Free BLACK to Reality by Russell Blake Page A

him. “Okay. Let me get out of the car, and once I’m clear, the crew will shoot you. Wait until Lou gets your stuff out, and then walk up the steps to the front doors. Holly, one of the hosts, will meet you there. I hope you like cold beer.”
    “You must be psychic.”
    Black followed Sarah’s instructions and didn’t have to pretend to be in awe of the mansion as he approached the entry. Marble, granite, exotic woods, columns…the entire place reeked of money. Big money. Mugsy held off on spraying him, so at least he was spared that indignity, and he hugged the beast to his breast like a newborn, playing for the cameras as he mounted the steps. When he reached the threshold, the doors pulled wide, and a gorgeous blonde woman wearing a baseball cap on backward, a black The Cult T-shirt and ripped jeans, all white teeth and tanned skin and augmented curves, greeted him like he was bringing an alimony check.
    “Welcome to the Rock House! Come on in! I’m Holly,” she squealed, and Black felt a twinge of alarm at how it would look to Sylvia when Holly hugged him and gave his bottom an on-camera pinch. “Wow. This one’s mine. Rrrowrr!” she said, and Black grinned and played along, trying not to think about the fact that she was likely half his age, even if she might have had twice the miles on her.
    “Nice to meet you, Holly,” Black said as she beamed sex appeal at him.
    “Everyone at home, this is Jim Black. He’s the original guitar player and songwriter for Gravatar, one of the biggest bands of all time. This is such a thrill. I can’t believe you’re playing with Last Call. Tell me, Jim…how does it feel?”
    “It’s a rush. I can’t wait,” Black said, doing his best to appear enthusiastic. “And it’s Black. Just Black. That’s what everybody calls me.”
    “All right. Black. So another question. Is it going to be weird having your old bandmate Nina judging you?” Holly asked.
    Black stopped in his tracks and tried to keep his mouth from gaping open. “Say what?”
    “Nina. She’s one of the judges. Are you afraid she’ll be harder on the band, or conversely, might be more willing to vote for you? You were married to her, right?”
    Black could hear the sound of his heart hammering in his ears. The hallway he was standing in seemed to elongate as the walls closed in. He was afraid he was going to faint, and then Mugsy saved the day by letting out a long yawn accompanied by a yowl.
    “I think I’ll let Mugsy have the last word on that,” Black said and resumed walking.
    “What a beautiful cat! And a husky boy, isn’t he?”
    “You don’t know the half of it. He’s actually been the state feline sumo wrestling champion three years running,” Black assured Holly without a trace of irony. Her eyes flicked to the side as she tried to decide whether he was kidding, and Black offered no clues. The cameraman shook his head from behind the camera, and she returned to her empty smile.
    “Oh, you. I can see you’re going to be nothing but trouble,” she said, giving Black a playful swat. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to the rest of the gang.”
    Holly led the way into a great room that could have doubled as a hangar, where four impossibly beautiful Asian girls lounged around the breakfast bar that separated it from the kitchen, two in mini-skirts that barely covered their bottoms, the other two in bikinis. Holly did a little bow to them and gestured to Black.
    “This is Black, everyone. Black, meet Love Jupiter. From Korea. They’re already stars over there, isn’t that right?” Holly enthused, and the four girls smiled and waved and made peace signs. Black smiled at each in turn, but he could have been invisible, because everyone’s attention was on Mugsy, who seemed to instinctively understand that he was going to be the center of attention as long as he turned on the charm. One of the bikini-clad nymphs moved toward Black, followed by her companion, and soon they were ooing