Page 58 of Doc Rock
Mai shook her head, then recalled that Donnie couldn’tseeher.“No. Only what Iheardat the concert.”
“Ryan’s still behaving like a teenager despite being nearly forty. The mess yousawbackstage before the show is pretty typical for him. He doesn’t take any responsibility for the shit he gets himself into and is so far gone up his own arse that he can’t tell when people are trying to help him. Ford has had enough of him. Scotty and Joel aren’t far behind.”
“Oh!”They kept any sign of the band being at odds out of the media very successfully.
“Yeah, good thing Ryan is too much of an idiot toknowwhat contract he’s on still,”Donnie muttered, and Mai was sure he'd forgotten he was talking to her.
“Donnie?” she questioned.
Donnie swore,“Shit. Right, um, yeah. Well—”he trailed off.
“What’s wrong with Ryan’s contract?”
Donnie didn’t speak for a long time, and Mai’s quick brain began to fill in the gaps.“Is he actually part of the band? Or is he still a session musician?”
“He’s part of the band,”Donnie said quickly. Maybe too quickly.
“Yes. Iknowthat. But I’m asking you, is helegallypart of the band?”
Donnie huffed a deep breath.“Ford, Joel and Scotty don’tknowI did this.”
“What did you do?”
“When we replaced you, I never got a goodfeelingabout Ryan. I made sure that the money side of things was split fairly, so you and Ford shared the songwriting portion, and Ryan got his fair share, the same as the rest of the band.”
“But?” Mai prompted.
“But, I got him to sign a sessional musician contract. With equal shares of everything compared to the other guys. But he’s never changed the contract. He’s still just a sessional musician with Midnight Thunder, not a legal member,”Donnie said, his voice laced with something she thought might be guilt.
Their manager had always been a straight shooter. She had no idea hecouldbe so underhanded.
“So they can drop him whenever they want, and he has no rights?”
“Yup,” Donnie confirmed.
Mai’s brain froze in shock, then she had another thought.“Am I still a legal member of the band?”
“Yes,” Donnie muttered.
“Oh shit.” Mai shot bolt upright. “What?”
“Yes," Donnie said louder. "The contract you signed meant you were only removed as a band member if you were replaced.”
Maiknewwhere this was going.“And Ryan never replaced me; he was just a sessional musician.”
“Yes,” the manager said.
“Shit,”she breathed. She’d left so long ago, and somehow, all this time, she’d been a member of a world-famous band.
“Ford won’t tour again if Ryan sticks around.”
“Right.”Mai squeezed her eyes closed, trying to ward off the impending headache.
“I’ve sent him to rehab. He usually lasts about two weeks before he decides to leave, but at least it gives us two weeks to discuss with the rest of the band what we’re going to do.”
“About the press release?”Mai queried, as it didn’t sound like that was what Donnie was talking about now.
“No. The future of the band. Now you’re back.”Donnie sounded so hopeful that Maifeltbad when she replied.
