Circling

Tristan Trilogy- Story 3

CHAPTER 27

Jack rubbed his temples as he tried to think of the most painless way to approach this problem. Up until now, the group had had an exceptional week…. finally. Things had been going so well that the trip to Copenhagen had been postponed. Seven tracks had been laid and no one wanted to stop the momentum. By Friday, they had completed ten and were ready to get home as soon as they could. It had been agreed that they would make the trip to Denmark on Sunday, come back to Sweden on Monday, wrap up a few details and head back to the U.S. on Wednesday morning. Spirits were high. The group was excited about the album and about going home and the label was relieved to discover that progress had been made. Then Jack got the fax and he had to call a meeting. Every member of the group was going to be upset - especially the Captain. Shit….. It was too late to exercise much damage control.

The Firm’s offices in LA had been going crazy trying to locate Jack. They had originally sent their fax to the villa and then word had come that Jack was in Denmark. An office temp had neglected to deliver Jack’s message concerning the trip’s postponement in a timely fashion and confusion had ensued. To be fair, timeliness wouldn’t have improved the situation. Jack held in his hands faxed copies of pages from an advance copy of Monday’s ‘Reputations’. The rag would hit the streets tomorrow.

This issue was worse than last weeks. Jack had already been on the phone to the home office. He felt helpless and that made him livid. He had already been informed that the label had been notified of the upcoming articles and that their high powered battery of lawyers could no nothing to halt distribution of the magazine. Jive executives were going nuts and with good reason. “Reputations’ was apparently launching a full blown and ongoing attack against the Backstreet Boys and the only logical motivator was the almighty dollar.

Jack flipped through the thin, curling sheets of white paper. The first page of the spread featured an article about the girlfriends and their infighting. Accusations had been prefaced with the phrase 'Unnamed sources said…' and then went on to repeat insults and catty remarks made by the women. What really disturbed Jack about this was that some of the remarks were almost direct quotes from the scene he had witnessed earlier in the week. He tried to deny what he knew was the truth - that there was a traitor among them. In a sidebar were pictures taken at the Jive party. Most of these photos also focused on the Backstreet women - a shot of Leighanne standing in her chair and waving across the room, looking drunk and stupid. The caption was sarcastic and read 'An example of grace and class - not!' It didn't help that Leighanne was falling out of the top of her dress. A shot of Amanda dancing a little too closely with JC was annotated with the words 'These boy bands share everything!' A similar shot of Tristan and Asa was underscored with the simple cliché 'First love lasts forever.' Jack groaned again when he looked at the picture of Holly and Nick. She was leaning into his shoulder, her left hand rested on his chest. There was no mistaking the ring on her finger and just in case the reader was unsure of what they saw, the magazine kindly made it clear in the explanation - 'Another Backstreet Boy to Wed?' The rag was going after the group by trampling over their women.

That was bad enough, but it could be handled. What was more difficult to defend were the shots of Brian and Kevin. Brian was shown talking intently to man that Jack didn't know. The mystery was solved by the magazine, which identified him only as a supplier of illegal drugs. The shot of Kevin smoking was a little more incriminating. Sure, it could have been a cigarette, but anyone who knew anything about the guys knew that Kevin wasn't a cigarette smoker. Besides people don't pinch cigarettes between their thumb and index finger when they smoke them. Jack shook his head. Jesus… Are my boys doing drugs?

On to page three…. Oh these were good - very good , especially considering how well they built on last week's issue. Here were the candids of Tristan and Jerald. Jack thought he might be ill. The first shot was of Tristan alone walking to her front door. The shot was taken at an angle that did nothing to hide her swelling abdomen. Headine - 'Smells Like a Shotgun Wedding to Me!' The short paragraph that followed did everything it could to cast doubt on the actual date of Kevin and Tristan's marriage and implied that the nuptials were forced. The bottom of the page contained another headline - 'They Really Do Believe in Brotherly Love'. Shots of Tristan and Jerald covered the bottom of the page - Jerald bending down to her face, Jerald rubbing her back, the two of them sharing a bench, Jerald holding her by the shoulders at the concert and, finally, Jerald and Tristan hugging backstage. The headline had fanned the flames of earlier innuendo. No captions were necessary for these pictures.

Last, but certainly not least, was page four. Mason had shown Jack Etienne's letter and so Jack immediately recognized the picture of Rebekah Sebastian Mallory. The intimate note that Rebekah had written on the back of her portrait was not quoted. The author of the letter was not named or quoted but the text that accompanied the portrait identified her as the mother of Tristan Mallory who had been in the midst of a passionate extramarital affair when she killed herself by slashing her wrists and bleeding to death. The magazine's pathetic excuse for including this bit of information was contained in the title of the article - 'Like Mother, Like Daughter?'

