Author's Note: Hey, everyone! This chapter took me a little while to work out what I wanted to work out. Like the previous chapter, this one has quite a bit of length. Not quite as long as the previous chapter, but certainly quite long. But I think it also contains some great dialogue, and a little bit of suspense—particularly at the end. For those who have been with me so far, I ask you to please continue to read, and to continue to give me some critical reviews.

We Will Burn the Sky

Chapter IX

Much of Dark Stairway's creativity came in the homes of each particular member of the group. However, when it came time to 'create something official'—such as a new album—the band often met at Andrew's home. Andrew had a recording studio in his basement.

"Well," began Chris, "it looks like we worked out the 'bugs' in this song, so what should we call it?"

On Chris's question, the rest of Dark Stairway's members turned to Dil.

Dil laughed. "Ah, yes, everyone turns to me."

"That's because you're the person, who usually comes up with the song titles," said Andrew.

"Plus, you did write most of the lyrics," added Johnny.

Dil paused, and wrote what the song title would be on a piece of paper. Then he passed that piece of paper to Andrew.

"'A New Beginning'?" said Andrew, before he passed the piece of paper on to the other members of the band.

Dil nodded. "The lyrics that I wrote were in reference to Dezirae."

The name 'Dezirae' made the other members of Dark Stairway nervous. They feared that Dil was going to quickly change moods. Yet Dil's mood remained the same.

Because Dil's mood did not change, a curious Andrew asked, "What do you mean?"

"I've come to accept the fact that Dezirae's gone. I have to move on. The lyrics that I wrote reflected on that fact."

The other members of Dark Stairway nodded.

"I'm sure it's hard for you," said Andrew.

Dil nodded. "It is, but I've come to accept it."

Andrew returned the nod. "Well now, why don't we discuss our first order of business?"

"Which is?" said James.

"Which is the show that we're going to play next month," responded Andrew. "Dil has arranged for us to play at The Friendly Tap."

"How did you pull that one off, Dil?" asked Johnny.

Dil smiled. "New ownership."

"But I thought we could do something special," continued Andrew.

"Such as?" said Chris.

"Such as having a local band opening for us."

"Anyone you have in mind?" asked Dil.

Andrew nodded. "Yes, there is a band called Green-Eyed that I happened to hear one night at The Nightlife. They are playing at The Nightlife this Friday. I thought that it might be interesting, if we all arrived at separate times, and observed them. And if we think that they're good enough, then we'll let them open for us at The Friendly Tap."

Johnny nodded. "That sounds reasonable enough."

"I thought so too, so with that being said, I think we should turn to our second order of business, which is to discuss what song we should cover for Volume III? What does everybody suggest? For myself, I would like to cover Iron Maiden's 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner'."

"Damn, that would be a long cover," said Chris. "For myself, I'd like to cover Led Zeppelin's 'Dazed and Confused'. I love the bass on that song."

"You may love John Paul Jones's bass," began Johnny, "but I love Cozy Powell's drums. Therefore, I suggest Rainbow's 'Stargazer'."

James chuckled. "Well, since we're picking instruments, my choice is Grave Digger's 'Yesterday'."

Dil, who had yet to give his choice, smirked. "Well, I'm not going to choose anything based on a particular instrument—be it vocals or whatnot. But my choice is Iced Earth's 'The Phantom Opera Ghost'."

Dil's suggested led to some mumbling among his fellow bandmates. His choice was not one they were expecting.

"That's a duet song," said Johnny. "To cover that song, we'd have to find a female singer to sing Christine's part."

Dil nodded. "Yes, I know that."

"And do you know a female singer that can sing Christine's part?" asked Chris.

"Yes," replied Dil.

"And who would that be?" asked Andrew.

"Lil. Lil DeVille."

The other members of Dark Stairway chuckled.

"What makes you think that she'd be good for the part?" asked James.

"I heard her sing once. She was in tune."

"What did she sing?" asked Andrew.

"Some song from Tom Petty, I don't remember which one."

"Our music is different from Tom Petty's," said Chris.

Dil chuckled. "Yes, Chris, I know that. I doubt that the girl, who sang on the Iced Earth album with Matt Barlow, was a metal fan either, but she obviously did okay."

"Can she read music?" asked Johnny.

"I don't know, but that's not really a big deal. So long as she can hit the notes and remain in tune."

