic Toc had brought no success, with one declaring that the cat was not a good actor, and the other agreeing that it was hard to make a duck do tricks. Nancy’s character admitted that she had only entered the quest in the certainty that the shared love would overcome all.

Cuthbert declared that his ‘ma, ma, ma, magic po, po, po, po, podcast was vi, vi, vi, vi, viral,’ and that he had been ‘ar, ar, ar, ar, asked to appear in Ve, Ve, Ve, Vegas. He praised his ma, ma, ma, ma, magic la, la, la, laptop. The others all sing praises for the magic laptop.

Ego takes his daughter’s hand and leads her to Cuthbert and declares that he has won her in marriage. He then reprises the ‘man of the people’ song, telling them that all will be given a car from his factory, ‘batteries not included’ and they all sing that Ego is surely the man of the people, repeating that line to a rousing finale, with the timpani giving the final drum roll.

After that, they worked on small parts that they had discussed, trying out new movements and timings. When it was time to go back to Coventry, Sarah gave the teachers a DVD of the raw footage and sound, with another for Willow. Everything was left as it was for the next day, when they intended to run through it as a complete show, with the changes they had made.

The cast all changed back to school uniform, leaving their stage outfits on a rack that Josh brought in from the back. Willow and Sydney collected all the buds and wiped them. The truck drivers were told to come back the next afternoon, and the orchestra got on the coach to go back to the school.

In the car, Howard Bamborough had a laugh.

“You know what the Head is going to say, don’t you?”

“What’s that girl done this time?”

“No. How many full houses will this fill in our theatre. I can see her wanting to have at least three nights as a season.”

“We might get it right by the third show.”

“You’ll have it right tomorrow. Jim and I have discussed this class as you’ve moved through the years. It has been the one with the different ways at looking at things. I know that you and Vivienne had no say in what was going to be tried, but, between you, you’ve created something entirely new and wonderful. I’m certain that there are at least three songs there that would become firm favourites, should it ever get onto another stage.”

“Thank you, sir. It took a lot of thought to get them, made easier by Viv being such a good singer.”

“I believe that you’re recording albums after this. Do you mind if I sit in on that? You can take all of Wednesday, it you like.”

“Thank you, sir. That’s appreciated. We have a deadline to come out with the two albums in time for summer, We’ll be spending the whole holiday in Europe, with a week each in six cities, doing shows in clubs. Not exactly the huge stadiums we did last year, but a lot more work at about six hours a night.”

“How do you manage that?”

“We did eight nights in a club in London, last week, and we did manage to fill the time quite well. It was a lot of fun, actually.”

“Is there a recording?”

“Well, yes, there is, but I doubt that it would ever be put on the market.”

“Oh! Something went wrong?”

“Not wrong, sir. It’s just another shift in focus. It was a gay club, as are all the clubs in Europe. Viv and I have become icons. They said that we were ‘icons of feminine empowerment’. The gigs were all booked by the Rainbow Alliance and accepted before anyone twigged.”

“Nothing wrong with that. Their money is as good as anyone else. That has never done any harm to a few other singers, none as young as you, I admit.”

“It has made us both think about our next recording. We trialled a lot of the songs during the week, and they went well, so I’m hopeful that the new albums should sell.”

“If they half as good as the ones you got the awards for, you should both do well out of them.”

“It’s not the money, sir. It’s what am I going to do with the rest of my life? I seem to be jumping from one thing to the other. I own the trademark of Summer Rose, but the band will never play again. I built a good friendship with Gina, but she’s now in Florence, rehearsing for a summer season with an orchestra. As soon as I get something positive, everything changes.”

“I can tell you, right here and now, young lady, that whatever you end up doing, it will be because of everything that has gone before it. I listened to you, today, calling the shots with that show, and you pulled it together. I know that you had worked with the orchestra, and I know that you had input into the songs and the story, but you allowed others to shine. Take my advice. When you get a final cut of the show, tomorrow, send a copy to the ENO, and another to your label. I’m sure that when you present it at the school, there will be a lot of people in the audience who are there to see this new star of musical theatre.”

At the school, he got out of the car and told her that she would see him in the morning for another session. On the way back to Rising Lane, Sebastian spoke.

“I didn’t know what to expect today. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw. There were at least three songs that reminded me of the best songs of other shows. That first song that Vivienne sung was like a stab to the heart, a bit like that killer song in Cats. There are people who will pay good money to put that on in the West End.”

“It’s just a school project, Sebastian.”

“So was the Blue Coat Dance Band, and that took you to that Berlin show, which is destined to be one of the all-time greats. So was that Carpenters set that put you on a record career. As Howard said, whatever you do is leading you to greatness, and I’m proud to have watched it unfold.”

“Are you going to write a book about it? Xavier said that he was going to do one with all the pictures he had taken. He said it was going to be called, ‘The Summer Rose Story, from The Sap Inside’.”

“I’ll call mine, ‘Driving Miss Willow’.”

He pulled up outside the house.

“See you tomorrow, Miss Rose.”

“I’ll be here, Hoke.”

That evening, she showed her parents the raw footage from the day and explained how it all evolved. Ashley waited until the end of it before he spoke.

“Is that the ‘man of the people’ song that you wrote for my campaign?”

“No, Dad. That’s the ‘man of the people’ song that your opponents are likely to use for themselves, and if they ask, I’ll give them permission. By the time that the election is called, hopefully, the show could have been seen by others, who will equate that song with pure ego and the desire to dominate. I’ll be writing you another short song, ‘man for the people’, which will be aimed at picturing you as a man who helps people. The lunches in the club will help.”

“Has anyone ever..”

“Yes, Dad, many times.”

Next morning, they were at the studio around nine, and, with no set-up needed, did the entire operetta in the morning, with just a few changes needed. In the afternoon, they did it without the buds, and with the full set of cameras and mics. Sydney told Willow that the vision looked good, with her conducting style drawing comment from the teachers, now she could concentrate on it.

Willow congratulated everyone on a job well done, and Howard Bamborough congratulated Sarah and the team on the effort they had put in, not just this week, but also in their teaching at the school, with the technical group getting handshakes from the teachers. Willow was given six copies of the DVD, with the teachers getting another six, and the cast and orchestra getting one each, with one left over for the techs. The rostrum and instruments were collected up and the truck went back to the school with them.

That evening, she looked at the latest recording, and then packaged one for Jill, with a note telling her that this was a school project and not for issuing. She also sent one to the ENO, to the attention of Norman Strong, with a note to check the school website for the date of the performance.

The next day she went directly to the studio. Mister Bamborough was already there when she arrived. With the team, they pulled the piano from behind the mock stage and pulled it towards the big window. They were stacking chairs when Vivienne arrived, With the space now set, and the microphones in place, the two of them changed into one of the outfits that they had worn in the club, the week before, and helped each other look good.

The blue screen was set up behind them and Willow sat at the piano and warmed up her fingers.

“Just so you know, Sarah. We are going to record two albums. Mine is called ‘Tourniquet’ and is a collaboration with Vivienne. We tried a lot of these songs in a gay club last week, and it will have us singing solo and duets.”

Vivienne stepped to her microphone.

“My album will be called ‘Viv-a The Difference’ and will be much the same. On Willow’s, she gets about seventy percent solo, and on mine, I get about the same.”

In the control room, there were smiles, with Howard Bamborough wondering how the label would treat these albums.

They recorded twelve tracks of jazzy pop and took a break. Willow gave Sydney a dozen covers, six for the CD, and six for the DVD. They were the willow tree again, with the album name. On the back listing, seven of the songs were listed as written by Armstrong/Rose and five by Rose.

When they had recorded a similar album for Vivienne, her covers had the old cartoon of a boy and a girl with their panties pulled open and looking into each other’s crotch. The songs were a similar mix of Armstrong/Rose and Armstrong. On both DVDs, the scene behind them was of the back of the stage at the nightclub, taken by Vivienne one night in a break, with the signs lit up.

They ate pizza while the team produced the discs. Mister Bamborough questioned the choice of material and packaging.

“It’s all about perception, sir. As I told you, we played for a very successful week in a gay club and are playing all summer in more across Europe. The label wanted two albums to go on the market before then, and these are the two albums that we’re delivering. Yes, they’re different from what we’ve done before, but they are us trying to be adult. The songs are all about love and laughter, so won’t make a fuss when they’re played on the radio. Our target market will understand, though.”

“What do your parents say?”

“Our parents are just happy that we’re a success. What we’ve done, so far, has improved our family’s lives. We’re sixteen, and in some countries, we would have been married off by now. The songs are all about enjoying life as a teenage girl in a free world. These will be forgotten in a year or so, but there is, waiting in the wings, a six-hour video of us doing what we just did, live in that club. We don’t know what’s planned for that, but it would be a real money-maker. These will divert some of the buyers cash to us. Now, sir, the studio is paid for until close of business Friday. I know it’s a short notice, but is there anything that you want to use it for until then?”

“I could get the junior orchestra in to record what they’ve learned. Thank you for that.”

“We’ll be in school, as usual, in the morning. I think that it’s been a successful few days.”

The girls changed back into the casual clothes that they had arrived in, collected their discs, four of their own and two of the other’s, and left with their drivers. Howard Bamborough arranged with Sarah about having the orchestra arrive in the morning and persuaded her to give him a copy of each of the DVDs for his own collection. He rang the school to organise the truck for the morning, and to get Mister Jamieson to tell the junior orchestra that they were spending two days in the studio. He drove back to Coventry with a smile on his face.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 9

On the way home, Willow got Sebastian to stop at a post office, where she bought a post pack big enough for three discs, and the stamps needed for a package of three and another of one. When she was home, she sealed the one to the ENO, and filled the package to Jill. Properly stamped, she left them on the hall table for her mother to put in a post box in the morning.

Then, she sat in front of the big screen TV and watched both DVDs critically, trying to pick the songs that may get airplay. She decided that they weren’t a bad collection of songs, most were good enough for even the most middle-ground radio, and more likely to appeal to those who bought the earlier albums. The DVDs looked as if they were shot on location, with the added club-like background sounds, and she wondered if they may end up as music for dinner parties, or even intimate evenings with a favourite person.

Then, she went to her bedroom to work on the promised anthem for her father, something that needed a lot more thought. When her parents came home, she had the dinner close to being ready to cook. They had the meal and she said that she would tidy up and that there were two, new, DVDs by the machine if they wanted to watch them. She cleaned up in the kitchen and went to get a shower, dressing in her nightie and gown. When she went down to say goodnight, the DVDs were left out of the cases and her parents were nowhere to be seen.

She turned her laptop on to check for emails. The only one was the statement from Peter and she transferred another quarter of a million into the company account. It appeared that without the constant back and forth within the band, and the loss of Wilhelm, her email traffic was now at a minimum. In the morning, she was getting breakfast when he mother came down.

“Those albums, love. They work in a different way to the hard rock ones. As we watched, all I wanted was to get your father into bed. The words made me very horny.”

“Could it have been the neon sign behind us that read ‘Sex’?”

“Whatever. What we do know is that if there’s a population jump around Christmas, we’ll know who to blame. I expect that you’ll be going to school today.”

“Yes, Mum. Orchestra this afternoon, so I’ll be late. I don’t know what we’ll be doing on Friday afternoon, seeing that we got the project to the point of performance.”

Sebastian picked her up and they went towards Coventry.

“Those songs and those album covers, Willow. They’re a bit different.”

“Do you think that it’s a problem?”

“Not to me, but you’re not likely to sell any in America, with the way they are now,”

“If I went to America, they’d probably kidnap me and send me to Gitmo. I was reading an article in the doctor’s waiting room, and it was talking about all the words and phrases you can’t use any more. There’s an old song, from the sixties, called ‘Too Young’, and it’s been banned. The reason is that the opening line is, ‘They tried to tell us we’re too young’. And the word ‘they’ can be the preferred address of a non-binary person, and they no longer exist.”

“That’s a bit silly.”

“Yeah! I don’t need that kind of silly. If I get good sales here and in Europe, I’ll be happy. Look, here’s copies of the two DVDs. Humour me with a little experiment and watch them with your wife tonight. I’ll have them back with your report tomorrow.”

That day, she got the lesson notes that she had missed, and the lunch was interesting. Garry sat with her and told her that the whole experience of the operetta had been fantastic and had allowed him to have fun while singing. That afternoon, Mister Bamborough set the orchestra a task. He wanted them to take the score of the operetta and rework it as a thirty-minute piece for future playing. With the skills in the room, they had it written out and played before they finished. It encompassed the whole orchestra, with those who hadn’t been part of the twenty adding their own music.

For Willow and Vivienne, it was almost a vindication of their own skills in writing the original album. As they were leaving, Vivienne told Willow that she had sent her album and DVD to Jill. They both wondered what the label would do with them.

On Friday morning, Sebastian gave Willow the two DVDs.

“If there’s a population boom after Christmas, we’ll know who to blame.”

“That’s what my mother said. Was it good for you, too?”

“Don’t ask.”

That afternoon, Mister Jamieson told them that the modules that had been dropped to allow them time for their project, would now be able to be worked on. They would be working on discussing the song ‘Africa’ for a couple of weeks, and then a film score. They would have the stage for the last Monday of the month, to run through the operetta, with the performances on the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, the beginning of June.

Willow spent the weekend working on the campaign song for Ashley, except for time at the club on both evenings. She learned that the mid-week lunch socials were becoming popular, and that her father had funded these from his own money.

On Monday, at lunchtime, she was told about the fantastic two days that the junior orchestra had enjoyed in the studio. For many, it had been their first time there, and Petunia gave her a letter of thanks from her father, who had attended both days to see his children in another light. At the bottom of the typed letter was a hand-written note. ‘Big things happening, speak to you in a few weeks.’

Over the next couple of weeks, things were fairly normal. Vivienne invited Willow to her house to run through some additions to the long set, and they were confident that they would hold their own when they toured. On the week before the operetta performance, both girls had texts from Jill. ‘Meeting Saturday at eleven in office, imperative you attend.’ They both texted back that they would be there. Vivienne said that she would have her limo service, seeing that Willow was supplying the accommodation.

Friday evening, they were on their way to London, with overnight bags in the back. They were dropped off at the restaurant and told the driver to be there to take them home at four on Sunday afternoon. They went up to the apartment and settled in for the night, sitting in the downstairs sitting room for a while and talking. For Willow, Vivienne was replacing Gina as a sounding board for ideas, as well as now part of a writing duo.

In the morning, they had breakfast in the restaurant and then freshened up before getting a taxi to the label’s offices. When they arrived, they waited in the reception until Jill came out to greet them.

“Thank you for coming. We have a lot to discuss, so come up to the boardroom as there are others here to talk to you.”

When they walked into the boardroom, they were ushered to seats, flanked by the CEO and CFO. Opposite were Jill and Clive, and they also said hello to Derek and Norman, from the ENO. There were two others present, who were introduced as Helmut and his wife, Delta, from the Rainbow Alliance. The CEO led the discussion.

“We are here to discuss a future tour, and the implications of a film that was shot at the nightclub, here, in London. When that has been decided, we will talk about a certain operetta which we have seen. Now, the first thing is that you girls were booked, by the Rainbow Alliance, to play that week in London, followed by six weeks touring six nightclubs in European cities. We accepted the booking and notified your manager of the times that you would be away. He replied that he had noted the booking and queried the somewhat low figure offered for your performances.”

“That was what was offered and accepted.”

“That’s not the issue, Helmut. What we didn’t pick up on was that these venues are all gay clubs, which we thought may be a problem to your reputations. When you were so successful in London, it changed the dynamic. Helmut has now informed us that the two of you are established gay icons. This could be a problem for you in the future. What do you think, Willow?”

“It was an audience, sir, like any other, who danced and sung to our songs. In fact, I think that they knew our songs better than we do. We felt safe, we were well fed, and we had fun. We also tried out several of the songs on the albums we sent in.”

“You don’t feel ashamed at being called a gay icon?”

“Not at all. The pink pound is as good as any other, and I hope that we’ll get a good reception over summer. We have both worked on extra material for it. You’re not cancelling, are you?”

“It has been considered.”

“We enjoy entertaining people. When people have turned up, wanting to be entertained, then it’s even better. I expect that flights and accommodation are supplied while we’re away, so it will be like the summer holidays that we’ve had for two years. Probably a lot less stressful. Give it another year, and let the press see us with guys, and it will all blow over.”

“Vivienne, what do you think?”

“I’m with Willow. It’s just a gig like any other. I doubt that we’ll see anything more outlandish as the Tart’s Tuesday.”

“All right. It goes ahead. Now, that video that was shot on that Tuesday. I’ve seen it and I have to praise the two of you for continuing your set with all that flesh around you.”

“Nothing we haven’t seen when we shower.”

“Yes, that may be, but we were wondering about what it’s going to look like if it’s on general release.”

“We were told that it’s for use in the other clubs.”

“That’s what we thought, but copies have turned up on the internet as bootlegs.”

“Then why not issue it as an adult level music video. It isn’t us flashing the skin, so we can’t be held accountable.”

Clive spoke up.

“Quite right, Willow. We could package it with your new albums as a special buy. Two studio albums and six hours of live performance. We could charge a premium and see how it flies. If we undercut the bootleg price for an official issue, it may stop that trade.”

“It is a first-class video; it should have been for what it cost us.”

“I’m not criticising the quality, Helmut, just trying to find a way to protect these girls and make money.”

“I’m prepared to supply security for the girls while they’re with us. We stand to make a lot of money with their performances. Their week, here in London, broke all the records for the club. If it’s needed to swing the deal, we’ll pay them an extra ten thousand a week, each. We have already needed to change venues at one city to cater for those wanting to be there. Every person who comes along has to become a member of the club first, before they pay the extra for a special event.”

“All right, if we’re in agreement, the tour goes on. Now, another thing about the video, Helmut. Who thought of the title?”

“That was my wife, Delta. It is what the members call these two songbirds. I’ve had a look at the writing credits on the two albums, and it’s quite likely what the scribes will call their collaboration.”

Delta handed Willow a copy of the video. Willow couldn’t help but laugh as she passed it to Vivienne.

“VivWillow in Heaven! That’s almost as left field as some of my thoughts.”

“You find it amusing?”

“It’s classic, Delta. It captures our working together with writing and performing. When Gina and I started playing, we used our surnames. This is just a variation. What do you think, Viv?”

“It’s certainly a step up from Armstrong/Rose. It’s catchy. We could even put out merchandise with it. Have you gone down that road, Helmut? By the blush, I bet that you’re way ahead of us.”

He laughed.

“You’re right. Do you object?”

Willow grinned.

“As long as we get some of everything for our friends, why should we object. It looks as if we’ll be VivWillow on tour, this summer. Jill, you may have to put on extra staff to handle the VivWillow fan mail. You can tell Peter, I’m not game enough.”

There was a general shaking of hands, a few hugs, and Helmut and Delta left. Norman laughed.

“Now, you two, there’s another video that we have to talk about, almost as drastic as the other one, if my imagination is to be believed. How many of these are there?”

“About four dozen. All the cast , the teachers, and the tech group who did the rear projection.”

“No thoughts of issuing them, say, through the school website?”

“Nothing said. If anything, it’s likely to be filmed and recorded when we perform it. We’re having a full-dress rehearsal on Monday, with the theatre left set up for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evening, which are filling well, I believe.”

“We’ll be there in force to see it. The thing is, you have come up with a commercial product, worthy of a bigger audience. We would like to make an offer for the rights to perform it next year. We have spoken to this office about our video being the official one. We may want some of the cast to remain and are prepared to pay those who developed that rear projection for the rights to use it in our theatre. In some performances it’ll be far cheaper than building sets.”

Clive leaned forward.

“The other thing is that there are at least three songs on this video that are worthy of general release, perhaps on a CD of the soundtrack. A couple that you sang, Vivienne, are on par with that one from Frozen. They deserve a proper studio recording with a fuller orchestra.”

Willow looked at him.

“The operetta was a school project. The school has a stake in whatever is decided. Most of the lyrics were based on Vivienne’s original work for our Summer Rose album, with a lot of changes. The music was mainly written by members of the orchestra, especially those in our Music Studies class, who were given the project to do.”

“I spoke to your Mister Bamborough the other day. He told me that it was you that pulled it all together, even to the point of directing the stage activity while conducting. He said that the performance on the disc was the first one where nobody was wearing buds, so that they could hear your direction. That was quite an impressive bit of work.”

“So, what are you all proposing?”

“The ENO want it for their own, mainly to tour around schools and institutions where it can be shown to a lot of children. They also want to see how long it runs on their London stage. They are willing to pay the school for the intellectual property, and the rights to the projection technology. There will also be compensation for those involved in the development, which, I’m told, is about three dozen. You two will get residuals for the use of the music and lyrics, as well as Summer Rose being listed as the originators of the show. If there’s a DVD and CD, all of the cast and development team will share two pounds for every sale, with the school getting a small amount.”

“So, you’ll need the contact details for all those involved.”

“Howard Bamborough has already provided that. What is curious is that half the cast were members of Summer Rose, and one is now the bass player in one of the best bands around. You guys never fail to surprise. Are you happy with what I’ve said?”

Willow and Vivienne looked at each other and grinned.

“I think we’re with you on this, gentlemen. All you need to finish the job is to get the paperwork in order.”

They were given lunch and driven back to the apartment by Jill.

“Are you both really all right with this morning?”

“A lot of it was already running, Jill, we just had to make sure we’re still included in discussions. The clubs are what they are, and they’re a safe haven for a lot of people in a harsh world. If they like us, who are we to complain. We could see that it was only the stiff-necked morals of the upper management that was the barrier, using our reputation as an excuse for any decision that may reflect badly on them.”

“You’re right, Willow. None of the rest of us saw a problem. The amount of flesh exhibited in that video is no more than you get in the average rap video, these days. It may even add to the sales with young boys. I’ve seen the itinerary for the tour, and you won’t be upset by any of the hotels. The flights are all business class but they’re all short hops, compared to last year. I’m going to talk to Clive about your cut of a large offering. Three DVD packages are not usual, especially as one is a double DVD with six hours of entertainment. We’ll push the media with this, to get a good coverage, and there will be a TV interview before you leave for Europe.”

“Thank you, Jill. We’re grateful for your work over the last couple of years.”

“I’ve enjoyed it all and have been to places that I had never thought I’d see when I took on the job. Up until Summer Rose, all the bands I’ve looked after have either been snooty, arrogant, little shits, or high as a kite little shits. You were a breath of fresh air and I find it hard to imagine what you’ll come up with next, Willow.”

“How about a political campaign in the next election?”

“Who are you backing?”

“My father is the candidate for the Kenilworth electorate, to replace the retiring member.”

“That will certainly keep you in the public gaze, especially if you make any political statements. What about you, Vivienne?”

“This is the first I’ve heard of it, but Ashley Rose is a good friend and a great guy. I’ve known him since the early days of the dance band in the Stoneleigh Club, and he’s always been straight with us. He supported the band when others thought we were just kids having fun. My family votes to the right, so we’ll help if we can.”

They were back in the apartment and discussing the improbable future of VivWillow, when Willow’s phone rang.

“Willow speaking.”

“Willow, it’s Sam Vines, how are you?”

“I’m good, Sam. What can I do for you?”

“Where are you? I rang your home and was told that you’re in London.”

“I am, Sam. Vivienne and I have just had a meeting with our label.”

“Is it possible for me, and one other, to meet with you and then have dinner? We’ve just left a lawyer’s office in London. Do you have somewhere quiet that we can talk with both of you?

“We’re at my apartment near Broadcasting House. If you want, we can talk here, and there’s a restaurant on the ground floor where I should be able to book a table for four. Is that all right?”

He said that it was, and she gave him the address, telling him to call when he arrived. Vivienne looked at her.

“That sounded intense.”

“Yes, and he sounded excited. That was Sam Vines, Petunia and Ivy’s father. He is one of our tenants at Small Heath. I wonder what he wants to talk about, and who he’s bringing with him. Either way, we probably only have a little while to make ourselves presentable.”

Vivienne dashed upstairs and Willow changed into a better dress and checked her hair and make-up. They were both back in the sitting room and looking good when the phone rang again. Willow answered and said that she’d be right down.

She went down to the street door to find Sam and Hugh waiting. Hugh smiled.

“This is perfect. Have you booked a table yet?”

“Not yet Hugh.”

“Let’s go and book for eight, if we can. Ted and Kevin can join us, with their wives, after we’ve spoken.”

They went into the restaurant and managed to get a table for eight in the cellar, as long as they started at six, as the venue was fully booked from eight. Willow led them upstairs, with a stop at the landing while Hugh knocked on Ted’s door to invite the two couples for dinner at six.

In the apartment, they sat in the sitting room and Willow offered drinks, with some of the wine still left and the two girls drinking lemonade. Sam took a sip of his wine and then spoke.

“I suppose that you’re interested why we want to talk to you. We’re here because of me sending my girls to your school. With all the things that went on, Hugh and I were able to sit in your studio and have a very private discussion It’s taken a while, but we signed all the paperwork this morning. Hugh has bought my business, with me staying on as CEO on a salary. The thing that affects you, is that he had a chance to properly look at the Small Heath property, especially the huge amount of office space that Mervyn and I don’t use. Over to you, Hugh.”

“That property was a place that I was looking at but didn’t need at the time. Sam’s business was one I’ve been after for a while, as it fits into the others in my stable. I want to utilise the office space as my headquarters, and with Vines Engineering there it makes sense. We’ve spoken to Mervyn, and his head office, and have come to an agreement to use his distribution centre as our means of our product distribution, so boosting his business.”

“That sounds extremely fortuitus, Hugh.”

“It was, Willow. It does leave me with an offer to make to you girls, for you to take to your syndicate. There’s ten of you, yes?”

“Only six now, Hugh. The others have had their shares in Small Heath paid out. They’re only still in the shopping centre we own in Manchester.”

“OK. I want you to talk to the other four. I’m making an offer to take the Small Heath property, allowing you to retain any advance lease payments that have been made.”

“Do you have a number in mind, Hugh?”

“I have, Willow, and that number is seven point two.”

“That is somewhat generous, Hugh.”

“No, it isn’t, Willow. It allows for the increase in value since you bought it, the convenience, to me, of consolidating my operations, and as a side effect of what you saved my companies last year. I gave you lunch and a framed thank-you at the time, and you were gracious and appreciative. At no time have you ever questioned me on what we gained from that report you submitted, but I can tell you that the extra I’ve added to the property is a drop in the ocean compared to the gains we made.”

“Thank you, Hugh. We’ll take it to the others tomorrow. What do you think, Viv?”

“Well, a quick one point two each would be good, and I think that Nancy and the two boys will jump at it. What will Gina think?”

“I’ll ring her in the morning and ask. She was happy to stay with us when we reorganised, but a quick sale could sway her, especially if the rest of us want to sell. Hugh, we’ll discuss it with the others and let you know as soon as we can.”

“That will be good. Sam and I will be at the school on Thursday evening, to see the first dress rehearsal of your new offering. I’m intrigued to see what it’s like.”

“You’ll be surprised. It’s good enough for the English National Opera to want it, so expect an interesting evening. Now, It’s close to six, we should rouse the others and go down for dinner.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 10

They went downstairs, knocking on Ted’s door on the way. They were seated at their table by six, and Hugh gave Carlo his credit card for all the meal costs. They were talking about general things when Hazel asked Willow a question.

“How’s the campaign going, Willow?”

“Dad’s been to the office a few times and spoken to them. We spent a morning with the guys at the head office in Whitehall and surprised them when they were showing us around Parliament. Chris Leigh spoke to us and hosted us for lunch in the Lords Dining Room.”

Hugh looked up, surprised.

“You know the Baron well enough to call him by his Christian name?”

“It’s a bit convoluted, Hugh. My great, great, grandfather was the brother of the Third Baroness, Marie. When the Third Baron died, childless, the title went to Chris’ side of the family. So, we’re almost relatives, but once removed at the time. He’s now a Lord.”

“So, why were you at Whitehall?”

“My father has been accepted as the candidate for Kenilworth, to replace the retiring member. We were given a list of party donors, and I saw that both you and Sam are on it. We were waiting until the election looks likely before canvassing those on the list.”

“What is your father’s place in your career, Willow?”

“He’s the managing director of WR Holdings, the company we set up to handle my affairs. It is the company that owns the shares in our property dealings, as well as the owner of the recording studio. He’s on the board of the Stoneleigh Club, which has been a huge place in the development of my entertaining career, as well as the careers of all of Summer Rose.”

“When we met on that coach to the studio, he said that he was working at Aston Martin as a design engineer, right.”

“He is. They have offered to allow him leave without pay to campaign. Hazel offered to handle the publicity, but I think that the electorate office will have something to say about that.”

“Look, I’d like you to set up a meeting for us. Perhaps at your house, next Saturday morning?”

“Can do. Give me a private email address and I’ll talk to him tomorrow and email you the address and time. Will that suit you?”

He took out a business card and wrote the address on the back.

“Make it for six of us. Sam will come along, and there are four others who aren’t on that list who donate through me. They would all like to meet you and your parents before things get hectic.”

“I’ll phone him tonight and alert him. Thank you, Hugh.”

They spoke no more about it, or the deal that had been put to the girls, and enjoyed the meal, with Hugh picking up the bill and getting a receipt for his business expenses. Back in the apartment, Willow phoned home and told her parents to prepare for a high-powered meeting next week, and to make sure that the wines were better than usual.

She sat with Vivienne and they both had a small glass of wine from the previously opened bottle.

“Interesting day all round, Viv.”

“It certainly was. Almost every part of it threw up something amazing. Peter will be happy with both of us earning an extra sixty thousand over summer. The big VivWillow package is risky, but you don’t know if you don’t try?”

“VivWillow. Now that’s something else. Once again, I’m number two, but WillVivienne or Rose Summer doesn’t have that easy sound.”

“Are you going to watch that DVD from the club?”

“After being there, I don’t think so. I’ll get my parents to look at it and see what happens. Our heavy rock ones made my Dad randy, and our latest ones made my Mum horny. I loaned them to Sebastian, and he was walking funny the next day.”

“That explains something. My parents watched the two of them while I was practising on the piano, and they were nowhere to be seen when I went to bed. They’re normally up late.”

“I was told that if there’s a baby boom after Christmas, we’re to blame. It would be funny if there’s a huge number of Willows and Viviennes going to school in five years.”

“Changing the subject. What did you do for your birthday?”

“The three of us went to the restaurant down the road. After the pressure of losing my grandfather and getting my grandmother settled in a home, we didn’t feel like throwing a party. Besides, we had a couple of real humdingers in the past, and sixteen is just about adult. How about you?”

“We had a party, but it was more for Mum to show off the house to all the relatives. I ended up in my room, with some cousins, talking about places I’ve been and boys I’ve met.”

“We’re a right couple of old fogies, aren’t we.”

On Sunday morning, they had breakfast with the other couples and went for a walk around the area, with Willow taking Vivienne into the Senate Library to look at books on Viv’s interest, botanical paintings. They had a late lunch at Gaucho, and then rang the other syndicate members about the offer on Small Heath.

Nancy, Bryan, and Edward were all happy to go along with what Willow and Vivienne decided. Willow had quite a talk with Gina. She ended up agreeing to the sale, as the others had agreed. The limo picked them up and Willow was home a little after six.

“Interesting weekend, love?”

“It was, Mum. The meeting at the label had more than one outcome. Number one was that we’re still doing the tour, which the label was thinking of cancelling.”

“Why on earth would they cancel the tour?”

“The top brass were worried about our reputation as lily-white innocent girls. I’ve got the DVDs of our show here, if you want to watch. It’s on two discs of more than three hours each. If my memory is right, the second one is the funniest, after a lot of the audience got drunk.”

“Anything that I should worry about?”

“Just make sure the way up to your bedroom is clear, it has a lot of the songs from those two albums, oddly appropriate in the setting.”

“Alright. What else happened?”

“The client is paying us an extra ten thousand, each week of the tour, and will be supplying security. And the label is thinking seriously about packaging this double DVD with the DVDs of both albums as a limited run special, well, special for them.”

