Chapter 2

Ed was seated in the dining room of the first year dorm eating lunch with Kelly when Albert Mandel and Cindy Carpenter entered the room. Waving an arm, he caught their attention and they headed over to their table. Kelly was puzzled by the appearance of the two individuals as they were wearing outfits unlike anything she had seen before. Wearing dark green clothes with soft leather boots that laced up their legs, they looked like something out of a Robin Hood movie. Noticing her puzzlement, Ed said, “They are Rangers.”

Kelly replied, “They seem to know their way around here.”

The comment surprised Ed until he remembered the only time the two rangers had been in the school. He explained, “The last time they were here was when you were shot and died.”

“That was almost three years ago,” countered Kelly.

“They are Rangers and have a memory for places.”

The Rangers finally reached the table and sat down across from Ed. Albert extended a hand to Ed as he said, “It’s good to see you again.”

Ed shook his hand as he replied, “It’s good to see you, too. What brings you to this part of the country again?”

“Checking out the wildlife. Since Cindy is going to start teaching here in a couple of months, we thought we would stop by and see what accommodations were available for her,” replied Albert with a gesture to Cindy.

A slight nudge in his side reminded Ed of his manners and he said, “Kelly, this is Albert and Cindy. Albert, Cindy, this is Kelly.”

After appropriate exchanges had been made, Albert looked thoughtful for a moment and then asked, “You were the one that was shot last time we were here?”

That day, the one where she had died, was one that would live forever in her memory. It was a gift from the Goddess and one that she had decided was the greatest gift she had been given. Smiling, she answered, “Yes. Shot and killed.”

Cindy didn’t say a word; she was busy examining her surroundings and comparing them to the last time that she was here. Her first trip had been filled with embarrassment at all of the naked people walking around. Three years later, the sight didn’t bother her nearly as much. Her attention was brought back to the conversation when Kelly asked her, “Would you like me to show you the quarters you will have when you come here?”

She replied, “Yes, please.”

After Kelly and Cindy had left, Albert turned to Ed and asked, “Do the Druids own the property down the road? The one with the stable and house?”

“Not really. I own it.”

“Oh, I wondered. I was surprised to see all of the delicate plant species protected by cages.”

Smiling, Ed said, “Yes. I had Al Turner go over the property to protect what ever might be growing there. I ride my horse and camp there occasionally.”

“You take very good care of the land. The wildlife in the area has done more damage to the plants you are protecting than your horse. The deer out here are amazingly aggressive,” remarked Albert.

“I try. So did you spot anything interesting while you were out there on my place?”

“Well, I did a cursory survey and didn’t turn up anything extraordinary.”

Ed smiled and asked, “Would you like to see a slightly more detailed survey of the property?”

“You have done one?”

“I did a geological survey. Little John did a bio-survey. Even Al says that it’s pretty extensive.”

“Little John? He’s your son isn’t he?”

“Yes, he is,” replied Ed. He glanced up at the clock and saw that the kids were due back anytime. Little John was taking an algebra course and Beth was busy with her civics class. He added, “He’s studied all of the wildlife in the area.”

“How old is he?”

“Six going on seven.”

“Sounds like he’s a little advanced for his age,” replied Albert not sure if he was going to accept a bio-survey from a six year old boy. Smiling at the idea that even Druids were susceptible to the normal self-delusions about the intelligence of their children, he said, “I’ll check out his work and maybe I can give him some pointers.”

Taking a sip of the lemonade, Ed smiled at the slightly condescending tone taken by the Ranger. The truth would become clear soon enough. William entered the room and headed to the table where his father sat. Looking around, he pointed to the empty chair as if to ask about his mother.

Ed smiled and answered the implied question. “She’s showing Cindy the apartment she’ll be staying in while she’s teaching here.”

William smiled and sat down while giving a nod of acknowledgment to Albert. Taken aback by the boy, Albert nodded in return.

Ed said, “Albert, this is William. He’s our youngest. William, this is Mr. Mandel.”

Albert said, “It’s nice to meet you William.”

William nodded in reply. At the withering glance from Ed, he said, “It is nice to meet you, Mr. Mandel.”

Ed explained, “Please excuse the rudeness of my son. He doesn’t talk unless absolutely forced to it.”

“I’m sorry I ever said a word,” William muttered with a certain amount of bitterness.

“Young man, if you don’t act nicely we’ll have to send you to the corner for five minutes,” lectured Ed. Standing in the corner was the worst punishment that the family used on the children. They felt it gave the child time to think about what they had done wrong, yet didn’t harm the child in any significant manner.

William shrugged and, after a look from his father, stood up. Marching to the corner, he stood facing it with a relaxed posture that suggested he would be happy to stand there all day. Ed watched him with sadness at his lack of social engagement with the people around him. Albert interrupted his musings when he said, “What an extraordinary child!”

“Pardon? He was quite rude to you,” replied Ed.

“He doesn’t like to waste his breath with trivial exchanges. I bet when he’s interested in something, he asks questions.”

“No, he looks it up himself. He communicates very little with others.”

“Interesting,” replied Albert as he watched the young man stand in the corner.

Little John and Beth sat down at the table and looked over at William standing in the corner. Beth asked, “Let me guess, he wouldn’t exchange small talk again?”

Her question startled Ed as he had been watching William. Turning to face his children, he answered, “Yes.”

Little John said, “I’m John and this is my sister Beth.”

Beth looked over at the Ranger and said, “I remember you. You were here when Mommy Kelly was shot.”

