JC: Ed Biggers Part 6: Doyen Chapter 14 By Lazlo Zalezac Copyright (C) Lazlo Zalezac, 2004 William was in the kitchen-watching Marguerite prepare dinner while Ed was in the pool swimming thirty laps. Although it was typically a difficult thing to do, Ed grinned broadly as he swam. He enjoyed being home. It had taken him almost five minutes to settle in and feel comfortable. He was looking forward to remaining at home for good even though this was just a short visit. A low moan echoed through the poolroom with sufficient volume that Ed could hear it over the splashing created by swimming. Ed tried to ignore the activities taking place just a few yards away, but he couldn't resist the temptation. He glanced over to the side of the pool and chuckled. In a poolside chair, Captain Jones was getting his cock sucked by the diminutive Mona. She had approached him with her eyes focused on his cock. Without a hello or acknowledgement of the man, she had knelt between his legs and gazed upon his cock as if in worship. He had been warned about Mona's particular behavior, but hadn't believed Ed. Seeing her between his legs, he didn't know how to react. During the past few months, Captain Jones had rejected all offers of sex, despite his real need for release, believing they were being offered in pity for his injury. He couldn't stand the idea of a 'pity fuck.' With Mona, there was no chance that her interest was pity. He doubted that she even noticed his amputated leg. Too horny to put up much of a fight, the soldier accepted her attention. It didn't take long before he released his come into her mouth with a groan. Too much time had gone by to last long. She backed off his cock and looked up at him, seeing him for the first time. Breathless, he said, "Thank you, ma'am. You have no idea how much I needed to be touched by a sexy woman in that manner." Months of therapy to control her fixation had just been undermined by five minutes of inattention. Mona was furious with herself for having lost control once again, but his statement chased away the majority of her anger. She didn't know why his words touched her, but they had touched her deeply. She bit her lip and looked up at his face afraid of what she would observe. Seeing the expression of real appreciation on his face, she was surprised to hear herself saying, "It was my pleasure." Hoping that she now saw him the person, rather than as a cock, he asked, "Would you mind sitting here with me for a while?" Surprised by the offer, Mona wanted to accept since he was the most handsome man she had met since Ed Biggers. Considering her recent behavior, she had expected him to chase her away. As she was about to answer, Ed asked, "When's Marguerite serving dinner?" Reminded of her kitchen duties, Mona replied, "Normal dinner time. I was just about to go back there." The lie hurt, but Ed let it pass without comment although Nathan noticed his grimace. Nathan suggested, "Maybe we can get together later." "Sure," answered Mona as she stood up and headed towards the door. She paused upon reaching it and looked back at Nathan wondering if he was the one. Deciding it was too early to know, she raced off to the kitchen. After watching her leave, Ed climbed out of the pool and sat beside Captain Jones. He had not heard much of their conversation other than Nathan's invitation for her to join him by the pool. Sighing, Ed said, "Be careful. She's far more fragile than you might think." Nathan had watched Mona run from the room and thought about what would make a woman act in that manner. He had noticed the change in expression when he had said that she was a sexy woman. In a soft voice, he said, "Fragile? Yes, I'd say she's very fragile. More than that though, she's desperate. She's the kind of woman who will agree to a gang-bang just so men would see her as an adult woman." "Pardon?" "She doesn't feel like a woman," answered Nathan feeling the rightness of his answer. He trusted his intuition more than logic. "I don't understand," replied Ed looking at the soldier in confusion. He wondered why she wouldn't feel like a woman since she was a woman. "She's small, flat chested, and has almost no curves on her body. She doesn't feel like a woman and feels a need to prove it somehow. How does a woman prove to herself and others that she's a woman rather than a little girl? She has sex." "That sounds like some kind of pop psychology answer," commented Ed wondering if the young man was correct. Talking to himself, Nathan said, "If she grows her hair out, she looks like a little girl. If she wears it short, then she looks like a little boy. Either way, she isn't viewed as an adult. She probably believes that the only men who would be interested in her are probably pedophiles and they would demand she act like a little girl. That's the last thing that she wants." Ed listened as Nathan talked to himself. It was an interesting theory, but he wasn't sure that he believed it. Nathan continued his monologue. "Her body is too small to get implants of any significant size. Anything beyond an A cup would look ridiculous and she knows it." Interrupting the stream of consciousness, Ed asked, "So what would you do?" "I'd ask her to wear business suits, make up, and to wear her hair in a style that is very mature," answered Nathan. "Interesting," replied Ed. After a moment of thought, he said, "I doubt she can find a business suit that is her size. She's probably wears a size zero." Nathan was silent for a minute as he considered what Ed had said. The