“What about this meeting next week?”

“There will be Sam Vines and Hugh, who you met on the coach to the studio. Hugh is bringing four of his friends who, he says, donate through him. They want to sit down with us and talk about the campaign.”

“That’s serious. Anything else?”

“Hugh has offered seven point two for the Small Heath property. He’s bought Sam Vine’s business and will be using all that unused office space to set up his headquarters. All of the syndicate have verbally agreed, which will just leave us with the shopping centre between the ten of us.”

“Didn’t you pay under five for Small Heath?”

“We did. He says that the extra covers increased property values, a bonus for the convenience it gives him, and a bonus that I earned with the first presentation I did last year in my course. Which, of course, I can’t talk about. That reminds me, I need to send him the confirmation and our address. Is Dad happy with the meeting?”

“Look, I don’t know. He’s been very quiet lately. It may be the enormity of what he’s going to do. Don’t get me wrong. He’s not backing out, just getting himself into thinking like a budding politician. Did you eat in town?”

“We had a late lunch at Gaucho, so I’m not hungry. I think I’ll go and send that email and unpack.”

On Monday morning, she was having breakfast when her mother came down.

“Dad not up yet?”

“Not this morning, love, but more than once last night. That show was in two parts: you two playing music and the audience doing striptease. We didn’t get anywhere near the credits.”

After lunch, Willow and the ensemble were given lesson notes for the ones that they would miss in the afternoon, and they gathered in the theatre to set everything up for the final dress rehearsal. For Willow, the main difference was that she would have her back to the audience as she conducted. When they had set the stage, erected the backscreen, and set out the orchestra below the stage, she got them all to gather round as she sat on the edge of the stage.

“Look, you’ve all done very well with this project. This week we have three performances to paying public. In one of the audiences will be a large contingent from the ENO. Vivienne and I had a meeting with them on Saturday, in London. They will be talking to the Head about buying the intellectual property from the school and taking our show to their theatre in London. They did talk about retaining some of the cast.”

There was gasps and talk. She waved for calm.

“The lads who developed the back projection impressed them enough to want to buy the details. I won’t ask you how you got such a crisp picture on a hanging screen, but they want to use it themselves. Everyone here will be compensated. I don’t know how much, but I do know that the Head will negotiate fiercely.”

“You bet I will!”

Willow turned her head to see the Head on the stage beside her.

“I came here to wish you all luck and was lucky to be in time to hear your little speech, Willow. The ENO have called, today, requesting a serious meeting when they’re here for the performance. They did suggest that money was concerned, and I’m happy that you’ve been able to give me an advanced warning. Were you going to tell me?”

“I only know the aims, ma-am, not the details. I expected them to talk to you directly. We, as the ones putting on the performance, are not privy to the detail, except that we were told that their performance is wanted to be the one available on the market. That means that we don’t need to film ours. You already have the one done in the studio as a historical item. The only other certainty is that it will be listed as developed from the album that Summer Rose put out.”

“Are you ready to start?”

“We just need to change. Give us half an hour, please.”

“I’ll round up some audience for you while you’re doing that. Curtain up in thirty minutes, chop, chop!”

They had the rehearsal and locker rooms to change in, and when Willow led the orchestra out, there was applause from the entire school, now seated and filling the theatre. The orchestra went to their places, with smiles, and then Willow stood on the podium with her baton, as the tuning was completed, hoping that the cast had seen what was going on. They would have heard the applause.

She looked over the players and tapped her baton before raising it. Then they were into the overture. They did the show without long breaks, and, two hours later, after some laughter and giggles, the school erupted with applause as the finale thundered to an end. Willow gestured for the orchestra to stand as the cast lined up across the stage, then turned to take her own bow.

The Head went up in stage, microphone in hand.

“Teachers and students of Blue Coat School. You have just witnessed something new. This has been the very first time that the fourth-year Music Studies end of term project has been completed and shown to us. I’ve brought you all out of normal classes to witness what can be done with talent, hard work, and imagination. Also, because you all deserve to see your school at the height of success. I will be talking to the English National Opera this week, and I believe that this show will be performed, by them, in London. We have had our students perform in many places over the years, but this is the first original operetta and also the first to be taken up by a national body.”

There was applause and she waited.

“My thanks go out to all those who have put this together. The cast, the back-room technicians, the orchestra and, of course, the indomitable Willow Rose.”

There was more applause and cheering.

“There is one other reason that I got you here, and that is that the three performances are sold out, and anyone not already booked will miss out on the experience. Thank you.”

The audience started filing out, and the ensemble went off to change. The Head took Willow aside.

“A little bird has told me that your father will be running in the next election.”

“Yes. He’s been chosen to run for Kenilworth.”

“Hopefully, it will be called after you finish fifth form, but, if it’s earlier, make sure it doesn’t distract you from your studies. These things have a habit of taking over your life. At least he’s not coming from behind but has only to convince the electorate that he’s a good replacement.”

“All noted. I think it’s started to get to him about how serious it could be.”

“He’s a good man. I like him. He should do well as long as there are no drastic events. You know, the sort that the papers love.”

“We’ll try to keep it on track. Thank you for your thoughts.”

That evening, after dinner, Willow was tidying the kitchen, Wendy was checking the garden to see that the gardening service had done a good job, and Ashley was sitting with a cup of coffee in front of him.

“Dad. Can we talk?”

“About what, love?”

“About you going all quiet and moody. You’ve got us both worried about you.”

“It’s nothing bad, love, just me having some fears that I’ll disappoint everybody if I lose at the election.”

“Nobody will blame you, Dad, especially us. You have a reputation among those who know you as a good man. This meeting on Saturday is with two people who have met you and four that we don’t know, yet. Hugh said that they were all secret donors. That could only be because they are either recluses or have public positions where donating could be seen as undue influence. This will be more of a pep talk than an interrogation, I’m sure of it.”

“Do you think so?”

“I’m certain, Dad. Now, please talk to Mum about your worries. It doesn’t do you any good to be sitting around all morose. Are the guys at work giving you a hard time?”

“Yes, they all think that I’ll lose.”

“Is it that they think you’ll lose, or that they want you to lose? With your connections, you stand a better chance of replacing the sitting member than almost anyone in the area. We don’t know who will be running against you, so you’re only fighting yourself.”

“I suppose you’re right. I have been a bit of a sourpuss lately, questioning my own worth. I just have to remember that I’m a Cambridge graduate, a good design engineer, married to the most beautiful woman in the world and father to a teenage megastar who can see things that ordinary mortals miss. That DVD at the club was a bit over the top, wasn’t it?”

“That’s not over the top for them. They do that once a month. It’s just that we’ve never experienced it before and it seems strange, just like standing for election. Do it once, Dad, and you’ll be eager to get out into the hustings next time.”

“All right, I’ll pull myself together. It’s the pressure of the guys at work that’s getting to me.”

“See what’s discussed on Saturday and start planning on not having to put up with the guys from work. Remember one very important thing, Dad. You are the managing director of WR Holdings. The company has a ten percent stake in a twenty-five-million-pound shopping centre. It owns a Coventry industrial site, it owns an emerging recording studio, it has one-sixth of a large industrial site in Small Heath, which it bought for under five million and has been offered seven point two for by one of the donors who’s coming to see you on Saturday. On top of that, it’s sitting on a bank balance of around sixteen million. You don’t like going to work, well, tell work to stick it and give yourself a salary from the company.”

“But it’s your money, love, that has come from your album sales and hard work. I can’t be seen sponging off my daughter!”

“If it was a couple of thousand and you took half, that would be sponging. It’s now a big company that needs someone at the helm to keep afloat. Since Wilhelm bailed out, I’ve done nothing to expand, just hoarding the money. It needs someone who can look at things in a professional designers way to see what we can do next. Who knows, there may be something more that comes from Saturday. Please think about it.”

“When you put it that way, love, it makes sense. Nothing will be done without approval of the board if we go that way. I’ll try to be the husband and father you all know. Thank you for telling me things that I should have already known.”

Over the next few days, his attitude returned to his normal self, and he had news for them on Wednesday, at dinner, which he had taken them to the Punchbowl for.

“I had a call from the estate agent today. Someone has made an offer on the Stoneleigh house. It appears that the village has attractions for buyers. A cosy church with a strong congregation, a Village Club with a good reputation within walking distance, and a good community vibe has had several who want to live there. He told me that he has had other offers, but has held off telling us, in case we just took the first one. He thinks that we’ve reached a point where we can’t expect more, so I told him to follow through and get the sale finalised.”

“That’s lovely, darling. We paid seven-ten for it, and, thanks to Willow, own it outright. How much are they paying?”

“One point one million, my love. One point one million.”

There were squeals and hugs which brought the owner to their table to ask about the noise. When he was told that they had sold their old house, he brought out a bottle of champagne ‘on the house’ and they had a toast, with the bubbly liquid making Willow’s tongue tingle.

On Thursday, the orchestra fitted the new concerto into a group of other popular classics, and Mister Howard thanked them all for an interesting and productive term. The following week was revision, and the next, until the last day of the term, was exams.

Thursday evening, the operetta opened to a full house and was greeted with laughter and applause. In the interval, many bought the boxes of conjuring tricks and baseball caps with ‘Ego is Always Great’ on them, that Garry, Willow and Vivienne had specially made for the show. All could afford a donation to the school, and this was a fun way of doing just that.

Friday night was another success, with some of the ENO in the audience, along with Clive and Jill. There was a lot of talk and laughter afterwards, in the lunchroom, and the Head told Willow that the performance had sealed a deal that had been thrashed out during the afternoon, that had been dependant on the show proving its worth.

Saturday morning, the family were up and at breakfast early, then going for showers and dressing well for visitors. It was a nice day, and there was now a large table on the back patio, big enough to seat a dozen, with a six metre by three metre gazebo erected to give it some shade. The bifold doors to the kitchen had been pulled back so that drinks and nibbles were easily served. There was a range of good wines in the fridge, and more in the one in the garage, along with beer. Wendy had brought home a range of cakes and biscuits, as well as enough meat and veg to serve them all, should any want to stay for lunch.

Just before ten, Vivienne arrived, with her limo service dropping her off. She had asked Willow about some practise on the weekend and had volunteered to help when told more about the meeting. At five past, three cars came up the drive and parked. Ashley and Wendy went out to greet their visitors, while the girls made sure that everything out the back was ready. The visitors were guided around the side of the house to the patio and asked if they wanted anything to drink. The girls poured glasses of wine for some, with one only wanting water and two wanting beer ‘if it’s cold’.

As they were getting the drinks, there was some talk. Vivienne glanced outside.

“Now that’s what I call a house party!”

Willow nodded.

“Sam and Hugh were expected, but I didn’t expect to see six millionaires in our back garden.”

They carried the drinks out and served the guests and then Wendy and Ashley. One of the guests smiled.

“Thank you, ladies. I have this feeling that I’ve seen you both, before, but can’t place it.”

Hugh laughed.

“Think about your teenage daughter, Jeff. I expect that you may have caught a glimpse of these girls on one of their DVDs. We’re at the home of Ashley and Wendy Rose, and the one who served you is Willow Rose. The other is Vivienne Armstrong, who has just had a top ten album with Willow playing piano for her.”

“Oh! I’m sorry, girls. I don’t follow the current music, more into the classics. My wife and I have tickets to a new operetta tonight, that Hugh has generously given us. I believe that all six of us are going, with our families.”

Willow grinned.

“I would say that I’d see you there, sir, but I spend the whole performance with my back to the audience. You will see Viv, though, as she’s the leading lady. We’ll get back inside and leave you to your discussion.”

The girls went inside and spoke quietly, watching for Wendy’s signals for more drink or food. From what they could hear, the talk was mainly about Ashley and his thoughts on a range of topics that he may be faced with during, and hopefully after, the campaign. From what Willow could tell, these men all had big businesses in the Midlands, and beyond, and were making sure that they weren’t backing a radical firebrand. Ashley would be just one of the candidates that they would back, as they were keen to see a return to a more business-orientated government. If not now, but into the future.

Later on, as the serious part had run its course, the girls were invited to sit at the table and were asked about their singing career and scholastic intentions. As the talk eased, one of the men asked the big question.

“Ashley. If the election was called on Monday, are you prepared to spend all day, every day, campaigning. Will you give up your job to do it?”

Ashley looked him in the eyes.

“Yes, sir, I will. If you had asked me this time last week, I would have hesitated, but my daughter gave me a reality check during the week, which has crystallised my thinking. I think that I could be a good member for this electorate and am willing to serve the party in whatever endeavour they think necessary.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 11

The men all nodded and made to leave. Hugh and Sam gave Ashley a man-hug, but the others just shook hands. The four walked the visitors back to their cars and waved as they left. Wendy gave a big sigh.

“I guess that when the election’s called, I’ll have to be the ‘supporting housewife’.”

“You can still work from home, my darling. By the time the election comes around, you may be ready for some rest. We do have some holiday time in the summer, while the girls are overseas. You may come home from that not wanting to go back to the daily grind.”

“Come home! Where are you taking me?”

“I’ve booked us on a two-week cruise in the Med.”

“Leaving when?”

“A week after Willow heads for Paris. I’ve also booked a security company to install monitored cameras here next week. They don’t need to be in the house to do it, and there will be feed that I can look at on my phone. It’s a pal of Sebastian’s, and he says that he’ll oversee the installation for us.”

“I need something to wear on board.”

“You have three weeks to get it, my darling.”

They went back to the house, leaving Willow and Vivienne giggling.

That afternoon, the four of them went to the steakhouse on the way to the school, where Vivienne had her picture taken to go on the wall next to Willow, who looked a lot younger when hers was taken. They took another of her to match Vivienne.

When Willow walked out after the orchestra, there was applause, and she could see a lot of the audience were already wearing the Ego hats. That performance was the best that they had done, with the cast now using timing to make the jokes work better, and generally hamming it up, happy that it was the last time. Norman, here for the second time, was making notes with the changes. There was a party atmosphere in the lunchroom afterwards, and all the cast got cheers when they came in after changing, Garry squiring Willow and Viv.

The event went close to midnight, with Hugh and his wife both giving the girls a hug and saying how much fun it was. Hugh asked Willow to send him the contact details for all the syndicate, as he would email the paperwork next week. Jeff also thawed enough to follow his lead and hug, telling Willow that she had changed his view on pop stars. Sam and his family were there, with the twins almost hyper.

They took Vivienne home before heading to Rising Lane. Willow was bright and talking all the way, but she did sleep quickly once she was in bed. In the morning, she emailed all the syndicate to expect the papers for the property sale, and emailed Hugh with all the contact details, including hers. She spent the rest of the morning trying to get a catchy tune to go with the words she had written for her father. In the afternoon, they hosted a barbeque for the team from the electorate office, as a ‘get to know you’ affair, with most being young and drinking beer.

That week was revision and catching up with the odd lessons that had been missed. The Head called Willow and Vivienne into her office on the Wednesday, telling them that the performances had been a great success, and thanking them for the donation of the hats and conjuring sets, which had sold out, giving the school funds a boost of over ten thousand pounds. She also thanked them for the success of the deal with the ENO, and that there will be some interaction with them when they workshop the show. She told them that it was possible that the two of them will be part of the finished show, with Willow conducting and Vivienne as the leading lady.

That weekend, Willow put her case together and had all her stage outfits in garment bags, ready for the following weekend. The last week of her last term as a fourth year was exams. On the Friday, at lunch, Garry went around the room to say goodbye to his friends, making sure that he gave all the girls a kiss, but saving the best for Willow. He was also going on tour, with ‘Toxic Rocks’, and would be on the road for more than three months. He thought he may come back to finish school, but grinned when he said that he hoped he didn’t have to.

On Saturday, Willow bade her parents farewell, and her limo service took her to London, where she was to meet Vivienne at the Eurotunnel station as it was the easiest way to get to Paris. They were met in Paris and taken to a hotel. On Sunday, they had media interviews, able to answer in French. They were taken to the venue on Monday, where they met their dressers for the tour, leaving the stage outfits with them. They performed from Monday evening to Sunday evening, and then went on to Monaco. The following Monday saw them in Florence, where Gina met up with them at the hotel.

“Mum and I went to that club where you’re playing. It’s a bit different, and we had to join before we could get tickets for your show, and that was only for Wednesday. They had a video for sale, called ‘VivWillow in Heaven’. It was like our shows in the club but populated with crazy women. Surely the label isn’t happy with you doing these shows.”

“Happy enough to issue a package of that double disc, along with both of our latest albums, which are mainly songs from the show, recorded in the studio. It went on the market two weeks before we left.”

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Gina took them around her new home, seeing the sights and visiting her music school, where Willow was asked to play something on the Grand Piano. She played an etude from the latest Chopin album that she had bought, and the teacher told her that he could have her playing with orchestras inside a year, alongside Angelina Summer.

On the Wednesday, Maisie and Gina came along to the show, and stayed to the end, hugging the girls afterwards. On Thursday, they went to lunch at the new home, meeting Maisie’s man friend and the family. Gina had a Steinway in her lounge, and they had a laugh with the two of them playing sing-along music for a while, before the girls needed to be back at the club to get ready for the evening show.

Gina was to be in Rome that weekend, to play a concert with an orchestra, so they all had a lunch in a restaurant on the Thursday, before hugging farewell. On the following Monday, they were in Zurich, the Monday after was Prague, and the next was Berlin, which was the one that had been moved from the actual club to a sports area. That one was a day less than the others, giving them the Sunday to fly home.

When Willow was dropped at home by her limo, she was enveloped in the loving arms of her parents. She had a long shower and gave out the various curios that she had picked up on her tour. She was shown the pictures from the cruise, and they went to the Punchbowl for dinner. Ashley told her that he had met with a lot of the other donors and supporters, with acceptance from the first six being a key to open many doors. Wendy had started working from home, three days a week, taking home the raw material on Monday and taking back the finished product on Friday. Willow was given her unopened letter from the school, with the usual results listed. Ashley took it so he could frame it and add it to his new wall of her achievements.

School didn’t start until the Tuesday, so Willow slept late and relaxed on the Monday, before making sure that her uniform was ready to go. Assembly was interesting. After the blessing, the Head spoke about the previous term and the various things that had happened. Once again, Willow was with a larger number of students who were asked to stand. There were no surprise announcements and they started fifth year without a crisis in the making.

When she had looked at her schedule for the Music Studies, she had found that she had been given a pass on the two segments in both terms. They covered Composition and Listening assessments, which she, along with Vivienne, had already achieved. That didn’t give them free time, however, as they were to attend the lessons as teachers’ aides. That would finish that part of the courses, but they could move on to Music Technology, which included mixing and recording.

As this year was aimed at passing the big exams, to allow them to move to the higher studies, it was mainly academic. The Junior Orchestra was on Tuesday, with the Senior still on Thursday. As they were looking at the display of photos from the operetta in reception, Miss Russell found them and told them that the Head wanted a word. They were beckoned into the office, where both Mister Bamborough and Mister Jamieson were already sitting to one side of her desk. They were asked to sit on the other two seats and Miss Russell closed the door.

“Welcome back to school. I suppose that you noticed that there were no big projects for you this year.”

“Yes, ma-am.”

“Well, that isn’t quite the case, but I wasn’t going to talk about it until we had a discussion. We know that you’ll be going for the exams this year, but we have been approached by the Football Club to see if we can organise another show for charity towards next summer.”

“We don’t have the band any longer, ma-am.”

“They know, but they have seen your latest DVDs and have asked if we could organise the two of you with an orchestra.”

The Head grinned.

“Your task, should you accept it, will be in two parts. You now have a wealth of knowledge and experience that is unique. We would like you to work with the Junior Orchestra, and Mister Jamieson, to work up a show that you can perform in our theatre before Christmas. It can be a mix of your old and new material. Willow, you can have the choice of conducting from the rostrum or playing the piano, with Mister Jamieson conducting.”

“If I’m on the rostrum, I can’t sing.”

“Exactly. Vivienne, you will, of course be up front and singing.”

“And the second part, ma-am?”

“You work with the Senior Orchestra to produce a similar show, but six months later at the football ground and it would be good if there are new albums that can be sold at the performance. They have spoken to your label and the BBC about televising it. We’ve run it by Peter, and his answer was that if you two agree, he’ll place his order for a new Rolls Royce.”

“What about the scores?”

“That’s where we win on another count. The Senior Orchestra can be tasked with writing them out as you work. That will give those in the Music Studies course a project that will fulfill their requirements, with you working with them in lesson time. The other non-playing students will have a project of their own, and that will be devising a pyrotechnic, light, and projection set-up for the big show. Or should I say shows, because the club want to have them on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. You will, of course, be paid for your appearances then.”

“No pressure, then!”

“No more than nailing that operetta in less than eight weeks. You know that you can do it, and it will have some recommendations added to your school record, on top of the ones you already have.”

Willow looked at the two teachers.

“Are you all right with this, sirs?”

“All the way, Willow. It’s going to be a lot different from the stuffy things we normally do, but we’ll both benefit from being inside the creation of something worthwhile.”

The two girls looked at each other and Vivienne laughed.

“It looks like VivWillow with the Blue Coat Orchestra have a booking. If we get the Juniors working well, we can record the album with them next year, and the show DVD will be the Seniors, so everyone will get some credits. So, twelve class weeks before the school show, and another twenty, or so to the big show. I like it!”

“Thank you, girls. I’m almost sorry that you’ll be moving on. I wish I could keep you for ever.”

The girls left the office and made their way to the first lesson. When they got to lunchtime, they sat with the other orchestra members, but didn’t say anything, saving it for the proper time on Thursday. When they looked around the lunchroom, they noticed that where the boys normally sat, there was another group. Nancy was sitting next to Vivienne, so Willow asked her where the rest of the old band were.

“Over the summer, they hooked up with Geoff and formed a new band called Blue Day. They got Peter to get them bookings, and they would be somewhere around Skegness at the moment, going anticlockwise around the seaside towns. As they’re all sixteen, with a steady job, they were allowed to leave. It doesn’t matter to them that the pay isn’t great, but they do have their own nest-eggs and are doing what they like. Mainly covers, and some of the G-Force songs that Geoff wrote. The new Hikers were going around the country in the opposite direction.”

“To paraphrase an old saying, ‘We may be among the few, but we seem to be getting fewer’. Of the seventeen that did that short tour, there’s just the five of us here.”

“At least this is going to be an easy year.”

“In your dreams, Nancy. All will be revealed on Thursday, at Senior Orchestra. You’re going to love it.”

“I’ve seen your show DVD in Heaven. Are we going to be playing ‘Danse Macabre’ with naked men cavorting around us?”

“Not quite that bad, you perverted madam, but interesting, all the same. Wait until Thursday, with all the others. That will give us some time to work it out.”

Being the first day of the term, the junior orchestra wasn’t meeting, so the girls had time to work out the speech for next week. On Thursday afternoon, they all assembled in the rehearsal room. Mister Bamborough welcomed them all to the last year of their orchestral endeavours and thanked everyone for the fantastic performances that they had performed over the last few years.

“This year, we have something special for you. I know that the Head didn’t announce anything, but you will find out what’s coming up from my two assistants, Willow and Vivienne.”

Willow stood in front of them.

“Last term, you all worked a minor miracle by scoring a full concerto of ‘Laptop’. It is that, I think, that has made some impressed teachers set us a new task. At the end of the Summer Term, we will be on a big stage at the Coventry City Football stadium, playing a show that will consist of some of the Summer Rose back catalogue, some of the current issues, and a lot of two new albums yet to be written. I’ll be singing and playing piano, and Vivienne will be singing. The shows will be three nights, and the stadium will be able to seat sixty thousand. The concerts will be to raise money for charity, but there will be some for us, for all our hard work. A lot of you saw the shows we did there, and there are five of us that were on that stage. We know what it takes to please the customers.”

Vivienne took over.

“Willow and I will be working with the Junior Orchestra, on Tuesdays, to put together a similar show, without the new stuff. That will be performed before Christmas, in our Theatre. Next year, we hope to record an album, each. One with them backing us, and one with you. It means that you need to know our old repertoire and to be able to write out an orchestral score for some. Those of you in the fifth-year music studies will have it registered as your input for that.”

Dianne put her hand up.

“Doesn’t that disadvantage the others who don’t play, Viv?”

“You don’t think that this school would disadvantage a student, do you? No, the technical guys and gals will be working on an addition to the big show. They will be attending a special school to learn pyrotechnics, adding their back and front projection skills, and also being taught how to create stadium light shows. They’re going to have a ball; I can tell you.”

They didn’t play a note in that session, but talked about the older albums and chose the ones that would work with an orchestral backing. Some Carpenters stood out, along with the two hits from the ‘Journey’ album. The two Willow albums had some on the list, as did Viv’s latest two. The three songs that Vivienne sang in the operetta were also included, which already had a score written.

On Friday, the others from the Music Studies were told about the project. Willow had been talking to Clive and had been given contacts where the tech group could get experience, by being added to crews that were working with current shows, to soak up the techniques. They were excused the actual lesson times, as they would be learning out of school hours.

On Saturday, Willow looked at her laptop for the first time in months, having been a bit busy in the intervening period. There were a few from Peter, the oldest going back to the beginning of July, with a statement. Her earnings at that time was two hundred and eighty thousand. The next one was at the beginning of August, after the package had been released. Peter advised that the bulk of the profit for the show DVD was going to the Alliance, but she would be getting her four pounds for her album, as usual, and five for her DVD in the package, with another two from the show DVD. That would give her seven for each of the packages sold. Her back catalogue had sold enough to give her two hundred and ten thousand, the new CD had sold two hundred and eighty thousand in the three weeks, so giving her one-point one-two. The package had sold two hundred and ten thousand, so giving her one point four-seven. Her total, after the commission and costs, was two point three million. She replied to that email with the request that he transfer three million to the WR account, leaving a quarter of a million with him.

There was an email from her accountant, telling her that the one point two for the sale of Small Heath was now in the account. The latest email was another from Peter, with her earnings from the August period. She had been paid the hundred and eighty thousand from the Alliance for all the shows. Her album had hit Gold with three hundred and ten thousand sales, giving her one point two million. The package had sold big across Europe, selling three hundred and fifty thousand, so giving her two point four-five. With back catalogue sales, less costs and commission, she had cleared three and a half million. She replied to get him to transfer it all to her company account.

There was an email from Gina, with an attachment. It was a copy of the revue for her first solo concert in Rome, with glowing praise for ‘this new star in the piano world’. She answered with her own congratulations and told Gina about the latest school project.

On Sunday, the family attended a picnic in Stratford, organised by the electorate office, funded by Ashley, and put on for all the volunteers who handed out the papers at the polling stations and did the doorknocking. It was a big crowd, in a public park, and many found out that the Ashley Rose that they would be working for was the father of Willow Rose, the entertainer. She signed a lot of tee-shirts that afternoon.

Tuesday, after school, Willow and Vivienne walked into the Junior Orchestra, to the amazement of the players and the glee of members of the Vines. Mister Jamieson welcomed the players to the new school year, all of the orchestra being new second year, except for Abbie, the leader. He asked for quiet, and deferred to Willow, who explained that they would have a special project, leading to a performance in the theatre at the end of term.

“The brief that we have been given is to create a show, based around the music of Summer Rose and beyond, with full orchestral scoring. We’re not here to tell you what to do, but to be part of the performance. You are the ones who will decide what it sounds like, be it close to original or else a lot slower, faster, whatever Those of you doing music studies will bank some experience for later years. Next year, you will accompany us on a new album. That will be a collaboration.”

There was a buzz in the room, and then Vivienne took over.

“At the same time, the Senior Orchestra is working towards a similar performance. That one, however, will be on a big stage at the football ground and will be for charity. They will also accompany us on an album, with both being released before the show. We discussed the list of songs with them last week, and these are the ones that they decided on. Mister Jamieson will read them out and you can comment on whether you agree, and if you would do any of them differently. We’ll just take notes and answer any questions you have.”

As they worked through the list, Willow needed to sit at the piano to play, many in the room too young to have heard the earlier tunes. When they were walking out to their rides, Vivienne laughed.

“I wonder if the Head gave us this to show us that we’re getting old. Most of that orchestra would have been ten when we started playing the dinner dances.”

“I know. I sometimes feel as if I’m trapped in a time warp by knowing so many songs. I once thought that my retention was an asset. Now I’m wondering what the limit is.”

Over the next few weeks, the two concerts began to take shape. The Seniors taking the original tunes as the yardstick, as it was to be presented to a big audience, the Juniors playing around with tempo and timing, as a demonstration of their own way of thinking. The twins were the powerhouse behind the changes, and the girls left a lot to Abbie to keep her orchestra in some sort of line.

Willow and Vivienne were going through their old notebooks to find snippets of songs that they had started but never completed, trying to get a theme for the new albums. It was browsing her laptop, one evening, when Willow saw her ‘Fractured’ file, and realised that the sounds she thought could be made by a synthesiser could be also made by an orchestra. She listened to what she had previously recorded, and then sat at her desk, writing out the most experimental score she had ever imagined, wondering if it could just be stupid. It would take a single play to prove if it would work.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 12

One of the things that had struck Willow as they worked with the two orchestras was how one was so much older. As it had all been a gradual change, she had only noticed the changes in herself in the need to occasionally buy new clothes. When they were with the Juniors, she realised that she had been the same age when she started at the school, and it was only Abbie that stood out as older, and wiser.

When the Seniors gathered, Willow looked around and made note of the way her friends had grown up. The girls all looked like young ladies, even in the school uniform, and the boys were mostly handsome. Vivienne was way ahead of her in the looks department, but Willow realised that a lot of it was good make-up.

“Viv. Do you go to a salon?”

“Of course. Every three weeks with Mum. Why, don’t you?”

“Except for shows where we were made up, I’ve only been the once, and that was for Racheal’s wedding. I’ve been taking note of our friends, and I realise what being sixteen means. I’m going to have to do something if I’m going to help Dad.”

“We visit a very good place in Birmingham. I’ll organise a visit for you and pick you up when we go. It’s actually this Saturday.”

“All right. I’ll be home.”

That Saturday, her parents were going to look for a car for Ashley, as he couldn’t keep putting mileage on the company car. They locked the house and Willow waited by the gate, watching the traffic go by, until Vivienne and Juliette arrived. They went to a place that welcomed them and especially welcomed Willow. She had a full hair treatment, a mani-ped, some wax treatment on a few spots where hair had sprouted that she couldn’t see, and agreed to a semi-permanent make-up treatment, which would be good for school days, and added to for other times.

When they got back to Rising Lane, Willow invited the others to join her for lunch at the Punchbowl. They talked about the future, and wondered what would be happening with the operetta, the charity show, and their general life direction as they moved towards the end of high school and into further studies.

Juliette was keen for Vivienne to become an established entertainer and praised Willow for giving her daughter such a magnificent training in long shows. One thing that was becoming clear was that Peter wasn’t going to continue as their manager as they moved on. They would need an established big-name manager, probably in London, to further their careers.

When her parents came home, she was sitting in the kitchen with her notebooks open, working on lyrics. Wendy walked in and grinned.

“Ashley, darling, can you call the police while I hold this strange person in the kitchen!”

He came into the kitchen and took a look at his daughter.

“Who are you and what have you done to my normal teenager?”

“This is the result of four hours in a salon, Dad. I’ll be going with Viv every third week, from now on. Do you think that it worked?”

Wendy sat beside her and touched her arm.

“It sure did, darling. You grew up. You’ve only looked older when you’re performing, but you needed to take the plunge, now you’re sixteen. What brought this on?”

“Looking at all my schoolfriends in the orchestra and seeing how grown-up they all looked, compared with the Juniors we’re also working with. It made me realise that there was one thing about being a girl that I was neglecting. I’ve got a bag of new products, and instruction sheets, and I’m going to train my brain into being a model, and not just for shows.”

“I’m impressed and proud of you, love. Today is the first day of the woman who is Willow. Can I join you at the salon next time?”

Ashley sat at the table, after putting cups of tea in front of them, and pored over a car brochure.

