by Andrew Grey
Kendall opened his eyes, and Johnny grinned at him. He barely noticed Johnny shifting on the mattress. “Johnny, I…,” Kendall began as he attempted to move, but Johnny held him still.
“Relax. Everything is fine. Just go to sleep, and I’ll be here when you wake up,” Johnny soothed.
“But…,” Kendall protested, not understanding.
“I’m fine. Just close your eyes and think happy, relaxing thoughts,” Johnny said as he stroked his forehead. Kendall’s eyelids became heavy, and his worries and cares slipped away as sleep, a deep contented sleep, came over him. Johnny was here and he would protect him. That was all that mattered for now.
Chapter 9
KENDALL woke to a tapping that was definitely out of place with his dream. He opened his eyes and looked around, expecting to be back in that damned car, but he was in the trailer with Johnny asleep next to him. Kendall carefully got up and pulled on a pair of pants. He yawned as he shuffled to the door. Juan’s smiling face greeted him.
“They’re ready for you in wardrobe,” Juan said.
“Shit,” Kendall swore softly. “I’ll be right there.” He held the door open, and Juan climbed inside. “Please make some coffee,” Kendall mumbled as he shuffled to the back and carefully closed the clothespin-repaired curtain. He pulled on a shirt and shoved his feet into a pair of tennis shoes. He heard Juan moving around and then smelled coffee.
“What’s going on?” Johnny mumbled.
“It’s all right. Go back to sleep. I need to get to wardrobe,” Kendall whispered and kissed Johnny on the cheek. Then he cleaned up quickly and used the facilities before joining Juan, who had the coffee made and in a travel mug. Juan practically shooed him out of the trailer. Once he was outside, Kendall realized it wasn’t yet light. “What time is it?”
“Just after five,” Juan said, escorting Kendall to the wardrobe trailer at one end of the encampment.
“Are you sure you’re up for this?” Lyman asked as he strode up beside him. “No one will blame you if you want to wait.”
Kendall paused outside the trailer. “Everything inside me says that if we don’t do this now, it’ll take a bulldozer to get me inside a car again.”
“Okay,” Lyman agreed. “You look like hell, by the way.” Lyman studied him in the light that shone out of the trailer. “It’s absolutely perfect for the scenes.”
“Thank you, I think,” Kendall said, and Lyman chuckled softly.
“We’re all glad you’re back and doing okay,” Lyman said and then poked his head inside the trailer. “Make sure he drinks lots of water,” he told the wardrobe mistress and then looked at Juan before striding off. Kendall climbed inside, and Juan took his mug.
“Hey,” Kendall said.
“You heard the boss. I’ll bring you some water, but no coffee. It makes you pee.” Juan hurried away, and damned if Kendall didn’t see him sipping his coffee.
“Come on, let’s get you in these clothes,” Diane, an older lady, tough as nails on the surface, but sweet once Kendall got to know her, told him gruffly. Kendall stripped down, and she handed him the soiled shirt and pants he needed for the scene.
“You need to create a stain around the crotch,” Kendall instructed, and she raised her eyebrows. “Trust me, after a day or two in that car, there will definitely be a stain, if you get my drift.” Diane raised her eyebrows and looked as if she were about to ask a question, but she stopped herself and found a spray bottle. She added a bit of yellow to the water and sprayed it on the pants. The moisture dried instantly. “Perfect. Now the other thing we need is a bit of white where sweat has repeatedly dried. Mild salt stains and things like that.”
She worked her magic, and Kendall put on the clothes, very pleased it was fake dirt rather than the real clothes he’d worn in the car. He never wanted to see those again as long as he lived. Once Diane pronounced him ready, Kendall thanked her and headed over to makeup.
“Good God,” Denny said dramatically as he sat in the chair. “I’m never going to make you look right.”
“Don’t. Make me look worse,” Kendall said. “I should look emaciated and sallow.”
“Even more than you do now?” Denny asked, and Kendall nodded.
