Meanwhile, Katerina paced backstage and glanced out to see Micky and Mike as they finished setting up their instruments while Basil warmed up the crowd.
Stopping for just a moment, she took a deep breath. She then wrapped her arms around herself and continued pacing.
“Just be calm,” she said to herself. “Why are you so nervous tonight? You never had this problem New York.”
Katerina stopped pacing again when she reached a wall and leaned her forehead against the cool cement. It wasn’t like her to be so unnerved. Something deep inside was bothering her, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. Throughout her life, she had always had this “sixth sense” about things, and although many times that foreboding feeling never turned out to be anything serious, sometimes it was.
“Get yourself together Johanson,” she told herself, shutting her eyes and taking another deep breath.
Suddenly, she felt two arms wrap themselves around her waist and a low voice whispering in her ear, “Hey.”
Turning around she smiled shakily at Peter.
“This is so groovy! You’re going to do so great Kat, I just know it,” Peter exclaimed, beaming at her.
“I don’t know Peter,” Katerina admitted, shaking her head as he held her tighter. “I’ve never been this nervous before.”
“What’s really bothering you,” Peter asked, pulling back a bit to look into her eyes.
“I’m not sure,” she said, leaning her head against him, “but something just doesn’t feel right tonight.”
“Maybe it’s because it’s such a new place to you,” Peter suggested, smoothing her hair down her back. “It’s an adjustment.”
“No, Peter,” Katerina said, wanting to let her bad feelings go and just melt into his embrace. “It’s something more than that and I just can’t put my finger on it.”
“Hey you two,” Basil interrupted, peaking his head through the curtain, “you’re on in less than a minute. The crowd’s getting restless.”
“Everything will be fine,” Peter said hurriedly as he released her and the two walked to the darkened entrance.
“I have a surprise for you later too,” Peter whispered, kissing her on the cheek and walking on stage.
Katerina took one more deep breath and adjusted her outfit; a burgundy paisley print long-sleeved shirt, a black beaded necklace, black mini-skirt, and tall black boots. She smoothed her long, straight blond hair around her shoulders and followed Peter on stage.
“Ladies and gentleman,” Basil announced, seeing that everyone on stage was ready, “may I introduce a young lady that is definitely outta-site, Miss Katerina Johanson.”
The young crowd clapped politely as the stage lights went up and Katerina stepped up to the microphone.
Slowly, she began to feel like her old self again as the first chords began to play.
Katerina turned to look at Peter. Just looking at his warm smile, she knew that when she didn’t have the strength in her own positive nature to go on, he would never let her down. She opened her mouth to sing…
Her set had finished about an hour ago, and now that she was in the crowd, listening to the Monkees play, the feeling that had been hovering around her all night managed to become a distant memory. Listening to them play was an entirely new experience for Katerina. She had never been a Monkee fan like Adriana. Hearing their songs made Katerina have a new appreciation for the guys that her cousin adored so much.
“They really are amazing,” Katerina said to Adriana at the table to the left of the stage where they sat with Ursula, watching the performance.
“I’m glad you think so,” Adriana said as the applause continued.
“And,” Adriana continued excitedly, looking over her shoulder, “I don’t think we’re the only ones.”
Katerina turned to where Adriana had looked to see a bearded man, possibly in his late twenties, applauding enthusiastically.
“Who’s that,” Katerina leaned over to ask Adriana.
“Micky showed me a picture of him before in a magazine,” Adriana explained. “His name is Adam Cartwright. He is evidentially quite a big time producer.”
“Wow,” Katerina breathed, turning away from Mr. Cartwright’s direction and blushing. What made her blush was the fact that he noticed her and smiled.
“Um, we’d like to try a new song out with ya’ll tonight,” said Mike from the stage. “It was written by my good buddy Peter Tork here, and he’d like to dedicate it to a special someone that knows who they are.”
Katerina smiled as she watched Peter step up to the microphone with his guitar and begin to play.
“Peter! Peter! Come here,” Katerina called excitedly to Peter as he emerged from backstage after helping the guys put away the instruments.
The party had kept going long after the guys finished playing. Someone put on a Beatles record and people were dancing and mingling everywhere.
Peter gulped nervously when he recognized the man who owned Big Apple Records.
“Mr. Cartwright,” Katerina said, pointing to her boyfriend, “this is the wonderfully talented Peter Tork, of the Monkees.”
Peter smiled sheepishly and politely extended his hand to Mr. Cartwright.
“Got to make a good impression,” Peter thought to himself, “Mike will kill me if I screw things up.
“Nice to meet you,” Peter managed to choke out quite cordially.
“Same here, but please,” he said, shaking Peter’s hand quickly and turning back to Katerina, “Call me Adam.”
“Okay,” Katerina said, nodding and smiling slightly, “Adam.”
Peter uncomfortably cleared his throat and shifted his position.
“I’ve enjoyed chatting with you very much, Katerina,” Adam continued, “but your music is what I’m really interested in.”
