"We 'ave to have words, girls."
Nancy glanced up from her guitar, her brows creasing in a frown as she took in her mother's grave expression.
"What's up, Jetta?" Sylva paused in working out the new range of chords. "Has something happened? We were getting down to album stuff again - do you need us for something?"
"I do, but it will do as well 'ere as anywhere." Jetta quietly closed the door behind her, glancing around at them all. "Where's Topaz? I need all of you."
"She went down to the creche to take Hollie out to the park to see the ducks. It was lunch hour." Sadie explained. "She should be back any minute, though. What's happened, Jetta?"
"When Topaz gets back, I'll explain." Was all the answer she got. Jetta perched on the windowsill, and the musicians exchanged confused looks.
"Is it something bad?" Copper ventured. Jetta's expression darkened.
"That depends." She said, and there was a definite harried edge to her clipped tones. "On 'ow you girls choose to 'andle things."
"I don't understand." Sylva looked confused. "What have we done, Jetta? Are you mad at us?"
"No, not really, though I will be if this goes on." Jetta replied shortly, as the door opened to admit the final band member. "An' there you are, Topaz. Sit down, huh? I need to 'ave words with all of you, 'ere an' now, about your new single. It goes to stores tomorrow, as I think you know."
"Yes." Nancy nodded. "So? What's wrong with that?"
"This." Jetta reached into her pocket, pulling out a folded scrap of paper and handing it to her daughter, who read it, her indignation growing with every line. She handed it back.
"Who wrote that? Can't you sue them?"
"Not without good evidence to the contrary. An' your Aunt Phyllis an' I don't want all kinds of negative flurryin' before the awards." Jetta shook her head. "But you might as well realise now, if this kind of press continues, there won't be any award - not for Jewel, anyway."
"Not for Jewel?" Topaz frowned. "What is that, Jetta?"
"Do you have to talk in riddles?" Sylva added. "What's gone so horribly wrong?"
"Some junk magazine has written an article." Nancy said quietly, her dark eyes flashing. "The article suggests that we're trying to cheat everyone - including the fans and the award committee - by releasing a song that isn't our own. Furthermore, they seem to have got their information from someone who knows something about us, because they cite as proof a conversation between the band and Mom on the night of Connie's show."
"What?" Topaz's blue eyes blazed with fury. "Which magazine? Jetta?"
"Cool Trash. Who else?" Jetta frowned. "Sylva, that quip of yours about burnin' them down 'as made an enemy of them for keeps, mark my words. They ain't forgotten it an' they take malicious pride in printing negative Jewel scandals."
"They take pleasure in printing nasty scandals about everyone." Sadie said darkly. "I thought some of the mags back home were bad enough, but there isn't anything to beat the depths this one goes to, believe me. How they haven't been sued out of existance is beyond me."
"Because they control a powerful medium." Jetta said grimly. "Freedom of the press. Any attempt to choke them off - however libellous the article might be - would be interpreted by them as a breach of their constitutional right to say whatever the 'ell they like. An' in essence I support that - after all, if the press were controlled, we'd all be in trouble. But we don't need this kind of malicious garbage upsettin' us. Our position is already weak - an' this can only weaken it. Pizzazz 'as already 'ad one phone call this mornin' from the award committee, saying that this needs investigatin'. If proven true, Jewel will be expelled from the nominations list."
"And Diablo will win it outright, since they and we are favourites and neck and neck in the polls." Copper concluded, her expression angry. "But they can't prove it, Jetta. It isn't true! Dolorida is as much our song as any of our others, and that's that!"
"Well, so Nancy assured me." Jetta nodded her head. "But the magazine folk ain't dense. They picked up on 'ow you wouldn't perform it live on Connie's show, nor on any other show you've been called to guest on so far. They think that this is indication of your guilt - and you know how the press are. We need a rebuttal - hard, fast an' damn conclusive - to get rid of any doubts people have. Do you understand me?"
"You mean, play live, don't you?" Nancy said quietly. Jetta nodded her head.
"Yes, that's exactly what I mean." She agreed, casting a glance at Copper, whose lips had set in an obstinate line.
"Don't look at me." She protested. "I never wanted to do it in the first place - Nancy made me! I'd make a worse mess of the show if you tried, and that's that! I know you've worked out what we've done, because Nancy pretty much told me so. And that's fine, so far as it goes, but sing live I will not do. I can't do it! My vocal chords will freeze and I'll probably faint into the bargain! There's a good reason why I've never sung on a Jewel track before, and this is it!"
"Copper, we're sorry - me especially, since I couldn't get my tongue round the Spanish - but what choice do we have?" Topaz asked. We can't have everyone in LA think we're so desperate to win an award that we'll go to any lengths to get ahead! This is a good song and you sing it damn well. You know you do! The recording studio people complemented you on it, and everyone's been raving about it in the presses. Well, before all of this. What have you got to be afraid of? Singing it live is just like, well, singing it into the studio mic, that's all. You did that well enough."
Copper sat silent for a moment, her brown eyes clouded. She shook her head.
"I can't." She repeated. "I joined the group to be Jewel's drummer. If I'd known that all of this would blow up then I never would have let you guys talk me into it. You promised I wouldn't have to sing live!"
"This is different, Copper." Sadie said softly. "It's our reputations on the line here. And really, if I can do it, you sure can. You've been a Jewel a lot longer than me and the fans love you - you know they do. You'd be fine, I know it."
Copper just shook her head.
"I can't." She said again. "Not now or ever. I'm sorry, but I can't. There'll just have to be some other way around it."
