JC: Ed Biggers Part 6: Doyen Chapter 12 By Lazlo Zalezac Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004 "You want me to do what?" asked Nathan with a hint of dismay in his voice. "You heard me," replied Ed without looking up from his work. "I'm not a baby sitter," said the soldier, indignant that he should be asked to watch Beth on her field trip. The crazy jobs that Ed was giving him to perform were about to drive the soldier crazy. Ed looked up and said, "I don't expect you to baby-sit. I expect you to be a body guard." "Body guard?" Folding his hands together, Ed said, "Maybe you aren't aware that she has five parents and that together we control almost three billion dollars. That makes our children targets of people that have less than good intentions in this world." "Did you say billion, with a b?" "Yes, I did," replied Ed as he looked over at the soldier. He watched as a strange expression settled onto the young man's face. He was hard pressed to describe what the expression conveyed. Nathan couldn't believe what he was hearing. For the past month, he had been around the family without even guessing how much they were worth. He had known that they had some money, but hadn't thought about just how much money they had. He had thought that the wealthy were lazy, but the Carter Clan was anything except lazy. Even the children worked hard, pushing themselves to learn all that they could of the world around them. Ling was a perfectionist when it came to the martial arts, emphasizing mastery at each step of training. Kelly traveled extensively working for the nursing profession. Last month she had testified at a congressional committee addressing the working conditions and hours that nurses often worked within ill-managed hospitals. Linda was overseeing the production of another movie based on her children stories. Ed worked tirelessly for the school, his family, and his businesses. "I'll watch over her," Nathan replied realizing that he was being asked to protect the daughter with his life if necessary. "Thank you. I may be a religious figure, but that doesn't mean I believe in an innate goodness in people. I've seen too many who are totally evil to believe that." "Yes, I can see that you have," replied the soldier. In war, he had seen the best and worst of man. More than one person with whom he had served had discovered in the heat of battle that they possessed a greater cruelty within them than they had ever guessed while others had discovered a greater empathy for their fellow man than they wanted to admit. "Spoken like a person that has seen too much," commented Ed. The comment struck a nerve in the soldier and his stomach twisted as he recognized the truth of the statement. Wanting to change subjects, Nathan asked, "Where are they going?" "To a number of government agencies, including the CIA. They are taking a tour of the facilities," answered Ed as he watched Nathan to gauge his reaction. He had learned that the CIA was very interested in hiring graduates from the school as intelligence analysts. Beth was going because she was interested in the architecture of the building. Nathan sat back in his chair struggling to come to grips with going to the place where they had planned the mission that cost him a leg. Frowning, he asked, "You can't find anyone else to take her there?" "Consider it part of your therapy," replied Ed. Sitting back in his chair, he looked over Captain Jones with a critical eye. He added, "You'll have to train up to Ling's standard before you leave, though." There was no way that Nathan was going to argue with Ed. Even though he hadn't been at the Druid College for very long, he was far more advanced in his recovery than if he had remained at Bethesda. He asked, "Can you give me any good news?" Ed smiled as he answered, "You get to wear your uniform for two days." "Really?" "I doubt they would let you walk around there naked," countered Ed with a grin as he imagined the Captain trying to get into the building naked. With a chuckle, he said, "Although I suppose that I could make some a call to General Grey so that you could go there naked." Believing the Druid would actually carry out his threat, Nathan stood up and replied, "No thank you. I'll wear my uniform." Ed watched as the captain walked away. His movements had become more graceful as a result of Ling's training. Dressed, most people would be hard pressed to recognize that he didn't have his leg. It would be better after Catherine finished the new artificial leg that she was developing. When the soldier had reached the door, Ed said, "Go visit Catherine. She may require your help with a project of hers." "Okay," replied the man with a shake of his head at the prospect of another project. He was trying hard to keep up with the little projects that Ed kept giving him, but half of the time he was out of his league. With a gruff snort, he realized that he had left his comfort zone the day he entered the college. He left the study before he could be given another assignment that he wouldn't know how to do. Ed returned to his work on his book wondering if anyone would really be interested in reading it when he was finished writing it. More than a dozen requests had arrived asking him to publish a reference book detailing the geology and mineralogy of the American Southwest. He didn't feel as if his knowledge of the area was anything outstanding, but others disagreed with him. His problem now was trying to organize the material in a cogent fashion. The cell phone in his pocket sounded, disrupting his concentration. He answered it, "Hello?" From behind him, he heard Betsy giggle as she said, "Hi, Daddy Ed. It's time to eat." Spinning around to catch her, she jumped back staying out of his grasp. With a giggle, she said, "You're so slow. You're going to have to be faster than that to catch me." Ed chuckled as he replied, "You make it