0 comments/ 39962 views/ 5 favorites Behind the Wall By: clairejones Behind the Wall She stands naked and shivering, behind a white wall that was erected behind a local strip mall. It is such a private place for being so very public. The strip mall, located just 50 feet away, was constructed not long ago and the area is still somewhat undeveloped with sparse forest immediately surrounding the property. Tall pines brush the sky and have provided a soft carpet of pine needles on the forest floor beneath her bare feet. The warm rays of the sun peak through the branches and provide much needed warmth on her naked flesh. Not 100 feet away, just through the trees on the other side of a small lake, heavy equipment rumbles by, driven by construction workers carrying out their daily routines, completely unaware of the woman standing underneath the trees not far from them. His instructions run through her mind over and over again and she tries to remember every command. "Walk behind the wall, strip, do not think, obey. Place your clothes in the bag provided, place the blindfold over your eyes and the gag in your mouth, violate yourself with the vibrator until you are approached. I may be watching." As she stands there, her ears are bombarded with every little sound. The noises around her have become more much intense after having placed the blindfold over her own eyes per his explicit directions. She can hear the construction equipment get closer and her breath quickens. Will she be seen standing there, completely nude? She trembles, her heart beats so hard that she swears it is going to explode, she feels her blood pounding in her ears and her throat constricts to the point where she can barely swallow. Her mouth is dry from the combination of fear, anticipation and the red ball gag filling her mouth. She parts her legs and feels the rush of cool air caress the wet and engorged lips of her cunt. Spreading her legs wider, her full lips part to expose her now throbbing clit and aching hole. She runs her hand down the length of the pink vibrator, it's casing so hard and cold, then turns the dial at the base of it. The noise of the toy startles her and she tries to calm her rapid breathing, her face and chest are flushed with embarrassment and arousal. She reaches between her legs with her left hand, parts her juicy lips and then thrusts the vibrator into her pussy with her right hand. She gasps as the vibrations move inside of her and she slides the now slick shaft in and out of her aroused hole. Time passes at a snail's pace as she continues to fuck herself. Where is he? Is he watching her? How long has he been watching? Is he there at all? Will someone else come upon her and take advantage of her per the instructions taped to her chest? The sign had also been left for her by him. It reads, "I am here to be used and tormented, I only ask that after you have had your way with me that you allow me to cum like the whore I am". How long has she been standing there with her nipples erect and cunt dripping wet. Suddenly, her ears detect movement, a different sound, and before she even has a chance to assimilate the noise he has his hands entwined in her hair and she feels cold steel at her throat. Tears form in her eyes and she thinks, "God what have I done?" She feels him press up against her and his breath tickles her ear as she hears a soft "shhhhhhhhhhh". Otherwise, he makes no noise, there is no need, she knows what he is there for and what she has agreed to submit to. She feels him swiftly take the vibrator from her hands and hears him place it in the bag with her clothes. He then grabs her wrists roughly and brings them behind her back where he lashes them together with duct tape. She feels something cover her ears and everything becomes muffled. No sight, no sound, can't scream, can't run. She is helpless prey. She feels his hand grab her ponytail and indicate his desire for her to begin to walk. She is tentative, unfamiliar with the sensation of moving while being unable to see or hear, she has to depend completely upon him to be her eyes and ears. Trust, she reminds herself, he will not harm you, he "just" wants to fuck you and use you, he swore you would walk away and has always let you. Trust him. Her tears are unable to roll down her cheeks as they become absorbed by the cloth over her eyes. She stumbles along awkwardly, her breasts heaving back and forth with each stride, his hand firmly gripping her bound arms as he walks behind her directing her to the place of her violation. The scene of the "crime". He pulls on her restrained arms, indicating that she should stop. They have arrived, this is the place. She stands rigidly as she feels him begin to examine her body with his hands, pinching, twisting, slapping, violating. She has no idea where the next sensation will come from, what it will be or how much force it will be delivered with. She has to prepare for everything, or nothing at all. His hands explore every inch of her while she stands completely still, unable to resist, nowhere to go. She then feels him pull her hair in a downward motion and press on one of her shoulders with his other hand. He wants her to kneel and she clumsily complies. Once on her knees, she feels him manipulating the buckle of the ball gag and removes it from her mouth. As soon as she thinks she is free of that encumbrance, her mouth is filled again but this time with his large throbbing cock. It fills her mouth as he rams it violently between her lips. She gags and sputters and is afraid she will vomit if he continues, she wants him to stop but she has no say. He seems to sense her distress and while he still continues to fuck her whorish mouth he holds back slightly so she can adjust and take him deep. She hears a moan escape from his lips. Before long she feels pressure on her shoulders again, requiring her to sit on the ground. She only now notices that he has provided a blanket and is somehow thankful for his compassion. How ironic she thinks that she would find comfort in his thoughtfulness under such circumstances. She feels him slowly lower her to the forest floor. With her hands bound behind her, she has to once again trust him not to let her fall. The cold steel once again caresses her soft flesh and she gasps as she feels the edge slice ever so slightly into the edge of her nipple. She hears a groan from her assailant as she feels the warm fluid trace a crimson line down the side of her breast. He then spreads her legs apart so wide she swears he will rip her in half. Her wet cunt is now exposed and completely vulnerable. She can feel his erection slide easily against her own, tormenting and teasing her little nub which now aches for release. Then suddenly with no warning he slams into her, fucking her hard, pounding her pussy and splitting her open. She cries out but is quickly muffled by his hand coming down firmly over her nose and mouth and she struggles to gasp for air. She feels herself becoming lightheaded before he releases her face and she sucks in fresh, life-giving air before it is quickly cut off again. She is reduced to whimpers as he rapes her hole and deprives her of the air she so desperately needs. Over and over the assault continues, slaps rain down on her breasts and her face, she feels his teeth rake over her flesh and bite her nipples. He grabs her thighs with his hands and pulls her against him repeatedly, pushing his cock deep into her body, the head bruising her cervix with every stroke. She feels like she is beginning to fade, to separate herself from her violation and the pain when she hears him groan loudly, she knows he is close and her eagerness to please him results in her beginning to move with him, thrust for thrust, she begins to beg him to cum in her. "Please, cum in me, use me, violate me, I belong to you, I am your prey", she pleads as his thrusts become more urgent and she feels him explode inside of her, emptying his load deep in her belly, using her as his cum dump before he finally collapses in exhaustion against her body. She feels him remove her constraints, the cum seeps out of her pussy onto the blanket and her legs. He lifts the blindfold and she sees her attacker for the first time. He kisses her and tells her that she has been a very pleasing whore and that if she is a good girl, that she might get used again and again. She trembles and weeps, she knows she will come back for more. Behind the Walls of Ivy Looking up from the geology exam he was preparing, Shale Stephens glanced out the dirty little window of his office. There they were: the iconic ivy-covered walls that had come to symbolize the apex of academia in America. "There are people out there who would kill for a job with that view," he thought to himself. "A tenure-track position as an assistant professor at an Ivy League school, good pay, a beautiful setting, surrounded by eager young students and some of the smartest minds in the world: what's not to like?" "If only they knew," he shook his head wryly as he returned to his work. Shale had held similar rose-colored views when he'd received his job offer from the university. Now, almost two years later, he was deeply disillusioned. For starters, the pay he'd been offered had looked very attractive until he discovered just how expensive it was to live in an Ivy League city. With the high cost of living combined with the payment schedule for his student loans, Shale had found himself struggling to have any sort of a normal lifestyle. The only thing that had saved him was that when he'd accepted the job he'd managed to negotiate a position for his wife, Sylvia. She'd gone to work for the Provost's office as a special assistant, and the additional income she brought in had meant the couple could enjoy a few "luxuries" like a two-bedroom apartment closer to the university. But money wasn't the only source of Shale's discontent. The university evaluated its professors on their teaching, research, and service to the university. For Shale those requirements translated into teaching a full load of courses every semester while also serving as an advisor to a number of students. At the same time he was expected to conduct ground-breaking research, get it published in a prestigious peer-reviewed journal, and, in his spare time, serve on several university committees. The result of all these requirements was that Shale found himself working over sixty hours a week every month of the school year. The summer "break" offered little respite. With the academic year consumed by teaching, advising and committee work, the summer was the only chance Shale had to do any research and writing. Once when he'd added up all the hours he worked, Shale was dismayed to discover that he was earning less than $30 an hour. "I'd be better off financially if I'd gone to work straight out of college rather than going to graduate school," he thought ruefully. But he always been fascinated by the origin and development of the planet and he loved the opportunity to share that excitement with others. He sighed and turned back to the examination in front of him. The year would soon be over and he wanted to have the final exam ready. Of course he knew the subject matter thoroughly but because the department had introduced a new text, Shale had to be sure his final exam covered what was in the text. That was another of Shale's pet peeves. The textbook the department required was written by Dr. Gray, the chairman of the Geology Department. That was fair enough - the chairman was a recognized authority in the field - but what irked Shale was that Gray put out a new edition every other year. The changes from one edition to the next were minimal but they ensured that students couldn't buy used texts, thus guaranteeing additional royalty income for Professor Gray. They also meant that Shale had to rework his lectures and exams to conform to the new text, adding yet another task to his already long list. A knock on his office door interrupted Shale's concentration. Surprised, he glanced down at his calendar and saw to his dismay that he had a student conference scheduled. He sighed to himself at the inconvenience and said, "Come in." The door to his tiny office opened and a pretty blond co-ed poked her head around the corner. "Is this a good time for our meeting, Professor Stephens?" she asked politely in her little-girl's voice. It wasn't a good time as far as Shale was concerned, but being available to meet with students was an important part of his responsibilities, so he kept his irritation to himself and beckoned the young woman to enter. As she stepped into his office and took a seat on the small sofa, he noticed that she was wearing an ankle-length skirt and a zip-front sweater for the cool weather they were having that spring. As she settled herself, he tried to recall why Taylor Poindexter wanted to meet with him today. Shale regarded Taylor with mixed emotions. Without question she was an attractive young woman, and he knew that she had to be reasonably intelligent or she would never have been accepted to the university. But as far as his class was concerned, she was a poor student who spent most of her time tweeting or checking her Facebook page. It was small wonder, he thought, that she was failing the class. "What can I do for you, Ms. Poindexter?" he asked politely, even though he was pretty sure what she wanted. A lot of students chose geology to meet their science requirement because they believed it would be easier than chemistry, biology or physics. Shale had been chagrinned to learn that Introduction to Geology was commonly known as "Rocks for Jocks" among the student body. It was usually only after the students had gotten well into the semester that they learned the truth: the physical history of the planet was a complex and demanding subject. Sure enough, Taylor quickly launched into a litany of concerns about her grades in his class and self-serving excuses for her performance. Then she got to the heart of the reason for her visit. "Isn't there something I can do to bring my grade up, Professor Stephens?" she asked, batting her eyes at him. "I really can't afford to fail your course." Shale stifled his impatience and said mildly, "Really, Ms. Poindexter, the best thing you can do is study a little harder for the final. I know geology isn't your passion, but it really deserves more attention than you've given it so far." "But there's so much to learn, and besides, the final won't help my earlier grades. Isn't there some special project I could take on, maybe something I could do for extra credit?" she asked coyly. Then, to Shale's astonishment, she slowly uncrossed her legs and the full-length wrap skirt she wore fell open to reveal the full expanse of her leg. The black over-the-knee boots that had been hidden by her skirt now lured his eyes