Jetta's expression darkened.
"In that case I 'ave nothing more to say." She said quietly, in tones that made even her daughter shiver. "I'll go an' discuss this upstairs. Action will be taken, because none of us 'ave any idea of lettin' lies like this fester. I suggest you girls talk it over an' come see one of us tomorrow. I 'ope you'll 'ave a better answer, if you value your careers."
With that she was gone, banging the door behind her, and there was a moment of silence as the girls digested her words. It was Sylva who broke the quiet first.
"That didn't sound good." She said at length. "Copper, would it be such a big deal if you sang it once? It wouldn't have to be sung again, and, well, we'd all be there with you. We'd back you up, you know. If it was just a case of the words, I'm sure we could get around it, but none of us can pronounce as well as you, and besides, people will expect to hear it sung with the same voice as is on the disk."
"Oh, don't you listen?" Copper exclaimed. "I told you, I can't do it! All right? I can't and I'm sorry, but that's it! And if that's all you're going to talk about, I'm going home. I have a date with Aaron tonight and obviously, work is done for today!"
She stalked out of the room, banging the door with equal ferocity as her manager, and Sadie winced.
"Guys, we have a real problem, don't we?" She murmured.
"I don't see what she's so fussed about." Sylva frowned. "It's not that big a deal, singing live."
"For Copper it obviously is." Topaz looked troubled. "We all do it so much that we don't think about it, but she never has. If she's that afraid..."
"If she's that afraid, then she's a damn hypocrite." Nancy cut in. "Before we did our very first concert, I was freaked and I didn't want to go out there. She talked me into it - said that it would be fine and that it was just stage fright. So I did it. But what good is that if she won't take her own advice?"
She bit her lip, and her friends could see the mix of emotions in her dark eyes. By now all of Jewel knew that Nancy and music were synonymous with each other, and that this latest obstacle had hit the youngest band member harder than any of the rest.
"How dare they suggest it isn't our work?" She whispered. "After all the time and energy I spent on writing up the score! How dare they?"
"Nancy, cool it." Sadie slipped down beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders. "Listen, Cool Trash are scum. Okay? You know that. We all know that."
"But Jetta is right. We do need to do something." Topaz knitted her brows, deep in thought. "Playing live would solve things immediately, but if Copper won't, what else can we do?"
"You know, Stefana is probably behind this." Sylva said darkly. "That bitch knows we're up for the same award as her no good group is, and if that isn't a motive, what is?"
"You think she skulked around backstage and spied on us?" Sadie opened her eyes big with shock. "How come noone saw her?"
"If she really did that, I want to know what security thought they were doing." Topaz said grimly. "But I think Syl is right. Poison comes from Stefana's lips all too often, and we know what lengths she will go to to upset us. Besides, there was that article in the presses, too. You remember?"
"Publicity war." Nancy intoned softly. "And what a war it's become!"
"Well, all I can see is that we have to talk Copper around somehow." Sylva said finally. "If we don't, well, we're in trouble. Not just from the world at large, but I never heard Jetta talk like that before. Either we fix this - somehow - else Jewel are going to regret it big time."
"The stakes are higher than I'm comfortable with." Sadie shivered. "I think we've all learnt that doing something different doesn't always pay."
"Nance, are you all right?" Topaz asked quietly. Nancy shook her head.
"No, and I won't be, either, until this is settled." She said flatly. "You guys excuse me? I need some head-space to think this one out. Noone's ever put me in this kind of position before - I need to work out what to do."
"Sure. We're done here, obviously, so we'll go hang in the city and see you later." Sylva nodded. "And if you see Copper, talk sense into her, huh?"
"It's best if I don't see her at all for an hour or two. I mightn't be responsible for what happens if I do." Nancy said quietly. "Later, guys."
"What do you reckon is eating at her? It's a pain for all of us." Sylva asked as the three remaining Jewel's slowly headed down to the creche to collect Hollie, before heading into Los Angeles proper in search of comfort food.
"Nancy's a genius. We all know that where her music is concerned, noone of us can hope to understand." Topaz said wisely. Sadie nodded.
"If you ask me, this cuts her deep." She agreed. "It's not so much the matter of Copper not performing live, but the idea that someone could doubt her hard work as her own. She's given everything to this group, from everything that I've heard, and, well, music is her life."
"I suppose so." Sylva's pretty face became sombre. "Nancy and I don't always see eye to eye, I know that, but I never saw her quite so shaken up about a press article before. Do you think we can talk Copper around?"
"I don't know. In truth, I don't think we should try yet." Topaz responded. "Right now she'll just push us back, and if you ask me, Nancy is the only one who can make her see any sense at all."
"How so?" Sadie asked. "In the state she just left here in, I wouldn't count on anything."
"Copper's scared - she's not trying to cause Jewel trouble." Topaz replied. "I doubt she realises how deep this runs, either. Not yet, anyway - she will, when she has time to stop and think it out. And most of all she'll realise how much it hurts Nancy. Or if she doesn't, Aaron will probably make her see it. He might be dense in some ways, but he knows his sister probably better than any of us do, and Copper's bound to confide in him. Whatever else it brings, I don't think Copper has it in her to do this to Nancy and her hard work. Not when we all know that this song was meant to put behind us the last few months. Nance went through a lot then, remember. Jetta could easily have died."
"Then for now, we leave it?" Sadie looked doubtful. Topaz nodded.
"For tonight, we leave it." She agreed. "Tomorrow...well, we'll see where we are then."