not for the sentimentality of this town.”
“But you’re not firing me.”
“Luke. If I haven’t fired Kazi yet, I’m not about to fire you. You’re not quitting? I’d think Charlie would want his internet-famous offspring on staff.”
I grimace. “Like most things between us lately, it’s a sore subject. But no. I’m not quitting. I’m determined to go down with the ship.”
Phil lifts his dirty coffee mug and raises it in a salute.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask.
“I’m not sure. There’s something to be said for going out with dignity and just closing our doors one afternoon with a sign that reads, ‘It’s been fun. Fuck the establishment.’”
“Or…” I prod with a smile.
“Or”—Phil smiles in return—“we come up with a way to limp along a bit further. Liberty Live is still set to run this summer, and it can’t if we’re closed. Vada’s been depending on it for a half a decade.”
“I remember.”
“Right, and as Vada is about to become my stepdaughter—”
“I heard. Congratulations!”
His grin widens. “Thank you; I’m a lucky bastard. But as I was saying, Vada is about to become my kid, so I would really love to keep it running one more summer.”
“You’d do that? Keep the whole thing running just for her?”
“Wouldn’t you? It’s incredible the things we do for people we love, isn’t it?”
“Right.” I feel my neck getting hot. “Well, this might be a mess, but I have an idea.”
* * *
Once Vada arrives an hour later, things start falling into place.
“You think you can convince them?”
She shrugs, flicking her hair over a bare shoulder. The weather is unseasonably warm today, hitting eighty for the first time since last summer, and I’m distracted by the freckles dotting her clavicle. There must be a hundred at least, and I want to press my lips to every … single …
“I think so. I just heard from them, actually. Or I heard from their PR person anyway. They were super grateful for the boost my review gave them. Said they were filling up venues all over the place after that. I figure now is a good time to ask them for a favor.”
“A ‘favor’ is putting it lightly,” Phil says. “We’re asking them to play practically for free.”
“Yeah, but Ann Arbor is a fantastic touch point. Particularly if they squeeze us in during the next three weeks. If they can do that, the college students will still be within reach and looking to burn off final exam steam. Not to mention, the podcast is hitting peak numbers, right?”
I nod. “As far as I know.”
“You think Cullen would be cool doing some advertising?”
“Yup. Even if he weren’t, he owes me.”
Vada turns to Phil. “Is this bananas? This is really short notice. Like, we can’t pull this off, can we?”
Phil nods thoughtfully. “Last minute is the best kind, sweetheart. Not enough time to get tangled in the details, and it doesn’t allow anyone to forget what’s happening. We used to pull off things like this all the time back in my day, and that was when we had to paper the town in flyers and word of mouth.”
Vada’s lips push to one side. “Well, we might still need to rely on word of mouth, and papering the town in lurid flyers sounds like as solid a tactic as any. If we can get (Not) Warren to sign on, I’ll even rerelease my review.”
“I can make some calls to the campus paper and see if we can get it published in print ahead of the show,” Phil offers.
Vada sinks back in her seat with a small smile. “Don’t think I don’t know what this is all about, Phil, but for the record, Liberty Live has been a tradition in this town for decades. I’m not the only one who wants to see it survive another summer.” She turns to me. “How does your dad feel about you helping with this?”
“He might not know.”
“Might not?”
“There’s a very small chance he knows and even smaller chance he’ll be happy with me.”
Vada frowns. “You don’t have to help.”
“Well—” Phil says.
“Well,” I interrupt. “Aside from the part where it’s the right thing to do, I want to help. And while I’m pretty sure papering downtown will spread the word, the podcast’s reach is a bit wider.”
Vada watches my face and must find the answer she’s looking for because she turns back to Phil. “So, that’s that. We’re off to save Liberty Live. No problem. Of course, you also have a wedding to plan for in two