Storiesonline.net ------- Racing the Clock by Crumbly Writer Copyright© 2011 by Crumbly Writer ------- Description: Alex has to find as many new followers as he can during the limited time he has left, as he deals with knowing his abilities will likely kill him. Before then he hits the road. They learn more about him, his followers, and about leading a mission when one doesn't know the way. He needs to build his movement, but only has a limited amount of time to do it, staying below the radar as he does it. Reading the previous stories is NOT needed, but IS recommended Codes: MF FF cons rom ESP inc harem slow ------- ------- Cast of Characters Character List ------- With the number of new characters in this newest book in the Catalyst series, I figured a character list is essential. I've broken the characters into Alex's family, his central core of followers. Other than that, everyone is dumped into one large list, without identifying who is from which book. The list shouldn't be much fun to read, but when you can't remember who is who, it should help. Just search for a characters name, and you should see who you're interested in without learning about anyone is a chapter you haven't gotten to yet. Let me know if you spot any errors and I'll fix them. I'm also open to suggestions on how to improve it. ------- Family: Alex Jennings: The story's protagonist, an 18-year-old who's just graduated from high school. Becky Jennings: Alex's eldest sister, a 22-year-old graduate student interning in a Genetics lab. Cate Jennings: Alex's younger sister, confidant, and lover. A bright 16-year-old overachiever and budding scientist who graduated early to help Alex and to study how Alex's abilities work. Frank Jennings: Alex's father, a 45-year-old office worker. Linda Jennings: Alex's mother, a 42-year-old stay at home mom. Melinda Jennings: Alex's older sister, a 21-year-old college student studying Economics. Alex's 'Girls': Shaniqua (Shani) Sharp: Alex's first activation. A 24 year old Jamaican-American Human Resources worker. Patricia Moore: Alex's 2nd activation. A 28-year-old jazz/blues singer who traditionally tours the south. Currently in New Orleans. Allison Livermore: A former New Orleans high-class escort. Alex's 3rd activation. 26 years old. Used to use the name "Amber". Anh Ngo: Alex's 4th activation, a 52-year-old Vietnamese grandmother. Alex's unofficial spiritual guide. Brooke Knowles: Alex's 5th activation. A 37-year-old emergency medical technician (EMT) in New Orleans. Natalie Mendoza: A 28-year-old hotel employee and the first 'watcher' that Alex adopted. He pulled her into his group to illustrate to his parents just what he was having to deal with. Nikki (Nicole) Gordon: A 19-year-old college student. Alex's 'lost girl'. Rebecca Boles: Another of Alex's adopted 'watchers'. She was a nurse at the New Orleans hospital Alex went to when he revived a man suffering from a heart attack. Gail Sanders: Female police officer working out of Peoria, Illinois. Meets Alex when driving past hospital he was in at the time. ------- Others: Abby Metcalf: 42-year-old granddaughter of Ruby Johnson, the St. Louis Alzheimer's patient. Abigail Ford: 73-year-old wife of Abraham Ford, who was involved in a traffic accident in Phoenix. Abraham Ford: 78-year-old man who suffered a heart attack and drove into another car in Phoenix. Ai (Akia) Satō: A 16-year-old high school sophomore, Japanese-American lunch mate of Alex's, whose name means "love song". Albert Rodriguez: A New Orleans' Times-Picayune Newspaper Reporter. Wrote some snarky articles about Alex which cast him in an unfavorable light and attracted him unwanted media attention. Alex Flores: The 'other' Alex. Maria Flores gay brother and Alex's lunch mate. Alice (no last name given): Martha Dunbar's 5-year-old Watcher granddaughter. Alice Swinson: Alex's sometimes lab partner in his Physics class. She was the first girl who appears to have noticed him in his school. Ally Frey: Lesbian Watcher Alex met at "Maiden Nights" in Oklahoma. Amanda Hodges: 16-year-old student athlete involved with a variety of different sports. Amanda Li: A Chinese-American woman who works for her father in a New Orleans business who is looking to get impregnated by Alex. Amy Ray: A nineteen-year-old college student from New Orleans who helps Melinda set up a sorority at SIU. Andrew Phillips: Eldorado high school Principal. Angie Hopper: Women's charities speaker and organizer centered in Phoenix. Anna (no last name given): Bartender at "Maiden Nights" in Oklahoma City. Anna (Annabelle) LaForge: State Policewomen operating outside of St. Louis. Annette (no last name given): An older woman who suffers from a collapsed lung, whose smoking causes complications. She and her husband were run into by Abraham Ford. Anthony Barlow: Grace Barlow's father and the man who tired the PI, Harry Wittmore, to 'dig up dirt' on Alex for him. Amanda Becket: Working mother Alex meets outside of St. Louis. Type 2 watcher. April Pruitt: Blonde Seer Alex meet in Las Vegas, the sister of Valerie Albright, who Alex met in New Orleans. An Actress and aspiring filmmaker. Anna Knox: Seer Alex meets in Vegas, the cousin of Natalie Mendoza from New Orleans. Works in a department story in Cleveland. Ashley Milford: The head cheerleader and top of the social elite at Eldorado High. Bao Luong: Anh Ngo's adult son, a fisherman in Biloxi, Louisiana. Father of Victoria. Becky Roe: A black hairstylist who is looking to get impregnated by Alex. Betsy (no last name given): A waitress at "The Abbey", a St. Louis lesbian bar. Betsy Allen: A somewhat 'butch' lesbian whose girlfriend, Ally, is a Watcher. Betty Taylor: A 15-year-old 'watcher' that was a sophomore at Alex's high school, unnoticed by him for years. Beverly (Bev) Kepler: One of Gail's lesbian girlfriends. Billy D. (no last name given): Native-American gas station owner in northern Arizona. Brandon Jones: Chalise's older brother, 20-years-old, a college football player going to school in Chicago. Brandy Stevens: New Orleans Child Services worker who is hoping to bear Alex's child. Brian (no last name given): Rose's boyfriend. After he helps Alex with some electronic issues, Alex asks him to take over technical issues for the New Orleans community. Brian Adams: Phoenix police officer investigating an accident that Alex witnessed. Brian (Beverly) Simmons: Young 15-year-old transsexual, born Beverly Adams (Simmons is his mother's name maiden name). Brittany MacFarlane: A college student Watcher majoring in architecture that Alex met in Dallas. Caity Stern: A former Miss America contestant who's currently stationed in San Antonia, just back from Iraq. Cami (Camile) Hurst: Seer Alex meets in Vegas. A relative of Grace and Anthony Barlow who lives in England. A farm girl and an amateur biker. Catlin Johansen: Jilted girlfriend living with her brother and sister-in-law looking to have Alex's child. Chalise Jones: One of Alex's potential girlfriends, a 16-year-old sophomore in Alex's high school. Alex first became aware of her when her brother, Darrell, threatened him over another girl. Carmen (no last name given): A Watcher that Alex encounters in Phoenix. Carlos Alvarez: A burn victim being treated at the Carbondale Memorial Hospital. Caroline Jones: Mother of both Chalise (one of Alex's potential girlfriends) and Darrell. Carolyn Simons: Blond 23-year-old college grad whose husband died in Afghanistan. Picked to bear Alex a child in Patricia's lottery. Carrie Meier: Red-headed shy 19-year-old college student. One of three girls subleasing Allison's apartment in New Orleans. Each is a potential watcher. Chie Yoshida: Japanese-American waitress at Lotus Garden, a Carbondale Japanese Restaurant. Clara Thomas: Somewhat unstable woman attracted to Alex in St. Louis. Clark Straus: Brooke Knowles' EMT partner and long time friend. Chelsea Kurtz: Patty's wardrobe person. Part of her tour group. Christie Hollie: Lauran Fraser's lesbian life partner. They both wanted to raise a child of Alex's, even though Christie is neither a seer nor a watcher. Christina Padgett: Part of brother/sister pair Alex and Cate meet in New Orleans. Clara Swift: Kevin and Nick's surrogate. A young watcher herself, she is anxious to help save her new community, but isn't ready to start a family herself yet. Col. Addams: Amputee suffering from 'phantom limb' syndrome. Cynthia (no last name): Local EMT. Cynthia Ackerman: Dark haired 21-year old college student. One of three girls subleasing Allison's apartment in New Orleans. Each is a potential watcher. Daniel Cooper: Local Shawneetown police officer. Part of a good cop/bad cop routine. Daniel Vertiz: Grace Barlow's 17-year-old high school boyfriend. Not a fan of Alex's. Darice Chavira: A Hispanic-American 'watcher'. One of the 3 leaders of the New Orleans 'watcher' movement. Darrell (Bulldozer) Jones: The brother of Chalise Jones, one of Alex's potential girlfriends. First met Alex when he threatened him, telling him to keep away from Kitty Washerstein. Alex returned his animosity by asking the girl (Kitty Washerstein) to date him. An 18-year-old high school senior and football star. David Samuels: One of the 3 leaders of the New Orleans 'watcher' movement. Debbie (no last name given): Woman Alex met at the "Maiden Nights" restaurant. Debbie Barrows: Hispanic-American Watcher Alex meets during Patricia's concert at the Alamodome. Debbie Grant: A 10-year-old Seer that Alex encounters while driving into Memphis, TN. Detective Michelle McCallister: (See Michelle McCallister) A local 38-year-old Eldorado police detective. Devon Montague: Watcher discovered attending Patty's concert in Houston. Diane Kennedy: Big name singing sensation trying to make a come-back with her new album. Diane Lane: 20-year-old philosophy/writing/computer design student at SIU. Diana Tucker: Potential Seer selected by Patricia. Dr. Alice Lovett: Owner of St. Louis fertility clinic. Dr. Avers Peterson: Head of Psychological Services at Carbondale Memorial Hospital. Dr. Edward Padilla: 56-year-old Chief of the Neurosurgery department at Carbondale Memorial Hospital. Dr. Hannah Lampre: A gynecologist/obstetrician Patricia has made arrangements to look after Alex's followers in New Orleans. Dr. Lister Pendleton: Head Neurological Surgeon at the Brooke Military Medical Center. Dr. Robert Parker: A 43-year-old heart surgeon from Chicago, brought to Carbondale Memorial to perform an 'experimental' surgery by Ryan Moore, the hospital's head. Dr. Ryan Moore: The 52-year-old head of the Carbondale Memorial Hospital near Alex. Dr. Tanjay (no first name given): Nikki Gordon's Psychoanalyst. Emma Burks: A young girl from Springfield, Missouri who encounters Alex in a Memphis hotel. A brunette with a cute smile. Friends with Sarah Hamm. Erica Mayes: Guitarist for Patty's band and a watcher. Erin (no last name given): A 2nd year intern Liv Bisla sends after to Alex to observe his treatment of Rachael Emmerson. Faith Tabernacle: One of three Watchers Alex met during the 'experiment' in Vegas. A 20-year-old Dental Hygienist from Las Vegas, the second cousin of Linny Gabberts. Francine Wilkins: Mattie Adams sister. Frank Hou: First friendly male Japanese-American student that Alex meets at his school. Senior. Frank Osmon: Male Watcher Alex finds during concert at Houston Astrodome. Frankie: Hapless Phoenix EMT abused by Gail and Patricia. Frankie Nolan: One of three Watchers Alex met during the 'experiment' in Vegas. A flight attendant who knew Diane Tucker and who'd visited the New Orleans community before meeting Alex. Freddy (no last name given): Employee of the Skirvin Hilton in Oklahoma City. Fredrick Washerstein: Kitty's father. Georgia Cantrell: Receptionist at the Skirvin Hilton in Oklahoma City. A Watcher. Gini (Genevieve) Connolly: Army vet who first fled Alex in San Antonio, but who he confronts in the desert outside of Las Vegas in Arizona. Grace Barlow: A high-school senior Alex activates in Beaumont, TX. An uninspired party girl who doesn't want to grow up, until she meets Alex, who fills her with the desire to excel in order to help him. Haley Hewitt: A Watcher who threw herself in front of Alex when a gunman tried to shoot him in a Dallas concert. She suffered a thru-and-thru gunshot wound to her thigh. Harriet (Harry) (no last name given): A New Orleans seer who has been observing religious protests around the city of New Orleans for Alex. Harry Wittmore: The 42-year-old head of "Wittmore Investigation Services", a private investigator. Henry Dunn: Patricia Moore's one time boyfriend/manager. 32 years old. Henry Ott: Husband of Kelly Ott, a woman that Alex activated in a hotel in Memphis. Jack Padgett: Part of brother/sister pair Alex and Cate meet in New Orleans. James Jones: Chalise and Darrell's oldest brother, a football player for Northeastern University in Chicago. A senior who's ready to turn Pro after he graduates. Jamie Stone: Aggressive Seer who followed Alex into the men's room at the Rose Bowl Stadium. She's a video artist with a strong independent streak. Jason Gorev: Sasha Gorev's 10-year-old son. Jeff (last name unknown): High achieving student that takes offense at Alex and tries to embarrass him. Jeff (no last name given): Caity's Army buddy/escort when she first meets Alex. Jennifer Pickford: A bone cancer victim Alex meets in his hospital tour with Ryan Moore. Alex activates her in the hospital room. Jennifer Weston: A 13-year-old kidney dialysis patient whose mother dragged her to New Orleans, hoping to get Alex to help her. Jenny Cox: New Orleans watcher who wanted to use Alex as a sperm donor for her and her husband. Alex assigns her to take charge of all the women wanted access to Alex's sperm. Jenny Ott: 5-year-old daughter of Henry and Kelly Ott. Jimmy (no last name): One of Alex's best friends. Jonathon (no last name given): Soldier suffering from a mild traumatic brain injury that Alex attempts to help (see Peter). Jonathon Pride: Referenced, not actually a part of the story. His sister heard rumors concerning Alex in the hospital while he was there. Jordan Sterling: Patty's make-up person. Part of her tour group. Josey Villanueva: One of three Watchers Alex met during the 'experiment' in Vegas. A Jewish/Woman's History student at Brandeis University in Boston. Joshua (Josh) Knowles: Brooke's 11-year-old son. Thinks of Alex as his chance to have a real father figure in his life. Julia (no last name given): School gossip, a 16-year-old girl. No other details given. Julie (no last name given): Martha Dunbar's 7-year-old Seer granddaughter. Julie Orsini: One of Gail's lesbian girlfriends. Kayla Odell: A Seer that sacrificed herself to protect Alex during an attack on him. She suffered a glancing gunshot wound to her side. Kelly Ott: A housewife and mother Alex meets in a hotel in Memphis. Mother of 2 young children. Kerry (no last name given): A Watcher that Alex encounters in Phoenix. Kevin (no last name): One of Alex's best friends. Kevin Eldridge: A young gay male interested in starting a family. Partnered with Nick Griggs. Kevin Grant: Debbie Grant's 12-year-old brother. Kuubba (prarie dog): Piute Tribal elder who explains about the tribes prophesy about Alex helping to save (indirectly) the tribe from its cancerous pestilence. Nick Griggs: A young gay male interested in starting a family. Partnered with Kevin Eldridge. Kimberly Morelli: Young female artist suffering from bipolar disorder. Kitty Washerstein: One of Alex's potential girlfriends, a 17-year-old junior in Alex's high school and one of his two potential girl friends. Kristi Nicholas: 18-year-old daughter of illegal Mexican immigrants. Picked to bear Alex a child in Patricia's lottery. Lacy Peterson: Watcher discovered attending Patty's concert in Houston. Lauren Albright: Seer that Alex activates during concert in Houston's Astrodome. Lauran Fraser: Lesbian watcher interested in starting a family with her partner. Leanna Dickson: Owner of the Oklahoma lesbian bar "Maiden Nights". She's a Seer who dragged Alex into her bar. Lekesia Shapiro: Daughter of a Jewish father and a New Orleans black woman. Still in high school. Picked to bear Alex a child in Patricia's lottery. Linda (no last name given): Receptionist at the St. Louis Lovett Fertility Clinic. Linda (no last name given): Woman Alex met at the "Maiden Nights" restaurant. Linda Evens: Harry Wittmore's girlfriend who realized she was a Seer when he sent her to spy on Alex in New Orleans. She traveled to Dallas to warn him about the investigation. Linda Tamar: The wife of an Air-Force officer who recognized Alex on the streets of San Antonio. Linny Gabberts: Cowgirl Alex meets driving across the plains of Texas between Houston and San Antonio. Lisa Beadrow: A San Antonio Watcher who works in the Rivercenter mall's Macy's. Lisa Grady: Lauren Albright's friend, who insists on following her. Liv (Anadjot) Bisla: Sikh Indian-American girl surgeon in a Memphis. Lori (no last name given): Woman Alex met at the "Maiden Nights" restaurant. Mac (Mackenzie) Schumacher: Female drummer for Patty's band. Maria Perez Flores: 17-year-old Hispanic girl, a little shy thing with a cute tinkling little laugh. Margaret (no last name given): A New Orleans seer who has been observing religious protests around the city for Alex. Martha Dunbar: Older retiree from the Texas coast whose daughter in New Orleans told her to meet Alex in San Antonio. Martha Washerstein: Kitty's (one of Alex's potential girlfriends) mother. Mary Emmerson: Rachel Emmerson's mother. Mary Taylor: A MRSA patient in a hospital Alex visits. Mattie Adams: 32-year-old blind New Orleans woman. Blind since 3 years of age. Megan Abrams: Law clerk for Houston prosecutor's office that Alex activates during concert in Houston's Astrodome. Melissa Riedel: A lesbian watcher at "The Abbey" in St. Louis. Mia Amendez: A 17-year-old Gosh chick lunch mate of Alex's of Mexican-American descent. Michael Grant: Debbie Grant's father. Both he and his wife, Sarah, didn't react well to Alex's offers of assistance are in deep denial about their daughter's abilities. Michelle McCallister: Local 38-year-old Eldorado police detective. Mike (no last name): Alex's best friend (from before his trip to New Orleans). Mike Franks: First time Jewelry store robber. Boyfriend of Stacie Powell. Molly Bishop: A law professor at SIU. Morgan Kohler: 33-year-old Texas housewife and mother of two. Mrs. Pearlson: High school crowd control officer (she watches the kids getting on and off the school buses in the parking lot). Mrs. White: The office receptionist at Alex's high school. Nancy Atkins: A Phoenix Morning News Reporter. Nancy Thorn: Mia Amendez's childhood friend. Nancy Wilkerson: Alpha-Gamma-Delta women's fraternity member who questions Alex's involvement in a sorority. Nate (no last name given): A lab tech assistant at the university lab that Becky works at. An intern like Becky herself is. Nicole Mullins: Quiet abused woman who suddenly finds her voice after finding Alex. Noel Shapiro: Lakesia Shapiro's mother. Pepper (no last name): Amanda Hodges' jock girlfriend. A fellow lunch mate of Alex's. Peter (no last name given): Soldier suffering from a mild traumatic brain injury that Alex attempts to help (see Jonathon). Peter Hammond: A New Orleans barrista and an oddity for Alex and Cate, a male 'watcher'. Is now one of the 3 leaders of the New Orleans 'watcher' movement. PFC Johnson: Private First Class (junior officer) who suffered a major brain injury. Phillip Rose: 24-year-old male nurse at the Brooke Medical Center in San Antonio. Poongatse (field mouse): Sick Paiute woman Dr. Reinhart and Jennifer have been treating. Principal Andrew Phillips: (See Andrew Phillips) The Eldorado high school Principal. Rachel Emmerson: A young kidney dialysis patient Alex encounters in a Memphis children's hospital. René Mizrachi: Jewelry store owner - "Mizrachi & Sons". Robert Parker: Heart Surgeon. See "Dr. Robert Parker". Robin Peters (Morning Bird): Hualapai Medicine Woman (Seer). Rodger Jones: Chalise and Brandon's father, husband to Caroline. A rough, hard pressing parent, move preoccupied with his sons' advancement in sports than he is his daughter or wife. Roger (the dog): Mattie Adam's guide dog. Rose (no last name given): One of the New Orleans' Seers. Ruby Johnson: 83-year-old Alzheimer's patient from St. Louis. Ryan Moore: The head of the Carbondale Memorial Hospital near Alex. Ryan Shafer: Megan Abrams' boyfriend – that Alex takes to bed with him. Sammy Tipton: Male Keyboardist for Patty's band. Sara Bronson: One of Gail's lesbian girlfriends. Sarah Grant: Debbie Grant's mother. She and her husband, Michael, didn't react well to Alex's offers of assistance are in deep denial about their daughter's abilities. Sarah Hamm: A young girl from Springfield, Missouri who encounters Alex in a Memphis hotel. A redhead with a full figure. Friends with Emma Burks. Sarah Mitchell: An effervescent optimist Seer that Alex activated in Phoenix. Sarah Miller: René Mizrachi's daughter-in-law. Sasha (Suzy) Gorev: A street-walker Alex encounters on a Phoenix street corner near his hotel. Shanna (Sanaa) Shenouda: A Coptic Christian of Egyptian heritage. Stacie Powell: Seer Alex encounters while she was robbing a jewelry store. Stacy (no last name given): Waitress at the club Patricia (Patty) performed at in honor of Alex's return to New Orleans. Steph (Stephanie) Ott: 2-year-old daughter of Henry and Kelly Ott. Stephanie?: 25-year-old female depressive, who is suffering because none of the antidepressants the hospital has tried has yet worked. Stephanie Dolson: 37-year-old Seer who followed Alex into the men's room in Dallas who works for UPS at the Dallas airport. Stu (Stubborn Bear): Paiute man, 31, who Alex treats for an 'unknown condition'. Stuart Johnson: Nicole's Mullins long suffered boyfriend. Sue (no last name given): One of three girls who followed Alex to his hotel in Houston. Susan (no last name given): Cancer patient friend of Jennifer's. Susan (Suzy) Knowles: Brooke's youngest daughter, 9 years old. Alex's youngest 'watcher'. Susan Siegel: Vicky's (Cate's best friend) sister. An 18-year-old senior at Alex's high school. Susan Weston: The mother of a young kidney dialysis patient who followed Alex to New Orleans hoping for his help in healing her daughter. Tate Shilah (he who talks too much): Local shaman/medicine man of the Paiute tribe in Utah. Tina Renolds: Coma patient's daughter. Tina Shaw: A twenty-year-old college student of the University of Mississippi, who helped Melinda set up a sorority at SIU. Tim Renolds: Previous coma patient. Toby Sorensen: Slightly overweight State Policeman operating outside of St. Louis. Partners with Anna LaForge. Tony [Sasaki] (last name not specified in story): A Japanese-American schoolmate of Alex's. Actively dislikes Alex. Tracy (no last name given): A New Orleans watcher who has been observing religious protests around the city for Alex. Tracy Renolds: Coma patient's wife. Tray (Jackson) Renolds: Coma patient's moody son. Tyler Cox: 18-year-old senior school bully. Valerie Albright: Blond 20-year-old college student. One of three girls subleasing Allison's apartment in New Orleans. Each is a potential watcher. Vanessa Sinclair: Seer that Alex activates during concert in Houston's Astrodome. Vicky Amhurst: A Seer Alex activated in the park in New Orleans who volunteered to stop the mass tattooing effort that his followers were planning on getting. Vicky Siegel: Cate's best friend, a 17-year-old high school junior. Victoria (Vicky) Luong: Anh Ngo's granddaughter, an 11-year-old grade school student. Translated for Anh when she first met Alex. Was the one who called him when Anh was thrown out of the house by her father, Bao. Wanda Garrard: A 17-year-old black student Alex befriended during lunch. Wendy Branch: A shy but social involved Watcher that Alex chose to boost in Phoenix. Wayne Grady: Vanessa Sinclair's boyfriend. Wilma Mitchner: Watcher discovered attending Patty's concert in Houston. Winona (Beautiful Vole): A Paiute woman who approached Alex, telling him she had a 'vision dream' where he impregnates her, potentially fulfilling a prophesy that Kuubaa, a local village elder, made. ------- Chapter 1: A Big Step Forward Into the Great Unknown Alex glanced up at the early morning light filtering through the leaves overhead and drew in a deep breath, enjoying the scent of the forest around him. It was a beautiful Monday morning when Alex, Cate and Gail were finally ready to set off on their grand adventure. They'd been looking forward to this for some time, as each prepared for it in their own way. They each felt apprehensive because they knew that many things would occur that there was no planning for. It was true Alex lived in town and thus wasn't technically within the forest, but the town in which he lived, Shawneetown, or rather New Shawneetown, resided next to a large national park, and he always felt close to it. The town had never grown very large, and so it still maintained a lot of the natural feel of the nearby woods. Shawneetown was one of the first settlements in Illinois. What is now "Old Shawneetown" was built along the Ohio River and was subject to repeated flooding, so the residents eventually built a new town which took the name over from the original. Shawneetown's greatest claim to fame occurred when a group of the residents went to the local bank for seed money to start a new town in Northern Illinois. The bank refused, claiming there was no future in the location they'd chosen. That site later became known as Chicago. That seems to show the ambitions of many of the inhabitants of the region to the current day. These thoughts floated through Alex's mind as he took in the feel of the familiar surroundings. He'd spent his entire life living in this quiet little town. His first foray into the wider world was on a recent trip over spring break to New Orleans. It was during that trip that his entire world had changed as he discovered that he was far from a typical kid. While he had been far from exceptional, he'd suddenly found that women were attracted to him, feeling themselves drawn to him because they felt this 'power' emanating from him. It turned out he was giving off a previously undetected energy associated with all life, and that is what these women felt drawn to. But it was more complex than that. It was only certain people, and aside from a few strange cases, it seemed to always be women. That was where his sister, Cate, had come in. While both Cate and he were quite bright and did well in school, Cate patterned herself as a budding scientist like her elder sister, Becky. Cate had glommed onto his new abilities quickly, and provided him with a series of theories concerning it. Since then she'd provided him with excellent advice, both about his abilities, the science behind it, and about how to deal with the many changes in his life. He'd quickly gone from a loner who was uncomfortable with people, focusing mainly on reading books and playing games with a couple friends, to a central figure in multiple people's lives. Several women followed him home from New Orleans, and each looked to him to provide direction to their lives. That had made him grow up rather quickly. At their instigation he'd made a stab at dating, as they didn't want him to miss out on a "normal teen experience" just because of those following him. That had quickly gone south, as the kids at school soon took notice of the attitude of those around him. He'd found two girls who seemed to be able to deal with him without presuming they knew all about him based on what they'd heard, and they hit it off almost right off the bat. One of his followers, an older Vietnamese woman by the name of Anh, theorized he was being led to find kindred spirits in the people around him, and that was why they'd gotten along so well. However Alex still wasn't sure how he felt about that particular concept. His involvement with those two girls, Kitty and Chalise, had defined the last couple of months. The family of one of the girls, Chalise, took exception to him, and the situation quickly degenerated when an older brother physically attacked Alex in his own home while he was on a date with her. It ended with the family taking out a contract on his life, paid for by her older brother throwing a professional baseball game for an underworld bookie. He'd grown up a lot over the course of these events, but now he was looking to the future. He'd just graduated high school, and the need to reach out and help these people who were tied to him meant he had no time for college or a normal job. Adding to the urgency of the mission, Cate thought he only had a limited amount of time to find as many people he could 'activate' as he could. His sister Cate had observed that he seemed to be aging prematurely. From graying hair, hair loss, his eating habits, and his overall health it seemed this energy he felt coursing through him was killing him. She paralleled it to having the equivalent of a nuclear power plant in the space of a couple of millimeters in his brain. But the energy itself, since it seemed to be associated with living things, had its own healing properties. Thus he found himself in a strange limbo. His body healed quite rapidly, but it was also degenerating at the same time. This strange dichotomy meant that his health was difficult to measure, but everyone around him was convinced he only had a short time to achieve whatever he was meant to. The big question was just how long he may have, whether it might be weeks, months, years, or even decades, no one had a clue. But he knew he had a lot to accomplish, and he couldn't waste any time in doing it. These abilities he seemed to possess were both simple and complex. They were simple in that he couldn't do very much with them, but they were complex in that they didn't seem to follow any established logic. The energy coming from him couldn't be measured except by those he activated, those he dubbed 'Seers', named because they were the only ones who could actually see this new form of energy. They reported that it revealed numerous things as shown by a glow around people that looked like a multicolored aura, from the health of a person and each of their organs, to the nature of the person's soul and even their changing moods. Alex, however, was unable to see any of this. Alex essentially acted like a catalyst. He triggered changes in people with a certain, unrecognized genetic trait that allowed them to feel this energy he produced. He 'activated' them, so they were able to utilize this energy. They'd found out a lot about what he seemed to do due to his friend Ryan, the head of the Carbondale Memorial Hospital, who'd examined what he did to his Seers with a series of MRI scans. However what they'd learned didn't significantly affect how they behaved. He also seemed to be able to communicate telepathically with the people he 'activated', though again it wasn't like you'd typically read about in a sci-fi story. Basically it was the equivalent of a cheap walkie-talkie, except it didn't seem to be constrained by either physical distances or hindered by obstacles. The communications were instantaneous, and couldn't be explained by traditional wave theories. They seemed to use some other method for transmissions. They were also able to send thoughts, images, and occasionally physical feelings. Again, it was both simple and complex. The women he activated, it had only been women so far, seemed to have certain properties that made them susceptible to his abilities. Cate theorized that they had a complex dual gene pairing that gave them this ability. It appeared these genes existed on the X chromosome, and that having a single one resulted in a person being a Watcher, so named because they could be identified by their tendency to watch Alex in fascination from afar. It seemed they could sense his energy without being able to specifically identify it, only knowing he held some amazing ability. Those with both genes became the Seers. They started out being able to sense others' emotions, though they never understood why. These genes also seemed to only work with women, though there were a couple of men who were Watchers, but they had extenuating circumstances that specifically exempted them from this rule. When Alex met one of these women, the potential Seers, and they'd meet because they felt drawn to him, all it took was for them to lock eyes with him to activate them. But of course, it got more complex than that. Over time, Alex found that stressful events advanced his abilities. One thing he'd found is that deeply emotional events triggered advances as well. Thus he learned that when he made love to his followers their own abilities would advance. The Seers, who normally could only communicate telepathically through Alex, could communicate with the other Seers without his assistance. What's more, once he made love with a Watcher, she'd advance to the same level as a pre-activated Seer, meaning they'd be able to sense emotions in others even though they still couldn't see what the Seers could. Which brings up yet another oddity about Alex, in addition to possessing this energy, he seemed to be able to direct it as it flowed out of him. His family decided that, simply by being exposed to him over time, his sister Cate had developed some related abilities of her own, and that both of them had never been sick with anything that typically affects young children. But by applying this energy to others who were sick or ailing, he was able to achieve some amazing medical advancements, although it was quite limited. It only worked in select cases, specifically when organs lacked the energy he provided. But it was hard to forecast in which cases his abilities would help someone and when it wouldn't. What's more, since Alex himself couldn't see this energy, he had no real idea of how to apply it, thus he needed one of his Seers with him to direct how to apply it. Alex had been involved in the local hospital helping out and thereby gaining experience, but it had been a confusing time because of the highly mixed results. Now it seemed that he had a mission to his life: to try to find as many of these women as he could, both the Watchers and the Seers, so that he could build a community that would survive him and that hopefully would be broad enough to provide for a functioning genetic base after he was gone. But the other thing he needed to accomplish was to produce offspring. Since he seemed to be the first person with these unique talents, it was important that he produce an heir that had the same abilities, otherwise all he had accomplished in finding these followers would be lost once he passed away. Sure, these women could all pass on their genes, but without someone to activate their children they'd never gain the abilities that Alex had activated in them. Everyone's hope was that he would not only produce an heir like himself, but that he might be able to produce a hybrid, a female with the same abilities as him, that could both see and manage the energy flowing through her. Alex and his women classified the people around him into three categories, actually four if you got right down to it. The first type was the Seers. The second type consisted of the Watchers, while the third were the normal people that surrounded them. To hide what they were talking about from prying ears, they'd refer to these people as 'type 1s', or 'type 2'. The type 3s, or those without any abilities that chose to follow him due to their own feelings, were further divided by a subset that Anh described as fellow spirits that seemed to be on a parallel journey to his own. These seemed to share more than just a passing interest in Alex and his abilities. They hadn't settled on a name for those as yet, though. Now Alex turned and faced those collected around him, ready for him to begin this next step on his journey. For Alex was going to hit the road, traveling cross country trying to find and help as many people as he could, helping them understand who they were, and to activate whatever abilities they may have. It was a big mission, and one that was vital to each of them. The people standing around him now were here to see him off, since he could only travel with so many. He'd decided to travel with only two others. One was Cate, his sister, his lover, his confidant, his most trusted advisor and his main scientific specialist. The other person was his personal bodyguard, an ex-policewoman Seer who'd dedicated herself to watching over him, since he seemed unable to keep from attracting unwanted attention to himself. The others were his closest followers, his immediate family and his two girlfriends who had made sure they came by just to see him off. Each regretted letting Alex go off on his own, each remembering the kinds of risks he'd likely be facing out there on his own, as the occurrences of a few weeks earlier clearly demonstrated. Besides, none of them knew just how much longer he had, in any event, thus they each realized this could very well be the last time they'd ever see him, so they made their farewells that much more emotional. Alex worked through each of his girls, moving in largely chronological order from the newest, Nikki, to the earliest, Shaniqua. Each gave him a tearful but positive goodbye, each knowing they'd be in constant communication with him even though they'd be separated by hundreds or thousands of miles. "It's especially difficult saying goodbye to you, Nikki. It seems like I just found you again, and I'm already saying goodbye," he told her. The story of Nikki, his 'lost girl', was well known to everyone who knew Alex well. She was a girl he'd passed on the highway on his way back from New Orleans. He'd accidentally activated her when they'd locked eyes while passing over a narrow bridge. Unable to find her, her existence continually wore at his own sense of responsibility, as he felt himself responsible for each of 'his' girls, and he'd unintentionally abandoned her when she needed him the most. However, through a series of difficult steps, she'd eventually tracked him down and located him, returning as his own prodigal son. Thus he felt it especially difficult letting her go again now. "That's OK, Alex. I'm doing much better now. You've given me a home, taught me what I need to know, and given me my own mission. I'll be fine as long as I have my fellow sisters, although I'll miss you terribly and you'll always be close to my heart while you're gone." Each of Alex's followers called each other Sisters, again as a way of discussing their relationships to each other without calling attention to themselves. He simply hugged her tight before moving onto the next girl, Brooke Knowles. Actually there were several girls absent from this sendoff. Jennifer Pickford, a cancer survivor he'd helped overcome an 'incurable' form of bone cancer, had gone on to help on a mission of her own, although he planned on meeting her in Utah as he traveled west. Then there were Ruby and Clara, two people he'd discovered in St. Louis but who had proved a disappointment. Ruby was 83 years old and suffered from an advanced case of Alzheimer's, while Clara had proven to be untrustworthy, since she couldn't separate Alex from her own preconceived notions of him, and had anticipated he'd only react in certain prescribed ways. Alex had quickly distanced himself from her for everyone's good, while still hoping to assist her by trying to give her a mission and objectives of her own. There were also several followers that attended the nearby Southern Illinois University (SIU). They included both Molly Bishop, a law professor, and Diane Lane, who hoped to write the next philosophical novel, both of them Seers, as well as numerous Watchers and fellow type 3s. Brooke was an EMT he'd met in New Orleans. She'd used her abilities to become one of the premier EMTs in New Orleans before her activation, and since then had found she could do much more than she ever did before, although she had less chances to use her unique knowledge due to the lesser population around Carbondale where she now worked. Before he could reach Brooke, her two kids, Josh and Suzy, who'd been waiting quite patiently, ran to him and gave him their own hugs. Josh idolized Alex simply because he was a likable guy who played with him, when he thought he was surrounded by women, a situation that was made worse now that his mother was surrounded by all the women that surrounded Alex. Suzy, however, was another Watcher, and thus thought that Alex was not only wonderful, but also knew that he possessed enough power to do both amazing and terrible things. However she loved him almost as much as his other 'girls' did. "We love you, Alex, take care of yourself. We'll miss you," she told him. "And maybe when you come back I'll be old enough for you to make me one of your girls." "We'll have to see, Suzy, but somehow I doubt I'll be gone quite that long," Alex replied humorously. "Well, if you don't do it soon, mom says it may never happen," she pouted. "Hey, don't hog Alex," Josh told his sister. "Don't stay away too long, Alex. There are already way too many girls around here, and you keep adding more." "Well, I'm sorry about the number of women, Josh, I'll have Chalise ask her brother if he can stop by and play ball with you sometime while I'm gone," Alex offered. "If not maybe you can play with Brian," he said, referring to one of his recent friends from school. "He probably needs to practice throwing, since he used to throw like a girl." With that Brooke moved up and eased her children aside so she could hug him herself. Her easy smile a little tilted with the emotions of the moment. "Take care, Alex, we're all concerned for you. I know you don't believe in him, but go with God and listen to whatever Anh's spirits tell you. If they tell you to duck, you'd better do it," she said with an easy laugh that hid her terrible longing to accompany him. "I'll do that. I guess I've messed up a couple of people's belief systems between my atheism, Anh's spirituality, and the fates that seem to conspire against me for their own amusement," he answered equally as lightly, but neither one fooled the other. They both knew how difficult this parting was. The next to envelop him in a hug was Rebecca, an emergency room nurse who he'd met when he'd revived a heart attack victim who had been down for over 30 minutes in New Orleans. Though she tended to feel intimidated by the other Seers, she'd found her ability to work with them and do her job at the hospital enhanced when Alex boosted her own abilities. Now she could forecast when something was about to happen, when someone was going to get upset, and she felt she shared a lot more with her sisters now. "Make sure you take all those Band-Aids that Ryan gave you, I'm sure you're going to need them," she teased, referring to the joke birthday present that Ryan Moore had given him. "I know its worthless saying it, but try not to worry about me. I'll be out on the street, so hopefully my enemies won't be able to keep up with me. I can't see anyone taking offense when I'm only in town for a day or two, so maybe I can avoid any troubles for a while," he told her. "Alex, you've never been able to avoid trouble. What's more, you keep giving your enemies more chances to hurt you. You need to be more proactive in your own defenses. Hopefully Gail can do some of that. Just pay attention to what she says, OK?" "Sure, sweetie, anything you say," he answered, giving her a last squeeze. Anh stepped forward and held him lightly. She was older than the others, and had earned a reputation for being wise and having a unique perspective on things. "I'm not as worried about you, Alex. The time we shared has been good. Even if something bad happens to you, we'll continue to share your spirit, and when we each die we'll once again join you. Just be sure your kingdom in the spirit world is big enough for all your new girls." Alex chuckled, and acknowledged he'd immediately get all the spirits working on an extension as soon as he got there. Next he enveloped Allison, the former escort from New Orleans who had become such a central figure in their recent research into the girls' visions. She'd used her interest in medicine and her plans to get a medical degree to research what she could about the patients' auras she saw. She had learned a lot and had shared it with the other women, helping each deal with their visions better. It had also earned her the profound respect of the administrator of the hospital, Ryan Moore. "You take care of yourself, Alex. I deal with enough death and dying in the hospital. I don't need you adding to it. But also don't hold back when it's needed. We know that you often have to make difficult decisions, and luckily you've always chosen well. Even this last time, when you purposely put yourself in front of an assassin's bullets, turned out to have been the right thing. We understand this but, as you can understand, it's difficult for us to cope with. Also, don't forget to spread some of your love around on the trip and save the rubbers. We need you to produce some babies, and we can't wait for everyone to feel comfortable with the idea. People have been having babies sooner than they expected for thousands of years, and it hasn't stopped the species yet." "I'll do that, Allison. I'll also try to make deposits in each city I stop at. Dr. Lovett has provided us a list of clinics we can use along the way, so if anything happens to me hopefully you can all survive as a people," he told her gently. "It won't be the same without you, Alex, but we appreciate that you'll be looking over us after you're gone," she told him with another kiss. Natalie came to him next. Poor Natalie, she'd been amazingly helpful, doing a wide variety of tasks and finally proving herself a resourceful planner for the organization they were building, but she always felt herself inferior to the rest of Alex's girls since she was only a Watcher. Alex had never considered her that, since he'd first pulled her into his extended family that first morning to demonstrate to his family what he shared with Shani. To him, she'd proven herself over and over again. "I'll miss you terribly, Alex. Please don't let anything happen to you, as I firmly intend to have a couple of Watcher children with you. I'm also anxious to see if having my abilities boosted to pre-activated Seer status will mean I can now have a couple of Seer children. You'll have to come back and get me pregnant in order to prove that theory." "Don't worry, Natalie. I'm going to stick around as long as I possibly can. I know how much each of you depends on me, and I couldn't possibly leave you all on your own." Natalie seemed to brighten hearing this simple affirmation from him. "And don't worry about the trip. I planned it all out for you, including scheduling many of Patricia's Watchers' families to meet you along the way, so you should have many friends to rely on. You'll finally see just what an excellent planner I am, and I plan on turning both the Angel Vision Foundation and your Sorority around by the time you get back," she assured him. "Hey, I didn't realize it had gotten so far behind since we've just started it. Just try to not make it too successful, after all, we're trying for obscurity here, not to appear in Business Weekly," he gently teased her as he kissed her silent tears away. Finally it was Shaniqua's turn. Shani, as she called herself, was a 28-year-old Jamaican-American who was Alex's first follower, and who first introduced him into this strange world he now found himself in. It was also her good sense and fierce loyalty that helped him through his many difficult periods. "I'll miss you more than most, my dear Shani. You were the first, and I'll remember you to the last. Watch over the others for me, will you. Many of them may be older than you, but I still consider you to be the more mature one with the youthful energy required needed to run herd on them all. They need that, especially while I'm gone." "You're right, Alex. This is the first time we'll all be on our own without you. We've never addressed it, but we've long suspected that it was your abilities that allowed everyone to get along so well. Now we'll test that theory and see if, without you, we all start bickering and fighting with each other. I'll keep notes on this experiment for Cate, recording each and every slight I encounter, just so it will be properly documented," she said, teasing him, but her words rang true. No one yet knew the true extent of his many abilities. They'd never answered that first question of his father's about whether he may actually be influencing the decisions and attitudes of those around him. After his girls, his two older sisters, Melinda and Becky, came up as a pair to hold him. Alex had had an interesting time with the two of them as well. Becky had long served as an inspiration for Cate, and she had fulfilled that role in helping Cate refine her theories about Alex's abilities. But it was Melinda that had caused the biggest trouble in the family. Despite knowing how close Alex and Cate were, Melinda had taken a spare moment to become somewhat intimate with Alex. Although Alex told her he'd give her time to be sure she was serious about it, thus preventing anything from happening, Melinda had made the mistake of telling Cate about it. Cate had blown up, refusing to speak to Melinda for a long time, but moreover it forced her to examine her own feelings for Alex. She realized that while she wasn't jealous of Alex's other women, or of his two girlfriends, she couldn't stand aside while Alex fooled around with their sister. She also realized that Alex meant a lot more to her than she'd ever acknowledged before. It was that very night they started an intimate relationship with each other, although it was several weeks until they finally had intercourse after a wonderful night when Alex had taken her out on a special date night all their own. Something that was special because it was so hard to arrange in this small town they both had spent their entire lives in. But Cate had finally forgiven Melinda when she eventually demonstrated that she was honestly interested in Alex's future. She did so by initiating a sorority drive at her school as a way of bringing likely Seers and Watchers together so Alex could deal with them. That initial idea had blossomed, and it had produced the Angel Vision foundation that was currently sponsoring a couple of sororities at different schools, each dedicated to helping not only Alex's Watchers and Seers, but also in assisting other girls learn to trust their own judgment about men as well. "We may not be as separated for as long as the others, Alex, since we've been talking with Cate about visiting you occasionally. Despite how many miles away you are, it's still not that far away by plane," Melinda informed him. "Still, it'll be hard having you gone. Although we weren't that close to you and Cate, you've recently become the focus our lives, just as you have everyone else's," Becky said. "I'll continue Cate's experiments while she's gone. I plan on getting the mice sick with a variety of things to see how they respond to it. I'm also going to try to run a partial genetic scan on you and the girls. I want to document you, at the very least, and I want to see if I can find any common genes in the girls." "And I'm going to continue working with Natalie on the sorority so we'll be ready to start it in the fall," Melinda added. "It'll only be on a trial basis its first year, essentially to make sure the girls don't go wild, but I'm pretty sure we can ride herd on them." "Good, I'm glad the two of you will have plenty to keep you busy in the coming weeks," Alex replied. "Oh, don't worry about that," Melinda said. "Everyone is still working on our loft and with organizing the Angel Vision Foundation. There's a lot to organize." Next up were Alex's parents, Frank and Linda Jennings. They'd largely been shuffled aside in all the excitement over the past several weeks, but they were so proud of what their son had accomplished and what he represented they couldn't have been more pleased. They knew what he was doing would have far reaching implications for thousands of lives. That is, assuming he had enough time to finish what he was attempting to do. "Stay safe, Alex, and listen to Gail. She's there to look out for you," Frank told his son. "And I know I don't have to tell you, but watch out for your sister as well." "Don't worry, Dad, I don't think you could find two people more dedicated to each other than Cate and I are," Alex assured him. "Yeah, unless you count each of your girls, your other sisters, your other followers or your two girlfriends. Not to mention all those schoolmates of yours," Frank countered. "Never mind your father, he likes to distract himself with details," Linda told her son. "I'll miss you, Alex. It feels strange saying this, but find as many young women as you can, take a bunch of them to bed and leave me with a whole passel of psychic grandbabies. Then I want you to promise to come back again so you can start all over again. Got it?" "Yeah, Mom, I got it. Did you ever think your house would have gotten as crowded with new people as it has the last three months?" "No, I certainly didn't, Alex. You've really made an impact on many people, both your girls and everyone else. Anyway, don't forget to call," she told him, kissing him goodbye. "Remember, those of us who can't talk to you telepathically still like to hear from you." They both moved on to telling their youngest goodbye as Alex said goodbye to his two girlfriends. Kitty and Chalise had seemed an odd pair when Alex first told them to talk to each other when he asked them both out on dates at the same time. He told them he had an unusual background since he'd returned from summer vacation to New Orleans, and he told them they should talk to Cate, his sister, and each other to compare notes, but warned them both not judge him on what everyone else was saying but to do it based on his actions. They'd done that, and found not only that they both fell in love with him, but that they found new best friends with each other and with Cate as well. Since then they'd formed a unique threesome, foursome if you counted Cate, though they were always so careful about not showing any familiarity between Alex and his sister that that portion of their relationship was often hidden. They both hugged him tightly and gave him long French kisses, trying to wrap in as much last minute lust as they could. "We'll both miss you, Alex," Kitty told him. "Mom and Dad have told me they'd help me pay to come visit you part way in your trip, so expect some company. I think we can swing a ticket for Chalise as well. Until then we're going to go to work for the foundation. We still have to get the accounting in order, file paperwork, and clean up the building you bought, as well as make plans to handle all the women you're going to be sending us as you meet them along the way." "Yeah, and like your mother said, don't forget that new smart phone of yours," Chalise told him. "We know you can't talk to us whenever you feel like it, but we expect nightly phone calls to tell us what happens to you along the way. We'll pass the word along to everyone else. Everyone is as excited about this as you are, Alex, and they each want full details about it." "And it has to be said, don't worry about who you have to make love to along the way," Chalise continued. "We realize it's a big part of what you do, and we trust you to only do it with people you trust and who you develop a personal connection with. Also, don't feel guilty if you go and change over the summer. If you fall out of love with us, we just ask that you don't just dump and forget us. Whatever happens, we're wrapped up in your life now, and even if we simply remain friends, we want to be a part of your life from here on out. And like you told Cate, we'll be a part of your mission even after you're gone." "Hey, hey. That's enough of that. I'm not dumping anyone. You know I don't like to have to make love with as many women as I do, but it's hard to avoid. They each need me, and I need to do it to boost their abilities as well as to include them in their new lives. But that doesn't mean the two of you will mean any less to me. If I could stop everything right now and spend all summer with you and attend college with you in the fall I would. But it's apparently out of my hands. It seems the fates have decided I have a specific role to fill, and as they usually do, they do it in the most difficult and excruciating way imaginable. Those damn spirits," Alex swore playfully, playing on Anh's recurring spiritual explanations of his recent life. "Don't worry," Kitty insisted. "When next we see you, we'll do our best to wipe off the smile all those women you'll meet in the next month will put on your smug face. But most of all, do us proud, Alex. Continue as you always do and stay safe. You can't achieve much if you don't stick around." With that they hugged him once again and backed off. That covered everyone that was currently gathered around the departing trio. Alex watched as everyone said goodbye to Cate and told Gail to watch over them both, then the three of them climbed into Alex's new old car and set off, wondering whether they'd ever see their home again, and if so, under what circumstances. ------- Chapter 2: Random Roadway Encounters Nicole was riding to work with her boyfriend. As always, he insisted on when they left, what she could take, what she wore and even what they listened to on the way into town. They both worked in St. Louis, although they lived in Lebanon, Illinois, a town just about a half hour's drive from the city. Nicole was sitting staring out the window as Stuart was talking about some petty thing that was bothering him at work. At least he's not haranguing me about something I forgot to do, she told herself. She was merely glancing at the many passing cars when she suddenly felt an odd sensation in the pit of her stomach and she sat up a little straighter. For some reason she could tell there was someone important in one of the cars ahead of her. She didn't know why, but she felt it was important she at least see who it was. Like maybe it would improve her life somehow, something she could definitely stand at this point. Life with Stuart had become stifling lately. When they first met it had been exciting. He'd arrived and swept her off her feet. He'd seemed utterly devoted to her and was interested in everything she said or did. However lately he seemed much less interested in her, except to get upset when she didn't pay enough attention to him. He also didn't seem particularly concerned with her views on anything anymore. Not that she could blame him, she hardly had any views on any topics nowadays. She never saw any of her friends, her family had grown distant, and she wasn't allowed to stay late at work lest Stuart get upset with her. Her sister Sue had warned her about Stuart, telling her he was trying to separate her from her family, but she'd believed Stuart when he told her she was the one trying to drive a wedge between them, and that she'd actually made a pass at him. After hearing that, she stopped speaking to her sister altogether. Sue tried to talk to her after that, but after being ignored for several months Sue had eventually given up. Truth be known, she actually missed her sister, even if she was a back-stabbing little bitch. But now she somehow knew there was someone in the car ahead of her that could improve her life. She knew that sounded stupid, and she was sure Stuart would be more than glad to point that fact out to her, but somehow she just felt seeing who it was would make a big difference somehow. "Stuart, could you move over to the center lane? There's a car I want to see," she cautiously mentioned to her boyfriend. "Huh? What was that? You want me to move into a slower lane so you can gawk at someone? What, you expect me to drive you around so you can stare at guys you think are better looking than me?" Nicole knew he'd overreact to it. He always seemed to turn everything she brought up into a criticism of himself, but he always did it as a personal attack. He never seemed hurt. Instead he always seemed angry she'd have an interest besides him. "It's nothing like that," she said, trying to placate him. "It's just that I think I saw someone important in it." She was afraid to tell him the real reason she was interested, but she thought he'd buy that idea. He was fascinated with famous people. Glancing across the lanes of traffic he scoffed. "I doubt it. No one famous would be caught dead in any of the beat up old cars around us, not to mention spending any time in a Podunk town like St. Louis. As soon as I become famous I'm leaving this stupid town and going someplace important like California or the Jersey Shore. Somewhere people are actually doing something." Nicole tried to control her tongue, knowing how he was liable to react if she contradicted him, but she couldn't help herself. "No, really, that little gray car. It must be someone traveling incognito." "Nicks, you're dreaming. No one with any money would be caught dead in a car like that. Look, if you want to stare at handsome guys, just tell me and I'll drop you off on the corner and you can look all you want, but you aren't going to find anyone any better looking or more fascinating than I am. I'm not saying I'm the best looking guy in the world, but..." he said, luckily not expressing the sentiment behind the thought. Stuart had long treated Nicole like this. He wasn't physically abusive, but practiced was a form of mental abuse based on his own insecurities. He didn't have a great sense of himself, so he always made himself feel better by bringing those around him down to his level. And he'd do it in a very passive-aggressive manner. He'd never confront someone directly, choosing instead to belittle their ideas, or offer up impossible options he knew they'd clearly never take, just to emphasize a point. It was a long standing pattern, one that had developed slowly, so Nicole had never known he was so insidious, but after several years of living with him, she no longer had the confidence to do much of anything anymore. So Nicole simply glanced out the window as they slowly made their way around the nondescript little car. Stuart already seemed to have forgotten the topic of discussion, as he was going on about something she'd forgotten again, but she had no desire to listen to it at the moment. ------- Amanda Beckett was running late. She'd tried, but she couldn't talk her mother into babysitting again, so she was trying to drop her son Tyler off at daycare before she was late for work again. It was just so difficult to get ahead when everything worked to hold you back. There just had to be something more to life than pushing a time clock and trying to keep your head above water. But just as she thought that, she noticed something odd, or rather, she felt something odd. It was hard to describe, but there was something about the car ahead of her. She had no idea what it was, but there was just something about it. The car wasn't very fancy, and the make and model didn't mean anything to her, but she somehow knew there was someone important riding in it. She had no idea how she could possibly know that, but somehow she did. There were a couple of cars between her and the car in question, so she put her blinker on and started edging over, essentially forcing the car behind her to back off or be run off of the road. She couldn't see much of the car ahead. It looked like a nondescript little Japanese car. It had seen better days, but she knew outer appearances often belied what lay underneath, and she felt the same about this little car ahead of her. As she drew a little closer she could see several figures inside. Even without seeing him, she could tell the figure in the passenger seat was what was drawing her. As she changed lanes abruptly, accompanied by the car behind her sounding its horn and what she could only assume was him also flipping her off, the young woman in the back seat glanced back and seemed to notice her. However the young lady looked down, paying her no particular attention and seemed to be studiously looking for something. But soon she looked up again and held something up. Amanda couldn't see it very well, so she drew as close as she dared, again moving closer to the car in question to the displeasure of the intervening drivers. It seemed the girl was holding up some paper with some writing on it. She tried to see what it was but it was too hard to make out. Seeing her difficulty, the young girl, who Amanda now guessed must be college aged, was trying to stick the sheets of paper she'd written on to the rear window using nothing more than saliva. However it seemed to work, at least partially. As she put the second sheet up Amanda could now make out the message. It read, simply, "Follow Us". Nothing more, nothing less, but Amanda knew she'd follow that car to Oregon if she had to. She didn't know why, but for some reason is was important for her to do so. ------- The car Nicole Mullins had been watching seemed to hold a couple of people in it. Glancing at her boyfriend to be sure he wasn't watching her too closely, she saw a young woman in the back seat, and that the driver was a fairly tough but pretty young woman. She could only imagine what kind of life she'd be likely to have. She also noticed there was another car that was changing lanes to get closer to it, so she knew she wasn't crazy. If someone else felt it, then she couldn't be imagining things, now could she? Just then the car between them pulled forward and she got her first glance at the person riding in the passenger seat. As he came into view he glanced absentmindedly out the window in her direction, and suddenly she knew that everything was going to be better. Somehow just that one look and that brief glimpse of a smile, assured her that her life was going to be better. "Stuart," she told him in an ominous tone that caught him by surprise. "You are going to change lanes. I want to see that car, and frankly, I don't give a damn what you think about it." "Wha—?" he started to argue with her, even though he didn't quite know what point he was arguing yet. Was she still going on about wanting to look at some stupid car? "Listen, you little shithead," she said, speaking in a barely audible whisper that made his blood run cold. Stuart knew she was more serious than she ever had been before. "You've controlled my life, you have controlled access to my friends, you've even ordered me around, but there comes a time for a person to reclaim their own life. You certainly haven't done anything to make my life any better. Right now I've got no friends, no family, no outside interests and I'm barely hanging onto my job because you expect me to not spend any time there. Well it ends right now. Now change lanes. I'll let you know whether I've got any desire to go into work soon or not." Man, Nicole was pissed. She had no idea where that had come from, but when she started it just seemed to bubble up from somewhere deep inside of her. Stuart glanced at her, looking nervous that he'd unknowingly upset her so much. His longstanding control over her had been indirect, and he wasn't comfortable with direct confrontations. Unable to understand how his world had just changed so radically, Stuart finally did something wise ... he shut up and followed her instructions. Still... "I don't know what this is about, but—" he started to say. "No, Stuart, like so many things, you have no idea what you're talking about. You think you're so special, but all you've managed to accomplish is to get a job making copies in an office downtown. Now shut the fuck up and stay out of this. This is more important than either of us," Nicole assured him. He wisely decided to shut up and follow her instructions. ------- The car Alex was riding in was new, relatively speaking, that is. No one had wanted him to use his old car to drive across the country. He'd resisted their pressure to purchase a new car until they pointed out he wouldn't like it if his car broke down in the middle of the Mojave desert and he had to walk out of there on foot. However, once he agreed he might need a new car, they insisted on a big SUV. "Don't worry," Shani assured him, "the foundation can cover the expenses. But the SUVs are the safest vehicles, both in terms of accidents and in protecting you from other dangers as well. Especially if we get one of the ones that Gail suggests, with the darkened windows and added body protection." Alex had simply sighed at this. "Look, Jesus didn't drive into Jerusalem in a fancy new chariot. He traveled by donkey or on foot. It hardly looks comforting for me to drive up in a fancy new SUV. I'm willing to drive a newer car, after all, California is a hell of a long ways away, but I want a small car that will fit in wherever we may end up. I don't want to worry about someone stealing it, getting carjacked, or thinking I'm stealing money from the foundation. The foundation is there to help the girls, not to treat me like I'm a king. I'll spend a few bucks to get a reliable car, but it's going to be appropriate for a kid of my stature." "Alex, your stature is ... never mind. As always, we'll follow your decisions," Shani had acquiesced. "We may not like it, but you probably know best." So Alex had ended up with a ten year old Toyota Corolla he got from one of Maria Flores's cousins. She assured him it was in good condition and that her cousin knew how to take care of cars. He accepted that and took it on her word alone. Michelle had recommended a reputable mechanic for Gail to have it inspected by afterwards, and he confirmed it was in excellent shape. He even updated the few worn parts to prevent their having potential breakdown problems. The foundation bought it and assigned it to Alex to conduct foundation business in. Thus they were traveling in a little car just a little less uncomfortable than Alex's previous car. "I can just imagine what this car will feel like after a couple of thousand miles," Gail complained. "And it's hardly a secure car." "No car is secure if someone is after you, and every car is safe until something happens," Alex answered simply. He'd made his decision and knew Gail would accept it. She may not appreciate riding in it, but she wouldn't second guess him. She continued to grumble, but neither Alex nor his sister paid her much heed. Alex had allowed Gail to drive after she'd argued she was both more familiar with city driving and with the city itself than he was. Besides, he wasn't terribly impressed with the traffic at this hour, so having her drive allowed him to simply lean back and close his eyes. The trip to St. Louis took them a little more than three hours. They'd caught the end of the morning commute, but missed most of it since they'd arrived so late. However they learned what they were in for on their journey when Cate noticed a woman changing lanes to get behind them. Previously they'd always driven to St. Louis at night, so they hadn't had to deal with many drivers. Cate, always full of ideas, grabbed some notebook paper and wrote "Follow Us" on it. Since no one had thought to bring tape she tried to attach it with saliva, which wasn't great, but it lasted long enough for the car following them to see. Alex instructed Gail to take the next exit just as they entered East St. Louis and she offered no objection, simply knowing that when he told her to do something, there always seemed to be a reason for it, even if none of them knew it at the moment. ------- Pulling into the parking lot of an abandoned business, Gail put the car in idle but didn't turn it off yet. Despite trusting Alex, she still remained cautious, and if anything untoward might unfold she wanted to be sure she had an escape plan. However Alex was already unbuckling his seat belt. "I think there's another car following us as well," Cate told them both. "It just pulled in behind the other one." Alex glanced back as he opened the door. Since he was already getting out Gail quickly shut the car off and put her arm across his chest, silently telling him to wait until she could prepare herself. She unbuckled herself, checked her Taser and can of mace in her breast pocket, that's the reason why she always preferred men's shirts, they contained handy pockets for putting things in just like her old police uniforms had. She also had a conceal carry permit for both Illinois and Missouri. In fact, she'd made arrangements with most of the states they planned to travel to, but she didn't want to risk revealing a gun to someone they'd effectively asked to speak to. Thus she kept the gun hidden. When she was ready she got out, quickly stepping aside so both Alex and Cate could get out and she could watch over them. Gail took in the two cars parked in the abandoned lot with them. The first held a young woman dressed in a business suit that didn't look very good on her. She fretted with something in the seat beside her before getting out of the car. Gail didn't have as clear a view of the car behind that one, but it appeared to have two figures arguing in it. She quietly took up a position to the side where she could observe and react to anyone approaching Alex. She signaled to him that he should let whoever might want to see him approach him themselves. Cate walked around the car to stand slightly behind her brother. Amanda was ecstatic that the car had waited patiently for her. She'd wanted to ensure that little Tyler wouldn't fret too much while she was gone. She felt terrible about leaving him in a car all alone, but she'd be nearby and she knew this was definitely an extenuating circumstance if there ever was one. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she climbed out of the car. She observed three people waiting for her, but she hardly noticed the other two, the only one she had any eyes for was the central figure, a young man that looked just like a young kid, but that Amanda could tell was wise beyond his meager years. She quickly approached them, then hesitated before reaching them and did a quick curtsy, something she'd learned as a young girl when she pretended to be a princess. She didn't know what the proper protocol for a meeting like this was, but she felt they deserved some sort of formal meeting protocol. The young man before her simply motioned for her to come closer. "Uh, excuse me, you don't know me from Eve but—" "Don't worry about it. We're used to being approached by now. We were expecting you, even though we never know quite when someone will show up. I'm Alex, by the way, these people with me are Gail, my personal watchdog, and my sister Cate. Now, you are... ?" he asked her, letting the end of the sentence drag out. "Oh, my name is Amanda Beckett. I'm delighted to meet you. I had this amazing feeling when I first saw you in the car ahead of me and—" "Believe me, Amanda, he knows all about those feelings you had," the young girl with him said. "Let me explain a little about what's happening and about yourself while Alex says hello to our other guests." Amanda did as the young girl told her, but she couldn't take her eyes off of Alex, even as he casually strolled away accompanied by the woman with him. Cate, the girl who had spoken to her, started to reveal an amazing amount of information to her. "I don't know what you think—" complained a somewhat stocky figure with short hair, slightly older than his companion, standing beside a larger car as both Alex and Gail approached it. "I don't care what you think you know, or what you feel. This is important, so shut the fuck up!" When the woman turned to face them, she saw the language she'd used with her boyfriend had been overheard so she blushed fiercely. "I'm sorry you had to hear that," she started to apologize, but Alex cut her off. "Never mind. These meetings are never planned, so we never have any expectations for how they should occur. My name is Alex, this is Gail. If you don't mind, she'll stay here with your, I'm guessing it's a boyfriend?" "Yeah, Stuart is my boyfriend. For the moment at least, though I have a feeling that's going to change pretty quickly. My name is Nicole Mullins." "Don't worry about appearances, everyone is surprised by these encounters," he told her as he took in her appearance. She was pretty, if a bit mousey, with almost shoulder length hair and little makeup. She was dressed appropriately for work, but her dress didn't look especially nice. Alex didn't judge her on that, though; after all, he'd just explained how these meetings always seemed to occur at odd occasions. He thought there would be an interesting story behind it, especially since the man she was with was dressed fairly well in a nice new suit. "You'll understand once we start to explain it. Though you might want to consider just what you may want to tell Stuart as my sister Cate explains to you just what is going on." With that Alex steered Nicole back to his car, where Cate was busy telling Amanda what she'd now need to know about her new life. Amanda was a young thing with pretty brown curls and brown eyes. And she wasn't one of these stick figures you frequently see either. She looked more natural than other girls somehow, and as always she smiled at Alex. She was dressed in a nice outfit that looked like she'd fit in an office environment. Amanda was on her way to a job interview, so Alex made sure they kept the discussions to a minimum, having Cate give them just as much information as she needed to, with a warning for them to get in contact with the Angel Vision Foundation in Carbondale for more information. When they found out that Amanda had left her son, Tyler, sitting alone in his car seat they insisted on checking on him. Amanda was pleased that Tyler seemed to take to Alex so easily, although she wasn't surprised to see that he could relate so easily to her son. She hoped he'd grow up to be just a little like Alex seemed. Stuart seemed to grow a bit agitated seeing everyone congregating around Amanda's car. "Don't mind my soon to be ex," Nicole told them. "Somehow you opened my eyes to what he's been doing, and more importantly what I've become ... now I know what I need to do about it. And you did it without speaking a word to me." "That's exactly what the Angel Vision Foundation is about," Alex explained to her, "getting women to listen to their inner voices. You have access to a lot more information to guide you than you ever suspected. What's more, it's likely that your family members also have the same abilities as you do." "Oh, geez, I guess you're right. I need to contact my sister and mother and nieces about this." "Just try not to shock them. This is a lot of information to take in at once," Alex cautioned her. "Look, I don't mean to intrude, Amanda," Nicole said, intruding into their conversation, "but I heard you're running late for a job interview. I think I've just decided to take the day off to take care of some unpleasant personal business. I'd be glad to watch your son for you while you check out that job. Then maybe we can both take some time off and visit Carbondale. I've never been there, but something tells me we may find a few things there very interesting." Alex, Cate and Gail soon said farewell to the new girls, letting them figure out how to tell everyone whatever they wanted about the encounter. Alex was sure he'd hear more about each of them soon. ------- The same sort of thing happened to them several times after that. It seemed that the Watchers were hardly the shrinking violets they'd long assumed they were. Now it appeared they felt strongly about their feelings concerning Alex, but he'd never approached any of them like this before. Apparently traveling during the early morning commute really made a significant difference, since they were encountering so many more people now. However Cate simply gave them a business card for the Angel Vision Foundation and a pamphlet, before Alex told them to hurry in to work and to read the material at their leisure later. The women didn't seem to be convinced, but the last thing that Alex wanted was to cost any of them their jobs. Alex could just imagine what the next month or two were going to be like if they'd be running across this many people just in a single early morning drive. Gail finally got them to her house, where Melissa met them and Gail gave her the keys and all the information she needed. Since Melissa's apartment was smaller, she was officially moving in, in anticipation of Gail's returning home after their little road trip. It was a little strange for a new relationship, but their relationship was hardly typical, and that was the deal they had worked out. Gail got her apartment and plants looked after while she was gone, and Melissa got a nicer apartment and a chance to 'customize' Gail's apartment to her own desires. Melissa gave them all big hugs, telling Alex to be careful and to try to have some fun. Cate just had to tell her what had already happened that morning. "Well, try to have some fun in between all the crazy followers," she corrected herself. After that they hit the road again. After all, it was at least another five hours until they reached Memphis, their stop for the night. Alex took over driving this time, since they were officially past the rush-hour traffic surge. Cate took the passenger seat so she could operate the GPS on her iPad, while Gail kept watch from the back seat. Gail insisted she'd take over driving before they entered Memphis. Alex glanced at his sister. Between taking their finals, Cate's preparing for college and handling graduation, she'd been busy the past couple of weeks. Knowing they only had a little time she'd stepped up her experiments. Aside from her regular experiments where she tested the mice's reactions to having been exposed to Alex's energy, she also had him try to repeat on them what he'd done to Rakeem. When Alex had met the gangster, dressed all in black when he'd pulled a gun and pointed it at his forehead, Alex hadn't known what to do, so he simply sent a mental image of his face to his girls and closed his eyes, expecting death at any moment. But it never came, and when he eventually opened his eyes he'd discovered Rakeem had suffered a sudden stroke. It later turned out that it was hardly a random event. Somehow, in a moment of panic, Alex had done to Rakeem what he did to the potential Seers. He'd activated a non-susceptible person. He'd essentially created a small empty place in his brain, causing the stroke like response, and in that space he'd created a communication link to himself. However, since Rakeem was neither female nor had any of the required genes, he never acquired any of the abilities the others had. However Alex had begun to receive random thoughts from him over the next week. And in the following weeks, Cate had been anxious to see if he could duplicate that action, and if they could learn how he could control it. The results were poor, to say the least. The majority of the time nothing happened as Alex had no clue what he'd done. Their best results ended with a dead mouse, though. A necropsy showed that Alex had in fact created the same changes to its brain, however it wasn't as well controlled, as this one replaced the majority of the left side of the mouse's brain, killing it instantly. Cate had him repeat the experiment, again with little success, although Alex managed to kill yet another mouse, though with a little less of its brain destroyed. He wasn't sure if that could be considered success, though. When Cate had examined the little animal's brain she was nervous, not knowing what to expect when she opened the newly created cavity. She theorized that Alex had created an inter-dimensional portal that allowed instant transmission of thoughts, electrical impulses, matter and energy. They'd never tried to expose one of these to the air before. However opening it was fairly disappointing, as it simply appeared to be a hole in the mouse's brain. Apparently whatever had been there had disappeared when it died. Thus they hadn't learned much, aside from that it was a fairly dangerous thing they were essentially playing with. Alex didn't feel comfortable with it, but he felt even more uncomfortable with the underlying abilities being uncontrolled and occurring at random. He was afraid of being surprised by someone and accidentally frying their brains. However all they had now were more questions and no more control than they'd had before. Still, it was amazing the amount of effort that Cate put into trying to figure out how her brother's abilities worked. She'd also experimented with his 'illness'. They knew that if he overexerted himself he became weak to the point of collapse. When Ryan had scheduled a stress test to see if they could duplicate it they'd been disappointed, since his body's ability to heal itself seemed to counteract the induced stress. That's when Becky had suggested continually increasing the stress. Thus Alex had run hard up an ever increasing plane for a very long time. But they'd gotten their reaction; Alex had collapsed gasping onto the floor. Ryan had pronounced it a severe heart arrhythmia, though it had disappeared almost as soon as Alex had collapsed. But the other symptoms remained. Alex's thighs, calves and chest all bore bruises, some significant. Those too healed faster than normal, but it still took days to occur. They had no more real evidence of what was happening, but they knew that when his system started to fail, it produced a multisystem failure. Thus they were hesitant to try repeating the experiment. They were just exiting the 255 loop around the city when they were surprised by a police car, which had quietly pulled up behind them and briefly turned on its siren. Alex didn't know what he could have done, but was preparing to pull over when the police car pulled out into the other lane. Alex figured it must have gotten a call and was just letting everyone know it needed to pass, so Alex eased over to give it room to get around him. However the police car pulled up alongside their car and the overweight policeman in the passenger seat motioned for Alex to lower his window. Somewhat confused, Alex did so. "My partner wants to know if you need an escort," the cop shouted to him over the noises of the highway. Alex almost broke out laughing over the continuing strange situations he found himself in. "That's OK, but if you could show us the nearest coffee shop, I need to discuss something with your partner," Alex shouted back, unsure how much of his message would be understood. The two cops talked for a few moments while Alex and company waited to hear their response. Alex tried to catch a glimpse of the cop driving, but he was afraid to make eye contact with her for fear of what would happen if he activated her while they were both driving at 70 mph. "She's trying not to stare, but I think it's pretty obvious she's not a Seer," Cate advised her brother, knowing him well enough to know his fears. "If she was, she wouldn't be driving patiently beside you for so long." The male cop leaned back out the window. "OK, follow us," he shouted before they pulled in front of them and turned their lights on and took off. Alex tried his best to keep up, doing 95 as they both exited the highway. The police stopped at a Denny's, the driver luckily turning off their lights and siren beforehand. "Gail, you—" "Yeah, I'll keep her partner occupied," she said, anticipating his request. "Good, hopefully we can do this easily. By the way, do you recognize them?" "Honestly, no, but then they're State Police, so we'd only have a few opportunities to meet before," Gail informed him. "Give me a chance to distract the passenger before you get out, just in case." So Gail climbed out and started talking cop talk to the passenger of the cop car. Once they started talking, Alex and Cate climbed out of the car. The driver came over to them, having apparently been waiting specifically for Alex. "Sorry, but I'm—" "Hey, don't mention it. My name is Alex, this is my sister Cate, and our pal is Gail. Let's get inside so we can avoid attracting any more attention. We've got a lot to discuss. Your life is about to change. I just hope you can separate your cop life from your private life." "Hmm, that sounds ominous. My name is Anna, Annabelle LeForge. My partner is Toby Sorensen. I see your partner is purposely distracting him, so I gather what you're about to tell me is of a slightly questionable nature." "Well, it's not illegal, but it is a bit unusual, and we'd prefer it not become common knowledge, especially not to an organization like the police or the military, if you get my drift." "Well, I don't get it yet, but hopefully you'll explain it to me," Anna said as Alex led her inside, trailed by Cate who glanced back to make sure Gail and Toby were following at a far enough distance they wouldn't overhear anything. Toby was heavy set with a bit of a belly and with a receding hairline, but he seemed fit anyway and he was large, so Alex thought he'd rather not have him angry at him if he could help it. Anna seemed nice, but she looked like a lot of cops, pale from being inside much of the day and not getting outside socially a lot. Alex guessed she probably hung out at the local cop bar rather than socializing with other friends. Once inside they sat at the counter so Gail could isolate Toby, while Alex and Cate surrounded Anna. Alex and Cate quickly outlined what being a Watcher was about, which Anna seemed to soak up. Alex was watching her carefully, anxious that she may take the information the wrong way. If she thought Alex represented a risk to the public safety she could definitely make life very difficult for them. However she seemed to handle everything pretty well, even though they had to keep their voices very low the entire time. Once they covered the basic info, Cate slipped her their pamphlet and told her to contact the Angel Vision Foundation, and then they turned their attention on Toby to ensure he didn't feel ignored. "So I take it you finished telling Anna whatever you needed to?" he asked. Alex couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, we did. Go ahead and ask her about it. She'll give you a nice little recap of it, but we asked her not to reveal it all to you. It's a bit of a sensitive topic with public officials, you understand?" "Look, as long as she doesn't show up for work unable to perform, and she isn't involved in anything illegal, I won't stick my nose in it. But just be aware if you get her into anything weird, or she gets hurt in any way, I'm not going to be pleased and I'll make it a personal mission to help her get away from you," he warned them. However he quickly broke into a grin. "However I doubt you'd ever do anything like that." Alex looked at him curiously. "And why would you say something like that. You don't know me from Adam. I could be a serial rapist con-man." Toby just looked at him seriously. "You're a young kid, traveling with his sister and an ex member of the St. Louis police force. That's about as clean cut as you can get. What's more, you're driving an old compact car, you don't have any expensive jewelry or clothes, and I can tell from your teeth that you aren't out to win anyone over." When Alex cocked his head questioningly at him he explained himself. "People who are out to influence people, and who think they're the greatest thing since sliced bread, always invest in their teeth, thinking a shiny smile will win them more loyal fans. It's clear that you're used to women walking up to you who are willing to do anything for you. Anna had no idea who you were, but she was willing to go out of her way to offer you professional services most politicians don't get. Yet you don't appear to take that sort of adoration personally. You seem like a good kid, so whatever you have going on between you and my partner, I'm sure it's kosher." "Wow, I can see you must be good at your job, because you've managed to categorize me pretty quickly. But I'm glad you feel so protective of your partner, even if you didn't think it was necessary in my case. If you didn't feel that way, I'd question just how much of a friend you are. However, I feel sure you'll find her even more productive and comfortable with herself than she was before. I'm no threat to her, but I just can't tell you what this is about yet. Maybe sometime in the future, but this information takes time to percolate through your psyche, so it's better if you learn about it slowly." "OK, I can live with that," Toby replied. "I won't push, but I'll wait for her to eventually give me something to work with. You may feel it's necessary for her to keep secrets, but keeping secrets generally isn't good for said psyche." "I understand that, and again I appreciate it, but I don't think you have to worry. She'll find quite a few new friends she can share her secret with, and I tend to emphasize keeping old friends, even if they have to work to incorporate them into their new lives." "Well, I appreciate your attitude as well. Now, if you are done, I think it's about time we got back on duty. After all, we're supposed to be working here, not sitting around eating donuts and drinking coffee." They split up after that, everyone shaking hands, Anna telling them she'd get in contact with the Foundation as soon as she could. Alex had to ask them not to accompany them out of town. He also promised them he'd catch them when he was next in town. ------- Those encounters set the scene for the rest of the trip. Before, when they simply focused exclusively on the Seers who approached them, they'd never noticed just how many people they disrupted on a simple drive. Alex wondered just how many people he'd left behind on his previous trip to New Orleans and back. Now they were stopping nearly every exit, and they even had to pull over on the breakdown lane when they couldn't get the people following them to understand they wanted them to follow them to the nearest exit. If you think it is difficult giving people the same information over and over again, then try doing it on the side of a busy highway with cars whizzing past at breakneck speeds. But what amazed Alex the most was that they all trusted him enough to stop as soon as he pulled over. They trusted that he wouldn't pull out a knife and steal their cars, which said a lot about their unrecognized abilities. That's why he was working so hard to get women of all sorts to recognize their inner voices. If his girls could assist other women to avoid trouble, then that was another benefit to this whole movement. About an hour outside of Memphis, Alex was driving again, when they approached a small family car. There was a young boy playing with something facing him so he waved, but the child never noticed him. He also noticed another young kid, but he or she seemed to be facing the front of the car. But as Alex drew near he noticed the child, a small girl with curly blond hair, turn abruptly and crawl to the back of the car. Even before it happened Alex knew what was about to happen when she looked back directly at him, her blue eyes shining brightly across the distance. She jerked back which, timed with a slight bump in the road, tossed her on her tiny little ass. Her brother seemed to notice and said something to his parents about it, but as far as Alex could tell they didn't do anything about it. Kids fall down, parents get used to it. Although the initial contact was extremely brief, Alex had made a conscious effort to try to form whatever connection was necessary to establish contact with her in case it was needed, but he waited until she recovered so he wouldn't panic her any more than she already was. She soon climbed back up and peered out the back window. 'Are you OK?' Alex asked her. 'Yeah, I am. Who are you and how are you talking to me? And what's wrong with my eyes?' She was a cute kid with blond hair, blue eyes and a missing tooth. Alex smiled at her as he spoke to her. 'There is nothing wrong with your eyes, you'll get used to it soon. I need to talk to you about your vision and yourself. What happened to you is big, and we need to talk about it. What are your parents' names?' 'Uh, Mom and Dad, ' she answered with the simplicity of a child. 'Do you know their proper names?' Alex asked, pushing her a little. 'Uh, Michael and Sarah Grant, ' she answered. 'And you are?' he continued to prompt. 'My name is Debbie. Why are you so bright? I can hardly see out the back of the car you're so bright.' 'I'll explain all that, but I need to speak to your parents. Could you ask them what their mobile phone number is?' She moved to the front of the car and he could see her speaking to them for a moment. "Something going on?" Cate asked him. "Yeah, I just activated the little girl in the car ahead of us." "Wow, you really should lie down in the backseat while we drive. This sounds a lot like when you lost Nikki the last time we passed this way. How are you going to get the parents to stop?" Just then Debbie slowly repeated a string of numbers, which Alex relayed to his sister. She quickly jotted them down. "Now, I want you to call the parents, Michael and Sarah Grant, and tell them we need to talk to them about their daughter." She just turned and looked at her brother. "Yeah, right. And why should they listen to me?" "If you have a better idea I'm all ears," he suggested. She continued to stare for a few moments, but eventually shrugged and started dialing. "Hello, you don't know me, but we're in the car behind you and we need to speak to you about..." Cate hesitated long enough for Alex to supply her with the proper name to use, "about Debbie." "No, this isn't a joke. If you look behind you you'll notice we're flashing our lights at you as we speak. We know your names are Michael and Sarah. I can't tell you why we need to speak with you, just that it's necessary for your little girls' future." Cate didn't seem to be making much progress. "Tell them to think of a number between 1 and 10, and to show her daughter that many fingers without saying anything or showing us," Alex told her. "Tell her the answer is seven, that Debbie's birthday is October 7th, and that Kevin stole a candy from the last store they stopped at." Alex waited patiently while the information was conveyed. It still took a little while for them to feel comfortable opening up to some strangers following them. "They're not sure they want to stop to talk to us. They want to know what we want with their daughter," Cate relayed. "Tell her to ask Debbie what she looks like." He waited for the response. "She doesn't understand what's happening," Cate told him. 'Debbie, tell your mother that what you see is the life force of people around you. You see how healthy people are, but you need training to use it. Tell her we are the only ones that can train you." Alex heard more talking over Cate's phone, to which Cate would occasionally say a few words. Finally he grew frustrated. "Put the phone on speaker," he told his sister. " ... swoop in and tell us what's wrong with our child. We have no idea who you are. We never asked for any assistance. How the hell are we supposed to know who you are?" "Hello, Sarah? This is Alex. This wasn't planned, we just happened to be passing when we encountered you. We aren't trying to sell you anything, and we don't want to convert you to anything. We just want to tell you a few things you are going to need to know about your daughter for the next several years." "And why should we believe you? What kind of medical degree do you have? You just sound like some kid yourself." "Sarah. Try to calm down a little bit. We were just trying to help, but it looks like you aren't receptive to it at the moment. You can only turn water into wine so many times, or feed so many people with a couple Ritz crackers, before you have to assume they simply aren't going to believe you. We'll leave you alone to cope with this however you want. Just be aware that we'll be staying in Memphis tonight in case you decide to come see us. If you ever need to speak to us, just ask your daughter and she can give you our phone number. Just be warned that you can't put it off for too long, because if anything happens to me you won't be able to contact anyone after that." "That's OK. I can't see any reason to talk to you in the future. You come along and pull a little trick with our daughter, telling us things you probably picked up from the web, and expect us to do whatever you want. No, thank you. Now we'd appreciate it if you'd leave us alone." And at that point she hung up on them. 'Debbie?' Alex asked, reaching out to the little girl. 'Yeah, Alex?' 'Look, given your parents' mood, I don't think you should tell them anything about your vision or that you can talk to me. Don't lie to them. If they ask, answer honestly, but don't force the issue. If you need to discuss your visions, what they mean, or any other issues with your new abilities, do it with us. OK?' 'Yeah, I think I can do that, Alex, ' she replied. 'Good. Now don't bother your parents for a bit, since they need to calm down. And don't mention it to your brother or friends either, since none of them will believe you. Just remember if you ever need to talk, just talk to me like we're doing now.' She agreed, so Alex finally said goodbye and wished her luck as he watched her parents pull away and leave them behind. They eventually turned off at the next exit, turning onto another highway intersection. Alex wondered whether he'd ever see the little girl again. "I guess there's more than one kind of lost girl, huh?" Cate asked her brother. "She's not lost. Her parents are just confused and defensive. They may or may not get over it, but Debbie will always have me." "Until she doesn't anymore," Gail commented from the back seat. "At which point she'll be lost, just like Nikki and Clara were." "Hopefully she'll be old enough I can give her a phone number to call, and she can keep in contact through other means. I certainly don't mean to abandon her to overly cautious parents," Alex assured them both. The whole encounter left them all feeling a bit down, so they simply stopped talking much after that. They managed to pull into Memphis fairly late, crossing the Hernando de Sota Bridge while it was still light enough for them to find their hotel. It was a fairly nice place in the downtown district, just a short distance from the AutoZone Baseball Park where the Memphis Redbirds played. Not that any of them were fans of that particular team, nor had any great desire to see an empty stadium at that time of night, but it put them at a convenient place amongst a lot of people, so hopefully they could draw whoever might be nearby the hotel while they were staying there. The hotel was situated partway between the baseball stadium and the Emporium shopping mall, so they figured they could go there in the morning, then possibly a few other sites tomorrow to make sure they'd covered the area fairly well. They'd leave for New Orleans the following day. But for now, each of them was tired and ready for some food and possibly a little rest. ------- Chapter 3: First Night in Town, or a little Hotel Fun The three travelers managed to find the hotel easily enough. It was a nice place in a nice neighborhood, though it was a little older, but all Alex was interested in right then was getting out of the car, eating and getting some rest. Stopping and starting, getting in and out of the car at every exit along the route, and worrying about whom they were meeting and what it might entail, was tiring. He realized he had to work on his relationship techniques if he was going to be doing this all summer long. Checking in, the hotel staff was very cordial. "Your friends are already checked in next door. They've been anxiously waiting for you," the receptionist told Alex with a bright smile. "They keep checking by to see if you've shown up yet." "Our friends?" Alex asked. "Oh, yes, there are two..." "Alex! Alex, it's so good to see you again." He turned around not knowing who to expect, when he was enveloped by two beautiful young girls. It took him a minute to figure out exactly who they were. "Tina? Amy? What are the two of you doing here?" "Patricia told us you were staying here on your way down, and since I spend much of the year here at the University of Mississippi, I figured I'd drive up and show you around," Tina Shaw told him. "When I mentioned it, Amy asked if she could come along. Since we've been spending so much time together working on the sorority together, we've gotten to be really good friends." "We've been waiting for you all day," Amy Ray said. "We were afraid to wander around much, since we were both so anxious to see you again. Hurry up, we'll get your bags and carry them up to your room for you." "Go ahead," Gail told her charges, "I'll finish checking in and meet you up there. The rooms already paid for, so I don't think the hotel will have a problem providing you with the room key. We can get some dinner in the hotel restaurant afterwards. That way we can stay in one location in case anyone, uh, feels drawn to the hotel." Alex shot her a quick warning glance, but relented when he noticed no one was nearby and the receptionist wasn't paying any attention. Tina and Amy grabbed the bags, there really weren't that many, and they trudged upstairs. The two girls told Alex and Cate about what they'd been doing since they last saw him at SIU several weeks ago. They'd been working to get their own schools to accept a new sorority for the fall term. There was a lot of resistance from the Administrations, but Amy's school, Tulane University, located in the heart of New Orleans, folded quickly given the amount of young girls attending the school who insisted on it. Tina experienced more resistance, but got an agreement to hold an open house in the fall, to be followed by a vote by the Administration afterwards. Given the circumstances and their late start she thought that was the best they could do. However both were quite excited about getting the sorority started, as they each felt it was their personal mission to do this for Alex. Amy opened the door for Alex, insisting she do it for him, despite her having to drop the siblings' bags in order to do it. As she held the door open, Alex and Cate entered and looked around. It was just a basic hotel room, nothing overly fancy, but it was clean and well lit. There was a nice big TV screen, but Alex doubted they'd ever have a chance to watch it while they stayed in Memphis. Alex and Cate quickly stored their gear, including Gail's, and hurried back downstairs. Alex had already spoken to Gail and told her to meet them in the dining room, so she had a table waiting for them when they arrived. All five of them sat down, and Alex and his friends told the many tales about what had happened to Alex since they'd been together just a short time ago. Their two friends were surprised that so much had occurred. They were horrified that Alex had come so close to being killed several times over, but they were relieved and captivated to hear just how he had managed to defend himself. They were quick to remind Alex how risky it was to everyone involved to take such chances, though. Alex didn't think then was the best time to try to defend his actions, so he accepted their warnings graciously. While they were talking and eating, two girls nervously walked up. Alex noticed them, smiled, and stopped eating, turning to face them. "Excuse us," said the first, a very outgoing redhead with a bright smile and a fairly impressive chest, though Alex hardly looked at it, instead looking each girl in the eye, measuring their responses. "We saw you sitting here, and we were wondering if we could get your autograph." Alex smiled, imagining the two girls assumed he was famous, assuming a common person wouldn't 'feel' so important and imposing. He knew they didn't understand what they were feeling, so he proceeded to sign his name to the sheets they supplied him. However he was cautious, only signing it "Alex", not writing his last name just so no one could trace him through any act of carelessness by either girl. "Do you have any idea who I am?" Alex asked the other girl, a young brunette with dark eyes and an equally pretty smile. She had shoulder length straight hair and wore a blue sundress. Her friend wore a red plaid dress that matched her hair. "No, but we can tell you're important. We've never felt more certain about it, despite not recognizing you. Whoever you are, even if you aren't important now, we're both sure you will be soon," the brunette replied. "By the way, my name is Alex. This is my sister, Cate, this is our friend who's traveling with us, Gail, and these two girls are friends that drove up to meet us from New Orleans. Their names are Tina and Amy." "Oh, I'm Sarah Hamm, and this is my friend, Emma Burks," the redhead told him. "You know, what you're feeling is a bit strange," Alex told them. "The reason why you can feel these things about me is due to a genetic anomaly which gives you an ability to perceive emotions in others. We're traveling the country, teaching girls like you what these abilities mean to them and how they can use it. However it's unusual that two friends would both have the same trait, since it's not a very common occurrence." "I don't know what to say," Emma said, blushing slightly. "We've been friends for a couple of years. As far as I know we're not related, but maybe we should ask our parents about their wilder younger years." "It certainly isn't unheard of for two friends to have it, but it's a fairly rare occurrence. Cate, maybe you could take over the explanation. I'll get some chairs. Gail, could you get the waiter to bring over some additional plates?" "Oh, we're sitting over at the side. Give us a second and we'll bring our plates over here," Sarah said. "Nonsense, what Cate has to tell you is much too important to be interrupted," he told them, getting up and pulling a couple of chairs from nearby tables. "You were very lucky to have met us here, as we're the only people that can tell you what you need to know about yourselves. We're growing a community of similar people, but it's a slow process." Gail managed to flag a waiter who brought over their plates while Cate and Alex began explaining what being a Watcher was all about, but Alex turned the explanation over to Tina and Amy, since he was anxious to learn what Patricia had been telling the people they identified as Watchers. Tina gave them a very good explanation, filled with a lot more personal detail than Cate ever managed to supply. They also spent quite a bit of time talking about how it affected relatives, and how you could tell if your relatives had similar attributes. Sarah and Emma were fascinated. "My mother, sister and aunt sound like likely candidates, but we're just visiting Memphis," Sarah told them. "We actually live in Springfield, Missouri. We're visiting my nephew. His parents smoke like chimneys, so we don't like to sleep there. I have a bit of asthma, so it's hard to breathe when we visit." "That's OK," Amy assured them. "They don't have to be here now. We have a large contingent in New Orleans, and there's a foundation dedicated to helping us that you can contact in Carbondale, Illinois. The only restriction is if any of them are Type 1s, or Seers. In that case, Alex is the only one who can activate their abilities. If either one might fit into that category, you should try to ensure they get down there in the next few days. We'll give you some numbers you can contact if that's necessary." "I'm not sure any of them would qualify as a Seer, based on how you've described it," Emma told her, "but I'm sure they'd like to find out about this, since it sounds like it will affect them and their families. Plus I'm sure they'd love to meet Alex. I know you said we aren't supposed to be able to feel much, but I feel all tingly just being this near to him." Alex and Cate were impressed with the presentations given by Tina and Amy. Apparently Patricia had really done her homework and had made some major strides in identifying Seers and Watchers without having to meet them. They based it on a series of questions and answers, which was important when they'd meet new followers on the road, since they could evaluate whether they'd have to contact nearby families as well. That could further complicate this whole process, but it was still a useful tool in their arsenal. After they got through most of the information they needed to, Tina and Amy started to focus on playing up to Alex, while Cate and Gail continued to talk to the two new girls. It soon became clear they were interested in a rematch with him, even though there was no pressing need requiring it. Alex glanced at his sister with an inquisitive glance, and she, recognizing it, simply nodded, giving him her blessing. Alex excused himself, telling Gail he needed to discuss some issues with Tina and Amy. Gail didn't need an explanation, knowing intimately the desire of Alex's followers to get naked with him to express their thanks to him. Alex didn't have any compunction about abstaining from sleeping with Sarah and Emma. After all, he'd only just met them, and he didn't feel any obligation to sleep with everyone he met. He'd slept with Tina and Amy before, but that was so they'd have the benefit of increased abilities when they undertook their assigned tasks for him. If Emma and Sarah ever took on a similar assignment then he'd consider doing something similar for them, but for now he had no desire to be jumping from bed to bed, especially since Tina and Amy had been waiting so anxiously for a reunion with him. "We'll stick around here, and then hang around the lobby," Gail told him. "I figure if there's anyone else around here they'll be drawn to the hotel, so it makes sense to watch for anyone walking in the door." "And we'll stick around and keep them company," Sarah offered happily. "We're interested in hearing all the gossip about Alex, and spending time with you is much more fun than spending it with my Aunt and Uncle." ------- Alex and the two girls got to his room with a lot of giggling and playful banter. The girls really thought the world of Alex, even though they knew they could only have a smidgen of his time. They recognized that he was really too big for any one person to hold. But they knew from experience that being with him was unlike being with anyone else, and the sex they'd had with him previously, when he'd boosted their abilities, had been phenomenal. They were both afraid they'd always compare any future sexual experiences with that, which they knew was unfair, but it was hard not making comparisons. They had slowly stripped off their clothing while they played and kissed each other. Alex used his experience making love with multiple women at a time to switch off between the two girls, never allowing them to feel slighted, not that either one ever would, each feeling grateful for any attention from him at all. Alex had gone down on Amy, but Tina was currently trying to get him to make love to her instead, each knowing the added benefits of full body contact with Alex. His energy managed to course through a person, and the more exposure you had being naked with him, the more intense the stimulations you received from him were. Alex was kissing his way back up Tina's body, intending to kiss her a little more before he did anything further, when there was a knock on the door. 'Gail, is that you?' Alex asked. 'No, why? What's going on?' Gail asked in response. 'There's someone at the door, ' he informed her. 'We haven't noticed anyone entering the hotel, and the other entrances are generally locked at night, so it must be another guest. That's strange, though, as usually anyone would be drawn to you much earlier than this, and the Watchers generally wouldn't be so forward to intrude on your privacy.' 'That's how I'm interpreting it, ' he told her, as he stood up and began searching for his pants. "Sorry, girls, but duty calls. This could be another follower," he told them as he noticed the hotel's robes hanging on the bathroom door. It was a nice touch the hotel offered, and even better, it was between him and the door. "Don't worry about it. We understand," Any assured him. "You've got a mission, and that always comes first. I just hope you don't mind if we stay a little antsy during the interview," she told him with a light laugh. Wrapping the robe around him, Alex cautiously opened the door to reveal a tired looking young woman with blond hair that hung down to her shoulders, wearing a simple smock and a purple housecoat. As soon as Alex opened the door she looked into his eyes and her head jerked back. Knowing what was happening, Alex threw the door open and grasped her in order to keep her from falling. Amy, seeing the trouble that Alex was having, rushed up dressed only in a shirt she'd thrown on without having time to button it. As they tried to carry the surprised woman inside to a chair so she could recover, Alex noticed an older woman peeking at them from inside her own room, watching as Alex and a nearly naked young girl were escorting an older woman into their room. Alex could only imagine the stories she'd tell once she returned home, but he tried to ignore it while he focused on the new woman before him. The woman began to recover before they reached the bed, but she allowed them to seat her as she looked around her with wonder in her eyes. Tina closed and locked the door as Alex addressed the woman. "I know what just happened to you was a bit of a shock, but what you are experiencing is perfectly natural. What you are seeing is a form of energy that supports all living things. Your new vision can tell you a great deal about people, and it's a furtherance of your current ability to feel how people around you are going to react." Just then there was a knock on the door. When Tina opened the door, Cate entered to help with Alex's explanation. The four of them were ready to provide a quick rundown of what her new life would entail. "My name is Alex, what's your name and how did you end up here at this time of night?" Alex asked. "Oh, my name is Kelly Ott," the woman explained. "I'm staying in the hotel, and I could feel you as soon as you entered the hotel, but my husband was having a business dinner with his boss so I couldn't leave the kids. I was really tempted to drag them along with me, but I didn't think you'd appreciate it. When my husband, Henry, came back from his dinner I dumped the kids on him, told him I had to see someone about something important, and left without any explanation." "Wow, that's something we haven't encountered before. How old are your kids?" "I have three kids. A five year old, a 3 year old and a little baby boy. I hated leaving them behind, but I didn't even look back as I ran out the door. I just knew that meeting you would be the most important thing in my life, and I couldn't afford to miss the chance to see you. As you said, I've always known to trust my feelings about people, so I knew enough to trust what I was feeling about you." "Well, what we're going to tell you is going to impact your whole life, including that of your family. Also there's a very good chance that your kids may be impacted by me as well. It seems there's a particular genetic trait that allows people to notice the energy that I generate. Since it only affects women, and since it seems to require a gene on both the X chromosomes, I think it's safe to assume that your daughters, if you have any, would at least be what we call Watchers, which is a lesser form of what you have. Essentially they may not have the visions, but they can feel the energy I give off." "Well, I have two girls. As I said, the baby is a boy." "Then I think it's important to get your family here. What room are they in?" "Room 412," she told him. 'Gail, you were right, it's another Seer. We're talking to her but she has family in another room, so we're going to be moving around the hotel. Leave the two girls to watch the lobby, and you come up and run interference for us. The woman's room is on the fourth floor. I'm sending the girls to get her husband and kids.' 'Husband, huh? That sounds like potential trouble. I'd better be there when they confront him. I'll meet them there, ' Gail informed him. "OK, Cate, take Tina and Amy and go collect Henry and her kids. Try to explain that he needs to come along to learn what his wife is doing, but try not to reveal too much. I'd rather only explain it once, and I don't want him making any assumptions based on partial information." "Yes, sir," Cate responded, smiling at him before she turned and ran out, the two girls trailing her after glancing nervously at Alex, not sure if they should leave him alone. They'd been quietly dressing while Alex and Kelly were talking. Once the room was empty Kelly glanced around the room. "I take it I interrupted some fun, huh?" she asked. "Yeah, you did. But don't worry. This is important. We can have sex anytime, but you'll only experience something like this once. Well, there are a couple of other highlights, but none are quite as intense as the initial activation," he informed her. "Why are you so bright? Why can't I see what you look like anymore?" she asked. "Let's hold off on that, as I'm sure your family is going to want to hear the same answers. It's difficult enough telling it once. I'm not looking forward to going through it multiple times with multiple people. Besides, your family needs to see your reactions and that, while you've been changed, you're still OK." She simply nodded and they waited for the others to return. "So, Kelly, tell me a little about yourself?" Alex asked, trying to keep her engaged. "There's not much to tell. I'm a young mother, so I'm completely occupied with my three kids right now. Henry works in an office so I don't get much relief during the day, but my mother helps. I always wanted to be a mother, but it wears you down eventually," she explained. 'Alex, we're on our way, ' Gail told Alex telepathically. 'Henry, the woman's husband was a bit alarmed when I said that something had happened with his wife. I tried to calm him down by saying nothing physically happened to her, but that she just learned something about herself that is a bit unsettling. He's still a bit concerned. I hope I handled that OK.' 'I'm not sure there was any better way of handling it, Gail. Difficult situations call for difficult decisions. How's he reacting to everything else?' 'He wasn't crazy about letting three strange women touch his kids and invade his room, but the girls were real professionals and they quickly gathered the necessary supplies and got the kids calmed down. They're real troupers. Anyway, we're on our way over now.' 'That's good. I'm trying to avoid talking about the obvious until everyone is here. By the way, did the girls manage to get any clothes put on, or are they parading down the halls in their panties and bras?' Gail laughed. 'No, they managed to put on enough to cover themselves. They look like a bunch of young women who have been hanging around their hotel rooms late at night. They're fine, ' she assured him. 'I'm not sure you're the best judge of what constitutes fine, ' Alex told her. 'Oh, believe me, those girls are most definitely fine, ' she laughed in response. Alex and Kelly talked quietly together until the others arrived. Henry looked cautiously at Alex. One daughter, the eldest, watched Alex carefully from behind her father while the other two kids didn't seem to show any undue attention, but Alex couldn't clearly label her as a Watcher from that much. Any kids would be concerned to be yanked out of their room by four strangers when their parents were both upset as well. "Good evening. My name is Alex," he introduced himself, purposely leaving off his last name. "This is a bit unusual and you are likely going to have trouble believing it, so you'd best get comfortable so I can start the explanation. I assume everyone introduced themselves already?" "Yeah, they did, but it was a bit rushed so I'm not sure who I'll remember and who I won't. This is Jenny," the young husband replied, indicating the watchful 5-year-old girl, "and the other one is Steph and the baby is Bobby". "Don't worry about it. If you are confused about anything, feel free to ask. I asked you to come down because this will impact each of you, but more importantly, it will likely impact both Jenny and Steph, so you should both be aware of what's involved." Henry looked concerned, but sat down beside his wife and drew his kids to him, although Tina continued to hold young Bobby. "You're wife has a rare genetic trait that allows her to feel people's emotions. I have a separate genetic trait that allows me to activate certain abilities in her," Alex explained to them. "Kelly is now able to see the energy surrounding people, and these lights, what we call auras, tell a lot about people. They reveal personality traits, emotions, and people's health as well." "Wait, wait," Henry said, halting the explanation. "When your friend said that something happened to Kelly I thought she'd been injured. You mean you dragged us all from our room so you can talk about some science fiction mumbo-jumbo?" "No, Henry, he's right," Kelly advised her husband. "Alex is so bright I can't even look directly at him, and when I look at the rest of you I see a bunch of colored lights coming out of you that I've never seen the likes of. They're colors that I've never seen before. There's something very odd going on here." That seemed to mollify Henry somewhat, so he allowed Alex to continue. "I realize this is going to sound unbelievable, but you're going to have to listen carefully, because there is a lot of information I'm going to be telling you, and I can assure you it's all very true. The reason you've never heard of any of this is that the underlying traits are extremely rare, and the ability to see this energy, like Kelly is doing now, is something that has only recently come to light, and we're trying to keep it as secret as we can." Alex proceeded to explain about the energy that he exuded, and about the classes of people that it affected. As he did he watched everyone's reactions. Henry remained dubious, but he at least listened to the information, taking his wife's reaction as his guide to the seriousness of the subject. Jenny took everything that was said very seriously, and seemed to be unable to take her eyes off of Alex, which he took to mean that she was, just as he had expected, a Watcher. However Steph, the younger girl, seemed to grow bored with all the discussion and was looking around the room. "Wait, you're telling me that you have some magical ability, and that you are wandering around triggering these supposed 'abilities' in other people?" Henry asked, still not able to wrap his mind around what he was hearing. "Yes, and it's limited to women. For some odd reason that seems to have to do with genetics, it only affects women. In fact, I myself have none of the abilities I've described. I have the ability to activate women like your wife, but I can't see or feel the energy they tell me I give off. What's more, there seems to be a complicated set of restrictions on it. It seems you need to have the trait on both of your X chromosomes to be a type 1 Seer, or only one to be a type 2 Watcher. I'm a bit intrigued by your children, though. I'd expect your daughters to be Watchers, since they inherited the trait from Kelly's X chromosomes, but they didn't from your own. However it appears that only one of them is. Steph seems to be unaffected, and I'd be willing to bet she is just a normal type 3." "Wait a minute. This is getting a bit thick," Henry protested. "You're right, Alex," Cate said, jumping into the discussion. She always got excited about the scientific aspects, and she couldn't contain her enthusiasm about learning new facts about her favorite subject. "There seems to be a lot more involved in the genetic process, which would account for the low incidence of the traits. I'm guessing there are several genetic triggers that need to be active for someone to be receptive to these traits, or at least there are several factors, besides having a Y chromosome, that specifically turns them off." "So you're saying that both Steph and Bobby are normal, uh, normal humans, while Jenny and I are, uh..." Kelly tried hesitatingly, trying to figure out how to address the issue. "That's right, Kelly, you and Jenny are now part of a select subset of the 'normal' population. As such, you need to know about these abilities, and we'll also supply you with others you can communicate with to help you deal with this. We've managed to grow a very helpful community, so I think you'll feel very comfortable among them." "There's a little more that my brother hasn't mentioned, and that I'm hesitant to mention with everyone here, but I'll take a stab at it," Cate said, bringing up an uncomfortable topic. "Alex has occasionally managed to boost both his own and the other women's abilities periodically. Specifically, he manages to boost the women's abilities by apply a certain physical contact," she explain obliquely. "What, you mean like a laying on of hands?" Kelly asked. 'No, Kelly, she means that if we have sex I can boost your abilities even more. She was trying to find a subtle way of raising the topic, ' Alex explained to her. "What the hell?" she asked, jerking back. "Did you just speak inside my head?" "It's another ability you have that we haven't gotten to yet," Cate told her. "You have the ability to communicate telepathically with Alex, and through him with the other Seers we've encountered. If you have your abilities heightened, then you'll be able to do it without his assistance." To illustrate the point, Alex had both Anh and Patricia say hello to Kelly and introduce themselves. She just sat there staring wide-eyed in surprise. "What's going on, Kelly? Is he doing something to you?" Henry asked. "I'm having a couple of people talk to her from a couple of hundred miles away," Alex told him. "They are a handy resource, since they can relate to what she's going through." "Sorry, this is all a bit overwhelming," Kelly said, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. "So what you're saying is that I need to have sex with Alex in order to get a boost in my abilities?" she asked, speaking bluntly despite the presence of her kids in the room with her. 'You can speak privately with me if you want, but yes, that's what we mean, ' Alex answered her. Aloud he continued. "It's not required, and there really isn't any pressing need for it. We're just presenting it as an option. If there was any other means of doing it, I'd have already done it. Personally I'm not overly fond of the physical requirements, since I'm only one man and I don't like feeling like I'm no longer in control of who I choose to sleep with, but that's part of the limit of these abilities." "Now wait one God damn minute," Henry interrupted, a little angrily. Alex guessed he hadn't responded earlier simply because he hadn't quite understood what Alex had been saying. "You're suggesting my wife has sex with you in front of me and our kids?" "No, certainly not. We're just telling her how these abilities work. We didn't understand the ground rules, and we've been discovering the restrictions strictly through a process of trial and error. It took us a long time to discover this particular aspect of our abilities. I'm not suggesting that anyone sleep with me. But she needs to know everything that we know about her." "So basically you're saying that, if I slept with you, I'd gain the ability to speak to all these women on my own," Kelly asked, demonstrating that she was probably being informed of additional facts beside what Cate and Alex were telling her. "That's right, but you're under no obligation to do so," Alex hastened to add. "Hmm," Kelly said, as if considering it. "You aren't thinking about it, are you?" Henry asked. "Mom, I'd do it if I were you," 5-year-old Jenny advised her mother. Her father spun around and stared at his daughter open mouthed. "No thanks. These abilities are amazing, but I love my husband and my family, and I'm not about to compromise them just for a few more tricks," she told everyone. "But Mom," Jenny tried to argue. "I'm not about to cheat on my husband just so I can gossip with a few women I don't know," Kelly informed her daughter. This statement by her didn't seem to placate her husband, but he wisely kept his mouth shut. "OK, moving on, there's still a lot more to get through," Alex said, trying to get off of the difficult topic. "Wait a minute," Jenny asked, asking Alex a question herself for the first time. "Does that apply to me too?" "Jenny!" he father sharply responded to her question. "Hold on, it's a perfectly reasonable question," Cate hurriedly argued. "Let my brother answer her honestly." "Yes, it would. If we were to eventually have sex, it would boost your abilities, but not in the same way. Instead of doing what it would for your mom, it would instead boost your abilities to the level your mother had before I did anything to her. But," Alex stressed, changing the tone of the discussion, "I'm not about to do anything with you until you are much older, and then only with your parents' permission, and probably not even then. It only works if I feel comfortable with the other person and we share a deep emotional connection. I'm afraid having sex with someone your age wouldn't allow me to be comfortable enough to achieve anything." "What about the rest of you, what age did you do it?" Jenny asked, suddenly sounding very old for her age. Everyone's mouth dropped at this question. "JENNY, that's enough, young lady," her father insisted. "Actually, Jenny, Alex has only been aware of his abilities for a very short time," Tina said, "and he only gained this particular ability even later than that. Yes, Amy and I have had sex with him, and he has boosted our abilities, but I think I know him well enough to say that he'd never consider having sex with someone as young as you." "How old would I have to be then?" she continued to press. "JENNY!" her father continued to shout, to little effect. Kelly put her arm protectively around her daughter. "Let her speak, Henry, this is serious, and it makes a big difference to her life. She needs to know this information, even if she doesn't do anything as a result." To say Henry was surprised by his wife's response would be an understatement, however he had no idea of how to respond, so he just sat there looking lost. "To be honest, Jenny, I wouldn't do it until you were an adult, and honestly, I doubt I'll even be around then," Alex told her, speaking to her like she was a little adult. "We can help train you to use the abilities you already have, but you aren't going to be gaining any new ones." 'Kelly, are you serious about not wanting to boost your abilities?' Gail asked her telepathically so the others couldn't hear, however she included Alex in the discussion so he'd be aware of what they said. 'I'm asking because, so far, everyone that Alex has activated and most of the Watchers have been more than willing to do quite a bit with Alex just for the chance to express their thanks to him.' 'Absolutely, ' Kelly assured her. 'I love my husband, and I wouldn't do that to him, even if he didn't know. I'd know, and I'm not sure I could live with myself, or be able to look him or my kids in the eyes if I did. So thanks for the offer, but I think I'll politely decline, ' she assured them both. 'Well, if you ever... ' Gail started to respond, but Alex cut her off. 'Thanks, Gail, but I think that's enough. I have NO desire to interfere with a healthy marriage, and I'd have problems committing adultery even if she were in an unhappy marriage. Let's just consider the topic closed and move on, ' Alex told them both. "Hey, I can see your eyes moving from here, and I can tell you're talking about something behind my back. What are you talking about?" Henry asked guardedly. "Gail was asking me if I was being honest in refusing, or if I was only doing so because you and the kids were here. I informed them I was sincere in my beliefs, and Alex agreed with me," Kelly assured him. He glanced at her like he didn't completely believe her, and Alex wondered what can of worms they'd unintentionally opened here. He wasn't sure Henry would ever fully trust his wife again, knowing she could be plotting a secret dalliance in silence with no trace over hundreds of miles, and he'd never have a clue. "Look, let's move on because there's still more we have to discuss," Alex insisted, trying once again to change the topic. "Kelly, I'm going to have Gail and someone by the name of Allison give you a brief lecture on what you're seeing means. This is very important, but because it involves shared memories it can only be accomplished telepathically. Meanwhile, I'll discuss the community you'll all be joining." After that things calmed down as everyone focused on their own topics. Alex and Cate told Henry about Patricia, the large Watcher community in New Orleans, and about the foundation in Carbondale. They also noticed that Jenny listened attentively, while glancing longingly at her mother, likely wishing she could join the discussion her mother was having at the moment. They suspected she'd be having a serious problem with envy with her mother in the coming months. Steph and Bobby looked completely bored with everything that was going on. Amy and Tina were busy distracting them at the moment, so they didn't fuss too much. Eventually everyone settled down and the Otts were given all the information they needed. They finally split up, with the Ott family going to their own room to consider what this meant for them. They told Alex they'd think about everything and talk to him again at breakfast. After they left, Tina mentioned it was getting late, and asked about the sleeping arrangements for the night. Gail snickered, since everyone present knew what that implied. "I'll go downstairs and talk to Sarah and Emma, since I essentially abandoned them down there. It might take a while, so I'll borrow your key, Tina. You can take my place in Alex's bed tonight. I'm sure Alex will have no problems finishing what he started earlier. I suspect you'll also find that his sister has no problems watching her brother perform, as she's been watching women chasing after him since this all started. Luckily there are two double beds for her to watch from," she concluded, subtly warning Cate to not broadcast the true nature of her relationship with her brother. With that, Gail headed off, and the rest settled down for a very interesting night. But before they could begin Alex had one more thing he needed to take care of before it got too late. "I'd like to call home and let everyone know I'm OK," he told the other girls. "Cate, you can join me if you'd like," he suggested. "Thanks. I'll talk to Mom and Dad with you, but I'll talk to your girlfriends on my own later. By the way, if you use your cell phone, I'll show you how I do three-way calling on it." So he dutifully called his house, where the phone was picked up quickly by his mother. "Hello, Jennings residence?" she answered, just as she'd trained her children to do. "Hey, Mom, it's Alex. I'm just calling to let you know that everything is OK and that we arrived safely," he told her. "Well thanks," she replied, "quite frankly, I'm surprised you managed to call. Don't tell me you don't have any new girls to boost," she laughed. "You know me too well," Alex laughed back. "Actually I met a bunch today while we were on the road, but right now I'm getting ready to spend some time with Tina and Amy. You remember them, right? They were the two girls from..." "Yeah, I remember them. Very nice girls. So no new, uh... ?" his mother asked him. "Yeah, I met a couple. A young girl whose parents didn't want anything to do with us, and a woman with a husband and kids," Alex responded. "Really? That's hardly typical," she responded. "No, but it's OK. If I can avoid sleeping with anyone else I'll jump at the chance. I'm getting tired of having to bed everyone I meet. I don't mind Tina and Amy since they're friends and they've been doing so much for me, but..." It still felt odd for Alex to be discussing such intimate details with his mother, but he knew she'd drag the details out of Cate or the other girls anyway, and he felt so frustrated over the constant pressure to make love to everyone that he didn't mind some feedback from someone who'd be sympathetic. Something he wasn't sure any of his girls could be. Linda laughed. "I can understand that. How's Cate holding up with all the potential competition?" "Hey, Mom, it's me," Cate replied from nearby. "I'm busy helping my brother with all his tasks," she said obliquely, telling her mother she was still in the room with the girls. "Ah, I understand. We'll talk later then. Thanks for calling. I already miss you both." They both bid her goodbye, Alex missing the chance for some helpful advice due to his inability to talk for long. They made another call, and Cate helped Alex talk to both girlfriends at once. She was more used to talking to them on a 3-way call than he was. He said much the same things to them, but they also talked a bit about how much they loved each other. Finally Alex called the loft in Carbondale to talk to all his girls there. They were also glad to hear from him, and they talked about the new girls since they were already familiar with them after having talked to Kelly earlier. However Alex ended the conversation early, knowing he had a couple of girls waiting for him. They all wished him good luck, and he turned his attention to his two guests, planning to work off some of the stresses of the day. Cate continued talking to Kitty and Chalise, while watching her brother performing sexually once again, a smile on her lips as she described what he was up to. ------- Chapter 4: A Long Day in Memphis The next morning Alex woke feeling disoriented, he wasn't used to only a couple of girls in his bed. Glancing around he noticed two girls clutching him, but there was still another spooned up against him and he instantly knew it was Cate, his sister. Alex's relationship with his sister was complex. It went back years, with him always protecting and taking care of her, but it turns out it was more complex than that. Without being aware of it, Cate had long been absorbing his energy. She'd turn to him whenever she was upset, unhappy or sick as a little girl. After unwittingly absorbing his energy, she'd always feel better, raring to go and ready for anything. When the family had traveled to New Orleans, where Alex's abilities first became apparent, Cate slept in the spare bed in his hotel room, where he entertained an ever growing cast of followers, each anxious to have sex with him. She quickly started to associate him with a variety of sexual impulses; however she resisted acting on them. It was only when she returned home one night to find out that her other sister, Melinda, had almost seduced him in her absence that the situation dramatically changed. Cate blew up at that. She insisted that no one was going to take advantage of Alex before she did. Cate was actually angrier because Melinda had always been somewhat distant before that, and she felt she had only swooped in now that everyone recognized what a catch Alex was, whereas Cate had been by his side since they were children. It took a long time for the two sisters to reconcile, and Cate had done a lot of thinking about their relationship during that time. She'd decided that she wouldn't forgive her sister until she demonstrated that she was serious about Alex and about what Alex now represented, and that she wasn't just using him for her own benefit. Melinda had eventually done that when she went out of her way arranging to start a sorority at her school specifically designed to attract potential followers of her brother. What's more, she worked on the whole project in secret with the help of Becky, their eldest sister. What was really strange about the entire thing, though, is that Cate had never felt jealous of the attention showered on Alex by his many followers, girlfriends and schoolmates. Instead, she felt confident enough of his love for her, and drew enough comfort from absorbing his energy, that she never felt threatened. What's more, once they finally made love with each other, following a romantic date Alex took her on in Carbondale, Alex managed to trigger a new ability within Cate that never knew she had. As a result, she could literally feel both Alex's love for his girls, and their love for him. Since she felt it so strongly she internalized it, feeling the same love for those very same women. She'd already had bisexual leanings, but feeling his love for each of these women turned the tide for her, even though she had only made love with a few of them. Thus Cate and Alex's relationship was, in a word, complex. The night before, after Alex, Tina and Amy had exhausted themselves, Cate had quietly slipped in amongst them and curled up naked behind her brother, the same way she'd been sleeping with him for the last several weeks. It had gotten to where she was almost addicted to his energy, unable to be away from it for very long. She hadn't thought about it much, but she was afraid she'd be unable to function once they had to separate. That moment was approaching. For one, Alex had a very short timetable hanging over him. From what Cate had been able to determine, it appeared the energy coursing through Alex was killing him. It wasn't apparent, since the selfsame energy also healed anything wrong with him, but the sheer volume of energy coursing through him was straining his body too much for it to manage. Beyond that, Cate arranged to alternate taking care of Alex on this road trip with her other sisters. They had specifically asked to accompany him for part of the trip, afraid he may not live long enough for them to spend much time with him. Now that Cate and Melinda had reconciled, they were anxious to taste what Cate was already enjoying a steady diet of, not only sex with Alex, but simply the chance to spend time with him and appreciate what this new version of their younger brother was. However, Cate was scared that once she separated from Alex, she may be unable to cope without the daily dosage of the energy she drew from him. But she also knew she'd have to learn to cope without it. That was the reason she'd agreed to alternate with her sisters. If she couldn't deal with a short separation from him now, she'd never survive the long term separation that his death would cause. The very thought of it made her shiver in fear. Cate's mini-terror got Alex's attention, and he turned and pulled Cate even tighter to him than she was already clutching him. The movement also got Tina and Amy moving as well. "Good morning, Alex," Amy said, smiling cheerfully but sleepily. "Oh, good morning too, Cate," she responded in surprise. "Hi," Tina told them both. "Couldn't sleep on your own?" she asked. They'd both suspected something was going on between Alex and his sister, but neither was forward enough to ask. Besides, they'd also been told the story of how Cate had been quietly absorbing his energy over time, and they were both familiar with just how sexy it was feeling his energy flow through them, tingling their senses and making them feel more alive than they'd ever felt in the past. Thus it was only a short leap to assume she'd at least sleep with him regularly, even if they didn't regularly create the beast with two backs, as Plato had called it. 'It's about time you got up, ' Alex heard Gail's voice in his head. 'You been waiting?' he silently asked her. "Yeah, I been sitting here watching the four of you sleeping," she replied out loud, surprising each of the naked foursome. They turned and saw her sitting on the desk chair, which she'd dragged past them so she could sit between them and the door. "It's very reassuring to see you so relaxed and comfortable with each other, despite the threats you constantly face. I think that just watching you can fill someone with calm, confidence and energy. As I keep saying, if I could bottle a little bit of you, I'd be a very rich woman. "Anyway, it's time we all got up and got moving. There are several people that are expecting to meet with us for breakfast, and you've got a full day of trolling for new followers today," Gail concluded. "All right, I'm up," Alex complained, as he moved to the end of the bed, trying not to disturb the girls on either side of him. "Do we have enough time for a communal shower?" "Ha, not if you have to be somewhere. If we have anything to do about it, you'll be busy in there for quite some time," Tina assured him. "All right," Alex conceded. "It wasn't overly hot yesterday, and I freshened up last night. I'll skip a shower this morning and just do a quick wash up. Let's get moving. The rest of you can take your time and meet us downstairs if you want. I'm anxious to get down there early so we can watch for anyone who entered the hotel looking for me last night or this morning." The girls protested they could get ready quickly if necessary, but Alex assured them it wasn't necessary as he'd be fine with Gail to protect him. So Gail and Alex headed downstairs, leaving the other three to finish their morning preparations, and probably get to know one another a little better as well. As soon as the door closed, Tina and Amy started pestering Cate to tell them more about what Alex was like. When she started in with some generalities they interrupted her, asking for specifics about what he was like in bed with her. "It's got to be different than it is with us, and I'm sure it's different with the Seers as well," Tina said. "Is it different for everyone, or is it as wonderful for everyone?" Cate blushed, and after a hesitant start she finally relaxed enough after they goaded her to give them the more personal details they were after. They each finished dressing and prepping as they listened to her description of her and her brother's relationship, and her details of how he related to the many others he fooled around with. They'd suspected she knew a fair amount of all of his sexual encounters, so they also asked her about his two girlfriends and what they were like. Cate told them they were both wonderful, and as dedicated to him as any of the other women, despite the lack of any biochemical inducements. Surprisingly, they were both pleased by that. Although it was nice to focus on their own private community, they wanted Alex to be able to enjoy some normal moments of life, and they were glad that he got to achieve his share of normality. Despite the initial shock, Cate found she wasn't disturbed at being 'found out', since she considered Tina and Amy part of Alex's stable of girls from back home, but she told herself she'd be even more careful about revealing things in the future. The women that Alex would be meeting in the future would think the world of him, and it wouldn't do for them to think his sister was a sex starved slut. No, she realized that everything she did reflected on Alex. It was important, despite her still young age, for her to act like the scientist and advisor she played the role of for Alex. He depended on her for her advice, and she couldn't embarrass him because of her actions on the side. If she had to do without getting any attention from him for several weeks, it was simply something she'd have to put up with. But even as she said it, she realized she couldn't keep from spending time with him, or from sleeping with him at night. The well-being he filled her with whenever they slept skin-to-skin at night was simply too much to surrender. But she could at least put a better cover over it. Yes, that was it. She'd stick to the story that she absorbed his energy, but not let on to anyone that there was any more to it than that. That should be enough to keep from embarrassing him in front of his new followers. After all, she didn't mind sharing her brother, but she wasn't about to give him up entirely either. The conversation continued as they finished dressing and all the way down to the dining room, and covered many other topics as well, as they asked about his attitudes on many things. They both seemed fascinated with how he approached life and how he decided things. They were appreciative that he seemed to take in everyone's opinion, but impressed that his decisions were always final. They were also touched that he was so nervous about making mistakes, and always asked for honest advice since he had so little experience with a lot of things. When Alex and Gail reached the dining room they found Jenny and Emma holding a table large enough for everyone. They greeted each other and ordered breakfast just as the Otts came down. As Kelly headed for the seat besides Alex, Henry squeezed in between them, which Alex didn't think was a good sign. However Kelly just waved it off and sat across from him. Jenny sat next to her mother, but as close as she could get to Alex. "So, we've been talking," Henry began. "Henry, let me handle this," Kelly told him. "Alex, as much as I'm thankful for what you've done for me, I feel I'm too tempted to flirt with you. I don't think it's very healthy, and I think I'd better keep my distance, so we're going to return home a little early." Alex was surprised, since this was the first time a woman he'd activated hadn't thrown her current life out the window and followed him home. "Are you sure? You don't have to do anything, in fact after breakfast we're going to head over to the Emporium Shopping Center. We figure we'd encounter more people there, since it's downtown and between the ballpark and the FedEx Forum. I won't even be around. I'd hate to mess up your trip." "No, if you're that close I'll be able to feel you nearby. I'd be distracted and Henry and the kids would notice." "Well, if you feel it's necessary, but you should still stop by New Orleans. I'll be there for a few days, but I'll probably be pretty distracted, what's more I'll be gone by... , how long are we scheduled to stay in New Orleans, Gail?" "You'll have to ask Cate. I'm not really sure. I think we're scheduled to stay for three days, though." "There, so you'll be free to travel to New Orleans in another several days, and it should be completely safe after a week." "I don't know, from what Cate said last night there are people talking about you all over there. I'm not sure that would be any better." "Look, anyone with these abilities is going to be familiar with me by definition. They only got their abilities because of me. You can't ignore who you are just because you're uncomfortable with me. I'll tell you what, forget me, forget New Orleans, but take the number for the Angel Vision Foundation. Give them a call and talk to some of the people there. Tell them I told you to call to make sure you talk to the right people. They'll tell you everything you need to know about what being a member of the community involves." "All right, I'll do that much. But my family is everything to me, and I'm not about to abandon them just because you breezed into my life." "That's fair, Kelly, and I believe in family, so I think you should do whatever you're comfortable with. Just be aware I probably won't be around if you change your mind," he warned her. "Oh come on, you're laying it on a bit thick, aren't you?" Henry scoffed, giving him a dirty look. It looked like he thought this was just a come-on line by Alex. "Actually it's true," Cate said, coming up behind him. "Sorry, but I just overhead the last of the conversation, but Alex is sick and only has a short amount of time left. Like everything about Alex, what he's suffering from is as new as the rest of this is, so we have no idea how long he has. That's why this trip is so important. We're trying to reach as many people as we can." All the girls, including the two that just came down with Cate, started oohing and aahing, but Henry looked unconvinced. "Come on. You've got to be kidding me. You're young, you look healthy, you have women all over you, and it looks like you're used to getting your way all the time. It's a little extreme to pull a fake sympathy card to get your way. Personally, I resent how manipulative you are about this whole thing. Maybe what you told Kelly and Jenny is true, but the way you're taking advantage of it is practically criminal." Alex just looked at him for a moment, taking his measure. Everyone else froze, they weren't used to people telling Alex off, although Gail was prepared to throw herself between the two if it proved to be necessary. Kelly looked especially ill at ease, and Jenny looked even more upset than her mother, looking like she was ready to cry. But she was biting her lip, trying to prevent it. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Henry. I'm not after your wife, but I suspect you're going to feel paranoid about me even after I'm gone. I'll do you a favor and promise I won't contact your wife, but I don't think that's going to make you any happier. I hope I'm wrong, but I'm afraid I may have broken up just what you are trying to preserve by leaving. I'm sorry to have done that. In retrospect I guess it was a mistake being honest with you. I guess I'll chalk that up to experience. But I'll tell you what, we'll pay the bill. Tell the waiter we're sorry but we couldn't stay. We'll leave so you won't be distracted as you pack. I'm really sorry we couldn't have gotten along since it doesn't hurt me, but it will impact Kelly and Jenny." With that Alex stood up, waited for each of the girls to stand as well, and escorted them out as Gail hurriedly laid out enough cash to cover the expense of breakfast. She then hurried to catch up with Alex and the girls. She heard Jenny crying behind her as she left the dining room. When Gail caught up to Alex and the girls, he was angrily stalking away. As much as he claimed it didn't, it still bothered him when one of his girls couldn't learn what she needed to because a guy in her life took exception to him. He knew it was likely to occur, but it remained hard to deal with personally. He also recognized that he wasn't used to rejection and wasn't quite sure how to handle it. He knew he was overreacting, but he had trouble putting it aside. He was afraid he'd hurt both Kelly and her daughter because of his inability to deal with males once again. Thus much of his anger was directed internally, though that wasn't immediately apparent to those around him. Cate was busy trying to console him, while the other girls followed along behind him. Gail reached Sarah and pulled her aside, asking her to watch the lobby for new followers while Gail escorted Alex to their room to get whatever they needed to leave the hotel. Alex overheard her, and walked back, telling her he didn't want to stay long enough to affect Kelly negatively. "I'll head over to the Emporium," he told her, turning to the other girls. "The rest of you can catch up when you're ready. I think each of you can find me easily enough, but I think it's important for me to leave the hotel as soon as possible." They all assured him that they were ready to leave then as well, so they headed out of the hotel. Gail had wanted to alert the hotel staff to keep an eye out for anyone who looked like they were searching for someone, but didn't have time if she wanted to keep up with Alex. As always, her first priority was watching out for Alex. Whatever else might need to be done, his security was paramount, and he wasn't particularly good at staying out of trouble, as the encounter in the dining room just proved. The short walk to the shopping center was quick, since Alex appeared to be walking off his anger and frustration. Gail thought that was best, as it allowed him to get it out of his system so he'd be more collected by the time he met anyone. The girls had to hurry to keep up with him. Gail's long legs and good physical condition allowed her to do so easily. She continued to scan ahead of Alex, though, always on the lookout for trouble. Her years of being a cop had ingrained habits that took over, even when she wasn't aware of it, but that she found especially useful now that she was protecting the most important person she'd ever been responsible for. Entering the Emporium, Alex pulled up short and tried to regain his emotional bearing as he took in his environment. He saw a directory so he headed over to figure out what was nearby. The girls caught up to them as he was choosing the best location for them to hang out, trying to figure out traffic patterns, ease of access, and anything else that needed to be taken into account. Gail continued watching for trouble. Alex found a nearby coffee shop near the South end of the center, close to some of the biggest and most popular shops. He situated himself and began to calm down a little more. Cate, being familiar with his tastes, walked to the counter to order them all coffees. She was well aware their little encounter had cost them their breakfasts, so she made sure to order something to eat as well. She knew that Alex ate like a horse due to his body processing the energy he generated. It was one of the things that had alerted her to the fact that he was actually much sicker than he appeared to be. Sarah came up to help her carry her booty. They'd only had a couple croissants, so she'd gotten some banana bread and some biscotti's as well. It wasn't much of a breakfast, but hopefully it would carry them until they could find something more substantial. The food court was nearby, but Cate knew that Alex had picked the most visible and accessible place in the shopping center, and it would be hard getting him to move. He knew he drew people to him, so he liked to remain in one place so they would have time to find him. When they got back and handed out the drinks and snacks, Cate turned to Alex. "You know, I think that's the first girl that's ever said no to you." "What do you mean? There have been lots who have. Why, it took me forever before..." Alex started to argue. "Yes, we're all familiar with how much of a loner you were before. But since New Orleans you've had women seeking you out. Between the Seers, the Watchers, and all the girls at school, you've never been rejected. Now, not only has someone refused to sleep with you, but she doesn't even want to have anything to do with you. I don't want to make this personal or make a big deal out of the rejection, but I think it's significant because it may finally put the whole mind control nonsense to bed. "If you were controlling anyone, they wouldn't refuse you. What's more, it would impact people more or less equally. Instead you have people who want to thank you for what you've done for them, and the only way they can think of doing it is to make love to you. That isn't mind control, Alex. I think Kelly's actions, just like Sarah and Michael Grant's yesterday, prove that all these women are perfectly capable of making their own decisions." "You know, you make a good point. The girls at home certainly were never in a hurry to agree with me," Alex said, considering the idea while he sipped his steaming latte. "I think Cate makes sense," Gail said, as she joined their table to get some food. She'd been looking forward to breakfast when Alex had stormed out this morning. "The reason why everyone follows your directions isn't because they have to, but because you are the equivalent of a CEO. You are leading this movement of yours, and so your decision counts. You set everything in motion, it's your ideas that everyone follows. You give everything you can to others, but you also listen to each of them. They've got every reason to listen to you and they willingly follow your lead. You've got to stop being so paranoid about this." "Yeah, Dad mentioned that mind control nonsense because he was teasing you," Cate explained, continuing this train of thought. "I don't think he ever expected you to take it so seriously. I suspect he didn't object to your subsequent ruminations simply because he was so surprised when you took them seriously. The fact that so many guys are jealous of you proves you have no mind control abilities, and the fact that everyone has such strong individual opinions shows that you hardly control everyone's thinking." "I agree," Amy said, offering her opinion, even though she had never discussed the theory before. "Tina and I never felt compelled to make love with you, but with everything you've achieved, you are just one damn sexy hunk. What more could a girl want? You have power streaming from you, you have to fight off the women, you are leading a movement, you're decisive, attentive, and a good listener. Face it, girls like you just 'cause you're sexy." As everyone around the table began agreeing, Alex found himself sinking lower behind the table. What started out as an object lesson was descending into a cheering session, and that was the last thing he needed, especially since he didn't want to attract attention or to intimidate anyone who may seek him out. However Cate recognized his distress and came to his rescue. She told everyone firmly that they'd made their point and that they should let it drop. She then started issuing marching orders, even though the others knew what to do. The fact they snapped to attention when told what to do, illustrated to Alex just how much everyone liked having a purpose and a specific role in the organization. It wasn't long before the first couple of Watchers showed up. Cate, Tina and Amy were familiar with how to handle things, and Emma and Sarah watched so they'd know what to do in the future. Tina and Amy would circle around and approach them from behind, so that they wouldn't scare or intimidate them. After talking to them for a few minutes, they'd accompany them to the table where Alex and Cate would take over the discussion. Gail, as always, was standing off to the side so she could keep a watchful eye over the proceedings. They managed to process a few Watchers, but not as many as they were hoping to encounter. After the initial discussion with each one they tended to gather around, anxious to talk to either Alex or one of the girls. Alex had to ride herd on everyone, telling them they couldn't cluster around his table because he had to appear open and approachable. Thus the new Watchers found side tables to sit and discuss their new lives, or they took advantage of the fact that the other girls weren't busy and took them aside to gossip about Alex. They hadn't wanted to spend all day there, wanting to move around so they could reach more people. So they moved to the food court to discuss where they'd go next. They discussed several potential locations, including several shopping centers. Cate felt bad for her brother, here he was traveling the country, and about all he'd ever see was a string of hotels, coffee shops and shopping centers, because he didn't want anyone to miss him. Running from one attraction to another would leave many people trailing after him, not quite able to keep up. Thus he kept restricting his movements. For a potential final trip, this wasn't quite the kind of grand vacation anyone would expect a dying man to undertake. They finally settled on the hospital complex, an area housing several hospitals near Southwest Tennessee Community College and Owen College, so they felt secure there'd be a nice potential collection of people. It also bordered routes 240 and 69. It may not be a comfortable place to hang around, but it was a likely place to find people. While they were discussing moving, Cate reached up and grabbed Alex's arm. Alex looked up and she pointed behind them. Twisting around, Alex saw a woman in a red dress and a silk scarf around her head, down on the floor with her head pressed against the floor, shuffling towards them. Sighing heavily, Alex told Emma to get the woman so she didn't have to humiliate herself. They watched as Emma approached the woman, but she refused, while Emma glanced back in frustration. Glancing around, Alex noted the others in the food court watching agape at the scene unfolding before them. Wanting to avoid drawing more attention to themselves, Alex got up and walked to the woman himself. The woman refused to look up as Alex approached, which Alex considered a good thing if she was a Seer. When Alex neared her, he could hear her mumbling, and she was slowly moving towards him with her forehead against the cold tile floor, her hands on either side of her head as she shuffled forward, almost like a ritualistic motion. Alex stopped near her and listened to her soft chanting, curious even though he was well aware they were being watched intently. "I'm unworthy," she softly repeated. "I'm not worthy of your grace." Alex slowly knelt and grasped the woman's arm, lifting her up. However she kept her head bowed. Speaking louder, she told him "I beg your forgiveness for my faults, and ask you grace me with your presence and advice." "Excuse me, miss, but I'm not a holy figure," Alex told her. "I'm just a young man who has something important to give you, and who needs to explain several things about your life. Now, I'm going to ask you to look up at me, but you're going to get a shock, so just prepare yourself." With that Alex placed his finger under her chin and lifted her face up until their eyes met. Her eyes widened and she stiffened somewhat, but that was the extent of her reaction as her eyes glazed. While she recovered Alex considered her. Despite her strange behavior, she was very well dressed with a darker complexion. She was dressed nicely with thick black glasses and a black scarf covering her head, which contrasted with the red dress she wore. It was apparent she was both beautiful and that she took great care to look her best. Alex had no idea why she felt she was so unworthy. Alex and Tina helped the woman to the nearby table, well aware they were still being carefully watched, though she was a bit unstable as she got used to her changed surroundings. They got her seated and Alex sat across from her. "My name is Alex. I'm not a religious figure of any kind, so don't start with any angel this or reincarnated that. I'm simply a guy that has the ability to trigger some unique talents in others. A few others claim they think God works through me, although that implies that God himself isn't much interested in the religious establishment, since he chose an atheist to do his bidding. I'm doubtful myself, for obvious reasons, but it seems to make the girls feel better about what's going to happen to me if they think someone is guiding my actions." Alex knew he was stalling, but he didn't think she was ready to speak quite yet, and he figured she must be religious, so talking about God acting through him, while not exactly a lie, would at least give her some comfort. "My name is Sanaa Shenouda," she told him, finally indirectly glancing at him, "although here in the states I go by the name of Shanna. You must be sent from God, because you look just like an angel of legend, and I could feel your might from a long ways away." "Well, Shanna, what you felt was an energy that surrounds all living things. For reasons we don't fully understand I seem to have more of it than most do. The reasons are complex, but they are related to what I did to you. I triggered your new vision, and I also enabled you to communicate telepathically to me. I'm going to try it now, so don't panic and think God is speaking to you, OK?" She meekly nodded her head while trying to look at him with great difficulty. 'Shanna, I know you can hear me, and if you try, you can communicate with me without speaking a word.' 'I can?' she asked. 'Yes, absolutely. Now, I'm going to introduce some more people. Say hello to Patricia, she's currently in New Orleans.' Alex then remained quiet as he let the women talk, hoping Patricia could calm the woman down. When Patricia slowed, Alex got Anh to speak to her as well. "Now, Shanna, I think it's time you talked to me a little bit since I need to know who you are. Where are you from, what do you do, and why do you think you are so unworthy?" "I'm sorry, I'm from a Coptic family that emigrated from Egypt. I fell away from my beliefs, not because I don't believe them, but simply because I didn't have time for them. When I saw you, I was sure you had descended to remind me of my position and my obligations," she explained. "I don't think Angels typically descend to discuss family duties. That's not why I'm here," Alex told her with a smile. "Well why did you?" she asked. "I didn't know why you chose me." "Ah, but that's just it. I didn't choose you. You felt drawn to the energy that I have in me, but I have no control over that energy. I didn't choose it or my abilities. That's why I say this has nothing to do with religion. Now I have no idea if anyone or anything is guiding me, but I feel pretty certain that we are talking about some new phenomena that, while unexpected, can be explained by science. In fact, we're trying to document as much about it as we can." Shanna simply nodded her head meekly. Alex once again reached over and lifted her chin, looking into her eyes, even though he knew she couldn't meet his gaze. "Shanna, you look like an intelligent, capable woman. Why are you so afraid of yourself? You need to trust your instincts. The reason you felt attracted to me is that you already have the ability to sense people's moods and personalities. You can feel their intentions and what they plan. Now you also have the ability to see those things as well. I'll have some people discuss what these new visions mean, but it's just an extension of the abilities you already possess. It's necessary that you trust those instincts, since they are what led you to me." She once again hesitantly nodded, then she seemed to come to a decision and she lifted her face to look at Alex, even though she couldn't look into his eyes. "I'm sorry. I've never trusted my intuition before, because it always caused me to question respected, trusted people. My family has deep religious roots, and there are many tales of what many petitioners did to renounce their sins over the years. That's what I was trying to do when you saw me," she explained. "If you didn't trust them, then it's because they weren't trustworthy," Alex said, ignoring her history lesson and focusing on what he thought she needed to know at the moment. "Your intuition is more reliable than what anyone else says. If there is anything from God, it is the ability he gave you to evaluate individuals. People are not always what they claim to be. You have the ability to detect lies, motivations and ill intent. I need you to accept these things with more certainty so that you can help others who can't detect such things. Do you understand?" "Yes, Alex, I understand," she replied, and he could see her backbone grow three sizes, paraphrasing Dr. Seuss. Once again Alex was reminded that his women each needed their own tasks. It gave them a purpose and allowed them to feel they were a part of his own mission, even if he wasn't sure he had a mission aside from activating as many women as he could. Already Emma, Sarah, Tina and Amy were excitedly working hard, because they too had their own assigned tasks that allowed them to pitch in. It was the fact they were doing it all for him that he didn't like. He thought there was more than a grain of truth to what Henry Ott had accused him of. "So, I really don't know much about the Coptics," Alex said, trying to get Shanna to participate a bit more. However she surprised him, speaking clearly and eagerly now. "The Coptics are a Christian group in the predominantly Muslim country of Egypt, so we've become fairly adept at trying to avoid trouble, while still preserving our religious traditions. Although they were formed early, they were one of the first Christian groups outside of the Catholic church, many argue it is made up of the remnants of the ancient Egyptians, though personally I think it's mainly because outsiders favored them when they controlled the area, and thus they got access to more of the ancient possessions and properties than anyone else." Alex sat back, a bit surprised by the turnaround in her. "Why, Shanna, you are even more beautiful when you speak up for yourself. I didn't think you could possibly become any more beautiful than you already were." She blushed profusely at his remark, but it was clear she was pleased by the comment, and she sat up even more as a result. They proceeded to tell her what she needed to know, with Tina and Amy helping out adding their own information to the mix, but what caught Shanna's attention near the end surprised Alex. "Wait, you mean you're traveling across the country, meeting and activating women, and they're all likely to travel to New Orleans, your headquarters in Carbondale, or both?" she asked. "Yeah, that's the general idea. There's a lot for them to learn, and we won't have time to tell them everything. What's more, we don't have the specific knowledge to teach them everything, plus we want them to get to know the others like them in the communities there," Alex explained. "So all these women, all over the country, are going to set out on their own, traveling cross country for an area they've never been to before, to visit people they don't know?" "Uh, I guess so. Are you getting to a point with these questions?" "Yeah, I've been working in my family's business for years, and I've saved up a fair amount and I've been meaning to start my own business, but so far I haven't found anything I thought would be a reasonable option. I think I may have just found one. How about this, how about I set up a small travel agency? I'll call it Messianic Travel. I'll arrange travel, hotels, introductions, instructions and I'll respond to any problems any of them have?" Alex just sat back, stunned that someone would jump from learning about their possessing inhuman abilities to offering to start a business dedicated to helping the people he was reaching out to. "I think that's a great idea," Cate said, jumping on the concept. "How soon do you think you could get something like that started?" "I'm not sure. I've been looking into starting a company for a while, so I know much of what it'll likely take to get setup, but I'll have to see what's involved. But this sounds like a readymade market. It shouldn't take much to start, just a small office, a phone, a computer and maybe a couple of employees." "I think I've got problems with the name," Alex told her, finally recovering. "Calling it 'Messianic Travel' leaves no ability to avoid suspicion. As much as I dislike it, even 'Divine Travels' has a bit more subtlety to it. At least that has a more legitimate sound to it. But how long could you keep a business like that running?" Alex countered. Shanna just looked at him. "Alex, each of the women you meet is going to want to visit both New Orleans and Carbondale. They'll probably want to spend a long time at both locations. You have no limit to the number of people you may eventually meet. As long as you keep moving I'll have a steady stream of business, and your new followers will have a much easier time adapting to their changing environment," Shanna answered with obvious enthusiasm. "I think what Alex is trying to say," Cate said, saying what Alex didn't want to, "without broaching the subject, is that we suspect he may not be around long. It seems the energy that gives him much of this ability is slowly killing him, so he doesn't know how long he has to find additional followers." "Oh, wow, that certainly changes things," Shanna responded, displaying a serious expression as she considered what that thought meant for several minutes, then started smiling again. "You know, as upsetting as it is, it really doesn't change anything. Anyone you find will want to travel to learn what they need to know. If you get sick, they'll all want to travel to visit you. If you die, there'll be a huge demand for a big memorial service. If you don't get sick, you'll need to travel to more than just the continental states. You'd need to try Europe, Japan, India, and many other countries and continents. Even with all of that, I'm sure once each girl makes the initial trip, they'll probably make a yearly pilgrimage just to renew friendships and learn everything everyone else has discovered. I can't see any downsides from a business perspective. Well, aside from your dying, of course." Alex couldn't help himself, despite the talk of his imminent demise he liked how decisive and enthusiastic Shanna had become. Despite the obvious name of her new business, and how it might reflect attention on him, he was impressed how she'd managed to find a task she could fill in his organization, and she'd adapted quickly as a result. It showed just how important it was to involve everyone as fully as he could. Idle minds make for idle hands, he reminded himself. Still, there were other considerations. As if reading his mind, Cate spoke up. "Could you operate such an organization from here in Memphis?" she asked. "Oh good lord, no," Shanna answered. "I'll definitely have to move to New Orleans to start it. That seems like a logical place, since it's just a short trip by Amtrak or car to Carbondale. But part of the reason I was looking for a business to start was so I'd have an excuse to get away from my parents' business. The idea that I have a payroll and business concerns can excuse all kinds of behavior in my family's minds. This works on so many levels. I'm helping Alex, I'm providing a needed service, I can make money and employ several people, I can immerse myself in this new community of Watchers and Seers of yours, and I can get away from my overprotective family as well." "Well how long would it take you to get started?" Alex asked. "We're leaving for New Orleans tomorrow. I have no idea how long we're supposed to stay, but I imagine at the very least you'll need to supply us with a phone number we can give anyone we meet." "Oh, don't worry about that. I can get a rush production on a bunch of business cards and I'll simply use my cell phone number. I figure anyone you give it to will be a 'preferred customer', so it shouldn't matter if they call my personal phone. Once you're on the road again I can concentrate on opening an office and getting it staffed and equipped. Besides manning a phone, I'll also have to find a few people to schedule and organize things. I guess if we're leaving tomorrow I'd better get home, pack a few things and make arrangements to be gone for some time. My parents won't like how soon I'm leaving, but once I tell them it's for business they'll be OK with it." "We, Kemo Sabe?" Alex asked teasingly. "Of course. I need to be in New Orleans to get started, and you'll need a bunch of business cards. I'll also need to speak to multiple people there. While we're there you can give me the numbers of everyone in Carbondale. Don't worry, though, I've got my own car, so I'll drive down separately, but I'll travel with you just so we can help each other out. You can show me around and introduce me and I'll help out any way that I can." Alex simply held his hands up in the air in defeat. "Hey, you've convinced me. The sooner I can get someone to help me, the happier I am. Hurry home and make whatever arrangements you need to. Cate, give her your phone number as well as Patricia's, Darice's and the one for the foundation as well. We'll probably leave fairly early in the morning, so either meet us for breakfast in the hotel, or arrange to leave town when we do telepathically, and we should be able to schedule our movements pretty efficiently." "Isn't that what Natalie is doing for you?" Cate asked nervously. "Actually, no, Natalie is scheduling my travels, and they're more involved than this," Alex replied. "Besides, she's also more tied into the activities at the foundation. She would be a good resource for Shanna, though. They might be able to come to an arrangement between them." So Shanna and Cate got together and traded numbers, leaving Alex feeling pretty good. He figured keeping people busy with tasks was a good thing, so he headed over to Emma and Sarah. "Hey, I'm slowly learning that although I draw people to me they can't always find me in time. It seems I've been missing a lot of followers I never knew were attracted to me before. I think it's a good idea to leave someone here to talk to anyone who comes looking for me here after I've left. If the two of you could, I'd appreciate it if you could stick around for an hour or two. Talk to anyone that looks lost around here, and then come meet us later. Just bring anyone you meet along with you, or tell them to stop by the hotel tonight and we'll deal with them then. If you could do that it would really mean a lot to me." "Sure, Alex," Emma replied. "We'd be happy to. It'll be exciting. It's almost being like spies, sneaking around looking for other spies. Besides, it'll give us a chance to tell whoever we meet everything we've learned about you." Alex groaned at the thought, since he hated the idea of dealing with people's presuppositions. But it would take care of anyone they might miss, and that would help a lot. So he thanked them as he, his sister, Gail and the other two girls all prepared to head off to the next location. ------- They traveled to the Regional Medical Center, hardly a typical tourist destination, but it was the most central location amongst five nearby hospitals, Owen College, Southwest Tennessee Community College and a couple of shopping centers and residential neighborhoods. While not a likely place to spend the day, it was certainly near a large number of people, especially since it bordered Route 240, which bisected the city. Before he entered the hospital itself, Alex divided the girls, telling them to spread out between the other neighboring hospitals. They were to keep a watch out for anyone glancing anxiously in Alex's direction, since they'd likely be potential followers feeling his energy from afar. If they didn't find anyone, they could come back and meet him in the hospital dining room, where he'd patiently wait. Gail, of course, would accompany him just because that was her chosen task, and she took it just as seriously as everyone around Alex took their assigned tasks. The girls quickly dispersed, Alex entered the building, while Gail trailed behind him, watching how everyone reacted to him while keeping unobtrusively in the shadows. It didn't take long before Alex's new cell phone began to trill. He'd gotten it as a birthday present just three weeks ago in anticipation of his traveling needs. Unfortunately, Cate had gotten a hold of it and programmed the ring tone to play "Angel" by Madonna. Not only that, but she'd programmed a different angel song for each phone number in his contact list. She had ones by Shaggy, Jimi Hendrix and Sarah McLachlan, including a bunch of hymns, Gregorian chants and even the original sound track to "Ben Hur" and the movie "Moses". He'd have changed them, but he could barely figure out most of the functions on the device as it was. However the song that was playing was the default tune, telling him it was probably one of the girls. "Hello?" "Hello, handsome," Amy answered. "I found two here at the Children's hospital, plus one little girl in a wheelchair she insisted her mother wheel her down in. How do you want to handle it?" Geez, nothing was ever simple, was it, Alex thought to himself. "Are the others free for the next 20 minutes, or are they working there?" "One's a visitor and one works in, what was it, oh, yeah, accounts receivables." "OK, tell the visitor to excuse herself and send her over. Tell the accounts receivables girl to come over once her shift is over. Tell her we'll be here for quite a while. I'll have to decide what to do about the girl in the wheelchair. I guess I'll have to come over there and see her. Get her phone number so I can call when I'm coming over. I'll also bring Gail with me, so maybe we can do something for her when we come visiting." "Yeah, like you could keep Gail from following you anywhere you go," Amy laughed before speaking off-line for a moment. "OK, boss man, one on the way, one coming over after 6:00, and the other will wait for you in her room, although her mother is very curious who you are and what you want with her daughter." "Again, get her phone number and tell her I'll explain everything when I come over. Tell her it's easier to explain it in person. Over the phone she won't believe a word of it. At least in person she can look in my eyes to see if I'm lying." "I think I'll leave all those details off," Amy said, laughing again. "I'll just tell her you'll stop by in a while. So, should I stick around or head back?" "Stick around for a little longer. Very often people are working and can't get away, or someone might be a patient and may not be mobile. If you stay there you may still encounter them. If no one shows up in the next hour come on back." "Will do, boss man. Sub-Angel out," she said, laughing, as she hung up. The phone rang again with a tune Alex recognized as Cate's number, so he answered it quickly. The ringtone was Celine Dion's "I'm Your Angel", which Cate thought was a clever reversal of their roles. "Yeah, Cate?" he answered. "Hey, Alex. I'm in a park across the street called 'Forrest Park', between the hospital and the campus of the local community college. It's also between the hospital and Owen College, so I figured it was a good place to waylay anyone showing an interest in you. So far I have one. There will probably be more, but Watchers move slowly since they are never sure what it is they are following, and I figure some have a distance to travel." "Sounds good, Cate, send her over. Good job. You may need to hang around there for a while, so enjoy the sun. I'm stuck soaking up the fluorescent glare. I figure you'll need to hang around for the next hour or two, so get comfortable." "I will, Alex, and don't worry about me, I'll be fine. If you need to, send anyone needing any information to meet me in the park." "Will do, Cate, talk to you later." He hung up after that. He figured he'd hear from Tina soon as well, but she went over to the Veterans Center, which was farther away, so he figured it would take a short while before he heard from her. Gail brought him a large soda, an apple and a sandwich. "You'll likely be here for a while. Eat up. You know how you burn through energy. Cate would kill me if you died on my watch," she told him. It wasn't long before the first person showed up. She popped in the door and looked around, looking like she'd run the entire way, so Alex assumed she must have been one from the Children's Hospital, since the park wasn't that far away. He waved her over, and Gail got up and moved a few tables away so she could watch over them. Alex started to speak to her; she was a Watcher, a mother who was taking her son for a checkup when she felt Alex's presence. She said she left her son behind with his father, saying she'd be back when she left the room, only to meet Amy in the lobby. Alex just shook his head at the strange circumstances everyone always found themselves in whenever he showed up, just as his phone rang again. "Excuse me," he told his guest, "I'll keep this short." "Hello?" he answered the phone. "Hey, Alex," Tina replied. "I've been wandering around trying to figure out where everything is, but I've found the wife of a Vietnam Vet and a Pharmacist's assistant that look like prime candidates." "Good, if they can get away, tell them to come to the dining room over here. If not, tell them I'll be here for a while. If they can't get over here then just take their phone numbers for later. Anything more I'll have to deal with later. I'm interviewing someone at the moment." "Yeah, I like the way you interview," Tina giggled. "I'll talk to you later." So Alex got back to speaking with his guest. It seems they really needed to send people out to herd the Watchers in, since they felt so self conscious approaching on their own. That told him a lot about how to approach this in the future. But for now they'd stumbled into a workable system. It also explained why waiting in a coffee shop hadn't produced as many followers; it seems many likely Watchers observed anxiously from outside the building, too nervous to approach. Hopefully they'd make up for that here. So Alex had a steady stream of Watchers coming to him in the dining room. So many, in fact, that they stationed one by the door, while they moved away from the center of the dining room to avoid obstructing traffic or drawing undue attention. Since Cate was unable to get away, trying to catch wayward students, Alex directed Amy to take her place when she returned so Cate could help with the explanations. Things finally started slowing down, the girls had returned, Emma and Sarah called to say they'd arrive soon, and everyone was starting to relax when a doctor suddenly appeared in the door of the hospital cafeteria, still wearing her scrubs with scattered bloodstains, showing she must have come directly from a procedure without changing. Alex instantly knew what was going to happen so he turned away. "Cate, grab that doctor and bring her over here. I don't want to make eye contact until we're out from under everyone's eyes. I'm heading over to the table in the corner. I've told Gail to position herself to cut off any hospital personnel that come looking for the doctor." People started moving as Alex stood up and walked away from the very person looking for him. Sitting down at a table in the corner, Alex stared at the wall waiting for everyone to arrive. Amy stood behind him, trying to shield him from the view of passersby. It took a few minutes, but he soon heard Cate clear her throat. "Alex, this is Dr. Liv Bisla, she's here to..." "I know what she's here for. Did you tell her what to expect?" "Yes, I told her to steady herself, but I didn't give her any particulars." "Fair enough," Alex replied and turned towards them, making eye contact with the doctor. She was tall and thin, with long dark hair and a dark complexion similar to Shanna's. As soon as their eyes connected she stiffened and her knees partially collapsed under her, but she managed to stabilize herself against a nearby table. A couple of people said something to her, apparently asking if she needed help, but she ignored them as she continued to watch Alex even as she took in her new surroundings. Cate gently steered her to sit down across from Alex and sat down beside her. Alex knew it always took people time to adapt to the changes he triggered in them, but he didn't think it would impact their other brain functions. "What you're undergoing are spontaneous adaptations to your brain that I triggered. I've got no conscious control over it, so don't ask for specifics, but we have a fair understanding of what's involved. What you'll be seeing in a minute is the glow from the energy that surrounds all living things. For reasons we won't get into yet, I'm inundated with a tremendous amount of it. Luckily I've been able to utilize it for other uses as well, but we'll discuss that later." She nodded as her eyes slowly cleared, then she glanced around. "Wow!" she marveled, blinking at what she was seeing. "Talk about rapid adaptive behaviors. It's amazing that much brain functioning can be added that rapidly. You'll have to tell me what you've learned about it." "You have no problems believing what he's telling you?" Cate asked. "I certainly don't understand it," Dr. Bisla told her, "but I'm assuming what he's saying it true because I'm seeing things that aren't otherwise possible, and I'm pretty sure I'm not hallucinating." Alex noted that she spoke with an Indian accent, with that little higher pitched lilt to the voice. He assumed she was one of the many foreign doctors who did their residencies in US hospitals, who then go on to live in the US. "There are a lot of unbelievable things about what you've just undergone," Alex told her. 'For instance, I'm now communicating to you telepathically. The telepathy is part of a portal I created in your brain that links our brains together. It's unaffected by distance, obstructions or interference. It's quite amazing actually. Your vision is tied to another portal created where your optic nerve enters your brain. It provides you with the same energy I give off, which promotes both health and growth. That energy allowed you to rapidly grow new brain tissue that allows your brain to process the visions, but that growth occurred outside of the brain. Normally I don't go into so much detail with someone just undergoing all of this, but I figure you'd appreciate it.' 'You're right, this is fascinating. What you are describing represents a giant leap in our understanding of the brain, physics, and the interaction between the two. Am I doing this telepathy thing correctly? Can you understand me?' "Yes, you're doing it fine, although we should speak out loud so my sister doesn't feel ignored," Alex told her, speaking aloud again. "She serves as my science advisor, and she's helped me to understand most of this. So if you want to discuss the details, she's the one to discuss it with." "You can count on me asking. Can I ask who you are?" the doctor asked. "I'm assuming your aren't a religious figure, since you're discussing underlying scientific principles with me. How did you..." she started to ask. "It's not unknown for religious people to accept modern science. After all, most do. It's just the exceptions to the rule that you're thinking of, but I didn't select you, if that's your question. If anything, you chose me. You experience this because you've got a specific genetic anomaly that allows you to feel emotions in others. For some reason, I've got an ability to make changes to your brain due to a strange interdependent relationship between our specific abilities. When I activated you, I allowed your natural abilities that you may not have even been aware of, to reach a new level. Those that don't have the necessary genes, I don't have the same effect on. It's all automatic, and I have no real control over it. But because you can feel this energy, and since I have so much of it, you sought me out. Once we interacted the rest resulted without any conscious effort on my part." "Wow, again. Let's slow down a bit. This is a lot to take in all at once. I think I'll need time to process this for a few minutes," she replied. "That's fine," Alex replied. "Let's focus on the mundane. I'm Alex. This is my sister Cate, the science expert in the family. I'll introduce you to everyone else in a minute, but I get the impression you're supposed to be somewhere else at the moment." "Oh, shit, I almost forgot. I felt you enter the hospital. I could literally feel where you were in the hospital despite all the intervening walls. I could feel you walking from one place to another. I was doing surgery at the time, lung surgery on someone who'd had a blood clot rupture, so I wasn't able to quit until I finished. But once I completed the surgery I told the other doctors to finish it up for me and I ran down here. "You're right. I need to be getting back because they'll be wondering where I am. How long does the normal indoctrination take? I take it you've done this several times before." "Yeah, he's done a few of these," Cate laughed. "You know, it's a lot more fun discussing this with someone who can understand all the intricate details." "Yeah, yeah," Alex interrupted his sister. "As she said, she's in a hurry. Your visions reveal many things. Each of the colors represents something. The central colors show a person's core personality traits like greed, honesty, trustworthiness. The colors around the edges of a person show the changeable natures of a person, namely their emotions. Things like anger, lust, desire and confusion. The part you'll find interesting is the intensity of the light. That reflects the health of the tissue. Light equals health. If there's damage to any internal organs or tissue, it'll show as a dark spot. You'll find this very helpful in your profession. "I'm going to go ahead and give you a specific mission because you are uniquely qualified to accomplish it, and I think you'll be enthusiastic to do it. I've been working with Doctor Ryan Moore at the Carbondale Memorial Hospital in Illinois. I want you to take a leave of absence. I assume you can think of a decent reason to justify getting away for a while. I want you to meet with someone by the name of Allison Livermore who works there. She's beginning an education in medicine and psychiatry, so she's the one who's done the most to identify the various things you see in these auras, as we call them for obvious reasons. You'll work with her for two weeks at the hospital. Ryan will give you free access. I'm also sure he'll offer you a job." "You want me to take a job at the hospital?" she asked him. "Oh, no, definitely not. I already have quite a few people living there at the moment. I don't believe in keeping all my eggs in one basket. If what we can do ever becomes public knowledge, we'll be in trouble. If we can spread our knowledge and resources across the country, then everyone benefits. I want you to return here and put the knowledge to use. Chances are you'll become an excellent diagnostician, since you'll be able to diagnose problems simply by looking at someone before any tests come back. You won't be able to heal anyone like I can, but your surgery will be much more precise because you'll be able to see precisely what you need to cut. I have no doubt you'll quickly become well known nationally in medical circles." "You want me to use your knowledge and the benefits you gave me to benefit myself?" she asked, confused by his motivations. "I want to foster a new people. Not that I think they're not human, but I feel they are going to require protection, resources and numbers in order to survive. In order to do that they need a community, they need education, and they need to be successful. In return, you'll further our knowledge about how to apply our knowledge medically. I may or may not get a chance to return. If I do, I'll visit and do some amazing healing. Unfortunately I don't share your abilities. I can apply the energy in me to help heal people, but I can't see it like you can, so I have no idea of what I'm doing. But I can do some amazing things. However we've been doing it in a very haphazard method. Some things I try work well, other things have no effect at all. We need to understand more about what this energy can do, and how to apply it. "Now it's time you got back. When you get to your office, call me telepathically and I'll give you my room number at the hotel we're staying at. I'd like you to come by tonight and talk so that we can explain a little more about your new life and your abilities. But I think you better go before they start searching the hospital for you." She sat there blinking, trying once again to process everything he'd told her, but she accepted it. She stood up, reached out and shook his hand. "Thanks for this, Alex. I'll see if I can do as you ask. It's the very least I can do for what you've done for me, and I look forward to meeting you tonight. How long are you going to be here in the hospital?" "We've been here for a while. There's a young girl in the Children's hospital next door that I need to see. I'll see if I can help her with whatever problem she has. Again, there's only a 50/50 chance I can do anything, but I'll try. After that we'll probably head back to the hotel for dinner. After spending the last several hours here I'm not anxious to eat dinner here." "Ah, then I assume I'll meet you later at your hotel. I get off at 7. I'll see you then. It was also nice meeting you, Cate. Say hello to everyone else I didn't meet for me, will you," and she headed off, just as Alex observed someone in a hospital uniform hurrying toward them. Liv met them partway and they turned and headed back into the hospital. "Wow, that was both fast and fascinating," Cate said. "She picked everything you said right off the bat." "She's a surgeon. You've got be a quick study to succeed at that. I think she'll be a wonderful addition to my mission." "You know, Alex, if you can't decide what your mission is, you've got to stop calling it that," Cate told him, smiling and snuggling up to his side. They both turned and regarded the other girls who congregated around them. Emma and Sarah had apparently arrived while Alex was speaking to Liv, but no one had wanted to disturb him. "I think we're done here for now," Alex told them. "We've got a little girl to visit, and then we can head for some dinner. It's been a busy day so far." ------- They were heading across the parking lot on their way to the Children's hospital. Cate had gone for the car, while Tina and Sarah had gone for their cars as well. Gail was accompanying Alex, as usual, while he was busy with his new phone. "Amy, room number, please?" Alex called out. "314," she answered simply, and Alex began dialing the number. "What's the girl and her mother's names?" "Mary and Rachel Waters," she replied. "Wait up!" they heard someone calling from behind them, followed by the sound of running feet. Turning, they saw a young woman in hospital smocks running toward them, her long hair billowing out behind her. Alex stopped to wait for her, so the others did too. While they were waiting for the newcomer to catch up, Alex's call was answered. "Hello?" "Hello, is this Mary Waters?" "It is. Is this the man who was supposed to call from earlier?" "It is. Sorry Amy didn't tell you my name, but I guess she thought it might be safer if she didn't announce it. My name is Alex." "Oh, good. She didn't mention your name, but she did mention hers. So now I know that it's really you. I really have no idea what this is about, but Rachel insisted that she just had to see you. In fact, she refused to undergo treatment unless I promised that I'd let you in as soon as you called." "Then I'm glad she's so stubborn and persistent. I'm on my way to see her and see if I can be of any assistance." "I'm not sure what you can do. We're pretty used to this. We do it every two weeks like clockwork, so there really aren't any surprises. But she'll be glad to see you. She gets pretty bored just sitting around while they do this, so hopefully you can cheer her up." "Fine, tell her I'll be there in about ten minutes." Alex hung up about the time the girl from the hospital came running up to them. "Whew, I'm glad I caught you before you got away. I'm Erin. I'm a second year intern, and as an intern we follow orders, no matter how strange they are. Dr. Bisla told me I was to accompany you to the Children's Hospital and observe everything you do. Seems she wants to be kept apprised." "That's fine, Erin. My name is Alex. This is Amy, this is Emma, and the silent one over there is Gail. Cate, Tina and Sarah will join us over there. We thought we'd get some exercise by walking." "That's fine. A little exercise never hurt anyone," she replied. "So, just Alex? Doctors don't usually introduce themselves by their first names." "Oh, I'm not a doctor," Alex informed her. "Then what ... Dr. Bisla told me I was to observe your treatment of a young patient," Erin tried to ask, but Alex had already begun walking, leaving a confused intern behind. As soon as Alex started walking the others did as well, moving as one. So after a moment Erin had to rush after them again. "But if you're not a doctor, how can you treat anyone?" she asked. "Oh, I'm not treating. I'm simply visiting a dear friend that I've never met before. However Liv is correct. She'll want to know what happens, so you should watch and tell her exactly what happens." Erin looked up at Alex, trying to figure what he wasn't saying, but he appeared inscrutable, so she gave up and simply followed along. "You're all pretty young. Well, except for Gail I guess. Do you have any medical training?" Erin asked, trying to kick start the conversation. "Nope, not a lick. So we'll be relying on you to tell us what's going on," Alex replied, confusing her all the more. However, by then she figured out he wasn't going to give her any more information so she knew enough not to ask any more questions. You learn to do that as an intern, since doctors rarely want to answer any but the most direct questions. They preferred to simply tell you what you were supposed to learn. They walked from the one hospital complex to the other, a short hike. When they neared the entrance of the Children's hospital they were joined by three other women, who Erin assumed were the aforementioned Cate, Tina and Sarah. Each silently fell into formation and they all walked into the hospital like they owned the place. Alex stopped, looking for an elevator, and everyone stopped and waited for him. "Where are we going?" Erin asked, no longer able to contain her curiosity. "Room 314," he answered without specifying anything else like what ward or which wing it was in. "Oh, the elevators are over here. We'll start from there and work our way back," she said, leading the way. Alex and the others simply followed her. 'Shanna, this is Alex? Can you talk?' 'Oh, sure, Alex. What's up? Man, it's weird having someone suddenly speaking in your head when you're all alone in a locked apartment.' 'I can imagine it is, if not a little creepy. I just thought I'd mention that we're going to be going back to the hotel for dinner. I don't know if you have the time, but we'd love to have you join us for dinner. I'd also like to invite you to spend at least part of the night with me. I know it's a bit abrupt, but one of the things I didn't mention is... ' 'It doesn't matter. The answer is yes to both.' 'Really? Just like that? What happened to packing?' he asked. 'It's nearly done, but it doesn't matter. When one's King asks for you, you come running with bells on. Even when you have no bells. If you want me there, I'll be there.' 'Really?' he asked again. 'Isn't that a little presumptuous? I was just asking... ' 'Alex, you are hardly just an average Joe from off the street. If you want something, all you have to do is ask. It should take me about an hour and a half to get there. Is that OK?' 'That's fine. We still have some things to take care of, and we'll probably want to freshen up as well. We'll meet you there.' By now they'd reached the third floor. They started marching down the hallway, checking room numbers along the way, but it wasn't clear which way they should go. Luckily Erin stopped someone and asked directions. She led them off again, and soon they passed a sign announcing they were entering the hematology clinic. There were a few kids in wheelchairs scattered around and they had to step around a couple, but they kept going. Finally Erin turned right and they entered a small room that held a couple of machines, and several people sitting or lying beside them. Alex observed a young girl connected to a large machine from which they could hear a pumping sound, with a young woman that Alex assumed was her mother. He recognized the machine as a kidney dialysis unit. He hadn't asked what Rachel suffered from, figuring it was better to find out on the fly, afraid he may have doubts if he knew beforehand. "Rachel?" Alex asked. The girl turned around, but didn't respond. Instead another girl, not attached to a machine called out. "You came!" she called as she got up and ran over to him. Alex looked at the girl attached to the machine and back to who he assumed was actually Rachel. However he quickly adjusted. "Of course I did," he replied, treating her as if she was a long lost friend, giving her a quick hug. "How could I leave someone as lovely as you sitting here all by herself?" She'd seen him looking at the girl currently undergoing dialysis. "It's not my turn yet. I had the option to go sooner, but figured I'd be too weak if I did. The machines make you really tired. If you came in while I was being treated, I'd be too weak to even stand, so I chose to wait until I saw you first. Rachel was cute, with long curly hair that framed her face, but her skin and her eyes had a yellow tinge to them, looking a bit jaundiced, even though Alex had never seen anyone with Jaundice before. Alex also noted that she looked a bit bloated as well, but he figured that was part of the reason she was here. The place seemed quite dreary, despite the bright paint and pictures on the wall. The people seemed fairly morose, and there wasn't much besides the medical equipment and supplies in the room. Even Rachel seemed tired, despite her evident enthusiasm at seeing Alex. "I take it you're Alex?" another woman asked, approaching him with her hand out. Alex assumed she must be Mary, Rachel's mother. "Yep, that's me," Alex replied, standing and shaking her hand. "You have a beautiful daughter, but I can see where she gets it from." "Flattery will get you everywhere," she responded with a laugh. "I really have no idea why she was so anxious to meet you, but..." "We'll get to that in a minute. Right now there's something I need to do." He turned to Erin. "Did Liv ask you to do something?" he asked. Erin jumped a little, then blushed and hurried out of the room. "Where's she off to?" Cate asked. "She's asking the nurse if she can see Rachel's records. I think you'll need to go along to authorize her access, Mrs. Waters. Don't worry, though. She's an intern we brought from the Regional Medical Center to give us an idea of what Rachel is suffering from." "Oh, oh of course," Mary replied, getting up and following Erin without even asking why she should give Alex such sensitive information. "Do you need to know..." Gail started to ask. "Let's wait until Erin gets back. Part of this is for the effect," Alex explained to her. Gail simply nodded and said no more. The two women returned a minute later, trailing a nurse with a clipboard. "I'm just here to check on my little patient," the nurse informed everyone. Mary sat down by her daughter again, and Erin returned to Alex's side. "Now," Alex told Gail. "The kidneys don't look very good, but they're still working. I'm guessing at about 30% for the left one and maybe 20% for the right one. She's got a dull look throughout her body, which I assume is the result of the impure blood. The blood being processed by the machine over there doesn't look much better. I'd say it's only cleaning a certain amount of the impurities." "The dialysis filters damage the blood cells as they go through the osmosis tubes," Mary explained, having been through this process for quite a while. Erin looked up at Gail in surprise, and seemed about ready to say something but caught herself and simply watched them both instead. "Any idea what the source of the problem with her kidneys is?" "Nope," Gail answered simply. "I think we'll need a little help here, Erin. I can help, but I need to know what caused the problems with her kidneys if I'm not going to make things worse." "But I thought," Erin started to ask before once again catching herself. "Oh, of course," she corrected herself. "It was a kidney infection." "That's not good. I can definitely help her, but if she has an infection, then I'll probably just strengthen the infection as well, which could cause a lot of complications. We haven't actually..." "No, no," Erin hurried to correct them, "the damage was caused by an undiagnosed kidney infection, but they've cleared that up. However the kidneys were already damaged, and now they are just trying to maintain her kidneys until she gets bad enough to warrant a kidney transplant." Mary was watching them through this whole conversation. "Oh, I think I can work with that, then." Alex stood there for a moment, just watching Rachel, who was also watching him intently. The nurse had also quit fiddling and was watching them quietly as well. Finally Alex stepped forward. "I could strengthen the remaining kidney tissue, but I think I want to try something new," he told Gail as he walked up to Rachel, while everyone in the room watched them carefully. "What I'm going to try is something we haven't tried before, so I want to be very precise in this. I want to apply about the same amount of energy each of you girls have coming into your brains, for a certain amount of time, though I don't know quite how long, so you'll have to guide me to the precise location, depth, and intensity. OK?" Alex was acting out of character, going out of his way to reveal what he was capable of. He was aware of what he was doing, but he was effectively showing off for Mary and, indirectly, Liv as well. He was also mindful that if he impressed the medical personnel here, they may cut him some slack. Seeing him perform a miracle in front of them, they'd be more likely to give credence to what was likely to happen afterwards. They'd be likely to resist it, but doctors tended to respond to results. Especially in frustrating cases that they had little success with. "Could you stand up for a minute, Rachel?" he asked. "Sure," she answered, climbing rapidly to her feet. "She's going to need to receive treatment in a little while," the nurse informed him. "I don't think..." "That's OK," he answered her. "She won't be any worse, and hopefully she'll be much healthier when she undergoes her treatment." "I'm not sure you should be doing whatever you're planning on doing," the nurse warned, though she could hardly protest too vehemently since she had no idea what he was planning. Ignoring her, Alex walked around behind Rachel and knelt down behind her, Gail following along as he did so. "I just want to do one at a time. I want this carefully controlled, so I think doing both at once would be too problematic," he informed her. Gail positioned his hands as Cate, Erin and the nurse each stepped behind him to watch what he was doing. They didn't say anything, and Alex just held his hand against Rachel's back for several long moments. "It's working, it's getting stronger," Gail announced. "Let it keep working," Alex told her. "I'm going for more than just strengthening this time." Gail continued to watch him carefully, neither one saying a word. "You'd better see if you can find a vending machine," Cate told Sarah. "Fruit, cookies or a coke would be best, but a candy bar will do if you can't find anything else. He'll need it when he's done." Sarah took off like a shot, and after a second Emma followed her out, figuring she might need help. Alex and Gail remained like they were for several more long moments, until Gail shifted again. "You're doing it. There's new growth. Damn, don't that beat all," she announced. "Shh, this takes concentration and I want to ensure I keep the flow constant. We'll talk later," he replied. Rachel looked back over her shoulder. "Whatever you're doing, it feels amazing. I'm feeling a lot better already." "I'm not sure you should be..." the nurse started to caution them. "If you need to contact the doctor then do it," Erin informed the nurse. "But if you do, then also send an emergency notice to Dr. Bisla at Regional, as she's been asked to be kept informed, especially if there's any attempt to interfere." The nurse hesitated, seemingly undecided about which course of action to take, so she ended up remaining passive, watching whatever was happening unfold. "I think that's about all you want to do now, Alex," Gail informed him. "Any more may be more than she can handle." With that Alex dropped both his hand and also his head, taking a deep breath. "Hold on, Alex," Cate cautioned him. "Don't try anything else until we get something into you." "Do you have anything handy?" he asked. "Well, no, but..." Cate hesitantly replied. "Then I'll continue until it arrives. Just make sure there's enough," he cautioned. Cate hesitated a second, then headed out the door as well. After she left, Alex tiredly lifted his hand to Rachel's left side and started whatever he did once again, although it didn't appear as if he was doing anything to anyone watching him. "Uh, excuse me, but just what is he doing?" the mother of the young girl currently receiving dialysis asked, obviously more than just mildly curious. However everyone ignored her, since Alex didn't want to be disturbed. The others in the small semi-private room were looking on, also quite curious about what was happening. For Alex, this whole episode was an experiment on his part. He hadn't known exactly what he could achieve. He'd intended to merely strengthen Rachel's kidneys, but he'd gotten the idea to go further once he'd started. He hadn't really considered what effect it would have on the other patients. However, now it was taking all his strength to focus on finishing, and he couldn't take his attention away to consider the others in the room. "Alex, you're working up a sweat and your sister seems pretty worried about you," Tina warned him. "Are you sure this is smart?" "It's necessary," he replied, sounding a little worn out, his voice a bit unsteady. Alex was aware he was taking a huge chance here. What he was doing was fairly major, and he was doing it in front of a roomful of witnesses. However, he'd initially only meant to help Rachel out by giving her kidneys a boost, something that would only last a couple of weeks at the most. It was only after he started that he got the grand idea of trying something new, of actually trying to imitate the energy flow that allowed his girls to grow new brain tissue. He had no idea what this would accomplish, and his curiosity won out over his sense of self preservation. But he was also mindful that for as much trouble as he was inviting on himself, he'd likely be protected by the attitude of the hospital's doctors. Doctors are infamous for thinking they are in charge of everything around them. If someone tells them about something they didn't personally engineer, they'd typically dismiss it of being of no importance. So he assumed they'd react to news of what he was doing with the same response. They'd say, "Oh, that's fascinating," while actually thinking it was anything but. Their own egos would shelter him from any undesired scrutiny. True, the nurse and the other patients would be upset, but he thought they'd be unlikely to cause too much trouble. Chances are he'd be finished before anyone really realized what was occurring. What's more, if the doctors didn't pay attention to their claims, no one else was likely to, and people had spontaneous recoveries all the time. All he had to do was make it out and he'd be in the clear. No one said anything for a couple of minutes. Cate and the other girls came back with their hands full, but they stopped a ways back and didn't come any closer, Cate looking worriedly at her brother. Finally Gail announced, "That should be it, Alex. That's close to what you did to the other one. This one isn't responding quite as well." Alex dropped his hand and seemed to sink into himself a little. Cate hurried to her brother's side and lifted a can of coke to his lips, then shoved an opened Snickers bar in his hand. He drank a little then began hungrily chewing the candy. "Is that it?" Rachel asked, again looking over her shoulder. "I feel terrific. I haven't felt this good in a long time." The nurse approached Rachel and started checking her vitals. The mother of the other girl started moving about, looking a bit excited. "She's fine," Alex tiredly told her. "In fact, she's better than fine. You'll have to watch her, I can't be sure, but I'm willing to bet you can cancel her treatment. In fact, you can probably stop the dialysis indefinitely, though she should get checked frequently just to be sure it lasts." "Wait a minute," the dialysis patient's mother asked, "you mean you just cured her by waving your hands of what I've been treating my daughter for years, spending a fortune for?" She seemed to be getting aggravated. That was about all the nurse could take. "Young man, I'm not about to trust my patients care to some random stranger that walked in from off the street, no matter what some second year resident girlfriend says. Now I think it's about time you left. Better yet, maybe I should call security so they can ask you a few questions." "No time," Alex responded, vaguely waving a hand at her. "Need food. We'll be in the cafeteria," he replied chewing as he spoke. He tried to stand but staggered, and everyone started when he did. Gail got in before anyone else and, wrapped an arm around him, literally lifting him to his feet. "I think we may need a wheelchair," she told the nurse. The nurse wasn't sure what to do, as her mouth started working wordlessly. "No time. Need to go, now," Alex responded with heavy gasps. "Here, take mine," Rachel insisted, turning and stepping away from her own chair. "It's a bit small, but it's the least I can do, and while it may not fit it will be easier than having him walk when he's like that." "We'll get it back to you right away," Tina insisted, stepping up and grabbing the chair, pulling it from behind Rachel. "This is highly..." the nurse started to bluster. Erin stepped up and quickly felt Alex pulse. "Geez, the guy's ready to pass out. Either get him in the chair now or I'm going to order a gurney for him. Are you sure you can make it downstairs?" she asked Alex. He weakly nodded as he collapsed sideways into the chair, since he couldn't fit into it normally. Gail immediately started pushing it as she hurried from the room, Cate running beside him, handing her brother broken cookie pieces. The other mother, leaving her own daughter behind on the machine, trailed after them. "Wait, could you do something for my daughter. If I can get her off of dialysis I'd be willing to pay you good money for it." The statement, spoken in the middle of a dialysis ward, caused quite a stir, and other people started trailing them as well. "Damn it, Alex, I knew that was a bad idea," Cate insisted as they receded off down the hall, several people following them. "Why do you have to be so damn stubborn all the time? You know you need to take it easy." Rachel, Mary and the nurse just looked at each other in the sudden quiet that settled into the room, in contrast to the various noises following Alex down the hall. However, a minute later Emma ran back into the room and handed Mary a slip of paper with a phone number on it. "Call him in about two hours," she told her, before turning and hurrying off as well. ------- Chapter 5: Recriminations and Acceptance "Are you sure he's OK?" Shanna nervously asked, trying to keep her voice low. "No, I'm not sure," Cate hotly replied. "It was stupid of him, and he should know better. He knows he's susceptible to these kinds of attacks, and the more he does things like this without taking precautions, the shorter his time with us will be." "It's alright," Alex insisted, still looking tired and drained. "I ate some and then I took a short nap when we got back to the hotel." "Alex, I didn't want to say anything before, but you already look several years older since you were shot before this latest event," Cate told him pointedly. "Now you're showing wrinkles on your face and around your eyes, you've got visible gray hairs and you look exhausted. The strain on your body is showing, and we're worried about you." "And I suppose you don't think I should have helped Rachel?" he asked. Cate sighed heavily. "No, you did the right thing, but there are ways to go about things like this. You're always trying to do something in the most dramatic way you can, without regard to your own safety. You just have to be more cautious. Maybe if you didn't do it all at once." "You don't seem to understand, Cate. What I did was unprecedented, and it wasn't like anything I'd done before. It simply struck me that I could try something new and I tried it, but since it was new I had no idea what was involved or how long it would take. Clearly it took longer than I'd anticipated. It couldn't have been done piecemeal. What I did was to cause the damaged kidney to regrow new tissue, but in order to do that I had to feed it a fairly heavy dose of energy in a consistent manner for a specific period." "He's right, Cate," Gail chimed in. "What he did was completely new. It's akin to what they keep trying with stem cells, getting the body to grow new cells when it wouldn't on its own. The amount of things he had to overcome and that had to occur for it to succeed makes my mind swim. I still can't fathom how it's even possible." "Still, I'd rather you tried these new things when you're in a healthier environment and better prepared than you were," Cate continued to chide him. "What could be healthier than a hospital?" Alex answered flippantly. "Anywhere you were rested, well fed and had enough supplemental energy supplies to keep you refreshed. You exhausted yourself, Alex, and you came very close to ending up in the emergency room as a result." "Yes, Mom, I understand what I did wrong. Now can we order dinner? I'm starving." "Humph, it's no wonder. And I want you to eat double portions. Order two entrees. And not just steak and potatoes, either. We don't know what you drained from your body, so order extra vegetables. And no desserts either. You don't need the empty calories. If you need anything else, order an appetizer instead." Alex merely rolled his eyes but did as his sister requested. "And don't call me mom, I think the world of her, but it's hardly an encouraging comment. Do it again and you're likely to be walking to California." "Hey there, I'm sorry I'm late," Liv Bisla said as she came in and found a place to sit down. "Wow, you certainly know how to make a scene. First you produce a medical miracle without any drugs, machinery or without touching the patient, then you put everyone into a panic by collapsing." "How'd Rachel do as a result?" Cate asked, her own scientific curiosity finally winning over her concern with her brother's health. "Well, it took a lot of discussion with the lead doctor at the hematology clinic, and only with Mary's insistence would he release the information, but they ran some quick tests. It turns out her numbers are much better. He didn't want to admit it, but Alex is correct. Her kidneys are now functioning well enough that she no longer needs dialysis. In fact, she should be relatively healthy now. At least for a while, they want to ensure this isn't a temporary gain. But that is a big win in my book," Liv told them all. "It's not short term," Gail announced. "It's brand new growth. She basically regrew 30% of her kidney function. I think if they did a scan they'd find her kidneys are that much larger." "That's amazing. 30% is enough by itself to end dialysis, but added to what she already had, it will leave her with a healthy margin," Liv said, looking at Alex with wonder in her eyes. "It's one thing to have something you can't fathom happen to you, but it's another to have a medical miracle play out in front of educated witnesses and that can be verified by demonstrable facts. And you do this kind of thing regularly?" "Oh, no," Cate warned her. "This is hardly regular. He almost killed himself today. He was trying something new. Normally he simply strengthens existing tissue, giving it a boost of energy. He saved a guy in New Orleans by feeding energy into his heart following a massive heart attack, then jump starting the guy's heart. But this time he actually convinced Rachel's body to grow new tissue. That just breaks so many physical and biological laws it's unbelievable. There are just a zillion reasons why it isn't possible." "It isn't possible yet, as far as modern science is concerned. They've managed to grow simple organisms, but nothing nearly as complicated as a kidney yet," Liv told her. "I was wondering why he responded so poorly if he'd planned this out in advance." "Oh, it wasn't planned," Alex told her while stuffing bread rolls into his face. "I had no idea what she was suffering from, and I purposely didn't ask in advance. In fact, I only asked Erin when there was specific information I needed to know to ensure I didn't make her worse." "Yeah, she said you were afraid you could make an infection worse? You certainly confused the poor girl. She didn't know what to report, since everything you did runs counter to everything she learned in medical school." Since Alex was still trying to eat, Cate answered for him. "Infections, viruses and parasites are all living things. Alex's energy surrounds all living things, so if he feeds more energy in, he'd theoretically feed the undesirable elements the same as he would the healthy tissue. That's all she'd need is a super healthy infection." "Yeah, I can see how that would be a problem," Liv acknowledged. "Did you actually test that idea?" Cate looked shocked. "Uh, no, I didn't think of that." "Then you don't know for sure that it'll happen. The energy isn't food, is it? Even if it strengthens the infection, it may strengthen the immune system more. We'll have to think of a way of testing it." "Well, that's going to be hard to do while we're traveling," Alex told her. "I'm the only one who can do it, and we'd need to supply energy to a Petri dish for a minimum of several days." "Yeah, it'd take a while, but it's something you need to do before you make too many assumptions about what won't work. Not that I'd suggest experimenting on someone with an infection, though," Live replied with a grin. They had to pause the conversation as the waiter brought Liv a menu and delivered a large frozen fruit drink in front of Alex. Hopefully that would give him enough energy to last until the food arrived. Once Liv ordered they resumed their discussion. "Actually, you did me a favor," Liv explained. "The head of the hematology clinic and the girls' doctor called the hospital demanding answers, which triggered questions around the hospital as well. Doctors don't like unanswered questions. I had to admit I didn't know anything about it, as I'd just met you. But I told them you'd offered me a unique opportunity to visit you and learn your techniques. I then explained where I'd need to go and how long it would take. They were hesitant to approve something so unprecedented on such short notice, but they were so curious they couldn't resist." "So, Alex, I'm confused," Cate asked her brother. "How did you manage the new growth? Did you dissolve the damaged tissue? Increase the density of the kidney tissue, or cause new growth to form outside of the existing kidney like you did with the brain tissue?" Now that she'd worked out all her protective issues her scientific curiosity was bubbling over. "Frankly, my dear, as usual, I haven't a clue," he answered. "As always, I just did what I felt was necessary and somehow my body knew what to do. But I don't actually think I did anything unusual. I think the increase in the level of energy and the way that I applied it fostered some natural growth function in the body that normally isn't used, so I think her body took over and took care of things. It's like if a parched drought ridden landscape suddenly gets a heavy rainfall. Suddenly new life springs up and everything just gets out of the way. Somehow everything just seems to work together." Cate grunted. It was clear she wasn't happy with that answer. She wanted something more specific than clever but weak analogies. "OK, moving on," Liv said, jumping back in, realizing her time was limited since she was likely to be called back on duty. "I understand there was a lot we didn't get to today. What else do I need to know? Do I need to travel to New Orleans? When can I head to Carbondale? Should I call your friend or the head of the hospital or what?" "Whoa," Alex replied, trying to slow down her questions since he didn't feel he had the energy to handle them all. "One question at a time. Yes, Liv, there's still quite a bit you need to know. No, you don't need to travel to New Orleans right now. Eventually, yes, but that's more so you can learn about the community than for any other reason. Right now I'd prefer if you focused on the medical aspects. I already spoke to Allison, so she's expecting your call and she's already advised Ryan about your desire to visit. They've already spoken to my friend Natalie, who's been handling your role until now, Shanna. She's the one that's planned our trip for us. She'll make whatever arrangements you need. Cate can give you the number for her. Call her and she'll set things up for you." "Good. I'm excited about this and I'd like to start as soon as I can. Is this coming Monday too soon?" Liv asked. Alex just smiled. "Since I'm not involved in it, the sooner the better. I'm sure they're just as excited, so I'm sure everyone will be more than happy to make allowances. As I said, I expect Ryan to offer you a job, but he's already been overextending himself and his hospital for my benefit, so I don't think it's a good idea to accept. Besides, I have other plans for you." The waiter arrived with their food so they dug in. The food was good, though not quite as good as they were used to in the French Quarter, but Alex made a comical sight sitting behind several dinner plates all piled around him laden with food. Both Cate and Gail knew he'd quickly eat his way through them, even with the extra large portions they piled on hoping to justify the prices they charged. Seeing Alex was again busy stuffing his face, Cate stepped into the breach. "There's a lot we didn't get to. There's a whole classification of followers that we've established that it's important to understand. In order to discuss them in public we've developed personal and public descriptions for them. We call the first group type 1's, or Seers. This group includes both you, Liv and Shanna, as well as Gail. They can physically see the energy Alex gives off, and that inhabits all living things. Until they're activated, they naturally feel other's energy, although they don't recognize it as such. They simply assume it's a form of intuition. They demand much more of Alex's time and focus, so they tend to get the most attention. "The next group is the type 2s, or Watchers. We call them that because that's how we identify them. Whenever Alex shows up they congregate around him, simply watching in rapt attention but afraid to approach him, not understanding their attraction to him. Generally they don't come to him on their own, but if asked they'll jump at the chance to help him. "The last group is the type 3s, which we classify normal people as. However over time we've refined that definition. There are now several subcategories. There are the type 3s who don't know anything, there are the ones that know something about Alex but don't cause any problems, then there are those who become part of Alex's whole movement, taking a very active role in the whole thing." "That would include Alex's sisters, his two girlfriends, and many of his friends from school," Gail explained. "It would also include the other girls in their sorority." "Sorority?" Shanna asked, surprised by the off topic reference. "Alex's sister Melinda started a sorority at SIU in order to attract women on campus who were likely to be new followers. His foundation is trying to get charters started in a few different schools. That's why both Tina and Amy are involved. They helped us get started and they're trying to start their own chapters." "Wow, you people certainly don't waste any time, do you?" Shanna asked. "How long have you been working on this? It sounds like you've been organizing it for several years now." Alex, Cate and Gail just looked at each other then each broke out laughing. "Nope. Alex's power only showed up when he traveled to New Orleans the first time just three months ago," Gail told them. "We've been working hard," Cate explained. "As we've described, Alex doesn't have much time and there are hundreds of things we have to work out. We can't afford to lose any time being indecisive or overly cautious." "Wow, that's really impressive. I can see I'm going to have to be offering my best game when I get to Carbondale," Liv responded. "So you were saying, about the various type 3s?" "Oh, yeah," Cate answered. "There's one other category of type 3, although there's only one case. That appears to be people who have been exposed to Alex and his energy for so long that they've developed their own abilities. That one person would be me." Liv stopped eating and looked up at Cate at this latest information. "So that's what you were talking about when you said you 'absorbed his energy'?" Tina asked. "Yeah, I've been around him for so long, always going to him as a child for comfort rather than my parents, that it seems to have affected me. When Alex..." here Cate hesitated, realizing she'd almost spilled the beans. She suddenly realized how difficult it would be to explain how Alex had boosted her own abilities without everyone asking the obvious question about it. However Liv seemed to be too inquisitive to wait for her response. "That makes sense. If he triggers new growth within seconds in the type 1s brains, and he did it in Rachel who is a type 2, then it would make sense that he'd have done the same thing to you after years of exposure to the same energy." Cate raised an eyebrow at this comment. It made a lot of sense when phrased like that. Maybe it wasn't so much an inborn talent or another genetic anomaly, as it was just prolonged exposure to Alex triggering a new adaptive growth in her. "That's a good way of putting it. Anyway, I seem to have the ability to feel Alex's energy in other people. And I don't mean his type of energy either. I mean I can feel the energy that comes from him in other people. Thus I can tell who Alex has spent time with, I can feel his emotions for the person, as well as their emotions for him. Since I feel these emotions so intimately, I tend to internalize them, feeling his emotions for his followers and him as a result. Needless to say, it can result in a bit of confusion," Cate replied, hoping she'd provided enough of a subtle hint that they wouldn't be as upset if they eventually learned about her and her brother. "Yeah, that fits," Amy said, jumping in. "That's why you feel compelled to cuddle up with him in the middle of the night. You're soaking up both his excess energy but also his emotions." "So I'm guessing you feel a little sexual charge concerning me and Amy then?" Tina teased. "Actually, it isn't so much a sexual charge, since Alex rarely feels simple lust," Cate explained, getting into the issue. "The physical connection he makes seems to trigger something in each of his followers. Here I suspect he may affect the Watcher's brains as well, since they each seem to feel real love for each other. As a result, I find that I love each and every one of Alex's followers, just as he does." "Man, this just gets weirder and weirder," Emma commented. "Tell me about it," Gail whispered as an aside. "Which brings up the last issue," Cate said, trying to create an opening for a point that Alex had been waiting to discuss. "Periodically Alex manages to increase his abilities. These are usually triggered by significant events like strong adrenaline spurts, but it also includes strong emotional responses." "What my sister is trying to tell you, in a subtle way, is that we've found that I can boost people's abilities by making love to them. There needs to be a strong emotional connection, and there needs to be full body contact between us, so oral sex doesn't count. Since there are so many people involved I tend to avoid it as much as I can, but I try to involve anyone that's going to be doing anything specific for me, just so they'll have the additional advantages they'll need to be successful. Thus I made love to both Tina and Amy so they'd be able to evaluate the hidden motivations of anyone they met in regards to their sorority applications." "So that's why you mentioned wanting to make love to us this evening?" Shanna asked. "I was wondering about that, because you described it almost like an obligation rather than as a seduction. I was a little afraid it was because you were getting jaded by so many women trying to woo you, but it sounds like it's really an obligation for you." "You'd better believe it," Cate added. "He's been fooling around with all kinds of people, and it's hard for him to have to reject anyone, since they'd take it so personally, but he actually puts a lot of consideration into this. He doesn't do it lightly. If it was up to him, he'd only make love to his girlfriends. But instead he's got dozens of women he has to make love to, many of whom are willing to wait quite a while to gain an available slot in his schedule." "Yeah, it must be tough," Liv said, rolling her eyes with a smile on her lips before she hesitated. "Wait, did you say 'girlfriends'?" Cate laughed. "Yeah, among everything else, Alex has a couple of high school girlfriends. But I'll tell you about them some other time. That story deserves a discussion all its own." "But the point Cate was trying to bring up is that I'd like to make love to both of you tonight, just so you'll be better able to carry out your tasks, although I certainly wouldn't complain about the opportunity to appreciate your beauty and charm up close," Alex added, trying to score a couple of point for charm since he seemed to be running so low on that score lately. "Hell, yes," Liv announced without any further prompting. "I'll definitely sleep with you, and I'd pay good money for the privilege, too. I don't think I've ever felt more attracted to someone. Not to mention how thankful I feel to you for what you've done to me. Then, when you add in the extra bonus abilities, whatever they are, I'd be a fool to turn you down." "Don't scoff too easily," Emma advised her. "Someone just finished rejecting Alex earlier today." "Now that I find hard to swallow," Shanna teased. Cate's phone rang, so everyone stopped talking while she answered it. "Oh, hello Mary. Yeah, he's doing better now. We've managed to feed him, so he's slowly recovering his strength." She paused while she listened to the response before continuing. "No, you shouldn't have to do anything more. We believe her kidneys should be fine, but let the doctors make sure it's healthy enough. Just don't let them try anything that isn't necessary, like possibly cutting her open to find out what Alex did. That wouldn't help anyone and would screw up Rachel's life." "Yeah," Cate replied after another pause, "if you want to teach her about her own abilities, you should take her down to New Orleans. We'll be down there for the next few days, but anytime you go down there, just ask for either Peter or David. They work in a local coffee shop in the French Quarter, and they'll be able to give you any information that you need. What's more they'll introduce you both to many more people like Rachel who share her abilities. That way you'll be assured she's still perfectly normal and she'll realize she isn't alone." Shanna started trying to get Cate's attention, and Cate simply help her hand up, telling her to hold on. "Yeah, you'll both be fine. Just relax and let Rachel be a kid for a while longer. You can give me a call if you need anything, but I think you'll have plenty of other people you can talk to about it once you've visited New Orleans. Now, I've got someone that can arrange a visit to New Orleans whenever you want, if you want help. Here, I'll let you talk and work it out. Take care and I hope that you and Rachel have a wonderful life," Cate said before she handed her phone to Shanna. Alex was glad they'd put that issue aside without any difficulties. Mary could have caused trouble if she'd started asking questions. ------- "Are you sure you're OK?" Liv asked as she cuddled up against Alex, pressing her naked flesh into his equally naked side. "Yeah, I ate, rested, and ate again. I think the big danger is if I do too much without eating. Processing the energy my body produces take a lot out of me." "You know, someone is going to have to pick a name for that type of energy. How about Alexism energy," Liv suggested with a giggle. "How about we name it after Cate?" Alex countered. "After all, she deserves some credit for what she's done, and it looks like she'll have to give up her dreams of a Nobel Prize, even if she does deserve it for what she discovers." "I don't think I've ever known a young man so reticent about recognition," Shanna told him as she played with his few chest hairs. "Well, until about three months ago I was a shy bookworm. I've only become social because I had to be," Alex replied while twirling her hair around his finger in return, turning the gesture into an intimate caress of her cheek. "Now I'm mostly reacting to everyone gushing over me. I'm afraid it'll give me a complex and go to my head, making me unbearable. Then who would all of you love? Hmm?" "Seriously, though, let's not change the subject," Shanna said. "Cate was really worried about you, and from what she told us about you, there's good reason for that. Now, are you going to be safe making love with us all night?" "All night? You're pretty optimistic. Don't you still have to pack? We're going to be driving all day tomorrow, I think I need a little rest sometime," Alex protested. "There he goes diverting the topic again," Liv said. "Actually, he shouldn't stress himself that much. From what Cate told me, it's only a problem when he emotionally distances himself and starts actually fucking rather than making love. She says that's extremely rare for Alex." Liv was cuddling up on Alex's other side, her leg thrown over his. She couldn't actually rub her naked chest against Alex's, since Shanna was already hogging most of it, but Liv was idly playing with his cock as they spoke. She was currently thinking more about his cock than she was about the ongoing conversation, imagining what the feeling of an Alex energy fueled orgasm would feel like. "That's also why Cate sent us in here with a bag full of groceries for me to eat afterwards," Alex reminded them. "I think I'll be OK. Besides, as Liv says, I prefer taking my time and really getting to know the people I make love to. The boost seems to be related to the amount of emotional involvement I have with someone, rather than to the sex act itself. I doubt I'd boost a hooker on the street if I engaged in that sort of thing. In order to boost someone, I really need a combination of a strong emotional interest, a decent amount of sex appeal, and a hell of a lot of timing to achieve an almost perfect simultaneous orgasm." "Oh, I don't know," Shanna replied. "I suspect if you found a type 1 prostitute you'd love her just like you're planning to do for us." "Don't get me started," he warned her. "There's a whole host of problems associated with that scenario. I worry about it happening, though, so I've thought about it quite a bit." "I'm sure your friend Allison would object to that. There are escorts, there are high class prostitutes, and then there are street walkers. I think most of the higher end types keep themselves pretty clean," Liv suggested. "At least, the one's I've treated seem to be." Alex thought that last comment deserved more discussion, but he was having trouble focusing on the topic as Shanna was pressing her tits into his chest and Liv was slowly jerking his cock with her hand. "You know, I think I like the idea that the Native American's had of changing one's name based upon what happens to you," Liv said, changing the topic once again. "I'm a Sikh, just in case you haven't guessed yet. I'm thinking I should legally change my name since all this happened to me. I'm thinking Anadjot would be a good name. After all, it's a traditional Sikh name that seems to apply to me all of a sudden." "Oh really," Alex asked, "and just what does Anadjot mean?" "It means 'one who radiates the Lord's light'," she explained, attempting to look at him. "Given that you're now my own personal lord, and that you are filled with light, I think it's fitting." "Yeah, but it hardly slips off the tongue. I think I like Liv better. It's easier to pronounce and it's close to 'live', which is always a nice idea. By the way, since you seem to know the etymology of Sikh names, what does Liv mean?" "It means 'focused and dedicated', like someone who is focused on what they're doing, just like I am now," she said as she gave his cock a gentle squeeze. Alex sighed, but he refused to be dissuaded just yet. "Personally, I think Liv is a better choice, as it describes the personality that got you to where you are," Alex told her, squeezing her tight buns in an effort to distract her work on his cock. "You're focused on your medicine, which you need to be. I want you to become a world renowned surgeon, applying that same dedication in applying your new vision to your surgery. I need someone who's focused, much more than I need someone who only focuses on what a dim bulb I really am." "Ha," responded Shanna, reaching up and kissing him on the cheek. "You're hardly a dim bulb. You're nearly as bright as your sister. In fact, I'm sure you would equal her if you dedicated yourself to the topic like she does. But I think I prefer you focusing on this mission of yours instead." "And what does your name mean, Shanna?" he asked, turning and kissing her lightly on the lips. He knew they were both getting antsy, but it had almost become a game now. They couldn't seem to stop talking, and he knew the longer he kept them talking the hornier they'd get. "Very funny, Alex. You know very well Shanna is just the Americanization of my real name, which is Sanaa. But it means brilliance, though it also means 'art' in Swahili." "Well, since you aren't African I think we'll stick with the intended meaning," Alex replied, reaching behind her to squeeze her buns as well with his other hand. As he squeezed both girls' asses, they pressed their thighs tighter against his. "By the way," he asked, continuing the teasing discussion, "what does your last name, Shenouda, mean? And did I pronounce it correctly?" "You did better than most Americans do, and surprisingly it also fits, since it means a 'slave of God'. I always thought it was a stupid name, but now I think it fits pretty well. I'll bet my parents never dreamed just how apt their name would become," she teased him right back. "All right, let's drop all this God talk," he warned them playfully. "I think you two are the exceptions, since you didn't accuse me of being an angel or a reincarnated Jesus, so let's keep that going. I'm not a god, and I have no desire to be." "Yeah, but according to Gail and Anh you seem to be guided by either God, spirits, or beings from another dimension. With that many mythical beings supporting you, I don't think anyone wants to get on your bad side," Liv teased. "Now, Shanna, I think we've been talking long enough. I seem to have this mysterious fleshy pole going to waste in my hand. Can you think of any better uses we could put it to?" "Um hum," Shanna answered as she kissed Alex seriously, her other hand snaking down to wrap around Alex's shaft just above Liv's hand, which was currently jacking Alex's cock. Luckily for him their motions weren't coordinated, so her joining in actually delayed his excitement a bit. Seeing as how Shanna didn't get the message, Liv pulled back, disengaging from Alex until she maneuvered low enough to lick along his shaft. Shanna, feeling Liv's face pressed against her hand, shifted it and wrapped it around his side. Alex, suddenly finding his left hand free, wrapped it around Shanna's breast. Shanna had larger breasts and more curves than his other girls had, and he appreciated the contrast. He loved small breasts, so Cate's were still a delight for him, but he'd learned to appreciate the difference so many women offered him. It had taken a while to not make contrasts, comparing one against the other, but he'd gotten better at it over time. Now he focused on the benefits of each, trying mightily to ignore similarities or differences between those not present. However, at the moment his mind was overcome with other thoughts, or more accurately non-thoughts, as Liv wrapped her lips around his organ and started going down on him. Alex sighed, which Shanna found delightful, as his moan echoed throughout her mouth as they continued to kiss. Shanna had never been involved in a threesome before, thinking they were a purely male fantasy, but she'd recently rethought that belief, as of today. Now it seemed not only natural to join someone else in making love to someone they both loved, but she was enjoying what it added to her own level of arousal. She had never thought of herself as bisexual, in any sense of the word, but she found the contrast between Alex's hairy muscular legs and Liv's softer but almost equally muscled legs rather intoxicating. It wasn't that Shanna suddenly wanted to make love to another woman, but the contrast between the two extremes teased her senses, and the idea that both of them were worshipping Alex' body at the same time just made it all the more exciting. What she'd once thought of as a disgusting male fantasy suddenly seemed like a natural extension of her love for this young man who had won her fancy. Liv, meanwhile, was applying her namesake dedication by focusing on what she was doing, surrendering all conscious thoughts in her appreciation of Alex's cock as she slid it in and out of her mouth, marveling how it seemed both plain and extraordinary at the same time. Even though she'd seen both bigger and more impressive ones over the years, somehow this one seems to dwarf the others she'd encountered. In fact, although no one mentioned it, she could swear she could feel his energy vibrating through his cock alongside his heartbeat as her lips slid over it. She wondered whether his cum had any energy in it she could absorb, but that was about the extent of her thinking at the moment. Alex was caught up in his own battle with several overwhelming sensations, although he was a bit more used to handling circumstances like this. Liv was doing wonderful things to his dick, she really had a wonderful technique, which was different than that used by either Anh or Allison, the two reigning champions of fellatio in his household. She had this way of lightly scratching the surface with her teeth, not enough to hurt, but just enough to further heighten the sensations he was feeling. It was certainly an unusual technique, but one he'd remember for quite some time. He didn't think he'd suggest it to anyone else, though, as images of tooth scratches to his cock made his balls retract temporarily. Meanwhile Shanna was busy sucking his face as she proceeded to hump his leg. He could feel just how excited she was by how damp his leg was becoming, both of their hands keeping busy as well. His playing with her full hefty breasts, hers running around his chest playing with the various muscles she found there. Cate, Allison and Gail had each been pushing Alex to begin an exercise regimen lately, hoping to fend off even more damage to his health, and that exercise, plus his own growth over the last couple of months, had paid off in a few more defined muscles than he had before, although that regime was going to be hard to keep up on the road. Breaking off his kiss with Shanna, Alex warned the good doctor, "You'd best hold off there, Liv, else I'm going to spoil everyone's night by coming too soon." However she was so focused on her task it took a minute for the meaning of his words to sink into her brain. She was reluctant to give it up, since she seemed to be drawing both excitement and an overall feeling of wellbeing from it at the moment. Letting it escape her lips with a wet popping sound, she slid up his body to discover Shanna trying to swallow him whole with her kisses. Liv laughed softly to herself, since Shanna was so involved with their kiss that she was missing her better position to claim him first. As Shanna continued to hump his thigh, Liv gently moved her aside and threw her leg over him, only to slide down on his cock. She swore softly to herself, both literally and figuratively, as she was sure the waves of energy coming off his cock made it expand to fit her vagina. It, like the rest of him, seemed to be a heaven sent miracle that defied all human sensibilities. She slowly eased down, allowing him to slide further inside her, filling her up. She pressed both hands against his chest, taking in the definition in his pectorals as she used them to leverage herself in the time honored up and down motion, even as she altered it with her own swirling motion she'd discovered could stimulate her own senses enough to help her achieve an orgasm though normal intercourse. However, she reminded herself, this was anything besides 'normal' intercourse. "Uh, as much fun as this is," Alex told her, gripping her hips, "from all accounts we need full body contact for this to work." With that he rolled them both over, pulling him free from Shanna's caresses. Liv found herself suddenly pressed down into the bed as Alex began taking the lead in their little dance. Normally she had always liked taking the lead role in sex, since she knew how to stimulate her clit while she was in charge of the action, but she had to acknowledge the other girls were right, even though she hadn't met any of them. The feelings she was receiving from Alex pumping into her were way superior to anything she could have achieved on her own. She instantly fell in love with this most basic of positions, and she swore to herself she'd give up on her cowgirl superior preference to this new missionary position. Her nipples, which she'd long considered one of her best features because of how long and sensitive they were, were stimulated both by his hairy chest as well as by the sensations running through her. She thought she could probably orgasm just from the feelings running through her, even without any physical contact, but the two combined were a purely wonderful sensation. Shanna, meanwhile, slid over Alex's side trying to regain her own contact with him. She found she could apply his in and out motions to herself as she once again slid her leg over and between his, pressing her pussy against his thigh and riding it much like she had long ridden pillows at home, unable to sneak any boys into the room she shared in her parents' house. However, there was so much else going on. As her hands snaked over his skin, they went from his side, where she could feel his labored breath, to Liv's softer skin on her side and yes, even her breast, which Shanna found oddly sexy as her fingers splayed over it. She ran her hands up both sides as her hand covered Alex's and Liv's neck to play with both the tensing and relaxing muscles there, and the rewarding teasing she could apply to both their ears. She leaned in and whispered to both of them. "Give it to her good, Alex, she's been a bad girl, and only the punishing application of a good stiff prick will satisfy her baser instincts." Shanna was well aware of her conflicted feelings about her dirty talk. She'd managed to internalize her parents' long expressed feelings of how dirty sex was by reveling in the feelings of shame it produced. She always thought of herself as a 'dirty girl' who could only be satisfied by a good solid punishing, much like her father applied to her mother, only after he finally lost control of his baser instincts. When they were younger, living in a small shack with almost paper thin walls, she'd frequently hear their arguments as her father would accuse her mother of forcing him to ravage her, as her own cries of surrendered lust rang out over the small household. Of course, she hadn't been the only one listening to the sounds of her parents' ruttings. Her brothers did too, and for days thereafter they'd let their hands roam and grab at her as she walked past, and she'd been so frustrated she almost let them do as they desired. But she had never wanted to reward them with her hidden treasures, because, just like the many Disney princesses she'd patterned herself after, she had wanted a mysterious prince to suddenly appear, ravage her with his strange ethnic good looks, and carry her off somewhere strange and wonderful. And here she was, in a strange and wonderful land where sex was both openly discussed and condemned, where her family still railed about the sins of unbridled lust while they themselves engaged in it at every opportunity. She had slowly learned to apply her own feelings of guilt and sinfulness into a heightened sexuality by portraying them as corrective coercion. She wanted to be taken and abused, but more than anything, she wanted the taker to be Alex. She truly wanted to be a slave to this new god of hers, just as her name had long proclaimed her to be. If such a life included many fellow wives and only a few occasional trysts with her lover, she'd accept it, because she could feel, just like Liv was, the benefits of full body contact while Alex made love with them both. She knew her psyche was well and properly screwed up, but the orgasms she'd found she could achieve by subverting the feelings of guilt had long proven too impossible to ignore. Indeed, she knew it was herself that was the dirty girl, deserving of the punishing rod of her avenging angel Alex, drilling her into the bed in punishment for her sinful thoughts and actions. Damn, just these thoughts were enough to achieve an orgasm. But, more and more, Shanna found these thoughts were sidelined rather than forced to prominence. The sensations she was receiving from both partners, but mainly from the tingling sensations of being physically connected skin-to-skin with Alex, overwhelmed her, regardless of any fantasies she may have used previously. She found she could abandon the make believe world she'd always used to justify herself and overcome the hesitant fumblings of her partners. Now she could just let herself go and enjoy the sensations she was feeling, even if she wasn't the one currently being screwed. Somehow, not being screwed by Alex was the most sexually fulfilling experience she'd ever achieved, and forbidden fantasies seemed to be completely immaterial. Alex, though, had no idea of the internal struggles of his two lovers. He, like Liv, was focusing on the here and now, on making love to the two beautiful women who were currently gifting him with their love. He was once again amazed that these two beautiful creatures would allow him to do what he was doing. He knew the reason they did had little to do with his looks, his personality or his own desirability. He knew that if he had never left his small town he'd still be a virgin to this day, never getting up the nerve to make a move on a girl, yet the selfsame abilities that drew these women to him also managed to keep them more than satisfied with his self-perceived inadequate performance. Shanna wasn't the only one with difficult issues of self perception. Alex was trying to work Liv up to a slow crescendo, since he knew she needed an overwhelming orgasm for him to do what he need to in her brain. She'd already had several minor orgasms, yet those never seemed to have the effect needed. Instead it was the mind-melting simultaneous orgasm accompanied by their full body sharing of his cast off energy that triggered the increased abilities she needed now. And he was working to give her just that kind of orgasm. In fact, if he wasn't mistaken, he was pretty sure Shanna had achieved a couple of smaller orgasms herself, as she continued to hump his leg. He was glad he could rely on the energy his body gave off to satisfy these women, because he had no doubt he'd be unable to keep up with so many women without some unnatural assistance. As they got closer and closer, Liv started mumbling his name, calling on him to 'anoint her with his love and make her into his new creation'. Boy, she must have a good mind if she could think of such descriptive things to call out during sex, Alex thought. But he tried to fulfill her desires. As he pumped harder and harder into her, her moaning become throatier and more disjointed until she finally started shrieking, then crying out. Finally he shoved home hard, drilling his firm dick into her love slickened pussy, and he proceeded to ejaculate wildly into her as Shanna clutched him from behind and echoed his thrusts with her own. Liv shrieked her loudest in a wordless sound before her eyes rolled up in her head and she passed out in a shivering mass of excited nerve endings. Shanna had stopped suggesting how dirty everyone was some time ago, but she was currently moaning in his ear as she gave a lesser cry of her own and she bit his shoulder as she began shuddering in her own orgasm. Luckily she hadn't passed out. They lay there in a weak and tired heap and allowed themselves to slowly come down from their sexual heights. Alex was just starting to move, trying to take some of his and Shanna's combined weight off of Liv so he could check to ensure she was still breathing, when the door rattled. Turning to look the door swung inward and Gail slowly entered. However, she appeared to be moving too slowly for Cate, who shoved past the slower moving ex-cop. "Well, that sounds like you burned off even more energy that you normally do," Cate said as she handed her brother a cold can of Coke from the machine down the hall. Alex shifted, lifting Shanna and him off of Liv, who Cate could now see was out of it, although she continued to shiver in post orgasmic delight. "Damn, I've got to try that sometime," she observed, referring to Liv's reactions rather than making love to her brother, which she wasn't about to reveal at the moment. "Are they OK?" Gail asked nervously. "They will be as soon as I can get my Lothario brother to eat something," she answered back. Alex managed to sit up and finally took hold of the cold beverage, using it to cool off his forehead before taking a long drink from it. While he was doing that Shanna was checking to see if Liv was still with them. She gently cuddled her new sister, trying to ease her slowing shivering. "Do you always come in to administer last rites to your naked brother?" Shanna asked Cate teasingly. "Actually, she didn't want to come in, since she was afraid it would freak you out," Gail explained as she started to take the food out of the grocery bag where he'd left it earlier. "But I was taking so long opening the door after that wild orgasms that the whole floor could hear, she shoved me aside to make sure Alex hadn't overexerted himself." "Yeah, as you can guess, I've seen my brother naked a few times," Cate told Shanna as she fed him a couple of KitKat bars. She didn't bother going into any more detail than that, though, as she didn't want the whole world to know about her and her brother. "You can't live around our house without seeing plenty of naked people around all the time." "Besides, I should have warned you ahead of time," Alex tried to say between bites. "Chances are, if you stay over tonight, she'll probably sneak in and cuddle up with me tonight." Shanna sat up somewhat, now that Liv was starting to come around, in order to take in this newest information about Alex. "It's an energy absorption thing," Cate told them, hoping they wouldn't jump to the obvious, and true, conclusion. "I've been doing it since I was little, and once you get that used to it, it's hard to give up just because he's sleeping with other people." Liv took that moment to moan as her eyes flickered open, so all eyes turned towards her. "Geez, you sure know how to win over your lovers, Alex," Cate told him. "You really don't have to work that hard. In case you haven't guessed, these two were yours long before you got them into bed." "Is necessary," he got out between bites, since Cate was still shoving things into his mouth. "The whole simultaneous orgasm thing, remember?" "Yeah, yeah, I remember. Shanna, how about you get her a damp washcloth while I keep feeding this love crazed baboon here," she added, still annoyed her brother continued to worry her so much. "You really don't need to worry so much," Alex said, pushing Cate away from him so he could do something besides try to chew everything she was shoving down his throat. "In case you've forgotten, I've got pretty good recuperative power. I think I'm sufficiently recovered from earlier today." "Yeah, but I'm not," Cate protested. "I'm not going to be over that until I see you fully recovered for a while." "Speaking of recovery," Liv moaned, trying to sit up to see what was going on, "what truck just ran me over, and could someone get me a repeat engagement to be run over like that again?" "Yeah, Alex certainly does a number his first time. I've never had one of those super-duper initiation orgasms before, but they can be pretty wild." Once Cate realized what she'd unintentionally admitted to she blushed heavily, but everyone else was too preoccupied to have paid it much attention. "Try speaking to Gail," Alex told Liv, holding her hand while fending off Cate's continued attempts to feed him. "Could you get me on a repeating schedule with Alex, Gail?" Liv teased, taking Alex literally. "Telepathically," Alex insisted, although he knew she was just playing. "Yep, it works. I'm officially 'boosted'. Wow, that's neat." "Now try Anh, then Allison," Alex instructed her. "You should remember them from when I had you contact them earlier." By then Shanna had returned and started wiping Liv's forehead and face. "Man, you could certainly put AT&T out of business. I get much better reception this way than I do with the best landline or cell phone I've ever tried," Liv announced in surprise. "That's because it's full featured. You can feel their emotions, hear their thoughts and see what they're imagining. It's really handy when you're away from home," Alex explained. "Man, I can't wait until it's my turn," Shanna commented as she vainly tried to cover Liv with the sheet. However she quickly gave up, as it was twisted up amongst the various bodies. "Man, I'm still buzzing from my own orgasms. If I can come that hard and still not qualify, I can't imagine what I'll be like after you do me." "I think I've recovered enough, Shanna," Liv announced, "you've stopped wiping my chest and now you're just teasing the nipples. I think you're right, you're still turned on. Alex, we've got to do something about this poor girl." "I think that's my cue to head back next door," Gail announced. As she did, everyone watched her stand up, and they noticed Amy and Tina watching them wordlessly from the door. "Come on in," Liv laughed, "the more the merrier. Though I suspect Alex may take a little longer before he can finish what he started." "I wouldn't bet on that if I were you," Cate told her. "Alex frequently continues through his first orgasm without even slowing down. I've almost had to physically tackle him just to get him to eat something." Liv, Shanna and Alex each glanced at this unintended slip on Cate's part, though Alex was glad to see the unintended gaffe wasn't entirely his domain. It made him feel better about all the information he'd let slip over the past several weeks. "So I take it this isn't the first time you've had to feed your brother, though it sounds like you didn't have to get out of bed to do it before," Shanna replied. Cate blushed again. "As I said before, I frequently sleep with him after he finishes. That often times means I'm there when he gets started again," she added, only admitting to half the truth. Alex wasn't sure whether the other girls believed her or not, but they didn't say anything. Tina and Amy came and sat on the bed, although Cate noticed Tina's eyes were busy switching between Alex's semi-tumescent cock and Liv's still erect nipples. She had to admit to herself that Liv had some terrific looking nipples. Cate could feel herself unconsciously licking her lips as she imagined wrapping her lips around them. Realizing what she was doing she snapped out of it. "I should probably go too," she announced unhappily. "You don't have to, Cate," Shanna told her, noticing her tone of voice. "After all, as Liv said earlier, Alex isn't quite ready to go yet. You can stay and watch over him for a bit longer. Besides, if you've seen him perform naked before, I'm sure you've already seen plenty of him, so you won't be shocked to see it again." "Hell, we've seen Alex perform before," Tina admitted, "but it was nothing compared to what we heard you two shouting about. I mean, Alex is a terrific lover, but we never lost consciousness before after screaming the roof down." Liv blushed heavily hearing what a spectacle she'd made of herself. However, the blush extended all the way down her chest, making her already erect nipples tingle all the more. "That's because he didn't do brain surgery on you as you orgasmed," Cate informed Tina. "It tends to make a bit of a difference." "As does the energy you can feel pumping into you," Liv admitted. "Amen to that, sister," Shanna echoed. "I was coming at a steady pace, and I wasn't even involved." "Not involved? Was I confused, or was it someone else that was humping his leg like a racehorse while he was screwing me?" Liv asked Shanna. "Excuse me, I don't screw anyone," Alex insisted. "You could have fooled me, you certainly did when..." Cate started to say, only to catch herself much too late. "Go ahead and say it, Cate, you've already admitted to everything else," Shanna suggested. "He just gets carried away sometimes, which is why I was checking up on him. He's had a bit of a medical emergency as a result of when he gets like that." "I think you spoke too soon," Amy told Liv and Shanna as she reached over and ran her hand up and down Alex's almost fully erect cock. It was drooping slightly, arching over like a water faucet, however it certainly firmed up under her hand. "Alex seems about ready for the second act." "Hey, hands off the merchandise," Shanna teased. "The next mind blowing orgasm around here is mine." "Sure thing, but you don't mind if I get him started for you, do you?" Amy asked with a smile, as she leaned over and took him into her mouth. She moaned as she went down on him and everyone watched her as she did. "Damn, I don't care if he is my brother," Cate told everyone present, "that is not going to encourage me to leave." Alex didn't think she was fooling anyone, but he was too busy moaning himself to measure everyone else's response to the statement. Amy's head bobbed up and down a few times before she released him with a smack of her lips. She reached over and wrapped Cate's hand around his shaft as she stood up. "That should do it," she stated. "We've already had our share of him, the rest of you should enjoy him for a while," she said as she and Tina left, though Amy had to lead her friend away by the hand. The door closed behind them. Still self conscious, Cate immediately jerked her hand away. "That hot, huh?" Shanna teased. "I think I'll just watch for a bit, to make sure he's recovered enough, you understand," Cate said as she backed up to the spare bed. "That's fine, I think we'll find something to distract ourselves with," Liv replied as she reached down and grasped the spare cock Cate had left wobbling in the air. She started jacking it, ensuring it was fully erect as Shanna crawled back into bed. "I think you were looking for a place to put this," she offered. "That's OK," Alex replied. "I don't like to jump into the middle of things. I always like to start slowly. As my sister observed, I sometimes get into trouble when I skip the important preliminary steps." "Fine," Shanna responded. "Let's start with the basics then. I could use another dinner and a show," she teased. "Not quite that basic. I was thinking we could start with some kissing," Alex replied as she started kissing her, making sure to not leave Liv alone. Once again, Alex's familiarity with fooling around with multiple women came in handy as they proceeded to make out at the same time. As Alex drew Shanna down so he could better access her breasts, Liv moved down and licked Shanna's breast. Noticing her jump a little as a result, Liv sought to reassure her. "Don't worry, Shanna, I'm not doing this out of any lesbian tendencies or anything. Numerous people have theorized that the desire to play with boobies has its roots in the mother/child period of child development. Women have the same early childhood developmental issues, so it makes sense we'd have the same impulses," she answered with a smile, just before she took Shanna's left nipple in her mouth and began suckling. Breaking off for a moment she continued. "You know, I think all those little boys have got a point, this is a hell of a lot of fun," and she went back to study the phenomenon in more detail. Meanwhile Alex continued to kiss Shanna, preventing her from protesting too vociferously, although she hardly felt like complaining much, given how nice it felt, but if Alex hadn't been there she would have felt obligated to say something. Alex's left hand was playing with Shanna's other breast, while he caressed Liv with his other hand. They made out for a little longer before Alex pulled back, giving everyone a chance to breathe again. "Want to come up here and try kissing your friend?" Alex asked. "It might be your last chance for a while." Liv pulled back and looked at Shanna. Despite her own lack of lesbian tendencies, she was greatly tempted. She'd always wondered what those girls who kissed each other saw in it, and this was the perfect opportunity to find out. But one look at Shanna's slightly panicky eyes told her that this wasn't the time. "No thanks, I'm enjoying what I'm doing at the moment. Just tell me to move over if you need access, though," she told Alex. Alex simply laughed, while Shanna felt a wave of relief wash over her. But the idea, however forbidden, had edged up her excitement a bit, so she pulled Alex back down and proceeded to make out with him a bit more. Finally Alex started to shift down, hoping to join Liv for a moment, then potentially move a bit farther south. "Nuh uh, buddy," Shanna warned him. "Everyone warned me not to let you do that. As nice as a little cunnilingus is, they say it's nothing compared to what you offer otherwise. So I'll respectfully decline. I want you up here, and I think we're about ready to do something a little more advanced." "Nee mre mo mrov?" Liv asked, not yet willing to disengage her mouth. "You're a spoil sport," Alex playfully pouted. "You realize no one lets me do that anymore. And I really like doing it, too." "That just goes to show that I'm right," Cate shouted from across the room. "You have no powers of mind control. It's all in that little head of your, so occupy it some other way and stop talking about what you can and can't do. We all know what you're going to do." Alex merely grumbled, then playfully nudged Liv. "Hey, move over so a boy can do the other childhood obsession that all boys share." She moved aside, but didn't release her liplock on Shanna's breast. "Imma gowa kwim ahowlla thrissh for a mif, K?" she asked. "Sure, take as long as you want. Though it may be a bit hard to hold onto in another few minutes," Alex warned her. Shanna was about to make a comment about having him punish this dirty girl, but she suddenly realized she had no desire to follow her usual sexual routine. She didn't want anything hard and fast. Instead she really wanted him to take his time. Damn, if his moving that slow blew Liv's head off like that, then she'd take his slow and steady any day. She didn't think she'd ever seen anyone cum so hard before, in real life or in porn videos. Alex carefully slotted himself, then lay back atop her, still giving Liv room to play. He resumed kissing her as he slowly slid himself inside of her. Shanna moaned in appreciation and lifted her legs, giving him ample room. Liv, feeling helpful, finally let her captive nipple free and grabbed her friend's thigh, helping to position it for her. Alex took the new position to thrust more easily into Shanna, keeping the motions slow and steady, and he slid in and out making long slow full motions, driving it in to the hilt, only to pull back almost to the point of it falling out. One time it did, and Liv quickly grabbed it, putting it back into position before Alex put it back where it belonged. Liv felt especially naughty wrapping her hand around Alex's love slickened pole covered in her new friend's juices. When she thought no one was looking she licked her palm, only to notice Cate watching her from the other bed. While she blushed, Cate blew her an imaginary kiss and winked at her. Liv blushed even harder. Instead of trying to get Alex to move faster, Shanna was appreciating Alex's slow easy motions. It felt much more relaxing, and she was already feeling her skin, as it seemed to be alive with a tingling sensation. As a result she pulled Alex down against her, trying to get more of the skin-on-skin contact everyone had told her was necessary. Liv took all this in as she allowed her hands to wander, one running across Shanna's thigh, across Alex's ass and up his back, while her other hand played around her own thigh. Damn, this is sexy as hell, she thought to herself. Even as hard as I came before, they're both getting me going. And from the looks of it, Cate certainly seems to be enjoying the show as well. And who can blame her, she asked herself. If I was her, I'd certainly be hot to trot regardless of who it was conducting such sexual magic. Still, she got a little shiver thinking she detected a bit more interest from Cate than she had from Shanna. She knew she wouldn't be around after tomorrow, but she wondered what it would be like to sleep with Cate. Did she have any of Alex's magic? Could she use the energy she took from her brother to do any of the same things he seemed able to do? Alex and Shanna were slowly working themselves up. Even though she didn't really need to, Shanna worked her hand in between them and started frigging herself as Alex made slow love to her. When Alex broke their kiss in order to regain his breath, since they were both breathing so hard, Shanna glanced at Liv and noticed how beautiful she looked as she rubbed her sweat dampened skin. She watched the same hand run up Liv's side and begin playing with her breast, and Shanna thought how jealous she felt of that hand, and how she could surely do a much better job than Liv's own hand could. However she had to abandon that train of thought, as Alex's continually intruding cock brought her mind back to what was important. She marveled that a man this young had such expertise and such a soft, light touch. She assumed the sheer number of women everyone talked about his sleeping with had something to do with it, as did his magical energy, but she suspected there was also simply a lot of tenderness and love in Alex that highlighted everything else he did. Despite just having met them earlier today, Alex already loved them both, and they both deeply loved him. Shanna knew she'd dedicate her life to Alex, she'd known that after only talking to him for a short while, but she was reminded as she once more felt his love wash over her like a large fluffy blanket, warming her very soul and comforting the large empty spot in her that had always threatened her. Now that hole seemed miniscule, hardly noticeable, and she suspected she could fill it full of the knowledge of Alex's love whenever she needed to in the future. That made her feel even better. Damn, how much better can I keep feeling, she asked herself. Alex started stoking a bit harder, as both of their breaths became a bit heavier. Shanna was still pulling him tighter against her while holding his hips, Liv's hands once more playing with the both of them since she'd lain down beside them. The difference in the sensation of their hands was amazing, and she again wondered how far those differences extended, as she continued to find her friend amazingly sexy. She knew a lot of long closed doors in her mind were slowly opening wide, opened by Alex's love and his, Liv and Cate's concern for them both. Alex had to prop himself up on his hands in order to get the angle he needed, as he was starting to tire. Shanna missed the press of his body against her, as the skin seemed to cry out in its absence. She knew that was silly, but it was such a strong mental image she couldn't deny it. Liv's hand made up for some of the loss, as it quickly eased into the space between Alex's and her body, running over her damp skin, touching places only male lovers had ever touched before. Liv's touch was electrifying. Not like Alex's at all, but still intriguing all its own, and added to what she was feeling from Alex it made for a complex mess she knew she'd be trying to analyze for months. Alex's strokes got shorter as his pace increased once more. He was making shorter thrusts into her, and she realized they were both getting closer to the big event. She realized belatedly that her body had, and was currently going through, several mini-orgasms that were each much more than she'd felt with her other lovers, and she marveled at that thought. She knew she was headed for a massive one, one by which all others would pale in comparison. She also realized it was silly making such comparisons, since she knew this one would be due to physical changes to her brain, but she also knew she'd compare each and every lover for the rest of her life against this moment, even Alex, though she suspected Alex would manage to rise to the challenge, even as she doubted that no one else ever would. Alex, growing weary, collapsed down on her again, Liv only just removing her hand in time. Liv transferred her hand to Alex's ass as he continued thrusting into Shanna, his pace growing faster and more erratic. Shanna felt the beginnings of what she intuitively knew was the mother of all orgasms. She could feel her skin rippling with Alex's energy, her nipples felt like they were near to bursting, and her lungs couldn't draw in enough air for the scream she knew was building up in her. Alex's pace became even faster and more frantic, and she felt him shaking as he held her to him. Trying to help him, she raised her own pelvis and strained to hold onto him each time he withdrew from her. She could feel sweat dripping down her skin and pooling in unexpected places, but she didn't give a damn. Nor did she worry about what dripped off of Alex, either. Somehow, anything that came from Alex seemed simply divine, whatever it might be. Somehow the thought of Alex's potential divinity drove Shanna's excitement even higher, even though she knew it was a falsehood. Here she was, making love to the most amazing man anyone was likely to know, the future father of an entire race of man, and a man who would singlehandedly change the future of a whole people. With that thought in mind, she felt Alex pull back and shove into her hard and she felt a hot shooting motion in her lower belly and she knew he was coming and suddenly it felt like the top of her head was exploding. She felt joy, excitement and happiness without bounds. She felt all was right with the world, and that she'd never again feel such happiness in her life, but she was too happy to be concerned with such a foreign concept. She idly recognized that she seemed to be screaming, although she had no conscious awareness of doing it. Almost in slow motion, she noticed Alex's amazing glow begin to diminish as she felt her eyes roll to the back of her head and she slowly lost consciousness in the grandest experience a woman, no, any human, could ever experience. She felt her consciousness leave her body as if carried away on a receding wave of beauty and happiness, and she bid it a joyful ma'as salaama. ------- Chapter 6: Reacquaintances Alex awoke to a comfortable mental fog, memories only slowly filtering through of what had happened the night before. Remembering, he slowly opened his eyes and looked about. It took him a moment to remove the hair from his face, but he couldn't see much. He was lying on his side with someone holding him loosely from behind, their naked breasts pressing into his back, while another body lay over him, her dark head with its darker black hair lying against his chest, her soft breathing telling him she was still asleep. He tried to glance over his shoulder, but even without looking he knew who it would be, who it always was, and that someone very important was missing. He already felt her loss. The arms wrapped around him tightened, so he knew at least one other person was awake. 