odds were high that Ed was correct. After a minute, he said, "If you will excuse me for a minute, I have some errands to run." Smiling at the obvious nature of the errands that Nathan was undertaking, Ed said, "Dinner is around seven." "Thanks," replied the soldier as he headed to his room to get dressed. He had a lot to do before they left for the desert the next morning. Ed sat in the poolside chair wondering what Nathan had seen in Mona that he had missed. He wasn't alone in the poolroom for long. Claire along with Dan entered the room from the outside entrance. Claire was dressed in a very nice red dress. It was cut low on the top and flowed down to her knees. Dan was wearing a tailored suit that actually made him look handsome despite ears that stuck out. Seeing the pair of them together, Ed asked, "What's up?" "Just got back from work," said Dan. "Yeah, they threw a party for him to celebrate his promotion," added Claire. She had an arm wrapped around his arm and was leaning against him in a very friendly manner. She looked over at him with more than a little pride in her eyes. The nude martial arts lessons of Ling and Claire had torn down the wall that Dan had built to hide from women. That had allowed him to more fully experience life at home and at work. Breaking out of his cubbyhole with a vengeance, he dealt with customers, management, and team members directly. Dan had taken the initiative on a couple of very high profile projects. There wasn't anyone to take the credit away from him. He was forceful in getting recognition and it had paid off. In the process, he had shocked all of those who had worked with him in the past. Raising an eyebrow, Ed realized that Claire had gone to the celebration with Dan. From the way that she was hanging on him, he wondered if something was going on between the two. As if Dan heard Ed's unasked question, he said, "We're engaged." "Really?" asked Ed very surprised by the news. They'd only known each other for a couple of months and figured that it would be years before shy Dan would reach the point where he was capable of proposing. "Yes," answered Claire with a grin. She'd had a lot of fun breaking Dan out of his shell and discovered that she really liked the man who emerged. He was interesting, bright, witty, caring, gentle, and supportive. When he turned his attention to her, she had his entire attention. It was almost scary at times, but definitely appreciated in bed. "I proposed a week ago," said Dan looking down at his girlfriend. She was fierce, strong, and confident. Being in bed with her was like making love to fire and he found that he enjoyed taking the risk of getting burned. "And I took a whole millisecond to say yes," she said with a grin. Her prejudice against mixed marriages was a thing of the past. She had found that love was colorblind. It had been an amazing revelation. "Dan, are you still going with us for the week?" asked Ed wondering if his engagement to Claire had changed Dan's plans. "You bet," said Dan, "I've been looking forward to this ever since you called. I even went out and purchased a trailer for the ATV." "We could have put it in the back of our trailer," said Ed wondering why Dan would bother to spend so much money for a trailer when he had a perfectly good one. "No, a trailer to pull behind the ATV. I can put a fifty-five gallon drum for water on it and there's still enough room to carry all of the food. It's all ready to go," replied Dan. He had spent the previous evening packing the trailer. He'd spent a fortune at the sporting goods store. "Oh, I never thought of getting one of those." Claire had handled outfitting them for the trip with the help of Walt. It had been an interesting experience for a city girl. She said, "I purchased two ATVs just like you requested. Why didn't you want three of them?" "I'm riding my horse," answered Ed feeling that it seeing the desert from atop a horse was an essential part of being in the desert. William didn't have enough experience on horseback to go the whole trip and Captain Jones wasn't ready to learn how to ride with an artificial leg. Getting tired of looking up at the couple, he pointed to the pool chairs and said, "Have a seat." Claire, uncomfortable about the invitation, sat down while Dan fetched another chair. He put it next to hers so that he could hold her hand. Claire looked over at Ed amazed at the ease with which he sat naked in front of two dressed people. She didn't have a problem when everyone else was naked, but when she was the only one undressed she quickly dressed. Attentive to his girlfriend, Dan noticed that she was staring at Ed. He smiled as he deduced exactly where she was looking. He couldn't blame her for staring at Ed's cock -- it was very large. It didn't really bother him since he was quite secure in his relationship with Claire. Ed drained his glass of iced tea and went over to refill it at the mini-refrigerator. He called over, "Do you want some iced tea?" Answering for both of them, Dan said, "Sure. We'd love some." Claire leaned over and whispered, "I work here. Maybe I should go." "I'm sure that it's okay. Stay here for a little while longer," whispered Dan understanding how she felt. Playing host, Ed refilled his glass and fixed two more. Holding the three glasses together, he carried them over to the little table and set them down. He grabbed his glass and returned to his seat. Getting comfortable, he said, "So, Claire. What do you think about your fiancee running off for a week?" After taking a sip of