“Really,” Katerina asked, taken aback.
“Really,” Adam confirmed with an adamant nod, “you’re quite a talent.”
“Thank you,” Katerina said, gratefully. Looking over at Peter, she noticed the grim look forming on his face.
“And weren’t the Monkees wonderful,” Katerina asked Adam putting a hand on Peter’s arm.
“Hmm, yes, yes, very good,” he said lightly, “but they’re really not what I’m looking for right now. I’d like nothing more than to sign you to my label tonight, Katerina.”
“But, you’ve hardly heard my work,” Katerina said exasperatedly, dropping her hand from Peter.
“I’ve heard enough, my dear,” Adam continued, looking her up and down. “I’ve heard enough to know that you have the…well…potential that we like to see at B.A.R.”
“I…I…don’t know what to say,” said Katerina, more than just a little shocked. Too shocked, in fact, to notice the way Adam was gazing at her.
She turned to look at Peter, who looked at her sadly, but then with a fake smile, whispered quickly to her, “I’ve gotta go, uh, ask Davy something.” He then turned and walked over to where Davy and Ursula stood talking across the room.
“Come, my dear, to my table,” Adam said, putting his arm around Katerina’s shoulders and leading her away, “We have much to discuss.”
Katerina looked over her shoulder as she walked away to see Peter standing next to Davy, looking sadly down at his hands.
“I can make you a star,” Adam whispered seductively to her as he led her to a darker corner of the room.
“So, all you have to do is sign here, here, and here,” Adam said to Katerina as he pointed to the contract he laid on the table in front of them a few minutes later.
Katerina’s heart beat with excitement and a bit of apprehension as she moved to take the pen from Adam’s hand. It seemed so unreal, but an opportunity to finally do what she loved and get paid for it was not something she wanted to pass up anytime soon. Maybe she’d never have to write another jingle again.
“Ah, ah, ah,” Adam said in a correcting tone, pulling his hand away from her, “there’s a little something that all of my new recruits must do before I let them sign with me.”
“Wait a minute,” Katerina said, putting a hand up and getting ready to stand up. “I don’t know what you thought, but I have a boyfri..”
“No, no, my dear,” Adam interrupted, “It’s nothing like that. Nothing like that at all.”
Katerina breathed a sigh of relief and settled back into her chair.
“Daniel,” Adam said to his associate, “hand me my bag.”
Katerina watched suspiciously as Daniel handed Adam a black leather bag. Adam opened it and carefully took out a small plastic baggie with five small silver cubes inside.
“I want you to have one of these babies,” Adam cooed, reaching into the baggie and pulling out one of the cubes.
“What is it,” Katerina asked, accepting it into her hand.
“Sure,” Katerina said slowly with a shrug, “but what does that have to do with me getting a record contract with you?”
“This little cube, here,” Adam said, holding one up to a dim light, “has the ability to make you free.”
“Wait a minute,” Katerina said, looking down at the square in her hand. “Is this what I think it is?”
“LSD, my dear,” Adam said, opening the cube and popping it into his mouth. “Eat up, there’s plenty more where that came from.”
“Oh, I’ve heard about this,” Katerina said nervously, dropping the cube like it was hot, “this stuff is really bad for you.”
“Bad,” Adam questioned with a laugh, “How can anything so wonderful be bad?”
“I think I’ll pass,” Katerina said, turning to leave.
“Pass,” Adam questioned, grabbing her arm. “There’s no passing.”
“I need some air,” Katerina said freeing herself and standing to her feet. “Excuse me.”
“Wait,” Adam called to her, getting up and following her out the door.
“Peter,” Adriana said as Micky and she walked over to where Peter had been sulking for the last half hour or so, “where’s Kat?”
“She’s over talking with Adam Cartwright about her career,” he said, his arms folded, looking glumly at Davy and Ursula slow dancing.
“Uh, no, she’s not,” Micky said, looking in the direction of Mr. Cartwright’s table. “In fact, I don’t see her anywhere.”
“What’s goin’ on,” Mike asked, stepping into the conversation.
“Kat dumped me for a record producer,” Peter said with a sigh, hanging his head.
“No she didn’t,” Adriana said, stepping to Peter’s side and putting a hand on his shoulder. “Katerina wouldn’t do that.”
“I don’t trust that Adam Cartwright,” Mike said, squinting as he looked around the room. “I saw him from the stage smoking something that didn’t look like your regular standard brand, if ya know what I mean.”
“Are you sure you don’t see her anywhere, Micky,” Adriana asked, worried.
“I’m sure,” Micky said, scanning the room. “Well,” Mike said loudly, “why don’t you go and find her, Peter?”
“I can’t,” Peter said, feeling defeated, “she’s probably not even thinking about me right now.”
“Look,” Mike said, putting a hand on his friend’s shoulder, “you gotta go do something. Adam Cartwright isn’t exactly the most gentlemanly guy around. Now, you love her don’t you?”
