What the hell is so damn important that I have to drop everything and fly to fuckin' Vegas, of all places? I don't even have any factories targeted in this area. That chunky bitch didn't even give me time to pack more than this damn carry-on bag. Miss high-and-mighty workin' directly for the boss square-faced bitch. If I wasn't so scared for my job right now I'd tell her flat ass where to go.
She said that there would be someone here to meet me. Oh no, its that strumpet, Glenda or something was her name I think. I thought Sophie said that she was a lez, but she sure looks prego to me. Must be someone else.
"Hello, Muriel. Do you remember me? I'm Brenda, and this is my partner, Diane."
"Damn. It is you, but you are pregnant. How did you manage that? Is that how you paid for your job? And do you know why the fuck I'm here?"
"I told you she'd notice, Diane. Can't hide shit from a redhead. We'll talk about it in the car, Red. Do you have any other bags?"
"No, this is all that nazi slut would give me time to pack. Let's get out of here then. Do you know where I'm to be staying at least? Tubby didn't give any clue except to get here asap."
"Are you always this pleasant to people you hardly know, Muriel?" Diane asked, "I consider Alex's PA to be a very nice woman, who works harder than most. Why do you have to keep referring to her in such a derogatory manner? Alex and Sophia decided to give you a chance to get your shit together instead of just firing you; all Diane was doing was following orders."
What?! I was pretty sure Andrews was thinking about firing me, but what does "sweet little Sophia" have to do with it? I bet that slut is trying to get my position to add to her bonnet. I'll take care of her shit when I get back. Now what does a second chance have to do with these whores?
"As to where you will be staying, we have a couple of friends who will be hosting you while you are here." Diane smiled sweetly.
"Why can't I just stay in a hotel or something? Andrews can afford that."
"Oh, I think that the accommodations will much more to your liking than a Spartan hotel room. What do you think of your job performance over the past few months?"
"Well ... I've had some problems, but I've had some success too. If these asshole men could think with the big head I'd be doing a lot better."
"No, Muriel." Brenda spoke up, "If you treated people with a little more courtesy, you'd be doing better. Sophia tells us that you haven't been laid since you started that job, so we are going to take care of that." By now they were at the condos that Alex had purchased for the employees of Jewels. Brenda led a bewildered Muriel in while Diane carried her bag. They went down the passageway to a door at the end of the hall, and Brenda knocked on it.
A tall brunette opened the door, "Here she is, Tanya. This is the girl we told you about." Brenda turned to Muriel, "Tanya and her roommate Monica work at Jewels as dancers. Their love life has been getting a little stale and we promised them some variety. You. Enjoy yourself, we'll come back for you in a couple of days." She pushed the confused redhead in through the door. Diane handed the bag to the tall black woman who came up as Muriel went in. "Take good care of her, please."
The pair of lovers laughed as the door closed and cut off a squawk from the surprised redhead.
"If those two can't take care of her horny, then she is hopeless." Diane said.
Two days later, a much calmer Muriel answered the door to Brenda's knock.
"Hello Muriel. How are you doing now?"
"I'm doing great. I can't thank you enough for providing me with these toys. Come on in girls, it is time for me to go."
Tanya and Monica entered the room. They were each wearing a velvet collar, and nothing else. Tanya's collar was black, and Monica's white. The colors contrasted nicely with the individual girl's skin.
"Are you going to come watch us work tonight, Mistress? We'll dance extra well for you."
"Yes, Pet. I'll be there. Any mistakes will come out of your hide, later. You may each kiss me before I leave."
The two tall dancers fell to their knees in front of the diminutive redhead. Muriel leaned down and kissed each woman soundly on the lips. "Be good, you two. I'll see you tonight."
Muriel strolled out of the apartment, followed by a bemused Brenda.
When she entered the apartment Brenda and Diane shared she asked, "So what is this shit about Andrews firing me? I've done what he needed."
Diane was sitting on the couch with an older woman and a young girl. "You got the job done, Muriel. But you pissed off and insulted a lot of people while you were doing it. Alex was okay with that to start out, but he wants a different tone as the company goes forward. Since you have not been able to find a good PA, he asked us to look for someone. This is my sister, Donna, and her daughter Chelsea. Donna worked for ten years as a receptionist and secretary for a legal firm here in Vegas. Chelsea just finished a year at college, and discovered that they were teaching her mostly baloney. She has an active interest in the uses of green technology. She also has a crush on Alex and wants to help."
