Becoming

Killers

Paul showed up promptly to the first rehearsal once Steve returned from his honeymoon, but after that one, he turned up increasingly late or occasionally not at all. With first a UK tour and then some European dates in Germany and Scandinavia already scheduled and starting in just three weeks, Steve wasn't quite in a position to fire the man yet. Still, Dave and Ade figured that Paul was on borrowed time unless he cleaned up his act fast.

The first half of the tour itself proved as tiring as the two guitarists anticipated. Fortunately for all of them, Steve found it just as brutal as the rest of them and persuaded Rod to at least get one more van and a couple of roadies to help out with the second half of the tour. He also talked the manager into letting the band stay in hotels at least three or four times a week, rather than trying to live completely out of the vans.

The more relaxed atmosphere did lead to other difficulties. Paul, already habitually turning up high as well as just barely in time to get onstage, grew aggressive with both his bandmates and the audiences, even going so far as to try to pick fights with some of the fans. A fuming Steve, along with Rod Smallwood, tried to make him see reason, or at least to tone down the drug use, but he refused to admit there was a problem. As if that wasn't enough for the band to be getting on with, Clive got beaten up by several members of a motorcycle gang.

Wanting to honour his commitment to Olivia, he'd taken to following the example set by Dave and Ade, of chatting with the girls who hung back a bit after the shows rather than seeking out the ones making it obvious that they'd drop their knickers upon request. Unfortunately, on this particular night, he'd unknowingly spent time talking with the girlfriend of one of the gang members. The biker took a dim view of some rock musician paying attention to 'his' woman and gathered a few friends to 'explain' to Clive that he should stay away from the lady in question.

Dave, heading out back for a smoke, found an unconscious Clive curled up with his arms protectively over his head, halfway between the venue and the vans, bruises forming on his face and blood pouring from his nose. Forgetting about his cigarette, he dropped to his knees beside the drummer, checking as best he could for other injuries. "Ade!" he yelled towards the open back door of the club, not wanting to leave Clive alone in middle of the car park. "Ade!"

His boyfriend eventually heard his calls and came out to see why he was yelling. "What's wrong?" Ade called.

"Get Rod, mate, Clive's hurt!" Dave called back.

"Bloody hell!" Ade exclaimed, seeing Dave kneeling beside the fallen drummer. "I'm on it!" He darted back inside, shoving through club employees and backstage guests alike until he located the manager. Giving Rod a quick rundown, he led the man back outside to see if he could help at all.

Deciding not to take chances, Rod asked the two guitarists to stay with the drummer while he headed back into the club and dialed 999, asking for an ambulance to take Clive to Casualty. After that, he updated Steve on the situation. "...that's all I know right now. I'm hoping that Clive can tell us what happened once he wakes up, or that the club has security cameras in the car park that show what happened."

"Bloody hell," Steve sighed. "Right, you'll need to find out where they're taking him, so you can be there to handle all the legal bits that might pop up. I'll get back up to the floor and make sure Paul don't do anything too stupid tonight. Bring Ade and Davey to hospital with you; Clive and Ade have got to be quite good mates cos they both fish, and since Dave found Clive, you know he'll want to know how bad it is."

"Right, then," Rod said. "You've the keys to the vans? I'll take whichever one is loaded up already, then the roadies will take one and that leaves the last for you and Paul. Glad we're at a hotel tonight, I'll contact you there once I know more – but we both know that'll be a couple hours at best. If you're not back there when I call, I can leave a message at the desk."