Chapter 2

She looked at me wide-eyed, “I’m going to spend the next year flying with the next boss of the company? That’s wild.”

We drove to the secure parking under the office building and left our things in the back as we got into the elevator. I punched the button for the top floor.

As we rose, she said, in a very timid voice, “I’ve never been up there before, this is scary.”

I told her not to worry; Terry was a good guy and would never put anyone into a situation he didn’t know they could handle.

When the elevator doors opened it was a sight that surprised everyone who arrived for the first time. No glitz, no gold painted walls, just a reception desk with Bronwyn, the person who really ran the company, sitting behind it.

She gave us a big grin, “Welcome home, Chris, that was a great job you did on your last tour; the band was very happy and, because of that, so is Terry. Now, welcome to the upper level, Molly. This is as high as it gets without a plane. Do either of you want a drink; Terry will join you if you go through to the lounge.”

I led Molly to the lounge, a good-sized room with picture windows that looked out over the airport and the vista beyond. I got a coffee for each of us and we sat quietly to await Terry. I whispered to Molly that she had better store up her energy because Terry is a bit of a dynamo and was likely to wear her out inside the first minute.

When he arrived, he was hyper and came over, pulling me up in a man-hug to tell me that I had helped get the next tour because of the way I had handled the last one. He allowed me to sit and then did the same with Molly, telling her that the reports back from her captains and the customers from her special interest tours had put her in line for something stupendous. He got us to follow him into his office where we sat around a coffee table on very comfortable armchairs.

He looked at Molly, “Molly, are you prepared to give up a year of your life, living cheek and jowl with the biggest band in the world as of this week?”

She looked at me and then back at him, “Yes, I think that may be fun.”

“Fun!” he hooted “You have no idea of how much hard work that answer is going to cost you. You will, however, be on the payroll twenty-four seven for the duration of the tour. Chris can tell you that there are a lot of good times but the two of you will almost be in charge as the ‘responsible people.’ Don’t expect the band or their people to take any responsibility; you’ll be the ones keeping everyone out of trouble. Chris will tell you about a sticky situation a couple of years ago when he had to take off with an armoured car trying to stop him. That band played like they had found salvation for some shows after that, or so the critics said.”

He then looked at me and the smile left his face.

I sighed, “Don’t bother trying to pussyfoot around it, Terry. They want to invoke ‘the look’ don’t they?”

He smiled again, “You saw Betsy on the way over, didn’t you?”

I nodded and he carried on. “Chris, if we had Molly here as highly experienced as you it would be easy. We have women in the air crews who can do the engineer and cargo control, as well as a lot of girls who can do the cabin crew. There are, however, no women yet who can do what you do. Will you think about it?”

I looked him in the eyes, “Terry, I may just do it for the hell of it. What I have heard about that band will make the year one to remember and you did promise me your seat if I pull it off.”

He laughed and pulled me out of my seat again for a hug. “I knew I could count on you, Chris. You have three weeks before you head off on the first leg. Lesley wants to have a chat with you both before then and has suggested you meet her tomorrow night at her home. Bronny will give you the details. Go get ‘em, champ.”

We left the office after Molly got another hug and I could see the questions on her face. Bronwyn gave us a folder with everything we need to know, as well as a smirk and a hug for both of us.

On the way back down in the elevator Molly finally got her voice. “I can see what you meant about a dynamo. What I didn’t get was the bit about ‘the look’.”

I waited until we were sat in the jeep again.

I started it up, “Molly, sometimes a band trades on the look. They have a stage outfit that becomes synonymous with the band. Think Devo and flowerpot hats, think Abba and sequins. I spent six months flying a heavy metal band around and all I wore the whole time was biker gear and chains. They even did henna tattoos on me, and I don’t think that the holes in my ears have closed up yet. That, funnily enough, may be a good thing. The look is what the band wants to project on tour.”

“So why is that so important to Terry?”

I laughed, “Molly, everyone must project the look, and I mean everyone. What is the current look of the band?”

She thought a bit, “Well, from what I have seen on DVD, they open the show looking and singing like Celtic Women and end the second half as a curious mix of Judas Priest and Suzi Q meets Black Sabbath and Alice Cooper.”

“Exactly” I said, “And when we meet Lesley at her home we may find out which ones we will emulate.”

When she looked sharply at me, I said, “Yes, Molly, I said we. The air and cabin crew all follow the look during the tour and the better we are at it the happier the customer is. You know that the happier the customer is the quicker we get paid.”

That’s when she started giggling so hard, she got hiccups and I had to lean over and pat her back so she could start breathing again. I put the jeep into gear and took us to the company hotel in the city. They had rooms already prepared for us with clothing that fitted.

Molly said that it was a step up from her time on the craft tours and I said that it was to allow us the chance to concentrate on what we do without worrying about laundry or ironing.

