Chapter 59: Brian and Samantha

July 5, 1996, Chicago, Illinois

“Do you think we could make love twice this morning?” Karla asked early on Friday morning.

“I think we have time, yes.”

“Then first, please just go as hard and fast as you can. We’ve never done that, and I wonder what it’s like. Then make love to me slowly and gently, the way we usually do.”

I moved on top of her and a few minutes later our bodies slammed together as I tried to drive her through the mattress and floorboards and she tried to launch me into orbit with her wildly bucking hips. We both grunted, groaned, and gasped from our exertion, and ten minutes later, Karla came hard as I drove deep into her and cum exploded from my dick.

“That,” she gasped, “was different.”

I nodded, “Very much so.”

“I like the other way better. I think doing it so hard twice would mean falling asleep! The other way we did it five times!”

I kissed her softly and moved off her, pulling her into my arms. We lay together for about twenty minutes before we began making love slowly and tenderly. Thirty minutes later, we were in the shower, gently washing each other’s bodies. When we finished, we dried ourselves, dressed, and went downstairs. With Karla’s blessing, I got my coffee, the newspaper, and then went to cuddle Birgit.

After our cuddle time, I made breakfast for the three of us, and after we ate, Karla and I left the house. We stopped to pick up Siobhán at her studio, then headed into the city for a day at the Art Institute and the Museum of Contemporary Art. I enjoyed the day, and for the most part I was simply listening to Karla and Siobhán discuss the various pieces of art.

After a full day at the two museums, we headed back to Hyde Park where we dropped Siobhán at her studio, and then Karla and I headed home for Albert’s birthday celebration, followed by Guys’ Night and Girls’ Night out.

“I see you managed to escape,” I chuckled when Brian arrived.

“It was escape or commit murder,” he said, shaking his head. “The Feds are throwing new obstacles in the way at every turn. My wife has FAR more patience than I have. I think I’d have called in favors with a friend of mine on the Stennis and asked for an airstrike!”

“What now?” I said.

“Nobody is allowed to speak to her dad without pre-clearance from the Marshals Service.”

“Seriously?”

“They’re being pricks,” he said. “But if you think about it, child molesters are the bottom of the bottom of scum.”

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“Teenagers aren’t children,” I said carefully. “While I agree Noel Spurgeon broke the law, repeatedly, and I’m not defending his actions, he’s no pedophile.”

“That’s not how I see it,” he said firmly.

“I understand. Let’s just let it go and play some cards. OK?”

“OK.”

We joined the other men at the poker tables and our usual tournament began.

“My sister said she didn’t get a chance to talk to you very much,” Karl said.

“I apologized to her when she and her family left for Grant Park,” I replied, mucking the 7-2 off I’d been dealt for the first hand. “Things were crazy with all the guests and some other issues I needed to deal with.”

“Problems?”

“Nothing immediate; but it’s NIKA stuff and I’d really prefer NOT to shop talk tonight!”

“Amen!” came the chorus from the other ten men at our table.

“Did they head back to Ohio already?” I asked.

“Yes. She wanted to see me before I left for Italy. We’ve been pretty close, though the years I was in college and law school I didn’t get to see my family much. Once my dad retired from the Air Force, he and mom came to visit, but Maggie was busy with school and her family.”

“I didn’t know you were from Ohio, Commander,” Ed said.

“I’m not. My dad was assigned to Wright-Patterson when I was in High School. I went off to college and he ended up at Davis-Monthan near Tucson for a few years, then moved back to Ohio. I was actually born in Germany when he was stationed there, and spent some time in Florida and California before Ohio.”

“Your dad was in the Air Force and you went Navy?” Clayton grinned. “I always knew you were smart!”

“I STILL sit on my ass all day just like my old man did, though part of his chair time was in the pilot’s seat of turboprop transport aircraft. After that, he commanded maintenance units. He retired a Light Colonel.”

