Chapter 14

The zoo was fantastic. While the weather was cold all day, my power kept us in a small bubble of warmth when we were outside, but a good portion of the zoo was inside. The various habitats, South America, Madagascar, the cloud forest, Himalayas, India, and others were, where possible, open to the public, so you could get very close to the animals.

The clever design left no visible barriers between you and the bears, elephants, and other animals. The tiger barriers were more obvious, but were made of clear plexiglass so you felt the inches that separated you from large curious cats. My power swept every animal I could reach, healing and comforting them.

They were all in good shape, as the zoo took its responsibility in animal care very seriously. Nora was delighted, opting for the camel ride, and squeaking in delight as she petted the farm animals. We both enjoyed the penguin march, as it was cold enough for their parade through the zoo.

I slipped away to ask if I could make a donation to the zoo. I was introduced to the director, who I surprised with an envelope full of 10 flawless 1 carat diamonds. He thanked me, and asked if I needed a receipt. I declined, but did ask if there were any baby animals we might get to visit personally. He nodded, and made arrangements.

I met up with Nora again after her camel ride, and a zoo guide found us and led us past the obligatory big red ‘Kein Zutritt Für Unbefugte’ sign into the hidden part of the zoo. Nora followed curiously, especially after I greeted her questions with only a big smile.

We both oohed, and ahhed over the tiny and not so tiny animals. Nora got to feed a new tiger cub with a bottle, and I got to feed a small gazelle. During the feeding, the director met us, and gave us both a lifetime pass in appreciation for my donation. It was only worth about a 100k total, as I had included tiny flaws, but they were so small it would still be considered inherently flawless, but would not be considered synthetic, especially considering the nature of the flaws. I was getting very good at counterfeiting diamonds.

He noticed Nora and her exceptional beauty, and as his eyes lingered on her shape and laughter as she played with the tiger cub, he sighed and looked at me. “Your daughter or granddaughter Herr Barkley?” he whispered.

“Personal assistant, and girlfriend.” I whispered back.

He was taken aback for just a moment, then smiled, nodding as if to himself. “That laughter is worth any price,” he commented.

I handed him a business card, and he returned his in exchange. “Your zoo is amazing. If you should have a need for funds in the future, please feel free to contact me, my email is on the card.”

“Thank you Herr Barkley. If the Zurich Zoo can be of service, please call. If you do not have dinner plans, there are two spots available for our tropical dinner. It includes a night tour of the Masoala rainforest exhibit.”

“That would be lovely,” I agreed.

We finished our tour of the Zoo early, so we could dress up a bit for dinner. The tram returned us to the hotel, where we quickly changed, and a car service returned us to the Zoo. The driver left me his number so we could call for our return.

I was glad, when I saw the others waiting, that we had dressed up. It seemed to be a semi formal affair. The doors were opened at 6:45 and we were ushered in, and welcomed. The doors closed and locked behind us, and I did a quick head count, there were only eighteen of us, including Nora and I.

We were welcomed by the zoo director, himself in much more formal dress. Nora translated quietly in my ear, “He is welcoming the group as friends of the zoo, for the monthly dinner.”

“Interesting, I knew they had regular dinners here, I thought we were invited to one of those.” I whispered back.

“They do those just on Fridays and Saturdays.” she said, then continued, “he is inviting us to take an aperitif, before the tour.” A waiter holding a tray came into the space, and we all collected drinks. It was a fruity bubbly concoction. As we took the drinks, I noticed the director was joined by another man, and I suddenly realized we were paired up into ten couples.

We chatted and introduced ourselves to the others, and the few who spoke English introduced themselves and others. The group seemed to all know each other, and conversed softly while sipping, but seemed cool to us, the strangers among them.

The directors companion, who was introduced as Dieter, began talking, giving us a guided tour of the rainforest. Nora translated what she could, but I mostly enjoyed watching the couple’s cuddle up to each other as we wandered the trails. A few of the couples behind us seemed to disappear into the forest as the talk continued.

My sensitive ears could hear the soft sounds of slapping flesh, and quiet moans. Nora seemed oblivious for the first half. I quietly pointed it out, and she turned to me with determination in her eyes, “You must do this. Show them you are real man, with power.”

I wondered at her attitude, and european ways, wondering if this was unusual in and of itself. I leaned over to a fellow dinner companion I knew spoke English and asked if there were any comfortable spots nearby. He smiled, winked, and pointed to a small path just ahead on the left.

I let the group mostly pass us, then taking Nora’s hand, led her off into the forest. There was a small open space in the trees, shielded from the path where a log leaned between two crossed trees. Nora quickly pulled up her skirt, pulled her underwear off, and lay back on the leaning platform, legs astride the log, feet firmly planted on the ground.