Andrew played a quick riff on his guitar. "I don't know, if it's a good idea, Dil. Perhaps we could ask that other childhood friend of yours, Susie, to play the role?"

"The pop singer?" said Chris.

"She is a professional singer," added Johnny.

"Yes, she is," said Dil. "Of course, I think Susie's schedule is slightly booked up for a while, so it would take a long time to get her to come in and sing the role—assuming that she would do so. Also, going after another professional singer would cost us a lot of money. With Lil, we can pay her a session's musician role—assuming that she works out okay for us."

The other band members seemed to be in agreement with Dil's fiscal idea.

"Why don't we give it a shot?" said James. "If it doesn't work out, we can always do something different."

Andrew, Johnny, and Chris nodded in agreement.

Dil smiled. "I'll call Lil on this sometime later. Besides, I told her that I was going to find something for us to do this weekend."

"You've been seeing her?" asked Andrew.

"Eh, sort of," Dil replied with a smirk.

"Now I see why you want her to sing with you," Andrew said with a grin.

Dil laughed. "No, she actually is quite good."

Andrew smiled. "Well, I guess all of us will find out about that soon." But in his thoughts, Andrew said, "I guess he must really be over Dezirae. Otherwise, there is no way that Dil would bother seeing anybody."


During Lil's final semester of graduate school, she began keeping a journal, and she had more or less been faithful to it. When she returned home on Tuesday, Lil wrote her latest entry:

April 12, 2016:

I've been a little tardy with my entries. I haven't written one since Friday. We had some scattered showers today, which was nice. I have to admit that I always like how it feels, after it rains in this town.

I suppose my biggest news to report is Dil. I'm about two years older than he is, and yet, I'm attracted to him. In high school, such things are often 'taboo', but I'm no longer in high school. However, I'm not quite sure, when this attraction began. I could always spot Dil in high school—with his long red hair and metal shirts. Yet, I wasn't attracted to him. I always seemed to like guys with short hair, and I'm not really a fan of heavy metal music. Yet, that night I saw Dil perform, back in October 2012, I have to admit that I found his hair attractive—perhaps that was when it came? I remember Dil tossing his hair, and him beaming at the crowd. He was just such a presence on stage. I have heard Dil say many times that a band is a band, and one person is only as good as the people he or she plays with. But what I saw that night showed me that Dark Stairway is Dil Pickles. Of course, the night in question was also the night Dil fell in love with Dezirae, and I pretty much just put my feelings away, but fate has changed things. Dezirae is gone now, and the attraction that I felt for Dil on that night has returned.

In my last entry, I mentioned how Dil and I were going to meet at The Friendly Tap on Saturday. I mentioned how Dil joked that he would show up wearing his robe. He wasn't joking—he wore it! It was the same robe that he wore long ago, when I first saw him perform. And when he wrapped his arms around me, my heart skipped a few beats. It was a fun day. Dil is just such a fun loving guy that I am glad to see back in him. He often went through periods of depression after Dezirae's death, and now the Dil that I remembered from my teenage years has returned. I had so much fun with him that when he leaned in and kissed me, when we were leaving The Friendly Tap, I didn't balk at all. It was the natural thing to do. And I must say, he's a damn good kisser!

As Lil's journal entry came to an end, her cellphone rang. On her Caller ID was Dil's number. "Hi, Dil!"

"Hey, Lil! I hope I didn't catch you at a bad time."

"No, not at all, what's going on?"

"A couple of things actually. First, what are you doing this Friday evening?"

"To the best of my knowledge, nothing. Why?"

"How would you like to come to The Nightlife with me? There's a band that Andrew wants me to see."

"Sure, I'll go with you. What time?"

"The band starts at nine, but I was thinking that we arrive at the club shortly after that."

"Okay, that sounds good."

Dil nodded. "Great, now let me turn to the second thing that I wanted to talk to you about."

"What's that?"

"Well, as you know, we've been working on a new studio album…"

"Dark Stairway Volume III," interjected Lil.

Dil smiled. "It worked for Zeppelin."

Lil chuckled. "Yes, I know about it. So what's going on?"

"Well, I was wondering…"

Dil's sentence was cut short, but an outside voice that said, "Daddy! Daddy!"

"Just a minute, baby," Dil attempted to say away from the receiver, while he ran some fingers through Blaer's hair.