“What are you getting, Dad?”

“Another Range Rover, like your mother’s, but in white with black highlights. I know it will be used on weekends, mainly, but the paymaster gave me a tip that my usage of the company car will be scrutinised before I get a replacement. We’ll have to look for something for you in another six months, so that you can be independent. You can’t rely on a limo service every day, especially if you need to go into a university most days.”

“I know, Dad. It’s racing up quicker than I expected.”

“You know that you’re already old enough to get a provisional licence and start to learn to drive.”

“Can I? I thought you have to be seventeen.”

“To be able to drive on your own, yes, but that doesn’t stop you learning, or driving with one of us in the car.”

“Nice one! I’ll look into getting an instructor.”

That Sunday, they had a drive out. The Kenilworth electorate was a big ring around the Warwick and Leamington electorate, and mainly rural. The biggest towns were Kenilworth itself, and Stratford-on-Avon. That day, they were hosting all of the volunteers from the south-eastern corner of the area, mainly only a few to a village, at the British Motor Museum at Gaydon. Willow had never been there and had a great time looking at the cars and being photographed with the volunteers in front of some. A few even included her father. Whenever the election was called, he was beginning to be known and befriended.

Over the next week, Willow received comments on her new look. She had to admit that her hair had become her crowning glory, with tints and waves that she now loved. The Juniors were coming along nicely, with about half of the show scored and rehearsed. She introduced the Seniors to her ‘Fractured’ song, taking her laptop to school and playing it to them with the synthesiser sounds. She, and Vivienne had written about half a dozen new songs, between them, which were already undergoing the orchestral scoring, so they considered that they were doing well.

The first week of October brought another statement from Peter. The old catalogue had picked up, bringing her another four hundred and ten thousand. Her CD was still selling well with another three hundred and twenty thousand sales, giving her one point two-eight million. The double DVD was now removed from the package, which had sold out at six hundred thousand copies, adding another forty thousand sales to give her two hundred and eighty thousand. Her DVD had gone on to sell a hundred and eighty thousand on its own, adding another nine hundred thousand to her income. In total, after the costs and commission, she had another three point seven million. She replied to get him to transfer three and a half to the business.

The weeks went by, with Wendy joining them to visit the salon on the third Saturday, and then it was just a week to the half-term holiday. Sundays, these days, were mainly taken up visiting all the volunteers in outlying areas, often just sitting in kitchens and drinking tea. For Willow, her Saturdays were now dedicated to driving lessons with an instructor from the Driving Academy in Coventry. As in everything she did, she concentrated on the job in hand and became quite good, once she had passed the written exam.

In the break, she went down to London with her mother, who was now only working part-time, with the brochure business in a bit of a slump, due to rising printing costs, even from overseas.

They lived in their separate apartments but joined for meals and outings. For Willow, it was a new experience, seeing the traffic in a new light as they went to places in the Range Rover. She wasn’t quite up to driving in the city, yet, but they had magnetic plates which went on the vehicle when she took over the wheel in the more open areas.

One place they went to, with Ted and Alicia, was to Royal Holloway, where Terry met them and showed them around the campus. She had booked for five at the Great Fosters restaurant, and Wendy had her first taste of Michelin Star dining. After that, Willow drove them around the south of the city on the M25, and A3, stopping at Clapham Common for Wendy to take over to drive back to the parking station. Walking back to the apartment, Ted asked her about her plans, noting that she had taken the application form for a Batchelor of Science in Business Administration that Terry had offered her.

“Terry said that the applications open in February, with the intake next November. He assured me that, if I apply, I should be sure of a place. I finish fifth year in July, so should have my exam results by August. With the course I’ve already passed, I don’t need to go for higher studies to qualify. That will mean that I start in November, after a nice holiday, and will graduate when I’m twenty. It’s full-time at Royal Holloway, so I can live here and take myself to the university.”

“That sounds like a good plan, Willow. What do you intend to do with your qualifications?”

“That’s something that will become clearer as time goes on. I am a firm believer that things come to those who wait.”

“In your case, big things happen to those who do the hard work. What are the musical plans?”

“We’re working on a school show to be performed in a month. It’s Vivienne and me with the Junior Orchestra, with a VivWillow selection of old Summer Rose and our new albums. After that, we’ll be recording a new album of new work with them that we’ve put together. Then we’re going to record another new album with the Senior Orchestra, and that will be followed by a series of big charity shows at the Coventry City ground with the Senior Orchestra. That one will have lights, projections, and pyrotechnics. The results will give the Juniors a lot of points in their Music Studies, and the Seniors passing their final Music Studies. The two orchestras are writing out the scores for all the music.”

“That big show sounds like one to get tickets for. Will that be your last show?”

“Could be. I’ll need to concentrate on my studies after that.”

“At twenty, you’ll have a lifetime ahead of you.”

“I know. We’ve talked about things, and Vivienne and I have decided that we will let the music slide while we study. She wants to find somewhere to become an opera singer, or a soloist in front of orchestras. If we end up earning very little after three years, we can leave our manager and talk to new ones here, who are better prepared to take us further.”

During that week, she rang Jill and went to see her at the office. Jill and Clive welcomed her in and congratulated Willow on a very successful package, one that exceeded the expectations. Willow was given bags with Gold Records for her CD and DVD, with another pair for Vivienne’s CD and DVD. There were a pair of Gold Records for them, as well, engraved to the VivWillow Writing Team for the two albums. She was given another bag, with Platinum Records for the CD and DVD , both having passed the mark during the month, along with awards for the studio. Willow advised Clive of her plans, with just the next album and shows as her last for a few years, to allow them to prepare the media for her absence from the stage while she studied.

They went home on the Friday morning, so that Willow could take her driving lesson on Saturday. They stopped off at Vivienne’s house to give her the awards, and then went home to prepare a dinner for Ashley when he got home.

On Saturday morning, when her instructor arrived, she came out with the awards in their bags.

“What are we doing today, Willow? You look like you’re ready for a trip.”

“If you don’t mind, I would like to go to Leicester, to leave these items.”

“That will be at the recording studio. I have looked up your profile on social media.”

“That’s right. I hope you don’t mind.”

“You’re paying by the hour, Willow. Why should I mind? We will go through Coventry on the way. It’s about time you got used to inner-city traffic. You’re already excellent in the open country.”

They took a way that she had been before, and then traversed the city, coming out on the M69 to Leicester. At the studio, she parked and took him into the studio, where Garry was recording a new album with his band. The instructor was amazed at what he was seeing. They stood behind Sarah as his long-time heroes were working on new songs.

When they had a break, they all gathered in the rest area, and Willow presented the team with her awards to go on the wall, along with the awards for the studio. The wall was getting full, with Josh telling her that all the older Golds were now stored, to make room for the newer ones and the Platinum collection. He had rearranged them and gone higher with a long line of the older ones, then a line of later ones, many for recording other singers and bands, the line of pictures from the sessions, now very close together, with space underneath for more. One picture showed Zara with her combo, and there were both Gold and Platinum awards above it.

The other wall had the sign lifted higher to give more room, with the Double Platinum and Treble Platinum in pride of place. That wall was only Willow Rose offerings, with and without the rest of the band. One row of Platinum, one row of Gold, the pictures, and one row of the studio awards.

Sarah told her that the ENO was coming in on the last week of November and had already booked the same weeks for next year. The studio was sending regular singers and bands during the second week of the month, and had also booked for next year, making this studio their main one. Willow told her to maintain the pricing for another year, as the studio was achieving her intended income.

The instructor got to talk with his heroes, and Willow got to talk to Garry.

“How do you like being a rock god, Garry?”

“Beats school, hands down. We did the big tour over summer and I’m now very well off. When we finish this album, it will be my first as an actual band member, and then we’re promoting it with a tour in the summer. After that, the band will take a rest to write new material. Someone from the ENO has been in touch, asking me if I would be available after that to be part of the operetta, which they’ll be workshopping. Have they been in touch with you?”

“Not yet. I suppose they needed to see if you were available, now that you’re a megastar.”

“You’re the real star here, Willow. How about I take you through and show you the kit?”

They went through to the studio and stood behind the stack of amps and kissed.

“You really are beautiful, love. What will you be doing after school finishes?”

“Living in my apartment in London and going to the University for three years. I won’t be making any albums after April.”

“Maybe I can come and visit you there, once we’re off the road.”

“I’d like that, Garry, a lot. You’ve got my number. Now, you’d better be ready to get back to work and I need to continue my driving lesson.”

They kissed some more, and Willow checked her lipstick before they went back to the others. When they were back in the car, the instructor had all the signatures, in texta, on his uniform hi-vis shirt.

“That was unexpected and wonderful, Willow. While we were there, I rang a friend of mine and we’ll be driving to the Everyman Racing track near Derby, to give you a high-speed experience as my gift to you. Of course, they will want pictures of you for their wall of celebrities.”

He directed her north to Prestwold, where they were greeted by his friend.

“Nice shirt, bud. Been to a concert lately?”

“This is from this morning, in Willow’s studio, where I met the whole band recording a new album.”

“Well, bud, you do get around. Willow, what would you like to experience, we have a huge range of cars for you?”

“I don’t want to scream around in something where my bum is almost touching the ground. Have you got something that I might want to buy for myself.”

“How is she on motorways, bud?”

“As good as it gets.”

“All right. We have a BMW M135i which is quick enough to be an experience, yet a lovely car for a female to drive as she gets more time at the wheel. If you do get one, you can come back and throw it around our track.”

She was sat in the passenger seat of the BMW, kitted out in a driving suit, helmet, and strapped in with the full harness, and then taken out on the track to get the feel of speed. As it was on an old airfield, the main excitement was on short section of a runway with a slight turn to the long straight. Willow watched as her driver took her up over a hundred miles an hour and then through the turn, reached a hundred and forty, before pulling up and turning around and going back. When they had got back to the offices, she was put into the driving seat with the man beside her.

On her run, she was slower, but not by much. She did get to a hundred and twenty on the long straight in both directions. Back at the offices, she was photographed with her driver in front of the car and given a certificate to show that she had officially become a member of the ‘ton-up club’.

It was almost an anticlimax to be back in the normal car and heading back home. On the motorway, she had to be reminded to slow down.

“Sorry, after going over a hundred, this just seems too slow with all that road in front of me. Do you have another appointment today?”

“Not until three. I’ve learned to give myself a buffer when I’m with you, as you don’t quibble over the cost of an extra hour.”

“When we get back to Rising Lane, there’s a place where we like to eat, not far from home. I’d like to buy you lunch.”

“Well, thank you for that. Can we go by my office, I’d like to change this shirt. I wouldn’t want to spill food on it and have to wash it.”

They made good time on the M1 and then the M69 and stopped at his office.

“Before I take this off, Willow, can you please sign the back?”

She signed it with a big signature, and he went off to change. When he returned, they carried on to the Punchbowl. Over the meal, he told her that he was impressed with her normal driving and that he doubted that he could teach her any more than she would learn going out with her parents. He suggested that she look for something to drive, that she would be taking the test in, and that for her to contact him a few weeks before her birthday, so he could take her around the usual roads that were used in the test.

He drove from the restaurant to her house and dropped her off at the gate, thanking her for lunch and wishing her a Merry Christmas. In the house, she joined her parents in the kitchen with a cup of tea.

“Bit of a long lesson, love. Was there any trouble? Did you hit anything?”

“Just the opposite, Dad. We went to the studio to give them the latest awards and Garry’s band was there, recording an album. My instructor is a huge fan and walked out with his shirt signed, and on top of the world. He was so happy, he directed me to a place where a friend of his works, and I was given a ride in a very fast car, then was able to drive it myself.”

She pulled out her certificate. Ashley looked at it a laughed.

“Can I have this for my wall of things my daughter as done?”

“Certainly, Dad. I brought back the brochure for you. They have Aston Martins.”

On the Sunday, they went to Stoneleigh to talk to Malcolm and the volunteers. They already knew everybody, but it was still good not to leave them out. They had lunch, with Willow now allowed a small glass of wine. After the meeting finished, and Malcolm was behind the bar, Willow sat on a barstool to talk to him.

“How are the Saturday nights going, Malcolm?”

“Good, lass. We had Zara in with her combo a couple of weeks ago. She’s very good and it was a great night. When are you going to entertain us again?”

“I’ll have to talk to Vivienne, but I was thinking of a Christmas Eve or New Year Eve party.”

“Either would be grand. Find out and let me know so I can advertise it. You know we can’t pay you what you normally get, these days.”

“As far as I’m concerned, we’ll do it for free. This place is a huge part of our memories.”

That week, she spoke to Vivienne about the show, and she agreed that playing as a duo, with Willow on the keyboard, would be a lovely way to see in the year. Willow rang Malcolm and confirmed that it would be a New Year’s party.

In the middle of the week, she had another statement from Peter. The CD had sold two hundred and eighty thousand with the DVD selling three hundred and twenty thousand. With the old catalogue still selling, she had received just under one point eight million. She asked him to transfer two million, and also advised him of her plans to stop recording after her next album, until she had finished university.

On the Saturday, Willow drove her mother’s Range Rover to the BMW dealer in Leicester and asked about buying a car for herself. She told them that she had driven an M135 and liked it. She had a drive in the showroom 135 and sat with her mother and the manager to thrash out a deal, taking in the fact that it would be paid for by her company, who already had two 5-series.

When they left, she had ordered an M135i in Tanzanite Blue, with Veganza Oyster upholstery, nineteen-inch wheels and the technical pack. The normal price was over forty-seven thousand, but she got it down to forty-two and a half. It would be available early in January, as there were none in that configuration in stock. She told them that it wouldn’t be a problem and paid the deposit.

As the weeks passed, the girls and the junior orchestra worked through to complete the show, with all the scores passed on to the Seniors, who were working on the newer songs that the girls were bringing to them in raw form. The single show had now blown out to three shows with the rush of bookings.

During the weekends, she was driving her father in his Range Rover as he went to various meetings. Her driving had become almost natural, and she was getting impatient with the wait to allow her to be independent. On the last weekend of November, they were visiting a group of volunteers when Ashley’s phone rang. He excused himself and left Willow to talk. As they were going home, he pulled out his diary and wrote in it.

“The phone call was Hugh. He wants to come and visit us next Saturday. He did say that he has a couple of tickets for your show on Friday evening.”

“I think that it’s sold out, along with the other two.”

“You know Hugh, he can get tickets for anywhere if he puts his mind to it. He has more contacts than anyone I’ve ever met.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 13

The following week was a busy one. On Tuesday afternoon, the Junior Orchestra were set up at the back of the stage, with a rostrum between them and the piano and microphones for Willow and Vivienne. They worked through the full show, with Mister Jamieson conducting, and some other teachers watching.

Afterwards, Willow gave out new outfits for the girls, in a shiny material with the school blue. There were shirts in a similar material for the boys. The label had sent boxes of the last two albums for sale at the show, and Vivienne had organised new pendants in stainless steel with a raised image of the two of them, taken from a show picture, and ‘VivWillow Rocks’ on the back. One was given to each of the orchestra.

On Wednesday, there was the last statement for the year. The back catalogue was holding steady, and the new CD had sold two hundred and eighty thousand, while the DVD had sold three hundred and twenty thousand, giving here a payment, after costs and commission, of two point five-five million. She asked Peter to transfer two and a half million to the business.

Thursday and Friday were good. School until lunch and then home to be ready for the show that evening. There were so many faces she knew in the crowd on both nights, and they were a great success. The Vines family were in the audience both nights, to see their girls in performance. Hugh was with them on Friday, along with some who looked like the group who had come to the house, so many months ago.

On Saturday morning, the family were up, showered and dressed, and waiting to find out what Hugh had in mind. He arrived and said that he preferred to talk business in the kitchen, so they sat at the kitchen table with Willow providing cups of tea.

“Thank you for seeing me. Firstly, Ashley, do you know of a firm called Robinson and Rice?”

“Yes. They’re a company that takes concepts through to finished drawings and can even supply CNC programs that allow you to make the product. We’ve used them, and I’ve been there several times.”

“What’s your take on them, having been there?”

“A good, solid company to deal with. Probably a bit behind with their hardware and software. I have a better program on my own computer for the work I do, but they can’t be certain what they’ll be getting to work on next. I know they do a fair bit of work with the furniture industry.”

“I’ve known Harry Rice since we were kids. He built the business up from almost nothing. There are twenty on computers, churning out the work, and they turn over about ten million a year. He owns the building that they’re in, and one of his tenants just moved out. Me.”

“Did you take them to Stella?”

“I did. Now, Harry wants to sell the business and has asked me if I knew of anyone bright enough to take it on and bring it into this century. There will be enough office space to double the staff now we moved our stuff out.”

“How can I help you?”

“By taking it over and using that brain of yours to get it into this century.”

“You’re not kidding me, are you?”

“Not one bit, Ashley. I’ve spoken to your supervisors at Gaydon, and they tell me that you’re one of the best around. I’ve spoken to the guys in the electorate office, and they tell me that you’re a hard worker and get on well with everyone. You’ve impressed me and many of my friends, some who are customers of the company.”

“How much would it cost, and when does he want to leave?”

“The cost is easy to work out, One year’s turnover, plus the building, plus a bonus for him for the good will. And I can tell you that there is a lot of good will out there.”

“So, ten for the business, another three for the building and the same again for the good will, about sixteen million all up?”

“Close. He will take seventeen million and walk away at the beginning of February. The building is worth four and there are two other sitting tenants.”

“That’s it?”

“No. I’m on that board, which you will be chairman of. If you’re the owner of Robinson and Rice, then you have his seats on other boards, some in my companies, and some in others. The industrial base in Birmingham looks out for its own, and very little happens without consultation, even this, today.”

“I don’t have that kind of money, Hugh.”

Willow thought it was time to ask questions.

“Hugh, how much does this company have on hand, and what are the forward orders for next year like?”

“There’s cash assets of about quarter of a million, with around two million in work for next year, Harry will clear the decks with the tax office and top up employee entitlements from his payment. The other tenants are locked in for another five years.”

“Dad, if you want to become your own man, there’s enough in our business account to pay for this and add a few million to fund the bigger workforce and upgrade the systems. It will also help you look successful when the election comes around.”

Ashley looked at her, and then to his wife, who smiled and nodded. He looked back at Hugh.

“What happens if I get elected?”

“Harry was hardly in the office. There’s a very good management group who run the show, just waiting for their white knight on his charger. You’ll be able to talk to them as one of their own. In a few years getting it upgraded, you’ll have Willow to manage it when she finishes university, if she wanted to. Look, come with me, now, and we’ll go and talk to Harry, show you around, and you can talk to the ones working today. If you agree, you can give three weeks’ notice and walk out in time for Christmas.”

“Can you give me a moment with my daughter, Hugh?”

He beckoned to Willow, and they went to the lounge.

“Can we afford it, love?”

“As of this week, Dad, WH Holdings has a cash reserve of nearly thirty-two million. We can afford it and have enough to ensure its success. When you’re elected, the management can keep in touch, and there will be regular board meetings. It’s all doable if you resign from Aston Martin. It would pay to talk quietly to any good designers there to see if they want a job in Birmingham.”

“If Hugh had walked in, six months ago, and asked this, I would have laughed. Now, I know he’s serious, and I’m seriously thinking of saying yes. I’ll be home in time to take you to the school tonight.”

He went off with Hugh, and Wendy sat with Willow at the table.

“This could be a big change in our lives, love.”

“It could, mum. Hugh isn’t a man who would play games. If we buy the business, it will be different for all of us. You may well end up working with Dad in his office while he gets the business into the shape he wants it. Don’t worry, we have plenty behind us now, and we’re not going to fail.”

“My worry is that it’s all your money.”

“We set up a company, Mum. You and Dad are the listed directors. So, it’s family money. I just managed to write and perform to create that income. Every time I put an album onto the market, it happens to earn us two million and then some. I haven’t done anything with that income for a year or more and have been wondering what we may be able to do with it. I’ve been too busy to give it a lot of thought. This comes at a good time, and we have enough to totally upgrade the office.”

“So, a new life for all of us. Will you give up performing?”

“I doubt it, Mum. I should have enough knowledge to be on the board, and act as a consultant. Who knows, I have enough appreciation from Hugh last year for his friends to want me to consult. I don’t think that I would stop writing songs or wanting to perform. Maybe smaller shows, like corporate events. I really can’t answer that at the moment. I’m going to get ready for tonight. I need some quiet time to process all of this.”

When she was in her room, she packaged her latest disc and one of the ‘VivWillow Rocks’ pendants for Evelyn and added a Christmas card with a message. She sealed and addressed it and took it down to her mother.

“Can you put this in the post for me, Mum. I think of Evelyn and hope that she’s still doing well.”

When Ashley was brought home, he embraced his wife.

“I met Harry Rice and several that I’ve worked with in the past. They were all very welcoming and honest in the explanations as I was shown around. Hugh’s old office is next door, and it would be a simple matter to create a door between the offices on both floors. I was asked how I would bring them up to date, so I said that I would create the doorways, then equip the empty side with state-of-the-art systems, and have them trained in small batches, so keeping the workflow.”

“That sounds logical. I guess that you’ve agreed to jump ship.”

“I did. We shook on it while I was there. I never thought that I would be my own boss. It’s taken some time, and being thrown into the election process, to realise that I can be that person.”

When Willow joined them, she was told of the decision, and they all went to the Punchbowl for an early dinner before going to the Saturday performance, her next to last school show of a very interesting year.

The show went very well, and they all bowed to great applause. This one had been filmed, and recorded, by the new batch of technical students, under tutelage of Sarah and the others. The result would be post-produced at the school, and then added to at the studio, before being sent to the normal production company for the saleable stock.

The after-show get-together in the lunchroom went to after midnight, with both Willow and Vivienne being posed for selfies, along with Abbie and other members of the orchestra. Sam Vines had been to every show and was proud of the way his daughters had fitted in. Ivy was now the orchestra pianist, while Petunia had taken up viola.

Quite often, Willow could see her parents in conversation with important people. The show had attracted many supporters of the school, including several civic dignitaries and business leaders. When they finally left, she was very tired, and it was quiet in her father’s Range Rover on the way back to Rising Lane.

When they went into the house, both her parents embraced her and told her that she was fantastic, and then allowed her to head for bed. It took her a while to actually sleep, her plush friends beside her, as she thought about all the side-issues that had occurred during the evening. She was sure that the news of the business purchase had gone around at warp-speed, and that the ones speaking to her father had known all about it.

The following week was, for her, just revision for the end-of-term exams, but her father had a very different week. When he submitted his resignation, he found that he was allowed to use the week he had earned for a holiday as part of his three-week notice. In the week, as his colleagues in the office found out that he was leaving, and where he was going, three of them asked him if they could join him, as they lived closer to Birmingham. He told them to contact him in January, and that they would be welcomed, as they were all using the latest programs and would be able to underpin the upgrading.

That Saturday, they organised the Junior Orchestra to be taken to the studio, along with the extra equipment, and they laid down a proper recording of the show, with video. This was for national issue, if the label thought it worthwhile. Sarah promised to supply enough CDs for everyone, as well as some extras for Willow to send to the label.

The last week of school was full-on exams, much harder than previous years, and Willow needed all her wits about her. On the Friday afternoon, when she arrived home, she gave Sebastian a Christmas card and a gift voucher for a resort holiday for his family. He gave her a pair of earrings with the BMW logo, ‘for next year’.

She had a week before Christmas, and then another before the New Year party at Stoneleigh. For that, Vivienne would join her on the stage, and Malcolm had advertised the evening as ‘Seeing in the New Year with VivWillow.’

The first Saturday saw the Rose ladies and the Armstrong ladies in Birmingham for the full works in the salon, and, on Sunday, the Rose family went to Cambridge to see her Gramma. That wasn’t as pleasant as it should have been, as her Gramma had become quite scatty and petulant. They did manage to have some time with her, leaving her gifts, but the visit wasn’t as long as they had planned. They stayed at the hotel they had booked for the few days and spent the time visiting nearby sites.

Their Christmas party was in The Henley Room in Stratford-upon-Avon, with the core group from the party office, as a thank you for the work they had put in during the quiet times and for the expectation of a heavier workload in the next year. The Government was into one of those times when there were lesser members who thought that they knew how to run things better, and in-fighting had broken out.

The New Year’s Eve party was in the club at Stoneleigh, packed to the rafters, with Willow on her old Yamaha keyboard and Vivienne singing. They recreated a lot of their nightclub show and added in a couple of the good songs from the operetta, which some in the crowd had seen. The big screen was set up to see the fireworks on the Thames. Willow was given a midnight kiss, or two, from Garry, who had come along for the evening and be with some of his old friends from the days when he played there with G-Force. Well, that’s what he told others.

The new year brought new things to all the family. Ashley was now going into Birmingham to work with Harry in taking over his business, with the first five million transferred to the Rice account and all the papers signed. Wendy wasn’t due back at work for three weeks, with her office quiet until the year got going. Willow went to school, as usual.

The assembly was interesting in a couple of ways. For one, it was Ivy Vines on the organ to play the hymn. Willow found out, a few days later, that Jim had left to go to another school. For the second, the Head praised the Junior Orchestra, and got them to stand, with Willow and Vivienne, to get applause from the school. She said that the school DVD of the show would be available soon.

With the Junior Orchestra on Tuesday, the girls started working with them on songs for Vivienne’s album. On the Thursday, they worked with the Seniors on songs for Willow’s album. They would also use the scores written by the Juniors for the big shows.

On Friday, Willow got a text message that her car was ready for pick-up, so, on Saturday morning, Ashley drove her and Wendy into Leicester to pay the balance and drive it home. Ashley left them to head for his office and they put the magnetic ‘L’ plates on for Willow to take the first drive in her first car.

The first place they went was the studio, where Sarah was working on recording an advert with a couple in beachwear standing in front of the blue screen and waxing lyrical about a realistic plastic hamburger. In a break between takes, Sarah and the team thanked Willow for the Christmas bonus, as well as the raise that had turned up with their latest pay slip. Sydney had now moved in with Josh, and her flat was now occupied by Sarah’s cousin, several years older and ex-traffic police, pensioned off after a chased car rammed his pursuit vehicle. He was their new driver, cleaner, and general handy man. Sarah admitted that it had got to the point when the three of them couldn’t cope.

Leaving there, they went into Coventry and Willow was careful in finding a parking spot. The locked the car and went shopping. After lunch, they went home, with Wendy driving. When they arrived, she declared that it was lovely to drive, and that she would help Willow by taking the car out from time to time, to ‘run it in.’ Willow spent Sunday working on songs.

When Willow got home from school on Monday afternoon, she found her mother looking serious, with a cup of tea and an email on the table. Willow sat down and Wendy pushed it towards her. It was from her employer, telling her that business had gone so quiet with the brochure work, a decision had been made to close the graphics department. The office would be open on Wednesday afternoon for the staff to collect their personal items and their wage sheets for tax.

“That solves one thing, Mum.”

“How can it solve something! I enjoyed working there.”

“It does free you to work with Dad. You’re good with that latest program, you could do instruction sheets for his customers, with the drawings. In fact, it also solves another thing. If Dad is looking for more equipment to enlarge the office, there are four systems sitting at your old office. They may be interested in an offer to take them away. Come to think of it, your colleagues may have the sort of knowledge that Dad’s looking for.”

“You really think so? Those guys will be devastated by this.”

“Talk to Dad, tonight. The system you use here is the same as the one you used at work, so it might be a good pick-up. They have to be written down by now. If I remember rightly, a couple of them had double screen set-ups. There’s also the big printers and laminators that may be up for grabs.”

“You know, love, that you have a very unique mind. There was I, all ready to blub, and now you’ve given me reasons to go into that place and see what I can come away with.”

Tuesday, Willow and Vivienne worked with the Junior Orchestra on more album songs, getting close to having enough for one. They had decided that both albums would be ‘VivWillow’ ones, with Vivienne’s being more ‘classical’, while Willow’s being more ‘big-band nightclub’. They were working on getting the first one recorded on the last Saturday of January, so that the orchestra could go back to the normal things.

On Wednesday evening, Wendy reported that she had negotiated a price to clear the office, with Ashley’s blessing, once he’d seen what was available. It would fast-track the upgrade. The other workers had been given his new business card and told to get their resume in order and give him a call.

Thursday, they worked with the Senior Orchestra. Willow had been thinking about the big show and had phoned Jill to ask her if there were any of the other stars who would like to donate their time. She was waiting to see what that would bring.

Friday brought the next email from Peter. The back catalogue had done well, along with her CD and DVD, no doubt being bought for Christmas. She had earned just over three point one and asked him to transfer three million. They had now transferred all the money for the new business.

The family now all had new business cards. Ashley was the Managing Director and Chairman of the Board of Robinson and Rice. Wendy was Company Secretary and Director, while Willow was Business Consultant and Director. They were all spending some of their Saturdays in the office, setting up the new desks and equipment. The ones from Wendy’s work were set up, along with the printers and other things, and the other three operators from that office were set up by the end of the month, starting to bring the others up to speed with the newer software. The new additions would be arriving in February, along with three operators from Gaydon. The doorways between the two parts of the building hadn’t taken very long. With the original staff still working, the output hadn’t decreased.

On the last Saturday in the month, the school provided a coach for the Junior Orchestra, and the truck for the usual larger instruments. Having set up in the studio before, it didn’t take long for the orchestra to be seated and tuned up. Willow was on the Steinway, Vivienne had a microphone, and Jim Jamieson was on the rostrum. This session was purely a CD production for the first album, as the big show was going to be televised and that would have songs from both albums.

They had a break for lunch, in the function room of the hotel, Willow’s treat, and finished the recording late that afternoon. The team produced enough CDs for everyone, with extras for the school and the label. On the way, Willow rang her mother to tell her that she was on the way to the school, as did most of the others, so there was fleet of cars waiting for them when they arrived.

That evening, they played the CD while they had dinner.

“That’s very beautiful, love, what do you call it?”

“It’s a VivWillow album, Mum. We called it ‘Viv-a La ’More’. You would have recognised the first track as the opening aria from the operetta, which we’ve called ‘Cossetted’. The last was the other one that Vivienne sang as she was in the park, which we’ve called ‘Benchmark’. As it’s mainly Viv, with me on duets, it’s going to be her album. Mine will be with the Senior Orchestra, and we plan to record it later in the year, well before the big show.”

“Have you made any differences to the show? It sounds unlike any big stadium show I’ve ever heard of, with just smooth songs.”

“I’ve asked Jill to ask around in their stable. I’d like it to be ‘VivWillow and Friends with the Blue Coat Orchestra’. I plan to go to London in the half-year break to see what she’s managed to come up with. We’ve saved them enough money by letting them record at the studio for them to give a little back. They sent a lot of their singers and groups there last year. I saw that Zara is on the wall with a Gold and Platinum award, along with others.”

“Now, that would be a show! It will cut down your parts in it, though.”

“If we have both albums in the charts, then all we need are the songs from them, plus a couple of the older hits.”

“Let’s hope that Jill has some answers for you, then.”

The following week she received another statement from Peter. With back catalogue sales added, and costs and commission subtracted, she was one point nine million better off. She asked Peter to transfer two million, leaving just over a half a million with him. There was also an email from her accountant. The studio had done well, earning around one point six. With wages and costs taken out, it was one point three in the black, with the Alliance business taking care of the council charges and utilities.

The next week was the end of the half-term, and Willow used her limo service to take her into London on Sunday. She had made an appointment to see Jill on the Monday, so settled into the apartment and checked that everything was good with both of them. She ate at the restaurant and also had breakfast there on Monday morning. When the taxi dropped her at the label office, Jill was waiting in reception for her.

“How are you, Willow? Vivienne sent me that album you recorded at the end of January. It’s really beautiful. When are we likely to see yours with the other orchestra?”

“We were planning for the middle of April, after the holidays. That will give you time to put it on the market in time to make an impact before the big show.”

“Yes, that big show. Come on up to the office and we can discuss that.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 14

In the office, they were joined by Clive.

“Hello, Willow. This show in Coventry, have you any idea of the details?”