all the way up her legs. As he sat there stunned by her brazenness, she proceeded to rearrange her legs again, in the process revealing that the skimpy panties she wore were bright red. Then she reached up and casually unzipped her sweater low enough to uncover her matching red bra. "Are you sure there isn't something I could do that would persuade you to give me a better grade in your course, Professor?" she purred at him. As Shale shifted uncomfortably in his chair, trying to come up with a response, the door to his office flew open and two young women popped into the doorway. Shale looked up to see his graduate assistant and her roommate smirking at him. "Weren't we supposed to go over the lesson plan now, Professor Stephens?" the blonde asked in a sly tone of voice. "What? Oh, yes, Annika, you're right, I'd forgotten," Shale stuttered gratefully. Turning back to the coed displayed before him on his couch, he said hastily, "I'm sorry, Ms. Poindexter, but I seem to have a conflict at this time. We'll have to reschedule." Taylor hastily drew her skirt back together and zipped up her sweater. She stood up abruptly, glaring at the two women standing in the doorway. "That's alright, Professor. But I'd still like to do something for extra credit, so just let me know." Then she barged her way past the other two women, obviously unhappy that her plans had been interrupted. Once she was gone, Shale heaved a huge sigh of relief. "It's a good thing for me you two showed up when you did. That woman was trying to seduce me into giving her a better grade. I've never had a student try to bribe me with sex before." Now the two women began to laugh out loud, and Shale stared at them suspiciously. "Alright," he demanded, "what's so funny?" Annika Mortensen, the blonde of the two and his graduate assistant, gave him a big grin. "OK, we confess. I noticed on your calendar that Taylor had an appointment for today, and I figured that you might need rescuing. She has a reputation for trying to sleep her way through the faculty." Mosa Pienaar, Annika's roommate, piped up, "Yeah, and the word on campus is that she's had success with several professors already. So we figured you'd need to be rescued!" "So basically the two of you set me up," Shale said, folding his arms in mock anger. "The least you could have done was to warn me about her in advance." "What, and miss seeing the embarrassed look on your face?" Mosa asked gleefully. "Not to mention that bulge in your britches," she added with a smirk. Shale glanced at himself and quickly sat down behind his desk in embarrassment. Trying to cover his discomfort he hurried on, "Well, nevertheless I'm glad you two showed up when you did. It's a scary thing to come face to face with a man-eater!" he said with a grin. When the laughter died down, his expression grew a little more serious. "Now, unless there really is something we need to go over, will you two get out of here and let me finish going over this material? I have to get done and then get out of here in time to get home and get cleaned up. The Faculty Reception is being held at the President's mansion tonight, and I don't dare be late for that." With smiles and waves the two women departed, still giggling to each other, and Shale couldn't help grinning as they left. Annika had been assigned to him at the start of the academic year and she'd proven to be a much greater help than he'd expected. She was teaching Shale's introductory geology laboratory while working toward her PhD, and she also helped him with grading papers and advising some of the students. Shale had found her to be bright, talented and personable. And, he had to admit, with her long blonde hair and tall, slim figure, she was extremely easy on the eyes. All in all, Shale concluded, her fiancé back home was a very lucky man. It was also fascinating to Shale to observe the relationship between Annika and Mosa, her roommate. Due to a shortage of graduate student housing, the two of them had been paired to room together by chance. Besides the fact that both were extremely attractive and intelligent, the two of them had almost nothing in common. As her platinum blonde hair hinted, Annika was of Swedish extraction and came from Minnesota. By contrast, Mosa, who was working on her Masters of Business Administration, was from South Africa. With her nut-brown skin tone, short-cropped ebony hair and curvier figure, she made a striking contrast to Annika. Yet despite their differences the two had become as close as sisters, and it was so common to see them together that they had become known as "Salt and Pepper" on campus. Putting thoughts of the two young women aside, Shale returned to the test. "I've got to be on time tonight," he told himself sternly. "Sylvia will chew me out if we're late to the President's reception." As he was packing up his laptop to head home a half-hour later, a chirp from his phone signaled an incoming text. When he read it, he sighed. It was from Sylvia. "C U at mansion. Provost needs me 2 work. Will get home late. S." As he drove home, a dark mood began to rise inside him. It had seemed like such a coup for him to negotiate a position for Sylvia when he came to the university. The job for her in the Provost's office would mean extra spending money for a few small luxuries that they wouldn't have been able swing on his salary alone due to his student debt. Furthermore, Shale had thought that it wouldn't hurt for his wife to make contacts so high up in the administration. If the President was the chief executive officer of the university, the Provost was the chief operating officer, a powerful figure with direct oversight of all academic support units, institutional responsibility for the allocation of resources and leadership of the university Budget Committee. His influence might prove helpful when it came time to evaluate Shale for tenure. But things hadn't worked out the way Shale expected. Not only had his own workload proven much heavier than he expected but after the first year Sylvia's job began to consume more of her time too. Initially the Provost took advantage of her talent as a photographer; later he began utilizing her organizational skills. As a result, this year her work schedule had grown longer and more irregular, and she often handled evening and weekend events. Of late it seemed to Shale that he and Sylvia communicated with each other by text and email more than in person. Not surprisingly, opportunities for sex had become few and fleeting, a loss that Shale felt acutely. But, if he were truthful with himself, it wasn't just their hectic lives that was bothering Shale. It seemed to him that his wife had grown increasingly cold toward him, especially over the last semester. The easy affection that characterized their first years of marriage had all but disappeared. Now Shale sensed a growing level of dissatisfaction on Sylvia's part for their lifestyle in general and for him in particular. It seemed clear to him that the two of them were growing apart, and lately he'd begun to wonder if someone else might be the catalyst for the changes he was seeing. Such doubts had a corrosive effect on his normally cheerful outlook. When he got home, the apartment was empty, but when he went back to their bedroom he found a suit, tie and white shirt laid out for him to wear. "I'm not a child," he swore under his breath. "I know what to wear to an event like this." Nevertheless, to forestall an argument he put on the clothes Sylvia had selected and then headed out for the reception. In order to provide a suitable place to entertain dignitaries and potential donors, the University provided the President with a lavish mansion in the toniest neighborhood in the city. When Shale drove up to the curb in front, an undergraduate acting as a valet rushed to take his keys and park his car. Shale couldn't help noticing the way the young man turned his nose up at Shale's older model sedan. Shale walked quickly through the mansion, pausing only to grab an hors d'oeuvre and glass of white wine from a server. Then he walked out through the French doors to the huge terrace, which was gaily festooned with paper lanterns. Making his way through the crowd of faculty members and their spouses, he went looking for Sylvia. When the crowd parted momentarily he caught a glimpse of her across the way, deep in conversation with Eric Solveig, the University Provost. Shale felt acid rise in his stomach when he spotted Solveig's hand on Sylvia's waist. Then Sylvia noticed him and said something to her boss. When the Provost turned and saw Shale approaching, Solveig hastily stepped back from Sylvia and extended his hand toward Shale, who reluctantly shook it. "So glad you could be here tonight, Shale," the Provost said smoothly. "Sylvia's been telling me lots of good things about you and your research." Shale glanced over at Sylvia, but she kept her face neutral. He returned his attention to the Provost and thanked him for the implied compliment. With the formalities completed, the Provost went on easily, "I hope you don't mind if I steal your wife away for a while tonight. She's proven so capable that I don't know what I'd do without her." With no more apology than that the Provost turned and steered Sylvia away while Shale stood there trying to think of some appropriate response. She looked back over her shoulder and gave Shale that enigmatic look again before resuming her conversation with Solveig. The brief exchange seemed to crystallize all Shale's resentments and suspicions. Sylvia hadn't said a word to him, had hardly even acknowledged his presence. Instead, Shale thought, she'd focused all her attention on the man who was her boss and who-knows-what-else to her. He spun around angrily and almost ran head first into the host and hostess for the evening: Magnus Jefferson, the university President, and his wife Margaret. Jefferson had already made academic history by being, at 43, one of the youngest men ever to serve as president of a major university. He was tall with thick dark hair accented by a bit of gray at the temples that made him look even more distinguished. "If a casting director ever wanted someone to play a university president in a movie, he'd want someone who looked like Magnus Jefferson," Shale thought grudgingly. The President's wife was what people called "handsome"; Margaret was also the daughter of one of the university's largest donors. The gossip among the faculty was that their marriage had been more like an alliance of royal houses than a boy-meets-girl love story. For a moment, Shale stood there, embarrassed by his near accident and unable to think what to say. But Jefferson avoided any awkwardness by smoothly grasping Shale's hand. "Dr. Stephens," the President said warmly, "so glad you could come tonight. The chair of the Geology Department has given me glowing reports about your work." Shale was surprised that the President had recognized him and highly doubtful that the man had gotten any such report on him. The last time Shale had encountered the head of his own department the good chairman had had trouble recalling Shale's name. Nevertheless, Shale modestly expressed his thanks for the President's remarks and then turned politely to his wife. "You and the President are awfully kind to have all of us over, Mrs. Jefferson. The mansion looks lovely tonight." The First Lady of the university merely nodded graciously, but Jefferson couldn't let silence prevail. "It's the least we can do," the President boomed fulsomely. "As I've said many times, this university is only as strong as the quality of its faculty." Shale recalled hearing the President use the same phrase in another speech when he was talking about the alumni, so he was less than impressed by the President's words. But he dismissed such heretical thoughts, smiled and thanked the couple again. As soon as the President turned to introduce his wife to another guest, Shale made his escape. Quickly picking his way through the crowd, he went out the door and asked the valet to retrieve his car. On the way back to his apartment Shale pulled into a fast-food drive-in and bought a sandwich to take home for dinner. As Shale sat down at their dining table to eat his meal, he asked himself, "How did things get so bad between Sylvia and me?" His mind wandered back to the beginning of their relationship. He recalled that he'd met Sylvia when he'd been commandeered to give a lecture to the local chapter of the geological society in his home town. Shale knew that it wasn't his speaking skills that had earned him the dubious honor; instead, it was the fact that he had just returned from Iceland, bringing back dozens of breathtaking photographs of that nation's many volcanoes. Shale couldn't remember much about the lecture, but he did recall the photographer from the student newspaper who'd wanted to interview him after he had finished. He never did know why Sylvia was attracted to him, but there was no question that the slim, dark-haired young woman completely captivated him. Later he learned that he'd caught Sylvia on the rebound from a long-term relationship that had gone bad, but by that time the only thing he was concerned with was winning her permanently. The two of them moved in together while he finished up his doctorate. Behind the Walls of Ivy If winning Sylvia was Shale's first big success, submitting his dissertation was his second. "Variable Rates of Diastrophism in the Late Archean and Proterozoic Eons" caused a minor sensation within the stuffy fraternity of geologists. His research on the cause of irregular pulses in the movement of the earth's tectonic plates had been groundbreaking, so much so that his doctoral advisor had insisted on being listed as co-author when it was published. Shale would normally have been outraged at his advisor's undeserved usurpation of credit, but his resentment was forgotten when he received an offer of a tenure-track position at an Ivy League university. Such an offer was the academic equivalent of winning the lottery. Shale proposed to Sylvia the same night he received the contract, and she had squealed in happiness when she accepted. At first the move to the university had seemed like a great adventure, the next big step in their pursuit of happiness. But that illusion was soon eroded by the unexpectedly high cost of living in their new city, the long hours that were required of Shale and the difficulty they'd had in making new friends among the clique-y university community. Over time Sylvia's resentment began to grow, and there was little Shale could do to appease her, especially since he was also dealing with his own disillusionment. Even as she complained about her husband's workload, Sylvia's new job began to consume more and more of her time. By the start of their second year at the