Ransom(43)

“Karen!” Paige hisses, shooting me a concerned look.

Karen rolls her eyes. “Daisy knows I’m not using her, for God’s sake. I’m just saying, if Daltrey offered us passes again, why in the hell are we turning them down?”

“Because,” Paige says, it’s important to me that we have the—”

“Full fan experience,” Karen interrupts. “I know, you’ve said it like five times. Fine. Let’s just go so we can get in line. If I have to sit on the concrete all day, I at least better get a good spot.”

Paige picks up the musty quilt she took from her car and folds it over her arm. “Everyone have everything?”

We leave our room and make our way down the dark, twisty hallway toward the front door. Our hotel in Hampton Beach came as an unpleasant surprise when we arrived late last night. The ceilings were low, the wallpaper peeling, and the mattresses poked me with their loose springs every time I so much as breathed. It was everything I could do to not call Daltrey and beg him to let us take him up on his offer to sleep on the tour bus. I was glad I hadn’t told the girls about that conversation. I’m pretty sure Karen would have committed several minor crimes in her willingness to get out of that hotel.

The place is close to the venue, though, which is particularly helpful considering the day is cold, grey, and drizzling. Karen grumbles about how stupid this is the entire way. Less than three blocks from the hotel, we turn the corner, and the venue comes into view, along with a staggering view of a stormy-looking ocean.

“Holy crap,” Paige says. “Did you know this place was actually on the beach?”

“I didn’t even know New Hampshire had beaches,” I say. “New Hampshire touches the ocean?”

“Could have fooled me,” Paige says.

Karen sighs. “Seriously, you guys? Of course New Hampshire touches the ocean. And why did you not figure this out from the name of the town—Hampton Beach?”

Paige smiles sheepishly. “I thought it was, like, just a name.”

I burst out laughing. The entire situation strikes me as completely hilarious—how cold and pissed Karen looks, the fact that it’s only eight in the morning and the line is already stretched down the building, the idea of sitting out here all day in the cold with the wind and salt from the ocean only a stone’s throw away. And, of course, Paige’s and my complete inadequacies in the area of U.S. geography.

“Let’s go get in line,” Karen says, leaving Paige and me still giggling on the corner.

It quickly becomes apparent that none of us are properly dressed. What felt like a chilly, wet day at the hotel is about ten degrees colder by the water. The venue is situated on the other side of the street from a long boardwalk. Beyond that is a stretch of sand leading right up to the ocean. The cold of the pavement goes right through our thin quilt, and the small awning overhead does little to keep out the mist and salt from the sea. I’m wearing my normal hoodie and jeans, and I’m freezing so I can hardly imagine how Karen must feel in her thin sweater and open-toed sandals. Paige has taken off her leather jacket out of fear that the dampness will warp it, and she sits shivering against the brick wall of the venue.

The cold is doing little to deter the Ransom fans, though. Within moments, at least ten more people have sat down behind us. Up ahead, someone is playing the album on iPod speakers, and laughter can be heard over the wind.

“See?” Karen asks, her teeth chattering. “We’re still not having the normal fun fan experience because we’re the only dumbasses here that didn’t dress for the weather.”

“We could go back to the hotel,” I offer. “Come back later. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if we’re standing in the back of the venue.”

“No!” Paige says, the impact of her vehemence slightly lessened by the blue tinge of her lips. “We’re having a normal fan experience, damn it!”

“I have an idea.” I pull out my phone and call Levi. I cross my fingers that he’s up already.

“Hello?”

“Levi, hey. It’s Daisy. I didn’t wake you, did I?”

He laughs warmly. “Nope. If I was sleeping, who would make sure the guys don’t do something stupid?”

“Are you super busy?”

“No, not at all. What do you need?”

“Well, we’re waiting in line—”

“Yeah, Dalt told me you guys were going to hang with the little people today. What’s up with that?”

I try not to roll my eyes. “Some of us think it’s an important part of our tour experience—”