The Bug Man (Story)

Prologue. Young man arguing with his dad about effectiveness marriage. Makes bitter comments about his parents’ relationship. Dad agrees but says he should go see great Aunt Kitty before he decides permanently. Does so. Finds ageing couple still very much in love living in big house Lewisham. They nice to him. Private joke about the bug man. He curious. Kitty tells him following story.


Pre First World War London. Kitty's parents conventional well to do. She is morbidly shy. Intelligent and sensitive. Parents afraid she never leaves home. All the suitors they get for her are weird and boring. At last give her ultimatum. Choice between living with awful stentorian aunt, or.....in desperation she marries Fenwick Reames. Bacteriologist He is ugly man. Very blunt and difficult. They go Cape Town because that where he can study special bug. The five legged African laughing bug. She finds him sexually repulsive. Wedding night psychodrama. After wedding night has dream of him covered in bugs, eating bugs and having sex with a giant bug! She goes crazy in Cape Town. No friends. No prospect making any. Takes up hobby but he belittles it. In disgusted rage she smashes matchstick house. She has minor kind of breakdown. In a church she starts weeping. Man next to her says, “ I know Jesus is very sexy in his loin cloth my dear, but this is overdoing it.” Gives her hanky. It Ambrose De Coverly. The ambiguous diamond broker. He introduces her to his debauched circle of friends. She finds sexual freedom. Sexual relations husband stop. He notices change in her. She calmer. This carries on for an eighteen months. Bug work going well, then!!!!!!!!! Fenwick hears rumors. Attends a party. The cabaret turns out to be his wife performing a sex act. He scandalized! He overcomes shame. Next day. Feels he can no longer go on in Cape Town because of shame. So he takes post in the interior. Small tribe. Mysterious disease killing them. She horrified. She won't go. Contacts parents. But he got there first. Because of scandal, they disown her! She forced go with him. But when there she overcome by pity at terrible state of village. They work together building hut hospital and disinfecting area. Tribe witch doctor educated man. Went to Eaton. Tribe has weird version of rugby game. At first Fenwick hated but when he excels at tribe rugby they learn respect him. Tribe has religion. Worship Lahcutoh. Their god. A giant praying mantis that lives under termite hill. Fenwick skeptical. But kitty has dream. Lacutoh speaking to her. It is about cure for sickness. They must go into savannah and meet him at waterhole. Fenwick rejects idea. But his experiments failing. Only matter of time before they get sick. Out of desperation he agrees to try it. Fenwick, Kitty and Witch Doctor set off. Must pass thru dangerous areas to get to where Lahcutoh is. Man-eating jaguar. Tribe of pygmy headhunters. The evil swampland. At last get there. It is desolate area of small stunted bushes and gray looking earth. Build fire. Wait for night. Long conversation about meaning of life. Then strange dust storm. When it stops kitty vanished! Nothing they can do but wait. Fenwick goes into rage. Witch doc tries calm him down. 2 days pass. Then storm comes again. When it stops, kitty sitting there! She tells story. In storm uncontrollable urge possessed her to walk off. Walked for hours. Came to dried up waterhole. Roaring noise then Lahcutoh appeared. It very awesome!
Kitty afraid. Feels ground dissolve. Falling thru space. Lands softly next to a small bush with a single flower on it. Bush talks to her. Says pick my flower. She does so. Lahcutoh appears. She gets on his back. They fly into dust storm. End.
Witch doctor wants to discuss story from an anthropological perspective. Fenwick tells him to shut it! They go back tribe.
Fenwick analyses flower. Collects more. Extract serum from it. Gives tribe injections. It works! That night Fenwick and kitty make love!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Coda. Fenwick and Kitty set up clinic in London using serum help people with many different ailments. Medical establishment pooh pooh it. But they don’t care. Have family.
Kitty writes book. AWESOME LAHCUTOH! which does moderately well. They have big house in Lewisham, which is constantly bursting with people. In a book kitty has pressed the flower that the god showed her in the gray land.

The young man leaves the house holding the book. She has given it to him. Sits down on bench in tube. Thinking deeply about strange story. A girl sits next to him. He looks at her. He looks at the book in his hands.


End