Chapter 572: Hermosa Beach
Wednesday, March 1st, Afternoon
She sat on the sundeck, looking at the small setup of the camera, microphone, and laptop. Looking over her shoulder, she could see Hermosa Beach, The Strand, and the Pacific Ocean; it would make a beautiful backdrop. Turning around to see the person setting up and walked over to clip the microphone on her.
Felicia van Ankeren took a seat by the laptop and looked it over. When she finished, she turned to her interview subject. Felicia took at her interview subject. She was in her early thirties and had brown hair with a determined look in her eyes.
"So, this is just a private conversation," Felicia said, as she put in her earbuds, "I have a series of questions I want to ask. We have all the time in the world, and take as many brakes as you want or need."
"Okay," the subject said.
"Just speak slowly and steady so the computer can record you clearly," Felicia said.
"Okay," the subject said.
"Let me know when you're ready," Felicia said.
The subject nodded, "I am ready," the subject said.
"Please, give me a countdown," Felicia said.
"One…two…three," the subject said, "three…two…one."
"Good sounds good; let's get at it," Felicia said.
"Alright," the subject said.
"So, please state your name and relationship to Brian Scott and Gabi Vincent," Felicia said.
"My name is Doctor Candace Scott; I am Brian Scott's first cousin and graduated high school with Gabi," Candi said.
"Tell me about your relationship with Brian," Felicia said.
"We were cousins, not that close, but friendly enough," Candi said.
"There is a story that you named the band Mental Lapse; how true is that?" Felicia asked.
Candi shrugged and giggled, "It's a bit of an exaggeration, but I was there when Kat picked the name. We had study hall together, Brian, Kat, and myself. Brian and Kat were discussing a name for their new musical project, as Kat called it. I was half-listening, and after forgetting something I said, mainly to myself, I had a mental lapse. Kat asked me what I said, and I told her I had a mental lapse. Kat smiled and said, that's it, and that's how they came up with the name Mental Lapse," she said.
"I was told after school you worked at RBR, which was where both High-performance Heart Attack and Mental Lapse were signed," Felicia said, "How was Brian's relationship with the label?"
"From my experience and memory, things went well early on in their relationship. In High-performance Heart Attack, the relationship between the band members hurt the relationship with the label. Brian wasn't the bandleader of HPHA, which most people didn't know, but it was Brian that got the attention, which caused the band to fall apart. Also, at one point, neither band was signed to the label. HPHA was released because their music wasn't good after Kat and Brian left. Peyton wasn't going to take a risk with a new band like Mental Lapse. Eventually, they did sign Mental Lapse when they had a solid foundation. As for the souring of the relationship with the label, as I wasn't there, it's just second-hand information. I rejoined RBR just as it came to a head. The reason given for releasing Mental Lapse was Brian's behavior and Kat leaving the band. RBR wanted to keep working with Kat," Candi said.
"What was your relationship with Gabi?" Felicia asked.
"Not much of a relationship; I knew her and knew she was into Brian. I was a close friend with several people that traveled in the same social circle. As I said, I graduated with Gabi, but I don't remember much more than that," Candi said.
"Was there any contact between you, Brian, and Gabi since you moved to Los Angeles?" Felicia asked.
"I was in medical school, so there was so little time, but occasionally I would run into one of them, mostly Gabi, who usually had Lennon with her. Other times Brian would put me on the guest list for his local show," Candi said.
"So, there was no close relationship between you, Brian, and Gabi in LA?" Felicia asked.
"No, I stayed on with RBR through undergrad and honestly sided with Trin on these things," Candi said.
"Why did you side with Trin?" Felicia asked.
"All Trin wanted from Brian was him to be in Wyatt's life since Trin's dad was absent most of her life, so she didn't want the same for Wyatt," Candi said.
"Did you hear what Brian offered?" Felicia asked.
"I heard a thing or two," Candi said.
"It was for Trin and Gabi to live with him as a harem, and they could raise the boys together," Felicia said.
"That's what I heard, " Candi said, "His two princes."
"What did you think of Brian's belief in the Marriage of Heaven and Hell and Blake in general?" Felicia asked.
"I don't think he ever truly understood Blake," Candi said with a laugh.
"What do you mean?" Felicia asked.
"When Brian was in high school, he had trouble writing song lyrics. Kat saw I was reading a book and asked me what it was. I told them it was William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven and Hell and said it was interesting. He took the book and went from there," Candi said.
"Do you blame yourself for how Brian turned out?" Felicia asked.
"All I did was give him the damn book. What he took from it and how it influenced him is all on him," Candi said, "I'm tired of it all being put on me."
"How did you take the news of the Scott, Hartmann, and Jared tour?" Felicia asked.
"It was Kat that told me. I had been a bridesmaid at her wedding. She explained that Brian called in his last favor; he wanted to do this tour to give his career a shot in the arm," Candi said.
"You were in the ER that night, correct?" Felicia asked.
Candi nodded, "Yes, I was doing an ER rotation at the end of my first residency," Candi said.
"What happened that night?" Felicia asked.
"What happened that night?" Candi asked.
"Yes, I've read all the reports, and you are the first person I ran across that was there," Felicia said.
Candi nodded and removed the microphone from her shirt. She put it down on the table. Candi looked at Felicia and sighed, "Turn off the camera," Candi said.
"Are you okay?" Felicia asked.
"I need a moment," Candi said.
"Are you going to finish the interview?" Felicia asked.
"Yes, " Just need a moment," Candi said.
Felicia nodded, "Okay," she said.
Candi walked away to collect her thoughts.
