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My Day at the Mall Ch. 02

By: Landrious1



Rachael watched me as I pressed the tips of my fingers to the bridge of my nose. She must have thought I was going to cut her lose because she flung herself at me, tears streaming from her eyes. "Please, you have to help her! Please! I beg you, don't leave her there! I'll do anythi..." 

I placed my fingertips to her lips and cut her off. I wrapped her nude, trembling, and abused form in my arms and whispered into her hair, "You don't have to do anything to or for me; you don't have to promise me anything; I want to take nothing from you. I am going to help you and even if I have to stage a raid on the place myself to free her, we will get her back tonight if she is there. I don't know yet exactly what or how, but we will get your sister back as soon as I can arrange it."

She looked into my face for a moment searching my eyes, I think to judge the truth of my words, and then collapsed sobbing into my embrace. I stroked her hair and held her until she calmed down. "I need to make arrangements and some phone calls. I'll leave you here with Sally and the Doctor." I felt her body tense up. I tilted her face to look into mine. "Little One, I'll only be gone a few minutes and I'll be within ear shot. I promised I'd stay and I will, but I'll need some help to free your sister."

I could tell she was uneasy. I took a gown off of the stand next to the exam table and wrapped Rachel in it. After a moment she turned and we put the gown on her properly. I again tilted her face to see mine and said, "I'll be just down the hall on the phone. Sally and Maggie will be here until I get back." They both nodded. Rachel got back up on the table and smiled weakly at me. 

As I exited the room I saw two Torrington Police detectives, one of which I knew, enter the hall with two uniformed officers behind them. "Hey Lou, did you escape from your monkey cage again?" The smile on his face reached his eyes as he caught sight of me and headed towards me.

"Well, Wayne Richards! I should have known you'd be here causing trouble if the mall were involved." The laughter in his eyes gave the lie to his words as he shook my hand. "Robbie let me introduce one of the best infiltration/extraction men in the world, and my good friend Wayne Richards. Wayne this is my partner Robbie Wells." 

We shook hands and while his grip was firm he didn't try to intimidate me by crushing my hand.

"Pleased to meet you, call me Robbie," he said in a deep baritone voice. I smiled.

"Likewise, Wayne is fine." I looked at Lou. "Are you here about an assault at the mall?"

Lou's eyes narrowed, "Yeah, something about a girl and one of your guards being attacked.'

Shaking my head I replied, "It wasn't one of my staff it was me. The guy in that room," I pointed at the closed door, "attacked me with a Sykes-Fairborn combat knife." I held up my arm to show the dressing. "I took it away from him. He had glued a woman into one of those PVC torture suits like we saw that time in Kosovo." 

I looked at Lou as his eyes went flat and could tell he remembered the incident. I nodded. "When we got her here and removed the thing we discovered that he had been raping and torturing her for more than a week and that her sister is still his captive. However she is being held in Covington."

Robbie said, "Fuck. It's got to be that bastard Winslow!" He continued to curse for several minutes. I could tell he was ex-military and based on his command of invective I was betting Navy Seals.

I looked at him and Lou spoke up "Robbie transferred into our department after quitting the Covington PD. It seems that a Judge and some of the cops down there think that having money is more important than doing their jobs."

I chuckled mirthlessly. "So I hear from one of my guys. His cousin is on the department down there. He told us not to try to get anywhere down there. He recommended we go to the Feds for help. I have a friend in the State police you know that I want to try first, though. Don might be able to point us in the right direction."

Lou grinned and said, "Tell my cousin from me to put down the donuts and nobody gets hurt." I chuckled.

Robbie spoke up, "If she is on his estate you need to go before he makes bail or talks to his lawyer. I know for a fact that three girls he took ended up dead while we were trying to question him and the only one to see him was his lawyer, Carter Burke. The minute he talks to Burke that girls sister is dead."

Sobering quickly I looked at the two men and said, "As the head of mall security I want to press charges of Attempted Murder, ADW (Assault with a Deadly Weapon), Aggravated Assault, Aggravated Menacing, Trespassing, and Disturbing the Peace. As private citizen I want to add the charge of Aggravated Menacing and Assault with Intent to Cause Grievous Bodily Injury. Those should keep him in custody up here for quite a while."

They both nodded and gave me evil grins. Lou said, "They told us he was unconscious so we can't take him until they release him but I am going to place him in custody now."

"I'm going to talk to someone and then I'll see you guys later." I hurried to catch Maggie. As I entered the room I caught her eye. "Maggie, are you the one treating the asshole next door?" At her nod I continued "I need you to sedate him and keep him from waking for at least the next four hours." 

I held up a hand to stall her protests. "I just talked to a cop that worked Covington and he says if this guy wakes up and talks to his attorney before I get to Becca then she is dead. That's not a possibility, but a certainty. He knows of several other women that have already met the same fate."

She grimaced and nodded, "Ok I can give him a sedative and pain killer cocktail that will get you four to six hours but after that there will be little I can do. The charts would show what I was doing and it could cost me my medical license."

I smiled. "Four hours is all I'll need to get her out. I just need to be sure he can't ask for a lawyer for the next few hours to get her clear is all. Can you get Rachel ready to travel? Once I've got her sister out they are both in danger. I'm going to arrange a safe place but she'll need to come with us now." At her nod I went back out to make my calls.

Twenty minutes on the phone had put me in a conference call with Lt. Don Phillips of the Missouri State Police, Assistant States Attorney Melissa Granger, and U.S. District Judge W.B. Smithers (Federal Judge for the 8th Circuit Court).

"We all know why I'm calling. I need to get to Rebecca Curtis before Mr. Winslow can regain consciousness. I've been informed by multiple reliable sources that if I don't she will be found dead within twenty four hours just like several others. I need your help Don." I was becoming agitated as time was running out.

Judge Smithers spoke up, "I know that bastard in Covington. His name is Harper. This sounds like something he'd be part of, the snake. Unfortunately young man if you go in there he'll have you arrested for burglary. I'll sign warrants but it may be too late by the time an officer can get to her."

Lou cut in, "Wayne, are you still a state reserve officer?"

"Yeah I'm still a member. I'm a sergeant. I was in the accident when we were coming back from range qualification recertification. Why?" I was curious now.

Lou responded, "As of this moment you are hereby called to active duty for the express purpose of serving and executing any and all warrants involving Roger Winslow. In addition you may activate any reserve officers you need to execute these warrants, secure the premises and perform any required searches. Once these objectives are accomplished you will provide security for Miss Curtis and her sister. Take whatever steps you deem necessary."

Smithers spoke up, "Ms. Granger do you have the warrants ready for my signature?"

Assistant States Attorney Granger spoke, "I'm outside your house right now your honor. If you'll open the gates I'll get your signature and meet Sergeant Richards at the site in Covington with the warrants and a Crime Scene Unit. He can enter the premises at any time, retrieve the girl and leave another officer to secure the building until the CSU arrives. Once they start processing his house we should have enough to keep Winslow locked up for good."

I smiled grimly. "I'm going to try to recruit a local EMT crew to go with me. I don't know who I can trust down there and I can't let us be picked up in Covington County."

Judge Smithers chimed in again, "You do what you have to and I'll guarantee a ruling of "exigent circumstances" on any charges those bastards manage to file." After a few more minutes we hung up and I went to recruit my crew.

I made a call. "Red, Wayne here, I don't have time to explain but I need a safe house and I need it in the next two hours. Did Jerry get in touch with you?"

Red McDaniels answered quickly, "Yeah they told me what happened at the mall but why do you need a safe house?"

I outlined the situation and finished off saying, "...I just can't leave her there for that bastard Red. I just can't. I've got official support but I need a place to keep us safe until trial, this slime has the whole county down there in his pocket and I can't take any risks. Not with these girls involved. If I had known what he was when he pulled that knife I'd have killed the bastard and saved myself the trouble. As it is I don't know who else at the state level is in his pocket. Granger gave the okay to put them into our own protective custody but I haven't got the resources to do it on hand."

"I hear you, pal. Take anyone you need from our crew to retrieve the girl. Listen I'm going to put in a call to a friend who can help you. You plan your raid and call me just before you leave for Covington. I'll have a safe place set up before then. Jerry and Ray are both reserve "Staties" too so I'd advise you to take them as well. Talk to you soon" With that he hung up.

I called Jerry and told him to get Ray and meet me at the hospital. I told him to get our tactical gear and bring it with him. While I had him on the line I told him, "We be deputized Jerry! Grab your reserve kits and be ready to move when you get here. I've been authorized to use whatever I need to make this happen immediately if not sooner."



My Day at the Mall Ch. 03



As we rode I sat and looked at Rachel's face. In her sleep I could see the turmoil evident in her dreams. I stroked her back and instantly the look on her face became one of total relaxation. I held her and thought what that meant for me... to me.

Ray turned and looked at her and said, "How could anyone hurt someone that beautiful?" 

I looked at him, my face a deathly grim mask and replied, "I don't know but he'll never hurt her again if I have anything to say about it." Ray just nodded.

Rachel's hand snaked up to cup my face. I looked down into her eyes and saw the adoration there. Her voice was a breathy whisper, "My knight in shining armor rides forth to slay yon dragon to protect the broken damsel."

I smiled at her, "Alas fair one, the dragon's doom hath been sealed, for the blackguard hath pitted his strength against me and I shall prove his perfidy upon his body! The dragon must be slain that the maiden fair be made whole and safe from the abomination of his desolation."

Jerry looked at Ray and said in a somber voice, "In my professional opinion, they're both nuts!" 

Ray broke out in laughter but cut it off as her heard Rachel start to sobbing the word "maiden" over and over again rocking in my arms effectively killing his burst of humor

Placing a finger on her chin, I turned her face to look at me, "You'd never had sex before he raped you." I made it a statement not a question.

Her quiet heartbroken, "No." wrenched at my heart.

I stroked her hair and moved a few stray strands away from her face, "You do know that your virginity is intact, don't you?" 

Her eyes flew wide open in rage, "How dare you mock me?" She tried to slide out of my arms but I held her firmly. Not so tight that she couldn't move but she wasn't going anywhere I didn't allow her to.

"I do not mock you, nor do I belittle your pain. Your virginity resides neither within your heart, nor your vagina nor in a hymen. Where you give your heart is the only thing that determines who gets to receive that most precious of gifts. He stole your body's innocence, that is true, but not your virginity. That is not something that can be taken by force or coercion. It is a treasured gift given to the one of your choosing and no other." 

She jerked and stared into my eyes. I felt the weight of her judgment upon my words. "You actually believe that!? You aren't just saying that?"

Jerry answered her for me, "If the boss says it, you can bank on the fact that he believes it. I've never known him to lie to anyone outside of a mission. Even then he skirted the truth more often than lied."

I said, "You may find this strange in this day and age but my mother always said I was from a time long past when people kept their word and spoke the truth, the strong defended the weak and did not abuse them. I'll not lie to you and I'll not belittle what you went through. Yes, I believe what I said." 

She looked at me for a few more seconds and then laid her head back on my shoulder, snuggling into my arms once more wrapping herself tightly in my arms. "Good!" she said simply. We rode in silence for a while longer and Ray and I discussed the best way into Winslow's estate.

Jerry piped up, "The turnoff to Winslow's is just ahead. There are several cars pulled in there." Jerry pulled in behind a State Patrol vehicle and shut off the engine.

The ambulance from Torrington containing Sally and Maggie Kirkland and Mike Foley pulled up behind us.