“Sounds like you’re going to do him one better,” Brian said. “You should make Captain about the time you get back from Italy.”

“Assuming I get the right billet,” Karl said. “The Navy doesn’t just hand out the birds to random officers the way the Air Force seems to. If my dad had flown jets, he’d have easily retired a full colonel.”

“It’s the same in the Navy,” Howard said. “The guys who fly jets get promoted faster than just about anyone.”

“I don’t know,” I chuckled. “They seem to hand out promotions like Halloween candy on JAG!”

“Through Lieutenant Commander it’s pretty much based on length of service,” Karl said. “You put in your time and do your job and you get the promotions. Commander and Captain are a very different story. Weren’t most of those Ensigns, JGs, and Lieutenants?”

“Yes.”

“And one of them was on graduation from law school, right?”

“Yes.”

“That’ll get you early promotion. Any advanced degree can accelerate your promotions. Your friend out east is going for her Master’s, right?”

“Yes, and eventually her PhD.”

“Then she’ll make Captain before she’s forty, and will have a good shot at a flag if she can find the right sponsor and there’s an appropriate slot. Is she still line or is she staff?”

“She was line, well, limited duty until they lifted the stupid restrictions on girls pushing buttons to fire missiles, but she’s staff at NRL.”

“Her husband is a line officer, right?”

“Yes, on the Big E. He had a shore billet with a submarine squadron once they got engaged, but he has an assignment back to a carrier starting next month.”

“Electronic Matériel Officer, right?”

“Yes. Lieutenant Commander John Fitzmaurice.”

“Which explains how they met,” Clayton laughed. “That shit breaks more than it works!”

“That’s what Aimee told me,” I said. “They had a wonky radar that only worked about 10% of the time they were out at sea. Her Lieutenant Commander caught her attention when he kicked the unit and it started working! That’s how they discovered it had to be a loose solder joint.”

“I had a piece of test equipment at Abbott like that,” Kurt said, shaking his head. “The tech from the company that makes it spent more time in my lab than I did! They finally just swapped it out. I eventually heard when they tore it apart at the factory they found a solder joint that was fine when the machine was cold, but once it warmed up, had intermittent contact.”

“The worst kind of software problems are like that,” Terry said. “You run the code and it works, but then suddenly it doesn’t. And you spend hours or days looking for the problem, only to find out there is an operating system bug!”

“How is Colorado treating you, Terry?” Pete asked.

“Pretty well. I miss seeing my kids every day, but I come back here every three weeks or so. Fortunately, Penny and I are cool, so I get to have them with me next month for two weeks. We’ll hit Pike’s Peak and take in a Rockies game and visit Yellowstone.”

“Any women in your life?” Jamie asked casually.

I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes and made sure to regulate my breathing at Jamie’s lame attempt to fish.

“A few,” Terry said, shooting me a look.

I shrugged, and the moment passed. Later, when we were taking a break, Terry pulled me aside.

“What the fuck was that?”

“Jamie being Jamie,” I said. “Just ignore him.”

“You know I WANT to see her, but she’s a stickler for the rules.”

“And you aren’t,” I replied.

“About as much as you are, Boss!” he said with an easy smile.

“There might be some truth to that,” I chuckled. “You know he’s not handling issues like that for us at this point. You can safely ignore him, as I said.”

“Right. You hired your own pet lawyer! But is she any different?”

“No history, which has its advantages,” I said. “With regard to you, just don’t do anything stupid.”

“I learned my lesson on that one, Boss. And I’m grateful you didn’t come down on me like a ton of bricks. I know how close you and Penny are.”

“There was enough blame to go around in that whole fiasco, including with me. I’m just sorry it all went to hell.”

“I have two wonderful kids, and Penny and I are very friendly. We love each other, but we can’t be together after all the bad shit we did to each other. I just hope she finds someone.”

“She’s not ready for that just yet,” I said. “But I think she will. Shall we go back to the table and take everyone’s money?”