'Gail? Are you awake?' he asked softly, quiet even for a telepathic whisper. 'Yeah, boss man. I'm awake. Though for as long as you kept us awake with all that screaming last night, I'm a bit surprised, ' she answered him. 'Sorry about that, ' Alex apologized. 'No you aren't, ' Gail contradicted him. 'You're right, I'm not. Do you have any idea of what time it is?' 'Yes, it's a little after six. You about ready to get up?' she asked him. 'Yeah, you'd better get the girls up. Who'd you end up sleeping with?' 'I got my own bed. Seems your two little girlfriends have developed quite a friendship with each other. They're both looking very happy in each others' arms.' 'That's good. I can't think of anyone who deserves it more, ' Alex told her before ending their short conversation. "Finish speaking with Gail?" Cate quietly whispered to him, whispering near his ear so she wouldn't disturb Liv. "Yeah, how'd you know?" he asked. "You always reach out to whoever you're physically closest to, as if they are the most in need of you, which is probably true most of the time. I can't see you reaching out to Shani or Patricia at the moment." "Always the careful observer, you should add psychology to your list of fields of study," he observed. Liv shifted against him, murmuring as she started to awaken. "Shh, don't awaken sleeping beauty," he whispered. "I wouldn't dream of it," she answered him. "Hey, wait a minute, what am I then? Sleeping Rapunzel?" Alex couldn't help it and started giggling quietly, which caused Liv to rustle a little more as she tried to find a more comfortable spot on Alex's chest. However, that just made it worse, and soon brother and sister were trying to contain their sudden giggle fits. "Hmm, some comfy pillow you are. There I was, all comfortable and then my pillow starts giggling," Liv complained, finally opening her eyes and looking up at Alex. "Good morning, beautiful. Or should I say beautifuls? Whatever happened to Shanna? Last I remember she was recovering from having her head blown off." "Yeah, you were pretty out of it after that last time," Cate reminded him. "I forced you to eat something while Shanna recovered, then you fell fast asleep. I keep telling you that you burn off a lot more energy than you're aware of. However Shanna had to take off shortly after that. Seems she still had some packing to do, and she wanted to finish her sleep at her place so she'll be well rested when she joins us this morning." 'Hey, Shanna?' Alex called, reaching out once again. 'Hey yourself, handsome. I was wondering just how long it would take you to wake up. You were pretty out of it when I left last night.' 'So I heard. Sorry about that. Are you awake and getting ready yet?' he asked. 'Yep, I'll be ready to head out in a bit. I'm packing the car as we speak. I've got a lot of mementos and office supplies in it. I'll park in the garage when I get to the hotel, just so I don't have to worry about leaving all this stuff on the street.' 'Sounds like a plan. Are you going to be ready for breakfast or will you need more time?' 'No, I should be ready. I'm anxious to get started today. Is everyone going to be there for breakfast?' 'As far as I know. I'm assuming Emma and Sarah will be there, so yeah, everyone should be there.' 'Good, I'll see you in a little while then. Now, unless you want to come over and help, I've got to finish up here, ' she replied and they both said goodbye. "Shanna says she'll be ready for breakfast," Alex told the two girls. "Good, we wouldn't want to leave without her," Cate told him. "Care to take a shower?" Liv asked. "Maybe we could try for a second cumming," she teased, making a terrible pun. "If you do, you'll have to do all of your fooling around within a half hour of breakfast," Cate told them. "Alex finished off all the spare food last night. We'll have to stock up on the way out this morning. This boy can eat like a horse." "Oh, that's too bad. Well, maybe in that case we can wash each other's backs ... and fronts," Liv suggested. "You do that," Cate told them. "I'll call home while you're busy and talk to Mom and Dad, they'll want to know how things are going. I'm assuming you've already talked to the girls?" "Not this morning, but I talk to them throughout the day. If they ask, you can fill them in on last night," Alex told her before he followed Liv into the bathroom, grinning broadly. Cate sighed as she started dialing the phone, thinking it was frustrated watching others have all the fun while she pretended she and Alex weren't involved. ------- "Well, glad to see you could make it for breakfast," Emma said, clearly happy to see Alex again. She and Sarah said hi to everyone. Liv couldn't wipe the grin off of her face, though, so everyone smiled in knowing acknowledgement. "Shanna should be by soon," Alex informed them. "I spoke to her about an hour ago and she said she'd be here shortly." "Good, it'll be a full house then," Sarah responded. "So how did the two of you sleep last night?" Alex asked, trying to get everyone's mind off of his romantic interludes of the previous night and that morning. "We did fine, although we can see you did pretty well yourself," Sarah responded. "So, Liv, did he work any magic on you?" "Man, you better believe it," she said. "I can talk to people I've never even met. It's amazing. I think I'll be talking to Alex all day just because I can." "Well, I hope you enjoy it. I'd love to have an ability like that," Emma told her. "You and me both," Cate complained. "That's the problem with being Alex's wingman, I've got to watch everyone else reap the benefits." "Are you kidding?" Amy asked unbelievingly. "You get to go everywhere with Alex and spend all your time with him. Not only that, you get to see whatever he does and talk to everyone he, uh, does." The other girls laughed at that while Alex and Cate both blushed. "She gets a few side benefits as well," Gail suggested meaningfully, which Liv and Tina smiled knowingly at. "So, we're sorry to see you leave. It's been a blast," Sarah told them. "Before you take off, I want to say a few things," Alex told them. "When you go home, I want you to talk to your relatives, and pay attention to anyone you think might be either a type 1 or type 2. If you're in doubt, include them. Next, suggest they come down to New Orleans. The type 2s don't need to be there anytime soon, but if they want to meet me, or if there's any type 1s, they'll have to get down there in the next couple of days. "They might not have much of a choice later," he continued, "but at this stage they can make up their own minds whether they want to be involved in this whole scene or not, so try to make it sound convincing." "Alex Peter Jennings! Don't you dare say anything more about mind control. I thought we'd settled this yesterday," Cate insisted. "You don't control anyone's mind and you don't make decisions for anyone. Everyone who is involved with you got involved because they wanted to. If any of their relatives don't want to get involved with you, it'll be because they don't believe them when they describe you. Now I'm going to break this habit of yours of assuming that no one would voluntarily accept you for who you are." Everyone looked at Cate in shock for a few moments, then the girls all started giggling uneasily. "Yes, Mom," Alex told her in an imitation childish voice. "Now I know you two must be involved with each other," Liv commented. "Only two lovers would scold someone like that, and only a lover can pull the mother card. Anyone else would be history." They all laughed a bit more openly at that, and Cate blushed heavily. "By the way, don't ever call your sister 'Mom' again if you know what's good for you," Liv warned him with a dire look. "Don't worry, Alex," Emma told him, returning the discussion to the prior topic, "we'll be down in a few days, with or without any relatives. There are a couple who might be possible, it'll be interesting to find out." "Hey there, everyone," Shanna called out as she neared the table. Everyone welcomed her, breaking up the discussion as they got their food from the breakfast bar. Sitting down again they started to eat. "OK, Tina, Amy and Shanna are all coming with us, correct?" Alex asked, just to figure out logistics. They each nodded their heads yes. "I'm already telling you, I don't care who drives with who, but you're riding with me," Gail told Alex in a no nonsense tone of voice. "That goes for me as well," Cate said. "Wherever you go, we're bound to find new followers, so I want to be there to keep track of them." "I don't know if that's necessary," Alex suggested, "Tiny and Amy have proven adept at talking to the new Watchers." "Yes, they have, but I still think I should keep track of them. I've been doing more than just talking to them. I'm also keeping track of who we meet, where we meet them, the circumstances, and I record any personal observations. Plus Tina and Amy don't have experience with the Seers. Each of them takes additional time, and the circumstances are almost always bound to attract attention. You need someone to watch your back. They can help out, but I want to be with you to ensure everything goes smoothly." "I'm OK driving on my own," Shanna told them. "Although I'd appreciate some company, I can always talk to Alex or Liv while I drive, so I'll be fine." "Amy and I would like to ride with you guys," Tina said, "but we were thinking of shifting off with one of you, so no one had to ride alone. I guess that idea is out the window now." "OK, I know it's awkward, but everyone travels in their own cars," Alex announced, taking the role of decision maker once again. "We'll take the lead, Tina and Amy can follow, so they can stop and help if necessary. Shanna can pick up the rear. She'll only stop if we meet another Seer so they can commiserate, but the chances of that are pretty slim. "We found out on the way here that we'll probably have to stop pretty frequently. We ended up stopping nearly every exit, so expect a lot of interruptions. If anyone doesn't want to stop, just keep going. We're heading to Allison's place, she made arrangements for us to use it for the next several days. We'll give everyone the address so we can meet if we get split up. Otherwise, if one of us stops the others can join us or simply head for the next exit. Anytime we stop we meet up at the next exit, since chances are we'll drag whoever we meet there to educate them. Everyone got that?" They all agreed, so they resumed their normal conversations. When they were finished, Alex hugged the two girls from Springfield, Missouri. Alex told them to try to bring their mother, sister and aunt, who they'd mentioned might be potential new followers, and he hoped to see them in a couple of days. "Just be prepared for a madhouse, because I'm known throughout New Orleans now, so there's no telling what might happen." "Yeah, we've figured that out by now," Emma replied. "Whenever you're around, anything is likely to happen." "OK, now that that's taken care of, Liv, I assume you'll be heading up to Carbondale soon?" She nodded meekly like a little girl, instead of the assertive professional she was. "Yes, sir, I'm planning on heading up this coming Monday. I'll be clearing up all my outstanding cases for the rest of the week, just so no one will be inconvenienced by my absence." "Good, I like that attitude. You demonstrate your own personal sense of responsibility, both to your tasks but also to your friends and coworkers. That makes me think that much more of you." Liv smiled brightly at this praise, even though it was so imprecise. "You'll enjoy everyone you meet up there, and I'm sure they'll fill you in on every little detail about me, but I wouldn't believe a word of it if I were you." She gave him a big hug and wished them luck. Everyone said goodbye after that, and the others headed out and the little caravan got underway. For two of the cars scheduling was easy to arrange, since they were in constant communications. For the other, they had to use a telephone, so it took a bit more work. As they headed out, Cate, who was riding in the back seat, turned to Alex, who was driving. "Alex, I thought we'd discuss what happened in Memphis while we have you to ourselves." "Yeah, it was something, wasn't it? Hell, we encountered more people in Memphis in one day than we did in St. Louis, a much larger city, in two weekends." "That's hardly accurate, or even true," Cate responded. "You met three Seers the first weekend in St. Louis, and we hardly spent as long there as we did here. And don't argue the fact you met Nikki in St. Louis. If you don't count her, then you can't count Kelly Ott, since you met her in a hotel. Besides, we've learned a lot about how to handle these things. We dealt with the Watchers, we set up people to watch for anyone approaching you, and we tried to scoop up anyone in the vicinity. We're handling things much more efficiently. We might have learned these things in St. Louis if we had the chance. However you allowed Clara and Lisa to chase us out of town instead." Alex listened to Cate's points, simply nodding in acknowledgment. He was well aware of the details. They had indeed learned a lot, and St. Louis ended up as a bit of a fiasco. Much like New Orleans had before. Thus he felt nervous about what they'd encounter there this week. "We'll have to be careful in New Orleans," Alex told both Cate and Gail. "We know everyone will be watching us, we know that Albert Rodriguez is aware of me. Let's see if we can prepare for whatever happens this time. But just be aware we may have to skip town again. I know Patricia has several things planned, but let's keep our options open. She and our trio of Watcher watchers have thing well organized in New Orleans, so it isn't really necessary for me to do much there. I'll try to visit with as many of the people that Patricia has lined up as I can, but nothing about the next several days is written in stone. I'd still rather not end up in the headlines." "That makes sense," Cate agreed, "although we probably have more Seers and Watchers lined up there than anywhere else, so if we can keep out of trouble you can reach a lot of people with a minimum of effort. Also, we need to manage the issue and not let people push us around." "That makes sense. I also think everyone in New Orleans has been inviting their relatives so I can check them out. That's bound to take some time. We'll just have to hope we can keep a low profile for once." "It's hard to keep a low profile when people bow down to you in public, or approach you in public cafeteria's dripping with fresh blood," Cate reminded him. He merely nodded, well aware of how these things quickly got out of hand. However the normal six-hour trip wasn't as difficult as the trip from St. Louis had been. They met plenty of new people, but they were more scattered, despite this being a more heavily traveled route. Instead of stopping at nearly every exit, they only had to stop every couple of exits. In fact, when they pulled into one McDonald's to talk over coffee with a couple of girls they'd just flagged down, Alex recognized it from their previous drive down several months ago. He wondered just how many people might have been following him then, only he had been unaware of it and thus had missed the chance not only to talk to the people, but to learn about himself before he'd reached New Orleans. But he realized that everything needs its own time, and that you can't rush life. Life happens according to its own schedule, and you have to be willing to adapt to it. Anh had been drilling that into him lately, and he thought it particularly good advice. As they drove past Lake Maurepas and the nearby Maurepas Swamp, Alex grew both more excited and more nervous, as he recognized the sights. He remembered the view of Lake Ponchatrain that had made him so reflective before. As they entered the city he spotted several sights he remembered, despite the fact they'd spent most of their time in the French Quarter, the view of Poydras Street in particular bringing back memories of his first medical intervention. When they pulled up in front of Allison's apartment everyone was more than ready to get out of the car, since they'd spent most of the day sitting. Tina and Amy had agreed to check into 'Le Sursis Petits', the quaint little hotel that Alex and his family had stayed in on their previous visit. They didn't feel secure staying there again, since the local reporter revealed Alex was staying there, but they felt comfortable with the management and were sure the girls would feel comfortable there. However the girls had heard stories of Allison over the last two days, and were anxious to see where they were staying so they followed the others up to their room. They'd reached the elevator in the lobby, and when it opened Alex found himself inundated by three excited young women who quickly swarmed over him. "Alex, it's so good to meet you," a girl with reddish hair that Alex had never met before stated excitedly. In fact, Alex was sure he'd never met any of them before, so he was confused why they all seemed to know who he was. "We were expecting you, but knowing you're coming and seeing you are two completely different things," gushed another, a blond whose bangs kept falling into her eyes. "Hold on, hold on," Alex said, trying to fend them off. He glanced at Gail, who was supposedly protecting him, but she was giggling with a hand over her mouth, so she was obviously not going to be of any help. "Now, could someone kindly tell me who you are?" he asked once he'd gotten a little space for himself. "Oh, sorry. We were so excited we kind of got carried away," said one, obviously the most outspoken of the group because she quickly took over speaking for them all. "We sublease Allison's apartment from her. We agreed to let you take over the apartment while you're here, with the understanding that we got to meet you. We're here to help get you settled, then we'll take you over to where we'll meet Patricia for dinner." "Oh," Alex said, relieved there was a rational explanation for three young teens throwing themselves at him for no apparent reason. "Are you... ?" he asked, not willing to finish the question in case they weren't. "Oh, yes, we're what you call Watchers. Patricia selected us from the group that hung out at Peter's coffee shop to take over Allison's apartment for her. She felt renting it to her 'sisters' was more fitting, plus she figured we'd keep it neater if she could threaten how upset you'd be if we didn't," she answered with a giggle. Alex had to admit she was cute, in that bubbly teen manner he normally found so annoying. It was the sort of teeny-bopper/cheerleader type of enthusiasm. Still, on this girl it seemed to be fitting. "So, you answered why you were here, but not who you are. As you've obviously guessed, my name is Alex." He then proceeded to introduce everyone else and the girls politely said hello to each, but their eyes kept darting back to Alex like he was the newest teen sensation. It was more than a bit disconcerting to Alex, but Gail continued to giggle at his discomfort, and his sister Cate soon joined her, since she knew how much he disliked the cheerleader types at his own high school. "Sorry," responded the cheerful blond. "My name is Valerie Albright. I attend Tulane University near here. This," she said, indicating the redhead beside her, "is Carrie Meier, she attends Loyola and this," she indicated the dark haired girl on her other side, "is Cynthia Ackerman. She's attending Southern University." Alex cordially said hello to each, reviewing each as he did in that searching manner he had of looking at someone like he was reading their very personalities through their eyes. Valerie obviously was the blond with the bangs that wouldn't stay in place, with blue eyes and very pale skin, but who managed to carry herself with a lot of style despite her simple dress. Cynthia had darker skin with black hair that hung down to her breasts and had a dark penetrating stare with nice full lips. Carrie seemed the shyer of the three, since she hung back a bit. She had reddish brunette hair with a fuller figure and a sprinkling of light freckles. Alex wouldn't have thrown any of them out of bed, but he had to reconsider that thought, since he realized it may just come to that. The three girls grabbed everyone's bags and helped them into the elevator and they headed up to their room. Everyone had to explain who they were, which mostly consisted of how they related to Alex, since he seemed to be the common denominator between them. Shanna, Tina and Amy all oohed and aahed over the apartment, and Amy told the girls how she wished she had a spread like this when she was in college. However they informed her they worked hard keeping it neat as a pin, since they definitely didn't want to lose it. As they were putting their stuff away, Tina and Amy announced they were going to head off so they could unload their stuff at the hotel in time to meet the rest at the restaurant. Valerie told them they were staying at the same hotel, since the management was so fond of Alex. It seems Patricia continued sending people from the community there since it was widely associated with Alex. Thus the hotel was doing very good business as a result. They were offering the girls a free room as their way of saying thanks. Cynthia offered to accompany Tina and Amy over to help them get settled and show them where the three girls were staying. She also said they'd be glad to show them around New Orleans, especially since they might have more encounters with Alex by doing so. They also gave everyone the name and address of the restaurant, as well as Valerie's phone number, though the restaurant didn't trigger any memories for Alex as he didn't think he'd ever been there before. Since they knew they had a while before the Tina and Amy would be ready, everyone else sat around and talked about themselves, while Cate and Alex rested up after the long drive. Even though they hadn't stopped as much as they had on Monday, it was still draining dealing with that many people, never knowing precisely how anyone was going to react or what to expect. "None of us knew the others when we each first learned of you," Valerie told them. "Cynthia and I learned about you when you were still in town, although Carrie showed up a few days afterwards. We took to hanging around at Peter's coffee shop in the French Quarter, commiserating with the other Watchers about who had seen what and what it might mean. Peter, David and Darice managed to get us organized and informed us what you expected from each of us, and we told anyone else we met we were sure was safe. But you certainly created a swirl of public attention with those headlines about you in the Times-Picayune newspaper." "Everyone had to be careful who we told what to," Carrie explained, "since everyone was anxious to discover whatever they could. Just like you did, we each had to deal with the posers who wanted to be a part of something they weren't. So we had to be doubly careful." "Word quickly spread about Patricia's intimate relationship with you," Valerie said, continuing the story, "so we'd all trek to her concerts whenever we could. We got to talking to her there after a short time and she thought she could trust us, since we behaved so well at the concerts instead of acting like drunken bores. That's when she told us Allison had a really nice apartment she was interested in subletting. We jumped at the chance, and we were even more excited when we finally saw the place. Our first night here none of us could sleep, imagining all the things you did with Allison and your other women in this very bed." "So what is it each of you are studying?" Alex asked, always aware of his need to give his followers individual tasks to keep them involved and to allow them to feel included. "I'm majoring in technology, mostly Web Design," Valerie told them. "I'm studying Industrial Design," Carrie said, which everyone thought fit her personality, although Alex didn't think he had any immediate needs in that particular area. Cynthia said she was working in teaching and the history of literature, which made Alex think of Diana, who shared a similar interest. They decided they'd wasted enough time for Tina and Amy to get ready, so after speaking briefly with Patricia they set out for the restaurant. As usual, they walked to the French Quarter, even though it was a healthy hike. They were each anxious to stretch their legs, so the walk did them good, and Alex was anxious to see the city again, as well as to see how many new followers they might see. However, when Cate pointed out a couple to Alex, Valerie asked them not to go chasing Watchers yet. "Patricia is planning on presenting you with the results of her research. She's got a bunch of potential Watchers and Seers that she's identified through her questionnaires, so she's anxious to see if they actually are. If you start blindly talking to people you'll compromise her 'experiment', so she asked if you could stop searching for people for the night. There are a lot of potential followers in the city at the moment, as everyone here has been recruiting friends and family. That's what tonight is about." Alex was about to ask about that, but he found the idea of not bothering with who was following or watching him to be strangely liberating, and he enjoyed it for as long as he could. He simply strolled along enjoying the scenery, the odd costumes and the strange mix of locals, performers and tourists. However, none of them could fail to notice the many Watchers that passed them, nor the several that were actively following them. But as long as they didn't make a scene Alex could ignore them for now. He just hoped that Patricia was correct in knowing who was who, and that they weren't missing people by taking this line of non-action. Vicky and Carrie took them into a small little brick restaurant where they met Cynthia, Tina and Amy talking to the maître d'. He escorted them back to a large table where they found Patricia sitting with Darice, Peter and David. Cate and Alex immediately begun hugging everyone, and they introduced their new friends and they quickly got started on the meal and catching up on their lives. Patricia had catered a specialty 5 course meal of the house. After the waiter brought a salad Alex had never seen the likes of before, they started discussing what had been happening. "Things have been busy since you left," Darice told Alex. "Everyone keeps bringing their relatives, so we've got plenty of people for you to indoctrinate." "Yeah," David said, "Patricia developed a real detailed checklist that identifies who will be a Watcher and who will be a Seer. We're anxious for you to check it out. That's why everyone is here this week. We told everyone to bring their relatives and friends so you could see who qualified and who didn't." "I heard about that," Alex replied. "I hope it works. We've already been using it, and Tina and Amy have been helping talk to the new people we've met." "We'll find out how well it works tonight," Patricia said, brushing out her curly hair showing off new jewelry. Noticing everyone's glance she responded, "I got this because it shows up well from a distance. The show tonight is going to be a big deal. It's the first time I present my new material to a public audience, aside from your birthday and your prom, of course. So I'm excited for a variety of reasons, but the biggest thing is introducing you to the potential Seers, to see if my ideas are correct." "We'll see soon enough, but there's no guessing ahead of time," Alex said, taking Anh's teachings to heart. "Now, how have the press reports about me been?" "Well, as you may have noticed, we worked to bury the internet accounts of your activities here," Peter explained. "While we haven't exactly erased them, we've made them much less noticeable, and we've produced so many misleads and false information most people have given up looking." "Yeah, we noticed that when we tried showing some friends what happened to me here," Alex commented. "So has Mr. Rodriguez printed anything more about me since we left?" "There really hasn't been much to report, and he didn't know that much about you to start with, so no, there really hasn't been much," Patricia explained. "That's a load off of my mind," Alex said, relieved he wouldn't have to worry about being exposed anytime soon. "We've got a lot planned for you in the next few days, Alex," David said. "I hope you don't have any specific plans for sleeping by yourself for a while." The others with him laughed at that idea. "David is right," Patricia explained. "I'd originally planned to have the women interested in getting pregnant by you agree to a unique agreement, where they'd arrange to find relatives representing a Watcher, a potential Seer and a normal type 3 woman. However, from what I've been hearing from everyone else, the time for grand experiments may be limited, so after talking it over with your other girls we've decided to present our potential Seers to you a couple per night, based upon who is the most fertile at a given time. These people are anxious to get pregnant, and especially to have not only your baby, but hopefully a baby that would possess your special abilities. That's the holy grail of your people right now, and people see anyone who could produce such an heir by you as being your equivalent of a Madonna figure." "But I thought you were the 'Madonna of the Angel of New Orleans'?" Alex countered with a smile. "Hardly," she laughed, "although that might change tonight. I see myself more as the other Mary figure in this context. I'm an intimate confidant to you. Many now like to think of Mary as Jesus' lover, although the church considers such ideas heresy, preferring to believe that Jesus never once sullied himself by getting an erection or ever having had sex, but I think such views of the world are overly simplistic. I like to think of her as the first disciple, whom the church conveniently chose to ignore." Cate cleared her throat loudly, subtly telling everyone who she thought was actually Alex's first disciple and 'intimate contact', and Patricia had to laugh. "Sorry, Cate, I know it's a misperception, but unfortunately I've become the public face of Alex's ministry in New Orleans. Everyone has associated me with him, and since he hasn't been here himself, they look to me for leadership. So far I've tried to keep the message simple and strictly based upon what he's told me, but it's hard because these women all want more." "It's true," Peter said. "Since we don't want to release the information in any publicly available manner, the three of us have been responsible for getting news of you out to everyone. There is a huge desire for the latest information about you. People are continually stopping by for anything new concerning you. They're especially interested in the numbers of people you've connected with. We keep telling them you haven't been doing that yet, and that you've been holed up amongst the normal type 3s until now, but that's just gotten them to focus on the stories of your schoolmates." "Yeah, they love the stories Patricia came back from your party and Prom with," Darice explained. "They especially like how you seduce and win over the normal girls just as easily as you do the Seers and Watchers. Somehow that makes them think that you have what's needed to allow the community to cross over into the mainstream eventually. They know they're a very small group at the moment, but they imagine a day when they'll be considered a specific segment of the general population, able to freely admit who they are." "I've hardly seduced anyone," Alex argued, blushing slightly. "If anything, I keep fighting them off. But my approach seems to attract many of them. But you're right, the girls from my school have become official followers, even if they don't know the full story about me yet." "Ha," Cate said with a surprising amount of mirth. "You should see them. They'd do just about anything for him. When he finally told them a little about himself, which they'd been gossiping and guessing about, they were ecstatic. Now they have changed their college plans, planning to attend SIU just so they can be close to him for the next several years." "They don't know about your ... uh..." Peter asked, unwilling to mention Cate's idea about his impending death as if saying it might make it come true. "No, we didn't feel it was appropriate," Cate told him, not addressing what they were discussing either. "Besides, for the moment, it's just a crazy notion that we've had. We have no actual proof of it. After all, Alex's energy heals, so any signs of his suffering from it are disguised by it as well. But I still remain convinced. Dr. Moore has given him several thorough checkups, and he's come through each with flying colors, although he admits that Alex already looks like he's aged several years in just the last couple of months. Luckily Alex is young enough it actually looks better on him, but still, it's noticeable to those of us around him." "You didn't really talk about that with Liv, did you?" Shanna asked. "I'm sure she would have liked to have examined you to make up her own mind. What do the other Seers see about your health?" "They have trouble seeing anything about Alex clearly because of the strength of his aura," Cate explained. "About the only way they can observe much in detail is through a lead door, which we've used several times. Again, his entire body is infused with plenty of energy, which normally means they are healthy, but he's been showing additional signs of aging. He's been suffering from mild arthritis recently as well." "I thought that was the result of wear and tear on the joints?" Darice asked, clearly confused by the association. "It normally is," Cate responded. "We're not real sure what it means or why he's suffering from it, since it doesn't really run in the family, but I'm guessing it's just a sign of the strain his entire body is suffering from. But whenever it occurs, he just touches the joint and it's better, so it's more an indicator than a problem." During a break between courses Alex excused himself, at which point Darice asked him to hold on a minute. As he waited, curious about the delay, she found what she was searching for and handed him a clear plastic container. He looked at her curiously, clearly mystified. However Cate laughed. "Alex, it's for your sperm. They're afraid that with you sleeping with several women every day, that you won't have enough fresh sperm for a fresh deposit in the morning. She's offering to have it delivered for you." Alex blushed and hurried off to the restroom where, after having relieved himself, he tried to forget about the embarrassing events of the evening long enough to get a good hard-on. Luckily there were enough attractive women sharing his dinner table for him to let his imagination run wild, and it was only a little longer before he'd made his deposit. He was washing his hands, the container on the sink, when there was a knock and the door opened. "Just came to see what was taking you so long," Cate said as she entered the men's room. Alex quickly looked around, although he hadn't noticed anyone else since he'd entered. In fact, he never would have masturbated into the cup if he'd thought there was anyone else in the bathroom. "You always walk into men's rooms like that?" Alex asked. "I do when you're in here alone for so long. I'd have sent Gail but ... she may have made you even later." Alex assured her he'd manage to take care of his 'deposit' and that they could return to the table. "You haven't noticed that we're one of the only ones in the restaurant tonight, have you?" Alex hadn't noticed it. "That's why I wasn't worried about walking into the men's john. The least you could have done was demonstrate how the urinal worked for me, though." Alex tried to ignore his sister's teasing. He tried to quietly hand the sample to Darice when they returned to the table, but she picked it up and examined it against the overhead light of the restaurant. "Gail, does that look OK to you?" she teased. "Think there are enough little wigglers in there, or should we send him back with a little encouragement to make the little spermatozoa a little more active." "You could always try it for yourself and see," Gail teased her back. "Don't tempt me," she told her. "You don't know how tempted I am as it is." After they finished their meal Patricia turned to the others. "Well, it's been fun, but I've got to get over to the bar to get ready for the concert tonight," she told them. "I'm assuming you'll all be there, and no, I'm not asking, I'm informing you you'll be there. It's important." When everyone nodded she continued. "Good. Now, to keep you busy until it's time to head over, I've arranged for some, uh, entertainment. I'm sure you'll find this very entertaining, Cate," and with that she stood up and left out the side door, while a woman they didn't know led six women in with her from the front of the restaurant. "Uh, I have a feeling I know what this is about," Cate confided to her brother. "You better believe it," he told her. "They want us to pick out the real Watchers from the posers. But we've always judged who was a Watcher and who wasn't by their interest in me. If everyone is focused on me, how can we tell the difference?" "Don't worry about it," Cate assured him, as she wiped her hands on her napkin and stood up, after briefly rooting in her knapsack. She walked to and around the girls, speaking to them from a table behind them. "Now girls, I'm going to need each of you to fill out some information before we start, that way Alex will know who each of you are." Several of the girls immediately turned around and started grabbing the forms, but two stood rooted to the spot, continuing to stare at Alex, seemingly unable to look away. At this point Cate wordlessly swept her arm to indicate the two lone women in a triumphant expression. "Damn, we misjudged one," Peter complained. "That's a 30% failure rate. Hopefully we'll do better with the rest," David replied, immediately filling Alex with dread, knowing he was going to be spending quite a while evaluating potential followers. He knew Patricia has been working with a lot of people, and had made arrangements with many of them. That big of an error rate could prove problematic. He just hoped they'd all been given the briefing already, so he and Cate wouldn't have to speak to each and every one of them. ------- Chapter 7: Big Events in the Big Easy They headed towards Patricia's club, since it was getting near the time for the show. They formed quite an entourage, with Alex, Cate and Gail, Tina and Amy, the three girls from the apartment, plus Darice, Dave and Peter in addition to the girls that had made up their little test. Alex was afraid they were close to reaching parade status, and he hoped they weren't as obvious as he was feared they were. Before they got too far, Alex cornered Cynthia, one of Allison's renters. "Before we get too far, I wanted to mention that I might have someone you'd like to talk to," Alex told Cynthia. "Valerie told us about your degree, and I've got someone else who is into writing, though hers is more philosophical in nature, but I thought the two of you would probably hit it off." So Alex told Cynthia about Diane Lane at SIU. Of course that led immediately to a discussion about Alex's sorority, which the other girls overheard and joined in. Many of the girls they'd just met were either in school or had recently finished, although there were a few older ones as well. "We'd just love to be a part of something like developing our own branch of the sorority here," Valerie replied enthusiastically. "Patricia has told us how you've managed to merge your normal classmates in with the rest of your followers," she told a surprised Alex, who hadn't been aware he'd done any such thing until just then, but he could see how Patricia could have easily have gotten that impression from the people she'd met at Alex's birthday party. "There's a lot of work involved in it, but we started it because it gives our girls a home, it gives them a common framework, but it also allows you to aid the normal girls who join as well. I see each of the Seers and Watchers who are a part of the sorority as assisting the other girls with evaluating who to trust and how to evaluate people," Alex explained to the girls. Cate nudged Alex, who had been busy talking to Valerie and the other girls. When he glanced at her questioningly, she nodded behind her. Glancing back he noticed that they had added even more women to their group. He was sure they'd be likely to attract attention, but he wasn't sure how else to handle the situation. He just hoped they wouldn't create a scene before they reached the club. Alex also noticed they weren't heading to the club where they'd first listened to Patricia. "So where are we headed?" he asked Darice. "Oh, I guess you wouldn't have known, Patricia booked a new hall for tonight. As she said, this is a big event for her." That comment didn't help Alex at all, but Cate was just as bewildered when he glanced at her. So they just followed everyone else, who seemed perfectly comfortable with where they were going. There were other tourists around, but being mid-week there shouldn't have been that many around. Instead their group seemed to be amassing more and more people, as additional groups just seemed to bleed into their group as they continued walking. Alex was starting to get alarmed at the size of the group now. They turned off St. Louis Street and neared a much larger club that had a large sign out front that announced "Closed: Private Party". As they approached the door a couple of large beefy bouncers looked up at them, making Alex nervous about age limits for the club. But they noticed Darice, Peter and David and let them through, though they stopped those following them. They managed to get Shanna, Tina and Amy through with them, though. While the club was not only large, it was packed. Every seat was filled and there were still a lot of people standing around, packing both sides and along the back of the hall. Alex was sure if the fire marshal were aware of the crowd he'd surely close the place down, since the club was almost certainly over capacity. But the trio of Watcher watchers, as they'd been referring to Peter, David and Darice, continued to lead them forward. Finally they came to the only table still open in the entire club. Despite Patricia's problem with having Alex in the crowd during one of her performances, the table was right in the middle, just in front of the stage. There were seven seats, so Alex assumed the spare seat was meant for Patricia to join them mid-set, but no one objected when Alex offered it to Shanna. Tina and Amy assured them they'd join Valerie and her friends standing with the rest of the people there. There was a real feeling of excited anticipation to the crowd, although there was an awed hush the entire time they'd been walking in. Once they sat down a nervous buzz started up around them. People continued to arrive and blend into the crowd, and a waitress quickly arrived. However, instead of addressing the girls she came directly up to Alex. "Mr. Jennings, sir, Ms. Patty asked me to bring you a Le Pavillon. It's her personal favorite. It's a local red amber beer and I hope you'll like it," she nervously told him, rattling her prepared speech off as if trying to distract herself. Alex looked for a name tab but didn't see one. "And who might you be, sweetie?" "My name is Stacy, sir. I'll bring over some snacks, although the kitchen is closed tonight, and I'll get drinks for everyone else as well." "Relax, Stacy, everything will be fine. You understand I'm not—" "Oh, that's not a problem here, sir," she hurriedly explained. "Ms. Patty said to not let you overdo it, but to make sure I took care of each of you." "Well you're doing a fine job," he told her, touching her arm to try to calm her a little. Instead she blushed and hurried through getting everyone else's order. Alex noticed her clutching her arm where he'd touch her as she hurried away to fill their order. "She's got it bad," Gail told him. "Yeah, I can see that. I assume she's a Watcher as well." "I think everyone here is a Watcher," Cate observed. "Though I'm surprised there aren't a few Seers as well." "No, you won't see any," Darice told them. "Patty will explain it, though." People continued to filter in and Stacy brought drinks for everyone, along with peanuts and fresh fruit which she delivered personally and placed directly in front of Alex, though he offered it to everyone else. The lights blinked a few times, signaling the show was about to begin, so everyone started getting settled. The lights finally dimmed and shortly the curtain opened featuring a band with one guy, a keyboardist, and three girls, a guitarist, a backup singer and a drummer. They started up a tune Alex didn't recognize but figured he'd probably heard it during his Prom, but hadn't been able to focus on it at the time. Patricia came running in from the side, dressed for some serious rocking in black leather and a brightly patterned top with a long scarf, not to mention the necklace from before. She stopped in the center of the stage and began speaking. "Good evening ladies and ... Alex." The crowd apparently thought that was hilarious, but she soon got them under control as she continued. "I'm sure you're all aware this is a very special private show. You've each been invited here for quite obvious reasons. There are a couple of reasons for this show. I'm getting ready to release a new album and I'm anxious to test out the material, so this is the largest crowd I've tried it out for yet. But mostly this is to show off for someone you all know. A certain someone who, like Madonna and Cher, needs only a single name. Someone by the name of Alex," she shouted as a spotlight shown down directly on Alex. He had to hold a hand over his eyes for a moment and the crowd started screaming, then they started stamping their feet. He hesitantly got to his feet, at which point everyone started going wild. He sat down again and the noise continued until Patricia, or Patty as she was known on stage, got them under control again. "He's still the shy young man you've all heard about, so we won't embarrass him anymore. But that's part of why we love him so much. There are several things to announce. First, our special 'Program' starts tonight. Those of who have been selected are waiting backstage and they'll be brought out later. They were each excited to have been selected. Next, I have a special announcement." Here she waited for the anticipation to build a bit before she continued. "It seems I've gotten some special news recently." She paused again and the audience shifted nervously. "It seems I'm officially pregnant. And as all of you know, there's only one man who could possibly be the father, so the Madonna of the Angel of New Orleans is expecting her own not-so-virgin-birth," she shouted, and the resulting screaming and yelling was even louder than it had been before. Alex was shocked to hear this news, and he sunk low in his chair upon hearing it. He'd wished someone had mentioned it to him beforehand and he glanced at Gail, however she simply shrugged, holding her hands up in a dismissive gesture, signaling it had been out of her hands so he simply groaned. He wasn't disappointed, he just wasn't sure finding out the in the middle of a concert was the most personal way of discovering such an intimate detail. Still, he was pleased, since he knew she was anxious about becoming pregnant, though he wondered how it would impact her new recording career. Surely she'd been planning on touring to help promote the new album they were planning to release. However Patty didn't go into that just yet. "Now, as you all know, I don't plan on being the last. We plan on giving Alex plenty of chances to provide my little baby with some brothers and sisters. And we hope he'll leave here in a few days with both a son and a daughter with his own special 'attributes'," she said, insinuating exactly what she meant by attributes. "Now, before we get to that, here's the music I'll be recording soon. Obviously it's dedicated to Alex, and it reflects how each of us feels about him, though it's cleverly disguised as a series of romantic tunes. The album will be entitled, 'Light of Our Lives', and I can't think of a more fitting title." And with that the band started playing and she started singing the soulful title song, detailing how someone always enters the lives of expectant women, and how he fills their lives with expectations, beauty and understanding, as well as providing them with a new view of life and an understanding of what life is all about. That was as much as Alex could listen to before it became too much for him. Despite all that had happened to him he was still a humble kid, and he really didn't like all this overwhelming talk about how wonderful he was. It really troubled him, and he was afraid of the effect it may have on him if he ever took it seriously. So he reminded himself that everyone only responded like this because of his abilities, and that it had nothing to do with him or who he was. However, everyone else at his table, in fact everyone else in the entire club, was listening intently to every word. For a rock concert, the crowd was surprisingly quiet as everyone struggled to understand each and every word she sang as if they were personal messages for each of them. Alex simply shook his head and sunk even lower in his chair. Patricia continued singing another six tunes, each one as laden with subtle but unmistakable references to Alex. Each one making him sink a little lower in his seat, but there was only so far down he could go. Not only that, but every time he tried to distract himself by glancing around the club, he realized that everyone else was mesmerized, either by the performance or by him. When the set ended, Patricia and her band exited the stage to thunderous applause, and Alex relaxed a little more, hoping everyone would ignore him a little now that they weren't being reminded of everything he'd done. Alas, his hope was short lived. While Stacy brought yet another local beer, a different one this time, several new women clustered around him, either wanting an autograph or to tell him how much he'd changed their lives. Finally Patricia joined them and Shanna quickly stood up, giving Patricia her seat. Patricia took the offered seat, thanking her, wiping her brow and taking the drink that Stacy handed her. "So, what did you think?" she asked Alex. "The music was wonderful, but I think I'd prefer a few more instrumentals," he mildly complained, hoping she wouldn't take it too seriously. The music and lyrics really were very good, and he was sure she'd be successful with it. He was also sure no one not already involved in the movement would associate the lyrics with him. It was clear that Patricia had spent a lot of time crafting the words so they'd be loaded with double meanings. "I'd also have thought you'd have mentioned your pregnancy to me earlier, say, maybe during dinner?" "I thought it would be more effective this way. I can't see you blush anyway, but at least I can imagine you squirming," she laughed. "He was trying to slide out from under his chair," Cate unhelpfully told her. "And Gail, why couldn't you have warned me? You're supposed to be able to see these things," Alex complained. "Hey, she talked to me earlier and asked me not to say a thing when we saw each other. She said she wanted to surprise you. Who am I to spoil your surprise?" Gail responded, though she was smiling as she said it. "Geez, some protector you are. I imagine if someone wanted to stab me in the back you'd hand them a knife if they didn't bring theirs." "A surprise is hardly a knife, though a knife is often surprising," Gail told him, making a true but meaningless statement. "But you're hardly likely to be badly hurt by a little well deserved attention." "Just be prepared, because there's another big surprise at the beginning of the next set," Patricia warned him. "Should I go ahead and slip out the back now, or do it in the middle of your presentation?" he asked. "Alex, you could hardly 'slip out' of here," Cate informed him. "Everyone in here is watching your every move. Every time you sneeze, everyone pulls out a Kleenex." "So what did you think of the songs?" Patricia pressed. "Well, I've heard them before. Twice in fact. but they are truly wonderful tunes, and I'm sure your album is going to be a huge success. When are you supposed to record it?" "So what did the rest of you think about it?" she asked, not answering the question, focusing on the others instead. Alex couldn't blame her, she had a lot riding on the success of this new album, aside from a bunch of high school kids, and a handful of adults with a vested interest, no one had heard these songs before. Everyone sat and talked and drank for the next twenty minutes. Stacy kept bringing refills on the fruits, along with a selection of cookies which Cate kept forcing Alex to eat. He didn't mind, but he thought she was getting a little obsessive about it. Soon Patricia excused herself and returned to the stage, while Shanna quickly reclaimed her seat. This time, instead of beginning with a song, she got everyone's attention. "All right, now's the big moment. This is significant, as all of you know, these women have been waiting for so long, because it's so important to all of us, but also because most of you have never seen Alex work his magic. Now, Alex," she said, turning to him while shielding her eyes, "I explained how we've picked out several potential Seers over the last couple of months. I also told you we picked a few based upon who was the most receptive in their cycles..." she continued. Alex was getting a sinking feeling in his stomach. "So this is your big surprise. We've been hiding the women who we've picked. They're ready and are certainly psyched to meet you. They're anxious to be mothers, but more importantly they're anxious to be the mothers of your children." The drummer actually played a drum roll as Stacy led three blindfolded women from behind the stage. Despite being blind and confused by the noises in the hall, none of the three hesitated, since they knew exactly where they were headed. They could have found Alex naked in a whiteout. Stacy positioned each in front of Alex and everyone at his table moved back, so every eye was definitely on him now. The three girls were flexing their hands, apparently dying to rip off their masks and throw themselves at Alex. "See. Alex, they actually maintain quite a bit of control over themselves," Cate quietly whispered in his ear. "They can resist the impulse to chase you down, they just want to find you as soon as they can." The three girls were close in size, though not necessarily in physique. There was a tall blonde, a shapely Hispanic and a cute black girl with an odd hairstyle. It was obvious they each were prepared for this, since they were each nicely but simply dressed and each wore makeup. It was clear they each wanted to look their best for him. Alex hated this idea of handing him three random women for him to impregnate, but he knew it meant the world to these girls. He supposed he could still get to know them before he did anything with them. After all, the last thing he wanted was to screw some stranger he didn't know to produce a child he'd likely feel unconnected to. He noticed they were waiting for him so he nodded. When Patricia didn't continue he realized she couldn't see him, so he gave her a thumbs up. "The first, a pretty blonde by the name of Carolyn Simons, is from Montgomery, Alabama, and was brought to our attention by Sandy, her cousin," Patricia announced. Alex realized she was trying to thank the people involved, but he found this presentation a little disconcerting. When Patricia finished the description, Stacy released her blindfold and Carolyn took a quick step forward before she looked up into Alex's eyes. She immediately jerked her head back, but didn't respond beyond that. Apparently they'd been warned what to expect. Alex stood and walked up to her, taking the still confused girl by the hands and leading her back to the table, where he found that Darice, Peter and David had vacated, leaving three empty seats. He sat her down so she could recover, and then turned back to the two remaining girls. "The next is Kristi Nicholas, from near Monroe, Mississippi. She was sponsored by her sister, Katie, who was lucky enough to have first seen Alex when he was here the first time." Alex noticed the applause as Stacy loosened her blindfold, which he hadn't noticed before. Kristi overbalanced a little as the blindfold came free, but quickly regained her balance as their eyes met. She didn't stumble or jerk, but she waved her arms for a minute, unaccustomed to the many lights she was now seeing. Alex walked up and, after kissing her on the cheek, guided her to a seat next to Carolyn. Finally turning back, Patricia jumped right into it. "The last one is Lekesia Shapiro, from Chalmette, just near here. She was excited when her niece, Kendasha, informed her and her mother about our little program." Stacy pulled the blindfold from Lekesia's eyes and she too, jerked back a little then looked momentarily confused after Alex activated her. Alex took both her hands and drew her forward to the last chair, then moved around the table until he sat facing the three of them. Cate and Gail shifted their seats around until they sat on either side of him. "Now we'll leave Alex to wine and dine his new girlfriends in his usual style, while the rest of you enjoy the rest of our set," Patricia announced as she and her band began playing. All in all, Alex thought it was probably a bit of a letdown for the people assembled, since these women, having been prepared, hadn't responded as unpredictably as most of his Seers had in the past. For that he was thankful, and had to acknowledge that this little presentation, as embarrassing as it was, was probably beneficial. As the music played in the background, Alex leaned forward so the girls could hear him. "So, Lekesia, an interesting last name you have," he said, speaking loudly so she could hear him over the music. Thankfully the music was also loud enough so the sound of their conversation didn't travel far. "Not at all what I would have expected." Lekesia blushed, which was interesting to watch in such a cute little black girl. Her hair was cut in an unusual style, almost shorn on one side of her face, combed straight over to the other side, with much of it sticking straight up in the back. She also had pretty makeup, penciled on eyebrows and an infectious smile. "My dad was from a Jewish family on the east coast," she told him. "He met my mom when he came down for Mardi Gras one year and never went home. I catch a lot of grief from my friends, but we alternate holidays. We get Mardi Gras but he gets Passover. Well, he got Passover, I guess," Lekesia smiled, remembering the events, telling Alex all he needed to know about just how close she was to her family. Alex was the last one to complain about unusual family relationships. What's more, it sounded like the family was still close, since the niece had gotten both Lekesia and her mother involved. He didn't bother to ask about her father yet, he figured he'd wait until they knew each other a little better before broaching what might be an uncomfortable subject. "So what's your mother's name?" "Her name is Noel. She's here in the city, but Patricia didn't want you to see her until after you they determined whether she might get a chance at you as well. She's been talking about having another baby for a long time, and she sees this as being the perfect chance. When she found out I'd been selected tonight, she told me she was looking forward to our being pregnant together." "Yeah, I can imagine the fun filled live birth videos," Alex teased. "So what happened to your father? Doesn't he have an opinion about your mother, uh..." "No, he died several years ago. We've decided whichever of us has the first male baby will name it after him, Nathan Samuels." Alex had been afraid that she might have gotten emotional about a missing father, but she grinned fondly at the memory of her father. Alex felt like shit for calling a dead man a cuckold, but she didn't seem to be offended by it. "You don't mind having a baby so young, or your mother having one so late?" "I'm actually 17, and I'll be finishing high school early next year since I've been taking advanced courses. Some of the other women in the community here have told me they'd help watch the babies so I could attend community college, so I'll be able to continue my education. But I'm about the last girl in my neighborhood to get pregnant, so I won't be likely to advance very far otherwise. I figured I'd either succumb to all the players chasing me or I'd get raped someday, but now, with everyone including me as a Sister, I think I can get away from that environment. Plus I'll have a new baby that not only my Mom and I can love, but everyone else will love him too." Alex felt like he wanted to cry hearing how hopeless her life had been up to this point, that the highest she could aim was to be the last one of her friends to get pregnant and drop out of school. The fact that she was graduating early spoke volumes about her dedication and conviction, since Alex knew Louisiana didn't have the best education system in the world. Turning to Kristi he asked, "What brings a beauty like you to a party town like this?" She giggled, which he thought was generous, since it was hardly the cleverest line in the world. "My father came here looking for work. He does lawn services while my mom does maid work. I help her out to help cover expenses, but I'm really hoping to attend college. Only we can't afford much, and there's the problem of the school letting me in with my immigration status." "So your family isn't legal?" he asked, immediately regretting it since the family wasn't bootleg, what he meant was that they weren't legal citizens. Still, he couldn't hold where she was born against her. However she didn't get upset either. "No, my father snuck across the border in Texas twenty years ago, and my mother and uncle came across to join him a few years later. They moved around quite a bit until they found a stable community here. There's always a chance we'll be discovered and deported, but their life in Mexico was hell. They were dirt poor, there were no jobs, and the crime in the neighborhood was unbelievable." "You know, if you were born here you're considered a citizen, so you should be able to attend school here as a native?" "Really? I've always been too afraid to ask about the details. I've been lining up how to get fake documents. Of course, even if I'm legal, if they find out about my parents they may start asking questions." The fact this young woman would trust him so much upon first meeting him was both fascinating and sad. He wondered if they'd confess such thoughts within minutes of meeting someone else, but he seriously doubted it. They were laying everything on the line, telling him their most sheltered secrets. That showed a high level of trust. He hoped he could live up to it. "We'll have to see if someone in the community knows something about immigration law. It seems to me we could work it out. They couldn't prevent your parents from being deported if they ran into problems, but you should still be able to attend school. Assuming you can get in, that is." "Oh, my grades are good and I'm in a bunch of work/study programs. I've been working really hard and I thought if I couldn't get into college I could probably do an internet study course." "Hey, what do you know, I'm planning on doing the same. As you might already know, a few things have popped up in my life that have taken priority over my attending college." "College is important since it opens so many doors," she told him. "But I think you'll have doors open for you for many reasons, not the least being your friendly personality and forceful nature. Any company would be happy to have you." "Maybe, but I'll have to see when I get there. In the meantime I'm going to be studying while I'm traveling, hoping to get some college credits under my belt. Maybe after I've established a larger community of followers I can look at going to school again." At this point Alex stopped and regarded her a little closer. "So why are you having a baby if getting into college is such a priority for you?" Kristi sighed. "Alas, it's a priority, but it's not real likely. I'll try to go as far as I can, but I'm unlikely to ever finish. I'm just hoping to learn as much as I can while I'll probably become a waitress or something. I know I'm pretty enough to do fairly well, so I'll do better than my parents. The fact that I speak without an accent and I know enough to speak well means I'll probably do even better. "But I can do those jobs with a baby. I have my mother and sister to help babysit for me, plus a lot of the Sisters have told me they'd watch over my child for me. But mostly, I couldn't resist the chance to have a baby that everyone would love so much, and that stood to be as influential and make as big a mark in the world as you have. I'll be honest, the chances that I'll ever do anything famous are pretty remote, no matter how well I do in anything. But if I have your son, there's a chance he'll be remembered forever. And even if he isn't, he'll still be loved by hundreds of my Sisters." "I'll be honest as well. I was kind of hoping you girls would be a little older, since I hate to see such young girls limit their futures so much. But I can see you're serious in your outlook and you believe in what you're doing. What about you, Carolyn?" "Oh, I'm older. I'm 23 and I've finished college. I was married too, to a wonderful guy. Unfortunately he was killed in Afghanistan while he was stationed there. We were hoping to have a baby together, but he died before we could make it happen. I'm still interested in having our baby, in honor of him, but I couldn't see going out and dating again and making a mockery of my love for him. But then I found out about being a Seer and about getting pregnant by you. It seemed the best option available. I get to have a baby by a wonderful guy, and I don't have to diminish Jack's memory by getting involved with someone else. I've found a wonderful sharing community, almost like the army wives but even better, and I can see my child will have wonderful genetic potential based on how well his father has come out." "There's really no reason to butter me up," Alex teased her. "You had me at 'Can I please have your baby?'" She had the good grace to laugh as well. "Well, I'm very impressed with each of you," Alex told them. "I was a little worried about this meeting. It's hardly the most romantic or the most intimate. Usually when I meet new Seers it's one on one, and we take time to get to know one another before we jump into bed. Then even after three months I've only gotten two of them pregnant, and even then I only knew one was eligible." "Has Patricia and the others explained what being a Seer is about?" Cate asked, speaking up for the first time. "In case you don't know, this is my sister Cate. She kind of runs my life. She's my harshest defender, my science advisor, and she helps keep me on the straight and narrow. This other woman is Gail. She's an ex-cop and my personal bodyguard. That's why she practices looking so mean all the time," he joked. "Yeah, they told us all about it," Carolyn replied, "but they said they'd wait to discuss about what the visions mean, since it's so hard to explain when you can't see it." "Yeah, it's much easier seeing actual examples of different auras," Gail told them, speaking from experience. "I'll go over it with you. We only have a couple of activated Seers here in New Orleans, so Shanna and I can work with you and we'll get Allison involved as well. She's the expert in auras at the moment." "Ohh, can you tell us how to do telepathy with her," Lekesia asked excitedly, so they started talking amongst themselves. Alex turned back to the entertainment, but it seemed to be winding down. He felt bad to have been distracted during Patricia's performance for the third time in a row, and hoped she'd forgive him, but she had set the whole thing up. He tried to half listen to the final song while the girls talked with the other Seers in Carbondale, and he applauded when they finished. This is stupid, he thought to himself, so he stood up and applauded heartily, which caused everyone else to stand at the same time, which was made easier by the fact that most of the audience was already standing. But Alex figured a standing ovation would go a long ways to earning him credit for missing much of her performance. Everyone called for an encore, including the new girls he'd just activated, so Patricia came out and performed one, then bowed and said they needed to allow Alex to get home, since he'd been traveling all day and he had such a hard night ahead of him. Everyone laughed and allowed her to get away. However no one started to leave. Stacy hurried over to him. "Patricia said she had several things to do tonight, so she'll catch you at breakfast tomorrow. She said she trusts you'll find something to keep yourself entertained with tonight. She also says if Cate, Gail or Shanna want to stay with her instead of going home with you they're welcome to." Cate looked hesitantly at Alex, but Gail jumped in. "My duty is to protect Alex, so I go where he goes. Besides, Allison has a very nice living room couch and we've stayed there with more people before." "Gail is right," Cate said, following her lead. "I need to accompany Alex to watch over him and to evaluate the girls. Besides, I've seen him entertain women around the house plenty of times before, so I'll survive sharing a huge suite with him." Shanna, who had walked up when Stacy did, looked indecisive but finally made up her mind. "I'm with them. I figure the girls will be anxious to talk about their new abilities, and I doubt even Alex is going to finish with all three in one evening, so I'll join Cate and Gail in the living room." "Well, I hate to break it to you, but none of these girls is about to leave before you do," Stacy informed him. "So if you want everyone to get home on time, I think you'll have to get everyone moving." Alex looked around at everyone and they were actually all standing there, waiting to see what he did, so he raised his hands and loudly announced, "Thank you all for your support and your trust. I appreciate your efforts and I'm glad we could share Patty's wonderful performance. Let's show her our appreciation, wish her new baby the best future, and then we can all get the hell out of here." Everyone started applauding once again, although the little group wasn't sure if they were applauding Patricia or Alex, then Alex turned and started to walk out, turning just long enough to make hurrying motions with his hand to the girls. They quickly followed along behind him. Alex led the way out, the doorkeepers hurrying to open the doors for them. They'd apparently been watching everything as well. As Alex and his entourage exited, the street started to fill with people as everyone followed him out. Alex was afraid they might begin applauding him in the street, but they acted just like a normal audience leaving a concert hall so he was relieved. He stopped long enough to discuss what the plans were, and whether anyone needed anything before they headed off. "That's OK, we had our overnight bags packed and the guys at the door handed them to us as we passed, so we're fine," Carolyn told him. "OK, we spent all day sitting in a car, and I've now spent most of the night sitting as well, so I plan on walking back and enjoying the night and the city, so if any of you would like to grab a cab home, feel free," he told them. However they told him they'd follow him anywhere, even across town, so they set out on a casual stroll. The Watchers from the concert surrounded them as each headed off in their own direction, although Alex was sure many were simply following them just to be close to him for a while longer. As they reached the corner Alex noticed a blind woman across the street, waiting for the stoplight to change so she could cross. She was standing holding her dog, who was waiting patiently, however she seemed to be looking in their direction, which Alex thought odd since she clearly couldn't see him. But she glanced in their direction and Alex saw the telltale jerk of her head that announced when he'd activated someone. Reaching out he grabbed Cate's arm and held her still as he came to a stop, waiting to be sure he wasn't imagining things. How could he activate someone who couldn't look him in the eyes? The poor dog looked up at his or her master with a worried expression. The woman, a shortish brunette, looked around a little, which Alex couldn't really interpret as anything since he couldn't see where she was looking. "What's up?" Cate asked. However Alex was too busy watching the blind woman to reply, so everyone with him started glancing around to see what he was looking at. The blind woman bent over and petted her Labrador guide dog, made him sit, said something to the woman beside her, and then set out across the street without any assistance. Alex was immediately concerned until he realized the light had already changed, but she headed across without a care in the world, walking full speed, skirting around people and stepping around a wastepaper basket in her way. Alex just watched her in fascination as she headed towards them. "Holy Shit!" Lekesia loudly said. "Damn, is she really blind?" Shanna asked. They weren't the only ones to notice, as everyone around her started to notice too. The woman she'd spoken to looked in shock at her, then hurriedly grabbed the dog's bar and rushed after her. The dog yipped, so the blind woman turned and yelled "Sit!" to him, then continued on. She couldn't have known the woman was walking him. He immediately followed her command, causing the woman following its master to trip over herself. The blind woman continued, her grand smile lighting the way before her in the darkening street, her face darting back and forth as if she was seeing the world for the first time. No one in Alex's group moved a muscle, so when she neared them the woman fell to her knees before Alex and cried loudly. "You've given me the gift of sight. You've granted me a miracle. I've been blind since I was three, so I can't remember ever having seen before, and now I can see again as if it were full light." Turning she called out, "Roger, here Roger" and the dog the other woman was trying to budge suddenly broke into a run, racing to its master, leaving the other girl trailing behind. Turning back, the crying woman took off her glasses and tried to look at Alex, but couldn't. "I don't know if you're an angel or what, but if you've come to take me away, I'll gladly go having seen my world clearly for the first time. You've given me my vision, when I've been handicapped for years in a blind box." They were beginning to gather a crowd, which worried Alex, but it seemed most of it was the Watchers from the concert who were still following Alex. "Mattie, Mattie," cried the woman chasing the dog, which ran up, jumped on the blind woman and began licking her face, happy for her. "Roger, Roger, I can see. I can see! Man, the first thing I'm going to do is take you to the beach and throw a damn tennis ball for you. I've owned you for years and I've never been able to toss you a damn ball!" Alex seemed to snap out of it, so he quickly knelt beside the woman, Mattie apparently, and tried to reassure her. "I'm not taking you anywhere. I'm not an Angel, I'm just a kid with a unique talent. But let's get the hell away from here because we're attracting a bit of a crowd." Unfortunately her friend took that moment to arrive, breathing heavily from chasing after her. "Mattie, what the hell came over you? That's the craziest thing I've ever seen. What do you think you were doing? You could have been killed." "Francine, oh Francine, I can see you," Mattie shouted, looking at her friend. "This wonderful man gave me my vision. I can see everyone. I can't quite see everything, but I can see well enough to get around. Francine, what does he look like? I can't see him because he looks white like the sun. At least like I've always heard the sun looks," she said, continuing to speak loudly, unaccustomed to judging visual distances. Roger took that moment to begin barking. "Yes, Roger, yes it's amazing. It's wonderful and I owe this man everything." "You don't owe me anything," Alex insisted. "But I'd really appreciate if we could take this out of the public venue." "What do you mean, Mattie?" Francine asked, waving her hand in front of Mattie's face. Mattie's eyes did indeed track her friend's hand, even blinking as the hand approached her face. "Oh, Mattie, you can see. This is unbelievable. This is indeed a miracle." Francine turned to Alex and gave him a big hug. "I can't believe what you've done for my sister. She's worked hard to build a life for herself, but it's hard getting out and establishing yourself when you can't see where you're going. She's been brave, and we're proud of her, but you've given her a whole new life. Thank you, thank you, thank you." Now that she mentioned it Alex could see a family resemblance between the two women, though they looked more dissimilar than not. "Please, let's not make a scene," Alex tried to tell them. He glanced around, noticing the Watchers had formed an irregular ring around them as they watched what happened. "I'm trying to keep a low profile here. We really don't need—" "Are you kidding? I'm willing to shout it to the mountain tops. Thank you, Lord, for sending this man to me and restoring my vision," she called out loudly, which prompted Roger to bark excitedly. Cate and Shanna decided to get involved then. Cate got down beside Mattie and tried to reason with her, while Shanna tried the same with Francine. "Look, you really need to quiet down. My brother Alex could get into a lot of trouble if we attract too much attention. He operates in the shadows. Too much attention and he'll be forced to disappear. You need to calm down so we can discuss what happened to you." This seemed to reach the woman, and she regarded Cate, looking not into her eyes but looking her up and down. "I understand," she replied simply, allowing Cate to help her to her feet. "Hush, Roger. The excitement is over." "Well I'm not going to forget what you did for Mattie. You have my vote for whatever it is you're trying to do, Alex," Francine said, kissing him on the lips with feeling. "I'm glad you feel that way, but there's a lot to discuss. It's not as simple as you may think at the moment. Let's find someplace we can sit and talk quietly and we'll discuss what just occurred," Alex said, again trying to get more control over the chaotic scene. The women allowed themselves to be guided, and Alex and the others began moving forward again, trying to vacate the area while Alex quickly scanned the area for a place to teach these two women what it meant to be a Seer. He noted as the ring of Watchers moved away to give them room, that there were numerous other people nearby. "Look, the rest of you need to dissipate. We're attracting too much attention, and having this many people surrounding me isn't helping," Alex told the nearest Watchers who'd followed him from the club. The women quickly began spreading the word amongst themselves and the crowd surrounding Alex quickly began to fade away. They'd gone a short distance, rounding a corner so Alex thought they'd escaped notice, when someone put their hand on his arm. "Excuse me, sir, could I speak with you please?" Alex turned and saw an older man dressed oddly, so he assumed it was a tourist who was simply looking for directions. The man had white hair and looked quite distinguished, but he dressed quite eccentrically. Not oddly, he was simply dressed peculiarly formal for the circumstances. He wore a straw hat, a suit with a tie, and under that Alex could see his colorful suspenders. The man reminded Alex of someone, but he couldn't think of who it might be, since he was sure he'd never met the man before. "Yes, can I help you?" Alex asked, stopping so they wouldn't appear rude and attract yet more attention. He figured they were safe since they'd moved away from where the scene with Mattie had occurred. She was currently walking with Roger, her sister clutching her side as Mattie was glancing around at everyone around her. Carolyn, Kristi and Lekesia were busy speaking excitedly but quietly together. "Yes, I'm very interested in finally getting your story, Alex. By the way, welcome back to New Orleans. It's been a while." It was at that moment that Alex suddenly remembered where he had seen the face before. He'd never met the man, just as he'd thought, but he'd seen the face in a small picture by the byline when he was reading an article about himself in the Times-Picayune Newspaper when he was first in New Orleans. He realized this was Albert Rodriguez, the man who had effectively chased him out of New Orleans. "Thanks, but I'm really not interested in seeing my name in print," Alex told him in simple concise terms. "But you know if you don't, I'm liable to print all kinds of things about you which may or may not be true. I'd think you'd want to ensure I got your precise message out." Alex considered that. He had a point. He already knew his name, which he hadn't printed, demonstrating he could be trusted with some things, at least. The fact he was referring to him by name now likely meant that he'd overheard what had been said a short time ago, which meant he already had enough material to write enough to embarrass Alex and bring everything he was doing under intense public scrutiny. 'Is there a problem, Alex?' Gail asked him. She spoke to him telepathically since, as usual, she stood back from him to overview the surroundings. Alex wasn't sure how Albert had gotten past her, but he assumed the crowd of people had hidden him. 'There is, but I think I'd better tackle it myself. It's Mr. Rodriguez, the reporter who was hounding me before. You just stay back and keep an eye out. I'll try to deal with him, but be prepared to provide a quick exit route if I think it's needed.' 'OK, boss, ' she replied simply. "You should know by now that I have no message to promote. I'm not trying to sell albums or make a name for myself. I'm not trying to become a household name. I'm simply a guy trying to get by," Alex told the reporter. Cate, realizing what was happening, drew near to Alex, clutching his arm and standing tall and defiantly beside him, hoping to somehow defend her brother from this man who had caused him so much grief before. The other girls, not being familiar with the story or with what was happening, simply milled about trying to figure out what was going on. "So you say, yet you continue to perform miracles which attract quite a bit of public attention. Surely you don't expect me, a journalist whose job it is to report on the news of the city, to simply ignore a major story when one slaps him across the face." Alex considered his words, and yes, he did feel like delivering the selfsame slap Albert was describing. But he also knew that would only hurt him. He had to address this on his own terms. It was time to stop running from what he was afraid of. "Those simple acts of kindness are no one else's concern. As you yourself have said, I'm betraying no public trust. I'm not scamming anyone and I'm not pilfering public funds. What individuals may gossip about me doesn't rise to the level of news. There is really no reason for a story about me, except that you think you can raise a hue and cry from the heavy Catholic readership of your newspaper," Alex challenged him. "Maybe, but you know I'm going to report it anyway, since I see this as a major event in this city. The fact you just came from such a large gathering of individuals certainly illustrates how many people this impacts. If there's such a large underground movement going on right under the noses of the average New Orleans citizen, then surely there's a much larger organization behind it, Alex," he replied, stressing the name. "Or should I refer to you as 'the Angel Alex'?" Alex sighed heavily as he considered just how to address the issue. How could he encourage this reporter to look the other way? Could he really expect to convince him there wasn't a story to be told here? Apparently he had already been following what had been happening around the city. Alex wished he'd checked out the last several days of the Times-Picayune so he'd know what he'd already printed. 'Alex, he keeps touching his ear. He's listening to someone, ' Gail advised him. 'You're right. He's got one of those obnoxious Bluetooth headsets, which means it's probably via a phone call. It's small so I missed it before. That would make sense. I don't think he actually saw the scene with Mattie from before, but if someone else he's talking to had, then he could have filled him in and called him over to confront me.' 'Want me to look around for someone else or provide you with some coverage?' she asked. 'See if you can find the guy. We need to know where he's getting his information from. We also need to know who's going to be watching us if I decide to make a run for it.' 'Will do, boss-man, ' she replied. "Alex will do fine," Alex responded, having finished speaking with Gail soon enough it wasn't obvious. "But don't imagine knowing my name will buy you anything. It's only a name I assumed to honor the real Angel who's behind all of this," Alex told him, beginning to imagine a new approach to the problem. Or at least a way to minimize the danger to himself personally. "So you're telling me there's another Angel Alex giving you orders?" Albert asked, clearly unbelievingly. "Actually yes, but the name is only a shortened version of her name. She's actually known simply as Alexandra. As far as I know she has no last name." This newest twist on the story got Albert's attention. As Gail had told him during her lessons to him on how to lie a while back, keep it simple, but add enough detail to intrigue the mind so they don't focus on the unbelievability of the lie. "So how do you reach her if she has no last name?" Albert asked. "I don't exactly call her to shoot the breeze," Alex replied. "When she wants to tell me something, she simply shows up. No explanation about why or how, she just walks up, tells me what I need to know, then she disappears again." "She disappears? Like 'poof', in a puff of smoke?" Albert asked him dismissively. "No," Alex replied, rolling his eyes theatrically. "She simply walks off. Yet I've never been able to follow her. I tried the first few times I met with her, but I've since given up. She seems to come and go as she wishes." "And what does this Alexandra want from you?" the reporter asked, still trying to wrap his mind around this newest bit of information. "Exactly what you've seen. She told me she needed me to 'reach out to a few select people'. She never explained why. She just said that I'd know them when I encountered them. You've apparently seen an example of that," Alex said, including Albert in the lie by incorporating Albert's own lie into his own. Alex knew full well that Albert hadn't seen either his encounter with Mattie or any of his other encounters, but reporters hate to admit they only pick up news secondhand from other sources. They all want to believe they are making the news themselves. Alex felt secure he could use that to help shift Albert's eventual stance on the issue. "So far that's exactly what happens. I'll be walking along, I'll see someone and suddenly I'll know exactly what I need to do or say. Often I have no idea what it is that I've done, but I seem to do miraculous things without even being aware of it." "So this mysterious Angel picked you out of a few billion other people to do her bidding?" Albert asked, still skeptical. "Not quite. I'm hardly alone. She's selected a number of individuals throughout the world. We each have a small area we're responsible for. I've been traveling over my area for the last few months. There are a lot of people to reach out to. However I do seem to be unique," he added, before Albert could ask him for specifics on who he was trying to recruit and why. Albert tilted his head, clearly intrigued by the latest tease. "I'm unique in that I'm the only guy. For some reason she thought I deserved special consideration. But her mission seems to be completely female centric. She doesn't seem to be concerned with men at all. Perhaps she's given up on men," Alex suggested, hoping to trigger either an argument or a defensive reaction from Albert. 'Alex, I found the guy. He's a tiny weasel of a guy lurking on the plaza across the way. Do you want me to take him out?' Gail asked him. 'Don't hurt him, but if you could, say, disrupt his communication, that would certainly help things.' 'I think I can arrange that, ' she replied. "Why would she give up on men?" Albert asked, signaling he'd already bought the premise that Alex was trying to sell him. He was no longer questioning whether Alexandra existed. Now he was asking specific questions about her actions. "Aren't men worth teaching?" "I'm not sure teaching is what she's going for. Or at least, if it is, she figures the message will get out in its own time. I think she's going after something specific, though she doesn't give me any details. I'm a worker bee, I don't get full briefings," Alex told him, once again making himself sound like a small cog in a larger machine. "But I'm also unique in another aspect. I'm the only atheist she's chosen." At this news Albert cocked his head with a quizzical expression, while Cate looked at her brother with an odd expression as well, as she tried to figure out what Alex's game here was. "It seems she's not selling a particular brand of religion. She's reaching out to each of the major religions. She's selected Catholics and other Christians, sure, but she's also selected Muslims in the Middle East, Buddhists in Asia, and myself as the lone atheist." "Why would she..." Albert started to ask, apparently trying to figure out this little puzzle on his own. That was when Alex knew he had him hooked. 'Alex, I had a little run-in with some distracted guy walking along the street, ' Gail informed Alex. 'I managed to hit him hard enough to knock his earpiece out of his ear, and before he could get back to his feet I managed to step on it. I don't know if it'll take it out, but it's the best I could do.' 'Thanks, Gail. That's a good start. Now make yourself scarce so he doesn't spot you. Head around the corner and wait for us there.' She agreed and Alex returned his attention to his current conversation. "I'm afraid your partner just bumped into someone. Seems he lost his phone's microphone," Alex told him cryptically. "What?" Albert asked him, not having expected that response. "As I said, I frequently seem to be able to arrange things without really understanding how it works. I think something and it happens even when I don't know what's involved in the actions that result." Albert shook his head and played with his earpiece for a minute before frowning and turning back to Alex. "You're thinking I'm making all of this up, aren't you?" Alex asked, even though he suspected Albert had already swallowed much of it already. "Yeah, I'm a reporter. We're always skeptical," Albert replied. Just then his phone rang. He looked at Alex oddly, and Alex simply told him to answer it, as it may be important. Figuring his earpiece might be malfunctioning, he pulled his phone from out of his breast pocket, where Alex suspected it might have been set to record their conversation, and answered the call. Since he was speaking into it, Alex could hear at least a little of what was being said on the other end. "Albert Rodriguez here," he answered. "Tôi hiểu bạn muốn thảo luận về nhiệm vụ Alexandra ở châu Á?" a feminine voice asked over the phone. "Who is this?" Albert asked. "It's my counterpart in Vietnam," Alex told him. "She just said she understood you were asking about Alexandra's role in Asia." Alex knew if he kept his facts simple it would work to his benefit. If Albert remembered just a little of the conversation, he may be able to confirm he was in fact listening to actual Vietnamese. "I don't speak Vietnamese," Albert protested. "Ông nói rằng ông bắt đầu hiểu những gì cô ấy có khả năng," Alex called out, loud enough to be heard over the phone. The voice on the other side bid them both a cheerful goodbye and hung up. "What did you just tell her?" Albert asked. But just as Alex was preparing to tell him Albert's phone rang again. "Hello? Is that you again?" he asked, looking thoroughly perplexed. "Pardon me," responded a distinctly British female voice, "I was looking for a Mr. Rodriguez about Alexandra's actions here in the UK?" Albert look relieved to be talking to someone he could understand. "Yes, I'm very interested in what she's doing and the extent of her reach." "Well, I really can't rightly say much, as I don't 'tink she'd approve of me giving out information too freely, but when she speaks to me, I jump to it. She ain't one to cross, if you catch me drift," Shani said in a very convincing British accent. I guess it helps that Jamaica was a British colony and had a British educational system for so long. "I don't—" Albert replied, not sure how to respond. "Well, I've got to go. Seems you've got another call coming," the chipper voice answered before she was gone. "What's—" Albert started to ask just as his phone rang again. Looking defeated he answered the phone and hesitantly asked who it was. "मैं समझता हूँ कि आप सिकन्दरिया के बारे में पूछ रहे हैं?वह मैं कभी मिले हैं सबसे बढ़िया जा रहा है मैं आपको बता सकता है," the voice answered. "What the hell?" Albert asked. "I believe it's Hindi, she asked if you were inquiring about Alexandra, and if you were, that she's the most wonderful being she's ever met. Poor Anila, she's never been convinced that Alexandra is completely human," Alex said with a laugh. "Say Goodbye, Anila, you know you speak English as well as anyone else does," Alex called out over the phone. "Don't tease the poor man." The supposed Anila laughed and bid Albert goodbye. Albert was still looking shell shocked and hadn't put his hand down when the phone rang again. Looking worried he looked questioningly at Alex. "You might as well answer, otherwise they'll just find another way of contacting you. But I promise, this will be the last one," Alex assured him. He answered hesitantly. "هل تحتاج إلى أي أكثر إقناعا؟ أنا أقول أن الإسكندرية قد أحدث تغييرا هائلا في هذه المنطقة من العالم.," a voice asked in Arabic. Albert, looking lost, simply held the phone up for Alex to speak into. "يقول هذا عن كل ما يمكن أن تتخذ في الوقت الراهن، ولكن هذا سروره للمساعدة ،" Alex responded for him, telling Shanna that while Albert appreciated her concern, Albert had had about as much as he could stand for the moment. With a laugh she ended the call. Alex was glad she'd been able to slip away quietly unnoticed when the business with the phone call had started. "I'm sure, if you try to track the calls, which I'm sure you will, that you'll notice they are all from the same general area of the country, but I can assure you if you try to reach any of them you'll get no answer. Again, I don't understand how any of this works, but when I need to do something, it just sort of happens," Alex replied, spreading his hands in a 'what can I say' expression. "I ... I think I've got to be getting back," Albert hesitantly replied. Alex hoped he hadn't hit him with too much all at once. After all, he was pretty old and wasn't up for a lot of surprises. "Oh," Albert asked after he'd taken a couple of steps away, "Is Bobby going to be OK?" "Yeah, Bobby is fine," Alex explained, "although the paper may have to reimburse him for a new headphone." With a shrug Albert headed off, so Alex quickly got everyone moving in the other direction. He was thankful when they turned the corner and found both Gail and Shanna waiting for him. "I think it's about time we paid for a cab," Gail suggested, and Alex had no objections. That was close enough for him. Now all he had to do was wait to see how it played out in the paper the next day. ------- Chapter 8: A Pregnant Pause to Consider Lekesia found everything about Alex to be fascinating, and he certainly didn't disappoint. She'd told her mother before she'd gone to the club that she was looking forward to spending time with him. Her mother, Noel Shapiro, was jealous, and told her she hoped to be in her shoes in a few more days. It was strange to think their luck boiled down to the day of their cycle, and whether it was regular this month or not. Everyone in the new community that Lekesia and her mother now found themselves in practically worshiped the ground that Alex walked on. That much was abundantly clear during the concert. People were hardly willing to breathe unless they thought he might want them to. Lekesia had felt it herself while she was led in to see him. She'd had to fight to keep from ripping that silly blindfold off her head and rushing out into the hall, but she'd known the results would have been disastrous. For as nice as Ms. Patty was, Lekesia recognized she was also a no-nonsense business woman who knew how to get what she wanted. She may not be ostracized from the community over it, but she had no doubt she'd feel the effects. Knowing she'd let her other new sisters down was a strong enough penalty to have prevented her from doing it. While Lekesia and the other two girls were standing there waiting for their blindfolds to drop, she could literally feel Alex there in front of her. She didn't need to see to know just where he was, she could have marched right up to him and sat down in his lap. What's more, she could feel not only his immense power, but also his love, his honesty and his humility. It was then she knew all those things that Darice and the others kept telling her were true. She'd long been a good judge of people, and Darice had told her that was a sign of a potential Seer, as they'd described what she was. However it also meant she hadn't been willing to date anyone throughout high school. Every time some boy would ask her out or try to flirt with her, she could feel how cheap they thought she was, what they intended to do to her, or how quickly they planned to disappear once they were finished with her. As a result she had no desire to bother with any of them. However it also put her into a difficult position. She was the only one at her school she knew of who wasn't busy doing something. Most of her friends were either already pregnant, many already a couple of times over, or else they were busy sleeping around. As the only holdout, everyone considered Lekesia an odd duck. And Lekesia was well aware what happened to people that didn't fit in at her neighborhood. Usually quite bad things happened. Most people usually joined a gang for protection, but joining a gang meant doing what you were told, and it definitely meant she'd have to sleep around in order to do that. Girls in the gang were expected to service the members of the associated gang. She'd known several so called 'honor students' who'd stuck out from the rest. Only two were still alive, and one wouldn't be walking to graduation. She couldn't even use a claim of lesbianism to avoid the guys' come-ons, because the lesbians at school and in the gangs were worse than the guys were. For all their talk of being better than the guys, they sure seemed to emulate their behavior. Thus she was thankful that she and her mother had stumbled into this odd community. Rather, her niece Kendasha had found them. She'd traveled to New Orleans to meet a boy she'd met, though Lekesia thought she'd actually gone to buy some drugs from a better source than those near her home, when she said she'd felt this 'amazing spirit walking in front of her'. Some 'lily white boy who looked like a tourist, but everyone treated like royalty', she'd described him. She stayed in the French Quarter the next four days, trailing the boy around. When she finally returned, she went back again and again. When she finally mentioned it to Lekesia and her mother, she'd said she'd been told that they each possessed some freaky genetics that made them different, but it also allowed them to join this new community that was forming in the city. Kendasha practically dragged them both with her to the Quarter. There, both Lekesia and her mother discovered what she described was true. The other half really did live better, but what's more, everyone accepted her as an equal. Because they valued this one particular oddity, they accepted her other oddities as well. When she'd finally confessed why she was such an odd duckling, they'd hugged her and told her that just proved how special she was. White folks are weird sometimes, but she was glad they were, now that she had found a place amongst them. What Lekesia had observed since leaving the club was beyond fascinating, though. He had barely walked a couple of blocks from the club when this blind lady leaves her dog behind and comes running full speed at him, dodging the people around her like it was something she did every day. Alex had literally healed her damaged eyes. He restored her vision. At first Lekesia had believed maybe she was one of those women who trained the guide dogs, Lekesia had known enough women in the neighborhood who had lost some or all of their vision from a variety of reasons to know about that. But the woman's sister confirmed that she'd been completely blind before. Then, instead of reveling in the miraculous moment, that reporter guy had shown up. Right off the bat Alex started talking, telling him all about this other Angel he talks to, and how there was really a whole community of Angels all over the world. When the reporter didn't believe him, he had them all call him, completely unbidden. She'd heard them each speaking to him in a different language, most of which she'd never heard before. The reporter had left confused, and Alex had left with a note of finality, and Lekesia was sure the reporter would never bother Alex or any of them again. She felt protected by him. He'd take care of them, and if not, he'd go down fighting to the end. Now they were all heading somewhere in a cab. Alex had told the blind woman, Mattie Adams, to head home to get used to her new vision, that it wasn't quite as miraculous as she thought, and that they'd meet in the morning. When she offered him her number he'd merely laughed, telling her it wasn't necessary. The other girls, the five pretty white girls, had headed off to their hotel. That left her and the two other intended mothers alone with Alex, his female bodyguard, his sister and that Middle Eastern woman. "Whew, that was close," Alex's sister, Cate, told him. "I know. I don't know how I thought all of that up. It just came to me. I just hope it works." "Well it should. It takes the pressure off of you. If they think your movement is being led by a fictional woman no one has ever heard of, then they're likely to not take everything out on you," Cate said. "Yeah, now we just have to see if anyone believes it," Alex replied. "We believe it," Lekesia replied, after having glanced at both the other girls in the back of the cab. She wanted to win a few points with Alex if she could, and if reassuring him could do that, she'd gladly do so. "I heard those phone calls, and how the phone would ring whenever you told him it would. If he doesn't believe it then he's a fool," she insisted. "Well, hopefully he takes it to heart," Alex replied with a smile. Alex was always smiling, Lekesia observed. Though it was difficult to make out, she could see enough of his face to figure out when he was smiling, but strangely, his smile never quite agreed with the mood she could see in his aura. She hadn't worked out the specifics of this reading people's aura stuff, but he seemed to be pensive. But then he was always protective, concerned and interested in everyone else. He was far and away better than any of the guys in her neighborhood she might have ended up with if she hadn't found this escape. Man was she glad she had. ------- Man, that is so fuckin' cool, Carolyn thought about what they'd just seen. What they'd just been a part of. It was one thing to hear about someone from afar, to hear about what they could do, and about what they'd done in some far off place. She and the other girls had spent many hours talking about what Alex might be able to do once he set his mind to it, but seeing it happen was something else again. He was performing miracles just like Jesus had done in the bible. He'd raised someone from the dead, he'd forgiven and accepted a 'fallen women' into his fold, and now he'd cured a blind woman right in front of their eyes. Man was that ever cool. She could hardly wait to tell all of her new friends. She'd been something of a party girl in college, jumping from boy to boy, from party to party, always keeping a small step ahead of trouble. But once they'd graduated, Jack had told her he was ready to get serious. She thought she was ready for it too, so they'd married soon after he'd joined the Army. She'd known he'd been planning to join for some time, and she knew how difficult it was supposed to be, but she was shocked at just how hard it was. She was on her own, far from home at a strange base, talking to other worried wives about their problems and their frustrations with having no husband around. At least she got his checks on time each month, as that was about the only thing that had allowed her to manage, but the pay was so small compared to what she'd expected he'd have made. But he'd told her it would only be temporary. That once he got out he'd get himself a 'real' job, and they could have a baby and buy themselves a nice house. Unfortunately that day never came. Instead, one day she saw a service vehicle pull up and an officer and the chaplain get out. Everyone in the military community knew what it meant when two officers get out of a service vehicle in front of an Army wife's house, and she'd dreaded what they were going to tell her. It had been rough. It had been rough listening to them tell her that Jack was dead. It was tough trying to manage everything during her grief, continuing to pay the bills, contacting Jack's family and friends, consoling his sister. The other Army wives had been very supportive, but at the end of the day Carolyn had simply reminded them of what they faced, so they gradually faded away. So Carolyn had come home. She came home to New Orleans where she could at least be near family. And it was family that had led her to this solution. She had felt lost and alone. Even the consolations of her parents and siblings seemed hollow. She had no Jack, no future, no baby, no job and she had no desire to start over. To pretend that all she'd gone through was an illusion, that she wasn't hurting and aching from a broken heart, was too much to consider. She couldn't just pretend she was a college girl again. She couldn't date some smiling stranger, or work at some nothing job that only held the potential of meeting a lesser boyfriend. But her cousin Sandy had excitedly called her one evening, telling her this unbelievable story about an Angel that had arrived in New Orleans, of all places. Sure, it was a largely Catholic city, so she had heard stories around there before about the newest miracle du jour. Like toast in the shape of Jesus or a crying statue, but this was much more than that. This was an actual Angel visiting actual people. She'd insisted that he wanted to meet Carolyn. That Carolyn had something that he needed and that he'd change her life. She hadn't believed it, and had thought that Sandy had been drinking a few too many margaritas down in the French Quarter. But Sandy had been correct. As soon as she met the other women here she had felt she was amongst kindred spirits. The same thing that had first drawn her to Jack, that sense that he was real and that he could cut through all the falsities of her previous life, had told her she was among friends that truly cared for her. Who wouldn't avoid you in your darkest hour just because it was uncomfortable. In fact, when she first met Peter and David she'd thought they might be a suitable replacement for Jack. Despite their low paying jobs they did well, had plenty of friends, were educated and could make intelligent conversation. What's more, they really believed in what they were doing. That much was abundantly clear when she'd first met them. They were doing the Lord's work. It was just that they weren't sure which Lord they were doing it for. When she heard about the lottery, that they were going to pick random women to get pregnant based on who was the most fertile on any given day, she was skeptical, but it seemed like a good option. The women of this community assured her that her baby would be loved and cherished by everyone, and that it would be raised to understand its role in life, and what it needed to succeed. What's more, she could have the child she and Jack had wanted without having to compromise herself and get involved with someone who didn't measure up to her deceased husband. But as nice as that solution was, she wasn't prepared when she felt Alex's presence while she was backstage. She could literally feel him walking in the door, she could feel each step he took, each step bringing him closer and closer to her. She could also feel just what a wonderful person he was, and she dared hope he may be just as wonderful as Jack had been. When they'd finally revealed him to her, she couldn't believe her eyes. It was like getting zapped in the face with a bolt of electricity. Every nerve in her body felt alive, her brain was whirling, but her vision faded and she felt like nothing was making sense. Then the visions started. The visions: they came at her in a wide variety of unbelievable colors. Colors no one had ever envisioned before. Colors she could never hope to describe to anyone. And the colors seemed to be everywhere. What's more, where she'd previously felt Alex, suddenly there stood a glowing Angel radiating power, honesty and truthfulness like she'd never imagined possible. She knew at that moment she'd never doubt her decision to take part in this whole scheme. When he'd come up and taken her hands she'd felt blessed. When he started talking to them she felt like telling him everything she could think of about her life. She just knew he'd understand and he'd make everything better, even if what she was going through was necessary and was something he wanted her to undergo. But what happened later was even more unbelievable. She'd felt his power personally, but she watched as each and every women in that hall stood and watched his every movement, and she just knew that each of them would do anything for him. That was a power even he didn't posses. Well, he did, in that he inspired it in others, she guessed. Afterwards they left the building and the women had followed them, like hundreds of lost puppy dogs, hoping for just another pet, another stroke, yet another glance. And then they'd encountered that blind woman. She'd listened to all the bible stories as a child, but she never imagined she'd be involved in one personally. What she'd encountered with Alex had certainly felt miraculous, but she'd been warned that he didn't see himself in that role, and that he used purely secular arguments to explain what he did, so she wasn't quite prepared for what had occurred with Mattie. He hadn't even laid hands on her or anything. She just looked at him from across the street and suddenly she could see. Not only that, but her dog could tell what Alex had done for her as well. Then when that dreadful Albert Rodriguez had accosted Alex, trying to insinuate there was something sinister about him, Alex had quickly put him in his place. Carolyn hadn't been aware of what was going on at first, but she saw he was purposely drawing him in, playing with him, bringing him to where he needed to be to see the bigger picture. Carolyn was still unsure about which was real and which wasn't. Was Alex the actual Angel of New Orleans? Well, duh? Of course he was. She'd seen his eminence herself. But she was still confused when he started talking about Alexandra. Was she a real person, a real Angel even mightier than Alex, or was she merely a clever story he'd told the reporter about to keep him off balance? She couldn't be sure, but what she was sure of was the series of minor miracles he'd called up in just a few moments. He'd caused the reporter's field agent to have some kind of accident. He'd had people from all over the world call the reporter up and speak to him in a variety of tongues, and Alex had understood and conversed in each and every one. It was an amazing sight to see, and she couldn't believe that she'd been there to observe it. It was a story she'd tell her child and all his or her half brothers and sisters over and over in the years to come. And what's more, speaking of that, they were even now headed to where Alex was staying so he could conceive a child in her and the other women with her. The idea seemed unbelievable, but she knew it was about to come true. She just hoped her child would be the one, the one that continued on where Alex led. But that was more than she could possibly hope for. ------- When they reached Allison's apartment everyone followed Alex into the room. He once again felt it helpful to counter his own feelings and entered first, simply as a show of confidence and authority to the women, though Cate knew he'd have held the door for each of them in any other circumstances. The new girls gawked at the luxurious apartment, especially Lekesia, who was sure she was going to find living in this new community better than ever. She recognized she was unlikely to appreciate such opportunities for long, but she planned to enjoy them while she could. "Can I take a picture to send my Mom?" she asked. "Since she may end up here herself, maybe it would be better if you let her experience it for herself," Alex told her. "But feel free to take any you want for your own use." "Man, I can't believe you've got a marble bathtub big enough for all of us," Kristi said, having just popped in from checking out the bathroom. "Oh, let me look," Lekesia replied, running off. Alex let them get it out of their system, knowing their minds wouldn't be on sex for a little bit. Cate headed into the kitchen to grab some food to keep him going for what was looking like an extended session. He thanked her when she handed him an apple and a cookie while she started working on a sandwich. Gail was making herself comfortable in a wooden chair by the door. When Alex looked questioningly at her she responded, "Just preparing myself for any unhappy boyfriends/husbands." She said it with a laugh, but she was serious as well. "All right, there's still a lot to go over, since we didn't have a chance to go over everything at the club," Alex told the three girls when they returned giggling from their exploration of the apartment. "But most importantly is tonight. As you may have guessed, Patricia was being very optimistic selecting three of you tonight, although I guess we can make it work if I make love with two of you tonight and leave the other for the morning. That should give me enough time to recover and generate some fresh swimmers." "I'll settle that," Kristi suggested. "Lekesia should be first, since it looks like she's about to pee herself in her enthusiasm. Carolyn isn't much better. I can wait for the morning, especially since that means I can get you to myself if I can work things out right." "That sounds like a plan," Alex replied. 'Thanks for not making me pick one of you over the others, ' Alex told Kristi telepathically. Just this simple acknowledgment made her beam in pride. "Now, I'm not exactly the type to just bed a bunch of women just because I can," Alex told them, trying not to make himself too conspicuous by eating while they were listening to him. "I'm pretty much being forced into this, but I plan on doing it according to my own standards. I'd really like to get to know each of you a little more before we do anything. To make it easier, Cate and Shanna can discuss any details we've overlooked with one of you while I entertain the others. "Sorry for being rude, but if I don't eat now I'm just going to get myself into trouble. You'll also find that Cate is quite insistent that I take care of myself immediately after we finish, so don't take her presence too seriously. She'll probably also appear in our bed tonight, so don't be too shocked. I'm sure she can explain it when you each sit with her. "Now, Lekesia, why don't you tell us a little more about yourself? What is it you plan on doing with your life? You said you hope to attend college, do you have any plans after that?" "Well, I don't have too many yet," she replied, leaning over to take a bite of Alex's cookie. "My main goal is to simply get out of my neighborhood before I get raped, shot or addicted to something. If I can manage some college I figure I'll learn more about my options there. However I'm pretty good with numbers, so I'm thinking about becoming a lab technician. Possibly in a crime lab if I can. But if I can't, I figure I can get close to that by starting a crime scene cleaning service. Either way will keep me near the police community, which I think is a good thing at this point in my life." "Is life really that hard for you?" Alex asked her. "Pardon me for being rude, but you appear well dressed and you speak quite well. You don't appear to have been held back much." "That's mostly due to perseverance on both me and my mom's part," Lekesia told him. "She always said not to let anyone hold me back, and to do whatever I needed to in order to get ahead. She suggested learning how to speak two separate dialects. One for my neighborhood and my black friends, and another for dealing with whites. I knew speaking like I was from the 'hood is the surest way of staying there forever. She also tries to reward me for my little successes by springing for the hairdresser or a new dress whenever I do well. But again, I keep a separate wardrobe for my neighborhood and for when I come to the city. Neither is very large, but at least I can make a decent appearance." "Wow, that's impressive. I've got a Jamaican friend who's similar. She grew up in the Jamaican community, but she speaks without any trace of an accent." "You really need to if you have any hopes of succeeding. It's like tattoos. Getting one would raise me in the esteem of my friends and those in my community. Yet getting the same ones would hurt me in getting into college or landing a job. If you want to be a successful black woman, you really need to live two separate lives. It sometimes gets to be a trip trying to keep them separate. The hope is you can eventually find friends that can accept you for you, otherwise you've got to hide half your life from each of them." "So is it really that bad?" Alex asked. "Don't you have any friends there?" "Oh, yeah, I'm not saying that I don't get along with anyone. But it's a fairly dangerous neighborhood, and everyone sees me as a clean cut do-gooder who doesn't fit in, so I attract negative attention from all the wrong types of people. There are a lot of decent people there, people who are just trying to get by. But I really can't rely on them, and they can't protect me. What's more, if I reveal myself to them, it's likely to get out to those who bear me ill will. So, as strange as it is to say, I've found wider acceptance amongst your community here than I have anywhere else. And my mother thinks so too." "I guess we've got it easier, although there are a lot of parallels," Kristi said. "For me, I just picked up the American accent from school. My parents and their friends criticize me for it, and for not being 'true to my roots', but they want me to get ahead so they don't complain about it too much." "So what about you, Kristi? You said you were planning on waitressing, do you have any further plans if you can manage some college?" "Well, I would like to attend some business school. I figure I could land a number of jobs as a secretary or in an office. After all, I'm Hispanic and I can speak a decent amount of Spanish, which helps. I'm personable and pretty so I'd do well as a public face for a company, and hopefully I'd be able to work my way up in the company. Like my parents, I'm willing to work hard to get ahead, and I'm willing to start near the bottom to get a decent start, if I can." "I'll tell you what, I've got the name of a certain foundation. I can't promise whether they have any openings, but they may be willing to help you with business school, as they're busy staffing up their operations and could use a decent public face." "Wow, that sounds great. I'd love the chance," she responded. 'I thought you were going to leave the running of the foundation to your employees?' Gail asked him. 'I am. But that's not to say she couldn't apply. I'm not guaranteeing her a spot, but there's no harm in suggesting a possibility, ' he responded. "So what does your family think of your plans to get pregnant?" Alex asked her. "Do they even know yet?" "Yeah, they know. I'm not sure they understand why I'm willing to have a baby with someone I've never met, but they're very supportive. I assured them I'd keep working, and that I'd keep up my education as best I can. But honestly, they both want grandkids, so they were fairly easy to convince." "Are you planning on having several?" Alex asked. "Why, are you offering?" she giggled. Alex blushed, realizing he'd walked right into that one. "You realize one night with me isn't likely to guarantee anything?" he asked, changing the subject slightly. "You'd be surprised what Patty put us through," Carolyn said, walking up and rejoining the group, motioning for Lekesia to take her turn with Cate. "She took our temperature, measured us, and told us what to eat in preparation. We're all pretty fertile and ready to go. But it's basically all a roll of the dice. We decided to go for it, even though we knew the odds." Alex thought about suggesting the sperm deposits he was going to be leaving at the local clinic, but thought better of it. He had no idea how much demand there was, nor what limitations Patty had put on them. He had to trust his own people, but he reminded himself to ask her about it. "So, I know that Carolyn and Lekesia don't have any boyfriends, but what about you Kristi?" She just looked at him with a dumbfounded expression on her face. "I think it's safe to say that if they're here for you to make love with them, that they aren't involved with anyone," Cate explained to her frequently clueless brother. "Duh! Yeah, I guess that makes sense. But I'm just worried about the future," Alex said, explaining his concerns. "I mean, generally it's better for a child if it has two parents who share responsibilities, but there's also the matter of the three of you as well. Aren't you going to need someone to cuddle at night, to help relieve the stresses of raising a kid, someone who can provide support and encouragement?" "Ha, you think I can find that in my neighborhood?" Lekesia asked. "The men I've run across so far are like the neighborhood rats, they run as soon as you first click on the responsibility light." "Now that can't be true. There have to be some good guys willing to stand up for themselves where you live," Alex protested. "Yeah, I'll admit there are. However, they each have their own dreams. They mostly want to get away from there as well, and the last thing they want is to get involved with someone who reminds them of what they're trying to escape. Besides, many of them are into white women. So I guess I'm following their lead, I'm now leaving the neighborhood, taking up with a white man, and making new friends in the white community in the city." "OK, that makes sense, but how about the rest of you? Surely there's something to be said about companionship? I mean, I'm going to be leaving in a few days, and there's no telling when I'll be getting back. Plus, due to health issues, there's a question about whether I'll ever get a chance to watch your children grow up. Certainly it would make sense for you to find—" Cate cut her brother off at this point. "You really don't get it, do you?" she asked. "You just don't realize how much of an impact you have in these women's lives. You represent a life changing event. After meeting you and feeling the energy and vitality coursing through you, as well as not only recognizing what a good guy you are, but feeling and seeing it as well. It's hard to go back to mortal men after you've been with an angel." "Amen, sister," Lekesia answered her, giving her a high-five. "But still—" Alex tried to argue. "No, you still aren't getting it," Cate continued. "I've seen what you do to these women in bed. You rearrange their brains, both literally and figuratively. But even before that, you completely redefine their lives. Do you think I'll ever be able to find another guy after being exposed to you for so long? Do you think any average Joe would hold a candle to what you represent? Besides, even if they found someone they liked, they'd never be able to relate to what they've gone through. What guy is going to want to listen to how their previous boyfriend was an angelic figure who could do no wrong?" "Actually, you're right up to a point," Gail said, getting into the discussion for the first time. "I was thinking I was going to end up on my own once Alex came into my life. I was willing to give up on my friends because I didn't think any of them could relate to what I'd gone through, and I didn't think I'd ever find another lesbian lover who would ever accept what I had with Alex. But Alex tossed that idea on its head. He not only got my friends to understand what I've gone through, to the point that now we can talk about what I'm doing and what it means to me, but he also introduced me to a new girlfriend. "While it's true that Melissa and I never quite connected before, now that we can both commiserate about Alex it's allowed us to communicate on a whole new level. I don't think Alex destroys romance forever, but it does take a special case." "That's easy for you to say, Gail," Cate responded. "After all, Alex only affects women so you've got a lot of potential girlfriends out there, so it was only a matter of time until he hit a lesbian for you. But what about the others who aren't so inclined?" "Actually I think she's got a good point," Alex said. "I don't know how much of my recent history gets repeated down here, but while I never actually focused on it, I've managed to find a lot of people, normal type 3s without any of our abilities, who appreciate me and who want to become a part of our mission. They're joining the sorority, they're helping at the foundation, and they've defended me to others. "I think we need to start recruiting more like them. Especially other guys. If Gail can relate to someone she didn't before, simply based on a shared fascination with me, then the same would apply to other guys. I'll tell you what. I've got a specific mission for the three of you. Each of you has always had an ability to evaluate people's hidden emotions, and that ability has just been heightened. I want each of you to start talking to a variety of men about both me and our mission. Now, I don't want you to reveal too much too soon, but just broach the subject and watch their reactions. In fact, you can start with the relatives of the other girls down here. They've managed to find the three of you, they certainly could find some interested males. "Once you've found a few, casually broach the subject that we've got hundreds of women without men, who are simply anxious to find someone who can relate to what they're going through. I think we can assume they'll make the connection themselves. And it won't be hard for them to ingratiate themselves. All they'd need is to offer to help. Run some errands, attend a few meetings, lend a helpful hand and a willing ear. Pretty soon they'll be in like Flynn. They may not ring any of your bells, but they might someone else's." "You know, you've got a good point," Cate said, a look of recognition igniting behind her eyes. "Although you've had a spotty record with guys in the past, there's no reason someone else who won't represent such a challenge to them couldn't be more successful. And each of the people who've joined in our group has been willing to go well beyond the extra mile." "The idea of bringing in male relatives makes a lot of sense," Shanna observed, walking into the middle of the room to join the discussion more fully. "Chances are, being related to other Watchers and Seers, they may have the necessary traits on their X chromosomes. Thus they'd make great breeding potentials. They should be included just for that trait alone. Plus the guys might not take such exception to Alex if they could see him relating to other men. As long as this is a woman's movement led by a single man there's going to be immediate opposition from half the population. If it's a combined movement made up of people of all stripes, but who share a common genetic trait, then it becomes just another group no more sinister than any other." "You know, I haven't really spoken to my brother since I lost Jake," Carolyn added, "simply because I never knew what to say to him, but this could be the key I'd need. Plus I've got several cousins and nephews I could try." "Hey, don't be afraid to include brothers. Some of them have a lot of potential," Cate offered with a little smirk. Gail couldn't resist a snort at that, though the rest didn't really get the point of her mirth, they nevertheless understood Cate's point. "That makes a lot of sense," Lekesia replied. "While I don't have any brothers, I could talk to the other girls' relatives. I could talk to any black relatives, and I'm sure they'd jump at a chance to join a movement of receptive white women," she laughed, getting a little dig in at her experience with many black men's preoccupation with those women. Like many modern black women, she was frustrated that the only black men she encountered were the ones getting into trouble, since the more upwardly mobile ones were just as busy getting out of the neighborhood as she was. "Besides, it'll give me something to talk to the other women about. I like the idea of being able to help you by doing something specific." The idea generated a lot of interest amongst the girls, which both pleased and bothered Alex. He'd intended to give the girls their own personal duties for precisely that reason; to get them involved and focused, just like he tried to do with the rest of his followers, but he also needed to get everyone to focus on certain other issues at the moment. If he was supposed to make love with three separate women it would take a fair amount of time, and they all needed their rest if tomorrow was going to be anything like he expected it to be. While the other girls sat talking, Alex leaned over and started kissing Lekesia on her neck. She was in the middle of a point, so she finished, giggling at Alex's antics. She turned to kiss him when Carolyn responded. Lekesia turned to reply and Alex growled at her. "Ha, here's the guy that, before he tries to get each of three women pregnant, tells them to go out and find a string of eligible bachelors for us to date, and he's trying to get fresh with me?" "So is that a yes or a no?" Alex asked, leering at her playfully. "Hmm," she replied, putting her thumb and index finger to her chin in apparent thought, "do I want to make love to a living angel who performs miracles, gives his women magical vision, and offers additional amazing abilities in exchange. Let me think..." She laughed and enfolded Alex in her arms. "Yeah, I guess you can do me anyway. Let's just chalk it up to a learning experience." The others laughed, which effectively ended the discussion. Carolyn sat down on the other side of him and started doing to him what he'd just been doing to Lekesia. Cate just shook her head and asked Shanna to help her prepare Alex's after sex snack for him. Alex tried to ignore them, but he noticed Gail standing by the door watching him. When he looked up and arched his eyebrow at her, she responded. "Hey, I'm just standing here guarding the door. If you don't want to be watched find somewhere else to fool around. Personally, I'm enjoying the view. These new girls are pretty cute." 'Down girl, let's not freak them out just yet, ' Alex cautioned her. She simply nodded, still watching them. Whatever else anyone might say about Alex, he isn't too bothered by being watched. Kristi wasn't bothered by the view either, though she was trying to keep from getting too worked up. She knew she had to wait for the next morning, at best, since she was sure Alex, as amazing as he was, wouldn't be able to manage three in a row. Especially if he was as weak as his sister seemed to imply. While Alex began kissing Carolyn, Lekesia knelt down in front of him and unzipped him, pulling his cock out of his pants. She started to lick it but he reached down and held her cheek. "Lekesia, as much as I love that, I'm still a young kid, and if you keep doing that I'm liable to waste one of my limited number of cums, and with three of you I don't think that's going to be a good idea." She pulled back and looked at him a little confused, so he took pity on her and took both of their hands and led them toward the bedroom. Before he reached the door he turned back and looked at Kristi. "Are you coming? You don't have to if you don't want to." "Oh, no, I'm coming. I can't think of any place I'd rather be," she replied as she hurried along behind them. Although Alex appeared to be behaving cavalierly, he was anything but. He wasn't happy to be in this position, but he knew it was necessary. What's more, now that he'd gotten to know the three women and had gotten to know what drove them to get pregnant by a strange man they'd never met, he really wanted to make love with them, and to show them how much he appreciated and cared for them. But he had doubts of another sort clouding his mind. Despite the perception that all men secretly want to get women pregnant as a way of proving their virility, Alex really had no desire to. He didn't like the idea of getting someone he didn't really know pregnant. He didn't like doing that to someone who he couldn't support and assist. Hell, he didn't even like the idea of getting anyone pregnant at his age, and he especially didn't like it when he suspected he wouldn't be around for the mothers and their kids. Thus he felt like a heel for trying to get them pregnant, knowing he'd be leaving them each alone in only a few days. In fact, the reason why he'd dissuaded Lekesia from going down on him didn't have as much to do with his being afraid he might cum unexpectedly, he was actually afraid he wouldn't be fully erect, nor able to maintain an erection, and he was terrified she'd find out and take it personally. He knew each of these girls saw their one evening with him as the high point of their lives, and that idea scared the hell out of him. But he couldn't very well crush those dreams by belittling them, either. No, he had to tough it out. He had to shower them with love, show them each how much he cared for and valued them. He had to leave each one with a lifetime's belief that they'd been loved and that their children were loved. In short, he was making his own performance anxiety that much worse by piling additional expectations on top of it. In order to help relax the girls, Alex dove onto the bed, flipping over onto his back in midair to land with his legs crossed and his hands behind his head, smiling at the three girls. They all laughed and dove in next to him, even Kristi, who had been holding back before. Alex pulled his shirt off, then lifted his ass and shuffled out of his slacks and underwear. The three girls all anxiously watched, fascinated to see what he revealed. Whatever their past experience or non-experience, each was captivated because they'd never seen one glowing and radiating as much power as this one did, even as it twitched. Lekesia couldn't resist and had to grasp it, feeling how it responded as she squeezed it. Lakesia hadn't had much experience with one of these before, and she'd never seen one that glowed like this, even on the internet. She swore it felt powerful, but she couldn't compare it to any others so she didn't know if that's how they all felt or not. Still, she loved the feel of the skin sliding along in her hand as she started jacking it. "You know, there are three of us here, so feel free to jump in and grab a spare breast if one becomes available," Alex suggested to the three girls. Lekesia and Carolyn both froze when Alex made that suggestion, and Lekesia make a face at the prospect. "Not too fond of the idea, huh?" Alex asked. "Not really," she responded. "I know everyone talks about it, but it just leaves me feeling a bit cold." "I agree," Carolyn added. "I tried it once, under protest, back when I was in college. I never liked it. It's too much like playing with yourself. There's no real attraction, and I've already got a set of those to play with. I hope that doesn't bother you, but I don't think I'd enjoy it." "No, no. This is all about you," Alex told them. "If there's anything anyone objects to, please speak up. I just mentioned it because we're all going to be fooling around in a small area, so I figured a little casual touching could be assumed. Would you rather I make love to each of you separately?" "No, I think I'm OK with it," Lekesia replied, thinking seriously about it. Alex figured she was the most upset by the idea, so he'd follow her advice on the matter. "I don't mind touching someone else, after all, I've showered with other girls before. I'm just not anxious to kiss or fool around with one. As Carolyn said, I have no real desire to feel what the other half feels." Both Carolyn and Lekesia nodded at this, although Alex noted that Kristi remained silent, which he took to mean she didn't necessarily object to the idea. He thought he could abide by their decision, but it would have helped if they could have helped each other. Instead, they were each expecting him to do all the work, which in his current mindset would be even more problematic. In order to take his mind off of such thoughts, Alex rolled over and pinned Lekesia under him and began kissing her. She didn't need any work getting interested, though, as she proceeded to kiss him back with enthusiasm, running her hands up and down his arms. Carolyn started undressing while Alex was preoccupied, and Kristi leaned over him and ran her own hands along his back, fondling his buns on the down stroke. When Alex and Lekesia finally broke, she had to pull back to regain her breath. "Man, I'm glad I waited so long. I don't know if kissing other guys is like that, but I imagine it's a hundred times better kissing Alex," she enthused. "Hey, I'm just—" he started to protest. "No he's not," Cate called from the other room, where they could hear the soft murmur of the television playing. "Don't believe him. He's far from an average guy. Just take it for what it is. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, so don't ever compare him to any other guy." "Oh, no, I'd never do that," Carolyn responded. "I know enough about guys to know they get upset when you compare them at all. They all like to think they're the biggest, grandest and most exciting lover you've ever had. You never tell guys the truth." Lekesia, not having had that experience, looked doubtful, since she had likely been planning on doing just that. However she stored that knowledge away for the future, where hopefully it would come in handy some day. "So, is he built like other guys?" Lekesia asked, curious since she really didn't know. "Hell, I have no idea," Carolyn answered. "I've never seen one glow before. And the glare from it makes it seem Huge. It may be no bigger than normal, but I'd have no way of knowing. About all I know is that I'm anxious to put it to use." Kristi didn't say anything. She simply reached out and put one hand on top of the other around his organ, measuring it with her hands. There was a little showing above them. "He seems bigger than average. Not huge, but he's got a nice shape and heft to it." "I tip my hat to the master," Carolyn told her playfully. "And here I thought I'd had some experiences from my college years." "I haven't actually had that much," Kristi replied with a giggle. "I gave several guys handjobs and even a couple of blowjobs. But my girlfriends always told me how each guy compared to others they've been with, so I figure I've got a fair understanding of what to expect." "Well, I plan on playing with this one enough to make up for my ignorance," Lekesia replied, taking Alex back in her arms. "I expect Alex to make me a very knowledgeable woman tonight."The other girls laughed as Carolyn scooted closer to Alex, caressing his back as she traded places with Kristi, who proceeded to undress. "Oh, no, I seem to be horribly overdressed for the occasion," Lakesia teased. "Whatever should I do?" "I'll see what I can do," Alex replied, as he buried his nose in Lekesia's cleavage as he unbuttoned her blouse. "I'd suggest you get naked and under him as soon as you can," Carolyn suggested. "I think you'll have a lot more fun down there than you'll have up here teasing him." Lekesia took her at her word and quickly unhooked her skirt as Alex finished with her blouse. All three girls were like most of Alex's other girls, in that they were thin, fit and fairly small on top. Lekesia was probably the largest on top, although that wasn't saying a lot. Still, Alex did a pretend motorboat with her for a few laughs. However she did have fairly receptive nipples, and she moaned deeply when he started teasing them. She pulled his head firmly against her chest as he did so. "Hey, you may not like touching other female private bits," Alex said, "but that doesn't mean you can't help me strip Lekesia of the rest of her clothes." That caused the other two girls to swoop down and make a production out of yanking her skirt off, giggling at her reaction. "Ooh, somebody wore their sexiest lingerie," Kristi laughed when Lekesia's red and black panties were exposed. Lekesia immediately tried to cover herself up, then realized the absurdity of the act and giggled as she peeled her panties off, posing as she did so Alex could appreciate the view they presented. "Mom helped me pick them out," she admitted. "I know it sounds strange, but we both went shopping for something to surprise you with. Hers are in green." Alex kissed her to stop her nervous rambling. "It's beautiful, as are you. Relax, you're fine and I'm delighted with you." She cooed in response and nestled against him. She shifted over on the bed and Alex saw she had a little heart tattoo on her butt cheek. "I thought you didn't believe in tattoos?" he asked. "I said I didn't think it was a good idea to get publicly visible tattoos where they could keep me from getting taken seriously," she replied. "But there's nothing saying I can't show off a little art on my ass." "Well, it's lovely art on a lovely ass," Alex told her. She laughed, "I'm so glad you didn't call it a 'booty'," she told him. "I get enough of that from my friends." She didn't speak much more, as Alex proceeded to make out with her again as they both rubbed themselves against the other. Both Kristi and Carolyn were running their hands over his body. Thinking she might still be a bit nervous, he started to move down. She tried to stop him, having heard instructions from everyone else. "Look, I like to give head, and nobody lets me do it anymore. Let me do this for me, OK?" She reconsidered and told him to enjoy himself and she'd manage to find something to do while he was busy. And Alex did enjoy himself. It had been quite a while since anyone had allowed him to do this and he'd missed it. But he had to quit when it was starting to look like Lekesia might be getting a little too lubricated. Alex was afraid it might be a problem, since he was already having problems. As he climbed back up he reached under himself and yanked on himself a few times. He still couldn't get the responsibilities of fatherhood out of his mind, and it was continuing to bother him. However he managed to reassure himself that he had a full erection. Full enough anyway. And Lekesia was beautiful, sexy, and she wanted to please him more than anything else in the world. Alex kissed her again as he lubricated himself in her juices. He almost made the mistake of asking her if she had protection, then thought of another question he should ask. "I take it you're a virgin?" he asked, hoping she'd figure out where he was going so he wouldn't have to ask it. "Oh, yeah, I'm a virgin but I'm not," she explained. "When I was 14 I had a friend that was raped, and I was so freaked out by it that I took my own virginity with a hairbrush to make sure I didn't lose it like that." Alex took a second to consider that. He was tempted to say he was sorry, but thought better of it. Instead he kissed her and slowly pushed himself into her. Despite her being quite wet from his going down on her, she was still tight enough that he got quite a bit of stimulation. As they kissed, he relaxed and enjoyed her feel and her reactions, letting his mind drift away from what the moment meant in the larger scheme of things. Alex enfolded her in his arms, knowing it would allow her to soak up more of his energy, and he rubbed his sparsely haired chest against her nipples. She didn't squeal so he assumed he was doing something correctly, but he looked at her to be sure. Her eyes were closed and she was whispering his name, so he took that as a good sign. He began thrusting into her as he began playing with her breasts again. Carolyn and Kristi weren't being left out. Kristi was busy feeling his buns as they clenched during each in stoke, and Carolyn was whispering encouragement to them both. Lekesia began moaning, which started increasing in both volume and pitch. She also began gyrating her hips. This was amazing receptivity for someone's first time, but Alex conceded she'd been pretty worked up before they began, and he knew the effect he had on these women. She went through a couple of minor orgasms, and by minor he meant they weren't mind melting, so Alex began thrusting into her more aggressively. Kristi reached under him and grasped his cock as it emerged from Lekesia, getting her hand covered in Lekesia's cum. Carolyn wasn't about to get so intimately involved, at least not yet, but she was still whispering to them. Lekesia felt him getting close, so she leaned in close to him and whispered, "Make me a mommy, Alex. Fill me with your seed." However the effect wasn't quite what she was planning. Instead Alex hesitated, then forced himself to blank his mind as he kept rutting, trying to force himself over the edge. He finally felt himself going over, and he glanced at Lekesia looking up at him lovingly, her breasts upthrust and her pelvis working against him. Carolyn was looking at them both with a look of enraptured love. Alex might not have been able to feel their emotions, but he could recognize it clearly enough, and it finally pushed him over. He started spurting into her, grunting each time he did. Lekesia stayed coherent the entire time, though she was mumbling about Alex, babies and something being amazing, though Alex couldn't figure out much more than that. When he finally finished he held her tight, letting them both calm down. Carolyn and Kristi snuggled into their other sides, not worrying about their own nudity. 'Man, I can't get over what a rush it is to feel you orgasm with someone, ' Shanna told him. 'I can have an orgasm from the comfort of the couch. Who needs all the sweat and effort?' she teased. "Are you OK," Alex asked Lekesia. "Yeah, I'm a bit shaken, is all. Man, that was amazing. The sex was hot, and the feelings were wonderful all along, but that ending. Wow. When can we do it again?" she laughed. 'Shanna?' he asked, expecting her to know what he wanted. A look of sudden recognition appeared on Lekesia's face. 'It works, Alex, ' Shanna told him as Lekesia turned and tried to look at Alex. She started to say something, but instead of saying anything Alex reached out to Anh and told her to talk to Lekesia. Her expression just got more awed than it already was. "Room service," Cate called out playfully, as she walked in with refreshments. Shanna came after her and handed out bottles of water for everyone. "Well, with any luck you'll be a father soon," Lekesia told him, and Alex felt his cock shrink a little further. Cate recognized the change in Alex's demeanor. "I think Alex needs to recover his energy before he thinks about any more potential children," she said, as she fed him a few bites from an energy bar, and Alex was thankful that she halted that line of thought. For as much as he respected what he was doing, what it meant to the girls and what it ultimately meant to all of them, he really didn't need the reminder just then. Carolyn and Kristi took over helping feed Alex, although Cate stood by and observed while taking in the beauty of the three new women sitting around naked before her. Gail, despite her protestations of protecting the front door, stood at the door of the bedroom observing them as well. Carolyn was anxious to get started. She was excited before they'd even begun, and watching Alex and Lekesia make love just got her even hotter. It wasn't like watching porn. It was more like watching a mini sun absorb a nearby massive planet, the glow of his aura just overwhelmed everything else. But she could feel their excitement, and added to his own energy and the sounds the two of them made, it was just overwhelming. Now that it was her turn she was all over him. When he tried to fool around in order to warm them both up she was having none of it. She felt ready to cum just lying there, and she was sure if he didn't make love to her right now she wouldn't last much longer. At her instigation, he finally entered her and she was off to the races. She gyrated under him and responded to his every touch. Despite his reticence, her enthusiasm overcame his doubts and he let himself go, simply trying to catch up with her, since she was already nearly there. He got into it, and Carolyn just got more and more enthused. When he finally came he triggered Carolyn's orgasm, and she answered by screaming at the night, loud enough Alex was sure everyone in the building could hear them, even though he was sure Allison's apartment was well enough made to contain most sounds occurring within. Strangely, Carolyn too remained coherent during the whole thing, though she proceeded to whip her head back and forth as she recovered. Alex took her through the normal communications, proving her boost had been achieved, although Alex knew enough to assume it had. But this was for the girls. "I'll tell you, Alex, I'm convinced you did it. I feel like I'm already pregnant," she told him. Luckily the pressure was off Alex, so he didn't panic any more. Instead he simply let the girls pour affection over him as Cate once again brought him food. Alex didn't last much longer, though, assuring Kristi she was next, just as soon as he could generate some fresh sperm. ------- Chapter 9: The Obstetrician Gets Her Own Checkup Alex woke due to some unexpected movement on his chest. As he opened his eyes he saw Kristi leaning down, looking into his eyes and grinning hungrily at him. It was early morning, the light still dim and the sun just peeking in through the window. "Hi," she whispered to him. "I've been so excited I've been anxiously waiting for you to wake up. Watching what you did to the other girls last night and lying here feeling the power flow out of you, I'm so excited I can hardly stand it." 'Shh, ' Alex cautioned her. 'Remember to use your quiet, indoor telepathic voice.' Although intonation isn't carried through telepathy very well, it has the benefit of allowing the inclusion of emotions, so his teasing tone was clear. Alex glanced around. He was lying flat on his back, with Carolyn and Lekesia, cuddling up on either side of him, while Kristi was lying on top of him, carefully positioned between her two partners in crime. Alex wondered when he didn't see Cate beside him, but then he noticed her cuddling up with Lekesia. At least if she couldn't soak up Alex's energy directly she could soak up some of Lekesia's, since Alex had pumped so much into her last night. 'So I assume you're ready to get started?' Alex asked needlessly, seeing as Kristi was slowly playing with his morning wood, keeping him erect and interested. 'You bet I am. I've been lying here forever waiting for you to wake up. I would have started without you, but I'm a little afraid to cross you. I don't think you'd do anything to me, but you possess so much energy and power I'm a bit scared to push my luck.' 'Don't worry. I told you we'd try to get you pregnant, and it is officially your turn this morning. Now, how do you propose we do this? If we do anything here we're going to wake everyone else. But then again, I believe the other girls have the couch in the living room taken.' 'I really don't care. I'm so ready for this that I'm willing to do it in the kitchen sink. You have no idea the effect you have on a girl. As you no doubt know, women are attracted to men of power and status. Being this close to you and feeling the power you possess, and knowing you're officially starting your own branch of the human race, boosts those up exponentially. I SO want you to make love to me and melt my mind like you did to the other girls last night.' 'All right, I guess there's no point going anywhere else. We'll try to let the others sleep, but I can't imagine they'll be able to for long. Being on top, you're officially in charge of setting the pace since my hands are currently wrapped around a couple of young lovelies.' Alex was right, his arms were under Carolyn and Lekesia, and he found his hands unconsciously clutching their naked breasts. Kristi rose up a bit, running his ready cock along herself a few times, both to get him lubricated as well as to get them both going. She was already so damp it probably wasn't needed. As Alex tried to watch her past the splayed hair of several bedmates around him, she lifted up, fit him inside of her and eased down with a deep sigh. 'Oh God, that feels so good, ' she mentally moaned. 'I swear I can feel your power coursing through your cock within my pussy.' Alex doubted that, but seeing as he had no way of validating it he had to take her word for it. Instead, he made his cock jump as a way of highlighting the sensations. Kristi moaned again, vocally this time. Alex heard an answering moan on his right hand side as either Lekesia, or Cate behind her, moaned as well. Kristi was excited on a couple of different levels. As she'd said, just knowing she was now making love to someone as powerful and as sexy as Alex got her motor running, but there was more to it than that. He was trying to get her pregnant, which would completely change her life, so this was a big moment on that front as well. Then, she was aware that once Alex triggered whatever changes he'd make to her brain, she'd no longer be the same. She'd not only have new abilities, but she'd be one of the 'chosen', one of Alex's inner circle. She felt like she'd be a high priestess in a new pagan religion, revered for her experience and knowledge. That realization caused her to shudder in an almost non-sexual orgasm that pushed her own sexual high that much further along. As Kristi slowly started moving up and down it caused the bed to move, and Alex noted the two breasts he was holding started to move in concert with Kristi's motions. He started to manipulate their nipples in response. Kristi leaned forward and kissed Alex, a kiss he enthusiastically returned. Despite the short time they'd been together, he already felt a strong connection to all three of the girls, and he felt sure he'd not only love the three of them, but their children as well. He just hoped he'd be around to demonstrate it. Alex tried to remove one of his hands from its delicious imprisonment, but Carolyn reached up and help it in place with her right hand, then used her left to grasp Kristi's hip for him. 'I didn't realize you were awake, ' he cautiously said. "She's not the only one," Cate said, properly guessing just what he was thinking as she reached across Lekesia's naked body to grasp Kristi's other side. "Hey, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what you're thinking, and I know you well enough to know what you want to hold while having sex by now." She realized what she was intimating after she said it, but she didn't let it slow her, as she wrapped her other hand around Lekesia. Lekesia, like Carolyn, wasn't quite completely awake yet, although the slow jostling of the bed had quickly alerted them to what was happening. She quietly moaned, feeling the unmistakable motions of sex as well as feeling several hands grasping her. Whose hands they were hadn't yet permeated her consciousness. Cate, peering over Lekesia's shoulder, grinned at Alex as her hand wrapped around his as he continued clutching Lekesia's breast. The two girls finally started to come around. When Lekesia finally opened her eyes and looked around, her eyes got big. Then she glanced down and noticed two hands on her breasts and Cate leaning over her, her naked breasts pressing in Lekesia's back. She immediately jerked away, pressing herself tighter against both Alex and Cate's massaging hands. "I guess it's not safe staying asleep too long around here," she said, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry about that," Cate said from behind her as she released her hold. "I'm pretty sleepy, too, and didn't quite realize what I was grabbing," she said, effectively lying about her intentions. However that didn't stop her from pinching the nipple before she pulled her hand back. "Now that you're awake you need to move around, Alex," Cate told her brother. "In order to get the full benefit of your full body exposure, you really need to be on top of her." "Geez, can't I just do what comes naturally for once?" Alex complained. "Ha, what seems to come naturally to you is to have multiple women bedding you on any given night, so I wouldn't complain too much," Cate responded. Carolyn moved aside, allowing Alex to roll him and Kristi over so he was lying on top of her. From there he kissed her as he began pumping into her, now able to dedicate his full attention on her. The other girls lay there watching the two lovers enjoying each other. Lekesia didn't even complain when Cate once again reached around and began playing with her tit. In fact, she pressed her breasts more fully into Cate's hand. Lekesia actually brought her own hand up and held onto Cate's, not trying to inhibit her movements. It didn't even appear as if Lekesia was aware of what she was doing, though maybe she was simply choosing to ignore what was happening so she wouldn't have to deal with it. But Cate knew enough to take advantage of the situation, so she wasn't about to ask if she could continue. If Lekesia wasn't willing to protest, then she'd simply continue. Cate figured she could claim ignorance once again if called on it, suggesting she was carried away by the moment. "Man, this reminds me of my college days," Carolyn told them. "But this is way hotter." "I'm not sure if you feel the same things that I can," Cate replied, peering over Lekesia's side. "Actually I doubt it, while you feel his emotions I feel both his love and the matching emotions of those he loves. Thus it feels like a broiling vat of love to me." Lekesia quietly growled at Cate, clearly telling her this was neither the time nor the place for scientific explanation, so Cate returned to watching Alex and playing with her little chocolate tit. Alex, meanwhile, was starting to move a bit too energetically to continue kissing Kristi any more. Instead he pulled back and held her tight as he started thrusting harder into her. Kristi hadn't lied when she'd told him she was ready and raring to go, and he'd already counted a number of smaller orgasms on her part. As a result he wasn't too worried about whether she was ready, and he mainly focused on reaching his own orgasm. He was well aware that, despite how much he'd eaten between each of his lovemaking sessions, he'd need to get some breakfast soon or he'd be facing problems once again. Kristi started chanting Alex's name over and over, which the other girls took up as a general chant, encouraging the two lovers. The commotion brought Shanna and Gail to the door. Both were topless, although they both wore their bikini panties. Gail quickly observed Cate and Lekesia, and subtly moved in behind Shanna, reaching around her to play with her breasts as well. Just like Lekesia, Shanna seemed to be so focused on what was happening in front of her she didn't seem to realize who was playing with her. Instead, she leaned back against Gail's bigger frame and sighed as she clutched herself. Carolyn's eyes, however, were taking in everyone's movements. She was no slouch and she was pretty quick on the uptake, so she could see what was going on. She was very much like Lekesia, in that she didn't have any desire to fool around with other women, so she took notice of how both Lekesia and Shanna surrendered to the pleasure of other women, while still not acknowledging or acting on it. Her own hand sought out her breast as her other hand headed south. Kristi started to orgasm once more, so Alex became even more forceful, pulling back and shoving home repeatedly. It took him a moment, but he felt his balls retract and he slammed in and pressed himself home. When Kristi felt him cumming she let loose with her even larger cum, her eyes rolling back in their sockets, her head thrashing side to side and her whole body quietly quivering while she moaned loudly. It took everyone else a few moments to respond, as some still hadn't reached their own orgasm yet, but Cate quickly jumped up to get Alex some food, while Lekesia and Carolyn quickly slipped several pillows under Kristi's butt to raise her pelvis. Alex rolled over and continued to hug Kristi, giving her gentle kisses as he waited for her to respond. When her eyes started to flicker again, Alex prompted her. 'Try speaking to Lekesia directly, not going through me first, ' Alex instructed her. She leaned up, a process made more difficult by having her ass elevated, and Alex took that as a good sign she had been successful. "This is so neat," she said, looking at the two girls she was communicating with. "Man, I'm canceling that expensive phone service I have now. Who needs it?" "Unfortunately, it doesn't work with everyone. Like mothers ... uh, maybe it will in your case," Alex replied. "Oh, damn, I need to call my mom. She'll be so excited," Lekesia said. By then Cate was sitting beside Alex, feeding him cookies and juice. "Just eat enough to ensure you're OK. We need to get cleaned up and moving. I think we have a few things planned this morning." "Yeah," Carolyn said, "we all have an appointment this morning with a gynecologist/obstetrician that Patty arranged for us." Alex looked questioningly at her, but then figured it wasn't so unexpected. Patricia had everything else so well planned, it wasn't surprising she'd have this covered as well. "Well, if you are all—" he started to say. "Oh, no, don't even start," Carolyn told him. "You're expected to show up as well. I'm told you have a few deposits to make while we're there." Sighing, Alex replied. "OK, I get it. I just spoke with Mattie, so she can meet us for breakfast. She's as bad as you were, Kristi, she's been up waiting for us to get started. She's anxious to learn everything we didn't get a chance to tell her yesterday. Let's start rotating people through the showers. As soon as someone has a chance, let's see if we can dig up a copy of the local paper. I'm anxious to see a certain column today." "You take it easy for a moment," Gail told them. "I'll take the first shower. Shanna, you keep watching in the front room. Yell if there's any trouble and I'll be out dripping wet. After I'm done and can keep watch then Alex can get in and process all the women through their showers," she said, laughing at the idea of Alex hurrying when there were beautiful naked women involved. So Alex remained cuddling Kristi while the three hopeful mothers talked excitedly with each other. When Gail stepped out of the shower Alex headed in, looking back to see who would be joining him. "Sorry, but we're going to stay and help Kristi while she waits for your sperm to find her eggs. Go ahead and join Shanna, or give your sister Cate a chance," Carolyn suggested. Alex simply shrugged and headed into the shower. Shanna looked questioningly at Cate who simply smiled mischievously. "Hey, if you've watched your brother impregnate three women, seeing him naked in the shower is no big deal." Cate hurried into the shower, knowing if she hoped to avoiding suspicious she had to be quick and she couldn't linger. So as Alex carefully lathered her up, she concentrated on kissing him, hardly giving him a chance to do anything else. She knew if she touched his tumescent organ they'd be there for a while, but even a short stint was enough if she could enjoy her brother in a little privacy. "Knock-knock," Shanna called out before pulling the curtain back. Cate had enough of a warning to pull back from her intimate kiss with her brother, but it didn't help much, since his hands were still all over her. Fortunately Shanna already knew about their hidden relationship. "I figured as much," she said as she got in with them. "Go ahead. I'll give you some cover. If you moan too loud I'll moan a bit louder for you." "Nah, that's OK. I just wanted to tell Alex I love him, just in case he may have forgotten," she said, smirking at that unlikely event. "You go ahead and enjoy him. I knew he was going to be too busy while we're here in New Orleans for me to get much access. Just don't take too long. There are a lot of dirty, dirty girls, and he needs breakfast before long." They both laughed as Cate stepped out of the shower and Shanna stepped into Alex's welcoming arms. "I love you too, Cate. Don't you ever doubt it for a moment," he told her before she pulled the curtain closed again. The rest of the showering went pretty quickly. The three potential mothers worked out a system where they took a few minutes showering with Alex while the other ones gave Kristi a chance to soak up his sperm. None of them really believed lying with their butt in the air really helped, but since they also knew this was likely their only chance none of them wanted to risk it. "You girls finish up," Alex called out after Kristi finally climbed in the shower. "Cate wants me to eat before I pass out. We'll meet you downstairs," and with that Alex and the other girls headed downstairs to the nearby café they traditionally used when staying at Allison's. As they entered the café, Shanna, who had run ahead, handed Alex that day's Times-Picayune newspaper. However Alex just stuck it under his arm, not wanting to upset himself before he could prepare for the shock he was expecting from it. Looking around, Gail noticed Francine, Mattie's sister, waving to them from a corner booth, so she directed them to the table. "Damn, Alex, you can certainly take your time getting moving in the morning," Mattie playfully lectured him. "I've been champing at the bit all morning. I wanted to get out and enjoy my new world. While I can't see the bright morning sun, I thought I'd bask in your glow instead." "Alex is always slow getting going in the morning when there are plenty of naked women around," Cate explained. "Ah, yes, the three girls you had with you last night. You'll have to explain about them, but you may want to wait until my sister isn't around, as she seems to think I'm an innocent child. Little does she realize that the blind have little else to distract them, so they usually copulate like little bunnies whenever the chance affords itself." "The other girls will be here shortly," Alex told them. "Cate, why don't you take Francine aside and explain to her what her sister is experiencing, as I believe that Mattie and I have some things to discuss on our own." Cate immediately asked Francine to accompany her, but Mattie's sister appeared guarded. "Don't worry, he won't try to sell her any real estate, but he has some things to tell her that you probably aren't ready to hear yet," Cate told her. "We try to release the information slowly to family, since it generally takes them a while to come to terms with it. You can ask Mattie about it afterwards, but she'll only tell you what she thinks you're ready for." With that, Francine finally left the table, still glancing doubtfully back at her sister. But the fact that Mattie was happily talking to Alex, shielding her eyes so she could look at him, convinced her something beyond her comprehension was happening here, and she didn't think she could protect her sister from it. "Hold on a second," Gail cautioned Mattie, "we have to find out what that reporter disclosed about the events from last night." "Good, I gathered from your concern that he posed a problem for you. But I'm familiar with Mr. Rodriguez. His reporting on the Angel of New Orleans has gotten him a lot of publicity. As a result I'm interested in it as well, and hearing it from you will save me having to download it from their website later." So Alex unfolded the newspaper and looked up the desired column. However it appeared to be about a certain ballot initiative coming up in a few weeks time. Unhappy and confused, Alex glanced at everyone else. "I told you," Gail reminded him. "It was late last night when we encountered him. He couldn't have gotten it to press on time, besides he probably needs time to process it. If we're lucky maybe he won't report anything before we leave." Alex grunted. "I seriously doubt that. Still, he treated us fairly the last time, so I'll allow him some leeway. But I'm curious how he's going to interpret what I told him. Personally, I'm tired of being chased out of town by reporters." Alex began telling Mattie what she needed to know, and they'd managed to order breakfast when the three girls arrived. Alex directed two of them to the other table so they could help Cate avoid any embarrassing questions. Lekesia was pleased to see that Shanna had left the spot beside Alex open, even though it was a tight fit. However Lekesia didn't seem to mind as she patted Alex's thigh. She leaned over and kissed Alex hello, despite her having done much more so recently, but this was partially her way of demonstrating she had a certain leeway with him. Mattie observed this and smiled to herself. It was nice watching people interact after years of only hearing about it afterwards from a third party. "Did you order for us?" Lekesia asked. "Yeah, I did. Hope you don't mind a cheese omelet," Alex told her. "If you do, I ordered the others a western omelet, and if those don't strike your fancy you can share some of my breakfasts," he added, motioning to the different things he'd ordered himself. Lekesia was tempted to, just to show she could share his food, but from what Cate had told them, taking food from Alex was a dangerous proposition. She'd die if anything happened to him on her account, so she simply shook her head. "When's the appointment?" Alex asked, not giving any more information away. "It's for whenever we show up. Patty assured the doctor you'd show up early anyway, so she wasn't worried when you might arrive." With that they got busy talking again. Mattie soaked up the information like a sponge. "So you understand that you aren't really seeing, right?" Alex asked her. "Oh, sure. That much is clear," she laughed at her small pun. Lekesia looked confused and held out two fingers in front of her face. Mattie laughed again. "You're holding up two fingers," she told her. "I can see the energy that people give off, but I've got no independent vision. So I can't read a menu or ever pass a vision test, so I'm still legally blind. But this gives me a degree of freedom I never had before." "Wait," Cate said, interrupting her detail of events, "you stepped around that planter on the street corner. How'd you accomplish that if you couldn't physically see it?" "Oh," Mattie replied with an easy laugh, "I saw everyone else stepping around it ahead of me, so I could tell where it was. When you're blind, you get to be good at identifying and remembering where things are, so seeing it that once was all I needed to avoid it." "OK, that makes sense," Cate admitted. "Yeah, but just be aware, while you can see the driver's energy signature in approaching cars, that you can't tell the dimensions of the vehicle, so you've still got to be careful," Gail warned her. "Don't worry, Roger is still here for me, and he can watch for those things. Although I think he's a little worried for his job since I'm so independent now. But the first thing I did this morning was to go out and throw a ball for him. It's so strange being able to do something so simple. And I could also see his joy in his, what did you call it, his aura?" When everyone nodded she continued. "I figured it out since his tail was wagging to fast. I'm going to have to discuss the details of what I'm seeing with you, but I've figured out a lot of it." "I'll have Gail talk to you about it when we get started. I'm assuming you're coming with us today?" "I don't know where you're going, although I heard you mentioning an appointment. But anywhere you're going is someplace I want to be. But you have—" she started to protest. "Don't tell me about how many people I have around me," Alex responded with a short laugh. "I'm well aware of them. But I'll be glad to have you along." They finished up soon afterward. Tina, Amy and the three Watchers who were now staying at the hotel had called to tell them they couldn't make it. They knew he was busy, and they didn't want to take the risk of anyone following them from the hotel, though they told him they'd see him later if he was free. Getting everyone in the car was interesting. Luckily for everyone Francine had her own car and took Cate and Kristi, so they could continue to explain what was going on. Alex took Gail and Shanna, although the three girls had to call a cab. They drove to the outskirts of the city, where they pulled up to a small clinic in a professional building. They all trooped in. As soon as they entered the clinic the receptionist saw them, looked panicked at their numbers, and then called back into the clinic. "Dr. Lampre will be with you in a minute," she told them. "Sorry there aren't enough chairs, but..." she responded, shrugging. "That's OK, we understand this is a slight irregularity," Alex told her. Just then a pleasant looking woman dressed in comfortable professional attire came into the waiting room. "Alex?" she asked, then laughed. "Of course it has to be the mysterious Alex. Who else shows up at a gynecologist's office with so many women? Come on in, we can talk in our examination room. I'm Dr. Lampre, but you can call me Hannah." "So you were expecting us? Just how much did they tell you about me?" Alex asked her as they walked down the hall. Dr. Hannah directed Carolyn, Kristi and Lekesia to three separate examination rooms, and then invited the rest in while she went into the one with Kristi after asking if she minded the extra observers. "Hell, no, hopefully he put something in there, so he can look at me in a pair of stirrups if he wants," she answered. "I figured as much," Hannah responded. "Ms. Patty wouldn't tell me too much, but from what Dr. Lovett told me about you, I kind of pieced together who you likely were. Oh, but don't worry," she responded, when she saw Cate's panicked look. "I'm not about to say a word. Besides, I couldn't even if I wanted to. Doctor/patient confidentiality you know. Dr. Lovett explained the unusual arrangement she had with you, and assured me you were serious about everything. From what Patty tells me, you're going to be throwing me quite a bit of business, possibly for some time, so I don't mind the unorthodox request. And if you are indeed who I think you are, I can understand why you'd ask for it." "Thank you, Hannah, I appreciate it," Alex told her. "I'm curious, though, is it just the three here for a prenatal checkup or... ?" "Oh, no, this is the start of a full treatment for them. Patty explained they'd each work out their own payments, but that she'd guarantee anyone who needed any assistance. But aside from anyone else you feel the need to get pregnant in the next few days, she also told me they'd be directing a number of women to my services. So far, I've gotten so many new clients I'm seriously thinking of finding a couple of partners to handle the new workload." Alex laughed at that. "Sorry about overwhelming you like that, I'm sure we could redirect a few if you'd like." "No, that's OK. She also explained they needed someone who understood they could probably tell me more about what was wrong with them than I could, and that they'd need special consideration as a result. Something about type 1s and 2s or something like that?" When Alex nodded she continued. "Anyway, I also made arrangements with a friend of mine, a pediatrician who can look after any of the children after they're born, as well as any others any of your girls may want to bring us. I also talked to him about the special considerations in your case." "Good, I'm glad that's all been taken care of. Patricia is nothing but thorough in what she takes care of. I'd also like to warn you that you might get inundated if anyone hears about my association with you. It's likely the press is going to be interested in me either later today or tomorrow." "Yeah, Patty said that was likely. She said you tended to attract attention wherever you go. That's also why I brought you right in. I figured I didn't need any pregnant women prostrating themselves on my dirty floor over you." Cate laughed. "Believe me, if you locked the front door you wouldn't be able to stop any of them. Although the type 2's will simply sit outside and watch the door like hawks for any sign of my brother." "And you must be Cate then? Patty mentioned you probably need a renewal on your prescription. Do you need to be examined as well?" Hannah asked as she peered at Lekesia's nether regions, not bothering to look back as she addressed Cate. Cate blushed unnecessarily but said it wasn't necessary, and that she was overdue on the prescription since she'd been a bit distracted of late. "Just out of curiosity, and tell me if I'm just being overly nosey, but is there some reason you feel the need to personally impregnate each of these women, other than just for the fun of it? You do realize I could do the whole thing for you if you wanted. You could still fool around but..." she left the rest of the statement hanging. Alex didn't know if she was trying to measure his response or not, but she wasn't watching him to see how he'd respond. "Actually I think I can answer that," Cate said, "since I know Alex will be reluctant to answer it honestly himself. It's not because he wants to fool around with a string of women. In fact, I suspect that's about the last thing that Alex wants to be doing. He'd be perfectly happy settling down with one woman, setting up house, making love a couple of times a week, and possibly playing cards with a few friends every now and then. "Alex sees this as an obligation, one that he can't get out of. Yet he'd never say that, since he doesn't want to disappoint any of the girls themselves. "Patricia knows that Alex couldn't deal with a bunch of women having his babies without his being involved. He'd be OK with it, thinking of it in the abstract for a little while. But it would bother him, then it would occupy his thoughts, then it would start to drive him batty. Wherever he was, he'd end up driving back here to check up on each and every one of them. He'd want to know if they were fit mothers, whether they were capable of raising the kids, both emotionally and financially. Then he'd want to know about them, he'd want to know if they really wanted to do this and what they thought they'd get out of it. Finally he'd want them to know they were loved, either by him personally, or by someone who'd appreciate and support them. And he'd want them to know he loved both them and the children themselves, even if he never gets a chance to meet them. "In short, my brother is a bit of a self obsessed nut case," she concluded. "Gee, thanks, Dr. Freud," Alex replied. Hannah had turned around during Cate's little monologue, both to watch her and to observe Alex, gauging his reactions just like he had suspected. When she finished, she looked deeply in his eyes, trying to perceive any signs of deception or insincerity in his response. Finally she shrugged and returned to her work, delving into Lekesia's vagina. 'Alex, tell her she's got a couple of spots on her chest, ' Gail told him. 'They're small, but if we can see them it means they're not likely false positives.' "Uh, excuse me, Hannah, but I've just been told that you have what might be the early stages of breast cancer," Alex nervously told the young doctor. "What?" she asked, standing up to regard him. "Are you sure?" "If Alex tells you something, you can take it to the bank," Cate assured her. "Uh, could you tell me a little more. Like where—" As she said it Shanna stepped forward and touched her in three different spots on her chest. "They're small, so they probably haven't done much damage yet. In fact, they may not even be detectable to modern medicine, but at the very least you should have them extracted, as they'll be detectable eventually. The first two aren't very deep, but the last is, although it's accessible from the side so it shouldn't cause a problem." "Uh, thanks. You speak with authority. I take it you're pretty sure of this?" "Well, I'm not a doctor," Shanna replied, "but as Patricia apparently told you, we have a unique ability to see things better than doctors can. What both Gail and I can see at the moment are three small but precise little blips that bear watching." "She's right, doctor," Lekesia said, sitting up. "I saw them too, but I'm not experienced enough with these new abilities to trust what I was seeing." "Thanks. I'll get them examined right away, although if they aren't detectable with a traditional scan I may have some trouble getting anyone to take me seriously," Hannah replied. "And now you see why my girls need doctors who are willing to make special considerations in their cases," Alex told her, smiling unhappily. He hated delivering such news. "If you can't get anyone to take it seriously I can probably do something, but my own abilities are a bit spotty, meaning things don't always respond like we hope they will. Only I won't be around for too long." "I don't think that will be necessary, Alex," Gail told him. "The spots are small and undeveloped, so I'm sure she has plenty of time to get them taken care of. What's more important is to figure out what's causing them in the first place." "I'm afraid I've got a propensity for breast cancer, as several members of my family had it, including not only my mother and my sister, but also my grandfather as well. It seems we've got the BRCA gene, so I've already got a cancer specialist I can call." "Then you really need to get it examined, and frankly, I'd be especially nice to your three new patients, as each one can see it much sooner than is likely to show up on any test," Alex told her. "OK, hold on a minute, I'll be right back," Hannah told them. "You can get dressed again if you want, the exam is finished although I need to take your personal information and go over your prenatal care," Hannah said, as she hurried to tell her receptionist to set up an emergency appointment with her oncologist. "Man, you always manage to cause a scene, even when people try to minimize it for you," Cate teased her brother. "It's a good thing he did, though," Gail reminded Cate. "We can hardly have someone helping us suffering unnecessarily." When she returned the doctor took them along as they examined the other two girls, then she gathered them together while they filled out their paperwork and she gave them the standard pre-natal lectures, reminding them of the odds of their not getting pregnant and of the various risk factors involved. Afterwards she took the other four out into the waiting room and waved her hand, indicating the various patients waiting there. Alex shrugged, glancing at Gail. Shanna stepped forward, "Incipient Gestational Diabetes, mild kidney damage, and a strange respiratory problem," she said, pointing at one woman after another. The women all looked shocked, so Hannah hurried them from the room to get the rest of the details about each case, even though she'd have to send two of the women to other doctors to have their cases reviewed. "Man, you've convinced me," Hannah said. "Anything I can do for you, just say the word. I think I'm convinced you really are the—" "Don't say it. Don't even think it. I'm not a damn angel. I'm just a young kid who happens to have a unique ability, who happens to be surrounded by a bunch of women who each have their own unique abilities. If you're going to be treating these women you need to understand that. Their abilities have nothing to do with their lifestyles, so just get that idea out of your head right now. They can have any problems they want and I'll only judge them if it impacts the others." Hannah simply nodded her head, accepting what he said. "Now, if you could examine my sister, I think I'd like to go hide in a closet until we're ready to go, as I don't think I can show my face in your waiting room again," he said, to everyone's great amusement. ------- Alex and the girls finished at Hannah's clinic and headed back to the French Quarter. On the way there, Shanna had them stop at a neighborhood Kinko's as she ran in. "So, Mattie, what is it you do?" Alex asked, trying to strike up a conversation since he hadn't yet learned much about her. "Oh, I do a few things. I'm a library researcher, doing research mostly on medical and technology issues. I also augment my salary by playing and doing a little singing at a few clubs and churches in the region. I'm also very involved in computers, so I do computer repairs and training. Basically I like to keep busy. I hate being thought of as that poor little blind girl, and I dislike having nothing to do." "You do research for libraries?" "Actually it's more of custom ordered research. Sometimes they contact me through libraries, but I've got an internet presence and I've gotten established. I research details about things that others either can't or don't want to do themselves." "Well, it sounds like you keep yourself pretty busy. It's not exactly what I would have expected." "Because you think a blind girl spends all her time feeling her way around the world?" she asked pointedly, but she didn't dwell on it. "It's a common misconception, and it's largely based on older people who become blind after being sighted their entire lives. When you're born this way, you learn how to adapt. Plus computers and technology have opened up the world to us. Now we have GPS on our phones to tell us where we are, we can read via the internet instead of using Braille, and on the computer no one can judge you by how you appear on the street." "Well, you've got no problems there," Alex responded. "You look beautiful, if you don't mind me saying that. I also notice that you, uh..." "You mean I don't have wandering eyes," she laughed. "It's a typical problem among the blind, but it tends to occur a little later in life. The problem is that without a focus for the eyes, the muscles tend to pull the eyes apart. But that happens when the muscles in the eyes start to weaken. Besides, now that I can see people's auras, I know where to look when I address people. I still can't look them in the eyes easily, but it does help." "You know, maybe there's a special task you can do for me. I had my sister do some research for me, but she didn't find anything. If you've got special training, maybe you'll be able to find something she may have missed. We were looking to see if there's any evidence of someone else like me, someone who showed the same sort of abilities that I do. They could have existed at any time, in any country, however it's likely they may have died before they could have used any of those abilities, so we may be chasing a dead horse. Cate thinks I'm a one-in-seven-billion occurrence, and she may be right. I may be the first of my kind. But if she's wrong, knowing what happened before could potentially give us a leg up on what to expect, or whether we should be looking for others like me. When Melinda couldn't find any record of any others, we basically stopped looking." "So you want me to search every recorded history, of every country, in every language, for any reference of an event that likely was never recorded?" she asked, trying to look directly at Alex. "Uh, yeah, although you don't make it sound like such a great suggestion," he responded. "Oh, no, I like a challenge. I just want to be sure I understand what you're asking. I assume this is open ended. I'll start out with the most obvious sources and slowly work my way down." "Look, don't kill yourself over this. As I said, there probably isn't anyone else like me, and even if there were, they probably died before it ever came to fruition. So don't get obsessed about it. Instead, look to see if there are any references to telepathy like we use it, or to the kinds of visions you girls have, or to any guy that had a large following of dedicated women with somewhat magical abilities." "Actually this will be fun. It isn't often I get a real challenge. I'll look for a while and see if I can get any likely leads. If not, I'll tell you and cut back my search so I only follow it as a hobby. But there might be evidence of it in any number of obscure historical references in some foreign languages, so we'd never have heard of it. In fact, a search of ancient legends may even be called for." Shanna opened the door and rejoined them, telling them they could continue. She handed Alex a box of business cards. "It doesn't have a business phone on it, so if you stay someplace for a few days I'll FedEx you some newer ones, but these should do for now. Give them to each of your new followers and I'll see what I can do to get them to visit the rest of your growing community, both here, Carbondale and anywhere else your people may congregate." "Thanks, this should come in handy. I like the idea of having them visit, to get familiar with everyone and learn that there's an already established community, but I'm also anxious for them to form their own communities," Alex replied. He turned and graciously handed one to Mattie. "Here you go. If you ever need someplace to travel, may I suggest beautiful downtown New Orleans." Everyone laughed and they continued on their way. As they drove, Alex saw Mattie looking at his hands. "A penny for your thoughts?" he asked. "Well, as you know, these auras make for an odd vision for me, but I can see you've been carrying that thing in your lap very carefully. It seems like the same one Cate's been using. I'm guessing its one of those new iPad things. If so, I'd love to try playing with it sometime, but right now I'm more interested in whether my assumption is correct, because I'm trying to learn to infer the things that I can't see." Alex smiled and admitted she figured out exactly what it was, and they talked over exactly what she'd seen and what she hadn't in her observations while he let her play with it for a while. They quickly figured out how to turn the speech aspect of the device on and she was using it like she was born to it. Cate also joined in the discussion, which led to some very interesting ideas on how Mattie could figure out those things she couldn't see. It turned out she'd seen a black space in Alex's aura that was too solid to reflect the health of any of his organs, so she assumed it belonged to something else. She'd known about Cate's fascination with technical things, and she'd heard enough about the devices to be able to guess the rest. But the discussion taught each of them quite a bit. It also showed how she'd figured out how to avoid the other obstacles in the street the previous night. They returned to Peter Hammond's coffee shop, not having any more immediate place to go. They knew they were likely to attract attention, but until the public was notified about their presence it shouldn't be a problem. So now was probably the best time to view the French Quarter that Alex and Cate remembered from before. Peter was working today, but as usual David and Darice were hanging around, so everyone bought some coffee, just so the shop owner wouldn't blame Peter and David for disrupting their business, and they sat down to discuss events. "We were expecting you. We'll be having lunch with Patty in a little while. She said if you were interested in coming to her club tonight you were welcome to, but that she's fine if you have other, ahem, items of interest you may be more interested in." Alex groaned at the implications of what Patricia had planned for him, but didn't give it much attention. It was part of what he was here for. He was no longer a tourist. He was doing his work now, and part of his work involved doing these things. The three Watcher watchers, as Alex and Cate liked to call them in jest, detailed many of the day to day issues they'd been dealing with. Darice was free for the day, so she accompanied the others as they walked around the French Quarter for a while, always trailing many attendant Watchers. The three women who had spent the night with Alex also remained close to him, since they knew their time with him was short. "Do you think I may be able to be there with you if my mother gets to spend the night with you tonight?" Lekesia asked. Alex regarded her for a moment, trying to measure just how serious she was. "I'm not sure that's a great idea, after all, I'm sure your mother would appreciate some privacy." Cate laughed, "Alex, there was a lot I saw last night, but privacy wasn't one of them." Alex blushed while everyone else joined in. "Actually, Mom and I discussed it, and we thought it would be nice to do it together," Lekesia told him. "That may be, and it might be nice in the future," Alex told her. "But it's like when mothers and daughters first have sex, they generally like to do it on their own. People tend to do things during the middle of a sex act which don't necessarily reflect them in their best light. So while she may have said she wanted you to be there, I think she'll be relieved if you aren't." Lekesia considered that and nodded her head, acknowledging that it made sense. The whole time they'd been walking, Watchers of all sorts and ages had been following. After a while, they slowly became a bit more adventurous, and many wandered up and introduced themselves, wishing Alex luck and telling him how much he was inspiring them. While Alex generally had difficulty with these moments, he was slowly getting used to it and tried to give each one at least a few moments of his undivided attention. Mattie's sister, Francine, a bank teller, finally excused herself, telling them she assumed her sister would be alright with them. She also told Alex she had no clue just what he'd done for her, but she was thankful, since it seemed to greatly increase her ability to get around and function in the world. She left after giving Alex a heartfelt kiss goodbye. One of the few chaste kisses Alex seemed to be getting anymore. ------- Chapter 10: Two More for a Grand Reception Alex and his entourage entered the restaurant where they were meeting Patricia. They'd stopped to pick up Peter and David again so they numbered quite a few people, but Alex was confident that Patricia had reserved a good portion of the restaurant for just such events. When they entered, Patricia was already waiting for them and she got up and kissed Alex, welcoming him warmly. "Have a good time last night?" she asked teasingly. "I'm not sure I'd describe it as a barrel of laughs, but I can't complain," Alex replied with a laugh. "Yeah, I suspected you might have a problem with it," Patricia replied, reading between the lines. "Your girls in Illinois said you'd have difficulty with getting strangers pregnant." "I think he worked through that," Cate said, whispering so the others nearby wouldn't overhear. Alex and Patricia had been speaking quietly to begin with, not wanting to insult the girls that Alex had just slept with, but Cate was even more cautious. "So how many do you have planned for me tonight?" Alex asked, speaking a little louder now that the others were gathered around them. "We'll get to that in a little while. I'm afraid if I bring them out now you'll spend the rest of dinner talking them up, and then I won't be able to appreciate my time with you," Patricia playfully teased. "Can I ask if my mother is one of the ones selected tonight?" Lekesia asked. Apparently she was anxious about sharing what she'd encountered with her mother. "Yeah," Patricia responded, "we tested her earlier and she's officially ovulating, so she made the cut. Are you sure you want to be here when she and Alex first get together?" she asked. "Hell yeah," she responded. "We've both talked about the issues and we know what's involved. We fully support each other in this, and we're here to cheer each other on. Mom was very supportive of me last night, so I'd like to be here to support her tonight, as well." "Well, that's nice to hear," Patricia replied. "It's hardly the response I would have expected, though." "I suspect most of Alex's followers are a little out of the ordinary, Patty," Lekesia told her. "You know," Alex said, changing the subject, "you seem to have taken on a whole new persona. Should I be calling you Patty or Patricia like I have been?" She smiled at this. "Please keep calling me Patricia, since it's my name. Patty is something I picked up because Henry thought it sounded more successful. He envisions the day I'm only known by a single name, like Cher or Madonna," she said with a laugh. "Careful there," Gail said, "you're showing your age with your idea of modern cultural icons." "Well, I suspect that Alex is fairly culturally literate. I suspect he's even studied up on other famous blues singers since he was last here." "That I have," Alex replied. "Oh, wow," Lekesia replied, "I'm sorry, should I have been calling you Patricia all along?" "Most people call me Patty now, but since you're now officially one of Alex's girls I consider you a close friend, so feel free to call me Patricia from now on." They sat and Patricia again had their dinners preordered for them, and it was again both special and delicious. Cate explained what had happened after they'd left the club the previous night, how they'd met Mattie and how they'd encountered their least favorite reporter. Patricia listened carefully, deeply concerned, but agreed with Alex that they'd have to see what he eventually reported before they could make or change any plans. They all knew if things got difficult Alex would be likely to flee the city rather than expose his followers to public scrutiny, but they also knew they were planning on leaving in a few days anyway. "I've got a few items to go over," Alex said, speaking loudly enough for everyone to hear. "First, I wasn't sure what policy you wanted to apply to my sperm donations, but if it's the same to you I'd like the girls here to be able to utilize it in case they don't get pregnant from last night." "Yeah, that's fine. I figured that would be your approach. The other girls and I talked about it beforehand, and everyone was sure you'd want to pre-interview anyone you were supposed to get pregnant." "That was a good idea," Cate told her. "I could see Alex was wrestling with it last night, and it was one of the first things that Hannah asked about today." "I'm glad you got a chance to see her, as she was very curious about you. What did she say about the girls? Are they all OK?" "Oh, if you mean are they pregnant yet, you should already know the answer to that, since you can clearly see it," Cate told her. "Besides, I'm sure you had them each examined before you'd allow them to sleep with Alex, am I right?" Patricia laughed and told her she was correct, and that each girl was not only healthy but disease free. "OK, that brings up the second point," Alex told her. "I appreciate the slow controlled approach, even though I'm not sure forcing me to sleep with three women each night is exactly a slow approach, but don't you think I should meet the other potential Seers before much time passes. After all, if you can introduce three women at the peak of their fertile cycle each night, each of which is anxious to get pregnant, then surely there are a significant number of them waiting to be activated. After all, you never know when plans may change." "You've got a good point, and I can tell you're thinking you may have to leave town quickly, so I can see your point. I'll try to get everyone together so you can activate them all at once tomorrow, although are you sure that's what you want to do? You seem to like knowing everyone you activate personally. I'd thought that was the approach you wanted to take." "In this case, with the numbers we seem to be discussing, I think we can skip over the typical approach. As long as each one gets the full indoctrination and training, I can't see any problem with doing it all at once. I'd hate to think of any of them missing out because I had to leave town unexpectedly. Normally when I meet a new Seer I get to know them pretty well. But I usually get to know them very well when I boost their abilities. But I try to do that only for those that I'm especially close to, or that I see as fitting into a special role in this mission of mine. But it's really not necessary for me to become close to every one of my followers. As the numbers grow, there's bound to be a little more distance involved with many of them." "Well, I'll try to get you together with as many as I can, but as you said, I don't want to overwhelm you. But don't be fooled by the numbers you've seen so far. Actually there aren't that many waiting to get pregnant. There's plenty that are anxious to get pregnant, and they're dying for a chance to get you to be the father, but there isn't as many as the initial batch would lead you to believe. We only have two tonight." "So have the two tonight already eaten? If not, why didn't you invite them to dinner? After all, I can get to know them over dinner just as well as I can afterwards." "You've got a good point, but they're eating in the other room," Patricia replied. "But we have seats ready for them, and we haven't gotten our food yet," Alex argued. "And I'm willing to bet that, even if they've already started eating, they'd be more than glad to join us." Patricia sighed and signaled someone, Alex turned and saw it was Stacy. A few minutes later she led two women out. They were still a ways away, and as soon as they entered the room they immediately looked at Alex, but he averted his gaze, waiting for them to get to the table before meeting their looks. They were followed out by a waiter carrying their plates. "Mom," Lekesia called, and got up to embrace her mother. Alex still didn't look, even as both women seated themselves across from him. Everyone switched positions, and Carolyn and Kristi offered to take the other girls' table in the other room to make room for everyone. Once everyone was seated and they had time to prepare themselves, Alex finally looked up and glanced at the two women, making direct eye contact with Noel first. They had both been prepared, so she didn't react too much, though if you were used to seeing it it was obvious what was occurring. Noel was easy to identify since she looked very much like her daughter. She was dressed nicely, with unusual jewelry and a beautiful dress. She had smooth skin, a nice smile and beautiful eyes. They both shared the same nose, the same cheekbones and lips, but they both plucked their eyebrows, relying on painted eyebrows, or at least heavily highlighted ones. Both were beautiful women, and Alex had no doubt their children would be beautiful as well. Well, aside from some unattractive eyebrows from both sides of the family tree. As Noel recovered, Alex turned his attention to the other girl, who Patricia hurriedly introduced as Diane Tucker, a brunette who was pretty but who didn't stand out in particular. She had a scattering of freckles across her nose and cheeks, she had thin lips and big brown eyes, and great skin that probably had more to do with her age than anything else. She was definitely pretty, and her eyes grabbed you, but she just didn't stand out as much as some of Alex's many girls. He thought it would help if he could get her to smile. Right now she seemed too intimidated to do that much. However she didn't react in the typical manner. She didn't recoil and her eyes didn't go out of focus. Instead she looked Alex directly in the eyes with a look that can only be described as awestruck. Alex turned and regarded Patricia. "I think your selection process hit another bump," he advised her. "Damn. We were pretty sure about these. Diane described how she was adept at picking up subtle clues about people, which we interpreted as her reading their energy signatures." "Well, it looks like that was something else," Alex informed her. "That could very well have simply been her picking up on the normal visual clues," Cate said. "Women have been observing other women for millennia, so you've got to expect some mistakes from that. She's probably just more perceptive than others. But I thought you have a whole checklist of other items to corroborate your selections?" "Generally we do, but sometimes someone fits some categories and not others," Patricia hurried to answer. "It's hardly a hard science at the moment. So far we're doing fairly well at picking them, since we've only had two misidentifications, but still, I'm sorry about this. I'll take care of her for you." "Don't worry about it," Alex told her, patting her hand to calm her. "I won't have you shuffling her off due to your embarrassment." He turned back to Diane. "So, I take it you aren't seeing any visions?" he asked, just to verify his observations. "No, I'm really sorry, sir. I was so looking forward to it. I didn't mean to..." "Don't apologize. It wasn't your fault. So are you still interested in getting pregnant?" She looked momentarily stunned, and took a moment to gather herself enough to answer. "Oh, yes, sir. More than anything. I've been ready for a baby for some time now, and when the opportunity turned up for me to have yours I jumped at the chance. The whole Seer/Watcher movement here has become such a major event in my life, and I so much want to help spread it so that others can share these abilities we seem to ... uh ... share. Anyway, I wanted to help spread these abilities to others, even if I may not have them myself." "Don't worry about it," Alex told her again. "I don't think any less of you for being a Watcher, but it's just important for us to address the Seers first, since they have so much riding on their activation. The Watchers don't gain as much from meeting me. So you were saying you're still interested in having a baby? Are you prepared to take care of it and watch over it, whether or not he or she has any abilities of its own?" "Oh, yes, sir, I do. I'll love it, regardless of anything else. But I'll treasure it even more knowing it's yours. Even if he doesn't have your abilities to, uh, activate people, he'll likely have your personality, your kindness and your protectiveness. I couldn't imagine anyone I'd want to father my child than you, sir." "OK, you can lay off the sir business. If we're going to make a baby, we need to know each other's names. My name is Alex, not sir. You wouldn't want to tell your baby about its 'sir' when it's 14, now would you?" She blushed. "No, si ... No, I wouldn't, Alex." "Good. Now hold on a minute while I check on Noel," he told her. As usual, Alex had only looked at each woman as he spoke to them, not veering his eyes, since he knew what could happen if he did. Thus he hadn't been watching Noel for some time. Turning back he regarded her. "How are you holding up, Noel?" he asked her. She seemed to have recovered, as she continued to blink repeatedly and was glancing around, observing everything around her. She also couldn't look directly at Alex. "I'm fine, sir ... sorry, I mean Alex. It's quite a significant change, I'll give you that. Everything has changed." Lekesia was holding Noel's hand, quietly whispering to her. "Cate, I just noticed something a little odd," Lekesia said. "I tried speaking telepathically to my mother just after Alex activated her. However I couldn't communicate with her until Alex just spoke to her. I suspect we can't do it on our own. I think we're still dependent on Alex. I mean, sure, he has to activate them, but I think he's got to make the initial telepathic connection first." "So it's like he has to give them their psychic telephone number before you can call them," Cate suggested. "Yeah, that seems like a good explanation," Lekesia answered. "It's nice to meet you, Noel," Alex told her, ignoring the side conversation. "I feel I already know you from what your daughter has told me. But there's still a lot I don't know. I know you were married to a Jewish man who traveled down to New Orleans, and that you carved out a home here, but I don't know what you do to get by, or any of the particulars." "Well, I married Alvin during his spring break from college in New York and he never went home. He had a fair amount of money, but his family disapproved of us so they stopped communicating with him. When he died about ten years ago, they managed to revoke his trust fund so all of our funds were cut off. I went to work then, trying to earn enough to keep going while also trying to raise Lekesia. I worked while we were married, so I was able to find a job working at a small business. I answer the phone, help around the shop and man the register. It's a job but hardly a career, but I like the people and they treat me well. However, the neighborhood we live in isn't the best, and it's gotten worse over the years, to the point I don't trust Lekesia will be safe there anymore. I want her to do better, but we have limited means of accomplishing that." "Well, you have a lot of new friends now, and it sounds like you've done a good job of raising your daughter, so it's possible someone here can find something she can do, or they might be able to help her out. We'll have to see. But right now I'm more interested in you than in her. She told me all about herself last night. I think you deserve to have someone paying attention to you, for a change. You've focused on Lekesia for long enough, let me take care of you for tonight at least." "That's why I'm not allowed to be there tonight," Lekesia told her mother. "He says he wants to spend the time with you and that I'll be more of a distraction, and now that he's explained it like that I agree with him. We can talk about it afterwards, so I'll meet you in the morning. But believe me, it will be a wonderful experience for you. You'll never forget it." "Does that go for us normal types as well?" Diane asked. Sighing, Alex turned to her. "Diane, you've hardly been demoted to the normal type 3s. And even if you were, they're just as vital and as much a part of this movement as anyone else. I've been focusing on the Seers simply because they tend to demand attention, but I don't want you to think I value you any less because you don't see lights or speak telepathically. I had two Watchers living with me at my home for the last several months, and I don't think any less of them than I do the others. In fact, my two type 3 girlfriends would argue with you that I treat anyone any differently. Now I can understand if you're disappointed, but you'll need to get used to it. You're going to have a baby to think about soon, and he or she is not going to need a mother who is distracted thinking about what her life could have been. You need to focus on the here and now." Diane dropped her head and mumbled that she was sorry, so Alex leaned over and lifted her head up and she repeated it louder this time. "Just remember, if we're going to be making love and having a baby, I don't take that kind of thing lightly. You and I are going to be tied together for life after this, and both you and that baby are going to be vital to me. I want you to realize that I'm getting close to loving you, and hopefully I'll be there soon. So don't belittle yourself. After all, I believe in you." "That's my brother for you," Cate told her, "he tends to be a little over the top sometimes. It's best to just humor him, so I'd suggest you start acting like you're happy to be a part of what's going on." "OK, getting to you now, Diane. What about you? What do you do, who are you and what are you good at?" Diane took a deep breath, still a bit intimidated by Alex, and started to reply. "I'm a marriage counselor. I work mainly through churches, although I also do work in divorce cases. I do good work and always hope for the best, but the majority of my cases end up in divorce and I end up feeling like I'm not making much of a difference. That's why I was so excited to join this, uh, movement of yours. I want to be more than just a cog in a machine. I want to be a significant part of something bigger than myself. I also want my child to be proud of his mother. I plan on telling him all about his father, and what I've been able to do for him, so someone in this life will know that I did something significant with my life." "A marriage counselor, huh?" Alex replied, considering that for a moment. "You know, if you are looking for a new role in my mission, then perhaps we can put your skills to use. Since you have direct experience with not having the abilities you hoped you'd have, I think you would do well talking to and counseling boyfriends and husbands of the various Watchers and Seers. I can see them having problems with the women all having abilities that they don't, as well as their each having an unhealthy fascination with me. And I mean it's unhealthy in terms of forming normal relationships. I'd like you to talk to those close to me and hang out with me for a while, so you can get a feel for how I view everyone. Frankly, I'm not crazy about the idea of sleeping with everyone I meet. I'd much rather see them form normal healthy relationships, as well as continue to build their relationships with their friends and families. If you could work as a go between for these women and their partners, it would help each of them. And, if the men can't adapt to the women's new lifestyle, you can help the women learn how to relate to men in the future and help the men deal with our culture." Diane thought about it for a moment, and then a smile crossed her lips. "You're right. There are a lot of people who are likely to be having troubles. By dealing with people before problems occur, I may be able to have more of an effect than I do after a couple is already having troubles. Your history with men has never been good, and the fact that your abilities don't seem to affect men means you're going to have continuing problems with the men in your organization. I may be able to help the women adapt and include the men in their lives a little more fully. It will be a full time job, but I can see it's one that needs to be done." "We think a lot of Alex's problems with men are likely due to either a perceived threat," Cate explained, "or Alex possibly projecting his interests on people." "There's a lot I'll have to learn about, but I think it's a useful mission," Diane said. "I may not be any more successful than I have been, but at least I won't feel I'm just applying Band-Aids to mortal wounds. Here I'm working on something that's vital to our whole organization." Both Alex and Diane smiled as they considered this. Alex was happy that he'd managed to turn a potentially disappointed woman into a useful facilitator, and Diane was happy that she had her own useful mission, even if she wasn't a Seer. "I also observed you've decided you're going to have a boy. Any reason for that confidence?" Alex asked. "Yeah, I figure I want someone just like you. He doesn't need to be an angel like you, or whatever you consider yourself to be, but I want him to be as strong, as concerned and as caring as you." "And you don't think a daughter can be like that, because she'll be more like you, then?" he asked, suspecting she was projecting her own insecurities onto her potential child. "No, that's not it," she answered with authority. "I just feel confident he's going to be like you, and when he goes to play with his little toy guns I'll tell him you never needed a gun. That you always tried to avoid fighting unless you didn't have a choice, and then you tried to heal the people you had to hurt." "I take it you've heard a little of my history. However I'm not sure you're going to be able to dissuade a young boy from playing with toy guns, nor a little girl from playing with dolls. I think a few people have tried before, and they generally aren't very successful. Hell, even gay guys used to play with toy guns, they just sang show tunes while doing so," Alex joked, trying to take the sting away from his mild criticism. "My brother, suddenly he's a childhood development expert," Cate said, laughing at the idea. "However, he does have very strong opinions, and he's fairly well read, so he tends to recall a lot of details and is fairly good at understanding people and situations. I think this is one of those cases. Alex continues to amaze everyone because he seems to read people without having the talent the rest of you have to feel someone's emotions. I think he's just learned enough about people by studying them in fiction and nonfiction stories, that now he can apply it fairly well." "Well, it looks like you have things well in hand once again, and it looks like my fears of your new girls taking all of your attention were well founded," Patricia noted. "But I've got to be getting to my club. As usual, any of you are welcome to attend, although I suspect Alex is going to have more pressing issues to attend to. If you other girls need a distraction while Alex is busy, come have some fun. And Lekesia, I think you should accompany me to the club so we can talk about babies and certain babies's fathers." Lekesia was smart enough to take a hint, so she quickly excused herself and left with Patricia after they gave everyone goodbye hugs. She told her mother she'd meet her in the morning for a 'talk'. The other girls left as well, leaving Alex with Diane, Noel, Cate and Gail. Shanna told them she'd find a separate hotel room, but that she'd meet them in the morning. Alex took everyone back to Allison's place, and he spent a long time with both Diane and Noel, both talking about their issues and showering them with love as well. After having gotten through the previous night without embarrassing himself, he was feeling much more comfortable with his situation. While leaving a bunch of potentially pregnant women behind continued to bother him, it no longer threatened to leave him impotent. He also managed to show Noel how much he appreciated and cherished her for her own mature beauty, as well as demonstrating to Diane that she was no less valued for having to take a somewhat diminished role in Alex's pantheon. However, she received a more substantial boost to her abilities as a result. ------- The next morning Alex awoke to find himself once again surrounded by women, though it took him a few moments to remember who the heck they were. He assumed that Cate was the one spooned against him, since that was the position she always seemed to assume, but he first mistook Noel for Lekesia. Since no one else was awake yet, he extricated himself from his bedmate huddle and snuck off to the bathroom. When he returned he saw it was still early, so he climbed back into bed. Noel, awakened by the sound of his peeing, cuddled up to him, while Cate once again snuggled up behind him. "How are we feeling this morning?" Alex asked. "Hmm, I'm feeling pretty good," Noel answered him. Cate simply hugged him a little tighter in greeting and responded with a little "Umm". "I'm not sure if I'm pregnant yet, so maybe we have time for another try," Noel suggested, playing with his chest. In answer Alex began tracing his finger around her nipple as he kissed her. They kissed for a few moments, Cate reaching around and playing with him out of Noel's sight, making sure he was ready for anything he may encounter. At least that was the rationale Cate used. Noel pulled back and looked down while still playing with Alex's chest. "Alex, this is a little awkward for me to say, but Lekesia is only 17 while I'm 35. I'm a little worried about whether I might be too old to be having babies. I mean, I know you can generally have your first up to age 40, and a second child even after that, but complications start to arise the older you are. I'm..." Alex leaned in and kissed her to halt her indecisive mumblings. "Don't worry about it. I don't know if it will have any effect, but I'll try applying some energy to the area. There's no evidence it will help, but strengthening the area could help." Cate quietly yanked on his erect cock, indicating she was aware he was spinning tales in order to make her feel better, since Alex was much more shy of using his abilities than that. "Wow, that would mean a lot to me if you could," she told him. "I'm concerned about the baby's health. I know there's no telling what may or may not happen, but..." Alex kissed her again, gently rubbed her lower belly, and moved his hand lower, running it over her pussy. He actually applied a little energy, but afterwards he relied on nature's magic to generate some special feelings in them both. Noel was so thankful for his easing her conscience she purred and returned his kiss. As she began feeling even better, she rolled over and grabbed for his penis, which Cate only barely managed to release in time. Noel was surprised, since she found that guys usually lost their morning erections after they'd peed, but she was pleased to see she could inspire such a reaction in such a young guy despite her being old enough to be his mother. After all, he was only slightly older than her own daughter. Alex rolled over, separating him and his sister, and began kissing Noel's neck before moving down to her chest. Noel was loving this moment. Here was a handsome young man, clearly in love with her, showering her with affection and not at all repulsed by her body. Maybe she was young enough for this. After all, she was only 35, there really wasn't a reason she couldn't be a mother again. Why, when her new baby was Lekesia's age... "Ow!" "Sorry, I thought your mind was wandering a little. So, are you interested in some oral foreplay, or..." "Oh, no, I'm already prepped and raring to go. I learned last night how much better having you on top of me is. Frankly, oral sex just doesn't compare with what we shared last night. I never thought I'd pass up on oral sex, but I'm more than ready right now." So Alex moved back up and positioned himself. Diane, who'd woken up while they were moving around, shifted over, disappointed she hadn't woken a little earlier. Still, she was surprised to find she wasn't jealous in the least. She knew they loved each other, just as she knew that Alex loved her, so she was happy seeing them enjoying themselves. Given how she now felt, she was convinced jealousy was simply the result of self doubts. The way she felt now, she had no doubts at all. Alex and Noel began the long slow dance of love as he began gently thrusting into her. She held on and reciprocated, matching him stroke for stroke, swearing she'd keep up with him despite the years that separated them. She was glad he was at least 18, though, as she'd have a hard time justifying herself if she was making love with a ... scratch that, she was still making love to a teenager. Just a legal one. Cate climbed out of bed, running her hand along her brother's side in a loving gesture. Diane observed she was completely nude. Not only that, but she was clean shaven. Not quite what you'd expect if you were traveling for several days with your brother. However Diane was a bit distracted by Alex and Noel. Cate got up and headed into the kitchen to fix the snack she was sure Alex would need shortly. After all, knowing him, he'd be going for a twofer this morning. Alex didn't move any faster than he had the previous night, taking the time to demonstrate his appreciation of the lovely creature he was with, and Noel loved him all the more for it. She could understand his rushing, trying to get as much as he could as soon as possible. After all, Alvin had always done that, always being so excited by Noel that he couldn't restrain himself. But to have Alex, a young man, want to spend so much time being so intimate with her spoke volumes about him. However, as much as she thought about him, it was hard to think about such things, since the energy she could feel flowing from him into her, filling her with life, energy and excitement, threatened to erase all rational thoughts. As much as she'd loved her husband Alvin for so many years, she'd never felt anything like this. What she was feeling now didn't make her love him any less, but it seemed to draw her to Alex that much more. She couldn't help but love him, and she had more than a niggling feeling she'd feel this way even if he wasn't such a wonderful individual, so concerned with her and so attentive. She didn't know whether it was possible to not love an angel. But putting it all together into a unified package just made it all the more wonderful. Diane was caressing Alex's back and thigh, whispering something to them both that somehow never managed to penetrate her brain, as obsessed with what was happening to her as Noel was. She felt herself approaching her orgasm, something that rarely happened through intercourse alone. But it quickly overwhelmed her and she shuddered beneath Alex, his energy seeming to increase the shaking in a syncopated rhythm. She finished her cum and quickly began building to another one, something that had only occurred once before, just last night. As she felt herself succumbing to her second orgasm, Alex didn't change his pace at all, simply softly kissing her as she quivered beneath him. As the wave crested and she felt a bit of sanity returning, however tenuous it was, Alex began quickening his pace. Noel felt the energy coursing through her increase, and she instantly knew what it meant. She'd felt the same thing the night before. When he got close to cumming the energy he gave off grew in intensity, and as it filled her, it took her back up another notch, and she found herself approaching a third orgasm before she'd even completed her second. But she also knew this one would be much more intense than the last two. She didn't know if it was the result of what he'd done to her brain last night, but her orgasm last night would be something she'd remember for the rest of her life. It hadn't seemed real. It was, in short, a transcendental experience. She'd felt like she was with God when it had happened, and it was Alex that she was with. The parallels were more than she could hope to deny. It wasn't intentional, but they both came together. She'd been orgasming already, but as Alex began shooting into her it just kicked the orgasm higher yet. But as wonderful as the orgasm was, stronger than any she'd had before, or in fact any she'd heard anyone talk of before, it wasn't quite the same as the previous night. She supposed she couldn't expect mind manipulating orgasms every time, but if this was her compromise she'd gladly accept it, since this was a mother of an orgasm. Any time Alex wanted a follow up she'd gladly volunteer, even though she might have to fight her daughter over it. When it was over, she simply luxuriated in how she felt. She felt more alive, more loved, more open to the world than any time before. Well, other than last night, of course, but then she'd been so out of it she couldn't really appreciate it. As it was, she continued to weakly clutch him to her, however that was broken when Cate reentered the room, still naked, and pulled Alex away so he could eat and restore his energy. However Noel could understand that, with as much energy as he'd giving off, it was a wonder he could stand at all. It had been like making love to the Hoover Dam power plant. She missed his presence, but she was feeling good enough she could do without his touch for a while. Afterwards, Diane fit a pillow under her butt, elevating it in the hopes of boosting her pregnancy chances. Noel wanted this pregnancy to stick. She couldn't picture a more perfect environment to conceive a life in, although she vaguely wondered if Alex had modified her brain during their orgasm, what might he have done to a fetus' brain? Gail came in at that point, and prevented Diane from getting a second chance herself when she reminded Alex that he was expected to make a deposit at the fertility clinic, and that his sperm could serve a better purpose helping dozens of people than it would helping one. Diane frowned, but she could hardly complain. Alex looked somewhat relieved, however he did escort her into the shower while Noel let his sperm soak into her uterus. Alex was in the process of connecting the freckles between Diane's breasts with his tongue when Patricia contacted him. 'Alex, sorry to disturb you, but you need to come down to Jackson Square park, and it needs to be at exactly 7:30, ' she told him. 'Oh, what's happening at the park this morning?' he asked. 'Duh, you should know the answer to that. You asked to activate all the potential Seers we had. It needs to be then, because the police will have trouble getting through the morning traffic to interfere. You'll also have to come in via the southeast side on the far side of St. Louis Cathedral. I figure if the local beat cops try to bust us up, they'll figure the action is happening closest to the Cathedral. We're going to have someone speaking to the Watchers there, so you should have sufficient time to do what you need to do before they realize what's going on. Be prepared to say a few words, in order to get the Watchers to pretend to listen to a make believe speaker, we promised them they could listen to you via cell phones. But the timing is going to be important.' 'OK, that makes sense. What about the fertility clinic, though?' Patricia laughed. 'Send the girls there alone. If you want, Cate can jerk you off in the cab and we'll have someone run it to Hannah for you. Oh, and one final thing, ' here she paused, and Alex found himself frozen in position over Diane's chest waiting for her response. 'What?' he finally asked, wondering what it was. 'Whatever you do, don't read the newspaper until you get here. You don't want to upset yourself. You'll need to be relaxed, because you won't know what might happen. I've got to go, though, so I'll talk to you later.' Alex tried to say goodbye but she was already gone. Alex realized he was still frozen in place in front of a delicious pair of wet erect nipples. "Talking to someone?" Diane asked, seeing him responding to her once more. "Yeah, we'll probably have to hurry. We need to get downtown soon, and I know I'm going to need a full breakfast beforehand. She says to expect trouble, so there might be some running around to escape exposure." "Well, shit, let's get you out of here. I'm clean enough. You've been washing my breasts for the last ten minutes. Go ahead and head out. I'll stay in here just so you can finish up faster." "She said you and Noel should head to the clinic on your own," he told her as he climbed out of the shower. "Tell Dr. Lampre I'll send my deposit over later." Diane laughed at his retreating form. "Ah, the life of the busy Angel, never a spare moment for a quick solitary masturbation." When Alex exited the bathroom Cate and Gail were waiting for him. Gail was dressed and waiting, while Cate was busy pulling her jeans on. Noel was sitting up watching everyone. "You'll need to get in the shower," Alex told Noel as Gail handed him his clothes. "I suspect you've waited long enough. We've got to be heading out soon." Alex fought the rising dread developing in him over the non-news about the newspaper. He knew that meant that Mr. Rodriguez's column featuring him had already hit the stand. But as much as he was worried about what it might say, he was even more concerned about what kind of reaction it would cause throughout the city. Connecting that reaction to a mob scene in a public place might make for a very dicey situation. He had no doubt that many people knew what he looked like. After all, a lot of people had seen him before, many of them non-followers. There were also the several videos of him on the internet. They'd done a good job of obscuring those references, but he was sure people would make the connection if the public became inflamed about what was reported about him. He was tempted to read the paper just for that alone, but he trusted Patricia. If she advised him not to read it he'd heed that advice. He told the two girls what he knew as Gail held his shirt open for him and Cate proceeded to button his shirt for him. They simply nodded, so he guessed Gail had already told his sister most of it. They headed out, calling back to Diane and Noel to catch up with them. Alex told Cate to get the paper, but not to read it or show it to him until they'd finished in the park. She simply nodded, so he knew she'd do what he'd asked. Shanna, Lekesia and Mattie were waiting for them when they entered the dining room. They had breakfast waiting, so Alex assumed Patricia had once again taken care of every last detail. He sat down and began eating right away, while Lekesia asked where her mother was, then asked how she did before waiting for an answer. In response Alex simply motioned to the entrance to the dining room, just as Diane and Noel entered. Alex wasn't fooled, though, he knew they'd likely been talking quite a bit already. In fact he was surprised they hadn't stayed up all night discussing it. They finished up in plenty of time. Alex was about to suggest a walk, then reconsidered remembering people might be out on the street looking for him this morning. Walking around with a cadre of beautiful women would be too obvious to miss. Instead, Cate took him into the men's room where she prettied him up, fixing his jacket and combing his hair just right. She finally kissed him while grabbing his crotch. "I know things are busy here in New Orleans, but you're going to have to find some spare time for Gail and me because we're both dying to spend some time with you. I can't make a move on you and she feels like she has to be on duty all the time, so we're both feeling a bit neglected." Alex kissed her back and gave her a nice hug. "I know. Sorry about that. If I could avoid it, I'd be spending all my time with you. I don't think things will be as crazy once we leave the city, but it will be like it was on the road earlier this week. Hopefully we can get a nice quiet hotel room and hide away, although there will likely be Seers to activate or boost then, too. You may have to just bite the bullet and just ignore everyone's reactions. A lot of people have already guessed about us anyway, so I don't think anyone would react too negatively. No one seems to hold me to the same rules they hold everyone else to." "There is that," she acknowledged as they both headed to the door, holding each other. "Although I'd hate to disillusion any of your followers just because I couldn't keep it in your pants." Just as they were leaving, Alex got another telepathic call. 'Alex, are you there?' asked a voice he couldn't place. Telepathic voices aren't like normal voices, especially with children, who speak with adult telepathic voices. Thus he didn't know who was contacting him. 'I'm always here, just ask and I'll always hear you. Sorry, but I don't recognize the voice, who am I talking with?' 'Oh, sorry. This is Debbie Grant. We... ' 'Yeah, I remember you. I'm not likely to ever forget you, cutie, ' Alex replied, remembering her face glancing back at him in her parent's rear view mirror. 'What's up? How have your parents handled your abilities so far?' asked Alex, pulling Cate aside, standing by the sink while he was talking to Debbie. 'Not well, ' she told him. 'They've been acting crazy. That's why I'm calling. Mom is taking me to the doctor to figure out why I'm seeing things.' 'That doesn't sound good, ' Alex told her as he mouthed 'Debbie' to Cate. She nodded that she understood. 'Look, whatever you do you can't admit to the doctor what you see. Just deny everything. As far as the doctor is concerned, you were just playing with your parents.' 'OK. I'll try, ' she answered doubtfully. 'You probably haven't had much experience with lying to adults. I'll tell you what, when you get there, contact me and I'll walk you through it. Just think about what everyone is saying, and I should be able to follow the conversation. I'll tell you what to say. Our communication is instant, so they shouldn't notice.' 'OK, I'm still nervous about it, but I'll feel better if you're there with me. I hate lying about lying, though. And Mom is going to get angry.' 