Chapter 14

Monday, October 8, 1979

Missy, Jude and I were in deep rapport the next morning when Beth surprised us by coming in and joining us. She sat on the loveseat across from us and waited for us to realize she was there.

<Good morning, Sweet Sister Mine, > I said.

<Good morning, Mike. How are you guys doing this morning?>

<We're doing good, Sweety. What brings you out so early?>

<There's something I wanted to talk to you guys about. You know I'm taking two classes over at Stanford this semester. I've got an hour from the time one class lets until the other one starts. If the weather is nice, I usually sit outside in this one area where they have some benches and a picnic table and study for my next class.>

<Okay.>

<Anyway, there's this one guy who hangs out there who really has me bugged. He doesn't look like a college student to begin with. I know that there are all kinds of students, but this guy is really weird. Last Friday, I decided to scan him. I found out he's a drug dealer.>

<They're a scummy bunch, Sweety, but you'll find them around almost any campus.>

<Yeah, I know, Mike, but he really bugs me. If he were just selling pot, I probably wouldn't be so upset about him, but this guy sells everything. His favorite thing is to get the college girls hooked on something and then force them to have sex with him to keep feeding their habit. When he gets tired of them, he turns them over to a pimp friend of his who turns them out on the street to hook for him.>

<He sounds like a real slimy bastard. Were you thinking we should do something about him?>

<Yeah, but I don't know what. Would you think about it and see if you can think of anything?>

<Yes, we will, Darling. I might have an idea or two. Just let me think it over for a day or two.>

Beth smiled from ear to ear. <I knew I could count on you, Mike. Let me know when you come up with something.>

When Beth had gone, Jude asked, {So, what are you thinking about, Love?}

{I'm not sure, really. I read a story a few years ago about some people who scared some drug dealers so bad they turned themselves in to the police. I'm not sure that scaring someone would work, but what about grabbing a dealer and tying him to a parking meter or something with his drug supply on him? Do you think that would be enough probable cause to search him when the police turned him loose?}

{I don't know, Mike. What if we tied him to a parking meter, nude, with the drugs in a fanny pack or something?} Missy asked.

{Yeah, we could use a magic marker and write "Drug Dealer" on his chest, } Jude said.

I cracked up. {I think that might constitute probable cause, } I said.

We talked about it for a while, then decided to bring it up to everyone after dinner.

Bonnie and Missy went in to work for a while, but Sharon, Jude, Cindi and I just lounged around the pool all afternoon. We were really relaxed, just soaking up some sun when we heard, <Cindi, Mike, this is Sarah. Can anyone hear me?>

<Hi Sarah. We hear you just fine. What's up?>

<I just had a couple of things I wanted to talk to you guys about. Would it be okay if I came over for a while?>

<Sure. We're just laying around the pool. We'll get some clothes on before you get here.>

<Don't worry about the clothes, > she laughed. <Maybe I'll even join you at the pool. I'll see you in a few minutes.>

Sharon went out to buzz Sarah in at the gate and in a few minutes they came out to the deck where we were relaxing. Sarah looked at least ten years younger and I told her so.

<I Haven't done anything with my age yet, Mike. That's one of the things I wanted to talk to you about. All I've done so far is fix everything that was wrong with my body.>

<Did you have a talk with Jimmy?> I asked.

<Yes. It wasn't easy, but he is very understanding. He says he wants to see me the way I looked when I was in high school. He said you guys gave him the fifty years he wouldn't have had and he is very grateful.>

<There are some things you can do to help him over the years, Sarah. You can monitor his body and fix individual things like we did with the tumor. He'll probably live a lot longer than someone who didn't have you helping them.>

<I've thought of that too. I'll do everything I can for him.>

<So, are you going to start an age regression program?>

<I want to, Mike, but There's so far to go that I'm not sure my body can even do it. I'd have to regress my age by fifty years to get back to where I'd want to be. Is that even possible?>

