Storiesonline.net ------- Rebirth by John Wales & Dr. Stan & Wires Copyright© John Wales 2007 ------- Description: Jeff is a successful entrepreneur. Over the years he built up his electronics business to a small chain or retail outlets. He had two failed marriages and accepted his employees as his family. Somehow his prostrate condition slipped through the cracks. Facing death, he goes back to his roots and the pain he endured in his dysfunctional family. Fate wants to deal him a second hand in life. Codes: mf mF ff Ff TimeTr rom cons inc mother sis ------- ------- Edited by Dr. Stan and Wires ------- Preface Hello friends and readers. I'm putting a short note here about Rebirth. The story was written before last Xmas though the last few pages had not been finished. There were a lot of editors that helped improve it. Most could not continue with such a long piece of work and disappeared. I still want to thank them though for the effort they have done to improve the story. Two editors have stayed with me to complete this story and improve the other ones that I have written. They can take these long stories in stride and come back for more. Some, if not most people, may consider them masochists but I'd never say that. These two gentlemen not only edited the grammar and spelling but suggested plot. They then added dialogue. They did enough improvements to be called co-authors. Both had to step beyond the norm by learning how to spell in Canadian English. Quite a feat when they did not know how to spell colour correctly only months before. If I wore a hat, I would tip it to them. I'm asking Lazeez, the person managing Storiesonline, to kindly send copies of all the letters about the story to them as well. They can then share the accolades and be informed of all the bloopers we missed or caused. Wires gives advice like Ann Landers but about electronics and radio. Dr. Stan is a lifelong science fiction aficionado with a love for books. He has even more stuffed bookcases in his house than I have. The story Rebirth is written in Canadian English. Since I went over the story before being posted then all the mistakes are my property and mine alone. I still have trouble with homonyms and transposing letters so if you think that you can do much better then edit the story and send me the new chapters with your name in the file name for reposting. You should be aware that you would have to do the same to the remaining chapters as well. Rebirth is related to 'Time'. In that story many cutting edge inventions were made. This is a lower key approach with a different plot and storyline. Instead of attack helicopters he is inventing disposable diapers. Both products deal with some dangerous products. The story codes will be altered to reflect the chapter content as I go along. I hope you enjoy the story we are bring to you. John Wales ------- Chapter 1 Jeff Congdon threw the now sweaty towel into the laundry basket to be taken care of later. The workout felt satisfactory and he flexed his sore muscles one way then another to see if the pain would leave. The snow outside was not even enough to bother with the blower and it gave a satisfactory method of using his body even without the weight room. Walking into the large washroom, he looked at his reflection. At fifty-eight he didn't look too bad he thought. His hair, was white, or at least what there was of it, was white. It had been a nice blonde colour just a few years ago. His chest still had a lot more hair and it would be nice to find if it could be transplanted to his pate. The stomach was still flat and the arms large from his lifelong commitment to keeping fit. After a quick shower and a change of clothing he tuned the radio station to a classical selection on CBC. Jeff was now pretty much a man of habit. This came from his penchant for keeping things neat and from his time in the military. All his life he had to clean up after himself and others. If he threw something down it would just mean that he had to find and retrieve it later. He walked into another section of his large home and looked around for a good task to keep him busy for a few hours. The walls had many projects not quite done yet. Musical instruments being built or repaired looked interesting - but not today. The old photo developing equipment should be thrown out; for it hadn't been used in years. The cameras and the special lenses allowed for much better home pictures than what would be in a binder. The large brightly lit room had three computers. One of which were running all the time. Another wall was covered with electronic test equipment of every imaginable type. Not all of it was the most modern but he was not doing as much inventing in the last few years. A chance to learn electronics in the Canadian military had been the key to the happiness he now enjoyed. During his five year hitch where he learned as much as he could about servicing not only the military but the civilian equipment too. His small electronics repair shop had grown with fits and starts to become a chain of five large retail outlets with a sixth opening in a few months. During his younger years, a string of minor inventions had supplied a great deal of money to expand his business. None of the patents covered earth-shattering discoveries but were still very innovative for their time. Not all were in the electronic field, but the ones to that paid the most were. The small lathe on the other side of the room reminded him that he needed to make a small part for a neighbour's Model 'T' that the man was rebuilding. The part was still in the chuck and after a few moments, Jeff put on his safety equipment and continued with the interrupted work. That night Jeff was well paid for his labour with a nice meal and a chance to talk quietly with the family. Not having a family of his own allowed him to adopt many others as his if they turned out to be worthy. At his side, a widow of fifty-two was his escort for the night. Eleanor laughed at the joke he told her and slapped Jeff good-naturedly. "I don't know where you come up with all those jokes. You can find one to suit any occasion." Emily Johnston, the wife of the neighbour added, "We talked of a crocodile last week, he found six jokes to fit the situation, and I am sure there were more." I said in reply, "When I am in such good company, there is always a push to pay for my meal. Kings and queens had their jesters." Tom Johnston said after taking a sip of his brandy, "You already paid for the meal with the project you completed for us." "Friends do not keep score like that. I may have taken this damsel out to a restaurant tonight but it is nicer to have a home cooked meal, and cheaper too." Eleanor held my arm and said seductively to me, "You could have come to my house for a home cooked meal Jeff." "Those meals are good too but I want to wiggle my way into Tom's confidence and see if I can drive his horseless carriage. An old fart like me looks good in an old vehicle like that." After we made our departure, Eleanor and I walked the few metres to my home and I said, "Would you like a drink Honey?" Her eyes seemed to shine with internal light. "No, I want to go to bed now." Bending over I held the woman in my arms and kissed her delicately. She was one of many that I would have loved to marry but for now it was better to play the field. I led her by the hand to the large master bedroom and she insisted on removing my clothing in a slow and bewitching process. When I stepped out of my boxers, she immediately knelt and sucked as much of me as she could into her mouth. A few days ago I had done something similar to her and now she was getting her reprisal. I was not much taller than she was but I was happy with the way my equipment worked after all these years. I was larger than average and through a lot of practice, I was good at using what I was born with. I held off this time and when my lady was getting tired, I pulled her head away and brought her face to me so I could kiss her. I now took my time to remove Eleanor's dress and then I was between her legs. When she started to stagger, I picked her up and lowered her onto the bed. My lips went back to what they had been doing and Eleanor's legs came together to trap me in place. Her hands came down and grasped my thinning hair but she released her grip just a bit. Her first orgasm approached and I held tight; for I knew that she was not only a screamer, she was a woman that had no idea what they did in the throes of their passion. She screamed and bucked as if trying to dislodge me. I knew that if I moved away her hands would pull my hair viciously back into place. Her next climax had me grasping her wrists to save what little hair I had left. When she relaxed, I stood up and moved closer to her. The one eyed snake found its burrow and soon he was home. Eleanor groaned her feelings and said, "Yes, you stretch me so nice." Flattery never hurt me much even though I knew that I was not that big. The little piece of fiction did stroke my ego though. I moved within her for a few minutes then we changed position as the night progressed. She liked the doggie position, and so did I, but I wanted to hold off as long as possible. This was just too enjoyable to hurry. Eleanor came twice more before I came myself with a growl and then a loud call of my own that shook the all the glass in the room. She shivered in response and came again herself. We both laid still in each other's arms until she stirred herself to pull away and move down my body. I was wet from our combined juices but Eleanor liked this and she sucked my tired soldier into her mouth. I was not as young as I used to be but in a few minutes, I was back and ready for round two. We continued until I was empty and then had our shower before turning in for the night. This time she must have been tired out, for she didn't want a rematch till the sun was shining in the window. Eleanor had her breakfast earlier than usual then we got up for a shower. She tried to show her domesticity by making me a hearty meal to compensate for my loss of fluids. With one more time in bed and another clean up she left for her duties and I left for mine. My empire, as I jokingly called it, was not that big, yet it took a lot of my time. Most of the work I entrusted to managers, only sticking my own nose in on occasion. Sometimes I went down to the shop and tried to make myself useful on some of the more difficult projects. Some circuit boards were repaired instead of being scrapped. This was fun, though not really cost-effective. The shop people knew me very well and I usually knew them and even their parents and sometimes grand parents. After two disastrous marriages and a bout of drinking that almost lost me the business, I decided to take the families of my employees as my own. The children sat on my lap at Christmas while I wore a red suit and the youngest at picnics or whenever I could arrange it. I gave myself to them, and over the years they had given themselves back to me. They were my family. There was no other way I would have got where I was without them and I made sure they knew it. I watched the clock and at three, I left for my doctor's appointment. Tom greeted me with a handshake and said, "You getting ready to go kill some worms soon?" "It is still winter Tom. Following an orange ball in the snow is not too bad but I hate to slog through the mud." "Well let's get started. I am going to have to look at your hairy bum again." "You only do that because you like it. Too many of your other patients have wide and flabby cheeks." Blood was taken and a great many things checked, and I was out of the office in a little over thirty minutes after promising to visit next week for the report and another home cooked meal. I went home with a sore butt and packed my suitcase for a short trip. I would drive to all the other businesses I owned and take a peek at what was happening. The accountant said everything was great but it is nice to see that with my own eyes. Accountants didn't know people, only numbers and it was people that made my company. The trip took four days but I usually stretched it out to seven or more. There were a lot of lovely and lonely ladies that need somebody to show them that they were still desirable. This kept the tubes cleared and all of us happy. In between, I talked to the employees and caught up on all the gossip. Some of the people had been with me for their entire working lives and most had their relatives precede them. There was nepotism here but it was very seldom that anyone gave me problems. The peer pressure was so great that no one wanted to rock the boat. When I got home, I relaxed for a few minutes and took a small glass of brandy. I sat with the mail in front of me and pushed the button on the answering machine to catch up with all the calls I had to return. Bills went to the accountant, while the few advertisement I received went into the circular file. There were letters from a few friends or family even though they were really employees. Weddings, showers, and funerals were a fact of life and if I had a regular job I would not be able to keep up. One of the calls was from a worried sounding Tom. Later on there were two more and now I began to worry myself. I called Tom at his home number and his wife Claire answered but her voice sounded odd. Tom was on the line very quickly and said, "Hello Jeff. I was trying to contact you for a while now." "What's wrong?" "Some of the tests came back and I just want to double check on them. Can you come in tomorrow?" "Tomorrow is Sunday. Your office is closed." "Come on in anyway. I have work to check up on and we can have some piece and quiet. Maybe I can get a picture of your butt and send it away to some geriatric magazine." I was not put off by his levity, and in a quiet voice I asked, "What's wrong Tom?" "Let's check tomorrow. There may be nothing wrong and I can make some money from the photograph." Sleep didn't come easy and I was up early for the appointment. Tom made a few jokes and I was usually able to play him quip for quip but not today. The tests this time were the same as last time but with more thrown in. He used the device to check my colon and I was worried about polyps. When the tests were done and I was asked to dress, I said with my best voice, "What do you think the problem is?" "We have to wait for the tests Jeff." "What do you suspect now?" There was a long pause and he said in a low voice, "Prostrate." The 'C' word was not there but I could still hear it. I went home stunned. I had a fist full of pamphlets on the subject but I went to the net and got a great deal more. It didn't take long to find out an awful lot. Some of them were printed but I had gone to school all my life and study was not difficult for me. Eleanor and a few others phoned up to see if I would go out with them but I begged off. In only three days, the reports came back and I had to go to the local hospital for more tests. In two more weeks, I found out that I had slipped through the cracks somehow and now it was too late. I could go for chemo or radiation but in the end, the result would be the same. Tom was taking this even worse than me. I asked, "How long do I have?" The answer was hard to get out of him but the maximum was apparently eighteen months. I found myself rudderless. My company, friends, and employees had been what I lived for. Specialists had been called and I went judiciously but the news was never encouraging. A year later my health was now failing. I loved exercise, including hiking and self defence and skiing, but now it was difficult to even walk for short distances. The city of my birth drew me back. It was a morbid idea for some reason because I had so many bad memories of this place. My dad had died of silicosis from one of the mines. The government, the compensation board, and the mines refused to believe that the silica dust caused his death. They fought the studies and paid the politicians so they would not do what was right. This happened in'52 when I went to grade one. Mark, my father, had been a harsh man that encouraged me to be much nicer. He was fair, though I may not have noticed at the time. My mother Jane, had kept us together with the help of welfare payments, some small jobs, and a few more under the table. She was a very busy woman and she left our raising to ourselves. Maggie was two years older than I was and I think was as normal as any other girl except for how our older sister twisted our family. Susan was four years older than me. Over the years I came to recognise a few things that I had not been able to see then. She was my parent's first born and got a great deal of love. When father got sick, and eventually died, much of the load fell on her shoulders. Some of the responsibilities she could handle but it was the actual guidance and love that she needed. Some of her crying was not just that dad had left us but that he had left her. It seemed that her resentment of this situation worked its way onto me. All of the girls looked like mom with dark hair and an adorable face. I took after dad with blonde hair and perhaps even a prettier face. While mom worked, Susan would look out for me but at the smallest infraction I was beaten with a vengeance. It was as if she were beating dad for leaving. Dad had a room in our basement set aside for exercising. At one time it had been for storing wine and curing meat. Susan had cleared it all out; and I was able to rescue the equipment only by being able to hide it in the attic when she was not around. This room came to be her playroom. She affixed clips to the walls and ceiling joists and created her own torture chamber. A locked trunk supplied all the equipment needed to make anybody's life a living hell. Not only was I tied up and flogged by her and her friends, but she even used an electric soldering iron to brand her initials into my butt. Photographs were taken of my helpless state and I think she sold tickets. The audience sometimes became active participants. They would whip or flog me but then one brought a dildo and I was raped every time after that. It was only girls doing this and most were four or more years older than me. Susan has sworn off males and this meant that other women became her sexual outlet. Just before my twelfth birthday I had been hiking in Pine Ridge Provincial Park when I was struck by lightning. I had been in the hospital for a while then at home recovering. Susan took this as a personal assault, for she now had to do what she forced me to do. A broken arm while riding my bike got the same treatment a year later. Others were tortured too. Maggie was the recipient a few times till she learned to obey her older sister. Most girls feared Susan and I think it was this fear that compelled them to exhibit lesbian tendencies. Susan continued to torment me until I was able to get big enough to fight back effectively. She and her friends ambushed me so many times that I avoided going home. When Susan began to loose the fights on a consistent basis, other things would happen to my property instead. When this didn't work she started rumours that I was a homosexual and this caused me a great deal of pain at school. Things were not good for Susan either and she committed suicide in '66. Mom only drank more but Maggie and I were free and had been for a few years. I had joined the military two years before and now I could go home if I chose. Maggie had got married the same year I enlisted, when she was 20 in 1964. I think it was mainly to get away from her sister. Her marriage was not good but they did stick it out. They had two lovely children. Laura the youngest died with her mother as a result of a horrendous car wreck in '73. It came out at the inquest that Maggie had been drinking heavily, as usual, on the day of the accident. Mother drank and smoked herself to death in 1980. I think she had died inside a great deal sooner; and it may have happened when dad died. We had some distant relatives but none of them wanted anything to do with our dysfunctional family. I had married Betty soon after I left the Air Force in 1969. Ironically, the woman turned out to be too much like Susan. I almost drank the company to death but an amiable divorce saved us in time. Four years later, I married Joan, but again the end result was the same. I knew that I was partially at fault for the failures. My expectations were too high and I think it was the type of women I was looking for in the first place. My family now was my employees. My time was limited and I sold most of my possessions or gave them away. I formed the company into a partnership now with the employees getting a share according to their seniority. The money was put into trust funds for the children for when they went to school or married. I was living in a small rented flat that suited me fine. Many friends and lovers tried to help me out. I allowed some, but I didn't want pity. It had taken a while but I came to terms with what was happening to me. I had been back in North Bay, the town of my birth, for a few weeks. There were few friends left. Many had not been my friends after Susan's accusation and their ready belief in the rumour. It was now April 2, 2008. I set out to hike through the nearby provincial park. I pitched my tent and made camp. The weather was supposed to be good for at least a week, yet the next day the sky was filled with ominous dark clouds. In spite of the drastically changed weather, I wanted to proceed. I had lots of energy today. My breakfast was a handful of drugs and my plan was to make short trips and camp early. When everything was packed away the wind came up, pushing a bit of rain before it. This early in the season meant it was cold but there was no place to shelter except the terminus of the park. The map and GPS showed that I was at least four hours from this that shelter if I chose it. I was only living this once so I decided to stay with my original plan. Even though my equipment was good, I was soaked with sweat. By three in the afternoon, my strength was finally giving out. I had rested many times and this time it would be the last for the day. A fire had burnt through the area recently and a few acres were just black stumps. When I got to the top of the last hill, I suddenly remembered this location. Exactly fifty years ago, in this exact spot I had been struck by lightning. Yet, instead of hurrying over the crown I stopped to admire the view. Lightning had been seen recently but so what. Given my situation, another lightning bolt with my name on it would make little difference in the great scheme of things. I mean how much deader would I be, right. I was wrong! ------- Chapter 2 I woke up with to a world of pain. I had to have been hit by lightning again. A bit of my old levity came back, when I thought of the old saw about lightning never striking the same spot twice. The pain was too much and I just looked at the odd coloured wall then went back to sleep. I awoke a second time to see a nurse with an odd uniform. She gave me a drink to wet my mouth but I went to sleep once again. It was dark so I guess the lights had been dimmed. Sitting in a chair was a familiar woman dressed in oddly styled clothing. My heart beat very fast now; for I knew who she was. Was I now dead? I was not religious but my mother, who had been dead for almost thirty years, suddenly showed up, I was not so sure now. "Mom?" I croaked. The woman got up quickly for she had been asleep. "Jeff, you are all right? They said that you had regained consciousness a few times. I was afraid you would never awake." "Mom?" "Yes I am here, darling." She paused for a moment and said, "You were struck by lightning. Some hikers found you and called the police. You're lucky to be alive." "Is it really you mom?" "Who else would it be? I have been watching here for three days." "What day is it?" "Tuesday." "What is the date mom?" "April 21 1958. In two days it will be your birthday. You were hit by lightning a week ago." This could not be. The last I recall it was 2008 and April the third. "How are Sue and Maggie?" "They are doing fine although Susan is still angry that this happened." I vaguely remembered a similar conversation fifty years ago. At that time, I went home for a rest in a week and Susan started on me after only a few days. I had bandages on my burns but she fought me even though I was in excruciating pain. The blisters were ripped open and I had to go back for new dressings and a lie to how it happened. I asked a few more questions about my past and fell asleep on her. The bright light of the morning seemed to wake me up. Mom was still there though, I thought that she would leave my dream. Looking around I saw that the paint colour was the same as it was before. The nurse's uniform was the old style. Mom was dressed old even for 58. New clothing was hard to come by on a limited budget. Looking at her closer, I could see the worry that most mothers must go through in a situation like this. Her hair was up in a bun that I remembered and she was wearing the green hat that I disliked so much. I was able to turn a bit and saw all the old medical equipment. All of it I had repaired at one time or another and here it was still tube operated. A candy stripper came in. She had pushed a large cart down the hall and looked to see if there was anyone here besides me. She left again but I got no lunch. When mother woke up, I said, "Good morning Mom. It looks like I will live because of my own special guardian angel looking over me. You should go home, have a shower and then try to catch up on some sleep. I should be here until at least Friday. Then I get a week or two at home before going back to school." She looked at me oddly and said, "Hello Sweetie. How do you know this? I don't even know, and I'm your mother." "The way I feel Mom." "You are only a boy that is not quite twelve and you are trying to tell me what the doctors are going to say?" "The doctor won't be around until after ten I think. Please go home. No matter what happens, I will not go home today. Would you ask the nurse for the menu? I haven't eaten anything for a while and if they see me wanting solid food there is a better chance of being discharged." "You don't get menus in a hospital Jeff. If you hadn't been hurt I would think something is wrong with you." She did get up though then get her large purse. She came over, gave me one of her infrequent kisses, and added, "Behave yourself Jeff." "I can do nothing but behave myself Mom." She just looked at me oddly and left. I went back to sleep only to find myself being prodded when a awoke. It felt as if only seconds had past but the angle of the shadows had significantly altered. An old doctor with a stethoscope in his hand was listening to my lungs. I assume he found no congestion. Then he looked at the burns and I felt a considerable amount of pain just then. "Well young man. I see you are awake. You should feel lucky indeed to be alive." "I feel many times more lucky than you would ever believe, although I have heard that deaths are only at ten to twenty percent." "Where did you hear that son?" "I read a great deal but at the moment the article escapes me. Lightning and electricity have always fascinated me." I got a good-natured chuckle probably stemming from the age of the body I was now wearing. "Are you going to be an electrician?" I had to do some thinking. The amount of time I had been conscious didn't allow me to do much in the way of planning. "I'll be and electrical engineer I think. I've a lot of ideas that can make money." The doctor chuckled again. "Your face, chest, legs and back are burnt. Your mind though seems to be in good shape." "So I go home for a week or so this Friday?" After another chuckle he said, "We'll see." He wrote out his findings and any prescription I needed. He waved and smiled before he left. I was able to stay awake for a bit longer and tried to think on what had happened to me. The first was that this was some kind of afterlife but that seemed improbable. Travelling backwards nearly fifty years in time sounded just as improbable though. Mom came by that night with my two sisters. Maggie looked to be a bit concerned while Susan appeared put out that she had to come. I smiled at both of them; for to me they had been dead even longer than Mom had been. They were at least civil here in public and I tried harder than I think I did before to be nice. Back at this age I was frightened out of my wits about what might happen to me when Susan got hold of me again. I started a plan for the rest of my life. Not everything could be worked out without a lot more data. The threat of beatings or worse had to be dealt with or I would be able to do nothing. The fear had been my stumbling block at this age. My sisters petrified me and I was also reluctant to strike a girl or a lady. It took years to be ready, and only after developing my body then learning how to fight from books. The result turned out much better for me and I think my sisters too. I don't think I would live a few more years before I got to the same point this time. The girls came on Thursday for my birthday. Mom came every day for an hour. I saw that she did love me but something just seemed to have been ripped from her life. When I asked for the newspaper, she looked at me very strangely but I had to learn a great many things about this time if I was going to live in it again. I was right about Friday. I was assisted into a neighbour's car for the trip home. The Vachone's were a nice older couple. They spoke a poor English, being transplanted Québécois. The border with Quebec was very close so there were quite a few locals who spoke nothing but French. It had taken me a short time to learn the language but I didn't start until late. My business and the military assured that I learned more than what I got from friends in high school. Languages did come easy to me but that was only found out in later years when I had a chance to learn. Mom got a lot of papers to sign while I had two nurses help me into the car. I had talked to them nicely and they seemed to respond to me. If I were thirty years younger or ten years older I would take either of them out. The sad fact is that this body had not entered puberty yet but would soon. The old Ford pulled away and took us to the front of our rental home. I had tried to eradicate this memory from my mind when I had left so long ago. This house had been just a vile jail where I would be tortured until I was able to fight my way to freedom. I hobbled as I left the car and Mom said, "What's the matter Jeff? You were walking better a few minutes ago." "It's tiring. I think there are a few old hockey sticks in the garage. If you brought one I could show you where to cut and I could have a cane. It will only be for a few days but I will need it to get to the bathroom." I got hustled into the house and sat on the old couch that now looked much older than in my memory. "Would you like a drink, Honey?" "No thanks Mom but I do need to go to the bathroom." She helped me and I worked to do this myself. I hurt a great deal having to bend as I did and I felt a bit of leakage as some of the blisters cracked and wept. Mom helped me back to the couch and I made sure she had to work at assisting me. It was only a few minutes later that she brought me a selection of broken hockey sticks I had collected. I picked one and drew how to trim the broken blade and then stood to get the right length. Mom took the handsaw and was at this job for much longer than she should have been. She brought it back and I smiled and said, "Thanks Mom, you are the best Mom a kid could have." She gave me a much better smile than I had seen on her face or even remembered seeing from my youth. We had an old TV that didn't work too well so I listened to the radio and read more of the newspaper. I must have fallen asleep for I heard the front door opening and my sisters coming in. I was covered with a blanket so it must have been put there by Mom. I was thirsty now and got up with a lot of difficulty. I used my cane to get to the kitchen and got some tap water. Bottled water was a very scarce commodity. Maggie got me the glass and I said, "Thanks Maggie. You're the best." I got a smile from her and a glare from Susan. When I stood in front of the two I was reminded of my short stature. I grew considerably but the growth spurts were very slow in coming. My psychosis developed over many years of abuse and was still with me even though I had tried a long time to rid myself of the problem. I shook in fear and all it took was one look at Susan. Mom had made the meal and she was now ready to go out. She worked the weekends, under the table mostly and filled in for others that wanted the weekend off. She had a medical condition that caused her to faint at odd times. She was not supposed to drive either but she did. I had never been sure how much of the money she made was declared. We were on welfare which paid for my medical expenses, food and clothing. It also paid for Mom's smoking and drinking. I didn't begrudge her a few vices but I knew that they were both expensive and had lead to her death. Looking now at her I could see some subtle differences. She was smiling more and preening. She looked more like a woman going out on a date than one going to work. A woman that she worked with picked her up and they drove off. We ate our meal in quiet. My job was to collect all the plates and wash them but I was not able to do so because of my bandages and still open wounds. Susan was angry but helped Maggie do the dishes. I, at least, stacked what I could reach. Much later the girls went to their rooms and I took my cane and went to the garage. With the small vice, I was able to hold the stick as I used the saw and the file on it to get it the way it had to be. Some white cloth tape went around the grip and just a bit at the other end. Before I left, I looked at the rest of the tools. All of them were my dad's and old. They still worked though. My bike with the large carrier was leaning against the wall. I used to have a paper route but I guess that it would have been taken away by now. I may not even be able to handle it after a month but I did need some money. Some was hidden in my room but this made me wonder how much. I went back into the house and walked through it to become reacquainted with it. So many things were not as I remembered but some were as clear as if I saw them yesterday. I went into the basement that had so many unpleasant memories. To one side was the wringer washing machine and the hose that shot out the dirty water was where I expected it to be. The furnace was an old octopus that had been converted over to oil from wood. The hot water tank was large and a rental. Some clotheslines were up with some of the girl's clothing hung from it. On a wall were some old boards supporting some preserves. This saved us a bit of money and at least here all of us had to work on the project. The back wall was the most frightening to me. I walked over to it and looked at the lock on the door. This was a small room about ten by twelve. Dad had made it for his exercise room. A fan could vent the air outside and so the interior walls went all the way to the ceiling effectively sealing the room. Sound came out but it was difficult. Old carpet I knew covered the inside and the floor. The clips to hold the punching or the speed bag were still there along with more clips. I had been hung from some of those eyes more than once as I was whipped or abused sexually. It was only a few months ago that this clear memory told me that the girls had used a dildo on me. I could easily remember that all of them seemed to love doing this to me. I could not see into the room but I did look at the lock. It was a cheap variety. Both sides of the key were the same with cuts going right to the central spine. These cuts lined up with wards in the lock. I had found out that if a similar key was ground to remove all of the metal except the end it would fit the lock and turn it. There were only three types. One 'S' went one way while another went the other and the last was flat. To get in, all I had to do was find one of the three varieties and sizes. One of my memories said that the lock on the trunk was similar. I collected some dry underwear that was mine and tried to make it up the steps. It was good that I had, for I found Susan at the top staring suspiciously at me. "You should have told us you wanted to start the laundry." This was frightening. She lashed out at the least reason and I was not prepared to stand up to her in my present condition. I kept my eyes down and said, "I will as soon as I can. Some of the blisters are open and will take a while to heal." I looked to her face and I could see that she was angry. She said, "You better heal fast little brother." Climbing from the basement winded me. I waited to catch my breath and read the last of the newspaper before putting it where it should go. Things didn't get thrown out as they did in later years. My own bedroom was very small as I remembered it but it was not as neat as I thought it should be. I thought of myself as very orderly and it seemed as if this was neat by one set of memories but not the one I was used to. After using the facilities, I found the pyjamas I used to wear and put them on. Sleep was a long time coming and I looked within to see if the younger me was still here or perhaps transferred to my other body. The thoughts of sharing had not been decided. My thoughts on the time stream were formed by my very unique experience. I was changing the one and only time line by simply being here and doing things differently than I had done before. What I wanted to do would change it even more. I got up late and did my ablutions, dressing in the same clothing that I had worn yesterday. There were not that many sets of duds and somebody would surely question me for being what they thought of as foolish. While passing my sister's room I noticed that they had probably left the house. Mom would not be home until late if she arrived even then. I warmed up some of yesterday's supper in the skillet; for the microwave had not reached even a fraction of the world. It was much too large and power hungry. I needed more calories than what cereal would give me. A knock came to the door and I got up to answer it. When I opened it, I saw a pretty girl I had known very well in my past but it had been years from now. She was a small girl that stayed small in later life. When fully grown she only reached four foot eight. She was very passionate but suffered from an inferiority complex. She kept her face down and looked to be ready to run at the least sign of a threat. She was a brunette with a nicely shaped face and a personality that as so sweet that it could give a person diabetes. Paige Newfield was a year and a few months older than me. She was above average mentally and has such nice breasts. I remember many long hours playing with them to both of our pleasures. I may not have active testicles but I did have the shadow of what I should feel like. "Hello Paige. Come in." I said this nicely but it was an order. I knew that she preferred this. I shifted to one side and pointed to a chair. "Hello Jeff. I heard that you were hurt. I came over to — " "Thank you. I like you too and would like to see you happy." This caused her face to change quickly. I closed the door and added, "Would you like some tea? I am sorry though that you will have to make it for us." I got a sweet smile. "Yes Jeff, I would love some." With a few directions, she found what was required and in the course of things followed my other directions as if I was controlling a robot. This I knew gave her structure and though it was demeaning to others, it was not to her. I watched her intently to make sure this attribute was well taken, as it would be in later life. We had been lovers for a long time though I was always sharing myself with others. She knew this and was able to deal with the consequences. This was not quite a girlfriend/boyfriend arrangement. With Paige's way of dealing with reality in mind I began to question her. She was submissive and I wanted her to accept this role sooner than she had before. I of course would be the dominant. The people of the neighbourhood were discussed. Her friends and family were discussed in intimate detail. This made her squirm but she told me what I thought was the truth. This I hoped would put me in a position of being kind to her but still the dominant she needed. She was in grade eight with me. I had skipped grade three. Very old memories came to me and I quizzed her about some of our teachers and some of the more flamboyant students at school. Because of the missed days, she promised to bring her textbooks and notes over to study. Paige seemed to adjust well to my questions and I wanted to deepen the link. My sisters were usually gone for the day and I didn't want them to find Paige with me. In a normal household this was fine but here it would be used against me. We drank our tea at the table while we talked. There was more than enough conversation for a few cups. When we ran out of talk I said, "Come to the front room Paige." She smiled and got up with no apparent hesitation. The cane was not really needed but I used it anyway. I sat at the edge of the easychair and then painfully sat on the floor with the chair at my back. When I settled I put my cane to one side and looked up at Paige. She was waiting for more direction. I pointed to the area of the floor beside my leg and said, "Sit here Paige. There is more to discuss." She did sit even if it was a bit awkwardly. "Lay down now. Put your head on my thigh so I can look into your beautiful eyes." There was only a bit of a hesitation but she did what I wanted. My right hand went out to move some hair that was over her face now and moved it aside. The hand never left though and I caressed her face and head like a favoured dog. She smiled and closed her eyes. Sometimes I had heard her purr like a cat and maybe I could get her to do it this time too. "You are a beautiful girl, Paige." Her eyes opened for a moment but I just continued to stroke her head. "We go together very well I think. I need help in some of the things I will do. This is not just for a few weeks but for a much longer time. I will make, what I hope to be, a lot of money and you will share it with me. You are very bright and I know that you like to be guided once in a while. I will do that for you." She started to move as if she would start to object. Perhaps her submissive personality had not made it to her consciousness yet. It was like dying slowly. There were a lot of stages that had to be gone through until the inevitability was seen and accepted. "Shhhhh, I know what's best for you." She settled down but now her eyes were open. "We were friends before and we will be even better friends now." She then seemed to close her eyes in acceptance. "As you can guess, I have changed after being hit by the lightning. The old me was not very structured and not focussed on what he wanted in life. Now I am beginning to plan out the rest of my life and I want you in it." Paige's eyes flashed open. "But — " I interrupted her and said, "There is no buts my little sweet. You are mine now whether you know it or not. I will be the one taking care of you eventually. We just have to wait a while for me to bring my ideas together. Now tell me what you think." "Jeff, I am only thirteen. I can't do many things." I rubbed her shoulder now and said, "I just turned twelve myself. I do know what's right. You just have to learn some things and then you can do them. You can learn to keep books. You will be managing some of our money. Some women now work in the marketplace or at home. You will do both. As you learn more, you will be given new duties. You are much too precious to waste." "You want to keep me forever?" "You will be mine forever." Her eyes were very large now and I added, "You will be my first but not my only." I could see that she would start to object now. "It has to be this way. I need help to get where I need to go. Others need help even if they don't think they need it. You will understand as time goes on. You will be safe and cared for. You have a place now that you were always looking for though you may not have known it until now." It took a few moments but she said, "Will I be your girlfriend?" "You will be my first girlfriend but you will actually be much more than what this simple term signifies." Her eyes widened now and I gave her time to digest what she had been told. She whispered, "Like a — daddy?" I knew she meant husband. I was sure that if I had not entered the military that I would have married her. Having children would have been inevitable. My plans for the future would and should be formed with this in mind. I whispered the same way she asked, "Yes my love. At least twice." Her eyes closed now and she snuggled to get a better contact with my leg and her arm came up to my waist. I didn't think she was thinking of sex now but of commitment and motherhood. I was too damaged and sore to do anything anyway. Taking advantage of her now didn't feel right even if I could. It was much better to allow her to take her time and digest the facts then come to me. For the next half hour I told her about my present situation with regards to Susan. I explained that until Susan was brought to heel, that the girl on my leg would be in danger. Paige was very reluctant but told me that Susan had already been after her. With a bit more prodding I found that they had engaged in sex on a few occasions. This information could destroy her if it got out but she trusted me with it. "You are mine now. That is all that counts. I see nothing wrong with girls having some fun. You did what you were forced to do. If you are forced to do this again you will remember that it will not change the way I feel about you. We are in a dangerous situation and it has to be fixed." My leg was sore so I got Paige to sit up and face me. "Honey, my face is scarred but most of it will go but some operations may be necessary. I am still a boy now. I will start to change but not soon. Hair will grow between my legs, under my arms, and a lot on my chest and face. I will also be able to make children when that happens but not now. "You are very important to me. To keep you safe you have to stay away if my sisters are here. Do you understand me?" She nodded her head for she must feel sad. With a hand under her jaw, I picked up her face and said seriously, "Give me your answer verbally. I do not want your mind to be ambiguous in this matter." "What does ambiguous mean — Jeff?" She at one time called me master but she tried to say that this was just role-playing. Jeff was just as good to me although I knew she liked the other better. "It means that there will not be a double meaning." We got up to use the washroom and when we came back we sat beside each other on the couch. I kissed her now like she belonged to me. In a while I held her breast in my hand but this too was to show ownership and hopefully some shared closeness. Paige leaned into me as if her bones had been removed. I didn't go too far in this and just tried to show her tactually that she was mine and I cared a great deal for her. She got some enjoyment from this too and I wanted it to reinforce what I had told her earlier. I asked her to leave telling her it was because of the danger. She did come back in a few minutes with two weeks supply of the Toronto paper her father used. It went in my room and I kissed her again before leaving. There was now some time with introspection though a bit late. I had taken a thirteen-year-old impressionable girl and told her that she would bear some of my children, I said that she would be with me for the rest of her life. I was not trying to find justification but I did list all the factors. Paige had a poor marriage after I left for the Air Force. She had moved when her husband found a better job elsewhere. She had children but was never very happy. I had found out about her but didn't intrude or put pressure on her marriage. When the husband died just a few years ago, Paige became devoted to her grandchildren. Our love had changed over the years as we ourselves changed. Now I had the wife I had originally wanted and I was not ready to deal with it on any level. I started to read the newspapers and did small exercises. The sisters were not home yet so I went down into the basement and searched through some cans of old nails, screws and the occasional key. It was the garage that did have the one I wanted, and it fit into the lock but didn't work. The edge of a file took out the bronze and I walked back to the basement two times until the lock popped open. With the possibility of Susan catching me I hurried to the trunk and found that I was right and the key opened this lock too. I saw whips, ropes, masks, knives and other things to frighten or use on a captive. Photos were also in there but in four envelopes. I knew what were on many but I put everything back the way it was and left. I began supper even though I couldn't do too much. Maggie and Susan came home thirty minutes later. Maggie smiled at me and for what I had done. Susan just ignored me and gave orders for what she wanted done to Maggie and assigned a few of the easier tasks to me. The two girls talked to each other and ignored me. I did what I could after the meal and they did the rest. We separated again and I started to work on my plans. The inventions I made were reviewed along with all the other simple things that had come out since. Most relied on transistors but some were mechanical. The patent process was costly but easy because of what I knew. It was finding a manufacturing concern to manufacture the article for me or find a retail outlet that would do all this by themselves. Canada did make some electrical devices and even one brand of television. These companies would mostly go when cheap imports killed them. I could get things made but they had to believe in the product's ability to sell or I had to pay for it and they would not care. There were literally hundreds if not thousands of devices that could be patented but had no direct market like bistable components for computers. This was because computers were not used at home and there was little chance of building the chips themselves because of the complexity. I had no remorse against using patents that were not mine. I would find them years earlier than the original inventors in that old timeline. There was no justification for how they could have felt, for they would have done nothing towards obtaining a patent. One time line meant that they just had to find something different to make if they could. The physics behind lasers was being worked on now and though not strictly electronic was interesting enough to make. One had even been presented in the back of 'Scientific American'. It had been set up in my shop among the televisions, radios, and test equipment I was working on. The projects were not that expensive at the time but I had more money then and access to other things that had been invented. It would be much more difficult now. The simple smoke alarm and carbon monoxide alarm could be done soon. The RIA was invented in 1959 and used to test small samples of blood for a variety of problems. The anagram was formed from radioimmunoassay. I had worked on them for some local hospitals and knew them fairly well. LEDs were used many places and were only one particular type of diode. I had studied all of them in detail but never even attempted to make one. They had been invented four years from now in 1962. In 64 the first type of liquid-crystal display came about. One of my inventions had been in this field and though complicated, it was possible to get it to market first. The patent application had been many pages long. My patent had been challenged in court and my lawyer and I had to do a great deal more research into liquid crystal technology to prove that my device was original. The fuel cell came about in 66 but was vastly improved by a group of Canadian inventors that I admired very much. This too could be patented but was of little use since there was little call for the device. Spacecraft were few and far between now and only the smallest were used. Nobody was in space yet and so batteries would suffice. A list was made though but it all hinged on getting enough money to start. There were a few upsets in sports that I recalled enough to wager on but I still didn't have enough money for this. Mid morning Sunday Maggie left to some friend's home and Susan just left. I assumed it to be a friend's but she never gave her details. Paige must have been watching because she came over a few minutes after Susan left. "May I come in now Jeff?" she implored from the door. I smiled at her and said, "I want you with me and it's safe at least for a while." When she came in I closed the door and hugged her to me. She said, "I missed you." "Only half as much as I missed you though." She smiled at me radiantly at this and I asked, "Did you come to any decisions on your own, concerning us?" She must have done a lot of thinking because she paused for a while. "I want what you said. I just don't know how this will work. What you are asking requires a great deal of trust. A few weeks ago you sounded like a boy that I liked and now you sound like a man. I can give you some trust and see how it works." She felt bad about this disclosure. "I think that is a wonderful idea." Her sad eyes brightened at this. "I can afford to earn your trust. I have no proof for you, the same as I have little money. Both I hope will grow until you are positive this is where you want to be." She snuggled a bit to my chest and I knew that she already liked where she was. A kiss seemed to help both of us. This time there was no stirring in my pants but this would not always be. We went into the kitchen and discussed our future but in vague terms. I gave her reasons for doing things and even for doing it my way. She got her private version of future history and about what I was going to do to it. Twice I mentioned a Nobel Prize and she only gave me that small sweet smile saying I was full of shit without saying it verbally. She asked about computers, medical apparatus and lasers in general and I explained them in more detail. Most of the explanation was over her head because she didn't have enough knowledge of physics. I asked her more about my friends because I could not remember much from my old memory or the new one that was very faulty. She filled in a lot though some of what she said didn't ring true. The boys, for the most part, were unknown to her. Paige taught me about the girls in the class. Some were nice and some weren't. "I am not interested in making any further conquests. I have the best girl in the school now. I will talk to them though and this means that you have to not be jealous. When and if I can deal with Susan, then we can hold hands and do other things. If we do it sooner then Susan will find out and use it against us." She held my hand now though and said, "So we can do this after?" I squeezed her hand. "Only if you want to, Paige." Paige went home to get what notes and textbooks she had. We went over them as quickly as possible. In this decade the tests covered everything from the start of the school year. I could see the benefits of the semester system and explained the reasoning. The material was very easy and all I had to really work on was the dates. Paige made lunch for me then cleaned up. I didn't have to even ask, and this made me warm inside. I did shoo her out of the house so I could read more of the textbooks and papers. It was not said that she would be safer this way too. Mom got back later and came to kiss me. It was nice to see that her maternal instincts had not left her or that my need had not left either. I could smell that she had sex and I was happy for her if she was not taken advantage of. I didn't think she was doing this strictly for money but I had no way of knowing for sure. In my old life I had not even suspected her of this. Susan came home later with Karen. This girl was cute but a little over weight. From some cues she gave I had to assume that she was timid and thus easy meat for Susan. They went upstairs as soon as possible to 'study' but they had no books or notes. My old memories of this time came back clearer and I knew that they made love to each other. I had to rethink this now for it should be just sex with no love at all. The following week allowed me to talk to Mom in a way I had never been able before. I was able to coax out some of her feelings and she was amazed that she had done so. My adult way of talking even with a high-pitched voice worked after a fashion. I discussed sex but couldn't be blunt because of the conservative altitudes of the time and the probability that Mom would get upset and stop. The entire range of range of textbooks was read and the information used to refresh what had been in my mind all along. I went back to the hospital and got my burns checked. I was getting some sulphur drugs but they were still good. If I knew that I was going to make this trip in time I would have made sure I had learned much more than I had done already. I figured I had done fairly well anyway. I had received university credits for night courses I took that expanded my understanding of electronics. Not having a wife or family allowed this though the girlfriends bitched a bit. They were also a lot more understanding or they wouldn't be girlfriends. Paige was at school during the day and brought home her homework and notes. Mom thought this cute. Susan and Maggie saw this and I tried to make it seem much more innocent than it was. I was able to move more and worked to take some of the chores. Mom was much more sympathetic now and got me to relax. I still pushed myself and explained to Mom about the need to exercise. On Thursday I heard the last of a conversation on the phone and figured that my reprieve had been cancelled. Looking at Susan's expression confirmed what was happening. Maggie looked a bit sick when I could see her expression so I guess I was getting some sympathy there. Mom gave me the family camera when I asked for it. I was able to slip a note to Paige asking her to get me five rolls of film to fit the camera. This took a good portion of the money secreted in my room. On Friday I went into the garage and looked for things I might need myself. The trunk in the basement was searched this time and I spent an hour going through the various photographs. Many were of me. Usually with a red back and legs or a dildo sticking out of my ass. Each of the girls had her picture taken as she worked the device in me. I was surprised at the number of other butts to receive the marks or dildo. Some showed the girls doing the deed but few had the face of the victim. A third of the photos showed the victim hung up from the beams and the rest were on the floor. Some of the old ones were in the countryside and on the grass. A reputable lab would develop none of these but I knew that one girl was in the camera club at the high school. When mom left on Friday she kissed us all and I could see a gleam in Susan's eye. Not five minutes after Mom left she said, "Jeff, go downstairs. We have your birthday party planned." I gulped in fear though I knew this would happen. There was no sense arguing so I hobbled down the basement steps. Susan was behind me but once on the floor she hurried ahead to unlock the door. When the door opened I started to pass her into the room. As quick as I could, my cane came up and I drove the bottom end with the tape into her stomach. I had taken karate as well as other forms of combat where I had learned what was necessary to protect myself. I now used the cane to beat her as best I could without breaking bones or bruising her exposed skin. She wasn't even given a chance to cry out because I had to get Maggie down here too. I may have overdone it a bit but all my old anger and all my new fear went into my strikes. When she remained quiet I looked at her pupils. I kept the cane handy but started to remove my sister's clothing. She was coming too when the last was leaving her. I swung the cane across her abdomen and the pain was enough to give me some more time. Susan was trussed up as much as she had done me. I was not strong enough to hoist her into position but the floor was good enough. One of the three ball gags was put into place and a rope secured her foot to a hanger too high to reach. It took a while to get back upstairs because I was tired. Maggie was coming down from her bedroom and I think she was surprised to see me. When she was at the bottom of the steps I raised the cane as if I was going to club her. I yelled, "Get on the step now or I will pay you back for all the pain I have ever received." She was too shocked to move but the expression on my face seemed to work. I backed up and threw her a rope and said, "Tie your feet together or I will make sure you suffer more than your worst nightmare." She quickly did as I asked. A noose on another rope went around one of her wrists and the other end tied to the rope between her feet. A foot of slack remained. "Get up now and get into the basement." She had been ordered to do this many times too and did comply though it was slow going. She shuffled across the floor then sat as she went down the steps like a toddler would. She stopped dead in the far room when she saw her sister tied and still unconscious. Maggie's free hand was tied as high as she could stretch. "Jeff, what is wrong? You were never like this." "Get moving." When she was secure I said in a calm voice, "Maggie, You are my sister and I do love you. Susan is crazy and she is going to take the rest of our family with her. Tonight we are going to give her some of her own medicine. I may have to punish you too but I will not do this for vengeance. It is just a way for you to remember." Maggie whimpered, "I never wanted to hurt you." I moved forward and she retreated thinking I was going to hit her. Instead I caressed her face and head. "I know that. You either did what Susan said or you would suffer the same as I would. Now tell me about the plans for tonight. I know some girls are coming over." "Ah," she looked at the still unconscious Susan. "Karen, Jennifer, Angela, Faith and Sandy are coming over. Ah — they were going to stay the night like — " I caressed her face and said, "Yes love. Just like usual. Now when are they coming over?" "Faith will be a bit late but the others should be here any minute." I backed up and retrieved one of the other ball gags and said, "Open now. I have to make sure you are quiet when the others come." "I won't say anything, Jeff." "I love you Maggie but this is too important to start with trust. Open your mouth." She did and I put the ball in and moved her hair so the rope would not bother her much. With a last caress and a sad face I left with the rest of the ropes and other bindings. Karen came first with her arms full of clothing. She rang the door and she was surprised to see me. "Where's Susan?" "She told me to tell you to go downstairs. She talked to Maggie about something and she was angry." I got to the steps ahead of her and went down. At the bottom I turned quickly and slashed her with the cane. She doubled over in pain but I just grabbed a handful of her red hair and dragged her to the room. I threw her to the floor and got behind her. One of the judo holds I knew could give a good deal of pain. This I used now and she cried out and tried to get away. "Put your wrists in the loops." She continued to cry in pain and I didn't stop. Eventually she got the idea and did as I asked. With her wrists tied I connected it to a rope going up to the joists. I pulled very hard and had to threaten her with more pain unless she stood higher. I tied the rope off and put the last of Susan's gags into her mouth. Jennifer, Angela came together which I was afraid of. I greeted them the same way and directed them to the basement. The door to the room was closed but it was easy to hear the muffled screams. Jennifer was the biggest and I rammed the butt of the cane into her stomach then slashed Angela across the abdomen. Both of these girls had been happy to hurt me and I was not going to be easy on them. Jennifer tried to get up first and she was hit hard again. Angela saw this through tear filled eyes and stayed still. I threw her some ropes and said. "Tie her wrists together and then her ankles. Do a poor job and you will have some broken fingers to worry about." The worried girl did as I said and I only had to tell her once to make the knots tighter. She tied herself up too and I got her into the room and secured her to the ceiling. Jennifer had to slither here and it made me feel good because she had made me do similar things. All the time she was threatening me, then later she was promising me other things. Susan was now awake and she saw all of this with hate filled eyes. My own