'That's likely, but there isn't much you can do about it. I'll talk you through that as well, ' Alex told her. She thanked him, and Alex quickly told Cate what the conversation had been about. As they exited the men's room Cate and Alex passed a middle aged couple entering the restrooms, both of whom stopped and stared at Cate as they watched her exiting the men's room. "Don't worry," she told them. "He's only my brother. It's OK." They both laughed as they ran back into the restaurant, enjoying the shocked expressions on the people's faces. But the incident reminded them both of the reason for Cate's reluctance. It was clear that Noel and Lekesia had been talking about them, since they were both giggling. Luckily they stopped when Alex entered the room, saving him and Cate from any teasing. Everyone took a few more minutes preparing before they finally exited the restaurant. Alex kissed Diane, Noel and Lekesia. Lekesia was accompanying her mother because they were anxious to talk more, plus they wanted to examine Lekesia in detail to see if they could detect any early signs of life. They were each aware that Shani had been pregnant for almost nine days before anyone noticed because no one had thought to look, so everyone was anxious to figure out when a fetus's aura would first be detectable. No one expected it would occur this soon, but they wanted to be sure. Alex was thoughtful on the drive over to the park. He needed to say something, and he had never been much of a speaker. He had delivered that speech at his graduation, so he knew he could speak to a large group of people, but then he had Cate's help in writing the gist of what he had to say. Now there simply wasn't enough time. He had to figure it out on the fly. When they drove up they could see a congregation of people, though it appeared to be at the other end of the park. The people nearby were scattered to the sides so they weren't obviously waiting. As the cab stopped, Alex quickly climbed out, hurrying forward so he could do whatever needed to be done as quickly as possible. The others exited the cab and paid the tab at their own pace. As Alex entered the park, Patricia, who'd noticed him getting out of his cab, began organizing people so the potential Seers were waiting for him when he approached. He tried to keep his eyes down, though that was difficult as he tried to figure out where to head. He was sure he accidentally activated a few, but that couldn't be helped. The main point here was to activate everyone. If it happened accidentally, it was OK, as long as it occurred. However it was also clear Alex would have to make serious eye contact with each one. What Lekesia had discovered yesterday proved that Alex had to establish them in his own memory in order to allow them to all have their own telepathic abilities. When Alex reached Patricia everyone grew deathly silent. He raised his eyes and slowly panned across the collected women, making definitive eye contact with each and every one. Several of the women reacted typically, jerking back, but Alex ignored that as he tried to establish a quick mental connection with each one. The whole process only took several moments, and then he collected himself and started speaking. "Thanks for meeting me here for this. I know it's awkward, as I normally like to do this on a personal basis. However, the number of you involved and the potential for trouble meant we had to move quickly. I hope to speak to each of you individually, and if I can't, please be aware that you can communicate with me telepathically whenever you feel the need to. Just be aware you may have to remind me who you are, as I may not have a face to associate with your mental voice initially." The women anxiously listened to every word he said. He could also hear someone making a speech from the other end of the park, but it was too far away to distinguish their words, as Alex was sure they were trying to avoid drawing the attention they were trying to divert. He also noticed that Patricia was holding her cell phone near him to capture what he was saying. "There's a lot you'll need to know, although I'm sure Patty has already explained much of it. There are several people you'll have to get to know as well. The most important, initially, is Allison, who will help you learn how to interpret these new visions of yours." At this point he had Allison make a brief comment to all of them, and many of them noticeably reacted, this being their first telepathic communication. He went on to introduce several others, including Shani, his first follower, Anh, one of his most loyal followers and one who always had a distinct perspective. He wanted to allow each of these women to become familiar with the newbies, so they could establish their own connections to follow up with them. That way the New Orleans contingent would be covered even without his assistance, and they could train them independently over the coming week. Finally he introduced Gail, telling them to contact her with any potential security problems, reminding them there would likely be many people who felt threatened by him, or by the whole movement. "I also want to speak about that movement for a moment. This is about people. I don't want any of you to think of this as winning a race. There are no Seers, Watchers and 'normal people'. Instead there are people who are aware of us, those that can be trusted, and those that you have to be careful of. We are all equal in this, and it's your job, with your unique talents, to help each of your Sisters. You can use your abilities to identify who to trust and who not to. Other people don't have that ability, and they need your assistance. Use that ability carefully, extending it even to those who don't know about me. If you do, you'll find that people gradually come to trust your judgment. But always keep in mind how receptive people will be. Many will need to be brought around slowly. Some will never be ready to learn about your new life. "But don't abandon old friends, because right now we need as many friends as we can get. We're a very small community, and if we suddenly face opposition we'll need people who will support us. Prove yourselves to be trusted friends, both of each other, and of those you meet, so each of those people will be willing to speak highly of you, of your honor, your commitment to others, and of your overall trustworthiness. These traits will be our best defense in a hostile world. Friendship is a vital tool, not something to turn away because someone might not understand what you're going through. Most of all, if you are unsure what to do or where to turn, reach out. You have many sisters of all stripes that are more than willing to help you out or to lend assistance. Take that into account. Utilize Peter, Dave and Darice, as well as the Angel Vision foundation in Carbondale." In the distance, Alex could see a uniformed cop approaching the group speaking near the Cathedral, so he knew he had little time. He'd have to hurry. "The biggest thing we've got to do in the coming months is to increase our core group. That means talking to friends, family, or anyone who appears may carry the traits you and your sisters share. But beyond that, we also need to include normal people as well. That's where your friends come in. We need friendly faces and supportive friends, both male and female. Each friend you make could potentially become someone who is willing to help defend us in our hour of need. You need to nurture such friendships like a tiny plant; it needs careful consideration and tending. They won't appreciate what you're doing or why you're doing it, but hopefully, over time, they'll come to realize how important it is, and what you, and what you represent, mean to their lives and to others as well. "Now, I'd love to stay and talk, but I see we have company coming, so I'd better be moving. In case you aren't aware of it, a recent column has identified me to the public, so I don't dare spend much time where I can be easily identified for a while. I hope to meet each of you, either in the next few days or, at worst, someday. But know that I deeply care for each and every one of you, and I cherish what you represent, both to me and to your fellow sisters." The policeman, now accompanied by another, had already broken up the meeting at the other end of the park and was already dispersing the participants. Alex noticed the one cop glancing in their direction, so he knew he had to be moving. However, instead of leaving he walked into the group of women and began hugging as many as he could. They each clustered around him, each trying to show him how much they thought of him in a quick physical connection, but soon they started pushing him away, concerned about his exposure. He took that as the final sign he couldn't stay any longer, so he turned and walked briskly to the edge of the park where Gail and the others held a waiting cab. The entire event had taken only a few minutes. They'd essentially created a flash mob, did what needed to be done, said what needed to be said, and now it was time to get the hell out of there. He hoped whoever was acting as the speaker wouldn't get into too much trouble. He knew it took weeks to organize a public event, and for as much as Americans talked about freedom of speech, it wasn't unlimited. It took money, time and effort to be able to speak, and no government organization trusted anyone speaking unless they could be observed as they did it. Governments rose and fell on the basis of free communications, thus those in government didn't trust them, just as they didn't trust the very people they supposedly served. They'd likely file fines for an illegal gathering and for not applying for permits. They climbed into the cab, Alex watching the scene as they sped away. As soon as the park disappeared from sight, he addressed Cate. "OK, who's got the paper? I need to see what it says." Cate reluctantly handed him the latest issue of the Times-Picayune Newspaper. He didn't know if she'd looked at it, but he doubted she had, since he'd specifically asked her not to for fear she'd reveal what it said simply by her reactions to him. Unfolding the paper, he quickly found the column under a banner headline in bold black ink. "The Angel of New Orleans Returns," it read. Alex groaned. This wasn't sounding very promising. He proceeded to read the article aloud so the others would know what it contained. "The long rumored Angel of New Orleans, which I reported on some months back, has finally returned to New Orleans. Word had spread amongst his many followers here that he was coming, although they are a very closed group. It was only by carefully watching and listening that we learned where he was to appear. A certain local celebrity was putting on a private concert for him, and I have no doubt he delivered a sermon of some sort, though the doors were closed and carefully watched so I wasn't able to learn what unfolded there or what weird ceremonies might have unfolded. However, I was able to catch the young man as he exited the secret meeting, and surprisingly he was relatively free with information for a change. "As some of you may be aware, I've spoken to him previously, and as he did before, he specifically told me that he desires no fame, recognition nor publicity of any kind. However, as this is slowly becoming an organized element of New Orleans, I feel obligated to report on it, even if I don't reveal the name of the individual or of the entertainer who appeared to be behind the secret meeting. "What he told me was quite interesting, and you may have as much trouble believing it as I did, as the idea of an Angel visiting the earth is a bit of a stretch in the best of times. According to the Bible, there is to be only one messenger from God scheduled to visit the earth, and he isn't planned to appear until near the end times, when Christ returns to the earth. I don't think that is the case here, but each of you may have your own opinion on that topic. "The first thing he told me, for the second time, is that he is, in fact, no angel. The surprising thing is that he's not even religious. He claims to be an avowed atheist. However, he said that God did in fact speak through him, and he speculated about the reasons for that. "He claimed that this is not a local event, as I had previously reported, but is a worldwide phenomenon, though one that is being done in secret. It seems there are a number of select individuals, scattered throughout the world, who the true Angel visits at random occurrences. She goes by the name of Alexandria, though he had no idea of where to find her or how to contact her, claiming she would simply show up whenever she needed to reveal anything to him. "She supposedly instructed him that he'd know what to do when he met someone he was to 'reach out to', and that she'd grant him the ability to do miraculous things, even if he didn't realize what he was doing or how he was accomplishing it. Being a prior atheist, he tended to explain things in very sectarian terms. "An example of this occurred just as I caught up to him. He encountered a blind woman walking with the help of her guide dog and her sister. He laid hands upon her, causing her sight to return, despite her having been blind since childhood. I literally saw this woman running down the street, moving in and out of people, avoiding obstacles. It certainly didn't appear to have been staged, and as skeptical as I am, I tend to believe it actually occurred just as I'm describing it. "After he performed this miraculous event we talked. He informed me that this Alexandria sought out select individuals from a variety of faiths, mainly because God had given up on organized religion, just as Jesus had ignored the established religion of his time. Thus she specifically chose members of each faith, including an atheist in this case. "He also said he's unique in that he's the only male in a predominately female organization. I don't know what they plan on doing with or to the men in their lives, but it sounds like they disapprove of how the men have organized religion over the past several millennia." "It goes on to describe my little trick of having everyone call him," Alex said, summarizing as he scanned over the rest of the article. "He gets a lot of facts wrong, but at least he left Patricia and my names out of it, which is something. So what does everyone think?" "It doesn't sound so bad," Cate offered. "He doesn't flat out call you a nut case, and he doesn't actually call you the antichrist, although he reminds everyone that it's a possibility." "Oh shit," Alex added. "At the bottom he lists a webpage for a link the paper is sponsoring showing what I did to Mattie." "That's not good," Gail quietly observed. "No, we've got to get a computer and see just what it reveals," Alex said. "If it shows us in any detail we'll be in trouble soon. We won't be able to show our faces around town without attracting a crowd." "I don't see how it couldn't," Gail replied. "I don't know who was filming it, but you were standing right there in open sight of everyone. If everyone can recognize you, we may need..." she started to say as Cate, smiling, handed Alex her ever ready iPad. Alex blushed but turned his attention to the device. He started it up and opened the paper's website to find the link. Everyone else leaned over to watch as the video began playing. They all recognized the scene, but luckily it was shot from a distance, so the faces were largely indistinct. However the actions and much of the speech were fairly clear. It only caught Mattie midway across the intersection, after she'd left Roger behind and was running between people trying to catch up to Alex. It also caught her collapsing at his feet, and her loud proclamations of what he'd done for her. But it also didn't show the interview with the reporter, though Alex couldn't tell if it had been edited by the paper or whether the cameraman had simply quit after the initial scene. He figured he'd learn the next day when Rodriguez continued his article. Alex was relieved. This wasn't so damaging he'd have to avoid going outside, but it was liable to cause questions. What sort of questions, and how it may or may not impact him, was something they'd have to see. ------- Chapter 11: Once You Get a New Ethnic Group, Someone Brings Up Bussing They were just getting out of the cab when Debbie contacted Alex again. 'Alex, I'm heading in to see the doctor now. Are you ready?' she asked. 'Yeah, I'm ready, ' he told her as he stepped onto the curb before turning aside so he could focus on their conversation. Cate recognized what he was doing, so she stood beside him to act as a buffer while explaining what he was doing to the other girls. They too stood around him to block anyone else's view of him, allowing him to concentrate. 'Go ahead. Just tell me what's happening and I'll walk you through it.' She thanked him and he simply stood there waiting for a few moments. 'Good morning, young lady, ' Alex heard the voice of Debbie's doctor as it was conveyed to him telepathically through Debbie. Alex didn't know whether he was a general pediatrician or a psychiatrist specializing in schizophrenia. 'I'm Dr. Green. What seems to be your problem today?' 'Tell him you don't have one, that you were just teasing your mother. Let's try to stop this as soon as we can, ' Alex told her. She did as he instructed. She then relayed how the doctor looked quizzically at her mother, Sarah, and how she started to respond. 'That's not what you told us, Debbie. You told us that man on the highway made you see things, and that you saw auras surrounding everything. Tell him what you saw, Debbie, ' Alex heard Sarah explain to the doctor. When the doctor asked her about it again, Alex walked her through her denial of it again. Sarah became embarrassed and insisted that Debbie tell the truth, at which point Dr. Green asked about the events that triggered the behavior. Sarah blushed again and tried to explain. 'We had an encounter with a crazy person in the car the other day, ' she explained. 'He called us up from the car behind us on the interstate. I have no idea how he got our number, but he started telling us all this crazy stuff about Debbie. About how she had this genetic ability that he somehow activated or something, and that now he needed us to stop so he could tell us all about it.' The doctor cocked his head, according to Debbie. 'He called you from the car behind you?' Dr. Green asked. 'That's pretty unusual. Did he describe what genetic anomaly she supposedly suffered from?' 'No, we didn't give him the chance, ' Debbie's mom told him. 'We figured he looked up some information about Debbie on the internet so they could stop us so they could do something to us. We weren't about to risk it.' 'I don't think I've ever heard of someone going to those lengths for a simple carjacking, ' the doctor told Sarah. 'Even then, the chances of catching up with you and holding a phone conversation is pretty difficult. You'd think they'd have just run into you if they wanted you to stop instead.' 'Whatever, ' she responded in exasperation. 'He was trying to get us to stop, spouting all kinds of nonsense. We weren't about to stop to discuss it with him.' 'Still, it may explain where she got the idea from. Apparently Debbie was intrigued by the concept and built a complex fantasy out of it. Debbie, what's an aura?' he asked. 'Tell him you think it's a glow, but tell him that's how your mother described it, ' Alex instructed her. She did so, and the doctor simply shook his head. 'It's unusual for a child to develop such a complex fantasy, but certainly not unheard of. Frankly, you should be proud she's bright enough to formulate such ideas. But as long as she can distinguish between the fantasy and reality, I don't see a problem, ' he told her. 'But she believed it, ' Sarah insisted, Debbie merely standing meekly nearby, not bothering to say anything else. 'Every time we look at her, she's staring at things as if she can see things that aren't there. When we asked her, she described what she saw in great detail.' 'All signs of a creative imagination and a strong mind, ' the doctor assured her. 'I wouldn't worry about it. Many children have intricate imaginative fantasies. Sometimes it's invisible friends, sometimes it's something else.' According to Debbie her mother then stormed out, clearly upset. Alex told her to keep talking to him and he'd help her with her mother as well. Alex glanced around him, checking to see if there was any problem with his staring into space standing on a street corner. While he waited, he walked over to lean against the neighboring building so he wouldn't look so conspicuous. 'Look, little lady, ' Sarah told her daughter. 'I have no idea what you are trying to pull. But I don't appreciate it. Do you care to tell me what's going on?' 'Tell her nothing has changed, but you aren't about to confess something that will have you force fed drugs you don't need, ' Alex instructed her. 'Are you sure, Alex? That doesn't sound very smart. She's going to be angry and it doesn't sound like me, ' Debbie complained. 'Just tell her. I'll be here to make sure it's OK, ' Alex assured her. She said what Alex told her to. 'So you are still seeing things and you lied about it, making me look like a fool, ' Sarah accused her. 'Tell her you had to, that otherwise he'd treat you for something you don't have, ' Alex instructed. She followed his directions. 'What the hell am I supposed to do with you? You still believe this nonsense, but now I can't face your doctor again. How am I supposed to get you treated?' Sarah asked Debbie angrily. 'You aren't going to treat me for anything, because I'm not suffering from anything. I actually see these things, just like I can see how angry and frustrated you are now. I can also see that your blood pressure is rising, ' Debbie told her mother defiantly as Alex had coached her. She described to Alex how Sarah clenched her fists, but she didn't say anything as she headed to the car, Debbie hurrying to catch up. 'We'll talk about this later, ' Sarah told her daughter sternly. 'Right now I'm too angry to speak to you. Maybe your father can talk some sense into you.' 'OK, we'd better not say anything further. Call me again if your father raises a fuss, but I think you've bought yourself some time. We'll think of something when the time comes, ' he assured her. She thanked him and he looked up to see the women looking at him questioningly. "Hey, somebody needed some help with a doctor's appointment," he told them, as if that explained everything. ------- Alex and the others entered Patricia's club a short while later. As a club they had a full kitchen, but they had private booths so they wouldn't have to worry about being recognized or disturbed. Patricia had called them shortly after they'd left the park to ask them to lunch, as they had much to discuss. That, as always, left many questions in Alex's mind, but he felt comfortable enough with how things had played out to leave them unanswered for the moment. Now, however, he was anxious to discover what the latest news was. They found Lekesia, Noel and Diane there. They'd apparently come here directly from the clinic, since Alex hadn't heard from them since they'd left that morning. They all positively beamed when Alex walked in the door. However, despite the club being busy, a lot of the other people they might have expected weren't here. The three Watcher watchers weren't in attendance, nor were the girls they'd brought with them, namely Tina, Amy, nor any of the girls who were renting Allison's apartment from her. Mattie and Shanna had come along with Alex. "So, is everyone pregnant?" Alex asked playfully. "No one can tell yet," Lekesia pouted. "Though Diane seems convinced she already is. The rest of us have our doubts, though." "I guess that just goes to show that my magical abilities only go so far. Sometimes you just have to wait for nature to catch up," he told them. Patricia was about to say something, but Alex cut her off. "Wait a minute, what's that on your wrist, Lekesia?" "Oh, do you like it? We each got one," she told him, displaying a small tattoo on her wrist of the Angel Vision foundation logo. "We also got these to go along with them," she said, displaying one on her other wrist showing a thought balloon with nothing in it. "It was Stacy's idea. All the girls are going to get one. The thought bubble represents telepathic ability, and each of the Seers are going to get one to denote our abilities. The Watchers are going to get one of an eye with the pupil larger than the surrounding eye, making it look like they're surprised." Alex sat back, and it appeared he was anything but happy. 'Listen up, everyone. No one else is going to get a tattoo. At least none relating to me, ' he said, broadcasting the message to every activated Seer he'd ever met. 'They're a BAD idea. I'm trying to help each of you, but if word of my existence gets out, along with what we can do, there's likely to be a huge reaction. The government has been known to lock up those it finds suspicious, usually without any rights to contest it. Your marking yourselves makes each of you easy to identify. I prefer it if each of you were able to blend in, so that if I get into trouble each of you could go on as if nothing had changed.' Everyone looked shocked at his response, but since everyone there was a Seer, aside from Alex and Cate, they each got the message. Cate was aware that something had happened, so she was busy watching to see what happened. "We didn't mean anything by it," Diane said. "We just wanted to be able to show it off to the others in the community." "Yes, and you and the others could very well be locked up together on the basis of it," he reminded them. "I say let them," Lekesia stated proudly. "Peter denied knowledge of Jesus three times and it almost destroyed him. Judas turned his back on Jesus, and look what it got him. We're each proud to stand beside you, even if it means punishment or crucifixion." "And that's the kind of righteous indignation that's resulted in two thousand years of wars, aggression and arrogance," Alex pointed out. "I'm looking to avoid that. I'm not looking to change the world. I simply want a safe place for each of us. Standing up for me might not be so safe. I'd rather each of you was safely protected if anything happened to me, so I won't have to worry about you. Right now, we need to continue these abilities of ours, and to promote the genetic traits that produce them. Having us all imprisoned or killed is a quick way to end our whole existence. I'm thinking long term. I don't like the risks involved, nor the implications that we're looking to take on the world in a huge theological conflict." Everyone looked down, intimidated by Alex's angry response. Cate had a quick whispered conversation with Noel, who explained what Alex had told them that she hadn't heard before. 'I want you each to know that I don't blame you, ' Alex mentally broadcast while trying to speak the words aloud for his sister's sake, not an easy task to pull off, since one was instantaneous while the other took time to say, 'but I don't think physical markings is a good idea. Whoever started this, get the tattoo parlor to stop it immediately, and everyone else get word out to the various Watchers that I don't approve of this.' He continued. 'I'm with Stacy now, ' responded a mental voice that Alex didn't recognize, assuming it must have been someone he activated this morning. 'I'm having her send people out to each of the clinics she dealt with. We'll also send people out to try to contact the various Watchers. I'll talk to Darice about it as soon as I can get over there.' 'Very good. By the way, who is this? I don't recognize the mental signature, ' Alex responded. 'This is Vicky Amhurst. I was in the park this morning, ' she told him. 'Well I'm glad to finally meet you, Vicky. When you get finished, come by the club so we can meet. I'm glad you responded so quickly. It says a lot about you, ' he said. He could feel her beaming in his own head, since the telepathy also tended to capture emotions sometimes as well. 'I'd be glad to, sir, ' she replied. Alex quickly bid her good luck before turning back to the others. "I'm sorry to get so rough, after all, I've never said anything about it before, but that's a risk there's simply no reason to undertake," he explained. "Besides, there's already enough of a risk that if and when I'm exposed to the public, they'll take it out on each of you they can find. Thus I want to distance the Foundation from us enough so that it won't get discredited if I'm exposed." "Do you want us to have them taken off?" Noel asked nervously. Alex looked a bit disturbed as he contemplated that. "No, I guess not. I'm not sure how complex the procedure is. You may need to at some time in the future, but if only a few of you have had it done then it shouldn't be too much of an issue. However, I'm also disappointed in you three since tattoos are the leading cause of hepatitis and other problems for developing babies." "We thought of that," Lekesia tried to explain. "Stacy found us a medical tattooist near the fertility clinic. You know, the kind that does medical tattoos like putting fake nipples on mastectomy patients or applying permanent makeup." Frankly, Alex had never heard of such a thing before. At least that would mean they were more careful about possible infections, but still, the basic risks to everyone remained. "Look, you may believe my reaction was harsh, but I wanted it stopped immediately since it puts each of you at risk," he told them, watching their stricken faces. "One of my first priorities is protecting all of you, and I couldn't allow you to endanger yourselves on my account. After all, I'm not espousing a religion here, I'm just trying to help each of you to survive in the future. We need to keep a low profile, and we also need to be aware of what's likely to happen once we're exposed. Now, let's put it behind us and move on to other topics." They each tried to cover up their contrite expressions as they tried to remember what they'd been doing before Alex's scolding. "Uh, I was going to say the mass activation in the park this morning worked out well," Patricia said. "The police didn't give us a hard time, since we hadn't built any platforms or anything, but they did shut us down pretty quickly. They said they don't like unorganized groups, since they could represent any number of different threats." "I figured as much. If it's a hate group or a Muslim gathering they want to be on hand in case things get out of hand, but I suspect they want to control who can speak as much as anything else," Alex replied. "Yeah, well you managed to get them all," Patricia told him. "Well, you got most of them. It turns out we have five misidentified, only one of which wasn't either a Watcher or a Seer. I figured you'd probably want to speak to her, but right now she's busy commiserating with her 'sisters', each of which are assuring her she still fits in, despite not having the requisite abilities. I told her that it seems many people with the underlying genes don't become full Watchers and Seers because of other restricting genes. That made her feel better. You can probably speak to her tomorrow, if you're still here," she added. "We also managed to get away before we attracted too much attention. Although I've heard there's an impromptu gathering in front of the same Cathedral by a group of Catholics protesting the new 'Atheist Angel movement' they read about this morning." "Yeah, I figured that was coming," Alex replied. "I think it would be a good idea to avoid most of the major churches for a few days, at the very least. We may be able to weather this storm, but we'll have to be careful. You never know when it might be necessary for us to run for cover." "That's actually why I had you stop by," Patricia told him as the waiter brought them their meals. "I've got a surprise for you, but it's outside so we'll have to wait until we're finished here. It bears on that very topic." "The topic?" Alex asked. "I was talking about avoiding churches. Do you have a billboard listing of all the churches in the neighborhood?" Patricia was about to respond before she finally saw Alex smirking, so instead she lightly slapped his arm. "No, silly, I'm talking about if the exposure gets to be too great. Well, actually it has to do with your travel schedule, but it still applies if you leave ahead of time as well," she explained. "Well, if it's another girl looking to get pregnant while we're driving cross country then it's officially not much of a surprise," Alex told her, which the three hopeful mothers each twittered over. At Alex's insistence, Patricia led the newest girls over. There were only two this time, and both had already been activated, obviously. One was introduced as Brandy Stevens, a buxom black girl with a no nonsense attitude, dressed in a simple dress with some African prints, which Alex had learned to appreciate from his time with Chalise and Caroline. The other was named Caitlin Johansen, a pretty bleach blonde with freckles. The difference between the two, the thin light skinned Caitlin compared to the fuller and darker Brandy, really contrasted them nicely, making each stand out that much more. The other girls hadn't heard of Alex's mass activation in the park, nor about the article in today's paper, so the girls discussed it amongst themselves. They were fascinated in the two topics; upset they missed the first and more disturbed about the second. Cate dug out her iPad to show each of them the video, so that kept them occupied while Alex focused on the new women. "Welcome, ladies. Apparently we met this morning, though forgive me if I need to get to know you a little better before we get down to business. So, Brandy, what do you do?" "I work in Social Services in the Child Protective Services," she told him, then regarded him carefully. "Ah'm more of a naturally shaped black woman, Honey. I hear you like your black women like Oreos: skinny and white. I've got a few more curves which the black men like. I've got a delicious bootie, which you're probably not used to," she told him. Despite the fact she was clearly testing him, he smiled in response. "I probably deserve that," he told her. "Yes, Shani, Chalise and even Lekesia are all thin, smart, and adept at fitting into white society. But I hope you don't hold that against me. I've got nothing against beautiful black women, and you're certainly beautiful. I can adapt to your more natural speech patterns, too, just give me a little time." "We'll see," she replied, looking at him levelly. "My natural reaction is to treat you like a demigod, as you're used to. But I'm afraid you may be just another spoiled little white boy, so I'm going to apply my experience and watch how you react to people. I'll either train you or you'll have to run me off." "Fair enough. I take it you typically have trouble with guys who don't understand you?" "That, plus I deal with a lot of white boyfriends who don't appreciate their girlfriend's black kids. I'm not saying you're like them, but I've had experience with racial blindness. People who are racist without even realizing it. Since my natural tendency is to defer to you, I'm resisting that impulse." "You realize that one of my contentions with people is about how they prejudge others? You're doing that now, assuming I'll act like all the other 'spoiled little while boys'. By the way, did it ever occur to you that you may be putting your chances of getting pregnant at risk?" Alex teasingly asked her. She gave a short barking laugh. "I considered it. But from what I've heard you're pretty understanding. You seem to do like I do, you look for the good in people, and you look at people's intent rather than at their initial statements. But I'm afraid you're going to end up like a lot of naive young white boys, you get disillusioned by life and you turn against people. If I can help you avoid that, I'll chalk it up as experience whatever you decide to do with me." "You manage to lose your accent when you get enthused," Alex observed. "Isn't that the opposite of what normally happens?" "I'm used to getting excited. I'm also used to talking to white superiors, white clients, and whites in my private life. You get used to speaking so you can be understood," she answered. "OK. That makes sense. Now, can we get back to the getting to know you, and you can teach me how to behave when we have more time later?" She smiled at him. Caitlin's head had been flicking from one to the other. Like the white men Brandy was describing, she wasn't used to such confrontations with large black women. "I keep myself busy. I already have two kids, Joshua and Sam, that's my daughter. I love 'em both but their daddy didn't last long. But they're getting older, and I thought this was a great excuse to have another one, which is something I've been wanting for a while. I figur'd that's just what I need, another ethnic group I can belong to that will get me discriminated against," she replied with a smile. "Well, I assume you know about kids and that you're serious about raising them, so I don't have to worry about that. What about other things, what makes you tick?" Alex asked her. She tilted her head, trying to look at him from a different angle, still trying to figure him out. "I volunteer at the church a lot. I sing in the choir and I'm also active in Republican Party events." Alex smiled again. "You can go easy on testing me," he told her. "While it's true I'm an atheist, I'm not a raving fanatic about it. Instead I just have trouble believing in the existence of a soul. Science has demonstrated that thoughts are the results of biochemical processes in the brain, so without a brain there's no way for a soul to be functional. Without a physical brain, there's no mechanism for the soul to retrieve thoughts or to think of new ones. However, I have no problem with anyone else believing in it. I also have no problems with anyone supporting whichever candidates or parties they think best serves them. I'm not looking for people to blindly follow me, I'm looking to help people. Especially those that only I can help, and even more those I've taken responsibility for. "As you may have heard, Clara was an exception, not the rule. I'm sure a lot of what you've been telling me is based on what you've heard about her. Her problem was that she was unstable. She couldn't distinguish between fantasy and reality. She was a risk not only to me, but to everyone around me and to those I feel protective of. However I gave her something to do. I sent her back to school to study those topics that make her uncomfortable. I want her to stretch her mind and get more comfortable with different ideas. College teaches people how to think, so hopefully they can help her with her thought processes. If not, at least I tried to help her. But I'll only welcome her into the community when she proves she's no longer a risk to those I love," Alex concluded. Brandy regarded him, trying to study him while still having trouble looking at him. "Don't look at me," Alex instructed her. "Look around me. That's where the colors reflect my emotions. You should be able to see my emotions even if you can't look directly at me. It's not the same, but it's about all you'll be able to do in evaluating me." She smiled. "I think I'm gonna like you, Alex. You're cute. You not only talk like a 'cyclopedia salesman, you seem to think about what you do, and you believe in what you say as well. I may be able to work with your little white ass." They both laughed as Alex finally turned back to Caitlin. "So what about you, Caitlin? What do you do? What are you interested in?" "Well, everyone told me you're mostly interested in why we want kids, so I'll get that out of the way first. I'm currently living with my brother and his wife because I just broke up with my boyfriend," she told him. At that, Alex glanced at Cate and she cocked her head at him as well. They both would have to learn more about that. It might be completely innocent, although there might be something else going on she was reluctant to mention outright. "We'd been trying to have kids for the last two years, but I learned from his ex-girlfriend that he'd had a vasectomy years ago and never bothered to mention it to me while I was struggling to get pregnant, having every test I could think of to figure out why I wasn't successful. He always claimed his tests came back fine, although I never thought to check them myself. "So I'm fully committed to having kids. But I was so focused on that, that I never pursued a profession. My boyfriend always supported me. When I screamed at him, he locked me out of his house and I had to turn to my brother. He's been supporting me for the last couple of months." "So how do you plan to support yourself and your child?" Alex asked, not wanting to embarrass her but clearly interested in her response. "Oh, I'm working at the nearby grocery store as a cashier. I've always kept my finances separate from my boyfriend's, largely because I never really trusted him, although I never even thought about his lying about something he said he desperately wanted. My brother told me he'd support me. Hopefully I'll eventually find someone who wants a child as much as I do, but I'm not going to wait for him. I'll do whatever I have to for this, and for my, our, child." "It sounds like you never trusted him much, even if you didn't guess the extent of his dishonesty. I suspect that was because of your abilities. But I'm guessing you didn't trust your feelings. Now that you can see what your feelings are based on, hopefully it will be easier knowing who to trust. The bad boys might seem like a lot of fun, but you're always going to end up hurt with them, and they won't support you like both you and your kids will need." "Yeah, that's what the girls tell me. We talk about those types of things a lot. We do more when we get together than just talk about you, you know," Caitlin said with a smile. "I'd certainly hope so. It'd be boring to talk about me all the time," Alex told her before sitting back and thinking about the topic. "You know, you bring up a good point, though. Both of you seem to know an awful lot about my personal life." "I'm afraid the girls talk about you incessantly," Patricia told him. "They're trying to learn more about you. How you think, what motivates you, and most of all, how you expect them to act." "Look, you really need to get the message out to people. I'm not trying to teach people how to live. Sure, I'd love to see everyone get along better with everyone else, but the previous attempts to establish a religion to do that have all failed miserably. I don't think having an influential figure telling you how to behave makes much sense. The biggest thing to remember is to take care of those around you, but especially those who depend on you. Thus you should stick up for anyone being picked on, but focus on each other first, and on your family and friends second." "Establishing your principles of life is fine, but if it's all the same to you, you can probably do that without me here. After all, I've got some other things to show you," Patricia told Alex. "I figured if you wanted, we could skip dinner so you could make other arrangements, since you haven't been able to enjoy our fair city much. But knowing how much you worry about exposure, you may want to have a quiet meal at home for the next couple of days." "Actually we've enjoyed the meals you've planned for us," Alex told her, "although it would be nice to have an unofficial dinner so we can catch up with the other people we know." "Well, as I was saying, there are a few more things to go over and time is a wastin'," she replied. "First, there's someone that has something to discuss with you," she said, signaling someone else in the club. Alex watched as a young woman got up and walked toward them. She had dark brown hair and a slightly crazy smile that looked like she was a little intense, but the interest in her eyes told you she was serious about whatever she was talking about. "Alex, meet Jenny Cox. She represents some of the women in the community that want children, but already have husbands, boyfriends and families of their own. I'll let her explain the rest." Jenny stood straighter, gathered herself and started, her face showing her interest in the topic. "I know that you are concerned about the motivations of potential mothers," she said, "and that you believe in getting women pregnant yourself to ensure you know who they are and whether you can trust them. I'm assuming when you do whatever you do to their brain it reveals something to you. But there are a few of us who already have relationships of our own, who can't have children for a variety of reasons, and who still want to bear your children without becoming intimate with you. We'd like to know if we could have access to your sperm without having to sleep with you?" Alex considered this as he watched her. "I've got no real objections to that. As you've guessed, I'm concerned that the parents are serious and they'll stick with it. So what does your husband think about your having my baby? Does he even know we're having this discussion?" "Oh, yes, of course. As I said, my husband Tommy and I have been unable to have children because of his low sperm count, plus he has a genetic problem on his father's side that we're a little leery of saddling our children with. I discovered the community here and they welcomed me. As I learned about you and what you represent, I talked about you to him. When Patricia started to talk about people willing to bear your children, we decided we'd both like to volunteer. After all, you're healthy, you have a lot of positive attributes, and you represent a whole new aspect of humanity that we'd like to foster. However Patricia told me she didn't think you'd go for it since you have this thing about connecting to people personally." "I'll admit that's generally been a good idea so far," Alex replied, "but part of what I ask about is if they can support a child and whether they view children realistically. It seems like your husband would be OK, but I think I'd still like to meet him. It's one thing to say you may be OK with someone else fathering your child, but there's talking and there's follow through. If he seems to be OK with it then I'd have no objections." "What about the other women?" Jenny immediately asked. "We have three Watcher couples and one type one. They're all like me in that they are in committed relationships and they seem to be OK with you being the father. They've said they're fine with you being involved with the family and in their remaining in the community. They've each looked into sperm donation, but there's a huge problem with the fertility clinics not controlling how many times an individual donor can contribute, so there are children all over who are only finding out they're related to each other after they're already involved with each other. Although you're likely to have a lot of children, I think it's safe to say they'll each know exactly who their father was, and they'll likely also know many of their siblings as well. That takes a load off of each of our minds." "Good. That makes sense. I'll meet with your husband, Tommy, tomorrow. If he seems OK I'll put you in charge of it. You can check with everyone for me. You seem to understand my concerns, so I don't think we need to establish any complex rules about it. I think I can trust you to watch out for my interests. After all, you seem interested in each of the potential children. The only concern I have is if any of them have fertility concerns. I shudder whenever I think of someone having six or seven babies because they don't believe in limiting the number of fertilized eggs. If someone isn't willing to do that then it's a no go. If they don't want to terminate a potential baby, then they'll have to risk paying for more than one treatment. There will be no loading the dice while risking a whole passel of children with no method of supporting them. And I don't want them appealing to the public to support them and their kids either. That type of behavior has poisoned a lot of minds against the Mormons by polygamists who aren't even affiliated with them. We'll have enough problems with people understanding us, we don't need to make those perceptions worse by behaving impractically." "Thanks. We'll be here tomorrow at lunch. I didn't think it would be this easy. I thought I'd have to fight for this," Jenny replied. "Hey, you made a lot of sense. You convinced me that my concerns would be met. I also like giving more responsibilities to those who demonstrate potential. When I've done it in the past they've always proven themselves, so I believe in following a successful formula." "Well, I'm honored you trust me enough to let me do this. I'll also look for any others that will volunteer to do it. I think a lot simply gave up when they heard you weren't interested. I won't let you down," she promised Alex. "Now that that's settled, I have that one final thing to show you outside," Patricia told Alex after he finished telling Jenny he'd meet her the next day. "Let's head out and you can view it." Everyone gathered up their things and started to head out. As they started to leave, Cate sidled up to her brother. "You realize that Tina and Amy were likely two of the first to get tattoos, don't you?" Cate asked him quietly. "And that's likely to influence the other girls in their sororities, once they find out what it represents," she added. Alex groaned, but admitted that was probably the case, but promised her he wouldn't make any more scenes over it. He'd made his point so he didn't need to embarrass anyone else about it. Cate responded by telling him she'd call them for him. As they left the club, everyone stepped aside to make way for Alex as Patricia led them towards the corner of the club. "You've been planning to travel across country to look for more followers for a while now," she explained as they walked. "Natalie, who you tasked with planning your trip for you, has been in contact with me. As a separate detail, as you know I've signed a deal to record a new album. Part of the conditions for that deal is that I'm going to go on tour to practice the songs before live audiences. As you know, my music has blossomed because I'm now able to both see and feel my audience's emotions, so that makes a lot of sense as it allows me to fine tune the performances." She took a breath before continuing the discussion. "I'm ready to begin my tour, and to assist me, the studio helped me swing a certain tool to aid with my touring." By this time they'd reached the back corner of the building where she stopped them. She held them for a couple moments, as everyone caught up, and then announced, "This is my surprise for you." With that she walked around the corner where Alex saw a large, state of the art tour bus. It certainly wasn't the largest he'd ever seen, but it was sizable enough to hold several people and a lot of equipment. Alex whistled. He was impressed, but he wasn't quite following the connections that Patricia was trying to paint for him. "Alex," Patricia told him, "your tour across the country has been scheduled to overlap my own. This is our tour bus. I've had a tow jack installed behind the bus, so you can either travel in your own car, or in the bus whenever you like. That will allow you to travel where you need to in order to track down anyone you meet. But this will allow you a central, organized event which will draw people to you. Whenever we pull into a city you'll draw whoever is near. But then, at night I'll perform a concert which will draw even more people. That will be a perfect opportunity for you to do your magic. While everyone is watching me, you can walk around the back of the performance halls, looking for anyone watching you instead of the act." Alex was stunned. Everything made sense, but the whole idea simply floored him. Patricia was lavishing some significant resources on his bare bones trip across country, all in an effort to help him reach even more people than he would be able to otherwise. "Come on, let me show you something," she said, leading him around to the back of the bus. "Here's where we'll hook up your car, but notice the banner on the back of the bus?" she asked. Alex saw "Sense Something Important?" followed by a phone number. "The album is to be titled 'Trust Your Senses'," she explained. "Most of the songs will be focused on women trusting how they feel about their man. The side of the bus says the same, so this logo makes sense in that regard. But anyone who is drawn to you while we're driving will hopefully see this and call the number, which will ring a cell phone in the bus, which we can use to communicate with them. Your mission and my album go hand in hand. You were the inspiration for the album, so everything related to it can be multipurposed for your use as well." "About all I can say is, Wow!" Alex told her as he took everything in. "This is a lot more than I ever planned." "Wait, wait, before you say anything, let's look at the inside of the bus," Patricia told him, as she led everyone around the side and she unlocked the door, leading them inside. As Alex had suspected, the bus was very nice. It had a large bedroom in the back with a large bed, easily large enough for Alex to sleep with whoever he wanted to during their journey. There was a medium sized flat screen TV, but Alex doubted they'd spend much time watching it. The bathroom contained a large shower, again large enough for several people to shower together, assuming they weren't afraid to be intimate. There were spare beds, including some overhead which could be used for storage, and a couch and table that could be converted to beds as well. "I've got my bandmates, who you've met when we performed for you at your loft, as well as a couple of support people, mostly wardrobe, makeup and such," Patricia explained. "The setup/breakdown people will be supplied by the concert halls. It'll be crowded with everyone riding in here, but not unreasonably so." "This is amazing, Patricia," Alex told her. "You've obviously given this a lot of thought and planning. I'm proud of you and I love you all the more for what you've done for me." He then enveloped her in a hug and just rocked back and forth for a couple of moments while she basked in the glow of his affection. When they finally separated, her satisfied smile spoke volumes about how she felt about it. "This also gives us..." she started to say. 'Alex? Can you talk? It's Kelly Ott.' Alex held his hand up, silencing Patricia, who was well aware that Alex's attention could be called away at a moment's notice. 'Yeah, I'm here. What's up? I thought you didn't want to associate with me because your husband wouldn't appreciate it?' 'Something has come up, ' she explained. 'I was bathing Jenny when I noticed something unusual. I saw a darker aspect to the aura around her legs. I think there's something wrong with her, but I can hardly take her in to see a specialist on the basis of something no one else can see. I talked it over with Henry, who just thinks I'm making up excuses to come see you again. We had a huge fight, which is exactly what I was hoping to avoid, but I'm worried. Can I bring her to see you? I figure you can either identify what I'm seeing, or possibly do something for her.' 'Just so you know, ' Alex hedged, 'my record with medical problems has been spotty at best. Sometimes I can do amazing things, but other times either nothing happens, or sometimes something unexpected occurs. I'd really feel better if you could get a doctor to look at it.' 'That's just it, ' she told him. 'There's no one else that can help. I've noticed Jenny is shorter than normal, and I think her bones are refusing to grow normally. I think there's something wrong with them. If I took her to a doctor they'd never believe me, and if they did they'd charge a fortune to run a dozen different tests. That would take several weeks and they might never find anything. Couldn't you just check her out for me? If you can't do anything, I'll understand, but at least you can give me an idea of what I could do.' 'I can hardly refuse. Sure, if you want to come down here I'm still in New Orleans. But how will your husband react?' 'Not well, I'm afraid. But I don't know what to do. Right now he thinks most of this is voodoo hocus-pocus. He's not going to believe anything I say about it. But this is my daughter's future we're talking about. I can't let his insecurity jeopardize Jenny's health.' 'OK, bring her down, then. But you may want to talk to your husband and try to get him to understand what's going on. The last thing I need is a jealous husband showing up on my doorstep in the middle of the night, ' Alex told her. 'Better yet, insist he come along. If you leave him behind, he'll never trust we didn't have a secret tryst.' 'We'll leave right away. Well, after I speak with Henry again and pack a few things. It might take a while to convince him to come.' 'I think he'll be convinced when you suggest you'll come with or without him, but tell him I'll feel better if he's here. After all, I don't want him wondering what we're up to, ' Alex replied. 'OK, I figure we'll get there either late tonight or early tomorrow. We'll see how we feel after we get there. I'd hate to interrupt you in the middle of the night, especially since that's just what Henry is afraid of me doing.' 'I understand, Kelly. Get here as soon as you can and we'll try to handle it. Stay safe and don't take any unnecessary chances driving down, ' he told her before signing off. Afterwards he turned back to Patricia. She picked up just where she left off, not even worrying about Alex's being distracted. "I was just saying that this gives us more leverage if we have to leave town unexpectedly. We're all stocked up and ready to go. I've told everyone involved that we may have to leave town quickly, so they're prepared. If we have to leave faster than that, we were planning on having some of the support staff bring another vehicle so they can always meet us after we leave. We could simply wait for them at a truck stop away from the city." "Actually, leaving town in a hurry has just gotten much more complicated," Alex informed her. "I've managed to make three separate commitments in just a short time that all involve me staying here for at least another day, if not longer. I can't exactly leave everyone in the lurch. We'll have to stick it out for a while longer." "OK. If you say so, then it is so. We can leave whenever you decide to," Patricia told him, giving him another hug. "I hope whoever called is going to be OK," she whispered to him. "Yeah, me too," he replied. ------- Chapter 12: A Handful of Events Alex decided that since there didn't seem to be too big an alert about him, and since the paper hadn't specifically identified him, they could stick around the French Quarter a little longer. As much as he was afraid of exposure, he really enjoyed the city. He didn't feel the need to patrol the city looking for new followers, figuring with as much attention as he'd gotten around the city that the majority of people with either type 1 or 2 traits would already have been detected and included into the community. So with a fair amount of trepidation, they set out to wander the streets of New Orleans for a few hours until it was time for dinner. They headed northwest, trying to keep off of the busier main streets, simply hoping to avoid any big scenes that would attract attention to them. Alex and the other non-natives were having fun, especially since the local girls had so much to tell them about the places they passed. They were strolling along when they approached what looked like a protest group. Gail stopped them and took the time to examine the area, announcing it seemed to be a local church with an organized protest out front. She guessed the protest was triggered by that day's newspaper article about Alex. Looking closely they could see signs reading "No Atheist God", and "No God But Christ". Neither one particularly apt or accurate, but their meaning was clear. Thus they decided to avoid the area but Mattie told them she wanted to head back to her place to feed Roger before they had dinner, so she thought she'd join them later. They wished her goodbye and started to head onto a side street when some sudden shouting attracted their attention. "Hey, look, it's her!" someone yelled. Alex and his crew turned to look, and they saw that one of the protestors had noticed Mattie. Although the images on the video were indistinct due to distance and motion, and the picture of Mattie had been vague, the combination of her looks with her dark glasses and a Seeing Eye dog made it easy enough to make the necessary connection. A group of the protestors broke off of the main group and approached her. Brandy, seeing this, grew upset and stormed off before anyone could stop her. Gail, thinking quickly, grabbed Alex and dragged him down the street at an angle so if anyone saw Brandy approaching they wouldn't immediately connect her with Alex. She also broadcast a message to Caitlin to move the other girls so they were between Alex and the protest group. That only took a few moments, during which they observed the group gather around Mattie in an apparently angry mood. "Are you that woman in the news today? You know, the one that was given her vision?" one woman asked. "Yeah, she is. Look, she can see us." "What kind of scam are you running? How can you give credence to a group that says the Christian church is 'misguided'?" Mattie tried to avoid them but they quickly hemmed her in. One man waved his hand in front of her face, trying to see if she was really blind, and she swatted it away. Some more words were spoken, indistinct due to the distance, but it wasn't looking very good. Just then Brandy, who'd been storming forward, reached them. "Yo, leave that lady alone! You think you're defending Christianity but ya hardly doing it justice, acting like an angry mob, frightening lonely women with hatred. You should be ashamed of yo'selves. You're showing exactly why they don't think much of the Christian church." The group turned on Brandy, whose tirade only attracted the attention of the other protestors. Cate also bolted after her, trying to defend the two women, but Alex told Caitlin to hold her. This might get ugly, but they couldn't be sure yet. He wanted to see how Mattie and Brandy defended themselves, and he also didn't want to focus the group's attention on themselves either. One of the group squared off against Brandy while the rest looked around in confusion, allowing Mattie to quickly move away. However one of the crowd noticed and he turned and approached her again. 'Caitlin, tell Cate to record this. If something happens we'll need proof of what happened, ' Alex instructed. 'Shanna, call 911 and report a disturbance. It will take them a while to get here, and if we don't call them now it's likely to be too late.' They both did as he suggested. "We should leave before this gets ugly," Gail told him. "No, we're staying," he told her. "We're far enough from it that we can get away if we need to, but I want to see what happens and provide assistance if I can." They noticed a few more people, a couple of isolated women, approaching the confrontation. One stopped and glanced directly at Alex and he thought maybe he'd been exposed, but she turned and marched forward again and Alex realized what was happening. As always there were Watchers following him. They'd apparently seen the disturbance and were now rushing in to defend one of their own. The man who'd approached Mattie angrily waving his placard, had drawn near enough to trigger a defensive action in Roger. Despite being extensively trained to be social, he could detect the man's intent and growled menacingly at him, causing him to pause. "What a bunch of cowards," Brandy cried, her voice rising with the increasing din of confusion. "You accost a blind woman who did nothing other than have her vision restored, and blame her because someone questioned your beliefs? How weak is your faith if someone getting healed undermines what you stand for?" The man who had been arguing with her previously started to say something, but couldn't quite think of a response, so he hesitated. By then the other women reached the scene. One walked right up to the man who was facing off against Brandy, said something to him, and slapped him hard across the face. He spun around and was halfway into the motion of throwing a punch when he caught himself, realizing he was about to strike an innocent woman in the name of the Prince of Peace. Brandy started to shout something else, but the words were lost amid all the activity. One of the women reached the man accosting Mattie, who was rapidly backing away from a snarling Roger. She shoved him from behind and he stumbled, scrambling off to the side, afraid of confronting the angry dog. Mattie, able to see everything that was happening, kept tight control of Roger's guide bar, preventing him from actually biting the man confronting her. She knew if Roger, a guide dog, ever bit someone, he'd be put down sooner than you could say "Excuse me?". The other people in the group looked around in confusion, as they were suddenly confronted with a group of people surrounding them who were not supportive, which is what they were here for. They'd hoped staging a public protest would garner attention and draw people to the demeaning things this so called 'Angel of New Orleans' was saying about the church. Instead they were now losing a fight with a blind woman they'd attacked, they were arguing with a fierce black woman who wasn't afraid of speaking her mind, and they were about to be beset by a crowd of onlookers. One of those on the outskirts of the group threw down his placard and took off, having lost his nerve once he figured out they wouldn't be able to easily intimidate their opposition. When he ran off several others left as well. Another woman moved up and began arguing with Brandy, though. Despite the distance, Alex could figure out much of what was being said via his telepathic link to Brandy. The woman started to shout things about atheists being the Devil's minions, when Brandy started quoting scriptures counteracting everything the woman claimed. It was clear Brandy not only spent a lot of time in church, but she'd clearly studied the good book, not only the parts she agreed with but the other parts as well. She ended up telling the woman she couldn't pick and choose which parts of the bible she chose to accept while claiming it was God's law written in his hand. Confronted with someone who could argue her points and wasn't intimidated by attitude, she quickly backed down. The protest group quickly disbanded, first those attacking Mattie and the others who'd stayed behind. Several of them shifted nervously to the side of the church, but the minister, finally rushing out of his church, yelling at them to pick up their 'damn signs' and to stay away from his church. The entire scene had only taken a handful of minutes. In the distance they heard a siren heading in their direction. "That's our sign to go," Gail told Alex. "But I have to thank those who helped us," he tried to argue as she steered him around the corner and away from the group. "They know what they did. They also know it helped you, and that's all the acknowledgment they need. Knowing you did the right thing is its own reward," she reminded him. Alex sent messages to the other women, arranging their movements and making sure they would be OK. Both Brandy and Mattie remained where they were just so they could report what had happened to the police when they arrived. The scene was what Alex had been afraid of, but it hadn't exactly gone like he'd feared. That Brandy is a real firecracker, he told himself. I wouldn't want to be on her bad side, he thought, but then remembered her own warnings to him. ------- They gathered for dinner at a nice quiet restaurant down by the waterfront and compared notes. The police had taken a while to show up, but Mattie, Brandy and the minister had been waiting for them, and had filed complaints against the people who had been there, many of whom the Minister knew. They told them that since no actual assault had taken place that there was nothing they could do. "What about an illegal assembly?" Brandy asked. "What about disturbing the peace, threatening behavior or public intimidation?" The two police officers had backtracked after that, saying they'd file a report, but it was clear they wouldn't do much more than that. Brandy asked them if they could say whether they'd take any action as a response and they informed her they couldn't commit to that, as it was an open investigation, despite the fact they hadn't filed anything yet. She told them she thought there was a video recording of the events, but when they demanded she turn over the device she told them she merely remembered seeing one, however, although there were a fair number of onlookers, the other Watchers who had participated had left by then. Little did they know that Cate had already sent a copy of the video to Lisa Woodall as well as to Patricia, with a message to have one of the 'girls' forward it to both Mr. Rodriguez and to the local television stations. If the police wouldn't address this directly, then they'd only have themselves to blame when the public became involved. Gail and Alex had avoided any congregations of individuals after that, which in the French Quarter is pretty hard to do. They'd taken refuge in a nearby store for a while until they thought the attention had dissipated, and then they'd headed to the restaurant to wait for everyone else. After they'd discussed it, Alex asked for quiet and pulled his own phone out and made a call from the table, allowing everyone in attendance to listen in. "Hello, Albert Rodriguez speaking." "Good afternoon, Mr. Rodriguez, this is Alex. Have you gotten the video link we sent you about the trouble at a local church today? Your article is causing trouble not only for me and my people, but also for others with no connection to me." "Ah, I was wondering whether I'd hear from you again. Alas, I can see the problem, but you've got to admit, it's the kind of thing that needed to be reported, even if it causes some problems. After all, it affects the residents of New Orleans, and your followers are becoming an increasing presence in the city." "I'll concede that, although I'm clearly trying to avoid any media coverage. I'm not looking for attention, and I'm not selling anything to anyone. I'm looking to connect with individuals, not religious groups, so it really doesn't impact any specific groups. My mission isn't against any group or involving any agenda. I'm simply trying to make a couple of personal connections." "Ah, that's interesting. What, exactly, is your 'mission'?" Albert asked. "That's something between me and my nonexistent God," Alex joked, though he wasn't sure the reporter would get it. He seemed to take it a bit too seriously. "So what you're saying is that you aren't specifically taking a stance against any established religion then?" Albert asked. "Exactly. I'm not trying to establish a new religion. I've got no message to deliver, thus I've got nothing that needs to serve the fodder of the media. What I do and say is strictly for those I meet with. There is no social movement here. That's why you haven't heard from any of what you refer to as 'my followers'. There's simply nothing to convey." "And I'll duly note that when I report on the troubles you apparently alerted me to. I hadn't been aware you were the one who sent it to me, since it arrived anonymously, as I'm sure you know. I checked the police reports on it, and they list a number of people as being involved. Most notably, a certain Mattie Adams, who they list as being blind. Might that be the same blind woman you 'healed'? The police marked her as being blind due to her having a seeing eye dog and glasses, but I don't think they actually checked whether she could see or not." Alex sighed theatrically, even though he'd anticipated this. "Yes, it is. I figured you'd ask to interview her. But you'll have to contact her on your own since I've already conducted what business I had with her." They signed off, and Alex turned to Mattie. "Well, you're about to get your official 15 minutes of fame now, I hope you're ready for it. As a result we're going to have to curtail our involvement for a while, since I still want to avoid the limelight. You can say what you want, but give them just enough to temper reactions. Tell them there was a miraculous event and that you can 'see', but don't tell them any more details than that. Don't tell them just what you can see. I'm sure once they hear you can only see a series of lights and can't pass a vision test they'll lose interest quickly. It will seem amazing, but hardly earth shattering. "I'll have one of the Sisters keep in contact with you, since she'll appear to be just another friend. However if I show up there would be too many connections. Contact me if you need anything and we'll see you get support. Let's see if we can support the press just enough to give them a blasé event. That should be better than avoiding them altogether." They decided that sounded like a good plan, then Mattie decided to change the topic. "Alex, since this may be the last chance I get to ask you, what's the deal with this Alexandria? Is she a real person or not?" Alex laughed, "She's as real as I've been reported to be. I only see her when she needs to see me." Cate cocked her head at his response, but Gail took exception to it. 'Alex, I understand how you want to foster the story to take the pressure off of you, but I've got a problem with you lying to your most important followers, ' she argued. Alex considered that for a moment. "All right, let me correct that. Quite frankly, there is no Alexandria. She was an invention of mine designed to alleviate the fascination with me. I figured if the general public had someone else to talk about, they wouldn't be as interested in me anymore. However, Gail points out that I shouldn't lie to you about this. We seem to be building a tiered approach to information, and I want the Seers to know what's real and what's not. So here's the official story. I'll tell the Seers that I'm the real deal, since they need to know it anyway. After all, no one else is going to show up to activate them. However we'll foster the story amongst the Watchers, and all of you can tell your friends and relatives about her. We need to get this story spreading if it's to do any good. If I get especially close to any of the Watchers, like you, Tina and Amy, I'll keep them apprised." They agreed that seemed a logical approach to the problem, which left just one more issue. "Now, I'd like to cover one more topic. We seem to have managed to avoid a lot of trouble by the skin of our teeth. But I still think I can move around the city freely, but not if I have a large contingent of women following me around all the time. So we're going to have to split up. Cate will accompany me, after all, she is my sister, and we should look like any other tourists. Gail needs to be near, but she'll remain in the background, watching from a distance ready to jump in if I need it. Her actions this afternoon demonstrate her usefulness in that regard. "However, the rest of you will have to disperse. I'll meet Brandy and Caitlin back at Allison's. I'll give you my key so you can get in. Gail has the other key so I'll be fine without one. The big thing is to try to get everyone to play down the recent events. I can't afford a big entourage anymore, and with Mattie's help we can potentially play down my latest miracle, so hopefully we can tamp down expectations and any further protests. I think Albert will likely do a good job reporting on the overreaction by the church groups, so that should work to our benefit. Is everyone clear on all of that?" he asked Everyone agreed with him, although he could see the disappointment writ large across each of their faces. They each wanted to spend as much time with him as they could, but both Brandy and Caitlin still had the promise of that evening, so they weren't about to look a gift horse in the mouth. With that they split up. Alex gave the others time to get away before he left the restaurant with Cate. Gail left before them, only to fall in unobtrusively behind them, looking like yet another tourist. ------- Cate and Alex had a grand time once more walking together, just the two of them enjoying grand ol' New Orleans without any outward concerns. Cate cuddled up to him, holding his hand just like boyfriend and girlfriend. That pleased them both, since Alex hadn't been able to spend much alone time with Cate since they started this new trip. They still saw a lot of Watchers surrounding them, however whenever any of them moved toward him or attempted to follow them, Alex would simply stare at them until they backed down. It was subtle, but he had to do it regularly, so he hoped no one else would notice it. But he and Cate had a wonderful time walking the street, taking in the activity and events. They both laughed at the street performers' antics, and he bought Cate and himself ice cream cones, since neither could order the drinks that were so plentiful here. Neither one looked back to check on Gail, simply trusting in her ability to observe them quietly on her own. No one seemed to pay them much mind, until a Hispanic-looking couple noticed them. The girl pointed them out and they both started to head towards them. Alex once again stared the girl down, but the boy was undeterred. He noticed the girl had dropped back but he continued on without her. 'Should I take action?' Gail asked Alex, instantly on guard. Alex hardly had the best history where other men were concerned. 'No, I don't think he means any offense, ' Alex explained. 'Your getting involved would just draw more attention to us. I'll deal with him. Just be ready in case something unexpected happens.' With that Gail made a point of walking up a short distance behind them, taking in a post card rack outside a nearby store. The young man walked up to Alex and extended his hand with a big smile. "Man, is it ever good to meet you," he told them both. "My name is Jack Padgett. My suddenly shy sister back there is Christina. She explained just what you've done for her, and it's made such a difference in her life that..." Here Alex cut him off, pulling him away from the main press of tourists into a somewhat quiet corner. "Look, don't talk about what I'm doing so loudly. I'm trying to remain unobserved. Your sister backed off because she could see I didn't want to be noticed. If you want to talk, we can, but let's find a little quieter place to do it." The guy looked apologetic. So too did his sister, who was looking on her brother from afar with a worried expression, so Alex motioned her over. She practically skipped the whole way over to join them. The girl was shorter, and they both had dark hair and fair skin. They also appeared to be in their early twenties, and their outfits marked them as typical tourists. Jack wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, while his sister wore a simple sundress. "I'm sorry if Jack is getting too forward," Christina apologized for her brother. "Since I told him about what's happened to me he's been very protective. However he's seen the impact it's had on me." As she spoke Alex steered them to an unoccupied area of the street where they could converse quietly. "I hadn't been doing too well, for a long time," she told them. "I'd had a few problems adjusting over the years. I always had trouble trusting people, and when I told people about my fears they'd make fun of me. The girls at school always gave me a hard time, calling me 'witch girl', and no one seemed to relate to me or to trust me. But when someone told me I was a 'Watcher', suddenly they included me like I was one of them. I've followed you for quite a while now, listening to all your stories. Your tales of trying to prevent people from prejudging you really rang true for me. Because I'm not blond and built like a typical model, girls always saw me as competition, but not pretty or well off enough to be friends with. Guys just assumed I'd be an easy lay, since I didn't attract as much attention, which I wasn't. So that didn't make me any more popular." "It's nice to meet you too," Cate said, trying to be non-condescending as she tried to get her to slow down. "I'm Cate, by the way." "Oh, don't worry," Christina told her. "We all know about you. You're almost as revered as Alex is." Cate seemed surprised by this information, and it shocked her into silence herself as Christina continued. "You've been the one leading your brother forward, watching out for him, protecting him. I can definitely understand that, as Jack has always been that way towards me," she said, once again making Alex and Cate wonder just how far the parallels ran. But they each told themselves they'd have to stop that reaction. Not every close sibling relation extended into the bedroom. It was possible to be close to a sibling without getting sexually involved. "She was this close to getting into some serious trouble," Jack explained, showing them how close he thought she was from it. "Then, when the Watcher community accepted her she turned a corner. She immediately sought out our parents and me and told us about the genetic potential we held ourselves. From what she's told me, there's even a movement to get guys like me dates within the community, I guess as a way of intermixing the genes a bit." "I'm glad it's worked out so well for you," Alex told them, warming up to them. He figured another couple their own age wouldn't be so odd. It would certainly attract less attention than a lone man being followed by a large number of beautiful women. They started meandering the street with them once again. "I've got to say, though, I haven't always had the best of luck with guys," Alex said, "so when I saw you coming towards me I was getting a little paranoid. Especially since you seem to be large enough to be some trouble." "I'll say," Cate said from beside him, still holding his hand but not holding him quite as close as before, "we thought for a while he was actually attracting women and repelling guys. However we now think we were just overreacting. Something we've been known to do on occasion." Thus they walked together, talking to each other. Jack, having seen what had occurred with his sister, observed Alex quietly controlling the other Watchers reactions from afar and took note of it, but he didn't say anything to draw attention to it. He figured he'd ask his sister about it later. "So, did you manage to catch the show on Wednesday?" Alex asked, managing to ask Christina whether she'd seen him earlier without having to call attention to the event itself. "Yeah, it was SO exciting. I could hardly stand it. I didn't manage to see what happened afterwards," she replied, catching on how no one was mentioning anything explicitly, "but I heard about it. I'm sorry I missed it." "There really wasn't much to see," Alex told her. "You saw much more in the club. Outside we just ran into trouble from the press." When they reached Canal Street, the lower boundary of the French Quarter, Alex told them it was getting late and that they needed to get back to their apartment. Jack and Christine knew better than to impose, so they split up after they told each other how much they'd enjoyed meeting them. A little further along, Alex decided it was fairly late and he'd better check up on Debbie Grant, since she was supposed to contact him when her parents finally confronted her over the events at her doctor's appointment that morning. 'Debbie, ' he asked. 'Are you still awake?' 'Yeah, I am Alex, ' she replied. 'I've been waiting for the axe to fall and my parents to come talk to me, but they haven't yet.' 'I suspect they didn't know how to react, so they're probably thinking about it.' 'Yeah, Mom told Dad about it, and she sounded upset, but I really couldn't hear what they were saying since they sent me to my room.' 'I think it will take some time before they decide how to approach it, ' Alex advised her. 'They're in what we call denial at this stage. They don't want to admit what's happening to you, so they're trying to pretend it isn't happening. It's a terrible method of parenting, but it's something that many parents fall into. Just wait until you have to learn about sex all by yourself because they're afraid to mention it to you.' 'Yeah, I'm not looking forward to it, ' Debbie replied. 'Believe me, it's best to put off growing up for as long as you can. But neither of your parents is likely to want to deal with any of these issues. Which means you'll have to be the grown up in this regard and protect them from the truth. Again, don't deny it if they ask, but if they don't ask, just don't mention it to them. That way they won't feel threatened. If you ever need to discuss it, just call me, or if you don't think you can discuss it with me, I can connect you to someone else.' 'It seems unfair for me to be the grown-up, ' she complained. 'Yeah, it is, but that's what the children of broken homes or of alcoholics have to go through every day. At least you have instant access to a whole bunch of people who know just what you're going through. That's something the other kids don't have access to, ' Alex explained. 'Anyway, if they do finally discuss it with you, feel free to call me so I can help you deal with them, OK?' 'Yeah, I'll do that, Alex. Thanks. You've helped a lot. But I feel guilty making you do something my own parents should be doing for me.' 'There is that, but people don't always react the way we want them to, ' Alex sadly told her before wishing her goodnight. 'Kelly? Did you ever make it to the city?' he asked, reaching out to her as well. 'Yeah, Alex. We got here safely, but I didn't want to disturb you. We'll see you in the morning. I don't think Jenny is in any immediate danger, but I didn't know where else to turn, and you'd said you wouldn't be here in New Orleans for very long.' 'You're right about that, ' he told her. 'We came close to leaving today. Check out today's paper if you want to see why. I'm sure tomorrow's will continue it as well.' 'Then it's a good thing I came when I did. Thanks for sticking around for me.' 'Hey, I believe in taking care of family, friends and ... well, I believe in taking care of those that one's close to, and you definitely fit in that category.' 'Really? Even after I chased you away and ran off, trying to get away from you?' she asked. 'One's responsibilities don't end because someone is uncomfortable with them. Otherwise there'd be no families left. It doesn't matter how you feel about me. If you need me, I'll try to be there for you, just like I try for each of my followers.' 'Well now I feel like a real ass for acting like I did, ' she replied. 'Don't. It was a natural reaction, and it was necessary to preserve your own family. That's what's important to you, so you did the right thing. But speaking of which, how's your husband? Did you get him to come along with you?' 'Yeah, he came, though he complained about chasing dream ailments the whole way down. He was also upset that I insist he take sick days in order to travel all the way down here.' 'Tell him he'll feel better for it simply because now he'll know you didn't come down here to fool around on him. If you'd have let him stay the possibility you might have been arranging something would have haunted him. But I feel confident that what you see is likely real. The only question is whether I can do anything about it.' 'Well, just like you have confidence in my ability to spot problems, I have confidence in your being able to deal with it. And even if you can't, at least we'll be aware of what's going on and hopefully you can give us some advice on what to do.' 'I certainly hope so. Anyway, say hello to Jenny and Henry for me and tell them I'm looking forward to meeting them again. Now I'll let the three of you get a good night's sleep and we'll see you in the morning, ' and with that he bid her goodnight as well. Alex and Cate had been holding hands the entire time he'd been conversing with Debbie and Kelly, and they continued to hold hands, looking lovingly into each other's eyes the rest of the way across town to the apartment. There hadn't been any chances to be close to each other since they'd left home, and they both missed their alone time together, since they both relied on the other so much. This time together was precious to them both, and while it was hardly enough to satisfy them, they took what they could get, realizing anything more could be a long time coming. When they got to the apartment they even spent some time making out in the hallway, just as they had outside of the apartment building. However Gail caught up with them and cleared her throat as she unlocked the apartment door, giving them plenty of time to break up their embrace. She was well aware of difficulties in hiding one's love, and she could relate to what they were going through. She was anxious for some time alone with Alex as well. It was hard being this close to him for so long without reaching out to him, but she realized the role she was serving, that of protecting him, was of the utmost importance, so she didn't let herself get side tracked. All it would take would be a moment's indulgence and the whole house of cards could fall apart. She'd had enough evidence of that already. Brandy and Caitlin were glad to see them. Alex had expected to catch them watching a movie, but instead they'd spent the time talking and speculating about him. They appeared to be more than ready to get romantic quickly, but Alex held them off for a little while so he and Cate could make some phone calls before it got to be too late. So both girls curled up on either side of him as Cate dialed. Brandy and Caitlin were anxious to hear from the others in Alex's life as well. Their parents enjoyed speaking with them, Linda was concerned about the risks posed by reactionary religious groups, although their father assured them that most religious people were much more understanding than those that typically went to extremes. However, they both thought they handled the situation well. Their parents also told them their sisters were currently at the loft, where they'd been spending a lot of their time recently. Alex called Kitty and Chalise and they spoke for a while, each telling the others how much they loved each other, and the two girls told Alex how worried they were about him. Brandy and Caitlin, instead of being jealous about such a demonstration, found such heartfelt displays of young love to be terribly endearing, even as they were preparing to sleep with the object of that devotion. Finally Alex called the loft to talk to his girls in Carbondale. Everyone said hello when Becky and Rebecca spoke up, asking if they could talk to Cate alone for a few moments. Alex thought that odd, but gave them their space as he proceeded to make out with his future bedmates, the potential mothers of his children. But he got off of that train of thought quickly, since he knew where it would lead. However, he kept one ear open to the conversation with his sister. "Wow, that's quite a theory. I'll have to consider that," she replied. "No, I don't know what it means, and I'm a bit doubtful about it as well. But I'll have to consider how realistic it is and what impact it may have." She listened a little more while Alex kept himself occupied. "I'm not sure how well I'll be able to do that. I'm here most of the time, and I'm..." she stopped to listen again. "Look, I'll give it some more thought, but personally I think you're way off base. I'll call you to talk about it tomorrow, but I'm not too worried about it." Cate then put the phone back on speakerphone and everyone said goodbye, after asking him who his newest bedmates for the night were. The two girls were a little embarrassed, but everyone took it so well they weren't worried. Soon the phone call ended and Alex turned to his sister. "What was that all about?" he asked, meaning the cryptic secret conversation she'd had with her sisters. "Oh, that? Never mind. It's a silly theory a couple of the girls had after talking to Kitty and Chalise. I don't think it bears repeating, but as I told them, I'll consider it before making a final evaluation. But I don't want to either bore or worry you about it. You've got enough things on your mind. Anyway, I'll be getting to bed. I don't think I'll disturb you tonight. I'll fix something for you to eat, but I'll trust you to eat it yourself. I'll turn in early tonight." Alex thought that was a strange response, but he refrained from commenting on it in order to not make anyone uncomfortable, but he could see from Gail's reaction that she thought it odd as well. Cate was essentially telling him she wasn't going to sneak into his bed tonight, and that was unusual in itself, since she'd been sharing his bed every night since the first time they'd slept together, and frankly he was used to it and comfortable with it. So far no one had complained about it, so he didn't understand why she was suddenly changing her stance tonight. However, he also didn't want to second guess her. If there was an issue, he was sure she'd bring it up eventually. So Alex took the two women to bed with him. It was quite an experience, given how many Alex had already had. Brandy demonstrated that there was much to be said for a more buxom woman, and he learned to appreciate the benefits of both bigger breasts, where she introduced him to motorboating, and the "beautiful black booty". She might have shown him how much fun titfucking was, but she was afraid to waste his sperm. Brandy was also a bit of a screamer, although she assured him that in the future, she'd likely be calling his name out during orgasms with future partners rather than Jesus'. "I mean, no offense, I think the world of the guy," she explained, "but personally, I suspect you know more about the subject, and you have more of an effect on my own orgasms. That was truly a religious experience if I ever had one," she assured him as she tried to retain as much as his cum in herself as she could. As Alex got busy making love to the quieter Caitlin, he considered how strange it was that Cate didn't come in to join in the fun, especially with all the screaming and laughing that had been echoing throughout the apartment. While Cate very often didn't participate, she was usually nearby to watch, or at least to comment. But this time she kept to her word, and didn't even come in to remind him to eat. Caitlin was much quieter than Brandy, though no less impressed by Alex's performance. She was basically a quiet shy girl, so she simply quivered in silence when her orgasms washed over her. She was fun to watch, but she didn't put on the kind of show that Brandy did. Damn, where's a video camera when you needed one. Alex guessed he'd have to ask Caitlin to replay her memories of the event for him sometime, just so he could remember it, although he doubted he'd be forgetting it anytime soon. ------- Chapter 13: Odds and Ends (Who you calling an End?) Alex was anxious to get started the next day, anticipating follow-ups and repercussions of the previous day's newspaper article and additional protests, so he tried to get everyone moving. However he knew he wouldn't be able to put everyone off, so he settled for fooling around in the shower in an effort to hurry everyone up. Brandy and Caitlin didn't object. Although they were anxious to become pregnant and were hoping to get a fresh batch of semen, they at least got some lovemaking. They were also aware of what was important. They knew Alex had promised them that if they didn't get pregnant they could take advantage of his stored sperm, but they also knew that everyone was anxious about Alex's progeny. The big goal was producing a new generation with Alex's abilities. Without that, all of Alex's advances would be for naught. Although they were each hoping to bear that child themselves, they realized everyone would win as long as someone bore the child each of them desired. Thus they were thankful for a ticket to the lottery, simply because of what it represented. In the end, Alex only had time for one ejaculation, and someone had to come out the winner. It turned out to be Brandy, as her louder moans and cries, plus her more energetic motions, triggered Alex's orgasm. After helping Brandy recover, he made sure to work on Caitlin for a while, just to make up for his unintentionally showing favoritism. Neither one managed to reach orgasm from it, but Caitlin was thankful for the effort nevertheless, as it allowed her to enjoy some additional alone time with Alex. They were both catching their breath, leaning against the cold shower tiles, when Alex was interrupted. 'Alex, my dad wants to talk now, ' Debbie Grant warned him. Alex had been preparing for this, though he had no idea just when it would come. Still, he was glad it hadn't occurred when he was balls deep in either Caitlin or Brandy. 'Alright, just relax and we'll take this a step at a time, ' Alex reassured her. She managed to focus on what her father was telling her so Alex could listen in. Alex motioned to Caitlin that she'd have to go on without him since he was presently occupied, but she just looked on in fascination. 'Debbie, you really embarrassed your mother yesterday. She's really upset, ' Michael Grant told his daughter. 'This pretend world of yours is going to get you into trouble, and this spiteful attitude of yours is going to make everyone around you angry.' 'Dad, he's ... Do you have your cell phone with you?' Debbie asked, changing her mind partway through her argument. 'Uh, yeah, but what does that... ' he tried to argue. 'Could I see it for a minute. I need to prove that I'm not playing games, ' she answered. 'I don't think calling your friends is going to convince me of anything, ' Michael answered strongly. However Debbie just sighed heavily in a tone Alex recognized from many of the women around him having used it on him in the past. 'Just let me see the phone, I'll prove to you I'm not making things up.' 'Calling some random number isn't going to... ' he started, but he seemed to reconsider his stance, looking at his daughter's reactions. Alex couldn't see what she did, but something must have intrigued him because it was clear he was giving her his phone. She wordlessly dialed it and then handed it to her father before it had even rung. "Hello, this is Alex," he heard. "We spoke the other day on the road." "Wait, how did you... ?" he tried to ask. "Just think about it. Who called who? And if you think this is something she arranged, ask her what her own phone number is. She's not especially good with numbers, so it isn't likely she'd have remembered this number from last week." "What is this about?" Michael asked, still cautious. "Look, this isn't a sales call," Alex told him. "Your daughter just wanted to make sure you understood that she isn't inventing this stuff. Now, if you don't want to deal with it, that's fine. We spoke, and she now knows she isn't supposed to mention me to anyone anymore. You and Sarah won't hear my name unless you ask about me. But Debbie isn't being malicious. She's undergone something significant, and she's learning how to deal with it on her own since her parents aren't able to deal with it yet. Personally, I think she's showing a great deal of maturity, but it isn't good to ignore such a strong capable mind just when it needs nurturing. Anyway, this is the last you'll hear from me. I've got no reason to intrude into your lives. I just did this as a favor for Debbie." Michael made some strange strangling noises, but Alex didn't pay attention to it as he hung up, thanking Brandy for bringing him his phone into the shower. He climbed out as he listened in on the rest of Michael and Debbie's conversation as the two girls set about drying him, each trying to be quiet so he wouldn't have any trouble listening to his conversation. "What ... who was that?" Michael asked. "Dad, as he said, that's the last I'll say about it. From now on I'm just the same little girl I've always been. You don't have to worry about me. But don't accuse me of being difficult or of inventing stuff again. This is something Alex told me I had to deal with on my own, and I will, but I need a little, a little... , latitude, that's it. I need a little latitude to do it on my own." Michael cocked his head as he smiled at his daughter. "Debbie, could you tell me what latitude means?" She looked back at him and shrugged. "I don't know. I was searching for a word and it just came to me, but someone tells me I need to look it up, so if we're done here?" she asked, glancing at her father. Michael just held his hands up, knowing he'd been effectively dismissed by his daughter. He didn't quite know what to make of what had just happened, but she seemed to be dealing with it on her own, and as long as his wife wasn't upset about the issue anymore, he was OK with it. Still, he wondered how his little girl had suddenly grown up so much, not realizing she'd been forced to grow up before she was ready to due to her parent's inability to deal with the changes she was experiencing in her life. When Alex and the girls reentered the bedroom, Cate and Gail had Alex's clothes all laid out for him. As Alex dressed, he spoke briefly with Kelly, inviting them to eat breakfast with them, ensuring he'd be able to deal with Jenny and her husband, Henry. She told him they'd be there, as they were already on their way. She assured him that Jenny was fine and wasn't feeling any symptoms, but that Kelly was still concerned about long term issues. Alex told her he'd do what he could as he finished dressing. Kelly didn't mention how her husband was dealing with everything so Alex didn't press. As the group entered the cafe, Alex saw that Shanna, Lekesia and Noel were waiting for them. He also noted, as an aside, that there didn't seem to be many Watchers here. He thought that odd, just given the numbers of Watchers in the city and how long they'd been coming here, but he assumed everyone had decided to give Alex some leeway. As they sat down, Lekesia was so excited she could hardly sit still. Alex noted that Cate was picking up the local paper from the counter, so he figured he could put off checking on his status for a little while to humor her. "So what's the good news?" he asked, already guessing what it was. "You're officially a father," Lekesia happily announced. "Well, I guess you'll have to wait for it to be born, but I'm pregnant. We've been checking our progress each morning, and Mom saw the glow of the baby's aura yesterday, but we weren't sure since it looked like an extension of mine. But this morning it started to change color, to reflect the baby's personality rather than mine. I assume it will change more, but this shows not only that I'm pregnant, but also that the baby is healthy and is developing normally." "Uh, I wouldn't call referring to a baby's showing its aura after only three days any part of a 'normal' development of a baby, but I'm happy for you both," Alex told them, grinning at their enthusiasm. He got up and gave Lekesia a big hug before turning to Noel. "So, I assume I'll be hearing from you as well in the next day or two?" "I certainly hope so," she replied, standing up and hugging him as well. "Has anyone checked on Diane yet?" he asked, since he slept with her at the same time he did Lekesia. "Not yet, but we asked her to meet us at Dr. Lampre's this morning so we could all check. We figured Hannah would like to know, even if it doesn't affect her traditional methods much." "Well, this is a lot sooner than anyone noticed Shani's pregnancy," Alex told them as Cate came up and eased into her seat. "Yeah, we figure that's because it isn't real obvious," Noel told him. "You really have to look for it, and even then it looks just like its mother's aura. I figure it will take several days before it finally shows its true personality to us." Alex laughed, "Don't get too excited. After all, you know how kid's personalities change. Even though it may seem cute and happy at 3 days, you know how kids turn moody when they reach their 13th day." Both Lekesia and her mother slapped Alex playfully, but they were both in very good spirits. As Alex sat, Cate handed him the paper and he turned his attention to it, everyone else falling silent knowing how serious this was for him. Alex read it silently for several moments before responding. "Well, it's really a bit of a change for Mr. Rodriguez," he told them all. "It's actually very understated and cautious. He starts off reporting on the trouble we had yesterday, and follows that with a general warning to everyone not to overreact. He says, 'The supposed Angel told me that he wasn't here to announce a second coming, or to pick those who are worthy and those who aren't. Instead he was simply reaching out to select individuals for reasons he wouldn't divulge, as he claims he doesn't necessarily know himself. He explained he knows what to do or say when he meets them, but that he doesn't necessarily understand what's involved. Apparently only Alexandria herself knows that, and she hasn't been very forthcoming about what's happening. "'It's also important to note that he himself never calls himself an Angel, or tries to assume any official position one way or another. Instead, claiming merely to do what he's called upon to do. So it's important not to view this as a vindication or rejection of any particular religion.'" "That is quite a surprise," Cate said, "especially given his initial reaction to you. Then it seemed like he was poking fun at you and trying to generate a reaction against you." "Don't worry, there's more," Alex said before continuing. "'After speaking to the supposed Angel, I managed to locate the blind girl he had miraculously cured. Although I won't embarrass her by printing her name in the paper, she's a local girl who has lived here her entire life, and had never heard of this movement until she encountered Mr. X (since that seems a better title for him than 'supposed angel').' "'She seemed a level headed sort, and she spoke honestly with me, explaining she didn't understand what he'd done, but that he didn't call it a miracle himself. She also went on to explain exactly what he'd done. Apparently it wasn't quite as 'miraculous' as it had initially sounded. While she can see well enough to get around in public, she is still clearly blind, unable to read anything at all of any size. What she now sees are a variety of shifting lights that allow her to identify people and various objects. While that is miraculous to her, it isn't exactly the same as curing someone's blindness.'" "That was exactly the response you were looking for, isn't it?" Shanna asked. "Yeah, it was. Mattie's done well for herself. Hopefully between her and Mr. Rodriguez they should manage to tone down the excitement over me a little. However, Albert goes on to counter it a little in his conclusion. He finished by saying, 'Although this miracle may seem innocent enough, possibly resulting from something else entirely, I wouldn't write it off just yet. His followers are all fiercely loyal, and each seems willing to say whatever they need to in order to head off any undesired publicity. I've also personally observed several impressive events, and I know his followers have no doubts about his abilities. So I'll look forward to what more I can learn about him in the future, and I'll report those events as I learn of them.'" "So essentially he's telling everyone that Mattie lied to him?" Noel asked. "Essentially, but he's done it in such a way that isn't inflammatory, which is what I was after," Alex told her. "After all, I wasn't looking for a miracle in his reporting, merely something that's easier to manage." Everyone laughed at Alex's turn of phrase, sounding much like he'd advised Mattie to answer herself. After that they ordered and started in on breakfast while the girls each asked Brandy and Caitlin what their first night with Alex had been like. Alex was alerted by both Cate and Gail sitting up, their focus behind him warning him that someone had entered the diner. Turning, he saw Kelly with Henry, leading a shy Jenny to the table. "Excuse me, you don't mind if we join you, do you?" she asked. "No, of course not. We've been expecting you," Alex told her, standing up to shake Henry's hand. He skipped giving Kelly his traditional hug, though. "I must say I hadn't thought we'd ever see you again," Gail said, breaking her noninvolvement in Alex's activities policy. "Not me," Cate said. "It takes a lot to avoid Alex's siren call. I figured she might avoid Alex himself, but that she'd surely visit New Orleans and probably Carbondale as well." "That's the thinking I'm counting on," Shanna told everyone at the table before they all quieted down, finally letting the newcomers speak for themselves. "Well, honestly I hadn't planned on this, and it's already causing troubles between Henry and me," Kelly told everyone as they settled themselves at the table. Noel, Lekesia and Shanna moved to the next table where they could still join in the discussion without being in the way. "I was doubtful about her wild claims about Jenny suffering from something that no one could see and that she couldn't describe," Henry said, glancing meaningfully at both his wife and Alex. "I figured she was just inventing an excuse to run off and visit Alex." "Do you still think that?" Alex asked, more to figure out how his followers' spouses' thought than anything else. "I'm remaining cautious, though I was impressed that you insisted I accompany her down here. I hadn't really wanted to come, figuring it was a fool's errand, but she told me that you'd specifically asked that she bring me." "Well, as I keep saying, I'm interested in building and maintaining my followers' existing relationships. You can't very well build a new structure if you take away all the supporting structures, now can you?" "I was worried about something I saw in Jenny's legs," Kelly explained, while Jenny listened attentively. "I knew I couldn't discuss it with a doctor, since they'd assume I was crazy and she hasn't shown any observable symptoms yet, but I can see from looking at them that something isn't right." That triggered a rash of questions and they started to get up again, to show everyone Jenny's legs but Alex calmed them down, telling them there was plenty of time to do that later and that he wanted them to relax and enjoy breakfast. They sat and ordered their breakfasts, and the relief in Jenny's eyes was apparent. Although she was still in awe of Alex, you could see the discussion of problems with her legs was bothering her. When Alex asked the waitress if she could have the cook fix some pancakes in some friendly faces, her relief and appreciation of him was evident. Wordlessly she gave him a quick hug, which Alex was always a sucker for. Both Kelly and her daughter were excited to hear about Lekesia's newest discovery, though Henry had trouble accepting they really knew better than the doctor would. Jenny may have been influenced by her love of babies, but Kelly also realized what this meant for the movement. They both gushed over it, which pleased Alex, since it took the pressure off him for a little bit. He noticed Henry's attitude as he watched their abundant enthusiasm, though. When Noel announced that she hoped she'd be showing the next day or two, it led to some embarrassing questions from Jenny, which Kelly quickly dismissed, telling her she'd talk about it with her later. No one knew what she planned to tell her daughter, or even if she had any plans to, but so far Cate and Gail hadn't been very impressed with the decisions that Kelly had made concerning this new aspect of her daughter's life. When they finished eating both Kelly and Jenny got a bit antsy, though for different reasons. While her mom wanted to figure out what the problem was as soon as possible, Jenny simply hoped the whole thing would just go away. Instead, Alex told them he wanted to accompany Lekesia and Noel to Dr. Lampre's office. When Kelly looked questioningly at him, he simply told her she had better facilities for such things, plus he thought he'd reward her for being so helpful by demonstrating the benefits of their abilities. That seemed to placate her, and everyone prepared for the big move, although Alex had to remind them he didn't want a crowd, again stressing how he wanted to remain a simple kid on vacation to anyone observing him. Henry took Alex aside as everyone was filing out, telling him he wasn't comfortable joining a bunch of women visiting a gynecologist/oncologist's office. "You and me both," Alex said, agreeing with him. "If I never have to visit a gynecologist's office again I'd be more than pleased." When they arrived at Dr. Lampre's clinic Diane was waiting for them, and the nurse quickly led them back to an exam room, since Diane had advised Hannah and the nurse that they were coming. Hannah quickly joined them and was glad about the girls' news, but like Henry remained skeptical that a pregnancy could really be determined so early. However, the other girls confirmed what Noel and Lekesia told her. "You know, this helps define a sore point in the whole abortion debate," she casually told everyone. "For years both sides have been fighting over what no one wants to admit, that essentially they're fighting over assumptions. On the one hand, the pro-lifers, while they'd never admit it, seem to have adopted the idea of a preexisting soul from the Indian theory of reincarnation. They seem to think that there's this soul just waiting to be born which gets assigned to a new body at the moment of conception, even if there aren't enough cells to support it yet. On the other hand, those who believe in abortion seem to take their beliefs from the tabla rasa, or blank slate concept, that says that everyone is born without any preexisting memories in their heads. Thus they believe that the personality is formed based on the accumulation of experiences, and that if there are no experiences, then there is no preexisting personality. "From what you're describing, they're both wrong, which is what I've long believed myself. Although it appears the soul, or the personality, whichever you care to call it, evolves over time, it is more predetermined than the mere collection of memories. Each child seems to have its own personality that is completely separate from its parents. Some parents are lucky enough to have pleasant kids that mirror their own personalities, while others seem to have kids whose personalities appear to have been picked at random. Everyone likes to believe they are responsible for their kids' behaviors, but that's just not borne out by evidence. "You'll have to tell me how it develops in the next couple of weeks. You said it's slowly starting to develop its own personality, so I'm anxious to learn how long that process takes and when its personality becomes independent of its mother's," she told the girls. "If you don't mind," Alex explained, getting Hannah off her little lecture, "I brought Kelly, her husband Henry and her daughter Jenny because she's worried about something she saw in her daughter's legs. She doesn't think she can take her to a doctor over it, but she's worried about it." "As long as you can do whatever you need to do while masturbating into a cup, go ahead," Hannah laughed. Henry clearly had no idea what they were referring to, but Kelly quickly went over what she thought was wrong with her daughter's legs while Alex consulted with his other girls about what they saw. They agreed that they saw a general dark area in Jenny's shins, though they didn't know what it represented. Hannah could detect nothing unusual, though. 'I'm guessing it may be some kind of stunted growth, ' Liv told him, after Alex asked her advice, having the girls show her what they were seeing in Jenny's legs. 'It's possible her legs aren't going to grow properly and what we're seeing is the source of the problem.' 'So I guess the best bet is to address what we see, even if we don't fully understand it, ' Alex replied. 'I've worked with problems in bones before, so at least I know how to approach it, and I've got a few eyes here to guide me.' Alex stepped up to the prone girl and moved his hands over her shins, never quite touching them, a habit he'd picked up working with burn victims and highly contagious people in the hospital. Jenny looked nervous, although she was delighted to be the sole focus of Alex's attention. She felt confident in Alex's abilities; even if Alex himself wasn't sure he could accomplish anything. Kelly looked hopeful and confident, while Henry simply chose to reserve judgment, though he found the whole 'laying on of hands' to be a bit over the top. Guided by the girls, who were excited to be doing this for the first time, Alex began applying energy deep within Jenny's shinbones. It took a little longer doing that, but it didn't take long for the light her legs gave off to brighten, and Kelly had to bite her lip to keep from shouting in joy. When Alex finally dropped his hands, she leapt forward and wrapped Alex in her arms, crying in relief. Alex quickly separated from her, being careful to not piss Henry off. "I think she'll be OK," he told them. "You should keep a watch on her in the future, but her aura already looks better. Hopefully that will hold up over time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a tiny cup to partially fill." As Alex grabbed a cup from Hannah, she bent over Jenny to see if she could see any differences herself, while the girls talked amongst themselves and Kelly gratefully hugged her daughter and then her husband. "The skin seems warmer to the touch, but that could just be due to the light," Hannah observed, not sure he'd accomplished anything at all. However the others in the room didn't need any convincing. They'd either seen it themselves, or they trusted Alex's abilities inherently. Generally it was a very emotional scene that Alex was somewhat glad to have escaped. He really felt for the mother and daughter, but he knew he already posed a problem for their family, and he didn't think his hanging around would help them any. ------- Kelly told Alex they had to be getting back as soon as they left Hannah's office. "Hey, you came all the way down here for the day," Alex told her, "and I'm sure it doesn't take that long to drive back home. If you're looking to maintain your distance from me, that shouldn't stop you from enjoying the city, or more importantly talking to the other followers in the city. I suspect Henry will find it educational as well as potentially a nice romantic getaway." "That might help, giving him a little reward for trusting me at least this once," she replied, glancing at Henry to see how he'd respond. However he simply shrugged so she gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for the suggestion, Alex. I figure we won't see you again, so thanks for helping Jenny. Even though Henry isn't quite convinced yet, we both appreciate it and I'll remember this every time I look at her." "Yeah, she's right, I'm still skeptical about it, but I figure we owe you," Henry responded shaking Alex's hand for the last time. "I guess there will never be any proof that you really did anything, but as long as she grows up normally I'll be happy. And personally, I wouldn't mind getting a nice cold mint julep while I'm here. It's been a while since I was last here," he finished with a smile. "Now aren't you glad you came along on my 'fool's errand'?" Kelly asked her husband with a heavy dose of 'I told you so' in her tone of voice. "Now you have a healthy daughter, a happy wife and a chance to get drunk while making sure I don't sneak off to meet Alex in a dark corner. Really, you need to start trusting me again. I didn't lie to you about anything, and I certainly don't love you any less because Alex came into my life." Henry didn't seem overly convinced, but he agreed he could give her a bit more latitude, especially if they didn't have any more run-ins with Alex. After they said goodbye to the other girls they all parted amicably, with little Jenny waving goodbye to him as they walked away. Alex waved back, sorry to see the last of them as he silently wished Kelly good luck with her husband. ------- 'So, are we going to be meeting you today?' Alex asked Patricia. 'After all, you've got to introduce the next bunch of girls.' 'Actually you've got a break today, as there aren't any girls who are fertile at the moment. So you can either take a day to relax, pass the time with Gail and your sister, entertain a lonely little pregnant singer, or even start on a few of the girls not looking to get pregnant at the moment. But I don't think you've got any shortage of women looking to spend time with you.' 'Yeah, you've got a point. Plus, each of the girls I've been with wouldn't mind a second or third chance at me, ' he assured her. 'There is that. Personally, as much as I'd enjoy a refresher, I'd advise taking the day off. You've got to be exhausted after sleeping with so many women in such a short period of time. Especially seeing how involved you get with each of them. Not to mention how many times you do the deed, nor how much energy you exert modifying their brains.' 'It sounds like a good idea, but I've been promising Cate and Gail some time as soon as I was able to.' 'She'll be happy just being able to spend the time with you, ' Patricia assured him. 'More than anything else, Cate looks out for you. The last thing she'd want would be you exhausting yourself. The same is true for Gail. If you were injured by overextending yourself, she'd be more upset than if you were injured by something she couldn't defend against. Take the time to relax. You'll have time to spend with them once we hit the road.' 'Perhaps, but then I'll be meeting people on the road. It's like a never ending treadmill, ' Alex complained. 'Then you need to relax for a moment and stop running so hard, ' she reminded him. 'I'll take that into account. Now, I'm meeting with Jenny Cox and her husband Tommy in a little while. Did you want to be there for that?' 'Hmm, are you asking me if I want to spend time with my favorite guy and the father of my child?' she laughed briefly. 'But honestly, I think if we got together I'd end up hauling you off to bed. You're safer with Jenny. At least she's already spoken for.' Alex agreed and thanked her before ending the discussion. ------- "Well, it's nice to see you again, Jenny," Alex greeted her as he entered the restaurant, after she jumped up to meet him. "And I see you've brought your husband. I take it you're Tommy." "Yeah, I am. As you may have guessed, I've heard a LOT about you. It's one thing to hear your wife rant and rave about some screen idol at the movies, but it's another when it's a young angel here in town with us." Alex laughed, "Well, you have nothing to worry about. I'm interested in preserving families. I'm not about to undermine my followers by cheating on their spouses." "That's what Jenny keeps telling me. So far, I have trouble believing everything she tells me about you. But none of it is quite fantastic enough to have been invented, and it certainly sounds complicated enough to be true." "Yeah, that's my life all right, complicated," Alex replied with a laugh. "So how do you feel about having the child of a man your wife thinks so highly of?" Tommy returned Alex's laugh. "You don't fool around with pleasantries, do you?" He turned so he could face Alex directly. "Frankly, I'd prefer it if you lived in Tibet, but I like what I hear about you, and I like how you've been organizing your followers. I think you're serious about what you're doing and about your claims to respect families and friends. I'm not sure about your need to sleep with so many people, but from how it's been described to me, I guess I can understand it. It still sounds fishy, though, so I hope you haven't been making it up. But as long as you don't try to pull anything on my wife, I'm OK with it." "That sounds good. How well do you and Jenny get along? Both before and after she learned about me?" Tommy smiled again at Alex's questions. "We get along well. We haven't been married long, so we're still in the 'madly in love' stage. I guess that'll pass once we have a kid to focus on, but we're doing pretty well now. As for how we're doing once she got involved with your group, actually it's like she found a whole new focus to her life. She's really perked up and seems more excited about everything. I've met so many new people I can't believe it, and all of them have told us they'd support us if and when we get pregnant. So I don't have a problem with you, or with her reactions to you. We trust each other, and I support her in this new mission of hers. And if you represent the future of those like her, and potentially of our future kid, then you can count me among your other followers. One of those few male type 3s," he said, showing he knew a thing or two about Alex's past and present. Alex turned and smiled at Jenny, his second Jenny of the day. "I think I like your husband. You've got yourself some sperm and you've also got yourself a job. I'll have Patricia direct everyone wanting sperm from me, both while we're here and after I've left and am no longer available for more direct transmissions. You know what I'm looking for, so you know the questions to ask and who to approve." He walked up to her and shook her hand, then couldn't resist and gave her a quick hug. "Welcome aboard." Turning, he again faced Tommy. "I hope you're serious about not being bothered by your wife's involvement in my affairs, because I think you both are going to be pretty heavily involved for some time to come." The husband and wife exchanged a quick reassuring glance before Tommy shook Alex's hand. "We're glad to be a part of your group. You seem to be doing a good thing here. Again, I'm not sure about how you're doing much of it, but I guess you can't help it if you're facing the limits you describe. So yeah, count us in." "I'll tell you what," Alex replied, "I'd like to buy you both a beer, but unfortunately I'm too young to do so, so how about if I buy you dinner instead?" "Well, there's one other thing we need to discuss first," Jenny told Alex. "OK, you're in charge, what's the problem and how can I fix it?" Alex responded. "Well, it's a question of perspectives, so the answer might be a personal one. There's someone here I think you need to meet." Jenny turned and motioned someone sitting at the other end of the cafe from them. A larger woman with her hair pulled back got up and made her way towards them. "I felt it would be better if she could express her concerns herself, as her passion might make a difference in your acceptance," Jenny continued. Alex nodded, wondering just what kind of problem there could be. He regarded the woman walking towards them and didn't see anything that would mark any difficulties she might have. She looked confident, strong and self assured. The thing he noticed about her was ... that she couldn't meet his eyes. "Alex, this is Lauran Fraser. Lauran, this is our Alex," Jenny said, introducing them. Lauran tried hard to meet Alex's eyes, but she was unable to. 'I take it we met at the park the other day?' he asked her. "Yes, sir, we did," she said speaking out loud, though Alex wasn't sure if she did so Jenny and her husband could hear, or because she wasn't comfortable speaking telepathically. "So Lauran, what issue do you have for me today?" "I'm familiar with what you're doing for the fertile Seers, and from what I understand from Jenny you're also going to allow couples to use your sperm to have their own babies, what I was wondering was..." Here she hesitated, seemingly a little unsure of herself. However she steeled herself and continued on, "I wanted to know if you'd approve of nontraditional families." "Nontraditional?" Alex asked, trying to keep a straight face. "Do you mean Jewish/Arab, or Male/Female/Labrador?" "Oh, no," she replied, looking stricken by the suggestion, "I mean either lesbian or gay." "That's what I thought you meant," Alex responded, with an easy laugh. "I don't know if you're aware of it, but my bodyguard over there is a lesbian. Not only that, but she plans on having a baby, my baby that is, when we get back from this trip across country." Lauren has the sense to blush. "I had heard that, but I wasn't sure. I also heard that was a special case, since you slept with her. Supposedly both her and her partner, so I wasn't sure how you'd feel about a committed lesbian relationship." "Hey, I've got no problems with that," he assured her. "The only reason I slept with them is because the attraction between me and the Seers is usually so intense that it tends to naturally progress to something more. Gail had never been with a man before, so she was surprised when she felt attracted to me. But I figure it's more a matter of who you're attracted to versus who you fall in love with. We felt a great attraction for one another, but it doesn't change the fact that she's essentially a lesbian. Basically she's lucky that I normally sleep with a lot of playful naked women, so she's got something to focus on besides my ugly man parts." "Wow, you really are as wonderful as everyone describes you. I guess I'm like your Gail. I'm a confirmed lesbian, but I could see making an exception in your case. But like I said, I'm in a relationship and I'm not willing to jeopardize it even for you." "That's fine," Alex reassured her. "I'm a definite believer in family, friends, and in strong primary relationships. I wouldn't want you to put your partnership in trouble. I've got no problems not sleeping with people. I've already got way too many people wanting to make love with me as it is. I'd really rather not make love to so many people. I only wanted one girlfriend. Now I've got dozens of them and, frankly, it's getting to be a bit much. The only reason why I've been sleeping with the girls wanting to get pregnant here is because they wanted to, but I also wanted to get a good feel for them, to ensure they were doing this for the right reasons." "There's actually a bit more to it than that," Cate said, walking up and speaking for the first time. "When Alex activates people, he seems to trigger some deep seated emotional response in those people. He also seems to establish one, though not quite as strong, with the Watchers he gets close to as well. There's still a lot we don't know about it, but that much is pretty obvious." "Well, I hope I didn't insult you asking you these questions, but I wanted to make sure," Lauren answered before once again hesitating, making Alex think she had something else to say on the subject. "Yes, Lauren, what is it? Do you actually have that Labrador hidden away back in your closet?" Alex tried joking, although he wasn't sure just how appropriate it was to try that joke at the moment. "No, no, no Labradors. But I've got some gay friends. They're also interested in children. They've been interviewing with girls who've accidentally gotten pregnant, but—" "But it's hard to find someone they can work with?" Alex replied, filling in the most likely answer for her. When she nodded her head he continued. "Well, there might be a little problem there. I'm not very good at producing the babies myself. I'm better at the sperm production side of things." "Oh, no, I actually connected them to some of the girls in the movement here, some who are anxious to help the movement but who aren't ready for a family yet. They've agreed they'd have a baby, but only your baby, and that they'd want to be involved with it, but only if they were free to pursue their education, careers and relationships as well." "Wow, it sounds like everyone wins. I can't believe you could even make an arrangement like that, but if you can, then I'm proud of you. I've got no problems with it, though, and Jenny, if this kind of thing ever comes up again, I've got no problems with multiple marriages either, although you'd have to look at them carefully, because I do have a problem with families where the women don't have any power, any say, or any choices." That was too much for Lauren, she launched herself at Alex and enveloped him in a big hug. "You certainly seem like a stand up guy. I hope those ideals stand up after you're..." but she couldn't bring herself to finish the idea. "After I'm gone, you mean," Alex finished for her. "I'm sorry, but yeah," she told him. "I don't think I need to tell you, but religions tend to change after their initial founder dies. And then they change even more as they get organized, and the various factions fight over what rules to enforce and which to completely ignore." "Hey, you don't have to preach to the choir. I'm not a big fan of the church myself, although I'm pretty sure you already knew that." "Yeah, we've heard a thing or two about it," Lauren replied, finally realizing she was still hugging Alex, quickly letting him go. "Look, why don't we have another big dinner. See if we can get a reservation somewhere for all of us. I expect to see your better half, Lauren, as well as your gay friends, and maybe even their surrogate." "We'll see if we can make arrangements," Jenny assured him. "It may be a bit late to arrange, but we'll try to fix something up. If nothing else we'll meet at our house and order in. It may not be as fancy as you're used to, but it would be more comfy." 'Patricia, we're putting a dinner together with a bunch of us. This is your last chance. Want to be a part of it?' Alex asked. 'Alex, I'm always interested in spending time with you, but as I said, I'm sure there are many people there who'd give their left nut to sleep with you, if they had one that is. Sleep with someone else. I'll get a chance at you when we start traveling. Go have fun.' 'OK, you said it yourself so I'll take your word for it. But I don't think there's much chance of me sleeping with anyone tonight.' 'You always seem to discount your own appeal, Alex. I think they may just surprise you, ' Patricia told him. 'Well, I'm not planning on testing that particular theory. I like everyone involved too much, ' Alex told her before returning to the others, not explaining the real reason was that everyone he was meeting with was either gay, in a committed relationship, or both, but he kept Patricia's warning in mind, making sure he wouldn't be asked to cross a line he didn't want to. He explained to the others why Patricia wouldn't be there. They soon broke up, though, as Cate was anxious to drag Alex back to the apartment by way of a wandering tour of the French Quarter. After all, Alex needed to dress up for this event. The Angel of New Orleans needs to keep up his appearances, doesn't he? ------- Alex and Cate were walking along the streets near the waterfront when Alex got a desperate message. 'Alex, you don't know me, this is Heather, but there's a crisis.' 'Whoa, hold on, Heather, ' Alex instructed her, trying to calm her down as he stopped to deal with whatever the issue was, seemingly staring off into space. To help make it look more believable, Cate slipped her arm through his and stared off into the distance beside him, resting her head against his arm. 'First of all, it's nice talking to you. Now take a break and tell me what's going on.' 'There's a bunch of us here. We're outside of Peter's coffee shop. But that reporter is here, asking everyone a bunch of questions. No one was sure how to respond, so they came to me, who most people around here recognize as being a Seer. We need some lead here. Should we talk to him? Should we ignore him? Should we tell him something specific?' Alex groaned, but only verbally, keeping his telepathic communications calm and collected. 'Well, hesitating isn't the best approach, but we can't make up for bad planning. Let me think about this for ... I'll tell you what. Speak to him honestly and openly. You can tell him what you feel, but just remember these rules. No discussing private details, so don't mention me or anyone around me by name, or give any details about what we did that the person involved may object to. Secondly, keep everything general. You can discuss your role in the organization, but don't mention visions or telepathy. That would just panic people. Finally, stress how I'm just one of many angels scattered across the world. Mention that the real power resides with Alexandria, but that you've never met her. I want to keep attention focused on her, so there's less directed at me. Do you understand all of that?' 'Yeah, I got it. Everyone is watching me, including Mr. Rodriguez, so I'd better get the message spread pretty quickly. I'll report what happens in a little while, ' Heather told him. 'Don't bother, Heather. I trust you. Just speak from your heart, but don't reveal anything that anyone would feel embarrassed by. We can discuss what happened later, but I'm not going to be in town forever, so everyone is going to have to figure out how to deal with these issues as they come up. Good luck, Heather.' With that Alex turned, kissed Cate, telling her he was sorry for getting distracted and they resumed walking. But he got another message from someone else he hadn't yet met personally. 'Alex, you don't know me but... ' she began. 'Hey, if you can reach out to me telepathically, then believe me, we've met. Now I may not have had a chance to get to know you individually, but you can speak to me whenever you feel it's important. Now tell me your name and then tell me what's happening.' 'My name is Harriet, sir, although most people call me Harry. My father thought it was a great joke at the time. Anyway, I wanted you to know that there are a couple of protests going on today. I'm at one at one of the larger Evangelical churches. I know the paper came down pretty hard on the protest yesterday, but it doesn't seem to have dissuaded these from starting up today. I thought you'd want to know about it.' Alex sighed, even though she couldn't hear it. He was tired of dealing with people constantly wanting to address him with reverence, but knowing now was not the time or place to pick a fight over it. The matter she was bringing to his attention was more important than matters of simple protocol. 'Well, thanks for keeping me informed, Harry. Does it look dangerous? Is anyone being threatened? Are you in any danger there?' Alex asked. 'No, sir, so far there aren't many non-church members involved, and I'm making sure to stay out of their way. There's no way of identifying me as one of your followers, but given their mood, I'm not about to give them a chance to blame someone for their own problems, ' she replied. 'That makes sense. Keep on the outskirts but try to keep a watch over them. If you can, or if they do anything inflammatory, see if you can get a video of it. If we need to we can show extreme behavior to the media and hopefully they'll help put it into perspective, but I doubt we'll be able to manage everything. What's the tenor of the meeting?' 'They have placards saying things like "A Woman's Place is Serving Her Man, Not Replacing Him", and "We Don't Need a New Religion That Replaces Men", ' she informed him. 'Good, it sounds like they'll do themselves more damage than they will us. Be safe, but try to capture enough to be useful. I'll give you the number for Lisa Woodall. She's a reporter that's been helping us, so she'll try to get any video you take to someone who will report it honestly. Hopefully, at least. And thanks for keeping an eye out for this kind of thing for me, ' Alex replied. 'It's not just me, sir. A bunch of us set out this morning to monitor the various churches across town. There's also a similar group at the Catholic Cathedral. I don't think it's any more widespread than that at the moment, but we'll keep you informed if it spreads or if it gets any worse.' 'Wow, thank you, Harry, I had no idea I had people so active in tracking these events down, ' Alex said. 'How do you think so many people responded yesterday when you stumbled into one? We were already watching it. We'd have warned you ahead of time, but they didn't have any Seers amongst them, and they thought running up to you would attract more attention than stopping you would divert, ' she replied. 'That makes sense. Thanks again. I'll have to do something to make it up to you.' 'I'm doing this because I can, and because I'm anxious to help you help each of us. It's important we protect each other, so it's not really an imposition.' 'Still, I'm appreciative. Keep me informed if anything else happens. Also contact Patricia if you have any recordings, as I'm sure she'll find a use for it as well.' Alex said, ending the conversation. He turned back to his sister and told her what had happened as they strolled the waterfront, simply enjoying each other's company rather than worrying about what they couldn't control. Either it would blow up, or it wouldn't. Worrying about it wouldn't make it any more or any less of an event than it already was. ------- Chapter 14: Discussing Closet Space Alex entered the restaurant with his sister and Gail. As he was directed to a large table Gail hung back, telling him she'd get a seat near the door. When he asked her about it, she told him she was uncomfortable with the large group and the angry protests, and thought she could better protect him by being discreet. He couldn't argue with that, so he allowed her to make her own arrangements. She had a credit card issued by the foundation to cover her own expenses so he wasn't worried about her. As Alex and Cate approached the table he saw Jenny and her husband, Tommy Cox, as well as Lauran Fraser with a woman he assumed was her life partner, as well as three people he didn't know, but whom he could figure out pretty quickly. Rising from her seat, Jenny took on the role of host, introducing her husband. But Lauran took over the rest of the introductions from there. "Alex, I'd like you to meet my spouse, Christie Hollie, as well as Kevin Eldridge and Nick Griggs, who we discussed earlier, as well as Carla Swift, their intended surrogate. Carla's a Watcher by the way," she said, although neither Cate nor Alex needed her to tell them that much, since Carla didn't seem to be able to look away from them. "I thought I should do the introductions since I'm more familiar with everyone," she explained. "I'm pleased to meet each of you," Alex replied shaking their hands, then hugging both Nick and Kevin. "I think we're beyond the formal handshake at this point, if you're going to be raising a child for me," he told them. If Alex was going to pick two people as being gay, he wouldn't pick these two, as both were large burly guys who didn't seem to be overly sophisticated in that typical persona that many gays took on. He then turned to Carla, a little thing dressed in a gray dress, and gave her a firm hug, to which she promptly responded by molding her body to his own, while Cate welcomed the two men in her own style. Carla was obviously young and ready for life, though probably not yet ready for life with a baby yet. "So does anyone need to know who either I, my sister Cate or our bodyguard Gail is?" he asked with an easy laugh. They each laughed in response, and assured him they were all quite familiar with him. At that point they sat down and got started on the discussion. "I'm really pleased to meet you. I know I've got no reason to be included in your inner circle, but..." Kevin started to say when he noticed Alex's eyes glazing over. He'd been warned beforehand that this might happen, so he had the sense to wait until he seemed to be listening again. 'Alex, this is Shani. I just got a call from Lisa. It seems that Albert Rodriguez contacted her, since he has no other way of contacting you. If you'll remember, she sent him that video earlier. It seems he's got a 6:00 news program that's going to start soon, and he wanted you to have a chance to see it, since it's about you and your followers. He also said he'd appreciate it if you could give him a call afterwards.' 'Thanks, Shani. He certainly doesn't give much warning, does he? I guess there isn't much we can do about it now, besides, we're sitting down to dinner and we don't have access to a television. But I'll try to relay the information to someone who can check it out for us. Hopefully they can warn us if it's likely to cause us any trouble, ' Alex told her. 'From what I've been hearing you've already been having some trouble, although you seem to be handling it better than your last visit when Albert was causing you troubles.' 'Yeah, I've got a lot of good people down here and they're all pitching in. It makes a big difference having a lot of people to draw on, ' Alex said. 'I've got to go if I'm going to head this off. Thanks for warning me, though, ' he said as he switched to his next telepathic broadcast. 'OK, people, this is Alex, as if you ever get any other telepathic comments from anyone else, ' Alex broadcast to all his Seers in New Orleans. It took a bit of effort to identify and select them, but not as much as one might suspect since the connections were all mental. 'We've got a bit of a problem. Mr. Rodriguez is doing a TV special on me that is starting soon, and I'm stuck without a TV. If a few of you could watch it for me and let me know how damaging it is, I'd appreciate it. If anyone has access to a DVR and could record it for me, that would help as well. I suspect my family might appreciate seeing it, as it's about all they'll have seen of me since I left home a week ago. Check with Patricia to see if there's someone who knows enough to record it electronically so someone can send it to my iPad, since it would be good to see if there's something specifically I need to respond to. But let's not get crazy about this, folks. We're likely to be seeing a lot of reports about us in the future, so we've got to learn to take it in stride and respond to it the best we can. Let's keep everything in perspective. OK?' Alex got numerous positive responses, which surprisingly he was able to identify, even if he didn't know the respondent's name, but somehow he could place each with a face. One girl said she was at home at the moment and could get her boyfriend to record it on his computer, so Alex thanked her and told her he'd get in contact with her after it was over. Patricia then asked him if he wanted her to do anything, to which Alex simply warned her to be prepared since she was likely to get a lot of flack due to her being so publicly affiliated with him. The whole series of exchanges took only several seconds, so Alex's eyes refocused and he met Kevin's eyes once again. Kevin, who wasn't sure what had just happened, was afraid Alex may have lost his train of thought, so he started over. "I was just saying that Nick and I have no reason to be included in your mission, but Lauran got us excited about the possibilities, especially when she suggested we may be able to help by finally getting the baby we've been trying so long for." "Sorry about fading out like that, I get distracted with a lot of information sometimes," Alex told him, leaving off any details since he didn't want to upset any of his dinner companions. Those dinner companions consisted of only three Watchers, none of them would know what was happening until they started to talk to the others in the community. Even Gail was in the dark about what was going to occur. "That's fine," Kevin assured him, waving it off. "We understand. From what we understand, you're responsible for a lot of people, both here in New Orleans and elsewhere." "I can understand why you'd want a baby," Alex told them, changing the topic as he regarded them both, "but why did you feel drawn to this particular community?" "Oh, that's easy," Nick responded. "Now that gays are being so widely accepted by the world, from the military which persecuted us into better paying jobs, to religious figures who accept us completely, except in cases of marriage or being near kids. Heck, even those who occasionally beat us up on the streets feel the need to tell us 'Not that there's anything wrong with that'," he joked with a somewhat bitter laugh. "But we felt that if there's still this much hostility for something that's almost been accepted as normal, your group is likely to face even stronger opposition. Plus, there's a certain cachet to raising the next potential Angel of New Orleans. It's the newest gay thing," he teased. Alex had been observing the two men while Kevin had been speaking. Kevin was what is referred to as a 'Bear' in the gay community, referring to a large man, often with a decent sized belly and/or with a lot of body hair. Alex would never have known any of this, but the other Alex had brought him up to date when Alex continued to prompt him about gays in anticipation of his travels. The gays, unlike the straights, considered this a sexy trait, since it was so much like cuddling a big teddy bear. Nick, on the other hand, was a sleek muscular young man who seemed to be the antithesis of the typical gay stereotype. In fact, neither one exactly shouted 'gay' by their appearance. "OK, that answers a lot pretty quickly," Alex replied with a reassuring laugh. "I'd hardly presume to understand what you've had to go through in coming out, but there are parallels. We face potential persecution based solely on who we are, something we have no control over. Those that I trigger seem to be based on a completely random genetic trait that no one ever knew they had, so many people are finding themselves part of this community whether they knew about it or even wanted to. But we're always glad to have anyone voluntarily join us. We've got several people without these traits who have already joined us. Many of them were from my school." "Lauran has really been driven lately, and we noticed and asked her about it," Nick explained. "Since we're fairly close friends and have been talking about raising kids together, she confided in us. We'd heard about you earlier so we were intrigued, but the more we heard the more enthused we were as well. This is the first significant genetic advancement anyone in recorded history has noted, and it sounds like a major one. It's too bad it's restricted to women only, but we're hoping it will eventually benefit everyone." "Just how much do you know about it?" Alex cautiously asked. "Well, Lauran never said too much explicitly, but we're aware there are three classes of followers. We also know that you can transmit thoughts and feelings, and that the Seers are able to see things like how healthy people are," Kevin replied. "That's a pretty good summation, although each of the girls is able to feel emotions. That's because they can sense the energy that each person gives off, and that energy is flavored by a person's personality. So it would be good to pay attention whenever Jenny, Lauran or Carla warns you about someone. But as you can imagine, the idea that there are people who can communicate telepathically is likely to panic people. Plus the idea that people see me as a religious figure upsets most of the people in the established churches." "Yeah, Jenny explained that you weren't particularly religious," Nick replied. "Nope, although the women can literally see what we call a soul, I'm still not sure how to relate to it. I see it as a feature of a person's personality, but I still can't see it floating away into space, so I have trouble seeing a big king of the spirits floating around in a make believe ethereal kingdom," Alex told them, expressing his own difficulties with his new position. "Yeah, I can see where you'd have a problem with religion with that framework," Christie responded with a slight smirk. "I think it's interesting that the famed Angel of New Orleans doesn't believe in God," she observed. "It's worse than that," Cate told her. "He's supposedly an Angel who doesn't believe in God, he lets people see souls that he doesn't believe exist, he heals people using energy he can't see, and he doesn't think anyone should treat him any differently than anyone else." "Some people seek greatness, while others have to be dragged to it kicking and screaming," Kevin observed. Cate seemed to think that was very funny. "So normally I'd quiz you on what you're looking for in this as well, Nick, but I trust that Jenny has already tackled that topic. I assume Christie and Carla have also been vetted, so I don't have to worry about whether any of you will be good parents. Oh sure, you'll each struggle, but that's the whole nature of parenting." "So says my 'oh, so experienced of a parent', brother," teased Cate. "You know," Christie said, "I think you need to consider this movement of yours as your own parenthood. You've essentially delegated the actual parenting, but you need to grow the movement. From what I've heard, you've been doing a good job, but you've got to get over this shy retiring persona of yours. You need to address things directly." "Ha, you should have seen him before," Cate observed. "He's making great strides, but personally, the rest of us think of it as our friend Anh does. Alex always seems to come to the right decision for all the wrong reasons. That's why we feel he's guided in his decisions. He seems to have a knack for judging people and making decisions. Now, whether he's guided by God, by Alexandria, or by a bunch of unnamed spirits, we don't know. But he does have a real talent for doing the right thing." "After being told how we and those we love are all going to hell for loving each other, it feels nice to be working on God's side for a change," Christie teased, only somewhat exaggerating. They were about ready to order and were looking for the waitress when they heard a loud commotion at the front of the restaurant. When Alex glanced up, he noted that Gail was halfway to the table before she realized the noise had come from the front of the restaurant, which was behind her. Glancing around a bit nervously, she returned to her seat and watched the door nervously. She didn't investigate the disruption, since her responsibility was in guarding Alex, not policing the restaurant. The disruption, which sounded like it might have been a fight as they'd heard some shouting, was over quickly, and everyone looked around trying to figure out what had happened. But as soon as Alex decided it didn't involve him, or present a threat to those he loved, he put it out of his mind. When the waitress finally came to the table a few minutes later to take their orders Carla asked what the problem was. "Oh, there was some argument in the bar," she answered. "It seems some idiot turned off the normal sports channel to watch some news program, and a couple of people started arguing about it. I guess it was some religious thing." Alex sighed and turned to his sister. "Cate, go to the bar and see who's there. It's likely one of ours." She quickly got up and hurried off. Tommy asked the waitress, "Did anyone get hurt? Any damage done?" "No, one guy shoved another," she said. "That seems to have been the extent of it." Alex perked up at that. If it had been one of his followers trying to defend him against someone mouthing off after the news story, one of the two should have been a woman. "Did you hear what the argument was about?" Lauran asked, picking up on Alex's interest in the topic. "Sorry, I wasn't there. I just heard about it when I was placing an order," she told them. 'Gail, it seems there was an argument about us in the bar, ' Alex explained. 'Chances are the participants were thrown out. Cate's checking the bar, could you check outside and see if you can find anyone that might be related to us? They were supposedly two men, so it may be hard to identify them.' 'I'll do it. You sure you're going to be OK without me?' 'Sure, what could possibly ... never mind. No, I should be fine. Besides, you'll only be gone for a couple of minutes and there are plenty of people here.' Gail nodded at him and stood up, quietly walking out of the restaurant. Alex gave the waitress both his and Cate's order, since the waitress was waiting for his order. Finished, she headed off just as Cate returned. "Sorry, whoever caused the trouble already left," she informed Alex. "The program they were watching was still on. I caught a little of it. It seemed to be about you." "Yeah, I already know about it," Alex told her. "Apparently Albert Rodriguez got a TV special dedicated to me. I chose to ignore it, but I'm wondering just who may have been fighting about it just now. I'm not particularly worried about the pro-tradition participant, but whoever was defending me might be of interest. I'm particularly concerned with why he was defending me." "Wait a minute," Jenny interrupted him. "There's a news exposé about you, and you just chose to ignore it? No wonder there's a fight. That's some big shit. We need to get you out of here. There might be trouble." "There's hardly..." Alex tried to explain, but everyone started getting excited. "Oh, man, that's major. Do you want us to escort you out?" Nick asked. "Let me check if there are any crowds outside," Carla said, getting ready to head out. "Everyone, RELAX. It's not that major," Alex told them all, staring at each of them, letting them know he wasn't fooling around. "No one knows that I'm associated with this, hopefully it was a fair report. I'll deal with it after it's done, but I'm not going to spoil my dinner worrying about something that I have no control over." "Yeah, right, when was the last time you saw a fair and impartial report on anything on television?" Tommy asked. Cate snuggled up beside Alex and held his hand, trying to figure out just what was going on. "So far we've been fortunate in that the news has favored us. There hasn't been anything to report about us, and what there was to report has been very unimpressive. Frankly, most people aren't going to care about a miracle that has qualifications. However, the news cycle is now likely to be filled with reports of traditional conservative churches reacting negatively to us. And by conservative I mean that literally, these are the types of churches that don't want to see any changes of any kind, so they aren't likely to appear sympathetic to anyone. So, yes, I see this as something we can weather. But what we can't do is to overreact. We can't fly off the handle and do something stupid that will focus the attention on us that we're trying to avoid." This stopped the others, and they each watched him as the ideas he proposed percolated through their brains. While they were thinking about it Alex turned to Lauran. "I've got someone who is organizing the relatives of my followers, trying to get them together with available Watchers, Seers, or type 3s. I've come to think she may need some assistance. It seems to me she should have some help from the lesbian and gay communities. I'd like you, Lauran, and you, Kevin, to meet with her, and you and your partners can assist her in helping merge these people into our community. There are actually two different groups, one is essentially a community dating service, while the other is trying to bring friends and relatives into the group. I'd like each of you to take part in both groups. I want to make sure that anyone coming to us feels welcomed." They glanced at each other, thinking about what he was proposing. Alex's ploy had worked. They were so thrown by Alex's suggestion that their previous arguments were temporarily forgotten. They started whispering to each other, measuring their spouse's feelings about the topic. Alex could see that the type 3s, Nick, Kevin and Christie, were interested, as this would give them a position of some importance in the community. Not only that, but it would allow them to meet and get to know both those within the community as well as those coming into it. It would allow them to move from the role of outsiders to integral members. However, before they could respond, Gail walked up to them. "I couldn't see anyone. It looks like they're gone," she told Alex. "I'm not sure they would have told us much. I was just concerned about whoever was supposedly defending us." "Well, I'm sure you'll find out who it was eventually," Tommy told him. "You don't need to thank him immediately." "Oh, no, I didn't want to thank him. Well, I did, but that wasn't the only thing I wanted to meet him for. I want to emphasize that we're not supposed to be picking fights. We'll do much better blending in, essentially remaining in the closet, and quietly influencing people one at a time. Thus we need quiet confidences, not outright confrontations." "You're suggesting your people enter their own closet?" Kevin asked, blinking in confusion. "Our biggest responsibility right now is simple survival. We need to protect ourselves until we've established a large enough base so we can withstand a potential attack. Right now we have two distinct communities, and an attack on either one would likely lead to the other. So we're vulnerable at the moment. We can't take chances." Kevin seemed to understand that, so Alex continued. "Luckily we don't stick out much. Unlike the early closeted gays, we don't have to worry about being caught frequenting underground bars. With our abilities, plus modern telecommunications, we can easily arrange to meet on our own. After all, it's not like we're meeting complete strangers." Alex saw Cate about to object, so he went on. "Yes, I'm meeting strangers, but everyone else in the community basically knows who belongs and who doesn't, so we shouldn't be as exposed as other groups have been in the past. One of our biggest objectives right now is to not panic the public. Our second is to reach out to our friends, family and coworkers, to educate them about who we are and what we represent. We especially have to communicate that what we represent is no threat to anyone else." "So you're suggesting the best approach is to hide?" Tommy asked. "I'm sorry, but that runs counter to everything we've learned in the gay community." "This isn't a civil rights movement yet," Alex told him. "Right now we don't have the numbers to stage an effective protest of anything. I'm working to increase our numbers, as are each of you, but that's going to take time. Until we manage to reach a critical level, we face the very real risk of being wiped out in a single strike. We can't take the risk of alienating anyone. "Our best hope is to demonstrate to people that we aren't dangerous. Hopefully, once we're finally exposed we'll have a few people who can stand up for us, because I have no doubt we will be exposed before long. And once we are exposed, there's likely to be an explosive reaction to us. What the general public will perceive is that we're capable of reading minds, which they'll equate with mind control, which will just bring up a lot of basic fears in people. I doubt anyone will sit still and listen to the limitations to our abilities. So yes, right now my central concern lies with protecting everyone as much as I can." They each considered that. "Well, it's hard to hear that, considering where the gay community stands at the moment," Nick said. "But I've got to consider that we've only reached this stage with a lot of new scientific knowledge that's only come about due to recent exposure. Before this we've had to hide for the last several thousand years. Even places known for their acceptance of gays in the past, places like Lesbos in ancient Greece, were more known for being a small collection of like minded people than for any widespread community. So, yeah, I can understand where you're coming from." "I must admit, our community, while organized, is pretty small at the moment," Christie agreed. "I also want each of you to remember that point when confronted in the future. First of all, protect yourselves. If you're exposed, I'll expect you to protect the community first, since the many are more vital than any individual, including myself, but the best way to protect the community is by protecting each of us." So Gail returned to her table by the door as the waitress returned with their dinners while everyone contemplated Alex's ideas on the subject. ------- They gathered outside after their dinner was finished. "Thanks for giving us this chance to be involved," Nick told Alex. "It means a lot that you'd accept us, even if we have no particular abilities of our own." "Yeah," Jenny agreed. "I was worried that I would be subjected to a smaller role in the community because I'm not a Seer, but now I see you plan on giving everyone a role, whether they're a Seer, a Watcher or just a typical Joe from off of the street." "That goes doubly for us spouses," Tommy said. "We've been concerned we wouldn't be able to help our mates in this aspect of their lives, and we have images of it disrupting our relationships. It's nice to know you won't hold our not being one of you against us." "Hey, the way I see it, if you accept us then you are one of us," Alex told him. "The only reason I haven't included more outsiders is because I've been afraid of how they'd react to learning about us." They each thanked Alex and told him they'd get started on the various tasks he'd assigned to them, as well as putting out feelers to others who may feel sympathetic to the community. Each either shook Alex's hand or gave him a big hug. As they split up Alex, Cate and Gail headed off to their car. "Gail, since I'm focusing on individual tasks for people, ask around and see if there are any security people in the community here," Alex suggested. "We need someone who knows what to expect if we're ever attacked. Keep in mind that I don't want a militaristic response, so look for a couple of people not in the security field to counterbalance the others. This will be important over time, so we need to set it up now." "Will do, Boss. I've already been looking, though I don't have anyone identified yet, but I'll keep you apprised," she told him. "Alex, what about this TV show?" Cate asked worriedly. "Well, we need to see if we can find someone who heard it to find out what it was about. After that we can see if we can get a copy of it so we can study it in detail." With that Alex took about doing just that. 'Hey, there, I'm sorry to disturb you, but I don't even know your name. I know who you are, since I remember you from the mass activation we had, but... ' 'Hey, Alex. My name is Rose. My boyfriend managed to record it, and he's got a recording although we don't know how to get it to you. We can send it to someone else with a computer, but sending it to your iPad might be a little difficult. The studio is local, so they haven't put it on the internet yet.' 'That's OK, ' he replied. 'The last thing I want is for us to put it on the internet for others to find. I basically just want to know how much damage they did. What did you think of it?' he asked her. 'It was essentially pretty accurate. He still doesn't know much, but it wasn't aggressive or argumentative. Instead he mainly focused on the established churches' reactions to you. He started out detailing what little he knew about us, then did a series of interviews of people at Peter's coffee shop, then he showed a series of film clips about local churches staging prayer protests about us.' 'That doesn't sound too bad so far, ' Alex conceded. 'Well, it's going to bring us a lot more attention. Before, it was only the people reading the local paper. The TV reaches a broader market, so there'll be more people aware of us. We'll have to be even more cautious.' 'You're right. I'll tell you what, Rose, start setting up a series of small klatsches where you can show the video you recorded and discuss it within the community. I'll try to make it to the first, but there's always the possibility that I may have to run off unexpectedly, ' Alex warned her. 'So how big of a fuss were the churches putting up?' he asked. 'It varies, and the show really put them in a bad light. It emphasized that you're not making a theological point, that it's strictly a personal thing, and even if it isn't, this movement is hardly more of a threat than any of the other religious groups. He said that so far we seem to present no threat to anyone, no one is being compromised or cheated, and a lot of people seem to take great delight in a series of very minor miracles. I'd say you don't have to worry about it too much.' 'Well, that's good to hear. Now we'll just have to see how the public responds to it. They could either side with us in opposition to the church's overreactions, or they could turn on us. Only time will tell, but it's hard to keep something this big a secret in this day and age.' Turning back to Cate and Gail, Alex gave them his view of the situation. "The TV show didn't make much of an impact. Generally it didn't attack us and came down somewhat hard on the reactionary churches. However it brings more attention to us, so everyone will have to watch themselves. We'll have to focus on shifting as many people as we can out of New Orleans. That'll take some of the pressure off of us." "That's good," Cate replied without embellishment. "Now come on, we're supposed to meet with Sarah and Emma. They've brought some family members with them for us to speak to and evaluate. They're on the way to the apartment as we speak." "Wha ... how?" "Alex, sometimes you can be such a luddite. They called while you were busy inside," she replied. "But you never answered your phone while we were..." "That's because I've got one of these," she replied, moving her hair aside to reveal a little device in her ear. "It's Bluetooth. It tells me when I get a call, and lets me talk to someone without having to talk into the phone. Since we were having dinner I let the call go to voicemail, but then I listened to the message. When I went to the ladies room I called to make arrangements. Sometimes, Alex, there's a whole lot you just don't pick up on. Thank God you always focus so totally on whoever you're with, because otherwise you'd miss everything." "That's why I always try to surround myself with smart people," Alex replied, "so they can keep track of things." "Yeah, like you have any choice in who surrounds you. You've just been lucky most of them have been so competent. But, yeah, I got it so I could help keep track of what you're supposed to be doing, just so we'll prepared for circumstances like this. Not all of your followers can speak to you whenever they feel like. Sometimes they have to go through me." "Well, thank you for that, my beautiful little secretary," Alex responded, taking Cate in his arms and kissing her to show her his appreciation. "I have no idea how I'd ever function without you." "Humph, you'd just find someone else to do all these things for you. Luckily I manage to do it all so you don't need any more hangers on. If I had to deal with any more people following us on a daily basis I'd go ape-shit. It's hard enough finding time to cuddle with you as it is." ------- They managed to return to Allison's apartment in time to prepare for company, though Alex had to meet with a few people beforehand. He'd promised Vicky Amhurst he'd meet to thank her for heading off the Watchers getting tattoos. He also met with the potential Seers in the park that turned out to have no abilities, but those meeting didn't take long. When their company buzzed the apartment Alex was about to buzz them in, but Gail warned him not to. Instead, Cate told him she'd escort them up. Gail didn't look pleased at that, since she felt she was Cate's guardian as well, but there wasn't much of an alternative. She wasn't going to abandon her guard to run errands. It's when professionals start not taking their jobs seriously that trouble happens. Alex and Gail were ready when they came up. Cate knocked, letting Gail know they were there. Once again she wouldn't let Alex open the door until she'd checked it herself, and even then she bolted it and made sure the proper people were in the hallway before she'd open the door. Alex felt a bit exasperated at the precautions, but he also knew how important it was, so he remained silent. It was moments like that when he missed his former life. He didn't have many moments when he felt like that, but they were getting more common as time went by. Emma and Sarah gave Alex big hugs and said hello to Gail before they introduced those with them. They'd both brought their mothers, Emma brought a sister, and both brought a niece. However, as usually happens, nothing went quite as expected. Sarah's mother and niece were Watchers as well, but Emma's mother wasn't, nor was her niece. That meant that Emma got her abilities from her father instead of from her mother. Alex was a little surprised that her sister was also a Watcher, until Cate patiently explained to everyone why that made sense from a genetics point of view. "You'll need to tell your father that he's a carrier of the Watcher gene, which means you'll have to explain what it means and how it impacts your life," Alex told her. "He really needs to know. Besides, hopefully it will bring him closer to your new life so he doesn't feel ostracized. Your mother has already been included, so they'll have that to share as well. But it's important to keep your family close to you if it's at all possible." "You'll also need to contact the female members of your father's family," Cate added, "since there may be Watchers in his family as well." They sat around and told everyone what they each needed to know while Emma and Sarah made tea for everyone. They also fixed Alex his snack, since they knew how he needed to eat constantly. But as soon as they conveyed the information they needed, Alex played up what an eventful day it had been, claiming he was exhausted from the stress. Since Cate had explained about the TV coverage and the religious protests in the streets, everyone quickly made excuses and made their exits. Cate was about to send Alex to bed when he instead grabbed her and held her in a loving embrace. "As nice as it is meeting new followers, I wanted the evening to be ours," he told her. "But I thought..." she started to say. "Shh. Yeah, I know, Patricia thought I should take a day to rest, but you and Gail have been doing without spending any time at all with me for the last week, and it's not looking like you're going to be getting any anytime soon, either. As soon as we start traveling again we'll meet more people along the road. About the only chance we'd have to spend any time together is if we stopped at a fleabag hotel somewhere, since any nice one would be likely to have a Watcher or two either staying or working there. No, it's worth it exhausting myself, rather than watching the two of you do without for so long. I know it's hard for you to pretend you're only my sister." Cate actually began crying as she stood there holding him, but that didn't stop her from kissing him. Nor did it stop her from dragging him to the bedroom, where they both made room for Gail to join them. Gail was very patient, simply assisting as Alex made quiet gentle love with his sister, and only then did she make her own needs evident, as she rushed through her own time with him. "Damn, I don't think I've ever been through a tougher tour," Gail told them both. "Trying to pretend that you're just a client all that time was killing me, when I wanted to grab you the whole time." "Yeah, imagine how I feel," Cate commiserated. "At least you can admit that you and Alex have slept together. I have to keep pretending I'm just his overprotective sister." "You realize that these women would make allowances for almost anything that Alex did, don't you?" Gail asked her. "Yeah, I realize that, but they'd have reservations about both him and me as a result, and I don't think we want to risk that. Besides, I just don't feel comfortable announcing to the world that I'm sleeping with my brother. Call me old fashioned, but that's just not how I want to be known. After all, I'm hardly a sex crazed young floozie who couldn't control herself. Alex is the only guy I've ever slept with." As everyone recovered, they sat Alex down at the dining room table to feed him his snack and then escorted him back to bed. They cuddled with each other, and the two girls did a little fooling around as well. Later that night Alex awoke to someone playing with him, and he managed to give his sister a repeat performance of his brotherly love. Gail had to settle for Cate's going down on her while Alex held her. However she found that worked well, since she was still more excited by the idea of a girl making love to her, even as she got a chance to soak up Alex's energy. They all fell asleep happily sated for a change, and Alex felt both exhausted and strangely at peace. They'd managed to weather yet another storm, and they'd managed to handle it quite well. He couldn't have asked for a better outcome to having their movement exposed to the public, and while he was sure there'd be several bumps in the road, he had to mentally thank everyone who helped keep his followers in New Orleans organized and responsive. He just hoped they could weather each storm as well as they'd handled this one. ------- Chapter 15: Cate and Gail Get Their Chance Alex awoke in one of his favorite positions, lying flat on his back with a beautiful woman cuddled up on either side of him. He took in their faces and saw they seemed happy. He knew it was putting a strain on them both to keep pretending they weren't attracted to him for the last week. Unfortunately, he knew the act would have to continue for the indefinite future. He also knew that he and Gail could argue all they wanted to, but there was no way they'd be able to convince Cate to open up about their incestuous relationship. He figured they'd just have to weather these challenges on a day to day basis, and there didn't appear to be any quick fixes. "So what's up, boss man?" Gail whispered to him, her head still nestled against his chest. "You were awake?" he asked. "Yeah, I was just enjoying cuddling with you before anything started. I noticed your heartbeat quickening, but I didn't want to disturb either you or the peaceful quiet until after you'd awakened." "Speaking of peaceful quiet," Cate grumbled, nestling in a little tighter against her brother. "Sorry," Gail whispered an apology, but it was for naught. After trying to settle back into her sleep, Cate finally gave up a few moments later. Feeling restless, she searched out Alex's crotch and wrapped her hand around his erection. However when he flinched she looked up, concerned. "Sorry, but it's getting a little sore. I've been using it a bit much lately, and as much as I appreciate the attention, it's only made of plain old flesh and blood," he explained. Feeling properly chastised, Cate removed her hand and leaned up, kissing her brother good morning. "Sorry about that. We didn't mean to wear you out, but I appreciate you taking the time with us last night. I guess you'll have to take a sick day from your daily visit to Hannah's clinic, huh?" "Yeah," Alex responded, ruffling Cate's hair, "I may be able to manage if I have to, but the idea of manhandling myself isn't something I'm looking forward to." "We need to get moving," Gail warned them, stretching as she glanced up at her employer. "Sarah, Emma and their relatives said they were going to stop by this morning to fix us breakfast." "Yeah, before we went to bed I also sent a message to Patricia and Rose and her boyfriend, so we'll have a few others as well," Alex replied. "Rose?" Cate asked, getting confused when she didn't recognize the name. She knew there was a huge amount of faces to keep track of, but she'd been doing pretty good keeping up until then. "I may not have mentioned her by name," he explained. "She arranged to record Albert's TV show yesterday. Or rather, her boyfriend did. I thought it would be good for us to review it to see what troubles we may have before we head out today." "Well, you'd better get started before everyone gets here. If they come in before you have any clothes on I suspect your poor dick will get even more of a workout," Gail advised him. "I'll join you in a minute, I'm going to start the coffee machine so it'll be brewed by the time we finish." So Alex and his sister reluctantly got up, although Cate's cute butt certainly got Alex moving as he followed it into the shower. He was midway through doing Gail's hair when the buzzer sounded announcing their visitors had arrived. He'd found his penis didn't hurt as much when it was jacked with a well sudsed hand. "I'll get it, you two finish up," Cate offered, "I'm not going to get much more use out of this dick, so there's not much sense in me playing with it for much longer." They each laughed as Cate climbed naked and dripping out of the shower to go buzz their guests in. "Just make sure..." Gail started to say as Alex was soaping up her butt. "That I check to make sure who it is?" Cate finished for her. "Don't worry, Gail, I know how to do this by now." By the time Alex and Gail finished showering, dried and dressed, they found the kitchen busy and the dining room table set when they entered the main room of the apartment. Everyone insisted on hugging Alex and the others as well. As focused as they were on Alex, the visitors recognized just how valuable Cate and Gail were in the whole process. Gail might not say a lot, since she was always on the lookout for potential trouble, but she had the practical experience with the visions and with the others in the community that she used to help the newbies. Although none of the women here now were Seers, they'd still learned a lot from her experience. The other guests arrived just before breakfast was served, and it was quite a feast. The women had been warned about Alex's appetite, so they'd prepared a substantial amount. Although Cate constantly had to worry about taking care of Alex, she was grateful that someone else was pushing him to eat for a change. She got tired being the 'pushy broad'. She hardly wanted to switch from incestuous sister to bitching mother, so she tried to not nag too much, but it was hard motivating Alex to take proper care of himself. For as concerned as he was with everyone else, he wasn't as focused on his own health. As enjoyable as breakfast was, everyone was anxious to see what had happened yesterday. So while the girls hurriedly cleaned up the dishes, Alex being refused admittance to the kitchen after Cate informed the others how helpless he was in there, Rose and her boyfriend Brian set up the laptop they'd brought along with them to display the video. Fortunately it had a large screen so everyone could see, even if they had to pack in to get only a partial view. The recording and the presentation by Albert Rodriguez were quite professional and well done. Albert presented a folksy face, dressing just as eccentrically as always, which seemed to be his signature. He recapped the stories that he'd previous reported about Alex some months back, before describing the stories that had been circulating about his return. He finished with a description of Alex's miraculous healing of Mattie, which was presented just as Alex had planned, as a positive feel-good story that showed it was hardly a miracle cure, merely an improvement on a bad situation. He followed it up with an interview of Mattie, where she explained what she could and couldn't see, leaving out any mention of her seeing auras. When asked about Alex, always referred to as 'the supposed Angel', she was positive but not overflowing. Alex thought she did an excellent job of it, as she made it sound quite ordinary despite what it had done for her. Albert then went on, describing what had been happening as a result of these events. He showed the clip that Cate had shot of the protest crowd confronting Mattie, then it switched to other videos that Alex hadn't seen, showing other church protests. There were signs proclaiming "No Atheist is going to tell me who is saved", "Only those that believe can be truly saved", and "God doesn't speak to nonbelievers". Patricia spoke up, saying that most of the videos were recorded by the various Watchers and Seers who'd been assigned to watch the protests. Most of the protests were peaceful, apart from the one Alex, Cate and Gail had witnessed, although the language used tended to be angry, and leaned towards the hate filled more than the loving or forgiving. After showing several sequences and brief interviews with the participants, Albert provided a summary, telling everyone that "this Angel doesn't seem to be hurting anyone, or forcing his views on anyone. In fact he seems to be reluctant to even express his own views. Yet the organized reactions to him are hardly as Christian as this atheistic Angel's has been. They've shown themselves to be defensive, reactionary and unwilling to consider any alternative views to their own. Frankly, I see troubles ahead when these groups finally start to interact with the growing presence of Alexandrians (as he referred to Alex's followers). For as peaceful as I've found this particular Angel to be, I can't assume his many followers will allow themselves to be pushed around for long." After the show ended they each sat and thought about what they'd seen. It was hardly the hard hitting exposé that everyone had feared, and it was directed much more against the established churches than it was against Alex and his followers, but the reactions of the protesters disturbed everyone watching. Alex took Albert's words to heart. These people could present a very real threat to his many followers, and he wasn't sure how to prevent the inevitable encounters that were sure to develop in the coming months. Brian then showed some more videos that had been collected by Patricia and Alex's people. These showed even more confrontations than the TV broadcast had, including several between church members and innocent bystanders, some escalating into shoving and shouting matches. It didn't exactly make Alex feel very warm and fuzzy. When it was over, Brian helped dissipate some of their frustration by taking their minds off the issue, as he offered Alex a copy of the DVD and offered to upload the video to Cate's iPad for later viewing. "I thought you couldn't do that?" Cate asked. "Well, the way they're set up by default, if you plug them into anything other than your home computer it'll erase everything on it. But I can reset that behavior so all you have to do is drag and drop anything you want onto it. Just don't try to Sync it to anyone else's computer," he warned her. "You know, Brian," Alex said, "Rose mentioned earlier that you're having a hard time finding a decent job. If you can apply your knowhow about getting everyday electronics to work, I suspect we've got a fair number of people in our community who could use your services. If you use that to boost your training, possibly taking a few courses, you could probably parlay it into a fulltime job opportunity." Brian, an older man probably in his 30s or 40s (older to Alex at least), seemed surprised by the offer. He looked at Rose, a younger woman who looked excitedly at him. She was happy Alex was including him, since she'd been having some trouble convincing him this whole 'movement' thing was legitimate. "Wow, that's quite an offer. I don't know what I've done to deserve it but..." "What you've done to deserve it is demonstrate that you know what you're doing, as well as how helpful you can be to people who want to figure this stuff out. I'm sure there's a sizable market for that kind of expertise. If this isn't quite your cup of tea, you can use it temporarily to get started on something else. Either way, you'll help those that could use your experience, and yourself as well." "Well, thanks. I can hardly refuse an offer like that. Part of my problem getting hired is that my skills aren't quite up to date enough for a professional job, but I could certainly help out here and there, and if I could take specialized training I could really establish myself." "Good, then consider yourself hired. I'm sure Patricia can spread the word about your services. I'm sure there are quite a few people needing their devices updated, and I know everyone would appreciate a copy of these broadcasts. In fact, let me know how much you want to charge for copies of this CD. I've got a bunch of people I'd like to mail it off to right off the bat." Alex turned to Patricia to get her input. "What do you think, Patricia?" "I'm sure I can find several things he can help with, as well as several other people he can help. In fact, if you could take a look at my van today, I'd appreciate it. There's no telling when we'll have to leave, and there's still some things that don't have all the bugs worked out of them. Plus, once word gets out like Alex says, there's sure to be a lot of people looking for some able bodied assistance." "Man, it looks like I'm going to be employed again, only now it's on my own terms as I'll be self employed. I never expected Rose's little fascination would work out well for me. When she started talking about Angels controlling her life I was getting really nervous, but this has worked out quite well for both of us." "Well I'm always glad to hear that. I believe in families and friends, and I believe in helping both as long as it's not counterproductive. I hope you consider yourself one of us now?" Alex asked. "Oh, yes, I certainly do. I can't say I quite understand it all yet, I mean, a nonreligious Angel with no message who just wants to help people, it just doesn't sound very traditional." Alex laughed, "Well, no one has ever accused me of being traditional." "So what do you think?" Gail asked, returning the conversation to the topic at hand. "Are you getting nervous or do you want to keep plugging away?" Alex considered this as he watched everyone else's reactions. However each person was watching him to see how he'd react. He knew he had to lead, so he made his decision. "No, no one knows me, so there isn't any real threat. We'll have to spread the word to try to avoid confrontations, while quietly trying to get the word out that we're harmless, but there's no reason for me to run away at the moment. However, the same restrictions apply. I don't think it's a good idea for me to walk the streets with a large entourage of women around me." "Well, I'll tell you what, if we aren't going to run away, I'd like you to speak to a few of the girls watching the various churches around town, just to show your appreciation for what they're going through," Patricia told Alex. "That way you can get their input firsthand. I've also got another couple of women that are looking forward to getting pregnant, and more than a few who'd love a chance at you, some who'd love a chance to get intimate with you, but most just want to spend some time with you in any way they can. Let me get busy and I'll arrange a lunch meeting." Soon everyone started getting ready, either packing up their things or making arrangements. Because of Alex's stipulations, they decided to leave at different times, which gave Alex time to spend with each of the people before Alex, Cate and Gail found themselves alone and ready to head out themselves. "That took a while, I figure if we stroll casually we can enjoy the city again and just be on time for our lunch meeting," Alex suggested, so they set out, Alex and Cate once again arm in arm like the lovers they were, with Gail trying to surreptitiously follow them. ------- Alex was discussing the religious protests with a couple of women in a nice restaurant. They were there with Patricia, and since it was only those few Gail was seated with them this time. "Well, the protests are really isolated," Tracy said. "That's right," Harriet, or 'Harry' as she liked to be called, replied. "Right now they don't know who you are or what you stand for, so they're basically just protesting the idea." "And the idea they're most upset by is that God would select an atheist to spread his message. That seemed to be the biggest tipping point. Most of these people have been taught their whole lives that the only way into heaven is through acceptance of Jesus Christ as your personal savior, and now you're turning that concept on its head. So the choice for them is to either accept everything they've ever believed is wrong, or get angry with it. Frankly, getting angry is the easier choice." "Most of the placards were focused on the atheism issue," Harry added. "Once again, I don't care if people want to believe in Jesus, Mohammad, Buddha or the Tooth Fairy, but I guess they have no way of knowing that," Alex said, sighing in frustration. Composing himself, he continued. "How widespread are the protests?" he asked, trying to get to the central issue. "Oh, they aren't," Harry answered. "There are only four churches with any activity, and out of those, there are only a relatively small number of people that are taking a stand on it." "The main ones in the city are at the Cathedral, which you saw, a big Episcopal church to the west of here, and two mega-churches, which is strange since they're both non-denominational, meaning they've got no established creed they follow," Tracy explained. "Yeah, but if people feel their belief system is being threatened, they're not about to question their own inconsistencies," Alex said, echoing what everyone was thinking. "Do the people seem particularly angry? I mean, are they likely to act out on it? Are they threatening anyone at the rallies?" "Not yet. Apparently the one Mattie was at was the only one where they accosted anyone, and that was only because they saw a blind woman and assumed, correctly, that she was the one that you'd healed." "I didn't heal her," Alex repeated tiredly. "Call it what you want," Cate said, "when you restore sight to the sightless, you've got to expect that kind of response." Alex simply grunted, but Harry went ahead and answered his question. "Again, they didn't really have anyone to direct their attentions at, so it's been mostly vague shouting into the void. But I suspect if they had a face, or worse, a series of faces, they might just boil over." "The priest at the Catholic cathedral has a good sense about him. He helped organize the rally when several members of his church complained to him, but he's stressing the established line of acceptance, forgiveness and following the teachings of Christ. However, the protests at the two evangelical churches are being led by their respective church leaders, who are using it to proselytize about the evils of modern society, so they seem a bit angrier." "There was talk of focusing their protests here, in 'the heart of the beast' as one described the French Quarter, since it was reported that your followers seem to be concentrated here," Harry added. "We've continued watching, and the rally in Jackson Square Park is bigger today, but not that much larger. If those four groups combined, their interactions might have unexpected results." "Tell me about it," Alex groaned. "Well, I'm glad you've been keeping such a careful watch over these for me, it really means a lot to me," Alex told them. "Yeah, the other girls couldn't get away to join us today, after all, we need the few Watchers we have so they can keep us apprised of what's going on," Tracy said. "Well, let them know that I really appreciate it," Alex said. "And thanks for getting the word out to everyone about not overreacting to these events," he told Patricia. She simply gave him a weak smile, not entirely sure they could control everyone's responses for much longer, especially not if they left and the various members were here on their own. They started talking about other things, since Alex continued to be fascinated with each of the people he met. He asked both girls about themselves, about their hobbies, jobs and families while they finished off their lunches. They were almost done when Alex got the latest surprise. 'Alex? This is Margaret. I came down to the French Quarter for lunch so I could catch up on what's been going on. I thought you'd want to know that there have been several trucks from the various national broadcast companies setting up here.' 'Hey, Margaret, thanks for keeping me informed. When did they get here?' 'Apparently the first one pulled in about a half hour ago, but everyone was nervous about calling Patricia about it, so when they saw me they told me so I could let you know about it directly. Since then another two have pulled up.' 'Which networks?' Alex asked. 'Two of the main three so far, ABC and NBC. The other one is for Fox News, ' Margaret answered him. Alex couldn't help but groan at the idea of Fox News getting involved. He had nothing against the station itself, but with the way they tended to pillory anyone who didn't agree with them, he could only imagine how they'd report this. Especially since he'd be perceived as challenging the established Christian churches, which formed a large and vocal percentage of their market. Alex turned to Harry, preparing to tell her to convey a message to those observing the protests, but then he remembered she hadn't been boosted yet, so he turned instead to Patricia, who he figured would also know who was involved. "Contact whoever is at the downtown rally and see if there are any news crews there. Apparently there are several news trucks from the larger broadcasters near here." Alex could tell from how Patricia's eyes suddenly lost their focus that she was talking to someone, so he returned to his own conversation, despite the look of concern on everyone else's expression. 'What are they up to? Are they doing anything I should be concerned with at the moment?' he asked. 'Well, the two new ones are still setting up, ' Margaret answered immediately. 'I think the one from Fox is getting coffee at the moment, but the NBC one has started interviewing people on the street already.' 'OK, there's not much we can do about that. At least they aren't heading to the rally in the park. Do our people around there know how to respond?' 'Yeah, we've all been told how you want us to handle this. They've been practicing interviewing each other just so they won't be caught by surprise. It also appears they're simply reacting to what was broadcast on the TV yesterday, as none of them has sought out Peter's shop. Mr. Rodriguez knows about it, but I don't think any of these people do as yet, at least.' 'That's one good thing at least. It sounds like the networks haven't gotten Albert to reveal anything he didn't say on the air to them, ' Alex replied as he turned to hear what Patricia had to tell him. Seeing he was ready, she told him there weren't any trucks there yet, but they'd noticed some of the organizers getting phone calls recently, and there had been a flurry of activity afterwards. "Damn, that means they've probably been alerted. Keep me informed, and have whoever is watching them contact me immediately if they try anything," Alex informed her. "Will do," Patricia assured him. "Actually there's a group there including Jenny Cox and her husband, but the main Seer for the group is Kristi Nichols, who I believe you already know." "Yeah," Alex smiled, "I'm pretty familiar with her." He ended his communications with Margaret and he quickly discussed what they could do about the situation with the whole table, but no one had any ideas. After all, they had the right to do whatever they wanted to, and so far no one had done anything illegal. "Just make sure our people have cell phones that can record anything stupid they do that will help cast them in a bad light if necessary," Alex told the others. "Our only hope of quieting this storm is to show it's out of tune with typical attitudes. So far they've sounded so misogynistic they've been hurting themselves, but with this new level of interest, even bad attention is likely to be seen as good publicity by them." Gail and Cate argued that Alex's best course of action would be to lie low, and that he could best do that holed up at the apartment. Alex was ready to agree when Patricia spoke up. "Before you go and hide, I have another couple of girls for you to meet today. I assume you took it easy yesterday, so hopefully your sperm is back at their full strength." When Alex blushed guiltily she simply smirked, having expected no less. She motioned someone, and soon a couple of nervous women entered the small side room they were dining in. Since the two women had supposedly already been activated by Alex's mass activation in the part, they didn't react when they first made eye contact with Alex, but they both seemed both anxious and nervous about approaching him. One appeared at first glance to be of somewhat Asian extraction, while the other was another black girl. Alex smiled to himself as he thought that was only to be expected, since New Orleans had a sizable black population. Something he was aware that he might not see as much of as he traveled west, especially if you discounted the larger cities. "This is Amanda Li," Patricia said, introducing the Asian looking older woman, "and this is Becky Roe," she said, indicating the black girl with red hair. "Becky Roe? I like your first name, after all, my sister shares the same name, but is that roe as in fish eggs?" Alex laughed, hardly able to keep the smile off his face. "It's spelled the same, but actually it's Roe as in the old English Ro, meaning a deer," she explained, growing more comfortable being able to explain herself, despite Alex's poking fun at her name. "Well, it seems fitting, after all, your hair color is actually close to that of a deer's," he told her. "I like it." He regarded her for a moment as they spoke, quickly trying to evaluate her in the few seconds he had to look her over before such a look would generate questions. She had very fair skin and a nose straighter than Lekesia's had been. Although she had a fuller figure than many of Alex's girls, she was well under Brandy's size and she had thinner lips. He then turned and regarded Amanda. Her hair, unlike Becky's, was jet black and mostly straight. She had an easy assured smile, with a wide nose and prominent cheeks. He motioned for them both to sit down and they did so happily. "Did Patricia at least allow you to eat?" Alex asked. "Why she insists on keeping everyone a surprise until the right moment is beyond me. If you had joined us we could have at least have eaten together." "And we wouldn't have gotten anything else done," Patricia reminded him. "I've seen how focused you get whenever you meet someone new. I wanted your whole attention on what's happening. Now that we've finished, you can go ahead and distract yourself as much as you want," she teased. "If you don't mind," Tracy said as she and Harry stood up, "we think we'll join the others watching over the news crews. If they split up, they'll likely need a few more Seers who can track each of them," she explained. Alex stood as well, and hugged each woman, thanking them profusely for what they'd been doing for him. They blushed prettily at his praise, but it was apparent that they were eating his attention up, and they each walked away with a new spring in their steps. Cate simply shook her head at the effect her formerly shy brother had on the women in his life. "Now where was I?" Alex asked as he sat down again. "Oh yes, I was going to tell you both just how beautiful you are. You can't see my face well enough to tell, but I'm pretty homely myself," he teased. That produced the typical response, as they both hurried to reassure him, not having gotten used to his sense of humor. "Oh, no, we can see from your aura that your beauty is much more than skin deep," Becky assured him. "You've got a beauty to you that goes beyond your looks, and even incorporates more than your amazing abilities." "She's right," Amanda told him. "Even though there aren't many pictures of you floating around, the other Seers share mental images of you between themselves so they'll always remember what you look like. Although you have the quintessential looks of a youth not quite finished growing into his adult body, you are hardly unattractive." "Well, thanks," Alex replied, blushing at the unexpected praise he'd received from his own self-depreciating joke. "Anyway, tell me a little about yourself. I take it from your description that you both already know most of what being a Seer entails, and have already spoken with at least a few of the crew up in Carbondale?" "Oh, yes, Patricia spoke to each of us both before and after our activation in the park," Becky told him. "She also took us through using telepathy, and connected each of us with someone who could assist us. She connected me to Shani, which I understand since we're both black, but I don't think she understood how different Jamaicans are from the typical American blacks." "Yeah, you've got to stop making such stereotypical associations," Amanda told Patricia. "She connected me to Anh, and although we're both Asian, that is one weird lady. I've lived in America my entire life, so when she started in on her Vietnamese mysticism I almost lost it." "I'll take that in consideration," Patricia told her as Alex, Cate and Gail all broke into giggles, "but it was a split second decision." "Yeah, Anh takes a little getting used to, but she's a sweetheart, and she manages to convey a lot of information pretty quickly," Cate told her. "Actually, I'm not so convinced she really believes a lot of what she says, as much as she's found that people accept what she says when they don't take it as seriously." "She told me something about a tiny chick being tossed out of its nest onto foreign soil," Amanda said, "and how although that was its new home, that it would always think like a bird and not like the other animals on the forest floor. She concluded that I needed to learn to fly amongst my own kind. Frankly I had no idea if she was talking about my being Chinese, being an American immigrant, or being a Seer." "Yeah, that sounds like our Anh," Cate replied, smiling. "She always takes the long way to making a point, and even then you have to think about what she said, since you're never sure if she understands what she's talking about." "Anyway, I'm a stylist," Becky said, getting the conversation back on track by answering Alex's original question. "I've got a shop out near Xavier University near where I live. I didn't often make it down here to the French Quarter, until a friend told me about you and how I may be one of your people. I thought she was crazy, but Patricia explained that I fit the description. My friend had noticed over the years how I seemed to always size up my customers and always seemed to know what to talk to them about. That's how she made the connection. Patricia explained that Seers are good at reading people's emotions." "Yeah, that seems to be an early precursor to their ability to read people's energy," Cate explained. "We've got several people who had similar stories about their earlier lives." "Well, as you can guess, with having a studio in the neighborhood around the university I tend to get a fairly young clientele. Several of the young girls started talking about you, and before long it was all anyone in the shop was talking about. I ignored it while you were still here, then after you'd left and things were starting to calm down a little, this girl took me aside and explained how I might be one of them myself. It took a little convincing, but she introduced me to Darice." "I take it most of you had your initial meeting with Darice as opposed to Peter or David?" Alex asked, trying to figure out how each of his 'Watcher watchers' were dealing with their positions. "Yeah, but they each have their own strengths. Since she's female as well, most women feel more comfortable talking to her initially. But since most people hang out at Peter's shop, we quickly get comfortable with Peter and David as well, and they drill home that it's not just a women's movement. In fact, there's a whole list of what your movement isn't," she said with a laugh. "You realize that coffee shop is hardly Peter's, don't you?" Alex asked, just checking his facts. "After all, he doesn't have a share in it." "No, but they've been getting so much business due to his association with the movement that they've made him a general manager of the place," Amanda explained. "The place is packed with your followers throughout the day. Then in the evening it's filled with all the others who have to work during the day. Actually David and Peter spend much of their time commiserating with the husbands and boyfriends of the women who congregate there." "You know, you both speak quite well. I'm thinking I only attract very intelligent women," Alex commented. "Oh, you attract plenty of regular folk too," Amanda assured him. "But you challenge everything they thought they knew. They have to reevaluate everything they knew. That's what the sessions at Peter's place are like. Everyone sits around speculating on the true nature of life and what's true and what isn't." "As I said," Becky told him, "I live and work near the university, so it was either learn how to speak like a college educated white person or I couldn't survive. But I can speak Black with the best of them," she assured him. "We get all kinds in my shop. Although recently I've been so busy with the various Watchers or their friends that I've never been quite so busy. You have a lot of black followers here in the city. You may not see as many of them here by the river, though." "Hmm, maybe I should head out that way then," Alex considered. Turning, he considered Amanda again. "And what about you beautiful? What's your story?" She blushed and answered him immediately, beaming at his easy praise of her. "I told you I'm a first generation American. My father came over to study in the American education system and met my mother, who'd been in the country much longer. She was second generation herself. After they married my father refused to return, and moved here to escape the larger Chinese communities elsewhere in the country, afraid the communists would track him down. But now that he's managed to grow a decent business here, they welcome him on his frequent trips to Hong Kong and the mainland as if he'd never done anything they object to." Alex and Cate simply nodded along to her story. Although it was unusual and fascinating in its own regard, they could understand the various attitudes she described. "I went to a small girls' school here in the city, and I attended college at Brown out East," she explained. "I work in my Dad's business, mostly meeting with clients. I'm pretty good with languages so I spend a lot of time translating." Gail smiled at her. "You'll really benefit from your new abilities then," she told her. "The ability to receive instant translations in real time makes a huge difference in learning new languages. I hate to see how multilingual our children will be in a few years. You should have seen him when Alex was talking to Albert Rodriguez the other day." "Oh, I know," Amanda told her. "The Watchers around the city have been repeating the story over and over again. Most of them couldn't repeat what was said, but it apparently was convincing. I think that's why his reports on you have been so positive. I honestly think you convinced him you really are the Angel of New Orleans, and that he'd better stay on your good side or else he may be surprised, either here and now or later in the afterlife," she laughed easily. "Well, look, we've spent enough time here, I'm sure the restaurant would like to have our table for paying customers," Alex told them. "How about we get out of here?" A short discussion followed, and Alex decided, helped along by Gail, Patricia and Cate, that the best thing for him would be to avoid the area. However Alex wasn't ready to spend the rest of the day locked away in the apartment, especially given how beautiful it was outside. They relented when he suggested a quiet stroll down by the river in Woldenberg Park. Everyone agreed that was an isolated enough spot, and that it was pretty far from the reporters at the moment. The bill had already been paid by Patricia, so they stood, said their goodbyes to Patricia and headed out. "Remember, we're all packed and ready to go," Patricia told him before they parted. "It will only take a little while to load the last few things if you decide to make a run for it." "I'll keep that in mind," he assured her. He hated being chased away from the city again, though. Gail insisted on heading out first to check the street before she'd allow Alex to leave the building. She hurriedly waved him out after they'd sent Becky ahead to flag down a cab so they could make a hasty exit. On the drive, Alex quietly told everyone once again his reluctance to be associated with a large crowd of women, so they agreed that he'd walk with Becky and Amanda, while Cate and Gail followed from a distance behind, speaking together and looking like a separate couple. That seemed to work, and everyone spent a nice afternoon just walking along appreciating the warm summer sun on the water, watching as people sunned themselves on the grass and threw tennis balls for their dogs. Alex learned quite a bit more about the girls, and Cate was kept apprised of what they discussed as Alex conveyed what was said through Gail. It was a strange way to hold a group conversation, but strange events call for unorthodox approaches to problems. Alex kept getting updates as events unfolded in the city, and he kept the others informed. Luckily, though, none of it directly impacted them where they were, so he simply chose to not focus on it, waiting to see what developed before reacting to it. As nice as their time in the park was, it soon grew time for dinner. Chancing a walk through the less popular neighborhoods on the way, they walked back to the apartment and talked about ordering dinner. However neither Amanda nor Becky would hear of it, both offering to prepare dinner for him. Alex tried to argue that this was supposed to be their evening, and besides, they didn't have any supplies in the apartment and it would take too long to go shopping now. They acknowledged that he made a lot of sense, so they settled on ordering some Thai food from a nearby restaurant. Before dinner they watched the television, scanning between the network news stations looking for reports on Alex. It took a while, after all, it was hardly earth shattering national news, but due to the slow news cycle each of the stations reported on him. NBC went first, talking about "a crazy new religious movement in New Orleans", followed by the others, with CBS taking the more aggressive stance of the major stations, showing interviews with several people who disapproved of an atheist telling 'normal people how to live'. However, after watching the other stations they turned on Fox to catch the end of a special commentary about "young con artists who make their living making fun of other people's religions". Alex groaned once again, but no one else had much to say. "Well, as bad as it was, they didn't say anything too nasty," Becky suggested after the silence drew out too long. "Actually, it isn't what they said that's important," Cate told them, "it's the fact they're reporting it at all. Now that everyone has broadcast the story, they'll each feel obligated to continue reporting on it." "Yeah, but surely they'll forget about it soon enough," Amanda said. "After all, you know how short the attention span of most people is. Everyone will forget about this is no time at all." "But it's the fact that it's been presented to the entire nation, especially since it was done so in such a big manner," Gail explained, building on Cate's point. "Now everyone in the country will be aware of us, so people will recognize us if we attract attention, and everyone will react that much more strongly whenever news of us breaks again. This is just the start of a whole string of subsequent behaviors." This was an area close to Gail's heart, as she knew it would impact everyone in Alex's world. The two girls didn't have anything else to contribute to the topic. Being part of Alex's community was still too new of an experience for them to have any distance on it yet. True, neither one had told that many of their friends about it, but they hadn't fully thought out how others might respond in a similar manner. Cate started to talk about the best approaches to the problem, but Alex hushed her. "Forget it, Cate. We each need time to think this through, and it's too soon to make any decisions about it. Luckily the reports weren't dramatic enough to cause us any immediate trouble, so I'm going to concentrate on a couple of beautiful women. I'd rather relax for the moment and attack the problem fresh when a real problem presents itself." When the deliveryman arrived, Cate met him at the door and took the bag, leaving a decent tip, while Gail watched from behind the door, deciding from his aura alone that he wasn't likely a risk. Still, no one wanted to risk exposing Alex to anyone who might potentially report seeing a young man entertaining a crowd of young women. They might have been acting paranoid, but they all thought the risk of Alex and his followers' abilities being exposed justified such overly cautious behaviors. The dinner was enjoyable, as both Cate and Gail joined in the discussion, both feeling they could relax their formality with Alex's guests in the more comfortable setting. Cate still had to play the dutiful sister, but Gail no longer felt she had to keep watch over everyone and everything around them. With the late dinner finished, Alex escorted Amanda and Becky to the bedroom. While Alex might have had something to occupy himself with, the same wasn't true for Cate and Gail, as they had to listen to their main lover make love to two other women, while they couldn't participate or watch. They found it was even worse because, in the silence that descended, all they could think of was the news broadcasts they'd just watched. In order to distract themselves, they turned the television on despite the fact neither one had any interest in anything on at the moment. After surfing the channels for a bit, Cate managed to find an overly cute romantic comedy, producing a groan from Gail, but they both watched it. It didn't manage to drown out the moans from the other room, but it helped. After a little while, Cate started imitating the girls' answering moans to each of Alex's, which got Gail to laugh enough they made a game out of it. Then Gail started making snarky comments about each of the girls' comments, causing them to get that much sillier. Unfortunately, they were both familiar with how long it took Alex to make love to a couple of women, so the jokes were starting to wear thin after a while. They recognized the excited scream of Becky's orgasm, followed shortly by the strangled silence that followed her passing out. Cate took that as her opportunity to get involved, taking a snack into the bedroom. Gail trailed along behind her, not so much to protect Alex as to perv on the two naked women he was with. Alex had explained about his sister, so Amanda wasn't shocked to find their private time interrupted by Alex's suitemates. After all, someone as powerful as Alex was likely to behave a little strangely. It was almost expected. He didn't operate according to the same rules that applied to other people. Cate made herself at home, sitting on the bed beside Alex on the far side of Amanda, and proceeded to feed her brother, casually talking to them both as she did so. Amanda was concerned about Becky, but Cate assured her that she was fine and that this wasn't unexpected, as it had happened several times before. "She'll not only be fine, she'll be addicted to it. You're in for the event of your life when my brother regains his strength. Apparently being boosted is a momentous event." She and Amanda continued talking, while Gail noted that speaking like that caused Amanda's breasts to dance enticingly. While she may not be able to join Alex in bed every night, there were a few other perks to this job, she reminded herself. Becky started to come to and moaned similarly to how she'd been moaning before she'd passed out. "How's it feel to have your brain melt?" Cate asked her playfully. "It's ... I have no idea how to describe it. It's unbelievable. Wow, I think I may give up on other men. No one else has ever done anything anywhere near that to me before." "It affects everyone like that," Gail told her. "As powerful as your first activation is, adding in the sex, the emotions, and the whole Alex effect to it, makes it that much more impressive." Cate was about to agree when she caught herself, biting her lip instead. As Amanda and Gail talked, Cate took the opportunity to fondle her brother's cock for a couple of seconds, smiling at him as she did so. Becky was still a little out of it to notice, listening to Gail and Amanda speak instead. When Amanda took a bite out of Alex's apple Cate invited them out into the living room for a snack, telling them Alex could use the time to regenerate. They took her up on it as Becky mentioned how hungry she was, having just burned up so much of her own energy. But that just led to a discussion with Cate about how much energy might be used by being 'boosted'. They ended up eating and laughing in the living room, sitting on the couch, with over half of them naked. Cate just hoped Becky didn't leak too much on Allison's nice leather couch. Gail had a hard time following the conversation as she pretended to watch everyone's eyes. Laughing, Cate told them she didn't want to stand out like the only conservative person at a nudist colony, and took her blouse off. Needless to say, she didn't have anything on under her shirt. Both Alex and Gail's eyes were immediately drawn to her nipples, but Becky commented on it as well. "You've actually got very attractive breasts," she said. "You really think so?" Cate asked, cupping and hefting a small handful in each hand. "Yeah, the fact they're so small makes the nipples look that much more attractive. Plus you don't have to deal with big knockers as obnoxious as these are," she said, hefting her own breasts, which only accentuated their size, a fact that neither Alex nor Gail missed. Cate openly admired them as well. "Pfft," Amanda announced, "I wish I had something as obnoxious as those. While I'm a little larger than Cate, I'm much closer to her than you." "So, it looks like the only one who hasn't expressed an opinion still has her shirt on," Cate teased. "Yeah, let's see how you 'stack' up?" Becky asked with a giggle. Gail was hardly one to stand on decorum. Well, actually she liked standing on it whenever she kissed a really tall girl, but other than that she had little use for it. Thus she quickly removed her shirt. She had to struggle with her bra for a bit, but she soon had it off and everyone considered what she had to offer. "You're lucky, Alex," Becky said, "you've got the best funbags I've ever seen on a security guard." "Makes me want to bite something," Cate teased, hoping she could trigger a similar confession from the other girls. "Hey, no biting allowed," Gail replied. "These deserve some serious oral attention. You're only supposed to bite when I'm close to cumming." They all laughed together, giggled really, although Alex wisely sat silently, watching the conversation unfold, carefully observing how everyone responded. He, Cate and Gail were aware of what a bisexual nature in either one or both of the girls could mean to them all. Even if it didn't completely ease Cate's position, it at least opened the door. "So, out of all the different sized breasts we've got here, who do you think has the most sensitive nipples?" Amanda asked playfully. "How do you propose we test everyone's responsiveness?" Cate, ever the scientist, asked her, instantly taking up the challenge. "Hmm," Amanda said, pretending to contemplate the issue, "how about we have someone play with one, while the rest of us watch the other one?" "That sounds fair," Gail said. "So who plays, and what constitutes the play?" She had to fight to keep from grinning like the Cheshire Cat. "I think it's only fair if it was representative," Cate suggested. "How about if we start with a little finger play, proceed to a bite, and then end with a simple lick." "Nah, a single lick is just torture," Becky argued. "You've got to make it a full suckle, but we can limit how long it lasts." "OK, so we've got the procedure, now who gets to conduct the experiment?" Gail asked, secretly crossing her fingers behind her back. "Well, I'm sure Alex has an opinion on that," Becky suggested, smirking at him. "But maybe we need someone a little more objective." "That makes sense," Cate observed, just a bit too eagerly. "Perhaps a cop or maybe a sisterly scientist would make a better tester." "I think it would be fairer if each of us were to do the testing," Amanda suggested. "Well, we're short a person, so I should probably excuse myself, since I'll probably skew the results," Alex said. "That's OK. I think everyone would like you to be a part of it, whatever effect it has on the results," Becky said. "I'll take a pass instead. I'll still be part of the experiment, but since I'm not much into playing with nipples, guys' or girls', I'll let Alex take my place in the testing so it'll still be four test subjects and four testers. The rest of you can have fun, though; this should be fun to watch." "Nonsensitive nips?" Gail guessed. "Hey, that'd be giving the results away," Becky laughed. "You'll have to wait and see how well I respond. All I'm admitting to at the moment is I don't like the idea of licking nipples." "So we have everything worked out," Cate said, hoping to regain the momentum they'd already established. "We have four official testers and four test subjects. And since you're right that Alex is likely to skew the test results, I think we should have Alex do me, since as his sister he's likely to have less of an effect on me," Cate offered, lying like she'd never lied before. Alex thought she should have given him the lessons on lying instead of Gail. "So that takes care of Alex and you, how do we choose up the others?" Amanda asked. "Since Becky isn't partial to girls, we should let her choose first," Gail suggested, hoping to prove to everyone else that Amanda was as anxious to do this as the others were. If she didn't protest, she'd as much as admit it. The others ignored the fact that Becky hadn't actually said she didn't like girls, only that she didn't like playing with nipples. They were interested in Amanda's response as well, even Becky. "Well, since Amanda and I are likely to end up in bed together soon, maybe I should pick someone not as likely to have a second chance," Becky said, surprising everyone. She turned and looked Gail in the eyes, smiled, then shook her head. "Nah, I was considering Gail, since I like commanding and decisive figures, but we're a little too similarly built. I think it should be Cate. That way I can see close up what kind of effect she has on me." Cate positively beamed at this news, but took a moment to glance at Gail with a "Nah, nah, nah, nah" expression on her face. But Gail was happy anyway. Amanda was cute enough, and she'd never fooled around with a Chinese girl before. Besides, if things went well, there might be a little more involved than just a quick game. "OK, that means that Gail gets to test me," Amanda said. "Then who do I get to play with? Er, I mean test," she asked, smiling to show it wasn't exactly an accident of speech. "Well, Cate and Becky are already taken, so that only leaves me, since your breasts aren't quite big enough for you to do yourself," Gail reminded her. "Duh, I guess you're right. I hadn't quite thought it through," Amanda admitted. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get a chance at someone else if you play your cards right," Becky teased, judging the atmosphere in the room. Everyone giggled nervously until Amanda suggested that they get started. They all looked around, but all eyes focused on Alex to get things started, so he reluctantly stood up and approached his sister, drinking in her beauty once again now that he could do so openly. "I'm not sure this is going to work well," Cate offered. "After all, we're talking about my brother, here," she said, doing an excellent acting job. "That's OK, I think you may be surprised," Becky told her. "Hey wait, her nipples are already hard. That's hardly fair," Amanda protested. "It must be cold in here," Cate answered, "after all, it looks like everyone's nipples are hard." They each laughed again as Alex leaned in and Cate leaned back, exposing her naked chest to her brother and frequent lover. He reached out and pinched her nipple, taking a moment to tweak it with a slight twist. Cate managed to swallow her moan, but her other nipple immediately hardened. "Hmm, it looks like someone protests too much," Becky teased. "It tickles," Cate protested, none too convincingly. Alex then leaned closer in and bit down on her exposed nipple. Cate shivered and Alex drew back to watch his sister's nipple's response. "Woo Hoo!" Gail cheered, breaking the awkward silence, causing everyone to break up laughing. As soon as everyone got their breath back, Alex knelt down, leaned in and wrapped his lips around his sister's nipple and sucked on it. Cate couldn't resist, she gave a brief moan as she shuddered again. The anticipation of waiting for him to do what they all expected had raised her anticipation, making the eventual contact that much more delicious. She blushed at her slip, which fit into everyone's expectations, so they didn't jump to too many conclusions. "OK, that's one experiment down," Becky announced. "Let's do the next. Amanda, get over there and play with some tit!" Amanda grinned, though whether in humor or anticipation no one besides her knew, and stood up and crossed over to Gail. Hoping to make it easier for her, Gail stood up, moving them both directly in front of the others. The others sat to watch, holding their breaths as Amanda reached out and softly caressed Gail's nipple with her fingertips. "Hey, you're cheating. Alex's was quicker than that. If that's allowed I demand a second chance," Cate protested. "Yeah, we can imagine," Becky replied. "But she's right. You're only allowed a quick pinch." Amanda reluctantly let go of Gail's nipple, staring her directly in the eyes. The meaning was clear to Gail, just as it was to everyone else. Gail had no idea whether she'd ever done this before or not, her gaydar not working at the moment, but Amanda knew she was ready to try just about anything tonight, and Gail was looking forward to it. Taking her eyes off Gail long enough to stare at her chest again, Amanda leaned in, hovered over her nipple for a moment, purposefully teasing everyone, Gail included, before she gave it a quick but sharp bite. Gail noticeably jerked, but smiled. "You'll have to do that again the next time I'm ready to cum," she told her. That produced a gentler laugh all around, and the others leaned in to watch the next stage. Standing up and looking Gail in the eyes again, almost as if making her a silent promise, Amanda leaned in, made easier due to their difference in height, and took Gail's nipple into her mouth and sucked hard, lavishing it with her tongue, batting it back and forth. Gail was almost sure she had experience with other women at that moment. Cate called out "Time", and Amanda stood up, once again looking Gail in the eyes and licking her lips. "Damn, I'm not into girls, but I think I'd like to see this continue," Becky observed. "You and me both," Cate agreed. "Well, I hate to break it to you, but she's got an appointment to get pregnant sometime tonight," Alex reminded them. "Hey, you may be a super lover, but even you don't last all night," Gail told him. "Damn, I was looking forward to watching them make out," Becky admitted. "Make out hell, I want to see them do each other," Cate openly stated. "You and me both," Alex said. "As long as it moves everything forward, I've got no objections to what gets everyone in the mood." "OK, OK, enough of that. If we don't continue we'll never finish," Becky announced. "They'll both need a chance to calm down, so I guess that means you're up next, Cate," she said, leaning back and pressing her chest forward enticingly. Cate found herself almost licking her lips, but restrained herself. She stood up, stepped around her brother, resting her hand on his thigh to steady herself, and moved in front of Becky. She helped Becky stand, and she did, shaking her ass for Alex's enjoyment. Once they were both standing, Cate followed Amanda's lead and looking into Becky's eyes, she reached down and made her own rules, by pushing the nipple up, then pulling it down, finishing by rolling it between her fingers. However, she did it so quickly no one could complain. Becky was surprised she'd found it so stimulating for such a simple action. Taking her eyes off of her, which was easy to do since Becky had squeezed her eyes shut when her nipple had been pinched, Cate leaned down and held her mouth over Becky's areola and breathed on it, hoping to pre-stimulate it. Then, after a short agonizing wait, she bit down, but instead of biting the nipple she bit the areola and slid her teeth down to the nipple itself, which she gave an extra sharp nip. Becky gave a quick shudder, which did amazing things to her breasts, causing Cate to forget to lock eyes with Becky again, showing she was actually more interested in her response than in developing a relationship. Cate figured she'd waited long enough, so she leaned in once again, making sure she didn't obstruct the others' view of the other breast, and took Becky's whole areola in her mouth. Becky's breast was larger than anyone that Cate had fooled around with before. Certainly larger than Chalise, whom she'd done this with several times, enjoying herself tremendously each time. Cate knew she liked her breasts big. She liked her own tits, and had no desire to have large ones herself, but she enjoyed playing with large boobies, and Becky's were prime examples. But she pulled back, only reluctantly releasing the nipple at the very last moment as she pulled it away from its attachment to the areola. When she stood up, Becky couldn't resist. She leaned forward herself and gave Cate a quick kiss. "Damn, girl. I know I'm as straight as I can get, but anytime you want to do that again, feel free to help yourself." Cate, looking her in the eyes once again, replied, "Count on it, Becky. Count on it." Before things could degenerate, Alex spoke up, trying to keep things on track. "OK, Gail, it's your turn now." Gail shook her head, regretting she hadn't drawn the robust Becky, but hardly feeling cheated when she studied Amanda. She liked variety, which is why she and Cate got along so well. Due to the difference in their heights, Gail got on her knees so she could more easily reach Amanda's breast. Of course, in so doing she managed to grasp Amanda's hip in what was a gentle caress. Reaching up, she grabbed her nipple, which were on the smaller side, and did a combination pull and twist motion, holding it away from her chest, only to release it with a snap. Amanda growled with pleasure. Gail then pulled herself into Amanda's chest, using her hips as a handy grasping point, and slowly brought her lips to her nipple, where she didn't waste any time in a delaying tease, simply biting down on the nipple, twisted her head and growling as she did so. It had the desired effect, as Amanda shivered with delight mixed with a healthy dose of desire. "You know, I'm learning a whole lot of techniques I'd never considered before," Alex admitted. "Really?" Cate asked him. "After as many women as you've been with, and after as many women who share your bed every night?" "Hey, when I'm with women they don't play with my breasts, and when I'm with a girl I focus on the girl, not on what's happening next to me." "I can attest to that," Amanda offered. "I was lying next to him, displaying myself, playing with him, and he wouldn't break eye contact with Becky. He's got some amazing powers of concentration." "That he does," Cate agreed, not even worrying about what she may or may not be admitting. Having had a chance for everyone to compose themselves, Gail pulled Amanda to herself this time, bringing her breast to her as she opened her mouth and lavished it with attention. Everyone could see her mouth moving as she showered it with her love. Her watchers were so fascinated no one counted her time. When Cate finally objected she just shook her head. "Ah confeeb," she told them as she continued to work over Amanda's breast, and Amanda, who was holding her head against her breast, gave no sign of releasing her either. "I think you've just lost your baby mamma," Cate advised her brother. He just smiled, thankful that everyone seemed to have accepted what was happening so well. "I suggest we move this into the bedroom. Luckily Allison's bed is large enough for all of us." Everyone got up, although it took a moment for Amanda to release her hold on Gail's head, and even longer for Gail to release her breast. But they weren't far behind the rest. After everyone climbed on the bed, Alex positioned Becky in front of him, climbing in behind her, allowing his sister to cuddle in behind him in such a way that they could all watch Gail and Amanda. "Hey, wait a minute, who won?" Becky asked, turning around to look at Cate, who she figured must be the one to judge, since the others seemed to be busy. Pulling back from each other, both Amanda and Gail said, "Cate." When Cate looked at them in surprise, Becky agreed. "You're right, her nipples were so hard after Alex sucked her breast it could have cut steel. If I didn't know better..." "I think it's due to Alex's energy," Gail said, stepping into the breach. "He'd excite a straight male Greek statue once they felt that energy flowing through him. It wasn't even a contest." Becky and Amanda agreed, freeing Gail to turn her attention back to Amanda. They lay against each other and made out, Gail's hands searching out Amanda's smaller breasts. Alex's hands played with Becky's breasts as well, and Cate's hands wrapped around his cock, using it to play with Becky's pussy. Whether Becky had any clue who was manipulating it, since both of Alex's hands were busy, no one bothered to ask. Gail and Amanda made out for a while, and Gail's hand shifted from Amanda's breast to her pussy, where she worked her up without getting her too excited. Finally Gail released her and moved down, bringing her mouth to Amanda's damp pussy. By now Cate had been teasing Becky's pussy with her brother's cock for a while, so she finally relented and put it where it belonged, then shoved his hands out of the way. "Hey, give a girl something to play with, you've got better things to do," she said, as she took Becky's large breasts in her own hands. Alex wasted no time, easing himself back into Becky's depths. Becky cooed, feeling the combination of Alex plunging into her, Cate's manipulation of her tits, and Alex's energy flowing into her. Cate could also feel the energy flowing into Becky, and it made her feel that much more attracted to her as well. Gail worked Amanda's pussy with a vengeance. Amanda had plenty of experience with receiving cunnilingus before, but she was unprepared for what Gail was doing to her. Gail seemed to read her responses before she even had them. She clutched Gail's head once again, and held on for dear life as she wrapped her thighs over her shoulders and squeezed her head. She let Gail work on her for a while, all the time building to heights she never thought she'd achieve from fooling around with a woman, during which time Alex was making slow love to Becky once again, as Gail helped Amanda build to her own peak. But finally Amanda squeaked out, "Let, let me ... suck you." Gail shook her head, which was difficult due to the lock that Amanda held it in, and continued to work on her. Not being able to do anything else, Amanda shifted one hand and began to maul her own breast. Gail continued working on her until Amanda hit a powerful orgasm, and then she sprang up, switching into a 69 position where she continued working on her. Amanda was overwhelmed and hardly knew what to do, but this was her first time and she wanted to do a good job because she was excited, and not only wanted to return the favor, but she was already feeling very positive feelings for Gail. She regarded the pussy hovering in front of her face. She took a deep breath, appreciating the smell of another woman's pussy for the first time, then reached out with her tongue and played it across Gail's pussy. However things were moving too swiftly for her, and she found she couldn't do much behaving so timidly, so she locked her lips to the pussy in front of her and started sucking for all she was worth. She was rewarded when Gail let up her own assault on her, signaling she was enjoying Amanda's struggling first attempt at cunnilingus, so she redoubled her efforts. Soon both women were moaning into the other's pussy, and Alex continued to plug away into Becky. Cate whispered in his ear, reminding him he was supposedly saving himself for Amanda, but Alex knew what he was doing. Although some time had passed since his previous orgasm, it was still soon enough that he could go on for some time, especially at the slow pace he was making love to Becky. Gail, having done this a few times before, carefully guided Amanda's progress, keeping her just on the cusp of cumming. She didn't want to finish her too soon, so she kept her off long enough for her to feel her own orgasm approaching, then she worked Amanda up to her own, trying to get them both off at the same time. Amanda couldn't believe what Gail was doing, and she kept throwing her thighs wide, then clutching them against Gail's head off and on, unsure of how to react to these new sensations from a lover she'd never had before but had long imagined. She reveled in the feel of Gail's larger breasts pressing into her, as she felt her own pressing into Gail's stomach. Gail's juices were running down her face, and she lapped up every drop she could reach, enjoying the taste and sensation in a way she never expected to. She knew she'd try this again. When they both went over, nearly simultaneously, Amanda gasped, letting loose of Gail's pussy even as the scent wafted over her even stronger than before. Gail reached down and pinched her nipples, which she knew commonly triggered a stronger orgasm when timed correctly, and she'd timed it correctly once again. Alex watched them cumming together and slowed his lovemaking, waiting until the two lovers they were watching slowed to a halt, then withdrew and crawled over to Amanda and Gail. He moved Gail aside and then gave her a sincere kiss. "My turn. Go twitch by yourself for a bit. And thanks for getting her started for me," he told her in a loving tease. He turned, giving Amanda time to recover a little, then proceeded to help Amanda relax a little more. He kissed her, tasting Gail on her lips, as they made out. As he allowed her to slowly calm down, Cate moved up to take over her brother's place, wrapping her arms once more around Becky as she started slowly humping her, trying to stimulate her own clit against Becky's buns. Alex decided Amanda was ready, so he gently worked his cock into her, and Amanda was surprised to feel his energy rejuvenating her and filling her with a newborn need for him. She pulled him into her and they set up a much slower pace than she'd been working on before. Gail crawled up beside them and watched them with a loving look in her eyes. "Enjoy it," Gail advised Amanda. "As good as our time was, it doesn't qualify as mind melting. You'll never have another session this good again, enjoy it. Don't rush it, but try to remember every detail." While they were otherwise engaged, Cate rolled Becky onto her back and moved around in front of her. By lowering her head to her chest she didn't block Becky's view, so Becky was free to watch the others make love, and it gave Cate a chance to finally make love to a new woman for the first time in some time. Amanda and Alex took their time, and Amanda couldn't believe the feelings that filled her. They weren't all sexual, but mixed with the sexual feeling she was receiving they augmented them, making them that much more intense. Meanwhile Cate had been working Becky up at a faster pace than everyone else. At just the right moment, Cate raised her head, looked Becky in the eyes and mouthed the words, "Can I?" Becky, who had trouble clearing her mind enough to answer, seemed to think about it for a few moments. Finally she decided, whispering back, "Never say a word to anyone." At which point Cate dove between her legs, where she proceeded to eat out this straight woman, a woman who would never bring herself to return the favor. However, that didn't matter to Cate at the moment. Because Cate already cared for her, and because she could feel both Alex's love for her and her love for Alex, she once again accepted both emotions as her own and showered Becky's pussy with her own love, trying to show her what she thought of her with her tongue. Gail, hearing the unmistakable sound of slurping, looked over Alex's back to observe Cate going down on Becky. "Take a look at your sister," she whispered to Alex. However Alex wasn't about to be distracted. He was in his zone now, and he was completely focused on no one but Amanda. But Amanda had overheard her, and glanced over at Cate and Becky. "Damn, I never could have believed it," she said, although no one seemed to be listening besides Gail. "Alex isn't the only one to work magic, although, to be honest, we all seem to borrow a little of his magic to work on each other," Gail informed Amanda. Amanda took that to heart, but turned her attention back to the love that Alex was showering her with. Somehow that seemed much more meaningful to her than such inane ramblings. As Amanda's breath grew more and more rapid, so too did Alex's pace. She certainly wasn't rushing anything, but he was moving faster than he had before. Amanda could hardly believe what was happening to her. She'd had a minor orgasm just watching Alex and Becky before. She'd felt intoxicated in the living room with Gail, and then Gail had given her a couple of powerful orgasms. But none of those compared to what she was feeling from Alex at the moment. Soon it was too much for Becky. She wrapped her legs around Cate's head, even as she played with her own breasts. She shuddered a couple of times in mini-orgasms and then she suffered through a big one. It wasn't anywhere near as major as the one she'd so recently had with Alex, but she knew she'd likely never have another one like that. This was certainly much better than she'd ever imagined she could receive from another woman. She'd only been able to reach it by ignoring who it was that was going down on her, and by watching Alex make slow, gentle love to Amanda. When she was done, Cate crawled up, kissed Becky briefly once, smearing her own juices on her lips, and then moved around behind her so she could cuddle her as they both watched her brother melt yet another mind, since that was always a sight to behold. Cate hugged Becky to herself as they watched him speed up as he approached both of their final release. For Amanda, she'd been feeling a number of minor orgasms, each likely stronger than she'd felt before, but each minor because she could feel they'd pale in comparison to the one she felt approaching. Soon Alex, for all his gentleness, was pumping hard into her. Amanda was too overwhelmed to do much but go with the flow, letting herself be battered, but apparently Alex was doing well on his own. Amanda could feel that Alex was getting close, but even without that knowledge she felt an increase in Alex's own emotions as she felt his love washing over her. She could never be sure just what she imagined, bathed in her never felt sensations, and what was real, but she'd always remember those feelings that washed over her, and that pushed her beyond the normal human limits. Just as she felt Alex shove hard into her, burying his cock in her well used cunt, she shivered as she felt him start to shoot into her. Her whole body began shaking, and then she found herself thrashing as she distantly heard her voice calling out from some other room. Unbelievable sensations were washing over her, and she never felt as complete, as happy, or as one with the universe as she did then. She wasn't sure the voice she heard was even hers and not some voice from the yawning chasm that seemed to be enfolding her. And then there was nothing. ------- Chapter 16: A Hot Time in the City of the Blues Cate opened her eyes, taking in the familiar scent of her brother's hair, a unique combination of his shampoo and his male essence, and just a little sweat and other miscellaneous leftover fluids. You almost couldn't separate Alex's smell from the scent of excited pussy. She smiled as the thought brought up memories of the previous night. She found her hands wrapped around her brother, idly clutching his chest and stomach. She had awakened in her favorite spot, spooned against her brother, feeling his heat and his abundant energy warming and comforting her. She hugged him a little tighter, but didn't do anything else to disturb him, happy to let him sleep. He needed it to help settle his mind. He clearly had a lot to evaluate, and he needed a clear mind to make the best decisions. Her role was to advise him, and part of that advice was to ensure he was in the best frame of mind to make the proper choices. The previous night had been interesting. She was afraid she was going to be prevented from fooling around with either her brother or any of the women that continually flocked to him on this trip. The day they spent together the day before yesterday was a nice reprieve, but yesterday was even more special. It demonstrated that even if she continued to hide her relationship with her brother, she could still enjoy a bit of fun along the way. And so far no one had objected to her sleeping with Alex on a regular basis. She realized that Alex continued to warn his many lovers about her habit of sleeping with him, and she was comfortable with that, as no one had become upset to find her cuddling her brother. Her mysterious ability to soak up Alex's energy had an even more amazing ability to give her free access to her brother. She valued both, almost as much as she valued her brother. Thinking that in the quiet stillness of the early morning, as she listened to the many breaths and the occasional snore, that Gail could sometimes let loose an odd snort, she considered what her abilities had brought her. Given the fact she could feel Alex's emotions for others, and other's love for her brother, she could appreciate how strongly he felt for each of his girls. Not only that, but since she internalized those feelings, she felt the same love for each of these women that he did. Which was quite frankly, a hell of a lot. It certainly helped her in remembering who was who. Being able to associate a particular smell, a certain look, a particular nuance with each person made remembering their names much easier. The fact that one person could love so many people would never have occurred to her before. When she'd heard such ideas before, she'd considered them a poor excuse for some player to fool around on the side, but in Alex's case it seemed to be much more than that. There was something about the physical process of activating and boosting his followers that tied him emotionally to each of them. Not only the Seers, who they all recognized he performed a virtual brain surgery on, but it seemed to extend to each of the Watchers as well. It was odd, and she'd never admit it to him, but she could understand why he stepped in front of the bullet meant for her. Only it wasn't just her. She could understand his risking himself for his closest confidant, his most frequent lover, and his devoted sister, but he also did it to protect his other sisters, two women he hadn't established a mental connection with, who he hadn't even made love to. He'd fooled around briefly with one, but that was the extent of his physical involvement with them, and until recently they hadn't even been that close to them. No, Alex was like that with everyone around him. He'd gladly sacrifice his own life for any of his many women, no matter how remote or how little he'd interacted with them, and by association, Cate knew that she too would do the same thing. She also knew the only thing that would stand in her way was her overriding interest in her brother. She'd sacrifice anyone else if there was any risk at all to her brother. She knew she was tied intricately not only to his women, but she was bonded to him and their lives were permanently intertwined. That worried her as well, but she wasn't willing to deal with that particular hurdle quite yet. She'd thought it funny that Alex had initially asked two girls out at the same time, and then had spent weeks trying desperately to choose between the two, only finally acknowledging he loved both when they forced his hand, insisting they wanted him to take their own virginities when he lost his, together and united. It had been a big hurdle for him, even though he was doing the same thing every day with each of his other women. Alex was a strange paradox. How could a single man love so many different people so personally and so intensely? He insisted on sitting down and getting to know each girl personally, knowing her innermost secrets. And they each responded to him naturally, admitting their deepest secrets, hiding almost nothing from him. It was fascinating watching him relating to someone, and watching the deep relationships naturally develop. She felt Alex shift under her, and recognized that he was waking up. Since they were entwined with each other, his early morning movements also caused Gail to begin to awaken as well. Gail normally was an early morning person, so she normally woke up before or at the same time as her brother. But she'd finally let herself go the previous night, and she'd relaxed the rigid professional stance she'd been working to maintain, which had been exhausting her during the past week. As Alex slowly awakened, Cate idly played with his chest muscles under her fingers. He liked these little intimate caresses as he woke up. She'd have tried playing with his cock, hell, she really wanted to, but she was aware just how strenuously he'd been using it lately, and she realized he really needed a break. Besides, she was sure he'd likely be called upon to make love a couple more times this morning, so it was really unfair of her to abuse him for her own desires. Alex's head lifted, signaling he'd come fully awake, and he looked around then reached up and covered her hand with his own as he reached around and grasped her hip. "I take it you're awake?" he asked. "Um hum," she replied as she kissed his ear. She could feel his smile as he accepted this small act of love from her. As Gail leaned up, her movement started to awaken the two newest girls. Girls who were hoping to become pregnant by her brother. By her lover she corrected herself. But again, she didn't feel any antagonism towards them. She loved them almost as much as he did. No, that wasn't accurate, she admitted to herself. She didn't think that anyone could love someone the way that Alex did. He put his whole being into the other person for however long he was with them. His ability to concentrate exclusively on a single person was amazing. The apartment could be on fire, but he'd only have eyes for the one he was making love to at that moment. She imagined it must have been similar to what it was like for Mary Magdalene when she must have made love with Jesus. She couldn't imagine a healthy 30-year-old man refusing the sexual favors of someone who'd actually wash and dry his dirty feet with her own hair. She'd seen similar things in her brother's case that had shown just how necessary the sexual component of appreciation was to these women. "Man, how can you people be moving so early this morning?" Becky asked the room in general. "After that excellent loving, I hate to move this morning for fear this wonderful feeling I'm enjoying might slip away." "Amen, sister," Amanda echoed her, making everyone laugh because it sounded so funny hearing a Chinese-American sound a typically southern black refrain. "Hey, we Asian chicks can have some soul too, you know," she protested. "You may have the feelings, but without the curves and the big black ass it just doesn't resonate as well. Nobody can quite carry the tune as well as a beautiful black woman," Becky reminded them. "Amen to that, sister," Gail replied, making everyone laugh again. "Forget it, Ms. Security Guard. While it was fun watching you and Amanda, and as much as I enjoyed the unmentionable activities that Cate subjected me to, I'm not about to switch teams any time soon. I enjoy playing on Alex's team too much." "Hey, I play for team Alex too," Gail protested. "For some people, even a confirmed lesbian like me makes exceptions. Though I may spend most of my time in the dugout with his all girl teammates," she replied with a grin. This was the first time that Gail had mentioned to the girls that she was a lesbian, somehow the subject had simply never come up the day before. However, instead of following it up, Becky turned her attention elsewhere. "Hey, where the hell is that damn cute carpet muncher?" she asked. "Here I am," Cate answered, thumping Alex's chest to demonstrate where she was. When the two girls glanced at her, Alex lifted her hand up in a schoolyard signal that she had the answer to the question. "Man, I guess that was one damn good tit suck," Becky suggested in a low guttural voice. "Hey, if one of you would let me do something besides laying on top of you maybe you'd find out," Alex argued. "Alex, for whatever your sister may have gotten out of your play with her titty, I'm not about to trade in what we shared last night," Amanda said. "Anytime you want to mash me into the mattress, feel free to. I've never been big on the basic missionary position before, but I think it's my new favorite position." Cate was about to suggest some alternative positions that also worked with Alex, but managed to catch herself in time, though she bit down on Alex's ear to keep from saying anything. That caused him to jump, causing the sheet to fall off of him revealing his 'morning wood'. That got the girls' interest, too. "Oh, Alex, is that for me? You shouldn't have," Amanda said in an exaggerated southern accent, generating another laugh from the others. "No, he really shouldn't," Cate warned them. "Alex has been burning his poor cock at both ends, and I'm afraid it's liable to be getting a bit tender. If you want to play in the shower, then that's allowable, but no jerking him off or playing with his dick. Otherwise he'll have trouble walking, and that's not good when he needs to run from antsy reporters." "Sorry to change the topic, but that brings up an important point," Gail said as she changed the topic. "I think we need to discuss what you plan to do today. Personally, as your security officer, I vote for skipping town. You've been exposed, the press is hungrily searching for you, and any slip up is going to cause you endless trouble. Let the press stay here and search out any little detail they can dig up, but don't give them access to the mother lode of trouble." "She's got a good point," Becky told him. "The best bet in avoiding trouble is to avoid it, and you can't do that by hanging around in a town that is desperate to pin you to a lab table and dissect you." "That's exactly what I was thinking," Cate told her brother. "You've been here for quite a few days, and you've instituted a lot of changes and tried to get quite a few women pregnant. You need to get out before you accidentally erase the good you've done. The women like Becky and Amanda can rely on your stored sperm if it's necessary. You don't need to be here any longer if it presents a risk to you." "Yeah, remember, you are the most important factor in our future success," Amanda reminded him. "If you get exposed, we'll all suffer." That last bit was the most convincing argument for Alex. It was one thing to tell him about hypothetical threats to himself, but it was another to tell him he was threatening those he loved and wanted to protect. "All right, I'll concede. We should probably leave. Although I'm sure Patricia probably has a few more things for me to do, I also know she's got a timetable she has to keep to, so we might as well get on the road and get used to traveling. I'm sure she's got to get used to traveling before her first tour stop." "Now you're talking," Gail said, encouraged by his change of position. "Go get your shower and I'll talk to Patricia. We'll get some breakfast here, and then we'll join her so we can get out of here as soon as possible." "Only we won't be going to any of the local diners," Cate warned. "As you've already pointed out, you've become too familiar around here. All we need is someone making a logical conclusion and calling one of the network reporters about their suspicions." "Hey, we offered to cook you dinner and you refused last night," Becky argued. "There's no reason we couldn't fix you a decent southern breakfast. When was the last time you had a nice plate of cheese grits, sausage and biscuits?" "That sounds good, but if we leave off the biscuits, we could probably get out of here that much sooner," Alex proposed. "Let's try to keep it simple, huh?" ------- While Alex was spending some time cleaning certain parts of Becky and Amanda in the shower, Cate had volunteered to head to the neighborhood grocery to pick up supplies for breakfast. Becky had explained what they'd need, giggling constantly under the running water as she did so. Although Cate hated going without her own shower, she figured she could rough it for a little while, besides, she had better things to do than to listen to her brother fool around if she couldn't join in. "Hello? Jennings residence," a familiar voice answered. "Hey, Anh, just the person I was looking for," Cate responded. "Cate, how nice to hear from you. So what be the news? We saw the reports of Alex on the news last night. How's it down there?" "So far, it's not too bad, but we'll probably be leaving town because of it. We agreed there was too much risk in sticking around," Cate explained before changing the topic. "I wanted to discuss a couple of topics with you, if you don't mind." "Oh, no, I no mind," Anh answered. Although her English had improved tremendously over the last couple of months, when she was relaxed or excited she'd often mess up slightly with the simpler aspects of her speech. "What you want?" "I was thinking about Alex and his girls, trying to figure out where I fit into it all. I was wondering if we could discuss your theory of otherworldly spirits guiding him." "Ah, you feeling neglected since his attention focused elsewhere, eh?" Anh asked. "No, that's not it. At least not at the moment, it isn't. He took care of Gail and me the other night, and last night we got to play as well. But this morning, before everyone else awoke, I got to thinking about how everyone fits into the grand scheme of things. Basically how we, Alex and I both, can love so damn many people at the same time." "Ah, you wondering if these be normal people, or spirits sent to guide him?" Anh suggested. "Exactly. All these women don't seem to fit into a normal paradigm. There are just too many particularities to them. I was wondering..." "Slow down, slow down. I'm having enough trouble figuring out your fancy English words. Luckily Allison is already at work and could tell me what 'paradigm' means. You no need to over think this. While there may be spirits guiding Alex, I mostly meant people like Kitty, Allison and maybe Ryan. That would have explained why they just happened to live here and were so receptive to Alex to begin with. However it no apply to Alex's girls. There's simply too many of them. It would take too much power to bring them all over from the spirit realm, even for someone as powerful as Alex. Instead I think he's guided in his selection, and possibly in who feels attracted to his power. I'm not completely sure your God may not have a role in this. Something seems to be protecting him." "But what about... ?" Cate started to protest. "No," Anh responded, intuitively guessing where Cate was headed, "you are special case. You cross over between two. You halfway between spirit world and Alex girl. Alex seems to have worked his magic on you. I suspect you were originally a spirit warrior sent to guard Alex, but since then, since you've been so loyal, he's made you over into one of his new followers. I don't really understand it, since you seem to be a strange case, but it makes sense that way." "Thanks," Cate responded. "I think. I'm not sure quite what that all means to me, but it will give me something to think about. So, moving onto other things, we never talked about what you thought about my revised theory about the nature of Alex's powers." "You mean the one where Alex makes holes in space and moves things between dimensions?" "Yeah," Cate laughed lightly, "that one." "I think it interesting theory. If you remember, I first propose other dimensions being the home of Alex's spirit. Thus it makes sense that he could find a way to cross between dimensions. Before, only vague ghostly spirits could cross over into this world. But Alex found a way to bring spirits over as fully formed human beings, only they had to be reborn to do it. Only problem is they seem to have forgotten everything they know as result. Somehow Alex find secret to crossing between worlds, or dimensions in your terms, in order to cross over. He also managed to tap a major power source in doing so. He needed that to bring so many spirit warriors over with him. However, that much power present dangerous power which hurt as much as it help. "Another important question you miss is not why Alex make link to energy, but why not," Anh continued. "Consider that all living things already have this energy, which doesn't seem to be native to this world. Maybe the energy we all have leaks from another plane, and that this is the most natural connection we have. Thus it would be the first to establish once we gain power to jump between worlds." "Damn, Anh, I keep forgetting how perceptive you are. We continually underestimate you, since you always speak in such folksy terms, but your ideas are spot on." "Also remember," Anh continued, "like all power, there are costs associated with it. You must be aware of that. A sword cuts both ways, and you, as Alex's principal spirit warlord, need to be aware of that." "Me, Alex's warlord?" Cate asked, sounding skeptical. "I hardly think so. I think you're thinking of Gail." "No, as I say, Gail simply a Seer with police training. She not warrior born. That role is yours. You need to always be by Alex's side, to protect him and guide him in his choice. Always trust his judgment, because he is divinely inspired, whether by spirits, God or the fates we cannot know, but you can't argue with results. He make mostly the right decisions. But remember to advise him, and help him when he takes the wrong step." "Wow, that's a lot to think about, Anh. I'll have to consider it. Anyway, I'm here at the grocery store, and I don't think this is the type of conversation I should be having in public, so I'll hang up and talk later. Say hi to Mom and Dad for me. I really meant to say hello to them, but I didn't quite get a chance. But right now I've got to get back and feed that damn hungry bear of a brother of mine before he bites someone else's tit." They both laughed, and Cate said goodbye and hung up before entering the grocery store. ------- When Cate got back she found everyone watching the television. Something Alex rarely did, usually being preoccupied with either his own thoughts or worrying about his girls. "What's up?" she asked as she set the groceries down. She idly noticed that whatever it was, they hadn't had a chance to dress, as the girls were only partially dressed while Alex was naked and still wet. "It's the news," Amanda explained, as she tried brushing her hair while staring raptly at the television. "Albert Rodriguez was on the morning news program and they started grilling him, since he's the only one who's ever met Alex. He kept trying to change the topic, but they apparently got him confused, because he blurted out Alex's name." "Holy shit!" Cate swore. "He doesn't know your full name, does he?" "No, he only knows me as Alex, but that's enough to cause me trouble," Alex responded. "Think it's too late to legally change my name?" "Hell, no," Cate replied. "It's nice meeting you Philippa," she answered with a laugh. However she didn't get much of a response. "They got him talking about who the Angel of New Orleans was and what his relationship with Alexandria was, in trying to get away from telling who Alex was he told the story about Alex assuming his name from Alexandria. That led to the obvious conclusions, and they're already referring to Alex as 'the sub-manager Angel Alex of New Orleans'. Cate couldn't resist and smirked a little. When her brother shot her a dirty look she had to shrug. "Hey, it was a clever response. I can see the humor in it. But I can also see the trouble this is going to cause you." "We'll definitely have to leave the city now," Gail announced. "All it will take is someone casually mentioning your name, and everyone will be on you like a ton of bricks." "Agreed," Alex said, finally getting up and turning the TV off in frustration. "Let's get breakfast started so we can hurry up and finish. I'll go get dressed. I've already talked with Patricia, though it was before this latest news was released. She said she's ready to go, she's just waiting for her band mates to show up." Everyone immediately jumped to their tasks, with Alex stalking off to the bedroom while the two girls headed into the kitchen to start breakfast. Gail stood by the door looking distracted, so Cate assumed she was speaking to another Seer, though she had no idea who. Cate followed her brother into the bedroom where she found him struggling with a pair of pants. "Calm down, Alex. You'll never get anywhere if you let your frustration get the better of you," she said, as she pulled his pants off his legs and folded them over her arm. "Just take a couple of minutes to relax. Think some relaxing thoughts. You'll remember, I taught you what to do a while back when we were concerned about the stress hurting your health even more than your energy is." "Gee, thanks," he replied. "That's all I need to relax." "Forget about it. All that matters is what's here and now. Embarrassment or difficulties don't matter. Focus on what does: your girls, your family and those who depend on you. They need you focused and at the top of your game. You can't lose that, Alex." Alex took a few calming breaths and she could see him visibly collect himself. "Thanks. You always know just what to say to me." Cate straightened out his jeans and handed them to him. He started to put them on, more slowly now, while Cate fetched a decent shirt for him to wear. Damn, she thought, where's our other Alex now that we need him? Alex's girls had gotten him to dress better, but sometimes he didn't have enough sense to match the simplest thing together. However she finally got him decent, at which point she gave him a hug and he simply stood for a while, quietly rocking Cate back and forth, consoling the consoler. Just like Alex always did. When they returned to the living room breakfast was almost ready, and Becky and Amanda took turns running to the bedroom to finish dressing. The girls made random chatter about various things, but Gail and Alex remained silent, obsessed with their own thoughts. Cate was tempted to tend to her brother, but instead she nudged Amanda, since this was really Becky's breakfast treat, and she pointed her towards Alex with a nod of her head. She got the point, and walked over, giving Alex a brief backrub. He seemed to appreciate it, lying down on the couch to allow her to continue. Amanda seemed to relish being able to assist Alex in any way she could, and Cate had to console herself with helping them both instead of doing it herself. The breakfast was indeed delicious, but everyone was a bit too preoccupied to really enjoy it as much as it deserved. ------- They made a slow trip across town. It seemed the French Quarter was even more packed than normal, with quite a few more cars, trucks and buses. Patricia informed Alex that the streets were busy and that he'd likely have trouble parking, so he decided to park at a parking lot several blocks away so he could get the measure of the crowds around town. Although they were cautious, and Gail wasn't fond of the idea, Alex figured he'd be safe enough since no one knew any more about him than his first name. He didn't think anyone would notice him as long as he was careful. Patricia had said she wasn't ready, since she was doing some last minute packing and was waiting for her people to arrive. Despite her saying she was ready to go at any time the last few days, it turned out it still took a while to get organized. Even though Alex had decided to flout the potential danger didn't mean he was any less cautious. Becky and Amanda set out on their own, essentially to scout out the route ahead of them. They reported seeing various news trucks farther down the street, but apparently Albert hadn't revealed Patricia's connection to Alex. He figured it was only a matter of time until that occurred, though. Having decided it was safe, despite the excited crowds on the nearby streets, Cate and Alex set off, Gail once again trailing behind at a short but discreet distance. They heard a couple college kids walking past comment about how they were "dying to see this religious freak with all the girls", so they were even more on guard as they proceeded. When they reached Bourbon Street, the street that housed both Patricia's club and the congregation of news vans, they thought they were almost home. They headed down Bourbon, heading for the club, keeping an eye out for any signs of trouble, when trouble found them. They heard a commotion and noticed an increase in the amount of people heading in their direction. However, soon the crowd got too thick to walk through, so they moved onto a connecting street and watched to see what was happening. Recognizing the face of a Watcher he'd seen earlier, Alex called out and got her attention. She hurried over, looking nervously around as she did so. "So what the hell is going on?" Alex asked. "It's a mess, and this is probably the last place you should be right now," she explained. "It seems the religious protestors decided the news teams down here have been ignoring them, which is true enough, but they decided they'd get more attention if they moved their demonstration to them, so we now have a moving mass of protestors, tourists and onlookers." "Ah, so you're one of the people assigned to watch over the church groups?" "Yes, sir, that I am. It's hard to listen to what some of what they say about you, but luckily they haven't accosted anyone, so it's easy enough to watch from a distance," she said. "Well, thanks for letting us know. I didn't mean to interfere," Alex told her. She looked at him oddly. "We're doing it for you," she replied. "You aren't interfering in the slightest. Just try not to mix in with them too much. They seem to be looking for someone to direct their anger at. Right now it's the news crews that are ignoring them, but that could change pretty quickly." She hurried off, and Alex conveyed the information to Gail. 