Stronger Within (The Silver Lake Series Book 1)

by McCallum, Coral

  Ok,” snapped back Dr Marrs sharply. “Go for a walk. Be back here in half an hour ready to work your fucking ass off.”

  “Whatever,” growled Paul, as he stormed out of the studio, slamming the door behind him.

  “Is he often like that?” the producer asked Jake.

  “No. He’s usually pretty laid back about stuff.”

  Shaking his head Dr Marrs sent Todd off in search of Grey, declaring they would make a start on the bass tracks while Paul calmed down.

  It was after midnight by the time the band crept into the apartment. All four of them were completely wiped out and there had been a tense silence during the cab journey back up town. Jake was surprised to find the lights still burning in the living room when they walked in. While the others headed into the kitchen to find some food, he went through to see Lori. She was lying on the couch, half asleep, watching an old John Wayne movie. On the other couch, Becky was curled up with her doll fast asleep.

  “Hi,” whispered Jake, sitting on the floor in front of her. “You’re up late.”

  “I know,” she said with a yawn. “Becky fell asleep and I couldn’t get her down to bed. I didn’t want to leave her up here alone.”

  “I’ll go and get Grey to carry her down,” said Jake getting up. “How was your day with her?”

  “Good,” said Lori sitting up. “I took her to the American Girl store.”

  “You’re spoiling her,” cautioned Jake, as he helped her to her feet.

  “Just a bit,” conceded Lori. “It’s fun. And she deserves a few treats.”

  Putting his arm around her waist, Jake led her through to the kitchen where the rest of the band were gathered, snacking on an open bag of tortilla chips and fruit juice. Lori leaned on the counter for support as Jake poured them both some apple juice.

  “Grey,” said Lori. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get Becky to bed. She’s asleep on the couch through there.”

  “No worries,” said Grey warmly. “I really appreciate you looking after her for me. I hope she behaved today.”

  “She’s been great,” said Lori smiling. “It’s a pleasure to spend time with her.”

  “She’s hard work,” countered Grey. “And don’t try to tell me she isn’t. I better get her to bed. I’ll see you guys in the morning.”

  “Night,” came the chorus as he left the room.

  “I’m off to bed too, guys,” said Lori with a yawn. “Night.”

  “Night, mom,” called Rich and Paul in unison, their mouths full of tortilla chips.

  “I’ll be down in a minute,” promised Jake.

  Taking her glass of juice, Lori limped her way out into the hallway and down to the bedroom. When Jake finally followed her a short while later he found her already fast asleep in bed.

  A blinding headache drove Jake out of the studio late on Tuesday afternoon. The thundery weather outside had affected him all day and after eight hours in the studio his head was pounding. Todd had thrown him a strip of painkillers as he walked out of the live room, heading for the lounge. Once upstairs, Jake helped himself to a bottle of water from the chill cabinet, then wandered over to the large black leather couch that faced the window. He swallowed down two of the Aleve then washed them down with some water. Setting the bottle on the floor, he stretched out on the couch and closed his eyes. He hoped a few minutes peace and quiet would lift the headache enough to allow him to return to work. Voices entering the lounge roused him some time later and, as things came back into focus, he recognised Maddy’s voice as one of them. The light from the window had a dusky glow to it and a look at the clock on his phone told him he had been asleep for two hours. On a positive note, his headache was almost gone.

  “I’m so sorry for being late, Jason!” gushed Maddy. “Traffic from JFK was a nightmare.”

  Jake then heard an English accent reply that he had only just arrived.

  “Let’s grab a drink,” said Maddy. “I’ve got those papers ready for you.”

  From his reclined position, Jake saw her feet appear round the edge of the couch then heard her squeal.

  “Jesus Christ, Jake!” she squawked. “You scared the crap out of me!”

  “Sorry, Maddison,” he apologised sleepily.

  “So you should be,” she declared, realising this was actually quite fortuitous. “Now why are you napping up here? I thought you guys were recording in Studio B?”

  “We are,” he said, sitting up and stretching, feeling his back stiff from lying so long on the couch. “I came up here for some peace. Blinding headache. Guess I fell asleep. I’d best head back down.”