Mel stepped out of one of the cars and came towards the SUV as Rachel slid off of my lap and made room for Mel to get in the back with us. I noticed that she put me between herself and the approaching woman. Melissa Granger appeared to be a woman in her mid thirties and was wearing a pair of tight blue jeans and a red silk top, which was mostly obscured by the jacket she was wearing. Even so her figure was alluring. Her shoulder-length brown hair was curly and bounced as she walked back to meet us. 

I opened the door and made room for the vivacious lady on the bench seat. As she slid onto the seat her jacket gaped open revealing a very pleasing décolletage. She was very lovely and I could tell by the looks on Jerry and Ray's faces that I wasn't the only one to think so.

As she put her arm on the back of the seat and turned to face us I saw she too carried a firearm under her left arm. She noticed my glance and said, "Since being promoted to the States Attorney's office I've had three attempts on my life. I don't go anywhere unarmed. Is that a problem for you?

The weapon was a Bersa Arms Thunder 45 Ultra Compact .45 caliber semi-automatic. I had seen and used them before and liked the weapon for its accuracy and dependability. It was one of the best concealed-carry firearms for accuracy and stopping power around. It's the preferred sidearm of the Argentinean Federal Police. 

"As long as you're qualified to carry it I have no problem with it." I watched her face as I spoke.

She smirked "I was taught to shoot by a former Olympic-class marksman and scored five hundred eighty-three out of six hundred in the ten rings at my qualifying exam. Is that good enough?" 

Jerry and Ray both whistled. Jerry said "Damn boss, she's almost as good as you." 

Ray took in her indignant stare and laughingly said "Boss man here set the state and national records for handgun qualification by scoring five ninety-nine, six hundred, and six hundred in three consecutive sessions at the Ben Avery School and then at Quantico. He holds several other unofficial or should I say classified records in the CQB (Close Quarters Battle) houses at Quantico, Fort Bragg, and Cherry Point.

"He's a regular one man wave of armed destruction when he wants to be." Ray and Jerry smirked at her. "Don't ask him about them. He signed a confidentiality agreement. We didn't! His call sign was..."

"Shut up, Ray!" My voice told him that I was serious

"Well it sounds like when this is over I'm going to ask for some shooting instructions and CQB training if you don't mind, Mr. Richards. I've made some powerful enemies and they seem to be determined that I not live to regret it." She said this with a jocular air at first but you could hear the sadness in her voice as she spoke.

"I'll be happy to help you with that when this is all over. At the moment we need to focus on getting Ms. Curtis out of there and the pair of them safe." As I finished Mel sighed.

"Ms. Curtis, is this your uncle?" Mel handed Rachel a photo of a distinguished looking old man.

Rachel handed her back the photo. "Call me Rachel, please. Yes, that's my uncle. Why do you ask?"

Mel sighed again and said "I'm sorry to have to tell you that your uncle is dead. As near as I can tell he died the same day that you were kidnapped."

Rachel gasped and tears began to well in her eyes. "There is no chance you are mistaken?"

Mel shook her head sadly "I'm afraid not. We verified his death and his identity at the same time we were notified of his passing. Your uncle secretly left iron clad instructions regarding the disposition of his remains however, and the required autopsy supports a finding of murder. He was poisoned. If we had not been looking for foul play we would not have found the poison. It metabolizes within twelve hours and your uncle had placed on file an order requiring an autopsy within four hours of his death under any circumstances and that a screen for every possible toxic agent be performed. I can only conclude that, as these orders were held in secret, he feared for his life and expected something to happen."

Rachel cried a bit more and then Mel continued after she had pulled herself together. "A will has been filed by Mr. Winslow showing him as the sole heir to his father's estate; however it will not be eligible for probate." She smirked, "Your uncle left a will with a trusted friend that is to supersede all other documents and it was on file under seal in the courthouse in Torrington not Covington. It's dated the day before he died. His friend is a sitting State Supreme Court justice. Winslow's lawyers are having hysterics trying to impeach his credibility."

Rachel looked shocked. "What does the will say?"

Mel smiled, "I have no idea at this time. The will is to remain sealed until you and/or your sister come to make a claim and probate the will."

Upon hearing that, Winslow's plan fell into place for me. "Mel we need to get inside now!" As I was speaking two more Missouri State Patrol cruisers pulled up behind us.

Mel looked into my face and instead of asking questions she pulled out a stack of warrants granting me the right to enter the premises and seize any evidence found there. "Go on, cowboy. We'll be waiting to hear from you. Those two cruisers are my people and I trust them with my life. We'll take care of Rachel till you come back with her sister."

~~~~~

I climbed out of the SUV and motioned for Jerry and Ray to follow me. I was shaking with rage. Winslow had figured to use Becca to force Rachel to turn over their inheritance. I stalked over to the new cruisers and greeted the officers.

"I'm Sgt. Tommy Monroe and this is my brother Bobby. The other two are our cousins Mike and John Butler. We'll be watching your back." The tall, fit looking blonde officer held out his hand and I took it. His grip was firm but he didn't try to play the power games I have dealt with in others. He was confident but not arrogant and so were the others.

Bobby spoke and I looked over at him and you knew that these two were brothers. "Sissy tells us you ran afoul of that Winslow bastard." 

I grinned. "Sissy? Oh this is going to be fun. I assume you mean Mel?"

Bobby looked like he had just swallowed a live salmon. "Oh shit, she'll kill me!"

Jerry, Ray, and I joined in the laughter of the three troopers.

After a moment we settled down and I gave them their orders. As I spoke their grim expressions told me I had staunch allies for this raid.

"Winslow kidnapped and tortured two sisters. I freed one of them in Torrington earlier today and we believe the other is still being held on this compound. I have it from a reliable source that if we don't free her before Winslow wakes up and asks for an attorney she will be found dead within twenty-four hours if she is found at all. Her sister is in that SUV with Mel now and we'll be taking the sisters into protective custody as soon as we have Becca free."

Tommy spoke "I'm assuming the three of you are going in and you want us to keep the locals out of there until you're done."

I nodded, "I need the time for my guys to find and free her. We think we can delay any alarm for a while but eventually it's going to sound. Winslow has a bought-and-paid-for Judge and several high level cops in Covington that have been helping cover Winslow for years. I have State warrants that give me jurisdiction and total authority over this crime scene. Anyone who tries to enter the grounds before we are out you can arrest for obstruction. That's an order by the way, so you are covered if this goes badly."

John Butler spoke for the first time, "I went to the prom with Leslie McGill. We were going to get married when she graduated college. That would have been next month. She disappeared two years ago. Winslow was the last one to be seen with her. She turned up dead six weeks later. The same day she was found a judge had signed a search warrant for his house. There was never any search. Harper got the warrant rescinded as her body had been found."

Mike put his arm around his brother and said, "Nobody will get past us until you or Mel says so. I know that bastard killed Les and I'll help anyway I can."

I nodded again and called Terry and told him to watch for the alert as we were going in.

"I've got the system rigged to delay the alert signal for twenty minutes not twelve. That should give you the time you need to find the girl and get her out of the house before anyone from Covington can interfere."

"Thanks, Terry! Okay guys were a go for breach let's do this." I picked up a sound suppressed H&K MP5 and cycled the action to load it. 

Jerry gave a curt nod and jacked a round into the chamber on his Benelli 12 gauge semi-automatic combat shotgun. Ray carried an M4, a lightweight close-quarters version of the M16.

Ray looked at me and said, "I'm on point." He moved as silently as anyone I'd ever seen. Jerry, Ray, and I, along with the other members of our unit, had been called the Ghost Walkers. We made our way over the wall of Winslow's compound and headed for the main house. We swept through the grounds and found that sentries who were on duty were very careless in their attitudes. They, like Winslow, assumed that they were invulnerable in Covington. One by one we rendered all six sentries unconscious. We bound them with flexi-cuffs and moved into the compound.

The map that we had obtained we had given to Terry and he had uploaded it to our PDA's. We disabled the alarm and told Terry to give us time readings every five minutes. Strangely enough there was no one in the upstairs or the ground floor of the main house. 

In the kitchen we found a door in the back of the walk-in pantry that led to what we came for. As the door opened we heard the scream of a woman in agony. I took point and as I rounded the corner into what could only be a dungeon, I saw a man with what looked like a branding iron preparing to place it on a nude woman's breast. The woman was strapped to a St. Andrews cross.

I called out in a loud clear, firm voice, "State Police! We have a warrant! Place your hands behind your head and kneel on the floor!"

I don't know his name, but judging from his looks I'd say he was of Middle Eastern extraction, but he was a fool. Instead of obeying orders and living he dropped the branding iron and tried to pull a pistol from his waistband. I fired two rounds, one to the head and one in the chest, and knew he was dead before he hit the floor. I moved into the room followed by Jerry and Ray. They spread out, left and right to clear the room. 

I moved straight to the woman on the cross. I released the buckles binding her to the cross. I caught her as she fell to her knees. I knelt next to a perfect copy of Rachel. Same eyes, same nose, same everything. I spoke softly, a single tear falling from my right eye, "Ms. Curtis? I'm a friend of your sister Rachel. We've come to get you and take you to her."

She never acknowledged my presence until she heard her sister's name. She raised her head and I could see the cuts on her lips from the abuse she had suffered I could see the bruising on her face, some beginning to fade, others fresh and new. "R-R-Rachel? 

I nodded. "I freed her from Winslow earlier today and have him in custody. He won't hurt you anymore. I won't let anyone hurt you again." As I reached out to touch her she flinched away in panic. I keyed the mic on my radio and told Terry, "I need a medic in here now! The house is clear. The sentries are neutralized."

Terry replied, "That's a good thing. Mel's Crime Scene Unit just arrived and the alarm company just made the call to Covington. You've got about three minutes before company arrives."

I switched frequencies on my radio and told Tommy what was going on. He told me that the ambulance was on its way into the compound with Rachel inside and that Mel was waiting for the Covington PD to arrive. They had moved their cars to block the road and would keep the locals clear until we were on our way.

I turned back to the nude woman and said, "Your sister is coming for you. She'll be here in a minute."

She looked up at me frightened. "You must get her away from here. Master will come for her and kill her! You must get her away from here!"

I took her in my arms and crooned softly. "It's okay. You are both safe now. I won't let Roger hurt you again. Roger is not your master any longer. You are free. I won't let him hurt you or your sister." She relaxed into my embrace and sobbed into my chest.

Rachel found us like that when she, Sally and Maggie entered the room. Rachel looked like she was about to throw up. They moved over to me and I leaned back. "Becca, this is Maggie and her sister Sally. They are going to look you over and make sure you're all right to travel."

As I moved away Rachel took her sister's hand and brought it to her cheek as she sobbed. "I told you I'd come for you, Becca. I told you I would."

Becca focused on Rachel's face and began to panic. "You must go! Master will come and said he'd kill you if I saw you again! You must run!"

Rachel snorted, "He's no master! He's a piece of filth. Wayne will protect us. He won't let him hurt us again." 

As Rachel spoke Becca calmed and said in a dreamy voice, "If he's not master, who is master? I must serve master." She drifted off to sleep and Rachel stroked her hair.

My radio crackled and Tommy said "If you want to leave before the goon squad gets here you need to do it now. I can hear their sirens."

I looked at Sally and Maggie, "Can I take her or does she need to go to the hospital?"

Maggie looked at Sally and said, "Tell Peter I'll be out for a few more days, maybe a week, on a personal emergency." She handed her four vials of blood she had taken from Becca. "Give these to Lance at the lab. Tell him to scan it for drugs of any type as well as everything else under the sun. I'll call him in a day or so for the results." Turning to me she said, "She can be moved but she's going to need more care than I think you are prepared for. I'll go with you to make sure that there are no problems."

I frowned but didn't have time to argue. We put the sleeping woman on the gurney and took her to the waiting ambulance. We rode to the cruisers and Jerry and Ray got out and into the SUV. We passed a large equipment truck with the words "Missouri State Crime Scene Investigation" on the side parked with one of the cruisers, and Mike Butler, near the entrance of the house.

We waved at Mel and she came across the radio "Keep 'em safe cowboy and I'll talk to you in a week. The Covington police chief is at the perimeter demanding to be let into the crime scene. I'm going to go give arrest orders to my cousins."

I called Red and informed him of the changes and he said "Come through Torrington and meet me at the south lot. I'll have a clean transport and some supplies for the doc that she might need."

Hanging up the phone I saw Jerry close his own and say "Boss, it seems that there is a 'hot pursuit' of a couple of thieves headed for the southern part of the state. The Covington PD are currently giving chase." The laughter in his voice let me know that his cousin had come through for us.

Thirty minutes later we met Red at the south storage lot for the Mall. He had a large decommissioned ambulance waiting. I recognized it as one that a defunct ambulance service had auctioned a month or so before. I was at that auction replacing my SUV which had been totaled in the wreck.

He kept it short and to the point. "Get the girl transferred and get moving. Harper called Winslow's shyster and is trying to get the warrants revoked. They are also making noises about his cousin being missing from the home. They don't know about the shooting yet but you can bet they will try to get warrants for you and her. The ambulance is outfitted with the best equipment available. The tank is full so get going." With that he turned and took the SUV we had arrived with and left leaving us the ambulance and his Jeep Commander.

Ray drove us to the safehouse in record time. Maggie rode with Jerry in the ambulance. Becca remained unconscious throughout the ride and, with one brief exception, until late the next day.

"I'm impressed. There's a full military field surgery kit in here as well as quite a few prescription drugs for a wide array of treatments." Maggie's voice sounded surprised.




My Day at the Mall Ch. 03



I chuckled, "Red was our 'scrounger' when we were in the Marines. If you needed it he could find it and get it to you. He knows this is going to take time to settle out. He also believes in a 'plan for the worst, hope for the best' approach to emergency management."