Muriel walked over to take a better look at the mother and daughter team. Donna stood up as she approached. "So you think you can control me, huh?"
"Oh heavens, no. I can keep you on schedule and offer advice, but the only person who can control you is you. I've looked over your record, and been quite impressed. Did you really tell the chief engineer from Delco to go home and stick his dick in his wife's ass, because that was the only satisfaction he was going to get that day?"
"I may have, I don't recall. That sounds like something I'd do though. The idiot was trying to say that we must have cheated on our test results, there was no way a generator could perform at those rates, or with that level of efficiency. I handed him a batch of reports from independent testers, as well as his own engineers, and told him that I would be back when he wanted to talk business. Otherwise I would just wait until his corporation folded. Andrews isn't complaining about that, is he?"
"No, actually, he said that he was impressed with your restraint at that meeting. It's been the last couple of months when you have started to implode. You have been trying to do too much on your own and your temper has shown how overworked you are. He is hoping that Chelsea and I can reduce your workload so that you can do what you were hired for."
"So he knows all about you two?"
"No, Diane hired us. She also said that if it didn't work out, we would be guaranteed a place at A&C."
Muriel turned to Diane, "I didn't know you had that much sway with Andrews. Is it because you loaned him your lover for a couple of weeks?"
Diane and Brenda broke down laughing. When she finally gained some control, Brenda responded to Muriel. "Oh boy have you got that wrong. For one, Donna meant Alex's Diane, the one you referred to as "Miss Chunky". And as far as my being loaned to Alex, Inez had to twist his arm severely to persuade him to get me pregnant. It's probably going to be just as bad when Diane goes down for her treatment next year. When Alex was in Vegas, we offered him both of us for the price of one, and he turned us down. I know Sophia explained it all to you, your barbed wit isn't going to prick us at all, Red, so shield it. Diane interviewed Donna and Chelsea over a video link and hired them both. Her instructions to you were to give them a chance. If you simply couldn't work with them, she would help you find someone else."
Muriel turned to the young girl, "And what am I supposed to do with you? I already have a couple of toys to play with. You're not likely to get too chummy with Andrews around me, I avoid him as much as I can."
Chelsea didn't back down a bit, she stepped up to Muriel and held out her hand. "I'm not your "toy", as you put it, I am your helper. When you show up at a factory, I am the one who makes sure that you have everything you need to snow over those "good old boys". I make sure that your computer can conference with their IT department and that there is sufficient space made available for you to work. I make sure that you and mom eat regularly and take care of your clothes and I am also to be your driver. I'm supposed to go and learn from Inez's driver just how to drive a limo. I have some martial arts skills and will also be your basic protection. After what happened to Norma and his partner, Mr. Andrews is not taking any chances. He has Sophia's helper taking the same training. According to him, your days of traveling naked are through. Mom and I needed work, but even if we didn't I'd jump at the chance to be a part of A&C. I take this work very seriously and will do my best."
"When Alex heard about that demonstration in Texarkana he blew up." Brenda said, "He almost had you and Sophia accompanied by a security detail to go to the bathroom. Steve Grant calmed Alex down enough to let him and Paul train your protection. Chelsea is it for you, and John Manning is going to be Sophia's minder. Chelsea's martial arts training has been evaluated by the security team we use here, and she leaves tonight for driver training with Paul. I wonder if she'll be allowed to drive that bad-ass Dodge Alex has?"
"I hope so, but what I'm looking forward to is that '64 corvette, fuel injected 327 with a four-speed, that would be a blast."
"My daughter, the car junky. I thought I was doing her a favor when I got her a Miata. She bitched about the small engine and no carrying room until I let her trade it in for a four-wheel-drive pickup truck. Now she races it in the desert on weekends. Not what I had in mind for a daughter."
"Ah, Mom. It's not that bad, at least I win sometimes."
"Speaking of winning, what did you do to those two down the hall, Muriel?" Brenda asked, "You should have seen them Di, they were nude except for collars, kneeling, and calling her Mistress."