gags now filled the last two mouths. The room was now filled with five girls. I went to the trunk and took out one of the flogs that were used on me so many times. It was made of leather with twenty four individual pieces of leather attached to the handle. There were so many pieces of leather that it actually looked much worse. There were no knots in the end and the thongs were not that long. It still hurt though. "I want the fun to start. Sandy is new I think but I am well aware of Faith. I see that most of you are too dressed to enjoy the festivities right. Now Karen will start the process. She is a nice girl but I remember being hurt by her a few times. I am going to use the flog on her to get her in the mood to cooperate." My anger had cooled considerably but I had to keep this up. I was not into S&M but I had to appear to like it, for this to continue. I struck Karen through her dress and she turned to protect the afflicted area. I just continued what I was doing until she was crying non-stop. I walked over to her and held her face as I had Maggie and said, "I have to do some things. You will cooperate or I will spend all night hitting you. Do you want to take all your clothing off now or after ten more?" Her head went up and down rapidly so I undid her dress and removed her panties and bra. I undid the rope holding her up and she crumpled to the floor. I just looked at her as I moved the flog and she recovered enough to take off the rest of the dress. Her shoes and socks came next. Karen was tied up once again when the doorbell rang again. "Well ladies," I said as a host. "More guests have arrived and I have to see to them. Please entertain yourselves in my absence." Sandy was the name of the next girl but I had never seen her before. She had not hurt me either but I thought it good for her to join us. She came into the house nervously and after a smile she asked, "Where's Susan? She said there was going to be a sleep over and a lot of fun." "Susan and the others are just getting set up. They have something special in the basement. I'll show you." "Thanks." She stopped part way down the stairs when she heard all the muffled screams. This time I was behind and pushed her roughly while holding her hair. She tried to get away but not to strike me. "Walk to the back." I threw her to the floor and she immediately started to scream because of the naked and bound girls. The flog was by the door and I started to hit her. After ten strokes she started to hyperventilate. "Put the loops of the rope around your wrists or I won't stop hitting you until tomorrow." She worked very quickly and I had her standing and attached to the ceiling. A rag was tied around her face to muffle her words or screams. She looked like a nice girl but so did the others here and they had beat me many times. "I am sorry to meet you this way Sandy." She looked at me in absolute terror. "You may or may not have known that I was to be the one tonight to get stripped, whipped and raped." Here eyes went very wide especially at the word rape. "Susan is my sister. Though she whipped, tortured, branded and raped me, I still love her." Sandy apparently didn't understand. "When our father died she grieved the most I think. She also went insane." Everybody was now listening to me intently. "She took out her aggravation on everybody, but especially me. I was a male and also I looked like our father. Over the years her hate got worse and worse and I was the one to relieve her frustrations. It would go on eventually until she killed me. I just wasn't prepared to do this for her." I had their undivided attention and I planned on keeping it. "Susan hated my father so much for leaving her that she swore off males. That left her to indulge in girls." This was nothing new to all but Sandy. "She beat or threatened to beat other girls into having sex with her and to share in my beatings. You, I assume were to be one of those girls." Sandy was shaking her head no but I went on. "You may not have liked it but you would have played her game. If you didn't then she would make your life like hell. Her gang would beat you then spread rumours about you that would make everyone stay away from you. It has happened to all these other girls and I am sorry to say it would happen to you too." Sandy mumbled a bit and I move closer but stayed away from her feet. I moved the gag some and she said, "What are you going to do to me?" I put the gag back and said, "I will ask you some questions and you will answer them. I am then going to take a few compromising pictures to forestall the same treatment I just mentioned happening to me. I am not going to hit you again unless you deserve it for defying me. The others though have hurt me a great deal and I have to let them know that I won't put up with it any more." Moving over to Jennifer I said, "You hurt me many times. You have a lot coming to you. Are you going to be cooperative like Karen or do you need a similar lesson?" With a rapid nod I undid her arms and let her begin. She was slow at first but looking at me and the flog made her hurry. She retied her knots securely but it was not as tight to her skin. When she was secured once more Angela did the same thing. When I went to Maggie I kissed her and I said, "You have to do this too Sweetie." She just nodded her head and I lowered her so she could do what was necessary. All the girls were naked except Sandy. This would have made me erect at one time but I felt sick at what I had to do. Beautiful bodies like those before me should be cherished not abused. I was happy that the flog didn't break skin but just gave a nasty red mark. If I were stronger some might turn into bruises. I went to the trunk and took the articles out one at a time. I listed to the girls at-large what had been used on me and what hadn't. The knife was only used to threaten but it was used. The photos were taken out and I showed Sandy what had been done to me. The unnamed females were also shown along with a reminder that Sandy would follow in time whether she wanted to or not. I removed Susan's gag for the first time and she started to scream invectives at me with the flair of an unbalanced mind. I just walked to the flog and she shut up. I used the flog now and laid it about her for much longer than Karen. When I was done for a while I asked her, "Will you cooperate now?" She refused to answer and I used the flog many more times. Part way through I stopped for a rest. She was sobbing so much I wanted to stop and help her but no matter how much crying I had done she never gave me an alternative. "Cooperate?" "Yes I will," I heard but the tone of voice told me that this wasn't the case. "I think you are lying to me." The flog went back to work. She had pushed herself against the wall for protection so I just stayed close and whipped her until both my arms were tired. She was red over much of her body but nothing worse. For the last while I heard her scream, "I will do what you want." It was done over and over again. The handle of the whip went into my belt as a subtle way of letting my position be known. I bent over and showed her the pictures of females being beaten. She gave me the names of each of them. Some happened to be in this room while others I had never seen and others moved away. When the doorbell rang the gag went back. "Be quiet ladies. I do not want my next guest warned." I looked at each of their eyes and I could tell that believed that I meant it. Faith came in like the rest. She was pretty and didn't seem to hurt me as much as the rest but I couldn't allow her to escape or to avoid punishment. The whip got her to strip and get bound with a minimum of strokes. With everybody present I said, "I have used the whip on you but I do not like to do this. It is only a way to gain your compliance. I will use it much more if I am forced to do so." I took out the camera and opened the back. One of the rolls of film was put in place and wound to get it ready. I took a few shots of the occupants of the room. This way Jennifer and the rest will know that film was in the camera. An old carpet was spread on the floor outside the room. One of our clean sheets went on top of this. Maggie was taken down and her wrists tied behind her back. Her feet were untied and the gag removed. "Do what I say. I love you but you have to obey me now and not your sister." She gave me a strained smile and said, "I will do whatever you want Jeff." "I need some evidence to hold you all. Lay on your back with your feet as far apart as you can." She was unsure but did what I wanted quick enough. Karen came next but her feet stayed tied. "Get between my sisters legs. Push up her knees and start to suck on her or I will get to whip you as much as I just did Susan." There was real fear here and she did as I asked. Maggie moved but I was sure that nether of them was getting any sexual gratification out of this. I took some lamps from the rest of the house during the day and now I placed them where I wanted. When it looked good I took a picture of both of their faces. Karen's was very wet but the fear was still evident. "Karen Honey, you are doing good but I want a smile. You know that I am now your master. Do what I want and I will reward you. You already know what it is to displease me." She just stared at me and I added, "You will call me Master when it is just us or with those I say it is proper to do so. Now say 'yes Master' then smile." She swallowed then did as she was asked. The smile came and it was almost believable. I took two more shots then got her wrists tied like Maggie and then tied them together. Faith came next and did the same thing to both girls and gave me a smile that I knew was not real. Jennifer took her place when Faith was put back. She knew what to expect and did this the best of all. Angela needed a reminder and I didn't stop once she said she would do what I wanted. This was a lesson so they would not be able to call the shots. I had to remove any opposition. Angela had to clean her face before continuing but she did a fair job. Sandy was shocked when she now had to do what I said. This time she didn't have to do anything but pose as if she had done this many times before and loved it. When I walked in to get Susan I saw some resistance and just used the whip again until she screamed her compliance. I still continued and the sobbing girl was taken out for her shot at fame. Her hands and feet were tied but these would stay out of the shot. When the roll was over I changed rolls and continued. The girls went through everything again even if there was a lot of untying and tying again. I had all night and tomorrow and I didn't want to waste this one chance at our freedoms. The third roll brought easy compliance. They were all locked up once again but they were at least more comfortable. It was getting late for a special guest appearance and I went upstairs to call Paige. When her mother answered, I talked a few minutes to be sociable. When Paige came on I said, "Hello Sweetheart, everything is ready." "Ok, bye Jeff." I used the washroom and cleaned up. A knock came to the door and not the bell. Paige came in and kissed me with a passion. In her hands was the leash to her dog Duke. "Can I stay, Jeff?" "Sorry, I have to do things that I don't even want you to hear. Go to the park and come back in an hour and ring the bell so I can hear it." I got another torrid kiss and she did leave. She wanted to be trusted with more but it may spoil what we already had. Duke was an old Labrador Retriever. He had been used for stud but was getting on in years now. His tongue was out and he wanted to show that he liked me with a kiss of his own. I just patted his head and scratched behind his ears like he appreciated. We walked downstairs and the girls just stared at the dog with no comprehension. I tied the leash and got Susan into position in the doggie position. She didn't understand in the least. She didn't resist as I tied more ropes to her wrists to the posts that supported the floor above and to the rack that held our preserves. I sat beside her now and said. "I need more fabricated evidence on you Susan. You have learned to do what I say, at least tonight but now you are going to be tested. I want you to stay still and have Duke get on your back for a few pictures. It is just posing because I wouldn't allow him to do anything. I will surely whip you if you don't do as I say. Do I whip now or are you going to be a good girl?" She couldn't answer so I removed the gag. "You can't expect me to do this Jeff. For god's sake you are my brother. Don't do this to me." "Susan, I was your brother when you whipped me and allowed your friends to do the same thing. You put the dildo into my ass without even some lubrication. I bled and you just laughed. Now do this for us or I will whip you for hours even if you say you will do what I want." She just cried now. She was tasting a bit more than she liked of her own medicine. I led Duke over and he didn't understand. Susan wanted to fall flat but I hit her with the butt of the whip to remind her. Duke got into position finally and I got three quick shots. More rope was used to lash a two by four stud horizontally to the same places Susan was tied to. Duke was raised up and rested his front legs on the board and the leash was lashed to the bracing between the joists. Susan was still crying but I gave her a small poke with the whip and said, "A few more shots Sweetie. Get close to Duke and pretend that you want to suck on him. I know that you don't want to do this and so do the rest of the girls. Just do this for me and I will have all the evidence I need to keep you honest." "I won't hurt you again Jeff. Don't make me do this." "I am sorry Susan. Do it or I will give you fifty lashes. That is a promise." She got into position in a few seconds and opened her mouth as if she wanted to take the dog into her mouth. I got a few more shots then came over and pulled the girl that tormented me so much into my arms. I hugged her to me and even kissed her. She was crying and I looked into her eyes and said, "I do love you. I should want to kill you instead but you are my sister. You are sick and I just have to find a way to cure you without you killing me first." I untied her ropes securing her to the house and helped her hop back to her old position. Jennifer, Angela and Faith did similar shots as what Susan had just done. They had to be hurt to get them to do what I wanted but I did get the photos. The doorbell rang just in time so Faith was put back into position and I went upstairs with Duke. With tears in my eyes I kissed Paige. "That was the hardest thing I ever did. Take Duke and these." I handed her four of the five exposed rolls. The other was already in the camera. We talked for a few moments trying to cheer me up but it was not to be. Duke left with her and he shit on the lawn before he got to the walk. I guess it was his way of telling me what he thought of the situation. I walked back to the basement room. I stared at all the girls as they looked expectantly at me. I said, "All the photos taken until now are gone." There was a real look of fear on their faces now. I went to Maggie and undid her bindings then Sandy, Faith and Karen. When they were free I said, "Leave your clothing here and come upstairs with me. Don't disappoint me girls." These were the girls that were the meekest and I had less against them. I sat on the chair in the front room. "Kneel on the floor with your knees spread and your hands behind your backs. Push out your breasts at me." I saw the marks on them but the whip had not cut the skin thank goodness. It hurt me to hurt them but I had to see that it was for all of our own good. They didn't understand the reasoning for my command but did what I asked. "Girls, we have to come to an agreement. I hold your futures in my hands. Those pictures were staged but nobody will believe that. Your social lives are dead if I just release that information." I let them stew for a moment then added, "I do not want to hurt any of you though. You have been punished enough. I can get into trouble for what I did. I will also have not only the new photos but those that are in the trunk to show that I was hurt worse than any of you were. "The plan for each of you will help us both. You will be my girls." They looked at me then each other not quite understanding. "As my girls, I will watch out for each of you. I have jobs for each of you and you will make money. You will be assisted with your homework and studying. This means that I keep Susan and her friends away from each of you. I will find some employment that will give you some money and finally I will make sure you get good grades in school. This can only be proved after enough time. Instead of me threatening you I want us to be friends though we got off to a very rocky start." The girls had said nothing. "Maggie, what was your last report card like?" There was a pause. She never did well in school and it had to do with her home life and no assistance from her only parent. "Not bad." In a quiet voice I said, "I am trying to be a friend. I also want you to be one of my girls. You are starting off with a lie. This hurts me and the rest of us too." I just waited and she eventually said, "I'm passing. Some subjects are not that good but — " Reaching out slowly and with an open hand I caressed her face again and said, "Thank you for trusting me. I will help you with your problem subjects. You will make me proud of you this year and next you will make everybody proud of you." Instead of the dominant position on the chair I sat close to them on the floor. We both smiled at each other and she leaned into my hand. Sandy was next and I asked, "Tell us about the real Sandy. This is the one inside you that tries her hardest." She was unsure of her response and spoke of what her dreams were. She avoided the word boys but babies were prominent. She went on to talk about grade ten and what she had troubles in and what she excelled at. Her averages told me that she would not need much help. When she finished I caressed her face with two hands and kissed her gently on the lips. "You already make me proud of you. I can still help you get higher marks but not that much. You are already pretty good. I will still protect you with my life and ensure that you prosper in life." Sandy didn't know what to say but seemed to like the kiss. Faith smiled and went into her own past. She talked about her mediocre marks and her aspirations to do something great. She got her kiss but seemed to be expecting this from me. Karen was shyer but she did open up. She was ill prepared to deal with life. She was overweight, which caused her to be shunned by the rest, and this caused her to eat more. She got her kiss but I added, "You are a beautiful girl. You are even more beautiful inside. As one of my girls I will help you not only to get good grades but also to be accepted in school by the other students. That's a promise from me to you." I slowly got to my feet and looked down at the four naked and damaged young girls. Their eyes were expectant in so many ways and in a way I wanted to hold and protect them from all harm. I was only one man though in a boy's body not even into puberty yet. "Maggie, take the rest of my girls up to your room. Run a bath but wait for me. You four will be sleeping there tonight." When Maggie stood I held her face in my hands and kissed her like the rest. "I love you and I want you to help me protect my girls." I did the same thing to the remaining three and sent them off with a pretend swat with my hand to one of their bums. They giggled like little girls as they ran up the steps. The basement seemed empty without the other four but my anger came back at the three remaining. They had not been talking because they still had their gags on. I made them a bit more comfortable but not too much. As I left again, I said, "I will be back in an hour. We will have a serious talk of our own." The bath had been run and the girls stood waiting for me. Sandy was starting to get shy and I went and stood in front of her. "You have a beautiful body. I am not going to rape you. Let me see it and make me proud that I picked you." She was not sure but her hands went to her sides. She was between Susan's and Maggie's grade in school and three years older than me. I had to assume that being meek, and me now being dominant removed all those years between our ages. I turned to Karen and Faith and said, "You two monkeys, in the bath and hurry or I will paddle your pretty bums." Surprisingly they still obeyed. They got into the tub but stayed standing. "Faith, sit facing the front. Karen put your legs around her and get close." They did what I asked. The other two were watching to see what happened next. I looked at Karen and said remorsefully, "I was hurt recently. I would bathe each of you myself but I can't until my wounds heal. You are going to have to bathe Faith as if you are me. Get the soap and rub it into her back as if she is the most precious thing in the world. Her pain hurts you even more than it hurts her. Her joy though makes you even happier." I just waited and Karen started. It was just business at the start but with a few more cues Faith was getting a very sensual washing. This was going slow but now without the girls getting stirred up. When Faith's breast and nipples were done the girl had her own orgasm even with us watching. When her knees were brought up, her mons was done very diligently and another orgasm ensued. The tables were turned right after and Karen got her own treatment. When they were done they were rinsed and got out of the tub. I dried each of them myself and said to Karen, "Thank you for making my Faith feel so good. She deserves love and so did you." To Faith I said, "Karen needs a lot of love. She has been hurt by more people that you have. Thank you for loving my girl." Sandy and Maggie got in next and I didn't have to say anything. All the other girls I knew had experiences with others of their own gender. I was not sure of anything with Sandy but only hoped. I talked to Maggie and said, "Sandy has such pretty nipples." Maggie caught on and added, "I saw them. They are very cute. I wish mine were as nice." "You have cute nipples too. When I get better I would like to ask all of you if I can taste each of your nipples to see which as the best texture, which are the most rigid and which ones are the biggest." Maggie said, "You like my nipples Jeff?" "You have very beautiful ones and beautiful breasts too. A man could just look at you for hours until he died of thirst from drooling so much." There were four sets of giggles but soon Maggie was working harder on Sandy. One hand was on a nipple while the clit got the attention from the other hand. This orgasm was very strong and Sandy screamed her joy. Maggie continued and the orgasm never stopped. When it looked like Sandy was going to collapse I stopped Maggie but with some difficulty. She liked what she was doing. I got the two to stand and I rinsed them off. Sandy was held while Maggie assisted keeping her vertical. When she was done I put her on the toilet and began to dry my sister. "I am sorry you didn't get that good feeling. I will see if I can make it up to you in a few days. I have wanted to since I was six and I will when I am sixty." This time she kissed me and it felt like a great feat had been completed. I gave some directions and the night table between the beds was removed. The beds were pushed together soon after. Pulling back the covers I said, "Hop in. We are going to have a lesson now in anatomy." All four girls got into the bed and pulled the covers up to their waists but stayed sitting. I removed my clothing with some difficulty and the girls could see my pain in doing just this. There were a lot of bandages still taped to me. The ones on my face had come off leaving some scars that would heal. My left arm and both legs were partially wrapped in gauze. "As my girls, you have to learn about boys." Sandy was more interested in one particular part. "This here is a penis. It is called a cock, meat, dick, fuck stick and a great many more words. Underneath it is the scrotum. This is a pouch of skin that containing the testicles. The testicles are called nuts, balls, rocks or other terms. "The testicles produce some simple cells that enter a woman's egg cell and this can produce a child. When the man's cells are placed in a woman they go with some fluid that is produced in a gland inside a male's body." "We will get into the mechanics of this another time but I want to warn you of something. Any boy that isn't dead or fully homosexual will want to have sex with any of you. He will promise to pull out in time but it is hard to do because instinct is telling him to stay in and plant his cells as deep as possible. If he does pull out he will want to go back in later. When he does some of the sperm cells will slip out even if he pulls out again. This is dangerous, for an unwanted child can happen that will destroy a girl's life. The father sometimes runs away leaving the girl and/or her parents to raise the child." I talked of all the ways for a girl to get pregnant by mistake and how to avoid rape if it isn't. I stayed on how a male thinks and what he will do without meaning too when he is not as sane as he should be. Sandy asked, "How come it isn't sticking up?" "That is a good question to ask Honey but embarrassing to me." I had a smile on my face and my fingers holding some loose skin on the offending appendage. "As a man, I am supposed to be ready to impregnate any number of women. I am not quite a man yet. My body doesn't have the hair, I speak with a boy's voice and my testicles do not produce the cells I mentioned. When the time comes, I will go through a rapid succession of growth spurts. I will get much taller and wide in the shoulders. This equipment here, will grow considerably in size. Most boys will not grow as big. At the moment though all you get is the small body of a boy but the mind of a man. You will have to love me as I am and just wait." They didn't know what to say. The girls had been pulled one way then another and I had to hope they followed my reasoning long enough for it to change their own way of thinking. More talk concerning other things that were never discussed during the 50s followed. I tried to make it interesting and informative. "It's getting late my beautiful girls. You can talk for a bit when I go but I want you to sleep. Think of me like your mother that has your best interests at heart. Tomorrow we will talk about female anatomy and how to make the best of it. I want my girls to have orgasms all the time. I want my girls happy with me and I want them happy for the rest of their lives." I kissed each of them one more time but it was not a quick one but one I hopped would hold them to the morning. I gathered up my clothes then and turned off the light. I saw four hungry eyes looking back at me and they reminded me of cats looking at a mouse. My clothing went into my room. I walked downstairs dressed in my shoes and bandages. I couldn't see the girls intimidated by the equipment I had, especially in its dormant state. The flog in my hand may compensate some. When I stepped into the room I found the girls all together. It may have been for communication but it was probably for warmth. It was still April in the north and in the basement too. I saw fear in their eyes. I didn't know if they had sex with one of the opposite gender but the whip intimidated them much more than my body. Crouching down on my heals I exposed myself better to their eyes. "What am I going to do with you three? At the moment I just want to use the flog on all of you until I get too tired." Fear was manifested in their eyes and the way they tried to get further from me. "When I finished flogging you I thought that I would just chase you out into the street naked and let you find your own shelter. "Against my better judgement, we will have a talk. If things go right for you three then maybe we can dispense with the flog." I tried to keep my voice down and appear as intimidating as possible. Standing was difficult but I tried to show that it was no problem. Going to Susan I let the flog dangle on her body as if deciding what to do next. When this stretched out for a while I heard her sob behind her gag. A moment longer I waited then bent and undid the bindings on her. The last to go was the gag. When she was free for the first time I said in a quiet voice, "A slave sits on her heels with her knees spread. Her hands are together and behind her back. See if you can do that now." She did move away from me then take the position I wanted. "Back straight and knees further apart." She moved quickly to obey. The other two were untied and assumed the same position. They carried many more marks from the flog but there was no bleeding. There was a considerable number of contusions developing in some tender areas. Walking around the girls I let the flog touch them. Sometimes it was a breast or let it lightly slap their mons. This brought a gasp and I wanted them to keep their fear. "Slave Angela, tell me how you came to be an evil young woman. Lie or withhold the real answers and you will regret the decision." "I — am not evil." I hit her slightly with the flog so the tips hit her breast and nipple. She bent over in pain but I had not hit hard. "Sit up slave. My name is Master. You will use it when addressing me. You are only a slave and you have no authority to contradict your master. I say you are evil and you are. You whipped a boy here, not too long ago. You used a dildo in his ass. And you did the same to other girls. Now tell me how you became evil." "Ah — Master, I — I have four older brothers. They — they picked on me. Susan was my friend and she tried to help me. It didn't work very well. We talked about men and our hate. We sort of took it out on you." I held her jaw like I would for a dog and said, "You did well slave. You told me the truth as you saw it. We will have a talk later so I can find more out." I turned to the left with a scowl and said, "Slave Jennifer tell us your story of depravity. I will flog you harder if you do not do this to the best of your ability." "Master — I — I have an older brother that is mean to me — and — my dad hurts me. My mother doesn't do anything." There was a pause then, "I guess I was like Angela and just took it out on you." I walked close to her too and held her jaw. Her eyes went to my cock though and there was fear there too. "Did your father or your brother stick his cock into you?" There was a pause and her eyes closed and tears came out. I waited but she didn't answer. I shook her head with my hand. "Tell me. A slave can't have any secrets from her master. I am deciding your life here and need to know." After a pause she said, "My dad fucks me when he is drunk. My brother Jake has been forcing me to suck him for the last few months." I heard gasps from the other two so this much have been a secret. I shook her head once more for she had said this with her eyes closed in pain. "A master protects his slaves. They will not hurt you again. You belong to me now." "Slave Susan, tell me your story. Start with what you were like before father died. Then tell us how your mind got twisted." "I guess I was fairly happy — " I hit her lightly with the flog and she quickly said, "Master, I was happy I guess." There was a pause as she had to deal with her internal pain. "After dad died Mom changed. She just appeared like she was drunk all the time. Since I was the oldest she loaded me up with all the work. Dad used to tuck us in and talk to us but when he left there was nobody. He took us places and gave us things like other fathers but when he left we got nothing. He helped me a bit in school but when I needed him he was not there. Other girls had their dads help but I didn't have anyone." When she was silent for a while I asked, "Why did you torture your young brother that would do anything for you?" She now cried great wracking sobs. She bent over to hide her face and continued to cry her heart out. We waited at least five minutes until she said, "You looked like him. I saw the picture when he was young and it was the same. I loved you as a baby but it changed to hate when I had so much to do. When I slapped you once for breaking one of our plates it made me feel — good. After that I guess it was just a way of making myself feel good again." I said just above a whisper, "Your brother worshipped you. You could do no wrong. He saw you as his mother when his real mother retreated from the world. He accepted the beating hoping to learn to please you and do better the next time. He prayed for forgiveness for all his faults but you only beat him more. The love he had was reluctantly turned to fear then to hate. The little boy was twisted so much he felt that his body was inside out. Nothing he did was good enough though he tried his very best." This was said through my own tears and though I was only looking at my sister I knew that the others were crying too. When I was able to recover I stood. I had found myself on my knees in front of Susan. I put my hand on her head and then moved it to her jaw. When her face came up I saw tears and snot everywhere. She was still crying and I said louder this time, "I will take your father's place Susan. I will help you through this problem and all of your other ones. I will help your mother too if I can. Some of this is just too late but some rebuilding can be done. I will care for the family and try to promote healing. All you have to do is to obey and trust. Later you will see that all of your trust will have been justified." Her tears had slowed along with her sobs. "How?" "That is, 'how Master, ' slave," this was said with a smile through my own tear streaked face. "Now we are like the crew on a ship in a storm with nobody at the wheel. I will take the wheel for a while and you will follow orders like any good seaman. If I do not make a good captain then we will try to find someone that can do a better job. There are a great many ideas in my head that can be turned into money. That is our cargo. You will help me sail our ship to a port that will buy what we carry. "Jennifer and Angela will be in our crew as will Maggie and Mom. The other three upstairs and others may or may not assist us. We have to navigate some treacherous shoals but if we each work to keep the ship safe she will protect us. All you have to do is obey and have faith in your captain. Will you sign the articles and become a crew member?" She gave me a small smile through her snot and tears. "Yes — captain Master." I knelt in front of her and used my hand to wipe away the snot then kissed her like my woman. When I pulled back I said, "A crew member is superior in my mind to a slave. Captain will do. Now your first order is to kiss me back the way it should be done." I was kissed then but it changed as it progressed. It started like a kiss for a brother then maybe for a father but in the end it felt like a lover's. "That's better. Now let me check if there is anybody else that wants to sign on." Turning on my knees to Angela, "I will nurture and protect you. I will assist you to a worthy goal in life. During this trip I will share the profits from our cargo. If we find a good port you can leave if your captain thinks it advisable. A ship is only as good as its crew. "Will you sign the articles?" The girl sobbed now but it was not all fear. "Yes captain. I will help with whatever I can." I opened my arms and she came into them readily and I kissed her to seal the deal. She pulled away a bit and wiped her own face with her hand and went back to a kiss as good as Susan's. Jennifer wiped her own face and had a bigger smile. "I will sign too captain if you still want me." I kissed her and she put more effort into this than I thought. She had the most reason to hate all males. When she pulled back I said, "Yes, I want you Jennifer. I want all of you very much." The girls trouped upstairs with some sleeping bags only. I led them into the bathroom and got them cleaned like a good mother. I avoided even masturbation because of the problems still facing Jennifer. In my small bedroom I directed them to move furniture and then set the sleeping bags or blankets on the floor. I kissed them all and surprised them by slipping in between Susan and Jennifer. My burns bothered me during the night but I found some solace by holding one of Susan's breasts. She held my hand to hers and I think this helped us both get some rest. The girls moved and Susan went to the bathroom but when she came back she put my hand where she thought I belonged. I snuggled closer and kissed her shoulder. ------- Chapter 3 When my own bladder made me get up, I decided to stay up. Dawn was just arriving but the sky was still grey. When I finished I searched for a half sheet of Bristol board. The one I found was actually the piece remaining from a project I had done last year. With a pen, pencil and ruler I went downstairs to the kitchen. While sitting on a cold chair in my birthday suit, I began to think of our charter. On some scrap paper I wrote out my ideas then tried to think of a way that would sound both legal and binding as well as clear. When the best solution came I used the pencil and ruler to put light lines on the paper. In ink I wrote out what I had thought. All the things I could give to the girls for their help was listed along with what they had to do. A bad captain could be brought up on charges of a majority vote and a crew member could be banished from the ship or spanked over the Captain's knee. In any case the procedures were listed so everybody knew where they stood. Lines in ink were added for names and dates. When I was done I went to the lines I made to put more in between as if the crew would get very large. I wasn't even sure of why I did this. This document was put to the side and I began to mix a large batch of pancakes. We had a good sized griddle and a few cast iron skillets. Stainless steel was out but not common yet. A Teflon coating wasn't even thought of. All of our plates were brought out but there was not enough room at the table or even enough seats. In between pouring more batter I closed the curtains on the windows and brought out the small bottle of syrup and two bottles of jam. Crêpes were just thin pancakes with anything served with anything sweet. It took time to cook all this so the cakes went into a warm oven. I made tea. Mom didn't like coffee and didn't buy any. Putting the hot pans aside on a rack, I hurried upstairs to my room. Waking Susan with a lover's kiss her eyes opened with shock. "Wash up my love. Get my other girls up and hurry downstairs. Breakfast is ready and leave your clothing off. I like to see beautiful skin." "But — " I put my finger gently over her lips and said, "I have my reasons. Your beautiful body is not the main one this time." I woke Maggie the same way. She must have been talking a long time last night and I didn't have any pity for her. "Get up Honey. Today is important. Susan is much better now but still fragile. She and the other two are going to try hard to make everything as good as we can make it. There will be no more whip. She will not hurt you or anybody else. We are going to be running around the house naked for a while. Wake the other girls and tell them to hurry down and without clothes." "Yes — master." I gave her a kiss with a smile and left. Seven girls and one bathroom was difficult. I continued the job of building my tower of pancakes while I sipped my tea. Maggie and Sandy were the first down. Sandy was naked but she hung back behind Maggie. When Maggie came close so did Sandy. I kissed my sister like I loved her but not as a brother. She responded to me but then pulled back as if remembering that I was her brother and not her lover. I put out my arm and Sandy came reluctantly to me. Again I kissed her like a lover that wanted to show his true feelings. When my tongue traced her lips she held me to her then. When I coaxed my way in she pulled me tighter to her. We were both surprised when she was poked just between her legs. When we pulled back we both saw a short harpoon that looked far from dangerous. "See what you girls do to me and it will only get worse as we get older. What is going to become of the little boy?" I got some giggles from both of them. I went back to work. I flipped and stacked pancakes and put the freshest on the two plates. Maggie gave me a quick kiss then after a bit of hesitation so did Sandy for making their breakfast. Soon the others started to arrive and the kitchen filled up. I kissed and was kissed in return by everybody. Susan got a better kiss because I thought she needed it and she held me tight to her. I thought of myself as a life preserver now and not a possible lover. Incest was not what I was after but I realised, well over fifty years ago, that I loved each of my sisters and not as just a brother. My little erection didn't go down for a while and the girls giggled about it, even Jennifer. I gave my interpretation of a young girl that was being humiliated by her friends and this made them giggle more. I spoke now in French about the crêpes and the proper way to eat them. I made a variety with what supplies I had and fed the girls by hand. On the second trip around I cleaned their lips with a small lick of my tongue and made approving comments about the taste. Even Jennifer was not upset at this. The Bristol board was picked up but they were unable to see what it said. I wanted it to be this way. The dishes were left and I directed the girls into the front room. Being naked now didn't seem to be a problem for them. I at least stopped pointing a deadly weapon at them. They all sat on the couch, chairs or the arms while I stood before them. "I want to apologise for my actions last night. The only thing I can say is that drastic action had to take place before a great deal more anguish came about. This group was heading for a precipice that would result in suicide, failed marriages and premature death through drugs, alcohol and cancer. What I saw recently was a need for a guiding hand." Looking at Susan I added, "It is usually better for a male to lead but a female can do just as well. It is a family's perception of our customs that will have the most to do with their success. This leadership cannot be imposed but needs to be agreed to by all participants. The idea I am putting forward is very similar to what used to be common on a trading vessel. The crew had to know what gains it would get for their labour. There are some checks and balances implied but I chose to write these out." Taking the paper I read from it as if making a proclamation, which I actually was. My obligations were listed and then those of the crew. Punishments along with bonuses were added for a carrot had to be used with a stick. The captain was subject to these selfsame rules and even a way of removing a person from this office. Physical violence by any member apart from a type of corporal punishment in the form of a hand on the posterior of the guilty party was expressly forbidden. Everything was couched in terms of a sailing ship where possible without steering from the legality of the document. The aims of the charter would be to provide protection and succour for all those involved. The financial terms favoured me because I needed the money to grow and provided the means of making the money originally. When it listed new dependants only a few understood what this meant. Finally there was a procedure to opt out of this agreement and take a portion of the accrued profits. "Below all this text is a place for each of us to sign. Even with our signature this document is not legal in Canada because we are all underage. I see it as a way of each of us making a promise to the rest of us that we will comply with a few extra rules. "I want you to read this document and discuss it. There is at least one more person that should join today. Susan, will you come here and read this out loud for the rest to get a better understanding of what this means?" "Yes Je — Captain." The inserted word was said with a big smile that I was very happy to see. I phoned Paige and spent a few minutes talking to her father. We had been distant but I could see some of his reasoning now from my perspective of age. When Paige came to the phone she said, "What happened?" "Everything appears to be working, and all the points I wanted covered happen to be done. I have had to alter some minor points a few times and now it is far from what I originally envisioned. The future has to be plotted and to do this I wrote out some rules. These cover me as well as my family. I have found that Susan's gang is as dysfunctional as she is. To help them I have to guide them. I want you to come over now. Go to the back door. Once in, I want you to take off all your clothes and come to the front room to be with us." "What?" A few seconds later she almost screamed while whispering, "You want me to go naked in your house?" "You will do as I say, woman. Nobody here is wearing clothes anyway. You will fit in. You can ogle my body while I see yours. This will be the first time but not the last. I will be admiring yours till you are old and wrinkled." "Really?" She said in a mild voice hoping for another compliment. "Yes really. Get your pretty body over here." "Yes Jeff." I walked to the back door and waited. I heard Susan's voice still voicing my words then having to do sections of it again. Paige came running up and stopped as she saw me naked just inside the open doorway. She took a moment to admire me and I posed in different ways until she smiled and came in. "Is everybody really naked?" "As naked as I am. Now strip. Well actually they are more naked. I have some bandages." She removed her clothes but paused as I made some comments about how beautiful she was. When the last of her clothing was on a chair I took her hand in mine and brought her to see the rest. The others started to hide but then stopped when the saw that Paige was naked too. She was the youngest girl here but could compete with any in looks. "Paige is my woman. It is only fitting that she be here to discuss these articles and have the opportunity to sign with the rest of you." Everybody looked at me then at Paige. Paige stood with her mouth open wondering where all this would lead. I thought that being called 'my woman' was even more of a shock. Paige read what had been written and listened to the discussion. She was too meek to volunteer any comments unless pressed. I pressed her. In years to come I didn't want her to say she didn't understand or wasn't sure of a particular point. Maggie went to the bathroom and when she came back she whispered, "Why are we all naked?" I smiled at her and explained, "Each and everyone of you are beautiful. It is a way for me to appreciate the view. More importantly, a person acts differently when naked. It is as if we are more defenceless. We will not make any great pretences when we talk, as we would if we were hiding behind our clothing." Since I was the one to write the declaration, I was the one that had to answer all the questions. The questions though raised more ideas. The most striking one had to do with children in general. I mentioned how they would be cared for. Sandy asked, "When are these children going to come about?" "I have mentioned that we are going to be a very large family. A fact of life is that girls get pregnant. Some of you will go out and find a boyfriend and then find yourselves pregnant. I am going to teach you all how to keep this from happening by accident. I am also saying that many times a pregnant girl is abandoned by first her boyfriend then her family. I am saying that we are going to form that other family that will protect our members if it is necessary." Susan said, "I don't want to go out and get pregnant. Well maybe one day I will. I just don't see why that provision is in here." "It is like how people live in a village. You have basic freedoms and can do much as you want but not everything. This small restriction is what you pay to have the rest of the village protect you in a time of need. You can leave this village at any time you want. This may happen when you get married but you may want to bring your husband to live in this village with us." Maggie asked, "What about Mom?" "Our mother's status is still up in the air. She may be having an affaire or just out to have her oil changed. If we can find her a good mate then this is what we will push for. If she is not ready she will have to come fully into the family for her protection and well being." Maggie had wide eyes, "Mom is going out with a man?" "She enjoys herself on the weekends. She stays out all night and sometimes two. It may be a man or a woman. Either is fine as long as she is happy. Now let's get back to our obligations on our ship or in a village." Two hours later we signed the paper. Nobody looked like they wanted to refuse and I hoped it was not peer pressure that produced some of the signatures. Kisses were shared with everyone and it was easy to see those that enjoyed the female contact. Nobody was actively opposed which may have been an indication of internal struggles. We got dressed slowly because I wanted to assist where I could. The girls seemed to like this type of attention but I wasn't going to make myself a servant so I could cop a feel once in a while. I spoke for the next hour on boy/girl relationships in general. The various ways that some girls found themselves pregnant were mentioned. Female anatomy came into play and I mentioned the 'G' spot which all of them were unfamiliar with. I went on to anal sex then fellatio and cunnilingus. I said, "When I get better I will volunteer to explain the more intimate workings of these acts." Most of the girls laughed at this but Paige shivered and smiled. Maggie got me some loose-leaf paper and I made a list of each of the girls' strengths and weaknesses. This was done in public but this time we were not hiding our faults. The other girls even added more points from their perspective and this could be a form of peer pressure to get the errant one to conform. Later when they began to understand what they had done to each other and to me, they would have a lot of regret if not guilt. Though I had gone to school a long time ago and forgotten much I had also gained quite a bit going to university for specialty and personal interest courses. I subscribed to the Discovery Channel because I enjoyed all the nature shows. Running my various businesses also gave me an insight into some things that others would never learn. The girls ranged in grades from eight to eleven. I guided but didn't push each of them in a the direction of their strengths, much as if I were looking for prospective employees. Some of the goals though were many years off. I needed much more than bookkeepers, managers, secretaries, saleswomen and receptionists. Technical subjects had to be learned too if there was an obvious talent or interest. I could not be the only one doing repairs or the only one that could work on an invention that I had to work out. The time came for some of the girls to leave and I gave them instructions about homework and study. Too many of the girls were close to failure. In this era, a student would have to repeat a grade rather than — as in later years — being allowed to advance with his peers. With just my sisters and Paige left, I decided to take a look at our television. This allowed the girls to go upstairs and compare notes. I was not afraid for Paige now, however, I would keep an ear cocked for trouble. I cleaned out the accumulated dust from the television's chassis and discovered that I needed a booster. The picture tube was giving up the ghost and it needed a simple transformer to boost the current to the heater. This would release more electrons to the gun but the tube would only last approximately three more months. A picture tube was expensive and I tried to remember the cost. Fifty dollars seemed to be about right but this was with labour to install and set it up. Fifty dollars was a substantial amount of money too. A factor of seven had to be been used when compared to 2008, thus making the cost more like 350 dollars in the inflated currency. Paige came down later. She watched me work for a while then gave me a kiss and went home. Maggie and Susan came to me. They didn't look like they had before our tumultuous encounter, just curious. Susan asked in a quiet voice, "How come you know so much brother? You were smart before but still like a boy of twelve." "I changed when the lightning hit me. There was a better than fair chance that I should have died. An experience like that tends to make a person think a lot more of mortality and those things that are really important. My family is one of the most important but Paige is too. I made up my mind and stopped being shy. If I wait too long then a chance of a lifetime could pass me by." "Like what?" "Paige likes me but there was no commitment given. A new boy could come along and sweep her off her feet and I would be left with only my memories. I saw my two sisters dying when their lives rotted away. As a young boy I worshipped both of you. My dreams included both of you and even our children. This was before I knew how this happened. I just knew that a man and a woman could make babies." Maggie asked, "Do you want us to have your children?" She was smiling widely but Susan now had a more serious look on her face. "A boy may want the moon. I am becoming a man and I know that you may not feel the exact same way I do. You both know my feelings now. We can play this by ear. You will be able to see many things. One would be my ability to take care of my family. Another would be how much I am able to find some quality time with them. You will also see if you are able to fit in. You may find other men and leave. I still love each of you enough to make sure you get the best education so you can get the best job possible. If you are happy then your children will be happy. In this case a marriage flourishes and I am happy even if the children are not mine." Susan said, "Aren't — our children going to be deformed?" "No! There is always a possibility of an improperly formed foetus but there is little chance of ours being this way more than any other family." When Mom got home we all greeted her and I could see my sisters assessing her to find if she had sex with anyone. They were pretty smug to see this. They could not think of what other reasons she would have to stay out all night. Seeing three smiling faces she said, "It is nice to see that you three are getting along so much better. I am always afraid that I would come home to a ruined house one of these days." I said, "We have been doing some serious talking similar to what you and I have been doing for the last few weeks. There were a lot of misconceptions and many of them are now are put to rest. We looked at some long-term goals and saw how we could gain many of them by working together. If we include you in our plans then the chances of success are much greater." She gave us one of her rare smiles and said, "What plans do you have for me?" "We have to get you interested in living. You have gone steadily downhill since dad died." Mom seemed to get angry but I continued. "Does the truth bother you Mom? We all love you and see that you try but you are not trying effectively. You need to form a plan and if your plan works with ours we will all flourish. You someone who will take care of you. Dad was the kind of guy that ran things. We were all happy to follow what he said because he used common sense and a lot of love. His leaving devastated the family and nobody stepped forward to steer a course." Mom didn't yell of scream, she just put her hands to her face and cried. Maggie and Susan took an arm each, guided her to the couch, and sat with her. At times like this Mom liked a tea so I put some water on. With me out of the room the girls talked to their mother. From some eavesdropped snippets of conversation, I found that the girls were siding with me. Later the girls came to me asking what to make for supper. I began then and there to give instructions as if to micromanage. It was a poor way to run a business yet it was a way to encourage Mom and the girls to follow directions while they still seemed to be malleable. After supper the girls cleaned the dishes. "Mom, you look beat. Why don't you have a long hot bath with some of that oil you like? You can read a bit and go to sleep early." "Why are you telling me what to do Jeff? I am your mother not a child." "Mother, you are a child," I said in a quiet voice. "Dad died and you fell apart. You have never acted right since his death. You slept little over the weekend. You have dark circles under your eyes. You stink of booze and cigarettes. Your clothing is dirty and I know that you need to get clean." Mom stood and it looked like as if she was going to hit me. "I'm young and know more than you think. If you hit me it will not change the facts. You need a bath and you need some sleep. Now go upstairs before your daughters hear you arguing like a child of three." "You are not my boss," she said with a pouting voice. "I am now because you certainly need one. Now go upstairs before I get my sisters to help me give you a bath. I have every intention of enforcing my orders if it's necessary." Mom looked very angrily at me but did leave. A few seconds later Susan and Maggie came in to see what had happened. Susan asked, "Did you send her to bed?" "I mentioned that she needs a bath and some sleep. She reacted poorly to the suggestion. I am afraid that we may have some difficulty signing Mom on. She needs a strong hand like dad gave her but now she has been free too long; and she has to be broken in once more." Maggie was worried. "You are not going to hurt her, are you?" "I may paddle her bum but nothing more." Both girls were wide eyed at this statement. ------- Chapter 4 I made bagged lunches for my sisters and myself. I gave them some money too for a soda. We never got an allowance so there was little chance to buy anything. The next morning I left early with Paige there to help me - if I needed it. My sisters would be going in the opposite direction to get to their school and left a little later than I usually did. "Did you mean what you said about me having your babies?" I held her hand and stopped to look at her. "I have loved you for longer than we have both been alive. I am not going to lose you like I could have. You are a submissive girl that I happen to love deeply. You need some direction for major things but you have the intelligence to not need it all the time. I need you near me until my teeth fall out and I need diapers once more. This time we will have two children of our own and I will try my best to make you happy." She hugged my arm until it hurt but I said nothing except to caution her against mentioning our business to her friends just for a few moments of notoriety. I also mentioned what grief our kisses could bring. At this time it was rare for a couple to show this type of behaviour at the lower grades in high school, never mind grade school. From fifty years ago I remembered the procedure. I went to the office to get myself in line to see the school nurse. I gave those people that asked enough data that they felt informed but not bored. I had even rehearsed what to say. Bookmark Mrs Sharp was an old teacher with a British background. She had her ideas about how a person should be dressed or act and she came down on anybody that didn't fit her criteria. She had even seen that I didn't have an undershirt in grade five and checked if I had underwear. She then proceeded to tell my teacher in front of me how I came to school only partially dressed. I could have argued with her to make myself feel good for previous wrongs but I saw that she was just an old woman too stuck in her ways to change. With a, "Hummmp," I got a slip letting me go to classes. I left without comment even though this too would bring her ire down on me. I went back outside to talk to people I knew. From later years I knew that the word friend meant something much different than a person to talk to on days when I was bored. These same people had jumped on me when Susan spread her vicious rumour. It was almost fifty years later and I was still angry. I did talk though to be sociable. My old anger started to crack by the time the bell rang; because I saw the boys as children and knew that even in three years they would not have matured appreciably. Mr Collins was the only grade eight teacher in our small school. There was no combination lock to open because there were no lockers. All my books and notes were in my old desk. The desk itself was dark wood with an inkwell; and the desk itself was screwed to the floor. Paige gave me as small wave and a smile from the other side of the room. We sang 'Oh Canada' and 'God Save the Queen' for opening ceremonies while looking at the 'Union Jack'. The 'Lord's Prayer' was said. Everything was by rote and I tried to not be too hypocritical in my thinking. Structure was good even if I knew it could and would be abused. Mr Collins said, "Hello Jeff. Would you tell us a bit about your recent experiences?" I was required to stand and did so with some difficulty. "Hello to you too sir. I can tell you nothing about the strike itself. I was almost instantly unconscious. I woke up in the hospital a few times but went back to sleep. I was given intravenous fluids and some morphine. Sulpha was administered by hypodermic as well as penicillin to control infection. Other than shock, a burn victim usually succumbs to infection of the affected area or the lungs. "There are second and third degree burns on my back, chest, left arm and legs. My face only suffered superficial burns. Burn victims cannot be helped much by painkillers. After a week in the hospital I was allowed home for a few weeks. I visited the outpatient clinic at the hospital twice. I take the penicillin for another week then I can start to remove my bandages. With a little luck and great deal of work I can absorb most of my scar tissue and not be afraid of frightening children on the beach." "You are taking this fairly well Mr Congdon. Please take you seat. You have a lot of math to catch up on." The subjects were boring in the extreme. I loved school for most of my life and tried to learn as much as I could. Recess was fifteen minutes long and was the only subject worth an extensive study. I chatted with Paige even if this was taboo. The girls had their area and the boys had theirs. A mixing of the genders was sure to promote all kinds of licentious activity. I alone seemed to be given dispensation because of my injuries. After a rousing session in Social Studies, Spelling and English we adjourned for lunch. The trip home was just a bit too far to go to during the forty-five minutes allowed. There was no cafeteria so some of us just sat in our class or outside and ate what we brought. There was not even a drink dispenser, only a water fountain. Paige and I ate alone. We basically talked. A nagging worry began that was difficult to suppress once doubt crept in. I loved an older Paige when I was her age. I was really a sixty two year-old man trying to live his life differently now that I had a second chance. Would a man my age really love a girl of thirteen? Many men had left their families for girls such as this but usually this ended wrong when the girl found that she had nothing in common with an old man. The only thing different here was that I had a twelve-year-old body. The idea was forcefully pushed onto the back burner until I got more information. Having things my way, may not be the right way for others. After school I went up to Mr Collins. "Sir, I'm having difficulty in your class." The man looked at me and said, "I guess I can give you some of the papers you missed. If you do them I will give you credit and tell you where I can be of help." "Thank you sir, however, the fact is that I find the material far too easy. Could I follow an independent study or we might work on something interesting for both of us. It would keep me occupied and out of trouble. We both can go over my work, but it will be the test at the end of the year that determine my mark." "What kind of study are you suggesting?" "I have been interested in electronics for a long time. I think I may have come up with some devices that are actually patentable. Failing that, I can read some books that can give me a better understanding of the world around us." "Science books, Jeff?" "For the most part the answer would be yes. While in the hospital I started to think of X-ray crystallography. This employs electron diffraction and then x-ray diffraction to study the structure of specific molecules. This should give me a three-dimensional model of certain processes. This could lead the way to proving the structure of various complex and important molecules." "Is this what you want