so hard to give you a hug." Betsy jumped into his open arms. Almost as soon as he closed arms around her, she was wiggling to get away. She loved hugs, but could hardly stay still long enough to receive a proper one. Rather than try to force her way out of his arms, she said, "We better get to lunch." Ed released his daughter and watched as she sped out of the room with a backward wave. Giving her the cell phone had not improved their ability to track her, but they could at least communicate with her. She still tended to track people down when she wanted to talk to them. Ed was sure that a social worker would be shocked that so many parents were unable to physically watch over a child, but they had never babysat a tornado. Realizing that he should join the others for lunch, he straightened the papers on his desk so that he could work on which ever project required his attention. He looked at the stack of work projects on his desk with a sigh. Papers concerning taxes, businesses, his geology trip for the school, his book, and other legal matters were neatly filed and waiting his attention. He wondered if that represented the rest of his life. Every day he had to spend three hours dealing with items that couldn't wait. Disheartened by the thought of the work ahead of him, he left his study and made his way to the first year dining room. Little John was talking on a cell phone and greeted his father with a grin when Ed showed up at the dining room. The young man winked at his father before turning his back and dropping his voice so that he couldn't be overheard. Ed didn't need to ask with whom Little John was talking. There was only one person who he called and she was Susan Grundy. Greeting the rest of the family, Ed took his place at the table. As he reached for the menu, Betsy announced, "Little John has a girl friend." Nodding his head, Ed said, "I know. I was there when he met her." In most families, a little sister making a comment about an older brother having a girlfriend would have resulted in a scene. Around the table, this particular family nodded their agreement with her assessment. Little John reacted by making an Okay gesture, thumb and forefinger in a circle with the remaining fingers straight. Betsy asked, "Is she nice?" Beth answered, "Of course she's nice. Little John wouldn't like her if she weren't nice. The real question is if she is pretty." "She's pretty," replied Ed knowing that Betsy was going to express the question in a second. Turning back to face his father, Little John asked, "Could I use the house for guests?" "What house?" "The one across the street. Dr. Grundy is willing to come up for a visit with Susan and it would be great to have them stay there," answered Little John in a voice that conveyed hopeful pleading. "Why not have them stay on campus?" asked Kelly without thinking through her question. "Ah, that might be a problem. I'm not sure how they'll react to the nudity on campus," answered Little John. He didn't want Susan's father thinking that he had invited them just to see his daughter naked. "Okay, invite them to use the house," replied Ed. He could understand how difficult it would be to invite the young girl to the campus. The idea of Mrs. Grundy surrounded by naked people brought a grin to his face. He wondered if she was at all like the famous woman of literature. The young man turned away and resumed his conversation on the cell phone. William watched his brother with a sad expression. Beth had her friend, John, and now Little John had Susan. Despite her overactive nature, Betsy was going to grow up normally with lots of friends her own age. He was happy for his siblings, but was sad that it would be many more years before he would find someone for himself. Linda watched her son and asked, "What's the matter William?" "I have so much to do before I find a companion," answered William with a sigh. Noticing the attention being given to him, he changed the subject. "I think I would like the fried shrimp for lunch." The abrupt change in subject threw Linda for a minute, but she recovered. Even though she was wondering what he had to do before finding a companion, she said, "The fried shrimp would be good." Linda looked over at Ed with a pleading look on her face. Ed noticed, but wondered what she wanted him to do. After a minute of thought, he finally said, "William, in two weeks I'm going back to Arizona. Would you like to come with me for a week?" "Yes, that would be good," replied the boy. Most of his life had been spent away from the desert, but he enjoyed his visits there tremendously. The dry desert seemed to resonate with his spirit in a manner that was very different from the campus environment. "Yes, I think we'll go rock hunting," commented Ed as he looked at William. It would be nice to show his son the ways of the desert. He added, "A week in the desert will do us both some good." Little John ended his conversation on the cell phone and announced, "Susan and her parents will be arriving Friday afternoon." Smiling at her son, Kelly said, "So we finally get to meet the mystery girl." "Mystery girl?" asked Little John confused by the label. He had done nothing except talk about her and wondered how she could possibly be a mystery to anyone in the family. As the others discussed Susan with Little John, Ed pulled out his cell phone and called the house. Mary Gold answered the phone. As always, the sound of her voice was a surprise. He recovered and made the arrangements for his trip to Arizona. He included Nathan in his plans for the trip. The soldier would probably enjoy a week away from the confines of the college. Once he had finished his arrangements, the waitress asked him, "What are you having today, Ed?" "Caesar Salad with Shrimp," answered Ed wanting to have a lighter lunch than normal. He looked over the waitress and added, "You've lost a little weight." "Yeah. I've