  “You ok?” asked Maddy then said, “Oh pardon my manners. Jake, this is Jason Russell. Jason meet Jake Power from Silver Lake.”

  The two men shook hands.

  “Maddison’s been telling me about your band,” said Jason.

  “All bad I assume,” joked Jake, flashing them both one of his smiles.

  “On the contrary, all very encouraging,” replied Jason warmly. “I’d be interested in hearing what you’ve been working on?”

  “Sure,” agreed Jake, glancing over at Maddy for approval. “Come down to the studio.”

  “Later, Jake,” answered Maddy. “I’ll bring Jason down after our meeting. Give me about an hour.”

  “Fine,” replied Jake, lifting his water bottle. “I’ll tell the others. Oh, does Lori know you’re in town?”

  “I called her earlier,” said Maddy. “We’re having lunch tomorrow.”

  “She’ll be glad to see you,” nodded Jake. “I’ll leave you to it.”

  “See you in an hour or so,” Maddy promised, relieved that her plan was sliding nicely into place.

  “Oh the long lost Mr Power!” declared Jack, as Jake re-entered the studio a few minutes later.

  “Sorry, guys,” apologised Jake shrugging his shoulders. “I fell asleep upstairs.”

  “How’s the head?” called out Rich, with some concern in his voice.

  “Better,” said Jake, running his hand through his hair. “I can think straight at least.”

  “First time for everything,” joked Paul.

  “Yeah, very funny,” muttered Jake then added, “I met Maddy upstairs. She said she’d be down in an hour.”

  Both the sound engineer and the producer looked surprised to hear this and Jack asked who she was meeting upstairs. Quickly, as he picked up his guitar and got plugged back in, Jake explained that it was an Englishman called Jason Russell. Knowingly the sound engineer nodded over to Dr Marrs. The producer gave him the thumbs up signal in return.

  “Hey,” said Grey, noticing this silent exchange “Is there something going on here that we should be in on?”

  Dr Marrs laughed. “Maybe. Looks like Maddison is scheming. We’ll see when she comes in. Now back to work. Guitar tracking. Jake, you’re up. Track four if you please.”

  By the time Maddy and her English “friend” entered the studio Silver Lake were totally engrossed in the task at hand. A quick look at the whiteboard indicated to her just how much work they had put in over the first three days. It was impressive to say the least. Dr Marrs called a halt to the recording and greeted her warmly, then shook Jason’s hand, “Long time no see, Mr Russell”

  “Evening, Jim,” he replied coolly. “Looks like this pet project of Maddison’s is going well. She wants me to listen in for a while.”

  “Not a problem. Take a seat,” invited the producer turning back to the window to the live room. “Rich, track four from the top if you please.”

  Rich was on form and nailed tracks four through to seven at the first time of asking. His fingertips were throbbing after playing all day and his wrist was stiffening up. Massaging his wrist, he asked for a break. The producer agreed and called Jake back up to do his part for tracks six and seven. Maddy interrupted the producer, smiling sweetly, “Do you have any vocals recorded that Jason could hear?”

  “Maddison, you know my rules,” replied Dr Marrs sharply. “The answer’s no.
”

  Sensing her plan drifting off course, she tried a different approach, “Do you have time for the band to even run through one track for us?”

  “Bit hard, Maddison,” he replied. “Rich just went out with Paul to get dinner. Only half a band here. Look for yourself.”

  “Maddy,” called Jake, trying to diffuse the situation. “While we wait for dinner arriving, I could play a couple of acoustic versions for you. Doc, is that ok?”

  Getting angrily to his feet, the producer declared he had fifteen minutes to do whatever the hell he liked as he was going for a coffee. As the door slammed shut behind them, Maddy apologised for causing trouble.

  “Wouldn’t be like you at all, Maddy,” commented Jason with a smile. “Apologies for the interruption, gentlemen.”

  “It’s been a long day” confessed Jake as he switched guitars. “Guess everyone’s feeling it a bit.”

