"Music doesn't leave you." James looked toward the piano. "Even when everything else does."
Jake finished his set to polite applause, considerably warmer than before. He approached their table. "Mr. Walker, I meant what I said earlier. I'd be honored if you'd play a few pieces. The guests are asking." His sincerity was evident. "Whatever you'd like to play."
James looked at Harrington, who raised an eyebrow in encouragement. "It seems you have an audience, Mr. Walker."
Emily appeared at Phillips's office door, speaking intently. The manager emerged, surveying the room. Several patrons approached him, gesturing toward James. Phillips's expression suggested an internal calculation weighing customer satisfaction against disrupted protocols.
James stood. "Thank you for the meal."
"The food was earned," Harrington replied. "Your talent demands compensation."
James moved toward the piano as Phillips intercepted him.
"Mr. Walker," Phillips said, his voice carefully modulated for nearby patrons. "Our guests have expressed interest in hearing you play again." The forced smile remained, but his eyes were shrewd. "Perhaps a shorter piece this time. Something more accessible."
The suggestion carried a clear implication: entertainment, not art; background music, not performance.
James simply nodded and continued to the piano. He sat, adjusted the bench again, and considered his options. Accessible. He almost smiled. He had played for wounded soldiers in field hospitals; he knew about accessibility.
He began with Debussy's Clair de Lune: beautiful, but familiar enough to establish comfort. His technique remained impeccable, but he imbued the piece with subtle complexity, transforming the often-played work into something fresh. By the final delicate notes, the room had fallen completely silent again.
Without pausing for reaction, he transitioned to Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue, adapted for solo piano. The jazzy opening clarinet glissando translated perfectly to the keyboard under his hands. The piece built from bluesy intimacy to orchestral grandeur, showcasing technical brilliance and emotional range.