The Late Greats Read online

  ‘We don’t really have one. Those days are gone. Until Kane contacted us about the possibility of a reunion, I don’t think I’ve spoken to Greg for six or seven years. I always knew what he was doing through the Internet and stuff, but we never actually made contact. It’s what this business does to you. It builds you up, tells you you’re the best thing in the world and then it demolishes you. And some things don’t survive it.’ He swallowed the last of his tea. ‘Our friendship was one of them.’

  I wasn’t surprised by what he said. It fitted with what I’d read in the pack Sarah had given me. After I’d left Queens, I’d stayed up late flicking through it. The music industry was littered with such stories. I hesitated, then asked the question that needed asking. ‘Do you think he’s done anything silly?’

  ‘Because he’s tried to kill himself before?’

  ‘Maybe the pressure was too much?’

  ‘I really wouldn’t know. He was my best friend a long time ago, but too much has happened since. We didn’t split on good terms. His problems were too much for us. We couldn’t continue. I’m sorry he took it so hard, but there wasn’t anything I could do.’

  I understood what he was saying. I’d played professional rugby league before injury finished me, just as I was getting started in the game. The margins of error were so small, there was always the chance that however well you did your own job, your team-mates could let you down. You need them to be strong.

  ‘So you wouldn’t have any idea where he might have disappeared to?’ I asked.

  ‘Assuming he hasn’t changed that much, he’s probably sleeping a binge off, or holed up somewhere recording some new songs on his own. That’s the way he used to work. He’d disappear for a few days and then turn up like nothing was wrong, like we were all supposed to just deal with it. Used to drive me mad.’

  That was what Siobhan had told me. I asked him if he’d met Tasker’s girlfriend.

  ‘He told us about her when we first rehearsed a couple of weeks ago, but I’ve not met her.’

  I asked Priestley about Lorraine and her website.

  He told me he knew her. ‘She was a fan from the start. Coming to the early gigs and supporting us. She even used to jump in the van with us and sell demo tapes and T-shirts at gigs.’

  ‘Kane said she was a bit weird, that she can’t let the past go.’

  ‘We were happy enough to use her when we needed a hand, but once we became more professional, we got rid of her without a second thought. I still feel bad about that. She did nothing wrong.’

  ‘Do you think she’s still in touch with Greg?’

  ‘I wouldn’t really know. Maybe they’ve rekindled their relationship? I know they stayed in touch, even when he moved down to London.’

  I was surprised. ‘Rekindled their relationship?’

  Priestley picked up his guitar. Started to tune up. ‘They were an item before we left Hull. Kane used to hate it.’

  I went back to the office and looked over the paperwork Sarah had left out for me. She’d also left me a sandwich. As I ate, I wondered how a famous man simply disappears. Clearly, there was plenty about Tasker I still didn’t know, not least his private life. My mobile vibrated on the table. I looked at the display – Sarah.

  ‘I’ve got an email for you from Lorraine Harrison, the woman who runs the New Holland website’ she said. I listened as Sarah summarised it for me before finding a pen in my pocket to take the details down. I didn’t know if Lorraine would lead me directly to Tasker, but she was the best lead I had. I must have been lost in thought, as I didn’t hear Julia Gowans walk into the office.

  She sat down opposite me and smiled. ‘What’s new?’

  ‘Nothing.’

  ‘No need to be so defensive. It really doesn’t suit you, Joe. We’re all friends here.’

  She had that glint in her eye again. I couldn’t decide whether she was flirting with me or not. I was out of practice on that front.

  ‘I’m not being defensive.’ It was the best I could manage.

  ‘Have you spoken to Kane?’

  ‘Not since this morning.’

  ‘Did he tell you Greg is missing, nobody knows where he is?’

  I tried not to show my surprise. There was nothing I could say. I stalled for time, taking another bite of my sandwich, hoping she would go away. It wasn’t the best of plans.

  She continued. ‘Are you telling me you’ve not been running around trying to find him?’

  What kind of investigator was I? She knew at least as much as me. ‘What makes you think he’s missing?’ I said.