been working out a little and started a diet," replied the waitress. She had started on a diet designed for her by one of the Druids and it was working. A number of other employees on campus had started practicing Tai Chi before their shift and she had joined the group. The results weren't immediately observable, but over the past week she had noticed that her clothes were a little looser and some of the patches of cellulite had disappeared. "We'll you're looking good. I hope your husband noticed it," commented Ed. It amazed him how the employees on campus were changing. The comment about hoping that her husband noticed that she had lost weight surprised the woman. She still wasn't used to people making such personal comments even though it was much more common on the campus. She looked at him and said, "A couple of months ago you had asked me if the town was changing. I hadn't noticed it at the time, but the town seems a lot calmer over the past two or three years." "Calmer?" "Yes, much calmer. It's like people don't argue any more. My husband had a flat tire the other day and two people stopped to help him fix it. Lots of little things like that happen now," explained the waitress. The fifth and sixth years were allowed trips into town on the weekends. The first time the students had shown up in town there were a couple of incidents in which the locals treated them with more than a little hostility. For the last six months, there hadn't been a single incident of that nature. He asked, "What do the town's folk think of the students here?" "At first, a lot of people were afraid that they were going to try to change people's religion. You don't mess around with people's religion in these parts. Of course, the kids didn't do anything like that. When a couple of them even helped repair one of the local churches, that really set people to talking. Since then, I guess the town has just kind of accepted them," answered the woman. "What had happened to the church?" asked Ed curious about what had happened and wondering why he hadn't been given the opportunity to contribute a little money to its repair. "Oh, it was damaged a bit in one of the storms. The wind had blown off part of the roof." Ed had not been aware that any of the students had helped repair any churches in the area. He was pleased to learn that they were contributing in some fashion, however little, to the community. Talking to himself, he mused, "Interesting." The waitress frowned at his muttering and then asked, "They won't get into trouble for doing that, will they?" "Of course not. Why should they get into trouble for helping?" "It was a Christian Church," she answered worried that she had talked out of turn. She'd never seen a Druid get upset, but there was always a first time. "I'm a strong supporter of the Churches back home," countered Ed trying to put her at ease. "But, you're a Druid. I thought that meant you couldn't be Christian." Chuckling at her misunderstanding of the nature of Druids, Ed explained, "A good church helps its people. Why should I stand in the way of that even if I'm not Christian? That wouldn't be right. I'd rather help a church do good deeds." "You guys sure are strange," commented the waitress shaking her head. It wasn't the first time that she said that and it wouldn't be the last. She glanced down at her order pad and said, "I better get your order in." Once the waitress had left the table, William commented, "She works here and still doesn't understand." "Whether she understands or not isn't important," commented Ed as he turned his attention back to the boy. "It isn't?" asked William surprised. Ed smiled at his son amazed that he had actually surprised the boy. William often seemed all knowing so that a gap in his knowledge really stood out. That was such a rare occasion that everyone at the table noticed it. As the others watched and listened, Ed answered, "The important thing is that she's trying to understand. Half the time, I don’t understand us." Little John frowned as he thought about the answer. His father wouldn't lie about not always understanding, but he was very important within the Druid leadership and should be in a position to understand the best. Confused, he asked, "What don't you understand?" "Well, there are the Druids. We have been chosen to serve the Gods and Goddesses. How we get selected is a mystery to me. Then we have the others who honor the Gods and Goddesses, but aren't selected to serve. They are pagans, but they don't receive any instruction from Druids on how to honor the Gods and Goddesses. The Druids lead by example, not by words. We don't go out and actively recruit members. It's a very strange way to go about establishing a religion," observed Ed. The group was silent as they considered his words. Little John said, "There are the stories about what you do. Don't they serve as lessons for others? What about the college? Isn't that a way to recruit members?" Thoughtful, Ed answered, "Yes, stories about us serve as lessons for others. I'm not sure that all of the stories have much to do with being a Druid, though. It seems to me that they are more about taking a moment out of the day to help someone else. The college provides a chance for others to offer themselves for service after getting an education. We haven't actively recruited people to attend, though." The food arrived and all conversation at the table ended while Ed examined his salad with the kind of intensity for which he was famous. The lettuce had been tossed with the dressing so each leaf had picked up some of the flavor. The shrimp were grilled with nice brown stripes where meat contacted grill. The croutons were made from bread baked on campus the previous day. The family watched as if the quality of the whole meal was determined by his appreciation of the food. He took a bite of lettuce and nodded his appreciation for it. At