PROFESSOR HANSSEN'S TIME MACHINE CHAPTER THREE
Slatternly Honey led Ben to a room, all the time fawning over him:
"Such a handsome young man, and how generous of your friend Sir McKenzie Chalker, to purchase a night in paradise for you!"
Ben gave her a weak smile and entered the room.
A frightened looking but pretty young girl lay there, the covers pulled up to her chin.
"Jessica Harrison, pull back the counterpane and let the young man here see what he's getting."
Jessica pulled back the covers mechanically. She was naked and trembling.
"That'll be all thank you" Ben said, somewhat sharply, to Slatternly Honey.
She gave him a big false smile and left, saying over her shoulder:
"Don't forget now, Sir, you must be out of this room by seven sharp or your good friend must pay extra."
"Hello, I'm Ben."
"J-Jessica."
"No need to be afraid of me. Are you cold, sweetheart?"
She shook her head and tears came into her eyes.
"I-I've never done this before. I'm new here. I was a lady's maid but the sons of the house accused me of stealing when I wouldn't lie with them, and I was dismissed with nothing. I came here, hoping for kinder treatment. Slatternly Honey pretended to be my friend and gave me food and this dress. Now she says if I don't make money back for her, she'll tell them I stole the food and clothes and I'll hang."
"Don't be afraid any more. We'll just lie here and talk till you fall asleep."
She looked worried.
"But if that happens I'll be beaten for not pleasing you."
"Ah, but I'm going to tell that Honey person that you pleased me very much! Now please, stop being scared. Come here."
He lay down with her, changing his position so that her head lay on his chest.
"Now let's just talk."
In the next room, Dylan was having the opposite trouble with the lusty Marian.
"Look" he said wearily, "I was pushed into this, I don't want a woman for the night, and… don't touch that!"
Marian was offended.
"What's wrong? Don't you like me? Aren't I pretty enough?"
She didn't dare insult her customer, not when she'd been 'given' to him for the night by the rich Sir McKenzie Chalker.
"It's not that. You're really pretty. It's just..."
Dylan fell back on a tried and trusted excuse. He knew all too well what could happen to gays at this time in history. He sincerely hoped Ben knew it too. He liked the lad and would hate to have to rescue him from a hanging.
"I was given more to drink than I am used to. Now I have a headache."
"Ahhh! I understand now. Well, Sir, as long as I get my fee I'm happy to just lie here and stroke your head all night if you so choose."
"That would be admirable" Dylan replied.
In the early hours, Sir McKenzie staggered home, hoping to continue his fun with Rita and her pretty maid Constance. Singing a cheerful aria written by Mr Purcell he strode up the steps to his home.
"'Tis I, 'tis I, 'tis I who have warmed ye…
Despite the cold weather, I've brought ye together…
'Tis I… oh, poxy plague, what are the words?"
Poor McKenzie meant to go up and lie on his bed for a while, then go and find two very grateful ladies.
Instead, he collapsed across the bed and was soon snoring loudly.
"Connie, we can't. It'd be like stealing!"
"Do you want a whipping or worse when he finds out we're not into him? Or burned at the stake because he finds out our secret? Rita, I feel bad about letting the poor man down, but we need to be selfish here. We have to leave before he awakens."
"And just abandon Ben and Dylan?"
"Of course not. All four of us are leaving. But we need to be quiet when we knock on their doors."
Marian was easy enough, she was already hurrying down the stairs. If she hurried she could satisfy another customer before the rest of the household awoke. It was a shame the nice looking man in her bed wasn't well, but she'd get at least one gold coin from the night's work even if that greedy bitch Honey had to take her cut.
"Who is it please?" Ben called.
"Ben, keep your voice down. We're leaving, it's too dangerous for us here."
"In that case I want to bring somebody. Give us five minutes."
Soon he arrived with Jessica in tow.
Connie was amazed, she really had thought Ben was gay.
"She's been mistreated and I don't want to abandon her to that trollop. She won't tell on us, will you, Jessica?"
"I just want to escape this life, Madam."
"Oh you'll do that all right. But you have to run."
They fled across the town, and just reached the machine as the rest of London was awakening. Connie manoeuvred the credit-card like key, and soon they were safely inside. Jessica's eyes were wide with wonder. She still didn't fully understand, but the fear of the vicious Honey was bigger than her unease about her future.
"Forward this time?"
Connie, unexpectedly generous, said:
"Dylan, it's your turn to choose."
"Hmm. These clothes we have on would be accepted more in the future than in the past. Let's try… forward and slightly sideways together."
As the machine moved, Ben said gently:
"It bumps a bit at first, Jessica, but you'll not be harmed."
Dylan felt a pang of disappointment. He could have sworn Ben was gay, and he'd started to have feelings for him.
The machine moved. Jessica felt a little nauseous at first, but that quickly passed.
Then the machine came to a halt.
"Shall I look?" Rita asked, wanting to be brave again.
"Better that I look, just in case." Dylan was feeling protective. And very put out with Ben.
He opened the door.
He could see a building marked 'Sherriff's Office.' Somewhere along the street, a honky tonk piano was playing. And gunfire in the distance.
The Wild West.
"Yee hah" he said miserably.
Back in 1690, Sir McKenzie was slapping his own thigh in great amusement. Those cheeky wenches! They'd fooled him all right. But there were lovely wenches all over London, and, hey ho, Good King Charlie was on the throne again. Life was grand.
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