Every Rose Has Its Thorns

Chapter 5

        Jo didn't sleep well for the rest of the week. She continued getting texts from the same Unknown number but Jo chose to ignore them, dealing with her anxiety the only way she knew how; by throwing herself into her music. She wasn't going to let this creep blow her chance of having her music played in the symphony's spring program. When she arrived at the café Friday morning, Jen greeted her with her coffee and a worried expression. 

        "This week is really doing a number on you, huh hun? What's going on, your music never gets you this stressed." Jen moved from behind the counter to get a better look at Jo. Her eye bags were dark and pronounced and she couldn't stop yawning. 

        "It's nothing. Don't worry about me," Jo smiled at her. She didn't know why she was keeping the frightening messages to herself. Steve hadn't called her back and though the notes scared her, whoever this man was hadn't broken into her apartment again. She decided it was best to just ignore it.

        "Your big meeting is today right? How are you feeling?" 

        Jo perked up a bit. Though the stress of this week had taken its toll, she had never felt more focused on her creative work. "I finally figured out that part in the second movement. I even got a few people in the symphony to play during my meeting. I thought a live performance would be better than a tape. I don't want to be over confident but it's some of the best work I've ever done," Jo smiled. 

        "Oh honey, that's wonderful! We have to celebrate tonight!" Jo laughed at Jen's eager expression. 

        "Let's not get ahead of ourselves Jen. I'm still really young. This meeting is a big deal but it in no way means my music will be selected for the spring program. I'll be lucky to get some feedback from this guy."

        "Fine, fine, at least promise to come straight here after? Tell me how it went?"

        "I will," Jo smiled. She thanked Jen again for her coffee and left for the biggest meeting of her young career, thinking of nothing but her music.

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Jo walked into the symphony hall. A small cohort of orchestra members had arrived early as agreed to play her piece for the director.  They each sat in their section, tuning their instruments. Jo greeted them all with a smile and a quick thank you before rushing to the piano to prepare herself. She set up her sheet music and moved her hands over the keys, playing a few scales to warm up. Immediately she felt more at ease than she had all week. 

        A few minutes later, Jo saw the director walk into the music hall and she rose to greet him. 

        "Thank you again for agreeing to listen to my music, sir. It means the world." Jo extended her hand to the director. He was in his mid-thirties - a serious man whose passion for music equalled Jo's. It was the reason they had developed such a good working relationship.

        "I've told you, call me Al," he said with good humor. He shook her hand politely before taking a seat in the middle of the orchestra section. "I look forward to hearing what you've prepared. Shall we get to it?" 

        Jo nodded, turning her attention back to the stage. The conductor had arrived and was speaking quietly with the small ensemble Jo assembled for the occasion. She walked up to him to give him her final notes, before sitting down at the piano, ready to give the performance of a lifetime. 

        The conductor raised his baton and silence descended over the music hall. Jo's fingers laid poised over the keys as she waited for the down stroke. At his signal, music swelled from all around her as her piece began. The notes she had practiced a thousand times came pouring out of her, weaving in and out of the ensemble in a grand crescendo, an homage to all the music that had gotten Jo through even the darkest days. She lost herself in the sound as it wrapped itself around her and filled the hall. Whether or not her music was accepted into the spring program, this moment was all Jo could ever ask for - hearing her music fill the great hall and sweep her away.

        When the piece ended, Jo sat in silence staring at the keys, unable to believe what she had produced. She looked up when she heard applause. Al was standing from his seat, staring right at her as he clapped. The conductor and her colleagues were all turned towards her as well, big smiles on their faces as they joined in the applause.

        Jo blushed furiously, looking out over the music hall, the wash of her music still pouring over her. She stopped when her eyes settled on a dark figure sitting in the back of the hall, obscured by the shadows. She could tell they were clapping as well but she couldn't make out who it was. Before she could investigate any further, Al had climbed onto the stage to join her at the piano. 

        "Brilliant, Jo. I'm blown away." Al beamed before her, his hands on his hips as he shook his head in disbelief. "I knew it would be good. You work too hard and care too much for it not to be good. But wow."

        "You really mean it?" Jo asked, still too afraid of failure to process what he was saying. 

        "Mean it? Jo you have a gift. Thank you for sharing it with me, with us," he turned gesturing to her peers who still watched her with smiles on their faces. 