to patent?" "There are a great many much simpler things that can be made and sold. A simple smoke alarm and a carbon monoxide detector should save a considerable number of lives." "Transistors have been recently invented and I want to explore some of properties to see if I can excite the electrons high enough that they emit visible light. It has been theorised that the photons of light can be made to march in step with each other. I believe that they should not disperse as normal light. This should find a use in the communications industry. There are other things too, but they are difficult to explain without some apparatus and a good deal of mathematics." "Show me some of the mathematics you are talking about if you know this. I mark your tests and have a rough idea of what you are capable of." I went to the cleared board and started writing some of the basic math relating to the propagation of light. In just two lines I was into calculus and both bilateral and unilateral Laplace and Fourier integral transforms. My memory was sketchy and it was like doing logarithms from memory rather than looking it up in the tables. The physics was not that difficult. I had reason to learn it many years ago with my own laser experiments in university. Basically I just regurgitated what I had been taught. Some of the other equations were a bit fussy too and I had to work on them for a moment to ensure that they were correct. My proof showed the way light was originally produced then on another board I showed that the divergence of the beam should fit the data that I had collected. This was getting the cart before the horse, yet it was still valid. "You may have noticed that the math is beyond what I was taught by you. My only explanation is to state that I never applied myself to anything. Coming very close to death only showed me that if I want something I have to go after it with both hands." The man was not listening to me but going over my work. It had been a great many more years since I took this course and I was sure that Mr Collins was trying to remember his own university math. Paige was getting antsy to go but I just put my hand on her shoulder for a moment to calm her. Mr Collins stood now and walked to the board then pointed to the forth line down. "Tell me why you did this." Talking was much faster than using a piece of chalk. It still took five minutes to explain why this had to be. The Bessel function of the first kind, then the delta function was explained before I went to the Heaviside step function. I couldn't tell him much more for I was an inventor not a mathematician. This same mathematics had to go onto a patent application to prove that I knew how the device worked. I explained the sixth line too then added, "Paige and I walk home together. Due to my recent injuries I walk a lot slower. Paige's mother will begin to worry if we are not home in a reasonable amount of time." He thought for a moment and said, "I'm sorry for detaining you. If you give me time to copy this down I'll give you both a ride home." "I have a counter proposal. Drive us home and I will write this out tomorrow in class. I will provide a more thorough description to cover why I did certain things." Mr Collins gave us a ride home leaving a note on the board to not remove the writing. Paige sat stiffly all the way home and I had to assume that she found this frightening for some reason. Paige and I walked into her home. I talked to her mother Nora and was given some cookies and milk. The three of us talked about school and my accident. Duke stayed under the table looking for any food that needed to be disposed of. When it was polite I started with some of my plans and how they may involve Paige. This talk avoided the inventions but dealt with things an educated person could do now. Nora said, "You are going to start some companies and then hire teens to work for you?" In my defence I said, "Usually a young teen does not work during the summer because he or she is unable to find employment. I can think of a great many jobs. I simply sell the products or services my company produces. Painting is good but this takes some skill. Gardening and yard work is fun but usually labourious. A cleaning service is well within most people's capabilities. A baby-sitting service can be created with a twist. Customers contact a company and a nearby employee is asked to take the job. If the closest employee is not available, others are asked until one is found. This avoids missing an engagement because the children will have no supervision. I can repair electronic devices or do just about anything around a home." "I think you will be rich one day Jeff." "I am already rich in friends. Money will come in time." When I got into our home the air was fragrant with the smell of home cooking. Mom's dishes were usually quick or one of us did them. This time I was happy to see Mom wearing a white and pink apron. She was being what she should be. She heard me and smiled when I came into the room. I smiled back and got close. As I stood beside her and looked into the sink my arm wrapped around her and pulled her to me even though she was bigger. "Hmmmmm your cooking smells good. I see that you have been a very busy lady today." "I have been busy all day I want you to know. There is a cake in the oven to take the place of the one you should have had on your birthday." "Birthdays are more important to the young. Family is what is important to me. That doesn't mean that I am going to turn down the cake though. What kind did you make me?" "You will just have to wait young man," she said as she pulled from my grasp and faced me. She still had her smile so I knew that she was just playing a game. "Thank you anyway." I reached up my hands and held her face for just a few seconds and kissed her on the lips like a man. She responded to me then remembered who I was. Before she could ruin the moment, I added, "We are all family and I love you much more than you realise. I am very proud to have such a beautiful lady as part of our family. Especially if this beautiful lady can cook as good as you can." I then said to get her sidetracked, "We are having two visitors tonight along with Paige. They have problems at school and I will be helping them." This seemed to work and she smiled once again. It was important to reinforce the commitments we made on our charter. If the girls were allowed to leave now they would start to doubt themselves and then renege on their commitment. This was not necessarily bad but some needed help that I could give them. Others needed some structure that they would feel better working within. For this reason some would come on weekdays to keep their agreements fresh in their minds. Jennifer and Sandy came in the door with Maggie and Susan. They were laughing gaily as they approached the house. This was different from their usual angry expressions and I felt good to have assisted them. The four girls stopped just inside the door and looked at me. I could almost see them wanting to salute or something. I walked closer then stopped a few feet away. "Hello ladies. It is nice to see you again." I took two steps and stood before Sandy. I took her face into my hands and kissed her gently. "Thank you for coming Sandy." The girl was three years older than me but not functioning as well as she should be. "I have to greet my other guest too Honey." Jennifer seemed to have forgotten yesterday and I was able to not only kiss her lightly but to trace my tongue on her lips. "I am happy that you are here too Jennifer. I missed all of you today." She said nothing as I moved to Maggie and kissed her too but turned her face and used much more passion. "I love you Maggie." Susan heard me and she opened her mouth as if in shock. I kissed her with the same passion I showed her sister. "I love you too Susan. My life would be poorer without you in it." When I backed up it looked like the girls saw me sprout another head. Trying to be sophisticated is a difficult job with a twelve-year-old body. "Please let me take your jackets and sweaters. We can talk a moment in the front room." Susan dropped her books but I was able to remove her sweater and at the same time caress her shoulder and arm. I helped the other three one at a time and hung the garments on a hanger. They waited like proper ladies for their man to assist them. From their actions I saw that this had not happened to them before. When we entered the front room I gestured for them to be seated. "Mom has prepared a nice meal for us. She also made a cake in honour of my birthday that I missed while in the hospital. Jennifer and Sandy, will you stay and eat with us? It will make it much more like the party I always wanted." I laid it on thick and even tried to act like a boy that wanted a favour while still trying to be suave. They looked at each other as if that would give them some indication of what to do. Sandy nodded her head and Jennifer swallowed and said, "Sure — ah I mean I would love to Mas — Jeff." "Thank you, you don't know how much that pleases me. Perhaps you should phone your parents so they will not be too worried about you not being there for your own supper." We talked about school and since two of them in the same class they were able to bring out clearer explanations. Maggie being younger was in grade nine and had some different teachers. Sandy was in a similar situation in grade ten. My memories of this time were vague in the extreme but I was able to ask about some teachers and their eccentricities. This made Susan stop and stare at me. She said nothing but her look showed that she had some questions for later. The girls talked of problems in homework that needed a better explanation. It was surprising what could be remembered after all these years. Bookkeeping was the easiest because I not only studied the subject; I also had to work with it for years. Science was simple too. If I didn't remember it from school I studied it in university. Failing that, it was on the educational channels or in books and magazines I had read. History and geography were always fun subjects. History meant people and I studied them and what made them tick. Geography was about beautiful places to visit. I had been across North America many times. I had been around our planet many times and either vacationed or done business in many exotic places. The ones I figured I would never reach were studied for just that reason. Maggie and Susan opened their books and then the others did too. I tried to make this as enjoyable as possible. Mom had been working all day and popped her head in to see what was happening. "Would you girls — and Jeff, like some tea? I just made a pot." I spoke first and said, "Thank you Mom but let me help. You have been very busy all day and you need a rest too." I just got up and brought out our good china. I took the cups and placed them on the coffee table then got the milk, sugar, spoons and the pot. I took Mom's apron off without asking her and gave her another kiss on the lips. "Come and sit with us. I like pretty girls around me." She whispered, "You already have some." "I want the best too." I didn't give her a choice but held her hand and guided her to my seat. I did the honours and poured. I even asked about adding sugar and/or milk to their taste. They had to stir though and we sat around talking as if we were at one of those stuffy garden parties. Instead of homework we talked about interactions in the class and about some of the odder teachers or students. Mom had only gone to grade seven and I didn't want to rub her lack of education in her face. We sat around the table later when Paige came over. We ate less like barbarians but family rules are good too. They did sing 'Happy Birthday' though we didn't have any candles. I asked for a birthday kiss in lieu of a present and I did my best to show that I loved everybody. Mom tried to pull away because she was a mother in front of strangers. I just held her tighter and she relented. She looked around when I let her go and she didn't find sneers but some smiling and perhaps even encouraging looks. I went around later licking off the chocolate icing and I knew that some had left traces there for me. Maggie washed the dishes while the rest of us helped dry. Homework went on the table and I helped more directly now by giving hints so they might remember how to do it next time. I was helping Jennifer with some business math when Paige said, "How come you know so much about this? You help us and you do stuff our teacher can't do." This revelation caused the others to pause and wait for my explanation. "I read and study a lot. After I was hit by lightning I found that I had to stop playing around and do what had to be done. I guess it was just time to let my teacher know that I could use either some extra time at school to study or for him to work a lot harder to teach me things I don't know yet." Mom asked, "Are you alright Jeff? You have been acting — different." "I am alright. Since my family is healing I am even better." Maggie was taking an arts and science course and was in her first year of Latin. I didn't know why she took it. Usually somebody going to be a scholar or go into the medical profession took the language. I had taken it on a lark and because a language gave me two points as opposed to the single one for everything else except math. This was my first language other than English and it was soon evident that I had a knack for learning them. French was easy too, but it was only when I gained some freedom and found some French speaking friends did I start to learn that. The military and business acquaintances honed this language for me. I was even stationed in Germany before the Canadians pulled out completely. That language too was added to my repertory. Most of this just happened to be because of all the German girls that seemed to like a good-looking boy especially with blonde Aryan features. I spoke in Latin with difficulty because of the length of time that it had stayed dormant. Picking out the roots of both foreign and English words was the only thing I had used it for in almost half a century. "If you go over the various declensions once a day for both the regular and the irregular verbs you will be in good shape for the your tests." I then used a soft voice and told Maggie that I loved her and always would but it was said in the language she was now studying. I hoped now that she would have added incentive to learn. That look came again but now it was from all the ladies. The rest of the girls started to phone after six. I helped again but this time just verbally. Angela and Faith were to come over tomorrow and their call was more to confirm what had been planned. There was very little of my own work done but helping others, especially now, was quite important. Paige went and borrowed her father's guitar. I was not good at this or any other instrument but could belt out a tune on a variety of instruments. I sang some of Roy Orbison's songs. I liked his popular tunes 'Only the Lonely' and 'Oh, Pretty Woman'. Later I sang some of the popular ones sang by Elvis. I sang the songs while looking at only one girl at a time. Mom was pleased when I sang 'Love me Tender'. This time she was the one to give me a three-alarm kiss and she didn't seem to mind who saw it. The girls were walked to the street and I got a smaller kiss than I had received inside the door. If worse came to worse, I would either have to look for Chapstick or invent it. Paige and I walked to her home and I thanked her father Jack for the loan. We talked for a few moments and I had to pay him for the use with a few songs. I sang to Nora and to Paige. Jack was smiling but kept it hidden about how the girls were both influenced by my efforts. Jack said, "I have another guitar in the garage. The neck is pulling away from the body. If you want to get it glued it will be yours." "Thank you sir. I have glued other instruments before and they worked well after." Paige and I walked to school the next day with raincoats and her umbrella. It was fun to be cuddled together this way. Paige liked it too and tried her best to get as close as possible. She laughed hard and put her hand over her mouth when I said, "Woman, you are getting me hard. I am going to wear a hole in my rain pants then have to explain it." She wasn't worried about it and continued to abuse me. After the preliminaries were done in class Mr Collins gave me a stack of foolscap without saying anything to anybody about the reason. I wrote out the premise of the paper and then followed through as if I were taking the course in university. In grade school we were encouraged to use the back too but I didn't. The proofs would take a long time to complete and I kept these sheets too. Everything was annotated and numbered. My recall though was good but the length of time since I had done this type of calculation was a bit too much. I had to work in sections and go back later and fill in the blank sections. Recess came and I was only partially done. Mr Collins promised to look but not disturb what I had done in my absence. "Sir, nobody does multiplication and division of large numbers long hand. They use logarithm tables from a book. The integrals I am dealing with can be simplified similarly with transforms. I can remember some but not all. The study of this alone could take years to master if the person is even able to. Will you see if you can find the tables for me?" "Which ones do you want?" When Paige and I stepped out into the hall she said, "Were you doing that math all the time?" "Yes, it is not hard just difficult to remember. I have to work out all the problems by hand. I am also obliged to make all of my own proofs. The time passed a lot quicker for me though. The only thing better would be to have my woman close by and rub my head once in a while to make me purr." "I can do that now," she said with a big smile. "I would like it too but then we could get into a lot of hassles. The teachers will think we are making love and think your stomach is going to get big very soon." She pulled my arm close with two of hers and said, "I would like that. You said before I could have two." "Yep, a boy and a girl as cute as their mother." I had to push her away just then for we were both getting carried away and a teacher was coming. "Don't you have something better to do Mr Congdon?" "I can say with complete honesty that there is nothing I would like to do more than staying here." The teacher's eyes got beady and I added, "I cannot move well. I cannot play. The best I can do is talk to a very intelligent and sophisticated lady of my acquaintance." She just said, "Don't get too chummy Mr Congdon," and left. The mathematical description of the propagation of laser light was still far from completion. Mr Collins wanted to talk but saw that I had to eat too, so he just read what I had written so far. Paige and I found a quiet area to eat and we managed to kiss a bit. It was not quite like we were a love struck couple but not like a recently married couple either. We seemed to fit together and we knew that we were in danger of being forced apart if we were too obvious. When we went back after lunch we found our teacher with Mr Goods, our principle, and Mrs Martin looking at my work. They looked at me then back at the work then back at me. Mrs Martin was the most forceful teacher around and asked, "Where did you learn how to do this?" "Books, magazines and encyclopaedias ma'am. It takes much longer that way but the information is still attainable. Working towards some specific goals makes these tools secondary. If I had a lab and suitable funding I could show you and the world how this is done. Finding somebody willing to risk their money on a twelve year old is very difficult. Bell Labs would listen but I would get neither the patent or the credit I could get on my own." "You couldn't do that. I saw your marks since you were in kindergarten." "It is nice to walk into my class and have an adult tell me to my face and in front of my peers that I am a liar while you can see the obvious proof before your eyes. I believe I deserve a public apology for a public insult. At the very least you could have asked for alternate proof in a private area." She glared at me for a moment and I just stared at her. "I am sorry for my unfounded outburst a moment ago Mr Congdon. I should not have said what I did or where it was said." "Your apology is fully accepted Mrs Martin. I would add though that I too would be perplexed at seeing what was before me considering what information is in the records." I put out my hand and it took her just a second to shake it. I made up my mind to speak with an adult intonation and choice of words. Some phrases may be considered 'highbrow' but the idea was to get them to think instead of reacting to what they saw before them. "What are you doing this for Mr Congdon?" "I have always loved electricity even before being cooked by it recently." I got a smile from her and a chuckle from the class. "I learned the math to understand electricity better. I am fairly focussed usually but I slipped up and worked on other facets of physics. Light can be produced many ways and my first idea was to find an alternative to the fluorescent bulb. My thinking deviated once again to consider that propagation of light in waves that were all in step. There have been a considerable number of assumptions made without verification of any kind. "The calculations you see before you should be looked on as a possibility only. Experimentation will winnow out those conditions that will not succeed and perhaps alternates will have to be formulated." Mrs Martin said, "Can you really understand what you have put on paper?" "The work you see is really not that difficult to do. Without adequate reference works, simple things are made much more difficult. Some of those same works are necessary for me to complete this task. I believe I will be staying after class again. You are welcome to ask questions if it is all right with Mr Collins." "I would like that Mr Congdon." The two teachers left. They had classes of their own and the students were probably running wild. Mr Collins got the class back to work and I continued with my self-imposed project. I had lied a bit but the truth of the matter was that if you wanted to really understand physics or the portion of it called electronics, it was necessary to understand mathematics. We had our short break at recess but I was not done even when the bell rang. "How is it coming Jeff? You used up most of the paper I gave you." "A good start I think. It should be finished by the weekend." "It takes that much time? I never heard of a problem taking this long." "I try to follow accepted rules and everything I put down has to be proven at each step. The proof takes so many pages that it is difficult to wade through all of them. Some proofs could be accepted but then they would be brought to question later. Most of the proofs are not complete because of the necessary tables I mentioned. You get everything at once now and I can let the world fight over how to apply this information. I could add my ideas but then anybody following them could do this with enough money and I would be left with nothing. I devise a delicious recipe and then a cook produces and presents the pastry to the world and he takes the credit." Mrs Martin was coming now and I asked quickly, "Are you supplying transportation once again?" "Yes Jeff." I turned to Paige who was the only other person present. "Paige will you study your social studies notes and concentrate on that pervert Champlain? An evil task master will be quizzing you later and a big pussycat will be giving you a test on it in June." She smiled beautifully at me and said meekly, "Sure Jeff." Instead of explaining what I had put to paper I started teaching differential calculus. More teachers came in and had difficulty fitting into the small desks. I talked for a few minutes on other things until I figured that everybody that was going to come was already here. I went over differential calculus. Not everybody here had taken the subject so I had the class move to the left or right. I now taught like it was a one-room school. I gave some information and then Mr Collins provided some foolscap to do some simple questions. The other side of the class received the same thing but at a deeper level. When it was time to go I remembered some simple books I had read and wrote the names on the board. They were old books when I went to school in the military. I added a simple book on electricity as it applied to a person entering university. Paige was quiet in the car again but this time it seemed different. I had been worried about dealing with her as an older man but I thought she might have the same feelings in reverse. I would have to talk to her later to find out. The house was a bit cleaner when I got home. Mom was again cooking a good meal that smelt heavenly. She was dressed a bit better too and her hair was done. "Mom, you are going to spoil me. You must have been working all day. The house is clean. Your hair looks beautiful and that dress looks good on you." This was a good enough excuse to kiss her and I did. There was nobody else around and she kissed me back like she really meant it. I used my tongue to caress her lips and she eventually let me in. Her own tongue stayed meekly back. My left hand caressed her back but my right one held her neck so her head was in position. She almost fell to the floor as she swooned and I was not prepared to support her with the state my body was in. I pulled away to let her breathe and her eyes were still closed. Her nipples were very erect and if I ventured to feel her panties I was sure to find them damp. I got her to sit on the chair and then stood in front of her. She looked at my eyes then quickly to my pants. They were pushing out just a bit. "What are you doing to me Jeff? I am your mother." "I love you. You need someone to guide you for a while and I want to be that person. You are an adult and you have adult needs. I am just making sure that you get all that you deserve. I am young myself and feel things mostly in my mind. My body will catch up soon and you will be fulfilled much better." Mom needed a dominant figure and this I would do very well. Words alone could not keep her from rebelling. She needed to be bound by sex. Another way to change our perceived positions. This would be for me to call her by her first name. Calling her mom would only emphasise what we were and remind her of the spectre of incest. "But I am your mother." "You are my woman, nothing else matters. You will be safe in a home environment and I will try to make you happy. "She put her hand out and touched the lump in my pants. "This is not for a mother." "You are my woman. Open my pants." She looked at me now with a frightened if not terrified expression. "Do as I say, Jane. This is what I want and what you need." "But — " "Open my pants now Honey," I said sternly but with some kindness. Her hands shook but she did as I asked. Without asking she lowered my pants then my underwear. She just looked at my small erection and not even my eyes. I put my hands on her shoulders and pulled her forward and pushed down. She went to her knees easily and her head came forward as if drawn to a magnet. She took all of me into her mouth and sucked slowly as if savouring the taste. The vibration of her hum of appreciation travelled through my cock then up and down my spine. I told her what all women love to hear while doing this. She responded to this and even got my small hairless scrotum into her mouth along with the rest of me. She used one hand to hold me to her but the other was between her legs and in her panties. It took almost ten minutes until it looked like she was having her orgasm. I put my hands on her head now and pumped in and out and she started to go even wilder. The scream around my cock was enough to push me over too and I had my first orgasm of my new life. The loud groan I made set her off once more and we eventually slowed down and stopped. My hands twisted Mom's head so I could look her in the eye without pulling out. "You are quite a woman. I am very pleased that you are mine. Now you better do me up before the girls get home." She pulled off then went back and kissed the head of my cock. When everything was in place I urged her up to her seat then kissed her once more. She was hesitant this time and I guess it had to do with a man's reluctance to kiss the orifice that he had just dumped his sperm into. This was not my way though. She sat back on her chair and I stood between her spread legs. I kissed her more. But tried my best to be dominant and demanding. She groaned and rubbed her breasts against me and I knew that she was mine now more fully than anybody else could be. We were still at it when the girls came to the front door. "You are going to have to excuse me my love. Our guests have arrived." She just lowered her eyes but she had a smile. I kissed Angela and Faith as I had Jennifer and Sandy yesterday. They smiled at me more and were not shocked so I had to assume that they had talked at school. I helped my ladies disrobe and then guided them to the front room. We talked about school for a few minutes when I heard the kettle whistling. Mom just brought in the pot, cups and everything else needed. I gave her my seat and her eyes were just glassy as they followed me. Susan looked at me then at our mother again then back to me. I guess she had another question to ask later. Paige came over as soon as she could get free and joined our talks. Today the things they asked me were more difficult. I didn't think it was homework but more of a test to see what I actually knew. I stayed with them for ten minutes and said, "If I pass this test can we start on your homework?" They looked bashful but the questions sounded more normal now. We ate together and tried to talk of current affairs but I could only express my views, for the girls didn't know much of what was going on. Susan washed the dishes and all of us dried this time. Everything was put away and the books came out. Faith had little difficulty at school and I got her to help Angela. I didn't want Angela to think that I thought less of her so I asked her questions too. I gave some of my own requirements for homework to them. Most of this was in bookkeeping because this would be the most important thing they could do for the family. The other girls phoned and talked of their day in school and then what problems they had. I gave them a few easy questions too so everybody was being treated evenly. Karen would be coming here tomorrow and she happened to live close to a hardware store. She had enough money to purchase the glue I required for my new guitar and would bring it when she came tomorrow. "You girls have all heard of hypnosis from friends, television and the radio. It's like talking to your subconscious more directly. I love all of you and would not hurt you again if I could avoid it. Hypnosis can help with your schoolwork and your everyday lives. May I try to do this to you? I will not have you do anything silly but there have to be some tests. Tonight this can take the place of music." Paige was very interested and agreed first. I had seen may stage shows and been at parties when this was demonstrated. I had helped some of my women over the years overcome their smoking problems. This was my real direction and I wanted to save Mom's life if possible. In my previous life Paige had been my first subject and it turned out to be true for this life too. I needed no gimmicks; which I think helped. With just my voice I had them all in a trance in just ten minutes. Paige, Faith and Mom had gone much earlier but I continued to deepen their trances while bringing the rest under too. Each of the girls was tested while the rest were told not to hear us. This tended to confuse the subjects when they thought all the instructions were for each of them. In an hour everyone was very deep for their first time. Everybody was given some encouragement to improve one way or another. Testing would not be as stressful and retention would be easier. Each was given a simple trigger with their name. Mom was encouraged to cut back on her cigarettes. The girls had their eyes open watching how others could not raise or lower their arms. Angela ate some onion but told us it was an apple. It was only when it was getting late that I brought everybody all the way out except gfor Paige. Each had specific instructions to remember everything said or done. I did some of the parlour tricks and had Paige suspended between two chair seats by the back of her head and her ankles on another seat. She was only there for fifteen seconds before the other girls got her down. used the trigger and pinched each subject in turn. The girls were amazed that the others had felt no pain. There were a great deal of smiling faces then they laughed at each other. Angela still thought she had some apple until the girls got her to smell her own breath. This got boisterous but not out of hand. I got Angela to go with me to my sister's bedroom. I hoped by now that she would not be apprehensive. She had good reasons to be. I had hurt her recently and her brothers had too and this is what I wanted to find out more about. This conversation was casual with us far apart on separate beds. We were lying on our backs, and looking at the ceiling while talking. The important points came out slowly with a little prodding and a few chuckles. She had not been sexually attacked yet but her three bigger and one younger brothers were abusive as if she were another boy. They also saw her as different and they tended to gang up on her. Many others had grown in a similar environment. Some had overcome the effects while others had been crippled by it. Angela tried to downplay much of the violence but I let her know that I saw through this. The talk turned sadder now and I was soon up and on her bed with my arms around her. Now was the time to dig deeper and I did. When I had learned enough I whispered how things would get better and I would make sure of this happening. I cleaned her up in the bathroom and we came downstairs with an arm around each of us. The girls were concerned but they didn't show any hostility to me so they knew that I was trying to help. We kissed goodnight and Angela got an extra kiss because of the onion on her breath. I tucked the girls in and wondered about the need. Usually they slept alone but other times one crept into the other's bed and made love. I had never seen it but I had heard and smelt this many times. Mom's room was next. I said to her, "Jane, you are now trying to cut back on your smoking. As an incentive I think if you smoke ten less I will give you something to smoke when I come home tomorrow." "I could smoke that now if you want Jeff." "That is a pleasant thought," I said as I caressed her face. "I am trying to start a routine where you get what you need and receive what I am able to give. You are my first Jane. I have not had an orgasm before and nobody has ever sucked me. This will not always be the case but I am not quite at the point where I can throw off my bandages and do other things. I could try this now but there is more of a chance of infection." "I won't push you dear. I am happy with what I got today and I can only hope for more some other time." ------- Chapter 5 Paige was a bit more subdued going to school the next day and we had a chance to talk. She saw the difference in us very readily but was worried that I would dump her for somebody that was more intelligent. I had made my own decisions last night and said, "As we get older, you will gain more experience. Age brings more intelligence too. If you think I am very smart then I have to tell you this important fact. You will grow faster than I will when it comes to IQ. I am further ahead than you are now but you will begin to catch up. You also happen to be the sweetest girl I have ever met. Absolutely nobody comes close. "Because of my family, I had to take a dominant position so they will grow properly. I cannot ever let this slip or we will fall apart again. If this happens there will be four catastrophes and I will be one of them. You are the type of person that responds to a dominant person. We are a matched set, now and forever. You are my woman and I will protect and guide you when it is needed. You may talk to me of your insecurities when they come up but I am committed so long as we both shall live." She stopped abruptly and hugged me tightly to her. My left arm, back and chest hurt but that was minor to what my girl was feeling now. Wednesday was the same as the day before. Paige seemed to be even more committed to me. The teachers, though not all, returned for more lessons. Jane was the name I called my woman when we were alone. She had done even more work on the house than before and prepared a low cal meal for us tonight. "Jeff, I didn't smoke at all today. Was I supposed to get a special cigarette for every ten I didn't smoke?" She smoked roughly forty cigarettes a day and this made four units. I smiled and kissed her lips and I was happy to not taste any smoke on her breath. "It certainly does Jane but I see some problems supplying you with four a day. Once in the morning and one at night. That means that it has to be two now. Let's do it in bed though." We ran upstairs like young lovers and I found that Mom only had her dress and bra on. She engulfed me as soon as my pants were down and she worked to get them completely off. I got us on the bed and I was able to play with her breasts and nipples. Her orgasm was quick. When she was recovering I went over her body in detail. Her breasts were not big and sagged anyway. She had the striations from three births. She had the usual amount of dark hair. She had some varicose veins but she was still in good shape for a woman of thirty-four. An image came to my mind with her stomach expanded. For some reason, this vision was much more beautiful. I moved onto her chest and poked into her mouth one more time. She took longer this time and I was almost bucked off the bed. From my new position, I kissed her lips as my fingers played with her clit. Soon my fingers were inside her while my thumb caressed her clit. The scream seemed to shake the house. I hadn't had my own orgasm but it was not important when they were all dry. After dressing I went down stairs and found Susan and Maggie at the door and waiting for me. I had to assume that Karen was going to be along after purchasing the glue. Maggie asked seriously, "Was that Mom upstairs?" "It was part of an incentive to quit smoking. She is actually a very fragile women just like Susan." I said this while looking at the girl. "Dad was the boss here and Mom was comfortable with that. So was Susan. They need some guidance on occasion. Mom needed something orally to compensate for the cigarettes and to be shown love. You two have each other. I am not quite old enough yet to fire live bullets. I have had my first orgasm only yesterday. "With a bit of time I will try to make the both of you happy if that is your wish. I will be able to handle quite a few women because of the way I will think and the way my body produces the right fluids. Our family though may just be the four of us and Paige or it may be more or less. If it is more it will be impossible to take care of everybody all the time. You girls have been taking care of each other for years and I would like a bit of help in the years to come." "You want us to still — you know?" I spread my arms and pulled the two to me. "I love you more than you can ever know. It has very little to do with sex. Everybody needs to interact with somebody else. I am truly happy that you two can help each other. I look at myself more as backup though. I want you to have mates and be able to grow like the average family. No matter what path you take you will still be loved by me." I smiled at her then added, "If more of my ladies think like you two then I will be not be forced to cut short the time I have to love each of you when the time comes. In the future though, a great deal of my time will have to go to our businesses." Susan asked, "You said that you loved us. Did that mean we would — like wives?" "I love you so much that I would love that but I also want you to be as happy as possible. That will probably mean that you each find someone that can devote much more of their time and love to you. If you didn't want me to make love to you then that is all right too. I want you in this family so you will be safe and each of you to be happy. If that other someone that can keep you as safe then that is ok but they had better be the right person or I will not allow them to get close again." The last was said with a very serious voice and face. Maggie hugged me and said, "I love you Jeff," and she kissed me. Susan hugged me too even if she had to push Maggie. "Me too and I'm sorry for all the mean things I did." She started to cry now but I held her and said everything was alright now even if that wasn't completely true. Karen cut short our group hug. She was the closest to our ugly duckling. I treated her like the rest when she came. "I got the glue you wanted Jeff." I gave her another kiss. "Thank you Sweetheart. I may get a chance to use it tonight." We discussed school and homework quicker than usual and went into the hypnosis session before our meal. The other girls went under easy and so did Karen. Mom watched from the doorway with a wooden spoon in her hand. I did some tests like I had done to others the night before. This was just to prove to each of them that hypnosis worked and was a powerful tool. I spent more time trying to build up Karen's image of herself. I only said once about curbing her appetite but all the other commands lead to this one. When she woke up she would not specifically remember any one portion of the litany of commands I gave her. Karen was happy and energetic when she was brought out. She returned a kiss with much more energy than before. Paige didn't come over until later. Homework and study as well as the telephone were taken care of. Jane came in and we tried hypnosis again. I reinforced all that was done before and they seemed to respond well. It was as if each of them were trying to do what they were naturally inclined to do. Karen thought that hypnosis was a lot of fun. I explained what I knew of the myths so that all of the girls knew that it was not a panacea but not worthless either. Karen was squirming on the couch and she looked at Susan quite a bit. When I came close I could smell that she was excited. I said to them later, "Why don't you three run along to the bedrooms and talk a bit in private. I won't bother you unless it is getting late for Karen to go home." Susan looked at me with her odd stare and all three hurried quickly to comply. With the glue in hand I found the broken guitar. Paige and I went to the garage and made up a jig to support the instrument and put pressure on the glued joint. Four long bolts with nuts and washers would force the new joint together with the right pressure and allow it to stay in proper alignment. Mechanical engineers competed in many activities within their class, school, province and even country. One simple one was a Popsicle stick bridge that had to be under a certain overall weight but had to support a minimum load. Simple white casein glue had to be used. The trick was to use only the best sticks and to use the minimum glue. This also meant that 50 pounds per square inch had to be applied to any joint. More or less force made the joint weaker. Over the years it got so good that the limit was raised from a thousand pounds to a full ton. I didn't have to warn Karen but the three did stay until the last minute. The air was thick with their odour and all three kissed me passionately when Karen left. Paige stared after Karen when she left. When we were alone I said, "It is ok to love other girls." Paige was shocked then upset. "I know that you love me more than anybody else. I also know that you like girls a bit too. You can make love to them, especially when I will be away on business. That is going to happen a lot. I wouldn't feel right about another man though." I got a small smile and a hug so I guess she was not that upset about being found to be bisexual. When I tucked in the girls I said to Susan, "I could see that Karen wasn't compelled to come to your room. I never want to compel you either. Neither of you will do that to others." "She wasn't pushed. If anything she pushed us." "Are you happy with that? I can stop it if you want me to." "No, I like her and she likes me. Tonight she found that she likes our sister too." I looked at Maggie now. "When I get out of these bandages I will have to have a taste too. I am afraid it will be habit forming. You don't mind sharing our sister, do you?" "Oh, there is lots there and it doesn't wear out. God knows I have tried for long enough." "Do you think that when we get a big house of our own with nobody to hear that she will be a screamer? Many passionate ladies are that way. Some even go crazy when their orgasm overcomes them. The poor man's hair gets pulled or he gets scratched so much it looks like he was in a fight with a tiger." "Oh she screams all right. She learned to put a pillow over her head unless I use something else to muffle the sound." "Mom is that way too. Does it run to other members of our family?" This time Susan blushed and I had to wait for a whispered, "Sometimes." I kissed Susan and used my tongue. "Maggie or Karen?" "Maggie. She is sweeter for some reason. I have sampled a few but she tastes the best so far." "We will have to have a taste test soon to find out for sure." Maggie threw back the blanket and stomped to her sister and me without anything on. She kissed me like the tiger I just talked about. "You better leave now. I have something to teach this other woman of yours." I kissed Maggie then Susan one more time. Don't worry about the noise but you two have school tomorrow. Good night my beautiful ladies." On the way out I closed the door and heard an 'Ouffff," from Susan. Jane was in bed reading a book. Her shoulders were showing and she had on her negligee. "Oh Jeff. I was waiting for you." She pulled back the covering and I saw that she also had her panties on. "Time for your period?" I got a questioning look. "Yes, how did you know?" "You like it naked and so do I. The panties under the negligee would only mean one thing." "I can still enjoy my last cigarette of the day before going to bed." Jane was much slower this time and seemed to savour each second. I happened to like this too and just talked to her about how she was doing. Part way threw we heard a muffled scream of passion that made Jane go a bit faster. Her own fingers worked faster then and in another minute she groaned and I did too as I held her head and pumped into her. The next morning brought a surprise. Mom had got up earlier than all of us and made breakfast for us. With the eggs on my plate and the girls just getting up I pushed Mom under the table and she opened my pants very quickly. We both had our orgasm before the girls came down. Jane looked at me and licked her lips as Susan came into the room. I smiled and Susan looked from one of us to the other. "Something special for breakfast Mom?" "There is only eggs and toast left. There was only one piece of meat but it is gone now." Susan just opened her mouth in shock at this. Too many children never considered that their parents were sexual animals too. Jane said, "Don't look so shocked Susan. I heard you two last night and it was no different than when I was a girl. You get what loving you can in this life and hope that there is more to come." I went to Susan and held her hand and held Mom's in the other. "We are in a period of adjustment. Old ideas are being changed rapidly. We just have to adjust to them." Paige was moody on the way to school and when she said woman problems I knew. "That is ok love. All women react differently. Some are in pain. Some get depressed while others take it out on their man. You are one of those that get a bit depressed but it is over in two days." "How do you know? I never told you about this before." "Your man is expected to know about the woman that will have his children." This cheered her up and she held my arm in two of hers. Mr Collins gave my papers back to me the next morning with three heavy tomes that had the tables I wanted. After opening ceremonies I began once again but now I could go to the tables to find the correct expression then manipulate my own equation so this would be a factor. When recess came the kids paused to look at the work I was doing but even though there was very little that looked to be something that they could understand. Paige said, "Lisa was asking questions about you. She always did but today she just won't stop. You better stay away from her. I already may have to share with a lot of others." "I like intelligent women. Especially those that are as beautiful inside as they are outside. I know of only one in the school that way." "Ok then but nobody else from here." "Yes, dear," I said just like her father. A man of fifty was in our room when we got back. He was going through my papers. He was short and rotund. He wore an expensive suit and smelt of an expensive cologne. I stood in front of him waiting to get my seat and he just continued with the papers though I knew that he was looking at me too. He gave me a slippery feeling. This made him a lawyer, accountant or a doctor to me. Any of the three could afford his clothing. Everybody was seated but the man continued to look at what I had put down on paper. When he did look at me he simply pointed to the door and left. I took my seat instead and opened one of the textbooks. Mr Collins looked at me as if I were insane. The man came back with a scowl on his face. I held out my hand palm up and looked at him. It took a moment but he came closer and handed me back my papers. With a final look at him I just put the papers down and began to work on them. "Jeff, Mr Goldbalm would like you to go with him." "That is nice to know sir. Thank you for informing me." I looked back at my papers and continued to work. I seemed to be the only person in the room doing anything constructive. I chose the next possible transform and tried to fit it into a factor of the equation I was working on. "Jeff, you are being impolite. Mr Goldbalm would like to have a word with you." "Mr Collins, not all people have the same conception of being polite. Some would give a loud yell across a large room and call a friend over and thump him on the shoulder. Others will introduce themselves in what is the correct fashion in the customs of the one being greeted. I do not recall you introducing this man to me. I am the one to feel offended when I stand in front of a person waiting to get to my seat while he alters the placement of the papers I had left in place. As for asking me in a quiet voice to have a few words; I get instead a finger flick as if I am a trained animal ready to jump through his hoops. "With this level of arrogance I see he can only be a doctor and specifically a psychiatrist. Many of the more high priced ones will dress as he has done. If this is his profession then he is not part of our school system. Further he has no warrant or legal hold over me. I will see him at noon for ten minutes if he wishes to talk to me. Otherwise he can go back to his office in — Toronto or some other large city." "Jeff — " "That is all right Mr Collins," the man said in a deceptively deep voice. "I will have the talk he suggested and at the time he stipulated." He now looked at me and said, "Noon." This man was a real asshole. He spoke to me in the third person reinforcing that he thought me an animal. I had to deal with many people that were obnoxious and this one here looked like he could easily climb to the top of the pile. I was not going to suddenly change my attitude and kowtow to this man. The man would then try other means and this obviously would be my mother. Then he would want information from my sisters and friends. It was a foregone conclusion that he had already talked to the teachers. The sneaky fat bastard may even now be going to see my mother to get some leverage on me. When Mr Collins paused to check his notes while the class wrote something down I raised my hand. "Yes Jeff?" "May I have a moment of your time in the hall?" He didn't say anything but he did walk out and I followed. In a more secluded area he asked, "What is it Jeff." "Sir, I asked if I could do some of my own work at school because the current curriculum was not challenging enough. Teachers came into your class and disturbed me while working. They were polite though after one rough spot. Now I am disturbed again by a man that talks about me in the third person even after me explaining that I do not like it. He said exactly one word to me and that was "Noon." This man will run roughshod over any of my feelings and probably my rights as well. If I see this man I want protection from him. You will have to be there when he talks to me." "I cannot do that Jeff. He is an important person that the school board allowed him to come here." "Are you telling me that this man is more important than one of your students? Is there not something within the mandate of a teacher that would compel you to protect one of your students?" "Jeff — " I interrupted. "Does he frighten you? Do you think he will damage your career by you protecting me? I am simply requesting a party that will look after the rights of a minor." There was a long pause. "I will do it Jeff. I don't like him either but sometimes we have to bend in the wind." "Thank you sir. I may be attacked another way and I wish to make a phone call. May I have some time to inform my lawful guardian of what I see?" "Go ahead Jeff but you better go the back way to the janitor's room. Goldbalm will be in the office I think." "Thank you sir." I pulled open the fire door to where the janitor worked. The man was not present but the phone was. I had to actually use the phone book for I had never called my old number in forty years. Mom answered with a lilting voice and I said, "Hello beautiful. What are we having to eat tonight?" Mom got over her confusion and said, "Stew for my big strong man." "Mmmmm sounds good. I actually phoned for another reason Jane." She was serious now, "What?" "I found a short fat man dressed in a very expensive suit going through my work at school. I think he is a psychiatrist by the name of Goldbalm. He doesn't talk to me but points like I am a dog. He talks to the teacher about me as if I am not in the room. I am going to talk to him at noon for ten minutes. I feel so upset about this that Mr Collins was asked to go with me." "Don't go Jeff. He sounds like a bad man." "I think he is too but the teachers will back him up instead of a boy of twelve. I can handle the man myself but I think he is a sneaky bastard. He will come to you and be very polite and get you to allow him to see me. It is even possible that he will get you to sign something but that is doubtful." "I won't sign anything and I won't allow him in the house." "Good Jane, but he will then go after Maggie and Susan. Then he will go after all my friends. He is an imposing man that has probably had years to find ways of intimidating people to do what he wants." "What do you want me to do?" "Talk to Nora Newfield so she knows about the man, for he will try to get Paige to do what he wants. Then phone Susan's school and ask her to phone you at her lunch break because of a minor family problem. Ask her to tell her friends about the man and give his description." "I will do that Jeff." "Thanks Sweetie. Did you smoke anything today?" "Only one while sitting on the floor this morning." "Those are habit forming too but not as harmful to your health. I'll talk later. Bye." "Bye Jeff." I got back to the room without seeing any teachers or psychiatrists. The students were all looking at me. Mr Collins had a difficult time to get them focussed. When the bell rang I stacked all of the papers I was working on and took them with me. With lunch in hand I waited for Paige and Mr Collins. The man though seemed reluctant to go. He needn't have worried. for Goldblam was at the door waiting for his allotted time. The man smiled at me and waited for the last two to leave. Paige just got beside me and sat in that desk. Mr Collins let out a lot of air from his lungs and sat too. Goldbalm just walked into the class and sat on the desk with his feet on the seat. "Tell me what happened to you Jeff." "Why?" He paused. "Because I asked." "None of your business I am afraid. Tell me about how you became as arrogant as you now are." I didn't talk loudly and tried to think the way I spoke when I talked to others in the class. "That doesn't sound like a boy talking to me." "It doesn't sound like a human talking to me. I find you an obnoxious being of some sort. Tell me Goldbalm, have you tortured animals for fun? Do you enjoy intimidating your patients? How many marriages have you had? A woman that would stay with you, I think, would be defective to do so for long." "You are very impertinent yourself Jeff. I asked a question and you suggest things about my family." "You would get to my family soon enough. I mentioned your rude behaviour and it didn't seem to disturb your lofty perch above the rest of humanity. Are boys my age so socially inferior to you that you have to talk about me in the third person? Perhaps it is any person you have your eye on as interesting. I have to assume that you see humanity as things to be studied or manipulated. Then you had the gall to say that I am rude. You have been rude to me from the very start." "I see that I will have to use other means to find out what happened." "Do as you wish. Bother me or my family and I will see that an injunction is posted against you." "An injunction? Where have you heard of an injunction?" "We have nothing to discuss. Do not bother me or my family." Goldbalm left without saying anything to Mr Collins, which seemed to be par for the course. Paige said, "I don't like that man." "Many psychiatrists study their profession because they feel that they too are on the ragged edge of sanity. They want to understand their own drives. In this particular case, I will leave the decision up to your own judgement." We ate in the classroom and Mr Collins went for a coffee and returned with his sandwiches. I talked about my proposed businesses that would bring me a bit of profit and give the girls a job for the summer. Page proudly stuck up for me. "Jeff is going to fix TVs and radios too. He told me that he only needs some test equipment and some spare parts." "Can you fix televisions too also, Jeff?" "They are not hard if you know how they work. The worst problems are the intermittent ones. You may have to wait hours or days until the problem reoccurs. Sometimes heat, vibration or cold will induce a part to act strangely. I am looking for some business although I have to be little more than a tube jockey until I have enough seed money." "Tube jockey?" both said at the same time and laughed about it. "A person that just swaps tubes until the problem leaves. If the problem was not a tube then he cannot fix the problem." "Tubes are always going. I wonder when they will find something better?" "I am afraid it will be ten to fifteen years. Transistors have been out for a while and some small radios have been made. Soon most, then all but the picture tube, will be transistorised. He asked, "How do you know this Jeff?" "Why do people buy the new transistor radio? Some will purchase it because of the novelty but it is much faster to start and much more dependable. It is expensive now but building the parts and the radios in mass quantities will bring the prices down. Not too long ago nobody had televisions and now look how many there are. At one time there were no horseless carriages and now I have to watch where I put my feet. The answer to your question is just that there are too many advantages of transistors over tubes for tubes to survive." "What else is going to grow?" "I can see commercial aircraft becoming very large and fast. Competition will bring the price of a ticket down to a reasonable level. The cheap price will encourage people to fly more places bringing on more competition and more flights." I then said, "Univac has a computer. It is large and power hungry. The transistor will make the machine small and affordable. Bell is one of the companies pushing this because they want more speed and dependability." "Where did you find that out?" "I read the news. The business section has a great deal of information. If you see something expensive you will see people trying to cash in on it. Competition and innovation will bring the price down. "Human nature never changes. We are just as rapacious as we were thousands of years ago. Society is just a group of principles that everyone should follow. This covers what to do in any situation. Take those principles away like in a war and we are worse than the animals in the field." "You are too cynical Jeff. Not everybody is like that." "A cynic is a person motivated purely by self-interest. A pure capitalist is that way. Look at the people that grew rich during the last century and a half. They despoiled the land and their employees. Then gave away lots of money or pay the same money in taxes. I think that I am more of a realist that hopes that the people in power will hold society together for our children and their children. It is always coming apart and some people are working hard to keep it together. It reminds me of an ant colony. One ant builds something and another steals the part for its own construction. On the whole the colony prospers but in a chaotic environment." When I had mentioned, 'children and their children, ' Paige's hand had moved to hold mine and Mr Collins saw this. I stood up and pulled my hand from Paige's grip and caressed her face. "I am afraid I have to perform some scouting duties. I have to see what Goldbalm has done and perform some damage control. If you two will excuse me for a few minutes." Mr Goods was in his office and I knocked on the open door. When the man looked up I asked, "May I have a few moments of your time, sir?" "Sure, come in." When I took a seat he said, "What can I do for you Jeff?" "I have become a disruptive influence in the school by voicing that I would like a more interesting curriculum." "That is what teaching is all about Jeff. You are just too smart and to tell the truth the school system cannot cope like it did when you skipped grade three." "The second thing I want to mention is that my disruption caused the educators here to spread gossip. This brought down Goldbalm. I am willing to bet that he was kind and polite to you but the further you are from something important to him the meaner he is. I am not going to ask if Goldbalm talked to you and mentioned how rude and obnoxious I was. This had to happen. Before you make any judgment calls I would like you to talk to Mr Collins. You know him and I assume you trust his judgement. You will find that Goldbalm never said who he was. He never even said hello. The man's mind is not completely functional. He is a machine with little conception of right and wrong. I was frightened enough of him that I asked Mr Collins to sit in at our meeting. "My first question to you is why you let a stranger loose in a building under your care? He gave me no identification. He gets his way by intimidating people. Is that how he got to me? How is a minor going to protect himself from a man like that? Is the school board now going to take a man's word and let him into a building full of children? Are you going to allow him to harass me again? I know he will go to my home now and that of my friends. I know this because of the type of man he is. I am willing to bet he asked for and got my address and phone number." I saw that this was true. I asked, "That information was for school purposes. Did he ask who my friends are and their addresses?" I paused and Mr Goods moved uncomfortably. "He did ask those questions." "And you gave out that information without a court order or an order from your superior." I waited again and he said, "Well - " When the pause was a lot longer I said, "The man frightened you too. That is how he gets his way. If he frightens you, how do you think a minor will feel? I might point out that men went to war to fight to protect their wives and children. Everybody was frightened but they did their duty. Are you and the school board going to do their your duty and protect me?" Another long pause and Mr Goods said, "I will talk to Mr Collins. If he will back me up I will talk to my superior." "Thank you sir. I think I stymied Goldbalm for a few moments but he will be back, and soon." "I hope not." The rest of the day was bad. Recess was not enough to dispel what Goldbalm had brought. Even fewer teachers