  She smiled at me. ‘Cut the shit, Joe. You’ve got two choices here. We can either work together or I can file the story right now. Kane will no doubt tell you there’s no story yet, but don’t believe him. There’s always a story. You need to choose the first option. You need to find Greg and it looks like you need all the help you can get.’

  We headed out of the office to my car. Major wasn’t going to be happy, but I’d weighed the situation up. There was no choice: I’d told Julia she was in. A story now about Tasker’s disappearance would be damaging. I was trying to control the situation. Major would surely see that. As we drove, I asked her how she knew Tasker was missing. She said she’d spoken to Michael Rusting, the man at Greg Tasker’s studio. He’d happily told her about our conversation the previous day.

  ‘What do you think?’ I asked. She knew what was going on, so there was no avoiding the big question. I kept my eyes on the road.

  She said she had no idea. ‘Until the interviews I did with him last week, I hadn’t spoken to him for years. Certainly not since the New Holland days.’

  I was surprised. ‘I thought you were closer than that.’

  ‘We go back, but it’s not the same thing. He was off touring the world with the band. I was trying to make a go of things with my job. It was good enough for my paper, though. They think I’m in some sort of inner circle, so I got the job.’

  Sounded familiar. ‘Do you think Kane approves of you being involved?’

  ‘I know them. Maybe he trusts me? I’ve not asked him. I don’t really care.’

  I pulled up outside Lorraine Harrison’s house at the bottom of a quiet cul-de-sac. It was on a 1970s housing estate out to the east of the city. The area itself was quiet and nondescript. The house looked like it needed a lick of paint and new windows. I nodded to Julia that I was ready. I made her promise to behave; no recording, no photographs. I’d be doing the talking.

  The inside of the house was similarly dated, only the TV and Nintendo Wii looked like recent purchases. The two women stared at each other.

  ‘Nice to see you, Lorraine’ Julia said. ‘It’s been a long time.’

  Lorraine nodded and told us to sit down before disappearing to put the kettle on.

  ‘You know her?’ I said to Julia. I don’t know why I was surprised. If they were both friends with New Holland, there was every chance they’d have met at some point.

  ‘We go back’ she said.

  I wondered if this was a good idea still. Lorraine came back in with drinks.

  ‘So what brings you here?’ she asked. ‘Your email was very intriguing.’

  ‘I work for New Holland’ I explained, trying to avoid using Kane Major’s name directly, given that I now knew he hadn’t approved of her and Greg’s relationship in the past. ‘I’m sure we can talk to you in confidence, though I suspect you already know. The band are considering making a comeback.’ I paused, tried to make light of the situation. ‘The problem is we’ve mislaid Greg. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about. He’s more than likely gone away somewhere for a few days without telling anyone. You know how he is.’

  ‘Why is she here?’ Lorraine said, pointing at Julia.

  I was about to answer, but Julia took over. ‘I’m documenting the reunion for my newspaper and Joe’s employed by the band’s management to make sure things run smoothly. I’m just helping him out.’

  ‘When did you
last hear from Greg?’ I asked Lorraine.

  ‘He rang me about a week ago’ she said eventually.

  ‘About the reunion?’

  ‘What else?’

  ‘Did he mention anything about going away?’

  ‘No.’ She looked up at me. ‘Why would he?’

  ‘Did he ever give you any reason to think he might be unhappy?’ I asked.

  ‘No.’

  ‘I spoke to Siobhan and she didn’t know much, either.’ I wanted to mention her, see what response it got. Not a flicker. Nothing. I was about to go for it and ask the question we’d been skirting around, but was stopped by a man and a teenager walking into the room. She introduced us to her husband, Jason, and their son, Jay. He looked at us and told Lorraine to go check on their tea. Jason Harrison was a bear of a man. His hands had the ingrained dirtiness manual workers never quite manage to wash away.

  ‘Tough day at work?’ I asked him, hoping to break the ice.

  ‘Could say that.’

  ‘What do you do?’

  ‘I repair classic cars. My mate has his own garage.’

  I nodded and told him why we were speaking to his wife.

