Chapter 15: Customs

Thursday, 5 June 1969, England

The dreams on the plane made it difficult for Wayne to sleep during the time he wasn’t staring out the plane at the clouds and taking pictures of them. Beside him Judith laughed and pointed out the window.

“Oh look! A cloud. We’re on top of it. Quick. Take a picture.” Wayne had his camera pressed to the window before he realized she was teasing him.

“Hey, I’m not a world traveler like you,” he complained. “I’ve never seen this before.”

“You are now, babycakes,” she said. “Just wait till later.”

But later, Wayne was thrashing in his seat with nightmares.

Fifty naked bodies dancing around the fire, hurtling through the spheres. He held his goddess queen tightly in his arms as their own fire leapt higher than the flames in and around the cauldron. From the cauldron’s depths rose a spirit, eyes glimmering as it took shape, beckoning them toward it. Calling them to their doom. Wayne raised his wards, but the demon slashed at them, reaching through to grasp him. Them. He had to protect her.

“Wake up! Wake up!” Judith was whisper-shouting in his ear. He had to protect her and extended his wards to enclose her. No sooner was she within than she reached to touch the pentacles on his chest and he awoke.

“Swordmaster,” he began.

“Shh. Not here. Come with me.”

They stood from their seat and made their way to the back of the plane. Most of their cast was asleep. A couple of them were playing cards and glanced at them, smiling. When they reached the back of the plane Judith pushed Wayne into the head and locked the door behind them.

“What’s going on?”

“Anybody who saw us thinks we’re joining the mile-high club,” Judith answered quietly. “But in our current state that might be dangerous. We could blow a hole in the airplane with the energy you were generating. Just let me hold you, Unbound. Come down and tell me what was going on in your dream.”

“It was the demon-man,” Wayne whispered. Details were already fuzzing, but he knew he had to protect them from the demon-man.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I don’t know what’s drawn him to us.”

“I fought him last night,” Wayne said.

“In your dream?”

“Maybe. It seemed so real. I had power and pushed him away. He wanted the crate. I slept on it last night.”

“Poor baby. It was all a dream,” Judith said, touching the pentacles. Wayne reeled slightly and caught himself on the edge of the sink. Judith sat on the stool in front of him.

“What are we doing in here?” he asked.

“There’s too much pressure in the airplane,” Judith laughed as she unzipped his pants. “We’re going to relieve a little of it.” She pulled his cock out of his pants and sucked it into her mouth.

“Oh god, baby! You found the release valve.”

“Come for me, darling. I’ve never tasted you yet.”

It wasn’t a command, but before he let that sink in, he was obeying.

“There’s good news and there’s bad news,” Jim said. Forty pairs of eyes stared at him from the crowded little bus. They had been crammed into the vehicle with all their luggage in Mansfield. For the last twenty hours, nothing seemed to go right. There was an unexpected six-hour layover at JFK Airport in New York resulting in a missed connection and another four hours at Heathrow. They’d been crammed virtually on top of each other into this bus. Now there was more bad news.

“There are no more buses available,” Jim continued. “That’s the first news. The other two casts are much smaller than ours and were supposed to share a bus. They cleared customs and took a bus each before we even got here. So, it’s going to be cozy for the next couple of hours. Get as comfortable as you can. We should open every other window about an inch to keep fresh air circulating. I can already detect unpleasant odors.”

A general movement among the cast marked the effort. Windows were slid back. No one could find a more comfortable position, though Wayne wasn’t complaining about Judith sitting on his lap. They finally gave up and returned their attention to Jim.

“Second, customs still won’t release our costumes and props. They say there are too many weapons in the box.” Wayne grimaced but tried not to telegraph his disapproval to Judith. Her fingernails dug into his arm anyway. “Mr. Brown, the tour director, has promised they will make it in time for the show tomorrow, but who believes The Great God Brown at this point.” Jim’s skepticism was shared by all the cast by now. “We’ll rehearse without costumes and props. I want everyone to check your luggage tonight for possible substitute costumes if we have to go on without.”

“No!” moaned Carol Nygard. “It’s one thing to play a boy’s role in boy’s clothes. I can’t play Guildenstern in a dress.”

“Dress?” answered Glenn. “This is our opportunity to make an artistic statement. Hamlet in the nude.”

“At least we won’t need the rapiers then,” laughed Chuck.

“And you the judges ware a beary eye,” misquoted Steve.

“Damn you all,” cried Carol. Chuck put an arm around her to comfort her.

“We’re not going to stay in Kendall as we were told. We’re headed to Keswick. It’s about thirty miles farther north, but is supposed to be a delightfully charming little town. That means, though, that we won’t be getting in until about nine tonight. For those of you who haven’t set your watches yet, it’s now six-o-five local.” Several people reset their watches according to the announcement.

“One more thing...”

“He’s really full of this stuff, isn’t he?” Glenn whispered over the seat to Wayne.

“The group is too big for any single hotel in Keswick. We will be split up in three different locations. We’ll work out the room assignments on the way up,” Jim finished. “Now the good news.”

“Thank god,” Wayne said. “I thought he was going to say that was the good news.”

“Dr. Allen has been on the phone,” Jim said. “One of the innkeepers has agreed to make us a late dinner. There’ll be a good meal waiting for us when we get there.”

“Hooray,” chorused a half-dozen weary voices.

“And by the way,” finished Jim, “we are in England. That ought to be worth something.” And, in fact it did spark a bit more enthusiasm as the bus lurched to a start.