came at the end of the day. Mr Collins had even gone. I mentioned as objectively as I could what had happened concerning Goldbalm and what I suspected without going into anything that could be considered slanderous. I mentioned my feelings as a boy of twelve fighting off this poorly controlled robot. "I hope in the future that school will be a safer place for children to be." Paige and I walked home and I kept an eye out for strange cars or Goldbalm himself. I walked her to her house and found Jane there too. "Hello ladies. Am I correct in assuming that you had a slippery eel visit you?" Jane said, "He came to me first. I had your cane in my hand and I didn't let him in past the screen door. I had already locked it. When he left I ran here and found him trying to get in Nora's front door. He just wouldn't take no for an answer. I swung at him and he quickly backed up. Nora closed the door in his face." "Two fierce lionesses trying to protect a cub," I said with a smile." They both smiled at this and they seemed to calm down a bit. "Did you manage to get the message to Susan?" "Yes, she called back and said she would talk to the rest. They may all be over tonight to find out what's wrong. Those girls want to protect you too." "I am afraid that the man is too powerful for them, especially individually." Nora wanted an explanation and I stated what I was doing in school. She was not sure I could pass as easily as I stated but agreed to wait and see. She was shocked to see that I had a class at the end of school with teachers learning from me. This I said was the reason somebody started talking and the word eventually got to Goldbalm. I thought of the other people that might have been pointed out as friends. They had not talked to me since I came to this time. They didn't visit at the hospital or even come over when I recuperated. My previous criteria to mark a friend held true for these people were much less. Goldbalm was free to talk to those if he wished. The girls did come over after we got back home. Mom talked of what had happened and they all seemed to band together when it was seen as a threat to all of us. We appeared to go onto a war footing and ways were mentioned about protecting the house from invasion. I let the girls have their fun then said, "If Goldbalm continues to find out about me it will not be by forcing his way into a home. Mom sure put the fear of God into him and he would be stupid to try it again." "What is he going to do?" "First he will want to get each of you alone and question you. He found that my mathematical ability was odd enough that he wants to find out more about it. He is old enough to know how to get his way and will wring out everything that you know. "If you resist him one way or another he will go after your parents to see if he can force any of you to talk about me. My doctors and nurses will be questioned and I assume any patients that even saw me in the aisles." I was smiling at the last but thought that the man would do this. We ate sandwiches that the entire group of girls made and we all sat around a circle. Jane now sat with us as one of the warriors. I knew she liked being one of the girls again. Paige brought up hypnosis again and both Jennifer and Sandy wanted in on it. They had heard about it from their friends sitting with them. Paige was again put under and her rigid body was supported at both ends by the edge of chair seats. Others got their turn and tell how they felt about the effects. Some of them like Jane had smoked but now claimed to have beaten it. I knew better but if they truly wanted to quit they would. Jennifer and Sandy had their turn and they succumbed to the suggestions. The rest of the girls had listened and they too were all deeply into a trance of their own. I deepened them all and went through all the suggestions of better memory and a calmness when taking tests. I brought up Goldbalm and suggested how they could resist him without succumbing to the fear the man wanted to project. A total of fifteen minutes was spent on this and I hoped the girls didn't take it into their minds to just look for the man and beat him senseless. They all awoke with a feeling of being happy and content. Nothing was hid from them and I didn't tell them to forget anything I did. Immediately after the girls questioned Jennifer and Sandy about their feelings and they seemed to love what had happened. As with Angela, I asked Jennifer to go upstairs for a few moments. I could see her reluctance. Being alone with other males had given her pain. "Jennifer, I am still just a boy. I will not beat or rape you. I may want to hold you to me for a while but I won't do that if you don't want me to." With separate beds again we talked about problems we both had in life. Soon it was me that was supplying all the questions. Her father had been having sex with her for years. It had started as what she thought of as love but it got more demanding and she was unable to stop. Her mother was just a servant in the house that did what her husband said. She had three brothers but only one forced her to suck him. They all apparently had learned how to act by watching their father. Jennifer started giving me more background data and I tried to see a pattern. I knew that at some times she was much more in danger than at others. We joined the others and Jennifer was crying much like Angela had done. I wasn't sure if it was from opening old wounds or from my commitment to help her. When we broke up that night, Paige's father drove all the girls home. It was crowded but I ended up sitting on Jennifer's knees until Angela left. I took the opening reluctantly and Jennifer patted my bum as I got up to the giggles of the other girls. The last stop happened to be Jennifer's so I went in with her. She introduced me to her family including the father that raped her when drunk and the brother that raped her mouth when he could. Though difficult, I smiled and tried to act polite. Basically I wanted to let them know that I was her boyfriend though four years younger. Jennifer may catch flack but it was not worse than what she had to live through. On the way home to my house I said to Jack, "Thanks for driving the girls home and waiting at Jennifer's home. All I can say is that she lives in a troubled environment and I would love to see her out of there." "I think I catch your meaning. What about the police?" "She doesn't want that yet. I am waiting until she tells me that it is bad enough that I can go to family services to get her out. He father is actually a policeman. This makes her problems much harder to rectify. I can't think of anything else to do for her." Maggie and Susan were naked in their room and pretended as if this was nothing new. I kissed them and they did the same back as they rubbed their bodies against me. Their smiles got appreciably bigger when they saw that my pants had got suddenly tight. I kept up the pretence although but I was still plagued by not only Goldbalm but Jennifer as well. Tonight I put them into the same bed. "You are going to have to get used to having some loving neighbours. Eventually you will get used to Paige and Jane in our bed." "Mom?" "She needs me too. I have thought a lot about incest. I love both of you too much and it goes well past what we should have. Mom needs me the same way she needed Dad. If I stop now, it will be the same way as when Dad died. This makes me a pervert to most but it also makes me the binding that holds this family together and safe." Jane smoked a white owl twice before I used my hand on her clit. She wanted to object but it only took a determined look for me to have my way. She screamed the last orgasm with my fingers in her and my lips at her nipple. ------- Chapter 6 Mom was up early again and she got what she wanted before I got my eggs. The girls came down later and looked at us as if to find a way to read what was happening. They knew our mother and I had sex and the scream at the end readily confirmed it. Paige was on the look out for threats on the way to school and I let her have her fiction that this is they way I would be attacked. Before school started I reported to Mr Goods and told him of how Goldbalm had almost pushed his way into our home then did even more to get into Paige's. He was embarrassed, as he should have been, because he was the one that told Goldbalm where I lived and where my friends lived. Work on my project went slower because of my preoccupation with my troubles. At recess Mr Collins stopped me and said, "Jeff our television is giving us some problems. Would you have time to come around and fix it?" "Tell me what the problems are." He listed what he knew and I asked questions that were more specific. At the end I told him which tube to replace. This manufacturer was common and I had fixed this problem many times. "Is that all?" "Ninety percent chance I think. Sometimes a cap gives a similar problem but they are not hard to fix either." "What do I owe you?" "I would charge my friends if I took the television in but usually less. I didn't touch your machine so it cost nothing. If you want you can get your friends to call me. I will not be so cheap that it is almost free but I will be very competitive. Being twelve and poor doesn't mean that I will not stand behind my work. That cost money too." Mr Collins shook my hand and left for a coffee. Paige and I stayed together in the room. We were able to kiss a bit before we heard returning steps. After school we had another mathematics class but the number of students had been cut down again. I liked teaching and I just hoped the class would stabilise. After we got home, Paige ran off to do her chores while I looked in on Jane. She appeared very nervous but I knew it was more nicotine withdrawal and my being not as early as she hoped. She smiled and dragged me upstairs. My other hand was fondling her butt as she climbed the steps. This time her scream came before the girls got home. I was downstairs in time to greet them. Sandy and Faith were here today. We had a rotating schedule that left only one out as Karen was in the last cycle. We had our gossip about school and Goldbalm. The man had been at the high school but had not got to the girls. I hoped it was that because Mr Goods had put the word out to protect them. It was the first part of May and the weather was warming. All of the girls were taking Home Ec. Those in grade eleven were into cooking and budgets again. Sandy was in grade ten and happened to be presently into sewing. I explained my needs to them and asked for old clothes that could be altered to fit. Paige came over this time and I told her the same thing. "Why do you want to do that Jeff?" "It is very good advertising." As a suggestion we all went into my sisters' room and searched for clothes. I had an old pair of jeans that were too small for me and had holes in the knees. We then went to search other rooms for more things. "Paige Honey, take off your dress." She looked around to the rest and just did as I asked. When she was down to her panties and bra I got her to put my old pants on. They were quite tight and the girls had her lay down on the bed to do up the fly. She gave me an, "Ohfff," when she got up. I helped her stand on a chair and I talked to everybody. Cut the pants here and here." I used my finger to show the location. Put in a one inch hem and it will come in here." Sandy said, "I have never seen shorts that short." "This material is too stiff and I am afraid it will rub too much to be comfortable. I would like some material in shocking pink or lime green. You only need one pocket and the rest can be left off or just fakes. I want them tight to see your cute bums. In front I want to see the cleft of your mons but this is too risqué for right now. We will make them bigger and the leg longer but as time goes on they will get tighter and shorter. The best way is to have them shrink but you will all be sweaty working in these and I don't want them shrinking prematurely." Maggie said, "You want us to work in these?" she asked incredulously. "People will see us." "Yes they will. The old biddies will be down on you really fast. It will also mean that such beautiful girls will have men coming from all over to buy whatever you have to sell. We can start with a carwash. The guys line up and a half dozen of the most beautiful ladies in the city wash their car. Of course they will be watching your bums push out the material or maybe even your cute little cunts. If you leave your bras home and if you accidentally get wet they will see an outline of your breasts and nipples." I got a small 'T' shirt and gave it to Susan. "Get this wet for me please but don't wring it out much." While she ran off I said to Paige, "Take off your bra Honey." She smiled and did this quickly. The wet shirt went right over her and she shivered with the temperature change. It didn't do all that I wanted. I undid the pants she was wearing and helped Paige out of them. "Take off the panties too Honey." She had light and very scarce hair. I ran my fingers through it then helped her down. "Bathroom please." We all hurried to the room and I got Paige to stand in the tub. There was no fixed shower and they had not even been common to most homes. The one we had was with a rubber hose that connected to the faucet and the head was used by hand. I sprayed the water on Paige's chest. She shivered. The shirt stuck to her skin and her nipples stuck up. "If this doesn't get a man to pay five times the price for a carwash then he is dead." All the girls were looking at Paige's breasts and nipples through the wet shirt. It wasn't just men that got turned on. Susan and Maggie moved awkwardly but in different ways. Susan was rubbing her nipples while trying to hide the fact. Maggie had her hand at her mons as if this would help. I could see that they wanted to find a way to run their lips over Paige. Faith was turned on a bit and Sandy was either less so or trying harder to hide it from us - or possibly herself. "Paige, give me the shirt please." She did as I said but stood in front of her admirers. I got behind her and wrung out the material into the tub and said, "Sandy, please get a towel and dry Paige for me. There's a breeze coming in the door and she's shivering." "Ahh — ok." I pushed the others out of the room before me and winked to Paige as I passed. Her calm face got a smile on it. The door clicked as I closed it. She was subservient but never stupid. We went back into my room and the girls sat on my bed. "Susan did that turn you on too." There was no hesitation. "Oh yes. Paige is a little doll. She's perfectly formed but just a bit smaller that the rest of us. If she is not an old man's wet dream she would be mine." I smiled then turned to Maggie. "What did you think of her breasts and nipples?" "You sure know how to pick some good ones." I looked her in the eye and even got closer. "I have some of the most beautiful women in the city." She gave me her coy smile and added, "Paige is beautiful. Have you asked her about your children yet?" This brought up Faith's head very quickly. "Yes we discussed it. The time's not right in any case. Even after I can produce sperm, we will have to wait until it is safe to do so. Children are extremely important to me. My own will be even more so. I need some mothers to stay at home and care for children and some to work and further their careers. If I own the companies then there is no problem rotating these positions. Nobody gets bored and nobody gets taken advantage of." I turned to pretty Faith and asked, "What did you think of Paige's body?" "She really is pretty." She looked at the other two who held some of her innermost secrets. "All of you know I like girls too. If you were asking if I would like to make love to her, I would have to say yes. Is that what you asked?" She was now very nervous. I squatted down in front of her and said quietly, "Yes Sweetie, it was. We all signed an agreement. Nothing sexual is in it. There is no forcing. I am not comfortable with other men but if the ladies of my family wish to make each other happy then that makes me even more pleased." Faith said, "I did a lot of thinking about what I signed and who else signed the document." She looked at Susan, "Some I was afraid of but not so much now. I think that in a while all my fear would leave. I actually liked making love and now I think it will be more fun. Nobody is pushing and I don't feel threatened. I don't know what it will be like to make love to a boy though." I said, "Let's go to the other bedroom." The change of pace cooled the girls off but I started to undo Susan's clothing. She just watched me. I put her on the top of her bed and said, "You two better hurry up. Jane will have supper ready in a half hour and I am serving hot woman now." The two looked at Susan and she just spread her legs a bit more and stroked her clit a few times. This was enough and the two just threw their clothing off and pounced on Susan. I watched for a few minutes enjoying the view. The girls had come over here before to have sex and I wanted them to do school work. There were features of the carrot and the stick here, but I hoped in time that they would see that both as were carrots. I heard water running a few times and I could only guess at what was keeping Sandy and Paige. I went back to my own room. Peeking at my girls was ok if I was going to participate but I was not quite ready yet physically. It was ten minutes later that they came out. Both were naked and held their clothes to their chests. They saw me but it didn't stop them. Paige dropped her clothes and laid on one side of me on the bed. Before she could talk Sandy had the other side. I moved my arms to hold them both. "Hmmmm two beautiful wood nymphs have returned from a forest pool. I don't' know of anyone that is as lucky as me." Paige held my jaw then moved to kiss me. "I think I am even luckier." I just stared into Paige's eyes then felt another hand moving my head. "I talked some more with Paige and I want to be yours too. I — I mean more than what was written on that paper." My own hand pulled Sandy close and I kissed her lips very tenderly. "That is wonderful Honey but do you really know what Paige and I have?" "She said she is going to have your babies." "Oh, we will. I also talked about having some of the other ladies too." I looked at Paige and said, "Paige will be my wife." The girl just closed her eyes and laid on my chest. "The word wife is not the word you know. It is a commitment between a man and a woman to share their lives and protect their children. I believe I am going to share the lives of other ladies too. This works best if the ladies shared their love with the other ladies too. One big family with everything being shared. "Is that the type of life you can handle Sandy? None of our children would be at a loss for love. He or she would have many mothers. The problem is that there is very little of me to share and it is better to find another boy that can devote his life entirely to you, his children and his job. I am not pushing you away but I want you to know what is in store for you. You can stay though and find out what our family is like and leave if and when you want." Paige hugged me and said, "We know about the talk you just had. We were going to get out but when we heard what was being said, we thought it a good thing to talk about ourselves." I said, "I would really love to make love to each of you now but I still hurt too much to move. I can't wait to hold each of you and gently kiss your lips and face. After a few moments I will turn to your eyes and your delicate ears." I could feel their ears with my fingers and said, "My kisses would go to your ears and I would gently suck on your lobes." My fingers worked just ahead of where I was going to talk about. "When you are breathing hard or with goose bumps all over your body I will give tiny kisses down your neck and across your throat. This I know will be a tasty area and I will stay there until you seem to melt in my arms." My fingers touched lightly as if they were caresses. Their arms came up to hold but then did so lighter because they hurt. Their sighs and caresses now worked on the portions free of bandages. Soon they were kissing my face and neck the same way I had said I would do to them. They were very slow and treated me as delicately as they could. Paige started to unbutton my shirt but Sandy got the first kisses on my scarred chest. From the bottom of the steps we heard, "Supper's ready." Sandy stopped when she suddenly found out what she was doing. I whispered, "You we're never in danger. Nobody will hurt you and Jane will not say anything. She knows by now that you are my girls and none of you has anything to fear." She had been kissing my belly and was now looking at my face. "You call your mother by her first name?" "My Mom has some problems in her life like all of us. It is best for her if I call her by name as an equal. She feels comfortable now that someone is looking out for her too. It is scary for some to be an adult and alarming for kids that have to do what an adult has to do. That was one of Susan's problems." We got downstairs a few minutes later because I stayed to assist in getting my girls dressed. My erection was still in place and the girls giggled. Paige went so far as to caress that area gently. Sandy had just finished laying beside me while naked and kissing my chest. She now had her mouth open at what Paige had just did. Paige said, "Is this what you said would be much bigger one day? I kinda like it the size it is." "It may not get to be a club but it will be big enough to make you happy and powerful enough to make your belly swell." On passing I knocked at my sister's door and said, "The rest of your meal is downstairs." All I heard was a groan and I didn't know if it was one of relief or one that came from knowing they would be frustrated. Over our simple supper I asked, "Jane, do we have any colourful material that can be made into shorts. My idea is to make them noticeable by the colour and for what they contain." "Is this for one of your businesses?" "Most of my businesses I am afraid. Boats, boat motors and automobiles are advertised with beautiful girls dressed in bathing suits or short dresses. My companies will start small and sell services. We talked about car washing before but I didn't tell you about how the girls would dress. My girls all know how to wiggle their bums and if they are bent over doing the car there could be another business supplying repairs to some of the men's zippers." I got shocked expressions all around but I knew it was just a reply based on culture and not what they really knew. We cleaned up after supper and began studying. Jane found an old dress of a solid colour and Susan went hunting for surplus clothing. Paige went home to see what she could find. The other girls phoned with their own questions but mainly to talk. Jane got out her sewing kit and started taking Susan's measurements. In a moment with nobody to help, I closed the drapes. When the doors were secure too I went up to Jane and said, "Take off your dress." She just stared at me for a moment and I turned to the rest, even those working on their homework. "Everybody take off their clothes. We have some fitting to do." They all hurried except Jane. I said, "This has been given some thought. Do as I say." Reluctantly she took off her clothes as I had asked. I now had five partially clad females so I took off my own clothing but didn't stop until I was naked. Taking a light green piece of material I folded it until it was about four inches wide and tied a single knot in it. "Paige take off your top please." She smiled and did right away. I put the knot between her small breasts and put the ends under her arms. With her arms in place to hold the material I brought all the girls to look at my creation. "I want some bras made that are simple but of our own design. When you walk around with a shirt that can be seen through, they will see a simple but elegant bra covering some beautiful breasts." "Susan, what can you think of that will be similar?" "Ah — you could make a ring to hold the material together instead of a knot." "Get some string as a temporary substitute and try your idea on Sandy." "Jane, what improvements can you see?" "Well it is too full in the back. Make it out of two pieces of cloth that is sewn together at the ends. Then put a thin strap on each one. You can sew the parts together but maybe we can have a small strap between the cups." "Get some material and try the ideas on Faith." "Faith, Sandy take off your bras to be fitted. The rest of you girls should do the same thing. Maggie, Paige, what can you come up with? It has to just hide the breasts but I like want it to be comfortable. It will get hot, humid, and even wet." I have seen many bikinis in my life and admired almost all of them. I could even see visualise many of my old girlfriends' breasts then see their bikini top on them. I could simply draw something out but this was simple enough that everybody could invent what they she wanted. I knew the fun would be in fitting the garment. The girls were nervous at first but I thought it was because of an adult being here. Jane was upset and I thought I knew why. I went over to her and Faith and said, "Jane, your breasts are older but still as beautiful as the other girls. You are an older and more mature woman but that doesn't mean that you aren't acceptable. The rest have young firm bodies but they haven't had to bear three children. When I get these bandages off I am going to exercise very diligently. You are going to do the same thing along with the rest of my girls. You will all be strong and athletic." "But Jeff, I have all these marks. I am fat and my skin isn't nice. I don't know why you want me." I kissed her lips tenderly then pulled back slowly. "I want you always. Any fat you have will leave with some exercise and that will improve your skin. As for marks, some are battle wounds suffered in bringing three lives into this world. They are nothing to be ashamed of." I added, "Look at me. I have burns over a good portion of my body. Some will heal and some won't. The scars will only leave with some operations." My hand rose and caressed her breast and gently manipulated her nipple. This got her off of thinking of her own problems. "See you are the same as the rest. When you try your ideas on Faith make sure you also try it with erect nipples. I don't want them to be uncomfortable. This has to be factored into the design." I turned to Faith and put her hand on Jane's other breast and said, "Think of your own designs that can be used on Jane. She has bigger breasts so we may need a thin strap like she was talking about to go over the shoulders. I can get some plastic or aluminium to form the bottom of each cup if it is necessary." None were working because they were watching us. When I looked at them they reluctantly returned to work. Breasts were measured a great many times and ways. It had become a way of playing with something they liked without any social stigma associated to it. Being a bachelor for the great majority of my life, I had to learn how to sew or pay for it. I did not want to impose on friends or give some of them false hopes that they were domesticating me. I began to make my own project. Jane got out our old 'Singer' sewing machine with the treadle. It didn't use electricity although many of the same model had been altered to accept a small motor. Straight pins became in short supply so I basted instead with thread. I put on shoes and pants and went to the garage and brought back some heavy gauge insulated wire and removed the covering but not the last covering of plastic insulation. A portion was pushed around the bottom half of a cup to see how it formed. Maggie had an unoccupied breast and looked to be about the size I had made. I put my creation to her and it was still too big. I gave her a kiss and went to Susan. This fit better and I moved the material around to see how it fit. When I turned to go, Susan said, "What about the erect nipple test?" "Thank you Susan," I said and got close. My lips went slowly to her nipple while I looked her in the eye. In a moment I was sucking like a baby and her hand came to support my head as a groan came from her lips. I stayed long enough to make sure that it would not go down right away. When I slowly pulled back she had to be supported but as I put the cup on her breast. The material was too loose to see the nipple well so I knew that I needed a larger breast. Everybody was staring at me. "Ladies, I was just trying this out and it is easier to try to find the right breast to fit it. I made it too big." I made a point of looking around then said, "I need to try it on the largest." Jane turned quickly. As I put the cloth in place but I could already see an erect nipple. I spoke aloud to myself about the fit then moved the cloth so my lips could take its place. Jane held me with two hands and in a moment her hips were moving back and forth on my hip and tried for the small prong that was out of position. I move to the other breast for a moment then backed up. In explanation I said, "I had to keep them balanced." The cloth fit better and I thought that her breast had enlarged a bit with her increased blood flow. "Still too much material." The girls took their bras and investigated them to find some of the construction techniques. Sandy and Maggie wanted to try it with the wire and tried to incorporate this feature into their designs. We parted with little accomplished. Individual projects were put in paper bags to be taken home. The creations either would be worked on there or brought back here. ------- Chapter 7 Today I took Paige home with a difficult parting for each of us. I kissed Jane and the girls but got my bike out of the garage. It had been used for the newspapers and had large balloon tires. Though my body had rode the bike even in the winter my mind had not been on a bike in fifteen years. I walked with Sandy and Faith, and my cane was sticking out of a cardboard box. We spoke of the projects and I explained about what the bottoms would be like as the world liberalised. "The bottoms can get so small that your pubic hair will stick out. I think we will have to shave it all off or leave a small tuft higher on the abdomen." In the streetlights it was easy to see that this pleased the girls. "I can try to be your barber if you want." The girls looked at me then at each other. Sandy wasn't sure about me shaving her. It was just that the girls were not thinking enough of all the things that needed to happen. To make the walk interesting I described in detail exactly how to do this job. By the time Sandy got to her home I was sure she was quite wet. I continued with Faith now and she wanted to hold my hand even though she was much older. We parted with a kiss in the dark driveway between her house and a neighbour's. She said, "I don't know about you Jeff. My eyes see a boy that has scars on his face and many more on his body. My heart sees a concerned person that I would love to have as a friend. My brain sees you as a caring man in a boy's body." "It's best to look at me with your last choice. I am going to go places and so an adult view is good for many situations. My boy's view, I am happy to say, is good for many other choices. Both views though, concern the well-being of my family and I am happy that my family has you in it." She bent over and kissed me on the lips and gave me a small hug. While holding me she said, "That's what I mean. I feel very happy but I am not really sure why. I should run away very fast but I know you would not hold me if I asked you to let go." I rode home with little difficulty. I thought about my girls and about what Faith said. There was no real reason to keep all these girls. My family I loved and they needed me desperately to stabilise the chaotic situation we had been in. Paige I had loved for too long in my other life to let her go in this one. The other girls seemed to need me in some way too, probably because I filled a role that they wanted or needed filled. Some were meek or even subservient but although not all were. Peer pressure in a small exclusive group could keep them together or with me. I didn't know why I wanted them. The only explanation was either I had some hormones going through my body already or past memories of those same hormones. I had four or five girlfriends even when I was in the autumn of my life. My gonads still worked and I was vigorous enough to use them. At that time though they had been spread out in among the cities that I owned businesses in. I had spent many hours thinking about my past life. I had come to the conclusion that, that life was only awaiting to unfold if I was there to assist. Most of the characters of that life's play would be born. They would not be changed much by me even though I was changed by them. Mom had been busy during the day. Not only was the house clean, in addition she had done the laundry, bought groceries, cooked dinner and even had a few minutes to sew. She was breathless but content to nurse on me like a baby that was well fed and just took the nipple to feel the comfort. I ran my fingers through her hair and whispered endearments to her that had nothing to do with her present activities. I did love her for the woman she was and for the enjoyment we brought each other. Our orgasms were long in coming and protracted. When I began to caress her small pearl she smiled at me and said, "Your other girls will be home soon. Just let me lay here and rest. Even without you putting anything into me I felt better than any time before." I kissed her and asked, "Are you really happy with your new life?" She smiled coyly which was unlike her. "Yes I am Jeff. If you keep me I will be even happier than I was with your father." Jane liked to be reassured. "We will stay together always. When you are old you will still be with us. This is a lifetime commitment even if you are not sure of my words." She snuggled to me and I continued to pet her head. "Jane — are you going to come home one day with a baby in the oven?" She looked at me seriously. "Why do you say that?" "I smell you when you come back on Sunday or Monday. You smell of having sex and nobody would work that number of hours without a break to get home. You know that I love you. Tell me the truth about your work." Jane started to cry now and I just continued to caress her head. It was almost ten minutes later that she said, "Welfare gives us some money because of my condition and the fact that I am trying to raise three children. They allow me to make only ten dollars without deducting from what they give us. I can do jobs once in a while that give me cash that I don't have to declare. That still leaves us short. There is not enough money to pay the rent. "I go to a house on the other side of town. Some men come and try to make me happy and give me some money to help us survive." I pulled Jane's face around till I could see it. She fought me but gave up. "Open your eyes Jane." When she did I asked, "Are the men gentle with you?" She paused now because this isn't what she expected. "Not always but they don't really hurt me. It is more like a game to them." "Do they always wear protection?" "Some don't like to but that is the way it has to be." Jane was my mother. And this revelation hurt. Then again she had just had my immature cock in her mouth. I found that this was a side of her that I had never been sure existed. She talked of finances and I was ashamed that I had not started to look at our expenses. I didn't know what the rent was. I didn't know what the groceries cost or how we were going through a great deal more of them. "Jane I have to ask some serious questions now. Think about each one and answer as truthfully as possible. If you need to explain a point then feel free." "I will do my best Jeff," she said with a worried look on a tear filled face. "Do you enjoy having sex with these men?" Her mouth opened then closed as she thought more. "I like the sex Jeff. When your dad died I almost died too. Up till just a while ago I tried to think of each of the men as your father. They seem to give me something to live for." "How strong is your need for sex?" "I could manage with just you." "Jane, when I heal more I can give you some of what you need. Around seventeen I will have a large growth spurt. I will be in a lot of pain as my body makes up for all the years of activity. At that time I can fill you much better. My time though is going to be in short supply. I am going to do a great many things. All of them will take time that should go to family. Paige is going to be my wife." Jane sucked in her breath is shock. "She may not be my only wife though. Susan needs me for stability. I believe she may have to be a wife as well unless we can come up with a suitable husband. You need me whether you know it or not. You need a similar husband to look out for you the way dad did. Not many men can do that without either destroying you or the marriage. "Paige is a good deal like you. She will do exactly what her husband says. Most women now do this but won't in the future. Paige though needs to be guided much more closely. You are both very smart but you need to be told what is right in great detail. The man's responsibility is very great. He can destroy the woman with a few words. "The other girls see the way I am and want some of me too. They are all little girls even if they are sixteen. Some would spread their legs and happily get pregnant, relying on their trust in me to provide for them and our children. "If I am careful, I can guide the girls to a better life. In time I hope they find other mates but some may not be male. I can give them a job and train them to be a productive members of society. In the meantime we can indulge in the enjoyment of our bodies. Actual conception may not be in our best interest. "I am trying to offer them everything they need to be happy. They will look at what I provide and work toward a common goal. Some may realise that the portion they actually will get of me will be too small. They may leave and then be forced back. I will let them see that they are not trapped. "This roundabout talk was to let you know what we are all facing. I can only give you so much. Later I can give you a similar joy to what you find elsewhere. I have no idea how much you need a large male to make love to your body. That is something you have to decide for yourself. Perhaps you need to go across town every weekend or maybe stay even longer. "What I am concerned with, is your happiness not my own. I can live with you being away and enjoying other men. I can share you like my other girls will have to share me. On the other hand if you get enough love now then I do not want you going across town." I waited and heard the girls come in but I just stayed here and waited. Jane finally started to talk and broke into tears. What I understood was, "I need more than you can give me now. A woman in her thirties needs a man desperately. Her body is telling her that she has to get pregnant soon or never have any more." I caressed her face and said, "Men are that way at sixteen and go crazy in their later years for other reasons." Wiggling down the bed I kissed Jane's lips and said, "Go to the washroom and have a bath. You are going out on a date tonight. Come back when you are content even if it is later than usual. I want you to promise me one thing though." "What is that Jeff?" When you look at another man I want you to see my face." Jane grabbed me so tightly that I hurt. I was smothered in kisses and she then rushed off to do as I asked. Angela and Karen had come this time. They had a great many pieces of cloth and old clothing. They laughed quite a bit when their mothers heartily approved of this activity. Another sleep over was planned for Saturday night. We ate our meal and Jane sat with us for a bite. This time her clothing was different. It looked flashier, as if she could do this now that her secret was now out. When the horn sounded she kissed us all and hurried out with a smile. Susan and Maggie now knew that she went out for sex but didn't ask any questions now. Schoolwork was dispensed with very quickly so we could get to our 'sewing'. Paige was quick to get naked but only after she whispered the suggestion in my ear. She informed me that her period was near and wouldn't want to take off her panties unless asked to. This made me love her even more to have trusted me with this much authority. All the girls were getting undressed and I stopped Susan with a shake of my head when she wanted to take everything off. I didn't have such a restriction. They saw me without clothes and much less of a threat. Again I broke the group up into pairs. I pulled rank and got my own girl. I had to use less material to cover Paige's breasts but I tried to be creative. My previous experience in sewing had been limited to buttons, zippers, and rips with the occasional patch. Here I was breaking new ground and I enjoyed the creativity. Then again anything to do with my woman and her breasts was interesting. When one bra was fitted and looked fair I worked on another that was even skimpier. Though smaller it took more time to complete. Paige worked on her own project and stopping only to model my work. The other two pairs stopped once in a while to display what they had created. Paige did something different though. I had not been looking at what she had been making. She came to me after calling the attention of the other girls. Her hand went out with no hesitation and started to fondle that little noodle between my legs. The others were very interested and just paused to watch. I was not quite shocked but it was not the way I figured she would normally do. I suppose that I could have suppressed this if I really tried but I didn't. My mind was mature but my body was young. When I got to full size she bent down in front of me. For a second I thought I she was going to put me into her mouth. Instead she took a piece of cloth and slipped it over my erection. A thin ribbon had been sewn to the opening and this was tied behind my small testicles in a bow no less. The front end had a ribbon that looked like a flower. There was a large mirror and I looked at the creation. The material was tartan but the flower was pink. "Paige, this penis sheath is just what I always wanted. It even is reminiscent of my Scottish ancestors. I believe though that if you put a flower on, its colour should be blue." "I can do that Jeff. I am also planning on an attachment to cover these little darlings you told us about. I plan to keep them well protected." Now that she had put the shoe on the other foot, I was unsure of what to do. The girls got on their knees and inspected the workmanship and basically did what all of us had done to a beautiful breast. I was manipulated, stroked and fondled all on the pretext of checking the clothing. I tried to take it with some dignity even though the cloth sheath was quite full now. I had done similar things to my ladies and I couldn't explain the reasons for a double standard. When they finished their inspection they wanted to see how it slipped on and off. Tying and untying required that I spread my legs widely to give them room. Susan got within an inch of me as she talked to the rest. She was still an evil woman because she knew what she was doing to me. When Paige removed my only piece of clothing. I took the opportunity to show everybody what I had made. There was a protrusion to hang the second garment from. Comments were made about the fit but Angela said, "That thing Jeff has is handy for a lot of things." When the girls were back to sewing I put on pants and shoes and got the guitar I had glued. I took a few minutes to tighten the strings and tune it. With this done I went back into the house and my guests. They were all sitting together. I sat and admired my beauties as strummed a few chords trying to see what song to sing. Starting with Angela I began to sing 'Spanish Eyes'. Her own eyes glistened when I finished the song and clapped the hardest. I continued with 'Don't Be Cruel', 'I'm So Lonesome I Could Die', 'Return To Sender', 'Earth Angel' and finally to Paige I sang, 'Love Me Tender'. In just a half hour I had five bright eyed and excited young ladies. They got up to show their pleasure and I took it like a dance. Susan turned on the radio and when it was warmed up so was I. She looked for some dance music and found some slow ones. Sue claimed first dance. "Where did you learn to dance Jeff?" "Natural rhythm when I am with a beautiful lady." "How can you dance with that weapon ready to poke me?" "The same way those two diamonds are trying to burrow into my chest." We rubbed each other and I found a natural place to park between her legs. Our steps got shortened so I would not be dislodged. When the song ended we were both breathing hard. Paige got me next but my erection hit her in her abdomen. I just bent it up when the song started and stayed that way till the end of the song. By the time I had danced with all five the end of my pecker was raw. Most of this was abrasion from pubic hairs. "Ladies, I have an idea." They stopped and looked at me and I felt like a piece of meat. "Some men love a woman with lots of hair. Some like them with scarce hair like what a young girl has. Others like ones that are completely shaved. I am happy to say I love all kinds. My poor pecker here is taking a beating from all that hair. I propose that we get the razor and I will be your personal barber. You get a smooth feeling that will make you horny while I will be much more comfortable. The down side is that the hair coming up later will be scratchy and uncomfortable. You have to either shave again or endure the discomfort until it grows long enough. Another alternative is to remove the hair permanently." Paige said, "You can shave me Jeff. When it gets uncomfortable you just have to do it again." "Thank you Honey. You have thin hair that is very fine and I love to run my fingers through it. I also want you to be the same as the rest and I want you first." She wrapped both arms around my neck and said into my neck, "I will always be your first." "Thank you sweetheart." I looked at Susan and said, "Baby, will you get the razor Jane uses?" She smiled and left. "Maggie, heat up some water please and bring out a bowl." "Paige, you know where the towels are. Get me three of them and three small hand towels." The kitchen would be the best place to do this. Paige came running back with the towels and I laid one on the table. Angela and Karen got Paige into position as I wanted her and then fear came to Paige's face. "Jeff, it is my time soon." I held her worried face and looked into her beautiful eyes. "You are a woman that I love very much. We are going to eat beans some nights and we will fart in bed. You and I are going to get sick and barf on each other. Menstrual blood is still just blood. It is the first part of your period, so if there is any it will be light. Some days I will put a towel under your butt and pump my seed into you. You have nothing to be ashamed of. I love you and even if you farted when I was shaving you, I would not think less of you." She was still worried but she said, "If you want me to then I will do it." "You are going to make a good wife and a wonderful mother. Now curl your back and pick up your bum." I had her panties off and there was little blood. A second time had another folded towel under her back for comfort. I had warm water and poured a bit of boiling water in it to make it warmer. The three hand towels went into this and I used my hands to get them wet. The water was not too hot because I could keep my hands in it. Angela and Maggie took a leg each and bent Paige so I could see her lower lips, perineum and anus. There was little hair at all. I put the warm towels on this area and Paige jumped a bit. I took the razor and stroked it on my arm and saw that the blade was sharp. With damp hands I massaged a bar of soap. When I removed the towel I began to massage all of this area. Paige jumped as I rubbed my fingers around her anus but she said nothing. I felt humbled by her trust. The cleft of her pussy got much more of a work out and her hands held to the table with a ferocious grip. "Karen, kiss my girl. She is about to make some noise." The chubby girl smiled and ran to do what I asked. I worked more than the lips and when Paige was close I worked exclusively on her clit. The scream was loud even with Karen working to muffle the sound. Her hands were out and claws dug into anything that she could hold onto. I had forgotten all about that. When she was the most excited she turned into an animal. This time Susan and Karen bore the brunt. The two girls felt the pain but they were so excited that it was not that difficult to bear. When Paige calmed down and her breathing got close to normal I began to take careful strokes. I just did a half-inch on either side of her crease and then everything back past her anus. The process was quick; and I cleaned her with a hand towel then did it again to make sure all the soap was gone. I had an opportunity now that I had not had since coming back to this time. My face, back, chest and other areas were too sore to move certain ways. I now got onto my knees and said. "Hold my women or I will get hurt." Paige, I was sure didn't know what to expect till she felt my tongue part her lips and move slowly from top to bottom. Paige started to jerk as if trying to get me into her. After a dozen strokes I started at her anus and worked around this opening and even tried to get in. Paige wasn't sure and kept her muscles tight. I continued my way from bottom to top then back again. When she started to breathe irregularly I used a finger on her and said, "You better hold her arms very tight. My tiger is stronger than she looks." My tongue went back to work and in a minute I heard the scream one more time but it cut off half way and she went limp. I was not worried but the girls were. "This was too much for Paige. She simply fled consciousness when too much stimulus was received. She will come back to us in a moment. Slide her up the table please so her legs are resting on it." In a moment her eyes fluttered and she looked at me. "What happened?" "You had such a good orgasm that you couldn't handle it and went to sleep." "No?" "Yes. Would your husband lie to you?" She hugged me in answer and we just stayed like that for a minute. I whispered in her ear. "We have enough time to do Karen and Angela if we hurry. They have to go home tonight." "Ok — husband." I pushed myself up and had to let her get up because I could not help much. "Angela honey, do you want me to shave you? We can get done before you have to leave." She was shy but her eyes glowed. "Yes." Susan used the scissors on Angela to get most of the hair off. Karen presented herself to Maggie that helped the same way. Maggie put a warm cloth on Karen while she waited and Angela hopped up onto the table. I put a towel on after making sure she was comfortable. When it came time to rub in some soap Angela was already half way there. Karen was already rubbing herself trying to find relief. There was much more to shave here so my sisters moved Angela where I wanted her to be. I rinsed the safety razor a lot of times and I used a lot more soap. Soon I had her as bare as the day she was born. With fresh water I washed her three more times before getting down to find out if there was any soap left. Susan and Maggie had to really wrestle the girl because she wanted me much more than she had apparently wanted anyone else. Paige did the honours but Angela didn't scream. She did flex her abdominal muscles very hard as if pushing up her pelvis to get me further in. My own hands were on her legs and she was too strong and just pulled away form me. I was able to get a few more licks in before she seemed to die. Susan told Maggie to pull and Angela slid up the table. When I looked at her she said, "Wow! I have never had anything as powerful as that. I couldn't believe it at first. Susan is good but for some reason I react much more to you." "Angela Honey, we are going to have to do this to you six of seven times to make sure you get to understand this better." "I couldn't live through that many." "Sure you can. Now I have to do one more lady." Karen already had an orgasm but quickly got into position. Maggie dumped the water and gave me fresh. Another warm towel went on my next lady. "Are you going to do that to me too?" "You are just as precious to me as the other ladies. I can't have you going home with a rash from soap can I?" She just smiled. The results were similar but Karen was not as strong. She did fart though when her abdomen contracted so hard. I didn't think anybody noticed anyway. Karen though just hugged me very tightly and cried. When she was able to relax I asked, "Why the tears Honey?" Through sniffles she said, "I am so happy." I walked Paige to her house. She said, "I love you Jeff. I didn't know it would be so good. But even if we never did that again I would still love you." "I know that you love me and I love you even more." As she went into her house she whispered back, "I love you more," and closed the door. I walked Karen and Angela home and watched that they got safely inside. Angela's mom looked out the window and I stayed under the lamppost with my bike and waved to her. Susan and Maggie were waiting for me. We got cleaned up and I took them into Jane's room and tucked them in. They didn't know what to do or say till I got in bed between them. "You may not believe this but I don't like sleeping alone." They smiled and Susan asked, "What did you do to Mom? She was happier than usual." "She had a lot of guilt relating with her activities on the weekends. I got her to tell me all about it. She needs a lot more sex than I can give her now or in the future because I will have other ladies to take care of too. She is fairly safe and getting what is best for her." They were quiet then Maggie said, "Couldn't we do this for her?" A big pause then, "We have that thing that we used on you." I had to think now. "We can try it. She will not be satisfied with just one time I am afraid. She needs much more than just one man." Both girls formed an 'O' with their mouth. "You mean — " "Yes, she is taking on a few men but one after another. She says that the money she gets helps support us. That is one more reason to make money so she can stop using that as an excuse. All of you girls may have to work on her till she is sated though." Susan turned off the light and we thought about our mother and how to help her. ------- Chapter 8 I slept in until eight thirty. I woke to find Maggie licking my erect prong. They were whispering encouragement and possible technique. Susan said, "Lick just the end. Clara says her sister does that to her boyfriend and it drives him wild. Ya, like that but just use the tip of your tongue." I was enjoying the sensations then I heard, "Guys like girls to run the tip of your tongue all the way from the bottom to the top. Other guys have lots of hair so you can start on his bag." Maggies voice now said, "I don't want to lick that." "Well lick as much as you want. When it is my turn again I am going to do everything." There was a minute pause while Maggie practised. "Did you see how he wasn't afraid to lick their bum holes? He didn't hesitate at all. Paige told me that he was using his tongue to try to get into that bum. His bag is a lot cleaner." Maggie must have been building up some courage because she moved on the bed and tried to lick as much as she could get without disturbing my body too much. She worked faster and faster and even bent me back to my abdomen for more room. She seemed to be getting into this much more and then she went back to sucking all of me into her mouth. After a minute she tried to get my balls in too but her gag reflex came in. "Let me try now. You had your turn." I felt movement on the bed and I came out of a warm moist home. My legs were spread more and the bed shifted a lot then I felt Susan engulf me. She did it very daintily at first but worked faster as she got excited herself. I was getting very excited at this time and she began to make rapid strokes just under the head as if she were stroking a clit. I couldn't help groaning but instead of Susan pulling away she worked much faster now. I couldn't help move my hands to her head and guide her to the spots that felt the best. Soon I was pushing my hips up to her mouth in an instinct even older than humanity. When I slowed and stopped so did Susan but she didn't take her mouth from me. When I looked down I saw her looking up to me with me still in her mouth. "Good — good morning my two lovely ladies. I am afraid if you do that every morning you will be both be pregnant every year of your lives. You drive me wild." The girls looked smug, and Susan let me slip out of her mouth, then she sucked in all her saliva. Susan said, "We never did that to a boy before but I like it. It is like a big clit and I have more to hold in my mouth." "I want some of you two in my mouth too. I can't do it here very well but we can go downstairs and do it on the table." I got two smiles at this and they even stopped to help me from the bed. I went to the bathroom first and the girls watched me pee. They had seen this many times but now it seemed to be more interesting. "I have a better idea if you want to try it. Trim your pubic hair with the scissors now then have a bath together. This gets all the hair wet. Keep a wet facecloth on after you dry the rest of you to keep the hair soft. I can do both jobs then." The girls were eager although I had to cut the hair this first time. They sat perched uncomfortably on the edge of the sink. It was not a comfortable position to be in. Maggie's hair was not that coarse yet but would be soon. I suddenly thought of those small electrolysis units for hair removal that probably weren't patented yet. Susan was in the tub cleaning while I did Maggie and when I was done Susan hurried out. She pulled my hand hard to get to the kitchen but remembered in time to go slow and even watched as I went slowly down the steps. I used hot tap water in the bowl and Susan got into position and pulled her knees up to her breasts. I lathered her very well but stopped just short of her orgasm. I started around her anus and removed all the hair. She reached down and parted her own cheeks to help. Maggie came down holding a damp cloth to herself. She assisted in holding her sister's legs while trying to keep her facecloth in place. I did around the lips very slowly but the blade was getting dull. Maggie kept her sister damp by using her soapy hands on her mons. When I got the blade changed I started again. When I had the last of the hair, Maggie went over Susan to make sure. There was no hair inside but she got checked quite a few times just in case. I cleaned her as well as I could without being rough on her most tender area. "Maggie, get on the table. Sit on Susan's face to keep her from getting too loud. While you are up there you can help by playing with her nipples." She smiled widely and just hustled to do as I asked. Susan's face told me she was not too sure but she didn't object. Maggie groaned within seconds of getting settled into place. Her eyes closed and her chest went out as the feeling surged through her. I got into position and began to please Susan. I stroked like the other times and I could hear Maggie reap what I had sown. When I started on her anus she didn't flinch or tighten but gave herself to me. It looked like she may be one of those ladies that liked some action in their bum. Both girls groaned as I tried to put my tongue into her bum. Susan was even beginning to shake. I surmised this might be enough stimulus her for her to make it over the edge. I continued to plunge in and out even though it wasn't much. My hand came up and stroked her abdomen then headed for her slit. My thumb got a copious amount of her lubricant and carried it to her clit. Her movements quickened. Soon my thumb stayed in place and stroked her very quickly. My tongue was tired but I worked frantically like a person trying to beat down a door. Just about when I thought I would have to change my plans, Susan's hands came down and tried to hold the short hair on my head. The shakes that were going through her turned into a multiple tsunami. I held on for dear life while quivering Maggie was almost thrown to the floor. She had to put her hand out to touch the wall to keep herself stable. The waves slowed and stopped and I kept up my attack but slowed with her. Maggie had her own orgasm and I quickly got up to help her off her sister so she Susan could breathe. Both girls were in rough shape but I wanted to be with Susan when she came back to us. The aftershocks had not died and I leaned over the table and held her. In a moment she knew that someone was here and she held me. It took a bit longer till I saw her open her eyes and stare at me. "Oh Jeff, I love you. Nobody has done anything close to what you just did. How could you know so much?" I kissed her then pulled back and licked her lips before saying, "Mmmmm yummy. I love you too. To answer your question, when there are so many people that love me, I want to return the love. I just know what to touch and I think to put you in a situation that you would like. How many times have you made love to a girl when another one has made love to you?" "Only once, and it was last Thursday when you sent me off with Maggie and Faith." "See," I said, "I know what turns you on and I want you to be happy. I even know something else that will turn you on later." "What?" "You will find out when it happens. Now I have another lady to perform my tonsorial skills on." "What's — " Then she guessed the meaning. Maggie was more than happy to help Susan off so she could get into position. With some fresh hot water I began on shaving her. She had dried off and I had to start from scratch again. This didn't bother me in the least. My lathering technique worked too well and she had her next orgasm by bouncing all over the table. Susan said, "Ya, she gets two." "She was owed one from before sweet Susan. Now don't act like a cat now. We share in this family and some may even need more." She put her head down and whispered, "Sorry." My fingers worked a bit more and Maggie was starting to respond again. "That is ok. I may give you two one day and you will have to take one home to Maggie." She smiled at this. I stopped my play now and got to work shaving Maggie. She responded very well when I ran my fingers over her lips to hunt for stubble. I washed her just as thoroughly as I had done for her sister then asked Susan to get into position. She was happy to oblige. I was licking Maggie for only a minute when the phone on the wall rang. It was distracting and Susan wanted an orgasm not to talk. "Answer the phone sweetheart." With a pissed off expression she answered. It turned out to be Jennifer. I went back to my second breakfast course. "Oh, nothing much. I am just sitting on Maggie's face as she licks my bald lips." "He is at the other end of the table, kneeling on the floor and eating Maggie." "Oh, she is bald too now. It feels wonderful to be this way." "Oh! Oh! Ya — sorry. When Jeff does nice things to Maggie, she does nice things to me." "Oh, oh hang on." Susan dropped the phone and pinched Maggie's nipples as I worked even faster on her clit. Maggie's muffled groans complimented Susan's louder call till she let out a muffled scream of her own. Both girls were bouncing all over the table and I had to get up to make sure Susan didn't fall. I leaned Susan against the wall with her legs over Maggie. In a second I could see the love in Maggie's eyes and I kissed her with all the tenderness I could. She replied in kind but it got more forceful as it continued. My own feelings of love made me warm and I felt safe in my lover's arms. Vaguely then more clearly I heard, "They are kissing now. Maggie had a good one but the one I had before made my stomach hurt. In fact it still does. I never felt that strongly before." "Yes, I do love him. He said he might keep me when we get older. Who knows maybe we can have babies too." "Ya, Maggie too and he already told us Paige is going to have a few." "How do I know how. He will take care of all of us and the kids." "Ya, you can come over now." "Ok I will. Bye." Maggie and I had remained quiet as we listened. When I pulled back to stand straight, Susan said, "Jennifer is one horny girl now. She is coming right over." We had our breakfast and had even cleaned up by the time Jennifer arrived. Susan peeked through the drapes when the bell rang then she allowed Jennifer in. None of us had any clothes on yet. She looked at my small dormant appendage and then at the two girls with the now bare area between their legs with not even a hello to any of us. Susan took Jennifer's hand and put it between her bare legs. "Feel