April 3, 1935: 5:15 p.m.: Union Station, Los Angeles :

Justin tried his best to act casual as if he didn't have a care in the world as he stepped down from the train onto the station platform. Half the girls from the orchestra were ahead of him already waiting, and the other half were behind him waiting their turn to deboard. They had all made it to Tinseltown in one piece, and their anticipation over their future careers kept them chipper and carefree. Justin, still playing his role as 'Sunny', plastered an excited smile on his face to match theirs. All the while, his eyes scanned the crowd around them searching out two faces, one that had become well known by now and one that was still a mystery to him.

Brian had left the train ahead of the girls and placed himself strategically behind a thick pole, out of view in the hopes of spotting the mysterious shooter that had made an effort to silence young Taylor. He didn't have much to go on as he scanned the crowd. His eyes fell on one male hand after another, because a crooked pinkie finger was the only solid lead he had. Luckily, few men were wearing gloves like they would have been in the still frigid air of New York City. Unluckily, Brian saw nothing suspicious that would lead him to believe that the shooter was nearby, watching the girls as they gathered on the station platform.

Neither Brian nor Justin could see the object of their search as he sequestered himself safely behind a large cart holding dozens of suitcases, waiting to be placed in the baggage car for the return trip back East once all the previous baggage was taken off. Johan had managed, by some miracle, to exit the train in Fullerton without getting caught by the intrepid police detective. He then made haste to hire a taxicab with a driver more than willing to take him all the way to LA for the extra hundred-dollar bill he was getting for a tip. A hundred was more than he usually earned for a whole week's worth of pick-ups. Johan managed to beat the train to the station by just enough time to find his excellent hiding spot. Best of all, he was close enough to hear some of the conversation of the group of girls that Justin was a part of.

Justin remembered Brian's instructions and kept himself surrounded by the ladies. The moment that Debbie exited with her son and brother in tow, the excited chatter began to die down and all eyes turned to the redhead. Debbie waited until she had everyone's full attention and then made her announcement.

"Okay, ladies, we have reached the Promised Land and all we have to do is show those movie folks that we have the talent to make their film even better. Are we all going to give it one hundred percent effort?"

A chorus of voices rose almost simultaneously. "You bet, boss." And, "We're with you all the way, Miss Debbie." And, "We're ready to take our shot at the big time, Deb," could be heard loud and clear, despite all the noise of departing and arriving passengers up and down the platform.

"Alright, ladies! That's what I want to hear. Now, I need you to gather all your luggage and instruments and meet me outside at the cab stands. I've got rooms booked for us at the 'Hollywood Hotel for Young Ladies' and Vic and Michael will be staying at the YMCA nearby. We're expected to report to the studio on Monday so you'll have a few days to get oriented and check out the city. Of course, we'll also have rehearsals every day, but I promise you plenty of free time too. We're here to make a name for ourselves, however we all know that musicians who have a little fun in their lives are also musicians who play their hearts out. So, let's get started on our grand new adventure, shall we?"

Again, a chorus of approval rang out. Justin felt a great deal of relief. This meant that he had at least five days to figure out where to go from here. At least he was no longer completely alone in his struggles. It was hard to believe that just hours ago he was blithely unaware of how close he was to feeling the cold steel of handcuffs on his wrists or a bullet in his brain, and he had no one he could trust with his secret. Now, as he looked around again trying to spot the handsome detective who had unmasked him, he knew he had not only an ally but someone who actually believed in his innocence, besides Daphne.

Justin was surprised at how much he trusted Detective Kinney, despite the fact that he had only really met him an hour or so ago even though he had been noticing the man for a lot longer. Logically, there was no reason to trust him so completely even though the man had literally saved his life. But logic didn't hold a place in this equation. Illogical or not, Justin felt safe knowing that Kinney was out there watching his back.

As for Brian, he too was confused by how much faith he had in young Taylor. There was no real reason for him to believe Justin's story about how Vanderbeke was murdered and how he had become involved, but whether it made sense or not he did believe the kid. There was simply something about Justin that cried out 'innocence'. Brian didn't stop to analyze whether there was something else about Justin that cried out to him. And yet, at that moment an image of some of the randier dreams about the blond that he had been having for the last few days flashed through his mind. He quickly shook it off. He reminded himself that he wasn't helping Justin just so that he could get into his pants. He was helping him because he believed in his innocence. One thing Brian hated most was injustice.

Brian quickly set his mind back to the task at hand and carefully watched the gaggle of females as their leader finished up her speech and everyone hurried to obey her. He waited until the troupe was on the move and then blended in with the crowd as best he could in order to follow them. He was unaware that his quarry, Johan, had slipped past him after hearing where the redhead had informed the group they would be staying while in Hollywood. He had work to do. He had been surprised to see that the cop hadn't arrested the kid, even though he was certain that the detective had also recognized the blond for who he really was under the wig. Maybe he had misinterpreted the cop's actions earlier. Maybe he just thought he was rescuing a damsel in distress.  It didn't much matter. He knew who Justin was, and he was still free to go after the kid. His job wasn't completed yet. Whether the cop was still around or not, Justin had to be silenced. He moved quickly to the cab stands and gave the address of the hotel the redhead had mentioned. He needed to scope out the place before his next move.

