Chapter 4

Susan walked downstairs and into the dining room, where she found Terri, Bethany, and Beverly. Bethany and Beverly were looking under the weather, and sipping what smelled like mint tea out of coffee mugs. Beverly looked up as she walked in and said, “Sounds like Jim is getting Julie pumped. I’d suggest we go up and watch, but I’m not feeling my best right now.”

“Me either,” agreed Bethany, and she sipped her steaming tea.

Terri looked at them, concerned, “I’m so sorry you’re not feeling well! Do you want me to get Lord DeGraves for...” Terri was interrupted as both Bethany and Beverly ran for the door. They hadn’t made it far when the sound of both being sick was carried back into the dining room. “Oh ... damn ... I’m sorry...” came Beverly’s weak voice.

“Must ... have ... the flu or something...” came Bethany’s voice. “Having trouble keeping food down ... the last few days...”

“Me, too.”

Susan, remembering the discussion she had just had with Julie, looked at her mother and cocked an eyebrow. “What?” asked Terri in a low voice.

“I think Julie thinks they’re pregnant,” Susan whispered to her mother.

“I’d think that they’d know if they were,” whispered Terri. They heard movement behind them to see Trish, who nodded, then gave them a wink and held her finger to her lips. She refilled the cups with mint tea and put down a small plate of saltines, and then left.

Terri held her hand to her mouth in surprise, then grinned at Susan. Susan grinned back, then sobered as she remembered the rest of her conversation with Julie. She put her hand to her belly with a touch of consternation, then shook her head.

Terri had missed this last gesture as she stood and helped Bethany and Beverly back to their chairs. “Trish just brought this in for you, hoping it will help you feel better.”

The two ladies sipped their tea to get rid of the taste in their mouths, and Beverly picked up a cracker. “These actually might help. I used to eat these when ... when...” Her word trailed off.

“When what?” asked Bethany.

“Oh, just when I was pregnant with Julie, and Jim before her. What are you two grinning at?”

“Us? Nothing!” answered Terri.

“Not a thing,” said Susan.

“But I’m pretty sure we know what Trish was grinning about.” said Terri.

“No! I can’t be pregnant!” said Beverly.

Bethany said, “I’m far too old to be pregnant! That ship sailed quite a while back!”

“Too old? At what, twenty?” asked Susan incredulously.

“Well, I’m actually a lot older than twenty. Quite a lot, actually. It just can’t be possible.”

“Julie seems to know something about Bethany,” said Susan. “She said you’re not too old to get pregnant, but I’m not sure what or how she’d know. She’s not all child in there, I’m pretty sure. She gave me this look...”

“Julie is definitely special, and sometimes I see things in her that are much deeper than a five year old.” said Beverly. “But could I ... could we both be pregnant? Oh, dear, if I am, that would make Jim the father!”

“I’m pretty sure Mason has been firing blanks for a very, very long time...” said Bethany, thoughtfully. “But no, surely I’m just too old!”

Bethany went to the sideboard and picked up a small bell and rang it. Noelle, one of the maids came into the room from the direction of the accidents and said, “I will take care of it at once, ma’am.”

“Thank you, Noelle. And please ask Jeremy to see me as soon as he is available. I have an errand for him.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Noelle said as she departed. The sound of scrubbing shortly followed.

“Are all of Lord DeGraves’ servants so, ah, well built?” asked Susan.

“Yes, they are indeed,” smiled Bethany. “There are advantages to working for Lord DeGraves, and not all of them are sexual in nature. Well, come to think of it, maybe they are.”

A minute later, a muscular young man entered, wearing jeans and a pocket tshirt. “Ma’am?” he asked Bethany with a bow.

“I would like you to run to the drug store and purchase two pregnancy tests and return. Thank you Jeremy. Please charge it to the household account.”

“Yes, ma’am, at once, ma’am”

“Once upon a time, I’d have asked him to prom,” said Susan.

“He’s an excellent dancer,” said Bethany, “and a great lay for after the dance!” she winked.

Susan blushed, and said, “I don’t think it would work out anymore. I’ve ... changed.”