'We should really get out of here, ' Gail warned him. 'That's what we're trying to do, ' Alex reminded her. 'As soon as we get to Patricia's we'll be fine. It'll be a little while until she's ready to go. When she is we'll either have Cate bring the car around or I'll just head out with Patricia.' 'No, I mean we should go back to the apartment and wait until this settles down.' 'And if it doesn't?' Alex asked. 'What then? No, we're close. We only have to go a short ways further, then we can skip town and leave this nonsense behind.' Cate hadn't said anything, watching him as he talked to Gail, but she looked nervous. She took the time honored male position of walking on his side facing the street, trying to shelter him from anyone they might encounter, but her slight size wouldn't be much of an impediment. Just then someone carrying a placard that read 'Damn heathens taking Christ from Christians'. It didn't make Alex or the others feel any better about things. 'Becky, Amanda, you should really leave. This isn't safe for you. You need to protect yourselves and your potential children, ' Alex warned them. 'You've got to be kidding me?' Becky responded. 'You're warning us, when everyone is angry at you, with you standing in the middle of them. If you stay here, then we'll stay here as well, ' she insisted. Alex thought about insisting on their protecting themselves, but thought better of it. She had a point, after all. Alex and Cate continued to watch. They noticed several Watchers passing them by, but each studiously avoiding either looking at or approaching them. It was funny, really. For as hard as they tried not to look at him, they kept stealing glances at him. If you knew what to look for it was an obvious signal to anyone watching, but they didn't think anyone else would be familiar with such behavior. "Are you sure we should remain here?" Cate asked, finally expressing her doubts. "The protests have been largely peaceful lately, but there's no guarantee they'll continue to be." "Well, I'm not sure what our options are," Alex replied. "Either we wait to see if we can reach Patricia, or we put off leaving town, which might just be worse." "That's a good point," Cate conceded, "but if anything happens, I'm not sure how much help I'm going to be. Just promise me that if I step in to protect you that you won't stick around to make sure I'm OK." Alex had a hard time agreeing to that, but after his sister prodded him, he relented and assured her he'd protect himself first. He didn't want her to get into an even worse position by trying to fight him as well as anyone bothering him. 'Patricia, we're having problems reaching you. How are you doing?' Alex asked her. 'I can see how you would, there's a mass of people out front, and they seem pretty frustrated. I'm still carrying out some last minute supplies, so I'm spending most of my time either inside or out back, but make sure you give them their space. I'm still waiting for two girls, and I'm currently giving some last minute instructions to a couple of the Watchers who will be taking over some of my tasks for the community after I leave.' Alex told her to hurry up, letting her know they'd cool their heels since there wasn't a rush. He quickly let Gail and the others know what Patricia had said. They watched the crowd streaming past. Mostly it consisted of curious strangers rushing to get out of the way, but there were the occasional protestors complaining about how "Frauds are defrauding Believers". There really weren't that many protestors, but the people following them and walking past seemed to swell their numbers, while the demonstrators complained about various things. Amongst the other activities, a few people broke off of the main group, passing out pamphlets. One approached Alex, asking "Have you heard the word of God?" Alex tried to edge away, knowing there really wasn't any way to respond to these types other than to agree with them. However, the man noticed Alex moving away and approached him. "Did you know that a man is professing to be the son of God while trying to seduce innocent Christian women?" he asked. Alex wondered what that had to do with the word of God, but figured the man was simply multitasking, looking for whatever produced the greatest response. Cate wanted to correct the aggressive missionary type, but knew that would cause more trouble than it was worth. She hated that they'd say such clear lies about her brother simply to sway an unconvinced public. It seemed like cheating, though it may be required if their ideas couldn't convince anyone themselves. "Look, I'm not really interested," Alex tried to deal with the man rationally. "I'm just waiti..." A middle aged woman hurriedly approached the man from behind. "Excuse me, could you tell me what this is all about? It seems like a lot of activity over not much at all. I mean, why would an atheist want to practice Satan worship?" The man turned, seeing a potentially more receptive target, and started explaining his position to her. Alex was momentarily confused, slowly backing up, but he felt himself grabbed from behind and propelled forwards. He glanced up and noticed that Gail was hurrying him away from the area. He looked back, and the woman that had approached the man met his eyes, glancing away from her companion, and winked at him. Alex didn't recognize her, but assumed she had something to do with his community, but he had no idea how. She clearly wasn't either a Watcher or a Seer, so he assumed she must be related to one of his followers. He hated feeling dependent upon people he didn't even know. He felt like he should pay her back somehow, but had no idea how. Gail marched him around the corner and they crossed over Royal Street, but found the way on the next street blocked as well. However, they stopped and waited again for the mob to pass, although this time Gail stood a ways in front of Alex, ready to redirect anyone approaching him. When the crowd finally began to ease, the main group of protestors having passed, Alex was anxious to head across the street, but Gail shook her head and Cate held him in place. They watched the people move around them until Gail felt comfortable, at which point she nodded and they continued on again. They hurried across Bourbon Street, hoping to avoid any hangers on from the protest, and they approached Patricia's club cautiously, simply because Gail didn't want to take any risks. They walked around the club, avoiding the still heavy crowds, heading for her van parked in the back. As they rounded the corner they saw Patricia talking to someone holding something in front of her. They couldn't quite tell what they were doing. 'Patricia? Anything I should know about?' Alex asked as they slowly approached her. 'Alex, now's not a very good time, ' she warned him, but they were near enough now to see that what the man was holding up in front of her was a microphone, but the smaller kind, the kind that a reporter holds to record notes or quotes to be used for a later article. 'One of the broadcasters is acting on Rodriguez's original articles about a female singer being closely tied to you, ' she told Alex. 'Apparently they've been sending grunt reporters around to talk to all the known female singers performing in the French Quarter. I haven't been performing in the club for a while, but this guy heard I was preparing to leave town and cornered me. He might be a while, but it would probably be better if he didn't see you, just so he doesn't associate you with me. I'll lead him back into the club in the other direction. You'd better head back to your room.' Alex, who had been holding Cate's hand, held her back. Gail noticed them both pause and she held back as well. Alex quietly turned and led Cate away. Gail crossed the access road behind the bar, to demonstrate she wasn't associated with them, while still observing Patricia and the reporter, who she saw as the most prominent threat, and they moved apart as Alex and Cate walked away. Gail wanted to be sure she could head off the reporter if he tried to follow Alex. 'All bets are off, Gail. Patricia's indisposed. We're going to have to leave town without her. We'll meet up afterwards. There's no telling how long she will be held up, nor whether she'll be watched or not. It'll be safer traveling independently, but it's time we left the city now.' The way back was easier to travel now since the crowds had eased, but the people on the street were still excited by everything that had been going on. As Cate and Alex recrossed Bourbon Street, a young girl, obviously a tourist visiting the city for the day, stepped away from her parents and stared at Alex. When her mother called her, she simply pointed at Alex, saying "But, Mom, that man is important." Alex's first impulse was to grab his sister and rush away, but he also felt compelled to reach out to the girl and tell her and her parents, what she was and what they needed to know, but Cate settled the issue by pulling him away. "You should give her a pamphlet, at least," he argued. "Yeah, right, a curious parent sees a man who showed an interest in her daughter, who then runs away, and someone hands her a pamphlet telling her about how she's actually part of a new religious movement. What could possibly go wrong with that?" "But we can't leave her alone, ignorant of what she is," Alex protested. "Alex, if you weren't here, she'd never have a clue who or what she actually was. But if you're gone, then hundreds will never know either. We can't risk it. It's dangerous being on the street now, and she's pointed you out to the entire street as being the most likely Angel around." With that she hurried him off and then jogged away from the scene, only slowing down once they'd gotten clear. Nearing the garage where they'd left the car, Alex and Cate drew up short when they saw a news crew doing interviews nearby. They realized they wouldn't stand out, but they were still nervous. In order to avoid the news crew, they crossed over to the street where Peter's coffee shop was. Since his followers seemed to be acutely aware of the dangers of focusing attention on him, he was hoping they'd continue to ignore him as he passed by so many of them. They hurried by, purposely avoiding making eye contact with the people around them. However, when they reached the end of the block, hoping to cross back over and approach the garage from the other direction, they were brought up short when they heard a woman shout out, "Alex!" Turning around, Alex saw a woman rapidly approaching him. He didn't immediately recognize her, even though he'd gotten familiar with many of his followers here. She was dressed nicely, which was a little strange in itself in such a tourist area, and she was leading a younger girl behind her, who was hurrying to keep up. The girl seemed as anxious to reach them as the mother was, but she seemed to be out of breath, which seemed odd since she didn't look like she was that out of shape. Alex resisted an impulse to bolt, thinking if she called out there was likely something important for him to consider. The woman finally reached him and he recognized that he'd seen her before, but was unable to place exactly where. She was a blond with her darker color streaked through her hair, but she wore the marks of prolonged worry etched on her face. She looked worried and preoccupied, but she didn't seem to have that odd mix of fleeting vision/rapt stare that his followers typically had. Then he glanced of the younger girl, and as he took in her somewhat odd skin tone, and her difficulty breathing, it finally hit him. She had a yellow cast to her skin. She was the other girl in the dialysis ward in Memphis. The woman must have been the mother who'd been upset when he couldn't cure her daughter as well. Apparently she'd somehow followed him to New Orleans. "Thank God I reached you in time," she told him, still struggling to catch her breath. "We got here a few days ago, and have been hoping to track you down. I found several people who seemed familiar with you, and there's a general buzz about you around town, but they wouldn't say anything specific about you. All they'd suggest is I stay in this general area and that I'd be likely to see you at some point." "How did you ever manage to follow me here?" Alex asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. He noticed that Cate looked away as he said this. "Oh, it took a bit. Mary Emmerson, the mother of the girl you cured back in Memphis, had your phone number, but she didn't want to give it to me, not wanting to betray your trust after what you'd done for her. However she revealed that Cate had mentioned that you were heading down here." Alex glanced at Cate, and she was still looking down, so he took it as an implied admission of guilt by his sister and turned back to the woman before him. "I talked to the doctors, and they connected me to Dr. Bisla. She also mentioned that you were headed to New Orleans, but she wouldn't say much beyond that. Once I got here, I heard the amazing talk of you, about how you're the 'Angel of New Orleans', and after what I saw I can certainly believe it." "Look, this is fascinating Mrs... ?" Alex asked, getting ready to beg off since they were still trying to get away before they attracted any more attention. After all, Alex was pretty sure what she was going to be asking him to do. "The name is Susan Weston, and this is Jennifer, my daughter," she answered, presenting the little girl to Alex in a clear attempt to win him over with her angelic but sickly look. The girl was cute, with long brown hair and an endearing smile, as well as beseeching eyes that seemed to plead with Alex to help her. "But don't think you can slink off again," Susan continued. "I know you've got your followers, and it's a closed society. I came all this way, forgoing treatment for Jennifer in hopes that you could do something for her. I've been spending a fortune for her treatment, and it's not helping her get any better. She has AB-blood, which is quite rare, so the chances of her getting a transplant aren't very good. You're basically our last hope," she said, looking at him pleadingly. "Look, I know that this sounds heartless, but if you've been in town for a few days, I'm sure you're also aware that the press is all over this, and everyone is busy looking for me. Not only that, but a lot of people are quite angry at me for what I've done. I don't think it's safe for me to stay here any longer and..." "No, you can't leave us behind again," she cried, falling to her knees before him in her desperation. "You're really our last hope. She can survive for a time with the dialysis, but she's not going to get better, and she'll just get sicker and sicker. Her quality of life is also terrible." Here she again pushed her daughter forward, trying to garner some sympathy from Alex. Alex noted that Jennifer had tears in her eyes, looking like she was about to break down at the prospect of not getting help from him. "Look, what I most need from you is to Not make a scene," Alex told her, dropping to his knees as well. He turned and held his arms out, and Jennifer came to him, allowing herself to be wrapped in his arms. "The problem is there are a lot of complications. What I did for Rachel was an experiment on my part, as it stretches what I can do to the limit. You saw what it did to me. Plus I need to get away from town. If I attract any undue attention I could find myself in a world of trouble." As Alex was explaining this to the girl's mother, talking over Jennifer's shoulder as he held her, he was also doing several other things. Despite Gail's not being there, Alex knew there were several of his followers nearby, so he sent out a call for any nearby Seers to help him. A couple responded, one saying she was watching from close by, and that the others in the community were trying to keep them separated from the more casual observers. Alex was grateful for that, but he didn't know how much it would help him. He thought his best chances were to act quickly while trying to talk the distraught woman down. Without his being able to see his hands, the nearby Seer guided him. He could see her now, and she drew close enough to watch exactly what he was doing. Since Alex had sent out the general message, and since the Seers who had heard had passed on the message, a ring of people seemed to solidify around him. But Alex had no time to consider that. As he continued to explain why he couldn't help her, Alex began applying the same kind of energy he'd given Rachael to Jennifer. However, mindful of how weak what he'd done had made him before; he only focused on a single kidney. It may not cure her, but hopefully a single kidney working well enough to filter a sizable amount of the blood was better than nothing. He realized the risks he was facing by doing this, but he continued nevertheless. Cate, who was standing beside him, figured he was trying something as he continued to hold Jennifer while explaining how he couldn't do anything to help her. So Cate shifted over slightly behind Susan and started to mention arguments to her pleas for help as well. The distraught women was near to tears, but the two pronged approach worked in that it distracted her as she kept looking between Alex and Cate, trying to follow what they were saying, even as she continued to plead with them. However, it was hard to argue when they kept pelting her with information. Alex could feel his own strength beginning to ebb as he worked to duplicate what he'd done with Rachael. This wasn't a simple procedure, as he had to produce a heavy and consistent flow of energy to a specific area of Jennifer's kidney. It took a lot of concentration, and trying to focus his energy burned up a lot of calories, so it wore Alex down quickly. However the Seer observing him, who'd been joined by another, told him he was succeeding. Alex distracted himself enough to ask them to ensure that they could help him get away once he was done. Realizing he was losing strength and knowing he didn't have much longer, Alex changed the tone of his arguments. "Look, you'll have to watch over your daughter for the next few weeks. It may be she picked up a little something just by being near me. The energy I possess is complex and works in an unusual and inconsistent manner; so, much of it is beyond my control. If she continues to get worse, I'll have to stop in and see her again when I return to the area." Being told he was close, and feeling exhausted, Alex finally pulled back, releasing Jennifer. A couple of women who'd been standing nearby, closed in on Alex and helped him stand up. Alex, feeling exhausted, had to lean heavily on them. Susan started pleading with him again, but Jennifer interrupted her. "Mom, I think I'm feeling better. It's odd, but just having Alex holding me like he did makes me feel much stronger." Susan turned Jennifer around, looking into her eyes, which already looked a little less yellow. Turning, she saw that Alex was already drawing away, aided by the two women. "Alex, what can I do... ?" she started to call out. "The best thing you can do for him is to not speak of this," Cate told her. "He's under a lot of scrutiny, and if word of this gets out he'll be attacked for it. The medical profession will attack him, the drug companies will be after him, various experts will berate him for ignoring people just like you did. Worse of all, they're likely to attack Jennifer just as fiercely, since she's a link to him, and they'll likely want to destroy any link to him. He needs a certain freedom to accomplish what he needs to," she said as she drew away from her. "Most of all, don't call him by his name." With that Cate turned and ran after her brother. As they hurried away, Cate glanced around and observed that Alex's followers had formed a ring behind them, keeping anyone from following them. She observed a few people pulling cell phones or cameras out, but had noticed others moving in front of them, blocking their views. Still, she knew they had to get away, and quickly, if they hoped to escape at all. As they headed quickly, but with difficulty, down the street, they passed the same reporting crew they'd observed before heading past them. They'd apparently just been alerted that they were missing something, and they were too preoccupied in getting there in time to record it to worry about a couple of drunken kids. By then they were near the garage, so Cate led them to where the car was located. When they reached the car, Gail was already there waiting for them. She didn't ask what was happening. Leaving the car running, she got out and helped the other two girls get Alex into the back seat. Once he was made secure, she thanked the women, told them to thank the others for what they'd done, and climbed back into the car, driving out of the lot just slow enough to not attract any undue attention. It took them a while to get away, and Alex alerted Patricia, informing her of their plans and that they'd let her know where they stopped for the night. Since Patricia wasn't really a local, she didn't know the outskirts of the city well, so she didn't really have any recommendations, and being presently occupied she couldn't ask. She told him that the reporter had already left, but that she still couldn't leave, since one of the girls still hadn't shown up, apparently having had a traffic accident on her way to join them. Alex also took the time to send a farewell announcement to each of the Seers in the city, telling them he'd been forced to leave. Alex was jolted when he heard dozens of goodbyes and good wishes for the future ring in his head at the same time, but luckily he didn't have to worry about wrecking the car while lying in the back seat. As they drove to the freeway, Alex leaned up and glanced out the back window at the city they were leaving behind. It might be a long time before I ever make it back, Alex thought to himself. I'm leaving a lot of people very important to me behind, including quite a few potential mothers of my children. However, he couldn't fret about that as he had to concentrate on getting out of Dodge once again. ------- Chapter 17: Odds and Ends – and Clara Alex, Cate and Gail were glad to finally get out of the city. They didn't have any trouble getting out, but they were worried about how close they'd come to getting into some serious trouble before they did. As it was, they were sure that photos tagging Alex would in every paper in the country tomorrow, along with YouTube videos of his latest miracle and interviews by Susan, who'd claim he'd refused to help her poor helpless daughter. The potential for trouble seemed unlimited. However, at the moment Alex was simply trying to recover from the exhausting attempt to heal Jennifer's kidney. He'd succeeded, but the strain of doing so under the time constraint he was under wore him out, and he'd only been able to repair a single kidney. He was laid out on the back seat, sweating and weak, while Cate leaned between the seats feeding him. An unidentified woman had handed Cate a little bag of goodies as they'd been making their escape. She hadn't thought much of it at the moment, and by the time she'd realized the woman had given her something she was already gone. It wasn't until they were driving away and she realized she had nothing to feed Alex that she even looked in the bag. It had several muffins, candy, energy bars and bottles of juice. Apparently Alex's followers knew his history well enough to know what he needed after an episode like this, and that encouraged Cate. It always helped when you didn't have to worry about someone all by yourself. Being your brother's protector, lover and science advisor was tough enough. Acting like his mother was the last thing she wanted to do. Alex, meanwhile, was busy trying to marshal his strength again. He was well aware of the trouble they were in, as well as the threats he now faced, but was too weak to worry about that now. Using this new technique of supplying a constant heavy and consistent flow of energy to force someone to regrow dead tissue was exhausting, and he knew he'd have problems every time he did it. He'd done it before with Rachel, healing both her kidneys at the time, but Alex hadn't been as stressed beforehand and he hadn't had to work so swiftly. That combination of events left him worn out. It wasn't until they were nearly out of the city before Alex had regained enough strength to cease eating and relax. He let his mind blank for a while, but then started thinking of what he'd left behind. Not just the people, but the responsibilities, the friendships, and the things that needed to be done. He left nine separate women who might end up as the mothers of his children, each without anyone to defend and nurture them. He felt like he'd just swept into their lives and abandoned them as soon as he'd had his way with them. He knew that wasn't true. They would be protected and helped by the community, and if he had remained he would have brought them unwanted attention. Still, it wasn't easy to shake the self-recriminations he felt. He just didn't feel comfortable leaving someone pregnant after only knowing them for a day. Then there were all the women hoping to get pregnant who hadn't had a chance to be with him yet, not to mention the multiple Seers he'd activated but hadn't actually spoken to. There were also many, many Watchers that he hadn't met, as the scene on the street had revealed, when they'd appeared out of the woodwork to help him. When he felt a little better he finally sat up, which relieved Cate. She kissed him, telling him she was glad to see he was back among the living once again. Alex could see they were already near the outskirts of the city, so they started talking about how the streets looked and how busy the traffic was. Simple things they could distract themselves with, but that kept them from focusing on the issues that were bothering each of them. 'Alex? Sorry to disturb you, I know you were pretty upset about what happened while you were leaving the city. This is Lekesia.' 'Hey, Lekesia. I'm always happy to speak with you. What's up?' Alex replied. 'Well, I wanted to give you an update before you left. It turns out that most of us are, in fact, pregnant. Amanda and Becky aren't yet, of course, since it's still too soon to tell. My mother, Noel, didn't take though, probably because it's a little harder to get pregnant when you're older. We're planning on going to Dr. Lampre for an additional sperm deposit. It's not as enjoyable as a direct deposit, but hopefully it'll get the job done. Catlin didn't catch either.' 'Oh, that's too bad. Tell them I'm sorry and I wish I could help out, but... ' 'Yeah, we know. You're no longer available. On to the newest recruits. Try to think of us occasionally. We'll be thinking of you a lot. You tend to make a big impact on us impressionable young ladies.' 'Well, each of you certainly made an impression on me as well. And make sure you each take care of yourselves. As important as your babies are to me, each of you is vital to me as well. I'd hate to see something happen to any one of you.' 'Thanks. I appreciate that. But none of us plan on doing anything dangerous in the near future. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know where we all stood before you left. I had to check on the others to be sure I didn't miss any. That's why it took a little while for me to contact you. Have a good time and take care of yourself. We're all looking forward to seeing you again, and we want you to come visit your children. We'll talk to you later with updates on our pregnancies, ' she promised before she ended the conversation. Alex told the others the news while they continued out of the city and beyond. Surprisingly, they didn't encounter many new followers. It may have been the time of day, since most people were already at work, or it might have just been that the three were too distracted to notice anyone else. Alex was concerned about the possibility, but he was still too worried about the events in New Orleans to focus on it too much. They only met two women. Both were on the outskirts of the city or farther out. One had heard of the famed 'Angel of New Orleans', but being nonreligious she hadn't given it much thought. The other tried to avoid the obsessive business of the city, thus hadn't heard anything at all about Alex. Cate advised they visit the city to meet the others like them, but Alex doubted the one girl would, since she disliked the city so much. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drive into a city they feel uncomfortable in. They drove past the Maurepas Swamp, where the highway was elevated above the marshes providing a normally excellent view, but they paid little attention to the scenery. They kept driving until they were well away from Baton Rouge. They turned off at a small exit near Lake Bigeaux. A smaller divided road, South Bayou Road, ran along a small river. They managed to find a small motel that looked spartan, but that they felt was isolated enough it wouldn't have enough people to present much of a problem for Alex. They were each ready for some time away from his followers for now. Alex told Patricia where they'd stopped so she'd be able to join them, but she informed him that the girl who'd been in the traffic accident had complicated things, and they'd had to delay leaving while they helped her make arrangements for the car and speak to the police about it. She thought they'd be leaving soon, but she couldn't make any promises yet. So they checked into the plain room, unloaded their stuff, and took a walk along the riverfront, finally unwinding from the unsettling activity of the past several days. Alex took Cate's hand, glancing meaningfully into her eyes, wordlessly thanking her for her assistance, devotion and love these past weeks, as well as asking for her forgiveness for having to ignore her for this long. While it was true he'd made love to them both on Saturday, and they'd fooled around with Becky and Amanda on Sunday, they'd been unable to acknowledge how they'd felt about each other in public, and they each had to pretend they weren't intimate with each other even when they were all in bed the previous night. His look promised that he'd try to make amends today while they waited for Patricia, but everyone was still too wound up to retreat to the hotel room for any hanky-panky. Instead they went looking for a quiet out of the way place to get away from anything that reminded them about what they were hoping to escape for a little while. Looking back, he saw Gail still silently trailing them, as she'd been doing so much recently, so Alex stopped and motioned her closer. "We're no longer in the city. We're isolated where we're unlikely to encounter anyone, and no one would think of looking for us here. Besides, there's no one here to object to a young man walking with his sister and his lesbian lover. So consider yourself officially off duty." They each laughed at that, and Gail gladly took his other hand, joining him and Cate as they each basked in the closeness of the others after having spent the last several days in an emotional holding cell, even as they remained so close together. They meandered along, not bothering to speak as the three of them wandered the riverfront, until they found a nice little spot where they could sit by the river and take in the scenery. They sat down, able to relax for the first time in a while. They simply sat in companionable silence, taking in their surroundings, each thinking their own thoughts until Cate broke the silence. "You know, I've been thinking about what I first surmised after Rakeem attacked you," she said. Apparently she was back into her science mode again, and Alex knew better than to distract her. This was Cate's passion, after all, and she tended to return to it when she relaxed. Cate wasn't the type to find comfort in emptying her mind, but instead reveled in challenging herself, and took great joy in doing it in such a peaceful surroundings where she could do so uninterrupted. "I told you I thought your primary ability lay in opening portals between dimensions. I also explained that gap in your brain by suggesting the gray matter had essentially been sucked out of your brain. Well, we've long debated how you could manage to do something so drastic to your brain on your very first try, and not do any significant damage. "I've been reading some about the theory of quantum minds. You know quantum theory, the one that says that an electron can be in several different places at the same time? Well, I no longer think that portion of your brain was removed. Instead I think it was shifted. I think you didn't suffer any damage because your brain is working as a single organized entity, and it doesn't notice any difference. I think your brain is accessing the missing grey matter even while it's in a different dimension." Alex knew better than to interrupt her. She was on a roll, addressing an issue she'd been thinking about for a while, but had only felt comfortable enough to address once everyone was relaxed enough to give it their full consideration. "The idea of a quantum mind is clearly a complex one, but I think your brain can exist in a separate location because it's still receiving nutrients from your brain, plus it's surrounded by this life energy of yours that helps maintain it. I think that's also how you're communicating with your girls. I think you created that shared quantum link in their brains. You may each be sharing a common segment of your brain, so the thoughts of one are shared by each. It's a fairly well understood concept in quantum physics, although they've never applied it to a situation quite like this." Alex and Gail simply sat quietly, contemplating the idea without speaking. There was no pressing need, since they were removed from the stresses of constantly having to address multiple issues at the same time. Finally Alex addressed it, speaking aloud, as if to the passing river. "That has a certain rationality to it. It would explain a fair amount. It covers the hole in my head, and it explains the telepathy." "It actually does more than that. It could also explain your relationship to the Watchers as well," Cate suggested. "You seem to communicate with the Seers through the link you've created in their brains, but a quantum entanglement, a merging of matter across a wide physical space, wouldn't require such a specific space. You could actually be sharing a smaller segment of your brain, or your thoughts, with the Watchers without needing that gap to trade information. That might be why you each feel so strongly for each other. You might also be sharing other things besides actual thoughts. You might share emotions, feelings and connections. That might be why you feel so strongly towards them. It's only conjecture at this point, but it explains a lot of what we've been missing so far." "I'm not sure I quite understand all the implications," Gail said, joining into the discussion, "but it sounds like it parallels Anh's basic theories as well. Essentially this is a mechanism for sharing Alex's ancient spirit. It's like Alex has discovered a way to split his mind between here and Anh's spirit realm, sharing space with the other women as well. They each tap into the common aspects of his spirit, allowing each to connect to each other. I don't think it requires quite so complex an explanation in physics, but I think she'd like to hear this theory as well." "I think it's a little more complex than that," Cate said. "His establishing a connection to his previous spiritual world wouldn't account for the energy he receives, so it seems clear he's established a connection somewhere else. But yeah, despite not being up on modern western thinking, Anh's got an inquisitive mind," Cate observed, "and she grasps the ideas I present pretty well. I'm sure she'd appreciate this one, and she'll manage to put her own spin on it." The conversation halted for a moment as they considered the implications of this newest idea, but Cate soon broke the silence. "There was something else I wanted to discuss, though you may not like it," Cate said. She waited until Alex turned to face her before she continued. "I've been thinking that these kinds of connections would take a fair amount of energy to produce. I can't imagine they would just open up on their own. What's more, they probably take energy to maintain once they've been created. So far we've been treating your symptoms as if you were suffering from a form of radiation energy. I'd suggested it was stressing your system, but we may be wrong about that as well. "Now I'm thinking that each person you connect to requires more of your own energy, not the energy that's pouring out of your system. The first couple of people you activated didn't do much to you, but as you continued to add more, you started running low on the energy you need to maintain your body. You're essentially trading your health for the maintenance of these links to your girls." "Hmm, an interesting idea," Alex said, once again regarding Cate's newest proposal. "That makes sense as well," Gail added. "It accounts for why his symptoms took so long to show up. If he'd had this since he was young, then you'd think he'd have shown symptoms of being weaker than normal before he ever went to New Orleans." They each considered this newest twist, quietly contemplating what it might entail. Cate let them alone in their thoughts. "You know," Gail said, getting into the idea of sharing different thought together, "there's something that's been bothering me as well. We keep talking about the energy your body is accessing hurting you. It seems to me that if we could focus some of that energy on healing you instead, then maybe there'd be less to harm you." "How so?" Cate asked. "Well, Alex has been exercising more in order to build up his endurance so he'll be in better shape, which will hopefully improve his health. As a result he's bulked up a fair amount over the last couple of weeks. Well, before we left home that is. But he also hasn't had any major episodes since then." "Except for that one on the treadmill, or the one at the dialysis unit," Cate reminded her. "Or the one today," Alex added. "OK, one that we didn't induce ourselves," Gail corrected herself. "What I'm suggesting is that perhaps by bulking up we can refocus the energy on healing rather than weakening Alex. Besides, if Alex is larger, then there's more body area to either absorb or radiate the energy away." "It's an idea," Cate said, appearing to consider it. "But I'm not sure the energy works like that. We use the term 'energy' pretty loosely to describe several different things. The energy that Alex is bringing in and giving off is very different than what we use ourselves to process our food and function every day. I'm not sure you can equate one to the other. Plus, the idea is that Alex potentially has too much energy coming into too small of an area for it to be processed properly. My analogy was that it was like having a major power plant located in a few millimeters of your brain. You'd expect it to do a lot of physical damage, even as it provided a lot of energy. I'm not sure bulking up would change any of those things. There may be more tissue surrounding the damage, but the damage would still be occurring internally." "Besides," Alex added, "how the hell am I going to exercise while traveling cross country?" "I thought about that," Gail told him. "We're going to be staying in hotels most of the time. I'd like to get you into the gym and the pool each night and really work you over. Hopefully we can at least make you strong enough so you can fend off any trouble for a little longer." "Well, I'm not sure you can relate one form of energy to the other," Cate reiterated. "It's like trying to use an excess of whale oil to power your iPod. But there's nothing wrong with Alex trying to maintain his body. That would be good for him no matter how you look at it." "Except for the question of logistics," Alex argued. "Every time I get to a new area, or check into a hotel, we head either to the lobby or the restaurant so I'll be easy to find. If I go from the lobby, to the room, to the gym, to the pool, then to the room again, then finally to the restaurant, there won't be any central location for anyone that's drawn to me to find. Instead we'd end up with a bunch of people wandering around any given hotel looking for me in the several places I've been. They'd be unable to separate the various energy trails from each other." "There is that," Gail conceded. "It's made even worse if we have to move everyone else around. In Memphis we did well because we left you in the lobby while I was in the room. However, if I'm walking all over the hotel, you're going to feel obligated to follow me, and if I'm burning up a lot of energy, then Cate's going to feel it necessary to follow me around checking up on me. That leaves no one to check for anyone looking for me. We showed at the hospitals in Memphis that it makes sense to spread out so we can watch for those that feel attracted to me, but that are too hesitant to approach me. We can't do that if I'm continually on the move." "We would have Patricia and her other band mates," Cate offered. Alex simply rolled his eyes. "They don't have the experience yet. They might be able to lend a hand, but would you want to have one of them guarding me, or taking care of me if I have another crisis? And what happens if they encounter a new follower but don't know how to approach them?" "OK, I'll concede defeat. It's looking like a largely unworkable solution," Gail told him. "Not completely unworkable," Alex relented. "We'll just have to be careful how we approach it. If we have the facilities in a given hotel, we'll have to make sure we stay in a central locale. It would be better than traveling all over town. That's why I haven't toured the places we've visited, to be sure that anyone that needs to can find me. I just think we'll have to think about it some more as we get more used to traveling." "Well, if I can't get you to exercise more, then I'll show you some exercises you can do in the car or the hotel room while you're sitting. That at least will help a little." The conversation lagged again as they watched the river run past and the clouds float by. "Thinking about your theory, Cate, the one about my energy being drained by my girls, that is," Alex said after a short pause, "as interesting a theory as that is, I'm not sure I can fully accept it. I'm not saying it doesn't have merit, and it may have some effect, but if it were the case, then I should be really weak now. I've easily doubled the amount of people I've activated in the last week, yet I seem to be fine at the moment. If I was expending that much energy for each person I'd activated, then by now I'd be overwhelmed. It probably has some effect, but I still tend to believe your original idea." "Still, it accounts for why your symptoms only showed up once you started activating people, and even then no one noticed anything until you'd activated a fair number of people," Gail offered. "We'll need to see how you progress over time. If we're talking about stressors, then it may not show up until you are under a certain amount of bodily stress." Alex didn't respond as they once again lapsed into silence. It was a relaxing afternoon, and no one felt the need to stress about the ideas they were exchanging. This was a chance to think about those things they hadn't had time to consider yet. There was no need to rush to a decision on any of them. "So I'm sure you're glad to be away from that whole 'meet the newest batch of women you're supposed to impregnate today' scene," Cate said, changing the subject and finally tackling the topic she knew had been bothering her brother, now that she'd cleared her mind of her newest scientific theories. She knew her new ideas would take time to sink in, and she was satisfied that Alex had simply listened to them with an open mind. "You'd better believe it. I think next time I'll ask Patricia to simply snip off the ends of my rubbers rather than build up each of these women's expectations about motherhood so much." "Ha, when have you ever used rubbers, Alex?" Gail asked with a laugh. "Hey, I use them occasionally," he protested, even though he knew it wasn't very frequently. Actually, it was ironic that she'd bring the subject up, since he'd used them with her most of the time. But Alex knew she had a point when she made one. "I could see how uncomfortable you were with getting so many people you hardly knew pregnant," Cate said. "I wanted to come in and hold you to help get you through it, but I was afraid revealing our relationship with each other would only complicate things. The last thing you need to tell a new mother is that the father of her baby is in an incestuous relationship with his sister." "Yeah, it really bugged me. I wasn't sure I could get through that first night without some major embarrassments," he observed. "I'm not sure I could do it myself," Gail observed, "for more than just the obvious reasons. I've had enough trouble just getting beyond the 'I love you' statement from a lot of girls, but to jump from that to impregnating them is a whole different order of magnitude difference." "Funny you should bring that up," Alex commented, "since you're planning on having a baby with Melissa." "Yeah, though I suspect you'd feel more comfortable knocking me up than you were those girls that first night," she responded. "The look you gave Lekesia was priceless. I thought I was going to lose it, but I knew you'd never forgive me if I did." "So how are you feeling, Alex?" Cate asked. "Have you recovered from this morning, or do you think you could use a quick massage?" "Hey, I'm not about to refuse a massage from my second in command and my favorite girl," he replied. "Well, I've got no problems climbing on top of my brother and working him over, although I'm not sure what to do with all these clothes in the way," she teased as she started to work on him. "You're doing better, but you're still pretty tense." "It was a stressful week," he reminded her. "I can think of something else that will relax him," Gail suggested with a friendly leer. "We'll get to that in a minute," Cate informed her. "This is called 'build up'. As careful as Alex is to take everything slow with everyone else, no one ever does a lot for him in return. I think he deserves a little care and attention." "Even if I fall asleep as a result?" Alex asked, as he relaxed, resting his face on the grass, listening to the quiet murmur of the river. "We might forgive you if you fall asleep, but don't worry, we'll wake you long enough to do us each a couple of times before putting you to bed again," she told him. "I'll do that if..." he started to say before he was interrupted. 'Alex? This is Rose. I hate to disturb you, but I've got some unsettling news I figured you'd want to hear.' Alex quickly sat up, surprising Cate and Gail, but Cate could tell by his studious expression that he was talking to someone, so she continued to work on his shoulders, which had just gotten much tighter. 'What is it?' he asked. 'It's Clara. I know you told her to stay away from the media, but it seems she made a phone call which has everyone upset. You'd better find a TV somewhere and turn on Fox news. They're running the recording pretty frequently now, so you can't miss it. As you can guess, it's a doozie, but I don't want to tell you how to interpret it, so I think it's better if you see it for yourself.' 'Thanks for alerting me. It'll take us a few minutes to get back to the room. Is it anything I need to address right away?' 'I don't know, ' Rose responded. 'It depends on how you want to react to it. That's why I didn't want to suggest anything, and why I think it will be better if you have some time to think about it first.' 'Well, thanks again. I'll let you know what I decide to do about it. I'll have to talk to Clara again I suppose.' Alex stood up and helped the others to their feet. They still held hands on the way back to the motel, but it wasn't quite as lighthearted and romantic as the walk to the riverfront had been. Alex filled them in on what was happening on the way. It took about fifteen minutes to walk back to the hotel. Gail left them alone, heading across the small community to a nearby market to pick up something for dinner. None of them felt like eating out where they might encounter anyone. Cate watched nervously as Alex turned on the television in the room and started flipping through the various channels. Frustrated, Cate grabbed the TV guide the motel offered and took the remote from him, quickly located the Fox network. They had to listen for a while, since there was an ongoing program on Fox. In the meantime, Alex took back the remote and started flipping between the main broadcast stations again until he found what he was looking for. " ... news. Apparently God doesn't want anyone to listen to Fox news. At least that's what his angel in New Orleans has been telling people. More on that in a moment." Alex groaned, but quickly changed the channel back to Fox, knowing how long it was between the typical teaser and the actual story. It wasn't long until the story surfaced on Fox again. "The Angel of New Orleans, a young man trying to get young women to follow him by claiming he's a 'subangel' led by God, has announced that God doesn't want anyone to watch Fox news. Not only that, but like all good liberals, he wants them to go to the liberal bastion universities to think like liberal socialists. But you'll see more in the following telephone exchange recorded earlier on a Fox call in news program. A voice Alex instantly recognized came on while the television showed what was being said. "Hello, am I online?" Clara asked. "You are caller. What do you have to say on the topic?" "Well, I think you're being really unfair to him. I've talked to him several times, and he's the..." "Wait, you've actually met the mysterious Angel of New Orleans?" "Well, yes, I have, and he's..." "Can you describe him for us? Tell us what he looks like, and why so many women seem to be following him so blindly?" Alex assumed this was a local radio broadcast. Most likely from St. Louis, which is where Clara would have heard it. The announcer was very antagonistic, not allowing Clara to say much of anything. But that was likely just the local announcer. Alex doubted the local affiliate had quite the credentials that the network regulars had. They'd at least allow her to finish a single sentence before interrupting her. "They're not following him blindly. He's actually a very wise and..." "Can I ask if you're a Christian yourself?" the announcer asked. "Yes, I am. I used to listen to Fox all the time as well. But he told me to ignore what the church has been telling me all my life, and to stop listening to this station, and to..." "Wait, you mean the Angel of New Orleans told you not to watch Fox? That seems like a pretty specific commandment. Doesn't he want you to have access to fair and balanced reporting?" "No, I mean ... That wasn't his point. He told me I couldn't separate fact from fiction anymore and..." "And he proves the point by getting you to join his cult? And an Atheistic Angel tells you that the church is lying to you, and you believe this boy over what you've been taught your entire life?" "Well, you see, they tried to cast the devil out of me. But it wasn't the devil I was seeing, it was..." Luckily the announcer once again cut her off before she could reveal what she was seeing. "What did he tell you about the church? That his new religion is better?" "No, he doesn't care what we believe. He's interested in..." "In leading young women astray with promises of miracles? What does he have against Fox News?" "He said that I couldn't think clearly and that I needed to think independently. He told me not to listen to Fox News anymore." "Yes, you already said that. So he thinks that watching the other news stations will get you to think independently, when each of them tell you the same left wing slant on the news? Doesn't he think the truth can stand a different opinion? Was there anything specific that Fox tells people that he objects to?" "No, he just told me that I wasn't thinking clearly. But he's not trying to talk me into anything. In fact, he told me to go to college and to take some courses in something I never studied before so I'd learn how to think more clearly?" "So he wants you to think like a liberal? Is that it?" "No, he..." "I can imagine what he was likely to tell you. It sounds like this young man has a very specific agenda. One which includes cutting you off from the one fair source of the news. It makes it easier for him to convince you of 'what's right'." "No, it's nothing like that. He wanted..." "And why would you assume that some smarmy kid knows better than 2000 years of accumulated human knowledge?" the obnoxious announcer asked. "He's not ... You know, I really don't like how you're treating me. I think I see his point now. You're really..." "Yeah, we can guess what you think. We have a member of a local Church online now who's anxious to tell us his opinion of what this 'Angel' is revealing to his subjects. Let's..." And here was where the network terminated the audio recording. Alex was glad to see the last of the job the local announcer was doing on Clara, actually feeling sorry for her. She wasn't ready for such a grilling yet. It was no wonder she'd fallen apart. That was why he sent her back to school, so she could think things through more carefully before she decided what was true and what wasn't. But she couldn't handle this level of attack yet. The national broadcast networks were better. Instead of attacking Clara, they simply laughed it off, assuring their audience that this was clearly the work of a young man looking to gain attention by preaching a false religion, blaspheming everything that Christians knew to be the truth. It didn't get much better, and they weren't adding any additional detail, so Alex got up and turned it off, having heard enough. Cate nervously looked at her brother, trying to gauge how he was reacting to the broadcast. As he turned to say something there was a knock at the door. Cate sighed and turned to let Gail in, checking to make sure it was her before allowing her in, following Gail's own repeated advice. When Gail entered she saw the TV was off, but she also saw Alex and Cate's reactions. "Not good, huh?" she asked. "No, they raked Clara over the coals," Alex informed her. "She hardly had a chance to string a full sentence together before they attacked her." "But why was she calling Fox News? I thought you'd told her not to listen to them anymore?" "I did, but I won't know until I speak to her. Cate, you can bring Gail up to speed. I'll let you know what Clara's position is in a few minutes." With that Alex spoke to her. 'Clara?' 'Shit, I knew you were going to be pissed. I'm sorry, Alex. I didn't mean to say all of that. He—' 'Yes, I know what he did. I just finished watching it. Now you see why I tried to talk you out of watching Fox News. Like most of the television programs, it's all about attack journalism. They're more interested in ratings than they are in educating people.' 'I never thought so before, but this time—' she tried to say. 'This time you didn't already agree with them. That's the difference. As long as they are agreeing with you, you tend to not question what they say. It's the same problem with the other news stations. That's why Americans are one of the least knowledgeable people in the developed world now. It's not Fox, and it's not you. It's the whole idea of someone telling you what to think. The news, like anyone else, is going to tell you a lot of stuff. Some of it is worthwhile, but some of it is just junk. Some is rumor, some hyperbole, and some is just plain wrong. You've got to learn to discriminate between the two. Wild off-the-cuff claims are just that. 'The point I was making wasn't that you couldn't make your own decisions, it was that you have to evaluate what people tell you and not just agree because it matches with what you already believe.' 'I was trying to defend you, ' she tried to explain. 'To tell them they didn't understand what you were trying to accomplish.' Alex sighed heavily. 'I don't need you to defend me, Clara. I'm trying to avoid the press. I'm trying to reach individuals. If the press knows, then those that don't want me to speak will know. I'm trying to avoid ending up like Christ did, ' he told her, hoping she'd understand it this time. 'By the way, why did you call them? I thought you weren't going to listen to Fox anymore?' 'I didn't really mean to, ' she said, sounding guilty, but Alex was anxious to hear her explanation. 'I haven't watched Fox TV since you told me not to. But I never reset the radio stations in my car since they're hard to set. I figured it wouldn't do much if I didn't accept what they said. But when I was driving into school today, I heard the horrible things they were saying about you, and I thought I had to tell them that they were wrong.' 'I don't think they were interested, Clara. Like you were doing yourself, they'd already made up their minds before they heard anything. They'd already decided I opposed their own positions, so they were looking to make me look bad. And the quickest way to belittle me is to make fun of those that accept me. That way they don't have to actually focus on the issues themselves.' 'Well he was mean, ' Clara insisted. 'OK, as hard as it was on you, I consider this a learning experience. Next time, try to find less antagonizing stations to listen to. Remember, I don't need you to protect me. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself, but only if I don't have people telling everyone about me. Do you think you can do that for me?' Alex asked. 'Oh, yes. I'll never call them again. Not after this.' 'Good, I can accept that. We won't talk about this anymore. How's school going?' 'Oh, it's going great. I'm learning all about science, just like your sister. I can't take the hard classes, and I'm having trouble following it as a result of not following the math, but it's interesting. Every time I start thinking something isn't true I think of what you told me, and I listen to it and think about it before deciding what I believe.' 'I'm proud of you, Clara. That's precisely what I asked you to do. While I'm not happy with what happened today, you didn't mean to do it. Just keep up your studies like you're doing. You don't have to agree with what you're learning, but you've got to be able to discuss it rationally, and explain both sides if asked. I've got to go now, though, since I've got to figure out how to deal with this.' 'Thanks for not being angry with me, Alex. I really appreciate it, ' she said. 'Don't worry about it. Just try to be the best person you can, ' Alex told her. He hadn't been expecting miracles with Clara, but he hoped she could cast off some of her bad habits. It looked like that was happening. He had to expect a few stumbles along the way, though. He turned to look at Cate, and realized he was sitting down on the bed and both girls were watching him. "She got in over her head," he told them. "It was a misunderstanding on my point. It's like making a wish with a mischievous genie; you've got to watch your language carefully. But her heart was in the right place, and I think she learned something from it. Luckily the jerk didn't give her a chance to reveal anything really problematic. We'll weather this. But the problem is, we're now not just novelty news, we've got a major group seriously opposed to us. We're likely to gain quite a few more. Now let's forget about this and carry on." They ate the dinner that Gail had brought home. It wasn't anything fancy, but after all the rich foods they'd been eating in New Orleans' fanciest restaurants they thought they deserved some plain food for a change, simply to clear out some of the fat from their veins, if nothing else. Afterwards they lay together on the bed and turned on the TV, but none of them were anxious to watch anything. They were reluctant to flip through the channels, afraid they'd encounter too many news programs talking about them. Alex hadn't watched much TV of late, having many better things to keep him occupied with a house full of women fascinated with him, so they'd all gotten used to reading, talking or playing cards together. The women and his family had appreciated it, since it allowed them plenty of personal time with him in the weeks before he left. But, as a result, no one was very interested in watching anything. Grinning at them, Cate pulled up the adult movie channel. Even though she wasn't legally able to access the pay-per-view channels, the hotel had the normal HBO teaser channels. She selected one that had a well-built gorgeous guy with a beautiful woman. It was clear from their teasing manner where the scene was going. "Really?" Alex asked. For as many women as he had in his life, all he needed was to watch yet another naked woman that he didn't even have a connection to. "Hey, you may not need it, but some of us like to see a little variety occasionally," Cate protested. "Ugh," Gail commented. "I just hope they don't show any naked male parts." "Don't worry, they have strict rules what they can show on television. It seems it's OK to show fully naked females, but they can't show a guy with an erection, so they don't show any of the guy's junk at all," Cate said, speaking from an unknown reference source. "Besides, you see plenty of Alex's junk and that doesn't seem to bother you." "You forget what it is that I'm able to see," Gail reminded her. "With Alex it's like making love with an otherworldly spirit. I don't so much see a throbbing male penis as I see a shaft of light drawing me into its flowing energy. Besides, you don't really think that's realistic?" she asked pointing at the guy on the screen, who was already shirtless. "The only guys that look that pretty and that built are self-obsessed gay guys. I doubt you'd find many straight men that look like that. At least, any that you could stand." "Still, I've never been able to watch this kind of thing at home, and the internet porn is just plain disgusting," Cate tried to justify herself. "I was hoping to see something to inspire me." "Well, if you have to picture someone else when making love with your brother, I can understand," Gail teased, "I'd suggest you picture someone like Beyoncé. That's what I usually do. Luckily Alex has plenty of women around I can focus on." "Well, as much as I like the ladies, I generally need a good looking guy to get my motor running. The girls are just a nice side dish. They add spice, but Alex is my main staple." "Now look at that," Gail protested the latest scene on the television. "How can anyone believe a woman being satisfied with a guy only going down on her for 15 seconds? No wonder there are so many lesbians if all guys are like that!" "Well, I can't speak for anyone else, but Alex has always spent quite a while every time he's allowed to," Cate said. "Yeah, but then again, for him it's like a breath of fresh air," Gail commented. "When you've got to screw someone, excuse me, 'make love' to several people every night, you relish the opportunity to do something different." "Amen to that," Alex observed. "Say, speaking of which, since there's no one else around tonight that needs special attention, how about a little oral lovemaking for a change?" "I've got no objections to that," his sister replied with a smile. "Well, since he can only do one of us at a time, how about we form a daisy chain? That way you can eat me while your brother is doing you," Gail suggested. "Uh, you realize a full daisy chain would involve you munching on Alex's dick?" Cate reminded her. Gail couldn't help herself and made a sour face. As much as she loved Alex, she found she enjoyed his making love to her while she was distracted by the other girls. While she enjoyed his reactions when she occasionally went down on him, it was hardly one of her favorite activities as she tended to focus more on the fact she was sucking a dick than she did on the energy she was sharing with him. Now going down on Cate, that sounded much more attractive, she thought to herself. "How about if Alex does you, and you do me?" Cate asked, seeming to pick up on Gail's thinking. Once again Gail made a face. "While Alex is good at what he does, he hasn't have enough experience with it to overcome his disadvantages. How about he does you, then when he makes love to you, you can do me?" "Uh, guys, isn't this conversation getting a little off course?" Alex observed. "Here we are, three adults watching an adult video, talking about making love, and so far no one has taken off any of their clothes or revealed any boobies." "Good point, what's taking you so long? Let's see your boobies?" Cate teased. At this point Alex growled and tackled his sister. While he held her down and blew raspberries on her throat, Gail moved around and swiftly pulled Cate's jeans off. It was always impressive just how quickly Gail could strip a woman out of her clothing when she was properly motivated. "If you're going to spit on my fleshy parts, at least do it to more useful fleshy parts," Cate advised with a laugh, causing Alex to smile. He moved down slightly, shifting her t-shirt revealing her naked breasts. He blew another raspberry on her breast, and then headed south once again, finally reaching her naked crotch, where he went to work to disprove the aspersions Gail had cast on his abilities. As Cate lay back, enjoying what Alex was doing for her, Gail quickly shed her own clothing. She got up and moved over Cate's head, slowly lowering herself down over Cate's face. Cate was a little perturbed, since she really did want to see someone new for a change, but she decided a live pussy beat a 2-dimensional pretty face any day. Soon they were going at it. Alex was licking his sister, while Cate was sucking Gail off, while she played with both her and Cate's breasts, the TV completely forgotten. Alex was delighted. He hardly got to go down on anyone any more, despite how much he used to do it, and like Gail had said, he really enjoyed the opportunity to do something different for a change. He loved Cate's aroma, as she always had her own unique scent. Alex guessed it was because she had her own diet, generally avoiding the burgers and fries he usually ate on the road. The women had all given up on eating Brussels sprouts long ago, based on Gail's recommendations, but they still ate several things that weren't ideal for such things. But Alex had enough experience that he found each woman's scent slightly different, and he could almost recognize a given woman just by her scent alone. Alex could hear a muffled moan, signally just how much Cate was enjoying what he was doing, though he had to admit that Gail probably had a good point. He really hadn't been doing this enough to keep up his skills. He supposed he'd have to insist on practicing more often. Unfortunately, the only people that seemed to allow him to go down on them were Kitty and Chalise, since they couldn't appreciate the extra charge absorbing his energy gave his girls. Even Cate got enough from it that she rarely gave him a chance to do this. But there was a method to Cate's choice of activities for the night. She wanted Alex to forget about his obsessively careful lovemaking tonight. She knew he always struggled to maintain his composure, timing his lovemaking carefully in order to give his women the maximum benefit a shared orgasm produced. She knew he rarely let himself go, even as she knew the dangers he faced when he did let himself do so. When he lost control, he could fuck himself into the hospital. But having just fed him a large dinner she felt they could give him the benefit of the doubt this time. She was very aware of the limitations he imposed on himself with all of his women, and she wanted him to let loose for a change. She figured doing so would allow him to relax in a way his nightly lovemaking with so many women hadn't. Besides, after so long of doing without, she figured both she and Gail would appreciate some wild sex for a change. As much as Cate had worried when Alex had that attack the last time he let and enjoyed himself, she had to admit it was a lot of fun. Gail wasn't thinking any such thoughts; instead she was enjoying what Cate was doing for her, trying to ignore the obnoxious sounds of male grunting still coming from the television. While she found it adorable when Alex did it, she still found it obnoxious when she heard some stranger doing it. While Alex had been busy the past week, she'd been forced to watch one beautiful woman after another strip naked for him, while she maintained a professional demeanor. She was ready to get some herself, both a royal screwing by Alex as well as diving between Cate's delicious thighs. As tiny as Cate was, and as much as it bothered her knowing she was committing statutory rape every time she made love to her, Cate always held a special place in Gail's heart and loins. Alex assumed he was doing fairly well for himself, given how well Cate was reacting to his ministrations. She'd already had a couple of small orgasms, and Gail seemed to be enjoying herself. However he soon found his sister pulling on his ears in the tale-tell signal that it was time to get on with it. Glancing up at Gail, she simply nodded at him, confirming his own thoughts. When Alex moved away and proceeded to strip, Cate pushed Gail off of her for a moment, her own jaws beginning to tire anyway. "OK, Alex, I want a royal fucking this time. None of this 'lovey-dovey' nonsense. I want you to screw me senseless. Just fuck me like you've wanted to do with each of the girls you've been with all week. Use me like you really want to use everyone else but are afraid to. I can handle it. Neither Gail nor I are likely to break from a little hard riding." Alex glanced at his sister as he quickly jacked his cock, trying to get it to full hardness since he'd been between Cate's thighs for so long. Normally Cate appreciated his slow lovemaking, so he was a little disturbed to hear her talking like this, but he saw the hunger in her eyes, and realized she was ready for a little more than they normally did. Having jacked himself to full thickness, he moved up on his sister. Since Gail was crouching over her face there wasn't much chance of any full body lovemaking anyway, so he simply lifted her thighs, elevating her crotch, and shoved his way into her. She moaned, still not reconnecting with Gail so she could fully react to the renewed connection to her brother. As Alex started fucking his sister, Gail realized Cate was distracted, so she climbed off of her. This gave Cate a chance to lean up on her elbows as Alex was still holding her thighs up as he aggressively fucked her. Now this is what each of us needs, she thought. Gail lay down beside them and started kissing Cate, despite how much her head was moving around due to the actions going on further south. Still close herself, Gail guided Cate's hand to her own crotch. Cate knew well enough what she wanted so she started fingering her, but Gail was in a similar mood to the others, and she wanted more. She stopped Cate, shifting up a little more. "Use more fingers," she gently instructed her, and Cate took her at her word, fingerfucking her with two fingers, then three, and finally with all four. It seemed Gail was ready for some rough treatment of her own. However Gail stopped Cate's hand once more, pulling it away from herself as she closed Cate's hand into a fist and moved it back to where it was. It took Cate a little bit to figure out just what was going on. She'd never attempted this before, and she was distracted by the pounding Alex was giving her, but she'd heard of it, she'd just never known anyone who'd ever tried it. Luckily Cate was fairly slight, and thus had small hands. She tried pushing her fist into Gail's pussy, with no luck. "Slip your fingers in first, and then close your fist inside me," Gail instructed, apparently having done this before. Cate did as she instructed, slipping her four fingers into her, then once they were fully inside her palming her thumb until her whole hand was inside her, then she managed to close it into a fist, hoping she wasn't hurting her friend. But Gail moaned as she did so, so it appeared she was fine with it. Gail knee walked closer to Cate so she had a better angle, and Cate began fistfucking her friend. This was something she'd never have thought of herself, but she found it strangely empowering. She thought it must be like Alex felt when he was fucking her so wildly, almost like she had license to do whatever she wanted to. She knew she had to be careful, but she felt so powerful fucking her friend with her whole arm, even if the motions were in opposition to those of Alex powering into her. Alex watched this all taking place, not believing it even as he watched it. He'd known that Gail had a wild side, but he hadn't seen much of it in the past. Sure, she loved getting everyone involved with at once, but she'd never gotten overly physical during their lovemaking yet. But this was a whole new side of her. As Cate's fist continued to shove into Gail, she shuddered. Glancing at Alex, and observing his wide-eyed fascination, she simply winked at him and whispered, "Give it to her". So Alex did, letting his own inner demons loose, pounding away into his sister, no longer mindful of who she was or what she represented to him. He knew his other two lovers were enjoying themselves, and that neither one had any reservations about what was happening, but their actions were so different than his normal procedures that he had to shake his head about what they were doing. But those doubts weren't reflected in his cock, which felt more alive and harder than it had felt in a while. Soon Alex's motions became too strong for Cate to be able to continue with her lateral motions, so without removing Cate's fist, Gail moved up. Seeing what was happening, Alex stopped long enough to help Cate turn over, all the time holding himself fully in her. They ended up with Cate on her knees with Alex fucking her doggy style, but now Cate had free access to Gail's cunt, and she could apply Alex's powerful thrusts as she fistfucked her friend. Once again Cate couldn't believe just how much fun it was to do this. What she'd once shivered at the thought of, she now decided she had to try some more. Being so small, she knew she couldn't quite manhandle anyone, but here she was, fucking Gail to within an inch of her life, shoving a good portion of her arm into her every time Alex shoved home inside her. The novel feelings of being so in control were too much for her, and aided by the fucking she was getting, she shivered in a delightful orgasm. Her shiver vibrated through her fist and arm, sending Gail over the edge as well. Gail had done this a few times and had enjoyed it, but she realized she could only do it with a select few people. She'd been tempted to try it with Kitty before, but hadn't wanted to risk scaring Alex's girlfriend off. But now she remembered why she liked it so much. While not overly huge, Gail was a big woman, and could relatively easily handle Cate's small hands. Gail's juices were running down Cate's hand as it moved in and out of her pussy. No, in this case it isn't a pussy, Cate reminded herself. In this circumstance, it definitely rates the title of 'cunt'. So Cate continued to pummel Alex's bodyguard, just as Alex was doing it to her. She suspected they might have trouble walking in the morning, but for now she couldn't imagine anything hotter. Suddenly Gail gave out a mighty cry, and she shivered around Cate's hand as even more cum flowed out along her forearm. Cate continued to fuck her with her whole arm throughout Gail's orgasm, and she felt her brother's thrusts become even more energetic. But as Gail finally slowed, gently removing Cate's hand, Alex didn't even slow down, now fucking her full force. Cate started to worry about her brother once more, as he kept going and going, even after the rest of them had already cum several times. "May ... maybe you could give Gail a chance?" Cate suggested. Alex recognized Cate was tiring, and eased up, preparing to disengage. "No, she stretched me out pretty well," Gail informed them. "You wouldn't be likely to feel much if we made love right now. You'll have to give me some time to recover before we can fool around." "Well, in that case, you'd better see if you can get Alex another snack," Cate said. "As I feared, Alex is going into overdrive again." Once that was worked out, Alex couldn't resist thrusting once again. He knew he was wearing Cate down, but he was close, and he'd been working for a while, so he was anxious to finish as quickly as he could. Cate braced herself against the headboard as Alex began to up the pace of his attack once again. Hoping to help a little, since he seemed unable to halt his actions, Alex started playing with Cate's clitoris as he worked on her. "Damn, every time someone turns you loose there's just no stopping you, is there?" Cate asked rhetorically, not really expecting an answer from her brother. He merely grunted. Now that he was leaning over to play with her while he fucked her, she could once again feel his energy coursing into her and it gave her renewed energy to withstand his onslaught, so she started pushing back into him. With that little bit of encouragement, Alex returned to his previous rapid pace. By the time that Gail returned carrying a bag containing cookies, juice and fruit, Cate had collapsed on the bed, and Alex was screwing her as if she wasn't even aware. Cate groaned, while Alex growled. He finally reached his limit, shoving hard into her one last time as he blasted time after time into her. Cate groaned again, whether in ecstasy or pain no one was quite sure. "So, should I be treating you or Alex?" Gail asked. "Mrph hrm," Cate responded, her face still buried in the crumpled blankets. Gain knew what that meant, so she handed Alex the juice and began feeding him the cookies. "Man, whenever you don't face someone directly, you turn into a wild man," she observed. "I thought the same thing," Cate observed, finally rolling over so her face was clear of the bed sheets, "but I think it's just because he's only been able to do it twice. If you had to eat Cream of Wheat two times a day, every day, then the first time someone offered you potato chips you're going to eat yourself sick." "Yeah, I guess," Gail conceded, as she continued feeding Alex. "I'm sorry, I know I get carried away," Alex said. "I'll try to control myself a little more when we continue, but damn it, when you shove my sister's arm up your twat, you've got to expect things to heat up." Cate didn't know about Alex, but she wasn't about to complain about his 'getting carried away'. She'd always felt energized after making love to Alex, refreshed and inspired to do better, but now, after Alex had let loose and let his inner demons out, she felt like she was about to explode from all the energy coursing through her. She briefly considered whether Alex should try this with his girls, as the extra energy and the stronger emotional connection from Alex might boost them even more, but she was afraid to mention it for fear of what it might do to Alex if he was expected to perform like that on a nightly basis. Instead she just smiled and nodded, agreeing with his observations. "Yeah, I might be expecting a bit much to think you wouldn't take that as encouragement," Gail replied with a smile. "So how are you feeling, Alex?" Cate asked, finally leaning up on her elbow. "Oh, I'm fine. Tired, but fine. Luckily I just ate, and Gail brought me another snack before I got into any trouble, so there wasn't any problem. But how are you?" Alex asked Cate. "Worn out. Man, when you get excited, you're a damn fucking machine. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade that for all the tea in China, but it's such a change in pace from what I'm used to, it'll take a little while to recover." Alex took that moment to get up and stretch. The thin sheen of sweat that covered his body was starting to cool, so he grabbed an old undershirt and tried to wipe himself down. "While we're recovering, you know we need to call home, don't you?" Cate asked him. "Everyone is sure to have seen the news accounts of us today, and they're likely to be worried to death." "Yeah, I was thinking that myself, though I've been a bit distracted of late," he added with a leer. "How about you give them a call?" he asked. "Call them yourself," Cate replied. "You didn't get yourself fucked into oblivion. You may not have melted my mind, like you do so often, but you certainly put me through my paces." "Personally, I don't think either of you is in any kind of shape to do anything on your own yet. Hold on and I'll call," Gail told them as she reached over to retrieve her phone. She dialed the number, and when it started ringing she handed it to Alex. Not even knowing who she'd called, Alex took it from her and waited. "Jennings residence?" he heard his mother answer. "Hey, Mom, thought we'd give you a call and let you know that we're all still alive," Alex told her. "I'm glad you finally called. We've been listening to the various news reports. Fox seems to be in a particular tizzy about it." "That's because Clara made the mistake of calling, assuming she could talk some sense into them. Instead they attacked her and she wasn't prepared for it, so she made a couple of stupid statements. Luckily they weren't really interested in listening to her. If she'd called one of the more seasoned reporters, we would likely have been in a boatload of trouble." "Look, before we get too far along, let me just say that Becky is anxious to talk to you. She would have called sooner, but she thought you'd be too wrapped up in other things and didn't want to disturb you." "OK, Mom, put her on and I'll talk to her, but don't worry, we got out of New Orleans OK. It was close, but we didn't suffer too much damage. We really had to expect some exposure at one point or another." "Hey, stud," Becky said as she picked up the phone. "Can't go anywhere without causing riots, huh?" "No, trouble seems to always be following me. Hopefully I won't be around anywhere long enough to attract too much adverse attention, but I'm not counting on it, as now everyone in the country is likely to have heard about me," he answered. "Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something specific. Something has come up, and if we're going to act on it we need to do it pretty soon." "Yeah, go on," Alex prompted. "Well, it seems the lab where I work is suffering from a drop off in government funding, so they're talking about letting some of the researchers go. Since they have to cut back I thought this was a great opportunity, so I went ahead and told them I might know of someone who could help out. To cut to the chase, I told them we might be willing to lease their equipment to do our own DNA research." "Gee, Becky, isn't that a bit..." Alex started to ask. "Now before you get upset, let me just say that I already ironed out the details. I told them you were only interested in the equipment, and that it would only proceed if I was officially in charge. No one else would see any of the results, we wouldn't ask for any analysis, and I'd zero out the machine's histories each night after we finished using them. No one would have access to any of our information." "Wow, it sounds like you've really been giving this some thought. And here I thought they just suggested this." "Them? They were ready to just lay everyone off," Becky explained. "No, I thought about it and considered all the options before mentioning it to anyone. I told them I'd take an unpaid leave of absence, and suggested we'd pay them for the use of their machines. Everyone comes out ahead. However, it also means it will take a long time to examine the results. That's what really costs so much doing DNA research. It isn't the machine time, which is significant. It's all the thousands of man-hours examining the tons of reports they produce." "So what about us? Where does that leave us if we can't examine the results ourselves?" Alex asked. "Well, it leaves us way ahead of where we are now. I figure we should do a full genetic workup of all of your women, but the Seers in particular. I figure we've got enough now that we should be able to do a statistical analysis and hopefully discover which genetic markers are associated with our abilities." "Our abilities?" Alex pointedly asked his sister. However she just laughed. "Yeah, that's what I said. I already feel so much a part of your organization I tend to think I'm just like the rest of your women. And I'm not alone. I think the other girls from your high school that are helping out this summer feel the same. They've really been helping out a lot. But anyway, the main thing is to just record everything we can so we can examine it in detail later. I'll have to watch the lab work, just to ensure no one tries to see what it is we're doing, but there's this other girl there that I trust. I've hinted about you and she's taken it pretty well, so I think we can bring her onboard. I'd like to have her watch the machinery while I do a preliminary analysis. We can both go over the results at night. I don't know if we'll come up with anything very quickly, but at least we'll be making an effort." "This sounds like you've already figured everything out," Alex told her. "What do you need from me?" "Duh, I need you to authorize it. This is going to take a fair amount of money and a bit of effort. Anh tells me the Foundation can probably afford it, but it's going to put a strain on your resources. But I think if we could identify what differentiates the Seers from the Watchers from the normals, we'd be a long ways ahead. Ideally, maybe someone can figure out how to do a blood test to determine who's a potential follower of yours?" "That's expecting an awful lot. You're already talking about a dearth of talent, and now you're suggesting mixing researchers, chemists, biologists and blood experts? Let's just keep to the basics. Run your tests. Do whatever you need to do. But make sure we keep the data secure. OK? We don't need to leak anything just when everyone is starting to take an interest in us." "Will do, bro. I won't let you down. I realize just how big this is and what it represents, so I'll watch over it personally." When Alex and Cate finished talking to everyone else, he relayed what Becky had asked of him. Cate was excited, but Alex remained guarded. "Cate, I assume you still have Anna LeForge's phone number? You remember her, the Missouri policewoman we met outside of St. Louis? If Gail could give her a call and have her do a quick check on this friend of Becky's, just to make sure she won't be a potential security risk. You never know what someone might be bringing to the table. I'd feel a lot better if we at least pretended we were watching out for ourselves." "I'll get right to it," they both agreed, clearly excited by this newest possibility. It was clear they were both too fascinated to focus on any more lovemaking at the moment, so Alex called Kitty and Chalise to chat while Gail and Cate started scheming about what this newest idea of Becky's might uncover. ------- Chapter 18: Reintroductions Alex and the others awoke to a loud knocking on the door. It took them a moment to figure out what was going on, but a second rapid knock got them focused. "Quick, get in the bathroom," Gail insisted, as she quickly grabbed her scattered clothes from the nearby chair. "I'll answer the door, but if it's a reporter or something I don't want them to see you." "Who the hell could it be this time of day?" Cate asked. "No one even knows we're here." Cate continued to look for her own clothing as Alex headed, naked, to the bathroom seeking refuge. His sister followed him after she'd put on her underwear and grabbed both of their clothes. "Open up, sir, it's the hotel management," called out a gruff male voice, following a third rapid series of insistent knocks. Cate closed the bathroom door while peering out the sliver she'd left open, while Alex used the opportunity to throw some water on his face to wake himself up. Gail finally settled herself and, checking the bathroom door one more time, unlocked and swung the door open. She could have checked using the peephole, but she didn't think it would reveal much. Member of the press would know to stay clear of the door and she wouldn't likely recognize anyone anyway. They also had nothing to fear from any organized groups like the police. She figured it was likely either innocent of a new follower had sensed Alex but hadn't wanted to approach him themselves. "Surprise," called out a familiar voice. Cate opened the bathroom door without a moment's hesitation, leaving Alex standing there naked with a damp face. There, standing in front of the door, stood Patricia and the members of her band, a guy and two girls, plus two other women standing nervously behind them. Alex couldn't remember any of their names, but he didn't let either that or his nakedness prevent him from serving as a gracious host. "Damn, I should have figured it was you," he told her as he strolled unconcerned towards the door to envelop her in a hug. The other band members grinned, having met Alex before and having heard plenty of stories about him. The two new girls looked more nervous than anything else. "I really expected you last night. Whatever took you so long?" "It's a long story," Patricia told him. "While it was true that Jordan had an accident," she said, indicating a tall dirty blond, "we spent most of the day helping cover for you," she explained. "That little incident you pulled before you left took a bit of handling. Thankfully there were quite a few people just hoping for the opportunity to help you out. When everyone started pulling their cell phones out while you were curing that woman's daughter, they helped to block their view. Brian, Rose's boyfriend who you gave the job helping fix everyone's computers, developed something just for that scenario. It was just blind luck he happened to be there at the time. "He fixed a powerful electro-magnet in the sleeve of his jacket. He wandered around anyone who looked like they were taking pictures and asked to see their pictures. Anyone with anything incriminating, he triggered his device and it zeroed out the memories of the person's camera or cell phone. It was localized, so it didn't impact anyone else, but a few tourists found themselves without any pictures of their vacations. "We spent the day sending out messages to the area discussion groups, talking about how no one was able to take a picture of you, that you'd cause any electronic devices to die. It won't make those with dead phones feel any better, since they didn't know, but given enough time they're likely to mention it to people and they'll do a search, and someone will associate the behavior with you. Not only will it help establish your reputation, hopefully it'll prevent at least a couple of people from trying to film you next time." "Wow, I'm certainly glad I've got so many resourceful people helping me out," Alex said, turning to acknowledge the others. "Come on in. There's no sense standing outside. Cate, do we have any coffee we can make for our friends?" "Yeah, you'd better all come in. Otherwise Alex will continue flashing his junk for the entire neighborhood to see," Cate teased. "Don't worry about drinks," one of the girls said. "We brought everything for breakfast. We've got coffee, Danish, omelets, the works." "Well hurry up and bring it in," Gail told them. "We'll get this one dressed while you're getting everything ready." The others brought in the breakfast goodies, closing the door behind them, while Patricia gave both Cate and Gail welcoming hugs as well. "So, I can tell you haven't yet recovered from last night," Patricia said with a smile. "I imagine having done without for the last week, that Gail and Cate must have been primed last night." "We sure were," Cate confessed. "But we didn't let him indulge in any gentle lovemaking this time. Instead we had him raw and wild. I even got to fistfuck someone for the first time," she said with obvious delight and an odd sense of pride in herself. Patricia glanced at Alex and Gail before looking at Cate again. "I'm hoping you're talking about Gail, otherwise Alex is a whole lot kinkier than I suspected," she said with a grin. Alex grunted as he fastened his jeans around his waist. "Let's just say I wasn't the only one getting carried away last night." "What about Clara?" Patricia asked, as the others set their booty on the table. "Did you get a chance to speak to her?" "Yeah, she called the station out of frustration, trying to defend me. She didn't expect them to attack her, so she wasn't prepared. As a result she was fumbling. We're just lucky they didn't push her for anything worthwhile." "Well, hopefully you convinced her to keep her mouth shut from now on?" "Yes, I think she's learned her lesson. She no longer thinks so highly of the Fox attack journalism now that she's been on the receiving end of it." "So you managed to skate away from trouble once again," asked the older bald guy that Alex remembered was Patricia's pianist. Well, actually he'd been playing a synthesizer, but that was close enough for Alex. "Yeah, so far I've been lucky," Alex said, reaching out his hand. "I'm sorry, but I don't recall your name." "It's Sammy Tipton," he said, introducing himself as he shook Alex's hand. "If you'll remember, I had a sister and an aunt who are both—" "Watchers. Yeah, I remember," Alex replied as another girl walked up with a cup of coffee. "I'm Mac. I'm the drummer," she said as Alex accepted his drink. "Mac? Not a typical girl's name, but it's fitting for a drummer, I guess," Alex told her. "The real name is Mackenzie Schumacher, but that's too long for most people, so I like to keep it simple." She seemed nice, although she had a bit of a stark face. But her eyes twinkled in delight at meeting Alex. She had long curly hair that framed her face. "So do you have any other affiliation with our organization?" Alex asked. "I like how you delicately phrase asking if I'm a Watcher or have the gene in my family," she replied with an easy smile. "No, I'm just your typical musician. I knew Patricia from before, so when she said she was putting together a rock band I was glad to join in. I was overwhelmed when she told me about you and how her life had changed. Then when I started meeting the others I could hardly believe it. Trust me, if you accept outsiders, then I'd be glad to be a part of this movement of yours. This is bigger than anything else I've ever been involved in. I'd always hoped I could achieve some small degree of fame, but now it looks like I'm part of changing humanity." "Well, I don't know about changing humanity," Alex said, "right now I'm just trying to keep everyone around me safe. You realize you could be putting yourself in jeopardy if everyone discovers who we really are?" "Yeah, I realize that. But then again it's like helping the first humans defend himself against the Neanderthals. There's a lot more involved than my own personal safety." "Well, I'm impressed by your dedication," Alex told her, "but please, try to keep yourself safe. For my sake, if for nothing else. I like to look after my followers, and I certainly count you amongst them." A cute blond walked up and handed them both an omelet sandwich. "I'm sure you don't remember me, but I'm Erica Mayes. I'm the guitarist, and a Watcher. When we played for your birthday and your prom, it was all I could do not to stare at you the whole time. You're truly amazing, and I'm proud we'll be spending so much time together. Anything you might need, feel free to ask." "OK, Erica, tell me how someone your age ends up being the lead guitarist of a big band. Isn't there something about paying your dues or maturing your craft?" Alex asked with a bit of a smirk, not being mean, but just trying to get her to talk about herself. He noticed that the others were sitting enjoying breakfast, listening to his conversation. He could see them whispering to each other, but he was afraid to ask what they might be discussing. He figured before they were done with their trip he wouldn't have any secrets left. It was then he remembered Patricia had commented about Cate and Gail having had their way with him, and he realized they already knew all of his secrets. "Well, my father was a professional musician and a member of a band for a long time, so I had a guitar in my hands practically my whole life, and I had exposure to being on stage as well. I'd meant to play with other groups long enough to get some decent exposure, then branch out into my own career, but now I'm thinking it'd be better to stick with Patricia. Not only does it look like she's going to make a big splash, but it will keep me in your sphere of influence for a while. I figure when I do go out on my own I'll do like Patty did, and orient each of my tunes around you." "Well, that's a nice thought, but I think your typical audience would like something a little more generic," Alex suggested. "After all, only a few people have the slightest clue who I am." "If we have anything to say about it, that'll change. But for now, Patty's managed to wrap the songs about you in terms the 'typical' person will understand, concealing the actual meaning while leaving it for those who'll recognize the actual context," Erica explained, showing she'd already spent too much time thinking about the topic. "That may be, but it still is a bit much for everyone to be singing about me all the time," Alex argued. "I might have a hard time dealing with it. In fact, I may skip several of the—" "Whoa," Patricia said, standing up and poking her finger in Alex's chest. "Let's just put that thought to rest right now. Natalie and I have very carefully scheduled these concerts for maximum effect. Not only were they arranged to reach the most people as well as to draw people to you, but we've made arrangements with many of your followers' families to seek us out during the concerts. You don't have to listen to the music if you don't want to, but you'll need to be there for each one." When Alex started to reply she cut him off, continuing with her explanation. "You can go searching for new followers while we're setting up during the day. But at night we need you there at the concert. We'll be in populated areas, which is a draw in itself, plus we'll pull in a substantial number of people. Not only that, but the advertising for the concerts is geared to your followers. This is the 'Trust Your Feelings' Tour. So anyone that has these sensations but doesn't understand them will be likely to visit, just to see if we reveal anything they can relate to. So it's the perfect opportunity for you." Cate was getting ready to say something as well, but Alex knew he'd already lost the argument so he waved his hands in front of him. "All right, I concede. You've made your point. I'd ask you to throw in a couple of non-Alex songs, but I figure the arrangements were also prepared long in advance, so I guess that's asking for too much?" Patricia and Erica both nodded, so Alex grunted at them, but he clearly understood there was no way he could change it at this late date. That was just one of the penalties in assigning others to arrange things for you. They had a tendency to paint you into things that were good for you, rather than doing it the way you liked. "So, Erica, you say you come from a musical family, how do they feel about you putting your musical ambitions aside to follow someone like me around?" Alex asked, trying to move the discussion away from the current impasse. "Oh, I'm hardly sidetracking my career with this," Erica informed him. "Patricia's going to be big. This album looks like it's going to hit the big time. But I've already told them about you. I've told both of my parents that the genes that have made me a Watcher might originate with them, so they're both expecting to meet you when we get to California, and they'll bring my nieces and nephews as well." Alex groaned involuntarily at that idea, but caught himself and put on a weak smile. The others knew how reluctant he was with what he had to do, so it didn't bother them. As long as he could do what he needed to do they'd each try to help him wrestle with his unease with it, since they each knew just how important what he was doing was. Alex turned to the other two girls, both of whom were now sitting on the bed with Gail and Cate. "OK, I take it that neither of you are musicians, since you don't exactly look the part and I don't recognize you from before." "No," said the first, a fuller breasted dirty blond with a big smile. "We're part of the support personnel. Once the album is released there'll likely be many more of us, but until then Patty only has a single van, so she was limited to who she could include. I'm Jordan Sterling, and I do the make-up and help run errands. Chelsea here does the wardrobe. We're relying on each stadium to handle the sound, stage and lighting effects," she explained. "Pleased to meet you both," Alex told them cordially. "Were you both hired for your particular skills, or do you have your own association to me?" "Jordan's known Patricia for some time, though she hired me because I'm known for my work with traveling performers," Chelsea explained. As she spoke Alex gave her a once over. She was a cute brunette with a nice smile. You could tell she took great pains with her own clothing, as it looked quite nice while still being unique. Alex could also tell that both girls were likely to be handfuls as well. "Patty told us all about you when we first signed on," Chelsea continued, "knowing just how much time we'd be spending together. She said she wanted to ensure we knew what we were getting into. She also told us that the band and their music are only secondary, that anything you said takes priority over anything else. We aren't used to self-centered musicians telling us something like that, so that got our attention." Jordan laughed, which really lit up her face even more. But Alex warned himself to watch it. The last thing he needed was to get involved with others besides his many followers. "Yeah, that told us just how serious she was about this. We also spent time talking to the others in the community, so we're fairly well informed about what's involved. I've got to say, though, this really brings this whole thing into much sharper focus for us. It is one thing being a part of a major act, but this goes way beyond that. This is, like, something real. This could affect millions of people for the next thousand years at least," she said with a look of intense concentration on her face. "Yeah, anything we can do for you, just let us know," Chelsea said. "We've heard so many stories of what you've done and how caring and protective you are, we're anxious to learn even more than we already know." "And in case you're interested," Jordan said, glancing at him with a raised eyebrow, "I can clean up those wild eyebrows for you, unless you're purposely going for a wild cult-leader look?" Alex blushed, but Cate and Gail both laughed. "He's lived with it for all this time, he's never once asked me to clip them for him," Cate told her. "Do you really think it looks that bad?" Alex asked, having never thought seriously about his looks before. "I know they're a little thick, but..." "It does look a bit wild," Chelsea offered. "Well, I guess as long as you're offering," Alex hedged, "but can you do anything about it long term, or would it need to be done continually?" Jordan walked up and played with his errant eyebrows. "I was thinking of just trimming them. You'd have to get them trimmed periodically, though. There are a couple that are longer than the others. If you were interested, you could get them treated so they wouldn't stick out by themselves, but I'd still recommend trimming it. But then again, what you have now is a unique look. It sort of says 'I'm not a handsome rock star, instead I'm an average man.' So think of which look you want. Either way, I can make you look good." "Yeah, like I need to attract any more women. Actually, if you could make me look uglier it might make my life easier." "Alex, you could look like Quasimodo and it wouldn't make a bit of difference," Cate informed him. Alex glanced questioningly at Gail and Patricia. "Hey, he has eyebrows? I never noticed," Gail replied with a laugh. Alex then glanced at Erica. "I'm attracted to your power. Your looks are an added benefit, but it wouldn't make much of a difference. Power is like money, it makes up for a lot of other things. It's sexy in a way that looks just can't compare with. Why do you think women go for rich and powerful guys? It's because they influence and control a lot of people and things. You fill that category in spades." Alex grimaced, but turned, spreading his arms, to appeal to the collection of women in the room. "So what do you say? Eyebrows or not?" "Personally, I'd trim it back so it's a little more under control, if I were you," Cate laughed. "There's eccentric, but then there's the Meth lab look." "Actually, you should think longer term," Jordan advised him. "While it doesn't detract from your followers at the moment, you're likely to get exposed eventually. All it'll take is a random photo showing up. When that happens, you have to consider how you'll appear to the public at large. Looking like you do now, while not bad in and of itself, might foster the wild cult image in people's minds." She regarded the looks she was getting and hurried to explain further. "It's part of my job to create the correct look for public figures. It's part of what I do." "All right," Alex said, turning back to Jordan with a smile, "I'll let you do your magic on me. Just try to not make me too irresistible, huh?" "Well, it'll probably be easier if we do it during the evening, when we have some time," Jordan said. "Uh, yeah, I had something else to tell you," Patricia said, looking a little put out. "Although I told you that whenever we left was up to you, well that was only true up to a point. We've got a schedule to keep. Our staying behind to clean up details cost us more time than we really had. Our first concert dates are tonight and Wednesday in Houston. So we need to get to Houston in a hurry so we can go over the preparations. It's especially important since this is the first performance in a whole series." "Oh, do we need..." Alex started to ask before Patricia cut him off. "You don't need to do anything," she told him. "We need to be there. But I heard how many stops you typically make, so we thought it would be better if we headed off on our own. That way you can take as much time dealing with new followers as you need to. As long as you make it there before the performance you should be OK." "I guess that means you'll be—" "Leaving soon? Yeah," Patricia replied. "We planned on leaving as soon as we finished breakfast. I'll give Cate the address of the hotel so you know how to get there. You can talk to me when you get there and I'll tell you where to meet us." "Well, that was quick," Alex said. "Though I appreciate whatever time I can spend with you, I'm beginning to think you're avoiding me." Patricia laughed. "As if I need to avoid you. All I need is to wait a couple of minutes and you'll have another bunch of women around you. Besides, all you need is an old lady like me hanging around you." "Hey, enough of that. I wouldn't put up with it from Anh and I won't put up with it from you. You're the mother of my future child, and you're a huge part of my life. Yes, I'm busy, but if you need the time I'll make it for you. Now I don't know what the next several nights will be like, but I'm expecting to spend some time with you. I haven't spent more than a few spare moments with you since my birthday." "Don't worry," Patricia told him, kissing him on the cheek. "We'll spend some time together. I've been planning on it, but I wanted to give the girls in New Orleans a chance at you. You take your time getting to Houston. Do what you need to do, just be there in time for the performance. But then I know you, you'll be on time come hell or high water. You don't let your friends down. I may be busy the next couple of days, but I'll make time for you. I'll always make time for you," she told him. Everyone said goodbye and they all hugged Alex, or shook his hand in Sammy's case, and soon they were on their way out the door again. Once everyone had left and Alex and Cate had waved goodbye to their departing van, Alex turned to Gail and his sister. "I guess we'd better get on the road. We had an easy time of it yesterday, but I wouldn't count on that to continue." ------- "You know, I'm really looking forward to the coming school year," Daniel informed his steady girlfriend, Grace. "Being seniors is going to be a big deal, but with a little work I think we can both get into one of the better schools together. That would be great. Can you imagine it, living on our own in dorms where we can spend the night whenever we feel like it?" "Yeah, I can imagine it," Grace replied with a feral grin all her own, "but I'm especially thinking of all the partying we can do next year. The pressure will be off of us at school, and we can kick back and have some fun," she said with a smile as her eyes seemed to envision it in her own mind. "Yeah, but don't forget there's still a lot of work we have to do, we can't party all the time. Neither one of us has been accepted at any universities yet, so we need extras to help push us over. We need to work at our respective sports, some awards wouldn't hurt, and maybe some volunteer work or some other extracurricular activities. We can't slack off. Although it's nice we both got summer jobs together this year, I'd like to see if I can get into some form of internship next summer." "Man, you certainly know how to bring me down," Grace groused. "I'm just looking forward to taking it easy all summer and having some fun with you. All that stuff will take care of itself. We'll get serious about life when we have to, but for now we're just a couple of high school kids on summer break, and aside from our part time jobs we've got no real responsibilities. Don't go spoiling that for me." "You always were the party girl, that's partly why I liked you so much, but I worked hard to get to where I am now, and I can't take the chance of letting good opportunities pass me by." "Ha, what we do now isn't going to make that big of a difference. As long as we graduate from college with a decent major we should be able to get a decent job. Then we can get serious about life, but there's no rush to grow up. You've got to learn to go with the flow. Worrying about your future makes you a dull boy, and while that intrigued me initially, I don't want you 'harshing my mellow, man'," she teased. It was true; they had come from two different worlds. Daniel was a hardworking overachiever who studied as hard as he played basketball and track. School didn't come easy for him, and since it meant so much to him he worked hard at it. He knew he wasn't likely to win any athletic scholarships, but being involved in a decent sports team would give him a leg up, so he worked hard to make the team each year, but it was a decent education that was going to win him a good paying job. But Grace didn't quite see things that way. Everything seemed to come easy for her. She was beautiful and she hardly had to work at much of anything. If she didn't get high grades right away, she'd flirt with some nerd and he'd offer to tutor her for free. If she couldn't get a decent job, she'd flirt with the manager at a local store and he'd offer her one on the spot. She was a social queen, and she really wasn't ready to give that up. She could afford to coast at this point, whereas Daniel couldn't. Still, they made an interesting pair. Daniel was intense and serious, thoughtful and a careful planner, whereas Grace was fun loving and impetuous. She could get Daniel to relax and let his hair down, while he could get Grace to do what was necessary for her to succeed. She knew she had to do well, and she'd used her charms on Daniel to help her do that, but he really took himself much too seriously sometimes. If he kept at it like he wanted to all the time, he'd be dead before he got very far in whatever job he wanted. "You know, it's great that we both got jobs at the mall during the summer," he said. "This idea of driving to work together every day is great. That way our parents don't question us spending so much time together, and we can spend time with each other during our break." "Yeah, well don't count on it today, Romeo, as I've got some shopping to do. Ramona told me that that Casual Girls got a new shipment of these darling fashions in today, and we're all heading over to check them out." "You do that," he told her, "and I'm sure you'll drag me to yet another party where you'll get the chance to wear them, but I'm going to focus on making an impression on Mr. Lopenso. I think he could give me a great letter of recommendation, and I want to make sure he thinks highly enough of me to lie for me," Daniel answered with a smile, glad that Grace was comfortable enough for him to joke about such things with. Grace came from a much different background than Daniel did. Both she and her mother were young, thin and gorgeous, and knew how to 'work it' to get ahead. Not only that, but her father was already a professional with a good job, unlike Daniel's immigrant parents. True, they were first generation, but they hadn't made it up the corporate ladder yet. That was Daniel's job. Everyone in his family expected him to get a good education and win that high paying job that made all the difference in America. And Daniel knew he couldn't let his family down. For Grace, her father actively encouraged her to take it easy. With any luck she could win a rich husband so she wouldn't have to work and slave like her father did. Their parents had very different lifestyles planned for the two of them. Though each had aggressive plans for their children, they had a different roadmap for how to get ahead in life. "I think I could get you one of those..." Grace unexpectedly halted mid-sentence, seemingly staring off into space, which was so unlike her that it make Daniel turn to see what was up. "What is it, babe? Think of something you forget?" he asked. "No, I think there's something we should see ahead of us. Can you step on the gas a little? We need to move faster or we might miss it." "Miss what? If I drive any faster I could get a ticket, and you know that jobs and colleges check out insurance rates and police records. If I get pulled for speeding my insurance would go up, and then I'd have to explain why I'm such a 'reckless youth'." "Uh, I really don't know what, but whatever it is, it's important. Much more important than avoiding a damn ticket," she said with a stern note to her voice. "Yeah, and what's so important it's worth getting a ticket I can't afford?" he asked. "Honestly, I don't know, but you're aware how I always seem to know who to avoid and who to follow at school, well it's like that. I just have this feeling that we should move farther up in traffic. There's something or someone that we should see if we can get close to them. You know how I got you involved with that silly choir group, because I told you they'd have good connections. Well it's like that. I just know there'll be a positive outcome if we get up there now," she insisted. Daniel certainly couldn't deny her that. Despite her having no clue who anyone on the men's choir was, she'd insisted he join, even pointing out whom to establish friendships with. It had certainly worked out well, as the job he was heading to now had been won by the connections he'd made. She'd also warned him about a variety of her friends. She'd told him that some of her friends were cutthroat, despite their pleasant demeanors, and she'd warned him away from some of the popular kids, something that had saved him from several embarrassing situations. So if she said to do something for some unexplained reason, he wasn't about to argue. She'd proven her worth on that front several times over. Daniel pressed on the gas a little heavier, watching the road ahead for any hidden police cars. He knew it was unlikely they'd encounter any, but they just loved to sit out on the highway during the warm summer days, and he really didn't need that hassle right now. His car maneuvered between a couple of others, slowly working its way through traffic. They both started work later in the day, meaning they didn't have to worry about traffic. These hours were ideal for them, they meant they could sleep late yet still have an excuse for the parents, they'd work into the early evening, thus having a handy excuse for getting home late and skipping dinner with the family. They'd get home in time to dress at which point Grace would drag Daniel to whatever crazy parties she found for them to crash. As they moved forward, though, Grace seemed to get more and more anxious, actually leaning forward in her seat. At one point she actually started biting her nails, something she never did. Her nails were always perfect, looking like she she'd never worked a day in her life. For someone as laid back as Grace was, it must be pretty important to upset her this much. "There," she said, pointing to the back of an older car ahead of them. "That's the one. See if you can pull up behind it. I don't know who or what's in it, but I can tell it's very important. We need to at least see who it is. I don't know how I know, but I can tell that whoever is inside is incredibly powerful. I think if we could identify who it is and follow them for a while, we could arrange an accidental meeting which would help us both." That got Daniel's attention. She'd set him up with some important people, telling him they'd make a difference in his life, either directly or indirectly, but she'd never actually told him they'd been that powerful themselves. With what they'd managed to do for Daniel, he was sure that whoever they were following could help him tremendously if they could work the same magic they'd worked before. As Daniel pulled in behind the older car, he noticed there were a couple of people in it. There was an older professional looking woman in the back, though she wasn't dressed like a business woman, but David just knew from her attitude that she was good at what she did. There was also a young girl in the front, but he couldn't see the driver. He figured the important person must be the woman in the back, but why they were riding in such a crappy car he had no idea. "Maybe your intuition is off this time," he suggested. "That woman doesn't seem so impressive to me." "It's not her, it's whoever is driving. I don't know why someone that important would be driving an older car like that, but he's the important one. The woman in the back, while she looks more imposing, she's not as influential, though I still wouldn't mess with her," Grace told him, speaking as if she knew these people she'd never met before. "I think she could put you in your place in record time. She's one tough lady," she told him with assurance, even though it sounded a little like a warning. As they drew nearer the woman in back, the one with the close cropped black hair, turned and looked back at them, then leaned forward to say something to the couple in the front seats. She turned and looked back at them, which made Daniel uneasy. They'd obviously been spotted tailing someone who was trying to travel incognito, but Grace didn't seem to be deterred. "Look, she's waving. I think if they didn't want us to talk to them I'd know. I think we should follow them to wherever they're going," Grace suggested. "That's just crazy," Daniel countered. "They could be driving cross country. Our exit is coming up in a little ways; it would be irresponsible for us to miss..." "Daniel," Grace said as she quickly turned on him, "it would be irresponsible to pass up an opportunity like this. There are important things that only happen to you once in your entire life, and I can tell that this is one of them. Whatever we do, we've got to talk to these people. It will affect our lives in a way that nothing else ever could. We aren't just talking about a possible summer job here, we're talking about a 'changing your life' type of event." Daniel glanced at her just to make sure she wasn't teasing him, but he knew before he saw the expression in her eyes that she was serious. She'd never sounded this serious the entire time he'd known her. Just as he returned his eyes to the road ahead of them, he saw the woman doing something in the back of the vehicle ahead of them. "What's she doing?" he asked. "She seems to be attaching something to the rear window," Grace told him. "What?" he asked simply. "Well, we won't know unless you get closer, now will we?" Grace replied a little testily. So Daniel edged closer, tailgating much closer than he'd normally allow himself. He had visions of accidentally rear ending them if they stopped suddenly. He was sure that would make a positive impression. "It's a sign," Daniel said, trying to read what it said. "It says, 'Follow us'." "Do it, Daniel," Grace insisted, looking at him. "Follow them wherever they drive." Daniel knew better than to contradict her, especially when she was this emotionally involved with what was occurring, but he couldn't imagine following some stranger home would work out very well, no matter how impressive the people were. But they'd already put their turn signal on, so Daniel felt safe that they wouldn't be following them indefinitely. Hopefully they'd either meet the people soon, or they'd pull up in front of a police station and have them arrested. Either way, they'd be able to get on with their day afterwards. ------- After getting a late start due to having spent so much time entertaining Patricia's entourage—Alex, Cate and Gail had gotten up late to begin with, with Alex finally having relaxed—they missed most of the early morning traffic. After they stopped for lunch it was even slower, thus the trio hadn't encountered as many new faces as they had on the rest of their trip. Sure, they'd stopped for a couple of people, but they were pretty few and far between. They reached Beaumont, Texas, without attracting too much attention, but just before they reached the turn-off where Route 10 merges with 69/96 Gail alerted them they'd gained another follower. "I'm guessing this one may be a Seer," she said. "They seem to be a bit more aggressive in following you. Keep your eyes on the road ahead and don't glance back in the rear view mirror. All we need is an accident because you let your eyes wander while driving." Alex did as she suggested, but Cate immediately turned back to look. "It's a young guy and a girl, both about our ages," she told her brother. "The guy's driving, so you should be safe." "No, Gail's right. Someone's first activation is too important to screw up by being careless. We need to wait until we can control the situation better. Gail, could you... ?" "Already on it, Boss man. I put Cate's sign to work. Take the next exit," she suggested. "There's an exit coming up, I'll just pull off here," Alex told them. "No, don't take that one," Cate corrected him. "That's 69/96 North. They have it labeled as the 'Texas Forest Trail'. That's the opposite direction we need to take, and I don't think there will be any nearby exits. Just stay in this lane until you see a place to pull off." "We seem to have another one," Gail warned them. "This one is further back. I don't know if they can see us yet, so slow down a bit so they can catch up." "I'll put on my blinker so they'll know we're exiting soon, though it's likely to annoy the other drivers," Alex replied. Alex ignored the turnoff he'd considered, leading to route 96, and continued on Route 10, his right blinker flashing the whole way despite his not taking the turnoff. He'd slowed down enough that little old ladies were passing him on the left, but since he didn't see any immediate exits he sped up again. Then he saw one, marked Laurel Avenue. "Let me know if they can both see me exiting," Alex called out. "You're fine. The second car is following the first. I don't know if they can see my sign, but they've slowed down to stay behind you so I feel confident they'll stick with us." Alex turned off and pulled into a small store complex on his right, where he found a parking spot as far away from the shops as he could get. Keeping his eyes hooded, he glanced back in the rearview mirror to gauge where the two cars were, not overly worried if the passenger behind them saw him now that they were safely off the highway. "All right, since this is another guy-girl combination let me get out first so I can protect you if I need to," Gail advised, so she and Cate both exited the car, while Alex rolled the window down. "The other car has a lone woman driving it, she's older and shouldn't be a problem," Gail told him, so he figured he was safe enough and got out of the car. As he did he looked down, watching the approaching feet of the people nearing him. "Uh, excuse me, we didn't mean to..." the approaching guy began speaking hesitantly, but the woman beside him showed no such hesitancy. Looking up, Alex saw them both clearly for the first time. They were indeed a young couple, both apparently dressed for work. The young man was trying to hold the girl back but she was having none of it, shaking loose his grasp on her arm. When she looked back she pulled up short, looking momentarily stunned, but that only lasted for a moment before she fell to her knees. "Are you OK, Grace?" Daniel asked. "No, I'm not," she hissed, which surprised him. "Bow down. This is some major shit we just stepped in," she whispered to her boyfriend. "We fuckin' stalked an angel!" Grace suddenly noticed that they could likely hear her, despite her attempting to whisper only loud enough for Daniel to hear, and she blushed deeply, but she bowed down even lower to hide it. Alex was preparing to say something to her, but the woman behind them who'd just gotten out of her car saw the two sink to their knees so she rushed up to them, quickly doing the same, apparently thinking it was the proper protocol for a situation like this. Alex looked this woman in the eyes as she approached. Their eyes met briefly, but she didn't react any more than to drop her eyes in embarrassment. Alex knew they must be making quite a sight, but the fact they were physically isolated meant they'd only be observed by people passing on the street, so he wasn't as concerned about attracting attention as he normally was. Grace was a thin wiry brunette with a fresh clean look and an irrepressible smile. Her boyfriend, Daniel, was a somewhat clutzy looking teen, with somewhat chunky cheeks despite his not being that overweight. Overall it made him look a little geeky, which contrasted with Grace's striking vibrant look. The other woman was a little older, but not that old. She still had a fresh faced look about her, and her smile lit up her otherwise shy geeky look her glasses and her hesitant demeanor projected. She had dirty blonde hair which was cut short, but only wore a nondescript outfit. "You really don't need to bow down to me," Alex told them. The young man looked up, taking Alex's measure for the first time, since he'd been afraid to previously. He was surprised to see the man they were prostrating themselves before was no older than they were. He was surrounded by two others, a younger girl, and an authoritative older woman who seemed to be standing just outside of arms reach of him. Grace and the other girl, whom none of them had met, were more reluctant to get up, but once Daniel started to stand and didn't receive a reprimand, they did too. "OK, there's a lot of information to cover and we don't have much time to do it. Just so you know; I'm not an angel or anything like that. What I have is a weird genetic anomaly which allows me to access and activate a related genetic trait both of you share. It's complicated, but I think it's fairly clear." "So you're just a normal guy?" Daniel asked him. Alex started to answer in the affirmative, but Grace quickly interceded. "He's anything but, Daniel, can't you see how he shines, the immense radiance surrounding him?" When Daniel didn't answer she glanced at him, getting only a dim witted stare in return. Confused, Grace turned to the other girl. "You can see it, can't you?" she asked. "No, but I can feel it. I know he's important, and I could easily believe he's an angel, but he looks normal to me." Grace turned and glanced at Alex, but seeing only a towering figure of blazing light turned to Cate instead. "Only certain people can see him like that," Cate explained. "It's part of the ability he's activated in you. You can see the life force in people. If you look at your friend you can see it as various colors, which we'll explain in a minute, but in Alex his energy is so strong that all you can see is a blinding light." Grace took a moment to look at Daniel and the others around her, trying to piece this all together. "Uh, what exactly did you do to Grace?" Daniel asked, not sure he was going to like what he heard. "My brother triggered an ability she's already receptive to. Perhaps you've noticed that she can pick up things about people? If so, it's because she could feel their energy levels. Now, because of Alex, she can literally see it as a physical manifestation. He actually managed to change a few things in her brain, both in the cognitive and the visual portions." "Grace, you're what we call a 'Seer' now," Alex continued to explain. "We call you that because you can see what the rest of us can't. You," he said, indicating the other girl, "are a Watcher, so called because you can feel the energy in people, but you don't yet trust those feelings enough to believe them, so you tend to stand back and watch. "You, sir," he said addressing Daniel, "are what we call a type 3. You don't have the particular genetic features that allow these other traits. I take it you're her boyfriend, so you'll need to help her out, because this is a lot to take in and cope with, and she'll need some help in dealing with it." Daniel simply nodded sheepishly, not quite sure how to react to all of this, but he was firmly convinced by how much it was affecting Grace. He could see she was seeing a whole new world now. "Now, as you may have guessed, my name is Alex. This is my sister, Cate, and the other woman is Gail. She's another Seer like you are. Can I ask who each of you are?" "I'm Daniel Vertiz, and this is Grace Barlow. We attend high school near here during the year. We were just on our way to work at the mall," Daniel explained, since Grace seemed to be too preoccupied to say anything on her own. "I'm Morgan Kohler," the older woman in the back told them. "I was on my way to pick up my kids when I came upon you." "Well, then it's important that we tell you everything quickly so you can get back," Alex told them, generating a scoffing laugh from Cate. "You still don't get it, do you, Alex? There's no returning to a normal life for any of them. Once you enter a person's life, their entire life changes. Hell, even the guys that you've interacted with have changed dramatically from the way they were before they met you." "Still, I'd rather they try to learn about it in their own time," Alex explained, not wanting to get into side discussions at the moment. "I'd like to supply everything you need to survive, and then let you contemplate it on your own. When you're ready, we've got people you can talk to and visit that will help you refine your abilities." "She's going to have trouble surviving with this?" Daniel asked nervously. "No, no. I didn't mean that. I just meant that she needs to know certain things about herself in order to understand what's happened. Once you know that, you should all be able to return to your previous lives for a few days while you process it." "So you aren't an angel, then?" Morgan asked, clearly looking like she couldn't quite believe Alex on this one point. "No, far from it," Alex laughed gently, hoping to put them at ease, but behind him, both Cate and Gail quietly shook their heads, telling the others they didn't agree with him. "I just happen to have the ability to trigger these capabilities in others. I myself can't see what you can." Alex and Cate then proceeded with the usual spiel about how the various abilities work, as well as explaining about the communities in New Orleans and Carbondale. Alex also handed out Shanna's new business cards, telling them to contact her when they were ready to travel to the other communities. "But for now, if you can spare the time, we'll be in the Houston House of Blues for a concert tomorrow and Thursday night. I'll be wandering around the concert, so I don't know how much time I'll have available, but you can meet others from this area who are like you, so hopefully you can form your own community here and support one another." "So wait a minute," Daniel said, now that he'd gotten a chance to consider what Alex had been telling them, "you're telling me that you're just an average Joe, with nothing else to tell Grace or anyone else?" "Well, I'm trying to tell them how to use their abilities, but I'm not here to lay some religious trip on you about it," Alex told him. "You may be saying that, but I'm not sure the others with you believe it," Daniel told Alex, considering the view he had of Cate and Gail. Alex turned and glanced at them as well, giving them a dirty look. They returned a couple of innocent looks, but as soon as he turned his head they shook their heads no again, while simultaneously making a shhing motion with their fingers. "The girls have an ongoing debate about me," Alex explained. "While I don't personally believe in God, most of my followers do, they tend to think I'm being guided by God, or spirits, or beings from a parallel dimension or some such. It provides a nice sense of reassurance to believe that, but I don't quite buy it myself." "Alex doesn't believe in the existence of the soul," Gail explained, "despite the fact that each of us Seers can see it, and can describe it to him. He also doesn't believe in a giant spirit guiding his actions, despite his knowing there's no other explanation. He likes to think he's the voice of reason here, but he's mostly just shooting from the hip." "Well, I think I tend to believe his point of view, but it begs the question. Why the hell should we listen to you?" Daniel asked with more than a trace of disdain. Grace spun on Daniel, wordlessly pleading with him to not make a scene, but Daniel was on a roll. While he could see that Grace was convinced she was seeing something that no one else could, he didn't think this kid had any more to tell them about it than they could figure out for themselves. He thought they'd do just as well avoiding him and his 'people', and continuing on as they always had. "Frankly, I don't see any need to either," Alex told them honestly. "I'm just here to provide some guidance. I triggered these changes so I feel personally responsible to the people I activate, as well as the Watchers, who can learn a lot from me as well. But there's no reason to believe that I'm any better than the next guy regarding how to react to this. You should each decide on your own how you want to deal with it." Daniel scoffed, rolling his eyes in front of Grace and the others, belittling Alex before everyone present. Grace couldn't take it, and she lit into him. "Daniel, now just shut up before you embarrass yourself any more than you already have. I can clearly see just how powerful Alex is. He may not be ready to recognize it himself, but don't you believe his rationalizations about being just another guy for a second. Only someone given great powers from God himself could have the powers that Alex does. Don't mistake humility and understatement for powerlessness or aimlessness. Cate, tell me, has your brother achieved any miracles?" Cate just smiled at this, enjoying watching the cat and mouse play between the disbelieving boyfriend and the newly convinced girlfriend. She'd seen this play out several times before in a number of ways, but each time it did, it seemed to play out in a unique way. What's more, Grace's responses echoed her own beliefs about Alex and his inability to come to terms with what he'd become since he'd first discovered his abilities. "He performs miracles all the time," she answered honestly. "He raised a man from the dead only several days after he first discovered his powers. He's healed people with incurable diseases, he's healed people with burns over vast amounts of their bodies, he's cured people with kidney problems, saving them the expensive treatments required for an organ transplant. He even gave a blind woman the power of sight. He likes to think he's normal, but no one else believes he is." Alex shot his sister a dirty look, trying to tell her to be quiet, but Gail spoke up then as well. "It's true, he's constantly telling us that we're free to believe whatever we want, that he doesn't have any new revelations or any scriptures to reveal to us, but then he constantly tells us better ways to live, healthier and more productive behaviors. He always knows how to achieve the best in anyone's life, and is frequently making major differences in people's lives. You can take him at his word that he's just a typical teenager if you want, but you should be advised that he's the only one to take that particular position." "Ha, he doesn't seem that special to me," Daniel scoffed. "What kind of miracle did he perform? He waves his hands over some guy with gout and he feels better? That doesn't prove anything." Alex started to say something, but before he could everyone else started speaking for him. "Has Alex ever showed any external signs of his power, something besides his healing abilities?" Morgan asked. "Oh, yeah," Cate assured them again. "Each time someone attacks him, and several people have, he's always come out on top. One big college football linebacker attacked him and Alex crippled him, despite the fact he outweighed Alex by about twice as much. Someone pulled a gun on him, pointing it right at his forehead, and Alex triggered a stroke so he was unable to do anything." "Ha, unless you count getting shot in the neck," Alex countered, brandishing his scar as evidence of his fallibility. "It was a flesh wound that he only suffered because he stepped in front of a bullet to protect us, after he'd already incapacitated the gunman," Cate explained. "Even then, he was healed and fully functional within days. He was dancing at his prom with dozens of potential girlfriends by the end of the week." "You can't cause someone to have a stroke," Daniel argued. "You might be able to screw their blood flow up if you hit them hard enough, but the chances of doing just the right thing to do it are almost impossible." "He did it the same way he activated your girlfriend," Cate told him. "He created a portal in their brain, linking it permanently to his. In the case of his attacker, he did the same thing, but in exactly the perfect location to render him spastic and unable to function fully, but without killing him. He claims it was accidental, but that seems pretty close to Divine intervention if you ask me." "Daniel, you clearly don't know what you're talking about here," Grace sternly told him. "I'd suggest you stop embarrassing yourself. You don't need to be here for this. Alex is letting you stay just to be nice and to allow us to remain close, but none of this concerns you in the least. But the rest of us are here because we believe in him and want to help him." "What do you mean?" Daniel asked, finally turning on Grace for not sticking up for him. "All you want is to party, what the hell are you going to do for him?" "I don't know," she responded. "I think I'm willing to stop everything I'm doing and follow him wherever he might need me," she insisted. "No, don't do that," Alex hurriedly told her. "If you were already planning on college, please, that's where I need you. I need educated people to advise me, and even more to help my people. It will take a lot to avoid trouble in the future, and we need as much brain power as we can get." Grace turned and faced him head on, despite her being unable to look at him directly. "Then what do you need me to do?" she asked. "I don't know," he answered honestly. "I don't know what your skills are in. Are you into science? Are you a talker? Can you lead someone? I need to know your strengths. But I need skills more than I need ready hands. I have plenty of people who are willing to simply help out. Once I'm gone, I'll need people who can help out for the next several generations. That's where I really need the help." "I'm good at motivating people," Grace confidently told him. "I can talk to people, I can organize events. I'm also sure I can master whatever technical skill you'd need. Do you need a doctor or a lawyer?" Daniel laughed from behind her. "Grace, you can't even get through a basic science class without assistance. How the hell are you ever going to study for the ten years to become a doctor or a lawyer?" She quickly spun on him. "Listen, don't confuse my taking things easy with my being a pushover. I can accomplish anything I set my mind to. The problem is, up until now I never had anything that I needed to do. However, now I do. I'll do whatever Alex needs me to do. What's more, I'll do an excellent job of it. And the only motivation I'll need is knowing that I'm helping him." "I agree," Morgan concurred. "I'd like to help in any way that I can. I'm just a housewife and a mother, but I'll do whatever you need me to do." "Well," Alex began, considering how best to use two people he knew nothing about, "the best I can think of is if you could come to the concert tonight. What I really need right off the bat is someone to organize and help the various new followers we'll be developing in the next few days. If you could help organize them it would mean a lot to me." "Consider it done," Morgan assured him, not even waiting for Grace to say anything. "I'll schedule everything," Grace added. "I'll organize call lists, I'll record everything you say and keep track of everyone's abilities and their job skills." Daniel again seemed to be unable to accept the new changes in Grace's basic personality, since it seemed to be so far from her previous personality of only minutes ago. "You? You who can't keep track of when your next test is or your own assignments!" "My class assignments aren't important," she assured him with authority. "No one's life is in the balance if I submit a history paper on time. However, it will with what Alex is asking me to do. I have no problem accepting responsibility. I'd only been delaying accepting it before, but now that I find it thrust upon me and finding that I can make a real difference in the world, I'll gladly do whatever I need to do." 'Look, it doesn't make sense to argue about this with Daniel present, as he's only getting more defensive the more he's exposed to. One of your new abilities is being able to speak to me telepathically whenever you wish. You should take Daniel aside and return to your jobs. Just let him rant and rave a bit and humor him a little. Give him time to come around. If he doesn't, then you may want to talk to him. But give him the benefit of the doubt. This is a lot for anyone to take in all at once. You have the benefit of being able to see the proof of it with your own eyes, but he doesn't have that benefit. Let me know if you're going to be able to make it to the show. If you do, I'll put you to use.' 'Holy shit!' Grace swore before she caught herself and considered just who she was swearing in front of. 'I'll be there come hell or high water. Count on it.' 'Good. Now take care of your boyfriend and think a bit more on what I've told you, ' he said mentally before turning to each of them. "Anyway, I've taken up too much of your time as it is. If you could, could you give Cate here your telephone numbers so she can get in contact with you? If any of you can get away to see the show I'd appreciate it, but I can understand if you can't. But it's important that you try to talk to others like yourselves to better understand what you're going through, and to help them as well." Both girls assured them they'd be there, while Daniel merely grumbled, at least until Grace shot him a lover's death ray, daring him to say anything else. He was wise enough to not push the issue after that, but only just. They all gave Cate their information, even though Grace had to correct Daniel's information a couple of times. During this exchange Alex walked back to the car with Gail, so as to not antagonize Daniel any more. He figured that Daniel was having a tough enough time dealing with it, and didn't need to be challenged any more. Soon three cars were heading off in different directions once more, each one fundamentally changed by the encounter. ------- The rest of the drive to Houston was largely uneventful. They still met more people on the road, especially as they neared Houston, but due to the hour they were driving they only met a couple of Watchers, and as they neared the city Alex decided it would be less awkward if they could direct them to the hotel rather than trying to stop and meet each one, so Cate, now relegated to the back seat while Gail drove through the city traffic, put up a sign telling anyone following them to meet them at the Four Seasons Hotel, which was near the club. Despite the fact their first performance was unlikely to do much for them, Patty and Gail had insisted on 'decent' accommodations for Alex and those staying with him. However they both knew that what Alex considered decent differed from what they felt he deserved. Alex was impressed with Houston. It seemed larger and more spread out than downtown New Orleans was. But the buildings were higher, the traffic more intense, and the streets around the hotel more crowded. He was glad he wasn't driving as Gail swerved in and out of traffic, swearing at the cabs as they cut her off. If he never had to drive in city traffic he'd be glad, but he knew he'd be likely to need the skills, since they were planning to have him travel to most of the major cities in the country over the coming months. When they arrived at the hotel, Gail refused to drop Alex off in front of the hotel to drop their bags off, wanting to be with him to provide any needed protection. They weren't planning to stay for long, just long enough to get their room which Patricia had already reserved, drop off their gear and then they'd head over to the club to join Patricia and her bandmates as they were getting ready for their first paying engagement of the tour. There were three girls already waiting when they got to the lobby, they'd apparently double parked in the street just so they could get to Alex in time. Alex sat with them while Gail made Cate take the bags to the room so she could watch over Alex. Cate mumbled to herself, but knew it was unavoidable. She'd just have to be quick so she could get all the names and numbers before Alex offhandedly dismissed them. That boy had no idea what it took to keep all his followers accounted for! When Cate managed to make it back down nothing too untoward had happened. No one had attacked or shot at her brother, so it looked like Gail's fears were once again unfounded. But Cate couldn't hold that against their friend, if Gail had been available that one night, maybe Alex wouldn't have been shot. The idea of how close she'd come to losing him gave her shivers once again. She hurriedly got together with everyone, catching up on the stories and making notes, as well as recording who they each were, how and where they met Alex, and a little something about them in addition to their names, addresses and phone numbers. She'd taken to developing her own coded shorthand, since she knew her records of Alex's followers could get everyone involved with Alex's movement in a world of trouble if it ever fell into the wrong hands. Like possibly those of the police or the government. She knew they needed to become much more paranoid in the future, because it was only a matter of time before they'd eventually be revealed. They'd need to be able to protect themselves when that happened. After she'd finished, Alex excused himself, telling the women he'd meet them at the club tonight assuming they could still get tickets. Alex didn't think their first performance would be that big, but Houston is a pretty big venue, so he couldn't rule it out. Besides, he knew next to nothing about the show. He didn't know if there was anyone else on tour with them, or if there were any other acts. Hopefully he'd learn about it before tonight. After saying goodbye to the newest Watchers outside, the three walked to the nearby club. The place certainly looked impressive, a modern steel and glass building. It wasn't overly large, so Alex wasn't prepared for what he'd find inside. As instructed, they wandered around the back and knocked on the door. They'd alerted Patricia they'd be by shortly, so Jordan met them at the door. The inside of the club was nothing like Alex had expected. He'd been thinking of a traditional smoky bar, but instead it was a nicely decorated restaurant/bar/concert hall with many separate rooms and venues. Jordan led them back to where they were still setting up, doing basic sound checks and going over their routines. "Oh, Alex, just the person I wanted to see," Patricia exclaimed when she saw him. "I think everyone else is ready, so I can spare some time to go over what you need to know. I'll need to get back here soon, though, so we'll have to make this fast." She led them through the club as she talked. "This is the theater we'll be performing in tonight. It's their largest theater, and we'll be lucky to partially fill it, since no one knows me outside of my usual haunts. But you won't be here watching me. Hopefully you'll be able to listen to me tonight, but I'm not exactly counting on it," she told him with a gentle laugh. She continued walking and talking as she walked out into the outer hallway. "No, you'll be spending most of your time here during the performance. The idea is that I'll attract them here. Since this was our 'getting started' session and since you didn't arrive with us, it won't count, but the idea is that when we roll into town, anyone sensing you will notice the van and the 'Trust your feelings' messages, and they'll come to wherever we're performing looking for you during the act. Thus you'll spend most of your time walking around either here outside the hall, or in the club itself or even outside," she explained as she walked them through the various rooms and passageways. "This is a large club, set up in various rooms, so anyone looking for you might be in any of these different areas, so you'll likely have to check each periodically. We certainly don't want to miss anyone in the confusion. If you need privacy, which I'm sure you will, these passes will ensure that you can pass through any of the doors you need to. I warned the club personnel that you'll be wandering around on my behalf, so try to not walk in on the club owner or manager, but otherwise you should have free rein. "If you need to check on anyone waiting outside the club, you can regain access through this door. There'll be a doorman here, but I've already given them your picture, and with the pass you'll have no difficulty getting inside. You'll have problems bringing anyone inside with you, though, due to fire regulations on the number of people in the club, so anyone you meet outside you'll have to arrange to meet either in the hotel or the van afterwards." She continued to show them around, showing the different access routes and the back room she'd made sure he'd have access to to talk to anyone backstage. Alex looked it over carefully, impressed that Patricia had planned everything so carefully. "You've certainly investigated each detail," he told her. "You do me proud, though I doubt there will be many people following me tonight." "No, I didn't think so," Patricia replied. "As I said, tonight is mostly a dry run so we can get used to how we'll work the crowds as the tour progresses. But we'll be in Houston two nights with two sets tonight, so there should be plenty of time to work your magic," she told him somewhat obliquely. "Don't count on there not being a lot of new followers," Gail told them, "he's been telling everyone we've met to come to the club tonight, so I'm guessing that even if no new followers show up at the concert, we'll still have several people following Alex around." "I never doubted that for a second," Patricia added with a smile. "Anyway, I need to be getting back. If you need anything, just ask any of my people, or even ask one of the club's people to find me." She turned back and smiled at him. "Duh, look who I'm talking to. If you need anything, you can always talk to me, even if I'm locked in the can, so I don't need to worry about your ability to track me down." "You're ideas are great," Alex told her before she could leave, "but I have a few of my own. I'll probably stay in one spot, outside the auditorium, so that people won't have to search for me all over the club. I'll also use some of the new followers to check around the other locations and outside to round up anyone that looks out of place. We've found that the Watchers won't initiate anything themselves, but that they want to be involved and will do just about anything once invited. "That should cut down on the confusion and the traffic. Each person can develop a rapport with the club personnel in each room, so they won't be disrupted by our coming and going. And afterwards I'll probably bring a bunch of the new people back to the hotel with us. Not for what you're thinking," he cautioned Patricia when she cocked an eye at him. "Instead I'm planning on appointing a couple of people to organize the local followers like we did in New Orleans. That will help the community here develop over time." "That sounds good," Patricia told him. "Also, don't forget that everyone in New Orleans with family or friends they suspect might be types 1 or 2 will have them show up here either tonight or tomorrow, so that will account for more people." "More likely it will be both nights," Cate said. "Undoubtedly," Patricia added. "Well, anyway, I can see you have this well in hand. As I said, I've got to be getting back. Walk around and familiarize yourself. During the performance tonight I'll have Chelsea and Jordan help you to round people up, since we don't know when your people will show up. Anyway, good luck and I hope tonight works well for you." "Hey, we should be wishing you good luck," Alex called to her as she headed off. "After all, it's your big night tonight. We'll be fine, concentrate on your show tonight." "Hey yourself," she called back when she paused by the door leading back into the auditorium, "this whole tour was planned to help you. You are the sole purpose of all of this. Don't you forget it. I don't care if I'm successful or not, as long as I can assist you in your mission. You've been talking long enough about this mission of yours, it's about time you started doing something about it. Now I've got to go so I can be sure I don't embarrass you too much with my own humble act." And with that she blew him a kiss and headed off. Alex, Cate and Gail looked around one last time at the silent hallway as they contemplated what they were about to get themselves into. Previously, they'd mostly dealt with various individuals as they ran into them, one by one on an individual basis. Now they'd have a circus like environment surrounding them, with hundreds of screaming people all around them. Whether that would make things crazier or help cover their own craziness, they didn't know, but whatever happened, this was bound to be a whole new experience. ------- Chapter 19: First Night Jitters While they were waiting for the show to start, Chelsea, Patricia's wardrobe assistant, updated them on what had been happening in the media while they'd been on the road. "The media is all over that news report from the woman that called Fox news," Chelsea said. "Yeah, Clara. Somehow she always managed to open a can of worms, despite her best intentions." "Well, Fox news has been ranting about it, so much so that the other stations are covering it as well. In fact, both Jay Leno and Jon Stewart did bits on her. She's managed to trigger a firestorm of interest about you, but the focus has been mostly on Fox's reaction to it and her responses, rather than on you. The press still doesn't seem to know much about you." "Well that's something to be thankful for, it's much easier to work in the shadows, away from close scrutiny. The last thing I need is to be the focus of everyone's attention, even if they aren't reporting on me. Just having them referring to me will get more people to notice me and what I do, and eventually someone is going to leak a photo which someone is likely to identify." "David Letterman did a Top 10 Commandments of the Angel of New Orleans segment, but most of those were just plain silly," Chelsea explained. "What about Albert?" Alex asked. "Has he responded to the new media attention? Has he released any new information about me? He's the one with the most information about me." "I haven't heard anything from him lately, but we've only been listening to the national networks while we've been working, so we could easily have missed a lot." "Well, the most damaging thing he knew about me was my name, and he's already released that, so I guess he can't do me much more harm. Besides, I think he's a fan now anyway. Hopefully he'll spend his time talking about Alexandria rather than me, now." "You know, I've been meaning to ask you about that, doesn't she mind being identified in the press like you were?" "Ah," Alex said, taking a second to think up a decent response to the question. "Since she's more divinely connected than I am, she's not as worried about earthly matters. She tends to come and go at will, while I've got to stay here and deal with the consequences." "I haven't quite figured her out," Chelsea continued. "Patricia has always talked about you, but she's never mentioned Alexandria before. I guess we're all trying to figure out how she fits into what you're doing." "The key is," Alex carefully explained, further wrapping himself in this fictitious enigma, "is that she's in charge, and she's where I get all of my abilities from. She doesn't stay on earth for long, or if she does, I don't know where she lives. She simply pops in to talk to me or the others from time to time, so she doesn't run the continual risks that I and the other leaders do." Alex knew he was breaking one of the cardinal rules that Gail laid out when she'd carefully told him how to lie successfully, that of 'keeping it simple'. This story was pretty complex, and it was likely to get even more involved each time he told it. But so far it was useful to keep people from focusing on him, and Alex's focus was on reaching as many people as he could. He couldn't hope to do that if everyone was watching him, so he didn't think the fictional Alexandria would mind if he continued to use her name for a while longer. But Alex also knew his 'fiction' of Alexandria was important for another reason, it gave those outside of his mission a way of dealing with it. As it was, as news of it spread, people would begin to ask what it was about. That was something no one would be able to answer without explaining about the genetic differences and the abilities that differentiated them, and that wasn't the kind of information that they wanted to give out. By using the story of Alexandria, they allowed those outside of the movement to label it in a handy box marked 'oddball religions' and put it out of their mind. However, without that clear distinction Alex knew those same people would soon be searching for what Alex's increasing number of followers saw in him. Alex figured this little invention of his wouldn't actually hurt anyone. After all, no one was actually 'preaching' this new religion, and no one was trying to convert anyone to it. He knew that his followers were following him and not Alexandria. Even Chelsea was simply curious about Alexandria's relationship to Alex, she wasn't asking about any further insights into her religious principals. Thus Alex's usage of Alexandrianism helped everyone without really hurting anyone. Alex didn't see any downside to it at the moment, although he was well aware of how it could potentially trip him up if he allowed it to get away from him. "It seems the other networks are stymied by your followers' refusal to say anything about you. They keep interviewing people in New Orleans, but it seems the only ones talking to them are the tourists or the locals who think they might have seen you. I suspect much of what they are reporting are the intentional misdirects that Peter, David and Darice are setting up for them." "Yeah, those three have really been working hard for me. They've saved my ass a number of times." Jordan, Patricia's make-up girl, laughed. "I didn't think angels were allowed to say things like 'ass'." "Hey, angel's don't, but they don't say anything to us atheistic sub-angels," Alex countered, which caused Cate to crack up. She thought the papers calling Alex the 'sub-angel of New Orleans' was hilarious. Alex just rolled his eyes at her. He thought it was pretty funny too, but he wasn't going to admit it too openly. The rest of the afternoon was spent worrying about what was likely to happen that evening, since everyone knows all the bugs in plans tend to come out during the initial performance. Gail spent her time chatting up the security people, telling war stories as she prompted them about access points and things to watch out for. Cate had run across some trouble when she'd wandered into one of the many bar areas. One of the harassed bartenders had chased her off, telling her they couldn't afford to get busted for an 'underage kid misappropriating liquor'. She'd tried to explain why she was there but he wasn't having any of it, so she'd eventually left simply to avoid the continuing lecture the bartender was hell bent on delivering. The club's staff seemed as nervous about what was happening as Alex's helpers were, though they didn't know what Alex or his people were up to. They ended up getting a quick meal prepared for them in the club's kitchen, which was decent even if the atmosphere wasn't quite what the paying customers received. Still, Alex could see why the club did such a good business. Looking at the performance schedule, he also noticed the acts that Patricia was situated amongst. There were some pretty big name acts. Finally it was time to prepare for the opening. Alex watched from the back of the auditorium as Patricia and her band ran through their last minute preparations, but when they flashed the lights signaling the doors were officially opening he retreated to the connecting hallway the patrons would have to pass through to access the auditorium. Cate, Jordan and Chelsea were stationed in other parts of the building. Actually, Chelsea was stationed outside to catch anyone trying to reach Alex without having a ticket to get in. Gail was standing beside the doors acting like just another security guard. She wasn't standing near Alex for fear of intimidating anyone trying to approach him, but he knew she could cross the space separating them in record time should the need arise. Grace, the Seer that Alex had found that morning, had contacted Alex as she got near the club, she was one of the first ones to arrive outside, and he directed her to work with Chelsea in trying to identify anyone outside who might be trying to find Alex's energy source. That way they'd be covered if Chelsea had to leave unexpectedly, or if she simply didn't know how to respond to something she encountered. Grace took to it immediately, scanning the crowd, keeping notes, and alerting Alex every time she saw someone who looked like a possible type 1 or 2 entering the club. She also told him she'd arrived with Morgan, so Morgan had agreed to enter the club's bar to do the same reconnaissance work there. Alex had his own hands full as he tried to evaluate the many people hurriedly passing him. Some scurried into the club to find their seat immediately; some took their time glancing around. A couple stayed in the hallways talking to their friends while they could, while others were waiting for someone to join them. As far as Alex could tell, no one was there looking for him, although he had plenty of false starts, as he'd find himself heading for someone who was looking around with a confused expression only to find the expression disappear when they found their missing friends. It took a while to fill the auditorium. Grace notified Alex that she'd managed to locate the three girls he'd met earlier in the day, mainly because Alex had told them to look for someone standing outside watching for them. They each volunteered to help as well, so Alex had one help outside while another came in to assist him and the third went in to see if she could find anyone spending more time watching the back of the hall than the stage or the other people. Overall, it was confusing and frustrating trying to identify potential followers as they walked in, so Alex doubted they'd have much luck at it. The other Watcher they'd encountered came in to see Alex immediately after finding out where to find him from Grace and Chelsea. They were beginning to make a bit of a crowd, so Alex had her make a coffee run just to keep her busy since everyone wanted to help so much. Soon the lights flashed, so Alex simply faded back against the exterior wall as everyone hurried to their seats to prepare for the show. Gail anxiously watched Alex, since she was farther away from him than she'd been previously, though Alex had no doubt she could cover him should the need arise. Grace asked him what they should do about coming in or remaining outside. He advised that she should come inside, since her main job as the head of the local community was to meet anyone he identified. He also told her to leave the other Watcher outside and that he'd meet with her later at the hotel. She could help Chelsea, but for now she should get some coffee because she was likely to be standing alone out there for some time during the concert, waiting for random passersby to approach after having felt Alex from nearby while doing other things. Once the music finally started up Cate came in and joined them as well. "Well, find anyone?" Cate asked. "Not yet," Alex told her. "What about all the potentials I warned you about?" Grace asked. "Most of those were normals who looked confused for other reasons. A few might have been Watchers, but they didn't stick around long enough for me to tell. I'm hoping once the concert starts they'll have enough time to identify where I am." "Good thinking," Cate agreed. "So now I guess we just wait here." "Yep, that's the plan," Alex confirmed. While they waited they enjoyed the music wafting through the walls. Gail continued to chat up the security guard, trying to distract his attention from the group of people hanging around in the hallway. Grace told them about the trouble she'd had with her father. Somehow he'd figured something had happened to her, she suspected she'd come in excited and it showed, but he'd grilled her. She told Alex she didn't reveal much, but that she'd insisted that this was something that she had to do, and that she was willing to move out on her own if it was necessary for her to do it. Alex cautioned her, reminding her of how important family was, and how she'd likely need the family's support if they ran into trouble. She agreed in principle, but she was hesitant to bring her father in to meet Alex, thinking he wasn't ready for that yet. After the music had been playing a little while they each jumped when someone exited the hall, but they watched in disappointment as a single guy walked off to the nearby men's room. However, a few minutes later someone else came out as well. She looked around questioningly, and then focused right in on Alex, her jaw gaping open as she saw him, as if she couldn't believe what she'd been feeling was actually real. Cate hurried over to her, telling her she wasn't crazy and that they'd been waiting for her. She guided her over and introduced her to Alex and Grace. It turned out she'd felt Alex approaching the city but couldn't find him in time. She'd noticed the ads about "trusting your feelings" and had been curious about it, since she'd had a history of correctly interpreting events based on her feelings, so had decided to attend the concert. "When I got here, I could tell there was something decidedly different about this concert, but I couldn't tell what it was." "We were waiting out here to see if anyone looked like they were looking for me, but I guess we missed you," Alex explained. "Yeah, I assumed the source of the power was the main act, and that I'd know it when she came out. But when Patty appeared on stage I knew she wasn't the one I could feel. Her words all rang true, but I knew I had to find you. I finally got up and tried to follow the sensations, wandering around the back of the theater. It finally occurred to me that you were out here, so I came out and here you were." "Well, we're glad you finally found us," Grace told her, taking the initiative and directing the conversation after that. The girl, one Devon Montague, was happy to talk to her, but she couldn't take her eyes off of Alex for long. As she and Grace talked, Alex took the time to look them both over. Devon was a pretty girl with dark hair, but not overly dressed up for a concert, wearing the typical T-shirt. Alex didn't think her eyes ever once reverted to normal size the whole time they stood there. Grace, on the other hand, was young and thin. Like rail thin, with curly brunette hair and an endearing smile. Alex liked her dedicated spirit, and could see utilizing her as their only Seer in Houston so far, but he was hesitant to give her too much responsibility for his community here if she was going to disappear to college soon. After a moment, Cate suddenly had an idea, and seeing her expertise wasn't needed for once, snuck off into the auditorium where the performance was going on. Grace excused herself, explaining she wanted to check what was happening outside, which Alex approved of, since if she was outside he'd know what was happening out there. It was a while later, just as the conversation with Devon was starting to wind down, that Cate walked through the doors leading another young girl. This girl wore a nice outfit with a matching faux pearl necklace/bracelet set that contrasted perfectly with her face. She had longish dark hair, and she imitated Devon with the way her eyes arched when observing Alex for the first time, but she also seemed more down to earth. She was a larger girl, with bigger breasts and a bit more 'oomph' to her than normal. Once again, she wasn't the type Alex would typically throw out of bed, but he knew he was going to have to start somewhere, as he simply couldn't keep up with everyone. "I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you when you told me your name," Cate said when they joined the group in the lobby. "Oh, my name is Wilma Mitchner," she told them, batting her eyelashes at Alex before drastically changing her approach. "So, just what the hell are you, and who are the rest of you?" she asked, not bothering to disguise her curiosity. "I could feel you when I came in, but I didn't know what you were, only that you were strong, powerful and potentially dangerous. I didn't even know that you were human. After the music started I figured out you weren't part of the performance, so I started wandering around, looking to see if I could find you in the crowd. That's when, whatever your name is, found me." "Cate's my name," Cate told her. "Wilma, I'd like you to meet several people, there's Devon and Sue here," she said indicating the two girls they'd just met. "Outside are two more, Grace and Morgan, probably the two central figures in the burgeoning movement of our people here in Houston," she explained, ignoring the fact that she was neither a Seer nor a Watcher herself. But if Cate couldn't include herself amongst Alex's followers, then who could? "But the one I know you're most interested in is my brother, Alex. Alex is a weird one. He's hard to describe because there's never been another like him before. He has a unique ability to activate dormant abilities in others. He acts like a catalyst, if you will. Those that are drawn to him, like each of you, can inherently feel the power he gives off, but you generally don't trust it because you can't explain it. That's what Patty's tour is about, getting our 'people' to trust their intuition and educating them about what and who they really are." "Wait," Wilma asked in confusion. "You're telling me I'm not human or something?" "No, no," Alex hurried to explain. "You're a normal human being, but you have this weird genetic anomaly that gives you some unique abilities. Somehow I can trigger those. Grace can actually see the energy that I give off, the same energy that you were just following." "It's an energy that Alex somehow taps from another dimension," Cate said, doing what she did best, explaining the unexplainable to unbelieving newbies. "Don't ask us to explain, since we really don't understand it very well and it's all conjecture at this point, but he does this activation thing by creating links between this other dimension, and he creates a similar link in each of your brains. Those links do several things, they give Grace her visions, they allow her to speak telepathically to Alex, and through him to the other women like her." "Uh, other women like her?" Wilma asked, unable to quite follow what Cate was asking her to swallow. "There's a whole class of people that Alex affects," Cate explained. "For reasons we'll get to, he only seems to affect women. There are the type 1s, like Grace outside, who we call 'Seers' because they can actually see the energy that Alex uses. Then are those like you, who we call 'Watchers', because we identify you because you tend to stand back, uncomfortable with your ability to sense others, so you don't believe what you feel coming from Alex is real." "And what about you? Which are you?" Wilma asked. "I'm an odd duck," Cate replied. "I've got none of your abilities myself, just like Alex doesn't. But I've got my own abilities that I seem to have gained by being around Alex for so many years. I can't feel the energy he gives off in general, but I can identify His energy, whether it comes from him, or if I sense it in other people." "Wow, this is all a lot to take in all at once," Wilma lamented. "Are you serious about all this, this stuff about other dimensions, different types of people and telepathic abilities?" Cate merely nodded her head while looking her in the eyes to convey just how serious it was, but the others took a different approach. "Tell me about it," Devon agreed. "I was pulled in just before you and I'm having trouble accepting it as well, but I can't deny the feelings of power I get from Alex, so I know something is going on, and so far Cate's explanation is the only one that offers any explanation." "So what is it that this Grace person sees?" Wilma asked, which led the various women to start talking amongst themselves. While they were talking, Cate stole around to her brother. "Wait here, Alex, I'm going to do another recon run to see if there are any more inside." "Sounds like a plan. And thanks. If you hadn't taken the lead role we'd have been waiting indefinitely out here." "Yeah, we need to discuss your approach to this, but we'll talk about that tonight or tomorrow. You've got too much on your agenda right now to worry about anything else. Anyway, I'm off. Try to keep this crew from getting into too much trouble." After his sister left, Alex left the other women alone to discuss their situation amongst themselves. Alex figured it was probably better coming from someone in a similar situation than it was from a complete stranger like him or Cate, although they'd occasionally look up at him whenever a particularly difficult concept would come up, as if they were asking him if it were true. Whenever this would happen he'd just nod, and they'd seemingly accept it just on his say so. That seemed to be it in the club, just the two Watchers, Devon and Wilma. Cate returned about twenty minutes later and simply shrugged her shoulders. Alex figured it wasn't a big win, but a decent first try for a new approach, and with all the others they'd found on their way in to Houston they had a fair number of new followers. Alex moved the girls away from the center of the lobby when he noticed the security people and a random usher trying to listen in to their conversation. 'Alex?' a telepathic voice he instantly recognized as Grace's asked him nervously. 'Go ahead. Whenever someone speaks to me telepathically they have my undivided attention. I'll let you know if I can't speak for any reason. What's up?' 'We've got another Watcher outside. She wasn't in the club, but wandered up following you. She said she was having dinner nearby.' 'Hold on, we'll come outside and join you. I think we've found everyone we're going to find in here, and the natives are getting a little restless, ' he answered, glancing at the security guard and usher who were still watching them warily. "OK, girls, we're heading outside where we'll have some more privacy. I doubt we'll find anyone else in the club," Alex told the talking women. Wilma glanced up at him with concern in her expression. "But I came to the concert with a few of my friends." "Well, either go inside, or call them up and tell them you had an emergency and had to leave," Alex suggested. "I don't think we're going to be finishing anytime soon, and I'm not sure we want to include anyone we don't have to at this point." Wilma decided to run back inside and explain that something came up to her friends. Alex told her to meet them outside, and they left the building to the disappointment of their onlookers. Gail let them leave without her, since none of the onlookers had associated her with Alex's group, and she didn't want to raise their suspicions more than they already were. She figured that now they were merely curious, but if they connected her to the odd group, they'd start talking, and someone might make a unfortunate connection. Outside they met up with Grace, Morgan and the other two girls they'd met at the hotel. Alex quickly shuffled them away from the club, so no one could eavesdrop on their discussion. Alex introduced the new additions to Grace, and Devon was very impressed to meet 'her first Seer', not realizing Gail, who'd been quietly watching them all along, was one also. Gail didn't like calling attention to herself when she was working. "Alex, this is Lacy Peterson. She just joined us, and as you can guess, she's been quite interested in meeting you." "How do you do, Lacy?" Alex asked as he bent and kissed her hand. Poor Lacy almost swooned just from that simple display. She seemed overwhelmed, so Grace and Alex got her to sit down as they began describing her new life to her. "Sorry I'm late, guys," Wilma said as she hurried over to them, having just exited the club herself. "I told my friends something happened without explaining what it was. I told them I had to get home. They looked worried so they'll probably call me after the concert, but I should be OK until then." Alex introduced everyone again, including Gail who'd come out when Wilma had, which gave poor Lacy a chance to recover a bit more. "Grace? You're the one that sees things?" Wilma asked. "Yeah, I am. I seem to be the only type 1 Seer here," she replied. 'Not quite, there are actually two of us, ' Gail told her, causing her to jump. None of the other girls understood when both Gail and Alex started to laugh, so Cate had to explain it to them. "Tell us what it's like and what you see?" Wilma asked. "I think we'd all have a better grasp of what we're talking about if we understood what your abilities are. Hopefully that will put our own into a better perspective. So far it doesn't look like we share much of anything with Alex." Alex and Cate let that slide for the moment, as Grace gave them a full accounting of her experiences and what she saw. Gail telepathically provided her with additional detail as she described it, so she did a good job explaining it. "An angel?" Devon asked her. "Yeah, that would account for the otherworldly sense of power he has about him. I was a little afraid he might be the devil incarnate, given the immense power I can feel from him, except he feels, I don't know, trustworthy, I guess." 'Alex, can you talk? This is Shani, I just got a panicky call from Lisa, the reporter from St. Louis.' 'Yeah, I remember Lisa. She's hard to forget after what she put us through, ' Alex told her. 'Well, she told me she was traveling and didn't realize her cell phone had died, but when she returned home and plugged it in, she found a message from Albert Rodriguez, ' Shani told him. That got Alex's attention. He'd been waiting to hear if Albert was going to release any new information, since he still had the few remaining pieces to tie him into the new media attention he was under. 'Wait, a reporter didn't notice her phone wasn't working?' Alex asked expressing his doubt about the simple statement. 'She was on her day off and wasn't expecting any calls, so she wasn't surprised when it didn't ring, ' Shani explained. 'OK, go on then?' Alex cautiously replied. 'She said he was calling to warn her about yet another TV special he's doing. Only, because of the delay with the phone, it's going to go live in only another 23 minutes.' 'Damn. I think I'd better be there to listen to this one. I skipped the last one, thinking I couldn't change anything by listening to it, but if he says the wrong thing I'll have to warn Patricia.' Shani gave him the channel it was being broadcast over, apparently one of the major broadcast networks was relaying it live due to the interest in Alex's activities recently. "OK, people, I hate to break this up, but something has come up," Alex announced to the women surrounding him. None of the girls were aware of what he'd been doing aside from Cate and Gail, who were both used to his receiving odd telepathic messages on occasion. "We need to get back to the hotel. It seems there's going to be yet another news story on me, and I'd like to hear this one. We can continue the conversation there, but I'd like to have a couple of people remain here to watch for anyone else who might show up." The girls glanced at one another, neither one really wanting to be separated from him, but each wanting to help him out in any way they could. Seeing they couldn't decide quickly, he stepped in and made the decision for them. "Grace, you're the only available Seer, so why don't you stay and watch out here for anyone who shows up late. Cate, I hate to say it, but you've got the access pass to the club, so you'll have to be the one to keep a watch over what might happen inside." They both agreed, so Alex headed off leaving the rest of the girls to scurry trying to keep up with his long legged gait. Alex led them back to the hotel, and they certainly made for one crowded elevator on the ride up. They got to the room in enough time to get settled before the show was to begin, Devon turning on the correct channel since she knew the local stations. The station was making a big deal of the program, mentioning it frequently in lead-in commercials, but they didn't reveal much. Apparently the focus of the show was "Angel of New Orleans: Real or a Fake?" Alex was anxious about it, though. He wouldn't mind if the program portrayed him as a charlatan, as that would take the pressure off of him, but it could go in so many directions from here. His primary worry was that Albert might mention his affiliation with Patricia, since that was the last thing he knew about them that he hadn't revealed. Finally the program began. "Hello, this is Albert Rodriguez," the reporter familiar to most of Alex's followers said when he appeared, looking comfortable and relaxed. It looked like he was enjoying his new national recognition. "As many of you may be aware, I recently broke the news about the mysterious 'Angel of New Orleans', an individual who claims he's being guided by God to seek out random individuals to help them, despite his own reservations on the subject of God's divinity, and despite the lack of any coherent message to the rest of us. Apparently this message from God is only for a select few. Men don't seem to be wanted at this point, and God doesn't seem to be influenced by what religion you belong to either. "Now, in order to dig a little deeper into this mystery, I've decided to focus more on the single miracle that I personally observed him perform. There have been reports of others. In fact, I know of one man who claims to have been risen from the dead by him here as well. But this one miracle happened before my very eyes, and I wanted to examine it to see if this whole movement is legitimate, or simply a potential scam." The girls settled in around Alex to watch the program. Most wanted to get as close as they could to him, and he humored them, even though his mind was preoccupied with other things at the moment. He sat on the bed surrounded by Devon and Wilma, with the others scattered around him, several sitting on the floor by his feet. Gail, as usual, sat in a chair by the door. "The 'miracle' I'm referring to," Albert continued, emphasizing the word 'miracle' as if it was anything but, "involved a local blind woman who was out late at night walking her guide dog. As this film clip shows, she wasn't close to the young man when she claims he 'healed her', but you can see from her reaction that she's convinced of what he did to her, and it certainly looks like her blindness was cured." They then showed the blurry image of a cell phone video of Mattie running to Alex, moving around people as she ran, though again, it was too far away to reveal Alex or any of the other's faces, although it showed Mattie's, since the camera was focused on her the entire time. "When I appeared on television a few days ago to report on this, I spoke to this girl, a certain Mattie Adams." Alex groaned at this revelation. It was one thing to report information, but it was another to reveal people's names, possibly exposing them to scorn or outright hatred. This didn't bode well for any of Alex's people. "She spoke freely of what had happened to her, but emphasized that it wasn't as clear cut as the images implied." Here the picture refocused to show Mattie speaking before a camera. "I'm still technically blind," she told the TV camera, Rodger sitting happily by her side, no sign of his guide dog handle to be seen. "I can see to get around, but I can't read a sign, a book or a magazine if my life depended on it." Mattie seemed perfect for this role he'd assigned to her. She smiled brightly, eager to talk about her experiences and the effect that Alex had had on her life, but still unwilling to make any wild claims, quietly diminishing expectations. Alex was proud of her yet again. "This claim that she could see while still being blind intrigued me," Albert relayed, continued his explanation in full high definition color display, "but she couldn't pinpoint exactly what she could or couldn't see. Finally I asked if she'd submit to a medical examination, so we could determine what had been done and what hadn't." Once again, it cut back to Mattie, who when asked by Albert, who was off screen, smiled prettily and said she'd be happy to, since she had nothing to hide from anyone. The view then switched to an optometrist's office, and Albert introduced an older, distinguished looking man, and he briefly discussed his qualifications. Finally they show him examining Mattie in an examination room, while Albert provided commentary. "As you can see, she can't see anything on the simple eye chart, at any distance. Nor can she see any item that the doctor holds up for her. This would tend to substantially weaken her claims of having been miraculously healed." Alex leaned forward nervously, expecting the program to get negative soon. If Mattie was lying about being healed, then surely they'd portray her as a scam artist. Alex didn't mind them saying he was, but he really didn't want Mattie's reputation to be attacked, since she had an established job that could be put in jeopardy by a hatchet job on national television. "The examination continued as the doctor examined the back of her eyes," Albert continued to explain. "He examined her medical records, and even spoke with her previous doctors in order to evaluate her condition. Each detailed the extensive damage she'd suffered as a child from a condition called "River Blindness", which occurs when someone is exposed to certain viruses in the water that compromise their vision." Here Albert stopped speaking as the examination progressed. "He informed me that her eyes were still extensively damaged," Albert continued again, "and that there was no way she could see anything at all. But that finding intrigued me, so I prompted him to do some simpler, less quantitative tests." Here they showed Albert and the doctor discussing her vision, then the doctor waving his hand before her face. "It turns out she can see motion, as evidenced by her reaction to his hand. She can also make out some details, as her telling him how many fingers he's holding up shows, but that certainly doesn't reveal much of a miracle, does it?" Albert's presentation wasn't going the way that Alex had feared, instead it was more nuanced, more questioning than antagonistic. It sounded like Albert was really curious about the whole issue, instead of trying to score points for publicity's sake. "While the examination didn't really prove much, aside from revealing that Mattie really is blind, we did some follow up. Now as you've seen, Mattie doesn't like to go on about herself or her supposed benefactor, claiming she doesn't really know much about him. But as you can imagine, she's become quite popular about town. We managed to record this footage, filmed in secret without her knowledge, of her at a party she was invited to." Here they showed more video captured by a cell phone, but this was of much higher quality, and you could see the detail. It showed Mattie coming in the door, kissing people hello and calling them by name. It showed her walking around the room, stopping to say hello to people and moving around objects. "As you can see, she certainly doesn't look blind in this video. It was strange, though. While she ignored all the impressive artwork on the walls, she commented frequently on the health of the host's various plants, talking about how healthy they were, and even telling him she thought one palm she never touched looked like it had a virus infestation and likely would start getting sick, and how they should remove it from the apartment so it wouldn't infect the other plants nearby. "When I asked her about this, not directly referencing the evidence we had of her new vision, she explained," here they played a recorded phone conversation with Mattie. "Well, yes, I get along quite well now. After all, this wasn't a scientific cure, this was a miracle. And you can't expect miracles to follow the rules of science, now can you? Yes, I'm still 100% blind. I don't think I'll ever be able to drive a car or read a paperback book, but I can see well enough to get around, and I can function, which is enough of a cure for me. As long as I can see, I really don't care what he did or didn't do to me. If I have to continue listening to books on tape, that doesn't bother me. What impresses me is that he gave me my life back, and that he didn't ask for anything in return." A couple of the girls in the room applauded at that, but Alex quickly hushed them, not wanting to miss anything. But there were a couple of sniffles floating around anyway. "So it turns out we have a bit of a conundrum. Mattie is still blind. There is absolutely no evidence of any kind of a cure. No sign of anything having been done to her. Yet she continues to get around, navigating through life without the need to rely on her guide dog, even though she continues to take him with her frequently. Only now she takes him on a leash, leaving the heavy equipment he wore before behind. "Do we really expect God, or whoever is behind this, to operate in a scientifically provable fashion before we can believe it? Isn't that what faith is all about? About not needing science to prove something to us that we can each see with our own eyes? You don't need science to tell you that we live in a beautiful and complex world filled with beauty and a wonderful symmetry. Did God create it all in six days, or did he use evolution and natural selection to achieve the same ends? I don't think we'll ever know. Which I like to think is the point. Miracles aren't the stuff of science. Scientists can study butterflies all they want, but it doesn't take away one's wonder at seeing one flutter by, seemingly impervious to the laws of science. "Which brings me to another point," Albert said, turning to speak into a different camera, taking on a more serious demeanor. "There's been a lot said recently about my previous telecast, where I revealed that the angel of New Orleans is himself an atheist. It seems that has generated a great deal of anger, most of it from certain Christians who can't seem to accept a God that doesn't do things according to their dictates. "What he told me, when I interviewed him on the street, is that God isn't choosing Christians for an impending apocalypse. Instead he's sending this individual to help select people regardless of their religion of choice. Somehow I can't understand how that's so unchristian? Isn't that the kind of loving and caring god we've always believed in? True, it doesn't reflect the angry and vengeful god of the Old Testament, but most of that ideology was thrown out when Jesus supposedly revealed the New Testament to us. And most Jews don't seem to believe in this angry God that the religious right chooses to anymore. If God is interested in helping a few select individuals, who are we to question it? If he isn't hurting anyone, why shouldn't this angel be able to quietly assist others? Who is he really challenging? Who is he offending? "I think that's the real challenge he's offering us here. Do we believe in a loving and caring God that cares for us as individuals, or are we so locked into the strict dictates of religious belief that we can't accept God if he doesn't behave like we want him to? "Anyway, whatever you personally believe about this mysterious Angel of New Orleans, I hope he at least makes you think about your own view of the world, and whether what you've always accepted as the truth is really all that true. Maybe that's the miracle we all need, to not be so rigid in our beliefs but to accept people in the way that Jesus, Mohammad and Buddha themselves treated others. Maybe that's the kind of religious belief we need more of in this world of hatred and aggression against others." There was a quiet malaise that settled over the room after the show ended. Sue turned, looking up at Alex and said, "It didn't seem that bad. I thought you said they were going to be causing you trouble." "Actually, that was very positive and surprisingly even handed," Gail told her. "Alex was concerned because he knows Alex's face and his relationship to Patty, and could leak them to the press at any time. But so far he hasn't." She turned and addressed Alex directly. "You know, I think your little show not only rattled him, I think it actually won him over. He hasn't actually championed you, but I think he's honestly trying to remain unbiased in his presentation while trying to help you at the same time." "I'm quite surprised, too," Alex said. "I was really expecting a further escalation, but this was really objective." "Just wait until the other networks get a hold of it," Gail replied. "They may not be as forgiving as he was." "No, but still, I appreciate each small favor we receive. It's this kind of understanding that we need to foster." "Maybe you should send him a fruit basket to say thanks," Wilma teased. "You could even bless the fruits if you wanted." "Hey, if I'm going to be blessing any fruits, I'll save it for the Fox network when I bless a gay marrage. I think they'd appreciate it more," Alex joked. "Really, Alex?" Gail asked him pointed. "While Fox may not be in favor of gay marriage, they aren't actually against gays, and the issue of gay marriage cuts across a lot of different lines. I'm not sure that should be an issue you want to jump into." Alex was about to respond, telling her he was only joking when he was interrupted, his mouth only partially opened to speak his first word. 'Alex? We just finished the concert. Where are you? Did you get many new converts?' Patricia asked him. 'We had to leave. We picked up a few Watchers, but we got alerted to a new national broadcast by Mr. Rodriguez, ' Alex explained. 'We're all over at the hotel now.' 'Oh, I hope he didn't say anything bad, but frankly, I wouldn't worry about him. He's not as sensationalistic as Fox has been. I think that's who you're going to have to worry about. Although, even then, they're responding to the idea of an atheist telling Christians what to believe rather than attacking you personally.' 'That was our appraisal, but we'll tell you about it when you get over here. How'd the concert go?' 'Oh, it was great. The audience was really appreciative, even though someone kept taking them out the back door during the set, ' Patricia teased. 'But we still need to wrap things up, then I've got to face the fans when we leave, so it'll probably take us a while to join you. As you say, we'll discuss the details when we get together.' Alex turned his attention to Grace and Cate next. 'Grace, you have any luck?' he asked. 'No. No one else showed up. Cate's with me now. She thought it would be too difficult to try to reach Patty right now.' 'Smart thinking, but I already spoke with her. You should head back to the hotel now. I doubt anyone will show up this late, and it would look better if you weren't watching the audience leave like a couple of stalkers.' 'Sounds good, ' Grace replied. 'We'll see you soon.' Alex was about to remind them to check for anyone hanging around in the hotel lobby, but assumed Cate would think of that on her own. Instead he turned back and noticed that everyone was watching him. "What?" he asked the room in general. "They noticed you staring off into space. I explained what you were doing," Gail explained. "Ah, that makes sense. The concert just finished, so Grace and Cate are heading back, though it's going to take Patricia and her band a while to make it back." "Man, talking to people in your head like that has got to be cool," Devon noted. "Yeah, but what's more is, it protects each of us. Normally, whenever the government or the police want information, they simply take someone in and hold them incommunicado. They won't be able to do that with us. So I'll try to leave at least one Seer in charge here, with the rest of your help. That way she can relay if there's any trouble without fear someone will be recording the conversation. I suggest you each use the type 1 and 2 designations when talking about people, and don't refer to me by name. Simply refer to me as your uncle or something. I know I'm probably being paranoid, but once the public gets an idea of what we can potentially do, I'm expecting a lot of people will get aggressive in trying to control us." The other people in the room considered that. "So Grace will be our local leader?" Morgan asked. "Not necessarily. It gets complicated," Alex explained. "In addition to activating people, I can also boost people's abilities. I'd like to do that before I leave, but I've got a real problem doing it with Grace. I guess you'll all learn about it soon enough, so I might as well explain it. During periods of stress or excitement, I sometimes advance either my own abilities or those of others. I guess the excitement and the influx of hormones triggers something. But it also works during emotional highs, especially when someone is exposed to my energy on a close basis. Thus I usually boost people when I have sex with them. However, I really don't want to have sex with someone who's currently in a relationship with someone else." "I don't think Grace would object," Wilma commented. "I get the impression she'd do anything for you." "That's not the point," Alex said. "I keep stressing the importance of family and friends, and I want to include more into our movement. It wouldn't help that if I went around undermining my people's relationships. I want to strengthen people, not tear them apart." "What would this 'boost' entail?" another girl asked. "Well, it would allow a Seer like Grace to communicate telepathically with any of the other Seers. She can do that now by going through me, but she and the rest of you would be cut off if something were to happen to me." "What could happen to you?" Lacy asked. "Hell, I mean, how can an angel get hurt? Can't you heal whatever happened to you?" Alex just looked at her for a minute before responding. "First of all, I'm hardly an angel. Secondly, LOTS can happen to me, and thirdly, I can only heal certain things, and I seem to have very little control over what I can heal and what I can't. I could get hit by a bus tomorrow, or shot by someone angry at us. I don't want to leave the rest of you unprotected if something were to happen to me." Once again they looked at each other as each considered the implications of what Alex had said. They were each well aware of the story of Jesus' crucifixion, and if the son of God could have that done to him, then surely Alex couldn't hope to avoid it entirely either. "Have you had anyone try to hurt you yet?" Lacy asked, sounding concerned. Gail laughed. "Girl, he's got all kinds of people angry at him. Why do you think I'm here?" Lacy turned and regarded Gail. "Honestly, I don't know. All I've noticed is you hanging around with the guys back at the club." Alex laughed at this one. "That's our Gail for you, always flirting with the guys." Gail shot him a dirty look, but addressed Lacy's question. "I'm Alex's security. I'm an ex-cop and I put together a small security company tasked with watching over Alex and his people. If there's a need here, I can open a local branch, but it would take time to find sympathetic security people." "Oh, we wondered why you were always following around behind him, always lurking in the background," Devon said. "So you never answered the question," Lacy complained. "Who's tried to hurt you?" "So far it's been a variety of people, but so far it's been men who either take exception to his interest in a particular girl, or who just feel a general animosity. Though he seems to upset a lot of men in general," she explained. "Personally, I'm more concerned about an upset boyfriend than I am the Pharisees." "The who?" Devon asked. "The Pharisees," Morgan told her, "the people who responsible for crucifying Jesus in the New Testament." "I thought the Romans did that?" Devon asked. "Look, we can discuss religious history later. The point I was making is I'd like to boost a local Seer to provide some protection for the rest of you. I really don't want to screw up Grace's relationship by getting in the middle of it, but she's the only Seer available right now." "You still have all day tomorrow and the concert tomorrow night," Gail reminded him. "True, and I hope we'll find someone else. Otherwise I may be forced to do something I really don't want to do," Alex told them. There was a knock on the door then, and Gail was instantly on her feet, waving Alex into the back of the room. He knew Gail's position, but there really wasn't anywhere for him to hide in a standard hotel room. Gail cautiously peeked into the door's peephole, grabbing something under her jacket as she did. It was only then the real threats that Alex faced seemed real to the girls in the room. "It's Cate and Grace," Gail announced before she opened the door, allowing them in. "No new people downstairs," Cate announced. "So what did we miss?" Alex started to relay what had happened on the program, but Wilma cut him off. "Excuse me, I know that's important, but I'm curious about something?" When Alex cocked his head, telling her to continue, she did. "If you can boost the ability of the Seers, then what about all of us, the Watchers?" she asked. Alex sighed, after all, it was hardly an unexpected question. "Yes, I can boost the Watchers as well. In fact, although I can give the Seers a degree of autonomy from me, the Watchers actually get a bigger boost as I give them the abilities equal to what the Seers have before they're activated." Wilma and the others looked at him in some confusion, so he felt it necessary to go on. "The unactivated Seers can feel people's emotions. They can tell whether someone is malicious, or if something is about to happen, or if they can trust someone. The Watchers can feel an inkling of these, but not enough to rely on them. So I've been known to boost Watchers that I think have important tasks." "Yeah, Alex forces them to engage in tremendous sex with a caring, devoted man for hours, during which he gives them repeated orgasms, culminating in a mind melting simultaneous orgasm. You wouldn't be interested in that," Cate teased. Alex shot her a dirty look. "The problem is, I haven't had much of a chance to speak with any of you yet. Right now I don't know any of your capabilities. If I were to pick any of you, I'd just to picking someone at random, and that wouldn't be fair. If I did boost any of you, I'd want it to be someone who could use the new abilities the most. Actually, I'd be tempted to pick Morgan, but she's in the same situation that Grace is, she said that she's a housewife so I'm assuming she has a husband, and I couldn't ask her to cheat on him." "What's this about boosting Seers and Watchers?" Grace asked, at which point the girls started to fill her in, as he explained to Cate what she'd missed. They were both part way through the explanations when Wilma's cell phone went off. She pulled it out and glanced at it before answering it. "It's my girl friends. They're probably checking up on me so I'd better take this." Everyone else quieted down, since no one wanted to give away where they were, but Gail quietly finished the explanation of Albert's program for Cate. "Hello Lucy?" Wilma asked. She listened quietly and everyone could hear an insistent voice but not anything it was saying. "Holy shit, are you kidding me?" Wilma asked her in growing concern. She turned to the others and covered her end of the phone. "They called my parents to see if I was OK, assuming I'd gone home. I've been living with them since graduation. But they hadn't heard from me, so they were obviously upset, thinking something must have happened to me. My girlfriends are calling to warn me." Alex indicated the phone still in her hand and she looked at it as if surprised before listening to Lucy again. "No, it's someone I'm with. I'm ... I'm with a guy I met," she answered, thinking a partial truth would be more believable than the full truth. "I've only known him for a little while, I didn't want to jinx it," she said. "If it seems like it's leading somewhere I'll tell you. But I'd better go to calm my parents," she explained before getting off the phone. "It always complicates things when you start with little lies," Alex explained, as if he'd ever gotten into trouble with his parents. "Well, what should I do?" Wilma asked. "Obviously I can't tell them what's happening." "No, you did the correct thing, though without thinking it through. The best thing is to say the least, but to let them know you've met me. Don't give them the full details yet. If you overwhelm them they'll likely respond badly. They'll think you're being taken advantage of. Just let them know I'm friendly and concerned, but that I'm not asking you for anything. Just say that I'm 'helping you'. That's what they'll be the most concerned about, that I'm taking advantage of you. Just tell them I'm a nice guy for now, then later you can tell them I'm the Angel of New Orleans, they'll likely have heard of it already, but assure them I'm not trying to convert you or lead you astray. Try to bring them around slowly, but don't put them off. If they think you're hiding something, they'll think you have something embarrassing to hide. The key is just to let them know as much as they can handle at any given time." All the girls were listening to his instructions intently, listening as if Alex were giving them instruction from on high. "The key is to not lie to your parents or friends. You need them in your life, and that includes your new life, too. And that includes lying by omission. Give them enough information that they feel they know what you're up to, but not enough to panic them. The thing to remember is, if we ever get exposed, we'll need family and friends to stick up for us, but if we hide from them, they'll only think the worst about me and my mission." "But what do we say about you? Clearly we can't tell them about what you do," Devon asked. "Well, don't mention your abilities, or the other's abilities. Just tell them I've been telling you things about yourself, things that you've wondered about. You'll have to explain what those are, but you don't need to mention telepathy, visions or mysterious healings to do that." "We've done this several times already," Cate explained. "He's speaking from experience. He's really good at dealing with family and friends, just not so good at dealing with brothers, boyfriends or potential boyfriends." "Or fathers," Gail added, but no one felt it necessary to add to the thought. The girls sat there just staring at him until Alex motioned for Wilma to make her phone call. She did. "Hello, Mom?" she asked when they answered the phone. "No, I'm OK. My friends didn't know, but I met someone at the club." She paused while her mother responded then continued again. "No, he's a really nice guy. You'll probably hear about him in the next few days, but I'll explain later. But for right now, I'm safe and I'm with a bunch of friends." She listened a little longer then turned to Alex. "No, I don't know how long I'll be." Alex mouthed, 'soon' to her, then 'only another few minutes'. "It'll be soon, Mom. In any case I'll call you from the car as I'm leaving." Here she paused as her mother said something else. "We're talking about me. He seems to know a lot about me, and he's telling me things about myself that I've never known before, and I'm anxious to learn about them." "No, Mom, it's nothing like that. I'll tell you about it later, but I'm here with a bunch of people so I shouldn't be ignoring them," she replied, relying on her parents' training on not being rude to carry the day. "Yeah, that's right. I'll call you before I leave so you won't worry," she assured them before hanging up. "Wow, you were right. That was the perfect thing to say. I'm surprised she didn't panic, but she calmed right down when I said the things you suggested." "It's not the things I suggested," Alex told them. "They're the right things to say. You've got to trust your family and friends because they want the best for you, and making them worry will only cause you grief." Here Alex turned and regarded them all. "Now, as I said, I really haven't gotten to know each of you very well yet, and we don't have much time. Unfortunately tomorrow is a big day. If you can, I'd like to sit with all of you over breakfast here tomorrow, but if you can't manage that we'll work something out. The important thing, though, is I can't walk around the city tomorrow with a whole string of women following me around, so you'll have to leave me alone afterwards. So unless I say otherwise tomorrow, I'd like to see Morgan and Grace tomorrow night at the club, and we'll wing it from there. Now the rest of you'd better be getting home. You have friends, boyfriends or husbands to call. And don't forget to consider your female relatives. You'll need to contact any of them you think may have abilities similar to yours. Either bring them to breakfast or the club tomorrow night." Alex looked at each girl, and after a moment's delay they all hopped up and started moving around trying to figure out what to do. Cate managed to organize them, getting their phone numbers and their schedules for the next day, so Alex left them to it. He still had to consider tomorrow, think about Albert's show, meet with Patricia and prepare for tomorrow. Their first show hadn't been that bad, but there were still a lot of loose ends, and there'd only be more tomorrow. He got up to kiss each girl goodbye as they left, and none of them looked like they wanted to, but they were more interested in impressing him than fighting about it. Soon they were gone and Alex turned to his sister and Gail. "You and I have a lot to talk about," Cate warned him. "You did a lot of things wrong, but at least you got not sleeping with any of them right. That way we can fool around until Patricia gets back. That woman's been waiting for you for a long time now, and I don't think she can be put off any longer." ------- Chapter 20: Feeling Overwhelmed Anthony Barlow entered the dimly lit diner with some trepidation. He wasn't used to such intrigue, his normal milieu was an office overlooking the downtown cityscape, not a crummy diner in a bad neighborhood. He wasn't at all comfortable with the situation, but he was desperate, and he wanted a solution to his problem. He figured this Wittmore fellow didn't have a traditional office he could simply drop in on during business hours, and he'd asked Wittmore to meet him as soon as he could, so Anthony knew he really couldn't ask for anything better. There were only a handful of people in the dark establishment at this hour, and it wasn't difficult to pick out Henry Wittmore. He was the only one watching Anthony as he stood just inside the door. Everyone else was either watching their drink or the legs on the waitress who slowly paraded past carrying everyone their orders. The Investigator looked gruff, unshaven, and worn by the years. But Anthony figured that's the kind of man he needed for the job, someone who had seen the seedier side of life and who knew how to look through the dirt for messy little details. Having figured out what to do, Anthony stepped smartly up to the table Henry was sitting at. "Henry Wittmore?" "You Anthony?" Henry asked, knowing better than to use his client's last names in even as unsocial an environment as this was. "I am," Anthony answered simply. "Then have a seat. Can I order you a drink?" Henry inquired as he took the measure of his potential new employer. He was used to all types, focusing mainly on spousal abuse cases, and those tended to hit people of all stripes. But this man looked so out of place he was practically begging for someone to mug him when he left the building. The man was older, with gray hair and dressed in a conservative and downright boring business suit. He also had a dour expression, as if he'd been tasting something that curled his lip for the past week. But Harry didn't have to wonder what it might be since he was sure the man would tell him shortly. "I think I should stay away from alcohol at the moment. In the mood I'm in, I'm likely to overdo it. I could use some coffee, though." "The coffee is crap in this joint," Henry told him. "Wait till you get back to the city and get yourself a Starbucks. The only things worth drinking here are the beer and the whiskey. The beer because it's in a bottle and they can't water it down, and the whiskey because you can tell if they cut it with something." "I'll do without then," Anthony said, ready to get down to business right off the bat. "Fine by me. Now what's your problem? You mentioned something about your daughter getting into trouble?" "Yeah, apparently it's just started. Her boyfriend was agitated when he brought her home earlier today. Seeing that, I assumed he'd done something to my daughter, so I cornered him. He was evasive, but he told me enough for me to bluff my daughter into giving me the basics. It seems they met some charismatic charlatan in downtown Beaumont, and now it seems my daughter is involved in some kind of a cult." "I wasn't aware we had many cults in downtown Beaumont?" Henry asked with no trace of humor in his voice. Somehow Anthony couldn't picture the man having much of a sense of humor, as he looked like he was too used to seeing the ugly underside of life. "Apparently they caught this clown traveling between cities. It seems he was traveling between New Orleans and Houston. They supposedly only talked for a short while, but it was long enough to cause my daughter to decide to run off to meet him." "So your daughter is missing?" Henry asked, more interested in knowing what the job entailed than in this suit's personal problems. "No, she went to some concert in Houston this guy was supposed to be attending. But she told me she was going and that there wasn't anything I could do to stop her. She informed me that if I refused to allow her she'd leave anyway, and if I locked her in her room she'd just break a window. Normally she's not very motivated, but she's resourceful, so if she makes her mind up to do something you can bet she's going to do it." "Yeah, so the problem is?" Henry asked, hoping to skip the minor theatrics. "She's ready to follow this guy wherever he leads. She said he wants her to study hard and get ahead, but I figure that was just to convince her he isn't after her money. But I don't trust him. From how she describes it, she's willing to drop her entire life just to follow this kid at the drop of a hat." "Kid?" Henry asked. "Yeah, the guy's not even old enough to drink yet, but apparently he's got a whole train of women following him around, doing his bidding. I don't like the sounds of that." "I can understand," Henry answered, not particularly caring how this kid or his potential employer entertained themselves. He was looking to figure out what he'd have to do. "So what do you want me to do? Hunt him down and hurt him? I'm sorry, but I don't do that kind of thing. If that's what you want I can give you a number, but I won't get involved in it, and I don't want to be informed about it either." "No, no. I want information. I figure my daughter is already convinced this guy is the best thing since sliced bread. What I want is for you to dig up some dirt on him. Hopefully, if I can show her this guy's dark side she won't be as susceptible to his claims." "You realize that she'll probably like him more, simply because you dislike him so much yourself?" Henry asked, getting as deep into psychology as he had any interest in getting. "Yeah, I realize that. I don't think it'll be easy, but she's a smart girl. If she thinks she's being taken advantage of she'll fight back. She may not come home to me seeking solace, but at least she'll be better able to look out for herself." "All right, that sounds like something I can do. I do surveillance all the time. Just who is this character and where can I find him." "Well, she wouldn't tell me where he is now, other than somewhere in Houston. But apparently he's spent a lot of time in New Orleans, where he's developed quite a following as a religious figure of some kind. All I know is his name is Alex, but apparently that name should be recognized by a bunch of people there." "So you want me to locate someone named Alex in the Big Easy? You know this is going to take some time, effort and expenses. I charge $150 per hour plus expenses, and New Orleans ain't cheap. Plus, I may need to pay certain people off." "I understand. Just keep detailed records and if the expenses are justified I'll cover them. I'm not going to pay for you to party there, or to pad your expenses, but if it's reasonable I'll pay it." "That's good to know. The other half of my business, my assistant, is very good with the record keeping, so you shouldn't have a problem with the itemizations. Now, is there anything else you can tell me besides this guy's first name?" "Well, he's supposedly been in the news down there recently. He also seems to go after women, so figure you'll have to focus on the women surrounding him, or who knew him when he was there." "That's not much to go on, but if he's attracted that much attention that helps. The fact he surrounds himself with women could be difficult, as it may make me getting access to his followers more difficult. I may need to involve a female associate along to gain their trust. That'll increase the daily rate and the expenses, of course." "As I said, I'm not afraid to pay for good information. If you can get me some real dirt on this creep, especially if you can actually get a photograph of him showing his true nature, I'll appreciate it." "I'll have to leave right away," the detective warned his businessman employer. "If he's on the run he likely won't be around very long, so I'll have to move fast. Any idea how long he's going to stay in Houston?" "Grace said she's planning on meeting him at some concert in the city tonight and tomorrow, so I have no idea what he plans beyond that. As you can imagine, she wasn't anxious to tell me much other than to defend the guy and tell me to screw off." "All right, there's no telling how long it'll take to dig up any dirt on this guy. I may not be able to get anything incriminating before he skips town again, but if he sticks around trying to soak your daughter, I may be able to follow him around after I learn some more about him. I'll try to give you daily updates, as I figure the short timeline is going to involve a lot of changes of plan, and that'll affect your bottom line. You got a number I can call?" "Yeah, I'll give you my business cell phone number. The wife and my daughter are bored by my work, so they won't answer it. That will keep anyone from finding out what you're doing before I'm ready to reveal the results to them. I figure my wife won't understand the implications unless I can show her what's wrong with this guy, so I figured it's better if I keep her out of it for now. But I appreciate this, since I didn't know how else to address this." "Hey, don't worry about it. Whatever dirt this guy has, I'll find it. Now, if you'll excuse me it sounds like I need to pack in a hurry and head out of state, so I'll talk to you tomorrow evening after I see what I can find." "Thanks, I'll take care of everything on my end, and I'll keep you out of whatever I decide to do to him afterwards, as well." ------- "OK, Alex, now that everyone is gone, we've got several things to discuss before Patricia gets here," Cate warned her brother. "I know that after all this time she's going to be wanting to spend some quality time with you, so how about you strip naked so I can get some quick time with you to discuss things before she gets here." "Ha! Like I'm going to strip naked when I know Patricia's likely to stop by here with her whole band in a few minutes." "That's hardly the 'Rock and Roll' spirit," Cate teased, "besides, most of them wouldn't mind seeing you naked." "Still, I'd rather not answer the door in my 'all together', just on the off chance it's a 5-year-old from down the hall who's been drawn to me. I'll strip, but I'm keeping my pants on, at least." "Oh, phooey, you're no fun. All right then, that's good enough for me to get my daily exposure to you, I guess. I was hoping maybe we could fool around a little, but I can work around your pants," she told him with a leer. Alex quickly took off his shirt and undershirt, opening his arms to her. She sat down, giving him a kiss and quickly fished his cock out. Alex didn't mind her playing with it, but when she started to go down on him he protested. "Hey, I thought you wanted to talk?" "Hmm?" Cate asked with her mouth full. She removed it before answering. "Oh, yeah, I guess you're right. How about we talk while you're balls deep in me?" she asked playfully. "No deal, you know you get lost looking in my eyes. The best I can offer is to spoon you while we talk. With my pants on," he told her. "Drat, well if you insist," she responded, playfully pouting. She'd expected he'd be a bit hesitant, as his mind was currently occupied with other things. She quickly peeled her top off. The fact she conceded so quickly told him much more about how serious she was about this talk than anything else she'd said. As she settled down against him, pulling his hands up to cover her breasts, she began. "Now, there's several things you missed tonight that I want to cover before Patricia gets here and you forget everything else," she told him while getting comfortable, worming her ass into a better position against his crotch. "First off, don't go making arrangements with people when you don't know what's going on." "Huh? What'd I say?" "You told those girls to meet you at the club tomorrow night, but Patricia was only scheduled to play there tonight. She made an arrangement with someone she knew to play here so they could see how well they performed before her first big show. I had to tell each of those girls where to show up and how to get in." "Why am I always the last to know about these things?" Alex complained. "Because you've got more important things on your mind," Cate reminded him. "Besides, if you don't ask, we don't bother you with the small details, just like you didn't ask about our travel plans this past week." Alex grunted, acknowledging she had a point while gently tweaking her nipples in appreciation. Cate mewed her thanks but continued on. "The House of Blues isn't that much bigger than the clubs Patricia has been playing at for years, so it isn't that much of a leap for her," Cate explained. "So where are we supposed to go tomorrow, then?" Alex asked. "The Houston Astrodome, though it's now called 'Reliant Stadium'." "Wha... ?" Alex managed to sputter. "You mean THE Houston Astrodome?" "No, I mean 'Reliant Stadium'. They changed the name some time ago," Cate reminded him with a smile. She couldn't see his expression, since she was facing away from him, but she could well imagine it just from his response. "Damn, that holds a mess of people," Alex responded in astonishment. "It's a little over 70,000," Cate informed him. "Shit! That's a lot more people than we've dealt with before." "No, usually we're in large cities with hundreds of thousands of people, but it's more people in one place than we usually encounter, which is why Patricia was so anxious to set this tour up for you. She figured you'd be able to find quite a few people during each show." "Hell, we found three last night, and that was out of only..." here Alex hesitated, since he didn't know how many people were in attendance. "The House of Blues holds 1,500 people, so the Astrodome would hold over 60 times as many people," Cate calmly informed him, enjoying his stunned mumbling as he tried to wrap his mind around the numbers. As much as Cate loved her brother, she knew visualizing large numbers wasn't his strong suit. "Wait a minute, 3 into 1500, multiplied by..." Cate took pity on him. "You can expect somewhere around 120 Watchers, though there could be any number of Seers. That's assuming full attendance, of course." "Holy Fuck," Alex quietly swore. "Not if you keep going on about this," she informed him. "By the time you finally figure out the numbers Patricia and her band mates will be here. After all, it's a 'holy fuck' with a nearby angel that I've been hoping for." "Wow, do you really think we'll meet that many new people?" Alex asked her. "People, yes. Watchers and Seers, probably not. The club was packed tonight, and Reliant Stadium isn't likely to be. Plus, even if it was, I doubt we'd manage to grab them all. We'll have to manage the people better, but we need all of those girls." "Wait a minute," Alex said, trying to wrap his head around another issue. "How the hell can Patricia pack an arena as large as the Astrodome?" "Reliant Stadium," Cate reminded him, just to be difficult. "And she can't do it on her own. At least, not yet. But that's just another thing you haven't asked about. This isn't exclusively her tour. She's the opening act for Diane Kennedy." "Diane Kennedy?" Alex asked. Hell, even he'd heard of Diane Kennedy. She was hardly as big as she once was, but he was well aware of the fact that she'd just released a new album and that she was trying to reclaim some of her former glory. "How the hell did Patricia connect with Diane Kennedy?" "The studio who agreed to do her next album thought a lot of it and pulled a few strings, and along with a lot of effort on Henry's part, they managed to get her on the tour." "And Diane is starting in Houston?" Alex asked. "No, they started on the East Coast with another opening act, but Diane wasn't getting along with them, so when they suggested a replacement Diane's people jumped at the chance. Diane isn't real easy to work with," Cate explained. "Ah, that explains a lot I guess, though it makes Patricia's role more precarious as well." "But Patricia just needs to last until California, where they'll cut her album. The album is where the sales come from. The tours are mainly designed to help sell the albums. Once Patty makes her own album, it won't matter as much if Diane throws a fit over her." "OK, I get it now. So, was there something else... ?" Alex started to ask before Cate rushed ahead. "Yeah, there's a lot more. You did all kinds of things wrong tonight. First of all, that idea of standing in the entranceway as everyone walks into the concert was one of your stupider ideas. What would you have done if someone fell to their knees before you in front of 1,500 people?" "Uh, I don't know," Alex replied honestly, since he hadn't actually considered it. "Right, you don't. Which is why you have people around to do your thinking for you," Cate replied with a smile. "Next time, and by next time I mean tomorrow, you'll be hiding in the men's room on the outer rim of the stadium. Since all your followers are women, you shouldn't have much trouble there. Well, aside from hanging around a men's room for an abnormally long period of time. That might attract its own attention," she replied in jest. "Then once the band starts, you get out of the common areas and enter the back of the auditorium. Hopefully there'll be enough people there that no one will notice any kind of commotion you may produce. Patricia knows to watch out for you, so she'll start wailing right off the bat, so you shouldn't disrupt things too much. As I said, I'm going to talk to the other girls and we'll manage to station them around the stadium, herding any Watchers towards you. I'm assuming the Seers will find you on their own. Just expect a couple of women to be waiting for you when you get out of the men's room." "OK, good point. I hadn't thought out what might have happened tonight," Alex conceded. "No, you didn't. That much was obvious," Cate agreed. "But that's why you have people like me, Patricia and Gail around." "OK, I can see putting all the girls to work tomorrow night, but what about after that?" "You mean when we hit San Antonio on Thursday?" "Yeah, how do we manage a crowd that large with only the three of us?" "I guess you'll have to do your magic and attract a few new followers. We can't afford a new trailer to carry a bunch of new support people, and we can't uproot all of your people, since the whole idea of this is to create communities of your people around the country. So either you find all new people at each stop, or we're going to do a whole lot of running," Cate informed her brother. Alex sighed heavily in exasperation, but recognized there was no getting around it. After all, the last thing he needed was to have a large contingent of women following him around in each new city he visited. "Another thing," Cate continued, not waiting for him to get comfortable, "talking about obvious screw ups, you're really lucky there weren't any obvious Seer activations." When Alex quit playing with her tits in questioning silence, she went on. "It's bad enough that anyone could snap a picture of you at any moment, but when you're walking around with a name tag showing your face and loudly proclaiming your name, you're just asking for trouble." "Damn, that was stupid wasn't it? OK, backstage pass goes into the pocket whenever I'm not backstage. Anything else?" "Just the most obvious, Patricia has been very patient and very dedicated. She's been working hard setting everything up in New Orleans for you. She set up that whole 'hopeful potential mother of the day' program for you, she covered for you whenever you screwed up in New Orleans, and she's planned this whole concert tour as a cover for you. I think you deserve to show her one hell of a good time to repay her for it." "Yeah, I was planning on it," Alex agreed, looking a little guilty since he was already aware how little time he'd manage to give her so far. "Though to be honest, when I offered she said we'd get together when we had more time. She was anxious to have me impregnate all those girls." "And I just don't mean a normal 'it's yet another girl' type of response," Cate continued, ignoring his weak rationalizations. "She's been one of your biggest supporters. She's put in more legwork than anyone else around you. You owe her a lot, and you're going to make it up to her." "Yeah, well, she—" Alex said, starting to invent another excuse. "I don't want to hear it. She deserves several mind-melting orgasms, at the very least. I'd tell you to treat her to a phenomenal date, but after what she's been through today, I don't think she'll be up to it." "Actually, given that, I'd recommend some personal attention. The non-sexual kind," Gail offered, reminding both Cate and Alex that she was still in the room. "I don't know if her room has a hot tub, but I'd recommend a hot bath and a back and/or foot rub at the very least. And don't you dare go getting distracted with anything else. You need to treat her like the wonderful princess she is, since she's done more for you than anyone else has. It's the least you can do for her." "Good points all," Alex replied. "Now, is there anything else I need to be aware of?" "Just to keep playing with those until Patricia gets here," Cate said, indicating Alex's hands that were still playing with her breasts. "I'll second that," Gail responded. "Watching the two of you together is almost as good as having her to myself." With that they all broke out in giggles, reassuring Alex that the lecture period was finally over and that both Cate and Gail were ready for some relaxation of their own after their own busy day. The noise of several people moving about in the hall warned the three that they'd be having company soon, so they got up to welcome them. There was a knock on the door before they could get to it, then the door opened a little and someone peeped in. "Hello? Everyone decent?" Mac asked. "Yeah, we're decent," Alex replied, opening the door to reveal a tired looking band leaning wearily against the wall. "Hard night, huh? Come on in and relax. After all, you're paying for the room." "Jordan and I will take the gear to your room for you," Chelsea offered, which the others gladly agreed to. They stumbled in and collapsed on the beds and chair. "Man, you always forget how tough a first night is," Patricia said, as she stopped to give Alex a kiss before sitting down herself. "I mean, we've done this enough times that we're used to it, but until you get some experience under your belt, doing it every day, it always wears you down until you adjust to it." "Can we get you anything?" Cate asked. "Yeah, got any whiskey?" Sammy asked in a croaking voice. "Uh, no, we didn't think to stop at the liquor store," Cate informed him, smiling at him because it was so obvious that no one would ever sell her liquor. "Oh, then I guess we could use some water. Once we're rehydrated we'll think of looking for something else," Sammy replied. "Coming right up," Cate replied. "So how'd it go?" Alex asked anxiously. "We should be asking you the same thing," Patricia replied. "After all, this was your first night at this as well." "Oh, we did fine, several new girls, no Seers this time. No problems. But we're not talking about us, we're talking about you. How'd the show go?" "It went well," Erica told them. "The place was pretty busy, and Patty got them revved up as she normally does. It was hard getting out of there since there were so many well wishers afterwards." "Any more than normal?" Cate asked, as she and Gail returned with water for everyone. "What, do you mean was there anyone asking about your brother?" Mac asked with a smile. "Nah, but it was a new city with new people. Back in New Orleans, after each session there'd be a ton of people anxious to talk about Alex. Here they were actually interested in us. I guess we should be glad he's here now, so he'll draw off the new followers and just leave us with the appreciative fans." Just then the inner door connecting the rooms opened and Jordan walked through. "We got everything situated. You guys have the bigger room, as I'm sure you were expecting. We have the smaller one on the far side and Gail and Cate have the one on the other side of this one." "Anyone need us to get anything for them?" Chelsea asked, peering into the room. Sammy idly waved his hand. "Nah, we just want to chill. We'll probably go wandering later, but right now we just want to unwind. If we can't recover from a small event like this, we'll never make it through the bigger events." "Uh, did anyone mention what's going to happen tomorrow?" Patricia asked, glancing worriedly at Alex. "Yeah, Cate finally brought me up to date, as well as reading me the riot act about everything I did wrong tonight," Alex replied. "Good, then you realize we'll be at the Astrodome tomorrow night, then?" she asked, just to confirm they were talking about the same thing. "Yeah, with 70,000 people," Alex said with a grimace. "Not likely," Patricia said. "This is a comeback tour for Diane, and she doesn't even have a new album to help it. She's trying to push a mix-up of old songs and a couple new ones." "They released a compilation album a while back, if you don't remember or didn't notice," Mac explained. "They included two new songs on it, but they were hardly exceptional." "Yeah, so I wouldn't expect a full house tomorrow," Patricia added. "She's struggling, and it shows in her mood, so I'd watch myself around her if I were you. She's developed a reputation as a prima donna and has driven off all her opening acts, most of her workers and many of her associates. We got this gig because no one else would take it. The current opening act only stayed this long because I offered to take over but we weren't ready to start until now, but they were anxious to get away from her as soon as possible." "Sounds like it's going to be difficult," Alex said. "Think you can last?" "I can last as far as California. But actually for us it's perfect. We get the exposure of playing for a big audience, and you get the draw of a major auditorium without the media attention of a big-name act." "Yeah, I can see that. I can also see you've put a hell of a lot more thought into this than I was aware of." Patricia laughed. "Alex, you're lucky if you notice whether your socks match. You're not always the most observant person regarding what's happening around you. But that's because you're always so focused on those you have to deal with, and that's what makes you such a strong leader. Everyone feels you take a personal interest in them, and thus they want to do the best they can to earn your trust." "I focus so much on everyone because I do take a personal interest in them," Alex said, getting a little defensive. "Exactly, and that's your forte. You need to do that, and the rest of us will work around your other shortcomings to make sure you can continue," Patricia concluded. "So let me catch up a little," Alex said, hoping to get a handle on things. "We head to San Antonio after the show here tomorrow, and then—" "We play in San Antonio for two nights, Thursday and Friday, and then we make a mad dash to Dallas for a Saturday night concert. After that we have a couple of days to make our next stop in Oklahoma on Tuesday." "Three cities a week, huh? Is that the way it'll be the entire tour?" "More or less. Next week we'll hit four cities, as we're only stopping over in Amarillo and Albuquerque for a day before hitting Phoenix." "Guess I'd better get used to traveling, huh?" Alex laughed. "Don't take it too lightly," Gail warned. "You'll likely have to stop several times on the way between cities, but you won't be able to stop for long, because the band needs to get there early to set up. Then you'll only have a few hours to check the city for new followers before you have to make it to the stadium. We'll likely leave before dawn each day to make the next city, so you'll be limited in how much you can search for any new followers each time we stop." "I hadn't considered that," Alex said in surprise. "We know," everyone else chorused. They all giggled at Alex's embarrassment. "Don't worry, it takes a while to get into a rhythm," Erica told him. "Once you do you'll be fine. But until then, life is going to be hell for a while." Everyone in the band nodded sagely at that little bit of wisdom, before Patricia moved on. "So I'm surprised, no young lovelies gracing your bed tonight?" "Only one I'm afraid, and she's the most beautiful and hardest working one I know. In fact, she's set up this whole trip for me, and I intend to make sure she knows just how much I appreciate it," Alex told her as he stepped up, took her hand in his, and kissed it gently while staring into her eyes. She giggled graciously at the gesture. "OK, I think that's my cue to disappear if I've ever heard one," Sammy announced as he stood up. "You guys ready for a quick run to the hotel bar?" "Are you kidding? This is romantic. We want to stay and watch how an angel seduces a fair maiden," Erica replied. "I suspect he'll do it the way men have been seducing women for ages," Sammy guessed. "The only difference is he does a mind meld at the height of their orgasm, at which point they forget all the stupid lines he used to get them there." The others laughed along with him as they reluctantly got up and followed him out. "We'll head to our own rooms if anyone needs us," Chelsea answered for both Jordan and herself. "I doubt anyone will need you," Patricia told them, "unless one of those clowns gets drunk and causes a ruckus, but it's really too early in the tour for anyone to get that carried away. Enjoy your evenings, because I know I will." "I think we'll leave as well," Cate told the two lovers, who were currently too busy staring at each other to respond, even though one had to do so by looking away and watching the other with her peripheral vision. "I've left your snack in the bedroom. I put everything in there while you were busy talking. Make sure you don't overdo it, and we'll see you in the morning. Gail and I will check downstairs for anyone looking for you down there." "Speak for yourself," Gail corrected her. "I'll be watching out from outside, then I'll be next door. If there's any trouble or anyone tries to get in the room, just pound on our door and I'll be over in a second," she explained, but they didn't seem to pay any attention so she and Cate quietly left, leaving Alex and Patricia alone just as Alex was lifting Patricia in his arms to carry her into the bathroom to prepare her bath. ------- When Alex and Patricia showed up for breakfast in the hotel's dining room the next morning she positively glowed, looking like she was walking on air. Cate wondered whether she looked like that after spending a night with Alex, and if she did, how could anyone miss the fact they were sleeping together, and if not, she wanted to try whatever Alex had done last night. There had been several places they could have met nearby, instead of the dining room, but they were hoping to avoid meeting anyone new just yet. They knew they'd find them anyway, but maybe they could avoid it temporarily. Cate had run down early and reserved a table large enough for everyone, both the band and all of Alex's girls he'd wanted to talk to. So when the others entered there was a table full of anxious women waiting to speak with Alex. When they saw Alex they were each about to bubble over in their excitement. Cate observed how different this was from the responses they got in New Orleans, but there everyone they met was already a part of an established community, whereas here the girls were new to the experiences and they knew that Alex was only available for another day. She could understand their nervousness in that regard. Patricia and her band sat at the far end of the table in order to give his new followers better access to him. In order to help out some more, Cate sent a couple of the girls to sit with Patricia, knowing that anything that Alex said could be relayed telepathically through Patricia. "Hey, everyone," Alex greeted them, sitting down quickly so he could get started. He knew he had a limited amount of time, so he wanted to cover as much material as he could as quickly as possible. "I want to apologize for giving you all the wrong information about tonight's concert. It seems I wasn't informed of the change in venue until after you left." "That's fine," Devon replied. "Cate explained where it was and what was involved. She also explained what she expected us to do tonight." "She did?" Alex asked, glancing at Cate with a worried look. "Exactly what did she say?" "She told us we'd all need to work together to cover the expanse of the Astrodome. She gave us zones to work. We're supposed to shepherd any new followers we see around to you so you can handle them." "OK, it sounds like someone has things planned," Alex sighed. "Given that, we'd best focus on other material. I don't know how much time we have." He then proceeded to give them all the standard introductory spiel. The women soaked up the information like sponges, and only had a few questions. Then Alex got to what he was really interested in. "Now that we've got that out of the way, why don't you tell me a little something about yourselves? How about you, Devon, what is it that you do?" "I'm glad you asked," she responded enthusiastically. "I work in a print shop downtown, and I can get you great rates on any printing you need for what you're doing. I can either run off a small set of stuff for your own use, or if I've got a little more time, I can run off bigger projects for either the New Orleans or Carbondale communities." Alex's mouth dropped open in shock, and he simply stared at her as if she'd suggested eating babies for breakfast. Then he started waving his hands. "No, I don't want you printing anything for the movement. And I want the rest of you to listen to this as well, never write down anything about the organization. Remember that anything that's written down, either physically or electronically, can ultimately be traced back to others in the community. I want this to be a completely word of mouth movement. "We printed out a small amount of material when we started this trip, using material that was very expensive yet behaved just like it was incredibly cheap. It would fall apart almost immediately. If you left it out in the sun it would be unreadable within a day. If you kept it indoors it would possibly last a week, but you'd only be able to read parts of it. If you stored it with other documents in a quality controlled environment it would probably screw up the other books due to the high acid content in the paper. Even then, we've stopped using that because our stock has already begun to disintegrate." "So we can't e-mail anyone in New Orleans about our experiences?" Lacy asked. "Only if you're very careful. Remember that nothing ever disappears on the internet. There will be no mention of Watchers or Seers online or on the telephone. You can refer to types 1, 2 and 3, but don't describe what that entails. If anyone asks, just tell them it's how you rank how attractive someone is for your own amusement. I can't stress this enough, the internet is filled with thousands of ways of identifying and tracking information, and anything you say could mean your friends end up in a concentration camp some day." "Isn't that a bit extreme?" Moran asked, looking worried over Alex's excitement. "My primary mission, above and beyond everything else, is to protect those that I care for. I'm not about to jeopardize those I love by being careless. If I'm being paranoid that's fine, but I'd rather be paranoid with everyone I love safe, than to have been careless and someone important to me suffer as a result. If there's a golden rule here, it's this: take care of those in the community first, take care of your family second, after all, they can generally look out for themselves anyway, and then take care of your friends. Whenever you do anything, think of who it's likely to hurt." They all looked chagrined, which bothered Alex because he'd taken a helpful suggestion to help and attacked Devon for it. "Just remember that sentiment," Gail cautioned him. "I'm sure everyone here feels the same way about your risking yourself. Keep in mind that it works both ways. Anyone here would be willing to risk themselves to save you, and the others would gladly step in to prevent you from saving them if it puts you at risk." Alex considered that. He hadn't really followed his own train of thought through to its natural conclusion. "You know, speaking of crumbling paper, maybe you know how to properly dispose of old documents?" Cate asked, coming to his rescue by distracting the current thread of the conversation. Devon still looked stunned for a couple of seconds before responding. "Oh, sure. I can put them through an industrial shredder. What's more, the remains will be buried with a bunch of other financial documents from companies throughout the city that would be impossible to get a court order to examine, since it could potentially embarrass most of the movers and shakers in the city." "Good, then I can get that junk out of the car," Cate said, speaking with a false enthusiasm to cover Alex's short diatribe earlier. "We're already starting to get little white dust all over the interior. It really looks like we've been living in the car when we climb out covered in paper fragments. I'll be glad to get rid of the crap." "I'll address one related item, and then I'll let the discussion drop," Alex added before finishing. "I don't want anyone to have a complete list of all my followers in the city. Treat your contact lists like a phone tree. Everyone should have a list of contacts memorized, maybe a few friends in the community in their phone book, but don't differentiate them at all. That way if anyone gets exposed, the whole community won't be exposed. Right now there's no way to identify who is or who isn't one of us, and if we're lucky no one will be able to track us. Now, that's all I'm going to say on the subject. "Devon, I hope you'll extend your offer to the other people in the community, though, for use in their personal lives. There's nothing wrong with helping friends. Don't put yourself in debt doing it, though. Protect yourself while you protect others, understand?" The other women all nodded, not quite sure how to respond yet. Realizing he'd scared everyone, Alex tried to get the conversation moving again. "So Wilma, what do you do?" Wilma looked a little stunned, and then started speaking. "I'm a court stenographer. I work at the local city courthouse recording the events of the trials." "Hmm, that's interesting. I've never met a steganographer before. Do you use a machine, or do you use shorthand?" Wilma smiled. "I do stenography. A steganographer is someone who codes secret messages. They're similar but they're completely different. Everyone uses a machine nowadays, but my grandfather used to work for the courts years ago, and he taught me how to do shorthand. It's fallen out of favor because everyone develops their own shorthand, thus if someone died, no one could ever translate their old records because one stenographer couldn't translate the work of another." "Interesting," Alex replied, looking intrigued. "So if we were looking to pass secret messages, you'd be the one to talk to?" She laughed again. "Only if they were trained, and only if we knew each other's shorthand methodology, which nowadays is pretty rare. I learned to use my grandfather's, so I'm not sure anyone could ever figure it out." "Hmm. Maybe we should appoint you to keep a master list of who has each of the other lists. Of course, you'd have to teach someone else how to read your messages, so they could figure it out if something happened to you, but it would be a nice subtle way of hiding information in plain sight. You could tell anyone curious about it that you're keeping notes of your cases. No one would ever be able to validate that without a lot of effort, and even if they found you out they wouldn't be able to decode your list." "Well, there are limitations," Wilma replied. "Numbers are pretty discrete, so they'd be easy to figure out even if I tried to code them. Stenography has been around for ages, so people theoretically know how to decode it. You can't really hide information with it, but someone couldn't translate it freely enough to use it for official documents." "Ah, oh well, it was worth trying out anyway. But it's still a decent idea for you to keep track of the master lists. If you code the messages, no one would question them since it's tied into both your work and your personal history. Hopefully no one would look any further than that." "That may be," she agreed. "You know, just out of curiosity, Watchers have a better than average ability to discern things about people. They can't perform as well as a Seer can, of course, but I think it would be interesting if you started marking your stenography with a symbol indicating whether you think the person is innocent or guilty. It would be interesting to see if you had better than random odds at it." "Well, it might not be so straightforward," she cautioned. "Oh, I know, but still, it would be an interesting experiment. What's more, if you had better than typical odds, if anyone started to apply heat to the community you could tell anyone you trusted to check your records. If they could document your successful odds, you'd have fairly convincing evidence of your abilities, but still have deniability that the marks could mean anything or nothing at all." "But—" she started to counter. "And if they argue that you got many of them wrong, you could simply point out that those cases were probably correct, that they just imprisoned innocent people," Alex replied with a smile. "After all, it's hardly an unknown phenomenon." "Yeah, but one that no self respecting Texan would ever utter in public," Grace added. "Yeah, it's probably too farfetched," Alex sighed. "OK, that's two of you. What about you Lacy? What do you do?" "Oh, I write a blog. That's why I was interested when you objected to writing about our experiences." "You didn't, did you?" Alex asked nervously. "No, I didn't. I frankly wouldn't even know where to begin. I could have done one for the community, but as you say, it would be fairly easy to trace to anyone who read or contributed to it. After all, most Americans aren't as cautious as they are in Pakistan or India, where most people use community internet cafes they can't be traced to. Most people here use an internet service which can track your digital signature on anything you do." "Good, I'm glad we're thinking along similar lines," Alex told her. "So what is it you blog about? Surely you can't make much of a living writing free messages on the internet, can you?" "Actually you'd be surprised. The blogs don't cost anything, but the ads we carry pay us. Not a lot, but enough to allow us to get by, especially if we do other things as well. I also write reviews for various magazines, and do YouTube reviews as well." "Really, wow. But again, what do you—" "Oh, sorry, I never answered your question," she answered quickly, realizing her slip up. "I thought the answer was obvious. I write music reviews. I was at the club last night to catch Patty's performance." "Wow, now that is really surprising. What did you say about the performance?" Lacy laughed. "Nothing. If you remember, I didn't actually watch the performance since someone in the audience was distracting me. But I'll tell you this, I checked the other reviews this morning, Patty has been getting some rave reviews." Patricia and her band perked up at this news and soon crowded around her. "Really, what did you hear?" Sammy asked. "We checked the paper, but our performance was too late at night for it to hit the papers. Where did you get your information from?" Mac asked as well. "Actually, the owner of the club was excited about what he'd heard about you from his friends in the music business in New Orleans, so he put out an invitation to a number of local music reviewers, so there were quite a few in attendance last night. You're right, it's too early to appear in the paper, but they usually put them up online pretty quickly so those of us in the know can review them ourselves. As I said, the reviews for your performance were all excellent. They raved about the stage show and how you seemed to hold the audience in the palm of your hand." Everyone started talking at once at that point, so Alex eased back and let the band cluster around Lacy. It was then that Alex noticed movement by the door and looked up in time to see two young women looking into the dining room, apparently having just entered. One was pointing at him to the other one. Alex got Cate's attention and signaled where to look and she quickly got up, taking one of the other girls with her to intercept the women. That was Alex's clue that they'd been there too long. If they were attracting people from off the street, then they needed to split up so they wouldn't attract so much attention. It was one thing to create a scene when they encountered a new Seer, but it was another to do it with a full crew of women attending your every movement. They'd need to be more discreet than that if they wanted to avoid trouble. The breakfast ended soon afterwards. ------- The rest of the day was pretty busy. Cate had been right. They hadn't really noticed it, since they hadn't had to stop and chat with each Watcher they observed in New Orleans, but here in Houston there were a lot of them. There were even more, now that Alex could assign people to go out and shepherd them in. A small group set out to stake out the nearby Houston Center, an indoor shopping center next door to them. They handled it just like they had any other mall, but the amount of people they attracted were larger than they'd encountered before. Not only that, but they tried two other locations in the downtown area trying to find as many people as they could. They even found two Seers. However, as much as Alex had wanted to find someone he could put in charge of the Houston community, he was unable to find anyone he considered suitable. Out of the two he considered his best choices, one was a very competent but mousy woman who he thought couldn't handle much responsibility, while the other was from out of town there on business. The mousey one didn't mind helping Alex as much as she could, but Alex just didn't feel good about putting her in charge. He was anxious to boost someone in order to give the community a little extra protection based on his paranoid fears that the government might try to arrest and interrogate his followers if anyone discovered their hidden abilities. He was starting to get nervous about finding an independent siren in the city who could alert the other Seers if anything happened to the community in Houston. Dinner was similar, with a few people showing up in the middle of dinner, but there weren't any major surprises so they handled it fairly well. Alex kept the people around him to a minimum, sending a couple of watchers out to round up anyone watching him, and sending the people they met to talk with a couple of other nearby watchers. That way they could use their numbers to get a maximum amount of work done while still maintaining a low profile. Dealing with new followers in a large city had proved more difficult than they'd anticipated, though they'd managed it. Now all they had to do was weather meeting, activating and training a string of new followers during a concert at a large public stadium. ------- Chapter 21: A Big Night Alex and the others got to the Astrodome early, though still later than Patricia and her band had. Still, their passes gave them access, although the door guard gave them a wary look. Alex knew that band members typically gave these types of passes to groupies that would sometimes hang around the entrance, so he could only imagine what the guard thought of him and the women surrounding him. However the man didn't say anything, simply shaking his head as they walked past. Strangely enough, their backstage passes didn't give them clearance to wander the stadium before it opened, so they knew they were on their own when they snuck into the main portion of the stadium. In order to minimize their exposure they separated, with Alex and Gail heading along one level, Cate and Grace took the second level, while Devon and Lacy took the third level. They figured they'd spread out later as people started entering, but for now they were just trying to remain unnoticed. "Hey, you! You're not allowed here," a security guard called out. "Oh, sorry," Alex responded. "I've got a backstage pass but I got lost." "You're nowhere near the backstage area. That's behind the stage. You should know you're not allowed out here." "Sorry, I got confused, I'm heading back there now," he called out as he turned around and headed back. But as soon as they got around the corner they ran downstairs to do an end run around the guard, hoping they didn't run into either him or another one. If the guards got multiple reports of people wandering the halls they'd know they were up to something. When Alex and Gail reached the front of the stadium, just in front of the main entrance by the ticket booth, Alex entered the men's restroom, just as they'd planned. The idea was he'd wait until the doors opened to the ticketholders, and then the girls would position themselves around the building to watch the people wandering around, watching for anyone that seemed to be looking for something. Alex would only exit the restricted privacy of the men's room after everyone had migrated to the inner auditorium as the show was about to begin. The building filled up quickly, but it took a while for everyone to get situated, so Alex had a long wait. They'd agreed that Alex would remain in the restroom, hiding in the far stall, while Gail remained outside, keeping an eye out for trouble. Alex felt like a peeping tom, waiting around while men walked in and out of the bathroom. He made sure to keep his feet to himself, to prevent someone assuming he was here for more than just passing time. It was getting close to the time Patricia's act was supposed to begin and the restroom was still busy. "Hey," some guy called out from the end of the restroom, "is there anyone here I should be looking for?" Alex's head snapped up and he quietly cursed to himself before exiting his stall. "Yeah, I'm looking for the same guy," another man called out. "My girlfriend sent me in here to find him, but all these dicks look the same to me, and I'd rather not examine each one," he finished, producing nervous laughs from everyone there. Alex glanced back and saw a big black man with a big belly and large meaty hands. He had a graying beard and a dark mustache. The other man was thin and white, tall with short hair. Alex waved at them and then walked to the far wall to wait for them. When they drew near, they both looked Alex up and down as if trying to evaluate just what kind of sex freak was hiding out in the men's room, but neither one asked about that. "What's this about? Why did our girlfriends ask us to come looking for you in the men's room? How'd they even know you were in here?" "Shh, I'd rather we not attract too much attention, if you don't mind," Alex told them. They both waited for Alex to explain what was going on. "Look, surely you've both noticed that your girlfriends are good at guessing what's going to happen. Perhaps knowing when someone is going to blow up before they do, or knowing who's attracted to someone when no one else did?" The two men looked at each other, then turned to face Alex again. "Go on," the big black man told him. "They both have a particular talent that is in a dormant phase," Alex explained. "However, it's strong enough for them to feel me here, despite the distance and the cement walls. I was hiding here to try to prevent this from happening, and hopefully it's minimizing it, but I guess it was to be expected a few would get through." "A few what?" the other man asked, looking perplexed by both the situation and Alex's explanation. "Just do me a favor. Go back and tell your girlfriends that their intuition was spot on and that I'm hiding in here until everyone is seated and the concert is about to begin. If I come out any sooner I'm likely to cause a scene, as I'm sure you can imagine given how your girlfriends are reacting to me. Once I do, I'll explain what's going on, but it's going to be confusing. Tell your girlfriends to be prepared for some strange experiences. I can't really describe what those experiences are, but watch carefully how they respond. "By the way, there's a woman out there, she's small but she probably looks like she could take on either of you. Her name is Gail. Have your girls talk to her. She'll give them an idea of what to expect." "Are you shitting me?" the white guy asked. "He's got a point about Vanessa," the other guy pointed out. "And I'm guessing he was right about your girlfriend as well. I don't know what he's trying to pull, but he's not going anywhere since there's no way out of this restroom other than through that door, so we've got nothing to lose waiting to see what happens." "Man, we paid good money to see this concert, and if we hang around all day to listen to this kid, we're going to miss the damn thing," the wiry white guy complained. "Hey, we did too. We came to listen to Ms. Kennedy. We've loved her stuff since her first album, but it's going to be a while before she comes out, so we have time." "Yeah, well we came here to see the new act. Someone named Patty Moore. Everyone's been raving about her performances. She's supposed to be the newest thing, and we're going to miss her if we stay here." "I'll tell you what," Alex said, trying to reach a quick compromise, "Patty's a good friend of mine, and if you stick around I'll arrange for the four of you to meet her. I'm sorry but I don't know Diane at all, so I can't make the same offer for her." They stood there and seemed to consider that, at which point the white guy seemed to notice Alex's back stage pass, which had slipped out of his shirt. Alex saw what he was looking at, blushed and hurriedly shoved it back inside his shirt. "All right, we'll wait. But if this is some stupid publicity stunt or some scam, I'm—" "Look, I'm just waiting for the crowd to ease a bit. You'll understand why I'm avoiding people when you see how your girlfriends respond to me. But I'll tell you this, I'll get you inside before she performs, and you can still meet her afterwards. You may not get to your seat, but you won't miss a thing." The two men glanced at each other again and seemed to come to an understanding. "All right, we'll go along with it, but I'm withholding judgment until I figure out what's going on." "Well, don't expect too much," Alex told them. "I still don't understand it, and I'm not sure you'll hear enough to explain what's going on." They both grumbled but left, whispering to each other as they went. Alex was concerned that he might be facing problems if women were seeking him out in the men's room, going so far as to send their boyfriends in after him. At least they hadn't come in themselves, but then he figured Gail probably headed them off before they could attempt it. Alex reentered his little stall and waited again, trying to attract as little attention as he could. It wasn't a long wait. 