that gesture, everyone else started to eat. After he had finished his meal, a satisfied Ed announced, "I'm going into town. Would anyone like to go with me?" "What are you going to do there?" asked Linda curious about the sudden announcement. "I'm going to take a look around and see how things are going there. I've had a couple of conversations that have made me curious how the town has changed as a result of having the college here," replied Ed. He thought about how his town had changed after John Carter had come to live there and wondered if something similar had happened locally. No one said anything for a minute. Finally, William said, "I'll go with you." Side by side, Ed and William walked down the main street of town looking at the buildings and watching people go about their daily lives. Their passage went without obvious attention. When they reached the police station, they both stopped in front of the building. It was new and the local police were still moving into it. Ed examined the building, observing its relatively large size, along with the new police cars that were parked to the side. A sign identified the building as 'The John Carter Police Station.' Noticing it, William commented, "Everything looks new." The building was larger than the old police station had been. The observation made Ed wonder if the local crime rate was increasing and there was a real need for more modern facilities. Frowning at the idea that the college had lead to an increase in crime, he said, "Let's go inside and talk to the police chief." Entering the building, he was immediately faced with a female dispatcher seated behind a raised front desk. She was a rather large black woman with her hair worn in a short afro. Black thick- framed glasses perched on her nose. Her uniform looked as if it had shrunk the last time she had washed it. The shirt gapped between the buttons giving glimpses of the cast-iron white bra worn underneath. Her jacket was unbuttoned and hung off her shoulders. He greeted her, "Hello." She looked up from the book that she was reading to look at the Druid. Her indifference to his presence was obvious. She said, "Ah, one of you. What can I do for you?" "I'd like to see the Chief of Police," answered Ed surprised by her reaction. William stepped back so that he could see the woman behind the desk. She looked intriguing to the young boy. Her large size and total lack of concern about the fact that she was talking to a black robe Druid was surprising. He decided that he wanted to know her better. "Go down the hall. He's in the third office on the left," replied the woman as she went back to reading. "Aren't you going to check to make sure that he's available to see me?" asked Ed surprised by the casual attitude about sending him unannounced to see the Chief of Police. "He told me to send back one of you when ever you showed up," answered the woman gesturing towards the hall with her thumb. She noticed William for the first time and leaned forward to study him for a moment. A frown crossed her face as she took in his blue robe. She asked, "Aren't you a little young to be going to that school? I thought it was a college." Head tilted to the side as though he was studying an interesting new phenomena, William answered, "It is a college. You might say that I'm a little advanced for my age." "I'd say you were a lot advanced for your age," she said without malice. She tried to place his racial heritage. After deciding that he wasn't Hispanic, she gave up. Turning to his father, William said, "I'd like to talk to her while you are talking to the police chief." Ed left the two of them talking and went down the hall to find the Chief of Police. Reaching the open door of the office, he knocked on the doorframe. The Chief looked up and saw Ed. Gesturing for Ed to enter, he said, "Come in. Have a seat." "Thanks," replied Ed as he entered and sat down. "What can I do for you?" "I noticed the new facilities and thought I'd come in to see how things are going," answered Ed. "Things are fine. Crime is down and the town is growing," replied the Chief as he pointed to a map on his wall. The map showed the town down to individual buildings. A major area of the map was a light blue indicating that it was under development. Ed looked over at the map and saw that a new housing development was drawn in along with a supporting shopping mall. It was a major addition to the town. Surprised, he said, "I didn't realize the town was growing that much." "Yep. Schools have improved over the past five years and it seems that some folks have heard about that. Some of the professors from your school are moving into the new housing development. Things are really growing around here," commented the man as he leaned back in his chair. He was curious why the Druid was doing in his office. He studied Ed for a moment and then asked, "Are you surprised?" "Not really. Well, I guess I am a little," answered Ed. He didn't expect the presence of the college to have such an effect on the local economy after less than six years. "To tell the truth, I figured that with the college here that I'd be arresting drunken college students Friday and Saturday nights and fighting drugs the rest of the time. I'm very pleased that I was wrong. You got a bunch of good kids up there," commented the Chief looking at Ed. "Thanks," said Ed. Gesturing to with a sweep of the arm to include the whole building, he asked, "So what's with the new building?" "The increase in tax revenues from the College meant that we had a bit more money than in the past. The city council decided that it was time to build up the infrastructure of the city before we grew too much. They call it urban planning. John Carter came to the meeting and pledged matching funds for this building, the new firehouse, and the new city office building." Ed had not been aware that John had done that. He realized