Chapter 5

Eddie had always like cemeteries. It was one of the few places where he would never get bothered by the press. Many times in the past he had used this place to meet people when he didn't want to be photographed. It was here where he used to let people know that they were being dropped from the label. People were less likely to try and hit you in a cemetery and if they cried it just looked natural. Eddie decided to walk to uncle Jakes grave on his own. He instructed Fred to get rid of the girls and be back in ten minutes; he didn't want to hang around long incase his sister turned up.

It was a surprisingly sunny day considering the time of year. Of course it would be dark withing an hour and a half but for now Eddie felt calm. The calm before the Christmas special he thought to himself smiling. He was happy. He was top of a multi-billion. multi-national, multi-fucking everything company. He could do what he wanted, was one of the most famous men in the world and and was top of the ratings. Uncle Jake would have been proud of him he was sure. He reached Jakes grave quicker than expected. It really was a sight to behold. A huge marble tombstone with a fountain and a small plinth with a statue of the man himself. Underneath read one of his quotes 'Ours is not to question why. Ours is just to milk it dry.' Eddie smiled to himself as he looked at the tombstone.

Here lies Jacob Robert Marley. Businessman. 1951 - 2010
 

It was a tasteful headstone for a tasteful man Eddie thought. It had been Uncle Jake who first brought him into the company. Eddies father had left when he was a very young age. Whilst his sister was found crying at night about this Eddie was glad to see the back of the cold hearted bastard and found solace in his mothers brother. Back then of course 'Marley INC' consisted of 2 small record stores. One in Camden and one in Shoreditch. But after Eddie came on board he persuaded Uncle Jake to start managing bands and singers. When their first act 'Fiddlers Muff' hit number 1 with their debut single and album Eddie knew he had found his calling. Of course Fiddlers Muff had been dropped from S&M Inc years ago but that didn't stop them from going from strength to strength with subsequent acts. And finally Eddie hit upon his big idea. His Magnum Opus. The music show; and he hadn't looked back since.

He picked up a stick and flicked a used condom off the headstone. Probably left there by a pair of drugged up young lovers. 'Finally practising safe sex eh uncle?' He smiled to himself. Although he sort of missed Jake the last few years of his involvement with S&M Inc had been stressful to say the least. Jake couldn't get his head around why the TV show would be successful and so resented Eddie when it was. He also didn't really understand the concept of digital music and had blocked Eddie at every turn when he proposed shutting down the record stores to save costs. Eddie hoped if he had been here today he might of understood where he was heading what with CDs now being next to obsolete. But he wasn't here. He was 6 feet under and probably just a skeleton now. The result of a lifetime of substance abuse. Eddie sniffed the cold air and turned to go. He jumped when he saw the woman standing behind him. Huddled up in a black fur coat and clutching a bunch of flowers she looked older than he remembered. Sort of withered. 'Hello mother.'

She ignored him and went to the grave to place the flowers down. Eddie wondered who she had come with. Susan maybe. Or one of her faithful servants. His mother had never been short of friends as was made clear in her 'tell all' autobiography where she had made Eddie seem like a tightfisted bastard as apposed to the shrewd businessman that he liked to come across as in interviews. He saw two figures approach in the distance. Susie and Harold. Harold was Eddies mothers servant who he was pretty sure was sleeping with her as well. They had never got on and made no effort to pretend otherwise. Susie ignored him completely and instead went to put her arm around their mother before shepherding her back to their car. Harold made to go with them before looking back momentarily
'We'll see you after the show for lunch Edward. Good luck. I'm sure you'll make many viewers very happy.' It was a backhanded compliment. Harold had always despised the telly show for exploiting talented individuals. Not that Eddie gave a shit. He was minted and Harold was so feeble he reminded Eddie of an old flannel.

The encounter with his family had left him feeling a bit empty. But he could not get down. Tomorrow was the biggest day of the year for him and he needed to be on top of his game. He made his way back to the car and told Fred to head for home. He wanted a quiet evening. A small amount of weed and a boxset would be fine. He didn't want any company or Christmas cheer so he called Bobbi and cancelled all his appointments for the rest of the day. They included a visit to a soup kitchen but that was only for publicity rather than any desire to help out. He only ever stayed for half an hour so his photographers could get their official shots before heading into the local overpriced restaurants run by celebrity chefs and eating a free meal. Scrooge looked out of the window and sighed. A nice quiet evening. That's all I want.