“It will be fine. He’ll be fine,” Angel reassures me.
I nod at the both of them, then move up the stairs.
Maddox wastes no time taking the mic. He works the crowd overas only he can, getting the crowd going while the rest of us plug in.
I look over to Dane, noting the lines of stress marring his face. He meets my gaze with a tight nod. Acknowledgment that he heard me. Hopefully, acceptance that Iwillbe there for her.
I am an only child. I can’t relate to Dane as a sibling concerned for another sibling. But Dane has been so much more than a sibling to Cara. In some ways, to me too.And one thingI can relate to is that paternal need to protect your child. To make sure they are happy and healthy.I can understand that desire to make sure nothing ever touches them and to want to burn the world down to make everything better.
I hope I never face anything like that. The thought of Lyra going through even a fraction of what Cara has been through makes me want to take them both and hide them away from the world.
Right now, as much as I would rather make sure Cara really is okay, I have a job to do.Dane taps his stick for one, two, three, and Ryder starts the fast-paced riff of our opening song.I join in after a couple of bars with heavy bass. Angel and Dane quickly followwhile Maddox steps up to the microphone.He opens his mouth, and the deep sounds of his lower register fill the space with the jaded words Ryder wrote long ago about his mother.
You’re nothing without your manipulations
You tell nothing but lies to hide the bitter truth of who you are
Your world is full of hallucinations
Building deceptions to cover the pain and suffering you cause
The lyrics definitely match the angry tone of the music. Maddox’s voice fills the arena like not many I’ve ever heard. The comparison’s to the great voices of thelast fifty years have been made since the band finally burst onto the scene twoyears ago.He has incredible range, power, and control and is definitely a sure way to know you’re hearing Sons of Sin.
The band could’ve been bigger than it has already if anyone of my brothers had used their influence and money. They didn’t want to do things that way. They wanted to pay their dues and earn their way to the top. If anyone can’t respect that, then they can fuck off. We don’t need them anyway.
Even though I haven’t beena part of the excitement the last few years, I’ve still been there. I’ve practiced with these guys, helped them when they were stuck on a chord progression, or couldn’t find just the right lyric. Even without being on stage or in the studio with them, I know every song.
If I’d done things differently, I would’ve been on this journey for the entire ride.It’s even possible that I would’ve been with Cara.But without those choices, I wouldn’t have Lyra. Angel wouldn’tbe part of the band. He might never have reunited withJosephine.
So many things could’ve happenedwith a simple change in course. The only thing I would change is Cara. If I’d made my move, then maybe she wouldn’t be suffering. Maybe she would neverhave ended up with the bastard that irrevocably changed her.
The rest, I wouldn’t change for anything.
“I’ve got a song I want to share with you guys tonight,” Maddox says to the audience, breaking me from my reflection.“A couple of months ago, I lost someone very important to me. I never had much of a chance to tell her that. You see, choices were made that set our pathslong ago. Choices Ididn’t know about until I was much older. When I learned that the woman who raised me was not the woman who gave birth to me, I was angry. I was so very, very angry. If I’m honest, I still am some days. But those choices were made because my birthmother was not in aplace to be a mother. What I regret most is not having the chance to tell her I love her and forgive her. That it wasn’t her fault, and she did the best she could. So I’m going to tell her tonight because I know she’s somewhere out there listening.This is for you, Jewel, wherever you are.”
I watch as he takes a deep breath. He’s struggled with this song for weeks. Wanting the lyrics and the melody to be perfect.Ryder starts slowly strumming out the haunting notesof the opening.Even though it’s not our usual style, the softer notes carry a haunting power.When the lyrics come, everything stills but the song.
You were a diamond until someone stole your shine
You tried to fight your demons
But the broken pieces of your mind
Couldn’t recover what was lost somewhere in time
You felt so lost and so alone
With so much weight to bear
That was was just too heavy
And you thought that no one cared
But I cared, and I’m still here without you
I’m still missing you
Though you never knew how much I needed you in my life
