“Yeah.” I sigh. “That’s going to be rough. She’ll never leave this place or her father. I wouldn’t ask her to either. Leaving her here is going to be one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I don’t know how Noel and Riff do it.”

“They’ll be glad to hear that you’re finally sympathetic to them needing so much time off,” Tyke teases.

I rub my forehead. “I gave them a lot of shit for getting themselves tied down once it started affecting the band’s schedule. It seemed insensitive to us because we still lived and breathed just the band.”

“And now…” he prods.

“Now I get it. I don’t want to leave Holly here. Leaving her will kill me,” I admit.

“You love her,” his voice is as sure as the words he speaks. He’s always known me better than anyone else.

“I do.” I don’t even hesitate when I answer because I know I’ve never said anything truer in my life.

Tyke nods. “It seems that we’re all changing, going in different directions in life. I suspected this would happen one day. I just never imagined it would happen while we’re still on top.”

I furrow my brow. “What are you talking about? Short vacations don’t mean the band is breaking up. You need to get that thought out of your head. We’re all finding something else to love other than just the band and music. Don’t you see that we’re all finally starting to live our lives? No one is calling it quits.”

I don’t understand his line of thinking. My brother may be great at seeing the bigger picture in most things, but he’s way off base on this one. No way will Black Falcon ever break up. That’s just fucking insane.

Tyke gives me a sad smile. “I hope you’re right, baby brother.” He claps me on the back. “Come on. Give me the grand tour of your new business.”

We spend the next couple of hours walking the dirt track, checking out all the rabbit hills, doubles and tabletop jumps. This place is really coming together. When you see it from this perspective, it really is amazing how much easier and quicker money makes things. Everything is newly painted and the porch on Holly and Bill’s house is finally complete, along with the office being sandblasted. I even have a few computer nerds on the property hooking up new electronic equipment all over the place.

Shit is really coming together. Not only here at Mountain Time, but with Bill and Holly as well. The initial shock of Bill’s diagnosis was hard for Holly, and I’m not sure she’s quite over it yet, but I think once she gets involved in his medical care that will help. Holly is a fixer, so she’ll want to know all the details about her father’s condition and ways she can help ease his discomfort.

She’s never once mentioned her mother to me again. I think there are some things a person just can’t forgive. Maybe with time and a lot of soul-searching she’ll figure out that situation on her own, but I’m not going to push her. It’s her choice if she wants to reconcile with her mother. I don’t know if I ever would if I were in her position.

I guess only time will tell.

As we’re walking back toward the office, Tyke asks, “What’s going on with the beats for the new tracks? Have you worked on them at all?”

I shove my hands into my pockets. “I’ve thought about a few of the songs, but I have to be honest, man, my mind has been on other things lately.”

“Things as in Holly,” he says filling in the blanks. “I suppose I should’ve accepted that. When we talked about her on the phone, I figured she was your main priority at the moment. Riff and Noel haven’t worked on anything either.”

The disgruntled tone in his voice doesn’t go unnoticed. “Are you pissed? We still have loads of time. You know shit will come together and flow once we’re in the studio. Don’t sweat it.”

“That’s the problem, Trip. I’m the only one of us that does sweat it. I write the songs and ninety percent of the time, I’m the one who develops the melody too. It wasn’t always like that. I remember a time when all of you wanted to chip in and put in the work to make the album kick ass.” He scrubs his hand down his face.

I stop dead in my tracks and turn towards him. “Is that why you’re really here so early—to lecture me about not working hard enough on the album?”

“That’s part of the reason.”

I flinch and let out an exasperated laugh. “You’ve got to be joking. Have you lectured the other two about this, or are you only going to single me out as usual.”

“No, I plan on telling them too,” Tyke answers.

“Good. If I’m going to get a talking to, then they should to. You should’ve been elected band leader. God knows Noel doesn’t do much with his power except exploit it for his own personal gain.”

He shakes his head. “No. I’m responsible for enough as it is and quite frankly, I’m tired of it.”

Alarms go off in my brain. Fuck. I don’t like where this conversation is leading. “What do you mean, Tyke? What are you not telling me?”

Tyke takes a deep breath and pinches the bridge of his nose. “I’m thinking of leaving the band.”

“WHAT?!” My heart bangs against my ribs. I can’t believe what I’m fucking hearing. “What the fuck do you mean? Wha—I don’t…I mean…Damn it! Why?”

He frowns. “I’m ready to branch out and do my own thing for a while. I want to be able to perform the music that I write, the exact way I envision it in my mind.”