Bethany said, “You never know! You could ask him to try on a pair of heels!” and she winked again.

Susan shook her head again and said, “I don’t think that would work.” She looked sadly at her mother, who patted her hand and then hugged and kissed her, mother to daughter.

Bethany looked at the others and said, “I’ve been doing a little research and talking to Mason. We think that talking to some of the people that he helps shortly after the end of their arrangements might be beneficial. We don’t want to include everyone. Sometimes those he helps turn ... dark. Unpleasant. Not people you want to know, or to know you. But there are some who could use a network of supportive friends, and could be supportive in return. Mason says we can’t keep everyone here.”

“Why?”

“As I understand it, it would collect too much of “something” in one place, which would have some kind of stress on the local environment. Also, there would be too many sexual freaks in the neighborhood to be overlooked. We would draw the attention of law enforcement, politicians, blue-nosed religious communities, and so on. Here, we are close enough to several major cities that this escapes notice, but the higher the concentration of obvious sexual deviance, the likelier it becomes that normal people would freak out.”

“Ah, yes, I see. It can be easy to forget that we’re no longer ‘normal’,”said Beverly.

“At some point, we will have to move anyway. Mason has to move every few years to avoid drawing too much attention to himself. People expect old men to get older and then die.”

“What do you mean?” asked Terri.

Beverly turned to Terri and said, “Mason is very old. If he ages, it happens very slowly. No one knows how old he is but Mason himself, I think. There are a lot of mysteries about Mason DeGraves that we’ll never know the answers to. Maybe it’s magic. I don’t know. Whatever it is, he can’t talk about it, and even Bethany can’t say much, and then only to certain people.”

Terri turned to Bethany, whose mouth was shut in a thin line, and who nodded tightly to her. She shrugged her shoulders, a gesture saying plainly, “What can we do? It is what it is.”

After a moment, Susan said, “Okay, so, we start considering people to add to our network as they come to Lord DeGraves and whatever he does happens? If they seem to turn out okay, trustworthy, we talk to them and let them know they’re not alone? Maybe we can set up ... I don’t know, clubhouses, or something, in different places where we can meet?”

“Something like that. I suspect that this has been done before throughout history, and some of them have come to light. Like perhaps “The Hellfire Clubs” with people such as Duke Philip of Wharton, Sir Francis Dashwood, and even Benjamin Franklin,” said Bethany.

“Benjamin Franklin! With the kite and the key and the lightning?” exclaimed Susan.

“Oh, yes! If you read much about him you will discover that he was a sincere and unrepentant pervert, and a devoted connoisseur of sex.” Bethany though a moment. “Those clubs tried to keep secret, but word leaked out. Members got accused of all sorts of terrible things, like rape, murder, and satanic rituals. Maybe that’s part of the reason Mason is so concerned about doing something like this. We would need to be careful.”

“How careful would we really need to be?” asked Terri. “I mean, there are BDSM clubs, sex clubs, porn star conventions and award shows, something called “furry” conventions, and all manner of sexual behavior all over the country! Not that I’m suggesting we take out billboards or anything.”

“You may be carrying your son’s child, and your daughter definitely is,” said Bethany to Beverly. She turned to Terri, “And you regularly have your daughter’s foot in your vagina, and vice versa. I suspect that the people who purchase pictures of that do not share them with, say, the police. Once the question arose, your lives would be made quite difficult, even if you are not biologically related. And your husband would no doubt go to jail.”

“Ah. Yes. Well, you are right, of course,” admitted Terri, looking embarrassed and aroused, and Susan squirmed in her chair.

“So, I would suggest that we begin looking at possible network additions for now, and consider carefully how we might grow that network. And consider, is it primarily for sex or is it for support? Let’s just think about that for now. We already have a number of people we can trust, like the staff here, the medical unit, and several other offices and research units and even businesses around the world.”

“Oh. Ohhhh!” said Beverly. “I was just thinking about us, here, you know...”

Bethany smiled at her and patted her hand. “You’re new to this. You’ll learn!” she beamed.