“It will be the same staging that we used on the tour. It is intended to run for three nights, so you’re looking at a total crowd of around a hundred and eighty thousand. I did hear that they’re charging a hundred and fifty a ticket, which should bring in twenty-seven million. At a rough estimate, with a million off for staging and costs, and the club taking ten percent, that will leave twenty-three point four million. I don’t know what we’re being paid, or if there’s any left over for guests. I’ll need to talk to the organisers once I know the line-up. Have you managed to get anyone else to join us on stage? It should be televised.”

“We have a few. Zara is really keen to be on stage with you, and there are three of the guys that you’ve met at the awards party. Lee James and Cliff Jensen, you know. The other is Ken Stroll, the latest winner of the TV show. Is that enough?”

“If we give them three or four songs, each, that’s a good hour, so, yes, that would be great. Is it possible for them to come to Coventry to rehearse with the orchestra? We work after school on Thursdays. They can stay at the Britannia, and I can organise a car for them. We’ll need a list of their songs, and any score that’s available.”

“The thing is that Zara and two of the guys will have new albums out, around the same time as yours. They will be in your studio during the March week we have booked. They all have pre-recorded backing tracks from the orchestra at Abbey Road and we’re using your studio to get the vision and sound right for the DVDs. They will be there on the Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, with the Friday set aside for any emergencies. Can you organise to see them in the studio?”

“I’ll need to speak to the Head, but I’m sure that she’ll give me the afternoons to see them, possibly taking Mister Bamborough with me. With a line-up like this, the school orchestra will be famous.”

“I’ll give you the names and dates for recording. If you talk to them directly, it will be good when you call them on stage as friends. Can you find out who are doing the filming, and if they need a marketing ally?”

“Will do. Are you happy with how you’re being treated at the studio?”

“Oh, yes. It will be nice if you can hold the pricing for a while, though.”

“It’s making money, and I’ll hold it as long as I can. We’ve bought another business that we’re expanding. It’s a design studio that does work for several industries, and my father was asked to take it over. By the middle of the year, we should have about forty employees and turning over close to fifteen million a year.”

“You’ve said that you’re taking a break from singing, is it to be hands on with the businesses?”

“No. I’m going to enrol in a Bachelor of Science of Business Administration. That way I can use my money to make money and sing when I want to. I don’t want to be tied down like my friends. Zara is into nightclub work, Vivienne wants to be in opera, Gina is now playing piano as a soloist with various orchestras. They’re being typecast. I’ll be living in the apartment while I’m studying, so won’t be far away.”

She had one more thing to do while she was in London, so, next day, she called on her limo service to take her to Royal Holloway to submit her application papers for the course that started in November. Terry assured her that she would be accepted, but it would be much later in the year before she had official confirmation.

She had taken her laptop with her to London, so sent emails off to the studio, asking Sarah to let her know when the label’s singers were in the studio by a text; and one to her contact at the football club, asking for an appointment on Friday to discuss the big show. She sent one other, to Garry, asking him if he could make time for a meeting. Much as she would have liked to stay to the end of the week, she got the limo service to pick her up the next day and take her home.

She had the Thursday to get herself ready for the appointment and talked her mother into driving her BMW to the football ground. When they were shown into the right office, the man who had bid on the band, so long ago, rose to shake hands.

“Welcome back, Willow and Wendy. What can I do for you? I hope that you’re not here to pull out of the show.”

“No sir. Just the opposite. I had a meeting with my label on Monday, and I now have one female singer and three males from their stable to join us on stage. We can advertise as an evening with VivWillow and Friends. Three of them will have albums out by then, and the other is a TV show winner. We intend to have them rehearse with the orchestra at the school so that it should be a good presentation.”

“Wow! I didn’t expect that! I suppose that they would like some payment?”

“That would be appreciated, thank you for offering.”

“Look, I’m prepared to pay them ten thousand a show, and put them up at the Britannia. You and Vivienne will get twenty thousand a show, and the orchestra will get fifty thousand a show to share between them. That will still leave just under twenty million for the charity, plus the profits from the merchandise.”

“That’s very generous of you. Now, I’ve been asked to find out about the filming. Who is doing it, and do they have a distribution channel?”

“The TV channel pulled out, and there’s a team in Birmingham who are going to film and record. We’ll have a similar system to the last time with fixed cameras and the team be doing roving shots of the crowds. I’ll have to ask them about what they’re doing with it. If your label wants to issue it, then I’m sure they’ll want to talk. With what you’re talking about with the extra stars, it would make a good DVD for Christmas presents.”

Willow gave him a suggested stage layout, with a screen that went across the back of the stage and down the side, so they could have the guests appear from the wings. She didn’t tell him that there was another idea forming in her head, which depended on what the other singers agreed to.

On the way home, with Wendy driving, Willow’s phone rang. She looked at the name and answered on speaker.

“Hello, handsome.”

“Hello, beautiful. I got your email and have to tell you that there’s a condition before I can meet you.”

“Oh, yes. And what might that be?”

“That any discussion we have will be over a table in a restaurant, where I’ve taken you for dinner.”

“Are you telling me that you want a date?”

“That’s it in a nutshell, sweetness. I owe you one for giving me the opportunity to play with Rocks.”

“Just a thank you, then?”

“Actually, I hoped it would be more than that. We seemed to have been spinning around the world and bumping into each other. I was wondering if those kisses were just friendly. How about I pick you up on Saturday, around five. There’s a place I’d like to take you to.”

“When do you plan to bring me home? My phone is on speaker and my mother has a grin.”

“I was thinking around the same time the next day. Is that a problem. Wendy?”

“Not from me, Garry. Just treat my girl right.”

Willow gave him the Rising Lane address and they ended the call.

“It’s all right with you, Mum?”

“Come on, love. You’ve stayed in hotels around the world with boys. We know that you were serious with Jacob at the birthday party. Garry is a nice boy, a good friend, and has been in love with you since that first show you did. It was the age difference that made him stay away, but you’re going to be seventeen in a couple of months. Him being two years older becomes less of a problem as you get around twenty. Take a big bag with a good nightie and your supplies. Even a skirt and top for the morning.”

The next day, Willow spent a long time preparing for her date. This wasn’t some clandestine hour in a hotel. This would be a proper date, with a handsome man, followed by a full night at wherever he took her, possibly followed by more sex in the morning. She felt as if she was preparing to be a ritual offering, and realised that, with Garry, she was looking forward to it.

When Garry drove into the property, he was welcomed in and given a drink before he carried Willow’s big bag out to the car.

“What’s in here, sweetness, the kitchen sink?”

“Only if there isn’t one where you’re taking me. I will need flats when I’ve taken these heels off.”

“You won’t be doing that for a few hours.”

“Is there dancing?”

“Not unless I put one of your CDs in the machine.”

“But I will get fed?”

“Oh, yes. We have a table booked at the Dial House, in Bourton. It’s about thirty-five miles south.”

“Into the Cotswolds, then. I’ve been to Bourton, when I was much younger. I got lost in the Dragonfly Maze and they had to send someone in to find me.”

“You grew up down that way, didn’t you?”

“Yes, we had a cottage, and I was at school in Clifton before coming to Coventry.”

“I’ve bought a house next to the main road, at Whiteshoots Hill.”

“If my memory isn’t playing tricks, they were big farmhouse types, in Cotswolds Stone. Is that where we’re staying the night?”

“That depends on what you want to talk to me about, my sweet.”

“It doesn’t matter what we talk about. I hope that you have one of my later CDs. I’m told that it makes women horny, and I wondered if it would work on me, without a keyboard in front of me.”

He laughed.

“Here I am, wondering if you like me, and then you tell me that you’re happy to sleep with me.”

“You were the first guy to hug me for the right reason, Garry. You’ve held a place in my heart since then. It’s only the age gap that’s kept us apart. I’ve had two, short-term relationships, one with benefits, but only on tour. I’m no femme fatal, but I do know what I like, and that’s love, not lust. I do have to come clean on one thing before we go any further. I can’t have children. After that first show, I was in hospital having two growths taken from my groin, with a follow-up operation sometime later to remove more bad stuff.”

“That’s sad, sweet. It makes no difference to me. I’m an only child and have no desire to have a lot of toddlers. You’re so good with the younger ones, though.”

“That’s been a surprise to me, as well. It must have been inside me all the time but has only come out in the last few years.”

They travelled in a companionable silence until they arrived at Bourton. He parked at the Dial Inn, and they went in. They were shown to a table and ordered drinks. Willow asked for a dry white and Garry had a beer. They sipped at the drinks, with Willow determined that hers would last her as long as they were here.

“Now, sweet thing. What do you want to talk about?”

“What are you and the Rocks doing in the last weeks of June?”

“At the moment, we’re still on a writing break, but most of them are scattered around the globe with their wives and soaking up the sun.”

“I have been given the task to put on a show in Coventry, in the football ground, on the same stage that we played there for the charity shows. It will be the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The seating will be similar, but the admission price is a lot higher. It’s for charity, again, but they’re willing to pay ten grand a show for guests. It was originally planned as an evening with VivWillow, but I’ve spoken to Clive. We’ll be adding Lee James and Cliff Jensen, who you’ve already played with, plus Ken Stroll, a new star. Zara is also keen to be with us. I’m wondering if you, and the Rocks, might like to add your talent.”

“This will be with an orchestra?”

“Yes. We will have the Blue Coat Seniors. That leads me to the little tricks I want to play.”

Their entrée was served as he sat back and thought about things. When they had cleaned their plates, he picked up his drink and grinned.”

“All right. Trick number one?”

“You remember the boys kit, the blue shirt and black trousers?”

“I do.”

“Well. I would like you and the boys to be embedded in the orchestra in that kit, so you don’t stand out. You can do the electric accompaniment to the rest of us throughout the show. When we call out Mac to sing, you’ll all be there, in place.”

He laughed.

“You’ve never had much to do with the band, have you?”

“You mean that they won’t do it?”

“I mean that it would be one of the things that would ensure that they will be there. They all have a love of the absurd. What else?”

“Towards the end of the show, we’ll have Zara on stage, to sing some of her songs. She will be in a white dress, and, by that time, Vivienne will have changed into white. The last song that they sing, as a duet, will be ‘Wishing You Were Here For Me’, from the Phantom. As they finish, they will be some way apart. We move to the orchestra blasting out the theme for Phantom, and then Lee comes out to sing ‘Music of the Night’. Cliff or Ken come out from the other side with the second stanza, followed by the other for the third, and then Mac for the fourth. So, we have two trios, one each side of the stage, the girls in white and the men in white tie and tails, and with the half masks on. By this time, we have smoke covering the stage. They finish that song in the usual way, with the girls taking turns to sing on order. Then the orchestra moves back into the Phantom theme, with you and the boys adding frantic guitar. They sing that song, and it builds up towards the crescendo, with each phantom singing “I am the Phantom of the Opera’, in turn. The ultimate few seconds is them all singing “We are the Phantoms”, as the music stops dead, and the stage goes black as thunderclaps and bangers go off.”

He looked in her eyes and chuckled.

“You really are an artistic director, aren’t you? But why the Phantom?”

“We have Lee, who played four seasons. He can help out with the detail. The thing is, that this is neutral ground. We don’t favour anyone on stage with the finale. It has the whole line-up right there at the end, with the orchestra in full voice. I haven’t been able to think of anything that comes close to creating a memorable finish.”

“I loved you for your talent from the first day we met. Since then, I’ve seen you grow into a formidable leader. Working with you on ‘Laptop’ was total bliss, and turned out to be something that changed me, fundamentally. I’ve heard it said that we musicians sometimes hide behind out instruments, but that show had me out there as myself, for the first time. It gave me the ability to be one of the Rocks, who are characters who play music. There were times, on our tour, where I was Ego on bass guitar, and I fitted the over-the-top lifestyle of the others. But, deep down, I’m still the Garry that overcame his shyness to hug the young girl who captured my heart as a fourteen-year-old.”

She put her hand on his and smiled.

“That was lovely, my darling. But we’re still going to dance before bed, even if it’s only a few minutes. I’ll hold you to your promise.”

They finished their meal in comfortable chat. Willow finished her wine and declined dessert, so Garry settled up and they went out to the car, where they kissed for several minutes before getting in and going a few hundred yards to his house. She giggled as he picked her up to carry her across the threshold. He carried her bag to the bedroom as she turned on his music system and selected the album that had affected other women. When he came back, she hit the ‘play’ button and put her arms around his neck.

“This is as far as I lead, my love. From now on, I’m yours.”

They danced, entwined, and kissed at times. At around the fourth track she whispered in his ear.

“It does work on me, lover. I can feel your prick against me and I’m getting wet, This is about the time we turn the album off, and you turn me on.”

They went to the bedroom and undressed each other, kissing when they were naked, and then he picked her up again and laid her on the bed. That evening was a revelation for both of them. Garry hadn’t had a lot of experience with women, just a few groupies with the band, and this was with Willow, a girl who knew the younger Garry and was giving herself to him. For Willow, it was unlike anything that Jacob had been, This was a boy who wanted to explore her body, to please her, to make her feel wanted in every way.

They did sleep, and Willow woke up early and took Garry’s hand off her breast to pad out to the bathroom, taking her bag and douche bottle with her. She hadn’t lubed, the night before, and hadn’t needed to. She gave her face a wipe, to remove any make-up that remained, and delved into her bag for her black nightie, Back in the bedroom, he had one eye open and a morning glory too good to pass up. She kissed and stroked it until he pulled her back on the bed and made love to her.

Afterwards, she laid with her head on his chest as he rubbed her breast.

“Willow, my love. Will you marry me?”

“Of course I will, my darling. You will have to treat me nice, like last night, for the rest of our lives.”

“That’s the easy part, my love. It will be balancing our careers that may be a bit harder.”

“The show in Coventry is my last. After that, I’m living in London and going to University for a Bachelor of Business Administration. That will take three years.”

“Don’t you need ‘A’ levels before you can do that?”

“I did a Certificate course for a year, on top of school and the tour in Australia. It gave me direct acceptance for the higher course, without needing the other results.”

“So, you’ll be just twenty-one with a degree?”

“That’s right. Is that a problem?”

“No, it’s just more about you that’s amazing. What are you going to do after that?”

“Shouldn’t that be ‘what are we going to do’, or have you second thoughts already?”

He laughed and rolled her off him to give her a kiss.

“Sorry about that, it still hadn’t sunk in that you said yes. Give me a few minutes and I’ll be back.”

She grinned as she watched him go towards the bathroom. When he came back, he got back into bed and she snuggled beside him, head on his shoulder.

“How come you bought this place?”

“It fitted the need. It’s close to the road.”

“You can say that! The last truck that came by almost shook the foundations.”

“It’s close enough to Bristol and Birmingham if I need an international flight, and there’s a few within a few miles if I want to charter something for closer destinations. Rendcome is pretty close, and you can go up on a biplane.”

“Don’t you mean, in a biplane?”

“No. You get strapped into a harness on the top wing and get taken up, on the biplane.”

“That sounds mad. If they give a certificate, it would be something to add to my Dad’s ‘Wall of Fame’ He collects all my non-musical awards. He even framed my membership of the ‘ton-up’ club.”

“How did you get that?”

“There’s a place north of Leicester where you get to drive a hot car. I drove one like my own BMW and did a hundred and twenty in both directions on a runway. They have all sorts there. That was after I met you and the band at the studio. My instructor was so happy with his signed shirt, he took me there afterwards.”

“So, when do you get your licence?”

“After May twentieth, when I turn seventeen.”

“You said that you’ll be living in London. Have you bought a place?”

“I have a whole building. Ground floor is a restaurant, upstairs are two apartments, both owned by lecturers from the Uni of London. Above them are our two apartments, both two floors, with a second bedroom and sitting room in the attic. I’ve taken one for me, and the other is my parents. That’s where you joined us for the TV interview.”

“I thought that you were staying with the others, not that you owned the whole lot. What about the studio?”

“All mine, now, which is why I’ve been able to make the changes and turn it into a commercial venture. The only project that we still own, as a syndicate, is the shopping centre. We paid twenty-five and are ploughing another fifteen into for updating. It’s too big for the others to mess with, but I reckon that we’ll get to get a good profit if we do sell.”

“And you have your nice house. That looks cosy but elegant”

“That’s the idea. With Dad now the CEO of his own design studio, and the chosen candidate to replace the existing MP, it needed to have exactly that vibe, should we host the media. It’s also a lot bigger than the one in Stoneleigh. What about you, Garry? You must have done well with G-Force for the couple of years they played. Being a Toxic Rocker doesn’t pay peanuts, either. This place wouldn’t have put much of a dent into that.”

“You’re right. The thing is that I’m not sure what to do. I left school after the exams and didn’t go any further. I don’t need to find a job, but I’m floating, waiting for something to give me direction. Like you, my love. How about we get showered and dressed and go down to Bristol to wander a market. They tell me that Windmill Hill is good.”

They showered and dressed. Willow had the skirt and top she had packed, along with more sensible shoes. He cooked them a breakfast, and she washed up after. Leaving the plates to dry, they went out to his car and drove south to Bristol. There were no jewellers open on a Sunday, but there were stalls at the Windmill Hill that sold flashy rings, and they bought one as a token.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 15

They were standing by one of the stalls, when there was a voice beside her.

“Excuse me, young lady, but you’re Willow Rose, aren’t you?”

She turned to see a man who looked all the world like a teacher, with a younger wife and a baby in a stroller.

“Yes, I am, sir. You look like a teacher, but not one that I ever had when I was at school here.”

“Well spotted. I am a teacher, but I started at the Clifton School the term after you had gone. This is my wife, Emma, and our daughter, Slade. My name is Harvey Horton, and I remember your papers that I forwarded to Coventry. I wrote that Billie-Jean should do well, and you have done, spectacularly, I may say.”

“So, it was you that told the school the name that Tony gave me. Are you related?”

“He is, or should I say, was, my son, from a previous marriage. He was a vicious little shit and spent time in reform school before ending up in a gutter with a knife in him. He bullied you, didn’t he?”

“He did, sir, and I still have remnants of the scars that he and his minions gave me. My doctor saw them and advised me to sue the Clifton School, but I had moved on. Look, sir. You have just added the one piece that had been missing in my life. Can we buy you nice people lunch, somewhere nice. This is my fiancé, Garry, by the way.”

“Congratulations. It would be a pleasure to have lunch and talk. The closest place is the Star and Dove, just a walk across the park.”

They walked across the park and talked on the way. Willow found out about Harvey becoming the assistant headmaster and now the headmaster. Of course, none of the older students that were there before were still around. Also, hardly any of the teachers. With the years, almost the entire staff had turned over, due to some moving on and others retiring.

He asked about the Blue Coat and was told just how good it was, both academically and artistically. At the restaurant, there was a table for four, and the manager recognised the two of them immediately. When he arrived with the menus, he also had the two latest Toxic Rocks albums, the two latest VivWillow albums, and a copy of the VivWillow in Heaven DVD set, for them to sign. Willow always had a texta in her bag, so signed hers and then gave it to Garry.

“The DVD, sir. Is that yours?”

“It’s the property of the Star. We are a friendly venue and hold special evenings. Nothing the size of that Heaven.”

“Heaven wasn’t a patch on the six places we played that summer. The one on Berlin had been moved to a sporting arena. There must have been ten thousand on the floor, every night for six nights.”

Emma was looking at the cover.

“It says here that it runs for six hours?”

“That’s right, Emma. Vivienne and me playing from after eight to nearly three, every night. It was a lot of fun.”

The manager smiled.

“And gave the girls a lot of good will among the LGTBQ society. I expect that there were a few who tried it on?”

“More than a few, sir. None were as crazy as that DVD on Tart’s Tuesday.”

“If you allow a selfie, later, the meals are on the house. Even yours, Headmaster.”

“You’re a bit old to have been at the school since I’ve been there.”

“Quite right, but my daughter is in third year at the moment, and I’ve seen your picture many times.”

He walked away with their orders and Emma giggled.

“Oh! the fame! My husband recognised by the manager of a gay bar, alongside a couple of famous singers. I have to get him to take a picture of all of us for my scrapbook. Willow, you would be in fifth year. Any plans, other than marriage and more albums.”

“Actually, the marriage is more likely. I’m taking a few years off to get a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree, starting in November. I did a Certificate course which allows me to go straight to Uni without needing the higher levels. It was hard, at the time, but is turning out more convenient than I imagined.”

“Any more big shows?”

“Just the one, Harvey. We’re putting on a charity event at the Coventry City Football ground, at the end of June. It will be me and Vivienne with friends. That’s why Garry and I were here, we’ve been discussing the format. After that, who knows. There’s some talk about us being in an operetta with the English National Opera, but nothing has been set in motion, yet.”

They had a pleasant meal and walked out after several selfies taken with the manager and his daughter, who had been called. Emma and the teen were given the VivWillow Rocks pendants, Emma also got her selfie of the four of them, with Willow holding the baby. Back at the market, Willow and Emma hugged, and Willow hugged Harvey, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you for that note that you sent to Coventry. You have no idea what good it did. There may be a few, from the orchestra here, who may remember Billie-Jean, but as Willow, my life has been brilliant.”

She gave him her business card.

“My email is on this. Send me an address and I’ll get a pair of tickets to you before the big show. It’s in term, so you’ll be able to use them on the Friday and Saturday nights.”

On the drive back to Bourton, Garry looked over at her.

“So, it was that Tony who gave you the scars. Was that when you were still William?”

“How long have you known?”

“The first time we played. You were still a bit too boyish on the keyboard. Since I moved down this way, I looked up the census records to find a young William John living with Wendy and Ashley.”

“And yet you still proposed?”

“I told you, my love. I fell for you that night, and you have become the woman of my dreams. It didn’t matter to me, whether you were a girly-boy or a boyish girl. That fact that you’ve used what little bit of boy you still had to be a leader has been a bonus, and I applaud you for it.”

“So, if I ask you the take me one more time, before you take me home, it wouldn’t be any different?”

“It would be sheer pleasure, my darling, sheer pleasure.”

And it was.

On the drive back to Rising Lane, he looked over to her.

“When did you realise that you wanted to be a girl?”

“About a month after that show. When we did that, I’d only worn a skirt a few days. Miss Russell had brought a girl’s outfit for me, and I thought that it was a good disguise. I fooled the others, why not you?”

He drove for a few more minutes, then spoke.

“I’m not really an only child. I had an older brother, James. He was about four years older than me. I saw him change from being manly to being girly. He hid it from our parents, but couldn’t hide it from me, seeing that we shared a bedroom. A couple of years before you arrived, he got all dressed up to venture out and enjoy the world. He never came back. They found his body two days later. He had been raped and beaten to death. They never caught the culprits, and I don’t think that they tried very hard. It destroyed my parents, who separated with me living with Mum until she went home to Wales. I was living with an aunt when I met you for the first time. I told everyone I was an only child, so that I could keep his secret safe.”

She put her hand on his arm.

“I’m so sorry, darling. Did meeting me raise memories of him?”

“Not really. What it did do was replace my last look of him as he went out, with the look of you working away on the keyboard. You were very good, you know.”

“It was all bravado. That school skirt was the first one I’d worn, and it was the acceptance of Willow in the school that made me happy when I needed the second operation. Both were part of a sexual re-alignment, but needed, as the first was to remove two dead testicles that had never been able to descend, the tubes blocked from a kick I got in primary. I’m glad that you know, but still want me. I feel so comfortable with you, and with you inside me. When I say that I’ll love you until death us do part, it will be heartfelt.”

“We’ll need to get you a proper ring.”

“No rush, love. This one will tell me what we’re planning. You can drive me into London, and we can live at my apartment for a weekend. Before that, though, you can take on some of the organisation for the show. We need to get the others at the school on Thursday evenings. We’ve got enough of our music rehearsed, so, all we need to do is perfect the friends sessions and the ending. Will you be able to come to the rehearsal room on Thursday and we can let the others know which way we’re going.”

“Right. I have the contact details of the band and will talk to them all tonight. I’ll get on to Lee, Cliff, and Ken, if you call Zara. It keeps playing in my head as we talk about it. The Phantom is really in my mind!”

When they stopped at her home, they went inside, and Garry put her bag by the stairs. Wendy took one look at them and enveloped the two of them with hugs and kisses.

“I can see that something momentous happened, but there were no jewellers open. That ring looks like something from a market.”

“It is, Mum, from Bristol. Garry proposed and I accepted. Nothing set, yet. We have a big show to organise, and we may leave things until summer. He’ll be helping me organise the show, as he knows all the performers already. I may be spending a few more weekends at his house, and we’ll be spending the next holiday at the apartment.”

“Well, congratulations to both of you. At least you’re both in the entertainment industry, so there’s no false expectations.”

Garry grinned.

“We may rope her in as an organist with the Rocks and go on tour together.”

When Ashley came home, he was brought up to date and the four of them went to the Punchbowl for dinner, with the two girls touching their wine glasses with the beer glasses of the boys, as they sank a toast to the future, to fame, and to happiness.

Garry and Willow shared a loving kiss as he was about to drive home.

“See you Thursday, my darling. I don’t know how I’ll cope without you until then.”

“It’s only a few days, my love. You could text me and I’ll call back as soon as I can. I love you.”

“I love you, Willow Rose, the sweetest flower in the garden.”

She stood and watched him drive away, then went to close the gate. Walking back to the house, she started humming ‘Her Day’.

On Monday morning, the first day of the second half of term, Willow knocked on the Head’s door as soon as she arrived at the school. When she heard the ‘come in’ she turned the knob and entered.

“Good morning, Willow. What can I do for you today?”

“I’m just giving you an update on the charity show, ma-am.”

“OK, Lay it on me.”

“We will now call it an evening with VivWillow and Friends. I’ve spoken to the football club and he’s happy with it.”

“So, who are the friends?”

“Zara is keen to be part of it, with a new album on the market. We are close to confirming Ken Stroll, the winner of the TV singing show last year, as well as Cliff Jensen, the winner a few years before.”

“Wow! They’re both drawcards.”

“Then we’ll have Lee James, who was the Phantom for four seasons.”

“He has a lovely voice. I suppose that he’ll sing songs from the show.”

“Not in his first appearance. I’m holding that back to a finale. I was talking to Garry Randall on the weekend. He is going to talk to the rest of Toxic Rocks.”

“They will be totally different from the rest of the show, though.”

“Actually, we spoke about dressing the band in school colours to embed them in the orchestra to provide some electric sound to other sections. I was thinking of not having amplifiers but routing the guitars through the PA with the rest of the mix. He told me that they have a sense of the absurd and that may get them on board. When we call Mac out, they’ll be there to back him up.”

“What about the finale?”

“Zara will be the last friend, and I see a duet with her and Vivienne with the Phantom song to the dead father. Then all four of the men appear to sing ‘Music of the Night’, with them in two groups of three. The last bit is when the orchestra play the theme, and they do the big song, building to a crescendo and a sudden end with pyrotechnics. I thought that it would be a neutral finish but theatrical.”

“Theatrical enough that I can see it in my mind. What do you need to achieve all this?”

“Access to the Britannia for the guests when they’re here to rehearse. My security will drive them. I’ll pay for the accommodation, but I’m sure that the school can negotiate a better deal than I can. We’ll need to have them there for the whole week of the show, so we can do a dress rehearsal here, earlier in the week. I’ll organise one friend at a time to rehearse with the orchestra. We could utilise the Vines inside the orchestra to do the electric bits before the Rocks are here, if need be. It was the Rocks who played backing to the recent albums, so they’ve already done the hard work.”

“What about the technical side?”

“I’m thinking that we can rig a huge backscreen for our guys to project on it. My studio has a lot of the video used on their DVDs, as they were recorded there. They can take a still from the Phantom film for the finale.”

“Look, Willow. That all sounds like a great night out. You run along and learn something, and I’ll start talking to some contacts.”

That day went along as usual, with just a few girls noting her new ring, but accepting that it was a token, rather than a commitment. She rang Zara, that evening, and got a firm commitment of being part of the show. Willow asked her if she would be able to join them in the orchestra rehearsal that week, with scores of the songs she wanted to sing.

Garry called her on Wednesday evening, to tell her that the Rocks will be in the show, as it would show them in a totally different light. The other three had confirmed, and Willow asked him if he could schedule them in the school, one a week for the first three weeks of March.

On Thursday, at the orchestra session, she created a bit of a storm as she walked in with Zara, who was warmly welcomed. Howard Bamborough nodded to her and smiled, so she understood that he had been filled in. She got the group quietened.

“Today, I’m moving the goalposts. We have rehearsed enough to fill all the time that Vivienne and I will be singing. The show is now ‘An Evening with VivWillow and Friends’. Over the past couple of weeks, I have been able to attract a few good entertainers to join us. Zara will be part of the last section of the show, including the finale. After Viv and I have opened the show, we’ll call on Lee James to sing a set, mostly with orchestral backing. After another short set of VivWillow, we will call on Ken Stroll, the latest TV winner, to sing a set. The next friend will be Cliff Jensen.”

There was murmuring and a few questions, especially about the need for some electric backing, which they didn’t have. Willow grinned and put her hands up to get quiet.

“I hear you. We need some electric to make this work. For rehearsal purposes, we’ll have the Vines to help out, if needed, but the show will have four guys in the blue and black outfits, embedded in with you. They will come along to back their singer but will provide the electric backing for our other friends, as they’ve done it before, on their recent albums. Our friend, called up before Zara, will be Mac and Toxic Rocks.”

This time the room was almost bedlam. Zara leaned close to Willow.

“Looks like you’ve done it again, my friend.”

“I hope so. I really hope so.”

The door opened and Garry walked in, causing more mayhem. Howard was looking on at this with a smile. Willow nodded to him, and he tapped his baton for quiet, then looked back at the trio.

“You all know Garry. He was with G-Force when we were juniors. He’s now the bass player for the Rocks and has assured me that the band will be happy to be here. What we’ll do, this afternoon, will be to rehearse Zara’s set. She’s brought the scores with her, but I’m certain that you’ve all listened to her albums.”

Garry went to a chair, Willow went to the keyboards, and Zara handed out scores. She had five that she had chosen, and they spent the rest of the session running through them until they were perfect. When they were finished and were packing up, Garry called out.

“Next week, we’ll have Ken Stroll with us, then Lee, with Cliff in revision week. After the holiday, I’ll be here with the band on Thursdays. It won’t need a rehearsal with Mac until near the show, but we’ll be able to add to other parts of the show. The other friends will be joining us for the Thursdays in June, with all of us here during the week of the show. I’m sure the Head will want us to perform it in the theatre for the school, one afternoon.”

As they were leaving the room, Howard Bamborough shook Garry’s hand and told him that he had done well for himself. At the entrance, Willow and Garry had a kiss that caused a flutter among the orchestra members going that way. He told her that they were going to London on the weekend, and that he would pick her up at home, Friday. Garry took Zara to the hotel, while Sebastian took Willow home.

On Friday, she had been home about twenty minutes when Garry drove in. She told him that they would be having dinner at the Punchbowl and then she was free for the weekend. Her parents arrived in one of the Range Rovers, and they were soon off to the Punchbowl. Later on, her bag joined his in the back of his Alfa, and they set off for London. Having been there before, although it was just outside, he knew where to go. They dropped their bags inside the door and went to the parking station, where Willow had the boom card and showed him the two vacant spots.

They walked back to the apartment, arms around each other, and went in to take the bags up to Number Four. Inside, with the lights on, he looked around.

“Nice. Well fitted out. Kitchen through there?”

“And another door to stairs to the attic, with fully fitted bedroom and sitting room.”

“What else?”

“Bedroom through here.”

She opened the door, and he followed her in. An hour later, they came out, naked, to pick up the bags. In the morning, they showered and dressed, the contents of his bag now hanging in the wardrobe or taking up space in spare drawers. They went down to the restaurant for breakfast, with Carlo looking after them. When they had eaten, they went back up to brush their teeth and freshen up. Garry had looked up a nearby jeweller, so they walked, hand in hand, along Foley Street and then through to Fitzroy Street and along that until they arrived at Agnes Jewellers. There was more silver than gold, but they did find a single diamond on a simple gold band which was just elegant, rather than over the top.