"The biker bitches? Do tell, Muriel. What did you do?"
"I just showed them who was boss, that's all. I promised them that I would go see them dance tonight. Don't you two have something to do there?"
"Yes, Muriel. We manage the club. I think you'll be surprised at how the place looks and how your two companions work. They are two of the best we have. Sometimes they go up together and the dances get very steamy."
"Very well. I am going to take my two new "employees" out to lunch and try to get to know them a little better. I need to do some shopping as well, so we'll be back in time to go to the club, let's say about eightish?"
"That'll be fine, Muriel. We'll be here and ready by then. Have a good day, and don't let her get to you Sis. She can't be much worse than I was."
"If she is half that bad, I'm gone. Don't worry about it, we'll get on fine."
Alex:
I sat at my desk, and looked across at Steve and Bill. They said that they had an update for me, and now we were just waiting for Diane to get here.
"So, can you give me a hint, Bill?"
"It's about Daniel Smith, the man who ordered the actions against you." He paused as Diane entered the office and sat down. "Smith has been going nuts trying to gain access to his accounts. When we shut them down and transferred the funds to us, we made it seem that his boss was doing it. One of the IT guys in their company has a grudge against both of them, it seems that their sons were not very nice to his daughter. I heard the word rufie mentioned. I'm glad that you don't have snakes like that working for you, Alex."
"I hope I don't, Bill. So what did Smith do about the loss of his money?"
"We knew that he would probably do something stupid, and we implicated his boss to try to keep innocents from being harmed if we could. Smith was sure that his boss, George Grissom, was trying to screw him, so he kidnapped the man's family. If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. We were able to intercept the demand for ransom, and clued in the FBI. They of course messed it up entirely, and killed Smith, his son, and badly wounded Grissom's boy. During the cleanup, they found the rufies and evidence implicating both boys and a few others in several rapes on the campus of Georgia Tech. There was even a tape with Grissom and Smith taking part in one gang rape. I would love to impress you with our ability to manufacture this stuff, but it was all valid. The corporation was already reeling at what you have done to them, but with this little bit of drama, they are dust. Wait about a week or two and you can buy their stock for pennies on the dollar."
"Well, that explains this note I got from the board of directors of the South Eastern Power Group." Diane said, "We already have enough stock to be on the board, and they have called an emergency meeting for the day after tomorrow. I bet they need a new director. Why don't you apply for the job, Alex?"
"No way, I don't want to take a pay cut. If they aren't careful though, I may give them Muriel. How is she doing in Vegas by the way, Diane?"
"She is doing great, Alex. She has apparently made slaves out of two of the girls from Jewels, and they are bringing in crowds with the new performances they have been doing. Donna and Chelsea are ready to go to work as soon as Chelsea gets back. Have you met her?"
"No, Paul has been monopolizing her time so far. I was hoping to meet her and Sophia's young man, John I think his name is, before they leave tomorrow. I can't believe I sent those girls out without protection. Bill, I'm going to sign my proxies over to you, I want you to go to the board of directors' meeting and let them know just how little time remains to them. That corporation is going to be split up into very small portions and turned into local co-ops. If they are smart, they can get onto those boards and maintain some control, but not much. Also let them know that I'm buying stock, as long as there is some available. I won't be paying much, but it is better than they will get when I bust the place up. They let scum like Grissom and Smith into their organization, so I have no pity for them. Make sure they know that. Is there anything else?"
"Not at this point, Sir. Grissom's wife and daughter were kept out of the line of fire, and they should have enough to live pretty comfortably while he is in prison. We weren't able to prove any fraud on his part except for what he paid Smith. I don't think prosecution on that point would be worth the trouble. What Smith still had in his local bank will be enough to pay for the funerals, but not much more. His house was mortgaged to the hilt and isn't worth that much. I was thinking of sending his ex-wife something from what we recovered in the Caymans."
"Sounds good, Bill. Go ahead and make sure she is okay. You've done a good job, and I appreciate it. Has your family relocated here yet?"
"Marge is still packing, you know how military wives are. She isn't going to leave until everything is perfect. I bought the house next to Cromberg and his little harem. They should prove to be interesting for my daughters to get to know. I'm looking forward to the pool parties with them."