Albert smiled and said, “You have a very good memory, Beth. That was almost three years ago.”

Ed sat back and watched the exchange between his kids and the Ranger. Little John was studying Albert very carefully and then said, “You are a Ranger, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am.” The intensity with which the child had studied him was rather unnerving. Never before had he encountered a child that took such obvious deliberation in assessing an adult. With a quick glance at Ed, he wondered if the parent hadn’t been mistaken about the abilities of his son.

“Would you like to see my survey of the flora and fauna on Daddy Ed’s place?”

“Yes, I would,” replied Albert interested in seeing what this child had done. As soon as the answer was out of his mouth, Little John left the table without another word. Albert watched Little John walk off to get the survey.

The waitress, seeing that most of the party was present, came over to the table and asked, “What can I get you?”

Smiling, Ed said, “Three small chocolate milkshakes for the kids. A Strawberry Smoothie for Kelly.”

Beth looked at her father in surprise at the order. She clapped her hands together in excitement. When Ed pointed to William, she nodded and went to fetch her brother.

Albert said, “I’ll take iced teas for me and Cindy.”

The waitress asked, “That’s three shakes, a smoothie, and two teas. Anything else?”

“No thank you,” replied Albert.

The drinks had arrived before Little John returned with his survey. Seeing the chocolate milkshake on the table, his eyes grew big at the unexpected surprise. Seeing William and Beth drinking the thick shake through the straw, he joined them and dug in. Albert laughed at how Little John had forgotten all about the survey in light of the milkshake. He was surprised when Little John finished his first sip and then opened the map and laid it on the table. “I’ve marked every location where I’ve seen a unique plant on this particular map. I’ve been computerizing this data so that we can map all of the plant species on it.”

Albert looked over the map impressed with the level of detail captured within it. All of the rare plants that he had observed earlier were clearly marked on the map. Other plants, which weren’t rare but uncommon on the property, were also shown. As he examined the map, Little John opened a photo album that contained pictures of each species of plant on the property. Albert noticed the album and went through it a page at a time, examining each picture with a trained eye. The pictures were remarkable, showing details of each plant that would allow easy identification. Looking up, he said, “This is very impressive. I hope that you will show this to Cindy. I’m sure that she’ll be glad to help you when you put all of this on your computer.”

“Thanks,” replied Little John. He opened another map and spread it out on the table atop the first map. This map identified locations in which animals had been spotted as well as all breeding sites.

Albert examined the map, noticing how each sighting was marked with a date and time. There was almost a year’s worth of data present on the map. Looking up, he asked, “What about the nocturnal animals?”

Little John looked at his father with an accusatory look and said, “My parents won’t let me stay up all night.”

Ed smiled at the implication that he was to let his son tramp around the woods in the dark of the night. He replied, “You don’t want to run into a bear in the dark.”

“I know,” replied Little John resigned to this limitation placed on him by his parents.

Albert said, “I’m sure that Cindy would be more than happy to pursue that part of the survey for you.”

“That would be nice,” replied Little John thoughtfully. He was more interested in having a complete survey than in doing it all himself. After all, others had already helped him with parts of it. After a moment, he asked, “Isn’t she concerned about being in the dark?”

Albert answered, “She was my student and I taught her how to move through the woods without being surprised.”

“Perhaps she can teach me,” suggested Little John.

Albert glanced at Ed for a second before answering, “When the time is right, I’m sure she’ll be more than happy to teach you woodscraft.”

Ed nodded his agreement with the answer. Albert was examining the pictures that Little John had taken of the wildlife when Kelly and Cindy returned from the tour of the apartment. Kelly noticed the milkshakes and looked at Ed with a question in her eyes, but he just winked in return. Cindy sat down and exclaimed, “You have wonderful facilities for the faculty.”

“It was John that designed them. He felt that the faculty needed to have a place that was conducive to thinking great thoughts,” replied Ed.

Beth snickered as she added, “And lots of space for sex.”

In the meantime, Little John had opened the map on which he had marked sightings of various insects. He set that one on the table for Albert to inspect. The Ranger was clearly impressed with the level of detail about the insect life on the property. More than four hundred species were identified. Looking over at the photo album that Little John was opening, he could tell that the young man had taken pictures of each species.

Cindy noticed the detailed examination that Albert was giving the map and looked down at it. Both eyebrows raised as she took in the detailed notes presented. She looked over at Little John and asked, “You did all of this work?”

“Not all of it. I had some help from others.”

Albert sat back and examined the boy. With his short pants, button shirts, and sneakers, he looked like any other boy his age. However, the mind inside that body was remarkable. One had to wonder if it was genetics, environment, or a blessing of the Gods and Goddesses.

The conversation around the table was lively and covered a huge number of topics. It slowed when Ed turned to William and asked, “So what classes did you observe today?”

The question was one that required a verbal answer. William looked over at him and answered, “Algebra, Intro to Biology, and Sociology.”

“Yes, I noticed that you didn’t attend my class this morning,” remarked Ed.

“Nothing new.”

Beth moved to expand on his answer, “You’ve been reading that same material to us ever since we were little.”

Little John nodded his agreement and added, “It’s a little boring for us.”

Kelly had never believed that the kids had understood the material that the fathers read to them, but they had proved her wrong more times than she would admit. It surprised her when Ed didn’t approach the topic concerned with how bored the children were in his class. Instead, he asked, “What do you think of the rule protecting the weak from the strong?”