  From his seat on the battered couch in the corner beside Todd, who was restringing one of Rich’s guitars, Grey called out, “Hey, Jake, play her track eleven.”

  Perching himself up on a stool, Jake settled to play while Jason and Maddy came in to join them. All the technology was switched off- no amps, no mics- just him and his guitar. Closing his eyes, he began the first chords of Lady Butterfly. Within moments his haunting vocal was filling the live room, stirring deep emotions in his small audience. When the song was done, without a word to the others, he launched into an acoustic version of track three, also known as “Flyin’ High.” It was a total contrast of style. This one was harder, heavier and vocally powerful and strong. Reclined on the couch, Grey was nodding with approval at the impromptu performance Jake had given. As the last notes faded away, Maddy came forward and gave him a hug.

  “Awesome, Jake,” she whispered in his ear.

  “That was quite something,” said Jason calmly. “Quite something indeed.”

  “Thank you,” acknowledged Jake humbly.

  “Well, Mr Russell,” began Maddison, changing tack. “Are you going to buy me dinner?”

  “Subtle as ever,” he declared. “Yes, I’ll buy you dinner. Plenty to discuss tonight after this.”

  “Thanks again, guys,” called Maddy as they turned to leave. “I’ll see you all tomorrow. I’m meeting Lori here to go for lunch.”

  “Night, Maddy,” called Jake, as he put his guitar back on the stand.

  “Night,” called Grey. As the door closed, he turned to Jake and asked, “What’s that woman up to?”

  “Lord knows,” laughed Jake. “But I suspect we’ll find out soon.”

  “She scares me,” muttered the bass player. “Let’s go and see if the others are back with our dinner yet.”

  During the cab journey from the apartment to the studio, Lori had tried to explain to Becky that they might not be able to have lunch with the band, but if she promised to be very quiet, they could perhaps visit the studio. Although the little girl had been perfectly behaved all week, Lori was a little anxious at taking her into the studio. If she was honest, she was a little anxious about visiting herself, but also excited at the thought of lunch with Maddy. The late morning traffic was congested and it felt as if the journey down to 28th Street took forever. Eventually the cab pulled over out of the stream of traffic and stopped outside the studios. Once inside the building, Lori led Becky towards the elevator and they headed up to the top floor lounge to meet Maddy as arranged.

  The lounge was deserted when they arrived. Becky settled herself down on the couch and asked if she could watch TV. Lori passed her the remote control, then sat down beside her. Quickly she sent a text to Jake to let him know that they had arrived. Silver Lake knew the girls were coming down, but had not promised to be free to chat. There was still a lot of work to be done, and now that they had reached midweek, it felt a though time was running away from them. A cricket chirp came from her phone.

  “Be there in 10. J x”

  The little girl had found a cartoon channel and was happily watching Scooby Doo. She was totally engrossed in the show when her dad slipped silently into the lounge a few moments later and crept up on her.

  “Boo,” he whispered in her ear.

  “Daddy!” she shrieked, throwing herself at him.

  “Hi, Angel,” said Grey, hugging her tight. “I’ve missed you this week.”

  “Me too,” said Becky

  “Hi, Lori,” said Grey, sitting down on the opposite couch with his daughter glued to his side. “Is this young lady wearing you out?”

  “Not yet,” laughed Lori. “We’re having a quiet day today. Lunch here, then we’re heading home.”

  “You don’t need to keep taking her places. She can watch TV for a day or two,” said Grey. “I feel bad that you’re running all over the city with her.”

  “Trust me,” commented Lori with a smile. “I’m not running anywhere!”

  “Sorry, bad joke,” apologised Grey, looking a little embarrassed. “Anyway, Jake sent me up to fetch you both.”

  “Are we going to see the studio?” asked Becky excitedly.

  “Yes, but we have to be very quiet,” warned her daddy. “The guys are working. Uncle Jake’s doing vocal tracks.”

  “What’s that mean?” she asked curiously.

  “He’s singing,” explained Lori, getting up from the couch. “And they are recording it.”