~~~~~

We rode in silence the rest of the way to the safehouse. Red had said it was a cabin. That's like saying Buckingham Palace is a small cottage. The "cabin" was enormous. At least five thousand square feet of living space and that didn't include the pool house for the 25-meter competition size pool or the tennis court. When we arrived we found the key right where it was supposed to be. There were eight huge master bedrooms each with its own attached bathroom suite with Jacuzzi tub and walk-in shower. We quickly moved Becca into one of the bedrooms and took stock of what we had to work with.

I began to look the place over and found a state of the art security system that included motion sensors, infrared sensors, and trembler sensors for the entire estate! I'd been on Navy bases that didn't have security this tight! The security room had a bank of eight monitors with six cameras each displayed on them. Absolutely every approach to the house and drive was covered by at least one camera. In addition the security system had round the clock off-site monitoring. Anyone coming at us here would have a problem. The windows were all refraction armored glass! 

[Authors Note: Refraction armored glass, when seen from the outside, moves the image of what is inside to one side by as much as six inches depending on the size of the window. A sniper aiming at what is seen will be put off target by as much as six inches. Only high caliber rounds such as a .50 can penetrate it.]

As I read the security spec sheet in the security room, I had to wonder just who the hell this place belonged to. To the naked eye there was nothing out of the ordinary for a moderate estate. But once you looked deeper, this place was an infiltration specialist's nightmare. There was no easy access to the grounds or to the house without alerting those in the house and the off-site security that someone was there. Seeing this I began to relax a little. I made a note to ask Red for the name of the owner and designer of this place. The security room also had an alert paging system. The pagers would be alerted to any intrusion and notify us instantly. I took one for myself and gave one each to Jerry and Ray.

"Damn, Bossman! This place is tighter than a virgin on prom night!" Ray quipped. I scowled at him. I'd never cared for that phrase.

"Keep looking around in here. I'm going to check on the girls and Maggie." I strode out of the room and headed to Becca's bedroom. 

I looked in on Rachel and Becca. They had fallen asleep and were cuddled in each others arms on the king-size bed in the room we had put Becca in. Becca had stripped down to skin and Rachel was wearing just a pair of panties and a crop top t-shirt that Della had given her.

Their beauty was marred by the pattern of bruising and welts that covered them both. Some of the bruises were starting to fade and some were brand new. I could see a tracery of burns on their arms and Becca's exposed breasts. I knew from the hospital that Rachel had a similar pattern on hers. What I hadn't seen was the vivid fresh burn on Becca's right calf. It was a stylized RW. The very sight of that burn made me eager to return to Torrington and end that bastard's life right now.

As I was thinking this the encrypted cell phone Red had given me rang. Only he and Granger had the number. I closed the door to the girls' room as I opened the phone and said "Speak!"

Mel's voice came across, "Wayne? Is that you? What's wrong? Are the girls okay?"

I sighed in frustration. "I'm sorry, Mel. I just looked in on the girls and got a better look at what that bastard did to them. Becca was being branded when we arrived at the estate and I was too late to prevent some of it. The arrogant son of a bitch marked her with his initials, Mel." I had to swallow to clear my throat of the rage I felt.

"Shit! Well that "bastard" is awake and Harper is already making noise about illegal search and trying to order arrests. By the way, Red says that he can set up a video conference with the investigators to clear you of the shooting. We got the whole thing on video; so it's a slam dunk you'll be cleared of any charges. The room was wired for sound and video. We think we have their whole rape and torture as well as the planning of Rachel's sale to a white slaver on tape. That's where he was headed when you interrupted his plans. The man you killed has been identified as a Syrian national named Hammed Fareez. Among other things he's on the terrorist watch list. He's a known terrorist with connections to Hezbollah and Hamas. He's also wanted by Interpol for trafficking in white slavery and drugs. He was a real piece of work."

I started to plan the ways I was going to slowly kill Richard Winslow. It was only going to take several weeks if he was very lucky. "Tell me that Winslow is still in custody."

"Damned straight, Cowboy! His consel tried to make a case for having him moved to Covington and the presiding judge laughed in his face. He was also told any more frivolous motions like that would get him a cell next to his client on a contempt charge. We have tons of video to go through and are planning to charge anyone in them with complicity in the crimes." She took a breath.

"I've been told by my Boss that there are no deals to be made. No plea bargains at all. He doesn't care if they can give up Bin Laden himself, there are no deals. He wants me to go for the death penalty if we can get a capital charge from the tapes. He has also frozen all of Winslow's legitimate assets. He currently would have to borrow a quarter to call 911, he's so broke." 

I chuckled grimly. "Thanks, Mel. Keep me in the loop on the case and let me know when you want to do the video conference. Would you mind acting as my lawyer for the interview?"

"Sure thing, Wayne, I'll let you know when or if they want to do this. Also, Red McDaniels said to tell you that he's got his people monitoring the security where you are and that there is a safe room in the basement. He said you'd know what I meant and the code is your service number."

That took a load off my mind. I now had a safe place to stash the girls if I needed it. "Thanks Mel. If you talk to him again tell him I want the name of the designer for this place. I'll let you know where we are when I think it's safe to do so. You'll need to come here for the girls' depositions anyway so plan on staying a day or so."

"All right, Cowboy, I'll talk to you later." I could hear the warmth in her voice.

I got an evil grin on my face, "Bye, ...Sissy!"

I could hear the heat in her voice "My cousin has a damned big mouth!" I laughed as she disconnected and I closed the phone. The rest of the night passed quietly. I still had not been to bed and Maggie had been up all night keeping watch on the girls.

As dawn broke I wandered into the kitchen and saw Jerry closing his cell phone. "What's up?"

"That was my cousin Mike. He wanted to tell me that he and his partner resigned from the Covington PD as of one hour ago. He'll be staying at my place until he finds another job and an apartment. They ordered him to arrest Mel and he told them to go to hell. He called her and told her about the attempt and a federal judge called the chief of police and informed him that any charges would be handled by him personally and any false charges would result in prison time for him." I laughed at that and had no doubt that Judge Smithers was the federal judge in question.

"Tell Mike and his partner to talk to Red and have them fill in for one of us until we get back. This is going to take awhile unless I'm mistaken. He gave up his career to help us so we owe him one." Jerry turned his back and opened his cell phone. I began to make a sandwich when the quiet was rent apart by a loud scream.



My Day at the Mall Ch. 04



I dropped the knife I had been holding and raced for the girls' room. I drew my weapon as I approached their door. Ray and Jerry were only a few steps behind me and stayed outside to cover the hall, pistols drawn and eyes alert. I flew into the room and saw Rachel cradling Becca and stroking her hair as they rocked slowly back and forth. 

As I approached them Rachel held a finger to her lips to silence me. I heard her cooing softly, "It's all right, Becca. Softly then, love… shhh. Its okay, we're safe now. Wayne will keep us safe." As she stroked Becca's hair I saw the tears trailing down Rachel's cheeks. 

I motioned for Jerry and Ray to go ahead that everything was being taken care of. Jerry said softly, "We've got the watch, boss. Take care of the ladies and we'll keep an eye on things." They turned and moved back towards the kitchen and sent Maggie to us.

Maggie came into the room with her med kit, and quickly moved over to the bed. She moved so that Becca could see her before she sat on the bed, so as not to panic the stricken woman, and began trying to calm her hysteria. I watched as she swabbed Becca's arm and gave her an injection. A few minutes later Becca drifted off to sleep and they laid the sleeping woman on the bed. I mentioned the burn on her leg and Maggie, cursing Winslow the whole time, cleaned and dressed the wound before covering her up and bringing Rachel out of the room with her.

Maggie turned to Rachel and asked, "What set her off? When I looked in on you a bit ago you were both sleeping fine."

A tear ran down Rachel's face as she said, "She woke me and asked me where her master was. I told her that Roger wasn't her master anymore and that she had no master and as near as I can fathom, she panicked." 

I took the elfin woman in my arms and held her for a few moments and moved all of us into the lounge and onto the couch. Maggie took a chair and asked "Do you know what he was doing to her? How did he get her to call him master?"

Rachel wiped her face on her sleeve and told us "I don't know what he was giving her but that vile Arab he kept at the house was giving her injections of some drug several times a day. The day they took me, the Arab did what he called a 'scratch test' on me with some drug and it made the site swell immediately and was painful for two more days. The Arab told him that if they used the drug on me it would kill me almost immediately. They started… raping me after the test showed he couldn't use his drug on me."

Rachel began to rock back and forth and I again held her and stroked her hair until she calmed down some. 

Maggie frowned at me and said, "We need to call Mel and have her look for those drugs. If I know what he was giving her I may be able to counter its effects. At the very least I'll know better how to treat her." 

I held out the encrypted phone and said "She's speed dial one. Keep it brief, they don't have that number and can't get it from our end but they may be able to track her end of things" She nodded and went into the kitchen as she dialed Mel's number. 

When Maggie came back she handed Rachel a pill and a glass of water and said, "Take this. Your sister will be out for a least the next ten hours. She needs the rest and by then I should have some idea of what is going on and how to begin fixing it. That pill will help you sleep. You need to rest, too. This should let you get about six hours of uninterrupted sleep. It should prevent any nightmares and let you rest peacefully. I won't give these to you often but I think you need it right now."