Lil, of course, overheard Dil's message to his daughter and began giggling. "I take it Miss Blaer's around?"

Dil smiled. "Yeah, she's pulling on my jeans right now."

"Care if I talk to her?"

"Sure, you can talk to her, so long as I put this thing on speakerphone."

"Go right ahead."

Dil sat on the floor, and placed Blaer on his lap. With his daughter secure, Dil placed his cellphone on the floor, and turned on its speakerphone. "Are you present and accounted for, Lil?"

Lil chuckled. "Yes, Dil, I am."

Dil smiled. "Blaer, meet Lil. Lil meet Blaer."

"Hewwo," said Blaer.

Again, Lil chuckled. "Hi, Blaer, we've met many times before at the Java Lava, when your Grandma Didi and Grandpa Pangborn brings you in."

Blaer displayed a look that reflected 'deep thought'.

Dil smiled. "She's thinking."

Lil laughed.

Dil chuckled. "That's Aunt Betty's daughter, Blaer. We also saw her at Slosh Mountain the other day."

"I ran through the sprinklers with you, Blaer. Remember?"

Blaer beamed and exclaimed, "Lil!"

Dil and Lil laughed.

"That's right," said Lil. "You've got it! So what are you doing right now, Blaer?"

"I want my daddy to pay wit me."

Lil chuckled. "Did you hear that, 'Dad'?"

Dil smirked. "I heard it." Dil turned to his daughter and added, "I'll tell you what, my little strawberry haired girl, if you take off to your room, I will be there, as soon as I get done talking with Lil, and then we can play, okay?"

"'Kay," replied Blaer.

Dil smiled. "That's a good girl. Would you say bye to Lil, before you go?"

"Bye, Lil."

Lil smiled. "Bye, Blaer."

Dil gave Blaer a kiss on her cheek, and a light pat on her bottom to send her on her way. Once Blaer left the room, Dil turned the speakerphone off on his cellphone. "Still there, Lil?"

"Yes."

"Good. We're 'speakerphone less'."

Lil giggled. "You won't have long to talk. Blaer's waiting for you."

Dil smirked. "I know she is. Anyway, back to the topic of our new studio album. I was wondering, if you would like to be part of it?"

"What do you mean?"

"As you know, we always do one cover song on our albums, correct?"

"Yes."

"Well, the song I suggested, and the one the band seems to be okay with, is a duet?"

"A duet?"

"Yeah, a duet. In other words, Lil, would you like to sing with me?"

Lil was stunned. "Dil, I'm flattered, but I'm not a metal singer; I'm not even a major metal fan. I don't know, if I…"

"Can do it?" interjected Dil.

"Yeah," nodded Lil.

Dil smiled. "Well, let me describe it this way. I know that you can sing a tune. I don't know, if you can read music or not, but that's not really a big deal for what we're doing. So long as you can hit the notes, and you're timing's right, that's all that matters. You also don't need to be a 'heavy metal singer'. Finally, since it's a studio piece, we'll dub it, and we'll give you some money for being a session musician—assuming that it works out."

"You mean I'll get paid for this?!"

Dil chuckled. "Yes, assuming that we're able to work with you. We're not asking you to do this for free."

"All right then, I'll give this a shot. Where do I need to go, and when would you like me to come by?"

"Do you know where Andrew's place is?"

"Andrew?"

"Our guitarist."

"Oh, yeah, him—no, I don't know where he lives."

"Well, I'll text you the directions. He has a studio in his basement."

"Okay."

"You get off from work tomorrow at five, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, come in sometime after that time. And if you have problems finding Andrew's place, make sure to call me."

"Okay, will do. What song is it that I'm going to sing with you?"

"Iced Earth's 'The Phantom Opera Ghost'."

"Okay, I'll listen to some of it on YouTube to get a feel for it."

Dil nodded. "That's okay, Lil, but please remember that it doesn't have to sound exactly like the original. Make sure to sing it 'your way'—we're kind of putting our own 'spin' on it per say."

"Okay."

Lil was prepared to ask something else, until she heard the word 'Daddy' interjected by Blaer in the background. Lil giggled. "Looks like Blaer is calling you."

Dil smiled. "Yeah, she is. I'd better go. Text me later, Lil."


The following day after work, Lil arrived at Andrew's home without any trouble-thanks to the great directions Dil gave her. Dil was outside waiting to greet her, when she drove up.

