So that was the man who had warped his only son! Craig Taylor was livid and could barely contain his anger. But it was important that these yokels that he had stirred up not know that his own son was standing amongst those sick creatures. The whole point of going to them and letting their organization know about the fag film was to get them to pressure the studio to shut down production. Maybe if Justin lost the job, he'd get his head on straight and realize what a stupid mistake he was making. Maybe things could get back to normal and they could all go back to being a family.
He knew there had to be some perverted man who had turned his innocent son into a queer. He sure as hell didn't inherit the illness. Craig had hired a private eye that very night that Justin made his sick announcement, and by Monday night Craig knew the name of the man Justin was involved with, including the name of his company and where he lived. It rankled Craig no end that the man, Brian Kinney, was well respected in the business community. Unfortunately he was openly gay even to his clients, so there was probably no way to hurt the man in his business. Apparently he had a decent enough reputation in his own fag community too, so that was probably not an avenue to get even with him. Craig finally decided that the first step in breaking his son free of the man was destroying the movie, the thing that brought the two together in the first place.
Craig turned away from the crowd of protesters formed by the "Keep America on the Straight Path" organization and headed back for his car. He hadn't intended coming to the studio today, but his curiosity got the better of him. He had seen Kinney's photo, but he needed to see the man for himself. He was hoping to get a glimpse of him, but had been sickened when he saw the man walking out to a Jeep across the street with his arm around Justin's shoulder in an almost protective gesture. He had never felt more incensed at the sight. It was at that moment that Justin turned to look at the crowd and Craig was almost certain his son saw him. He quickly ducked behind some of the mob. He was not ready for Justin to know what he was up to. Hopefully the boy was too distracted by the crowd to have seen him. Now it was time to put phase two of his plan into action. He had to do his best to make Justin see the error of his ways.
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Justin couldn't stop shaking all the way back to the loft and it worried Brian. Brian wasn't really sure if it was fear or anger that the young man was feeling, or a combination of both. They had barely gotten seated in the Jeep when Justin revealed to Brian that he had spotted his own father on the edge of the crowd of hate-mongers. As Brian pulled away from the curb, he made a quick U turn and passed the ugly crowd. He scanned the group as he drove by but saw no one matching the description that Justin had given him of his father. The man had probably scurried away like the vermin he was. It was at the moment that he had that thought when he heard Justin gasp out loud beside him.
"Oh shit," he moaned. "It was my Dad. He was the one who did this."
"What are you talking about, Sunshine? Did what?"
"He's the one who organized this protest."
"Aren't you giving him a little too much credit, kiddo."
"No listen. I told him that the movie was gay oriented. They told us to keep that fact under wraps while filming here. It's my fault it got out. I never dreamed he'd use the information, especially to hurt me or my career. Goddamn him!" Justin began shaking even harder. "Could my own father hate me that much?" he cried out.
"Some fathers are as capable of hate as others are of love, Justin." Brian spoke with the authority of a man who had been there. "You're not responsible for his narrow minded view of the world... he is. You just have to wash your hands of him."
"Look, I know we have our differences.... always have. He saw my future one way and I saw it another, but I always believed that we'd get back on the same page someday once I was a success."
"People like your father only want you to be a success at what they expect from you, not what makes you happy. And don't blame yourself for what you father does. If he's the one who spread the word about the movie to the wrong people, then the betrayal is on his head, not yours. And there is no need for you to be spreading your theory to anyone else. Besides you don't know it was him for sure."
Brian didn't believe that any more than Justin did, but Justin took comfort knowing Brian didn't blame him. The rest of the ride home was in total silence, both men lost in thought.
That night Brian did his best to distract Justin. He placed a call to Linds and gave her the lowdown on the day's dramatics. He had decided that a woman's gentler touch might help Justin deal with his father's betrayal, and he knew that Gus was an excellent distraction. The young boy had bonded with Justin almost instantly. It was as if they'd known each other all their lives. Not long after he had hung up, the girls called Justin to invite he and Brian over for dinner. Justin suspected that Brian was behind the invite, but was more than happy to accept. He loved talking with both ladies and his obvious affection for their son made Justin a welcome visitor in their home.