        "Thank you, sir...I mean Al. Thank you. I...is there any way you'd consider..." Jo stumbled over her words, too afraid to ask about the spring program. 

        "It's in the Spring Program, no question. If you can send me the music by end of day, I'll have copies made and distributed to the principal orchestra right away."

        Jo couldn't believe her ears. She sat on the piano bench stunned. "I...thank you Al. I'll do that." 

        Al shook her hand one more time before moving off stage. All at once members of the ensemble gathered around her congratulating her on the achievement. Jo was still too stunned to say anything but she thanked each and every one of them for agreeing to play for her today, thanking the conductor as well for showing up on his day off.  

        When the commotion settled down, Jo's gaze moved back out over the hall, looking for the dark figure she had seen before, but he had disappeared. The hall was empty and Jo, shaking it off, smiled in pure joy at her achievement. 

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        "To Jo, San Francisco's very own Mozart!"

        "To Jo!" Glasses clinked as Jen lead the café in a toast. Jo sat on the counter, glaring at Jen for making such a scene. As promised she had rushed to the café to share her news right away. To her surprise, her best friend Michelle was waiting there with bottles of champagne and a cake. 

        Jo took a sip of her champagne, the bubbles tickling her throat and making her giggle. She was slightly tipsy, the bubbles from the champagne going straight to her head, but she was far too happy to care. She had done it. All that hard work had paid off. 

        Michelle came over and draped an arm across her shoulder. "You look like s**t, you know." Michelle drank straight from a champagne bottle and Jo took it out of her hands. 

        "Gee, thanks." She took a swig and looked around the café. The place buzzed with excitement as every patron indulged in some champagne poured into whatever they could find from water glasses to coffee mugs and some cheap plastic champagne flutes Jen had managed to dig up from the back. As Michelle moved across the room to chat with Jen, Jo felt her phone buzz. With the gathering sense of dread each new message now brought, Jo put down the bottle and unlocked her phone.

From: Unknown

Congratulations mio amore. Watching you play made my heart swell with pride.

       Jo's mind immediately went to the dark figure sitting in the back of the hall, but instead of fear she felt her anger building. This man was nothing but an anonymous figure, a shadow in the back of the room. How dare he show up at her place of work and listen to her play as though he had any right to be a part of her life. Jo angrily powered down her phone, refusing to let whoever this person was rain on her parade any longer. She refused to be afraid anymore. 

        With her phone off and away, Jo looked across the café at her friends. Michelle and Jen chatted happily with each other, the patrons socialized amongst themselves, happy for the surprise of free champagne and cake. Jo couldn't help the pang of sadness that Steve and Lauren couldn't be there to celebrate with her - that she couldn't even call to tell them the news. She hadn't expected to hear from them at all during their two week trip, but with everything going on, Jo couldn't help but worry. In another week her brother would be home and life would go back to normal again. 

        Jo jumped off the counter, losing her balance a bit as the effects of the champagne rushed to her head. It had grown dark outside and she wanted nothing more than to take a relaxing soak in the tub and curl up under her covers to sleep. After saying goodbye to Michelle and Jen, she wandered outside to begin the walk home. 

        The streets were eerily quiet. Though Jo lived only a few minutes away, she suddenly felt very exposed. It was unusual to experience such quiet in the city, no matter what time of night it was.

        As Jo turned the corner onto her street she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. The distinct sound of footsteps echoed behind her. She picked up the pace, jumbling through her purse for her keys but the champagne made her moves sluggish and try as she might to hurry through the street, she felt as though her limbs were lagging just one step behind her. 

        The feet behind her picked up their pace as well and panic began to swell in Jo's chest. She broke out into a run, gripping her keys tightly in her hand but just as she reached the door to her building, two strong arms lifted her bodily from the ground. 

        Jo made to scream but a hand swallowed her cries, pulling her head tightly against her assailant's shoulder. She felt a sharp pinch in her neck and her head began to swim, her limbs giving up their fight, her screams dying in her throat.

        Tears streamed down her face as her world began to tilt into darkness. The arms that held her swept her body up into their chest and an almost tender hand wiped her tears. Just before she slipped under, a deep voice hummed in her ear, "Sleep well, mio amore."