She-Rox: A Rock & Roll Novel (41 page)

“Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars—”

“Oh, no—they won’t sign me looking like this,” she whimpered.

“That’s why I’ve been hanging around all afternoon waiting to get the word from the doctor. It’s all good, Eddie, really good.”

“You’re serious—you’re not lying.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” he said, smoothing the hair away from her bruised face, promising, “There now, love, everything’s going to be all right. You’ll see.”

The Faust Residence, Early morning after the Showcase

Over coffee, Celina warned, “If you lowball these girls Lanni, another label will offer a better deal, and then, not only will you lose them to another label, but you’ll upset one of your biggest money makers. You even said so yourself that there isn’t an act like that out there. And quite honestly, you can’t expect a bunch of glamour pusses to make a go of it on one of those shoestring contracts. They’re
girls.
Their needs are different.”

Lanni grimaced. He had already decided when he woke up that morning that he’d call Astral and politely pass. He didn’t have any experience with an all-girl band and he was too old to start now.

Celina noticed the scowl. “Tell you what, I’ll make you a deal—give me the girls. I’ll take them on.” She looked her husband dead in the eye and held up two fingers. “Give me two years. If I don’t make them the number one draw on the label, I, personally, will pay you back the seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars. But if I do get them to the number one slot, passing up your precious Slade McAllister—I get to keep them, pay back Moonshine the seven fifty advance including any buyout and keep all profits.”

“Let me get this straight,” Lanni queried in disbelief, “You’re going to take on these
Katz
, generate enough profit to pay back Moonshine, and break all arena attendance records Slade has heretofore made?”

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you,” Celina sweetly smiled, knowing he’d take the bait.

“Celina, you weren’t even there last night.”

“I was with you when they played The Troubadour. If it were me, I would have signed them right there.”

Still humming about the idea, Lanni warned, “Slade’s got a Grammy under his belt. He’s got far more experience than these nowhere
Katz.
And you’ve been out of the business for years.”

“What’s the matter, dear —afraid a bunch of girls will kick your ass?”

“Oh, honey, you are
on,
” Lanni chuckled. “You can have the seven fifty—hell, care to wager a cool mill?”

“Oh, honey, I knew you’d get cocky, but I won’t need a million,” She ran her perfect nails through his long salt and pepper hair. “I know talent when I see it, Lanni. I also know that Slade’s quite possibly maxed out. While he’s on his downward spiral, my band will be on their way up and I’ll watch the two cross paths.”

“Celina, it’s been almost twenty years since you brokered any deal, answered constant phone calls, or dealt with the endless drama from the current roster of prima donnas coming in and out of my door like a parade of travelers at LAX.”

“I also know Slade needs another miracle hit and I’m still not sold on his latest tracks.”

“You’ve been listening to Slade’s new tracks?”

“Um hmm,” Celina purred.

After the bargain had been struck, Lanni called up legal, telling them to draw up two contracts: one for the Katz, the other for his wife. Then he called Slade and gave him the news. “Get to those Katz before Zygote or Iron Horse get to them. I don’t need to have a bidding war on my hands. I waged war with my wife. That’s enough.”

Cedars-Sinai Hospital

Slade had left, but the nurse came into Eddie’s hospital room. “Someone will be in a bit later to fit you for crutches. Dr. King will also be sending a copy of the MRI and a letter to your family physician, Dr. Hildebrandt, and apprise him of their findings.”

“Dr. Gunner Hildebrandt?” Eddie asked.

“Yes.”

If Dr. Hildebrandt knew about the accident, then Kai knew. She had hoped to keep Kai from finding out.

And then the room phone rang. She answered.

It was Kai.

“Please tell me you’re okay.” Kai said. He was on campus getting ready for fall semester and heading for Lane Medical Library.

“I will be, eventually,” she said, sounding beat.

“I wish I was there,” Kai said, trying to cheer her up. “I did what I could. My dad called Cedars and requested the best neurologist available. Has he been in to see you yet?”

“Yes and thanks. I owe you one.”

“Eddie, you don’t owe me. I’d do anything for you.”

“How did you find out?”

“T.J. told me,” he lied. “So what did he say—the neurologist?”

“I have a mild concussion and a second-degree sprained ankle. Apparently, I am
a very lucky girl
. Just need lots of bed rest and maybe a little physical therapy.”

“You’re coming home, aren’t you? You’re going to need constant supervision for the next couple of weeks and I highly doubt one of your band members is going to hang around playing nurse.”

“I’ll be fine—stop worrying.”

“Eddie, you landed on your head. You’re not
fine.
Somebody needs to be there in case you fall asleep and don’t wake up. It’s common with head trauma. You could lapse into a very coma-like state and an adult needs to be watching you all the time. Gretchen doesn’t qualify as an adult.”