"Hey, there!" Dil said, as Lil exited her car. "It's my duet girl."

Lil smiled, while Dil embraced her. The two held hands briefly and kissed.

Lil maintained her smile. "Have you guys been here for a while?"

"Since noon."

"Who's watching Blaer today?"

"Mom and Dad—she's spending the night with them."

"I'm sure they enjoy having her around."

"They always seem to—especially Mom. I often think that Mom wished that I was born a girl, but since I wasn't, I had to have a girl in order to 'make up for it.'"

Lil chuckled.

And Dil smiled. "Anyway, are you ready to sing?"

"Yeah."

"Well, good let's get started."

Dil took Lil inside the home, and introduced her to the members of Dark Stairway. She had met all of them before, of course, but Dil wanted to reacquaint her with his bandmates. Once the greetings were made, the band got down to business.

The members of Dark Stairway decided that the first day with Lil would be kind of a 'rehearsal'—a rehearsal which produced some positive results. Lil may not have been a professional singer, but she certainly was able to hit the notes, and she was eventually able to get her timing right with the music. After three hours of playing through 'The Phantom Opera Ghost', the band decided that tomorrow they would finish the cover with Lil, and she would receive her fee as a session musician.


The following day, the members of Dark Stairway and Lil met once again in Andrew's studio. They did one practice run of 'The Phantom Opera Ghost', before they decided to record the real thing. This time, Lil was with the band for approximately an hour, before Dark Stairway decided that they had a good finished product.

With the song completed, Dark Stairway decided to take a break. Lil decided that it was time for her to go, and Dil followed her to her car.

"That was a lot of fun, Dil," Lil said with a smile, while she leaned against her car. "I really enjoyed singing with you." Lil smirked, before she sang some of the words from 'The Phantom Opera Ghost': "'I feel you. From beyond the walls, you speak to me.'"

Dil chuckled, before he started to sing his portion of the song: "'Christine, my love! Paris now will worship you. You will star soon. I'll kill to make it sure for you.'"

The two laughed, as Dil leaned against Lil's car.

Lil smiled, and inched herself a little closer to Dil. "So what are your plans for the rest of the evening?"

"I'll probably work for another hour or so with the band. Then I need to stop by the Pangborns, and pick up Blaer."

"You're not having Blaer spend the night at the Pangborns?"

Dil shook his head. "No, she spent last night with Mom and Dad. Tonight she gets to spend it with her daddy. Of course, tomorrow, she's going to spend the night with the Pangborns."

Lil smiled, and held Dil's hand.

Dil returned the smile.

"You haven't had much time to spend around Blaer, have you?" asked Lil.

Dil sighed. "No, I haven't, and it's one of the things that I hate. But the truth of the matter is I can't have Blaer around, while I'm trying to compose."

"Why not?"

"She's a very active toddler, and her activity often effects my concentration." Dil sighed. "But at least she enjoys her time with her grandparents or being around Kirk, and I take comfort in that."

Lil giggled. "I just thought of something."

"What?"

"We've known each other, since we were little kids, right?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, so will, I'm certain, Blaer and Kirk. Can you see them doing what we're doing fifteen years from now?"

Dil smirked. "Let's just say that the 'Heavy Metal King David' will morph into the 'Heavy Metal Keep Away from My Daughter King David'."

"You're a good dad, Dil," Lil said with a smile, before she kissed Dil's cheek.

Dil smiled, and pulled Lil close. "Thanks. Sometimes I need to hear that."

"You want to hear something else too?"

"What's that?"

"You're a damn good kisser as well."

Dil grinned. "Thanks, might I give you one of those kisses?"

Lil returned the grin. "You may."

Dil and Lil engaged in a brief round of tongue wrestling. When it concluded, Lil said, "Well, I guess I should get going, so you can get back to working on your album. But before I go, I have another question for you."

"What's that?"

"I'm curious, do you have any idea how much money I'll receive for my 'vocal talents'?"

Dil smiled. "I don't know exactly. I'd say around a thousand—maybe a little bit more."

Lil gasped. "Really?!"

Dil nodded. "It's amazing how much money can be made in this industry, if one can make it…and it's also amazing how much money one can be screwed out of too. Thankfully, I haven't been screwed over…not yet, anyway."

Lil smiled. "Well, I haven't been 'screwed over' yet. Of course, if I am going to get 'screwed over', I'd like to be kissed first."

