Chapter 10

We had been on Chaos for quite a while and I was a mess from the point of needing to shave off the beard. Janice wasn't there to cut my hair, and it took me a longtime to scrub out the dirt that was almost embedded into my skin. Slowly, I started to look and feel better about my appearance. I wrapped a towel around my waist and headed into the bedroom.

Alice was on the bed in a red teddy that left nothing to the imagination. She didn't want to wait and my biological response was exactly what you would expect. I knew that Janice and Mandy were in the other room and would hear us but Alice wanted me. Janice knew the rules and I hoped that she would be helping Mandy to understand them.

I dropped my towel and climbed into bed with her. She was ready for me to rip everything off and have her. Instead, I took my time to feast on all of her body. My touches started to bring her to small orgasms and when I was ready for more, she was spread wide and near begging for me. No one had burst into the door and I finally just forgot about them and took her.

The first three times needed no help from the restoratives. I had been on Chaos a very longtime and I was more than ready to release all of that pent up desire. The next four times took the restorative for both of us. At that point, I was hungry for food. We dressed and headed out to see the others.

We were greeted by cheers and clapping which had me turning red. She just seemed to glow in it. I looked and saw that Chester was sitting between Mandy and Tammy. He was freshly shorn and shaved and looking like an old fart. I did notice that he had two arms again.

I guess he hadn't been restored to his true fighting age in the healing chamber and that would happen when we went back through the portal to John's office.

Then it hit me; how would I get Mandy through that portal? The questions were never ending and what would Tammy say if I took Mandy back with me?

"You look surprised to see us here, Willy," Chester said.

"While I was otherwise pleasantly occupied, I didn't think about the three of you," I replied

"We could tell," Mandy said with a giggle.

"But now, seeing you all here, I have more questions than answers." My stomach took that moment to erupt with a loud gurgle letting everyone know I was hungry.

"Maybe we would do better to discuss this over a meal," Tammy said.

So we sat down and food appeared at the table. I didn't remember the table being for five before but if the food could just appear, the table could be made larger without much trouble.

We each ordered what we wanted. Chester, for god only knows what reason, ordered Wolf Brand chili with ranch-style beans and Lone Star long-neck bottles of beer.

"We don't have a dog to eat any of that, Chester," I joked. Mandy looked confused and Tammy and Alice giggled.

"You eat what you call food and I will eat what I call it." He proceeded to order four bowls of that concoction with six beers.

The rest of us were concerned with eating more than talking. When Chester moved his seat back and sighed, holding his stomach, I just could not help myself. "Do you think we will need to put him in the healing chamber to deal with the gas he is going to experience?" Mandy giggled and Tammy and Alice tried to keep from doing then.

"I will be fine. I have eaten that for almost all of my life." Chester sat back resting in that chair.

He was just giving me too many opportunities, and I was not going to pass one up. "That explains why the healing chamber couldn't fix your looks." I burst out laughing.

The women were not saying a word at this point. But I could see upturned corners of their lips. "Don't you need to be working on Alice getting pregnant so we can go home?" He replied, the food no doubt having made him sleepy and less ready to spar mentally with me.

I looked over at Alice and then Tammy. I knew she would want to be part of this as I had taken the edge off. Then I looked at Mandy. "Chester and I are going to play checkers. Go and take Tammy with you."

I didn't move, trying to decide what was going on but Alice and Tammy did. I was up and out of my chair and back in the room with the two of them in short-order. I was looking like a deer in the headlights and that had them giggling.

"I explained more about this to Mandy, my Hero," Tammy said.

"It's just that..." I didn't get to finish my objection as Tammy cut me off.

"You cannot apply the constraints of Earth to Crossroads and Chaos," she said.

Alice took a simpler approach and just dropped her robe and helped me out of mine. "I want a baby, you are the Hero who rescued me and I want my reward," Who could or would want to argue with logic like that.

I don't know how many hours those two played checkers but we were not quiet nor did we stop at just four restoratives. Something had Tammy's drive going as she was much more passionate with Alice than she had been with Vanessa. I awoke between the two of them, needing to use the rest room. Once I was there, a shower sounded like a good idea. I was in the middle of rinsing my hair when the door to the shower opened and someone entered.

I finished and opened my eyes to find Mandy standing there looking at me. I wanted to take her and kiss her and make long passionate love with her. The idea of what would or wouldn't happen if I did that stopped me. I pulled her to me and we kissed.

She whispered." I want you to have me just like Alice and Tammy. But there are too many unknowns," Tammy said.

"I know. I want to have you just like them. But what would happen if the portal wouldn't let you through because you were pregnant?"