The front door opened and closed, and Jeremy entered the room with a pharmacy bag. Bethany thanked him and he turned and left. Bethany took a deep breath and opened the bag to disclose two pregnancy kits. She took one, and gave the other to Beverly. “Well, here we go,” she said as they got up, and arm in arm, walked to the foot of the stairs.

Ten minutes later, Bethany and Beverly came back down the stairs, looking a bit shocked. Bethany, in fact, looked positively stunned, while Beverly, though a bit pale, guided her to her chair in the dining room.

“I see,” said Terri. “Well, you’ve got some things to think about. Is there anything we can do, or get for you? Would you like me to call Trish and ask her to make something for you? Maybe a stiff drink?”

“No, no thank you,” said Bethany, and Beverly shook her head and sat down.

“I hadn’t thought of having another child,” said Beverly.

“I hadn’t thought I could ever have a child,” said Bethany, her hand on her womb.

“A child?” asked Jim, as he walked into the room, then looked at his mother, and then at Bethany, neither of whom had quite regained their color or composure.

“Susan, let’s go take a walk and see the horses,” said Terri, standing and taking her daughter’s hand. They halted as they heard a girlish giggle from out in the hall. Lord DeGraves’ voice was heard from the opposite direction, saying, “Let me guess ... a certain little girl has been sharing the wealth, yes?”

Peals of Julie’s laughter rang through the hall, and then she appeared in the dining room doorway, clothed in a robe and looking very naughty, not so much in a sexual way, but more like a mischievous little girl who got caught with her hand in the cookie jar but wasn’t at all unhappy about getting caught. DeGraves entered behind her, looking mock disappointed in her.

“What on earth do you mean?” asked Beverly, looking quite confused.

“She did this? But how... ? Did she use her transformation to affect Jim somehow?” asked Bethany.

“I suspect that Little Miss Mommy here did exactly that,” said DeGraves. “I suspect she managed to increase Jim’s fertility during her transformation. She loves being a mother, and as Jim is to be the father, it would make sense that she’d want him to get her pregnant again and again. Is this the case, Julie?”

Julie blushed, ducked her head, and nodded. “And were you planning on him getting your mother pregnant again?” DeGraves pressed. Julie, her head still down, shrugged.

“So, not exactly, but you aren’t unhappy at the prospect?”

Julie shrugged again, then nodded.

“And you didn’t consider that this might affect other people as well, correct?”

Julie shook her head, then looked up at Bethany and Susan and said, “I’m sorry.” and hung her head, looking at her lap.

Bethany looked at Susan, and said “But you’re not pregnant, are you? I mean, not from last night...”

Susan looked worried, and said “No, I don’t think so...”

Julie nodded.

“How could you know... ?”

Julie shrugged and blushed again.

“I see,” said DeGraves. “Well, we shouldn’t be surprised if it turns out to be true. You certainly have some things to think about, in any case. And I am going to have to arrange for a nursery, and a delivery room as well. A obstetrician, perhaps? Bethany, I will put this in your capable hands. Run a search for a good obstetrician in the local larger cities, a female one, I think. Standard staff deal.” Bethany nodded.

DeGraves turned to Jim. “Jim, I suspect that any un-pregnant girl that you use that with will be quite pregnant afterward. Very possibly every single time. Be very careful with whom you use it. We’ll have a sample of your sperm analyzed by Dr. Cole’s people. The results should be interesting.”

“Uh ... yes, sir. Um, what do I... ?”

“I believe that you and your mother, and you and Bethany, and very possibly you and Susan and her parents will need to have some talks. I expect we’ll know about Susan in the next few weeks. We’ll get Jeremy to get a couple of more pregnancy tests on his next trip into town.” He glanced at Bethany as he said this, and she nodded again.

He looked Bethany in the eye, and in a tone of voice that expressed love and care, asked, “Are you all right? Do you need anything?”

Bethany smiled up at him and answered, “I will be fine. I’m just ... startled, is all. I would never have suspected that this could happen!”

“Well, my dear, I’m surprised as well. Not concerning Beverly, of course, but something like this hasn’t happened before with a long-term servant, ahem, employee. If you so choose, the child will be most welcome here, you know that, yes?”

Bethany blushed, and thanked him, and told the room that she had business to attend to, and stood and left.