I turned to Steve, "Do you know where Paul has the kids working today?"
"I think he has them over at the airfield for final testing. Should be about done by now though, let me check with him."
He called, and found out that they were indeed at the airfield where we stored our planes and helicopters. Diane and I headed out there to see how they were doing.
We walked up behind Paul and a young man who were watching a limo maneuver a course of cones on the reserve field. The big car was sweeping around turns, winding its way through the course. At one point it screeched to a halt, then reversed direction, doing a 180 turn after a short distance in reverse, and speeding up to slide sideways to a halt in front of us.
"Damn, she beat my time again, hell, she almost beat yours, Paul. If she could shoot any better, I wouldn't win anything."
I stepped next to Paul, and put my hand on his shoulder. "I gather that the driver is Miss Featherstone? And this young man next to you is John Manning? How are they doing?"
"They are done, Alex. Chelsea is better than I ever was and John isn't far behind. The bitch is that they are both going to want technical jobs in the future. There is no way they will be satisfied with this kind of work. Your girls will be as safe as we can make them now."
"That is what I wanted. Thank you, Paul, for your help. The three of you can join us for dinner, Marcella has promised a special treat for their success."
Dinner was a lot of fun. John and Chelsea were friendly with each other, but I was puzzled. They were about the same age and had many of the same interests. I was surprised that they were not having any kind of romance. They just didn't seem aware that the other was of the opposite sex.
I mentioned this to Inez while we were preparing to go to the hot tub later.
"I would expect two good looking young kids to be all over each other, Inez. Is John gay or something? He didn't act like it at all, and neither did Chelsea."
"No, Dear. They have given their hearts to another. You can tell where John has his sights set when he talks about Sophia, and Chelsea has an older man in mind. When their affections are not returned and they keep getting thrown together, it will probably work out that they hook up. Or, they may just remain friends, it is hard to say. We are having guests in the tub tonight, Dear. Let me take care of that before you startle the poor women." Inez knelt before me and proceeded to take away my reaction to her nudity. Even at almost the end of her pregnancy, I found her body to be beyond beauty. I was amazed at the fluidity of her motions at her advanced stage as well, must be the dancer's training helping her out.
"Women, who is joining us tonight?" Ever since the incident with Brenda, I have become accustomed to others in the hot tub with us, and the nudity shown there. I would probably never be comfortable with it like Inez was, but I was used to it by now. The way the tub soothed the aches and pains of being pregnant, I was not going to deny her the relief offered by the warm water jets. It must be someone new if they weren't used to my reactions though.
When we got to the tub, Steve was already in it, and his lovers Camille and Teresa were just shedding their robes to join him. Nothing new here, this triad had joined us many times over the months. After all of us were seated, I found out who the newby was. Diane walked up to the tub and removed her robe. Underneath it she was wearing a one-piece swimsuit. I didn't say anything though, if she wasn't comfortable with nudity, I was not going to make her feel any shame with comments.
"Thank you for joining us, Diane." Inez said, "I was surprised to realize that you hadn't done so before this. We have had just about everyone join us at one time or another, except for you. Why the Higgins and Ortiz families have even been in here with us."
"But ... aren't Hanna and Marcella kind of big? Were they nude like you?"
"Yes, Dear. What did you think of them, Alex? Did they disgust you with their size?"
"No, they are such lovely women inside, that it shone through and bathed them in beauty. I had a lot of fun with them here. George made me feel a bit inadequate though."
"Yeah, that was kind of scary, wasn't it?" Steve put in.
"Well, if you don't mind, I'll just keep my suit on for now. I'm not quite ready to show all."
Teresa spoke up then, "No problem, Diane." She turned to her lover, "Steve, Camille and I have a question for you. Julie has been taking some cooking lessons from me and my sister. She was telling me about Ingemar's plans, and I had a thought. I discussed it with Camille and here it is. When their new house is ready, could we buy the one they are renting now and the three of us move into it? I know that you can't marry us, but we would like to have children, and we want you to be the father. I look at Inez and Janice, and I want to experience that too. What do you say, Steve?"