“Cracked lips and a nose that looks like I’ve had a cold for a week, because it felt like it when I was in the car. Also, a bit of dried blood under my nose and redness around the eyes. They felt like sandpaper after a day or so.” Kendall was quiet while Denny worked, and once they were both satisfied, he placed his hands on the table. “Make them look as bad as my face.”
Denny worked and Kendall tried not to think about what he was about to do. He had to get through these scenes now or he would never be able to do them. Once Denny was done, Kendall thanked him and left the trailer, then headed toward the set. Everyone stopped to look, and Juan handed him a bottle of water with a straw. Kendall drank what he could and got into position.
“Let’s do this, Lyman,” Kendall said. He didn’t have much in him. He took another drink of water and sat in the car seat, allowing himself to be handcuffed. He tamped down the panic that threatened to rise from inside him and took a deep breath.
Then everyone moved away from him, and Kendall peered out at the assembled crew just as the sun began to rise. “Quiet,” someone yelled, and Kendall began to shake and pull on the cuffs. He had to get the fuck out of there.
Johnny’s voice broke the silence. “It’s okay, Kendall, I’m right here, and you’re going to be okay.”
Kendall stilled and closed his eyes like he’d just dozed off. Lyman said, “Action,” and Kendall played the scene.
“Okay, use it,” Lyman said eventually. Kendall had continued long after the script had ended, and no one had made a sound. In his mind, he let himself go back to his car. Despair and hopelessness reigned inside him as he tried to figure out who had done this to him. The hours of doubt as hope dwindled away came back to him, and he used it… all of it. “Can you continue?” Lyman asked as he walked to where Kendall sat with Johnny right behind him.
“Yeah, but I’m starting to sweat,” Kendall said. “At this point, I shouldn’t be able to sweat. There wasn’t enough moisture in my body.”
“Get something over here to cool him off,” Lyman said, and people scurried around. One of the windows was lowered and a portable air conditioner placed through it. They were working with a whole car with the one side removed. A tarp was thrown over the opening and almost immediately, the heat began to dissipate. The passenger door opened, and Johnny sat down next to him and shut the door.
“How are you doing?” Johnny asked as he took Kendall’s hand. “Drink this,” he added, thrusting a bottle into Kendall’s hand.
“I’m fine,” Kendall lied. He wasn’t fine. He was barely holding on, but he knew he had to get this done.
“No, you’re not. I can tell, so don’t try to lie to me. You can tell them whatever you like, but I know different. That’s why I’m here, and I’ll be out here all day just behind the camera. Know that and remember this isn’t real.”
Kendall shifted in the seat. “I know it’s not real, but it has to look and feel real. When they watch this, the viewer has to think they’re here with me. This is hard as hell, and it scares the shit out of me, but that’s why I have to do it now. You were right last night. It will fade and mute. But right now I need everything to be sharp.”
“Five minutes,” someone called, and Johnny got out and closed the door.
“Remember I’m just out here,” Johnny said through the tarp, and Kendall breathed deeply and did his best to relax while others worked around him.
“It’s going to be a few more minutes,” Lyman said, his voice drifting through the blue plastic. “I need the light just a bit higher in the sky. We got the sunrise, now I need midday. We can simulate some of it with camera angle, but it needs to be a little higher.”
“It’s okay, Lyman. Do what you need to,” Kendall said and turned his head away as the sun shone b
rightly through the windshield. After a few more minutes, they removed the tarp and the air conditioner, and Kendall once again descended into character.
They filmed for much of the day, and Kendall rarely got out of the car. He added all the discomfort and pain that crept into his body into his performance, stretching his muscles and trying to keep his shackled arms from cramping. Lyman gave very little direction, and after every take simply said, “Use it.” The only time they reshot was when a breeze blew Kendall’s clothes, making them move in what was supposed to be a closed car.
“That’s it for the day,” Lyman called eventually.
“Just a second,” Kendall said, getting out of the car slowly, wincing in pain before walking to Lyman. “There’s another scene you need to film,” he explained, and Lyman’s mouth fell open, but he nodded.