"That is what Tammy said. Are you planning on taking me back to Chaos or Earth?" She looked at me, her upper lip quivered while she waited for the answer.

I knew that I needed to answer this right away. She was a bundle of nerves. Hell, I was a bundle of nerves. I knew that once I had returned to Crossroads, I couldn't go back to Chaos but could I take her to Earth. What would be the consequences for her and I in doing that? What would the Powers that Be say about it? Had the healing chamber removed my DNA from her, so she couldn't pass through it? All of this was all going through my head in pulses. And she stood there looking at me. "I think the only place I can take you is Earth."

I said the right thing as tears streamed down her face, and she jumped up and held on to me wrapping her legs around me kissing my face everywhere.

"I thought you were working on the baby for me," Alice said.

"HE'S TAKING ME WITH HIM TO EARTH!" Mandy screamed out.

"There was never any doubt with that," Chester's voice rang out.

"So where is Tammy? She is the only one missing right?" I said.

She came walking in behind Chester. She had tears streaming down her face, but they were not the happy ones that Mandy had. Mandy saw her and got down off me. I turned the water off and opened the door, tossing Mandy a towel while I just continued my way to Tammy.

I pulled her tight and held on to her. She was shaking from the pain and there weren't any words that would make this right for her. The others disappeared and I pulled Tammy into the room with me and closed the door.

"I knew you would have to take her with you when you brought her here. But I so want to be her and go with you."

"I know; you deserve to be there with me as much as she does. I love you just as I love her. But the Powers that Be have placed a block on the portal you said."

"You got her here by adding your DNA to her body."

"I don't know if it will even work again."

"Could we try?" She turned into Janice then.

"I will do anything you can think of to help me take you with me." She looked into my eyes and kissed me.

"I don't need to go with you," she said.

I shook my head in confusion. She was just crying to go with me, and now she didn't need to go.

"That you love me so much you would risk everything to take me with you. Knowing that I would destroy the ring to keep you from ever returning and you would still take me. You love me, and even if we can't have a long life together with a family on Earth, I still have you here."

"But I don't understand," and I didn't.

"If you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you, it was always yours. If it doesn't return, it never was. I looked up that poem."

"You know that I will return to you over and over again."

"For a thousand times is my desire, my Hero and my love. But I have seen how Mandy loves you. It is that wonderment and innocence. I don't have that in me. I'm selfish in what I want, but I know that she is who I want you to have on Earth. I can share her love of you."

"And what does she think?"

"She is so happy that you want to take her back with you that nothing else matters."

"What if she changes her mind at some point?"

"Then I will have been wrong about her but in the meantime, I will have shared your love."

"You know you're very confusing don't you."

"I thought I am very sexy. Who do you think is the sexiest?" She started flipping though the four of them again.

"They could walk in her and see you doing that."

They won't; I spoke with Alice before she came in. She will keep them out until we go out.

I took Janice into the shower and scrubbed her clean, inside and out. Adding a deposit along the way, she cried out as I did but no one came in. We got dressed with Tammy reappearing and made our way out to find the others just finishing a meal. It looked like Chester was eating that chili and bean concoction over runny eggs this time. He was a sick puppy but he liked it.

It felt strange not sharing my body with Mandy while I was doing that with Alice and Tammy. But Mandy understood the reward was not being pregnant here but going to Earth with me.

Tammy took time to talk with her as I would spend time with Alice. Days turned into weeks and a then a month. We ate and lived together. I could tell that Chester was not having much fun in the lack of sex department, but he was the Hero companion so that was how it played out for him.

We debated about the Portal and what the healing chamber had done to Mandy. Would she be let through or kept here until I returned? What would happen to Chester, since I only had read of the Hero having the cramps needing to leave Crossroads?

I worried that I wasn't living up to Alice's ideals of her Hero having her. She assured me everything was just perfect and then proceeded to show me with a couple of restoratives. I noticed that Chester had slowed down on his chili and bean concoction and was eating a different diet. He would drink a few beers to many and Tammy would have him drinking a restorative, and he was back to sober. He complained that she ruined a perfectly good buzz.

If you weren't directly involved in being the Hero, that companion role sucked. Chester was a trooper, knowing that you had to pay the price for everything in life. Even I was feeling a little sorry for him, but he was surviving. He had survived all of those years on Chaos, so I guess a month or more here wasn't going to kill him.

We got Alice to agree not to say when she was pregnant. We needed to make sure there was a needle and syringe next to the portal incase Tammy needed to take some of my blood and inject it into Mandy. It was all we could think that would allow her to go with us in case the healing chamber had removed my DNA.