'Alex, this is Patricia. I just thought I'd warn you that the show's about to start. People should be heading inside so it should be safe for you to head out.' 'Thanks. I appreciate the heads up, ' he replied. Just then the lights in the bathroom dimmed. Alex didn't know how long he had, but he figured it would take a while to talk to the two couples, assuming they'd take more time because of the men being involved. He collected himself on the way out of the nearly empty bathroom, and headed outside. He gave Gail a heads up as he exited the men's room, so she was expecting him. He kept his eyes lowered, trying to scan the feet of the people in front of him. It wasn't a very effective way of keeping track of things, but he was able to notice a group of people near him, and the legs of several women took a halting step. He turned and walked towards the group, finally looking up. The same two men were standing beside their supposed girlfriends, Gail, and another three women. Alex first met the eyes of a slightly heavy set black woman, who immediately squealed and sank to her knees. While her boyfriend tried to help her, Alex looked at a shorter woman standing beside her. She was standing with the other man that Alex had met, and she clutched his side as her eyes went wide and she took a hesitant step back. That man glanced between her and Alex, trying to figure out what was transpiring between the two of them, but Alex didn't have the time to consider him just then. Since he'd nearly reached them, he quickly took in the other people surrounding them. Gail was on the far right, a young girl stood to her right, standing beside Vanessa, the black girl he'd already activated, and there were another two other girls standing to the right of the little group. Because they didn't respond as dramatically Alex assumed they were simply Watchers. "What the fuck did you do to my girlfriend?" the black guy with the graying beard angrily asked when Alex stopped in front of him. He started to reach toward Alex, but Gail firmly grasped his hand just as his Vanessa reached up to hold him back. "No, Wayne, don't. You don't know what you're getting into. He's not going to hurt anyone. He's ... he's..." "He's an angel," the other woman answered. She was a good six inches shorter than her boyfriend, and looked a little worn with some heavy laugh lines in her face despite her apparent young age. Alex figured the lines under her eyes might due to a lack of sleep, but he wondered whether she had a susceptibility to winkling or just smiled too much. "Really? Why do you say so?" one of the other women asked as she looked at Alex in wide-eyed fascination. She wore a flowered blouse with blue jeans and had scarlet hair Alex knew wasn't natural, since that color only came out of a bottle. "Can't you see it? He glows like an angel. He's so bright I can't even see his eyes. I saw him when he first walked out of the bathroom, then his true nature was revealed as he shed his mortal skin," the girl he'd just activated told the others. "Uh, Megan, he's just a normal guy. In fact, he's a scrawny little thing who looks like he just got out of high school." "Hush, Ryan," she insisted. "Don't say such things. You don't question a messenger of God when—" Alex had enough by then, so he finally stepped in. "OK, let's all calm down. Let's keep our voices down, but the rest of you need to know that what these girls are seeing is very real. They just don't realize what it is they're seeing. All they can see of me is a glowing white light, but what they haven't realized yet is that everyone looks different to them now." As Alex revealed this, the two women glanced at the others around them and looked almost as surprised by them as they were by Alex. "They are seeing everyone's life energy. It's a real gift and it's very useful, but it's best if we don't reveal what's happened to them for obvious reasons." "Uh, what obvious reasons?" Ryan asked. "You don't want your girlfriend locked up in a nuthouse, or taken into custody by government officials looking for new tools they can use to spy with," Gail whispered gravely to him. That took the guy by surprise, and he glanced back and forth between Alex and Gail trying to determine if she was serious. Alex's expression convinced him and he stopped talking, figuring he'd see what unfolded before he overreacted. "They'd really do that?" One of the other girls inquired. This one was a really young girl with long brownish hair that fell over one shoulder. She and the girl with scarlet hair both looked young enough to still be underage. "How can they arrest an angel?" Vanessa asked. "Easily," Alex answered. "If they can nail God's son to a cross, they'll have no problems arresting an angel. But I'm trying to tell you that I'm no angel, and I wasn't sent by God. I'm just someone with a unique genetic trait that somehow activates a related genetic trait that each of you have." "Each of us?" asked the third Watcher girl. This one was only a little older than the other two, possibly a friend or an older sister, with shorter dark hair and a stripped dress. "Yes, you three have a milder form of what these two have. You can feel the energy I give off, but you can't see it, nor feel it as strongly as they do." The lights dimmed again, distracting the discussion. The girls started excitedly talking but Alex quieted them. "Look, stay here and talk it over. We've got a lot to talk about, but right now I need to see how many others like you I can find. Gail here can help you understand what you're going—" "Like hell I can," Gail interrupted him. "You aren't getting away from me. There's no telling what might happen to you in this crowd." Alex sighed in exasperation. "Fine, come along, but the rest of you stay here. We'll be back in a minute." Alex turned back after taking a couple of steps. "Oh, Ryan, if you and Megan want to watch Patricia perform, you'd better come along because we'll probably be distracted for much of her set." Megan and Ryan looked at him in confusion, but Megan decided the issue when she clutched Ryan's arm and pulled him along behind Alex, who'd already set off for the entrance to the auditorium. Although Alex hadn't been keeping track of it, it seemed clear that the band had just come out. Patricia was midway through her introductory speech as he entered. " ... the feelings that you have. They tell you who to trust and what you should do. Listen to them. Follow them and they'll lead you to the man who'll change your view of the world." As Patricia continued Alex walked in, looking for anyone that seemed drawn to him. He spotted a woman who turned just as he came to a stop. Their eyes met and that was it. "Those instincts will lead you to the one who'll change—" "It's HIM! It's him. He's come to save me. Oh God!" the woman screamed as she collapsed in front of Alex. Everyone around them turned and stared, the woman's scream attracting everyone's attention. Patricia tried to recover quickly to help cover for Alex, having detected him from a distance due to his powerful aura, and instantly guessing what had happened. "Well, someone thinks I've rambled for too long, so without further ado..." Patricia said as she turned and brought her hand down in a signal to her band, and they immediately set off on a song which drowned out anything the woman before Alex might have said. However, it didn't refocus everyone's attention as they continued to watch the woman and the strange young man standing awkwardly before her. 'Quick, get up, ' Alex told her telepathically, which shocked the poor woman that much more. 'I can't explain now, but we've got to get out of here. I'll explain everything outside.' With that Alex spun and hurried out, although Gail remained behind as she surveyed the crowd. Alex hurried out into the outer rim of the stadium where he saw the people he'd left earlier looking at him in surprise. Figuring he was relatively safe, he glanced back and saw the woman who'd exclaimed over him hurrying after him, followed by Megan and Ryan. He also noticed a couple more people clustered around the passageway entrance, so he headed back to the waiting group he'd left earlier. "What happened?" Vanessa asked. "A minor complication," he answered, turning to regard whoever came out after him. "Who was it?" the young looking brunette asked, not even bothering with what had happened. "I activated another Se ... another person," Alex answered, looking around to see if there was anyone who could overhear what he was saying. There was no one near them, but he noticed a stadium employee watching the group gathered outside the show. Alex's attention was pulled back when he detected someone enter the corridor. The woman who'd exclaimed over him ran out first. She was short with whitish blond hair with dark eyelashes and a nice outfit, unlike the 'rockers' in attendance who all seemed to dress in t-shirts and jeans. As she headed towards him, several more people appeared behind her, Ryan and Megan among them. The new people, two young women and a couple of guys, looked between Alex and the blonde. Alex didn't know who they were, but he knew he needed to handle them. The sheer number of people they were encountering was becoming a problem. So far Alex hadn't had a chance to get to know anyone, and more people kept approaching him. It was going to take a lot to figure out how to adjust to this new approach, as he could see now he wouldn't be able to take the time to speak with each new follower anymore. Cate had warned him about the expected increase in people they'd likely encounter, and they'd changed their plans to adjust to it, but it appeared there were still a lot of changes they'd have to make. Instead he'd have to rely on the other people with him who were scattered around the stadium watching out for others, to tell these people what they needed to know. If he tried to do it himself he'd soon become inundated, and they'd only attract even more attention to what he was doing. 'Come stand by me but remain silent, I need to get rid of some of these people, ' Alex told the blonde. Alex was hoping to use Gail to intercede on his behalf, but she hadn't caught up to him yet. The others, seeing the blonde heading towards him, followed along. "What did you do with our friend?" asked a young woman in a red striped t-shirt, who sidled up alongside the woman who'd just followed him out. "He didn't do anything," she hurried to answer, trying to discourage her friends from speaking in her defense. "What are you talking about?" asked another guy. "You just made a scene in there yelling about how this guy had 'come for you'. Who the hell is he and how does he know you?" Alex was preparing to respond when Gail finally showed up, leading another three people. Alex groaned. Things were definitely getting out of hand. "Listen," Gail called out, distracting the people asking Alex questions, "it's just a case of mistaken identity. I don't think she knows him, and he didn't actually do anything," she blustered, trying to invent some excuse for the woman's behavior, but it achieved what she wanted it to. Alex could tell who was listening to her, and those few who couldn't keep their eyes off of him. The three women that Gail had brought out all looked at him in wide-eyed wonder, and so did one of the men standing amongst the friends of the blonde. 'Pardon me, Miss... ' Alex asked the blonde. She turned, looking dumbfounded, but she answered him aloud. "I'm Lauren Albright." 'OK, Lauren, could you take your friends aside and tell them you thought I was someone else, possibly a past boyfriend you were worried about. We need less people out here. We don't need to attract more attention than we already have, ' Alex told her. She acted on Alex's suggestion immediately. "Look, guys, it was all a big mistake, I thought..." she related as she led them a short distance away so she could explain things to them privately. Seeing his chance, Alex approached the other people he was sure were Watchers. The original people he'd left behind trailed along, and Ryan and Megan clustered around him as well. "All right, this is starting to get out of hand, so I'll give you the shorthand notes," Alex told them. He hurried to fill them in as quickly as he could, trying to project the same information to Lauren telepathically. "You each have a unique trait which attracts you to me. As you might have noticed, some people respond even more than that. The people who are attracted to me fall into different categories. People like Lauren are what we call Seers, or type 1s because they can literally see the life energy that everyone has in them. The reason you were each attracted to me is because I have more of that energy than most people have. The rest of you we refer to as Watchers, or type 2s. We call you that because your tendency is to just stand back and watch me. You can feel there's something important about me, but you generally don't trust your instincts. You need to get over that. These 'feelings' of yours are much more than that, and they can aid you in whatever you do." Several people started to ask questions but Alex waved them off, wanting to finish as quickly as he could before anyone else showed up, or Lauren's friends returned and he wouldn't be able to speak freely anymore. "This seems to be a genetic thing, though we really don't know much about it. The trait is carried on the X chromosome, so it's likely it runs in your family. You should consider who might also have it amongst your relatives. However, it seems to be limited to women for reasons that aren't worth getting into right now." The lone man started to speak up but Alex cut him off. "You're an exception, so far we've only had two others like you, and in both cases it turned out that they had a unique condition where they have an extra X chromosome. The dual chromosomes seem to override the Y for some reason, although maybe there's some requirement that both chromosomes are present for some reason, frankly we don't have a clue. Now, quickly, just so I know whom I'm talking to, who are each of you?" They quickly introduced themselves. It turned out the guy was Frank Osmon, a 32-year-old artist, while the three women came from a variety of backgrounds. Alex had been keeping a watch on the other group, and Lauren seemed to have convinced her friends, because they started to head back into the auditorium while she headed towards Alex and his group. But then the girl in the red striped T-shirt called out, walking rapidly up to them. "Hey, if you don't know him, why are you staying out here? There's something you're not telling us." Lauren headed back, once again trying to pacify her friends, and Alex realized they didn't have much time. "OK, we have way too many people here to escape notice, so here's what we're going to do. Megan and Ryan, go watch the damn concert and enjoy yourselves. We can discuss what you need to know later. You three," he said pointing at the three Watchers that Gail had brought out, "I want to head upstairs to meet my sister. She's up there looking for anyone that looks lost, so she should notice you right off. Now—" "Uh, Alex?" Gail interrupted him. "What?" Alex asked a little sharply, beginning to feel overwhelmed. But instead of answering, she simply pointed behind him. Alex turned to see Cate herding three other women towards him down the hallway from the staircase leading to the second floor. Alex groaned again. "OK, change of plans, you three head up to the third floor. There should be two girls up there doing the same thing. Chances are they'll have some more people waiting to see me. Tell one of them to bring them down, then have the other one explain what's going on. You three," he said indicating the original three girls, "head up and talk to Morgan on the second floor. Tell her that Cate will be up in another minute." With that people hurriedly scattered in several different directions and Cate brought the new batch of people to join them. "Here's a new bunch of converts," Cate announced. "It seems Patricia made an announcement for everyone to 'follow your instincts' and how they'll 'lead you to someone who will change your life', so all the Watchers are now actively looking for you. Somehow she managed to get the normally reticent Watchers to become more aggressive." "Thanks. We have our hands full here as well. I'm sending these girls to the others so we can teach them what they need to know without grouping too heavily down here." "You know they'll all want to meet you, though," Cate told him unnecessarily. "Yeah, but I figure if I give them a brief overview that should satisfy them. The rest of you should be able to give them the details they'll need to know." Cate looked at the crowd standing around Alex. "Seers?" she asked. "And their boyfriends. I sent the Watchers away. There's another one inside watching the concert and there's—" "I'm sorry," Lauren said, speaking to Alex as she walked up with her friend behind her. "I can't get my friend, Lisa Grady, to leave until I tell her what's going on." Alex sighed once again. It seemed to be his new thing. "Cate, this is the other one. Her name is Lauren. Lauren, do you trust your friend, Lisa? Can she keep a secret, even though it's strange and is likely to generate a lot of buzz?" Lauren seemed to stop to consider that, but she ended up nodding her head. "Lisa and I go way back. If something is going on in my life, she'll want to know what it is. What's more—" "Never mind. If you trust her then that's good enough for me," Alex replied. He then gave the basic spiel to the new people as well. Lisa was at first surprised, then skeptical, but given how seriously everyone else took what Alex was saying she kept her doubts to herself. The entire evening was much the same. There was a constant stream of people coming out, being ferried by people Alex had assigned to this task, stopping just long enough for them to meet Alex. Alex was feeling close to being overwhelmed. Before, they'd sought out city centers to find high enough concentrations of people to find new followers, but now they had too many to process. It's one thing to walk along a busy pedestrian mall, and quite another to have thousands of people standing shoulder to shoulder. This scheme of Patricia's was probably the biggest thing they'd stumbled onto yet. They were finding a huge number of new followers in a very short time span. Now if they could just avoid getting into trouble. "Hey, you there, you can't be standing around selling drugs in the open," yelled an approaching security guard leading a policeman along behind him. Alex and the others with him looked up in alarm, but no one moved, unsure of how to respond. "What are you doing here?" the cop asked them. "The concert is inside." "Sorry, officer, we were just talking. We'll head back inside now," Alex answered, trying to appear polite. "They've been here since the concert started," the security guard informed the policeman. "There's been a steady stream of different people coming and going, and none of them have been paying a bit of attention to the concert." "Is there a problem, officer?" Gail asked, walking up and flashing her backstage pass. Luckily, despite her lack of security credentials, she still carried herself like an officer of the law and knew how to talk to cops. "These people are dealing drugs," the security guard said. The cop didn't look so sure, but he was looking them over, looking for any sign of wrongdoing he could detect. Alex noted the cops badge said his name was "Lawrence". Alex hoped none of the new girls was carrying anything, or else they might all be in trouble. "The kid's with me. I'm assigned to protect him," Gail explained, digging out and flashing her private security license at him, which she hadn't had ready since she wasn't hired by the Astrodome as security personnel. "He's clean. He doesn't have anything illicit on him. He's just busy interviewing audience members for a story he's doing." Officer Lawrence looked over the document, then looked Alex and Gail over before looking over the people surrounding them. "If you're going to do interviews, it will have to be outside. You can't create an obstacle to public egress," he announced. "You don't look like typical druggies. For one thing none of you scurried off, but if I catch any of you congregating here again I'll run you in and we'll continue this little discussion there." Alex was about to say something when Gail cut him off. "We understand. I'm sorry to have upset things, but I thought it wouldn't cause a disturbance. We'll head into the concert now." With that she took his arm and guided him into the concert. The others looked at each other for a few moments and then trooped in after him. "What was that about?" Alex asked Gail. "We need somewhere we can talk." He found he had to shout to make himself heard over the noise of the concert. 'You can't do it out in the hallway anymore, ' Gail told him telepathically, since that was the only way to be heard over the loud droning music. Patricia had closed her act a while before to thunderous applause. Her set had been a quiet sedate affair, yet the response had been thunderous. The current lead act was bellowing a hard rocking tune, yet the audience wasn't as excited. 'You're attracting too much attention. All you need is a public record linking your name to the concert here. See if you can find any more people here on the floor. I'll talk to the others and get them to talk to whoever you've met, telling them to meet us out in the parking lot after the concert.' 'I'm not sure it will work, but we'll do what we have to, I guess, ' Alex replied. 'We'll make our way over to the far side. Hopefully the cop and security guard won't be looking for us over there.' 'Just don't get caught. We want to keep your name clean for as long as we can, and we don't want your name linked to any concerts where people might talk about meeting the 'Angel', ' Gail explained before letting him go. She stopped a few of his followers to issue some terse instructions as he headed off. Despite the difficulties, they actually managed quite well. One of the girls ran up to alert the other girls on the other floors. They got Cate to head outside where anyone wanting information could go to discuss what they'd stumbled upon. The other girls flanked Alex, whispering instructions or writing down contact information to the girls that would walk up to Alex. By now the audience was already starting to thin out. Despite her best efforts, Diane Kennedy just wasn't generating the level of excitement she'd been hoping for, and many listeners were heading home already. That helped to cover the people heading out to discuss things with Cate, and it also disguised the large group clustering around her a little ways from the entrance. When the audience thinned a little more, Alex figured they'd had a good night and he'd better call it a night before anyone else noticed what he was doing. Signaling everyone still helping him, they headed outside. When another security guard approached them Alex had one of the Seers stop him to report an 'altercation' with someone back in the stadium. That distracted the guards enough to allow Alex to slip outside with his followers. The people talking about him to Cate were excited to see Alex and they swarmed him as he drew near, but Gail kept them at bay, helped by the fact they were afraid of antagonizing him. He gave a few words, making sure he spoke telepathically to the few Seers amongst them, connecting them to the Seers in Carbondale. But Alex had another decision to make. Who was to be in charge of the Houston followers? This was his last night here and he needed to assign someone the role, and ideally Alex should boost them to ensure the community here stayed safe. "Lauren, I need someone who can watch over my followers here in Houston. What's more, I need someone who can alert me if the authorities start taking people into custody should we ever get exposed. I know it's asking—" What he left unsaid, was why he needed someone who could communicate with others. Namely, that if anything happened to him, say he was to die after having been exposed for some odd reason, the community could be cut off just when they'd need to reach out to the other communities. "Uh, excuse me," Megan said, coming up behind him, "but if you're worried about the police doing something, then maybe I can help." "Yeah, I'm listening," Alex told her. "Well, I'm involved in a law firm, and both my father and my brother are in the Houston police department. If anything were to happen, I'm sure there would be several people who'd alert me simply because they'd be concerned that I may be involved. I'd be the perfect person to keep a watch on things." Alex looked at her skeptically, and then glanced at her boyfriend, Ryan. "There's more to it than that," Alex told them. "In order to ensure I hear anything that happens, I need to, uh, boost someone so they can communicate to anyone in the organization." "And you can only do that through becoming sexually intimate with them?" Megan asked. "Cate already explained that." Alex stood back and regarded her, not sure what he was getting into here. "Look, as good as that sounds, I have a real problem with screwing up established relationships." "Hey, look man," Ryan said, stepping forward for the first time that evening. "As confusing as all this is, Megan already spoke to me about this. I don't understand it, but she told me that this was the most important thing she's ever gotten involved in, and she'd gotten into some heavy stuff before. I know it's strange, but I'm willing to let her go through with this if she thinks it's necessary." Alex blinked, unsure how he felt about that, but Ryan continued. "The only thing is, I want to be there. I know this is a really odd situation, but this is the modern world and strange things occur all the time. But I really want to make sure she isn't going to want to run off with you. I figure if I'm there I can determine if she's getting too involved with you." He looked Alex in the eye. "Megan says she trusts you to do the right thing, and that you wouldn't come between us, but I just need to be sure." Alex's mind was dancing as he tried to figure out how to deal with this strange offer. Despite his normal reservations, it sounded like Megan really was the best person to oversee the Houston operation. It sounded like she was used to a certain amount of organization, and her connections would mean a lot. But Alex didn't like stepping into the middle of something. He was also nervous that Ryan might see this as a potential group sex thing, but he had to make a snap decision because the night was getting late, and they had to leave early the next morning. "All right. Here's the deal, I'll take you and Megan back to the apartment with us, along with Lauren. Since we have a couple of Seers I want to make sure we have duplicates that can carry on if anything happens, or someone is out of town if something goes wrong. I just want you all to know, I'm only doing this because there's no other way to manage this. I don't like the idea of forcing my way into an existing relationship, but if you think you can manage this, I can't see any easy way to avoid it." "If it makes you feel any better," Megan said, "I can now feel Ryan's sincerity in this. I don't think he's trying to trick you. I think it will work out." Alex glanced at both Lauren and Gail, both of whom hesitantly nodded their acceptance to him, though Gail's was actually more of a helpless shrug. Though she might not be overly fond of the idea, neither one was willing to tell him it was a bad idea. "In that case, we've got ourselves a date," Alex told them, wondering just how much trouble he was getting himself into. ------- "Hello? This is Anthony Barlow," Anthony answered hesitantly, afraid of saying much before he knew who was calling. He really wasn't cut out for this skullduggery nonsense. It took too much out of him trying to hide phone calls from his wife. He'd had to run into his den to answer two phone calls before this one, only to have to take the phone back out to his wife because it had been someone calling his personal number to speak to his wife. He was sure she was going to think he was having an affair before long. "Yeah, this is Harry Wittmore, calling in with my daily report," the voice on the other end said. "Man, am I ever glad you finally called. I've been waiting for your call all night," Anthony told him. "What can I say, these investigations involve odd hours, and I've been working overtime trying to get a lead on this kid. I can't guarantee I'm going to call at any particular time. After all, I'd rather wait until I have a complete picture to give you than phone you with repeated updates throughout the day." "Yeah, that makes sense," Anthony admitted, although it didn't alleviate his stress any. "Fine, now calm down. You've got to learn to deal with this just like any other phone call. Don't go hiding it from your wife or you'll create more problems than you already have." "OK, I'm calm," Anthony replied, although he sounded like he was anything but at the moment. "What have you discovered?" "Not much. It seems there aren't many men in this organization, or rather, there aren't many men asking questions that these people trust. I've learned there are supposedly some other men involved in it, but none are apparently in the know, so no one's going to talk to a man about what's going on." "So you haven't discovered anything?" "I haven't said that. What I said is it's hard to uncover details, but we'll talk about that in a minute. So far I've learned that this kid you referred to is the hottest thing to hit New Orleans since the Pope visited here way back in '87." "Go on," Anthony prompted him, anxious to learn anything he could. While he was surprised that this scammer hadn't been hiding and was somewhat well known, he was more anxious to find something he could use against him. After all, his interest wasn't in writing the man's autobiography. "Well, it seems everyone knows something about him. It's been the talk of the town for months now, and there was a spike in interest in the last week when the major networks all did reports on him during their evening news broadcasts." "Really? Damn, I missed those. I only read the Wall Street Journal and only watch CNBC and CNN in the evenings." "Well, none of those carried it, but the major networks did. Although they thought it was fluff news, so they didn't cover it in much detail, giving just a cursory overview. It was mostly covered by Fox news because they were playing up how it was an affront to the Christian community." "Oh, no wonder I didn't see it then. I try to avoid those kinds of sensationalist reports." "Anyway, the big news media didn't turn up much of interest. They basically parroted the reports of a local reporter who first broke the story. I've just e-mailed you the video clips from the different broadcasters and copies of the newspaper clippings from the local reporter." "How ... I never gave you my e-mail address," Anthony argued. "I'd hardly be much of an investigator if I couldn't look up public records on one of the biggest names in the Beaumont financial world, now would I?" the detective asked. "No, I guess not," Anthony answered defensively. He didn't feel comfortable with a detective investigating him at the same time he's doing an investigation for him, but he really couldn't complain when he'd only looked up public information. "It seems this kid is only interested in women, although he doesn't seem to be interested in wealthy women or women with connections, so I'm not sure what his scam is. The people here claim he's performed several miracles, which is why they made the religious connection. Supposedly he brought someone back from the dead, he converted a prostitute, and he healed a blind woman, but none of these reports is all that miraculous. They each have other explanations for them." "That's not surprising," Anthony answered, his voice dripping with attitude. He already knew this kid was scamming his daughter. That isn't what he was interested in. "Look, I'm not interested in the Reader's Digest Condensed Version of his history, what I want is the dirt on him. Something I can use against him." "Yeah, that's the thing. If no one is willing to talk to me, I can't get that kind of information. So I've got an idea, but it's going to add to your costs," Harry warned him. "I'm not overly surprised. What is it and how much is it going to cost me?" "Well, since no one here will talk to a man, I want to bring in an associate who hopefully they'll talk to. I've picked up enough clues she should be able to gain their confidence, and hopefully she can get some real information. As soon as I get your authorization I'll fly her out. Her bags are packed and the next flight out leaves in an hour." "Well get her out there, man. I told you this is important, and that I'm willing to pay for some decent information. You should have brought her out on your own. Next time, if you have to pay someone off just go ahead and do it. You don't need to ask me first. I told you before; as long as you itemize your costs so I can review them I'm fine. I might question tickets to Fiji, or a thousand dollar bottle of champagne, but anything related to this case I'll OK." "That's good to know. Look over the stuff I sent you and I'm sure I'll have something good by this time tomorrow," Harry concluded. "I'll call you about this time then," and with that he hung up. Anthony wasn't pleased, but he couldn't really expect miracles. It took time to dig up dirt on people. He could wait for decent information, but he was afraid if it took too long his daughter might do something stupid. He'd have to watch her and make sure she didn't. And if she did, there will be hell to pay, that he promised himself. ------- Chapter 22: The Fear of Angels "Did you really agree to what I just heard?" Cate asked her brother after they'd gotten into the car and underway. "Yeah, he did. I'm waiting to see how this all falls apart," Gail laughed at the mess Alex had just gotten himself into. "I'm telling you, Alex, if that creep tries anything with me..." Cate said, leaving the rest of the threat unstated. "I'm sure he's not going to ... never mind, I'm not so sure of that, myself," Alex replied. "If he tries anything with me, you may end up picking his pieces off of the sidewalk below the hotel," Gail warned him in a stern tone, indicating she was serious about her intent, even if she wasn't about the specific threat. "Hey, haven't you ever wanted to fool around?" Alex asked his sister. "I mean, you have to sit there every night and watch me make love with a string of women. Don't you ever get the desire to try it yourself? You know, maybe spread your wings and 'fly' a little?" Cate turned and glared at Alex until he winced, then she explained herself. "I've got everything I need right now, and it's only a little bit sexual. The sex is great, but that's not why I'm sticking around. You're turning the world upside down, you're setting up something that will carry on after you for centuries, and you're influencing hundreds of people. Beyond that, no one else can compare with you. Remember, half of what these women get from you is exposure to your energy. If you were making love to them without it, you'd likely be struggling to keep up. But with your energy added to the mix, they're all over you." "You've got a point there," Alex conceded. "I'm continually amazed that everyone responds like I'm a stallion in bed. It just doesn't make sense." "Oh, it makes plenty of sense. You've never slept next to you. Believe me, there's nothing like it. Why do you think I sleep next to you every night, even on those nights I can't sleep with you." "So you won't ever date anyone because you wouldn't get your daily fix of Alex energy?" Alex asked. "Not only that. But say if we ever settled down and you married someone who wouldn't put up with me living with you, in other words, not Chalise or Kitty, then I might try to find someone of my own. But I'd only do it if they understood that you are my top ten priorities. I owe you everything I am, and we have too much riding on you. Even if I'm not able to spend time with you, I'm still going to dedicate myself to figuring out how you tick. Sex with you is just a tiny piece of the bigger puzzle." "OK, so you aren't interested in dating," Alex summarized. "Alex, I don't think any of your girls would be interested in anyone else," Cate replied. "Hey, that's exactly what I'm —" "Yeah, yeah, we know. You want to maintain everyone's relationships with their families and friends," Cate interjected, finishing the thought for him. "But like I said, what they're getting from you is completely separate from what they get from a boyfriend. You represent the future, power, and you're the closest they'll ever get to divinity. Do you think these people would all be interested in you if you were just a great lay? Hell, no. They are spending this time with you because you bring something major to their ordinary lives. You've given their lives meaning, you've given them something to aim for, and you promise a change from everything they see that doesn't work in the world they currently know." "So what are you going to do if he tries something?" Gail asked Alex, hoping to get some guidelines from him before anything happened. "Well, if he tries to force anything on anyone I'll at least throw him out. If he assaults anyone I'll file charges, whether it gets back to me or not." "What if he ... decides he's interesting in experiencing some bi-angel action?" Gail asked with a grin. Alex shivered uncomfortably at the thought. "Don't like it when the shoe is on the other foot?" Cate asked him as she also grinned at his discomfort. Neither one could miss the conflict between his ease with everyone else fooling around with the same sex while he refused to even consider it for himself. "I've got to admit," Alex replied, "although I'm not anxious to try anything myself, and I've got nothing against gay guys, but there's just something about him I'm not comfortable with. "So why do you think she vouched for him? Speaking of which, why did you vouch for him, Gail?" "We saw he was honest in his offer, but there's no telling what he may decide when he gets there," she answered. "You know guys, they think with their penises. And when the pants come off and everyone gets naked, there's no telling what he's liable to try." "I'll try to watch my step," Alex told them. "I wasn't feeling comfortable about this to begin with. I'm even less comfortable with it now." ------- Alex and his crew waited at their hotel for the others to catch up with them. Patricia and her band hadn't finished when Alex and the others left, so they would arrive later. That left Lauren, Megan and Ryan. Lauren ran up and hugged Alex, effectively gluing herself to his side, while Megan kept her distance, not wanting to antagonize her boyfriend, Ryan. Alex once again asked himself whether he was making a huge mistake, but he wasn't sure what else he could have done under the circumstances. "So if all your followers are women, then what's the deal with that Frank dude?" Ryan asked. Alex was preparing to give the standard explanation when Cate spoke up. "Actually that's an interesting question. We've had a couple of guys that have shown these abilities before, and there seems to be a specific set of circumstances that allow it, but I plan on interviewing him over breakfast tomorrow, just to make sure. Basically it's very, very rare, so he's definitely the exception and not the rule." Ryan seemed to accept that, even without the semi-scientific argument that Alex had been prepared to supply him with. "So, Lauren," Alex said, addressing the girl he hadn't really gotten to know yet, "whatever happened to your friend Lisa Grady? She didn't look very convinced about my little tale." "Oh, no, she wasn't," she answered with a little giggle. "She thought it was the stupidest thing she'd ever heard. But we talked, and I described what I'm able to see now and what it meant, and she said she'd reserve her judgment on it until she had some more concrete evidence." "Smart girl, that. It's always best to doubt, but doubt with an open mind, that makes a big difference," Alex said. "That's what makes a successful scientist," Cate added. "Never accept anything as it is, but wait for the final evidence before making a decision. It's the ability to disbelieve established wisdom that allows you to make great strides forward." "Well, I'm not sure Lisa will ever rise to the level of a great scientist, though she loves to experiment," Lauren commented. Ryan smiled at the weak joke, although Alex wasn't sure he got the point of it. However it reinforced his earlier nervousness about being caught with someone carrying drugs. "What about you, Lauren, what is it that you do?" Alex asked as they waited for the elevator. Alex and Cate surreptitiously glanced around the lobby to ensure no one was looking for Alex before the elevator got there. "Oh, nothing special, I'm a purchasing agent for a vegetable processing plant outside the city. Basically, I buy the various vegetables like potatoes and corn, and we process them and ship them off to be sold across the country." "Ah, good honest work," Alex said, despite the fact that he'd never done an 'honest day's work' himself. Alex, like Cate, had focused on school and after school events instead of getting a job, and now it looked like he'd have difficulty staying in any one place long enough to get established in a job. "There's actually a lot involved in it," she answered. "If you were staying longer I'd offer to give you a tour of the facilities, since there's a lot you may not realize about how the food you eat every day gets produced." "So you deal with a lot of people, then?" Alex continued, searching for some ability she had that he could capitalize on to help the local community. "Oh, sure, I'm on the phone all the time," she responded as the elevator doors opened. "Basically it's a glorified sales job, except I'm talking to farms and grocery stores instead of customers." "Oh," Alex said, at a loss over how to apply that knowledge to his mission. "Do you do any hiring? Any interviewing or evaluating?" "Not really. I have to talk up the people I speak with, establish good rapport and keep them all on an even keel." "Oh, so you'd probably be able to run herd on my followers here in the city, then? Make sure they're all doing well, that they're properly motivated, and help anyone that's having problems with anyone, especially with their family or friends like you might be having with Lisa?" "Oh, I guess I could do that," she said as the elevator dinged on their floor. "That sounds a lot like what I'm doing now." Alex was pleased with himself as they entered their hallway. He'd managed to fill yet another position in his organization. "I'll tell you what, since I don't have time to do it myself, could you try to get together with the people you met tonight and see what they could do for the community? If we're going to survive, we've got to pull together and make sure we're productive. What's more, we need to make sure we're all successful, both in our work, our businesses and in our relationships." "Don't worry," she answered with pride. "I'll manage to find you the best. I'm sure we've got some real talent here, and if someone isn't good at a particular job I'll try to find something else for them to do. I won't let you down." "I wouldn't think you would," he answered, "I'm sure you'll do a great job." "Alex has this weird ability to always pick the right person for the right job," Cate said. "He doesn't seem to get it from anywhere, he just seems to always luck into it, but it's been working for him for a while now." Opening the door, Gail let them into the room. Alex had them sit on the bed while he sat on a nearby chair. Cate took the other chair by the desk while Gail remained standing by the door. "So, are we going to get started?" Ryan asked, looking both excited and nervous at the same time. "That's not quite how I operate," Alex explained. "I believe in getting to know people before I get intimate with them. This doesn't work unless I can establish a personal connection with them. I'm not in this for the sex. I've got to find a way to associate with them so they'll open their minds to me, if you will." "Oh, well lead on then, oh great masterful one," Ryan said with a sweep of his hands. Alex wasn't sure if he was teasing him, being playful or was making fun of him. However he chose to not debate the issue just then. "I'm curious, Lauren," Alex said, continuing with his previous conversation, "you said something about 'you've come for me' when you first saw me. What was that about? You didn't think I was an angel of death or something, did you?" "Oh, no, absolutely not," she reassured him. "Actually, my great aunt called me to say that you'd be in the city today, and told me to attend Patty's concert specifically so I could meet you. She lives in New Orleans and she explained that she was a Watcher and that I probably was as well. She also detailed what that meant, what you were trying to do and that I might have the specific traits that you were looking for. "I thought it was pretty far-fetched, at first, but she's always been pretty insightful so I didn't poo-poo it right off the bat. When I saw the ads for the concert with the tag lines about 'trusting your instincts' it struck a chord with me, so I figured I'd see what you were selling. However I figured you were probably in the band, so I got there early and got up close to the front of the crowd. But I kept feeling myself being drawn back to the far entrance again. Since the whole concert was about trusting your instincts, I figured maybe I'd better listen to mine, so I started following them, and the farther I went the stronger I felt your presence. Then when you walked into the stadium I just knew you were who I was looking for, and when our eyes met and suddenly you started glowing like an angel I knew you'd come for me." Alex shifted nervously in his seat. "I'm really not an angel. In fact —" "Hold it right there," Gail warned him from the corner. "You know, for someone who keeps saying he doesn't mind what others believe, you're always quick to tell others what they're allowed to believe in. You know that you're the only one who doesn't believe in the existence of souls, don't you?" When Alex hesitantly nodded, she went on. "The others may have differing views on their interpretation of spirituality, but most believe in some form of God. If you really believe in an open movement that allows all faiths, then you've got to allow people to believe in what they choose to. "Despite my own troubles with my church, I still believe that God leads you, and that you are unwittingly doing God's work for him, and I'm sure everyone else feels the same thing. Don't belittle our faith by constantly telling us we're wrong. "Now, I don't mind if you tell people that you're not an angel, as it keeps them from overreacting when they first meet you and it provides a nice method of explaining what we know of everyone's abilities, but you've got to reel it in when you're relaxing with people. We understand why you don't believe in God, and we value it, because you've demonstrated that it deconstructs the link between you and organized religion, but don't try to kill our own sense of religious faith." Alex blinked wordlessly a few times as he tried to absorb Gail's words. "You know, you're absolutely right. I've been a bit of as ass, haven't I? I apologize to each of you, and I promise I'll try to be more careful in the future. Hopefully I'll succeed if you each help me stick to my promises." He turned and regarded Lauren again. "Lauren, I specifically want to apologize to you. I'm officially whatever you want to think of me as. I have no idea if God is using me, if the spirits are making me dance, or if the fates have it in for me, teasing me by making me lead a religious movement that I don't personally believe in, but you're right. I did come for you, just like I came for every one of my followers, including those I find here and on the rest of my trip." She just smiled at this. "I had no doubt about it. I could tell you were divinely inspired when I first saw you, and the more you talked the more sure I was. You carefully explained how you weren't an angel, and frankly, as popular as the idea of angels is, they're a bit of a dated myth. I'd rather believe that angels are spirits that are called to the Lord, but that are separated from man for whatever reason. I can see you in that role. You are a man, but you've clearly held yourself separate from other men, both in your beliefs and in your assumptions about the world. The only thing is, that kind of angel doesn't need to know they are angels to do the Lord's work. Heaven knows, there's a long list of religious figures who have done some horrid deeds, so being religious doesn't make one any more of a saint than anyone else, so I can understand why God might avoid a religious figure." "Man, I'm sorry, but I agree with you, Alex," Ryan said, laughing. "This is all too heavy for me. Have we talked enough? You've gotten to know everyone and you've managed to find a job for everyone in the room, besides me, of course. So how about we get this little show on the road. You must know Lauren and Megan well enough by now to do whatever black magic it is that you do so well," he finished, quoting famous rock vocals from a time neither one was even alive. Alex wasn't sure he liked Ryan's attitude, but he could see his point. Ryan was obviously nervous, both about what Alex was planning on doing with his girlfriend and also about all this talk of Alex's being guided by God. Plus Alex was aware if he didn't do something soon that Ryan was likely to lose patience and bolt, probably taking Megan with him. "All right, that makes sense. We can get started. But I'll just warn you, I like to take my time. It's hard enough scheduling these events, you really can't rush them." "Hey, that's fine. I'll tell you what, you start on Lauren and I'll get Megan warmed up for you? How's that?" For some reason that irritated Alex, but he couldn't really figure out why. He couldn't really expect Ryan to just sit there and watch him make love with his girlfriend without him being involved in some way, and he wasn't actively interfering with anyone anyway, so he just shrugged it off. Instead he reached out, took Lauren's hand, and guided her to the bed. "You guys do whatever it is you need to do," Cate told them. "I'll busy myself fixing Alex something to eat while I distract myself. After all, watching my brother get naked with a bunch of women isn't exactly something that interests me that much." Alex had to smile at Cate's response, knowing just how much she actually enjoyed doing just that. But he understood what motivated her. It was bad enough not freaking out Alex's girls, but the idea of negatively impacting a potential spouse of a follower just increased the risks, so he understood the need to keep a low profile. He was a little surprised that she and Gail didn't just head to the other room instead of remaining here. So Ryan and Megan began kissing while Alex did the same to Lauren. Alex noticed Megan's reactions when he wasn't concentrating on Lauren. She'd keep glancing at him, and she seemed ill at ease with Ryan. Again, Alex could understand that. She was feeling torn by her feelings for Alex and for her boyfriend, and she was having to fight a two headed serpent in her own mind as a result. He'd expect her to be distracted for most of the evening. After all, she didn't want to disappoint Alex, but then again she couldn't appear to be too enamored with him either. Lauren, though, had no such compunction. She was all over him, kissing him enthusiastically, rubbing up against him, and trying to maintain as much skin contact as she could. He had no doubt she'd already talked to the other girls, plus those that Alex had put her in telepathic contact with, but he'd also learned that these women could feel the energy he gave off, and they could figure out the best way to get it on their own. Alex glanced over while playing with Lauren and noticed that Ryan and Megan were going at it hot and heavy. Megan was already totally nude, and Ryan wasn't far behind. Their clothing was scattered around the bed, and Ryan's hands were busy. But Megan seemed distracted. She actually looked like she was trying to slow her boyfriend down, rather than encouraging him. Alex hoped he wasn't intimidating her, making her feel she couldn't let herself go in front of him. After all, Alex certainly wasn't the jealous sort, and he had no intention of getting between a man and his girlfriend. Well, actually he was doing just that, but he was trying to do it with the least amount of damage, and getting upset with them getting intimate would do more damage than anything else he could think of. Alex shifted over a little, partially to avoid having to stare at Ryan's junk, as he tried to move a little faster himself by removing Lauren's blouse and bra. As Alex began playing with her breasts, still watching how she responded to his touch, he couldn't help noticing that Megan had gotten Ryan settled between her thighs. However, instead of seeming pleased by his actions, she seemed nervous and pensive. 'Is everything OK?' he asked her mentally. 'What? Oh, sorry, I keep forgetting that you can do that. Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that Ryan is acting oddly.' 'Oddly how?' Alex asked, allowing himself to be distracted from what he was supposedly doing with Lauren. 'Oh, I don't know, ' she responded before she began describing exactly how he was acting oddly. 'Notice how much noise he's making?' she asked. Actually, Alex had been so focused on Lauran and her reactions to him he hadn't noticed before, but Ryan was making a lot of noise grunting, swearing, and even making slurping noises while going down on his girlfriend. Thinking about it, Alex could understand that, though. He was intimidated by his girlfriend wanting to make love to someone else, a near angel at that. Thus he could see Ryan acting possessively, trying to show everyone that Megan was officially his. Actually, this was almost like hiking his leg and pissing on her to mark his territory. Alex shared that mental image with Megan causing her to laugh, which probably wasn't a very good idea, since it would likely only upset Ryan all the more to have his girlfriend giggling at his sexual performance while comparing him to Alex. Hoping to move a little faster, and to make up for time lost being distracted, Alex got up and helped divest Lauren of her pants. She then proceeded to remove his clothing as well. However, before they'd progressed very far, Ryan was already moving up, anxious to finish the deal and screw his girlfriend. As Alex and Lauren got back to sharing his energy between their exposed flesh, Ryan was already humping away beside them, grunting up a storm, telling Megan how hot she was and how she was the finest piece of ass in all of Houston, in fact in all of Texas. Such actions cooled down Alex's own ardor, as he didn't like such obnoxious and overbearing behavior in the bedroom. He believed in sharing experiences and getting to know someone in the most intimate of manners, but it only looked like Ryan was in a race to the finish line. Megan, meanwhile, seemed to be sick of her boyfriend's behavior, but seemed too embarrassed to call him on it. Alex had to refocus his attention or else he'd lose the connection he'd already established with Lauren, which he didn't want to do because he knew it would take a long time to reconnect if he did. However, Alex also quickened his pace, figuring if he took that much longer to finish than Ryan did there could possibly be trouble. In order to counter the disruption that Ryan was having on Alex's slow approach to lovemaking, Alex started speaking to Lauren telepathically. This did two things: it allowed him to concentrate on her more fully, plus it allowed him to share both his innermost feelings and emotions without having to worry about being out of breath or breaking their kiss. As a result he started to catch up. "Oh FUCK! Oh Yeah, Oh God, Oh Shit! God you're the best piece of ass. Suck my cum, baby!" Ryan shouted out, further distracting Alex. Everyone tried to ignore him as best they could, but Ryan was obviously trying to garner attention with his outburst. Alex kept working, quietly making slow love to Lauren even as Ryan rolled off of Megan and draped his hand over his forehead. "Ryan, I can't understand why you're acting like this," Megan quietly hissed at him. "I don't know what you're talking about," he insisted. "I'm just showing poor Alex how it's done, since he seems to be having trouble finishing what he started." "You don't realize who you're dealing with," Megan whispered to him through her teeth. "He could do horrible things to you if he wanted. You have no idea of the power he possesses." She was obviously trying to keep her criticisms between them, but in the small room it was hard to disguise what she was saying, but he wasn't listening to her. "Hey, if he's a damn angel then he's going to be forgiving, so I've got nothing to worry about." He then turned to Alex, still making slow quiet love to Lauren. "You're never going to finish if you don't pick up the pace," he observed, watching Alex. "There's delaying orgasm to heighten sensations, but you're just being lazy." When Alex didn't respond, he just shook his head, looking pointedly at his girlfriend, but she was ashamed to even make eye contact with him. Ryan simply shrugged, reaching over, finding his pants and pulling out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. "This is a no smoking room," Gail reminded him. "So?" "All we need is to make a negative impression on the hotel staff. We're trying to maintain a low profile. Please don't piss off the people we rely on, OK?" He shrugged again and dropped the cigarettes on the nightstand, turning to watch Alex and Lauren again. "Man, I could make love to Megan twice in the time you take to even get started." Alex didn't respond, looking away from him so he didn't have to react. Ryan shook his head again and rolled over. "Hey baby, you want anything? I think I'll hit the can and grab a soda." Megan declined the offer with a visible revulsion over his attitude, but Ryan didn't seem to notice as he walked to the bathroom, his cum coated limp penis bouncing as he walked. Both Gail and Cate had to look away. He didn't even bother to close the bathroom door as he relieved himself. Being a standard hotel room, there was only a central room with a single double bed, a desk with chairs, and a small entrance way holding the microwave and refrigerator holding Alex's supplies, which Cate was fixing. Finishing, he gave out a very loud sigh of satisfaction, then went to the room fridge where Cate kept Alex's food supplies. "Hey, you're really stocked here. Thanks man. I guess it pays to be the king, huh?" "Uh, those are emergency supplies in case my brother needs them," Cate tried to argue. "Hey, I'm sharing my girlfriend with him. He can at least share a damn soda and some cookies." Cate just stood there, hands clenched by her side, jaw firmly set and fire in her eyes. Still nude, his flaccid penis dangling, he stood and put his arm around Cate's shoulder, holding his Coke and cookie in either hand. "Hey, babe, you wanna get busy?" "I'm only 15 and a virgin. Try anything with me and you'll go to jail as a pedophile," Cate informed him, exaggerating her age for effect. "I'm only here because my brother needs someone who knows how to treat him if he has a reaction. I'm not interested in any of his sexual shenanigans, so please leave me alone." If looks could kill, Cate would have been the one going to prison with a satisfied expression on her face, but Ryan didn't seem to notice. "Hey, no harm in asking," he told her before turning to Gail. "How about you, Doll, you want to give it a shot?" "You touch me and I'll break you in half," she told him in a quiet bone-chilling voice. "The last man who touched me ended up with a dislocated shoulder and a broken pelvis." Cate immediately thought of the advice that Gail had given Alex on how to lie successfully, create a simple but powerful story and give just enough detail to make it believable. "Oh, you're one of those, huh?" he sneered. "Guess it makes sense, though. You couldn't get much protection from somebody you're schtuppin'." Gail looked ready to throttle the guy, but he didn't seem to register her reactions either, simply walking to a nearby chair and collapsing on it, popping open Alex's soda and loudly drinking down a good portion of it. He also didn't bother closing his thighs or hiding his limp dick from anyone's view, despite their clear lack of interest in both it and him. Alex was finding this all just as distracting as the others in the room were. Everyone besides her boyfriend was well aware how Megan was feeling about it. Alex was only able to maintain his focus by keeping up a running dialogue with Lauren, telling her how beautiful she was, how he could tell she was a wonderful person, and how he was glad he could find someone as wonderful as she was to help organize his people for him. In order to keep Megan from going ballistic, Alex started to include her in his mental communications with Lauren as well, so he started addressing them both. This seemed to appease her, as she turned and watched the interplay of his emotions revealed by his aura rather than the couple making love next to her. 'Alex, please excuse Ryan. I don't know what is up his ass, but he's being a real jerk. He doesn't normally act like this, and I can't understand why he is now.' 'That's OK, Megan. I think I can understand it. He's feeling threatened. I can imagine how I'd feel in the same situation. I couldn't imagine watching someone else screwing my girlfriends or even my sister if they looked at me the way you're looking at me.' 'Still, if he's having an issue with it, he should just say so. He shouldn't be acting like an ass, like a willful child insisting he gets whatever he wants.' 'Give him time, ' Alex advised, even though he found that advice difficult to follow himself. 'I think he can't figure out what he's thinking at this stage. If he had a better grasp on what he's going through I'd expect we could discuss it, or at least settle it like gentlemen with him busting my lip, but it's not as clear cut as that.' 'I think you're giving him too much credit, ' Megan replied, ceasing carrying on about her poorly behaving boyfriend and letting Alex focus on Lauren like he should. 'Prepare yourself, ' Megan warned Alex a few minutes later, 'I can tell from his expression he's getting ready to say something else equally as stupid.' 'Is he normally like this, or am I just bringing this out in him?' Alex asked. 'No, I've never seen him this obnoxious. It's like he's purposely trying to piss everyone off. Frankly, I don't know if he's simply getting defensive or if he just doesn't know what he's doing.' When Alex told them both that he wanted to finish before Ryan got bored, they both started encouraging him, whispering sexy little things in his mind. That was just what he needed to maintain the necessary focus to finish the job. "Man, you'd think a fuckin' angel could manage a simple—," at that point Alex shoved home and let loose, pumping Lauren full of his cum. This set Lauren off as well, since she'd already had a smaller orgasm beforehand. Megan was busy pinching her nipple, anticipating her turn. "About damn time. Man, your girlfriend must never get any sleep. But then, I guess when you chase as much tail as you do, you don't have any girlfriends, do you?" Everyone in the room bristled at that one, since each considered themselves either one of his girlfriends or would gladly volunteer for the privilege if offered. However Alex again ignored him, figuring he was simply acting out his own frustrations. But he wasn't sure how long he could put up with Ryan's belligerent attitude. Cate started to bring him a plate full of food when Ryan groaned loudly. "Man, a damn bedtime snack? No wonder you bring your sister along with you. What, you're mother couldn't be bothered with following you around to make sure you eat on time? How the fuck can you eat when you've got two beautiful women waiting to bang your sorry ass?" Growling under his breath, Alex waved Cate off. She looked doubtfully at him but did as he directed, worrying how long he could go without food under the circumstances. She was sure his trying to bottle up his emotions was burning up even more of his body's energy. 'Ignore him, Alex, ' Megan suggested. 'But if you're ready, I'm all set. Listening to you mentally while you were making love to Lauren has me primed to go. Even without that, just feeling the energy you give off has me more excited than anything I've felt before. If you need some physical encouragement, I'll provide plenty of that as well.' So Alex crawled over and lay beside Megan, gently kissing her, though he stopped when Gail walked up and handed him a condom, as he'd instructed her to. "I need the condom to make sure I don't receive too many sensations," Alex explained to the room, though his focus was Ryan. He knew Ryan was having a hard time watching Alex best him with his own girlfriend, so Alex took the tack of providing an ongoing monologue, a description of what he was doing to show how distanced he was, though he kept up a mental communication on a much more intimate level with Megan, still including Lauren as well. "The key, since I have to carefully time a simultaneous orgasm each time, is to delay my own orgasm while building the girls up to a sufficiently high peak. That's why I utilize the condom, and why I often talk during sex." "Uh, you didn't use either with —" Ryan tried to point out. "No, you didn't notice it because I was talking to my people in New Orleans and at home," Alex explained, hoping the little lie would throw Ryan off the other inconsistency as well. He really needed Ryan to believe that he didn't have a personal connection to his girlfriend. "The reason it takes so long is because I need to win the woman over, to make her believe that I have a personal connection with her." Alex felt throwing Ryan this bone would assist him if Megan ever revealed what a great lover Alex was during a fight sometime in the future. Now Ryan would always be able to claim that Alex was just stringing her along, thus saving his fragile male ego. 'But you didn't —' Lauren started to remind him. 'Sorry, Lauren, but I'm trying to make things easier on Ryan by making me seem more distant. Clearly I think the world of you and Megan, but I think reminding him of that as I'm making love to her is just going to make him that much worse. Please excuse me for what I'm likely to say aloud for the next few minutes, but I need to maintain two separate dialogues, and I have to convince him of what I'm telling him.' They both accepted what he told them, and continued to egg him on while focusing strictly on what he was telling them mentally, ignoring his spoken words for the moment. Ryan, though, was leaning forward in his chair now, feeling like he was being included by Alex as he told him his innermost secrets. "I'm not allowed to go down on them, since it's necessary to maintain bodily contact at all times. That's how they absorb the energy my body gives off. That's mostly what they respond to with me. They feel the energy I give off and they respond to it. It's a healing energy, and it promotes feelings of safety and comfort in them, which coincidentally also triggers certain chemical reactions." "I was wondering about that. I couldn't figure out how a skinny little kid like you could attract so many damn sexy women," Ryan exclaimed, finally taking the bait as Alex continued to reel him in. "That's also why I spend so much time kissing and cuddling with them. It's actually a way of exposing them to more skin-to-skin contact so they can absorb the energy more rapidly." Cate looked at Gail in a 'can you believe this' expression, but Gail simply smiled and winked at her, letting her know that she expected no less of her brother. Once again, Alex knew just how to handle a difficult situation. "At each stage, I have to evaluate just how the woman is reacting physically to the energy she's absorbing, which also manages to give me a fair amount of distraction," Alex explained, not exactly lying about the process he went through. As Gail had taught him, keep lies simple, and wrap them in the truth so you don't have to remember the details of the lie, since it's always the little details that trip you up in the end. Meanwhile, Alex was saying something completely different in Megan's head. 'Megan, you are truly beautiful, and I don't just mean that physically, although you are so beautiful in the flesh. But your real beauty is inside, where your inner beauty, your 'soul', if you will, calls out to me. Now that you can see how people really feel, hopefully you'll learn to appreciate just how true this is, but you can always identify truly happy and beautiful people by how their happiness and satisfaction in life radiates from them.' 'Damn, Alex, you don't need to lay it on so heavily, ' she told him, although she was blushing in a combination of humbled embarrassment and excitement at his compliments, which Alex then included in his explanation. "Notice how her skin is now showing more color? That shows she's getting closer. Now I need to make sure she achieves a couple of small orgasms, just to ensure the pump is primed, if you will. I need her on a hair trigger so she'll orgasm at just the right moment, and it helps if a woman has multiple orgasms, especially if she has a bunch of small ones." By now Alex was slowly pumping into her, still maintaining full body contact with her, still playing with her nipples and kissing her in between his comments. "Notice how carefully I thrust. I don't go for full motions, except to change it up occasionally. I need to keep them guessing, so they can't anticipate what I'm going to do. Simply slamming into them announces what they're going to experience. In order to control their response you have to surprise them, and then keep on surprising them so they don't know what to expect." "Damn, I need a notebook to keep up with all this shit. So that slow-assed shit you do is actually some secret technique?" "Hey, once you go slow you never go back," Alex managed to distract himself enough to tease. "But it's like tantric sex, it's hard to manage, but if you can, it'll drive the women nuts and allow you to maintain control over their bodily responses." Of course Alex knew this was hokum, even if much of it was based on his actual personal experiences. Frankly, Alex had no idea how he did what he did, although the rest he pieced together over time due to frequent exposure. He still had no idea how he could possibly satisfy so many women, and now he dreamed at night of only having a single girlfriend who he could only make love to a couple of times a week. But Alex knew fantasy even when he spun it, and he knew he'd never be so fortunate. "She's having another one, she's getting close," he explained. "Notice how her eyes lose their focus and her lip curves up? That's a good sign when she's cumming." "Man, this is too much," Ryan said, getting up from his chair, his cock revealing it had swollen once more, though it still wasn't fully hard. "Pardon me, but this is getting to be too much for me. I think I need to lie down on the bed to watch this closer," he explained as he climbed onto the bed behind Lauren. She froze as he did, but he didn't seem to notice. Alex knew if he turned he'd completely lose his concentration, the multiple dialogues in his mind were proving to be so distracting. As it was, it was hard keeping pace with Megan's responses. Alex continued thrusting and lecturing, while still maintaining a dialogue with both Megan and Lauren, however his concentration was soon spoiled. "Get off me you jerk!" Lauren shouted. Alex growled, his anger flaring. He'd finally reached the breaking point. He'd given up on reaching his own finish line, in fact sex was the last thing on his mind at the moment. Alex wasn't quick to anger, and he tended to try to reason with people trying to hurt him, but he was quick to anger if he thought his followers were being taken advantage of. He started to turn, thinking very dark thoughts. 'Alex, don't overreact. He made a stupid move, but it's hardly worth doing something stupid over, ' Gail cautioned him, seeing where he was headed. "Alex, NO!" Cate yelled, also detecting how he was responding, and knowing just what he might do if he gave into his own anger. "Ryan!" Megan hissed over Alex's shoulder. "Don't you have any idea what Alex can do to you? His girls have been telling me about him, and they all say he's fiercely protective of his followers." Alex stopped, gritting his teeth and taking time to steel himself. He knew he'd done well in the past by giving people latitude, but more often because he listened to those close to him who would call him on it when he was in the wrong. He shook his head to clear it of his dark thoughts and he tried to reorient his thinking. Alex had been about to do something he'd likely be unable to undo. He had visions of shriveling Ryan's hand or possibly even his dick, leaving nothing but a dead husk with no life remaining in it. He knew he couldn't win by taking such a drastic and stupid action, but he was close to losing any remnants of control. Ryan glanced between Alex, Cate and Gail, who was rushing, not to defend Lauren but towards Alex. He could also see the dark look in Alex's eyes. Alex rolled over and faced Ryan, who was sitting up, holding his hands up as if trying to hold both Alex and Lauren at bay. Alex also took in Gail and Cate's anxious looks but waved them off. The other two girls didn't know him well enough to realize what he'd been about to do, or to recognize what the bright flashes in his aura meant. "Ryan, what the hell is your problem? I've been going out of my way to make you feel at ease. I've purposely distanced myself emotionally from Megan, I let you win your little pissing contest, I didn't punch you in the face for the way you treated my sister and Gail, and you respond by trying to assault every person in the room besides me, who I suspect is the one you really want to attack." Ryan stared at Alex for a moment and then hung his head. He'd seen that short burst of temper in Alex, and despite his cavalier attitude, he honestly believed everything that Megan had been telling him about Alex. But Alex's carefully thought out response instead of the anger he both expected and feared hit him much harder. He mumbled something, but no one could understand what he was saying. "Pardon?" Alex asked him. "I'm trying to say I'm sorry," he said a little louder but still only speaking in a quiet voice. "I realize I've been acting like an ass, but I couldn't seem to control myself. I knew how important this was to Megan, and I thought I could deal with it, but it turns out I haven't been able to. It's one thing knowing she looks up to you and that she thinks she needs to sleep with you to help this, this mission of yours, whatever that is, but the reality of it is completely different. "How am I supposed to compete with a damn angel?" he asked, his voice rising in volume. "Sure, everyone qualifies it by saying that angels aren't really how they've been portrayed in the media, but everyone here thinks you really are the living embodiment of an angel. How can I compete with that? Despite how much she's been trying to play down how she feels about you, it's clear she's nuts about you. "I'm never going to measure up against you. I don't glow like a mini-sun. I don't radiate energy which turns the women around me to quivering masses, and I don't promise to change the future of mankind. I'm just a typical run of the mill jerk!" Alex let him calm down after having worked himself into a lather before addressing Ryan's issues. "Ryan, listen to me, you don't have to compete with me. Megan shouldn't ever compare you to me. If she does, say in the middle of a fight someday, just ask her how I'd react to that. I'm sure she'll back down, and if she doesn't, just ask her to contact me and ask me what I think about her behavior. "Comparing us is like comparing apples and oranges, or maybe it's more like comparing apples to angels. There simply is no comparison. Hell, even I can't compete with that. Do you think any normal girl is ever going to treat me like these women do? Do you think they'd react to me like they do if I didn't look like a burning star? I'm just a young man, fresh out of high school, barely able to grow a beard, and they treat me like I'm the next messiah. "But the fact of the matter is that she knows that I'm only here to boost her powers to make her more productive, both for me and for her other work as well. I'm going to be gone tomorrow, and although she can reach me easily, she'll probably never see me again. What's more, she knows how I feel about family, friends and relationships. I didn't want to get involved with her because she was involved with you, but she convinced me she was the best person to appoint to watching over the community here. "You're here, hopefully, for the rest of her life. You've got to carry her through the rest of that life without me. I just showed up for one afternoon and knocked her socks off, but you're the one who's going to be here for her, who's going to support her in this crazy life of hers, who'll protect her secrets and who'll support her even though you can't really understand what it is that she's experiencing. "Frankly, if she ever compares us, I'd tell her to screw herself, because she doesn't deserve you and she doesn't deserve to represent me. I make it a point to stand up for those that depend on me. If she can't do that for someone who stands up for her, then she doesn't understand what I represent." Alex took a minute to compose himself after his own mini-tirade. He glanced at everyone in the room, and they all looked shocked by his reaction. They were surprised equally by how close he'd come to exploding, how he recovered afterwards and over his giving Ryan relationship advice. "I'm sorry, Ryan. I knew better than to get between a man and his girlfriend, but I let myself be convinced that I couldn't avoid it. The fact that you support Megan in her beliefs speaks volumes about you, despite how you may have acted this evening. But I should have known this wouldn't work. There's too much at risk to jeopardize the emotional health of my girls." Now Ryan looked at Alex, seeming to gather himself together. "No, Alex, I can see now why they think so highly of you. Anyone else would have punched my lights out, or at the very least have your bodyguard throw me out the door, or simply told Megan to dump me. But no, you've tried to treat me fairly. You've reached out to me, you've included me in something I really have no part in, and you've offered Megan a gift she'll never be able to repay. "I'll tell you what. I want you to continue. I'll sit here and shut up, but I want to see what she goes through. Instead of comparing myself to you, I'll try to take joy in what you're sharing with her, and I'll try to understand just what it represents. But you're right, I'm in this for the long haul. I intend to be by her side for a long time, and if that means supporting her work for you, I'll do it. But just do me a favor," he asked, lowering his voice as if speaking to him in private, "could you promise to not force me to do this again? It was hard enough this time, I don't think I could do it again." Alex laughed and gave Ryan a quick slap on the back. "Absolutely, but are you sure you want me to continue? Megan is in an ideal position to help, but I really don't need her to do this. I can rely on Lauren to do it for her. In fact, now that Lauren is boosted, she can communicate with Megan whenever she wants to, so it really isn't necessary to boost Megan as well." "No, I want you to do it. If you don't, Megan is going to blame herself for this and for the way that I acted tonight. This means a lot to her, and it would mean the world to her to be able to help you. You're right, she's going to value this gift too much for her to belittle me for making this sacrifice. Besides, now, whenever we get into a fight, I can always remind her about it and suggest that she asks you what you think about it. That's better than having a Jewish mother telling you she had to suffer 20 hours of labor to bring you into the world." They both looked at each other, trying to measure the others resolve, until finally Alex broke. "You're really sure about this?" "Yeah, I was getting caught up in my own insecurities, but I agreed to this because I value Megan too much to allow her to pass it up. I'll try to focus on what she's experiencing rather than what I'm missing out on, so I think I'll be OK. If I'm not, I promise I'll wander into the hall until it's OK, rather than act out again." "You realize you don't have to do this, don't you?" Alex reminded him. "Oh no, you don't understand, Alex, I do. If she's ever going to respect herself, and if I'm ever going to respect her, we both have to understand that this is important to her. She'd never be able to forgive either herself or me if she missed this opportunity. Now go ahead, I'll quietly sit here and not bother anyone else. Give her whatever gifts God has given you to bestow upon her, and I won't look a giving angel in the mouth again," he said, laughing at his own bad joke. Alex continued to watch him for a few more seconds before finally turning back to Megan. "Now where were we?" he asked her. "I think you were about to change my world and melt my mind," she answered. "After all, you've already converted my partner." ------- Chapter 23: Setting Oneself Up Everyone was up and out early the next morning. Megan and Ryan had stuck around just long enough for Alex to have a discussion with her and Lauren about what they should try to accomplish after he left. He also took a cue from his interactions with Tommy, Jenny Cox's husband. He suggested that Ryan work with the spouses, boyfriends and families of his followers in Houston to help them adjust to their women's new role in his mission. Ryan seemed to like the idea, getting enthused about helping others in a similar position, proving once again that including people was one of the best ways of winning friends. Lauren accompanied them to breakfast, which meant that Cate and Gail couldn't question Alex about his behavior the previous night, although Cate kept giving him surreptitious looks throughout the morning. But then she was busy talking to Frank Osmon about his background, particularly his family, and how it might fit in with her current scientific hypotheses, so she didn't really have a chance to confront him anyway. They managed to get started early, early enough to miss most of the early morning commuter traffic, so Patricia and her group were happy, but they were ecstatic that their big performance the previous night had gone so well. She had teased Alex about his followers 'messing up my show', but he knew she was just teasing and had actually helped cover for him, so they took it in stride. Once they got into the car, though, all bets were off. Alex and the others chose to drive their car, so they'd have time to stop if they encountered anyone without slowing down Patricia's van, giving them time to set up for that night's concert in San Antonio. The fact they each knew they needed to discuss the events of the previous night also weighed in on the decision. "So what was that about last night, Alex?" Cate asked. Gail simply remained silent and kept driving, choosing to stay out of the discussion for now. "I think you know what last night was about, so why don't you ask me what you really want to ask?" Alex replied. "Fine, what the hell were you about to do to Ryan last night?" Cate asked, taking her gloves off and getting right to the point. "I was tempted to drain the energy from the hand he'd used to grab Lauren, maybe leaving him with a useless blackened husk to think about." No one responded to that right away, thinking it best to leave it while their emotions were still running so high. "You do realize why that would be a bad idea, don't you?" Cate eventually asked him. "Yes, of course I do. It would have been horrendous. It would have made me a permanent enemy, it would have terrified my followers, and it would have attracted the attention of the authorities. The doctors who'd have to remove the arm would have called the police, not knowing what had caused it, and they'd have launched a full investigation, during which my name would have come up ... repeatedly." "Yet if I hadn't spoken up, you might have done just that," she reminded him. "Actually you weren't the only one to warn him," Gail added. "I gave him a talking to as well." "Well I'm glad that someone did. Alex, if you know it was so dangerous, why did you allow yourself to get to that stage?" "I don't know," he admitted. "I felt like I was forced into a difficult position. I knew I shouldn't have gotten involved with Megan and Ryan, but she was the best person for the position. I thought I could defuse the situation, but Ryan kept going, kept trying to goad me." "If you knew he was trying to goad you—" Cate started to argue. "It wouldn't have mattered. I was trying to deal with him but I wasn't having much luck. I should have simply refused to have had sex with anyone last night, and even once I had, I should have walked out once things got difficult." "Yes, you probably should have," Cate agreed. "But the fact of the matter is you were right. It was a difficult situation, but you chose the best option. Ryan acted like he was OK with it, and he only acted out once it started. What's more, you couldn't very well have backed out, and even if you did you would have had a permanent enemy on your hands. Once again you managed to pull off another miracle, but you did it by listening to your own intuition, which always seems to get you out of trouble. The problem is you almost made a huge mistake because you didn't take the time to think the situation through. Now what I'd really like to know, is why you let yourself get so bent out of shape about things?" Alex sighed. He'd been thinking about that very question all night. He'd come close to permanently disabling someone simply because he'd acted like an ass. Something that he'd had every right to do, considering that Alex had been screwing his girlfriend. If Ryan had changed his mind, it was his to change. Alex should have recognized he wasn't comfortable with the situation and stopped what he was doing immediately. "I don't know, I guess the truth of the matter is that I'm starting to get overwhelmed. The pressure of everyone looking up to me, trying to figure out what to do in every instance, and to always make the right choice is intimidating." Cate simply looked at him, not sure of how to respond. Her immediate impulse was to comfort him, to tell him that it was understandable and that it would all be OK, but she knew it wouldn't be. If he continued on this course, he might very well make a mistake even bigger than the one he'd almost made the previous night, and then she may lose her brother altogether. She was trying to prepare herself for his eventual death, but she couldn't imagine him being taken away from her even before that, especially if it was something like the previous night they could prevent, but that Alex had decided to confront instead. "I hate to break it to you, Alex, but you're going to have to deal with it," Gail said simply, stepping into the breach in the conversation. "Things are only going to get worse as time goes by and more people come to rely on you. You're doing well learning how to adapt to it, to adjust and put people to use helping you. You'll figure out how to handle it eventually, but you can't allow yourself to become overwhelmed." Gail took a moment to consider Alex before continuing. "You need to work with Cate more on your coping mechanisms, play with her relaxation techniques until it becomes second nature. I'm also going to push you to start exercising again. All this sitting around waiting for someone to find you isn't good for you. In fact there are exercises you could be doing while you're sitting in the damn car." "I'm not sure it's going to be that easy," Cate argued. "While it wouldn't hurt, he is under a tremendous amount of stress, and having to dance around a constantly changing group of sycophants isn't helping anything. But I'll tell you what, Alex, you aren't going to go sit in a damn mall this time. We're taking you out for a nice walk around town. We may not be able to take you far, but we're going to get you to relax more even if it kills us. Luckily San Antonio is a smaller city, so it shouldn't be quite as intense as Houston was. Hopefully there won't be that many people to worry about this time." "Those are probably good ideas, but I'm not sure taking it easier for an afternoon or exercising a few days a week is going to ease the pressure on me. They might help temporarily, but it doesn't resolve the central problem. The only thing that's going to do that is if I can get a handle on what I'm dealing with. But I'll admit just having a pleasant afternoon would be a welcome change of pace." "You've also got to give up this idea of being able to control everything and protect everyone," Cate said, getting into what she saw as the central problem. "There was really no reason why you had to boost Megan, especially when you had Lauren there, another Seer who didn't have the problem of having a current boyfriend. I know you thought that Megan made a better choice, but you've got to be willing to accept imperfect choices. You may not find someone you can boost in the next city, or the one after, but it won't stop your mission. It may not even endanger your followers there. It just means that you can't control every potential risk to each of your followers. Now that is what you really need to be working on." With that they fell into an uneasy silence as Alex considered that idea, so Gail began instructing him on how to exercise in a moving car, while Cate proceeded to give him a quick backrub from the backseat. It wasn't great, but it was better than ignoring the stresses he'd been facing. ------- The route between Houston and San Antonio takes one through a lot of uninteresting terrain without many structures, with only a few scrub trees and a few clusters of small cacti for distraction. Alex leaned his seat back and was working at relaxing following Cate's advice. But she was the one who distracted him this time. "Alex, quick, get up. And, Gail, you'd better pull over." Alex didn't take long to respond, since he was used to having to respond to unsettling events. He quickly glanced back and forth, not knowing where to look. "Look behind us to the right, you may have to look a moment, but..." Alex twisted in his seat and scanned the sparse vegetation in this region of Texas before his eyes focused on the object of Cate's interest. A figure on a horse, clearly a woman, her hair streaming behind her, raced across the countryside apparently following the car as she angled towards the highway. "You'd best... ," Alex started to say, but found Gail was already edging into the breakdown lane. "We're not going to be able to reach her," Cate told him, taking into account the fencing that separated the highway from the surrounding property. "Give me a second and I'll figure out where the nearest exit is and we'll see if we can double back and find which road leads—" "Never mind," Alex told her as their car came to a halt on the side of the road, cars continuing to zip past on their left. "There are other ways to communicate under the circumstances," he said, as he got out of the car and looked back at the figure hurrying to catch up with him. He had to wait for her to get closer, but when she got close enough for him to see her eyes, he saw the figure pull back, but it apparently wasn't enough to dissuade her horse, which continued its gallop. Luckily the horse knew its way around the countryside and wasn't relying on its rider, because it continued to weave around the cactus scattered around the area. Figuring the woman had made eye contact based on her actions, Alex let her know she didn't need to continue to risk her own health and wellbeing to reach him. 'Don't panic, it's OK, " Alex told her. "I see you and I can communicate with you, so you don't need to rush to meet us.' 'Who, or what, are you?' the woman asked in amazement, as she pulled back on the reins, slowing the horse to a walk. 'I'll have you know I'm a good Christian woman, so if this is some kind of a trick... ' 'This is no trick, and no, I'm not the angel you currently see me as. I'll explain everything, but it looks like it's going to be too hard to reach you. If it isn't too difficult, we'll be staying in San Antonio tonight. If you could get there, either today or tomorrow, I can explain everything to you, but you need to realize how important this is to you, ' Alex told her. 'Believe me, I can feel how important it is, if that makes any sense. I'll get there as soon as I can arrange it. Where are you going to be staying?' 'Uh ... I'm told we're staying someplace called the Menger, if you know where that is, but if you contact me when you get to the city we can coordinate where we are and where we can meet. Finding each other with telepathy is much easier than it is otherwise.' 'Yeah, I know the place. I'll be there later this afternoon. Thanks for stopping to ... uh, talk with me, ' she said, pausing to consider the language she wasn't speaking. 'My name is Linny Gabberts, by the way.' 'Linny, huh? You've have to tell me the story of that name when we meet. Mine is Alex, but we've got to be heading out as we've got to meet a lot of others like you.' 'Uh, Ok, but are you—?' 'Look, we'll cover that when we meet. But keep in mind that I'm looking for others like us, so if you have any relatives that seem as intuitive as you are, bring them with you, ' Alex told her as he signed off. Turning, he saw Cate and Gail watching him from beside the car. "She'll meet us in the city," he told them simply, not explaining any of the conversation he'd had with her. "Seems like an interesting girl," he commented as he climbed back in the car, ready for the rest of the trip. ------- The hotel they'd booked in San Antonio was the Menger, which was not only right downtown next to the Rivercenter Mall, but it was a famous hotel from the 1850s located next to the Alamo. The place was gorgeous, filled with historic artifacts, but since it wasn't as 'modern' as the more recent Rivercenter Marriott it was actually cheaper. Cate was excited that it was right downtown. That way Alex could draw the maximum amount of people to him, but they were also right next door to various tourist spots so there was no reason for Alex to beg off touring the city. They checked in quickly, leaving Cate downstairs to watch for anyone looking for Alex. Once that was done, Alex was all for heading to the Mall complex, a nice center connected to the famous San Antonio River Walk by a special diversion that ran through the center of the mall, but Cate vetoed that idea. "Yeah, it's a great place to sit and stress about how tough your life is, but we're going exploring today. If anyone wants to find you, they'll just have to follow you. "While you guys were putting our luggage away, I talked to Jordan and Chelsea. They agreed to round up any Watchers surrounding us so we're covered. Now we're going to visit the Alamo and you're going to learn some Texas history!" Alex tried to argue with her, but it was only half hearted. He was tired of isolating himself and thought it would be good to relax for a change, and the way that Cate described it, the Alamo, the Rivercenter and the River Walk were all close together and were heavy tourist destinations, so they'd all be good for attracting new followers. So they walked to the Alamo, which was right next door to the hotel, where Cate and Alex did the self tour while Gail kept subtle watch from behind them, and Jordan and Chelsea kept watch for anyone paying an inordinate amount of attention to Alex. When they finished their tour Alex noticed that Jordan had a woman with her, but since she didn't bring her forward to meet Alex he figured they had something planned, so he didn't worry about it. Cate pulled him behind her as she led him across Alamo Plaza and down a little public park pathway that featured running water leading to the river walk. Alex had to admit the sound of the water, the bright sun and the warm weather all made for a relaxing morning. When they reached the River Walk, Jordan introduced Alex to Lisa Beadrow, who it turned out worked in the Macy's in the nearby Rivercenter mall. While they'd been touring the Alamo she'd felt Alex from where she spent her lunch breaks. Jordan had been explaining what she knew of being a Watcher to her, but had wanted to spare overwhelming Alex at the time. Now, however, they used her familiarity with the neighborhood to figure out the best place to have lunch. Lisa happily led them to her favorite spot, a little French restaurant that sat across from several larger Tex-Mex places, and that provided a nice view of the river—actually a small diverted stream that flowed through a concrete path laid out for it—and also gave them easy access to anyone walking along the River Walk. When Gail complained about eating overpriced French food instead of the more local Mexican, Lisa informed her that the prices were about the same, the food was better—not as touristy as the other places—plus it had a great view of the entertainment the Mexican restaurants across the River Walk offered. It also got them on the less populated side of the River Walk, so anyone walking nearby could find them, but they wouldn't stop traffic if anyone stopped to stare. The food was actually very good, and Lisa talked the adults into drinking the house specialty: cactus-pear margaritas. Gail had to be talked into it, but the others assured her a single margarita wouldn't incapacitate her, especially not one from here. Lisa informed her if she wanted a more potent one she'd take her someplace special later. "So, Lisa, tell me a little about yourself?" Alex said while they were eating. "Well, you know I work at Macy's, right? Well, I went to school at Rice University in Houston. I decided to move to San Antonio because it's not as crowded as Houston, and everyone seems more relaxed. Plus because of its location it gets enough rain to make it more comfortable, and it has more forested land around it that's good for weekend trips. I spend a lot of time rafting the local rivers north of here. Like virtually all Texans, I also do a lot of dancing at the local dance halls. That and Football are the central tenets of being a Texan." "And here I thought religion was one," Cate commented, trying to test just how she might respond to Alex's professed atheism. "Oh, well of course, being a practicing Christian is a requirement in Texas," she said with an easy laugh. "The rule is you party at the ball game on Friday, you sin on Saturday in the dance halls, repent on Sunday, and then recover floating down the river with a beer in your hand." They took turns eating, so there were always two people talking up anyone watching Alex from afar, but there weren't that many. However, Alex was still eating when a woman on the other side of the 'river' loudly exclaimed, "Oh my God, there he is!" Alex looked up in alarm, expecting trouble, and saw an older woman staring at him in front of one of the Mexican restaurants, blocking traffic as she pointed Alex out to everyone around her. As soon as their eyes met she reeled and almost fell into the shallow river. Several people nearby stepped in to help her, one of them being Chelsea. Alex wasn't sure what she said to the woman, but she managed to convince her to approach Alex without attracting any more attention. As she crossed the little walkway bridge over the small river, Alex was able to examine her in more detail. She was older with red hair, and the red cheeks and skin of a woman brought up under the hot Texas sun. She wore a denim outfit that practically shouted she was on vacation. When she neared Alex, Chelsea practically had to hold her up to keep her from falling to her knees. Alex got up to help her into a seat. The waitress seemed to have figured there was something odd about this group of tourists, so she gave them their distance, giving them a little leeway. In exchange they made sure to order drinks for everyone to justify a bigger tip. "This is Martha Dunbar," Chelsea said, introducing the woman. "When everyone was trying to help her she kept going on about 'the Angel descended to us from on high', so don't be surprised if you get a lot of looks." Alex nodded that he understood, but decided to give the woman some time to adapt to her new visions. "So you seemed to recognize me before we made eye contact. Did you know who I was or—?" "Oh, no, one of my daughters told me you'd be in San Antonio, so I came here to see if I could see you at the concert tonight," Martha answered, much too loudly in Alex's opinion. "I live in Rockport, which is near Corpus Christi on the coast. She mentioned that you'd be here for the Diane Kennedy concert, so I came up today to see it and figured I'd spend the day enjoying the city while I was here. I was surprised when I felt myself attracted to you. I was shopping in the mall up the road when I felt this overwhelming need to seek you out. When I saw you, I just knew you were him." "Well, I'd appreciate it if you didn't spread the information too widely," Alex told her. "I'm still trying to maintain a low profile, since I don't want to get into a fight with the various religious factions around the country. I'm not trying to establish a new religion, I simply want to reach out to people like you and teach them what they need to know about themselves." "Melissa, that's my daughter in New Orleans, told me that it runs in families and that it only affects women. What you've just done to me is amazing, could you visit with my granddaughters and see if you could help them the same way?" "I don't see why not," Alex answered. "I'm assuming they're a little young to attend the concert tonight. I also see you don't have your other daughters with you." "Alas, my youngest daughter died two years ago from colon cancer, so I help my son-in-law raise them occasionally. If you can see them sometime before you leave, I'd really appreciate it." "I guess we could meet for breakfast or lunch tomorrow, would that work?" "Oh, that would be wonderful. I'll call George and tell him to bring them up so they can meet you. Either breakfast or lunch is fine. We'll work to fit into your schedule, after all, you're the important one with a mission to accomplish." "Well, just don't get too excited. It does run in families, but there seem to be a lot of things that turn the abilities off that we don't fully understand yet. They may not respond to me. We'll only know when I see them." "There are probably other genes that prohibit the expression of the particular gene in question," Cate corrected him. "Still, it would be good to find out, and it would also be good for them to see an honest to God Angel as well," Martha replied. "OK, although I'm not pushing my own beliefs here, I'm not..." Alex said, repeating once again his standard disclaimer about not being an angel. He tried to tell her what she needed to know as quickly and as quietly as he could. However her hearing wasn't very good, so he had to speak louder than he'd like and she tended to speak loudly in return. As a result Alex was sure the many people sitting around them were hearing a lot more about him and his followers' abilities than he really felt comfortable with. That was when he finally decided to finish up telling her everything telepathically instead. That solved the problem, but it didn't solve what everyone around them had already heard. They were still talking with a strange mix of speech and telepathy when another woman walked up to them. She got up from a table not far away so Alex had assumed she was making a run for the restroom, but instead she stopped by and leaned over to say something to him. Alex had been aware of her, even if he hadn't been paying much attention to her, so he already knew she wasn't either a Seer or a Watcher, so he wasn't sure quite what to expect. She was a pretty woman, fairly tall, in a bright scarlet top with long curly dark hair and a distinctive mole at the corner of her mouth that accented her smile, making it seem that much larger. Her eyes seemed to laugh as well, so Alex assumed she'd be good natured, at least. "Pardon me, but are you that guy they were talking about on the TV?" she asked. "You know, the angel of New Mexico or something?" "He's the angel of New Orleans," Martha answered proudly. "His power and righteousness shine brightly for all to see." Alex groaned, but tried to recover enough to get a handle on the situation. "My 'righteousness' might not be apparent to everyone, since it shines inside the minds of everyone," he said, trying to obliquely correct Martha while not alienating the new woman. "Oh, my goodness, I can't believe you're him," the woman exclaimed. "My name is Linda Tamar, and I'd love it if my husband could take a picture of us so I can show my friends that I actually met you in person?" Alex was about to fly into a panic over the idea of Linda posting photographs of him all over Facebook, labeling him as the angel of New Orleans, but Gail set his mind at ease. 'Don't worry, Alex, Patricia gave me her little device to disable the memory card in cameras. If they take a picture, their pictures will suddenly disappear or turn solid white.' "Uh, that might not be such a good idea," Alex told the woman, hoping to use the information to help dissuade her from bothering with the camera at all. "I don't exactly photograph well, and if you try to take my picture you're liable to lose all of your vacation photos." "Oh, don't you worry about that. You're hardly an ugly sour puss and we're hardly on vacation. My husband works at the Randolph Air Force base out near Universal City. We like to come into the city to enjoy the River Walk on occasion." She turned and motioned for her husband, calling to him loudly enough for everyone around them to hear. "It's him; it's the real Angel here in San Antonio. Come take our picture." Alex figured that he'd warned her, so he got to his feet slowly enough for Gail to get her hidden equipment ready. Alex positioned Linda and himself in such a way that her husband was standing beside Gail so she could do her magic. He snapped off several pictures as everyone around them made room for them, but when he went to see how the pictures looked he seemed confused. "Honey, did you do anything to the camera? It doesn't seem to be working." "Alas, it's not the camera," Alex tried to explain. "There's just something about my ... ah, about my aura that seems to interact with electronic devices. That's what I was trying to warn you about." "It's true," Gail offered, since Cate was out looking for hesitant Watchers. "If you Google 'Angel of New Orleans' and 'camera', it'll give you a whole discussion of the phenomena. Many people think God doesn't like people focusing on him, since he's on a specific religious mission and isn't out seeking publicity for himself." Alex groaned inwardly again. While what she was saying was part of what they'd planned as their defense, she was doing it by emphasizing Alex's supposed 'religious mission'. That was the last thing these people needed to hear. More people began to gather around, each anxious to ask Alex about what he was doing and what he could do. Apparently most people had taken at least a passing interest in the news reports about him, so while they may not know much about him, they knew enough to be highly interested in him. Alex tried to fend them off as best he could, but even as he did he noticed Cate returning with yet another Watcher for him to talk to. "Look, I'd really love to stay and talk, but I have other people to help. Let me just say that, yes, I am the supposed Angel of New Orleans, but I'm not trying to change anyone's belief system. I was simply given the task of reaching out to specific individuals to give them information they need to live their lives more fully. But that's about all I can say about it." That didn't really dissuade anyone, however, and they continued to shake his hand and ask about his 'mission'. It took a while, but he managed to finally disengage from the crowd. He'd sent a silent message to Martha and Gail to bring the Watchers and to meet him at the East Commerce Street Bridge. 'Instead of that, just head up the River Walk on this side and walk over at the next crossover, ' Gail suggested. 'That'll put you on the path leading back to the Rivercenter complex.' 'Thanks, which isn't something I can say about that scene, ' Alex responded as he tried to walk away from the crowd surrounding him. 'Couldn't you have offered some help?' 'Hey, it all happened too soon, and talking you out of difficult situations isn't the same as taking down an armed assailant, ' she replied. 'I never received any training on talking down an enthusiastic fan. Besides, you've got to get it through that little head of yours that this mission of yours is bigger than just your precious Watchers and Seers. There's a general interest in you, and people want to know what you represent. You should try to use that to swing people over so they'll be more sympathetic to you. After all, that's what you've been telling your followers to do.' Alex grunted an acknowledgment that what she said made sense, but he wasn't sure he was ready to embrace it quite yet. It seemed to him it would simply expose both him and his followers to more scrutiny, and right then he was mostly concerned with escaping the public's attention. He was afraid to look back, but when he reached the little footbridge, he did, only to see Linda and her husband following along behind him, as well as Gail walking with Lisa behind them, and Cate and her watcher walking on the far side heading towards him as well. He knew better than to groan this time. Groaning to himself never seemed to help situations, and doing it internally didn't seem to achieve much. Bowing to the inevitable, he stopped to wait for Linda. "Sorry, but we just wanted to learn more about what it is that you're doing," she said when she reached him. "Yeah, you're probably the most interesting person we've meet this week," her husband said, agreeing with her. Alex motioned for them to cross over the bridge, while checking to make sure there weren't any others trailing behind him. He saw a lot of people looking on, but no one else was actively following him. Everyone met up again when they turned off to head back to the mall. The River Walk was frequented by the occasional water taxi that ferried large groups of ten to twenty people up and down the river. They used the mall entrance to turn around for the return journey, so the walkway was always active and there were plenty of people to wave to, especially if you were looking for distractions to prevent you from having to talk to those you were walking with. But Alex could see the Watcher that Cate was escorting was anxious to talk to him, so Cate managed to slip in beside Linda and her husband and launched into a discussion with them, allowing Alex to focus his attention on the new girl, giving her just enough information so she wouldn't be completely lost. As they started walking into the mall complex from the side and a few shops started appearing next to the walkway, Linda and her husband managed to catch up with him again. "You know, we're both members of the UU Church. That stands for the Unitarian/Universalist Church," she explained. "If you don't know, we're a collection of free thinking people from a variety of different positions regarding religion. The group merged some longer standing groups that formed in the 1800s. The Unitarians didn't accept the holy trinity, while the Universalists believe that all religious organizations have something to teach us. Given that, we thought it would be interesting if you could come and speak to us about your organization. Give us your own perspectives on religion." Alex was about to flatly refuse, but something gnawed at the back of his mind, telling him it wouldn't be as bad as it sounded. Besides, he remembered what Gail had said, so he ended up surprising himself. "Actually, I'd be glad to. Although I'm only in town for a short time, so it'll have to be over lunch tomorrow. And make sure you warn everyone to not bring their camera, cell phones or recorders, so we don't have a repeat of what happened to you. It doesn't seem to be a problem if they have them on them, but it will wipe the memory clear if they try to use it to record me. Again, I don't really understand why, but we've found it to be the case after it's happened repeatedly." "Oh, that sounds perfect. I'll try to call everyone and see if we can arrange an emergency session. In fact, we'll arrange something downtown here so it won't inconvenience you too much having to drive all the way to our church." "Actually, I believe the Air Force base is on the way to Austin, so we should be heading that way on Saturday," Cate suggested. "If you could arrange it for Saturday brunch, I'm sure that would be easier to arrange." Cate had no idea what Alex was planning by talking to a private religious group, but she'd learned long ago not to question when Alex had one of his spur of the moment inspirations. He'd proven that his weird off the cuff decisions usually worked out for some reason. "That sounds perfect. I'll set it up," Linda responded with a smile, pulling her cell phone out to make the arrangements right then and there. "I'll take down the information." Cate told her. "I'm kind of his social secretary. He'd be lost if it wasn't for me keeping track of his appointments." They continued into the center of the mall, which constituted of a large circle of steps surrounding the River Walk, surrounded by the glass walls of the mall. That was ideal for Alex, as they could actually entertain a fairly large group without impacting anyone else from the nearby mall. And that was necessary, since they already had several new followers, both Alex's newest girls as well as a few type 3 people like Linda and her husband, who seemed to gravitate to him as well. Of course, every time someone asked about who he was, Linda gladly told them. But the other girls quickly got the knack of distracting the other people while Alex and Cate talked to the people they needed to. Linny Gabberts, the cowgirl they'd met on the way from Houston, met them there. She'd arranged with Alex to meet there when she finally reached the city, so she was waiting with several coffees and muffins from the nearby Starbucks, something that Alex always appreciated. Now that Alex could actually see what she looked like he was impressed. She was dressed as she had been out in the countryside, with a straw cowboy hat hooked under her chin to prevent it from blowing away, and wearing a casual tank top and bikini combination that was perfect for the hot Texas sun. She was pretty with a spotless complexion, although it was plain she got plenty of exposure to the sun as she seemed like the epitome of a 'farm girl'. "I didn't know who the hell you were," she told him after they'd sat down. "All I knew was that you were the most important thing to happen to me, and you were going to disappear from my life if I didn't do something. So I set out after you as fast as Spyder could carry me." "Spyder is your horse, I take it?" Alex asked. "Yeah, he and I go way back. But as loyal as he is, I really suspect he could feel how powerful you were too, because he ran faster than we've ever run before, and I've put him through his paces. I don't know whether he felt my own emotions, or whether he possesses whatever it is that attracted me to you, but he was just as determined to reach you as I was. I had to really pull back on him hard to get him to stop his charge to catch you. I was sure he was going to leap over that damn fence that separates the highway." Alex considered that, and Cate clearly took an interest, as she edged closer to take part in conversation at that point. That was a point that neither Alex nor Cate had considered, that the Watcher/Seer gene combo might actually cross species. But Alex wasn't ready to accept something that outrageous yet. So far it seemed to affect humans only, and since it seemed to be genetically based, he was sure it was tied into the human genome. He was also aware of just how receptive many animals were to their owner's feelings and reactions. Linny had told him she could often guide Spyder even without their reins. "So where does the name 'Linny' come from?" Alex asked, curious about the odd name. "Oh, my name is actually Linda, but my little brother used to always call me 'Linny' since he couldn't pronounce the hard d sound, and the name kind of stuck. The family took to calling me Linny, then my classmates took it up, and it stuck through college as well. Now I wouldn't know how to respond to Linda. Anytime someone calls me Linda I look around to see who they're talking to." "Just what do you do then?" Alex asked her, once again pressing to see how he could put his followers to use. "Oh, my family owns a small cattle ranch back where you saw me. I was riding along the outskirts of the property. I didn't know what drew me there today, but something did. I don't think it was you, because I just had this odd notion to head there today. It was only after I'd been there about twenty minutes that I suddenly felt your presence approaching." "It's almost as if someone or something was directing your motions so you'd meet Alex, wasn't it?" Gail added from the side, having been listening to the discussion. "Yeah, it was. I swear, I think God directed me there just so you could restore my faith. I've kept it, by the way, but it's been hard over the years, seeing all the nonsense that religion has been used to justify, but what you did was surely a reward for maintaining my vigilance over the years." "Well I don't know about..." Alex started to argue before Gail shot him a dirty look, so he allowed the statement to die on its own. She had a point, he didn't really know where his abilities came from, and it seemed more than just random chance how everything always seemed to work out all the time. Maybe there was something to Anh's theories after all. They didn't pick up any more Seers, but they did pick up a fair number of Watchers, and this more relaxed approach was much easier on Alex's psyche. He liked acting like a tourist, even if he ran into trouble doing it. However, he didn't know whether he'd be able to do the same thing in any other city. The layout of San Antonio, and the size of the city, seemed to account for a lot of what made it work out so well. For dinner the others managed to talk Alex into returning to the River Walk to try out another restaurant. A Mexican one this time, which was big in this region of Texas, seeing how close they were to the border. Alex was still concerned with being overly exposed on the narrow River Walk, but the other girls assured him they'd try to keep a better watch of people coming and going, and they picked a restaurant across from the other, where he could sit back from the River Walk itself but still overlook it and observe anyone approaching him. That seemed to settle it for Alex, and he had to admit the relaxed atmosphere definitely beat eating in the mall. Chelsea and Jordan ate quickly, begging their leave, as they really needed to be at the Alamodome in time to help the band prepare for the concert that night. As they were still getting their things ready, Cate kicked Alex in his calf to get his attention. When he turned to complain, looking away from Patricia's two assistants where his attention had been focused, he saw a gorgeous blond woman approaching them with big puppy dog eyes. Just as he expected, as soon as he noticed her her head jerked back and those eyes, the same gun metal gray as her companion's uniform, glassed over. She was even more beautiful than most of Alex's companions, her face was flawless and her every feature was perfect. But her companion, a young man in an Army uniform, quickly glanced between his suddenly confused companion and Alex. "Should I ask?" he asked rhetorically. "You wouldn't believe it if we told you," Cate told him. "Come, have a seat so she doesn't attract any more attention than she already has, and tell us who you are." "Ha, that's a laugh. Sergeant Caity Stern always attracts attention wherever she goes. She draws men to her like shit draws flies," The young enlisted man glanced at Caity before deciding she wasn't quite ready to speak for herself yet, but Cate and Lisa were watching her, so he continued. "She's an ex-Miss America contestant who just came back from Afghanistan, where she worked as a combat medic. Between her model good looks and her no-nonsense kick-ass attitude, she demands attention wherever she goes. And the Army agrees with me, because they keep sending her out on publicity jaunts whenever they can, despite the fact she's not overly fond of them, preferring the life of a grunt instead." Caity seemed to have recovered by then, so she was busy glancing around in surprise at the changes in her vision she saw all around her. She was looking at everyone and everything. "Are you OK, Caity? You told me this guy was some big dude, so I didn't say anything when you got dizzy, but if you need any help say the word and I'll—" "No, I'm fine. I think," she responded, still not sure how to respond. "You're fine," Alex told her. "What you underwent is what everyone like you goes through. What you have, and what you experienced, are very rare, and we've only been doing this for a little while." At this stage Alex took in her companion as if trying to determine what to say in front of him. As Alex expected, his hair was cut short and he looked to be in great shape. He wore the standard Army camouflage uniform, which Alex guessed was expected around here since everyone seemed to accept it so readily. Alex remembered that San Antonio was the home of Fort Sam Houston, which was the center of the American military medical establishment. Walter Reed in Washington D.C. had a fair amount of responsibilities as well, but most of the injuries coming in from overseas were sent here, where the military specialists from the various services worked together to get them whole again. Or as close as they could manage. Caity saw his look, and glanced quickly between the two men before coming to a decision. "Jeff, could you excuse us for a little while. I want to discuss a few things with..." she paused, waiting for Alex to reveal his name. But Alex wasn't so sure he wanted to reveal it if Caity didn't trust him enough to listen to whatever he told her. "Just call me Gabby," Alex told her. "I just need to discuss a few things with Gabby and his friends," she finished, looking at Jeff, asking for his cooperation. "Are you sure? It didn't sound like you've ever met this guy before, and I'm not about to leave one of my people unprotected in a dangerous situation," he told her, keeping a straight face for several seconds before breaking into a grin. "Yeah, I'll make myself scarce for a little while." He started to get up, but Alex flicked his head towards him as a signal for Gail. She pointed to herself in a 'who me?' expression, but Alex motioned again. Gail wasn't pleased to be leaving her charge, but she recognized that the guy would respond to her best, as a fellow serviceman, even if they were in widely separated arenas. She got up, took him by the arm and guided him to a nearby table so they could talk. Caity turned and regarded Alex seriously at that point. "Now could you kindly explain just what the heck you did to me?" she asked, as she smiled at him to let him know she was simply teasing him. "You don't trust your pal, Jeff, to overhear what we might say?" Alex asked, just to confirm his own suspicions. Caity sighed. "Jeff is an Army man. As such his first loyalty is to the Army, which is the center of his life. Somehow I suspect you're going to tell me some things that the Army wouldn't exactly be inclined to take lightly. Thus I think it would be better to not overwhelm Jeff with information which might test his convictions." Alex smiled at her understanding of events. "That was exactly my own thinking. I'll try to cover the basics as quickly as I can, so we won't leave him hanging for too long." So Alex proceeded to give her the rudiments of her new abilities and what it entailed, with Cate adding anything he may have temporarily forgotten. She was shocked when he first spoke telepathically to her, and was overwhelmed when he connected her to multiple people hundreds of miles away who she could converse with instantly, without the need for translations in some cases. "Man, we could definitely use something like this out in the field. When we were in Afghanistan, our damn radios often wouldn't receive anything over the surrounding mountains, plus communicating with the people in charge of support, the people who controlled access to bombers or rescue 'copters, would be sporadic at best, and they often wouldn't understand what we were trying to tell them." "Yeah, you're right. I'm sure it would be beneficial there. But right now I'm trying to help as many people here who have your abilities as I can. If I were to join the military, I'm sure I'd search out people with the same abilities in Afghanistan or Iraq, regardless of which side they were on. As I keep telling everyone, I'm not picking sides, I'm trying to reach my people, whatever they choose to belief." "Yeah, I can see how the military brass might look down on an attitude like that," she replied, smiling at him again with a look that caused an involuntary shiver in his spine. Man, she could charm the pants off a troll, Alex told himself. I'm going to have to watch myself. But then he rethought that idea. If he could utilize her ability to both charm and disarm people, she'd be a tremendous bonus to his growing community. "You know, I can see how these abilities of mine may have been helping me over the years. I've often been very good at detecting who was sincere in wanting to do something, and those who were only going through the motions. Thus I've been able to avoid those who merely seek to use me, or those that aim to discredit me. I've also used my feelings about people to avoid getting myself into difficult positions, which is something that women in the Army have serious problems with. I'd always know who was looking to put me into a bad situation, so I'd always find some way of avoiding them, or at least surrounding myself with other people if I couldn't avoid them altogether. That saved my ass a bunch of times." Alex smiled at the fact that, for as prim and proper as Caity liked to portray herself, once she let her hair down the soldier in her came out and her language got a lot looser. In order to cover additional material, Cate quickly provided an overview of how Caity could see the health and emotions of people, and how Alex could also affect people's health as well. "Holy shit," Caity swore. "That's phenomenal. Look, you've got to do me a favor. As Jeff told you, I'm a medic currently stationed at the medical center here. I work with the people sent here for injuries they suffered overseas. The military especially likes how I can inspire the soldiers to recuperate faster and work harder at getting better, as well as how much attention I bring to both the military and to those getting help here. It would mean a lot to me if you could come with me tomorrow to see some people at the Brooke Medical Center." "Uh, that would involve entering the military base wouldn't it?" Alex asked, feeling a bit reluctant about exposing himself to watchful eyes in the military. "Don't worry, you'll be my guest, a personal friend. If the patients show a marked recovery, they'll just chalk it up to their being inspired by my bubbly personality," she told him, flashing another of her toothy smiles. Alex had to admit, she was good at what she did. He was ready to march onto that military base and do things he knew were utterly stupid for him to do. "What about getting Gail and Cate in as well. I need Gail there so she can advise me, but also because she's my private security detail. Cate, I need, so she can interpret any surprises we may encounter, and believe me, we end up getting more surprises when we try to help people medically than we do anything else." "I don't see any problems with that. The guards at the gate might look askance at you, but as long as I sign you in it should be fine. If it would make you feel any better, I could ask some press people to come along, that way all you'd need is a camera and you'd fit right in." Alex had images of not only military doctors watching him perform miracles in a hospital, but of the local press capturing it all on film, and he shuddered for a completely different reason than he had before. "No thanks. I think I'd rather avoid that if we can. Yeah, sign us up. I'm not promising I can do anything, especially if we encounter something we haven't before, or if we don't actually understand what's happening, but it should be interesting." "Just wait until Gail finds out about it," Cate warned her brother. "You know she's not going to be pleased about you taking a risk like that, especially since she won't be able to protect you while she's surrounded by armed guards." Alex grunted his acknowledgment that he'd have trouble justifying taking such a risk to Gail, but he felt he needed to do this, both to see what he could do with a different sort of medical problem, and to see how Caity worked with people. He really wanted to see how he could potentially utilize her abilities and how she could help people. Well, she was already helping people, but he wanted to see how he could get her to help his people. Having covered most of what they needed to, they called Jeff and Gail back. Surprisingly Jeff was more surprised by the news than Gail was. Gail just seemed to assume that Alex knew what he was doing, while Jeff told Caity that she was always trying to skirt the rules more than she should, but she told him she knew what she was doing, which shut him up. Finally, Alex told them they were heading to Patricia's concert, which he strongly hinted that Caity might want to observe as well. Jeff informed them he needed to get back since he had early duty in the morning, and Caity hesitated, but when Cate asked her in a slightly pleading voice she relented. "Sure, it should be fun. I've been intrigued by the ads I've seen for her portion of the show." "Yeah, and as an added benefit, if I attract too much attention you'd be a perfect distraction to take the attention off of me," Alex added with a wink, meaning every word of it. ------- Gini settled her helmet on her head and checked her outfit one more time, making sure nothing was loose to cause her trouble as she rode. She still wore her camouflage uniform because she'd been so anxious to get away she'd been afraid to change into her riding outfit. She'd have to change on the road once she got away from the city. Away from the presence she felt bearing down on her. She had everything packed, so there was nothing left to hold her here. She'd felt the strong presence that demanded her attention when it arrived earlier in the day, but she wasn't about to seek it out this time. She'd learned long ago to follow her intuition, and it had helped her in her daily life, but when she joined the army and was stationed in Afghanistan, it had become a bit too much for her. Her teammates had quickly learned to trust her instincts as well, labeling her 'Lucky', since she managed to keep them out of so many ambushes or booby traps. But they'd come to rely on her too much, and despite her best efforts she'd seen too many of her friends die. She was tired of the responsibility, especially now that she was home and couldn't deal with civilians or the dreams that constantly haunted her. She'd wake up in a sweat, desperately trying to save her companions from an unexpected attack that had taken many of them. She'd jump out of bed, grabbing any weapon that was available to defend herself, only to recognize the shocked expression on her family and friends when she finally realized she was stateside once again. They couldn't deal with her wild nature, and she couldn't deal with their inability to deal with what she'd gone through. Instead, she thought she'd prefer to simply survive on her own. She learned overseas how to live in the wild on her own, so she figured she didn't need anyone anymore. All she'd have to do was to visit the local grocery store every few weeks and she'd be fine. Maybe she'd be able to figure out where her life was going, or had gone, she wasn't sure which was the case. But the last thing she needed now was to purposely seek out what she could only guess was a bigger pile of shit than she'd ever encountered before. Sure, it seemed positive from this distance, but she knew how quickly feelings of happiness could switch to terror, and the power she felt calling to her was more than she ever wanted to deal with again. No, it was better for her to simply seek isolation. She didn't need anyone else and they certainly didn't want her around anyway. With that thought, Gini mounted her Harley, moved out onto the street and set off heading away from the city. She was free and there'd be no looking back now. ------- Chapter 24: Further Experimentation Anthony Barlow picked the phone up as soon as it rang this time. He wasn't about to miss this call. Things were getting more extreme and he was anxious to get a handle on them. "Good evening, Barlow residence," he answered. "Hello, Mr. Barlow. This is Harry Wittmore again," came the reassuring voice he'd been so anxiously awaiting. "What have you got for me?" Anthony asked, hardly able to contain his nerves. Things hadn't been going well at home. "Well, I've got some upsetting news," Harry warned him. Damn, the little shithead left town and it's too late to catch him, Anthony thought to himself as his mind filled in the likeliest possibility of what happened. He'd tried to settle things with his daughter, Grace, after she'd been running after this Alex character. This supposed angel. He'd put his foot down, trying to get her to see where things stood, but she'd resisted. Now she had moved out and he had no way of keeping track of her. Hopefully the little scammer had left town before he could take anything from her, but... "And what would the bad news be?" Anthony asked since Harry wasn't forthcoming. "Remember when I said I was having my associate, Ms. Evens, try to make inroads with the 'angel community' here in New Orleans?" he asked. "Well, she wasn't so much my associate as she was my girlfriend," Harry confessed, leaving Anthony confused as to why he was talking about nonsense when his client was so anxious. "It turns out it worked well, too well in fact. They accepted her as if she was one of their own, and it turns out that isn't that far from the truth. They told her they thought she had some 'traits' that this angel character is looking for, and that she should seek him out in order to learn 'who she is' so he could 'reveal a whole new world to her'." Anthony's hands grew cold. This wasn't going the way he'd anticipated at all. "She made some good points about it, and there's one thing I've learned seeking out people's dirty laundry over the years, and that nobody is helped by suspicion. Even if I find no evidence of cheating, the person who seeks my services isn't always appeased, and if I find it neither party is happy. Jealousy and possessiveness can be poisonous, and a lack of trust destroys more marriages than infidelity ever has. Cheating can be dealt with, whereas the absence of trust, justified or not, can't be. I've learned that suspicion is about the worst thing you can do to a relationship, and I'm not going to fall into that trap. My own relationship is too important to me for me to poison it with my own insecurities." "What the hell are you talking about?" Anthony asked, his hands literally shaking with rage even though he managed to keep his voice neutral and somewhat calm, finding himself frustrated with this man's inability to get to the point. "What I'm trying to tell you is that I've got a conflict of interest here, and my relationship with my girlfriend is more important to me than what you're paying me, so I'll have to cancel our arrangement. Now I'll give you recommendations for others in the field you can use instead, but—" Anthony's mind starting sprinting at that point, he had to get ahead of this. There wasn't much time before that Alex creep left town, either with his money, his daughter's dreams, or even possibly with his daughter. He didn't have time to dick around with some confused gumshoe. "That's OK, I'm not interested in anyone else," he responded, having found the reservoir to respond somewhat calmly, an idea growing that gave him the confidence to withhold his anger and frustration. "I'll tell you what, Mr. Wittmore, I think we can come to an understanding if you can do me a little favor." "Yes," Harry asked, intrigued but cautious about what he might be asked to do for the amount of money they were talking about here. "Just tell me where your girlfriend is supposed to meet with this Angel, and I'll forget what I've already paid you, and I'll even throw in a nice little bonus. I just want to see what this character is up to myself, maybe ask him what he's after. I don't mean to cause anyone any trouble, but I just want to make sure that my little girl is going to be OK. If he can assure me that—" Harry didn't even wait for him to finish before he made up his mind. "Sure, I think I can do that. He's supposed to show up at a Diane Kennedy concert in Dallas on Saturday evening. I don't know how long he's going to be there, or where he's supposed to go after that, but that's where she's planning on meeting him. In fact, she's already made ... hello? Are you there? Did we get disconnected, Mr. Barlow?" ------- That night's concert went much better than the ones in Houston. It didn't attract quite as many people, which didn't bother Alex since he'd been a bit overwhelmed at the Astrodome. Alex took to hiding in the men's room again, but he wasn't accosted there this time, although he did find several women waiting for him when he came out as the concert was about to begin. Like they'd done before, they used the people they met that day to work the crowd, and since they now had more experience at it they managed to avoid some of the scenes they'd had the other night. In all they got fewer new followers than they did in Houston, but they still got more than they normally did, so the numbers still stunned Alex, who was still used to meeting one or two at a time, not dozens. There was only one Seer this time, but there were quite a few Watchers. At the end of the evening, when they met in the stadium parking lot, Alex was once again faced with a small dilemma: who to take to bed with him. As usual, Alex wasn't really anxious about sleeping with anyone, but he had the same problem he'd faced before, he felt he needed to leave someone in charge of the local community, or at least someone who could provide some security for them, once he left. But as usual it wasn't quite as clear cut as that. Martha Dunbar and Linny Gabberts were both from out of town, so they wouldn't be able to help with the community if they weren't there frequently enough. Caity would have been a good choice, but she was a good Mormon girl who didn't believe in premarital sex, even if it involved an angel who was looking to change the world. What's more, being active military she'd only be in the area for a short time anyway. The new Seer wasn't much better, as she already had several kids, none of whose father's supported them. It seemed she fell into the trap many women do, falling for 'bad boys' while ignoring their own intuition, despite how strong it may be. Knowing he couldn't really get out of it, Alex chose two Watchers. While they wouldn't be able to protect his fledgling community like a Seer could, at least they'd be in a better position to help those within it. One of those was Lisa Beadrow, the Macy's sales girl, while the other was Debbie Barrows, a Hispanic-American that Alex thought might be able to reach out to the local Hispanic community to connect to anyone who might not relate to the mostly white people he'd met so far. Although Alex tried to respect everyone's personal choices and beliefs, he couldn't see Caity's worries about her chastity. After all, if God could forgive her of his greatest sin, that of taking a life, then surely he could forgive one instance of premarital sex to help others like herself. Caity had relayed a bit of her personal history from her last trip to Afghanistan that she'd just returned from that continued to trouble her. Like the other Seers, she'd recognized how useful her sense of intuition was, and it served her well. She'd often know just where to focus when a new patient came in, even when there were no physical symptoms to indicate there was a problem. Like when an IED victim came in and she worked on his stomach rather than his shredded arm. It turned out he was suffering from internal bleeding that, if untreated, would have killed him. Caity's experience had led her to trust her intuition, and it had proved vital in Afghanistan. However, she was out with her unit one day when they ran into trouble. An Afghani vehicle 'just happened' to break down in front of their convoy on a narrow road, enroute back to their FOB (forward operating base). The translator went to speak with the driver while the rest of the unit went on high alert guarding against an ambush. While trying to get situated, she'd felt a sudden sense of maliciousness. She knew such animosity didn't bring good things, so going against her training and ROE (rules of engagement), she used her rifle to shoot into an obstructed doorway. There was a cry from within, and a moment later a young boy of about fifteen years of age came stumbling out, only to collapse on the ground in front of the building he was in. In semi-passable English he called out to them for help. Caity's heart went out to him and she felt terrible for what she'd done, but she still couldn't shake that sense of hostility coming from him. When the other medic and one of her fellow soldiers started to move towards the boy, she held them back. Trusting her judgment, even though she didn't explain why she was hesitating, they watched him as he pleaded for help. Finally, seeing they weren't going to come to assist him, he finally cursed at them in Pashtun, raised his right hand and pressed the plunger he'd been holding. His body exploded, killing him and spraying the building with shrapnel and gore. That very well could have been Caity and the members of her unit if she hadn't hesitated. It was a trap laid out for them. If she hadn't shot him, he likely would have walked up to them. If they'd gone to help him they would have died. But she still couldn't shake her sense of guilt she felt from causing his death. First, that she had shot someone who hadn't actually threatened her, and second, she had a direct role in his death, even if it was at his own hands. She knew it made no sense, and she made no apologies for her actions, but it continued to haunt her. Thus she confessed the incident to Alex, hoping he'd grant her the absolution she desired. He told her that he personally forgave her, and that he was sure that God wouldn't blame her, which seemed to set her mind at ease. Despite her willingness to have his children, she still remained firm in her decision to remain chaste until she was married in the Mormon Church, though. "You aren't interested in converting to Mormonism, are you?" she asked. "You could keep your harem, as long as you married each of them," she teased. Cate liked the two girls and they got along well, but she was mostly pleased that Alex wasn't stressing himself about his inability to boost the perfect girl for the situation, like he had the other night. Hopefully that would keep him from getting himself into ridiculous situations like he had the previous night. Gail also liked the two girls, but then she usually liked all the women he brought home, as they were usually easy on the eyes. Unfortunately, they tended to be straight, too, so she didn't get to play along with him, but she was glad for what she could get and she'd take watching over total abstinence any day. Cate had decided she liked having her brother warn whoever he was with that she might show up to cuddle with him. Somehow it seemed less creepy that way, and she didn't discount that hearing it from him made it sound more acceptable to the girls as well. So while Alex dallied with his two Watchers, Cate and Gail entertained each other in the other room, knowing Gail could always detect when he had an orgasm with one of his girls from their shared telepathic connection. That way Cate was right on time with his snack, and she snuggled into his bed once she was sure the two girls had fallen asleep. Debbie had also provided her own little surprise when Alex asked at the last moment whether she was protected. She'd just smiled and told him she wasn't afraid of sleeping with an angel, and she also wasn't afraid of carrying said angel's baby out of wedlock. What resulted were several long minutes as Alex tried to talk her out of her decision, but she wasn't to be dissuaded and he finally relented, since that was one aspect of his mission. Lisa wasn't as anxious to get pregnant at the moment, but she looked at Debbie holding her stomach afterwards with a certain feeling of jealousy, thinking both how nice it would be to have her own child and how wonderful it would be to grasp the future in your hands by potentially bringing the next angel into being. Needless to say, emotions were running high that night. ------- The next morning saw them all bright and chipper, as usual, although Gail was a bit grouchy without her coffee. After all, she hadn't gotten a shot of the big O the night before. Cate, though, was fine after having soaked up energy from Alex all night, even if she hadn't gotten to fool around herself. Arriving at breakfast, there was quite a crowd awaiting them. Alex had asked the girls not to cause a disruption by surrounding him, but it only went so far. Martha was there with her three grandkids, along with her son-in-law, who didn't look very comfortable meeting Alex. Caity was there too, as were two new Watchers who'd been waiting for him. Of the young girls, one was a Seer and another was a Watcher, though they were aged seven and five, respectively. They both stared at Alex as if he were a certain purple dinosaur, although the one girl had trouble looking directly at him, while their sister ignored him the whole time. Their father eventually paid for breakfast, but never warmed up to Alex, as he couldn't bring himself to believe the wild tales his mother-in-law had told him, although the girls' reactions to Alex said the same thing more eloquently. Alex gave then an overview of what they needed to know, promising them he'd tell them a little bit at a time over time, so that they could learn more as they needed it, rather than all at once. As they were leaving for the hospital, Cate asked Caity if she'd "made any arrangements". She replied that she had, and had made reservations for later, but neither would explain to Alex what they were talking about. They stopped off at a clinic that Cate directed them to, where Alex met yet another fertility specialist and made a certain deposit while the girls waited. They talked to the doctor for a while, ensuring she was qualified to care for anyone getting pregnant in the community, and that she could keep and respect their secrets. When they were comfortable that she was, they headed off. Alex was nervous as they approached the gate of the Brooke Army Medical Center. He had severe reservations about entering the military base, being a bit paranoid about what the 'government' might do if they had any idea of what he was capable of, but he tried to not let it show. Caity took them to her office, which was festooned with a large cardboard cutout of a Disney princess to which she'd affixed a military M-16A2 rifle. It stood besides multiple pictures of Caity posing with various young girls in either her uniform or wearing her Miss Utah crown. She briefly spoke to someone outside of her office and led Alex and his group off again. "The thing is," she said, as they walked into one of the wards, "while I'm impressed with what you've been able to do in the past, we have some unique medical problems in the military that we continue to have problems with. I was hoping you might have some success where we haven't so far. "The other girls told me about how you managed to heal burn and cancer victims, and I'm intrigued. Cate also mentioned how you seem to have a problem with your energy causing more bleeding than normal, so I'm keeping that in mind," she said, as she led them into a room with a couple of young soldiers who looked at them curiously. She'd stopped on the way in to talk to the ward nurse, who in this case happened to be male, which was more typical of the military. The nurse had sent word that she was on the floor to one of the ward doctors and then followed them into the room, but she remained in the background, giving them plenty of room to do what they needed to. "Peter and Jonathon here have both suffered mTBI, or 'mild traumatic brain injuries'. Basically their brains got shook up when their vehicle ran over an IED. Neither suffered significant wounds, but both have suffered mild mental impairment as a result. We're anxious to be able to treat these types of wounds, as it means they'll have to be discharged if we can't, something that neither one wants." Alex looked them over without saying a word. Gail, however, stepped up and, getting Jonathon to lean forward, examined the back of his head. Finally she turned back to Alex. "There's diffuse impairment across a region about the size of a softball in the back of their head, plus a lesser effect in the front and side of his head," she told him. 'Show Caity what you're seeing, ' Alex responded telepathically. However there wasn't any outward sign of a response by either woman. Alex took that under advisement before addressing Caity. "We've worked with this a little in terms of sports injuries. In fact we set up a program where we've been monitoring anyone suffering from a minor head trauma, determining who's suffered damage and who hasn't. I haven't really tried to heal one of these wounds myself, simply because we haven't encountered many of them." Caity and Jonathon looked positive at this news, but Alex had to disappoint them. "The problem is with the wound. There's been too much time for scar tissue within the brain to form. The idea is we need to address the problem before the body starts to take action on its own. When I worked with the burn victim, I found we could reduce the amount of scar tissue that formed, but once it forms it's almost impossible to remove without seriously impacting the patient." "Ah, I was afraid of that," Caity responded. "The problem is these men get injured in the field, get a simple dressing, then get shipped to the closest field hospital where they get their initial treatment. If they're hurt badly enough, which these men weren't considered to have been, they're shipped off to Germany for further treatment. They only come here for long term treatment, so we only get them long after the wounds have been inflicted." "That's what I figured," Alex said. "I can give the area a general energy bath, but aside from making him feel better temporarily I doubt it will have much effect." "Well, just try what you can. After all, we're interesting in seeing what works and what doesn't." Alex and Gail switched position, and Alex began applying a diffuse application of energy to the impacted region of the soldier's brain as Gail directed him. As he was doing it, Caity proceeded to ask him a series of questions, trying to detect a difference in his mental acuity. After only a couple of minutes, his mind seemed noticeably clearer and both he and Caity seemed enthused, but Alex had to remind her it was likely only short term. "Still, it's an improvement, and it's possible if we could do this over a longer time period that they might regain more functionality for a longer time." "Sadly, this is more akin to those he, uh ... spends time with," Cate explained to her. "They're bursting with fresh energy and feel like they can take on the world, but once the energy dissipates nothing has really changed. Well, actually, in those cases something significant did change, but aside from that, simply being exposed to Alex's energy won't do much besides make someone feel good." "Are you sure of that? Have you actually tested prolonged exposure?" Caity asked, trying to say what needed to be said without giving too much away. "Actually, Liv asked the same thing and I couldn't really answer her. I was doing some longer term studies, but unfortunately once we hit the road I had to discontinue them." "Ah, so your other request makes more sense now," she replied. "You should really try taking a standard IQ test both before and after being exposed, just to see if there's any noticeable difference." "That makes sense. It would be a simple test with immediate answers. Of course it wouldn't hold up under scrutiny, but we aren't looking for that level of proof at this stage." "Do you and Gail have any standard IQ test results on record?" Caity asked, curious about what they might produce. "I have some somewhere," Cate answered, "although in my case it may not be indicative, since I've been exposed to Alex for a long time." "Man, I have no idea what you people are talking about, but if you have an IQ test, I'm ready. My mind hasn't felt this clear in a long time," the young man interrupted. "Well I'm glad," Caity told him with a smile before they moved to the next soldier. They performed the same procedure on him, with the observing nurse paying much more attention this time. However, since they'd said what they needed to, they didn't bother to explain what they were doing. "That's amazing," the nurse said. "We need to try that more often." "I'm afraid it's an unproven procedure, and we probably shouldn't be trying it without patient authorizations," Alex said, trying to cover himself since he knew the nurse was likely to object to what they were doing. "I can tell you're a civilian," he replied with a smile. "Military personnel get free medical care, but they also have more limits than civilian patients. They don't have the legal right to sue for malpractice if anything goes wrong." About this time the ward doctor entered the room and Alex started getting nervous again. Caity noticed this and led them from the room. The doctor and nurse followed them, but stayed back as the nurse quickly described what he'd observed. Caity led them to a nearby room which housed another young soldier with mTBI. After making explanations and giving them the soldier's personal history, Gail repeated her in-depth analysis of his head, something the doctor and nurse were fascinated to watch. "There's really no physical damage I can isolate in his brain, as there's no weak spots in his aura," she said aloud, making no attempt to hide her observations. "Chances are any damage has already healed, or the damage isn't so much a result of scar tissue in the brain as it is the experience of having suffered the trauma." "This seems to be the other end of the spectrum," Alex said. "This time there's nothing specific to heal. As you just heard, I might have been able to do something if I'd gotten here just after it happened, but this long after the fact there isn't really anything to address." Caity and the soldier looked disappointed at this news, even though the young soldier had had no real expectation that Alex could have helped him anyway. "That's why I presented you with this case," Caity said. "You managed to help the last man, even though you specifically said you couldn't heal the underlying damage. I was interested in seeing if you could do something similar in this case." "What's the nature of his problem," Alex asked. "It's just as Gail described. He's suffering from what they used to call 'shell shock', or what we now call 'Post Traumatic Stress Disorder'. It mostly consists of his having visions and memories of the events he experienced. As such, you're right, there are no specific injuries, but he's still suffering, and we'd like to know if you can give us any more clue as to how to treat it. "We've had the most success with behavioral conditioning with these cases, where we work with the victims to try to diminish their negative memories, the bad dreams and the panic attacks, and focus on the positive social connections of friends and family. We do this by giving them specific exercises to do whenever they suffer a negative response, we've even tried doing it more directly, having them stay in the hospital so we can address them when they have a panic attack. The process works quite well, but it's fairly labor intensive so it's difficult to implement on a wide scale basis. "I thought that if you could make him feel better that it might provide a more direct method of applying this behavioral modification. If you could apply either a boost or a negative reinforcement directly to the area of the—" "Wait a minute," Alex interrupted, cautioning her, "you're getting into dangerous territory here. I'm hesitant about apply energy directly to the brain, largely because even if it's specifically applied, it still affects all those regions between it and the surface of the brain, and we don't know what effect that would have. When you add the fact that we can't identify what region of the brain a specific memory originates from means we'd just be shooting in the dark. That's bad enough to begin with, but if you then suggest I remove excess energy from the brain, we're talking about even more severe possible repercussions. Every time I drain energy I run the risk of killing healthy cells. Simply removing a small amount of energy risks killing or injuring brain cells that may house specific memories." "I was thinking a more general approach. Simply applying an overall application may be enough to reward positive thoughts, though your points about draining energy would be more problematic." "What about using an fMRI?" Gail asked, having learned from being involved with Alex the difference between a functional and a regular MRI. "It would be too difficult," Cate answered. "It would mean getting Alex inside the MRI while it's working, giving him enough room to operate, and trying to identify which mental activity was a negative thought and which ones were positive ones." "How about we try the general approach first, just to see how well it works?" Caity suggested. Alex simply smiled as he glanced at the young soldier. "Are you currently having a flashback?" "No, but I'm starting to feel a little nervous about you doing something that might destroy my memory," he answered. "Don't worry," Alex answered, "I'll give you a brief treatment. It won't help you one way or the other, but it should make you feel better temporarily." When Alex finished the man did in fact feel much better, but it wasn't a very specific treatment, so as they left Cate and Caity started discussing possible variations in treatment while the doctor and nurse trailing them got into a whispered conversation as well. Caity led them to another room which, upon entering, revealed a young man suffering from what appeared to be a head wound. His head was shaved on one side and there was a good sized gash running along his skull. He looked up at them in confusion, but didn't seem to be able to focus on them for very long. "PFC Johnson here suffered a shrapnel wound to the head," Caity told them. "He's lost a lot of his cognitive ability. You mentioned that you'd managed to ... uh, regrow kidney tissue. I was wondering if—" "I don't think it will do any good to have me try a procedure that is almost guaranteed to fail," Alex told her, not terribly happy to be put into this position. "That's not what I was suggesting, I—" Caity tried to explain once again but never managed to finish. "I think what Alex is trying to say is that there are a lot of problems with trying to regrow damaged tissue," Cate said. "Essentially, there's not a lot of spare room," Alex explained. "If something new grows, other things are going to be shoved aside." "In the kidney there's room for things to move to a certain degree," Cate continued, alternating with Alex in describing what happens during these procedures. "But in the brain, which is already packed pretty tight, there isn't," Alex finished. "What will happen is that the internal pressure in the brain will increase, possibly causing additional cell death." "Not only that, but the kidneys, for as complex as they are, are a pretty homogenous structure," Cate continued. "Getting them to grow is pretty straightforward, whereas trying to regrow portions of a human brain are fraught with difficulties. Will each of the various cells grow at the same rate, will they be able to differentiate themselves, can they function together, will some form while others don't? You could end up with a mess of nonfunctioning cells, which would simply act as a benign tumor." "But this man is largely unaware of his surroundings," Caity argued. "He has no quality of life, he has no future. He's got nothing to lose." "No, but I stand to lose a lot by doing this," Alex countered. "Mainly, it would demonstrate that I can damage and cripple a somewhat functional mind, it could also incapacitate or possibly even kill the patient, and it would break the central covenant of 'first do no harm'." Caity was about to counter that when a corpsman came up to Caity and said something to her that the others couldn't really hear. They stopped the discussion, and as the corpsman left Caity turned back to them. "We'll get back to this, but right now your wish has been granted," Caity told Alex, which piqued his curiosity. She led them to yet another room where a man lay unconscious on a gurney. His head was freshly shaved and showed fresh stitches which revealed he'd just come from a recent brain surgery. "You said you couldn't do anything with a brain after it had already managed to form scab tissues following a trauma to it. Well, here we have someone who's just suffered fresh trauma. True, the trauma probably saved his life, as the surgeons removed shrapnel that was embedded in his brain, but we're interested in seeing if you can minimize the damage he suffered from the surgery." "You want me to minimize the damage done by cutting out portions of a man's brain?" Alex asked, unable to believe she'd try to evaluate his success after the surgeons had potentially done so much damage to the man themselves. "Basically, yeah," Caity responded. "We have a basic idea of what damage we'd expect a surgery like this to impart. What I'm looking for is to separate what level of damage is done by the initial shrapnel wound, what we did ourselves with the surgery, and finally what additional damage is suffered from the internal scar formations in the brain. Again, this is hardly objective, and a single case wouldn't answer much, but it would give us working on these kinds of wounds more of an idea of the costs associated with this kind of treatment." Alex considered that and then silently asked Gail to examine the man's situation as best she could. She quickly glanced at the man's head, moving around him before turning back to explain what she'd observed. Alex noticed that both the doctor and the nurse following them were listening carefully to what they said. "There's extensive damage along the trajectory of the shrapnel, both old and new. However the new damage, while more extensive, is still fresh, so you may be able to limit some of the damage inflicted, though I have no idea of how they'd ever be able to evaluate what you did or did not help with." 'You know, I really don't appreciate being put in this situation, Caity, ' Alex reprimanded her telepathically. 'I'm trying to avoid focusing undue attention on myself, and I'm especially trying to avoid alerting the government that I may have certain unique abilities that no one else does. If I do any of the things you suggest, what's to prevent me from never walking out of here again?' In response, she simply turned and called the doctor who had been observing them over. As he approached, Alex saw the name "Col. Lister Pendleton". Although Alex had been ignoring both him and the nurse until now, he looked him over to get a feel for the man before he spoke. The man looked much more gruff soldier than attentive doctor, with a stocky build, a chiseled face and short graying hair. However the patients seems to respond to him, and he seemed to have a considerate, though 'no nonsense', approach to them. Alex still felt cautious about how much he'd trust the man, but he was willing to hear him out on the matter. "Lists, could you explain to Alex why you aren't going to have him locked up in a secret chamber in the basement?" Both Dr. Pendleton and his male nurse, Phillip Rose, chuckled at Alex's greatest fear, which didn't exactly fill him with warm fuzzies. "Alex, Caity called us yesterday and explained that she was bringing someone over who could potentially give us some insights into our more protracted medical cases. We were intrigued, but she quickly told us that you had some rather unorthodox techniques and that we couldn't tell anyone else about what we observed you doing. Normally we avoid 'faith healers', clairvoyants or voodoo priests, but we've grown to trust Caity's judgment, as she's pretty good at what she does and she's very good at cutting through the bull. When she promised us that what you did was legitimate, we decided to see just what you could show us." At this stage he took a breath before continuing. "If I was to 'report' you for having some strange 'power' that allowed you to heal the sick without touching them, the best I could hope for is 'counseling' by my commanding officer. It's entirely possible that I could end up being separated under AR 635-200, chapter 5, paragraph 5-13, the one they use for 'Personality Disorders' and 'Other Designated Physical and Mental Conditions'. The military isn't some evil lurking onerous presence conspiracy theorists believe. Its main focus is on being able to respond and function efficiently. They don't look kindly on people who bring up issues that are considered fantastic, as that only conveys that the person reporting it isn't in his right mind. The quickest way out of the military is to imply that you're not qualified to lead, or that you couldn't be depended on to follow concise orders. "No one in the military is likely to report anything they observe you doing, as it would mean their own separation from the service. The military might be many things, but it's not an aggressive ogre, though they aren't terribly understanding of personal idiosyncrasies. Thus people quickly learn to keep their own beliefs separate from their military careers. The military doesn't mind religious people in their midst, but start trying to convert your fellow heathens and just watch how long you last." Alex was more than a little surprised to hear this, but he could see its truth echoed in the expressions on Caity and Phillip's faces. He took a second to process it and then tried to adjust his thinking to accommodate the new information. "So what's up with getting me to do either dangerous procedures or do something that can't be determined to be effective?" "Well, I wasn't aware of what Caity had planned, but if I was to guess as to her thinking, I'm pretty sure she'd tell you that PFC Johnson doesn't have much chance at a life in the state he's in, he also doesn't have any family, and he's only got friends who want him to get better. If there's a chance to improve his condition it would be the best thing for him, but if it instead worsened, it wouldn't be your head on the block. Since you're not authorized to administer to the patient the fault would be completely mine. But again, since you can't sue for malpractice in the military, I'd likely face a review panel which would simply ask what happened to him. About all I could tell them is he suffered an unfortunate setback for unknown reasons, which would be the truth. "We're looking for insights here more than we are cures. Caity tells us you've done some amazing things, and when she gave me the names of Dr. Moore, Dr. Padilla and Dr. Bisla, I was told to leave all my previous preconceptions behind. She also mentioned that you're only available for a very short time, so again we're looking to see if we can figure out new approaches that we can apply ourselves. If you can show us how or why a different approach would make sense, then we'd be glad to implement it. "The benefit to that approach is that it wouldn't require any real medical justification. If we find a new operating procedure that results in higher success rates, the military will adopt it across the board. The military medical corps is large enough that they're mostly interested in statistical successes. If something works, they push it to the next level. They aren't as concerned with checking it with the civilian medical establishment for FDA approval." "So you don't mind if I make him even more nonfunctional than he already is?" Alex asked, still doubtful about the situation. "Well, we wouldn't be pleased. After all, we're just as human as you are, and we care about those who are under our care. But if we can learn something from it, something that could save hundreds of others in similar circumstances, then we'd understand. Especially since we never gave you authorization to practice on, or even to examine, the patients. You haven't been operating on any of our patients, have you?" he asked with a smile. "No, sir," Alex smiled back. "All I've done is stand here and occasionally touch them, simply to establish a necessary human connection to them." "The other thing you have to keep in mind is that the military undertakes a lot of studies to see what procedures are the most beneficial," Caity continued. "We study how much weight a soldier can be expected to lift, and how they can do so more safely. If there's something we can do to prevent scarring when we operate, I'm sure we could get a study organized to look into it. We're really more interested in how these problems function so we can better deal with them. We know you won't be here to cure everyone who passes through our door, but we wouldn't mind picking your brain to understand how you manage to do what you do to see if we might imitate it in some way." Alex looked at Cate to see what she thought of this. She thought it over, then simply nodded her head. "All right. As Gail just said, there's damage from the original injury and from what you just did to remove the shrapnel. The old injuries have scarring associated with it, but the new ones don't, as yet." "It's important to remember that the concept of scarring is different for the brain than it is for other parts of the body," Cate reminded their observers. "Typically brain tissue doesn't scar, instead it develops reactive astrocytes, which insulate damaged tissue. In the case of cell death, these often block off all communications to the damaged cells, thus preventing brain cell functioning even if the cells can be restored." "Don't worry, Cate, we understand how the brain operates," Lists assured her. "Just continue with the explanation." "The idea is," Alex explained, "if I can supply the affected tissue with enough energy to stabilize it from the shock you administered to it, I may be able to circumvent the body's natural reaction to shut down. Hopefully that will allow the working cells to continue communicating with their neighbors." "If you don't mind me asking basic questions that I'm sure you've already covered," Lists asked, "just what kind of energy are you applying?" "Don't worry," Caity responded, "I'll explain the basics after we're done. I'm sure Alex is tired of explaining it since he has to give this information to practically everyone he meets." Lists just nodded, indicating he was happy with that, so Alex continued. Guided by Gail's observations, Alex applied energy to the specific regions affected by the surgery. Those regions were very precise, so he had to be careful how he used it, but the utilization of the energy had to be precisely regulated in that it needed to be applied slow and steady, rather than just a quick shot. It was hardly a simply task, especially since he could only see what he was doing by Gail's showing him snapshots of what she was seeing herself. In all, the entire procedure took about three minutes, though Alex looked a bit worn out when he finished. "That's it?" Lists asked in shock. "From the way you were going on I thought this was going to be a big production." "What he does happens very quickly, and since there are no physical incisions it doesn't take much time," Cate explained. "What it does require is a lot of physical strain to control the application of the energy. That's why Alex is looking like he's about to fall over. Do you have a vending machine I could get something for him from?" "Oh, of course," Nurse Phillips replied. "Caity warned us you'd need some snacks. She gave us some specific things to pick up for you." He walked into the hall and called out to someone, and shortly someone handed him a paper bag which he brought over to them. Cate looked through it, then handed Alex some cookies and a Coke. "So this is your own energy you're using to apply to the patient?" Lists asked. "As I said before I'll go over the basics later, but no, it's an outside source of energy that you can't observe," Caity told the doctor. "Alex has simultaneously tapped into two different aspects of humanity. One is the ability of select people who can see this energy which every living thing possesses, and the other is a way of accessing vast quantities of this energy." "So there's no way to duplicate this energy?" Lists asked, just to clarify what he already suspected. "No, we all have it in us. In fact all life possesses it, but only Alex has a direct connection to its source," Cate explained. "So does it come from living tissue, or is it given to living things from some other source?" Lists asked, clearly intrigued by the concept. "I'm currently thinking he's tapping a source that's connected to a larger living entity," Cate expounded. "As such, it produces the required energy in much larger quantities. Unfortunately, the quantities are more than humans can easily withstand, so we're afraid it may be killing him. That's why we're trying to do as much as quickly as we can." "Well, I think the idea of connecting to a huge imaginary animal is even more disturbing than the other stuff, but I'll put that aside for the moment. Is there anything we should be aware of for the follow-up care?" "No, although it wouldn't hurt for me to stop by before I leave and give him another quick session," Alex offered. "I should be able to stop by before I leave in the morning, though I'd like to do it fairly early, if that's alright, as I already have something planned that I'll need to get to." "Hey, anytime you want to try some more of this magic and I can watch, and hopefully learn something, just give me a buzz and I'll make sure you can get on base," Lists told him, handing him a card. Since Alex hadn't really recovered yet, he simply nodded to Cate who took the card for him, since she was the one responsible for keeping track of everyone they met anyway. "OK, then, let's try the next one," Caity suggested, as she led them all from the room. "Should I ask how Gail does her diagnosis so quickly?" Lists asked. "I'll give you a complete overview later," Caity told him. "So how did you ever get the name Lists?" Alex asked, hoping to get away from the topic of his abilities. As much as they'd reassured him they weren't going to lock him in a cage somewhere in the facility, he still felt uncomfortable revealing too much about himself. "That's easy," Lists replied. "Nicknames are common in the military, and someone associated my tendency to keep detailed lists of all my duties with my name, so soon everyone was calling me Lists." "Well, I haven't noticed you making any yet," Alex laughed. "Just wait, as soon as I get a chance to sit down I'll make a bunch of them," Lists assured him. Alex was about to tell him why he shouldn't do that, when they arrived at a different room. When they entered they found a sturdily built man with only one arm, the other having been amputated. "Col. Addams here is another interesting case," Caity said in an officious tone. "He's got what's known as 'phantom limb' pains. That's where—" "Yeah, I'm familiar with the concept," Alex replied. "It occurs where the nerves send impulses to the brain that it can't interpret correctly, so it associates them with pain in the nonexistent arm." He turned to Gail and continued. "This may be difficult because we don't know whether the problem is in the nerves in the arm or in the brain itself. I'm not sure you can see anything associated with individual nerves, but if you could give it a try." Gail didn't say anything, simply quietly examining his stump. While she was doing that, Caity glanced at his brain, even though she wasn't sure what she was looking for, since she didn't know how to interpret what she saw yet. "Try flexing your hand," Gail suggested. "Hopefully imagining movement in it will trigger the nerves associated with it." Gail continued examining his stump, moving it around so she could examine it from different angles. Finally she held it up for Alex. "It's real faint, but I think I can see something right here," she said, pointing out several indices. That was the only way they'd found to stipulate where to find something inside a 3-dimensional opaque object. Alex quietly examined it as well, aided by additional mental images that Gail supplied him with. "What I'm going to do is try to drain the energy away from the affected nerves," Alex told them. "Since I can't take much away without affecting the surrounding tissue, I'm going to do it from several different angles, and even then I won't affect it much. Essentially it will be like giving the nerve a shot of Botox. It will weaken it so hopefully it won't respond as quickly." With that he proceeded to point his index finger at the man's stump from a couple of different directions. Col. Addams watched in apparent fascination, not sure why the doctors were leaving his care in the hands of a teenager, but willing to try anything to rid himself of the annoying pain that plagued him. After only a couple seconds he was done, gently releasing the man's arm. "So how does it feel?" Alex asked. The man looked at him in apparent confusion until he seemed to realize something. "Damn, I can't feel anything anymore. What the hell did you do, and where can I get some more of it? Is this going to last or do you have to do it again?" "Well, like a Botox injection," Alex said, "it will wear off over time. How long it'll last I'm not real sure, but I'd guess it'll last for at least a week, possibly as long as a month, but I'm just guessing since I've never tried this before." "So I'll need to see you again?" the soldier asked. "No, I'm sorry but he's here to help us understand better approaches to your treatment," Caity told him. "I'm not sure how we can apply it, but it should give us some more information to work with." "I think this might be enough of a lead to turn over to the research people," Lists said. "If they can apply some real Botox to nerves, maybe they could duplicate it." "How will they know how to locate the necessary nerve endings?" Phillips asked. "I can help with that," Caity replied. "I'll need to spend some time with Gail first, though." "You know, it might even make sense to examine the patient during the initial amputation, or maybe even open the arm up after that, just to locate the affected nerves in people suffering from it," Lists suggested. "I suspect we'll have to take that approach," Caity offered. "I can't imagine being able to poke a needle into a live nerve." "You should show Liv what we did," Alex told Gail, "I'm sure she'd be interested in the procedure as well." It was only a couple of seconds later that Alex discovered why that wasn't such a great idea. 'Hey, Alex, what the hell is that?' Liv asked him telepathically. 'Don't you think I'd want to see what you were trying there? Gail just gave me an overview, but I'd have loved to have been more involved. What's more, I'm sure Allison would too. As it is, I suspect just the little information we have is going to buy us several dinners, as Ryan is going to try to pick our brains about it.' 'Sorry, but I hadn't exactly planned any of this. A new Seer asked me to stop by, ostensibly to cheer up some people here and talk about what I did. Instead she put me on the spot and I've been doing all new stuff.' 'Well, make sure you give me a detailed run down later. I'm dying to know what you learned.' 'I'll do that, but get what you can from Gail, since she'll be able to give you the visuals, and she probably knows what I did as well as I do.' When Alex finished his discussion with her, he found everyone busy talking amongst themselves, with only Cate noticing he seemed preoccupied. Everyone was excited as Caity led them out after everyone wished Col. Addams good luck. The three medical professionals talked amongst themselves until Caity led them back to PFC Johnson's room. As they entered, Alex was feeling nervous, not liking the idea of screwing with some guy's brain when he had no idea of what he was doing. No one said anything, as the junior officer couldn't maintain his concentration long enough to follow what was being said anyway. Gail proceeded to examine his head from various angles, while she guided Caity in what to look for telepathically. Finally she motioned Alex over and positioned him, telling him what she wanted him to do. "I think it would be best if you did what you tried with Rachel and Jennifer, right here. That's where the most damage is." "I'm guessing you're pointing at the impact area," Dr. Pendelton told them. "It's to the right side of the frontal lobe." "Actually, most of that region was damaged so long ago we can't expect to do much to it," Gail explained. "As Alex explained, it looks like there's scarring of the brain in those regions, so it's unlikely we can do anything there since that's all dead tissue." While they'd been talking, Alex apprised both Liv and Allison of what he was attempting, and they quickly evaluated it and gave him their opinions. Luckily this all took place nearly instantly and silently, so no one suspected anything. "What I'm going to do, instead, is to focus on the regions just on either side of it," Alex told them. "I'm going to try to force new growth there which, hopefully, will regrow some of the damaged tissue. Luckily there's room for that tissue in the region where the impact took place, since there were segments removed. There are a few areas where there's functional tissue which borders the gaps. Now this is going to take some time and a lot of energy." "We'd better get a lot of food," Cate warned the others. "This takes a lot of energy, both this new energy and Alex's physical energy he uses to process the other. Alex gets really weak after this kind of thing. He may have trouble standing afterwards and he'll need to eat a lot." "I'll order the cafeteria to send up a couple of meals, anything in particular better for him?" Nurse Phillips asked. "No, he needs plenty of sugar and carbohydrates to replenish the energy he lost," Cate replied, "plus a lot of proteins to replace what he loses. We also don't know if he loses any particular nutrients, so just order some protein rich meals with some milkshakes or something." Phillip ran off while Alex got busy. Cate laid out the remaining supplies from their paper bag of snacks that Phillip had supplied them with earlier. Alex concentrated on what he was doing as he poured a lot of energy into a very confined space, and slowly moved that application of energy around following the edges of the gap in the man's brain. Johnson twitched sharply, causing Alex to jerk as it threw off what he was doing, so Lists stepped in and held the man's head steady as he watched Alex as he appeared to do nothing at all. But, after a short time, he could swear he saw Johnson's eyes brighten, as if he was beginning to focus on what was happening around him for once, but it would be impossible to determine that for some time. When Alex finished he sank into the chair Cate had provided for him, and Cate began feeding him what was left of his snack. Lists looked nervous since he looked so weak, but Gail assured him he'd do better waiting until the food arrived than he would trying to make it downstairs. Phillips had returned not long after he'd left, carrying another bag of yogurts and fresh sodas, which Alex enjoyed until the cafeteria meals arrived. "So he actually can force damaged tissue to regrow?" Lists asked in amazement. "He regrew the kidneys in two separate people, effectively taking them off of dialysis," Cate told him. "He only stopped because he was worried about the crowding of the tissues, since this was a new phenomenon." "Well, the fact he practically collapsed helped as well," Gail reminded them. "So the application of energy triggers a stem cell like growth?" Lists asked, clearly impressed. When Cate nodded he considered that. "We need to conduct experiments. If Caity can detect the levels of this type of energy, then maybe we could test different procedures to try to activate the energy levels. If we can find something to kick it into a higher gear, we could do some amazing things with it." "You couldn't regrow damaged organs, though," Alex explained in a tired voice. "That takes a tremendous amount of energy you wouldn't find in a normally functioning body." "But if we could heighten the amount of energy that's available in a test tube, perhaps we could see a little more success in traditional stem cell experiments. Maybe what they've been missing in the past is the added energy it requires to kick it into motion." "Hey, don't go taking the experiments I plan on earning my Nobel Prize with," Cate laughed, only slightly teasing. "Don't worry, I'm sure there's enough new material to discover with this for a lot of us to earn a plenty of awards," Lists assured her. "But I'm sure we'll be bouncing ideas off of you whenever we get near enough to trying anything. Whether you're ready to start your experiments by then or not, at least you'll have some correlating research you can reference to add weight to your own conclusions." Cate smiled at that. She hadn't even considered that. Maybe getting more people involved would be beneficial to everyone. Well, as long as no one managed to tip their collective hand, so to speak. ------- After they left the Medical Center and the base it was housed on, Caity and Cate revealed what they'd been referring to earlier. They pulled into a large Petsmart store where Caity treated Cate to several cages full of little white mice, carefully separated into different cages by sex. "Now I can finally resume my experiments while we travel," Cate replied while she played with the mouse she'd named Shanny. She'd decided to name each one for the women in Alex's life, since they'd each spend the rest of their lives bathed in his energy like his girls were each hoping to do as well. Shanny was named for her darker brown hair and her toothy grin when you tickled her. She was the only non-white mouse they'd picked up. "Yeah, from what you were saying, there's a lot of things you should be able to test," Caity said. "I'm mainly interested in doing the necessary ones," Cate replied before lowering her voice. "I want to determine how much exposure to Alex's energy shortens their lifespan, so we'll have some idea of what to expect with Alex." "Where the hell are we going to keep them?" Alex asked, imagining a van full of women with a bunch of mice running wild across the floor. "There's plenty of room in the van, plus it'll be easier to control the environment they're in," Cate told him. "I'll fix up the cages so they're fastened to the cabinets. After all, we wouldn't want to lose any if we have an accident." "No, we certainly wouldn't want that," Alex replied sarcastically. "Oh, so you're going to bathe them with a lot of Alex's energy?" Caity responded. "I'd thought you have started off with something simpler." "Oh, I am," Cate said. "I'll have one set getting a slightly elevated level who'll represent Alex's girls, another who'll get a large dose, who'll represent Alex, though they won't get enough to equal what he gets, and a final control group. Hopefully I can extrapolate the eventual response on Alex from the results." "Well, you've got more mice than that," Caity observed. "Are you doing other experiments as well?" "Not off the bat," Cate replied. "In order to avoid potential problems I was hoping to increase the sample size to three for each group. That way if any one dies unexpectedly it won't invalidate the experiment." "Well, Lists is so excited by what he saw today that he's already arranging for a research study to see what can boost Alex's energy level in animals," Caity told them. "He's not sure he can sell that one, but he knows it's necessary for any follow-up study, so he's thinking of undertaking that one himself, with or without funding." "I suspect he's going to keep you busy," Cate replied with a smile. "Well he'll have to hurry," Caity answered. "The military isn't likely to leave me stationed here for long. I've already been here for seven months, so a standard tour will only leave me here for another year." "Be sure to keep me apprised of his progress. I'll be anxious to learn if he discovers anything. After all, once Alex is ... uh..." "You can say it," Alex responded with a sigh. "Once I'm gone there won't be any way of testing my energy anymore." "Yeah, so if he can made some headway in how to generate more in lab animals it would be a big boost to any further studies," Cate said, finishing her original thought. "Great, after I'm dead and gone my sister is going to replace me with a bunch of lab rats," Alex replied, rolling his eyes for effect. Gail thought the entire exchange was hilarious, and was enjoying herself as she shared it with her sisters in Carbondale. ------- Chapter 25: Interfaith Community Outreach Alex felt better about the concert that night. This was his third one, well, the third big one, and he felt comfortable that they were getting a better handle on it. It was hard taking the time to get to know each person in the madness of a live rock concert, but they managed to get a bunch of new followers at once, which made it more efficient. Also, the sheer noise and confusion kept things from getting embarrassing. The number of new followers went up with the increase in crowds for a Friday night concert, so there were a lot of them, but they managed to cover any embarrassing scenes fairly well. Alex was on his way home from the concert with two new girls he was planning to boost. Both were ideal candidates. Not only were they local Seers, but they would make good contacts for the others in the community. One had a small shop in La Villita, a small park made up of local Mexican craft shops and restaurants. Although it mainly catered to tourists, it was a natural place for Alex's Hispanic followers to gather since everyone there spoke Spanish. Alex had only met a couple of Spanish speakers in San Antonio, but he assumed that was because he'd been holed up in the more touristy areas. He figured this woman would be able to reach out to them, and find a good number of the undiscovered Watchers and unactivated Seers in the community for him. The other one was an older woman who worked in a hotel in the downtown area, thus she could see many people during the day and could get away to the nearby shops to discuss community issues with them privately. What was especially attractive about both that made Alex's decision to boost them, was that they were very interested in getting pregnant as well. The Mexican-American woman came from a big family and had kids but was divorced from her husband, so she had a very large supportive family that would help with them, and she had a good job and a good position in the community to watch out for any children. The woman from the hotel put off getting married until she now found herself with no husband as she neared forty, so she was more than ready to take advantage of Alex's offer of children. Not that Alex actually offered, of course. As usual Alex made no mention of the issue. Instead it was Cate who brought it up along with everything else they should know. Both women told Cate they were interested, and Cate told Alex, who had already been eyeing them for a possible boost. So everything seemed to have worked out for once. But they were in the car riding back to the Menger hotel when Alex's attempt to get to know them better was cut short. 'Alex? This is Shani. I've got something important to tell you and you're not going to like it, so make sure you're ready before I tell you.' Alex sat up straight, alerting everyone around him that something had happened, so the conversation was curtailed as the girls watched him, hoping to get a clue as to what had happened to distract Alex so suddenly. 'What is it, Shani? I can tell from your response that you're not quite all there. You seem, I don't know, you seem weak, like you're struggling just to communicate with me. Are you OK?' 'I'm OK, ' she assured him. 'You're right, I'm frazzled, but I'm not the only one you should be concerned with. Alex, Anh had an accident and, well, the rest of us kind of screwed up.' 'OK, tell me what happened. Was Anh badly hurt? Is she OK?' 'Well, it's fairly involved, but it started when we were sitting here in the loft having drinks and talking together. Everyone was here so there were a lot of us present, but Anh tripped and fell, hitting her head against the coffee table. Since we've had so much exposure to this type of injury at your old school, we were concerned.' 'That's understandable, ' Alex answered. 'But you're also the best people to handle it as a result. You can see and evaluate just how much damage has been inflicted, so you know when to have it treated. It's probably a good thing she did it there rather than anywhere else.' 'Yeah, but that wasn't the problem. It was what came afterwards. We could see that she'd had a significant shock to her brain and she was woozy. We know from experience how little success doctors have in treating this type of injury. Our thinking was it would be better if we could treat it immediately rather than waiting to get to the hospital and have them spend hours doing inconclusive tests, while the damage settled in and became worse, and possibly intractable.' 'OK, so what happened then?' Alex asked, already guessing it was bad from the way she was presenting it. He noticed Shani wasn't even focusing on Anh's injuries, instead she seemed to be preparing him for something that was even worse. 'Well, although we've been watching these types of injuries, we haven't had much success with treatments. Basically we know when to take people off of the field so they don't compound it, but—' "Yeah, I get the general idea. What specifically happened, though?" "I'm trying to get to that, but I need to explain what we were thinking when we did what we did, ' she explained. Alex held off responding, giving her the latitude to explain the situation in her own terms, although he was growing increasingly anxious about what may have happened. The unknown often is worse than simply knowing what was wrong. 'Anyway, while we were trying to evaluate her, we thought about how you'd likely respond, and we agreed that you'd be more successful at it than the hospital would, when Liv got this wild idea. Rebecca Boles had already called for an ambulance, but again, we already knew they couldn't do much for her other than document what we already knew.' 'So what was this wild idea of Liv's?' Alex asked, trying to figure out where this story was going. 'Well, she mentioned that each of the Seers has a small amount of your energy that they get from being tied to your brain. More of it than would naturally occur, that is. She suggested that, although it would be difficult, maybe if we worked together we could try to duplicate your own healing process.' 'Oh, that does NOT sound like a good idea, ' Alex told her, already getting images of what likely happened. 'You girls don't have enough energy to accomplish anything like that, and you also don't have any experience—' 'You'd better let me finish, because you'll find out what happened a lot faster than you will by guessing, ' Shani warned him. 'Anyway, we knew we don't have your energy, but we decided that the small amount we each had coming into our brains might be enough if we worked together. So we decided to try that approach.' 'Go on. I'm interested in what happened, but I've got a bad feeling about what did, ' Alex told her. 'So we all pointed a finger at the regions of her brain we could see had been impacted by her fall. We meant to give it just enough energy to help it recover and minimize any lasting damage she may have suffered. However when we tried it nothing happened.' Alex started to respond that he knew they wouldn't be able to do anything when Shani continued, cutting him off. 'Then Molly Bishop got the idea that, if all your energy enters our brains through the portal you created, then the energy must be strongest there.' 'Oh, no, ' Alex groaned, imagining what must have happened, so Shani continued to describe what they'd done. 'We each put our heads against Anh's, which as you can imagine was pretty difficult. We were all there, Allison, Brooke, Diana, Molly, Liv and I, so we had a fair number of people to contend with. Since Liv knew more about the brain than we did, she organized everything, standing over us and directing us with telepathic images of what we were trying to do. We didn't have to worry about being able to see what we were doing because of our shared mental images. So we each tried to project our energy into the affected area of Anh's brain. We figured that you do the same thing with your finger, that there's nothing magic about your finger, that you only use it because it's easier to point with. So we simply concentrated and tried to force the energy to flow in the direction of Anh's injury, and it worked. Sort of. 'We tried for a couple of minutes, and figured it must be working because we could feel the energy draining from us. Or rather, we felt our own energy draining from us, much the way you lose energy when you try to heal someone.' 'Slow down, Shani, I can feel the exhaustion in your connection, so I know you still don't have much energy left, ' Alex cautioned her. 'Take your time and make sure you tell me everything that I need to know, but don't hurt yourself in a hurry to tell me everything at once.' Shani took the time to compose herself, working to slow down both her breathing and her heart rate. Allison and Brooke had been doing 'mindful meditation' exercises with them, so they were used to slowing down their bodies' responses. When she was ready she continued, although by that stage Alex was a nervous wreck, as were the girls watching him in his car. Gail kept driving, knowing she'd hear about it when Alex was done, and they'd be better able to deal with whatever it was from a comfortable hotel room than they could sitting by the side of the road. 'Anyway, we were feeling the drain on ourselves, but then Liv excitedly announced that we'd done it. That Anh's brain was responding and was steadily looking better. But by then we were exhausted so we simply collapsed on the floor. 'Being excited by what she saw, and not wanting to leave our work unfinished, Liv tried to finish the treatment, trying to do what we'd done by herself. Before you get upset with her, it wasn't an unreasonable thing to try. After all, she wouldn't need to impart as much energy since we'd done most of the work already. 'Anyway, the end result was that, when the EMTs we'd called earlier finally arrived, we were all lying on the floor in utter exhaustion and Natalie and Rebecca were both trying to feed us ice cream and cookies trying to revive our energy. The EMTs panicked when they saw us. Apparently Ryan told them it wouldn't appear severe, but that Anh's injuries were probably hidden so they had to make sure they responded with the utmost urgency. What's more, they knew the entire hospital was anxious about Anh. They initially thought we'd all been exposed to something, then one of them suggested it may be an symptom of our abilities, since many of the people at the hospital know of your getting sick. They ended up calling a bunch of additional ambulances. We tried to object, to tell them that we simply needed to eat, but we were too exhausted to say much of anything more than mumbling. 'It took four separate ambulances to carry all of us to the hospital, and the whole emergency room staff was there waiting for us when we arrived. Anh was taken away immediately, while the EMTs were busy checking us and trying to prevent us from eating, telling us it could be dangerous before they knew what we were suffering from. But Rebecca knew what happened and she knew how to respond to it. After she screamed at them they hooked up some IV drips to get some nutrients into us a little faster, but we were responding too slowly and they ended up taking us in anyway.' 'Damn, Shani, you should have known better than to attempt that. You've seen what it does to me, ' Alex argued. 'We knew it drained you, but we figured we weren't trying to do as much as you do, and we also knew that you normally don't lose that much strength doing the simpler procedures. We figured since we weren't trying to restart a stopped heart like you did in New Orleans, that we'd be OK. And we were successful. If we hadn't tried Anh might have suffered significant mental impairment. As it is, we're all recovering here in the hospital, and we're doing OK now. Ryan had the nursing staff bring everything they could find for us to eat, and they each stood over us feeding us while the IVs dripped in our arms.' 'Yeah, I can picture what a scene that would have been. What, you figured I didn't manage to have enough embarrassing public scenes that you needed to pull one of your own?' Alex asked playfully, trying to lighten the mood, since he knew Shani was embarrassed and ashamed that they'd potentially let him down. 'It was pretty embarrassing. But luckily everyone at the hospital knows enough about us to listen to what we told them and didn't try to force conventional medicine on us. If they had, we might have had a major trauma as our energy levels dropped even lower. Brooke and Ryan were correct, the best thing for us was simply to eat as much and as fast as we could. I guess it was pretty funny watching us gobbling bottled Cokes and ice cream sandwiches from the vending machine while all the expensive hospital equipment sat around unused.' 'You realize you could probably have done the same thing by simply giving her an aspirin, don't you?' Alex teased. 'Although it would have increased any internal bleeding, it would hopefully have prevented the blood from coagulating and causing damage to Anh's brain.' Shani was silent for a moment. 'Don't worry about it, Shani, I wasn't serious. While I worry about all of you trying something like that, I'm really proud of each of you. So how is everyone now? Did Anh make out OK?' 'Yeah, she seems fine. Any damage she'd have had would have taken a while to show anyway, but we can see the damage was lessened. She still has a bad headache, but we think we prevented any serious repercussions. Actually, I think Liv's headache might actually be worse than Anh's at the moment.' 'Well I'm glad you're all OK now. You've got to be careful trying out something like that in an uncontrolled environment, ' Alex cautioned her. 'Believe me, if it's a choice between watching a close and trusted friend suffering possible damage as a result of our inaction, we'd each try it again. But at least we learned something from it, ' Shani responded, sounded decidedly uncontrite. 'Is Anh healthy enough for me to speak to her?' Alex asked. 'Oh, sure. You know you can always pop inside any of our heads and we can reply without using much energy. We managed to do it with you when you were only semi-conscious after your attack. I just wanted to let you know what happened first, so that you'd have a complete explanation before you spoke to anyone. But I'm sure that Anh will want to speak to you about it, even if only to apologize for getting us involved and thereby threatening our own health.' 'Well, we're just pulling up in front of our hotel so I'll talk to Anh on our way in, then we'll get settled before I check in with everyone. I think we'll save an analysis of events until later when everyone is thinking more clearly. Does everyone else know? My parents, Kitty and Chalise?' 'Yeah, Ryan made sure they were informed. Last we heard they were on their way in, but we recovered pretty quickly once we got some food in us. I still feel weak, but I figured I was strong enough to communicate telepathically with you.' 'Well, you just keep eating. Whenever I go through that I find that the more I eat the better I am. You sometimes think you're going to be OK, but then you get hit with another sag in your energy so you've got to keep that in mind. Leave it to Ryan to explain to everyone what happened. I'm sure he'll want to know. If you're too weak to talk we'll call and explain to him what happened.' 'We've been able to speak a little, though we can't talk very loudly yet. It probably wouldn't hurt if you called him and discussed the situation with him, simply because you understand what we went through better than anyone else. I'm sure he'd appreciate getting your feedback on how to handle and when to release us.' 'OK, I'll do that. Now you take it easy and concentrate on your recovery, ' Alex told her before he finally turned to the others in the car and started to explain what had happened back home. ------- There was a lot to follow up on, after all, there had been a lot of stuff to sort through the previous day. After Alex talked to Anh the previous night, telling her to take it easy and concentrate on her own recovery, he spoke to everyone else, telling them not to stress over what they may or may not have done wrong or what it might mean. There would be plenty of time for that discussion later. They took that advice to heart and Alex could feel them release many of their hidden worries. He'd spoken with Cate about it, but he'd told her the same thing. "I want us to think about this before we finally start debating what it means. This involves a lot of little things, and we'll have to consider a lot as we try to figure out what direction to take it. I don't think any of us is ready for a post-op at this point, so just let the ideas percolate for a bit before you try to figure anything out concerning it." She, like everyone else, accepted that simple advice. Receiving such scary news about so many people all at once had unsettled Alex, especially once he managed to reach both his parents and his girlfriends, Kitty and Chalise. "Hello?" Chalise said over the phone. "Hey, sweetheart. I'd love to whisper sweet nothings in your ear, but I just wanted to talk to you about the—" Alex heard the sound of the phone being fumbled then another voice responded. "Alex? What the hell is going on?" Caroline asked him, sounding clearly upset. "We're just pulling into the parking lot and everyone is beside themselves. How is Anh and what happened to everyone else?" "Calm down. Everything is fine. Anh fell and hit her head, but she's recovering now. As for the others, they, uh, they got the bright idea to pull one of my tricks and they tried to repair Anh's concussion themselves. They actually managed to do it, but the effort wore them out. When the EMTs got there they were all wiped out, but they're recovering now. By the way, instead of going right in the hospital, make a stop by a grocery store or a fast food restaurant and grab the most calorie rich foods you can find. They need to restore their energy as quickly as they can, and I'm not sure three month old vending machine food is going to be their best option." "Sure, we can do that. So they really tried—?" "Caroline, not to be rude, but you yanked the phone away from one of my two favorite girlfriends, and I'm sure she's just as anxious as you are, and would like to hear it from me directly. Could I possibly speak to her please?" "Oh, sorry," she responded. "I was so upset I guess I overreacted. Those women have been so helpful to us and we owe them so much. When you were injured they—" "Caroline?" Alex asked, reminding her once again who he'd originally called. "Sorry again. I'm ... actually I'm so upset that Kitty volunteered to drive me. She was spending the night. So which girlfriend were you hoping to speak to?" Alex laughed an easy laugh. "Just put me on speaker phone, then you can all hear it at the same time. I've been saying the same thing several times over, it would save a lot of energy if I didn't repeat it another three times." So he spoke to them about it, then spoke to his parents who were just as upset. He asked if they had checked up on Brooke's kids, but it turned out a neighbor had volunteered to watch the kids when the EMTs came storming in. His parents went to bring them to the hospital so they could see their mother and explain what had happened to everyone as best they could. No one knew quite what happened or what it meant. However, now that Alex was pulling up in front of the Schertz Unitarian Universalist Community Church, he asked himself again what the hell he was doing. It was a quiet little building in a small community located just a short distance from the Randolph Air Force Base. It actually looked quite peaceful, a wooden building devoid of crosses, painted a pleasant pale gray color with scattered trees around the yard and a big playground behind the church. There were also several cars parked in front, so Linda must have managed to make her last minute arrangements for the impromptu meeting. "Oh, good, I see you made it," Linda Tamar said, giving him a big hug hello as he entered the building. "What, you didn't think I'd do what I promised you I would?" Alex asked her, always surprised how people didn't seem to think he'd react like other people would. "No, no, it's ... heck, I'm not sure what I thought. But I was just sure that you'd either get scared off or you'd get called away." "Called away by whom? God? Remember, I'm the one who doesn't believe in him, so I wouldn't be likely to answer his call," Alex joked. "Well, I'm here, although I don't have anything prepared. I've never actually done this sort of thing before, so you'll have to let me know how it's done. You've got a real nice place here. I can see why you come." Alex took in the people already there. Despite it's being such a small church, there were somewhere between thirty to fifty people in attendance. Alex wasn't quite sure how many there were since many were crowded around the edges. The coffee pot seemed to be working overtime to keep up. He didn't think Linda could gather this many people from the small church this quickly, so he assumed she'd called the other local UU churches and he was speaking to members of several churches scattered throughout the area. Linda noticed him glancing around. "I hope you don't mind, but I invited a fair number of guests. Just to assure you, I didn't say anything over the phone to anyone. I just told them we have a very notable figure that represented a new religious viewpoint that they'd like to hear. We even got a couple of non-UU people. Each group contacted their own call lists and got the word out." Alex nodded that he understood, so she continued. "We traditionally invite clergy from other religions as part of our Universalist background, so we've had various religious figures; Islamic Imams, Native American holy men, Buddhist priests, all sorts of people come in and discuss their backgrounds, so I think you'll find a very receptive crowd. But as you can imagine, they've only heard about your organization from what's been reported on TV. As a result they're probably anxious to hear your response to the most obvious questions first." "Well, it looks like we've already got a full house so I guess we should get started. Just let me—" "Don't worry, Alex," Cate told him, pushing him forward, "I'll get you your coffee and some water as well, since we don't know how long you're going to be talking. I'll bring them up to you." As Alex strode to the front of the room he could feel everyone regarding him with a mixture of curiosity and skepticism, so he tried to prepare himself for whatever happened. After all, he couldn't blame anyone else if he screwed up, since he'd brought this on himself. "I'd like to present someone I'll only introduce as Alex, for fairly obvious reasons I'm sure you can understand," Linda said. "Alex is the supposed 'Angel of New Orleans'. Due to the recent press coverage about him he's found it hard to continue to reach out to people, so he's trying to stay out of the limelight, but he agreed to speak to us today to describe what this new religion of his entails. "Now Alex has told me that he hasn't exactly prepared for this, since he hasn't given any talks on the subject before, so I thought I'd just toss some questions out and he can run with it." Linda saw that everyone seemed to accept this, including Alex, so she continued. "Alex, as I'm sure you're aware, Fox network has been proclaiming that you're making a mockery of Christians and Christianity, and that you're nothing but a charlatan promising false hope to susceptible people. That you're essentially no better than the unauthorized offshoot sects of the Mormon Church, where supposed 'Christian leaders' convince multiple women to marry them for their own benefit. I'm not sure I'd go that far myself, but I'm sure it's something everyone here has thought of, so I thought that would be a good place to begin. How would you react to those statements?" "Well, Linda, I'm glad to meet you too," Alex answered to a quick round of laughter from the room. "Maybe when I'm done we can discuss whether you've stopped beating your husband yet?" He found himself strangely comfortable in his current situation. "As for whether I'm making fun of Christians, let me just explain that that's because I explained to Albert Rodriguez, the New Orleans reporter who first reported about me, that I'm an atheist myself, and that I have problems believing in the existence of an independent soul. Many Christian groups have taken offense that someone who doesn't even believe in God would serve as his spokesman. So I'll tackle that position. "This mission, what we've taken to calling Alexandrianism in reference to the actual angel that's working around the world leading this mission, and from whom I took my own name, has a very syncretic belief structure, meaning that it doesn't matter what you believe. My own part in this has been to reach out to individuals. Alexandria told me to just go out amongst people, and that I'd know who to reach out to and what to do for them, even though I wouldn't know how it was done. Thus she means this as a personal one-to-one ministry that has no bearing on preaching a new religion or judging others. "That's exactly what I've done, and while I don't understand how it works, or why I'm doing specific things for select individuals, or even who's responsible for my position, I've found it works quite well. My current thinking is that, if God is responsible for this, that he's tired of the failure of organized religions in the past and wants to avoid them altogether. That's why Alexandria has purposely sought out Buddhists, Muslims, Christians, Jews and even me, an atheist. I also suspect it's why she's avoided men for the most part, since they were the ones responsible for establishing the current balance of power in the world, both that of the political and religious worlds." "So you're saying this isn't a new religion, then?" someone from the audience asked. "That's exactly what I'm saying. I don't preach, I don't lecture, and I don't dictate what anyone is supposed to believe. Instead, I seek out people that I can help. I do so in a number of ways; by helping them see their world in new ways, by helping them trust their feelings, to believe in the unbelievable and, yes, even occasionally healing their afflictions." "So you admit to having performed so called miracles?" asked an older gentleman who didn't seem to be malicious, merely curious. "Well, I'd hardly call them miracles. Coming from my background, I tend to find secular explanations for what I see happening, so I usually have alternate theories about what happens." "Such as?" someone asked. "Well, for instance, the whole idea of whom I 'choose' to help. Actually I don't so much choose who to help as they choose me. I'll tell you what, I know it's hard to believe in miracles so how about a demonstration. How about you?" Alex suggested, pointing to one woman. "I see you sitting with your friends, so it won't seem like I planted you just for this demonstration." "I'm not sure if I'm a good choice for this," the woman said, fidgeting as she approached. "Don't worry, this won't hurt a bit, but I'm just going to do a little something," Alex said, placing his palm against her forehead for a second and the woman's eyes suddenly opened wide. "You seem to be surprised by what just happened. Could you describe to everyone what you felt?" "I ... I'm not sure. Suddenly my mind seemed clear and I feel more ... alive than I've felt for a while." "That's because I seem to give off a certain type of energy. It's an energy that fills all living things, but is invisible to the naked eye. For some reason that I haven't been able to work out fully, Alexandria seems to have given me a larger dose of this energy. The women that I help seem to be able to feel this energy in me from a distance, so they seek me out. It also seems that I'm able to help them because they have the ability to respond to this energy. Thus I see the whole phenomenon as being more about biology and genetics then I do being religious or spiritual." "What are your issues with God? Just what is it about religion that you can't accept? We have many 'secularists' in the UU church, so we're curious just where you're coming from on a personal basis." "My problem is that I believe in physical things. I see what others describe as someone's soul as being dictated by the physical reactions in the body. What may be someone's soul, their basic personality, changes over their lifetime, so it's hardly an eternal entity that can exist outside of their body. I just can't believe that an intelligent entity can exist without a physical presence needed to interact with the world around them. Science can demonstrate the physical reactions associated with thought occurring in the brain, so how can a 'spirit' think if it has no chemical processes associated with it. And, by extension, if you can't believe in the existence of a soul, most of religion just falls by the wayside. Without a soul you can't believe in eternal life, in resurrection after death, or of a giant soul that governs the universe that floats around in the sky. I'm not saying I have anything against anyone else believing in those things, and I wouldn't criticize them for believing it, but I just can't wrap my own head around them." "So you reject this designation of being an angel?" someone else asked. "Well, I'm hardly an ang—" Alex noticeably jerked when Gail scoffed at him telepathically. When he turned and looked at her everyone else noticed and did likewise, so she spoke up and said what had been bothering her. "I was just telling him that he's full of bull," she said. "He keeps pulling this 'I'm just a normal guy' routine, but he knows very well it isn't true. He can see it in everyone around him, and he knows how they feel about it as well. He also knows he can't explain what's happening to him on a purely secular basis, so he struggles with what's behind it. So I find it a little disingenuous when he claims to be just like everyone else." "So you think he's an angel, then," the same person asked Gail. "Well... ," she started, not sure how to respond. "I'm not sure I'd say an angel specifically, but everyone that chooses to follow him believes he's being guided. They may attribute it to many different things. The Christians call it God, some call it spirits, he's occasionally attributed it to 'the fates', but he seems to have this uncanny knack for being in the right place at the right time and for always knowing just what to do. It happens frequently enough you can't just chalk it up to random chance. It looks like he's being guided, nudged and prompted to do certain things. And I think if you ask him, he won't be able to deny it," she explained. Everyone turned back and watched Alex, not saying anything but clearly waiting for him to respond. "All right, I'll admit it," Alex responded. "The preponderance of evidence suggests that there's a 'guiding influence', but I have no idea what it is. I just don't think it's some bodiless spirit that watches over us. I have no clue what it is, but I've learned to trust it. Everyone keeps telling me to trust in it, since it hasn't failed me yet, so I take their word for it and that faith hasn't yet let me down." "But you say that you're the only atheistic angel amongst those this Alexandria has scattered across the world?" Linda asked, just to make sure they all understood what he was trying to tell them. "Right, Alexandria is an interesting case. Every time I've seen her she appears as just a typical person. She's older, a little feeble, not very quick, but I've never been able to follow her. As soon as she finishes with me she walks off, and if I try to keep up with her she just seems to disappear. I have no idea how she does it, but I don't think of her as a traditional angel as a result. I see her as a physical person with some unique talents, just as I am. I have some strange abilities which might seem miraculous, but I'm hardly an angel. You can call them, and me, anything you want if it helps you wrap your mind around what we're dealing with, but I'm uncomfortable claiming to be an angel." "So where did the name come from, then?" the girl he'd done the experiment on asked. "Oh, whenever someone I help comes up to me they tend to make wild claims to account for what they see and feel," Alex explained. "As a result, several of them have called me either an angel, or claimed I was Jesus reincarnated. I'm neither, but it's a natural enough thing to assume, given our shared cultural understandings." "Wait, you've said something about 'seeing' several times. Are you suggesting that certain people can see something about you that the rest of us don't?" someone else asked. Alex resisted sighing, figuring it wouldn't help anyone in the room. "That's exactly the case. Some of the people that seek me out literally have their vision altered. They don't see 'visions', but they manage to see this energy that both I and everything around them possesses. Again, I suspect I do something to them to enable these new abilities, but the end result is that, when they see me, they see so much energy coming off of me that they see me as a larger than life figure glowing with this bright energy. The only reference we have for that sort of thing is an angel, so that's how they respond on meeting me." Once again, everyone turned in unison as if it was prearranged and regarded Gail. "Yeah, I'll admit, that's how I see him," she told them. "That's why I can't look directly at him without squinting or shielding my eyes. He literally hurts my eyes when I look at him, but no one else sees anything out of the ordinary about him. That's why I have so much trouble when he claims to just be 'normal'. He's hardly that. He's extraordinary, no matter how you choose to define him." "Wow, Linda, this is so much better than our previous sessions, this is touching on a whole bunch of different issues," an older gentleman observed. "So you say you see him as a glowing spirit, but what do you see when you look at anyone else that has this energy?" Gail took a while to answer, trying to figure out how to express it without giving too much away. "I see exactly what I've always seen, but I also see everything with this array of colors over it. The colors are unlike anything you've ever seen before, as they aren't a part of the normal visual spectrum. You can't see them because they're not composed of light. Instead they reveal the things that traditionally make up what we think of as a soul, but like Alex says, it's always associated with a living thing. "We've had to struggle with it over time, trying to associate meanings with the various new colors we see, but they reflect the basic personality of the individual. We can also see an outer glow that reflects their emotions at the moment. It seems to be an outer glow because it's only temporal, and isn't part of their basic personality." "Wow," the man said. "So what do I look like?" "Again, it's hard to describe since we don't have any words to describe what it looks like, but I can tell that you are a caring individual that has a stubborn streak, and that you are quick to anger if you feel offended. I can tell that you're sometimes dishonest if you feel you need to be, and I can also tell that you have gout, several precancerous lesions on your body that you need to watch, and you are having problems with your liver." There was a collective gasp at this, though whether it was because they recognized the truth of her words or they were just shocked that she claimed to have this ability, Alex didn't know. "As you can tell, these are the kinds of things that we need to keep quiet," Alex hurried to explain. "That's why I try to stay out of the limelight. We don't want to announce that there is a whole subclass of people with the ability to see things that no one else can see. First of all, no one would believe them, secondly, no one would ever react to them the same way again. Generally it's best if you don't think of what they can or can't see, but if one of these people tells you something about someone, about how they 'feel' something about them, you'd better believe it, since it's based on more than just a random guess." The discussion basically broke down at this stage, with multiple people shouting out various questions which Alex tried his best to explain, but everyone was much too excited to follow any standard rules of conduct in asking them, so it was hard to keep track of. They let it go on for a while, but finally Linda stood up and shouted to get everyone's attention. "OK, I think Alex has given you a very good overview on what he believes and what he's trying to do. You can also see why I asked you not to try recording this lecture. Not only does he not want the message of what he's doing to get out, but he's told me the energy he gives off screws up any efforts to record him, although it won't damage idle cell phones or other devices. But I think we've taken up enough of his time. From what he's told me he's got other obligations to get to. So let's all thank him for taking the time to speak to us today. "That's not an absolute," Alex corrected her. "It seems to be a matter of some sort of static electricity. There have been photos taken of me, but usually they don't come out and it damages other pictures in the device, so I didn't think it's worth taking the chance." Surprisingly the audience was very gracious, curtailing their remaining questions and applauding him for what he'd managed to convey. Alex thanked them, shaking hands with Linda and several others before he, Cate and Gail managed to slip off. "Whew! I'm glad that's over with," he told the others as Gail pulled the car out of the parking lot. "Still, you once again handled it with aplomb. Not overly polished, but done just the way it should have been. I really don't see how you can claim to know how to handle a situation like that on your own," Gail said as they drove off on their way to Dallas, where the next leg of Patricia's concert was playing that night. ------- They pulled into a big hotel near the Plaza of the Americas Mall in downtown Dallas. It wasn't exactly a prime location, and it wasn't that close to the stadium they'd be at that night, but it was in the populated downtown area, so Alex felt sure they'd have a decent draw, and as always being in a mall meant it would be easy to find a convenient location to watch for new followers. The concert that night was being held at the Cotton Bowl stadium, which with a 65,000 person capacity was hardly as large as the newer Cowboy Stadium in nearby Arlington, which was farther away from downtown Dallas, but it was better for Alex since it was closer to the crowds surrounding the Dallas business district. They parked in the garage and headed up to their room. Alex wasn't ready to face any new followers yet, so he was eager to head to the room first. When they made it to the attached mall food court, Alex was happy to finally just sit down. His experience of exploring San Antonio had been worth it, but he didn't have long before the concert started and he was wanted to take it easy for a while. He knew he was unlikely to be able to do that with new people always surprising him, but this seemed a better alternative than risking the kinds of exposure he took wandering around San Antonio's River Walk. He did manage to take it fairly easy, and he wasn't terribly surprised by anyone approaching him this time, but his mind was preoccupied with worries about what tonight promised. Although Cotton Bowl stadium held fewer people than he'd had to face so far, the crowds had been growing each night as it neared the weekend, and here it was, Saturday night in a major city. While the Houston stadium had been larger, both it and the Alamodome hadn't been at full capacity, so he wasn't quite sure what to expect tonight. Somehow, he thought tonight was going to be different. He knew he faced a larger crowd, and with more people came increased chances of something going wrong. He hoped he was just being paranoid, but he wanted to be prepared. So he concentrated on finding enough new followers in Dallas to support him when he got to the concert. He only had a single shot that night. They had a couple of days until their next show at Oklahoma on Tuesday, so he still had time to investigate the city, but only one chance at the tightly packed crowds that a weekend rock concert offered. He just hoped everything went well. ------- Anthony was anxious. Everything was going wrong. He'd managed to lose control of everything, and for someone used to maintaining a tight control over all the facets of his life it was highly unsettling. He'd had it out with his daughter several days before and she'd stormed off, refusing to listen to his cautious advice. In return he'd threatened her with cutting her off financially, yelling after her that he wouldn't just sit by while someone tried to take her for all she had. As a result they hadn't spoken since. However, he'd gotten a notice recently about some unusual activity in his financial records. It seemed his wife had purchased tickets for his daughter with her credit card. He didn't know where they were for, but he knew he was about to lose his daughter forever, and that his wife was actively helping her destroy her life. He'd been hoping that all he'd have to do is to show them both what this 'angel' character was up to, but that idiot PI had screwed that up. How a businessman could let some woman distract him from what needed to be done, he simply couldn't understand. But then again, he couldn't comprehend how an employer would let an 'underling' determine his business practices, even if he was sleeping with her. The investigator had been a disaster, but he still had hopes of resolving the situation. All he needed to do was to confront the man. Hopefully he could talk some reason into him. Persuade him to leave his daughter alone. If he told him she had no access to his money, that she was cut off and could no longer help him, then hopefully he'd lose interest in her. If not, he could always threaten him with exposure or legal action of some kind. There had to be some way of resolving this crisis. So Anthony's mind was in flux as he boarded the plane that was taking him to Dallas. He only had one shot to save everything he held dear, and he still had no clear idea how he was going to handle it. For someone who always had his business negotiations clearly planned out in advance, this was troubling. Not only that, but he was feeling frazzled, worn out, and out of control. He'd been so worried about everything that had been happening that he hadn't been sleeping well, and he'd found himself switching between cool confidence, emotional distraction and unbelievable anger in only a moment, leaving him uncertain as to his own frame of mind. He just hoped he could hold it together until he'd finally dealt with the issue, one way or another. ------- Chapter 26: Daddy's Girl Alex still felt unsure about the concert that night. He didn't know what it was, but he couldn't help feeling that something was off. About all he could figure was that with the increased number of people they'd have with a Saturday night concert, they'd likely have more things go wrong, so he clearly expected to be embarrassed or find himself in some uncomfortable situations tonight. But that was hardly unusual and he knew he had to get used to it, because it was now a constant part of his life. People would always come up to him at odd times and react in unexpected ways. He just had to deal with it and get on with life. He couldn't fret about what he could neither change nor which was ever likely to change. This was Alex's fourth concert. Well, his fourth major concert. The feeling he felt walking into the Cotton Bowl Stadium was again one of being overwhelmed. He knew the heavy concentration of people was good for him. While he'd been trying to hit cities because of their heavier population densities, these concerts notched that up yet another level, as there were more people per square foot than he'd ever encounter anywhere else. Still, with that many people mixed together added to the unexpected nature of how his followers and their family, friends, boyfriends and husbands reacted to him, he knew he was likely to run across even more problems than they typically had. Despite the larger audience he was anticipating from a weekend concert, the Cotton Bowl Stadium was smaller than the other arenas they'd been in over the last week. Not only that, but the other major stadiums in the area meant there would likely be even less people here than there could have been. On top of that, Alex realized that an old rock star staple and a relative newcomer weren't going to draw the numbers that a more popular attraction might, so he wasn't really sure what the night would bring. As always, there were simply too many unknowns tonight for him to guess just what was likely to happen. What's more, it was hard taking the time required to get to know each new follower he met in the madness of a live rock concert, but they provided a way to get many more new followers, which made it more efficient. Also, the sheer noise and confusion kept things from getting embarrassing. So in the end the heavy crowds were actually more of a benefit than a hindrance. He'd managed to handle things well enough the last couple of nights, so he knew they had a decent system worked out, although it didn't help that they had to work with people even more unaccustomed to the process than they were. But he felt that if they stuck to what had worked before, that they should be fairly safe into the future. With that he put his discomfort out of his mind and instead focused on what he had to do in the here and now. Entering the Cotton Bowl via the backdoor, hurrying to arrange themselves around the stadium as usual to interact with the most people, someone ran out of a room and straight into Alex. "What the shit are you doing here? Who the hell are you, anyway? What is this, a damn party? Who are all these people?" a tall shapely figure that Alex instantly recognized as Diane Kennedy demanded. She was a beautiful woman, with shiny brunette hair that curled around her face. But it had been a long time since she'd first hit it big, and time was beginning to take its toll on her. She had some obvious wrinkles around her eyes and along her neck, but the most noticeable thing was the deep frown lines along her face and her heavy scowl. She was clearly unhappy, not only with Alex having gotten in her way, but the fact that a bunch of 'underlings' were congregating in the halls instead of doing something more productive. "Uh, I'm with—" Alex started to answer before he was cut off. "I don't give a damn who you are, you aren't important. What is important is that I need to center myself, and I can't do that if a bunch of idiots keep running into me. Get away from me, I need to calm myself. Where's Kathy? I need a drink," she continued to rant as she stormed off. "Whew, I can see why she has such a bad reputation," Cate whispered. "She's just lucky I wasn't close enough to jump her," Gail warned them. "I don't like it when someone attacks Alex like that. It makes me jumpy, and you don't want to see me jumpy." "Look, don't worry about it," Alex told them. "We were in the wrong here. We're underlings and we're not supposed to be wandering the halls with nothing to do. Now let's see if we can get out of here without any more trouble. We've got enough to worry about." They managed to find their places so they'd be ready for the crowds to enter and for the concert to begin. Alex once again stationed himself in the far stall in the men's room to wait for the concert to begin and the audience to settle down. He could hear the crowds moving about as people began entering the stadium and not much longer men began coming and going in the men's room. Alex was trying to not look overly conspicuous when Gail alerted him. 'Alex, head's up, you've got some company coming your way, ' she cautioned, but her warning had an odd lilt to it, though what that meant wasn't clear. But her warning was. Alex sat up straighter, paying more attention. He remembered the men who'd come to confront him in the men's room in Houston, and he could easily imagine the same thing happening with some guys who weren't quite as happy about their dates pining after another man. He listened carefully, and a few seconds later he heard the door to the men's room slam open. "Hey, you can't come in here!" someone shouted, which only brought up a number of possible visions of the type of person who wouldn't be allowed into a public restroom. They must be one bad-assed—. "Hey, fuck off buddy, we aren't here for you," the brash voice of a pissed off woman rang out. "Just finish what you're doing and we won't bother you." "Do you see him?" asked another woman's voice. "No, but I think he's at the end of the room. You can't mistake his presence." Alex heard the rapid tap of heels on a tile floor, accompanied by the complaints of men being pushed aside. He figured he'd better address this before the disruption the women were making in a men's room escalated. He could imagine any one of the guys complaining to someone about this 'abusive treatment' and then his quiet hideaway would be spoiled. Getting up quickly, he opened the door and stepped out. He saw three women walking rapidly towards him, though they made an odd assortment. One was an angry looking young woman in her twenties with short blond hair and an attitude, another was a dark haired older woman who seemed to revel in the freedom her companion's brazen attitude gave her, while the last, a lightly freckled young woman with brunette hair with a blondish tint to it, seemed to be meekly following the others. When he met their eyes, two of them stopped suddenly, jerking back as if struck. The third, the meeker brunette, continued on until she realized she'd lost her companions, she was about to say something when she realized the person she was looking for was standing before her. "Holy mother!" the one in the short irregular haircut swore. The other older woman looked so shocked Alex was afraid she might collapse. The final girl, looking at Alex in confusion asked, "You're him, aren't you?" "And who were you looking for?" Alex teased. He knew he was being cruel, but he couldn't help it, the expression on her face made it worthwhile, even if it took him hours to talk her down from his response. "You're ... you're... ," she tried to say before she was interrupted. "Sweet Jesus, you're..." the blonde said, also unsure just how to finish the statement. The older woman, who Alex guessed was probably in her mid to late thirties, looked like she might collapse and was too busy crossing herself to answer. Alex glanced around and noticed a number of men either watching them in fascination or hurrying to flee the scene. "Follow me, we're attracting too much attention here," he told them quietly and turned on his heels and crossed over to the other side of the divided restroom, not bothering to see if anyone heard or was following him. The side he'd been on consisted of toilet stalls while the other was comprised of a long row of stark white urinals. There were several men glancing in their direction when he entered, but when they saw the three women follow him in they quickly zipped up and hurried out, seemingly in a hurry to get away. One man didn't seem to be so inclined, a small leer starting to spread across his face. He started to turn towards them, his hand still holding himself, apparently ready to expose himself when Gail walked up behind him. "Freeze, buddy. I'm a cop, and if you don't want to be spending the night in jail I'd suggest you zip up and get the hell out of here. I'll take care of this." The man quickly turned and ran out, hurriedly trying to zip up as he went. The younger blonde giggled behind Alex. Seeing as they were now relatively alone, he turned to his three new followers. "Not exactly the best timing in the world, but I've had worse first meetings." When his response didn't get a single smile he decided to change his approach. "OK, we've got to hurry. Quickly now, what are your names?" "I'm Jamie Stone," the blonde answered without hesitating. She was interesting looking, to say the least. She was pretty, but she seemed to have turned 'pretty' on its head, as if she was tired of how people responded to her based on her looks. Her hair was erratically cut in a short bowl type of cut, but you could tell she'd paid some real money to have it done to her. She'd had a sharp look to her eyes, but right now they were looking at Alex in pure awe, her gray eyes wide and attentive, even though she, like the other one, had trouble meeting his gaze. "I'm Stephanie Dolson," mentioned the taller woman with the dark hair. She had a wide big smile that showed a lot of white teeth. She looked like a lot of fun, but Alex guessed she normally felt a bit intimidated, so she'd relished following Jamie's lead when she brazenly led them into the men's room. "Everyone calls me Steph, though," she added. "I'm Brittany MacFarlane," answered the still hesitant younger girl, the lone Watcher of the trio. She had flowing two toned hair that framed her face and covered some of the many light colored freckles which covered her nose and cheeks. She seemed to have recovered more than the others, as she was now smiling widely, apparently pleased as punch to have found Alex in a public men's room. "All right, I'm not going to say who I am, because I'm afraid we may have too many people listening still, but you'll learn it soon enough. The woman guarding the door, the one you stormed past a few moments ago, will accompany you outside and explain a little about me. As for myself, I think I'll try to lose myself so we don't continue to attract so much attention." Once again Alex turned and marched towards Gail. She was currently staring down a couple of guys who were trying to get a peek at what was going on. She seemed to be successful because she stood aside as Alex reached her and waited for her new charges to catch up. Alex could tell from the hurried click-click-click of a couple sets of heels that they were each hurrying to do as he'd instructed. Only two of the girls were wearing heels. As he exited the restroom Alex saw several people nervously watching him, both men and women. Apparently the men who'd fled the bathroom had already informed their wives and girlfriends what had taken place, so Alex was anxious to get away, hoping they'd focus on him and not on the girls who were following him out. Striding purposefully, Alex walked briskly into the crowded auditorium. Several people were watching him intently, but he didn't slow down and he certainly didn't try to establish eye contact with anyone. He entered the stadium arena, where the audience was waiting for the show to begin. Alex was hoping to loop around, exiting through the next corridor, but the crowd of idling people was a bit thick, so he had to stop several times waiting for people to move aside. However, each time he did, one or two people seemed to fall in behind him. As he was waiting for another couple to step aside the lights dimmed, notifying people that the show was about to begin. It was almost like someone was watching him, and decided to help him out. As a result, most people turned and moved closer to the stage, moving out of Alex's way. But the damage was done, while some were watching to see what was happening on stage, the others, aware the show wouldn't be starting for several minutes yet, watched this strange young man with the several curious people scurrying along behind him. Rather than lose himself in the crowd to avoid attention, he'd done the opposite, making a spectacle of himself before the hundreds of people near enough to be watching. 'Well, I'll give you this, you certainly know how to make an impression, ' Gail teased. 'I'm trying to head the girls away from here because everyone is watching us like a hawk watches a field mouse free for all.' 'You haven't seen anything yet, ' Alex warned her. 'I was trying to get away, but instead I'm leading some more mice your way, just like Pied Piper. I just walk in and they all follow me out.' She laughed at that. 'You should know by now that you really can't predict how people are going to respond to you. No matter how carefully you plan, someone always manages to surprise you.' 'OK, try to meet me at the next arena entrance, ' Alex told her. 'I'm contacting that other Seer we met earlier to alert the other girls that we're changing our location. Hopefully this won't mess everyone up too much.' 'Yeah, we'll see if that's far enough away. Frankly, from the interest of the people around here, we may have to go to the far side of the stadium to escape any unwanted attention.' Alex figured it would be best if they split up, especially since there were so many people for him to interact with. He debated contacting the new girls telepathically and telling them to seek out Cate on the upper floor, just so they'd draw the curious away from him, but he knew if he did that without a warning he'd freak them out. He usually only did that when he was facing someone directly, or they'd been briefed ahead of time. So he continued with his original plan. He figured he wasn't going to be any less conspicuous, and already the people around were growing bored with watching him, so he turned and motioned for the girls behind him to follow as he headed to the outer hallway where they'd have a little more privacy. Alex was growing tired of trying to escape who he was. If he drew too much attention they'd find a way to deal with it. People were attracted to him, and his 'presence' surprised them so much they often reacted oddly, attracting attention. They could minimize it, but wishing it wasn't so wasn't going to change anything, and continually pretending he wasn't who he was also wasn't going to change anything. It was time he finally took the bull by the horns and accepted the role he had been given. There were now four women following him, each looking sheepish about it. But they were clearly drawn to him and this time they weren't as easily dissuaded. They scampered to catch up to him as he reentered the outer vestibule. There they met Gail and the other three girls. "I've already given them the general overview," Gail explained. "They still have a lot of questions, but you don't have to give your traditional 'I'm not an angel' speech." "Are you an angel?" one of the new Watchers asked him, her eyes seemingly growing even larger. "I'm the person the press has labeled 'the Angel of New Orleans'," Alex explained. "As Gail intimated, I'm not an actual angel, but I project a certain kind of energy that draws people to me. What's more, I trigger a reaction in some people, who we call 'Seers', who can see this energy," he described, indicating the three women standing beside Gail. "Their typical reaction is to call me an angel. There's an open discussion amongst my followers whether that's true or not, but I've never had any indication of it, and you'd think God would think to mention something about it to you if you were, so I'm still doubtful." Instead of wasting time giving them an overview, Alex instead sent the first three girls to talk to Cate, so he could communicate through them with her while sending the other four Watchers to talk to their only other Seer. They'd cover the basics with them while freeing Alex to do what he needed to. Getting these people up to speed quickly would free up more people, allowing Cate to join him. That would help prevent him from getting overwhelmed too quickly. As everyone split up heading in different directions, Patricia come on stage by the time Alex and Gail reentered the arena floor. Things slowed down after that, which gave everyone time to get organized and Cate eventually joined Alex and Gail, having assigned the new girls her previous tasks. The place was packed and it was difficult to talk. Alex had several girls he'd recently met around him. The two talking to him at the moment were Haley Hewitt, a young girl with a bright red stripped t-shirt and blue jeans who'd turned out to be a Watcher and Kayla Odell, who was a quiet young thing with short black hair and heavy glasses that gave her a serious but quirky look. Alex was trying to tell them what they needed to know when Gail alerted him to someone else. 'Someone headed your way in a hurry, Alex, ' she warned him. Turning, Alex saw a tall woman with somewhat wild brunette hair and freckles heading toward him in a rapid march, like she wasn't just seeking him out, but wanted to have a serious conversation with him. As soon as Alex looked at her, her head jerked back and she took a misstep, hesitating briefly. But she quickly set out again, stumbling slightly on her way since she was unused to her new vision. "Alex?" she asked once she'd reached him, shocking Alex that she knew him. Her eyes were still glazed from her recent activation, but she seemed intent on telling him something, and seeing she already knew who he was, Alex immediately forgot about everyone else around him and focused his attention on her. "You know who I am?" he asked. "Yeah, I just came from New Orleans. They told me I was a likely Seer and that I should seek you out. My name is Linda Evens, by the way." "Well it's nice to meet you, Linda. I take it they explained what you needed to know about being a Seer?" "Yes, they did, although they told me they couldn't explain much about the visions because I couldn't really understand it until I'd experienced it. They were right. But I need to tell you something before we discuss anything else." This certainly got Alex's attention. 'Do you need me?' Gail asked. 'Maybe, I don't know yet. I'll let you know as soon as she explains what she's here for, ' Alex told her. "And what would that be?" Alex cautiously asked. "I work for... ," she said before hesitating, taking a moment to figure out how to explain her relationship, "my boyfriend is a Private Investigator in the eastern end of the state. He was hired by someone who was anxious to dig up dirt on you. He was very insistent, so I figured it would be important that you know about it." "I see," Alex said, not quite sure he really did yet. "And how did you come to be here then?" "My boyfriend, Harry, went to New Orleans to see what he could discover about you," she said. "He basically ran into a brick wall, and figured he'd have more luck if he had a woman try to get some information. So he flew me in and sent me into your community there. They were cautious about me, protective of their community, until we talked and they got to know me. After they asked me a few seemingly general questions, they announced that I was one of them, and that I needed to contact you because it would change my life. I quickly went from seeking information for Harry, to seeking it for myself. They didn't hesitate to tell me everything once they knew I was one of them. They told me they knew they could trust me. "I went back to Harry and informed him I couldn't help him anymore, because I was going to join your movement, and if he cared anything for me, he'd stop trying to damage you. Without listening to his decision, I told him I was going to follow you here. Your girls told me you'd be here tonight. Once Harry heard that he called up his client and told him he could no longer represent him due to a conflict of interest. However I don't think the man's likely to change his mind. He seemed pretty obsessed with causing you trouble." "You wouldn't know this man's name, would you?" "No, Harry's real adamant about his client's privacy, it's a central tenet of the PI Industry. He described what the case was about when he brought me in. Normally I do his bookkeeping and act as his personal assistant, so he doesn't usually brief me." "Well, it's not much to go on but thanks for warning me," Alex told her, his mind dancing, trying to figure out how to respond to this news. "I at least know that someone has it out for me. I'll tell you what, why don't you talk to Gail over there. She's my bodyguard and as such has more expertise in this kind of thing. She'll have a better idea of how to deal with it than I do. She's got contacts with the police force in Illinois, so she may be able to use that as leverage with your boyfriend." Linda set off to speak to Gail and they had to move a little further away to make themselves understood over the noise, Gail not wanting to overwhelm her by speaking telepathically until Alex had introduced her to the idea first. Alex returned to his previous conversation with Kayla and Haley. They didn't ask him about what he'd been talking to Linda about, figuring it wasn't any of their business, so Alex resumed telling them about the communities in New Orleans and Carbondale when they both looked over his shoulder. They were surrounded by people since Cate was talking to another two girls as well, but they were set off a little from anyone else. Seeing the girl's attention shift Alex turned to see what they were looking at, and he saw an older man with thin graying hair conspicuously wearing a business suit to a rock concert. Alex thought it odd, but didn't think much of it until he saw the man's eyes. He was staring intently at Alex. His eyes seemed to have an unbalanced look to them, and there seemed to be a cold burning hatred to them that alerted Alex that this was likely serious. When he saw Alex glancing at him he responded. ------- Anthony Barlow had waited outside until he'd spotted Linda Evens coming into the stadium. He knew he'd have no way of finding the supposed 'Angel', Alex, on his own. There were just too many people here and too many places to look. Getting a picture of her had been fairly simple. A simple Google search using her name and her home town of Beaumont, Texas produced a fair sampling of photos. As he'd expected, she zeroed in on Alex right away, heading directly to him without even pausing to consider where he might be. He didn't take much time to consider why that would be, however. He tried to stay back far enough from her to not be conspicuous. After all, he was looking to surprise his target. He was intending to merely speak with him, to warn him to leave his daughter alone. He wasn't sure why, but he'd felt it necessary to bring an old Luger along that his father had brought back as a souvenir from World War II. He'd at least taken the time to clean it, since it hadn't been used for the last thirty years. He didn't even know if it would work, and he certainly didn't plan on using it. He merely wanted it so he could scare the miscreant away in case he couldn't get him to see the situation rationally. When he saw the tight band of women surrounding the man he was after, most of them young beautiful and seemingly innocent, he was overcome with a righteous indignation. Each of these girls was like his own daughter. Each believed in this man out of their own naïveté and their own sense of the purity of man, never once suspecting just what he was planning to do to them. He could easily see this supposed angel taking advantage of each of them, leaving them penniless in some strange city days weeks or months in the future. The 'angel' didn't look anything like he'd imagined. He was just a young man who seemed to have delusions of grandeur, since he didn't seem that impressive. He appeared clean cut, but Anthony assumed a con-man would have to project that image in order to get others to trust him. But the fact he projected such a false image just set Anthony off that much more. He felt himself losing it at that point, his hands literally shaking with rage. He wasn't quite sure what happened from that stage, all he knew was that he was filled with an overwhelming anger at the injustice of it all. This self-appointed saint enriching himself while stealing young girls from those that loved them, taking both their innocence but also irreconcilably destroying their relationships all in one fell swoop. When asked later exactly what he did, what he said or why he chose to do it, he wouldn't be able to answer, all he knew was that it was over in an instant. ------- "You're not going to do to these women what you've done to my daughter," he said with a snarl as his hand came out of his pocket. Alex wasn't entirely clear on what he said, due to the loud music surrounding them, but his intent seemed clear. He seemed to be holding something in his hand. As his hand rose everything suddenly slowed down, once again. Alex had experienced this before, so he knew what to expect. Suddenly he no longer noticed the music filling the arena. Instead he picked up a bunch of seemingly irrelevant details; like that the man's suit looked to be an expensive European cut and his shoes were freshly shined, as if he wanted to look his best for this confrontation. He also noticed those around them, mostly the girls talking to Cate, seemed frozen in place and Alex noted the pretty patterns in their dresses frozen in mid-movement. The man's hand continued to rise slowly and Alex noted a glint of dull metallic gray, but that was the last detail he managed to register. Before Alex could figure out what was happening, he was hit from the side, simultaneously hip-checked and shoved from the side. Knocked off balance, he had time to glance over and see that Haley, a slightly bigger girl, had shoved him out of the way for protection. As he began to slowly topple over, falling in a twisting motion, he saw her moving forward towards the man approaching with the gun. Things continued to move in slow motion, but now his mind was focused on his inability to observe what was happening. As he fell away, he was no longer able to observe the man, but his overactive mind was recording everything else it saw flashing before his eyes, most of it immaterial to the threat on his life. The old chewed gum and beer stains on the floor, the movements of those around him, as Haley and Kayla rushed forward. They seemed to move glacially slow, but they were moving faster than anything else around him, as everyone else seemed surprised. Most of all he was aware of how powerless he was. He'd been too surprised to react, but even the ability to do nothing had been taken out of his hands. Now he was merely observing what was happening, both to himself and those around him, as an outsider without a clear view of what was happening. The man was no longer in sight, he had no idea what he was doing, or what he intended. He had no idea how everyone else was responding. What's more, he had no indication of how much of a threat the man was, or whether anyone else was in danger as well. If he'd had more control, he might have been able to respond. At the very least he could have moved away from the others, drawing the man away from the others. Instead now he a helpless bystander, a potential target amongst several unintended victims, unaware of what was happening and unable to respond to it. They fell out of his field of vision as he twisted further and he now found himself only a few feet off the floor when he heard what sounded like a couple of firecrackers off in the distance. "Pop", "Pop". Despite not hearing the music playing in the background, Alex was aware of silence hanging in the air for a moment, as the speech around him fell silent from the interruption of the unexpected sounds. Since Alex's mind was now in overdrive, and since he could no longer see what was happening around him, his mind raced, trying to guess about what was happening. Instead of being worried about himself, his thoughts immediately flew to those around him. Not just Haley and Kayla, but the girls with Cate who were between him and his attacker, in the line of fire as well. He tried desperately to think of what he could do, but even if he knew what was happening, he'd be unlikely to stop bullets already fired. Not knowing what was happening prevented him from even attempting to. His mind recorded the footfalls of the girls, the whizzing sound of something traveling at high speed slicing through the air, and then the sickening sound of flesh being torn and the gasps of pain that were exhaled in slow motion from above and behind him. He had no idea who, but someone had been shot. He didn't think he'd been injured, but he knew how the mind played tricks on you, and tended to block out minor details like the perception of pain. He hadn't felt pain when Rakeem had shot him at point blank range. Alex was pretty clear he hadn't been injured, but that left him to wonder just who had been struck, and whether he was actually the intended target or whether the man was upset at someone else entirely. The mind goes to unexpected places in these circumstances, but it was in hyper-drive now, and it was trying to fit the many pieces together into a coherent whole. Then all hell broke loose. Things started speeding up, at first moving incrementally faster, then suddenly moving much faster. The people around them drew back, holding their hands to their mouths in horror, and Alex landed with a crash onto the hard floor, bouncing slightly, spittle unexpectedly flying from his gaping mouth from the impact. He wasn't sure what had happened, but he was pretty sure what the loud pops he'd heard were. The next thing he heard was Gail's voice ringing out, cutting through all the distractions around him. "Drop the gun or..." she yelled before her words were punctuated by a louder pop, just above and to the left of Alex's head, "I'll shoot," she finished in a calm tone of voice. The difference between her initial excited utterance and her accepted conclusion made her statement that much more poignant. It was then that the screaming started and the disruption finally reached the band. Alex suddenly became aware of the ongoing music just as the band members stopped playing one by one in an odd manner that drew more attention that something was wrong than anything else. 