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Much Later that Same Night:

Brian stretched out on the cramped little bed in the cheap hotel he had checked into right after making sure all the ladies of the band, especially Justin, had gotten to their destination safely. It was the only place he could afford that was very close by to the 'women-only' hotel where they were all staying at. He could clearly hear melodious sounds of singing over the sound of running water coming from the tiny shower in the bathroom off to his right. He was eager to see the 'man' who would be emerging from that room very shortly.

Brian was surprised at how quickly young Taylor had responded to the message he had left for him at the desk right after the ladies checked in. If the young man hadn't responded to the message, which informed Justin as to where he was staying and that he needed to see him as soon as it was safe to get away, Brian wasn't sure what Plan B would entail in order to safely talk to Justin and work out how they were going to draw the mystery man out in the open without risking Justin's life. Fortunately, Justin did get the message almost immediately after settling into his room with roommate, Cherry. The first thing Justin did when he arrived at Brian's door was tell him how he had enlisted Cherry's help in getting away from his own hotel for the entire night.

Luckily, Justin was not only artistically talented but in possession of a very sharp mind. He used that intelligence to come up with a cover story that he knew his die-hard romantic roommate would love. He told Cherry that the gorgeous man they had both been flirting with on the train had approached 'her' the day before they arrived in LA and struck up a conversation. He added that the attraction between them proved mutual, and that the man was staying in Hollywood for a little while on business. He had invited 'Sunny' to spend some time with him while they were both in town.

All of the girls in the orchestra knew that Miss Debbie was no prude. If any of her girls found romance while on the road, she never interfered as long as they didn't miss rehearsals or go off without someone knowing where they were or with whom. As long as 'Sunny' kept Cherry informed as to when she was going to be with her new beau, Miss Debbie would not care at all. Thus, 'Sunny' told Cherry that 'she' would be spending the night with her new fella and gave her the name of the hotel. Cherry was tickled pink as her new best friend strode purposefully out of the room on 'her' way to 'her' rendezvous with the handsome stranger. If she couldn't have him, she was content for 'Sunny' to have a chance with him. Even though he was a stranger, Cherry could sense that he was one of the good guys. Her instincts had never been wrong.

The first thing that Justin asked the detective when Brian ushered him into the tiny room was if he could have a shower and change out of his 'girlie' clothes. He had carefully packed his only male clothing into the overnight bag he carried and he longed to look like himself again. Brian agreed and was now waiting to see the results of the change. The sound of the water running finally stopped but the music continued on. Brian could picture the young man's relief at no longer being forced to be in disguise. No doubt that was why the song sounded so cheerful.

Finally the door opened, letting out steam into the outer room. Justin stepped out into the room and Brian could finally see clearly why he had been so attracted to the young man when he first saw him on the train. Justin Taylor was simply beautiful... much more so as a young man than as the woman he was pretending to be. Brian was so caught up in the image of a masculine Justin that he failed to say a word.

"Well? Is this better... more like the man you were trying to track down?"

"Oh yes," Brian almost sighed. He got up from the bed and walked over to stand in front of Justin. Without thinking, his hand went up and brushed a long, wet strand of silken hair away from Justin's forehead.

Justin felt goose bumps as they rose along his skin. Was he getting his signals mixed up? Was this gorgeous hunk of a man actually flirting with him? There was no way that the very cop who had been assigned to drag him back to New York was a man like himself... and attracted to him to boot! He couldn't be that lucky, could he? Justin instantly decided to test his theory.

"Brian, I really can't thank you enough for coming to my rescue, and even more so for trusting me when I told you the truth about what happened. I know the story sounds wild because I have nothing to back it up, but your faith in me is the kindest thing to happen to me in my entire life. I owe you my life and much more."

Justin leaned up on his tip-toes and placed a soft kiss on Brian's stubbly cheek. As he stood back on his heels, he looked deep into Brian's eyes. Their eyes remained locked for breathless seconds. Suddenly Brian's hands came up. He laid a palm on each cheek and let his mouth come down to join his lips to Justin's. What started out as a soft, lingering kiss slowly grew in intensity. Before either man knew what was happening, or could explain what drove them, their lips parted and the kiss deepened. It began to engulf them. Instinctually their bodies drew closer until there was no space separating them. Still the kiss lingered on.

Finally the two men broke apart, each breathing hard like a marathon runner at the finish line. They stood there, slightly bewildered by what had just happened. They had each recognized their attraction to the other, but never expected for it to go any further. Now it was clear that the attraction was mutual. Justin said nothing. The next move was Brian's. Brian's response happened swiftly, before he could analyze and ruin the moment. He pulled Justin into a close hug and kissed the young man again, this time letting his tongue probe for entry between pearly white teeth.

As the two men kissed ardently, Brian's hands reached for Justin's shirt and he removed the garment from Justin's body in one swift movement. Justin did the same for Brian just as quickly. Their pants fell to the ground next and the two men stood back to admire the view. All the fantasies were proving to be short of the real thing. A few moments more and they could no longer hold back. The couple scooted the few feet backwards to the bed as they clung to one another. They fell to the bed in a clinch. Justin thanked heaven for his wisdom in preparing Cherry not to expect him back until morning. It was going to be a night that cried out for no interruptions. It was going to be a night to remember.

To be continued........