With the market ring replaced, they considered themselves properly engaged. They strolled back along Fitzroy Street and then through to the Goodge Street tube station, taking the train to Embankment, going up to the street level and then walking along the river to Westminster. They had a look in the Abbey, joking about having their marriage there.

After that, they walked across the Waterloo Bridge to the Waterloo tube station, taking a train back to Goodge Street. They had a solid lunch at Gaucho and went back to the apartment to talk more about the show, their future, and to go to bed.

They were cuddled together, resting, when Garry declared that he loved the apartment, the location, and that Willow had been very clever to find it. In the morning, they bundled the sheets and pillowcases in the plastic bag, taking it down and having breakfast with the other two couples, who Garry had met before. The ring attracted squeals and hugs from Alicia and Hazel. Ted wanted to know if Willow’s plans had changed and was assured that she was determined to see the three-year course through.

Garry said that he was likely to be on tour with the Rocks that summer, with the USA pencilled in from the middle of July. That led to more questions, as he had been with G-Force the last time they had seen him. The process of events that led him to be playing in one of the biggest bands around was discussed. They had a long breakfast and then they went up to gather up what they were leaving with and walked to the parking station to get his car.

At home, she kissed him and picked her bag up. He gave her a wave as he drove out of the property, with a promise to see her on Thursday. When she went inside, her mother gave a squeal when she saw the diamond ring and hugged her daughter.

“So, the market ring was just a stopgap, was it?”

“Yes Mum. We got this one from a place near the apartment.”

“You actually went outside?”

“For a little while. The first weekend with him I found out that the album that affected you did the same to me, in the right situation. I wonder if there are a lot of women ready to give birth at the moment.”

The next few weeks flew by, with three Thursdays a real joy for the orchestra, accompanying the other three men and perfecting their sets. For Willow, it was time spent with Garry, who was now acting as her assistant director. For Howard Bamborough, it was a novelty and a privilege to conduct three well-known singers. The last week was revision week, so things were fairly easy going.

In that week there was another statement for the February sales. Album and DVD sales brought her two point two-seven, and, after costs and commission, she had one point eight-five. She got Peter to put two million in the business account.

The weekends were spent in various ways. For one, the couple went to Bourton; another was spent moving things around at the design studio, with Garry sleeping with Willow in her room. He made friends with Tiger and was much better for her to cling to. Another weekend saw the four of them in London on the Friday evening, as Ashley had a strategy meeting with the party officials. Wendy got to know more about her prospective son-in-law, and they bonded well.

The final week of term was, of course, exam week. It went as they always did, some stress, some joy, and a relief at the end. Garry had organised the whole show to be at the school on Monday, and the orchestra was happy to spend a couple of days working through the entire show without the rest of the students being there.

On Sunday, the couple went in to set up the orchestra seating on the stage, pulling the rostrum apart and relocating it. Willow had written out the score for the finale, after some input from Lee, who thought that it would look good. She added it behind the rest of the mass of scores that they had accumulated on the stands. She put the two Yamahas with a swivel seat between them, one to be set to piano and the other to organ. There were three extra seats in the back of the orchestra, with fifty-watt amps behind them, and a drum kit set up. When they were happy with things, they locked up and went to Rising Lane to join Ashley and some donors for a barbeque.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 16

In their spare moments, Willow and Vivienne had worked out what songs they wanted and made a rough calculation of how many would fit between the guests. They had timed the guest’s sets, so had some idea of how long the show would last.

On Monday, Sebastian had the most star-studded passengers he had ever driven as he picked them up at the Britannia and took them to the school. He was interested to see what Willow had put together this time. There were several cars there when he arrived, and Garry came out to welcome everyone.

The orchestra were setting up on stage, with Garry joining the other band members. Willow waited and then called out.

“Thank you all for coming today. We will be working through the show up to the end of Zara’s set. Then we can work on the finale. The score is on your stands. Rocks, you’ve worked with these friends before, so you know what bits of guitar work fits. With everything else, add something as you see fit and remember it for later. Tomorrow, hopefully, we can work through the entire show. We have three months before the charity show, but I’ve been there and got caught before. Tomorrow we’ll have a small audience. Who knows what we’ll be doing between now and the end of June.”

Moyra led the orchestra in tuning up. Willow and Vivienne walked onto the stage with Howard and led him to the rostrum. Willow went to the piano and started to doodle the intro to ‘Finding a Friend’ while Vivienne spoke to an imaginary audience. The orchestra was brought into the song, and they were off and running. They alternated Willow and Viv’s songs and then brought out Lee to sing four of his better-known songs that weren’t Phantom related. After that, it was four from VivWillow, then four from Ken, another four from VivWillow and then four from Cliff. All the time, the guitar was being added, proving that the band remembered the recording sessions. After Cliff, the pair did two duets before calling on Mac. Another duet and then they called on Zara to join them.

At the end of her set, Willow called all the singers onto the stage.

“Now we get to the neutral zone. We’ll be finishing with a set from the ‘Phantom of the Opera.’ You four guys should now be kitted out in the white-tie getup. At the show, Zara will be wearing white, and Viv has gone off and changed into something similar. When Zara is taking her applause, Viv comes onto the stage and they sing the duet, ‘Wishing you were here for me’. The orchestra goes straight into the tune for ‘Music of the Night’, and they sing the first couple of stanzas alternatively. Then, one of you guys strides in with the song, going up to Zara, who has moved to one side of the stage. Another one of you come in from the other side to sing the next bit with Viv, followed by the other two, leaving two groups of three on the stage. As that song ends, I let rip with the theme song on the organ, joined by the orchestra. We bash it senseless for a few bars, and then you phantoms sing the main song, rising to a crescendo with all six voices. When you sing ‘We Are The Phantoms’ we cut it suddenly and the lights go out.”

She handed out the lyrics sheets.

“We can do this a few times today and get it right. Tomorrow, we’ll have all the costumes ready for a full-dress rehearsal. If we mess it up, we have Wednesday, but I would hate to take up too much of the holiday. Tomorrow, we’ll also have the backdrop projections and final smoke, but no pyrotechnics. That’s saved for the outside.”

They took four runs through the finale before getting it right, seeing that it ended up as one, long, song, and made a couple of changes on the way. Then Willow got them to run through Zara’s set and into the finale before she was happy.

“Thank you all for your work today. Orchestra, all blue tomorrow if you can, I have a full set of outfits on hangers in the locker rooms. Try the one with your name and let me know if there’s a problem.”

The stage emptied and Willow stood there with Garry’s arms around her. Howard Bamborough got off his rostrum and stood beside them, watching the mingled orchestra and stars leave the theatre.

“When we set you that task, back at the beginning of the first term, we were just thinking about something that would be good in this theatre, not realising how weak it was if out in a stadium. As usual, you’ve pulled our irons out of the fire. I was excited as I conducted, and that’s not usual. I’ll be telling the Head to round up a good audience for you tomorrow. By the way, my timing was that it goes three and a half hours, so an ideal show length.”

“Thank you, sir. Today would have been another month into the future if it hadn’t been for Garry being able to connect with the others.”

“What time shall I tell the Head?”

“If we do a full performance in the morning, tell her that we’ll start at two. I’ll organise a food truck outside for lunch.”

As they left the theatre, Mac called over to them.

“Garry and Willow! Come back to the hotel with us for lunch. You deserve some food after directing that!”

Willow got into Garry’s car, and they followed the coach to the Britannia. There, he left it with a valet, and they went into the hotel, following the others to the dining room. They had Vivienne with them, as well as Moyra and a few senior members of the orchestra. Willow joined the other girls in the toilets to relieve themselves and freshen up the make-up. Zara was effusive in her praise for the finale, and Moyra was just thankful to be part of the whole show.

They had a good lunch and there was a hubbub of talk. Mac came over to Willow and Garry and pulled them to some isolated seats.

“Look, lass. While I was singing my set, I could hear organ work inside the band.”

“I’m sorry, Mac. It’s a natural response, from my earliest days when I played along with Garry and the other bands. I won’t do it again.”

“Yes, you bloody will. It made things sound better. We’ve never had more than our core group on stage, it’s been almost an unwritten rule from before I joined the band. Nothing like this, with a full orchestra. We’re in final discussions with a tour of the USA during summer. It doesn’t start until the third week of July, to allow their college kids to attend midweek shows, and will end on the last Saturday of September. It’s ten weeks on the road, with just a few days off. Will you join us?”

“Me!!! You want me on the stage with Toxic Rocks. That would be brilliant! We could have a Las Vegas marriage, Garry, with Elvis as the preacher.”

“I’ll take that as, yes?”

“You bet! It’s back to my roots with hard rock”

“It also allows us to rip off some of your hits, some of the ones that you wrote are crying out for a Toxic shock. Look. Say nothing at the moment. After you’ve done this show, I’ll get our manager to have a word with yours. If you’ve told him that you’re going to retire for a few years, he may be happy to sell you. That will put you under our umbrella, with all the benefits that comes with it. Of course, once you’re with us, we’ll be using you and Garry as our artistic directors for the tour. What you’ve pulled together with this show has been amazing, and I’ve watched that DVD of you in the club. Six hours of flawless entertainment with just two of you was a masterclass in arranging. Garry has told me the term dates, and I’ve got us booked into your studio next week to record our next album. How about Garry bringing you along and we’ll make it a five-piece band to see how it works.”

She gave him a hug.

“See you next week, boss. I have the studio booked the Saturday after, to record our last VivWillow album with this orchestra. It’s all new material, more soft rock. It will fulfill my commitment to the Head, and there will be the two albums on the market before the show, using both the Juniors and the Seniors. My gift to them before I leave.”

“What then?”

“A three-year Bachelor of Business Administration through the University of London, the Royal Holloway campus.”

“Clever girl. When will that start?”

“November.”

Garry took her home and came back in the morning to take her back to the school. She had a shimmering dark blue dress to wear. That morning, they looked the part, and the Rocks were well hidden within the orchestra. The tech boys had put up the screen across the back of the stage and were projecting pictures that reflected the songs. They took it very seriously and worked through the entire show before lunch, with Mac and the other guys resplendent in the white-tie outfits in the finale. The smoke was cold about her feet, but she expected that it did what it was meant to. There was a last change, which Lee had suggested, and it worked so well, they liked it.

The guys changed back into their set outfits and Vivienne changed back to the yellow dress that she did the rest of the show in. The food truck was outside the door, and they all stopped for lunch. When they had tidied up, freshened up and took their places, the auditorium was about half-full.

Willow could see the Head and most of the school board; most of the main teachers; the Bishop and his group, including Tom, Sally, and the three Russells. The group from the Coventry Football Club was expected. What she didn’t expect was some that she recognised from the last charity tour. As the orchestra was getting seated, she went down to talk to Bruce.

“How are you, today, Mister Ace Reporter?”

“Wondering what’s going on. The Head rang me and told me that there was something that I might like to be ahead of the game on. If it includes you, I’m looking forward to it.”

“This is a show that we’ve put together for the football club, on the last full weekend in June. It started out as me and Vivienne. We did perform that show with the Junior Orchestra before Christmas. This showcases the Seniors. I’d better get back, we’re nearly ready.”

She went up on the stage, the doors were closed as the orchestra checked their tuning, and Howard Bamborough came out to take to the rostrum, with some applause. Vivienne went to the front of the stage.

“Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to a little show which we call VivWillow and Friends. Everybody needs friends.”

Willow played the intro on the piano and they sang it as a duet, with the orchestra coming in on the second verse. Willow could hear the Rocks adding a very gentle accompaniment. When Vivienne called Lee out to sing his set, there was an audible gasp from the audience. When she called out Ken, there were a lot of smiles, added to when Cliff came on to do his set. All the singers lived up to their reputation, and all made the effort to hug both Willow and Vivienne as they left the stage.

When Mac was called on, and the Rocks stood up at the back of the stage, Willow had to grin as she heard Sally yelp. Mac did his numbers, and Willow added more organ than before. At the end of his set, he hugged and kissed both girls before he left the stage. After their duet, Vivienne went to the front of the stage.

“Our last guest is a long-time friend. For some years she played cello in this orchestra. Please welcome a new songstress in the charts, Zara.”

As Zara came on, Vivienne gave her a hug and left to change. As Zara took her applause for her set, Vivienne came back in a similar white dress and they sang the heartfelt song from the Phantom as a duet, moving away to each side of the stage as they finished. The orchestra started the ‘Music of the Night’ as the four men, now with the half-masks, came on stage. At the end of that, there was applause, and then Willow blasted the opening to the final piece on the organ, with the orchestra and the Rocks following on.

The one change that they had made didn’t affect the music. Willow left the organ and came down to the centre of the stage as the others were singing, with the others now with a phantom on each side. Instead of the men taking the finale to the end, they did the ‘Sing for Me’ line and the three girls sang the notes, taking it higher with each turn. As they got higher, Howard, on his rostrum, switched the controller for the multipliers that they were going through, with the last notes sustained and sounding like twenty-one singers as the music, and singing, came to a sudden halt, and the stage lights went off.

They were in a line, across the stage, with the smoke around their feet, when the lights came back and the audience were on their feet as one, applauding. The Rocks joined the others, and they gestured for the orchestra to rise, and for Howard and Moyra to join the line. Then there were hugs and kisses.

Willow knew that the Head would want to say something so there was a hand-held microphone by the steps to the stage. Sure enough, she joined them and hugged a few before going to the front of the stage and calling for quiet.

“At the beginning of the school year, we set Willow and Vivienne two tasks. The first was to perform a show on this stage with the Junior Orchestra, which they did before Christmas. The second was to do it again with the Seniors before the end of the last term. Never did I think that this show would be the outcome. I suppose that throwing in a charity show in the football stadium was the catalyst, but today has been a revelation. I thank all of the other stars who have joined in and made this a day to remember. I’ve called in the lunchroom ladies, and we’ve got nibbles and drinks there. Thank you all for coming, and I hope that you leave in high spirits, as I will.”

As the auditorium was leaving, she went around the orchestra, giving hugs and words of appreciation. Slowly, everyone made their way to the lunchroom, Willow with Garry’s arm around her and the two of them flanked by the rest of the Rocks.

In the lunchroom, it was all laughter and talk. Clive and Jill were there and spoke to all the cast, asking if they could recreate the show in Abbey Road. The man from the football club came over to Willow.

“Willow. This is Jonathon, and I asked him along to see the show that he had told me was too smooth for television. He has now changed his mind and will broadcast our Saturday performance live.”

“That’s great! What about the others who will be filming?”

“They will do a lot of backstage and crowd shots, which will be added into the DVD. We just need someone to distribute it.”

Willow giggled and pulled the two of them over to Clive.

“You people need to talk. Agree to agree, and there’s money to be made.”

Bruce waylaid her on her way back to Garry.

“Willow Rose. This show was created with you driving it, so I’m told.”

“With a lot of help and advice, Bruce.”

“They also said that this will be your last show for a while.”

“It was certainly meant to be, but things have a way of changing the future. Look at that group of men over there, deep in discussion. I recognised some of them that we had worked with during that big charity tour. I wonder if they’re working out the weekends that their stadiums are vacant. One venue may become a few, if they put up enough money.”

She wasn’t wrong, as the man from Coventry came over to Willow and Vivienne with a piece of notepaper.

“Girls. I expect that the Head knew what she was doing when she invited the other venues along today. This is a list of stadiums that will be free to use on the weekends listed. I already have the staging and other things organised, so just need to get it moved from place to place. We know that most of you need to be at school, so the shows are all weekends, Friday to Sunday. Can you make it happen?”

“We can, sir, but we’ll need to get the others involved. Hold on and I’ll get them together.”

She went around the room, getting all the other stars, the Head, Howard, Clive, and Moyra to join them. The man outlined the likely scenario.

“I’ve been asked to see if this show can be performed as a charity show at the other football clubs, similar to the ones we did a couple of years ago. The early clubs have worked out the dates for when the teams are playing away. The two weekends of April can be Northampton and Luton. The first two weekends of May are Leicester and Birmingham. Then there’s a break until June, with Nottingham, Derby, Manchester, our show and Liverpool. That will give the students two weeks to the end of the term. I was told that Toxic Rocks will be heading for the USA soon after, so we wanted to get everything in before that.”

There was discussion after that, with Clive getting his diary from his briefcase and looking up dates and bookings for the others. Rocks had nothing on, and Mac thought that it would be a wonderful exposure to their more ‘elegant’ side. The three guys were able to have any dates they had pencilled in moved, and Zara said that the nightclubs could do without her, as long as she was out there making a bigger name for herself. Howard and the Head were certain that the orchestra and the tech boys would love to be part of a bigger event, with everyone certain that Vivienne and Willow would be on board. Willow turned to Garry.

“Darling. Can we get married in the break before the beginning of next term? It will be the weekend after the recording session. Something quiet, but with a good reception. If I get the orchestra into the studio on the Friday, we can finish my part of the two albums then. Maybe you could put down a few Rocks songs with them. Then we can get married at Stoneleigh on the Saturday and party at the club Saturday night. We can set up at Bourton, and the limo can take us home.”

“That’s only two weeks away! Are you sure that you can organise that?”

“Let’s go and ask Revend Russell.”

They went to where the church group were drinking and talking with Bruce. Sally saw them coming and rushed over to give Willow a hug. When she let her go, they went up to the others.

“Excuse us, sirs. Garry and I were planning a summer wedding, but he is now touring the USA. Will it be possible for us to arrange a quiet wedding at St. Mary's, for the Saturday before Easter?”

“Of course! How big is it going to be, a media extravaganza?”

“No, just us, our family and friends. I was hoping that we could see Malcolm to arrange a reception in the club.”

“I’ll talk to him about that today. You know that he has a soft spot for you, after all that you’ve done for the church, the club, and the village.”

The Bishop smiled.

“Would you mind if I officiated, if it’s the Saturday afternoon. We could do it as a duet, Reverend. I would offer you the Cathedral, should you want a big affair, but I see that you’re staying humble, Willow, and that’s a good trait to have.”

“I’ll make a formal request by email, Reverend, as well as one to Malcolm. That big meeting, just now, was a sudden expansion of the Coventry show into another eight cities to the end of June. Thank you for your help.”

Bruce joined them as they left.

“Giving me another couple of hot stories. How long has this been planned?”

“About ten minutes, Bruce. If we’re married, I’ll be able to go to America with Garry as Willow Randall. The expansion of the shows happened in this room. You’ll need to talk to your contact at the football club to get the details. He rattled of a bunch of dates and places, all in the Midlands.”

He went off to get the details, and they were joined by Vivienne and Zara, who steered them over to a quiet spot.

“You two had a good talk with the Bishop, there?”

“Yes, Viv. It hasn’t been confirmed, but we should be getting married at Stoneleigh, on the Saturday afternoon before Easter, with the Bishop officiating. The reception may be at the club that evening. How would you two like to be joint Maids of Honour?”

She was enveloped in hugs and cheek kisses, with Garry getting hugs and kisses of his own. After that, Willow went to talk to Howard Bamborough.

“Sir. I’m going to be at the recording studio next week, with Garry and the Rocks. Can we organise for the orchestra to be taken there on the Friday? That way, I can get that album out of the way, and Mac may want to record a few numbers with them. If it gets too strung out, we can use the Saturday morning to tidy up.”

“That will be done, young Willow. I have to tell you that today has been the most exciting concert I’ve ever conducted. The thought that we’ll be taking it to nine cities is intoxicating. And to be televised, live, on a Saturday evening. You realise that it will put the Seniors out there as the orchestra to have?”

“That means that you’ll have to manage their futures, sir. I’m sure that there will be approaches over the summer period for them to play. They should be getting fifty thousand a show to share between them. They deserve it, but they deserve the accolades more.”

The performers all went off to change into normal outfits. Willow told Viv about the Friday to record the second album, and she said that she would be at the studio then. They arranged to meet with Zara on Thursday, in London, to look for bridal wear, with Viv picking Willow up in her limo to go to the city and coming back that evening

After they left the school with the others in the coach, Willow found herself in a private dining room for dinner with the Rocks and Rufus, their manager, who had been at the show, asked by Mac to listen to the band with the organ. Over the course of the meal, she told him about Peter, and the fact that the sales were dropping without fresh albums. He agreed that she needed to be on stage in America, and that she could help the band get a bigger sound.

She told him about the two albums, one already recorded and with Clive, with the next to be recorded after the next Rocks album. He got Vivienne's details from her.

“Look, if I can buy the two of you from Peter, I can say that I’m going to groom you for bigger things after a couple of years. I’ve worked with Clive a lot, in the past, so see no problems moving on. When is your next statement from Peter?”

“It should be on my email in a couple of days.”

“When you get it, empty your account, and I’ll see him next week.”

When Garry took her home, they kissed as he dropped her off.

“See you, Monday, in the studio, my love.”

“I’ll be there, my darling.”

He drove away and she went into the house. Wendy gave her a hug.

“Big day, love?”

“You could say that, Mum. You could say that!”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 17

“Oh? Something happened?”

“Let’s all sit down with hot chocolate, and I’ll tell you.”

They were sitting and relaxed.

“Now, young lady. Spill the beans.”

“OK. Yesterday we ran through the whole show and Lee suggested we change the very last few seconds from the guys singing to us girls doing the scales when ordered to sing. It really worked well, so we did the whole show in full dress this morning and then had lunch.”

“Right. That’s it?”

“When Mac and the Rocks were doing their set, the orchestra added some bits and I just had to play along with the organ. Mac pointed it out to me yesterday.”

“He told you to stop?”

“No, he told me to carry on and then asked me if I would tour America with them to bring them up to a six-piece.”

“You! From a Rose to a Toxic Rocker!”

“Yes. I said yes and we leave the day after school finishes and we’re away for ten weeks.”

“Wow! That’s some news.”

“There’s more. The Russells and the Bishop were there, and I asked them if we could get married in Stoneleigh on the Saturday before Easter. The Bishop will officiate.”

“That’s only a week next Saturday. Why the rush?”

“Some of the guests that the Head invited were the guys from the football club to see what they were getting, along with a bunch of guys from a lot of other clubs. After the show, they put together a set of nine clubs who all want the show. It starts the weekend after Easter and is on and off until the last weekend of June, two or three shows on weekends only. The man from the TV was there and has decided to show it live on a Saturday evening.”

“So, you’re going to be very busy. Does it leave time for school and revision, remembering that it’s the final exams.”

“It does. There’s one more thing.”

“What else could there be?”

“The manager of the Rocks was there, and he told me to empty my account with Peter. He will talk to him after that and make an offer for both me and Vivienne. He reckons that with my decreasing income, I may be a good buy. Peter doesn’t know about the two albums that we’re issuing soon, or that the show will be more than just in the school. I think that anything paid for me will be recouped from the American shows. I’ve made a calculation on the sizes of likely venues, which are a lot bigger than I’ve played at before. The Rocks do one big tour a year, and kick back for the rest of the time. If we’re away in class time, I can organise Zoom or notes by email, if it’s during the summer break, I can take my laptop and do the work between shows.”

“With the wedding, what are you doing about dresses?”

“Viv’s picking me up on Thursday morning. We’re going to London, meeting Zara, and heading to the shops. They will be my joint maids.”

“Do you mind if I come? I’ll need something that enhances my natural beauty without overwhelming my daughter and her friends.”

“Sure. It would be nice.”

They went off to bed, and Willow told Tiger and Shaun that good things were happening. She laid for a while thinking about her life. Yes, she had been in the charts and had made a lot of money, and yes, she would be marrying young. But she loved Garry, a love that may have started when he first hugged her, as her, and crystallised with their kisses behind the amps in the studio.

She thought back over her time at the school. Garry had always been in her background with the Gees. With her new appreciation of what real love felt like, she realised that her first boyfriend had emerged because of her thankfulness of being accepted as a girl, while her second had been purely lust and teenage experimentation. The last couple years had forced her to grow up beyond her years. Projects that had been handed out had forced her to become a responsible adult well before others around her. She may only be coming up to seventeen in years, but she was in her twenties in experience.

Next day, she checked her emails and saw one from Peter. The sales were dropping, and his costs were minimal. Her account was now a shade over two million, so, she asked him to empty the account into WR Holdings. She sent Gina an email, telling her about the impending marriage, and that she would be with Garry while his band toured. She also told her about how a school show blossomed into a nine-city extravaganza. She invited Gina, Maisie, and any companion to the wedding and reception. She also sent Evelyn an email, giving her the news and talking about the pleasures of fifth year school.

For the rest of the day, she rearranged her room, taking her desk and the other computer equipment to the annex, setting it up in the part her mother had not got around to using. She added all of her musical instruments, taking the keyboard a bit at a time, until the bedroom looked more like a bedroom. She made a list of things that would need to change, with her living in Bourton, here, and at the apartment, with Garry. They would need to be here until she had finished school.

When Viv picked them up, Juliette was driving. On the way to London, Viv rang Zara to let her know that they were coming. Zara told them to meet her at an address and they pulled up outside.

It turned out to be a small shop, with just one dress in the window, without a price tag on it. Inside, they were well looked after, measured, shown samples and drawings, and had their colourings noted. Willow wanted a dress that she could spend all evening in and be elegant enough for the reception and the ride to their love-nest. That set the tone for the others. With her age and figure, almost anything looked good, and it was a hard job to pick. It had to be white, her mother insisted, and Viv and Zara were outfitted in off-white, while Wendy was elegant in pink. Juliette chose a faintly orange dress that she wore with aplomb. She also insisted that she pay for everything, seeing how her daughter had done so well after joining the dance band.

The dresses were all packaged and put in the car. They all had photos of them in the dresses, and now they were after shoes to match, as well as visiting a high-end jeweller, with Wendy buying Willow her first tiara, seeing that she wasn’t going to wear a veil. Of course, the diamonds needed to be complemented by the perfect necklace and earrings.

In the car, going home, Willow rang Garry.

“Hi, love. There’s something we need to do before next weekend.”

“What’s that?”

“We need to visit a jeweller in our area to pick a pair of wedding rings. It may take a couple of days to get them sized.”

“Sounds good. I’ll come and pick you up Saturday morning. Love you.”

“Love you too.”

On Saturday, he arrived in time to share breakfast with the family. Willow brought up the need for her to be living here until school ended and showed him the room now, taking the opportunity for a passionate kiss. They drove into Birmingham, following Ashley and Wendy, and parked at the Bullring. They took their time at the jeweller and found a pair of rings that they both liked. They were simple gold bands, but with imprints of stars on hers, and circles on his.

The finger sizes were measured, Garry paid for the rings, and they were promised delivery in two days. They gave the design studio address to courier them to. Happy with that, they wandered the shops for a while, noting that there were new life-size cut-outs of other singers in the music store, although there was pictures of both Toxic Rocks and Summer Rose on the walls.

“I feel as if I’m one of those characters in a spooky movie, who slowly fades into nothingness.”

“You’ll be back to a solid person once we open in America.”

“I know. I wonder if Herb and the others will ever realise what they threw away by being driven by their hormones and egos. I’m sure that they didn’t like being led by girls after a while.”

“They did what they needed to do, at the time. What they never realised is that you and Gina were the true talents in the band. When we did that recording session in the club, I saw a pair of genuine world stars with a backing band. The fact that one of those stars was making goo-goo eyes at that Jacob didn’t sit well with me, but us bass players are in it for the long term, so I just had to wait until we could find ourselves.”

“What if we hadn’t?”

“That was not in my thinking. When we did that short tour, I could see him leaving the same page as everyone else. He must have scored in Paris. I saw him popping pills during those rest days in the hotels but thought he may have just had a headache.”

“He wasn’t the same boy by the time we were in Berlin. It’s sad that so much talent ends up wasted.”

“The tour with the Rocks was a steady stream of guys offering to help us party. I’m sure that the others may have gone down that road in their earlier days. They still talk fondly about the two foundation players who died, but, as the present band, they’ve become clean.”

“We didn’t have any problems as Summer Rose.”

“That’s because you were all children. The dealers were waiting for you to grow up, or for one of you to fall, as Jacob did. When we’re in the States, stay close to me and never drink anything that you haven’t poured yourself.”

“All right, my love. I’ll just let my big, strong, older husband protect me.”

They left the shops and went to the design studio, where her parents were finishing off some new paintwork, with both sides of the business now in identical colours. The new part was now fully equipped, with the half a dozen new operators starting to teach the old ones. The original side was still making money, and the staff were keen to be upgraded.

After tidying up and washing out the brushes, the four of them made sure that everything was good before leaving. Garry followed Ashley to a place to eat and meet, the Merry Maid Bar and Grill. It certainly wasn’t the sort of place where Willow expected to meet Hugh and Sam, but they were there, saving a table, and not looking out of place.

Over a meal of chops and chips, Garry was brought into the conversation regarding the upcoming election campaign. Both men were sure that things would come to a head in the spring. Garry and Willow let them know that they would be in America for ten weeks, and Willow decided that it was time to record her father’s advert, should he want to use it.

The couple left the others to more secretive talks, and drove back to Rising Lane, where they checked out the rearranged bedroom again, along with her bed. They laid in each other’s arms and spoke about the future. They would live here during the week until school finished, and then they left for the tour. Then, they planned to live in Bourton and London, although Garry was keen to sell Bourton and buy something north of London.

After they had showered and redressed, she took him through to the annex, where her computer was, and they looked at online maps to see where would be nice to live, with access to the apartment or back north. They looked for properties around Henley-on-Thames and came across one in Marlow. It was red-brick Georgian in style, with a fantastic kitchen, five bedrooms, and more. It was set back off of Marlow Road and was priced at four million. The odd thing was that it was only about ten to fifteen miles to Royal Holloway, mainly on motorways.

Garry called the agent and arranged a viewing on Sunday afternoon, so they printed off all the details and went back to the house, just as her parents arrived home. That evening, they all sat in the lounge, two cuddling couples, as they watched a new movie that Wendy wanted to see, having bought a copy. After that, they went to bed.

In the morning, they went to Stoneleigh, arriving just as the church was emptying. They had Willow’s BMW, to give it a run, and parked by the vicarage. Reverend Russell took them through the process of the wedding, mainly for Garry’s information, and then they all went over to the club, where Garry paid for the reception, asking for the amps, drums and a keyboard to be set up for that evening. They had lunch with their friends from the village, invited everyone to the reception, and then drove south, with Willow behind the wheel and the magnetic plates on.

The agent was waiting for them and showed them through the house. Willow particularly liked the big kitchen and the outside space at the back, with lots of room for sun loungers and tables with the southern aspect.

“The vendors will be clearing the furniture, so it will be a blank canvas if you buy. They have requested a thirty-day settlement, without any allowance for the offers rigmarole.”

Garry looked at Willow and she nodded.

“Look, sir. That’s perfectly all right with us. I have a place down at Bourton which will go on the market once we’ve moved in here, and we have the funds to pay for this. Being empty, it will give us the chance to buy the things we want.”

They shook on the deal, there and then. Garry gave him his contact details and the agent said that he would email the contract.

“What name will I submit for the title?”

“It will be Mister Garreth Jackson Randall, that’s Garreth with two r’s, and Mrs. Willow Jean Randall.”

As Willow drove along Henley Road, heading for Henley, she giggled.

“Garreth, with two r’s I can understand, but how did the Jackson come about?”

“It was my father. He was keen on the Jackson Five. I’m lucky I didn’t get Jermaine or Marlon. The Garreth was an old family name on my mother’s side. What about your names?”

“Mine evolved from Billie-Jean, that Tony Horton, god rest his soul, gave me. Mum was quick to produce a new birth certificate and she was able to cover over the ‘iam’ and the ‘oh’ in William John. Willow Jean fitted nicely. She did make IDs for her friends at uni. I have an official one now.”

“How did you get out of the country for your tours? How did you get a passport?”

“The label organised a bulk order of them for any of the band that didn’t have one for our first tour. Mine was probably not scrutinised as much as it should have been. I was already in the charts by that time, so the application may have been rubber stamped by a fan eager to finish work on a Friday night.”