  ‘I don’t want her upset.’

  ‘We’re not here to upset her’ I said. ‘We’re looking for Greg Tasker.’

  He thought about it for a moment before answering. ‘She needs to let it go.’

  ‘Let what go?’ Julia asked.

  ‘New Holland, Greg Tasker, the website, everything. Nobody cares anymore. She needs to be concentrating on our son. Not that shit.’

  ‘It’s only a website’ Julia said. ‘A bit of harmless fun.’

  She was baiting him. She must have known that Greg and Lorraine had history. I was beginning to wish I hadn’t brought her along.

  ‘I don’t like the man, alright?’ Harrison said. ‘I’m an ordinary bloke who goes out to work each day. I work hard and I bring home a fair day’s pay, and that’s me. It’s what I do. His fame means nothing to me.’ He pointed at me, angry. ‘If you do find him, you can tell him from me I want him to stay away from me and my family. He doesn’t come near us again. Is that clear?’

  I stood up, ready to leave. We were finished. ‘Crystal clear’ I said.

  You love the stage now. The nerves you suffered from at the early gigs are almost under control. You can channel them positively into your performance. The band has been making strides forward. You now headline gigs around the city and have a demo tape to sell to fans. Things are beginning to move. You meet Kane Major after a gig. His confidence, both in himself and the band, blows you away. You’re in awe of him. You know your judgment is right. You decide you want him to manage the band. Priestley is reluctant, but you convince him. You tell him it’s the way forward. You know it’s a watershed moment for New Holland. He falls in line. Kane puts the money up for a limited edition vinyl single. Your first proper record. When you get a copy, you can’t stop looking at it. It has your name on it. It’s the proudest moment of your life. You tell anyone who’ll listen about the record. Even your parents are proud of you. Things move fast. The record is played on Radio One. The music press love you. Kane brokers a deal for you with a major label. You tell Priestley you were right. You knew it all along. You’re on your way to becoming stars.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  We drove away from Lorraine Harrison’s house. Julia was hungry. We headed for a quiet Italian restaurant I knew off the main drag of Newland Avenue, well away from the loud bars which continued to spring up. It was on Julia’s expenses. It was going to be the only perk I got from this job. We sat down and she ordered drinks. I asked her if she had been friends with Lorraine Harrison.

  ‘Not really.’ She poured herself a glass of wine before offering me one.

  I shook my head and waited for my soft drink. I wasn’t drinking. I didn’t want to leave my car on the street for the night.

  ‘More like acquaintances’ she said. ‘I went to a few of the gigs when the band first started, usually when some friends of mine were also playing. I knew her more by sight at gigs and we got talking once or twice in nightclubs. Sisters together in a male environment, if you like.’

  ‘I got the feeling she didn’t like you very much.’

  Julia sipped at her wine. Asked to see a menu before turning back to me. ‘She never did. We both wrote for a local music magazine, but she never pushed it any further. I became friendly with Greg and the band.’ She shrugged. ‘Maybe she read more into it than she should have.’

  I thought about it. Maybe life had ground Lorraine down, I didn’t know, but she was far from being unattractive. Maybe she’d hoped life would have turned out differently for her. Maybe having such close access to people who had become famous had led her to think about what might have been. I was regretting not asking her more directly about her involvement with Tasker. I picked my drink up and changed the subject. ‘What did you think of her husband?’

  ‘I’ve met nicer people.’

  I couldn’t disagree. Julia ordered our food.

  ‘Who does he think he is’ she said when she returned to our table. ‘Laying the law down to his wife like that? If she wants to run a website, it’s none of his business. I didn’t get a good feeling off him.’

  ‘Me neither.’ I bet being compared to a rock star, whether his wife ever said it or not, wasn’t good for his ego, but it was no excuse.

  ‘Do you think Greg wants this reunion?’ I asked. The pressure was going to build up. I wondered if he’d realised what he’d got himself into and changed his mind.

  ‘I know he struggled with the failure of his solo album. The press were savage towards him around that time. I think a few people in the media had scores to settle with him. The reunion’s certainly a brave move for him.’