Rachel took the pill and drank the water. Soon Rachel had nodded off as the drug took effect, so I picked her up gently, carried her up to her room and laid her gently on the bed. She snuggled into her pillow without as much as a whimper. She looked so calm and peaceful lying there.

I turned and limped over to my own room. I pulled out my swim trunks and quickly changed. As I was exiting my room I heard a low whistle. I turned and Maggie was standing in the hall; she was still in her scrubs from the hospital.

I smiled grimly and said, "Doctors must have a depraved sense of humor if you like what you see."

She cocked and eyebrow at me and asked, "What do you think I see, cowboy?"

I grunted, "A tired, overweight, half-crippled warhorse that would like to take a soak in that hot tub. I didn't bring my meds and my leg is killing me."

She frowned and shook her head at me when I told her I was in pain. "Unh uhn. Back in the bedroom for a minute, soldier boy, I'm going to check you out. Maybe I can help. We'll finish this conversation after I take a good look at you." I started to protest and she cut me off. "Stow it, Grunt! Rumor has it I'm a pretty fair doctor so go in there while I get my kit. Doctors orders!" She punctuated each word with a poke in my chest.

In my defense I was just too damned tired to argue. I was starting to come down from the adrenaline rush of the raid and flight. We were relatively safe for the moment. My mind knew this and had told my body, so I was crashing.

Maggie came back into my room with her doctor's bag and the large carryall containing the drugs Red had provided her. She had changed and was wearing an oversized terrycloth bathrobe. She smiled and said "This shouldn't hurt a bit." 

She quickly looked me over and checked me for any other injuries. While she was examining the mound of scar tissue that used to be my right knee she got a thoughtful look on her face and asked "What does the knee feel like right now?"

I looked at her and said "It feels like it always feels. When I bend my knee I can feel something grinding in there but the surgeon says it's just my imagination. I had an appointment to see another doctor next week but it looks like I'm gonna miss that one."

She frowned and shook her head. "Let me guess: When you're on your feet for very long your knee aches and after a while it becomes inflamed and you have to get off it and soak it or put ice on it to reduce the swelling. Your therapist believes you but can't figure out what's going on or thinks you're not telling them everything you are doing to stress the joint."

My jaw dropped. "That's almost a verbatim quote of… of what they said last time I was in."

She ran her hand up my knee pushing gently. At one spot to the outside of the joint pain flared in my knee and I hissed and I jerked in pain. "I suspect that that is where you have something embedded in the connective tissues of your knee. The doctor who repaired your knee was either incompetent and missed something or he closed something up in there. When you walk it saws back and forth and this causes the inflammation. The inflammation puts pressure on the nerves and the result is flaring pain. I'd need an X-ray to see what exactly is going on in there but from the position I think it's working its way out and I might be able to remove it with a local and the field kit you got for me. I don't want to wait to long though. Every step you take puts more stress on the knee and it could end up cutting a nerve or tendon or ligament."

I looked at her skeptically. She said, "Trust me. I've removed my share of shrapnel from guys in Afghanistan. I could do this one in my sleep."

"If this works, I owe you big time. They tried to talk to me about putting me on stronger painkillers but I refused. Then they accused me of being addicted to the ones I'm on except that they are non-addictive. That's why I was going to see someone else next week." I couldn't help but to wonder how some people got their medical license.

Grimacing I said, "I'll ask Red if there is anywhere close we could get an X-ray off the books. If not, I've lived with it this long; it'll keep a while longer." 

She stood and held out a hand to me and said, "In that case, grab your phone, your towel, and anything else you need and let's go imitate a couple of lobsters in a pot by boiling in that hot tub for awhile."

I took her hand and grabbed my stuff as she sashayed out the door. I may be dense but even I could see this offer on its way.

I called Red as we walked to the tub and he said "Let me work on it. I have a friend I have to check with first but I'll let you know tomorrow morning before ten." I closed the phone and as I walked through the door I was stunned. Maggie was standing there next to the hot tub. NEKKID! 

(For those not raised in the south we have words that ya'll don't. There is Nude - meaning sans apparel, without clothing. Then there is Naked- meaning bare skin and nothing more. Then you have NEKKID which means hotter than a firebomb and twice as dangerous.) 

So friends and neighbors let me tell you, Maggie was NEKKID! I had never seen a sexier sight in my life. She stood there beautifully posed with one foot slightly in front of the other, hands on her hips. The light coming through the windows highlighted her curves and they were generous let me tell you! Maggie had the classic hourglass figure. While Sally was wiry and strong Maggie was lush and very sensuous. She had a light, narrow racing stripe of brown curls above her clit but was bare everywhere else.

Maggie smiled at me and said, "I was supposed to have the night and the next three days off. I haven't had a day off in more than two months and I haven't been laid in three. I was going to try to find a nice guy to have fun with tonight but this came up instead. If you don't mind I'd like to pick up the conversation we were having earlier?" At my nod she continued. 

"What do I see when I look at you? I see a nice, strong, caring, stubborn man who can't stand to see someone abused. I see a man who has had his body abused recently and is coping quite well. I see a man who cares enough about people to put himself in harm's way to protect them and not expect or want pats on the back, or parades and parties for having done so. I see a man that I would not be ashamed to wake up next to in the morning or even to take home to meet my mamma." She wore a little smirk as she said the last part and held out a hand to me. "I would like it very much if we could get to know each other better. I would also like to spend the night… well day now, with you. If you'd rather not, I understand but I think I can say we'd both enjoy it."

I took in her beauty and swallowed. She was a stunning woman. It also didn't help that I hadn't had sex in more than three months either. As I thought about it, it had been closer to five months since I'd split with my last girlfriend. We were just getting started in our relationship and her company offered her a pay raise, twice what she was making at the time, plus relocation expenses to move to Seattle to open their new corporate division there. I was saddened by her departure but encouraged her to go. It was the right thing to do at the time.

Now here was a beautiful woman making a pass at me. Two beautiful women interested in me in one day? I didn't know what was going on but I wasn't going to turn it down either. I stepped towards her and took her in my arms. "I would be honored to spend the night with you. What did you have in mind?"

She pulled me to the side of the hot tub. Its waters were already boiling and she said "First, I want you to sit and relax for a bit. I'd like a little cuddle to see if there is anything more than just a physical attraction before we see if tab A will fit into slot B." She grinned at me.

I smiled. "That would be fine by me. Cuddling is always good" I stepped into the tub and sighed as the soothing waters did their job. I could feel my muscles unwinding and could feel my knee relaxing.

Maggie climbed in and sat next to me and draped my right arm over her shoulder as she snuggled into my chest. She spoke softly as she told me about her life. She had been a Navy hospital corpsman. (The U.S. Marines don't have their own hospital corps; they use Navy Hospital Corpsman) and so spent four years attached to the Marines. 

She spent three years posted to Afghanistan and Iraq during the hottest of the ground fighting there. She worked at a mobile field hospital and had been in the thick of it when their position had been overrun twice. When her tour was up she decided that she had had enough and resigned her commission. Since then she had come home and been working at the hospital in Torrington.

She hadn't had a stable relationship since college. The men she dated couldn't handle her hours or her dedication to her profession. As a result she had one failed relationship after another. Her supervisor was worried she was going to burn out and had ordered her to take the time she was spending here off or be fired for her own good.

As she spoke she gently ran her hand over my chest and played with the few hairs she found there. I'm part Native American Indian ― a quarter Cherokee ― and my chest hair, what there is of it, is sparse. I hugged her and told her about myself and what I had been through and had been doing the past few years. We made an odd pair I'm sure.

I had just finished my story when the timer shut off the hot tub signaling that we needed to get out. I stood and held my hand out to her. "I think we've proven that we both want more than a little cuddle. Shall we see if that tab will fit that slot now?"

With a wicked grin Maggie took my hand and pulled me towards her room.



My Day at the Mall Ch. 05



I had never in my wildest dreams expected to have Maggie come to my bed. It simply never occurred to me as a possibility until she showed up nekkid. Yet here we were with Maggie pulling me into her bedroom. The bed had obviously been prepared for us as the comforter had been removed and the bed turned down. 

She was lush and ripe and had all the right curves in all the right places. Her sister, Sally, was taller than Maggie was. Sally was lean and muscular whereas Maggie was soft and feminine. Her breasts weren't overly large but on her smaller frame they appeared larger than they were. Even still, she was a large C- or possibly D- cup. She had a narrow waist and wide flaring hips. Her shoulders were broad but fit her frame to perfection. She was the embodiment of the voluptuous fifties pin up model.

"I am hotter than I can ever remember being and I want you to fuck me senseless. But first I want a taste of that magnificent cock!" 

Her voice was husky with her desire and I did not intend to resist her. She guided me over to her bed and sat on the edge. She pulled me to her and her delicate hand wrapped around the base of my erection as her lips slid over the flared head of my organ.

I'm not the biggest boy on the block but at a little over eight inches I had nothing to be ashamed of either. I was also thicker than average, which according to past results was a definite plus. I groaned in pleasure as the velvet warmth of Maggie's mouth closed around my rigid tool. Her eyes never left my face and the smoldering look in them was sexier than anything I had ever seen before. 

She kept her eyes on my face and began to twirl her tongue around the shaft of my cock, bathing it in more moist pleasure. Her hands were not idle either. She stroked them up and down my abdomen tracing the scars that were there. One bullet wound on the lower right side of my abdomen just above my hip bone, and several scars on my ribs caused by flying debris from a mortar attack.

It's funny that the most debilitating wound I had ever received occurred after I was "safely retired from duty". The thought lasted only a moment as Maggie noticed my wandering and decided to remind me that she was there ― as though I could have forgotten ― by moaning around my shaft and increasing the pace of her bobbing head. 

I reached down and stroked the tops of her magnificent breasts and slowly let my fingers wander to her nipples. From her position I could not see them very well and when my fingers at last arrived I got quite a shock. Her nipples were distended by an amazing degree. They were puckered up into hard little nubs and extended more than an inch from her areola. I twirled and lightly pinched her nipples. She moaned her appreciation and renewed her efforts to bring me to climax.

"Maggie, if you don't stop I'm going to cum." I warned her. 

She pulled her mouth off my rod with a resounding pop and with a questioning glance asked, "You won't be finished for the night if you cum now, will you?" The curiosity and burgeoning disappointment in her eyes was plain.

I smiled at her, stroked her cheek and said, "With a woman like you with me, not a chance. I never was a one-shot wonder anyhow." 

She giggled and said, "Good, then I want you to cum in my mouth and then I want to see what other hidden talents you have." She returned her lips to the head of my cock, rubbed it over them and then closed her eyes for a moment. 

"I have never had a lover with your obvious endowments before. I want to try something but I ask that you go slowly at first as it has been quite awhile and I want this to be the best night I've ever had." She spoke softly and then took me into her mouth. She, up to this point, had never had more than half my length in her mouth but as I watched her, she slowly, ever so slowly eased my pulsing cock into her mouth and down her throat. With only a little resistance about three quarters of the way down, she backed off again, paused and then swallowed me to the base of my pelvis.

I felt it as my cock burst into the ring of her throat as she swallowed several times massaging my cock with the muscles of her throat. The look of accomplishment on her face and triumph in her eyes, coupled with the sensations in her throat were enough to trigger my climax. She must have felt me swelling as I came, for she suddenly backed off until only about half of my cock was in her mouth. She sucked and licked backing off my shaft until only the head remained as she swallowed my spending without hesitation.

The pleasure she had given me left my knees weak and as she released my cock from her mouth, I quickly sat on the bed next to her. I pulled her into my lap and kissed her with all of the passion I could muster. The astonished look on her face told me that this was something new for her. 