her tea, she answered, "Well, if he was running off with a couple of blondes, I'd be a little concerned. Not too concerned, though." "A little?" asked Dan acting as if he were hurt. His smile demonstrated that it was all an act. "Okay, a lot," she replied with a giggle. Ed watched the interaction between the two. There were times when they looked at each other that he was willing to swear that the love they felt was almost visible. Thinking about what each of them had been like when he first met them, it seemed to him as if people were changing for the better at a faster rate than in the past. William entered the room and went over to where his father was seated. On arriving at the house, the boy had set aside his robe and put on blue jeans, shirt, and boots. His hair had grown to a length that was almost long enough to put in a braid. The transformation between the Druid College and Arizona had been amazing. At the Druid College, he looked like a Druid. Around the house, he exhibited his Native American Heritage without any hint of being a Druid. Claire had watched William enter the room. This was her first time to meet the young boy although she remembered that he had called from the college to tell Ed to hire her. In a voice that she would use with most children, she said, "Hello, there. You must be William." Turning to Claire, William raised an eyebrow and studied her. His gaze was so direct that it took her by surprise. He replied, "Yes, I must be. There are exactly two children in this house, Lucy Gold and William Carter. You already know Lucy, ergo I must be William Carter. Impeccable logic." "William!" Ed chastised. Sitting back in her chair, Claire realized that William wasn't putting her down, but was making a point. He was not to be treated like a child. She interrupted, "He's right, I was treating him like a little kid." Smiling, William said, "It's a pleasure to meet you Claire. I see that you have become lovers with Betsy's hero. She's going to be crushed. I think she was a little infatuated with Dan." Claire stared at William wondering how he knew that Dan was her lover. Recovering, she said, "I'm sure Dan will let her down gently." Turning to Dan, William said, "It is an honor to meet someone who would risk his life to save my little sister." "You're welcome. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Sarah," replied Dan. Previously, he would have sworn that William was Sarah's own child from the way that she talked about him. After watching the boy, he understood Sarah's exuberance and started to believe that she had been rather restrained in her comments. "My cousin Sarah tends to exaggerate about all of the children in our family," said William. "From what I have seen and heard, each of you is remarkable in your own way," said Dan. He grinned and said, "Of course, I've heard that Betsy is the laziest among you." Grinning at the impossible implication that Betsy was lazy, William pulled up a chair and said, "I understand that you are a wonder at circuit design. I read one of your papers on the subject and thought it was quite fascinating. In particular, I'm interested in the idea of a CPU with a built-in random number generator. For some of the ideas that I've been pursuing, pseudo-random number generators will not work and the external random number generators are too slow. Have you been exploring that concept any further?" If William had landed in a space ship and announced that he was from Mars, Dan wouldn't have been anymore surprised than he was at that moment. Nodding, Dan said, "Yes, I have been pursuing that idea. I'm not sure what applications you may have in mind, but I think that the market in the gambling industry will be significant." "I agree. My applications are in the area of Monte Carlo simulations. A little historic connection to the gambling industry there." Ed listened to the conversation with a great deal of interest. William very seldom discussed his intellectual interests with anyone. The fact that he was talking with Dan signified a real interest in the work that Dan was doing. He glanced over at Claire and saw that the woman was staring at William open mouthed. After a few minutes, William said, "We shall have time to talk while rock hunting. For now, I think that Claire would like a little time alone with her boyfriend." "Fiancee," corrected Ed surprised that William didn't say it that way. The look of surprise on William's face was genuine. He recovered and said, "I'm sorry. I didn't realize. I thought you would have waited to ask until you picked up the ring from Bob." "Bob is a little busy and I was a little impatient," replied Dan surprised that the boy knew about him ordering a ring from Bob. He looked at Claire remembering how he had proposed after an exceptionally passionate experience in bed. Looking up at her as she climaxed, he couldn't hold back his desire to spend the rest of his life with her. He had blurted out the proposal. Claire giggled at the characterization of impatience. She considered that he was in the throes of passion and had no control over his mouth at that time. Of course, she was willing to agree to anything at the moment as well. She wondered how many women could claim that a proposal had triggered an orgasm. Looking over at William, she said, "I fear that I must get ready to return to work." Smiling, Ed said, "I had heard that you work for some real mean people." "Yes, they are horrible people," replied Claire as she stood to leave. The horse trailer rattled as it was pulled