that. Smooth, and it feels so sexy. I don't know why I didn't do this before." There was a pause and Susan moved Jennifer's hand. Her fingers were busy and Susan put her hands on her friend's shoulders and soon she let out a groan and sagged against Jennifer. The tableau was played out in just under ten minutes. The two girls were now kissing and Jennifer was trying to get her clothing off. They were in a world of their own and Susan started to help her friend. Once the girl was naked they looked around for a place to make love and Jennifer stopped abruptly at seeing me still where I was when she came in. I walked over to her. She had seen me naked but now she had been seen making love to a girl without being compelled to do so. Taking her hands in mine I said, "Hello Jennifer. Thank you for coming over. You seem to be frightened of the situation or me once again. I will not hurt you and family secrets stay within our family. I always knew that you liked girls. Just because I see it with my own eyes now does not make it any different." "Are you the one that shaved them?" "Yes I did. And I have to tell you it was a lot of fun for each of us." "Will — will you do me too?" I kissed her lips and pulled back with a smile. "I would be honoured to do that but I am afraid we have to put it off for a while." "Oh," she said and it had come out as a disappointment. "Jennifer Honey, I have to remind you that you are living at home with a father that gets drunk and takes advantage of you. If he sees that you have shaved it will mean that you are doing it to have more of those special sensations. It is possible he will think you are now having sex with others and want a lot more for himself." She thought for a moment and said, "You are probably right. I don't want to encourage him in any way. You also talked about the police and I should look as much like a little girl as possible." "That's true but it doesn't mean I can't trim a little then do my special test to detect any soap residue." "You want to do me?" "You are a beautiful and caring woman. Why wouldn't any man want to make you happy? May I do this for you?" I just got a delighted nod and the girls took Jennifer to the kitchen. In minutes I was massaging soap into her hair the same way I had done the rest. She was still upset and I worked longer and let her have her first orgasm with me. When she recovered we hoisted her legs and I worked around her anus and perineum. This area was now nice and smooth and I had Jennifer feel herself there. "Oh, that feels so nice." "I hope the next part feels as nice Honey." I began to wash off all the soap and rinsed again to make sure. Susan crawled over Jennifer without being told after I had begun. Jennifer loved her anus being stimulated. I didn't pay favourites and moved up after parting some hair with my thumbs. She started to flex her muscles as she really got into what we were doing. I became aware of talking and when I concentrated a bit more I knew it was Maggie's voice. Moving higher I saw she was talking on the phone. "He is looking at me now Angela. His mouth is still on Jennifer and she is moving her hips up and down really hard. Jennifer is sucking on Susan and she doesn't see or hear anything. She looks like she does when she is about to come." "What? Oh yes he went back to making Jennifer happy. I have to tell you that being shaved is the most exciting thing I ever did." "Ya, we were going to try that." "Jeff slept with us and this morning Susan and I played with his cock." "Yes." "It was lots of fun and he started to push like Jennifer is now and then he had his come. Nothing came out but it was still nice." "Yes. Yes I will. Bye." I buried my tongue into Jennifer. She was the only one without a hymen. When my focus changed to her clit I sucked hard and quick and then Jennifer really began to buck. Muffled noises were heard and then Susan's call as her own orgasm washed over her. I was hurt from all the abuse I had been put through. My hips and knees were especially painful but I stayed as long as I was needed then slowed down. Jennifer's legs were now on my shoulders. Susan was being assisted off the table. In a moment the two pulled Jennifer back from the edge. I moved around to see sparkling eyes and she gave me a kiss that hurt my back even if it wasn't burnt. "That was wonderful. It was never this exciting and I didn't know a boy would do this to a girl." I said, "This boy loves you and would do anything for you. Besides, making love to you is not a job but a privilege. We have a lot of years ahead of us and I want them to be happy." "I am happy — and I love you to." I kissed her tenderly. "That makes me feel especially good knowing what you have to put up with. Some women that have gone through what you have find that they hate all men, even to little boys. That is bad, because it twists the mind and she can never be happy." Sandy and Faith were over within minutes. They examined the merchandise and were told about Karen and Angela. Susan took them upstairs to be trimmed and Faith came down first for what services I could perform. She was smooth as a baby and then even more excited as I licked and sucked on her. Sandy was next and reacted similarly to Paige and went unconscious. It was at noon that Paige came over. "What kept you Honey?" She turned red and whispered, "It felt so good that I couldn't leave it alone." With a hug and another kiss I said, "Don't feel shy. Angela and Karen probably have rubbed themselves raw by now and the ones today will do the same thing tonight." My statement seemed to help. We moved onto their costumes. Their minds were unfocused. Almost anything reminded them of their condition. We got a fair number of designs and I got the girls to wear them. We then talked of blouses that were at least semi transparent. Paige had a dress which she went and fetched after she changed. The material was in multiple layers and a single layer went in front of each of the girls. We made comments about the pros and cons. We needed research now so we all got dressed and left for a fabric store. There were only two other customers and three sales people. I had a damaged face, short hair and looked male even if I was young. I didn't know what they thought of me. There was not that much in the line of choices but we bought two different materials and two different patterns. Both were similar but I could see possibilities in them. We bought buttons to compliment the material and the idea I intended them to be put to. We got some material for lining the bras and even some plastic that could be used to strengthen the cups. I had brought all of my money and put it into the kitty but the girls had to add some too. I saved the receipts as I had done since starting a business in my old life. We did hurry home and the girls began to start on their projects right away. They knew a great deal about sewing that sounded like common sense once they explained it to me. The radio was turned on and the girls began the project. The size that corresponded to the largest girl was chosen and cut out of the pattern. The cut paper was placed on the fabric in the correct orientation and a sharp piece of soap was used to mark the cloth. Once the number of pieces for this particular size had been cut the pattern was trimmed to the next smaller size we needed. The girls worked on the remnants and made the cuffs and collars while another worked on making sleeves. Few girls made clothing in my later years but these ones here, worked very fast. They seemed to form specialties and worked together to sew the blouses up. Angela and Faith came over and found the girls all working. I slipped into the kitchen to begin making lunch. The girls nibbled and drank as they worked while listening to the music. It was nice to see them all working together so well. Sandy took some of the material and started to make another bra but this time she could use some of the soft lining. Some girls had not completed their first one yet. An hour later, the first blouse was done. This fit Jennifer who happened to be the largest girl. They had worked with their clothing on but now she stripped completely. One of our bras was put on then her blouse. With no buttons needed in this design I just tied a knot in the shirttail at the front. This exposed a bare midriff and an open area down to the knot that showed skin and the colourful bra underneath. They rushed upstairs to spray her with water. A sponge and a cloth were put in each hand and I said, "From the waist up this is what a man will see as Jennifer washes his car. She is covered but not to what is currently acceptable. Shorts have to be worn that will not arouse too much ire. As time goes on, the shorts get shorter till they get to the stage I was talking about." Angela said, "If she washes the car the way she is now and without shorts we would get a lot more business." This brought a lot of laughter and even Jennifer laughed. I said, "That is certainly true. I want all my angels to appear both beautiful and very desirable. You are my girls though. I like other men to look and drool but never touch unless they plan on marrying you and even then they better pass my criteria. Only the very best men will get a chance at my angels and I am not going to let a fast talker get by your defences. I will be a husband, brother or a father, all depending on what you need or allow." Maggie took Jennifer into her room to dry her. Some looked on wistfully but hurried down to complete their own creation. Fifteen minutes later we heard a scream of completion then one more. Some of the girls rubbed their mons or breasts as they continued with their blouses. Five minutes later the two absentees descended the stairs naked. I guess they wanted to flaunt their bodies; and it had an effect on all of us. I asked Jennifer to help and we started to make supper. The front doorbell rang. I spanked a startled Jennifer and said, "You better take that pretty bum of yours upstairs with your clothes." She gave a me a quick kiss and ran off. I heard running feet on the stairs. That had to be Maggie. I was cautious and looked out before opening the door for Nora, Paige's mother. She had a hot pot of food which she carried with oven mitts. When I opened the door she said, "I made some food for you since your mother is out." "Thanks Mrs Newfield. It smells great." I directed her to the kitchen and she set it down on the stove. She looked around at all the girls industriously working. "I think I should have made more. You have a lot of girlfriends Jeff." "They are more than girlfriends but your daughter is the most important to me." She looked at me assessing me one more time. "Are you getting serious at such a young age." "I mentioned how I changed after getting hurt. I cannot play a child all my life. Some choices are easy to make and others take a long time for people to come around." She wanted to talk but saw all the faces looking at her. "We will have to talk later. What are you guys making anyway?" "One of the service companies will wash cars. If a beautiful girl dressed in some provocative clothing does the job, not only will she be busy as an employee, but I can charge far more for this service. The blouses happen to be part of the uniform. It is currently used in magazine ads for a great many things that men purchase." "That doesn't seem right to me." "The men's ads or my using the same ideas?" "Both." "The girls will be more dressed than the girls in swimsuits draped over an outboard motor. They will have much more on than when you go swimming at the beach. Are you trying to say that you want a double standard where they can wear a bathing suit at the beach but not shorts while washing a car?" "Not really. I'm not sure. Young people wash cars all the time. It is just that my daughter is so young." "Paige is a year older than me even if she is still the youngest lady here. The other girls can be seen washing cars and as I said, Paige is only a year younger and should deserve the same consideration. My plan trades on their beauty the same way an advertising executive hires a model to wear a hat or a dress. We will both gain from this. The girls will be fully employed and I get my money to start a business. Paige will share in this in many ways. Her self esteem grows and she learns some valuable lessons in business." "I'll think about this Jeff." "I know you will. Any good mother would, but you also have to realise that children eventually have to grow up. Would you and your husband consider coming over and having dinner with us? I want to show our uniform and I want to let you see how beautiful Paige is in it." Paige was shocked at this and had wide eyes. Nora considered. "Is there enough food to go around?" "In an hour there will be more than enough. I was already making supper and your contribution was more than just generous. I just wish I had a dry white wine to go with our pasta dish." Nora gave me another odd look and said, "I will see if we have any and be back in an hour." When she left, Paige said, "Why did you do that?" "Paige honey, they are also going to be my in-laws." Paige took very little time to understand then she smiled like the sun before hugging me. The Alfredo sauce was continued but now with a few more ingredients. We didn't have large pots so I used two of the largest we had to boil water. Susan took over the duties of getting the table ready. The other girls began to clean up their own mess or at least make it manageable. I sent Angela downstairs to get fruit preserves and two loaves of frozen bread from the small freezer. When the doorbell rang I said, "Paige, answer that for us please." She welcomed her parents into the house and I wiped my hands and went to do the same thing. "Hello Mr Newfield. It is nice of you to come over." "Hello Jeff. I was told this might be interesting." "That is the goal of any host, to treat their guests to interesting and provocative discourse and to see to their wants." He handed me a bottle of white wine. I said, "Thank you. Mom doesn't buy this but it does go good with our pasta dish." I assisted seven of my eight ladies to sit with Paige's place at the far end across from me. Her parents sat on my left and right. The table was crowded but still manageable. I talked to get an idea of their appetite as I doled out the food then put some of Nora's dish on each plate. Paige served the meal and did some talking of her own but she was very nervous. There was little wine but it went to everybody so they would get a taste. The talk was not high society by any stretch of the imagination; but it was like family. The girls talked of the difficulties in making some of their garments. Apparently Jack had not been told that the clothing would be considered risqué for 1958. Everybody was encouraged to say something. Over dessert, Maggie had to mention that I dutifully sampled the fruit we had preserved before it went into the jars. In a way I guess she was right although my memory was vague on this. Nora said over tea, for we had no coffee, "You mentioned that we would see your new uniform." Some of the girls had been wearing dresses as they were what was currently fashionable. Older women and men still wore hats. "I will ask." "Ladies, Nora and I would love to see what you have produced. I'm quite sure that Mr Newfield would love to see too." Paige hadn't moved so I went behind her chair and whispered, "We are all family here. Please show us what you have done." She gave me a weak smile and squeezed my hand and left with the rest. All the girls were upstairs now and I said to the parents, "Page is very special. She has some great strengths and a few weaknesses. You both know that she is meek. I want her for a girlfriend and eventually a wife if she is willing." Jack now stared at me very seriously. "Aren't both of you too young to talk of things like that?" "Perhaps for Paige but not for me. She is free and will remain so. When she has matured in a few years she will be able to make a rational decision." "You are young too." "I only look young. Close your eyes and discount my high pitched voice and tell me that I am young." Jack said, "Even if you are older mentally, there are a lot of things that an adult has to handle to survive in a marriage." "I am familiar with most. I too will change in the next few years when I enter puberty. Hormones, money problems and commitment are just some of the problems. It may be rough with my changing body but most other boys lived through it." Nora said, "You can't expect to support a family on the proceeds from a carwash in the street." "I mentioned seed money. That is all I need. I have things that Bell phone would love to get. I have inventions for the home, car and industry that should bring in a very substantial amount of money. I even have things that can be used in satellites when they get bigger and need more power. "On top of that I have a knack for electronics. A shop would be the first step then a chain of retail outlets for present and future gadgets. No matter how or where I go there is a need for an initial investment. The girls are going to help me get it and then share in what we make." Jack said, "We have known you for years. You were bright, polite and kind. You have changed though." "You are right, of course, but am I less bright, polite or kind now? I just see that it is time to move. I will start small and progress in measured steps to get where I plan to go." "Where do you want to go?" Financial independence for myself and extended family." "Extended family?" "Those girls upstairs need some help. Most can get along well enough without me but not all. Some are very delicate. Paige is too but she is in a loving environment and not one that is dangerous." We heard footsteps and we turned to watch the girls parade into the room. All had the new semi-transparent blouse and their new bras. All were wearing slacks or pants. Paige stood in the middle holding a sponge. Skin could be seen under the cloth but it was still legally covered. Jack sat with his mouth open till Nora hit him in the leg to shut it. I stood up and pulled Jack to his feet. He came over to Susan first. I said, "My sister is covered though the material is thin. If you think of a girl at the beach you will see that she had much more clothing than they do. What she does have is a beautiful figure that will bring people over to have their car washed and to enjoy themselves watching that this is done properly." "They are going to work in these?" I looked in Jack's eyes and said, "Be honest. Would you enjoy watching these girls wash your family car?" "Well — " "The girls worked hard to make their outfits. We get a great many men coming go get their car done and the girls get an above average income. Not bad for a few hours work on the sewing machine and a bit of soap and water. When you consider what most of their friends would make if they got the chance for a job. You will see that they have a great opportunity here." I brought out the guitar Jack had given me and played a few songs to get over this rough spot. Some songs I played were by the Beatles and other entertainers that had not made it to the stage yet. Nora asked, "I never heard any of those songs before." Maggie said, "He sang a lot in the last few days and almost all have been new." She turned to me and said, "You can sell songs too I think. "I guess I can give it a try. I can't sing and I don't play well enough to do this for myself. They could only be sold." Jack got his guitar and we played a duet and I tried to get the girls to sing. Some did this for me but most were too nervous. When Jack and Nora left they were not that upset. I had proved my point that the girls were dressed adequately, they should make good money and they were safe because they were in a group. We cleaned up right away. The curtains had stayed shut ostensibly because of Goldbalm. We played the radio and then Sue wanted to dance. This lead to our clothes being taken off though Paige wanted her panties to stay on. Sandy's time was close too but she was willing to risk it. The girls didn't mind dancing naked with the others as long as they got a turn with me. When the songs were not to our liking I sang another new one for them then we danced again. Only Jennifer could give me a problem with her hair but we liked the way I parked under her mons and danced close. When it got late, I assigned beds. Susan, Jennifer, Angela and Faith would take Jane's bed. Maggie, Sandy and Karen got the two combined beds. Paige and I would sleep in my bed, which was now called our bed. Sleep was out of the question. Paige was told to take a partial shower and come to bed. She was hesitant but I was not. We spent the first part of the night face to crotch. After the first orgasm she didn't worry about anything. Her orgasms were not that sharp but were long and drawn out. More like two lovers that were comfortable with each other. ------- Chapter 9 I woke up early and just stayed in bed looking at my lover. She had a small snore that she always denied. When she woke up she looked around to see me looking at her. "What are you looking at mister?" "Oh, just the woman I love." "Ha! You love a lot of women and I have to share." "True but I love you the most." "Prove it." I started my journey till she remembered her state. Her bum got a single swat and I continued. Her scream five minutes later woke the others. With her hand in mine I pulled her to the bathroom and we used the toilet and had a short shower before the others were mobile. We got dressed and I started breakfast. Everybody had a hot meal because some girls wandered down much later than the others. I wanted to go for a walk to exercise; but only Paige and Sandy wanted to accompany me. The weather was perfect. Paige held one hand and Sandy grabbed my other. Some older women going to church saw a boy with short hair, scared face and two beautiful girls holding his hands. I even said this to the girls when the ladies had left. Paige hotly disliked my choice of words and said, "You are handsome and those marks just give you character." Sandy added, "They can't see inside you." "You humble me, my ladies. A young man like me has to be extremely fortunate to even hold one of your hands. To hold two is astonishing." I got some giggles, but after all, they were still girls. Far ahead I saw some refuse by the curb. When we got close I saw that part of it was a television similar to ours and made by the same company. This appeared to be set out for junk. The back was screwed on still and the picture tube didn't seem to have that dark area to indicate that it was burnt out. It still could be but it was less likely. "Wait here please. I am just going to be a moment." It was almost noon on Sunday so I was not worried about getting people angry at me. When an older man came to the door I said, "Hello. My name is Jeff. Have you discarded that television in front of this home?" "Ya, never worked worth a darn." "May I have it for parts?" "Sure but you got to take it all. Don't leave any mess." "May I pull it towards the house so I can get it transported away in the next hour?" "Go right ahead Sonny." The girls helped me move the television and I hurried home alone. I was back in less than ten minutes with the bicycle. The man had to help us load the device and the girls and I held it stable as I walked it home. Susan and Jennifer helped me get it out and into the living room. The back was off in a minute. The cord was rivetted to the pressboard back. I took that off with a drill bit. Mom's television was robbed for parts and in ten minutes, I had a better picture than what was on our old machine. I made some minor adjustments and the picture improved even more. The girls vacuumed both televisions when they were disconnected and I went out to get some coloured wax paste. I went over the scratches then use furniture wax on the rest. Mom got her tube back and the new television closed up. Susan asked, "What are you going to do with it?" "Sell it after I get a tube." "How much can you get for it?" "If I take a few hours on the cabinet I can get fifty dollars. The way it sits with the new tube about five dollars less." They all liked this because fifty dollars was a lot of money. It worked out to about three hundred and fifty dollars in 2008. The girls worked on their clothes while I checked the garage with an eye to doing some woodwork. Susan came to the garage and said, "Mom wants to talk to you." She wasn't quite pissed off but she was four years older than me. "Thank you Sweetheart." I kissed her lightly and hurried into the house. "Hello Jane." "Hello Jeff. I just phoned to say that I would like to stay out longer. You said I could if I felt like it." "Are you having fun or is it business?" "Oh, it is more of the fun but the other thing is there too." "Are you going to be in the same place? It's dangerous to leave." "Oh, I plan on being here all the time. I see a nice man that I know and some of the other girls are off to Toronto for a wedding." "When are you coming home?" "I can be home for when you get out of school." "That's fine Jane. We had the Newfield's over for a meal. The girls were all ladies. I couldn't ask for better." "Are they listening to what you say?" "Yes." "Well go get them tiger but don't put a bun in the oven. It could ruin their lives and yours too." "Not now but maybe one day it will be a good idea." She laughed and said, "Bye Jeff. I love you. Tell the girls that I love them too, though I don't always show it." "I love you too and I'll tell them." Maggie and Susan were waiting. "Mom found a hunk or maybe two. She will be home when we get home tomorrow. She wanted to make sure that you know that she loves you. She did sound happy though and her life has not had that much." I was going to go back to the garage when Maggie said, "You told us a lot about sex. You were going to demonstrate too. You did some but only allowed Paige, Susan and me to taste some of that meat you have. You said it isn't dangerous and you aren't going to put any stuff in our mouths." Christ, how am I going to get out of this? By the time they are done I am going to have a sore pecker. "How about doing it when we have just two girls over at once? Jennifer is here tomorrow." "She's here now too. Maybe she wants to try one that is not mean to her?" Jennifer had her eyes down. I got in front of her and slowly raised her face. Her expression was neutral. "Did you hear what Maggie said Sweetheart?" "I heard Jeff." "Sweetheart, you are one of those most hurt by males. I would not think of hurting your body and now especially your mind. Did you want this?" She didn't answer immediately so I just waited. She said, "I was never in control. Maggie thinks that if I am the boss then I will get to like it." "I don't know if that is right or not. I will do exactly what you want though." "I want you Jeff. I want you on the table like I was. I want to get on top and maybe suck if I want or not. I want you to suck me though." "That is an enjoyable thing for me. I love making love to you. You don't have to do anything. The problem is that we might not fit. I am shorter than you. And I like to curl my neck so I can do what a lady likes." "Let's do it anyway." I smiled though I wasn't sure about this. Paige smiled at me and helped me take off my clothes. Once I was on the table, Jennifer climbed on. She sat on my face as if challenging me to do something nasty. I took a delicate lick instead. Susan got me a throw cushion to go under my head. She had lots of practice and knew just what I needed. It must have been four minutes later when I felt a bit of action; and I am ashamed to say that I was not erect but got that way soon. My arms didn't have the freedom to open Jennifer up so I had to use my nose, lips and tongue. I was getting sore in the neck and the tongue when I felt more action but it stopped quickly. Taking a break for a rest was out of the question. My strokes got longer and slower trying to convert the pain in my neck to what I hoped would be seen as being seductive. Susan came around to have a good look at my technique. "She needs something special when she gets this way. I took a beating until I found her secret." The dildo that had been planted in my ass quite a few times came into view. I think I must have wilted because the device made me cringe. The end had something on it and when it slowly worked into Jennifer's anus. Jennifer started to respond and I tried to work as low as I could to give Susan some room to work. Her strokes were short at first but quickly built up to rapid thrusts that actually came completely out. Jennifer was moving back and forth to accept the strokes or even make them more violent. It was difficult to make contact and I could only do this as she passed by. In very little time I felt her hands squeeze my legs and a long and loud howl came from her throat and she moved forward and collapsed on me. At the same time a pain shot up my legs and knew that some of my scabs had been ripped off. Susan removed the dildo and ran to see Jennifer's face. I could now see more because of Jennifer's position. Maggie was called and soon the girls tried to get Jennifer off of me. I knew something was wrong with Jennifer too. Jennifer had to be dragged off which hurt even more. Paige ran to me with tears in her eyes. She hugged me to her. I asked, "Would you help me up, my lady?" She tried and I had to fumble to help myself too. When I was able to sit on the table I looked at my legs. The scabs were three inches wide on both legs and travelled down to my feet. A portion above the knees was now bleeding and oozing a clear liquid. The table edge was under my knees and I had a difficult time wiggling forward on a bare table on an equally bare butt. Paige helped me to my feet. "Jeff, you''re hurt. Do you want me to get my dad or call a doctor?" "I am not that bad Love. I should soak in the bath more and let the scabs get softened to let the new skin grow underneath easier. I just need to get cleaned up and let it air out. I want to find out about Jennifer first. The girl is hurt inside even more than I am hurt outside." Jennifer was sitting on the couch with all the rest of the girls around her. She had her elbows on her legs, and her hands holding her face. She was crying and the girls were trying to comfort her. I wasn't exactly sure of her problem. A good guess would be her family life but it could also be me too. I didn't want to just rush in and make things worse. I pulled Paige back to the kitchen and said, "Please find out what is wrong. Maybe I can help but maybe I am the cause." "I'll try." Getting dressed was an option but if I did and the girls stayed naked it may cause them to feel a wider gulf between us. Of course, me being naked Going naked might remind Jennifer of my gender and cause more pain. Fifteen minutes later Jennifer came to me as I sat at the table I was just on. I had used a clean damp cloth to blot out the blood and lymph that was on my legs "Jeff — I — I am sorry." "You have nothing to be sorry for. I would like to know if there is anything I can do to help." "No, it is just — " When nothing further came I said, "You are part of my family now. We all work together to protect our members. Usually a problem can be resolved with enough people concerned with your welfare." I waited again and eventually she said, "I thought of my father and my brother. I tried very hard to see that you are not like them and I really did. Before you could have been putting on a show for me. Susan reminded me about all the things she and the rest of us did to you. All you did was hit her enough to listen, then you said you loved her. She believes in you now. You never hurt her after, though I would, if I were you." She had been looking down as if embarrassed and noticed for the first time the blood and clear fluid running down my legs. She stared openly this time. "Did — did I do that?" "A man accepts pain very readily when it comes from a woman that is feeling ecstasy that he produced in her. It inflates his ego so much that nothing else matters. You have given me great joy." She cried instead. She ran the few steps and knelt on the floor between my legs and hugged me but now she was as tender as if I were a newborn. I held her to me and whispered that I loved her. Her crying became sniffles and then stopped altogether. When she was ready she pulled back and I kissed her. "Feeling better now Sweetheart?" She sniffed and nodded her head. "Then let's make something to eat." The girls went home well before it got dark and I didn't have to escort them. Paige had to go home too lest it seem that she had moved in with me. Already I was worried about the amount of time she spent over here. There was only so much that could be attributed to staying with girls next door. My frank discussion with her parents let them know where I stood and prepared them for what my employees would wear. I had received my own vibes from them and considered it a good time to spring the disquieting news. "Paige, before you go you need to know something." "I love you too Jeff." "I know you do and I love you but it is something else." "What is that my husband?" This was said with a coy smile as she quickly looked at the floor. "Oh, nothing much. I just told your parents yesterday that I want you for a girlfriend and eventually a wife if you are willing. I am surprised they didn't corner you yesterday or make you come home to confess all our sins. They will eventually. Tell them whatever you wish but what the girls do among themselves and with you will be even more of a shock. Though me sampling a taste or two of that delicious pussy of yours will be right up there with the rest." "What am I going to say?" "Go talk to those devious creatures in the other room and they will set you straight." She ran very quickly to get what assistance she could. Paige was smart but she was also easily pushed around. When a half hour passed and she was still talking I just took her hand in mine and said to Susan and Maggie, "I have to go next door to explain more. I will have to leave and then Paige is going to be interrogated by just her parents. I will be back as soon as I can." Paige let me in and I found the couple watching television. Keeping Paige's hand in mine I walked close. "I came over to complete our talk. You have a million questions to ask and I have a similar number to answer. I just don't want Paige pressured too much now or after I leave. She get upset easy and it made her sick more than once if I remember." It was a tag team against me. I sent Paige away for a drink or any other good reason so she could get a break though few of the questions were directed at her. They seemed to be convinced that I was bright enough to do some of the things I planned and bring in a good living too. I worked on stating some of my sterling qualities and those not quite so. This was to show that I would have the same moral values in later life. I had known their real concern before coming over. Jack said it for me. "We are not opposed to you two marrying some day. It is that you are both too young. At your age you can change moods and friends daily. Part of it is the puberty that Jeff will go through and that which Paige is now dealing with. Another portion is that people drift apart even when they are adult. One of you may not like that and refuse to let the other go." Paige tried to defend her stand but it boiled down to what she felt at this moment and for at least a small portion into the future. I said, "I promise to let Paige go if she wishes to. That includes after our proposed marriage. As long as Paige and I are together, she will not come home with a big belly until she is safely married. I will encourage her to get the most education she can get and not restrict her options at a career. Anything else will be covered in a marriage contract if we make it that far." Jack said, "That covers our immediate worries but a lot of well meaning people have made good promises but through some unfortunate events the opposite has happened. I know you both like school and this implies that you will continue, providing money and time when available. A career though can take either of you away from the other for extended periods. Jeff, you said that you are going to be very busy at starting a business that should spread to many cities. How is that going to effect your relationship?" "I love the area around London. It is more pastoral and good for raising a family. If I want to be home at most nights, I will have to work from a large city instead. If I can get a toehold in Toronto I can grow just as fast and not have to go far. If I gain a good size, quick enough, then I can franchise or borrow enough to hire others to run those stores further away. "Instead of one type of store, I can make one that sells a wide range of products and then expand across North America. There are even ways of starting many different kinds of dependent stores and when a city is picked, all the associated stores are placed in one large area. One business will sell tools, construction materials and things for the do-it-yourselfer. Another will be a large department store that has a pharmacy and sells food. Food stores will prosper if they are very large and, of course, in good areas. A chain of coffee shops can become an excellent moneymaker if quality is kept high. "If I was really going for money I would expand into the US at the same time. Money is easier to get there and they are more open to innovation. "Paige though, will be right beside me as we grow. Children should not slow us down till it is necessary for them to go to school. Three grandparents nearby will help a lot too if they are interested." Nora smiled at the thought and I could see a hint of a smile from Jack. Jack said, "We wouldn't mind helping our grandchildren but do you know how to keep that other part of your promise from happening?" "Do you mean saving the children until we are ready to take care of them?" "Yes, that." "I can list methods for you but I am afraid you will both blush and be very embarrassed. I may even give you ideas that you have not considered yet. It keeps the marriage strong and unencumbered until the prospective parents are ready." "Let's have a man to man chat in private to discuss this. I can't see how you know but I am willing to listen." I smiled and said, "And you won't cut me off until I am done even if your ears turn red." He paused and assessed me, "Not until you are done." We went for a walk for privacy and I started all the sexual acts that could be done that would not result in a woman getting pregnant. I listed all the commonly known methods and devices of preventing such an occurrence. At the end I added that birth control pills would be coming out in a few years and after a great struggle. "You have quite a repertoire of ideas to keep a woman satisfied. Many women would not like some of your ideas. How many of them have you used on my daughter?" "If we have a chat with my doctor you will find that not only am I a boy but I am also slow at developing. I don't even have one dark hair. I hope to get at least one in the next year. The year after that should be when puberty hits me. Puberty is what brings on the hormones and the irrational activities. You are going to have to ask after that happens. At present I think I can kiss adequately to keep Paige interested." When we got back I could tell that Paige had been questioned. She had a small smile so I could tell that she had not broken under pressure. Nora looked at her husband but he said nothing. I was positive that when they were alone the details would come out unless Jack got cold feet. When it was time to leave I said, "Good night Mom, Dad," and took Paige to the door and said, "I love you Paige. Don't let anyone bully you. You are too smart to hide your light." "I love you too Jeff." I hugged her and said quietly, "Please remember that I only kissed you on your upper lips." When I pulled away she was already red but at least prepared. The next morning I knocked and was admitted into Paige's home. Jack said, "Would you like some breakfast Jeff." "No thanks Dad. I was up early and made breakfast for my sisters." I turned to Nora and said, "I may like to try some coffee if any is available. Mom has nothing but tea." When she brought me a cup I said, "Thanks Mom." Jack is the one that had to ask, "Why are you calling us that now?" "Practice for one, and to tell the truth I have not had a father since I was six." This seemed to please both of them. Jack said, "We had a talk and we decided that Paige was spending too much time with you." They waited for my response. I said, "I figured that would happen. Paige should have a chance to meet other people. She also has an opportunity to find somebody better or at least to compare me to. It will also give her a chance to have much more than the small circle of friends that are visiting my sisters. "Though it may shock Paige, I think it is good in the long run." It did shock her. "Paige, Honey, it is like being married. We are constantly together and sometimes it is difficult to breathe. Your parents forget that you like to be guided and being together lots is not a burden. Another thing to consider is that I have a business to start and that requires my time. Some married couples have a night out on their own. A man can have a poker night, go bowling or play golf. Women have similar things but are usually tied down because they must do all the housework." "I want to be with you." "I want that too. Let's try it your parents' way as long as it is fluid." Nora said, "What do you mean Jeff?" "Say Paige has Tuesday for her other friends but that day we need to work together on something. Then Wednesday will be your day with other friends." To get off the subject, I said, "I repaired a TV. I am selling it for fifty dollars after the cabinet is cleaned up a bit. I will be advertising but if you hear of somebody we will be thankful." I just hoped that they didn't give a great many days away from me or have the days set up so there was no leeway. If I could get control then Paige would be home and visible whenever she could be spared. On the way to school I explained how I had short-circuited the restrictions but that we would have to live by our own rules. This at least was conciliatory. Just before first recess a man came to the classroom door and after a few quiet words he was admitted. Mr Collins said, "Students, this is Mr Flaherty. He is here to see how the class is run. He may ask a few questions to make sure you have been taught everything you should." This happened twice in my school days and could be true now but I didn't think so. I continued filling out my proofs and the class went on until the bell. When we got up to leave Mr Flaherty said, "Mr Congdon, may I have a word or two with you before you leave?" Paige came over and stood beside me. I held her hand and said to Paige, "I am afraid the two words will last more than just this recess. Have some fun with your friends." She looked at me then Mr Flaherty then said, "Ok but don't start giving him a private class in mathematics. If he wants to enroll he has to do it with the rest." "That is why I keep you around. You are the brains." She smiled and left. I walked to Mr Flaherty and put out my hand. "Glad to meet you Mr Flaherty. Paige is right. You have to join our main class if you want to learn but I think this is not quite the reason for this chat." "You're right. I wanted to see for myself what you were doing and also trying to find out if you are trying to snow Mr Collins in the subjects you are supposed to know." "By now you already know that I will pass mathematics with a fair grade. If we cut to the quick you and Mr Collins can give me a quick verbal quiz on a variety of subjects. You can have the rest of the morning quizzing me yourself but from time to time I reserve the right to ask my own questions." This time I got a smile and he said, "Sounds fine to me. Where would you like to have our talk?" "Janitor's room and you can sit by the window when you smoke. I don't have to be bothered and it is in an informal setting." "The janitor's room it is, Mr Congdon." I turned to Mr Collins, "Please inform Paige that I have taken a new student under my wing for assessment." He tried to hold his smile when he said, "I will do just that Jeff." I shook the door and opened it slower that I could have. Mr Fritz would not like it that we invaded his inner sanctum and even less if a superintendent caught him loafing. Mr Fritz was busy when we came in and I introduced both men with no titles. "Mr Fritz, I would like to have a talk here so that it is away from most of the school. I am not kicking you out. Do whatever jobs you want or sit and listen. I am giving and getting a private test." "On what Jeff?" "On the grade eight curriculum to start then perhaps some high school subjects. Mr Flaherty will be tested on school board policy and the law." "Really, I wouldn't mind hearing that last part myself." "You are free to listen." It started out with specific one or only a few word answers but I was quick to answer each of them. After five minutes I put up my hand. "What is the board's policy on finding out that a student is severely beaten by his of her parents?" The answer was much too short and I fished for a clearer answer. "Come on now Mr Flaherty. The school board is not a mother figure for all students but it isn't blind. That criminally negligent." "Criminally negligent, Mr Congdon?" "Sure, if you are not following the law. You could even have a law suit if proper procedures are not followed." The man almost turned blue. "Will you give me a detailed answer within a week Mr Flaherty?" "I can do that," he got out with difficulty. "Then you can quiz me now. It is your turn." The questions now were much more difficult and required a detailed answer with all sorts of extra points. Half the time I got Mr Flaherty's opinion for he was not a lawyer. Other opinions were just how far I could work within the framework of the board. I chuckled internally for he had never reached for the package of cigarettes I knew he carried. We were doing Canadian geography last and I mentioned a good detail of some of the cities. I had been in them many times but they had changed over the years. My own questions now dealt with features of the cities that an adult may or may not know. Usually this was a museum or a theatre for I couldn't ask about the best nightspot or the best musical group that played at a bar in town. "You seem to know a great deal more than just your grade eight studies. How did this come about?" "Some of this that information is not going to be told, even to you. Some information I will give you alone. The rest is just what I have mentioned to others." "Ok." "My home life is not what you would expect and I do not want any questions on that. A boy has dreams that start perhaps with his first thoughts. My dreams I think were much larger than any one else's. I only had a few acquaintances and no friends except Paige. If you do an investigation of the school and the public library you will find my library card number on a great many books. Some were fiction but most were history, geography, electricity, chemistry, physics and mathematics. The last, so I could speak in the language of the previous three subjects. "My dream is to remake the world as I want it to be. I am not becoming a megalomaniac but I can see myself being a positive influence in what will happen. All this is still only a dream with a nebulous means of achieving my goals. "One day I was hit by lightning. In the hospital bed and in a great deal of pain, that could not be chemically held at bay, I realised that I had to start or it would always be just a dream. "What was holding me back before was my own ultra cautious attitude in my dealing with people. Shy didn't even begin to cover the way I was. Some people have 'seen the light'. This happened to me and it was probably over a million volts. A boy instinctively knows he will live forever but I don't see that any more. "If I can convince enough people that my dreams are attainable then they can help me to reach them. Some of my dreams are easy, like ideas to get rich. Others are more difficult because the demand that our culture changes. Self interest or greed will motivate people to getting rich but it is difficult to convince people to change even if it is for the better." "Mr Congdon, how is it easy to get rich? Many men have tried and failed." "Many have not tried as hard as they should. Some may have failed because of poor planning, a poor choice in something like a location, not reading the market correctly or just bad luck. Others failed because of insufficient funds or a myriad other reasons." Mr Flaherty asked, "I was told your mathematics would lead to advances in physics." "It's much more like practical physics that can be turned into money. That particular project you mentioned should net me well over fifty million dollars and give a good shot at a Nobel Prize. Others ideas are as lucrative but will take more years to reach that figure. My inventions will give me the money to get into retailing. The money gained can be used for the maximum good." The man just looked at me with a serious face. "The figures you gave me are beyond what I can even comprehend." "I am glad you didn't scoff or even laugh outright at my ideas. One day you would have to eat those words and be one of the doubters until you saw the money before you." "No, Jeff, if anybody could do it, it would be you, on determination alone if necessary. Tell me though about the questions you put to me? I am not aware of any serious problems." "There are many in a population as large as ours. They have not been brought to light though. Some are caused by apathy on the part of supposedly responsible adults that takes the form of inertia. The more serious problem is rape of a school girl by her father and now one brother." "That has to be reported Jeff. It is a crime and the police and Children's Aid will do what they can." "The rape started when the girl was ten and has continued for six years. The girl is petrified of her father and with good reason. Her mother is of no help because she too is frightened even though she now knows what is going on." "Tell me the name and I will see that it is fixed." "The girl is too frightened to even voice the complaint. There are even stronger reasons for treading lightly. One reason is that I have given my word. You might want to talk to the board but — " "But what Jeff?" "I have to think on this more. Perhaps we better leave Mr Fritz to his duties and maybe we can continue this talk over a burger and fries." I wasn't worried about carcinogens or cholesterol yet. I got that look and he said, "Fine, there is a place nearby." "Is you wallet thick enough for my girlfriend too?" This time he really laughed and just patted me on the back. It was not quite lunchtime and we talked quietly in the hall. We timed it very well for we made it to the door of our class just as the bell rang. Paige had a worried look but I smiled to her. The class scurried out and the two men had some words. Paige came close. "We are going on our first business lunch. We are obliged to speak of something that would encourage or benefit our company." "What company, Jeff?" "At the moment it will be our fledgling retail outlet." "The TV?" "Sure, we can even start now." When the men finished their own talk I said, "Gentlemen, I am the proud owner of a reconditioned television receiver. It is presently for sale at a cost of sixty dollars." The increase in price left me more room to move. The two men thought of what I mentioned and Mr Flaherty simply said, "Interesting." We drove to the local restaurant and I ordered without looking at the menu. To avoid problems and undue hesitation I ordered for Paige too. "What is this business I heard you mentioning to this young lady?" "We are working on seed money to make a larger company to provide a larger seed. The particular company I mentioned repairs electronic devices. Other companies will provide a service with a much smaller initial investment." "What other companies besides your repair service?" "A while ago I mentioned my dreams. Some young people have already heard of my dreams and joined me. This young lady beside me was the first." The lady in question blushed at the words. "My sisters and their friends have followed. We will wash cars, cut grass, clean garages, do windows, and I will do household repairs. The businesses should be very profitable and much of this money will go to those that helped me reach the dreams." "If you say they will be profitable, then I will take your word. Having some pretty young ladies to help you would be a great advantage." We ate our food and talked after. Food tasted richer with young taste buds and this was the first burger I had eaten in a long time. Paige was asked questions and she answered them with care. Mr Flaherty tried to be careful in the way he came across. I asked, "A few days ago a man by the name of Goldbalm came to my class. He neither greeted me nor attempted to follow any of the social norms. I deduced that he was probably a psychiatrist but nobody has told me anything about him other than he wants to talk to me. Later that day he tried to force his way into my mother's house then into Paige's home. A quick swing of a cane was the only reason he was dissuade from getting in. The man is persistent but sees the rest of us as animals fit only for his study." Flaherty was hesitant to speak but then said, "We heard a great deal about him and from him. He wanted your records and even wanted to talk to everyone that knew you." I said, "The man gets his way by being intimidating. I assume he got to see the records though it is against board policy." Flaherty looked embarrassed but didn't answer one way or the other. "He came to the board office later but Mr Goods had already talked to us. He got far less cooperation from us. Memos were sent to principles detailing board policy in this matter." "Well at least one of the changes I wanted to instigate has been started even if I had to pay for it. The man is not stable and has been harassing students and their parents. If he had been polite and acted more human I would have given him most of the information I have given you. Of course he would want tests and I wasn't about to pander to his newest area of investigation." "Jeff, I noticed that you use a great many words that a boy your age would not even know never mind use in casual conversation. I heard you were not that way before." "I put myself in an adult world. To converse with many in this world I need to speak the language and not be heard as a child. My pitch is still high and there is nothing I can do about it. The best I can do is my choice of words." "You spoke of tests. Would you be interested in taking some for the board?" "I will take standard tests that everybody else is compelled to take. My IQ and knowledge are my property. It is the same property that I hope to make a great deal of money with. My conception of a person's basic rights and freedoms is different than what you may see. Privacy of information is important now because in the future it will be sold in wholesale lots and any person can use it to gain an advantage on another." "How can this happen Jeff? There are problems in getting this information from schools now." "I see some trends that others don't quite see yet. The American government is using the Univac computer to assist in processing tax forms. The machine is new but the field is in its infancy. I believe that it will grow much faster than even the optimists see. Computers will get very powerful and very cheap. All companies and governments will use them. To use the data efficiently means the data is shared. Some unscrupulous people will want this data for their own use. "Think what I could deduce from your federal and provincial tax records alone. When compared to property records and local tax assessments I would know how to attack you if I wished. "Banks will have intimate information about you on a computer. The information may be privileged but it can be accessed by somebody determined to find something out." He said, "I see what you mean Jeff but that sounds like those robot movies where an automaton attacks people." "Those concepts are too far into the future but what I mentioned will be possible in two decades and will get progressively worse." Mr Flaherty was quiet as he drove us back to school. He had a lot to think about; I was pleased that he seemed to take me seriously. When we parted I don't think he saw me as a boy any more. At the second recess Paige said with wide exciting eyes, "The girls are always wanting to find out about you. At the first recess they mobbed me." "Did you tell them how good I kiss?" She turned all red and whimpered, "I can't do that." I had my class after school and Mr Flaherty was in it and taking notes. Mr Collins drove us home. Paige and I went into her home to the smell of home baked cookies. "Hi Mom, that smells good. Do you need a taste tester?" "Hello you two. Sit and I will get you some." We got a communal plate and two glasses of milk. I told Nora about the superintendent and our lunch to explain how we brought our own lunches back. When Paige and I had been living together she was only a fair cook. There was more than one way to learn though and she could get another chance of doing better. "Paige Honey, your mother is a good cook. She knows a lot and it would be a shame to not get as much knowledge as you can. One day you will leave this home. It may be to go to college or university. I don't want you or us to starve. Will you learn what you can?" Paige smiled, she saw my request as a way for her to take care of her man and her family. "Another thing it does is give you a chance to talk with your mother and just be with her. It is good for both of you and even factors in to the restrictions you parents want on us." She didn't like the idea of restrictions but I added, "A young family need a great deal of information to succeed. Making good food is one but learning how to change diapers and washing clothes are important too. Now make me a big batch of oatmeal cookies." I continued by saying, "Mom, if you invite my family over here tomorrow I will make a large pot of stew." "You can cook or is your mother going to make that?" "Fight on, my men, sayes Sir Andrew Bartton, I am hurt but I am not slain; Ile lay mee downe and bleed a while And then Ile rise and fight againe." Nora asked, "What was that about?" "A Scottish ballad that mentioned a man wounded like I was by your words of doubt. I will make the food mentioned though I may get my stalwarts to peal the potatoes and another to simmer the stew tomorrow." "Well we will see you tomorrow for supper and I want to talk to your stalwarts when they come." I kissed Paige then Nora but much more like a mother. Jane was home and had time for a bath. She was currently in a bathrobe and working to make our supper. "You look lovely in that robe." Jane smiled at me and said, "I wish all the others were as romantic." "Was your weekend fun? You look happy." "Oh, I am happy I guess. I feel sated but I am missing something." She said this while looking at my crotch. "Did you put my features over those of the men before you?" "Oh, yes I did. I seemed to get a lot more excited when I did this and the men liked it. Even Sara commented and liked the way I did it." "Sara runs the business?" "Yes, she and Mary. They used to be in the trade and joined forces to buy the house we work in." Jane looked at my face but her eyes went down to my crotch one more time. Her eyes were not just lustful but something more serious. I said, "Are you really fully sated?" I couldn't help feeling that she may think that she was too soiled for me now that I knew how she made her extra money. We were back downstairs by the time the girls came home. Jane was not really happier but now she looked calm and I think content was the best word. Jennifer was the odd girl this time and she seemed to be in much better spirits. We took up homework and studied until supper was ready. While Mom prepared our meal I asked, "Jane, I want to set up a budget. I need to know how much our bills add up to and how much is coming in." Jane was not averse to giving me the information. Some was a guess because she didn't know the exact figure. After supper she brought down a square metal cookie container with the information about what the government was giving her. There was a hundred and thirty two dollars and seventeen cents in cash. Jane got her purse and dumped twenty two dollars and fifteen cents into the can. I looked at her while she did this and I could see that she was happy. I suspected that she was this way because now she would not be in charge of the money. The responsibilities would now be on my shoulders. I got blank sheets of paper and I had the girls write out our fixed costs including things that had to be paid on a bi-monthly basis or yearly. The government cheques were put against this. Jane answered our questions about food costs so we had an idea of what was before us. She happily mentioned that the cost of cigarettes was not going to be a hindrance anymore. "I am cutting back on my drinking." She looked at me. "Should I quit Jeff?" "How much a week do you drink now?" When she told me, I cut the figure in half. It was hard enough cutting out cigarettes without having to worry about booze too. She wasn't too disappointed or maybe it was relieved that it wasn't everything. We also found out that our rent was a lot more than it was on paper. The house was large and fairly expensive. Some of Jane's other income went into paying the rent. She had to hide the income somehow and the landlord was happy to not pay tax on the extra he got. Paige came over now with a container of cookies that she had made and a few of her mother's. She kissed all of us and called Jane Mom. Jane liked this and hugged her tighter. We talked about the cookies and I had to try a few. Paige's of course had to be better but then again I like oatmeal better. The girls tried some too and complimented Paige's effort. I told my ladies, "Paige and I had a serious talk with her parents. I told them that I want Paige for my wife when she gets old enough." This was serious talk and the girls congratulated us but mostly Paige. My girl beamed at this as if she were sporting a large belly. This was grownup talk with grownup ideas. "I didn't tell them that I may have other ladies wanting to be my wife too but that doesn't have to be dealt with for quite a few years." This would lesson Paige's smile but increase the rest. "We're making out a budget. It's something all of us have to do in life. For a family it can be simple, but even a large business has to budget or it will get into trouble." This was a real life situation and we had fun putting money where it had to go. Dates where bills were due were compared with when the money to pay the bills came in. Paige had to leave though she wanted to stay. "I am going home and telling Mom what we are doing. It makes us look more responsible." The girls went upstairs to study in the bedroom while I fielded the calls coming in from the four other girls. We heard a few groans and screams upstairs so Jane and I knew that the lessons were well received. I cut up some sheets of paper in half and wrote out the ads by hand for the upcoming carwash. I listed our main attribute as beautiful girls. Most men would come to the wash anyway. I needed to check on hoses, soap and the many other things needed to clean a car. I would try to get the supplies with my bike tomorrow because none of my girls were coming over. My hand was getting tired but I added a few more about the TV. With everybody busy I had time to work on the cabinet. Two hours later I was happy with the result. This should work out to $2.50 an hour and this was good money for this portion of the century. When some bright eyed and bushy tailed girls came downstairs we talked of places to post the notices and we even had to make a few more. Jennifer went home in the daylight with some of the notices that she could post along the way. All three would be taking some to school so they could cover as much of the town as possible. I spent the rest of the night getting the stew ready. It was not Jane's recipe but I liked it. When I was twelve before I had made meals but they were usually simple. Jane promised to heat the stew up for tomorrow. It was always better the second day anyway. ------- Chapter 10 The next day I needed to pick up my supplies. Canadian Tire was closer to the school but I drove home with Paige because of my after school class. It used to be our time but now she remained quiet in the car. Jane knew of my shopping expedition and I took enough money to cover our purchases. I was home an hour later. I put the supplies aside and cleaned up. Susan carried the stew next door because of the weight. The girls and Jane were