“Okay, we have one more short scene after the sun goes down,” Lyman said. “Be back here in an hour and leave all the equipment right where it is.”
Kendall walked back toward his trailer and climbed inside without saying a word. Johnny followed right behind him and immediately held him once the door had closed.
“Don’t,” Kendall said. “Not right now.” Johnny looked hurt. “I need to stay in character until this next scene is done. Then I’ll need all the comfort you can give me.”
“Okay,” Johnny said, and he grabbed his laptop and left him alone.
The light through the windows faded, and Kendall was called back to the set.
“We did what you wanted,” Lyman said. “I’m giving you leeway here.”
“Trust me. You’re going to want this,” Kendall said. The driver’s door had been put back on the car, and Kendall got inside. They cuffed him to the steering wheel again and fogged up the windows. Lyman called for action, and Kendall licked the areas of the windows he could reach. Then he licked the little bit of the windshield he could get to before flopping back into the seat in total exhaustion that didn’t have to be faked. He didn’t hear the call to end filming. He only knew it was over when the car door opened.
Johnny was there, and Kendall waited until the cuffs had been removed before unfastening the seat belt. Kendall stepped out of the car and nearly tumbled to the ground. Before he could catch himself, Johnny lifted him into his arms and carried him off the set.
“Johnny, I’m fine. Put me down.” Johnny complied reluctantly. “I need to check with Lyman and make sure we’re done for the day, then you can drive me back to the hotel and go as caveman as you like.”
Kendall stretched his muscles and found Lyman and Guy talking together about the shots they’d gotten. “Do you need me anymore this evening?”
“No,” Lyman said softly. “We’ll review what we have, and hopefully in the next few days, we can fill in any shots we need and get the hell out of here. The only scene we need to film is the rescue scene, and I have some changes I want to discuss with you in the morning.” Lyman went back to talking to Guy, and Kendall turned back toward where Johnny was waiting.
He’d taken a few steps when he swore he could almost feel someone staring holes in him. His spine prickled and he turned around, looking over the entire crew, but no one seemed to be watching him. He turned back around and walked to where Johnny waited by the car. “I need to get out of these clothes and then we can go. Give me ten minutes.”
Johnny nodded, and Kendall hurried to the wardrobe trailer. He changed and then headed to makeup to have the heavier stuff removed. Finally, he was back at the car with Johnny, and they headed away from the set toward the lights of Las Vegas and the comfort of the hotel room he hadn’t seen in days.
Kendall fell asleep during the trip and woke with the lights of Vegas shining in his eyes. “I’m at the—” Kendall began, but Johnny drove by the turnoff to his hotel.
“I have all your things in the trunk. I had Juan drive in and get them,” Johnny said as he continued driving. He then turned into the drive for the Bellagio. “There are things we still need to talk about, but no one has been able to figure out who kidnapped you, so there’s no way you’re going back to that hellhole they put you up in.” Johnny drove beneath the portico to the valet parking. “I made a reservation here under my name.”
Johnny stopped the car, got out, and told one of the attendants his name, and Kendall didn’t quite know what happened from there. He and Johnny were escorted through the casino to the desk, where they were checked in and then escorted up to their huge room. “I don’t understand,” Kendall said, looking around the luxurious space once the escort left and their bags were brought in.
“I’ve been making money on my books hand over fist for years, and we’ve always lived simply, but I figured it was time I spent some of that money,” Johnny told him and pulled the curtains aside. The fountains danced below them, and the Las Vegas Strip stretched in both directions. “You deserve this. To be treated like this,” Johnny said.
Kendall shook his head and moved away from the windows. “First thing, the view is gorgeous, but I don’t need that.” He moved closer to Johnny. “All I really need is you. We live simply because it fits who we are.”
Johnny sighed. “It does, but you know that as soon as your movie is released, those days will be over. There isn’t enough security at our apartment in New York, and when you’re here, you’re going to need protection. We’ve been lucky up till now and have been able to remain under the radar. That won’t continue for much longer.” Johnny wrapped his arms around him, and they stood gazing out the windows.