I tried to stay focused on what was happening but my mind would drift to Earth and this new wrinkle in my life. I had JD living at my house so the idea of bringing Mandy there right away was not going to work. I had only been gone fifteen minutes. What would John say when we appeared? Would he and Beth take in Mandy and Chester until I had my life here straighten out?

Every time I thought about it, my head would start to spin. There were simply too many what-if's to try to figure out. I made a mental note to go and see if Pamela had filed for the legal separation. That help make it easier.

We ate breakfast together and Alice had a sparkle in her eye. She had me sit in the chair and put the band around my arm to help my veins stick out if Tammy needed to take blood. She hugged the others and kissed me and said the magic words that would move this all to a new level.

"Thank you My Hero Willy. I'm pregnant," And she was gone as she disappeared into the bedroom.

I felt the pains and looked over and saw that Mandy was also. Maybe it all worked on DNA and she must have had some still in her. I got out of the chair and pulled her to me and then Chester.

Tammy kissed me and then pushed us to the portal. We made our way into it and there wasn't any resistance. I looked at John as he opened his mouth to see Mandy, Chester and I all standing in his office.

I had left a single and returned with two additions. He sat there for a few more moments, his mouth hanging open. "Hello John," I finally said.

"Hello Chester," he replied.

"Hello John," Chester said.

Now I was damn confused and starting to get pissed. These two knew each other and neither had said anything about it. I knew I had told John about Chester but had I told Chester about John? Mandy stopped me from thinking about it as she moved closer to me and put her arm around me.

"Hello John," I said in my command voice.

"Hello Willy, I'm sorry I didn't say hello. It's just that I am shocked to see Chester here with you."

"We can and will discuss that at later. I would like to introduce Mandy to you first."

"I'm sorry and a complete cad. Welcome to Earth Mandy, I am John."

"Hello John, this is really Earth?"

"For better or worse it is."

"Do you think you could call Beth to come over?" I asked.

John picked up the phone and a short conversation transpired between the two of them. He nodded his head at the end of it which indicated Beth was indeed coming.

We sat down Mandy at my side. I looked over at Chester and back at John and then at Mandy. I was in the dark about those two and my mood would be changing because of it. But I was trying to keep an even temper about it until Beth had taken Mandy home with her.

"John, I think, until I sort out what is going on, that Mandy needs to go home and stay with you and Beth." Mandy took a hold of my hand and squeezed it.

"Mandy, Beth is a caretaker and John is a retired Hero. She came from Crossroads to be his wife. Much like I see you becoming my wife. But you need to allow me to work through some problems and issues that we can talk about. But Beth is the one best equipped to help you while I take care of this." She looked at me and simply held my hand but didn't say anything.

"I believe that is the best for you, my dear." John said.

"It's for the best right now," Chester added. I watched her relax when he said that. She had known Chester for most of her life and his saying that was, no doubt, comforting.

"If you wouldn't mind explaining, I have a couple of questions on how Mandy arrived here," John said.

"DNA," I answered.

"I don't understand," John said.

"Mandy had been poisoned and was dying. There was nothing I could do to help her. I was unwilling to just let her die so I cut her wrist and mine and had my blood flow into her. I guessed that it was the DNA of the people of Earth and Cassandra that allowed us to pass to the portal to Chaos."

"I had never thought of that," John said.

"All I could do was think not letting her die and how to accomplish that. I couldn't speak at that point. I had cut my tongue out for the mission." That took him by surprise.

"Actually Mandy's father and I cut it out but only after he suggested it," Chester said.

"I did more than suggest it; I insisted on it." John was taken back at the thought.

I noticed that while Chester had his arm back, he had not changed dramatically in his looks. He must have been this age when he had gone to Crossroads and Chaos. I looked at him for a moment and then turned back to John. The discussion was labored from that point. I wanted to explode and know what had happened. Had I been lied to or miss informed yet again? But I needed to stay calm for Mandy. So we danced around with small talk until Beth showed up.

She could see the fire in my eyes and came to me and kissed my cheek. She whispered "Don't get angry, just ask for explanations after we leave."

She knew Chester and gave him a hug, and then I introduced her to Mandy. Mandy needed a woman to talk to and the two of them bonded almost instantly. Before they left, she went over and kissed John good-bye and whispered something in his ear. We stood as they started to go and Chester wanted to tag along with them.

"I think you need to stay Chester. We may want to go and have some chili and beans together with a couple of long neck Lone Star's." He was busted and sat right back down in the chair after they were gone.

"I am not going to play twenty questions. But someone is going to damn well tell me what is going on."