Steve seemed to be shocked. He looked at Inez and me in confusion, and then he looked at Camille and Teresa on either side of him. He saw the tentative smiles they both displayed.
Just then, Diane interrupted the tableau, "Wait a minute. Janice is pregnant? When did this happen and why didn't I know?"
"She told me yesterday, but I knew it already." Inez said, "and as for when, I think it was right after she came out of the hospital from the shooting. She said that she forgot to tell the nurse that she needed her pills. I think that subconsciously she wanted to forget. Julie is so jealous of her, it is kind of funny, really."
Steve squared his shoulders, then said, "I say that it is a marvelous idea. I wish I could marry both of you, but I'll make sure that you are provided for with the company documents. Would the owners of the property be willing to sell?"
"Sure will." Inez said, "When I found the house for Crom the owners wouldn't rent, they insisted on a purchase. So I bought the house and rented it to Crom. You can have it for what I paid, no problem."
I turned to look at my wife, "Excellent, Dear. I wondered how you found such a perfect place for rent." I turned to Steve then, "You know who your neighbors will be, don't you?"
"I heard Bill tell you that he had bought the place on one side, but I'm not sure offhand who is in the other house."
"Grier Barringer has it. His wife and four kids are there with him. Bill was saying that his daughters would be given a great example with Crom and his girls living next door, then when you three show up I bet he has kittens."
Camille laughed at that, "We'll try not to be too much of a distraction to them, Alex. I'm going to need some maternity leave in about eight months, Inez. I'm not waiting any longer, and neither is Teresa. Mr. Grant here is going to be busy this weekend."
Teresa spoke to me, "And Grier only has three kids living with him now. His oldest, Julie, is living in the apartments here with a young tech. I think it is the same one who went to Washington with you."
"Sam, Sam Bell I think his name is. I'm surprised that Julie was able to snag him, he made me look cool when I was at my gawkiest, I'm glad though, he should treat her right. What does Grier think of the situation?"
"It's funny to watch," Steve said, "He tries to act gruff with the boy, but the smiles keep peeking through and I don't think he is fooling anyone. Sam has a bright future and Julie walks on clouds as far as he can see. I would only hope for such a nice future if either of these forward women have girls." Steve pulled both women against him for a hug, and they in turn leaned in to kiss him.
I felt something at my side, and turned to see Diane crying. "What's wrong, what's the matter?"
"I wish I had been that lucky. My husband treated me like shit and cheated constantly. You gals don't know how lucky you are."
Just then, Inez grabbed my arm in a strong grip. "Alex, I think we need to get hold of Phyllis, and you'll need to clean the hot tub, because unless I am mistaken, my water just broke."
Diane forgot her misery and became the calm directing person I had hired. She stood up and took charge.
"Camille, you get to a phone and call Phyllis. Teresa, get a lawn chair from the balcony in here. Steve, you and Alex please lift Inez carefully out of the tub and put her on the chair when it gets here. Just relax, Inez, you have plenty of time to get to the clinic. Put my robe on, Honey, I don't think you want to be naked on the way to the clinic."
Phyllis told Camille that she would be at the clinic shortly, and to have Inez walk slowly over there. She said the mild exercise would help with the contractions.
The walk over to the clinic would have made a good "Saturday Night Live" skit. I had taken the time to put on shorts and T-shirt when I got sandals from our bedroom for Inez to wear. Diane was still in just her swimsuit, and Steve, Teresa, and Camille were in robes with flip-flops. Inez was wearing Diane's robe, but while the robe had reached the ground with Diane, it barely cleared Inez's knees. It also did not cover her protruding belly; all the sash could do was slide under the bulge. Every few minutes Inez would stop and grip my arm as a contraction hit her.
Warren Andrews was born at four in the morning, on June 6th, 2015. His big sister Jessica was there for the birth, and she smiled a mile when he grabbed her finger. I think I was more exhausted than Inez when it was all over.
Well, I had done it. I had intended to buy a family, but instead I had founded one. My son and his soon to be siblings would grow up in a world better than the one I had been given. My original intention was to build an insulated little community for my family to hide in. Now we were expanding worldwide and we had friends to help us. I never expected for that to happen. My little family had grown to include those who worked for and with us, for without them it would indeed be a lonely existence.
An Ending