John must have done it during one of the times when Ed was back in Arizona. It felt strange to learn about things that his husband had done for others now that he was dead. He said, "I didn't realize John had done that." "Nice fellow, that John Carter. Amazing, really. It's a real shame that he's gone," said the Police Chief in a soft voice. The times that he met with John Carter were already stories that he told his grandchildren. Uneasy about hearing someone else talk about his late husband, Ed stood and said, "Well, I just stopped by to make sure that there weren't any problems." "Thanks for coming by," said the man realizing that the Druid had told the truth about the reason he had stopped by the office. Once Ed left his office, he bent his head and went back to work. Ed walked down the hallway feeling a little off balanced by the visit. Entering the lobby, he was just in time to hear William say, "That would be interesting." "What would be interesting?" asked Ed. "She's invited me to attend her Church this coming Sunday and to have dinner with her family afterwards," answered William. He turned to look at his father and asked, "May I go?" Ed turned to the woman and asked, "You mean him no harm?" "What? I wouldn't harm a little boy," replied the woman indignant at the accusation. Smiling at the truth in her voice, Ed nodded his acceptance of her words. He said, "I believe you. William, you should call your mother and get her permission. Let her know that if she agrees that I'll ask Captain Jones to take you." The woman watched with surprise as William reached into his robe pocket and pulled out a cell phone. A minute later, the arrangements had been made. Reaching into his pocket, William pulled out one of the family cards and handed it to the woman. He said, "If you need to get in touch with me, call the number. Either Cathy or Mary will put you through to me." The woman looked down at the card surprised to be receiving a business card from such a young boy. It took her a minute to realize that it was a family card. She stared at the names written upon it. The name of John Carter was still on the card. She looked up at William and asked, "You're one of the Carter Clan?" "Yes," replied William surprised by the question. "I told you my name was William Redman Carter." "I guess I just didn't realize," said the woman wondering if it was such a good idea to take him to her church. She'd hate to have problems arise because she took one of the children of John Carter to a Christian Church. She glanced over at Ed and back at the card for a second. Curious, she asked, "Are you Ed Biggers?" "Yes," answered Ed surprised that everyone in the down didn't know his identity. It was then that he realized that he hadn't been into the town more than a dozen times over the past six years. "It doesn't bother you if I take him to a church?" "Not at all," answered Ed with a smile at her reaction to his answer. "I'll see you Sunday, Ms. Jordan," said William ready to continue the trip through town. Together, Ed and William stepped out of the police station. Ed asked, "So why did you arrange to visit the church?" "I'm curious about the whole Baptist thing," answered William as if it were the most natural thing for a child his age to wonder about the differences among branches of the Christian Faith. Linda was a Catholic and he had been to church with her many times. The experience made him wonder why there were so many different varieties of churches. "Ah," answered Ed understanding that William was extremely curious about the world. It was just a rare occurrence when he showed that curiosity for others to observe. William looked across the street and spotted a park complete with a swing set. Excited, he sped up to cross the street for the park. As he ran, he called out, "Swings!" Ed was about to call out for him to look both ways before crossing the street when a large black bird perched on a crosswalk let loose with a raspy call. Almost tripping over himself, William slid to a complete halt. An SUV sped past him while he stared at the bird. The bird had flown away by the time Ed reached William. Ed said, "What happened?" "The raven shouted a warning," answered William with a puzzled expression. "You were almost hit by that car. Haven't we told you to look both ways before you cross the street?" "The raven shouted a warning," repeated William. He stared at the ground as though given a great puzzle to solve -- one with most of the pieces missing. The repetition forced Ed to consider what happened in a different light. Looking down at his son, he asked, "What do you mean, it shouted a warning?" "I heard it say the word danger as clear as day," answered William. Looking both ways, he started across the street as he said, "It spoke to me." Ed followed William across the street trying to make sense of what his son was trying to tell him. It wasn't that he doubted animals could play a large role in the lives of the family. Rover, Shadow, and Tiger had been guardians of John. After they left other animals had watched over John, but they had never spoken to him. William wasn't in the service of the Gods and Goddesses, so that wasn't the explanation. Ed watched as William went over to the swings. Within minutes the young boy was swinging back and forth, but his mind was elsewhere. Ed frowned at the sight of his son deep in thought. For a bare fraction of a second, he had been a regular child who was excited at the chance to play on a swing set. It was a shame that his time acting like a child hadn't been a little longer. After a few minutes, William called out, "Hey dad, come on and play. It's fun." Grinning at his son, Ed climbed onto one of the seats and started swinging his legs. It didn't take long before his robe was fluttering in the wind created by his movements. He leaned back and laughed as the sky rocked back and forth above him.