I broke our kiss and said in a voice shaking with lust, "That was, hands down, the best blowjob I have ever had! You are amazing, Maggie Kirkland!" I panted, out of breath after her most excellent performance.

She smiled and said, "No one has ever kissed me after I have done that for them before, at least not on the lips." The disappointment in her voice spoke volumes. 

"If they didn't then they were fools and assholes! If you have the grace to swallow, I have the courtesy to kiss you afterwards. My body made it, so it's certainly not going to kill me." I leaned in and kissed her again, even more passionately, my tongue invading her mouth. 

It was at this point she discovered that I hadn't lost my erection as it bumped into her vulva as she ground into me. She pulled back and gasped, "Are you still hard?"

I smiled and told her, "I told you I wasn't a one-shot wonder." The grin that spread over her face threatened to split it in half.

"In that case, I am on the pill and I want this magnificent specimen of masculinity inside me post haste good sir!" She smiled at me and it lit the room.

"As my lady commands, so shall I do! But first I want to return the favor." She gave me a quizzical look. "I want my dessert too." Her smile showed her understanding. With that I rolled us both over and into the center of the mattress with her glorious ass near the edge of the bed. 

Stopping me, she slid up towards the headboard and beckoned me to follow her. "Your knee has been under enough stress the last day or so. You can lie down on the bed and rest your knee while you do this."

Giving in to her request, I smiled and stalked up the bed until I reached the juncture of her thighs. I lay down with my face at that sweet joining. I stroked my hands up and down her legs making her purr in pleasure as I felt the goose flesh rise under my hands. I moved my hands up to her rose-tipped breasts and rolled her magnificent nipples against the palms of my hands as I gently stroked her succulent flesh.

I lowered my face toward her delectable quim and let my breath flow out across her sensitive flesh. She shuddered with her arousal as it climbed steadily towards its peak. I looked into her eyes and saw anticipation there. And fear? 

I looked at her and said gently, "I won't hurt you. I want to bring you to the heights of pleasure and plunge off them with you again and again. Trust me. Trust me to do this with you."

She hesitated only a moment before nodding. I took a pillow and put it under her hips; she raised them when she saw me grab the pillow. Never taking my eyes from hers I lowered my mouth to the junction of her thigh and pelvis, licking the crease where leg meets the thigh. I lightly traced my tongue back and forth over the surface of her skin. She gasped as my tongue made contact with her. I swirled my tongue gently around and over the top of her hooded clit. I swirled my tongue lazily over and over the edges of her entrance, never quite making contact with her clit or the inner lips of her pussy.

My teasing had her breath coming in ragged gasps as I took my time with her pleasure; her mounting anticipation was truly driving her higher towards a climax. As I at last made contact with her clit, that tingling bundle of nerves pulsed against my tongue; she closed her eyes and threw her head back.

Her breathing came in gasps as I did everything I had ever learned to bring her pleasure. When at last I took her clit into my mouth and slashed my tongue against it her legs clamped against my head and she screamed out her pleasure for the entire world to hear.

For several seconds she was as rigid as steel vibrating like a guitar string. Then just as suddenly, she went completely limp. I looked up the line of her body and found she had passed out. I'd heard of this but this was the first time I'd had it happen for me. I moved up beside Maggie and watched her for a moment then got up and retrieved a damp washcloth from the bathroom.

I gently wiped the sweat from her face and chest as I waited for her to come around. As I watched, a slowly spreading smile crossed her face and her eyes slowly fluttered open and met my own. Her arms sensuously snaked around my neck; she pulled me close and said in an excited whisper, "That was, hands down, the most spectacular orgasm I have ever had! My god, I have never cum so hard in my life!"

I smiled at her and teased, "So I shouldn't take it that you fell asleep out of boredom then?"

Her laughter burst through the room as she gently swatted my shoulder. "You ass! No one has ever made me cum so hard I lost consciousness before, and, just for the record, you can do that to me anytime, anywhere, and as often, you want too. That was amazing!"

"We aim to please, ma'am." I said with a grin.

Without letting her body lose too much of her aroused state I moved down to her breasts and began to nurse on her right nipple as if it would give milk. Her sensitive nipples were a dusky shade of pink and stood proudly crinkled up from her areola. She moaned as I suckled at her breast. Her hips began an unconscious rotation seeking stimulation so I set my finger in the groove of her labia and just held still. Her twisting rubbed my finger against her hooded clit and I felt her shudder at the contact.

Her breath caught as the first waves of her newest orgasm crashed over her. I felt the spasms coming and when I felt they were at their strongest I plunged my finger into her depths and used my thumb to rapidly flick across her clit, sending her high with the strength of multiple orgasms, each one larger than the last roaring through her already too-sensitive body. Her body convulsed tightly with each repeated spasm. Maggie cried out one last time and went limp in my arms. She had again passed out from the shear overload of sensual sensations.

I moved up and pulled her into the circle of my arms. I laid back and cradled her in my lap and as I reclined I pulled her into my arms atop me and stroked her back soothingly. I raised her up and with little difficulty settled the head of my cock at the entrance to her grotto as her legs straddled my waist. I then waited for her to awaken again. 

Maggie opened her eyes slowly and the sparkle in them was matched by the smile on her face. "Sweetheart you keep this up and I am just liable to throw a rope on you and keep you tied up as my sex slave."

I chuckled and rubbed her back some more making my way to her tight little ass and squeezing her cheeks slightly. "I think you might find that a bit hard on the décor; I tend to dislike being held against my will. Of course I'm not saying I wouldn't be willing."

Maggie chuckled and said wryly, "Where were you when I got out of the Navy? Back then, I'd have taken you up on that. Now it's just not the right time. Too many other people need you too badly for me to take you away." She sighed heavily. "Are you ready to let me feel that big cock of yours before I get even more maudlin?"

I smiled and nodded as I looked into her eyes and said, "You can control how deep and how fast I go. You are spectacular and I want to watch you take your pleasure from me the first time. Then I'm going to fuck you silly! But first, is there anything you don't like to do?"

She thought for a moment and then replied, "I'm not into water sports, serious pain, or scat but pretty much everything else is fair game. I'll at least try it. If I did say no, I'm pretty sure you'd respect my wishes and back off. It's the type of guy you are, I think." She smiled as she said that. 

She also sat up and began to slide my aching erection into the tightest velvet vise I'd ever experienced. "Oh God! You're stretching me so good!" 

She was a thing of beauty as she straddled my hips. She was so tight that I touched every bit inside her. As she moved further down my shaft I rubbed against her magic spot and she would inhale sharply, her head thrown back against the sensations traveling the length of her body and traveling into mine.

She paused several times as she slowly sank down on my hard length. She paused for a moment and looked to see that there was only about an inch left to go. Her eyes widened, "God, how you fill me up so good." As she watched herself take the last of me into her silken folds she began to pant wordlessly. "Hahn... Hahn... Hahn..."

As the last of my cock entered her she abruptly sat up forcing her pelvis tight to my own and screamed, "Cummiinnggg!" The spasms wracking her body shook violently through her. I placed my hands on her hips to steady her as she reeled from the sensations her body was sending to her brain. After almost a minute, her body unwound and she again began to relax onto my chest, panting from the exertion. 

Placing one hand on either side of my chest she levered herself up to look into my eyes and said, "I think... that this... might... kill me... if it goes... on much longer. But... I can't... think of ... a better... way to go." She smiled at me the whole time she spoke and the light in her eyes let me know that she meant every word of it. After a moment, she caught her breath. My hands had continued to glide over her body in a soothing fashion. 

She again began to ride slowly up and down my hardness. She trembled as the ridge of my head pulled across her G-Spot. Her head shaking back and forth as she again toppled over into bliss. A new orgasm rolled over her again, and again, and again as she rode me. 

She slowed and eventually dropped her head to my chest. Great wracking gasps of air flowed into her as she fought to catch her breath. Slowly she regained her composure and a contented smile stole over her face as sweat ran down and dripped from the tip of her nose.

As she looked at me, she brought her hand up to stroke my cheek. "You are amazing. You need to finish this I'm wearing out." She said with a wry grin. "Now, put me on my back and fuck me silly you sweet, sweet man." With that, I rolled her over and found that her Kegel muscles were very strong indeed. The movement caused my cock to move within her rubbing her G spot and sending a flurry on ripples throughout her velvet walls.

For the next twenty minutes I took my time and made slow languid love to Maggie. I would lick and caress her breasts bringing her higher and higher. I stroked her stomach and felt the muscles jump and tremble under my touch. As she would near an orgasm, I would back off driving her up and up until I reached down and strummed my thumb across her clit, sending her into bliss. As I approached my peak, I began to speed up and finally, at long, long last came with a wordless cry. 

Feeling me cum set Maggie off on her last orgasm of the night. Her head thrashed from side to side as she screamed, "Oh YES! YES!" With that she promptly passed out again. I looked at her and watched her face relax into a peaceful slumber.

I pulled the sheet up over us and taking her in my arms, we took a well-deserved rest. Some short time later I slipped off to sleep.



My Day at the Mall Ch. 06



I awoke to the sun shining in my eyes through the window and a very warm woman on my shoulder. I smiled as I remembered the time we had spent together. I looked at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was about six-thirty. My bladder announced that it wanted my attention. As quietly and gently as I could, I slipped out of bed without waking Maggie and hurried into the bathroom.

I stood there relieving the pressure of my bladder and thinking how strange things had gotten. I was confused about it. Maggie and I had just spent a very wonderful and satisfying night pleasing each other. I also knew that as much as I had liked the sex and as satisfying as it had been, there wasn't the emotional spark with her, not like there had been with Rachel. 

Rachel. There was another kettle of fish. My feelings for Rachel were frighteningly strong and yet so clear. I knew, or felt at least, that she wouldn't be willing to leave me for long. I also knew that I would do literally anything to protect her and her sister. I knew in my bones that if the law didn't do the job of protecting her and her sister that I would ensure that they were safe. I didn't know where things were going with her but I didn't plan on waiting too much longer to find out.

As I stood there lost in thought, I felt Maggie's nipples press into my back and her arms came up from behind me to caress my chest, drawing me back from me reverie. "Hello, Lover." Her voice was low and sexy. The piss hard-on that had begun to flag began to regain its firmness.

I turned and pulled her into my arms. "I didn't mean to wake you." I apologized.

"You didn't, my bladder did, so if you are through here..." she smiled at me as I moved aside and she sat on the toilet. As I started to turn and give her some privacy she quickly grabbed my cock and said, "Who said you could go anywhere? I have plans for that in a few minutes." I heard her let her bladder loose as she looked at me.

Her smile let me know the she was well pleased with last night and was anticipating a morning tryst as well. I was more than willing to oblige. I smiled at her and said, "Let me check in with Jerry and Ray and I'll be more than happy to help you out with that."

That met with a moue of disappointment but she let me go. "If you're going to be all responsible I suppose I'll have to be as well. I'll check on the girls and see how they are doing. However, I expect to see you back in here shortly!" She grabbed my tumescent appendage "Do I make myself clear Mister?"

I smiled, snapped to attention and saluting, in my best parade ground voice replied, "AYE, AYE ma'am! Orders received and acknowledged, ma'am!"

She laughed, smacked me on the ass, and said, "Go check on your boys!" 

Winking at her, I turned and went back into the bedroom and began to dress. Once I had on a set of fresh pants and a shirt I looked to my weapons and the secure phone. Taking care to check that my weapon was in the same condition I had left it ―loaded and on safety ― I holstered it and headed for the security room.

