writing.
This fresh set of particulars says a distraught Colin Elliot—named as Vaughn’s protégé, colleague, and close friend—is secluded at his country estate, along with Laurel Chandler, who they’ve named as his fiancée after a whirlwind courtship of less than two weeks. This reading gets the most going over because there’s pleasure in knowing the rock star is suffering over the death of a buddy and probable partner in crime. And there’s heartening in knowing for a fact that hurry-up courtships never amount to much—that sooner or later the lawyerwoman will return to New Jersey, alone, and with her throat exposed.
But there’s not enough pleasure and heartening in the world to make up for having to spare both Elliot and Chandler the blade last Saturday. Or for evidently failing with the last-ditch attempt to cause trouble for Elliot by planting dope in his ditty bag when it was known he’d be boarding an overseas airplane where they’re supposed to check for things like that.
Four whole days after the planting, none of the regular news outlets are reporting anything about a Colin Elliot arrest for possession. It’s time to accept that rock stars probably bribe their way through border crossings as a regular thing.
He finishes the sandwich, sets aside his writing and selects one of today’s newspapers he hasn’t yet studied. The story’s still front page, but down toward the bottom.
LONDON (Reuters) — Not since Elvis Presley’s untimely demise a decade ago has a cause of death been as hotly debated as that of Rayce Vaughn, preeminent British rock star who died Monday, April 13, at his lavish townhouse in the Holland Park district of London. Vaughn was found by household staff and pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy performed later that day identified a brain hemorrhage as the ultimate cause of death. Informed sources report that the hemorrhage was, in all probability, induced by the massive ingestion of a controlled substance said to be cocaine of an unusually potent quality .
Because Vaughn had a long history of self-medication and a more recent history of self-imposed abstinence, speculation is running high that his death may not have been accidental. However, the naysayers aver that Vaughn — spectacularly launched on the comeback trail after last Friday’s stunner of a concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden, with a recording of that event expected to ship platinum, and a sold-out twenty-three date European tour to follow—had everything in the world to live for. Vaughn’s fellow passengers on a charter flight to London Saturday night concur, especially longtime friend and collaborator, Colin Elliot—himself on the comeback trail after surviving a devastating 1984 car crash—who strongly emphasized in a prepared statement that Vaughn displayed typical high spirits throughout the flight. A coroner’s jury may have to decide the issue .
Vaughn, age 55, is survived by seven children, three ex-wives, and two sisters. According to his manager, David Sebastian of the Manhattan law firm Clark, Sebastian & Associates, a private funeral will be held at an undisclosed time and place .
Nothing fresh to work with there, so Hoop moves to the wardrobe and retrieves the gym bag containing the few items not stored with Audrey. He works the combination lock and the zipper and takes out the rock star’s pocket photo album, Cliff Grant’s rotary card file, Gibby Lester’s copybooks, and the lawyerwoman’s little diary. The handful of splinters taken from the lawyerwoman’s back stairs, he doesn’t bother with. The rest he lines up on the bed, brings a chair over to the foot of the bed, and sits himself down with every intention of trancing on these objects till one or all of them tell him what to do next.
TEN
Early morning, April 17, 1987
“Oh . . . look.” Laurel twists in her seat to watch the scene he’s monitoring in the rearview mirror—Anthony peering through the bars of
This fresh set of particulars says a distraught Colin Elliot—named as Vaughn’s protégé, colleague, and close friend—is secluded at his country estate, along with Laurel Chandler, who they’ve named as his fiancée after a whirlwind courtship of less than two weeks. This reading gets the most going over because there’s pleasure in knowing the rock star is suffering over the death of a buddy and probable partner in crime. And there’s heartening in knowing for a fact that hurry-up courtships never amount to much—that sooner or later the lawyerwoman will return to New Jersey, alone, and with her throat exposed.
But there’s not enough pleasure and heartening in the world to make up for having to spare both Elliot and Chandler the blade last Saturday. Or for evidently failing with the last-ditch attempt to cause trouble for Elliot by planting dope in his ditty bag when it was known he’d be boarding an overseas airplane where they’re supposed to check for things like that.
Four whole days after the planting, none of the regular news outlets are reporting anything about a Colin Elliot arrest for possession. It’s time to accept that rock stars probably bribe their way through border crossings as a regular thing.
He finishes the sandwich, sets aside his writing and selects one of today’s newspapers he hasn’t yet studied. The story’s still front page, but down toward the bottom.
LONDON (Reuters) — Not since Elvis Presley’s untimely demise a decade ago has a cause of death been as hotly debated as that of Rayce Vaughn, preeminent British rock star who died Monday, April 13, at his lavish townhouse in the Holland Park district of London. Vaughn was found by household staff and pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy performed later that day identified a brain hemorrhage as the ultimate cause of death. Informed sources report that the hemorrhage was, in all probability, induced by the massive ingestion of a controlled substance said to be cocaine of an unusually potent quality .
Because Vaughn had a long history of self-medication and a more recent history of self-imposed abstinence, speculation is running high that his death may not have been accidental. However, the naysayers aver that Vaughn — spectacularly launched on the comeback trail after last Friday’s stunner of a concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden, with a recording of that event expected to ship platinum, and a sold-out twenty-three date European tour to follow—had everything in the world to live for. Vaughn’s fellow passengers on a charter flight to London Saturday night concur, especially longtime friend and collaborator, Colin Elliot—himself on the comeback trail after surviving a devastating 1984 car crash—who strongly emphasized in a prepared statement that Vaughn displayed typical high spirits throughout the flight. A coroner’s jury may have to decide the issue .
Vaughn, age 55, is survived by seven children, three ex-wives, and two sisters. According to his manager, David Sebastian of the Manhattan law firm Clark, Sebastian & Associates, a private funeral will be held at an undisclosed time and place .
Nothing fresh to work with there, so Hoop moves to the wardrobe and retrieves the gym bag containing the few items not stored with Audrey. He works the combination lock and the zipper and takes out the rock star’s pocket photo album, Cliff Grant’s rotary card file, Gibby Lester’s copybooks, and the lawyerwoman’s little diary. The handful of splinters taken from the lawyerwoman’s back stairs, he doesn’t bother with. The rest he lines up on the bed, brings a chair over to the foot of the bed, and sits himself down with every intention of trancing on these objects till one or all of them tell him what to do next.
TEN
Early morning, April 17, 1987
“Oh . . . look.” Laurel twists in her seat to watch the scene he’s monitoring in the rearview mirror—Anthony peering through the bars of
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