Chapter Six

Griffin arrived early for rehearsal the next morning. He hadn’t bothered to wait for Christian, who probably was going to be driving Sir Edward, anyway. He stopped at a coffee shop and bought a huge paper cup filled with violently black java. Even though his eyes were still puffy and his energy low from crying himself to sleep at dawn, he posed for pictures with the barista and signed autographs for a couple of people who recognized him on the sidewalk. He was as friendly as he could stand to be, given the circumstances.

The theater building was quiet and mostly dark when he walked in. It smelled like a theater should, filled with the scents of wood polish, dust, makeup, glue and dreams. He walked through the auditorium, looking at the glorious gilded façade around the stage and the worn velvet seats. This theater had been around for a very long time, and like a venerable old dame, she was aging well. She carried the whispery memories of generations of actors and theatergoers, people who had come together to share the magic of this living art in a way that never happened in the outside world. To Griffin, this was a sacred place.

He climbed up onto the stage and stood on one of the hundreds of colored tape strips, marks left from the blocking of the production before. There were cleaning supplies stacked in the center of the backstage area, and a scattered collection of old props. He turned his gaze out into the auditorium, viewing it from the most privileged place in the world.

In three weeks, the place would be full of people. He could almost imagine all of the upturned faces and expectant looks. For the space of three hours, it was the cast’s responsibility to take them from their lives and propel them back in time, to give them a window into a new world and relieve them from their troubles for a while. It was an awesome responsibility, and one that he took seriously.

He loved the stage, and he had missed it badly. His early training had been all about live performance and the electric give and take of energy between actor and audience. Working in television was wonderful, and there was no denying that it was lucrative, but it didn’t have the quality of immediate connection that the stage could give.

“Ahem.”

The voice came from stage right, and he turned to look. Sir Edward stood there, immaculate as always with his anachronistic suit and walking stick. Griffin felt momentarily annoyed at being interrupted and embarrassed at being caught.

“Magical place, isn’t it?” Sir Edward asked, his voice mild.

“Incredibly. It’s a beautiful theater.” He faced the auditorium again. “I wonder how many plays have been performed here.”

“Hmm, hundreds, I would expect.” The older actor walked closer. “I owe you an apology, Mr. Lawrence.”

Griffin turned, his eyebrows raised in surprise. “I beg your pardon?”

“That’s my line.” Sir Edward smiled. “I apologize that I was so unwelcoming when we first met. I assumed, incorrectly, that you were unworthy of the role that you had been given. You proved me wrong in our read-through.”

He could scarcely believe what he was hearing. “Apology accepted, sir. And I could have been nicer, too.”

“True.” The older man’s smile turned mischievous. “What do you say that we start over on a better foot, as colleagues this time instead of as adversaries?”

“Nothing would make me happier.”

Griffin went to him, and they shook hands to seal the agreement.

Sir Edward walked with Griffin back to center stage, and he joined him in looking out at the seats. “Now that we’re friends, I feel I should offer you a bit of advice.”

“Okay…”

“Michael Abner heard your admission to Mr. Rudd in the wardrobe shop. He was standing in the doorway while the two of you were talking. He has spoken of this, and I fear he may be spreading rumors.”

He was dismayed but not surprised. When he’d been interrupted by Michael’s knock, he had suspected that the other actor had been privy to the conversation. “Thank you for telling me.”

“I had no idea that you were of the homosexual persuasion.”

Griffin paused to consider his response, then shrugged. “Most people don’t. It’s not something I’ve advertised.”

Sir Edward nodded. “Most of us keep it quiet out of fear of negative repercussions.”

“Most of us?”

He chuckled. “I have never been a ladies’ man, if you understand me.”

“I didn’t know.”

“My closet is deep and wide and I’ve made a home for myself within it.” He turned to Griffin. “When I was your age, admitting to being gay was tantamount to suicide, professional and otherwise. Things have changed greatly, and there’s no such risk for men of your generation. I envy you.”

“I haven’t come out publicly,” he admitted. “Maybe I should.”

“When and if you’re ready, I believe that would be a good step. Perhaps you can help inspire the more timid members of the community to step forward and follow your example.”

“Maybe.” He took a deep breath. “So… What do you think Abner’s game is? Why spread rumors?”

“Why else?” Sir Edward asked, chuckling. “Drama.”

“Stands to reason.” He put his hands into his jeans pockets. “I wish he’d find some other way to spend his time.”

The Englishman tapped his walking stick against the stage. The board thumped hollowly. “I’ll talk to him, see if I can’t get him to redirect his baser instincts somewhere else.”

“You’d do that?”

“I wouldn’t say I would if I didn’t intend to do so,” he answered archly. “Besides, I have some history with Mr. Abner. I may be more convincing than anyone else.”

Behind the stage, the babble of approaching voices heralded the arrival of more of the cast.

“Time to get to work, I guess,” Griffin said. “I’m interested in seeing how Moultry intends to direct this thing.”

“Indeed.” Sir Edward turned and led the way into the workshop area. Griffin followed in thoughtful silence.

***

Levi and Sherrie were huddled together over a list of things that needed to be done, the paper between them on the workshop bench. He scribbled notes on the list as they divvied up the tasks.

“That should about do it,” he said, straightening.

Sherrie asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” He forced a smile. “Just tired. Stressed, I guess. I’m not sleeping too well.”

She glanced at the door, then said quietly, “I heard about you and Griffin Lawrence. Is it true?”

He stiffened. “That all depends on what you heard.”

“Are you two really dating?”

Levi frowned. “No, we’re not dating. Where did you hear that?”

“From Michael Abner.”