She drove them to Henley, and they parked near the rowing museum. They walked along the riverside, hand in hand and happy.

“It’s going to be fun furnishing that house. I suppose that we agree that nothing comes in unless we both are all right with it.”

“A really big bed is number one.”

“What! So, you can scamper over one side and snore. Besides, getting bedlinen for unusual sizes is a pain in the butt.”

“We’ll need to set up one room as our joint office. I need a place where I can communicate with the rest of the band and swap song ideas.”

“That big bedroom in the eaves can do for that. You can have one side and I can have the other. If I have any input with the band, we’ll need to work together. I can put my keyboard up there, so we can play around with tunes.”

“I liked the home cinema. A really big screen and all the action pictures from my collection will be great!”

“We could look at old DVDs of us and ask ourselves if we’d been crazy as teenagers. If we adopt, we can indoctrinate them to be pop stars and look after us in our old age.”

They had dinner at the Angel on the Bridge and strolled back to the car.

“I love you, Garreth with two arses.”

“I love you too, Will.”

They stopped and kissed.

“This time next week, we’ll be man and wife.”

“How about we go home and practise? We do have the studio in the morning.”

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re wicked?”

“Too many times, my love, and every time was deserved.”

On Monday morning, after breakfast, one couple was heading for Birmingham while the other was on the way to Leicester, with Willow driving.

“Have you got any idea of the songs that you’ll be recording?”

“That we’ll be recording, my love. Mac did mention something about looking at some of your back catalogue and giving it the Toxic Treatment.”

When they arrived at the studio, there was a minibus parked, with Sebastian waiting for them.

“Good morning, you two. That show that you put on is the best so far. The Rocks are inside and waiting for you. I’ve been told that Howard Bamborough will have the orchestra here on Friday. I’ll be bringing them with the coach. While you’re recording, I’ll be taking all the band’s wives on a tour of the countryside.”

“Please let them know that they’re invited to our wedding on Saturday, at Stoneleigh. So are you and Sebastian, Max, and your wives. Reception is in the club.”

“Thank you. I’ll see you later.”

They went inside and found the Rocks, sitting in the rest area with bits of paper strewn around. Garry laughed.

“Welcome to the ‘Rocks Institute of Songwriting.”

Willow looked at the piles of paper, took some and sat looking at them, creating sub-piles. She went and got some more and added to the sub-piles. The others stopped and watched her. Mac was the first to speak.

“What are you doing, Willow? Those are all thought bubbles.”

She took five of the piles.

“Come on through to where we make music and I’ll show you how brilliant you all are.”

In the studio, she sat at the keyboard, tried out a couple of tunes, and sang the words from one pile with a twelve-bar beat.

“It just needs some rearranging and editing of the words, and you’ve got the basis of a song. It will need adding to before you record it.”

“Right, Missy. From now on you can earn your keep. We’ll get set up and you can play that again, so we create the Rocks sound around it. Then we’ll sit down and edit the words. While we’re doing that, you can show us how brilliant we are by doing the same to another set of bubbles.”

Through the morning, that’s how it happened. Willow could see that the guys were good wordsmiths but were jumping from one idea to another. Her experience in adding to a basic set of lyrics or tune stood her in good stead. By the end of the day, they had created five new songs and recorded them.

When they went home, Garry was smiling.

“What you did today showed all of that learning from the school. You sorted, you arranged, and you just recorded four more songs than they’d have done in the first day. Be prepared to do the same tomorrow and the lads will love you as much as I do.”

“I only need one of you, my darling.”

“And that’s what you’re getting on Saturday.”

Tuesday was, indeed, more of the same, but with Willow making editing suggestions as they went along. By the end of that day, they had enough recorded for an album. That evening, Wendy gave Garry the package that the jeweller had sent to the office. On Wednesday, they recorded it all, in the album order, with the amps turned up and Willow told to let loose on the organ. When that was finished, they sat in the rest area and listened to it played back to them.

Mac smiled.

“Now, that’s what I call a Toxic Rocks album. Willow, we listened to some of your material in the hotel, last night, and watched the ‘Live in Berlin’ DVD. Would you allow us to do a make-over on a few songs? Just the ones you wrote. It would fill out our stage show without having to play the old stuff. If we’re going to present ourselves as a new look band, we should give the punters something new to listen to. Summer Rose never took off in the US, did it?”

“I don’t think the label tried very hard, seeing that you need to be seen to make it work there. It was hard enough fitting tours into Europe. I suppose that Clive may have made the push, probably around this summer, had we stayed together. You won’t want me singing, as that wouldn’t sound like the Rocks.”

“Correct, but we could do them as duets.”

They went back into the studio and the band improvised around her organ sound, turning some of the Summer Rose material into something else. She was particularly happy with what they did with ‘Dummy Spitter’.

On Thursday, because they could, they took her next album and turned it on its head. Willow was getting used to what was needed, as it wasn’t far from the stadium rock she had played before. In the lunch time, she asked Sarah if she could record her thirty-second advert for her father’s campaign. It was just her and the piano, and she worked to a clock.

‘The party it chose’
‘It chose Ashley Rose’
‘A man of ethics and reason’
‘When you make your pick’
‘He stands as tall as a steeple’
‘So, vote Ashley Rose and give him your tick’
‘For he’s a man for the people.’

Mac was in the control room as she did it and was waiting when she came out.

“Is that for your father, with his political campaign?”

“Yes. I don’t know if he’ll use it. I thought it would be good background to pictures of him in various places, with the voters.”

“You know that he’ll be attacked when they play that, don’t you. Using your famous daughter isn’t the way to do it. How about we get the band in, and make it sound like the Rocks supporting his run?”

“You’d do that for me?”

“Lass, you just saved us two weeks in a studio, trying to lay down an album. Thirty seconds with this is nothing.”

He got the boys in, and they listened to what she had done. Within half an hour, they had re-recorded it with wailing guitar and manic organ, and Mac singing the words. Willow had to laugh, as it sounded a lot like what they were doing with her other songs, but a lot shorter. Sarah gave her six CDs of her original, and six of the new version.

Before they left, they rearranged the studio for the orchestra, but kept the amps set up. Friday, after the orchestra had arrived and all its bigger things brought in, Willow and Vivienne recorded the album again, but not exactly as it had been envisioned. This time it had the Rocks playing along to give it a bit of bite. Howard Bamborough had a big grin as it was happening. For him, this would add to the album’s credibility, and would be doubly listened to once the show was being performed.

On Friday afternoon, as the orchestra was being packed for travelling, Sarah and the team produced a lot of CDs. There were some for the orchestra and the school as well as to be couriered to Clive. There were some for Vivienne and Willow, with a few for the Rocks, and also those to be couriered to Clive. There were three Rocks CDs for Mac; one of the album, and another of an album’s worth of Willow Rose material, reworked, and another of the new VivWillow album. Willow was given a couple each of these but asked not to spread them around, until they were released during the tour.

Garry was going to the Britannia with the band, to have his stag party. Vivienne was taking Willow home, to be with her in the morning when they had an appointment in the salon, with Zara coming to Coventry tonight, and meeting them there in the morning. That evening she gave Ashley the two versions of the soundtrack to use as he wished, and they sat and listened to the next VivWillow album.

“That’s not what I expected, love.”

“That’s the result of being in a studio with Toxic Rocks. I think that there may be one of their own albums, sometime in the future, with them playing along with an orchestra. It will also lessen the shock when they appear on the show.”

“It’s your show, tomorrow. It’s a big day in any girls life.”

“I know, Mum. It’s not as if we’ll be rushing off soon. We’re having a week at Bourton and then coming back here so I can go to school. I don’t know what Garry has in mind, probably getting his finances in order before the tour.”

That night, as she laid in bed, feeling lonely without Garry beside her, she considered what had happened so far, this year, and what things would be like as a married woman. She knew, already, that the charity shows would be big, and then there was the final exams before she was heading for her introduction to the Rock’s fans as the new addition to the line-up. It was to be the start of a new phase in her life, and she was excited by it all.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 18

That Saturday morning was like no other that Willow had known. She woke up with the realisation that today she would become a partner to Garry, for life. It wasn’t something that had been front of mind in the busy world that had been the last few weeks.

After relieving herself, she sat at the bedroom window and looked out over the garden and into the fields beyond. She thought about things and saw that her immediate future was like the garden, full of beautiful things, and beyond that was an open book of experiences. Before going down for breakfast, she finished packing the case which would be going in the wedding car to Bourton. Then she put a robe on and went downstairs.

Vivienne and her parents were already in the kitchen and there were good morning hugs all round.

“Ready for the big day, love?”

“I think so, Mum. This morning, I realised that it really is the start of a new life as a wife. The words to ‘Her Day’ were running through my mind. For some reason, I’ve been caught up in other things and have had almost nothing to do with today. I don’t know what we’re eating at the club, I’ve had nothing to do with the cake, if there’s even one. All I know is that I’ve got a dress to wear and friends beside me.”

“It’s a good job you have a lot of friends, love, as well as an organising mother. I’ve been talking to Malcolm this week, and he’s organised a very traditional wedding cake. The only thing that I don’t know is who will providing entertainment. Malcolm did say that he has a piece of music that he’ll play for the first dance, but, beyond that, he’s keeping his cards close to his chest.”

“I do know about the band, Mum. I’m not saying anything now, as it will be a surprise performance of about an hour. After that, we’re off to Bourton for a week. We’ll be back here for me to go to school. Did you listen to the jingle, Dad?”

“I did, love, both of them. I love them both, but I fear that the campaign office will want to use the one with Mac singing. They’ll think that it has more leverage.”

“That’s what Mac said. Using me would be a bit like reverse nepotism. If you do use it, it gives your team some time to get footage to use with it.”

“We can also use stills from those sessions on the printed handouts. I suppose that you girls will be spending the morning in a salon?”

Wendy laughed.

“Will we ever. We’ll be early lunching in the city, so you’ll have to make yourself a sandwich. We’ll be back about twelve-thirty, so that we can get our daughter and her bridesmaids dressed in time for the limo ride to Stoneleigh. There will be two cars, one for you and her, with the other for me and the merry maids.”

They all went to shower and dress for the first half of the day. Ashley hugged his wife and the girls before they went out to the limo that had arrived. That morning, they met with Zara at the salon and were pampered and preened. They all had a light lunch and then the limo brought all four back to Rising Lane.

They had their dresses to put on, and Laura arrived to do their make-up. A little after two they were ready to go, with two stretch limos in the driveway. Willow was led out to one, with her father, he resplendent in a new suit, and she in the long, white dress and jewels. The other three got into the second car and they were off to Stoneleigh, Laura closing the gates as she left to follow.

At the church, they parked by the side entrance that leads to the room below the organ loft. Willow was guided in to join the Reverend and the Bishop. Her mother gave her a gentle hug and went through to the body of the church. The organ was playing some very nice Bach.

“Who’s playing?”

The Bishop smiled.

“Our cathedral organist, Chris. You don’t think we could keep him off that seat for this momentous occasion, do you?”

At three, the organ fell silent, the Dean opened the door, and the Bishop and Reverend Russell led them out, with Willow on the arm of her father and the other two behind. They made the slow walk to the main altar with the full church standing. Willow could see a host of friends as she passed, even Maisie and Gina had come. There were a lot of wet eyes with the standing ladies, her mother being the chief weeper.

As they got to the altar, she saw Garry, in a new suit, with Mac standing next to him. Her father passed her hand to Garry and then went to join his wife. The service was longer than she thought it would be, but the Bishop was an old hand at making it all seem magical. There was a sermon about love and partnership, a couple of hymns, and then they were into the detail. The exchange of vows, the blessing of the two rings, with a sermon on what they signified, and then they were announced as man and wife, kissing before being led back to the room for the official signing. They were then led back through the church and into the open air, where they were showered with rice and spent over an hour with photographers.

There was one that her parents had booked, who did the usual group photos. There was one from the teen magazine who tried to assemble all the stars that were there, and there was one with Bruce, who took candid snaps and piggy-backed the other two, letting them round up the groups for him. There was even a cameraman from the local TV station. Willow tried to talk to the others as she was posed, but it was mainly just a few words. When she was beside Gina, she whispered.

“Who’s the hunk?”

“That’s Guiseppe, my boyfriend, he’s magnificent!”

“Tall and slim, with a ponytail, I guess he plays in an orchestra, probably double bass.”

“Spot on, friend. Those strong fingers send me mad, and his plucking is masterful.”

Over the course of the photo session, Willow saw that all the Rocks and their wives were there, all the Senior Orchestra, Nancy, Bryan and Edward with their partners, Hugh and his wife, the Vines, the Chris and Marie, Clive and Jill, Racheal with her parents, the Head, her husband, and several of the teachers with their partners. It was going to be a big reception.

When they were allowed to move on, they went straight to the club. The reception was going to start when they got there, allowing for a lot of talking and laughter. When she walked in, Malcolm gave her a hug.

“The stage is set, Willow, and the cameras that I installed in February are ready to record the activities, as well as whatever you have planned on stage.”

He went behind the bar and pressed a couple of buttons, with easy music coming over the speakers. Garry and Willow were able to go around the room, thanking everyone for coming, and catching up on the news. Maisie and Gina, with their men, were sitting with Ashley and Wendy; there was a table for Garry and Willow, with Zara, Vivienne and Mac, with his wife. Most of the other tables were the villagers, the orchestra, the school group, other attendees and the church group. The other Rocks were at another table with their wives and Rufus, who hugged Willow and told her that Peter was not her, or Vivienne’s, manager any longer.

There was a lot of talk until the food came out. Malcolm had really turned it on, with an array of meats, salads, hot veg, and carafes of wine for those who wanted it, with beer and spirits over the bar. The cake was cut, and Willow had to giggle to see the couple on the top tier, standing in front of amps and a keyboard. After a break to pass the cake around, Ashley came to the front and gave a speech about his wonderful, talented, and beautiful daughter, and her wonderful, equally talented and handsome husband. Then Mac stood to talk about the groom, saying that he hadn’t known him long, but had gained a great deal of respect for him and his calm attitude, a total opposite to the rest of the band.

“Now, I’ve seen a lot of you looking at the stage and wondering who will be playing. There is a complete band here, tonight, and they will set up while our host organises the wedding dance. Then, the new Toxic Rocks will show you a little of what they are touring America with, as the band’s present to you.”

The Rocks went on the stage as a waltz came over the speakers. Willow and Garry danced together and, as the tune finished, caused a hum of talk as they went up to take their places. Mac went to the microphone.

“Over the last week, we’ve been in Willows’ studio, recording. We ended up with the latest Toxic Rocks album, plus some others. Here is what we’re taking to the USA.”

For the next hour and a half, they worked through most of the new album, along with some of Willow’s old songs in a new, Toxic, way. There was space enough for dancing, and there was plenty who took up the challenge. The novelty of being in a small room with such an iconic band was intoxicating to many of the audience. The band’s wives were agog with how different they now sounded, and, as one, decided that this was one tour where they were not staying at home.

Willow’s new manager had a big smile as he heard the new band in full voice for the first time. He had his reservations, but had gone along with Mac, who was now proving to have been right. It was going to be a new look, a new sound, and a whole new market to tap, as well as being something novel for the old fans. He started making notes about venues in America, as well as thinking about where Vivienne would be best served. He did know of an upcoming film shoot that she would be good in. He would organise a screen test next week.

When the band finished, there were cheers and applause. Garry and Willow collected their things and did the usual leaving ceremony, with Gina catching the bouquet. They were in the back of the limo, embracing, as they left Stoneleigh and were taken south to Bourton. There, the driver took their cases out of the back, was given a very good tip, and drove away, leaving them at the front door. Garry opened the door, put the cases inside, and then carried Willow across the threshold for a second time, kicking the door shut as he carried her towards the bedroom.

………………………………………………………………..

In the club, Ashley and Wendy were helping a bemused Malcolm tidy up. He kept on muttering.

“We had the Toxic Rocks here, in Studio Two, and they cost us nothing. Pinch me Ashley, I must be dreaming.”

“No dream, my friend. Willow will be touring America with them this summer. It’s brought her back to the hard rock that was so popular with that Berlin show. She’s going to be more than famous by the time she gets back. Now, that recording. Can you make me a copy on DVD, I have something in mind for that.”

………………………………………………….

At home, in Coventry, Bruce Miller was sitting in an easy chair with a notebook in front of him, trying to write an article without giving too much away. He started writing.

‘I’ve written, in the past, about various bands and singers. One has been prominent over the last couple of years. Yesterday, Willow Rose became Mrs. Willow Randall, marrying Garry Randall, the previous bass player of G-Force and now the bass in Toxic Rocks, with a hugely successful tour under his belt. That band played in the Stoneleigh Community Club last night to just over two hundred of us, all amazed at what we were seeing and hearing. I’ve written about the new Coventry Sound, which became the new British sound. Last night, I heard something that can only be described as world-beating.’

…………………………………………………………..

On Sunday, the world turned, with the majority happy the sun had risen once more. Willow and Garry were snuggled together in bed. Ashley and Wendy woke to a quiet house but were going to be busy with a barbeque lunch for volunteers and donors. Across Coventry, orchestra members, teachers and many others woke up, many wondering if the previous evening had been all a dream.

Mac was laying on his back, his wife resting her head on his shoulders. He kissed her forehead.

“What did you think of the set, darling.”

“Mac, my love. That was the first salvo of a new band that will give you old codgers a new career. I was ready for you to retire and rest, but no, you have to go and find a new sound. It’s going to give you a few more years, and that girl will be the driving force, if you let her.”

……………………………………………………………..

When Garry and Willow were fully conscious, they just lay in the knowledge that this was now their future. Garry was just thinking, then he spoke.

“Darling, we have a slight problem.”

“What’s that, my love?”

“I was taken to the wedding with Mac, and we were brought here by limo. That means that my car is still in the car park of the Britannia.”

“We’ll just have to go and get it, won’t we. But not this day! Today, I want to laze around with my talented and handsome husband, or so my Dad thinks.”

“I like your family. It is something that I missed after mine split up. So, next week we go back to Rising Lane to live until the end of the term. By that time, we should have been furnishing our home in Marlow. If we have everything there, we can move in during the last week, and then it’s just a short ride to the airport on the Saturday. We can set up a security service and gardening while we’re away.”

“We could do what we’ve got at Rising Lane. The cameras there are monitored, and you can access them through your phone.”

“We do have the money to make it as secure as Fort Knox. Did you bring your laptop with you?”

“In my bag, by the front door.”

“I’ll email the limo service to pick us up mid-morning tomorrow. I also want to send an email to Mac for his kindness. Mine is in my car. I didn’t know much about the bucks’ night, only that those guys can drink, when they put their mind to it.”

For the rest of the day, they lazed, comfortable with each other. Willow raided the fridge and was able to produce a reasonable lunch. In the afternoon, they powered up her laptop and he sent the emails. She had several in the inbox. One from Gina thanked her for inviting them, and that she had a wonderful time, with her Italian Plucker proposing at around three in the morning.

“Italian Plucker!”

“Yes, darling, he plays the double bass, and she told me that his plucking is wonderful.”

She answered that one, as well as the good wishes from many in the orchestra. There was an email from Peter, telling her that she now had a new manager, who had ideas for her future. He thanked her for her output over the last few years and said that she was certainly formidable. He wished her well, after she had gained her degree, and looked forward to hearing her on the radio in a few years.

They forwarded that on to Rufus, her new manager. Later on, that day, he replied, to tell her that he paid half a million to take them over as his clients, and that had included any residual costs that Peter had, as well as all the old stock of Summer Rose and VivWillow merchandise. He promised an itemised stocktake soon.

“Old Rufus is a genuine gentleman. His statements are down to the last penny, not those rounded down ones that Peter issued. Still, you did well in the time he was looking after you.”

“I really can’t complain. I know he made a small fortune from us, but that’s behind us now.”

“I wonder what he’ll say when we hit the charts with the new album. I was talking to a reporter, last year, in Edinburgh. He was interviewing me as being the new kid on the old block, and how well I had fitted in. He told me to watch out for when the wives joined the band on tour. He said that the only times they had done so, in the past, was when there was a major announcement. He thought that the next time they went on tour would be the one where the band announced their retirement.”

“What has this to do with us?”

“Last night, I heard one of them speaking about the hotels in America. That can only mean that they’re planning on joining us. For us, that’s good news, because it means that the band is looking for another few years with the new sound. That gives us some stability.”

“So, you joined them last year with the knowledge that it could be a short touch of fame?”

“Certainly. That touch is something that leaves a mark. I could go anywhere with just that one tour and an album on my resume. If the others retire in a few more years, there will be dozens trying to snap us up. If we stay below the radar and write a load of new material, for us, we could put together a supergroup and have a whole new career.”

“You think long-term, my love. I’ll worry about the end of high school and the charity shows. There’s something that Rufus can do. I was quoted some numbers that were all right for a single show, but don’t stack up with twenty, or more, shows. It was twenty grand a show for each of us girls, plus ten for each of the stars, and fifty for the thirty-odd in the orchestra. I think everyone needs equal billing. If it means I drop back to ten a show, so be it.”

“I’ll ring him.”

She followed him to his small office and sat while he looked up the mobile number. When he got through, there was some chat, and then Garry spoke about the payments for the charity shows, and their idea that the orchestra, and the Rocks, should be classed as individuals, not a single entity. He quoted the numbers that Willow had told him, thanked him for listening, and hung up.

“He’ll talk to the various organisers and see what he can do. The smallest ground is the first venue, at about twelve thousand including using the pitch. If the tickets are a hundred and fifty, that’s one point eight a show. With Liverpool, it’s over ten million a show. I reckon that Rufus may try to get us twenty thousand each, off the top of the total gross. With the lift in entrance prices, this has the chance of doubling the take from last time.”

By Monday, the sex had slowed down, with Willow needing to lube. They agreed to have a short break. The limo arrived at ten-thirty and took them to Coventry, where Garry reclaimed his car. They wandered the furniture stores, looking at lounge set-ups and bedroom suites.

On Tuesday, they both packed small cases and drove into Wales to see where Garry had spent his young days, and to put flowers on his mother’s grave. His hometown was Llandovery, and his mother was buried at the Llandingat Anglican Church. It took a while to find the site, just a mound with a small stainless-steel sign. They left the flowers they had brought and went to find the local monumental mason. By the time they left, Garry had ordered, and paid for, a proper gravesite and headstone.

Beyond that, he didn’t want to stay around. They drove down to Cardiff and spent two nights in a good hotel, wandering the city and trying new places to eat. Garry was unusually quiet.

They had parked the car on Clarence Embankment and walked through on the Cardiff Bay Trail and into Hamadryad Park. They were sitting on a bench overlooking the River Taff and the apartments and the Rowing Centre on the other bank. Willow was thinking about Garry and his younger days.

“Garry, darling. When we were Llandovery, you looked as if there were demons around you. Were you living there when your brother died, because it didn’t look like a place that a passable tranny would get into trouble.”

“No. We had moved to Birmingham by then. That was where my father had a new job. My mother didn’t like it. She wasn’t happy outside Wales. I think that it may have been the start of the split. Dad was just a postman, but the round was mainly rural, so he had a small van instead of a cycle. He was happier and didn’t notice the changes going on.”

“What happened to him.”

“Don’t know. All I know is that we had the funeral service for my brother. Mum and I were crying our eyes out, and he was just stone. When we got home, he had a pee and went back out to the car and drove off. It was only when Mum went to bed that she found that all his clothes had gone. He must have packed and loaded the car before we went to the funeral.”

“Where’s your brother buried?”

“He was cremated. I’ve never gone back. Mum took me to her sister, in Coventry, and went home to Wales, to die, not long after, by her own hand. I was only told that after she had been buried. This was the first time I’d visited her grave.”

“Where was the service for James, love?”

“Yardley.”

“Tomorrow, my darling, we’re going there and will find where his urn is. Then, maybe, you can truly move on with me by your side. We can be our own family, without demons.”

He held her close.

“Thank you, my love. I had held this in for so long, I hadn’t realised how it had affected me until we saw the mound of earth that was my mother. My aunt died while I was touring with the Rocks, and I arranged things by phone. Perhaps we can put flowers on her grave as well.”

That night, they were back in Bourton. The house had been an enigma for Willow, from the first time she had been there. Now she knew why it had been bought. It was isolated, and ideal for a loner, which Garry had been becoming. Now, she could pull him back to the light.

The next day, they packed the car and drove to the Yardley Cemetery, looking at the records and finding where James Randall’s remains were, in a rose garden with a simple, engraved sign over the spot. They laid the small bunch of flowers and Willow went to sit on a bench to leave Garry to tell his brother all the things that had happened, since, and to tell him, finally, that he loved him, as James or Jamie.

After that, they laid another bunch of flowers on the grave of his aunt, and he introduced his wife to her. Then they went back to Rising Lane, phoning the design office to tell her parents that they were back, and that it was dinner at the Punchbowl tonight.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 19

That evening, Good Friday, they spoke about the wedding day, the time away and Cardiff, but made no mention of the gravesites. That was an experience that was one of the first for the new Randall family. Wendy let them in on the details of the wedding and reception, all organised while they were busy in the studio.

“I hope you don’t mind, love, but the business account paid for everything. I was sure that you wouldn’t worry.”

“That’s all good, Mum. I wasn’t in that headspace at the time, with so much happening in the studio. We haven’t told you, yet, but we’re buying a place in Marlow, between Heathrow and Henley. Garry will sell Bourton, and it will mean that we’re closer to Royal Holloway, the airport, and anything else we may need. You can still use the apartment, and we’ll use Number Four if we need to stay in the city. We can get extra parking spaces if we need them. For now, though, we’ll be here, if that’s all right, until the end of term.”

“Of course it’s all right, love. We are happy to have the company. When you’re in your own place, we’ll need to rethink our living, but this is perfect to commute into the office, and the apartment will be good when my wonderful husband is elected.”

“You sound sure of that.”

“He has a lot of backing. The outgoing member has been getting them seen together, and I reckon that he’s already spoken to enough voters to get him in. In the office we’re already bringing the old office manager up to speed with the new systems and our way of working. The entire place will be re-equipped inside the month, and we’ve been getting letters from designers wanting to work for us. I expect that we can take our hands off the tiller in a couple of weeks, and just be the oversight. Your father is now on three other boards, including two of Hugh’s engineering companies. Life is going to be less drudgery, in future, but a lot of brainwork.”

On the Saturday morning, there was a phone call for Ashley as they were having breakfast. When he came back to the table, his face was grim.

“What’s the matter, darling, you look like you’ve seen a ghost?”

“That was Marty, from the campaign office. He’s heard that there are ructions in the government that may not heal. He said that there’s talk, in the party, to bring on a vote of no confidence. If that happens, we may be going to the polls before June.”

Garry grinned.

“This will be my first time. I’d better get enrolled, seeing that I’m living in your electorate. I’ll have to think about who I’ll vote for, though. There may be others on the ballot paper who appeal.”

Ashley put his hand on Garry’s arm.

“It’s a free world, son. If you like someone else, it’s not my place to force you to vote for me, that’s called democracy. If I’m elected, I’ll still be working for you.”

Garry was looking at him, tears forming in his eyes.

“You just called me ‘son’.”

“I did. You’re my son-in-law, and I’m your father-in-law. Don’t you want me to call you son?”

“It was just such a shock. My own father only ever called me Gazza, as if I was just another person. Can we hug, Dad?”

The two of them stood and hugged, and then they sat down as Garry dried his eyes. Willow took his hand and smiled.

“It’s all right, my love. You now have two families in the here and now. Me in one, and my parents in the other. You’re not alone in the world anymore.”

She could see her mother looking sharply at her and shook her head. This would be the beginning of their new life, together, and with their own secrets.

That day, Garry was shown the other parts of the house that he hadn’t seen. In the garage, Willow opened up her cupboard and showed him the recording and film equipment that they had used in the club. His eyes, though, went to the box on top of the cupboard.

“Is that a car model?”

“It is. Dad and I bought one each, a couple of years ago, and I never got around to starting the build. We were both keen on electric cars when I was young. I think he’s finished his or is very close.”

“Make sure that you bring that to Marlow. I’ll set up a workshop and work on it while you’re at uni. The back garden is big enough if I get a helicopter model, or even a drone that I can learn to fly.”

In the annex, they looked at her email traffic on the laptop. There was one from Gina, telling her that they had gone home, and that her wedding date would be announced later, possibly as a double ceremony with Maisie and her boyfriend.

There was one from the security company that Sebastian worked for, telling her that the contract with them had been terminated by Peter, and that she would need to organise her own transport. She spoke to Garry about it, and he suggested that she took out a contract through her own company. She replied to the security company, asking for Sebastian to continue taking her to school and bringing her home, starting Tuesday, as well as other services needed, mainly the trips to and from the big shows, with the contract now for WR Holdings.

The was one from Vivienne to tell her that there would be a meeting with the student techs, Tuesday, after school, to finalise what they wanted to do with pyrotechnics in the show, seeing as this was the one part of it that hadn’t been tried. She answered that, saying that both she and Garry would be there.

“I’ll tell Sebastian in the morning to pick you up here and bring you to the school, then he can bring us both home. It would be good, for the big shows, if we can have transport services as usual. I expect that it may cost a bit until the end of term.”

“Sounds good to me. That first show has arrived quickly, hasn’t it.”

“We still have to see our lanyards and get accommodation details for the furthest venues. We’ll have to see if we get some extra ones for partners and friends, so we can give the other students a treat.”

They stayed in the annex for most of the day, with Willow using the keyboard and the two of them thinking of songs. She brought up her old song file, with bits of thought bubbles to work with. She saw the ‘Fractured’ file and deleted it. The tune hadn’t worked with the orchestra as she thought it would and they hadn’t gone any further. Now, it was time to leave it in the past.

By the dinner time, they had recorded a couple to her laptop. Sunday, the family went to the church in Stoneleigh and then had lunch in the club. Afterwards, Malcolm played them the recording of the events of the weekend before, from the cutting of the cake until the happy couple left.

They sat, with drinks, and watched it carefully, especially the band session, as it was the first time they had seen themselves, together, on stage with the Rocks. When the session ended, Garry kissed her.

“I really don’t think we could have done any better, darling. I can see why Rufus and the wives were smiling. If the tour goes well, we’ll be in all the music papers.”

“It’s me, back to the hard rock. That’s what gave me most pleasure, those days. It’s all right with the smooth and soft stuff, it pleased the audience at the time, but it’s the hard rock that gets my adrenaline moving. It was weird, how it appeared in Berlin, and not a coincidence that the DVD went treble platinum. I think that we’re all going to be on a runaway train during summer.”

On Easter Monday, it seemed very strange for her to be laying out her school uniform for Tuesday morning. Garry looked on and laughed.

“There’s a lot of guys in the world who would pay good money to see you in a school outfit, and I get to see you for free.”

She giggled.

“Shall I put on my netball outfit, with the GD on the front, and you can give me a good doing over?”

An hour later, they were laying together and thinking more about the end of the week. When they were showered and dressed, they went back to the annex and turned both of their laptops on. They both had identical emails from Rufus.

‘First two shows booked out, with both Sundays added. Posters listed all the performers and the future ones selling quickly. Have negotiated a payment at the end of tour, with twenty thousand each person on stage per show. Projections are for a hundred and fifty million grossed. Media have picked up the scent and will be there in force, so expect interviews.’

“Looks like it’s going to be a busy time, darling.”

“And a profitable one for the orchestra. None of them would have earned this amount of money, before, except that ones that used to be in Summer Rose. That money will go a long way towards their future.”

“Remember that now we’re married, we’ll need to set up a new bank account for you in the new name. I expect that you’ll still be Willow Rose on stage, but you’ll need an account as Willow Randall. On top of that, you’ll have to set aside tax payments now, as you’ll be considered a taxpayer if you start to get paid personally.”

