Page 49 of Rescue

“The label called during your set with a fantastic opportunity.” It’s a little freaky, seeing Louis this happy.

“You gonna keep us in suspense, Lou?” Layla asks, rubbing a towel over her sweaty brow.

“You all know that Ransom’s show in Paris next week is going to be broadcast in the States.” He pauses, his eyes going to each one of us. “I hardly need to tell you the magnitude of this concert. The label is expecting viewership in the tens of millions. It will be simulcast on satellite radio and streamed live on the internet—”

“Louis,” Dylan barks. “Ransom is amazing, we get it. What does this have to do with us?”

Another long pause, his smile smug. “They’ve decided to broadcast your opening set as well.”

You could hear a pin drop in that room. We all sit stock still, staring at one another.

Lance is the first to speak. “What did you just say?”

Louis is clearly enjoying his role as the deliverer of good news. “Your opening set is going to be broadcast to millions of viewers in the United States and Canada.”

“Holy shit,” James whispers, and then we’re all screaming and jumping around. Dylan grabs me, swinging me off my feet, his voice shrill in my ear. Then Layla throws her arms around us, and I think she might be crying.

“Are you serious?” Lance yells above the noise. “Are you fucking with us, Lou?”

Louis laughs. “Of course not. I worked my ass off on this deal, you know.”

Dylan releases me and grabs our manager instead, pulling him off his feet in a bear hug. “Louis, you asshole, you’re good for something after all!”

I realize that I’m laughing, a head-thrown-back, full-throated cackling that I just can’t control. I don’t believe this. The Ransom Paris show has been talked about for months. MTV is predicting it will be one of their largest audiences ever, rivaling that of the VMAs. You can’t pay for this kind of exposure. And we’re going to be featured as well.

Everyone is hugging everyone, yelling and laughing, and then James is in front of me. We just look at each other for a long moment, and that lump comes back to my throat. “What were you saying about that dive bar in Detroit?” I ask, and his face breaks into the biggest grin. Then he’s hugging me, and I bury my face in his shoulder, letting a few tears escape. I figure I’ve earned them.