university, their work schedules had cut so deeply into the amount of time they shared that the two of them seemed more like roommates than husband and wife at times. Their sex life began to suffer as well, and as the second semester started it had gone from frequent to occasional to almost non-existent. "When was the last time?" Shale asked himself. In addition to his own sexual frustration, Shale began to wonder if Sylvia might be meeting her needs some other way. She had always had a high libido, and that thought only added to Shale's paranoia. Excavating himself from his gloom, he checked his cellphone. Even though the faculty reception had been scheduled to end at 9:00 p.m., he saw that it was almost midnight and Sylvia still wasn't home. Shale remembered the Provost's arm around Sylvia's waist and that memory only inflamed the fire of his jealousy. Just then he heard her key in the lock. Because he was seated at the kitchen table, Sylvia didn't spot him as she came in, and he took the opportunity to examine his wife closely, looking for any evidence that she had been doing more than working. She had certainly dressed attractively, but he had to admit that he could see nothing about her to suggest any inappropriate behavior. Nevertheless, he couldn't resist voicing his jealousy. "The reception was over hours ago. What have you been doing all this time?" he demanded, startling her. She flinched, then turned to face him. "I didn't expect to find you up," she said coolly, folding her arms as she turned to face him. "You're usually sound asleep by this hour. But to answer your question, I've been working with Eric. He had lots to do after the reception and he needed my help." "It seems to me you always have something to do for Eric these days," Shale spat out. "You're never at home anymore." "You're one to talk," she snapped back angrily. "When you're not in the classroom you're always grading papers or going to some committee meeting. You work longer hours than I do. Besides, you were the one who wanted me to take the job with Eric in the first place." Shale felt the argument slipping away from him and he felt his frustration growing. "This is not about me," he shot back, "this is about your being out at odd hours. It's about me never knowing where you are or when you'll be home. And when you are home it's 'Eric this' and 'Eric that.'" Before he could stop himself he demanded, "Are you having an affair with the Provost?" For just a moment Shale saw an expression he didn't recognize cross her face, but then she burst out "Hah!" in a derisive laugh. Then she began to pace back and forth before finally stopping to stare at him. "Where do want to be in five years?" she suddenly asked. "What?" stuttered Shale, caught off guard. "It's very simple," she said snidely, "Where do you see yourself five years from now?" Confused by the change in topic, Shale's orderly mind automatically tried to think through the problem and come up with an answer. "Well, in five years I expect to have been granted tenure, which will mean real job security for us. I also expect to be promoted to Associate Professor, which should mean a nice bump in my salary as well. We'd be bringing in enough that you wouldn't have to work anymore if you didn't want to. We could even start a family," he added hopefully. But Sylvia's only reaction was a curl of her lips that hinted of a sneer. "Have you ever thought about going into Administration?" she asked. "What? No! Why would I want to do that? Being a full professor is something I've been working for all my life. I love geology and I love research - why would I want to give that up for a desk job doing administrative work?" he asked, truly puzzled. "Well for one thing it would be a lot more prestigious," she responded. "You'd be out working with the real movers and shakers of the world, not stuck in your lecture hall or that dusty laboratory all day." "I don't understand where this is coming from, Sylvia," Shale said. "Teaching at the university is what we've always talked about. This is what we've been working for together. I thought this was the life you wanted too. I know the last year or two haven't been easy for us, but things will get better." he added, trying to sound an optimistic note. She stared at him for several moments without speaking. Then she gave a small sigh and said, "Never mind. I'm tired and I have to get to work early tomorrow. I'm heading for bed." With that she turned and walked down the hall toward their bedroom, leaving Shale standing there perplexed. "What was all that about?" he asked himself as he cleaned up in the kitchen. By the time he finished and had changed out of his clothes, Sylvia was already in bed with the covers pulled around her. Shale climbed into bed beside her and turned out the light. He didn't even try to touch her; it was pretty obvious to him how she would respond. When he awoke the next morning, Sylvia had already left. Because he had only an afternoon class that day he had time for breakfast before he also headed off to the university. As he began going through his paperwork at his desk, the conversation he'd had with Sylvia the night before kept replaying in his mind. "What was all that stuff about my goals and expectations?" he wondered. "And where did that thing about working in administration come from?" As he thought back, he suddenly realized that Sylvia had never given him a direct answer to the question that had started the whole conversation. "She never denied she was having an affair," he thought suspiciously. At that moment, Mosa stuck her head around the corner. "Professor Stephens, can I interrupt you? Annika asked me to bring you the lab report you asked for." Shale looked up, and the sight of the pretty young woman momentarily lifted his mood. He beckoned her in. "Thanks, Mosa, I really appreciate it." Suddenly, a concern struck him. "Is Annika okay? She's not sick is she?" "Lovesick," Mosa answered with a big grin. "When I left her she was on the phone with her mother, deep in planning the details of her wedding. It's a wonder that girl can get anything else done right now!" "Well, let her enjoy it while she can," he replied. "The honeymoon won't last forever." "Uh-oh," said Mosa quickly, "do I detect a little discontent on the Stephens' home front in that comment?" Shale mentally admonished himself for letting his concerns creep into his conversation. The last thing he wanted to do was to involve Mosa and Annika in his personal problems so he quickly tried to dismiss her concern. "No, no, nothing is wrong. I was just trying to make a bad joke about how quickly time passes. Anyway, you're really nice to do this for her, and for me." Mosa dropped the subject. "Okay, Professor, I'll get out of your hair so you can get back to work. Have a good day." And with a wave and a smile she departed. He managed to get through his class that afternoon without incident, but his dark mood returned in full when he got back to office. He needed to review a draft of the report by the Dean's Committee on the Status of Adjuncts, but he found himself unable to concentrate. So when Perry Ryan came by and asked him to go out for a beer, Shale was happy to put the report aside. The two of them found a quiet table at a tavern just off campus and ordered a round. Shale was glad to have Perry's company and he wanted to get the older man's thoughts on his problems. Perry was also an assistant professor in the Geology Department, but he was a few years older than Shale. Despite the fact that the two of them could wind up as rivals for tenure at some point, Perry had welcomed the new man and been friendly from the day Shale had come to the university. In fact, Shale thought, Perry was probably his only friend in the department. Both men had wives who were young and attractive, and the two professors had tried a couple of times to promote a friendship between the two couples. But for some reason Sylvia didn't hit it off with Camille, Perry's wife, and since their wives set the social agenda, the only time Shale and Perry got together was to share a beer or two. Shale wondered if part of the problem might be that Camille was an adjunct professor. He had never thought much about adjuncts, but after he began serving on the Dean's Committee he began to see why there might be issues. Even though "adjunct professor" sounded impressive, and even though three-quarters of the faculty at the university were adjuncts, they were little better than indentured servants. The university paid them the equivalent of the minimum wage for each course they taught, and Shale had been amazed to learn they received no benefits whatsoever. They were like highly educated temporary workers with no status and no job security. If too few students signed up to take a course taught by an adjunct, the course could be cancelled as late as the first day of classes, and the adjunct would be abruptly unemployed. Shale had heard of adjuncts at other universities who had to go on food stamps to survive. Given the shabby way adjuncts were treated and the low regard in which they were held, Shale thought it wasn't surprising that Camille might feel uncomfortable socializing with other professors and their wives. But today Shale had other issues on his mind. After a little meaningless chit-chat, Shale leaned closer to his friend and said, "Listen, Perry, I've got a situation at home and I need a little advice." With that he began to voice all his frustrations and concerns about Sylvia. "I think she may be having an affair with the Provost," he concluded. Perry looked around with concern. "Don't say things like that where other people can hear," he said in a low voice. "This campus is filled with faculty and students alike who love to gossip, and every one of them is armed with a camera phone and a Facebook page or Twitter account. Accusations like that can spread like wildfire and cause big trouble." He took a swig of his beer. "Besides, I think it's pretty unlikely that Sylvia's running around behind your back. It's obvious from what you've said that you guys are going through a rough patch in your marriage. But every marriage goes through that. Anyway, all you've got are doubts and unproven suspicions. If you accuse Sylvia of cheating, you're only going to drive a wedge between the two of you that's going to be very hard to heal. "But let's suppose you're right - suppose Sylvia is cheating on you. Is that really such a big deal? Isn't it better to turn a blind eye than to wreck your marriage? If it comes to a divorce, your finances are going to take a hell of a hit. Isn't it better to keep your cool till she gets it out of her system than to be paying alimony for years until she remarries?" Shale looked at him in astonishment. "You're saying I should just ignore it, pretend like nothing ever happened?" "That's exactly what I'm saying," Perry said calmly. "It's just sex - what's the big deal?" Shale was aghast. "I guess I'm just not wired that way, Perry. Sylvia and I made some vows to each other when we got married and I've kept mine despite having opportunities," he said, thinking back to Taylor Poindexter. "I expect Sylvia to keep hers as well." The discussion went around in circles from there, and finally the two men left to return to their respective homes without any opinions changing. When Shale got home he was surprised to find Sylvia already there. Even more surprising was the fact that she had dinner in the oven. The two of them had a pleasant home-cooked meal together for the first time in weeks, and spent the time talking about various events and activities on campus. "This is just like things used to be," Shale thought. After the two of them had cleaned up the dishes together, Shale excused himself to do a little work to make up for the time he had spent with Perry at the tavern. When he finally finished going over the report for the Dean's committee, the light in the living room was out. But when he made his way back to the bedroom he found Sylvia waiting for him. As soon as he entered, she climbed out of bed to come to his side, and he saw that she was wearing the sheer, smoky nightgown she had brought on their honeymoon. He tried to ask her what was going on but she pressed her fingers to his mouth, saying, "No questions." Then she proceeded to undress him and push him back on the bed. Kneeling before him, she started to lick her way up and down his thighs, sending quivers through his nervous system. He tried to reach for her to return the caresses but she pushed his hands away. "No, this is all for you tonight," she said in a husky voice. As he slumped down on the bed, she moved her head back and forth so that her hair brushed over his swollen cock, causing exquisite sensations. Idly he tried to remember the last time they'd made love, but then all rational thought dissipated as the tip of her tongue came out to lick the underside of his erection. She made catlike purring noises in her throat as she ran her tongue in a circle around the head of his cock. Then, looking up into his eyes intently, she took him into her mouth as deeply as she could and began to hum. Shale could only groan at the pleasure he was feeling. After a few minutes she pulled back slightly, and then Shale felt her hands wrap around the lower part of his cock while her mouth continued to suck and lick on the head. Her hands began gently rotating in opposite directions while also moving up and down. "Oh, God, Sylvia, that feels amazing!" Shale moaned. "I won't be able to last long if you keep doing that." In response, Sylvia accelerated her motions, driving Shale absolutely crazy. Soon his back was arched off the bed and he gasped and reached for Sylvia's arms, trying to warn her because he knew she didn't like him to cum in her mouth. But once again she rebuffed his efforts and suddenly he groaned and shuddered repeatedly, his orgasm pulsing into the mouth that had driven him wild. Finally he collapsed on the bed and lay there in a stupor. He barely heard Sylvia spit her mouthful into a towel before slipping away to the bathroom. When he sensed her return, he struggled to sit upright, reaching for her to try to return the wonderful pleasure she had given him. But she gently pushed him away, reminding him, "Tonight was just for you, remember? I haven't paid you enough attention lately, and I wanted to make up for it." With that she slipped under the covers, and by the time he had cleaned himself up and returned to bed she was already asleep. As he slid in beside her, a feeling of happy lassitude came over him. As he drifted off to sleep, he remembered that this was how it had felt when they had first been married. The next morning Shale was in a cheerful mood. "I guess Perry was right: I was just being paranoid about Sylvia," he told himself as he drove to work. His good