down the dirt road to where the chief lived. William watched through the window of the Hugger with eyes that didn't miss a single detail of his surroundings. He turned to face Ed and commented, "They don't seem surprised to see us, but they are watching Dan and Nathan like a hawk." "They know me and know that I will deal honestly. They don't know the others and will wait for them to prove their true character," replied Ed glancing in the mirror at the truck that followed behind. "They are good men. My people should be able to see that," said William. "They will," said Ed as he stopped in front of a house. They had arrived at the home of Awa Tsireh. Lounging around on old chairs under an awning were Awa Tsireh, Robert White Feather, and a young man who Ed did not recognize. He commented, "We have a committee waiting for us." Ed, carrying two cartons of cigarettes, climbed out of the Hugger and waited for the others of their party to join him. Together, they headed towards the seated men. William, holding two packs of cigarettes, walked beside his father, his eyes watching the young man. There was a sense of expectation in the air and it originated with the young man. Reaching Chief Awa Tsireh, Ed handed a carton of cigarettes to the two older men and said, "Greetings, Chief Awa Tsireh and Chief Robert White Feather." "Ed Biggers, it is good to see you again," replied Chief Awa Tsireh in a measured voice. Robert White Feather shook his hand and asked, "Are you back to the desert for good?" "For the most part," replied Ed. In the pause, William stepped forward and handed the two men a pack of cigarettes each. Nodding, he said, "Greetings, Chief Awa Tsireh and Chief Robert White Feather." "It is good to see you again, William Redman Carter. I see that you are looking more like your grandfather," said the Awa Tsireh. He looked at the shoulder length hair in approval. "After we conclude our business, you will have to tell me how your mother is doing," said Robert with a smile. It was always good to hear about his little sister. Dan and Nathan stepped forward and handed their cigarettes to the two Chiefs while being introduced by Ed. Neither man had ever met a Chief and they were nervous that they might say or do the wrong thing. All that remained was to learn the identity of the young man and all attention turned to him. Robert said, "This young man is Spirit of Desert Rock. He is going to the Native American College next year." William examined the young man and said, "We will be classmates." "Yes, that is what I understand from Chief Robert White Feather," answered the young man after glancing at the two Chiefs. He didn't know what to make of the boy. For the past few years, the elders of the tribe spoke of William Redman Carter with awe. It was difficult to believe that anyone so young could possibly get accepted into a college. "You shall be going into the desert with us," said William as though it were an agreed upon fact. He glanced at Dan and Nathan before adding, "To watch over them and to get to know me." "And to learn of rocks from Dr. Biggers," said Spirit of Desert Rock nodding in the direction of Ed. Robert shook his head and gently reminded the younger members of the party of their place. "It is for the elders to talk about that in due time." William raised an eyebrow at the reminder and said, "Of course. May we be excused so that we can get to know each other?" "That would be a good idea," replied Awa Tsireh with a wry grin. The young man and boy walked off to the horse trailer where they could talk without intruding on the discussions of the elders. Chuckling, Awa Tsireh said, "Since they already agreed that Spirit of Desert Rock is going with you, I guess there isn't much point in asking." "It will make his mother happy to know that he will have a friend at college," said Ed with a grin. Looking at the two Chiefs, he asked, "Standard deal on the rocks we collect?" "Yeah," said Robert. He looked around for a minute and then said, "I guess that concludes the business side of this." "Care for some iced tea?" asked Awa Tsireh. "Sounds good to me," answered Ed looking forward to a nice tall glass of homemade iced tea. "That would be wonderful," said Dan amazed at how informal everything had suddenly gotten. "Sure," said Nathan looking back at William trying to figure out how he knew that the Chiefs were there to ask Ed to take the young Native American with them. The boy still made him nervous despite the number of interactions that had had with him. "Is he always like that?" asked Robert pointing to William. "Yes. He seems to know things before they happen. He also claims that animals occasionally talk to him," answered Ed. "Spirit of Desert Rock makes the same claim. The medicine men of the tribe are all expecting great things from him. They were very happy to learn that William would be going to the Native American College at the same time with him," said Awa Tsireh as he exited the house with five bottles of iced tea. Ed looked at the bottles with disgust, but didn't make a comment as he accepted one of them. Not for the first time, he wondered where the advertising person had gotten the nerve to call the bottled beverage iced tea. Robert noticed the shudder as Ed took a sip and said, "Don't worry, it will grow on you." William and Spirit of Desert Rock returned to the group of men. William said, "Dale says his horse is already at the place we are headed." "Dale?" "Yes, that is my white name," explained Spirit of Desert Rock with a shrug. It