quizzed as to how much they had done for the meal. I was given some compliments back now for my own cooking. The pot was empty for the return trip, I was happy they enjoyed my cooking. Someone called about the television later that night but they didn't sound enthusiastic to be buying from someone with my voice. On Wednesday we had a non-dry run on our auto cleaning enterprise. The Vachone's had either driven or loaned their car to us many times. Jane had done favours in return; still we were indebted to them and would occasionally need to borrow the car. Karen and Faith assisted us this time and didn't feel too bad about exposing themselves as long as they were with three other girls. I went over what had to be done and why it had to be done in this order. The types of cleaning were also listed on a chart with the price. Jane said, "Jeff, you don't expect people to pay these kinds of prices, do you?" "Jane, they will pay gladly. You could even rent chairs if they could get close enough to the girls to see their backsides better." Nora stood with us as the girls worked and when Jack came home Susan got him to bring his car close so he could get a complimentary cleaning. People had stopped to watch the girls work. Neighbours came out not only to see the girls but to be in the growing crowd. Young boys came then fled only to return with more of their kind. Young girls came to see what the competition was like. It took a long time to do one car but the five girls didn't mind when they could work together. Old man Vachone was out inspecting his car and his wife was making sure his false teeth didn't fall out when he stared. Nora and Jack started to circulate and talk to the more vocal of our neighbours. The idea was to guide the crowd before they started to come to a different opinion than what I wanted. The girls too took breaks and talked to the neighbours to show that they were just healthy young girls. The boys drooled and my girls giggled but not too loudly at the boys' antics. The girls were seeing that what I said, was true. I couldn't explain that I had forty years of advertising experience but apparently I didn't have to. When the first car was done Susan bent at the hips to clean nothing. She was right in front of old man Vachone. He didn't have a heart attack and that was only because she stood up fairly quickly pretending to wipe something from her fingers. I went forward as the straw boss and asked the Vachone's if they liked the job. They spoke poor English so I spoke in French. They were indeed happy with the job because the girls had cleaned the entire car and even put a coat of wax on. Jack's car was done fifteen minutes later and it looked immaculate. The girls were very proud of what they had done and so was I. Jack gave his own thanks and I knew he meant every word of it. In a loud voice I called to everybody within earshot. "Hello neighbours. These beautiful girls and three more of their friends have formed a small company to make money for their education. You all saw how hard they worked. The quality of their efforts is very high. Anybody would be proud to have a car prepared by these angels. For the next two days we are having a reduced rate for the services offered. You might have noticed that the prices are high but you will not be able to get a better job done anywhere." Still talking loudly, I said, "Good job my angels," and started to clap my hands. Jane, Nora and Jack clapped too then everybody did. The girls smiled widely, blushed deeply and looked at their feet. The girls started to put things away; but the young boys wanted to help. The girls caressed the boy's heads and the lads ran to do their bidding. I knew that if the boys were older they would have a wet spot in their pants. The girls were very excited when they got inside. I also knew what they needed. "Girls, go upstairs and have a quick shower and rest in the bedroom for an hour or so." Jane smiled at me. "You know what they are going to be doing?" "That was why I sent them. They were ready to explode they were so excited. You better make some tea because there is a fair chance we will get some visitors." "You better tell the girls to be quiet and close their door too." "I better call out. If I go up there I may not be able to get away." Jane laughed so much she had to sit and she still laughed. When I called from the bottom of the steps, "Girls, we may have visitors. Please keep it down until they leave." In a second I heard all five say "Yes Jeffery," in unison. The Vachone's came in and offered some money for our work. I turned on the charm and kissed the missus and said to both, "I am thanking you for all the times you have helped us. I even came home a while ago from the hospital in your car." Soon they had a cup of tea and then more neighbours came in. One was Nora and she looked around for her daughter and I pointed up and whispered, "Hen party." With more people coming, I put more water on and then washed the cups of those that had left. Paige and Nora's cookies were offered and duly complimented. Most of our guests were women and it became a much larger gathering than I had anticipated. I took a break from playing host and hurried upstairs as quick as possible. I tapped on the door and whispered, "It's me." The door was opened and once Susan saw that it was only me she pulled me in and kissed me. When I caught my breath I said, "Hmmmm that was nice but I have an idea." I looked around and there were all my girls and they had not bothered to hide. I rubbed my pecker even though it wasn't hard and said, "You guys are going to give me that problem again." This was good for a laugh and a few giggles. "There are a lot of old ladies downstairs, it would be good public relations if all of you came down and put on your best behaviour. Talk to them and ask their opinion on things and basically butter them up. If we get problems later they will be our front line troops." I was only kissed by each one once but them made a production out of it and I had to reach inside my pants to now move a small protrusion. When I got downstairs Nora smiled and straightened out my hair. In a whisper she asked in a phoney sympathetic voice, "Were they nasty to you?" I stuck out my lower lip and tried to look like I was going to cry. "You don't know what the sacrifices I have to make." Nora laughed so loud that she had to hold the counter. The rest stopped their conversations to look at her. I went back to circulating and mentioning that this was partially done to help the girls pay for college. Plugs were put in about gardening, grass cutting and even window washing. To one group of old ladies I said, "Did you know that the girls made their own outfits. They even purchased the material and patterns. They had me carry them home. Not that many girls these days do things like that." The women readily agreed; and they would really be appalled at what it would be like in the future. The girls came down dressed very demurely. They split up and spent time with the various groups of women. Susan, Maggie and Paige introduced Karen and Faith then went looking for targets themselves. The two men in attendance hightailed it when they saw the girls were not in their uniforms. Nora went home for more cookies and some purchased deserts. Jane mentioned to the ladies she was standing with, "Did you know that Jeff can fix televisions and radios? He does a great job. He even gives a two-month warranty when other places only give thirty days. He has one used television for sale now." The women now asked how good I was and Jane gave the biased answers that were expected of her. I was running all over fetching tea and snacks when Nora returned. She had a selection of different pastries and two homemade pies. I did dishes as quick as I could because flatware was in constant demand. The girls were dressed as if going to church and I couldn't expect them to help. One of the older women pushed me aside and made a quick job of what I had been struggling with. Mrs Cooper came over and helped me with another load. "My son tells me you are doing difficult mathematics at school. He tells me the teachers sit in so they can learn." "They are sitting in to learn but they want to learn what I can build. I can't explain it without mathematics. It's similar to the new math being introduced, except it is more advanced." "What are you working on?" "The thing I want to make first can be used for the telephone. It will allow the same system to carry more calls and be quicker too. I can finish washing. I think we may have to get more cups. Mom likes her friends to come over. It makes her feel good. She hasn't been very well since I got hurt." "The poor woman. I know just how she feels." In another minute she was done and dried her hands. She patted my head and said, "You are a good son." The women left slowly and the girls stayed to act like true ladies. As soon as they could they ran upstairs probably to resume their interrupted activities. They stayed up there until it was time to leave then they trooped down the stairs, kissed me and left. This was much more abrupt than usual but I was still happy for them. Even Paige hurried home but not before a kiss for both her new mom and me. Jane was happy enough with the evening that and she was even humming to herself. I wasn't sure if it was from Paige's kiss or the fact that she had just hosted an impromptu party. Susan and Maggie were closeted in their room. They came out later and wanted me to tuck them in. I did so in one bed and said, "You girls were fabulous today. You worked exceptionally hard at doing the cleaning then you came across as very sophisticated ladies that would make any man proud. I know because I was and so was everyone else that was here." Susan said, "I love you too Jeff." Maggie pulled me close and after a kiss said, "I love you too." Later I said the same to Jane but I knew she still needed her pacifier. I slept very well. It was drizzling the next morning but not much. Mom was up and I gave her a breakfast that made us both need to relax for a while. I ate some eggs and toast before the girls wandered down. They were ladies last night. I loved them all the more for it. When they took their lunch they found a quarter each in front of their lunch bags. A small bottle of Coke cost five cents and this money would last them for a few days. I got a big hug then so did Jane. Next door I had a small coffee and got back into my raincoat so Paige and I could walk to school. The light rain and a stiff breeze gave us a good reason to cuddle. The rain cleared up by recess and it turned out to be a beautiful day by lunch. My math class didn't have Mr Flaherty but I didn't expect him. The class had enough math by now and I could start teaching them physics. None of the physics was taught in university because they didn't know about coherent light. It had yet to be postulated, let alone described much less described mathematically. On the way home I told Mr Collins, "We have our carwash business started. Today and tomorrow we are having an introductory special. The price is still not cheap but our service is actually the best. I guarantee that nobody does better." I explained about the two cars yesterday and the reaction of the crowd. The uniform was not emphasised but it was mentioned. Mr Collins slowed down and had to laugh at my verbal imaging. Paige was getting red and I said, "The one that made me breathe faster was Paige. There is something about girls that I don't understand but it is interesting." Paige's home was visited first and I said to Nora as I slipped up beside her and kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you Mom for helping out so much yesterday. I know we couldn't have done nearly as well without you and your husband's help." She gave me a kiss back on the cheek too and said, "You need your start. If my daughter wants to keep you then this will help her. If she doesn't then it will help you. Sit down, I made some more cookies." Ten minutes later Jane got her snack and we rested on the bed. "Do you still like me Jeff? I am a whore — " I slapped her face. "You are my woman. I will tell you if you are a whore or not. You are a passionate woman that needs something that a young son cannot give to you yet. When you have sex unprotected or do it without my permission I will be very angry with you. I don't want you coming home with a disease or a baby growing in your womb. You are learning again how to be a good mother. Don't make me angry by calling yourself a whore." She cuddled close to me. I had not hit her hard and in a way I think that what I had done was reassuring and perhaps what dad would have done. All the girls came over to the house today. They stood a chance of making some money although not as much as when the weekend came. I was down to meet them as they filed in. They kissed me in procession then they ran upstairs to change into their 'work clothes'. When they returned, they went into the front room and faced the front window and the street. I didn't catch what was happening but as I stood in front of them. Each one had a smile on her face and though her face was pointing forward her eyes were looking up. I turned to see what they were looking at and heard all of them giggle at me. I looked back and noticed some fancy script sewn above their left breasts. In large letters it said, 'Jeffery's Angels'. Above the right breast was their name: 'Angel Sandy', 'Angel Maggie' and so on. I had to smile wide then broke into a laugh until I had to lean on a chair. Looking at the left breast I broke into laughter once again. The girls began to get upset so I tried very hard to control myself. "I am not laughing at your great idea but to something I remember. It — anyway it's a fantastic idea though only I will get the joke." Paige got out of line and held me to her. "Tell me about the joke Honey. I want to know too." I had to think now. "There was a story somewhere about a detective agency. All of the private detectives were ravenously beautiful ladies. They could hurt a man with just a pout of their beautiful lips. They could shoot a gun like a marksman. They knew a form of Oriental fighting called karate. They were all brave, bright, resourceful and of course deadly. Charlie was the man that owned the company so the beautiful ladies were known as 'Charlie's Angels'. "All I have to do is teach you to shoot and have you learn karate and I will have it made. We can go to Hollywood and make not only movies, we can make a television series." The girls were jumping up and down now, their breasts were doing wonderful things. "I had not considered movie scripts but it is possible that we can make a few movies if I can get enough money. I need a name for myself. The songs need to be written. That will get me in the front door and with a lot of money too. Hmmmm maybe do some scripts and sell them to movie studios. Hmmm 'Jaws', 'Ben-Hur' will be out soon, 'E.T.', 'The Graduate', 'Psycho', 'Star Wars', hmmm." "What are you talking about Jeff?" Oh, oh thinking out loud. "Sorry just sorting ideas that can make some money. If I can sell some movie scripts and some songs we can pick up a goodly amount of change. Now if you girls could sing, I could get you into making records and you could be the music stars. I can still sell the songs but it is better for somebody else to play the music for it to sell." Now the girls were really excited. I would even give them this if it meant their future success but I wasn't even sure if they could sing. I turned the radio on and said while waiting for it to warm up, "I love you all. I know each of you girls loves the others. There is no need to be shy or think that you are offending anyone. I want you to sing. You can improve a lot with practice, but professional singers are born to sing. You may be too and don't know it. Will you try for me?" The girls were all dancing on their toes. "Girls, if I have to write the songs you have to practice. I cannot do both all the time. Susan, you are in charge of getting each girl to practice. If any of my angels has a chance I will have to hire a professional to get their opinion. A car pulled up outside and I saw that it had three young men were in it. One got out and looked around, probably checking addresses. "We may have to go to work ladies and have singing lessons later." I went outside with a notebook and pen, "Hello, were you gentlemen looking to get your car cleaned? We have various specials today and tomorrow all performed by a group of dedicated angels. The girls by now were on the steps and walking toward the boys. They swayed as they walked but didn't do it to extremes. The other two guys got out of the car very quickly and lined up to see the girls. It took a full moment before the driver said, "How much?" I presented him with a chart with corresponding prices. He almost choked on the figures. "Today and tomorrow it's half price as our special. You will not find a better job done anywhere." The girls at this time were smiling while some got the equipment to do this job or the job for the next one that could afford the prices. When Susan came back she pulled her blouse that was already open as if to get some cool air. In a moment she wiggled her shoulders and the blouse opened even more. An open area now extended down to her navel and was three inches wide. The men drooled and didn't know what to do other than stare. The girls acted like nothing unusual was happening. Maggie shrugged her shoulders too, but was currently talking to Angela. She reached out and held her breast and tried to move her small bra. This was not lost on the young men either. "Gentlemen, do you wish to get your vehicle cleaned?" "Ah — yeah. Wait a minute." They went into a huddle and in a moment they pulled out their wallets and came up with the funds for the cheapest cleaning. I was handed the money and I checked them off. "Ladies, these gentlemen would like our number seven cleaning. Please ensure that you clean the grill, for I see that it has a lot of insects." The young men left the car and the girls rolled up the windows and began to wet the car in preparation to washing. Susan and Maggie picked up the heavy floor model radio and put it on the veranda then got two extension cords so power could be supplied. The washing continued while Susan found a station. When she found what she liked she turned the volume louder than this radio had ever experienced. The girls started to sway and dance as they washed the car. Some tried to sing as they had been asked before. Susan hurried down the steps and she too began to dance and sing as she cleaned. A car screeched to a stop as it got in front of us then just stayed there as the young man watched what was going on. I walked over with my chart and notebook. "Hello, we are having a carwash with half price special today and tomorrow. You will not find a better job anywhere no matter which plan you choose." "What?" "You pay money, girls wash car. Get in line now." The man took off like a shot and turned around to get next in line. I went over to the driver again. "A low price plan has the girls working on your car for a short time. The high price plan has them crawling all through your car getting sweaty and dirty as they clean it spotlessly. The prices are half of those listed today and tomorrow." I handed the sheet and the man looked at the high prices and at the girls. A hand unconsciously went down to his crotch to adjust himself then he looked at the chart. "I'll take the deluxe. Does that include cleaning the trunk?" This had not come up so I said, "Four dollars if it is close to empty and eight if they have to unload and load again." "I'll take the whole thing," and he opened his wallet and handed me the money. Susan was working on the back bumper of the car in front and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself. "Angel Susan, will you escort this gentleman to a seat. He appreciates your fine efforts and not only wants the deluxe but also the trunk. The keys are in the ignition." Susan really brightened and not only opened the door for the young man but put her arm in his and escorted him to the front steps to sit beside the other three men. When the first car was done the men were reluctant to leave. They had to push through a crowd now to move their car. I stood beside it and said, "Have you ever seen your car look this good?" The driver said, "Oh it's beautiful. All of them are beautiful." "They certainly are. They are all angels." The yard and surrounding properties were beginning to fill up with spectators. I had waited to talk to prospective customers until the trunk of the car we were working on was started. I managed to have a quiet word to Susan and Jennifer. They were the tallest and best able to lean into the trunk. "Jennifer, the trunk has to get cleaned for a very good price. You don't wiggle as much as the other girls and I think the reason is that you don't want to entice them and have them take advantage of you. I don't want that either. We can try an experiment. You wiggle your bum beside Susan and try to drive the poor guy crazy. We are all here to see that you are not hurt. In fact all the men around here would love to come to your rescue so you would just bat your eyes at him." "I can try." Susan said, "Jen, it'll be fun. Try to make him pop a zipper. If he touches you I will pound him into the ground." I waited until the song stopped and then the few words between songs. The driver came over and got the keys from the ignition. Susan even opened the door for him. The music had started and she danced beside him instead of walking. The trunk had few articles and Susan even got the man to remove the spare tire and jack then all the other small things that she should be doing. She bent over into the trunk now and wiggled her cute buns to the music. Jennifer and the man watched and the reaction was nearly the same. Jennifer though was able to pull herself out of the trance and begin herself. The man held the jack and tire iron in one hand. Coincidentally, the plate that went on the ground conveniently covered a large bulge in his pants. More men and boys from the lined up cars came over to see how good the job could be done and assess their own needs for this service. The rest of my girls liked the attention but now found that their primary audience had shifted to the trunk. The man was a good customer, he even put his jack and spare tire back. As a reward I asked him to stay and rest. The girls took breaks in succession. Instead of sitting they went to the groups of women and talked to them. If they could form a small bond then the older women might see the angels as one of their group, and thus be able to let themselves feel what the angels felt. They all could see the reaction on the men. Car washing proved to be very lucrative. The girls shared in the profits and brought home more money than many men for the same number of hours worked. They also worked very hard for their money. They cleaned and entertained the customers and anybody else that could get near. They talked to the older women about domestic duties as if they had not known of many. The new teachers took them under their wings, so to speak, and I was sure they would soon start to talk about what the music or dancing and how it effected the males. The girls' bodies or the clothing that revealed it, was downplayed. When the car washing was done, the girls told me of impending tests and I scheduled them so they would have time to study. Not everyday was a workday because of rain. Occasionally the girls did work in the rain and the men had trouble with a large bulges in each of their pants. The wet clothing stuck tightly to the girls nubile bodies so the men could see all the delicious curves. When the days were warm enough one or another would get sprayed very well then laugh at the effect. This drew attention to her and the other girls could relax a bit. The girls were ladies away from our assembly line and this blunted much of the criticism of their dress from those people too conservative to accept change. They even took what the ladies taught them and brought samples for examination. Many times it was cooking but sometimes it was a particular stitch. During the third week in May, all my bandages were removed. I was not a pretty sight. Last time I had remained scarred for life although it was not that bad. I was able to get into the Air Force. This time though, with enough money I could get some help in removing the scars, or at least in the more visible areas. I even remembered a bit in a nature show that talked about growing a patient's own skin to cover areas when scar tissue was removed. If I could do 'discover' this, then I could make some money too. The local newspaper interviewed me. I took control of the meeting with the single reporter who happened to be the publisher. I gave the messages I wanted sent out but made it interesting for the readers. Mr Chile was a little miffed at my self-promotion but happy that he got something more interesting that he originally thought. I got his card so I could inform him of future newsworthy information. ------- Chapter 11 The next week, I took my bike out to do some shopping. Goldbalm must have been watching for me because he approached inside the store. I pushed the shopping cart down the aisle when I heard, "Jeff, will you take a few moments to have a chat with me?" I was shocked and frightened. We were in a grocery store, a location that was public enough for me to feel slightly safer. I screwed up my courage and said, "Goldbalm you start a conversation as if we had been introduced or that we had at least said hello. For your information we have not. I find your attitude not only unprofessional but also offensive to me. I do not want to talk to you now or in the future. I told you to leave me alone before and now I'm telling you again. Leave me alone! Do not come near me. The same thing goes for my family and friends." My voice has slowly risen so that it was easy for shoppers to hear what I said. I dearly hoped that some would come near. I turned and just pushed the cart a few yards away and looked at a can of peas. I didn't want the peas or to be pushed around by this man. Goldbalm came close instead of leaving. He put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed. I had no open sores but his grip was still painful. As a doctor, he knew just where to pinch. The man said, "I only want to talk for a few — " I was groaning in pain, though I was being theatrical. When I looked around, I saw four women were looking at me in shock. I bent over more and said, "You are hurting me, stop!" At the same time that Goldbalm was talking to me. The back of my fist caught Goldbalm in the nuts. His grip left my shoulder. My other hand came back with the can of peas and I drove it into the man's face as he was already contorted in pain. Once was enough. He fell to the floor and the women raced to me. I groaned in pain though it was not as bad now. The police came and I gave my statement, as did one of the four women that stayed to back up my claim of being attacked. The manager of the store was there also. He had been nice after hearing all four women's story before the police came. I added about Goldbalm pursuing me and not leaving me alone when asked. The witness had heard me say this and corroborated my statement. Goldbalm though showed little emotion, although his eyes now seemed to glow with more interest. It was as if the pain had happened to someone else. I finished my purchases. At the register with the battered can in my hand, I asked the manager, "Do you offer discounts for scratched and dented cans?" The man laughed and put the can into my bag. A stock boy of about seventeen helped me get the groceries into the carrier on my bike and even gave me a push to get me going. The girls were upset about what had happened at the market. I was more troubled than I let on. I still didn't see Goldbalm leaving me alone. The girls were extra careful now and not only watched for odd cars but went home during the daylight or caught a ride. There was more money to use thanks to my angels, so I talked to a few lawyers in town. All were incredulous that I would want to hire them. Some were more sympathetic; and the best one of these I hired. James Mason was a young lawyer and quite angry at the radio and now a particular television show. The station had a very popular program about a brilliant lawyer by the name of Perry Mason. My suggestion to capitalise on the name instead actually got him more business. Last time, in the mid sixties, I was nineteen and in the Air Force. The songs that I played and sang then were from a variety of singers. I remembered the songs because I would play them for my fellow airmen. The 'Stones' had 'I Can't Get No Satisfaction. This was easily remembered because I had used my guitar and entertained many of my new friends. Elvis came out with 'Crying In The Chapel'. The Beach Boys had 'Help Me, Rhonda'. Although I didn't sing it to the guys I did sing 'Downtown' while seeing mental pictures of a miniskirted Petula Clark. The words came easily but I had to remember the music with the guitar. It took me three weeks to finish the songs. I then took them to the high school music teacher to see if there were any obvious mistakes. The woman had heard of my ability with math, so she freely helped me finish the four works. James (Perry) Mason, as he was called in later years, filled out the forms and got the four songs registered for copyrights. I sent the songs to various Canadian studios to see what they would offer me for any or all of the works. Goldbalm had his day in court and left town. I saw him back skulking around a week later. He had a court order now to stay far away from both my family and me. The restraining order didn't seem to bother the arrogant man. I went through many defensive measures with the girls including running to any nearby house and banging on the door. Usually a very good scream would frighten somebody off. The girls talked of self-defence training and I was all for it. A week later, I came across a small Asian community in North Bay. There were only five families so I was fortunate that some of the children could speak English. The various martial arts take many forms from slow, subtle movements, to striking with body parts, then up to the use of various hand weapons. Many Asian people, even the elderly, see this as a sport to be practised, and not just watched. I was in luck when I found one old gentleman who could do some of what I wanted. He was an amateur himself and didn't know very much but he did know more than the girls did. I had gone to the dojo for a few years when I was younger to develop my speed. I used a gym at home for strength and development. My incentive was not just my own body but a beautiful Chinese woman that I was trying to convince to marry me. Her family accepted me and I learned some of their rich culture and some of their spoken language, unfortunately the girl escaped me. The language, I partially knew, was of no help in the here and now. I found a boy of ten to interpret for me. I explained my needs and in a safe environment made slow moves that I wanted taught. The grandfather's words, through the boy, were, "Why do you want me to teach if you know what to do?" "My body has been damaged by lightning." This had a lot of symbolism for these people. "I must learn myself to move again and this will help me too. Many others may wish to learn from the Chinese and Japanese if there is a place to do so. Your family knows many others that in turn know even more people. Surely there is someone that is suited to teach one of the many forms of fighting. A business grows slowly like an oak tree but will be very strong when your descendants shelter under it." The actual dojo was a long time coming, and in fact it took two years. The old man and the boy helped the girls in the mean time to throw each other and to strike at vulnerable points. This was all a mishmash of styles but it was better than nothing. When karate became popular, then this would change. Now there were very few places for an Occidental to learn this sport. One day near the end of May, I noticed a small mouse under Angela's eye when she came to visit us. She didn't want to talk about it but I persisted. It was her brothers again. "Phone your parents and ask if you can invite a young man over for supper tonight." "But you won't like Italian food. We eat tripe sometimes and squid." "I don't like trippa that much but I like calamari if it's done right. Sometimes it's chewy but still a lot better than some things I've tasted. Tell me where your family came from and you can teach me some of the ways their dialect is different from the Italian I know." "You know Italian?" I knew a bit but of one particular dialect. I spoke slowly now in this way. "I can speak only a few words. It's what a child would know plus some words used in electronics. I learned to curse and swear but I'm sure your brothers know much more. Do you understand my words?" In English she said, "The words are close to what we speak so I have to think hard about each word. Some of the endings are different and some of the words I have to guess at." In English I said, "Many of the simple words are different. You would be amazed though at the words that are almost exactly the same for Italian, Latin, German, French and English. They are the words that are usually never used and thus never get a chance to be altered by common usage. "Now go to the telephone and call, or am I too ugly and deformed to let you feel comfortable with me at your home?" When she called, I heard the dialect. I knew how Angela felt. The words were difficult to follow and she spoke too fast as well. Her words were not really fast. The vowels came quickly and when I missed a word, I lost track of the conversation. I had learned some Latin in school. This had helped with the French I needed for the military, my friends and my business acquaintances. Italian was an easy language to learn especially when it shared so many of the same roots as the other languages. German though stood mainly by itself but even if it did have some Latin roots. The last half millennia of the Roman Empire was policed and run by the Germanic peoples. The Roman citizens were too busy following their own pursuits to join a poorly paid army. After Angela came back, Susan was whispering to her. It was probably about the new ability I just displayed. Angela's parents gave their ok. Most people in the world are naturally gregarious. They would give you their last crumb to eat and the shirt off their backs. After the Second World War things began to change. Still, in 1958, honour was very important and a handshake and a person's word was usually contract enough. By 2008, it took a battalion of lawyers to preside over even the simplest transaction. As time went on there were too many people that would take advantage of this till it was what we had in 2008. This was usually true of the peoples who worshipped money and what it would purchase. It was the poor people, the ones who thought of family first, who were the nicest and perhaps the sanest. Angela had difficulty speaking in Italian to anybody not family. Though I was family in a way I was still a 'manga cake', a cake eater; or a person that was not an Italian. Angela and I built up a number of nouns from identifying those articles around us. Verbs came from spoken English. I, in turn, gave the Latin words to show the similarity if there was any. Idioms abounded, we just had difficulty recalling them. It was fun pointing out body parts because there was slang in each language. Here I didn't know the Latin name because I had not gone into medicine. Nature shows and the various articles about a medical discovery were the best I could do. I only recalled a few words explained by doctors that had to do with the medical equipment I repaired. When the time came, I walked my bike and talked more to Angela. Not many boys would take a bike on a date. I had to get home and I was both comfortable with my girls and didn't have too many preconceived and faulty adolescent ideas. I greeted the parents in their own dialect which amazed them. They thought they knew all the local Italian families. The father, Giovanni, was short and strong with hair coming out his collar much like I would have in later years. The mother was rotund but was still quick on her feet. She held her weight well and had me sitting at the kitchen table as soon as possible. I even kicked off my shoes because of the pile of shoes near the door. "No, no leave them on. My floors are dirty." They weren't, but I said by way of an idiom, "I see no dirt; and when in Rome, do as the Romans do." Giovanni spoke too quickly to understand but then slowed down for me. In less than a minute I had a small glass of homemade wine and some sliced meats. I complimented the tastes though the prosciuto was salty. "Where did you learn to speak our language?" "I can speak Latin and French. Italian is much easier to learn then. Some of my fiends spoke Italian but not your dialect. Your lovely daughter has been giving me a lesson since she phoned you." Angela replied in English and I found that the parents didn't understand very well so I asked her to speak in Italian so I could learn. The boys were soon called and I shook their hands though they didn't see this as proper for a person of my age. They all looked like their father in build. The oldest was nineteen and working at the same mine my dad had worked at. The others ranged in ages from Stephano who was almost twenty, Flavio at eighteen, Mario a twin of Angela's at sixteen and Carlo, a boy of fourteen. The boys were not as friendly as the parents but stayed for our meal. The conversation was steered to their homeland and the province they came from. I had been to Italy three times and one time happened to be in Calabria where the family originated. Geography and history were very interesting and the area had lots to offer a tourist. There were scores of ruins with information about what had happened in certain battles and even why some of the wars were fought. The leaders were mentioned that took part in the battles, especially if they were famous. I started to repeat all that I remembered about the area north of Cosenza. Giovanni and his wife had been farmers as their predecessors had been. They believed, like many Canadians in 58, that the education of women beyond a certain level was a waste. The parents had not even known many of the things I mentioned. My focus was to point out honour in every instance I spoke about. Sometimes it was couched in terms of losing honour when attacking, while those that lost a battle seemed to have a flaw in their character that caused this. I had a captivated audience now. I explained the geography and even the fruit that was seldom found anyplace else in the world. I talked of the more recent history and again hammered honour as the reason for success, or the lack of honour as the reason for failure. I didn't have that much material to work with so I had to do the same travelogue but about other areas of Italy. It was easy to slip in the emperors this way. I named the bad emperors and what they were like and what they had done, then went onto the good emperors and extolled their honour and how their people prospered. When it looked like my point had sunk home, I asked my host about the farm he was born on. This was a good topic to them and they basically rehashed stories of old relatives and how good it was in Italy. It was not just them, but most people that immigrated to North America thought that it was great or better at 'home' but forgot the hard facts that had drove them to our shores in the first place. The conversation broke up and I managed to get the boys alone, although the oldest wanted to leave. Stephano sat with his brothers in one of the bedrooms upstairs. Everybody was sitting on a bed except me. "I wanted to talk to you guys," I said in English. "Tonight I talked of your ancestors and what honour brought them. Any of those people mentioned could have been one of your family even though some were two thousand years ago in the Republic. "The honour of your own family though is tarnished. Your ancestors would be ashamed at you. Hadrian would have been very severe if he were a close relative. You would be banished to some uncivilised place and left to rot. He would hope that the rest of the family forgot all about you." Carlo the youngest stood up ready to fight, "I have honour. You can't say that to me." The boy was four inches taller than me and even outweighed me by a good thirty pounds. I stared at him and said, "Yes I can because it's true. You're without honour and your family should disown you." He came closer menacingly with a fist. I quietly said but with a sneer, "Hit a boy younger and, smaller than you and one that needs a cane to get around. Hit me and show us how much honour your family really has." He stopped but stood over me thinking that he could still frighten me into taking my words back. "My family has more honour than yours does." "You're not only a man without honour but you're blind." "I'm not." "When was the last time you beat a woman up Carlo? A man of honour protects any woman. A man of honour protests his family. Will you beat your wife and whip your children? Tell me why you have honour." " — she deserved it." "You're a pitiful excuse for an Italian. You beat your sister because of words. Are you afraid that you're only part of a man that you need to pick on a woman?" Mario the next oldest tried to defend his brother. "Angela has a big fucken' mouth. She tells us what to do. I don't have to take any shit from her." "So you have big balls and no brains. I heard about you. You have the brains of a mouse and think you're smart. She says you're a pig and from what she tells me you are." "I'm not." "Let's go to your room, pig, and see if you live in a house as a human or in a pig sty." He didn't move. After a pause I added, "I didn't see your report card but I heard you're failing. You're told to study and you play with your friends and get into trouble. Lie and tell me you're smart. Lie and tell me you are doing fine in school. Now lie and tell me that you don't need somebody to beat the living shit out of you and make you do all the things that need to be done." The boy was ready to jump me and I just dared him with my look. I turned to the last two now. "You two used to beat up your sister too. You used your fists and feet on a girl. She was even much smaller than you." Flavio, the younger of the two said, "I can do that to you too. I don't give a fuck about honour." "Beat me Flavio. Your father is blind in some things. He thinks that his children will work things out. Beat me Flavio, and see what your father thinks of honour and the beatings of a guest that can hardly walk." The boy was ready to do this but his older brother held him back with a hand on his shoulder. I said quieter this time, "Honour is how our culture works now. You tell a man you will do something and you will. If you don't then you have lost honour. Word gets around and then anyone of importance thinks you're worthless." Flavio said, "When you leave I think I will slap my sister crazy for bringing you here." "Do that Flavio. You're even more stupid than your younger brothers. I'll come back and find you. I'll use my cane and try to beat you as hard as you beat your sister. You'll hurt me instead. You're too big. Your father will see a twelve-year-old boy with burns over his body that shakes when he walks and needs the cane to stand. What will your father do Flavio? Will he be like your younger brothers and stick up for you even if you're wrong? I don't think so. "When I get out of the hospital again, I'll go to your school and taunt you in front of all the school and your friends. I'll let the world know how much you and your brothers behave. Will you beat me then Flavio? Will you do it in front of your friends or when you can get me alone? When I come back, I will tell your friends what happened. Now you will see if you need honour or not." Pointing an accusing finger at the oldest brother Stephano. I said, "My father worked at the mine where you work. He died from breathing in the dust. The men in a mine have honour because they have to depend on each other to survive in a dangerous environment. They will not like to hear that one of their number let his younger brothers beat up his sister. Talk to your brothers about honour and especially how it affects your honour. If I find Angela hurt once more I'll take on all of you even if I'm put in the hospital again." I just turned and walked out the door. My steps were hesitant because I could see that they would dearly love to hit me. They had not learned how to deal with their anger but so I could only hope it would be redirected away from Angela. The three downstairs must have heard what was happening. I said in slow Italian speech, "We had a talk about family honour. Angela works for me, she's a friend of my sisters and she is more importantly my friend. On my own honour, I vow to protect her. I'm sorry for disturbing your home with something you had not noticed. May your family regain all that it has lost." It was time to leave after this last disruption. Let the parents think for a few moments and see what they would do. The brothers though should know that I would go after them if they slipped. Angela ran with me to my bike and hugged my openly. "Io ti amo." "I love you too. Your brothers will be angry. Act a lady and call on their honour and they'll just have to get used to the new you." The rest of the family were waiting for news and I gave them just what I thought and hoped. Only time would tell. The next day, after school, proved to be very warm and bright, a good harbinger of summer. The girls all had accounts in trust that got some of their money and the rest was paid in cash. Bookkeeping was now a very practical and useful occupation. Electronic test equipment was purchased after I got a business permit. The basement and the garage would have to do as a shop until I needed to expand or until the neighbours started to complain. They had not done so about the girls washing the cars. The men would not do this and the women saw themselves through the girls' eyes. The cars started to line up early in the warm and sunny afternoon. When the girls got home they were already exhausted from their rush and the higher than usual temperature. At least they didn't have to walk much. Many girls now offered them rides. I think it was to be with popular girls but it might be to keep competition away from the limited number of boys. Susan said, "Can we hire more girls? It's getting too hard to keep up." I countered with, "How much does a new girl get? Will she be paid by the hour or piecework? She'll have to be in the house part of the time. Will she have fun upstairs or not? Eventually our size will bring the taxman our way. The bigger it gets the more attractive a target it is. I'm trying to spend all our money as if we were paying taxes. If they do audit our books they'll find we owe very little. If I could, I would have all of you taking singing, acting and dancing lessons. If you do this in our business it can be written off." "I'm just so tired some times." I got up from my seat at the table and kissed her tenderly. "Susan you know how much I love and trust you. I want you to run this business. That means making the decisions that you just asked me. We may make a lot but we won't lose much no matter what you do." "Me? Run this? I can't do that." "You're smart, caring, energetic, I think you have good business sense now, and besides I want you to grow. If you think about it, the job is not much. You don't have to raise a family or do all the things you had to do before. Now you ask someone to purchase the supplies. One or two people make out a schedule. You organise the singing and talk to the customers. You do that very well and wrap them around your pretty fingers much quicker than your little brother can." "Would you be here to help me?" "Sure, but if you had noticed, you have been flying solo for the last week without knowing it." She thought a bit then smiled. "Ya, I guess I was." I got a big kiss. Seconds later she turned the radio on and hurried out." Angela came in later and immediately kissed me. With a big grin on her face she said, "Thanks, Papa never did much before but he had a talk to my brothers. He was very angry and talked about family honour. He mentioned an uncle that was shot by the family for honour and he said he wouldn't do that. He would use his fist instead." "Well that sounds like the boys will really remember the conversation better." "Papa wants to invite your family over next Sunday for a meal." "That's a great idea but does he see me as a prospective son-in-law?" Angela blushed very deeply and I think this was her wish even if I was a lot younger than her at this point. "Honey, I said you're my friend. You're much more than that. It's probably better to have Paige with us. Your parents are then relieved that I'm not chasing you. Then you can come over here to see Susan with less of a hassle. If I treat you and Paige the same then I look like the boy I am and your parents will not worry about me poking you with a dangerous weapon." She thought on my words. "Paige is ok I guess. I just want to show my brothers that I can get a boyfriend." "Honey you have one but he's too small and young, and others will make fun of you." "I don't care." I kissed her and whispered, "But you do care." Television business started to pick up. Most of the time I loaded my equipment in my large carrier and pedalled to the home. It was good exercise and I usually had too little time for this. Anything that was not an adjustment or to replace a weak or defective tube, would have to go to the shop. Transportation was the customer's responsibility. Usually when travelling to a house, I would think of what I had to do next. 'Jaws' was started but I had a long way to go. The music studios had not responded back to me yet. There were a whole series of songs yet to put down that ranged from the Beatles to some from Henri Mancini. Writing for a band was difficult but it was getting easier. Writing for an orchestra was much more difficult. The music teacher at the high school was a believer, and she would help if she could. My teaching career was over. My students had learned enough to know that I was not bullshitting them. They could understand the physics after a fashion but I had no materials to explain exactly what was happening. I also knew that somebody else was going to develop the gas laser soon and I had to hurry or give the idea up. Glass tubing was not that cheap plus I needed many other things. As I turned the corner going downtown I noticed a neon sign flickering. I looked at it wondering what I would do to fix it when I was almost hit by a car. The driver angrily honked his horn, shook his fist and cursed at me. I smiled wider that than I had in a long time. The radio I went to fix needed more than a tube and would be delivered. I was almost hit again going home as I made plans and contingencies. The next day, was Thursday, and it went very slowly. I was writing songs in class and trying to work on 'Jaws'. The teachers wanted to read the story so I got them to edit it for me at the same time. Being fair at other languages didn't make me good at my own language. In the afternoon, I began to work on the device the arcing neon sign had reminded me of. It was actually very simple; and I should have thought of this idea sooner. It was actually not the neon that had reminded me of the device, though it did help. It was the actual arcing. I had not built this project before even though it would have taken less than an hour to complete. I had been getting a balky yard tractor to start and then something else had come up. The construction would require parts and pieces uses for articles that could be found around the house for the most part. I didn't have a high voltage solid-state diode but I did have a tube that fed the flyback transformer to an television that was not worth fixing. The tube was a suitable alternative. Even in my time, tubes had not been completely replaced. In many applications they worked much better. A tube could handle much more power and dissipate more heat without frying. I had once had a contract to be back up to a commercial radio station. They rotated their tubes and with fresh units and the large expensive tubes were sent out to be refurbished for a fraction of their original cost. The circuit took only a few minutes to build but some values had to be guessed at until the circuit was tested. We had some aluminum foil at home as well as some masking tape. I started a list of specifications but I had to start drawing the actual construction of the unit so I could guess at a few measurements. The high voltages involved and the need for adjustments meant that I may have to use some threaded plastic rods. The rods would allow minor adjustments to the unit while in operation. Without them, the device had to be turned off if it needed adjusting. The transformer could be the common one used to fire an oil-burning furnace. A repair company or a recycler would have one. By the time the bell rang to go home, I saw that the project would take longer than I first envisioned. I had drill bits at home along with a great deal of odds and ends like long bolts, nuts, washers, plastic sheeting, stapler, particle board. I needed quite a few hand tools that we or my company had not had enough money to purchase yet. One of the missing tools was taps to mount the adjusting bolts. Paige and I intercepted Mr Fritz, the janitor, before we left. "Hello Mr Fritz. How are you today?" "Fine, young Jeff. What can I do for you?" "I'm building a device that the world has not seen yet. It's actually very simple and I had not considered this device until very recently. I need to have some tapped holes put in some angle iron or maybe some bent aluminum flat bar. Would you consider supplying two number eight threaded holes for me?" "I think I have the right taps. Do you have the parts?" "I have to make the majority of the device first then see what works best. I may have it tomorrow but it'll be here next week for sure." "Just show me where you want it done and I will do it for you." On the way home Paige asked, "Is that the laser you were talking about?" "Yes, I was hung up on low pressure gases with quartz glass sheets cemented at the Brewster angle. Mirrors are easy to make and even ones that do not reflect all the light possible will work. With my new idea, I won't need glass tubes, mirrors, lenses or vacuum pumps. There are some parts I have to get though and I just have to phone to see if any of them are available." I gave Nora the information that I was going to build something that may lead to a Nobel Prize in physics and she said, "That's nice Dear." Jane gave me a kiss but it didn't get beyond that because I needed to make calls and do things before businesses closed. I bought a used transformer from a repair outlet and then went to Canadian Tire to check their handwear and flooring sections. I found some long number eight bolts and some metal drawer knobs that fit the bolts. They had sheets of six mil plastic for a drop cloth that I picked up. Aluminum edging that kept the edge of a carpet in place when it abutted other types of flooring. I needed two, two-foot sections but had to remove the ends because they were crimped just a bit. The welding supply section of the store produced a six dark sheets of glass designed to filter out the ultra violet light from an arc welder. The finest sandpaper and some fine steel wool completed my purchases. The old dirty transformer was still in the carrier outside the store. I would have been surprised if it had been stolen even in 2008. With scissors, sharp knives and some alligator clips I had the lasing device mostly done. A TV chassis is hard to cut but I managed it. Susan had to help and then so did Jennifer who happened to be taking a break from washing cars. One secondary from another transformer provided isolation and power for the heater of the high voltage tube. The oil transformer went across the B+ with a resister. Extra wire hooked all this to the aluminum foil. An autotransformer would regulate the supply voltage. Jane called us for our meal before I could complete the project. Our table now was quite full and the girls seemed to be happy. New faces turned up on occasion. They had similar shirts but none had "Jeffery's Angels" on them. Susan was paying them a fair pay and also included them in our after work study sessions that involved books rather than the other type handled upstairs. These girls didn't share in our hypnosis sessions. These sessions continued because they seemed to work well and needed constant upkeep. After the meal, I finished the power supply and put it into place. In the garage, I found a short length of inch and a half angle iron that would do just right. I cut two short pieces off it then filed and sanded them to make them look nicer. Holes were drilled and screws attached them to the board on which I mounted everything on. A wooden box was constructed around the metal cage that housed the high voltage section of a TV. The metal provided a ground while the wood would restrict the noise and bright light from the arcs. The two pieces of aluminum edging were removed now and the edges polished smooth with the sandpaper then the steel wool. When they were put back, I adjusted the gap between them to a bit over one millimetre. I remember that it was best to have one end of the gap be slightly closer than the other. The more open end supposedly got four times the output of the other end. I wanted to tape the high voltage spark gap apparatus to something to give it a try but I didn't. It was dangerous and not good practice. Upstairs I watched the girls work as they danced and sang. It was much more entertaining than TV to me and I knew the performers too. I wrote up the experiment as if this was a university experiment. I even added things that would possibly be of use when I applied for the patent. I didn't remember many of the optics formulas, so a trip to the library may give me a chance to get the data I needed. The ease of finding data on the Internet or even a CD Rom made going out for books a hassle. I put the device away because there was no way to finish it yet. When the girls came in, they drank lemonade and I asked questions that would probably be on their up-coming finals. A few easy questions about a favourite subject of theirs made them feel better. ------- Chapter 12 The girls accused me of being a tyrant because of my constant questioning. Passing this year would be less difficult for them but I still wanted them to get high marks. This would boost their confidence and probably get them to work even harder in September. Paige came over and showed me her new dress. The quality time she shared with her mother had taught her many skills and caused Nora to go beyond what she knew. I was always getting new things to taste. I had homemade shirts too that I was proud to wear them to school. My clothes had been gone through with a fine-toothed comb and those garments needing repair were quickly mended. Paige stood in front of me and twirled around. This made the hem of her skirt travel out and expose a bit more thigh. "Do you like it?" "It looks very good on you. Certainly not what a girl your age would normally wear but not quite what an older woman would either. It's a good compromise. The colour matches well and it looks comfortable." She smiled at the compliments and reached over to grasp the hem in two hands. She raised it seductively until I saw that she had no panties then it went higher. "Do you like what's underneath? It's been waiting for you all my life." Now I smiled widely. "I certainly do like this. Do you want to hop up on the table so I can see how quickly I can make you come?" Paige got serious. "Actually I don't." This stopped me cold and I wondered what was wrong. "Jeff, your bandages are gone. Your blisters are nearly all gone too. You told me that I'm your wife. You can't give me a baby now and I want what only a husband can give." This staggered me. "I was worried about pushing you Honey. I know you don't mind being directed but this is something that has to be freely given without me influencing you other than saying that I love you. It's as if I have to step back and let you lead." "Well I want to lead now and I want us to do this." Now I put a pleased smile on my face. "I have actually been saving myself for you. I haven't used this equipment except to allow you girls to play with your hands or mouths. You know that the other girls will want what you get." "They will get it after me and I have saved myself for you." We went upstairs to my room hand in hand. We didn't hurry this. The first time came only once. Jane came out of the bathroom and looked at us oddly. She said, "So this is the time?" "Are we that obvious?" "To me you are. Usually you run up here for some fun then go do something else." She looked at paige. "My first time was just ok. I know that you will remember this day with a lot better memories than most girls have." Paige said, "Jeff's special. He always taken care of me since I was a little girl. I loved him then and I know he knew it. He got all red sometimes and had to swallow when I came close. I knew he was going to be the father of my babies too." "Well have fun. I'll try to keep the peanut gallery away. I hope you know Paige that your mother will know when you go home." This shocked Paige. "How?" "It may not be you walking funny but it'll be the way you talk and the way you act. This is one of the steps to leaving childhood and they'll see that you have grown up just a bit more." Paige was not worried though and nudged me into moving. Jane went downstairs and we entered the bedroom. I was much neater since I was a boy but it looked like Paige had been here ahead of me and made things better herself. She started undoing her dress and I stopped her with a touch and began to undo the buttons one at a time. I marvelled at her creamy skin that became exposes as I worked. I had to kiss this area and continued to do so as more area was slowly exposed. Paige groaned in want but I continued my slow-moving pace. Paige hurried when she could to get things moving but I wanted to enjoy this and try to file away all the information so I could relive it for the rest of my life. At the very end I even kissed her feet after removing her bobby socks. "Hurry Jeff, please. You're killing me." "I may be torturing you Honey but I want us to remember this when we're old and have our great grandchildren on our laps." She smiled as if seeing this image. "We can still hurry a bit to the good parts." My own clothing came off quickly. I slid beside her and kissed her lips in the most tender of ways. She kissed me back with a level of passion that she seldom showed. I made slow love to her body and I felt small tremors coming from her. When I came up from her feet she pulled my ears because my hair was still too short. When I was nestled into her very moist opening she kept me there to do what was needed. I still worked at my pace while she built to two slow orgasms and screamed both times. Later I worked my finger into her bum when she was climbing for her third and this pushed her much higher and over with a cry that must have shaken the house. It quickly stopped as she fainted with the intensity of the moment and of course the feelings that raced through her young body. I heard footsteps climbing the stairs and I had not bothered to even close our door. We were a family and as such we should not hide. It took a moment but Paige's eyes opened with a flutter then she saw me and hugged me to her with force enough to hurt my neck. "Oh, I love you my husband." After a moment she added, "We have to get started or we'll never get those great grandchildren you were talking of." "You're getting to be a pushy wife but I like it. You're well lubricated now. Why don't you get on top of me?" "That sounds kinky," she said but with a big smile. She did get up and took her time to get into position safely. She sat down on my legs with something sticking up in front of her opening. "Do I look like a boy now?" I said, "There are many things you'll never look like and one of them is a boy. I'm not that big and you now look like a girl with a big clit." "Do some get that big?" "I don't think so but I have not made a large enough survey. Do you want me to start and get back to you with the results in a few years?" She looked exasperated. "No. I think the information isn't necessary. Now what do I do next?" "Try to get higher and walk forward on your knees." She tied but giggled at her mistakes until she was in position. She rubbed me back and forth across her opening to get me lubricated. She started to sit herself