mood carried him through the final exam he had to administer to his upper level geology class, and even the prospect of having to grade all the papers couldn't daunt him. He was whistling to himself when Annika walked into his office. She looked at him for a moment and then gave him a sly grin. "Well, it looks like someone is pretty darn cheerful today. If I had to make a guess, I'd say somebody got laid last night." Shale was caught off guard by her comment and blushed. Annika laughed and said, "Hey, don't be embarrassed, that's a good thing. Mosa was telling me that you seemed in a bad mood yesterday, but I guess everything got straightened out last night - no pun intended." To cover his embarrassment, Shale pretended to take a stern attitude with her. "So the two of you spend all your free time talking about me behind my back?" Then it was Annika's turn to blush. Shale let her squirm for a few moments before changing the subject. "Did you have something I need to see, Annika?" Grateful at the change in topic, she brought the final exam she planned to give her lab class over to his desk for him to review. They chatted about the questions for a few minutes before Annika left for her next appointment. As she walked out the door, Shale thought to himself again how fortunate he was to have such a bright and capable graduate assistant. He regarded both her and her roommate as friends, not just colleagues. That afternoon was the meeting of the committee that was reviewing the status of adjuncts at the university. As Shale had learned to his regret, his fellow professors seemed to delight in debating every proposal to death; arguing with colleagues seemed to be their favorite sport. As a result, meetings were interminable and agreement almost impossible to reach. But as he listened to the endless debate, something happened that shook Shale to his core. One professor had recommended giving a small increase in compensation to all the adjuncts, and another had immediately challenged him. "You're doing nothing but throwing a bone at a starving dog to keep him from barking," he said contemptuously. The professor's words seemed to grip Shale's stomach in a clammy hand. "Was that what Sylvia was doing last night?" he wondered sickly. "Was she throwing me a bone to divert me from what she's doing behind my back? I'll bet that's why she didn't want me to make love to her. It was all for show." As he sat there stewing, his smartphone suddenly began to vibrate. When he pulled it out he saw he had just received a text from Sylvia. "Working L8 2nite. Don't w8 up." As he stared at the screen, the text seemed to taunt him. If anyone had asked him to summarize what happened for the rest of the meeting, Shale would have had no clue. He sat there lost in emotions that rotated from anger to sadness to misery and back again. When the meeting finally broke up, he immediately headed back to the isolation of his office to try to sort things out in his mind. "I can't believe this is happening to me," he moaned as he sat there in the darkened room. "If Sylvia isn't having an affair, she's sure acting like it. But how can I know for sure? She won't admit it and I can't prove anything. I don't want to throw away my marriage if I'm wrong. Besides a divorce would be a catastrophe from a financial point of view. But if she is cheating on me, I could never look the other way like Perry suggested." Behind the Walls of Ivy He shook his head in frustration. "What am I going to do?" After he'd fruitlessly circled the same mental path for a while, a pang in Shale's stomach reminded him that he'd had nothing to eat since lunch. He glanced at his phone and was surprised to discover how late it had grown. Remembering that there was nothing he could fix quickly at home, he decided to allow himself the luxury of eating out. "Maybe I'll feel better if I'm around other people rather than being alone all the time," he thought. He drove over to a pub that the students frequented and, once he had been seated, ordered a burger and fries. He normally tried to eat a healthy diet, but doing so seemed irrelevant in his current mood. He was halfway through his dinner when his phone suddenly rang, startling him. He wondered hopefully if Sylvia might be calling, but the display indicated an unknown number. When he answered, at first he didn't recognize Mosa's voice, and when he realized who it was she was speaking so rapidly that he could scarcely make out a word she was saying. "Mosa, Mosa, slow down! I can't understand you - what's happened?" "It's Annika, Shale, she's hysterical. I've never seen her like this. You've got to come over right away. I don't know what to do!" "What happened, Mosa? Why is she hysterical?" he asked urgently, simultaneously reaching into his wallet to pay for the meal. "It's her fiancé," the young woman said frantically. "He dumped her! He called off the wedding. Annika is beside herself. Please come." "Shit," he muttered under his breath. "Listen, Mosa, I'm at a pub just off campus so I can be there in just a few minutes. I'm leaving now - just hang tight." Throwing a bill on the table he dashed out of the pub, ran to his car and hurried over to graduate student housing. When he got off the elevator and knocked on the door to the apartment, Mosa must have been standing right there because she opened it immediately. Shale was shocked by Mosa's appearance. Her pretty face was twisted by fear, her eyes were red and tears streaked her cheeks. It was obvious that she was deeply upset, almost panic-stricken. He grabbed her shoulders to steady her. "Where is Annika now?" he asked her, and she pointed down the hall to the closed bedroom door. "She locked the door and won't let me in," Mosa said breathlessly. "OK, before I go back there, tell me what happened," Shale said, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. "It was about a half-hour ago," Mosa explained. "He called her on the phone. That sonuvabitch told her that he'd found somebody else and the wedding was off! I heard Annika scream and I went running back there. She was sobbing hysterically. She said her life was over and she wanted to die!" "Alright, let me go talk to her and try to calm her down." He let Mosa go and started to walk down the hall, but Mosa grabbed his arm. "She's got a gun, Professor! I think she's going to kill herself!" "Where did she get a gun?" he asked in dismay. "She's had it for a long time," Mosa said. "Her father gave it to her for protection. Should I call the campus cops or 911?" Shale's stomach lurched as he felt his adrenaline level jump, but he tried to maintain a calm demeanor. "No, don't do that. An official record of a suicide attempt could ruin her prospects for the future, and I don't want that to happen if I can help it. You just sit down over there out of the way and keep your cellphone handy, just in case." Mosa's eyes widened as she nodded and backed away. When Shale neared the bedroom door he could hear Annika wailing and sobbing. Just to be safe, he stood to one side as he knocked on the door. At first, nothing happened, but when he knocked again - this time more loudly - Annika sobbed, "Go away - leave me alone!" "Annika, it's me - Professor Stephens. It's Shale, Annika. Please let me in." The sobbing subsided into whimpers, and he heard footsteps approach the door. There was a jiggling at the knob and then the footsteps moved away. Hearing nothing more, Shale cautiously tried the knob, and when it turned he slowly pushed the door open. Annika was standing facing him on the other side of the bed. In her hand was an automatic pistol that she waved in his general direction. "Who else is out there?" she demanded. "There's no one here but Mosa and me, Annika," he said soothingly. "I wish you'd put down that gun. You frightened poor Mosa half to death." Her tears began to flow again. "No, I won't. My life is over; everything I've been living for is gone. I just want to die!" she said, waving the gun recklessly. "Listen, Annika, you can't kill yourself. There are too many people who need you and care about you." "Robert doesn't need me," she said, her voice growing shriller. "He's probably been cheating on me the whole time I've been at the university. I feel like such a fool." "No," Shale said, trying to keep his voice firm, "what you are is lucky." Her head jerked up at that. "How can you call me lucky?" she yelled angrily, and for a moment Shale thought she might fire at him. "You're lucky," he went on quickly, "because you found out what sort of person Robert really is. You're lucky not to have married him and found out the truth later. Believe me, Annika, finding out later is a lot worse." As he spoke to the distraught young woman, Shale carefully eyed the pistol she was clutching. He noticed that it had a slide-mounted safety, and although the way she kept waving it around made it hard to tell, he thought that the safety might be engaged. If so, he hoped that she was enough of a novice not to realize that, and not savvy enough to flip off the safety with her thumb. Annika's crying grew louder. "My life is ruined; all my dreams are gone. I have nothing to live for now." "No!" Shale said angrily, "that's not true and you know it." The young woman was startled by his tone, and Shale pressed on. "You have people who love and need you, Annika. You just can't abandon them. Your family needs you, Mosa needs you, I need you." The distraught woman stood there staring at him. Shale hoped that his words might have penetrated her pain and misery, and he decided to take a chance. "I know you're hurting, Annika, but you don't want to shoot yourself, and I'm pretty sure you don't want to shoot me either. Now, give me that pistol so we can figure out what to do next." With that he stepped cautiously around the bed toward his assistant, holding his hand out for the gun. She stared at him uncertainly and the pistol wavered. Then she let her hand fall to her side as she dissolved in another bout of tears. Shale quickly reached down and took the pistol from her unresisting grip. He set it aside on the dresser and then took the distraught young woman in his arms and held her tightly as she began sobbing again. He looked over his shoulder and called for Mosa, who quickly appeared at the doorway, a frightened expression on her face. "I think she's going to be okay," he reassured her, and the South African quickly ran over and hugged the two of them. After a moment, Shale tapped Mosa gently on the arm. "Didn't you tell me once you had trouble sleeping at times?" he asked. When Mosa nodded he went on, "Do you have any kind of sleep medication, a prescription?" "I've got some Ambien in the medicine chest," she said. "Bring me one and a glass of water," he ordered. When Mosa returned, he took the pill and the glass and gave them to Annika. At first she hesitated, but when Shale insisted she took the pill. Once she'd done so, Shale picked her up and laid her on the bed. "Try to get some sleep, Annika," he said gently. "Things will look better in the morning, I promise you." He kissed her on the forehead and then pulled the spread over her. Exhausted from her hysteria, the young woman closed her eyes and in a few minutes dropped off to sleep. Shale led Mosa out of the room, remembering to retrieve the pistol. After he turned out the light and pulled the door closed behind him, he took a moment to examine the pistol. "Holy shit!" he exclaimed under his breath. "The damned safety was off the whole time!" When they returned to the living room, Mosa was still shaken by what had happened. "Is she going to be alright?" she asked anxiously, her eyes still red and watery. "I think so," Shale said. "Sleep is probably the best thing for her. She's just completely exhausted." Mentally and emotionally exhausted by the ordeal, he sat down on the sofa and leaned back in the corner. As the adrenaline began to drain out of his system, he suddenly felt shaky, so he laid his head back to rest. A minute later he felt Mosa climb onto the couch. She lay down beside him and put her head on his chest like a small child frightened by a nightmare. "I was so scared," she said in a small voice, and Shale felt new tears wet his shirt. He put his arm around her to comfort her. "I was too, Mosa," he admitted. Then he closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again, the first thing he noticed was light shining in through a window. Startled, he pulled out his phone, and when he saw the time he realized that he had slept through the night. Carefully he eased Mosa off of him, trying not to wake her. Then he tiptoed back to Annika's bedroom. When he opened the door, he saw that she too was still sound asleep. As he groggily walked back into the living room, a thought struck him and he quickly pulled out his phone again, this time to check his calendar. "Damn," he swore, "Annika's lab final is this morning!" He went over to the couch and gently shook Mosa awake. "Mosa," he said quietly, "Annika's lab class is supposed to take the final today. She's still asleep and I don't want to wake her. I'll go over and administer the exam for her. Nobody but her students will know she wasn't there, and they won't care anyway." She sat up on the couch and looked at him intently. "You know," she said quietly, "you're a pretty amazing guy. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't come over here last night. Annika is really lucky to have you for a friend. Actually, I think we both are." Shale was embarrassed. "Anybody else would have done the same thing," he said awkwardly. Then, seeing Mosa about to protest, he went on quickly, "Listen, I better get out of here. If I hurry I can just make it home in time to grab a quick shower before I have to be at the Geology lab. When Annika finally wakes up, see if you can get some food into her. Then send me a text and let me know how she's doing." As he turned to leave, he remembered to pick up Annika's pistol. "I'll just take this with me - for safe-keeping," he told Mosa with a little smile. Mosa followed him to the door and before he left she hugged him fiercely. "Thank you, Shale. Thank you for being our hero." As he drove home, Shale felt good about what he'd done. But when he remembered everything that had happened he shook his head in dismay. "What was I thinking trying to take a loaded gun out of the hand of a hysterical woman?" he asked himself. "Sylvia's not going to believe what happened." The instant he thought of Sylvia, all his marital troubles came flooding back to him. Then a thought popped into his head, and when he came to a stoplight he fished his phone out of his pocket and checked it. When he saw here was no record of any phone calls from Sylvia last night, his mood darkened further. "What the hell? I was out all night and she didn't even call to check on me! Did she not know I wasn't home or did she just not care?" When he got home he quickly showered and changed clothes. Before he left for the university, however, he made a quick survey of their apartment. The bed hadn't been slept in and the kitchen was untouched. As best he could tell, Sylvia hadn't been there either. "Where in the hell was she last night," he asked himself, "and what was she doing?" While he watched Annika's class laboring over the lab final, the same questions kept reverberating in his head, and his resentment grew. Perhaps there was an innocent explanation for his wife's absence, but he sure couldn't think of one. When the test period was over and he'd collected all the exams, he returned to his office and decided to begin grading them immediately. Fortunately, most of the questions were multiple choice or fill-in-the-blank, so he felt the task wouldn't be too time-consuming. He was halfway through the test papers when his phone signaled an incoming text from Mosa. "She's up. Still miserable but calmer. I think she'll be OK." Shale typed out an acknowledgement and went back to the exams, much relieved that Annika's crisis appeared to have been averted. He had just finished grading the last exam when he heard a quiet tap on the door. Looking up he spotted Mosa's pretty face peeking around the doorframe. He quickly waved her in. "Has something happened?" he asked anxiously. "No, I think Annika's still doing okay," she said. "I just wanted to come over and bring you a little thank-you gift." Shale started to protest, but Mosa pulled her hand from behind her back to display a sack of food. She laughed, "I figured you didn't have any time for breakfast, and you probably haven't had lunch either. I couldn't let you die of starvation, could I?" Shale thanked her for her thoughtfulness and hungrily began to devour the sandwich she'd brought. While she ate with him, Mosa filled him in on Annika and her mood when she'd awakened. "It's going to take some time," she concluded, "but I think she'll heal. But you know what her biggest challenge is right now?" When Shale looked concerned, Mosa got a big grin on her face. "The hardest thing for her is going to be facing you again. She's embarrassed to death about the way she acted and the fact that you saw her so completely out of control. She really thinks the world of you, and it's killing her that you saw her that way." Shale was relieved that Annika was okay but dismayed to hear of her reaction. "That's silly, Mosa. Everybody needs a little help from their friends now and then. I'm just glad that you and I were around to help Annika when she needed it. Tell her she has no reason to feel ashamed." Mosa got up to go back to the dorm and check on her roommate, but she paused at the door. "For what it's worth, you really are a hero in my book. I thought you were incredibly brave to walk in there and take that gun from Annika in her state of mind. And despite what you said, I don't think many people have a friend who would help the way you did. You're a pretty special guy." Before Shale could think of what to say, she gave him her big grin and hurried out of his office. Shale shook his head. He didn't feel like a hero, but Mosa's words still gave him a warm feeling. When he turned back to his desk, his good mood quickly dissipated. He might have finished grading the exams from Annika's lab course, but now he had all the exams from his own courses to do. Unlike the lab exam, many of the questions for his tests required essay-type answers that would take much more time to go over. He sighed and pulled the top blue book off the stack. By the time he had finished grading the exams from the first of his courses, the light was fading through his office window and his stomach was rumbling again. "I might as well work on the rest of these at home. Surely I can find something I can eat there," he told himself. And, if he were honest, he also wanted to check to see if Sylvia had ever returned. When he got back to their apartment, Sylvia wasn't home, although Shale saw signs that she'd been there earlier. The door to her closet had been left open, a towel tossed on the floor suggested that she'd taken a shower, and he found a load of laundry that had been run in the washing machine. All those things seemed suspicious to him but none was conclusive evidence of infidelity. He sighed in frustration and went to make himself a sandwich. Then he settled down to his grading. Several hours later Shale was startled by the sound of a key in the lock to their front door, and he glanced up just in time to see Sylvia stride by the kitchen door on her way to the bedroom. When he went after her he found the bathroom door closed and heard the shower running. "Another shower?" he asked himself. That raised his blood pressure several notches and he stood there staring at the closed bathroom door in frustration. After waiting a few minutes he gave up and went back to his grading. A short time later he glanced up to see Sylvia, dressed in her robe and pajamas, standing in the doorway. "Well, well," she said sarcastically, "I was wondering if you were ever going to come home. Who did you spend the night with last night?" Caught off guard, Shale sputtered, "It wasn't like that. One of my students had a crisis and I had to help her." "What did you do: rob her at gunpoint?" Sylvia asked, holding up Annika's pistol. "No, of course not," Shale replied. "Her fiancé dumped her; she was going to commit suicide and..." He tailed off with, "It's a long story." "Sure, Shale, I believe you," she said in a mocking voice as she gingerly deposited the pistol on the countertop. Her tone sparked all the anger and resentment that had been building in Shale, and he abruptly stood up and pointed at her. "Never mind about me, where were you all night?" "Oh," she said casually, "I was working late and fell asleep at my desk." He stared at her incredulously. "You really expect me to believe that?" "Believe whatever you want," she said nonchalantly, "that's what happened." "I think you spent the night with Eric Solveig," Shale said hotly. "That's what I think happened." She shook her head and heaved a theatrical sigh. "We've been through that already, Shale, and it's starting to get boring. Whatever makes you think such a thing?" "Listen, Sylvia, you've got to admit that things have been strained between us. We hardly ever see one another, you stay out all night and you never even call to let me know where you are. We haven't made love in ages..." "Now wait right there, mister. We made love just a few days ago, or don't you remember?" "Well, okay, maybe, but it felt less like we were making love and more like you were throwing me a bone to keep me quiet," Shale said hotly. Sylvia folded her arms across her chest and scowled at her husband. "Just listen to yourself, Shale. You say we never see each other, but you're the one who's wrapped up in university business all the time. You accuse me of not keeping in touch, but you could have tried to call me last night to tell me where you were. You say we never make love when I gave you the best blow job you've ever had only a couple of days ago! "From where I sit, the problem is you, not me. You're merrily pursuing your little associate professor job and you don't really care what I want or need. I think you've got a lot of nerve making wild accusations for which you have no proof." She shook her head and sighed again. "Now I'm tired and I'm going to bed." With that she turned on her heel and stalked off to the bedroom, slamming the door behind her. When he heard the lock click, Shale started to go after her, intending to kick down the door. But he stopped himself and stood there in the hallway in helpless anger. If Sylvia were to call the police and charge him with spousal abuse, his career would be over. Yet he knew that he hadn't been imagining the changes in Sylvia's attitude and that anyone would agree that her behavior was highly suspicious. But he also knew that she was right: he had no proof. What's worse, he thought, she was almost daring him to do something about it. But what could he do? He had no time to follow her and there was no way he could afford to hire a private detective. And what if he did and found nothing? Would that prove she was innocent? He didn't believe that, but logic told him he at least had to consider the possibility. Behind the Walls of Ivy He turned and walked back toward the kitchen. When he saw the stack of exams left to grade, he heaved a sigh. "Not tonight," he thought. "I just can't face them now." In frustration and weariness he switched off the lights and went out to the living room to sleep on the couch. When he woke the next morning his body was stiff and aching. "I've got to stop sleeping on sofas," he told himself ruefully as he tried to stretch out the kinks. When he went back to the bedroom, he found the door open and Sylvia gone. He shook his head: once again he had no idea what she was doing, where she was going or when she'd be home - if ever. "I just can't go on living like this," he told himself. He grabbed a quick shower, dressed and packed up all the exams, intending to resume grading them at his office. He knew that he had no choice but to finish them all today, no matter how long it might take. The university had made it clear to the faculty that submitting all grades by the deadline was mandatory. Failure to do so was a major no-no that could and would be considered in decisions on tenure. When he reached his office he closed the door and set to his task. He'd been poring over blue books for a couple of hours when he heard a timid knock at the door. He sighed and said, "Come in." The door opened and the shapely figure of Mosa stepped around the doorframe. "I know you're on deadline, Shale, so I won't be long. I just wanted to bring you a little sustenance. I figured you might need it." With that she produced a cup of coffee and a pastry from Starbucks. Shale couldn't help but laugh appreciatively. "Thank you, Mosa, that's really thoughtful of you. I didn't have any breakfast, so you may have saved my life." She smiled back and then added, "I also brought something else for you." When he looked at her quizzically, she stepped back into the hallway and had a brief whispered conversation. Finally, she grabbed an arm and pulled a reluctant Annika into the small office. Hastily Shale came around from behind his desk to reach for Annika's hands. "I'm so glad to see you," he said. "How are you feeling?" The blonde graduate assistant could hardly bear to look Shale in the eye, so Mosa spoke up. "I kinda forced her to come see you. She kept saying she was too embarrassed." Shale understood immediately. He lifted Annika's chin up so he could see her face. Her eyes were still red, but she no longer had that wild look of anguish and despair he'd seen in her apartment. "You have no reason to feel like that, Annika. You had a terrible experience; anyone could have freaked out." She looked up at him, her lip quivering. In a whisper she said, "I'm so ashamed, Dr. Stephens. I can't believe I threatened you, especially when you were trying to help me. It's just that I felt so lost, so hopeless when Robert..." Once again he thought she was going to break down, so he pulled her to him and hugged her. "It's going to be alright, Annika. Robert is a fool for letting you go. Some day he's going to realize that and it will be too late because you'll have found someone better, someone who's worthy of your love." He took her shoulders and held her at arm's length so he could see her face again. "Don't feel bad about hurting - how could you not be hurt? Believe me, I know what it feels like to learn that someone you love has stopped caring about you." Annika shot a quick glance at Mosa, who raised her eyebrows and nodded knowingly. "I told you something was going on," the dark-haired roommate said. Then she turned to Shale. "Alright, Dr. Stephens, what's up with you and your wife? You haven't been yourself the last few weeks and you've dropped several hints. What's going on and how can we help?" Shale let go of Annika and started to deny everything, but his frustration and his weariness had worn him down and he suddenly found himself pouring out the whole story to the two women. As all his suspicions and misery came pouring out, the two of them exchanged glances of concern. When he finally stopped, Annika took the opportunity to ask, "What was the deal that morning when you came into the office and you were so cheerful? I thought things had gotten better for you." Her question embarrassed him, but Shale had gone so far that now he felt he could hold nothing back. "I guess that morning I did think things were back on track with us. The night before we'd made love for the first time in a long while - well, she made love to me, you know, with her mouth, but she wouldn't let me do anything for her. That seemed strange to me, but..." At that moment Mosa burst out with a snort, "She gave him a 'blow-and-go'!" Annika laughed out loud. "It's classic!" she said. "What are you talking about?" Shale asked in confusion. The two women looked at each other, and Mosa spoke first. "It's something we girls talk about in the dorms. It's a way to handle a date you don't really like, or one that's getting too aggressive." "Sure," Annika said, "all a girl has to do is to give the guy a quick hand job or a blow job. Once the guy has cum he's not thinking very clearly and it's pretty easy to get away without getting raped or anything." Mosa looked at Shale sadly. "I hate to say it but your wife blew you and then blew you off." Shale's anger returned in full, not only at his wife but also at himself for being duped so easily. He looked at the two young women in frustration. "What's really killing me is that I have no way to find out what's going on with her. The way she's acting makes me believe she's having an affair with her boss, but she denies it and there's no way for me to prove it. And as long as I can't, there's always that element of doubt. It's driving me crazy." "Couldn't you hire a private detective to follow her and get photos?" Mosa asked. "Those guys cost a small fortune," Shale said dismissively. "Besides if she's doing something on campus, a stranger probably couldn't find her anyway. I'd do better off following her myself, but I've got so much work to do I can't possible take the time." Annika and Mosa exchanged glances; then Annika said excitedly, "Let us do it! Mosa and I know what Sylvia looks like and we know this campus like the back of our hand. The next time you think something's going on, we'll be your detectives!" "No, absolutely not!" Shale said vehemently. "I'm not going to get you two involved in my mess. Besides, if the wrong people saw you and started asking questions, it might cause trouble for