The Sauna Part 265

Once I’d hung up the phone, I ordered a glass of wine and heaved a sigh of relief. It hadn’t gone smoothly, but it could have been a lot worse. I filled Jim in on the details and smiled wryly as I finished telling him about the last part of my conversation.

“Damn, that would make a good story for the book, but I’m guessing you and Jon would rather I not get into explicit details here?” he asked quizzically.

“Yeah, I’d say that’s a safe bet” I agreed.

I knew Jon would be pacing anxiously in his plane, waiting for news, so I didn’t delay any longer and dialed his cell. He picked up immediately on the first ring.

“Trish? Is it done?” he asked tensely.

“It’s done, love. It’s all over and Matt’s gone and everything is okay. Jack’s got it all under control and he’s already working on getting things in order, so we both can relax” I hurriedly explained, knowing I’d have wanted the synopsis first too.

“Good, I’m glad it’s finally taken care of. How did it go?” he asked, needing to hear all the details himself.

I recounted what I’d been told and Jon interrupted only once to curse when I shared that Matt had tried to assault Jack. He listened to the rest of the story pensively as he ticked off the answers to his own questions in his mind.

“Sounds like you covered all the bases, babe. I’d say we’ve got a few people to thank, but I want you to know how much I appreciate you. You did a great job just like I knew you would and I feel like an ass for ever doubting your judgment. Rest assured that it’s one mistake I’ll never repeat. I’m no longer blind when it comes to my family” he apologized yet again.

“Jon, stop it. Please, stop apologizing, okay? I was angry, I admit, but I don’t want you to keep doing penance for having a blind spot when it comes to family, okay? You made a mistake and I made mistakes too. We’re not perfect, but neither of us screwed up because we’re stupid. We’re just human, so stop with the ‘Mea culpa’ and let it go. Please, Jon, don’t let this eat at you. Let it go, for my sake even, okay?” I snapped.

I just couldn’t handle his continued remorse and I knew he was still punishing himself for letting me down in the beginning. I regretted having spoken so harshly when it all started, but I couldn’t take back what I’d said. I remembered how devastated I used to feel when my father would tell me how disapppointed he was after I’d made a mistake and I silently kicked myself for acting just like him.

“Trish, baby, I love you and maybe someday you won’t have to keep kicking my ass” he chuckled. “But until that day comes, don’t stop, okay?” he teased.

“Stop flirting with me when we’ve still got half a day before I can discipline you properly” I smirked back.

“Aaawww, shit, darlin’…” he blushed and with that I knew we’d be okay again soon.


*************


Jon was still in the air and he’d fallen into an fitful slumber after updating the guys with the news. The emotions he’d felt in the last several days had taken their toll and he was exhausted. He also knew that the worst was yet to come as he hadn’t heard from his mother and he had prepared himself mentally for when the call came. He might as well get some rest while he could, so he’d downed the last of his wine and closed his eyes.

Scenes from his childhood peppered his dreams as he remembered how close he and his mom had been. She’d bought him his first guitar and she’d encouraged him to learn how to play, even arranging for him to get lessons from the neighbor across the street. He’d been awful at first and he’d wanted to quit, just like he had when he’d been younger and she’d brought him a violin. But his mom realized this time he was trying and she’d never lost faith; she’d always believed he could do anything. Those were the good times.

He remembered her smile as he saw her and his dad out in the audience when he had his first gig at Giants. She’d winked back when he threw her a smile and he felt the warm rush of a mother’s pride in her son. She created the Fan Club and it seemed fitting; she’d always seemed like his biggest fan. As he grew more successful, and the money rolled in, he’d bought her the dream house she’d always wanted and she’d seemed so content. And then she had started drinking.

There had always been parties in the neighborhood and he remembered that she had often come home a bit tipsy, but his dad had just laughed it off. He’d never really thought twice about himself until the night many years later when he’d been honored for his success and the record company had thrown a big bash. He’d said a few words and he’d thanked everyone for their support, including his family, but he hadn’t singled her out. He’d just married Dot and he’d been riding high on the charts and yet his mother hadn’t seemed happy for him. She’d blasted both him and Dorothea for being ungrateful brats and had left the party in quite a huff. Jon passed it off as she’d had too much to drink.

But their relationship grew strained over the years since that episode and it seemed like he could never please her. When he had a hit record, she’d push him to do more and when his career had sagged at some points, she berated him for letting things slide and he began to avoid her as he was sick of her tirades. She’d never treated Dot like a member of the family and actually seemed to resent her importance in his life. And through it all, her drinking continued and he remembered one evening when he went to visit and it ended up being just him and his dad.

His father had always stayed in the background while Jon was growing up and that seemed even more true once his career had taken off. Not that he wasn’t proud of his son, because he was, but more because he tended to shun the limelight, unlike his wife, who soaked up attention like a sponge. Jon had spent the evening alone with his father, without Carol hogging the spotlight, and he was surprised at what he had learned.