Ah. So that’s what Sir Edward was talking about. “And what would he know about it?”

She looked around again, as if she were checking for spies. “He said that he heard him say that he loved you.”

He turned away from her, trying to conceal his annoyance and embarrassment with the busy work of shuffling bobbins of thread. “Do you believe everything you hear?”

“Well, no…”

“Good.” He picked up the list. “Let’s get to work.”

Sherrie went about her business, and Levi began to work with the armor for the Roman soldiers. He spent hours fitting and touching up the plastic breastplates, and once again, the task was made longer by his inability to concentrate on the job at hand. When he found himself trying and failing to make the same adjustment for the third time, he leaned on his elbows, put his face in his hands and groaned in frustration.

“That’s not a happy sound.”

Levi looked over his shoulder and saw someone he hadn’t wanted to see. Michael Abner was standing there, his arms crossed over his chest, his dark head tilted to the side. He smiled at Levi, but there was something conniving in his eyes. It detracted from the handsomeness of his face and made him look unpleasant.

“Just stressed.” He turned and faced his visitor. “What’s up?”

“I just wanted to talk to you for a minute.”

“About what?”

The actor came into the workshop and closed the door behind himself. Levi was instantly on his guard.

“I wanted to tell you that I heard Griffin Lawrence making moves on you. It seemed like you weren’t very happy about it, and I just wanted to tell you…” He took a deep breath and fixed Levi with a look that exuded concern and compassion. “I wanted to tell you that if you need me to get him off your back, I’ll do that.”

He distrusted everything about this man. Quietly, Levi answered, “That won’t be necessary.”

“He was really pushing you, holding on to you… I hate to think of what he might have done to you if I hadn’t shown up in time.” He tilted his head, and although the compassionate expression didn’t change, a sly air crept over him. “I would hate to think that the famous Mr. Lawrence is a sexual predator.”

Anger flashed through him. “Griffin is not a predator. You just misunderstood completely. He would never do anything like that.”

“It’s sweet of you to defend him, but I know what I saw.” He dropped the pretense of caring. “I wonder what his fanbase would say if they knew.”

Levi lifted his chin. “Don’t you dare.”

“Why are you defending him? It’s pretty clear from your conversation that the two of you are over, and he’s trying to push you to - ”

“He wasn’t pushing me,” he snapped. “Now mind your own business and keep your damn mouth shut.”

Infuriatingly, Michael smirked. “There’s no need to be unpleasant. I was just trying to help.”

“You’re trying to make trouble.”

“Maybe, maybe not. Maybe trouble makes itself and I just find it.” He opened the workshop door. “Well, darling, if you want to leave yourself at the mercy of a ravening sex fiend and refuse my help, that’s on your head. I tried.”

“What’s your problem? Are you just bored or something?” Levi demanded. “You’ve got a lot of nerve, coming in here and trying to stir up shit you don’t know anything about. If you do anything to damage his career, or if you try to ruin his reputation, I will make sure you never work in this theater again.”

Michael laughed. “You? What power do you have?”

“None, but I’m Sir Edward’s personal assistant, and if he says you’re done, you’re done.”

A dark cloud passed over Michael’s face. “He would never speak against me.”

“Don’t be so certain.”

They glared at one another for a moment, then both of them backed down from the confrontation. The actor made a dismissive motion with his hand and turned to leave. He nearly collided with the English actor and Griffin, who were walking down the hallway together to the rehearsal room. Given the head-butting that the two stars had done during yesterday’s read-through, both Levi and Michael were surprised to see them together in such a friendly manner. It made Levi happy, because it lent credence to his entirely baseless threat.

“Sir Edward,” Michael said. “Griffin. Good morning.”

“Good morning, Mr. Abner,” the English actor said, his tone redolent with disapproval. “Do please watch where you’re going. There are others attempting to walk in these halls.”

Michael flushed. “I apologize.”

“As you should.” Sir Edward looked in the costume shop and saw Levi, and he nodded politely. “Mr. Rudd.”

He returned the nod. “Sir Edward.” Griffin didn’t look at him. Levi’s heart sank. With a false brightness, he bade, “Have a good rehearsal.”

The three actors walked away together, leaving him to his own devices once again. His concentration was no better than before.

***

Griffin was heading out for dinner after rehearsal was over when Michael Abner trotted up to him. “Do you have a minute?” the other actor asked.

He glanced at Sir Edward, who was also walking down the hallway, remembering the older man’s warning. He decided to play it cool. “Sure.”

“Let’s go in here.”

Michael led the way into the combat practice room, someplace they’d all be seeing too much of in the near future. He closed the door once they were inside.

“What’s going on, Michael?” Griffin asked, confident he already knew the answer.

“I wanted to let you know that I saw you and Levi Rudd in the costume shop, and I heard what you were saying.”

“I know you did.” He was gratified that Michael looked surprised. “I also know that you’ve been spreading it all through the cast and crew.”

He shifted his position, most likely internally as well as externally. “Well, I just wanted to say that I’m not going to stand for that sort of abuse of power around here. This is the era of the 'Me Too' movement, and you’re not going to get away with sexually harassing or assaulting our costume designer.”

Griffin gaped at him. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about you pressing unwanted advances.”

He was stunned. “What… I never…”

“That’s not what Levi says.”

Griffin’s jaw dropped, and he could feel himself go pale. In a husky voice, barely more than a whisper, he said, “What?”

“You heard me.” Michael pulled himself up to his less-than-impressive full height and looked smugly into the other actor’s face. “I trust we understand one another?”

He was too stunned to speak or respond. With a smug grin, Michael left the room, abandoning Griffin to his shocked silence.