Chapter 24: Public Relations

Anita went searching for Tony on Monday morning when he didn't show up for breakfast. He was sitting on the couch, playing a furious acoustic piece on his Ovation. It was obvious that if he'd slept at all it hadn't been much. He had a smile on his face.

He looked up at her as she approached and slowly wound down the song he had been playing. He was done now anyway. "Morning little one," he said, setting down the guitar.

"Tony! We need to leave in like twenty minutes or I'll be late. You look like you didn't sleep at all."

"I'm OK, I'll be right up," he said, then stood and gave the pre-teen girl a hug. "I love you."

"Luv ya too Tony, but get going."

After a quick shower and a change of clothes he did indeed get Anita to school on time. Once she was dropped off, Tina was onto him immediately.

"You didn't sleep again, did you?"

"No, not really, I went back." Possibly, just possibly, Tina might understand this. "Back to that place after Tammy died. It's the disease, at least that's what I call it now. I just let the dragons pull me in. I'm grown up now Tina, they can't hold me anymore. It took me a while to realize that all they ever represented was the truth about the leukemia. When I realized all I had to do was admit the truth, that what I denied myself and the promises made to Tammy were wrong, it was easy."

"So you just went back? Just like that, back into your mind where you couldn't get out before?"

"Yeah, I left some things there. I thought I'd be better if I got them out. Part of me, memories of Tammy, part of the music. I had to leave them then to escape when I was thirteen."

"I believe you Tony, but it sounds damn dangerous to me."

"Not really. The music keeps me OK in there now that I admit the truth. But it didn't work like I thought. The parts of me that were there, they really aren't a part of me anymore. I think it would have been dangerous to try to bring them back. Those I buried, or destroyed, I'm not sure. I didn't see how they could fit with who I am now. Tammy was easier, I just moved her out of there, to a different place. I can get to her memories anytime or not, like normal I guess."

"And music? What about that, what does that mean?"

Tony chuckled. "All of it, every note you played for almost three months. The music I took from them, it wasn't theirs. It was ours, so I took it back. Then I just closed the doors and left. It's gone. I don't think I could find the dragons or the disease now if I wanted to."

"You make it sound too easy, just like that, no more nightmares?"

"I don't know if I'd call it easy, but it had to be done. Throwing away parts of your self, even if they're old and not needed is a hard thing to do. There's a wrongness to it that I can't describe. I don't think you'll notice anything different. It just seemed too dangerous to try to put parts of thirteen-year-old me back. So I'm still crazy as a loon, but the nightmares should be gone, at least for the most part. I needed to do that, it was really worrying everyone, especially Rebecca.

"The single gunshot. It may never go away. I think it's there to remind me."

"Well there she is," Tina said as they pulled up next to Rebecca's Volvo in the school parking lot. "You better convince her that you'll be OK. She'll know if you aren't."

"Like all four of you wouldn't," Tony said, getting out of the car. "You're a pack of mother hens. Part of being the old Tony is I'm supposed to watch out for y'all, not the other way around."

Tina chuckled as she closed her door. "Yep, as long as you believe that, you'll be just fine."

Tony was literally saved by the bell. Rebecca and Cheri weren't going to be convinced that he was going to be OK, and that he would sleep better. While Tina might marginally understand, he had no hope of coming up with an adequate explanation that would satisfy those two, or Anita for that matter. Mrs. Finch didn't quite literally throw him out of class during second period but she sent him to find someplace 'quiet' and he did find a back corner of the library where he could lay his head down until the next period. It wasn't ideal, but it did help him get through the rest of school.

Everyone hit the office after school. There were only a few chairs to be sent out and most involved with the recording sat down and discussed the progress. Tina, Gwen, and Chrissie were the most helpful. They knew the details of the number of useable tracks and had to compile a master list. By the end of the week they would have a pretty good estimate of every track that would need to be recorded. It was another learning point to be used in the future: if you are building a record like a puzzle, you need to know how many pieces you have. They would even include what they would call multi-tracks, those things that they just didn't think could be done individually. A little more experience would allow them to estimate with some kind of precision how much more recording time they would need. That would be very valuable with their own clients later.

Riley paid rapt attention. A smart person with his skills would develop some software to make all this a lot easier. Table names and queries were already running through his head. Hell, he could have something really basic by the end of the week. It might just be a spreadsheet, but it would work. Why didn't Bell Tone have something like that?

Saturday morning brought something new. While Tina was laying down electric keyboard and synthesizer tracks Dewayne happened on a magazine in the lobby: Music City Weekly. Thumbing through, he found that it was apparently a trade publication. He thought to find a copy for Bea because there were several ads for studios in it and it might be the kind of thing she'd be interested in to advertise the studio when it was ready. Flipping through he stumbled on what was apparently a weekly section called In the Studio. The first word that caught his eye in the first column was obvious so he read on:

Chaos Resurfaces

Six months ago the hottest buzz among execs in this town was a new rock group called Chaos. A spread in Rolling Stone and an, apparently unintended, live demo tape spread through the halls of labels throughout town and they seemed on the cusp of a big recording deal. Indeed MCW confirmed with at least three execs that they had contacted the band and were talking contract, but apparently no one could sign them.

