The Original Taylor Daughter

News

This chapter is an upsetting one, I was bawling my eyes out as I wrote it.

Roger pulls up outside the Lodge the next afternoon, but Alice doesn't get out of the car straight away, "You know what this is about, don't you?" She looks to her dad for a hint of why Freddie has asked her to come over, "Did this happen while I was on tour?"

"Yes, and yes," He nods, finding it very hard to look at her for fear she'll see the pain behind his eyes, "But he asked me not to tell you. He wanted to tell you himself."

Knowing not to push it any further, she climbs out of the car, "You're going to see Felix and Rory, right?"

"Yes, I'm taking them out for the afternoon," He knows it's his own fault, but he does miss seeing his other children every day. He's thankful he's still got Alice around.

"Then I'll walk to mums when I'm finished here. See you later," She shuts the car door typing in the gates code as her dad drives off.

Walking up the path, Alice fears what today is really about. There was no hint of excitement or happiness in her dad's voice for the coming news, which tells her this isn't good news.

She spots Jim doing some gardening, "Hi Jim."

"Oh hello, Ally," He smiles, Irish accent prominent in his voice, "I didn't hear you come in the gate. Freddie is in the music room waiting for you."

"Thanks," She sees Romeo sat on the top step in front of the door, she picks him up and walks into the house straight for the said room, "Uncle Freddie?"

He's sat at the piano but turns upon hearing her voice, "Hello lovie, gosh you've grown up in the time you've been away. Come on," He pulls her over to the sofa by the window like an excited schoolgirl, "Tell me all about the tour."

"It felt like freedom and the shows were amazing, though nothing compared to a Queen show but still amazing."

"Of course," He chuckles, "No one puts on a show like Queen, my dear."

She tells him everything, about Ben and Gwilym and the places she visited, at some point Joe brought through some sandwiches for them.

Soon the conversation starts to feel stretched and Alice can feel him trying to stall the purpose of her visit, "Uncle Freddie, why have you really asked me here? You said you had something to tell me and Dad says that the Queen family knows too but you wanted to tell me in person."

"It's true I am stalling, I'm afraid to tell you. You've been through a lot of hurt and pain in your life and I don't want to put you through anymore," Alice is the daughter he never had and he wants to protect her from evil.

"But..." She encourages, painful news is starting to become a common occurrence in her life.

"But I fear I'd hurt you a lot more if I asked everyone to keep you in the dark." Freddie cradles her hand in his, using it as a grounding point, "Alice, I've got aids."

She knows what aids is and how it comes about but she doesn't care a thing about that. "Is it treatable?" She whispers, Romeo still purring away on her lap.

"There are experimental treatments but no cure, however, I will not be a part of the experiments."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want to live the time I have left stuck in a hospital being poked and prodded by needles. It was actually Molly who taught me that, she wanted to live her last years completing her bucket list, actually living and so do I. I have no bucket list but I want to spend what time is have left making music and singing. It's what I was born to do."

Alice feels numb all over, this can't be happening. First Biscuit, then Molly and now her uncle Freddie, "What's wrong with me?" She sniffs, tears falling rapidly, "You know, I think you were right, there is a curse in the Queen family and that curse is me."

Freddie tries to calm her down but she pulls away, "Everything good in life turns to shit around me, mum abandoned me, Uncle Brian got ill, I got cancer, Biscuits got killed by a car, Molly died from cancer and now you have aids. Maybe it should be me dying then perhaps whoever hates me up there will leave you guys alone."

"Alice," Freddie lifts her chin taking her hands back tightly, "Don't you dare go down that road, you are not a curse. And don't say such things, the Queen family would be very dull without you..."

"But it will be even darker without you and so would the world," Alice breaks, sobbing as she wraps her arms tightly around his chest. "I don't want to lose you, you've been there from the beginning. I can't deal with the pain of losing anyone else."

She tries to pull away from him again but Freddie tightens his grip around her, afraid that if he lets go she'll run off and do something stupid.

He lets her bawl and sob until eventually, she falls asleep against him. He knew she might take this badly but he hadn't expected that.

After composing himself, he lays Alice on the sofa Romeo curls up beside her and Freddie rings Dominique asking her to send Roger to pick Alice up when he drops Felix and Rory home.

It can't have been long after the phone call that Roger dropped the kids home because he was at the Lodge twenty minutes later.

"How did she take it?" Roger asks as Freddie leads him to where she's still asleep on the couch.

"Far worse than I imagined she would. Do not let her out of your sight for the next few days," He explains what happened and Roger's pain increases. He's already struggling with the news that they're going to lose Freddie but now he feels worse knowing that his daughter struggling mentally.

He shouldn't be surprised really, with what she's been through already, he's surprised she hasn't had a breakdown sooner.

"I'm sorry," Freddie mutters, "Had I known she would break like that I would have got you to come with her."

"Don't apologise mate. In time I think she'll appreciate you telling her like this, I just wish life hadn't been so cruel to her already. Are you alright? It's you that's ill."

"I'm fine, lovie," Freddie waves him off, "You worry about her and not me, I fear she might do something stupid if left alone for too long." Nodding Roger scoops Alice up from the sofa and carries her to the car.

------

January 1988

To everyone's relief, Alice never tried to do anything stupid, though they kept a very watchful eye on her until they were sure she was safe to be on her own.

Queen went back into the studio and though they asked her to, Alice didn't go back to take photos for them, not straight away anyway. None of them pushed her, they knew she'd come back when she's ready.

After one studio session, Roger was late coming home. It's not unusual for them to run late but Alice and Debbie were surprised when he came home with Brian in tow dragging a suitcase behind him and a bag on his shoulder.

"You going on holiday, uncle Brian?" Alice stops on the path to the stairs.

"Not quite," Brian smiles but it doesn't reach his eyes, "Chrissie and I are splitting up."

"Oh, I'm sorry," She cringes feeling bad for making light of the situation.

There's an awkward silence but Roger breaks it, "Brian, will be living from us while he finds a new home."

Alice understands there's probably more to the story but notes that her uncle isn't in a good mind to talk about it now, so decides to make him feel welcome, "Well I don't mind. It's like old times except we live in a mansion now instead of a flat. Come on uncle Brian, I'll show you to your room."

Brian smiles, truly this time following her. He fondly thinks back on the days when it was him, Roger and Alice living that small flat and how simple life seemed back then, even if they struggled for food some days, life had far less pain in it.

Hi guys, sorry if I've been a bit disconnected over the last week but I'm back now. Just a quick check-in, are you guys still enjoying this book?