<I think it is, Sarah. Bonnie regressed her age by almost twenty years and so did Thelma. Bonnie did hers all at once and I think that is a bit much. Thelma set hers up to regress over a month's time and it was almost transparent to anyone else.>

<I was thinking about doing it over a period of time. Do you think taking off a year each week would be too quick? That way I'd be where I want to be within a year.>

<Actually, you could probably do it faster than that, but if you'd be satisfied with a year a week, it would give you more time to adjust to the changes in your body as they occur.>

<That's what I was thinking. A person doesn't seem to notice the things that happen to your body from year to year unless it is something really drastic. One of the things I'm worried about though is what's going to happen when I go in next year to have my driver's license renewed and it says I'm sixty-nine, but I look like I'm twenty?>

<We can help you with that, Sarah. We've all had to get our ages adjusted on our official documents. Cindi is really very good at things like that now.>

<I appreciate that guys. You know, this talking mentally is really nice. In all of my sixty-eight years I've never experienced anything like this. I've always been afraid of someone finding out I'm telepathic. I've felt a few fleeting touches at times, but I've always been afraid of contact.>

<I know. We worry about that too, but there are a lot more of us out there than you'd think. Most of us are just like you though and are afraid of contacting anyone else. We were all just lucky to find each other.>

<Well... I guess what I'm beating around the bush about is that I wanted to ask if you guys would mind if I visited sometimes. I really do enjoy the mental conversations and now that I've found out how much I enjoy them, I'd like to experience it more often.>

<Sarah, you're always welcome here. We're sort of a lazy bunch and there's usually some of us here. Also, most of the women here enjoy shopping, so feel free to offer too take them with you when you go.>

<Thank you so much, Mike. I'll try not to abuse your friendship.>

We offered her the use of the pool, hot tub and the spa, but she declined for the present saying she was ashamed of her body. <I'd really like to swim in the buff with you guys, but my old buff has been buffeted until it looks like a disaster area. I'll take you up on it after I get a few years off.>

After dinner we had a family meeting. We explained to everyone about Beth's drug dealer and the pimp. I also told everyone what I had been thinking of doing to the dealer. <I'd want to make sure he had his entire supply of drugs on him when we left him for the police, > I said. <If we found any money he had stashed, I'd want to give it to some charity. Maybe to one who specialized in drug rehab or something like that.>

<I think that is an excellent idea, > Ken said. <I had a friend who got hooked and ended up taking his own life because he was so ashamed of what he was doing to get money to support his habit.>

<How many of us are going to be involved in picking him up?> Sharon asked.

<Probably not more than three or four. We only need that many in case he gives us trouble.>

<If it goes well on this guy, I say we should pick up as many of them as we can, > Ken said. <Maybe we can make a difference. Maybe we can help our kids avoid what seems to be becoming a real threat to them.>

<I agree with Ken, > Bonnie said. <I sometimes feel guilty about having the abilities we have and not using them to help people. This way we could help anonymously.>

<I tend to agree guys, but let's wait until we see how the first one goes. Sharon, did you have a reason for wanting to know how many would be involved?>

<Yeah, Mike. I was thinking the people he might see should be in some kind of costume. Maybe Batman and Robin, or Superman, or Wonder Woman or something like that. That way he'd be telling the police that Batman was the one who tied him to the parking meter. If we did continue with others, it'd start putting the fear of the unknown into other people who are doing the same thing.>

<I think that's an excellent idea, > I said and everyone else agreed. <It wouldn't matter which of us went on any one dealer, it'd be Batman who got the blame.>

<What could we do about the pimp?> Tim asked from his bedroom. <You can't leave any incriminating evidence on a pimp, and his kind frosts me as much as the drug dealer does.>

<I was thinking about that, > Cindi said. <I haven't figured out any way we could get him into trouble with the police, but I do have an idea. What if we planted something in his mind so he'd throw up every time he saw a prostitute?>

Everyone cracked up at the thought of a pimp hurling when he saw a prostitute. <I really don't like messing with people's minds, Cindi, but in this case I think it might be a good idea, > I said. <It still wouldn't stop him from recruiting girls though.>