“I don’t care about a meal,” Wayne said. “As long as there’s a good bed in my room.”

“Always looking for a place to sleep, aren’t you?” said Judith. “Thought all you needed was a blanket, a pillow, and the stars.”

“Hey, it held great potential. I didn’t exactly go out and hire a clansman to throw darts at us.”

“Well, maybe we can pony up to go halvsies on a room. That would ease the shortage.”

“Save water, shower with my girlfriend.”

“Am I your girlfriend?”

“I hope so.”

“Lover?”

“One and only.”

“Wayne,” Jim said, fighting his way over the luggage in the aisles. “I need to talk to you a minute.”

“Trouble,” Judith said under her breath.

“Sure. What’s up?”

“Do you have a copy of the declarations slip?”

“Yeah. Right here in my camera bag.”

“Along with twenty-eight color glossy photos of clouds on the way to England,” Gail laughed from in front.

“ ... with circles and arrows and a paragraph on the back,” Glenn chimed in.

“You can get anything you want,” they sang in unison until Gail shut him up the easy way.

“Is there a musical accompaniment to everything? I’m going to have to send you back to London,” Jim said. For a moment Wayne thought he was referring to Glenn and Gail, then realized Jim had returned to talking to him. “Apparently, we need a representative at customs in the morning. You packed the box, you know what’s in it, you’re the technical director, you’re it.”

“Tag,” Wayne said.

“Shit,” Judith responded.

“How am I getting to London and why am I going three hours in the wrong direction first?” Wayne grumbled.

“We’ll get settled in Keswick first, then head back to London so you can be there at eight o’clock when the office opens,” Jim answered.

“Maybe I should go, too, since I’m English,” Judith volunteered.

“Dr. Allen has agreed to go with him so he doesn’t get lost or have legal problems. She represents the school.” Wayne felt Judith stiffen and then slump against him. “We’ll change drivers in Keswick and send you back by bus so you’ve got a place to put the crate.”

“Terrific. One more night sleeping sitting up for that damned crate.”

“I’m depending on you, Wayne. I know it’s rough, but we’ve got to get the goods.”

“Yeah. I’ll bring it back, dead or alive.”

Jim moved back toward the front of the bus. Wayne looked up at Judith. She glared back.

“So,” she said acidly, “spend your first night in England with Rebecca. See what I care.”

“I didn’t choose this,” he complained.

“You certainly didn’t object.”

“What was I supposed to do? Sorry, Jim, I’ve got other plans for tonight?”

“At least make a show of being disappointed. It doesn’t take a medical examiner to see your eyes go out of focus every time you get the chance to spend time with her.”

“If my eyes went out of focus, it’s because I went to sleep.”

“Then stop poking me in the ass with that thing. You’ve had yours.”

The silence turned stony as Wayne closed his eyes to attempt to sleep the remainder of the way to Keswick. Eventually, Judith relaxed on his lap and cuddled as they tried to get sleep that didn’t come. Wayne held her close and they kissed, holding their lips close to each other all the way to Keswick.

Disappointed not to spend the night with Judith? Yes. Disappointed in the prospect of traveling back to London with Rebecca? Maybe not.

After dinner, Wayne lay down on the bed in his room. It would be midnight before they left again and he was determined to get as much sleep as possible before they left. In keeping with school policy, the women had been assigned to the Skiddaw Hotel and the men to the Walpole. Except Rebecca. Because she was working with Wayne to go back to London, she’d been assigned to the Walpole as well. Judith glared at Wayne when she left for her hotel and he couldn’t catch up with her to give her a goodnight kiss. Glenn was just a room down from Wayne on one side and Rebecca on the other. He dozed on top of the covers. He didn’t hear the knock on the door. He came up out of sleep when Rebecca shook him gently by the shoulder.

Friday, 6 June 1969

“Wake up, sleepyhead,” she said. “We’ve got a bus to catch.”

“Oh, gees. Is it midnight already?” he yawned.

“No. It’s a quarter after one. We had trouble getting another driver.”

“Must be jet lag,” he quipped. “Here I thought it was the middle of the night.”

“Very clever. Need anything?”

“No. Just a pillow.”

“John and Joyce already put pillows and blankets on board for us. Make sure you’ve got your declaration.”

“Got it.”

“And passport.”

“Oh. Yeah. Anything else?”

“Let’s go.” They went out the front of the inn and Jim met them at the bus.

“It looks like you’re set. Here’s the itinerary of where we’re playing so you can direct the bus right to the theatre on the way back.”

“This is the whole week’s itinerary,” Wayne said glancing at it. “Is that in case it’s Wednesday before we catch up with you?”

“Get back in time for tonight’s performance, okay?” Jim laughed. “You’ve got the first line.”

“Who’s there?”

“Long live the king.” Jim shot back and pushed Wayne back into the bus.

“Gees, it’s cold in here,” Wayne said as he boarded the bus.

“It still gets pretty chilly at night,” Rebecca said.

“Waste of fuel to heat the whole bus,” the driver added. Wayne noted that he had a heater by his seat.

“Go on and find a comfortable place. Here’s a thermos of hot tea and there are the pillows. I’m going to talk to our driver a few minutes.”

Wayne picked up a pillow and blanket and settled into a seat about halfway back as the bus jumped forward and ground its way out of town. If the trip in had been cramped and uncomfortable, the trip to London in the empty bus would be rough and bouncy. A few minutes out of town, Rebecca came back and sat beside Wayne.