Chapter 35

I was pleased Ida announced she was ready to leave. I was ready minutes after we sat down. The trio of musicians left much to be desired. I drove toward the motel with one hand on the wheel while the other worked teasingly slow sliding Ida's dress up high and baring her panties.

"You bring back memories of my earlier dates with Frank. He wanted to drive with one hand on the wheel while keeping the other busy under my dress," Ida said sheepishly.

"Not mild mannered Frank, he wouldn't do such," I commented laughing softly.

Ida chuckled and leaned against the seat, thrusting her mons against my hand. A minute later, I felt her body shaking. I looked at her she was laughing, one hand forced against her mouth held the controlled laughter inside.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

Her laughter kept her from speaking more than a minute. At times, she laughed so vigorously she couldn't hold it inside and she expelled loud roars.

"I can't tell you," she said amidst her convulsions of laughter.

"I believe it's too late to tell me you have secrets now. What is it," I asked briskly rubbing a finger against her clit while pressing firmly.

"Maybe some day," she replied grinning.

I continued driving toward the motel making one stop at a liquor store. Once we were inside Ida began undressing without wasting any time. I hurriedly undressed and we tossed the coverlet into the floor. We fucked, had a drink, and then made love. For a woman who professed to have many problems it didn't disrupt Ida's sleeping. Two minutes after I rolled from her soft body, she was sleeping soundly.

I had trouble going to sleep as my mind was in turmoil. I didn't know what lie ahead but I knew it couldn't good. Looking back over the past week it looked just as bleak. My major concern had to be Sue's health.

Ida teased me about making a call to a wife and I began thinking seriously about her remarks. It seemed easy to make a call and get a willing subject. Doubts came into mind and I wondered if they would be willing photographic subjects. Listening to Ida I had a notion it would be relatively simple. The longer I thought about it the better it sounded. It would be a source of willing participant's, although I continued to have doubts of their willingness to be filmed. Dad mentioned he had difficulties contacting people without drawing attention to him and I realized this could be a possible solution. Since he couldn't make the contacts, I saw no reason I couldn't. My problem was I didn't know what to do with them after I had the names.

I don't know how long I lay awake, or when I drifted off to sleep, but when I woke it was 9 a.m. Ida was sitting in the lone chair drinking coffee and reading a newspaper.

"Good morning," I mumbled.

"Good morning to you, I was giving you a few more minutes before I woke you. I promised a friend I'd meet her for lunch at noon today," Ida remarked.

"Does that mean you don't have time to come to bed? You look as though you need more rest," I remarked laughing softly.

"I shouldn't but I know you're leaving today. I don't believe I could wait another year for you to return, and I can't depend on my husband returning anytime soon. When I think about it I have to look at all my options." She placed newspaper and coffee on the table and began undressing. "I thought about it," she said standing and walking slowly toward me dropping her items of clothing on the floor.

"I know you think of me as a slut and rightfully so. What decent woman would take pride in seducing her best friend's son? I wouldn't blame you if you never spoke to me again -- but I'd be hurt," Ida mumbled as we lay facing one another after we regained our bearing.

I was staring into her face and saw a tear fall across the bridge of her nose. I wiped at it and another took its place. We had made love and I was dreading the moment we had to dress and part company. She meant more than just a woman I bedded, she was a part of me. I could see the strained expression and I knew she had a similar feeling. Years of friendship, the majority of which I looked upon her as a friend's mother, faded and I felt a part of her belonged to me. She nourished me with the knowledge gained through fortunate and not so fortunate lessons she learned in life. At the present, she was feeling remorse. I thought of another that had similar thoughts years earlier.

"I thought it was going to be easy to forget you, go back to my husband, and become a normal housewife. That's not so, I'm going to miss you," Cecelia said as a tear rolled across her cheek. "I thought it would be a simple matter to walk out of your life and forget you. I've a confession to make; it's not going to be that simple. I've grown fond of you."

"I love you, I don't want you to go," I remarked attempting to hold back my tears.

"No, you're not in love with me, you just think you are. I'm not saying that to be mean either. Someday you'll understand. You've taught me about love. That may come as a surprise to you but it's the truth. You have the excited look about you, the same as I had when I was young and enjoyed the thrill of sex the first time. I'll never forget my first lover as you'll never forget me, but you'll realize it's not love you feel," Cecelia said caressing my cheeks with her soft hands.

"But I do love you," I said placing my arms around her waist and pulling her close.

I was distraught and heartbroken the afternoon she told me she would be leaving at any moment. She was waiting clearance from Camille's doctor visit. She felt her baby was in perfect health but blood test results were incomplete. Two days previous, she informed me Camille was free to travel as she was listed on Cecelia's passport. That day was a black day in my life and she compounded it by giving me this horrifying bit of information.

"How could I teach you about love, I never did it before," I mumbled speaking into her milk-filled breasts.

Cecelia pulled me tighter against her soft body and said, "Love encompasses more than 'just doing it'. That is the intimate part but many other things matter. I enjoy special treatment and I forgot men love the same. I have taken my one and only for granted and you've taught me how important it is to remember. I felt lonely and, many times unloved, but I realize I was the one pushing my lover from me. I took his acts of kindness as sympathy actions. I was wrong. I turned to you thinking I needed love and sympathy. I had it all the time but it took you to prove it to me. I needed the love but I brought the sympathy upon myself. I see that now."

"I don't understand that, but I know I love you."

"Yes, in your way you do love me but you'll be in love many times before you find the girl when you can say you're really in love. Until that day comes, just be you and love everyone," Cecelia remarked and coddled me by pulling me closer.