Jack's head was throbbing now. There was going to be no easy way to tell the group about all of this. Nothing would kill the Backstreet Boys any quicker than this kind of cruel shit. They were sick enough of personal attacks and Jack hoped this wouldn't be the final straw. He really couldn't think of any words that might make this less painful. The pages had brought up several more questions, too. Someone was feeding this information to 'Reputations'. Someone on the inside. Someone with a motive. Another question that greatly concerned Jack was the possibility of drug problems within the group. As bad as all of this was and as impossible as it would be to defend, there was another problem and it concerned Kevin directly. Before The Firm realized that Jack was out of town, they had assumed that he was at the villa. The same pages he held in his hands had been faxed to Stockholm several hours ago. There was a strong possibility that Tristan had already seen them.

*****

Martina was trying awfully hard to keep her eye on the prize, but it was difficult. Tristan Richardson was a genuinely nice woman who clearly loved her husband. She had come into the kitchen when Martina was cleaning up and had been outgoing and friendly, asking Martina about her family and ambitions. For the first time in her career, Martina had felt a twinge of guilt - just a twinge. For a moment she was afraid her cover would be blown. Charlie had barreled into the kitchen thinking that Martina was alone and became a little tongue tied when he found himself face to face with his quarry. Martina had come to the rescue and quickly introduced Charlie as her brother. Tristan had stared at him for a moment and then apologized.

“I’m sorry. You look familiar. Have we met before?” she asked.

Charlie shook his head nervously.

“I…I don’t think so. I’m sure I would have remembered.’ he stammered, hoping that she wouldn’t recognize him as the man with the camera who was backstage at her performance.

“Hmmm…” She looked puzzled for a moment and then shrugged her shoulders, laughing. “I’ve seen so many faces, I guess I think I know everyone…”

The chat was interrupted by a repetitive tone coming from somewhere nearby.

“Fax machine…” Martina explained.

“In the study?”

Martina nodded and Tristan began to walk down the hall towards the sound of the tones. When she didn’t come out right away, Martina went to have a look and found Tristan staring at several sheets of fax paper. Even from her spot in the doorway, she could tell what they were. Someone had gotten a hold of the magazine galleys and had sent them to the villa. Martina became a little alarmed when she witnessed Tristan’s reaction to the pages. First she paled and then brought her fist to her mouth. Her eyes never left the pages. Soon her cheeks became pink and she began to perspire. Tristan gasped, pressed her hand to her belly and then stepped back, fumbling for a chair on which to sit. Martina flew into the room.

“Are you all right, Mrs. Richardson? What’s wrong?” Her voice had risen. She was afraid.

Tristan grabbed the papers and held them up to her chest so Martina wouldn’t see them and tried desperately to calm herself. She took several deep breaths before speaking.

“No, I’m okay. Just a stitch…” Tristan said shakily. "But I am a little tired. I think I’ll go lie down.”

“Maybe I should call….”

“NO!” Tristan shouted. She closed her eyes for a moment and then spoke softly. She was almost whispering. “I’m all right. I’m going to lie down…”

“Can I get you something?”

“No. Thank you, Martina. Just try to see to it that I’m not disturbed, okay?”

“Yes ma’am.”

Martina stepped aside as Tristan shuffled though the door, back down the hallway and up the stairs. She still held the papers to her chest, crumpling them in her fist. Martina stared after her, already trying to erase the look on Tristan’s face from her memory. It had surprised her that Tristan had shown no anger. Instead, her expression had radiated bewilderment, sadness and a touch of resignation. Martina had felt a little tug at her heart strings. She was startled back to reality when she heard Charlie’s voice booming behind her.

“Don’t you go getting soft on me now, doll. We’re both in this too fucking deep to start developing a conscience.”

*****

Jack had made copies of the faxed pages so that each of the guys would have their own copy. Then he sat back and waited for the explosions. The room was silent for several minutes until Jack prompted them.

"Well?"

Howie was the first to speak. "Uh… I don't know what to say, Jack. They really didn't attack me.."

Jack frowned at Howie's ignorance. "You don't think that making insinuations about your sexual preferences is an attack, Howard? Even if they were talking about me, it would be an attack! You don't think that the reference to you, Brian and Kevin as the 'Winkin', Blinkin' and Nod' of the drug scene is an attack?"

"Uh… well… I guess I don't exactly get it…"

"Let me explain it to you, D. Brian's always batting his baby blues at the crowd. He's Blinkin. Kevin does that nodding thing before you all go into 'Larger Than Life'. That leaves…"

"Oh…okay… yeah… Winkin'. But I don't do drugs.."

"You don't do men either, Howie, but people are going to think you do both now."

Jack turned his attention to the rest of the group. He wanted to hear their comments about how they might be personally affected by this. Brian, Nick and AJ were still seated but Kevin had gotten up from his chair and was staring out of the hotel window. Jack couldn't see his face. AJ spoke up next.

" I don't know what to say. I don't know why this rag is attacking the girls like this. Amanda won't give a shit what they say about her and they really didn't go after me too bad. I've seen worse on the internet."

Jack nodded and turned his attention to Brian who had become increasingly nervous.

"Uh...gee… This is all so stupid! That was just a bad picture of Leighanne. It made her look as if she was stoned…"

"Interesting choice of words…" Jack commented.

"You know what I mean, Jack. Drunk. Leigh wasn't drunk…"

Jack saw AJ roll his eyes.