“I’ll call the accountant tomorrow and set up an appointment. He can draw the line under the current balance in WR Holdings. There’s more than enough for Dad to run the business, or for me to top up the studio. We’ve been paying company tax on that one. The shopping centre is now a stand-alone investment with a separate accountant. I can seed the new account with my old personal one that Peter had been paying a wage into. I suppose that that one will have to be tax audited as well.”

“Almost time to find a place in a tax haven.”

“Not for some time, my darling. I need to finish the degree first, then we can start thinking that way. While I’m at school, tomorrow, can you pick up an application form to change my surname to Randall on my passport?”

On Monday morning, she made ready for school while Garry looked on.

“You look different, now. Not the schoolgirl, but more the head prefect.”

“Probably because I’m surer of myself with you beside me, my husband.”

“Also because of the effort you’ve put into the show. There’s fifty of us on stage and you’ve been in charge since we started rehearsals. Hell, you’ve even tamed the Rocks into playing quietly.”

“That was easy, they were getting bored with all the heavy stuff, and just enjoy using the other skills that they have. You’re different, having played the quieter music with Zara.”

She hugged her parents and kissed Garry when she went out to get into the car. Sebastian held the door for her.

“Good morning, Willow, or should I say, Mrs. Randall.”

“Still Willow, Sebastian. It’s good to see you.”

On the way, they spoke about the way things were happening, and Sebastian was told that Garry would be part of the job, and that he would need picking up from the house, that afternoon, to be at the school at around finishing time, for a meeting.

When she walked into the theatre, for assembly, there were a lot of the girls congratulating her on her marriage. When she sat down, she was surrounded by the Senior Orchestra, with Barbara on one side and Dianne on the other. The organ was played by Reg and the Head spoke about the usual things regarding the term, before talking about the show.

“This weekend, the Senior Orchestra will be on stage in a big show. It is headlined by our own Vivienne Anderson and Willow Rose. I saw the first dress rehearsal in this theatre, and it is fantastic. Can you all stand so the school can see you.”

They all stood and there was applause. When they sat down, the Head carried on.

“This term will be the last one with Willow in our ranks. Since she joined us, in second year, she has been the catalyst of so many changes I find it hard that one girl could make so much difference. She completed a Certificate course which will take her directly to a degree course without needing to study for ‘A’ levels, and, I believe, will be starting that at the end of the year. I, for one, will be sad to lose her, but she will be going on to a bigger and brighter future, a shining example to the rest of you to use your talents and don’t be afraid to do the hard work. Welcome to the summer term, everyone, and let’s get working.”

She left the stage and the school started to file out. Viv walked next to Willow.

“I had a long talk with Gina at the reception. She has certainly blossomed in Italy. That man of hers is quite a catch.”

“She emailed me that he had proposed.”

“I went on a date with Ken Stroll on the weekend. He wants to be a serious singer and will be joining me at singing school to become an opera singer.”

“Was it a good date, or a very good date?”

“It was a very, very good date.”

Willow hugged her.

“Good for you, Viv. I wish you happiness.”

“Thank you, Willow Randall. See you at room two after lessons.”

Lunch, that day, was all about the show to come on the weekend. While Willow had been on her honeymoon, every member of the orchestra, including Howard Bamborough, had been contacted by Rufus and signed on as his clients. He would be providing transport and accommodation during the show weekends and had arranged things with the school for them to be driven to the school on the Mondays after the performances.

At the end of the last lesson, Garry was waiting for her when she went to the theatre.

“How was it today, love?”

“All right. The Head gave a little speech of appreciation of my time here. The orchestra are all now signed on with Rufus, and Viv is going with Ken Stroll. Nothing unusual.”

In the meeting, the tech guys were all smiles. Lucas, the main one with the lighting, wanted to know what special effects they wanted. Willow looked at her notes.

“The sunset is after eight, so the lighting gets critical after that. For most of the time, it can be just highlighting the singer at the time. When Viv and I do a duet, there should be a spot on both of us. When Mac comes on stage, you can be free to make it more like a rock concert. When we get to the last part, when Zara and Viv are singing the first of the Phantom set, you can cut it back a bit, as we want the set to feel darker. Perhaps blue filters will work. The back projection guys will have a picture of a graveyard during the duet, and then change to the still from the movie, showing the watery cavern, for the rest of it. We want total blackout with the final chord.”

“Got it. I’ve been talking to the stage people about lighting. When there’s a solo singer, we have a pair of spots that can be trained on them and laser locked, with a computer driving the electric motors to have the lights follow them around. We’ve also added a chandelier on a winch, which will lower into view for those last two songs.”

“Thank you, Lucas. Your team has done an excellent job, and I’m looking forward to seeing the results on Friday night.”

Barry, who had been off studying pyrotechnics, spoke up.

“Willow. I know that most of the concert doesn’t need anything from me, but I’ve thought about the section with Toxic Rocks. Garry, do they use sparkle fountains on stage?”

“They do, so it would be good during that set. We also had flame guns in outside arenas.”

“OK, I’ll set these up for that set, but just small units. For the finale, you’ve already had the smoke when you played here, but I’ll ramp it up for the big stage, adding outlets to the stage surround to really make it hazy. I was thinking of a set of thunderclaps as the lights go out. What do you think?”

Willow looked at Viv, who grinned.

“We used them before, and they were effective at the end, so, yes, please add thunderclaps.”

“Will do. Before we finish, I would like to thank you two girls for what you’ve done for us. Lucas, his team, and I have learned so much more in the last few months. It’s been a life-altering experience for me, as I have been offered a job with the professional fireworks and stage pyrotechnic company. I may see you, on tours, in the future.”

“Congratulations, Barry. We’re happy for you. It’s a very dangerous, but rewarding, profession. Do you have any shows that you know you’ll be on?”

“Not yet, but the company is negotiating with several tours. It will be either us or a local outfit.”

“I hope you get it. A lot will ride on what you do with these shows.”

On the ride home, the couple sat in the back. Garry and Sebastian had talked a lot on the way to the school, and the conversation was between the three of them as they went towards Rising Lane. They spoke about the arrangements for the shows. Vivienne had taken out a contract with the security company, and Max was now driving her. For the first weekend, Max would be driving the orchestra and the two girls to the hotel and taking them back to the school on Monday morning. Sebastian will take Garry and bring him home on Monday, with both he and Max helping with the VIP security.

On Wednesday, the school received a big bag of lanyards. All the orchestra had two, there were a dozen for Howard Bamborough, the Head, and other teachers and partners. Vivienne and Willow had six each, for friends and parents, and the techs and the rest of the class had two each. Willow was told that the other performers had been couriered theirs. When she got home, Garry said that he had received four, so there was three of his to spare.

They discussed it, over dinner, and it was agreed that Ashley and Wendy would use the extras to take the campaign workers and volunteers, as well as the office staff, with Sebastian’s firm being contacted to supply a minibus and driver each day.

On Friday morning, Willow had a roller case to take to Northampton. They all left, after lunch, and Max took them to the Premier Inn, where they checked in. Sebastian and Garry were already there, and he took her case to their room. The orchestra were all sharing twin rooms, and Howard’s wife was with him in their room. The other performers had arrived and checked in as well. That afternoon, they had two coaches to take them to the venue.

The stage was as they had used in the previous charity tour, but with the enhancements that Lucas and Barry had mentioned. The sound and vision tent was in the usual place, manned by the crew that had been on the previous tour, augmented by the group that were being trained at the school, as their first experience of real life. All the main equipment had arrived, that morning, by truck, so they all went up on stage to run a sound check.

They did one of the VivWillow duets, with the orchestra, and one of the Toxic Rocks numbers to set the electric levels. Then, they went back to the hotel to get an early dinner and change for the show. Because of the sheer numbers, the invited VIPs would be fed at the ground before the show but would remain in the dining room as the performers arrived.

This venue was one of the smallest, with twelve thousand, all seated, including some on the covered-over pitch. At eight, the orchestra went on stage, to applause, followed by Howard and then Vivienne and Willow. After a welcome, they started the show. An hour later, as it was getting dark, the effect of the lighting came into its own. A bit after ten, when Mac came on the stage and the Rocks opened up, the sparkler fountains and flame guns created the right atmosphere. As Willow watched each act occur, she marvelled at the spotlights working beautifully. With Zara and Vivienne singing the duet, the lighting turned blue, staying that way as the final songs unfolded. In the blue light, the white light of the chandelier stood out as the smoke began to cascade from vents in the stage surround and the back of the stage.

When they reached the final crescendo, the stage went black and the thunderclaps went off, only to be followed by a tremendous roar from the audience as they took their bows. Despite cries for more, they waved to the crowd and left the stage, to have a hugfest together, before getting the coaches back to the hotel.

Garry and Willow were in bed, the following morning. He kissed her.

“What did you think of the show, darling?”

“It was great! The extra bits that the tech boys came up with worked really well. I’m sure that when the teachers see the effects, the boys will all get good passes. We were good in the Rocks set, weren’t we?”

“That will be noted, with the new sound. It was a good demonstration of what we’ll produce on tour. The scribes will be scratching their heads.”

“Bruce won’t, seeing that he saw us play in the club. I suppose that when we go down for breakfast, we’ll be inundated for interviews most of the morning.”

She was right, as, after a very joyful breakfast, there was a steady stream of reporters, TV crews, and visitors who wanted to speak to them. Although, the main stars were in the front of the action, nearly every member of the orchestra were spoken to. Many wanted to talk to Mac about the different sound, and her told them that they were experimenting with different sounds to take to America.

That afternoon, they all rested and settled down, before an early dinner, then going to dress for the show and to do it all again to another full house. On Sunday, they wandered the city, many going to church, and, that evening, they played the last concert of the weekend, now more polished than when they started. On Monday morning, they had an early breakfast and checked out. Garry going off with Sebastian, and Willow dressing in her school uniform to join the others in the coach to go into Coventry.

The atmosphere at lunch, that day, was joyful, with many of the teachers having been to see the show, along with a lot of the students, taking advantage of the nearness of Northampton. Miss Russell came into the lunchroom and took Willow and Vivienne to see the Head.

“Good afternoon, girls. I’ve just got you in to tell you that the show, on the weekend, was a few levels above what you showed us here. The team that did the lights and the pyrotechnics have all gained enough points to finish the year with ‘A’s. You, my girls, have excelled yourselves. If the rest of the shows are well attended, the charity will be getting a lot of money. I believe that all the venues have decided on sharing the proceeds with the Salvation Army in each city.”

“That’s right, ma-am. Rather than smaller charities, there will be a big cheque-giving ceremony after the last show, and after the final costs are taken off. That’s when all the performers will be paid, as well. I hope that you get to enjoy some of the other venues. It should be a lot noisier when we get to Manchester and Liverpool, with a bigger audience.”

“We’ve created a roster, with the teachers taking groups from the lower school on coaches. Some of the orchestra have donated their extra lanyards for the later shows. I expect that more than a few of the parents have booked good seats for the Coventry show. Now, off you go and use your brains. You still have the final exams to come.”

“We haven’t forgotten that fact, ma-am. At least we’ll get a couple of weeks after the final show.”

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 20

That evening, Willow and Garry went to see her accountant. He reviewed the business account, now noting that the income would stop, and that she would be paid as a director. After the company taxes had been paid, as well as the wedding and design office upgrades, the WR Holdings had a balance of just over eighteen million.

They organised a new company, GWR, to receive all the future income, with the two of them being paid a monthly amount from that. It was seeded with three million from WR Holdings, and another three million from Garry’s account, which was his personal one. Willow asked the accountant to pay her salary into her personal account, which now stood at just over eight hundred thousand, and to change the name to Randall. He was to organise the tax on that one as a personal account, and work out the tax owing, now she was a taxpayer. That evening, they emailed Rufus with the news of a combined account and said that the account details would follow.

By the end of the week, she had received her new passport by registered post, and the accountant had them in to sign the paperwork. They were now joint directors of their own company, with the first purchase being the house in Marlow, having received the paperwork from the agent. It had worked out well, with the keys to be handed over on Willow’s birthday, now just a month away. They had the accountant transfer two million to the agent’s trust account to seal the deal, signed the papers and returned them to him by courier.

That weekend was a repeat of the one before, only changes being that it was at the Luton football ground, the hotel was the Premier Inn in the city centre, and the audiences, for each of the three nights, were twice the size. This time, there were seats for twenty-five thousand, with another ten thousand standing as general admission. What that created was a lively atmosphere with a lot of dancing among the standing crowd.

By this time, the music scribes had worked overtime to do their reviews and associated stories. The demand for the following shows were good, and the expectations for the rest of the tour were rosy.

The Monday morning was another new week at school, and the first day of May. School was usual, up to lunch, when someone spoke about the next shows. Willow remembered Harvey Horton. So rang the Birmingham box office, buying a pair of tickets for the Saturday evening. Digging the note from her bag, she asked for them to be couriered to Bristol, with a note to say, ‘Courtesy of Willow Rose’. She was given the total cost and paid for it with her card.

The next two weekends were in Leicester and Birmingham, both about the same capacity as Luton. The sun was up for longer, by now, with sunset just before nine thirty, but the show was still good with the lighting. Both venues were close enough to have the locals go home each night, with the stars staying in hotels.

…………………………………………..

On the Sunday, after the Birmingham show, Harvey Horton and his wife were driving home and talking about the fantastic weekend they had enjoyed, from the hotel they had booked into, to the show that had them bouncing in their seats. They had bought the program, seeing the articles about the stars, and seeing Willow’s impressive back catalogue, including all the classical albums. They noted that she was listed as the artistic director for the show, which raised her in their esteem. Harvey knew that she would never have done all these things had she still been studying at Clifton. Little did he know how right he was.

…………………………………………

After Birmingham, it was the last week of the first half of the term. The following weekend was Willow’s seventeenth birthday and the day that they would go down to Marlow and take control of the house. During the week, they called the agent to get a time, and to ask him if the previous owners had used a gardening service or a security service. They had used a gardening service, so they rang to organise for the service to continue, giving the GWR company as the owner. As for security, Willow asked Sebastian about companies in that area and was given a note with the contact details of a good one. They rang that company and organised for them to install a new system on the last few days of the month, with Garry staying at the house to oversee the work. They also called his insurance company to start the coverage on the house.

In the last week before the holidays, Willow and the rest of the fifth year did mock exams, to give them the idea of what waited for them at the end of term. School ended on the Friday, and Saturday saw them in Ashley’s Range Rover, going south to get the keys. The address had been put into the GPS and, when they turned off the road and through the gates, Wendy gasped.

“That’s not a house, kids. That’s a mansion!”

They met the agent, gave him a bank cheque for the residue of the payment, signed the paperwork and shook his hand before he got into his car to leave. They opened up to see that very little had been left. They wandered through the empty rooms, with Wendy beginning to see why they had purchased the house. Like Willow, she loved the back patio with the southern aspect.

“You’re going to have fun furnishing this mansion. Five beds will be needed.”

“Just four, Mum. The room under the roof is going to be our combined office and music room. We’ll come down next weekend to get enough in so that Garry can be here to oversee the security company. We’ll buy the things on Thursday and get them couriered for delivery Friday. After that, we can take our time, ordering things on-line with Garry coming down to open up. By the time we get back from America, there’ll only be odds and ends to get before we move in.”

When they locked up, Willow gave Ashley the address for Royal Holloway. It took them down to the junction to the M4, then to a very complicated junction which set them on the M25, which would take them to Heathrow. Passing the airport, they turned off onto the A30, which crossed the river and then looped around under the highway to become the Egham Bypass, which took them directly to Royal Holloway.

From there, Willow directed Ashley around the lesser roads, which led them to the Great Fosters Hotel, where she had booked a table for four for lunch. After they had been seated and ordered drinks, she smiled.

“This is where Hugh gave me that first certificate of appreciation, Dad. You had better get used to this, as I think that he’s well-known here.”

They had a long lunch, toasting Willow for her birthday. The chef came out and made himself known, recognising Willow and congratulating her on the latest albums, which he loved. When he discovered that it was a birthday lunch, he called for a bottle of champagne to be opened and joined them to toast her again. When she told him that it was Garry’s birthday on Friday, and that he was the bass player in Toxic Rocks, there was another toast and the need for selfies.

Willow was behind the wheel when they left, having only sipped at the drinks. Both Ashley and Wendy were considered marginal when it came to driving, and Garry sat beside her in the front. She retraced the route back to Marlow, and then kept on the M40 going north. At home, she emailed her driving instructor to organise a few lessons in the early part of the following weeks, in the evening, and for him to make an appointment for the test when he thought she was ready.

She had an email from Gina, with birthday greetings, and a date in June for the marriage, with a note that it needed to be rushed. Willow answered with birthday wishes for the Monday, and apologised that she couldn’t be at the wedding, as she would be on stage in Manchester that evening.

On Sunday, the couple looked at furniture stores, on-line, and chose the beds and bedroom suites. They ordered what they wanted and asked for delivery on the Friday. With lounge and kitchen furnishings, they wanted to try things out before buying.

On Monday, Garry drove them to the Penfold Trading Estate, an industrial area close to Watford. There, he stopped outside an industrial building.

“This is where we perfected the last tour. It’s not soundproofed, but the surrounding places are noisy enough not to notice us. I see that the rest are here. Come on in and we’ll get the American tour into shape.”

When they went in, they found the four wives with ear defenders on their necks. Mac welcomed them to ‘the Blast Furnace’ and sat them on chairs before they started playing.

“This tour is going to be different in some ways from our past tours. We will be playing sixteen venues in the ten weeks, mainly two a week, with the better places being on the weekend. Where it does deviate is that we’ll play four shows in New York, and four shows in Boston the week after, before flying home from there. We will be playing a total of forty-two shows. The contract gives us four million, US, for the band for each show, with the promoter covering all our travel and accommodation. That amount equates at three million pounds, so the tour will give us a hundred and twenty-six million. There may be other contracts signed for advertisements or promotions.”

He took a sip of water and smiled.

“Each share, paid after we get back, is twenty-one million pounds, less our esteemed manager’s cut, so seventeen point eight five. Now, our wives have decided to join us, so it will be a close-knit group of us, so no hanky-panky. They have argued that you, Willow, be allowed to do some of your own songs, in the old way, if you want. I have a list that they want you to look at. We have three days here to create a three-hour show. We have already got the nearly two hours that we recorded, so just need to add another hour or so. The last six songs will be our greatest hits.”

“I would rather that we do my stuff in a Rocks way, Mac. The band has been able to play soft rock in our show, so it shouldn’t be a problem to do my songs that way. I suppose that the main question is whether we do them as a duet, or if I do them solo. Solo would be all right for a couple, but no more than that.”

“I was hoping that you’d say that. They will fit the new sound, even as laid-back as they will be. OK, let’s get going to sort this out.”

They went to the bank of amplifiers, the drum kit and what looked like a new organ. They had a PA with feed-back speakers to hear themselves. Over the course of the day, they worked through the songs that they had recorded, plus the six greatest hits, which Willow didn’t do a lot with. The next day, they worked on her songs, in a Rocks way, which had the wives nodding along. On the Wednesday, they decided on an order of play, with Mac’s wife typing into her computer, and then printing out ten sets of lists. The band then played the entire show twice.

Before they left, Mac told them that he was going to book the studio to record the whole show, with video, on the Saturday before they leave, with the cheque ceremony happening on the Sunday, in Coventry, in front of TV cameras. For Willow, that would be a very busy week, but she now thrived on the pressure.

On Thursday, they drove down to London, visiting a bedding store and buying up new sheets and pillows for the new beds. They had booked a night at the Danesfield House Hotel and Spa, and celebrated Garry’s birthday, on Friday, with an early morning workout without leaving their room. They checked out and went up the road to the new house, opening up and seeing that the garden was trimmed. There was a card wedged in the doorjamb, from the gardening service, which Willow put on the kitchen island. They went through the house, taking measurements, until the truck with the bedroom suites arrived.

Once the beds and other items were in place, they unloaded the car and made them up, putting the extras in the linen cupboard. Then, they went to another furniture store and chose settees, easy chairs, a kitchen set, and then went to an electrical outlet to get a couple of big TV’s and a party-sized sound system. There were some that could be delivered the next day, but the rest would be after the Bank Holiday on the Monday.

They celebrated Garry’s birthday a second time, in their own bed, in their own bedroom, in their own house. For both of them, it was a moment they would cherish, their true beginning as the family Randall. On the Saturday, everything that could be delivered was in the house by lunch, so they went out in the afternoon, returning with a car full of new computer equipment. They each had a large screen, with a fully loaded computer tower, and a printer/scanner. These were taken up to the top bedroom and left for later installation. Garry would be going to buy flat-pack desks and storage cabinets, to put together when he was alone in the house. They went back to Rising Lane on the Sunday, and Garry left to go back to Marlow on the Monday.

On Tuesday, it was the start of the last part of Willow’s time at the Blue Coat. She was starting to feel sad at leaving but knew that her future would be full of more learning and more music. She knew that the time would pass quickly, with the last show being only two weeks before they flew to America.

On the Friday morning, she had her bag and outfit to take with her. The school group were allowed to finish early to be taken to Nottingham, and the Premier Inn, Nottingham South. Garry was already there and took her bag to their room. As they changed, he told her about his week, so far.

“I’ve touched up the odd bits of paintwork, erected our desks and storage on the office, and set up the new computers, all with the new software under the GWR company details. The security have installed the cameras and a new security system, all monitored. I can view both the inside and outside cameras by phone.”

“That’s great, darling. What was it like, being in the house for that time?”

“It was wonderful, knowing that what I was doing was for us. The aircraft noise was a bit loud at night, depending on the wind direction, so I’m investigating extra soundproofing in the roof. Many of the windows are triple glazed, and I’ll look at those that aren’t.”

They all went to the venue and did the show, followed by the next, on Saturday, with the last on Sunday. On Monday morning, Garry was taken back to Rising Lane, while Willow joined the others in the coach to go to school. On the way, Vivienne sat next to her.

“Interesting weekend, my friend. Ken and I shared a room, and it was wonderful.”

“Congratulations, Viv. You’ll make a good couple, both off and on stage.”

The following week was similar, but the venue was now in Derby, and the hotel was the Premier Inn, Derby City Centre. Willow was now taking more driving lessons, in the evenings, and her test was set up for the Saturday they were playing in Coventry.

The next week, they were in Manchester, and staying at the Premier Inn, City Centre West. The Saturday show was sent out on the club website, to all the other countries. This was the biggest crowd of the tour, with seventy-five thousand a night. It was while they were at Manchester, the opposition put forward a ‘no confidence’ motion in the house, which was passed. The Prime Minister announced that there would be an election, in a month, in the second week of July.

The schoolwork had started to be revision and tests, so the early Fridays and late Mondays weren’t a great problem. The Coventry weekend had them all taken to the Britannia to stay, to keep them all together. The three shows were as good as they could be, with the Saturday show being televised live. On the Saturday morning, Willow took her driving test and passed.

The last show was in Liverpool, and the coach took them there on Friday, after lunch. The three shows were full, with sixty thousand a night. The final show, on the Sunday night, was a joyous occasion, with many happy that they had been part of it, but sad that the excitement was over. The last line-up on the stage had everyone waving to the audience and a lot of hugs and kisses. In the weeks that they had worked together, the whole group had become friends, with Mac promising Howard that they would be making an album with the orchestra.

The following two weeks had Willow taking her exams, with a lot of time off. On the Saturday, after Liverpool, she joined Garry and the Rocks in the studio, to make a complete recording of the American show, with video for a DVD that could be used in advertising while they were there. Willow had a copy to give to her parents, to watch while she was away.

On the Sunday, they all met at the big function room at the Coventry Football Club, for the handing over of the cheque. It was a big affair, with lunch and the handing over. The whole group of performers were there, along with the Bishop and his group, the Head and a lot of teachers and school board members.

The result of the tour surprised Willow. It had grossed just under a hundred and sixty-three million. With the costs taken, the percentage for the venues, and the performers payments, the Salvation Army received a token cheque for a hundred and thirteen million and seven hundred and fifty thousand pounds to share out to their offices in the nine municipalities. On top of that, they found out that the live show from Coventry had a phone-in banner across the screen, and that there had been over two million pledged.

There were a lot of the media there, and the rest of the afternoon was taken up with interviews and discussions. The Army officials went around to all the performers, thanking them for their involvement. The Head went around hugging all of the students, including the tech team.

She spent some time with Garry and Willow, telling her that there was a movement among the members of the Coventry Council to award her the keys to the city, seeing that she had been the driving force behind the two charity shows, but it would be later in the year, should it happen.

Willow had four more exams that week and was able to stand with her father on the Thursday at the various booths that he was able to visit during the day. That day, the thirteenth, wasn’t lucky for the current Prime Minister, and Ashley found himself part of the new government that evening, in the Kenilworth Sports and Social Club, where they had set up an after-election party.

Willow didn’t need to be at the school on the last day, but she dressed nicely and went in, with Garry, to thank the teachers and say farewell to her friends. The orchestra members, who were there, all gave her a hug and a thank you, now each having received the five hundred and forty thousand pounds that they had earned during the charity tour. That evening, the family had a meal in the Punchbowl, and had a hugging and kissing session, before Willow and Garry left, both cars loaded with their clothes and Willows computers and the two-tier keyboard set-up and accessories. Garry had her car model to work on.

They drove down to Marlow, and into the house, now looking more like a home. They unloaded the cars and put together suitcases for the tour. Both had been measured and the stage outfits would be supplied by an American company. They spent a wonderful night, and were awake, bright and early, to start the tour.

When they arrived at Heathrow, by Uber, they were directed to the first-class departure lounge, where Rufus met them to take them through. They sat for a while, before they were joined by the rest of the band and the wives, as well as the sound and lighting crew. They were all taken down to an airport coach and driven out to their chartered aircraft. It had ‘Toxic Rocks on Tour’ on the side, with the names of the band members listed, with Willow Rose as the organist. They went on board and the crew got ready to leave. They had to wait for a little while to get a take-off slot, but were soon in the air, for a nine-hour direct flight to Charlotte, the venue for the first two shows of the tour.

They took off at eleven, and the captain advised them that they would be landing at three, local time. The plane was nothing like anything Willow had been in. The seats they used for take-off and landings were like armchairs. Behind them was a big lounge, with reclining chairs, and behind that was a dining table with swivel chairs. The toilets were full-size, and there was sleeping quarters towards the rear. The crew had flown with the Rocks before, and everyone was very friendly.

Willow sat with the wives for a few hours, really getting to know each other, while the boys played poker for matchsticks. The stewardess brought out tea, coffee, or something stronger as requested. About three hours after they took off, they all sat at the dining table and had a good meal, better than any other airline meal that Willow had ever eaten.

When they landed, it was just after three in the afternoon. There was quite a crowd waiting for them, and there was a lot of noise when the door was opened. They were parked away from the terminal and used a stairway that was wheeled up to the door. Everyone who left the plane was cheered, especially the older band members, but there was noise for Garry and Willow when they appeared. There was a small fleet of limos waiting for them. Rufus had collected their passports and would deal with the immigration, while customs would look through the plane. They were taken to the Hilton Charlotte Centre City and checked in. They were sitting in the lounge when Rufus arrived with their stamped passports and the luggage in a van. They followed their luggage up to their rooms and freshened up. Tonight, they were having dinner in the hotel, and would be joined by the promoter and selected media.

The dinner was interesting. The reporters had done their research, and knew that Garry and Willow were married, had both attended the Blue Coat school, and had both been in successful bands, with charting albums, in their mid-teens. One of the reporters, quieter spoken than the others, waited until the general clamour had quietened down, and they were drinking coffees or something stronger.

“Miss Willow. I was told that you had considerable experience with church organs. Is that right?”

“It is sir. I was the regular organist at St. Marys, in Stoneleigh, where Garry and I were married. I also played the organ for three months in Coventry Cathedral, alternating with my friend, Gina Summer.”

“You also have albums recorded in the Kings College, Cambridge, as well as the York Minster?”

“That’s correct.”

“I have been asked to ask you if you would play the organ at St. Peters Catholic Church, here in Charlotte, tomorrow, for either the nine ‘o’clock mass or the one at eleven-thirty.”

“I would be happy to, as long as I was told how the mass works. I’ve always played in Anglican churches. There’s also the matter of what we have organised as a band for tomorrow.”

The promoter spoke up.

“We’ve set up a half a day at the Speedway, where you’ll be playing. We’ve got a NASCAR experience for you. If you do the mass at nine, you’ll have plenty of time to get a couple of laps in before we start setting out seating on the straight. The stage has been erected in pit lane.”

The wives were smiling and one grinned.

“She’ll be there for nine, if you send vehicles for the five of us. Our husbands aren’t very religious and would be happier racing around your track.”

“All right, ma-am. There’ll be a stretch out front at eight-thirty.”

They had a long day, so the band went off to bed. Garry and Willow stayed awake a little while longer but slept well after that. There was a wake-up call at seven, and Willow had a shower and dressed in a full skirt and top. Garry was snoring again when she took her bag and left the room. She joined the wives for breakfast, and they were outside when the stretch limo arrived. They were taken to the church, which was a cheerful shade of red brick. Inside, they were welcomed by the Bishop, who explained the events of the mass and the times she should be playing. She was shown the way up to the organ, which was quite beautiful. A volunteer was allocated to help her, and she started playing Bach as the church filled.

As far as it went, it wasn’t that much different from Coventry, but with more walking around and incense in a ball. The volunteer told her when to play and made sure that she had the right music in front of her. After an hour, she was playing Bach again as the church emptied. The lad told her that she could stop playing and leave, also telling her that he was looking forward to seeing her, on Monday night, at the speedway.

She surprised him by thanking him for his help and giving him a hug, then went down to join the wives to be taken to the speedway. There, they were driven onto the infield and the pit lane. The guys were all dressed in racing gear and laughing at how scared they had been as the driver drifted into the corners at two hundred miles an hour. Willow decided that she had gone fast enough, for her, and wouldn’t take the drive. Instead, she went up the stairs to look at the stage. It was much the same as the ones in England, but with a bigger roof. She looked out and saw the blocks of seats on the other side of the track and guessed that they would be playing to about twenty thousand on Monday night. The amps were as they had used in Watford, and the keyboard was the same.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 21

Garry joined her as she was standing there.

“Good morning, my love.”

“Good morning to you, my husband. You needed your sleep this morning.”

“I did. How was the church organ?”

“Good, it had a lovely tone. I was able to follow the mass, with the help of a young lad to tell me when to stop playing.”

They stood and watched as the last of the laps were taken. Willow thought that it was a very loud sport. When the car came into the pits, a group of men started putting seating out on the main straight and the grassed area between it and the pit lane.

“Did you play at a similar place with your last tour?”

“No. This is a lot different to anything I’ve seen. I wonder how far along the straight the seats will be used.”

“Quite a way, if those guys setting up big screens are doing it so those further along can see us. There’s a space on the straight which could be where the cameras are set up. I’d guessed that it would be twenty thousand, but now I will take a guess at thirty thousand. I expect, that when we get here, tomorrow, there’ll be big banks of speakers off to each side.”

They rested in the afternoon, and all had an early night. Next morning, there was another media session, this time with reporters who had arrived to see the show. After lunch, they were taken out to the speedway to do a sound check. Willow had been right. The big screens stretched to the end of pit lane, in both directions, along with banks of speakers.

When they went up on stage, they could see the cameras flanking the mixing tent on the straight. They put buds in and played a couple of songs for the mixer. When they got the OK, they left the buds by their instruments and went back to the hotel, joining the wives for lunch.

That afternoon, they were given the stage gear. Seeing where they were playing, it wasn’t a surprise to be given a race suit, each. The boys were all bold colours and Willow was in pink. The tops had logos of the track sponsors, and ‘Toxic Rocks Charlotte’ across the back. Willow was happy that they weren’t asked to play with crash helmets on.

Resplendent in the outfits, with new driving boots on, they were all taken back to the speedway, where they had dinner with the promoter and the sponsors in a well-equipped dining area overlooking the track. This would be where the wives would watch the show after they had finished dinner at the hotel.