you both." "Okay then, how about this?" Mosa proposed. "We won't break into any buildings or listen at any keyholes, we'll just keep an eye on her, see where she goes and let you know. At least that way you'd know where to look if you wanted to check on what she's up to." "Please," Annika begged, "you've done so much for me, let Mosa and me do something for you for a change." "I don't know," Shale said, "I still think..." At that moment his phone signaled an incoming text. When he read it, his face darkened. He held it up for the two of them to see Sylvia's text: "Don't wait up 4 me 2nite." "She's doing it again," he said angrily. "We're just three days from graduation - what can she possibly have to do that requires her to work late?" He stared at Mosa and Annika, frustration creasing his face. "Alright, if you guys really want to play detective, follow her while I finish grading these exams. When I get through, I'll call you and take over. I've got to get to the bottom of this, but I'll be the one who takes any risks, not you two." "Deal!" Mosa said, and to Shale's surprise the two of them leaned in and kissed him on the cheeks. "Now, go back to grading, Professor," Annika admonished him, "and leave the detecting in our capable hands!" The two women left, eagerly chattering about what they needed to do to find and follow Sylvia. As Shale returned to his stack of exams, he wondered if he was making a mistake involving the two women. "At least this is taking Annika's mind off her troubles," he rationalized. It was dark by the time Shale finished all the exams and entered the grades into the university's online system. When he was sure he'd done everything required, he picked up his phone and sent Annika a text. "S'up? Where r u?" A moment later his phone rang - it was Mosa. "We're outside Elliot Hall. She just went inside." "I'm done here. I'll be right over," he told her. Eliot Hall was the administration building of the university. The gray edifice built in classical Roman style was three stories high. Shale found Annika and Mosa waiting under a huge maple tree on the lawn in front of the building. "We've been keeping an eye on her all day, and everything she did seemed pretty innocent. Then, just a little while ago, she came outside to make a call on her cellphone. I couldn't get close enough to overhear her, but she seemed to perk up when she finished. She headed straight for Eliot, and that's when you called. We didn't follow her inside because we figured a couple of students wandering around in the lobby would really look out of place," Mosa explained apologetically. "Listen, you did great," Shale reassured her. "You two head on home; I'll take it from here." Annika nodded, but Mosa grabbed Shale's arm. "You're not planning to do anything crazy, are you?" He smiled grimly. "I'm not here for revenge, only to find out the truth." Seeing she wasn't appeased, he added, "I'll call you later and let you know what I find." Grudgingly she released him, and the two young women headed off across campus toward the graduate student dorm, looking back at him apprehensively. Shale walked boldly up the marble steps to the front entrance. Once in the lobby he glanced around and, seeing no one, headed toward the stairwell rather than the elevator. He was familiar enough with the layout of the building to know that the Provost's office was on one wing of the top floor, with the President's office on the other. If Sylvia was up there with the Provost, he didn't want the sound of the elevator to alert them. When he reached the third floor he poked his head out of the stairwell and checked to see if anyone else was around. The hallway appeared to be empty so he tiptoed to the door of the Provost's suite, trying not to make a sound on the marble floor. When he leaned against the door to the reception area, to his surprise it opened easily. Peeking inside he saw that no one was working at the reception desk. He hesitated, unsure of his next move, when he heard a woman's earthy moan coming from behind the door with a brass plate inscribed "Office of the Provost". It was easy for him to walk silently over the carpeted floors to press his ear against the door, trying to determine exactly what was happening inside. Again he heard a feminine moan, and now there came the sound of grunting accompanied by the slap of flesh on flesh. Shale's anger ignited and he started to put his shoulder to the door to barge his way in, intending to catch his wife and her boss in the act. But he remembered his promise to Mosa, so instead he eased the door open just wide enough to let him peek inside. As he'd expected, he saw the Provost vigorously pounding into Sylvia, who was face down on his desk, her long brown hair draped over her face. Solveig's eyes were closed as he grasped her hips and thrust so hard that the desk actually shook. His grunts sounded to Shale like the noise a wild boar might make, but it was obvious that Sylvia was loving every second. Taking a chance, Shale pulled out his smart phone and set it for video. "Now I've got my proof," he thought bitterly as he cracked the door open a little farther and began recording. As he watched, the Provost reached down and grabbed a handful of Sylvia's hair, pulling her head back. But something was terribly wrong, because Shale suddenly realized the Provost's lover wasn't Sylvia at all! He gaped in confusion for a moment, then suddenly jerked back, stifling a gasp. He knew who the woman was now: it was Perry's wife Camille! He let the door close carefully so as not to make a sound and backed away. What he had witnessed not only surprised him, it thoroughly confused him. "If Solveig is having an affair with Camille, then maybe Sylvia has been telling the truth all along." But even as he felt a twinge of doubt, he recalled his wife's contemptuous attitude and unexplained absences. "I didn't imagine all that. What in hell is going on?" he wondered as he slipped out of the Provost's suite and back into the hallway. He stood there trying to decide what to do next when he heard the sound of the elevator rising. A thrill of panic shot threw him: he knew he had to move if he didn't want to get caught. Quickly Shale darted down the hallway in the other direction, not wanting Solveig and Camille to find him if they happened to leave. Then he heard the sound of footsteps heading in his direction, and when he heard Sylvia's distinct laugh he knew he had to hide. Frantically he began trying different doors, looking for one that was unlocked. When he came to an unmarked door with no knob near the end of the corridor, he pushed in desperation and was relieved when it opened. Slipping inside the darkened room, he let the door close; then he listened carefully, trying to determine where Sylvia and her companion were going. As he waited he glanced around to try to figure out where he had hidden. At the other end of the room, light was coming in through a vent at the bottom of another door, and as his eyes adjusted to the semi-dark he realized that he was in a lushly appointed bathroom. "This must be the President's private potty," he thought irreverently. Just then he heard Sylvia's voice again, this time accompanied by the unmistakable tones of Magnus Jefferson. The sound was coming from the office outside his hiding place. Shale tiptoed over to the door and got down on his hands and knees to peer through the louvers. He almost gasped as he saw Sylvia perched on Jefferson's lap with her arms thrown around the President's neck. "I'm so disappointed," she was saying. "I thought we'd have the whole evening together." "God knows I'd love to, but I have a meeting that I must attend," he said in his deep voice. "At least let me give you a quick one," Shale heard her beg. "I love you pleasing you so much. Please, Magnus." "Very well," he said, "but you'll have to leave in ten minutes so I can get ready." "Ten minutes is all I need," she said huskily. With that she proceeded to slide off his lap and kneel between his legs. As she loosened his belt and pulled down his zipper, Jefferson leaned back in his chair. The momentary hope Shale that Sylvia might actually be faithful had long since been dismissed, but learning the truth still filled him with anger. "So much for giving her the benefit of the doubt!" he thought bitterly. He grabbed his phone again and began recording through the louvers, knowing that this time there was no way Sylvia could lie her way out. From his awkward vantage point Shale watched as Sylvia began to twirl her tongue around the President's exposed cock. Jefferson gave a deep groan. "Every time you do that it drives me absolutely crazy," he gasped. Glancing around, Shale noticed that a mirror hanging on the office wall gave him a better view of what was going on behind Jefferson's desk. He focused his camera on that, all the while seething as he watched his wife fellating the university President. Now Sylvia had the full length of her lover's cock down her throat, and it looked to Shale like she was making swallowing motions. He could hear gagging sounds coming from her, but she refused to pull back. Magnus gripped the arms of the chair and his back arched in ecstasy as Sylvia brought him closer and closer to orgasm. Suddenly his knuckles turned white and he gave a loud groan as he ejaculated repeatedly into her mouth. When he collapsed back into his chair, she made a great show of rolling his cum around in her mouth before swallowing. Bitterly, Shale recalled how Sylvia had spat his spunk into a towel the night she'd given him her "blow and go." The difference told Shale all he needed to know about his wife's true feelings. Deftly Sylvia laved Jefferson's limp cock with her tongue to clean it before deftly reinserting it back into his pants and carefully zipping him up. Then she rose and kissed her lover passionately. "That was wonderful, my dear, but now I really have to prepare for my meeting," he told her. "I understand, Magnus. I'll get out of here for now. But I hate being able to have you only a little while at a time," she said fervently. "I know, I know," he said, walking her to the door. "I feel the same way." Now that Sylvia had left, Shale was eager to get away, but he decided it would be wiser to wait until Jefferson left for his meeting. "Just so long as he doesn't need to use the restroom," he thought fervently. But before he could stand up and ease his aching knees, he heard a new feminine voice say, "Well, Magnus, I hope you enjoyed yourself." In shock Shale looked through the vent again to see Margaret Jefferson enter the office through another door. He was even more startled to hear Jefferson's response. "I definitely did, my dear. That is one lusty young woman." Mrs. Jefferson seated herself in a chair by her husband's desk. "I have to admit, she is a pretty little thing." She looked at her husband shrewdly. "You do know she's in love with you, don't you?" "Of course," he said with a laugh. "That's part of what makes her so passionate." Margaret looked at him sharply. "Just make sure you don't fall in love with her." Magnus laughed again. "Now, now, dear, you know better than that. Besides, I'd never leave you." She wasn't appeased. "You'd better not if you want to keep my father's support - and his donations." "Don't be boring, Margaret. I know what I'm doing. For your information I'm just about done with the lovely Sylvia. I plan to break it off with her right after graduation." His wife relaxed and stared at him. "Hmm, I wonder if I might be able to persuade her to give me some of that loving attention after you dump her. She is a pretty little thing, and I'd love to see what she could do with that talented tongue of hers between my thighs." "I'm afraid you'll have to look elsewhere, my dear. I can assure you that that little minx is heterosexual through and through." "Too bad," Margaret said, "but I suppose there are plenty of other choices I can find." Jefferson glanced at the ornate clock on his Chippendale desk and stood up abruptly. "We're going to be late, my dear. Quick, do I have any semen on my pants?" When she reassured him that he was clean, the two of them quickly left the office, allowing Shale to scramble to his feet with a groan. But the pain in his knees was nothing compared to the pain he felt at the bitter turn his life had taken. When he was safely outside the building he grabbed his phone again and called Annika. "What happened, Shale? What did you find out?" she asked anxiously. "Would it be alright if I crashed at your place tonight?" he replied in a low voice. "I'd really rather not go home." "Oh, Shale, I'm so sorry," she said. After another night on the couch, Shale went in to his office and looked up the name of a local attorney to handle his divorce. Now that he knew the truth about Sylvia there was no way he could stay with her. He was fortunate to get a quick appointment. After listening to the situation and reviewing various considerations, the attorney promised to have the necessary papers filed the following week. She also gave Shale some advice about what to do to protect himself financially, and Shale spent the next few hours setting up a new bank account, transferring funds from their joint account, canceling joint credit cards and making the necessary changes to his insurance. It felt good to be taking action, but overhanging everything was the shadow of failure. His marriage had failed and his life as he'd imagined it was about to come to an end. Behind the Walls of Ivy When he'd completed as much of the unraveling as possible for the day, he returned to his office because he had one last chore to accomplish before he went home to confront Sylvia. Once he had finished he started to head home, but Perry Ryan suddenly stepped out of his office and hailed him. "Hey, Shale, did you get all your grades turned in on time?" Shale heaved a sigh. He'd hoped not to run into Perry so he wouldn't have to get involved in their marriage. But now that he was face to face with the man, Shale decided that he had no choice. "I guess if I'm really his friend it's my responsibility to tell him," he thought as he walked into Perry's office and closed the door. "What's up?" Perry asked, curious at Shale's solemn demeanor. "Perry, I was in Eric Solveig's office yesterday evening," Shale began. "And how is the Provost?" Perry asked carelessly, but Shale thought he saw something odd in Perry's eyes. "Perry, I don't know any way to make this sound better so I'll just say it straight out: Solveig and Camille are having an affair." His colleague just stared at him, and Shale was surprised at his lack of reaction. "Perry, I know this comes as a shock; maybe you don't even believe me. But they didn't know I was there and I was able to get them on video. I can show it to you if you want." Perry began to rub his mouth