but stopped to ask. "Can I sit now?" "Honey, most of the time I'll help you decide. At times like this just think what I want without asking. What I want is to make you happy. Now make me happy if you're ready." She did smile but she was worried. She knew all about being quick against the benefits of going slow. My growth spurts were in the future and I was far from being big. I could joke about my body and cock now because I knew I would grow appreciably in both areas by the time I was eighteen. With a bit more wiggling and a few nervous giggles she sat down fast. Her face was ready for a lot of pain but she gave me a weak smile instead. "It didn't hurt much." "That's good but our first baby will change your mind. "When the pain leaves, you can start moving slowly. There's no need to rush. We have our entire lives ahead of us." "I like that idea too." Her movements were slow and her strokes short. There was whispering in the hall but I wasn't concerned. They may even be at the open door for all I knew because Paige was blocking my view. Paige's strokes got longer and she started to groan. The way she did it, I knew that she was working herself up like a future Mount St. Helens. Paige called out loudly as if she were in great need. The voices in the hall got louder. One was Jane but another sounded like Nora. This prospect sent a chill down me but the woman was not yelling at Jane or coming in here to yell at us. You had to go with what cards you were dealt and if the woman got this far she may as well go for the finale. My hands ran up and down Paige's smooth body. Reaching her breasts was difficult so I moved the pillow under my head to my back to prop me up. My movements allowed me to think, and allowed Paige to slow her assent. When I pinched her nipples she groaned loudly but she started to respond more to me instead of the sensations flowing through her body. "Paige, you look so beautiful, and more so when you're excited. Are you going to act like this every time we make love?" "Oh, I love you in me." "Does your mother act like you? Is she a horny woman? Does she drag your father away and make love to him? Does she have that just fucked look in the morning?" Paige continued to move on me and said, "Sometimes. Dad smiles too, so they are a good match. I used to rub myself when I heard them making noise in their bedroom. I'm not bad, am I Jeff?" "You are my angel and you cannot do any wrong. I was just comparing you to your mom. An old saying is that if a man wants to know what a woman will look like in twenty years. He just has to look at her mother. Do you think I'll look as tired out as your dad?" Paige finally slowed down for she was doing all the work. "Jeff, why are you asking me all these questions? I don't mind answering but not right now. Can't we get back to what we were doing? I was so close too." "I know you were. You were working yourself to a fantastic explosion that would lift the roof and tell the entire neighbourhood that you love me." "I would not — well only a little. Do you think my Mom will hear us?" "I am very sure she'll hear you. Now let's start again. This has to be remembered for posterity." Paige bent over and I kissed her lips. As I whispered endearments she soon went back to the way she was a few minutes ago. One of my hands hand played with her nipple while the other caressed her clit. She built up from there and got even more excited. She worked so hard that I came all the way out but she managed to hit the right place to get me back home. A mantra came from her lips and she had all the classic signs I had seen when she was older. When the time came I pinched her nipple hard and pushed my thumb onto her clit and rubbed painfully. The scream rattled the windows and was the longest I had ever heard her make. It was cut off at the end when she stood on her knees and I was far from that last bit that I needed myself. She fell forward on me and I caught her weight and guided her to my chest. In the doorway I saw Jane, Nora and all the other girls trying to get a look to see what was going on. Nora looked very worried. I used my right hand to beckon them in. Nora was not sure of her welcome but Jane came in and pulled Nora with her. To both of them I said, "This is our first time and Paige just fainted. It was just too much for her. I think she will be a very sensuous woman and I'll have my hands full keeping her happy. In seven or eight years a child might slow her down but I'm not sure." Nora whispered incredulously, "She just felt so good that she fainted?" "Yes, some women get that way." Nora replied, "But I never heard of that." Paige cuddled but when she heard her mother's voice she froze. She said almost hysterically, "Mom, what are you doing here?" Her voice was loud and she was certainly worried. Nora it seemed didn't know what to say either. " — I came over to tell you that you had a phone call. Everybody was up here. I came up and found that you — you were here making love to Jeff." "I'm going to marry him Mom. He even said he was." "Yes he did Honey. I know young people change their minds all the time. I just don't want you hurt. I don't want a baby to come too soon either." I looked at Nora and said, "Mom look between my legs." The woman was hesitant but did as I asked. "I have no dark hair. My John Henry is small and not developed as a man would be. You can see that my testicles are small. That means that I'm not making any baby juice. Don't ask me how I know but I think that I will not be normal until I am sixteen. At seventeen to eighteen I will grow a great deal more. I will only be six feet but I will be wide and very strong. The old John Henry will have grown much more than the rest of me. "What I am trying to say is that I cannot produce children until later than normal. That will not stop me from practising safe sex. I want my future wife to give me two lovely children but not until we're ready. My family will be everything to me. Children would change my commitments and they would come first even if the world has to wait. "Now if you ladies either take a seat or wait in the hall I want to continue our first time with my young wife." Nora was shocked and Jane smiled. The rest of the girls were in the room too and nobody looked to be leaving. "Paige, roll over on your back. I have to get you warmed up again." "But Mom's here!" "Roll over Honey." She did as I asked and even spread her legs without me urging her. Paige had bled some but not much. Menstrual blood may have bothered me a bit but not this. In only a few minutes Paige had forgotten that we had any company. She was urging me on and pulling my ears to make sure her directions were followed. An orgasm followed with a scream that made me feel good to have caused this in the woman I loved. When she calmed down I crawled between her legs and pushed my way in very slowly as if I had my full adult size. Paige came down far enough to remember her company but after twenty strokes she forgot them again. I used all of my techniques to turn my woman into jelly. Many times I pulled out and moved her body then went back in. Paige cried for me but not to finish. Her incoherent words were punctuated by her mumbles for more or exclamations to her maker. I was not in shape and knew my limitations now. When her next orgasm came I sped up my own and growled out that she was mine. Our screams had joined and even hurt my ears in a way but I was beyond worrying about it. Instead of falling on Paige I pushed myself to one side and fell beside her. Her arms sought me out and we held each other tight. "I love you Jeff." "I love you wife." "Hmmmmmm." In a moment I looked around the room. I saw two girls that were recently hired. Some of the girls had hands still in their panties while Jennifer and Susan were kissing passionately and rubbing their bodies together. Nora was sitting in one chair with eyes glazed as if she had her orgasm or wanted another very soon. Both could be true. Jane was behind her with a hand on the chair and some fingers in her pussy. I covered Paige for privacy as I stood. I couldn't think of anything sane to do so I walked to Nora and kissed her lips like a man. She hugged me tight to her as if this might get her to orgasm. When I pulled back I said from only inches away, "Thank you for coming. This makes it easier because Paige would worry needlessly. I don't like to hide things from family either. I'll keep your daughter safe as I promised and though I love her almost to pain, she may go if she ever wishes it." "Oh, Jeff. I know you will." I went around to those most likely to flee now that things were normalising, and thanked them for coming so that our unofficial union could be witnessed. Paige was getting up and wanted to put a sheet over her but I just took it gently away. "My woman's beautiful. I like people to see her. Then they can know how lucky I am." This worked very well. The new girls went downstairs but Paige and I hugged the rest. I was fondled a few times but that was par for the course around here. Nora didn't see this because she and Jane went downstairs too. I imagine they had lots to talk about. Paige and I had a quick shower and then dressed. By this time we were alone to do so. When we got to the kitchen we found the two women sitting close. "If you two are working on a wedding you better remember that it will not happen until after I'm eighteen." The two turned red so I knew I had hit the nail on the head. I offered Paige a seat and asked her, "Would you like some tea?" She refused and I said, "I'm going to the shop to catch up on some work. I know that the three of you have lots to talk about. "But — " "No buts. Talk and tell the complete truth. If either of your questioners starts getting to personal just ask some questions of your own. These women also want you to know about the care and feeding of a husband or just a potential husband." Jane smiled. Nora was non-committal and Paige was just a bit worried. The next morning, Paige held me even tighter on the way to school. "You knew Mom was out there didn't you?" "Sure, we couldn't hide and it was best to just push harder so your mother sees us a bit differently. This time it turned out good for us. I doubt if your dad knows but your mother is more on our side." We went to Mr Fritz room first. The hole centres were scribed and I took his centre punch and made the marks officially. "This is the last to be done. They're for a spark gap. I get to control the voltage from getting too high. The unit should work around five to six thousand volts." "That can kill you, young man." "The flyback voltage is much higher and I work with them all the time. When colour television comes out around here, you will find that the voltage will have to be even higher." The man nodded his head as if understanding. "Do you want to wait? It'll be just a few minutes." "Ok if it isn't too much of a problem." He used a small drill press and then tapped the holes. He wiped the chips and oil off and handed them back to me. "There you go." "Thanks Mr Fritz." Mr Goods was our next goal. We both walked to his office and Paige was not as hesitant as she used to be. I knocked beside the open door and the man looked up and smiled. "Hello Jeff, Paige. How are the pair of you? I never see you apart." I nudged Paige and she said, "Fine Sir." I said, "I'm more than fine, I feel great. Today I'm going to start on my first Nobel Prize if you'll help." "Only your first?" I said, "You used to be a doubter then a supporter. Did you revert?" "No, I guess not. When and how is this going to happen?" "I could call in sick today but I don't like to lie. That is not the way I want to be known. I almost completed my first laser and the last two parts are in my pocket. Tonight I'm going to tinker with it. It may take hours or perhaps minutes until it first lases. I want you and Mr Flaherty to see it when it first works." "You haven't tried it yet?" "I'm confident or hadn't you noticed?" I said this with my best little boy smile. "What is it going to do?" "It will glow in the air but almost all of the energy will be in the ultra violet. This is invisible but when ultra violet light hits something like paper, the material glows blue. This may not seem like much but it will be in one spot. What will be new is when the paper is moved farther away the spot will not get appreciably larger. That is one of the properties of coherent light. "I am going to invite our local reporter after it starts and my lawyer to get the patent started. The reporter will just mention about a local lad that made a startling discovery that will change the world but still keep it from getting out of hand. I need to have others know that I made my laser first but I don't want reporters coming out of the woodwork. This is something like making a controlled fire to burn trees before a large fire gets to this area." Mr Goods said, "I would very much like to see this experiment. I'm sure that Mr Flaherty would too." "If I have not lied to you then there's an extremely good possibility that your names will be linked to what I hope will be an invention as important as the aeroplane or the automobile. Kitty Hawk is well known and perhaps North Bay will be the same way soon. "The other reason for coming is to get time at the local library. I need some formulas on optics that I cannot remember. The younger librarians allow me in the adult section but the old biddy that runs the show puts me with 'Peter Rabbit' and 'The Engine That Could'." "I'll give you a note and hope that helps." "It might until the Nobel Prize comes my way but I am afraid that may take twenty years or more." "Do you really think it's that important of a discovery?" "My math proved that this is a new branch of optics. My experiment will prove if my math is right or not." Mr Collins was invited too and he accepted though he had other things to do. He got my note from Mr Goods and I could go right after recess when the library opened. I didn't need the note to sneak around the old head librarian. The formulas I wanted had to come out of Encyclopaedia Britannica because the other books on optics were all out. With lunch in hand, I continued to work on the patent application leaving out those last minute details. There was time to drop in at Mr Mason's office. I chatted with his secretary but didn't call her Della. She hadn't embraced my new idea like her boss had. The lawyer asked, "Ok I'll be there. Do I get to charge for this?" "You charge and you get paid in money. You come as a non-paid witness and you go down in the history books. Your choice." "Not much choice there." "I almost have the patent application done. You're not going to starve. We even plan to feed you as if this were a regular symposium." Mr Goods was the first person I talked to when I got back to school. "Everything is set. My mother is even making us a snack." I went back to writing my screenplay. Nothing else could be accomplished and at least this way my nerves wouldn't get to me. To help even more I now thought of 'Star Wars' and how to handle the special effects. Robots were used and then when they could with tiny actors in similar units. Spielberg would not be hurt and the same was true of other authors or songwriters. They would just see a lot of movies or songs and make something new for themselves. If this was wrong ethically then I really didn't care. There was just too much riding on what I did. Paige and I got a ride home. She went to get her mother as the rest of my guests talked to Jane. All of us went downstairs and I mounted the two brackets then screwed in the two bolts and locked the small metal knobs to the ends. I started with a small gap and brought in all my test equipment. An explanation was made of each of the parts. There wasn't that many to begin with then added what the purpose of each would be. "What is the time Mr Flaherty?" He smiled because he must know the reason and he told me officially. I threw the power on and waited for the tube to heat up. A small arc was seen at one end of the parallel aluminum bars and I adjusted the autotransformer. The high voltage was shut off while the other transformer fed the tube's heater. An extra switch shorted the capacitor through a resistor and I made a very minor adjustment. The glow was now further up and I did everything again. After seven adjustments, the light travelled down the bar. The high voltage power was shut off. "I believed it worked ladies and gentlemen. I handed out all the dark pieces of glass. I'm going to put a sheet of paper to intercept some of the ultra violet light. The paper takes the light and because of the molecules in its construction, it will convert some of the invisible to visible light. The gentlemen's white shirts should glow blue under the same circumstances. The rest of you should not look at the pattern on the paper until your chance comes. If anyone here fails to follow this rule I will kick them out. It's hard to resist but do so. I do not want you blinded though the exposure is small now." There was no laser light yet and I adjusted the spark gap. This was more by feel but my meter said that I was just about at five kilovolts. The pulses were too short to accurately measure without a scope. It took fifteen minutes and the paper started to glow differently. Two more adjustment and I seemed to have made the sweet spot. I got the lights turned off. "The device is emitting coherent monochromatic light ladies and gentlemen." Those with glasses looked then gave the glass to the others that had not seen. "Please remember the size of the brighter light because I want to move the sheet of paper. If this were ordinary light, the pattern should spread rapidly and vary with distance." The paper was moved back as far as I could go and kept so the beam hit it perpendicularly. "Ladies and gentlemen with the glasses, please note the apparent size." Mr Flaherty said, "It hasn't spread at all. A good lens can keep light together for a while but this doesn't have any lenses." The others got a chance to examine the beam until it abruptly disappeared. I shut the unit off and said, "I think if I look under the foil I will find a burnt mark. The polyethylene cannot stand the high voltage and I don't have anything better. It's six mills thick but I think there may be material half as thick that will do better. The device can be up and running as soon as the plastic is replaced but everything else has to be recalibrated. If we go upstairs now, I will tell you more about what you just witnessed." Paige hugged my arm and smiled widely as everybody headed up the rickety steps. Mom served everybody tea and I brought out previously prepared sheets of paper. Everything including the drawings were large for easy viewing. The plastic and the sheets of foil were said to be capacitors used to build up the current. I explained about the nitrogen atom in simple terms. The electrons were moved out from their normal state of rest by the high voltage. The electrons fell back in some predictable patterns then later fell more. The energy given off when this fall happened was within the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum called the ultraviolet. I left out population inversion and kept the explanation as simple as possible. Jane and Nora didn't understand but Paige stayed with me to the end. The men didn't understand too much more and lost it completely in the math except Mr Collins who had taken more of my classes. Jane made a snack while Paige was please to act as my hostess though her mother did the most. Most of the men folk went downstairs and watched me strip the top layers of aluminum foil off and then hunt for the small dark hole. There were a few pats on the back when one was found and a new sheet of plastic put down in its place. The experiment was started all over again but it didn't take as long to set it up. I explained about the actual speed of light restricting how I could build this device. Even a few inches longer would make it inoperable. They didn't understand so I promised to show them the math later. The reporter, Mr Chile, was primed to come and did so in half an hour. The men and Paige went downstairs to see the experiment again. I had basically written the article but he asked questions. He had heard of black light and the glowing shirts but not the paper. This time I made pencil marks to outline the width of the beam and it was easy to see that there was too little spread to be detected. I used the acronym TEA for Transverse Electrical discharge in gas at Atmospheric pressures. Laser was defined and I used the term coherent monochromatic light and explained what this meant. Mr Chile said he would put that the math was too hard for him to understand anyway and he did. The names of everybody present including Mr Chile's was listed because he believed that he wanted this set for posterity. The local paper had a small circulation and Mr Chile promised to put the article further back then the front page. He did as I wanted and even my picture was put in beside a girl with a prize bull. Paige didn't like that; but I had to explain the reasons but she still didn't like it. I was her man and deserved the front page. ------- Chapter 13 A week before final exams, I handed in the completed patent application. Reference was made to one mirror at the back to bounce more of the laser light back into the system. Other gases including that from a carbon dioxide fire extinguisher were entered. These were expensive to fill but the school board or Mr Flaherty let me have one. I had even skipped school to work on the 'special project'. North Shore Signs donated some neon that allowed me to cover that particular gas. Helium was not as readily obtainable as in my time but the school again got me some. The carbon dioxide allowed me to explain more about population inversion and the probable use of nitrogen, water vapour and neon. I basically stuck enough data in that I was covered when other gases and the various combinations to allow the gas being excited to be brought to a ground state. The previous Sunday, I went to Angela's home with Jane, Paige and my sisters. The brother's looked sullen but cheered up dramatically when they saw Susan and Maggie. I sat between Paige and Angela but I had seated the rest of the women as a gentleman. We talked quite a bit and encouraged the girls to do their share. The boys wanted to talk too so they could say how good they were. They had too much of the macho and the girls knew about the boys from Angela. They were still ladies though and that was what counted. Jane must have been taking notes. She acted very much the lady herself and brought out Angela's mother whenever she could even if it was to discuss recipes. When we parted for the night, Paige went to her home. Jane subtly reminded me that she missed out a lot to go with us. I slept the night with her and we both had an orgasm. On the Monday after the laser demonstration, Susan wanted the same thing as Paige. She had used the dildo on her butt and partially broke her hymen but I was her first man. She was almost as responsive as Paige. Tuesday was Maggie but only after Paige came over for some loving of her own. Maggie loved our lovemaking and I loved her. She tried to get as high as her sister or Paige but we had to work on it more. She didn't mind this in the least. The high schools had tests earlier and I was busy doing last minute chores to ensure that the girls got as good marks as they could get. The hypnosis helped a lot and they seemed to absorb the information easier. Post hypnotic suggestions should help too and the girls agreed to try them. One of the song companies sent me a letter offering me a hundred dollars for each of the four songs. I sent them a reply that I was thinking of getting a competitor to promote my sisters as they sang the songs. I couched the reason as four hundred dollars was much too low a figure and I could make many times more farming the songs out myself. My own finals came and I went through each of the tests very quickly then checked them over. Mr Collins allowed me to go then. I spent my time in the school library waiting for Paige and reading. She was usually very happy to see me, and part was because the tests seemed so easy to her now. The day finally came when all the examinations were over and grade eight was behind me. I think the situation was very bitter/sweet. I loved school before. It was a safe place for me even if I was small. I had hated leaving and going to a scary high school with my sisters. Now I had friends but they were the teachers that I would leave behind. The other students were just children with all their faults. They would be going with me for better or worse. Quitting school was the best answer but that was an impossibility when the body I had was just only twelve. All of my girls had done extremely well in their marks. Some had been barely passing but now were at least at the respectable level. Employment opportunities were limited in the Bay. Girls of all sizes and ages came to my girls looking for a chance to earn some money. Susan and Jennifer were given some direction and they started to develop some of the other businesses. One of my rules was that no girl went alone to a job. They were always in at least pairs but I liked threes better. House cleaning was hated by the girls but being paid for it by strangers was different. Flower gardening worked very well when Angela took over. She had a flare for symmetry and design. I was sure that she could be an artist to if she only tried. She now worked with her clients and guided those girls that liked working with plants. Boys were hired too. These were given uniforms too and the clothing showed some style and a bit of muscle or at least skin. The boys were far from beefy but the girls liked to look at them. Our prices were higher than what a single boy would get. We guaranteed the work though. Safety was stressed. Steel-toed shoes were a must and a special crew used any chemicals. The chemicals I really hated, for what they did to the environment. Mr Chile assisted me by putting in print how some matron or other kept an immaculate property with no harmful chemicals. She was praised for using her hands to remove weeds. This helped one of my lawn care businesses. Chemical companies didn't even see us but they were all spouting how chemicals were beneficial for everybody. The same was said about nuclear power and how cheap it would be. The carwash was our biggest moneymaker but got a lot of hassles from the conservative element. I was forced to amalgamate all the companies the girls worked at, and then apply for a business permit as well as registering as a legal entity. A nearby service station signed a contract with me. The carwash was doing very well and I think it brought increased business to the operator. He was hassled now, but my lawyer told him that he had nothing to fear from anybody but me. About mid July, I was awakened by a knocking at our door. I left Maggie's bed and went downstairs. Our door was locked but most homes never did this. Jennifer was in tears and I hurried her into the kitchen. When I turned on the light I saw bruises and a ripped dress. "What happened Honey?" "He — he — tried to — do — it again." "Your father?" "Yes." "Did he put those bruises on you?" I got a head nod. "Did he rape you?" A head shake this time. "Honey, now's the time to deal with this. I'm surprised you are not pregnant yet. You can't go back. I'll make sure you're safe." "But my dad's a cop. I'll never get away from him." "I know his job Honey and I know how to make this work. Will you trust me?" "What are you going to do?" "There is an organization called Children's Aid. They have been around here talking to us a bit. They don't think Jane is a fit mother. She does a good job when she doesn't have to hold the world off. In your case, it would be a bad idea to live with us." Jennifer's eyes got big and she was ready to cry more. "Wait Honey. I knew this long ago and made some plans. I talked to Paige's parents. They're not rich but the government will give them some money to take care of you. We will be just next door to help you." She cried more but she did agree that this was the best time to sever her ties with her family. I woke up Jane and my sisters. They all clustered around Jennifer for any support they could give. I phoned next door and Jack sleepily picked up the phone. "Dad, Jennifer is over here. She was beaten and her clothes are ripped. She has decided to leave." It took a moment for him to think of all the details. "Ok, I will get up Nora and Paige." In a few moments two more women clustered around Jennifer. We didn't fit in Jack's car very well but we made it to the police station. Jennifer swore out a complaint against her father. The sergeant found out who her father was and tried to sidetrack us. I made suggestions to Jennifer to frustrate him. He tried to separate her but two irate women could not be budged. Mr Mason had appraised me of what to do and what rights Jennifer and I had. I used them pointedly and asked the sergeant if he was skirting the law. Children's Aid was not as proficient as later years for nobody was on call. We made a trip to the hospital. It was late by the time Jennifer was looked at. Jennifer demanded a copy of the report and here we found ourselves blocked. I quoted the appropriate section of the law verbatim and was given a copy. Jennifer couldn't sleep but a social worker did come around ten and talked to her in private then to some of us. Jennifer had to be urged to ask questions. She found out that it looked that she was now free of her family. I asked, "Will Jennifer be allowed to go get her clothes?" The woman said, "She can if she wants." "I assume you'll be going to talk to the family. Would you also be there to assess Jennifer's father? From what she told me he is very violent." The woman didn't like this and before she could wiggle out I said, "Jennifer has no clothes except those on her back. She has to go to school in September and she needs warm clothing for winter. Surely you want to find out how irrational the man is for your report. If you feel a danger to yourself then ask the police to intervene. The police may stick together but that's done in the shadows. You are doing this officially." The father was still drunk and missed a shift at work. Finding his friends there to investigate the beatings was bad but nothing was mentioned about the rapes. Jennifer got all her property. Some of her possessions were broken and thrown out on the lawn. The father had to be carted off but I didn't think he would be thrown in jail. More likely just taken for a drive until he could cool off or dried out. The mother was crying too and I just saw her as a beaten woman. In a week, Jennifer had settled in. She lived with Susan and Maggie mainly. She did have a bed in what used to be the sewing room at Paige's house. The father had a small fine but was back at work. Our carwash was well patrolled now and any infraction was jumped on. Mr Mason took care of this and advised the girls on what to do. Things looked good for Jennifer and for my extended family, but not for me. Two days after Jennifer came to us and looking for a place to stay I received an odd telephone phone call. It was almost eleven o'clock and I was about ready to go to bed. A woman's cultured voice said, "Hello Mr Congdon. My name is Sandra Harrison. I hope I'm not going to disturb you greatly but I came by some disquieting information." "What's that Mrs Harrison?" "We seem to have a mutual enemy." "I can think of only one man that could be, but I think of him as more unstable than a real enemy. "Then we are talking about the same man. My daughter has the misfortune to work for this man in his office. His power and dynamic bearing swayed her. To be short; they became lovers. I hope I'm not upsetting you too much by my being frank." "That's fine Mrs Harrison. It's a Human condition that is unavoidable. Please continue." "I saw the liaison as detrimental to my daughter. Mr Goldbalm doesn't like to thwarted as you must know so he attacked me through my friends, my place of employment and even worse, through my daughter." The woman paused and I heard her sniffle. "Excuse me Mr Congdon but the wounds still hurt." She paused to regain her thoughts. "This was last year. My daughter has seen that Goldbalm has many other women to see to him. Their relationship has thankfully cooled. Mr Goldbalm's fixation with you had grown though. He has been banned from going near you but he has some devious plans bent on making you do as he commands." "What are they?" "My daughter has heard Goldbalm rant and rave about you. His rumblings were recorded on paper and she listed them on three separate sheets. I'm currently in your city. Would you like to come over and take the papers? Perhaps the most disquieting parts can be listed and if there are just a few my daughter may be able to goad Goldbalm into revealing a bit more." This sounded very interesting. I didn't really think that Goldbalm would leave me alone even with a court order. I was very curious about the contents of those pages. "I would love to see what plans he has for me." "I'm leaving early in the morning. I have a small business to run and I can't be away too long." "I can come now." "I think that's best." She gave me the room number and the name of the motel. The city was not large and I knew of the place. It was one of the best ones in the city. Jane was told of the call and where I was going. She was worried about me but it was something that I had to do. Fifteen minutes later I was at the motel and parked my bike in the back beside a transformer vault. I climbed the steps and knocked on 116 and a regal looking woman came to the door. "Hello, you must be Jeff. Please come in." I stepped in and saw an expensive dress draped across the bed. Three suitcases were lined up against the far wall. "Thanks Mrs Harrison." The woman pointed a long thin arm with some expensive jewellery. "I put the sheets my daughter prepared on the dresser. Please take a look." I picked them up and looked at the ideas in point form. Goldbalm's name was not mentioned but it was not necessary. Some of the allegations were very disquieting to me. A few listed a love affair with my mother and my sisters but then listed a great many others by name. It looked like he was thinking of pushing all the possible buttons. Most were contradictory but they were just points. The sheets were re-read while Mrs Harrison was looking over my shoulder. She said, "This sounds like the rumblings of an unstable man. My daughter can talk to him and may get some information. What are the points most disturbing." The most disturbing points were those that were the truth. I had sexual relations with my mother and my sisters even with my best friend Paige. I think it was the woman's eagerness for the answer that rang a tiny bell in my head. "Most of this sounds like a joke and should make any of us laugh but why does it says here that I had sex with Jason or any boy. This is a lie. Why would a man say this?" The sheets mentioned that I had sex with half the city but I picked this one as the least likely. When I tried to hand one of the sheets to the woman she backed up as if it were poisonous. Now all my worries came to the front. Something was wrong here and I didn't know what it was. "Could you write your phone number on one of the sheets? I doubt if I will need to ask anything but something may happen here that you need to know about." She smiled at me and now it didn't look natural. She took out a piece of paper from her purse and just wrote the number on it. "Is this a Toronto number?" She smiled and took the paper back and added the code word for her calling area. The telephone had not adopted direct dialling yet. "Jeff, I'm sorry but I need my sleep and I have to get up early in the morning. I have your number and I can call when I get any information." "I have to go too Mrs Harrison. Thanks for taking the time to come up here just to see me." When I stepped outside the door, I wondered if the effort coming here was really worth it. There was nothing here except blanket accusations to cover everything from raping polar bears to being sexually dysfunctional. Hell, I just turned twelve and I shouldn't be functional at all. I thought a lot more as I pedalled slowly home. That night I didn't get to sleep for a while still worried that I had missed something important. More work was done on 'Jaws' as I was into the next editing phase. The girls were off working at the carwash and Jane made me a nice lunch. A loud knock at the door got me up and I saw two uniformed police officers at the screen door. I immediately thought of how they were hassling the carwash again. "Yes?" "Are you Jeffery Congdon?" "You personally have been here twice before so you know the answer to that question." "Where is your mother?" he said as he tried to open the screen door. "Nobody invited you in, but I'll look for her. Wait outside." Jane had come when she heard the gruff voices. "What's all this about?" The cop that had been here before had a small smile and said, "We have a warrant here to search your house." "For what?" "Stolen property." I said to Jane, "Phone Mason. Tell him to get here as soon as he can. Make sure to tell him that the police are up to their old tricks. This time tell him to call the Ontario Provincial Police get them to investigate wrong doing by our local force. Mention Jennifer's father and a possible lawsuit against the man and the force. I'm not going to put up with this anymore." The cop said, "Let us in." "Give me the warrant first or are you going to branch out into making your own laws?" To give time I pushed open the bottom of the fragile wooden screen door and the cop was obliged to push the three-page document through. I heard Jane talking on the phone as I read the documents. When I finished the cop just pulled the handle hard and broke off the hook. They both stepped quickly in and I said. "Forcible entry is not a good thing to see on your future resume. My mother is the tenant of record in this house and you have not given her the warrant or allowed her to read it. The OPP may be hauling your ass off to jail and since your partner came in with you then he may be looking for a new job too." The man brought his hand back to hit me. Cops in this time and for thirty more years were much more physical. They swore as good as the felons they arrested. Many times an informal fact finding discussion involved blood and a person's face seriously damaged. He thought better and just pushed me to one side. I was not that fit yet and fell. Jane had seen this and yelled on the phone, "They are beating Jeff —. Ok I will." She came in and stood under the two tall cops. "You broke into our home through a locked door when all you had to do was wait until the documents were examined. I saw you assault my twelve-year-old son. Are you going to take out your batons and beat babies next?" "Ma'am he pushed me first." "You're a liar. I saw you come up to him and push him." "You are mistaken ma'am. My partner was a witness and he saw it the way it happened." "Are you asking him to perjure himself? This is now going to be scrutinised by a more responsible police force." Nora came running up and came in the front door. I said, "Call out to our neighbours. We need some witnesses, quick." In a moment three other neighbours were in the room with us. The cop said to them, "Get the hell out. This is an investigation." "Stay. They are beating me and broke into the house. If you go I'll be beaten more." Mr Vachone was one of those to get in last and he said in broken English, "We are staying here. You can try to beat me if you want. I'm bigger than the boy." The man was sixty-five and couldn't defend himself even as well as I could. "I'll put you all under arrest." I called out quickly to the cops before the threat would register. "Do it. Then explain how you went to this neighbourhood and arrested concerned individuals." "Shut up." "Hit me again and make me. Our guest would like to see police tactics in action. While you hit me, think of the lawsuit and your ability to pay when you're in jail." The cop was very angry and I mentioned these features to the witnesses and explained that he was not stable. If I pushed him far enough I could get the local police to leave me alone. I still didn't know the reason for the search warrant. Jane tried to cool things down though. "What stolen property did you come here to find?" "That's a police matter." I acted a bit and eventually got to my feet with Jane's help. I said, "You are facing an assault charge and one of forcible entry." For the witnesses' benefit I continued, "You didn't allow my mother to read the warrant and she never left your sight even when she talked to our lawyer. You broke the lock on the door and then pushed me out of the way and knocked me to the floor. Now tell me what you are looking for." The cop turned red but said through pinched lips, "A gold locket that you broke into a motel room to steal." "And who claims that I stole this locket?" The man waited. I knew he was very angry but said, "A woman by the name of Harrison." I had never been framed though some people have tried half heartedly once. They were angry with me for being successful when they had a failing business on their hands. "How did she know that it was me that supposedly robbed her?" "She saw you leave her room last night and she found her locket gone. She called it in last night and came this morning to swear out a complaint." He added a bit quieter, "We have to search." Something was more than just fishy. "What more did this woman say." They remained quiet. "You have the law behind you but the law also awaits in judgment of you too. I'm not a thief but I want to know what is a matter of the public record." I just waited and the cops fidgeted. Eventually the first cop said, "She saw your face in the newspapers and she followed you home." The cops must have been very worried. I had kept them busy long enough for Mr Mason to come. I was able to say to him in private, "Someone is trying to frame me. A woman by the name of Sandra Harrison asked me to go to her hotel room last night. She claimed to have information about how Goldbalm was trying to attack me. I bicycled to her motel and went into her room. She gave me three sheets of typed paper that she refused to touch. I'm thinking fingerprints. "I left with the papers and the next thing I know, the two cops came to the door. They broke the lock on the screen door and pushed me hard enough to fall. I used this against them to make them give me what information they had. The woman swore out a complaint that she saw me leaving her room last night and she said she found a locket missing. I just found that she says she followed me home. "For this to go this far, I believe the locket is here someplace. Goldbalm is behind this. Can you get this woman's picture and try to find out any connection to the man. She may have been with somebody else. I cannot see that woman planting the evidence. She's too old and acts like a rich lady, but one that is willing to lie in a situation like this." Mason said, "Why would Goldbalm do this?" "I'm willing to bet that he'll come to me and make a deal. If I do as he asks then the woman will miraculously forget something important that you can use to get the case dropped." "We can nail Goldbalm if we can get him to talk in front of witnesses." I said, "He's crazy, not stupid. Now tell me what my rights are as a twelve-year-old." "You can have your mother with you when you are questioned. They can throw you in a cell but I haven't heard that they have ever kept a child for long. We can get you out on your own recognisance. If they find stolen property here, we will have to find some convincing proof or you'll get convicted." I said, "The proof will be linking this woman and her accomplice to Goldbalm. The woman gladly gave me a phone number in Toronto with her fingerprints but she can say that this was stolen too. The police don't like one of their number getting raked over the coals and they won't help if they can help it." Mr Mason left to find out more and the police searched the house. Jane had her camera and anything not put back right was photographed. Actually I had used the film and she was threatening with an empty camera. The search lead to the garage and I unlocked the door and almost immediately they found the locket. By this time the neighbourhood was booing the cops as if the cops were the ones to plant the evidence. Mr and Mrs Vachone were nearby and I said, "Somebody wants me to get in trouble and they put something in my house then called the police to find it. The police now are doing their job. They are doing nothing wrong either. We just have to make the woman tell us why she lied to the police. The police act like children sometimes but they are here to help us. Now please let us go. I'll get questioned and then be let out until a trial unless the woman can be convinced to change her mind." Others heard and we could get to the car. I was put into the back and Jane got in too. The police didn't like this either but didn't kick her out. The harsh radio sounds came to us and Jane was very nervous. I said, "Relax, they'll ask questions and send me home. You can be with me all the time. The charge is minor but it galls me to have a record. Goldbalm is behind this and I'm going to nail both him and his professional hide to the wall." The cops tried to get rid of Jane but now she was protecting her cub and she was not taking anything from anybody. I told what happened last night. I mentioned Sandra Harrison's avoidance to touching the papers. My approximate time at arriving home was stated and then I mentioned how cheap the lock was that protected the garage. Because of Jane's presence, I was not given a private room with a hard steel bed. Jennifer's father came by and paused to gloat. I was about to ask if he raped anybody recently but kept my mouth shut. A Justice of the Peace got Jane and I to sign the papers and I was free. Mr Vachone drove us home. I was quiet and Jane just couldn't shut up. There were a lot of people there to show support and I told them what I had done last night and what the woman had claimed. I avoided making the statements that could get me taken to court for slander and mentioned this to my well-wishers too. Almost all of my activity halted as I tried to think of an escape. Mason had got the picture of Sandra Harrison and the side view of a tall thin man that was with her at the motel. Mason tried to find out what he could through his contacts in Toronto and frankly told me that this was difficult and costly. Many phone calls came in and I explained what had happened. In two days though a court date was set because the crown attorney figured that there was enough evidence to convict me. It was very heartening to see the girls go out of their way to offer discounts at cleaning cars so that more money could be brought in for my defence fund. It wasn't just my angels though, for a great many girls showed up to encourage customers to come and others to clean the cars. All my money was going to a private investigator in Toronto. Other offers for my songs came in from different recording studios. I was going to accept their lowball offers but I didn't like being pushed around. I told them that I wanted two thousand for the four or I was going to get my sisters to sing and they could find hits some place else. We both knew the songs were good and the figure I mentioned was only fair for this time, especially from a young man of my age. ------- Chapter 14 Everything changed again on July 20. I was moping around the house after my first appearance in court. The court case was slated for seven days later. I had even turned the television on. I was watching drivel on CBC but my mind was that way too. At eleven twenty a news report came in that cut into the show. The announcer mentioned that a man hijacked an automobile with a gun in Windsor Ontario that morning. A still photo showed a good-looking young woman that the reporter said was twenty-one. A child of just a few months past her third birthday was shown next. A similar automobile was shown and even the licence plate number was made to look like the actual plate. Lastly, he said that more news would be available at noon. I sat back stunned. I knew that face. Gathering all my thoughts I tried to put them into perspective. I left the Air Force in early 1969 and soon married Betty, my first wife. In the summer of 69 we had little money and spent our honeymoon in cottage country where I hoped to camp in our tent and save a few bucks while showing our love for each other. Vockner was a village with a population of 130. It was 120 miles south of North Bay and just off Highway eleven. This is the main highway leading to Toronto from North Bay. The town is three miles off the main highway and close to the Chuutney River and Lake Kanocha. The land was rough and very beautiful. Farms are poor because of the many hills, lakes, and rivers all clustered together. The locals have little to encourage tourists other than the ruggedly beautiful land. A small museum was made and situated far up an Ontario Hydro road. The place was devoted to a major crime that had come to this small community. Betty just had to see it. A double kidnap had occurred in Windsor at ten in the morning. It happened in front of witnesses who suddenly happened to appear on the scene. The kidnapper wouldn't have done what he did until it was safe. The carjacking and double kidnap involved the small northern community because the kidnapper brought the child and woman back to his home. The kidnapper tried to destroy the car and it was found by a game warden chasing some poachers a few weeks later. The police from all over flooded the area. The kidnapper's home was almost twenty miles away but still one of the only homes around. When some townspeople got close there were shots fired and the kidnapper was killed. Inside the home was the body of the little girl and a day later some police dogs found the decomposing body of the woman that had been hired to watch the child. In 1969 I was not interested in an eleven-year-old crime but I had to stay until Betty got her fill. I looked at all the pictures and saw that the museum was actually the kidnapper's home. In a corner was a small plaque telling all that read it that the child's body was found here. I found the morbid curiosity distasteful but Betty didn't. She even dragged me back again just before we left. A year later I found that Betty was too much like what Susan had been like and we parted company. When I had come back to this time three months ago I had changed time just a bit. The kidnapping would not have been effected and would still take place. That meant that two people would die if I could not remember right, and unless I could do something about it. Going to the police, even if they were neutral would get me nothing until the bodies were found, then I would get an awful amount of questioning as to how I knew. Telling an adult would not do much either. There was nobody I knew that would take my word for this and help. Trying to lie and say I saw this in a dream would not help for the same reason. Nobody would follow until the news of the bodies being found had arrived. It appeared that I was the only person who could do anything about the situation. I knew I could call any of the girls to help but quickly nixed the idea. They would be of no real help and after some thinking I realised that I would be taking them into danger. I could not let two people just die though. After paying my lawyer and the private detective, I had no money. Even though I had been exercising, my strength had not returned completely. Even if it had, I was still a puny twelve-year-old. All I had on my side was knowledge of the event and perhaps surprise. Hurrying to the telephone I dialled the bus terminal. The next bus heading south was leaving at 1240. I could get off anywhere along the line. It was ten minutes until noon when I dropped the handset back into it's cradle. I hurried down to the basement to get the old military surplus backpack my father had given me. There were some aluminum pots in the pack, relics from happier times spent camping with my father. We didn't have any guns in the house, my mother had to sell my father's hunting rifle to make ends meet. I would have to confront the kidnapper or find a way to free the two girls alone and unarmed. The features of the land in my memory came back to me. The only road near the cabin was the rutted tracks that lead to it. There were no other roads close by and I was sure we would be pursued just to keep us from talking. This meant that I had to feed three people, run from the kidnapper and make it back to civilisation. This could take a considerable amount of time. Food and shelter were important. We had been having a long series of cold rains. Even moderate exposure to those conditions could lead to hypothermia if it kept up. I had most of the packing done by the time the noon television news came on. I saw from the time and location of the crime that the kidnapper would not have arrived in Vockner yet. There were no super highways in Ontario in 1958 and the kidnapper would not speed because of the chance to get pulled over. This meant that I would have at least four more hours before the kidnapper could possibly arrive at his lair. Picking out a sheet of paper, I jotted down that I was going to Vockner for a solo camping trip to clear my mind. It would not be in character but it was possible. I would be back in time for my court case. A PS said that I loved everybody more than I could say and would be back on time. I got on my bike and threw the pack into the carrier. The pack was heavy and I could still not carry that much weight very well. At least I was now dressed for hiking. I went to the carwash and pulled Susan aside. Lots of the girls wanted to talk and give me some encouragement but I had to hurry. "What are you doing here Jeff?" I held her hands in mine and looked into her eyes. "I had a very odd feeling just a while ago. I need to do something and for you to forget about what I am telling you now. Please give me all the cash you can spare. I have to do something and I will be back just before the court case." "What feeling Jeff? You're scaring me." "This is scaring me too. Please give me the money and forget about the feeling. I just came here and got the money. Don't tell anybody else, even Jane and Maggie. It can get me into a great deal of trouble if it's mentioned. Promise me." "Ok Jeff. You are not running away are you?" "No. I need to hurry to the bus station. Here's the key. Please come and get the bike. My exact time coming home is up in the air but I will try my best to get here. Talk to Mason and see if he can delay the trial if it becomes necessary." She game me thirty-one dollars and sixteen cents and I gave her the key and a kiss. The bus was preparing to leave when I handed my ticket to the driver. I had a new road map and kept my pack with me. The bus stopped many times to drop off passengers or to pick them up. This was not an express bus and went through all the towns on the way to pick up passengers. My mind worked back forty years dredging up all I knew of Vockner and the area around it. I was not sure of the roads but fairly sure certain things had not changed much from now to 1969 when I had been there. My mind was getting adept at leaping back forty years to a time ten years in my present incarnation's future. All this was sifting through my brain when a deliciously ironic idea came to me. My next movie script would be my own version of, "Back To The Future" Shaking my head to clear it, I focussed on different scenarios of how to deal with a man that would kidnap and kill a young woman and very young girl. I had time to think more on my plan as the bus chugged south in fits and starts. My only hope was to get the girls to flee with me because I would not be able to overcome the man the way I did Goldbalm. The kidnapper would be armed and very nervous. I could not get close with him lulled into relaxing his guard even if I was small. Hell if the guy raped and killed the two women he may do the same to me too. The bus was very slow, with a changing cast of characters. I tried to take a short nap but the din of loud conversations kept me awake. At three thirty five the bus stopped where I asked. A heavy woman was trying to get off with a little boy of her own. I put my bag on the crushed stone beside the road and tried to help the pair. The bus roared away and left us in a cloud of acrid diesel smoke. The woman said, "You new to these parts?" "I came through here with my family a year of so ago. I got permission for a camping trip on my own and thought of starting in Vockner then go north to Bracebridge." "Quite a hike for a young boy with a big pack. Bracebridge is not close either." "I figure I can do it in ten days." A car came up the intersecting road in a cloud of dust. The rains had stopped and the bright sun dried the road quickly. The woman said, "You said you are starting in Vockner?" "Yes ma'am." "We can give you a ride there so you can start fresh. It is only a few minutes by car." "Thank you ma'am. That is very nice of you." The husband packed his family and didn't say anything to me, and very little to his wife; it was as if he were angry at one and all. The husband stopped in the middle of the town. There were only a few businesses. A small store, service station, and a hotel that probably saw its main business function as serving beer. They were the only businesses. When I got out, I said, "Thank you very much for the ride. I might extend my trip if I could find a good bike. Do any of you know where I can find a used one?" They didn't but at least I got a smile from the woman. When she left I scanned the road looking at the cars trying to remember the one that brought the kidnapper and his victims here fifty years ago. I struggled to get the pack on my shoulders. It wasn't a very good backpack. In later years they would have external and internal frames with a wide belt at the waist with a quick release. Now all the weight was on my shoulders and not distributed between shoulders and my hips. Walking to the store was not that bad but opening the heavy door was much harder. I asked about a bike but they couldn't help me. I got some matches already sealed in wax and some mosquito repellent along with some bread, salami and hard cheese. I had not eaten since breakfast but strangely I was not hungry yet. My stomach was roiling, acidic though and it was only from fear and worry. A large local map was in a display by the door. I picked up a copy and trudged back to the counter. With a heavier pack I walked across the road to the service station. A man was sitting outside in a wood chair tipped back on its back legs. When I got close the man said, "What'ya want?" "I'm looking for a used bike so I can go further." "How much ya' got to pay for one?" A new bike cost $25 and a used one would be a lot less. Five dollars seemed enough. "I got five dollars." The man got up after looking up the road towards the highway then hurried into the open bay. There were batteries, an engine and various other car parts pushed against a piece of canvas. The man pulled enough junk off to free the canvas and removed the heavy cloth with a flourish. Underneath, was a bike similar to the one I owned. "This one here is worth $25." The bike was old. The front tire was flat and the seat was ripped. A name was painted on the bike frame with the last name matching the name of the service station. "The bike was $25 when it was new. It is not even worth $5 now." "Look kid. I am in a good mood today. I will give it to you for ten." "The tire's flat. The seat is ripped. I can see that the tires are all checked with age. I'll give you six and you fix anything that is wrong with it." "Ten and you take it as it is." "Why would I take a bike that has a flat tire? I may as well carry it along with my pack." "Ten and I fix the tire." "Six, you fix the tire and we see how much more is wrong with it." The man looked at me angrily then to the road and hurried off. The wheel then the tire was taken off. The leak was found but I noticed six other patches on the tube. The man expertly put on the patch but I had him check again. One more small leak was found. When the unit was reassembled I took the pack off outside and drove the bike in a large circle and tested the brakes. The back fender had a broken strut going to the wheel hub and the front wheel was out of true and to one side. Basically this was a wreck. I took the wrench used to put on the tire and adjusted the front wheel. "I need a steel rod and some wire to make a splint." "What do I look like, a store?" I did look at his face and it looked vaguely familiar. It took a moment then I remembered. He was the man that killed the kidnapper. "The bike is yours still. You fix it then." The man went off and found some scrap steel and with some bailing wire attached it to the broken strut. "There you go. Ten dollars." "I'll take it for six and that is being generous. Somebody else around here has to have a bike for sale at a reasonable price that is not a death trap." "Ha, either you buy this or I tell everyone around here to not sell to you. You insulted me. We stick together here. One word from me and I can even get you kicked out of town." "I don't care who your friends are. The bike is falling apart and probably won't get me ten miles down the road." A car raced by the station and the man ran to see whom it was. So did I but I was looking for the hijacked car. "What are you looking at kid?" "The same thing you were. A car goes by and you race to see it then it may be important." The man just glowered at me. The man walked back and into the garage. I just stopped at my pack. The man turned to me. "Don't you want the bike?" "Only for six bucks." "Eight?" "Seven and you throw in the tarp it was wrapped in." The man looked furious but stuck out his hand, not to shake but for the money. I paid the man, then tried to stuff the canvas in the carrier. The bike had to go against the telephone pole to hold it up as I struggled to get the pack into the carrier. The man was back to watching cars and appeared to ignore me. I saw his anger still on his face. North seemed to be the direction to go. I got out of town on the stone road leading north and south. I pulled the bike over and leaned it against a fence and took out the map. The one seventeen-mile long road was obvious. With the town just behind me it was easy to see which way to go. The turn off was three miles ahead and I hurried on my way. Just before the turn off I heard a car behind me and pulled over to the side. A blue car raced by and slowed for the turn. The man inside was familiar too. The make and model was right even down to the year. It was the light blue paint on the bumper that told me this was the car. The guy had spray painted it to change the colour. The licence plate was different though the last two numbers were right. The kidnapper had just gone by but I didn't see the two victims. The man raced up the road now. He was probably not worried about cops here. I waited just a minute then I went after him. I needn't have worried about him spotting me because he was soon out of sight. The road looked straight on the map and in a car but on a bike it went up and down hill a lot. The stone surface was like a washboard that seemed to shake me on a bike as much as I remembered in a car. Other things I remembered, a river crossed the road just after the turn off. Odd rock formations may be forgettable but not to me. The fear, the worry and the work made me remember Betty sitting in the car on our honeymoon. Though we were in love, I remember the nagging now and I realised anew why I had married her. She was very similar to Susan. The road, for the most part, was cut from the hills. There were vertical sides some places that went hundreds of feet into the air. It would be very difficult getting onto this road and even more so to get off. The other side of the road parallelled the river. Standing to pedal helped a bit. I knew that every minute counted. On an asphalt surface I could make good time but loose stone over a washboard surface was another thing entirely. A turn off appeared ahead, and the locale looked as it did when I went to museum all those years ago. The grade increased considerably then fell to go through a stream. Another hill rose before me and I kept pumping doggedly until I got to the top. Dishearteningly, I was greeted by the sight of another, even and higher hill. I had to rest. My pack had a wine skin and I drank some North Bay water. It tasted funny being in the bag but it was wet. I put it back then raced as fast as I could on the one speed bike. I got partway up the next incline and I had to get off and push. The top few yards were very steep and I had to