At seven, after the wives had arrived, the band were led to a tunnel that brought them up behind the pits, and then they went up to the stage, standing behind the bank of amps. They could hear the crowd as they stood, and then the track announcer welcomed everyone to the speedway and to give a big Charlotte welcome to one of the world’s best groups ‘Toxic Rocks!’

They came out from behind the amps to a big roar from the crowd. The guitarists went to strap the guitars on, the drummer sat at his kit, Mac went towards the microphone at the front of the stage and Willow stood at the keyboard. They were all putting their buds in as Mac called out to the audience, hoping that they would enjoy the entertainment, and then they were into the first song. Of course, a lot of applause was for the hits, but there was more for the new material than Willow had expected for a first hearing. They finished at half past ten, and waved to the crowd, who wanted more. Of course they had more, the top three hits with the added organ. When the finished for the second time and the stage lights went out as the track lights came up, they left the stage with smiles on their faces.

They went back under the track and the departing audience, to join the wives in the dining room, where there was a lot of talk and laughter. They stayed together, as a group of ten, as others spoke to them, and then left to go back to the hotel, leaving the others to party. When the two stretches got to the hotel, they all went up to their floor and had a hugfest before going to their rooms.

The next day, Rufus left them to fly to New York, and the band spent time in the local TV station, being interviewed, with a lot of questions about the new sound and the addition of an organ. Mac got a bit testy after the third time they were asked ‘why?’.

“Look. We’ve been playing for years. This year we were thinking of making another album and retiring. Then, Willow came along and asked us if we would be part of a charity show. During our set, she played organ that sounded so good that we decided to carry on for a few more years, as long as she joined us on stage. I ask you, was it good, or was it crap?”

The interviewer quickly agreed that it was good, so Mac looked him in the eyes.

“Case closed, now, would you like to talk about something else?”

That evening was a repeat of the previous one. Dinner with sponsors, a three-and-a-half-hour show, some time at the party, and then back to the hotel for bed. The only difference was the new driving suits in different colours, with Willow looking good in red.

On the Wednesday, they checked out and were taken to the airport and the plane. It took a little while to get loaded up and ready to go, but they took off and were in Atlanta later that day. There, it was another round of media and answering the same questions before they were driven to the Hilton Atlanta South. They had the rest of the day as a break and went to The Mecedes-Benz Stadium the next day to do the sound check.

This was more like the football stadiums in England, with them set up at one end. The stage gear offered was mainly denim and check shirts with boots. The meals with the sponsors were in function rooms and it was all a bit more up-market. They played three shows there, with the last on the Saturday evening, All shows were sold out and all the audiences were happy with what they heard.

On Sunday, they were in the air again, landing in New Orleans. They played the Monday and Tuesday evening and were in Memphis on Wednesday to play the Thursday, Friday and Saturday. By this time, things had become second nature, and they were playing better. Willow was getting to sing more, especially the new material, and the reviews they saw were positive in their praise of the band’s new sound.

Willow had taken her laptop with her, with a power cable and adaptor. It was on that Sunday morning that she had an email from Wendy, to tell her that her father had been confirmed as the Secretary Of State for Business and Trade, a huge honour for a first-term member as it is a Cabinet position. They were living in the apartment for a lot of the time and were being invited to a lot of parties. Willow replied with her congratulations. Later, that day, they landed in Oklahoma City for two shows on the Monday and Tuesday.

From Oklahoma, they went to Phoenix for two shows and had the Saturday off, flying to Los Angeles for three shows from Sunday to Tuesday. Wednesday, they flew to San Francisco for shows on the Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

That Saturday evening, they were two hours into the show and had just finished a number, when Joe, the drummer, stood and rushed off stage, his hand to his mouth. Mac looked at the others and Willow made a quick decision.

“When I was younger, I put out an album of Carpenters covers, and then an original album called ‘Journey into Womanhood’ That album had two songs that became hits across Europe, this is one of them.”

She started playing the intro to ‘Finding a friend’ and, as she was singing, the guitarists joined her with gentle backing. Mac went and sat at the drums and picked up the sticks. They played that song, and ‘Her Day’ to a shocked but interested audience. Joe came back on stage and stood behind Mac. When they finished the song, Mac stood and went back to his microphone as Joe sat again. He didn’t look the best, but he managed to get through the rest of the show.

The reviews were positive. The fact that Willow had a complete package of her own hits wasn’t lost on the writers. Mac praised her for her quick thinking. The problem was that Joe’s stomach problem wasn’t over, and he was ordered to take a few days off and given pills to help him recover.

The band played Portland without him. On the flight there, and the following morning, they sorted out some extra songs from Willow’s albums that Mac could play drums on. He had started his musical career as a drummer and could hold his own. That night, when they went on stage, he sat at the drum kit and pulled the microphone towards him.

“Friends, I am sorry to tell you that Joe, our drummer, fell ill in San Francisco. So, tonight, we had to channel our inner ‘Genesis’ and I’ll sing from the drum seat. It may not be so interesting, but, at my age, every chance to sit down is welcome. We will start tonight with a few of our new organist’s back catalogue and then move into the music that you had really come to listen to. Take it away, Willow.”

They started with the two of them doing ‘Finding a friend’ as a duet, then led into ‘Her day’, before getting into some of the songs they had recorded with her singing the main parts, and then moving into more Rocks songs, with both Mac and Garry singing. By the time they finished, they had won over the crowd, who had been shown far more versatility from the band than had been seen before.

The following evening was the same, and they left Portland, happy that they had done their best. The wives were full of praise for them pulling the rabbit out of the hat and saving the tour. Joe rejoined them in Chicago and Detroit, but was unable to play in Cincinnati and Washington, spending that time in hospital. He was pumped full of pain killers and took the stage for the four shows in New York but flew home from there with his wife. Toxic Rocks went on stage without him for the last four shows in Boston. By that time, news of the totally new sound had circulated, and the fans were keen to experience the new, laid-back rockers that had dominated the airwaves with loud, brash music. The reviews for the new shows were full of praise for the depth of their musicianship.

They left Boston on the Friday, happy that they had completed the tour, despite the circumstances. They didn’t know what Joe’s problem was, only that it could be serious. On the flight, Mac came and sat next to Willow.

“A good job you were on board, lass. Any other time we would have called for a replacement drummer or cancelled the tour. Not only did we complete all the shows, but my wife has a folder full of positive reviews from every venue. Where did you get the quick thinking?”

“Playing piano, in the local club, on a Saturday night and doing drinking songs. You learn to change direction with the feedback from the audience. I was thirteen at that time, and I’ve learned to follow my instincts. You’re a pretty good drummer, yourself.”

“That was my early days, in a blues band. It was a similar situation when the singer was held up in traffic and I opened the set from the drum stool. I doubt that we’ll see Joe back in the band. His wife told me that the hospital in Washington suspected stomach cancer, but he will be getting the full treatment in London. We’ll find out, for sure, in a few weeks. If we tour again, it’s good to know that the three of us can share the vocals, if I stay behind the drums. It’s far too late in our careers to get another drummer.”

Rufus was at the airport when they landed, along with a whole battalion of reporters and TV crews. They held a press conference in one of the arrival halls, currently being unused. The bulk of the questions were about how they managed to save the tour, and also what was wrong with Joe. For the second, all they could say was that they didn’t know, but for the first, Mac gave a long answer about how pure musicianship and experience had helped them through, along with the charity tour that they had performed in before leaving for America.

“Those nine venues gave us a new appreciation of quieter, but equally as impressive, music. The band accompanied other singers on stage for the first time in years and played over three hours a night inside an orchestra. On top of that, we had Willow on stage, with her back catalogue of hits that hadn’t been heard in America. Garry has a great voice, and we’ve decided that if we tour again, he will be doing a lot more singing. I do know that our last shows, in Boston, were recorded by the radio station there, so there should be a chance to listen to what we produced on the night.”

Rufus announced that there were negotiations under way for Toxic Rocks to go back to America to promote upcoming albums. When they were allowed to leave, they collected their bags. Willow was delighted to see her parents waiting for them. She rushed over to give them hugs, followed by Garry.

“Thank you for meeting us, The Right Honourable Daddy.”

“Just Daddy is good, poppet. How are you, son, after ten weeks with my daughter?”

“Somewhat numb, Dad. She saved our bacon, and we had a different show to what was planned.”

“I heard that. She does have a habit of taking over, doesn’t she?”

“We were all glad that she did.”

“I’ve got a government car outside, with a driver. Do you want to come to the apartment for a few days, so we can all catch up?”

“We’d love to.”

They said cheerio to the rest of the band and the wives, having a hugfest before leaving the terminal with her parents, Wendy with her arm over her daughter’s shoulders, while the men took charge of the baggage. The car was loaded, and they were taken to the apartment, where the driver helped take the bags up to their landing.

Ashley had to leave them to go to his office in Whitehall, and it left Wendy to take them down to the restaurant for a meal. They were joined by the other two couples, but Willow and Garry were unable to get far into the evening, pleading tiredness and going up to their apartment and bed, knowing that there would be no reporters waiting for them at breakfast.

The next day, they got an Uber to take them to Marlow, where they checked that everything was as they left it, if a bit dusty. They unloaded their bags, and repacked them with fresh clothes for a week, picked up Willow’s phone and charger, and took Garry’s car back into London. They spent the week learning about the whirlwind that had engulfed Ashley after the poll was declared, with Wendy telling them that his inner stability was now front and centre in his workdays, and that he had become quite a popular figure in the government.

“We’re having lunch in the house dining room, tomorrow. All the others want to meet our talented couple. Dress well in the morning.”

That lunch was a procession of government members, opposition members, and invited peers, including Chris. It was pleasant, but tiring, and they were happy to leave. It did allow Willow to see her father in the surroundings that she had imagined he would fit. And fit them he did, with cheerful words from both sides of the house. It appeared that most of the firebrands that had dogged politics for too many years had been swept aside in the last election.

Willow spent a whole afternoon with her phone, catching up on the messages that had been left while she’d been away. Many were well-wishes, which didn’t need replies, one was an invitation to the wedding of Vivienne Armstrong and Ken Stroll, on the second Saturday of October, in the St. Martins-in-the-Fields church, with a request that Willow stand beside her. That led to a phone call and a long conversation. Two days later, the girls met in a café and discussed things. Willow showed Viv the pictures that Gina had sent of her marriage, as well as another, sent the week before, with her showing a slight baby bump.

In the last week of September, the couple left the apartment to go to Marlow, spending a few days adding things to the house and properly setting up the office. They had an email from Rufus, to tell them that their tour money had been deposited, and also that Joe would be lucky to see the next year.

They checked the GWR account to see that it had grown by thirty-five million, making sure that their future, whatever happened, was well funded. They sent an email to Joe, to tell him that he was a great guy, and that they would be there for him and his wife.

They also had an email from Clive, asking them to meet him in the office that Friday. They acknowledged that and carried on making the Marlow house their home. On the Friday, Willow drove them in her car to the office. Inside, they were met by a smiling Clive and Jill, now sporting an engagement ring. The girls hugged and then they had the meeting. While they had been away, the two VivWillow albums had passed Gold Record sales, the new Toxic Rocks album had shot past Platinum, boosted by sales in America. On top of that, the DVD from the Coventry show had also passed Gold level. Clive had managed to obtain a copy of the recording from Boston, but it wasn’t good enough to be issued as a double album. However, he had been in touch with the other Rocks and had arranged a recording session in the Abbey Road studio, later in the year, to record that show, properly, with video, to release as a DVD. Also, the album that Willow had recorded with the Rocks had been issued as ‘Toxic Rocks, featuring Willow Rose’, and had sold well enough, both here and in the US, to have also gone to Platinum.

“We won’t give you any awards until the big party at the Dorchester, in December. It will be the biggest that we’ve ever held, with all of the Blue Coat Orchestra getting individual awards for the show DVD. I believe that we’ll have a government minister on hand to make the awards. I’ve spoken to your father, and he said that it would be the third best day of his life, after his marriage and his election to the hallowed ranks of government.”

They had a laugh.

“On a more serious note. I’ve spoken to Rufus, and he tells me that the Rocks will not do any more big tours. Maybe four to six weeks maximum. That fits in with your university time, Willow, as they can be in the summer break, and you won’t miss anything. Mac tells me that the last shows in Boston told him to slow down, and that the quieter Rocks could do a couple of years before they retire for good. He wants to skip America, if possible, and do a couple of farewell tours in this country and Europe. Now, after the session in Abbey Road, Jill and I are getting married, and she would like you to be a bridesmaid, Willow.”

The two girls hugged, and then Willow hugged Clive.

“You don’t work very quickly, do you, Clive? I could see the two of you together back when we were first in Abbey Road.”

“It did take a while, I admit, but there was a lot to do, and we have been living together for over six months. If we get your session out of the way, we both have enough holidays for a good honeymoon, and then we have the big party to arrange and your DVD to issue after Xavier has worked his magic with it. That lad is going to tower over his profession by the time he’s thirty.”

“The only ones that I’ve seen to be better are the new batch being trained, at the school, by Sarah. She’s got a far better handle on the programs than he had. That show had them helping the sound and vision, and the lad who did the pyrotechnics already has a job.”

“We saw what Sarah was doing in the studio and sent Xavier there for extra tuition. He’s done wonders with Abbey Road, once he talked Harold into going along with it. You’ll see when you go to record the DVD. I spoke to that Barry and Lucas at a show during summer, they were both fully employed on staging.”

The girls discussed dresses and arrangements. They would both be at Viv’s wedding, so would finalise things there. The Randall’s went back home to settle down again. In the first week of October, Willow had a call to see Terry at the Royal Holloway. She drove herself there, following the GPS but already knowing the turns.

When she parked and went in, he shook her hand and welcomed her to the new course, with the last full week of November being the week that they will be shown all the facilities, given their course overview, and the invoice to pay for the first year. She asked about the summer break and was given the dates that they would have off, although there was likely to be a project to do.

“I can do what I did with the other course. I may be on a short tour with Toxic Rocks for a couple of summers, and I’ll take my laptop with me to work on things in the quiet times.”

“Yes, I saw that you were in America with them. I wondered if you had decided to miss the course and just carry on with your musical career.”

“My plans remain the same, Terry. I want to get that degree, so that I can manage my life later on. I have a new address for your files, by the way. We have a house in Marlow, and I drove myself here in half an hour.”

“After the familiarisation week, there will be another two weeks to the second Friday in December, with you all introduced to the first-year subjects. We tend to lose about ten percent of the applicants at that time, and we have a full-fee refund available. After that, it’s into it in the second week of January. Here’s your study pack, it’s in the name of Willow Randall, and we’ll see you at the end of November.”

She left him the new address and then drove home. It felt like home, now. Rising Lane had been good, and still was good for her parents when they were able to be there. Garry had been down to Bourton and cleaned out the wardrobes and drawers, bringing everything back. They went down again to tidy the place up, load up the small appliances and a couple of paintings he had bought, and met with an estate agent to list the house for sale. For Garry, it was the last vestige of his time as a loner, and he had no qualms about selling it.

Back in Marlow, Willow and Vivienne got together and planned the wedding day, with Willow booking the salon for them and the two of them visiting the shop where they had bought the dresses for Willow’s wedding. Juliette was making her own arrangements in Coventry.

The next day, Willow and Jill got together and went back to the dress shop for outfits for her wedding, much to the delight of the shop owner. Willow booked them into the salon for the Friday before that wedding, hoping that they would have finished the recording session by then.

It was going to be a busy month.

Marianne Gregory © 2025

Chapter 22

Later, that week, Willow got her statement from Rufus, with the income from album sales up to the end of September. With all the different albums out there, she was on a sixth of the Rocks albums and a third of the VivWillow ones and had earned two point three million while she had been away. Garry was on the same income for the Rocks albums and the charity show DVD. All of her expenses had been paid by the promoter in America, and she had gained a large number of new outfits.

She and Garry relaxed for some days, playing around with songs at times, and watching old show DVDs in their home theatre to pick holes in the performances. They both worked to get the house clean and tidy, with the idea that they may have a housewarming, or at least a Christmas party. They discovered a high-class restaurant only walking distance away, which was handy if they felt like being pampered.

On the Friday, she met with Vivienne, and they spent several hours in the salon. Ken was staying in a hotel that night, so Willow went with Vivienne to the house that they lived in. As they had both done very well for themselves, Ken and Viv had a house about the same size as Marlow, but in one of London’s better suburbs. The wedding was at two, on the Saturday, so they lazed around and talked about the past and the future. Both Viv and Ken were working with a voice coach as well as with the ENO. Viv let on that they would be looking at the ‘Magic Laptop’ with Ken playing Ego.

They had a light lunch, and Willow got them both dressed and ready to be picked up. Viv’s father and mother had come down from Coventry, that morning, and he was in the limo that arrived to collect her. A second one was waiting for Willow. They were transported to St. Martins in the Fields and Willow helped Vivienne get ready to be escorted in by her father. She followed behind, to stand off at one side when Viv was handed to Ken. The service was wonderful, the church was full of friends and celebrities, the photo session took place in Trafalgar Square, surrounded by tourists and reporters. Willow couldn’t help but smile, as it was the most higgledy-piggledy after wedding she had ever witnessed. The thing was that all the pictures, when she saw them later, had everyone with a beaming smile, so she guessed that may have been the plan all along. The happy couple had a flight out of Heathrow that evening, so the reception started early, just a short walk away to the Portrait Room in the National Gallery. It was a restaurant that Willow had never been to, but would go again, with fantastic food and great views out to Trafalgar Square and the church.

The limo took Willow and Garry to the apartment, where they spent the night, with Garry pretending that it was their wedding night, all over again. Willow had no problems with going along with the pretence.

The following week, Willow and Garry stayed in the apartment and went to the Abbey Road studio on the Monday morning to record the Boston set. When they went into the big studio, there was a noticeable change. The back wall was painted blue, along with the floor in front of it. There was a wall of amps, with the drum kit and keyboard. They changed into stage gear, were all set up with lapel mics and buds and asked to do a soundcheck.

As Willow stood at the keyboard, she could see a number of cameras on tripods, set some way in front of them, as well as the ones above the control room. They did a single check and were then taken up into the control room to see what it would look like. The vision had them on what looked like the stages in America, with speaker stacks and big screens on each side. The rear looked like a curtain, and there were play-back speakers in front of them, with what looked like flame guns and thunderclap canisters.

They all agreed that it looked good, and congratulated Xavier and Harold. Then, they went back down, got ready, and recorded the entire Boston show as a single take, with audience involvement and announcements.

They had the studio booked for three days, so sat around putting together another album. On Tuesday, Willow and Garry brought in the songs that they had been working on, the others brought the ideas they had been having, and, on Wednesday, they played the set in the morning, twice, and recorded the next Toxic Rocks album in the afternoon. The main difference was the change of outfits, and the treatment of the background to a smaller venue. The album was to be called, ‘Toxic Rocks -Genesis’, and would be released the following year.

Clive and Jill were happy that it had gone so well, and amazed at how Willow was able to pull the four, older, guys into an agreement. The fact that the result was so good was evidence that the Rocks had agreed to let her arrange the songs.

On Friday, Willow met Jill at the salon and repeated the beauty treatment. They went back to her flat in Maida Vale, not that far from Abbey Road. Clive was staying with his Best Man that night. This wedding was at eleven, so the girls got ready to be picked up. The church was St. Augustine’s in Kilburn, the photos were to be taken a short walk away, in the grounds of the Paddington Recreation Ground, and the reception was lunch at the Carlton Tavern, that they had walked past on the way to the photo shoot.

It, too, was a lovely service, the bride looked radiant, and the happy couple left to go and change before also heading to Heathrow for a flight to Ireland. Once again, the limo deposited the two Randalls at the apartment and they had a very early night indeed.

When they went back to Marlow, they lived the life of a happy family for a week, and then took a flight to Florence, following up an invitation to visit from Gina. They were picked up by Gina, with a chauffeur-driven Rolls Royce, and taken to a genuine mansion. Over the course of the week there, they met all Gina’s in-laws, a very wealthy family in the wine industry. Her marriage was truly one of love, as both of the happy couple were well off in their own right.

Gina was well on the way with the pregnancy, and assured them that it was a girl, who would be called Salice, or Willow in Italian. She had a full list of bookings that next summer, playing piano with a number of good orchestras around Europe. They had one fun evening, with the in-laws, and Maisie with her husband, playing piano on the Steinway Grand and singing drinking songs, which seemed to resonate with Italians as well.

The two girls spent a lot of time in the conservatory, talking and laughing about the past and the future. Willow showed Gina pictures of their new home, and Gina was amazed that Ashley was now a Government Minister. Willow also had pictures of Racheal’s Rebeccah, the wall of awards in the studio, and some from the charity show.

When they left, Willow was much happier with the relationship with Gina, having felt that she had been neglecting her. There was a standing invitation to visit Marlow, sometime in the future. The Randalls, while they were already in Italy, took a flight south to Brindisi, checking in at the Ostello della Gioventù Brindisi for a relaxing ten days in the sun, and looking at the tourist spots.

Back in London, Willow prepared for the familiarisation week at the Royal Holloway. On the first Monday, she drove herself there, parking and walking in to join the crowd of students. She was, by a couple of years, the youngest one in the group, and had dressed down to avoid recognition.

It did work, that week, as they were split into five groups, each with a leader, and shown some of the facilities. Each day, they had a new leader and saw something different, so, at the end of the week, everyone had seen everything, tried the internal computing systems, been allocated a locker, and received their campus library card, as well as a new card for the bigger Senate Library in the city. On the Thursday, they were all given invoices for the payment of the first set of fees, with paperwork outlining different payment methods. Willow took the straight line, that evening, and paid it in full by bank transfer.

The following week, they were separated into the courses that they had nominated for. The payments were checked, and receipts handed out. Then, each group went off to different areas on the campus, Willow finding herself in a group of fifteen in a lecture theatre. Terry and Ted spoke, at length, about the course, the different modules, the basic requirements needed to complete each module and the expectations of the student involvement. That day, most of the first year was covered.

On Tuesday, there was one missing, and the lecture continued with the rest of the first year and into the second. On Wednesday, the number was the same as the lecturers covered the third-year subjects and projects and the amount of hours study that was expected.

Willow could see that it would be hard work, but hard work never bothered her. On Thursday, just twelve of them were sitting in the lecture theatre as they were told about all the resources and help available to them to complete the course. They were given Friday off the think about things and were to be back in the lecture theatre on Monday, at ten, when they would get an idea of what to expect by having the first lecture and a mini project to complete by the end of the week.

During the weekend, Willow looked through the course notes she had been given and the notes she had taken during the overview, and went in on Monday, ready for anything. The lecture was given in a normal speech pattern that shouldn’t be a problem if you were awake and concentrating. She listened to what was said, and the way it was said. She took notes and tried to follow the reasoning.

Taking the project from Terry, she read it through while the lecture was fresh in her memory, then went to the library to sit down and create a list of what was required. Only then did she go out into the nearly empty carpark and drive home. That night, she sat in the office and typed her answer to the project, giving her reasoning for her conclusions. She saved the file under ‘Year One’ and also sent it to a file of the same name in her silver laptop.

On Tuesday morning, she drove to the campus and handed her answer in, with Terry telling her that she was the first back, and that he was looking forward to seeing her in the new year.

Back at home, she put all of the course paperwork in a file in her side of the office. She turned on her trusty black laptop and checked for messages. There was an official invitation to the event at the Dorchester, addressed to both of them, and a list of dates from Wendy, showing all the events that her father was expected to attend, with a note asking if the Randalls could find the time to join them at some.

Some were Christmas parties organised by the electorate office, one was a New Year party at the Stoneleigh Club, another was a soiree to be held in Whitehall, where Ashley was hosting a get-together of important figures from the industrial and business sector. The Dorchester event was listed, with an asterisk, as was a Christmas party on the last day of work in the design office, which she should attend as a director of the company.

It made her stop and think about how much more complicated her life had become. On tours, there was only one aim in life, and that was to put on a good show. At school it had been to learn enough to pass the exams. On that thought, she realised that the school would have sent her results to Rising Lane, and that her parents had probably put them aside for her.

When Garry came in, after a meeting with Mac about the practise schedule for the next year, she told him that she would be going to Rising Lane the next day to see if there was any post for her to pick up.

He needed to go down to see the estate agent on Bourton about the house, as it appeared that there had been an offer made, so she would drive herself to the old home. That evening, he told her what had been discussed with Mac, and that the rest of the band had decided on two tours, over the next two summers, before calling a halt. They would release the already recorded album next year, with a final boxed set the year after, with a lot of their old material, re-mastered, and a new album that Mac wanted to be some reworkings of their very early work. That meant that any new songs that they wrote would be for them to use, which also meant that they would have to think about putting another band together if they wanted to perform.

She showed him the list of events, and they agreed to attend the ones that Wendy had highlighted. The rest of their December was almost full. They looked at everything and agreed that this wouldn’t be a year where they would host something at their home, as there wouldn’t be a free date available.

The next morning, Garry headed south while Willow drove north. As she drove, she thought about this simple act. During the year, that one driving test, successfully completed, had changed her life. She didn’t need someone to take her anywhere these days. If she felt like it, she could drive to a beach somewhere and wade in the waves, without having to ask anyone. It was a feeling of total freedom that having a car gave you. That made her think about something else, and she knew that there was somewhere she needed to go today.

At Rising Lane, she let herself in and went up to her bedroom. It looked a bit sad, with the bed stripped. She saw a small pile of envelopes on the dressing table, held down by Tiger. She smiled, knowing that she now had a larger version to cuddle at night. The envelope from the school was there and she opened it. The results list was impressive, and there was an embossed certificate from Cambridge University with her nine ‘O’ Level passes listed. She took it to her father’s office and found a spare frame. She framed the certificate and hung it on the ‘Wall of Achievement’ wondering if he would notice it, one day. She sat in his chair and gazed at the other framed items. The ones of appreciation from Hugh, the end of year results from second, third, and fourth years. Her ton-up certificate. It was all a record of her life since arriving in Stoneleigh that summer.

Back in her bedroom, she looked at the other letters, seeing that some went back months. There were invitations to events long passed, advertising of sales of musical instruments from the summer, and one from Alec, with an invitation to his wedding, which had happened while she was in America. There was a letter from Evelyn, telling her that, as the band had broken up, the Summer Rose Fan Club in Sydney had been disbanded as well, but that she would always cherish Willow’s friendship. That was one that she put in her bag to answer. It made her think about the fun they had enjoyed on the rides in Luna Park, the sheer exuberance of being a girl in a large group of girls.

When she left Rising Lane, she drove to the Epstein’s farm, where Racheal welcomed her in and sat her down with a pot of tea. With Rebeccah on her lap, they talked about things. Rick was doing well with the new Hikers. They had recorded a new album in Leicester which was selling well. The farm was starting to turn a profit and Jacob’s barn had been sub-let to their farm foreman and his family as part of his package.

Jacob, himself, had been moved from rehab to a private clinic, having got out and overdosing on a free trial, so doing damage to his body and his brain. Racheal said that she went to see him every couple of months, but he didn’t recognise her. Her parents had wiped their hands of him, and were happily living the high life, travelling the world on his money, which she didn’t begrudge them. Before she left, Willow was handed the two guitar cases, with the Martin and the one he had used in the band.

“Do what you want with these, Willow. He’ll never play again.”

“I’m going to see the Head. I’ll donate these to the music school.”

With the cases in the back, she hugged Racheal and the little one, then drove into Coventry to the school. She parked the car and stood, looking at the institution that had changed her life forever. She went in and knocked on the Head’s door.

“Come in!”

“Good morning ma-am. I’ve just popped in to wish you a Merry Christmas. I also have a couple of guitars that used to belong to Jacob Epstein which are a donation to the music school.”

“Good morning and Merry Christmas to you, Willow. You look like the music star that you’ve become. We’ve been monitoring your progress with that rock band. Pity about the drummer.”

“Yes, that one was a shock, but we were able to overcome him not being on stage, There’s a double DVD coming out that we recorded in Abbey Road. It’s a recreation of the Boston performances.”

“I have to tell you that your place here has been filled by the Vines girls. They are very talented and almost as hard working as you. They gave a performance in the theatre that was hard to beat. Their father has funded a couple of recording sessions but won’t allow them to be released until the girls are over sixteen. Have you had any word from the Mayor yet, about the keys to the city?”

“No, Ma-am. I really don’t deserve it. Everything we did, we did as a group”

“Bosh! It was always you who was driving things. It was you that turned the simple performance into a star-studded extravaganza. Over a hundred million for charity was quite a feat. And then, straight after that, you passed all the exams. You know that you’re a freak?”

“It has been said before. That reminds me. I went to see Gina Summer recently. She is well on the way with her first baby, and married an Italian lad who plays double bass and comes from a very rich family. She has a full list of engagements next summer with a host of good orchestras.”

“I saw the two of them at your wedding.”

“I didn’t have much of a chance to talk to her at that time, I was a bit busy.”

“I could see that. Now, these guitars. If you go and get them, we’ll go and see Howard. I believe that he’s been invited to the Dorchester again. There must be another award coming his way.”

They went out to the car park and Willow collected the two cases, then they went into the music school. Howard Bamborough was working on end-of-year reports and was happy to see Willow. She gave him the two cases.

“These were Jacob’s, sir. He doesn’t need them any longer. One’s a Martin. His sister gave them to me this morning to pass along.”

“Thank you, Willow. You know, I have the DVD of the charity show and watch it every now and again. It still sends tingles down my spine. It has to have been the most exciting concert I’ve conducted, even better than the two in Albert Hall.”

“I enjoyed it as well, especially as I didn’t have sing as much as usual. The tech boys who did the lights and bangers have all got good jobs, and I was in Abbey Road the other week and spoke to Xavier. He’s made some changes to how they do things there.”

“A lot of that is down to you giving them opportunity. Although we strive for academic results, just getting our students into well-paid professions is an achievement in itself. How are you enjoying married life?”

“Very much. We bought a place in Marlow, not that far from Royal Holloway so I can do the degree course. We did plan to have a festive season party, but there is a great long list of events that I’m expected to attend for my father.”

“Yes, politics has a habit of taking over one’s life, a bit like teaching. He did well for himself. I think that it’s where you got your genes for hard work. Talking about work, I need to get back to mine. Merry Christmas, Willow.”

“Merry Christmas, sir, and thank you for your kindness and generosity while I was here. It meant the world to me. That goes for you as well, ma-am.”

The Head walked her out to her car.

“Don’t be a stranger, Willow. You’ll always be welcome here. I’ll send you invitations to charity dinners.”

“Thank you. I have a card, here, with my new address, so you can add it to the record.”

They hugged, as friends, and Willow left the school. She went to the old favourite steakhouse for a meal and a glass of wine. The owner was happy to see her, and she was looked after well. After that, she went home.

The various events came and went, with Willow needing new dresses. For the Dorchester party, Garry was elegant, and Willow was regal in a long silver dress and her diamonds. It was a big affair, with all the orchestra and their partners. The whole cast of the charity show were on hand, and it was a lot of talk and laughter. With the awards, Ashley and Chris were on hand to give them out, both now in the Government. Willow sat with Garry on one side and Wendy on the other, looking like a real lady of means.

The award ceremony was long, but nobody minded. There were a lot of photos taken and a lot of light-hearted banter. Clive and Jill managed to keep things moving and Willow received a lot of hugs from the orchestra members, as well as one from Howard Bamborough. She also had hugs from Sarah and the team from the studio, here to pick up their own awards for production.

The Randalls stayed overnight, surrounded by their awards, and went back to Marlow the next day. The rest of December was a whirlwind of parties, mainly politically driven, and they were all interesting, in their own way. They met the Prime Minister, more than once, who admitted that his son had a collection of Toxic Rocks albums, but he still loved Willows’ classical ones.

They were at an open window of the parliament to see the New Year fireworks, with the sparkles making the jewellery glitter. Willow stood, Garry with his arms around her, thinking back to previous New Years, and she wondered just what lay in store for her in the future. Surely, it couldn’t be as exciting as the recent past, now, could it?

Marianne Gregory © 2025
End of Book 5