'Alex, you've got to get the fuck away from here, ' Gail insisted. 'What's going on? What happened?' Alex asked, desperate to find out what he'd missed. 'Some asshole just tried to shoot you. Instead he hit the two girls you were with.' Alex rolled over and started to stand, still seeming to be moving in slow motion, despite how quickly everything around him was now moving. 'I've got to help. Maybe I can—' 'The hell you will, ' Gail hissed. 'Security and the police are going to be all over this in just a few minutes. If they connect you to this they'll have your name and a record of your employment on Patricia's payroll. If this shooting is related to your being the famed Angel of New Orleans you won't have a private life anymore, and every one of us will be exposed. You've got to get out of here.' Alex intended to ignore her and continued trying to stand, something that took substantially more time to do in slow motion than speaking telepathically did. As he did so he felt Cate urgently pulling his arm, trying to move him away from the scene he found himself in. "I've got—," he tried to tell her but she cut him off. "The hell you do, you're getting the hell out of here," she hissed, trying to be insistent while keeping her voice low so it wouldn't be overheard by anyone else. Feeling he was losing the argument he instead reached out to Kayla to see what he could do for her and Haley. 'Kayla, how are—?' he tried to ask, but was once again cut off. 'Alex, get the hell away from here, ' she answered as waves of pain, fear and frustration washed over Alex from their shared telepathic connection. He was strangely aware of what his own reactions must have felt like to those around him when he'd been shot only a month earlier. At first Alex thought she was scared and reacting to being shot, but that initial thought was soon proved wrong. 'Alex, you can't help them, ' Gail said, speaking to him angrily from her own frustration with him. 'They sacrificed themselves for you, and if you ignore that and stay to help them, you'll not only put them in danger, you'll put all of your followers in danger as well. To stay and try to heal them will only belittle what they did for you, insulting their sacrifice, but it will probably be useless since you know you can't stop bleeding with your powers. Just take off and I'll take care of them.' Alex was about to try to plead his case one more time when Kayla cut him off. 'Get out of here, ' she insisted. 'Haley and I will be OK. He wasn't aiming ... at us, so we weren't hurt ... too badly, ' she tried to say even as she had to stop frequently as the pain kept interrupting her thoughts. 'But you've got to get the hell away from here.' Cate was still yanking on his arm as he finally got to his feet, and since he was off balance she pulled him farther off balance, so he started to stumble towards her, away from the girls. He knew they were correct, but he felt like he should do something. He couldn't just leave two women who were injured trying to help him. But he also knew that Gail was right. He had the wrong skills to help them now. Chances were the stadium had medical personal on call and they'd be here shortly with their security people. They could staunch the bleeding and stabilize them until an ambulance could reach them. There wasn't much that Alex could do as far as emergency medicine was concerned. His specialty was helping speed the healing process. He'd be better helping them at the hospital. Since he was conflicted as to the best course of action Cate continued to drag him towards the exit, which they were near anyway. People were still screaming but no one was moving yet. They were still recoiling, and their screams were starting to spread around the stadium. Alex knew as soon as people got their wits about them there'd be a mass rush to the exits, so he knew they'd be swamped soon. Against his better judgment, he let himself be dragged away from where he felt he should be. He already felt guilty, but there really wasn't much he could do, and they'd specifically asked him to. Feeling terrible about it, he finally started heading out on his own. There was sheer pandemonium after that. There were people running and screaming in all directions. People poured out of the stadium like it was on fire. Alex was sure that no one realized the violence was over, but he wasn't about to point out their mistake to them. As he ran he received a variety of messages. 'Alex, are you OK?' Jamie asked, just before her sentiment was echoed by Steph. They'd both heard the commotion and immediately thought of Alex when they recognized it sounded violent. Before he could answer he got another message, 'Alex, this is Liv. What happened? We could feel your emotions just now, and we know what happened the last time you did that.' Alex figured if he didn't head this off, he'd have to respond to everyone individually, so he sent out a message to all the Seers. 'Things are crazy right now. I'm OK but someone tried to shoot me, ' he alerted everyone. 'We don't know why yet, but he hit two new girls that were with me. Everyone forced me to leave although I resisted. I'll let you know what happens, but I just wanted everyone to know in case you got some emotional leakage from me.' 'Alex, you get your ass out of there right now!' Patricia insisted, which was instantly echoed by several other telepathic voices. 'Are they OK or should we call the police?' Patricia asked. 'Gail is with her and she's applying emergency first aid until the medics reach them. But if you were to call 911 you'd inform the police that you know more than you'd have any reason to.' For some reason Alex didn't understand, he seemed perfectly rational and in control when he heard himself telling others what to do, but he didn't feel that way as his own mind was awash in conflicting ideas and motivations. 'Good, that's where she should be since she's been trained for that. Your being there would just slow her down and you'd risk exposure. I'll find out from her what's going on.' 'I don't think it will be any better overwhelming her than it is overwhelming me. Let her do what she needs to do. She'll likely contact me as soon as she has any news, so I'll pass any news along to everyone else.' Alex then proceeded to tell the other girls in the stadium to pass the word to anyone with them that he'd be in the parking lot and that they should try to find him in front of the East entrance. He figured that's where the ambulances and police cars would congregate, so he warned them to take a separate entrance, but that he'd be near the entrance so he could see what happened to anyone they brought out. It seemed that most of the people that fled the stadium simply got into their cars and left, but there were still a lot of people standing around watching what was going to happen. Time passed with no word. Alex concentrated on flagging down anyone looking for him, but they all seemed to zero in on his energy, so it didn't take much to get their attention. Soon he had several new followers around him, so he turned to the girls he'd met earlier to keep his mind off how little he knew. "So, girls, how about you tell me a little about yourselves," he asked Jamie, Steph and Brittany. "I work for the UPS," Stephanie said, causing Alex to smile at her. "I can just picture you in brown shorts." "No, I work out at the airport organizing the airplanes flying around the country, so I don't get to wear the shorts," she told him. "I'm in college studying architectural engineering," Brittany said. "And I'm a video artist," Jamie replied. "I make video presentations that get shown in galleries as well as on YouTube and occasionally on television as well." "Well I guess that explains your unique look. I guess it's fitting for your line of work. I couldn't see you as an office worker looking like that. Tell me, what's with the aggressive attitude from earlier? There must be a story behind that?" Alex asked. She was about to respond when Alex's eyes glazed over. She'd just been warned to watch for that, so she waited until he was done before answering him. 'Everyone is OK, ' Gail informed him. 'They received glancing blows since he was aiming at you. That's serious enough, but it isn't life threatening. Haley was hit in the side and Kayla was hit in the thigh. Apparently he was shooting downward as you were falling and she was between you. I've patched them up and they're in pain but they're alert and in good spirits. They both wanted me to be sure that you got away OK. The stadium people just got here so they're looking after them now. Before they got here I went over with them what to tell the police, but they'd figured it out for themselves. I just gave them the same advice that I'd given you about not being too obvious by making their lies too simple. I told them to tell the truth but leave off any mention of you. You weren't there. If anyone presses, give plenty of detail about everything else.' 'If you can, tell them I'm worried about them and I'll help them in any way that I can. Tell them I'll come to the hospital to—" "You most assuredly will NOT, ' Gail insisted. 'They both agree with me on that. They don't want you anywhere near the hospital. They figure the police will be watching it to see if anyone tries to contact them, so stay well away from there. They're covered. They both have insurance so they should be OK.' 'They may have insurance, but there are still the deductibles, not to mention follow-up physical therapy, ' Alex argued. 'I don't want them going broke because they were injured trying to save me.' 'Again, you will do NO such thing, ' Gail warned him. 'It's too easy to trace payments. The foundation can't make any payments either. But don't worry about it, I think I've got an idea on how to save them for having to pay for being attacked. And about conveying your feelings to them, I can't say anything now because of the other people who are here, but I assured them you wanted to stay, but that we'd forced you to leave. That made them feel better.' 'What about the attacker?' Alex asked. 'Did you find out why we were attacked?' 'Yeah, the asshole was quite talkative. He said he was trying to stop you from stealing money from unsuspecting girls. As for how he's doing, he's in more pain than anyone else. I shot him in the gut, so hopefully he'll be terribly sick from sepsis before he goes to jail.' 'That was what he initially said, ' Alex said, ignoring the latter half of Gail's information. 'Do we have any idea what he was talking about?' 'Look, I'll talk to you soon. The medics are getting ready to take the girls out and security is holding the shooter. I don't trust these clowns to keep him secure. I've got my hands full at the moment.' With that their conversation ended and Alex found himself facing a waiting Jamie. He had to refocus to remember what he'd been talking about earlier, but he told the girls around him what had happened before he returned to Jamie. As he was providing them with the update, several police cars pulled up, followed shortly after by an ambulance. The front of the stadium was busy with flashing lights, although no one there yet had any idea of what had actually occurred. The people around them were busy gossiping about what they thought might have happened, so Alex lowered his voice some more, causing the women around him to lean in more to hear him clearly. Since they hadn't yet brought anyone out, Alex turned back to Jamie and asked her to continue. "Well, I've got a ... history with guys," she answered a little obliquely. "Meaning?" Alex asked. When she didn't answer right away Alex tried to help. "Look, if you're gay it doesn't make any difference to me." Jamie made a face at that, but it apparently prompted her to explain. "I've got no problem with guys, in general, but they always want to compartmentalize me, to put me into their little boxes. I'm the 'pretty girl', so I'm expected to act in a certain way, or 'she's a blonde' so they assume I don't know anything." "So you decided to rebel by getting an odd haircut, so you'll stand out more?" Alex asked, genuinely curious. "More so they won't be so quick to pigeonhole me. People tend to give artists a little more leeway." "But don't they put the same restrictions on artists. You dress a certain way, so you must be a certain way. You do a certain kind of art, so you must think like other artists do?" "Yeah, but it gives me a little more latitude," she explained. "Which you use to be abusive to those around you?" Alex asked, enjoying turning the tables on her. "Well, not everyone. Mostly guys," she admitted, suddenly hesitant and sheepish. "I hate to break it to you, but I'm a guy as well," Alex reminded her. "Yeah, but you're not like other guys. You're different." Alex was set to tell her he was hardly different when he stopped himself. He knew how hollow that sounded, since everyone could tell he was hardly ordinary, so he took a different approach. "So this attitude only extends to men?" Here she blushed, so Alex knew he'd hit a nerve. She saw his response, whether in his aura or by his attitude, Alex didn't know but she tried to explain herself. "When they get high and mighty I have a tendency to put them into their place." "And does that ever accomplish anything, besides making yourself feel better by belittling others?" he asked her pointedly. "It works, though," Steph said. "With her by my side, taking charge of everything, I had no troubles marching into that restroom. I never would have done it if she wasn't by my side, and it was her attitude more than anything else that gave me the courage to approach you like that." "Well, it's good that you can motivate people, but the question is just how many do you motivate that way, as opposed to the others that you either put off, insult or make feel terrible about themselves? Actually, when you get right down to it, how are you any better than the people you criticize when you judge people based on how you suspect they'll act rather than getting to know them?" Both Jamie and Steph were looking nervous, but that hadn't been Alex's intent. Instead he was simply trying to figure out what motivated them to behave as they did. He was about to continue when there was a shift in the crowd's attention and he turned to see they were bringing out several stretchers. Though it was hard to see around the vehicles and the people crowded forward, they observed the gurneys rolled out one by one. They brought the two girls out, and then they brought out the attacker as well. Alex wasn't as concerned with him at the moment, however. 'Kayla? This is Alex. How are you holding up?' 'Well, I hurt like hell but I'm fine, ' she answered. 'We weren't badly hurt. I'm just glad you got away in time. They're interviewing everyone they can find so be careful. It's probably only a matter of time before they start interviewing the people out here looking for witnesses.' 'How's Haley? Have you been able to talk to her?' 'Well, we've hardly been in the mood to get into a gabfest, plus there have been people all over, so we really couldn't say much. You know, this talking telepathically makes it much easier. I don't have to measure my words to match my energy.' 'Yeah, I was hoping to help with both the energy and the healing issues, ' Alex told her, lamenting how powerless he felt having been unable to do anything at all for her. 'Don't worry, we'll be fine. Just promise me you'll stay away so you don't raise any questions. It looks like there are going to be people all over us, so they'll likely ask about anyone coming to visit.' So Alex promised her he wouldn't, as much as it tore him up to not be able to take care or protect those who depended on him. As much as he hated to admit it, there were always going to be things he couldn't protect his followers from, and if he tried to control and shield them from everything, he'd probably end up hurting them even more. Maybe there's a lesson here, he told himself, without trying to flesh it out just then. He watched as they loaded Kayla and Haley into the waiting ambulances. They were both loaded into the same one while their attacker was loaded into a separate ambulance, accompanied by an armed policeman. Alex thought he saw a handcuff under the stretcher, but he really couldn't tell from that distance. Finally the ambulances moved out, although the police cars remained where they were, their lights still flashing against the dark night sky. "They're OK. Kayla seemed a little more composed, so they probably gave her something, but she still seemed pretty clear. They told me to stay away from the hospital." Cate knew him well enough to know what he'd been thinking about so she went to him and wrapped him up in a big hug. "Don't worry. I know you want to shelter each of us, but sometimes things happen. You've got to learn that you can't control everything. Just focus on what you can change and let the rest go. You've got amazing abilities to help people, but if you get too obsessed with trying to control every little thing, you'll only make yourself crazy and you won't be able to help anyone." Alex thought about that, and how little control he had over what was happening. But, in the silence that descended as the ambulances pulled away, he felt he had to say something just to distract himself so that he wouldn't obsess. What's more, if he simply started talking he'd talk about the girls, which he didn't like doing because he could never tell when someone walking past might overhear them. So he once again returned to the inane discussion they'd been having earlier. "So what about you, Steph?" Alex asked once Cate let him go and stepped back. He needed to distract himself so he wouldn't have to deal about worrying too much. The girls were in very capable hands now. He couldn't do anything for them, so it wouldn't help them no matter how badly he felt. "Why do you feel this need to be more in control?" he asked her, echoing his own concerns with himself. "What is it about you that feels powerless?" Stephanie seemed to consider this a few moments before answering. She seemed to be as thrown by the question as he felt asking it. "I've always been a bit of a mouse, a wallflower if you will. I tend to simply go along with what everyone else wants, preferring to let others take the lead. It saves me a lot of trouble, but it can leave you feeling powerless after a while." Alex reflected on that. Here was someone who took the opposite tack than he did, but she didn't appear to be any happier. He considered that maybe it wasn't so much what you worried about as much as how it defined your life. It wouldn't hurt to be concerned about things, but once it started defining how you acted and limiting your actions, then it turned into a major problem. "Are you married? Do you have spousal issues?" he asked her. It was really a surreal scene. Here he was, having a normal everyday discussion, while one of his closest friends was being led away to be questioned by the police about a scene he was actively trying to hide from, and as two people he was indirectly responsible for injuring were being taken to the hospital. It was making Alex's mind spin, but he knew this was his defense mechanism. By acting normal, he could maintain his equilibrium. And by discussing something so mundane and safe he could keep his mind active, ready to respond but not actively fretting about what he couldn't do at the moment. "No, I'm single, although I was in one abusive relationship for a while and I just ended another relationship I was hoping would develop, but just never did." "Is it possible it never developed because you didn't help it along?" he asked, wondering what it was that was driving him to ask these probing questions. It was one thing asking what people did to try to figure out what they'd be good at, but it seemed to be a wholly different thing to be asking them about the reasons behind their personal failings. "I suppose it did. I wanted to confront him about it. Many times, in fact, but I just never did. I just didn't want to make a big scene about it," she answered him. Alex was about to respond when one of the girls pointed out something behind him. He turned and saw Gail being led out by a couple of police officers, along with some other people, including Linda Evens. He was about to speak with her, but Cate pulled on his sleeve and pointed in another direction where they saw police officers starting to wander into the crowd. "We'd better go," she suggested. "Yeah, let's get out of here. It wouldn't be hard to simply deny we saw anything, but there's no sense tempting fate," he told them, so he turned and led everyone back to his car. As he did he asked the three girls, Jamie, Steph and Brittany, if they'd accompany him home for the evening, explaining they couldn't do much until much later in the evening since he planned to pick up Gail after the police finished with her. Cate went on to explain exactly what his offer entailed. Each explained that they were unattached and would be honored to spend the evening with him. Brittany actually offered that she would be willing to become impregnated by him, but that she was currently on the pill, so it wouldn't do them any good. Jamie answered that she didn't think she could deal with being pregnant quite yet, while Steph said she was afraid she might be too old to catch easily. Alex considered this to be TMI, "too much information", although he understood why it was important. But right then he was more concerned with what was happening to everyone else to fret about who he slept with or whether he could get them pregnant or not. As they drove out of the parking lot they drove past a policeman in the process of closing off the gate to prevent anyone from leaving before they could be interviewed. Once again, they managed to slink away by the skin of their teeth. It seemed like everything that night had been like that. Alex had been unable to control anything that had happened, and it had all worked out due to nothing that he'd done. These were all things to think about, as he waited for Gail to call him later for him to pick her up. ------- Chapter 27: A Lot of Telling and No Showing "I'm telling you," he explained to the impatient policemen facing him in the decrepit hospital room where he was physically chained to the bed by handcuffs, "I was trying to protect those girls from a predator attempting to take advantage of them." "And we're telling you," responded the beefy sergeant who glared at him as if he was the bug he'd just accidentally swallowed while out biking, "there was no guy there, supposed angels or not. You shot into a group of women. Everyone reported the exact same thing. It was a group of women talking amongst themselves. No guys." "That just can't be right," Anthony said in confusion. They'd given him medication to ease the pain when they'd operated on his stomach to repair the gunshot wound he'd gotten when that woman had shot him in the gut. But they hadn't given him enough to eliminate the pain, and he found it difficult to think through the still flaring pain in his stomach. "If that's the case, then—" "Then you imagined the whole thing?" the other cop asked. Anthony had already seen a whole string of them. Apparently shooting someone in the middle of a crowded stadium got a lot of attention from the officials. "I'm sorry," the cop continued, "but if you're trying to build an insanity defense it ain't going to fly. You've already admitted to shooting into the crowd. You've already told us you were trying to kill someone, and it doesn't matter if he was there or not. You were trying to commit murder, you thought enough to bring a gun, so it shows both intent and premeditation, and if you injured someone else in that attempt the law's the same. It's just as if you had been gunning for them. You're not going to get off on this one." "Yeah," responded the sergeant, "especially not in this jurisdiction. You may not be aware of it, since you're from out of town, but the local councilman from this region is notorious for pushing race-baiting issues. He's not about to let some rich businessman from another part of the state slip by, just because you can hire some expensive lawyers to argue a useless insanity defense. While we don't report to him, he'll be sure to bring enough political pressure to bare that you won't be able to dance away from this one." "But you don't understand," Anthony argued, trying to get them to do just that. "I went there just to talk to him, but when I saw him there, trying to take advantage of all those girls who were just like my daughter, I lost it. I wasn't even sure what I was doing." "Yet you managed to say something to him, this mysterious angel who wasn't even there, that he 'wasn't going to get away with it'. That demonstrates clear thinking. Being mistaken in who you're trying to kill won't buy you anything, and insanity defenses almost never succeed. If you're going to make bogus claims you're going to have to be more careful about your story when you do it. Now, why were you shooting at those girls? We all know there are no damn angels in Dallas, and we know people don't go around shooting them even if they did exist. So what were you really trying to do? And just bear in mind that we're not leaving until you give us an explanation we can understand. OK?" Anthony knew he was going to be there a long time. The thought that he'd shot the wrong people, the very people he was trying to protect, that he was protecting them from someone who wasn't even there, was more than he could take. It forced him to question his own sanity. Obviously he must have been out of his mind. He couldn't have seen something that no one else there had noticed. Hell, the cops insisted that each of the victims had denied that any such person had been there. Things were looking bad, both from a legal, personal, mental and psychological perspective. Worst of all, the money he was trying to protect was in danger, as he wouldn't be able to manage his finances while in prison, and his daughter wouldn't be likely to look on his actions favorably. Hell, he'd screwed up big this time, and he couldn't see any way out of the mess he'd stumbled into. ------- 'Alex?' Gail asked telepathically. 'Yeah, are you ready for us to pick you up? We've been waiting to come get you.' 'Actually, it's OK. When the police asked about my car Linda Evens told them that she drove me, giving me a plausible excuse for why I didn't have my own. So she's bringing me by.' 'OK, that makes sense. So how'd everything work out? We've been anxious to find out what's been happening. We've been busy here trying to decide what to do or how to respond.' 'I think the best bet is just to lie low for now. Right now no one suspects you're involved. The suspect, an eastern Texas businessman, has been ranting and raving about how dangerous you were and how he wanted to stop you from harming anyone else, but since no one reported seeing you, and since everyone there said not only that you weren't there, but that it was only a group of women, the police are taking this as a case of someone with a severe mental condition. Thus it would be better if no one knew you were actually in the city right now.' 'That makes sense. So it sounds like we should head to Oklahoma earlier than we'd planned? Say early tomorrow morning as opposed to Tuesday morning?' 'That's what I was thinking, ' Gail responded. 'So what was this all about? Who was he so concerned about? Who was I supposedly cheating?' 'Well, despite my being a fellow cop, they wouldn't tell a witness to the events that may be called to testify any information about the case, so they wouldn't give me any specifics. But it's got to be someone you've met while you've been here in Texas. Since they keep specifying 'eastern Texas', I'm thinking it was someone we met in Houston, and the only one that reported any problems with her family was that real skinny Seer, what was her name, Gracie something or other?' Alex turned to Cate, who was the one who'd been keeping track of who everyone they'd met was. "Cate, I need the last name of Grace, the girl we met when we just entered Texas." Cate grabbed her iPad and started going through her notes. "It's Grace Barlow, from Beaumont, Texas," she responded, which Alex conveyed to Gail. 'All right, I'd suggest you contact her for information about whether it's her father or not, and what may have happened.' 'OK, I'll get on that, ' Alex replied, but Gail continued before he could switch over to her. 'There's something else I wanted to bring up. It's strange and I think it needs to be addressed, ' she said, without supplying any specifics. 'All right, I'm listening, ' Alex replied cautiously, not knowing what to expect. 'I know everyone always talks to each other, and that you generally ignore most of it, effectively just tuning it out, but can you tell if Kayla Odell, the new Seer that was shot, has been using you to transfer messages?' 'That's a tall order, since as you said I try not to listen in to the private conversations in my head, but now that you mention it I don't recall hearing her mental voice. Although I don't listen in, sometimes I get enough for me to make a connection to a specific person.' 'The reason I ask, ' Gail explained, 'is that she contacted me directly. When I asked her how she did it, whether or not she went through you, she had no idea what I was talking about. As strange as it sounds, I think you somehow boosted her abilities without being aware of it.' 'I can't picture how that could have occurred, ' Alex replied. 'Normally boosting someone takes a lot of work, trying to set up the environment, carefully controlling the pace, and trying to arrange things so everything happens at once. I can't imagine how it could just spontaneously occur. I mean, we'd have to at least be in close physical proximity. They were both well away from me when they were shot.' 'Do you think the attack might have boosted your own abilities?' she asked. 'After all, it's happened before. Usually every time you're attacked you end up with some strange new power.' 'I'd hardly describe them as new powers. Usually my new abilities are either new manifestations of existing abilities, or they're something my brain wasn't able to handle initially, like when the telepathy kicked in when I got in that fight with Bao, Anh's son. I suspect I'd had the ability for a while, but my brain hadn't yet figured out how to process it.' 'Yeah, I remember hearing about that. But however you describe it, you usually can do new things you couldn't before following a physical altercation.' 'I'll tell you what, hold on and I'll contact her and set up a test. I'll have her contact you while I focus. If she goes through me I'll know it this time.' So Gail waited while Alex made the arrangements. 'Kayla? This is Alex. How are you holding up?' Alex asked. 'Hey, Alex, ' she responded, sounding pleased he'd reached out to her. Her thoughts were clear telepathically, but that didn't necessarily mean she wasn't still in a lot of pain. 'Actually it's kind of mixed. Both Haley and I refused the painkillers they offered us, since we wanted to keep our minds clear so we'd know how to respond to questions by the police. Gail told us how to approach it so we were prepared, but we were afraid we wouldn't be able to focus on giving the right answers if we were drugged up. 'So essentially we're both still hurting, but we're also feeling more alive than we ever have before. I was checking in with Gail the entire time the police were questioning me.' 'That's just it, ' Alex replied. 'Gail was wondering how you managed to do that. Normally the only way a new Seer can communicate telepathically is either to me or through me, and you don't seem to be doing either.' 'Yeah, Gail mentioned that. But it's not just me. Cate said that the Watchers don't get activated, that they're just drawn to you but that you don't actually do anything to them. Yet Haley can easily tell which of the cops' good-cop/bad-cop acts is legitimate. She actually told them she didn't buy the whole act, since the bad-cop was more sympathetic to her.' 'Whoa, that's a significant development, ' Alex responded with a bit of alarm. 'Alright, just so we can get a handle on this, I want you to contact Gail again just after we finish talking. That way I can tell whether you're actually going through me or not.' Kayla agreed, and Alex sat back and focused on what was happening inside his own mind. 'Alex, this is Gail again. Kayla just contacted me. What did you get?' 'You're right. She didn't go through me. Not only that, but she also told me that Haley was boosted as well. This is downright freaky. I have no memory of doing any such thing.' 'But this is a good thing, isn't it?' Gail asked. 'I mean, you keep complaining about having to make love to one stranger after another. Wouldn't this solve a lot of your problems? It's essentially a spontaneous boosting without the need to get intimate with each of your followers. It would mean you could boost everyone right away without having to get to know them so intimately first.' 'You're right; it would be a tremendous boost, not only for me but to the whole movement. It would make my life much easier, it would help each of my followers that I meet from here on out, and it would reduce a lot of my ongoing stress. But I think Cate will want to examine it in detail before I attempt to try it again.' 'Well, I just wanted you to be aware of it, ' Gail said. 'We should be home shortly.' Alex stopped to update Cate and the others in the room on the latest news, and then left them to discuss it while he reached out to someone else. 'Grace? This is Alex. Where are you now?' 'I'm in New Orleans. I came down to see the community down here. It's wonderful how many people like us are here and how supportive they are. I'm planning on returning to Houston and trying to build up our local community to—' 'Yeah, that's wonderful. Listen, I've got some very bad news for you, but I've got to ask some questions first. How are you and your father getting along lately?' 'Does this have to do with your attack in Dallas?' she asked, but Alex wasn't ready to reveal that information quite yet. 'Not directly, but it may apply. Just answer the question.' Grace was hesitant in her response, but Alex couldn't tell if that was because she felt guilty about having not conveyed reports of her continuing problems with her father, or because she was concerned with what his 'bad news' might be. 'We haven't, frankly. We got into a couple of screaming matches. I kept trying to assure him I wasn't changing anything, but he insisted that I was being taken advantage of and that he was going to cut me off financially to protect me. But I've never had access to that much money to begin with, so his argument of trying to protect me seems pretty weak. I think he was just upset that I'm finally growing up and am no longer as easy to control as he used to believe I was. 'Anyway, things escalated after that. He then threw me out of the house, telling me if I wouldn't listen to him then he'd no longer shelter me. Again, I think he was more concerned that he couldn't buy me off as easily as he'd thought. When that happened I decided I'd take this trip to New Orleans just so I wouldn't have to bother my friends with putting me up indefinitely.' 'I can see why that would be beneficial, but I'm still interested in the relationship between you and your father. If he cut you off financially, then how could you afford to fly to New Orleans?' Alex asked. 'Oh, that's easy. My father was being an ass, but my mom could see the effort I was making and how much I seemed to be maturing, to use her words for it. She wrote me a check to cover my expenses.' 'Ah, that might have been the triggering event. Despite his best efforts to protect you, he probably saw the canceled check and thought you'd found a way to access his funds indirectly. I'm guessing he figured the money wasn't to go to New Orleans, but to follow wherever I decided to take you.' 'Alex, I'm starting to get worried. What's happened to my father? Why are you asking me all these questions?' 'Grace, there's no easy way to say this, but your father has just been arrested on two counts of attempted murder in Dallas. He came into a crowded concert and tried to shoot me. Unfortunately he hit two girls instead. I don't think anyone actually knows that I was there, so I suspect he'll have a fairly good chance at claiming a mental impairment defense on the basis of his trying to shoot a mythical person.' 'Wow, that's horrible. This was when you alerted up about being attacked? He tried to shoot you then?' 'Yeah, it happened several hours ago. I'm just now starting to get details on what happened, and I didn't even know who he was when he confronted me. We pieced together that you were the most likely connection, so I wanted to be sure before I told you. The media is responding to the shooting but they haven't released any details on it yet. But that's likely to change before long. You'd better call your mother and see about getting to Dallas. You'd also better get a decent lawyer, because he's apparently been speaking pretty freely about his trying to gun me down.' 'Yeah, we'd better get right on this. You weren't hurt were you? And what about the two girls? Were they connected to you and were they seriously hurt?' 'I'm fine, and the girls weren't seriously hurt. They were injured, and that's serious enough, but they weren't critically injured. He wasn't aiming at them so they only suffered glancing blows as they tried to defend me. They reacted quickly to his strong emotions, so they knocked me aside before he could get a bearing on me. But I'm worried about what this will mean to you and your family, so I want you to see if you can help him before he buries himself any further than he already has. I hate to remind you of this, but Texas is a death penalty state, and a shooting in a crowded stadium is likely to have people looking to make a public example of him.' 'Thanks for warning me, Alex. I'm not sure how I'll react to this. I'm a bit too surprised at the moment to be able to think clearly yet, but I'll start making the arrangements right away.' With that, Alex wished her luck and returned to the ongoing discussion between the others. Cate, seeing he was done with whatever telepathic conversation he was having, tried to discuss the idea of his newest boost but he put her off once again. "I want to check up on the girls in Carbondale and see how they're doing first," he told her as he started dialing the loft. "We haven't had a chance to check up on them, and I'm sure they're upset by whatever emotional leakage I projected when I was attacked. And before you ask, I'm calling so I can talk to everyone there and not just the Seers." "Hello, Angel Vision Foundation?" Natalie Mendoza, the first Watcher he'd ever talked to, answered. "Hey, Natalie, this is Alex. I was just calling to check in to see how everyone is doing. I was—" "Alex, what the hell happened to you? Hey, everyone, it's Alex," she called out excitedly before returning to the conversation. "I'm putting you on speakerphone just so everyone can hear you." "And I'm doing the same thing here," he said, although he'd already done it when she first answered. "Don't worry about me. Yes, there was another attempt on my life but I'm OK. A couple of new followers acted quickly, I guess by detecting his intent from his aura. They shoved me out of the way, saving me, while charging him hoping to distract him. They both received gunshot wounds but he missed any vital organs. I'm still worried about them, though. I wanted to stay to help but Gail wouldn't stand for it, and they wouldn't let me see them either. But for now, I'm interested in knowing how each of you is holding up. Last I heard, most of you ended up in the hospital yesterday." "We're fine," Shani responded. "Just like you, all we really needed was to eat a bunch and relax. It took a while to recover, but there was no reason for us to have been hospitalized. Basically the EMTs panicked, and the hospital staff, who know and worry about us, overreacted as well." "I can assure you everyone is fine," Liv told him, as if her word as a doctor meant any more to Alex than the voice of the others. "Ryan checked everyone over, and Anh, while still a little woozy, seems fine." "Well that's good to know. Just so you're aware, there may be another new ability this newest attack triggered, but we don't understand it yet. I'm going to experiment with it as soon as we finish here, so I'll probably call you, Anh, so we can discuss it, and several other things that have been coming up, tomorrow. I also have a few other things to discuss with Liv and Allison concerning some things I learned while at the Brooke Medical Center in San Antonio. But I've got a lot of talking left to do here tonight, so..." "Hold on, Alex," Rebecca hurriedly said before he could hang up on them. "Becky brought up something the other day that I wanted to discuss with Cate. That was what we were discussing the other night when Anh fell." "Sure, I don't mind considering another question." "Uh, well, we kind of wanted to ask Cate herself, without you listening in," Rebecca hesitantly added. "Oh, well, that's a little unusual but not that strange. Sure. I'll take the phone off speaker and give it to her. Here she is," he told them, while wondering what they had up their sleeves this time. If all his girls gathered to discuss the topic it must be worrying them, yet they didn't want to discuss it with him. That got his curiosity up, but he wanted to maintain their privacy and their independence, and they couldn't do that if he was continually butting into their conversations, so he put that curiosity aside. However, he kept one ear open to his sister's conversation. "Wow, that's quite a theory. I'll have to consider that," she replied. "No, I don't know what it means, and I'm a bit doubtful about it as well. But I'll have to consider how realistic it is and what impact it may have." She listened a little more while Alex kept himself occupied. The other girls had turned their attention to scanning the TV for any news reports of what had happened at the stadium, so that kept them busy. "I'm not sure how well I'll be able to do that. I'm here most of the time, and I'm..." she stopped to listen again. "Look, I'll give it some more thought, but personally I think you're way off base. I'll call you to talk about it tomorrow, but I'm not too worried about it." Cate then put the phone back on speakerphone and everyone said goodbye, after asking him who his newest bedmates for the night were. The three girls were a little embarrassed, but everyone took it well so they weren't worried. The women in Carbondale laughingly teased Alex that he must have had his abilities boosted if he was now taking on three women a night instead of his traditional two. Alex took the teasing pretty well, and soon the phone call ended and Alex turned to his sister. "What was that about?" he asked, meaning the cryptic secret conversation she'd had. "Oh, that? Never mind. It's a silly theory a couple of the girls had after talking to Kitty and Chalise. I don't think it bears repeating, but as I told them, I'll consider it before making a final evaluation. Besides, I'll have to call Becky and Melinda tomorrow and hear it directly from them before I really know what they were thinking, but I don't want to either bore or worry you about it. You've got enough things on your mind." That response hardly eased Alex's mind much, but she was right, he had enough other things on his plate at the moment. Instead he turned his attention to the television. The girls had found a news report about the shooting. Whereas earlier they hadn't given many details, now they were announcing that "a businessman from out of town came to the concert looking to confront the mysterious Angel of New Orleans. Instead, he attacked a random group of women who were speaking together; thinking one of them must have been him. The police describe him as being 'fairly delusional', so they have him under medical observation at the moment. They also have him under a suicide watch since they're afraid he may respond negatively when he realizes he was chasing a figment of his imagination." "Well it looks like they're not looking for you, at least," Cate observed. "Yeah, but it would still be better if I didn't stick around. All it would take would be several people talking about an angel appearing downtown and they may rethink that," he answered. "Now, it seems I've got a mysterious new ability and three willing suspects to test it out on," he said with a leer, but they weren't immediately convinced. "Will we still get the traditional boosting performance if it succeeds?" Jamie asked. The others seemed interested in Alex's response as well. "Yeah, I figured it'll be hard to convince anyone to forego that, so there's no need to pretend I'm unsuccessful," he laughed. Thus he tried, over the next twenty minutes, to somehow boost them without making love to them. He knew there must be a way to do it, but since he hadn't been aware of doing it at the time, it was even harder to duplicate. He tried concentrating, he tried wishing, he even had Cate threaten to hit him thinking that maybe it was the sense of danger that triggered it, but nothing seemed to work and Alex was starting to get frustrated. That was when Gail and Linda Evens, the girlfriend of the PI who'd warned Alex about the attack, came in. Alex got up and gave them both a big hug, asking how they were. He knew that Gail had a lot of experience in the field, but he couldn't imagine it was easy shooting someone. She explained that the questioning had gone well and the police were satisfied by her answers. What's more, since it was so clearly a case of the public's defense, and so many people had seen the man preparing to shoot her after she'd given him the warning to put his gun down, that they weren't going to make her stick around any longer, as long as she was available to return for the eventual trial. "It's a lot easier than shooting someone when I was a cop. Then I'd end up spending the entire day filling out detailed reports about the shooting." "They wanted to honor her in a ceremony for having saved even more people," Linda said, "but she told them she had business in another city on Tuesday, and she had to be there early to make sure the next concert was doubly safe after this. That seemed to appease them." "Not quite," Gail replied. "They want me to appear downtown tomorrow morning, so you'll have to leave the city without me. Just promise me you won't get shot at by anyone while I'm not there to protect you." "I'll try to avoid standing still long enough to provide them with an easy target," Alex laughed. "So how did you make out, Linda. After all, I'm guessing this was the guy that you warned me about. Weren't they interested in the common link between you?" "Actually, they never asked me about it. I'm sure they'll make the connection eventually, but I'll simply tell them I didn't know who he was." "I suspect he followed Linda here," Gail surmised. "I'm guessing her boyfriend told him she was going to be here tonight, so he trailed her until she led him to you." "If that's the case, I doubt either of them will volunteer that Harry said that," Linda suggested. "I think that's a safe bet," Gail said. "If he did it would make him culpable for the attack and it would destroy his reputation as a PI. Besides, they'd have been all over it if the shooter had mentioned he'd been following her." "It's strange he'd admit to the shooting but wouldn't mention he followed someone here," Alex commented. "I'll call Harry to make sure he doesn't mention that when they call him," Linda said. "It's probably too late," Gail told her. "I'm sure they've already contacted him. Besides, you don't want to implicate yourselves. Right now, you had no knowledge of any of this." "Yeah, but it would be expected that I'd call him. I should at least tell him what happened to me." Gail admitted that made sense, so she made her phone call. The others were still trying to figure out how Alex's newest ability might work, but they were interrupted when Patricia and her band mates arrived. Once Gail let them in they swarmed around Alex, each telling him how worried they were about him. "I'm OK, but I can't say the same for the two girls that were hit. Luckily they escaped serious injury, though. So what happened to you? You're getting home awfully late." "The place was a mad house," Sammy Tipton, the keyboardist, told them. "First the police questioned everyone, even though we were nowhere near the shooting. Then the business manager spoke to us, then the insurance adjuster, and then finally Diane Kennedy lit into us. She insisted that we be thrown off the tour since we introduced an 'uncontrollable criminal element' to the show." "That doesn't sound good at all," Alex said, growing worried he'd destroyed Patricia's newly revised music career. "I wouldn't worry about it. Diane is mostly upset that we're attracting bigger crowds than she is," Patricia answered. "In fact, once we finish our set there's a steady stream of people leaving in the middle of her show." "No doubt helped by those that I take with me when we leave," Alex replied with a guilty smile. "No doubt, but you're not the problem. Diane is the problem," Patricia told him in a no-nonsense tone of voice. "This was supposed to be her comeback tour, but she just doesn't have what it takes to make it anymore. She's become a bitter angry diva. No one was about to blame us for what one crazy person did during our concert. Of course, there's no telling what they'd say if they knew we were actually indirectly responsible for it." "No, you simply know me, and the person was trying to kill me. That doesn't make you responsible for it, just like I wasn't responsible for it. Frankly, I'm not even sure why he was after me, so I can't even say whether the shooter was responsible for it. Right now, he's got a fairly good basis for temporary insanity." "Anyway, the long and short of it was that everyone wanted to know what happened, whether we had any clue about it, and what we personally planned to do about it," she continued. "So what did they conclude?" Cate asked. "Just what you'd expect," Mackenzie Schumacher, the band's drummer answered, "that no one knew anything and that we weren't responsible." "The show's sponsors weren't pleased, since they'll have to issue refunds to everyone," Patricia explained. "They suggested we play an extra concert so they won't have to do that. That way they could simply give everyone a replacement concert, and only refund anyone who can't make it. Unfortunately tomorrow night, Sunday, is the only date we have open." "That means you'll have to leave them behind and head to Oklahoma on your own," Gail pointed out, still stressing that Alex needed to leave the city as soon as possible. "I hate to see you pass up the chance to meet the followers you didn't get a chance to meet tonight," Patricia told him. "I met a lot of them. We'd never get everyone as we were only here for one night, anyway," Alex responded. "I'll consider it a done deal." "So everyone is OK? Aside from the two girls, that is," Patricia repeated. "Yeah, we learned several other things, though." "Well, we stopped back to get some food. We've got to go back to arrange things for the show tomorrow night," Patricia said, just letting Alex know that they were under the gun. "I'll tell you what," Linda suggested, "Alex is likely to focus on boosting everyone, and since I've got to get home again before Harry starts to worry what I'm up to with Alex here, I'll explain everything to you while you eat." Everyone agreed that made sense, so they said goodbye and the members of the band told Alex they'd meet him for the show on Tuesday. As the others left, Alex turned back to the remaining girls and they resumed discussing how Alex might spontaneously boost the three girls. Everyone had their own ideas on the topic. Linda Evens could have provided yet another test subject, but Alex had missed his chance, and he doubted it would have made a difference anyway. He was still feeling frustrated at his inability to utilize this new ability of his. "It might be like the telepathy. It may just take time for my brain to figure how to wire itself correctly. Maybe it will work after a few days?" Alex suggested, not really expecting an answer. "I guess you'll have to resort to the old approach of multiple orgasms," Jamie suggested with a smile. The other girls quickly agreed that was the best option. "I'll fix your snack for you in that case," Cate told him as she headed off to the kitchen. "Just so you know," Alex told the others, lowering his voice, "Cate's got a unique ability of her own where—" "Don't bother, Alex, I'm not staying tonight, so there's nothing to explain," Cate called from the mini-fridge. "Uh, OK," Alex answered, unsure why Cate would suddenly change a long established pattern that hadn't caused any problems in the past. But he wasn't sure how to ask her what was up without first explaining their basic relationship to the other girls first. "I'll leave your food here on the table," Cate said. "One of the girls can get it for you when you need it. I fixed extra, since you'll certainly need it if you're doing three girls tonight." "What about the experiment I proposed?" Gail asked, returning to the conversation. That distracted Alex, so he couldn't pursue asking Cate what was going on with her. "I think I'll try it," Alex explained. "I think we need to know more about how this whole procedure works." "Which experiment is that?" Brittany asked. "The one where he doesn't give each of us multiple simultaneous orgasms," Steph told her. "Sorry, I was trying to avoid saying that outright," Alex apologized. "Hey, don't apologize," Steph answered. "We're here for you, we're happy to help you. Any orgasms we get are strictly a side benefit. Frankly, I'd be happy with one decent orgasm, even if it isn't quite mind melting." "So who gets the full treatment and who gets less?" Jamie asked. "I assume you're using a control?" "Ah, but if I told you that I'd introduce the placebo effect," Alex replied with a smile. "I'll have to leave you guessing. You'll only know if you don't get a boost following the experiment." "That sounds fair," Steph answered. "Yeah, I can certainly agree to that," Brittany said. "Wow, this is a lot easier than I thought it'd be when I suggested you weren't going to be getting my 'A' game," Alex said. "Alex, Alex, Alex," Cate answered as she brought out a tray with snacks. "Once again you completely miss the point. The idea isn't that these women want to have you give them unbelievable orgasms. They're trying to express their thanks and get closer to you. As long as they can enjoy your company, they'll be happy." "Especially if we can help in the process of figuring out how to use your abilities," Jamie answered. "If we can help you do that, then we've helped everyone else who'll be in our shoes after us." "The other thing you need to work on is letting go and stressing yourself less," Cate instructed her brother. "Yeah, especially since it seems you've been inhibiting your own ability by not trusting your own instincts," Gail added. "I still contend you'd do better just letting go and not trying to control everything that happens to you." "So the moral of the story is, have fun, stop stressing so much, and don't worry so much about who orgasms when," Cate concluded. "If it happens it happens. If not, you'll still all have a blast. But in either case I'm going to bed in my own room, so have fun without me. Somehow I don't doubt you'll find some way to keep yourself entertained." Cate left with no further explanation and Gail made herself comfortable in an easy chair against the wall, figuring four on a double bed was a few too many already. Despite Cate's advice, Alex still felt it necessary to maintain a certain amount of control in order to ensure each person got the desired effects, but he didn't have to control everything, and once he reached a certain level with each girl he could let himself go to a certain degree. Alex had to give it to Cate and Gail, though, sex was a lot more fun when you didn't stress over it the entire time. ------- Chapter 28: Would Energy by Any Other Name... Alex awoke to the sound of the hotel room door opening. He wasn't quite aware of anything yet, so he simply rolled over and glanced wearily at the door. "Hey, just came by to bring you something to eat," Cate said by way of a greeting. "I figured that none of you would manage to get moving yet." "Man, how come my sister never brings me stuff to eat in the morning?" Brittany complained, as she tried to find a sheet to pull up over herself. "Hey, I think angels just have very angelic sisters," Jamie suggested. "She certainly watches out for him." "So how'd it go last night? Did everyone get boosted?" Cate asked as she tossed Alex a bag full of goodies, just to show she wasn't that interested in her brother. Gail, who'd come in with Cate, was anxious to find out how everything went as well. "It went wonderfully," Jamie replied cheerfully. "In case you couldn't tell, she was the control group," Steph explained. "She had her mind officially melted. She passed out for a while." "I would have worried," Brittany said, "but Alex had just finished with me and I could feel her emotions as she went under. It was the weirdest thing. I could literally feel an inkling of what she was experiencing." "That was nothing," Steph added. "I had a little orgasm when she did. That got me so ready for my own." "We meant did you each get boosted, not how it was sleeping with my brother," Cate pointed out, letting the girls think she didn't like hearing about Alex's sex life. "They each did," Alex explained as he started eating things from the bag that Cate had thrown at him. Jamie tried to sneak some grapes, and he playfully slapped her hand before sticking a couple in her open mouth before continuing. "As Steph explained, Jamie got the full treatment. Steph had the build up but I skipped the simultaneous orgasm, and poor Brittany drew the short straw. She didn't get the big build up but I tried to give her an orgasm when I did, but I was off by a few minutes." "So I was right, then?" Gail asked, trying to drive her point home. "You don't really need to work so hard to achieve the same results." Alex agreed with her summation, so she continued. "I think that just demonstrates that you've been standing in the way of your own abilities. Maybe if you stopped trying to analyze and control everything you might be able to figure out this spontaneous boosting ability." "I prefer the old way, myself," Jamie replied as she stretched out, not bothering to be as self-conscious as Brittany was. Brittany figured she was fighting a losing battle, so she dropped the sheet she was covering herself with and started picking up the scattered pieces of clothing she found lying around the room. "So it worked with everyone?" Gail stressed. "Did you try communicating with anyone?" she asked Stephanie. "Yeah, I said hello to Anh just to see how well my telepathy worked. By the way, Alex, she said she's anxious to speak to you today." "Yeah, she can wait until we hit the road later. Right now we need to get cleaned up and dressed. I think we're all ready for breakfast." The three girls agreed. "I think Steph and I should get to share the shower with you this morning, to make up for not getting the full 'mind melting' treatment last night," Brittany teased as she handed out the various pieces of underwear she'd collected. Once Cate was sure they were all moving in the right direction, she returned to the other room to give them a little more privacy. She'd learned what she'd wanted to find out. ------- "So, what do you think about this 'spontaneous boost' issue?" Alex asked, once they'd escaped the heavy downtown traffic, allowing them focus on Alex's outstanding issues. They'd gotten an early start, since they had no one to meet and were anxious to get out of the city. Gail had informed them she had a late morning public meeting with the mayor where they were going to give her a key to the city for saving people from the attack at the Cotton Bowl Stadium, so Alex and Cate were on their own for the day. She'd try to catch them when they stopped for the night, but she didn't know how soon she could get away, or how long it would take her to catch up with them. "Well, as usual it's complicated," Cate said diplomatically. She turned to watch him as she got comfortable, preparing to discuss the issues at length. "First of all, I'm not sure 'spontaneous' is the best word to use. I was thinking of 'autonomous', since it occurred independently of your conscious mind, but that doesn't seem to be much better. But aside from that, there are a lot of outstanding issues about it." Alex was pleased to see Cate getting back into her 'science mode', which is where she felt the most comfortable and enjoyed herself the most. He knew she was uncomfortable constantly watching out for him, and he knew she was much better exercising her mind instead. What's more, Alex had been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to explore the issues that had arisen lately. There were a lot of things they had no explanations for, and they really needed some handle on them to know how best to approach them. He knew that Cate was the best person for that role. "And those issues would be?" he prompted her, even though he already had his own list. "The whole premise behind your boosting the women during sex was predicated on the extreme mix of hormones in the brain during sex combined with the heavy brain activity occurring during orgasm, and the necessary emotional link that you seem to need to make the connection. It just doesn't make sense that you can bypass all of that." "But you heard what happened last night. Apparently all those steps I was taking were unnecessary. I boosted the girls without them." "But that's just it, just because they don't need a simultaneous orgasm doesn't mean they don't require the hormones, the increased brain activity or the emotional connection. There's clearly more to it than that. There's something else that we're missing, although the rest is a part of it as well. If you don't need the other things to achieve the spontaneous boost, then you probably don't need them otherwise. But our focus needs to be on how you achieved that in the first place." Alex could see that Cate, once again playing the role of scientist, was again calm and detached, evaluating the issues on a logical basis, not on the emotional one he was considering them on. "So what do you suggest as an alternative?" Alex prompted her again. "The idea that you could do such a thing from a distance, to people that you hadn't even gotten to know yet, goes against everything we've assumed about the process up to this point, so clearly those assumptions were incorrect." "You do remember that incidents of violence have generally—" Alex began. "Yeah, I know," she said, but then continued as if he hadn't said anything. "Thus we have much of the same ingredients. You have the emotional connection, because you're concerned about the women due to the perceived threat to them, and you have the excitement level that seems to be a major component for you, but what's missing is the women's responses. Apparently they don't need the big build up. Apparently the only requirements are your own. Whatever you manage to do you do on your own, with no requirements on their part." "You don't think the adrenaline rush they got from being shot at made a difference?" Alex asked. "I'm not sure, but I don't think it was a major component. Instead I think it was a component for you, and as I said, the worry about one of your 'followers' was threatened would force you to identify with them. I suspect the long process is so you'll trust someone enough to relax, but if forced, you can make the jump that much sooner." "So you're suggesting the hours long lovemaking is just to make myself feel better about the whole process?" "I didn't say that, but we may need to examine it as a separate issue. Right now I want to examine what's essential to the process and what's not. I'm thinking this is more about your ability to create and enhance links in their minds. Again, I'm thinking the boosting, at least for the Seers, involves recreating or enhancing the existing links you've already created in their minds." "And the Watchers?" Alex countered. "I suspect you're doing something similar, but it doesn't involve anything nearly so complex it would show up on a brain scan. I think you're probably doing something with a quantum-mind, you're essentially sharing a portion of your mind, or possible the Seers' minds, with the Watchers." "Wait, this is the same quantum mind you think I've somehow accessed in another dimension, and that fosters both the telepathy and gives me my extra energy from?" "Yeah, and we need to come up with another term for that energy," Cate said. "It gets too difficult talking about two different types of energy using the same terms. The energy you give off is clearly different than the biological process of converting fats and food into biochemical energy to propel muscles. It's a whole different beast." "Well hold off on that thought for now, since I've been debating that myself. I've got an idea, but I want to discuss it with the others first." "The others?" Cate asked, although she had a good idea what he was saying. "But if I do it by triggering the link that I created in their brain, then wouldn't it mean that all I need to do is tweak that linkage again?" Alex asked, avoiding answering her question immediately. "Couldn't I then boost someone without doing anything specific? Couldn't I just access their minds directly, make a slight adjustment and get out again, without getting anyone worked up?" "That's something we may never know," Cate advised him. "You have no conscious control over the aspect of your mind that handles these things, so we don't know how to control or even access it. Thus we've got to rely on what we know will work, and try to refine that process. Simply hoping for the impossible won't advance anything." Alex was still mostly convinced it was a combined process between him and the girls, but he wasn't quite willing to rule anything out at the moment, especially since their best theories had just been knocked for a loop. The idea that he may be able to boost people without having to take them to bed was vitally important to Alex. He continued to feel bad about what he was doing, like he was using everyone's perceptions of him being more than the naïve young man that he was to take advantage of people he barely even knew. What's more, the conflict over who to boost, and whether they were currently involved or not, was a constant source of worry for him. The incident with Megan and Ryan still bothered him tremendously. He'd made a stupid mistake in ignoring his better instincts and had almost responded by inflicting permanent damages on someone who couldn't handle the situation. Such a scene just illustrated why this whole process was so dangerous. He was playing with people's lives here. And although he had powerful motives for doing it, he couldn't shake the perception that he was only doing it to get his own rocks off, effectively making him no better than any of the other high profile people who have a string of sexual dalliances then proclaim shock and dismay when eventually exposed. Alex could only imagine when he was eventually exposed. Man, the number of people who could publish a book about their experiences with him would be almost unlimited. "The shared quantum-mind would certainly explain a lot. That would explain the tremendous link we share between us. You know I feel as strongly about my Watchers as I do the Seers, despite the direct brain connection I share with the Seers." "Yeah, while that's one of the more 'far out' conjectures, it also makes the most sense," Cate said, blowing a stray hair out of her face. "Luckily we don't have to account for how it could occur, since we're simply assuming you're utilizing a pre-existing quantum mind that you're using to share your own abilities with the girls. If I had to explain the whole thing in a science paper, it would take another hundred years, at the very least, but if we simply assume it's an already working system, we can skip most of those problems." Cate was frustrated not by her brother and her inability to answer his questions, but because she was distracted at the moment. The back of the small car was filled with cages of hyperactive mice whose continual chittering kept diverting her attention. Since they'd had to leave town ahead of Patricia and her band, and would probably be separated from them for over a day, they'd decided to bring Cate's lab mice with her so that Alex could continue giving them their twice a day exposure to his energy, testing how they responded to it over time so Cate could determine the effects of long term exposure to Alex's energy. She'd dedicated certain mice to specific tests, namely the 'Alex mice' (who'd get a massive exposure equivalent to what Alex was getting), the 'Seer' mice (who'd get a much smaller dose representative to what they'd get), and the control group, who'd receive none at all. She was currently trying to settle both Anh and Brooke, two mice named after two of his earliest followers. Alex had already spent enough time with them he could actually identify which little furry creature was which. Neither Alex nor Cate felt comfortable riding in a car full of mice, since all it would take would be one simple accident, or his hitting the brakes too hard, and Cate's precious experiment might be seriously compromised. But they couldn't leave them behind, and there was no way to secure the cages like they had in the touring van. Still, they tried to ignore the disruption and continue the conversation. "So, if we agree there's something in me that could achieve this spontaneous boost without my getting physically involved with the women—excusing any obvious puns, since I can't imagine anything more 'physically involved' than monkeying around with someone's brain—then how do we figure out how it operates, so that we can figure out how to access it?" Alex asked, starting to feel frustrated since they weren't coming up with any clear solutions to his central underlying problem. Cate simply shrugged her shoulders. "You can't. There could be any number of different factors occurring, and we have no way of tracking any of them down since we don't have access to your unconscious mind. But we have some decent ideas, so hopefully we're narrowing it down. You just can't get frustrated yet. This is a big step, as you said, so it doesn't make sense to rush it unnecessarily. It's worth taking a structured look at it. If we can crack this particular nut I have a feeling we'll figure a lot more as well. So that makes it even more important than it is at the moment. After all, this one little detail, the unlocking of this mystery, could mean the difference between boosting dozens and thousands of individuals." "As if I'm not feeling stressed enough about it at the moment," Alex groaned, but he knew she was correct. Just as she usually was. He sat there for a moment considering it. "I think I may have to take Anh's advice on the topic," Alex suggested. "Anh's?" Cate asked. "What did she say about it?" "Just what she's always said, that there's more to what's happening than simple science can account for. She keeps harping on my spirit having crossed over from the spirit realm to guide me in this, just like the other girls keep telling me that I'm being led by God. Maybe that's the simplest explanation. Maybe there's some outside influence pulling strings that we simply can't see." "Alex, while I still believe in God, I don't believe in a paternalistic deity that has the time to sit around listening and responding to individual prayers of each individual animal in his kingdom, nor that he controls each and every physical response in the entire universe in each second of its existence. I believe that he set the universe up to operate according to very specific rules, and that those rules are what governs its functioning. Science has answered most of the major questions for the last 2500 years, the same questions that religion has failed time and again to answer, so I can't see any point in abandoning a reasoned response now." "That's not what I'm suggesting," Alex calmly explained to her. "All I'm saying is that, given our inability to come up with a rational explanation, we may have to forego explaining it right now. I'm thinking that maybe someone else is doing the activations instead of me, for their own reasons. So instead of stressing about what's causing it, we need to focus on what we're going to do about it." "Oh," Cate responded, looking momentarily surprised by that response. She waited a few moments before responding again. "Well, what's the next step? You've been trying to repeat the process without any luck, so it doesn't look like you can force it to occur. And both you and I need to figure this out. You because it will solve a major problem, and me because it seems it might provide a clue to how everything works. And, frankly, leaving it in the hands of an 'unknown entity' seems like just throwing our hands in the air and giving up." "Again, that wasn't my attempt in suggesting it. I was simply trying to say that maybe I'm not directly responsible for it. But you're right, it's too soon for us to assume that. Gail seems to think I 'need to get out of my own way' in the matter," Alex reminded her. "That's a familiar refrain, as Anh always said that as well. They may have a point. Maybe if I just stop stressing about it, I'll stumble across how to do it." "That's hardly a plan of attack," Cate said. "Telling someone to relax is almost guaranteed to make them tense up. Telling you to just ignore it means you won't be able to." "OK, it looks like we may need the big guns to figure this one out. Why don't you try calling Anh and ask her if she has any ideas? I wanted to speak to her about what happened to them anyway." So Cate got her phone out and dialed the number, putting it on speakerphone as soon as it started to ring. "Hello? Cate?" they heard Allison answer. "What's this? No 'Angel Vision Foundation'? We leave for a couple of weeks and suddenly everyone forgets the proper way to answer the phone?" Cate teased her. "No, it's just that we've been anxiously waiting for your call. We checked it was you calling before I answered," Allison replied. "And who is 'we'? We were hoping to ask Anh a few questions," Cate told her. "I'm here," Anh responded. "Yeah, Anh, Shani and Liv are all here. We knew you were anxious to discuss what happened, so we took the day off just so we could be here for this call. That's why I was so nervous when I answered," Allison responded. "Was there something specific you were looking to say?" Alex asked, slightly concerned. "Not specifically," Shani responded, "but we had some things we wanted to convey that we figured out from our little mishap, but mostly we're just here for you. After all, we hear from you so infrequently, and we're used to you relying on us a lot. Plus, we figure you had a lot to tell us about what you learned in New Orleans." "Yeah, can't we just be glad to talk with you?" Allison asked. "OK, sorry for asking then. It's good to speak to you all again, and I'm glad you're all there," Alex said. "So how are you feeling? Have you recovered from the other day?" "We're fine," Shani assured him. "It's just like you always do, we just needed to eat and we eventually recovered, though we seemed to take a bit longer to recover than you usually do. I'm guessing the energy you have constantly pouring through you makes a pretty big difference." "What about you, Anh, any after affects with your head injury?" "No, I'm fine. If there was any injury, they seem to have taken care of it. I had a bit of a headache, but no more than I used to get once a month, so it wasn't anything major," she explained. "You know, I've been thinking about what to call this energy I'm taking in. Simply calling it 'energy' causes a lot of confusion. By referring to everything as energy we aren't being very precise." "I agree, we've found ourselves caught in the same word trap," Liv replied. "Do you have any suggestions on what to call it instead?" "Actually I do," Alex responded. "I definitely don't want it named after me. First of all it would sound boastful, which just isn't like me, but more importantly I don't want anything that refers back to me, since it would make talking about it in public difficult." "So... ," Shani prompted him, knowing he'd already come up with something. "I was thinking of making it personal, but still nonspecific enough so no one would be able to figure out what it was. I'm thinking of simply calling it BCM energy, or just BCM for short." "BCM?" Cate asked, glancing at her brother. "It stands for 'Becky, Cate and Melissa'," Alex answered. "That way it gives credit for what they are each doing for me, since I know one of the three will likely eventually unlock the secrets to it. I figured I might as well give them credit for it upfront, rather than creating some meaningless abbreviation. "What's more, it's nonspecific enough that no one will know what we're referring to. If anyone manages to overhear one of us referring to it, and asks what we're talking about, we can always claim it stands for 'British Comedy Measure', meaning it refers to how dry or abstract the person's humor and personality are. That way we can make it sound like we're talking about individuals, rather than about a scientific principle, but it would also be so esoteric it would never catch on and anyone hearing it would quickly forget about it." "You've clearly given this some thought," Shani replied. "And you seem to be the resident expert on esoteric names," she said with a laugh. "Actually I think he may be onto something," Cate said. "It would be easy enough to drop in conversation, it wouldn't mean anything to anyone listening, and it's got a quick response if anyone does ask about it. Although it hardly slips off the tongue, I think it does everything we'd need a name to do for us. Although I take exception to the idea that Becky may isolate and document it before I do," she added with a little edge to her voice. "You know, speaking of names, how about we change what we call the Watchers," Shani suggested. "Every time someone says it, I see Natalie wince." "What's wrong with Watchers?" Alex asked, clearly surprised to hear that anyone had an objection to it. "Well, frankly it's a little demeaning, as if they aren't as committed or as motivated as the Seers are," she replied. "And it's not just the Watchers who feel that way," Allison told him. "I see the girls from your school who help out around here react whenever the term comes up. They glance at each other, as if asking 'if they say that about them, then what chance do we have?'" "So what would you suggest we call them?" Alex asked a little irritably. "Hey, you're the man in charge," Allison told him, "you should be the one to choose. After all, BCM was nicely handled. We're just bringing a problem to your attention." Alex looked a bit frustrated to be presented with this at the moment, especially since he had no ready response to it. "Well, I'll take it under advisement. What other topics did we want to discuss?" "So is Becky there?" Cate asked. "I had something I was going to ask her as well." "No, she had school today," Allison said. "She was interested in talking about what was happening, too, but she's been busy doing her work trying to sequence your genome. We told her we'd take care of this and let her know what we found out." "What did you want to ask her?" Shani asked. "It's not worth getting into just yet," Cate answered. "We've got a lot of things to discuss, and I'd rather get to the more important things first." "So what's first on the agenda then?" Liv asked. "I'm very worried about my inability to duplicate the spontaneous boost I achieved yesterday. This is something that's vitally important, since it means the difference between boosting one or two girls at a time and boosting everyone we meet." "Not to mention it also eases your guilt about having to sleep with everyone," Shani guessed, once again knowing just how Alex's mind worked. "Guilty as charged," Alex answered. "I'd love it if I didn't have to continue making love every damn night, nor having to worry about crossing some unseen line each time I do. It's stressful enough doing what I have to do, but adding making love to a string of strangers at every stop just makes it uncomfortable for everyone." "Well, not everyone," Shani answered with a quiet laugh. "We all seemed to appreciate it, and I'm sure each of the girls you spend time with treasures it tremendously. Methinks you focus on the negatives too much. I don't think it's as much of an issue as you're making it into." "Well, we had an embarrassing scene the other night when I went against my own better judgment and took an established couple to bed, simply because the guy said it was alright. It almost went tragically wrong." "Wait, you took another guy to bed?" Allison asked, sounding shocked at the very idea. "Alex wanted to boost a specific person," Cate explained, "and her boyfriend agreed it made sense, but he insisted on being there just to ensure she didn't fall for Alex and out of love for him. Everyone agreed, but the guy turned into a real ass about it when they got down to it. Alex was about to do something very stupid when we jumped in, saving his ass yet again." "Yeah, I could see where that would be problematic," Shani answered. "But that kind of thing hardly happens very often. I still think you're making a mountain out of a molehill here." "That may be so, but it's important to me," Alex responded. "It makes it unfair to the women who chose to not make love to me, like Caity or Kelly Ott, plus it makes me feel like I'm taking advantage of everyone. It makes me feel like I consider myself more important than anyone else, and it causes me nightly stress as well." "Alex, I hate to tell you this, but in regards to this mission of yours, you are more important than anyone else," Liv reminded him. "Only you hold the key to the future of this new race. If you can sire an heir with your genetic ability then it could very well live on and form the basis of a large community. But if you start getting self conscious it could mean the whole thing goes nowhere and we all eventually die out as a simple momentary blip on the evolutionary scale." "Well, debating the merits of Alex's worry isn't answering the question," Cate pointed out. "Does anyone have any ideas about how we may be able to unlock this new ability of Alex's?" That got everyone focusing, and they tried various suggestions, although most simply duplicated the things that Alex and Cate had already either discussed or tried. No one seemed to be getting anywhere. Finally Alex grew frustrated. "Anh, you always seem to come up with amazing new insights when everyone else is stymied," Alex said. "What do you have to say? You've been pretty quiet up to now." She took a moment to respond. "I think yours is an old problem, older than time itself. You have to ask yourself, what does the turtle do when it encounters something it no understand?" "A turtle?" Alex asked, surprised by the question. "Yes, a common turtle. What does it do when it runs across something it cannot figure out?" "Uh, I have no clue," Alex answered, sounding befuddled by the question. "It simply goes around it," she answered simply. "It no worry about what it cannot understand. If you get more information, then you go back and try again. But if you no understand enough to answer question, then it's simply not worth bothering with." The simple wisdom of Anh's advice surprised everyone. Alex wasn't happy having his worries effectively shunted aside, but he had to admit that no one seemed to know enough to offer any significant advice, so he figured that Anh had a good point. If there's no way to figure something out you simply put it aside, only going back once some new information offers you the chance of unlocking it. However, Anh's advice effectively shut down the conversation. "OK, there are other issues," Cate pressed. "What did we figure out from your misadventures the other night?" "Just a second," Alex said, interrupting her, "what did you figure out about Frank Osmon? The two of you talked the other morning, but you never told me what you figured out about him. Is he like Peter and David in New Orleans, you know, having an extra X-chromosome?" "Well, he wasn't aware of it if he was," Cate replied, remembering their conversations back in San Antonio, "although it seems that many people with that condition never know it. It's estimated that it occurs anywhere from one out of every 500 to one out of thousand men. They wouldn't show any symptoms as long as the NRY region of the Y-chromosome, the noncombining genes, prevents the expression of the female-specific genes on the X-chromosome. However, if that were the case then I'd expect they wouldn't be able to utilize the gene in question, since we have good reason to think the gene which governs the Watchers and Seers are within the sex specific region of the X-chromosome. A more probable hypothesis is that they're actually chimeras, or someone actually possessing two different chromosome pairs. If parts of their brain had some XX chromosomes while the rest of their body was a normal XY it could account for it, although it would be difficult to test for. Generally, you can only determine it if a specific medical issue points out a specific region of the body to examine for it. Chimerism is generally associated with the body's absorption of a twin's body before it can develop. It's fairly complicated." "Well, that's more than I really needed to know. The question is can we learn anything from Frank, and more specifically, could it be possible for me to discover a male Seer because of the same mechanism?" "I don't think so. In order for it to occur, the normally blocked sex-specific regions of the X chromosome and the NRY Y chromosome region would compete with each other, producing some significant medical issues. Basically it wouldn't be a pretty thing to see someone suffer from, and they'd have a fairly short lifespan." "All right, I'll take that as a no, then. Now is there anything we can learn from the three men who've managed to express the Watcher gene." "Actually, I suspect the Watchers and Seers utilize the same gene, but I think the Seers have two separate occurrences of it, whereas the Watchers only have one. A normal male could carry the gene, but it would normally be inhibited by the NRY gene on the Y-chromosome. That's why I suspect they only have a few specific regions of the body with an XX chromosome pair. But no, I haven't figured out how this will help us understand anything, although it looks like you'll occasionally meet more of them." "OK, so no new information then. Now, Cate was asking about what you girls in Carbondale learned from your attempt to heal Anh. Is there anything you've figured out?" "We've been discussing that amongst ourselves," Liv answered, taking charge of the discussion from their end. "Aside from our figuring out that we really aren't equipped to try it very often, we decided it had some specific uses for Alex." "Yeah," Allison echoed the thought. "If you were to give up this pointing at wounds like a spirit from on high, you may actually accomplish more. If you'd used your forehead, instead of your finger, you might not have worn yourself out so much with Jennifer Weston back in New Orleans." "That's a good point, Alex," Shani said. "You've got to be less preoccupied with trying to appear inconspicuous and go with what's the most effective. If you accomplish something amazing no one's going to care how indifferent you appeared. They're going to react to what you did however you go about it. Pressing your head against someone's wounds may seem a bit too religious for you, looking more like a praying motion than a 'laying on of hands', but it would clearly work better than what you're doing now." "OK, I can get on board with that," Alex replied. "Though let me point out I wasn't doing it to be any less inconspicuous. I just didn't have any reason to think there was any more effective way of doing it. After all, I'd only done that the first time because Shani suggested it and it seemed the most obvious way of doing it. But I've got no problems in being more efficient." After that they discussed the issues Alex had tackled in San Antonio at the Brooke Medical Center. Liv and Allison were especially interested in discussing the topics raised there, and each of the Carbondale girls were interested in what he'd learned about handling mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) cases. But nothing they discussed seemed to offer much in their own treatment of such injuries at the high school, not that they had many of them to worry about, as it was. "So what was it you wanted to ask Becky?" Shani asked Cate when the discussion finally ground down. "Before you get to that," Liv interrupted, "let me tell you that she's been having more success than she led you to believe the other day. Apparently the machinery she has access to is pretty sophisticated, so it can do a lot of work. What's more, she's made some assumptions which seem to be making things much easier. Instead of doing a full genome analysis, like she'd originally suggested, she'd been focusing on a few specific regions. I'm not sure I understand it, but she thinks she can come up with some answers pretty quickly." "That sounds impressive and we'll have to talk to her about it, but what I wanted to ask her was a bit more generic than that," Cate responded. "I've been thinking a lot more about what Alex does when he activates someone. Each of you know what I'm referring to, and most of you were there when Alex activated Gail, so you could actually see what happened. But I'm interested in why nothing occurs until Alex looks someone in the eyes. Even when he activated Mattie, nothing happened until he looked into her eyes, so it can't have anything to do with their individual responses. Do you have any idea what this thing of making eye contact is about?" Everyone considered that, but it was Liv who answered first. "There's more to the eyes than just being 'the windows to the soul'. While he may be simply getting to know them on a personal basis, much like he does when he has to figure out their 'psychic phone number' in order to communicate telepathically with them, the eyes typically reveal what's happening in the body as well. I don't have to tell you how the eyes convey sicknesses in the body, like with dialysis patients. The eyes are close to the brain, so they typically offer insights into what's happening there more directly than any other method. That's why people use them to determine whether someone is on drugs or how they're responding to them in a hospital environment." "Frankly, Cate, I think we were all focusing on Gail's brain when Alex activated her," Allison responded. "None of us even considered looking into her eyes." "I think Liv has the right idea," Cate answered, as if she'd been struck with a revelation. "It may have nothing at all to do with communication, or with recognizing each other. Instead it might have everything to do with how the eyes respond." "So what do you think it might reveal?" Shani asked. "If he's looking for some indication of how their bodies or brains are responding, then the most obvious thing they'd be responding to would be his BCM energy. That's why they're responding in the first place. The idea has always been that what separates the Watchers from the Seers is the strength of their response. I've assumed that since only women seem to be affected by Alex's ability, that it requires the double X-chromosome to respond to him. Thus it may be that Watchers have a single necessary gene, which I'll call the 'S' gene, while the Seers have a double dose of it from having the same gene active on both their X-chromosomes. That could account for why they respond so differently." "So what are you suggesting?" Liv asked. "That the Seers have some receiver in their brains that the Watchers don't, that they're picking up some invisible signal Alex is broadcasting?" "Oh, it's invisible alright, but I don't think Alex is actually broadcasting it, and I don't think they need a specific mechanism to receive it. I think it's what we've been discussing all along. I think the 'S' gene they both possess controls how their bodies respond to Alex's abundance of BCM. It isn't that Alex's abilities parallel their own so much, but that he knows they'll respond to his energy. "Look, think of it this way," she said, taking a moment to reorganize her thoughts. "We've always thought that Alex's genetic ability was related to that of the Seers. But I screwed up that concept when I surmised his gift wasn't in activating someone's native ability, but was instead in his creating a physical link to a different dimension somewhere. A place where he could take in more of this BCM than he could elsewhere. What I'm suggesting here is similar to that. It isn't that Alex is determining whether they have a specific ability or not, instead, I think he's measuring how they'll respond to his BCM. "If we assume the 'S' gene controls how people respond to BCM, where those without it don't respond at all, the Watchers respond to it positively, but the Seers respond the best of all, then it reduces everything to that responsiveness. Alex isn't broadcasting anything for them to receive. Instead he's simply radiating BCM, and they've been genetically predisposed to respond to it." "So how would that work?" Allison asked, figuring Cate was onto more than what she'd said so far. "What's so important about how they'd respond to this BCM energy?" "That's the point," Cate said. "They don't have any specific abilities of their own. What abilities they showed before is tied into their body's reaction to people's varying levels of BCM. Thus when he establishes eye contact with them, he's measuring how their bodies will respond to the BCM. Specifically how their bodies can utilize it. Look, if he's actually creating portals between dimensions or between their brains and his, then there's more to it than just the simple creation of said portal. That was shown when he accidentally created one in Rakeem's head. It simply didn't work. The portal itself doesn't do anything. Instead the recipient has to be able to grow enough new tissue to be able to respond to the new input. "What I'm suggesting is that while the Watchers respond to his energy, the Seers are actually capable of using the energy to grow new tissue. I'm guessing that if Rachel had been a Seer, or a potential Seer, that she would have responded much quicker to his attempt to force her to grow new tissue. As it was, she responded much faster than Jennifer did. Essentially what Alex is measuring when he looks in their eyes is how well they can grow the new tissue that's needed to respond to the new links he creates in their brains." "You know, you may be onto something there," Allison responded. "We know that the activated Seers' brains undergo some rapid growth. We know he actually affects two separate areas in their brains, one specifically in the communication and cognitive area of the brain, and the other outside of the brain itself along the optic nerve. In both cases we've documented that the Seers grow new tissue that would be necessary for them to process these new abilities." "Right," Cate replied. "And Alex can apparently tell who's capable of growing new tissue by how their eyes respond to the BCM he gives off. Thus he doesn't try to activate the brains of Watchers or type 3s, already knowing they wouldn't respond to it." "But wouldn't that require a lot of a priori knowledge?" Shani asked. "I mean, how could he possibly know that? After all, he supposedly hadn't done anything like that until he'd first met me." "Not that we're aware of," Cate replied. "So far, we've surmised that he created his first portal in his own brain when we were both young, based on how long I've been feeling the effects of his BCM. That leaves years before he activated you. That doesn't mean he wasn't trying in all of those years. For all we know, there could be hundreds or thousands of people walking around Shawneetown with little gaps in their brains that they never responded to or ever noticed. After all, we know that Alex doesn't create them in the brain itself. Or at least we know he hasn't in any brain other than his. Instead he creates it in the gaps in the brain, inside the brains' sulci. Thus he'd never really affect anyone who couldn't respond to it by rapidly growing the necessary brain tissue in response to the BCM." "That makes sense," Allison said, getting excited herself at Cate's newest proposal. "We've already theorized that the gap in our brains holds the mechanisms to physically transfer our thoughts, which gives us our telepathy. But the gap along our optic nerve is smaller and not as well formed. Chances are it doesn't actually transfer anything, but was created simply as a way of giving us a quick boost of BCM to trigger the growth there." "Which still begs the question of how Alex could ever have known how the brain would respond, or which areas of the brain to create which structures in?" Liv responded. "Hell, I'm a damn surgeon who's studied the brain, and I couldn't give you a specific location to try something like that in." "Again, that's something we'll probably never know enough to answer," Allison answered, "but this idea of Cate's manages to answer several important elements with an elegantly simple solution. There is no underlying ability in the Seers that Alex is acting on when he activates them. Instead he's simply working on their ability to respond to BCM to grow new tissue." "But the Seers could already identify people's emotions before they encountered Alex," Shani argued. "Just take Brooke's explanations of her own history. She describes how she always knew what to expect in emergency situations." "But again, that can be explained by how someone responds to BCM," Cate responded. "They can differentiate the BCM they receive enough so they can tell the differences between them. Just as I can, even though I don't possess the supposed 'S' gene. Because I've been exposed to it for so long, I can tell the difference between his BCM and that of others. If I can differentiate that much, then surely someone like a Seer, who is attuned to it, may be able to deduce something from the differences they pick up from someone." "Maybe, but there's a hell of a lot of unanswered questions," Liv answered. "Hey, you can't expect me to solve every issue we'll ever encounter all at once," Cate argued with a relaxed laugh. "Let's take what we have. Knowledge is the slow accumulation of fact, and theory is the best attempt to explain it. We just added a little more. Let's take it and see what we can figure out with it, rather than worrying about what we don't yet know," she answered. It was clear that Cate was in a much better mood, having just figured out one of the long outstanding mysteries of Alex's abilities. She was sure she'd cracked an essential nut in their understanding of the underlying genetics concerning Alex and his women, and she was anxious to discuss these newest theories with Becky, to see if she could put these newest ideas to use in identifying the genes responsible for those abilities. Man, it was a great day to be a scientist, she told herself. ------- After they hung up the phone the conversation in the car died out temporarily, leaving the car filled with nothing but the sounds of the traffic outside and of scurrying rodents in the back seat. To alleviate the awkwardness, Alex asked about what Cate had discussed the previous night, meaning her secretive talk, but she wouldn't tell him. "It's a new theory, but I don't have enough information to make an informed decision yet," she told him. "Oh, well, you also mentioned you needed to call Becky about it, do you want to do that now?" Alex prompted. "Not really, it'll be fairly involved and I'd rather not discuss it while we're traveling, as I may not be able to hear all the technical details." Alex wasn't quite convinced that made that much sense, especially since she could always send an e-mail using her iPad instead, but he held his tongue. It seemed she was reluctant to discuss it, so he figured he'd best leave it alone. Besides, it probably had to do with her genetics investigation which Shani had alluded to, in which case she may need to do some research before she talked to her. "So what are your plans for Oklahoma?" Cate asked, trying to shift he conversation. "I'm just planning on lying low. I'd like to avoid calling attention to myself for a little while until the excitement in Dallas fades a little." "Yeah, now that's likely," Cate observed teasingly. "No, really, I've thought it out. I'd originally been planning on staying in Dallas for a couple of days, so there's no rush to accomplish anything in Oklahoma. Since I'd only planned on spending a day there, I should be able to establish a small community there in about a day. Now I won't turn anyone that shows up away, but it also doesn't mean that we have to park ourselves downtown where I'll attract a lot of attention. In fact, what do you think about staying at a smaller outlying hotel?" Cate seemed thoughtful for a few moments. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea," she said, but didn't immediately explain. Instead she seemed to be searching for a satisfactory response. "I think it makes sense for you to avoid public appearances, but I think it's a mistake to avoid the city altogether." "We did that after we left New Orleans, and it didn't impact anyone," Alex pointed out. "Yeah, but still, why don't we go ahead to the hotel that Patricia got for us? We can check in early and just stay in the hotel. I can check the lobby occasionally and bring anyone who shows up to the room. Oh, by the way, I'm ... uh, having my period so I'll probably sleep alone tonight." Alex turned to glance at his sister. "You know that isn't an issue with me. We don't have to have sex, but that doesn't mean you can't sleep with me. After all, I know how much it means for you to spend time with me, soaking up my energy as it were." "Yeah, well, I guess I'm just having an off day," she said, "I think I'll skip it for one night. Maybe two, we'll have to see how things go," she concluded. Alex glanced at her again, a little taken aback by her response. This wasn't typical of her and he wondered what might be going on, but once again he decided to not press the issue. While it bothered him that she didn't want to spend time with him, he knew it could be any number of things, and he didn't want to stress her out if she had a good reason for her decision. He knew pushing her for information would just make her defensive. "I'll see if I can find something for us to do in the evening at a somewhat less crowded venue," she said, as she busied herself with her little device, hurriedly typing in search requests. Alex just shook his head and thought about other issues. He was still upset he didn't have any new leads on his automatic boosting. Such an ability would mean a big difference, not just in who he had to make love to on any given night, but also in how many people he could reach in a limited amount of time. He really wanted to figure this riddle out, since he had so much depending on it, so both of them kept to themselves for the next hour or so. ------- They arrived in Oklahoma City relatively early, before lunchtime, and drove directly to the Skirvin Hilton in the downtown area. It was located near several different convention centers, but seeing as how it was Sunday there weren't that many people on the streets. Alex still wasn't comfortable being downtown, preferring to avoid any public interactions, but Cate had a point, he couldn't just hole up in the hotel room indefinitely. He'd attract attention no matter where he was. Besides, he'd really enjoyed being able to wander the streets in San Antonio. Hopefully here, in a smaller city, he may be able to do so again. After Alex parked the car in the garage, they entered the hotel to check in with Cate carrying the animal cages on top of her luggage rack, perched above her single suitcase. While Alex headed to the reception desk, Cate told him she had to make a phone call and wandered off, standing to the side by her curious mice, before he could ask who she was calling. Shrugging his shoulders, he went ahead and did what he needed to. Approaching the reception desk, the receptionist looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. Since she met his eyes and only reacted by looking even more awestruck, he assumed she was a Watcher. She was young, with dirty blond hair pulled back into a short ponytail. She had light freckles across her nose and cheeks. Glancing down before addressing her, he noticed her nametag read "Georgia Cantrell". "Good morning, Georgia." "Good morning, sir. Can I do anything for you? Anything at all?" Another older man, standing at the end of the counter examining the computer, looked up. "Is there a problem, Georgia?" "No, sir, it's just ... this man is clearly..." Georgia seemed unable to phrase how she was perceiving this man she clearly didn't know. "I just want to make sure we offer this gentleman the best service we can. He's clearly very important, and I'm sure he needs his privacy and anything we can offer him." "And you are?" he asked. Alex glanced at the nametag and saw his name was Andrew Peters. "Let's just call me Alex Jennings," Alex said, playing up the role of a celebrity in disguise. "Georgia, I think you can handle this. And yes, make sure you give him every amenity he requires." Alex was amazed it was so easy to get upgraded, even though he had no intention of asking for any special favors. After all, if they discovered he wasn't anyone special he'd not only get himself in trouble, but he'd hurt Georgia's reputation with her boss as well. "The room we reserved is fine. I realize that we're here early; there's no problem with leaving our bags here until check-in time, is there?" "Nonsense, Mr. Jennings, I'll have someone take your bags up to your room right away. Your room is already available," Georgia responded, signaling someone over to take care of them. "OK, a couple of other things, although they're all minor. First of all, one of the people staying with us isn't here yet, so you'll need to hold a key for Gail Sanders. Secondly, we need to discuss something with you," he said more quietly. "If you could give the room a call when you get off I'd appreciate it." Georgia nodded eagerly that she'd be sure to do that for him, no questions asked. "Finally, if you notice anyone looking lost in the lobby, tell them to come up to my room, I'll be expecting them. Chances are they won't recognize the name, but that's not unexpected, I'll know who they are." "I can take care of those things for you, Mr. Jennings. Will you need anything else?" "No, that should take care of everything. But please, call me Alex." She glanced at her boss, then back at Alex. "I'm afraid I can't do that, sir." "Well, at the very least, don't call me sir. You know, I've got a good feeling about you, I have a feeling you're going to be running this hotel one day." Alex had no idea why he added that last bit. It had sprung unbidden into his head and he'd said it before he could stop himself, but Georgia looked surprised by it, then she smiled and stood up straighter and she took his credit card. The rest of the check-in went by without any problems, but as Alex was walking away he overheard Georgia telling her boss, "You know, I'm going to take over your job in a couple of years." Alex felt very good about that. Cate joined him and they headed to the elevator accompanied by the porter, who Alex had gotten to load up the mice cages as well. He was very professional and never asked why they were carrying rodents into a hotel room. Alex reminded himself to supply him with a nice tip to ensure it wouldn't become an issue in the future. Cate just looked at the man and back at Alex without a word. "Who was the phone call to?" Alex asked. "Oh, I've been trying to contact Becky for a couple of days now. I couldn't reach her before," she answered. "You couldn't have called her from the car?" Alex asked, remembering she hadn't even attempted to call anyone beside the one call to the loft in Carbondale. "I didn't think you wanted to listen to us talk details. It's not very entertaining," she said, looking down at her feet. Alex looked at her again. If anyone was interested in their discussion it would be him, since it directly impacted him. He was about to say something but the elevator arrived then, so they climbed in and rode up in silence. Alex simply figured she had something planned, and he trusted her enough to tell him when he needed to know when he needed to know it. Again, there were several things it could be, and several of them, like Becky's genetics research, might need to be fleshed out before she could discuss it with him. "There aren't many people around today," Cate said, changing the topic after they rode the elevator in silence for a few long seconds, "from what I can see, how about we wander the streets and see if we can find a nice place for lunch. I'm not crazy about your idea of staying in the hotel all day." Alex shrugged, Cate seemed to be in a strange mood. "That's fine by me. I'm kind of anxious to get out, too. I just wanted to avoid any public scenes for a couple of days if I can. But since there don't seem to be that many people around, maybe we can slip by if we're careful." They put their bags away in the room and Cate carefully stored the animal cages along the bathroom wall, under the sink, while Alex tipped the porter. Once he left, Cate brought up a subject she'd been holding back while they were in mixed company. "Alex, I think you need to find a couple of new followers today and make love to them." "Huh, what?" Alex said, thrown off by the subject coming in out of the blue. "You need to boost a couple of women tonight, you can't hide out here until the concert," she said, clarifying her thought. Alex was thrown by this newest statement of Cate's. While he had been concerned that Cate didn't want to spend time with him, this was something completely different. It wasn't 'I need my space', instead it was, 'you need to do this, and you need to do it soon' There was clearly something she wasn't telling him. "And I need to do that tonight? How about if I just make love to you and Gail instead?" "I already told you, I can't tonight. Besides, it's important that you boost someone. A couple of someone's, to be more precise." Now this intrigued Alex. There was clearly more to this than met the eye. She wanted him to do something, she didn't want to be a part of it for some reason, and it had specific conditions to it. What could she be trying to do, and why couldn't she just come out and tell him what was up? "But why ... wait, this is concerning something you discussed with Becky isn't it? What did you ... this is about the spontaneous boosting, isn't it?" Alex asked, guessing what she was trying to arrange. "I can't say," Cate answered obliquely. "It would impact the results if I did. But you need to find and invite a couple of women here tonight, and it can't be either Gail or I. You need to boost someone." "Two people," Alex said, confirming what she'd just told him now that he had a better idea of what she was driving at. "I take it the idea is that, while I boost one, I may somehow boost the other one as well?" "Again, I can't say. But you'll do it anyway?" she asked. "Cate, if this will give us more insight into what's happening with the automatic boosting, you can count on it. That's going to make a big difference, and we need to give it our priority. It will impact a lot more people than we'd be able to reach otherwise." "Good, then let's get out of here and get us some lunch." Alex agreed, offering Cate his arm and escorting her out. If she had a new insight that would help solve this problem, he was all for it. The automatic boosting was important enough to risk exposing himself for. He was actually looking forward to meeting a couple of new followers now. He was looking forward to exploring Oklahoma City. ------- Chapter 29: A Quiet Oklahoman Afternoon Alex was glad to get out onto the streets of Oklahoma City. While he was afraid of attracting more attention to himself following the shooting in Dallas, he didn't like the idea of hiding in the hotel room any more than Cate did. What's more, the idea that Cate might have some ideas on how his 'automatic boost' ability worked had him enthused. If they could crack that nut it would really improve things for his followers, and for himself as well. As necessary as boosting people was, he didn't like having to constantly make love to a bunch of virtual strangers. He missed spending time with Kitty and Chalise, remembering the days when he only had three lovers with fondness, even if those memories were a little off, since he'd actually had quite an extensive harem at the time. But he still missed his girlfriends anyway. He managed to call them regularly, but there's a big difference between calling and being there. Despite his fears, they found the streets of downtown Oklahoma City on a hot summer Sunday morning relatively empty, so Alex wasn't as concerned about creating any potential scenes. If anyone overreacted, it was likely to only be noticed by a few people, so he felt a little freer, able to ignore his constantly niggling worries at least for the moment. The hotel was located near several conference centers and sports arenas, but the downtown area didn't have the big retail draw that other cities had. He didn't think the arenas were busy today so they headed off in a random direction, just walking along and seeing what they encountered. They were both enjoying themselves and Alex tried holding Cate's hand, but she dropped it after a few awkward minutes, which made Alex curious, but he figured she'd simply found synchronizing their pace difficult, so he ignored it. Still, he was feeling himself more uncertain about her all the time. 'Maybe she's just as anxious as I am about whatever test she's trying to schedule for me, ' he thought. They were enjoying the walk, even though the scenery wasn't overly impressive, when they were interrupted after several blocks. "Hey, wait. Wait for me!" someone called out behind them. Before they could even turn around they both heard the click-clack of heels as a woman ran after them, trying to reach them quickly. Alex had a good idea of what to expect, so he took a moment before turning around and confronting the woman, allowing her to draw closer. When he did turn, he saw a well dressed, slightly older woman, probably in her mid to late 40s, running towards them. When their eyes met she jerked back slightly, losing her balance momentarily. Alex was worried she'd trip, possibly twisting an ankle due to the high heels on the fashionable boots she wore, but she recovered, taking the time to focus on what she was doing and moving a bit more sedately after that. As she moved towards them more cautiously, Cate hurried to her side while Alex took the time to look her over. Although older, she seemed to be very comfortable. The slight laugh lines around her face made her seem like she really loved her life, and her clothes marked her as being somewhat successful. She wore a hat, which had made running after them more difficult, as she'd had to run with one hand on her head holding the hat in place. She also wore a scarf, a colorful multi-patterned dress and the aforementioned high-heeled leather boots. Alex knew next to nothing about women's footwear, but he knew what looked good, and he figured those must have cost a bit. She was also a blonde, with her long slightly curly hair bouncing around as she hurried forward, now being steadied by Cate. "Wait a minute," she said on reaching him. She put her hand on his chest as if to see if he was real or not, "you really knocked me for a loop with whatever you did to my vision. Give me a second and I'll be OK." It did in fact take a long time, probably around a full minute before she could gather her wits about her, but then she steadied herself and tried to address Alex directly, even though she had to squint while looking at him. "Excuse me, but I could somehow feel you from inside my club, and I just knew I had to find you. I was afraid you'd get away before I could catch up to you." Looking over her shoulder Alex observed a couple of women watching them from a small establishment farther down the street. "Don't worry, we're used to it. This is a typical reaction, though it's due to a rare occurrence," Alex explained patiently, as he took her arm and guided her to the side. "By the way, what's your name? I'm Alex and this is my sister Cate." "Sorry, my name is Leanna Dickson. As I said, I'm sorry to bother you but—" "Don't worry about it. You've got a rare genetic trait that responds to a certain energy that I give off. No one else can detect it, but for those that can, it's pretty overwhelming." "Excuse me, but why the hell are you glowing like a spotlighted disco ball? Is it you, or am I having some kind of stroke?" "No, you aren't having a stroke," Alex answered, laughing quietly. "Like your genetic anomaly, which allows you to detect people's emotions and feel this energy I give off, I have a separate one that allows me to 'activate' new abilities in you. The glow you see when you look at me is this energy I give off. We've decided to call it BCM for want of a better name. It's undetectable by anyone else, but you'll notice it in almost everything you look at now. It's a sort of life supporting energy, so it indicates health and a lot of other things. It'll probably be easier to explain this if we could sit down somewhere private. Does this club you just came from have an area we can talk privately in?" "It sure does," Leanna replied with a gentle laugh of her own, her laugh striking a light tinkling note that made one smile in response, "though I'm sure a lot of people are going to be curious why I took off running after some strange guy like I did, so we may have to answer a few questions about it." "That's fine. You'll find you'll have to watch how you respond to questions now, as we generally don't want to tell people too much about these abilities we have. But we've gotten fairly good at dealing with people's curiosity." "That's no problem, I'm used to dancing around issues. I've had my fair share of secrets in the course of my life. Come on, I'll take you back, introduce you, and then we can escape to a private room to discuss whatever you need to tell me." Alex offered Leanna his arm. She gave it and him an odd look, then shrugged and linked her own through it as they walked back. "If you look at the people around us, you'll noticed how their 'auras' contain a lot of different colors," Cate explained, as she fell in beside them. "You can only see pure white when you look at Alex, but that's because his BCM is so strong it overwhelms you. But with others it reflects a lot of information you'll likely find very useful." As Cate continued to describe what she was seeing, Alex took in their surroundings. There were four women standing outside of the club, which was pretty nondescript. It had those odd one way windows that looked like mirrors on the outside with the name of the club, "Maiden Nights", on it. Alex thought it an odd way to decorate a club, figuring clear windows would attract more people, but he guessed it was probably a bit exclusive and that they weren't interested in attracting just anyone to it. As they drew closer to it, he noted the other women awaiting their return were also nicely dressed, although one looked more like a lumber jack, which Alex found strange. If this was an exclusive club, and the others people were so nicely dressed, then surely there must be some kind of a dress code. Alex then wondered about his own attire, glancing quickly at Leanna and Cate, trying to guess whether there might be an issue with how they were dressed. But by then they were already back at the club. "Hey, Debbie, Betsy. Sorry, but I saw someone I recognized, Alex and Cate, out here, and I just had to say hello," Leanna explained. "Yeah? And how'd you do that when you couldn't see them?" the oddly dressed woman asked, though she seemed more curious than hostile. She didn't look bad, and she didn't have a heavy plaid jacket or anything, but she was just dressed more casually in what Alex would consider more work clothes than 'going to a club' type of dress. The woman was young, with a big toothy smile, and wore thick framed glasses that shouted 'retro chic'. She also wore her hair cut very short. "I actually heard their voices as they walked past and I noticed them as they passed the window," Leanna responded. "Anyway, these young women are Betsy, Debbie, Linda and Lori," she said, identifying the woman that Alex had noticed was indeed Betsy, "girls, this is Alex and his sister Cate." They all said hello, though they seemed a little guarded responding to Alex, probably because of the strange way they met him, but they seemed to take to Cate right away. When Alex watched everyone saying hello, he noticed Cate grinning as she watched him as well. He tilted his head, silently asking her what was so funny, but she just waved him off as she continued smiling at him. Leanna started to head in, but Alex quickly got the door for her. "Ah, a good old fashioned gentleman. Just watch out who you do that for, a lot of people read more into it than you probably intend," she responded, offering him an odd bit of advice. But once she was through he waited as the rest entered and followed after Cate, watching her shake her head the entire time. As soon as he crossed the threshold everything suddenly made perfect sense. Cate was right in laughing at him. The entire bar's clientele was composed of women, though it was hardly crowded. There wasn't another man in sight. Alex thought he saw two, but on closer examination he saw they were just women wearing less obviously feminine clothes. Now Betsy didn't look so out of place, as there were several women dressed like her here. Alex just shook his head, Cate was right, he really was slow sometimes. All the signs were there, and he should have had enough experience with it by now to have recognized what was going on. The women turned to watch him as they entered, their eyes moving from Leanna to him, though they'd also stop to follow Cate as well. Alex just followed the rest, acting like his being there was the most natural thing in the world. "Ah, there you are, we wondered where you ran off to like that. And now you come back in dragging some strange guy and a nice piece of candy that's likely to get us all thrown in the joint if we go near her, what's the deal?" someone sitting nearby asked. The place was nicely laid out with a small bar by the door, but only a couple of people were located there now, instead most people were sitting at a variety of tables eating lunch. There was a nice homey feel to the place with candle lit tables, several couches and a lot of posters featuring either notable or famous figures or sporting specific women's slogans. "Relax, it's just someone I met a little while ago that I haven't been able to—" "Hey, you don't run out of here that fast unless your undies are on fire," someone countered. "I can also see you're a bit preoccupied with this chap." "Hey, I'm a business woman, I have to interact with a variety of different people every day. I can't spend all my time flirting with you girls," Leanna argued. "Hey, leave them alone," objected a woman who was standing beside Betsy. "This guy is clearly someone important, I want to hear his story. The rest of you can do your own thing, but let's not make a fight out of this." Betsy seemed to be clearly surprised by this response, but Alex noticed her companion's eyes were focused on him in a typical pattern so Alex quickly walked up to her. "The name is Alex," he said, offering his hand to her. She shook it, saying, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Alex, my name is Ally Frey. You've clearly got important things to do, so what brings you to our little place? I'm guessing it wasn't due to a personal recommendation from anyone you know." Alex gave them a relaxed quiet laugh, "No, we just stumbled on Leanna here. We've got an unusual ... relationship between us. She's got a unique ability to sense something in me, just like you do, Ally. It's got nothing to do with me as a person, but a lot to do with who you are." With this unexpected response several people drew closer, wanting to hear what bill of goods Alex was going to try to sell them. Ally was all ears, so Betsy protectively moved closer to her. Alex simply smiled at her in response. Ally looked a lot like her girlfriend. She had longer hair, but it was the same shade as Betsy's, though a bit longer, and she wore a dress instead of the work shirt that Betsy wore. She also had on some jewelry which made them contrast in their appearance, although they also both wore the clunky thick black glasses that were currently fashionable amongst the hipsters. "You don't need to worry, Betsy. What Ally feels for me isn't sexual, instead she feels a specific energy I give off," Alex said, surprising himself with how much he was revealing so quickly, but he felt strangely comfortable with this group of women so he went with his gut. "We each have related genetic anomalies. I have one which causes me to give off a certain type of invisible energy, while Ally and Leanna have one that allows them to detect that energy. They're both drawn to me not because of my young boyish charm, but because of what they sense in me." "Wait a minute, what kind of stuff are you trying to tell us?" Lori asked. "I've never heard of any 'mysterious invisible energy' that attracts people. Are you going to give us a bunch of bull about crystal energy next?" "Hey, leave my damn crystals alone," another woman called out from a table nearby. "What I chose to believe doesn't impact you in the least. They make me feel better and that's all I care about." "Ignore my friend," Lori advised Alex. "I like to tease her about her belief in things like Feng Shui, but I can see that Ally and Leanna seem to be responding to something that I can't see, so I'm actually interested in knowing if there's anything behind these claims of yours." "Actually, we've gotten a lot of practical experience with it, although we haven't been able to document the process," Cate explained before Alex could respond. "It seems the energy, which we call BCM for reasons I won't bother getting into right now, is in all living things, but it seems to be neither a wave nor a particle, so it's never been detected by existing measuring devices. We're not sure yet what it consists of or how to measure it, but just watch Ally and Leanna and you can see just how real it is. Alex, walk to the bar and back." Smiling, Alex did so, safe in the knowledge that no one was checking out his ass as he walked away. He heard a coin clinking against the floor behind him. He stopped at the bar and headed back. "Did any of you notice that while everyone else looked at the coin I tossed, neither Leanna nor Ally ever took their eyes off of Alex? And did you also notice that while Ally can't keep from staring into his eyes, Leanna is unable to? That's all part of our evidence. The BCM energy that Alex gives off is too intense for Leanna to manage. Ally can detect it, but not quite as well as Leanna can." Cate had no idea why they were revealing this much detail to a bunch of complete strangers, but she'd learned to trust Alex when he suddenly decided he go off on a tangent. If he felt it was safe, then she had no problems with following suit. "You know, getting off of the particulars of our unproven ideas, you might be interested in something else that we're doing. We're involved with a group called the Angel Vision Foundation. They're involved with a new college sorority, Pi-Alpha-Zeta. That stands for 'Praecipue Animo Fiduciam', which means 'Always Trust Your Judgment'. We're trying to find others like Ally and Leanna that have these particular talents. They typically are able to detect things about people, often guessing how people are likely to react." "I've always wondered how Leanna did that," Lori said. "She always seems to know when someone's had too much to drink or when a fight is about to break out." "You know, Leanna, I hate to ask this, but it's pretty ironic that your name is Dickson and you own a lesbian bar." She smiled, apparently comfortable with the observation from having heard it before. "Yeah, I don't have any control over my family name. Seems it came from my father, who was a bit of a dick himself. But my mother would never forgive me if I changed my name now, and I wouldn't know what to change it to. 'Vaginadaughter'? 'Pussyrelative'? Or my personal favorite, 'Cunt Kid'?" Alex had to laugh, although the others in the bar seemed to have heard the line before. "Now that's a superhero sidekick I'd like to see. Although, since everyone now thinks that Batman is gay, we'd have to find her a different mentor." "How about Invisible Energy Guy and the Cunt Kid?" someone suggested, only partially trying for a laugh. "Anyway, you've got a good point, Leanna. As I said, I didn't expect you to have an answer, I was just curious how you handled it. But getting back on topic, we're trying to reach out to women and girls, trying to teach them to trust their instincts, since many of them are actually based on this genetic trait. While those like Leanna, who have learned to trust their feelings based on experience, the ones like Ally, who we call Watchers, don't trust those same instincts because they aren't as strong." "Wait, if Ally is a Watcher, and yes, we can figure out why you call her that, then what do you call Leanna?" Debbie asked. Alex managed to skirt that topic, but they proceeded to talk about the work that Alex's foundation was doing, with Alex leading the conversation. He subtly suggested that Cate take Leanna and Ally aside to explain what they needed to know, while Alex distracted everyone else with the topic of helping women in general. More and more women came over to join them, and soon Alex was entertaining quite a group of interested women. Noticing many of them had just finished eating, Alex asked if they could continue the conversation over lunch, since neither he nor Cate had eaten yet. The women were more than happy with that, and they pulled a group of tables together so everyone could listen to them as they talked. A couple of women offered to buy Cate lunch, but Leanna said their meal was on her, since it was the least she could do for what Alex had done for her. That led to a discussion about just what he'd done for her, since so far, all the women knew was that Leanna and Ally could somehow detect some sort of energy that Alex gave off. Leanna started to describe her being able to sense more things, and the women asked her for specifics. She slipped up, mentioning his "changing what she could see", and it led the conversation further astray. "Wait a minute," Lori, always the instigator interrupted, "you said earlier that Leanna couldn't look at you because your energy was too bright, but she had no trouble looking at you as she ran after you, and now she says you've changed what she sees. What is it you did to her? You both mentioned you did something, but you didn't say exactly what it was." It was Cate that sighed this time, but Alex was ready, having anticipated this coming up. "The truth is that my genetic ability plays off of their abilities. I 'activate' dormant abilities in them. I've enabled Leanna to see the BCM in people, and that energy supplies a lot of information about people. It shows someone's health, since all living things give off BCM, but it also shows people's personality traits, as well as their current emotional state. It's complicated but—" "Wait, if this BCM stuff isn't related to light, and isn't either a wave or a particle, then how can she 'see' this energy." Despite how much she was leading the conversation astray, both Alex and Cate were developing a real admiration for Lori. She seemed to have a real sense of curiosity, and it was hard to slip anything by her. Cate took over the explanation here, since this was her bailiwick. "It's complicated, and we don't want to overwhelm you, but Alex uses his excess of this energy to cause Leanna to grow new tissue. Since she's focusing on her perception of the energy at the time, it triggers her to develop a mechanism to interpret it." "But wouldn't that involve a predefined structure on her DNA? I mean, growing a whole new organ would require a lot to ... I don't know, I guess if a single gene can govern whether we have thumbs or not, it could trigger this, but it just seems a little, I don't know, odd that it would in this case." Alex took the time to give Lori another look at this juncture, since she continued to impress him. She seemed like a simple girl with a pretty face, a nice smile—especially when she was being challenged—and fairly straight blonde hair that cascaded around her face. The kind of hair that was definitely helped by a bottle. She wore simple jewelry—large pearl earrings and a matching non-pearl necklace. She also had soft penetrating eyes, and was dressed in a heavy leather biker jacket. She clearly didn't fit into any single mold. Although one wouldn't pick her out of crowd as an intellectual, based both on her blonde hair and her style of dress, she seemed to revel in it, just as she seemed to revel in being her own woman, picking her own clothing style, her own look, and maintaining her own way of life. Alex also didn't notice any girlfriend. In short, she was a whole series of enigmas. A butch lesbian, an intellectual book worm, a blonde bimbo, a girl who liked to dress up, there just wasn't any way of pigeon holing her. But Alex didn't get a chance to analyze her any more than that, she was waiting for a response. "That's because I trigger growth along her optic nerve that utilizes the areas of the brain associated with sight to also process what she's now perceiving. Although she's not seeing light waves, she 'sees' the energy as if it's normal vision. What she sees is completely different from the recognized color spectrum, and it also overlays her normal vision, so she can see both things equally. Again, we've leaving a lot of specifics out because it's actually quite complex, but that's the general idea." "But then why can't Ally see anything new?" Betsy asked, growing more interested in what might affect her girlfriend's ability to deal with the world around her. "That's because while Watchers respond to the BCM energy, they don't respond well enough to grow new tissue. We think it would allow them to heal better, but only the Seers can, well, grow the physical structures to actually see this energy." "Wait, if Ally is a Watcher, and you never answered my question about what you called people like Leanna, let me guess, she's a Seer, or something like that?" Lori asked. Alex had to smile in response. "You should be a scientist," Cate told her. "You pick up on a lot of subtle clues. You'd be good at it." "That's exactly what we call them," Alex confirmed, not giving her a chance to respond, despite Alex's curiosity about what she did. "The Watchers constantly stand in the background and watch me, while the Seers can physically see the energy that I give off." "Wow, this is amazing," Debbie said. "Leanna, what am I thinking?" "Sorry, she can't see your thoughts, but she can see emotions, particularly strong emotions. Although she's still a little green at it yet, meaning she isn't likely to know what the different colors she sees mean yet." "OK, then, Alex, what am I feeling?" she laughed. Cate laughed as well. "As strange as it sounds, Alex doesn't share the same genetic trait he activates in others, thus he can't actually see what they can. It's a strange codependent relationship between him and them. He opens their world up, allowing them to see all kinds of things, but he has to rely on them to see the things he can't, the very things he allows them to see." "Yes, it's a complex relationship, but it's fascinating. How come we've never heard of it before?" Lori asked. "It's a very rare occurrence, and its effects were never obvious enough for anyone to identify until Alex came along," Cate explained. "After all, if everyone has the same amount of this energy, how is anyone going to measure a difference in someone's response to it? Alex is also a strange case, as it seems he's the first person with his ability. So it looks like Leanna and Ally's abilities were hidden for thousands of years, while Alex's just popped up out of nowhere." Alex figured everyone had a good idea of how things operated by then, and he figured they needed time to consider it before he revealed any more information, figuring it didn't make any sense until they had time to process what he'd already told them. "Do any of you know of a decent jewelry story around here? Nothing too ostentatious, but I need to pick up some gifts?" Alex asked, trying to get everyone off of the topic they were discussing. "Well, surprisingly, there aren't any big malls in the downtown area," Leanna told them. "There's one in the Oak Brook Shopping Center, which is close, but it doesn't have much of a selection. There's also the Crossroads mall, but that's seen better days and is more of a gang hangout than anything else. The only jewelry you'll find there is nickel and dime stuff. Your best bet is 'Mizrachi's' in the Penn Square Mall, but that's a ways from here. I could drive you there, if you'd like." "You know, that's not a bad idea. It'll give us time to talk a little more about this. We aren't taking you away from your business, are we?" "Nah, that's the great thing about being the boss," she teased. "I can leave the place to my lackeys. Can't I, girls," she called out loudly enough for them to hear her. The various waitresses and the bartender all called out, "Yes, your evil lordship." Apparently it was a well rehearsed response and Alex could see them all smiling, so he knew it was a comfortable joke amongst them. "But what about Ally?" Betsy asked, sounding concerned for her girlfriend. "Doesn't she need to know the same sorts of things?" Alex waited a moment before answering. "Frankly, there are separate things to discuss with each, but I guess it wouldn't hurt if you wanted to come along." "That's OK," Ally hurried to say. "You guys go ahead. We can get together later to discuss anything more that I need to know. Frankly, I think it's better if I take some time to talk over what I've already learned." "Oh, yeah, there's more we need to cover," Cate told her. "I'll also need to get some contact information, and we need to give you contacts to our communities in Illinois and New Orleans. We have smaller ones in Texas, but—" "Wait a minute," Lori said, sitting up and staring intently at Alex. "New Orleans, building communities, teaching 'select individuals' things they need to know. Are you that, that angel that was in the news recently?" This time Alex couldn't resist the audible sigh he gave out. "Yeah, you got me. I'm the fabled Angel of New Orleans. But don't tell anyone, will you? What I'm doing doesn't have anything to do with religion, and I don't like the idea of misleading people. People call me that because the Seers often call me an angel when they first acquire their new vision. They see my glowing with this energy and assume I'm a messenger from God." "Yeah, I can see that," Ally said, getting a faraway look. "Look, if we're going to go we'd better do it soon. I don't know what we'll need to do today, but I'm trying to avoid attracting attention. I figure if we're going to go to a mall, we should go early so there won't be too big of a crowd." They all agreed, and Leanna got her purse from her office and they took off, leaving the bar abuzz with women discussing Alex and his movement. ------- Stacie took one last glance around the corner, but saw nothing that would stop them from doing what they'd been anxiously planning for so long. This was it. It was now or never. She glanced at Mike and he nodded. She reached into her jacket pocket and took out her mask. She was definitely not crazy about this idea. It seemed stupid, but Mike was right, they really had no choice. They were at the end of their rope. Their debts had been mounting steadily since they both lost their jobs and the bank took over their house, but they were still living there illegally. They had credit card bills they had no way of paying back that they'd used to live off of while they'd continued to look for work, but nothing had panned out. Then Mike had made a series of mistakes. He took out a 'temporary loan' from a neighborhood loan shark, figuring he'd have another job before long. Then, in order to pay off the loan shark, he borrowed money to bet on a 'sure thing' he'd heard about at the track. Now they faced eviction from their home, they had no money to stay anywhere else, it looked like they'd soon be living in either their car, or the street if the bank took the car as well, and various people were looking to break their legs for the illicit loans they couldn't pay back. Mike, always one for the most direct solutions, had come up with this idea. "We just need one big haul to pay off our debts," he'd told her. "We just do this one hit and we can get started again, maybe move somewhere we can start again, find jobs, someplace unlike here where the only people we know don't trust us because we owe them so much money." While he was right, that there didn't seem to be any alternatives, she thought this idea was completely insane. Neither of them had a criminal record, but neither of them knew the first thing about how to commit a crime either. Mike had managed to pick up a gun from a pawn-shop by pawning her engagement ring, the ring promising her a marriage that had never taken place, but he had no experience shooting a gun, and he was such a gentle soul she had no doubt he'd be unable to shoot anyone. "Don't worry, it's all a perception thing," he assured her. "All you've got to do is look the part. Just meet their gaze and look a little crazy and they'll back down. I'll never need to shoot anyone." "Yeah, but that doesn't mean they won't have a gun," she argued. "This is Oklahoma, and the people here are as gun happy as Texas is. If someone else pulls a gun, or if the guards or the police see us, we could end up in jail, shot or even dead." "That's true, but what choice do we really have? We can't keep going like we have. Frankly, jail would be a relief at this stage. At least then we'd get fed and wouldn't have to scrounge from day to day. And if I get killed, well, that's a gamble I'm willing to take." "But what if someone pulls a gun? What then? Are you going to kill someone trying to get away?" "No, you know I could never do that," he assured her. "But I've got it covered. The key is to get the drop on them so they don't have time to grab a gun. Then you've got to look serious so they don't try to resist, then finally we've got to get in and out before the security can respond. If we watch the security for a while, we can figure out their rounds so we can time how long we'll have." "But rounds change. If someone wants to take a break they might rush to finish sooner, so figuring we have a set amount of time might just be wrong." Mike simply shrugged at that. "What can I say? We're gambling everything for a one time shot at making a clean start. If something goes wrong we're screwed. But if we do nothing we're screwed as well. We're out of options. If you have a better suggestion I'm anxious to hear it. But we both had decent factory jobs, and the factories all moved overseas. Without a degree we don't have the qualifications for a new job, and without recent work experience no one will even consider us without specific job skills." "But no one will hire us if we have a criminal record," Stacie countered. "Yeah, but we're first time offenders. True, if we're caught we'll face serious charges, but at least we'll have a place to sleep at night and food to eat. Chances are they'll look at our history and let us off on probation, so it won't be that bad. Plus they've got government programs to help ex-cons, while they don't have any programs to help people without any marketable skills. We lost our unemployment benefits years ago. We have no family so we can't even get food stamps or childcare. Even if we could, it wouldn't pay the tremendous debt we have against us. I don't think we have a choice." Stacie had continued to argue about how wrong it was, how ill equipped they were, how stupid it was and how unlikely it was to succeed, but he'd continue to push her on the issue, and she couldn't think of any way of dissuading him. They really didn't have any other choices. But the problem was, for all of Mike's bravado, she didn't think he was capable of this, and she knew that she wasn't. If anything went wrong, things were likely to snowball. An undercover cop walks by, someone makes a call with a hidden cell phone, someone happens to be packing? There were any number of things that could go wrong. The chances of succeeding were almost astronomical, but Mike had been right, the chances of them continuing without trying something were even worse. With that thought she slipped the mask on over her head, straightened it so she could see out of the eye slots, then pulled her hood up over her head to hide the fact she was wearing the mask. They both had gloves on. They may not be smart, and they may not know much about being a criminal, but they knew enough to cover themselves. Mike seemed sure that this place didn't have any security camera, and while they didn't get much traffic they were known to make on-the-spot purchases of diamonds and other gems, which meant they had money on hand. They'd covered all the bases they could. Now it was either do or die. Stacie considered that poor choice of words and hoped it didn't come down to that, but this was no way to live, so maybe dying wasn't such a bad option. With that they slipped around the corner and into the store. They only had a small amount of time to get in and out again. They had to do this fast. ------- The drive over was interesting, it was mostly quiet with Leanna driving while she was getting a hurried telepathic tutorial on how to read auras from Allison and Liv, who had a few insights of her own. Leanna would occasionally ask either Alex or Cate follow up questions, but she was mostly busy with their explanations. Instead they watched the scenery of yet another city, while Alex worried about his potentially overexposing himself this soon after Dallas. He knew visiting malls or similar places with a high density of people was likely to cause some sort of reaction, but he couldn't very well hole up in the hotel for the next several days. Besides, both Cate and Gail had been so supportive lately he really wanted to get them both something personal to thank them with. He didn't really think there'd be any problem rushing in and out of a single store on a Sunday afternoon. Cate, on the other hand, was anxious to discuss this latest twist that Alex had pulled. She was wondering why he'd suddenly chosen to entrust a bunch of type 3 people he didn't know with as much information as he had. About the only thing he hadn't told them about was the telepathy. They'd even intimated he could somehow 'enhance' someone's health with his energy. However, she wasn't going to take him to task in front of a new follower who wasn't yet used to their personal dynamics, as she might not respond to Alex's being 'attacked' very well. It didn't take them very long to get to the mall, though it was clearly much farther than they could have hoped to walk. Leanna parked at the entrance closest to the jewelry store, on the side with the Macys near it, but as usual each store opened into the mall and not the street. They got out and headed in, both girls being aware of his interest in moving as quickly as possible, so they were both prepared to help him select whatever he wanted so he could get out swiftly. Alex once again held the door for them both, despite Leanna's advice to watch who he did it for, but instead of taking offense she smiled and thanked him, tipping the gray and black hat she still wore. They walked quickly past the intervening shops, keeping an eye out for anyone noticing them. They knew he'd likely have to return here later, when it was more crowded, to find as many new followers here as he could, but he was nervous about doing it so soon after the shooting in Dallas the previous day. As Alex walked into the jewelry store, named "Mizrachi & Sons Jewelry", Alex leading since his longer legs carried him faster than the others, he almost ran into a couple hurrying out. Stepping back quickly to avoid them, one of the people he'd almost collided with stepped back from him. It was then that Alex noticed that things seemed odd. For one it was too quiet in the store. He quickly swept his eyes around, rather than looking to see who he'd run into, and he noticed all the customers in the store were on their knees with their hands on the floor. He had a very bad feeling about this when he finally looked back at the people he'd run into. He immediately noted the figure on the right had a gun clutched tightly to his chest. He also noticed they both had on dark hoodies with the hood pulled up over their heads and were wearing masks. One, a simple ski mask, the other, a plastic copy of the hockey mask from the movie "Friday the 13th". As he scanned their faces his eyes met the eyes of the shorter of the two people. He was close enough he could see her eyes dilate, and she stepped back, before her eyes lost their focus and the eyes contracted again. It was the strangest thing to see. It wasn't clear the figure was female from a simple observation, given her bulky clothing, but her reaction had only a single explanation. The figure suddenly dropped to her knees, throwing her hands out before her, one hand containing a heavy canvas bag. "Damn, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to do it," she called out loudly, as if Alex wasn't standing just in front of her, her voice breaking in her current emotional state. "Forgive me, Lord, I was desperate and I didn't know what else to do." "What the hell are you talking about," hissed her companion, clearly male from his voice and his larger build, although he spoke much quieter than she had. "Can't you see, HE's come for us. He's come to punish us for this stupid act," she told him even as she trembled before Alex's supposed might. "Who the hell are you talking about?" the man asked, glancing at Alex and the two women behind him. The girl on the floor looked up at him as if she couldn't believe how he couldn't see what was so obvious. "It's the Angel of New Orleans, you idiot. Can't you see his angelic glow? God has sent him to stop us from committing this sinful act." Alex winced at that loud proclamation from the jewelry robber, suddenly feeling more in danger from people overhearing them than he was from the man standing before him with a gun, although he was clearly aware of the gun the whole time. The woman on the floor, as if suddenly remembering something, looked up at Alex and in a sudden moment of inspiration handed the bag she was holding to Alex. "Here, take this. It's not mine. Return it for me. I'm glad to pay whatever price necessary to make amends for my actions." Alex, taken completely by surprise, simply took the bag, noticing it seemed heavy and bulky, not at all like he'd expect a bag of jewelry to feel like. "What the... ?" the man with the gun asked as he started to reach forward. 'Alex, the man's not angry, ' Leanna advised him telepathically, 'he's scared and nervous, but he's not angry enough to try to kill you.' Alex had no idea how he did it, especially since he had seemed to have been in a stupor until then, but suddenly the man's hand, which was reaching towards him to grab their loot, seemed to slow down until it was moving in slow motion, the gun in his other hand moving away from his chest and away from him. Without thinking Alex started to spin, although it was hardly noticeable they were both moving so slowly. He twisted away from the man's open hand, moving the sack away from him, while spinning around. Since it took so long to perform this spin in such slow motion, Alex had plenty of time to think and observe what was happening. The man hadn't had a chance to respond yet, and Alex trusted Leanna's reading of him. He didn't think the man was likely to shoot him, but he was waving a gun around and there was a good chance he might shoot someone by accident. The store's customers were relatively safe, all kneeling behind the couple, but Cate and Leanna might be in the line of an accidental discharge, and Alex couldn't accept that. The couple disappeared from Alex's view as his body moved away from them. He observed how still everything was, how perfectly quiet it was. He heard a gasp. He noticed the sales banner hanging over the door he'd missed before, and he noticed a couple of people who'd appeared behind them, apparently brought around by the woman's excited exclamation. At this point Alex had no idea what was happening behind him, whether the robber was bringing the gun to bear on him or not, but he had a clear idea of the motions involved, and knowing how quickly everything was likely moving in real time, knew he wouldn't have a lot of time to respond. As he continued his spin both Cate and Leanna came into view. Cate's mouth was opened wide in shock and her eyes were about to bug out of her head, almost as big as Ally's had been earlier. Leanna, though, looked quietly confident, sure that Alex, her new hero, could do no wrong. Neither one's reaction changed in the time it took him to spin around, except Alex had the time to notice that Cate's upper chest seemed bare, and that she really needed something to focus people's attention, and he instantly knew what he wanted to get her. Even as slowly as things were moving in this time warp he was in, he was spinning faster as the robber that had been reaching for him came into his line of sight again. As expected, he had been so focused on reaching for the bag that held what they'd been so desperate to acquire, that he'd over extended himself and was now stumbling forward trying to reach the bag that was pulled away from his hand. As a result his gun hand splayed wider, leaving it exposed and pointing away from anyone. Alex moved his free hand up, it was already in motion, since this had been his intent all along, and he watched it slowly inch to intersect the robber's hand. Alex noticed an older, distinguished looking Germanic man in a suit standing behind the counter. He too had a look of horror on his face, but there was also an inclination of hope imprinted there, and somehow that helped to inspire Alex even further. The man was fairly squat, with short hair that was graying on the sides and a wide face, but that was all the time that Alex had to notice him. Again, he'd only picked up that much detail because of the way his mind tended to pick up stray events whenever he went into this weird slow motion thing he so often experienced. Alex's hand connected with the criminal's outstretched hand, knocking it back and spinning the man away from the direction he'd been moving, knocking him off balance. Even though everything was moving at a snail's pace, the motions all worked together, and Alex could see him release the gun as he twisted, his own arm pulling him around and upsetting his center of balance. It was at that moment, the instant that Alex knew that everyone was safe, that the gun that had been pointing away from everyone wasn't going to accidentally fire, that things began to speed up once again. They sped up rapidly, moving from a gently faster movement to a sudden blur. All Alex could see of the gun now was a flashing blur of gunmetal gray as it flew back towards the counter of the store behind them. Alex continued through, now seeing both robbers. The man was hopelessly unbalanced, already falling, while the girl on the floor was quickly moving to avoid being crushed by him as he fell. Suddenly there was a crash as the man fell hard on his shoulder, his shocked gasp from the impact clearly announcing how much pain he was in. Alex hoped he'd broken his shoulder bone for having put so many people in danger. The girl had just missed her companion's landing on her, and she was now sitting on her ass with a shocked and surprised look on her face. Alex, still unbalanced himself, had to take a step to recover his balance and to stop his twisting motion, so he stepped past the fallen man. 'Get the hell out of here, ' he told the girl on the floor. 'The police will be here soon and you don't want to be here when they do. While I don't condone what you did, I truly believe that you're contrite about what you did. Go and make restitution as best you can. Make a better life for yourself. Do something for others instead of threatening to harm them for your own gain.' Since she was no longer in Alex's line of sight he had no idea how she responded, but as he landed heavily on his lead foot, braking his movement and stumbling a bit as a result, he heard movement behind him. When Alex recovered, mere moments afterwards, he glanced to his left to see where the two robbers were. The man was cradling his arm, crying out in anguish, while the girl was already on her feet and heading out. Alex turned around, having heard the gun smash against the wall behind the counter, knowing it was no longer a concern. He proceeded to walk calmly forward, trying to indeed calm himself before confronting the surprised store manager. He glanced at the people kneeling on the floor. Half were watching him while the rest were watching the man on the floor as he struggled to get to his feet, being impeded by a non-functioning shoulder. All of their eyes looked to be the size of saucers at the moment. If they didn't respond soon, the business wouldn't need to buy any fly traps because they'd have been caught by all the open mouths. Alex walked up to the man behind the counter and calmly handed him the bag, even though he still had no idea what it held. "I believe this belongs to you," he said, even as he heard continued shuffling behind him, followed by rapid footsteps moving away from him. The man he handed the money to took quite a while to respond, so Alex had a chance to study him. He seemed like a nice chap, though Alex thought he'd look better if he could keep his mouth shut. Somehow that look never seemed to look very good on anyone unless they were singing an aria. While the man took a while to react, Alex heard both Cate and Leanna hurry up to him. Finally the man reached up and took the proffered bag. "Uh ... thanks, I guess," he said simply, not quite sure of the social protocol in a situation like this. "Look, I was going to buy something from you, but I'm not anxious to be associated with this whole 'angel' persona, so I'd rather be gone before the police arrive. I know you probably have no control over it, but if you could possibly keep them from posting my photo I'd really appreciate it." Alex then pressed his fingers down on the glass in front of the man. "I'm leaving my finger prints so the police can eliminate them when they do a fingerprint exam on the bag. They won't be able to identify me, since I've never been fingerprinted, but it should help them process the evidence." The man had no idea of how to respond, so he just nodded while continuing to stare at Alex. Alex turned and nodded to the people still kneeling on the floor. "Sorry to disturb you. You'll excuse me if I don't stay to make sure you're each OK, but I'm hoping to avoid any unnecessary attention, you understand," he told them before he turned again to address Cate and Leanna, who were looking at him with a mixture of shock and admiration. "Girls, I think this is our call to return home." With that they calmly but quickly left the establishment and the premises. No one tried to stop them, even though they heard the rapid footsteps of the mall's security guards as they entered the store behind them. None of them turned to see what was happening, simply acting like they were finished shopping and were ready to return home. They exited the door, which Alex didn't bother to hold open for them for once, and were soon in their car and heading away. ------- Chapter 30: No One Appreciates My Paranoia Driving away conservatively Leanna didn't notice any police cars, but they did hear sirens in the distance. "Alex, what the hell was that about?" Cate asked her brother, sounding a bit peeved about the whole encounter. "I'm sorry, Cate, but you weren't aware of what was going on. Leanna advised me that the guy wasn't a seasoned criminal. He didn't have the intent to harm anyone, and I was interested in making sure he didn't harm anyone by accident. When he grabbed for the bag that the girl gave me, I just reacted." "Oh," she responded, stopping to consider that. "Still, you know that none of us like when you take risks like that. Just as you'd step in front of a bullet for any of us, you should realize that it makes sense to allow us to do the same for you. After all, if one of us is hurt the movement will still go on. The same isn't true in your case." "Yeah, I know, but everything just sort of occurred before I even realized what was happening." "So how are you holding up?" Leanna asked, sounding concerned and a little upset herself. She was the one driving. "Right now I'm shaky. I'm coming down from an adrenaline high, so it'll probably last for another 15 to 20 minutes. I've been through this before." "Yeah, like yesterday evening," Cate reminded him in an angry tone. "What happened yesterday?" "You didn't hear?" Alex asked, surprised. "We were involved in a shooting at a concert in Dallas." "The one at the Cotton Bowl?" she asked, seemingly surprised by Alex's association with it. "Yeah, the shooter came looking for Alex, trying to keep him from 'corrupting' his daughter. Luckily the police and the press never got that information, but..." Cate let the statement hang, letting Leanna figure out for herself what it would have implied if Alex had been implicated. "So you see why I was trying to avoid creating a scene today. If there's news of my being seen here, then the Dallas police are likely to put out a witness warrant for me, which is something I don't need. I need anonymity to do what I do, and as soon as anyone figures out what I'm doing I'm history," Alex explained in his typical overwrought manner. "Well you certainly avoided that scenario, didn't you?" Cate asked. "You don't need to remind me, I know I screwed up," Alex replied wearily, his voice indeed sounding a little shaky. "It was hardly your idea," Cate reminded him. "But we'd better get you some food. You'll probably be OK without it, but I don't like testing your limits. I know stress and those little slow-motion episodes you have tax your system. Leanna, can we stop somewhere and get him something to eat?" "Frankly we're almost home. It would be easier just taking him back to the bar and feeding him there." "No, that's not the best option. I think we'd better head to the hotel," Alex told them with a commanding insistence neither one was willing to argue with. "I got into this mess because I didn't listen to my initial instincts. I should have stayed in the hotel today, but instead I ventured out and got involved not in one mess, but in one involving a bar full of people and another that'll involve the very police I was hoping to not alert. Chances are they'll be sending out an APB on the New Orleans Angel any minute." "All right, I'll take you to the hotel, but I'm going with you," Leanna informed them. "You can hardly expect me to abandon you when you're in the shape you're in. You know, for someone that was in such control, you certainly fall apart when everything is over and done with." "That's the result of the adrenaline surge and the following letdown," Cate explained. "He's been through this enough for us to be familiar with it. He'll be OK in a little while, but until then he'll be shaky and a little out of it." Leanna accepted that, not having any similar frame of reference to judge it with. She soon drove them into the hotel parking lot, not wanting to expose Alex to public scrutiny by forcing him to walk along the public streets in his condition. Unlike the other times he'd experienced this type of thing, this time he'd developed a case of the shakes, where his whole body had a slight tremble, making him feel not in control of his body. As a result the two women had to assist him. His stumbling along with the assistance of two women was likely to attract the very attention he was seeking to avoid. Instead they helped him into the hotel, where Georgia was still on duty. "Mr. Jennings? Are you all right? Freddie, help them, would you? It looks like they need help." Alex tried to answer but he was having enough trouble with simply walking in a straight line, so Leanna took charge. "He's OK, he just had a bit of a shock out in the parking lot. A car almost backed into us. We just need to get him settled." "Should I call the police?" Georgia asked with apparent alarm in her voice. "No, it was an accident. I don't even think the people were aware they almost hit him," Cate hurried to explain. "We're close enough to the elevator. He'll do better in his room than he will out here in the lobby." "OK, if you're sure," Georgia answered doubtfully, just as Freddie hurried to assist them. Leanna allowed him to steady Alex. Cate told her their room number, handed her the keycard, and excused herself as she walked over to talk to Georgia, who she'd not yet met. Leanna looked back nervously as the elevator opened, but Cate waved her on. She turned back to Georgia as they entered the elevator. "Georgia, did anyone stop by looking for Alex?" "Oh, yes, I almost forgot. It was just like he described. Someone entered looking confused, glancing around as if searching for something she couldn't identify. Personally, I think I know what she was feeling," she whispered to Cate. Speaking in a more normal tone she continued. "I told them you'd be back shortly, but she was with some other women who didn't seem to understand what she was doing here, so she told me that she'd be back in a little while and that she'd see him then. I gave her your room number, was that OK?" "Yeah, that's what he asked you to do. She's just like you. She knows there's something significant about him, but she doesn't understand what it is yet, and won't understand until she has a chance to speak to us. We're also still expecting Gail Sanders to show up, so be sure to give her her keycard when she arrives, OK?" "Of course," Georgia replied. "So is he going to be OK?" she asked worriedly, afraid she'd somehow been complicit in harming this great man she didn't even know the true name of. "Oh, yeah, he just needs to rest a little. He's got a bit of a 'nervous disposition' so he's easily upset by things that wouldn't bother other people. It's really nothing, he just needs some time alone for a couple of minutes." "All right, I'll be sure to watch out for anyone stopping by. What's more, I'll call ahead to let you know if anyone is heading up." "Thanks, Georgia, I appreciate it. I'll enjoy talking to you later," Cate replied with a wink before she headed to the elevators herself. When Cate got up to the room she saw Freddie, one of the hotel staff, being tipped by Leanna but reluctant to leave Alex while he was still woozy. "Are you sure he'll be OK, Ms. Dickson? I can have someone call for a doctor if you think that's a good idea." "That's not necessary, Freddie. He'll be fine once he has a chance to rest for a while. It was just a sudden shock, that's all, he'll be fine." Freddie took the tip and reluctantly left, tipping his hat to Cate as he passed. 'Damn, that's all we need, ' Cate thought. 'If Leanna is that well known about town, they probably know her at the jewelry store she recommended. Which means they'll connect us and seek her out to find out where we ran off to. We're material witnesses to a robbery, and running away before the police get there is a criminal offense. I'll have to discuss this with her, ' she told herself. When Leanna let her in she'd already gotten Alex laid out on the bed. Cate was saved from having to make a supply run, since she'd stored Alex's emergency supplies in the room fridge. She dug them out and started feeding him. "This looks like more than a simple case of the shakes," Leanna observed. "Alex has side effects from being exposed to the BCM. There's simply too much of it, and no human is designed to withstand that much of it. We all need it to survive, but too much in too small of a space can overwhelm the body. As a result he gets a lot of 'episodes' where I have to feed him enough to replenish his body's normal energy supply. The BCM helps heal the very damage it's doing so we're never quite sure just how sick he is, but there's always the danger that he may die at any time, so we take threats like this very seriously." "Wow! That's pretty heavy. And here I thought the life of an angel was ... sort of angelic, I guess," Leanna said as she watched the two of them. "By the way, what's up with all the mice?" "Oh, them, they're part of an ongoing experiment. It's actually part of my attempt to determine how long Alex is likely to survive. As such, we value them very highly and keep a careful watch over them." "Ah," Leanna said, before moving on to a new topic. "You know, I know you're not interested in any of the girls at the bar, but I'm also picking up more than the traditional brother/sister vibe here." Cate froze with her hand halfway to Alex's mouth. "I don't know what you're talking about," she responded. "Look, it's no business of mine, and I'm not about to question how someone in your positions should live their lives, but I'm just telling you that you look much more intimate and much more concerned than a simple sister would be. When you mention how close he is to dying, you look like you're ready to break down. Also, when you talk about doing research on what's making him sick, you sound like those mice are more important than gold to you." "Can't a sister just be—" Cate tried to argue. "There's a concerned relative caring for someone who's sick, and there's someone who's finally recognized that someone close to them won't be around forever, but baby girl, you don't seem to be in either camp." "I'm sorry, but sometimes I feel like I'm about to break down when I think of it," Cate confessed, tears beginning to streak down her face. "I know I've got to resign myself to it, since it's looking more and more obvious, but I don't know how I'll handle it when it occurs." "I'll tell you what, I'll get you some tissues and give you some good old fashioned female comforting while your brother recovers. You don't need to confess anything you don't want to. I understand how situations in life present us with challenges we don't plan for." With that she headed off to the bathroom, being careful around the animal cages, and soon returned to take Cate in her arms. As much as Alex hated to see Cate suffering, he was glad that she was allowing her worries about him out. He knew his impending death was hard on her, and how it was made worse by her inability to talk about it with anyone else. The only ones who'd understand were back in Carbondale, and Gail was as busy keeping a stiff upper lip as she was. Perhaps admitting her fears to a well meaning stranger was just what she needed. Thus Alex lay silently while Cate revealed all her fears, never once acknowledging what Leanna had so clearly picked up on. Once Alex felt better, he told them he'd get them some sodas from down the hall. They each knew they already had some in the refrigerator, but that wasn't the point, he was trying to give them a little privacy since he knew he was the very reason she'd been holding this in for so long. So Alex ended up standing alone in the little ice room, nursing a bottled water, giving them a chance to talk while he considered just how much trouble he'd stepped in this time. 'Man, you've really got a knack for getting into it, don't you?' he asked himself, as he figured there wasn't anything he could do about it other than waiting for the other shoe to drop. ------- Alex returned a little while later, two extra drinks in his hands. "Where the hell, were you?" Cate instantly asked as soon as she saw him. He hadn't actually thought he'd been gone that long. "I was just giving you a little—" "Alex, you're talking about being worried about the police tracking you down or attracting someone's attention, and then you sneak off and go into hiding. Don't you know—" "Now, now," Leanna consoled them both. "I think you're both getting a little crazy here. There's no problem. No one got hurt. No one's being arrested. I think I see why Cate dragged you out on the street today, Alex. It seems like being holed up here in your room makes you both a little nuts. I think you'd do better being out with some people. You were fine out at the club, you seem like a natural in a lesbian bar. You seemed right at home." "Well," Alex admitted with a slight blush, "it wasn't exactly the first one I've ever been in." "Oh, do tell?" she asked, thinking this might distract the two overly stressed teens. So Alex told her the story of Gail's hangout in St. Louis, "The Abbey". Once he started telling the story, Cate started filling in details and they got so caught up in their own recollections they were both feeling better when they finally finished, and Leanna had a much better idea of just how intimate everyone in Alex's 'organization' was, even the outsiders, family and friends. Leanna seemed to be about to say something when someone's phone rang. Since Cate had taken over Alex's scheduling duties, and since he normally didn't even need one to talk to people, Cate carried both the iPhone and the iPad he'd received for his last birthday. She quickly grabbed the phone out of her purse. "Oh," she responded simply, sounding a little surprised when she looked at the number on the screen. "Hey there, girlfriend," she responded happily when she answered it. "I'm sure you're looking for Alex, but I just couldn't resist saying hi too ... Wait a minute. Slow down, there. Tell me about it." Leanna glanced at Alex but he just shrugged, having no idea what the phone call was about. Cate listened for a little longer and then held the phone out to Alex. "It's Chalise, she's pretty upset so you'd better talk to her, after all, she's not going to want to repeat this twice." Alex anxiously took the proffered phone from her, worried about what might be happening. "Hey, baby," he answered. "Oh, Alex, I hate to interrupt you. I know just how busy you are. I mean, I know how good you are at calling, but—" "What's wrong, Chalise. You should know by now that you're a priority in my life. If you have a problem, I'll drop everything else." "Well," she said with a quiet hickuppy sob, "my father finally accepted his plea deal with the prosecutor today. He knew he couldn't fight it, but..." "I can see how that would get you upset. How's everyone taking it?" "Well, Mom's kind of distanced herself from him, but she's pretty shaken up even though she won't talk about it. I know I shouldn't feel like this, but—" "Hey, baby, there's no right way to feel in a situation like this." "You know, it's strange. Dad got some hard prison time, but my brother, James, got none. He lost his career, his reputation and most of his friends, but still. But I find myself on the fence about it. I want my Dad to go free, but I also want James to go to jail. I want them both to suffer and not suffer at the same time." "That's perfectly understandable," Alex told her, settling in, preparing for a long talk. He waved to the other girls to indicate he was here for the long haul as he continued consoling Chalise. "Do I dare ask?" Leanna asked. "That's Chalise, one of Alex's two girlfriends," Cate explained. "One of two?" she asked without managing to imply anything by it. "It's not like with his followers. He's really committed to them. But with so little time he needed to try to reach as many followers as he could, so he had to leave them behind while he—" "Yeah, yeah, I understand. Tell me about what they're like together, as well as the rest of his friends and family back home." So while Alex consoled a tearful Chalise, Cate described what Alex's home life was like, which did just what Leanna had wanted it to, relax and distract her so she could distance herself from her anxiety. The two conversations went on for quite a while. It turned out that Chalise and Caroline had been in to see Rodger before he was finally led off to the Federal prison. He'd already been before the Judge and he'd already accepted the deal, so it was already signed, sealed and delivered. Chalise had spent the afternoon crying on Kitty's shoulder, since they all lived in their own apartment at the loft, but she'd needed her boyfriend's reassurance in her hour of need. Alex related that he had a new girl in a similar situation to hers, and that he thought it would be good if Chalise could talk to her. He explained about the shooting, and how Grace had been unaware that her father had gone off the deep end, even though she knew he'd been behaving strangely since she'd first met Alex. Chalise could easily see the parallels between them, and immediately volunteered to call and speak to her. Alex gave her Grace's phone number, getting it from Cate rather than bothering Grace for it at the moment. But the idea of helping someone else in a similar situation managed to refocus Chalise's attention. Alex knew she'd feel better walking someone through something similar, and he felt sure they'd manage to help each other in the process. When he finally hung up the phone he looked a little worn out, for a wholly different reason than before. He briefly recapped what was happening, not bothering to relate how she was reacting to it. They both nodded sagely. "You know, between your early emotional outbursts and this newest depressing news, I think it would really do you both good to get out amongst people. You're both people-persons, so you'll do much better there than here. Besides, what is there to do here? Watch old movies on the TV, play with your mice or have sex? Or maybe that's exactly what you want to do?" she finished, leaving her meaning perfectly clear. Alex was still thinking about it, but Cate made a quick decision. "You're right, it'll be good to get out of here. But I'm a little concerned. It seems you're pretty well known, and I'm afraid that if the people at the jewelry store know you then..." "The guy you talked to is Mr. Mizrachi himself," Leanna said, addressing Alex directly, "as in 'Mizrachi & Sons Jewelry'? He's René Mizrachi, one of the sons, the original Mizrachi having passed away some time ago. He and his family run the place, and yes, we know each other. But I'll tell you what, if you're worried, I'll call the club and see if anyone has been asking for me. Believe me, if some strange guy shows up asking about anyone, they'll take notice." "Here," Cate responded as she proceeded to dig through her purse. "Use this," she said, handing Leanna a disposable cell phone. Leanna looked up at her with a dubious expression. "I see you've done this kind of thing before." "Alex gets pretty paranoid. He's so worried about his 'girls' getting in trouble because of him that he makes sure we cover our tracks well. He knows all it would take would be someone picking up a random comment about telepathy, and the resulting outcry would have wiretap warrants flowing pretty freely." "I can understand that. OK, give me a second." Leanna made the call, which she kept short. It seemed an easy enough conversation and she casually asked whether anyone had asked for her, her meaning implicit without having to spell out who might be doing the asking. When she hung up they both anxiously watched her to see what she said. "No one's been there. Either they don't know or they don't care. Either that or they just haven't gotten there yet. But if they do we'll know before they come in the door, so we can hide you safely away while I talk to them. I can easily tell them I was just showing you around town, having just met you through your Foundation or something." "No, no, don't mention the Foundation," Alex warned her. "I don't want it associated with me. It's serving a serious purpose, and I don't want to see it go down in flames if I'm ever exposed. If I'm compromised, I hope to see the Foundation continue its work while the rest of us take the heat." "You've really got this worked out, don't you?" she asked "I'm planning for the long term," Alex assured her. "I want us to survive as a people for the next thousand years, not just while I'm around to reap the benefits. Protecting my people is my topmost priority. Everything else comes after that." "Well, we've had a full day and I'm sure the girls would be glad to quiz you again. They were pretty excited about this Foundation of yours. And wasn't there something about a concert or something?" she asked as she picked up her purse, gently nudging them along, happy to see them getting over their well earned paranoia. ------- Both Cate and Alex were anxious about venturing out. Neither one expected anyone to be able to track them, after all, as Alex had described, his fingerprints weren't on record and no one knew him in Oklahoma yet, aside from the girls in Leanna's bar, but they were still nervous about it. Alex stopped off at the front desk, assuring Georgia that he was OK before telling her where they'd be, and to send anyone seeking him out, or seemingly lost, over to meet him in person. She assured them she would, telling him how glad she was that he was OK. She told him the hotel was ready to make some restitution for what had nearly happened on their premises but he wouldn't hear of it. "Nothing happened. It was a simple accident and no one was harmed. I was unnerved is all, so there's nothing for anyone to worry about. The hotel did nothing wrong," he assured her. They set off, Leanna once again letting him walk arm in arm with her, even though she wouldn't have allowed any other male that degree of familiarity. Yet with Alex she felt it oddly comforting, and she reveled in what she'd considered an archaic male dominating behavior. When they entered the club, Alex was surprised at the number of people present. Despite it being later in the day, with their serving dinner instead of lunch, it didn't seem to account for the substantially larger crowd. "Damn, I've got to keep you around, Alex, you're definitely good for business," Leanna told him as she took in the crowd as well. As soon as the people in the bar noticed them they were suddenly swarmed, although the girls from earlier pushed the others back and got Alex and Cate situated before allowing the others access. "It seems the people from earlier called their girlfriends, and many of them called up their straight friends and family as well," Lori explained. "I invited my family," Debbie admitted. "I hope I didn't overstep my bounds, but I thought they'd be interested." "Don't worry," Alex assured her. "Family and friends are always welcome. After all, they're the ones who will support you if you need it, and you'd be expected to share this kind of news with them, especially if you suspect any of them might have this genetic trait." "We've got a questionnaire to identify who may or may not have it," Cate explained, digging once more through her small purse. "These were made by a friend in New Orleans, so we don't have a lot of spare copies, but pass this one around so everyone can review it. It should give you a good idea of who to contact about it." "Before we get to that," Lori said, casually passing the pamphlet on to someone waiting behind her, "there's a lot more going on. The whole town is abuzz with what you did today!" "What do you mean? What did you hear about us?" Alex cautiously asked, afraid to hear the answer. "The word about your 'appearance' at the mall is spreading like wildfire. People who never heard of you before are talking about you now. Everyone I ran across has been talking about it." "I hope no one has been telling anyone about me," Alex anxiously inquired. "Oh, don't worry, we know to keep the things you told us between us. Well, within reason, that is," Debbie conceded, as she glanced around at all the people in the club. "What she means is that we haven't told anyone that you were here, telling us about yourself," Betsy assured him, pushing Ally up to get closer to him. "We told our families and close friends, but only those we trust, and only then after swearing them to secrecy." "Whew, that sets my mind at ease," Alex told them as someone handed both him and Cate a drink. Leanna took that opportunity to ask one of the waitresses to bring them dinner, telling her precisely what she thought they'd each like. "I don't mind you reaching out to family and friends, but I've still got to stay out of the limelight. Talking up what I'm trying to do is one thing, telling people about what I can do, or who I am, is quite another." So while their food was being prepared Alex and Cate held court, with Alex meeting everyone while Cate would meet with those requesting more specific information. Alex was terrified about the news of his actions at the mall becoming widely known, but he knew better than to show the women here how concerned he was. While he felt better after they'd assured him they wouldn't reveal anything about him to anyone they didn't trust, Alex was still nervous about the word of his performing 'miracles' around town. Although he felt safe that these women wouldn't betray him, he knew that rumors had a life of their own, and word of the Angel of New Orleans being in Oklahoma City wouldn't require anyone here revealing he was here. These women were here to support him, and they all seemed to be on the same page about how to respond to people. But as he talked to everyone his mind was flying a mile a minute, trying to figure out what the spreading rumors would mean to him and how best he could respond to it. It wasn't long until their dinner arrived, and rather than move them to a private table they were served right there on the couch, sitting together, so everyone had free access to continue talking to them as they ate. It was a bit overwhelming. Alex had been growing more comfortable with women flocking to him and having to deal with large numbers of them at the same time, but this was something else entirely. These were normal women with no compelling biological reason to gravitate to him, and they seemed to be just as enthusiastic as the most devout Seer he'd met. He then began to rethink the attitude of the women—and the men—around him. He considered they might not have been so enamored of him because they saw him as a spiritual being, but instead because they saw him as a powerful leader, someone trying to accomplish something significant, and who they each wanted to encourage and share in his vision. Not the vision of secret abilities, but the idea that he was leading a new group of people, trying to organize, educate and guide them, hoping to get them established. He also reconsidered how the men like Brandon and Rodger, Chalise's brother and father, or Tony from school, or even Grace's father, Anthony, had reacted to him. If these otherwise normal women were this enamored with him, even without any otherworldly attractions affecting them, then maybe these men were responding to something having nothing at all to do with him. Maybe they were reacting to how the women were responding to him, to how they perceived the attractions involved, or how they feared he might be doing something nefarious? He decided he and Cate needed to rethink their understanding of what drove those around him. What's more, it also threw his understanding of his most loyal followers into question as well. It now seemed they weren't so overwhelmed by their perceptions of him and by how they felt his energy, but that they were excited simply by what he represented, both for themselves and for their future children and others like them. This new understanding changed all of Alex's perceptions of the people around him, and it had his mind reeling almost as much as his paranoia did. Everyone was anxious to tell him how the people they'd talked to were reacting to him. They also wanted him to describe his 'mission' to each new person they presented him to. They had many more questions, although only a few had potential followers they expected him to evaluate. He actually discovered a new Watcher. He probably would have found more, but Ally's family lived out of town, and Leanna had spent the day with them, not having had time to contact anyone else. After they finished dinner they continued their discussions, though now they were free to get up and wander like it was just a big cocktail party. Despite the clear reasons for why they wouldn't want to, Alex was intrigued by how many of the women were actually flirting with him. He wasn't sure if it was a matter of his 'appeal' overruling their basic non-attraction to him, or whether it was just simple comfort or even the allure that attracted them. This was all a mystery to him, one for him to contemplate another time. For now he was glad that everyone was so relaxed and seemed so aware of his own caution. The woman who had been looking for him at the hotel showed up, and Alex spoke to her before sending her off with Cate to learn some of what she needed to know. She was a Watcher, but she'd had trouble getting rid of her friends, who were more concerned with their prior engagements than with what she 'considered more important'. She was fascinated to find herself in a lesbian bar, never having been exposed to one before. The locals welcomed her as one of their own, so she followed along, anxious to learn all she could in a safe environment. During a break in the conversation, Alex managed to corner Cate for a moment. "You know, I was thinking about what to call the Watchers. It seems to me that we have been treating them a little unfairly. I mean, in the early days we had to treat them differently just because of the way we were encountering people, but now, we're ... well, I'm only doing it because I've gotten used to treating them as 'not quite full Seers'. Given what I'm learning about the women here tonight, I think I'm going to have to change that." "So what are you going to call them, then?" she asked, grinning because she still loved putting her brother on the spot, something she still held over from their childhoods. "I was thinking 'Seekers'. It's true they don't seek me out the way the Seers do, but that's only due to their own doubts about their abilities, and even then, those that do come forward do it based more on their personalities than anything else. I don't think any of them are any less motivated or driven to help than anyone else in the organization." "I agree with you, and what's more I think it's a much better name than 'Watchers'," Cate agreed with him. "Good, then I'll put the word out to everyone. From now on the Watchers are no more." Cate watched as Alex's eyes glazed over for a minute. Someone else walked up to speak to them, but Cate just held them off for a moment. The woman figured something was going on, so she watched Alex and noticed the distracted look to his eyes and wondered what was going on, but Alex recovered and they began talking, and the woman didn't think any more about it. At least not that night. Betsy now seemed to be as interested in foisting her girlfriend, Ally, on Alex as she'd been guarded about him earlier, which also confused him. He wasn't sure why she'd changed positions so quickly. And she wasn't the only one. Not only were the lesbians flirting with him, but many of them were foisting their straight friends and relatives on him. He once again couldn't understand how the standard rules of what drives men and women to be committed to one another seemed to break down in his case. Surely there must be some biological reason for it this time? After all, it didn't seem like his leading a promising movement would overrule the basic male/female relationship structure. Of course, as everyone continued to ask him about what he was doing they mentioned Patricia's show. Everyone seemed interested, so Alex explained that while Patricia was a well regarded musician and her show was excellent, that the whole tour was designed to advance his movement. He then explained how she'd switched from her normal Bluesy background to write the songs and music for a new album, all of which were focused on him and what he was trying to achieve, each cleverly disguised to sound like simple love songs. The women were fascinated, asking about the performance and how long it would be in town. "You know, I heard the ads for it. It didn't get much space in the paper, just a couple of lines under Diane Kennedy's Ad, but the bit about 'Trusting yourself' sounded intriguing. I'd thought it was a feminist manifesto of some sort." "It may be designed for the Watch ... er, the Watchers and Seers, but the kids at school that heard it when she performed for our Prom thought she was wonderful," Cate told them, having gotten confused by the name change before realizing these women wouldn't know about it yet. "Patty has used what Alex has been able to teach her to really refine her music and improve her concert. It's really produced a bigger impact in her act. I think you'll all love it." "Are there still tickets available?" someone asked. "Frankly, I'm not sure. The last few shows have been pretty crowded, but that just might be due to the difference between a Tuesday and Saturday night show. She's currently performing a make-up show in Dallas." "Wait, do you mean that concert where someone got shot?" someone else asked in alarm. Alex resisted the impulse to sigh this time. "Yes, unfortunately someone was upset about me at the concert. Luckily someone was there in order to react and took him out before he could hurt any more people, but two women were injured." He neglected to add any more details, nor mention that Gail was accompanying him, for fear that would further tie him into the event. But that didn't stop the people around him from figuring out what he was leaving out. "He was shooting at you? What did you do? How did he miss?" Here Cate stepped forward, once again taking Alex's lead, going so far as to add what Alex himself was afraid to say. "One of the girls who Alex had just activated saw the guy's anger and hostility in his aura and shoved Alex out of the way while she and another girl charged him. When Gail, who'd been distracted by someone who was warning her about the very man who attacked him, saw what was happening, she drew down on him, warned him to stop, and before she even finished he raised his gun to shoot again and she shot him." "Wow, you certainly lead an exciting life." "It's just like everyone fighting the big fight, someone is always trying to shut them up so they can stop the movement," another new person observed. At that point there was no way to control the information, and everyone was busy discussing what it meant and what the person who'd attacked him had been motivated by. Alex continued to talk to the people for the rest of the night, and more and more people arrived until the place was positively packed. As far as Alex could tell, no one who showed up was uninvited, and the regulars seemed to be checking out everyone who showed up. Alex eventually managed to get both Betsy and Ally aside where he finally confronted her. "Betsy, this morning you were guarded and upset that Ally was interested in what I represented, yet now you seem anxious to push us together. What's up? What are you trying to do?" Betsy seemed hesitant to reply but Ally didn't hesitate. "We talked it over after you left. We've talked about having a baby, and I said this would be the perfect opportunity, that if we could talk you into it we'd not only have the perfect genetic makings for a baby, but it would further your movement and tie us closer together by joining my Watcher gene with your genes in our child," she explained, showing just how free Cate had been with their information, and how readily everyone had been soaking it up. "So you figured you'd push her on me, instead of simply asking me whether I'd share my sperm? I'm planning on finding a fertility clinic in the city and making a deposit tomorrow." "We'll call that Plan B," Betsy finally worked up the nerve to reply. "Ally is clearly excited about you, despite not being attracted to any other man. When I felt myself feeling the same way I saw it as a clear sign that there was more involved than appears on the surface. Besides," she added, staring into Alex's eyes, "I'm interested in having a child as well." Alex had to swallow heavily as her obvious implications struck home. "Wow, that's a lot to take in. You're serious about this?" he asked. "Absolutely," they both replied. "And Cate didn't mention anything about what's involved in the process?" he asked cautiously. That seemed to heighten both their attention. "No, but that doesn't mean we aren't interested in any further details. Just so we're clear, we're both sexually interested in you, even though we're confirmed lesbians and don't fool around with men. We don't understand what the attraction is, but we figure this isn't a 'normal' situation." "You can say that again," Alex replied. "A friend of ours has this theory that I, and those central to me, are all spirits from another plane of existence that figured out how to access this energy source and used it to cross over to this world, taking on the form of human babies. It's pretty far out, but it explains a fair amount and gives us a different perspective sometimes. But if you apply it in this circumstance, maybe I'm just a lesbian merely taking on another form in this life?" "Really?" Ally laughed. "That's the best you can come up with?" "Yeah," Betsy replied, grinning. "We've already told you we're willing to sleep with you in the hopes you'll get us both pregnant, you don't need to invent stories to convince us." "All right, you've made your point. Go talk to Cate and ask her to explain what is going to happen to you tonight. As much as I hate fooling around with an existing couple, I think this is a special case. I think I'm going to invite someone else to our party, though. Cate will explain what that's about as well." They both hurried off as Alex found Leanna again. "Leanna, I've been looking for you. There's something you don't know about yet, and I think I should explain it before I ask you something." "Is it about boosting people?" she asked with a twinkle in her eye, even though she had to look away from Alex as she said it. "How—?" Alex started to ask. "While you were talking to one of your two girlfriends," she explained, "you took quite a while, so we talked about a lot of things. And the answer is I'd be delighted. I've been around for a long time and I've got to admit that I've never had my brain melted, so I'm looking forward to it. After all, some things are even worth having to put up with a little dick for," she finished with a laugh as she hooked her arm through his. "Anna, close the bar for me, I'm going to escort Alex and Cate back to their hotel and I probably won't make it back." "Sure thing, Evil Queen, I live to do your evil bidding," Anna replied with a chuckle. The girls in the club surrounded them again, each anxious to tell Alex how much they'd enjoyed meeting him and asking if they'd see him tomorrow. He told them he'd be back sometime, but that he didn't have any plans yet. "Hey, Alex, you can't leave yet. I just got here," Gail called out from the door she'd just entered through. "After all this time you finally find a bar full of hot girls I can fool around with, and suddenly you're anxious to run out?" "You can come along and enjoy a couple of them at your place," Leanna suggested, not bothering to mention she knew she usually spent her time in Alex's hotel room. "Never mind, then, girls. I'll be back to meet you all tomorrow. But right now I've got someone important to protect with my body. Now, if only I can protect him from all those big bad lesbians," she answered with a grin. There was a short delay as everyone had to acknowledge that Gail was the one who had defended Alex and prevented anyone else from being shot. It was clear she was going to be popular when they returned tomorrow, but she insisted she had to protect Alex from the evil lesbians between there and the hotel, which generated some shared laughs. Soon they were on their way. "So I'm assuming that everyone knows what's involved?" Alex asked, as they walked away from the club. "What, that in exchange to putting up with your repulsive dick, I get to experience multiple earth-shattering mind-melting orgasms that will leave me with magical abilities, and possibly a one-in-a-billion baby that will help to change mankind?" Ally laughed. "I'm not sure, do you really think it's worth it?" she asked her girlfriend, who also seemed to find the prospect quite funny. "Don't worry," Gail told them. "I've got a lot of experience in dealing with Alex from a lesbian's perspective. I know how to get the most energy from him with the minimal amount of dick exposure." "So how did everything go today?" Alex asked her, changing the subject before anyone might change their minds. "I should ask you the same thing. The girl at the hotel said you had another episode." "That's the least of it," Cate replied. "Without you there to protect him, he walked right into a robbery. Luckily he's learned enough from you that he disarmed him singlehandedly. Turns out one of the two was a Seer, and when she saw him standing there shining she handed him all the money they stole." "Jeez, that's the last time I'm ever leaving you alone again. Man, couldn't you keep out of trouble for a day? What's even worse, you entertained a bar full of gorgeous lesbians without me there to intervene," Gail joked, but it was clear she was upset. "It wasn't intended," Alex told her. "I was trying to avoid any public scenes. I went there to ... uh..." "I talked him into it," Leanna offered. "I wanted to buy him something to honor him for what he gave me. I was going to buy him some jewelry." "I'll need to leave you alone tomorrow morning to check out the place and see what I can learn from the owner." "His name is René. Just tell him that I sent you," Leanna told her. "He'll be more forthcoming that way." Alex stopped by to say hello to Georgia on the way in, ostensibly to tell her they were in for the day. She told him she'd sent the woman looking for him to the club to find him, so he assured her she'd found him but they'd left her at the club. Georgia asked which club he was referring to, looking at him a little askance. "Hey, it's a perfectly nice club," Leanna insisted. "And don't worry, the girls there would be glad to welcome you. Though, to be honest, you might have trouble getting out again." They both laughed at that, showing that Georgia was more relaxed than she'd been earlier. She told him that she'd be off duty in a few minutes. Alex told her to come by and say hello when she had a chance, knowing full well that she'd be there with bells on if she had any choice in the matter, only saying that because he knew the other employees were possibly listening. The three new girls were positively giddy as they headed up, something which greatly impressed Gail, since it reinforced that what she'd experienced wasn't just her, that it was somewhat universal with Alex. Once inside the room Alex suggested that Cate fix everyone something to drink, since he was waiting for Georgia. "I'll tell you what, how about if I talk to Georgia and you entertain the girls," Cate replied with a smile. Everyone seemed to think that was a much better idea, so Alex took everyone aside into the connected room so they wouldn't be obvious when Georgia arrived. As Alex started kissing the girls as Gail described the best way to handle Alex when someone still isn't used to men, Leanna slipped into the other room again. Alex wasn't paying much attention, but he picked up little snippets of conversation between Leanna and Cate through the open door. "Why not, no one is going to say anything about it." "No, I can't. I..." Alex couldn't hear the rest as Cate began whispering. "You're kidding me? Man, between everything else; all the women proceeding through here, the multiple girlfriends, taking care of him all the time, having to worry about his health, and then this? Man, I don't know how you can put up with it." Alex couldn't hear the rest, as Gail decided to help him along with getting Betsy started with a good tongue bath, one that involved a pair of spread legs and lots of loud moans, but Alex didn't worry too much. He could guess what they were talking about. She'd already gone over it with him. She couldn't say anything about it, for her own reasons, but it clearly had to do with his new ability to automatically boost someone. She'd wanted several people here so she could direct him in his lovemaking, hoping to do something differently with one woman so he'd somehow boost the other one. As such, she couldn't take part in the lovemaking so she could direct everything. He could understand Leanna's disbelief that Cate would undergo that, but she didn't understand how they operated together, nor what this meant to the whole mission. If they could just crack this one nut... Alex realized he was letting himself get distracted, but he also observed that Ally was distracted as well, so he rolled over and shifted them so they were both facing Gail and Betsy, watching them, while he clutched her from behind, not doing anything other than letting her soak up his energy. Gail was busy eating Ally's girlfriend out, and she was apparently doing a good job, as Betsy had her head back, moaning while playing with her breast with one hand and holding Gail's head steady with the other. After they watched for a while, Alex gently moved his arm around Ally's chest, taking her breast in his hand, ignoring the majority of it, just running the palm of his hand over her nipple. They'd stripped earlier, sure that Georgia wouldn't interrupt them. She hadn't, but that semi-privacy didn't mean she couldn't overhear them through the open door. Speaking of which, there was a knock on the far door then, so Leanna joined them as Cate hurried off to answer it. Leanna came in and watched what was happening as she stripped herself, watching Alex as much as she was watching the cunnilingus being performed in front of her. While she couldn't see his eyes exactly, she could tell he was paying more attention to her than he was Gail and Betsy, so she put a little extra wiggle into the normally mundane process, feeling odd that she should feel so encouraged stripping for a man. When she finished she crawled onto the bed, moving in front of Ally instead of behind Alex. "Let me help you out," she offered, stopping to kiss Ally while she played with her other breast. Alex appreciated her distraction, focusing on kissing Ally's neck and ear while she was concentrating on kissing Leanna. After a moment Leanna moved down, working on Ally's breasts, allowing Alex to replace her, kissing Ally in a way that she didn't notice just who she was kissing. Alex knew she was already feeling the effects of his energy, and he could feel her excitement building under his fingers. Leanna soon moved lower, in imitation of Gail. Ally took the opportunity to twist around and kiss Alex more fully. Betsy was moaning more now, twisting her head back and forth, Gail grinning from being able to enjoy eating another woman openly. Glancing over at the other side of the bed, Gail stopped for a moment as she switched positions, swinging around until she was positioned over Betsy. Betsy, of course, knew just what to do, and didn't hesitate before diving into her task. Seeing that Ally wasn't focusing as much on who was kissing her anymore, Alex started getting more aggressive playing with her breasts, still keeping his touch light to not remind her of his rough male hands. But soon it became evident that Ally seemed to be enjoying Alex's attention more than Leanna's. Just then Cate and Georgia looked in through the open doorway. "Oh, my," Georgia said in surprise at the number of people involved, and the women making love with each other more than Alex sleeping with several women. "Pardon, me," Cate told her, stepping around her. She leaned over Leanna and whispered to her, though it was loud enough for Alex to hear her. "She's ready, let them get started." As Leanna moved back, Cate leaned down and kissed her, while Ally got up and turned towards Alex. Betsy glanced over at them, seeing that things were progressing. That seemed to be enough for her, somehow, so instead of being distracted she started coming, almost as if the idea of someone else making love to her girlfriend was that exciting. However Alex held Ally off until Betsy finished her cum. "You should lie back on Alex, him underneath, you on top facing away from him," Gail instructed as she wiped her face. "That way you get the same energy while being able to concentrate on everyone else." "I don't think so," Cate interjected. "We're going to do this one a little differently. Alex, I want to see you get aggressive tonight. Let yourself go like you did the other night. Ally, get on all fours. Alex, you get behind her. You're always more aggressive when you aren't physically facing someone. Betsy, either you or Leanna can climb under her and have some fun, although I doubt she'll need the extra help." For some reason everyone did as she instructed, no one questioning why she was choreographing their lovemaking. Betsy got up and knelt beside Ally, wanting to be there for her instead of getting involved herself. Leanna also decided to sit and observe, although Gail snuggled up behind her and played with her as they each watched. As much as she liked the younger girls, she really preferred someone closer to her own age. Alex moved behind Ally, lightly grasping her hips. "As you ready?" he asked. "She's ready, go ahead," Cate assured him. Ally turned back and nodded her head just in case there was any doubt. Betsy reached down and grasped her hand. With that assurance, Alex swiped his dick across her pussy, lubricating himself since he hadn't done anything else to prepare himself, and tried to enter her gently. However she was having none of it. When Ally felt him moving slower than she thought appropriate, she pushed back against him. Taking that as sufficient encouragement, Alex shoved home, holding still a second before he withdrew and started to establish a rhythm. "It's nothing like what you expected, is it?" Gail asked. "No, I never thought I'd be so excited having some guy's dick fucking me over," she giggled. "I've had Betsy ... fuck me with dildos, ... and a strap-on, once or twice. Frankly, I can't ... even compare the two, since my whole body is ... alive with Alex's ... energy," she explained, having to pause every time Alex thrust forward. "You're right," Gail told her. "It's not so much the dick as it is Alex himself, and a lot of that is his energy. That's when I stopped making justifications and just resigned myself to getting fucked by a guy. I figured the relationship is what's important, not the sex of the individual." Alex leaned over, grasping her tits, his pace already starting to pick up. "Get ready," Cate advised her, "Alex is going to get pretty rough. Every time he's tried this before he went a little nuts. Chances are he'll go through several of you before he even starts to wear down." "I'll take my ... chances," Ally responded. Georgia, who was still watching, and who no one else was even aware of anymore, leaned against the door frame and starting to play with herself, slipping her hand under her uniform skirt. "What's it feel like?" Betsy asked, genuinely curious. "Well ... it's..." Ally tried to respond, having more trouble answering since Alex had speeded up, shoving into her harder than he had previously. "It's kind of like having static electricity running across your whole body," Gail said, filling in for her. "You don't actually feel that much from his dick, but his energy makes you so excited that anything he does for you seems tremendously sexy. It's not like you're making love to a man, it's more like your making love to an event. It's like making love to an earthquake. His cock is almost extraneous to what you're experiencing." As she spoke, Gail's hands started working faster on Leanna, one hand playing with her left tit, the other working on her clit. Leanna's breath coming faster, based largely on what she was watching. Despite being so far away from everyone else, she felt like she was watching something phenomenal, and she was sure she was responding to the energy she could feel from them. Alex was starting to have trouble playing with Ally's breasts, so Cate made a decision. "Quit trying to do so much, you're fucking the girl, Alex, go ahead and fuck her. Let her know what she's getting," she instructed him. So he let go and stood up, working more seriously on fucking her. He thought this strange advice, since she'd be receiving less energy this way, but this was Cate's grand experiment, and if having him lose himself in the moment would help them unlock the automatic boosting ability then he'd put his own feelings on the matter aside. This is for you, he told all the women in his movement in his imagination. Just out of curiosity, Betsy ran her hand along Ally's back, then reached over and ran it along Alex's chest. She shivered a little part way through. "I don't know if it's my imagination or what, but I can only imagine what she's feeling." "Need a little oral lovemaking?" Gail asked Leanna, already knowing her answer but wanting to make a point. "Hell, no. Watching Alex make love to someone is more exciting than anything else. Just keep doing what you're doing." Alex was making full strokes now, pulling way back and shoving home. After he slipped out a couple of times on his outstroke, Cate turned to Georgia and motioned her forward. She delayed for only a second, then headed in, standing behind him and holding the base of his penis while reaching around him. Anytime he slipped out after that, she'd hurriedly line him up again and shove his pelvis forward with her own hips, sinking him back in. Both Alex and Betsy felt Ally quivering under Alex, but he didn't let himself slow down or fine tune his activity. Even though Georgia was still fully dressed, she could feel Alex's skin develop a thin sheen of sweat. Despite how sexy being involved with this was, and her actively holding his cock helping him literally fuck this woman, she couldn't picture removing her hand to play with herself. She was feeling too much from just holding on to him to willingly give it up. Alex worked on Ally, hardly taking the time to consider her feelings or emotional well being, for some more time, during which she had a series of small orgasms which all seemed to be building in intensity. "Wow, she's never come this much with me," Betsy observed, never having moved her hand away from Alex's abdomen, where it had ended when she'd initially stroked his chest to determine how much energy he was giving off. Ally went off then, her whole body shaking almost violently, the interior of her pussy massaging Alex's cock. Betsy finally released Alex's body, leaning over to hug and stabilize her lover. Alex, getting the additional stimulation from Ally, closed his eyes, shoved hard into Ally and proceeded to shoot off into her. She lasted for about three blasts before her eyes finally rolled up into her head and she collapsed, pulling away from Alex's dick. Betsy followed her down, trying to protect her and hold her at the same time. Alex continued to shoot, and Georgia proceeded to jerk him the rest of the way off, his cum landing on both Ally's ass and Betsy's side. Leanna started shaking almost as badly as Ally had, although Gail, knowing what she was doing, held her steady as she finished off finger-fucking her with three fingers. When she finished coming, she kept holding her, keeping her upright even though she sagged in her arms, though her eyes never left the scene before her. However, Alex wasn't done. Growling, he reached behind him and grabbed Georgia. "Quick," Cate shouted, "Betsy, get your ass in Ally's position. Ally will be fine where she is. She'll need to rest anyway, but Alex needs to keep going." Leanna suddenly perked up, and seeing Betsy distracted started to move away from Gail to jump into the action, but Cate was having none of it. "Don't, Leanna. Although you're older and are probably more used to this kind of fucking, I'd rather you not be subjected to this. You can make love to Alex later, but for now let him impregnate the two people he's supposed to." With that command Gail held her in place, while the others jumped at Cate's instructions, and Betsy quickly moved around, presenting her ass and exposed pussy to Alex while still holding and sheltering the unconscious Ally. Georgia, not releasing Alex's cock, shifted her hand back obediently, being more concerned with doing what was needed than in anything else at that moment. Again, she was happy enough still holding Alex's tumescent dick. She could feel Ally's cum dripping over her hand and Alex's pulse vibrating through his cock, but still she was serious about what she'd been asked to do, still feeling like she was only involved in the activities because of this one task she had to perform. Alex turned around. He'd been prepared to throw Georgia down and ravish her, but he was willing to jump on Betsy instead. Moving forward, he grabbed Betsy's hips and pulled her back, not even having to handle his own cock as Georgia guided it into Ally's girlfriend. Alex slid in and Betsy couldn't help sighing heavily as he filled her up. Gail had been right, the feelings she felt were unlike anything she could compare it to. While she wouldn't say that she could do without Alex's cock, she was right in that it was only a small part of the entire experience. When he initially pulled back, she pushed back until Alex was partially seated in her, and then allowed Alex to shove her away from him as he filled her again. Alex started fucking her hard, which Betsy didn't dream of protesting. Leanna shrugged Gail off and knee walked around Betsy and Ally's prone form, wrapping her arm around Alex and Georgia. Cate, taking pity on Georgia, walked behind her and quickly worked her dress up and over her head, leaving her clutching Alex in only her white underwear and industrial stockings. Once Cate finished with that task, she stepped back, being very careful to not touch Alex herself. Gail, having no one else to play with, started to work on herself, both hands playing with her clit. Alex was fucking Betsy as hard as he had Ally, slowing down only long enough for his dick to firm up enough to do her justice. Now that it was hard enough, he didn't dare slow down for fear his dick would shrink following his powerful cum. Betsy was amazed, even though she couldn't feel what everyone else did, she felt more alive being fucked by Alex than she ever had before, although she wasn't sure whether it was his energy or the idea of making love to the potential father of a future humankind. That very idea made her quiver in delight. Alex was thrusting hard into Betsy now, pulling her hips back as he drove his cock into her. When he pulled back, Betsy pulled forward to aid him, though he needed no effort when he shoved into her. Betsy was surprised, he was actually hitting the end of her pussy, just barely hitting her cervix with a jarring thud before he pulled back. She wasn't used to that, not having had much experience with this kind of thing, but she found the sensation an odd but natural part of the whole process, almost like an exclamation mark at the end of each thrust. Soon Betsy was working up her own sweat, having had the same escalating series of minor orgasms that Ally had had. She didn't have as many of them, two instead of Ally's five or six, but she wasn't about to complain. Georgia could feel the sweat dripping off of Alex now, finding her own underwear becoming damp, though she wasn't about to move enough to remove it. She was much more interested in holding Alex's pulsing cock steady than she was in being comfortable, and unlike Betsy, she could feel Alex's BCM energy coursing through her. Cate, though, was nowhere to be seen. It was almost like she'd lost interest and had simply wandered off. Everyone else was involved with Alex in one way or another, even Gail, who was providing him with additional inspiration. However, Cate wasn't gone. "Keep it up, you guys," she called out from the other room. "Alex, don't hold back, because once you're finished with Betsy you're done. You'll be officially cut off." Strange as it was, that seemed to set Alex into overdrive. He started fucking Betsy with rapid short stokes. Gail was beginning to see what Cate was up to. These rapid motions Alex was using were sure to burn up more of his energy than his previous motions. Alex was hardly pulling back at all, fucking Betsy like a rabbit with a short attention span, afraid to pull back much lest it forget what it's doing. Georgia was now able to feel Betsy's juices running over her hand at the end of each of Alex's strokes, and she was beginning to appreciate that aspect of women's sexuality more than she had before. Previously she'd considered a woman's lubrication as a messy business, but now she was wondering what it might taste like. She reminded herself to taste her hand when they finished. That is, if Alex ever finished. The way he was going it looked like he'd just keep going. Betsy had had another two orgasms, but was nearing the end of her endurance. "I'm ... about to ... lose it," she gasped out. "George?" Alex asked, not even bothering to finish her name. She responded quickly, using her other hand to manipulate his balls. Alex was now fucking Betsy so hard he had to hold her hips tight to keep her from slipping off the end of his dick every time he fucked her, now pulling back on her hips as he thrust forward and as he initially pulled back. Leanna had her arm wrapped around Georgia, clutching and kneading her ass while the other was wrapped around Alex's chest, pressing her tits into his side. Finally Betsy had enough, she screamed and proceeded to shake and thrash. Alex wasn't quite there yet, but he knew he didn't have much time so he didn't slow down at all. Betsy's cunt contracted around his dick, trying to hold it steady but he just continued to thrust in and out of her violently enough to force his way through. Just as Betsy felt herself collapsing, from exhaustion rather than having her mind melted like her girlfriend, Alex pulled her tight against him and fired off into her as he had his second orgasm. That seemed to set everyone off. Gail collapsed as she shuddered through her orgasm. Just as Georgia was about to lose it she felt herself yanked back, Alex slipping from her arms. Leanna wrapped the arm she had wrapped around her around Alex and straddled his leg, feeling herself letting go as well. Georgia tried to pull away from Cate's arms, surprised to find her there since she'd thought she was in the other room, and when she wouldn't release her she groaned, but Cate didn't have any sympathy for her. Alex shot off three pulses which seemed to drain him of all his remaining energy, then everyone collapsed together, burying poor Ally beneath them. Silence reigned in the room for several seconds, until Alex reached up a shaking hand. "Food..." he gasped. "I need food!" When he uttered those words, Cate literally shoved Georgia aside and rushed to Alex's side, clutching and holding him. "Georgia, grab that tray of food," she instructed. But Georgia was in no condition to do so, she was still shaking, and once she started to recover she pulled back. "Shit, I can feel you. I can feel each of you. But most of all I can feel Alex's utter exhaustion." "You ... you did it," Alex gasped out. "We boosted her," he announced weakly. "What? Oh fuck, I had nothing to do with that. I have no idea why that happened," Cate responded. "But, I thought..." Alex tried to respond. "No, stupid, I was trying to prove that I wasn't the one killing you. It took almost doing so to prove that I'm not the one draining your energy, but now that I know I'm not, I don't have to leave you," she said, as tears ran down her cheeks and she kissed Alex as if no one else was there. What the fuck? Alex thought as his body started to go into spasms. ------- Chapter 31: Adapting to Circumstances "Holy Shit, Cate, what the fuck did you do?" Gail demanded as she grabbed Alex, physically shoving Cate aside. She laid him out flat, checking his pulse, and then turned to the shocked onlookers. "Georgia, put down the food. Now's no time to fuck around. Bring a soda, he's in no shape to eat anything at the moment." Georgia jumped, quickly grabbed a Coke from the items that Cate had set aside earlier. "Is he going to be OK," Leanna asked anxiously. "Hopefully. I have no idea what Cate was trying to prove, but what she did was incredibly stupid," she answered as she tried to dribble the soda into Alex's mouth while simultaneously holding him down. "She knows he has trouble, and she purposely set him up to fail just so she could prove a point." "I wasn't proving a point," Cate answered in a quiet voice. "It was something I had to establi—" "Face it," Gail hissed at her. "You fucked up. If you'd really been serious about this, you would have warned us." "Should we call an ambulance?" Georgia asked. Both Cate and Gail responded immediately. "No," Gail insisted, loudly enough to drown out Cate's weaker but no less impassioned response. "They've never seen this before, and they'd try to keep him for hours and run every test under the sun. All he needs is to eat and rest, and he won't be able to do that while the EMTs are wrapping him up and transporting him. No outsiders," she insisted, just to ensure no one tried to call for help. When Gail had laid out Alex on the bed, Betsy had gotten up and was now watching the proceedings. Everyone, even Betsy, had forgotten about Ally, but she sat up slowly, also concerned about what was happening to Alex. "I've got to apologize to you both for this," Gail told them, noticing they were both moving around again. "Normally Alex is very loving and gentle, but for some reason when he isn't dealing with someone directly, he tends to go over to the dark side. Cate knew this, and she deliberately set you up." "That's why I—" "We don't want to hear it, Cate," Gail snapped. "OK, he's starting to come around a little. Hand me another Coke and get some cookies ready. Hopefully he'll be able to gum those. Shit, Cate, I feel like ... fuck, I don't know what would be a fit enough punishment for this." Cate looked worried sick, standing away from everyone else, biting her lip and wringing her hands. She'd planned on making sure that Alex didn't last any longer than he had in the past, but she didn't count on his being worse. This was the first time that he'd lost consciousness or went into convulsions. "I think she just wanted to make sure she wasn't hurting him," Leanna said, trying to intercede for Cate, who she could clearly see was upset about what she'd done. "You knew about this?" Gail asked her accusingly. "I ... I ... Yeah, I did. She told me why she'd been avoiding him. I hated to see the two of them at odds, but when she—" "So you thought this little game of hers was worth risking his life?" Gail hissed. "Aren't the two of you happy enough that he's going to die soon, anyway? Did you think you needed to rush the process? Damn, there's so much he has yet to do and he only has so much time to do it. Don't you realize that without him all your new abilities won't help anyone? For all we know, your telepathy will stop the moment he dies. He—" "Telepathy?" Betsy asked, sitting up a little straighter. Even Georgia became more alert when Gail accidentally revealed that little tidbit. Ally had already been advised of that particular ability the Seers shared. "Never mind," Gail hissed, getting frustrated that no one else was aiding Alex, even though she was fiercely watching over him, not allowing anyone else near him. "The fact is, many of his followers' abilities will possibly just dissolve, like so much smoke, once he passes away, and without anyone else with his abilities there will never be another of us activated or boosted. You'd piss that away just to satisfy your idle curiosity?" Everyone shut up after that, and while Georgia continued to hand Gail whatever she needed no one else approached them. Cate shrank back, standing anxiously against the far wall, trying desperately to see how Alex was responding, but feeling too ashamed about what she'd done to him to venture any closer to him. "Please, be OK," she whispered. "I'd die if anything happened to you." Gail, overhearing her, swung around and stared at her, but Alex was responding by then and was looking for more food, so she couldn't glare at her for long. "All right," Leanna responded calmly, which was shocking to hear in the current context. "Shouting isn't going to help anyone, and it's only likely to upset Alex once he gets his senses back. Let's just focus on helping him recover." Leanna seemed to assume command after that. "Betsy, get a cold wet cloth and I'll clean him off. Hopefully that'll bring him around a little quicker. Ally, get some ice. Cate, you'd better stay away, otherwise Gail is likely to punch you out." Everyone started to move, now that they finally had something they could do. Cate walked around so she was out of the way but could still observe how Alex was faring. Alex seemed to be trying to say something, but Gail was so intent on feeding him she wasn't noticing. "I think he wants something," Cate cautiously mentioned. Gail turned and stared hard at her, but Leanna came to her rescue again. "She's right. He's trying to say something." So Gail held off. Alex managed, with some difficulty, to lean up. He reached out and held his hand out to Cate, palm up, silently asking for her. Seeing that, she ran to him and threw herself beside him, being sure not to interfere with Gail's attempt to feed him. Once she was there, holding his hand, he returned his attention to eating again, but his actions affected Gail, who no longer glared so pointedly at her. She wasn't ready to forgive her yet, after all, Gail was still feeling angry, frustrated and betrayed, no longer knowing who she could trust in taking care of Alex. She'd take a while before she could trust Cate again, but she knew better than to go against Alex. Gail hadn't been there for Alex three separate times, and now the one threat to his life had come from someone he trusted more than anyone else. Gail took that as a personal betrayal, feeling like Caesar's guards must have, no longer knowing where to look for the next attack to come from. She felt badly enough that she'd been unable to protect him from the shooting in Dallas, or the robbery here in Oklahoma, but this had been more than that. He'd been set up and injured by a trusted companion who should have known better, and while the other threats were something she couldn't avoid, this one felt personal to her. Although Alex responded and seemed to get better, he was too tired to say anything, and after the initial excitement was over quickly fell asleep. The other girls were concerned with whether it was safe for him to sleep then, fearing possible undetected brain damage given his earlier seizures, but Cate assured them he needed rest more than anything else, although they'd wake him in a while to feed him again. Gail backed off, letting Cate do her job, which was to advise everyone on Alex's abilities and vulnerabilities, though she still watched Cate suspiciously. They both knew they'd be having a talk soon but neither one was ready to do it in front of a bunch of impressionable new followers. The new girls were too worried about Alex to go anywhere, so they decided to camp out. Gail assumed control of watching over Alex, so she sent Cate to sleep on the other bed in the connecting room with the other girls. Georgia had to run home to change, but Gail suggested she not come back, fearing it would alert the hotel staff that she was up to something. She assured her they'd call, and Cate took her information so they could do that. Alex slept between Gail and Leanna, curling up into a fetal position, looking to the two of them like a glowing cherub, despite his size. They both nuzzled him, but gave him plenty of room so he'd have no problems breathing or getting up if he needed. As much as they fought it, they each drifted off to sleep. Cate the last one, her cheeks streaked with dried tears that no one saw her shedding, as she worried about what she'd almost done to her brother. Her last thoughts, before she fell asleep were that maybe she should separate herself from him, lest she do something even worse to him. ------- "OK, Alex, you need to get up so we'll know if you're OK or not," Gail warned him. "Plus you need to eat again." Alex groaned as he rolled over and opened his eyes. "As much as I hate getting up, food does sound good. Man, what truck ran over me last night?" "The one your sister was driving," Gail replied, casting a steely glance at Cate's room. However she hadn't come in yet, so she missed it. "What? Mellissa drove all the way out here just to sideswipe me?" Alex asked. Gail was about to respond when she noticed Alex grinning, or rather she noticed his enjoyment of her reaction in his aura. Sometimes it was difficult to catch subtle teasing when you couldn't actually see someone's face. "So what's for breakfast?" he asked. "Betsy and Ally are fixing you a starch filled meal of blueberry and banana pancakes. We want you to eat before you attempt showering, since we're not sure we can trust you to stand up at this point." "Man, newly abused and impregnated followers are the best," Alex teased as he climbed out of bed. "No one else ever makes me pancakes." "Hey, you can buy me pancakes whenever your little heart desires," Gail assured him. "But pancakes aren't in my job description." "Cate?" Alex called out, although he had to hold his head immediately after, since it hurt so much for him to yell in his current condition. "Yeah?" she cautiously asked, peeking around the door connecting the two rooms. "Could someone finally explain what last night was all about, seems I was having trouble following the conversation, what with the convulsions and all?" "It seems that Cate instigated the whole thing, pushing you to overextend yourself so she could assure herself she wasn't making you sick," Gail explained. It was clear she still wasn't happy with her, even though she wasn't going to say anything to her directly after Alex had come to her defense the previous night. Alex turned to Cate, trying to study her with only one eye as he shut the other to keep the light from bothering his headache. "What's up with that? Whoever put that crazy idea in your head?" "It's something that Becky brought up. She mentioned it to the girls in Carbondale, and they mentioned it to me the other day when we spoke to them. But I couldn't speak with Becky until yesterday, and by then I was already committed." "So Becky asked you to run over me with a semi?" Alex asked, purposely misunderstanding her. "No, she proposed that since I've been soaking up your energy since we started ... uh, fooling around, that maybe I was doing more than just absorbing the extraneous overflow. That maybe I was acting as a sponge, actively soaking up the energy that you needed and thus actively making you sicker." "And you believed this cockamamie idea?" Alex asked her seriously. "Hell, Alex, it seemed like a legitimate idea. After all, you've only been having episodes since we got involved. And I am the most consistent figure in your life. That's why I've been avoiding you lately, I had to see what effect I was having on you. Unfortunately, there was no way to tell with you just wandering around like normal, so I needed to stress you out to see if you reacted any differently than you normally did." "And what did my reaction last night tell you?" Alex asked simply. "That it was a stupid idea and that I never should have paid attention to it?" Cate replied sheepishly. "That's right. You aren't draining anyone's energy. If you'd thought to ask someone like Gail, they'd have told you that they'd have been able to have see if you had more BCM in you after sleeping with me than you normally do." "Uh, Alex... ?" Gail said, interrupting him, but Alex just waved her off. "Even if you have a small amount more, the fact is that the human body can only hold so much of this, and that's why I continually cast off so much. If you pick up some of it, that doesn't impact me. It's stuff my body has already gotten rid of. What's been hurting me is how hard my body has to work in getting rid of it." "I understand that now, and I was pretty certain of it before, but I just had to be sure," Cate told him. "So what would you have done if you'd been playing a role in making me sicker? Gone off to live in Siberia or something?" "If I needed to; yes. Your health and what you can accomplish are vitally important. If I was negatively impacting you I was willing to step aside, but I wanted to be sure before I took that step." "From now on, discuss any stupid ideas with me before you decide to back a truck up over me, OK?" Alex asked. Cate nodded, and that was enough for Alex. "All right, now does anyone have any pancakes before I continue what I started last night but never got a chance to finish? After all, I'd like to make up for how I acted." "Sorry, but we each decided you aren't going to strain yourself any more until you've recovered," Leanna informed him. "A little excitement isn't worth risking your health, even if it does involve melting our minds." "Frankly, Ally and I couldn't go again even if the others would let us," Betsy told him as she poked her head around the corner. "You kind of wore us out. We've had some wild sex before, but nothing like that." "Again, I'm sorry," Alex tried to tell her. "Don't worry," she hurried to assure him. "It wasn't your fault." "No, it wasn't," Gail agreed, looking pointedly at Cate. "All right, getting off of that topic, what else is going on today? What happened with you yesterday, Gail?" "Ah, the presentation of the key to the city went well, though you can rest assured that's the last time I'll be doing that. The thing you'll want to know about, though, is that I talked to a bunch of the other Seers and asked them to spread the word to everyone in each of your communities. At the end of my little presentation I announced that we were accepting donations for the girls injured in the attack, and before anyone could respond our people from all over the country did. Your people called in a lot of favors from family and friends to ensure the contributions couldn't be traced back to your communities." "So Haley and Kayla's hospital bills are covered?" Alex asked. "You got it. We covered it ourselves, and it can't be traced back to you." "That's good, I was worried about them and I wanted to help them somehow." "Believe me, they both know that, but they were both adamant that you not tip your hand after what happened." "Ha, well my keeping a low profile didn't do much good," Alex informed her. "Yeah, the girls described what happened in a little more detail this morning. I was planning on visiting the owner of the jewelry store, but it seems that Leanna beat me to it." "What do you mean?" Alex asked. "René Mizrachi is stopping by the room for a personal sales call," Leanna informed him. "When I told him that we had some questions for him and that you'd never gotten a chance to make your purchases, he told me he was taking the morning off just to come and take care of you himself." "Are you sure that's—" "Don't worry about it, Alex," Leanna assured him. "I briefly outlined your objections, and he understood. All sales will be complimentary, or he'll accept cash if you insist, so there won't be any paper trails connecting you to the robbery. Plus Gail can ask him whatever she wants to in the privacy of your room." "Well I'm glad you people can watch my ass when I'm out of it. Anything else I missed?" "That seems to be about it," Gail informed him. "Though Leanna and I discussed another issue. She thinks you should strike while the iron's hot, as it were." "Yeah," Leanna answered, as Ally and Betsy brought in pancakes and syrup for everyone, along with fresh coffee and orange juice, "you've got a great opportunity to expand your operation here and to reach out to the public at large. It seems that most people are responding positively to you. If you ever want to make more of a public outreach without exposing yourself, now would be the time to do it." "You know, that makes a lot of sense. Give me a little while to consider it, but I think I've got something else to address right now. Gail's story gave me an idea," Alex told them as they all noticed his eyes glaze over, even as he continued eating. 'Hey, robber girl? Where are you?' 'Jeez! Is that you, Angel?' she responded, clearly unnerved by being spoken to from on high. 'Don't be so upset, my speaking to you this way isn't as miraculous as it seems. Not to me at least, but that's neither here nor there. Now answer the question.' 'Right now I'm lying low. Both Mike and I are trying to attract as little attention as we can.' 'Ah, so Mike would be the guy who talked you into this little fiasco?' Alex guessed. 'Yeah. He still can't figure out what came over me, or what happened to him.' 'Well, I can't be responsible for him. If he didn't learn anything from the encounter, then there's probably no help for him. However, I'm reaching an olive branch out to you, and a way for you to turn your life around. Can you get to, hold on a second... 'Alex paused as he asked the other people at the table for the name of the city park nearby. 'Yeah, can you get to Myriad Botanical Gardens this morning, say around 10:00?' 'Yeah, I should be able to, ' she answered, not even bothering to ask why. 'Good, be there. But there are some conditions, this offer at redemption is for you only. Don't bring Mike along unless you're sure he's turned a corner and can be trusted not to screw up again. If you think he can, then it's on you if he screws up, but in either case, I want him not to interfere with anything. Understood?' 'Yes, sir. I understand perfectly, ' she answered, ready for whatever out he was offering. 'OK, when you get there, do NOT approach me under any circumstances. Do you understand that? I don't want to jeopardize the trust the people of this city are holding me in now by being associated with the people responsible for the robbery I broke up. When you get there, just call out to me telepathically like I am with you. I'll hear you and I'll tell you what to do then. OK?' 'Yes, sir, I understand. Show up at the Myriad Botanical Gardens downtown and wait for you, but don't approach or respond to you in any way. Should I come to the street entrance, the park entrance or what?' 'Hell, I don't know. I don't know the city at all. How about if we meet across from the big convention center across the street from there?' 'That would be the Cox Center. If I can, I assume you want this to be inconspicuous, so how about if we meet by the Outdoor Skating Rink. It's right beside the Botanical Gardens, there should be plenty of people, but it won't be so crowded there will be a lot of people watching us.' 'That sounds good. I'll see you then. Or not, since I probably won't acknowledge you. Whatever you do, don't be late because I won't wait for you, and don't let Mike screw this up for you.' 'I won't, sir, and thank you for giving me this chance. I've been worried sick about how to get out of this mess, and I knew that Mike's idea was terrible, but I couldn't see any alternative.' 'Well, you have one now. Just watch yourself and don't screw it up. I'll talk to you in the park, but before I go, just what the hell is your name?' 'Oh, I'm sorry, my name is Stacie, Stacie Po—' 'That's OK, right now the less I know the better it is. I just don't like having to refer to you as robber girl. Anyway, I'm expecting you to show up, ' and with that Alex ended the conversation. "And what was that about?" Gail asked when they noticed he'd finished whatever he'd been doing. She had a feeling she should be aware of whatever he was planning, especially since he may not have recovered as much as he thought he had yet. "I've got a few things planned today that should help a number of people, and all I'll have to do is take a little stroll through the park," he answered, giving them no further information. "So girls, don't you have work today?" he asked. "We were going to call in sick today," Betsy answered for her and Ally. "Don't. Go ahead and head in. We'll be busy this afternoon, but we can meet at the club this evening." "I've got people opening the bar for me," Leanna told him. "I can go in whenever." "Good, I need the phone number of a good hard working local reporter," Alex answered with a gleam in his eye. ------- René was very helpful, anxious to pay Alex back in any way that he could, but still being respectful enough to not overstep his bounds. Alex took him aside and told him what he was looking for, and why, and René opened his case of wares on the hotel room's writing desk where he showed Alex several different things he thought might be suitable. Alex examined several of them, but eventually said he liked his original idea better, asking René if he could manage that. René assured him that he could, that he actually had some in stock and that he'd bring them by later. He and Alex shook over it, and Alex told him to bring them by Leanna's club that evening, since it would be better if no one observed the two of them together who didn't already know his story. "That makes sense," René replied before remembering something else. "Oh, I also wanted to tell you that I couldn't keep the video of the robbery out of the hands of the police. I'm required to keep video surveillance both by my insurance company and also by the Jeweler's Association. After all, they don't want jewelry thieves wandering around any more than anyone else does. But don't worry, I discussed the matter with the police, detailing why you're anxious to avoid being identified. They said they'd rather interview you personally, but since I didn't actually know you and that they had your fingerprints you left behind for them, that that should be enough. They didn't think they'd need your testimony to investigate the crime, since you didn't seem to have been involved with it. They also stated that they weren't going to make a big deal of it publicly, since they weren't anxious to spread news about this type of crime anyway." "Well, thanks for that. That's all I need is my name being exposed and being permanently tied into this Angel business. It's still going to hang over me that they could choose to release my photo anytime they choose to, though, but I guess you couldn't control that." "Oh, I don't think you need to worry about that," René replied. "I did mention suing them if the information was released. The Police Department would get nothing out of releasing it, and it would hurt my business if it was learned that I was responsible for exposing the very person who'd stopped the robbery. I think we have an 'understanding' between us." Alex thanked him and walked him to the door after he bid the women a gracious good bye. "He's pretty swift," Gail observed. She'd spoken to him privately before Alex was ready to deal with him. "I wouldn't say 'swift', but he seems to know what he's doing and he doesn't waste any time once he knows what's involved," Alex responded. "He's a good honest man," Leanna told them candidly. "He has an old school, old world mentality. What's more, he's discreet. He'll take your secrets to the grave if you need him to. That's why so many people use his services; after all, married men don't like the news of their dalliances getting around." "OK, I think we've had enough time for my food to digest and for me to recover. Anyone care to accompany me to the park. Just keep in mind I'll need to appear innocuous, so you'll have to keep your distances. I want to be alone in the Botanical Garden, but afterwards I'll need either Gail or Leanna nearby, but only one person." "In that case it'll be me," Gail informed him. "That's fine, but I wouldn't mind giving Leanna some firsthand experience," Alex added, not giving them any clues as to what kind of experience he was implying. ------- At the park the others did indeed leave Alex alone, even though Gail wasn't overly fond of the idea. She already felt bad that she'd failed him thrice by not being there when he needed her, the first in Dallas, the second the robbery and the third when Cate had set him up to fail. As a result she wasn't taking allowing him a fourth chance very well. Alex strolled into the Botanical Garden, simply wandering aimlessly. Gail kept a watch out for him from a distance, but Cate took a seat on a nearby bench while Leanna went to get them some drinks, staring off into the distance like she didn't have a clue who he was. Alex thought she had some acting potential, she honestly looked like she was checking out the guys ice skating. He noted that there were several female skaters as well, though. 'Stacie, Can you see me?' Alex asked. 'Yes, I can, sir, although I'm staying well back and I'm trying to not be obvious.' 'Very good. By the way, you can't keep calling me sir, because you're going to need to know my name eventually. I'm Alex.' 'I'm honored, Alex, ' she very graciously responded. 'I'm Stacie Powell, ' she offered hesitantly, still not sure whether he wanted to know that much about her or not, but he quickly put that particular fear to rest. 'Pleased to meet you, or not meet you as the case may be. Did Mike come with you?' Alex asked, being genuinely curious how he'd eventually dealt with the issue. 'Yes, he did. You left it up to me, so we had a long talk. I explained that you were a true angel, whether he could see that himself or not, and that this was not only a free hand up from God himself, but that it was our only chance. He won't cause us any trouble.' Alex remembered that Mike had gotten away, despite his injured shoulder, while Alex had been talking to René. He wondered how his shoulder was holding up, and whether he'd gotten any medical attention for it or not, but he figured now wasn't the time to address that issue. Alex wanted to get Stacie straightened out and taken care of, he couldn't afford to get distracted right then. 'Good, I hate to see him suffer if he's willing to change his life. Just remember, though, there are no second chances here. If the cops wander by you are both on your own.' 'I understand, Alex. I'm willing to take my chances, ' she responded. 'Hey, you just—' 'Yes, I'm perfectly aware of what I just did. What you just saw was me accidentally dropping a fair amount of change. Two hundred dollars, actually. Now, don't act obvious about it, but as I walk away I want you to walk by behind me, notice it, and pick it up. However, since neither of us interacted or said anything to the other, there's no reason to suspect we're in collusion. Got it?' 'Yes, sir, I mean Alex. I just had the good fortune to have found some money that someone else lost, ' she responded. 'Now, get the hell away from here. I want you to head to the bus station and pay for a one way ticket for you both to Dallas. Pay in cash so there's no record with your names on it, and forget about trying to unload your car or other possessions. Just abandon them. The longer you remain here the greater your chances of being found, and the greater the likelihood you'll backslide. This is a new beginning, so don't try to drag your past lives with you.' 'What will we do in Dallas? We don't know anyone there.' 'Don't worry about it. There will be someone there who'll know you and will be waiting for you. She'll take you in for the night, then put you on a bus in the morning for Houston, and from there you'll head to New Orleans. They'll explain what this is all about, what it means and what you're to do there. Of course, you're free to take the money and spend it on whatever you want, but if you do you'll never get another chance at redemption again. Also, you and Mike will be watched carefully to make sure you don't screw up. This is a wonderful chance to turn your life around, take advantage of it.' 'Thank you. We won't screw this up. I can't believe you're doing this for me. I—' 'The longer you talk, the longer it will take to get out of the city. Keep your head down and keep out of trouble. The money should take care of any incidentals. Have a good life and I hope to hear great things about you in the future.' Stacie didn't bother responding, though, she was heading back to get her boyfriend, Mike Franks, so the two of them could buy a ticket with money that an Angel had arranged for her to 'find'. It would take them away from this city and all its associated troubles, and would carry them to their new lives. ------- "What was that about? You realize some homeless chick just ran off with your money, don't you?" Gail asked him when Alex exited the Botanical Park. "Yep, I'm aware of it. I hope it improves her life. You never know when little things like that can turn your life around." "You're up to something, aren't you?" she asked. "I'll never tell. After all, if I'm not, I just threw away a bunch of money." "A bunch? How much was it?" Gail asked, growing more concerned out of principle, after all, she knew that Alex wasn't hurting for money and he hardly needed a lot to spend. "It's not important, now we have some things to do," he said as they both took the drinks that Leanna brought them. After that she accompanied him as Alex casually strolled around the park. He'd stop every now and then to help an elderly couple, or to talk to someone, frequently touching them on their shoulder or helping them do something. Cate and Leanne watched from a distance, although Alex also gave Leanna a chance to help him as well. When it was her turn he put her to the test, asking her to observe those around them and advise him to any potential medical condition they might have. It took her a bit to get the hang of it, but when she did he'd get quiet, she was sure he was communicating with someone again, then they'd approach the person and strike up a conversation where Alex would manage to come up with a reason to touch the person wherever their affliction was. Thus many people in the park that day noticed they were suddenly feeling better for no apparent reason. They each remembered speaking to the nicest young man, but they couldn't remember him specifically enough to describe him. Older people had their arthritis improved, those with undiagnosed conditions no longer had a drain on their systems, and others just had a better sense of well being. Troubled people felt better about what was troubling them, and those with mental illnesses suddenly felt themselves better able to cope with their lives. Then, just at three o'clock, Alex collected the others and they moved out of the park just as a taxi arrived and a reporter climbed out. He'd just gotten a strange call, informing him that there were reports of the famed Angel of New Orleans performing miracles in the park, however he didn't see anything obvious, so he started interviewing those around the park, trying to see if they'd observed anything. It didn't take long for his story to write itself. ------- Although still early in the afternoon, Maiden Nights was busy when they arrived. As they walked in the door several of the regulars who were parked at the bar overlooking the street surrounded them, anxious to discover what they'd been up to. "You wouldn't believe it," Leanna said, as she surveyed the crowd. "Where the hell did all these people come from?" "Yeah, it's a bit crowded. They're all here for Alex. Everyone has been careful and they're pretty well vetted, but it still means there are a hell of a lot of straight women here now." "Hell, I'm not going to complain about a few more straight women," Leanna replied. "After all, business is business, and we're essentially serving a common good here. If any of them bring in an overbearing sense of their own morality about anyone then I'll deal with it, but I suspect if they're here to see Alex that they'll be on their best behavior. But it's probably a good idea to spread the word that we have guests, and people should refrain from anything too outrageous. After all, it's good to get people used to how we live, but there's no point in pissing them off if we don't have to." A couple of the women went off to spread the word, but the other women in the bar had noticed Alex's return so they started to close in. No one was rude about it, but it was clear that he was the reason they were here. "You know, it's good that you feel that way," Alex told Leanna. "I'm thinking of using this as a meeting place for the local community. It may permanently screw up the dynamics of your place, so feel free to throw out anyone you want, but it would help if there was a central place anyone could come to talk about me, both my followers and the type 3s." "Alex, get over it," Cate told him. "Everyone here is now a follower, even the type 3s. After all, they can be as dedicated as the others are." Hearing Cate say that, particularly the part about "even the type 3s", just rubbed Alex the wrong way. He had to admit, they'd really been treating his followers according to a heavily tiered approach. "Alex," Leanna replied, "you don't even have to ask. I'll be glad to do it. Besides, if we can do a good job presenting ourselves well, maybe we can convince a few of these women to trade sides," she finished with a smile. "Hey, Boss Lady," Anna, the bartender, called out, "the police called earlier looking for you. They wouldn't tell me what they wanted, but I'd guess it's probably to interview you concerning the robbery and about Alex's identity." Alex looked up in alarm at that, but Leanna seemed relaxed, holding Alex's arm to let him know there was nothing to be concerned about. "I'll call them in a minute after things get settled. That way they won't feel it necessary to stop by." With that she turned back, considering it already a done deal. By then they'd managed to reach the central couch, so a lot of women clustered around him, ready to hear anything new about him. "So what happened today?" one of the women who met them at the door asked. "What unbelievable thing did he do today?" Alex was about to respond when Leanna jumped in, anxious to describe what they'd been doing. "He decided to wander around the park, curing various people." "I was hardly curing anyone of anything. I helped several of them, but it was mostly a matter of helping them feel better, helping them deal with their various conditions rather than curing them," Alex tried to explain. "Don't listen to him," Cate told everyone. "It's impressive to watch him do his thing." "I don't know," Leanna argued. "There was that one guy with the heart condition. You placed your hand over his chest and I could see it get better right before my eyes. And then there was that poor homeless girl. You leaned in, pressed your head against hers pretending you were whispering to her, and when you pulled back her eyes were clear and she sounded like her thinking was clear again." "You never mentioned you could heal people before," Lori pointed out. "How do you explain that from your secular non-religious perspective?" "That's easy," he answered. "The energy I give off, this BCM energy, seems to be central to healthy living things. If someone has a health problem, it's reflected in their BCM levels. So when we notice someone with a condition, based on those abnormally low levels, I just give them a boost, using the excess that I possess. It helps to restore their balance, and quite often it kick starts their body to begin correcting their problems." "Really?" asked a heavier set woman he hadn't noticed before. "I've got diabetes, which I have to take pills for every time I eat. Are you telling me you could correct that simply by waving your hand over it?" "Uh, let's not overwhelm him," Cate cautioned. "He had an episode last night, and we've been trying to keep him from overextending himself today. Each time he tries this, it takes a fair amount out of him, more depending on what he tries to do." "That's OK," Alex answered, motioning the woman forward. "I don't think her problem is that serious." The woman anxiously moved to the front of the crowd, the others making room for her because they were each anxious to see Alex perform a miracle. Alex communicated briefly with Gail, who'd positioned herself behind him, and Leanna, who he wanted to gain some experience with utilizing her new sight, then he leaned forward, placing his forehead against her side. He only remained there for a few seconds then pulled back and looked up at her. "That's it?" she asked. "Just wait. But I'd suggest not taking a pill for the next meal you eat. But I'm also told there's something in your digestive tract. We think it may be affecting your hormone levels, so give me another second," he said as he placed his forehead against her lower stomach, which looked quite odd, but probably better than if he'd shoved his hand under her skirt. He only remained there for a moment before pulling back. "I hate to say it before we're sure, but you very well might be cured," Alex informed the woman. "I'd still watch what you eat, since that's likely how this developed in the first place, but I don't think you'll need to bother with the pills." Silence descended on the entire bar for several seconds, and then the woman knelt down and threw her arms around Alex. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. I don't care what you say, you'll always be an angel in my book." "Look, it really wasn't that big of a deal," Alex tried to explain, uncomfortable with her reaction in front of all the people in the club. "It was simply a ques—" "The hell it was," Leanna interrupted him. "That was a bloody miracle, pure and simple, however you choose to view it." Here she turned to the rest of the club. "Anyone without a drink, get one. Betty, get Alex and Cate a soda and bring me a beer. We're all going to offer Alex a toast. And turn on the TV. We think a certain TV News station might have a report about him at six." The people around them went wild, everyone crowding around either the bar, getting a refill, or around Alex, congratulating him and watching to see what else he may do. Of course, the fact that everyone was in a rush to buy drinks didn't hurt Leanna's business any, but Alex didn't mind. She was being forced to change the nature of her business, so she'd probably need the extra income to make necessary adjustments. "Here's to the miraculous non-believer non-angel, Alex, the person who seems to be changing Oklahoma City without even trying," Leanna pronounced after everyone had gotten their drinks. There was a resounding cheer of "hear, hear!" as everyone drank up. "You know, we've been hearing about you from people throughout the day," Debbie said. "Everyone is talking about you." "It's true," Nora responded. "We've been prompting people to talk about you. Between talking to people at work, at the beauty shop, or while shopping. We've been trying to get people talking about you and everyone seems to be responding positively. Of course, there are several holdouts. Those who still believe you're making a mockery of their religion, but we tried to point out that there's been no reports of you 'preaching' anything, or saying anything against either Christians or Christianity, but they simply won't be dissuaded." "Yeah, I don't think we'll ever convince everyone, but I'm really pleasantly surprised just how well we've been received," Alex responded. "Now if I can just keep from screwing up before we leave." "Hey, Alex, how are you feeling?" Betsy asked as she and Ally came in the door. Betsy seemed glad to see him, but Ally ran forwards, trying to get to Alex as quickly as she could. Still, when she reached him she simply stood there meekly, as if afraid to impose herself on him. However Alex opened his arms to her, so she rushed forwards, and Betsy joined them a few moments later. "Whatever happened to you?" Linda asked, growing suspicious about the comments about Alex's health. "Alex got ... uh, a little sick last night," Betsy replied, trying to cover for Alex, not sure what line he was taking about it. "It's an effect of my exposure to the BCM," he answered simply. "It affects my health, so sometimes I have these 'episodes'. But Cate and Gail know what to look for and how to respond, so everything worked out." Gail couldn't help herself and grumbled under her breath, but no one beside Cate could figure out what her issue was. Before anyone could ask any follow-up questions, Betty turned the TV by the bar up. "The report is coming on," she called out. Everyone turned and watched the TV, giving Alex a reprieve from having to explain what was likely to happen to him, or what Cate had done to him the previous night. "There have been scattered reports of the mysterious 'Angel of New Orleans' being observed throughout the city, although no one who's actually observed him seems to be willing to discuss it publicly," the reporter announced, looking both understanding and authoritative at the same time. "However, I was in the park today, apparently arriving just after he'd left. It seems he'd spent quite a while talking to people, just wandering amongst them without saying anything specific to anyone or telling anyone who he was. However they all report some 'miraculous' occurrences." Here the cameras switched, showing an older man and his wife. "He was very pleasant, a really nice polite young man. He just started talking, and while talking to us he shook my wife's hands, taking both her hands in his, which was unusual but we didn't think anything of it. Next he commented that I seemed to be favoring my back, and I explained that I hurt it years ago and that it's been bothering me ever since, putting me on disability. He asked if he could feel it, just to see if a little massage might help. I just said, 'go ahead', thinking I'd humor him. Finally, as he finished he seemed to trip, grasping my side to steady himself. I hadn't told him, but I've had a cancerous lesion there that the doctors have been watching to see if it got any worse. "It wasn't until after he left that Annie mentioned that her hands no longer hurt from her arthritis, something that's bothered her on a daily basis for the last thirty some years. After she said that I checked my back, which no longer seemed to hurt. Finally I tried to check my side, feeling for the lump that's been there. I'm not sure about it, but I'm going to make an emergency appointment with my doctor, because I have a feeling the growth there just might have gotten better." The camera then switched back to the reporter again. "We found multiple similar reports throughout the park, so he seemed to have been quite busy today. So we seem to have a supposed angel who doesn't like the term, who's selflessly walking the streets, helping people while asking for nothing in return, not even acknowledgement. He's not saying anything at all about Christianity or Christians in particular. I suspect that the attacks on him have been a bit like the pot calling the kettle black. The very Christians who are busy telling everyone how they should behave, are perceiving that someone else is telling them how to behave, something he doesn't appear to have done. I suspect if they, his critics, were to step back and take a breath, they'd find he hadn't actually done anything offensive yet. That's not to say they shouldn't call him on it if he ever does, but until then, I'd say they should just stay out of his way and let him help people, since that's what all people, both Christian and non-Christian, should be concerned with." After that the report ended and the two anchors commented on the report, but no one particularly cared about their opinion, so everyone started talking about what they'd just seen. "It sounds like he likes you," Leanna suggested. "It sounds like the whole city loves you," Lori noted. "Hell, if you can convince a bunch of confirmed lesbians to put up with a little dick every now and then, I'd call that a bigger miracle than anything else," Betsy teased. "Well, as I keep saying, I'm not interested in converting anyone," Alex responded. "I did it to help you, and now that I've done it there's no reason for you to do it again." "Hey, I'm not complaining. I'm just saying that you manage to pull miracles out of your hat at every turn, then you turn around and say you're just a normal guy. Frankly, no one is buying it. Get used to it. People can recognize what's important to them and what's not. True, some people will get angry with you, but that's always the case. I'd say continue to concentrate on the people you need to, the Seers and the Watchers that only you can reach out to, but don't ignore the common people. The type 3s. They can help you, they can support your mission, and it's only by getting their buy-in that 'your people' will ever be safe." "Yeah, the last two days here in Oklahoma have really been an eye opener. I was so busy trying to avoid bad attention that I almost missed this unique opportunity." "Perhaps that's because, as all your followers keep saying, you're being guided," the ever quick Nora noted. "You don't have to believe in God to admit that there's more to life than we can see, and to accept that you need the help of others. Don't ask where the help comes from or how it occurs, just learn to accept it. If God, or whomever, wants to help you, don't waste all your time second guessing her." "You've got a good point, and you're right, I've got to learn to adjust," Alex admitted. "I think I've learned a lot while I've been here, and I'm planning on changing my approach from here on out. Now, would anyone care to join me for dinner? I've still got another day and two nights to plan for and I could use some guidance in the matter, and I'm willing to listen to anyone who offers me advice," he replied as he smiled at them. ------- Chapter 32: A Few Different Perspectives Cast List Previous Chapter While they ate dinner and continued to hold court with the many women, both lesbians and straight, who wanted to speak to him, Leanna went off to call the detectives back. She was gone for a while, but Alex wasn't worried. If anything was wrong she'd alert him, and if she was talking to them then they'd be unlikely to just drop by. "There you are," someone called out from the doorway. They turned, only to see Patricia and the rest of her band, including Chelsea and Jordan. "I might have known you'd find the only remaining place still packed with women," Patricia teased, "but this isn't your usual crowd. You should give these women a break, you steal enough women away, you don't need to switch teams to hijack more of them. Somehow that just seems unfair." The other women in the club were curious about who the newcomers were, especially since they seemed to know Alex so well. When Alex made the introductions they made the necessary connections. "You're the one who with the ads about 'trusting your judgment', aren't you?" "Are you the singer that Alex has been telling us about? The one we're supposed to be at the concert for, helping him deal with all the new followers?" "Well, it seems you've been telling these girls all your secrets. Any reason for the change in policy?" Chelsea asked. Alex couldn't help but blush in response. "They convinced me that sometimes it's better to not avoid people, and that the more people I include, the stronger the whole movement will be. Besides, they're all interested in the entire thing, especially the idea behind the Sorority and the Foundation." "Wow, you really have told them everything, haven't you?" Patricia asked, as they pulled up some extra chairs for them to sit down. Alex proceeded to tell them what had happened while they'd been separated. Although they were interested in the story about the robbery, they'd already gotten most of it from Patricia. It was impossible keeping the Seers from talking to each other about what Alex was up to. "So what's the story?" Alex asked when Leanna returned a few minutes later. "They wanted a basic statement. They want me to stop by tomorrow so they can record it and have me sign it." "So they aren't asking anything I should be aware of?" "No, they asked if I knew you, and I said that we just walked in at the same time. I admitted that we left together, but that I never learned who you were. They seemed happy with that and didn't ask anything else about you, and I wasn't about to ask them what their attitude towards you was. I told them I thought you were from out of town." "That sounds good, but just watch yourself tomorrow. They'll likely ask the same thing in different ways, hoping to trip you up, so just be careful how you respond, but I'm not going to worry about it anymore. They'll look for me if they want, there's no way I can stop them, but I'm not about to voluntarily identify myself as the Angel of New Orleans just so they can claim they've interviewed everyone involved. After all, I've broken no laws, I've hurt no one, and I actually helped stop a crime, so I don't see why my helping someone should be used against me." 'Well, technically you did help them escape, ' Leanna reminded him telepathically, so she wouldn't tip anyone off. 'Yeah, but they don't know that, and they'll have no way of discovering it. And if everything works out they'll be well away from here, starting a new life that will keep them from getting into any further troubles.' The others agreed to his spoken comments, but they really had no desire to feed Alex's paranoia so they just left it alone. It was good that he was going to let it go, but no one had any doubt they'd hear about it again in the near future. It was just part and parcel of what Alex was made of. He liked to worry, and it was what kept him mindful of others. It had its good points, but also its negative ones. The band seemed to fit right in, but it wasn't just that they liked to have a good time. As Alex looked on he noticed several things. He observed that the women would flirt with the female members of the band, but they were always careful to not overdo it. Thus they fed the ego of the women as being desirable to women as well as men, but they didn't confront them or attempt to force them to deal with 'gender issues'. It was then that Alex studied those around the club in more detail. There was less open flirting than he'd noticed in his other gay bar encounters. No one was making out in the corner, no one seemed to be picking anyone up. Instead, everyone seemed to have assumed that this was a special situation, and that they were entertaining strangers just like one does relatives for the holidays. They put their best foot forward, trying to present themselves in their best light, but they were, in effect, putting themselves out for Alex. They were ceasing their normal activities for the 'normals' that had come to see what Alex represented. They thought enough of him and what he stood for to put their own lives on hold for the moment. That said a lot about both them and how they felt about him. Even Sammy seemed to be in his element. He teased the women and they responded in a playful way, ignoring the obvious sexually teasing comments. As a result he felt comfortable, but he also respected the women and didn't try to hit on any of them, recognizing it wouldn't be appreciated, even though he continued to play the role of the 'typical man', making jokes at his own expense. However Alex realized that, as much as everyone was enjoying his presence, he should really move on. He wanted the locals to have their club to themselves. He enjoyed being welcomed, but he also wanted to minimize how much he disrupted the lives of those who were helping him. Thus he invited the same women as before to come home with him; Leanna, simply because she hadn't received any of his attention the previous night, and Betsy and Ally because he'd really cheated them, and wanted to give them a 'booster shot' to help ensure they became pregnant. It had been a big day for him, and he'd managed to accomplish a lot, even if it was in a way he hadn't expected before reaching Oklahoma. But it was good, and he'd done well. He only had another day here, and he hoped it went as well as the others had. After all, after the concert the next night they'd move on to Amarillo the next day. ------- "Good morning, everyone," Cate called out, pausing only briefly to knock before entering the room. "I brought another guest, just in case things aren't busy enough in here already." "Hey, there," Leanna called out from the bathroom. "I decided to get an early shower. I'll be out in a minute, but I'm sure your brother will be glad to entertain you." Cate strolled in trailing Georgia Cantrell, the desk clerk Alex had spontaneously activated the other day. Gail followed them in, making sure she closed the door securely behind her. "Hey, Cate, hope you'll excuse me if I don't get up, but..." Alex responded. He was currently lying in bed, covered by the naked form of Ally lying on top of him facing away from him, while an equally naked Betsy sucked on her clit. It was hard to see, but if one looked from the right angle you could see Alex's cock sliding along Ally's lips as he thrust between her legs. "Now if that doesn't just beat all, if you aren't going to do the job properly..." Cate teased, imitating Ryan Shafer, who'd insulted Alex for being lazy because he couldn't just fuck and get off his girlfriend, Lauren. It was an image that Alex didn't like being reminded of, since it still set his teeth on edge. "Nah, I'm not being lazy. I just figured Ally would appreciate it more. Neither she nor Betsy are into dicks, so this way they get my BCM energy without having to deal with any yuck factors yet." "Hey, you don't have to explain," Georgia responded, making her presence known for the first time. "Personally, I think you should be screwing each and every one of your Watchers. I mean, I know you like communicating with your Seers, but ever since the other night my entire world has opened up. I can read people like books. They walk up and I can tell how they're feeling. I can anticipate events. Hell, I can feel an angry or frustrated driver before he even gets near me." "Hey, Georgia," Alex called out, even though his voice was dampened by Ally's short hair getting in his face and her body gyrating against his, masking his voice as she did. "How have you been since the other night?" "Hell, I've been great. I love these new abilities you gave me. I know it's one basic ability, but it has so many permutations that I feel like I'm experiencing something new every time I turn around. Hey, Ally and Betsy," she added. "Uh, oh, hey there, Georgia," Ally gasped out, but Betsy didn't bother replying. After all, she'd been raised to be polite, and she knew better than to talk with her mouth full. "I should have known that Alex would be busy this morning," Cate replied, stopping by the little fridge to grab some food for him for when he finished. "Didn't he wear you all out last night?" "Hell, no," Leanna replied as she emerged from the bathroom, fastening a towel around her in addition to the one wrapped around her hair. "He was a perfect gentleman this time, unlike the other night. This time he spent all evening making slow quiet love to me, making me feel like a real queen. Then he woke up in the middle of the night and made love to Betsy while Ally held her. Then this morning he wakes up and grabs Ally, making sure to get Betsy involved. Your brother doesn't seem to have an off switch. Somehow I was under the impression that guys could only do so much at a time." "It's... 'ave a couple hours to recover," Alex responded, even though it was hard to make out what he was saying. "Yeah, you managed to slip in some recovery time in there, but it seems like you slept just enough each time to come back with a new erection," Leanna laughed as she watched the trio on the bed. Having no other place to sit, Georgia sat on the bed beside them. "Excuse me if I crowd you a little," she said, "but I just want to sit here and soak up both your energy and everyone's emotions. Man, how can anyone get by without the ability to sense these things?" "I don't know, maybe you should tell me what I'm missing one more time," Cate mockingly complained. "Hey, don't gripe," Georgia responded. "You get to soak up his energy all the time. I think anyone would trade you for that. Plus, you get to be in the driver's seat of his movement, or at least in the navigator's seat. He activates, boosts, then abandons the rest of us. You get to follow him everywhere." "Yeah, as much as I like to tease, you're right, I do have it pretty nice," Cate replied, as she too glanced at Alex as she finished preparing his snack. "Hey, is this going to be another of these marathon sessions? After all, we need to get you down to breakfast soon." "I don't know how much more ... he needs, but I'm primed and ... ready for blastoff," Ally responded. Betsy lifted her face from her girlfriend's crotch. "You'd better believe it, she's been having a whole series of little orgasms. I don't know about you, Leanna, but if he can do this consistently, I may be convinced to switch teams more often." "Don't worry," Alex replied as the others laughed, "I'm almost there. Say, could one of you manage to put me where I need to be. It's a little hard to manage from this position." Before Betsy could respond, Georgia leaned over and grabbing Alex's cock, positioned it so he could thrust into Ally. "They're still looking to get pregnant, and since they don't make a lot, they were hoping I could finish the deed before I left so they wouldn't get stuck having to pay a doctor to do it." "Sure, Alex, that's what all the girls claim," Cate teased as she moved over beside him, feeding him a cookie as he began short-stroking into Ally. "Hey, no fair distracting my man," Ally complained. "As much as I love this, I've come about as much ... as I can stand, and if he takes much longer ... I'll never be able to walk today." "Your man," Betsy teased her girlfriend. "After two days you're already talking like a straight girl. I'm telling you, once Alex leaves town I'm putting you back on a strict girl diet." "So what are the plans for the day, boss man?" Gail asked, ignoring the disjointed byplay. She was interested in what she needed to plan for, even as her eyes were taking in every detail of the two naked lesbians laid out before her. "I've got ... plans," Alex gasped out. "I won't ... detail them, but they're fairly ... standard," he told her. However, at that point he reached the point in the shuttle launch where they start doing the countdown. He started concentrating, grasping Ally's hips as he tried to drive as deep into her as she could. He only did that for a little while before grunting and, pushing tight against her, bathed her womb with his little swimmers. Ally was going to mention how she'd never appreciated what women meant when they talked about feeling a man coming in them, but, a little too breathless to say anything, she chose to simply moan her response. Of course, she was aided by Betsy rubbing her crotch and kissing her, so she'd have had trouble talking because of that, as well. Once they all stopped moving, Cate gave Ally a little push. "Sorry, but I think Alex needs to breathe a little. If you could roll over and recover on the side, I can make sure he doesn't go into a reaction on us again." It took Ally a moment to respond, and when she did she merely rolled off of him wordlessly, at which point Georgia looked up. "Does anyone ever have more than one 'mind melting orgasm'? I mean, do they pass out because of what he does to their brain, or is it just the orgasms?" "You know," Cate replied as she proceeded to feed Alex, who was lying there gasping, "I never really thought of that. As much as I can recall, everyone only seemed to pass out the once, although I think there have been a few times someone else did for a special occasion." "I can answer that," Gail said from the corner. "He did me once with his and my girlfriends, and I thought I was going to die. I remember it fondly to this very day," she replied with a very satisfied smirk to her face. "So, if he's got plans, does that mean we're going to eat out or eat downstairs?" Georgia asked. "Cause if we're eating here, I can ask Paul, the breakfast chef downstairs, to fix him up something nice." "Do that," Cate told her. "As soon as we get Alex on his feet again and everyone gets their shower, we should be ready to go." ------- "So, Julie, what are you doing inside on a beautiful day like today? Wouldn't you rather be outside, playing with your friends?" "No, I can't," the overly serious little seven-year-old replied as she turned yet another page in her math textbook. "If I'm going to make a difference with my new abilities, I need to become a doctor, and I'll need to be good at math. So I'm trying to catch up on all the math I avoided this year." Martha was intrigued. This was a side of Julie she'd never seen before. Ever since she'd had her son-in-law, Julie's father, bring her three grandkids to meet Alex in San Antonio just a week ago, Julie was like a whole new person. She'd turned out to be the only one of the three that Alex had activated, and she took that as a high honor, one deserving only the best performance. "And what makes you think that?" "I sat down and talked to Mrs. Cooper, my teacher, and I asked her what I needed to do if I wanted to become a doctor. After she finally stopped laughing, she asked why I was suddenly interested in becoming a doctor, but obviously I couldn't tell her since no one is supposed to know about Alex, so I told her I want to make a difference, and that I think I have a special talent for medicine." "Well, as a Seer you have a huge leg up on the other people applying to medical school," Martha told her. "They have to cut someone open to figure out what's wrong with them, whereas with your vision, you'll only have to cut where the problem is." "I know, and that's why it's important I work hard to become a doctor. I mean, we can't leave something this important to other people who can't see what we can, can we? I mean, can you imagine Jeffery trying to operate on someone. Ugh," Julie shivered, imagining her 2nd grade classmate as a practicing physician. "You realize that medical school is a long ways away. You may change your mind by then," Martha cautiously suggested, not wanting to squash Julie's ambitions, but wanting her to realize just how much of a task she was undertaking. "But it's important that we put our 'neak abilities to use," she responded, trying to copy Alex's speech and his wording, even if she didn't quite know how to use them yet. "No one else can do what we can, so we owe it to everyone else to do as much as we can. After all, there are only so many of us, and there are millions of people who'll need us to do what they can't. It's not a matter of what I want, it's our calling. It's what Alex would expect us to do." "Well, you certainly make a compelling argument," Martha replied, smiling at how serious Julie considered her new role in life, even though she only learned of these new abilities of hers a week ago. "What do Alice and your father think of this new focus of yours?" Alice, of course, was her five-year-old sister who'd turned out to be a Watcher. She'd been just as taken with Alex as Julie had been, but she was still a little too young to realize quite what it meant yet. "Well, Dad's still not sure any of what I see is real, so he simply hummers me. Alice, though, wants to put her 'bilities to use as much as me. She knows she won't be as good at medicine as I can, but she talked to her preschool teacher about it. She was s'prised when she asked her, but she suggested that she could use her talent at understanding people by working as a psychiatrist, a therapist, or even as a business person." "The word you were looking for is 'humor'. Your father is humoring you by pretending to believe what you tell him. And you did very well with all the other words," Martha told her, realizing that Alice hadn't been as unaffected as she'd thought. "Thank you. Alice made sure her teacher taught her how to say each word. But what was that word you used before?" Julie asked, looking at her very intently. "That combelling? If I'm going to be an important doctor, then I need to know lots of big words." "The word is compelling. It means that it makes sense. That it's a very good argument. But go on, I'm anxious to hear what Alice decided." Martha was sure this new interest in speaking well and learning was inspired by Alex's sister Cate as much as it was from her interest in Alex. It had been clear that both were intelligent, and their language and diction had apparently made an impact on little Julie. "Oh, well, she decided that a therapist wouldn't make sense, since she'd only see one person and it wouldn't be using her 'bilities very well. Being a Psycho wouldn't be good either, since you need to be a doctor. We decided we should leave that to the other Seers. She decided she'd rather work as a police woman, like that woman with Alex. That way she could deal with people every day, and she could quickly figure out who was dangerous and who needed help." It took Martha a moment to wrap her head around that concept. One girl deciding to be a doctor and the other wanting to be a policewoman, and after they'd wanted to be a ballerina and a cowgirl only a couple weeks ago. "The word is Psychologist. Psycho means something completely different. You realize she could also be a teacher, or a minister?" "Yeah, but anybody can be a teacher. We need to focus so we can make the best use of our 'bilities. After all, there are only a few of us, so we need to make the most of them." "Well, that's very grown up of you. I'm sure that Alex would be very proud of you." "Well, just don't tell him yet. I want to prove I'm serious before we tell him anything. After all, I don't want to bother him with little stuff, since he holds the whole future of our people in his hands. Let's wait until my grades improve first. Oh, and by the way, we'll have to go back to San Antonio. Alice and I want to talk to Caity about this, about what we'll need to study and what school we'll need to go to." "OK, I'm sure we can arrange something. Just don't forget to play outside some. After all, Alex doesn't want you to only do one thing. You'll have to be good at a lot of different things if you're going to help him. After all, look at the people he surrounds himself with, they manage to do everything for him. If they were only good at one thing they wouldn't be as helpful, would they?" "No, I guess not," Julie said thoughtfully. "OK, as soon as I finish this chapter I'll go play outside for a while. But then I want to start on the next one." ------- "So, Jenny, are you ever sorry that you didn't get boosted by Alex?" her husband, Tommy Cox, asked as they walked away from yet another meeting with the other Seekers. These meetings had become a regular thing, and it made a big difference for both of them. Not only did they really feel a part of the entire thing, but everyone was anxious to achieve just as much as they could, 'for Alex'. Although he and Jenny were involved with dealing with the relatives of the Seekers and Seers in the community, Jenny had already applied for a promotion in her work, and most of the talk that night had been about what courses the women should sign up for, and what field of study would allow them to do the most good. Overall, Alex had had an amazing effect on each of the people's lives, even that of the men. Of course, the rest of the discussion was less impressive, with everyone discussing the merits of calling Watchers, like Jenny, 'Seekers' instead. Tommy figured it was necessary, but it seemed less meaningful then the other work they were doing. "No, I'm happy with the decision I ... that we made," she told him, reaching over to hold his hand to reassure him. "Really? I can imagine what getting boosted could have done for you. I realize how much your abilities mean to you, especially now that you've been getting training from the Seers in the community. But if you had slept with Alex just one time, you'd be able to do so much more. Surely that's got to haunt you, at least a little bit." Jenny stopped and faced her husband, stepping up and wrapping her arms around him as she looked him right in the eyes. "There is no way I'd trade you for a boost to my abilities. I'm working with the hand that I was dealt, and I've got a lot more than most people have. Sure, I've got to work a little harder, but it's the effort you put into something that makes the difference. Unadulterated talent by itself doesn't mean much. Do you think that Liv and Allison could do what they did without a lot of work and dedication to what they do? The main thing we have to offer is our dedication. The abilities are nice, but we don't choose those. What we personally choose is much more important. I chose you, and Alex agrees, since he puts so much value on families. He knows how important someone like you is to my life." "Still ... if you had both the dedication and the talent..." "Then I probably wouldn't have you. Look, I realize what I passed up, and I accept that. But I also know how much information was thrown at you all at once. There's no way you could have accepted me sleeping with someone like Alex unless you could literally feel what he represented like the rest of us could. If I had chosen to sleep with him, you'd never be able to stop questioning why I did it." "That may be, but you'd already convinced me that he was legit, and I'd been hearing from others in the community. I'm sure I could have—" "You may think so, but there would have been doubts, and those doubts would have undermined our relationship, and that would have distracted me so I couldn't focus like I am now. Yeah, I have given up a fair amount. But if I'd chosen that route, I'd have been less productive than I am now." "Well, I appreciate that, and you're probably right. I likely would have freaked out. But if the opportunity ever comes up again, I want you to go for it." "Ha, that'll be the day. You heard Alex. He'd never go for it. Each time he stops somewhere, he has to choose who to boost. He knows how important it is, and he's developed a complicated criteria. But at the top of that list is the health of the people involved, and there's no way he'd screw up someone's life by helping her cheat on her spouse. So, thanks, but I don't think you have anything to worry about. You're stuck with me, a mere unboosted Seeker. But I'm happy to have you, now a central figure in Alex's movement here in New Orleans. Not a bad accomplishment for a male type 3. You're as heavily involved in this as I am, and you're playing as vital a role in his organization as I am." "Yeah, there is that. But now that we've finished planning on how everyone is going to train harder to help Alex more, how about we try to increase the number of available Seekers? After all, we all need to do what we can, and it seems to me that we're letting some precious Seeker DNA go to waste." The two of then ran off giggling, after she gave him a quick kiss. They had a lot to accomplish, and as much as Alex valued family, they were glad they'd be creating a valuable piece of his community. ------- "So, Mom, how are you and Dad getting along?" little Jenny asked her mother. The question surprised Kelly Ott, coming as it did out of the blue. "We don't have any problems, why do you ask?" Kelly asked suspiciously, wondering what Jenny might be up to. Since they'd encountered Alex a couple of months back, Jenny had suddenly turned into quite the precocious youngster, not only sounding much older than her young age, but also frequently surprising both her parents with her observations of people they'd meet or even pass on the streets. The fact of the matter was that, for a while there, things had been quite bad between Henry and her. When they'd first met Alex in a hotel in St. Louis and Cate had slipped and mentioned something about Alex 'boosting' his followers abilities, Henry hadn't coped with it very well. Especially when Jenny had decided to address the issue directly, suggesting that Kelly should consider it. Although Alex himself had never suggested anything of the kind himself, it had really poisoned Henry's mind against him, so it had been rough for quite a while. "Well, it's just that you and Dad were having so many problems when we first met Alex, and then when you suggested we visit him in New Orleans I was afraid Dad might leave." "Well he didn't, did he?" Kelly responded, ruffling the hair on her daughter's head. "No, he didn't. It was good that Alex insisted that Daddy come along, wasn't it?" Kelly took a moment to consider her response. "Frankly, yes, it was. I think it made a real difference between us. Before that, your father was a bit paranoid about what I might be doing, possibly communicating with Alex in my mind without him ever knowing. But the fact that Alex insisted he come with us to meet him, and that he then told us to stay in New Orleans and he would be sure to stay away just so we could have a good time did a lot to reassure your father." "I thought so. That was a great weekend. It really brought Dad and I closer. We spent a lot of time in the evenings after that discussing how the changes Alex had made in my life affected me. We discussed it a lot, often while you were busy doing other things. I think he was trying to determine how much he learned from the women in New Orleans was real and how much was make believe." "So what's with the question, then? If you know that Dad's doing better, then why question if we're OK?" "Well, you and Dad still try to protect me by not telling me stuff, even though I can kinda feel what you think about things." "Yeah, and..." Kelly prompted her, trying to find out where she was going with it. "Well, I just wanted to make sure there still weren't any problems. I mean, Daddy's been supportive with me, but I just wanted to be sure. After all, when you and he were having problems he tended to blame me as well." Kelly sighed before answering, remembering those dark days. "No, your Daddy's fine. He really warmed up to the whole idea of what we both went through, especially after talking to everyone after we left Alex at the clinic. Giving us that time to ourselves so we could talk to others without any pressure was really an inspired move. It kept us from fighting, Daddy could relax and actually listen to what everyone was saying and he thought about what it all meant. It was an important time for us both." "For all of us," Jenny insisted. "As I said, Dad and I have never been closer. Since we had those initial discussions just between us, we have been talking a lot more. He'll stop by at odd times and ask me what I'm doing or how I've been able to us my new abilities. That led me to describe what I was experiencing in school, knowing what people were likely to do before they did something, or knowing when someone didn't like me. We spent a lot of time talking about the girls who pretended to like me, but who I could feel really hated me." "Wow, I never knew you were going through all of that. Why didn't you ever mention it to me?" "Actually, at first I was confused and wanted to figure it out on my own. Then, when Dad and I started to talk about it, I wanted to save it for him, since it brought us so close. He'd offer advice, or try to explain what made them do it. Then we'd discuss what having these abilities would mean to me." "And what did he think it would mean?" Kelly asked, genuinely interested in the topic now. She knew her husband had turned a corner that weekend they'd gone to New Orleans to have Jenny's legs treated, even though she had no obvious problems that anyone beside her and the other Seers could see. She and Henry had never really talked much about it. Even though they'd been getting along much better since then, Kelly had never wanted to jinx her good luck by bringing the subject up, figuring it was her cross to bear. "He tells me it's my 'sponsibity. That now that I have it, I have to work hard to make the most of it." "Really?" Kelly asked, surprised since her husband had never said any such thing to her. "What kinds of things did he think you needed to do?" "Well, I told him how I thought I had to work really hard at school, since Alex expects so much of us, and how he wants smart women to help him." "Yeah?" her mother responded, not quite sure where this was going, or how Henry would have responded to it, since they almost never communicated about Alex any more. "So he says that Alex is right. That in order to repay Alex for what he gave me, that I need to work hard and deadcate myself in school." "The word is 'dedicate'. And the other word was 'responsibility'." "Thanks. I know I need to learn my words better, so I can speak like Cate did. My teacher is impressed with how much I've improved, but I still need to learn more. Daddy's even been spending time helping me with my homework." "Really? It used to be a real fight trying to get him to do that," Kelly commented. "I told him that the Seers seemed to make better doctors, but that I wanted to do something where I could help. Something like what that lady that guards Alex does, or that nurse did in Orleans. But he said that I couldn't do what others were doing, and the best thing was to learn how to do several things, so that I could do whatever was needed. He said if all Alex's people became doctors and scientists then it wouldn't help, but that by working hard and taking advantage of things, I'd be ready when I was needed." "That's actually good advice. So what have you been working on?" "I'm studying my science and math. Dad says that even if I don't become a scientist that it will be important. He also said that I'll have to study genetics in school, since that's what my 'bilities are all about, but that you have to be smart to study such things." "So if Daddy doesn't want you to be a doctor or a scientist, what does he want you to be?" Kelly asked, intrigued just where Henry's mind was headed. "He said that we probably don't know what Alex will need in the future, and that when I get to college what I'll need to study hasn't even been invented yet, so I can't decide what to do now. Instead I need to be prepared to decide when the time comes, and that when I need to decide, I can talk to Alex's women in Illinois and they'd help me decide." "He actually said that?" Kelly asked, once again surprised that her husband and daughter had been discussing so many things when he rarely discussed such things with her. She figured she needed to stop trying to protect him, and that she was doing exactly what she'd originally done with him. When they first met Alex, she'd kind of dismissed his concerns because she'd wanted both her and Jenny to learn as much about their abilities as they could. Now, instead of that, she was again dismissing his interests in an effort to avoid confronting him with something he was uncomfortable with. Maybe Jenny was right. Maybe there were problems between her and her husband that she'd been unaware of. Problems that she'd compounded by trying to avoid them. "He did. He promised me that we could travel there if we needed to, or he'd let me call them whenever I felt it was necessary." This time Kelly couldn't even think of how to respond. Here her husband was not only supportive, but he was actually working behind her back to help incorporate Jenny into Alex's whole movement. This was really a weird turn of events. "You know, I think your father and I need to have a talk about this. I have a feeling there's a lot we need to hash out." "You're not upset, are you?" "Can't you tell?" "I can feel you're a little miffed, but you don't seem to be angry at either me or Dad," Jenny observed. "You seem to be learning to use your abilities quite well. I suspect that, having gotten these abilities at such a young age, you and the other children exposed to Alex will quickly outpace all us old people with these abilities. You're liable to discover things we never even considered." "That's what Dad says," her daughter happily agreed. "He says that's why I have to wait before deciding what I should do." "Well, I'll tell you what, I think your father and I are going to be doing much better after we talk. It sounds like he's doing much better with what you're going through than I am. What's more, if he's this supportive, it may be time we returned to New Orleans. It seems there's likely a lot they've learned since we were last there that would help you." "Really? That would be great. I've love to talk to other people like me, especially if there are other people my age with the same 'bilities." "You and me both, honey. I've been ignoring my own abilities for long enough. If your father is this supportive with you, it sounds like I should stop avoiding it myself," Kelly said, chiding herself for all she'd missed by not communicating with her husband once again. This had been a real wake up call for her. Not only had she dismissed her husband's interests initially, she'd been doing it since then as well, assuming he was still touchy about it simply because he didn't force her to discuss a subject she herself had been avoiding. Apparently this was one area that having a miraculous ability to see someone's personality didn't help with. "I'll tell you what, let me talk to your Dad this evening, then we'll all have a long talk. Your brother is obviously too young to include, but I'm going to have to include him soon. It seems avoiding things isn't necessarily the best way to address issues," she observed with a smile. "Now how about some ice cream? You deserve a treat for opening your mother's eyes." ------- "Ryan, I know you're still a little touchy about the topic, but I really wanted to discuss your reaction to Alex last week." "Oh, geez, Megan," her lank and lean boyfriend replied. "I've already said how sorry I am for what I did. I mean, we agreed to it beforehand, but when it came down to it, it was just a bit much for me to take." "Don't worry, I know it's upsetting thinking I'm comparing you to an angel, but that's not what I wanted to discuss. Instead there's been a lot of talk about how Alex affects people." "I'm assuming this 'talk' is taking place in your head?" Ryan asked with a crooked smile. "Yes, I've mentioned it with a couple of the women in town, but it's also involved a lot of the other Seers scattered around. I'm not sure just how much you know about Alex beside what he told us himself, but he's got a bit of an unusual history. It seems that women are generally attracted to him, but men seem to get really angry with him, and we've been trying to figure out what it is that's causing this reaction." "Yeah, he mentioned that he'd had a couple of encounters with other people. There was something about him getting shot by someone." "Yeah, that little scar on his neck. Apparently someone shot him there. They'd been aiming point blank at his forehead, but he gave them a stroke. He'd have escaped unscathed, but when his sisters came out and surprised his attacker, Alex reacted instinctively and jumped in front of him, trying to shield them." "Hey, what can you say, the guy's an angel through and through." "But what I and the rest of us are interested in is exactly why you got so upset the other night? I mean, we've fooled around with others before, and we discussed it ahead of time. I asked you if it was OK, and that this would mean a lot to me, and you said it wouldn't be a problem. So I've got to ask just what the issue was: was it simple jealousy? Did you think you couldn't measure up to a supposed angel? Or was there more to it? Just how much control did you have over your reaction?" "You know, that's probably a good question. I've tried to put it out of my mind, so I haven't really sat down for long to analyze just what I was thinking, or rather what I wasn't thinking, since I seemed to have just reacted." "Well, I think it's worth reviewing. I mean, not only would it help you to put it into perspective, but it would help the rest of us figure out how both Alex's and our own abilities work. Most of what Cate explained to us is just conjecture at this point. If there's something going on here, then it would help us all to understand just what it is, especially if it will help keep Alex alive long enough to do what he needs to." "I must admit, I'd love to clear my conscience about it, and it would be great if I could repay Alex back for what I put him through. Let me think about it for a minute. It seems to me that I just stopped thinking and I just felt angry, like I just wanted to crawl over and wipe that smug expression off of his face." "You know, his expression was anything but smug," Megan told him. "He takes that whole boosting process pretty seriously, and he knows what it means to everyone. He's usually so concerned about what it means to us, and how he has to do everything so carefully, that he views it more as a job than he does just fooling around with someone." "Yeah, I can see that now, but at the moment that was just my impression. But I think I just started reacting. I wanted to hurt him, but I knew I couldn't just hit him. After all, not only would everyone disapprove, but his bloody bodyguard was sitting right there the whole time. Shit, you told me what happened when that other guy attacked him. If I'd done that she might have put a bullet in me." "I doubt that, after all, the guy she shot had just shot several innocent people while gunning for Alex. But I get what you're trying to say. You were still thinking on some levels, since you were considering alternatives, but that your emotions were operating on a visceral level." "I just suddenly felt like I wanted to hurt him somehow. I guess it had been building. At first I was just irritated, then annoyed, then I started to get angry at him, and then my thinking kind of shut off. After all, you know I wouldn't act like that otherwise. I mean, I'm not the type to proposition teenagers, make passes at armed lesbians, or try to force myself on anyone." "Just tell me what you were thinking. Maybe we can figure it out. Did you feel angry at Alex when you first met him?" "No. I was taken aback, and I thought him an odd duck telling a strange tale that no one would believe, but the rest of you took him so seriously I decided I needed to reevaluate him. But it was only after we talked about it later that I figured out just how seriously you were taking this, and it was then that I figured that he might be on the level. And when I told him I was OK with you sleeping with him, I really meant it. It wasn't until we were in the room and you were all talking together that he started getting to me." "That was before anyone took their clothes off, right? And you weren't actually that close to him. I mean, we were sitting on the bed, he was in the chair, and you were sitting on the other bed, correct?" "Yeah, I guess I was about as far from him as you were." "Well, that kind of rules out any effects of close contact. Maybe it has something to do with confined spaces? Maybe he's giving off some kind of pheromones, and in the concert hall or outside it didn't affect you, but in the closed in room it did?" "I don't know. I didn't recognize anything, but as I said, I wasn't actually thinking at that point. What's more, I wasn't angry at you. If anything, I was upset that you were trying to stop me. I mean, you were trying to warn me what he could potentially do to me, but I just felt angrier that you were trying to protect him." "That's the thing with him, Alex can't detect his own energy, so he always downplays its effects. I don't think he has any idea of what he's truly capable of, but the rest of us can feel it. While I used to get vague feelings about people, with him it was like standing in the face of a hurricane. I could feel his power washing over me, and I knew if he were to direct it against someone in a fit of anger that he could do tremendous harm without even having to think about it." "Yeah, that's what I figured afterwards. That's why his actual response cut so deep. Instead of acting out, or just shouting at me or insulting me, he very carefully explained what both he and I had been doing, and then he asked me what I was trying to do, as if he was more interested in what upset me than in what I was doing to everyone. That's when I figured he probably was a real angel, because it seemed like the kind of thing that Jesus would do, asking the Roman Centurions how he could help them while they were marching him to his death." "Let's keep this on topic. I know that's important, and we'll get to that, but I want to follow your train of thought before we get sidetracked. So you started getting upset while we were talking. You also said you stopped thinking at some point. Can you figure out just when you stopped thinking?" "Not really. It was a slow process that seemed to escalate. At first I just found him annoying, then cloying. Then I think I started to invent things to justify the way I was thinking. I mean, that business about his being smug. You're right, he wasn't acting like that at all, but I convinced myself that he was, and that he was simply up to no good, trying to take advantage of you and Lauren." "It sounds like your emotions were getting ahead of your thoughts," Megan replied. "Like you were feeling things first and then trying to justify them somehow." "Yeah, that's what it felt like. Like you just knew something, and then you were casting around for a reason why you knew it. And then, after a bit, you just stopped thinking about it, since you figured you already knew everything you needed to know." "OK, just when did that happen? Did it happen when we were all naked and on the bed together?" "Hmm, again, I'm not really sure. I was pretty angry as we were making love, and I was trying to insult him. But it was after we finished that I started making a real ass of myself. That's when I got up and started actually accosting people. I think I was trying to provoke him, like I was trying to pick a fight with him or something." "That would make more sense. When we were making love, you were closer to him and you didn't have the interference of the clothes to block anything you were picking up from him." "Do you think I was reacting to something he was giving off?" Ryan asked, hoping there was a better explanation than that he had merely been as ass. "I'm not sure. Right now I'm trying to find something the others can evaluate. No one has any real clues why Alex seems to antagonize guys. If we can identify it, we can at least know what to expect, and hopefully learn more about how these processes work. "So what else happened? You seemed to turn around when he started talking to you. I know he was trying to disarm you, which you didn't seem to relate to, but when he started discussing his 'techniques' with you, you seemed to become more interested and animated. Is it possible you were functioning on a more primal basis at that point? Like you thought 'Ugh, me can gets me woman too?'" "I'm not sure. Maybe. I remember being interested in what he was saying. And I remember getting an erection again, and that's when I climbed on the bed and shortly after I started to grab Lauren, which she wasn't pleased by." "Yeah, that's what finally set Alex off, and what I'd been trying to warn you about. So it's possible that there was something that only works in enclosed spaces, that affects your thinking, and that reduces you to a very basic unthinking level that invents justifications to rationalize your behavior? Does that make sense?" "I guess. As I explained, I wasn't really thinking much at that stage, I was just reacting." "Good. That's very useful information. You did good, and you more than made up for anything you did that night. After all, I would have hated to have had him do anything to you. I kind of like having you around. What he gave me wasn't sexual. True, we had to get sexual to do it, but it was more than that; and less than that as well. But I can see what you're saying about getting an erection from your exposure to him. I could at least feel his energy, and being bathed in it like we were it clearly had an effect on me, making me feel sexual, even more than simply being around him was. I suspect that was the effect of his energy on you, even if you couldn't perceive it directly." "Well, I think all those details are above my pay grade, but I'm glad it makes sense to you. It certainly makes me feel better that there's some kind of explanation for my behavior, even if we don't understand it yet. After everything was said and done, I really like the guy and I support what you're doing with him. But there was just something about him that set me off." "I know, honey," she said as she enveloped him in her arms. "I could see it did. That's why I was asking you about it. Now let's try to get your mind off of that topic and on to more productive thoughts." ------- After a quick breakfast, Alex led them outside and flagged down a cab, not bothering to tell anyone where they were going. Leanna had to take off on her own. She had an appointment that morning to visit the detectives investigating the jewelry story robbery, though she assured Alex she'd let him know how it went. Cate and Gail were curious where they were heading, but they knew better than to ask. Georgia accompanied them, while Ally and Betsy went home to change and head in to work. When Alex announced where they were going they were surprised at the apparent subterfuge. "The mall?" Cate asked. "Why make a big deal out of going to the mall? We go to one every time we stop in a new city." "It's not the mall that's the surprise," Alex assured them. "But, yes, that's what we're doing today. We're scouting for any Seekers or Seers we can find, like we should have done when we first arrived here. The way I figure it, we're several days behind, so we need to see how many we can find before the concert tonight." The others nodded at that. It made sense, and they had no better alternatives. Besides, it seemed fairly safe. No one yet knew what he looked like, and even if they did, he seemed to be the current celebrity du jour in the city, so they didn't expect he'd have much trouble even if he was identified. However, when they got out of the cab and entered the same mall entrance they'd so hurriedly fled previously, Alex pointed down the hall to the food court. "Save me a table, I've got to make a stop." Gail eyed him nervously. "I should come along. You know very well that someone may recognize you from the other day." "No thank you," he told her. "I plan on visiting René. We have some unfinished business, and I wanted to ask him something in private." "Now wait a minute," Gail responded, looking at him askance, "you mean to tell me you're voluntarily walking into the place where you were publicly identified, expecting no one to recognize you? And that you want to do it unprotected by us? What's going on?" "Nothing that you need to be concerned about," Alex reassured her, even if it did anything but. "I'll be fine. As you said, I'm Oklahoma's darling right now, so I should be fine. If I run into any trouble I'll alert you. But until then, order me a drink. If you want, you can stop by and see if anyone has some nice shirts I could wear. I haven't had anything new to wear for a while. After all, if I'm going to be famous I should at least look the part." Both Cate and Gail looked at him curiously, trying to figure out what he was trying to pull. However he didn't relent, so they finally shrugged. "Fine. Just don't come crying to me when this all goes to hell," Gail quipped. Georgia didn't seem to be concerned. As far as she was concerned Alex could do no wrong, so if he had something to do, he'd know better than them what was needed. So they took off, heading away from him towards the food court. Alex waited until they were well down the mall concourse before he turned and headed for Mizrachi & Sons' Jewelry store. He'd wanted to make sure they weren't going to double back and try to follow him. When he entered the store no one noticed him at first. Then one girl looked up and did a quick double take. She quickly ran over to another girl behind the counter and whispered to her. After that, one person after another seemed to remember who he was. Not all of them, though. Alex couldn't remember the people, but he suspected that only a few of the same people had been here the other day. The others probably just noticed how the ones who had responded to him. "Bon Jour, Mr. Mizrachi," Alex called out as he approached the store's manager and co-owner. Alex knew nothing of René's family, but he assumed his brother still retained some control over the place. "Alex? I was expecting you to call. How nice of you to come in. And please, don't start with that 'Mr. Mizrachi' nonsense. You know my name. I expect you to use it." Alex reached across the counter and shook René's hand. "Sure thing, Bob. Or was that Joe?" he asked with a grin. "I've got your things in the back," René told him, smiling at Alex's joke. "Give me a second and I'll get them." After René left, Alex glanced around the store. It seemed all the sales people had identified him, and by now the customers had figured out that he was important in some way. Some of the quicker ones had already made the most likely connection, but several of the others were a little slower to come to the realization. "Here we are," René said as he returned carrying a small bag which he opened on the glass counter. "Did the police get my fingerprints OK?" "Oh, yes. They were most appreciative of them. I was tempted to leave them there as a testament to what you'd done, but then thought better of it. While I can see you wanting the police to rule you out as a suspect, I can see you not wanting everyone having access to your fingerprints." "And they were OK with my not showing up?" "Well, I explained what was said, and why you didn't want to be identified. I also said that you high-tailed it out of here, so they took my word for it that I didn't know you. Of course I didn't mention that you called me the next day to arrange a private meeting in your hotel room." "As long as they aren't putting out an all points bulletin on me, I'm happy," Alex responded, as he looked over the pieces that René revealed to him. "Very nice work. They came out even better than I'd hoped." "I took a little extra time with them. I added the rubies to both, figuring it would make them a little more memorable while not making them ostentatious or obscuring the meaning." "Again, I can see why everyone believes in you so much," Alex told him. "Now what's the damage?" René laughed. "If it were up to me, they'd be free. But alas, someone doesn't seem to appreciate that sentiment." He quickly glanced around the room, then bent over and wrote a number on a pad of paper he had with him and showed it to Alex. Alex glanced at it, then stood and pulled a wad of bills from his pocket, handing several to René. In return, he went to the register and rang the purchase up, hand writing up a sales ticket making no mention of who the product was sold to. "I don't think there'll be any need to return it, but if you're ever in town, or if the recipients ever need an adjustment, the receipt has the inventory number on it. That will be good for anything they need. In fact, if you aren't here to object, they could probably get any repairs done for free," he responded with a smile. "Thanks," Alex said, again reaching across to shake the owner's hand. "It's been a pleasure doing business with you." "No, the honor is all mine," René responded. "I'm pleased I could have been of service. You're welcome anytime you want to return, though I doubt you will. Still, take care and try to keep out of trouble. It was a pleasure knowing you." With that Alex took his purchase and walked away, aware that everyone in the store was watching every move he made. ------- The girls noticed Alex approaching them. Of course, the fact that they were waiting for him, scanning everyone to spot either him or potential followers, helped. Thus he couldn't quite surprise them. They'd taken a table near the entrance of the food court, which was easy to access and thus easy for people to approach. Alex was nearly to them when he was distracted. 'Alex, this is Jamie Stone. I just wanted to inform you that the Dallas police just issued a statement about you.' That got Alex's attention, and he came to a dead stop. 'Go ahead, Jamie, what did they say?' 'Well, there were news reports recently of your being seen in Oklahoma, so it's triggered a lot of talk here. Apparently the police felt they needed to respond to it, since the shooting here was directed at you, and if they missed you, the source of the attack, their investigation could be called into question.' 'Yeah, that makes sense, ' Alex said, concerned about where this was headed. 'I just watched their announcement, and I can't repeat it word for word, but I got the gist of it. They said that it didn't matter if you were seen in Oklahoma, as they were already aware the shooter went to the Cotton Bowl looking to confront you there. However, there's no evidence that you were there, nor that you were even in the city for long, so they aren't looking for you.' 'Ah, now that's good news.' 'Wait, there's more. They then said that the shooter, who they identified as Anthony Barlow, went to the concert expecting to confront you, and then grew angry to find you weren't there. He then shot into the crowd at random. But since he was gunning for you it was still an attempted murder charge, and the injuries he inflicted on the two girls would be treated as such, even though he wasn't specifically trying to murder them. 'They then went on to say that they've been in negotiations with the assailant, and they're close to resolving the case. You've got to understand that the case has attracted a lot of attention, and the local councilman in charge of the region around the Cotton Bowl is pressing for a full trial, since he sees it as a wealthy white man running wild getting off easy, whereas if he was a black man he'd be facing several life sentences.' 'Yeah, I can see how that could impact how they viewed it. So what did the police say about that?' 'I guess it was the prosecutor who was speaking, in conjunction with the Dallas Police Chief. He said that they were close to resolving the case, that Mr. Barlow had realized he'd made a serious mistake and was willing to plead guilty, saving the city from an expensive and potentially divisive trial, but that he was pushing for leniency, assuming he could get psychiatric counseling. The prosecutor then made an oblique reference to the Councilman, saying that they could put this to bed if certain individuals weren't purposely trying to interfere with a police investigation.' 'Ah, it sounds like Anthony might get a break, but that it's going to be difficult because no one wants to be seen giving a rich man a break when they wouldn't give anyone else one. I'll have to talk to his daughter and see what her reaction is. They might have more information. Anyway, this means they aren't actively looking for me as a material witness, which is a big deal for me. Thanks for the info. I appreciate it.' When Alex finished the conversation, he noticed he was standing in the middle of traffic passing him on either side, so he crossed the short distance to the table. "What was that about?" Gail asked, having recognized the telltale signs of his having a telepathic conversation. "It was Jamie. She told me that the Dallas police aren't looking for me in regards to the shooting, and that they're close to a deal with Anthony, but that there's political pressure being applied." "Yeah, I didn't think it was going to be an easy case. You can't go shooting up a crowd in a situation like that and expect to get off lightly," Gail remarked. "I don't think he's expecting to get off lightly. Instead I think he's hoping to get some concessions. Possibly some psychiatric counseling and a reduced sentence based on his supposed psychiatric condition." "It's still a hard sell, especially in Texas." "Well, it'll be good news for Grace and her mother. I know they're both concerned about her father, even though they don't want him back on the streets until they're sure he's not going to do something else crazy. I think everyone is assuming the best place for him at the moment is prison, though I'm sure he'd prefer a psychiatric facility." "Yeah, good luck with that," Gail responded. "They really don't have them anymore, and they're not going to give someone like him that much leeway. The public wants blood in some form, so they're not going to concede that much." "Well, enough about that," Cate impatiently interrupted them. "We're all dying to know what you had to discuss with René Mizrachi that you couldn't do in front of us." Alex simply smiled, sitting down across from both Cate and Gail. "Well, he gave me this," he replied, pulling out a small jewelry box. He opened it, revealing a small gold ankh figurine, with a small ruby where the head met the cross. "This represents us," he said, handing the box to Cate. "I know you're concerned with my health, but I want you to know that what we share is eternal. What's more, it'll continue long after I've passed away, whether that occurs next year or forty years from now. You're in this crusade of mine and you're a central figure, so you'll be involved with it long after I'm gone, so I want you to remember it, and me, and what it means to me, and all those that will be helped by it. I thought this would represent all of those things." She took it, her mouth gaping open in surprise. This was the first piece of jewelry that Alex had ever given her. After a moment's hesitation she pulled it from the box, unraveled the chain, and fastened it around her neck. "It's beautiful, Alex, and I'll always cherish it. I realize what this means, and how much of a concession you're making by publicly acknowledging that you may not be here with us indefinitely." With that she leaned across the table and gave him a quick kiss. "Now, I also have something else," Alex continued, turning to face Gail, pulling out another small ring box and presenting it to her. She hesitantly opened it, revealing a gold heart enclosing a small shield, which held a small ruby within it. "This represents what you mean to me. You're in charge of keeping me safe, but you do it out of love, and not simply duty. You're looking out for me, so your love covers everything else you do. The rubies, in both cases, represent both me and my heart, which you both share." Gail, unused to such things, and especially not used to them from a normally undemonstrative Alex, was struck speechless. However, a moment later both Cate and Gail got up and swarmed him on two sides, rewarding him with kisses and hugs. They continued with little whispered messages until they were interrupted. "Uh, I hate to break up this tender moment, but we've got company," Georgia informed them. The two girls pulled back, remembering their positions of watching out for Alex and helping his movement. When they did, Alex turned and saw two women cautiously approaching him. He could immediately tell that they were neither Seers nor Seekers, but he waved them forwards nevertheless. "Pardon me, but we were in the jewelry store and we heard about what happened, and we just wanted to tell you how impressed we were with what you did, and how you asked nothing for it other than to just be left alone," one said. She wasn't old, but certainly older than most of the women that Alex dealt with. She was more Leanna's age, late 40s or early 50s, Alex guessed. She had a mix of blonde and dark hair with a nice smile. The other woman was young and thin, like many of the women that Alex encountered. She had dark hair and a nice neutral pink top with a lot of lace. Although Alex had no basis from which to judge, he guessed she was probably Jewish, and then guessed she was probably in the store for reasons other than simply shopping. "I was there the other day, I'm Sarah Miller, René's daughter-in-law." the second one added, confirming Alex's theory. "I saw how the robber responded to you, and how you dealt with the other one when he tried to stop you from taking his money away from him. I can see that she didn't see a simple man. She was convinced that you were an angel, and I think I'm convinced of the same thing." Alex resisted sighing in exasperation, since he knew these two women were serious. "Well, I'm..." Alex started to say before he caught himself. He then took a moment to reconsider what he'd been about to say and started again. "Yes, I am who you think I am, but I'm as human as either of you are. It seems that Alexandria, for her own reasons, feels it necessary to have those I'm sent to help see me as more than I really am. Thus, when they see me, they see more than how I look to you. Instead, they see this image of a towering angel, even though I'm anything but. However it's useful, since they take what I tell them much more seriously as a result." They both seemed to soak up this story, and each seemed to feel compelled to touch him. Alex assumed it was for good luck, he wasn't quite sure, but he wasn't about to deny them this simple balm. "So you're actually ministering to poor souls?" the first asked. "Actually, I never know who I'm supposed to help, nor even why. All I know is that they often address me first, and when they do I always know what I need to do to help them. In the case of the other day, I knew the one needed to redeem herself. So I stepped up, took the results of her act from her, and told her she needed to change her life and the course she'd chosen," Alex told them, inventing material as he went. "I'm happy to report that she's done that, and through her the other robber has also decided to try to turn his life around." Gail had been simply observing this discussion, smiling at how well Alex seemed to handle these types of encounters, when she reached across the table and quietly tapped his arm. When he looked at her she indicated something behind him. Turning, he saw a girl in a gray top with darker somewhat reddish brunette hair and a pale face and large eyes. When their eyes met she paused briefly, but then continued forward until she reached him. Then she did like the other women had. Instead of making a scene, she merely reached out and touched his chest with her hand, as is trying to measure whether he was real or not, or whether he was actually as immaterial as he appeared to be. "You're real?" she stated, as if shocked by the thought. "Yes, I am. I'm ... well, we'll get to who I am in a second. Who might you be?" he asked. That was the start of their morning in the mall, which proceeded much like that. Alex spent more time addressing normals who thought they recognized him, or who were attracted by the others surrounding him, then he did actual Seers or Seekers. Those he fended off on Cate so they could discuss what they needed to unobserved by everyone focusing on Alex. This was certainly a new approach to his mission, and it would take some time to decide whether it was better, or whether it would ultimately bite him in the ass. ------- "Hello?" Linda asked, not even bothering to ask in the formal manner she'd been so careful to teach her children. She knew her kids were good about calling, but she also knew they were preoccupied, and that she was often at the end of their lengthy call list. "Hey, Mom. This is—" "Don't worry, Cate, I know exactly who it is. You don't think I'd mistake the sound of my own daughter's voice do you?" "Especially when she's been waiting all evening for the call," Frank grumbled from his easy chair. But he had the good sense to turn the TV off so it wouldn't interfere with their call. "So what's been happening? The girls have been talking about what you've been up to, but mostly they're saying that the whole town knows who Alex is, and that he's facing exposure the whole time he's there." "No, it's OK. Actually, it's worked out surprisingly well. I'm sure they told you about the robbery. We managed to walk in during the middle of a jewelry store heist, and one of the criminals was a Seer. As soon as she saw Alex she collapsed in front of him, asked his forgiveness and handed him all the money they stole." "That damn son of mine is going to get himself killed one of these days." "From what Alex says, it wasn't very likely. But we didn't know it at the time. The other guy tried to grab the money from Alex. He had a gun, even though he didn't try to use it. Anyway, when he went to grab it, Alex just goes into this spin, yanking the money away from his hand and coming around and clocking the guy. The gun flies off behind the counter, the guy falls hard on his shoulder, and Alex calmly walks up and hands the money to the owner of the jewelry store." "How could you let him do that? I mean, I know he got away with it this time. But you know just as well as I do that his luck can't hold forever. He just barely managed to squeak by when Rakeem shot him. Where the hell was Gail? Isn't that her job?" "Mom, when was the last time you heard of Alex doing what he was told?" "Well, he was pretty good about listening to people before that little trip to New Orleans. It seems a couple of people gave him a bit of a big head, so now he thinks he can do no wrong." "Frankly, we spend enough time telling him to trust his instincts. Usually when he does decide to do something, it works out pretty well. Gail's job is to protect him from the things that he doesn't expect." "Like Rakeem? Or the guy who tried to shoot him the other day?" "Well, to be fair, Alex told her to stay behind the day Rakeem came after him. And Gail was the one who shot the guy who came after him." "Still, I don't like the idea of people shooting at him, or at any of you. And I especially don't like the idea of anyone else getting shot. Especially one of his girls. It's strange, but somehow I feel close to each of them. I know it's unrealistic, but we've been so close." "It's like the mother of a gay guy, he and his friends always treat their mothers like queens." Linda laughed. "Yeah, you're right. The girls are always treating me like I'm the Queen Mother. And it's hard to think badly of anyone who loves my son that much." "Anyway, it's worked out well. Word about Alex spread quickly, but everyone was intrigued. We stumbled into a lesbian bar and—" "Alex walking into a lesbian bar? You've got to be kidding me," Linda teased. "Frankly, that doesn't surprise me much." "No, it doesn't. The big joke was that he's finally run out of straight women, so now he's going where the only remaining women are. After all, we know he's an equal opportunity activator." "It's not the activation that worries me." "Yeah, well, he tries to limit who he boosts. But as you know, there's a lot riding on it. But, surprisingly, we spent most of our time dealing with the normal type 3s. Everywhere we went they were all over him." "What, normal women finding Alex attractive? Were there more than a handful of girls in your high school who weren't chasing him?" "No, but let me tell you what else happened. Today he wouldn't tell us what he had planned, but he got us into a cab and took us back to the mall." "Wait, the same one he'd been identified at? Wasn't that kind of ... I don't know, kind of stupid?" "That's exactly what we were thinking. Especially when he told us he was going back to the jewelry store to talk to the owner, and that he didn't want either Gail or I to accompany him." "I'll tell you, for a couple of near genius kids, sometimes you can both be a bit headstrong." "Tell me about it. Anyway, he insisted, and neither of us was going to confront him about it, so we went and waited for him. One of the girls we met, Georgia, came along with us." "Wait, wasn't she the one that—?" "That he spontaneously boosted? Yeah, that's the one. It sounds like you're getting information from other sources than just me." "Honey, if I waited for you to get around to telling me what's happening, I wouldn't have anything to talk to the girls about." "Anyway, when he came back, he presented me and Gail with a couple of presents. He actually had René custom make some jewelry for us. You know just how undemonstrative he is? Well both Gail and I were flabbergasted. He gave me this Ankh, the Egyptian symbol of eternity with a small ruby that represented his heart, telling me it represented our love that would last forever, long after either of us were around." "Wow. As much as we always talk about how clever he is, we keep underestimating him sometimes." "I know. I mean, I know what he was trying to tell me in his unsubtle manner, but it was still very effective." "I can imagine." "He also gave Gail something similar. He gave her this little gold heart with a shield within it, which was then inlaid with another ruby like he gave me. He explained it represented that she was his protector, but that he realized she did it out of love for him, and that she too shared his heart forever." "Stop, you're making me tear up. As much as it still freaks me out that you two are involved with each other, it still affects me knowing how much you both care for each other." Frank grunted from the other seat, letting her know what he thought, even though she could also see a smile that he tried to hide. "Your father agrees with me, even though he hasn't heard the details yet." "Anyway, we've got to be going. We still have a concert to do yet, and a bunch of new followers. I just wanted to call you before we left, since we'll be up late tonight as a result." "Well, as you know, I'm always glad to hear from you. Now put that damn expensive phone we bought you to use and send me a picture of your present. After all, the other girls may already know what it looks like, but I still want a chance to show off." "I'll do that, Mom. And Alex sends his love. He says he'll call you later, but he doesn't know when he'll be able to reach you." "Tell him not to worry about it. I don't mind being awakened if it's to hear from either of you. After all, I'd rather be awakened hearing something positive than I would to hear someone else is shooting at him." "I'll tell him, Ma. Tell Dad we love him, and that we miss you both. Anyway, we've got to run. It takes a long time to set up before the concert begins, so—" "Go on. I know how busy your lives are now. And thanks for calling. I always appreciate hearing from you." With that Cate hung up. Sighing, Linda turned around to tell the entire story to her husband. They both knew she could just as easily have turned on the fancy speakerphone option they had, but Frank had long ago learned that she enjoyed the retelling at least as much as she did the initial conversation. ------- Chapter 33: Adventures on the Road "Well, it's nice to see you folks so happy. Apparently you either got more sleep than we did, less alcohol, or something else to put those self-satisfied grins on your faces," Sammy commented when Alex and his posse climbed aboard Patricia's touring van. They'd decided to get an early start, skipping breakfast at the hotel. Chelsea had gotten everyone a to-go breakfast which she'd laid out on the table before them. "Hey, speak for yourself. Some of us not only didn't 'get any', but we didn't even get a chance to soak up any BCM last night," Cate mockingly complained. "Speak for yourself," Gail responded. "I didn't get any ass myself, but at least I got to play a little, and I figure a feast of gorgeous young naked females with a casual tit or two tossed my way isn't a bad distraction." "So I take it you did well last night, then?" Patricia asked. "I was nervous that with so much attention it may have been difficult, especially after that fiasco at the Cotton Bowl on Saturday night." "Let's just say it was interesting," Alex cautiously responded, but Cate wasn't quite so reluctant to get into the details. "Oh, it was interesting, all right. The first people we encountered, this woman screams to all her friends, 'I told you he was here. It's him. The Angel of New Orleans, and he's taken on his angelic form'. At that point we were the center of attention, as everyone knew what was happening." "I figured letting everyone know your business was going to cost you eventually," Mac Schumacher, Patricia's drummer, remarked. "Actually it wasn't as bad as it sounds. We'd had the same response when we went to the mall earlier in the day. What ended up happening was that I tended to the type 3s who clustered around me, while handing off the Seekers and Seers to Cate." "So you're sticking with the 'Seeker' nomenclature?" Chelsea asked. "Yeah, it's a better description," Alex replied. "However, you're welcome to continue to refer to them as Watchers if you want, since we all know who we're referring to, but I think Seeker describes them better than the term we came up with before we realized what was really going on." "Wait a minute, Cate?" Jordan asked, skipping back to the previous comment. "Isn't she normally scouring the concert hall for you?" "Normally she is, but we had so many helpers last night that she was there helping me out. We hadn't met many new followers, well, new Seers or Seekers, at least, but we had that whole lesbian contingent who were more than happy to help. So we were covered." "So how did the women feel being foisted off on Cate, while you spent your time with your new fans?" Patricia asked. "I'm sure they'd have rather spent their time with me, but once I explained what we were doing telepathically, they went along with it." "Yeah, when someone first sees you, bathed in light, and you speak in their minds like God from on high, what do you expect?" Cate asked, not completely teasingly. "They're afraid if they don't do what you suggest you may strike them down." "Nah, they know just how good Alex is," Gail explained as she dug into her meal. "They wouldn't expect any such thing. But they do want to please him, so, yeah, they'd do whatever he suggested, even if they didn't like it overly much." "Man, I'd love to see you in action some time," Sammy complained. "You always operate in the back of the auditorium, and when you venture out into the city we're always busy either practicing or setting up." "Don't worry, I'm likely to encounter plenty more. It's only a matter of time," Alex informed him. "Well, I'm glad you decided to travel with us today," Patricia said. "We've spent so little time with you since we started this tour, it'll be nice to get to spend some time with you." "Yeah, we've been dying to learn more about you on this tour, but so far we only get second hand information from Patricia after the set's all done," Erica Mayes, the guitarist said. "Well, I'm planning on staying on the bus for a while. Traveling on our own doesn't seem to help much, and when I start venturing out I run into trouble. So you'll be seeing more of me for the next few days." "Good, I'm glad to hear it," Erica responded. "It's frustrating being so close to someone who's making such a difference in the world and hardly getting to see him." "Watch your drinks," Sammy called out, since he was the driver, "the roads outside the city are a bit rough." Patricia's band took turns driving the van, mostly because they were afraid of relying on anonymous hired drivers who might be likely to sell Alex's story if someone offered them enough money. They felt it was safer handling the driving themselves, plus they pooled the money they saved. "So, about the concert?" Patricia prompted. "Like Alex said, it was interesting," Cate responded, taking over the explanation of events. "It was a complete change from normal. Alex ended up entertaining his new fans the entire night, while I and the other girls would pull the new girls aside and tell them what they needed to know. He kept excusing himself to talk to them occasionally, but often he'd just encounter someone else, which would just cause his fans to get excited and bother him more." "I met the girls outside afterward and invited several of them up to the room so we could finally talk. They were anxious to get some face time, and it's helpful talking face to face when you introduce them to new people telepathically." "Yeah, we've seen how you 'talk' to the girls," Jordan teased. "No, seriously, we talked. Several of them were either married or in committed relationships. I ended up sleeping with two girls, but mostly we just talked." The band members started talking about how the concert went while Alex, Cate and Gail finished up their breakfast. When they finished, Cate turned to Alex. "You know, I was talking to some of the girls." "You were talking to the girls?" Alex asked with a smile, having recognized the term to denote Alex's followers. "OK, Gail told me about what a couple of the girls told her. They wanted me to know about certain things. It seems that Megan, of Megan and Ryan from Dallas, talked to the other girls and they got to talking about how you seem to upset a lot of men, while you seem to attract women, even those without the Seeker/Seer genes. It apparently got her thinking and she had a heart-to-heart talk with Ryan." "I can imagine how he felt about that," Alex said, rolling his eyes. "She said it was good for him. That he managed to get a lot out, but more, it revealed a lot of things that no one thought to ask before." "Like?" Alex asked, intrigued. "She said he had no problems initially, but that he found himself less and less able to think clearly as he began responding emotionally, and the primary emotion he felt was anger. Anger directed at you. He didn't initially have any reasons for his anger, but he tried to justify it based on assumptions he made about you. Does that sound like anyone you know?" "Yeah, it sounds like quite a few people," Alex said, thinking of all the guys who'd come after him in the past several months, each of whom seemed to invent their own reasons for why they disliked him. "She thought it was something about his exposure to you that triggered his reaction. She said he was fine until we reached the room, and that it got worse when you both took your clothes off and got closer together. She suggested pheromones. That could explain both the women's attraction to you and also the angry response by the men." Alex thought about it in silence for a few moments before responding. "There are a lot of weaknesses to the idea. Darrel took a dislike to me without meeting me, and instead of it getting worse the longer he knew me, we ended up as friends. Anthony never even met me, and each time Tony confronted me we were outside the school, where the pheromone idea falls apart. Finally, if these scents affect so many women, then why do they only affect a few select guys?" "There is that," Cate conceded. The other girls were sitting around listening intently, having moved closer while they each explained their positions. "OK, I didn't think that was so likely," Cate admitted. "But here's another idea, which I think is more probable. We discussed how the Seers ability is actually that they respond to your BCM, based upon a specific gene. That it's the fact that they respond to it, and heal better than normal as a result of it. Right?" "Yeah?" "Well, what if men with the same gene don't become Seekers or Seers because they have a gene that either turns the ability off, or possibly they simply respond negatively to the BCM energy." "Wait, you mean if I tried to heal them they'd go into anaphylactic shock?" "No, I doubt it's a simple allergy. Instead, I think it's a biological reaction to the gene that produces both the Seers and Seekers. Given the widespread distribution of them across different ethnic groups, it seems fairly certain that the 'S' gene has been around for a long time. Long enough for counter genes to have evolved and gotten established. The idea is that women got recognized as being more sensitive due to the prevalence of the 'S' gene. Maybe men developed a reputation for being overly aggressive because they're genetically programmed to not react to it." "That sounds a little iffy," Alex countered. "Yeah, I was thinking that even as I was saying it. But still, it could be that select individuals react negatively to BCM. Normally their sensitivity doesn't show up in their day-to-day lives, but when they run across you, with such a large concentration of it, suddenly they react to it." "But they'd run across smaller amounts of it in everyone they met. In every animal they petted, in the food they eat and the grass they sleep on." "We'd have to run tests on them to determine their sensitivity to it, and what level would trigger a response. It might be that those with the 'S' gene have an increased healing ability, but that these people have specific antibodies to it that trigger a response. It could even be a localized response restricted to the brain itself." "So you're suggesting that certain individuals will just take an instant disliking to me, and that, once they do, they'll invent reasons why they don't like me?" "That's what I'm saying." "Well what about Rodger, Chalise's father, or even Anthony. Neither one ever met me." "It could be as simple as the excess BCM that Chalise and Grace had on their clothes and on them," Cate suggested. Alex responded with a scoffing mumble, but she countered herself. "Hey, I can tell who you've slept with simply by detecting your personal BCM on them. Obviously it sticks around for a while. I'm guessing if you gave your Seers a pillow of yours, they'd respond to it. In fact, maybe we should ship your underwear to the cities you aren't able to reach. They could keep it in a Tupperware container to keep the excess BCM fresh, and if their eyes showed a response they'd know whether they were Seekers or Seers." Alex was about to respond but thought better of it as he considered it. "We'd better ship Grace one of my T-shirts or something. You'll have to tell her what to look for. If she can detect a response in her father, we'll have our answer." Gail laughed at that. "Yeah, I can picture it now. 'Say Officer, do you mind if I pass a potential felon this dirty shirt he can smear over his face so I can watch his reaction, possibly recording it with a video camera for documentation purposes?' She'd be thrown out as soon as she suggested it, and they'd assume insanity runs in the family. Either that, or they'd start following her to see if she was as dangerous as her father." "Hmm, you have a point. What about if Dr. Avers Peterson volunteers to do the psyche evaluation for him? We could train him beforehand on what to look for. It wouldn't impact his evaluation, but he could easily record the response and he could measure it himself. He could even take an assistant, like Caity, to help him do his evaluation." "The police and the prison authorities would never go for it. They'll pick either a local or a nationally recognized expert with prior court expert testimony experience. The best we could hope for would be to influence the defense team with our exciting offer of evidence they couldn't prove or offer as testimony in a trial." "You're right. How about if we send it to Ryan instead? He apparently doesn't have it as bad as the others did, but he should show a response if that's the case. We should try it with some suspected Seers first. We should have some we can test it on. I'm sure we have people with relatives we haven't met yet." "We'd need someone trained to know what to look for, and equipped to measure the response so we'd know how to test for it in the future," Cate suggested. "I don't think we can afford to waste the limited opportunities we have." "There's also likely to be false positives. We'll have to find several potentials, then have someone fly out to test them," Gail offered. "If you made it to California, you could follow it up with a visit by Alex later and correlate whether the findings are correct," Erica excitedly said. Everyone started getting enthused about the chance to finally test for evidence of both Alex's and his followers' abilities. Alex simply leaned back and watched, smiling at their excitement. It would be a complicated experiment to set up, but it could be the kind of evidence they were looking for, and if it proved true it could provide a lot of answers about a number of different issues. What's more, Ryan, Liv and Lists would each be thrilled with the fact there was finally demonstrable evidence of what they'd seen. Whether or not they could do it, however, would be a whole different issue. Just then the discussion was interrupted when the van's mobile phone went off. Immediately everyone froze. It rang again, this time Sammy responded. "Damn, it's finally working. We've only gotten two calls so far, both from kids. Yet here we are, barely out of the city and someone—" "Don't you think someone should answer it?" Alex asked. Erica hesitantly picked it up. "Hello?" She paused a moment before responding. "No, this isn't him, but he's here." She glanced back at the others as if asking how to handle this before she continued. "Look, we're taking the next exit. Just follow us, and when we park, he'll let you in. It's important that you come in, because he's got a lot of important information that you need to learn." Both Alex and Cate thought they should have spent some time training everyone how to respond to new followers, but it was a little late now. Erica continued talking to her, mostly answering inane questions like how the band related to Alex, something she deftly avoided, simply reaffirming the band's emphasis on 'following your feelings'. "Is there anyone with you?" Erica asked. "Oh, that's good. Having to deal with outsiders always makes these things more complicated." When they finally pulled to a stop in a gas station's parking lot, Alex got up to let the new person in. Everyone else sat in rapt attention as Cate and Alex worked their magic, going over everything the new woman needed to know. This was really the first time Patricia's people had observed him in action. Usually the band was elsewhere while this occurred. In the case of Chelsea and Jordan, they'd helped him, but they'd usually been in another room searching for new followers instead of watching what he did. Alex could see that the band really wanted to be a bigger part of this than they had been. He was glad he'd finally found time to travel with them, as it helped include them more, and it made things easier for Alex's people. Yet another step, Alex told himself. One more out of so many. ------- The van was pulling into Phoenix near the end of a busy week. They had two concerts here, Friday and Saturday, after having spent the last four days performing one night concerts at Amarillo, Albuquerque and Flagstaff following their extended stay in Oklahoma City. It was a pace that Alex was unused to, and it left little time to spend exploring or searching for new people in the cities themselves, especially when the concerts ran late, and he spent so much time with various followers afterwards, only to get up and out early in order for the band to be able to set up the next day in a new city. The others could rest while they drove, but he, Cate and Gail had to keep active, since not everyone who followed them thought to call the phone number on the bus, so they'd often have to wave to attract someone's attention before they exited the highway to talk with them. That was harder to do from a tour van than it was out of a rear windshield. As a result, Alex was already feeling worn out, and he knew he'd be busy for the two days they'd be spending here. Unfortunately, they couldn't spend any longer here than that, since they had a long drive through remote countryside to their next tour date in Las Vegas. They had a fair amount of time until the concert there, as it took place the next week, but Alex had some plans in Utah that he'd need the extra time for. Speaking of remote, Alex had thought that the Texas countryside was sparse, but it was lush compared to what they'd observed on the road here. Although they weren't technically in the desert yet, he could see how close to it they were. He was glad to see the green around Phoenix, as little as there was of it, glad to feel the increased humidity around the city as well, although the heat, despite the greener environment, was oppressive. The band had really stepped up to the plate, now that he'd involved them in more of the day to day operations. During their frequent stops they each made themselves busy, planning out future stops, calculating how many miles there were between each exit, fixing drinks for their new guests and for themselves as well. Chelsea and Jordan took over Cate's role of recording the new follower's information, allowing Cate to focus on explaining the science behind their new abilities. It was a role they relished, since it was to help Alex. Sure, the tour helped their careers, and it was already proving a big success, much to Diane Kennedy's consternation. But their first priority was to help Alex, and they appreciated finally being able to play a bigger role in his work. Nearing the city, Erica pulled off of Interstate 17, the Black Canyon Freeway, to fill up the van's gas tanks before getting into the city where it would be difficult filling up a vehicle that big. Exiting the highway, they were approaching a gas station at a nearby intersection when a car suddenly veered off course approaching the intersection, crossing into the oncoming lane of traffic and barreled straight into the cars just entering the intersection. There was a horrid screeching of tires, as the other driver tried to avoid the collision, but it was unsuccessful. Those who were paying attention watched glass fly as the two car collided, spinning the one car around and off the intersection, crumpling the front ends of both vehicles, accompanied by a horrendous sound of crashing metal. "Erica, pull over," Alex insisted, taking immediate control of the situation. "Mac call 911. The rest of you, come with me. We've got to move fast if we're going to help, we'll need to finish up before anyone arrives to watch us." Cate already had the door open when he got to it, and they took off running to the two damaged cars. There were several vehicles stopped behind the accident, although several cars had veered past while the drivers in the other lane simply took in what had happened as they passed by. As Alex approached the cars he took in what he could. The driver's side of the vehicle hit was crumpled, and he could see it would be difficult getting the people out, The other car was kitty-corner to that one, and while damaged, seemed to be more structurally sound, at least enough so they could reach those inside. Turning, Alex started barking orders. "Sammy, you and Chelsea try to get that door open so we can reach the occupant. Gail, check on the passenger until they can get the driver out. Patricia, check out the other car. We need to know what the injuries are and whether the people can be moved before we do anything else. Jordan, you'll have to control the approaching traffic." Everyone followed his commands without thinking. The site was confusing, but since each person now had a specific job, they didn't stop to consider what to do. Alex and Cate were the only ones trying to do a quick evaluation of where they were most needed. Having no other information, Alex approached the driver pinned inside their door, since that looked like the worse situation. "Martin? Martin, are you OK? Martin?" a woman behind him yelled. 'Alex, you'd better get over here, ' Patricia advised him. 'The driver isn't responding and his wife seems to be about to lose it. I need to get him out of the vehicle.' 'Are you sure that's wise?' Alex asked. 'Make sure he doesn't have back problems first.' 'He doesn't, and he was already partially thrown from the car. I can't examine him properly like he is, but I can tell he's got an injury to his hip, so I'm being very careful in moving him. But if you're going to help him, you'll need access to him. Right now our concern is going to be saving him.' "Cate, come along," Alex instructed his sister. "I don't know what you can do, but maybe you can control the wife. The other driver is the most seriously injured at the moment." They ran quickly to the other vehicle and he saw Patricia gingerly lowering an older man onto the ground. The wife, also older with gray hair, was struggling to free herself of the airbag and her seatbelt, crying out for her husband, Martin. Cate headed directly for her while Alex moved toward Martin. "His heart's not beating," Patricia told him. "Also it turns out his hip is broken. I tried to minimize any damage to it, and it doesn't appear to be a bad break at this point, but any—" "I know how serious a broken hip is. You were right to react as you did. Lying half in, half out of a crushed vehicle wouldn't have helped. Now, show me what the damage to his heart is." By now a crowd was beginning to form around them as traffic in each direction stopped and the drivers were craning their necks to see what was wrong. Passengers got out of the stopped vehicles to get a close up view of what was happening. It was hardly rush hour, but there was a lot of traffic on the road, so there were a lot of onlookers. However, as was typical of Alex, he was so focused on what he was doing that he scarcely noticed the surrounding onlookers, barely recognizing they were even there. They watched as this young man bent over the old man and placed his forehead against his chest. "Martin!" the older woman yelled. "I think he had a heart attack. He just crumpled over just before we ran off the road," she called out. She was pushing against Cate, who was trying to hold her in place and talk her down. She wasn't making much progress against the much younger Cate, but she wasn't listening to what she was trying to tell her either. Alex sat up almost immediately, and the old man jolted a bit and tried to sit up. Alex placed his hand against his chest, holding him in place. "Don't move. You're seriously hurt. You had a heart attack. You're doing better now, but you're still weak. What's more, you've got a broken hip. Hold on," Alex told him before he moved farther down. He seemed to stare at his hip, not trying to inspect it for damage, before he again bent over and placed his head against the man's right hip. He sat up just a moment later. "What's it look like?" the man wheezed. He seemed brave. He wasn't complaining about the pain and he seemed to have his wits about him. He'd just been told what was wrong with him, and he was more interested in knowing the extent of the damage than he was in alleviating the pain. "The bones are nicely lined up and I think it'll heal, but broken hips are a serious problem. It should knit well as long as you don't jostle it and shift the bones before they can apply a cast to it. But what's more important are the complications that can set in. Seventy percent of those with broken hips die within a year due to other, related conditions. This is important, so pay attention. I don't know how well you treat yourself, but you aren't going to eat any cheeseburgers, red meat, or sugar for the next year. You're going to have to focus on fruits, vegetables and nuts. Everything else tends to promote either infections or impairs the immune system, which is already weakened in your case. I don't care what you do after that, but you need to adapt, and quickly, if you hope to be alive this time next year." "Am I that badly hurt?" "You just died. Your heart stopped, and you've broken your hip. But you aren't in any immediate danger. You're stable. Our main concern right now is not jostling that hip any more than it has been. But I'm trying to tell you what you need to do to stay alive beyond today." "Won't the doctors—" "No, the doctor's won't know what's going on for a while, and they don't know the state of your immune system. Frankly, you've been eating shit for too long. Your body isn't prepared for a shock like this, so it's going to be dicey. Now I won't be there to explain—" 'Alex, if things are stable over there, I need you over here, ' Gail informed him. 'What are we looking at?' Alex asked. 'I'm at the other car. The passenger here has a collapsed lung on one side, but the big problem is that her lung is badly damaged from a lifetime of smoking, thus she's having a lot of trouble breathing. She's not likely to last long the way she's going.' "Look, I've got to run," Alex told Martin. "There's someone else that needs my help. Just remember what I said and don't listen to anyone who tells you otherwise. Chances are they'll tell you your heart isn't that bad, but they're wrong, so don't listen to them. This is your only chance to survive the next year, so don't slip up." With that, Alex got up and ran back to the other car. Sammy and Erica were still working on the driver's door, and they seemed to be making progress, but Alex was focused only on the passenger. Gail backed up as he approached. She'd moved the seat all the way back, giving him room to move. "Hello there, Miss. I'd ask your name but I can't tell you mine, so we'll skip that part. You're not looking good. Just relax and I'll help you breathe a little better. But it's important that you relax and don't fight me, OK?" The woman nodded quickly, still struggling to breathe. Gail gave him a view of what her lungs looked like and it didn't look pretty. Alex knew he couldn't repair the collapsed lung, but that wasn't his concern at the moment. He needed to boost her lung so it was strong enough for the medics to work on. Without taking the time to think about it, or for the woman to respond, he bent forward, pressing his forehead against her upper right breast. She wasn't feeling strong enough to resist. He remained like that for several seconds, his head lightly resting against her breast but not really pressing against it. When he finally pulled away and asked how she was feeling, she realized she could breathe more easily. Her collapsed lung still hurt and it was painful to breathe, but at least she could suck in air with her other lung, which was a relief. She hadn't been sure she was going to survive. "We've got access to this one," Sammy called out. Alex turned and motioned for Gail to check him out. "Your lungs are a mess. By all rights, you should be dead now. If I hadn't been here, you wouldn't have survived this. You've got to quit the cigarettes, because your lungs will have enough trouble recovering as it is. If you continue to smoke, your lung might never recover, and since it impacts your immune system as well, it's likely to affect your recovery as well." The woman still hadn't recovered her breath well enough to respond, so she simply nodded. Alex wasn't sure if she got it or not. "Look, I know people have been nagging you about this for years, but this isn't just a polite recommendation. Your lungs are a mess, and even without this accident you wouldn't have survived for much longer. Now, if you want to be around for your kids, you've got to stop. Otherwise you won't be. I've stabilized you so you'll function better, but if you continue, you'll counter what I did for you and you'll be right back to where you started." She nodded again, not sure why she was listening to him, nor why she was taking what he said so seriously. But as soon as he saw her nod, Alex was up and moving again. "He's largely unhurt. He broke an arm and he's cut up, but that's it," Gail told him as he came around to survey the damage to the driver. "Be careful that you don't cause his other wounds to bleed, but if you..." Alex motioned to her that he got it, so she stopped trying to explain the situation to him. Again, she showed him what the man's arm looked like from her perspective. "Hold still a moment, your arm is broken. It'll still be broken when I finish, but it'll stand a better chance of healing." With that he pressed his forehead against the man's arm for only a couple of moments then pulled back. "That's it? I thought you were going to do something to it?" "Who me?" Alex asked smiling. "What could someone like me possibly do? But I have a feeling your arm will heal quickly, and will come out of this almost as strong as you were before the accident. Now, is there anything else wrong?" "No, but what about my wife, Annette? She doesn't sound very good," he asked worriedly. "She'll sound like that until the Ambulance gets here," Alex said, referring to the sickening wheezing sound she continued to make. "She's punctured her lung. But her biggest problem is that her lungs weren't strong enough to withstand the treatment for the collapsed lung, nor for her to live until the ambulance got here. I've stabilized her so she should be OK for now, but she'll be struggling until they can reinflate her lung." "Who are you, and what—," the man attempted to ask him, but Alex was already moving away. 'Gail, Patricia? You've got to stay with the victims and watch over them. I don't want to be the one to advise the medics what's wrong. There'll be enough questions as it is. They'll likely take your suggestions better than they will mine. In fact, switch positions. You're likely to have more medical authority than Patricia has, Gail. I'll be nearby, but I'm going to try to keep out of the way. Let me know if anything else happens.' And with that Alex moved away, backing up beside the van. The ambulance took a surprisingly long time to arrive. The police arrived sooner, but once they established that the victims were stable they focused on the screwed up intersection, keeping onlookers at bay and redirecting traffic so the emergency vehicles could gain access. They also advised the approaching ambulances about what to expect. When the first ambulance arrived, the EMTs split up to evaluate the two worst patients. The first one ran up to Gail and the older man, while the other one was still getting his gear from the truck. "I'll take over from—," he tried to tell her. "Listen up, short stuff, the important thing here is that he's had a massive heart attack, causing the accident. That's stabilized for the moment, but the other issue is that his hip is broken here, here and here," she said, drawing imaginary lines with her hands. "Right," the man scoffed. "You figured this out with your own imaginary X-ray scanner?" "No, I'm a retired cop. And while I can't prove my diagnosis, you need to focus on not shift—" "Look, you were probably hot shit before you were forced to retire, but I—" "Listen, punk. You can do whatever the shit you want, but just understand this: I warned you, and if you permanently disable this man because you ignored my advice, the fault will squarely rest with you." "Hey, you're not getting near me unless you change your attitude, young man," the older victim insisted. "Now back off until someone qualified to treat my injuries gets here." The EMT was about to argue when the nearby cop, hearing the disruption, approached. "What's the trouble here?" "The victim won't allow me to treat him." "We're only insisting he take the proper precautions," Gail advised as she turned to the cop. "St. Louis PD, retired, badge number 31928." "Are you taking the proper precautions?" the cop asked. "She doesn't have any—" "I don't want him anywhere near me," Martin snarled. "He's going to fucking break my hip worse than it already is. As she said, I'm stable now. Go pay attention to the other patient, and when you're done, send your partner. Maybe he'll know how to treat an emergency better than you do." "You heard the man. I'd advise you to take his advice. I'll stay here with him while you're gone to ensure he doesn't have any problems, but don't come back unless it's to help your partner." The EMT got up and ran off, mumbling to himself the entire way. "I assume you have some reason for pissing the poor guy off?" the policeman asked. "I was just advising him that his patient has a broken hip. He didn't seem to care," Gail informed him, choosing not to provide any more detail at the moment. The cop took the time after that to speak to the man, then to get a quick recap of events from Gail. "Oh, could you thank that nice young man for..." the man said before falling silent. "What nice man?" the cop asked before turning to Gail, who was holding her finger to her mouth in a shushing motion. The dismissed EMT ran up to the other car where his partner, who had just arrived a few moments before, was busy checking Annette out. "Man, watch out for those people. The old guy wouldn't even let me treat him. All because some ex-cop—" "Told you he had a broken hip, here, here and here?" Patricia asked with a playful smile, making the imaginary marks on her own hip. "All right then, what magical diagnoses did you make for this one? Does she actually have scarlet fever?" "No, but her husband has a break in his arm right here. It's a small break with 3 small radiating mini-fractures," Patricia replied, just because she know it was impossible to diagnose, and impossible to ignore when proved true later, even though the EMT was unlikely to ever see the X-Ray results. "He also has multiple minor cuts and a decent sized abrasion on his outer thigh, about this high up." "Look, lady, I don't know what the hell is wrong with all of you, but—" "Forget it, Frankie. So far she's spot on. I'd suggest you check out the other guy. I've got this one. She's got a collapsed lung, so we'll need to reinflate her lung back in the truck." "Well, they want you to treat the other guy. The cop over on the scene won't let me work on him," his partner complained. "Do I ... really need to stop ... smoking?" the woman he was working on asked, hoping for a more sympathetic diagnosis. "For this? I don't see why. After all, you seem to be breathing all right with your other lung." "Just remember what your breathing was like a short while ago?" Patricia reminded her. "And then remember who made it better." "Huh? What's that mean?" the senior EMT asked. "Did someone else try to work on her injury?" "No, sir, no one laid a hand on her," Patricia truthfully replied, even though she knew the woman wouldn't be fooled by the partial truth. Yet another step, Alex told himself. One more out of so many. ------- "So I take it you witnessed and helped out after the crash?" "Well, I tried, Officer Adams," Alex said, having read the man's name tag, "but there really wasn't much I could do." "The old man said you restarted his heart." "Me? Not likely. I don't even know how to do CPR. All I did was to listen to his heart to tell if it was beating or not. When I did, he woke up, scaring the shit out of me. I guess he wasn't as hurt as everyone thought he was." "The EMTs seemed to think he'd had a massive heart attack and passed out, causing the accident." "Ah, that explains it. I was wondering what happened. But I guess it wasn't quite as bad as they imagined. After all, he was awake and conscious as they were taking him away. It hardly looked like it was that bad. Maybe he just passed out or fell asleep." "What about the occupants of the other car?" Brian Adams asked, not pursuing the issue any more, but also not giving away what he'd already been told. "Well, after I saw that the old guy was OK, and then Gail chased me away, I tried to see if I could be of any use. But again, I was pretty useless." "So I take it you know the other people involved then?" "Yes, I was riding in the van with the others when we came upon the accident." "OK, we'll get back to that in a minute. Could you describe what you did then?" "I got to their car. The woman was having trouble breathing. I figured there wasn't anything I could do, since the whistling sound seemed to indicate a punctured lung, but she looked at me with a look of desperation. So I tried to listen to see if I could hear decent breathing sounds from her good lung, to know if she'd be OK until the ambulance arrived. By the way, it took a really long time for them to arrive." "Yeah, that happens sometime. Then what happened?" "Well, her other lung sounded good, so I told her we'd called the police and that I'd stick around to make sure she was OK. But then Patricia told me she'd take over for me, so I went to check on her husband, who Sammy and Erica managed to free from the car." "Wait a minute, when you arrived at the second car, was Miss. Moore or Miss. Sanders there?" "You mean Patty and Gail? When I got there, Patty was there. I guess Gail was there earlier checking her out, but as I said, she arrived when I was trying to help the old man and told me to let her take care of him. Since she has the training and I don't, I did as she suggested. However, Patricia was just standing there. She was just looking on, trying to see if the woman was bleeding, but she was afraid to touch her, so I took a look just in case Patty was too scared to actually do anything that was necessary." "Hey, guys," Cate said, walking up and interrupting them. "They're taking the old woman, Abigail Ford, to the hospital along with her husband. Since I had nothing else to do, I thought I'd see if I could help you over here." The cop looked a little annoyed at her interruption, but he knew he also needed to talk to her as well. "You're Cate something, right?" "Yeah, I'm Cate Jennings and this is my brother, Alex." "Do you mind if I ask what someone your age is doing traveling with a bunch of musicians in their tour van?" "Oh, no, I don't mind. Our parents know what we're doing as we have their permission. Gail is a personal friend, Alex's godmother in fact, and she offered to take us along while she traveled with the band. She works as a private security expert for the band. Since it's an almost all girl band my parents didn't object as long as my brother is here to keep me out of trouble." "OK, I'll need their names and phone numbers," Officer Adams told her. "Sure thing, I'll get some paper and jot the information down." That pleased the officer, since he wanted to ask each of the kids what they saw separately. Their answers were already sounding somewhat rehearsed, but they didn't seem to be hiding anything, and he couldn't find any inconsistencies in their answers. "Could you describe the accident for me?" he asked Alex. "Sure, it was pretty straightforward, and I'm sure everyone else told you the same thing. We noticed the gray car veer across the intersection, crossing directly in front of the other car. We'd just exited 17 to fill up, so they were coming from the left. The other driver tried to slam on their brakes, but since the oncoming car didn't slow down at all it slammed right into them. The two cars spun around coming to rest where you see them now." "Who was in your vehicle, and how did everyone respond?" "Oh, well, let me think. Erica saw the accident and decided to pull over. Chelsea Kurtz immediately dialed 911, and when we came to a stop I think we all got out. I was the first off, being close to the door, so I really couldn't see the others." "Who organized who did what?" "We just split up based on who was closer to what and who was already dealing with something. I think I suggested that Sammy try to open the driver's door, since he's bigger than I am. I basically just stood there until I saw the old guy lying by himself and his wife started screaming." "Who moved him out of his car?" "I'm really not sure. I was watching Sam and Erica trying to get the guy's door open, and when I turned around he was on his own. I guess whoever moved him went to ask Gail for assistance. As I said, she's the only one with any training in how to respond to this sort of thing, but when I saw him there wasn't anyone by him." The cop grunted, seemingly unhappy, but he didn't press. They discussed a few more minor items, then Cate came out, giving him the address and phone numbers of their parents. He then proceeded to ask her many of the same questions. He rephrased the questions, hoping to trip someone up unexpectedly, but he didn't really suspect anything so he wasn't too aggressive about it. There was something unusual about this group, but he couldn't figure out what it was and it didn't seem to impact their behavior in any way, so he guessed there wasn't much sense in pushing it. Alex and Cate gave him their phone numbers and took his. When asked where they'd be if he had any further questions, Alex assured him they'd be in town for the concert for the next two nights, and then they'd be heading out to Las Vegas. As they walked away, Alex silently thanked everyone's careful planning and sensible answers. This could have been a mess. If anyone had noticed what he'd done it could have been embarrassing. It looked like he lucked out one more time. ------- Chapter 34: Some Initial Tests, and Some Preliminary Results "Holy shit, you've got to be kidding me?" "Nope. It's true. Cate thinks she's broken the key to how Alex activates people, and more than that, she thinks she knows how to detect who's a Seer and who's a Watcher." Dr. Ryan Moore got up, excited at the prospects this brought up. He started nervously pacing around the room. "Man, this is a major break. We've been piecing things together for a long time, but ... So how does—" "She thinks the key is that both the Seers' and the Watchers' main talent isn't their ability to detect emotions, instead it's their receptiveness to Alex's energy," Allison explained. "That's changed too, by the way. Now they're calling it BCM. It stands for Becky, Cate and Melinda, though think up a humorous mnemonic you can use to throw off anyone who may hear you use the term. Anyway, the idea is that Watchers, who they're now calling 'Seekers', react to BCM, but Seers respond more strongly to it. She thinks that if Alex were to try healing Watchers, they'd heal a little faster, but that Seers would heal much faster." "Wow, they've been busy coming up with a lot of new stuff. Wait a minute," Ryan said, coming to a halt to address Allison directly, "you mean the only reason you girls were successful the other day, was because you were treating Anh, who's a Seer. And that if she wasn't, that you may not have recovered as quickly?" Allison blushed, embarrassed that she hadn't considered the idea. Now that she did, she realized what it implied. That if they'd tried to save someone else it could have been disastrous. She didn't know what would happen if they exhausted their own supplies of BCM. Would it mean they'd just collapse, or could they drain what they needed to survive? No, that thought was too scary. They'd consider it another time; she was here to discuss a specific topic. "Yeah, I guess that's true. But it's a separate issue. The point is, a Seer's main ability is their heightened response to BCM, and Alex's isn't activating people or using his BCM, instead they're all tied together. What we think of as each one's strongest abilities, are really complete accidents based on their actual abilities. I think we've explained how Cate believes that Alex's real ability is to create these linkages between different dimensions, and that he created a path to somewhere with a much higher density of BCM. That's why he has so much of it. That explains why Alex is sick, because he's tapped into a source of BCM so strong that it's fatal to humans." "That's a lot to take in. Yeah, you've mentioned the bit about Alex creating portals to alternate dimensions previously, but it wasn't all tied together like this is. But how does that apply to the Seers?" "Well, if Seers respond to BCM to a higher degree, then the idea is that Alex uses that to activate them. As you know, he creates two mini-portals in them, linking his own brain to theirs. By doing so, they get just a small amount of his own energy, but when he first creates it they get a sudden rush which is strong enough to cause the massive growth of new tissue required to produce both the visions and the telepathic connections. Thus both Alex's and the Seers' activations are a byproduct of his exposure to this high level of BCM, and that by exposing the Seers to it, they use it to rapidly adapt." "OK, I get that, but you're obviously leading up to something else. What's this about a test?" "Well, if everything I've laid out is true, then we should be able to test people's response to BCM to determine who may be a Seer, or even a potential Watcher," she said, using the older term since that's what Ryan was most used to. "But if all humans have the same basic level of BCM, then how would you ... Wait, you mean expose them to Alex's BCM?" "Exactly, but not quite. Alex's BCM level is too high, it would throw everything off. Any Seer who came across him would get activated. Instead, we remove Alex, but we use something that's been soaking up his BCM. We plan to use his underwear. It's cotton, so it's made from something that can absorb BCM, and it's close to him, so it has plenty of time to absorb his energy." "I can see that. But how do you measure the response?" "Cate's newest idea is that the eye contact that seems to be so essential isn't really a necessary component of the actual activation. Instead it's a test. Alex needs to make eye contract to measure how people respond to his BCM. If he can detect a response, then they're able to respond to his activation. If they don't, then there's simply no sense in even attempting the activation process." "Wait, so you're saying they can simply expose someone to Alex's used underwear, then measure their response to the BCM levels in their eyes?" "Exactly. Just like you can measure whether someone's been exposed to certain drugs by their eyes' responses. If their pupils are dilated, they've been exposed to something." "Yeah, it makes perfect sense," Ryan said, looking thoughtfully in the air. "It just might work." "But that's the next step; we're planning a test on some relatives of known Seers. We plan to expose them to some samples to see how they respond. But there's a necessary preliminary step. We need to know what to look for. We figure we've only got a limited amount of people we can use to test, and we can't afford to waste the opportunity." "That makes sense. If there are only so many relatives, and only so many are liable to have the necessary traits, then you couldn't afford to miss their response completely." "That's where you come in, Dr. Moore," Allison told him. "Huh? What do you mean?" "Oh, come on, you didn't think I asked you to offer me a drink in the privacy of your office just to shoot the breeze, did you? We need you to reserve some time tomorrow. Cate sent all the undershirts that Alex wore last week to us via overnight express. I can't conduct the tests myself, since there's a chance we might respond to the BCM ourselves and potentially miss the response we're trying to record. So we need you to make the history making first recording. You need to measure the first recordable reaction to BCM. Even though it's indirect, it would be the first measurement of BCM." "Me?" he asked. "Well, you and Becky. She's not about to miss this opportunity. And we'll use us Seers as test subjects. In fact, Liv is driving up tonight just so she'll be here tomorrow morning to be involved. This is a big event, and you're going to be the star. You're going to make history tomorrow morning. And what you determine is going to affect the future of a whole new race of humanity." "Yeah, you're right, it will," Ryan responded with a starry far-away look to his eyes. "It will." ------- "It's a wild concept, but it sounds like a solid idea. I can see it working," Lists, Col. Lister Pendleton, M.D., said, also getting excited about the prospect of breaking new ground in this exciting new field. "I thought it was worth mentioning to you," Caity told him. "After all, you were talking about trying to find a way to generate an independent source of BCM in order to do your own independent tests. This is just up your alley. You couldn't publish the results of any of your experiments, and you can't detail how you gained access to the material, but if this works, you'll have a measurable component to evaluate differences in the quantity of BCM." "Yeah, this could be major. As I said, I'm not as concerned with publishing. I'm coming at this from an applied process. I'm interested in demonstrating how it can impact people's overall health and their recovery from specific health issues, thus I can do an end run around the traditional peer review process. As long as I can demonstrate a particular procedure has a higher success rate, there's no reason to justify it scientifically." "Good, I thought you'd appreciate hearing about it. Hopefully you can use it to—" "Oh, no, I won't be using it myself. I'm concerned with new treatment protocols. I'm looking at what Alex's approaches to medicine can teach us. I know we'll never have a sufficient level of it to accomplish anything, and I have no desire to prove its existence. If I could get access to some of those dirty t-shirts it would be a tremendous help. But basically I'd be holding it next to a lab culture to see how it impacts tissue growth. I'm more interested in the end result rather than in the underlying principles. My job is to heal sick warriors. If I can increase their survival rates with a fairly easy process, I'll be sitting pretty. But I'm not about to rock the boat by making wild unprovable claims. The military command wouldn't be impressed, and they'd yank me if I provoked any controversy." "Well, the ultimate aim is to establish how it impacts people. They want to know why non-Watchers/Seers are attracted to him, and why many men get so angry at him. They figure if they have a method of measuring someone's reactions, then they can quantify how much BCM it takes to provoke a response, then measure the people's other physical responses to see how they correlate." "Ah, that makes sense. Again, an excellent study, and one that I'd love to hear about, but one without any ultimate benefit to use here," Lists replied. "Frankly, we don't much care who takes offense at Alex. If we have a sudden increase in Alex types signing up for the military, then we'll analyze the syndrome, but until then..." Caity laughed. "I see your point. Anyway, I'll keep you apprised of what they discover. And if we can arrange it, I'll see if I can get you some samples you can use in your own testing. But the point is, once they determine how to do the measurements, you could use me, or any other Seer, to determine just what concentrations of BCM you're dealing with." "That would help. After all, it's hard doing experiments with an invisible, immeasurable substance. But my main interest is figuring out how to vary naturally occurring levels of this BCM. So I'd like to see if I can boost it through natural means, so yes, a way to measure it would be invaluable." ------- "You realize this is most uncomfortable, don't you?" Allison asked. "Hey, you volunteered for this," Becky responded as she finished strapping her in. The setup was basic. They'd moved the furniture in the loft to the sides and sequestered the other Seers to another loft space to await their turns later. Right now Becky was restraining Allison, and fastening a special tape to keep her eyes open so they wouldn't lose valuable information due to an unfortunately timed blink. Ryan was sitting behind a monitor which was showing a close up of Allison's eyes. "OK, she's set. We can begin," Becky announced, as she got up and moved over by Ryan to watch the proceedings with him. Allison was very uncomfortable. Not only were her eyes taped open so she couldn't blink, but she was also in enforced isolation, disconnected from everyone. Although there were three people in the room, Ryan and Becky were both focused on their tasks, and Allison wasn't allowed to communicate with anyone telepathically other than to signal Shani, who was stationed outside of the door, to send Melinda in. The windows had been covered with heavy drapes to reduce outside distractions, and there were bright lights shining in her face so they could clearly see any changes in her eyes. Perhaps the hardest thing was to resist the impulse to talk to her sisters, the other Seers, who were as anxious as she was to know how this played out. Her eyes were already burning from being kept open, and the experiment hadn't even started yet. Her chair was uncomfortable, and the lights were already making her sweat. She hoped she'd be able to sit still for the whole procedure, since there were multiple stages to it. When Becky and Ryan were set, they signaled her and Allison sent a message to Shani, and a moment later the door opened and Melinda entered, carrying a wrinkled t-shirt in front of her. They'd laid out the loft so there was nothing between Allison and the door, and as Melinda entered Allison could hear the click of her heels. Allison tried not to react, but she was anxious about how she was going to respond. She could feel her eyes tearing up, she hoped it wouldn't impact the test. They'd marked out the distances involved, and the floor was marked with measurements which Melinda called out as she walked at a measured pace towards Allison. "Thirty feet, Twenty-five, Twenty..." The footsteps sounded hollow in the sound deadened room, although there was still a mild echo from her heels on the hardwood floor as it reverberated against the distant walls. Allison could feel herself tensing up with each step that Melinda took towards her. Melinda's steps, and her calling out the distances, were the only thing Allison could hear over the sound of her own heartbeat and her bated breath. She had to force herself to take measured breaths to maintain her calm. Melinda drew closer and closer, and Allison couldn't detect any difference. Finally Melinda reached her, and she held the t-shirt up against her face. She took a deep whiff of the shirt, just to see if there was an olfactory element to the BCM, but she couldn't detect anything. Plus, even with her vision, she couldn't see anything on the shirt itself, even though Melinda positively glowed in the darkened room, her emotions dancing across the outside of her aura. Since her vision was technically independent of the light entering her eyes, the lights shining in her eyes didn't obscure her vision of her aura. "OK, we got that one," Ryan called out. "If you're OK for another trial, we'll send her back outside so we can do another." Allison tried to nod, but found she couldn't move her head, so she answered verbally instead. "Yeah, I'm OK. Let's get this over with. The sooner I can get out of this setup the better." She watched Melinda walk the same distance, this time heading back out of the room, but this time she wasn't walking with the same measured steps. Allison could also see she was relieved to have finished that first step, so apparently Allison wasn't the only one feeling the stress of this experiment. "You know, I'm still not sure why Cate couldn't have done this herself," Ryan commented. "After all, this is the kind of thing she's been dying to study." "It's because she's with Alex all the time," Becky explained. "His presence would skew the results too much. If a Seer can detect him from miles away, then marking off the feet between the door and here wouldn't make much difference. She needed someone isolated enough to do the study, and she wanted it carried out by those without the specific 'S' gene, since she was afraid the Seekers and Seers might not be able to make an independent observation." When Melinda entered again, carrying a different shirt this time, Allison felt her stress rise once again. But she immediately noticed that Melinda seemed more anxious than she had been before. She didn't know if she knew something, or just surmised she held the right shirt. However, Allison couldn't determine anything as Melinda walked towards her. It wasn't until she was partway towards her that she could detect the faint glow of the shirt she was carrying, and a short distance later she could literally feel his presence on the shirt. Even at that distance, knowing and feeling Alex's essence on the shirt made her feel safer and more secure. That was enough to alleviate much of the stress she was feeling. Melinda walked the rest of the distance, and Melinda still couldn't tell whether she was reacting any differently, but she could definitely tell this was Alex's shirt. She'd never concentrated on such a trivial item in such detail before, but it was hard to mask Alex's presence on it. When Alex's sister stopped in front of her and held the shirt against her face, Allison tried to just close her eyes and soak in its energy, but of course her eyes were taped open. So instead she sniffed the shirt, but the act of smelling it didn't seem to either increase or lessen the effect she felt from it. Finally Becky got up and approached them. Melinda stepped back as Becky carefully removed the tape from Allison's eyes. "I'm sorry we had to keep you strapped in for so long, but we needed the control sample so we can compare the two videos side by side. Melinda, you'd better get the shirt back. We can't leave those things exposed for too long, since we have no idea how quickly the BCM degrades." Melinda hurried out, after placing the shirt in a plastic container. Allison knew she wouldn't be returning, as Ryan and Becky didn't want to be distracted by too many people watching them. Becky released the restraints and Allison blinked rapidly several times and stretched her hands and arms. "I didn't notice anything, so I'm anxious to see the videos playing side by side," Ryan said as Becky returned to her seat beside him. They started the video as Allison was still getting herself together, but she was anxious to see this memorable event, so she hurried over to peer over their shoulders. They watched the videos. It seemed strange to Allison, watching her eyes staring back at her as if she was a panicking prisoner in some slave-master's dungeon. The video seemed to run much faster than the actual experiment had. "No, I didn't see any difference between them," Ryan said. "Maybe it's been too long. Maybe there's no observable difference." "No, there was definitely a difference," Allison told them. "I could both feel and see the energy in the second shirt." Ryan grunted, showing he wasn't convinced she could actually tell any difference, especially since he couldn't detect any difference in her physical responses. "Don't be so sure," Becky cautioned him. "Let's review it again, just to be sure." So they viewed the recordings one more time, and now that Allison was watching as well, she could see Ryan's point. She couldn't see any difference between the two videos, so she started to question whether she'd merely wanted there to be a difference between the two shirts. "No, I still don't see a thing. Maybe it's simply not visible in the eyes. It might just be that the eye thing between Alex and his Seers involves something else. Plus, we have no idea how long cotton will hold BCM. Maybe it's already dissipated. Maybe by the time it gets here via overnight delivery it's been too long." "I'm not ready to rule this experiment a failure yet, let's review it again and see if we missed anything," Becky insisted, even though Allison was having doubts about what she'd seen and felt herself. "Also, according to Cate's explanations, there's no other mechanism to transmit this information, so it would have to be something in the eyes, since Alex wouldn't be able to see anything else." "You know, it might vary with the individual as well. Or it might even be a testing bias. Maybe if Allison knows she's being tested, she behaves differently than she would normally." "I don't think so," Becky responded. "Otherwise Alex's procedure wouldn't be as dependable as it is, and he would activate people he'd already met. Since that's never happened, we can assume it's not subject to such variables, so let's just watch it until we figure out what's happening." So they watched the video again. They ran through the entire tape another two times. "I'm telling you, there's no response whatsoever. The entire experiment is a complete bust. There was no reaction." "Hold on," Becky said. "I think I may be onto something. You're looking for something obvious. Something that Alex could easily detect from a distance. Hold on a minute," she said, as she pulled her purse up and started rifling through it. "Ah, here it is," she said as she pulled a small clear plastic ruler from her bag. "I use this at work to measure stuff from the displays on the computers. I think..." she said as she rolled the recording forward and then stopped it at a specific point. She laid the ruler over the image of Allison's eyes, though no one was sure just what she was measuring. "OK, roll it forward now," she instructed Ryan, who did as she requested, moving it forward in slow motion. "There, I'm not sure, but I think I've got something." "I can't see anything, and certainly nothing that would be visible across a room or across a street. I think you're imagining things." "No, it's the anticipated result, only it's not as clear cut as we'd been expecting. Look at the pupil. If you review it slightly, the edges of the pupil expand a tiny amount. It's only a fractional increment, but it's actually occurring." "You may be seeing what you want, but even if it is true, how could that impact anything? How could Alex observe that from any distance?" Ryan objected, playing the skeptic. "I think you're the one who's letting his feelings get in the way of his judgment," Becky responded. "You're disappointed that you're not seeing the results that you expected, but there's an observable difference here. The eyes are widening, not just as much as we think is required." "You know, there's something else there as well," Allison observed, leaning over to point at the screen. "Run through the entire thing again and watch the intensity of the pupil, instead of how much it does or doesn't dilate." Ryan, intrigued, did as she requested, and they watched it again as he ran through it in slow motion again. "There, you see, there's a dulling of the color. I'm not sure exactly what's happening, but there seems to be something happening to the eye that we can't quite make out, but the dark of the eye is getting less intense." "That makes sense," Becky said. "If you'll remember, whenever someone meets Alex they have this wide-eyed glassy look. Maybe that's a part of the whole process." "I'd always thought that was the result of observing his aura for the first time," Allison commented. "But it seems to occur earlier than that, since there's no overwhelming aura to account for here." "You know, I think you've got a point there, Allison," Becky said, glancing at the other two. "We've been looking for something that Alex could have observed from across a room." "Or from across a city street, in the case of Mattie," Ryan reminded her. "Exactly, but we're not taking into account the difference in scale here. In one case, Alex comes along and literally blows these girls' senses, overwhelming them, in the other we have his shirt from the other day, which has probably degraded. It's a matter of a couple grapes versus an orchard, or rather a few drops versus a powerful flood that sweeps everything else away." "I think I see where you're going," Allison said, growing even more excited. "What's hard to note here would be much more pronounced if Alex was present. Even a tiny change would be apparent in that case." "Now wait a minute," Ryan countered. "If that's the case, then why has no one noticed it before? If every Seer's eyes dilated like they were high on cocaine, then surely someone would have noticed it. I haven't seen any visible reactions in any of your eyes when he's around." "There may be more to it than that," Becky surmised. "Assuming Cate's proposal is correct, and Alex activates someone fractions of a second after he detects a response in their eyes, maybe it counters the very effect we're looking for." "That's logical," Allison agreed, "remember, he's hijacking the optic nerve and the visual cortex, even if what we're responding to isn't a form of light. Thus what we perceive as Alex's bright aura causes our eyes to respond as if we're exposed to a bright light. That would cause the pupil to contract. That would counteract the effects of our exposure to the BCM, masking its effects." "Now wait, that would..." Ryan started to object before stopping to think it through. "You know, as crazy as it sounds, it does make sense. What's more, since BCM isn't a light wave, the retina wouldn't need to be fully functional in Mattie's case. We saw how the sensory apparatus was added behind the eyes, along the optic nerve, so that would mean that it's completely bypassing the eyes themselves." "Not only that, but we've bypassed any complex explanations of the phenomenon," Becky observed. "It's using already clearly established mechanisms. The pupils are likely dilating not based on their exposure to the BCM, but to the body's reactions to it. It could very well be a general peripheral nervous system response. If the outlying nerves respond to it, then they'd trigger other responses to it, like increased heart rate, possibly increased blood pressure, but whatever physical symptoms they'd show, it would likely involve a simple dilation of the eye." "Well, this would be basic enough we could actually justify the results in a research pap—" "You'll do no such thing," Becky warned Ryan before he could get any further. "We can't afford to publish any papers on this, at least not while Alex is still alive." "Yeah, but I could do some private studies on my own. Since the underlying things we're studying wouldn't be apparent, it wouldn't cause anyone to question what we're doing. Measuring the eyes response to certain stimuli is pretty rudimentary, so no one is likely to ask questions about it." "No, but you doing studies on the eye would cause people to ask questions. We'll continue to do the studies we have planned," Becky reminded him. "Cate already has a whole string of things for us to examine on a step by step basis. We need to do this in a very organized structure, as each result impacts the following tests, so we won't all go off on our own tangents. We've got plenty of things to study in the next several hours. Right now we need to determine at what distance the results are the most obvious, so we'll know where to concentrate during the remaining tests." "And once we get that we can test the other girls and get how much variance there is," Allison suggested. "We'll also have to measure how the responses degrade over time, to determine how quickly the BCM dissipates, though that measurement might be confused by the subjects becoming accustomed to it," Becky said. "I don't think so," Allison replied. "Otherwise Alex would never be able to measure our response. We can detect Alex from around a mile away, so if that were the case our eyes wouldn't respond at all. I doubt our responsiveness adjusts with exposure." "Hot damn," Ryan called out. "We're making some serious progress now. Let's see what we can figure out. Hey, can I be the one who tells Alex the news?" "I don't think so," Allison told him. "We're not going to tell Alex about this." "Why the heck not? He's obviously interested, and this affects him more than anyone else. What's more, it affects his people, and he likes to know what impacts them." "Well, the problem is that we're setting up this experiment in California when he gets there. If he knows what to expect he may respond differently. But mostly we're concerned he'll get so excited he won't focus on what he needs to at the moment. You know him, he focuses completely on one thing at a time. If we distract him, he may screw up and get everyone into trouble. No, he'll find out in time, but for now it's better that he not know." "It's a shame," Ryan replied. "He'd be really proud of us. I'd love to be able to pay him back for everything he's allowed me to participate in." They spent the rest of the weekend trying to iron out all the details. ------- They finally made it to their hotel, and Patricia and her band mates ran in while Chelsea and Erica struggled to park the van. They were late for a media interview for a local news program. It would run on the 6:00 news, with a longer segment showing on the morning news program the following morning. The accident they'd been involved in had meant they'd almost had to cancel, so they were in a hurry to make the show. Alex and the others stayed with Chelsea and Erica until they'd managed to park, then they all walked into the hotel. They were staying downtown, but it was an odd location, near several museums and stadiums but not near that many businesses. Thus Alex wasn't sure how many people he'd have access to during the day, but missing crowds wasn't the worst thing in the world. He was sure he'd make it up at the two concerts they had that and the next night. The concerts were being held a ways from the hotel, out near the airport at the Cardinals Stadium in Glendale. They'd have to travel there either by car or in the van, and then they'd have to return to the hotel downtown afterwards, trailing a string of cars. Nothing too untoward about that. Instead of interrupting the live interview, they found a TV in the hotel lobby. They took over the corner of the lobby facing the TV and turned the channel until they found the interview. "So you've really made a name for yourself. You joined Ms. Kennedy's tour late, yet you're drawing more attention than she is now. Everyone is talking about your shows, saying that you really draw out your fans, making them feel like they're a part of your show. They even say that you have standing ovations, even though your entire repertoire consists of mellow rock ballads. Not the usual stuff of a hard rock scene. Care to comment?" Patty laughed. "Which question were you looking for me to answer?" she asked, before trying to answer them as best she could. "First of all, I'm not sure Diane Kennedy would appreciate your characterization. She's been very good to me, and I'm hardly taking anyone from her concerts. We get along fine, and I'm honored to be supporting her. And yes, I've had good responses, but I think that's because my fans appreciate the messages behind my songs." "Really? Your songs are all idle teenaged love songs?" the reporter asked, unintentionally revealing her view of the material. It was clear she wasn't a regular music reviewer. "How can they produce such a strong reaction?" "Well, the songs aren't really about any one person. Instead it's about people following their instincts, and the benefits which can come from trusting yourself. The key is that we can each find the happiness that I sing about, but we need to learn to find it." "So anyone can be happy then?" the reporter, Nancy Atkins, asked. She was a chipper little thing, a little heavier set than normal for a TV reporter, but she had a bright smile that made up for a lot. Plus, this was a music interview, hardly what would be considered hard hitting news reporting. "Well, it's not really about being happy, and it's not just anyone. What I'm saying is that many of us are capable of finding our own happiness. It's not only a matter of luck. We can figure out who to trust and who not to. Instead of chasing each rugged looking cheater, we need to focus on ourselves, and only pay attention to those we trust won't hurt us. It's that process that will produce success, and which will hopefully lead to our own happiness. But happiness isn't the point, the point is to recognize our own power." "So you're saying anyone can do this?" Nancy asked, still pushing her original question. "Not quite. It's a skill, and some people are better at it than others. But even then it takes a lot of practice. Some people are just good about sensing things in others. And what I'm trying to say is that those people can refine their abilities, and that, if they do, they'll learn a lot about themselves." "Like how to find love?" Nancy asked, still trying to figure out how all this talk related to her songs. Patty sighed before continuing. "It's not about finding love. What it's about is finding someone, or something, that will change your life. For many of us, it's a single person. For others it may be something else. But if you learn to trust yourself, when you get close to it, you'll know it, and you'll find it, whatever it is." "So your songs aren't about your boyfriend?" Nancy continued to push. "No, it's about a search. I'm talking to women, and to the men who love them. It's about learning about yourself, and how that process can lead to important things in your life. Things that will change not only you, but everything around you." "So, have you found that one individual in your life?" she asked, still not quite getting it. Patricia simply smiled. "If I answered that, the individual in question wouldn't be happy. And if I don't have someone in particular, then all those looking to me for romantic inspiration will be disappointed." "Which is a long way of saying you aren't going to answer my question?" "Exactly. If you trusted your own opinion, your own journalistic instincts, you wouldn't need that teleprompter. You'd know that I've already answered your question, and you'd focus on issues that are more important than who I'm dating. I'm talking about a movement that will change people's lives, and that could potentially change a whole aspect of humanity." But Nancy just didn't grasp what she was saying, and she kept going back to the idea that Patty, Patricia's stage name, was in love with some unknown teenybopper. Still, Patty came across quite well, sounding like she was talking over Nancy's head the entire time. After talking briefly to the other band members, who said basically the same things, Nancy finally tried wrapping the interview up. "Do you have any concluding words, Patty?" "Just that anyone who's ever felt they could feel things about people, anyone who can guess what's going to happen around them, even if it's just an odd feeling; they should come to the concert tonight, and I feel secure in telling you there's a very good chance you'll find something amazing, something that will literally change your life." "Well, folks, you heard it here. Go see Patty either tonight or tomorrow night, and you too can find the love of your lives," Nancy happily concluded, while Patricia could be seen shaking her head in the background. Alex had a feeling Nancy wouldn't be coming to her concert, especially after she watched the taped interview and saw how badly she came off. But hopefully others would be intrigued enough to attend, and those were who they were looking for. Alex got up to turn the channel back to the previous one when another newswoman came on, reporting on another news segment. "And in other news, there are reports of a religious figure who saved several people by praying over them. Find out more when we return after the following messages." That got Alex's attention. He glanced at the others and Cate motioned him to his seat. Shrugging, he sat down. "This should be interesting, if nothing else," Cate said. The program resumed a little later. "We've been receiving reports all morning about someone who's saved multiple people, simply by kneeling beside them and praying over them. We haven't been able to independently confirm any of these stories, however. All we know was there was a horrendous crash with several people severely injured. One man was thrown from his car after having suffered a heart attack and wasn't breathing. Apparently this young man walks up, kneels down and prays over him, and the man sits up and begins speaking as if nothing happened to him. "The same man then walks to the other car, where a woman is having trouble breathing. Observers didn't think she'd survive until the ambulance arrived, but this man again prays over her and suddenly she's OK. She still had trouble breathing, but she could breathe on her own and was able to survive until the EMTs arrived several minutes later. Finally he helps the woman's husband, who'd broken his arm. Apparently his arm remained broken, but he assured him his arm would heal in record time." Alex buried his head in his hands, but he continued listening to what they reported. "We've tried to track the report down, and have identified where the accident occurred, but have been unable to speak to any of the people involved, so we have no idea who this man was, and he doesn't seem to be interested in coming forward. We'll bring you any information as we learn it, and we thank you for bringing it to our attention. We'd also like to ask any other listeners who may have seen these events to call in, especially if you managed to record any video of these amazing events." That was as much as Alex could stand. He got up and stormed off, heading up to their room. Gail hurried after him, as did Cate, after she silently questioned Erica and Chelsea, getting a nod in response that they'd listen for any further information. She then ran after her brother. ------- "You can't let it get to you, man," Gail told him after they'd reached the room. "I mean, it's not like you can run off or anything. We're stuck here for another whole day." "No, I'm not going to run off. I was just frustrated and unsure how to handle this. I just need to think about it. I've learned a lot. This isn't about me, this is about the movement, and the movement has gotten bigger than just the Seekers and Seers." "Good for you, Alex," Cate said, trying to encourage him to get beyond his fear of exposure. "You've waded through this kind of thing before." "Yeah, I learned in Oklahoma City that we've got to deal with the general public. When this first started, I only focused on the Seers. Then I learned about the Seekers, and then I came up with the numbering system to take the type 3s into account, the people that chose to follow me more because of the force of my personality than anything else. But we've grown even beyond that. Since we've started this trip I've been paying more attention to the Seekers, and now we're dealing with a new type. The type 4s: the people who decide to follow me because of what I represent. Those include Kevin, Nick and Tommy in New Orleans, and all the women at 'Maiden Nights' in Oklahoma. There was also that group in Flagstaff that followed me out of the concert to ask why everyone was surrounding me. They've decided to follow me because they like what it is that I'm doing and what I represent. So I can't just turn them away. If regular people want to know about me, I've got to address it." "You know, you've really matured a lot in the last couple of weeks," Cate said admiringly, "but especially a lot in just this past week. I mean, that episode in Albuquerque was really telling. You really handled that masterfully." "She's got a point," Gail echoed her. "I was ready to just grab you and make a run for it. But instead you stood your ground, and you ended up winning those people over." "Well, these people have to be handled. They may very well prove to be a problem, but I can't afford to assume they are before we know it. After all, I've found that some of my worst enemies end up being faithful friends. Just look at Darrell and Ryan. In both cases we almost came to blows, yet I feel sure they'd stand up for me whatever happens." "I'm sure they would," Cate agreed, "though you've got to remember when to back down as well. There's no sense trying to continue when you know you're fighting a losing battle. When I think what almost happened with Ryan..." "But it didn't," Gail reminded her. "Once we called Alex on it, he reconsidered it and he came right around. Not only that, but Ryan did, too. I've never seen such a dramatic turn around. Let me tell you, working the streets as a cop we saw all kinds of situations, but you never see two people turn around like that, except maybe two drunken buddies who realize they really love each other after trying to kill one another." "Yeah, but with the people in Albuquerque—" Cate began. 'Alex, am I interrupting? I know you're supposed to be busy today, but... ' Alex held his hand up, signaling Cate that he was distracted, which she'd already figured out. 'Don't worry about it, Lekesia. You don't bother me much, so when you do I know it must be important. So what's up?' 'Well, I've got a lot of updates for you. First of all, I wanted to report on Stacie and Mike. They've both been doing wonderfully. Right now she's taken a part time job with Becky Roe. She figured she'd test just how committed she was by making her sweep up hair at her shop, but she's serious about it, so Becky has promised her if she keeps with it that she'll promote her to shampoo girl soon. It's not much of a promotion, but she's taken to having someone watching out for her. Right now we're looking at preparing her to start taking classes in the fall.' 'What about Mike, though. How is he doing? He was always the wild card in all of this, ' Alex pointed out. 'Oh, he's doing great. Once he realized who you really were, how close he came to losing everything, and how you managed to drag him back from the precipice, he can't say enough good things about you. He's been spending time with Peter, David, Tommy, Nick and Kevin. They've become your male team here, and they're always quick to take in any male boyfriends or family members.' 'Well, that's good they've found a role for themselves, but what's Mike been doing since he got there? Is he staying out of trouble?' 'He's been doing great, ' she answered. 'Actually Stacy's gotten him a job at Patricia's old club, and he's been working his butt off. That's the other Stacy, the one who was serving you at the show the first night you arrived down here. Right now, Shanna's thinking of putting him to work, as part of a family outreach program she's starting for her travel agency business, so I think he'll do OK. In fact, Brandy Stevens has even talked to him about getting a government job in child services. She's nervous about getting him to apply for it due to the fingerprinting and DNA samples he'd have to submit for it, but if she can swing it... ' 'Tell her he should stick with Shanna. It's safer for everyone involved. We want to give him a chance, not to try to bury everyone.' 'I'll tell them that, ' she responded. 'Also, on the good news front, Brandy Stevens, Caitlin Johansen, and Becky Roe all turned up pregnant. Unfortunately, as I'm sure you remember, my mother, Noel, never did, but it's only been a couple of weeks, so she's waiting for her next cycle and then she's going to get your sperm implanted. But we spend all our time watching your baby develop. Mom says she knows the baby's aura so well that she could pick him out of a lineup in the dark, even without ever having seen him.' 'Well, I'm glad everyone is doing so well—' 'Wait, that's not everything, ' she responded. 'Brian, Rose's boyfriend, the guy who's been doing all the computer stuff, anyway, he's taken to scanning the media for any reports about you. It seems he's turned up some new stuff, ' she reported, causing Alex to stiffen. 'He turned up something related to what Fox reported on you. You're going to love this one. Let me make sure I've got it straight, since I don't want to spoil the surprise. Anyway, Brian found a follow-up report they did on you, where they update open stories previously reported to see what's changed. They recapped how you'd caused a scene in New Orleans, and how they'd been tracking you since you "reported that God was finished with Christians since they've screwed up religion".' 'I never said any such thing, ' Alex objected. 'Yeah, I know. I'm just telling you how they summarized it. They went on to report on what's happened since. That someone shot up a crowd of strangers looking to kill you, and that you were reportedly seen in Oklahoma City, but that there have been no confirmed sightings and no direct news of you.' Here Lekesia took a breath and steadied herself before beginning. 'My notes are a mess here, so I'm not sure exactly who said this next bit, but he said the following: 'I've got to say, the fact that he's stayed out of the limelight and hasn't tried to excite or challenge people says a lot about him. He actually seems to be trying to aid people on a personal basis. Personally, I'm sure I speak for a lot of Christians when I say we'd prefer if he did it officially; say by repenting, joining a church and taking Jesus Christ as his lord and savior, but we've gotten no bad news about him. There are plenty of people who talk about how wonderful he is, but we haven't found anyone who claims he's cheated them, or that he's tried to get them to do anything they didn't want to. Instead he actually seems to be helping people. 'Now part of what Fox and related stations do is to try to expose the scoundrels; those that say one thing and then do the other. Who preach helping the poor then funnel money into huge government programs to prop up the unsuccessful. Or those that talk a big game, but end up doing more damage than if they'd left things alone in the first place. But this so called Angel hasn't tried to do any such thing. Instead he stays behind the scenes, working quietly and taking no credit. That's the kind of help that the churches should understand, as it's been the backbone of their ministry for centuries. I'll continue to watch, but I'd like to commend him for his restraint and good common sense. For this much attention to be focused on someone, and for nothing to come out about him, he's got to be doing something right. And while I still question his motivations, I'd like to tip my hat to him.' 'Wow, that's not what I was expecting to hear, ' Alex replied. 'I know, right? I was thinking that Fox would continue to attack you for your supposed attacks against Christians and your liberal secularism, but they've been silent about you lately, and instead this station says this. They and the other stations set out to warn people about what they feared you might be trying to do, but when they found you weren't doing that, they backed off. Frankly, I'd still avoid the press, but it's nice to see when they give you your due. Now, I doubt anyone else will come to your defense, and this one only did it because they were trying to embarrass the other stations, but still.' 'That's a lot to take in Lekesia, I'll have to think about it before I can really respond, but you're right; Wow!' 'I just wanted you to know about it. Everyone here still talks about you all the time, so I'll tell them I spoke with you. That should buy me a lot of attention around town, ' she laughed before signing off. "So, what was that about?" Cate asked when she noticed his eyes refocus. "Oh, Lekesia had a lot of news to tell me, on a whole variety of topics. But you're right, it's amazing just how much things have been going our way, even when we have no reason to think they will. It really is as if someone is watching over us. He sets us up, giving me every opportunity to screw up, and then, when I don't, he rewards us with either another new ability or a significant turnaround." "Just don't let it go to your head," Gail advised him. "You're still walking a tightrope. You're delicately balanced at the moment, but all it'll take is a nudge one direction or the other and you'll topple over. We're here to steady you and help you, but if you fall you're the one who'll suffer. The rest of us will be affected as well, but you're the one with the most to lose. Just keep that in mind." "I will, Gail, I will. I remind myself of that every day," he replied. ------- Chapter 35: Another Lady in the Night "Man, I can't believe this is happening to us," Wendy Branch said to Sarah Mitchell, someone she'd only known for a couple of hours but already felt was closer to her than her own sister. "I know what you mean," Sarah responded. "My whole life was changed in a single moment, in just the amount of time it takes to make eye contact with an angel." Alex had asked Wendy about her name after they'd met earlier, and she'd sighed. "My father was always a practical joker, he wanted to name me 'Windy', but my mother compromised on a 'standard girl's name'. At least they didn't name me 'Broken' or 'Twisted'." The two women had encountered Alex at the Diane Washington concert at the Cardinal's Stadium just outside Phoenix. He'd knocked their world askew, and they felt honored to have been selected by him to be 'boosted'. They knew what that entailed, and they had no problems with it. In fact, they were not only looking forward to it, they would have traded almost anything they had for the honor. Cate dropped back a bit, moving close enough to the two girls to whisper to them. "I think you're making Alex nervous. He's uncomfortable enough with this, if you could ease back on the whole adoration thing, I think he'd appreciate it." "Oh, absolutely," Sarah said with an effervescent enthusiasm that belied her promise to tone her attitude down. Sarah was naturally bubbly. A young, positive individual with short dark hair and facial features which marked her semitic roots, even her muted pink blouse and shorts marked her outlook on life, so Cate didn't think she'd be able to dissuade her for long. She'd been hoping she could keep it under control until they reached the room, at least. Wendy, on the other hand was a bit mousey, with clear pale skin, wavy brownish, almost oily, hair, and the wide eyes of those that Alex had recently won over. That was fine, but she tended to echo Sarah's enthusiasm, which only compounded the problem. Returning from the concert late at night, they parked at a parking lot a short distance from the hotel so Cate could stop at a convenience store to pick up some food for Alex. It had been an interesting day. Despite the news reports about him, so far no one had linked the activity to Alex, nor to the famed Angel of New Orleans. Alex had been right in his perception of the area around the hotel, there hadn't been a lot of activity around it, and while the various sports and arts venues were nearby, their limited access prevented anyone attending from seeking Alex out. Thus they hadn't met that many followers. They'd picked up a few Seekers, but hadn't met any Seers. The concert had been different, though, as many people were drawn both by Patricia's growing reputation and also due to her appearance on the morning news program. It hadn't taken the Seekers and Seers in the audience long to find him, as they'd been told by Patricia to 'trust your feelings and seek out what you feel you can trust'. Wendy and Sarah were two of those, the two that Alex had selected to share his bed for the night. He'd chosen Sarah because of her attitude, figuring her happy persona would make the others in the community feel welcomed. Wendy he'd chosen because, although she was very shy and reticent, she was connected to several social organizations, and had contacts with a great many people, groups and services that she could potentially call on to help the others in the community, and to help temper any negative reactions to Alex that might pop up in the future. Sarah was a Seer, while Wendy was a Seeker. Coming around the corner, after Cate had finished purchasing her supplies for her brother, a young blonde woman standing on the corner noticed them and approached Alex specifically. "Uh oh," was Gail's only comment. "Hey, there, looks like a party. Need any company?" the woman, hardly more than a girl, asked, mistaking Cate's bag of cookies for a stash of alcohol. The woman, while pretty, looked a bit world weary. She was extremely thin, with bags under her eyes that her makeup tried vainly to hide, and looked a bit like life had driven over her with a Mack truck. She was wearing a light olive halter top with the straps to her black bra showing, along with a combination black miniskirt and matching black hosiery. It didn't take much to figure out why she was interested in them. "Look, if you knew who he really was, you wouldn't be propositioning him," Gail cautioned her, though it was probably too cautious of a warning for her to understand. "Why, is he famous or something?" she asked, her eyes growing brighter as she thought she might have hit a good mark. "No, he's a friggin' angel, bitch," Sarah hissed, growing defensive of Alex and marching up to face the woman down. "Now back away, he's feeling stressed enough. He doesn't need a common street whore making his life more difficult." "An angel, huh? I figured he must have something going for him to be trailing so many beautiful women," the woman responded. "Personally, I think we should let him decide himself," she said as she sidled up to him, slipping her hand into his pocket, though whether it was to grab any bills Alex had there or to grab his junk, Alex wasn't sure. "He's not a John," Wendy said, betraying her mousey image by sticking up for Alex. "He's a religious figure that's going to change the world." "Hell, I've done plenty of 'religious figures' before. I don't discriminate on the basis of either blasphemy or hypocrisy," the woman responded, showing she was brighter than they'd anticipated, even if she wasn't exactly aiming to achieve a lot in life on the basis of her intelligence. Gail was moving towards the woman when Alex held up his hand, waving her off. "What's your name, honey?" Alex asked, putting on a southern persona with the unusual endearment. "It's Suzy," she answered in a deep melodious voice, while grabbing Alex's cock via his pocket. He gently pressed her back, not taking his eyes off her face the entire time. "No, I mean your real name." She seemed stunned that he'd ask her that, but was even more surprised when she answered him. "It's Sasha. Sasha Gorev." "Wait," Cate interjected, "isn't Sasha a shortened version of the Russian name Aleksandra?" "Da," Sasha answered without thinking about it, stepping back and glancing at the people around her in some confusion. "Man, this just gets weirder and weirder," Cate commented to no one in particular. "Out of all the people in the world to run into, we encounter a random hooker, and she ends up somehow tied to Alex through some spiritual relationship we can't understand." Alex ignored Cate's ramblings, not wanting to get sidetracked. "Do you really want to be doing this?" Alex asked her in a carefully measured careful tone, ignoring everyone else. Sasha couldn't help it, she felt pulled in by the caring expression in his eyes. For some odd reason she felt she could trust him, even though she didn't know him from any other John who'd use her without any concern for her feelings or safety. "I ... I no know," she responded, struggling for a response. "Do you want to get out of the life you find yourself in?" Alex pressed. "Or are you happy with your position?" Sasha, in a moment of weakness, felt her eyes grow damp. "I want to. I feel trapped. I no have green card and I have no options." "We can take care of that, but only if you're serious. I'm not going to help you if you're not fully committed to this. That means no going back to your pimp. If you so much as return for a few possessions, he'll try to talk you out of it. Quite persuasively, too, I'm sure, as he'll likely question my motives and whether you can trust me or not." "I..." she started, again hesitating before seemingly making up her mind. "I have a young son. I can't leave him behind," she said, suddenly looking very worried. "OK. We'll take care of him. I want you to go with Sarah and Wendy. You're going to buy a bus ticket to New Orleans and wait for us. You're going to have to renounce this lifestyle, because I won't have you taking advantage of my people there. If you backslide, it'll be your soul you're putting in jeopardy here and not just your life. Do you understand?" Alex asked her, laying it on a bit thick, but it was a conscious choice on his part, because he wanted her to know just how serious this decision was. He didn't want her getting cold feet in a couple of hours. "I understand," she said, looking him directly in the eyes in honesty for the first time since meeting him. "You'll get my son, Jason, for me though, won't you?" "Yes, we will." "I've also stashed some money away, in case I ever needed it. The rest of my possessions don't amount to much, so I won't worry if I lose them, but the money could ensure Jason and I survive for a little while." "Don't worry. You'll need to give us some detailed information, but—" "Uh, Alex, I hate to interrupt, but don't you think we should discuss this before you commit us to it?" Gail asked him. "I'm not turning my back on her. I'm sure it's going to be dangerous, but I'm also confident you'll be able to think of a way of handling it for me," he answered her, effectively shutting her up. "All right, everyone, we've got a new item on the agenda. Let's see how quickly we can handle it," Alex announced, hoping to get everyone moving on an issue he felt queasy about undertaking himself. ------- Alex walked right into the sleazy dive like he lived there, and while the occupants of the boarding house stared at him, no one tried to stop him. Actually, that isn't quite true, he walked in like he owned the place, since most of the inhabitants lived in constant fear of the place. Even if they wanted to say something, the look in Gail's eyes as she marched behind him would have made them back down. Alex walked swiftly upstairs, showing an energy and enthusiasm that the other occupants seemed to be lacking. They reached apartment 312B without anyone questioning them. Alex already had the key in the lock before anyone did. "What the hell are you doing?" someone called out. Alex didn't even bother looking up, concentrating on opening the door, but Gail backed up as if surprised, pressing herself against the far wall, where she could measure who was responding. He was a large man, tall but thin, with a grizzled look, a stubby unshaven jawline, and a conniving gleam in his eyes, as if he knew he could control anyone stupid enough to backtalk him. "Hey, I'm talking to you. Get away from Suzy's door before I break your fucking leg!" the man shouted. Gail seemed to shrink even further into the wall, backing away from Alex, which meant the man ignored her as immaterial as he closed on Alex. "I'm sorry, but we don't know any Suzy. We're here to pick up Sasha's things," Alex told him, finally turning to face him now that he had the door opened. "Sasha Gorev no longer exists," the man sneered as he neared Alex, reaching out and grasping his wrist. However, before he could respond, or either one could say anything, Gail walked up behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. When he spun around to confront her, she simply stepped back. Letting go of Alex, he turned on her, reaching out to grab her, however she spun around grasping his hand, flipping him over using his own momentum in a Ju-Jitsu move that ended with him flat on his back with Gail's forearm against his throat. He glanced up into Gail's eyes with a panicky expression on his face. "We aren't here to dick around, jerk. We just offed Sasha. She's buried out in the desert where her body will never be found, so don't worry about her coming back. But we wanted to take care of her kid to make sure no one bothers to investigate. I figure it's safe to assume you won't be 'investigating', am I right in that assumption?" she asked. Even though he couldn't breathe and was having trouble fighting off the panicked response to continue breathing, he managed to nod yes. "That's what I thought. Now you just be a good boy and wait here patiently, or I might feel the need to cut you a new asshole in your throat so I can shit down it. It that understood?" He again nodded, still clutching at her arm. "What the hell is that supposed to mean? That you'd like to breathe? You really should have thought of that before you tried to grab me, now, shouldn't you? No, don't bother to answer. It was a purely rhetorical question. I'll give you enough air to survive, but just enough. You try to pull anything, though, and you'll be breathing through a hole in your forehead, got it?" She didn't wait for a response as she pulled back slightly so the guy could breathe, even though he had to struggle to do that. While the two of them were conversing, Alex had quietly slipped inside the apartment. He managed to find Sasha's son, Jason, cowering behind his bed in his tiny room. "Hey, Jason, don't worry. I'm here to rescue you from this terrible place. Your mother is waiting for you, but you'll have to grab your stuff so we can get away from here. We've got to leave quickly, so you can't pack much. The people here have been hurting your mom, so she can't stay here anymore. But we'll take you to a new home where your friends will be real, and not the types living here." When Jason didn't respond immediately, Alex said, "Your mom said to trust me, Litl lyudyna. I'm here to help." That seemed to be enough to convince him. He still didn't say anything, but Alex was able to get him out from behind his bed, and he set him to packing his stuff into his school bag while Alex set about checking out the apartment on his own. He could hear gasping breaths coming from the hall, so he figured that Gail had things well in hand. She'd let him know if anyone else showed up. He quickly found a heavy dresser in Sasha's bedroom. Moving it away from the wall he found the covered hole in the back, where he found a handful of bills. It was a decent sized bundle, but Alex didn't bother to look, not even enough to see if the bills were singles or hundreds. Instead he simply pocketed it, then moved the dresser back and grabbed a handful of clothing which he shoved into an empty pillowcase. When he was finished, he returned to Jason's room to get him. "You'll have to carry this," he explained. "I'll probably need to keep my hands free." With that, he led the young boy out of his room and out of the apartment for the final time. The young lad was cute. While he didn't have the bleach blonde looks of his mother, his hair was still light, and he bore enough similarity to his mother for Alex to see they were both related. Jason had a short haircut and was healthy, certainly healthier than his mother was, which Alex took to mean that she had her priorities straight, and that hopefully she cared enough about her son to make a serious go of this one chance she had at turning their lives around. When they entered the hallway Jason stopped to gape at Gail holding the man, still gasping for breath, against the floor. Alex quietly relocked the door, ignoring the looks of the neighbors peeking through their partially opened doors, then approached the man. He carefully took the man's right hand which had been grasping Gail's arm, no longer struggling with her, but ready for a chance to ease his breathing if she offered it. "Grigori, just to ensure you're not going to cause us any trouble, I'm disabling your hand," Alex said, calling him by his Russian name as he released the one hand and picked up the other. "You won't be able to hold anything for some hours, so I'd be careful about picking up things like, say, telephones or weapons. After all, we don't want you to shoot yourself when you fumble and drop whatever you pick up." "Should I disable his vocal cords?" he asked Gail. "Nah, I'll take care of it the old fashioned way," she told him, making Grigori glance at her nervously. Finished, Alex stood, held out his hand for Jason, and when he took it he led him down the hall away from the man and Gail. "Uh, is she coming with us?" Jason asked. "She'll be along shortly. I suspect she didn't want to hurt him while you were still looking," Alex casually told him. The little boy glanced back, then turned and followed along, not bothering to question Alex's assertion. Gail caught up to them when they reached the street, and they took off at a quick trot, hoping to escape before anyone else tried to stop them. Alex realized they were really lucky there wasn't anyone else trying to stop them, potentially someone with a gun and a couple of friends. But Alex wasn't completely sure that luck alone could account for it, even though he hated to seriously consider the alternatives. ------- Alex and Jason approached the waiting women, who were sitting around a little table drinking coffee and discussing their options. "I have someone who'd like to say hello," Alex said by way of greeting. Sasha, who hadn't been expecting him to approach from that direction, spun around. "Mommy!" "Jason! Thank God you're OK. Thank you, whoever you are. I know the other girls think you're someone important, but I never even got your name." "Don't worry about it, it really wasn't anything. And don't fret about who I am, but when you get to New Orleans, head to the French Quarter and ask any of the locals there for help, and mention that Alex sent you. It may take a few tries before you find someone who'll know what you're talking about, but when you do they'll take care of you. But just remember, if you screw up, it'll be on you, and I won't give you another chance. This is your last shot at a new life. Grab onto it with both hands. I'll arrange for someone to meet you to discuss citizenship issues. Hopefully you can work out an asylum deal with the government. But if you so much as make a single phone call here, all bets are off. No one in New Orleans will have anything to do with you, and you won't hear from me again. Got it?" "Da, I understand. I'll do my best. I've been praying we could get away, but they always said we had no options and that the police would only arrest me, beat me, and then ship me back home to the Russian mob. I never knew how to get away. After having lived here for years, I still don't know much about the country. They kept us pretty tightly controlled." "You seem to be pretty well educated. I'm guessing you weren't a high-school dropout?" "We call it 'secondary school'," she explained. "But no, I had a good university education in business outside of Moscow, but someone with some prestige offered me a chance to sign a modeling career in America, and I took it with the blessings of my family. Only when I got here, I found myself in a brothel against my will. When I fought, I was raped and beaten. That's where Jason came from. Once he was born I lost most of my will to fight. They've kept me under their control ever since." "Grigori sends this, and his love, and he wanted me to convey that he hopes you do well in your new life," Alex said, as he pressed the wad of cash into her hand. "Really? Grigori said that?" she asked disbelievingly. "Well, he really couldn't say much at the time, but that seemed to be his intent. He didn't seem to be terribly interested in coming after you at the time." "I have no idea how you pulled this off. Any one of those men would have killed you, and the rest of us, without having a second thoughtas easily as they would have taken out the garbage. But I want to thank you, and I promise I won't let you down." "Well, excuse me, but this is no place to be talking about this. After all, you never know who may be listening. How long until the bus leaves?" "Not long, only another half an hour." "Good, now be careful. Don't talk to anyone until you leave the state, and don't go with anyone who tries to talk to you. If anyone tries to force you, stay on the bus and scream as loudly as you can. There's no way we can be sure someone didn't follow you, so you'll need to be cautious. Once you've left the state you should be safe to strike up normal conversations, but I'd suggest changing buses along the way to make sure you aren't being followed. Since we bought your ticket with cash they can't trace your bus tickets, but still..." She nodded and gave him a big hug. When she finished, Jason did the same. "Thank you, mister. I'm glad to get away from all those bad men." "Hey, there are always bad men around. That's why it's important for good men like us to stand up to them whenever we have the chance." With that Alex said his goodbyes and they left, hoping to draw off anyone who might be watching. "You know just how irresponsible that was, don't you?" Cate asked. "Yeah, I'm perfectly aware of it," he answered. "Good, I'm just checking," she answered. "By the way, where's Gail?" "She's maintaining a watch for anyone keeping track of our little family. She'll be along shortly. Let's just duck into this late night coffee shop. That should allow anyone trailing us to show up. If no one does by the time her bus takes off, we should be clear to leave." "You certainly take all this subterfuge in stride, don't you?" she asked. "Ha, you don't think an angel is afraid of a petty criminal, do you?" Wendy asked, suddenly brave in the knowledge that she was under the protection of someone with connections. "Don't mention that word too casually," Alex quietly told her. "So far, no one has made the connection here, and I'd like to keep it that way." "And don't think that they don't get hurt either. Al ... he's been hurt plenty of times. However, he always manages to slink away by the skin of his teeth. However, I'm afraid that skin is beginning to get a little long in the tooth, as they say," Cate concluded with a smile, grinning at her bad pun. However, it was just the right touch for the overwrought crew, and they all laughed at it. "Actually, I had plans if anything happened, so I wasn't completely unprepared," he explained, not giving any details. "Actually, I was almost hoping something would happen, just so I could try a few things. But you never know what'll happen when you try something for the first time." Cate knew better than to respond to that, but she gave her brother a dubious look. Perhaps being so close to death and staring it in the face daily, gave him a false sense of confidence. He just didn't seem to realize how much everything depended on his sticking around, and that depended on his staying out of danger. But she knew she couldn't convince him of that. ------- "Alex... , Alex, wake up." "Hmm, mrmph umph?" "Alex, you need to get up, something is happening," another voice said, poking him in the side trying to rouse him. "Argh, it's the middle of the bloody night. If I'm going to change the world, I need my bloody sleep." "Hell, it may be night for you, but not for us," someone that Alex, in his sleepy state, couldn't immediately identify said. "But you've got to get up. This is potentially important." "Here, let me through. Alex, this is Cate. Get the hell up. We have a crisis here." "OK, OK, I'm up. What the hell is wrong?" he asked, groggily sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "Your aura is too bright," a woman who Alex now recognized as Sarah said. "It's bad enough sleeping with you normally. With all the lights turned out, it's like every light in the room is on at the same time, but we deal with it by always facing away from you. Why do you think you're always spooning us from behind? But now the light is just too bright. There's something wrong." "Huh? My invisible light is too bright? What the hell does that mean?" "We don't know, but we figure it must mean something," Wendy said. "Do you feel different?" Cate asked him. "Do you feel winded, tired? Do you feel any strange sensations?" "No, I just feel like someone woke me from a sound sleep for something I can't quite work out." "Well, you might not be able to feel anything, but I could feel you from the other bed. It feels like I've been curled up with you all night. I'm positively tingling with your energy. You've got to be giving off a lot more energy than you normally do." "I don't feel anything unusual, and I don't feel any more tired than usual. Again, you just woke me up, so of course I feel tired, but it's not like I'm physically exhausted, and I'm not having an attack like I do when I overexert myself." 'Alex, what's going on?' Patricia's voice asked from inside his head. 'I woke up because your aura is filling the room over here with too much light to sleep. This isn't usual and I'm concerned that—' 'No, I'm fine. We're trying to figure out what's going on, but I feel fine. It seems my BCM energy output has spiked for some reason.' "What was that about?" Cate asked, once again recognizing when Alex was having a telepathic conversation. "Apparently my aura woke Patricia in the other room. It must be a lot brighter if it woke her up over that distance and with so many intervening walls." "So you don't feel differently at all?" Gail asked him, looking concerned. Well, she seemed concerned. It was really hard to tell without any lights. "Could someone turn a light on? The rest of you may be blinded, but I can't see much at all." Gail, who was the only one standing and not sitting on the bed with him, turned the overhead light on. It didn't really make any difference to her, since his aura was washing out any details the light might reveal. As she did, the connecting door opened and Patricia entered, trailing several tired looking people behind her. "Have you figured anything out yet?" she asked. "No. What do the rest of you feel?" Gail said. "Wendy, you're a Seeker, can you feel anything different?" "Yeah, it's like Cate suggested, I can feel it. It's like having my finger in a light socket. After the initial shock has passed, that is. It's like my skin is vibrating and I feel incredibly alive and aware, like I want to get up and dance or something, just to burn off this excess energy and because I just feel so good." "Yet, you feel so good you want to wake me up and rub my nose in it?" Alex asked snidely. "No, we're concerned that something is wrong," she answered back. Not happy at being accused of treating this lightly. "She has a point, Alex," Cate said. "We're already dealing with your burning yourself out because of the energy your body is processing. If the energy level is increasing, then the risk to you would rise as well. This could potentially be quite threatening to you, and it begs questioning." "OK, then, let's figure it out. What's different?" Alex asked, sitting up and concentrating on what was going on. "What's changed between last night and now?" "Maybe it's a new ability?" Wendy suggested. "Maybe the fight you were in triggered an increase in your overall abilities?" "I don't think his abilities have anything to do with his BCM levels, at least not in that direction," Cate explained. "He gets most of his abilities from the BCM, so I don't think it would make sense for an increase in his abilities to increase them. That's a reverse attribute. But maybe he's increased his ability to process the energy, and so he's giving off more BCM because he's absorbing less of it himself?" "Do you really think that's true?" Gail asked, sounding skeptical about the idea. "No, I guess not. After all, we've decided the BCM is probably bleeding over from his portal to another location, so an increase in energy would probably mean that the portal has increased in size. That would suggest that Alex has done something to himself, since he's the only one who can create those portals." "Hell, I was asleep. How the hell could I do internal surgery on myself while I'm asleep?" Alex asked. "Alex, you do all this stuff unconsciously," Gail interjected. "You're never aware of any of it, and quite frankly, if you ever stopped to think about what you're actually doing, you probably couldn't do it." "OK, so the general idea is that I somehow did some magical operation in my head for no apparent reason, with no motivation or purpose. Then why the hell haven't I been doing the same thing for the last 18 years? We've examined my brain scans. There aren't that many holes in my head. If this kind of thing occurs randomly, my head would look like Swiss cheese." "Maybe not," Patricia offered. "When you boost us, the 'hole' in our heads doesn't increase. Instead you seem to create a stronger link in our heads. At least that's the prevalent idea we're relying on at the moment. So maybe your brain simply increased the size of the portal, which wouldn't necessarily correlate to the physical dimensions of the gap in your brain." "Either that, or you created a new linkage in some new area," Gail suggested. "After all, you typically create these things in empty areas of the brain. Maybe you've created a new portal for some new reason?" "But then for what purpose?" Alex asked. "So I can die that much sooner? Because I'll tell you, from an evolutionary standpoint, that would be a big drawback to having this particular trait." "We don't know if there is a reason for it or not at this point," Cate emphasized. "Right now we just know that something has changed. We have no explanations for what's happened, so we'll just have to wait for more observational evidence to appear. Once we have more data to work with, we can start formalizing explanations." "Are we likely to observe much data between now and ... say 7AM?" Alex asked. "Uh, no," she hesitantly replied. "Then how about we put the whole issue, and ourselves, to bed, since I can't see how we can get any more evidence than we have at the moment, and I'm still sleepy." "You have a point. We've established you are giving off more BCM energy. Chances are we won't know any more until we see whether it varies, or if there are any other symptoms that might shed some light on it." "Good, then I'm going back to sleep," Alex announced, rolling over dramatically to show he considered the conversation finished. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but it's too bright in here for me. Patricia, could we sleep in your room with you?" Sarah asked. "It's pretty bright in there, too," Patricia replied. "I'd suggest we trade rooms with Chelsea and Jordan. Their room is farther away and thus a bit more protected." "Hell, even that might not be far enough," Sarah commented. "I hate to say it, but maybe I'd better head home?" "You can if you want," Wendy responded, "but seeing how this is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and that he's going to be gone in another day, I think I'd be willing to stay up all night rather than miss the opportunity to spend time with him. After all, we've each stayed up all night to party before, haven't we?" "Um, present party excluded," Cate said. "I'm still too young to get into any clubs that stay up all night." "Some rock star groupie you're turning out to be," Patricia teased, ignoring the grumbling noises that Alex was making into his pillow, where he currently had his head buried. "All right, I'll trade rooms with Chelsea and Jordan. Anyone that wants to can either use my room, assuming the extra energy isn't as obnoxious to the Seekers, or share Chelsea's with me." "No, Wendy has a point. It doesn't make sense to piss away an opportunity like this just because I can't sleep," Sarah responded. "I'd rather spend the time here, although I likely won't be able to sleep. So if anyone is interested in playing some cards or something, since it's too bright in here to do much reading at the moment." "Don't worry, I doubt I'll be able to sleep either, since I've got to stay here to guard him. We can stay awake and gossip about him, I can tell you all the juicy little secrets I've got about him. He'll hear it all as static in the back of his head, but it'll serve him right for keeping us awake all night." "Look, it's really not that I'm not concerned or that I want to hurt any of you," Alex said, rolling over and addressing them once again, "but it's just that there doesn't seem to be anything that I can do about it right now. I'm thinking the best thing would be for me to rest up, so that when we head out in the morning I'll be awake enough to figure out any clues we receive about it during the day." "Well, if no one else wants to cuddle with you, I will," Cate offered, to which Alex simply grumbled and turned over again, offering his back to anyone wanting to cuddle it. Everyone decided how they wanted to handle the situation as best they could, and they each found their own sleeping arrangements, but Alex's sleep was sufficiently disturbed that it took him a long time to fall back asleep himself. After all, this wasn't really a matter of simply not getting more sleep. This could literally mean another drastic reduction in his lifespan, which already appeared to have been radically shortened as it was. That thought did more to keep him awake than anything else did. ------- "So, how's my aura this morning? Still brighter than normal?" Alex asked as he climbed out of bed, still rubbing his eyes. These late night 'after concert sexcapades' took their toll, even when he wasn't woken up in the middle of the night afterwards. "It's still as bright as it was last night," Gail told him. She was sitting with both Sarah and Wendy, playing cards and talking quietly, each facing away from him. Cate, too, had abandoned his bed, sitting cross-legged on the other one. "Et tu, Brute?" Alex asked. "Si, Kimosabe," she replied. "I got all of your energy I could stand. After a bit I felt like my skin was going to slide right off of me. I'm not sure how you handle it." "Honestly, I can't feel any difference. But if you can feel it that strongly..." "Don't forget, I've got my own ability to detect you, but this is the first time I've ever had too much exposure to you." "That's right," Wendy replied, turning to address him. "I got out of bed simply because I was missing all the stories about you. It's been a very educational night for me," she said, flashing him a knowing smile. "Well, don't believe all the stories you hear," Alex cautioned her, "because chances are that while they're likely all true, I'm trying to build a movement based on something less than that." "You mean the mysterious Alexandra that no one's ever seen?" she asked. "Yeah, exactly. I initially used her to throw people off my track, or at least to take some of the pressure off of me, but it's becoming a bit of an issue now. As Gail taught me, you need to keep your lies simple so you can remember them. So far it's a pretty simple story, but it's a different story for the Seers, and a separate one for both the Seekers and the type 3s." "What, why I do declare, how could you ever have deceived me so," Wendy responded, resting her hand on her forehead and acting like she was about to faint. Although Alex thought it a clever comeback, he wasn't about to get into it. Instead he headed for the bathroom to relieve both his bladder and himself of his morning wood. "Hey, you gotta quit moving around," Patricia called out as she entered the room. "We had to sleep facing away from you in the other room, despite the obstacles, but when you start moving around it defeats the purpose." "Yeah, your glow is way too bright today," Sarah agreed. "Sorry, I'll see if my sour disposition spoils my morning-after glow," Alex replied, giving himself a finishing shake before rejoining the others. "Speaking of which, I—" Patricia said before she was cut off by the ringing of the hotel phone in her room. However, instead of answering she stopped to consider it first. "That's odd. Who the hell would be trying to contact me now?" "I have no idea," Jordan answered. "Could it be your manager or the Stadium?" "Nah, Henry won't wake up for another couple of hours, and the Stadium knows better than to contact rock stars this early in the day. They tend to get nasty when you wake them from a serious hangover." She stopped to think about it for another moment. "Alex, I think you'd better come along and listen in. I have a feeling this may be concerning you." That got Alex's attention, and a number of possibilities sprang to mind, from the police wondering why they'd found a body with his name written on its palm in the desert, or possibly a pimp's muscle calling to threaten him. But instead of worrying about invented scenarios he simply followed Patricia, not stopping to pull on pants first. Cate and Gail followed too, which just meant the other girls followed as well. As they entered Patricia's room, they observed Chelsea and Jordan sleepily glancing at the phone, not quite awake enough to answer it themselves. "Hello?" Patricia said, answering the phone informally, not knowing who might be calling. "Yeah, I remember you. After all, the interview was only yesterday," she responded, letting the others in the room know who was calling. After another moment she rolled her eyes and sighed. "Yes, I was there. I know what happened. Look, I really don't want to discuss it. I'm not one of these young stars who want everyone to talk about them. I'm older, and I have a life that I like to keep private. We were there purely by chance, and we responded just because we were there before anyone else was. Besides, despite getting there right after the accident, we really didn't do anything." She listened again to the response before continuing, letting Alex follow along with the other half of the conversation. 'That's certainly surprising, and while it sounds nice, I find it a bit hard to believe. However, it wasn't you we were interested in. We were more interested in the young man who was helping the injured people, ' Nancy Atkins, the news reporter, said in a less than ingratiating manner. "There were several people there at the scene. You'll have to be more specific," Patricia answered, not even attempting to help her at all. 'The one we have recordings of praying over them. The one that everyone on the scene is reporting healed the victims.' "Do you seriously expect me to answer that? You really want me to respond to some wild-assed story about a laying on of hands by someone no one has even spoken with?" 'And how would you know who we've spoken to?' Nancy asked pointedly. "You wouldn't be calling me, asking me if I knew the young man, if you had already managed to locate him," Patricia told her plainly. 'So, that doesn't answer the question, do you know him or not?' "I know of him. But tell me just how much you know?" Patricia asked, trying to fish for how much they'd already dug up. If they'd gotten hold of the police records, which clearly listed Alex as traveling on her tour bus, there really wasn't much use in denying it. 'Just that you were the first on the scene, and that you were seen working with him, and that you talked to him repeatedly. We're trying to reach him. We figure it would be an interesting story.' "There really isn't much to tell. He got there when we did and he was trying to help, but there really wasn't much that any of us could do. The people had injuries that required hospitalization. We tried to make them feel better, but that was about all we could do. One of my security people, an ex-cop, tried to—" 'Yeah, yeah, that's fascinating. All our reports mention that this young man knelt and prayed over each of the injured people and they recovered. Can you either confirm or deny those reports?' "Personally, I think you're barking up the wrong tree, as there's no story here. The man you're looking for didn't actually do anything. Before he got there, my security person got to the older man who was thrown from his car. She checked him out, saw that his condition was stable, and went to check on the other injured people in the other car. She didn't want to take any chances trying to do anything with him, since she thought he might have some internal injuries." 'Well, you're right about that. From what we gathered, he had a broken hip and a number of other injuries. But they also report that he had had a major heart attack, and his heart wasn't beating at that point.' "Oh, really? And who might your source be? Someone with an EKG machine standing on the side, while the rest of us were trying to help as best we could until the ambulance arrived. As I said, when we got on the scene he was stable. I have no idea what caused the accident, as he crossed into oncoming traffic and ran right into the other car, but he was stable when we left him. I saw the man you're referring to, and frankly, all he did was try to listen to his heart. The kid didn't even know enough to check his pulse. Instead he tried to place his ear on his chest. However, when he did the guy woke up, surprising the hell out of the kid." 'Really? That's not what we heard?' "Yeah, that's what I figured. What other wonderful information did you hear?" 'They said that he went over to the other car, where someone else was standing on the side, and that he got the woman breathing again.' "Yeah, you really need to check your sources. She had a punctured lung, so she was gasping for breath. This kid gets there just as she's recovering from her initial shock. He reacted so badly, she had to get control over herself in order to calm him down. She managed to get her own breathing under control, but she still was struggling for breath." 'But wasn't he praying over her? We have multiple reports of—' "He was trying to listen to her lung by pressing his face against her breast. He got so panicky at being caught, he was hyperventilating," Patricia told her, feeling especially creative trying to play down the story. 'So you contend he didn't actually do anything?' "Frankly, none of us were able to do anything, despite having a trained professional there. There were serious injuries, but everyone was stable." 'Well, whatever your thoughts on the issue, the decision to run with this rests with the program manager, and right now it's looking like he's going to run with it.' "OK, if you do, just keep this in mind. If you quote anything I said, or refer to my presence there, I'll go to your competitors and tell them what I told you, on the air, and your public can hear how you're trying to milk a story you know perfectly well is pure shit. Just how do you think that's going to go down? Especially if you manage to milk a lot of sympathy with a make believe story beforehand?" 'Uh... , OK, I'll keep that in mind. I'm not sure if the manager will go for it, but would you allow us to use your information if it's posed as a counterpoint to the story?' "That depends on how it's presented. If it's clear I don't agree with your characterization of the story, then maybe. Quite frankly, I'd rather see the whole story dropped. Now if you want to help the people injured, I'd consider that commendable. But if you're looking to ignore them while playing up a make believe 'feel good' piece of crap, then I simply won't be a party to it." 'OK... , I'll take that into consideration. But you realize that you were involved in an incident that's considered part of a news scene, thus you really can't—' "Look, if you insist on running this idiot story, don't blame me when your station goes down in flames as the laughing stock of Phoenix. I don't bear you any ill will, and I'd like to see you succeed in your career, but I think this attempt to create a story where none exists is an attempt to take advantage of some people's serious injuries. That's why I don't want to be a part of it." 'OK, I think I've gotten your position. Thank you for your time, Ms. Moore, ' Nancy finished. "I'm glad I could be of assistance," Patricia answered, grinning evilly at Alex before hanging up. "You realize your interview isn't likely to air today, don't you?" Alex reminded her. "Yeah, I considered that. But it's better than having someone come forward and connecting us, and then having the station conclude that we're hiding something. That would just cause them to dig until they discovered something." "Yeah, that's something we definitely don't need," Alex responded. "By the way, could I put some pants on now? My dangling here in the cool breeze is about to put a chill in my shimmering aura." Patricia laughed and sent him on his way. She hoped this didn't develop into anything, but she'd done what she could. That was all they could ever do. Whenever Alex was involved with anything, it was going to attract attention. They could try to play it down, or try to bluff their way out, but if it was their time to be exposed, there wouldn't be much they could do about it. Luckily no one had made the connection to New Orleans yet. ------- Chapter 36: Testing for a Double Negative "And then he says ... pardon me, that's my phone. I'll finish up in a second. "Hello, Patty Moore's line?" She listened for a moment as the others continued with their breakfasts. No one else paid much attention, but Alex couldn't remember her getting a lot of phone calls while they were together in the past, so he was curious who might be calling at this hour. 'Alex, I think you'll want to hear this, ' she warned him. 'Go ahead, just let me listen in, ' he suggested. "Excuse me, but we were talking and I missed most of that. Could you repeat it please?" The woman, Nancy Atkins again, sighed theatrically. 'I was asking whether you'd allow us to run with those comments you'd given us before?' "And why would you want to do that? Again, I didn't catch the reason you gave before." 'We did as you suggested, withholding airing the report, only one of our competitors, Chanel 5, the one you threatened to provide with a counter story if we ran with it, decided to run with it instead. So now we look like we're playing catch up, even though we had the story first. So we're hoping you can give us the counter story you threatened us with so we don't look like complete fools.' Patricia bit her lip. As much as she'd railed against them before, it had really been a hollow threat. She couldn't very well go on record downplaying Alex's role in the rescue, since he had been traveling with them. If she did, there was a good chance that someone in the police department might take offense and release their association. That would not only make her look conniving, but it would raise questions about what she was hiding. She glanced up beseechingly at Alex. He simply nodded his head, telling her to go with her instinct, whatever that may be. "OK, I'll do it. Did you record my previous statements or do you want me to repeat it for you?" 'Actually, we'll issue a release with what we have for now, but we'll stop by the hotel if you're going to be staying there for a little while, and record your response. Since the report from Channel 5 is saying just what you didn't want reported, I figure your response should work well on both the 12:00 and the 6:00 news, and it should attract additional attention for your concert tonight. After all, while you're denying that anyone actually did anything miraculous, you're still the only ones who were trying to help out.' "Aside from the other man, that is." Nancy laughed. 'Yeah, aside from him. So you'll be around for the next hour?' "Actually, if it'll save you time, why don't I stop by your offices? I'm sure you've got better facilities there, and it'll look more professional," Patricia suggested, hoping to avoid having them stop by the hotel where someone may accidentally say the wrong thing. 'That sounds great. I'll be waiting for you. I'll get the crew ready for you so we can get started as soon as you arrive. As I said, this is highly embarrassing for us, since our phones were ringing all morning and we were talking to people about it. So if we can explain to people why we didn't run with it ourselves, it would really save my ass.' "Yeah, don't worry about it. I'm glad to do it. I'll be there in about another twenty minutes." Patricia said, concluding the conversation, and turning to Alex. The others around them had figured that something was up by now, so they were watching as well. "You did good. There wasn't anything else you could have done," Alex told her, not waiting for her to explain what happened. "Now, we'd better see if we can catch the broadcast just to make sure they don't have any video. I'll need to know whether anyone will recognize me today." "So what are your plans for the day?" Patricia asked, wanting to have an idea where he'd be. "I was thinking of heading out and—" "In this heat? Are you crazy?" Cate asked. "It's stifling outside. Trust me, if anyone is looking for you, they'll probably arrive in their air conditioned cars and expect air conditioning when they get here. Besides, we don't know what effect this energy boost you're experiencing is going to have on you. All we need is you stressing your system unnecessarily and have you collapse in the middle of the street." "That makes sense," Gail said. "After all, your aura is so strong today that you're likely to attract a lot of attention. You've already pulled in two people from the hotel and another two from outside. With your energy radiating that strongly, you'll be drawing people from a long ways off. Your best bet is to stay in one place where they can find you." "Not only that, but honestly, there aren't any more likely locations nearby," one of the new girls suggested. "This isn't like your bigger cities; there isn't a large public park with a lot of high rise apartment and office buildings nearby. People are more spread out here. I think this would be a good location." "They've got a good point," Cate said, putting the final nail in that idea's coffin. "If you are drawing people from farther away, it'll take them longer to get here. If you start wandering around you're likely to lose several of them, confusing them as you move around while they're trying to find you here. Besides, we don't know how healthy you're going to be. I'd rather you stayed here where we can watch you and where we can more easily get you help if you need it." "Hey, no hospitals. You know as well as I do that they won't do any good, and they'll ask too many questions," Alex argued. "Agreed, but we have the hotel room nearby, it's air conditioned, and there's a cafeteria and vending machines here. You'd do better here than out on the street." "OK, that makes sense," Alex conceded. "Let's move to the lobby and see if we can check out the local news to see what they're reporting about me. That way we'll be right by the front door to intercept anyone that might come looking for me." "Are you sure it's wise to expose yourself so publicly if someone is broadcasting videos of you?" Gail cautioned. "So far, this is different than the other situations were. No one has yet mentioned the dreaded 'A' word, so no one is likely to connect it. I don't mind being viewed as a religious individual as long as it doesn't lead anyone to identifying who I am. This seems like a particular situation that we may not get again. In effect, it's the best we can hope for in terms of exposure." "All right, but if things change I'm yanking you back up to the room. Just be aware of your public exposure. We don't need anyone in the hotel calling the press. After all, we don't want anybody associating you with Patricia. That would just raise too many questions." "Agreed. How about we finish up and move out of here. More people are likely to notice me here in the dining room than will in the lobby, especially if we remain off to the side. Grab whatever you can grab and we can finish up in the other room." "Jordan, I'll need you to accompany me so I don't have to rely on some stranger to do my makeup. But I won't take anyone else, since I don't want to come off as a diva. I'll need to appear as a no-nonsense down-to-earth person." "I guess that means I'll be able to help," Chelsea said. "How about if I head outside and direct anyone looking for you where you are. Hopefully that will decrease the 'awkward incidents'." "We're not doing anything this morning, and we'd love to help as well," Erica said. "We love the fact we've been able to talk to you more over the last week, and we like being involved in this. How about I take the back of the hotel, and maybe Sammy can scope out the garage. He looks pretty tough, so no one is likely to bother him, and he's big enough to not have to worry about someone jumping him." "Yeah, I'm sure that Erica knows your spiel by now, and while we may not know it in depth, we can at least caution anyone not to overreact when they see you," Sammy agreed. "After all, it works at the concerts so it makes sense to apply it here as well." They all agreed, sounding like they were happy to be involved in the process "What about us?" one of the new girls asked. "Well, we should be fine on our own. How about you talk to your families so they can meet us tonight at the concert if you think they're likely candidates. Otherwise we'll see you there anyway, as we can always use the assistance." They readily agreed to that, so everyone got up. Alex gave Patricia a hug goodbye and she and Jordan headed out accompanied by two of the new girls, the other two, Sarah and Wendy, still hadn't finished getting briefed yet. They got up as well, since Alex had previously told them they could trail along today. Alex was anxious to see what effect this increased energy he was giving off would have. They'd already seen it was attracting more people, but there hadn't been much chance to see just how much of an effect it had, yet. "All right, I'm guessing it's going to be another interesting day," Alex said as everyone headed off in different directions. "When is any day with you not interesting?" Cate cracked as she walked by munching on an English muffin with jam. ------- When they reached the lobby corner they found several comfortable chairs in front of a TV, and Wendy started flipping through the channels, since she knew what channels to look for. Alex settled into an easy chair, while Cate settled to the side on a nearby couch so she could finish briefing the two new girls. The girls, Carmen and Kerry, were about the same age, the same height, had similar sun bright smiles and seemed to be getting along great. Carmen was a dirty blond in a simple print dress, whereas Kerry was a young Asian-American with her hair pinned up in what almost looked like mouse ears. While they talked to Cate they could hardly take their eyes off of Alex. Since it was still early, it didn't take long to find several competing early morning news program. They already knew Nancy's station wasn't reporting anything on him, yet, so they focused on the others. As usual, most of the material they found was either teasers to continue watching, fluff pieces like they'd done with Patricia the previous day, or cooking segments, nothing of any interest to Alex, but after a while finally they saw something about him. "And in the latest local news, we have reports of a young man praying over the victims of a traffic accident just off Interstate 17 approaching the city. As the video here shows, the elderly man was unresponsive until the young man is seen literally praying over him, and who then responds. We have reports he did the same for the other three victims, and they responded similarly. They still required hospitalization, of course, but their injuries were reported as 'critical, but not life threatening' by the hospital staff." The video they played, without sound, clearly showed Alex bending over and placing his forehead against the man's chest in what looked like an act of devotion to a higher being. Alex had to admit it provided a more believable explanation than his simply pointing at someone's chest, since it took the responsibility for what he did off of him and put it squarely in God's hands. Alex was glad to let God take the credit this time, and reminded himself to continue the practice in the future. Although the video didn't show Alex clearly, having been shot at a distance with a cell phone, it showed enough. It was doubtful that anyone could make a positive ID from it, but it might cause people to question him, which was exactly what Alex was hoping to avoid. But at least it didn't identify him as an angel this time. That was about all they said about it. Wendy continued flicking between the available stations and they continued talking about it, but it was mostly either showing people's reaction to it, inane chatter between the news people about it, or, more importantly, a few calls to the news station reporting the event soon after it happened. "It was the most amazing thing," said a businessman who'd called the station on his way to work and who'd been forced to stop while the intersection was cleaned up. "This young kid walked from one person to the next, and everyone seemed to just step aside as he did, and after he'd bend over them they'd get better. They weren't healthy, by any stretch of the imagination, but they were responding, and they appeared to be stable afterwards." However, the most interesting thing came after the coverage was over in the 'inane chatter' between the news people. "You know, Mac," one newsman observed to the weather person, "I think I prefer someone like this, a young man who believes in the power of prayer, over a self serving attention seeker who describes himself as an angel who personally speaks to God." Alex had to smile at that, and the others had a good laugh at it as well, although everyone was careful to keep their mirth under tight control so they wouldn't alert anyone nearby to their personal interest in the story. They were hoping to merely appear to be interested in an unfolding story. During the intermissions between the news reports the girls talked amongst themselves about it, occasionally asking either Cate or Alex their opinions. Although Cate had finished her discussions with the new girls, they weren't quite ready to head off yet. After all, this was fun being behind a hot news story, having insights that no one else had. As the morning shows began wrapping up, and the newer girls finally headed home to talk to their families, Cate joined Alex to discuss something more worrisome to her. "Are you feeling OK?" Cate asked. "After all, you seem to be giving off a lot more energy than you normally do, so it's got to be draining you." "Honestly, I can't tell any difference," Alex replied. "Yeah, I guess you wouldn't. The healing aspects of it would probably have you feeling pretty good, but any negative impact will probably come upon you pretty quick." "Sarah," Cate warned, "Alex is likely to need a bunch of food if what happening catches up with him. Could you see if you could grab a bunch of high calorie foods for him from the vending machines or the reception desk? Sodas, cookies, cakes, or even better, some sugary fruits like bananas or apples; that sort of thing." "Yeah, sure," she said, and took off without even looking back, eager to help out in any way she could. "You know, I—" "Alex, excuse me, but this is Angie Hopper," Chelsea said, introducing a woman in her late thirties. She was nicely dressed with reddish blonde hair, a colorful lightweight dress, and wearing a cross prominently displayed on her chest, dangling from a simple chain necklace. "I've got to head out to catch anyone else outside, so I'll leave this to you guys," Chelsea said before heading back outside. "Excuse me ... Mr ... uh, Alex. You'll have to excuse me, despite Chelsea's telling me what to expect, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to respond here." "You can just call me Alex, that's fine," Alex told her as he stood to shake her hand. "I certainly don't stand on formality here. This is a very relaxed comfortable group. Are you from nearby?" "No, actually I was driving by on the Papago Freeway on my way to Tempe when I had the oddest sensation. I felt like I needed to get off the highway. The further I came the stronger the feeling got, though I couldn't understand what I was looking for or what it might mean." "And what, if anything, did Chelsea tell you about it?" he asked, trying to gauge where to begin the explanation. "She said it had something to do with some genetic quirk of mine that allowed me to sense things that were invisible," Angie said a bit nervously, as if she was afraid someone was pulling a joke on her. "Well, that's a good place to begin it—" Alex began, and got no further as he doubled over, gasping out and trying to grab something to stabilize himself with. "Alex!" Cate cried as she jumped from her seat and ran to him. The other girls ran forward as well, but Gail beat them to him. "I've got you. Are you OK standing or do you need to lie down?" "What's wrong, Alex? What happening?" Cate asked before he had a chance to respond. But Alex just waved a hand at them, grimacing as he tried to straighten up, having trouble with it as he did. Angie didn't know how to respond. She'd jumped back to make way for the others, but was still hovering nearby. "Should I call for a doctor?" she asked. "Not yet," Gail told her. "We don't know if it's something serious or only a cramp at the moment," though she had her own fears of what was occurring. She and Cate guided him over to the recently vacated couch. Cate knelt down beside him. "Alex, what's—" "He's not as bright as before. His aura has dimmed a lot," Sarah observed. "Maybe it's just returned to his normal level?" Cate asked hopefully. "No, I'd say it's dimmer than normal," Gail advised her, checking his vitals. "Come on, Alex, talk to us. Tell us what's happening," Cate pleaded with her brother. "I ... I don't really know. It's nothing serious, at least I don't think it is. I just got weak, and then I got this ... weakness that seemed to consume my whole body. I'm hardly able to do ... much of anything." "It could be his body reacting to the BCM easing up," Cate said. "Without the healing effects of it, the stress it's been exerting on his body is only now becoming apparent." She turned and started taking control. "Sarah, grab that bag of food over there and let's start feeding him. Start with the bottle of Coke first. Wendy, see if you can get us a wet towel to wipe him down with. Gail, open his shirt and let his skin breathe. See if he's sweating as well." "Wouldn't fresh fruit be better for him?" Sarah asked. "It takes too long to eat. Bananas are OK since they have a lot of carbohydrates and they're sweet, but things like apples, pears and oranges take longer to consume than these quick snacks." "I'm ... I'm OK, I just need to get my wind back," Alex argued. "You'll lay there until you've eaten and we've examined you. I warned you before we didn't know how this increase in your energy level would affect you, and it doesn't look like it's been beneficial." "His heart rate is up, he's got goose bumps, and he's sweating," Gail advised her, "but then again, it's so damn hot today it's hard to tell whether it's from the heat or something else." "Do you need any help?" one of the hotel staff asked, looking on and rubbing his hands together while he bit his lip. "See if you can find a blood pressure cuff. We need to check his vitals," Cate called to him as she glanced at Alex's eyes to see if they were clear. "I didn't do this, did I?" Angie asked. "No, he started showing some unusual ... symptoms last night. We've been watching him ever since, but this is the first time he's become sick because of it," Sarah said as she started feeding Alex the Coke, which he drank as if he'd been starving. "Do you think he's..." Angie asked, afraid to finish the sentence. "He'll be fine," Cate insisted. "The problem is with long term damage, though. We don't know what effect this will have on his overall health." Wendy returned with the cloth, which Cate then used to dab his forehead and chest. She didn't know if it would do any good, but it's something her mother had always done for her whenever she'd gotten sick, and it had stuck. Whenever someone got sick, she'd always try to cool them with a washcloth. The hotel employee, Frank Tye, according to his name tag, came running up with the blood pressure monitor and his supervisor trailing behind him. He handed it to Cate, asking if there was anything else they needed or if they should call for a doctor. "It wouldn't do any good. He has fainting spells that strike at random," she lied, not wanting anyone else to involve themselves. "He'll be OK once we stabilize him. But he just needs to be off his feet for a little while." "Well, if we can be of any assistance," the other man said, but Cate waved them away in another trait she'd picked up, this time from her brother. "We'll let you know. If we need to, we'll take him to his room, but I doubt it'll be necessary." Everyone continued to administer to him, and Alex gradually began to recover. He sat up a little, still eating and drinking whatever Sarah fed him, but turned to Angie. "So, tell me, what is it ... you do, Angie?" "Me?" she asked, as if surprised to find the attention turned onto her. "Oh, I work with a number of women's organizations in the region. I have a company here that sponsors a lot of the groups, and I lecture throughout the southeast." "Really?" Alex asked, pushing aside the pear that Sarah was trying to force on him. "What kind of women's groups?" "Oh, abused women's shelters, women's health care, child care services, all that kind of stuff," she said dismissively, not thinking it would interest Alex or bear on the current circumstances. "You know, that's very interesting. We do several things along those lines as well. We have a 'trust your instincts' program where we try to get women to rely on their own perceptions of people. It's based on these genetic traits that you share, but even if others don't have them, we encourage the women who do, to ... help them evaluate the men they encounter so they can avoid any bad elements." Although his sudden interest in the woman focused his attention, he was still weak enough he had to take frequent breaks in speaking. Each time she simply waited for him to go on, much as one would do if the Queen Mother would suddenly partake of tea during a social exchange. "I saw something similar about a concert here in town," she responded. "That's us," Cate told her, saving her brother from having to answer, hoping he'd take the chance to recover a little more. "Or rather, it's one of us, Patty Moore, the singer." "Listen, while I'm recovering, tell me more about ... what you do. You may be able to ... help us out," Alex said, trying to take it a little easier. So Angie described what she did, and Cate started telling her bits and pieces about what she was and what this mission of Alex's was about. She'd let Alex ask something, then when Angie finished explaining she'd distract her with some more information until Alex could formulate another question without gasping for breath. Unfortunately, while they were talking several other people arrived, further complicating the situation. "Where did you come from?" Cate asked one. "We're from Bel Air," the tall girl responded. "It's about six or eight miles away. I felt this odd sensation, like there was something important I couldn't let slip away," she said, proving to them all that Alex's reach had grown substantially if he was pulling people from that far away. She'd been sitting in her house at the time, and had found her car keys, told her husband she was taking off and had driven downtown. She hadn't been able to tell what she was following when she'd left her house, claiming it was only an "odd sensation". It wasn't until she'd gotten closer that she described the typical impressions. And it looked like people were still coming in from even farther away. The parking and exits weren't real easy to manage, so it seemed to take them a while to find Alex. About then Carmen, who was fidgeting with the TV, managed to find Nancy's report. It sounded much like Patricia had recited to Nancy, with Nancy herself dismissively reporting that their station hadn't felt the story was "up to their standards". However Patricia's simple honest delivery as an impartial observer is what really sold it. As she described how Alex hadn't actually done anything, they showed a still shot of him leaning over the guy, followed by a single shot of the guy sitting up as Alex had sat back up. Hopefully this would kill the story, but it wasn't likely to make Alex any less recognizable in Phoenix. The video they'd watched earlier had already been airing for a couple of hours, and if Alex could guess, he felt pretty sure it was already online. The photos, although not close up shots, were clearer than the videos had been. Alex and Angie continued to talk, and he outlined how he'd like her to head up the community in Phoenix. She liked the idea, seeing it fitting into what she was already doing, and anticipating being able to use some of Alex's followers to help in her outreach to other women. She thought that if a few Seers, or even a boosted Watcher like Sarah, could talk to certain of the 'at risk' girls, using their ability to read their emotional responses and relating how they'd learned how manipulative men put up a false front, that they could reach more women than they did otherwise. Angie agreed to head the local community, as well as keeping an eye out for any other potential Seers and Watchers in her dealings throughout the southwest. That was ideal for Alex. "But didn't Cate mention something about you wanting to protect the community by putting Seers in charge?" Sarah asked. "The idea to boost a Seer was only to have someone, anyone, who could communicate with the other communities if something were to happen to me. That really has nothing to do with who organizes the community. A Seer makes organizing things easier, simply because they don't have to rely on the telephone to communicate, but Angie can just keep one of the Seers close by so she can do the same thing." "Well, I'm glad you aren't discriminating against the Seekers," Wendy commented. "No, I'm trying to reach out to more people, and you can't do that by showing favoritism. It took me a while to figure that out, especially since we were still learning how to balance things, but my being forced to include more type 3s finally got through to me." "So how are you feeling, Alex?" Cate asked. "I'm doing better, but lunch would probably be a good idea. I seem to have mostly recovered. It knocked me on my ass, but I don't think it hurt me that much overall." "Not that we know of," Cate cautioned him. "But we have no idea what it may be doing to your overall health. If your exposure to your BCM is killing you, then exposure to higher levels would surely hasten it. What's more, the fluctuations in the level probably wear on your system more than a single constant amount. I'm worried about what this means to you in the long term." "Yeah, those thoughts occurred to me as well. I'm well aware of the dangers this represents. We'll have to discuss this and try to figure out what's happening. Hopefully we can prevent it from happening again, but until we do, there isn't much we can do about it." But, despite what he said, Alex was largely worn out for the rest of the day. He wanted to take a long nap before the concert, but people kept showing up at the hotel, mostly having been drawn from points far away, so he didn't get much rest. Luckily he had several days to recover after the concert that night, if he could only last that long. After all, he didn't think anyone would appreciate his falling asleep while he was making love to them. ------- "You know, this isn't very comfortable. When you mentioned you and several of your friends were going to restrain me, I had a whole different type of thing in mind." "Yeah, I know how awkward this is, honey, but it really is necessary," Megan explained to her boyfriend, Ryan, while ignoring his attempt at humor. She was a little too stressed about what they were undertaking to appreciate it at the moment. "We're hoping that by doing this, we can identify a means of testing who responds negatively to Alex. The women in Carbondale have managed to document how the Seers and Seekers respond, so now we're hoping we can come up with some way for Alex to identify who is likely to go off on him." "Wouldn't that other guy, the one who just shot at him, be a better test subject?" Ryan asked, while the other women worked around him as Megan was patiently taping his eyes open. "After all, I don't actually dislike the guy." "I understand that, but both Anthony Barlow and Rodger Jones, the father of his girlfriend who also tried to kill him, are currently in jail, and surprisingly, the prison isn't overly fond of people bringing in used T-shirts and strapping in their inmates without a reasonable explanation, which we're not anxious to supply them with," Megan responded with a smile. "Yeah, but I just don't know how much of a response you're going to get from me." "That might very well be, but although you liked Alex from the start, when you were around him in a closed room your whole personality changed. I see that as a warning. You didn't seem to have much control over how you responded, and that's not a good sign. Instead, I see you as part of a continuum. Anthony and Rodger are at one end, and responded violently, but there are a string of other people who can cause him trouble of a less drastic nature, and Alex will need to be warned whenever he sets someone off. If we can figure out the variations between people, we'll be doing him a huge favor." "Well, I can't argue with that," Ryan said as Megan stood back to make sure she'd done everything securely. "I'm really interested in helping this mission of Alex's, and I feel like I owe him for going off on him like I did. But I'm just not sure whether you're going to learn much from me." "Well, we're not going to know until we conduct the test, now will we?" Megan summarized, which effectively silenced his argument. She backed up and checked the camera recording his eyes one last time before walking around to observe from the background. Seeing the others were ready, she called out. "Vanessa, could you send Wayne in now?" The door opened in the empty building they'd managed to lease for the day for the purposes of this test, and Wayne entered carrying a wrinkled T-shirt. They'd wanted to recreate the setup of the previous tests that Becky and Ryan had conducted in Carbondale, and this location, while hardly comfortable, was at least open enough to supply the wide open distances required. No one's home was situated adequately. It had been hard to arrange quickly, but everyone had worked hard to make sure it came together in time. Both Wayne and Vanessa had been glad to help out. They'd both felt badly that they hadn't been able to have been a part of Alex's boosting effort, especially after they'd heard how badly it went. While neither had been willing to risk their relationship, they still felt like they'd let Alex down by not doing so, even though they knew he wouldn't feel that way himself. Now Wayne was moving down the long empty hallway, calling out the markings on the floor as he crossed them. "Thirty feet, Twenty five, Twenty..." Megan watched her boyfriend for any obvious signs of distress, but couldn't see any yet. She'd begged off doing the actual measuring, afraid she was too involved to be objective, preferring to be here for Ryan should he need her. Thus the other people from the local community were doing the actual measurements. One of the younger girls had some experience conducting science experiments from her university courses, so she was watching the monitors. Frank Osmon was monitoring Ryan's vitals. They'd tried to keep any Seers from participating, fearing they might throw off the results, but Megan had insisted that this was a strain on Ryan and that he'd need her there, so the others had relented. Wayne drew closer and closer, but Ryan showed no outward signs of distress. Wayne finally stepped up to him, holding the T-shirt up to his face. "His heart rate is up slightly, but not much, and his blood pressure is normal," Frank told them. "That could just be the expectation that something is going to happen," Debbie, the girl behind the monitor said. "It may not mean anything at all." "Let's wait, keep him exposed," Lisa Grady, the type 3 friend of one of the local Seers that had met Alex during the concert there in Dallas, observed. "After all, he didn't react to Alex right away. It took some time." So they waited, while Wayne continued to hold the t-shirt up to Ryan's face. Again, Megan couldn't notice anything, and she hated to see her boyfriend trussed up like this, looking like the figure from the movie "Clockwork Orange". She hoped this wouldn't jeopardize their relationship. As much as he'd upset her that night with Alex, she realized it had been a very stressful event, but even then, she didn't think how he'd responded had been of his own volition. Finally Debbie called it off. "OK, let's try it again. Why don't you untie him just so he can relax for a few minutes? Being strapped up like that has got to be difficult." So Megan carefully peeled off the tape holding his eyes open, though they kept his arms restrained, not wanting to have to refasten everything. They talked about it, about what he'd experienced, and whether he'd noticed anything. Finally Debbie told them it was time to try again. They did it again, and the results were much the same. Wayne walked in, approached Ryan, calling out the distances. However, Ryan didn't respond. He finally got to him and held the T-shirt against his face and Frank announced there weren't any changes in his vitals. Megan was sure the BCM on the T-shirt had degraded too much, while Ryan was sure they wouldn't be able to determine anything anyway, since he'd never actually hated Alex like the other people he'd had run-ins with had. "Both his heart rate and blood pressure are up," Frank called out, surprising everyone. Megan bit her lip to keep from saying anything, not wanting to obscure any reactions by her boyfriend, but she was worried about him. "His heart rate is climbing. It's not a lot, but it is increasing," Frank told them. "I see some sweat along his upper lip," Lisa observed. "Did you notice that when you were with Alex?" "No," Megan replied as an aside. "But then again, there was a lot going on, so a little sweat wouldn't have been noticed." They continued to measure Ryan's responses, longer than they had previously, but his vitals didn't change much beyond that. "Could we call a break?" Ryan asked. "This is exhausting being restrained like this." Everyone glanced back and forth, wordlessly debating how they should respond. "Yeah, that should be a sufficient test," Debbie decided. Megan quickly unstrapped her boyfriend and gave him a reassuring hug, as he got up to stretch his muscles that were fatigued by being kept in the same positions for so long. "That's for doing this for us, we really appreciate it. And I'm sure it will help Alex, even if all we produce is a negative result. It least it will tell him more than he has now." "Yeah, well, we'll see what it reveals," he responded a bit skeptically, but they gathered around the monitor with the others to watch the replay of the tests, interested if Debbie could determine anything they couldn't themselves. Again, it took several tries, and even then the results were hardly convincing, but there did seem to be something there. "Look, the heart rate and blood pressure increased and there's a tiny dilation of the pupils, although it's much more subtle than they described in the Carbondale tests," Debbie concluded. "I think we've got a positive response, although I've got to call it as a probably qualified result. But I think you were right, Megan, Ryan isn't a full blown case of rage against Alex, but he does show symptoms of it, which would tend to stress that the problem is more widespread than he's currently aware of, since the only cases he'd likely to notice are the ones that call him out and not the ones who take offense at him." "You know, maybe the people who respond to him the most are affected like this," Lisa suggested. "Maybe, but I don't see how the religious figures in New Orleans or the commentators on the news stations could be reacting to an exposure to his energy," Megan said. "I think it's a complex mix of a lot of things, so we'll probably never have a clear picture as to what's really happening. But this is another arrow in Cate's quiver of tricks, and it should help them both make more intelligent choices when they're confronted in the future." "Yeah, let's just hope they can determine who the next person who's likely to shoot him is ahead of time. After all, all it takes is one missed call and it's all over," Frank warned them. "That's an option I don't really want to consider," Megan replied. "Let's try and get these results to Becky. I'll call Cate and tell her the results myself. As I said, she's going to need to know these details." ------- "This is nuts, you know that, don't you?" "Hey, I know it's a long shot, but it has the potential to tell us more than we know at the moment," Chalise told him for perhaps the twelfth time. "Frankly, I'm not fond of the idea of my father and brothers being potential murderers, yet here we are. I'd still like to believe there's something redeemable in you, and if we can establish that this was an aberration, a stress event induced by outside factors, then it would help to resolve a lot of issues, both for me and Mom, and I'd think for you too." "Yeah, but will this help Dad?" James asked his sister as she taped his eyes open, insuring there was no way he could help but see the look she was giving him. "I mean, it's nice to think that this can explain everything, but hell, I knew I was doing the wrong thing even as I was doing it. But that didn't change my mind. Dad convinced me there was a problem and asked for my help, so the choice was clearly mine. I'm not convinced about this theory of yours, and I'm not sure it will actually help any of us." "It won't help your father, no," Becky said from behind the computer monitor set off to the side, where he had trouble seeing her. "This is only conjecture at this point, and even if we can establish a potential causal link, it won't be authoritative enough to use in court. So it could never be used to overturn his guilty plea. But as Chalise says, it will give us all a way of understanding what happened to your family. If there's a genetic explanation for how your family responded, then it's important for everyone to understand what that is. It's not a magic bullet, though. It's only for our own edification, nothing else." "Yeah, but if that's the case, then why the hell weren't Chalise or Mom affected?" James asked. "Cate thinks it might have something to do with a Y-chromosome response to the X-chromosomal gene that gives Alex's people their heightened sensitivities," Chalise replied, even though she knew that Becky could answer for herself. She felt it was more important for her and her brother to thrash these ideas out amongst themselves. "So you aren't affected since it only affects men?" James asked, just to make sure he understood the underlying concept. Chalise simply nodded as she worked on his other eye. "But I never even met this Alex guy. How would my non-exposure to him have affected me?" "He's got this thing that his body gives off. The idea is that Dad reacted to what was left on my body or my clothes whenever I'd spend time with him. Since I spent so much time with him, the effect was heightened, even though the overall effect was reduced by his not being directly exposed to Alex. We're also guessing the effects may be cumulative somehow, so that he got worse over time. Maybe the amount in my clothes increased over time." "Another way of subtly saying you and he traded sweat on a frequent basis," James scoffed, still not liking this Alex character very much. "Absolutely not!" Chalise insisted strongly, stopping what she was doing to stare down her brother's bulging eyes. "Although we did eventually get to that stage, we hadn't when all this first developed. Remember, Darrell, who ended up liking him, also had a similar reaction to him." "It's not the neatest idea," Becky said, stepping into their somewhat private conversation. "It's not clear cut, with any absolute answers. Everything's a matter of degrees and there are a lot of unknowables, but if we can establish that this idea is at least a component, then we'll have something to watch out for in the future." "Yeah, you may have been exposed to it when you visited the house. I may have used the same chairs, or maybe it was on me when we hugged or even when I walked by you. We don't understand the limits on how it affects anyone yet, we're just trying to establish whether it has any effect at all." "But you already said you've gotten positive responses from someone else," James countered. "Yeah, but he was a special case," Becky answered. "He was more like Darrell. He liked Alex, but after he'd been exposed to him for some time in a closed environment, his emotions got the better of him, and he ended up trying to justify his negative response to Alex by inventing reasons why he was upset. We think that something similar happened to your brother, Brandon, your father and you. If we're right, we should get a much bigger response from you than we'd get from Darrell, and we'd probably get an ever bigger response from your father if we could test him as well." "Yeah, the day that Dad helps Alex with anything will be a long ways away. He still has a very visceral hatred of him. Me, my anger at him seems to have cooled over time to where I now question why I ever did what I did." "According to this idea, that's because Alex has been gone for so long," Chalise explained. "You aren't exposed to his energy any longer, and thus your emotions aren't getting revved up anymore." "Yeah, well I still think a more likely suspect is the fact that he got you mixed up in this weird threesome, leading you off to some make believe fantasy world, telling you about some far-fetched religion." "We'll see," Chalise answered simply, quickly glancing at her girlfriend Kitty, who'd chosen to remain silent during the whole discussion, not wanting to force a confrontation. But like Chalise, she'd been anxious to help their boyfriend, Alex, out in any way they could. If they couldn't be with him, at least they could aid him in this small thing, just like they did with their work for the Angel Vision Foundation. Kitty motioned to her that she was fine and wasn't insulted by anything Chalise's brother might say. She was well aware of how he viewed both her and Alex, and while she wasn't pleased by it, she wasn't going to get offended by it either. "OK, you're all hooked up. Now let's get this show on the road so you aren't taped up like this for long," Chalise said as she stepped back. Kitty made sure the video camera was arranged correctly, focused directly on James' eyes, and then she stepped beside her lover and wrapped her arm around her waist as they both waited for the test to begin. "OK, Melissa, you can come in now," Becky yelled out. The door opened and Melissa entered, walking at the same steady pace down the same marked walkway she had before, counting out the distance as she progressed. The verbal counting had really helped with the visual analysis and measurement, as it documented when the responses they detected had an effect. "I'm telling you, some dirty t-shirt ain't going to make a shitload of difference," James mumbled, but he was resigned to what was going to occur. On one hand he'd like to know that he wasn't completely responsible for what had happened to his family, but on the other, the fact he might not be terrified him as well. This was some strange stuff his sister had pulled the family into, and he was sure there was a lot she still wasn't telling them. Unlike the previous test, Ryan had gotten some equipment to measure James vitals during the test, which kept a continual count of his heart rate and blood pressure. While they hadn't needed it during the previous tests, they figured it was needed here, since they were expecting a more visceral, if more subdued, response. In the first test they were only interested in how Alex determined who was a potential Seer and who wasn't, whereas in this one, they wanted to know what the response was, and whether the angry reaction accompanied the recognition of Alex's energy, or was a separate component. Ryan had decided to sit out this test. Both Kitty and Chalise had wanted to be involved, and Alex's sisters had wanted to be there as well, so he figured he'd make the scene just too crowded. Caroline, Chalise and James' mother, had likewise decided to sit the experiment out, deciding to wait to hear the results. However, they were all gathered outside, waiting to receive the results as soon as they were available. Ryan gave Caroline a hug, and she looked up at him with a grateful smile. Allison smiled at the two of them without saying anything. Only time would tell, she told herself. Melinda walked the outlined path at a slow measured pace, and everyone besides Becky watched James' reactions rather than the monitor. No one said anything, but when Melinda reached him, perhaps only a few feet from him, they could all see a few telltale signs. His nostrils seemed to flare and he seemed to fidget more, even though he was restrained and couldn't hope to move. He seemed more tense and appeared to actually shy away from the worn t-shirt she held up to his face. It was obvious he was reacting to the BCM remaining in the shirt, despite his earlier skepticism. Of course, none of them knew whether this was the case or not, since this was supposedly a double blind test, but they were pretty sure of the results from his reactions. In order to duplicate the earlier tests with Ryan, Melinda kept the shirt next to James' face for a fair amount of time, but Becky finally called the test off, figuring they'd gotten the results they wanted. She didn't want to keep James tied up any longer than they had to, and they still had to do the second test. After they finished, and after he'd had a chance to recover, they'd do more tests to test the parameters of the response, just like they had with the Seekers and Seers before, testing the effect at different distances and with different shirts that had been exposed to Alex's BCM further in the past. There was a lot they could determine from the simple tests they were conducting, and while they'd never be publishable, and couldn't be done on a widespread enough basis to be statistically significant, they'd reveal a lot of information. They ran through the second test, and this time the results were even clearer, as James' reaction was noticeably cooler. He didn't react to the t-shirt itself, and he didn't seem to get agitated when Melinda neared him. Chalise removed the tape from her brother's eyes as Kitty removed the restraints from his arms. "Are you sure we should do that if he's still..." Melinda asked, afraid to finish her sentence. "Yeah, I think it's safe," Becky responded. "He's reacting to the energy, but it's only a diluted sample, and his anger wouldn't be directed at any of us, even if he did react." "But you just said that the people he affected tended to justify their behavior by inventing excuses for it, didn't you? What would stop him from doing the same thing with us?" "Hey, I'm right here. If you're going to talk about me in the third person, at least include me in the conversation, huh?" he asked as he stretched his arms, trying to get the blood flowing again as he continued to blink rapidly, trying to get the eye drops Chalise had put into his eyes to distribute properly. "So how do you feel, James?" Kitty asked, her curiosity overcoming her hesitancy to speak earlier. "I'm not sure. When I was exposed that first time, I was almost ready to tear that silly t-shirt apart with my teeth. It's strange, but even for such a weak sample, it had a definite affect on me." "That it did," Becky said from the controls she was still watching over. "His heart rate and blood pressure went up significantly. There were other signs as well, but we managed to document the constriction of his pupils. If we can correlate how much this varied from Ryan's responses, we might have something that Alex and Cate can put into practice." "Yeah, I can't see them testing everyone they meet's blood pressure," Kitty quipped. "Do you feel OK now?" Chalise asked her brother. "No residual anger or anything?" "Nope," he replied simply. "But please, keep that damn t-shirt in the box and take it in the other room. If that little thing can provoke such a response, I can easily see how picking up some second hand exposure to whatever he gives off could have set us all off." "Well, take time to relax, but it's not going to be that easy," Becky warned him. "We still have almost a full day of testing ahead of you. You'll be exposed to more of Alex's t-shirts, varying in amounts and over various distances as we try to glean as much information from this as we can. We've still got a lot of work ahead of us, but I think we've got clear evidence there's something here, and it's fairly significant as well. ------- Chapter 37: A Little Bird, a Pit Bull and a Spirit Go Into the Desert, and... "Hey, Cate, aren't these mice getting a bit ... fat?" Alex asked, not sure how to phrase a question about tiny rodents delicately. Cate wandered over and glanced around her brother to see what he was looking at. "Oh, those are Allison and Shani. Allison is one of the Seers, that is, she gets a dosage equivalent to what a Seer would get over her lifetime. I've noticed that the Seer mice have been putting on weight. I suspect it's because they handle food more efficiently, drawing more nourishments from the same amount of food than the others. I'd cut back their feed, but that could potentially skew the results of the experiment. But then again, not cutting them back could skew it as well if they're lifespan in reduced by their being overweight. I've been meaning to discuss it with Becky to see what she thinks about it." "Don't you think you should mention that to the human Seers?" Alex asked. "Well, the mice are adjusting themselves, voluntarily cutting back on what they eat, but they haven't changed enough to counteract the effects to their metabolism." "Still... ," Alex said, before refocusing his attention. 'Hey, this is Alex. Cate noticed something unusual in her research that you might be interested in, ' he said, reaching out to each of the Seers. 'She says that your metabolism has likely changed significantly and that you're likely to gain weight as a result.' 'Hey, Alex, this is Allison. I've talked to several of the girls about this already. We've already noticed it and we've each cut back on our eating pretty dramatically. If I'm not mistaken, the Watchers have had some problems as well, but only after they spend time with you. They seem to return to normal within a week of your leaving.' 'Really? You already knew this and didn't think to mention it to Cate?' 'Well, the girls have been contacting me, since I'm the resident medical expert, and I discussed it with Liv. We figured out pretty quickly on our own that we needed to cut back what we eat, so it wasn't too hard to figure out it was tied to our activation. Frankly, about all I eat nowadays is a small appetizer anytime I go out to eat. It's more nutritious than a salad, but I can't eat much more than that.' 'Have you noticed any modified responses from the boosted Seers and Watchers?' Alex asked. 'I mean, does that boost the effect, as well?' 'Not that I've noticed. We think it has to do with how we utilize the extra BCM we're exposed to via the link you created in our brains during our activation. Since you don't do that to the Watchers, they don't seem to be affected. What they're affected by is simply being exposed to your energy. That effect lasts for a while after you're gone. 'There's the ongoing question of whether you increase the size of the link when you boost the Seers, so it might be useful for us to measure exactly what the different amounts each of the Seers eat, but since we haven't noticed a difference in their BCM is just never occurred to us.' 'OK, that makes sense, though you'll have to talk to Cate about doing any further tests. But as long as you're aware of the problem I'm happy. I was afraid you'd all blame me for getting fat.' 