Chapter 3: Urgent Messages

"We need to tell everyone to leave tonight," I said as Renée slipped on her shoes.

"There's no way to reach everyone fast enough. We'll have to call each of them, one at a time," she replied.

I nodded and sat down at her desk. Just as I reached for the receiver, it rang again. "Mr. Naughty's."

"Why are you using a phone? It can be traced." It was Whisper again.

"How do you know what's going on?" I asked quickly.

"Because that is what I do." And then he hung up.

Talking about vague, but that was Whisper. He - if it really was a he - had shown up before the semester began, to confirm the girls' choice of me as their protector and to let me know that if I didn't get to the rest of "mine" that they would be in danger. He had been vague then, too, but then Renée told me about Master PC and her theories on its use in the serial kidnappings.

"Whisper?" Renée asked and I nodded.

"He says using the phone would be dangerous."

Renée gave me a worried look. It was her first since I shared my memories with her. "Is he suggesting you run to each girl?"

I shook my head. "That would take just as long and even call more unwanted attention." I looked up at her while thinking. I could feel her anxiety. Renée wasn't prone to panic but even she had her limits. I reached down that link and helped calm her.

"Maybe you're supposed to use our bonds?" she suggested.

I nodded. I just didn't know if I could convey what my girls needed to know in order to be safe.

Renée came over and knelt in front of me, her hands on my thighs and her eyes alight. I could feel her strength, her trust in me. I needed that. Then I reached out to the only one I knew I could talk to through our link.

"Erin."

She was out in the store just finishing a sale. Her day had been long but not overly grating. "Hey, baby."

"I'm in Renée's office. I need your help please."

"Okay, " she thought as she started our way.

She didn't bother knocking, just came in and closed the door. She saw Renée with me and the look on our faces. "What happened?"

I held out a hand to her as she approached. "Come here. I'll show you."

She took my hand and I shared the memories of my encounter with Professor Belton, the plan Renée and I had agreed on and the messages from Whisper. Erin knelt next to Renée. "What can I do to help?"

I smiled at her. Though she had issues with the subtle control I had over her and the others, she knew that I would never abuse that power. Her trust in me harmonized with Renée's. It was like a soft song lifting my spirits. I allowed the feeling to surround me like a warm blanket and closed my eyes.

Reaching out through the links to my girls, I could feel their various moods and even knew where each of them was. Some were in the store helping customers. Some were downstairs already, doing what they normally did when not working or out. Some were out, finishing their Christmas shopping and others were working at locations other than Mr. Naughty's.

The confidence Renée and Erin poured into me cut through my doubts about how to contact my girls. I was already in contact with them, only they didn't know it. I reached out and touched each gently on the cheek. Everyone stopped what they were doing at the familiar sensation and looked up as if seeing me in return.

Some of them had questions, but very quickly everyone realized that it was a group meeting, just like when we slept. The only differences were that everyone was dressed and I only wanted to share memories with them. It only took a second, like always, and everyone understood what had to happen. Immediately they changed the course of their immediate actions, either heading back to the complex, back to their rooms to pack or to notify coworkers that they had received an emergency call and had to leave. I caught a few thoughts from some of them and a couple of those drew my attention.

Jeri had been worried about having the opportunity to tell me something. She felt it was very important and I turned my focus to her. "What did you want to tell me, Jeri?"

She looked apprehensive. I could feel her nervousness and helped calm her. She smiled then and hugged me. As focused as I was on her, something felt ... off.

Jeri had been sitting in her office going over inventories and checking order forms. There was something else on her mind other than work though. She had been looking at a magazine when I contacted her. Through her, I saw images of pregnant women and infants in various outfits. The magazine was for maternity and baby clothes. Then idea struck me, and I looked at Jeri.

With a soft smile, I pulled her to me and hugged her. "How long have you known?"

"I only found out last week. I was going to wait till you got back from your trip to tell you, but now... "

I nodded. I understood. She was worried that the father of her baby might not return. I knew it wasn't the way she wanted to tell me but the other thing she had been worried about had already been answered.

Weeks ago, before the semester had started, I was under a lot of stress trying to find way to keep my women safe from the serial kidnappings and for our first meeting with the Users. I had panicked about all the unprotected sex that I had been having with the girls. Not because of the possibility of any of them getting pregnant but more about the risks and further stresses the pregnancies would bring. I had used Master PC to change my sperm count to zero and let it go at that. The girls who were there when I did that had told me that they would eventually want to have children and had no desire to go looking for a father. They had already found who they wanted. I hadn't taken their decision very seriously at the time, but now that I thought about it, even in light of the new issues, I knew it was okay. It was better than okay.

I smiled at Jeri and when she saw and felt my elation, she seemed to glow. I gave her a deep, meaningful kiss and held her for another moment.

Her news had apparently already been known by several of the others. They smiled and congratulated us. I felt a twang of guilt though. Several of the others held various levels of jealousy. They were perfectly happy for Jeri, but wanted the same for themselves. Those desires, those thoughts, started getting me excited. Something about the very idea of any of them being pregnant aroused me. Their desires weren't just for the child, or the terms of pregnancy, or even the conception. It had more to do with the connection each had with me. Something deep down told us that our bonds would be so much stronger if they bore my children. Then, one by one, my mental image of each of them filled out with slightly wider hips, swelling breasts full of life-giving milk, and bellies distended with children. Alexandria looked massive and I understood that she would have twins.

I shook my head. The visions faded. Each of the girls had caught a glimmer of what I had just seen and felt. No one said anything.

I had to get back on track. We were supposed to be getting ready to leave, all of us, though not all of us would be going to West Virginia. I looked around at the gathered women.

"All of you know what the plan is. I would prefer none of you return here for anything, but I won't stop you if there is something essential that cannot be purchased elsewhere."

Everyone nodded. I had the idea of not asking where everyone was going, but one of their thoughts caught my attention. I understood that there had been further discussions about my trip.

"Okay. What's going on?" I thought.

Erin replied first, "We've been talking and decided that you're not going alone."

I don't know why, but I found it amusing. Maybe it was the stress I was feeling again. After a soft chuckle I asked, "And who decided this?"

"All of us." Renée thought. "You going to confront your parents, Ral. From your memories we all know what they're like. Mandy even agrees that they haven't been fair to you."

I looked at my pet. Vikkor had altered her appearance so she looked like a cat-girl out of a Manga comic. Her mental state had also been altered or she had taken on a more cat-like persona. When I had found her and she fell to my Charm, that cat in her mind chose to be my pet and she went along with it. With the connection we had established, I considered her mine just like the rest, even though she was my sister through the family that had adopted me. She smiled softly back at me. Then I looked around at the rest. "There's only one problem... "

"We already have two extra tickets." Renée thought.