“Kai,” she said, “quit talking to me like I’m a three-year-old.”

“I’m not talking to you like you’re three years old.”

“Yes, you are.”

“No, I’m not.”

“I’ve been out on my own for over a year now without anybody’s help. I’m a big girl. I can handle it.”

Kai spied Nadia heading the same direction. She waved with a smile and slowed her pace. It had been over a month since they’d last spoken. He had purposely been avoiding her. But this time he couldn't.

“Now isn’t a good time,” Kai told Nadia, putting his hand up.

“Talking to your pin-up queen, then?” Nadia gave him a mocking smile.

“Who’s that?” Eddie asked.

“Nobody,” Kai answered too quickly.

“Did someone just call me a
pin-up queen
?”

“Well, were you or were you not on the cover of Exposure?”

“What’s her name, Kai?”

“She’s just some girl in my class.”

“Sure,” Eddie said.

Kai's voice dropped. “Hey, I’m not any more involved with Nadia than you are with Slade.”

“
Nadia?
Sounds blonde to me.”

“Yeah, well, your Slade—the guy is a total
poof
,” Kai contended. “What with that fake accent of his?”

Eddie was grateful for the pain medication. “Well, that
poof
just helped me get a seven hundred and fifty thousand dollar recording contract with Moonshine Records and a North American tour with his band.”

Congratulating her would have been proper, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.

“I’ll call you tomorrow—see how you’re feeling.”

“Thank you, Dr. Hildebrandt,” she answered. Eddie hung up the phone and heavy eyelids closed as the state of oblivion called her name.

–The Who

Somewhere In Reseda, CA

Bryn Tanner cursed at the weeds in her overgrown garden, giving the clover and nettle a piece of her mind as she dug away at the dry earth. Hearing the phone ring inside the house, she was thankful for any excuse to get off her knees. She threw off the garden gloves, enabling her fingers to push the “talk” button. “Hello,” she said, as the heat and exhaustion of the day’s work came across the airwaves.

“
Bryn
—
Is that you
?”

“
Celina?-”

“You sound out of breath,” Celina remarked.

“I was outside, working in the garden. Gosh, I haven’t heard from you since, um—”

“Since Tricia’s wedding,” finished Celina.

“Yeah . . . since the wedding—so, what’s up?” Bryn asked. If Celina Calderone Fauste was calling, it wasn’t to do lunch and hit Barney’s for Stella McCartney’s trunk show.

“How’s it going with you and Tracy?” Celina asked.

“He left me eight months ago,” Bryn replied, stating it as casually as she could. After their brief encounter at Tricia’s wedding, Bryn got her message loud and clear— “I’ll call you if and when my life gets dull.”

Celina did her best to sound contrite. “I had no idea. I can’t tell you how sorry I am to hear that.”

“Oh, Celina—forget it. It’s over and it’s done. What else is there to say?”

“Well, okay then. Are you still teaching at that school?”

“Yes, but its summer.”

“Oh, right, right.”

There was an awkward pause. Bryn delicately asked, “Celina is everything okay with you and Lanni?”

“Oh, yes, I just . . . well, I have a bit of a proposition for you—that is if you’re interested.”

“Okay—”

“I’ve got,” Celina began, and then changing her mind, took a different tactic. “Bryn, you have this unbelievable way with kids. When I heard all those stories about Sheena Maughan’s stepdaughters—honey, I just don’t know how you did it.”

Sheena Maughan, a ten-million-dollar-price-tag movie actress, dumped her two step-daughters into Bryn Tanner’s capable hands. Bryn had fostered the girls into young ladies instead of wayward hellcats.

Celina clearly remembered all the party gossip regarding Sheena’s sudden marriage and all the chaos it created. “You seem to cultivate kids as well as you cultivate plants. And I’ve got a new band going out on the road—four girls. One of them is seventeen, but she’s got more talent in her pinky finger than I’ve seen some have in their entire body. I would feel a lot better sending her out on the road if she were chaperoned, you know?”

“Are you asking
me
to chaperone?” Bryan gasped.

“You’re the first person I thought of,” Celina said.

The sincerity in her voice caught Bryn off guard. “Can we back track a little?”

“I have a band going out on the road the first week of September.”

“Hold on—
You
have a band or is this one of Lanni’s bands?”

“No, it’s mine. This is my baby, Bryn. I’ve got a band of four girls that are going to tour with Slade McAllister, light up a stage and blow the minds of everyone out there. They're not gonna know what hit ‘em. The girls sing, they play, they write, they do their own studio recording. I don’t have to hire stand-in musicians to play their parts. They’re incredible.”