Chester spoke up. "I have known John for several years here. I lost my arm here, not on Chaos. He was helping me with the lawsuit against the company whose truck had crashed into mine resulting in the loss of my arm. A long story short, he offered a way for me to get my arm back. I was skeptical about it but at the end of my rope. So I took the chance that what he said was true. He took me to Crossroads and Chaos, and I don't know, he just disappeared and I was stuck there."

"But why not tell me the truth of it."

"Bravo, self-importance, a need to be seen as more than a damn cripple. I lied is all I can say," Chester said.

I turned to look at John. "Why didn't you tell me you knew him?"

"I didn't know it was him. You said he was a Hero. I knew Chester wasn't one. Yes, it could have been him but I hadn't known Chester to lie before. I should have mentioned it but I didn't."

"Why did you leave him there?"

"The Damsel died and I was pulled back to Crossroads and then pushed right back here. I didn't want to leave him but the rules are the rules and the mechanisms in place did what they are supposed to do. I didn't realize they would leave him there."

"So why didn't you go back?"

"I had promised Beth that was my last mission. I wanted to return Chester's arm to him. One last final act of good and I failed." John hung his head low.

"I couldn't tell Beth that I needed to go back. She would have let me, but I would have felt her disappointment in me breaking my word."

"I never knew why you were just gone." Chester said he stood up and went over and took John's hand pulled him out of the chair and hugged him. There were tears in both of their faces when they were back in their seats.

"So how does the time line with Chester, and I work since we were on different missions."

"I don't know. Do you remember what time you left Chester?" John asked.

"Hell that was over twenty years ago."

"It was only fifteen minutes, since I left."

"I don't know how it works Chester said. And I really don't, excuse my French, give a damn. It may be selfish on my part but I want to go home and enjoy this new arm and write again."

"Well, you damn sure don't need to go and drink and eat anymore of that chili and beans. He ate that every damn day for a month or more on Crossroads."

"It was the only damn pleasure I could have. You were the only one getting any. That damn companion status is bullshit." I started laughing, then John did and finally Chester did too.

"So, was it worth it to get your arm back?"

"That's the hell of it. It's like it was never gone. And I feel better than I have in years too."

"Well it's not from the beer and beans, that's for sure." I laughed.

"You just don't know good food is all. And poor upbringing is no reason to criticize a man's sustenance."

"What are the plans now?" I asked.

"I want to hear about your mission, but I would also like to talk with Chester," John said.

"I need to go and talk with Pamela. She was to have filed some paperwork with the court. That should give you enough time to catch up with Chester. I still have a houseguest if he isn't still out in the woods with Cal." I got up out of my chair.

"Have Mary Jo call over to make sure Pamela is available. If not, you might want to head on home." I knew John by now and when he gave a direct order, something was on his mind. With all of his experience the message to go home and take care of the JD issue was clear-cut.

I didn't know if this was the last time I would every see Chester, But I said good-bye to him like it was, He had kept his true identity hidden from me and if this was a week ago I would have been pissed. But I was learning to loosen up to deal with what was really important. Having him wait for over a month while I had both Tammy and Alice made me think the books were even anyway.

I would discuss it more with John when we saw each other in the morning. I didn't know how much we would actually say about it. But I would mention it the same way he mentioned something he wanted you to think about.

Mary Jo was a dear and she called right over and told me that Pamela would be waiting for me when I got there. I wondered what she knew as I was going out the door. It was obvious that I had been the only one in with Charles and now Beth brought out a woman and Charles was still in his office speaking with another person. But she never seemed to be even curious about it.

I made it to Pamela's office a short time later, and she greeted me with a hug. I followed her into her office and closed the door behind us.

"How are you doing today?" I asked.

"That is what I should be asking you. Word has it you have been given the midnight express."

"A little birdie told you?"

"It's amazing what can be discovered after a nice meal," she raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"So where does my divorce stand at this point."

"I have filed everything with the court. You're now officially separated and responsible for your own debts."

"How long will everything take to become final?"

"The problem is in serving her. Since she is whereabouts unknown it always takes longer."

"So the answer is?"

"When you show all the financial documents to the court about the cash she took and the mortgaging of your sole and separate property. They will be a little more understanding help move this along."

"In English this time," I said with a little voice inflection.

"Depending on the judge maybe a little as three months."

"You know I'm having an attitude readjustment revival with selected members of the midnight express. Do you think I might invite the judge to help him or her move this along?" She giggled for a little while.

"That might not be the best course of action in my professional opinion."

"If you know about it, I doubt it is a secret about what's happening."

"Oh, the midnight express is legendary. You have quite the reputation at being able to expose it."

"I could have lived without the trip."