was an easier name for most people to use in informal conversation, so he accepted it. "Aren't you curious what they discussed?" asked Dan wondering about the presumptive way in which William had determined that Dale was going with them. "He's going with us and we've agreed to the standard rock collecting deal," replied William as though it was obvious what had been discussed. Ed laughed and said, "He does that all the time. I don't think he's ever been wrong." "Blind on a few occasions, but not wrong," said William with a shrug of his shoulders. While it wasn't obvious by his statement, he appreciated the times when he was blind. Knowing that there were events that he wasn't to know about before they occurred allowed life to remain interesting. A desert wren landed on the awning. Both William and Dale paused to look at the little bird. It chirped and then flew off. As William nodded his agreement, Dale said, "It's time for us to go." It was almost dark before they reached a good place to camp for the night. Ed and Dale were on horseback, with Ed leading an extra horse for William to use on shorter trips around the camp. Dan, Nathan, and William rode on individual ATVs, with Dan's ATV pulling a trailer. The campsite was near an area where Dale said there were a lot of interesting rocks. Ed recalled having been in that area several years before and looked forward to seeing how it had changed. At the camp, everyone got busy with getting the camp ready for use. Ed watered the horses and then feed them some grain. While the horses were eating, William and Dale brushed them down. Dan and Nathan unpacked the trailer that had been towed behind the ATV. It wasn't long before the camp was set up and Ed was cooking dinner over a fire of wood that Dan had brought. Dan leaned back and watched the setting sun. With a sigh, he said, "It's really pretty out here." "It sure is," agreed Ed stirring the stew he was preparing. He could feel all of the residual tensions leave his body under the wide-open Arizona sky. Thinking of the large number of people who would enjoy the sights provided by the desert, Nathan commented, "You'd think the people here would open a hotel or something." As Dale bristled, Ed replied, "They're doing something far more important with the land." "What?" asked Dan looking around trying to see what they were doing with the land. "They are preserving it for their children," answered Ed. A soft breeze blew through the camp bringing the scents of the desert to their noses. He inhaled enjoying the smell of cactus, sand, and dry air. "The land does not belong to the fathers, but is held in trust by the fathers for their children," said Dale. "I never thought about it like that," said Nathan looking around at the pristine desert area. He had spent so many years in the military fighting for what he considered the American ideal. He hadn't fought for political or business reasons, although most people cast wars in those terms. He fought for an ideal that said people should be free to pursue their happiness. He liked the idea that a man could be born poor and become president one day without having to overthrow the existing government. He commented, "I kind of believe the same thing about the American government." The statement seemed like a total change in topic. Dale looked at the soldier and asked, "What do you mean?" "I've fought to keep our freedoms in place. I didn't do it for myself, but for my children," answered Nathan. He sighed as he looked up at the colorful sunset. "You didn't do a very good job. Our freedoms are eroding," commented Dan. The old soldier laughed at the comment. He replied, "I disagree. I think we are freer than we've ever been. The opportunities that exist for our children are far vaster than existed for us. There was a time that if two men slept together, they'd have been killed without creating a riot of protest. Despite the plethora of government databases, people have far more anonymity than ever. Ed and Dale know what I mean." Dale frowned and shook his head to indicate that he didn't know what Nathan meant. Seeing the expression on his face, Ed explained, "There's no privacy in a small town." Realizing what Nathan was suggesting, the young man nodded his agreement. He said, "You can't hide anything on the reservation. You take a drink in the middle of nowhere and, in an hour, everyone knows what you've done." William said, "Many of the things that people protest as losses of freedoms are in fact freedoms they never had." Surprised at what William said, Dan turned to study the young man. He asked, "Have you given this much thought?" "That's all I think about," answered William without a smile while staring intently at the campfire. "I thought you were doing some modeling using Monte Carlo methods," said Dan. "It's all part of the same thing," answered William. He didn't say anymore since he wasn't willing to discuss the full extent of his research. Observing the way in which William turned away, Dale changed the subject and asked, "When is dinner going to be ready?" "Soon. Are you in a hurry?" asked Ed with a smile. Out here, there was nothing to demand a particular schedule. "Yes," answered William. His answer surprised everyone around the campfire except Dale. "The coyotes will be calling for us soon," explained Dale with a gesture towards the open desert. "We will go to meet them," said William glancing in the direction opposite of the setting sun. They still had time since it would be a little while before the moon rose.