A source at Bell Tone studios confirmed that Chaos is indeed in the studio at their facility under the auspices of apparent upstart label Cobblestone Digital out of Savannah, GA. Not much else is known about the label and the source would only acknowledge that the band is in fact working on a full LP for a spring release.

We'll try to find more on the band, the label, and their project and it will be interesting to see if the end product meets up the hype that was being thrown around town last year.

The section then went on to list all the major studios in town and what acts were recording there. It was apparently business as usual for the magazine. He took the magazine to Tony, who was in the control room; he just looked at it and shrugged. There was no secret about them recording an album and he guessed it was better to be noticed than not.

Nothing, of course, was quite that easy.

Craig, a reporter for the Music City Weekly showed up by eight AM. That was about the time the phone calls started as well. By eight-fifteen, a second reporter had arrived. Someone had obviously told these people the band was recording on weekends, so why the hell did they think they had time to talk to reporters?

Tony refused to answer calls and had everyone else do the same. He first called Jake Turner and asked him to drop everything and come to the studio, but who he really needed was Bea. He thought quickly and made a phone call.

"Sheltair, this is Kitty."

"Kitty, good to hear your voice, it's Tony Smith."

"Hi Tony! Got a lesson today? I didn't see anything on the board."

"No, I need someone in Nashville like yesterday. Is the Baron available?"

"Let me see, yep all day, and no major maintenance for almost thirty hours."

"Good, put it in my name for today. Probably return around two this afternoon, it's just a drop-off. Now all I need is a pilot. Do you have Barry's home number?"

"Don't need it, he's here on standby for orientations and walk-ins today."

"Oh please let me talk to him. I'm in a real bind."

It took a minute but the familiar voice of Tony's flying instructor came on the line. "Tony?"

"Hey Barry, up for some twin time today?" Tony asked.

"As long as you're paying the rental, the Baron?"

"Yeah, I suppose that's the fastest thing you got there now right?"

"Yep"

"OK, have Kitty put me down for five hours wet. I need one passenger dropped off in Nashville. We'll handle the return flight with that beast we charter. I need her here in a hurry, Tunes, not International OK?"

"One passenger to Tunes, give me a name for the log."

"Bea, uh Beatrice Wallace, cute gal, you'll like her."

"Oh this gets better and better buddy, when?"

"Start preflighting, I'll have her there as fast as I can. Look it should take 3.8 or so for the trip, burn the whole five on the way back if you want. I know twin time is hard to get and we'll settle a fee later, I'm not sure if I'd pay you or your company."

"We have a rate Tony, it's 'with pilot' instead of 'with instructor', a little cheaper actually. I'll get your friend there as fast as I can do it safe, OK?"

"Alright, I guess I better give her call."

Tony hung up and called Bea's number.

"Hello?"

"Hey Cindy, it's Tony, I need Bea like bad."

"Why Tony! What would Rebecca say?"

"Oh dear God were you two born to room together or what? No I need her on the phone, we got a mess up here in Nashville."

"Ah, OK, I think she came out of the shower a few secs ago. I'll get her."

"Tony? What's going on?" Bea said coming on the line a minute later.

"I need you in Nashville like right now Bea. Put on your good duds and get ready to do some of that PR shit I'm paying for that you never actually get to do."

"Whoa, what's going on?"

"Some local trade mag published that we were here recording. I've got two reporters already and I don't even know who I'm refusing to talk to on the phone, three calls already wanting to talk to someone. I had no idea anyone in Nashville even knew who we were outside some record companies we talked with months ago."

"OK, OK, I've got to find a flight, it might..."

"Nope, go to Sheltair, the same place we catch the charter. The nice lady behind the desk named Kitty will get you to your plane. I've got one standing by for you. Pack a quick bag and I'll have Riley meet you when you land OK?"

"OK, well I'll be there as fast as I can I guess."

"Thanks Bea, and welcome to the big-time entertainment biz, you know how we need our adult supervision right? Remember the last time I did a press conference?"

"I'm on my way! Say nothing!" Bea was laughing as she hung up the phone.

Tony did at least have to go back and talk to the two reporters; if nothing else to stall them until Jake arrived. He returned to the lobby and greeted the two. "Hi, you're Craig, and you are?" He asked the second man.

"Steve Beckam, R.I.T."

"I'm sorry Steve, what's R.I.T.?"

"Recording Industry Today."

"Ah OK, I've actually got a subscription to that. I'm Tony Smith with Chaos. Uh, we have a hospitality room over here, there's plenty of coffee and breakfast stuff. Follow me."