“Just like old times, Boss!” he grinned.

July 6, 1996, Chicago, Illinois

“You have my cell phone number, Kimmy’s cell phone number, and the number of our travel agent, right?”

“Yes,” Karla said. “Written into my address book.”

“And you’ll call if there are any issues, right? I have friends in New York if you have any trouble. In fact, let me give you Katya’s phone number. She and her husband Aleksey live not too far from the United Nations.”

I wrote out their numbers and handed the piece of paper to Karla.

“I should be OK!” she laughed. “I’m used to big cities.”

“I know, but I just want to make sure you have a fallback if something were to happen with the person you’re supposed to meet in New York.”

“I spoke to her yesterday evening before we went out. It’s all set. I suppose I should say goodbye to everyone. It’s almost time to leave, isn’t it?”

“Yes, in about ten minutes.”

Karla went to find the various family members to say goodbye while I loaded her bags into my BMW. Just about ten minutes later, she and I walked out to my car for the drive to Midway Airport.

“Thanks for letting me visit,” she said as I backed out of the driveway.

“You’re welcome. And you’re welcome here anytime you want to visit. I guess you’ll be very busy with school the next two years.”

“Yes, and I hope to have some kind of Summer job at a museum next year. I’ve been doing private tours this Summer, as I said. Perhaps you can come back to Amsterdam to visit.”

“I’d like that,” I said. “But I’ll need to work it into my schedule, which is pretty hectic as you’ve seen.”

“It’s crazy! I don’t know how you keep track of everything!”

“Lots of help from my wives and friends, and of course very good employees.”

“I very much enjoyed meeting all of them, especially your kids. They’re so much fun!”

“I agree.”

When we arrived at Midway I helped her get her bags checked for New York, then walked her to security.

“Thank you for everything, Steve.”

“You’re welcome!”

“«Ik hou van je»,” she said softly.

I pulled her into my arms and we exchanged a soft kiss.

“I love you, too. Now, go have a good time in New York and a safe trip home! Make sure you call, and make sure you stay in touch.”

She smiled, “I will. You’re wonderful.”

We hugged again, exchanged another soft kiss, and then she went through security. When she was clear, she turned and waved, then walked down the concourse. Once she was out of sight, I left the airport for home.

Once I arrived home, I helped my wives and Elyse get the kids ready for the wedding, then took a quick shower and dressed in my tailored black suit with red suspenders, a red tie, and freshly polished wingtips. I added a red silk handkerchief to my pocket, something Don Joseph had always done on ‘formal’ occasions, and then went downstairs to wait for my wives to finish dressing.

Once they came downstairs, we loaded everyone into the minivan and my car, and headed for the Chicago Botanic Gardens in Glencoe. When we arrived at the gate, I showed the pass which Samantha had obtained for us, and we were directed to a special parking area. From there, we were escorted by a young man in a white shirt and black pants, sporting a black bow tie, to a tent where Samantha, Brian, his parents, and her mom were waiting.

“Brian wasn’t kidding!” his dad said, shaking his head as I introduced everyone.

“No, he wasn’t, Mr. Frost!” I grinned. “Jesse’s moms aren’t here, or we’d have an even bigger contingent.”

“Steve, can I have a moment?” Samantha asked.

I nodded and followed her a short distance away so we could have a discreet conversation.

“What’s up?”

“I’m going to be busy when my dad arrives, so I’d appreciate if you would make sure he gets settled. I cleared you with the Marshals via Pete, so you’re allowed free access to my dad. Most people won’t be allowed closer than two feet away, but you can shake his hand, if you want.”

“Jesus,” I said, shaking my head. “The man had sex with teenagers! He’s not Charles Manson or Ted Bundy! I mean, shit, I get he’s in prison for what he did, but damn!”

“The State’s Attorney, US Marshals, and US Attorney had a fit that I got a judge to agree to let him out. They all think he’s a pedophile and kiddie-porn purveyor.”

