Page 1 of Opening Strain

Chapter One

The mask I often wear—front man for the multi-award-winning Untamed Coaster—slips over me as I tug on the door. Inside the conference room, Jeremy Davis, reporter for theRecord News,awaits. Usually Luke Allen, our manager, either does these by himself or I join him, but he’s busy today, so I get to do this interview alone. Whatever. After more than a decade, I can handle any question thrown at me.

“Hey, Jeremy, nice to see you again.”

“If it isn’t Bennett Hardy, in the flesh.” The journalist, a few years older than me, stands. He extends his hand, and we shake. “Looking good.”

“You too.” Adjusting my rings and leather bracelets, I take in his appearance. His hair, which used to be shoulder length, is now short. While I remember when he was scrawny many years ago, he’s filled out. Yet his piercing hazel eyes remain, reminding me of his profession.

While I settle into a comfy chair and open a bottle of water, Jeremy sets up a recorder and takes out a notepad. “Ready?”

I incline my head. The sooner we start, the sooner we end. I canalready picture my reward, complete with unlimited Manhattans and a random brunette with a nice rack. My stomach reminds me I didn’t have lunch, so I add tacos to my prize.

“As usual, I’m going to ask you questions and feel free to answer them as you see fit. I’ll make sure to clean up any grammar issues. We at theRecord Newsare interested in getting behind public-facing information but we don’t traffic in gotcha situations. We aren’t a tabloid.”

Appreciating his honesty, I take another sip of water. Truth is, I wouldn’t be here if he were working for a lesser magazine. “Fire away.”

He plays with his shorter hair. Probably still getting used to it. “The buzz around your upcoming movieUntamed Coaster Unleashedis staggering. I think the public is excited to see the rise, fall, and rebirth of UC. It’s okay if I refer to the band as UC, right?”

Why I need to give him permission to use our initials every time we sit down is beyond me. “Everyone on the inside does.”

Jeremy makes a note. “All of the rumors swirling around the movie have been positive, although the subject matter is quite deep. I was lucky to get an early screening of the film and can attest to how powerful it is.”

Itisa great fucking movie. Quinn Walker, the director, went above and beyond.

Jeremy continues, “At the beginning, UC was riding high, selling out stadiums with no obstacles in your path. Until Darren Hilliard, the band’s original keyboardist, overdosed. At that point, everything collapsed. Can you give me some insight into what it was like back then?”

Our keyboardist died. How does he think it was?“Darren’s death truly was awful for the band. After all, he was the one who invited me into UC, when we were all working at Amazing Amusements.”Really, Bennett. Why did you open this door?

“The amusement park.” Jeremy’s eyebrows raise. “Tell me about it.”

And he walks right through.“You want to hear about how I joined UC?”Please say no so I can get to the fun part of my day. And tacos.

Jeremy motions for me to continue. I sigh as my hopes for a quick exit fall off the music stand.

Here we go.“Well, the summer before senior year in high school, I worked at the amusement park with the guys. We were all assigned to the Untamed Coaster ride. I was the operator while Darren, Río, Coop, and 007 ensured all the riders were safe and the coaster was ready.

“I’ve already brought up Darren, your original keyboardist. Could you give me a quick rundown on the others?”

Is this necessary?“Sure. Río is River Sullivan, who plays drums, and Coop is short for Cooper O’Shea, UC’s guitarist. I think you can figure out how we came up with their nicknames. As for 007, that’s Pierce DeLuca on bass. I actually dubbed him that since both he and the actor Pierce Brosnan, who was playing James Bond when we were born, have dark hair and blue eyes.”Proud of that one.

“Clever.”

I soak in the accolade. When he doesn’t say anything else, I add, “Yeah, well, at the beginning of summer, they heard me singing along to ‘Gives You Hell’ by The All-American Rejects. The song was being piped into the amusement park before it opened and it spoke to me. You see, I had been thrown over by my girlfriend so she could attend the senior prom with my then best friend.”Why did I share that detail? I never ever share that detail. At least I managed not to blurt out Lissa’s name. Or Curtiss’s.

Jeremy sits straighter. “Ouch.”

Annoyed at myself, I stare at the ceiling for a couple of beats.I wave. “Old news. So, the guys were impressed with my voice. After work, they invited me to join them at a local sports bar.” I lean toward him, as if sharing a deep, dark secret. “One they knew didn’t card.” We both laugh.

Latching onto the safer topic, I continue, “Anyway, I showed up and a band was playing, and they were good. That’s when Darrentold me all the guys played instruments and had formed a band themselves, but their lead singer had left for the military, so they were looking for a new front man. I didn’t know it at the time, but my audition happened when I sang The All-American Rejects song earlier in the day.”

“And the rest is history?”

“Basically. It took some deft finagling”—in terms of introducing me to a bunch of young ladies at the bar who convinced me I was hot enough to assume the role. Back then, I needed reassurance. I soon left Lissa’s betrayal in the dust when those chicks were all over me. Got rid of my virginity, too. “Finally, I did agree to drop out of high school and join the band.”

We share a smile. After consulting his notes, Jeremy asks, “Let’s step back for a second. How did your parents like the idea of your quitting high school to be in a rock band? I mean, you were only seventeen, correct?”

Not going down this rabbit hole. One trip down memory lane was enough for this interview.“I was, yes. My father had passed away from a heart attack a few weeks before all this went down, so he never knew. As for my mother, I made sure she was taken care of. Because the other guys already had graduated, Darren rode me hard to get my GED.”

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