"They have badges and don't like to be exposed when they pull a stunt like, they did with you. Making you the chief suspect when you were seven thousand miles away when that was easily confirmed with your DoD paperwork was stupid. It was wrong on their part, but they use the power of the badge to do what they want sometime."

"Did you know about their foray into my house?"

"No, what happened?"

"After our little woods revival meeting, someone with some time off likely came and upset my household. They didn't take anything, just made a general nuisance. But I didn't call anyone to come over and dust for prints. So the mess wasn't as large as they would have liked it to be." I stopped to take a breath.

"So that was why they had the midnight express," she said.

"That is the way I figure it."

"I understand you have them and the city by the short hairs."

"And they will follow me anywhere," I laughed.

"I take it, you're not going to leave them buried out in the woods?"

"I don't have any plans to do that but a friend of mine, who likes to play out in the woods as much as I did before I retired, has come out to visit me."

"He worked with you?"

"Not the same branch of the government. He is see-through if you understand." She put her hand to her mouth.

"I thought they could not operate on American soil."

"He is not on an official assignment. Just here to help out an old friend, you understand."

"Do you have any idea what he wants to do?"

"He has agreed not to kill, maim, wound or destroy their mental faculties. But their ass will belong to him."

"You have no idea. What is going to happen?"

"He is out in the woods with my soon to be ex's father who served in Vietnam working on what they want to do, as we speak." She shook her head to ponder what the hell would happen when we were done.

"You understand, they are officers of the court."

"They are coming out willingly for some advanced training is all I know."

"My understanding is the willingly is being compelled."

"Not at all; Charles is more than willing to file the civil rights cases against them and let the courts deal with it. Of course, he was going to file individually against every command person in the department also."

"Go and play with you in the woods with your unknown helpers or face the courts?"

"That is about it."

"Please remind me never to make you angry."

"Well, this issue of taking three months does have me a little unsettled." I grinned and laughed.

"It's the courts and certain statutes have to be followed unless you wouldn't mind if she invalidated the divorce."

"Touché. I can wait a little while, if begrudgingly."

"You're about a ninety five percent freeman at this point. That you can't marry is the only practical issue being held over your head." I must have looked at her then and tipped my cards not meaning to do so.

"You have someone waiting in the wings already?"

"No one from this world." I smiled and got up from my chair. I hadn't lied but she would not believe me if I told her anyway.

We hugged and I left her in her office and showed myself to the door. I wondered if she would be on the phone to Matt before I was out of the building. I had a taste for my favorite pizza again. It struck me that I could have had that in Crossroads but hadn't at this point so far for some unknown reason.

I didn't know if Cal and JD would be back to the house or not so I stopped and got two of them to take home. It wasn't like I wouldn't eat them both at some point over the next few days if they were staying in the woods. The phone lines between Pamela and Matt must have been burning up because when I pulled into my drive, there was a county squad car and an unmarked car. I recognized Matt and the Sheriff. Well, at least I had enough food to feed them.

I got out of my truck and the two of them exited their vehicle. I motioned to the deputy in the squad car to come in also. "Good evening, I hope you're hungry. Only have sausage though."

"Hello Willy, It looks like you were expecting us," Matt said.

"Well I have a houseguest and Cal who are out and might be back so I got enough just in case they were. I don't see Cal's truck, so I'm happy to share. Why don't you come on in," I said?

So we went inside. I shook hands with all of them once I put the pizza down on the table. Then went and got some drinks and paper products. "Help yourself," I said, once everything was on the table.

We got some food and sat down around the table. "I'll get right to the point," the Sheriff began.

"I would rather you didn't," I interrupted and they all looked at me.

"I know you're concerned; I know why you're concerned. But there is nothing to be concerned about. Yes my friend stopped in for a visit. No he was not called or invited here for this particular event. But he is an old and dear friend and his idea of retribution won't happen. If he chose to, I couldn't stop him for accomplishing his goal. And I have traveled with the man. Anything more than that is classified."

"You understand our concerns," Matt stated.

"They are my and Cal's concerns. That car ride has a name which tells me it is an ongoing concern that you have not been able to put a stop to. I will simply tell you that those responsible will want to have gone to Turkey for punishment instead, but they will all arrive healthy and all leave that way. In between, their asses belong to me."

The Sheriff looked at me. "I'll take that as your bond."

"The express will be off the tracks, you can be assured." I smiled, tipped back my bottle of beer and took a large drink.

"Do you care to enlighten us as to the events you have planned," the Sheriff asked.

"I have no idea. What is happening. At this point, it is a simple training exercise where my help has been requested by the Chief."