“So what do you want to do?” Kendall whispered.
“I’m not sure. Lyman and I talked a lot while you were sleeping yesterday. He’d like to turn one of my books into a movie. It seems he’s a huge fan and said he’d maintain the character and flavor of the book. He also wants me to help write the script and act as associate producer.”
“Are you going to do it?”
Johnny shrugged. “That depends on you.” Johnny held him tighter. “I’m not going to be out here working on some movie while you’re doing a show in New York any more than I’m going to allow you to be out here making a movie again while I stay in New York to write.”
“I want to go back to the theater. I like movies, but I love the stage,” Kendall said.
“Then I’ll tell Lyman no deal.”
“Or you could tell him the writing team will be based in New York,” Kendall suggested and turned in Johnny’s arms. “Enough talk for now. I want to get dinner, maybe spend a few minutes in the casino, and then come up here and have loud screaming fun that will scare the straight people.”
Johnny checked his watch. “We have a reservation for dinner in half an hour.” Kendall stared. “I called while you were asleep.” Kendall yawned, and Johnny picked up the phone. “How about room service, no casino, and we see about the screaming.”
Kendall nodded slowly. “The room service is fine, and I can do without the casino,” he agreed. After pausing dramatically, he promised, “But there will be screaming,” and then he headed toward the bathroom while Johnny took care of the arrangements. He started the water and stepped beneath a shower with jets coming from every direction. By the time he was done, it felt like he’d had a massage. Johnny had placed light sweatpants and a T-shirt on the counter. Kendall changed into them and left the bathroom. Johnny waited for him on the sofa, and he sat next to him, relaxing as they watched television while waiting for their dinner.
Johnny answered the knock on the door, and the waiter wheeled a cart into the room. Johnny tipped him, and the waiter left, leaving them alone once again. They ate in front of the television without much conversation. Kendall was tired, and Johnny seemed deep in contemplation.
“What is it?” Kendall asked once he’d eaten all he wanted.
“I told you they don’t know who put you in the car,” Johnny said, and Kendall nodded. “Well, it’s definitely someone in the film crew.” Kendall agreed. “They left a note that you were quitting and going back to New York.”
“You told me that already,” Kendall said, and Johnny seemed a bit scattered.
“I did? Well, it’s the rest of the note that was so disturbing. It said you weren’t happy, and no one was paying enough attention to you. The note said you were going back to New York, where you could be the center of attention. It was a little disjointed.”
“Whoever wrote the note was probably projecting their emotions onto me,” Kendall said thoughtfully. “The whole stalker thing had me pretty scared, but….” Kendall shivered. “The guy’s a real nutcase.”
“And a dangerous nutcase,” Johnny said. “As soon as this movie’s over, we’re heading back to New York where I can keep you safe.”
“What are you going to do? Hire bodyguards?” Kendall asked.
“I don’t know. But I do know we’re not staying here until I know you’re safe.” Johnny moved closer and held Kendall tighter. “Are you ready for bed? I’ve told hotel security about your problem, and they’ve put us on a secured floor. Not just anyone can get off the elevator at this floor. I’ve also been assured that security will be making regular rounds all night long.”
Kendall nodded slowly and stood up. “What did I do to deserve this?” he asked. He slipped out of his clothes and climbed under the covers. “I’ve been trying to figure out what I did to make someone want me dead. I’ve been nice and respectful to everyone. Why does someone hate me so much?”
Johnny joined him in bed and turned out the light. He then got up and pulled the draperies closed before returning. “I don’t think whoever is doing this hates you. I think they’re in love with you, and when you didn’t return those feelings, they got more and more desperate.”
Kendall didn’t reply right away. “But it was so creepy,” he said.
“Yeah. But what you saw as creepy, they probably thought was romantic. You were given flowers, right? And at first you thought they were from me, so you were happy to get them.” Johnny held him, and Kendall rested his head on Johnny’s shoulder. “They probably thought you were pleased with the flowers and that made them bolder.”