Ray was sitting at the monitor bank and drinking a cup of coffee when I walked in. "Hiya Boss! Have a good night did you?" The laughter in his voice and the knowing smirk on his face gave the lie to the shadows under his eyes.

I asked, "How are you holding up? Where's Jerry?"

He answered, "I'm okay, and Jerry is catching forty in his room and should be here to spell me for some sleep in about an hour. After we looked around we decided to take turns watching the monitors. This place is set up better than we thought. There are sensors embedded inside the perimeter wall that can pick up motion, heat, and sound for fifty meters on both sides of the wall. In addition, the software on the system is so sophisticated it can tell you how large the target is, biped or quadruped, too. If anyone tries to get in here, we'll know it before they even get close to the outer wall. One man can monitor the whole place from in here and provide adequate warning of intruders. Jerry figures that we can spell each other in here and walking the perimeter and not get burned out on it for a while."

I nodded and said, "Just make sure he figures me into the rotation. I'll stand watch with you both and that should extend our endurance..." As I spoke, the secure line rang. I answered it. "Hello?"

"Wayne? This is Red; I have the name and location of the x-ray machine you asked for. My friend will be expecting you at one o'clock today and will take the pictures for you. He also has an OR and anesthetics if Maggie wants to do things today. He used to be an MD but couldn't deal with losing patients so he went back and got his vet degree. He offered to assist if Maggie chooses to open you up. He is a veterinarian specializing in horses, not a people doctor anymore but the procedure for x-rays is the same." 

He gave me the model number of the machine for Maggie. "Also, I wanted to let you know that a lot of powerful people are hollering about your arrest of Winslow. I don't know what all our boy was up to but he has some top-level people scared shitless and doing their best to either get him out of the jam he's in or running for cover."

I grimaced at the news. "Thanks, Red. I have a feeling that he is connected with some very unsavory people and it could get hotter than you anticipated..."

"You finish that sentence you son of a bitch and I'll come there and kick your ass myself! I've never backed out on you before and I'm not backing out on you now! I just wanted you to be aware that there are a lot of very heavy hitters interested in this one." The anger and hurt in his voice were palpable.

I sighed wearily. "I know you've never backed out, Red, and I just meant that I'd understand if you needed to distance yourself to protect the Mall. Anyway, what can you tell me about the Syrian I shot? How the hell did the bastard even get into the country?"

I could hear the frown in Red's voice. "He came in on a diplomatic passport under an assumed name. The Saudi consulate is denying any involvement with him but his alias is listed as an attaché assigned directly to the ambassador himself. They are scrambling to cover their asses as hard as they can and are calling in favors by the busload in Washington to do damage control on this."

"Fuck me! Tell me no one is asking to have me extradited to Saudi to stand trial for murder." I could see those bastards in D.C caving in a heartbeat for oil concessions.

"Oh no, not at all. In fact, the Saudis want to congratulate you. They are saying that they have been looking quietly for their missing attaché and simply had not informed the FBI that he was missing yet. They want everyone to ignore the fact that he's supposedly been missing for nearly a year." Red's amusement was evident in his voice. We were both of the opinion that the Saudis were no more our allies than the PLO, Al Qaeda, and Hezbollah were.

"As long as I don't have to worry about some Federal prick serving me up to a foreign court for execution, I don't care. Give me the address for the x-ray." I wrote it down as he read it off and handed it to Ray. He opened a browser and called up and printed a map to the place from here.

"Tell Mel I'll call her later today. Oh, and ask her to check with the lab at the hospital and see if they can tell us what drugs they were using on the girl. Dr. Kirkland says knowing that may help her treat Becca more effectively." I hoped they would have some answers soon.

"I can answer part of that one for you. She left a message with me to give you this list. She will be coming there tomorrow to take your depositions. She wants all of your statements on record in case anything goes wrong. She'll be arriving at noon by helicopter. She'll also have a Care package from me; it's just a few things that will make your stay there a little more pleasant. She's also bringing out one of her cousins to help watch over the girls. I don't know which one." 

Red spelled out the names of several drugs and I wrote them down. I recognized one of them. It was commonly used as a truth serum ―thiopental sodium― more commonly know as sodium pentothal. Used properly it is an anesthetic; it also reduces one's ability to resist interrogation by lowering one's cognitive functions and inhibitions. It also has the side affect of rendering the patient susceptible to suggestion when used in combination with other drugs. When used improperly, it can kill you.

As I was writing, Maggie came in and I handed the paper to her. There were actually two lists, one with the drugs that had been present in Becca's blood and the other of drugs found in Winslow's home. Maggie grimaced as she read the list and began fuming as she read.

"The bastards were lucky they didn't kill her. Ask Red to have Lance, um... Dr. Piper, to send her blood-work report to my email. I can access it online and see what else was going on with her." Maggie's voice was cold with anger.

I relayed her message to Red and we hung up. I looked at her and asked, "What do these drugs mean for Becca? What were they trying to do?"

Maggie sighed. "The drugs individually are dangerous. Several are experimental. The ones I recognize coupled with the hormones released during her torture are going to make her ― or should I say change her ― into a dependant personality. They were supposedly abandoned by the military as being too dangerous to use. The one I'm most concerned about, Priathomazine Glycol, was developed for interrogation during the first Gulf War. The military never used it because it was determined to have too many negative side-effects. I heard rumors that the CIA was still researching it but I can't confirm that."

Maggie ran her hand through her hair. "The most notable documented side-effect is the induced psychological dependence on a given person. The infliction of either pain or pleasure during the course of the drugs effect ties the subject's pain and pleasure centers to that person. From the levels that they found I'd say she hadn't had more than a dose or two. I'll need a biopsy sample from her liver to tell for sure."

I was glad that at that moment Winslow was far away because I would have killed him on the spot, slowly. "Is there any way to reverse the effects of the drug? I mean is there a counter agent to it?"

Maggie frowned as she spoke. "The only ones who could answer that question work in Spook Central. CIA could tell you, or maybe NSA, or DIA. But since we aren't supposed to be developing mind-control drugs in violation of international law and agreements they are not likely to be forthcoming. In fact they may try to shut us down from treating Becca at all to protect their secret formula. That Arab had to get the juice he was using from somewhere and they either already know where or they are going to want to find out very badly."

I chuckled grimly, "The only one who can answer their questions now is Winslow. I think I'll have Red drop a few hints to some of his contacts that they should start asking Winslow about his guests. With any luck the CIA or Homeland Security, or somebody, will take Winslow out for us and we can get back to our lives."

Maggie shocked me with her next statement and it brought me to instant erection with the image it conjured in my minds eye. "If I didn't think it was a bad idea or if I knew their preferences from before the drugs I wouldn't mind being the focus of one or both of those hot little girls." Maggie's face was set in an almost feral grin.

I looked at Maggie and said, "Well aren't you just full of surprises."

Maggie licked her lips and said, "I like sex any way I can get it. I'll never give up men but I love the touch of a woman as well. I'd have to be dead not to see how sexy those two are. I won't do anything while I'm treating them but as soon as I can talk to Rachel and find out if there is any interest, I plan to hand their treatment over to a friend of mine who will be better able to help them cope with what has been done to them. Then I'll see if she is interested in having some fun with us." 

"You are just full of surprises, Maggie. I think I like the way your mind works though," I said with a grin.

Maggie nodded. She looked at the map that Ray had printed up and asked, "Where is this?"

I told her, "You'll be seeing it for yourself in a little while. Red found a Vet that has an x-ray machine we can use for my knee. That map is directions from here to there. It won't matter that it's a veterinary x-ray machine, will it?"

She frowned, shook her head and said "If it's the model I think it is we could x-ray a horse on the thing so getting a few shots of your knee should be a piece of cake."

"Red said he specialized in horses so it's probably the one you think it is." I said as she nodded her head.

"When is the meeting?" she asked. 

"We'll need to be there at one so we need to leave here about eleven-thirty." I looked at her and watched a wide grin spread across her face.