Jon’s eyelids fluttered as he continued remembering that night in his dream, so vivid now that he was almost reliving it.

“Dad, how come we never spent any time together, just you and me, before now?” Jon had asked.

“Your mother would never have allowed it” John Sr. had smiled. “You were her baby, her darling. There wasn’t room for me in that picture” he’d replied truthfully.

“Where’s mom tonight?” Jon had questioned, realizing it was rare that Carol wasn’t there, but then he hadn’t told her he was coming to visit.

“She’s out again with her well-to-do girlfriends” his father had said with a touch of sarcasm as they’d sat there sharing a beer at the kitchen table.

Jon had suddenly realized how lonely his father sounded and how left out he must have felt. Carol had embraced her new lifestyle and she seemed to have left dad behind now that she had the opportunity to mingle with the rich and famous, thanks to his success. When Carol had returned home later that night and stumbled into the house, drunk and gushing over her powerful friends, Jon had seen his dad age right in front of his eyes.

“I’m really sorry, dad. I never meant for it to turn out like this” he’d apologized.

“I know, son. It isn’t your fault. It’s just your mother” John Sr. had said as he helped her into bed before she passed out.

That had been the beginning of the “grey summer” as Jon had come to call it and the first time he had been seriously depressed. Whatever shred of innocence he’d retained about his notions of fame and fortune had withered away and he’d become bitter and jaded for a time. But Dot had pulled him out of it and he eventually moved on, repressing the knowledge that his mother wasn’t who he needed her to be. But it all came crashing back with a vengeance as his subconscious mind subtly reminded him of what he’d tried to forget.

He was jolted awake by the sound of his cell phone and he reached in his pocket to retrieve it. He looked at the number and braced himself for the onslaught. Here we go.

“I’ve been expecting your call” Jon said coolly as he answered the phone.

“Jon, what have you done?” Carol bleated frantically into the phone.

“Something I should have done years ago, mother” he answered in a steady voice, catching her off guard with his icy tone.

“I’ve spent the last several hours trying to console your brother after the humiliating way you and that wife of yours treated him” she huffed.

“Trish was much kinder than I would have been” he stated with a snort, dismissing her unwarranted haughtiness.

“Jon, what’s the matter with you? Matt didn’t deserve to be treated that way. All he did was try to clean up the mess that wife of yours made when she interferred with the Fan Club! Why are you blaming your brother? He warned you not to let her go through with it in the first place! I can’t believe you don’t see that!” she fumed.

“The only mistake Trish ever made was believing that Matt could be trusted to carry out her wishes and she did that for my sake” he countered.

“For Heaven’s sake, Jon, Matt doesn’t monitor the boards himself. He didn’t realize there was a problem and when he learned about what had happened to the fans, he tried to do what he could to correct it and stop any more bills from being generated” she insisted.

Ah, so that’s the game. She doesn’t think we know how the billing works. She doesn’t realize that we know what they did. Let’s cut to the chase and get this over.

“Trish wasn’t as stupid as I was, mother. She figured out what you and Matt did and how you did it. And as soon as we determine who else was involved, they’ll be terminated as well, so don’t think for a moment that you’re fooling anyone or that you’ll ever have such an opportunity in the future” Jon hissed.

He was seething now and ready for a fight. He wasn’t looking to make amends and even if she’d apologized and owned up to the plot, he doubted he’d have forgiven her. But continuing the charade and trying to blame his wife who she’d victimized was just way too much and he was incensed at her persistence in trying to manipulate him just like she always had.

“What are you saying? Now you’re blaming me? How dare you! After everything I’ve tried to do for you? How could you let that woman turn you against me that way? I’ve given up everything for you! For you, Jon!” she howled.

“Don’t you mean that you’re afraid of losing everything that you have because of me?” he spat back.

“Jon, you’re my son and I love you” Carol whimpered, but Jon was having none of it.

“You love my money and my fame; in fact you love it more than I do. You don’t know the first thing about love, mother. You tried to destroy my relationship with my wife, the most precious thing that I have…” he reminded her but she interrupted.

“Jonny, you’re blind. You don’t realize what you’re saying. One day you’ll open your eyes and see…” she tried to convince him but he cut her off, his heart steeled against her now.

“I closed my eyes for a long time because it hurt me too much to see, but they’re open now and what I see is an incredibly selfish, spoiled woman who’s panicking because the gravy train has dried up. If it wasn’t for dad, I might not ever see you again” he threatened her.

“But Jon, I’m your mother…” she wailed.

“Then act like it!” he said finally and hung up the phone.

The guys in the band heard most of what Jon had said and they didn’t know what to say. Tico stared at his hands, while David looked out the window and Hugh pretended to read the book he was holding. Only Richie ventured a response. He applauded. It was about fuckin’ time.