"I can't miss this luncheon; I've put off my friend twice. I had a wonderful visit," Ida said leaning and kissing my cheek.

The kiss was precautionary because I just pulled into my condo parking slot. We said our good-byes in the bed earlier, and more on the drive to the condo. She slid out quickly and rushed to the stairwell, turning and giving a short wave before she ascended the steps. I was more leisurely, taking my time getting out of my car.

I took two steps and heard, "STEWART!" shouted from across the parking lot.

I turned and saw Agent Dawson motioning to me. I walked in his direction and saw Carlette's partner was sitting behind the wheel. Another man sat in the back seat, one I didn't recognize from the previous day. That is, I didn't recognize him until I came to a halt beside their car. I didn't know his name but he was the wise ass at the meeting Harper hosted in N.C.

"I don't believe you've been introduced to Agent Jessup," Dawson said as he opened the car door motioning for me to get in beside Jessup.

"I've seen him before," I said staring at Jessup as Dawson slipped into the passenger's side in front.

"He works the Phoenix, AZ, office and he has brought you some good news. It's good for you but alarming to us."

"Good news?" I remarked.

"Yes, good news for you. Tell them what he needs to know Jessup," Dawson remarked turning to face me.

Jessup looked at Dawson questionably.

Dawson spoke up, "Brief him on your boss."

Jessup nodded and to me, "When you see my boss you'll remember him. He was the short man wearing the ten-gallon hat when we were in North Carolina."

I nodded, "I believe he was the one that was shouting when they... were assaulting... raping... the girl."

"Yes, he was the one shouting 'give it to her, give it to her'. He's going to be in Tennessee with another of his cronies from Texas, from San Antonio I believe. They're both mean bastards, and both are into drugs. My boss' name is Sam and he's from Phoenix. Ike is from Texas and we believe they're forming a partnership. I've been working for Sam more than a year. I thought I would learn something in North Carolina, but I didn't. They're smart. They work in small groups, no more than three, or four when they discuss business. It could be different this meeting because Pansy, Sam's wife and daughter are attending. Sam's wife, Pansy, is a flirt. She's short, roughly five feet tall, but she stands out because she has monster boobs. Brooke is his daughter; she's 17 and drab looking although she is actually a classy girl. I'm not sure but I believe she dresses drab not to draw attention to herself. It doesn't work; in fact, it's just the opposite as she attracts attention. Arch, his son is 18 and a cock hound. He'll screw anything with a hole, eight to eighty it doesn't matter to him. He's a cruel bastard just like his father."

"Why are you telling me this? I don't know them so how could his family accompanying him be good news to me?" I asked and directed my gaze at Dawson.

Dawson replied, "We believe it will be more relaxed with families in attendance and we could pick up on something. We're going to send agent Hernandez as your girlfriend and assistant. You can explain to Harper that she'll be much better suited for the job than anyone he finds. We have an expert working with her now. He's giving her a crash course on photography."

His words startled me. They had photographs of me, enough to send me to jail, and now they planned sending an agent to work with me. I saw her as a spy, her intentions to gather derogatory information on me. Instead of ten to twenty, I'd be lucky to get forty to sixty if she worked alongside me.

"There's no way, I won't do it. You're sending her to look over my shoulder. She'll report every sneeze I make... and worse... if I spit she'll hold that against me. No, I won't do it."

"You're not looking at it from our point of view, you will be working for us. We'll overlook many things," Dawson remarked.

"Right! Six months or a year from now, or however long it takes, this will be on my record, the little book you people seem to be keeping on me. I'll be standing before a judge and you won't remember me. I know how that works."

"You've got this wrong, we want your help," Dawson expressed.

"You're asking for my help but when you get what you need I'll no longer be of benefit to you and you'll forget me. Forget it,"

"I guess the only thing we can do then is ask Hernandez to call her friend at the Justice Department. It's a shame a young man could spend half of his life in prison. You don't seem to understand that we didn't have to come to you; we could have passed the pictures on and not worried about you. It wasn't my idea to treat you with kid gloves. I was against it from the beginning. It's a shame, a terrible shame," agent Dawson mumbled.

Carlette's partner turned and spoke coldly, "I don't know why she wanted the trouble with the likes of you. I told her you'd be nothing but trouble, a pain in the ass otherwise."

"A pain in the ass you say, I'm a pain in the ass; tell them what's going to happen at that meeting," I stated harshly speaking to Jessup. "Explain the way they do things, and why the women are there."

"I don't understand. What do the women have to do with it?" Jessup stated.

"The meetings, the party, the way the women are treated, explain that to Agent Simpleton," I remarked boldly speaking to Jessup.

"How would I know? I've only attended one meeting and were no women, well two, or three," Jessup remarked.

I stared at him a moment, scowling and said, "You been working over a year with Sam and you don't know anything of these meetings? You people are something else. I've seen the beatings and I've taken my licks. I don't intend for it to happen again. Call your man at the Justice Department."

Jessup looked at Dawson and commented, "I've only attended one meeting, what can I say?"

Dawson stared hard at the man sitting beside me. Joseph appeared to be in misery as he twisted and squirmed in the seat. Somehow, he reminded me of myself the previous day when questions were being fired at me and I didn't know the answers. Agent Dawson opened his door and slid from the seat. He stood beside the car two or three minutes. No one spoke during this time as the two agents in the car stared at one another glancing in my direction occasionally. Dawson opened my door and stepped back.

"Stewart, come with me," Dawson said and began walking across the parking lot.