“When the look is decided,” I said, “We will have complete changes of outfits waiting for us every time we land. You just leave what you are not wearing in the room, and it is taken care of.”

We had the rest of the day off so went our separate ways, Molly looking at sorting out her old living arrangements and me thinking hard about what may lie in wait for me tomorrow night.

The next morning, I had breakfast and picked up the jeep to go out to the airport. I parked in the hanger and sat there looking at good old Betsy. We had been through a lot together and she was a game old airframe. I looked more closely at the paintwork and saw that the band name ran across the top of the windows, while the names of the members went along under them.

There were eight in the band, three singing and five playing and doing backing. I did like the early part of the shows but could see where the second half was good for the younger set. Under the front windows they had already painted in CeeCee Culver and Molly Edwards with space still for the rest of the crew. On the nose, either side, were big, plump lips, pursed for a kiss and, up on the tail was another pair of lips, this time vertical and from another part of the female anatomy.

The guys were working on the underside of the plane, but it was difficult to see just what it could be. The painting foreman took pity on me and showed me the sketch they were working to. It looked like a woman with the body along the fuselage and her arms stretched out as if she was flying, the hands reaching the tips of the wings. She wore a bikini, and I caught my breath at this would look stunning as we took off or landed; especially at night as we had floodlights that would illuminate the underside. It was a statement. He invited me to have a look inside and told me that I would be surprised.

He was right. I expected a cacophony of pinks, but it was all very neutral and tasteful. It had the usual settees and office areas with tables and benches. There were rows of seats for take-offs and landings and a section with bunks that could be curtained off for privacy. The cockpit was untouched, and we had a crew room just behind the cockpit which was nice. Down the back were the toilets, two salons, a sick room and gym.

It was businesslike and very well sorted out. In the middle were the kitchens and more toilets and a small area for the cabin crew to sit during landing and take-off. When I got back to the gantry he said “Now I will show you all the things you didn’t notice. This is all as per the orders; the band want to record everything for a documentary.”

We started at the cockpit where he pointed out tiny lenses which would record everything done and said, then on to about fifty other lenses throughout the plane except in the bed area, sick room, and toilets. He said that there were servers in the tail to take all the recordings. We would certainly have to watch our mouths for a year.

That evening a limo picked us up to go and see Lesley at her home. I was worried and Molly was excited. We had been dressed for a formal dinner with me in a tux and her in a long dress.

I thought she looked fabulous and told her so. Lesley had a big ranch-style place in the hills, and it was jumping when we arrived. She came and welcomed us herself, giving us both nice hugs. She told us just to mingle and enjoy the party; the business could be discussed later.

Molly was almost beside herself seeing the rest of the guests. Beside the band there were other top of the chart singers and a few well-known film stars. Everyone was very talkative, and I caught up with a few of the band members I had flown with before, introducing them to Molly. Before we could talk to everyone, we were called into a dining room and we sat next to Lesley.

At the end of a good meal, we were all sitting with a drink in front of us and Lesley stood up and tapped her glass.

“Now” she announced “We come to an interesting part of the evening. You have all had a chance to look at and speak to Chris and Molly, here. They will be flying us around the world soon. What I want to know, from you lot, what part of our show they should emulate.”

Everyone said, “First half!”

That was that our look was to be the Celtic Woman half and I must say that Molly would look really nice.

Me, well I just don’t know, yet. I am sure they will do their best.

As the party wound up, we were spoken to by just about everyone before they left. In the end it was just us and the band and Lesley gave us both a hug.

“Now, it’s nitty gritty time. Chris and Molly, we know that you have the skills to fly us about in absolute safety. What I am going to say here and now is between us, right!”

We both said yes, and she went on.

“The girls you see here are all branded as lesbians as that is the band we are supposed to be. Now, three of them are married and two of them have steady boyfriends. That said, we expect that you will keep this from leaking before we end the tour so that we can steal away and live our own lives. When you have chosen the rest of your crew, I will pay for everyone to have a full make-over to look as fabulous as we do at the start of the show. None of you will have to get the grunge look we finish as, but we do expect the crew to look fabulous twenty-four seven.”

When the limo stopped at the front door Lesley held me back as Molly got in.

“CeeCee,” she said in a quiet voice, “My mother has asked me to tell you that she really did enjoy your attention in the Bahamas, especially her joining of the mile-high club. She will be coming to some of the shows and told me that she will be around when we finish, whisking you off to her mansion to suck the life out of you, that is, if you are prepared to be loved for the rest of your short life.”

In the limo going back to the hotel we just sat, quietly.

Molly reached out and took my hand, “Thank you, Chris. If tonight is an example of what the year is going to be like I had better start going to the gym, I think I’ll need it.”

Marianne Gregory © 2022