  I could understand that. Professional failure cuts deep, especially when you do it in the public eye, but there had to be more to it. ‘Have you had a word with Kane today?’ I asked her.

  ‘Not yet.’

  ‘Best let me talk to him first.’ I wasn’t looking forward to telling him Julia knew Tasker was missing, even if I had been backed into a corner. He wouldn’t see it that way, but if anything, I should ask him for a bonus, as I’d at least stopped the situation escalating. ‘Are you going to file the story?’ I asked her.

  She shook her head. ‘Not yet.’

  I was relieved. The food arrived, saving me from any further discussion.

  ‘You never got around to telling me about yourself’ she said, biting into a slice of pizza.

  ‘Not much to tell.’

  She shook her head. ‘You don’t get away with it that easily.’

  ‘It’s the truth.’

  ‘Let’s start with the basics. Tell me about your wife.’

  I put my pizza down. ‘I don’t have one.’ She hadn’t done that much research into me.

  ‘Girlfriend, then.’

  ‘I don’t have one of them, either.’

  ‘What about Sarah?’

  I hesitated before I answered. ‘She’s a good friend who I work well with.’ There’d almost been a moment, but it hadn’t gone any further. It had been a possibility for a short while, but we were friends first and foremost. Good friends.

  Julia smiled and shook her head. ‘There must be someone.’

  ‘There isn’t.’

  ‘Are you really a monk?’

  ‘Widower.’

  Julia put her food down. ‘I’m sorry.’

  I waved away her apology. ‘You weren’t to know.’ It’d been a couple of years now. I wasn’t ready to buy into the theory that time heals, but day by day it was getting a little easier.

  ‘How did she die?’ She put her head down and apologised. ‘Sorry, it’s the journalist in me. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.’

  ‘House fire. She was babysitting for her sister and didn’t get out in time.’

  ‘That’s awful.’

  I nodded. I was able to talk about it a bit mo
re these days. ‘The police never got to the bottom of it. It was down to me.’ I told her a bit about a previous case and how it had brought me a measure of closure. ‘At least I got the truth in the end.’

  ‘It must have been awful.’

  ‘At least I had Don and Sarah to lean on.’

  ‘How did you meet them?’

  ‘I used to work for a firm of solicitors as a freelance investigator, but I’d been looking for something steadier, something with prospects, and Don had been looking for some help. It worked for both of us. Just good timing.’ I changed the subject. ‘How about you?’ I said. ‘Married?’

  She shook her head. ‘Not even close. I’m your classic case. Career first and never met the right man. You know the drill.’

  ‘Boyfriend?’

  ‘Nothing serious. Work doesn’t leave much time for anything else.’

  ‘There must have been someone?’

  She picked her pizza back up. ‘Not really. There was a guy in Hull, but I was too young and stupid. I needed to get away from him because he wasn’t good news. There’s been a few in London, but in the main, they were arseholes.’

  I smiled. ‘What about family? Are they still in Hull?’

  ‘None worth coming back for.’

  It explained why the change in the city fascinated her. She didn’t have a reason to visit regularly. My mobile vibrated in my pocket. It was Kane Major. I excused myself and took the call. He wanted me to go with him to Tasker’s parent’s house. They wanted to speak to me.

  I went back inside. ‘I’ve got to go’ I said to Julia. I picked up a slice of pizza. Food on the move. ‘I’ll call you later.’

  The Taskers lived in a modest semi-detached house, out in the suburbs to the west of the city. Only a short distance away from Siobhan’s boutique. The area was convenient for quick access to the M62 and the bigger Yorkshire cities of Leeds and Sheffield. There was a social pecking order - east to west Hull and then out to the outlying villages. They’d nearly made it. I lived just outside of the city centre, which put me in no man’s land. On the way there, Major had told me Keith Tasker was mid-management at Smith and Nephews, one of Hull’s most prestigious employers. My dad had opened a pub like many ex-sportsmen, but Keith Tasker had taken a different and more prosperous route. His wife, Kath, had stayed at home once Greg had been born.