"That means I have time for my morning orgasm and a short nap!" She grabbed my belt and pulled me back to the bedrooms as Ray's laughter rang throughout the house.

~~~~~

After another vigorous romp wherein Maggie demonstrated that she was indeed ready for marathon sessions in my bed, Maggie and I took a short nap. After showering we went to the kitchen to get something to eat about an hour before we had to leave. Ray was sleeping and Jerry was manning the security room.

"If the pictures are good, how long will this put me out of commission?" I asked her as we drank our coffee. 

She had a thoughtful look on her face and after a moment said, "If everything goes well you'll be off the knee two, maybe three days, on a cane for a week and wear a brace for maybe a month. Then you'd be up and at 'em after that. You'll need to strengthen the knee again and take it as slow as we can. Try too hard and the knee won't heal properly. The longer you have before you stress the knee, the better for you. If I have to do any serious repairs while I'm in there you're in trouble. It could take a couple of months. Depending on how bad it is. I don't think it's that bad based on the exam I gave you but without the x-ray I can't really say for certain." 

I nodded and said, "In that case we need to rearrange things a bit."

She looked at me with a question in her eyes. I smiled. "I'm going to arrange for a friend to meet us on the way to the Doc's office. He lives a little further north than we are going so it should be no problem. If I'm down for a while I'll need someone to pick up the slack. Jerry, Ray and I are good but we'll wear down after a while. Mel is bringing some help and Bear will make us golden."

Maggie looked at me and asked, "Who's Bear?"

I smiled sadly and said, "Brian 'Bear' Wilcox was a corporal in our old unit during our time in Afghanistan. He was too close to an incendiary round when it went off. He had some moderate burns on his right arm and his neck and face. He recovered quickly and healed nicely but the powers above didn't think that he fit the 'image' they were trying to project for the war and ordered a medical discharge. After all none of our boys are being hurt, right? He has three-hundred acres of near virgin forest land that he lives on just north of our destination. If I can reach him, he should be able to meet us there."

Maggie nodded as I made the call. We were in luck and Bear was home. He agreed to meet me at the Doc's office ready for war and a long stay. I didn't tell him what was going on over the phone and he didn't ask any questions other than if I needed help. Bear is really good like that.

Maggie and I let Jerry know where we were going to be and how long we expected to be gone before we packed up and left. An hour and ten minutes later we pulled into an empty lot at the vet's office. Bradley Thayer was a small, thin man in his late thirties or early forties. At what appeared to be five-feet eight-inches tall he packed a solidly built one hundred and fifty pounds on his small frame. As we approached the building he stepped out and approached the Jeep we were driving. My eyes narrowed as I watched the tree line over his shoulder.

As I opened the door he held out a hand and said, "Hello, I'm Brad Thayer and you must be Wayne and Maggie. Our mutual friend did an admirable job of describing you. He also said to tell you 'The sun in the East is setting softly', whatever that is supposed to mean."

I smiled grimly at him and said "That little phrase means I don't have to shoot you. We are dealing with terrorists and torturers and I am taking no chances with my people."

Thayer blanched and asked, "Wha...?"

I looked at him and asked, "What did Red tell you?"

He shook his head in confusion. "He said a friend of his and a doctor needed to take an x-ray and because some unsavory people were watching for them that it had to be off the books so they couldn't go to a regular hospital."

Maggie nodded and said, "As far as it goes he told you the truth. We are part of a protective detail protecting a witness who was subjected to torture. She is now in protective custody. Wayne here rescued her yesterday but needs his knee taken care of so he can continue to effectively protect her. We won't be getting more help and I am going to try to treat him now. But I need to see what I'm working with and what I need to do to treat him."

I looked at him and said, "If you want out, say so now and we're gone. After this there is no backing out. Telling anyone at all about what happens here today could get you tortured and killed. They won't hesitate to torture and drug you to ask questions you won't have any answers to. You need to be aware of the risks to you before you agree."

Thayer looked shaken for a moment and then I watched as the resolve coalesced on his face. "I'm not trained for covert stuff but I can keep my mouth shut. No one but us knows you are here. I'm supposed to be on vacation for another two weeks so no one is going to come around. I have a fully stocked O.R. and can administer the anesthetics myself as well as assist if you need it. You can call me Brad, by the way. "

I smiled. "Thanks. I appreciate your help."

Maggie smiled and said, "Let's go see what we need to do."

Thayer unlocked the door, but before he could open it a man in a ghillie suit stepped out where Maggie and Brad could see them. I already had my pistol trained on the man. He slowly laid the M4 carbine he carried down and as he stood he pulled the hood of the suit away revealing his face.

I smiled, "I wasn't expecting you quite so soon Bear. How the hell are you? What were you doing across the road?" I holstered my pistol and waved him over. 

Bear picked up his rifle and sprinted over to us. "I'm watching your backside as usual Wayne. We need to take this inside; there has been an unusual amount of air traffic around here today." 

Brad keyed a remote on his key ring and an entire section of what appeared to be a solid wall began to slide aside revealing a covered pass-through to the inner paddocks of his clinic. "Pull your Jeep in there and they won't be able to see anything. The trees in back are high enough they can't see into the paddocks except from directly above."

Maggie took the keys from me, climbed into the Jeep and pulled into the pass-through. We followed the Jeep and as soon as we cleared the door it began to close. Brad walked over to a door and unlocked it. He held the door for Maggie and me and locked it behind Bear.

He led us into a small room and handed Maggie a smock. "Put this on and help him get on the table in the next room. I'll warm up the machine and then be in to take the pictures you need. Bear, if you need to talk to Wayne it'll take about twenty minutes for the systems to boot up and cycle. After that it'll take about fifteen minutes to take the x-rays she needs."




My Day at the Mall Ch. 06



He opened the small door and said, "By the way Maggie, do you need actual film? I've got the new digital setup. It'll display the results on a screen and let you zoom in too. I can then re-focus and take a better picture if you need it."

Maggie's grin got even wider. "Tell me that you have the real-time feed and I'll kiss you."

He smiled and said, "You owe me a kiss then. I have the real-time imaging as well as the positive scan software."

Maggie sauntered over to Brad and gave him a five=alarm kiss that curled his toes. As she let him go Brad panted and tried to catch his breath. Maggie and Brad walked into the other room and I motioned Bear over to me. "What did you mean about the air traffic?"

"I've lived here most of my life. I got a call that you needed help and were in the area and the sudden increase in helicopter traffic started to get a little suspicious. There have been four choppers with the same markings flying over the area for the last six hours. They are looking for something or someone and it stands to reason it's you." Bears expression was pensive.

I pulled out the secure phone and called Red. When he answered I said only one word, "Wabbit", and disconnected.

Five minutes later the phone rang again. "Wayne, why do you think my lines are tapped?

"Bear was waiting here at the vet's office and warned us that four choppers are in the air doing a search grid. I know they can't find this phone and I'm betting that they only got the area code and prefix on the number for here. They are looking for us but they don't know what we were in so we should be good for a bit. Maggie sedated both girls again before we left so we can take our time getting back I think."

Red began cursing in all three languages that he spoke: English, Italian, and Spanish. "I just got a passive sweep result on my phones. There are at least three sets of taps in place. This is another scrambled Sat phone so it is secure. From now on use only this line to talk to me. Mel will have one of these by the end of the day as well."

"Maggie is going to see what she has to do about my knee and then we will head back. It's more than an hour and a half back to the girls so we should be good. Brad says he can fix us up with whatever she needs to do me and then we'll be gone. Maggie may call you with specs for a brace for my knee but that won't be till after she sees what she needs to do." I was getting nervous about her operating on my knee but then again I never did like the idea of someone cutting on me. We said goodbye and I made sure his number was stored in the Sat phone. As I did that Maggie and Brad came back in the room. Bear went back out and took up an overwatch position to keep an eye on the building while we were busy inside.

Brad was fast and efficient and twenty minutes later had all the x-rays Maggie needed up on a thirty inch Hi-Def monitor. Maggie looked the pictures over and had Brad zoom in on a couple of them, and then she turned to me. 

"Well, Cowboy, it looks like I was right on the money. You have a foreign object in the connective tissue of your knee, specifically the Iliotibial Band, the large muscle that runs the length of the thigh and attaches to the outside of the knee. It's close to one of the ligaments and is putting pressure on it. The pressure from movement is what is causing the pain and swelling. Brad says he has everything we need ready for me to extract the object and sew you back up right now. All I need is your okay to do it."

I looked at them and said, "Well we ain't waiting on me Doc. Let's get this show on the road!" I smiled as Maggie laughed.

Brad took me into a room and had me strip. He and Maggie shaved my knee and wiped it down with betadine surgical scrub solution and then had me get on a very large, very cold table.

"I've had to improvise a little in order to accommodate a human but this should work to hold you in place." He showed me a makeshift harness that would keep me on the table. He explained that the table could be tilted to make the surgery easier on the doctor but normally the patients were horses so the harnesses he had were far too large. 

Maggie looked it over handed it back to Brad with a nod and said, "Get him strapped down and let's do this."

Brad fastened me into the harness started an IV and injected a mild anesthetic. He had me count backwards from twenty. I remember saying fifteen and then darkness overtook me. 



My Day at the Mall Ch. 07



I awoke to an extreme case of cotton mouth, a mild case of nausea and a throbbing in my knee. Maggie was there with a little water and a damp cloth. "Welcome back Cowboy!" she said softly. Then she set me on fire with one of the hottest kisses I've ever received.

After she let me catch my breath the first thing I noticed was that we were no longer at the vet's office. I was in my bedroom at the 'cottage'. "How did we get here and what time is it?" I asked as I tried to sit up. Maggie's hand on my chest kept me from getting up. That and the fiery lance of white hot pain from my bandaged knee, that is.

Maggie said softly, "Take it easy or you'll wake her." She nodded towards the other side of the bed and only then did I see Rachel and Becca sleeping next to me.

I looked questioningly at Maggie and she told me, "The surgery went fine but you had a mild reaction to the anesthetic and it kept you out a little longer than we thought it would. Given that you reacted to the anesthesia we didn't dare give you the antagonist to wake you up. Aside from that small glitch the procedure was textbook perfect. You've been asleep for about sixteen hours and Bear decided we should leave as quickly as possible given they were searching the area. We decided to leave immediately and that we could get you back here before you came too. An added bonus was that it would save time and put distance between us and the search area."

I nodded. "Why are Rachel and Becca in bed with me?" (I know, I'm dense sometimes.)

Maggie stifled a chuckle and said quietly, "When we got back here with you, Rachel had, amazingly enough, just awakened and became frantic when she thought you had been hurt. I got her calmed down but she refused to leave your side. She has watched over you since then and she dozed off again about twenty minutes ago. Frankly, I'm amazed that she stayed awake that long. She should still have been under the affects of the meds I gave her before we left."

I looked down at the sleeping woman. Her hair curled around her face and gave her air of complete innocence. "She's a remarkable woman. I want to get to know her much better." I said quietly as I looked at her delicate features.

Maggie smiled and said, "Yes she is. You know that she insisted that we move you and her sister into the same room? She is convinced that if Becca wakes up and you aren't the first one she sees Becca will fall completely apart. She is positive that you hold the key to her sister's recovery, and maybe even her sanity as well." She paused a moment, to frame her question, and then continued. "How can you tell them apart? With their legs covered you can't see the bandage, so how did you know that this one was Rachel?"

I looked to the other side of Rachel at the second sleeping angel. I frowned for a moment and then looked at her and shook my head. Puzzled I said, "I don't know how I tell them apart. I look at Rachel and she is Rachel. I look at Becca and I see Becca. I don't know how else to explain it to you. They are who they are" 

Maggie looked at me for a minute and asked quietly, "What are you going to do about Becca? I've talked to a friend of mine on your secure line and he tells me that as Becca seems to have fixated on you the drug she was given will only reinforce that feeling. There is no known reagent, no antidote, to counter its affects." She held up her hand, "I called in a marker and got as much information from my friend Daniel," she paused, "he's a CIA researcher, as he could get me and he said that as far as he can tell there is no known cure for the affects of this shit. He did say that without repeated doses that the effects would lessen over time but that they never go away completely. The stuff has only been around since the early nineties so there are no long term studies on the affects. Given that they don't even admit to having it, there are even fewer materials available to him to research."

I sighed. "I need to talk to Rachel and see what she is comfortable with doing. Her sister is not competent to make that decision for herself at the moment and I don't have that right. We need to see how badly this stuff is affecting Becca's judgment." I sighed again. These are complications I so did not need. 

Maggie sighed sadly and said, "I don't think you understand what I meant or all of what I've told you about the Priathomazine Glycol. The instant she looked at you in pain, she began the process of bonding to you. The minute she had pain inflicted on her after exposure to the drug she began the process of becoming dependant on the first person she saw; that would be you. She won't have a choice about it. That has already been taken from her. It's what this drug does. That is all it does. The only reason it's considered unsuitable for field use is that the subject becomes completely non-functional on their own. They can operate within specific guidelines you set for them for short periods of time, but will be completely unable to adapt to new or changing situations. They are completely unable to improvise on their own. The most prominent secondary affect is heightened libido. She'll crave sex. The BDSM crowd would call her a 'pet'. A 'pet' is someone unable to safely be on their own. They have no regard for their own safety or welfare. The only 'choice' left now is what you are going to do with her." 