rest there too. Off to the left was the building I remembered. There was some bare land and some white birch in a large horseshoe off to the side. At the bottom of this incline was the edge of a small lake that washed the edge of the road. The way down was steep though. I just pushed off now and let gravity do the work. I whizzed by the lake and pedalled like crazy up the last part of the road. At a fork in the road, I took the right side. The left went more directly to the house. This whole section made me visible from the house. There were some paths among the trees and I pushed quickly to get much further along. I pushed the bike up a small rise and hid it among the trees. The pack was opened and both a jacket and a pair of cheap binoculars that a kid would have were taken out. I reached in and took the map and slid it into my pants. The canvas went over all of it and I hurried toward the house. I couldn't see the car but I knew it had to be here somewhere. One wall of the house had no windows and so I crept as close as I could. A nearby shed made of the same logs as the house had a stand outside to support a boat motor. The shed door was secured with just had a wood latch. I slipped the latch and I looked in. The shed was filled with boat paraphernalia including two small outboards. Fuel, a cutting and a splitting axe, some handsaws, a large chainsaw and some fuel drums for more fuel were perched on stands. Hand tools, some old car tires and some inner tubes were hanging from struts nailed to the wall. The house had no power lines going to it and so it would have no telephone either. It is one of the costs of living back in the bush. It was another way to get us killed too. It was getting overcast so I went outside and opened the map on the ground. I found my location and tried to visualise what the terrain was like. Unfortunately, this was not a topographical map. I needed to find an escape route. I was not limited to the land though. A boat could carry all three of us to safety. The boat motors though reminded me that the noise, we get us caught. There was a suggestion of an old river bed that may make travel on foot easier. It was on the other side of the house though. I constantly scanned and I searched for any trouble as I circled the building. I came on a small road that curved to the left. Though a storm was threatening, I followed the path. In three minutes it came to an end but I had found the now blue car. Coming on it slowly I could detect no movement. I went around the backside and looked in the glass. Garbage was all over the front seat including a dozen cans of baby blue spray paint. Most were used. The back seat had a blanket but I saw blood on it. There was a purse though. Risking the noise I opened the door and made a quick search. I gathered a wallet for identification. The cloth was a green wool Hudson's Bay blanket. There was a lot of blood on it though. Closing the door, I moved further from the car to get some of the remaining light. Geraldine Ulster was the nanny that had gone missing. There was absolutely no doubt now. Tiny Corinne Jessup was the child's name and, I could recall the photo from the museum showing her small body. A twig snapping alerted me. I was fairly well hidden but I managed to lie down. A man looking five and a half feet tall and wearing a plaid shirt hurried to the car. He fished out a key ring and opened the trunk. I couldn't see what he was doing but in a moment I saw him drag a naked woman from the trunk. Her skin was grey and she didn't make a sound. She was dead. The man dragged her to the side of the road and it was good that it was the other side from me or he would have stumbled over my hiding place. When he was busy I got a bit further away. The man took out the blanket then worked on the floor of the car. He looked all around for quite a while. Finally, he put the nanny's purse beside the body. What he was looking for was probably in my hand. The car backed down the way the man had come. I hurried after it knowing all the twists and turns would hide me. Seeing more of Geraldine's body would only make me shudder. I caught sight of the car climbing the first tall hill and disappear over the other side. Looking through the windows of the house, I found that they had iron bars over them. It looked like nobody was home but I hid the wallet and just knocked at the door as if looking for directions. Nobody came and I heard no sound. The doors were very secure as if to keep a bear out or possibly Humans going either way. I tried to find a way to pick the lock but I had little experience in this. A log was nearby that could break in the door but I would not even be able to lift it. Racing to the shed I looked for a pry bar. There was nothing until I saw the chainsaw. Checking the fuel and oil I raced to the house. The saw was not made for a small person and was quite heavy. It took five minutes for me to get it running. It made a hell of a noise but there was nothing I could do about it. I put the bar about the height of my shoulder and cut straight down but the cut was aimed to my left about thirty degrees. The noise inside must be deafening. The chain was sharp and it took four minutes but it felt like thirty. A new cut was made but the angle went the other way. When I got to the bottom I just pulled the saw out and pushed in the centre of the area I cut. The pieces fell easily inside. I pushed them out of the way and called, "Corinne." There was no answer and I just hoped that she was not dead now too. The house was not large but I raced through it looking for hiding spots. I noticed a trap door fit into the kitchen floor. I pulled it up and went down the steep steps. It was a root cellar. Trussed up in one damp corner was a small girl with terrified eyes. I raced over to her and started to untie the girl. As I did this I talked to her. "Hi Corinne. My name's Jeff. I came to get you away from the bad man. If we hurry we can get something to eat and drink." When the last rope fell away the girl never moved, just her eyes. "Come on Sweetie. We can't stay here. The bad man will be back soon." She didn't move. It was only when I tried to pick her up that she started to move and she fought me with everything she had. I stepped back, "Ok, I am going and getting Geraldine and leave you here." The girl now changed as if a switch had been flicked. She accepted my hand for support as we climbed the steps from the dark, unlit hole. I got a better look at the child now. She was the size of a three year-old but she didn't have the baby fat most still had. It was as if she was sick and used it all up. Her hair was dark and hung down her back but was now tangled and in disarray. Most children changed as they grew, still I somehow knew she would be a beauty when she matured. There was no refrigerator but I did find food for her. I sampled some myself now that the girl was safer. There was a good backpack on the wall, it was modern for this time. I could get my own things hidden with the bike but this was better and I may need more supplies. Corinne seemed to eat well and I gave her some water from a hand pump. There were no pistols but there were rifles. Below the rack were some bullets but no bolts to make the weapons operative. I did a hurried and unfruitful search. These could be used to shoot us and I could not use them without bolts. I went to the wood stove and used its weight and rigidity to bend each of the rifle barrels. I took a better first aid kit than what I had and basically put in all that I thought I should have on the bus ride here. A long sheath knife looked good as well as a small hatchet. Blankets and what would be good for camping went on top. I looked for Corinne's clothes and found them ripped and thrown in a corner. There was no sign of her underwear. The shoes were open-toed as if imitating what a rich lady would wear. One leather strap was ripped. I had to assume the man ripped off the shoes in order to get Corinne naked. I searched the man's clothes available and picked out some smaller shirts. I took a pack of needles I found. I was improvising as I went. Fishing gear was all over the place and I picked out a small box and made sure I had a great deal of line because I had alternate uses for it. A large deer hide on the floor was bundled up and stuffed in the pack. Beside the kitchen table with a ravenous looking Corinne were some envelopes. I grabbed some for the name but also found a large folded sheet of paper. Just looking at the flap told me this was a topo map. I didn't check to see if it was even this area or not. One last look around netted me a photo album sitting on the small table in the other room. I took a few seconds and saw other small naked children. As the pages went on I could see them slowly dying. I think it was their eyes though there bodies seemed to indicate the same thing. I took a sampling of the first pages and put them in my pocket. The album was too big to take with me but I knew it was important. Looking around for a hiding spot I saw room above the stone wall that backed the wood burning stove in the kitchen. The rocks were irregular and I may be able to climb it. A paper sack held the album and it was in turn held in my teeth. There was a dusty area here and it looked to be undisturbed for years. It was difficult to climb because I needed two hands but I got the album pushed as far back as I could reach. It was past due to be gone. "Corinne, we have to put your shoes on. I got them and only one would work. I used a small roll of masking tape was used to secure the shoe to her foot. For safety sake I did the same to the other. I dressed Corrine in the smallest green shirt; I used more tape on this so it was like a dress too. "We have to go now. Geraldine is waiting for us to catch up to her." Her voice came out weak and unsure. "Where is she?" "She is leading us to safety. We just have to follow her." "Ok," I stood the pack up on the table and got into it by adjusting all the straps to the tightest they would go. When I stood I knew I had a lot more weight but it was a easier to carry. Corinne held my hand now and we had a difficult time getting out the opening with the tall pack. I walked over to Geraldine's wallet and said, "Your nanny left her wallet here. Will you give it to me?" Corinne picked it up and after a short examination did as I asked. The area around the house was mostly rock and thus hard to track us. The kidnapper would assume the road first anyway. We walked as if to circle the small lake. On the way I broke some small branches and dropped a small rag. Ten minutes later we turned around. "Silly me. I forgot Geraldine said we had to go the other way." This time we were careful. We had passed an area of rock, washed clean from many years of erosion. We walked up the incline and to where it would lead. "Step on the big rocks and try to keep your feet dry. Do you know any songs? We used to sing when the radio was turned on." "I know twinkle twinkle." "Will you sing it for me Sweetie?" The girl did but most of it was mixed up but still beautiful to my ears. Perhaps the dead girl in the picture would not happen, at least not yet. We had to climb over or under a lot of dead trees and I tried to not disturb them. Even spider webs we avoided. I went through boot camp forty years ago. It was more to weed out the weak of body and the weak of mind. It gave little training for staying alive in the wild. I remember vividly a television scene from a show telling about Bushmen living in a desert and burying ostrich egg shells filled with water for later use. Other than the grubs in a dead tree trunk there was little to help me unless I remembered more. Corinne wanted to rest but I pushed on a bit more before finding a layer of solid rock. She was in pain just like me but she was a trouper. "We can rest over here, Sweetie." I led the way then sat where I could get the pack back on easily. The girl really was a Sweetie. She didn't complain much and for the most part didn't make too much noise. The girl was looking around with more than the usual interest. "Do you have to pee Sweetie?" She just nodded her head. "Out here there aren't any bathrooms. You get to pee wherever you want. We don't want to pee where somebody is going to step though." I made a face as if trying to be sanctimonious. I got a small smile, which was more than I hoped. Off to one side was more rock and I got her to squat as I held her hands. "You can see me." "I'll close my eyes." I heard the sound then it stopped in a moment it started again. When she moved again I peeked and saw her grimace. I assumed she wanted to shit. In a moment she started to cry. Since she had peed I did not think she was raped in her vagina but I figured her anus was the target the animal chose. With eyes closed I said, "Does it hurt Sweetie?" "Yes, the man hurt me. It hurt real bad." There was probably some aspirin in the first aid kit but it would not help to much for this type of pain or later when her bowel pressure got even higher and she had to shit. Hypnosis seemed to be a logical answer but I wanted to do this a little later when we camped. It was already getting dark though the storm had not begun. Heading directly away from the stream we walked up, I found a small hollow. "We will camp here tonight Corinne." "What about Geraldine?" "She is further ahead making things easy for us to follow. We might catch up to her tomorrow but probably the next day." "K," came out in a weary child's voice. I set the pack down and worked quickly to get settled before full dark came. A plastic sheet went on the ground and a blanket went on that. There was no tape so the shoes had to stay on a bit longer. I took out a soft shirt and helped Corinne get hers off then put the bigger one on. She could curl up in this. She drank some genuine North Bay water with distaste. I sat and got Corinne to lay in front of me. I talked quietly but my voice said very little other that she was sleepy. This was already the truth. I think in ten minutes she was under or just sleeping. The solid arm test seemed to work when she could not put it down. I deepened her trance for another twenty minutes then let her sleep while I looked for something to eat then do my own duties. Sometimes when I was nervous I got constipated. Corinne cried in her sleep and I pulled her close to me. This helped and she went rested quietly the rest of the night. ------- Chapter 15 There was a fog on the ground in the morning. It was quite cool. When it was light enough I studied the topo map. We were much higher now and I took out the compass I had found in the cabin. The kidnapper, or Carl Honzer, would keep the hydro road well patrolled and try to keep us from getting to Vockner. The more sizable town of Malute could be reached with more difficulty and the man could not be in both places at once. Though it was chilly I did what was necessary. I dumped my water and rinsed the container before getting new water from upstream. I had a cold breakfast set out before Corinne finally woke up. When her eyes started to flutter I smiled and said in a small voice, "Good morning sleepyhead." She looked around quickly probably hoping that yesterday was just a nightmare. She shivered and pulled the blanket to her. "Where am I?" "This area has a lot of high hills. We're near the top of one. I don't have a car so we are going to have to walk until you can get back to your family." "Where's Geraldine?" "I saw Geraldine. She is going on ahead to mark a trail for us. I just look at the secret signs she left behind for us and follow. Tomorrow or the next day we should find her. Would you like to have some breakfast?" "This isn't breakfast." "Well you're right but I didn't have time to shop for cereal and I don't have a refrigerator to keep the milk from going bad. We just have to eat what we have." I cut portions of food and put them in an aluminum fry pan. I looked around the rock and found a lot of low bush blueberries. Staying in sight I took a small pot and began picking. When the small pot was half full I brought it back. Corinne would need the fruit to soften her stool. I knew partially what she felt like because my sisters used the dildo on me. The girl loved the berries and had a blue hand and face when they were done. She had some water next that hopefully tasted a bit better. Wrapping the child in her blanket I talked again but used the trigger phrase that I had planted last night. The trance was deepened for fifteen minutes. "Corinne, get up. We have to go to the bathroom." The girl left the blanket behind which was good. We went twenty yards from camp and closer to the stream. She peed easily but I had to stress how the pain never reached her and she could do what she needed to do. This turned out to be a long and painful process for she was not as deep in a trance as she needed to be. She did do it though and I saw fresh blood and the older coagulated variety. I took some nearby moss but this was painful too. "Let's go to the stream." The girl walked in pain and I figured that the discomfort had brought her out of the trance. With a hand and in the Arab fashion I cleaned the girl. She shivered from the cold but remained pliant. We washed our own hands and I flicked some water at her and she smiled at me. When I opened my arms she came after a second. I was not strong but it was fun to hold this young life close to me. Back in camp, I put back her old clothes and took off her 'jammies'. The rest of the pack was dumped and I sorted and packed it better. Though not a survivalists, I had camped and hiked. Heavy things went to the top but that was where I wanted some things I used often too. The pack didn't have many places to attach cups or water bottles but then again I didn't have a plastic water bottle to put there. All in all, I figured I had about the best I could get. I went back and buried any evidence of our being here. A walking stick or a simple spear would be good and possibly life saving but it would make marks on the ground that a foot would not. With one last look at our campsite we walked back to the stream and climbed further. Corinne trustingly put her hand in mine. She may have done this to make sure I didn't leave or to help her keep up but I hoped it was more. We left the stream and walked as if to go to Vockner but I went back to a more rocky area that would take us in the direction of Malute. I was not a great woodsman so I knew that I could be tracked by one that was. My worst fear was dogs because they didn't need to see our trail to find us. In some of the less strenuous areas we talked. "Corinne, what is your favourite colour?" "Pink." "Will you sing twinkle twinkle again for me. I like the way you sing." The talk went on and on with simple things that just allowed us to know that the other was here for them. Corinne had difficulty walking and we made small breaks. If she couldn't walk I could not carry her and the pack we needed the pack to stay alive. We just didn't sit though. Blueberries were in season and we picked quite a few. Mine went mostly into an aluminum pot but Corinne's went into one made of flesh. She enjoyed this and it made me happy too. Mosquitos were not bad on the exposed rock usually but I put some repellent on both of us. When it got hot, Corinne's dress came off and she walked naked. She thought this naughty but fun. The dress went back on later so she wouldn't get sunburned. We had a longer break when the sun was at the highest. Corinne was put under again. This allowed her to deal with her pain better but I wanted her to get over some of her shyness. When she had to defecate, I wanted to know well before the event was imminent. When this happened, I wanted to put her under with a trigger phrase and then another to begin doing her job. When she was awake, I asked the same thing and hoped that one way or another it would work. We ate what was going to go bad first. I spread the topo map out and had fun teaching Corinne about map reading. She loved the compass when I pointed out how to use it to show features on the map and in the real world. She now carried her share of the weight. The strap holding the compass was now around her neck. I got the pack on with difficulty. My shoulders were in pain from the straps. Packs were just not made as well as what they would be. We walked just a few yards when I heard, "I got to go." "That's fine sweetie." I had no kids of my own but I figured that all parents had to put up with this. I took the pack back off and used the trigger phrase. Corinne was in my arms like a baby or like a lover. As my words went out to bring her deeper I thought of the child. I still had no hormones to make my mind follow dark paths. Love though was there but it was not the kind I would be ashamed of. She was a beautiful child with a sweet disposition. The second trigger phrase worked and Corinne did what was necessary with a little less pain. It could be the trance or the fact that her body was trying to heal itself. Moss was still out and the Arab style still in, at least until she got better. I had a smelly hand that I wiped on the moss then buried the evidence. We walked downhill now as much as we walked up. Not every place allowed us to stay on bare rock. I stayed away from areas with the lines of elevation on the map were close together. We came to streams that had to be forded but sometimes this was impossible. When we walked back to a good spot I took off my pack. "Sweetie, I want to get across this water. I don't know how deep it is. I didn't bring a bathing suit. When people go swimming without clothes it's called skinny dipping." She looked at me with trusting eyes. I wagged one finger at here and said, "I'm going to take my clothes off and you better not look." I did what was necessary and Corinne peeked then closed her eyes when she saw that I saw her. The water was only up to my chest and the stream bottom was covered in decaying matter. The pack went over then my clothes. Corinne did too, but she was also skinny dipping too. In the middle I washed both of us. The mosquitos were bad on the other side so we hurried to get dressed. The clothes I used as towels hung from the pack to dry. On our travels I pointed out things that I knew. Some were plants and some were animals. Odd rock was pointed out and I would tell her the name if I knew it. Corinne repeated the words for all three classifications and we had tests when we came across the same thing again. She pointed out things she had been taught and wanted me to take her tests. We were exhausted by the end of the day and I set up camp early. We had walked to a point on a small lake. A line of trees kept us from view of the surrounding area but still allowed the wind to keep the ever-present mosquitos away. "Sweetie, I want to go fishing. Fish like to eat other fish or nice juicy bugs." I said the last as I licked my lips as if I thought they tasted good too. She made faces at me but we looked. Bait was scarce; all I found were a few crayfish. I baited six lines and put them as far out as I could get them. The lines went around twigs before being tied to a springy branch. Corinne sat in my lap as we rested. I told her of my family starting from when I was small. Other than my dad's death I skipped over the bad things. I talked of all my young friends who happened to be girls. My adult friends of both genders were listed. I used two sentences to talk of my laser but Corinne didn't see anything special about it. Corinne talked now but the words and ideas were mixed up like a child of her age would do. Her parents were dead and her maternal grandfather was raising her. There was no grandmother so Geraldine watched over her all the time. They flew in planes and had large cars so I assumed that her grandfather was rich. She had no siblings and she wasn't around many children her own age. Corinne's shoes were coming off because of the tape that had been soaked in water and sweat. She ran to get what I asked for from the pack and I cut some small portions of deer hide to take the place of the broken strap on her shoe. The stitching was not bad once I found a thimble. With a short section of fishing string I tried to get some measurements. Corinne had to stand in her birthday suit as I transposed the measurements to the hide. Pants would be best but were too difficult to make. A skirt, though, might not be hard at all. I was not able to cut it in one piece so I rotated the hide and started again. Corinne noticed a twig moving and I dropped what I was doing and worked to pull in my fish. The line was cutting my hands and Corinne ran for the hatchet so I could use the handle to wrap the line around. The girl was very excited but as the fish came close to shore it made an impressive struggle with the rock to push against. It looked like a pike of four pounds when it shot into the air and left the bare hook for me. Corinne looked heartbroken. I just picked her up with my hand under her bare butt. "Some we catch and some we don't." I loved carrying the girl but I was happy it didn't affect me sexually. My naked little nymph was sent to get dry wood. We started a fire and the wind blew the smoke into the trees. Someone could smell it but they couldn't actually see it. I began a third time on the hide but this time I was able to use some of the burnt twigs to make dark lines. Scissors would have been better but the knife worked well enough. It was almost all cut out when another twig moved. Corinne jumped up and down and barely contained herself. She knew she shouldn't even talk loud but her actions were loud enough. I took off my shoes, socks and pants. This time I pulled in the fish from knee-deep water. The rocks were slippery and I fell once pulling on the line. My girl laughed at me with no pity for my plight. This was a pike too so I was not about to put my fingers into its mouth to hold it. With the knife blade in my hand, I used the grip to strike the fish on the head. It quieted immediately and I put my fingers in its gill slit. I almost stumbled twice getting the short distance back to shore. My hands were full of fish and tools. About ten feet onto the land, I hit the fish again and began to cut it up. Corinne squatted down as close as she could get to see what was happening. This fish was small. If we got more I was going to bake them by the coals but this one would get roasted. That was where the remains of our fish now cooked. 'Y' shaped sticks were put into the shallow soil and I had to resort to rocks as a hammer. Longer Y shaped sticks supported portions of fish and were put around the fire. They would be smoky but the rest would go over the coals. I called Corinne 'Mommy' and she had to watch the food. She liked the term like most girls of every age. I found another crayfish and again rebaited the hook before washing up. The hide was finally cut and I sat by the fire to watch the fish and make some long strips of leather from the remains of the hide. We ate the burnt smoky fish as if from the finest restaurant. Corinne had to be fitted and came many times as I put the skirt to her for measurements. Holes were made with the knife. I wanted the skirt to look nice so I made the holes only an inch apart. Any puckers would be small. We ate more fish and eventually the portion in the coals too. The skin was pealed off and the hot flesh eaten delicately. Pike had a great number of small sharp bones. The skirt was finally finished and I wrapped it around Corinne's waist and tied the thongs. It was good that I had made certain provisions for her belly stuck out quite a bit. She liked the garment a great deal. She danced around and tried to get the heavy material to fly out. She came to me then and kissed my cheek and said "Thank you Daddy," then she looked worried. "You are welcome Corinne. I love you like a daughter anyways. Do you want to be my daughter for a while?" Her face brightened with a smile and she nodded her head vigorously. A few years ago but in my previous life, I read a few volumes of a British publication called Osprey. There were a great many books on different aspects of war craft. One of the books dealing with the Romans showed a cut out of a Roman Infantryman's footwear. We didn't have metal studs and tough leather but I could make some shoes with what we had. Corinne supplied her foot and I used the burnt twigs again. It was getting dark now and the fire could be seen even if the smoke wouldn't be. Corinne warned me and I put her under with her phrase. I deepened it for a while then she could go. The pain appeared to be less this time. I washed her on shore with water squeezed from the wine skin. She thought this funny and I made a game of it. She watched me with interest when I peed and only watched me shit once to know what it was like. I didn't find much interest in this and neither did she. I had her lie down on the blanket. She hugged her knees as I inspected her anus. There was still some bleeding when her stool opened the wounds one more time. The ground was just as uncomfortable as the last camp but pulling Corinne close was therapeutic for both of us. The morning was cold and foggy again but I was happy to see that we had two fish. The other hooks were bare. I cleaned both fish and put the offal in the water at the shore to feed the crayfish. The wind was still favourable and I started a fire. The dew dampened wood took longer to start. I went back to cutting my girl's new shoes. They required many more thongs which I produced. These shoes I figured would be better than moccasins just because of the way they were secured to the foot and the fact that they were easier to make. The short thongs would go to the footwear but the longer ones I saved. The thongs were woven into a ribbon but it was difficult to get it to stay flat and not curl. I tried a lot of patterns until one worked. Corinne got up eventually and hugged me. With a sly look she said, "Hello Daddy." "Good morning daughter. Did you sleep well?" "Yes Daddy." I opened my arms and she came to me. I kissed her nose and cuddled with her. The key word was said and I deepened it. She would have to go soon and this way we could hold each other. The blueberries had their effect, which I was happy to see. Wash-up was a bit more difficult though. Corinne tended the fire while I tidied up in preparation for leaving. I fit the boots over her shoes and tightened the thongs. The shoe was more closed and would protect her better along with making her footprint less distinct. The fish went into the coals but the fire was kept burning for additional heat. The woven strips of deer hide went around Corinne's forehead to keep her hair out of her eyes. My Pocahontas looked very beautiful and I told her so. She blushed, but like any other woman, took the compliment as her due. When the fish was done I noticed that the smoke was going straight up. The fire was drowned and we ate quickly but I tried not to show worry. With everything packaged, I tidied camp and even buried the remains of the fire under some rocks. Instead of continuing on our old course I changed and took advantage of all the rock I could find. Corinne was pushed hard too but didn't complain much. The course was changed again after we backtracked. This was done two more times before we were too exhausted to continue. I was less nervous now and told the story of Pocahontas as seen from a storywriter's point of view. The truth was not as glamorous but it was exciting. We picked and ate more blueberries. Some of the slopes, with a good crop, had to be avoided because we would be too exposed. Mosquitos were feasting on us but I resisted applying more repellent. In an hour we were in a small lake and having our bath. Bar soap had been scrounged but I was careful that it didn't get lost when it sank. We had old and new red marks from feeding the bugs. Pocahontas looked beautiful and I wondered again if I was turning into a pervert or just a person that could admire beauty. I loved the statue 'David' but guys didn't turn me on. We stayed until we dried and put our clothes back on. Checking the topo map I found that we had to go east to avoid a large hill that was at least five miles long. I chose the direction as if I were in the kidnapper's shoes. Some things would be easy enough for him and some difficult choices would keep us safe. He wasn't safe though. Canada and Ontario had the death penalty at this time and he would hang if I had my way. We were not making many miles in a day. I was still hurt from the lightning and my scars didn't stretch as much as regular skin. Corinne had asked about them. She didn't find me ugly. I guess it was that being a father had more leeway. Our path bypassed lakes but I found we were in swamps some of the time. They were smaller on the map but we had a great deal of rain recently. The clouds were getting grey again and I knew we would be getting more. Rain started an hour later just as we were getting out of a wet area. I stripped my Pocahontas of all but her shoes. The rain washed her as she danced in it. I had the plastic tarp over me, which made her laugh. In a suitable spot we stopped and made camp. I had foreseen some rain so brought two sheets of plastic. I sat on the blanket with the plastic supported by my head. My naked girl sat in my lap and we talked of everything that she wanted to talk about. We ate some of our fish, berries and some cheese that was going mouldy. During a lull, we got undressed or rather I did and we went out to do our business and hurry back into the shelter. I deepened Corinne's trance and we slept that way until the morning. The next day looked bad so we stayed put. We talked about many things. She thought my directing the world some day was a good idea. Through some of the things she said, I thought that Corinne's grandfather was a lawyer as well as a businessman. Her parents appeared to have died about a year ago but I wasn't sure. She was still too young to remember much. We both went through Geraldine's wallet. There was no photo ID and I didn't want to remember her as I saw her the one and only time. She had pictures of her parents and her as a child. There was a lot you could learn about a person by just what was before us. There were a few business cards but one had some extra writing. It mentioned an emergency number to call. The card mentioned a large legal firm. The name was not Jessup but I figured that the name was her maternal grandfather. I looked at the photos taken from the album. The girls were older than Corinne but I was sure that she would have shared their fate. The rain stopped later in the afternoon. A good breeze came up and I decided to get some distance in as well as some exercise. We probably made five miles before we made camp. Less time had been spent on breaks but we did pick some fruit. I made sure Corinne ate all of it. The next day looked to be great. The sun came out and burnt off the fog quicker than usual. We had finished much of the supplies taken from the cabin but there was still fish and berries. Other plants could be eaten and I had my eye out for cattails that were not in a swamp. We found civilisation of a sort in decayed docks and a very old cabin. In the back of the cabin were old trucks, now no more than rusting hulks from when this area had been logged. It was so long ago that trees grew all around the wreckage. On the decayed back of one large truck I found a mortar boat used for mixing mortar or cement by hand. Corinne was interested in the truck and I being 'a father', did what was necessary. She climbed in the cab once the door was forced open. Rodents had eaten the upholstery and the girl couldn't see outside the window because of her size. I climbed on top of the cab and was surprised at the strength vehicles were made at one time. The lake we were beside was perhaps twelve miles long when gauged on the map. It was also close to five miles wide. A falls fed it and rapids emptied it into another. Both places were very close to each other and the lake was just the low area that collected the water. We were almost directly opposite the two accesses. There were some trees by the water and I figured this area would be as good as spot as any to set up housekeeping. I could fish in safety and we could build a fire further back where the onshore breeze would carry the smoke horizontally. We went searching for bait and had the lines set before it got full dark. The light from the small fire was well hid by the mortar boat on one side and the truck on the other. At the moment it was more for comfort and to keep the mosquitos away. At full dark Corinne tended the fire while I went to check the lines but nothing had bit yet. On the way back to camp I stopped to move a burr from my pants and heard the faint baying of dogs. My heart beat very quickly. The noise came from where we had come from and the distance couldn't be for more than a few miles away. I looked all over foolishly in the dark then tried to remember what features could take us to safety. The area was basically flat except where the lake cut into the hills on both sides. I was already back at camp when the idea came to me. The mortar boat was a boat. The metal was heavy and had a functional handle at each end. Taking a shirt, I looped it through the one handle. "Corinne, we're leaving now. I know you want to rest. Fold up the plastic and the blanket and put them into the pack. Pick up everything else of ours. Let the fire burn so I can come back. I'm going to the water." My voice was not excited though I was inside. The boat had a flat bottom covered in many years of rust. It was difficult to move but I pulled frantically. I got it in the water as I heard the dogs calling from much closer. I ran as fast as I dared to get Corinne and found her done. "That was a good job. You did everything perfect." I picked up some of the boards that used to form part of the shack and we hurried to the boat. We had been using them as firewood. We just pushed away from the water when the dogs rushed us. From their voices I think some of them were hounds. In a voice that surprised me, I said, "Look Sweetie, we found some dogs. Too bad we can't take them with us." Corinne was afraid though because of how they came at us from the dark, baying as they found their prey. The boards became paddles but the boat was too wide to treat like a canoe and had no oarlocks for a rowboat. We were on the water a half hour before I heard men's voices. They cursed the dogs to shut them up. Their flashlights were not powerful enough to find us. I saw a bright flash and a loud noise. They were shooting at us. The light of the flashes showed that there were three people and not one. I paddled furiously as I kept Corinne as low as possible. These had to be part of the kidnap plan for nobody would be hunting like this at night and shooting at just a shape in the water. They must know that their dogs were tracking Humans. When we got further into the lake the light from their guns could not illuminate us. I looked at the stars and began to think of the next plan. We were safe here and maybe even safe in the middle of the lake but we could not stay there. The men would patrol both sides of the lake to find which way we went and then be right after us again. "Was one of those men the one that hurt me?" I could not lie to her. "I think it was Sweetie. He can't get us here and I have a trick to play on them." I used the knife to whittle a board into a paddle with a narrower shaft. The time taken would be repaid in saved hands and more efficiency. I paddled to the left toward the far side of the falls from the rapids. In an hour we made land. Corinne wanted to get out and I said, "Stay here a moment. I want to let the dogs know that I was here." I scrambled up the steep sides of the hill but about fifty feet from the shore. With one hand on a rock I pissed on the wall in front of me then climbed down. Once back in the boat, I paddled further into the lake. The dogs had been led by hand now and they ran around to find a scent. Back in the centre of the lake I heard the loud baying of the dogs and a single gunshot. Corinne was cringing in the bottom of the boat. "Corinne, that's good. Now the men knew we were over there. The gunshot told the others that they think they found us. They will take all the dogs now and look for a way to climb the hill and it's going to be hard. We're safe and now I know that there are three people." "They are going to hurt me." "A daddy protects his girl, Corinne." My plan hinged on a few things. The end of the lake with the falls was easier to get to than the part with the rapids. This end had very high hills that at one time had been split by an earthquake. If the rapids were navigable then we could make very good time but it would be back the way we had come. We had to move faster than the men. They may think of this route eventually but going after us would be difficult. They could backtrack and cut us off if they knew my plan. I brought out the plastic and laid the blanket on it. "Get some rest Sweetie. We just have to just wait." She tried to sleep but was too worried. Two words were enough to put her to sleep and I began to paddle. I aimed for the rapids with nothing much more than luck to guide me. The river went straight for a mile then turned directly away from the falls. I could hear the air move but no slapping of water. It was dangerous to go further in the dark and I tied us off with some strong braided fishing line. I awoke at the grey dawn and went ashore with the hatchet. It took five minutes to find a tall enough tree to help me but small enough that I could handle it. Corinne was still asleep so I woke her. "Sleepyhead, are you going to sleep all day?" "Hi Daddy," she said with a smile. "Let's go for your pee and poop and we can get going." "K." This went fairly quick and she bent over to get cleaned. I knew she like this and it wasn't all because it was a way to be close. She closed her eyes in enjoyment. I pushed off using the pole when I could and stayed close to the shore. Corinne leaned over our yacht and ran her hand in the cool water. Far ahead I could see rolling water. The summer was wet and the water should still be high. The bad point was that I didn't have any life vests. A spill here could kill us. To go slow could kill us too. We went ahead in stages. This side of the river looked fairly clear even if it was shallower. If we had to pull out, I wanted a place to get out and climb onto land and not be pinned by a shear wall of rock. By the time it was dark, I estimated that we had gone over twenty miles. The rapids were not as bad as the topo indicated. Another falls was ahead and though not high we could not navigate it. The boat was too heavy to portage up and through the rock so we went by ourselves. I came back and pushed our faithful boat into the water. If it made it through the turbulence then I could retrieve it and start again. When I returned to Corinne, she was pointing to the base of the falls. The boat was lodged in the rocks and there was many times too much water coming over to wrestle it loose. We were on the other side of the river from the men. We had made good headway and now picked more berries. As soon as possible we set out toward Vockner, as our new objective. We would have to go close to Carl Honzer's place again. This was a danger but also gave me a chance at stealing a car. I studied the map quite intently. Putting myself in the place of the men I though of what I would do. The possibility of them thinking like me would be fairly high. The house was the only one around. Even with the cars closed to me, we did have my bike and I could carry Corinne easily but not my full pack. The actual route we would take would parallel the Chuutney River. If we stayed too close then we would be restricted in a retreat. The land further inland was rough and would take a long time to cover the same distance that could be done beside the river. With the theft of the map and the way I followed the terrain to approach Malute they had to think I knew the two choices available to me. With the river far behind, we headed for a small lake. Fishing was better than catching game and I regretted not looking for some stiff wire for snares. That night I realised that tomorrow I was to be at court to answer the charges of theft. The family would certainly be worried but it was possible that Mason was able to get the case adjourned for a later time. We ate fish the next day but the bugs ate us. We slogged on, even though it looked like it would rain. This was prime blueberry territory and Corinne said, "Look, somebody dropped some blueberries." I had seen the pile. Most of the berries were undamaged but that was like the way it was when an animal ate some things. A bear had come here and dumped his load on the way. It was only partially digested the way a horse hardly digested anything it ate. I said, "That is bear poop." "A bear? Is it going to eat us?" I smiled at her. "A bear is usually afraid of Humans. In the spring a momma bear will fight for her baby but usually a bear will leave us alone." "K." She was not sure but as long as the bear was not surprised it would usually amble away. That was why it was good to beat a pot or hit two sticks together for the noise they made. Bear signs became more common and I pointed one out to Corinne. She loved the idea of seeing one and asked if I could catch it for her later. Just before cresting another hill I found a mother bear and her yearling cub. It was large and almost old enough to leave on its own. When we started down the other sides I heard the dogs again. Three of them were far down the hill but easily racing toward us. Not far behind would be one or more of the men. The phrase the enemy of my enemy is my friend popped into my mind. Turning around I raced for the top again. Dropping the pack didn't really matter much now. I held Corinne's hand tight as we raced across the flat top then down to the left. Maybe three hundred yards ahead were the two bears. They had not heard the dogs yet. I looked at the terrain and figured where the bears would go then raced in that direction ahead of them. We made enough noise that the bears looked at us as we raced past. The dogs were winded when they got to the hilltop but followed our scent. They didn't even bay this time they were so tired. I didn't know who was more surprised, the three dogs or the two bears. Momma bear swatted one dog and it flew through the air. All thoughts of us had stopped especially when the yearling was bit. I stopped long enough to show Corinne. She was breathless but stared in fascination of what was unfolding. I tried to do the unexpected. To do otherwise would get us killed. I went back in the original direction we were going. A rock face was before us. The dogs would not be able to follow. The face was well over a mile long but only thirty feet high in a few places. I took the closest one and looked for hand holds. I think I could do it but I doubted if Corinne could. I put the pack at the top of the pile of loose stone and dirt at the bottom of the cliff. I took out the heavy braided fishing line I had taken. It was rated for a hundred pounds. "Sweetie, I am going to climb up there. The dogs can't follow. When I get to the top, I am going to pull up some of this very strong fishing line. The other end is going to be tied to a blanket and you are going to be in it." "It's scary. I don't want to do it." "Sweetie, the dogs and the men are scary. This is just going to be a bit of fun. You can tell your grandpa what we did soon, if we get up there now." "It's too scary." "Sweetie. I am your Daddy now. You have to do this." She lowered her head and whispered, "K." I took out the blanket and tied a good knot in two opposite ends then in the other two ends so I had a basket. The fishing line was tied to these knots with a lot of care. The distance was estimated and I cut more than enough line. Hopefully as I climbed the slack line would not get caught. It took longer than I thought. I had to try many routes before I gained the top. When I got to a good point I said, "Get in Sweetie and I will pull you up. "I'm going to fall." "No you won't Sweetie. Just get in the blanket and I will pull you up." "I am going to fall." "Sweetie, put the blanket beside the pack and tip it in. The pack weights more than you do. When it comes up safe then you can get your turn." I wished now that I had just used the words and put her into a trance. The girl did this with a bit of difficulty. The barking dogs told me to hurry. I wrapped the line around the limb of a tree. I pushed on the line sideways then pulled the whip end until the blanket and its cargo came over the edge. With little room to work I said. "See it was easy. I threw the blanket over again and made a simple knot to hold the line from falling. The pack went twenty feet higher and over the higher ridge. I came back down and talked to Corinne but I could not get her to get in the blanket. The sounds of gunshots stopped the barking and now it may be too late. I whispered just loud enough. "Get in Corinne or it will be too late." The girl just curled into a ball. I climbed down as fast as I could. I didn't trust Corinne to stay in the blanket. The knife at my waist cut a strip off the blanket and I tied her hands together with a foot of gap. The cloth cut off my circulation and my breath but I moved from side to side as I went up the cliff face. The difficult part was at the top. From below I heard, "So we've been chasing a fuckin' kid all this time." I knew that voice. It was the man that owned the service station in Vockner. "Come on down kid and we will go easy on you." I knew what easy meant and I worked even harder to get the both of us over. With Corinne on my back I could not get the centre of gravity right. "Come on down now or I shoot. I can't miss at this range." I didn't say anything. Dying by a bullet was better than the other death they promised me. Corinne started to whimper. I didn't want her flailing about and said the two words to put her under. I managed to move three feet to the side but not any closer to the edge. The best possibility was to see if I could push Corinne over the lip then climb over myself. I heard scrambling and now I knew that the man was going to simply climb up and catch us. I spotted a good-sized root that came out of the ground then went back in. If I could get that then I could get over. Moving close to the root I heard the man promise then threaten he was just a yard below our feet. I looked for a rock to throw at him but there was only gravel. Where the idea came from I didn't know but I said the code words that commanded Corinne to shit. I even managed to get one leg up in time. I didn't know how accurate we were but I heard the man yell as he was hit and then again as he fell close to thirty feet below. I lunged for the root and with more strength than I though I had, I pulled us over. The man could quickly follow and even use the fishing line to help. I pulled up the blanket. I woke Corinne and we hurried up the last few yards to the top. Pushing Corinne in front of me I felt a powerful punch to my left shoulder. I looked up and saw Corinne pushing me to get up. "Hurry the man's climbing." The pain hit me then and even more when I tried to get up. I was bleeding. I had to have been shot although I knew I should have much more damage. Staggering back, I saw a smear of lead on the rock I was beside. The bullet had hit the rock then hit me. "Hurry the man will get here soon." She was right. Even if I wasn't hurt the man would run us down and kill Corinne. "Stay here!" I staggered down the slope I had just climbed. A few yards from the edge I saw some large rocks. I heard small rocks falling as the man climbed up the face of the cliff again. I tried to pick up a rock of thirty pound with my right hand. It couldn't be done. I had to use both hands no matter what the pain. It almost killed me but it didn't matter now. Looking over the edge I saw the man now covered in blue shit, the gun strap was on his shoulder. He looked up at me just as I threw the rock down at him. He looked so surprised just as the rock hit him in the upturned face. He fell outward and down. He landed on his back and didn't move. I picked up more rocks. One hit the barrel of his gun and propelled it away. Only half the rocks hit but I was sure he wasn't going to hurt Corinne or anyone else. Corinne had disobeyed but she helped me back up the incline. I just collapsed at the top. Corinne talked to me in my dreams about being stupid. I woke up later and Corinne was with me. She had put out the plastic and blankets. I got a drink then went back to sleep. I woke up and it was dark. The water skin was close and I used my right hand to drink all of it. Corinne was sleeping at my back. It must be around noon when I awoke again. The water skin was full again and I drank all of it again. Corinne came running to me with a pail of blueberries. She said, "Eat some. They will make you feel better." This was the same thing I had said to her. Looking around I found all our containers full of the fruit. "How long was I here Sweetie?" She wasn't sure by her look. "How many times did night come since we got here?" "Two I think." "Thanks for taking such good care of me Sweetie." She only smiled widely and didn't blush at all. I actually wondered why we had not been killed or captured. Two days here was a lot. I tried to feel my shoulder but couldn't move very well. We had to move though. I wolfed down lots of the berries and drank the water. There was a spring nearby that kept us supplied. I could not manage the full pack. Reluctantly I selected only those things to carry that would be the most useful. The large treble hooks stared at me and I had to keep those and a spool of monofilament. There was little food left. It was only oatmeal and some fish we had caught too long ago. We made camp that night and I had a fire going to boil water for the oatmeal. I knew I was running a fever and probably had an infection from the gunshot. We ate all of it flavoured with berries. The morning retching brought me to my knees. There was nothing on my stomach but soon Corinne brought me some water which I threw up again. The third time was better. My head was pounding though. By the time night came, we got into familiar territory. I also heard dogs but not on scent. I pushed on in the growing darkness. Just a mile from the house I took out the fishing line and set it up across the trail. The large treble hooks were tied to trees and the line dragged down the trail. They crossed each other and were supported eighteen inches high by another line across the path. This would give them something to think about. I put Corinne in a trance and went to check the two cars. One had its hood partially open while the other was all the way up. It was difficult to get it the first up but it was spring loaded like all old cars. I was going to hot wire it but decided to peak first. There was enough starlight to see that the distributor cap and wires were gone. The other car proved to be the same. I reached in and removed the rotor on each distributor. If they were not letting me have the car then they couldn't have them either. It took a half hour to get close to the bike. I was going to climb the last rise but smelt cigarette smoke instead. There was just a hint of a breeze but I quietly retraced my steps. Cars and bikes were out it seemed to my feverish mind. I didn't see any boats. The house was dangerous but maybe the shed could help us. I opened it and removed the two hoses from the fuel cans that fed the outboard motor. If they did have a boat they wouldn't have a motor. I remembered other things inside the shed. There were two large inner tubes. Searching around I found a hand pump and even some short paddles. Getting the pump connected with one hand was difficult. The tubes inflated slowly. A small tarp with grommets in the edge looked like it might work. A hank of small diameter sash cord hung on a peg. It took twenty minutes to get Corinne to the shed. It took another half hour to carry the two tubes, canvas and rope to the river. Corinne kept her red blanket like Charlie Brown's friend Linus. I tied the two tubes together then tied the canvas around both. We just pushed off. From the land I heard a yelling and a dog in pain. Strangely it didn't seem to matter. I held the tube and stroked as hard as I dared with my hand. Using two hands and a paddle was far too difficult. When it looked like we were in the middle of the river I just crawled onto a tube and went to sleep. Corinne woke me up with difficulty. It was not quite dawn. She said, "A car went by. It had lights on. Then a another but this one roared." When my mind started to work I said, "That means we are getting close to town Sweetie. The other noise was probably a truck." "K." In another half hour the current took us close to the bridge. I got off the tube and pushed us to shore with scissors strokes. We were on the other side of the river from the hydro road. There was brush here and trees. The area was too dense to see into very far. Corinne helped me pull in our boat. I concealed the raft, made a quick camp. She did her business and I told her to sleep until I came to get her. The blanket went around her to keep the bugs off. I started to leave but had to come back and kiss the child and get Geraldine's wallet. I took the two cards because I didn't know which was which in the dark. She had a few dollars in coin and I had perhaps seventy cents. It took well over two hours to get into town. Nobody was moving yet but I knew that one more man was with the service station owner besides the kidnapper. I wasn't about to take chances. The phone booth was outside the station. I read the number and after putting a dime in dialled the number. The operator came on. I assume direct dialling was not here yet. "What number would you like?" "First, what day of the week is this?" "Sunday." "Thanks." I read off the number and asked her to let it ring longer if necessary. "Please deposit three dollars and twenty cents." I had just enough money and it was out on the small table. It was difficult to hold the receiver and put in the coins. The phone started to ring — and ring and ring. "The party seems — " "Hello." "Hello Sir. Is this John Holtzman?" "Yes it is." "My name is Jeffery Congdon from North Bay. Your granddaughter is relatively safe but two men are pursuing us." "Cori is safe? Where is she? Put her on. Where are you?" "Sir I have bullet in me. I cannot stand too well. Do you want to prance about like a fool or listen to me?" "Go ahead." Just off highway #11 towards North Bay is a village with the name of Vockner. Drive through the village and at the next road turn north. To the left is a hydro road. Stop just before a bridge and come into the bush on your lefthand side." "There is a kidnapper by the name of Carl Honzer. I saw the body of a young woman I believe to be Geraldine. Two other men joined the kidnapper. One I had the pleasure of killing. I plan on doing the other two. This village is not safe for us. I'm going back to Corinne. Bye." I just hung up and the sound of the coins dropping into the box told me that I better get moving. Cars and trucks passed me but I knew that Corinne was now safe or at least, soon she would be. When the road was clear I slipped through the brush and looked down at the beautiful child I had started to love. Blood was still running down my arm but it had slowed to a trickle. I curled up to Corinne. She would be in natural sleep now and she needed the rest. A rough hand moved my shoulder and I moved quickly trying to kick. I missed. "Woh, there son. I'm not going to hurt you." My vision was blurry but I saw a suit. "Are you John Holtzman? Is Corinne safe?" "She's in my car and yes I am Jeff. Let me help you to my car. I see your shoulder is bleeding. I'm sorry I didn't see it. We need to get you to a hospital." "I'm not going to a hospital yet. There are two men still alive. Above the stone chimney in the house is a photo album of children that may be dead now. The other man may kill Honzer to keep his identity safe. You lawyers let too many of the bad guys get away." "Not this time Jeff. I brought some friends that are a law unto themselves." "Help me up. I want to see them die." The man looked at me very seriously and then dragged and eventually carried me to the car. Another car was parked ahead of us with two big men in it. I weakly said, "About seventeen miles down the road then turn right. Lots of hills. My bike was on the right fork. They had it staked out. The left fork leads to the house and you can see it from the last hill. They have rifles." "Please wait here a moment." The man came back in a moment later and we began. Once we got on the rough road Corinne got very upset. "Sleep Princess." Corinne went right to sleep and the grandfather looked hard at me again. "Hypnosis?" "Honzer raped her butt. It was the best I could do." Holtzman just looked at me for the third time but said nothing. We entered the cut off and going slow. The car had much better suspension. We climbed the hills much easier than I had done on the bike. At the top of the hill we heard gunshots. Holtzman stopped the car. I was leaning on the door and I wanted to urge him on because I couldn't walk far unaided. The car moving woke me up. We went down the hill. I saw the car that had been in front of us. Two men were on their knees with their hands behind their heads. The two large men just stood there without weapons in their hands. I got out somehow but had to hold the door to remain standing. My voice wouldn't work very well. Using my hand I called one of the men over. He came after saying something to his partner. "On — on top of the — chimney. In the house. An album. Dead girls." The man just raced to the house and was back in just a few minutes. Holtzman looked at the pictures and I managed to walk to the men by holding onto the car. "The girls were never found. Will a court make them talk?" I felt dizzy and I must have fallen. My dreams were very bad. I was being tortured and Corinne was being raped right beside me. I couldn't get to her to help. I was being raped this time and dogs were trying to rip out my throat. My head hurt terribly and so did my body. The room was real though. Jane was sitting in the chair. "Is this a dream?" I croaked. She got up and rushed me. I think I smiled and went back to sleep. I must have waked up three more times for only a minute. The people kept changing. One morning I felt more awake but also more in pain. It must be the drugs, I thought. The light was bright and shining in the window. I had all my girls with me. I was able to croak out, "Good morning ladies." The girls rushed me but were very gentle. They all seemed to talk at once but I knew basically what they were saying. Jane pulled rank and kissed me. "I missed you Jeff. You do something like this again and it will be me trying to kill you." I just smiled. Paige kissed me and said almost the same thing. The procession started but the threats turned to saying they loved me. In this case all of them said that. "Where's my little princess." Paige pushed forward, "Her grandfather took her to get away from the reporters but she didn't want to leave you. What's it you have over us women?" "I simply love them and they know it. Now give me a sip of water and tell me all the exciting things I've missed." Ten days later I left the hospital. Instead of being whisked home I went to the courthouse. There were a great many reporters outside but no photographers in the courtroom itself. I was knee deep in lawyers. This reminded me of the Simpson trial except I had more of them. Sandra Harrison recanted her testimony and said that she had been blackmailed by Doctor Goldbalm to commit perjury. Another man was asked about his actions and replied that he had planted the locket in my garage. The judge held both people over for trial and issued a warrant for Doctor Goldbalm. I was found not guilt of all charges. The prisoners were lead out and I hobbled up to Mr Holtzman. I put out my hand and said, "Thank you Sir. There was no way I could have found out all you did about those people." The large man looked down and smiled. "It is my job to find things out. It was not your job to do what you did for my granddaughter. I will forever be in your debt." "You must have spent a considerable amount of money digging up all those facts. Jane tells me that you had twenty people looking through records for linkages to Goldbalm." "It was more than that but the money was well spent. I knew of the man, and didn't like him. It was a pleasure to stick it too him. He always thought he was too smart." I said seriously, "If he gets lots of very good council they will dig up enough muck and throw it all around. They will be able to get off." "That doesn't happen here Jeff." "Who do you think you are talking to; a twelve-year-old? ------- The End ------- Posted: 2007-12-04 Last Modified: 2007-12-22 / 08:24:41 pm ------- http://storiesonline.net/ -------