"What about you, Nick? You ready to announce your engagement?"

Nick rose to the occasion. "Hell, yeah! I don't give a shit.."

Jack began to grow impatient.

"Don't you think that Holly might give a shit? Have you forgotten the grief Tristan got last year?"

"That was different. Tris got shit because she and Kev weren't engaged or anything. Nothing official. They were just shacking up with no commitment or anything…"

Jack cringed, expecting Kevin to jump Nick's ass. Kevin's retort could barely be heard as he continued to stare through the glass.

"We were committed, Nick…"

"Shit, Kev… You know what I mean…"

Kevin turned slowly from the window and faced the youngest band member..

"I'm not sure I do, Nick. Within the last few days you've made some rather personal remarks about Tristan and myself. You've wondered if I was fucking other women….

Brian's eyes widened at this revelation and he turned in his chair to look at his cousin as AJ shook his head and stared at the ceiling.

"…. You've referred to the trash that's been written about Jerald and Tris. Makes me think that you have some doubts, Nick. Do you think he's screwin' her? Or maybe you just wonder if she's doin' him…"

Kevin was tensing up. So was Nick.

"….And now you're questioning the degree of Tristan's and my commitment to each other…."

Nick pushed his chair back from the table. That's not what he meant and Kevin knew it. Jack saw a whole new set of problems rise to the surface of this bubbling crock of shit. As if the situation wasn't bad enough, now the guys were beginning to go after each other. Disunity could break them apart quickly. The proposed album title, ‘Black and Blue’, could easily refer to the slams that came from within the group, not just the outside.

"Don't be an ass, Kevin.." Nick snarled. "I don't question your commitment to Tris. I asked you if you were screwin' around because you hadn't seen Tristan in weeks and you were upset and tense, not to mention the fact that you hadn't been home all night. Frankly, your attitude reminded me a lot of the way you were last year and we all know where that led. As far as Jerald and Tris, I’m not the one wondering about it - you are…."

Thankfully, Nick and Kevin were standing far enough apart that AJ had time to put himself between them before the fists started to fly. Nick's comment had flipped Kevin's switch and he jumped for Nick before anybody had time to realize what was happening. By the time they were pulled apart, sides had been taken. Brian was defending Nick and AJ had sided with Kevin.

"ENOUGH!" Jack screamed over the din, capturing their attention for a brief instant. "You guys keep it up. You're playing right into their hands! Don't you get the bigger picture, here? Somebody is feeding this rag information. Somebody close! Now, before Kevin and Nick kill each other, I'm going to tell you what I think and then you can do whatever the fuck you want!"

Jack took a breath and looked at the faces of his clients. His friends. Howie looked dumbfounded and confused. Brian tried to appear uninterested. AJ seemed disgusted. Nick was trying to look tough but his eyes were wet and Kevin…. Well, Jack could see Kevin withdrawing before his eyes. Once again, his face had become expressionless and fixed. They all had to be careful. If things got too far out of control, Kevin would be the first to jump ship. Jack suspected he had already seriously considered that possibility. If that happened, it would be over.

"No one at 'Reputations' has a personal grudge, as far as I can tell so they must be in this for the money. They've chosen to go after your personal lives because it's become useless to attack you professionally. They're going after the tender meat - your soft spots - your women. Their market is mostly females who like to read this shit. Unfortunately, your fan base is mostly female, too. They don't like reading this shit. It upsets them. They get disgusted with Amanda and Leighanne. They see Holly stealing away the baby. And Tristan - Jesus…."

Brian cut in. "They have no right, Jack…"

"They have the same rights that the legit press does, Brian!"

"This is slander!" AJ accused.

"Why?" Jack countered. "They haven't made any false statements. Look at the headlines and captions. For the most part, they just raise questions - very leading questions, I must say, but that mark at the end of a sentence makes all the legal difference in the world." Jack paused to look again at Kevin. "I'm sorry about the picture of Tristan's mother and the innuendo, Kevin…."

Kevin said nothing. He couldn't figure out how the magazine came into possession of the letter. Tristan would be devastated, especially when she found out that Kevin had it and he hadn’t shown it to her. His concern about her presumed anger and hurt was, however, offset by glaring and painful confusion over the pictures of her and his brother. [hen did they get so close?…. She said that he didn't touch her - that nothing happened, but there's something going on here. That isn't a friendly bear hug he's giving her in that picture. I see his face…. Did Tristan lie to me?….

"Kevin?" Jack tried to recapture Kevin's attention. He looked as if he were zoning out. Finally, Kevin met his eyes and Jack didn't like what he saw there. "You should know that The Firm faxed these same pages to Stockholm, thinking I was there. It's quite possible that Tristan has seen them. I thought you should know that before you call her. If you feel like you should return to Sweden, that's understandable."

Kevin rose from his chair and walked slowly to the door, hesitating for a moment before he turned the knob.

"I won't be phoning Tris." He murmured.

He closed the door softly behind him.

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Tristan Trilogy - Story III

"Circling" is a work of fiction.
The characters and events portrayed are fictitious.
Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental.

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