I gaped at her in horror. "Tell me you are joking! You can't be serious."

Maggie shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. From what Daniel told me I'm probably understating the case. He says that very little of the drug is needed and that Becca was given more than enough to guarantee the collapse of her free will. Without a master or a protector, someone to look after her and keep her safe, she'll not be likely to survive more than a year or so. That's if she doesn't immediately go catatonic if you reject her. Daniel says that is a very real possibility."

The feeling of dread I had settled like a cold knot in the pit of my stomach. It built for a moment and then ignited into white hot rage. "Winslow is dead. The next time I see him, he dies. My lip to God's ear it's a promise." My voice was calm and quite but my body tensed with the emotions running through me and that caused a flare of pain in my wounded knee.

Maggie watched me with concern in he eyes. "Settle down. There is nothing you can do right now and if you don't relax you're going to ruin the excellent needle point I did on your knee and then I'll have to spank you." She smiled and stroked my brow as she spoke. "I know someone who can help you to learn what you'll need to know about how to handle Becca both short and long term. We need to let her wake up and see how she'll react once she is awake. I agree with her sister by the way. You need to be the first person she sees when she wakes up given what we know of this stuff."

I nodded and relaxed back into the pillows. "Can I get something to eat please? And can I take a bath? My skin feels like I've not had a bath in a week."

Maggie shook her head. "No baths. Not for few days anyway. You can take a shower and we can wrap your knee to keep it dry but I don't want the sutures getting wet or you to immerse your knee for a week. After that, if it's healing well, you can have a nice long soak."

There was a soft knock at the door and Jerry came in carrying a tray loaded with a bowl of vegetable soup and a ham and cheese sandwich. He shook his head and in a very fake southern slave dialect exclaimed, "Well ain't thet jes' a fine 'Howdy do'. I's does all da wuk and you gets all da purty wimens in da bed wit' chou while I's is a slavin' away in de hot ol' kitchens!" He smiled as he sat the tray on the nightstand. "How are you doing goldbrick?"

Maggie's jaw dropped at his little speech. Jerry usually spoke with a very cultured Boston accent. For her to suddenly hear him spouting lines straight out of Gone with the Wind or Roots just blew her mind. I chuckled and said "Well, what can I say? They have better taste than to hang out with the field hands."

Jerry laughed quietly and then took in Maggie's expression. "Fuck you White Man! Don't worry Dr. Kirkland. Wayne and I have been friends for years and we used to pull this routine on several of the real 'crackers' we served with just to rub their noses in it. It is a long standing joke between us."

Maggie slowly nodded at him and said, "Call me Maggie, please. We are likely to be here a while and calling me Doctor all the time will get old quickly." 

"Maggie it is then. Call me Jerry. If you'd like to eat there is more food ready in the kitchen or I can bring you in a tray as well." Jerry cocked an eyebrow at her in question.

"I think I'll come eat in the kitchen in a minute. I want to be sure he can keep his supper down and then I'll be along." She smiled at the big man as she spoke. I thought I detected the glimmerings of interest there in her eyes. I knew Jerry would be interested. If Maggie had been ordered from a catalog she couldn't have been more Jerry's type. Racial aspects aside, she was exactly the type of woman Jerry would go for and he, like me, had no problem with the interracial aspects of a relationship.

As Jerry turned and left I watched as Maggie checked out his ass. I grinned at her and teased, "Like what you see?"

She had the grace to blush at being caught but decided to brazen it out. "Hell yes! He's a very handsome man. Why wouldn't I find him attractive?"

I smiled at her calmly and replied. "No reason whatsoever. I have to admit I'll take your word on his being handsome, given that the subject is fairly abstract for me, but I was only teasing you."

She smiled back and asked, "You wouldn't mind if I spent a little more time with him would you?"

I grinned affectionately at her. "Maggie, if you want to go for him, be my guest. I think we both know that the pleasure we shared is just that; pleasure. We are starting to be good friends I think. I'm not your father or your conscience. If you want to try him out be my guest. Just don't play with his heart. He is my friend and I don't want to see him hurt."

She smiled at me and said, "I don't play with hearts. If there isn't a spark I'll be sure to keep it light." A concerned look crossed her features. "Do you think he'll accept advances from me given I'm white?"

I smiled. "Maggie, if you make a play for him, he most definitely will be interested. He's color blind in that regard. So am I for that matter. He wouldn't care what race you were if you're really interested in him. You are as close to his physically ideal woman as you can get so I really don't think you'll have a problem. You are gorgeous, intelligent, articulate, and sexy as hell. He'd have to be dead not to be interested."

She smiled at the compliment. "I want you to rest. I don't want you on that knee at all today. If you heal well and quickly you'll be back up and on it by the middle of the week. I'm going to go find out what there is to eat in the kitchen." She smirked at me. "Then I'll have my lunch!" I laughed softly as the door closed behind her.



My Day at the Mall Ch. 08



I chuckled as I lay there after Maggie left looking at the twin visions at my side wondering how in the hell I could do this and not screw it up. I had no insight whatsoever into the BDSM subculture and had never thought I'd find myself any more involved with it than dealing with a few scuffles between patrons at the Mall. Hurting a woman who wasn't pointing a gun at me just wasn't in my nature, and that was all I thought BDSM really was.

Now Maggie is telling me that I'm going to have Becca for what sounds like forever. I was interested in her sister and now that seems like that might be out the window. I sighed and Rachel stirred.

I looked down into the greenest eyes I'd ever seen. They sparkled with life like twin emeralds set on a perfect alabaster necklace. I smiled and said softly, "Hello, little one. How are you feeling today?"

Her eyes snapped wide open and for a brief moment there was panic in her eyes as she stiffened next to me. I was saddened by the fear in her eyes. She didn't move away however, and the moment quickly passed. She relaxed back into the shelter of my side. Hesitantly at first she took my hand and drew my arm over her back and hugged herself to my side. 

The Irish lilt in her voice was intoxicating to me. I could listen to her speak all day and never tire of her voice. "I am sorry to react that way to you. I have to remind myself every time I'm near you or the others that I needn't be frightened of you. That you and they haven't and won't hurt me." A single tear leaked from the corner of her eye and trailed down her cheek.

I wiped the tear from her cheek and said, "You never need to fear me. We'll do our best to keep you and you sister safe. In time and with help these feelings will pass."

She smiled and the room lit with her joy like a spotlight had been switch on in the room. I hesitated for a moment and then said, "I don't know what Maggie has told you about your sister's condition but it isn't good."

Sighing, I used the phone next to the bed and called the kitchen. When Jerry answered I asked, "Jerry? Call Mel and tell her I'm not up for her visit today. Don't tell her why. Just tell her that there were a few complications and ask her to give us a couple of days to sort things out a bit. Also ask her if we can send you after one or both of her cousins to help with security till I'm mobile again. They are Troopers so it shouldn't be a problem."

"You got it Bossman. Good thing you called; they would be leaving soon." 

He hung up and I settled a little more into the soft bed. Rachael snuggled down next to me and I swear she was almost purring in contentment. I spent the next few hours talking with her and learning about her. 

Rachael was a graduate with honors of the National University of Ireland Galway and had a double degree in Finance and Business Management and Bachelors in Computer Sciences. She loved computers but her passion was art. She was an accomplished artist in her own right and while not famous she'd had several international showings in Europe and one in New York. She used her degrees to manage her and her sister's modest holdings and to trade on the Dublin Stock Exchange.

How she did all of that in such a short lifetime amazed me. Her sister had degrees in History and Art. Becca hadn't applied herself to her schooling the way Rachael had. She had preferred to party more than study and still graduated in the top ten percent of her class. These women were both astonishingly intelligent.

Sometime while she was talking I drifted off to sleep. When I woke up Becca was curled into my side. She was moaning in protest at the nightmare that she was having. I cooed softly and stroked her hair. "Gently, Becca. No one is going to hurt you. It's all right."

I stroked her face and as I spoke she relaxed, sighed softly, and drifted into a deeper, more peaceful slumber. I heard a small sound and looked to the door to see Maggie and Rachael standing there with looks of adoration on their faces.

Maggie whispered, "That is so cute." 

Rachael nodded, "I'm the only other person that I know can do that. Mum and Da would always have to wake her; she must feel safe with you."

Okay, so I blushed a little, sue me.

Ray came in and told us that Jerry would be back in about twenty minutes with Tommy Monroe and Mike Butler. Mel had sent them to help us with security until I was mobile again. 

With a little help from Rachael, Maggie managed to move the sleeping woman so they could give me a sponge bath. As much fun as that could have been we passed on the sexy antics to be ready for our new arrivals. As it was, we only just got me redressed before we heard Jerry in the hall. I tugged my T-shirt into place and asked Ray to help me into the living room. 

"Cowboy, that just ain't gonna happen! I told you I want you to rest today. If you feel good tomorrow we try putting you in a chair and letting you sit in the living room or the security room. But you are going to take it easy for the next five days if I have to sedate you to do it!" Maggie's voice and the look on her face brooked no argument. 

I looked at her for a moment. "Maggie, I need to talk to them and I don't want to disturb Becca or have her wake up in a room full of strange men."

She looked at me for a moment. "It would be easier to move her to another room temporarily than to let you risk hurting yourself or delaying your recovery. Every time you stress that knee over the next week you are going to delay your recovery. You can sit up in here and Ray can bring her back in after you talk to the others."

The look on her face told me this was the best compromise I could expect. I sighed and nodded to Ray. Rachael moved quickly out of the door to prepare another bed for her sister. "I'll stay with her so she won't be alone if she wakes up."

Ray carried the sleeping woman out of the room and a few seconds later Jerry, Tommy, and Mike came in. "You just wanted an excuse to laze around all day, didn't you, you goldbrick," Tommy Monroe said with a grin.

I looked at him with a straight face and asked, "If you had three ladies that looked like these around you'd want to lounge by the pool with them too."

Maggie's eyes popped open wide and Rachael's face blushed a bright red. Tommy and Mike were just flabbergasted. Ray and Jerry began laughing as the others caught on to the joke.

Maggie then broke them up again when she asked, "Does this mean the hot tub is no longer clothing optional?"

Tommy whipped his head around to her so fast I was afraid that he'd get whiplash.

I laughed again. "Has Jerry explained the situation?" 

They sobered and Mike answered. "He told us that you are off your feet for a week and that you needed help to watch over these ladies. He also said this is a fortress in disguise. He said the setup is state of the art."

"He's right, it is. But three people can only watch for so long before fatigue takes its toll. We needed at least one more and with the two of you we can staff the security room around the clock and still make sure everyone gets enough downtime to stay sharp. I expect this to take several months at the least unless he tries to cut a deal and Mel says that's not gonna happen."

Tommy looked at me and then at Mike and looked distinctly uncomfortable. "Um... I don't know how to tell you this but Winslow was transferred to federal custody yesterday. Sissy is trying to get him back into state hands but the Feds and Homeland Security want the information that they think he might have. She may not be able to prevent a deal."

The rage that welled through my threatened to burst free in a conflagration; Rachael stroked the side of my face to get my attention. I looked at her. "You will keep us safe. You gave your word and I trust you. You won't let us down."

I sighed. "Did you guys bring any more surprises with you?"

Mike smiled and they went back into the hall. Mike brought in a double case of 5.56mm ammunition and set it down. Tommy came back in the room with four double rifle cases and sat one on the foot of my bed.

"Do you prefer up close, distance, or a mixture for your primary weapon?" Mike asked.

I looked at Jerry and he just grinned. "I'm good on any of the three. I have sniper certification, C.Q.B.(Close Quarters Battle), as well as guerrilla warfare experience. Why?"

He opened the case and removed a very formidable weapon. The H&K G36 is the preferred weapon for the German military and is coming into popularity with most police departments and SWAT teams. The FBI also issue them to their HRT(Hostage Rescue Teams) squads. H&K says they have a production model with over 25,000 rounds fired without a single misfire or jam and without cleaning.

The variant he brought out was the G36K, a sniper rifle including built in 3-power optical scope. Handing it to Jerry he said, "This is for Bear, and this," he held up a G36C with red dot scope and laser targeting device, "is for you. I've enough of each of these so we each have one. I have one of every variant, assault, sniper, and close quarters for each of us. These are yours. A friend in D. C. was more than happy to help Red out when he called him with the information about Winslow's change of custody."

I grinned at him. Missouri had refused to purchase these a year ago citing lack of funds in the budget. Red had gotten them for us which put us on an even footing with just about anybody that would come after us.

"I want to thank you for your help. If the Feds give Winslow a deal none of us are going to be safe. I'll tell you now that if they give him a deal I will take him out. I will eliminate the threat he represents permanently."

I looked around the room and saw nods of agreement from everyone there.

Tommy and Mike nodded and Mike said, "If they let him off, he'll come after everyone he can find that had anything to do with arresting him. Wayne and the girls will be his first targets but the rest of us won't be far behind. He was a frequent host to Senator Mavros. That man is dirtier than a cesspool. He'll take money from anyone and cover it up anyway he can."

I put a hand to the bridge of my nose and sighed. "This just keeps getting better and better." I looked around the room and said "I need to rest. Jerry can show you the security. I want at least two of us up and watching at all times. From this point on everyone is armed at all times; no exceptions. If they are this connected then we are in deeper shit than I thought."