Terri stood and took her daughter’s hand again, and announced that they were going for that walk. Jim sat in his usual spot at the dining room table, and looked out the window for a minute. Beverly said, “Jim, I know this is a lot to take in. We have been having a lot of unprotected sex, I quit taking the pill after the accident, and with all the craziness and life-changes and ... I just didn’t think it would happen. It literally didn’t occur to me. How would you feel about having another baby?”

Jim found himself smiling at his mother. “I love you. I love our family. I love our baby with Julie, when he or she comes. This baby was created in love, too. I’d be happy to be a father again, the father of your baby. I’d be happy to be the father of Bethany’s baby as well, and I’d be happy with her as a closer part of our family, too, if she’d like. I mean, she’s already kind of family, but it would make me happy if it would make her happy.”

“What do you think about Susan?” asked his mother.

“Wow. I mean I don’t even know her, really. I don’t know what to think if she’s pregnant with my child. That’s ... I just don’t know. I mean, I’ll do whatever I need to do, if she is. I just had no idea ... what was I thinking?” said Jim.

“Well, for a lot of it, no one was actually thinking! Other things, yes, thinking, not so much beyond what would feel good for who next!” said Beverly, blushing furiously. She sobered, and said, “I’d really like to have another baby, Jim.”

“Well, that’s settled, then.” said Jim.

Julie startled them both by cheering loudly and dancing about the room in excitement. They both reached out to her and gathered her in for a triple hug, smiling and crying a bit.

Jim stood, and said, “I should probably go talk to Bethany.” His mother nodded. Julie looked at them both and said “Beth’ney will be a good mommy. She needs a baby in her heart. She has been too alone for a long time. Tell her, Jimmy! Tell her she’ll be a good mommy, and she’ll have a good baby.”

Jim nodded, humoring her, and went to find the statuesque personal assistant in the shocking French Maid’s uniform. He found her in DeGraves’ office, sitting in his chair and looking at the collapsed desk a bit blankly.

“Hi,” he said.

“Hi,” she returned, obviously preoccuppied.

“So, I’ve been sent to tell you that you’ll be a good mommy, and that Julie thinks you need this. And we, the three of us, want you to be a part of our family. Not just as Lord DeGraves’ assistant, or as a great sex partner, but for you, the you that you are. You have become part of the family anyway, and it’s not like we’re going to just let you go. I love my sister and my mother, but I’ve been falling in love with you. And it isn’t just the sex, and it isn’t the baby. I’ve been so very happy when you’re with me. I want you to be with us. I mean, it is an ‘us’. I just wanted to tell you, and I think you should talk with mom and Julie. They’ll tell you the same.”

Bethany stood, and with tears streaming down her face, she moved to embrace Jim. She looked in his eyes, and saw his sincerity, and his love. She hugged him tightly, shaking in his arms. She pulled back, and gave him a shaky smile. “Thank you, Jim! Thank you. I will talk to Beverly and Julie.”

Two weeks later, several questions had been resolved. First, Jim’s semen had become particularly strong, resilient, and ... persistent. The sperm themselves could live for up to seven days inside a woman, stored great energy reserves, and were incredibly motile - incredible swimmers. Somehow, they seemed able to sense the presence of an ovum at a remarkable distance, and steer towards it with an amazing amount of what can only be called “determination”. Jack’s ejaculate not only contained sperm, but also cells that appeared to manipulate the female reproduction system into high gear for ovulation, and also cells that seemed to restore damaged DNA in sperm, ovae, and during early cell division in the fertilized egg. There might very well be other functions to these cells, as they reproduced, lined, and appeared to nourish and restore the cells of the entire host female reproductive system, facilitating normal egg production and the proper anchorage of the fertilized egg in the womb.

“In short,” reported Dr. Cole, “Jim could have sex with a 90-year-old woman, and as long as she had not had a hysterectomy, and if he did it again within several weeks she would likely become pregnant, and the resulting baby would quite likely be very healthy and quite normal. A younger woman during her normally fertile years, would likely become pregnant from having sex with Jim even once. Jim is an extremely fertile baby-maker.”