unREASONable by Arya Matthews
Track 24
Marshall
I want to break my skull when I enter the Nest. I was supposed to tell Alexandra we’re not happening. Instead I stayed at her house, slept there all night, then asked her out. Genius.
Fiona comes out of the ground floor office with a bunch of papers and a laptop in her hands. “What are you up to?”
“Nothing. You?”
She gives me some of the papers. “I sent you all an email, but here’s a hard copy of what will be happening at the festival. It’s going to get a little crazy soon.”
“Too late for that.”
“I’m told you’re getting along with Alexandra a little better.” Fiona sounds neutral, only I know her enough to not trust it.
I pretend to study the festival details. “Yeah, I guess.”
“You guess?”
I plaster a smile onto my face. “Alexandra and I are going to be fine from now on. I’ll behave.”
“I know you like to be tough and handle it all on your own, but change is hard for everyone. I actually thought you’d throw a much bigger tantrum about it. Kiera had way more faith in you than I did.”
I use this conversation as an opportunity to ask something I’m not supposed to. “How did Kiera find Alexandra? Why from Russia? She’s great, of course, but we have plenty of local talent.”
“Honestly, I don’t know. One morning she went through her emails, had a couple of phone calls, then announced we had to go to the airport to pick up your new bassist.”
That’s random. “Just like that? No plans, no auditions, no research?”
Fiona sighs. “Marshall, I’m just an assistant. I know you think I know everything, but I don’t. I’m sorry. She could’ve done the research and even the auditions without me. Most likely though, The Label handed her Alexandra and told her to deal with it.”
“How did The Label pick her then?” I remember Alexandra getting really upset when I called her the president’s pet. She said she’d never met him, but… It’s not that I don’t trust her. I only find it hard to believe The Label’s president had nothing to do with her joining us.
“I don’t know.”
“Shouldn’t we though?”
Fiona holds my gaze with ease. She always does. “Marshall, you’re asking for trouble. You agreed to a bassist replacement with no questions asked.”
“I know, but who is Alexandra? There are no records of her online, no social media presence, no Tube videos. She’s obviously talented, but how did she end up with us without ever trying out for anything or performing anywhere? Or posting a single tweet about her favorite makeup? She’s from Russia, not from another planet. They have computers and smartphones there. And since I agreed to ask no questions, I need someone else to do it for me.”
“All right, all right. Settle down. I’ll see what I can find out. I guess it’s only fair you know something about her.”
“Thanks.”
She flicks me a semi-irritated look. “You’re welcome, but don’t expect me to play any spy games or snoop around. My relationship with Kiera is largely built on trust. I won’t break it for you.”
“Fair enough.” I want to know everything about Alexandra, but I’ll take anything, any crumb Fiona can find out about her.