“Of course they do. As Elyse once asked, where could she sign up at age sixteen to have completely consensual sex and get a million bucks for it?”

“My dad is an asshole, there’s no question about it, and I don’t completely disagree with you. But they do and they’re the only ones that matter.”

“Your husband.”

“Our one and only fight,” she sighed. “He backed down, which is why my dad is here, but I guess he said something to you?”

“Yes. I take it he has no idea you and I were together?”

“No, and at this point, there is no way I can ever have that get out. I was seventeen and legal, but he’ll see me as having been underage.”

“But he knows you were with someone, right?”

“Sure. He assumes it was a High School boyfriend and I just let him believe that.”

“He’s going have an absolute hissy fit when the cousins discover sex!” I said.

Samantha laughed, “I believe it’s already been discovered, they just aren’t quite ready for it!”

“True. Anyway, any message for your dad?”

“Just that I’m glad he’s here and I’ll talk to him at the reception. I’m the only other person allowed physical contact with him. Oh, before I forget, they’ll frisk you. You probably want to put your gun in your trunk.”

“I will. I saw them setting up the metal detectors. So dumb. If he were a Mafia boss, I’d understand.”

“It’s all part of pissing me off and making this cost me as much as possible,” she said. “But it’s only money. I’ll make it back on the next big market move, no matter which way it goes. And I refuse to let them piss me off. You should, too. Just let them play their stupid game. I gave Pete an earful.”

I chuckled, “Then you are breathing rarified air. Nobody, and I mean nobody, including Melanie, gives Pete an earful about law enforcement.”

“Well, I did. Now, kiss me and go put your gun away before the idiots decide you’re a terrorist or something.”

I kissed Samantha’s forehead, then walked over to let my wives know I was going back to the car. I made my way there, took off my jacket, removed the holster and pistol, and locked them in a box in the trunk, then closed the trunk and walked back to the open-sided tent.

“What was that about?” Kara asked.

“Samantha letting me know about the stupid games the Marshals, Illinois State Police, FBI, and US Attorney are playing. They’re doing their level best to piss her off but she’s not taking the bait. And I’ll lay you odds once those metal detectors are up, we’ll all have to go back and walk through them.”

True to my prediction, about ten minutes later a Marshal and a trooper from the Illinois State Police made everyone except Brian and Samantha go through metal detectors and have their bags searched. The kids were curious, but I asked them to simply do as the lawmen asked, and I’d explain later. When I did, I got an earful of my own from Jesse, Matthew, and Nicholas, who had arrived with his parents just as we were going through the scan.

“Do they think we’re going to try to help him escape?” Jesse groused. “We’re kids!”

I chuckled, “And if they REALLY knew you, they’d have searched the grounds with dogs and metal detectors because I know you well enough to know you guys would have come here a few days ago and buried your weapons cache and determined your fields of fire!”

The boys laughed and then went to get themselves something to drink. I went to the bar and got a glass of whisky, then went to join my wives, Bethany, and Tom. Most of the guests had arrived, and it was only fifteen minutes before the wedding was to start when a caravan of three black government utility vehicles arrived, escorted by four Illinois State Police cars pulled up. After a bunch of agents jumped from the vehicles, they led Noel Spurgeon to a special area which had been set aside for him. I was VERY happy to see he wasn’t in leg cuffs and chains, and that they removed the simple handcuffs as soon as he was at his chair. I walked over to see him.

“ID, please,” a Deputy US Marshal demanded.

I showed my driving license and after he checked his list he handed it back.

“I need to frisk you,” he said. “And I’ll do it each time you come back.”

I didn’t reply, and simply held my arms out to my side while he frisked me. I was tempted to tell him he could have at least bought me a drink before feeling me up, but I figured he had no sense of humor. He let me pass and I walked over to Noel Spurgeon who stood up. I extended my hand and we shook.