while staring uneasily at Shale. After a long moment he said quietly, "No I don't want to see the video, Shale. I know about the affair. I've known about it since it started." Now Shale was shocked. "You knew about it and you did nothing? What kind of husband are you?" A fire rose in Perry's eyes, and for a moment Shale thought the man was going to come around his desk. Then the fire subsided and he slumped down in his chair. "Shale, Camille and I have $723 in our bank account. The two of us owe close to $150,000 in student loans. By the time I make the monthly loan payment, pay our rent and send in the car payment, there's hardly anything left over from my paycheck. "Camille has her PhD, so you'd think she could bring in enough money to help us get by. But as an adjunct professor she only earns a few thousand dollars for every course she teaches. And this semester the university only gave her one course. "So when Eric Solveig came to Camille and offered to get her on full-time staff next year in return for her personal services, what do you think we did? I hated it, but I went along with it because there was no other way out for us." He stared at his desk, ashamed to look Shale in the eye. "Camille hates it too. She says Solveig is a lousy lover, but she's doing it for us." Shale thought back to the scene he'd glimpsed through the door of the Provost's office. From the moans of ecstasy he'd heard and the way she'd responded, he didn't think that Camille had been acting, but he kept his opinion to himself. "I can only imagine what you must think of me, and Camille too, for that matter," Perry continued. "I understand how life can lead people into places where there are no good options," Shale told him. "All I can do is hope things work out for the best for the two of you." He started to leave, and then turned back. "And don't worry: I won't share what you've told me with anyone." As Shale trudged across campus to his parking space, he felt slightly sick to his stomach. "My life doesn't have any good options either," he thought to himself, "but I could never prostitute my wife, no matter how difficult the situation. Of course, I won't have a wife soon, so that's a problem I won't have to face," he thought bitterly. It was late in the afternoon when he got to their apartment building. As he walked to the door, he realized he'd have to move before long. The place was too large and too expensive for him to live there alone. Not surprisingly, Sylvia wasn't home, so Shale went rummaging through the refrigerator for something to eat. There was almost nothing inside; finally he settled for scrambling the last two remaining eggs. After a meager serving of scrambled eggs and toast washed down with the remainder of an old bottle of wine, he sat down on the couch and prepared to wait. He thought it was likely that she'd come home because the university calendar indicated that President Jefferson would be speaking at a fundraiser, and Shale was pretty sure that Magnus would have his wife with him, not Sylvia. Even so, he was startled when the key turned in the lock and Sylvia strode in. She in turn seemed equally surprised to find Shale sitting there, but she recovered quickly. "I see the prodigal son has returned home," she said sarcastically. "I don't want to cross swords with you, Sylvia, not now. I'm here because I wanted to tell you in person that I'm filing for divorce. You'll probably be served with the papers early next week." She walked over to a chair on the other side of the room and sat down. Even given all that had happened, Shale couldn't help but notice how good her legs looked in her pencil skirt. "And just what has brought on such a drastic step?" she asked coolly once she was settled. Shale looked at her evenly. "No more games, Sylvia. I'm divorcing you because you're having an affair with Magnus Jefferson." To his surprise she gave a derisive laugh. "You really are something, you know that? First I'm having an affair with the Provost, now you think I'm having an affair with the President. Do you know how crazy that sounds, Shale?" "I was at President Jefferson's office last night. I saw the two of you together." "That's impossible, she snapped. "You're making all this up." Instead of replying, he walked over to the television and switched it on, along with the DVD player. Then he pressed the remote and suddenly the video of her giving a blow job to the President filled the screen. He let it run until he saw Sylvia smilingly swallow Jefferson's cum. At first Sylvia simply stared at the screen in surprise; as she realized what she was seeing her face went pale. But when Shale stopped the video, she became defiant. "Aren't you the hotshot detective?" she sneered. "Are you proud of yourself: trespassing, taking dirty pictures, sneaking around like a peeping tom?" "No," he said, "all I am now is curious. What happened, Sylvia? I thought we had a good marriage. I thought we had the same goals and dreams. How did we get to this?" he asked, pointing at the frozen image of Sylvia licking her lips. "You really want to know?" she asked, her face distorting with anger. "Things changed when I started working for Eric. It didn't take long to learn how the people in the administration look down on the faculty. He would make little jokes about their quirks, their petty rivalries, and their obsession with things that didn't have any significance in the real world. To people in the administration, the faculty are little more than spoiled over-educated children. "Then when I began to do work for Magnus I started to meet the real movers and shakers: billionaire donors who fund the university, captains of industry with big research grants to offer, government officials who need advice. Those are the kind of people that Magnus rubs shoulders with every day, while you're stuck in a dusty lab teaching bored students the difference between sedimentary from igneous rocks. "What's worse, I realized you loved it all, that you would be content to bury yourself for the rest of your life. The closer I worked with Magnus, the more I admired his drive, his ambition and his influence. When we became lovers, I saw a way to get out of your pathetic little world and into something so much bigger and better." Shale looked at her like she was some unknown specimen under a microscope. Was this the woman he'd married? Had all this envy and insecurity he was seeing now been there all along, or had it only come to the surface since they'd come to the university? "I guess it doesn't matter, either way," he thought sadly. She shrugged her shoulders contemptuously. "If you want to file for divorce, be my guest. You're just saving me the trouble of doing it myself. All it means is that Magnus and I will be able to be together that much sooner. He's planning on leaving his wife right after graduation, and as soon as the divorce is final, I'll become Mrs. Magnus Jefferson." He stared at her a moment. Then in a flat voice he said, "There's something else you need to see." With that, he pressed the PLAY button again, and now it was Margaret Jefferson's voice that came through the speakers. Shale didn't even look at the screen; instead, he watched Sylvia's face intently. At first there was a look of disbelief as she saw and heard the conversation that had taken place after she'd left the President's office. As she listened to Jefferson's words, Shale saw her confidence crumble and shock grow in her eyes. When the video abruptly stopped, what was left of her composure disintegrated and she began to sob. Shale stood up, ignoring her tears. "I'm leaving now. You can stay here tonight, but you need to be gone by the time graduation is over. I don't know where you'll go - that's not my problem." He picked up the bag that he'd packed and started toward the door, but then stopped. "However, I wouldn't recommend trying the President's mansion," he said bitingly. As he walked out the door, Sylvia screamed. Shale drove back over to the graduate student dorm. When he knocked on the door, Mosa quickly answered and put her arm around him as he walked in. "How did it go?" she asked sympathetically. "As bad as you would expect," he said. Saturday morning was graduation day. The joke among the faculty was that the only valid excuse for missing graduation was to phone in dead. Shale didn't want a strike against his hopes for tenure so he reluctantly donned the required academic regalia. Wearing the golden yellow cape that designated Science over the black robe made him feel like some grotesque bumblebee, but tradition outweighed taste in such matters. When he arrived at the university, the great quadrangle had been covered with rank after rank of folding chairs arrayed in front of a large platform erected for the faculty and speakers. Looking at the steep steps leading up to the stage, Shale could only hope that none of the new graduates suffered a spill trying to climb that last barrier to their degree. The weather was perfect and the quadrangle was rapidly filling with friends and families. A small platform had been erected in the midst of the crowd with a videographer perched on top to make a continuous record of the entire ceremony. A photographer wandered about taking stills and candids for the university web site. Even in his dark mood, the spectacle still impressed Shale. When Pomp and Circumstance finally played, the faculty marched in, mounted the stage and were seated. Shale saw Perry seated several spaces away, but the man steadfastly refused to look in his direction. Then the graduating classes followed, filling their designated rows in front of the stage. When everyone was finally in place and seated, President Jefferson rose to commence the proceedings. Despite his contempt for the man, Shale couldn't help admire the way the President's opening remarks deftly wove tradition and formality together with a little knowing humor. "The bastard would make a good political candidate," he conceded. "Hell, that's probably already part of his master plan," he thought. Next the President launched into an extended metaphor about the compact between student and university. "Today the students before us have kept their part of the bargain by fulfilling the requirements for their degrees, and we, the faculty and administration, have kept our promise by delivering a world-class education," he pontificated, pausing to emphasize his point. In that momentary pause a shrill voice near enough to the podium to be picked up by the microphone shrieked, "You're lying!" Some in the crowd tittered, and Jefferson looked around in amazement, unable to believe that someone had dared interrupt him. His hasty scan found no source of the outburst, so he tried to resume. "As I was saying..." "You're lying!" came the scream again. "You didn't keep your promise to me!" People on stage and in the audience began rising and craning their necks to try to see what was happening. Jefferson's head swiveled around again, and this time he focused on the photographer who had been crouching onstage snapping pictures. Shale peered between two of his fellow professors to get a better look and gasped. "That's Sylvia!" he realized in astonishment. She was wearing jeans and a hoody with her long hair tucked under it, and with the camera in front of her face neither Magnus nor Shale had recognized her. As the President gaped at her in shock, she stood up and stepped toward him. When she pulled the hood off her head, he gasped as he too recognized her. "Sylvia, what are you doing? This isn't the time or place..." he started in a low voice, but the microphone caught every word. With a cry of rage Sylvia lifted the camera over her head and smashed it to the floor of the platform. The lens shattered and rolled across the stage as the crash reverberated through the speaker system. The audience gave an audible gasp. "I will not be thrown away like some unwanted toy," Sylvia cried. The campus police had been stationed at the outskirts of the crowd at the start of the ceremony. Now Shale spotted several of them trying to make their way to the stage, but the aisles crowded with spectators impeded their progress. One of the officers managed to get near the stage, but Sylvia caught sight of him. Quickly she reached into the camera bag slung over her shoulder and pulled out a pistol. "That's Annika's gun!" Shale realized with dismay. He'd forgotten all about it. "Get back!" Sylvia yelled at the campus cop. "Don't try to stop me. I will have my say!" The audience at the back of the quadrangle couldn't see what was happening, but those nearest the stage did and shouts began to ring out: "She's got a gun!" Like a wave receding from the beach the crowd scrambled to back away from the stage. Sylvia brandished the pistol in Jefferson's general direction as she turned toward the audience. "He lied to me. He promised he was going to leave his wife. He said he was going to marry me!" she cried in a wild voice. Jefferson stood there as if paralyzed, gripping the podium for support. Now the crowd had quieted somewhat, trying to hear what was being said. Hundreds of cellphones were held aloft as onlookers tried to capture a record of the spectacle occurring before their eyes. Suddenly, to everyone's further astonishment, a female professor stood up, tears streaming down her face, and yelled, "He promised he'd marry me too!" Sylvia's head jerked around in surprise until she spotted the woman who'd spoken. Then another female faculty member jumped to her feet. "He promised me I'd get tenure if I slept with him!" she yelled angrily, pointing an accusing finger at Jefferson. Then a young woman seated among the graduating class stood up on her chair. "He promised me he'd write off my student loans!" she yelled. The crowd gasped at each outburst, transfixed by the drama unfolding before them, wondering what would happen next. As each new voice rose to join the other accusers, Sylva's head had swiveled back and forth as though watching some bizarre tennis match. Now she snapped back around to confront Jefferson. "You bastard!" she screamed. "You've been lying to all of us." Jefferson held his hands out toward her and took a step in her direction. "You've got to let me explain, Sylvia. It's not how it looks." "Get back!" she screamed, gesturing violently with the pistol. The gun went off with an enormous bang that echoed over the quadrangle, amplified by the speaker system. Instantly screams rang out as people dove for cover. Jefferson stood there for a moment with a shocked look on his face. Then he reached down and touched the chest of his academic robe. When his fingers came away stained crimson, his face took on a look of confusion; then he slowly crumpled to the platform. From his vantage point at the rear of the stage, it looked to Shale as though the entire quadrangle was in motion as people tried desperately to get away from the shooter. Panic-stricken people fell over chairs and tripped over each other in their quest for distance and safety. On stage, members of the faculty shoved one another as they scrambled down the stairs at the back of the platform. Several of them were pushed off the side and fell heavily to the ground. In all the chaos, Shale found himself trying to make his way to the podium. A voice inside him kept urging him to flee like the others, but his sense of responsibility kept him moving forward. "I've got to try to stop this," he thought as he stepped toward Sylvia. She was crouched over Jefferson's body. "What have I done?" she kept crying to herself. "Sylvia!" Shale yelled over the din, and the distraught woman looked over her shoulder at him. Then she caught sight of a security officer scrambling up the stairs on the other side of the platform. She glanced once more at Shale with an expression of resignation, then turned back toward Jefferson. As Shale reached to grab her, she slipped the barrel of Annika's pistol into her mouth and pulled the trigger. There was a muffled explosion and a sticky mix of blood and brain tissue sprayed over Shale. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The story captivated the news media for weeks. The initial shooting and the panic it caused were sensational enough, but the story kept getting uglier and uglier as the investigations began. Not only had Magnus Jefferson been having illicit and inappropriate relations with employees and students of the university, but so, it was soon discovered, had his wife. Worse, many of those relationships were induced by offers of money or privileges; some had been coerced by threats of reprisals. Then it came out that Eric Solveig, the Provost, had acted as a sort of sexual procurer on campus, identifying potential victims and steering them to Jefferson or exploiting them himself. Those predations had apparently gone on for a number of years. Equally damning was the revelation that others in the administration had been aware of what was happening and had done nothing. Desperate to try to salvage its reputation, the university demanded the resignation of virtually everyone in the upper level of administration. The trustees met and subsequently issued an abject apology on behalf of the institution. They also decided that Elliot Hall, the scene of such debauchery, should be torn down and another facility designated as the administration building. None of these efforts, of course, were successful in limiting the scandal. A screen capture from the videographer's camera of Jefferson staring at his bloody fingers became the symbol for the "Graduation Day Massacre." The photo of the student standing on her chair became a meme for sexual harassment. Headline writers endlessly alliterated "president," "provost," "predator" and "pervert". Ultimately, the university wound up retiring those titles and switching to "chancellor" and "vice-chancellor of operations". Knowing that a long trial could well keep the disaster in the public eye for years, the university quickly established a special fund to settle claims by the victims. Funding the trust wound up making a considerable dent in the university's multi-billion dollar endowment. Shale's attorney was able to negotiate a special settlement with his employer. In exchange for a seven-figure payout, the university bought up Shale's contract and he agreed to leave the school. Shale couldn't blame them for not wanting to have him around - he would have been a constant reminder of that whole dreadful episode. For that matter, he had no desire to be an ongoing source of whispers and jokes on campus. Behind The Waterfall It’s a beautiful Summer day, the sun is warm, the sky is blue with light fluffy clouds and we are in a long climbing gorge. There are many waterfalls dotting the canyon. The largest waterfall has a walkway behind it that allows people to see out through the falls as the spray falls all around. Below is a very deep pool of water carved out from thousands of years of the falls beating down on the rock base. We stop there to watch Nature’s beauty and enjoy each other’s company. You are in shorts and comfortable short sleeve shirt. I am wearing a tank top and a pair of white short shorts. I am standing in front of you, with your arms around my waist. We see down stream people walking and taking in the awesome beauty around them. I start to caress your cock with my one hand and play with my breast with the other. You are watching from over my shoulder with my long hair brushing against your face as you take one of your hands and guide mine...to touch, caress, and tease your cock the way you want to be played with. Your other hand unzips the zipper of my shorts and start to finger my pussy, while glancing at my face to see my eyes closed and mouth slightly open. The two of us have your shorts undone to have your glorious cock exposed that I may stroke that wonderful hardened part of you just for my pleasure. Your hand and fingers are tickling me so playfully as you lightly touch my clit and tease at penetrating me. Taking my hand from my breast, it has gone down to meet yours as you tease and tantalize me. Back and forth we play with each other, watching each other and what we are doing. I turn to face you as you are still stroking your cock and I am seeing that lovely cock of yours so hard, so tempting. You start to kiss my breasts and lick at my nipples, running your tongue down my body to my very womanhood. Licking at me and sucking gently on my clit, my pussy has become so wet as I stand there shaking with your touch. My hands on your shoulders needing to steady myself as I dizzy from your loving gestures. Licking at me and sucking, I am getting wetter as you lap up the taste of me. Taking two of your fingers and penetrating me with a moan and a squeal, I shake uncontrollably. The people that were off in the distance from us have caught glimpse of shadows from behind the waterfall as they hear moans echoing through the water. I am now so close to feeling an inner explosion that my mind is no longer aware of being attached to earth. Oh God, I feel myself starting to cum as you penetrate me with your fingers and your tongue laps at the opening of my pussy to extreme ecstasy. “Oh Love, I am cummminnggg!!” You suck at my pussy to urge me on, faster, with your tongue entering me!! Oh God, Oh God, I can’t hold still, trembling. “Ooohhhh, I am cummminnnnggg!!” You lick at me to get it all!! Oh, I am shakkinnnggg, hold me from falling, my head is spinning!! “Oh Love, what you do to me, steady me quick!!” “OH GOD!! Please wait, I need to catch my breath!!” As I start to calm down you are taking your fingers to my glistening wet pussy again, BUT this time I want to play too. So we lay beside each other on the rock floor of the walkway. My face to your glorious cock and yours to my pussy. I start to lick at the head of your cock as I glance down to your face, feeling you licking at me again. Running my tongue along your shaft, licking at the head and going back to your balls so gently to take one by one into my mouth and suck so lightly. I am already so close to cumming again from what is going on and what you have done to me before. BUT NO I won’t, I want you to feel me swallowing your cock deep inside my mouth. Taking your cock and sliding it slowly in and out of my mouth as your feel my tongue all along your hardened rod. You are now feeling inner urges as I begin to slide and swallow you a little faster as my hand massages you. Innnnnn and oouuuutttttt you slide, my lips kissing at the head as you slide out so far to tease me. I SWALLOW with one quick motion as you moan LOUDLY!! I stop...and you shake so hard, as I then start again to suck at you. We have drawn a crowd but they aren’t seeing that well as the falls and spray show us only shadows from behind. You are so ready and excitement of sucking at you has me even closer. “Oh Love, Please fuck me!! I want you inside me now!!” You turn me over and thrust your cock so deep inside me that I swear I can feel you to my heart. Thrusting hard and deep, oh God you must cum now, please you must cum now, PLEASE!! “Arrrggghhh”...you moan as you feel it. You hot cum spirting inside me. Spirt,cum,spirt,cum,spirt,cum...you ejaculate inside me!! “Oh God, I feel you, I am cummmmmiiinnnnnnggg!!” OH GOD, the world has just stood still as our minds orbit into space. The people heard all the moans and screams, women got VERY wet and the men got so hard that they had to finish themselves. We shook and goose bumps were all over our bodies. We lay beside each other to calm and hold each other as we felt the closeness. As the force of the waterfall continues to drop to the deep pool of water below and the day seems so much warmer. Behind the Waterfall You are wearing your flowing white sun dress and walking barefoot on the white sand beach... There is no one else around... as I approach, I see your womanly figure walking towards me... you are lost in thought and haven't yet recognized me... your lovely smile appears at the instant you realize that it is me... As we reach each other, embrace, and kiss, I notice that your white dress is quite translucent and the white bathing suit that you have underneath accents your figure in a most flattering way! Nearby, there is a waterfall that tumbles from the hillside and creates a nice pool... from the pool flows a small stream that flows across the beach and into the ocean... what a lovely romantic place! You kiss me again - more passionately this time... your big smile tell me that you enjoy our kisses very much! After a few minutes of kissing and talking, we begin walking together through the warm white sand towards the waterfall... The sound of the falling water gets louder as we get closer... we are holding hands and stopping once in a while to kiss... the day is perfect... The almost-invisible trail ends at the beautiful pool below the waterfall... there is no one else anywhere to be seen... "Oh, Rory - it's just you and I and no one else around!" you whisper as we hold each other close... "I'm a bit warm from walking - let's go into the water..." you say with that special smile that lets me know you are up to something... You move to help me take my t-shirt off over my head... as my head pops out, your soft lips are there waiting for mine... your kisses taste like desire... As we kiss, my fingers playfully move the straps of your sun dress off your shoulders... you take a half-step back and let it drop to the sand... I look down and can't help but notice that your white bikini compliments your smooth, tanned skin so well! your hair moves seductively in the gentle breeze... We stand there together on a flat rock overlooking the water and you decide that you want to jump off, so we hold hands and jump... SPLASH!! As we come up to the surface, you kiss me while treading water... then you notice that there is a small hidden pool behind the waterfall and challenge me to a race... we playfully swim behind the waterfall and stand up in the water to kiss again... You press your body against my bare chest as we kiss... I put my hands on your hips and pull you against me... We are in the warm water up to our waists now... you put your hands behind me and feel my rear, pressing me against you even more firmly... your hips begin to move as you rub yourself against the growing bulge in the front of my shorts... As I kiss your neck, my hands move up to undo your bikini top... you close your eyes, tilt your head back, and smile - giving me permission... after removing your top, I look down at your beautiful breasts... your nipples are already fully aroused from the water... You close your eyes in pleasure as I bend down to kiss one nipple, then the other... then you open your eyes again and watch me - smiling... saying nothing... As our lips meet again, you run your fingers gently down the center of my back to the waistband of my shorts and begin to pull them down very slowly... I help you to take them off, and you playfully toss them up onto the shore... you take my cock in your hand beneath the water, and begin to tease it - feeling it grow for you... We kiss passionately again... you press your bare breasts against my chest - feeling the warmth, the wetness, the heat... I whisper softly... "Oh, lover - I want you so much right now..." You step out of your bikini bottom and toss it onto the shore near my shorts... we are naked together again at last! you wrap your fingers around my cock, place it between your legs, and rub the tip of it against your clit... After a couple minutes of this, you hop up in the water, put your arms around my neck, and wrap your smooth legs around my waist... my fully-aroused cock is right at the very entrance of your pussy now... Reaching behind you, your hand moves in tiny circles as you rub the very tip of my cock against your clit and then slowly, slowly guide me inside of you... you are so wet, yet so tight! I can feel every inch of your pussy gripping me as you slowly take more and more of my big cock inside you... deeper... deeper... deeper! We are making love in the water now... you cover my face with kisses, and then put your tongue into my mouth as you ride up and down... up and down... up and down! Your breathing is getting heavier now... I can tell you are getting close to having an orgasm... so am I... the water surrounds us and makes us feel light as we move with each other... kissing... touching... feeling... The warm summer sun shines on our naked bodies... Now you playfully spread your legs wide, and I quickly push as deep inside of you as I can - your pussy feels so wonderful!! As I stroke in and out, your pussy muscles tighten, then relax - riding the whole length of my cock... our nipples brush together with every thrust... your tightness and wetness are bringing me closer and closer - my hardness is filling you completely... oh, lover!! mmmmmmm!! Suddenly, you tip your head back and moan loudly... your orgasm is a very strong one... this is what I've been waiting for - I can't hold back any longer and erupt deep inside of your pussy... as you feel the first warm spurt of my cum, your hungry lips find mine and we kiss as we continue to cum together... the water flows around us - making us one... Afterwards, we relax in the water, and just smile at each other... "Oh, Rory! making love with you is even better than I remembered!" you whisper breathlessly... I put my hands on your cheeks, look deep into your eyes, and reply... "thank you for being my lover... you are a beautiful woman in every way!" The sound of falling water fills our ears - it's the sound of complete satisfaction... The summer sun shines, the white sand sparkles, the water flows... We kiss again for the longest time...