Sunday, July 15, 2007

What ShadowsForge does while Jena' is away…

What ShadowsForge does while Jena' is away…

This was a bit of silliness that I typed up one night between writing ShadowsForge 3: Retaking America and ShadowsForge 4: The Long Way Home. Just what do the characters do when they are waiting for their next book to be written? Read and see…

Jena'

Believe in Dreams!

Geoff Richards paced back and forth across the white room that was devoid of furnishings, decorations, even windows. He couldn't figure out where the light was coming from but at least the room wasn't dark. He released a heavy sigh as he reached the wall for the umpteenth time.

“Where the hell is she?” He shouted at the wall, and his voice echoed back in his face.

“That’s not going to help.” Ty sat on the floor, Alexis on his lap. He wrapped his arms around her as she leaned down, and gave him a long kiss.

“Oh, would you two get a room?” Jon leaned against the opposite wall and moaned.

"What’s bugging you?” Brian sat on the floor, against the corner. Diane sat beside him, her legs curled under her and her head on his shoulder.

“Nothing you or Ty would understand. We’ve been waiting for over a month.” Jon moaned again.

Jordan laughed. “You want some cheese and bread, Jon?”

“For what?” Jon slid down the wall to sit on the floor.

“I thought it would go well with your whine.”

“Funny. Why aren’t you going nuts yet?” Jon stretched out his legs.

Jordan shrugged. “I know how she is. She’ll be here when she's ready.”

Geoff punched the wall. “Not soon enough.” He leaned his forehead against the smooth surface, and kicked at the baseboard with the toe of his boot.

Jon shrugged. “There were some truly fine ladies in that audience in Roanoke. I saw at least three I could have gotten to know really well. She could have left a couple of them here, too.”

“And a couple of acoustics,” Jordan added.

“Sticks and a snare or tom.” Brian shrugged.

“Hey, I always have my voice with me.” Geoff turned his back against the wall, and shoved his hands into his pockets.

“How about a few partitions--for privacy.” Ty grinned at Alexis.

Brian smirked. “It could be worse.”

“How?” Jon looked around at the silvery-blond drummer.

“She could have left Nigel in here.”

Everyone groaned.

“That would have been grounds to up and quit.” Jon slid along the wall, and landed on his back. He stared at the ceiling. “Hey. Look at that.” He sat up, his steel blue eyes tracing the top of the wall.

The others followed his gaze. Around the ceiling where it met the walls was a seam.

“She’s put us in a bloody shoe box!” Jon stood up, jumped as high as he could, and struck the ceiling. It bumped up.

Jordan leaned his back against the wall, and laced his fingers together. “Jon.”

Jon placed his sneaker-shod foot in Jordan’s hands. He climbed up to push on the ceiling. It moved a bit before Jon jumped down.

“It’s heavy. Geoff, Ty get up here.”

Geoff braced his back against the wall and assumed the same position as Jordan.

“On three,” Ty suggested.

Geoff cleared his throat. “Five, four, three.” Jon and Ty climbed up their band mates.

Ty laughed. “Can’t you count normal?”

“Wouldn’t be as much fun.” Geoff groaned under the strain.

The two blonds pushed at the ceiling, and raised it high enough to see that there was a small lip. They struggled to move the lid before J.C. or Geoff gave out.

Between them, they got their hands under the lip and pulled it. The ceiling slid part way back, and left a gap of about a foot before Jon lost his balance, and fell to the floor. Before Geoff collapsed, Ty put his boot against the wall above Geoff’s shoulder and shoved. With his fingers wrapped around the lid, he was able to move it another foot or so on his way down.

The four sat on the floor, slightly out of breath.

“Damn.” Geoff huffed. “We need to get to a gig soon. We’re in pretty bad shape, here. Ty, you’re getting fat, mate.”

“Thanks.” Ty looked at his body, then at his wife. She shook her head and licked her lips. It made him smile.

“We definitely need some exercise,” Jordan agreed.

Brian walked over to assess the opening. “Don’t suppose we have a rope?”

“Not with,” Jon grinned. “Got one or two in my bag.”

“And your bag is where?” Brian looked sarcastically down at Jon.

“Same place yours is. In the bleedin’ bus in Roanoke, Virginia, where Jena' packed us up.”

“That was a great show,” Geoff reminisced with a twinkle in his topaz eyes.

“Glad you had fun.” Ty stood up, and dusted off his trousers. “You almost got locked up.”

“I wasn’t going too far. Security just got nervous when I opened my trousers.”

Brian crossed his arms over his thick chest. “Like I was saying, a rope? Could we make one?”

“Out of what?” Geoff looked around, and turned with his arms wide to present the empty room.

“Your y-fronts.” Jordan laughed.

“Excuse me?” Diane spoke from the corner where Brian had left her. “The only undergarments in the room belong to Alexis and myself. Just what can you do with two bras and two thongs?”

They all laughed.

END