“Mike, I…,” Peter started.
“Don’t you,” Mike asked again.
In his mind, Peter could see her face. Her smile. Her heart. Everything that he had begun to love about this girl flooded his spirit and much unlike the non-fighting countenance he always seemed to own, he felt a determination like never before rise up inside him.
“Of course I do Michael,” Peter said slowly, lifting his head up and looking towards the door.
“Then go out there and get her, boy,” said Mike, patting him on the back.
“You’re right,” Peter said, striding purposefully away towards the door.
“He might need some help. Come on,” Micky motioned to the rest of the group.
With determination, Peter first walked over to Adam’s table in the corner, with Micky, Adriana, Mike, Davy and Ursula close behind. Daniel was the only one sitting there, staring at his hands, waving them in the air and smiling.
“Where is she,” Peter demanded with an uncharacteristic rise in his voice.
“She who,” Daniel said with a laugh.
“Katerina,” Peter said forcefully.
“Oh, that chick,” Daniel laughed, waving his hand in a dismissal motion, “man is she a drag.”
“Look,” Peter shouted, “just tell me if you know where she is!”
“Gee, man,” Daniel said, cowering a bit, “they just went to get some…air.”
Peter turned and hurried out the door. He hurried around the corner, and was stopped in his tracks by something his heart could barely take to see.
While Peter had been making up his mind whether or not to go after Katerina, Adam Cartwright had caught up with her right outside the club’s doors.
“Hey,” he said, softly, “do you realize what you’re giving up if you don’t try this?”
“Why is it so necessary,” Katerina asked, turning to him annoyed.
“Because,” Adam said slowly, “only those who have been where this takes you can go where they’ve been dreaming of.”
Katerina walked for a moment, turned a corner, then sighed and leaned against the wall.
“It won’t bite you, dear,” Adam said, stopping beside her, taking another small cube out of his pocket. “Think about all you’ll be gaining. A whole new world of opportunity. Success beyond your wildest dreams. Playing your music to throngs of humanity. Your name in lights. Tune in, turn on and drop out, my dear.”
Katerina stared at the tiny cube that Adam held out before her. She didn’t quite understand why it was such a big deal to this guy. She had heard of LSD before in Health classes and such. Katerina knew it was supposed to be bad for you, but she wasn’t sure why.
“It’s such a small dose, after all,” Katerina thought as visions of possible fame began to overwhelm her normally sensible persona. “Really, what harm could something that small do?. He doesn’t appear any more than a little drunk, and I have been there before. It wasn’t fun, but not a big deal. Besides, it will make him happy and I’ll have a contract with a great label that can give me everything I’ve dreamed of.”
“What do you say, my dear,” Adam asked as he waved the cube in front of her.
Resolutely, Katerina slowly took the cube from Adam’s hand. Gingerly she unwrapped it and carefully placed the cube into her mouth.
“Let it dissolve, my dear, then wait,” Adam said with glee, popping another into his own mouth.
Katerina felt the cube slowly fade into nothing inside her mouth. It was sweet, like sugar.
For a moment she felt nothing, but suddenly her vision began to blur.
She braced herself against the wall as everything began to spin.
“Isn’t it lovely,” Adam exclaimed as he turned around and around in the alley. “The colors! The colors!”
Katerina’s heart beat wildly and she began to perspire profusely. Leaning against the wall, she found it hard to breathe. Shadows began to close in around her and she felt a scream rise in her throat as invisible hands reached towards her.
Peter froze for a moment as he heard the echoes of her scream and saw her fall to the ground.
He looked at Adam, who glanced quickly at Katerina, then turned and ran down the alleyway.
Peter dashed over to where she laid on the cold, dirty, ground. He put his head to her chest and listened for a pulse. It was very faint. Her breathing was low and raspy, as well as infrequent.
“Oh, God,” he heard Adriana cry as the rest of the group caught up with Peter outside the club.
“Somebody call an ambulance,” Peter yelled at the top of his lungs.
“Come on, Kat,” Peter said, lifting her head and lightly slapping the side of her face. Her once vibrant and rosy complexion had turned a pasty white.
Suddenly, he could no longer hear her unsteady breaths.
Peter grabbed her wrist and felt for a pulse.
“Oh, no,” Peter said exclaimed, tears forming in his eyes, feeling nothing but an extremely intermittent heartbeat, “Oh, no, Kat, no.”
As Peter held Kat’s head in his lap and stroked her hair, Mike shouted out orders to his friends in the crowd that had formed around them.
“Don’t you die, Kat,” Peter whispered, touching her face, “I love you.”
After what seemed like hours, the flashing lights of an ambulance flickered in the distance and then pulled into the alleyway. Peter felt colder than he had ever felt in his life as a paramedic jogged over to him and Katerina.
“Step aside, son,” the man said to Peter. “We’ll take over from here.”
View My Guestbook
Sign My Guestbook