'Believe me, the only ones blaming you for getting fat have more specific reasons for it than this, ' Allison teased him before saying goodbye. "Are you finished?" Cate asked. "Yeah, I was warning the Seers about it, but it seems they already knew about it." "That's what I figured," she replied, "but it brings up another topic I was meaning to discuss with you. You'll notice Shani is thinner?" "Yeah, I noticed they're all different sizes, but Shani and Allison are kind of two extremes. One's huge and the other is thin as a rail." "That's what I was meaning to discuss with you," Cate responded. "Shani is one of my 'Alex mice'. She's been getting a dosage commensurate to your lifelong exposure to BCM, and frankly, she's thinner than the others because her metabolism is much higher. I've made adjustments in their case, because I figure they need the extra nutrients, but like you, they eat a LOT more than normal mice and they still lose weight." "That makes sense, after all, you've seen me eat." "Well, I just wanted to point out that it's an issue. I'll be watching them to see if they show any other symptoms, but that's not real likely for some time." "Hey, and here I was thinking you'd want to limit my calorie intake to try to extend my lifespan, after all, that's what they've been finding in lab animals." "Yeah, I can see that. If I were to cut back your food, you'd likely be a skeleton within a week. I don't think those rules apply in extreme cases like yours. Basically your metabolism is racing as your body tries to deal with the effect the BCM has on it. Don't worry, I'm being very careful with what you're consuming. Why do you think we've been eating such rich food in fancy restaurants? I'm trying to get some more fat on you as a protection, giving your body something to fall back on during emergencies." "Hmm, so that's why we don't stop off at McDonalds anymore," Alex replied with a grin. "Man, speaking of which, I could go from some fries right about now." "Well, you're not likely to get it out here in the middle of the desert," Erica called out from the front of the van where she'd been listening to the conversation. "Still, if you see someplace to pull over and grab something, I'm getting kind of hungry as well," Sammy commented. "Hey, we're in the middle of the damn desert. We're not likely to pull over for some crappy gas station warmed over hot dogs. I've got some stuff for Alex to eat, but you can stand to skip a meal or two, Sammy," Cate informed him, looking his pot belly over. "Ah, man, you're no fun," he playfully complained, remembering even as he said it that his life hadn't been anywhere near this exciting before he'd met the sibling pair. "Alex," Mac Schumacher, who was driving the tour bus at the moment, called out. "We've got something here." Alex focused his attention on her as he started to get up. "What is it? We're pretty far from any populated areas." He noticed she'd already started applying the brakes, though, so he knew something was up. "There's somebody standing in the middle of the road, trying to get us to stop," Mac warned him. "This far out in the country, that might not be such a smart idea," Gail warned. "If they've got someone else hidden nearby, they might be looking to rob us." "Or more likely, it's another Seer who's detected you as we're approaching," Patricia countered. "Yeah, and who the hell is going to be wandering around in the middle of the desert without having a car nearby?" Gail asked, skeptically. "I agree with Patricia," Alex said, coming to his own decision. He'd gotten close enough to see out the front of the van, and he could see a slightly heavyset woman in colorful but muted earth tone colors. "If it makes you feel better, you can take whatever precautions you want, Gail, but we're stopping to see what she wants." Mac slowed the large truck and pulled onto the dusty embankment. While they were still in the desert, they were now in what they called the 'high desert', near the higher isolated peaks rather than in the sandy isolated areas, thus is was marginally cooler, but Alex wondered what this woman was doing way out in the middle of nowhere. He saw no other signs of life nearby. No truck stop, no stores, no houses, cars or much of anything, yet this woman was standing in the middle of the road holding her hands up signaling for them to stop as if it were the most natural thing in the world. As the bus pulled to a stop, Alex opened the door, exposing them to the billowing clouds of dust they'd kicked up, as well as to the oppressive heat outside. As he moved down the stairs, Gail was right beside him. "I thought you wanted to stay back and watch out for anyone nearby?" "Hey, I'm guarding you, not everyone else. But if there's anyone else here, they're very cleverly disguised," she advised him. "She's coming by the side now," Erica called out, so Alex quickly exited the vehicle and held the door open for the woman, who despite her size was pretty nimble. As she approached, Alex recognized that her hair was straight and black and her skin was a coppery tan color. Between that and her dress, which was adorned with several tribal motifs, he gathered she was a Native American. That might explain why she was here, but not why she was wandering in the middle of nowhere with no way to come and go. "I'm glad you stopped," the woman said as she drew near. "You were traveling pretty fast, and most people don't pay much attention when they drive past here." Gail wondered why she was speaking with Alex normally, if she was a Seer like she suspected. Watchers, while they were attracted to Alex, usually didn't go to such lengths to stop him. However, Alex was hampered by the sun, which was now shining directly in his eyes from behind the woman approaching them. Thus, according to Cate's premise about how he performed his activations, he'd be unlikely to do it yet. Beside the native dress she wore, he also noticed she had a full backpack and a water bottle strapped to her side. He could see that much, at least, since it was in silhouette. "My name is Alex. Do you have a car nearby or—?" "No, I like to wander the desert every now and then to maintain my roots in my native environ—" she said, halting abruptly when the angle she was facing Alex from changed and his eyes connected with hers. But instead of stumbling back, she simply stopped and regarded him, as if taking in whatever was happening to her, almost like she'd been expecting it. "Are you OK?" Gail asked from slightly behind and to the right of Alex. "I'm fine," she told them. "I was expecting something exceptional, but when I saw you, you looked just like a normal gringo. But now you look like what I expected you to, like a spirit." "Well, look, let's get you inside where we can discuss this in some air conditioning. While you may be used to this heat, we city folk aren't," Alex said, already feeling himself sweating heavily. The woman simply nodded, stepping in front of Alex and climbing the stairs into the tour bus. "If you could, I'd like to refill my water bottles," she said to those inside the van as she entered, without bothering to introduce herself. "I've been waiting for you for a while, and I'm running low. I was afraid to leave to refill them." "You've been waiting for a long time? Not just since you felt Alex approaching?" Cate asked as Chelsea got her some water. She waited until Alex and Gail followed her into the van before responding, figuring they'd want to hear her response as well. "It's an interesting tale," she said. "I come up here to commune with the spirits of my ancestors and to reacquaint myself with the old ways of my tribe. But, as I was packing up to return home I saw a running bird, what you'd call a roadrunner. It stopped near my campsite and just stared at me, which isn't like them at all. We both watched each other, until it finally turned and ran off a ways, then turned back to watch me again, as if challenging me to follow it. "Now, what's particular about it, is the running bird is my spirit guide. Although my American name is Robin Peters—my father was from outside my culture—my tribal name translates to 'morning bird'. It seems everyone associated birds with me, though they seemed to have gotten the wrong birds. I had my first encounter with the spirit of running bird when I was twelve, and it was so momentous that I decided I would study to become a medicine woman of my tribe so I could better learn what it was trying to tell me." While she was talking, Cate offered her a seat and she happily took it. Despite being used to the terrain and her being there voluntarily, it was clear she was tired from having been exposed to the elements for so long. Chelsea handed her a glass of water as she handed Chelsea her water bottle. She took a long drink of the water, then pulled her oversized backpack off, revealing it contained both a folded tent and sleeping bag combo, and she pulled out another couple of water bottles. "Since that time I've served my tribe, the Hualapai, as their official medicine woman. We're a very small tribe, with only a couple thousand members scattered over a range only several hundred miles across both Arizona and Nevada, and many of those I serve live off the reservation, in non-tribal cities across the country. But they often ask my advice about a number of things, so I like to return to the mountains here to commune with the spirits to ask them how best to answer their queries." "Well, I don't mean to interrupt your story, but I'd like to introduce everyone," Alex said. "What's your real name, just so I'll know what to call you?" She laughed a short bark of a laugh. "My 'real name' is Robin. I'm as American as the rest of you, only I also live in my native world as well. You wouldn't be able to pronounce my native name, and I don't consider it important that you do. Everyone I know speaks English, and while Hualapai make a fair amount off of the tourists visiting the Grand Canyon, which is only spread amongst a small number of members, our native language isn't widely used anymore, so I only use it on special occasions to remind people what it sounds like. But it's rarely used for everyday speech." So Alex made introductions all around, and Robin 'morning bird' stopped with each introduction to stare at the person. Alex wasn't sure whether she was trying to figure out what her new visions meant, since they varied with each person she looked at, or whether she was trying to peer into their souls using her normal vision, but she took the time to evaluate each and every one of them. "Anyway, as I said, the running bird drew me from my campsite," she said once more, not bothering to explain what she'd been looking at in each of them. "I figured, as strange as this was to have my spirit guide come to me as an actual bird, she wasn't likely to wait for me forever, so I quickly packed everything up. Once I started, the bird ran off, but once I'd gotten everything squared away and set off in the direction she'd run off to, she showed up farther on. "Now I have no idea if it was the same bird or not, but I felt confident it was my spirit guide speaking to me through them, something she's only rarely done in the past. But she continued to guide me in the same manner, showing up occasionally, staring me in the face, then running off in a new direction for me to follow before running off again. I knew better than to run after it, simply following in the direction it set out, but it drew me, eventually, to this site. "When I got to the highway I wasn't sure where to go, thinking my spirit guide wouldn't be concerned with the ways of the white man, but as I was running across the road, another running bird showed up farther down the highway. It ran out in the middle of the road, once again staring at me, as if saying 'No, I want you here, ' so that's what I did. When I returned to the road, it ran off, disappearing once again. So I waited. And it was a long wait. I waited two full days in the hot sun. I'd set my tent just off the road so I wouldn't get overexposed. But today the running bird showed up one more time, this time calling to me. I didn't know what it was saying, but I chose to interpret it as saying that this was the day we'd been waiting for, so I packed up my supplies once again so I'd be ready for whatever happened." Robin stopped speaking when Chelsea brought her water bottles back, once again drinking a fair amount, trying to rehydrate herself, then putting them back where she'd gotten them. It was obvious she was dehydrated from having been sitting in the sun for so long, so they gave her time to recover. "Eventually I could feel your presence approaching, and I could tell it was a strong spirit that was coming, and not yet another car. I decided I couldn't afford to let you pass, so I got in the road, intending to flag you down in case you didn't know I was there." "I didn't," Alex explained. "While you can feel my energy, I have no such abilities of my own. I give off the energy you feel, but I have no way of interpreting it on my own." "That may be, but your energy isn't so much physical as it is spiritual. I've felt the spirits of my ancestors and of my spirit guide before, and yours feels similar, although it's much stronger. I'm now thinking I've been such a successful medicine woman because I've been able to feel the spirits of my people, and I've used that to evaluate them." "That makes sense," Cate said. "The energy that Alex gives off, which we call BCM, is given off by all living things, but only a tiny percentage of people can detect it." She then proceeded to give Robin a full explanation of what was involved, and she listened very patiently, absorbing everything she told her, but she didn't seem to be overly convinced. "As I said, you can explain it anyway you like, but your energy feels just like that of other spirits, but theirs isn't as strong, probably because they're reaching out to me from the land of the dead, whereas yours is from a living source." "Actually, we've got an alternate explanation," Alex replied. "We have a Vietnamese woman who views it along similar lines, interpreting it from her cultural basis. Her theory is that my spirit found a way to tap into this BCM energy source as a way of crossing over from the spirit realm. She thinks I used the energy to bring over many of my followers, and that's why I've found so many supportive people around me." "She sees me as one of his generals in the spiritual realm," Cate said with an obvious pride in her voice. "That makes more sense," Robin observed, "and it fits in with what I both believe and feel in my bones." "It also fits in with what we've been trying to tell him," Gail suggested, "that he's being led by a higher being, or possibly by a number of them. We're thinking he's here to do more than just educate a few random people." "The bigger mission, as much as we can make out," Patricia offered, "is to create a new branch of humanity with these particular abilities, and that if he crossed over to do it, then he must have seen a unique opportunity to help humanity, and then found a way of doing it." "Well what are we doing here in the hot sun?" Robin asked, looking like she was ready to head off. "Huh, what do you mean?" Alex asked in confusion. "Don't you need to gather your supplies? Return to your car? Meet whoever brought you here?" "Don't worry about that. I'm used to the desert. I come out here often, and I travel the high desert during the day and the low desert at night. I'm comfortable catching rides with passing traffic, and I know how to get from one location to another. I can't rely on telephones, since there's no wireless activity out here." "But isn't that dangerous?" Alex asked, worried about her catching rides with complete strangers in the middle of the desert, where it wouldn't take much to hide a body if someone wanted to. "Don't worry, I'm a capable woman who knows how to defend herself. And while I may not be able to fight off a fully grown man, I know how to extract revenge, if nothing else," Robin said, as she reached into her hair and pulled out a very small needle of some kind. "It's a cactus needle, dipped in the venom of a number of poisonous animals from the desert. I keep several hidden on me. It may not be enough to save me if I'm attacked, but it'll incapacitate anyone. And I'm not so afraid of death that I'd try to save myself by not defending myself. All I need to do is scratch their face enough, so that when they seek medical attention for the poison, whoever treats him will see the scratches and call the police. As you can see, I'm well aware of how dangerous life is. While I can't prevent the danger, I treat it like the other dangers of living in the desert. There are any number of ways you can die out here. You just have to be aware and keep your eyes open." "That fits in with what we've learned about your kind, the Seers that is," Gail said. "They're pretty good at evaluating people based on what they feel from them, thus you've probably been able to avoid the worst cases." "That makes sense. I've avoided a lot of people over the years, and if I recognize someone is dangerous, I can usually manage to defend myself. Stabbing someone with this," Robin said, once again indicating her small needle, as well as revealing a knife in her belt, "is more effective when you first meet someone than after they've already attacked you." "But wait, you want to leave here and follow us, wherever we head off to?" Alex asked, still not able to keep up with the various divergent discussions. "I was led to you by my spirit guide. They had something for me to accomplish, and I believe it was more than just this 'activation' you talk about. I have to believe that I was meant to help you, as much as you have helped me. So if I am to do that, I must follow you to whatever you'll need my help with." "But how will you ever get back?" Alex asked, trying to figure out how she could just take off with a bunch of strangers on a moment's notice like that. "I have a phone and a lot of contacts. My friends are used to my wandering ways. It may take them some time to reach me, but they'll find me eventually and take me home when the time comes. Now let's go. There's no sense waiting. If you have a rendezvous with fate, there's no sense putting it off." Still confused, they got everything straightened up and got back on the road, not sure how this was going to eventually play out. ------- "So what's up with all the mice?" Robin asked. "If you're interested, I could find you a few wild specimens." "No, they're part of an experiment," Cate explained. "We're testing to see what the long term affects of exposure to BCM is. Since these are lab mice I know what their typical lifespan is, whereas I wouldn't with their wild brethren." "Well, if you ask me, the chubby ones look pretty healthy, despite how fat they are, but the skinny one doesn't look so hot." "The skinny ones represent Alex, while the fat ones represent the Seers, like you. The lethargic middle ones are the control group," Cate explained. Robin tried to glance at Alex again, but immediately realized she couldn't tell how he looked because she couldn't see either him or his aura clearly. "That doesn't sound good for Alex," she said in response. "That's why I'm doing the test. We're worried about his health. Tremendous power comes at a cost, so far Alex hasn't been corrupted by it, but it's costing him in other ways." "Well, I'll admit the skinny ones looks healthy, so they'd probably do better in the wild. Frankly, I wouldn't let those chubby mice out of here, as they wouldn't last long out in the wild. I can imagine all the foxes salivating over them now." "I'd be willing to bet both of them would likely survive longer than the control group mice," Cate said, sticking up for her tiny test subjects. "Hey, there's a gas station coming up," Sammy announced. He'd taken over the driving when they'd stopped to pick up Robin. "Ah, that'd be Billie D's place. He's got his own receiver, so I should be able to get a signal. I'll call someone and have them pick up my car." "If it was nearby, why didn't you have us stop by and get it for you?" Alex asked. "Because it wasn't nearby. It was over on the far side of those hills back there. You'd have had to drive a good fifty miles to reach it," she answered. "While it's a relatively short walk, it's a long way by road." "Oh, OK, as long as there was a good reason," Alex answered weakly. "Something tells me it isn't such a short walk, either," Gail commented, taking into account Robin's tough girl image. Robin made her phone call, making her arrangements while Sammy pulled in to the quaint but worn down little roadside stop. Sammy pulled the bus up to the gas pump as everyone else got ready. Although they had their own mobile bathroom, no one really liked using it that much, since using it meant they'd have to empty it more often, something that none of them liked to do that often. As a result, everyone was ready to make a break for it. "Man, I'm ready for this. I've been trying to hold my knees together for the last half hour." "That serves you right for drinking all those sodas," Jordan teased Erica. "Me, I'm ready to get out and walk around," Mac said. "I wonder what they sell inside?" "Billy doesn't sell a lot. He's got a lot of fast food, most of it pretty old. The drinks are all lukewarm, and the road maps don't show shit, but he's got the basics. But I wouldn't get your hopes up about the bathrooms. They're not as nice as the one you have here." "You know this Billy?" Patricia asked. "Yeah, I know him. He's a Paiute from near here. He's gotten close to the members of my tribe, to keep anyone from getting upset about his setting up shop in their territory, but it's government land and it's off the Hualapai reservation, so they really can't complain." "Billy D? That's some Indian name, is he from Mississippi or was he named for the actor?" Chelsea asked. "Well, if you insist on knowing, his native name is 'Burrowing Fox', that's a 'wannge'e' if you're interested, but everyone knows him as Billy D. He picked it up when serving in the military, where no one could pronounce his name. He found it so much easier to use, and it generated so many fewer questions, he kept it after he got out." "Are you two friends?" Chelsea asked, out of curiosity. "I wouldn't say friends, but we know and respect each other. I stop by occasionally when I'm up here in the high country, and he knows of my role as the local medicine woman." When they stopped, everyone climbed out, and Alex went to help Sammy fill the tank. Robin stuck with Alex, as did Gail, but Gail only stuck around for so long until her bladder got the best of her, so she excused herself and trotted off. Alex was pumping the gas while Sammy checked out the van, Robin was testing the wind as if it had some private message for her. 'Alex, you'd better get in here. There's someone waiting for you by the register, ' Gail warned him a few minutes later. "Uh, SAMMY, could you take over the pump for me. I've got a situa—" "Yeah, yeah, don't bother explaining. I should've known you'd get called away as soon as you offered. Go on, I'll take care of this," Sammy said as he took the pump from Alex. "Just remember, though, we only have so much room in the bus with all those damn animal cages." Alex wiped his hands off and headed inside, Robin following right along behind him. When he entered the little shop attached to the gas station he saw rows of supplies, several older refrigerators holding various sodas and beers, and several people standing around the cash register. However Alex made a point of not looking at their faces, wanting to save that moment until he was closer. "Mornin', Robin." "Mornin', Billy," she answered simply. "Interesting group of friends you have here," Billy commented. "Just wait. You ain't seen nothin' yet." "You can look up, Alex," Gail advised him, "I've told her what to expect." "I fel—" the new woman started to say until Alex looked up and looked into her eyes. After their discussion of the other day, Alex took the time to watch what happened. Alex couldn't see anything specific, but Cate, who'd noticed something was up and who was watching from one of the nearby aisles, saw what was happening. Since she knew what to look for, having discussed it with her sister Becky, she could clearly see the woman's eyes dilate then immediately contract again. It was quick, and hard to see, but it was pretty clear if you were looking for it. She'd also observed, before Alex arrived, that the woman's pupils were already pretty large, and they got larger the closer that Alex got to her. Thus by the time Alex reached her, there wasn't quite as significant a response. The woman, a tough looking girl, looked like she was built like a linebacker. She was beautiful, with long straight brunette hair with a few blonde streaks. She was buff, clearly having more muscles than Gail did, and she wore camouflaged military pants and a simple green muscle T. She was clearly a weightlifter, and knew how to work out. Alex assumed she must be in the Army from her outfit, but couldn't figure out what the hell she was doing out here in the middle of nowhere. "Are you OK?" Alex asked. "Hell, yeah, I'm a soldier. I'm always OK. I ... what the fuck did you do to my eyes?" 'Easy there, soldier. Let's not say too much out loud. I'm trying to keep this type of stuff quiet.' That produced a reaction, whereas her initial activation didn't. Her head snapped up and she tried to stare Alex down, but was unable to look at him for longer than a few moments. Billy D glanced at her and then at Alex, trying to figure out what she was seeing. 'It's OK. I'm speaking to you telepathically. We'll explain everything, but I don't want to do it here. Come out with me to our bus and we can discuss it.' She just stared at him, and both Billy and Robin figured something was going on. When she didn't respond, Alex had to prompt her. 'You OK?' he asked again. She simply nodded at him, so he simply turned and walked out, having not said more than five words during the entire exchange. As the woman walked out, with both Gail and Cate following along behind her, Billy turned to Robin, who stayed behind. "Let me guess, the spirits led them to you?" "Nope, they led me to them. I had to flag them down in the middle of the highway. But I figure I'm supposed to be helping them. I'm judging, from the woman's expression and attitude, that it has to do with her past, but we'll see." "They got blood?" he asked. "Nope. As far as I know they have no relation to the people at all, but the spirits know them. My totem brought me to them. That's how I know they need my help." "Did he do the same to you?" he asked, still not sure what had just occurred. "Yep. He's a spirit. And not just a spirit, he's a major spirit. He's got more power in him than that soldier has ever witnessed in the army." "Then you'd better get along and help them," he advised her. "They aren't going to get any better without you there to help." She simply smiled, grabbed a coke from the nearby open container and walked out. "I'll pay you next time I come by. Talk to you later." The door shut behind her, keeping at least a little of the cooler air in the building. "I'll pay for her," Patricia said, plopping a couple of sodas on the counter. "If you can get to Vegas this weekend, you should catch the show." Billy D just looked at her, then couldn't keep from smiling. "Yeah, I think I may need to see this show. You gringos never stop surprising me." "Hey, we're not so strange. As of today, Robin is our sister," Patricia said with a smile. "And we look out for our family." ------- As Alex followed, the new woman preceded him into the van, before turning and confronting him as he entered. "What the hell do you want from me?" she demanded. "Me? I—" "Pardon me," Gail said, as she hurriedly slipped by Alex. "I wanted to be here for this, but clearly I never got to pee, so just continue while I take care of business." However, before she entered the van's bathroom she turned and confronted the new woman, still holding herself a little knock-kneed. "And you, I'm watching you. Hurt a hair on his head and you'll have me to contend with. You may be ex-military, and you may be able to snap both of us like a twig, but not before I'll be able to inflict some serious damage on you." With that she jumped into the bathroom, pulled down her pants, sat on the toilet and let go, leaving the door open so she could overhear what was occurring between them. Alex just looked at the space that Gail had left behind, not quite able to form a response to her little tirade. Cate, who was now standing behind Alex by the entranceway, couldn't help but giggle at the odd confrontation. The new woman, however, seemed to be fairly pissed at Alex, and having Gail threaten her didn't set her mind at ease any. It took Alex a few moments to get his thoughts in order again. "Look, I don't know what you want from me, and it doesn't look like I can keep avoiding you since you keep following me, but—" "Wait a second, me following you?" Alex protested, as he waved his hand in front of him as if trying to erase that fallacious thought from the air. "I'm not following you. You can sense me, and thus you seek me out. I can't sense you, and have no idea where you are, nor even who you are. So I haven't been seeking you out." "Uh, Alex," Cate said, trying to get Alex to focus on what was important rather than getting sidetracked down a potential rat hole. "No, I think this is important," Alex replied without turning around, still regarding the woman before him. "You've been following me. When you showed up in Texas I felt you, and I knew you represented trouble, so I left town rather than face you. But when you tracked me down here I—" "Wait, back up a minute," Alex said, making more meaningless hand motions as he tried to figure out what she was talking about, "when did I ever—" "I've always been able to detect trouble, to predict when it's likely to occur. For a long time, as a young girl, I used that to avoid difficult situations, but it always grated on me. It felt like I was running away, something I never liked. So I decided to take a different tack, and I decided to confront it instead of hiding from it. I got several guy friends to accompany me whenever I felt trouble approaching, and we'd confront it head on." "Wait, wait, this sounds like you've got a long story to tell. Could you at least tell me who the hell you are? I'm Alex, by the way. This is Cate, my sister, behind me, and that's Gail, my bodyguard, in the bathroom, an ex-cop." The woman just stared at him belligerently for a moment, and then shrugged slightly. "Fine, my name is Gini Connolly." "OK, it's always easier talking to someone when you know what to call them," Alex answered in a calmer tone of voice. "I'm sorry if we got off on the wrong foot, and I'll admit the way I handled the scene in the store may have contributed to it, but I haven't been following you." The door opened behind them, and although Alex never turned around, Robin entered, quickly taking in everyone's body language, trying to figure out what she'd missed. "This is Gini," Cate explained to her. "Gini, this is Robin Peters, a Native-American medicine woman we just met." However neither Gini nor Alex reacted to this interruption on her part. "I was in San Antonio when I felt you approach, I could feel you, and I knew you represented trouble. And not just a little bit of trouble, but a shit-load of it. As a result I left town, since I no longer had any ties there. But here you are, having followed me to this God-forsaken piece of nowhere, so I've got to assume you're following me." Before Alex could respond and potentially alienate Gini even more, Cate tried to intercede on his behalf. "He wasn't seeking you out. As you've seen from the bus, he's traveling the country as part of a music tour. He showed up in San Antonio for a two night concert. We just finished playing in Phoenix last night, and we're on our way to Vegas today, preparing to head to Utah afterwards." Gini's eyes shifted off Alex, who she couldn't see anyway, to regard the diminutive little girl standing behind him. "So you're saying this is just a chance encounter, despite the fact that trouble has always sought me out, and he feels like much greater trouble than I've ever faced before?" "Look, I'm not trying to cause any trouble," Alex tried to argue, but no one seemed to be paying him any mind at the moment. "That's exactly what I'm saying," Cate insisted, despite it being obvious that Gini was trying to bully her with both her physical size and her belligerent attitude. Cate could see her nostril flaring, which she knew wasn't a good sign, but she had no intention of backing down. Instead she stepped in front of her older brother, trying to get between him and this giant woman. Gail took that moment to exit the restroom. She took one look at the scene, which she'd been listening to all along, and realized she'd better move to protect both Alex and Cate before it was too late. But before she could move, Robin stepped in to defray the situation. "Look, I don't think anyone was seeking anyone else out. I think what we're facing here is the fact that we've all been brought here by an outside force. None of us sought this situation out, but now that we're here, we need to consider why we were brought together, and what those that did were trying to tell us." Gini turned her sharp look on Robin, glaring at her, then turned to Gail. "Who is this, again?" she asked. "She's a medicine woman," Cate said, speaking up to assert herself against the overly aggressive woman. "As such, she sees things on a much more spiritual basis than the rest of us. But in this case I'd advise you to consider what she has to say, even if it doesn't make sense to you initially." Strangely, Gini seemed to do just that. She glanced briefly at everyone, including Alex, although she seemed to wince a little when she did, then she sighed, shrugged and clearly seemed to accept things as they were, as she visibly relaxed somewhat. "OK, so what are we all doing here?" she asked. "Before we get to that," Alex said, holding his hand up, trying to slow down the rapid exchange of different voices, "I think we should hear your story so we can understand where you're coming from, and why you're feeling so defensive about me. I'm sure Gail would appreciate hearing that, as she doesn't take aggression directed at me particularly well." Gini turned to regard Gail, seeing that she was looking just as belligerent as she'd been only moments earlier, and saw he had a point. "OK, as I was saying, I've had a history with both avoiding and seeking out trouble all my life." "That's not unusual," Alex interjected. "As we'll discuss, you've got a genetic anomaly that allows you perceive things that others can't. But go on." This newest information made Gini regard Alex oddly for a moment before she continued. "Once my guy friends and I started confronting the local troublemakers, one of them mentioned how they all worked out so they could defend themselves, and invited me to come to their gym with them. They were all your basic football types, by the way. I didn't think much of it, but because I'd come to rely on them so much I went along. But once there, I ended up in the weight room, and soon I was bench pressing weights, doing chin ups and running laps. I loved it. I discovered a way I could bulk up and defend myself, so I didn't have to wait for others to back me up whenever I encountered potential trouble. "I started working out regularly at the gym, and I started backing down less than I had before. However, the response to that wasn't that people trusted me more, or thanked me for defending them, instead my girlfriends started avoiding me, telling me I'd changed." "It's a difficult time," Robin said. "Teenage girls aren't known for accepting behaviors that are considered outside the norm." "As a result, I spent more time with the guys and trying to add muscle mass and agility. I took up Kung-Pow, Karate and boxing. By the time I graduated high school, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but I knew I wanted to confront trouble head on. I thought the best way to do that would be to enlist in the army, so I'd be trained to handle the worst that the world has to offer." Alex, seeing the potential confrontation had lessened, moved back from Gini and sat down, hoping to give her enough room to continue opening up. Cate, seeing his response, did likewise, as did Robin. Gail, however, feeling guilty for abandoning Alex to a potentially hostile situation once again, positioned herself just behind him, standing over him, ready to defend him if things escalated again. "Of course the guys tried to put the moves on me, but I'd bat them down as quickly as they'd try anything. I didn't want sex to confuse the issues between us, so I never let it come between us, even if I had to do it physically. There were many times I'd back some guy at the gym against the wall, ready to punch him out if he didn't back off. However, I also didn't want that to impact my life, and being around guys all the time, I started thinking like they did, so I started seeking out some male companionship on the side, with people other than my friends. "When I joined the military I thought I'd found my home. They pushed me, they trained me, and they represented a world view I could understand, and I did well. However, as I'm sure you know, they aren't terribly open. I'd wanted to join the Special Forces, but they don't allow women into those areas. "I was sent to Afghanistan, where I excelled enough that I was paired up, unofficially, with several special forces units. Although I wasn't warmly welcomed, they soon realized I had a knack for anticipating trouble, so they came to rely on me." "Sounds like Caity," Cate commented as an aside. Alex quickly waved her comment aside, not wanting her to distract Gini from her tale, since this seemed to be so important to her that they needed to hear it out, but Gini was already distracted. "You know Caity?" she asked. "She's good people. Like me, she exists in a man's world. But unlike me, she's managed to save her femininity, while I've gone in the other direction. I respect her. She's not afraid to stand her ground, and she's seen some trouble." "Yeah, we... ," Cate started to explain until she noticed Alex glaring at her, so she quickly fell silent. Noticing her reaction, Gini tried to see what Alex's reaction was, but she couldn't see anything besides his glare. "Here, this might help," Robin said, stepping up beside her and pulling her phone from her pocket. She pointed it at Alex and took a quick photo of him, then showed it to Gini. "Thanks, that does help. It's hard to know how to react to a brilliant glare." "There are tricks you can use," Gail advised her. "But we'll get to that in good time. Go on." "Anyway, the guys in my unit figured out that I'd know when things were likely to get messy, so they started to listen to me. That went well, as they started to treat me better, but it had its downside as well." The other girls nodded at this, easily able to imagine just what those downsides were. "During my stretch in Afghanistan, I changed how I reacted to the guys around me. Figuring we were all on the same side, and that I couldn't very well find anyone else while I was in a foreign country, I started sleeping around with the guys in my unit. I wasn't looking for anything serious, but I was looking to let off steam. And it worked well for a while, since the guys opened up to me more after that. "But that started to wear thin. The guys became guarded. They started giving me names. Like 'Lucky', 'Gifted', 'Clover', or more likely, 'Horse', short for horseshoe, or even 'Bwitch', which was a combination between Witch and ... well, you can guess the rest." Alex and the others felt for her, having an inkling what that must have felt like, but they didn't think they could honestly relate to it closely enough to offer their own opinions on the subject. "Excuse me," Robin asked, "but, Gail, could you explain to me how to do that telepathy thing?" 'It's not quite as easy as that, ' Alex answered her telepathically, 'but here you are, just talk to her like I'm doing to you now, and she'll hear everything you say.' 'Alex is correct, ' Gail told her. 'It's a little complicated, because you're technically only able to initiate communication with Alex. You have to go through him to reach anyone else. But you don't have to worry about it, once you get used to it, you can do it whenever you want and he won't listen in. He's gotten quite good at tuning out the other conversations in his head. Personally I don't know how he does it, as his head must sound like an angry beehive with all the conversations taking place in the back of his head.' 'I'm sure that will be an interesting discussion, ' Robin replied, 'but right now I want you to tell me how to interpret the various things I see flashing across Gini's, uh, aura.' 'Ah, that I can do, though for now I'll simply describe what she'd feeling, rather than trying to train you from scratch.' That little telepathic exchange took place both quickly and silently, so it didn't disturb the rest. Gini managed to resume where she'd left off. "Whenever I'd catch them calling me that to my face, I'd usually bend them over the bar, threatening them with a bottle. They stopped calling me those things directly, but I knew they continued to behind my back. "It turned out that while I saved their necks time and again, they felt I was at fault for not saving them each and every time, and they suspected that I wasn't so much good luck as I was a lightning rod for bad luck. Despite our unit having a tremendous record for successes and an outstanding reputation, everyone started to recoil from me. "And they weren't alone. I started to internalize the very same feelings. I began to take each injury, each death, personally. As If I'd led them to it and then couldn't protect them from the very dangers I'd warned them about. As we started to lose more and more people to either hospitalization stateside or death, I started retreating from the others as they did from me. Pretty soon it was me against everyone else." "See, Alex, that's what comes from this obsession you have with—" Cate started to tell Alex before he quickly shut her up with a quick hand motion. Alex was well aware of the parallels between them. How she saw her role as protecting each and everyone in her unit, while he saw himself as being responsible for each of his followers. He too knew it wasn't realistic, but it was a hard tendency to fight. But he didn't want to get distracted by that discussion now. There would be plenty of time to discuss that later. Now, he wanted to know what it did to her. He'd already begun to accept Robin's view of their situation, even after the short time they'd been together. "This happened over a long time, of course," Gini continued. "It was over several tours in Afghanistan, yet each time, things were changing stateside as well. Each time I'd return, people would treat me differently. I now had no female friends, and now the guys who I used to hang out with, my 'Army buddies', no longer wanted to be around me. So instead of turning to strange men as a release, I started cutting them off, not wanting to be cut off when they rejected me, just as the guys in my own unit cut me off when I was saving their damn lives." Gini didn't look pleased as she recounted these details, but Alex recognized she needed to deal with this on her own basis. He didn't know if it would help, and he figured she'd probably already talked about it plenty before then, but he figured it was important for him to hear, especially since she'd offered it up so freely, even when she'd been so guarded about him to begin with. It was then that Alex idly wondered where everyone else was. He quickly glanced around and saw no sign of the others, the members of Patricia's band that were traveling with them. He couldn't imagine them still sitting on the can, or buying enough to keep them busy for this long, but Gini demanded his attention as she continued with her tale, so he couldn't worry about it then. "It was during my last couple of tours that things came to a head. Things at home had become rough. My family claimed I was 'different', and they didn't feel comfortable exposing their children to me, and I was getting into more fights than normal, even though people avoided me most of the time. "Overseas, the missions got more and more difficult, as we were called upon time and again to accomplish what the other units just couldn't do as well as we could. I stopped sleeping, I stopped socializing, and I'd fly off the handle at the smallest provocation. Finally, after one difficult mission, one where I lost three men, this officer from another unit walked by, making a smarmy comment about my unit having trouble as a result of my practicing witchcraft in a religious based country. Well, that was just too much. I took the man down and beat some sense into him. It took over a dozen men to pull me off of him, and when they did he scampered off like a frightened rabbit, but the damage was done. I was immediately shipped back home to San Antonio for 'medical observation'. "They kept me there for a long time, trying to figure out why I had so much trouble 'coping', as if they could understand something they'd never experienced themselves. Not only had none of the civilians ever been exposed to combat, even the other soldiers hadn't experienced it to the degree that I had. None of them had ever had to deal with this physical sensation of oncoming trouble like I had, and they couldn't understand why I felt so responsible for being unable to protect the people around me from things they saw as being 'outside of my control'. But I knew better. I knew what was coming, and I tried as hard as I could to protect everyone, but I'd been unable to shield them enough. "As a result I simply stopped talking about it. I stopped going home. I stopped going to the bars with my Army buddies, and I stopped talking to the idiot shrinks. That was when I met Caity, and for some strange reason we hit it off. She was my first 'girlfriend' in ages, but even she wasn't able to help me much. "Eventually they declared that I was 'unfit for continued military service' and put me out of the service. Although I was invaluable to them overseas, my having slugged an officer just wasn't forgivable. I got a nice disability settlement, but I had no intention of doing anything else. Because I had enough to live on, I stayed on at the Brooke Medical Center, but when I felt you arrive a couple of weeks back I knew what that feeling you brought meant. While I didn't feel threatened by you personally, I knew that I only felt those things when terrible things were about to happen, and given how strong the feelings from you were, I didn't want to wait around and see what happened. So I packed up and took off." "So you've been living out here on your own ever since?" Robin asked. "Yeah, the military trained me to live off the land, and surviving in the hills in Afghanistan without being able to rely on any of the locals makes living in the desert by myself a piece of cake. And I feel better living without anyone around me. I can take care of myself, and I don't have to worry about protecting anyone, or how they're going to respond to me." "Do you have dreams? Panic attacks? Flashbacks to your combat experiences?" Alex asked. "Duh! Of course I do. Why do you think they shoved me out of the Army? While what I did to that officer was bad, they didn't think I was safe to be around anyone else either. But their response was to have me talk to a whole string of doctors who had no idea of what I was experiencing. Personally, I couldn't see that helping someone like me." "Look, I've had some success with a few things that other doctors haven't been able to deal with, and I also talked to both Caity and Dr. Ryan at the Brooke Army Medical Facility, and we discussed this very topic. Right now, I think we need to get out of here before we attract any more attention, and I suspect the other girls would like to get back in here with us, or else they'll all be visiting the little girls' rooms again. If you don't mind, how about if you take us to your little mountain hideaway and we can see whether I can help you." Gini just looked at him, but once again couldn't figure out just how serious he was, and also couldn't see what his attitude was either. "I'll explain how to interpret those visions you have now. If nothing else, that'll help you learn how to evaluate people, which will help you in the future," Gail offered. That, more than anything else, made up her mind. She was so used to training to increase her fighting efficiency, and with always wanting to be better so she could better protect herself and those around her, that the idea of more training with a whole new set of tools was more than she could resist. "You've got a deal. Let me get my motorcycle and I'll lead you there. But be warned, though, you'll have trouble getting this monstrosity there. It's well off the road, off in the hills where no one goes." "I'm well familiar with the back country around here," Robin assured her. "I also don't think there's any need to take a bunch of people with us," Alex told her. "If you're not comfortable with people, having all of us invading your private space won't make you feel any more comfortable. We've got a car hooked on the back, and while it's not exactly a back country vehicle, I think if we drive carefully we can make it there safely." He turned to the others, issuing a set of commands. "Gail, you, Robin and I will follow her out. Cate, as much as I know you want to come along, I think you'd do better here." "The hell I will," she positively hissed at him. "Alex, no one know your health issues like I do, and no one is better at covering all the details in these girls' educations like I do. I'm coming along as much to protect you from yourself as I am helping Gini here. If you want me to stay outside once we get there, that's fine. But I'm going to stock up on supplies for you before we go, because I have a very bad feeling you're talking about spending a long time away from modern conveniences like food and water, and if you're going to be stressing yourself, you're going to be needing a LOT of supplies." Alex simply nodded that he could accept that, so everyone started making plans. Alex and Gail got out to unhook his car, while Robin accompanied Gini to her bike to get it ready. Alex didn't know how long it would take, but it looked like Robin was correct. Her little roadrunner spirit guide had drawn them all here at this one moment for him to help Gini, though he didn't know how long it would take or what it would involve. ------- Chapter 38: Experimental Therapy under the Gun The small car careened as it struggled to keep on the rocky trail behind the zippier motorcycle. "Tell her how she can read emotions from the outer rim—Ouch—of people's auras," Cate suggested, straining to hold herself upright. "Already covered. Right now I'm leaving it up ... to the girls back in Carbondale to explain about that," Alex informed her, bracing himself in place. "How the hell can she concentrate—Ooph—on talking while she's driving through this mess?" "I guess she's used to it," Alex guessed. "Don't worry, I'll get you there, but it's not going to be easy," Gail assured them. She'd volunteered to drive, having learned how to handle extreme driving in her training for the Police Department, a talent that certainly came in handy now. "It'll be easier on the way back, but I've got to keep up or else we risk losing her." "Forget that shit," Cate opined. "Let her get lost. You and Alex can talk to her wherever she goes, anyway." Neither one reacted to that last statement, but they both realized this was as much a test as anything else. Gini wanted to see how they'd handle the rough environment. As such, they didn't want to risk whether she'd even respond if they lost her. "I'll say this, though, I'm sure glad I peed before we left," Cate continued, as she tried to hold herself steady in the back seat beside Robin, who strangely didn't seem to be as bothered by the chaotic drive as the rest were. They'd turned off the highway a short distance from Billy D's place, heading into the higher desert regions nearby. But that had taken them completely off the established roads. The only thing that made the rough ground they were on manageable was the scattered signs of old motorcycle tracks, but even those were obscured by the dust the motorcycle ahead of them was kicking up. 'I'd have thought you'd have had a Harley, ' Alex told Gini, curious about her choice in bikes. 'Wouldn't a bigger bike be better in this terrain? After all, you're certainly big enough to handle a bike that large.' 'Ha, don't insult me. A Harley is like a Cadillac, it turns like an aircraft carrier. It's what you ride if you want to impress your friends. I've got enough strength for both me and the bike. What I'm interested in is the responsiveness in these little Japanese bikes.' 'Yeah, but aren't they more likely to clog and fail from the elements?' 'Ah, so the little one isn't so sheltered after all, ' Gini responded, not sounding like she was being thrown around like they were. Despite speaking telepathically, Alex wasn't sure his 'voice' was coming across quite as well. 'I take it you didn't get a good look at my bike. It's a specially constructed model, made for high speed back country racing. It's designed to stand up to abuse, and it's got amazing shocks. But you're right, I spend hours after every trip stripping and cleaning all my parts. The dust gets into everything, and I can't afford to have my machine fail on me.' 'Well, speaking of dust getting into everything, at least you're in the lead. You're kicking up enough grit that we can't see a thing, and I'm not quite as good at stripping third hand cars. You may have to drive us out so we can call Triple A.' 'The hell with that, ' Gini responded with a laugh. 'There's no way Triple A could ever get back here.' Alex just groaned as the right tire went airborne momentarily, only to crash back to the earth a moment later, knocking them around that much harder. He hoped his own shocks survived this trip. He figured if they didn't, they might be able to make it out without them, but it would mean at least another several days stuck out here in the desert. 'Is it much farther? Mind you, I'm only asking because I haven't been able to see the hills for a long time because of the dust.' 'No, it isn't much farther. I picked this spot because it was relatively easy to reach, ' Gini responded. Alex almost cursed at that response, but managed to bite his tongue before he did, even though that wasn't his plan as much as it was his being thrown against the side of the car once again. They managed to see a dim red glow appearing in the dust ahead of them, so Gail slowly applied the brakes. Seeing Gini sitting ahead of them, Gail drove around to park beside her so they wouldn't block her in, as if you could actually do so in the middle of the open desert. Everyone took a few moments to settle themselves before they attempted to climb out of the car, and when they did, they found the doors hard to open because of the jostling the old car had undergone. When they climbed out, Gini was wordlessly smiling at their discomfort, but Gail didn't seem any less smug. "You did well for yourself, Gail. I'm not sure you'd survive out here for long, but you managed to do yourself justice." "I was never trained to live like a flea clinging to the back of an ass," Gail shot back. "Put me in the inner-city and I can go toe to toe with the best of them. But I still prefer flushing toilets and a comfortable bed to hold my girlfriend at night after I'm finished." "There is that," Gini conceded. "I don't have that much to worry about. If I did, I'd have lost him or her a long, long time ago," she admitted resignedly. "This is where you live?" Cate asked, glancing around in disbelief. All there was, nestled against the face of a cliff, was a single small tent, a couple cases wedged in position, and what looked like a folding shovel marking a latrine off to one side. Cate felt herself shivering as she considered living like this for any period of time. She'd thought she'd been 'roughing it' traveling across country by car for the past several weeks. "This is it. And actually, I consider this more luxury than I really need. I'd be just as happy sleeping on the ground, lodged against the rocks." "Ah, you've got a nice clean stream running beside you coming from the hill above us," Robin observed, taking in what the rest of them missed. "You're also sheltered from the afternoon sun, and this dip just before the cliff wall means you don't have to worry about the wind." "Ah, a woman after my own heart," Gini said with clear admiration in her voice. "You get what I'm doing here." "Aye, I can see it. But I choose to endure this only for short periods, as a balance against the distractions of everyday life. I'm not sure I understand your wanting to live like this all the time." "Yeah, well, I figure if I'm going to stay here much longer I'll probably try to put up a little cabin, just so it'll be more secure in a storm. Though I'll probably just use it as a home base to store my supplies if I do, as I like to wander around the countryside." "Have you observed many animals nearby?" Robin asked. "Yeah, how do you think I survive out here so long?" Gini responded with a question of her own. Robin looked horrified. "You do realize there's only a limited amount of livestock around here, that if you kill too many animals, you won't be able to fend for yourself anymore. This is a very delicate ecosystem." "Yeah, don't get your panties in a bunch. I'm careful, and I make sure I spread out my kills when I do take something," Gini said, getting a little defensive at someone calling her survival skills into question. "So do you have someplace we can work?" Alex asked. "We'll have to work out how we'll do this. I don't know whether it will be easier to work sitting up or lying down, but I suspect it'll take a while, so I'd figure on resting." Gail simply shook her head at this. She'd been with Alex when he'd treated the people at the Brooke center, and he hadn't been able to do anything for the mTBI patients. Yeah, they'd been impressed, but he'd told them it was only a temporary fix, that the energy applied wasn't fixing anything, just clearing their minds temporarily, making them operate more efficiently, but that it wouldn't last very long. While he may be able to make her feel more in control of her life, the effects would be short term only, and then she'd be back in the same position. That seemed crueler to inflict on someone than simply letting them deal with their problems themselves. However, she knew better than to question Alex's approach, especially in front of his newest followers. "The tent's the best bet," Gini suggested. "If you have any blankets or jackets you'll probably need them, as the tent only has the basics in it." "Gail, see if you can find the blanket in the back. I'll bring in the cooler with Alex's food," Cate said as Alex followed Gini to the smallish tent. "So, what kind of a name is 'Gini'?" he asked. "Short for Virginia, or something?" "Or something," Gini answered. "Actually it's short for Genevieve, which I got from my Italian grandfather. I was never that fond of the name, so I simply shortened it. It's unique, it's short, and it's easy to call out if you're in trouble and having difficulty speaking, so it's ideal for the kinds of things that I do," she said as she unzipped the tent and climbed in. Alex climbed in after her. The inside of the test was as sparse as the outside, but it was also as carefully laid out. There were supplies around the edges, where they could be quickly accessed, but there were no personal effects aside from a dream catcher hanging from the ceiling, another large feather likewise suspended, and a dangling claw of some kind. He did notice a small photo album among other books under the sleeping bag, which he assumed contained her few personal photos. At least she had a good collection of reading material. "So what are you planning on doing?" she asked Alex guardedly as Cate came in, already making the little tent more crowded than was comfortable. Cate dragged her cooler in with her. "I don't think I need any more 'talk therapy', and the doctors said they couldn't do anything for me medically." "No, I'm going to take a different approach. While I was in San Antonio with Caity we discussed mTBI cases, which is what I suspect you have, and she laid out some ideas that I'd like to try. But first I'd just like to give your brain a simple little energy bath. It won't hurt, and it should allow you to think more clearly, which should help." "Well, if it won't do any damage, OK. But if you try to fuck with my head you won't like how it ends," she warned him. "But yeah, TBI is what they classified my injuries as, though they said it was probably more psychological than from any real combat injuries." "OK, I've been warned. I don't think the difference between head injuries and 'battle fatigue' will affect how I plan to treat it. Now just sit and relax," Alex said, as he moved behind her and put his hands against the sides of her head. "Gail, I think you're needed in here," Cate called out. She recognized there wasn't room for them all, so she climbed back out, heading for the car where she was planning on catching some Z's. "I think she's setting up a peripheral guard," Robin teased. "I'll head in. I got a quick overview on what to look for, and I can talk to Allison and Liv, so they'll cover anything that I don't know yet. Don't worry about us." "Just make sure to keep an eye on Alex. If he tries too much, he's likely to get weak fast, and you'll need to have food ready, otherwise he'll be useless for the next several hours," Cate warned as she headed for the car, though she stopped to admire Gini's motorcycle before she did. It was indeed one sexy little vehicle, even as covered in dust as it was. Robin scampered quickly into the open tent, making sure to zip the opening closed to keep the drifting dust out. She observed what Alex had already started on, nodding that he seemed to be applying a good overall flow as she got her water bottles out. She tossed him some of her beef jerky, thinking it would serve him better than eating a candy bar after he got in trouble. Gini was surprised that Alex stopped whatever he was doing almost immediately, and frankly, she didn't think he'd actually done anything. He hadn't even touched her, and he hadn't been there long enough to have done anything. For as powerful as she could both see and feel him to be, she wondered if he was just humoring her. "How do you feel?" he asked as he sat down in front of her again, just enough to the side so that Robin could get a clear view of her. Gini cocked her head considering his question. She sat still for a second and then shook her head a little, as if unsure of her response. "Shit, what the fuck did you do to me?" she asked, turning to regard him, only having to look away once again. "My head is clearer than it's been in a long time. I feel like I did when I was a kid back in Boot Camp." "It's temporary, but it should last long enough for you to help with your own treatment. I need you to be at your best. Now, this is where it gets interesting, and where it's going to take a long time. I'm going to ask you to simply run through your memories and think about a whole variety of different things. What I'm looking for are either positive or negative memories. But I'm especially interested when you hit anything that brings up memories of the war. So anything that causes a panic response, or that makes you think you're back in Afghanistan, let me know immediately, OK?" Gini simply nodded so he continued. "When you have a positive thought, just hold up your index finger. It doesn't matter when it occurs, or what you're thinking. If we're asleep, just kick me and I'll look to see what you're trying to tell me. Don't bother to tell me what you're thinking, as the act of trying to put it into words might cause your brain to shift focus." "You're going to be here overnight?" she asked guardedly. "Oh, yes. I suspect we may be here for quite a few days. If you don't have enough supplies for us, we may have to let Gail take your bike to get more, but to do that you'll have to promise not to kill me until she gets back, OK?" Alex teased. She grinned, his off-beat sense of humor appealing to her. This was the kind of thing they'd teased each other with in the Army. "Now, if you have a negative thought, hold up your second finger, and if you have a combat related memory, especially a negative memory which conjures up a fight or flight response, hold your whole palm open. Those are going to be our bread and butter. That's what I'm here to try to cope with." "This doesn't sound like any medically approved treatment that I've ever heard of," Gini warily told him. "Actually, it was suggested to me by Caity, and she claimed it was based on the latest research and has been borne out by experience, but that it's very hard to get without specialized treatment." "Oh, sure, I've had doctors ask me to visualize things before, but usually they'd describe something then ask me how I felt about it, which didn't seem to do much besides entertain the shrink. Somehow I don't think you're doing the same thing." "Oh, I'm not," Alex responded, before he turned to Robin. "Say, this jerky is actually fairly good. It's tough, but it's got a unique taste. What is it?" "It's bear meat. Try this one, it's snake. You might find it more palatable, as it's tenderer than the bear. And don't forget to keep drinking. It's easy to dehydrate out here in the desert, even if you don't think you're exposed," she instructed. Gini wordless raised her index figure, so Alex leaned over and placed his hand near her head for a second. "Hey, that's nice. I'll have to try to have more of those." "That's the whole idea," Alex told her. "So what happens when I have a negative thought? You smack me upside the head?" "Hey, I could never hit someone as pretty as you, 'cause if I did you'd likely beat the crap out of me. No, I'll apply a similar approach." Curious, Gini raised her second finger. "Is that real, or are you testing me?" Alex asked. Before she could respond Robin did. "It looks like it's pure curiosity. I don't know how to read individual thoughts, but it doesn't look like she's being straightforward." "Damn, human lie detectors," Gini said, smiling. "There's no way to use your ability to read minds, but you can use them to figure out what someone's underlying motives are, just like you did," Alex told her. "You're learning quite well." "Well, don't congratulate me too soon. It was Alison that told me what it meant." "Still, you're getting the hang of this pretty quickly. Tell Alison hi for me, will you," he replied with a smile of his own. "She says 'hi', and that she's glad that someone is including her in your newest experiment." Alex simply replied by sticking his tongue out at her, but just then Gini held up her second finger again. This time, instead of questioning her, Alex held his hand near her head, where she couldn't see it, after having spoken briefly to Robin telepathically. "Whoa? That's not what I was expecting. What the hell did you do to me? It feels like I just lost a dozen IQ points," Gini complained. "Just wait until you have a flashback," Alex warned her as he settled back, reaching for the nearby water bottle. This was going to be a long process. Since it had never been tried before, he had no idea how long it would take, or even whether it would work or not, but it was worth trying, and he knew that Caity and Lists would be anxious to hear how well it worked, and it was the only way he could think of improving Gini's life. He just couldn't bear the idea of her living the rest of her life in isolation, hiding from the rest of humanity. ------- "OW!" Robin sat upright, not knowing what was happening. She'd learned over the years to sleep lightly, rousing at the most subtle of environmental changes, but she hadn't been awakened before Alex had cried out. As she regarded him, he was already reaching up to Gini's head. 'Are you sure you should be doing that?' Robin asked, worried about what he appeared to be doing. 'No, I'm not sure about what I'm doing, but it's the only way I can see to achieve what I need to do. But make sure you watch me. I need to do this in a very controlled manner so I don't inflict any damage. Let me know if I drain too much from any one area, and watch the surrounding tissue. We don't need any collateral damage here.' That response, while hardly comforting, reassured her. Gini never said anything, but Robin could see the wild look she'd had in her eyes was quickly fading, and now she looked much calmer. "Thanks. I was just about to slit your throat when I remember your finger symbol. Then I had to make sure you were awake, so to make sure you weren't really an Al Qaeda member, I kicked you a little harder than I really needed to." "While I can understand the sentiment, next time, don't try to incapacitate me quite so much. I'm hardly able to hold my hand up to do the procedure." "Hey, don't whine. You only need to hold it up for a second. If you really were an insurgent, a simple kick like that wouldn't likely have stopped you, and I'd have given you enough time to either shoot me or to set off an explosive. I figure I must be doing better already." "Well, I can see why your Army buddies stopped sleeping with you, then," Alex responded. "It's hardly the ideal way to cap a romantic interlude." "OK, it seems to have worked. My brain feels like cotton candy, but I'm not longer feeling panicky. Can I go back to sleep now?" Gini asked. "No, this is the first flashback we've had when you were ready to strike out. Think about associated memories, especially when this has happened in the past, and see if it triggers anything." So it was a while before any of them fell asleep again. Cate never noticed a thing, softly snoring in the back seat of the car, but Gail woke up, noticing the sudden glow of anger coming from the tent before it faded. It took all her self control to keep from reacting instinctively, but she relied on her trust of Alex to overcome her fear of what Gini might be capable of. She was happy when the intense glow quickly faded, first turning into a duller shade of the same color, and then fading away entirely. He must be doing something right in there, she told herself before she finally settled down again. She just wished that someone had suggested she bring her own sleeping bag. She reminded herself she could have slept in the front seat of the car, but the hard ground was easier to deal with than Cate's snore. She didn't know how Alex and the others put up with it, but then she figured she wasn't normally like that. It was probably just her reaction to all the dust in the air. ------- 'Hey, girl, are you awake yet?' 'Whoa? Oh, yeah, I guess so. I'm guessing this is Alex?' 'Yeah, who else would it be?' 'Oh, I can think of any number of people right off the bat. Gail, Allison, Liv, Shani, but not Cate or Becky.' 'OK, point taken, but I thought you'd have recognized my telepathic voice, at least?' he asked. 'Oh, I did, but I was just so surprised I didn't have time to think my response all the way through. But, since you asked, yeah I'm up, but I'm not used to people speaking in my head when I'm out for my morning run.' 'You always run before dawn?' Alex asked. 'It's the best time, especially if you don't want to fight with several hundred competing soldiers, ' Caity answered. 'Hey, I have some interesting news for you. I've met an old friend of yours, and I've been trying some interesting things with her.' 'Alex, I told you, I'm waiting until I meet the man I'm going to marry, so I don't need you describing your sexual shenanigans while supposedly boosting people, ' she responded. 'No, no, it's nothing like that. It's Gini, Genevieve Connolly. We ran across her here in the middle of the desert in northern Arizona.' 'Really?' Caity asked, slowing down her pace as she considered what that meant. 'I was worried about whatever happened to her. She disappeared just about the time you showed up. She simply didn't show up for her treatment, and no one's ever heard from her again. Is she OK?' 'She's fine. It turns out she's another Seer like you. When she felt me approaching San Antonio, she took off, but I'll let her explain it to you personally when she's ready to talk about it. Right now I wanted to let you know what I'm trying with her.' 'And it doesn't involving boosting anyone?' Caity asked again, just to be sure. She'd had enough trouble not giving up on her principles when he'd been in town. She really didn't need him putting ideas in her head now that he was no longer there. 'No. I'm treating her. I'm trying what you suggested. Giving specific areas of her brain an immediate treatment based upon what she's thinking about and how she's responding to it.' 'Really? That sounds intriguing. You'll have to tell me about it in detail, but before you do, how's it working out?' 'So far so good. She seems to be making steady progress. I'm not sure we're quite out of the woods yet, but she seems more even tempered than she was, and she's reaching out to those around her more already.' 'Wow, that IS amazing. Last I saw her, she was a real mess. She was about ready to give up on humanity. I didn't think it would be long until she did herself in. When she disappeared I had base security search her place. They didn't find anything, though. She'd packed everything up and moved out overnight.' 'Yeah, she told me all about that. I just wanted to let you know so you could tell Lists what we're up to. Anyway, I've got to go. She just had another negative response, so I've got to treat it. After that we're going to have an early morning breakfast watching the sun rise over a beautiful Arizona mountainscape. It's really beautiful. I'll talk to you later." And with that he was gone as suddenly as he'd appeared in her mind. ------- "So how'd it go last night?" Cate asked between yawns, scratching her ass as she approached the camp fire. Gail just rolled her eyes. "You've been spending too long with your brother. You're losing all your sex appeal." "Ha, I never had any. Remember, I've always been more interested in studying than flirting. And since we both act the same, he can't complain when I do the same things he does." "Hey, I've always said being sexy is over rated," Gini said. "I learned a long time ago, the best way to attract men's attention is to casually mention you've been out shooting. As soon as they hear that, they'll flock to you like flies to shit." "Really?" Cate asked, surprised to learn something about human interaction she hadn't read first in a book. "Yeah, guys are so surprised to find a woman interested in something that they're interested in, they go nuts. After that, all you need to do is mention you like bikes, comment on the latest football scores and you're in like Flynn." "I'll keep that in mind," Alex said. "Alex, it's going to take more than that to keep some guy from wanting to shoot you," Gail warned him, which made him smile in response. "So you never answered my question. How'd it go last night?" "Actually, as much as I was dreading getting involved with this, and as little success as the doctors had, it went really well," Gini responded. "My mind is clear, I'm feeling much more social, and I don't mind a bunch of strangers eating all my food." "You've also been glaring at me much less today, and your mouth isn't quite as sharp either," Gail observed. "But in case you're interested, the bit about guns works with women as well. Maybe not as well, but I don't think it's so much a shared interest as it is just a unique situation." "You got many bullets on you? Maybe we could try some target practice?" Gini offered as an attempt to mend fences with Gail. "You got a target?" Gail asked. "Sure, the rock over there is 50 feet, the cactus behind it is close to 25 yards, fairly standard distances." "You've got all the amenities here, don't you?" Gail teased. "Speaking of amenities, how do you use the commode without flashing your butt at everyone?" Cate asked. "You make sure you wake up before everyone else," Robin answered simply. "Hey, half of us have seen your ass often enough, and while I doubt the new girls will be overly interested, I doubt they'll be shocked by it," Gail noted. "What about you, Alex? You ever tried shooting a pistol?" Gini asked. "Nope. Never really saw a need. I was never a threat to anyone before, and now I've got Gail to do all my shooting for me." "Aren't you interested in what it's like? Don't you have the typical guy's competitive drive?" "Alex, competitive?" Cate scoffed. "He was on the gymnastics team but never really competed. He's almost as smart as I am, but he doesn't compete on his grades, although you wouldn't know it for how he's been acting lately," she said as an aside to Gail, who nodded in acknowledgment. "Hey," he complained. He paused a moment before adding a specific objection, then meekly added, "I like competition, as long as it's something interesting." "Uh, are you sure it's wise to ... uh..." Cate said, unable to figure out how to delicately finish the sentence without insulting the woman with the gun and the unsteady temper. "Hey, I'm perfectly capable of learning to shoot a gun," Alex responded, assuming Cate's objections were based on his lack of physical coordination. "Sure, come stand over here," Gini said, leaving the cactus leaves she was grilling before she mixed in the eggs she'd just bought at Billy D's. "I'll get you a smaller sized pistol." She started to walk off when Alex mistakenly stepped on a branch that had fallen off the nearby firewood pile. Gini spun around instantly, drawing a pistol Alex hadn't even been aware she'd been carrying and pointed it right at his chest. Alex stepped back a half step in fright, but when she didn't fire he looked at her face, and saw her eyes were flicking back and forth, as if she was searching for a hidden combatant. No longer thinking of himself, Alex calmly walked up to her. "Alex, it's not safe approaching someone experiencing a..." Gail tried to warn him, but gave it up after she saw he wasn't paying any attention. Alex was carefully watching Gini's reaction as he approached her. Her eyes continued to switch back and forth, looking for whatever had triggered her reaction, but her gun never left his chest. When he got close to her, he reached up and placed his hands on either side of her head. She flinched back, raising the run higher, pointing it at his face, but she'd pulled her hands back, so her arms were now crooked. Alex held his hands there for only a moment and then backed away. She didn't lower her gun, but she was no longer aiming it directly at him. She shook her head then tried to look at him again. "Thanks. I'm sorry, I... ," she said before Alex approached her again, despite the fact she was still holding the gun unintentionally pointing at his head. He reached up again, this time with only one hand, just holding it before her forehead before pulling back again. "Wow, it's surprising that works so well. I'd thought that approach would have taken much longer to work," Robin said. "Me too. Frankly, it shouldn't have," Cate commented. "How do you feel? Do you feel ... stable?" Gail asked. No one had noticed, but she quietly placed her own pistol she'd pulled when Gini had drawn hers, back into its hidden holster behind her back. She'd been afraid to point it at her, for fear the sight of another gun might make her lose it altogether. "Yeah, when I heard the ... gunshot, I ... sort of freaked out. I thought I was back overseas. I saw Alex, glowing like the sun, which fit in with my image of the desert over there, but I couldn't figure out where the threat was coming from, so I kept my gun pointing in the direction of the glare, assuming whoever was threatening me was hidden by the sun. If anything unexpected had happened, I might have..." She let her words trail off, afraid to say what she'd come so close to doing. "Do you really think it's safe putting yourself in this position when so many people..." Cate stopped speaking when Alex glared at her. "She needs this, and she won't feel secure in herself until we complete this treatment," Alex insisted. "How about if we, uh, put all the guns down for the moment," Gail suggested. "After all, if anyone attacks us, I've got us covered." "Uh, yeah, that makes sense," Gini responded, carefully placing the gun on the ground and stepping away from it, still nervous about what she'd almost done. Robin walked up from the far side, reaching down and taking the gun, taking it with her as she returned to the fire, not willing to take the risk of putting it back in Gini's tent. "I'm really sorry, Alex," Gini said, rubbing her arms to hide the fact her hands were shaking. "It's not like I don't know something is wrong when it happens. I know it doesn't make sense. That's why I was so skittish. I was trying to deal with a life or death situation while reminding myself it's probably not real. But I was thrown off by my inability to see there was no threat." "Hey, don't worry. It's part of the process. I expected a few setbacks, but I needed to be here for the actual flashbacks as well as the minor unpleasant memories. Now let's see about getting that breakfast started." ------- Everyone jumped when someone knocked on the door. They'd been sitting around, trying to keep themselves entertained while worrying about Alex and the others. They'd been gone for quite some time, and they had no idea what had been happening. He'd told Patricia they were going to be a 'couple of days', but that was all they knew. Sammy got up to answer the door, since, as the only guy, they felt more secure that way. He opened the door and saw another Native American guy, much younger this time. "Excuse me, Billy D suggested you might know where Robin is? I came to give her a lift back home." "Uh, we haven't heard from her for a while, we're... ," Sammy said before finally sighing and turning around. "Patty?" "I'll talk to him," she said simply. With that Sammy turned back to their new guest. "Want to come in? We've been waiting for them, and it's probably more comfortable in here than it is outside." Before the younger man could respond, Patricia spoke up. "He says they're on their—" "Hey, is that a motorcycle I hear?" Jordan asked, leaning forward. Chelsea got up and moved to the front of the bus where she could see out the window, but before she could see anything a small dusty motorcycle with two riders pulled up. "Looking for someone?" Alex asked. "Yeah, where the hell have you been?" Erica demanded, sounding upset as everyone surged to the door. Their new guest backed up, letting them all cluster around Alex and Gini as they got off her motorcycle and brushed themselves off. "Is Robin with you?" the new guy asked. "She's on her way, we left them behind 'cause they weren't keen to drive as fast as we were," Gini answered as she took her helmet off. "Oh," he answered simply, stepping away to observe the others and patiently wait. "Do Gail and Cate know you're riding that thing?" Patricia asked, arching her eyebrow. "Nah, we kind of left them in the dust," Alex confessed. "We didn't think they'd appreciate it, so we didn't exactly stop to ask how they felt about it," Gini added. "Well you seem to be in a better mood," Patricia observed, watching Gini smiling at everyone. "Hey, blame your friend with his 'magic hands'," she answered. "So is that what took you so long?" Mac asked, actually curious what they'd been up to. "Nah, it was nothing like that. I didn't fool around with or boost anyone. This was all therapy," Alex informed them. "Well, you do realize that we're way behin—" "That's OK, Erica, I contacted everyone and told them he was delayed," Patricia informed her before she could say any more. "What are we late for? I thought we had several unscheduled days until the concert in Vegas on Friday and Saturday?" Alex asked. "We, uh... , say, did you talk to Cate about what her, uh, plans for the next several days are?" Erica asked, nervously shuffling her feet, afraid to meet his eyes. "No, she didn't mention anything. What's up?" "Uh, nothing. She'd mentioned something, but I guess it can wait," she replied. Alex simply shrugged, handing Gini her spare helmet back. "By the way, Gini, if you were up here hiding away from everyone, why do you keep spare helmets around?" "Oh, that's easy. Even if I don't trust myself around people, I'm not likely to turn away a friend, a fellow vet, or someone in distress. Think of it as my being a solider, I'm always prepared for any circumstance. While I don't plan on certain things, I know I need to keep certain things available in case they're necessary." "Good enough," Alex conceded. "And thanks for the ride. It was fun. I doubt Gail will let me try that again, but it was a blast." "You're probably right about that," she agreed. "I get the distinct impression she doesn't trust me, but I know what I'm doing behind a bike. I don't take chances. Even if I had a flashback, which is unlikely, I'd put the bike down carefully before I tried to do anything else." "You really don't have to explain," Alex told her. "I understand. Don't worry about Gail. While she doesn't trust you, I do, and she'll follow my lead." "So, to follow up on my initial question, how are you doing, Gini?" Patricia asked her again. "Oh, I'm much better, as you can tell from my cheerful disposition," she replied smiling. "I was terrified of people before, never sure when I'd go off on someone, but Alex has really helped settle my mind." "We aren't finished yet," Alex added, "so she'll be traveling with us for a while. I need access to her so I can react to whatever she experiences. I need to be there whenever she has a flashback. I've almost got this beat, but the last 5% is always the most difficult." "Uh, how long is she going to be with us, then?" Erica asked, glancing at her nervously. "Yeah, remember, we're already pretty crowded as it is between all of you, our instruments and all of Cate's damn mice," Sammy reminded him. Just then Alex's little car pulled into the garage's parking lot, skidding to a stop beside them, trailing dirt all around it. It looked a little worse for wear. "I think we're going to be disturbed in a minute, but I'll need you, Sammy and Gini to help me figure out how to hook Gini's bike to the back of the van." "ALEX!" Gail shouted, as she climbed out of the car and angrily slammed the door shut, sending up another cloud of fine sand. "What the fuck do you think—" "He's fine," Gini said, getting between Gail and Alex, trying to protect him from anything that might threaten him. "I know you don't trust me, but I take my responsibilities serious." "Down girl," Alex calmly told her in a quiet voice. She glanced back to ensure he was serious, then quickly backed off, giving Alex room to do whatever he wanted. "I needed to demonstrate to Gini that I trust her. It was necessary, and an important part of my 'therapy'." That simple explanation took the wind out of Gail's anger, she wasn't sure how to respond, but simply shut up and backed down. "That might be enough for her, but I'm not about to back off," Cate insisted, marching up between him and Gail. Gini started to get between them, but with another glance at Alex backed off again. "Do you realize what you could have done if you'd gotten into an accident? What it would have meant to your mission, to all those people depending on you to find them? What it would have meant to me?" she asked as she broke down in tears, clutching him tightly to her. Alex just stood there, calmly holding her, letting her cry herself out. He knew there wasn't anything he could say to solve this. She had to get this out of her system. It wasn't her fear of his getting into an accident, it was her fear of his upcoming death, and this was just another trigger point. He knew the talk about Shani the mouse had started it, and his running off had set it off. So he just held her. They'd talk about it when she was ready. ------- Chapter 39: When You Can't Heal the Sick, Try Healing the Healthy Climbing out of a filthy car once again, Alex took in the quaint little village laid out before him. It was a small community, with small structures built much like they were long ago, with red stones and the old style adobe, as well as a few scattered newer structures which stood out in sharp contrast. There were several people sitting out, including a few young children. One looked up and called out to a friend, watching Alex and his cohorts. "Look, it's him." Soon both boys came running to where Alex stood as he waited for the others with him. Gail and Gini were getting some crates out of the car's trunk and setting them on a travel dolly. Alex had offered to help, and they both told him to forget it. While he may feel it his duty to protect the women around him, they were both in better shape than he was, and he'd just get in the way. Gini, like Alex's car and her own bike, was covered in sand and dirt, leaving a little cloud whenever she moved. She'd parked her motorcycle off to the side so it wouldn't get in anyone's way. Cate was still stretching out the kinks in her legs by the car. It had been a long rough drive from Cedar City driving through the surrounding country over rough primitive roads into the high desert where they now found themselves. "Are you him?" the little boy's friend asked Alex. "I'm sorry, I don't know who you're looking for, but I doubt it. I'm nobody special. I'm just here to see the doctor." "See, it is him," the first boy crowed. "She said he always says he's not special." At that he started calling to the other kids in the village, and Alex saw a few additional heads popping up. Alex immediately had a bad feeling. He knew the boy was referring to Jennifer, and it looked like she'd been busy talking him up, probably promising everyone that he'd be able to help them all, which worried Alex. He knew the people here were very sick, and so far his ability to heal was very iffy, sometimes doing amazing things but other times either having no effect or actually making things worse. Jennifer herself was an example of that, though apparently she'd forgotten that little fact. "Is it really him?" a little girl asked. Despite being cute, with the typical dark skin and black hair of a Native American girl, she was fairly heavy set, with puffy cheeks and her own little pot belly. Alex assumed it was because of the cheaper starchy foods they had to eat, seeing it was so expensive getting anything fresh out there. "Yeah, it is," the first two boys assured her. An older man using a cane stood up. "The Doctor is over here, I'll take you to him," he said, effectively rescuing Alex from the kid's questions. Alex glanced back and saw that everyone was ready, so he set off after the man, the others following him, including the several kids. They entered a slightly larger building, one of the newer, more run down ones. Although it used modern materials, they were cheap, and the building was suffering as a result, and it looked like it was barely standing on its own. There Alex saw two beds laid out with people lying in them, and another two women sitting in chairs waiting to be seen while the doctor worked on a single patient. However, it was Jennifer who saw him first. "ALEX!" she yelled, running over to throw her arms around him. He noticed she no longer had a cast on her arm. The arm she'd broken as a result of Alex's 'miracle cure'. He'd tried to heal her cancer, or at least to minimize it. Instead, he'd weakened the bones in her arms so that a simple collision with a food cart in the hospital had fractured it, releasing the cancer embedded in the marrow of her bones into her bloodstream. "Hey, Jennifer, it's good to see you, too. It's been a long time. I see the arm is better." "Oh, it's much better," she said as she backed up, trying to look at him but once again being unable to. "Simon took the cast off early, and he told me that not only did the bones heal in record time, but that they healed stronger than he'd ever seen bones knit before." "It's true," the man who'd been examining the women on the beds said as he got up, "I swear, it looks like they might be stronger than they were before." Alex examined the man and realized he was much older than he'd assumed. He had thinning close cropped receding gray hair, leaving a lot of forehead. His eyebrows were still dark, but that was it. The wrinkles along his forehead and around his eyes were deep set, probably etched that much deeper because of his prolonged exposure to the sun here, and his jowls and neck had the characteristic sagging of advancing age. "Dr. Simon Reinhart, I presume," Alex said. "And you must be the infamous Alex," he said in kind, giving Alex the look over as well. "Dr. Moore in Carbondale couldn't say enough good things about you, and you're practically all I've heard about since Jennifer got here. Frankly, I hope what they say about you is true, because we can use whatever you've got to offer." "I find that hard to believe, about Jennifer that is," Alex said. "She fractured her humerus into a bunch of little pieces, and they were worried they'd never fully mend." "Ah, but that's just the thing, they did. You can see where they joined, but they seemed to have done so in a unique way, as if the new tissue somehow fused with the older tissue, making a solid joint where you normally wouldn't find one." Alex arched his eyebrow, trying to determine whether Simon was pulling his leg or not, but he continued on. After all, he still had to disabuse him of a couple of notions. "Maybe it healed well, but there's no restoring an arm that badly fractured into one piece again. If she ever injures it again..." Alex said, letting everyone draw their own conclusions. "Still, it was an amazing result, given the state it was in before. I don't know anyone else that could have done what you did, with only a few simple treatments. From my own experienced medical standpoint, I'd qualify it as a bonafide medical miracle." "Well, if you say so, though I find it hard to believe, but if she talked about me so much, she must have told you why she shattered her arm, and why my approach to helping diminish cancer is so dangerous. Not only did I screw up her arm, but I also took a contained bone cancer and managed to spread it throughout her whole body." "Again, I beg to differ," the older man contradicted him. "You apparently gave her several treatments after that, telling her you'd have to examine her after some time to try to treat whatever cancer spread. Well, so far I haven't been able to detect any. It seems what you did while it was still in her arm worked well enough to control it. It hasn't spread." "Cate, introductions please," Alex instructed. "Gail, I need you to examine Jennifer for me." So as Cate introduced Gini, Gail came up beside Alex and looked her over. Finally, she knelt down, examining her nether regions from close up, simply ignoring the intervening clothing. "Do you need a light?" Simon asked. "The light isn't very good in here." Alex noticed he'd been using a goose necked spot light to examine his patients. "No, I'm looking at the light the body gives off, so I don't need anything that would wash it out," Gail informed him. "By the way, if you could step aside, Alex, it would make this much easier." "Yeah, that's right. I should have remembered that," Simon responded, reaching over to shake Gini's hand while Gail continued with her examination. Finally Gail turned around and addressed Alex. "There really isn't much. There's some dark spots, which may be her body trying to fight off the start of something, so you'll probably want to reinforce it so her body can do what it needs to, but beside that..." she said, not needing to finish the thought. "But won't feeding a potential cancer cause it to grow?" Alex asked. "A cancer, yes. But this doesn't seem to be a cancer. I'm just guessing when I suggest her body is fighting some new growths, but nothing had developed yet, so it should be safe," she assured him. Shrugging, Alex took Gail's place as she stood. However, as he did he noticed the kids scurrying around, trying to get a closer look at him staring at Jennifer's crotch. Alex simply turned and glanced up at Dr. Simon. "Kids, could you give him a little room. He seems to be worried about you. After all, you never know what may happen." As soon as he said that, the kids rapidly dispersed, but still watched him in apparent fascination. Gail pointed out the spots she wanted him to work on, but they were too small for him to focus on using his head, so he used his finger instead, even if it wasn't as efficient. It only took a moment and he got back to his feet. "Amazing," Simon said. "Hardly, I didn't really do anything, as Gail tells me there isn't anything there. Even so, I'm nervous doing it, since we aren't sure what it may do." "Well, given your record, I'd be willing to bet it'll work," he replied. "But what was amazing was how simple the treatment was. Anything western medicine would try would be cumbersome, complicated and expensive, but you did your thing in less than a couple seconds." "That's just 'cause I don't have an expensive office to maintain, like you do," Alex replied. "Come along, I've got a couple of patients I'd like you to take a look at." "You'll have to let Gail look at them. I can't see what the Seers can," Alex said, waving Simon off. "They'll tell me if there's anything to be done." With that, Gail walked up and silently studied the two prone sickly women. Gini walked up behind her, glancing over her shoulder while Jennifer walked up on the other side, apparently speaking to them telepathically, though not a word was uttered aloud. Finally Gail turned to him. "They've got a few bad areas," she said, getting ready to explain what he needed to do. "I'll tell you what, rather than risk making something bad worse, I think I've got a better approach," Alex said as he stepped up, bypassing Gail. Glancing at Jennifer he positioned his hands against the first woman's neck. "I'm looking for the thyroid glands, so tell me when I'm near them." When she nodded, he gave them both a quick burst, using his forehead this time, since he wanted to make sure they got a good dosage. "That should help their immune system, so hopefully it'll stabilize them before I try anything further on them. I'll let them rest for now, and try any specific treatments tomorrow," he said as he walked around to the other woman and did the same thing to her. "Amazing," Simon said, watching Alex finish with both women in only a few seconds. "How do you feel, Poongatse?" "I ... I..." she said as she seemed to take a moment to consider. "Actually, I seem to feel better." "It's only the placebo effect, they wouldn't feel any effects this soon," Alex assured them, waving her observations off. "We'll check to see if she's any better in the morning." There were a couple of audible gasps from the back of the room, although none of the adults said anything. "Are they going to be following me all over?" Alex asked, motioning towards the kids. "I don't think you could chase them away with a stick, at this point," Jennifer told him with a smile. "Yeah, she's also mentioned your way with the ladies," Simon said, grinning at him. "It's not me, it's just that the people affected by me are all women," Alex assured him, even though he didn't completely believe it himself. "I'll tell you what, you stay here with Gini, and I'll send several people in to see you. I'm sure she can show you how to find their thyroid," Simon suggested. "In the meantime, I'd like to have Gail examine the women in a separate room, with Jennifer discussing what she's noticed about them. That way we should be able to get through quite a few people before we break for dinner." Alex agreed that it made sense, so the two women got up, not saying anything but moving very gingerly and slowly, while Cate got her cooler of food set so she'd have it ready if and when Alex needed it. Soon there was a steady stream of people filing into the small cabin. Simon just stood back, reassuring the various people as Alex did his magic. He'd gone through several when a younger man came up and whispered something to Simon. Alex stopped what he was doing and watched them for a second. He noticed the man would occasionally touch his side. 'Gini, check out that man's side where he's touching, and tell me what you see.' 'Frankly, I don't see much, but then again, I'm not very experienced at this kind of thing, ' she admitted. "GAIL, could you come in here for a second," Alex called out. As soon as he did the two men stopped talking and watched him, wondering what he was interested in. It took her a few moments to reach them, but when she did, Alex asked her the same thing. She simply pulled the young man away from Simon and examined his hip briefly. 'I don't really see anything, ' she said. 'It's not as healthy as it should be, but it looks fine. He does have a couple of small tumors in his chest, hip and thigh, though, but they're small and don't look too serious yet.' "Why do you keep holding your hip like that?" Alex asked, as Gail moved back. "I'm not really sure," he said. "It keeps itching. Just a small niggle, nothing else. I haven't been able to figure out what it is, though. Dr. Reinhart told me it's nothing." Alex, though, walked up to him and got to his knees in front of him. When the man started to back up Alex grabbed him by his hips and held him steady. He communicated briefly with Gail to ensure he located the right organ, then leaned into the man, resting his head against his side. However, this time he kept it there. "What's going on?" the man asked. "Yeah, I'm curious as well," Simon admitted. However no one answered them. Finally Cate spoke up. "Alex, it's clear you're doing more than you've done with anyone else. If you're doing something major, we need to know. We'll need to have more food ready for you." "I'll be done in a second," he assured her, "and then I'll eat something, but I want to finish first." So everyone stood around and watched him resting his head against the man's hip. The kids, though, kept bringing more and more people in to watch, even though there was nothing for them to see. Finally Jennifer came in and began shooing them out. "There, I'm not sure what that'll do, but I'm sure that's enough for whatever it was," Alex announced, as he backed up and hesitantly rose to his feet. "What did you do?" Simon asked. "Frankly, I have no idea, and I can't even tell you why I did it. But what I did is to give his liver a heavy dose of energy. Again, I can't tell you why I thought it was necessary, but I just felt it was. I really had no reason for deciding to, though. However, he should be processing the toxins out of his blood like mad, now." 'Honestly, Alex, I can't see it made any difference, ' Gail advised him. 'When you spent that much time doing virtually the same thing with Jennifer in New Orleans, she regrew much of her damaged kidney. I mean, his liver is glowing brightly now, but I can't see it having had any impact on him at all.' "Alex, you'd better eat," Cate told him, guiding him to the nearby bed and getting him to sit while she began feeding him. "Wait, you just decided to inundate a single organ with a bunch of 'energy' for no reason?" Simon asked. "Yeah, I know it made no sense, but like he said, I had this little niggling sensation that it would be beneficial, but I have no idea why, or even what it's supposed to do, or even why I feel like it's going to do anything," Alex tried unsuccessfully to explain. "Sometimes Alex does fairly odd things with little apparent reason," Gail explained. "He doesn't always have a good reason for doing it, other than his 'intuition' or his ability to pick up subtle clues, but they tend to bear out over time. We like to talk about his being guided by either God or some random spirits, but he seems to choose the right things to do for some odd reason. Although, this is probably the strangest one he's pulled." "What's your name?" Alex asked around a mouthful of cookie. "It's Stubborn Bear," the man answered, "but you can just call me Stu." The man actually looked to Alex to be more Hispanic than Native American, but then again, Alex certainly wasn't very good at spotting ethnic differences between people. He had a broad nose, clear eyes, somewhat puffy cheeks and a very thin mustache over his upper lip. He also wore a headband over his forehead. "Well, Stu, I have no idea whether what I did will have any effect, but I'll be curious to see if anything develops over time." "Was there anything wrong with him?" Simon asked, still confused. "Nothing," Alex answered. "Well, not quite," Gail corrected him. "He's got a couple of minor growths you should be aware of, but nothing that would require immediate surgery for at least several years." "Well, we'll keep an eye on him for you," Simon told Alex. "I'm interested in what this might be about as well. While Stu has lived here for most of his life, he's only here to take care of his family, since he works construction in the city." "I think we'd better take a break and let Alex recover a little," Cate cautioned them. "How about we see if we can take that dinner a little early?" ------- "So, Alex, as anxious as I am to hear about what miraculous things you've done since leaving home, I'm sure you've more than a few questions for me," Simon offered, as they sat at a crowded table eating a variety of things that Alex didn't recognize. They were supposedly native dishes, but he had no way of confirming that. However, they were interesting, if not quite on the same scale of the food he'd eaten in New Orleans. Yet, he wasn't anxious to ask what was in each one. But then, he'd eaten cooked cactus and eggs with Gini in the desert the other day, so this couldn't be much worse. "Yeah, I'm curious about a number of things," Alex replied, "but let's start with what brings you here? What is it about you that would make you spend your waning years, when most people would be at home with their grandkids, looking for a cheap cure for cancer that probably doesn't exist." "You certainly get right to the point, don't you?" Simon laughed. "But just so we're clear, I'm not really looking for cures, since I really don't think such a thing exists. I'm just looking for treatments. There are millions of people across the world with cancers, most of whom can't afford an expensive treatment like chemotherapy, and whom drug makers and scientists just don't care about because they can't afford to commission them to find a new treatment. I'm just one man who's decided to try to even out the playing field a little. I guess time will tell just how successful I am at it. "But as for myself, I was an idealist when I was young and fresh from medical school. Rather than taking a job at a major medical practice, or doing research work, I decided I'd rather serve overseas in the International Medical Corps. I'd been fascinated with cancer early on, since my father had died from pancreatic cancer, and I'd had several friends suffer from several other cancers. However, I found that while the IMC does good work in poor countries, they basically just throw in the towel when it comes to cancers. Sure, they treat the people, hoping to make them feel better, but there really wasn't much they could do, since so many people in remote areas simply couldn't afford expensive treatments. "That was when I started researching harder to find, more extreme treatments. I flew all over the world looking for alternative treatments, but sadly, most of them did no better than what was already being done. Everyone claimed their own amazing successes, but those happen all the time in cancer treatments. It's called 'spontaneous recovery', and most doctors just accept it as something which happens. However patients always attribute it to their own faith in God, as if everyone who doesn't get better simply didn't believe as much as they did, and the alternate medicine people used the same thing as evidence that their treatments, which usually had very little medical science to back them up, were successful. "I continued chasing wild treatment options, but I just got more and more disillusioned over the years. The medical companies dream of finding some mysterious plant in the middle of the rain forest that some obscure tribe knows about that can heal everyone, and which they can take ownership of, displacing the native tribes and charging a fortune for, but I didn't like the approach they took. However, they provided me an opportunity. Since they had these grand dreams of hitting the golden payload, and since no one was interested in really doing the legwork to find it, I found those same companies would pay for research into 'native treatments' concerning a variety of illnesses. Thus I started applying to a variety of places to do the low level grunt work research in what may or not work. "I worked in the Amazon for many years, as that's where the drug companies wanted to pump the money into, since that's where their fantasy solutions came from in their imaginations. But after several years I found myself suffering from a variety of medical conditions myself, each of which was worsened by the high humidity and native diseases of the Amazon. An area where it's difficult to get treatments for simple conditions. Thus, as a simple method of self preservation, I started looking closer to home for alternative treatments. "That's how I ended up here. It's a nice dry environment, so it doesn't bother my lungs, it's in America, so I don't have to keep learning new languages where my biggest fear is that I won't understand a vital piece of information, and I'm only a couple of hours away from both vital resources, but also treatments for myself if I ever take sick." "I can see how that would compel you," Alex conceded, once it was clear that Simon was finished with his explanation. "But how did you find this place? What is it about this one location that seems to trigger so many cancers in one place?" "Ah, the always important first question. At first it was a great mystery, and we tried to chase down a lot of explanations about it. Most of them we didn't have either the time or the money to investigate fully. But our best guess is that several oil and gas company representatives like to test drill here occasionally, and they like to do so however they can. What began with blasting the earth with dynamite at the start of the 20th century, has now progressed to fracking. Our best theory is that someone, somewhere around these hills, did something similar and created a fracture in the stone separating the underground water table and the old uranium mines that used to exist here, but that have been abandoned for a long time. We think when that happened, the waters flooded the old uranium mine, and thus contaminated the water that the locals here rely on to live. In fact, for all we know, it may not have been negligence that did it. A simply earthquake could have broken a seal between an underground reservoir and an old mine, or even to a naturally occurring uranium vein, but in either case, the water is highly toxic here." "Ah, so that's why you asked us to bring out so much water to resupply you with?" Gail responded. "Yes, although the people here refuse to relocate, and they keep using the same contaminated water, we can at least insist that those already suffering drink only potable water." "Have you had it tested?" Cate asked. "Yeah, we have, although it isn't as easy to test as you'd think. The radiation levels are very low, having been 'watered down' so much. What I suspect has happened, is that whatever is in the water isn't so much making it actively radioactive, as it's simply changed the chemical and biological compounds in the water. But we've done several tests, and so far they've been inconclusive. We've actually had some very incriminating test results, but when we try to duplicate it, we'll get another result that either comes up clean or it points to another explanation. So we still haven't been able to document what's happening here." "But it's definitely pervasive?" Alex asked. "Yeah, the vast majority of the residents here suffer from a variety of cancers. The longer someone has been here, the worse their cancers. The younger people haven't been as affected yet, but I fear it's only a matter of time. Like Stu here. He knows better than to come here, but he keeps returning, and each time he does he eats the local foods, drinks the local drinks, and doesn't consider the risks he's exposing himself to." "It's true," Stu admitted. "Every time I come out, I bring bottled water with me. But my relatives refuse to drink what they call 'white man's waters', claiming their ancestors have been drinking these waters for thousands of years. In the end I simply end up eating the same meals, rather than chasing my relatives out of their own kitchens and taking over cooking for them while I'm here." "But wait, why don't the people just leave, if the incidence of cancer is so high?" Gail asked, clearly intrigued by the enigma. Simon simply sighed at this, having suffered through years of having to deal with it on a personal basis. "It's several things. First of all, they don't trust the white man, or even if they trust me for what I do for them, they don't trust the science of the white man, assuming they're lying to me to move them out of their ancestral homes. A not completely unlikely argument. But there's more to it than just that. Apparently there's a local legend here, one that was fostered by a family of famed medicine men. They claimed, years ago, that this area would undergo a 'test', one that would try their faith and challenge their beliefs. But that the only way through this challenge would be to stay true to their beliefs and their faith, and that they'd be borne out in the end, and that everyone would come out of it whole. That's a very hard thing to fight against." "It's more than just that," someone said from behind them, so they all twisted around to see who it was. "This is Kuubba, or 'guardian prairie dog', if my understanding of the name is correct," Simon explained, introducing an older woman with white hair and a face full of deeply ingrained wrinkles. Alex noted she also had a couple of moles on her face that he'd like to investigate, as they looked suspiciously malignant to him, just from this far away. She wore a bright blue and white spotted dress, but her expression was dour. Despite her age, she held herself with a regal pose and an authoritative certainty that comes from a lifetime of making uncomfortable decisions for those around one. "I have seen it, I have spoken to my ancestor spirits," the woman said with conviction. "They say the same thing. Others have seen it as well. Our ancestors insist we stay. They say that though many will die, we will be borne out in the end, and that we will be much stronger for having stayed. What's more, they tell those they visit that if we leave, we'll all die. Thus we face leaving home to face a certain death, or stay at the beckoning of our ancestors, knowing we'll suffer horribly, but with the hopes that we, as a people, will ultimately survive in the end." "As you can see, it's hard to argue against that," Simon said. "They see it as their sacrificing themselves for their children and their children's children." "But if the water is poisoned, then surely it'll also kill whoever comes after them, won't it?" Gini asked. "We no see it that way," Kuubba answered. "The water not poison, but affected by evil spirits. They change water. That way it show up differently in tests. There be no one poison. Instead, there be malevolent spirit that seeks to harm us in any way it can. It wants us to flee where it can strike each of us down, since then we'll be sick and without the support of our faith, family and culture, simply yet more poor tribal people in an uncaring city." "Yeah, I can see how that would be hard to argue against," Alex conceded. "That why we see you, a powerful spirit brought here from the land of our and other spirits, as our answer," she continued, which caused Alex to stare at her again, wondering what they'd been told about him. "Don't look at me like that," she insisted. "You think silly Jennifer our only source of information. Your coming was foretold, long ago. My ancestors told me just last night that you were finally on your way and would be here today." "Did your ancestors manage to tell you how I was going to cure so many sick people?" Alex asked, really at a loss as to what he could possibly manage. "No," she responded sadly before continuing. "But they say you work with the people here, and that we, not you, solve the problem, and stand up to the evil spirits. You act as a ... a..." "Let me guess," Alex said, rolling his eyes, "a catalyst?" "I not sure what that is, but yes, you be what triggers change, although you don't make the change yourself." Cate leaned in close to Alex, whispering in his ear. "Alex, this sounds just too familiar to be completely off base. I think you need to hear her out, since what she's saying seems to be tied directly into what it is that you're doing." "No, I'm sure it's not," he replied, turning and casting angry stares at both Jennifer and Simon. "You both should know I operate the best without building up anyone's expectations. What I do is very uncontrolled, and it's uncertain when it will work, or for whom. By setting me up as this mythical being who is going to save everyone, you're really setting everyone up for disappointment." Jennifer looked down, unable to face his disappointment, but Simon merely smiled at his response. Kuubba, however, spoke up, walking up behind him until she was only a short distance away. "You no cure people," she told him, even as she reached out to touch him as one does a holy relic. "You institute change. You trigger change, but we change ourselves after you are gone. You are like an ember, blown in from the wind. You trigger a fire that burns away the evil spirit, but it is we that must fight him once he is weakened. You no save us, we do that ourselves." "You know, I'm curious, could you tell me something of what this 'vision' of your entails?" Alex, ever the skeptic asked. While he felt that the woman's perceptions had probably been influenced by what both Jennifer and Simon had been saying about him, he'd been impressed with Robin's being guided by her 'spirit guide'. That little creature had led her right to Alex. The woman looked a little ill at ease, knowing how outsiders tended to think of tribal visions, but she steeled herself, standing a little straighter and started describing what she'd seen. "I saw a nest of many kits, lying exposed to the sun with no parents there to protect them," Kubba explained. "They looked weary and sick, and cried out for their mother who never came. Then a crow flew down. Now, normally a crow is seen as a negative thing, always stealing things, but without the honor of a hunter like a hawk. However, in this case the crow, which represents you, examined the kits, then began picking at them with its beak, pecking and pecking at them. Each of the kits bravely allowed it to continue, even though it was painful for them. But eventually the crow took off again and flew off, leaving the sickly kits mewing for help again. But one opened its mouth, and out flew a beautiful white butterfly. This butterfly flew around the nest, taking in each of its kin, then turned and flew into the sky, seeking others to bestow its wisdom upon." Alex, mindful of not insulting one's hosts, resisted rolling his eyes, but he remained skeptical. As opposed to Robin's very specific message, by an actual physical creature who led her to a specific location, this 'vision' seemed to be anything but clear. How she'd picked him to represent the crow he had no idea, as she could have attributed the crow to any outsider; Jennifer, Dr. Reinhard, or even someone they hadn't met yet. Even then, the meaning was hardly clear. A baby fox gives birth to a butterfly, and that's supposed to suggest someone in the village is going to save the other villagers? Alex couldn't see much reason to assume that the supposed vision was true, that it represented what she believed it to mean, or that it would ever come to pass. "Well, excuse me for being rude," he said, "but I still think you only cast me into this role because of the expectations that Jennifer and Simon have established. Tell me, did you have this vision before or after they told you about me?" Kubba looked nervous and shuffled a bit. "It was after," she admitted, looking doubtful for a moment, before she got her resolve back and stood straight again. "But the vision is clear, and I know my ancestors were trying to tell me something very important." "I don't doubt that," Alex quickly replied, "I'm just questioning how you choose to interpret it. The role of the crow could be played by anyone, even someone from within the tribe. For all you know, the pecking of the crow could represent someone within the tribe picking apart your belief in remaining in the current village. I don't mean to belittle your beliefs, but I'm afraid it's open to too much interpretation, and any single choice could give a completely different meaning. I'm already dubious about how much I can do here. While I'm sure I can help somewhat, I'm afraid that all I can offer is a stopgap measure. I may be able to hold off your sicknesses a little, but I'm unlikely to be able to halt them. And when I leave, as I'll have to, it is likely to continue unabated. What's more, I'm likely to inflict almost as much damage as I save you from. Thus your image as me flying in, picking at the problem and then flying off is probably fairly realistic, my causing the birth of any butterflies is more questionable. "Given that, I'm afraid that much of your belief is probably rooted in what Jennifer and Simon have already told you about me. But rather than sit here and argue it with you, I think we'd do better to try what we can. It seems to me that we still have a lot of people to see. If you don't mind, I'd like to see as many people from the village as we can, going from the sickest to the healthiest. I'll try to boost the people's immune system to help strengthen them tonight, then try to help with the specific cancers tomorrow, and possibly the next day. While I can constrain the cancers, I can't cure them. What I do is to simply weaken them. But that just means it'll take longer for them to return, and when they do I likely won't be here to help." "We ask for no more. You do what you can," Kuubba told him. "You no problem getting everyone here. We already send word. As I say, we knew you were coming, so everyone is ready. As soon as you ready, they will be here." ------- Just as Kuubba had promised, they had a steady line of willing participants when they returned to the 'clinic'. Each person would walk in, often hobbling or leaning on someone, and Alex would strengthen their glands so they'd be in better overall health when he tried to work on their specific cancers the next day. At the same time, Jennifer and Gail compared notes, contrasting what they saw with what Simon had been able to observe. "She's amazing," Simon said, speaking of what Jennifer had added to his work. "It took a little while before I completely trusted her, especially when she'd tell me someone had something that I couldn't see, or when she'd tell me that something I'd labeled as a tumor was actually benign, but after I confirmed the first couple of observations, I learned to trust her. She definitely makes the whole medical diagnosis progress much faster. Luckily I don't have to worry about Medicare approvals or excessive government documentation here. As long as I can document that these people actually have cancer at some point, we're OK." Jennifer managed to keep detailed notes, separated into 'documented' and 'undocumented' observations, which Alex would be able to refer to when he tried to work on them the next day. "You understand the problem is that, while I can drain the energy that the cancers live on and that feeds their growth, doing so strains the health of the body and the organs connected to the cancers, so it can lead to complications like Jennifer's humerus fracturing. I essentially made the bone unstable by drawing too much energy from it." "Relax, Alex, you're making too big of a deal out of it," Simon assured him. "Every medical procedure involves risk. Hell, every pill a doctor hands you has a whole list of complications, only some of which are documented at the time they're approved. Thus each treatment the average doctor applies sickens the patient as much as it helps them. It's all a question of balance. If the person ends up better as a result of the treatment, it's considered a win. In Jennifer's case, she's now cancer free and her arm has healed quite well, so I'd consider that a success." "Yeah, but I'm just trying to point out that it's not as clear cut as she likes to paint it. I'm not comfortable applying a treatment that I can't see and that I really can't determine the success of. I'm just guessing here, and I've got nothing to guide me concerning how to apply it, so if I screw up..." "Alex, that's the way that medicine has always operated. It's only in the last fifty or sixty years that doctors have become pill pushers, with everything they do thoroughly researched and documented, and even then, the treatment varies with each person. There is never a clear cut treatment, and anyone who insists there is should really not be prescribing medicine. Don't worry. These people understand they're sick. They know there's only a small chance that you'll be able to help them, and they aren't likely to sue if you screw up; not just because they can't afford a lawyer, but because any court in the country would toss them out on the street if they told them they let an untrained teenager treat their cancer." "Yeah, still... ," Alex complained, still not happy being stuck in the position of being the savior of the entire village. Still, the people he treated were both quiet and respectful, so he didn't have to worry about them making a fuss about what he was doing. They seemed to trust him, whatever he suggested, so he didn't have to worry about embarrassing scenes or any outright fights over what he tried. They really impressed him. They knew they were sick, and they weren't really resigned to it, they just refused to back down to it. If they thought there was something they could do, without having to move away, they'd do it with no real expectations it would save them. They'd made a mad run to get up here in time to do whatever they needed to. Treating Gini had taken about two full days, and her treatments weren't done yet. They'd bypassed Vegas, although the other girls had seemed interested in getting him to stop. They'd dropped Patricia and her van there. They'd take the time they were separated to schmooze, make contacts, and tour the city and nearby tourist spots. Alex would meet them again in time for their Friday/Saturday concerts. Gini's treatments had been going well. She didn't have many flashbacks, but when she did, Alex was usually there and could intervene quickly. She'd also alert him whenever she had either sad or positive emotions, so he could reinforce or correct them, part of his treatment procedure. While it hadn't really made as much of an impact as the first couple days of his treatment, it was a necessary component of it. As it was, she was feeling good to be alive again. She enjoyed being around people once more, she was amongst people she trusted and could depend on, and she wasn't afraid of hurting them by her erratic responses. Though she also appreciated the community they currently found themselves in. She appreciated their stoic reliance on themselves, especially since they didn't make a big deal of how she related to them. She still wasn't ready to become a social butterfly yet, so this was a nice transition for her. She could be around people without having to be social. As expected, they didn't encounter any new Seekers or Seers, due to the small number of people in the community. Still, Alex had to admit these would have to be considered 'followers', even if their aloof nature was a nice contrast to the behavior of his other followers. But he also had the distinct impression they'd do most anything for him, even if he was only a white outsider and likely couldn't help them. When they retired for the night, something that was determined by the setting sun, since there wasn't much electricity in the community except for battery operated devices, Alex and the others ended up sleeping with select families in the community, although Alex ended up sleeping with Jennifer. She was anxious to spend time with him, since it had been so long since she'd last been with him. Gini and Gail slept nearby for obvious reasons, although Cate chose not to, not wanting to risk offending anyone by cuddling up to her brother at night. Tomorrow was another day, and it would determine whether he could help these people, or like Jennifer, he'd end up making their conditions worse. Alex felt himself becoming queasy at the thought of what might happen. ------- Chapter 40: Visions, Nightmares, Sickness and Hope "Well, I guess it's time to get down to business, huh?" Alex asked as he finished off his breakfast and pushed his plate away. Breakfast had been a dour affair. None of those in Alex's group had felt like talking, given what they knew they'd be dealing with later. Their Native American hosts were, as ever, aloof and taciturn, and today they were even more serious, now that their entire future rested in Alex's nervous hands. Or at least that's how Alex viewed it. It was hard to tell what the mostly silent village residents really believed. "Yeah, that's a good idea. There's no sense putting off the inevitable," Simon said, wiping his mouth and getting up as well. Alex and Simon walked out together, not bothering to wait for the others, who followed them out of the room. It was a hot dry oppressive day, and the sun blazing overhead baking their skin out in the open wasn't making things any easier. The conditions were hardly alleviated in the non-air conditioned hut they were using as a makeshift hospital ward. "You specified you wanted the worst cases first. Though I question the wisdom of that approach, I accept it, since I have no idea how you operate. This case, though, is a tough one," Simon said, as they entered the dark interior where Alex could see an older woman lying there, obviously quite ill and looking quite uncomfortable. Gail stepped up at that point, looked her over and turned to Alex. "There's a couple of major tumors, fairly well advanced." She turned to Simon. "I'm surprised you haven't tried to remove them." "Ah, but that's the rub," Dr. Reinhart explained. "While a simple removal is cheaper than chemotherapy, it isn't an option in this case. The central tumor resides next to a major artery, which is why it's managed to grow so fast. It's getting more than enough blood flow to feed it's never ending growth. That's why this is such a difficult case. We've got to find some way of removing the cancer without surgery." Alex and Gail spoke silently together, while Gini listened in, trying to learn how to interpret what she saw. Finally Alex turned back to Simon. "It's going to be difficult. These are all major growths, and I can't drain the energy from them without destroying the flesh and organs in the way. While I may be able to help with the tumors, I'd have to kill off the healthy tissue around them." "Well, there's an easy enough solution for that," he responded, calling to Jennifer. "Could you get her ready?" Turning back, he told Alex what he planned. "I'm going to put her under quickly, and then I'll cut her open. We aren't really operating in a pristine environment, but since you simply need unfettered access it should be OK. I'll cut as close to the tumor as I can, and you can treat it without worrying about anything getting in the way." As much as that disturbed Alex, he couldn't see any reason to object. It would solve his problems, and it would give him access to what he needed to do. "You do realize I can't do what I need to do with gloves on?" he asked. "Are you planning on manhandling her tumors?" Simon asked. "No, but still..." Alex replied, not able to explain his fears. "Then it should be fine. Both Jennifer and Dr. Ryan explained how you operate, so I don't see any problems with it." It took a moment for Simon to put the woman out using a crude anesthetic, applied with a simple air supply mask. He then motioned Alex near him as he made a couple simple incisions, working quickly. Jennifer, standing on the other side of the patient, wiped the blood clear, and Simon waved Alex forward. Alex had never had much experience with blood, aside from his own when he was shot, so he felt a little queasy looking at the woman sliced open like she was, but he put those feelings away. He had more important things to concentrate on, and this woman's life depended on his not getting sick just then. "You realize what I'm going to be doing will make her blood thinner, making her bleed—" "I'm perfectly aware of how you work," Jennifer assured him. "I'll keep the blood stanched, you just do what you need to." "Do you actually thin the blood?" Simon asked. "If so, I'd love to know how you accomplished that." "We're not exactly sure what causes it," Cate explained, "this is just something we've observed over time. We're not even sure it thins the blood, but it increases bleeding, whatever the causation behind it." Alex saw he couldn't use the more efficient forehead approach, since the incision wouldn't give him enough room to stick his entire head into her body, thus he'd have to do this the old-fashioned way, by using his fingers. Jennifer pulled the skin apart, giving him more room while still keeping the incision clean of excess blood. Alex reached in, moving his hands as close as he could without actually touching anything. He could easily access the tumor now, and it was clear what it was, as it appeared hard and dark, like a mottled mass of destructive growth. Using just his finger tips, he tried to drain the energy from it at a slow but consistent level. Gail advised him how he was progressing, once again showing him what he couldn't see. Alex had to make several passes at it, keeping each one short, since he wasn't actually doing anything physical with the tumor. But he had to get in at different angles to reach the different areas of the tumor. He knew it wasn't necessary to get it all. Simply draining much of it would sap the rest of its life sustaining energy, and without that it would slow down substantially. What's more, once the affected areas of the tumor died off, they'd slough off. Simon could either remove it later, or hopefully her body would be able to dispose of it naturally. He worked on it a little longer, trying to reach the areas he hadn't been able to reach yet, instructing Jennifer where he needed access to, when suddenly the woman's incision began to fill with blood. It quickly filled and the blood began running out, streaming down her side. Alex stepped back in alarm. "Doctor, we have a situation," Jennifer said, as she hurried to clean the wound enough for him to see what had happened. "Damn, her artery burst. You didn't cut anything, did you?" "No, I didn't touch anything. I don't even have a knife on me." "Well, excuse me, but this is going to be difficult to stop. Could one of you give me some more light, please?" Alex retreated, and Cate came up to reassure him, as Simon and Jennifer worked frantically to save the woman's life, knowing he'd blame himself for whatever occurred. "Damn, I don't know what's happening. Every time I try to sew her artery up, it falls apart on me. It's crumbling like a sand sculpture." "I think what's happening is that Alex drew too much energy from the artery walls, effectively killing the cells making up the artery. Thus it's disintegrating as you pull it tight trying to sew it up," Gail explained. "At least that's what Liv is telling me. I'm giving her a live feed on what's happening." "Does she have any suggestions on how I can save this woman's life?" Simon asked in desperation. This should have been a serious but easily treatable complication, but instead he found himself unable to stanch the flow of blood. Gail simply shrugged her shoulders, but since he couldn't see her she answered verbally. "She says no. Without a viable artery, there's no way to make the repairs you need." "I don't suppose draining energy from her would help slow her bleeding?" Simon asked, never looking away from his task. "Sorry, but it doesn't work like that," Alex replied. "The effect on the blood is secondary, a byproduct, and I don't look forward to draining more energy after what I've already done to her." "Damn," he swore again as he continued to work. Jennifer continued to mop the freely flowing blood, but she was having little effect, as the blood was getting everywhere. Cate had to turn away from the scene, but everyone else had seen enough blood to not react negatively, whereas Alex felt he had to look on in consuming dread. "8:12. I'm calling time of death. She's gone. She's lost too much blood and there's nothing else I can do. Her heart's stopped and with nothing to pump, it doesn't make sense trying to restart it," Simon said, finally stopping. Jennifer continued to work, since without a blood pump like most hospitals have on hand, the blood continued to flow even though it was no longer being pumped. Seeing Cate was having trouble, Gini stepped up, took Alex by the hand and forcibly led him outside. "It wasn't your fault," she insisted. "No. You're wrong. It was entirely my fault. I drew too much energy away, and it destroyed the very tissue that was keeping her alive. That's why I shouldn't be doing this. This is a force that can't be controlled, and that we don't know enough about to use safely." "That may be so, but until you learn more about it, you'll never be able to use it successfully. You've got to expect the occasional failure. After all, think of how many people died when they first discovered anesthesia, and how many people still die of adverse reactions to it even now. This is the same thing. You couldn't account for it." "She's got a good point," Simon said, walking out into the sunlight, peeling his gloves off as he approached. Alex glanced around, noticing several people around them, none of whom approached, but who continued to look on, trying to determine what had happened. "That was a completely unexpected accident. I'm sure you didn't intend to weaken the artery, and I'm also sure it isn't as easy to control this energy as it seems. While unfortunate, you did the best you could." It was then that Alex noted another older woman, quickly shuffling to the hospital cottage, pausing at the door, then entering. Curious, Alex followed her and watched what she did. She entered, took in what was happening, and then approached the body. "I'm sorry, but there was nothing we could do," Jennifer told her. The woman said nothing, though Alex could hear a quiet sob. She tried to hold back her tears as she reached up and closed the woman's eyes. "We need to clean the body up. It would be better if you didn't see her like this," Jennifer continued. "Believe me, I've seen her at her worst. This is nothing. This is just her end. I've seen death before, and I'll see it again. She had a good life. We both hoped Ada could help her, but we knew it was unlikely. There was too much damage done. We were already resigned to this. I'll get her burial shroud for her," she said, before turning and leaving the hut once again, tears quietly streaming down her face. She walked by Alex without saying a word to him. "As she said," Simon continued once she'd gone, "they knew how sick they were, and how risky this was. Don't feel like this was your fault. You were her last hope, and I'm sure you took more chances than you normally would in trying to save her." Alex wasn't sure how to respond. His heart felt like it was being ripped out. He'd injured people before, but only in self defense. He'd caused someone in the Emergency Room to bleed badly, like this, but the emergency room staff had managed to stabilize him, and he'd also shattered Jennifer's arm, though indirectly, but here she was, almost whole and doing better than when he'd started. But this was the first time he'd actually killed someone, when he'd used his abilities to not only inflict harm, but to actually take someone's life. "Alex, you shouldn't be here," Cate insisted, physically pushing him away from the hut as she exited it herself. "Remaining here is just going to make you obsess about what happened." "She has a point," Gini added. "And you can't take this personally. While this is unsettling, there are too many people depending on you for you to lose your nerve now." This last statement stopped Alex in his tracks, and he turned and regarded her. Turning slowly, he took in everyone standing around, observing them, their number having increased over the last several minutes. Strangely, no one seemed to be judging him, holding him personally responsible. Instead, they seemed sad but resigned. They seemed to not be taking this personally. But Gini was right. This wasn't about him, this was about helping the people here, who without him would die soon anyway. His only hope, no, their only hope, was if he could slow the spread of their cancers, giving them a little longer. Otherwise they had no hope at all. "OK, I'm fine. Are we ready to continue?" "It'll take Jennifer a little while to clean up, and then the members of her family will remove the body," Simon explained. "They have their own rituals for the body, and their own burial customs. "I'll tell you what; I'd thought starting out with the worst case was a bad idea. How about if I select a couple of people to focus on instead, covering a variety of situations? That way we can see what you're capable of, and you can get used to treating these people." "That makes sense," Alex replied, as Gini handed him a water bottle to wash down the bile in his throat. "Call me when you're ready. I think I need to walk this off for a little while." ------- "OK, I decided to start off a little easier this time. This one isn't quite so far gone, but he's also a difficult case. His tumor is much smaller, but it's in his lung, so it's very difficult to operate on, and it would be highly risky in even the best of conditions, which these clearly aren't." 'What do you see, Gail?' 'Like he said, it's a tumor to the front side of his right side lung, right about here, ' she said, pointing to where it was. 'What do you see, Gini?' 'The same thing, I guess, but it looks like it's got a healthy supply of blood feeding it, as the tumor, although an odd color, is still fairly bright.' 'Very good, you're learning, ' he replied. "So what do they say?" Simon asked, having watched Gail pointing out where the tumor was. "Yeah, is that the only one?" Alex asked the room in general. Simon answered before anyone else could respond. "He's got a couple of smaller ones, but that's the most important one." "That's what I thought," Alex replied, even as Gail gave him a brief image of what his aura looked like so he could see where they were. "Does everyone here have such widespread cancer? Doesn't anyone have a case that hasn't spread?" "They've got a very high incidence of it here, and when they get it, it spreads quickly. Again, we think there are specific reasons why they're more susceptible, although the results aren't conclusive enough to pinpoint it, I suspect the water." "And you can't get enough water here to support the community?" "You've seen the road into here, and there are a lot of people. What's more, the water seems to seep into everything. The local plants which the locals eat draw water, putting down deep roots. They draw whatever is causing these problems to the surface. It's not as easy as buying more bottles of water. And don't forget, these people can't afford to buy thousands of bottles a year." "OK, I think I understand the problem," Alex replied, "and they absolutely refuse to leave?" Simon simply nodded his head with an unhappy but resigned expression on his face. Seeing the discussion was over, Alex stepped up to the man. He'd been lying down, so Alex got him to stand, then leaned in and rested his forehead against his chest. Then he stood up and pointed his finger at a couple of areas surrounding it, always pointing towards the tumor. "That's about all I can do without causing other damage. I'll look at it again later, maybe I can do a little more, but this should restrict the growth and cause it to diminish a fair amount." "How do you feel, Al?" Simon asked. Alex noted that the use of names varied here. Some people used their native names, while others chose to use their American names, but Alex couldn't see whether anyone held either choice against the people who chose them. Al just twisted his head a little, considering the question. "Frankly, I don't feel any differently." "You wouldn't," Alex answered. "I didn't give you any energy, I just took away a small amount from a very small area, so you'd be unable to feel it. Just as you never felt the tumor growing, you're unlikely to feel the changes to it now. It's not completely gone, but it's better. Not a lot, but it's better." "That's all we ask," Simon assured him. "I'm just looking to improve their current conditions, and slowing the growth of their tumors is even better." However his words didn't make Alex feel that much better at being unable to help them more. "Thank you, Ada," the man said, bowing slightly. Alex was surprised, but merely nodded in response, after which Al turned and left the room. As he did, Alex noticed another woman standing there, awaiting her turn. "This is your next case, she's got uterine cancer," Simon told him. "Uh, I'm not sure I want to risk playing around with someone's—" "Alex, just think of it this way, what good are her sex organs going to do her if she's not around to enjoy them?" Simon asked, guessing Alex's reservation. "Besides, if we can't do anything with it, her reproduction capabilities will be seriously diminished. As much as I'm sure she'd like to maintain her fertility, I'm sure she'd rather live long enough to take care of children instead." Alex considered that, then shrugged, stepping up to her. He glanced at her and then motioned for Gail, who approached with a smile on her face and knelt in front of her and examined her from close up. She couldn't see anything risqué through her clothing, of course, but Gail found the situation humorous, if nothing else. "Well, it looks quite nice," she said, turning to cast him a knowing smile, but then turned back, "aside from that little spot right there. I can't tell what it's near, though, since I can't really differentiate the internal organs." "You should be ashamed of yourself, Gail," Simon chided her. "It's right in the uterus, in case you can't remember where that is. It's to the front left portion of it, if that helps at all." "How big is it, and can I access it from different directions without getting into trouble?" Alex asked. Simon started to answer when Gail simply held her fingers up, showing how wide it was with her fingers. Simon just shrugged. "Yep, that's right. You know, if you had a scale model of the human body, you wouldn't even need me here." "I wouldn't say that," Alex said with a frown. "You get to clean up the mess whenever I screw up." "I'd suggest you do the initial attempt using your forehead, going directly in just because you have access, then try it from here, here and here," she said pointing out the best lines of approach. "All right, stop sniffing around down there and let me give it a try," Alex told her. When Gail stood up and moved back, Alex took the position she'd just abandoned. He just touched his forehead to her pubic area, then pressed his finger against each of the points that Gail had outlined for her. It only took a couple of moments, and then he turned to check with Gail. "How's that look?" "It looks perfect. What's more, you didn't inflict any damage to the surrounding tissue. I can't be sure, but I suspect if you'd damaged her reproductive system I'd be able to see it." "Wow, now that's amazing," Simon answered. "Not that the others weren't, but it looks like you just fixed her entire problem. Since it's inside the uterus, I'm assuming the body can eject the material, so you'll probably want to watch whether you have any unusual discharges for the next week or so," he told the woman, who simply nodded before she turned to Alex, kissed his cheek, and whispered, "Thank you, Ada." As he watched her walk out, he turned to Simon. "What the hell does Ada mean?" Simon looked embarrassed, so Jennifer spoke up. "It means 'Crow', Alex." "Great, so everyone is calling me Crow based on the silly spirit dream Kuubba had?" No one bothered to answer since it was clearly a rhetorical question. Rather than let Alex focus on his dissatisfaction with what people expected from him, Simon changed the topic. "I've got a question which might seem silly, but I'll ask it since I haven't heard your previous discussions. If you're afraid of draining too much energy from surrounding tissue, then why don't you just point your finger in the other direction, away from the tumor, and boost the energy, essentially replacing what you've just drained away from the region you were just working in?" Alex just looked at him and then at Gail. "Damn. I never even considered that. It makes sense, and it's a very simple elegant workable solution." "Not only that, but if you have a difficult case, after you've drained as much energy as you can, if you can restore some, you could then begin again, draining even more from the tumors," Gail suggested. "Well, I'm not sure if I'm ready to do that. We're not really sure what we can get away with in the procedure, so I hate playing around too much. I'm not so convinced applying energy after I've drained it restores it to where it was. I suspect it's more complicated than that. I think we'll do better if we only do so much damage at any one time, but it'll help if I can minimize what damage I inflict." "Good, I'm glad I've contributed something to the process. I was beginning to think all my medical knowledge was going to waste. Instead I redeem myself by stating the obvious, having nothing whatsoever to do with medicine. But anyway, since you've had some success, even if some of it's been a little qualified, let's try a harder case." Alex simply shrugged. He was officially Ada while he was here. There was no getting around it. While he may not believe in Kuubba's vision dream, apparently everyone else did. ------- Alex was exhausted when he finally turned in. It had been a long day. They examined quite a few people, had a break for dinner, then Alex went back to work, working long into the night trying to treat as many people as he could. He felt terrible he couldn't spend more time here, but the time he'd dedicated to helping Gini had taken up valuable time he'd reserved to helping out here. The results were quite mixed. Some cases were clear victories, with Alex either substantially reducing the cancers, or at least minimizing it. However there were many cases that didn't work quite so well. The cases where Alex could access the tumors did the best, but those where there were obstructions, or where Alex couldn't get a clear shot at them, proved to be problematic. Though Alex was troubled at the prospect, he had to work on a couple of bone cancer cases similar to Jennifer's. While Simon assured him Jennifer had turned out OK, Alex wasn't so sure, but there didn't seem to be much of an alternative. One case, a young man, involved the man's shin bone. Simon told Alex it shouldn't be that much of a problem, since he was both young and male, and thus wouldn't be as likely to suffer from weakened bones the way that older women are. But that claim rang hollow for Alex, since Jennifer was hardly a candidate for osteoporosis. When she shattered her arm it wasn't because the calcium in her bones had degraded over time. But Alex treated him anyway, advising the man that he'd have to treat the leg gingerly, being very careful to avoid minor bumps or stresses to the leg. Gini started to suggest drinking a lot of milk, until Simon pointed out that the goats the village kept drank the local water and thus were another source of contamination. They decided that wouldn't be much of a valid treatment option. One strange thing they observed was that, while applying BCM to an open wound caused increased bleeding, draining it didn't seem to lessen it. It seems to only work in a single direction. Cate was sure there was some strange mechanism at play here, but no one had any clue what it was. Cate decided to make a series of notes on it, but she considered it a less important issue, and one she wasn't likely to be able to address anytime soon. Maybe someone else might be able to study it, but their hands were already pretty full. And there were cases where people did worse with Alex's treatment. In most cases Alex refused to treat brain cancer cases, fearing what may happen to brain functioning or memory from draining BCM from the intervening brain cells. However there were some cases he couldn't avoid. Like a man with an ever increasing brain tumor which was putting pressure on the rest of his brain, already leaving him disabled. However, when Alex treated him, he ended up feeling confused and bewildered. When Simon tested him, asking him to recall specific details or post events from his own history, he performed very poorly. Despite Alex trying to restore the BCM levels, the man didn't seem to improve, which seemed to prove Alex's point. The brain was too fragile to drain BCM from. That worried Alex even more about what he'd done to Gini, although with her he hadn't seemed to have drained enough to cause her problems. She didn't display any of the symptoms the man did. One interesting case occurred when Alex was draining energy from an older man's stomach. Gail told him to stop, since she was monitoring to ensure everything worked the way he was intending. She pushed him aside and examined the man's stomach closer up, then consulted with Allison and Liv before turning to explain. "The problem is while you were draining the energy, I saw a small area develop very dangerous signals, turning from a healthy color to a very dark color, indicating cell death. Yet the tissue all around it was fine. When I consulted our Seer medical experts we discussed it, and Liv made what seems like a very obvious observation. The tissue involved was about this long, and only this wide," she said, indicating an area about the size of a small pencil. "Worms," Simon immediately guessed. "Exactly what Liv suggested. Apparently there was an intestinal worm in the way while you were draining energy from the tumor. Since it's much smaller and doesn't share the nearby energy with the rest of the body, what you drained essentially killed the worm while leaving the man's body fine." "I'll treat him for parasites right away," Simon promised. "They actually aren't that uncommon here. We have some fruit trees, mostly cactus pears and the like. While they're quite tasty, they also share the local water supply, and they frequently have worms that enjoy them just as much as they enjoy feeding on humans." The one dead worm, however, required surgery for Simon to extract it before it could potentially poison the man who had it, whereas simply treating him for worms would have been much less invasive and dangerous. Finally, there were two more deaths that Alex blamed himself for. While they were quite sick and may not have had long to live, they ended up dying from Alex's treatment, so he couldn't avoid assuming it was his treatment that triggered their deaths. Thus Alex was both mentally and physically exhausted. All he wanted to do was to climb into bed and sleep, hoping to lose himself in some meaningless dreams so he wouldn't have to consider the harm that he'd done. Just as Alex was starting to take his clothes off, there was a soft knock on the door to their cabin, one they shared with a local family. The family had been very understanding, putting up the whole group, despite it consisting of one man and three women, one of which was his sister, but Alex slept alone as a result. Thus Alex assumed it must either be important, or someone was attempting to visit the host family. However, Gail wasn't about to let him just blindly open the door either. As Alex stood behind her, covering himself with his shirt, Gail partially opened the door, even though it was so flimsy that even the sickest of the nearby residents could have forced their way through it. She peered out, then sighed and opened the door wide, revealing a beautiful young woman, unmarred by sickness, with beautiful flawless skin, long straight dark hair and full pouty lips. Her eyes immediately sought Alex out, but it was clear from her response that she was neither a Seer nor a Seeker. "Ada," she said, bowing slightly to him, "I come because I've been sent. Our futures are intertwined. My spirit guide insists we must join together, and I accept this mission gladly." "Whoa, wait a minute, before we start going down that path, how about we start with our names? Mine happens to be Alex, not Ada, I'm not a damn crow. I've got no spirit guides that lead me, other than these people that support me. Now who the hell are you?" "My name is Winona, though my cultural name translates as 'beautiful vole', because it was said that my beauty could burrow into the heart of the most hardened man." Gail simply stood aside as she entered. Although she was fully clothed in native attire instead of western dress, it was a simply wrap around skirt and top that revealed quite a bit of skin, instead of any kind of ceremonial dress, of which Alex hadn't really observed anyone wearing there. "Winona? Like the country singer?" "Yeah," she blushed, "though actually it's a Ute name meaning 'first daughter'." "Wait, you've got two different Paiute names?" "No, actually Winona is the name on my American birth certificate. My parents wanted me to remember my culture even if I became Americanized. But actually it's not uncommon to have a couple of different native names. Once when you're a child, another when you're grown up, and sometimes it changes when something happens, though that tends to confuse people." "Well, Winona, I've got to tell you I'm not a real big believer in spiritual visions, since they seem to be so open to interpretations, but I'm also not about to toss out good ideas when I hear them, so how about you explain this vision of our futures your spirit guide has shown you." "It is very simple," she said, advancing on him with a sultry stride. She was tall and fairly regal looking, but that didn't counter her earthy sexiness in the slightest. "I had a series of visions a short time ago. They were never detailed, and they came during my dreams, of a massive crow circling overhead, watching me. I had no idea what it meant, so I consulted our medicine man, whom we consult when we have spiritual questions or want answers from our ancestors. He told me I had to discover what it was that my spirit guide wanted to tell me, even though my spirit guide isn't the crow. "Acting on his suggestion, I went off and spent the night out on my own, using our version of a sweat lodge to help me see what the spirits were trying to tell me, since I didn't even know which ones were trying to help me. That night I had a much more detailed vision. It consisted of a massive crow that visited our village, bringing healing herbs in his beak for our people. When he landed, he handed the packet of herbs to our medicine man, who transformed into he who you call Simon. Then the bird turned and advanced on me. I was very confused, not knowing what it wanted, but I knew better than to retreat. It approached me, pecked my thigh, and then flew off. I watched it fly away and wondered what kind of a message this was, since nothing specific had been said about me, only about what you'd do for the village, but after the crow disappeared I saw myself, but my belly was full and it glowed, revealing a baby crow inside. "I take that as a clear sign that I am to lie with you and let you impregnate me. I don't know why, or what it will mean, but it is clearly intended that I am to bear your child, so it may do whatever my ancestors see." Alex considered this before responding, noting that they now had an audience, as the entire family was watching them from the door separating the rooms. "Well, as much as that vision means to you, I'm still not sure how much it means to me. Since you already knew I was coming and had likely heard Kuubba's prophecy, you already knew what I represented and how she saw me as a crow, so I see it more as a simple wish fulfillment. In your hope that I'd save your village, you chose to interpret the dream as representing me. While I'm moved by the offer, I don't see it as likely leading anywh—" "Hold on, Alex," Cate said, walking out of the other doorway she was watching from, dressed in only a t-shirt and panties, since it was such a hot night. "Hear her out. I think you're missing the real meaning to the vision. Sure, she may be adding her own details, but consider what she's specifically added. A glowing belly? That's sounds awfully close to what your own Seers report all the time. If you had a child with her, and if it turned out to carry your abilities, then it too would likely glow just as you do. I suspect that Kuubba's vision had nothing at all to do with Stu. After all, I still have no idea what the hell you thought you were doing to him, and he hasn't shown any signs of reacting any differently. Instead, I think she was predicting this. She foresaw you and Winona making love and bearing a child. "Alex, for as much as you've been trying to sire a child who could carry on your work after you're gone, you've never had any indication you've had any success. But here you have a clear sign that other people see it happening, and while it may not involve a Seer or a Seeker, remember that your gene isn't related to theirs, and thus they don't need to be the one to carry your gene on. But I don't think you can afford to say no. If this was meant to be, and if they see it producing the heir we've all been waiting for, then you can't afford to pass up this opportunity." Alex remained silent, chewing over Cate's words. Gail, meanwhile, was simply leaning against the door, smiling at how Alex always managed to get himself into awkward situations that no one else would have a problem with. Any other guy would just take a beautiful woman offering herself to them to bed, especially if she didn't care about pregnancy scares. "OK, let's say this is a possibility," Alex said, trying to come to an understanding with this vision of his and this woman's future, "why would you choose to go along with it? Why would you do something just because an unidentified spirit suggested it? There's no sign of who instigated it. For all you know it could be a malicious spirit, one intent on hurting your people, possibly even the very ones that are poisoning your water and your people. And what's in it for you? What would it mean to have an outsider's baby, especially when he can't stay and look after both you and the baby? How would that look? How would you ever care for the baby?" Here Gail couldn't help herself and broke out laughing. When Alex glared at her interruption she held up a hand, signaling she had to regain her breath before she could answer. "Alex, that is the silliest argument I've heard from you for quite a while. Clearly your people won't abandon this child, even if it shows no signs of being your heir. After all, no one knows when these abilities develop. It doesn't appear your abilities developed until you were quite a bit older. And if it is your heir, your followers will flock here, bringing anything either Winona or her people could ever desire." "Not only that, but it's clear these people see you as something other than a savior," Gini added, speaking with a deep conviction of her own. "They see you as a spirit, just as we do. They aren't looking for a miracle, but to be part of what you represent. They may not see things the same way that we do, but they can clearly see what you represent. While you may not be able to save all of them, you've helped them, and they also recognize that your importance goes beyond what you can do to help them. So I seriously doubt that anyone is going to hold this against her." "Hey, do you mind? I'm trying to discover something about the future mother of my child. I don't want to always remember her as a beautiful member of the Paiute tribe who walked in and out of my bed one night. I'd like to know how she thinks, what she believes. Whether she actually believes in what she's being asked to do, or whether she thinks it's her duty. This is as much courtship as I get, these little hurried intimate discussions. Don't take that away because you think you know what's best for me. I refuse to see the women who voluntarily enter my life as mere objects for me to advance my own desires. I want to care for them, to see them as human beings, and not mere pawns to be shuffled into positions that are advantageous to me." His outburst seemed to shock everyone in the room. Gini fell silent and everyone simply stared at him. However Winona grabbed him, as if trying to shelter him from their abuse. "I'm sorry. You're right, I had no call to interfere," Gini admitted. "We just didn't want you to miss what might be the only opportunity to keep your mission alive," Cate said, trying to maintain some dignity. "I understand what you were trying to do. Now, do you think you could give us a little privacy? As much as Winona thinks this is necessary for us both, I don't think her spirit guide told her she'd be performing for a crowd. Some people still believe that sex and love are intimate acts between two people." Cate blushed heavily and quickly started to backtrack, but before she turned around to hurry away she caught Alex looking directly at her, and as she met his gaze she saw him wink at her, letting her know he didn't take what he said seriously. Or rather, he didn't mean what he said to be personal. He knew just how important this was, but he wanted it to be important to Winona, and possibly for himself as well. Cate could well understand and respect that. So she smiled at her brother, winked back at him, and she and Gini left him and Winona alone, ushering the family, still watching the events, back into their sleeping quarters. Cate was sure they hadn't been able to follow the rapid fire English exchange between them, so she suspected she'd be supplying a translation of what just happened for a while. It looked like she and Gini would be almost as busy as Alex was. As they left, Alex and Winona talked in intimate whispers about a variety of things, mostly involving her beliefs, her hopes and her dreams. Gail, who still felt it necessary to watch over Alex, decided to guard his door from outside for a little while, so she grabbed a water bottle and walked out the door, sitting down outside, sitting against the door, close enough so she could at least hear what was happening inside. One thing she had to admit about Alex, she reflected, he never let things get boring. ------- Chapter 41: Some News is Better Than Others "I'm glad you stopped by to help us," Simon sincerely told Alex. "Though you may have your doubts, you've made a big difference here. At the worst, you've added years to these people's lives, and at the best, you may have allowed them to turn the corner. I'm sure they're all thankful, and I'm personally appreciative that you could help us out." "Yeah, I'm just sorry I couldn't have helped more. Like I said, I'd originally planned to spend more time here, but..." "That's my fault," Gini offered. "He was stuck for a couple of days trying to scale me off the side of a desert mountain." "It's hard having such responsibilities," Kuubba said. "You are forced to decide between equally impossible choices. Most people would be happy to save one person, instead you must choose between saving one or many. It's not an easy choice to make when you're staring someone in the face." "Well, I think you've done amazing things for all of us," Winona cooed. "You've given us the gift of life itself, and there's literally no way we could possibly repay you." Cate couldn't help but roll her eyes. Normally Cate had no problem putting up with Alex's many adoring fans, but Winona just seemed to be a bit much. She'd been clinging onto Alex all morning, acting like a love struck school girl. Normally, any new followers of Alex's were well aware of how many others there were, so they didn't obsess over him. However, Winona had no one else to call her on her behavior. Both Gail and Gini felt it necessary to remain in the background, and Cate certainly couldn't say anything. But she felt herself ready to hurl over Winona's obnoxious behavior. She did briefly consider whether her feelings might be flavored a little bit by the idea this woman might be the one woman everyone had been looking for, but she really didn't want to consider that at the moment. "Still, if I'd gotten here a day earlier..." "You wouldn't have been able to do any more than you did," Jennifer told him. "As you said, you've done as much as you can at this stage. True, you had to work nonstop to do it, but you've tried to help everyone in the village, and that's saying a lot." "Well, what's going to happen in the future?" Alex asked. "How are they going to keep moving forwards?" "You've already given them several years, at a minimum," Simon said, "and if what you say is true, that you've slowed the rate of growth of the cancers, then you've given them even more time." "Actually, I think we may be prepared to leave," Kuubba revealed. "If we abandon the source of the problem, then that should help us even more." "But I thought you couldn't?" Alex asked. "That this was your cultural home, and that if you abandoned it, the evil spirits that caused it would follow you?" "No, the prophecy say that if we sought refuge in the white man's world, that we'd be lost and would soon die without anyone who cared about us, cut off from the spirits of our ancestors, and thus cut off from our own spiritual journey. But you've fulfilled that prophesy. You've helped us, and the rest is up to us now. We remained here for you to arrive, since you are a, ah..." "A catalyst," Cate suggested. "Yes, a catalyst. You've triggered a change in us that'll allow us to handle the problems on our own. Now that you've started the process, it is for us to finish. But we don't plan on doing it by abandoning our heritage. Instead we're going to seek refuge with other tribes, maybe even asking other nations to take us in." "And that would be OK, I mean, it wouldn't cause conflicts or anything?" Alex asked. "Oh, it would create a lot of conflicts, but we'll be OK. Most tribes now are made up of people of very mixed heritages. Very few of us have pure blood anymore. Mixing the Utes with other tribes won't be that odd. After all, this region was originally home to many different peoples, so many of us have a common heritage here." "Then why couldn't you have simply done that before, and avoided all this sickness and death?" Alex asked before he caught himself. "Never mind, I get it. You felt you had to wait for me, even though I think that was a stupid decision, since I haven't managed to 'cure' any of you, I've only managed to delay the inevitable." "No, you've triggered a change in us, though it will be a while until we understand just what that change has been. But you've also given us time to adjust to those changes, and to adapt on our own. Thus the prophesy has been fulfilled, and we aren't abandoning our heritage by leaving here." "What about the spirits?" Cate asked. "Can they find you if you go somewhere else?" Despite her scientific training and her reluctance to believe all these tales of spirits left over from a pre-industrial culture, she was intrigued by the internal consistencies of such beliefs, and she wanted to understand just what it was that they believed. "The spirits can travel. They are more at home here, but if we need them, or they need us, they can find us. They don't like the soulless nature of the white world, and they refuse to venture to your cities, even though we frequently have to travel there to live. This is a good compromise. We'll be farther from them, but we've managed to do what they've asked, so they'll understand." "Well, I'm glad you'll be getting away from the source of the contagion," Alex told her. "It makes me feel better about your prospects. Hopefully, leaving the area will prevent new cancers from developing. Personally, I'd have liked it better if you'd done this years ago, but I guess I can see the conflicts you had to deal with." "Actually, I'm even more pleased," Simon admitted. "We know the water supply here is incredibly dangerous, but I've had a hell of a time trying to get anyone to consider relocating. Most of my work has been in importing fresh water and keeping healthy people, like Stu and Winona, from coming back here, since it puts them at such increased risk." "Yeah, since you're likely to get pregnant, Winona," Cate told her, "you'd better move away as quickly as you can." "Oh, don't worry, I'm going to do whatever I can to protect this baby," she said as if it was already a proven fact that she was pregnant. "Well, I'm glad you took the extra time to help the few extra people this morning," Stu told him, walking up to shake his hand. "My cousin was one of those you helped, and I feel sure that you've given him many more years as a result. You'd already set his cancer on its ass, and the extra treatment means it'll be that much longer before it can regain a foothold." "Well, I'm glad I could make a difference, even if it wasn't an unqualified success." "And speaking of misses, I don't know what you were trying to do, but you know that itch of mine that you tried to treat? You managed to make it even worse. It's starting to drive me bonkers, I keep rubbing my side, but I just can't ease it." "Yeah, well, sorry about that, but it turns out that my energy permeates all living things, so it feeds parasites and viruses as well as heals. I suspect I probably made your rash even worse than it was." "Actually, there's no—" "I think what Alex is trying to say, is that while you don't have an actual rash, it's probably a dermatological problem just under the skin," Simon told him, trying to save Alex having to explain more about what he could and couldn't do. "If you return to the city, you should probably see a dermatologist about it. After all, if Alex can grow kidneys and shrink cancers, I'd hate to see what he could do to a case of athlete's foot." "So, Jennifer, if the tribe is going to break up, I'm guessing that Simon's research project will end as well, if I haven't already screwed it up. What are you planning on doing? After all, you originally came out here to set things up for me when I finally arrived." She looked a little taken aback. "Well, I guess I should think about what else I should do, but there's still a lot to do here." "Nonsense," Simon told her. "You've been a tremendous help, but I know you're heart lies in helping Alex, and this is your chance to follow him for a while." "But how will you evaluate how everyone responds?" Jennifer asked. "You can't determine how well the treatments worked if you can't evaluate anyone. And we should discover as much before everyone disperses." "I've got an idea," Alex told them. "Hold on a second. OK, I've got a solution. I've got another Indian friend, Robin Peters, a member of the Hualapai tribe in Northern Arizona. She said she'd come up and take over for you for a few weeks, and that she'd also find a place for some of you to stay, if you don't mind traveling that far." "No, that is very kind," Kuubba said. "We respect our Hualapai neighbors, and the climate is very similar, though I refuse to lead kids on tours of the Grand Canyon." "I think they may be able to make an exception in your case, but actually Robin is more of a traveling medicine woman." "I know Robin," another grizzled older man said, walking up to them. "My name is Tate Shilah, or 'he who always talks too much'. I'm the local medicine man for this tribe. I'd have introduced myself sooner, but I was waiting to see how you came across. Both Kuubba and Winona spoke to me about you, and they asked me what I thought. I encouraged them to undertake their own vision quests on the matter, but I had none of my own, thus I was cautious. I've worked with unseen spirits all my life, and I get nothing whatsoever from you. No, that's not quite true, I can feel the spirits of my ancestors, and of the various animal and spiritual guides. They're buzzing all around you, but I get nothing from you at all for some reason. But I'm convinced Kuubba's vision is true, that you bring us good fortune, and that we'll soon be turning a corner as a result." He proceeded to shake Alex's hand, and despite his advanced age, he had the grip of a blacksmith. "Well, I'm glad I've convinced you. You'll have to tell Robin about these other spirits around me, as I'd be glad to learn more, but I'm afraid we don't have much more time here." "That's understood, we're all aware of this tight timetable you have. That's why I wanted to make sure I said my two cents worth before you finally left." "Two cents worth? It's always interesting the way you all keep mixing Native American spirituality with American idioms." "Nothin' strange about it. We're all Americans here. I fought for Uncle Sam myself, as have many of the people here. But we have a dual cultural heritage. As much as we're Americans, we're Ute too. We're also mostly Christians, which I'm sure you'll find odd as well. We don't deny your Western God, but we don't refute our own beliefs either." "So, Jennifer, which is it?" Alex asked, turning to address her before they finally left. "Do you want to come along or stay here and help Robin adjust." Jennifer bit her lip, looking like she was tempted. "I really want to help people with cancer, like I had," she admitted. "You can always compromise," Simon suggested. "After all, that's what brought you here. Take off on your own, driving on ahead of Alex. You know his route. Visit the local hospitals along the way so that he'll know who he can treat as he travels. That would do more for your sick friends than your spending time here doing paper work is likely to. Face it, you're standing beside greatness here. I say go for it. This is the only chance like this you'll ever have." With that, she threw her arms around Simon, kissed him, then turned to Alex. "All right, I'm yours. But I'll have to get a car somewhere, and I'll have to work out a schedule." "Hey, you can travel in the back with me," Cate told her. "I'm the one in charge of the schedules. Alex never knows what's going on." "Well, I'm really sorry to be leaving like this, but duty calls. I've got women to awaken, dreams to chase, and a devil to run from," Alex said as they headed off. He blew Winona a kiss, knowing she'd appreciate it, then they climbed into the dirty beat up old car, ready for another several hours in the hot sun before they reached Las Vegas. ------- "Gail, you'd better alert everyone, we're getting close. We're at the 20 mark." Alex, who'd been discussing what they'd experienced since he'd last seen Jennifer following his shooting, looked up. He and Jennifer were riding in the back seat. When he glanced forward at Cate, he noticed she was closely examining her iPad, and it looked like she was studying the map app. "We're still a ways out of Las Vegas, aren't we?" Alex asked. "I mean, we haven't been on the road long enough to reach the city yet." "Yeah, we're still a ways from Vegas, but we've got a little surprise for you," Cate told him with a grin. "A surprise?" Alex asked dubiously. He wasn't always crazy whenever someone pulled a surprise on him. Sure, the one for his birthday was nice, but the one for his graduation had certainly alerted everyone that he was more than he appeared, and Cate's last 'surprise' had almost killed him. He wasn't sure he needed any more. After all, he had surprises every damn day, whether it was women approaching him or walking in on an armed robbery. He'd really rather avoid any unnecessary surprises if he could. "Let's just call it an experiment," Cate told him. "Your last experim—" Just then Gini raced past. She'd been following behind them, but now she was gunning the engine and racing off. "What the hell was that about?" Alex asked. "Where's she off to?" "Don't worry, I'm sure she'd warn you if she suspected anything dangerous," Gail advised him. "Why do I get the impression you both know exactly what's going on?" Alex asked. "A surprise? Really? I just love your surprises," Jennifer gushed. "I remember the ones back in Carbondale. I thought Alex was going to stop breathing when he walked into the loft for the first time to find all of us waiting for him. What do you have planned?" "Yeah, why don't you let us know what I'm going to be walking in on?" Alex stressed. "Ah, don't you like surprises?" Cate asked sweetly. "After all, you took to Leanna's surprise pretty well." "Leanna didn't try to set me up. She just didn't want to announce to the world that her place was a gay bar. However, setting me up isn't a way to make amends for doing it be—" "Hold on a minute," Cate said, waving Alex off momentarily. "That's the 15 mile mark," she announced to Gail who didn't respond, showing she knew precisely what was going on. "OK, this is more than just the four of us, could you at least give me an idea of what I'm supposed to be expecting?" "You'd really better tell him," Gail advised. "We've kept him out of the loop for long enough, but this is about him, so he really deserves to know. Besides, he's likely to panic when he gets a vision of what everyone looks like." The reference to what everyone looked like did in fact panic Alex. He could imagine a bunch of injured people waiting for him to respond to them. Cate seemed to consider that for a moment, then turned to Alex with a smile. "You remember when you told us to set up a test using the relatives of known Seers and Seekers?" "Yeah, so what, you've arranged for me to meet someone out in the middle of the desert to activate them? That sounds a bit too unnecessary for it to be a very complete explanation." "Well, it is a little more complicated than that," Gail admitted, growing nervous about how much they'd been keeping from Alex for so long. "There was quite a bit more to it than simply finding someone for you to activate. After all, we've been doing that for a long time now." "You left the details up to us, like you usually do, and we've done everything that's necessary," Cate reminded him. "The surprise part is just a little payback we get for having put so much work into it." Alex sighed, but he was smiling as he did it. "OK, you got me there. I sometimes give you guys fairly large tasks without asking for explanations. So what was involved with this?" "If you remember, we decided that you picked who to activate by what you saw in their eyes. So we needed to figure out just what it was that you saw, and once we did that we had to measure it so that we can apply those same measurements to others, then we can determine who will and who won't respond to you." "How did you manage to measure how people will respond to my ener ... So that's where all my clothes have been disappearing to, lately?" Alex asked, finally catching on to the obvious. "Exactly, I've been stealing your used t-shirts every night for the last couple weeks and mailing them so others can use them to conduct the very tests I've been dying to undertake." "But why couldn't you—?" "Because I needed to be here, and we couldn't conduct these tests with you present, since you'd blow the test out of the water. We used the shirts to measure the responses of a lot of people, documenting the differences between them. Now we think we can precisely pick not only who's a Seer or a Seeker, but we think we can measure who'll react negatively to you." "Geez, that's major," Alex replied, sitting up and leaning against the seat in his enthusiasm. "If I can spot who's going to go off on me, I can either try to keep my distance, or we can try to intervene." "Exactly, that was the idea. Pardon me ... That's ten miles, Gail." Gail, of course, didn't bother responding. "So this is the final test. We need to confirm that our assumptions are correct, but beyond that, we need to do a final measurement of how they react to you, versus how they responded to a smaller dosage of your energy." "But that means—" Here Cate smiled at him. "Yes, it does. It definitely proves the existence of your BCM, although it does it indirectly, which still means it would never be publishable, but it's still pretty convincing. We're thinking if we can establish a ratio of responses, we can guestimate how much BCM you're giving off." "OK, I apologize. This really is a big deal, and it's clear you've put a hell of a lot of work into this. This could be a game changer." "You're damn right it is," Cate assured him. "This takes it from 'he seems like he does amazing things' to 'he's got a measurable energy we can determine which he's using to achieve what he does'." "Shit, have you told Ryan? Or Lists?" "Don't worry your little head about the details," Cate said. "We've handled everything for you. Now it's time to reap the rewards." "But why are you doing it in the middle of the desert?" Jennifer asked, it not being an unreasonable question. "For a number of reasons; first, it's out of the way, so no one is liable to wander across us, secondly, it allows us to maintain a steady approach, and thus we can measure when they can detect Alex approaching." "So that's why you keep announcing the distance?" Alex asked. "Exactly, and lastly, we wanted to control the environment, which we couldn't do if the meeting took place in the middle of a park." "So where are you meeting?" Jennifer asked. "It's an old abandoned warehouse," Gail told them. "One of the local girls knew about it. They used to manufacture the metal signs they used to use in Vegas. The one's with all the lights? When they started switching to the electronic lights the company folded and the large industrial space has sat empty ever since. But because of worries about neighbors complaining about it, they built it well away from the city. Since the place closed, almost no one comes out this way anymore." "Seven point five," Cate announced. "You weren't paying attention, but I turned off on this little side road a ways back. That's why we have no traffic around us anymore." "I'd noticed that, but I hadn't wanted to say anything," Jennifer responded. "This road takes us to it along a pretty straight path, so we can correlate the responses to how far you away you are at any given time. By maintaining a constant rate of speed, we can calculate the exact distance they each respond to you at." "Wow, there's certainly a lot more you people are putting into this stuff than when I was in Carbondale," Jennifer observed. "Back then it was, 'we think he may be doing this, but we really have no way of knowing'." "It's been like that all along," Cate told her. "However we had a breakthrough a little while back, when we kind of stumbled across how Alex handles his activations. That gave us the lead in how to measure responses. It gave us something we could measure, rather than just conjecturing all the time." "It sounds like it's a lucky thing I decided to come along," Jennifer responded. "This is going to be a ... well, a memorable occasion." "You're right, this might be the day we change everything," Cate said, a self satisfied grin covering her whole expression. ------- Gail parked the car near the front of the large gray building. Although it was desolate, Alex noted a number of cars parked off to the side. They got out quickly. "We need to keep a constant pace so we'll know your distance relative to the time," Cate insisted as she and Gail led them towards the building. "Whatever you do, don't stop. Also, we weren't sure what to do about your activating the women. We briefly considered blindfolding you, but we decided that was a bit much. We'll mark the distance they respond to you at, which we've always wondered, as well as measuring how they respond afterwards. In order to minimize it, though, the potential Seers will be facing the other direction, so I want you to walk right into the center of the crowd, say 'Stop' and then do so. Once we've gotten our measurements, just say 'start' and then walk to the Seers, stand beside them but don't look at them, then walk about five feet in front of them, turn and do the activations." "Those are pretty specific instructions for a situation where I normally just glance at someone," Alex complained. "We weren't trying to record measurements before," Cate explained. "We need to compare distances with each individual's reactions so we'll know what distances are safe in the future." "OK, I got it," Alex insisted, feeling more nervous about this than he really should. There was a lot riding on this. As prearranged, Jennifer ran ahead and got the door, opening it so they wouldn't have to slow down. Cate ran on ahead, though Alex couldn't see what she was doing since the sun was still bright outside. "Remember to not slow down," she called out. Alex continued on through the door, and quickly realized why Cate had repeated that simple warning. The scene before his eyes was, to put it simply, shocking. There were a mass of people, several of whom were running around, checking on the people seated. The people sitting weren't merely resting; they were strapped to their chairs, with their eyes propped open and staring as if horrified like the scene out of "Raiders of the Last Ark". In front of each person was a little video camera, and there were people running back and forth applying eye drops, recording events, and checking on everyone. Alex saw several faces he recognized, but he didn't have time to stop and identify people if he hoped to keep moving at a steady pace, though he did notice Cate recording his expression with her phone. He'd have to get her back for this. He walked steadily forward, trying to ignore the few faces he recognized, but he did notice a few from Carbondale, New Orleans and Texas. He reached the middle of the group, making sure to establish eye contact with each girl sitting in the chairs facing him to test whether any were actually Seers that he could activate, but since they were each incapacitated, he couldn't be sure whether they were or not. The entire room was silent, despite the large number of people, as everyone was either focused on him, on watching the strapped in women, or were unable to move. He also noticed that Ryan, of Meg and Ryan, was one of those strapped to a chair. "Stop," he called, and glanced around finally, taking in who was around him, but he didn't comment, finally just announcing "Start", as he walked to the waiting women facing away from him. He stopped when he was parallel to them, but unable to see their eyes, and said "Stop" again. As expected, he couldn't recognize any of the faces from that angle. "Start", he said before walking forward. He didn't bother calling this time, assuming it would be obvious. Instead he merely stopped for a moment before turning around and facing the three women. This time he could tell from their reactions that each was a Seer. But he was also watching their eyes. It was hard to see much, since their eyes already looked very large, but he noticed how their pupils shrank once they were activated and they got that famous 'glassy' eyed look. "Is that everything?" he called out. Instead of answering, Cate looked inquiringly at Caity. She flashed them a thumbs up. "That's it, Alex. We're all set." "Good, then let's let these poor people loose. It looks like they're being tortured." The silence in the large hall evaporated, as everyone hurried around, unstrapping everyone. "Girls, I'll talk to you in a minute, but I'm anxious to say hello to some old friends," Alex explained before stepping into the chaos. "Shanna, I honestly didn't expect to be seeing you again. Why are you involved with this?" "Like I could avoid it," she answered. "Besides, helping here is just part of what I'm doing. I've got to establish a regional office to handle the travel business for all your new fans. I'm thinking California, which is only a short distance from here." "So I take it this crazy idea of handling everyone's travel plans is working out?" Alex asked a little doubtfully. "It sure as hell is. Everyone you've ever met wants to meet everyone else. I've been running people back and forth. Not only that, but their family and friends usually want to travel with them so they can understand what's happening, and they end up using my services. Who do you think arranged the travel plans for everyone here?" "Well, thanks for arranging everything. But I'll tell you what, how about next time you let me know what's happening somewhere along the line?" "What, and cross Cate? Are you crazy? You may make the decisions, but one word from her and you'd drop me in a second. I'm not about to take that kind of chance." "Hey, Alex, it's us, Car—" "Of course I know who you are, Carolyn and Kristi. Like I could ever forget you. You were the first people I activated in New Orleans at that introductory concert Patricia arranged. I take it that Lekesia was indisposed?" "Yeah, she and her mother don't have a lot of extra money, and they're trying to save to give Lekesia's baby the best chance. Plus Noel didn't want to leave because her fertile period is arriving soon, and she wanted to try to get pregnant via Dr. Hannah." "Ah, that makes sense. How are the two of you doing? Neither one of you is showing." "Nah, it's only been a month. We won't show until the third or fourth." "So what's going on?" "Well, I've gotten back with my family, like you suggested," Carolyn said. "It went fairly well. I suspect my aunt might be a Watch ... I mean a Seeker, but she wasn't anxious to commit to the concept yet." "I've been talking to Amy Ray and Tina Shaw about getting a sorority started when I start school again in the fall," Kristi told Alex. "I'm excited to be reaching out to others in school like me, and even trying to teach those not like us in the hopes we can somehow trigger a natural adaptive behavior. Maybe we can force them to adapt, to become more 'Seeker like'." "Well, I suggest you talk to Cate about that. After all, she's the best for determining just how realistic that might be. But it certainly sounds like a valid goal," Alex said, proud that they were both still so motivated. "Hey there, Alex. Man, I'm glad to be out of that contraption," Ryan Shafer said, anxious to speak to Alex and hopefully make some amends. "Uh, thanks Ryan," Alex replied, nervously watching to see how he reacted. "I can understand that. It looked like some medieval torture when I first walked in." "Believe me, it felt like it. When they first started planning this, they were talking about doing this in a tent out in the middle of the desert. Can you imagine not being able to blink as sand gets blown into your eyes? As uncomfortable as this was, it was better than that alternative." "Hey, Alex, it's good to see you again," Megan Abrams, Ryan's girlfriend said as she joined them, hoping to intervene on Ryan's behalf. "And in case you're wondering, we've talked it over with Becky. She's of the opinion that Ryan is OK as long as we watch his exposure to you. If he's exposed for too long, he's liable to have problems, but for short periods he should be fine. He doesn't seem to have the negative reactions that certain other men might have, but he does have some. You'll have to talk it over with her, but she says that you need to watch their pupils, just like you do the Seers. If they dilate noticeably upon meeting you, it's probably a warning, and how much they dilate probably indicates just how severe it is. That will be important to learn, and we're hoping Ryan can play a big part in that process, since he represents a certain threshold between what's safe and what's problematic." "Well, that's reassuring to know," Alex replied, giving both a big hug, "and I'll have to talk with her to iron out the details. I just want you to know, Ryan, that I never blamed you for what happened. Instead I blamed myself for putting myself into a bad situation. Hopefully, with what you can teach us, I can potentially avoid such situations in the future, though I suspect if I just listen to my own intuition I can simply avoid those situations altogether." "Oh, but that's just the thing," Ryan said, addressing Alex directly, looking him squarely in the eyes so he could evaluate him while they spoke, as they'd rehearsed beforehand, "I'd never ask you to redo what you did. Sure, it was uncomfortable, and I really embarrassed myself over it, but what you did for Megan has made had a big impact in her life, and apparently what they've learned from studying me will make a big difference as well. As such, it really helps to make me feel better about myself and the role I can play in your mission." "Well, that's not really the reaction I would have expected. I was thinking you were probably still pissed at me." "No, not at all. Apparently this is a 'manageable condition'. In my case I simply need to limit my exposure, like I would with alcohol. If I have too much exposure to you I'll act like I'm drunk, in that I'll act stupidly, saying and acting like I normally wouldn't allow myself to. In the case of others, they need to react like alcoholics and simply avoid any contact with you at all. Hopefully, learning how to spot who fits into either camp should simplify your life tremendously." "You're right, it's a major advancement, and if it turns out we can reliably depend on it then it will change how we operate. I'm glad you stuck around and didn't simply run off, like I'd have likely done." "Well, I've got to credit Megan for that. It seems she was bothered by how I was blaming myself, and refused to let me simply ignore what happened. She forced me to talk about it, and instead of blaming me she pressed me to explore what happened. As we hashed it out, she uncovered certain things that had never occurred to me. So much of what you're seeing today is because of her efforts. Cate sent us some of your shirts, and several of us in Dallas did a test, much like this, where they established what reactions to look for. This effort today was to determine how I responded to your higher levels of energy. However it doesn't seem to be so much the levels, as it is the exposure over time. But even now I can feel some negative emotions that I'd previously attributed to uncertainty about you. Knowing what it is, now, certainly helps me manage it." "Well, thank you both for going above and beyond the call of duty. You've really made a difference, and I'll always value that. Now, if you don't mind, maybe we should keep our exposure short, so let me mingle a little more and we can talk later for shorter durations, rather than spending too much time all at once." "Actually, we have plans for that, too," Caity said, coming up from behind. "Sorry to interrupt, but I felt I needed to intervene to explain some of what we'd learned. I flew in from San Antonio, having taken a few days off of work just to be here for this. By the way, Lists couldn't be here today but he really wanted to. He's expecting me to tell him whatever we learn, since he's so curious about it. "We plan on having you spend time with Megan and Ryan later, just so we can watch you together. That way we can determine what the tipping point is, when the exposure gets to be too much for Ryan. If we can determine that, it would make a big difference in not only identifying potential problems, but it would also allow people like Ryan to still be a member of your organization while also minimizing the threat to you personally." "I'm also hoping that knowing about the problem in advance, I may be able to control myself better," Ryan explained. "Before it appeared I would invent excuses to justify how I felt towards you. Now, I'm hoping my conscious mind can ride herd on my emotional responses, and I can simply tell myself to take a break. So this will be a test for me as much as it's a test for you and the others." "We're planning on doing this over dinner tonight," Caity said. "There will be several of us there, so we can watch how the two of you interact, hopefully picking up any other clues to watch for." "OK, that's good to know, but again, let's not push our luck now, since there's so much else we can do to diffuse the situation," Alex laughed. Ryan, smiling himself, waved as Alex backed away, heading to where they were studying the results of the tests. "So, how have you been doing Caity? By the way, I've got someone you should meet. You already know each other, but I think you have much more to talk about now than you did before." Here Alex turned aside, preparing to yell, but before he could, Gini touched his shoulder announcing she was already behind him. "Hello, Caity. It looks like we're sisters of a sort, now," Gini said, by way of a greeting. "Wow, I can't believe the difference in you," Caity responded. "Before, whenever we'd talk you were flighty, unable to maintain eye contact for long, and you appeared to be tightly wound and defensive. Now you seem open, friendly and relaxed. I can see Alex's treatments really made a difference." "Yeah, they sure did. It wasn't an easy process, but it had fairly immediate results. But he went beyond that. We've been spending a lot of time together, and each time I have a negative reaction, he steps in and helps retrain my brain. The end result is that now I'm relaxed around people, and I no longer jump when I see hear something unusual. I no longer have bad dreams, and I feel I can be productive again." "Uh, excuse me for being indiscreet here, but does that mean that you and Alex are, uh, spending a lot of time alone together?" Here Gini laughed gently. "Yes, we are, but not in the way you think. I decided I wasn't ready to start fooling around yet. As beneficial as it would be to get boosted by him, I wanted to make sure I was recovered first. But we actually do sleep together, and by that I mean exactly that. We sleep near each other, much like he and Cate do. That way, if I wake up in the middle of the night having suffered a bad dream, he can step in immediately. And who knows, maybe if I feel comfortable enough, I might decide to take the extra step and get boosted as well." "Well, I'll tell you, it will mean the world to those suffering from PTSD that knew you back at the clinic at the Brooke Army Medical Center. Knowing that there's a treatment that not only works, but can effectively cure it, will help, even if they can't get the treatment themselves. As Lists keeps saying, simply knowing what works and what doesn't will shape our own treatment options." "We should really talk in depth, I'd love to describe what the experience was like, as well as catching up on everyone I left behind." "I'll tell you what, you two take the time to discuss the details, and I'll keep talking to everyone else. After all, I don't need to be embarrassed by listening to you talk about all the mistakes I made along the way. I'll see you later," and with that Alex wandered off again. "Molly, it's a pleasure to seeing you, but first, let me say hello to someone else. Nikki, it's wonderful to see you again, too. I'm sure this separation has been tough on you," he said as he gave Nikki Gordon, his 'lost sheep', a big hug. She happily hugged him back. "You wouldn't believe it, Alex. Each day separated from you is a day too long, but the time apart has been good for me. I've learned to stand up for myself. I told my shrink off, as you know, and you were there when I first confronted my family, but I've been doing even more. I've reestablished contact with many of my older college friends and other family members who'd effectively written me off. Now I'm a capable independent woman, and I'm planning on going back to finish off my education. Except now I'll be attending SIU with everyone else, and I'm planning on either studying medicine or science." "Well, if you do, you should discuss what areas we're lacking. After all, the last thing we need is to have everyone in the organization studying the same things," Alex laughed. "Molly here could probably help advise you, since she has so much experience advising students, though I'm sure that Cate knows what everyone is currently planning on studying. I think we have enough people going into medicine and genetics, so if you're thinking of either field, you might look at taking up a specialty within the field instead." "Believe me, I'm well aware of the problems, and I've been talking to the other girls planning to attend SIU, including several of the girls from your high school, all of whom wanted me to tell you how much they miss you. By the way, they asked me to give you this, from them," she said, as she proceeded to give him a serious lip lock. Alex, blushing when they finished, continued. "Say, you didn't say so, but two of those future SIU students include a couple that are especially close to me. Any idea why Kitty and Chalise didn't volunteer to help out?" "Actually, I'm sorry to tell you that they wanted to, but they already had some travel plans scheduled somewhere else so they couldn't make it. But they both wanted me to tell you that they miss you, and they're anxious to talk to you tonight to find out how it went. As much as they love you, they also feel close to each of your followers, and they are anxious to hear how we're all doing. They talk about you all the time, but they're in an enviable position. Since everyone knows the role they play in your life, they're treated as queens. Anything they say people listen to, since it's widely considered they know you better than anyone else, excepting Cate, of course." "Well, I'm sorry to have missed them," Alex admitted. "I really miss them. Having to leave them behind was really hard, but I also knew how difficult it would have been on them to follow me around, since I couldn't pay much attention to them on this trip. Make sure you tell them how much I miss them, and give them each a big hug from me as well." "Believe me, they know," Molly, the law professor at Southern Illinois University, told him. "They understand just how conflicted you are, and they both stand behind you fully. They know what you're doing is very important, and neither wants you to compromise what you're doing on their account. They both think much more of you that you'd put your own desires aside in order to help all the people you are. Also, I'm sure you'll be pleased to know, each of the girls from Eldorado High who are coming to SIU are really dedicated and seem to be applying themselves, so I'm sure they'll do quite well. We get together to discuss their education, especially in relation to your mission, and yes, we discuss what each person should study to spread out our talents to ensure we spread the wealth of knowledge, if you will. They're also planning to help each other, so that the others will know what they're learning, in case something happens to one of them then others can help stand in for them." "Wow, it's good to know my influence hasn't waned while I've been gone. I'd have thought many of them would have moved on, having found new boyfriends by now." "Oh, don't worry, they'll never forget you, Alex," Nikki assured him, "although a few have found new boyfriends, including the other Alex. He's been visiting the Gay, Lesbian and Transgendered Association on campus, and he's met a nice boy that we all approve of. He wanted you to know that we've vetted him, so he feels sure he's made a good decision." "Well, that's certainly good to hear. It's especially nice knowing that you're all looking out for each other," Alex responded, smiling widely at the memory of all those he'd left behind. "Ai Satō has been getting along famously with Frank Hou. I'm sure you remember they started going together near the end of your school year. But the other girls are all waiting for school to start, figuring their chances of finding someone decent will be better when there are more people to pick from. And they each plan on having any future boyfriends vetted by your girls in Carbondale. Anyone who doesn't fit in, or who can't deal with the people in your life, are automatically out." "Just be sure they give everyone they meet a fair chance," Alex replied, laughing at the comments. "After all, I'm not much to look at initially, but I have a tendency to grow on you. By the way, how's Brian? I still worry about how he'll fit in." "Oh, Brian's having no troubles at all," Molly informed him. "Everyone sees him as being a natural guy, even if he isn't that big. Besides that, with a close friend like Darrel, and the support and acceptance of so many people, I don't think he'll have any problems. He attends meetings with Alex, so he's prepared for college life and has already made several friends, although he hasn't met his 'significant other' yet." "Wow, I'm impressed. It's great being able to reconnect and learning what's happening with everyone I left behind. By the way, what have each of you been doing here?" "I've been doing what I do best, checking the documents and the record keeping of everyone else," Molly answered, as Nikki seemed more than happy simply clutching Alex's hand. "Nikki here has been in charge of water and snacks for everyone, which as you can imagine, being stuck in the desert as we are, is pretty important. Caity was in change of measuring the girls' responses. Carolyn and Kristi, who you spoke to earlier, were responsible for strapping and releasing everyone. Shanna, as always, was working on the scheduling, including planning how to arrange things around your schedule, which I'm sure you're aware you've changed on us several times." "Yeah, sorry about that, but as you know, things tend to come up unexpectedly. So what about Liv and Allison? Although I see them hunched over in the corner, I haven't managed to speak to them yet." "Yeah, they're in charge of the whole test. Liv in measuring the responses, and Allison was in charge of the multiple video cameras recording everyone. It looks like they're finishing up, so you should try talking to them now." "By the way, there are a couple more surprises waiting for you back in Vegas," Nikki teased, as he begged his excuse and started walking away. "I'm not allowed to tell you what it is, but I'm sure you'll be pleased," she informed him, taking great delight in piquing his curiosity. "I can imagine. As much as I hate these surprises, they're generally pretty nice," Alex shouted back before he approached his two medical experts, who were busy studying the computer results on the laptops in front of them. "So I see you two have been keeping yourselves pretty busy." "Alex, just the person we were hoping to talk to. Excuse us if we don't kiss you hello right now, but we figure there will be plenty of time for that later, and we have our hands full at the moment," Allison said, hardly taking her eyes of the screen as images of the various test subjects danced in front of her face. "Yeah, Cate got us all busy, sending us messages via Gail," Liv said from her own position examining data tables on her own monitor. "She told us not to talk to you about it, which would have upset us, but she also explained that you'd authorized her to take care of the task on her own, so we didn't worry about betraying you too much." "Well, normally I'd be pretty upset by that omission," Alex told them, "but it seems to have worked out in this case, and Cate and Gail are pretty good at figuring what I'm good at handling, and when I need to concentrate on other things. So, what have we learned so far?" "Well, right off the bat, we've determined the ranges new Seers and Seekers can perceive you at," Allison told him. "An unactivated Seer can detect you around the 8 to 12 mile mark, depending on their respective strengths. I'm guessing that those that use their abilities more, like those in the service fields, are better at it than those who haven't used them much. However, they can't pick out what direction you're in until you get much closer." "They seem to pick up the general direction around 3 to 4 miles away, and they can pinpoint it only within a mile or two. The Seekers have the same responses, but at closer distances. The Seekers can generally feel you at about the five mile mark, but can't seek you out until you get within a mile." "We're also seeing variations in the people's responses," Allison informed him. "We don't know if those are inborn, whether it's their use of their abilities or what, but if we can identify what differentiate the variations it should help you picking people to put in charge, as well as helping us train people." "So it really makes sense to train people, even if I can't get to them right away," Alex observed. "Having them hone their abilities beforehand would likely make them better once I boost them." "Well, we can't actually make a causal connection like that yet, since we don't have any evidence to back it up, but we do know that using the ability heightens it. Whether that use takes place before or after activation is a separate question." "I should have known neither of you would give me a straight answer. I suspect you've both been hanging around my sisters too long. By the way, where's Becky at? I heard she was responsible for organizing and conducting most of these tests." "Oh, sorry, but she's busy trying to finish some important parts of her genetics research. She wanted to make sure you call her this evening, as she's been anxious to talk to you about it." "Yeah, I never got a chance to thank her for putting some crazy ideas in Cate's head earlier," Alex snarled a little. "Crazy ideas?" Liv asked, intrigued what she may have gotten up to. "Never mind, I'm sure the other girls can describe what happened. Let's just say she suggested something to Cate that got me into a lot of trouble. But let's keep on topic for now. How accurate were your estimates on who were Seekers and who were Seers?" "Oh, we were spot on. We were a hundred percent accurate in both cases," Liv proudly stated. "That was my impression when I did the activations. Even though I couldn't see their reactions while they were strapped down, I had the clear impression that each one was successfully activated." "Have you spoken to them yet?" Allison asked out of curiosity, even as she made some notations in her notebook. "Not yet, I wanted to be sure I had time to spend with them. I didn't want to give them a cold shoulder by giving them only a casual introduction. I take it they've been given the whole introduction?" "Yeah, one second," Liv said, pausing for a moment. "Gail is currently working with them about what their visions mean. We try to give them an overview, but they really need a hands on introduction, since you really can't describe what the colors mean when there are no words for what they're seeing, and they couldn't associate colors they couldn't see even if we had them." "So how long did it take to plan all of this?" Alex asked, intrigued in how far this subterfuge extended. "It's been a bit over a week," Liv told him. "I believe you first suggested the whole thing when you and Cate had that discussion when you were leaving Oklahoma City about eight days ago. Though we were all prepared to meet you here before you went to Utah, but Cate cancelled it when you got sidetracked with Gini." "Yeah, that would make sense. So you think you can determine who's going to be a stronger Seer or Seeker? That should help in deciding who to boost?" "Ah, yes we can, but I'm not sure we should use that to influence you," Liv cautioned. "As we said, those in the service fields seem to be more experienced in using their intuitions, but that just might be experience that they could always gain after boosting, as well. We think your decisions so far have been spot on, since they incorporate a lot more information than we could calculate, like their life experiences, their relationships, and how useful they can be to the movement, not to mention how personable they are. Those are the types of things that only you could evaluate on the spot." "I should have known you'd be no help," Alex playfully complained. "You've all been around my family too much." "By the way, make sure you thank Cate for all of this. Although she couldn't take part since she's been so ... uh, intimately involved with you, she was really the one who set everything up, who gave everyone their marching orders, and who assigned them their individual tasks. She's not only got an amazing mind and a wonderful connection to you, but she's a scheduling demon," Liv said. "Don't worry, I plan on giving her something for all of this. I just have to decide what it's going to be, at this point." "Hey, do I sense someone using my name in vain?" Cate teased, coming up from behind them. "Cate, in the future, if you start something this major, could you at least tell me what you're working on, even if you don't need to give me the details, just so I'll know what's on the horizon?" "Alex, you're always so focused, we're afraid to spring too much on you," Cate told him. "You need your full attention on what's happening to you as it happens. Burdening you with what we're doing on the side wouldn't help. We'll always tell you when you need to know something, and the final decision on what to do with it is always in your hands, but I'll keep making sure your mind is where it needs to be. And lately, your mind needed to be on Gini, the Paiute village in Utah, and other things. We really didn't need your help on this." "OK, when you explain it like that it makes sense, I guess. Still, you know how much I dislike surprises." "I know, but the expression on your face was just so funny. I already e-mailed the pictures I took when you entered the hall to everyone. Mom, Dad, Becky, and Kitty and Chalise, as well." "Hey, and here I thought you were supposed to be working on my side," Alex complained. "Hey, you've got no problems impressing anyone. If I can help demystify you so people can relate to you on a more human level, I figure I'm helping you out plenty," Cate responded. Alex simply sighed, knowing she'd won another battle before he'd even managed to pick a fight with her. "So how much do you still have to do?" "Well, we've done about as much as we can here," Liv answered, taking the time to smile at him. "The rest will take some more careful analysis. We might be able to glean some additional facts out if we can play with the numbers for a bit. But you should be fine to go if you want. In fact you should probably take everyone with you." "That's OK, I'd like to meet with the new girls before I go anywhere. So what else is planned? I understand there's another surprise when I reach Vegas, and no doubt you have plenty of things planned for me in the city?" "I figured that news would leak out," Cate said, "but you'll find out what we have waiting for you when you get there. I'm not about to spoil that surprise, as I suspect you'll like that one even more than you did this one. As for the rest of your time in Vegas, I want you to take it easy, although easy is the last word you'd use to describe it. I figure you're going to be busy boosting new girls, reacquainting yourself with your fans, and spending time with everyone you haven't seen for a while. Just assume you're going to be spending the whole time in your hotel room. If anyone shows up looking for you, we have plenty of people to identify them and bring them up to meet you. But don't forget, you also have concerts tonight and tomorrow, and then you'll be heading on to California after that, so you're going to be busy no matter how you cut it." "Yeah, that's about the extent of my life, I spend all my time either in bed, sitting in the park or at a mall, and yet I get no rest whatsoever," Alex teased. "Oh, cry me a river," Cate teased back. "If I got as much tail as you do, and quite loving fawning tail at that, I could hardly complain. As it is, my own love of my life barely has any time to romance me, and Kitty and Chalise's boyfriends are so busy they hardly ever get to see them. So consider yourself lucky. Now go say hello to your new followers, I'm sure they're ready to pee themselves in anticipation." Alex made sure he kissed her in response, just to show her he didn't mean anything by the teasing. He also gave Liv and Allison kisses in thanks for all the work they put in. He had no idea what this little 'experiment' cost, or whether it was paid for by each individual or by some central fund by the Foundation. He'd have to find that information out later. Right now he had some other things to do. ------- "OK, someone told me this is where I could find all the beautiful intelligent women," Alex teased as he approached the group of new Seers and Seekers. However, instead of waiting for him to approach, they'd been busy conversing with Gail, a few of the other Seers, and each other. But when Alex announced his approach all those conversations halted. "Alex!" happily announced someone he'd never met before. He quickly tried to take everyone in. From what he remembered, there were three Watchers ... eh, Seekers and three Seers. There were also several 'controls', but he'd meet with them just before dinner. "That's me, and don't you ever forget it. After all, after today it may be a long time before you see me again. But, if nothing else, you'll always be likely to remember these eyebrows, even if you don't remember anything else." "You have eyebrows?" one of the girls, a blonde, asked before breaking into giggles. "Yeah, you wouldn't believe them," another girl responded, a young thing barely 80 pounds soaking wet, "he's got the most obnoxious eyebrows you've ever seen, but on him they just make him look even sexier." "Hey, no one has ever called my eyebrows sexy before. Speaking of which, someone tell Jordan I need a new eyebrow trim," Alex responded, speaking to the whole group rather than anyone in particular, even though he knew none of them would even know who the hell Jordan was. "So, do your pubic hairs grow as wildly as those eyebrows?" asked another of the Seekers, this one a somewhat mousey brunette with dark glasses. She was grinning a bit too much to carry it off, though. Still, Alex laughed. "There's only one way to find out, ladies. Now, as I'm sure you've guessed, my name is Alex," here they all groaned, just to show that it was an unnecessary introduction, "and who might each of you be?" "I'm April Pruit," said the blonde, who was pretty, even if she was a bit too pretty to take seriously. She had blonde hair that surrounded her face in long sweeping curls, very fine skin, blood red lipstick covering her thick lips, and deep blue eyes that contrasted with her choice of lipstick. Alex would have to be careful that he didn't become lost in those eyes, but he knew he'd be saved by her inability to look at him for long. "I'm related to Valerie Albright. I'm her second cousin, and I'm an aspiring actress, although I'm trying to get into filmmaking." "Hey, small world. So how is Valerie?" Alex asked, recalling the tiny blonde girl who'd rented Allison's apartment in New Orleans, and who, with her other two Seeker roommates, had voluntarily surrendered their apartment to him in exchange for meeting him. "Oh, she's doing well," April answered, smiling even brighter. "She says she's never felt as good as she has since she first met you in New Orleans when you first arrived there. She contacted everyone in the family. She only found one other, an Aunt who's a Seeker, but she couldn't get out of her job to get here this weekend." "Well, tell her I miss her, and I'm sorry I never got a chance to spend that much time with her," Alex said before turning to the next girl. "I'm Anna Knox," replied a smiling brunette with tight curls and a fairly athletic build. "I'm Natalie's cousin, her dad's brother's daughter," she explained. "I live in Cleveland and we were afraid I'd never get the chance to meet you, so this worked out well for me." "Natalie, huh? Well tell her thanks for arranging this. She was a Seeker, so did you suspect you were a full Seer, or were you gambling on how this turned out?" Alex asked. Natalie was the first Seeker that Alex approached, the waitress in their hotel in New Orleans he met when he first introduced Shani to his family. "Oh, from her descriptions we were pretty sure I was a Seer, but we couldn't be sure until we got here. But after they ran their initial test on me, they said they were fairly certain." "Yeah, Patricia's initial questionnaire was pretty good, but this newest test seems to be much more accurate," Alex agreed. "So am I anything like she described me?" "Well, yes and no," she responded. "She sent me a picture initially, so I had an idea of what you looked like before, but when she described how she perceived you, I'd thought she'd lost it. But her description doesn't even begin to do you justice." "Well, you're intuition about my plans was spot on. I'm planning on heading north to Seattle, then west to Chicago, then back home before possibly trying to the east coast, so Cleveland would have been way down the list. "And how about you?" Alex asked, pointing to the last of the Seers. "If I'm not mistaken, you don't look American. Is your family from somewhere else, or did you travel here from farther away than the others?" "I'm Camile Hurst, or Cami. Yes, I'm from England. I'm related to Grace Barlow. She called me from New Orleans, telling me about how she'd first met you, and about how the people in New Orleans told her how to spot others like her. I'm a relative from the old country. Some of the family settled in North Carolina, others went to Texas, but we'd originally come from England, and that's where I still live." "Oh," Alex said, suddenly frowning, "have you spoken to her lately? Do you know about... ," he asked, afraid to spell it out in case she hadn't. "Oh, yes, that was a frightful bit of news. I was afraid you might not want to see me when I first heard about it, but everyone assured me that you wouldn't hold it against me. Though I'm a bit afraid to introduce you to anyone else in the family, for fear they might have whatever made her father so crazy." "Well, hopefully they've gathered enough information so you can judge how they'd react on your own. But, if I'm not mistaken, they're likely to get crazy towards you before they'd ever figure out who I am." "There is that. Obviously I've been discussing this very topic. It seems each of your girls knows quite a bit about how you seem to piss people off." "And what do you do, Cami?" "I'm a farm girl, but I'm into sports, reading and I bike a lot. I typically spend about a month every year biking across the continent. Now that I know about the community here, I plan on biking across the States as well. I'm thinking maybe I'll start in New Orleans and bike to your home town, maybe ending up in Chicago before coming back again." "That sounds quite ambitious, though I'm not sure how good you'll find the roads for bikes in that area of the country. No one has held Anthony's actions against you, have they?" "Oh no, sir. They've all treated me quite well. I've got to say I'm most impressed with everyone I've met here. Even that Ryan fellow that supposedly caused you so much trouble." "Yeah, there's nothing wrong with Ryan. We're just now learning what set him off, but it wasn't that we didn't get along. As far as I can tell, he's a real stand-up sort of guy, and the fact he'd come back and stand up for himself after what happened between us says more about him than anything else." "I just wish the same was true of Grace's pop, Anthony. Somehow I can't see him responding in quite the same way." "No, I doubt it as well. Look, since we don't have anyone else in Europe at the moment, how'd you like the job of my ambassador there? You could seek out anyone you suspect might have your abilities there and let them know what to expect, as well as telling them how to establish contacts here if they need to." "I'd be highly honored, sir. Anything I can do to help you out." "Thanks, and quit calling me 'sir'. You're in America, now, and we stand on our informality," Alex smilingly replied. "Now, I believe that leaves my three Seekers," he said, turning to the others. "I'm Josey Villanueva, and these are Frankie Nolan and Faith Tabernacle," the skinny young thing announced, taking the lead role amongst the three young girls who almost looked similar enough to be sisters. "Well it's nice to meet you al ... wait, did you say 'Faith Tabernacle'?" "Yes, it was my father's idea of a practical joke, though I've kept it despite the teasing it's generated over the years, since we share the same sense of humor," Faith patiently explained. "The family thought it was humorous, since we're all atheists." "You should get along well with Alex then," Cate said, breaking in from where she'd been standing, listening in. "So is Alex, although he has no one else to relate to, since everyone else around him believes in one form of spirituality or another. So far we have Christians, Buddhists, a Vietnamese spiritualist, a couple of Native American believers in spirits, and a few others. We haven't reached any conclusions on the nature of God, other than she has a funny sense of humor in sending Alex to do her work for her." "I'm sure I'll enjoy discussing it with everyone, though we'll have to talk fast as there's a lot of people here, and I can't talk to people long distance quite as easily as others here can," she responded. "So what is it you do, Faith?" Cate asked, trying to keep the conversation moving. "Oh, I'm a Dental Hygienist. I live here in Vegas, and I'm related to Linny Gabberts. If you don't remember, she's—" "Don't worry, we manage to remember almost everyone we encounter," Alex said, "and if I have any trouble remembering, Cate manages to keep excellent records of everyone. Linny is the little cowgirl we met between Dallas and San Antonio." "Yep, that's her. I go out there occasionally to ride with her, since we share a love of horses, but it's too hard to keep them out here." "Excuse me, but you look a little young to have a full time job," Cate interrupted. "No, I'm actually older than I look. I'm actually twenty years old." "That's good to know. Although we don't have many people here in Vegas yet, I'm sure we may be able to swing some business your direction, assuming the dentist you work with is any good," Alex commented. "Yes, si ... Alex. He's actually quite good." "We haven't actually examined anyone's teeth yet, but you should talk to Allison. She may have noticed something that I haven't. She may know something that will help you." "I'm not sure it would help," she responded. "Aside from being a Seeker, and being unable to see anyone's energy, the teeth aren't quite like skin or tissue, it's largely like fingernails, bone or shells. I'd expect it to have little BCM in it to observe, and I'd also imagine it would make it hard to see any in the nerves below." "I wouldn't be so sure, Alex has actually helped heal someone with bone cancer before. You see that girl over there, ask her about it. Gail and Allison had no problems seeing the cancer in her bones." "I'll do that, but again, I'm not sure it would help since we have no Seers in our office, but it would help me learn what would be helpful and what wouldn't," she replied. "And you realize what it would mean if it did, don't you?" Cate grinned. "It would mean you'd be expected to give up your job, go back to school and become a dentist yourself, so you could do research on how the teeth form and what role BCM has in their development." "Oh, wow. I never considered getting into that level of detail before." "Well, consider it now. Alex expects the best from his people, and he supports them in their efforts, too," Cate assured her. "OK, we're getting off track here," Alex said, cutting the discussion short. "What about you, Josey?" "As I said, my name is Josey Villanueva. My family isn't Mexican, though, like the names sound. We're American but of Spanish extraction. My family has been here for about five generations." "And what is it you do?" "Well, I live in Boston, where I'm attending college at Brandeis University. I'm related to Sarah Hamm. She first contacted me about trying to establish a new sorority at my school, and while I haven't had much luck yet, that got us talking. So when this opportunity came up she got me involved, knowing just how long it was likely to take you to reach there." "Yeah, it seems that no one wants to take the risk I may die before I reach the other end of the country," Alex complained. "What are you studying?" Cate asked, always trying to engineer what everyone should study to best help Alex's mission. "Probably nothing that would help you. I'm studying Jewish and women's history. I plan on becoming a writer/historian, though I'm hoping to write a combination of history books, ongoing blogs, and whatever newspaper articles I can manage." "Well, it won't help our knowledge base, but we can always use another writer," Cate told her, looking thoughtful at the prospect. "I never knew that Sarah was Jewish," Alex commented. "All the time we spent together, and she never thought to mention it." "From what I heard, you never spent that much time together," Josey commented. "Although Alex never spends much time in any one place, people have a tendency to open up to him pretty quickly, thus they tend to tell him a lot more than they normally would," Cate explained. "Well, we don't usually talk about our heritage much unless it comes up in the conversation, and that end of the family isn't as religious as my end is." "None of you are orthodox, are you?" Alex asked. "No, we belong to Reform Judaism, so we don't follow the ancient tenets as much as the more orthodox do. There are a lot of fights in the community about it as a result, as you'd expect, given how much the various Protestant sects fight with each other, and they've only split up in the last several hundred years, while we've been fighting amongst ourselves for thousands of years." "Well, it's a good thing we arranged this for today, then, as you might have had trouble participating if we'd done it tomorrow," Alex observed. "I knew you'd be here for at least two days, so even if I missed the experiment, I knew I'd at least catch you for one day. Besides, the dates been bouncing around, so I actually flew in early to make sure I'd be ready whenever you were available. And, just in case you were serious, this isn't considered 'work'." "I hope you didn't have to spend a long time here?" Alex asked, bypassing how much he knew about the Jewish faith. "Don't worry, I'd gladly spend a lot more time and money for this honor, and the time I did spend here I used to talk to others like me. So it was more than worth it. Instead of the ancient history I study, this is all new history, unfolding before you even as you live your life. This gives me a unique perspective into my forefathers, and the women I emulate from the women's emancipation movement." "Well, it looks like we're running out of time. How about you, Frankie? Where'd you ever get the name 'Frankie' from, anyway?" "It stands for Francine. I've always hated Francine, thinking it sounded like a girlie-girl from the eighteen hundreds. Frankie makes me stand out, and it keeps employers from discriminating against me before I get my foot in the door. I usually have to do a lot of explaining once I get there, but at least I get that far." "And you do?" Alex asked, hoping to move the conversation along. "Oh, I'm a flight attendant. I'm 21, I live in Chicago, and I'm a friend of Diane Tucker's. While she turned out not to be a Seer, she learned enough about it to spot me for what I was. She had me fly out to New Orleans, which I'd been planning anyway, and they gave me the whole talk there. So when this turned up, they suggested I fly out." "Oh, how's Diane doing? I was upset she'd feel like an outcast when she didn't turn out to be a Seer like Patricia had thought, but I haven't spoken to anyone about her lately." "She's fine. She's very involved in the community in New Orleans, and has already been to Carbondale to visit everyone there. She's very much a part of the community, even if she doesn't have the visions she'd anticipated having." "Good, I was hoping she wouldn't get depressed, or that the others wouldn't feel embarrassed by what they put her through." "No, I think they all know just what a crap shoot this all is. They manage to include everyone you select, regardless of where they fit into the structure." "Good, look, I hate to cut this short, but it looks like everyone else is getting antsy. How about we finish up, and we can continue after we get situated in Vegas. You're all up for helping out at tonight's concert, aren't you?" They agreed on both counts, so Alex got his act in gear, returned to his car, and proceeded to lead a virtual parade back to the city he'd only passed through once before. This was going to be interesting, as he had a lot of people to catch up with, a lot of new people to meet, and a lot of work to be done in the next two days. ------- "So what's with the surprise," Alex asked, as they neared their room. "I was expecting to see someone in the lobby, so unless it's a pet snake to take care of your mice, I don't know what to expect." "Don't worry," Cate assured him. "You'll see in due time." "Hey, there you are. It's about time," Sammy called out, sticking his head out of the band's room on the far side of Alex's. He turned back and shouted to the others. "Hey, the big man is in the house." Before the threesome could reach the room, Patricia's whole group swarmed out of their room and gathered around, as if waiting for something. "Is there anything I can do for you?" Alex asked. "Nope, we just missed you. After all, it's been several days since we last saw you, and knowing you, a lot must have occurred." "Oh, it did," Cate told them, happy to have someone to tell. "He cured a whole bunch of people, and several of the villagers had 'spirit visions' of him getting one of them pregnant with a 'glowing spirit' baby who'd finish the job of healing the whole village. Oh, by the way, could one of you take some of these cages for me. They're getting hard to carry." "You're shitting me," the normally demur Patricia swore. "You mean we know who's going to bear Alex's heir?" "Yep, her name is Winona. She's gorgeous, if a bit obnoxious when hanging around Alex, but hopefully she'll be better once she realizes she's not his only girl." "Man, we've been waiting for this for ages," Erica said, stating what everyone else was thinking. "Do we have any proof of their claim?" Chelsea asked. "Of course not," Alex responded shortly. "It's only been a day, and a pregnancy doesn't show for several days even with our vision, and for all we know, we won't know definitively for another five or ten years. Gail, are you opening the door or what?" Gail didn't say anything, she just turned and held the keycard out to Alex. Grumbling, he dropped his bag and took the key from her. He turned and opened the door, only to be confronted by two people he never expected to see. "Surprise!" everyone behind him chorused. Haley Hewitt enveloped him in her arms, even as Kayla Odell was trying to quickly limp up to join in the hug. "What the hell are you two doing here?" Alex asked. "We knew you were upset about not being able to help us, so when everyone was planning this experiment Gail suggested we join them. But Cate thought it would be a bigger surprise if we waited, and since Kayla is still having trouble walking we figured it would be better to say here." Alex gave them both a long hug, and when he finally broke long enough to usher them inside, he found his eyes were tearing. "Before we do anything, lay down on the bed, one on each. I'll see if I can do anything for you after all this time." They did as he asked, smiling at him as he approached them. "We understand you're not likely to be able to do anything, after all, the scarring of the wounds has already set in," Kayla answered. "We've both been working in rehab, but that takes a long time." As Alex waited, Gail and Gini carried in the bags, while Cate happily filmed the three of them with her cellphone. Gail started to go back for the animal cages but the other girls brought them in for her, so she finally joined Alex and examined Haley first. "It was an in-and-out without hitting anything major, but there's minor scarring on either end and some along the path as well. But the tissue in between is still a bit dim, showing it's still not at full strength." "OK, check out Kayla while I work on Haley," Alex instructed her. Since Gail hadn't laid out where to do the work, Alex examined both her entrance and exit wounds, calculating the path the bullet had taken. He figured out the trajectory from there, and began applying his energy evenly across the whole pathway. He doubted it would make any difference this long after the fact, but Haley's smile grew bigger the longer he worked. Since he felt guilty, he kept the treatment up longer than he really needed. "So, make any difference?" Alex asked doubtfully. "You'd better believe it. This is the only time it hasn't hurt since it first happened." "Well, I don't think I actually did anything, so it probably just relaxed the muscles. After all, I can't imagine how it could serve as a pain killer. I suggest you do the exercises they gave you to stretch the muscles, and it may be more effective than it would be otherwise." Haley practically jumped up and moved to the far side, doing just that, her smile never fading the whole time. Alex felt bad, since she seemed convinced that he'd cured her, while Alex didn't have any such confidence. Instead, he turned to Kayla. "She had a through-and-through right here in her outer thigh. Again it's mostly minor scar tissue that is restricting the movements of the leg. It will probably ease on its own with the exercises they have her doing, but..." Alex stepped up and did essentially the same thing he'd done with Haley, only this time he ran his hand along her thigh as well as treating it from either end. She started to purr halfway through. "Now, you can't be feeling anything from what I'm doing," Alex complained. "Hey, when someone cures you, you can complain to them, but if you're not the one who's been shot, and who's been struggling with her recovery, then you don't get a vote," she shot back. "Still... ," he complained. "Actually, if the scarring isn't that extreme, it may have a healing effect," Cate offered. "Well, I'd suggest you do like Haley is. If nothing else, it should make the exercises you normally do more effective," Alex suggested. She sat up and kissed Alex in thanks before getting up and moving to the end of the bed to start her exercises. "I'm really sorry I couldn't stay to help after you were shot," Alex said again. "Alex, I was the one who told you to leave us alone," Kayla reminded him. "Besides, your community all contributed so much in order to help us, that we started a small non-profit to help other injured people in the city. "Really? You got that much?" Alex asked, stunned that it would have amounted to that much. "Well, it wasn't all from them. They covered the basic costs of treatment and planned therapies as soon as Gail announced the fund, but once they did, the other contributions started, and when everyone noticed how large the collection was getting it kind of snowballed. We talked about what to do with the funds, and after discussing it with some of your people, we called a lawyer and had them set up the "Guardian Angel Foundation", which is assigned to help accident and victims of crime in the Dallas region. There was enough money that, as long as we don't spend it too fast, should last for some time. Especially if we use it to cover whatever insurance, Medicaid and Medicare doesn't." "And no one asked about the name?" Alex asked skeptically. "We just explained that we named it that to spite the shooter, who thought he was trying to kill an angel. This was our revenge, since it was our guardian angel that kept us from being killed by him. The public loved it, especially when we smiled as we said it, wearing our low cut tops," she answered with a cheeky grin. They proceeded to talk for quite a while, detailing what had happened to each one, but mostly Alex. Cate explained about what happened after the shooting, covering the events in Oklahoma City and the other cities, Gini explained about what happened after he left Phoenix, and Cate resumed describing their adventures in the Paiute village. "So let me get this straight," Kayla said. "Not only have you expanded your mission to include whoever wants to join, and you've quit trying to hide from the public, but you've effectively solved the whole heir problem, and you've figured out how to boost more people than you can through simply having sex with everyone, and you've included a whole 'nother nation of people to your mission. Is that about it?" "Well, I wouldn't say I'm telling the public at large about me, but essentially, yeah," Alex admitted. "Then it sounds like you have reason to celebrate. You've apparently assured the survival of your people after you're gone, which hopefully won't be for some time. You've not only healed a bunch of people, but your treatments are likely to change what treatments people get. Cate and Becky have officially documented your energy, and your followers are more organized and enthused than they've ever been. So just what the hell do you have to complain about now?" Alex couldn't say much to deny it, but he considered what she said as he sat there with a crooked smile. She was right. While it had been a complicated and busy month, he'd managed to accomplish a lot. And even if he died that very night it was very possible his whole mission would live on after him, and would even live on after the people he'd already activated died out. He couldn't have expected any more. Anything he achieved from now on out was pure gravy, it helped, but it was no longer essential. He'd managed to accomplish what he was looking to do. "How about we go get some food?" Alex asked. "If I stay here and everyone keeps congratulating me, my head will expand so much I won't be able to carry it downstairs in a little while." The others laughed and they headed downstairs, looking forward to meeting everyone else. ------- "Becky? This is Alex, I understand you wanted to talk to me." "What, you don't want to talk to me unless I've got an agenda?" she asked. "No, of course not," he replied, blushing from his oversight. "Turn on the speakerphone," Cate suggested. Alex did so before speaking again. "You know that I miss you, but everyone has been surprising me with one thing after another today, so I'm a bit anxious about what you want to discuss with me." "Yeah, and we love you too," Becky reassured him. "Actually, we knew you were going to call, so Melinda is here with me. She's been involved with a lot of what I do, as well as supporting your other activities. Not only that, but she's been studying up on both general genetics and physics, so hopefully she can make some sense of all the mysteries you bring up. She's going to start her science sub-major when school starts in the fall, but right now, she can understand most of what I'm going to cover." "Well, I'm proud of her, that is if that's what she really wants to do," Alex added. "It is," Melinda told him. "I figure determining what's going on with you is a family affair, so I'm going to do my part. I may not have the leg up that Becky and Cate do, but I want to do my part." "OK, that's fine, but the point you wanted to discuss was?" Alex asked, trying to get them back on target. He always felt he was being set up in these prearranged encounters. "Don't worry," Becky reassured him, "it's nothing bad. Instead I wanted to reveal what I've managed to uncover in my research. You do remember I took over the entire genetic lab here for the summer to try to isolate which genes are affected, don't you?" "Yeah, of course I remember. In fact, if I remember correctly, I'm the one paying for this little 'experiment' of yours." "Yes, you are, and as such you need to be kept apprised of what we've discovered. I was ready to give you some updates a little while ago, but Cate suggested it would be better if I saved the updates until I had something specific to tell you. Well, that time is now." "Wait, you've already got results? I thought the whole idea was to run full scans on all the women, and then analyze the results after we had to give the lab back?" "That was the initial idea, but I started to make some assumptions that helped me to isolate where to look. I figured the 'S' gene is in small region of the X chromosome inhibited by the male SRY gene, thus it's turned off in males. It's a region of the X-chromosome that is excluded by the presence of the SRY gene on the male Y-chromosome. That's why most of your followers are female. What's more, if it were placed anywhere else there would be more things that would cause its nonexpression. But, by focusing on that region, I was able to cut out a lot of unnecessary research and analysis. I still did the full workup on your women here, but I'm focusing the analysis on these specific regions, and I think I've got it identified, at least to three or four specific locations. I'm not positive on which one it is yet, but I'm pretty sure I know which one it is. That means that we can run tests to identify who has the gene, and we could even run the test on either the baby's blood or the mother's placenta blood to identify whether anyone's child will be either a Seer or a Seeker." "Wait a minute. This is major. But I thought that there were actually two different 'S' genes?" "You're close, but not quite. What we said was that it takes a double presentation. A gene 'presents' itself if it's active, although a 'double presentation' is fairly unique. If someone has a single 'S' gene, theoretically on either X chromosome, then they'd be a Seeker, though it would really need to be on the active X-chromosome to be expressed. As you can guess, with two competing X-chromosomes, one from each parent, one has to be active while the other would be inactive to prevent destructive over-expression, or different genes on different chromosomes competing with each other. So the 'S' gene needs to be on the active X-chromosome. But the idea is that if a person has the 'S' gene on both the X-chromosomes, then that would boost the effect, making them a full Seer. Thus it's like getting a double dose, one from each parent." "OK, I think I can follow all of that. But now the big question is, do we want the 'S' gene identified? If that information got out, the Seers and Seekers could be tracked down, tested and imprisoned based upon a simple DNA test." "That's why I've been riding such close herd over the research here. I didn't want any of this information getting out. I think it's secure, and the DNA scans of each woman are being stored in a climate controlled vault in a bank under someone else's name, to prevent anyone from tracking it down based on an association with either you or I." "All right, that makes me feel better about it. So you've managed to do scientifically through genetics on what Cate's managed to do via observational techniques?" "Hey, don't go giving Cate all the credit here. It was her idea, and she orchestrated it, but I was heavily involved in the initial testing, and I managed to determine the specifics we've been using to do the analysis with. Cate may be your favorite sister, but she's hardly the only one doing the heavy lifting around here." "Sorry, I didn't want to diminish your involvement, but I'm just trying to confirm that you've basically duplicated the results of her eye dilation technique using genetics, correct?" "Yes, that's correct. Which also goes a long way in both proving and demonstrating the abilities if we ever need to establish our claims." "Good, now what about the 'A' gene, the one that determines my abilities. If you could do the same with those, then we could potentially test each of my male children to—" "Don't assume it would only be the boys," Becky cautioned him. "For all we know, you're the only case we have, so the gene in question could be on either the X or the Y gene, meaning your heir could be either a boy or a girl. Everyone has been hoping it will be a girl, since combining the 'S' gene with the 'A' gene would be like a one-two punch. It would really boost the ability to perform miracles up a notch." "Yeah, I'll believe it when I see it, but in either case, if we can potentially test my children before they begin showing their abilities, it would be a major gain as well." "Well, I'm trying to do that. As you know, we're being very careful with that, as we've had to mislabel your DNA tests so that no one can tie them to you, and there's only one of you, so any single gene could be triggering these abilities, so it'll take a minor miracle to correctly identify which one it is. But again, I think I've got the region it will be found on identified, and I'm zeroing in on some likely targets." "OK, that's a start. And if you can't identify it, it'll get easier when we turn up some more cases of the 'A' gene." "Oh, most assuredly. That would help tremendously." "OK, you've done great, Becky. It sounds like we're making huge leaps and bounds on several different fronts. When do you think you'll confirm which gene is the 'S' gene?" "Well, as I said, I pretty much know which one it is. But we just need to rule out a couple of alternatives, which means we need more samples so we can find instances of Seers without the other alternatives. That's a longer process, but I'm pretty sure we know which one it is right now. It's just not provable yet." "OK, another big advancement, which I'd never have known if I hadn't wheedled it out of you." "Don't worry, you'll be able to grill me in detail as much as you want in a little while," Becky told him. "Huh? Why? What happens in a little while?" "Oh, nothing. I just mean that I'll be done with the study soon, and I won't be so preoccupied," she answered, although it sounded to Alex like she wasn't being completely forthcoming, but he was too excited by all the good news to worry about his suspicions at the moment. ------- "Man, I'm exhausted," Alex commented after he lay back, having finished with Cate's after sex snack. He'd managed to boost both April and Cami, and he'd done Anna earlier, but he knew he had to try to get to the other girls before the next day. He knew there would be others showing up throughout the day. In fact he'd been alerted that there was another girl waiting for him who'd joined the others downstairs earlier. Although it would be tough, he figured if he woke up in another five hours he could do Josey, then possibly manage Frankie and Faith with a twofer in the morning in the shower. After that he'd probably have to sleep all day to recover, and apply some energy and lotion to his poor frazzled dick, but at least he'd get everyone taken care of. Since they'd all flown in from so far off, he felt obligated to try to boost them all, especially since he didn't want to show favoritism to the Seers. But that wasn't everyone he needed to be concerned with either. There were still the women from the concerts. He'd managed to put off all the women they'd encountered that night until later, but he'd have to boost some of the local women as well. Man, this being in charge of a new race of people took a hell of a lot of work, he reminded himself wearily. They all curled up, settling in to sleep, lining up with Alex cuddling Cami, and Cate spooning him. They were about to drift off when they heard a loud banging on the door. Alex sat up, wondering what was happening. "Stay there," Gail insisted from the other bed where she was crowded beside the other girls. "I'll take care of this, the rest of you, uh, take it easy." She got up and put her pants on and tossed a hotel robe over herself, slipping her handgun into the pocket on the off chance she may need it. Every so many minutes the rapid repeated knock would sound again, as if the person was either desperate to get in, or they weren't sure anyone was home. Finally Gail headed to the door and checked out the peep hole. "It's Erica," she announced as she unlocked the door. "I have no idea what she wants at this time of night. After all, she knows what your nights are like." When she opened the door, Erica shoved past her and ran to Alex, though it took her a minute to identify Alex amongst all the naked bodies lying together on the two beds in the darkened room. "Alex, I don't know what the hell you did, but you did it. You friggin' boosted me!" Both Alex and Cate sat up, surprised by this news. "I'd been hoping I could convince you to sleep with me sometime before our tour ended, and I was thinking I wouldn't get the chance, but you figured out how to do it. Not only do you manually boost six friggin' women in one damn night, but you manage to do me too." "Where the hell were you?" Cate asked, intrigued by this unexpected news. "Me, I was sitting in the bar downstairs. I was restless all evening, and it wasn't until I went downstairs for a drink that I realized I could feel the emotional excitement of everyone up here. As you continued, I kept feeling more and more excitement myself. I tried to deaden it by drinking with Sam, but then, just a little while ago, it all exploded. I felt this wave of relief wash over me, and then my vision blurred. I thought I was going to pass out, but when I didn't, I looked around, and after a minute I noticed I could tell what people were feeling; like who was getting belligerent, who was calm and who was feeling horny. That was when I realized what happened. You mastered the spontaneous boost, and you chose me as a reward for all our time together." "Uh, I didn't do—" "Alex means it was the least he could do," Cate finished for him. "After all, you've been so much help, and you've been there for him. But he still doesn't have it worked out yet, so we're not sure we can do it again." "OK, I'll be sure not to mention it to the new girls. They were all sitting downstairs in the bar talking about what we'd told them, and gossiping about what meeting you would be like." "Uh... ," Alex eloquently responded. "If you don't mind, Alex is going to have his hands full tomorrow," Gail told her. "He's got someone else to do later tonight, and another two in the morning, not to mention how many others there are." "Oh, I understand," Erica replied. "He's going to have to put in even more effort if he hopes to spontaneously boost the others downstairs, and he might have to try several times if he's not sure how to trigger it. OK, I got it. Do you need any more food? I can run and get it. Did I mention how amazing it is to feel your emotions from across the room? Is that what love feels like to an outsider, Gail?" "Uh, Erica, just how much did you have to drink downstairs?" Cate asked. "I don't know, I was trying to drown out my increasing horniness. It was a few. Man, I can feel how each of you feel towards each other. Though, Gail, I can feel your annoyance." "That's because I'm responsible for looking after Alex, and that means I have to play the bad guy. Would you please head back to your room? NOT downstairs to the bar, and get some sleep," Gail told her sternly. Erica giggled the entire time Gail led her out. Alex wondered what she'd think when she awoke in the morning with a hangover and these strange feelings about people, and possibly no memory of what happened. But then he didn't really know whether she was really boosted, or whether she was having alcoholic hallucinations. He figured they'd work it out in the morning. "Thanks, Gail," he said as she grumbled, taking off her clothes again and snuggling in beside the other girls. "That was really nice of you," April told him. "Yeah, boosting someone from that distance couldn't have been easy, and for as much as you've been doing today, you're really amazing," Anna offered. "Literally, it was nothing," Alex responded in exasperation. "Zip it, Alex," Cate whispered to him. So Alex lay there, feeling exhausted but too disturbed to actually fall asleep. There was still so much to be done. Beside the women to get through before the women in the hotel, and a few select women from Vegas, they were going to hit California in a couple of days. Once they did, Patricia's tour would end, so right after the biggest concert of the tour so far Alex would be faced with touring the West coast on his own, without the benefit of Patricia's concerts to draw people to him. What's more, he had to figure out how this spontaneous boosting worked, he had to build communities in a variety of cities across the country, and he had thousands of miles to travel before he'd eventually reach home, where he could finally see his girlfriends and his family again. There was still a lot more for him to do, and it would take a lot of time, and a lot of effort on everyone's part. It was looking like things were going to get more difficult, but at least he had the support of a lot of people. There was yet a lot to look forward to, but there was still so much to do. ------- So ends this, the third volume of my account of Alex's story. This recollection has been a long and tedious process, and the results have been uneven. But then again, I'm not a writer, and was only tasked with this topic because of my familiarity and association with Alex. The next volume, though much shorter, features many changes once Alex reached California. Having changed his focus and being relieved of much of his sense of obligation to save the future of his people, he felt less obliged about his future actions. Though he knew he had to reach as many people as he could, since there was no one else who could do it, yet he felt confident that one of his potential children would possess his ability, even if he wasn't sure of that. But a lot of things were scheduled to change. For one, Patricia and her band reached the end of their tour in LA, taking away Alex's major source of recruitment of new followers. But while that changed his approach, it also removed a major source of stress in his life; for a time at least. But many other things changed as well, including some major changes in his abilities, or at least how he managed to apply them. ------- As our biographer states, this book was a bit of an uneven ride. As I stated on the Blog/Discussion Group, I knew going in that this would be an unsteady ride. I'd imposed a LOT of limitations on the story, some because of necessity, and others simply to challenge me. As such, it ended up proving to be fairly unsteady and inconsistent, as well as having several specific problems. I (Crumbly) hadn't originally planned this book to end at this stage, but everything reached a natural crescendo, and there's a lot remaining for another book. As a result, I thought it would prove a satisfying conclusion to the current book, while providing a significant change in both attitude and substance in the new one. However, the limitations of the story; a limited cast of main characters, no follow-up on the majority of new characters, a limited amount of time to handle any given situation that Alex faced, and a desire to work out every little detail, will remain in the next book as well. Just so you're warned. But then again, I warned you that this one would be difficult when I first posted it, but hopefully I've learned enough to keep it interesting. But the Biggest change is in the schedule. As most of you know, I jump directly from Book 2 into Book 3, then found myself unable to escape 'Editing mode', where I couldn't just write a rough draft and go back later to 'clean it up' once I knew how the whole thing would play out. Instead I found myself covering each and every detail, unable to work out the plot or pacing ahead of time. As a result, I've decided to take a break before continuing. I wanted to finish off both current books ("Racing the Clock" and "Love and Family"), then I wanted to take off enough time to ensure I wouldn't be plagued by 'editing mode' any more. Then I plan to write a complete first draft of the rest of the story. Finally, I won't start posting until I have a good seven to ten chapters revised, edited and (somewhat) polished. As a result, it'll likely be a little while before you'll see the next installment of the story. However, hopefully it will read better, be more consistent, and won't drag on quite as long. The good news/bad news, though, is that I've decided to make Book 4, "Building a Legacy", much shorter than I'd planned. Originally, I'd envisioned Alex circling the west coast, ending up in Chicago before returning home for a break. I'd given up on the idea of taking him farther, as he traveled east heading to New York City, but I now see that's liable to cause more problems than it'll solve. So I'm planning on keeping the story concise and limited in scope, which will hopefully prevent 'chapter creep', where the story grows longer and longer as more and more details get added. (The first two books were originally 43 chapters combined, which grew into 16 and 47 for each book). What's more, Book 4 will be the End of Alex's story. There won't be any continuations, although if anyone wants, there's plenty of room to write associated stories, either covering the other people Alex met, or what happens in the future, but I myself am ready to move on to other areas. Areas where I can put many of the issues I attempted to wrestle with here to bed. As you can tell, I decided to tackle a lot of disparate topics. Even "Love and Family" attempted to cover a lot of diverse topics, which all work to prevent me from crafting a 'polished' product. I doubt I'll ever be able to write a concise best seller, simply because that's not the kind of writing that motivates me, but as I gain more experience, I suspect my work will become more focused. Anyway, I hope you'll join me when I begin posting the next volume. But for now, it's been a wild ride, and I'd like to thank you all for your support and your many suggestions and critiques. ------- The End ------- Posted: 2011-11-29 Last Modified: 2012-10-18 / 12:41:07 pm ------- http://storiesonline.net/ -------