Dinner was spent in animated discussion about a new art exhibit that Lindsay was responsible for and her enthusiasm over meeting the artist who had a worldwide reputation. Brian casually mentioned that Justin was pretty good at drawing himself, witnessed by his doodling at the office while waiting for Brian, which brought on a stream of questions from Lindsay. Justin blushed adorably at any suggestion that his drawing showed any real talent, but was only let off the hook when he promised to give Lindsay a sample of his work. He didn't bother to mention that drawing was his favorite form of escape whenever life got too complicated ever since he was quite young. His mom had encouraged him, but his dad convinced him it was a frivolous waste of his time starting with the day he first rushed home from school with an art project that got an A+ from his teacher in third grade.
Brian sat on the couch with the girls after dinner and talked with Mel about the legal aspects of dealing with the protesters at the studio. She only confirmed his worst fears that there was nothing they could do to stop them from openly demonstrating within the boundaries of the law. They sat and watched Justin sitting on the floor with their young son while joining in happily with the child's fantasy world of dinosaurs and cave men. Justin was a natural with Gus. Brian couldn't help thinking that Justin would make a wonderful father someday. He wondered if Justin ever considered parenthood. There was so much more to learn about the young man. The thought saddened him because he knew Justin would have to leave eventually. But Brian was never one to dwell on the future for too long. He forced himself to get back to thinking of the here and now.
By the time the men had left Mel and Lind's house and headed back to the loft, both men were feeling a lot more relaxed that they had been when they arrived. Neither of them noticed the dark blue sedan that began following them from the moment they pulled away from the curb. The swarthy man inside had tucked his notepad and pen into the seat next to him when he saw the tall brunet and shorter blond step out of the house. His job was to keep tabs of every place they went and everyone they saw. The man who was paying him handsomely for the job made it clear that he wanted full details of the lives of both men. It only took one man for the job in the evenings and nighttime since the two men to be followed were inseparable once they left work. He didn't have to guess what was happening in the wee small hours when they went up to the older man's apartment at the end of the day and didn't come out till the next morning. But that was none of his business. His job was to report the facts. He couldn't help wondering why his client needed to know all this, especially since the reports obviously upset him. He had spotted his client in the crowd of protesters that very evening, watching the two as they left work. Well, what the hell, it was his client's business, he reminded himself.
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Craig met with the head of KASP, the Reverend Phillips, to discuss strategy for the day's demonstrations. Thursday had gone exactly like Wednesday's demonstration and both men decided it was time to get a little more aggressive. The studio hired some burly guards to protect their staff and actors the previous day and would probably do so again. Only a smattering of news folks had shown up for the first two gatherings, and it was time to do something more dramatic to capture a little more attention to their cause before the weekend. The filthy film had to be shut down.
Craig Taylor had contacted a gossip mongering yellow journalist from a national magazine, 'Truth Be Told', and offered him an exclusive on the full story behind the making of the new movie, 'Rage'. Sammy Peters, a man with few scruples and less conscience, was chomping at the bit for the chance to bring down the Producers of the new film ever since they had black-listed him for exposing their number one female star for her past as a working girl on the streets of New Orleans. She had been rescued from that life by one of the Producers and brought to Hollywood, where she had made a good name for herself as a leading lady in several small but popular independent films. She made a good story for the tabloid and they hadn't told a single lie. Now was the chance to teach the big dogs a lesson.
Craig met with Peters Thursday night and gave him the complete lowdown on 'Rage'. He then promised the journalist that he would have a rewarding exclusive if he just made sure he was at the studio the next day. Peters was intrigued. He just hoped it wouldn't be the usual placard raising, voices shouting protests that one usually saw at these events. The stage was set for something noteworthy. Hopefully Taylor would follow through on his promise.
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Brian and Justin rose early Friday morning. They had made love the night before with a sense of urgency that they had not felt before. Thursday was stressful on Justin. The protesters had spent almost the entire working day outside the studio making their noises to try and distract the action inside. Luckily the studio sound stages were soundproof and the motley gang of thugs made little impact. However, just knowing they were there was stress enough.
For some reason both men felt uneasy today. Maybe it was because the weekend was looming. Maybe it was just being tired of the harassment. They had both felt they were being followed all the time, but put it down to paranoia. Whatever it was, they only wanted this day to end so they could go back out to the country house. As Brian let Justin out in front of the studio entrance, he was surprised that the street was clear. Maybe the idiots had tired already, he thought to himself. He watched Justin wave goodbye from the front door, giving Brian one of his patented Sunshine smiles, and then disappear inside. He knew he should feel happy that things had apparently calmed down so quickly, but he still had this feeling of unease. Oh well, he thought... as long as Justin was safe inside. Brian drove off turning the car in the direction of his office.
To be continued.......