The Resistance(75)
“Limos and award shows,” I add. “I remember thinking the same thing before I moved out here for college, maybe I still thought that even in college. Then one day I went to a party in the Hollywood Hills and saw an actor I’d had a crush on when I was a teenager. He was wasted, drugged out, and hitting on everyone. He was a complete mess and a prime candidate for a Where Are They Now article. The bright lights kind of dimmed for me that night.”
“My dad thinks it’s all druggies and people with no souls. Says it was aptly named. I think I just wanted to prove him wrong, but I don’t know if I can.” He sighs, then says, “Dex started using again right before Vegas. No one was worried about the light stuff, but Cory and I knew he was doing more. We just didn’t want to deal with it. But last night we all went to a bar. He’d been gone for a while, so Cory went looking for him. He found him on the floor in the men’s bathroom having seizures. If we hadn’t been there…”
I gasp, but push down the other horrifying feelings that start to overcome me. Calming myself for Dalton’s sake, I ask, “That’s why you had a few days off?”
He nods. “Cory went to the hospital with him. Dex had a severe reaction to some hallucinogens he’d taken. Shit he bought in some alley from a stranger.”
“That’s awful.”
“Tommy got him released a few hours later despite what they wanted. From what we know, the press doesn’t know yet. Cory and I were doing the interview while Tommy kept an eye on him at the hotel. That’s when Rochelle called to say she went into labor.” He sits up and looks into the black sky through the jet windows. “What he said out there… It’s bullshit. He loved Cory. That was his guilt speaking, but it still doesn’t make it right.”
“We all deal with grief differently.”
“You haven’t mentioned it.”
He lets that lie between us, waiting for a response from me. “Mentioned what?”
“That I was supposed to be on that flight.”
A trembling sigh escapes me because I’m not ready to think about if Dalton had caught that flight with Cory. But for him, I’ll be strong. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“You saved me.” He glances over as he slides down onto the bed again. “My bag was packed. Ten minutes. Just ten minutes and I would have been out that door heading for my own death.”
“Dalton.” Tears pool in my eyes.
“You saved me. I knew you would.” A tear slips down my cheek as he nuzzles against my neck, repeating, “You’re my angel.”
I hold him, thankful to have the opportunity. I hold him so tightly and cry, now knowing Rochelle will never have the chance to hold the man she loves again.
Our breathing evens as we wear down, exhaustion setting in. Just when I think we’re going to sleep, Dalton says, “Tommy found out the cigarettes Dex was smoking were laced. That’s how he was hiding it from us.”
“What?” I ask, surprised by the bombshell he just dropped.
“Yeah, he knew if he was caught using again he’d be out of the band. He’s been told several times and there he was getting high right to our faces. It’s like a fucking game with him.”
“Dex doesn’t need you to be the parent. Let Tommy do that. Rochelle, Neil, and the baby need you right now. Focus on them.”
He turns out the light and we lay there, silent. I let my mind roll over what he said and try to figure out if I’ve seen any signs of Dex’s problem. Thinking back to the night I picked Dalton up from Dex’s house, drugs were everywhere. He wasn’t hiding them that night, but I can’t say I saw him doing anything other than smoking pot. I also remember seeing him sitting on the couch smoking cigarettes.
Dalton’s words from the night I picked him up from Dex’s come back to me. “I bummed a few cigarettes at the reception.”
Rolling on my side to face him, I ask, “What kind of cigarettes did you smoke at the reception?”
His voice is deeper, bordering on sleep. “Huh?”
“The night of your ex’s wedding. You said you ‘bummed a few cigarettes’ from Dex.”
Tension fills the room as his body hardens. Dalton flies out of bed and out the door before replying. He’s banging on Dex’s door yelling one profanity after another.
Dex is wise not to open the door.
Tommy pulls Dalton back and they end up in a heap on the floor while Dalton yells, “He fucking drugged me and he knew it. He fucking knew and let me do it. Bastard!”
They both get to their feet, out of breath. Tommy asks, “What are you talking about?”