  Down in Studio B Jake had been working on the lead vocal tracking for four hours. There had been several false starts and a few fits of laughter as he forgot lyrics mid-song. So far it was all taken in good fun, but he was beginning to get exasperated with himself. As Lori and Grey crept in, he was just starting on Stronger Within. He was standing with his back to them, totally unaware that they were there; totally oblivious to the fact that Lori was listening intently to the lyrics he had written for her. His voice rang clear and strong, no lyric fluffs and after three runs through Dr Marrs was happy. As Jake removed his headphones and turned round, the first person he saw was Lori.

  “Ok,” called the producer. “Let’s break for lunch. Be back by two.”

  Without a word, Jake came over and took Lori into his arms holding her tight. She snuggled into his chest and allowed herself to be held. Gently he tipped her chin up and kissed her passionately with no thought to the fact they were being watched.

  “I love you, Mz Hyde,” he whispered softly.

  “Ditto,” she whispered back.

  Keeping a protective arm around her, Jake guided her out of the studio.

  “Where are we going?” she asked.

  “Lunch,” he replied with a grin. “Maddy called and left a message to say we were all to meet her at the Thai place along the street. Any idea what she’s plotting?”

  “What makes you think she’s plotting?”

  “Because it seems like she always is!”

  Lori giggled, “Plotting is her speciality.”

  The Thai restaurant was busy with office workers out for lunch when the band walked in. From a large table in the centre of the restaurant Maddy was waving at them. Spotting Lori she came rushing over to hug her friend, enthusing about how well she looked then she introduced Lori to the gentleman seated at the table.

  “Lori, this is Jason Russell from JR Management,” she said theatrically. “Jason, this is Mz Lori Hyde.”

  “Pleasure,” greeted Jason, shaking Lori’s hand. “I’ve admired your work for a while Mz Hyde. Perhaps we can talk business sometime? I’ve a few projects I would like to offer to you.”

  “Thanks. I’d be interested to hear about them,” said Lori taking a seat. “What brings you to New York?”

  “Maddison,” he replied succinctly. “She’s been setting up appointments for me all over the east coast.”

  Realising what was going on, Lori asked, “And have you found what you were looking for?”

  “I believe I have,” said Jason smoothly.

  Over lunch, they all chatted like old friends talking about everyday events, anything except music. Becky
held court for a few minutes as she told them about visiting the American Girl store, then Lori explained that they planned to go to Central Park zoo the following day then over to FAO Schwartz. The four members of Silver Lake bemoaned the fact that they had seen very little of the city so far and gradually the conversation turned naturally to their progress in the studio.

  “Any plans for after you’ve finished recording?” asked Jason casually.

  “Try to get a record deal or a support slot on a tour I guess,” replied Rich.

  “Do you have any management behind you?”

  “Not as yet,” admitted Rich. “Up until now we’ve looked after ourselves.”

  “Smart answer,” chimed in Maddy with a suspicious looking smile.

  “I’d like to talk to you about letting my company manage you,” said Jason calmly. “Perhaps we can meet up tomorrow or Friday. I fly back to London on Friday night.”

  The band exchanged glances and nods, then Jake said, “Why don’t we meet for breakfast tomorrow and we can take it from there?”

  “Fine with me,” agreed Jason. “Meet me at my hotel at eight. I’m staying at the Crowne Plaza.”

  “Deal,” stated Grey before anyone butted in.

  It was well after midnight when the band returned to the apartment. With a few grunts of “good night” they all crawled off to their separate rooms. The light was still on when Jake crept into the bedroom and he found Lori sitting up in bed reading. She put the book down as he collapsed onto the bed.

  “I’m beat,” he groaned. “I’m too old for this shit.”

  Lori giggled, “Sounds like you’re just getting started, rock star.”

  “I know,” he sighed. “Doesn’t feel real.”

  “Oh, it’s real alright,” she commented. “Maddy has this covered. She’ll be there tomorrow to keep you guys straight.”

  “I’m kinda glad to hear that,” Jake admitted, as he hauled off his T-shirt. “We’re out of our depth here. Way out!”

  “She’ll look after you,” reassured Lori softly. “I spoke to her after you left the restaurant. Jason’s a decent guy too, as far as I’ve heard.”