Dil chuckled, and he and Lil engaged in another round of tongue wrestling. This time, however, Dil's hands began to feel around Lil's posterior. "She looks to be wearing a thong," thought Dil. "She definitely isn't wearing much. Damn! I'd like to have her on my couch right now, and find out just how much she does, or does not, have on underneath."


In the evening, Dil sat in the rocking chair in Blaer's nursery with his daughter on his lap. Dil rocked Blaer, and sang to her, before he finally placed her in the crib.

After Dil turned out the lights to the nursery, and partially closed the door, his cellphone rang. Dil checked the Caller ID. The number belonged to Lil.

"Hey, Lil."

"Hi, Dil, are you busy?"

"No, not really—I just finished putting the baby to bed."

"Care if I came over?"

"Sure, you can come over."

"Thanks, I'll be there in a minute."

As Dil closed his cellphone, he heard a knock on his front door. "That's odd," thought Dil. "That certainly can't be Lil."

Yet, when Dil opened his front door there, indeed, stood Lil. She was dressed as Dil had seen her earlier—a red blouse and black skirt.

"Lil!" said a surprised Dil. "I wasn't expecting to see you so soon."

Lil smirked. "I move fast."

Dil smiled. "Please come in."

Lil entered. "Any chance you think that Blaer will wake up?"

"I doubt it. She was pretty tired, and the songs that I sang to her really help her go to sleep."

"What songs were those?"

"'The Temple of the King' and 'Homeward'." Dil turned to his kitchen and added, "Can I get you a drink?"

"Yes, I could certainly use a beer right now."

"All right, I'll get you one—even though I've never really known you to drink beer."

Lil chuckled. "Well, when I want something bad enough, I want it."

Dil returned the chuckle.

"Kind of like how you earlier wanted to see my thong," added Lil.

"Eh?"

Lil smirked. "I saw what you were feeling earlier, Dil." Lil slightly raised her skirt and added, "Perhaps I will let you see some of it later on."

Dil grinned wickedly, and he quickly secured two beers from his kitchen. When he returned to the master room, he found Lil on the couch. Dil sat next to her, and handed her a Bud Light. "Here you go, Lil."

Lil took the beer, but she sat it to the side unopened. She smiled, and twirled Dil's hair that was near his face.

"Damn," thought Dil. "She isn't messing around."

Dil returned the smile, as he looked into Lil's brown eyes. Eventually, Dil leaned forward, and kissed her. He closed his eyes, and began to massage Lil's thighs. But when Dil opened his eyes, he saw something radically different. Lil's skin was pale, and there were bruises on her legs. Dil was stunned. He could not look away from Lil's legs. "Lil, what's going on?"

"This is how the car left me," was the response to Dil's question. However, the voice did not belong to Lil.

Dil froze. He knew exactly whom the voice belonged to. Dil slowly turned to the face the person, whom he suspected was now sitting with him. His suspicion was confirmed. Dezirae sat before him with a glare.

Dil could not move, and he could not speak. He was frozen.

"You have forgotten me. Haven't you, Dil?" said Dezirae.

Dil could not respond.

"Is it your success, Dil?"

Again, Dil could not respond.

"What plans did you have for tonight, Dil?"

Dil could not answer.

Dezirae smirked. "I know exactly what those plans were going to be."

Dil was simply a statue before his dead wife. He could move, and he could not speak. Yet, he was intrigued with what Dezirae was going to reveal to him.

"You were going to make out with Lil on our couch, and then take her upstairs to our bed, and make love to her there. And as all of this would be going on, our daughter would be sleeping on the other side of the hall—on the other side of your 'secret love dungeon'. That's what you were going to do, wasn't it, Dil?"

Dil, again, could not respond.

Dezirae glared. "What's the matter with you, Dylan?! Are you not able to answer a simple question from your own wife—from the woman that bore you a child?!"

Dil tried to respond, but the words would not come. Instead, Dezirae clenched her first, and prepared to strike her living husband.

But before the blow could strike Dil, he found himself in his bedroom. It was Friday morning. Dil woke up in a cold sweat, and he gasped for air. He struggled to find feeling in his body, but when he felt he could move, he charged to his dresser. He opened the drawer that contained his wedding ring, and placed it back on his finger. While it may have been a nightmare, Dil was in a state of shock. He sat on the edge of his bed and thought, "My God!"