Chapter 1

Daniel Webster Thorpe had just barely gotten back home and opened the door to his house when he noticed that his home was completely empty of anyone. His wife and two stepchildren were nowhere to be seen. Dora and he had always had a rather odd marriage, a mixed bag of good and bad, but they had lately seen the passion fade a bit and both knew that very well. There was talk of marriage counseling and various attempts were made to revive their romantic spark, but so far to no avail. He was never truly happy with the monogamy side of their marital life, but he suffered in semi-silence about it, not reminding her unless she brought it up ... and to be completely truthful, he had strayed now and then.

At this point, however, Dan thought it a very cruel irony in a way that she had left so abruptly, if in fact she had. So much else was going on in the world, after all. Then again, nothing was packed, removed from its place, or otherwise disturbed, which plenty should have been had she taken the children and just deserted him suddenly. Naturally, this raised very real questions for Dan, who continued to inspect the place, finding a note on the fridge which said that she had gone to the local Target to shop, another example of their different attitudes, as he was sometimes a bit tighter with money than his wife.

Just then, a knock at the door began, getting louder as Dan made his way to the peep hole. There was a rather short County deputy, Corporal Ayumi Tanaka, whose sex was still a bit unclear to him at first. He answered the door, more than a little worried as to what the peace officer might have to say. It was then that he noticed the corporal had breasts ... not very large, but more obvious as the deputy drew closer. Corporal Tanaka was very female, and like many women of Japanese ancestry, very petite.

"How may I help you, Corporal?" Dan asked her, a bit puzzled as to what the County wanted with him.

"Are you Daniel Webster Thorpe?" she asked him, still a little unsure, having never met him.

"I am. I gather that you're looking for me," he noted guardedly.

"Yes, I am here to inform you that your wife, Dora Alyssa Thorpe, and your stepchildren were extracted by the Confederacy this afternoon during a pickup. Accordingly, her debts are paid off and your marriage is formally dissolved. Mrs. Thorpe is now a concubine of a former British national, Cecil Mansfield. She will leave you a message when it is practical to do so," Tanaka declared.

"I ... see. This is kind of a surprise, because for a while, she expressed opposition to the idea of being a concubine or even a sponsor. I guess that she changed her mind when she had the chance to save her children. I don't blame her for that. I just hope that she adjusts well to her new life. It's just seemingly out of nowhere, though it does explain why she didn't pack, but didn't return. I was truly confused about all of this. She left a note indicating that she planned to shop and return, but she didn't ... so I really was puzzled right before you knocked, Corporal," Dan confessed.

"This is more common than you might think, Mr. Thorpe. A lot of people rethink or reconsider their stance on concubinage and sponsorship when they're facing the acid test of making their life choices, not only for themselves, but also for children. Trust me when I tell you, it's for the best for both of you. Whatever the state of your marriage, this has enabled each of you to determine this life or death matter without having to consult a spouse.

"Very often, too much sentimental attachment to a spouse can cloud one's judgment about being a concubine, sponsor, etc. It can also lead to someone ending up with sponsors that might be a good fit for their spouses, but are a very harmful choice for themselves. This is not a decision to make with a spouse, as part of an 'us.' It should be made for you as an individual. Besides, we need your genes and it is apparent that you weren't doing anything with them in your marriage, at least not yet," Tanaka explained.

"Oh, you might be surprised at how much I agree with you, Corporal. Unlike my ex-wife, for instance, I have never opposed the extractions. In fact, I was tested some time ago, freely, without any need to pressure or urge me. I stayed with her until she left, but we were definitely drifting apart. I made a rash promise to be faithful to her during our marriage, something that I sometimes managed to keep, if not totally. I cared about her and her children, but I wasn't happily married, if you get the difference. I certainly wasn't in love with her anymore, I realize that now," Dan informed her.

Tanaka nodded and smiled at Dan, asking him, "May I come in, before we air-condition the outside and jack up your power bill?"

"By all means, Corporal. It sounds as if you have something more to say, so why not spill it?" Dan agreed, letting her in, "would you like a beer? I have some Timberwolf here," he referred to an upstart craft brew that had gained traction in the past couple of years.

"Well, this was my last stop before going off-duty, so why not? Thank you, I could use the drink, and I imagine so could you," Tanaka accepted the offer, opening the bottle to take a few good swallows.

Dan took a swig or two himself before he asked Tanaka, "Do you normally spend so much time with the remaining spouse when the husband or wife gets picked up?"

"Not really. To be honest, I like you more than I do most of them. Maybe it's because most of them are embittered, self-pitying fools who can't man up and accept that they have some responsibility for what took place. That includes more than a few of the wives, I might add. They're the sort easily drawn to that Earth First foolishness, if you ask me," Tanaka admitted.

"So what's different about me, then?" Dan expressed his curiosity.

"You seem to be ready to move on with your life better, more or less like you've already been headed in that direction, and you seem to grasp why this whole thing is necessary. So many are busy beating their heads against the wall about this business of the extractions, but ... you get it.

"Besides, you easily drew me into conversation beyond what was necessary and explained yourself, articulated yourself even, better than most would in your shoes. You're clearly a rational, level-headed guy, if nothing else, and yet I can sense that you do have passions, just not ones that maybe your ex-wife shared. I know that it's a little early for any kind of relationship or anything, but then a lot of snap decisions are being done these days, often with life-altering consequences.

"So, here it goes ... would you be opposed to taking off my clothes and taking my husband off my mind? You see ... I'm married, but I'm not happy about the way that my husband has behaved about things, especially once the Swarm deal began. He's one of those fools that refuse to do what is needed. He and I ... well, he's a traditional Japanese man in so many ways and he was handpicked for me by my family, but we just don't see eye to eye on any of this.

"Quite frankly, if my husband doesn't shape up, I'll be leaving his ass behind for sure. As it is, a large part of me thinks that it would be best if we parted company for the reasons that I mentioned, anyway. I'm more than game for some adultery, if that's fine with you," Tanaka shocked Dan more than a little.

"So, your marriage is as dead was mine was. I see. Tell me, have you ever had sexual congress with any man other than your husband?" Dan inquired, truly curious now.

"No. Absolutely, unequivocally, and completely no. Though I've been looking to do so lately, I'm no round-heeled slut, or rather, I haven't been one until now," Tanaka confirmed, "how about it? Want to be the first man to put horns on my childish husband's head?"

"In that case, take off your pants first. Then bend over that sofa. I'm going to fuck you from behind, treat you a bit like the naughty slut that you've just become. Besides, I've wanted to screw a cop for a while now, and here's my chance," Dan instructed Tanaka, who surprised him by obeying without hesitation.